For Richer or Poorer?

Why is it that we put so much hope in money? We dream about winning the lottery. We fantasize about how we would spend our sudden fortune to make our lives more comfortable, or even how we would bless the people we love if we only had vast riches at our disposal.

But ask yourself this question, "What is the quality of life that we dream of having if we only had such great wealth?" Obviously, if you or I had millions of dollars in the bank we would have all that we need right now. We would have no fears about tomorrow. We would be able to rest comfortably and enjoy our lives completely. Such is the fantasy we imagine enjoying "if only" we had great wealth.

However, Jesus confidently assures us that, if we will change our perspective, we can enjoy exactly the same sort of life right this very minute. He tells us that we already have all that we need for our life today. God has already provided each of us with our daily bread. Just as God cares for the daily needs of sparrows, He cares even more for us.

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" - Matthew 6:25-26

Jesus also tells us that we do not need to worry about tomorrow. Why? Because God has everything - absolutely everything - under complete and perfect control.

"So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." - Matthew 6:31-34

Of course, if God is in control, that means that you and I are not. This is what most of us really struggle with. We're not too concerned about God being in control, but we don't like it when we're totally out of control. But we can't have it both ways. If God is in control, we are not. That's why trusting God is so important. Without trust, we are filled with anxiety and strife. But if we can let go of everything and trust that God is good, that He really loves us, and that He really only wants us best for us, then trusting Him is the only response that makes sense.

So, who is the truly rich person? Isn't it the person who has all they need right now and who has no fear or anxiety about tomorrow?

If you and I are true disciples of Jesus, then we have all that we need for today, and we have no cause for worry or anxiety about tomorrow. Our Heavenly Father has given you all you need for today, and He has tomorrow under complete control too.

According to Jesus, the wealth of this world does not compare to the "true riches" of the Kingdom of God. Seek first His Kingdom and do whatever you have to do to obtain it, because the Kingdom of God is worth more than anything - and everything - you currently possess.

"So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?" - Jesus (Luke 16:11)

Thank you, Lord, that I have all I need for today and tomorrow is under control.

"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength." - Philippians 4:11-13

-kg

Hidden with Christ

"Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory." - (Colossians 3:1-4)

I woke up this morning and this verse was in my mind. It's not often that this happens, especially when I've not been reading or studying a given passage and it becomes highlighted in my thoughts out of the clear blue. At first I wasn't even sure where the passage was found in the Scriptures. It wasn't until later that I looked it up that I realized where it was found in the New Testament. But I was familiar with these verses so I lay there and waited to see if God had something to say to me about the verses.

The first thing that came to me was that Paul says, "For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." My typical response to this verse is that it's saying something to me on a personal level as an individual follower of Christ. But then it came to me that this letter was not written to any single individual. It was written "to the holy and faithful brothers in Christ at Colosse." (v.2) So, Paul's instructions here are not meant to be taken as individualized components. He's speaking to a community of believers in a region of Colosse when he reminds the Church that their "life is now hidden with Christ in God." He's wanting the Church in Colosse to understand that the life of the Church is hidden in Christ.

You can see further evidence of the fact that Paul is speaking to a community of believers (rather than to an individual) when he says "set your hearts (plural) on things above" and "set your minds (plural) on things above." Individuals only have one heart or mind. Paul uses the plural in this case because he's talking to a group of people; the Church.

So, what does it mean for the life of the Church to be "hidden with Christ in God"? Again, I think I always thought of this passage as saying that my personal life was to be found in Christ. But it says our life (in the Church) is "hidden". If something is hidden then it means you can't find it. It means you're not supposed to find it. It's gone. So, our life in the Church is forever hidden in Christ. All that is left of us is now in the Church is in Christ. We have died. Our life (as a Church) has been swallowed up in the glorious life of Christ our Lord.

Paul also says that "Christ...is (our) life". We have no other life apart from Christ. When we are "hidden with Christ in God" we are wrapped up in the Divine mystery and only when Christ appears will we appear. If Jesus does not manifest Himself, the Church is still hidden. Without Christ there can be no Christian.

Reading chapter 3 of Colossians again with this new awareness of Paul's instructions for a Body of Believers, it's now plain to see that his intent was to provide a basis and framework for how the Church was to relate to one another in fellowship. As he says in verse 16, "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God." He continues to talk to a community of Believers here, urging them (and us) to let the word of Christ live in us powerfully as we teach one another and encourage one another through song.

When we come together as a Body, the purpose of our teaching, then, should be to encourage one another. We should share the "word of Christ" with each other in love. Our singing should also be full of the word of Christ, and even this is not a selfish pursuit. The singing of songs is also meant to share the word of Christ with our brothers and sisters. It's meant to be shared from a thankful heart full of gratitude for what Christ has done for us all.

I'm not exactly sure why this verse came to me in the night. But it does seem more obvious to me now that God wants His Church, and specifically the church family where I am a functioning member, to understand that Her life is only in Christ, not in the individual people who take part. We, as individuals, are called to be lost in Christ when we come together (as a community) and to discover Christ's life in our midst. We are called to be filled with the word of Christ and to encourage one another and even to sing to one another out of our sincere gratitude for the amazing love of God that has been lavished upon us all.

Now, to practice the simple truths of these verses in our time together. That's where things get really exciting.

-kg

GUEST BLOG: THE FREEDOM OF MATURITY by W.Carl Ketcherside

We have always been told that "the new testament" consists of twenty-seven books. It seems almost heretical for one to say this is not true. To refute it seems to deny God's Word, even though God nowhere said or implied that such was the case.

It cannot be denied that thousands of people in the world, both Jews and Greeks, were in covenant relationship with God before one word of the New Covenant Scriptures was ever written. Many who died for the faith had never seen an apostolic letter. Many had no idea there would ever be a compilation of such letters. They simply believed that Jesus was the Messiah and God's Son, and pledged allegiance to Him. They renounced any thought of their own righteousness as having been attained by works of the law, and simply put their trust in the righteousness of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

The divine agreement, the covenant that established their relationship with the Father of all mercy, was inscribed by the Holy Spirit upon the walls of the inner chambers of their being. It was written in terms of love, a dynamic so powerful that it not only transformed their lives but completely altered the world in which they lived. The New Covenant Scriptures, now entitled the New Testament, grew out of their covenantal relationship, not vice versa.

As time went on, the Holy Spirit motivated certain ones to make a record of the divine breakthrough on the human plane. A former tax-collector told the story primarily for the Jews. A young man who grew up in Jerusalem, a close friend of Simon Peter, wrote it for the Romans and the Latin world. A Greek physician interviewed eyewitnesses and then compiled and collated the information he had received for presentation to a Greek state official. To this he later added and certified an account of the struggle of the message of hope to free itself, first from the bonds of Jewish legalism, and second from the toils of Greek philosophy. The account ends with the proclamation free and the proclaimer in prison. Much later, a former fisherman, who survived all of the other apostles, wrote a supplementary account to offset the effects of one of the most subtle foes that ever sought to infiltrate the faith.

As communities of believers were beset with problems growing out of the humanity of the covenant people, the apostles wrote letters to them, furnishing guidelines for rethinking their conduct. Sometimes these grew out of reports received from persons who were familiar with the saints in a given locality. Other times they were replies to letters that had asked for information. In still other circumstances the apostles wrote simply because the situation warranted it. One of these was a letter commending a runaway slave to his master, to whose home he was returning. Another was addressed to a people who were being seduced from the liberty they enjoyed in Jesus.

Those who received the letters did not regard them as legal documents. The writers who penned them had no consciousness of creating a code of laws. They merely wrote letters of deep affection to people whom they loved, without any thought of writing a Bible. Paul, who wrote most of the letters, disclaimed any thought of domination over the faith of the recipients. He said, "Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand" (2 Corinthians 1:24; KJV).

During the life span of the apostles, the letters were scattered among isolated communities, although they were occasionally shared with other believers in the same general region (Colossians 4:16). It was not until long after the death of John, and after a good deal of debate about the validity of some of the letters, that the canon was completed and the New Covenant Scriptures were collected as we now have them.

It is true that our relationship to God is a covenantal relationship. There is a great deal of difference, however, between the covenant or agreement and the letters written to the covenant people. The covenant is entered by faith in Jesus as the fulfillment of the promises of God. It results from a response to the good news that Christ "hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel" (2 Timothy 1:10). The gospel was fully proclaimed on Pentecost. Not another word was ever added to it. Those who responded to it, by reformation of life and baptism, entered into the covenant with God, even though they never saw an apostolic letter and certainly never saw a copy of the New Covenant Scriptures.

