The Final Idol of Our Soul

        Many of you know my historical man-crush for George Whitefield, but if you didn’t, you do now.  He was a great preacher and evangelist in the 1700’s.  I am reading through a collection of some of his sermons and have been incredibly encouraged.  One part of a particular sermon made me think about a parable that Jesus told many years ago.  I would like to share with you the section of Whitefield’s sermon and then the parable of Jesus, and I pray you will be challenged and encouraged as well.

“After we are renewed, yet we are renewed but in part, indwelling sin continues in us, there is a mixture of corruption in every one of our duties; so that after we are converted, were Jesus Christ only to accept us according to our works, our works would damn us, for we cannot put up a prayer but it is far from that perfection which the moral law requireth.  I do not know what you may think, but I can say that I cannot pray but I sin- I cannot preach to you or any others but I sin – I can do nothing without sin; and, as one expresseth it, my repentance wants to be repented of, and my tears to be washed in the precious blood of my dear Redeemer.  Our best duties are as so many splendid sins.  Before you can speak peace in your heart, you must not only be made sick of your original and actual sin, but you must be made sick of your righteousness, of all your duties and performances.  There must be a deep conviction before you can be brought out of your self-righteousness, it is the last idol taken out of our heart.  The pride of our heart will not let us submit to the righteousness of Jesus Christ.  But if you never felt that you had no righteousness of your own, if you never felt the deficiency of your own righteousness, you cannot come to Jesus Christ…”                                                                                 (Whitefield, The Method of Grace Sermon)

Here is what Jesus says about self-righteousness and pride:

Luke 18:9-14

⁹ He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: ¹⁰ “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ ¹³ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ ¹⁴ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Things to think about:

·         We often fail to think we are ever self-righteous.  It is always easier to see other people and say to them…”oh, you think you are so good…” but let me stop you there.  If you were thinking of someone else while reading these passages are you not doing exactly what Jesus said the Pharisee was doing.  Take a moment and stop to look at your own soul.  How are you self-righteous?

·         This parable of Jesus highlights the truth that it isn’t only about what you do outwardly, but God cares about your heart.  Is God the center of your heart’s desire?  Is Jesus Christ the king of your heart?  What does your heart tell you about yourself?  Does it cry out like Whitefield’s heart, “my repentance want to be repented of…”  I am so wicked I don’t even ask for forgiveness correctly! 

·         But, oh the grace of God to forgive the sinner!  His precious blood certainly washes away our sins, but only when we see them rightly and admit that they need to be washed away!  If you don’t think you need Jesus you aren’t going to ask for his help.  May God remind us every day that the Lord Jesus is the only remedy for our sin, the only Redeemer that we have, the only solution to our sin problem.  Let us turn to him today and rid ourselves of our self-righteousness.  Admit our sin, and in humility ask for forgiveness.  Praise God!  For, He promises to give it!

Must I Forgive?

My Care Group is currently working our way through a great Small Group Study called “I Am N.”  It takes a look at the persecuted church in Iraq and the Middle East.  We have been learning a lot from our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ.  The lesson last night was particularly challenging as it focused on forgiveness.  Forgiveness is hard enough under normal circumstances, but how do you forgive people that murder your family?  Abuse your children?  Kill your friends?   Here is one quote from a Christian living in Iraq today when he was asked if he forgave those who persecuted him and his family.  “I cannot say they (ISIS) is my enemy.  If they are my enemy then I would have to hate them, and I can’t hate them.  I must love them.  I must forgive them, for that is what Christ did for me and what He commands for me to do…so, I will never say they are my enemy!”  Wow!  What a heart for the lost, what an example to follow, what a challenge to us as we struggle to forgive those who speak against us, take advantage of us, or harm us…let alone try and kill us!  Let’s look at a few of the passages that the Christians facing persecution quoted as they reflected on forgiveness.

Colossians 3:12-17

¹² Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, ¹³ bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. ¹⁴ And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. ¹⁵ And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Luke 6:27-36

²⁷ “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸ bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. ²⁹ To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. ³⁰ Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. ³¹ And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.

³² “If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ³³ And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. ³⁴ And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. ³⁵ But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. ³⁶ Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.

Matthew 6:9-14

“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name. ¹⁰ Your kingdom come,
your will be done^]
    on earth as it is in heaven. ¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread, ¹² and forgive us our debts,
    as we also have forgiven our debtors. ¹³ And lead us not into temptation,
    but deliver us from evil.

¹⁴ For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, ¹⁵ but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Things to think about:

·         After reading these passages the question I ask myself and now share with you is this: “Is forgiveness optional for a Disciple of Christ?”  What else does the “must forgive” in Colossians 3:12 mean if it doesn’t mean we “must forgive?”

·         Why is it such an important issue for Christians to forgive?  Why does it matter to the world?  To the church?  To God? 

·         Forgiving those that harm you is not a natural response and is seen as strange to the world.  Why? 

·         How often do you pray for those that persecute you?  Harm you?  Abuse you?  Etc.  I think a first step in forgiving them would be to pray for them.  Start there and see where God leads you. 

