Aug 31

Replacing the Idols

Christian Life, Theological Musings No Comments »

I’m sitting in a coffee shop reflecting on the summer (it’s the first day of school). It’s been one of the best summers of my life. I took three weeks off in July and had an absolute blast with my family. That’s always good and restorative. But something deeper went on as well. I spent a good part of the summer reading, re-reading, re-reading again Tim Keller’s Counterfeit Gods. The best part of the summer was (and continues to be) identifying my idols and functional saviors, confessing them, and praying for Jesus to replace them with the glorious treasure of Himself.

My journey this summer reminds me of a scene in C.S. Lewis’ The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Chronicles of Narnia, Book 3). Eustace, an unbearably self-centered boy, discovers the cave of a dying dragon. The cave is full of treasures, and he imagines how rich and powerful he’ll be if he could have it all. He falls asleep dreaming of being a dragon.  When he wakes up, he discovers that he’s become one.  Several times, after Eustace is now sorry for the way he has acted, he tries to peel the scaly dragon skin off of himself only to find a new layer underneath.  Each time he thinks he has peeled the last layer, he finds it is too deep to remove.  After these failed attempts, Aslan, the King Lion and Christ figure, removes the dragon skin for Eustace.  In Lewis’ story, Eustace retells the event like this:

“The very first tear Aslan made was so deep that I thought it had gone right into my heart. And when he began pulling the skin off, it hurt worse than anything I’ve ever felt. The only thing that made me able to bear it was just the pleasure of feeling the stuff peel off….Well, he peeled the beastly stuff right off—just as I thought I’d done it myself the other three times, only they hadn’t hurt—and there it was lying on the grass; only ever so much thicker, and darker, and more knobbly looking than the others had been.”

Identifying the idols in our hearts, on the surface or hidden deep below, is an excruciating process but ever so liberating.  I’m daily reminded of Tim Keller’s words: “Idols cannot be removed. They must be replaced.”

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Aug 29

Wisdom & Wine

Bible, Christian Life, Proverbia, Theological Musings 3 Comments »

The following is the manuscript from a message titled “Wisdom & Wine” (preached August 28, 2011 at Northshore Baptist Church)

This summer throughout our Proverbia series, we’ve been talking about relevant, practical topics for our lives and our relationships. We’ve talked about things like pride and humility, marriage and parenting, friendships, work ethics, and money. Last week, we even talked about sex. And this week promises to be another practical topic: “Wisdom & Wine.” Today, we’re going to talk about a biblical and practical perspective on alcohol.

I believe today’s message is actually more difficult than last week’s. When we talk about sex, the Bible is absolutely clear on God’s expectations: don’t have sex outside of marriage. But with our topic today, “Wisdom & Wine,” the use of alcohol by followers of Jesus is a disputable and sometimes even contentious topic.

Our background and personal experience impact how we interpret the Bible in this area. It impacts how we develop a personal perspective on the use or non-use of alcohol. Some of us come from legalistic church backgrounds that taught and even demanded complete abstinence of alcohol. So some have wholeheartedly adopted that stance. And some have rejected that position in pursuit of Christian liberty and freedom. And then some unfortunately take Christian liberty and freedom to an extreme, and it becomes a license to do whatever they want because, after all, “we’re under grace not law.” Some of us come from families where alcoholism was involved, and we’ve experienced firsthand the devastation of alcohol addiction. Our environment has a profound impact upon our interpretation and practice.

Today as we discuss “Wisdom & Wine,” we’re going to look at three things: (1) The Proverbs & Alcohol, (2) The Bible & Alcohol, and (3) The Believer & Alcohol. And as we discuss these three themes, here’s the big idea, the conclusion that I hold biblically, personally, and pastorally: Drinking alcohol is not a sin, but drunkenness is.

#1 The Proverbs & Alcohol

When we read the Proverbs that relate to alcohol, we discover that they condemn drunkenness and describe the degenerative and destructive effects, physically and mentally, of the person who drinks too much.

Proverbs 20:1. Here’s what this verse says: When people are drunk, they’re belligerent and boisterous. The key to interpreting the verse is the second half… “whoever is intoxicated by it is not wise.” When a person drinks too much alcohol, their filter disappears. They begin to lose respect for others in their speech, attitudes, and actions. They become belligerent. They become boisterous. Apparently when people get intoxicated, their hearing stops working, and they just get stupid and loud.

