Escaping dead religion. The tyranny of works.

A common trait of dead religion - of man's religion - is the unnatural focus on works. Usually when an individual is heavily involved in a works (performance) based religious system, they don't realize it. Only when freedom from that tyranny comes can one look back and see how works-based their religion truly was. This dangerous way of thinking has always been a common difference between man's way and God's way. Man tries to earn God's favor, but he cannot. Jesus Christ offers freedom from that hopeless state. He says that favor with God is free, and it doesn't require more religious exercises, but faith in His finished work as the God-sent savior of our souls.

However, many (if not most) Christian religious groups have fallen into the age-old trap of performance based religion. It may be subtle, but is present nonetheless. For those of us who were in a system like that for a good length of time, the process of re-learning and changing ones way of thinking is lengthy and difficult.

For example, just yesterday I noticed remnants of that old way of thinking while I was working. I was feeling far from God, and my relationship with Him had seemed distant for a few days. Frustrated, my mind started going down one of those old paths. Maybe I need to read my Bible more. Maybe I haven't been living out the great commission enough. Thankfully, I caught myself almost immediately, all glory to Him.

No. No -- Rightness with God doesn't come from those things. Closeness with God is not a result of working harder. Those things are a result of healthy intimacy with God, they are not what gives me intimacy with Him. So instead I went for a walk and and spent some time talking with Him.

That old way of thinking is like saying, "I feel distant from my wife, so I need to make more money, or I need to work harder around the house." Yes those things are important in keeping a household running, but they have very little to do with intimacy with my wife. If I want that, we need to spend more time together. True intimacy only comes from consistent and healthy communication.

Intimacy is not the result of right works, rather it is the root and seed of them. True kingdom work must be built upon a strong foundation of intimacy and walk with God.

Man's religion says: Work hard to reach God. Deny the body, deny enjoyment. Change your ways and do penance. Pray, fast, and read your Bible more. Go to church more. Yet God's grace says: Come to me. Sit at my feet. Seek to know me. Stay with, and in, me - and I in you.

So man's religion is backward. It says work harder and do more, and rightness with God will result. But Jesus has taught us the opposite: Get right with God, know Him. Then He will clean up your act, and right works will follow.

Escaping Dead Religion. The mystery of God's life.

I continue to be baffled by the life that God gives to us His children.

Today started great but since has gone a bit downhill. I have been caught in this funk for the past few hours. Frustrated with work, feeling incredibly impatient and annoyed by little things. Feeling trapped. Feeling tired. Feeling far from Him. In fact, the last few days have left me feeling distant from my Lord...

Life just gets busy, especially when working full time and going to school part time, and marriage and kids and chores and finances and church family - oh boy - perhaps you can relate. Sometimes it feels like a grand juggling session.

At least without Him it does.

But then during my afternoon break at work I take a long walk in the sun, and pour out my heart too him bit by bit. Even praying and connecting with Him seems hard right now. But I press through. I've been through this before, and I trust Him enough to know that He has a purpose, even in this. I know that walking with Him is all about faith, and faith requires less-than-par circumstances. Faith wouldn't be faith if circumstances didn't require faith in the first place. As I struggle through my broken conversation with Him I remember this.

About 1 min before I make it to my desk, heading back inside, my countenance begins to change. Frustrated goes to freed and tired goes to peaceful. I feel a freedom in my spirit from Him. I suddenly feel like singing his praises and quoting Psalms about His wonder and goodness and life. His uncreated life which he gives to those who seek to know Him.

I don't understand it and probably never will, how God imparts peace and life into my innermost being. Without realizing it, after spending time with Him, even frustrating, hard time - trying to connect with Him and feeling like I'm not - He pours life into me. He rubs off on me and I can't put my finger on it.

Wonderful mystery. Glorious King.

Escaping dead religion. To find Him. (Day 1)

I received a forward today. It was labeled "I agree, it is so!" and had the picture of a big-name evangelist-pastor personality and then a handful of affirmative prosperity statements listed to believe and accept by faith. At the end, it read:

"Very, Very, soon and I say Very, Very, Very soon, GOD is going to do a miracle and lift u up 4 GOOD. Here is a test: if you love God and you're not ashamed of Him, send this to ten people and watch what He does for you tonight. "

This last statement grieved me in my spirit. Since when was serving God about what He does for me, especially about my prosperity? Not to mention the very slight mysticism (forward to 10 people and God will do something amazing tonight for you) -- which may be harmless, yet effectively distracts folks from what God would have them do, which is seeking to know Him. Regardless of what He does or does not give to us, he would have us Know Him above all else.