The gospel is not a legalistic arrangement by which we earn God's favor. It is the good news of God's marvelous grace growing out of the love which God is. The New Covenant Scriptures are not a legalistic code, for we are not under law but under grace. The Scriptures are a collection of "love letters," written in familiar terms. They do not represent the will of God imposed, but the mind of God exposed. They act as guidelines, showing how Christ would react under conditions faced by saints on earth. They are instructional material intended to inform subjects how to prepare for the coming of their King.

Another reason for the reluctance of many people to accept what was said about the covenants is that they would rather be under law than under grace. It is for this reason they make grace into law and convert the love letters of the apostles into a written code. They are frightened by the freedom that makes them personally responsible for their decisions. They prefer to have things "spelled out" and have a law-book. Then they can go and "look it up" to see how far they can go and still remain within the limits. It is easier to qualify as a good lawyer than as a great lover. It is easier to lay down the law than to live up to love.

This is indicative of emotional and spiritual immaturity. An adolescent outwardly demands freedom but inwardly craves restraint. He wants his parents to lay down laws, even though he professes outward rebellion against their regulations. The reason for this inner turmoil is his association of love with law. Enforcement of law, even though it galls him to comply, indicates to his still immature mind that his parents are shielding and protecting him from the big world he is still afraid to face alone. He would rather be behind walls with a sense of security than to be forced to face life openly and on his own.

In the Roman world in which the apostles lived, a son was turned over to others who were charged with his rearing. Even though the boy was destined to become heir to his father's estate and title of nobility, he was under such a tight reign and subjected to such strict discipline that he was little better off than a slave. Every action was ordered by others. His life was regimented each hour of the day. He made no independent decisions. All of this continued until he reached the age of puberty, when his father publicly presented him as a citizen to the populace.

The whole course of a youth's life was changed from that moment onward. No longer was he under the hand of disciplinarians who could flog him into compliance with their will. Publicly recognized as a son by the father, he could now move among men as a man. This did not mean he was a law unto himself. He was bound by ties of respect to his family. His actions brought honor or dishonor to the family name. His concern had to be for others. He had to measure his behavior in the light of his influence.

Paul uses this familiar way of life to illustrate God's plan for His people through the ages. After describing the law as a custodian charged with delivering us to Christ, and pointing out that once this was accomplished we were no longer under a custodian, he introduces the example drawn from social life: "Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; but is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father" (Galatians 4:1, 2; KJV).

Notice now his application to the people of God: "Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world" (v. 3). In their childhood age, God's chosen people were treated as children. At Mount Sinai they were placed under the tutelage of a custodian. That custodian was the written code. This stern disciplinarian actually reduced the children to a status comparable to that of household slaves. The written code is here referred to as "the elements of this world." The term refers to the fundamental or primary principles upon which any system is founded. In the literary world it was applied to the alphabet, which was basic to all writing. In the natural world it was applied to atoms out of which all matter was composed. In the social world it was applied to fundamentals of moral and ethical behavior.

"But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons" (vv. 4, 5). Under Roman law the father decided the time when he would deliver the son from his custodians, and publicly acknowledge him as a son of the family and a citizen of the commonwealth. In the spiritual realm, it was God who ordained the time when faith should come.

When the time arrived for the world's attainment of sonship, God sent His Son. It was important that our deliverance be wrought by the Son, because in Him we could see what was entailed in divine sonship. The Son of God became the Son of man so that the sons of men could become the sons of God. Note that God did not send a new or better legal code to deliver us. Instead, He sent His Son. In Christ we do not sustain a legal relationship to the Father, but a personal one. God sent a person to inaugurate that relationship.

In His entrance into our world to share our lot, Jesus was made of a woman. He was not the seed of man. He was not begotten by Joseph, although He was conceived by Mary. He was made under the law, and He fulfilled it. He was the only person who ever did so. He was tempted in all points as we are, but He was without sin. Because He had no sin for which to suffer, He could suffer for our sins. God laid upon Him the iniquity of us all. He delivered us from the curse of the law by having been made a curse for us.

It is through Christ's sacrifice that we receive the adoption of sons. "And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ" (vv. 6, 7). God did not hand us another law, a written code to govern us as sons. Such a code belonged to the days of childish immaturity. He sent forth the Spirit of His Son, that is, the Spirit of sonship. The Holy Spirit's indwelling presence marks us out as belonging to the divine family.

The Spirit within brings out the consciousness of a father-son relationship. It is not based upon legalistic compliance but upon acceptance through mutuality of love. "We love him, because he first loved us," wrote John (1 John 4:19). In the joy of acceptance, expressed by the word "adoption," the inner being cries out "Abba, Father." The first term expresses the initial exclamation of the little child for the parent, conveying affection and dependence. The last is the mature recognition of warm relationship.

God has delivered us from the status of slaves. He no longer treats us as minors. The coming of Jesus was the signal for the coming of age of the people of God. The fullness of the time was the time of their fullness. Unfortunately, many people are not able to accept the sense of responsibility involved in the freedom of sonship. In their spiritual adolescence they seek to convert the very love letters addressed to them into a legalistic arrangement, which would thrust them back into slavery.

Only a little thought is required to demonstrate that the new covenant cannot be postulated upon such a written code. When a community is founded upon law, the law must be enunciated first. Those who are to constitute the community must consent to it and pledge their allegiance to it. If the procedure were the reverse of this, the community could have imposed upon it regulations that the members would abhor, and to which they could not subscribe in good conscience. As was stated, we do not erect a structure and then construct a foundation; we first lay the foundation.

The nation of Israel is a good example. It was God's design to create for himself a nation that would preserve the concept of monotheism until the Messiah should come. He would be identified as the Son of the one God who made Heaven and earth. Accordingly, God called His people out of slavery in Egypt and led them across the Red Sea. Instead of taking them by the ancient caravan route, which gave direct access to the land of Canaan but led through hostile Philistine territory, He conducted them southward to Mount Sinai, or Horeb. He called Moses to come up into the mountain in the presence of all the people and gave him instructions to relay to the multitude. The people were to wash their clothes so they could appear clean in the presence of the Lord. They were to abstain from sexual relationship with their wives. They were not to touch the mountain, under the penalty of death. A boundary line was drawn around the base of the mountain so no man or beast could make physical contact with it. Then, "Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God" (Exodus 19:17; KJV).

When the assembly heard the voice of God thundering from the peak, they were frightened. They requested that Moses be allowed to go and receive the message of God and relay it to them. "And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do" (Exodus 24:3).

Moses wrote all the words God had spoken, and arose very early in the morning to construct an altar in the shadow of the hill. Young men were dispatched to offer a sacrifice upon the altar. Moses caught half of the blood in a basin and sprinkled the remainder upon the altar to sanctify it. He then took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. They responded to the reading by saying, "All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient" (v. 7). Moses thereupon took the blood in the basin and sprinkled it upon the people and the book, saying, "Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words" (v. 8).

The sprinkling of the book consecrated it to the people, while the sprinkling of the people consecrated them to the book. The covenant founded upon law was inaugurated, and from thenceforth the nation was bound to keep all the words of that law or die. To violate a covenant with God is a tragic renunciation of a promise. To break a covenant with Him is to become a traitor to the Eternal God.

In the case of the "new covenant," which God specifically declared was not to be like the one made with the fathers when they were led forth from Egypt, there was no written code announced and read. Ours is a personal relationship with Jesus, through whom grace and truth came. Instead of writing a book and sprinkling it with blood, Peter publicly announced the facts concerning the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. He ended by saying, "This same Jesus God raised up and made Him both Lord and Christ." The application of the blood of the new covenant was figuratively to the hearts of the believers.

The New Covenant Scriptures could not have constituted a legal code upon which the church was erected, simply because they were not yet written. They were written many years later. It is true that those who were baptized "continued stedfastly in the teaching of the apostles," also in the sharing of the common life in Christ, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers, but this was in no sense a ritualistic performance based upon legal specifications. It was the natural expression of hearts filled with the Holy Spirit after being cleansed and purged by divine forgiveness.