·         Since your praying…when was the last time you prayed for God to help you forgive?  Nobody says this is easy.  Nobody said forgiving those that hurt you will be quick.  Trust God has the power to change hearts, including your own! 

·         May we be people that forgive and shine the light of Jesus putting his forgiveness on display for the world to see! 

Struggle and a Strain

      As we go through life there are times when things seem to be humming along at a pretty good pace and life is generally working out.  Then, there are times when things come to a screeching halt and everything is turned upside down.  We start to define each day with words like, “struggle, toil, hard, strain, etc.”  Each day is a new day, but the new day may seem bleaker than the last.  Sometimes we are suffering or the people around us are suffering.  Other times it isn’t necessarily suffering, but more a lack of purpose or drive to get things done.  An overarching fatigue sets in and we just feel tired.  I want to share a passage of scripture with you from the book of Colossians that may be encouraging to you if you find yourself in one of those times.  The author, Paul, is talking about how amazing Jesus is in the beginning of chapter 1 (totally worth your time reading) and then he shifts gears and talks about his own suffering.  Read this passage carefully and see how Paul thinks about his suffering; perhaps you and I can be encouraged by rethinking about our suffering. 

Colossians 1:24-2:5

 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, ²⁵ of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, ²⁶ the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. ²⁷ To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. ²⁸ Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. ²⁹ For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

2 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, ² that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, ³ in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. ⁴ I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. ⁵ For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.

Things to think about:

·         Why does Paul rejoice in his sufferings? 

·         Paul saw that his sufferings, his toil, his struggle, his straining forward accomplished something in the lives of the people around him.  To the people that he was serving Paul’s suffering offered them a glimpse at the love and suffering life of Jesus.  In a sense they saw Jesus through Paul.  The question for us is this; “Do people see Jesus through our sufferings?”  How could we suffer in such a way to make Jesus shine more brightly?

·         Read verse 29 again…Whose energy does Paul struggle with?  Who is at work?  God is at work with God’s energy through Paul.  Is God at work with His energy through you?  Pray that he will be! 

·         When Paul prays for these people, what does he pray about?  Are those anything like your prayers?  Why or why not?

May God give  you all a piece of that “treasure of wisdom and knowledge” today.  May you be encouraged that your suffering is not in vain.  May you be strengthened with the power of God in you to work and strain and struggle for what is to come.  May today be the day when the cycle of sadness, frustration, and melancholy, be broken and may we push on in endurance for the mission that God has called us to participate in until the end.  God bless.

What You Talkin Bout?

Have you ever walked into the middle of a conversation and been totally confused?  Have you ever been in a conversation with someone that had a special expertise and they started using words or describing processes that you had no idea what they were talking about?  Often our response in those situations is to ask something like this; “what are you talking about?  I am confused.”  Then we ask for more information and hopefully figure out what the person was trying to explain.  The disciples of Jesus were surprisingly confused a lot of the time.  These guys walked with Jesus, saw him do miracles, heard him preach, and talked with him just about every day.  Yet, they were often in the dark asking the question, “what are you talking about?”  Today, I want to look at one of those situations and maybe learn something from how Jesus responds to the disciples query. 

John 16:16-24

¹⁶ “A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me.” ¹⁷ So some of his disciples said to one another, “What is this that he says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?” ¹⁸ So they were saying, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.” ¹⁹ Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Is this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me’? ²⁰ Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. ²¹ When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. ²² So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. ²³ In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. ²⁴ Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.

Things to think about:

·         I love verse 18 because I have been there often in life.  “What is Jesus talking about?”  “What does he mean?”  Maybe our first thought from this passage should be an encouragement that in the times we get confused we are not alone!  Even the disciples were confused and they were right there with Jesus every day. 

·         Jesus knew, without them saying anything, that they were confused.  Jesus also knows when we are confused.  He knows when we don’t understand our circumstances, don’t know right from wrong, don’t know what would be wise, don’t know…anything.  He knows.  In those times instead of being like the disciples and just asking the question – take your request to the Lord.  Pray about it.  Ask for wisdom.  Ask for answers.  But, be ready for an answer that you may not expect.

·         Read verses 20-24 again.  Did Jesus answer their question?  “What do you mean by a little while?”  Jesus responds…”let me tell you about giving birth…uh…ok.  Why does Jesus talk about birthing pains?

·         In verse 20 how does our sorrow turn into joy?  When?  How can I encourage a person in the midst of their sorrow?  Should I tell them, “it will be okay for one day this will turn to joy?”  How should we do that?

·         Verse 22 is a promise from Jesus.  When you see him again your heart will rejoice and NO ONE will take your joy from you.  May that day be today!

·         What kinds of things do you think Jesus is referring to in verse 24?  Can we ask for anything and receive joy?  A new car?  A private jet?  Long life?  What is Jesus referring to in this context that we should ask for and receive joy?

May God give you joy today even in the midst of sorrows and for those of us that are still confused, that’s okay, have hope for Jesus knows exactly what to do.  Trust Him, even when it seems like everything is out of control, it never is…ever!