Am I pleasing to God?

I had a discussion during a worship practice over some song lyrics which is always a good thing to do. The question of our state of being pleasing before the Lord came up. Now the preface was where does the Bible say "I am pleased with you" You know, chapter and verse? Well it doesn't that specifically because that would require God speaking to us specifically which he doesn't often do. He is usually speaking to the disciples. 

I immediately responded that the concept of being pleasing to God was all over scripture. That is a benefit of being a child of God. We all know that Jesus was the beloved Son in whom God was well pleased not us! But, I would posit that because we are in Christ, because of his precious blood and wondrous work of the cross, I can be brought near as an adopted son.  I can come boldly to the throne to receive mercy and grace because I am now a family member. 

I do not shrink away from his presence because of feelings of guilt, or unworthiness, or wonder if I am pleasing to God...not anymore. I suppose that this is part of every Christian's growing experience, to believe the promises of God. To believe that I am accepted in the beloved and will make it into his presence on that final day. This I believe is why the author of Hebrews writes without faith it is impossible to please him. (Heb 11:6) If we do not believe and live in such a way that his truths are true for us then our relationship with God will be very different than what he desire for us. 

Colossians 1 teaches that God was pleased to not only fully dwell in Christ but to do this for the purpose of reconciling the world to him. 

19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven,by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

God was pleased to make peace with us. So I have to ask did God do these things, pleasing himself, to remain not pleased with his people? This really brings to mind the idea of an angry God in heaven who scowls as his people that he was so please to reconcile himself to. It doesn't really follow does it? But I know that our sin has a tendency to trap our minds in this cage. This is basic theology that perhaps we forget when we are looking at ourselves instead of God. If God has taken the time to reconcile himself to us it follows that he wanted a relationship with us. He desires us. 

Now I understand the reasoning for this. When I first heard the song that caused such tumult I though it was perhaps a bit light to say the least but I did not think that author was intending to communicate that we were pleasing to God in a vacuum.  If the author was intending to communicate that we are so pleasing and therefore God cannot but simply recognize our merit, then yes we would have a problem. But this gets back to the filter issue I wrote about before. If I am weighed down by my past or I am thinking about someone else's lack of righteousness then my lens might cause me come to the phrase in this song and think "We are not pleasing! Haven't you read Romans?" 

This is putting the Bible at odds with itself. Yes there is no one who does good, no not even one. But this is the reality of fallen humanity not the regenerated son of Christ. Yes we as sons and daughters of Christ are people who still sin, but the glorious gift is that we can turn to him who is faithful and just to forgive us of all unrighteousness. "Jesus paid it all", to quote another song. We do not believe that we are perfect by any means but we understand that our filthy garments have been replaced by robes of righteousness. This is what makes relationship with him possible. 

See if we forget this truth then we fall into a performance based relationship. We seek relationship through obedience, however the the real way it works is because of my relationship with him that he established I desire obedience because of love for him.  

I wanted to exhort us to not walk around with our hands covering our face just in case God is pitching burning embers our way. God is pleased with us as we walk with him. This is not to say that perhaps some of us do not have some repentance and Christian discipline to do, but God is not shocked at our failures to be perfect. We should always strive to keep short accounts with God for sure. It isn't different than going to seek forgiveness on account of any transgression that we seek to repair for the sake of relationship. 

I walk with my head held high not because I know I am some awesome human specimen, but because "I know that my redeemer lives." To quote another song. I know that I have a relationship with the most powerful, most beautiful, most loving, most forgiving, most welcoming, most just, most good, most best-est God ever! My words fail to even give majesty to him, but I know that he loves me and thus I try to be pleasing to him as Paul writes many times over and thus I love him in return. 

Now I didn't have the benefit of this one in my back pocket during the discussion but I am thankful because it lead to this entry, but I am glad but the Bible does teach this:

For the LORD takes pleasure in His people; He will beautify the afflicted ones with salvation.

(Psalm 149:4)

This psalm teaches that God does delight in his people, he takes pleasure in them and that he beautifies them with salvation. God did this very thing, he came and beautified his bride with his righteousness. Jesus made his bride beautiful because of his gift of redemption. Now we cannot say we are pleasing in a vacuum just as I would not say I made my wife Kimberly beautiful because of her distance to me. Only God has the power to cleanse and make beauty from ashes and this is the very thing he did.

This is not simply Israel because remember John teaches that each of us have been grafted into the promise though Christ. We are part of the people of God. We can know we are pleasing to God as much as Flanders knows he is pleasing to God.

So are we pleasing to God? Yes, but for you to believe that perhaps you might need to pray and talk with God about it and do some heart examination. Be encouraged.

thanks

Chasing the Carrot

Theology of hope and blessing are an interesting thing. Always having hope is important. It is essential to the Christian life. Looking toward the future with expectation in Christ's return is important. Looking forward to the day of our redemption is vital to Christian health. Knowing where we are going is important to any journey.

