The Meaning of Grace

"What act could be more one-sidedly free and non-negotiated than one person raising another from the dead! This is the meaning of grace."
-John Piper

"And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved and raised up with him..."

Ephesians 2:1-6

Why Does God Allow Suffering

What is the purpose of suffering? If God is a good God, why do bad things happen to good people? For an honest man, these are fair and common questions. I've been reading through the book of Job recently (part of a chronological Bible reading plan for the new year), and was struck by Elihu's (one of Job's friends) response to Job's suffering and subsequent questioning of God's justice in it all. Elihu is realistic about the pain, brokenness and suffering that is present in all of our lives. Yet, he offers us a hopeful response as to why a sovereign God allows such brokenness and pain. Please read:

"Man is also rebuked with pain on his bed and with continual strife in his bones, 

so that his life loathes bread, and his appetite the choicest food. 

His flesh is so wasted away that is cannot be seen, and his bones that were not seen stick out. 

His soul draws near the pit, and his life to those who bring death. 

If there be for him an angel, a mediator, one of the thousand, to declare to man what is right for him,

and he is merciful to him, and says,

'Deliver him from going down into the pit; I have found a ransom;

let his flesh become flesh with youth; let him return to the days of his youthful vigor'

then man prays to God, and he accepts him; he sees his face with a shout of joy,

and he restores to man his righteousness.

He sings before men and says:

'I sinned and perverted what was right, and it was not repaid to me. 

He has redeemed my soul from going down into the pit,

and my life shall look upon light.'"

Job 33:19-28

A couple things stick out to me as I read this. 

• First, God allows brokenness, pain, and suffering to happen, even to those pursuing Him, because it allows us to experience his salvation. As this passage points out, we can't experience redemption from the pit, unless we ourselves are in the pit. We can't experience the joy of a ransom, unless we are first held captive. In other words, we can not rightly taste and experience the salvation of the Lord, unless we first know, understand, and experience the plight of sin in the world. Healing is sweet when we know we are broken. 
• Second, God allows brokenness, pain, and suffering to happen because it serves as a testimony to the Lord. Notice in this passage, the man who is restored and ransomed from the pit "sings before men and says.....He has redeemed my soul from going down into the pit."God's redemptive grace  amidst our brokenness and pain serves to glorify God and point to his Sovereign goodness. 
• Lastly, reading this passage, it is clear that all of these things are ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ. He is the one who redeemed our lives when we were in the pit. He is our ransom. He is the merciful one. Let us turn to, and accept this God. 

The Whole Sweep of Scripture

With many people having new year resolutions to read more Scripture, here is some great wisdom from N.T. Wright. In it, he gives wonderful perspective on what the Bible is all about, and how we are to go about reading it.

The Whole Sweep Of Scripture from The Work Of The People on Vimeo.

Occupants of Cells Without an Exit

"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock.

 If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, 

and they with me."

Revelation 3:20

Tyler Stevenson commenting on how our consumeristic culture has impacted the very way we interpret texts such as this one:

"The popular treatment of this passage demonstrates the degree to which consumerism has co-opted Christianity. In most treatments of this passage that I have encountered, we are led to imagine Jesus standing on the front stoop of the mansions of our lives. The moment of conversion in this depiction is that glorious moment when we deign to let him in, that salvific Fuller Brush man or Mary Kay rep who stands ready to make the sale that will change our lives. But this understanding is an inversion of reality. The one who crosses your threshold in such a case will not be the Lord but a Brand Jesus pitch-man. The real, living Lord does not wander the scorched suburbs of our reality, a lonely figure trooping door to door in search of those houses that could use a spiritual sprucing up.

Rather, in reality, we are occupants of cells that have no exit-no exit that is, until his knock makes a door where before there was none. Our lives are not six billion points of reference between which he wanders; no, he is the one point of reference onto which all doors open. And his invitation to 'come in and eat with' us and we 'with him' is not the plaintive wish of one begging for scraps, but the offer of a minister offering to share a meal with a condemned person in his or her cell. Jesus offers to come into our lives, not because our lives are his proper place, but because his life is ours-and until he enters, we cannot be led out into the Kingdom of God."

