From 1 Corinthians
I am a fool. A weak fool. I am not of noble birth nor influential. I have not much about which to boast – save Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians reminds me that at have no cause for pride. I have done nothing to earn the assurance I own. It is easy to forget that outside of Jesus we are worthless, that we deserve death and hell.
“Of First Importance”
A response to someone’s question: “Is it necessary for the Christian to believe Jesus was actually raised form the dead?
Paul reminds his readers in no uncertain terms that the actual, physical, historically accurate resurrection of Jesus from the grave following his crucifixion is of first importance. The resurrection is Christianity, and without it there is none. Paul removes any doubt of his opinion in 1 Corinthians 15:14 when he writes, “And if Christ has not been raised from the dead, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” Without a resurrected Christ all of Christendom is moot.
From The Acts of The Apostles
Reading the Book of Acts a clear contrast surfaces between the early church and the American church of today. There is an exception that proves every rule, they say, so this opinion of mine is not meant to include every single church in the land, but I do believe it true of the lion’s share. The early church, as it existed before committees and business meetings, cantatas and 5th Sundays, steeples and Robert’s Rules of Order was motivated by two things: the discipleship of current believers and the evangelism of those who were not. The same holds true of today’s church (universal), on paper at least.
From the Gospel of Luke
Reading the Gospel According to Luke, my attention was captured by Jesus’ words in chapter 6. I will focus on those verses 27-36 and 37-42 here.
Jesus Paid It All
It is critical to understand that Jesus’ death on the cross was a voluntary surrender to redeem you and I. The willful self-sacrifice of Jesus is representative of how we must come to accept that salvation. That does not make it easy, mind you. Jesus knew why he had come, to do the will of his Father who sent him. Jesus alluded to his death, burial, and resurrection repeatedly during his ministry, but as the hour drew close he prayed that God would, if it were His will, take that cup from him. We do the same, you know. Only we are not facing our own execution for crimes of which we are innocent. We say, “God, please this.” and “God, I can’t do that. Something else, please!” Or worse, “God, I refuse.” I do not believe it wrong to ask God for another way, place, or time. Jesus did. We cannot ignore the remaining fact, however. Jesus asked if there might be another way, and then displayed plainly his motive when he prayed, “Not my will but yours be done.” Jesus told his Father that if there was another way he would be glad to hear it, but also stood resolute that whatever God’s will was, that is what he would do. When God again affirmed that the sacrifice of the cross was the only means to save mankind, Jesus willingly accepted. To understand that is to understand the salvation available to you and I. We must WILLINGLY accept what Jesus offers through his WILLING sacrifice. Jesus knew God’s will, but could have chosen to ignore it. (Aren’t I glad he did not…) We can know the facts of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, but if we chose to ignore it we have not salvation. We must willingly respond by, in light of his choice to redeem us with his own life accepting Jesus’ gift of salvation by making him Lord of our lives.
From the Gospel of Mark
The Gospel According to Mark, finding itself among the Synoptic Gospels is predictably similar to the Gospel of Matthew. Reading the Gospel of Mark this week I found my attention captured by chapter 5. Here Jesus and his lot have landed a boat only to find a demon-possessed man. This man had been tormented for a long time. The townspeople knew him well, and if verse 4 is any indication they were troubled by this individual. He was someone who frightened them, someone they shielded their children from. The people had tried chains and irons to control the man to no avail.
1 + 1 =?
Thought I would share a brief response I wrote to the question, “Why is it important that Jesus was actually fully God and fully man?”
It is critical to understand that Jesus is fully God and fully man. Does 100% + 100% add up? No, with the exception of Jesus. Jesus came to earth as a man. He hungered and thirsted. He was certainly tempted, in fact far greater was his temptation than yours or mine. I don’t know about you, but I have yet to be led into the wilderness by Satan for forty days…
If Jesus were not fully man he could not have died at human hands. He knew physical pain. When he knew the hour was near Jesus prayed that God might find another way. Yet only his sacrifice was worthy to redeem mankind, because he was also fully God. Jesus did not inherit the sinful nature that plagues each of us as he was born in a unique way, a miraculous way, of a virgin. If Jesus was not also fully God his sacrifice was meaningless, and we have no hope. Christ proved his humanity in death, and his divinity by raising again from the dead. Were this not true, our faith would be futile. Paul speaks to this in 1 Corinthians 15:19 when he says “If for only this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people to be most pitied.”
From the Gospel of Matthew
This was not my first time to read the Gospel of Matthew. Nor my second. It was not my third or fourth. It was not even my first time to read it this year, but as I read it this time I was struck by a message I had not previously focused my attention upon. I have long been aware that Jesus combatted the hypocrisy of the religious leaders of the day, but this time it became most conspicuous, and perhaps for a different reason.
