Continuing our look at Jude.
14 It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, 15 to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” 16 These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud-mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage. (ESV)
14 Jude reminds that he is drawing imagery from the book of Enoch. This judgement is in its own category and is apocalyptic in nature. Judgement that requires a pulling back of the realm of the physical so the spiritual realm can be witnessed. God is upset. Again these ones have warnings and prophecies about what happens to them from the Bible. They should know better and they are without excuse.
15 Judgement is coming for these men who not only pervert the truth of the faith but act in ways worthy of Judgment. God will bring conviction on these because of their anti Godly deeds. Not only are their deeds anti God but their methods are anti God. And not only this but they speak harshly against God himself. This is probably both by undermining his character in their teachings and outright blasphemy as they have already been shown to do against the glorious ones. These men undermine God's character when they teach that God allows and encourages things that he outright forbids. This undermines the character of God. It misrepresents God. It challenges his authority and it attempts to steal God's glory making him out to be something lesser than he is. Did I mention God is upset with these men?
16 Jude calls them grumblers and malcontents. This may be what fuels their misdeeds. They refuse to be content with what God has done, they continually grumble against the one who would have saved their souls. Perhaps they grumble against what they consider his restrictions on their behavior so they drum up teaching that allows them to continue down their dark path? Instead of listening they follow after their own sinful desires, and worse for the wear they use the grace of God to justify their own sins. They are loud mouthed boasters and they show favoritism for their own gain. They work for money and prestige and somehow their message of cheap grace leading to sexual sinful pleasure has a landing place in some hearers.
The testimony of Jude about these men is damning indeed. What is worse is that they are teaching others to follow suit. God will absolutely judge false teachers. God will defend his honor and character and woe to the man that attempts to poison the image of God. God will not excuse those who lead others astray, nor will he excuse those who attack his very nature. This is both for Jude's time and in ours. Grace does not excuse perverting the character of God. I do want to comment for application on how they show favoritism to gain advantage. This is precisely what is happening in our culture, they show favoritism to those with the sinful proclivities of our culture and in return receive praise and acceptance. They get to both live in the world and be of the world. They manufacture a different gospel that sinners love because it does not call them to repentance. So they rightfully gain a following and point to this "gain" as God's blessing but do not see that their judgment was long written down. We should not lose heart that many follow after them and the rest that hold the line get socially condemned, because it is before God that any man stands or falls. Take heart the day is coming when everything done in the darkness will be revealed.
I know this is challenging. I feel discouraged sometimes when our own Christian theology is hijacked. When grace and love are the handles that they hang their new teachings and perversion on we are made to look like bigots and backwater fundamentalist without hearts or care for the the world. But take heart, God is well aware of the score.
thanks
Showing posts with label love. Show all posts
Showing posts with label love. Show all posts
Friday, September 4, 2015
Friday, May 22, 2015
Sin the other church four letter word
Sin is such a vile word that the world hated Jesus for his use of it. Jesus admits this himself:
John 7:7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil.
Jesus also tells us that we will be hated like him because of our association with him.
Mathew 28:9“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.
Why was Jesus hated? I thought he was about love? Are we going to be hated because of our association with Love? If this is all Jesus was about then why all the hate? Hmm...could it be that perhaps that Jesus was not a one dimensional person only concerned with love the way we tend to portray him?
The pharisees didn't hate Jesus because he was so loving. They hated him because he had the audacity to speak with authority about sin. He had the audacity to use that authority to point out that they were not as holy as they thought. This is why they kept pointing out his bad associations because they were desperate to find him guilty as well. The people who loved Jesus did not love him because he didn't talk about sin, they loved him because despite calling them on it, he still loved them. This is what led them to repentance. The difference was the way people responded to having their sin pointed out. Humility or pride. This is still the issue to this day, this has always been the issue. Hypocrites in the church get mad when sin is talked about and unregenerate souls do the same.
But why are Christians reacting this way?
