“I don’t have to go to church to be a Christian.” Perhaps you’ve heard that line, or even uttered it yourself. Or maybe you’ve heard it with different phrasing. Something like, “Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian.” That statement is incorrect! In fact, I’ve never heard an active church member make that statement. It usually comes from someone trying to justify their neglect of church.
If you are still reading, allow me to make a distinction and explain what I mean.
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Have you ever known you should believe something, but for some reason couldn’t seem to? You KNEW that you should believe it. In fact, you WANTED to believe it. But you could never FEEL that you believed it.
I’ve been there. In fact I go there more times than I care to admit. As an occupational hazard, I use a lot of “faith talk.” I encourage others to trust God only to see my own faith fall short from time to time.
All too often I completely identify with the man in Mark 9 who had a demon possessed son. You can read this incredible account in Mark 9:14-29.
Jesus’ disciples tried to cast out the demon, but turned a bad situation worse. Then calmly Jesus told the man, “all things are possible for one who believes.” The man replied, “I believe; help my unbelief!”
The man’s response may sound like a contradiction. But essentially it is more an honest admission that he wants to believe even more. There is another contradiction at work in his life, one we all experience from time to time. That is the battle between what we KNOW and what we FEEL. Therein lies the test of our faith.
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I’m not much for camping out. I prefer my lumpy mattress to the hard ground. I feel much more at east in my climate controlled bedroom than a nylon tent. My idea of “roughing it” is a hotel with no wireless internet connection.
That being said, tents played an important role in Old Testament times. One of my favorite cases in found in Exodus 33:7-11. As Moses led the Hebrews through the Wilderness, they set up camp for a short time at various locations. When they would set up camp, Moses would set up a tent far off from the camp that they called the “tent of meeting.”
Anyone who wanted to pray could get alone and meet with God. The Bible tells them that when Moses went into the tent, the cloud representing God’s presence would engulf the tent. When the people saw the presence of God come upon Moses and the tent, they would “rise up and worship, each at his tent door.”
I think it’s past time for you and me to have something like a tent of meeting in our lives. We need a place to get alone with God and let Him speak to us.
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Recently, I shared an article from a Christian site that raised questions about the public’s trust of my profession – pastor. I originally shared the article on an online forum for pastors of small churches like my own. Most reacted, as did I, with sadness and a desire to do all we can to make the situation better. Other responses fell to the more negative side. Criticism is not easy to receive.
The responses of the forum members were varied and set me to thinking. How do I react when presented with news that I may not want to hear?
All of us hear or read critiques that challenge us personally, our behavior, and/or our thinking concerning certain issues. How we respond to those critiques reveal our heart and could determine whether or not we grow.
Here are a few thoughts centered around the various reactions to the post and what I think they may mean.
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Friday, I had the blessing to join with several hundred fellow Maconites to publicly stand for the unborn. We were there to peacefully and prayerfully protest the pending arrival of an abortion clinic in downtown Macon. I was also pleased that several of our church members were there to take their stand with us.
Macon’s Kolbe Center for Life organized an inspiring event that featured Rev. Walter Hoye II, founder of Issues4Life. Rev. Hoye shared the story of his first child, born 4 month pre-mature, and how it impacted his perspective.
As we enjoyed encouraging words from our speaker, I reflected on how we got to this point. In my mind, abortion is not a political issue or even a civil rights issue. Ultimately, it is a spiritual event.
I am not surprised that an abortion clinic wants to come to Macon. Sadly, we live in a city where the darkness of sin runs rampant. Macon abounds in the conditions that create the twisted desire for abortion.
But, why? In a town that has a church on every corner, why here? Since abortion is a spiritual issue, and since Macon has an abundant supply of churches, something is amiss.
As I thought about it, I could identify at least 3 things we churches must do better moving forward.
Foremost, we MUST do a better job of intentionally sharing the Gospel and compelling people to come to Jesus. The only remedy for a spiritual problem is a spiritual break-through.
I am not saying that only unbelievers have abortions. But a heart that is walking close to Jesus will not be in a position to consider that alternative.
We need to do a better job of getting the Gospel beyond the church’s walls. We must be more intentional to share the Gospel in our community. I don’t know about your community, but Macon-Bibb needs Jesus.
As I said above, I don’t believe for a minute that everyone who has an abortion is an unbeliever. Christians fail at a remarkably similar rate to unbelievers. Churches have gotten away from honest frank teaching to older kids and teens about Biblical sexuality.
We let the schools teach it, and we let their friends teach each other. But for some reason, we deem the topic taboo in church. Maybe it’s because we have bought the devil’s lie. The lie says they are going to be sexually active anyway, so why bother.
Also, in our discipleship we need to train believers to stand up for God’s principles of life and sexuality. The first century Church bravely existed in a hostile culture. We need to raise up brave men and women who will stand up in to today’s Christian-hostile culture.
Finally, and maybe most importantly, we need to compassionately serve hurting people. A woman who feels the need to seek an abortion is a hurting woman. She feels as though abortion is her only hope. Quite possibly, she is ashamed, frustrated, scared, or possibly all of the above. Jesus had a heart of love for the harassed and helpless (Matthew 9:36), and so should we.
All to often people identify us more for what we oppose than what we stand for. I am against abortion because I am for life. I am pro-woman and hate to see her life torn apart. The devil tells her a lie that baby will ruin her life. But God says that children are a heritage from the Lord. (Psalm 127:3). I believe that is true even if the child is unplanned or unexpected.
It is the height of hypocrisy to criticize a problem without being will to become part of the solution. I am thankful ministries in Macon like Caring Solutions are willing to meet people at their point of need. I urge you to check out their webpage and partner with them. Become part of the solution instead of merely lamenting the problem.
