A Different View On Church Structure?

"But you do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren." (Mt 23:8)

This passage really struck me because there is a real egalitarian aspect when it comes to spiritual matters under Jesus. Not that there is a belief that we are equal with Christ or God -- that is an error that exists in Mormon belief (that we can become a god - that Jesus is only one of many) -- but rather that we are equal in the sight of God.

I definitely would distinguish as well spiritual egalitarianism from political egalitarianism. With the concepts of personal property in the 10 commandments, "Thou shalt not steal" God clearly emphasizes that we are not promised the same "stuff". Forcible redistribution of items so that everyone has the same result is not supported in God's Word. Instead we are called to be charitable which involves a voluntary spirit of giving of our personal property to others as we personally choose. Likewise a spiritual of communal living can be chosen as well as in the book of Acts (which could very well be the picture of Heaven), but it not something that is required. Even in Acts, people gave what they chose to give, they were not forced to give all of their possessions, but they were not allowed to lie about the level of their contribution. (see Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5).

It isn't that Christian leadership is unnecessary - from an organizational and teaching standpoint, there is really a need for proper teaching and organizing. But, Christ is asking us never to exalt ourselves or others to the point of being a substitute for Him. Instead, we are to turn to Christ as our ultimate resource and our ultimate Teacher. We are to read the Word and pray constantly so that we will know His will and follow His ways.

As I mentioned the Mormon faith earlier, something that they may be doing more right than Christian churches is the concept that teaching should not be dominated by one man or group of men, but perhaps that it should be rotated amongst the congregation. That each week, a different head of a family would preside over the teaching for the group. Certainly that would bring a different atmosphere and the responsibility for teaching (and learning) would be passed from one main person to a everyone.

Although that would present a logistical headache and the consistency of teaching may be lacking, it would certainly be interesting to hear individual stories and points of view on how God has changed their lives instead of only hearing the same stories over and over again.

Church structure is a hard thing to think about, and I'm certainly struggling with it now. However, the main thing is to find a preacher that teaches the Word truthfully in a straightforward manner. Based on this scripture, I am also thinking that it is important to find a church that emphasizes that we are all equal under God and does not try to exalt the leadership beyond that.

Lord Jesus, we are on the cusp of moving, if it is your will that we get this house we are looking at. Please help us to find the right church body and the right place for us to grow as a family that will teach our kids Your ways. Thank You for being our Teacher, Father and Friend. In Jesus' name, AMEN.

Keeping it Simple

"Then one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question, testing Him, and saying, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all Your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." (Mt 22:35-40)

I'm in awe of these two commandments. There's really nothing to add or subtract from them. Everything that encompasses the simple, "Follow Me" from Jesus comes down to this verse - Give everything you have to God and allow Him to be Lord of your life, and give others the type of respect they deserve as those who have been created by the Lord God. Love them as He loves all of us.

Lord Jesus, I don't know if I match up completely with these verses, but I know that I want to. Help me to be faithful to You in all my dealings, thoughts and actions. And when I am tempted to stray, hold me firm near to You. In Jesus' name, AMEN.

A Nation That God Can Bless

"Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it." (Matt 21:43)

This verse refers to the nation of Israel versus the Gentiles, but as I was reading it, I couldn't help but to think about our nation. The United States has lived a generally charmed existence and it was founded on the back of Pilgrims escaping religious persecution in Europe to found a set of Protestant Christian colonies. These people risked their lives and died in massive numbers, but succeeded in finding a place where they could worship the Lord without the oversight of a powerful elitist church leadership who were more interested in worldly power than spiritual piety.

From such humble beginnings, we grew up to be the nation that is the beacon of modern Christianity. From greater Europe to Great Britain, and now to the United States, the mantle of world superpower has passed. And along with each successive change in the title of world superpower, so has gone the strength of the Christian church in each nation.

I am not saying that the Kingdom of God is something to pass from nation to nation, but I do believe that it is God's hand that causes nations to rise and fall. And He brings about the rise and fall of nations in accordance to the faithfulness of that nation to His Word and His Ways.

Unfortunately, our nation has become a country of loopholes. People aren't looking to follow God in fullness, but are instead interested in finding loopholes that will allow them to sin without punishment.

In our nation, we don't lie, we misspeak. We cuss constantly and we have no qualms about showing adult sexual situations in the midst of family programming. We teach our kids that materialism is the most important thing in life and we no longer put a premium on honoring our mother and father. I don't know if even 5% of us are even remotely familiar with the 10 commandments (Even as a committed Christian, I am pretty familiar with them all, but can't name them for you in order - probably a good time to go study).

