Did You See Last Night's Game?

 Quote: "You can have the outfit on, but still not have the identity. 

(Heard in a message at M4M)

I immediately think of the Wise and Foolish Builders. (Matthew 7:24-27) Two houses that probably look the same on the outside, but their underneath, their foundations were very different. One house was just there, sitting on the sand where a good rain or storm would damage if not destroy it. The other was firmly anchored to the rock, where it was secure in the event of a storm. One was for show, the other was a home, a safe place, a sanctuary. 

I have a couple of IU (Indiana University) sweatshirts that I wear from time to time. I like IU, and the shirts were on clearance. Sometimes when I wear them, people I run into will ask me what I thought of last night's game, or the season the team is having, or some like question. I like IU, but am not a rabid fan, nor do I follow them closely. So most of the time, I don't know how to answer their question. But they assume I do, because I have the outfit on. They can see the outfit, but not my identity. Sometimes I bluff my way through a conversation, other times I just say I didn't catch the game or I don't know the answer. 

Sometimes, people go to church, they do some very good things, they may have even been baptized, they have the outfit on. But I am not sure if they have their identity in Christ. Galatians 1:27 says, "For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ." 1 Peter 5:5 says, Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”  The follower of Jesus definitely has a way that they should look. If you want to see more of what that should be, immerse yourself in the Sermon on the Mount. (Matthew 5-7) But know that there were many in the crowd who had the clothes of righteousness on, but did not have the identity. I believe this is why Jesus told the crowd, "For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."  The scribes and Pharisees had the outfit on, but their identity was not in Christ, rather it was in their own accomplishments. They thought they could earn salvation, put God in their debt. Rather, we should look at the mercy and grace of God and consider the debt that we owe Him. Romans 12:1,2 "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."  It is more than just about wearing the clothes, it is about the identity that goes with the outfit.

Go team!

Quote of the Day

The gospel doesn’t make bad people good; it makes dead people alive.

Tchividjian, Tullian (2010-04-23). Surprised by Grace: God's Relentless Pursuit of Rebels (p. 56). Crossway. Kindle Edition.

Peek-A-Boo

Leaders have the unique opportunity to demonstrate before the ones they are given charge to lead, whether it be their family or their flock, that no healing is available in the shadows. There is no victory in the darkness. Jesus-centered leaders lead from the light of honesty and openness, trusting fully in Christ’s provision—and Christ’s provision alone— to make up for what is faulty in their leadership.

Chandler, Matt; Geiger, Eric; Patterson, Josh (2013-11-26). Creature of the Word: The Jesus-Centered Church (p. 175). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. 

Which comes first?

Gospel-driven vision will undoubtedly lead you and your church to tackle weighty causes, but not all cause-driven vision will lead you and your people to the gospel.

Chandler, Matt; Geiger, Eric; Patterson, Josh (2013-11-26). Creature of the Word: The Jesus-Centered Church (p. 167). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. 

Quote of the Day

Churches centered on the gospel aggressively go for the heart, not for behavior.

Chandler, Matt; Geiger, Eric; Patterson, Josh (2013-11-26). Creature of the Word: The Jesus-Centered Church (Kindle Location 2098). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. 

Now that makes more sense!

The message of the Christian faith is not “God helps those who help themselves” but “God helps the helpless.”

Chandler, Matt; Geiger, Eric; Patterson, Josh (2013-11-26). Creature of the Word: The Jesus-Centered Church (Kindle Locations 2054-2055). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. 

Ultimate Goal

Serving for the sake of service is not the highest end. We must be careful not to teach people that the ultimate goal of Christianity is serving. Jesus is the ultimate goal, the highest end.

Chandler, Matt; Geiger, Eric; Patterson, Josh (2013-11-26). Creature of the Word: The Jesus-Centered Church (Kindle Locations 1146-1147). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

Have not heard this song in years, but it is still beautiful.

Margaret Becker "Just Come In"

Heaven is for real

Heaven is not for people who just want to skip hell. Heaven is reserved for those who love Jesus, who have been rescued by Him and who long to praise Him.

Chandler, Matt; Geiger, Eric; Patterson, Josh (2013-11-26). Creature of the Word: The Jesus-Centered Church (Kindle Locations 682-683). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. 

Wish I had said that...

“When sin becomes bitter, then Christ becomes sweet.”

Chandler, Matt; Geiger, Eric; Patterson, Josh (2013-11-26). Creature of the Word: The Jesus-Centered Church (Kindle Location 579). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. 