Proverbs 23:19-21. Here’s what this proverb teaches us: When people overindulge, they go from revelry to rags. Notice that this proverb speaks to overindulgence in drinking and eating. The proverb writer calls us to the path of wisdom and cautions against any kind of overindulgence. And he explains why. When we overindulge in drinking or eating, it begins to consume our heart (it becomes an idol and addiction), our money, and it can impact our work ethic and ability to be good employees who provide for our ourselves and our families. Overindulgence can have serious consequences.

Proverbs 23:29-35. Note what this proverb teaches us: When people are drunk, they don’t see clearly, they don’t think clearly, and they don’t act rightly. In v. 30, the one who “lingers over wine” and is constantly “in search of a drink,” their vision, their motor skills, their brain, and their conscience become distorted. Think about a party where a lot of alcohol is consumed. Perhaps it’s at a college party or a neighborhood block party or an annual party for work. When people get drunk, they just act stupid. They’re staggering around hugging everyone or getting mad at everyone, they’re saying ridiculous things, or they’re stripping down to their underwear riding a skateboard off a second story roof into a swimming pool (I’ve never seen this… I’ve only heard about this). And then some of them get behind the wheel of a car and kill somebody. Drunk people just get stupid. They don’t see clearly, they don’t think clearly, and they don’t act rightly. So the proverbs condemn drunkenness and describe the degenerative and destructive effects, physically and mentally, of the person who drinks too much. Be warned!

#2 The Bible & Alcohol

The Bible has a lot to say about drinking and consuming alcohol. Here’s the first thing we see about the Bible and alcohol.

The Bible speaks positively of alcohol in celebration.

Psalm 104:14-15. Notice what God gives… grass for cattle, vegetation for man’s labor, “wine which makes man’s heart glad.” As we see throughout the Bible, wine, the fruit of the vine, is a gift from God and can be enjoyed as such and is often used in celebratory occasions.

Deuteronomy 14:26. We see that God’s Law in the Old Testament permitted the consumption of wine and “strong drink” (fermented drinks of honey, wheat, grain, etc.), and in the specific context of the verse, as the worshipper celebrated God’s goodness, alcohol could be a part of feasting and celebrating with God and with each other.

John 2:7-11. One of the first places we go to for a New Testament perspective on alcohol is John 2 when Jesus turns water into wine. Here’s the backstory. Jesus, His mom, and His disciples are invited to a wedding party in a town called Cana. During the party, an embarrassing social faux pas happens… they run out of wine. So let’s pick it up in v. 7. Now please hear me on this… the main point of this passage is not a theology of wine and alcohol. The main point of the story is that Jesus supernaturally and miraculously changes the molecular composition of water and turns it into wine. Please don’t lose the proverbial forest for the trees. But nonetheless, there is something instructive about the reality that Jesus turned water into at least 120 gallons of wine. And He turned it into good wine… so good that the headwaiter goes up to the groom and asks him why he was saving the best wine for last.

Matthew 11:19. Here’s another verse, this time from the lips of Jesus as He explains what people were saying about Him. Let me read between the lines for a moment. All of the uber-religious people are calling Jesus a glutton and a drunkard because He’s going to these parties where people are eating and drinking too much. And here’s my assumption in this verse. Jesus is likely eating the same food as everyone else, but He’s not becoming a glutton. Jesus is likely drinking the same beverages as everyone else, but He’s not getting drunk.

Excursion on Wine in the Ancient World. When we read these passages about Jesus turning water into wine or being at the parties eating and drinking, some theologians and pastors teach that it wasn’t really wine as we know it today. It was really grape juice, unfermented wine. I’ve read the articles. I’ve heard the arguments, and here’s the deal. Wine means wine. Wine doesn’t mean grape juice. The Greek word oinos means fermented grape juice that is alcoholic in content. And historians tell us that the alcohol content was likely similar to our wine today. If it were only grape juice with no alcohol content or a dramatically reduced alcohol content, why would the Bible condemn getting drunk off of wine? In a moment, we’ll look one of the prohibitions against drunkenness in Ephesians 5:18, “Don’t be drunk with wine (oinos).” I’ve never gotten drunk off of grape juice. Please hear me on this. If you come to the biblical, prayerful, and personal conviction that you should abstain from alcohol, awesome! That’s the way the Lord is personally leading you. But please be biblically, historically, and intellectually faithful and accurate to the text.