2 Corinthians 2:15-16
15For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, 16to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?
Sin should not be a four letter word for a Christian. Sin itself is a problem because it separates us from God, it influences. But confronting sin, talking about sin should not be because Jesus made a way. Sin is the reality of the fallen world. Sin is what reminds us that we need a savior and the amazing things God did for us. This is why Paul says the purpose of the Law was to reveal sin. When confronted with sin the Christian falls on his knees and asks for forgiveness and rises again knowing his forgiveness is accepted and he his welcomed into God's presence. Christians acknowledge sin because sin separates and a Christian wants to abide with Christ. Sin becomes a problem when it is not revealed; sin becomes a problem when it is fostered. For a Christian the mere presence of sin is not the problem, because it is always going to be there in some form. It is the hiding of sin that is. When someone points out our sin we should say "You are right and I need Jesus." The person bringing the charge should say "You are right, you do and so do I. It is a good thing that he is so forgiving." Then they should go out to lunch or something.
Instead what we have is people in the church responding as hecklers at a tent revival. The abhorrence to the charge of sin that the world has, has infiltrated the church and now we can't be honest with ourselves. We fail to grow and produce fruit because we seem to think that grace means we don't talk about sin or that it is no longer an issue. It isn't, as far as eternal judgement, but it is as far relationships and growth. Romans 6 is all about this. But the church has fallen for the "hey man don't judge me line" that the world uses. The church should be the one who is well aware of her heart and her deeds. This awareness should be met with joy because God's availability to us in the middle of it. God's righteousness should cause us to rejoice because our sin's are dealt with in Christ, but righteousness should not make us indifferent to sin. Living together as broken people is what makes the church beautiful. That does not mean the multicolored stained sheet of unaddressed sin is beautiful, but the fact that the people are humble about it.
It is this humility that makes us prepared to share the gospel. We recognize our need. This is that whole "It is the sick that need a physician" thing. This humility makes us present the "good news of the gospel" as a remedy and not as condemnation.
If sin is overwhelming and hateful to you one of two things has happened. The first is that you are being overcome with guilt over your sin, you feel helpless about it because you feel condemned. Now this also can go in two directions. It can lead you to repentance or it can lead you to more guilt and despair. It is this latter that causes someone to react with such hostility about sin. The first will lead you to Jesus. But the next thing that happens is your heart is hard and you do not want to repent. So the idea of sin merely angers/offends you. This is the position of the unregenerate heart, but unfortunately this mindset has weaseled it's way into Christian speak among brothers.
If as a Christian we react in this last way then there is a big problem in our heart. It is the goodness of God that causes us to repent going back to the first problem. This does not mean that the Holy Spirit tells us we are doing well when we are in sin and that hopefully we will "come around." It means that because God is good his spirit brings guilt to us so that we will want to repent and restore our relationship with him. This is clear from what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 7.
9As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us.10For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.
For the christian sin is supposed to bring us back to God not drives us away from him. I know that part of the problem may come from the way it is presented, but i would urge us to still reply that we know we need God too. Humility is quite a disarming thing. That way, if it was just said poorly we both are covered. A pastor has the responsibility to bring both the encouraging words as well as the challenging ones. If we constantly war against the challenging ones, then the question remains what's going on with our heart?
Sin should not be a four letter word for a Christian, not anymore.
Thanks
John 7:7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil.
Jesus also tells us that we will be hated like him because of our association with him.
Mathew 28:9“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.
Why was Jesus hated? I thought he was about love? Are we going to be hated because of our association with Love? If this is all Jesus was about then why all the hate? Hmm...could it be that perhaps that Jesus was not a one dimensional person only concerned with love the way we tend to portray him?
