“He says ‘No’.”

I recall a story from my family about a child who was asked, “What does mommy say?” and responded, “She says ‘No’”.  I don’t know for certain, but I think I was the child.  Eventually I grew to recognize that my mother did not exist simply to frustrate my goals and aspirations.  Unfortunately, I did not recognize the same thing about God until much later.  In my mind, He existed simply to tell me what I should not do.   

This morning we discussed one of the fundamental lies we often buy into—namely that God is interested in keeping us from having fulfillment or enjoyment in life.  We talked about sin happening when we give in to selfish desire and ignore God’s will.  We studied the trap of sin outlined in Romans 7, and how we long for a solution.  God has provided that solution in the salvation from sin that Christ died to provide.   

When we submit to God through repentance and baptism, a profound change begins in us.  We begin to be transformed into the likeness of Christ.  Through our continued submission and God’s grace and workmanship, he transforms us until our will is in line with His.  In John 10:10, Christ states that he has come that we may have life “abundantly” (NASV).  He does not want to tell us “No”; he wants us to enjoy the freedom found in Godly desire.  When we want what God wants for us, we no longer see him as one who simply says “No”; nor do we see Him as a “vending machine” for our prayers.  We instead see Him as He is—our Creator and Savior, our Advocate and our Friend.  

II Corinthians 3:17-18 (NIV): 

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Agape–or at least the best I can do,

Chris

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ezra 3:11-13 (NIV): 

With praise and thanksgiving they sang to the LORD:
       “He is good;
       his love to Israel endures forever.”
      And all the people gave a great shout of praise to the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.  But many of the older priests and Levites and family heads, who had seen the former temple, wept aloud when they saw the foundation of this temple being laid, while many others shouted for joy.  No one could distinguish the sound of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping, because the people made so much noise. And the sound was heard far away. 

Rebuilding the temple must have been an amazing way for the people of Israel to take part in the grace of God.  Still, as with any outpouring of thanksgiving, there were those that felt an overwhelming sense of loss.  This season, I am reminded of many whose hearts are grief-stricken, or those whose thankfulness is otherwise hampered.  I wonder if we try hard enough in our assembly to “distinguish the sound of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping”.  My prayer is that we all can draw closer to God through this celebration, and that we will seek ways to encourage each other.   

Agape—or at least the best I can do,

Chris

Simple Christianity

As we have been studying so many world religions in Human Geography, I am reminded constantly of my own faith and commission.  I believe as a public school teacher that I am to imitate the apostle Paul to the best of my ability. I Corinthians 2: 1-5: 

 When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power. (NIV) 

The issue for me is how I can best do that.  I do not have the right to impose my view on anyone in my class, and I would not wish to do that if it were permitted.  I instead am trying to “demonstrate the Spirit’s power” through the way I work with students, the love I share, and the example I set.  I have had several questions about my personal beliefs, and would like to start with these:  I am a sinner and I need a Savior.  No other world religion offers me a solution to my sin problem.  God solved it by sending His Son to conquer it for me.  Submission to His will, as shown by my obedient response to his call, puts me in contact with that sacrifice and frees me from the bondage of my sin.   

I am far from the example I would like to be, and I’m sure Jesus would get your papers graded faster, but I am thankful for the opportunity to share my faith any way I can.   

Agape—or at least the best I can do,

Chris

“You don’t know where that’s been.”

If you’ve ever said that to someone, you have dealt with the issue of trust in the most practical of terms.  We like to have a basis for our trust, starting with our eating utensils and including everything from a pilot’s training to the education of the engineers designing our buildings and bridges.  

 Trust is a finicky proposition.  We can’t go through life without it; yet we deny it to people or institutions for any number of reasons.  I wonder how many have abandoned their faith because of what they see as a betrayal of trust.  As long as the church is made up of people, I imagine that is inevitable.  Still, I am amazed by the reality that many people do not trust God.   