Just take the two pictures Stevenson paints, and ask yourself which one is more beautiful. The first picture being of the proud man who makes much of himself because of the what he has accumulated. This man views Jesus, the Lord of Glory, as just another important accessory to add to his mansion of possessions, accolades, and piety. Jesus is just a way to boost the spiritual component of his life.

Or take the prisoner. He has no exit to his cell. He doesn't have much, if anything to his name. His life has a lot of regrets; certainly he has done things he is not proud of. But, he is real with his brokenness. He doesn't wear a mask behind which he can boast. No, he is a sinner; a broken man in need. To this man, Jesus means much. To this man, Jesus is real. He another accessory to add onto his already stacked life. No, Jesus is everything to this man. 

I don't say this to condemn physical possessions, but rather to point out the spiritual reality of pride vs. humility. There is a reason Jesus said, "it is easier for a camel to enter through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God" (Matthew 19:24). God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. The proud man makes much of  himself. The humble man makes much of Christ. 

My Neighbor Needs Help

Recently, I've started reading Wayne Gordon's, "Who is My Neighbor". First of all, if you don't know who Wayne Gordon is, read a biography of him right here. The guy is an inspiration to me and certainly someone I am trying to learn from. Reflecting on his years of  ministry in North Lawndale, Wayne's book takes a look at the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37) and asks the question: Who is my neighbor?

The book is organized into short (2-3 pages) chapters meant to be read daily, in which Gordon points out different aspects of "Who is my neighbor?" and "What does it look like to love my neighbor?" The second days title was, "My Neighbor Needs Help". Here's what Gordon writes:

"A second obvious characteristic of a neighbor is somebody who needs help....The parables of the Good Samaritan revolves around a person who needs help-who has been left naked and half dead and is unable to help himself.

On the surface, helping others seems like a very simple concept. It's not. Of course, if all we mean by helping is opening the door for someone whose hands are full, that's one thing. But it's another thing if helping means that we have to get involved in another person's life, as the Good Samaritan did. 

These days, people don't want to get involved. Perhaps they are afraid to get involved. After all, helping others can be a risky proposition."

I love this excerpt from Gordon because I think it points out the very nature of what it means to love someone. Actually helping someone, or as I would say, loving someone, is never convenient or efficient (as quoted by Nick Theobald). It means putting aside your own ambitions and laying yourself down in the service of another. I think as people, and as Christians, we love to conveniently help people. We love being nice. We love walking around with a smile on our face while we do some really nice things (like opening the door for someone). I'm not saying these are bad. But I am saying, this is not truly loving your neighbor. That is soothing your religious conscious. Big difference. Actually helping, or loving, means getting involved with a person. It means entering into their brokenness and messiness. It means giving up your perfect schedule, emotional energy, and comfortability for the sake of another. I think Wayne Gordon touches on an important truth: that helping others (or loving) is not a simple concept. Loving your neighbor is to risk yourself for you neighbor. This doesn't always play out in the extreme example of risking your own life. But it is risking your time, energy, money, stability, comfort, cleanliness, etc...

How did Jesus love us? He risked all of those things. He risked them to the max. He put everything on the line for us. He did it so he could save us from our brokenness and give us new life. And now, for those who have this new life, he asks us to prodigally do the same. 

Wealth and the Gospel

 A certain ruler asked him (Jesus), “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”  

“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 

You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’”  

“All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said. 

When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 

When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

Luke 18:18-25

For anyone who reads the Bible with an open heart, these are extremely hard words to swallow, especially for those living in the present Western World which is considered by many to be the wealthiest context in all human history. What does Jesus mean in this passage? Does he mean that if you are rich, you cannot enter the Kingdom of God unless you literally sell everything you own? 

As I've been going through the Gospel accounts, I am amazed at how frequently and directly Jesus approaches the topic of wealth and possessions. Jesus gets right at the heart and holds no punches back. At first glance, most of us (myself included) will mistakenly read this text in either a moralistic or relativistic way. What I mean is this: In a moralistic reading, we take Jesus' command to "go sell everything and give it to the poor" as a universal rule that must be literally followed by anyone who truly considers themselves to be a Christian. The story is then a direct moral imperative to be followed literally and universally. The other end of the spectrum many of us will fall on (especially if we have great deal of wealth), is a relativistic reading. We read Jesus command and instantly think that there is no way this applies to me or actually demands a change from me. Jesus didn't really mean what he said. In this reading, we relativize the text in such a way as to protect our self from being faced with our own sinfulness. I think it is important that we examine our hearts and be honest with ourselves in regards to where we fall on the spectrum. Like I said, for those who hold on tightly to their wealth, and are consumed with building their own little kingdoms of comfort, you are probably going to fall on the side of relativism. On the other hand, for those who are often discontented with the status quo of 'safe, individualized, lifeless, consumeristic Christianity', you might find yourself imposing pharisee like rules on people. For the person who struggles deeply with self-righteousness (like me!), you might read the text in a moralistic way as a way to justify yourself. 