When we read the beatitudes. We recognize that most of the blessings that come about are because of attitudes towards life that are not normal to the natural man. We have to re-frame our perspective about life according to the very real world changes that come about because of the Gospel. When we look at them closely we recognize that many of the resulting blessing are in a sense kingdom come blessings. As such they will find there ultimate fulfillment in the actual kingdom of God. It is about looking to the future. It has less to do about present and immediate tactile increase.

Blessed are the meek, blessed are the poor in spirit, blessed are those who mourn, blessed are the peacemakers etc. The blessings are inheriting the earth, possessing the kingdom, seeing God. All of these have there fulfillment when Jesus returns. There may be temporary comfort and mercy but the unending guarantee of them is when we are in heaven and the new earth. Jesus is calling for a change in behavior now for the promise of what is to come. The even better thing is that with the Spirit we get to experience some of this relief now but the truest fulfillment is yet to come.

But watch Christian television for any length of time and you get the feeling that God is always around the next corner waiting to shower you with blessings and prizes. Wow the Christian life is exciting! Now I don't doubt that God blesses his people in this way but this seems to lack balance and perspective. 

I don't say this because I believe he doesn't bless but often this message is that it is just around the next corner. God has something amazing! God has the fix you have been looking for! The solution is coming, always coming. It sounds very infomercial. 

So is my problem with buying or is there some issue with UPS, a strike perhaps?

My real question in this is how do we get perspective on the lack of arriving? Do we continually swallow this line that it is still on its way? I know that it is true that the destination is always still a ways off while we are still in transit. But don't we at some point check the route again? 

This is a hard question, but I want to wrestle with hard questions. Does even asking the question undermine my faith? Would this be easier to shut up, get in line and hold my hands open for the inevitable filling all the while feeling something is wrong? What do I do when it doesn't feel inevitable?

Worse yet what do we tell people in ministry when they experience this dissonance? The easy answer is have more faith, but this doesn't help. Is it perhaps some of us are just poor waiters? Perhaps, but might a continual message of carrot chasing need tweeking?

See I want blessings as much as the next person. I don't think rose colored glasses are the answer though. We are taught to pray "if it be thy will" this needs to be applied to that blessing that we want. If the message we are hearing is continual blessing around what seems to be endless corners then maybe we need to consider that crucial phrase "if it be thy will".  

That way if checking around each corner only reveals another boulevard to be traversed it will not bring more undo stress. Jesus has another leg on this journey huh? Well get back up on the wagon and let's continue on. Perhaps at some juncture we will realize we have learned to navigate the map better and learned to actually listen to the GPS. God's, Path, of Salvation, ha!

See I believe faith is more about believing the promises of God and not so much about receiving the next item of blessing. It is hard enough to keep myself in the love of God without worrying about whether my check is coming in the mail. Worrying about the check is a real enough issue but faith is about calling us to settled truth that we are loved and accepted in the beloved. It is about moving forward with a renewed sense of urgency because I have new sense of place in the world. I am loved and cared for and forgiven and my blessed of eternity with him gives me what I need to negotiate today. This truth helps me wait for the check without calling into question his character and provision when the mail seems to get lost.

I am a Christian for the relationship with God not for the personal benefits that may come to me. This is a truth that I have to remind myself. I don't want to get so caught up with petition that I forget adoration. The relationship absolutely brings about personal benefits but I want to seek his face. When it becomes about the carrots then I become a dissatisfied bunny.

There are so many advantages and benefits to being a follower of Christ that I never want to grow discontent because I feel short changed on some temporal blessing. I want to focus on Jesus forgiving nature that positions me for a relationship that I do not deserve. When we focus on this it gives such freedom to the Christian life that I cannot stop to mourn a loss of discontentment. Along with this truth we get to inherit eternal life and live in the presence of the maker of all things.

I get to befriend God.

No carrots are worth losing my center which interrupts enjoying the lover of my soul in the now. This is preparing for the coming storms that come and having that solid foundation in Christ. This is why Jesus taught us to look to the blessing that come with eternity because that is where the real fun begins. This is not pie in the sky and self denial this is recognizing the true joy of our salvation. This way God is free to bless and withhold as he sees fit in order to develop our hearts for him.

This is how we can say "The Lord has given and the Lord has taken away blessed be his name."

This way God is able to say "yes" and "no" if needs be. He gets to be God and I get to be a faithful member of his kingdom, a loving member of his family, and a happy bunny with carrot rations.

thanks

A contextual Sigh-nn

After travelling across the country (thank God we have arrived!) and seeing sign after sign directing me where to turn, where to merge, where to exit, and even what speed to drive, I was reminded of this little episode that played out in my life last year.

Signs are supposed to instruct, to help, to inform, to guide. Signs are a good thing, but...