Are we a nation that is deserving of God's blessing? Has the recession, which was caused by personal greed by all levels of society, taught us anything that would get us to re-examine and reform our ways?

I can't say that I know if there is another nation in the world that has the spirit of God growing inside of them although the rumor is that China's underground church is already larger than ours. However, the point is not to be powerful as a nation. It is that we will all benefit from a nation that has God's hand upon it. A nation that respects the ways of God and lives them out in their daily interactions with their neighbor. A nation that prays and has personal charitable compassion for the society around them.

Lord Jesus, I know that a nation is only made up of individuals, and a nation You can bless is made up of individuals who make a personal choice to worship and follow You. So help me to be a person that lives in fear of You above all things, who has the strength to live as You guide us to live. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control - those are the fruits that come from a nation that is worshipful and fearful of You. Please help me to become that man more and more each day. In Jesus' name, AMEN.

Why We Forgive

²² Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. ²³ Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴ And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. ²⁵ But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made. ²⁶ The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, ‘Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ ²⁷ Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.
²⁸ “But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’ ²⁹ So his fellow servant fell down at his feet^{a]" style="font-size: 0.75em; line-height: 0.5em; ">[a]} and begged him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’^{b]" style="font-size: 0.75em; line-height: 0.5em; ">[b]} ³⁰ And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt. ³¹ So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done. ³² Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. ³³ Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’ ³⁴ And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.
³⁵ “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”

(Matt 18:22-35)

Forgiveness is a really tough issue and one that we have to wrestle with every day. The truth is that we don't live in a world where everything is perfect, and we also live in a world where we each have free will to do good and evil. So there are real times when we are hurt by the events in our lives.

What I've noticed here in this passage are some of the following:

Forgiveness is personal: The reason that we feel so free as Christians is that we have been forgiven our transgressions by God. Yes, we have done many terrible things and each sin is in the end a denial of God's ways, but when we come to Christ, our sins are washed away by his shed blood. We no longer face death in eternity, but life. In the same way however, as we begged our King, Jesus Christ for forgiveness, which he then provided - we must also show that same compassion when we are faced with the chance to forgive.

Forgiveness is a personal choice. No one can make that decision for us, but instead we must exercise it by our own volition. Unlike other faiths, Christians believe that forgiveness should be extended regardless of whether or not someone comes to us and asks to be forgiven.

The main motivation for me is that Jesus Christ has absorbed my sins, and I have given my allegiance and Lordship to Christ. My life is not my own any longer, and it is not myself that I represent, but Christ. In the same vein, I do not take offense and judge on my behalf, but instead I defer all judgments to Christ who will judge us during the end-times. In that sense, there is no longer anything for me to take offense over. Everything I am is given to Christ.

Another more personal reason for this is that keeping the offense within ourselves is toxic. If we remain in a state of offense, we will rehearse and re-live our hurts over and over again. Each time we do that, we are stabbing ourselves with the past and killing our joy. The Lord saved us to be free from sin - those that we have committed and those that have been committed against us. We are new creations, and we should not carry around our offenses because they will act as an anchor - keeping us from becoming the person that God is molding us to be.

We are expected to act according to the way God has treated us: Above all else, God is desiring for us to be cleansed of our sins and of the sins of the world. He desires that we should have eternal life with Him. In the same way, we should not be focused on the faults of the people around us, but we should be focused on seeing their souls saved, that they might have eternal life instead of eternal hell.

When we take offense and keep it with us, it prevents us from seeing the deeper roots - that we are here on earth to spread the good news of the gospel above all else. And in doing so, it is natural and logical that we'll be in the world with non-believers - like missionaries.

In those situations, we must seek to be like the Lord and suspend judgment because they are non-believers. We must be lights in the darkness.

In the case of believers, we must confront sins in a specific way as described in Mt 18:15-17.

Forgiveness is not forgetting: While forgiveness entails a measure of letting go of judgement and not holding it against a person, it doesn't mean that we forget what happened. In this example, the King clearly remembered what the hypocritical servant did, and then paid him back according to his actions when the servant did not extend the same type of forgiveness to others.

Unlike Christ, we don't have the power to grant eternal life via forgiveness of sins. However, we do have the power to let go of our judging of a situation and giving it over to Christ. We will not forget someone's actions against us, but we will not let it simmer within us at the same time. That is ultimately what forgiveness is - suspending and giving the ultimate judgment to Christ - and He is a just and perfect judge.