A written code was the foundation of the nation composed of those called out from slavery in Egypt. The foundation of the kingdom composed of those called out of bondage to sin was a simple fact, the greatest in all history. That fact is that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God. When Simon Peter openly testified to it, Jesus pronounced a blessing upon him and declared that his statement was a Heaven-revealed truth. He said, "Upon this rock I will build my church." On that fact He would plant the called-out ones. The church is composed of those who are not under law, but under grace. Their hope is not derived from righteousness based upon law, but from righteousness of faith in Christ.

At one time in my life I thought the New Covenant Scriptures, consisting of the apostolic letters of love and sharing, constituted a blueprint for the church, exactly as the legal code given at Sinai did for the nation of Israel. I did not stop to realize that a blueprint must be in the hands of the construction superintendent and the carpenters before the building is started. I freely quoted what God said to Moses when he was about to make the tabernacle, and applied it to ourselves. The instruction to Moses was "See that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount" (Hebrews 8:5; KJV).

In spite of what may be said about "pattern theology" and a "divine blueprint," the New Covenant Scriptures do not constitute either a pattern or blueprint by which the church was constructed. If they do, the church was not built by the blueprint, because it was in existence a good many years before a single epistle was written. Each letter was addressed to only one community of believers. Not one area had all of the Scriptures available to it for many decades. There were congregations that lived and perished who never saw one segment of "the blueprint," and did not know that such existed.

The writer of Hebrews contrasts the old covenant and the new. Unfortunately, many readers think he is comparing them and pointing out similarities. Reference is made to the time when Moses was instructed to build the tabernacle after having been shown a pattern of the tent and all of its furnishings. Many readers assume that when God said, "See that you make all things according to the pattern," He was, by implication, telling us also to build the church according to a blueprint supplied to and by the apostles. This analogy breaks down for several reasons, including the following:

1. Moses was given a preview of the tabernacle because it was to be built by men who had never seen such a structure. It is specifically stated, however, that the true tabernacle was one "which the Lord pitched, and not man" (8:2). Since it was not pitched by man, it was unnecessary to provide a blueprint for man.

2. Since the priests offered gifts according to the law and served "unto the example and shadow of heavenly things," it is sometimes argued that we are under a written blueprint to provide the antitype. In that eventuality our blueprint would have been the pattern shown to Moses, not the New Covenant Scriptures at all. Our task would be to "spiritualize" the pattern shown to Moses and to erect the true tabernacle accordingly. In that case the true tabernacle would be pitched by man, and not the Lord, in contravention of the plain Scriptural statement.

3. The very next sentence after the quotation relating to the "pattern shown to Moses" (v. 5), begins with the words, "But now." When these words occur in Scripture, they indicate a change in God's dealings with mankind. It is true that under the first covenant Moses was shown a replica of the tabernacle and instructed to make everything according to it. The writer of Hebrews continues, "But now hath he [Christ] obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises" (v. 6).

Under the new covenant God did not provide a pattern or blueprint of a structure. Instead, He gave His Son, and it is the Son who is our pattern, or example. Speaking about the persecution and hardship that are to be endured by one who is identified with Jesus, Peter writes, "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps" (1 Peter 2:21; KJV).

The temple of God today is composed of living stones, of individuals who are cleansed and purified by the blood of Christ. The only sanctuary is a consecrated human heart, and for this the blueprint is the life of Jesus. The first covenant began with a book; the new covenant began with a baby. The first created holy days and holy places, the second created holy persons. The first covenant, like the first Adam, was of the earth, earthy; the second covenant, like the second Adam, was the Lord from Heaven.

Our hope lies in conformity to the Christ, not in conformity to a code. We do not walk in statutes but in the Spirit. We are free from the demands of the flesh which made law necessary. The flesh has no claim upon us, since Jesus died in the flesh. Those who continue to walk after the flesh shall die. We are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if it is true that the Spirit of Christ dwells in us. When the dominion of the flesh was destroyed and we were liberated, we were freed from the bondage in which we were once held. To form a new written code from the letters that the apostles wrote to congregations and individuals, would be to forge anew the fetters that would bring us once again into captivity to law.

-by W. Carl Ketcherside

FIGHTING THE GOOD FIGHT?

"When troops move to take a beachhead, they do so with the conscious plan that they will sacrifice thousands of men. What if the Christian church moved into the world with the same convictions? What if we had a conscious plan to follow (Jesus) even though it might cost many lives? ...It would appear that before the Christian church justifies giving the lives of so many of its people in military involvement it should look at the greater sin of being unwilling to sacrifice lives of affluent ease for the cause of building the Kingdom of Christ." - Myron S. Augsburger; War:Four Christian Views, page 93.

Counting the cost is difficult. It forces us to look at ourselves with unflinching honesty. It means looking into the mirror to see who we really are without our masks on. It means not turning away from that painful reflection, no matter what we see staring back at us.

Where does the loyalty of the Church truly lie? Are we more passionate for our flag or our nation than we are for our Savior and our God? Perhaps the answer is more obvious than we care to admit.

An idol, by definition, is anything you will sacrifice your children to in order to maintain your own comfort and protect your way of life. What, then, do we in America sacrifice our children to? What is the name of the god we appease when we send our sons and daughters off to a foreign land in order to protect the American way of life?

"And I heard another voice from heaven saying, 'Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities'" (Revelation 18:4,5)

What does it mean to be in the world but not of the world? Are we primarily citizens of the Kingdom of God? Or are we first and foremost the patriotic sons and daughters of the United States of America?

The Church is part of a global nation whose citizens are found all around the world. Most of our brothers and sisters were not born under the banner of the red, white and blue. They do not call themselves Capitalists, or Socialists. They are simply followers of Jesus who hold their greatest allegiance to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

To this day the worldwide Body of Christ is made up of former communists, capitalists, socialists, and zionists. We are now members of One Body. We are not properly identified to our Lord as Baptists, Methodists, Catholics, Charismatics, Pentecostals, or Anglicans. We are simply His children. We are His Body. We are ambassadors of His Kingdom, and His Kingdom alone.

The question before us now is, are we willing to lay down our lives for the Kingdom of God? Are we willing to die for the Gospel of Jesus? Do we honestly place Jesus on the actual throne of our lives?

There is a profound difference, I am learning, between "being willing" to lay down your life for Christ and actually laying down your real life for Him.

And now, sitting here at the keyboard typing out these words, here in my 3 bedroom house in one of the richest counties in our nation, I am reminded of the words of Jackie Pullinger who said, "The Gospel is always life for the one who receives it, and death for the one who brings it."

Where is my death? Where is my dying? Where, even more, is the life of Christ in the one who has received the Gospel I have championed?

What has it cost me to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom? What is the fruit of the Gospel of Jesus in my actual life? Am I being transformed daily into His image? Am I capable of letting go of my life in order to receive the rivers of living water that Jesus offers me now?

"Are you able to drink from the cup of suffering that I am about to drink?" - Jesus (Mark 10:38)

Would I sacrifice my bank account to advance the Kingdom of God? Would I surrender my career for the Gospel of Christ? Would I risk everything - or anything - for Jesus?

Would I?

-kg

Ensenada Grace

Last Saturday I drove down to Ensenada with my friend, Brodie. He was kind enough to volunteer to be my ride to and from the YWAM base where I was scheduled to speak over a 3 day period.

On the way down to Ensenada I reflected a little about how God had opened this door for me. It started months ago when I began to pray (near the end of last year) that the Lord would open up new opportunities for me in 2011 to teach about the Gospel of the Kingdom, Following Jesus, and God's Heart for the Poor.

The first thing that happened was that a friend handed me an envelope of cash and said, "This is so you can get your passport". (Thanks Mike!)

About the time I got my passport I got an email from my friend William who volunteers at the YWAM base. He asked me if I could come and speak for 3 days to several youth groups who were coming down to build houses for poor families in Ensenada, Mexico. The theme of the week? "The Kingdom of God".

My time there was a great blessing and I got to share 4 different messages about the Kingdom of God. Spiritually it was an uphill battle, but by the final night the dam broke and several kids came forward to respond to the calling to follow Jesus and surrender their lives to Him.

Now I'm praying that God would open even more doors for me to share about the Kingdom of God and our blessed opportunity to follow Jesus daily.

Let the Kingdom come!

GOD IS NOT INTERESTED IN HAVING YOU BELIEVE IN HIM

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." - Jesus (John 3:16)

If there's one word I could remove from the Christian Lexicon, it's the word "believe". Why? Because we've mangled it so badly it's hardly recognizable from the original meaning the writers of the New Testament intended.