The Bible speaks negatively of alcohol in drunkenness.

Ephesians 5:18. Don’t get drunk with wine (and by implication any other mind-altering substance). If you choose to drink alcohol, stop before you feel any physical or mental affects. Don’t let alcohol take control of you. Let the Spirit of God take control of your life, your attitudes, and your actions.

Galatians 5:21. In this passage, Paul tells us what it looks like to live life in our own power vs. living life in the power of the Holy Spirit. And drunkenness is an indicator and warning sign that we are living life on our own terms in disregard to the design and desire of God.

1 Timothy 3:3. Paul tells us what church leaders’ lives should look like, and then by implication, because church leaders are to model the heart and behavior of Jesus, he tells us what all of our lives should look like.

#3 The Believer & Alcohol

Here are some practical applications for us in regards to our perspective and practice concerning alcohol:

1. Don’t get drunk. I can’t get any clearer than that. We’ve seen that the Bible clearly speaks against drunkenness because of the degenerative physical and mental effects, as well as how drunkenness distorts our actions and judgment. And on a side note, if you’re under age 21, obey the law. Don’t drink at all. And if you’re over 21, if you do choose to drink, don’t get drunk!

2. Don’t be a legalist. If you come to the personal, prayerful, biblical conclusion that you should abstain from alcohol, don’t use that as a tool for self-righteousness, and don’t force your personal conclusion on others. Don’t try to be holier than Jesus. In the early church, different groups were using different things to demonstrate that they were more holy than other people in the church. Some people thought that worshiping one day of the week was more holy than the others. Some thought that if you ate certain foods, you weren’t a true follower of Jesus. So here’s what Paul has to say about that (and it’s a long passage): Romans 14:10-23. If you come to a personal conclusion about something where the Bible hasn’t clearly spoken, don’t become a legalist and make it a mark of holiness.

3. Be sensitive about your surroundings. This is the other side of the coin of the legalism argument, also addressed in Romans 14. If you choose to use drink alcohol, be sensitive about who you’re around. For example, if you invite someone over to your house for dinner, and they’ve come to the personal conclusion to abstain from alcohol, don’t become a reverse legalist and look down upon them because they choose not to. And if you pressure them to take a drink, and they violate their personal conscience to please you, you’ve caused them to sin and therefore you’ve sinned. Also, if you’re around someone who struggles with alcohol, don’t drink around them and definitely don’t ask them if they’d like a drink. This is what it means to cause someone to stumble. Be sensitive about your surroundings. Don’t use your Christian liberty and freedom as a license to cause others to sin.

4. If you have a problem, get help. If you are struggling with any kind of substance abuse (alcohol, prescription drugs, or illegal drugs), get help. And here’s what I mean by struggling. If you think you don’t have a problem and you can quit anytime, but you keep going back to it, you have a problem. If you’re drunk or high and your problems seem to disappear, you have a problem. And you know this… when you come back down and sober up, you realize that your problems didn’t disappear. In fact, now they’re even worse because now you have new problems… relationships are strained, work suffers, and finances are consumed by the costs of alcohol or drugs. As we discussed last week, we have an amazing ministry at Northshore called LIGHT. We have individual counseling, recovery groups, and people who can walk alongside you one-on-one to be a support. If you have a problem, get help.

 

So as we’ve discussed “Wisdom & Wine,” we’ve talked about the Proverbs and Alcohol, the Bible and Alcohol, as well as some practical applications for the Believer and Alcohol. I want you to think biblically about this subject. I highly encourage you to prayerfully develop a personal position on alcohol. If you’re a parent, take the initiative to talk with your kids about alcohol, especially if they’re in junior high or older… because it’s in their world (and if you think it’s not, you’re being naïve).

At the end of the day, we all need Jesus’ help. Only Jesus and the Holy Spirit can give us the wisdom and grace we need to develop a personal position on alcohol. Only Jesus and the Holy Spirit can give us the grace we need to extend to other people who come to a different conclusion. Only Jesus and the Holy Spirit can give us the self-control we need so that we don’t walk in sin and drunkenness. And that much needed self-control extends to every area of our lives where temptation abounds… our finances, our work ethic, our relationships, and our sexual integrity. Only Jesus and the Holy Spirit can give us the healing and hope we need when we’ve blown it or when we’re struggling with a dependence upon alcohol or something else.