The pharisees didn't hate Jesus because he was so loving. They hated him because he had the audacity to speak with authority about sin. He had the audacity to use that authority to point out that they were not as holy as they thought. This is why they kept pointing out his bad associations because they were desperate to find him guilty as well. The people who loved Jesus did not love him because he didn't talk about sin, they loved him because despite calling them on it, he still loved them. This is what led them to repentance. The difference was the way people responded to having their sin pointed out. Humility or pride. This is still the issue to this day, this has always been the issue. Hypocrites in the church get mad when sin is talked about and unregenerate souls do the same.
But why are Christians reacting this way?
2 Corinthians 2:15-16
15For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, 16to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?
Sin should not be a four letter word for a Christian. Sin itself is a problem because it separates us from God, it influences. But confronting sin, talking about sin should not be because Jesus made a way. Sin is the reality of the fallen world. Sin is what reminds us that we need a savior and the amazing things God did for us. This is why Paul says the purpose of the Law was to reveal sin. When confronted with sin the Christian falls on his knees and asks for forgiveness and rises again knowing his forgiveness is accepted and he his welcomed into God's presence. Christians acknowledge sin because sin separates and a Christian wants to abide with Christ. Sin becomes a problem when it is not revealed; sin becomes a problem when it is fostered. For a Christian the mere presence of sin is not the problem, because it is always going to be there in some form. It is the hiding of sin that is. When someone points out our sin we should say "You are right and I need Jesus." The person bringing the charge should say "You are right, you do and so do I. It is a good thing that he is so forgiving." Then they should go out to lunch or something.
Instead what we have is people in the church responding as hecklers at a tent revival. The abhorrence to the charge of sin that the world has, has infiltrated the church and now we can't be honest with ourselves. We fail to grow and produce fruit because we seem to think that grace means we don't talk about sin or that it is no longer an issue. It isn't, as far as eternal judgement, but it is as far relationships and growth. Romans 6 is all about this. But the church has fallen for the "hey man don't judge me line" that the world uses. The church should be the one who is well aware of her heart and her deeds. This awareness should be met with joy because God's availability to us in the middle of it. God's righteousness should cause us to rejoice because our sin's are dealt with in Christ, but righteousness should not make us indifferent to sin. Living together as broken people is what makes the church beautiful. That does not mean the multicolored stained sheet of unaddressed sin is beautiful, but the fact that the people are humble about it.
It is this humility that makes us prepared to share the gospel. We recognize our need. This is that whole "It is the sick that need a physician" thing. This humility makes us present the "good news of the gospel" as a remedy and not as condemnation.
If sin is overwhelming and hateful to you one of two things has happened. The first is that you are being overcome with guilt over your sin, you feel helpless about it because you feel condemned. Now this also can go in two directions. It can lead you to repentance or it can lead you to more guilt and despair. It is this latter that causes someone to react with such hostility about sin. The first will lead you to Jesus. But the next thing that happens is your heart is hard and you do not want to repent. So the idea of sin merely angers/offends you. This is the position of the unregenerate heart, but unfortunately this mindset has weaseled it's way into Christian speak among brothers.
If as a Christian we react in this last way then there is a big problem in our heart. It is the goodness of God that causes us to repent going back to the first problem. This does not mean that the Holy Spirit tells us we are doing well when we are in sin and that hopefully we will "come around." It means that because God is good his spirit brings guilt to us so that we will want to repent and restore our relationship with him. This is clear from what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 7.
9As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us.10For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.
For the christian sin is supposed to bring us back to God not drives us away from him. I know that part of the problem may come from the way it is presented, but i would urge us to still reply that we know we need God too. Humility is quite a disarming thing. That way, if it was just said poorly we both are covered. A pastor has the responsibility to bring both the encouraging words as well as the challenging ones. If we constantly war against the challenging ones, then the question remains what's going on with our heart?
Sin should not be a four letter word for a Christian, not anymore.
Thanks
Tuesday, April 7, 2015
Is this news Good?
With Easter come and gone I have been thinking about our message and why it doesn't always sound as good as it is supposed to sound.
