Functional Christianity

On August 25, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 13:35

By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.

While at the Y this week, I shared a testimony with one of the instructors. One of our talented director/instructors at the YMCA I go to got me involved with a class called “Body Pump.” Recently I got to test the effectiveness of that class. In hanging a painting for my mother, I held this 27-pound, 3 foot wide painting against the wall but over my head as she and a friend decided it need to go up a couple of inches and then to the left an inch, and then another inch. I was pleased I was able to hold the painting while they determined where it should hang. As I gave this testimony to one of the instructors who teaches Body Pump, she said that is what functional fitness is all about. What a great term, functional fitness. It means that we don’t just improve our appearance but that the muscles we exercise are actually able to perform for us in the real world.

The phrase, “Functional Christianity” popped into my mind immediately. What would that be? You see, I think many of us have slipped into a generation of what I call “Cultural Christianity.” Cultural Christianity is that which has all of the form of Christianity but lacks much of the substance. We adhere to the cultural mores of Christianity but we lack the power, the function. We go to church every Sunday. We listen to the sermon, sing the songs but much of what Jesus taught has lost its applied strength. Our Christianity, and the exercise thereof, ought to make us stronger but increasingly we find that our modern Christianity is void. We go through all the motions we have been taught yet when I think of the early church and the apostles it almost seems we are on the outside looking in. This does not mean that we don’t love Jesus. It simply means we have gotten bogged down in our culture and have lost our way.

The good news is that Jesus is the way. Additionally, he sent us the Holy Spirit to teach and guide us so that we can get back on the right path. The path Jesus marked for us is one of the Holy Spirit and fire. We have to stir ourselves up again and ask for that which is missing. We need to ask Jesus and he will show us how to live so that our Christianity has functional strength. This is something we can do individually but the real power of it will be as we begin to move as a body. Get a revelation and then share it with someone else. Tap your friends and start a way. Stir up your church. Functional Christianity means that our spiritual muscles are toned and able to perform with strength, flexibility and fluidity. We are spiritual athletes who must enter training so that we can win the race set before us.

I ask you to ponder what Functional Christianity is? What would it look like in operation? What would an entire congregation of functional fit Christians be like? I am hungry to know. I hope you are too. As always, your comments and thoughts are very much welcome. Now, go exercise!

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Custom Requires

On August 24, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   1 Comment

Acts 15: 1

And some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brethren, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

What do you say about this teaching? Is this teaching true, accurate? How would you respond to the teachers?

This was a major point of contention in the early church and yet I believe that not one of you would buy into this ideology. Salvation is in Jesus and his sacrifice and nothing else will do. It seems to be human nature for us to try to earn the gift of salvation through some act of our own. We may even raise the standard as we apply it to others. There is something about us that requires a sacrifice or some outward demonstration of what Jesus has accomplished inside us. Notice, though, that their requirement was a requirement of custom. Our customs can kill us.

We call salvation a gift because it is free. There is nothing, emphasis on nothing, any of us can do to earn even an iota of the grace which flows to us from the cross. I have never been worthy and I never will do anything that makes me even a little bit worthy of all Jesus and the Father have done for me, EXCEPT believing in Christ. Putting our lives in his hands and in his blood is the only thing that will ever make any of us worthy of any of the blessings of our Lord.

I, for one, am happy that I never have to worry about earning anything or being worthy in any sense. It was my unworthiness that brought Jesus to the earth. I couldn’t even earn 25 seconds of blessing on my own and since that is the case, I can release all striving and anxiety and just be grateful for the unblemished lamb that God, my Father, sacrificed for me. Jesus knew we could never earn even the slightest bit of the grace our Father longed to bestow upon us so he willingly shed his blood for us. Isn’t that completely amazing? Why would he give his life for creatures that could never attain even a nanosecond’s measure of worthiness? It was because of love. God so loved that He sent His only begotten (John 3: 16) and Jesus so loved that he gave himself for us.

Still, just like the teachers from today’s verse, man’s nature is to try to put conditions and requirements on the gift from God. First, who is man that he should proclaim a condition for something God has done? Second, it is an insult to the grace of God to suggest there is anything we need to do to obtain salvation. If God and Jesus were unable to accomplish salvation, what can a human do? How can we add anything to the blessing of salvation? And if it is a gift, why should we have to do anything? If I give you a present and then make you perform for it, it wasn’t free and it wasn’t a gift.

I find it personally offensive for someone to suggest that there is anything we could or should do to affect salvation in our lives other than to receive it with gladness. Paul and Barnabas were equally incensed. They understood that freedom is free to us though it cost Yahweh and Jesus a great deal. As long as we have to perform for salvation, then we will always have a hand in saving ourselves. The effect is that to some degree, even if it is a small amount, we retain lordship of our lives. That is one of the reasons God is the complete author of salvation, so that we will be free from having to be lords of our lives. We can only be free when we completely release those responsibilities to Him. So rejoice! Your Father did all that needed doing for you to receive salvation. There is no more striving, no more earning. Just relax and accept the gift of the Lord.