Participation to Observation

From a previous post, I want to comment on the idea that...

Worship has changed from participation to observation.

I think for many people, worship is something that is done on Sunday morning, period. No wonder some look at heaven and want to put it off as long as possible. Ten thousand years of singing His praise, and still no less days than before. That really hits home as we count down to the end of the school year! Six more days, then we get a break! But ten thousand years and we still are no closer to the end!

But what if worship is more than Sunday morning? What if worship is what defines us and our relationship to God? What if worship is how I eat, work, talk, rest, play, and basically how I engage with every part of life? Then worship defines me and worship is a part of me. Then I don't just worry about the part(s) of my life I give to God, but I give it all to him. (This is one of the reasons I don't agree with the concept of the tithe, where we give 10% and keep 90%. Doesn't it all belong to Him?)

So worship is not something I do, it is part of who I am. Think of Paul, singing out praises in prison. Was it Sunday morning and time for worship, or was this just who Paul was? If you don't know, try reading some of his writings! "Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS, again I say REJOICE!" I don't know how this can be done outside of worship, do you?

Celebration to Ceremony

This is one statement from a list on my last post that I would like to chew on a bit more. There may be others to come.

 The Lord's Supper has changed from a celebration to a ceremony.

Is this a valid statement or not? To answer this, we must look to the early church, what did the breaking of bread mean to them? Did they pass around a plate full of crackers? No, they had a meal. They shared life together.

Yet from the start, it became corrupted. Some where always the first in line to get the best food, others drank more than enough and even became drunk. That was not the purpose! If you're that hungry, eat a snack first!

The Lord's Supper was instituted in a somber moment, when Jesus ate the Last Supper with the 12. But it took on a different meaning after His resurrection. It was now a memorial of the greatest event in history, of Christ's victory over death and sin. A memory of His suffering, yes, but also of His glory. How can such an event be remembered and not be celebrated? But is that what we do when we partake? Some do for sure, but others? Where do the majority land? Where do I land?

It is easy to fall into the routine. That is the reasoning for some not partaking in the Lord's Supper on a weekly basis, but rather doing it monthly or quarterly. But in truth, are they any better off when it comes to just performing a ceremony. Paul warns us to examine ourselves prior to partaking. What is our reasoning, our motivation? Where do we stand before our God and in relation to our fellow Christians? That sounds like something I need on a daily basis!

Obedient Children

Article Found Here

I have posted this for me, so that I can go back and look at this article when I have more time.

One of the lines is this: Obedience looks like this: 1) act immediately, 2) without compliant, and 3) without back talk

So...Am I teaching my children what obedience looks like? But more importantly, do I know what obedience looks like? (I am a child too, a child of God.) Yeah, that one is a little tougher.

Good Stuff...

Found on Jared C. Wilson's blog...

My dear friends, most churches make the mistake of selecting as leaders the confident, the competent, and the successful. But what you most need in a leader is someone who has been broken by the knowledge of his or her sin, and even greater knowledge of Jesus’ costly grace. The number one leaders in every church ought to be the people who repent the most fully without excuses, because you don’t need any now; the most easily without bitterness; the most publicly and the most joyfully. They know their standing isn’t based on their performance.

--Tim Keller

Doesn't that seem to be how God chose His leaders?

Found this quote here.

Nonbelievers need to hear the gospel to believe it and be saved. Believers need to be reminded of the gospel so they can grow deeper in Christ. There is really no distinction, you see, between what believers need to hear and what unbelievers need to hear. Both believers and unbelievers need to get a glimpse of God’s majestic glory, a taste of His surpassing beauty, and a sense of how much grace God has shown toward them in Christ. Both believers and unbelievers need to be rebuked for their pride and self-sufficiency, to be reminded of the all-surpassing beauty of God. They both need to be stirred up to faith. The gospel is the center of the message no matter who you are talking to. It is everything. Christ is all.

--J. D. Greear

Love it.

Thoughts for Today

QUOTE FOR TODAY

Tim Keller, in his book, The Prodigal God, writes, "If the preaching of our ministers and the practice of our parishoners do not have the same effect on people that Jesus had, then we must not be declaring the same message that Jesus did."

So, what is the effect that we should be having? What changes need to be made? These are hard questions. Not hard because the answer is difficult. Hard because they challenge what we have done in the past and how we should approach the future.

LINK FOR TODAY

Click here to read a post by "The Resurgence" in honor of Martin Luther King. In it, they discuss the difference between being an organization or a movement. Which are we? Which should we be?