While I was driving to work one day I saw man on the way, he was standing out on the corner of a fairly major intersection. He was holding a sign. It was one of those signs that teaches biblical truth. At least I assumed that was the sentiment.

It was one of those signs that had two truths, one on the front and one on the back, both from first John. The first side I saw said "a child of God does not go on sinning" at first I was like, OK, an apt truth. But then he spun the sign to reveal the other side. It said "anyone who sins is of the devil".

The first by itself may have been an exhortation to brothers to step-up their faith, to stir up the good works inside of them, to continue on the narrow path, to even check to see whether or not we are in the faith as the apostles remind us. A little bit of exhortation from a fellow believer? I like that, however, that wasn't the truth at all, when the two messages are coupled together it rang like a scathing contrast: Christian are good and everyone everyone else is bad. With the messages together it was no longer an encouragement, it was people retreating to their respective camps with knives out. It was us versus them and clearly we have the upper hand. We have the leg up and not only that but you are horrible people. It was not an invitation to life change or a welcoming to the gospel.

Signs that condemn do nothing but anger and create walls, or make us swerve off the road.

Now these verses in this vacuum of context are not true. They are half truths. It does not contain the next crucial verses, it doesn't contain the context in which it says, but when we sin God is faithful and just to forgive us of all unrighteousness.  Without these thoughts, this message is pretty hopeless.  The Bible can say a lot of things when we print individual verses on signs, boards, and cards. The Bible can be made to say many things it is not intending when it is not allowed to speak for itself.

So this sign did not speak truth. Christians do not sin. So wait, what if at some point I did and sometimes do, am i now not one? Oh dear...

He who sins are sons of the devil? So what there is no hope for me, then why say anything? What is that supposed to do except make me angry? Oh dear...

No! The Bible in untrained hands or presented thoughtlessly as this only kills. As Paul says the letter kills but the spirit brings life. The Spirit illuminates the scriptures, but his job is made difficult if we only choose bits and pieces and ignore the rest. People, do not talk about sin without a remedy! Do not talk the judgement without the invitation to repentance and the welcoming arms of God!

Our sin does separate but this is not the complete story. He loves us so he sent his Son to die! This is like when the news quotes presidential candidates out of context to undermine their platform but much much worse. 

If we aren't communicating hope then we don't understand the gospel. We have to understand the hope is in the message not the hearing. If people don't hear the hope then that is on them but we have to present it! Otherwise we just continue the pendulous nature of us against them, sinners versus saints. Guns drawn armor on. 

The word gospel means good news. It is not good to simply know that God is angry with me. People have to also know what to do with that information. The good part comes in that God has done a work to repair that wounded relationship. Not only has he done the work but he offers to us the results of that work himself.

This is like those people who say "I am not mean I am just being honest". They parade it like a virtue, when everybody else is silently noting how much of a jerk they are. See if we only tell people the truth of their situation without any remedy we will simply close doors. This is why we are taught to speak the truth in love. It had to be complete to be true and the delivery is also important. 

I remember thinking that if I saw that guy the next day that I would have to stop and talk with him. I can only assume he meant well but it would be more helpful if his sign had said "The End is Nigh". That would at least elicit a response of some kind, but the one he had, stated the way it was, simply laid down a barricade between who is in and who is out. This differences between who is in and who is out is not a helpful conversation apart from the Gospel. That kind of truth is only revealed after people have an encounter with Jesus through the gospel. We understand this truth afterward and it prompts us to go and tell it on the mountain. We understand both sides of the truth and it fills us with awe and love and it is supposed to fill us with compassion for those who need it as well.

Telling half truths may as well be lying. God offers forgiveness to all, if we would only come. This is similar to the Calvinist and Arminian debate. If we only are interested in God's part, and God's part has nothing to do with us then why bother talking about it? If we are only interested in our part and our responsibility then why bother bringing God into it at all? This is what happens when we press a particular point without its context within the fuller picture of revelation. 

We are not operating in vacuums here.

God did not without context tell us we are sinners, nor does he tells us without context we are loved. There is background information that these truths communicate upon. Doctor's offer help within the context of sickness. Mechanics repair within the context of malfunction. Gardener's sow and tend within the context of wild overgrowth. Trainers train within the context of misbehaving puppies. 

Finally the Savior saves within the context of the people of the earth being eternally lost. He offers life where there was only death. So start telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help us God.

That way the sign will lead people to God rather than away. 

thanks

Yes Brother I Do Lift

Since we are moving and I have been busy I will post a bit of shorter one this week. This is something I wrote awhile back but I was thinking about it again because of us moving across the country and as I have been busy all week packing and lifting all our belongings onto a truck so...