Lord Jesus, thank You for Your gift of life. Thank You for loving us so deeply that You came to die on the cross. We not only have eternal life, but we have freedom and forgiveness from our sins. Likewise, we have given our lives over to You, and as such, we have passed judgment to You as well. Nothing in all creation is hidden from Your sight, and because of that, You can and will judge everyone fairly according to their deeds. We can rest in that and trust in that. Let us then be focused to the people around us. Let us then be ready to pray for our enemies and seek them to know You more and more. In Jesus' name, Amen!

What Is Heaven Worth?

But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men." Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. for what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matt 16:23-26)

Jesus knew his destiny and shared with his disciples that he would be persecuted, killed and risen again in Jerusalem. Having a normal horrified human reaction, Peter responded with a simple, "May it never be!" He was then harshly rebuked by Jesus because He knew that to be sacrificed via crucifixion would be done out of obedience, but it was still tempting to turn away from God's instruction - no one wants to die.

To do the Lord's will is an honor and a privilege, but at the same time it involves tough choices that aren't the most appealing things to do...especially if we are driven by the comforts and approval of the world. For the most part, we are all driven by the need for security, the desire to be comfortable, and acceptance of our peers. As adolescents we bend over backwards to wear the right clothes, have the right style, the right gadgets -- all in an effort to be accepted and hip.

As adults, we are driven by the need to have a decent income, maybe by greed and power, but for the average person - there is desire to be secure and a good provider. Nothing wrong with that.

But, we must remember that the Lordship of God is paramount over all. Over our security, our creature comforts and our desire to obtain. The Lordship of God means that we are ready, willing and able to follow any instruction that we receive for the day - be it big or small. The Lordship of God means that we really have no ownership of anything, as it may be asked to be relinquished by God for His service at any time.

Imagine if we were wealthy - maybe not stinking rich - but perhaps with a million dollar net worth. A large sum, but in this day and age, with a long period of hard hard work - not impossible.

What if the Lord were to put a conviction on our hearts to give it all up and to donate our assets to a new missions project to spread the gospel? Could you do it? Could I do it? The question weighs heavily upon me because I want with all my heart to say "yes" without reservation.

But, I know that it would be something that would be difficult - especially if my asset was a home filled with my family and children.

To what depths will I trust the Lord? Money is nothing but temporary, no matter what the asset, but heaven or hell is eternal. Are we really poor if we exchange our house, cars or paper dollars for an eternity in heaven? How much would such a thing be worth?

Put into perspective -- the eternal perspective -- we see that such a gift is truly priceless. We have been given a priceless gift and opportunity by God. Even our earthly lives are worth giving to Christ.

Lord Jesus, may I hold nothing back for Your kingdom call. I get so wrapped up in the daily grind that I start to believe that the only things that are meaningful are things, people's opinions and bank accounts. In reality, all of those things are rubbish compared to You and Your kingdom. May I conform myself daily to You, and to righteousness and goodness. May I strive to live honorably with true character rather than to live like a prince. Thank You for Your Word today and for rebuking me as you rebuked Satan. In Jesus' name, AMEN.

The Bible Is Our Standard - Our Instruction Manual

"Then the disciples came and said to Him, "Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?"

But He answered and said, "Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. and if the blind leads the blind both will fall into a ditch." (Matt 15:14)

This one stuck out to me because we say "blind leading the blind" all the time in our daily lives, but lo and behold it came from Jesus as he was referring to the Pharisees.

Despite the fact that the Pharisees had a ton of head knowledge and devotion, they argued over minutiae while trying to twist scripture to fit their own desires to sin.

I have once heard it said very well that to RATIONALIZE = RATIONAL LIES. It has stuck with me over the last decade+ because it made all the sense in the world. If we were to sit and desire to do one sin or another, we can easily convince ourselves that there are enough good reasons to feed our sin. In the case of the Pharisees, Jesus exposed the fact that they would withhold aid to their parents who were in need based on the rationalization that their profession was dedicated to God and therefore any profits should be withheld from being given away to anyone, including their parents.

Of course, the end result of this tradition is that money was never given away to anyone but only fed their own desires and pursuits. Looking at the overall practice of the Pharisees, the rational lies are exposed -- but they were so entrenched in their rationalizations, that they had deluded themselves into thinking they had done righteousness.