We have reduced "believing in Christ" down to the level of believing in the Easter Bunny or Santa Claus or Sasquatch. We've told people, and each other, that all we have to do to be "born again" is to simply "believe" that Jesus was real, or that he was the Messiah, or that he was God's son.

However, the verses we base this misunderstanding on suggest otherwise. The most famous one being John 3:16. In context, Jesus is having a conversation about the Kingdom of God with a pharisee named Nicodemus. The pharisee wants to know how he can enter the Kingdom of God. Jesus explains to him that he cannot see or enter the Kingdom of God unless he is first transformed from within. This is when Jesus says, "...whoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life" and he doesn't mean, "whoever thinks I'm real" or even "whoever thinks I'm God."

First of all, since the verse is in the middle of a conversation, we know that Nicodemus wasn't having trouble accepting Jesus as a real-life person. They were in the middle of a conversation! So "believe in" here does not mean "to accept that Jesus is/was real."

Secondly, if belief were enough in itself, then what about what we do with the rest of our lives? Isn't it possible to believe in God and still having almost nothing to do with Him? As the Apostle James says,

"You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder." (James 2:19)


See, the demons "believe" in God the way that we sometimes think we should believe in God. In fact, as James points out, they not only know that Jesus is real, they've seen Him with their eyes, and they tremble with fear! But is that kind of belief enough to save the demons? No, of course not. The demons "believe" in God but they do not put their trust in God. They will not submit their lives to Jesus and allow Him to transform them into beings who are just like Him.

God is not interested in having you and I believe in Him. He already has legions of demons who do that just fine. No, what God is searching for is a human being made in His likeness who willingly surrenders their life to Him and trusts Him enough to say, "I will submit my whole life to you and receive your amazing love for me."

God wants our love, and our complete trust in His wisdom, power and goodness. Believing is only the first step. We have to go all in.

-kg

Tell me what a congregration sings and I will tell you their theology

GUEST BLOG ARTICLE
Tell me what a congregration sings and I will tell you their theology
by Dwight Smith

NOTE: Dwight Smith and his wife serve the homeless community in Santa Ana, California. He shared the article below with me today and was gracious enough to allow me to re-publish it here. I hope it blesses you as it did me. - kg

**
To the Christian Century,

We run a house of hospitality and a soup kitchen in Santa Ana, California.

Today as we served lunch to about 200 souls in the government plaza, I wondered if I was becoming childish. As the acolytes of local government passed by, scowling, I "turned up the volume."

For fifteen years we Catholic Workers have been "reading the alphabet" while we arrange and distribute the US mail along with our soup. Knowing how utterly dependent homeless people are for the mail to contain the funds or documents they need for "redemption," I, years ago, became almost inured to their repeated requests that I "check again" or "keep a lookout" for their salvific correspondence.

To allay their fears that we might miss something, we began pulling an entire sheaf of incoming envelopes, gathered by the first letter of the last name, and crying out, "Doing the "M's," or "Doing the R's!" Then we would proceed to sing out the surnames so everyone in the soup- line could hear their "call."

Over the years I became culturally more sensitive. I pride myself on being able to pronounce Spanish and Vietnamese surnames. In a lower voice I can often guess how the mortified parents from Detroit and Mississippi would have their kid's names properly pronounced all these years later in this God-forsaken place so far from home.

By saying aloud every surname beginning with a given letter of the alphabet for every single communicant, we have arrived at a process that largely allays the fears of those for whom no check ever comes.

This process, a hymn of sorts, is the way we sing the names of the children whose ship won't be coming in; for those whose only ship is deportation; and for those whose forebears "already got their trip" on a slave ship many years ago. We sing the names of those who will not be rescued this time around - at least not in the way they want.

We sing out these names, a tiny balm over anxious and troubled waters, and we sit with the empty-handed until, on rare occasions and after many, many years, they raise their own voices in song.

It is then, thanks to your Pastors' message to a young seminarian, that I now recognize the hymnal of our theology: I now hear the loud, clear voice of those who have turned, undistracted by wealth or power or even sustenance, utterly toward the Cross.

It is the song of those reconciled to the singular sufficiency of the Redemption Himself; of those for whom no lesser counterfeit will suffice.

Thank you for your much needed and salvific interpretation. Tomorrow I pray that I might listen anew to the sound of my friends, silently singing of the Love that will at last their terrible suffering suffice.

Thank you for showing me how to follow this sweet, sweet sound.

-Dwight Smith

OUR UNITY IS BASED ON JESUS AND NOTHING ELSE

I’ve written a little before on the unique blending of denominational backgrounds within our little Mission House Church. Somehow, even though we each come from divergent and oftentimes hostile denominational streams, everyone within our simple church family has managed to overlook our differences and love one another in spite of this.

So, why am I writing about this again? Well partly because I’ve started to notice that a lot of the other organic and simple churches in our area share a common denominational background, which means that their unity isn’t strained by the same forces that a group like ours might encounter. In our group we can't appeal to a common set of doctrines. If anything, we've all abandoned our identity as members of a particular denomination and embraced our core identity as followers of Jesus.

On paper, then, our house church family shouldn't be so united. We come from Pentecostal, Calvary Chapel, Vineyard, Brethren, Baptist, Lutheran and non-denominational backgrounds. How can we all sit together and worship together without sparking an argument? Simply because we have intentionally avoided centering our gatherings together on issues or doctrines that we know are potentially divisive.

Because we’re sensitive to these theological landmines we’ve instead focused our meetings on the One Thing we can all agree on – Jesus.

Not that other groups aren’t centered on Jesus and what it means to follow Him daily. I'm certain that they are. But since our group is not all on the same page when it comes to doctrines I think we have a tendency to emphasize following our Lord Jesus and discovering together how we can put His teachings into practice in our actual lives.

This also doesn’t mean that we don’t tend to stray over into areas where there are differences of opinion. We have had our share of disagreements and in those cases we’ve done our best to allow everyone an opportunity to communicate their perspective on scripture. Thankfully we’ve stopped short of trying to impose a particular perspective on everyone else in the church. No one has to agree with me, or with anyone else, on a peripheral issue in order to remain a valued and loved member of the church family.

For example, my wife and I have a huge personal conviction when it comes to our calling to love and serve the poor in the context of following Jesus. We formed the Mission largely because we wanted to plant a church where 100% of the offering could go to help people in the community (and even within our own church family) who were struggling financially or in poverty. We regularly serve at a local motel and share free groceries with families living there each month. But at no time does anyone in our house church family feel guilty for not joining us in this service. (Yes, we've asked them to make sure). Of course, we freely invite people to come along with us, and we regularly share testimonies of what God is doing through this service, but we don’t impose our conviction on anyone else in the Body.

Again, it’s not as if our group is perfect. We’re continually learning from our mistakes. But one thing we’ve tried to hold on to is the idea that everyone is free to share in our church family and everyone is free to disagree as long as no one attempts to sway the group to “go their way” in a certain practice or doctrine.

As Christians we have to admit that our calling is to love one another, not to argue one another into agreement on doctrines that are non-essential. We’re totally ok with people sharing their perspectives on the scriptures. That's how we grow together! But what we advocate is an attitude that listens and doesn't have an agenda to change the other person's mind.

Think about it: If you wanted to find something to argue about in your church fellowship I'm sure you wouldn't have to look very hard. The question is whether or not your desire is to seek for what things you disagree on, or if your desire is to seek for the things that you all agree on?

Here’s another example. A few months ago we had a new visitor to our group. In the course of our open sharing time someone brought up an issue of healing. This new brother shared his firm conviction that it is always God’s will to heal. He was allowed to share his perspective and no one interrupted him. After he was finished I shared that my perspective (and I was clear to state that I could only speak for myself) was that sometimes God choose not to heal and instead used the sickness or the struggle to work the character of Christ into our lives.

Again, my goal was not to convince him that he was wrong or to change his mind. I knew that I probably couldn’t do that anyway (and I didn’t). To be sure that this brother was ok with my sharing a counter point I invited him to lunch the following week and he and I talked together about our group’s commitment to allow differences of opinion. The great thing was that this brother understood and celebrated our open share time and our desire for freedom and acceptance of one another.

Our group only asks: “Are you following Jesus daily and is it your aim to know Him and to let the Bible be your guide?” If the answer is “Yes” then you’re in! We ask nothing else of those who desire to fellowship with us, as long as their desire is also to walk with others who may, or may not, agree with them on everything.

Our aim is to avoid being distracted from our main goal which is to love God and to love one another and to follow Jesus in our actual lives.