Be strong if your strength comes from the Lord and be weak if your weakness gives way to the Lord's strength. Do not lean on your own understanding but lift your shoulders as he gives strength. Re-new your strength and rise up like eagles because we wait for God's movement. He gives strength to the weak and gives help to hopeless. I have no strength on my own. But I do lift my head to the one who gives all that I need. I lift my eyes up to the mountain where my help comes from. I stands as he gives my bones strength and I walk as he give my body life.

I am weak truly and he is strong. But my weakness allows for his strength to rise. In my weakness he is strong so I am made strong in turn. I can keep moving as he gives me his Spirit and breath.

I can drown on own, but I am ready to soar. I can fail and create massive destruction on my own just fine thank you, but God makes all things new.

For I was dead and he made me alive. For I carried the stink of death, and my smell appealed only to my fellow walking dead. But now I carry the aroma of life leading to life that he grants. He gives me the help that I need beyond my need, the needs that I don't understand and sometimes don't see. I cannot rest on my laurels if I even have any. I rest in his strong arm. I lift my head because I know where my strength comes from. I lift my head from the many sorrows to the Father of lights.

I also lift my voice as I call on the name of the Lord. I lift my voice and call to the one who strengthens in the days of adversity. I lift my voice to the one who guides when the night continues on for too long. The days are darker but I can lift my voice to the ever present help in time of need.

I lift my face when my soul is downcast. I lift my face when my tears draw my head down. I lift as he holds me, as my own might is nothing. He holds and guides and draws. He is with me. He is in me. He is for me. He loves me. So I can press on. I can continue the race till the reach that place that puts all the world to rest. 

He gives me rest so I can rise in the morning. He gives me grace so I can rise despite my failings. Just as I will rise when he calls my name. I lift my myself into his hands. But really he has lifted me.

I rise when I fall because he helps me to stand. I lift my heavy heart when my heart is overwhelmed.

I lift my hands to worship the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. I lift them because he was first lifted for me. He spread out his hands to show them the kind of death he would die. We was lifted up on the cross and draws all the world to himself. 

As he was lifted up and brought down to the depths of the earth, his life and body afterward was lifted into the sky for one the day he will return. Until then I lift my head till he returns knowing that he will lift me up when I lay me down for the final sleep.

So I lift my arms to the work of the Gospel as he has called and shown me the way. I lift my strength and give it to him to use as he gave his all for a world that did not weep as his own sacrifice. I lift as he leads and I go as he calls. I lift because he taught me how.

He taught me to lift my head when I didn't really want to, he shortened my tether and held me close so that I would learn to lift my heart to him. So I lift my heart to the one who holds it eternally dear. I lift my faith to believe in him and I continue to do and I will with his help.   

Oh, you were talking about going to the gym? Er, well I uh, maybe tomorrow.

Thanks

Dying a Death that Kills

A man makes his plans but God directs his steps.

Solomon tells us that even our jobs are vanity. The conclusion of the matter is unless we fear God and serve him first, then our work will be vain, and ultimately all of life.

Holding on for life is a great thing to do on a roller coaster. But holding onto my dreams for life may just kill me. Why? Because I can only move in a direction but God informs the end game.

I do believe that God gives us the desires in our hearts. Not that he grants them as a genie would but that he has placed within us passions, skills, and interests that are good for us to pursue. Hopefully we discover these before we head off to college and train ourselves in our respective fields. God leads and calls and directs. This is a good thing.

But as a famous theologian once said we are idol factories. If my dreams become the source of my joy. If my dreams become the focus of my thinking. If my desires become the source of my happiness. If my goals become my obsession, then I am in danger of making a God given desire into an idol. This can happen in the day to day tasks as well as the big dreams and goals that we all have.

God wants us to pursue our dreams, but not in a way that if delay in fulfillment should happen, it causes us to lose our contentment. It causes us to lose sleep, it causes to beg in prayer, it causes our view of God to alter. It becomes an idol I worship instead of God.

I have learned how easy it is to let my desires fall into a fire and simply come out as a golden calf. I didn't mean for it to happen, as Aaron told Moses, but the pressure of the crowd and the emotion of the moment, well, here is your god.

God is the only one who I am to worship. This is easy to do if we think of worship in terms of only bowing down, but what consumes our minds, our thoughts, and even our prayers? Does it grant joy in my salvation or does it steal it? God wants us to pursue our dreams but they are supposed to bring us closer to him. If the promise land becomes our end, well God is more than happy to put a desert in our way.

If we think God must perform a certain way for us to be happy, If we believe God must come through in a specific way for us to have stabilization then he will probably simply destabilize us so that we fall into the everlasting arms. This may seem like a hard truth but only if we view our definition of the solution as best, when God wants our very lives, he wants to know us. God wants us to find him.

I can only ever go in a direction. I cannot define the destination, I mustn't. The destination must be God himself. It is like following a light at the end of a dark cavern. The path I walk to get there is my own based on where I am but the destination must be the light, it must be him. I spoke a little bit about this path before about courage. Walking, truly walking with Christ is an invitation to death. He asks us to take up our cross in order to follow him.

