Do I have to?

³And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. (I John 2:3)

There is a constant struggle between legalism and grace. So what is John saying here? Are we bound to keep the commands of Christ? Is it a part of our salvation to do so? And the answer is apparently, YES!

But before someone yells, "legalist!" at me, that is not my answer, it is John's. So here are some thoughts about this verse that might clarify things a bit.

• John is not talking about keeping his commandments as a means of salvation. He does not say that if we keep his commandments we are saved.
• He does state that this is evidence of our salvation. That if we want to know if someone knows Jesus, we should look at them and be able to see a difference.
• Verse 6 states, "whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked."

Salvation is not a matter of works, it is a matter of faith. And by that faith, we pursue the object of that faith, God as revealed by His Son. We cannot pursue that by works of righteousness.

My son is at the age where he is a constant shadow to me. If I am going somewhere, he wants to know where and if he can go along. If I am doing something, he wants to help. Not because I ask him too, but because he wants to. In a sense he is pursuing me, and in some ways he will become like me. He would not become like me by merely doing what he was told. He would not become like me by cleaning his room and mowing the yard. To become like me he must spend time with me. Watch me. Talk with me.

I don't become Christlike by merely attending church, giving, serving. These are good things, but take out the love for God (see 1 Cor 13!) and it all means nothing.

God, help me to love you today. Help me to pursue You, to spend time with You, to see You. What more is needed?

Head over heels

Ephesians 1:19b-23

That power is the same as the mighty strength ²⁰ he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, ²¹ far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. ²² And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, ²³ which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

God is all-powerful. So in a sense, it is strange to hear God using "mighty strength" and "exerting" Himself. Job Chapter 26 touches on some of the strength of God, and then concludes by saying "And these are but the outer fringe of his works; how faint the whisper we hear of him! Who then can understand the thunder of his power?”

I like the words of the ESV, which translate it as the "immeasurable greatness of his power toward us." Now, instead of seeing God exerting Himself, I just stand back in awe as I witness His strength in raising Christ and placing Him as supreme over all things.

Christ is not just above, He is far above all things, past, present, and future. He is ruler in this age and the age to come. I love the idea that all things are under His feet (as in they can be stamped out when He sees fit), but He rules over the church with His head.

I need to keep His greatness before me. I need to see His glory and let that keep me focused, for I am far too easily swayed to sin. I also need to see His strength and justice, and remember that it is much better to be ruled over by His head than to be under His feet.

Romans 3:21-23

But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

Is therer anyone out there who honestly believes that they have the right to stand in the presence of God? Is there someone who thinks that they are good enough to have favor with God? What about for even just one day? Can we say that even for one day? Can we stand before God and say, "Surely You remember that day I took that mission trip and worked on that home for that poor family?" Even on a day like that can we say that we totally gave ourselves to the Lord, with no thought of malice or self? That we did not argue about how things need to be done, or our mind wander about the cute person next to us, or just that self-righteous idea of, "Okay God, you owe me one now."

We are wicked, and the Law and the Prophets testify to this. If you don't believe me, just read the 10 commandments. How many have you kept? If your score is not 10 out of 10, you have failed. How many have you kept when you extend that idea that even looking lustfully at a woman is adultery? Forget about murder, when Jesus says that even calling someone a fool puts us in danger of the fires of Hell? Not only does the Law show God's righteousness and perfection, it reveals our unrighteousness and imperfection. (Not a wildly popular sermon topic, but a topic the Bible does not shy away from.)

So what a wonderful gft and revelation when we discover that the righteousness we do not have is given to us through Christ! Given. As in we don't deserve it, we did not earn it, but we can possess it. We all fall short, but through faith can be justified freely though the redemption that came by Jesus.

And if that were all that there were to it, it would be a great ending. But it isn't. You see, the word faith does not just imply a head knowledge, but also conveys the meaning of "a conviction." So it is not just believing that saves us, but the change that takes place because of the conviction of our hearts when we see what He has done for us in giving us His righteousness.

That is what I want and need to see more of each and every day.

Romans 2:5

But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.

In order to have salvation, we need to be saved from something. So what is it that we are saved from? The obvious, but I believe wrong answer, is sin. While God cannot stand sin, I believe that there is more to it than that, and this verse hits it hard.

But because of your hard and impenitent heart This is what we need salvation from, the heart that causes sin. The hardened and unrepentant heart that says, I will not, I cannot yield to God and His ways. The word "hardened" carries with it the image of calluses. We are somewhat hardened by our constant exposure to the world that we live in, especially when we don't stop to view things from God's perspective. When we see others who have more or don't suffer as we do, it can create feelings of hurt. These feelings, if not dealt with, can and will create a toughening of our protective shells.

Two illustrations quickly come to mind. One shows what an idiot I can be, so I will share that one.

I was working in the garage on a project and got my thumb too close to the blade on the table saw. My first response was to say, "It is merely a flesh wound." A throbbing, painful, bloody flesh wound. So I go in the house, clean it up and bandage it. My wife thinks I should go to the emergency room, but it don't. 24 hours later, I am in the med center getting stitches. By now the wound has begun to heal, and the doctor tells me that I should have come in sooner. He goes on to state that I will probably have a permanent numbness in the tip of my thumb, which I now do. The tip of my thumb has no feeling, which is dog-gone irritating when trying to play video games. Not to mention, the rest of my thumb feels sensitive around that area when I am out in the cold. 

