Part 2 - American Dream vs. Real Faith

As I've thought about my first post relative to radical faith, it struck me that what I was describing sounds like radical behavior to most self-professing Christians.  But, actually, it's not radical at all.  It's normal behavior for those who have genuinely given the ownership of their lives to Jesus.  I know it sounds "wacked out" to say "God is in control of my life".  And to some, not knowing what that really means, they are self-deceived in thinking that God runs their lives.  But here are some indicators that God either is or isn't the Lord of your life.  Now as you read them, remember that only you and God can truly know what's in your heart.  You can lie to me, and probably get away with it for quite a while.  You can lie to your family, friends, and co-workers, and get away with it.  But, you can't lie to God.  And it's God you will ultimately stand before someday, and His Word, the Bible says that He'll say to those who have truly made him their Lord "well done good and faithful steward.  Enter into your reward".  But that's not the end of it.  To those who lied to themselves, or never even made the attempt to give their lives to Jesus, He'll say "depart from me, you cursed evil ones, for I never knew you." And those will be cast into Hell for all eternity to suffer in lonliness without God.  So you can see there's a lot more on the line than just putting some money in the offering plate, or being nice to your neighbor.  Having said all that, here is a short list of possible checkpoints to indicate whether or not you've given your life ot Jesus:

     1.  Do you regularly consider how to spend your money by first stopping and asking God what He wants to do with the wealth that He's given you.

          A.  One indicator would be: Have you ever denied yourself something in order to give the money to someone in need?  (Not just giving someone your extra money, but actually going without something that you wanted or needed in order to enable someone else to have what they wanted or needed.)

     2.  Do you spend more time each day reading the Bible than you do watching T.V.  (If this checkpoint sounds too severe, then perhaps you're not as surrendered to God as you want to think you are.) 

          A.  Think about it, we spend an enormous amount of time, (8 hours a day for 13 years, plus college and grad school) preparing to do the work we think we want to spend our lives doing.  How much time have you spent preparing for the work that God wants you to spend your lives doing?

     3.  Do you know and recognize God when He speaks to you?  (This one is puzzling to a lot of so-called believers because they don't know what God's voice sounds like.  Most true believers have heard God's voice at one time or another, but they're uncertain about whether it's really God, or just guilt or something they ate last night.)

          A.  Do you know how to distinguish God's voice from all the white noise in our lives?

     4.  Does it bother you that many people in your county, and pehaps even in your neighborhood will die this week, and many will go to Hell?  (By now, some are saying:  "This guy's some kind of religious fanatic!  But did you know that this is exactly what Jesus was preoccupied with?  He said in Luke 19:10:  "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."  You were on the mind of Jesus 2000 years ago as he walked this earth.  If you want to be successful find a successful person and do what they do.  If you want to be a Christ follower, study the life of Christ and do what he did.)

Well, I told you it would be a short list.  But, I hope it helps you to be honest with yourself about whether or not you're really a follower of Jesus, or just a "wanna be".  If you ever want to talk to me, just go to the home page of our websit and find my contact phone number.  You'll find I'm very accessible.  Until next time...

Pastor Jim

Inter-faith?

Just this morning I read an article about an Episcopal Church that held an inter-faith service with an Islamic Mosque in the area. The pastor of the Episcopal Church received all sorts of criticism and couldn't understand why. He said that many of his congregants were in inter-faith marriages, so it wasn't much of a stretch for them to do it, yet his complaint was that other Christians, some even senior ministers within his own denomination, were the most critical of this. The article then quoted the Islamic Imam who presided along with the Episcopal Priest as saying that the people who were being critical of the service could not know much about the Jesus they claimed to follow, because Jesus' purpose on earth was to show love, kindness, and forgiveness. He further stated that Jesus never said anything harshly, and never called anyone, certainly not those of his faith group, names.