When Jesus the Christ walked this earth, His teachings were about as far away from prosperity teaching as you can get. Instead of "You will find favor with men", he told his followers, "Men will hate and persecute you... If they hated me, they will hate you too". Instead of "God will give you more and more", Jesus said "In this life you will have trouble, but be happy, because I have overcome the world". Instead of "Trust God for more material blessings in this life", our Saviour taught the masses, "Don't be concerned for what you will eat or drink, or where you will live, or how you will be clothed, for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. Seek first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be added to you."

Jesus was the antithesis of getting ahead in this world. He was homeless, jobless, and sometimes even friendless. Instead of furthering his own causes, he focused solely on doing the will of the Father. He did not seek long life, but voluntarily died a premature death for those he loved. He was often acquainted with loneliness and abandonment. It's no wonder we don't hear much about these realities of Jesus' life and teachings. Truth simply doesn't sell as well.

I wonder what would happen if Christians today took all of their stock out of this world and re-invested it in the kingdom of God... Jesus said, "Don't lay up for yourselves treasures on earth... but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven." What would happen if we became completely content with having our basic needs met, and then focused all the leftover time, energy, and resources on Him and His kingdom?

Lord, give us the grace to be content with what we have, and focus all our efforts on knowing you and on helping others (as you lead) to know you.

A song I wrote

Wrote a song that I feel like the Lord placed on my heart yesterday morn. Can't wait to put it to music. It is a song to help teach my children and our spiritual children how to pray.

When We Pray

When we pray
We thank Him for another day
We tell Him how great He is
For He gives us all good things

(chorus: Then we quiet ourselves
We focus on Him alone
We listen for Him to speak
In whatever way He wants to speak)

Then we confess
Our faults to Him who loves us so
Loves us more than life itself
His mercy will renew us

(repeat chorus)

And then we ask
For strength to make it through the day
Keep us walking in Him today
And give us help to do His will

(repeat chorus)

Of course we ask
For Him to help our families
Our close brothers and sisters
The ones we live & work with in Him

(repeat chorus)

Not afraid to ask
He said ask and you will receive
He said you don’t have because you don’t ask
The constant cries of His church will yield results

(repeat chorus)

And as He leads
We cry out for our lost friends
The ones stuck in sadness and sin
The ones who do not yet know Him
We ask believing
We plead for them as for ourselves
Cry and wail as the Spirit leads
We don’t take no for an answer

(repeat chorus)

And He will lead
His Spirit will lead our prayers
He’ll show us where to go from there
He’ll take us into the deep

(repeat chorus)

And when we’re done
We worship and we love on Him
He wraps us in His arms again
And tells us we’re His own again

Tells us we’re His own again (repeat)
We’ll always be His own

Re-thinking the "End Times"

Oh man... I am sort of floored right now in my mind and spirit, and a little angry at all the twisted Bible teaching that I (and so many others) grew up with on the subject of eschatology.

How do you help someone to completely rethink their paradigm (their pre-existing set of beliefs and opinions) on a certain topic that they have been taugh fallacy on since they were very young? How do you help a person completely re-examine their entire belief system on a certain subject -- especially on a subject as full of confusion and fear (paralyzing fear) as this one? How do you help a person to take a huge mountain in their head, break it down piece by piece, rock by rock, and realize that the many pieces which constituted the mountain do not form a mountain - but actually something completely different? Where do you start? How can you help them see the need for a complete re-examination and then be willing to go through the process of re-discovery and re-learning?

Well, I do not doubt, as in anything truly important in this journey of life with God, it must be a God thing. It must be the Lord who initiates the questioning process which eventually leads to a complete re-examination of certain truths. Unless God is in it, trying to help a person see truth on a subject that has been as twisted as this one over the years, is like running into a brick wall.