Come to Jesus and ask Him for wisdom and grace… for self-control… for healing and hope. Jesus is fully God, and He came down here to die on the cross so that any sin, shame, guilt, and condemnation that you’re experienced might be removed. And He was raised from the dead to give us this new life… this new way of living life… this new power for living life. So come to Jesus, so that you might have His wisdom about how to live at the intersection of life and wisdom.

 

Here are some additional resources for further exploration on the Christian’s use of alcohol:

“The Bible & Alcohol” by Dr. Daniel Wallace
“Wine in the Ancient World” by Dr. R.A. Baker
“Is it Okay to Drink Alcohol?” Interview with Dr. John Piper
“Total Abstinence and Church Membership” A message by Dr. John Piper to his congregation on his personal and pastoral stance on alcohol

 

 

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Aug 11

The Danger of Greed

Christian Life, Proverbia, Theological Musings No Comments »

A crucial facet of living in Proverbia is the realization that “Money Matters.” It matters how you view it. It matters how it serves you or how you end up serving it. It matters how you use it or how it ends up using you.

In his excellent book Counterfeit Gods, Tim Keller writes

According to the Bible, idolaters do three things with their idols. They love them, trust them and obey them. “Lovers of money” are those who find themselves daydreaming and fantasizing about new ways to make money, new possessions to buy, and looking with jealousy on those who have more than they do. “Trusters of money” feel they have control of their lives and are safe and secure because of their wealth…Idolatry also makes us “servants of money.” Just as we serve earthly kings and magistrates, so we “sell our souls” to our idols. Because we look to them for our significance (love) and security (trust) we have to have them, and therefore we are driven to serve and, essentially, obey them. When Jesus says that we “serve” money, he uses a word that means the solemn, covenantal service rendered to a king. If you live for money you are a slave. (pp. 56-57, emphasis added)

And in our attitude on money, we ultimately have two options: Greed & Idolatry or Generosity & Impact.

Which will you choose?

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Jun 28

The Profiles of the Fool & the Humble

Proverbia, Sermons, Spiritual Disciplines, Theological Musings 2 Comments »

As we continue in our summer series Proverbia: Where Life & Wisdom Intersection, it’s crucial to discern and distinguish between pride and humility, folly and wisdom. Pride leads to folly, but humility leads to wisdom. How do we know what pride and humility looks like in our lives? Here’s what the proverbs tell us:

The antidote to pride is humility. And the best way to “weaken pride and cultivate humility” (to borrow a phrase from C.J. Mahaney’s Humility) is to:

Reflect in wonder at Jesus & the Cross

“There is only one thing I know that crushes me to the ground and humiliates me to the dust, and this is to look at the Son of God, and especially contemplate the cross.

When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss
And pour contempt on all my pride.

Nothing else can do it. When I see that I am a sinner, that nothing but the Son of God on the cross can save me, I’m humbled to the dust. Nothing but the cross can give us this spirit of humility.” (Martyn Lloyd-Jones).

How are you weakening pride and cultivating humility?

 

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Jun 15

Summer Series: PROVERBIA

Northshore Baptist Church, Proverbia, Sermons, Theological Musings 1 Comment »

We live in a confusing and complex world. A world filled with vastly different visions for living life well. A world filled with many false gods. A world filled with many deceptive gospels. And in this confusing and complex world, we are daily presented with choice after choice on how to make the most out of life and satiate the hunger in our hearts.

There have always been choices and decisions to make, relationships to build, work to do, money to earn and spend. So the key question is: “How do we live life well?” This is what wisdom is all about… living life skillfully. PROVERBIA is about discovering where life and wisdom intersect. This summer, we’ll explore some of the most important themes in life from the ancient book of Proverbs. In all of these themes, we want to learn how to live out the gospel with skill… knowing that as we live the way Jesus calls and invites us to, we will live life to the full. Here’s the line-up:

June 19 – The Heart of Wisdom

June 26 – Folly & Pride

July 3 – The Power of Your Words

July 10 – The Wise Worker

July 17 – Choose Friends Wisely

July 24 – The Younger Generation

July 31 – The Home Front

August 7 – Money Matters

August 14 – Summer Sunday at the Farm (One service)

August 21 – Sexual Integrity (Warning: PG-13)

August 28 – Wisdom & Wine

September 4 – Coveting & Contentment

Join us this summer for Proverbia: Where Life & Wisdom Intersect. This will be a great series to invite family & friends.