Might it be because the only way to know truly him is to understand his sacrifice? To understand his sacrifice we have to understand the chasm that stood between us, the chasm he crossed to get to us. Suffering is a picture of God's gift to us. We tend to think only in terms of our sins that distanced us, which is true but the suffering he endured to bring us near gives us insight into our distance thus into his character and heart for us.

As much I hate to admit it, suffering teaches us.

As I carry my cross I grow to know him more and in turn to love him. I do not rejoice in suffering, I endure it for the sake of the relationship. If God went through so much suffering to get to us, will he really just leave us hanging? Will he really just abandon us on the way to the destination?

So with a new year upon us I have to ask myself how will I proceed? We are moving to Tucson, I am to take on a pastorate position. I walked ups and downs rounds and bouts and even though I see a bright future I need him more than ever. With a job on the horizon and a bit of the metaphorical forest starting to clear I now see a valley of jagged rocks with pointy bits waiting for my exposed ankles to pass by. I cannot let up now for now the real challenge begins.

I knew that when the job came a new enemy would veer its ugly head. My own confidence it seems is the next punching bag. I am still learning to fight. As I look at the new stretch of path laid out before me my mind is filled with my inadequacies and shortcomings. I recognize this for the attack that it is but I knew it was coming. I don't know if my foresight is comforting or worrying.

I know God is inviting me forward and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is with me. Is my new found instability the reality of my life or am I just now noticing how exposed I am apart from God? I will not move out from here if you are not with me. I know that much and my time in the desert has reinforced this. As much as Romans has helped me build a foundation of truth that is without compare, I find solace in the book of Psalms of late. The people cry to God but they always come back to praise. As praise is now a major function of my duties, I welcome the part. I know the road less traveled isn't easy but I know all the more where my compass points.

To battle my new adversary I feel God calling me to two things. My identity which is framed by his identity and returning once again to worship. Worship positions my identity rightly before his which is rightly primary over mine. As I sit in his truth and bestow on him praise I can rest that my identity is fastened to him. I am only because he is, or rather because of the great I Am, I can be also. My identity takes focus as I remove it from myself. He calls me to come and die so that I can truly live. 

So I return to the Lord who is my rock. I worship before the Lord of hosts and King of Kings knowing that I am apart of the household of God. Even though ease may not be my calling I want to run again, and keep running till I see his face. God, here is my life, here are my dreams, here is all I have. Take what you want even if it kills and causes a death that I didn't want to happen because you are the bringing of new life. 

Thanks

Do not harden your hearts as in the Rebellion

With Christmas almost here and the big movie Star Wars coming out on Friday I thought I would role out this gem. As in Star Wars, the Rebel Alliance fights against the Empire and their rule over the Galaxy. They raise up X-wings Y-wings to battle the Tie fighters. War is at hand. Jedi are needed. But what's everybody so upset about?

15 As it is said,

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

I have always pictured Darth Vader saying this line to the rebel alliance, calling them to return to the Galactic Empire, but alas it was not so. The author of Hebrews is of course talking about the Israelites who grumbled and complained about life on the road. But God was saying you don't have to live like a refugee.

The Israeli rebellion was all about losing their way. It was about looking at the accommodations on the journey and musing if it was better in first class. The rebellion was about people grumbling. Isn't that where it always starts, with discontentment?

I have had to start asking myself this question. What causes you to complain? What causes you to complain to God? Does being a Christian mean that our lives should reflect the American dream? What comforts are essential to you and yours?

How does God fit into the picture? When I spoke in Tucson at my vetting I was discussing this very issue. I realized that even though I escaped the name it and claim it theology of my youth I still had expectations of God that put stress on our relationship. I expected him to fulfill certain needs, wants, and desires in my life. I expected his grace to look a certain way. When after long enough, it didn't, or they went unmet, I started to to wonder at some other promises from God. It started to affect my relationship with God. 

You know like a relationship with a friend or family member who you feel cheated you or let you down and it still affects the way you think about them. In person you are cordial enough but you always come back to the wrong or the disappointment. In the end the relationship becomes of toleration, or perhaps you depart it.

I realized I expected certain comforts especially since I was pursuing ministry. Since I was pursuing God. A certain amount of wealth, health, protection and provision? What expectations of God do you have? 

As I have gone on in my Christian I keep coming back to the Exodus story and the wilderness journey. The longer I live my life I have become convinced that the Torah is a picture of our lives. The first five books of the Bible I believe represent our faith walk. Just like in the Exodus, for us Jesus raises himself up and delivers us from the bondage of sin. He does miraculous works and so why wouldn't we follow him? But as we travel together and we start to learn some of his truth and his ways we can get a little overwhelmed. We continue to walk and we start to realize that this journey is actually hard. We walk and start to think that life perhaps was a bit easier when I wan't out in this wilderness but safe back in the city as they did. 