Well I would like to encourage anyone being led to question their traditional thinking and belief system on the topic of eschatology that the process is worth it. It is so worth it. Imagine not experiencing fear and timidity surrounding the future because you understand the hope that God has given to all those who are in Him, and what He has truly revealed to our forefathers about our future. Picture reading the Bible - especially books like Daniel and Revelation and passages like Jesus' Olivet discourse - and fully understanding what you are reading, and being sincerely and deeply edified by it. Consider having so much more confidence in God, in His inspired writings, and in the apostolic fathers, because for the first time what were fuzzy and twisted sayings and teachings are now clear - and further prove that Him and everything about Him is true and living. This is the glorious result of coming in contact with Truth - and remaining in it.

On a topic as expansive as Bible eschatology, which includes verses and passages from nearly every book of the Bible, the task of rediscovery can seem daunting. Where do you start? Where do you go from there? How do you tell fact from fiction, truth from tradition? Well, on every journey, we start with Jesus. And we end with him too. He IS the truth, and He sent His Spirit to lead and guide us into ALL truth. The best posture before the word of God is one of complete humility and discipleship. Lord, teach me -- re-teach me on this subject. Show me what is true and what is not. Show me where to start and be my guide and my teacher. Protect me from every lie and deception of the enemy. Grant me understanding on this topic.

Let me next say that the right key opens the most frustrating lock with ease. The wrong key will not open the door no matter how hard you try. For many, searching for truth on this subject has been like systematically trying every key on the keychain to try and open that door (and for most, the right key has never been on the keychain at all - they've had to go searching for a new set of keys!). The fact is, when you find the right key to understanding this subject - the right paradigm through which to view this topic - all will become clear. The lock will unlatch, the heavy door will swing open with ease, and a new world of revelation and understanding and edification will be in front of you. For those who love the Bible, this is where it is at! God did not give us the inspired writings to confuse and perplex us endlessly - far be it from Him. He gave us His word to shed light, to give understanding, and to give us peace.

Simplicity

Well,
As life moves forward, repeating themes and thoughts and burdens seem to emerge. One of the key disciplines that always seems to come back to the forefront of my mind and heart is that of simplicity. Living simply - cutting out the extras, the unnecessaries, the weights, or the distractions - and filling my life with the simple and straightforward, the rich and the pure.

I don't want to waste my time. I don't want to be throwing punches into the air. I don't want to finish my life wondering where all the time went. I want to finish it knowing I lived it right and full - and that I put my thoughts and energy on what was truly important.

My kids are what is important. My wife is what is important. Learning to spend time with Jesus constantly is important. Loving sinners is important. Living in community. Working hard. Being honest. Being totally available.

The words from a John Mayer song come to mind. "How come everything I think I need, always comes with batteries - what do you think that means?"

Preach it, brother John :)

If something in my life needs batteries to work, then its probably just a filler or a substitute for something organic and real - and the organic and real comes straight from the LORD.

Twisted Sisters - Common Bible Misconceptions - Pt 3

Part 3 - Liturgy? Who needs it!

Okay - so the next misconception is not a misconception as much as a malpractice. Most understand that modern liturgical exercises do not find their roots among the primitive Christian church, but cling to modern liturgy nonetheless. Liturgy is a specific order of worship. Usually when we think of this term we think of something like the very traditional rituals of the Catholic church. However, presbyterian churches have them too - yes, even contemporary Christian churches have their liturgy - and I am afraid that it has taken over the modern church like a lingering cold that won't go away.

Any one of us could pick a church to visit on any given Sunday - small or large, black white or grey, and whatever the denomination - and generally know what to expect. Most services we could set our clocks by. We park, enter the building, are greeted by someone. Pick a seat in the sanctuary, and wait for the service to start. Someone steps on the platform in front, greets people or opens with a prayer, and the singing starts. 3-5 songs are sung. Then an offering is taken and/or announcements are given. Then the preacher or teacher steps up and prepares to give a sermon. Usually between 45 and 75 minutes long. Then either a corporate prayer or some type of altar call. There are variations to this of course, but pick whatever church or group - I don't care - any fairly mainstream denomination or church type, and it's nearly identical. Call it what you like, but that is liturgy. It's a specific order of worship. Whether we've consciously decided to follow this order, or sub-consciously, we follow it nonetheless... Or most do.

On this topic, like most every other, I believe that going back to the ancient writings to see how the early church functioned before the traditions and liturgies and organizing and institutionalism could very well revolutionize the way we practice our faith. Here is a key verse to kick things off:
1 Cor. 14:26 - "How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification."