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Jun 14

A Father’s Vision

Christian Life, Theological Musings No Comments »

1 My son, do not forget my teaching,
But let your heart keep my commandments;
2 For length of days and years of life
And peace they will add to you.
3 Do not let kindness and truth leave you;
Bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 So you will find favor and good repute
In the sight of God and man.
5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Fear the LORD and turn away from evil.

~ Proverbs 3:1-7

Being a father is tough work.  Being a father is a constant challenge.  But being a father is a wonderful adventure.  As a father, I am continually helping to shape the life of my son Jacob.  To be honest, it’s often overwhelming, and I need all the help I can get.  To father well, we need a father’s vision—a vision for wisdom and for our children to live out the heart of that wisdom.  Solomon, the wisest man in the world, even had troubles raising his own kids, but he left some great resources behind for us fathers.  His “fathering advice” always centered on pursuing wisdom from above.  And that wisdom shaped a vision for the lives of his children.

A Vision of our Children’s Character

Solomon, the wise father, started here—character.  How do we want our children to live, to think, to act?  These are questions of character.  Solomon wanted his kids to listen to the heart of God, to be faithful and reliable, and to be known as people who lived out the teaching of their God.  He knew that if we had a vision for this type of character in our children, they would experience the blessing and the wholeness that comes from God.  Even in Solomon’s day, there was a multiplicity of enticements beckoning for his children’s hearts.  Nothing has changed.  Our children are bombarded every day with opportunities to sacrifice their character.  The Psalmist who penned Psalm 119 knew of the temptations regarding purity in the heart of a “young man” (Psalm 119:9-16), and his antidote was the same as Solomon’s—treasure God’s instruction in your heart.  As fathers, we must model God’s instruction and His heart, and we must constantly teach them who He is.  And in doing so, we help them shape a vision of who He is calling them to be.

A Vision of our Children’s Future

It has been said that character determines destiny.  How we live determines how we navigate the path ahead of us.  Solomon, like any good father, wanted his children to experientially know the security of their Heavenly Father.  He wanted his children to know God.  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart” is much more than the intellectual assent of knowing about the Father.  The Hebrew concept of trust always centers upon the feeling of being secure in the arms of the Father.  If Solomon’s kids knew God in a deep, experiential way, their future, their path, and their journey would be straight.  “Straight” in Proverbs 3:6 means “free from obstacles.”  Any experienced father knows that our children’s path will never be totally free of obstacles and things that desire to snag their hearts. But when we teach our children to pursue a deep relationship with their Heavenly Father, those obstacles will not ensnare them.  They won’t be held back in their journey to be like Jesus.  What do you want your children’s future to look like?  In five, ten, fifteen years, where do you want to see your children (I know “out of the house” will be a common refrain, but think a bit more deeply)?  As fathers, we must help our children shape a vision of where God longs to take them.

A Vision of Jesus Christ

The greatest introduction we can ever make for our children is to introduce them to their Savior Jesus Christ.  Solomon continually tells his children to pursue the wisdom of God, the wisdom from above.  The Apostle Paul, through the lens of the New Testament, tells us that the wisdom of God is Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 1:24).  If our children pursue and seek Jesus, they will be filled with all of those character qualities that Solomon desires for his children in Proverbs 3.  They will be filled with faithfulness, love, and mercy.  They will seek to know and honor God with their lives—present and future.  They will be people who navigate the rugged journey of life with grace because they are walking with their Lord.  They will follow Him.  They will be His disciples.  There can be no greater heart, vision, and joy for a father than to know that His children call themselves followers of the Risen Christ. And as fathers, we must help our children shape a vision of their ever-present and ever-faithful Savior Jesus Christ.

“Heavenly Father, through the power of Your Holy Spirit, give us earthly fathers a deep passion to teach our children how to pursue and seek the Savior Jesus Christ for a lifetime. Amen.”

 

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Jun 07

The School of Jesus

Bible, Christian Life, Spiritual Disciplines, Theological Musings 2 Comments »

Yesterday on my monthly day of prayer and solitude, I spent time reading and meditating upon Ephesians 1:3-23. Take a moment and read it. It’s well worth your time.

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him 10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him 11 also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, 12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.