Response to Mr. Stephen Hawking
Just watched the premier of CURIOSITY on THE DISCOVERY CHANNEL. This pilot episode, if that is what they are calling it, featured the renown Professor Stephen Hawking and his attempt to answer the question, “Did GOD create the universe?”
I found Prof. Hawking’s responses a bit under-whelming to be completely honest. Without giving a transcript of the entire hour long episode, let me summarize the prevailing point made on the program:
God cannot have created the universe, nor can He exist at all, because prior to an assumption called the “big bang” there was no time for Him to exist in.
That’s it. This is the best argument that is offered from what the scientific community seems to agree is the greatest mind since Einstein. There must not be a God in Heaven because time is conceivably limited. I really thought there would be more to it. It reminds me of the rare occasions I decide to do some deep cleaning or rearrange a room. I dig in and drag everything out for a big undertaking, and then loose interest and shove everything back where it was. Mr. Hawking celebrates saying it has taken 3000 years of human history to bring us to this milestone, the place where we no longer need to invent “gods” to explain the universe, then seems to loose interest and throw out a ludicrous rationale. The scientific world now enjoys a bully pulpit of sorts, and anyone who would dare oppose these smarter than you types is dubbed a rare breed of idiot. Well, somehow I manage to cross the street all by myself, but I cannot understand this “no time before bang” explanation.
Humor me a moment. Let’s say, for sake of discussion, the GOD of the Bible is real. Why would He be bound by time? Realize that time is not a tangible thing. In fact time is only a human concept invented to explain a given number of earth’s trips around the sun. It is not something GOD or anyone or anything else can exist inside of. The Professor tries to explain himself with an analogy of a clock entering a black hole. Because of the black hole’s intense gravity, time stands still. Clearly, if time is standing still, then the clock would stop it’s motion. If this is the best conclusion the guys in white lab coats can draw, my faith is unshaken. Mr. Hawking, a clock is not the engine of time, it is simply a mechanical device which moves predictably. Time is a measurement, so cannot screech to a halt because of gravity. If we would agree that time is measure of the earth’s orbit, then for time to stop the earth must stop… Maybe you get it. I do not.
Book Review: How GOOD is good enough? by Andy Stanley
HOW GOOD IS GOOD ENOUGH?
Just finished SINCE NOBODY’S PERFECT… HOW GOOD IS GOOD ENOUGH? by Andy Stanley. This is a pretty short book, easily read in one sitting, and well worth the time invested. This book is a gospel presentation designed to address the common misconception that “good” people go to heaven and “bad” people do not.
This book is fantastic. It is a brilliant delivery of the gospel truth. In addition to adding to my frequent re-read list, I plan on giving this great resource to anyone needing help sharing their faith or to anyone with questions themselves about salvation.
I received this book from the publisher in exchange for this review.
Book Review: Radical by David Platt
Radical by David Platt
I opted to read Radical by David Platt after hearing some friends who are also in ministry talking about the book and how much it had challenged them. I believe one said it “wrecked” him, meaning the subject matter of the book had turned his life upside down. I knew I had to see what all the fuss was about so I ordered a copy (yes, I actually paid for this book) and dug in.
This book is certainly true to it’s name. Platt sets out to challenge the status quo, as it were, at least as it relates to the Christian faith. The sub-title reads “Taking Back Your Faith From the American Dream, ” and Radical takes a stab at everything that encompasses our modern view of that dream.
His premiss is simply the “radical” idea that Christ has called us to more than white picket fences and credit card debt. More than SUVs and second mortgages. Maybe God is not nearly as concerned with the interest rate of our Sears Card as he is with our motivation to meet physical and spiritual needs globally. Platt tells of a newsletter that features a church’s grand new worship center which cost tens of millions, and on the same page celebrates that local churches have raised $5000 to go toward a mission goal. That’s a pretty accurate cross-section of our American churches. He tells of churches elsewhere who risk torture and death to come to meetings where they study the bible for hours on end because their hunger for the Word is so great. Compare that with our local churches, where we often can only be motivated to attend a padded-pewed, climate controlled worship service sporadically.
If asked, I would say this book should be whisked straight to the top of any christian’s to-read list. This is probably the best book I’ve read outside of scripture, not because it left me feeling warm and fuzzy, but because I too was “wrecked.” As someone who has been blessed with the middle-class, suburban answer to the American Dream, this book was a wake-up call, maybe even a slap in the face, and I plan on reading it again very soon.
Get your copy and find out more at www.radicalthebook.com
delighted to share. 