I think that whatever church you’re part of, you have to be ok with sitting next to someone who holds a different opinion about eschatology or baptism or spiritual gifts, etc. and still call that person a brother and love them simply because they are part of the same family of God.

If someone denies the Gospel or teaches a strange doctrine that distorts the Gospel or character of Christ, then yes, of course, you need to correct that. But we're not saved by having the correct information about the Bible, nor are we saved because we can communicate complex theological ideas, we are saved because we have a transformational encounter with the living Jesus and we fall in love with Him and His Word.

By the Grace of God our church family will continue to love one another and to accept one another on the basis of Christ and not on the basis of agreement on a set of doctrines.

-kg

BEING CHURCH?

Those of us who are part of a house church or an organic church often speak of "being the church" rather than "attending a church".

A fellow house church leader recently emailed me and a few other house church practitioners to ask us how we would answer this question: “How are your house church communities doing at ‘being the Church’ rather than ‘going to Church’?”

Here’s my response.

Over the last few weeks I've had conversations with several in our house church family and they’ve indicated to me that they've started to experience a paradigm shift between "going to church" and "being the church". Here's how some of them have expressed this phenomenon:

*"Once I realized that being who God created and called me to be was all that He expects of me, I started to realize that I have a ministry to children already. I don't have to travel to Africa or even to Mexico to minister to children who don't know the Gospel. They're in my 5th grade class I teach every day."

*"I had only been coming to this house church for two weeks when I offered to host the next meeting in my home. Everyone was like, 'That's great!' At first I thought, 'Don't you want to see my house first?' but then I realized that it didn't matter to anyone what my house was like. They were all eager to allow me the freedom to contribute to the Church in whatever way I wanted to."

*"All my life at other churches I was always on the outside of that myterious inner circle of leadership, but now I'm one of the many other contributing members of the Church. Suddenly my voice counts for something. My gifts are relevant. My family is truly known and loved. This is what Church is all about!"

*"Growing up in Church I never understood what the pastor was saying. But now I'm free to ask questions and people are free to question me and to challenge me in my walk with Jesus. It's the Body of Christ that has changed my life where all those sermons never did."

*"For the first time in my life as a Christian, when I think of "my church," I now think of the people in it. Not the building or the pastor because we don't have any. The faces of the people I fellowship with come to mind."

*"Instead of going to church and attending a meeting, the house church experience has allowed me to see that all of my life is a ministry to God. No matter where I am or what I'm doing, the Spirit of the Living God is alive in me and that's where 'Church' can happen."

Our house church is called “the Mission” because we hope to encourage everyone to see that they are missionaries equipped by God to minister the Gospel in their own neighborhood, workplace, community, etc.

In addition to these statements, I’ve personally witnessed individuals in our house church family as they discover their own personal mission. Some have felt a calling to start a weekly prayer meeting in their home. Some have felt compelled to take regular trips to an orphanage in Mexico. Some have taken it upon themselves to put together survival kits for the homeless. Some have responded to God’s calling to use their teaching gift to lead weekly Bible Studies with people outside our house church family. Some have stepped out to help teach Chinese students how to speak English as a second language. Others are still trying to understand what their personal mission is and we’re patiently standing by them and encouraging them as they continue to follow Jesus daily.

While no one in our house church family feels pressure to participate in anyone else’s ministry, they do know that they are free to join in if they want to. No one feels pressure to start a ministry of their own either. Unless God is genuinely speaking to them about stepping forward, we’re content to meet them wherever they are.

Our house church family has a saying that goes, “We’re all in process.” That means we recognize that none of us is in exactly the same place in our walk with Christ. While we encourage everyone to grow deeper with Jesus, we don’t set our own expectations of what that should look like. We allow the individual person to listen for God’s voice and to respond accordingly. We strive to have grace for one another and not to impose our passion on others.

For example, my family has been serving at a local motel for nearly 9 years now. We go every month and pass out free groceries which our house church family purchases using the offerings that are freely given to help the poor. Not everyone in our house church goes with us when we serve at the motel, but they know we'd love to have them join us if they wish. They also know that they don't have to give their offering to this cause if they don't want to. No one forces them to give or looks to see who is giving or how much. We don't impose our vision and mission on them and they don't try to convince us that their personal ministry should be everyone else's.

Rather than exploit one another to benefit our ministry, we empower one another to step out and serve others in whatever way we feel called. We help when we can. We encourage one another, and we cheer each other onward.

So, in a nutshell this is how our little house church family is learning to “be the Church” to one another and to people we come into contact with each and every day.

How are you learning to “be the Church”?

-kg

HE DID IT!

So proud of my son, David. I gave him a puzzle on his 13th birthday (December 31st) called "One Tough Puzzle". It has only 9 pieces and it says on the outside of the box, "10,000 wrong answers, but only one right answer". (Kind of like our lives, right?)

Our whole family took turns trying to figure this one out but one day I came home from work and David had figured it out - mathematically! (I can't explain to you how he did it, but when I asked him how he found the answer he proceeded to explain a complicated calculation that boggled my brain, but I know it all makes sense, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to make it work).

That's my boy.

Terms of Surrender

"Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?" (Matt 19:16)

"Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." (Matt 19:21)

Someone recently emailed me to ask about what this verse means for believers today. Are we expected to go and sell all of our possessions and give to the poor in order to follow Jesus?

It's a huge challenge to consider these instructions from Jesus and even more challenging to consider applying them to our actual lives.

Here are some things to consider as you meditate on this scripture.

First, notice that the Rich Young Ruler's question to Jesus was "What good thing must I do to get eternal life?" (v.16)

In response to that question Jesus says, "Sell all that you have and give it to the poor and then come and follow me." (v.21)

Throughout the Gospels several people come to Jesus and ask him what they must do to inherit eternal life or to enter the Kingdom of God. Jesus never gives the same answer to anyone twice.

Why?

I think it's because Jesus is able to look into the hearts of those who are asking and he can see what is holding them back from submitting themselves to him as their King, and therefore what needs to change in order for them to enter the Kingdom of God.

For Nicodemus, a wise and well-respected Pharisee, the terms of surrender were to become like a baby again and start over from the beginning with a new birth.

For the Rich Young Ruler it was letting go of his wealth.

For Peter it was walking away from the biggest catch of fish he had ever had in his entire life.

For Matthew it was quitting his job as a tax collector on the spot to follow Jesus for the rest of his life.

For Zaccheus it was giving half of his possessions to the poor and paying back four times the money he had extorted from his fellow Jews as a tax collector.

For the Thief on the Cross it was simply recognizing that Jesus was a King who would soon be coming into His Kingdom.

In every case, the terms of surrender were unique to the individual.

So, what is it that's holding you back from following Jesus with your actual life today? If it's your great wealth or your love of money, then maybe that's what Jesus would ask you to surrender to Him. If it's your intellect and your position of respect and authority in the community, maybe it's complete humility and the willingness to become simple and foolish in the eyes of men in order to identify yourself as a follower of Jesus. If it's your job, then maybe you should walk away from it like Peter and Matthew did and follow Him.

For each of us there is probably one thing that we would find difficult to surrender to Jesus in order to enter the Kingdom. We should certainly be willing to let go of whatever the Lord Jesus asks us to surrender in order to follow Him and die to ourselves and carry our cross in obedience to Him. But we shouldn't take it upon ourselves to assume that just because Jesus asked one person to do something that you and I automatically need to do that same thing.

What is Jesus saying to you? What is it that Jesus would ask you to surrender? What, if anything, is keeping you from seeing the Kingdom or following Jesus today? Honestly, that's all that we really need to ask ourselves.

-kg

FRED ROGERS: ACCEPTANCE SPEECH FOR LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Just in case you needed to see this for yourself...

And This Is How It's Done

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood won four Emmy awards, and Rogers received one for lifetime achievement.

During the 1997 Daytime Emmys, the Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Rogers. The following is an excerpt from Esquire's coverage of the gala, written by Tom Junod:

"Mister Rogers went onstage to accept the award — and there, in front of all the soap opera stars and talk show sinceratrons, in front of all the jutting man-tanned jaws and jutting saltwater bosoms, he made his small bow and said into the microphone, "All of us have special ones who have loved us into being. Would you just take, along with me, ten seconds to think of the people who have helped you become who you are. Ten seconds of silence."