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Rock and Sand

On August 23, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Matthew 7: 25

And the rain descended and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock.

Have you seen the movie, The Perfect Storm? Maybe you can picture a storm as described in this verse. Picture this: flooding, gale force winds and torrential rains. Against all these, who can stand? Jesus has an answer. He said this house stood because it was built upon the rock as contrasted with the house which was built upon the sand.

This is a metaphor for life. Jesus said that our lives can be compared to these two foundations. The house built upon the rock can bear the storms of life and will not fall. Of the house built upon the sand Jesus said, “Great was its fall” (v. 27). It is tragic seeing someone’s house crumble under the pressure of a storm; much more so when their lives cannot withstand the pressures of life.

Clearly, we all want to live in the house built upon the rock. We would all readily agree that a life built upon the rock means a life built upon Jesus. So often, though, these ideas turn into platitudes. We agree at a high level but what does it mean in practice, in real, everyday life? Fortunately, Jesus answered this question.

“Everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon them, may be compared to the wise man, who built his house upon the rock,” (v. 24). There are three distinct pieces to this statement: 1) a foundation built upon the rock, 2) the acts of the wise, and 3) how we handle Jesus’ words. A wise person is the one who hears Jesus’ words. We must put ourselves in the position to hear Jesus’ words spoken into our ears and our hearts. Of course, this involves reading the Word for ourselves but I also hear Jesus saying for us to hear others speak his words. We have many opportunities in the nations where most of us reside for Bible studies and to hear as many preachers as we want on either television or the internet. The opportunities are there, we need only avail ourselves of them, and this is wisdom.

Jesus did not stop with his admonition that we hear his words though. The next directive he gave us is the divider of people. He said in order for us to have an unshakeable foundation such that we will be able to bear the storms, we must act upon his words. Wouldn’t you say this is the real meat of the parable? Think of it this way. Jesus was a carpenter so let’s pretend we all attend his seminar on building a sturdy home. He tells us all about the foundation and building upon rock instead of sand. We all diligently take notes on every word he says. Then we go home. Some people take the notes and file them away. Some people leave them right on their dining room table for weeks where they see them frequently but eventually, the notes get lost or discarded. Then there are the few. Those few actually take every piece of instructive advice Jesus gave at the seminar and apply them. They build according to all Jesus has said. These people end up with an unshakeable house and unshakeable faith while the rest of us wonder what makes them so special and why this works for them but not for us. Didn’t we all hear the same Word?

Jesus has given us the wisdom of the Kingdom but in order for it to work in our lives, we must apply it. He is not going to build the house for us, he is not going to force us to use his wisdom. He gives freely but he will not take away our choices. He has pointed out the way. He has lit the path. Let’s learn how to take his teachings and turn them into application rather than theology. This is the way of the wise.

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Sunshine

On August 22, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 8: 12

Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”

I hope you were able to see the solar eclipse yesterday. It was a remarkable event; many observations to be made but there is one thing that really stood out to me. At the totality, the sky became like nighttime. What amazed me was how little sunlight it took to light up the earth again. As soon as the sun began to peek out, the earth began to look like mid-afternoon again.

It reminded me of Jesus. Without Jesus, there is only darkness. It takes only a bit of Son-shine to make the darkness flee. With even a little Son, hope arises. Someone said, “Wow, the sun is really powerful.” How much truer is that of the Son? He turns darkness into light and life. Where he is, there is no darkness. We need not stumble in the darkness because he lights our path.

Some people think those are just cute sayings but for those who walk in the light, you know they are true in a very real sense. Jesus spoke literally about himself in this verse. Without him there would be no light and no life. Without the sun, the earth would die. We need sunshine for plants to grow. Without the Son, I believe even the sun would die because everything was made through him and nothing that was made exists apart from him.

Over the next weeks you may continue to see news stories and pictures from the solar eclipse. I hope it will make you think about the glory of Jesus and his resurrection story. From the darkness of his death, light arose and through that resurrection breathed life back into each of us. Let all the earth praise the Son. Let all the universe, sing his praises. Thank you Father for sunshine; thank you more for Sonshine.

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Eclipse of my Heart

On August 21, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   1 Comment

Joshua 10: 12 – 13

Then Joshua spoke to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the sons of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel,

“O sun, stand still at Gibeon,
And O moon in the valley of Aijalon.”
So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped,
Until the nation avenged themselves of their enemies.