My thumb was cut, and because I did not treat it correctly, the inside has a permanent callus that has no feeling. Because our heats have lost their feeling, we do not repent. Why change when there is no feeling of wrongdoing? And what a better picture of our current world than to say they feel no wrong! Not only do they feel no wrong, but they berate those who do. Christians who stand for something (and not always in the best ways, I will admit) are viewed as intolerant. Abortion, homosexuality, lying, and all of the rest of the commandments are viewed as outdated.

Even within the church, and that is to whom Paul is writing, there is this intolerance of others who do not see things as we do. So just like the Pharisees, we put heavy burdens on them that we ourselves are unwilling to carry. We pressure people to tithe, stop drinking any alcohol, don't go to R rated movies, dress a certain way (especially on Sunday), etc. Not that these things are bad, but they do not ensure salvation.

So what is it we need to be saved from? The answer is ourselves. Our hard and impenitent hearts that get between us and who God would have us to be. And the church-goer needs this every bit as much as anyone. It is because of this that we are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.


When God's righteous judgment is revealed, what will that look like?

Here is what it won't look like: You, come on it because you followed the commandments, you attended church and gave a tithe of your income. You, come in because you stayed away from alcohol and drunks and people who sin.

Here is what it will look like: You, come on in because you gave me drink when I was thirsty. You fed me when I was hungry. You clothed me when I was naked. In all that you said, and in all that you did, you sought only to show your love for me. Enter into my kingdom.

God's kindness should lead us toward repentance. Toward a change. To where I no longer value the things that I valued, but now I value God, and in all I do, I show that to the world. So now, when I give a cup of water, it is not to earn God's favor (hand him a filthy rag), but it is because for me there is no other choice. I love others because of His great love for me. I serve others because of my great love for Him.

How not to start a new ministry

Don't randomly call people who don't already know what they want. (John 1:38)

Don't let people know about your past. (John 1:46)

Don't talk about the subject of alcohol. (John 2:9-11)

Don't mess with traditions that are in place. (John 2:15)

Don't tell it like it really is (John 2:24-25)

Don't do any of these things, unless you want to be like Jesus.

I wonder, if Jesus were starting a ministry today, would it look like our ministries? Would he put a coffee bar in a large building where he encouraged everyone to meet on Sunday? What would he talk about? Would he worry if people were offended? Would he judge his success by how many came?

I was just wondering.

Follow him

Jn 1:35-39

John the Baptist has baptized Jesus, and sees him walking by. John was with 2 of his disciples, and he nudges them and points to Jesus. "Behold, the Lamb of God."

What would you say if you were one of the disciples with John? We have no record if they said anything at all. Just that they heard and left him to follow Jesus. I wonder if this was John's intent, to show them who they should really be following. Had there been conversations? After all, John was sent to prepare the way. Was a part of that preparation getting these specific men ready to follow Jesus. Was this John's way of saying, "What are you waiting for, there He is!"

Jesus turns and sees them following and asks an interesting question, one that they don't answer, "What are you seeking?" I think it is a legitimate question, especially since He knew who He was, and at this point they really don't understand all of the implications of who He was.

I wonder what my answer would have been, had Jesus asked me that question on the day I began to follow Him. I wonder if, like the disciples, I would have not said anything. I don't know what I am seeking, Rabbi, but there is just something about you.

So they (the disciples) instead ask him where He is staying. Jesus replies, "Come and you will see."

They did not know what they were getting themselves into. They probably didn't even know what they were looking for. But they were willing to take the risk. They saw something that drew them in.

I wonder if it still shouldn't be that way today. Just Christians living like Jesus, drawing in followers by lives that reveal the glory of God. Not everyone is going to follow, Jesus didn't bat 100% either. But it didn't change who He was or how He approached others. As a matter of fact, He sometimes said the hard things that drove people away. I believe you might call that "pruning."

So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It must have been enough, for they continued to follow him even after that day.

Tough words.

Hosea 4:6 "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your children."

In some regards, I don't think you can say this about the American church culture. We have more knowledge floating around out there than is comprehensible. I don't think that is what God is concerned about, the quantity of the knowledge. I think he is more concerned about the quality, is it really knowledge, or is it the latest psycho-babble wrapped in a Scripture text?

Because many have rejected the truth, the knowledge that comes from God, and have followed whatever tickles ears, you will stumble (see 4:5).

But that is not us, because our church is growing. Read on...

(Vs. 7) "The more they increased, the more they sinned against me; I will change their glory into shame."

So maybe it is not talking about church growth, but rather their own supposed intelletual growth. Yet I see a parallel.

The writers of the New Testament warn us to guard our doctrine. Not the doctrine of a particular denomination, but the teachings of Christ. Yet so much of what is taught in not centered in Christ, but rather wrapped in a layer or two of Christianity.

To quote Mark Driscoll, "...if we ever study anything and don't connect it to Jesus, we are bound to get into a lot of trouble."

Amen!

The Rose

I have just recently found Matt Chandler's preaching, but I find it powerful and convicting. It is no wonder that the church he minsters at has grown dramatically.


If you aren't aware, he has been diagnosed and begun treatment for a malignant brain tumor. Please consider praying for him.