As I read the article, the thought that came to me is that the article was written from the perspective of a progressive person who doesn't have any convictions. But what really struck me was the audacity of allowing an Islamic Imam speak for the Church relative to our Saviour, Jesus. First, the Bible clearly says in 2nd Corinthians 4:4, that the God of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers so that they cannot see the light of the Gospel. So, an Islamic Imam cannot know the Jesus we worship, because he is blinded by Satan. Because of this blindness, he was totally wrong in his report of Jesus. Did not Jesus have extremely harsh words for the Pharisees and Levite Priests? Did he not call them sons of the devil? Did he not say they were "white washed tombs"? As a matter of fact, the people who Jesus never criticized were the ones who freely admitted they knew nothing of Him. But to those who supposedly knew the Law, that is the Old Testament, he spoke harshly because they, more than anyone else should have known better.

When I see this Episcopal Priest saying that the God if Islam is the same as the God of the Jews and Christians, I have to take exception. Allah is not Jehovah God. Allah is a false God made up by a false prophet, 600 years after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And more importantly, Islam denies the diety of Jesus, and vehemently denies the virgin birth and incarnation. Jesus said "I and the Father are one" He further stated that "he who has the Son, has life. But he who has not the Son, has not life."

But even more tragic than the Imam speaking for Christianity, is the priest who doesn't realize that the Bible also forbids communion with worshippers of other Gods. 2nd Corinthians 7: 14-18 says: "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people. Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you, and you will be my sos and duaghters, says the Lord Almighty." These verses make it clear that we cannot and should not try to "worship" with unbelievers. And Muslims are unbelievers because they deny the very Son of God.

So, what should our action be toward other religions? Well, certainly God loves them and died for them just as much as he loved us and died for us. So our action should not be to isolate ourselves from them. That is not what these verses are teaching us. What they are saying is don't be yoked with unbelievers. That can mean don't be married to unbelivers. It can also mean dont be joined in bussiness with unbelievers. But it certainly means don't worship with unbelievers, because Paul refers to our bodies as Temples. You worship at a temple.

What we can do is build bridges of friendship. We can develop strong relationships where unsaved people see the difference in our lives that Christ makes. Then as 1st Peter 3 says we should be prepared to give an answer when they ask us about the hope that lies within us.

In conclusion, let me say that we live in a very different world than the one I grew up in 50 years ago. Today, if you tell someone they're wrong, you are accused of hate speech. The article I referred to at the top stated that the Priest had received over 54 pieces of hate mail. Yet when he read excerpts from some of them, it wasn't hate mail at all. It was other Christians trying to correct and reprove this priest. I'm reminded of the years I lived in Colorado. We have one of the most beautiful pieces of creation there, the Royal Gorge. It's a breath takingly beautiful chasm and the only way across is the Royal Gorge Bridge. It's stretches several thousand feet above the floor of the gorge. Now if someone asked me how to get across the gorge, and I told them the only way is the bridge, I wouldn't be a narrow-minded biggot, I'd be telling the truth. Using the logic of many so-called Christians, I'd be rebuffed. They'd say: "You can't tell a person there's only one way across the gorge. Their religion is as valid as yours, and so if their religion says there are many ways across the gorge, then who are you to say there isn't. This of course would be obsurd, but it's just as obsurd to say that Christians are narrow-minded biggots for re-stating the words of the Son of God ("I am the way, the truth, and the light. No man comes to God except through me.") We aren't narrow-minded and biggoted. We're telling them the truth that can save them and keep them from eternal torment in Hell.

Let me know what you think of this post.

Pastor Jim

American Dream vs Biblical Faith

I read a book recently, "Radical" by David Platt.  Platt really challenged me to consider the possibility that I had sold out to the American Dream.  He gives some pretty easily understood indicators that hint that one might be living for self, rather than living for God.  I hear people all the time say "I'm a Christian, I believe in God and all that.  I go to church."  Blah, blah, blah.  The problem with this statement, at least in my experience is that it's almost never backed up with any kind of physical evidence to prove that the person believes in what he or she just said. 