In honor of the solar eclipse today, I decided to send you a verse about another amazing day in God’s heavens. Everything in the universe, including the sun, is in God’s domain. God actually stopped the sun and the moon in their paths because Joshua needed more time and in faith spoke the words of command. This is such an amazing passage. Joshua’s boldness is, at the very least, remarkable. Then, the fact that the sun and moon obeyed is nearly incomprehensible, but there you have it. The faith partnership of God and man can accomplish anything.

In thinking about today’s eclipse, I was again impressed by the order God created. The moon had to be a specific size and at a precise distance between the earth and the sun in order to totally eclipse the sun which is far bigger in size. It just amazes me that God thought of all these things; that He actually took into consideration the movement of the heavenly bodies and all of the implications of their orbits. Further, He considered, contemplated and calculated all of the variable involved for today’s eclipse before He created anything. These moments have been in His calendar since before the beginning of time, since before the founding of the earth.

I know some people believe this is all completely random but I just can’t swallow that argument. When you look into the sky today and the sun disappears for a few minutes you will see the glory of God in His creative authority. This isn’t happenstance. It is calculated science and He knew the math and the science in the beginning. Whatsmore, He knew you and knew you would be standing on the earth on this special and momentous day. You are part of His calculation, part of His anticipation.

I hope you will consider our God and Father today as you view this glorious spectacle of His creation. I pray you will allow Him to touch your heart with renewal and new birth. You may ponder what these signs in the heavens mean, prophetically, you may simply wonder at the glory of creation, or it may be that a sense of awe wells up within you as you remember that your own Dad made all that you see. Whatever, touches you this day, I hope that you will allow the Father to speak into your spirit the special reason He had you be born in this time and to be a part of this event.

I would like to leave you with one last point to ponder. Consider also the crucifixion account in Luke 23: 44 – 46, “And it was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour, the sun being obscured; and the veil of the temple was torn in two. And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, ‘Father, into your hands I commit My spirit.’ And having said this, He breathed His last.”

I hope you and Dad have a great day!

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Peace, Peace

On August 18, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Matthew 10: 13

If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace.

Jesus talked about peace or blessed people with peace quite a number of times. Before he left the earth he even made a point of leaving his peace here with us (John 14: 27). What is so compelling about peace that caused him to frequently say, “Go in peace” or “peace be with you?” We have to dig into our Hebrew roots to get an appreciation of this peace which Jesus speaks of and even directs us to bless others with.

The Hebrew word is Shalom, and it is very rich with many shades of meaning. The simplest way to describe the Jewish idea of peace is wholeness in every area of life, or I have heard others say, “nothing missing, nothing broken.” This necessarily means that your health is not broken, your finances are whole, your relationships fruitful, your spirit vital, and every other facet of life you can think of functions perfectly. When Jesus, or any other Jew, says “peace” to you, they have spoken a blessing which covers every aspect of your life. Now, consider today’s verse. Does it take on more meaning?

Jesus intimates in this passage that we have the right and perhaps even the obligation to speak a blessing of peace on the households of others. This may manifest in you praying peace as you enter a friend’s house. Maybe you are invited to attend a party or even a Bible Study at someone’s house. You can give that home YOUR blessing of peace. In so doing, you are speaking wholeness to that household – nothing missing, nothing broken. That is a powerful privilege the Lord Jesus has given us. So, think of that as you visit people’s homes and maybe also stop at your own front door and speak “Peace.”

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Ransom Me

On August 17, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 50: 2

Is My hand so short it cannot ransom? Or have I no power to deliver?

Don’t you love the passages where God just comes right out and speaks. In this verse He doesn’t just speak through the prophet Isaiah, He just shouts out His thoughts. It must be an important, emphatic message.

As we consider the words of this verse we may contemplate a wide range of situations in which this would be God’s communique to us. What is He saying here? Does something shout to you? What are you involved in right now that you would love to have God deliver you from? What is there in your life, right now, that if you spoke to God face to face you would say, “Father, rescue me from this and just take care of it for me?” Think about that situation and hear the Father ask you, “Is My hand so short it cannot ransom?” Immediately you think, “No, you are able to reach me.”

The point is that God wants us to think of Him in all the uncomfortable and even miserable life situations that occur. So often we do not even consider Him as our redeemer and our help. He is left in the background of our lives when He wants to be an integral part. Even on Sunday, we forget to talk to Him about that circumstance that is causing us stress and even robbing us of sleep.

God is saying to each of us today, “I have the power to deliver you.” No matter what the situation you are facing involves, He is well able to help you and I can promise you He is also willing. If God could have His way, we would live stress free lives. Sure, there is trouble in this world but Jesus said that is the very reason he was sending us the Holy Spirit whom he called “the helper.” These heavy burdens are not for us. They are for the three persons of the Trinity. Give them a call today. They want to hear from you.

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