This one simple statement written by Paul to the church in Corinth in the first century is paradigm-shattering if we thoroughly consider what it suggests. First of all, when's the last time you were in a gathering where "each person" had a song, a teaching, a tongue, a revelation, or an interpretation? Or when each person was simply even given the chance to share their individual gift? Although the church I grew up in was open to the spirit moving and taking over during a gathering, it was still a very rare occurence indeed. When it did happen, it was like pulling teeth. If God wanted to interrupt our comfortable liturgy, He had to play his cards just right or we weren't budging.

And we were better than most at this. Most churches don't ever see a service where each member can use their gift to build up the whole body. They are, without realizing it, helplessly bound by tradition. Our tradition has muzzled God's voice, quenched the moving of His Spirit, and held back His hand from truly working in our midst. We don't even see it.

This verse tells us a few key things. First, their gatherings were a forum for every Christian to share the gift God had given them before the whole group. Second, the believers in Corinth were so excited about what God was telling and showing each of them, that they had too much happening at once. Third - and I believe this is key - Paul's instruction to them was not to stop letting everyone share their gifts from the Lord when they came together, but rather to show them how to do it so that the whole group was built up. He did not stifle their giftings! Did not tell them that in order to avoid chaos let one person select all the songs they would sing each week and everyone else just stand by as spectators. Did not tell them to be quiet and let the smartest among them do all the ministering. Did not advise them to save their gifts for outside the corporate meeting. He was excited about each member functioning!

This is a peek into a bit of the glory of the early church. When they came together, anyone was free to share a song, a testimony, a revelation, a doctrine, a tongue or interpretation, or whatever other way the Spirit was communicating. Herein is the point. If the One who gives all these gifts is the Holy Spirit, and the gifts of the Spirit were the focus of their gatherings, then it was not any man that was in charge of their meetings! It was the Holy Spirit who was in charge. He was the M.C., and He alone led the gatherings!

It would seem then, that if He wanted to speak through a certain individual one week, and someone completely different the next, He could. If He wanted to speak a little something through a number of different members during a particular gathering, He was free to. Maybe He wanted to speak through a child, or an elderly widow, or even a stranger walking in off the street. Perhaps one week He wanted to build up His body through songs, and the next week He wanted to build up His body through gifts of healing. Well he certainly could, because there was plenty of room for Him to move! As a result, the job of the believers each week was very different than it is today. Today a small handful of folks do a lot of preparing for the main gathering during the week (usually a song leader, some Sunday school teachers, and the pastor or preacher). Back then though, it would seem that it was every members job to prepare for the main gathering - each was to seek the Lord during the week (seperately and together I'm sure) so that when they all came together, God could speak through any one of them the exact message for the exact needs present in that meeting. Because after all, only He knows what each member comes in true need of each week!

For the sake of brevity I will wrap this up -- In my studies, here is what their average gathering looked like in the days of the primitive Christian churches: 1. They usually met in homes (more on this in a future installment - Acts 2:46, 20:20, 1 Cor 16:19, Col 4:15, Phm 1:2). 2. They shared a full meal (also called love feasts). 3. A sharing of the bread and the wine to remember and honor the Lord's sacrifice, according to the Lord's command. (1 Cor 11:20, Jud 1:12, Acts 2:46, 20:7) 4. Waiting on the Lord together and each sharing the gifts of the Spirit, in whatever way and through whatever forum the Spirit prompted each one.

I will also mention that this forum fits well with the oversight of elders (bishops or presbyters - spiritual moms and dads) who simply looked over the flock, fed the young ones, and were there to guide the church family at key times -- but did not do all the work or all the ministering. Every member functioned in their God-given gift, and the whole body grew up into the Lord together as they submitted to His headship alone.

It makes me wonder how many unspoken needs go unmet in our modern corporate gatherings today because the Lord is not allowed to break in and spontaneously minister to them. I wonder how many spiritually gifted individuals have never been encouraged to exercise the gifts God has given them, let alone have a forum in the presence of the whole body through which they could practice them. Over the years I wonder how many leaders with profound callings on their lives have sat on our pews and grown stale and weak because they were never given a consistent and meaningful place to minister among their extended spiritual family.

I also wonder how badly our Lord desires to be head of His church again, to be the One in charge of the gatherings of His people, and to minister in the way that only He can each and every week...

But I have already said too much.