At the end of the day, both of these ways (relativism and moralism) are incorrect ways to understand what Jesus is really getting at. The proper way of understanding this text is a third way, lets call it a 'gospel' reading of the text. When we read this text in light of the whole gospel story, it is evident that Jesus is getting at something much deeper than a simple moralistic formula for how to deal with wealth and possessions. Rather, Jesus is getting at the radical way in which the gospel completely reorientates everything in our lives. In other words, Jesus is saying "the gospel changes everything." Being in the Kingdom of God is a complete reordering of everything in our lives. 

The story of the Rich Young Ruler is piercing because along with the heart of the young man in the story, our hearts are also revealed. In the story, the young ruler goes away sad because he realizes that the cost of following Jesus is too high; he is not willing to sell all that he has to follow Christ. The problem here wasn't so much that the man had possessions or power, but that he loved and trusted his wealth above God. His hearts orientation was out of whack. His life was out of order. The purpose for this story isn't ultimately that we might all sell our possessions, but that we may see the way we, like the young ruler, trust and love things (like wealth) more than God. We put other things (in this case, wealth) at the top of the pecking order. When Jesus says that you can't enter the Kingdom of God if you are rich, this means that only way you can enter the Kingdom of God is if you are living under the loving and righteous reign of the King. For a disciple, or a person living under God's reign, all other compartments of life fall under this ultimate allegiance. Money, possessions, relationships, work, family, time, energy, food, religion, they all must be orientated under God. They all must be submitted. We can see by the rich young ruler's response that this is a hard pill to swallow. Here was a man who kept all the rules and who zealously tried to live for God, but there was just one area of his life that he trusted and loved more than God.

So, the take away isn't so much a moralistic rule to follow, but a paradigm shift. The gospel of Jesus Christ brings us into a completely new worldview. Wealth is no longer something that needs to grip our hearts affections, but is something to be freely given to our God. This story is a way to ask ourselves, "what is it that I trust and love in more than God," "what do I look to in order to gain significance," or "what compels or controls me?". For this man, it was his wealth and power. That was the barrier between him following Jesus. Is this true of us? How we respond to Jesus' challenge, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it," (Luke 9:23-24) reveals where are hearts are at. 

To close, there is good news in all of this. Just thinking about this now, I realize all the ways I fail to orientate my life completely under Christ's Lordship. It seems impossible. The crowd following Jesus thought the same thing. Read how the story finishes:

"Those who heard this asked, 'Who then can be saved?'

Jesus replied, 'What is impossible with man is possible with God'"

Luke 18:26-27

The good news is that Christ died in our place, and resurrected, that we, along with him could be resurrected to new life. Jesus lived, died, and rose that in him, we might receive a new heart, one that is orientated toward God. In our own strength and religious zeal, this is impossible. With God's supreme power and unfailing love, this is possible. 

Jesus, The Fulfillment of the Law

"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; 

I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them."

Matthew 5:17

These words Jesus spoke come right in the middle of his famous Sermon on the Mount. It directly follows the beatitudes and is followed by his teachings on murder, adultery, divorce, and love. In many ways, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount is a parallel to the Law (think 10 commandments) given to Moses in the Old Testament. However, in his teaching on the Law, Jesus takes everything further. Whereas Moses taught "You shall not murder", Jesus proclaimed that everyone who is even angry with his brother, or speaks insult is liable to the same judgement. Where the Law of the Old Testament said, "You shall not commit adultery", Jesus said, "everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart."The Old Testament allowed for a man to divorce his wife, but Jesus said that the only legitimate reason for a divorce is sexual infidelity. 

