Simple Instruction from Jesus to His Disciples

"You received without paying; give without pay."

- Matthew 10:8b

5 Ways to Make your Kids Hate Church

A post from the resurgence blog.


1. Make sure your faith is only something you live out in public.
2. Pray only in front of people
3. Focus on your morals
4. Give financially, as long as it doesn't impede your needs
5. Make church community a priority, as long as there is nothing else you rather do


This list highlights things we do that would make a child or teen see Christianity as a bunch of religious morals that a bunch of self-righteous hypocrites are telling them to follow. On the contrary, here is a list of 5 things we can do that would make kids not understand what the real Christian church is.

1. Make sure your faith stays a private matter
2. Have a non-existent prayer life (private and public)
3. Morals are only for Sunday's
4. Give financially, but be emotionally and spiritually detached from the actual church
5. Church community is just for an hour on sunday's

The True Motivation for Justice

Tim Keller in his new book, 'Generous Justice', talking about the Gospel being the ultimate motivation for justice.

"I believe, however, when justice for the poor is connected not to guilt, but to grace and to the gospel, this 'pushes the button' down deep in believers' souls, and they begin to wake up. Here is an example of the kind of argument that accomplishes this. It comes from a sermon by a young Scottish minister early in the nineteenth century, preaching on the text, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive' (Acts 20:35):

'Now, dear Christians, some of you pray night and day to be branches of the true Vine; you pray to be made all over in the image of Christ. If so, you must be like him in giving....'Though he was rich, yet for our sakes became poor.'

Objection 1. 'My money is my own.' Answer: Christ might have said, 'My blood is my own, my life is my own'....then where should we have been?

Objection 2. 'The poor are undeserving.' Answer: Christ might have said, 'they are wicked rebels, shall I lay down my life for these? I will give to the good angels.' But no, Christ left the 99 and came after the lost. He gave his blood for the undeserving.

Objection 3. 'The poor may abuse it.' Answer: Christ might have said the same; yea with far greater truth. Christ knew thousands would trample his blood under their feet; that most would despise it; that many would make it an excuse for sinning more; yet he gave his own blood. Oh, my dear Christians! If you would be like Christ, give much, give often, give freely, to the vile and poor, the thankless and the undeserving. Christ is glorious and happy and so will you be. It is not your money I want, but your happiness. Remember his own word, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive'"

We Can Never Obligate God

The following quote comes from Jerry Bridges book 'Transforming Grace'. I highly recommend this book.

"He doesn't owe me anything, and what He has given me was given by His grace alone."

Without doubt, we live in a culture of entitlement. People feel entitled to certain things. Older adults feel entitled to live a certain lifestyle with a certain level of enjoyment and comfort. Younger adults feel entitled to jobs, to fun, to a life free of responsibility. Teenagers and kids feel entitled to materialistic things. On a deeper level, we all struggle with a sense of entitlement from God.

This attitude of 'deservingness' is extremely detrimental and contrary to the Gospel. In our minds, more times than not, we believe that if we obey God, or do good, we are entitled to God's blessing. In essense, God is beholden to us. He is in our control.

However, in the Bible we get a very different picture of the whole human and God relation. Rather, God says, "Who has a claim against me that I must pay? Everything under heaven belongs to me." (Job 41:11) and "Who has ever given a gift to God that He should repay him?" (Romans 11:35). The Bible is clear that 1) everything in creation belongs to God 2) Therefore, anything we have in this life is a gift from God and 3) Therefore, we cannot give God anything that God has not already given us.

Reflecting on this, it is obsurd to think how humans even think about questioning God. We are nothing but creatures, who are completely 100% dependent on the grace of God. It is crazy to think that God owes us anything. We are but dirty worms in comparison to the incomprehensible, majestic, flawless God of glory. To think we deserve or are entitled to anything from him is seriously crazy.

But, this is not said to bring us into a state of depression because we realize how small and powerless we really are. Rather, it should bring us to a state of increasing gratitude and joy. Gratitude in that God gives us common grace everyday, in the air we breath, in our health, in every good thing we enjoy in a day. But also, in the particular grace which he has applied to His people. The saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross is that much more glorious when we rightly perceive how unworthy and ill deserving we really are. This, should then produce great joy, that the God of creation, the all powerful, sovereign over every square inch of this universe holds His people, calls them his children, and will see them through unto the end.

He Himself is Enough

I've really noticed recently how so much of my prayer is centered on myself. I've found myself to be merely thankful to God for what he has given me in an earthly manner. Don't get me wrong, these gifts such as family, friends and education are wonderful, and God deserves every ounce of credit for sustaining me in those various ways, because it is only due to His immeasurable grace. However, I have more so seen how the extent of my prayers regularly don't extend past what God has given me in an earthly manner.

May I see God, the giver of gifts, as a gift in himself. His presence in my life is enough, because I am so unworthy. By enough, I mean, it is anything at all, which is everything. May we never lose sight of the incredible ways God showers us with earthly gifts, but may we ground our hope and root our joy in the person of Christ, who came as the ultimate gift of grace, giving himself to us for all eternity to rest in.

Real Love

Martin Luther writes in the final thesis of the Heidelberg Disputation (1518):

"The love of God does not find, but creates, that which is pleasing to it. The love of man comes into being through that which is pleasing to it."

....

On our own, we are lowly, wicked and disgusting. It is of the utmost importance we realize that we are diseased with depravity, and ultimately, we are unlovely.

The truth is...God loves us. Nevertheless, God does not love us because of anything good we have done. God does not love us because we are lovely. God loves us, because He chooses to love us out of pure grace. For given our sinful state, we are completely undeserving. God's love for us is completely independent of us. If it was dependent on us, we would be in trouble. In fact, he has every reason and right to condemn us to an eternity in wrath. Yet he chooses not to. In short, God's love is completely due to his perfect, holy and merciful character.

God is Love. He chooses to love that which is unlovely. Thus, Love is a choice. May we love to love God for himself.

The world tells us what is lovely, and thus, what we should love. But, Jesus demonstrated on the cross what REAL LOVE was, to love the unlovely.

By His grace, may we seek to love others, not because of their apparent loveliness, but because He first loved us.

....

"By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers."

(1 John 3:16 ESV)