Scripture was given to us as God's directions for life. He created us and knit us together in our mother's womb. The life that He breathed into Adam and Eve still flows through us from one generation to the next. Science has been able to move live DNA from one cell into another -- components of original life -- but have never ever been able to breathe life into something that was dead. God is the only one who has that spark of divinity to lend to us.

And so the Creator has given us an instruction manual - one that has many authors who were used to write down the Scriptures, but the messages are consistent from page to page...if we are to read them honestly, desiring to look at the context of the author rather than cherry picking a passage here or there that agrees with our desires to sin, we would have a standard by which to examine ourselves - a standard which could be used to repair ourselves to optimal health and vitality.

I've been a Christian for only 12 years now. Sometimes that seems like a long time, but in reality I feel like I am continually being shown new depths of the Lord in so many different ways. Still, the temptation to fall into the trap of rational lies is so easy in today's culture. It is so hard to get away from all the competing influences that vie to sway us away from the path of the Lord.

In fact, it goes back to the very origins of man, when the Lord gifted us the earth to have dominion over. Because we (man) have dominion over the earth, we have the free will to choose God or to choose Satan. And Satan, being jealous of God's affection for man, continually tries to thwart us and influence our behavior to sin. (It also explains why God will prompt man to pray for God's help rather than intervening continually without an opening from man)

Yet through all of the centuries, God's Word has stood the test of time. It continues to prove itself time and time again as the book which leads us to peace, lawfulness, and order. Jesus still provides many miracles through His Word from the completely supernatural (like stories of reviving the dead via prayer), to the more mundane but still miraculous (healing addictions, mending hurt souls, giving a clear purpose to those who are lost).

But it's only effective if we read it honestly. We can't try to find loose passages here or there in order to justify our sinful behaviors, but instead we need to read it plainly, in the context of the culture (since all writing is ultimately contextual with cultural allusions).

Lord Jesus, thank You for Your Word. You have completely transformed my life in so many ways that I cannot even count. I pray that I can be true to You and honor Your ways by letting Your Word minister to me and convict me in whatever way I need to be rebuked back to the standard by which You created us. In Jesus' name, Amen.

God Allows Us to Be Partners With Him

"When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works? Is this not the carpenter's son? Is not His mother called Mary?... So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house." Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief. (Mt. 13:54-58)

God can do anything. I know that, but this verse brings to my mind the partnership aspect of spiritual life that we gloss over a lot of times. Jesus, the son of God went to his home and tried to minister to the people there. He tried to do great works and miracles, but because they knew him as a youth, they assumed that he was simply the same person that he had always been...the carpenter's son.

When Jesus tried to teach and minister as a Rabbi, they were offended, and didn't want to believe that he could do miracles -- and consequently, no miracles came.

In Genesis 1:28 man was charged to subdue the earth. In short, God gave man the earth on which to live and manage. This, in essence forms the covenant by which God operates in our lives as well. Because He has given us free will to manage our lives here on earth, He doesn't always step in when it is obvious that He should or would.

He is available to us and He presents His ways and commandments as the instruction manual for us to follow - both to gain entry to His heavenly kingdom and to live optimal lives during our earthly lifetimes. However, it is ultimately up to us to determine how much access we will give to Him.

Will we simply pray from time to time and ask for His help? Or will we live lives of complete trust on Him, sometimes risking everything knowing that He will come through for us with a miracle?

God obviously wants the latter because He continually seeks to get to know us and when we do come to Him, He is a loving parent with such a deep deep well of love and affection for us (parenthood itself is the gift of a glimpse into the type of love that God has for each of us). He knows our characters more intimately than we will ever know them because He created us in a specific and special way. He wants to help us have a life that will bring out the very best in ourselves even if that involves tremendous trial and difficulty.

But, in order to do all of that, we need to willingly let Him into our lives. We need to open our hearts to Him in prayer and accept His free gift of Jesus and the Holy Spirit. If we reject Him or limit Him in some way shape or form, than miracles will not occur there. It is not because God is limited in power or scope, but it is because He is honorable to His original covenant to man. He will allow man to sort out and manage the world even though it brings us to the edge of destruction. But, at the same time, He presents Himself ready to assist us if we would simply believe and pray to Him.

Lord Jesus, thank You for this most timely of messages and reminders. I have learned so much about You through Your word, but at the same time, I need constant corrections to get myself back on track. I know that I need You in ways that I haven't been praying for, and I pray that as a family we will seek You daily. Shape our lives Lord, make us into the people that You want us to be. Help us to face our challenges and overcome them. Help us to be people after Your own heart.

In Jesus name, AMEN.