The Gospel. The cornerstone of our faith. Romans gives us a great summation of how to have faith. The Romans Road as some have dubbed it is a series of verses that is still very helpful for explaining the Gospel. Some may think it archaic in presentation; to simply present the verses and then an expect a full conversion after hearing it; I would agree, but the content of the verses are still very useful and true.
Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
Wait what? Is God maybe not OK with this?
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.
OK we should want to avoid this and want that, a bit harsh?
Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in that while we still sinners Christ died for us.
Ok, Hey this does sound good, so what's the catch?
Romans 10:9 That if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised him from the dead you will be saved.
Ah but here is the rub, if someone isn't offended by the first point then this one brings issue. In Christian circles we think that this is so simple, just believe! Be saved! Make it to the finish of Romans 5:1 Therefore since you have been justified through faith you have peace with God through Christ. Right? Easy? Easter!!!
I have seen the problem, which has always been the problem. The recognition of sin and our fallen state is a hard pill to swallow at first. But then confessing that Jesus is Lord and believing in his resurrection is admitting some other things about ourselves. This is admitting that perhaps we have been an offense to God. That perhaps my sin is separating me from him. Did my sin somehow contribute to his death? Is that something I am really prepared to come to terms with despite how good the end of this road is. Am I prepared to be humble before an accusation that I am not OK?
For a Christian this is good news. For someone who has already agreed to these terms this is very good news. For someone prepared to come to these terms, this is very good news. For someone who is not, then the Gospel is not so good. It is not so exciting, because there is a veiled accusation. There is a veiled message that I am not cool with God the way I am. This is the reality of the Gospel, it does have a catch. We have to be humble and accept the truth it points out in us. In faith we repent of trusting in ourselves and we place our trust in him.
People love the idea of a loving Jesus with all the acceptance. But Jesus' acceptance comes on the other side of my repentance. Again the repentance is a turning in my mind from going it on my own to going on because of him. This is my acceptance that I am not OK, that I might even be on the pathway to hell. That I am currently dead and an offense to God. Now we do not even have to present this amount of detail in the message but rest assured that someone who is offended has come to this realization. They have put two and two together and they don't like. This is why the Bible even tells us that this is offensive.
If it is offensive, doesn't it push people away? So what is the answer? How do we fix this?
We don't. This may be easy for some and not for others, but the ones it is harder for have to work through it. We are not free to soften the message's impact. It has eternal consequences, it is supposed to.
Despite this, what has happened is we have tried to help the Gospel out anyway.
The solution? To present a less offensive Jesus. Now it is not this overt, which is why it is difficult to talk about. But I hope I can show here that it is true. The method? Let's only focus on one aspect of the gospel, the love. And I know the moment I say that people will say "What do you have against love?" Well, I don't have anything against love, but the Gospel's true love is on the other side of something. It is on the other side of our coming to terms with truths from the Romans Road verses above. Wait, didn't God display his love to us while we were still sinners? Yes, yes he did, but that is a general offer, that is his loving nature. But for it to be efficacious, the love of God's forgiveness, he asks of us something. John 3:16 has an "if" clause. If it didn't we would have universalism and evangelism would be moot.
If people were already OK and loved then we wouldn't need to tell them. But if they are not, then I had better help them see and point them in the right direction. Our presentation of "God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life" has started to sound like original sin is no longer a thing, which people love!
But what this has done to the gospel is what the angry mob said to Jesus on the cross in Mathew 27.
39 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads 40 and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41 So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, 42 “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him.
They would believe in Jesus if he simply came down from the cross. The King of Israel has no business on a cross. The King of Israel has no business dying an insurrectionist's death. The King of Israel has no business being a substitution for our atonement. This is similar to what Satan tempted Jesus with. "I will give you the world, if you just worship me", without all that going to cross and suffering. But Jesus had to go through the path he went as the Bible says to learn obedience, he was the suffering servant. He was born to die. And he asks us to take up a cross and follow.