And then he lifted his wrist, looked at the audience, looked at his watch, and said, "I'll watch the time." There was, at first, a small whoop from the crowd, a giddy, strangled hiccup of laughter, as people realized that he wasn't kidding, that Mister Rogers was not some convenient eunuch, but rather a man, an authority figure who actually expected them to do what he asked. And so they did. One second, two seconds, seven seconds — and now the jaws clenched, and the bosoms heaved, and the mascara ran, and the tears fell upon the beglittered gathering like rain leaking down a crystal chandelier. And Mister Rogers finally looked up from his watch and said softly "May God be with you," to all his vanquished children."

Someday I hope to live in this man's neighborhood. For now I'm happy just to drive through and admire the architecture.

May all of us live such simple and humble lives as this man did.

Peace,
Keith

NAKED SPIRITUALITY: A Review

As someone largely unfamiliar with the writings of Brian McLaren I wasn't sure what to expect when I received a pre-press copy of his yet-to-be-released book, Naked Spirituality, in the mail for review.

Being a proud member of theOoze.com Top 20 Viral Bloggers set, I have been tasked with reading this book in advance of it's publication and providing an honest review of the book here on my blog.

Before I begin the review I need to make a few disclaimers. The first being that I do not consider myself an "Emerging" or an "Emergent" Christian. Even though guys like Jim Belcher (Deep Church) and others consider me among those in that camp, I most vocally do not belong to that brand of faith. Of course, I'm not against them either and I do publish articles on webzines (like theOoze.com and Next-Wave Magazine) that are widely recognized as such, and I do consider people like Spencer Burke not only my friends but my brothers in Christ.

But enough about me, let's talk about Brian D. McLaren's newest book, shall we?

As I've already pointed out, I'm not familiar with McLaren's books so this was my first foray into his writing. Surprisingly, I found myself deeply moved by his insight and challenged by his ideas. Frankly, the Preface and the Introduction alone were better than most books I've read in the last few years, and that's the truth.

In the preface, McLaren reminds us of St. Francis of Assisi's many naked moments and uses these to illustrate our calling to throw off the adornments of this world and to embrace the glorious skin of our primary selves before all men, and before God.

If at first this seems like an arbitrary example of nakedness as a metaphor for spiritual honesty, McLaren goes on to remind us of Isaiah the prophet's three year sermon in the nude (Is 20:3). Eventually he points out that our Lord Jesus called us to give away our clothing if someone takes us to court to sue us for our overcoat (Mt 5:38-41), implying that we should call attention to their greed by exposing ourselves in order to appease their demands.

Of course, the author isn't calling us to embrace a literal nakedness here, (thankfully), but a spiritual nakedness that reflects the actual vulnerability of our souls before God and men.

Yes, Jesus was stripped totally naked on the cross. His clothing was literally stripped off of him and divided among the Roman soldiers at his crucifixion.

As McLaren says, "Naked we came from the womb, Job sid, and naked we will shall depart this life, but in between, we clothe ourselves in a thousand fascinating ways."

The book is about how we hide ourselves in outward garments and how we cover our spiritual sensitivies in clothing both real and figurative. It's a book about how we are spiritual beings who were created to be naked and unashamed and how to recover our spiritual identity by stripping away the layers of designer labels, religious robes, and fashion consciousness to reveal the image of God in ourselves.

After sharing a deeply personal testimony of an early encounter with the Holy Spirit, McLaren sets up a framework for his book, allowing readers to take a voyeuristic glimpse at what will be revealed in the pages to come.

Essentially, McLaren sets up twelve practices arranged in four stages to help readers navigate the process of being naked before God. Without spelling everything out here, the book covers Simplicity, Complexity, Perplexity and Harmony as seasons of spiritual growth. Within each of these four season, the author places three simple words to meditate on as we journey through our lives.

For me, this is where the book begins to lose me. I wasn't looking for a "How to" book as much as an exploration of concepts and ideas that might help me see myself, and my own need for spiritual nakedness, in a new light. The practical part, as helpful as it may be, didn't appeal to me. Perhaps because I tend to shy away from formulas and programs as a general rule, the step-by-step section of the book was only mildly interesting, although there were several helpful insights buried within this section to keep me reading along.

If you're like me, I'd recommend reading the programmatic sections more as suggestions and take from them what you find helpful without feeling the need to incorporate all of them into your daily routine. And to be fair, I suspect that this is partly what McLaren is hoping for anyway. He does speak of there being exceptions even to our natural seasons (where we experience unusually warm winter days, or surprisingly cold summer nights) and this I think is his concession that one size may not fit all. So, don't let any suggestion of self-help rhetoric to keep you from picking this one up. The chapters are not contingent upon one another and anyone who longs to learn more about spiritual vulnerability and living naked before God and others will find plenty to nourish their souls within these pages.

McLaren, it must be said, is a masterful and talented writer. His images are effective. His language is evocative and his insights are profound. This book bears witness to why he is hailed as one of America's 25 most influential evangelicals and I expect that many followers of Jesus will find themselves lost in these pages and discover themselves beneath the covers where they have hidden themselves away for too long.

Still, some of what is communicated here feels more than a little like an update to Richard Foster's classic Celebration of Discipline but without the nasty "discipline" word (for those who recoil at the sound). Yet, if McLaren's clout can inspire a new generation of Christ-followers to entertain the old school notions of simplicity, silence, meditation, fasting, service and prayer, then I suspect even the most anti-emergent pastors could only whisper a reluctant "halleluiah" in response.

-kg

NOBODY FOLLOWS JESUS (So Why Should You?)

Nobody follows Jesus anymore. Just look around, and you’ll see what I mean. How often do you ever see someone show love to a person who is in their face? Have you ever once heard of anyone chasing a thief down the street screaming, “Hey, you forgot my DVD player!” or witnessed a person who has just been slapped in the face turn their head to offer the other cheek?

I doubt it.

That’s my point. Jesus had some pretty radical teachings. Love your enemies. Pray for those who abuse you. Give to those who steal from you. Lend without expecting anything in return. Bless those who curse your name.

Even the most casual glance at the words and teachings of Jesus will tell you this guy had unreasonable expectations of those who would dare to follow Him. It was almost as if He was trying to thin the crowd by raising the bar so high.

He doesn’t stop there. No sir. Jesus even goes so far as to say that those who follow Him must deny themselves and take up their own cross (an instrument of brutal torture and death). In fact, He says if you don’t do this, you "cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14:27).

No wonder no one follows Jesus anymore.

Now, I’m not suggesting people don’t believe in Jesus anymore. There are millions and millions of people out there who really do believe a guy named Jesus actually lived 2,000 years ago. They believe that He was the Son of God, and God the Son, and that He lead a sinless life, died on the cross for their sins and rose bodily from the grave three days later. Yep. They all believe that. But, those people don’t really follow Jesus, not the way He expected them to.

Maybe that’s why Jesus wondered out loud, "When the Son of Man returns, will he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8). Maybe He knew after 2,000 years of Christianity, we’d just have given up on following His specific example of how to live.

G.K. Chesterton once said, "It’s not that Christianity has been tried and found wanting; it’s that it has been found difficult and left untried."

I think Jesus really did expect His followers to live extravagant lives of love as He commands in Luke 6:27. He wasn’t kidding around.

He’s pretty clear that the kind of love the world has is nothing special at all. "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ do that" (Luke 6:32).

Jesus was trying to get His potential followers to understand they were expected to model a standard of love that went far, far beyond what anyone living on this planet had ever encountered or dreamed of before. A kind of love that could change someone’s life for eternity.

Once you understand this, it starts to make more sense. Jesus calls His followers to this kind of life for a reason—so we can show those who aren’t aware of the kindness of God what it means to be loved, forgiven and shown mercy.

Yes, Jesus expects us to actually do these things.

Yes, it will hurt.

Can you think of a better way to show those who are far from God that He really loves them, Christianity is the "real thing," and forgiveness is for them?

Imagine a world where we all actually did this stuff on a daily basis.

Would it change the world? Would it change the world’s idea of Christianity? Of Christ?Would it set the teachings of Jesus apart from every single other religious figure who had ever lived?

Isn’t it ironic to think the most radical thing a modern Christian could do today would be to simply do exactly what Jesus says? Yeah, it’s really a shame that no one really follows Jesus anymore. But, can you imagine what would happen to the world you live in if even a few people actually did?

Not only that, Jesus promises those who actually do put His words into practice will be blessed and have life abundantly. Maybe it’s time to start following Jesus? Maybe it’s time to take Him seriously? What do you think?