We are warned in scripture that those who desire to live a righteous life will suffer persecution. We are reminded that we will have trouble in this world. Jesus warns that we will hated as he was. This doesn't mean all is bad of course but it does mean the accommodations may not always make us feel like we are in that 5 star place of rest. Perhaps sometimes we get to stay in the stable. There will be times of challenge but what do we do? Do we grumble at the pillar of fire or drag our feet at the leading cloud?

I think the Exodus is a picture our lives with God. God wants us to continue on to the promised land, but some fall in the desert or give up, or harden their hearts and rebel, as this verse was referring to. Some raise up for themselves new leaders who will tell them what they want to hear. They look for leaders who will lead them how they want to be led, and feed them how they want to be fed. So does Jesus like Darth Vader find your lack of faith disturbing? Are we grumblers or are we committed to the walk, the journey, to the destination? That classic question are you a Caleb or a "nay-sayer"?

This is what happened with Korah's rebellion as well. They were tired of Moses' lead, one that dragged on through the desert. They grew tired of him saying that he spoke for God and brought to them the words of God. The grew tired of the mana. They wanted their own leaders who would be nicer to them. They wanted their own representative, their own relationship with God. Their own meals. But God was Kingdom building and was not interested in an insurrection.

I feel the pull of not only a society that wants a specific kind of freedom but a growing sect of churches who want a certain kind of savior. A kind of savior that only possess one attribute. Unadulterated acceptance. We can continue to say the words of God after him. Or we can grumble depart and raise up teachers who teach a form of religion that pays service to God and Jesus but denies his harder side. His side that cares about conduct. His side that calls to repentance. His side that says if you desire to live a righteous life you will be persecuted. His side that says you will hated as I was hated because I call people's deeds evil. His side that makes whips. I don't say this because I prefer Jesus when we said those harsher things and not when he communicated grace, but to honestly follow him I have to come to terms with everything he taught. He is interested in my obedience as well as my love. Jesus is more complex than he simply loved people and accepted them. His message also said go and sin no more. His love looked like sacrifice because our lives of sin are repulsive. His love looks like taking sin very seriously. He taught his disciples this as well and they continued to write about it the rest of the New Testament . 

Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.

Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! 

God is concerned about his Kingdom not yours and what you want to bring into it. 

So do we grumble and attempt to follow new leaders back to Egypt? Back where we were still on good terms with the Egyptians? We wouldn't want to upset  anybody. We wouldn't want to make the Egyptians feel bad about worshiping false gods. We wouldn't want the Egyptians to feel bad about their sin so perhaps we should go back and join them? This is that wide road that many go, the highway to hell that doesn't upset the status quo. That road that is paved with smiling leaders that say "peace, peace" when there is no peace, only capitulation. As the writer of Hebrews again reminds.

Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.

We have walked through history and we are starting to feel the squeeze of what persecution feels like, of what being uncomfortable for our beliefs is.

This is my squeeze because I know as Jesus said that holding to his truth would not make friends. Jesus even says woe to you when people speak good of you. Our message is so upsetting that Jesus encourages us to check our walks when   people are liking the things we have to say.  Because the kinds of things we are supposed to say sound like death, death to ourselves, death to our vices, death to our idols and life to the King.

I am not tempted to grumble against God so much. But I see my temptation of one feeling sad that the Gospel is no longer good news to our culture. I feel the squeeze of trying to say God's words after him while others are raising up new gospels that itch ears. People raise up rebellions and we who want to be disciples of Jesus are made to look like bigots and fundys and the worse charge yet? Unloving. Well all I can say is I love God and I love his people and so we continue through the wilderness at his leading. Some may grumble and some may rebel but we must continue onto the promise land. So please rebels but down your pitchforks and blaster rifles, soften your hearts and come back to mountain of God.

thanks

Come Let Us Return Unto The Lord

New York Daily News' provocative article about God failing to address our nation's violence. "God isn't fixing this". We hide behind useless platitudes. We call on God and he does nothing. I don't remember them printing their prayers for help, you know, in big bold print so God is sure to read it from the sky. When were they asking for his help? If anything I recall us as a nation telling God he was not needed or welcome anymore. So what do we have? People firing guns in the streets and in schools. People acting like there are no moral standards or higher power to be accountable too, hmm... Now sadly this wasn't lamenting God's absence, because that would be something. No this is a smokescreen, an obvious cover of the bigger agenda of gun control. Now control should be discussed, but not here. That should happen in times of peace when our heads are on straight not in the wake of mass human loss. This isn't a political blog, but they brought him up, so let's talk about God's part in this.

What they are doing here is a provocation for us to move on something that will have actual impact, you know, because God doesn't? Because everyone knows God doesn't exist and we are silly for praying to him, right? How empathetic we are to those in mourning.