We think we are doing people a favor by avoiding sin and the death part and making the Gospel more palatable. But we are really joining with the angry mob and with Satan when we downplay Romans 10:9. God raised Jesus from the dead because sin caused his death. Our sins, not his. A payment had to be paid. It required the death penalty. God's love is freely offered but is was not free of charge. The cross speaks volumes. The cross has meaning. The cross speaks of our need and his answer. The good news cannot be offense free. Somebody had to die, because somebody did something worthy of the death penalty. This is offensive because it points to us. We have to acknowledge this exchange.
Running past the cross to the love is not simply a case of the cart before the horse. This is making the goodness of the good news not that he died for us, but that he accepts us the way we are, as we are, where we are. But He doesn't, we have to be cleansed. To not do this takes away the rescuing element. It is affirming us as we are, and who wouldn't love that? But the gospel is not affirming it is undermining. It undermines our security in our self. It is a painful reminder of our need for salvation. It is a mirror to the face with a bright light revealing all our blemishes. It does not cover up, it tears down all defenses and then asks "Am I welcome to continue?" It causes vulnerability. As we say yes, then in our nakedness before God he reaches out and embraces us at our worst, fully exposed but fully welcomed. This is the Good news.
"But Gabe no one is questioning this, we just want to reach more people!"
Cool, but the issue is that people in the church have still taken up the "Hey man don't judge me mantra." This is evidence that the offense of the cross and our part in it has been circumvented.
Without humility, and a recognition our sin, then the Gospel is an imposition. If it is an imposition than our response is not repentance but anger. This is a result of an anemic Gospel, hence this blog entry. Our job is to be clear on the Gospel not soften the blow. It is not our job to change this.
I am not adding works to the Gospel. I am simply returning to it what we have subtlety stripped away. I know this makes it sound like I am trying to make the Gospel harder, but I am not I am trying to make the message clearer. We focus on love and rightfully so, but its aim is always to draw people to repentance, drawing to repentance means an honest confrontation with the cross. So let love live on but as Paul McCartney sang Live and let Die.
In order for us to live we have to allow Christ to die. Don't worry he rises again, it's awesome!
thanks
The Gospel. The cornerstone of our faith. Romans gives us a great summation of how to have faith. The Romans Road as some have dubbed it is a series of verses that is still very helpful for explaining the Gospel. Some may think it archaic in presentation; to simply present the verses and then an expect a full conversion after hearing it; I would agree, but the content of the verses are still very useful and true.
Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
Wait what? Is God maybe not OK with this?
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.
OK we should want to avoid this and want that, a bit harsh?
Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in that while we still sinners Christ died for us.
Ok, Hey this does sound good, so what's the catch?
Romans 10:9 That if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised him from the dead you will be saved.
Ah but here is the rub, if someone isn't offended by the first point then this one brings issue. In Christian circles we think that this is so simple, just believe! Be saved! Make it to the finish of Romans 5:1 Therefore since you have been justified through faith you have peace with God through Christ. Right? Easy? Easter!!!
I have seen the problem, which has always been the problem. The recognition of sin and our fallen state is a hard pill to swallow at first. But then confessing that Jesus is Lord and believing in his resurrection is admitting some other things about ourselves. This is admitting that perhaps we have been an offense to God. That perhaps my sin is separating me from him. Did my sin somehow contribute to his death? Is that something I am really prepared to come to terms with despite how good the end of this road is. Am I prepared to be humble before an accusation that I am not OK?
For a Christian this is good news. For someone who has already agreed to these terms this is very good news. For someone prepared to come to these terms, this is very good news. For someone who is not, then the Gospel is not so good. It is not so exciting, because there is a veiled accusation. There is a veiled message that I am not cool with God the way I am. This is the reality of the Gospel, it does have a catch. We have to be humble and accept the truth it points out in us. In faith we repent of trusting in ourselves and we place our trust in him.