You might also enjoy reading Our Most Valuable Possession
“Do not disturb.”
You’ve seen the sign hanging on hotel room doors. The sign means that the occupants want themselves and/or their things left alone. Maybe the occupant needs to sleep in. Perhaps he or she has valuable items that they do not wish for others to see.
Whatever the case, the message is clear. Be quiet and stay on your side of the door!
How often have you wanted to display a Do Not Disturb sign prominently on your chest? We prefer an undisturbed life. We want our plans to succeed, our families to grow, our businesses to profit, and our health to stay strong. If we were to get our way, nothing bad would ever come our way. No one or nothing would ever cause us heartache or disappointment.
But that is an unrealistic expectation isn’t it? All of us experience some disturbances now and then. My good friend Bobby Simpson (Higher Ground Softball) reminded me that those disturbances are not necessarily bad things. In fact, we find our faith grows better in the fertile ground of challenges and trials. (See James 1:2-4, and 1 Peter 1:6-7). Sometimes, as Bobby says, we need disturbing.
The news of the death of Marlin’s pitcher Jose Fernandez shocked the sports world Sunday morning. Fernandez, only 24 years old, was an incredibly talented pitcher with a larger than life personality. His exuberance inspired his teammates and often infuriated his opponents. His shocking death in the prime of his life gives reason for us all to reflect on our lives. What are your thoughts on life and death?
Life is fragile, and one inescapable statistic is that 1 out of every 1 people die. For some, like Fernandez, that death seems to come much to early. For others, death comes as a welcomed release from a long struggle for survival. Regardless of it’s timing, however, death eventually visits everyone, and we must prepare while we can.
Our culture is not lacking passion these days, but passion is often misplaced. We are passionate about our sports teams, our families, our jobs, and even about our hobbies. We are passionate about politics and current events. Yet, when it comes to things of God, we replace passion with either a robotic ritualism or general apathy.
How can we direct our passion toward God and living for him? Consider as a role model a King we read about in the Old Testament. Here’s how the Bible summarizes his life, his epitaph, so to speak.
[he did] “what was what was good and right and faithful before the LORD his God.” – 2 Chronicles 31:20
His name was Hezekiah, and he excelled above the other kings of Judah. If you study his life, you find a man with a passion for God. Why did the Bible say that he did what was good, right, and faithful? How could he accomplish this on a daily basis?
“In everything that he undertook in the service of God’s temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered.” – 2 Chronicles 31:21
I believe Hezekiah demonstrates four truths that will help us focus passion in the right direction.
Saturday will mark the day seven years ago that my dad passed from this life to his heavenly home. The memories are still fresh and in many ways I live as though he were still with me because in my mind and in my heart he is. I miss his physical presence and the opportunities and blessings that would afford, but I would not wish him back to earth from heaven for one moment for that would be the cruelest of all wishes.
Recently, in our church we buried four church members in a 26-day stretch. That is a lot of grieving and our church members miss each of these dear souls greatly. I had a similar experience at a previous church where I preached 12 sermons over a 6 month period, 4 of them in one month alone. Those are difficult times for a pastor, a congregation, and even more so for the families involved.
During this most recent stretch, I heard a church member comment about the death of one of our members by saying, “That sure was bad about ______, wasn’t it?” I’ve heard statements like that before, and even said them myself.
As I thought about the upcoming anniversary of my dad’s death and as I prepared for the funeral of one of our dear saints from our church, the Lord reminded me that the answer to the question is “no, not for the Jesus-follower. It’s not bad.”
Psalm 116:15 reminds us that the death of one of His saints is PRECIOUS in God’s eyes. Yes, you read that correctly, PRECIOUS. The Hebrew word rendered “precious” in that verse refers to something that is of high value like a precious stone. The Jesus-follower can view death as a valuable event rather than a sad moment. Remaining family and friends may be saddened by the death, but for the believer, it is VALUABLE.
Most of us have too high of an estimation of our earthly existence. We tend to over-value this life and all that accompanies our life here. We overwork and over-extend ourselves to amass earthly goods, we bend over backwards to attain earthly credits and praise, and we prioritize our time, energy, and resources around things that are earthly.
Paul reminds us in Colossians 3:1-2 to set our minds toward and seek things that are eternal instead of things that are earthly.
What kind of view do your priorities reflect? Do you wear yourself out living for life on THIS side of eternity when there is a far more valuable life awaiting you? Jesus reminded us not to lay up treasures here on earth, but to lay up treasures in heaven. (Matthew 6:19-21)
How can you reorder your priorities, resources, plans, and practices to reflect an eternal view? When you pass away will it be a bad thing because you are leaving behind what was most valuable to you or will it be PRECIOUS because you will finally reap the heavenly investment you made here on earth?
Like most of us, you’ve probably asked the question before: why am I here? For thousands of years, people have been trying to discover the true meaning of life. We search for meaning, value, and purpose. Today, we will let the cat out of the bag and reveal the great mystery of the ages.
The Mystery of Life…Solved
Colossians 1:24-29
Recap: The Secret to a great life is letting Christ live in and through me.
q The presence of Christ is appropriated by faith
q The presence of Christ can be a moment-changer
q “Hope” in the Biblical sense is not iffy or subjective, but is sure and
grounded in God’s reliability
q “Glory” refers to anything good or praiseworthy
q Christ in us assures us that things will occur in our life that are
meaningful and purposeful.
q God’s purpose for your life is to make you like Jesus – Romans 8:29
q The WORD of God is the INSTRUMENT of God to accomplish the PURPOSE of God in the PEOPLE of God.
q So many times we fail to unlock the true secret to a meaningful life
` because we use the wrong keys.
q When we conform to God purpose for our lives, His power comes to
bear to accomplish His purpose.
