What Are We In It For?

Job 34: 11-12 He repays a man for what he has done; he brings upon him what his conduct deserves. It is unthinkable that God would do wrong, that the Almighty would pervert justice.

Elihu and his companions felt that Job had brought his troubles upon himself. In this scripture he states his belief that God simply would not let bad things happen to righteous people. He see God as unswerving justice.

The book of Job is pretty darn interesting. There is no indication that Job was ever anything but the most righteous of men, but God did allow calamity to befall him. His friends simply weren't able to believe that Job was not responsible for his lot, despite his argument. But there were things going on in a higher plane that none of them knew anything about. God reserves the right to use each of us as He will for His purpose. It might not appear to be just in our limited comprehension so if justice is our aim, we might be in for a nasty shock. Romans 9 states that God has plans that override our actions and sense of justice. If we are to give ourselves to God and His plan we must simply trust. It's not that I think God is unjust, it's just that He sees things on such a broader scope than we can. Our view of justice hinges on the here and now, His extends into eternity. To trust Him in harsh times is a test but there are clear examples in scripture that righteous people, being obedient to Him, sometimes have brutal experiences. All of Christ's disciples, save John, died at the hands of men, just as their Lord had. It doesn't mean God forsake them, only that their deaths served His perfect plan. Are we willing to give ourselves to God even if it means that things might not get better? Will we follow Him if it makes us appear to others that we are the losers? If it means we stay poor or single? If we are to take up our cross, we must only trust and follow. Where is not guaranteed.

Lord God, Please nurture my faith so that I may trust You enough to follow where You would have me go. Amen.

Slavery by Deception

Galatians 4: 8-9 Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to beings that by nature are not gods. Now, however, that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and beggarly elemental spirits? How can you want to be enslaved to them again?

Paul was arguing against false teachings that were urging a return to adherence to Jewish laws and customs as the way to attain righteousness.

This scripture has always spoken to the alcoholic in me. In recovery it is common to see people fall back into their addiction after enjoying a period of sobriety. I spent 12 years struggling with sobriety and falling back into the arms of the god of my choosing, alcohol. For a person who recognizes the great gift of freedom that Christ has given us, to watch someone choose anything else is baffling. Unfortunately it is not uncommon in the world outside of recovery either. There are all kinds of pitfalls that are covered over with false promises of freedom, ease, pleasure, success and control. These lies lure us into a lives of confusion, competition and fear. If we are to win the prize it must come at the expense of others, or even ourselves. We settle into meaningless lives that range from mediocre to tragic. This is all done by design by the same force that initially lured us out of trust and freedom and into slavery. The serpent has bait other than a shiny apple these days, so if anything leads us away from the trust and love of faith in Jesus Christ, it has a hook in it.

Father God, please lead me to trust in You no matter what. Amen.

Fourteen Years?

Galatians 2:1 Then after fourteen years I went again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along with me.

Paul is recounting his second trip to Jerusalem.

My mind plays a lot of tricks on me and I am beginning to suspect that I'm not very smart. For whatever reason, my mind condenses down the time it took for the events in the bible to take place. The book of Acts tells of events that took place over at least a thirty year span of time. In my mind however, it took about a year. No one told me that, that's just the way I want to see it. The result is that I see the Church growing like wildfire and Paul rushing about the Mediterranean like Elijah in 1 Kings 18: 46, which is a really funny picture to me. And this is the standard I hold myself and all of you to as well. We must do a lifetime of work in a few days. Simply put, I'm impatient. I can't understand why The Bridge isn't a mega-church after meeting a couple of years. After preaching a hand full of times over a couple of years, it seems to me that I should have started a global revival. Things should be happening faster! To see Paul reference fourteen years brings me back into reality a little. Even though I don't like to give them time, things take time. God is eternal and infinite, He is not in as big a rush as Hugh is. There is probably an ego issue working here as well. I want to hurry up and get done so people can see what a good job I did. Anyway, there is certainly a lesson for me in this. I grew up watching TV and in those shows things always work out in 30 minutes or an hour. It's not that way in the real world. If I am to humbly walk with my Lord, I must travel at His pace and have no agenda of my own. In my experience, when I have done this He never wastes time, I just don't always understand what He is doing.

Lord God, please grant that I might learn to follow You, doing the next right thing over and over, in no hurry to be anywhere other than in Your grace. Amen.

Righteous Indignation!!!>:-(

Mark 11: 15-16 Then they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who were selling and those who were buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves; and he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple.

This is our only glimpse of Jesus being physically violent. He is taking the strongest of action against a corrupt enterprise that was allowed to exist within the temple.