People love the idea of a loving Jesus with all the acceptance. But Jesus' acceptance comes on the other side of my repentance. Again the repentance is a turning in my mind from going it on my own to going on because of him. This is my acceptance that I am not OK, that I might even be on the pathway to hell. That I am currently dead and an offense to God. Now we do not even have to present this amount of detail in the message but rest assured that someone who is offended has come to this realization. They have put two and two together and they don't like. This is why the Bible even tells us that this is offensive.
If it is offensive, doesn't it push people away? So what is the answer? How do we fix this?
We don't. This may be easy for some and not for others, but the ones it is harder for have to work through it. We are not free to soften the message's impact. It has eternal consequences, it is supposed to.
Despite this, what has happened is we have tried to help the Gospel out anyway.
The solution? To present a less offensive Jesus. Now it is not this overt, which is why it is difficult to talk about. But I hope I can show here that it is true. The method? Let's only focus on one aspect of the gospel, the love. And I know the moment I say that people will say "What do you have against love?" Well, I don't have anything against love, but the Gospel's true love is on the other side of something. It is on the other side of our coming to terms with truths from the Romans Road verses above. Wait, didn't God display his love to us while we were still sinners? Yes, yes he did, but that is a general offer, that is his loving nature. But for it to be efficacious, the love of God's forgiveness, he asks of us something. John 3:16 has an "if" clause. If it didn't we would have universalism and evangelism would be moot.
If people were already OK and loved then we wouldn't need to tell them. But if they are not, then I had better help them see and point them in the right direction. Our presentation of "God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life" has started to sound like original sin is no longer a thing, which people love!
But what this has done to the gospel is what the angry mob said to Jesus on the cross in Mathew 27.
39 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads 40 and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41 So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, 42 “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him.
They would believe in Jesus if he simply came down from the cross. The King of Israel has no business on a cross. The King of Israel has no business dying an insurrectionist's death. The King of Israel has no business being a substitution for our atonement. This is similar to what Satan tempted Jesus with. "I will give you the world, if you just worship me", without all that going to cross and suffering. But Jesus had to go through the path he went as the Bible says to learn obedience, he was the suffering servant. He was born to die. And he asks us to take up a cross and follow.
We think we are doing people a favor by avoiding sin and the death part and making the Gospel more palatable. But we are really joining with the angry mob and with Satan when we downplay Romans 10:9. God raised Jesus from the dead because sin caused his death. Our sins, not his. A payment had to be paid. It required the death penalty. God's love is freely offered but is was not free of charge. The cross speaks volumes. The cross has meaning. The cross speaks of our need and his answer. The good news cannot be offense free. Somebody had to die, because somebody did something worthy of the death penalty. This is offensive because it points to us. We have to acknowledge this exchange.
Running past the cross to the love is not simply a case of the cart before the horse. This is making the goodness of the good news not that he died for us, but that he accepts us the way we are, as we are, where we are. But He doesn't, we have to be cleansed. To not do this takes away the rescuing element. It is affirming us as we are, and who wouldn't love that? But the gospel is not affirming it is undermining. It undermines our security in our self. It is a painful reminder of our need for salvation. It is a mirror to the face with a bright light revealing all our blemishes. It does not cover up, it tears down all defenses and then asks "Am I welcome to continue?" It causes vulnerability. As we say yes, then in our nakedness before God he reaches out and embraces us at our worst, fully exposed but fully welcomed. This is the Good news.
"But Gabe no one is questioning this, we just want to reach more people!"
Cool, but the issue is that people in the church have still taken up the "Hey man don't judge me mantra." This is evidence that the offense of the cross and our part in it has been circumvented.
Without humility, and a recognition our sin, then the Gospel is an imposition. If it is an imposition than our response is not repentance but anger. This is a result of an anemic Gospel, hence this blog entry. Our job is to be clear on the Gospel not soften the blow. It is not our job to change this.
I am not adding works to the Gospel. I am simply returning to it what we have subtlety stripped away. I know this makes it sound like I am trying to make the Gospel harder, but I am not I am trying to make the message clearer. We focus on love and rightfully so, but its aim is always to draw people to repentance, drawing to repentance means an honest confrontation with the cross. So let love live on but as Paul McCartney sang Live and let Die.