I guess calling on God for help is so 2001. Even before 9/11 I remember 1999 with Columbine and the prayers that went out. But since then apparently science has solved us of our God problem and politics have delivered us from evil, or have they not yet? But it is a good question even though it wasn't a question of a truly agnostic heart. Why isn't God helping us?

So another tragedy has taken place on American soil and rather than call out to God for help, we use him to push an agenda. They mock those who call on the name of the Lord. They even took the time to highlight all the silly people who do call for prayer. This reminds me of 2 Peter 3:4-9.

knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. 4They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” 5For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, 6and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished.7But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

They mock and point out that God has not arrived yet. Where is God? Where is your deliverer? Where are your answered prayers? They say this and all the while they forget that God is delaying judgment so that more might repent. They fail to realize that while they mock they are being added to the very judgment, the very justice, they mock for not coming. 

Could part of the problem be we are more interested in politicizing this tragedy than calling for repentance? But Gabe isn't writing a blog about this doing just that? Well, no because I am offering real help to the real problem. We have lawless people running around in what is becoming an increasingly morally bankrupt America. We need a moral solution, one that is bed-rocked in something greater than ourselves. God. If we actually wanted God to fix this problem the place where we should start is on our knees. The direction of our culture however has not been one of seeking God's help. If we want God's help then why is our country going out of its way to remove him from public and personal life? Ah so he is probably not fixing this because we want no part with him. I am then reminded of Psalm 2

1Why do the nations rage and the people plot in vain 2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying,3“Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.”4 He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision.5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath,and terrify them in his fury, saying,6“As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.”7 I will tell of the decree:The LORD said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you.8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession.9 You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”10 Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth.11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. 

Now before we misunderstand, God does not sit and laugh at our tragedy he laughs at our plans to usurp him. He weeps at our tragedy, he beckons us to return and be made hold. He desires us to repent and be saved. He says I have set up my King in Zion, Jesus, go to him! He calls us to take refuge in him, but we have no interest in his blessing, we are busy with our prodigal living and show no sign of turning back to the ranch. This is on us, and maybe this is what the Dahli lama was trying to get at a few weeks ago, but we do need the welcoming arms of God to do it. We have run off, and we need to come back.

God has already said my help is available but we would have none of it! Verse 3 is telling of us when we as a people have said to God "let us break our bonds and cast the cords away from us."  How? Well we have made him unwelcome in our government, in our schools, he has become unwelcome at work, and we work to remove him from the streets. He is unwelcome in our morals, in our laws, in our speech. What's next, soon our homes maybe?  We are even taking steps to keep him away while making way for our false gods to take up residence. Our kings and rulers have said We will not have you rule over us! We have spit in the face of God but now we want to invoke him to make an impassioned plea and provoke a response from his people to make a political point for our system. We mock God but God is not moved by our ridicule or our arrogance, he laughs! But he is moved by humility.  If we will humble ourselves and return to the Lord and call on the name of Jesus that we have cast away, then and only then, will he rise from his position and perhaps help us.

But not while he while we continue pointing our finger in his face. We have thrown off the bonds of God and have the gall to wonder why a godless nation produces men and women who want nothing to do but steal, kill, and destroy. But rather than ask those questions about how we got here, why we are here? We focus on the symptoms. We make it about the particular instrument used in the incident. We pretend that the particular weapon is the problem rather than the people who do these things. Why don't we ask those deeper questions instead? What is wrong with our people, our souls? May it is because those questions will reveal a condition of the human heart that we all posses? Maybe a heart that we have fostered and coddled and paraded as virtuous. Oh I think we know and we don't want that curtain pulled back.

Well we pushed and wanted a godless nation and we got it. So much so that we will only bring God up to drag his character through the mud just to continue building our own kingdom of refuse. We have so little regard for God that we will jump on the first occasion to both undermine him, his followers and continue our world without him. Even while our nation crumbles. And we wonder why we are here? We dishonestly comment on his failure to help.

I don't say this gleefully, but...

Congratulations America, you are getting the utopia you purchased with your own sins.

But not all is lost! So do we pray? Yes we pray! We pray even when we are ridiculed for it. We pray in our times of want and in our times of plenty. We pray because we have a God who acts! We ask because we have a God who forgives, and not just that he does but he wants to! A God who will even forgive our mocking of him. Let us take him up on his offer. Seek refuge in the Lord!

It is not too late to return to the Lord, today is the day of salvation. Be warned O' Kings of the Earth. Kiss Son lest he be angry and you perish in the way. There is a warning and a call. He is calling to us. C.S. Lewis says that God is shouting to us in pain. He is saying Return and be saved! But to do this, well, that would require looking in the mirror once and awhile and bending our stiff necks.

thanks

My Dahli Lament

War, war never changes. To quote a modern proverb. With the recent attacks on Paris the world once again is reminded we have an enemy that will not relent, will not stop until we all convert or are killed. Shame on us for forgetting. These wolves will not go away.