What was Jesus doing here? He seems to be challenging and contrasting the ancient Law of God. These words would have undoubtedly caused his Jewish audience to question such a man claiming to usher in God's Kingdom. How can this be a man from God if he is changing what God has already given us?

This is where Matthew 5:17 comes in. What Jesus is saying here is that he came to fulfill God's own intention in the Law. The Law is meant to lead us in righteousness and point us to God's perfect moral character. Yet, in the Old Testament, the Law served more as a guide and restraint to an imperfect situation. For example, lust is an unavoidable reality among people, but instilling retribution (The Law) for such acts puts restraint on this action. However, this is incomplete; it never really gets at the heart of the action. 

Jesus fulfilled the Law in that he got at the heart of the matter. Jesus wasn't interested in giving his people a minimal standard of rules so that they could live functionally as a society. He came to bring so much more than that. Jesus came to call a new people, to which he would give completely new hearts. These new hearts wouldn't be fashioned after the minimal requirements of the Law, but would be fashioned after God's heart in the Law. Therefore, it was no longer an issue of literally committing murder or adultery, but rather, as God's new people, who have been given new life and new hearts, we are living under God's loving and righteous rule and reign. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law because he did what they Law never could do. The Law could never change hearts and give new life. Jesus came to assemble a new people who had the Law written on their new hearts, and who were free to follow God in righteousness. 

Simple Instruction from Jesus to His Disciples

"You received without paying; give without pay."

- Matthew 10:8b

Poverty and The Gospel: Part 2-Gospel of the Kingdom

Before we start digging into how the gospel relates to poverty, I want to start with a bigger question, "What did Jesus come to do?" What were the intentions of his ministry? Most of this will be based off of a post I wrote a little over a week ago, The Intention of Jesus, which lays this out a little more thoroughly. I'm going to try and be brief.

The reason many of us don't see poverty as a gospel issue is because our view of the gospel is too small. Either we (reformed folks) limit the gospel to justification by faith (which don't get me wrong, is absolutely central to the gospel. Yet, the gospel is bigger and effects more than just our individual standing with God) or, we forget this central tenant of the gospel (justification) and move on to the social issues that Jesus cared about. Last post we saw that both extremes are misconceptions.

To look at what Jesus came to do, I want to let him answer the question himself.

"Jesus came into Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, 'The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.'" Mark 1:14-15

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." Luke 4:18-19

I'm going to try and be brief here. A couple big picture takeaways.

First, Jesus came proclaiming the gospel of the Kingdom. In other words, the good news is that God's kingdom is at hand. God is reclaiming his rule and reign. He gives the call to repent and believe, because in reclaiming God's Kingdom, he is calling us to turn from our own little kingdom of self-autonomy. Jesus came inviting us to be a part of God's rule and reign, wherein we live under the love and righteousness of our Creator.

Second, as seen in Luke 4, under God's rule and reign (The Kingdom of God), all things are being set right. Look at all the comparatives he gives in Luke 4. The poor are receiving good news, the captive is set free, the blind see. At the heart of God's rule and reign is the restoration of humanity. Under his rule and reign, all things are being made right again. This is because under our own rule and reign (self-autonomy), we are really ruled and reigned by sin. Under the curse of sin, everything is distorted. And when I say everything, I mean EVERYTHING. Therefore, if under our own self-autonomy, everything is jacked up, I propose that under God's rule and reign, EVERYTHING is being made right. In other words, Jesus came to restore life.

To get a glimpse of what God intends life to be like, we need to look at Scripture. The place we will look at primarily will be the Creation account, because this was the only time when life was unhindered by the Fall. Genesis 1 and 2 are the only times in human history where humanity itself wasn't distorted by our own self-autonomy.

Free to Serve

"Live as people who are free, 

not using your freedom as a cover up for evil,

but living as servants of God."

1 Peter 2:16

What we decide to do with our freedom shows where our hearts desires truly lie. The Christian is one who has been freed from bondage. We are no longer enslaved to anyone or anything. We are free. Yet, in our freedom, we willfully submit ourselves to our loving Lord and Savior. In a culture that prides itself on freedom and personal choice, this very idea of submitting yourself as a servant to someone else probably seems disgusting. It seems ludicrous to use your freedom to make yourself a slave. But, I think this is the true measure of love and trust. Once we have tasted of the immeasurable love that our Master has for us, it is easy to turn to him and trust him. It is a joy to run to our Redeemer, the one who has freed us, and willingly lay our lives down at his feet. Ultimately, we can look to Jesus as the prime example of this, who, though he is God, came to earth and confined himself to a human body, and willingly died the death we deserved, in order that we could be freed from our bondage. Now we are free to serve. 