In order for us to live we have to allow Christ to die. Don't worry he rises again, it's awesome!
thanks
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
On Love and Haircuts
With Valentines here a lot of people get excited and a lot of people groan. This is not a deep without words groaning that the spirit does while making intercession for us. No, this is because we think the holiday is stupid or pointless or merely a paycheck for hallmark. Some are excited for a night of romance, some want connection, some are depressed, some are worried about paying for it all , some don't worry because they have convinced their significant other that it is pointless. And some are actually excited for the 50 Shades of Grey movie?
So why groan? May it be because relationship are hard, or perhaps some of us are bad at them, and worse at learning about them? The Bible has something to say about that.
The Bible tells a story of a man who was driven by his passions. Samson is probably one of the best examples of a hopeless romantic in the bible. He seems to try and make it work with the wrong woman over and over again. It ended very badly for him.
Here are some examples of the way Samson acted when blinded by lust:
Samson saw a daughter of the philistines and wanted to marry her despite her not being from their own people. Then Samson when to a prostitute in Gaza. Then he went to the valley of Sorek to live with Delilah a woman who continually betrayed him to the Philistines.
What is wrong with this guy? But do we do much better? What's wrong with us?
The Song of Songs is a book celebrating the love that God has gifted to a man and a woman. An underlining theme may be that perhaps we are bad at this? The book reminds us not to awaken love before it's time. But Samson would not have it. He wanted this girl no matter how much of a bad decision that was. He did not know it would cost him his life, as proverbs 7 reminds us.
to keep you from the forbidden woman,
from the adulteress with her smooth words.
Sometimes reaching for love before you are ready can have a tragic end. But it will always draw your heat away from God.
So why groan? May it be because relationship are hard, or perhaps some of us are bad at them, and worse at learning about them? The Bible has something to say about that.
The Bible tells a story of a man who was driven by his passions. Samson is probably one of the best examples of a hopeless romantic in the bible. He seems to try and make it work with the wrong woman over and over again. It ended very badly for him.
Here are some examples of the way Samson acted when blinded by lust:
Samson saw a daughter of the philistines and wanted to marry her despite her not being from their own people. Then Samson when to a prostitute in Gaza. Then he went to the valley of Sorek to live with Delilah a woman who continually betrayed him to the Philistines.
What is wrong with this guy? But do we do much better? What's wrong with us?
The Song of Songs is a book celebrating the love that God has gifted to a man and a woman. An underlining theme may be that perhaps we are bad at this? The book reminds us not to awaken love before it's time. But Samson would not have it. He wanted this girl no matter how much of a bad decision that was. He did not know it would cost him his life, as proverbs 7 reminds us.
to keep you from the forbidden woman,
from the adulteress with her smooth words.
6 For at the window of my house
I have looked out through my lattice,
7 and I have seen among the simple,
I have perceived among the youths,
a young man lacking sense,
8 passing along the street near her corner,
taking the road to her house
9 in the twilight, in the evening,
at the time of night and darkness.
I have looked out through my lattice,
7 and I have seen among the simple,
I have perceived among the youths,
a young man lacking sense,
8 passing along the street near her corner,
taking the road to her house
9 in the twilight, in the evening,
at the time of night and darkness.
10 And behold, the woman meets him,
dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart...
dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart...
Solomon warns his son about how a man is easily enticed by what he sees. And Solomon knew what he was talking about after all he had over 500 wives and concubines. In some ways this makes him both over qualified and perhaps also disqualified, but the advice is sound either way. In the book of proverbs he warns us about how to act when the temptation arises, because the end is always the same...
21 With much seductive speech she persuades him;
with her smooth talk she compels him.
22 All at once he follows her,
as an ox goes to the slaughter,
or as a stag is caught fast
23 till an arrow pierces its liver;
as a bird rushes into a snare;
he does not know that it will cost him his life.
with her smooth talk she compels him.