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock" (Matthew 7:24).

[From the book, "Nobody Follows Jesus (So Why Should You?)" by Keith Giles]

Download the entire book for free
HERE

NOTE: This article is part of a lenten blog series started by Christine Sine entitled: Following Jesus, what difference has it made?

The series will feature writers from various sources all sharing what it means to follow Jesus, the impact it has made on their life, and why it’s important to be a disciple of Christ.

Read what others wrote on this topic over at her blog:
HERE

EMBRACING DISCOMFORT

Lately I've been feeling a very strong urge to step outside of my comfort zone again.

There was a time when I was regularly crossing that border to minister to prostitutes in Santa Ana at 12am, or hosting hot dog picnics with the homeless in Costa Mesa and hoping the cops didn't try to shut us down.

Over the last few years I've slowly settled into the comfort of my daily routine. I've given myself permission to spend my time on myself and as a result I've been less and less engaged in the lives of others around me. Not just the poor, but those in my community, my neighborhood, even my own house church family.

Slowly I've been awakening as if from a long nap and I'm discovering once again a strong desire to pursue Jesus outside of my comfort zone.

Truth be told, this is where you'll find Jesus. He's out there. He's moving among the poor. He's near to the destitute. He's wrapping his arms around the homeless. He's weeping over the prostitute. He's grieving with the hopeless. Just as he was when he walked this Earth over 2,000 years ago, Jesus is always "out there" where the broken and the forgotten are crying out for love.

So, right now I just know that I need to rediscover Jesus in the street and I'm feeling, personally, a need to be challenged more in this area of my life.

Someone reminded me the other day that the word "Compassion" means "to suffer with". If we do not make ourselves available to those who are suffering, we can't truly know what compassion is all about.

I know that I need to start leaving my comfort zone more often to encounter Jesus in the world around me, and specifically among the poor where I live.

My friend Thomas Crisp has been spending his Sunday mornings hanging out with the homeless at a local shelter. Together we've been trying to explore how to create an incarnational expression of Jesus among the poor here in Orange County. Meaning nothing more than he and I sitting down and having a meal with people living on the streets. Not to fix them. Not to evangelize. But to allow the Holy Spirit to change us (and them) in the process of sharing a meal and inviting Jesus to be with us.

It's simple, yet it's bold. It's quiet, but it's radical. It's small, but it's powerful enough to transform a human soul into the image of Jesus. At least, that's what I'm about to find out.

Peace,
kg

WHAT ABOUT PASTORAL MINISTRY?

If you've been reading my blog for any length of time you know that I've spent a fair amount of time discussing the modern concept of the Pastor and how it corresponds (or not) to the New Testament use of that same word.

Before you read any further I have to say that I am not against pastors. Many of my dear friends are senior pastors. I do not hate pastors and I'm not writing this article to put pastors down. I love pastors (and some of them even love me).

My beef with the word "pastor" is that we've given it (and the concept of a clergy-lead church) a level of importance that the New Testament doesn't support.

As I've said elsewhere, it's not that I'm against the idea of someone surrendering their life to serve the Body of Christ. Far from it. What I'm in favor of, instead, is the idea that every single believer in Christ is already a member of the priesthood. I'm in favor of the ordination of all Christians into the ministry of the Gospel, not just a select few professionals.

Does that mean that all are pastors? Of course not. But every believer is a member of the priesthood and that means that they have an ability to hear Jesus's voice, to minister to (serve) others using their gifts, and to participate in the life of the Church.

So, for me, the title of "pastor" is something I've worked hard lately to get out from under. Although I have been licensed and ordained as a minister in the Southern Baptist Church, my aim is to empower everyone who follows Jesus to operate fully in their gifting and serve in the Church as the Holy Spirit directs them to do. (My ordination papers are framed and resting happily on the floor under my bed covered in a layer of dust).

I'm in favor of the 58 "one anothers" being practiced and celebrated rather than recognizing a handful of professionals who attempt to do the work of the entire Body all by themselves.

Still, there are plenty of people who still call me "Pastor" and get away with it. For example, my family has been involved in planting an organic church at a local motel lately, in partnership with Saddleback Church. Because of this, it's more and more common for people involved to call me "Pastor Keith". I don't mind it and I don't try to correct them. Why? Because I'm actively encouraging them to "be the Church" and to follow Jesus in their daily lives. It matters less to me what they call me and more to me whether or not they are becoming disciples of Jesus.

When I used to visit my friend Robert Higgins at the Senior Home near my house, everyone called me "Pastor" and even Robert would introduce me to others as "His Pastor". Quite honestly, I was very happy to be known as "Robert's Pastor" because this is what I was for him. I was "shepherding" him into the presence of Jesus and he and I both recognized this.

To me, a pastor is someone who cares for others in the Church. He, or she, has been filled with the Holy Spirit and gifted to come alongside people in trouble or distress. As far as I can see, the New Testament (which only mentions the word once) gives us no restrictions as to how many people can operate in the pastoral gifting. And the scriptures always speak of a plurality of elders who shepherd, never one single pastor.

What's more, the gift of pastoring is a service gift. It's not a gift that carries any authority with it. Pastors care for their brothers and sisters in Christ, but there is only one Father and that is God. There is only one Head of the Church and that is Jesus.

A few years ago, when I first started this blog my bio at the left identified me as a "Writer, pastor, teacher, and house church leader in Orange County". You'll notice now that the word "pastor" has since been removed. That's because I've tried to distance myself from both the title and the popular perception of what most believe a pastor is or does.

In our house church family I have also done my best to back myself out of the senior pastor role, allowing others to share scripture, lead us in communion, teach the Word, and operate in their gifting more. Most are shocked to learn that I do not teach or preach at our house church. In fact, no one does! Instead, everyone one of us - children included - are encouraged to bring a scripture, a teaching, an encouragment, a song, or whatever else the Lord compels them to share with the church family.

One member recently remarked that he was shocked the first time he visited our house church because I wasn't the one leading the meeting. At one point I even left the room while everyone else continued to share from scripture! This is by design. It's taken me a long time to learn how to shut my mouth and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us in the meetings. And I've love the freedom we've enjoyed over the last 5 years together, operating in this way. It's been the best thing I've ever done with the word "Church" on it.

So, when we look at the New Testament we see that the Apostles used the terms Elder, Shepherd and Overseer interchangeably.

The terms "elder" (or, presbyter), "overseer" (or, bishop) and "pastor" all refer to the same thing. So, we should not separate elders, pastors, and overseers into three different groups with differing functions.

An elder (presbyter) is literally "an old person". The same word is used in the Greek to refer to someone who is old and also someone who is recognized in the Church as such. In Titus 1:5-7, Paul talks about appointing elders in the church but then he switches to the term "Overseer" which suggests that the two were one and the same in his mind.

In 1 Peter 5:1-2, the Apostle Peter exhorts the "elders among you" to "shepherd (pastor) the flock of God that is among you." So, who are the one's "pastoring" the church in the New Testament? It's the Elders (plural) who are recognized as being mature, humble and trustworthy in the Body.

In Acts 20, all three of these words (Overseer, Pastor and Elder) are used to refer to a single group. Paul calls "the elders of the church" and instructs them to care for "the flock" (suggesting that they are therefore "shepherds") and reminds them that the Holy Spirit has made them "overseers" (v.28). So, elders, pastors and overseers are referring to one group of people in the Church who perform all three works of service.

I always have to point out that the New Testament also commands all of us in the Body of Christ to submit to one another. Submission isn't something you demand in the Church, it's something you grant to others out of love.

So, all of us are called to submit to one another and that means that the elders/pastors/overseers submit themselves to serve the entire church and the entire church submits to them and to everyone else. The only supreme person to whom all Christians should submit is Christ, and Christ alone.

The pastors (plural) in the Body are called to be the servants (or slaves) of all and to serve out of humility and love. If we follow the New Testament, it's not about one person leading us in everything. Instead, everyone gets a chance to serve and to lead and to encourage. Eventually, the immature among us will become the "elders" of the group and they will have their turn to serve others in the way they have been served.

The Church is a family and in God's family there is only one Father (God) and one Head (Christ). The rest of us are just brothers and sisters in Him.

-kg

OC/ ORGANIC CHURCH FORUM: This Saturday

You're invited to join us for our next OC/OC FORUM on Saturday, Feb.26th.

We'll hear from local house church leaders Wendy and Keith Giles as they share their story and answer questions about their journey into organic church in Orange County.