I've heard this scripture preached on a number of times but have never really made peace with it. The fact that Jesus reacted this way indicates that there is a time and place for this kind of behavior even though I have never found it. Not that I haven't thrown several nasty temper tantrums in my time! Oh, I have. They were never constructive or righteous though and I always wished I could have a re-do when it was all said and done. In the last couple of years I have felt a desire to rage against mediocrity and the status quo within the church but have decided to put that on hold for awhile. It was something that Shane Claibourne said in his book, The Irresistible Revolution: Life as an Ordinary Radical, that changed my thinking. I can't quote him exactly since I can't find my copy right now but the gist of his comment was that as Christians we can't just rage against things. Our rage and actions have to be based in the love of God and our fellows.(See Mark 12: 28-31) That's pretty heavy stuff. It more or less takes rage off of my plate. I have been told that justifiable anger and righteous indignation are better left to other people and, in my case, I agree. There are lots of situations where I am not happy with the way other people are behaving but I'm not sure that whacking the tar out of some silly sinner has ever been the best way for me to let the love of Christ shine through. Maybe someday, but for now I am struggling with freshman level love and service classes. I really don't mean to make light of this story from the life of Jesus Christ. I do however, feel that after considering all of His teachings, we should weigh any inclination to rage against Christ's commandment to love one another.

Almighty Lord God, please lead me to love You by loving my neighbor, even when that is a terribly difficult thing to do. Amen.

Rescued From a Life Among the Tombs

Mark 5: 18-20 As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed by demons begged him that he might be with him. But Jesus refused , and said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy he has shown you." And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.

After having been freed from a legion of demons, the Gerasene man wanted to follow his savior. Jesus however instructed him to stay behind and tell his story to the people where he lived.

I identify with this Gerasene demoniac perhaps more closely than with any other character in scripture. We don't know his name or his whole story but what we do know is that demons had totally taken control of his being. He was harmful to himself, frightening and dangerous to others and could not function in society. All that was left for him was to ride out his days living among the dead. I've been there. And here's what: Jesus freed me too! Like this pig guy, (that's my nickname for him and myself) Christ's power to free us from the powers that enslave brought me back from a life that was very close to death. It made me want to follow and serve the Savior as well. We both were shown too much truth not to proclaim His name! We know that many people were amazed by his story and that's the last we hear from the pig guy. What about me? What will I do with the truth that has been given me? Most people manage their lives much better than I have. At least it would appear so from what I can see on the surface. Because of my demons, I believe I was taught some lessons about powerlessness and our dependence upon Jesus Christ that maybe most people don't have the opportunity to experience. I pray that I will be able to express my experience with living death, undeserved grace and liberating love that will pass on the truth that I have been shown.

Gracious Heavenly Father, Please give me the words and the love of You and my fellows that will make my story a testament to Your love, grace and healing power. Amen.

What Demons Know

Mark 3: 11 Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and shouted, "You are the Son of God!"

Demons, members of the spirit world, recognized Jesus clearly.

That demons so clearly recognized Jesus and instantly conceded His authority has always intrigued me. I suppose since they are spiritual beings and know the reality of spiritual matters that they knew that Jesus is the Spirit of absolute power. That vision is not so clear to us. Paul said, "Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror..." It won't always be that way. Because God has graciously and lovingly given us a glimpse of truth, we have the opportunity to live our lives in recognition of His authority, which will eventually be clear to all. The society that we live in has become so adept at manipulating the physical world around us that I feel people are less and less inclined to seek spiritual solutions to life problems. It is our lot to follow Him and to let Him shine through this facade however He will in our lives. It still seems odd to me though. The world He came to save didn't recognize Him, but the demons he came to free us from fell down before Him. How crazy is that?

Father God, please lead me and teach me to live in the sunlight of Your Spirit so that You shine out and are perceptible to those around me. Amen.

An Old Cloak

Mark 2: 21-22 "No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak; otherwise the patch pulls away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and so are the skins; but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins."

Jesus was explaining to the people why his disciples were not fasting like the disciples of John and the Pharisees. Fasting would not be appropriate behavior in the presence of their Lord and master. Their time to fast would come, but it had not yet arrived.

Appropriate behavior. This is pretty consistently an issue for me. I am a Christian and have recently become a pastor but I'm also a guy who works in warehouses with other guys. I've worked in these warehouses with these guys for a lot longer than I've been a committed follower of Christ. God Almighty is not the only god I have bowed to in my time either. The point that I'm trying to make here is that I've learned a lot of bad behavior over the years, and Jesus didn't drive these behaviors out when He came to reign in my heart. When the pressure is on and tempers flare at work my behavior is often not what I would consider appropriate. It has become pretty clear to me that it is my responsibility to have the appropriate attitude and words to reflect the Lord that now dwells within me. Weather or not I will sacrifice my pride, my anger, my sense of justice and my desire to get a good laugh, regardless of the cost, is the question that I am faced with countless times every day. If I am willing to put aside my whatever, His grace replaces my bad habits and behaviors. This is the sacrifice that I am called to make for Him, for my co-workers and really, for myself. It hurts me more and more every time that I make the wrong choice and realize that an opportunity has been lost. That I am still willing to crucify Christ hurts me and those around me.

Father God, please lead me to sacrifice my sense of self importance and lay it at Your feet. May I faithfully put aside myself and bear this cross daily. Amen.