The Dahli Lama is a great man who has suffered more than the most of us, but I will critique his theology on prayer. He spoke about the recent tragedies with terrorism. He challenged more people to love and spread the love, and quite frankly it is not a bad message. However in this instance thinking that more love will do anything in the face of this enemy is utterly misinformed. He continues on about the need for love and said that if we emphasize harmony and non-violence then we usher in a new era. Now I appreciate the sentiment but it really doesn't solve much in this instance. Failing to understand that we are dealing with demonically fueled hate from a false god will never help the situation. It would have been similar to John Connor trying to convince the Terminator not to murder him. Kyle Reece explained to Sara Connor what the Terminators do.

Listen, and understand! That Terminator is out there! It can't be bargained with. It can't be reasoned with It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead. Terminator (1984).

This is not something we can win out with love and good intentions. This is not the case of religious differences but the kingdom of man wrestling with the kingdom of darkness. Powers, Principalities, Rulers, Authorities have raised themselves an army of darkness and now march on the earth to wipe out mankind. This is literally what Paul was warning about with the armor of God in Ephesians 6. But these demons do have foot soldiers. If we don't understand the enemy or their mission then any attempts at solutions will only fail or worse yet enable the spiral to continue, insert American foreign policy. Trying to reason against a growing army with an evil conviction committed to death and destruction is a failure to respond.

But this is not a political blog, the bigger issue I had with his statement apart from a misunderstanding of extreme Islam, was the obvious one that the media have latched onto, him urging the people to stop praying for Paris. Part of his thought was fine because I think that he was trying to say that more than simply prayers were needed. Now this is true, our governments should step up. But his other reasoning was that God's answer would be "No, solve the problem yourself, because you caused it." Well perhaps Buddha may respond saying something like that because he is quite incapable of doing anything, but God is.

The problem with this is that this is not God's nature. He is loving and compassionate. He encourages us to humble ourselves and pray and to repent. God encourages interaction with himself. If God cannot and will not help then get a new god. This is why Paul speaks about the armor of God. This absolutely has a spiritual element to it and we need God's help.

2 Chronicles 4:14 teaches this principle.
14if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

I think the problem is we have gone on long enough without the help of God. 

The other issue is God is not a pacifist. He raises up kingdoms and brings others to the ground. God gives the power of the sword to the governments for the very purpose of curbing evil. The governments of the world are supposed to rise up and topple this evil, that is their very purpose. They in a sense hold the peace until true justice returns. 

"But Gabe, Jesus was a pacifist!" You are right, he was for his purpose in his first coming and he requires it of his followers as well. That is why he has governments in place to handle the wet work. They are not expected to handle this task with protest and peace vigils. God raises up governments and kings for this purpose. They maintain order and they and bring the sword when it is necessary. As Ecclesiastes teaches there is a time for hate and a time for war, also read Revelation.

When these neo Nephilim reek havoc on the world then God's avengers must stand up. I already wrote about God's avengers though. If God expects his avengers to do something then do we expect him to turn a deaf ear at our prayers? In fact sending in governments from around the world to combat this evil may very well be one of his ways of intervening and answering prayer. God raised up armies to do that very thing in the Bible all the time. God judged his own people with Assyria and Babylon. God used his own people to judge the Philistines, Canaanites, the Ammorites etc.  

So go read a Psalm about calling on God to intervene on the world stage. He does it all the time.

Psalm 94 is a psalm calling on God to act on the enemies.
Psalm 10 is calling God stop the wicked.
and this from Psalm 58   

O God, break the teeth in their mouths;
    tear out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord!
7 Let them vanish like water that runs away;
    when he aims his arrows, let them be blunted.
8 Let them be like the snail that dissolves into slime,
    like the stillborn child who never sees the sun.
9 Sooner than your pots can feel the heat of thorns,
    whether green or ablaze, may he sweep them away!

10The righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance;
    he will bathe his feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 Mankind will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous;
    surely there is a God who judges on earth.”

God cares about justice. This is not to say do not pray for your enemies though. Jesus does tell us to do this. So while I pray for them to turn from their wicked ways and come to the Lord I hope in the meantime their violence will be stopped whether by a solider doing his job or a missionary doing his. 

So while he meant well, the Dahli Lama only caused me to lament at having missed this one. So I want to end by offering a prayer. Thank you God for being a God who hears, a God who acts, and a God who cares. We have indeed made a mess here of your beautiful creation. We are in need of help from the enemy of creation. Delivery us oh God from evil and if this be a judgement, keep us oh Lord during it and let all people return to you. God help us, oh Lord and continue to bestow your grace on France and anyone else suffering at the hands of this regime of evil.

thanks