15 For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints, 16 do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

As followers of Jesus, those who have enrolled in The School of Jesus, we see the “cosmic” view of what God is up to through the person and work of Jesus Christ. It is so powerful yet so personal. Jesus’ work is out-of-this-world yet for this world. Here are some lessons I learned yesterday in the school of Jesus.

  • Redemption (v. 7) means that I am forgiven. I no longer have to struggle with guilt and shame. The old has passed away, and the new has come.
  • Adoption (v. 5) means that I am loved. I am a son of God. And sons and daughters are loved extravagantly so.
  • Sanctification(v. 14) means that I am growing. Jesus is changing me. He is healing me. He is fixing the broken places in my life through the grace of His Holy Spirit.
  • Resurrection (vv. 20-23) means that I am empowered. There is a power that is outside of me that works inside of me. This fills me with hope because many a day, I feel so powerless

What is Jesus teaching you as a student in His school?

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Feb 21

Effective Prayer

Christian Life, Gospel of Mark, Spiritual Disciplines, Theological Musings 1 Comment »

From The Struggle of Prayer by Donald Bloesch…

“The efficacy of our prayers is tied to the discretion of God. He will answer the prayers of the faithful, but He will answer in His own way and in His own time. He will often give us beyond what we ask for. As Luther phrased it, ‘We pray for silver, but God often gives us gold.’

Yet God may also answer with a refusal. He will not reject our prayer, but He may well reject the way we wish our prayer to be answered. We must not insist on our solution after it becomes clear that God chooses to impose another solution. There is a time to resist and there is a time to submit. God may delay His answer in order to secure our humble dependence on Him. We need to wait for the right time, which is known only to Him. It was seven years before William Carey baptized his first convert in India.

It is well to recognize that there will always be a tension and sometimes a contradiction between our desires and God’s will. The reason is that sin still darkens the minds even of believers, so that we do not always know or desire what is best for us. God is infinite, whereas we are finite; He is the Creator, we are only creatures. This immeasurable gulf between God and man is vividly portrayed by the prophet Isaiah: ‘My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts’ (Isaiah 55:8-9).

The paradox of prayer that is not answered according to human expectation but that is fulfilled in the perspective of eternity is admirably set forth in the following poem:

He asked for strength that he might achieve;

he was made weak that he might obey.

He asked for health that he might do greater things;

he was given infirmity that he might do better things.

He asked for riches that he might be happy;

he was given poverty that he might be wise.

He asked for power that he might have the praise of men;

he was given weakness that he might feel the need of God.

He asked for all things that he might enjoy life;

he was given life that he might enjoy all things.

He has received nothing that he asked for, all that he hoped for.

His prayer was answered!

In our prayers we will not always get what we expressly desire, but we will receive what we need.”

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Feb 14

Real Love

Bible, Christian Life, Theological Musings No Comments »

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:16

“Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.” ~ 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a

“Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8

“We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him… There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He first loved us.” 1 John 4:16, 18-19

“We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” 1 John 3:16

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Feb 11

A Response to WSJ’s “God at the Grammys”

Christian Life, Theological Musings 2 Comments »

A friend sent me an article from the Wall Street Journal – “God at the Grammys: The Chosen Ones.” The stars are giving props to God for their success. A couple of thoughts in response:

1. Theology. It’s interesting how non-descript our “God” language is. What God are these stars referring to? Our culture’s use of God is simply a higher power. Rarely do we hear “Jesus Christ” uttered from the lips of people who are giving God a shout out. Implication: they’re not talking about the God I know and worship.  In our culture, you can bust out “God” language with little to no eye brow raising. But the moment you mention Jesus Christ, the conversation goes eerily quiet… or worse.

And it’s interesting how everyone wants to ascribe God’s power and guidance when things are good, but the moment the world comes crashing down, God will either be cursed or spurned.

2. Discernment. Even though my hackles are raised with an article like this, I see this view of the “divine candy dispenser in the sky” present in our own spiritual lives and Christian culture.  “______ is God’s will for me.” Fame, success, catching a game-winning pass… buying this house, choosing this job, marrying this spouse. It may be God’s will or it may not. As Christ followers, it’s imperative to develop discernment and make sure that it really is Jesus’ voice and the Spirit’s leading in your life before you pass the buck to God. There are voices out there, and most of them are not Jesus’. Be ever so careful when you ascribe your choices and actions as God’s will.

What are your thoughts to the article and to our ability to discern the will of God?

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