In Genesis 3, we see sin enter the world when Adam and Eve buy into Satan’s simplest assertion, “God is a liar”.  What is so fascinating to me is that neither of them had any basis for not trusting God.  Every need was supplied; all of creation was before them.  Still, they sinned.  It seems impossible, unthinkable, ungrateful.  Then I look at my life.  Do I trust God?  Not always.  What is the basis for my distrust?  There is none.  And I know where God’s been…

 Agape–or at least the best I can do,

Chris

Esther could have been a porn star.

Esther was a woman who was “lovely in form and features”(2:7).  I’m always amazed at how the Bible presents concepts such as beauty.  Esther was one who was recognized for her beauty; and by the position it afforded her, she could save her people.  In our class tonight, we discussed the beauty of people and the concept of physical attraction.  We were reminded of the fact that God has a purpose in everything he created, including physical beauty.  It may be that our beauty is so stunning that it gives us disproportionate influence in society, like Carrie Underwood or Esther.  It may be that our attractiveness simply strengthens a relationship with one other person.  Regardless, we have a choice to make with any gift of God.  Esther risked her position to save her people.  We can choose to glorify ourselves with our gifts and thereby corrupt our blessings, or we can glorify God by choosing to be attractive from the inside out. 

 

Agape—or at least the best I can do,

Chris

Sabbatarianism

Sabbatarianism- a reform movement of the Second Great Awakening, it sought to criminalize business on Sunday, the “Christian Sabbath”.  “Blue laws”, as they are now called, still exist throughout much of the South and Midwest.  They pertain almost exclusively to the sale of liquor. 

 

A couple of things surprised me during the lecture on reform last Thursday.  One was that only a few students knew that the Jewish Sabbath was Saturday.  The other was that many of my students seemed to think the Sabbath requirement of a day of rest was still in force, as given in the Ten Commandments (see Genesis 20).  I would like to offer a different understanding for you to ponder. 

 

All of the Ten Commandments are discussed in the New Testament, but there is no requirement restated for Christians to observe the Sabbath.  We have examples both from scripture (I Cor. 16:2, Acts 20:7), and from church tradition as to Sunday being the day set aside for the assembling of the church.  In fact, they often worshiped after having worked the whole day, as many were slaves.  Christ made a point of healing on the Sabbath and pronouncing himself as “Lord of the Sabbath” (Luke 6:5).

 

So what does the New Testament say about the Sabbath for Christians?  Read Hebrews 4.  In it the writer calls us to an understanding of what the Sabbath represented.  It is a shadow of the rest that we all enter when we obey the gospel.  It is not a rest from work, so much as a rest from works.  We are under grace, free from the bondage to sin as it was shown to us by the law (Romans 6:1-18).  Our works now are not a result of that struggle to be justified; but rather are the result of transformed lives freed from the power of sin.  That is our Sabbath rest.  TODAY is our Sabbath, and so is tomorrow, and yesterday, provided that we have entered into that rest by obeying the gospel. 

So do I work on Sunday?  Not usually.  I am not in danger of starvation or bankruptcy if I set aside working in order to focus on God, his church, and my family.  I admire those that set the day aside as a personal rule for themselves, consecrating it as a day they dedicate to the Lord.  Still, I have no biblical basis for telling anyone else not to work on Sunday; and God forbid that I use any excuse to avoid helping others on that day in His name—even if it involves physical labor. 

Agape—or at least the best I can do,

Chris

The Purpose

Life’s Greatest Answers

Hey all (one or two that may read this)!

I have contemplated doing this for a while.  It satisfies a couple of my needs–you know, I get to talk and I get to tell you about what I know is really important.  I don’t know how often I’ll post, or how edifying this will be to anyone, but I’m going to give it a shot. 

Above is an example of what we are doing on Thursday Nights at Lakehoma.  If you get the reference to 42, then you know that it is a lousy answer to the ultimate question of life.  Yet, as we studied, it is as good as any (and better than most) that the world outside the WORD has to offer. 

Please consider joining us.  We meet at 6:30 on Thursday nights.  Use the south upstairs doors.