Once You Know That God Loves You

"If I speak in the tongues of mean and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. 

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritating or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends..."

1 Corinthians 13:1-8

"Once you know that God loves you as you are, you are free to make the choice that love makes: not to rejoice at wrongdoing but to rejoice with the truth that God has grace for other sinners. You are also ready to do what love does: you are ready to forgive, ready to serve, and ready to pour our the treasure of your heart for Jesus."

Phil Ryken, President of Wheaton College, commenting on 1 Corinthians 13.

What Do You Treasure?

""The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. 

When a man found it, he hid it again,

and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field." 

The notion of hidden treasure may seem a bit antiquated for modern times. I mean, we aren't the pirates of the Caribbean, and none of us are Jack Sparrow. Yet, I don't think the hot pursuit of hidden treasure is that far from our hearts. Think about it. We are all after something. Whatever it is that we value most, we will chase after. Whether it be the pursuit of money, a career, a football scholarship, recognition, respect, or simply academic success. Whatever is precious to us, we will be willing to sacrifice and chase after. 

This raises the question: What do you treasure? In other words, what do you value most, or what is most precious to you? In this passage, the thing that was most valuable to the man was the hidden treasure. He chased after it with all that he had, even selling everything that he owned just to get this treasure. This brings us back to the question, what do you treasure?

In life, just as with the man in this short parable, we can tell what our treasure is by what we are willing to give up to get it. When something is supremely valuable to us, we are willing to sacrifice for it, we are willing to spend time and energy to get it. This treasure will captivate us and we will be drawn to it in such a way that we are willing to follow it with everything we have. 

So why would Jesus tell this short parable to a large crown in Matthew 13? How is the Kingdom of God like this hidden treasure? I think what Jesus is telling us is that being in a relationship with Him is a lot like finding that treasure. Knowing God is more valuable, more precious and more captivating than anything else in this world. So much so, that if we come into this relationship, we will be so drawn to Jesus, so captivated by His glory and beauty, that all the  treasures in this world, the treasure we so often chase, will soon loose their appeal. Jesus is the supremely valuable treasure that we are all looking for. 

Lastly, if we look at God's actions, what does this say about what or who he treasures? Based on the criteria of what you are willing to sacrifice for, you treasure, it is evident that God treasures us. We know this  because he was willing to give everything for us. And this is the good news; God so loves and treasures each one of us, that he sacrificed his only son, that we could discover him as the true treasure. 

An Ocean of Glorious Truth

A quote from John Piper found in the video I posted yesterday.

"Give yourself to this. It's my plea! Give yourself to this. Let us know, let us press on to know the Lord. Pray that God would show you these things in his word. Swim in the Bible everyday. Don't just give it a little touch before you leave to do what you really like to do. Swim in the Bible everyday. It is an ocean of bright, glorious, weighty, all-satisfying truth from the one from whom you were made!"

Something I need to be reminded of, and something I long to return to.  

Checking Yourself In

Then David confessed to Nathan, 

"I have sinned against the LORD."
2 Samuel 12:13

These are David's words following his horrendous actions in committing adultery with Bathsheba and then essentially killing her husband. To top it off, David lied and tried to cover the whole thing up before coming clean. 

This verse is also a bite-size preview of Psalm 51, wherein David confesses and repents to the LORD. The reason I love this story is because I think it gives a good snapshot of what Christianity is really about. This story shows one of the Bible's most Godly characters (David) fall into complete and utter sin and despair. It shows a hero of the faith fall.

But herein lies the beauty of the gospel. Where the seeming "hero" falls (David), the true Hero of the story is brought to center stage. The gospel is not about cleaning yourself up, hiding your sin, covering up your brokenness, or your own personal spiritual strength. Quite the opposite actually. It is about how we are all like David; ruined, broken, weak sinners who are in need of a divine act of grace on our behalf. The gospel is about us being honest with our sickness, sin, evil, and brokenness, and then turning and clinging to the only one who can actually save us. It is about looking to the true Hero for forgiveness and new life.