*** RSVP REQUIRED! ***
Seating is very limited for this event.
TO RSVP: Please reply to this email with names of all who wish to attend.

Check-in will be required at the door. Please bring a picture ID with you when you arrive.

Info:
OC/ORGANIC CHURCH FORUM
Saturday, Feb. 26th - 9am to 11am
Fuller Seminary California Coast
2021 Business Center Drive, Suite 115
Irvine, CA 92612

Need more info? Post questions here or visit
http://www.OCHouseChurch.com/

A Difficult Path and an Easy Yoke

Jesus is often found saying things that challenge us, perplex us and confuse us. For example, he tells us that we have to eat his flesh and drink his blood if we ever hope to enter the Kingdom. He also expects us to love people who want to kill us and in the Gospel of Matthew he appears to contradict himself. But does he really?

First, Jesus says, "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it." (Matthew 7:13-14)

Then later on in Matthew he says something that sounds contradictory like, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

So, which is it? Is following Jesus easy, or is it difficult? Let's see if we can make sense of what Jesus is teaching us here.

Starting in Matthew 7:13-14 we see that Jesus tells us that following him will not be an easy thing to do. This by itself can be confusing to a lot church-goers since pastors and evangelists have been teaching for years that all we have to do to escape judgment is to believe in Jesus and we’ll be saved. What could be easier than that?

Yet, Jesus is adamant here that it is certainly not an easy thing to find the narrow gate and to enter it and to walk in that path. What is easy? The wide gate. This is wide and easy to see and – look – so many other people are walking in that direction already! How can it be the wrong way to go?

Jesus affirms that the way that leads to life is hard to find. Not only that, once we find it we will soon discover that the way is difficult and not many people will come with us.

What is he talking about?

I think there are a few different things going on here. First, I believe that Jesus is warning us that "There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death" (Proverbs 14:12 ; Proverbs 16:25).

Basically, if we ask most people if they believe in God they will say "Yes". Every national poll for the last 50 years has confirmed this truth. Most people, in general, believe that God exists. Most people also believe that if they live a good life and don’t kill anyone that they will go heaven when they die.

Of course, all of this simply human wisdom. It does not take into account that none of us is "good enough" to earn heaven. If we were, then Jesus was the dumbest messiah ever because he came and suffered in our place for no reason whatsoever. This human wisdom also doesn't take into account that going to heaven when we die isn’t really the issue. It's who we will put our trust in now – today – while we are still living.

Jesus never invited anyone to believe in him so they could go to heaven. He always asked people to follow him, and he always talked about one thing: The Kingdom of God.

The most famous passage that people gravitate towards is, of course, John 3:16. But if you read the entire chapter you'll see that the conversation was all about the Kingdom and who could enter the Kingdom of God (v.3). Those who are able to become like little children and who are willing to start over again with God as their Father (i.e. – “Born Again”) are capable of entering the Kingdom. They must receive a spiritual birth (v.6) in order to receive the new life of the Kingdom.

This is why the "gate...that leads to life" is narrow and "few (people) find it"; because without Jesus we cannot see it or understand it. In fact, you cannot live in a Kingdom unless you submit to the King. That is why many miss the narrow path; because they are unwilling to submit their lives to the King and live under His rule and reign. They want life on their own terms.

This is what the "wide gate" is all about. It's about the American Dream. It's having your plans succeed and your dreams come true – usually at the expense of others – and certainly without compromise. The shocking thing is that Jesus says that this way "leads to destruction" and that "many go this way". Why? Are they stupid? Of course not. No one would continue driving down a road marked "certain death" no matter how well-paved it might be. People gladly travel down the wide path because it promises the happiness that everyone craves.

The wide path is the one you see advertised on Television. It's what the Paparazzi chase with their cameras. It's what drives big business, and fashion, and celebrity, and the Lottery. It's a willful submission to the promise of a Me-centered reality. It's about a Kingdom of comfort where the only King is you.

Now, how do we reconcile this teaching with the passage where Jesus says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)?

Which is it? Is following Jesus difficult, or is it easy and light? This is confusing stuff.

In this passage, Jesus contrasts his "yoke" with the one that the world gives us. The yoke of the world isn't gentle. It is not rooted in humility but in pride. The yoke of the world isn't about rest. It’s not "easy" or "light". The world's yoke uses us up, exploits us, and spits us out. In fact, the world leverages the empty promise of the Wide Gate and puts us on the treadmill where we can chase the carrot dangling just out of reach. If we ever actually succeed, we'll find out that it was all a lie. But most of us never realize our dream for fame or riches, and so we continue to run the race that leads to nowhere.

Elsewhere, Jesus also tells us that "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)

So, we know that while we are in the World we will have trouble. The yoke of the World is burdensome and does not lead us to peace. The Narrow Path (following Jesus) is difficult (because it requires us to leave our comfort zones), but Jesus has already overcome the World and has shown us that it is possible to walk the Narrow Path successfully if we trust in (believe in) Him to show us how – day by day.

When Jesus says in Matthew 7:13-14 that the way is difficult he doesn’t mean that it takes work to be saved. So, what does he mean? He means that the way is difficult because it challenges our sinful nature. As we read in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus asks us to do some pretty difficult things: Loving our enemies, forgiving people, not worrying, going the extra mile, not lusting, not being angry, etc. All of these are difficult things for us to do because they are not our natural tendencies. However, if we can let go of everything we think we know and submit ourselves fully to the King, then He will empower us to walk in the narrow path and to enjoy the peace of a light and easy yoke. In fact, he will walk beside us along the path and show us how it’s done because He’s already walked down this way many times before.

-kg
**

Three things Jesus tells us about the Narrow Gate:
1. It’s the path of life. (Jesus is the gate and His teachings show us how to live an abundant life which eventually leads us to eternal life with Him)

2. It is difficult. (It involves a willingness to do things that are not easy for us to do but that are good for us in the long run)

3. Not many people chose this path. (But those who do will discover the real life that the other path can only promise)

LOVE BEYOND KNOWLEDGE

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." (Ephesians 3:14-21)

Notice how many times Paul talks about "Power" in this passage, and in what context the word is used.

What Paul is praying for the church in Ephesus is, first, that the power of God would be exerted in the hearts and lives of the followers of Jesus "so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith."

It takes God's power working in us to reveal Christ in our hearts and to empower us to have an ongoing relationship with Jesus.

Secondly, Paul prays that the power of God would lead us "to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."

I love this verse because here Paul confesses a bit of his inability to express with words the incredible love of Christ for us. Notice the phrase, "to know this love that surpasses knowledge". How can we know something that is beyond knowledge? If there is a concept that "surpasses knowledge" can it really be known? Not in the natural world, but supernaturally it is possible, and only through the miraculous power of God working in us by His Spirit.

Lately I must admit I have forgotten this. I've been very busy with a lot of "Christian activity" but I've neglected to simply come to my dear Lord Jesus and sit at His feet and love Him. Not only to love Him, but to allow Him to love on me.

Re-reading this passage reminds me that what I need most is the power of Christ to be made alive in me so that I can "grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge".

Do you think it's possible for us to know something that goes beyond knowledge? Is the love of God really greater than our ability to absorb or comprehend without an upgrade to our spiritual software?

Paul seems to think so. And he spends a lot of time in his letter to the Ephesians trying to express something with words that cannot be understood through words. He struggles to communicate to us in this epistle that God's love for us is beyond comprehension, and then he prays that we might have an ability to understand it, and to receive it, and to be empowered by it in our everyday lives.

God's love transcends information. The Gospel is not about information, it's about a tranformation of the heart by our Creator who comes to live within us as we humbly submit to Him as our King.

One of the ways that we can be empowered to know the love of God that surpasses knowledge is through suffering. Paul affirmed this when he talked about his "thorn in the flesh" (2 Cor. 12:7) and said that it was given to Him by the Lord "so that Christ's power may rest on (him)" (v.9) because "(God's) power is made perfect in weakness" (v.9).

Over the last few days my family has endured a lot of suffering. In fact, at almost every level we have been under attack, and I think this is why I was able to realize last night that I had been neglecting to remember that I am called to love Jesus and cling to Him no matter what.

Today, in my weakness, I am thankful for the power of Christ at work in me. This power reminds me that I am loved and treasured beyond words and that the love of God is greater than I ever fully know with my natural mind.

"The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing." (Zephaniah 3:17)

Peace,
kg