22 All at once he follows her,
as an ox goes to the slaughter,
or as a stag is caught fast
23 till an arrow pierces its liver;
as a bird rushes into a snare;
he does not know that it will cost him his life.
For us love and relationships are such a touchy subject. Because nobody is going to tell us who we can love! We just feel what we feel, right? We know this girl/dude is different! We feel it inside and that is all that matters to us. But God does have somethings to help us out with in this area. Perhaps he wants to spare us some heartache.
I think Samson while an incredible story and important character used by God, he teaches us something about relationships.
Look hard before you buy.
With Valentines here this is an important message. Love is indeed in the air, but where are you sticking your nose? The Bible has a lot to say about love and relationships if we will but listen.
It's speaks to the timing of love. Songs 8:4
It speaks to character of love. 1 Corinthians 13
It even speaks to the type of people to love. 2 Corinthians 6:14, 1 Corinthians 5:33, Proverbs 31
It even hints at the confines of love. Proverbs 5:18-19, Genesis 2:24, 1 Peter 3:7, Mathew 19:3-9
If love hasn't arrived for you yet, this Valentines don't be on the look out for "love", instead work on being a person capable of loving and being loved. The time will come when love comes to town, but don't miss it because you are preoccupied with needing a date for the holiday not wanting to feel lonely. Don't let a holiday or a bad movie tempt you into making a bad decision when it comes to this area. Decisions of the heart last a long time. Don't be like Samson who ran after what his eyes told him was best, nor should we listen to Roxette for that matter and simply listen to your heart. No the Bible teaches us to engage our minds on this one. Probably because our hearts have a tendency to go overboard with this stuff.
But if love has already come to town for you then be a person worthy of being loved. Be excited because if your significant other is excited about Valentines and you both get to celebrate each other. Then read the Song of songs for some advice. Be prepared to love back despite your feelings on the holiday. When you don't, you make it about yourself, when it is about you, well then you are acting like Samson.
Don't miss the point, the point being the other person who is excited about the day, not the day itself.
Love isn't about you, love is about them. Your job is to love them. If you don't yet have someone make sure the other person is worthy of your heart. If you do then make sure you are taking the time to be worthy of their love.
So as Samson failed to do, make sure the next time you let a girl cut your hair that she has your best interest in mind.
thanks
It's speaks to the timing of love. Songs 8:4
It speaks to character of love. 1 Corinthians 13
It even speaks to the type of people to love. 2 Corinthians 6:14, 1 Corinthians 5:33, Proverbs 31
It even hints at the confines of love. Proverbs 5:18-19, Genesis 2:24, 1 Peter 3:7, Mathew 19:3-9
If love hasn't arrived for you yet, this Valentines don't be on the look out for "love", instead work on being a person capable of loving and being loved. The time will come when love comes to town, but don't miss it because you are preoccupied with needing a date for the holiday not wanting to feel lonely. Don't let a holiday or a bad movie tempt you into making a bad decision when it comes to this area. Decisions of the heart last a long time. Don't be like Samson who ran after what his eyes told him was best, nor should we listen to Roxette for that matter and simply listen to your heart. No the Bible teaches us to engage our minds on this one. Probably because our hearts have a tendency to go overboard with this stuff.
But if love has already come to town for you then be a person worthy of being loved. Be excited because if your significant other is excited about Valentines and you both get to celebrate each other. Then read the Song of songs for some advice. Be prepared to love back despite your feelings on the holiday. When you don't, you make it about yourself, when it is about you, well then you are acting like Samson.
Don't miss the point, the point being the other person who is excited about the day, not the day itself.
Love isn't about you, love is about them. Your job is to love them. If you don't yet have someone make sure the other person is worthy of your heart. If you do then make sure you are taking the time to be worthy of their love.
So as Samson failed to do, make sure the next time you let a girl cut your hair that she has your best interest in mind.
thanks
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