Think about it terms of a drug addict. It would simply be stupid for a drug addict,who is obviously addicted to keep living their lives as if they don't have a problem. It would be futile for them to attempt to clean themselves up on the outside, so they appear to be 'clean', but on the inside, they are still sick and addicted. The only solution is for them to ditch their delusion, be honest with themselves and realize they are jacked up and desperately need help. The solution is to check themselves in to rehab. Likewise, we are addicted to sin. We might not have killed anyone of committed adultery as David had, but I have absolutely no doubt, that if you look at your life honestly, and compare it to God's standard of love, truthfulness, compassion, and justice, you will cringe at your sickness. Like a delusional drug addict, our tendency is to live our lives as one big cover up. We try so hard to hide the inner sickness of sin that is ruining our lives. We try to cover up our inner brokenness with big houses, fashionable clothes, successful careers, relationships, alcohol, sports, the latest gadgets, and the list goes on and on. Our tendency is to cover ourselves up and save face, rather than be real with the situation.

The beauty of the gospel is that we no longer have to save face. You no longer have to cover up all the crap in your life. There is healing. There is redemption from this addiction and enslavement of sin. There is a solution. The solution is Jesus. Christ's death and resurrection on our behalf is the only solution.  All it takes is being honest with yourself, and checking yourself into rehab (yes that's a Lecrae reference :). All it takes is knowing your absolute need for him. Like David, when he was finally honest with himself, and turned and confessed to God, it was there he experienced what Christianity is really about.

Life's Most Important Question

"And on the way, he (Jesus) asked his disciples, 'Who do people say that I am?'

And they told him, 'John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.'

And he asked them, 'But who do you say that I am?'

Peter answered, 'You are the Christ.'"

Mark 8:27-29

This is the most important question of life. Who do you say Jesus is? Who do you actually claim him to be? Many say he's a good teacher. Many say he's a wise man. Many think he's their 'homeboy'. Many think he is a nice religious figure.

But is He your Christ? Can you say that He is your Savior? Does the deepest conviction of your heart scream out that He is the one and only Savior who is the Son of God? What does your life show? How does the life you live answer this question? Does it proclaim that Jesus is your Christ? That He is your everything. Or does it reveal that Jesus is really just a percentage on a pie chart called your 'life'?

Questions worth considering. 

Like One of the King's Own Son's

"And from that time on, Mephibosheth ate regularly at David's table,

like one of the king's own sons."

2 Samuel 9:11

Who is this Mephibosheth guy? A little background on this verse. Mephibosheth was the grandson of Saul. Yes, this is the same Saul who tried to kill King David. Because Mephibosheth was from the household of Saul, David, by law, legally had the right to kill him. So, first of all, Mephibosheth was a man who deserved death. Some more background; Mephibosheth was crippled in both feet. In other words, he was completely helpless and useless. He was an outcast. So here is Mephibosheth, who by law deserves a traitors death, and who by his own recognition in 2 Samuel 9:8, describes himself as a "dead dog". 

As the story goes, David, rather than killing Mephibosheth, rather than bypassing him as a social outcast, actively seeks to show him mercy and kindness. 2 Samuel 9 begins, "One day David asked, 'Is anyone in Saul's family still alive-anyone to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan's sake?'" (2 Samuel 9:1). Where nothing but judgement was deserved, David delighted in, and sought to show mercy and kindness. 

The reason I love this passage (and am doing a Bible study on it tomorrow night, Wednesday) is not that it shows how great of a guy David is. It is because what David did for Mephibosheth is strikingly similar to what God does for us. David takes a dead dog, and brings him to the King's table, and adopts him as a beloved son. God takes us, sinners, who rightfully deserve death,  who are crippled and unable to help ourselves, who are outcasts, and offers us mercy and kindness. He takes dead dogs and makes us into true sons and daughters of the King. That is too good to be true! But the good news is that, yes, it is true. We are Mephibosheth. We are poor, crippled, broken, sinful people. But God's love and mercy are greater. Only the power of the gospel can take us from dead dogs to those who are "like one of the King's own sons." (2 Samuel 9:11)

We Become What We Worship

"Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands.

They have mouths, but do not speak;

eyes, but do not see. 

They have ears, but do not hear;

noses, but do not smell.

They have hands, but do not feel;

feet, but do not walk;

and they do not make a sound in their throat.

Those who make them become like them;

so do all who trust in them. 

O Israel, trust in the LORD!"

Psalm 115: 4-9

"It is a fundamental truth of Scripture that we become like whatever or whomever we worship. When Israel worshipped the gods of the nations, she became like the nations-bloodthirsty, oppressive, full of deceit and violence. Romans 1 confirms this principle by showing how idolaters are delivered over to sexual deviations and eventually to social and moral chaos. The same dynamic is at work today. Muslims worship Allah, a power rather than a person, and their politics reflect this commitment. Western humanists worship man with the result of degrading every whim of the human heart is honored and exalted and disseminated through the organs of mass media. Along these lines, Psalm 115:4-8 throws brilliant light on Old Covenant history and the significance of jesus' ministry. After describing idols as figures that have every organ of sense but not sense, the Psalmist writes, 'Those who make them will become like them, everyone who trusts in them.' By worshipping idols, human beings become speechless, blind, deaf, unfeeling, and crippled-but then these are precisely the afflictions that Jesus, in the Gospels, came to heal!"

Peter Leithart, "Transforming Worship," Foundations 38 (Spring 1997): 27. 

Do Not Presume

"Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, 

'we have Abraham as our Father,' for I tell you, 

God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham."

Matthew 3:9

In this passage, John the Baptist is speaking to the Pharisees and Sadducees as they came to him to be baptized. John's message to the religious leaders was clear (like it was clear to the other people he preached to in Matthew 3:1-2). They needed to repent. In this case, it meant repenting from their presuming upon God. What exactly was their presumption ?

According to the passage, the Pharisees and Scribes assumed their position with God based on their religious heritage. They presumed that they were children of God because they were from the same bloodline as Abraham. They were good with God because of their tradition.

I love the gospel because it speaks to each of us in our self-inflated efforts to gain God's acceptance. It bids us to repent; to literally turn from trusting ourselves, to trusting in Christ. To those who think they are good with God because they are moral people, the message of repentance is that we could never be good enough to earn God's acceptance. In fact, the only one who did that was Jesus. Therefore, we must turn from our own moral record and trust Christ's moral record on our behalf. To those who try to be their own god, the message is repent. Turn from trusting yourself as god and turn to the one true and living God. To those who think they are good with God because they come from a rich religious tradition, God's message is repent. Your religious heritage cannot save you; only I can. So, stop trusting in yourself and turn to trust in me. Don't assume you are a true child of Abraham and thus a child of God because of your families religious tradition.

This makes me ask, in what ways do I presume upon God? In what ways do I think my self-efforts earn my acceptance with God. To me, I can imagine this passage saying something like, "Do not presume to yourself that you are a child of God just because you go to seminary, or because you are an active member at a church, or because you are in ministry."None of those are bad things. However, when we trust in these 'things' to give us acceptance before God, they are wrong. The gospel is that we are only accepted by God by grace through faith. It is Christ's finish work that gains our acceptance. There is nothing we could ever do to earn it. To attempt to do so, is to minimize Jesus Christ as our Savior. This is what this passage demands we repent of. Join me in doing so. 

Gift vs. Giver

"When you love the answer from God more than you love God, the answer will actually take you away from God." --Darrin Patrick

Think about it. When we desire something God can give us over and above God himself, getting what we want can actually be the worst thing for us. This is idolatry; cherishing the gift above the giver, the creature over the Creator. We think that getting what we want is good, but in reality, it separates from God.

"Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, 

to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 

because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie

and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator"

Romans 1:24-25

Promises of Sin vs. Promises of Christ Part 3

What about pride?

Growing in the gospel includes fighting for a sense of true confidence. Pride says trust in your accomplishments, your awards, your approval for worth. Pride says you should have confidence based on your performance.

The gospel says that your confidence should come from the performance of another (Jesus). The gospel says your pride shouldn't be in yourself, your moral record, your job performance, your financial security, etc....Rather, your pride should be in the cross. Your only boast should be in the cross. The gospel says our sufficiency comes from Christ, and Christ alone.

"Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. 

Not that we are sufficient ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, 

but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient." 2 Corinthians 3: 4-6

*Much of this is taken from Jonathan Dodson's "Gospel-Centered Discipleship"