Here's what I mean.  A person says "I'm a Christian".  But they live a life of self-indulgence.  Jesus said that if anyone wants to be His disciple, they must first deny themselves and then they can follow Him.  So, self-indulgence seems to be the antithesis of being a Christian.  Others say; "oh, I believe in Jesus", as though simply assenting to what we know from History is significant.  The Bible says that even the demons believe in Jesus, so that doesn't seem to carry much weight, either.  Jesus said in Matthew 7:21:  "Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven."  So, just believing that Jesus exists doesn't seem to get me very far, either. 

So, what is it that makes me a true Christian and enables me to live without worshipping the world or all of it's toys?  Well, I'll give you my thoughts on the next post.  In the mean time, I'd value hearing about what you think?

Willing to Serve?

One of the things that has been impressed on my heart recently is the call for us to be servants. The recent messages, particularly last weeks, have touched my heart very specifically regarding this topic. One of my favorite passages is Mark 10 where Christ is explaining to the disciples that we need to be servants to those around us in order to receive rewards in heaven. I ask myself, am I really willing to serve others - without reward - here on earth?

Those who come to our small group know that this is a topic close to my heart. We often discuss the idea that God knows our hert, even though man cannot see it. God has the ability to understand our motives, and can convict us when our actions and our intentions are not aligned with his will. I know there are times when I have done the right thing, but it was not for a reason that would honor my God. It was for a selfish purpose, or to make me look good.

So I throw out the question to those who claim Christ as our example, will you join me and measure your actions against Mark 10:43-45 this week or this month? Will you serve others with the understanding that the reward will not be granted on this earth but will be stored up for us in heaven? Will you challenge me with the question, "Where is your heart today?"

Can a Christian lose his or her salvation?

Can a Christian lose his salvation? I get asked that question a lot, although often in some variation. Someone might say: "So and So is no longer a Christian." Or, one might ask: "If I die with unconfessed sin in my life, will I go to Heaven?"

It's clear that the Bible teaches that Christians can fall away. Peter denied Jesus. Moses fled to the desert for 40 years. Jonah fled to Tarshish. Throughout history, God worshipers have strugggled to maintain a faithful walk with God. So, it's normal to wonder what happens when someone moves into eternity not having finished well.

The good news is that the Bible clearly teaches that when I commit my life to God, he forever saves me. In Ephesians, chapter 1, and verses 13 and 14 tell us: "And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory."

These verses clearly state that those who have believed the Gospel have received God's spirit, which is a guarantee of our redemption. Folks, God never breaks His promises, and certainly, when he guarantees something, it happens.

So, what happens when someone who previously believed, either recants his or her salvation, or simply gets caught up in doing wrong and wanders away from God? Well, the best way to explain it is through the use of a parent/child relationship. When one of my children chooses to disobey my instructions, even saying "I'm no longer your child", that, in and of itself, does not mean he or she is no longer my child. Having been born into my family, the child will always be my child. But, our relationship is broken. He or she won't have much to do with me, and certainly won't receive the best that I have to offer until the child confesses the wrong, and apologizes. That's the way it is with a Christian. When we recant our salvation, or wander away from God, our relationship with Him is broken. He can't and won't bless us, or guide us at that point. The next prayer that God can hear from us is a prayer of confession. As long as we are walking in disobedience our prayers cannot be heard by God. The Psalmist, David, put it this way in Psalm 66:18: "If I regard iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear."

But, that has nothing to do with our eternal salvation. Some might say: "Well, then why should I live for God? As soon as I believe, I'm guaranteed eternal life, so I can just go on and live my life any way I choose. Right?" Well, technically that's true. But think about it for a moment. The Bible says that at the end of time, each person, Christian and non-Christian, must give an account of his life, to God. For the non-Christian, that accounting includes the eternal destination of Hell. But the Christian doesn't stand at that judgement. Romans 8:1 says: "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Because Jesus paid the price for my wrongs with his death on the cross, it would be double jeoprady for me to have to pay for them at the judgment. No, the judgment that Believers will stand for is one where we get rewarded for the things we did in this life for God's glory, not our own. For the person who decides to recant of their faith, that will be an empty appointment. And, although enjoying eternal life with Jesus, they'll have nothing to show for their earthly existence, and this will be for all of eternity. So, does it make sense to do that? No!

I hope I've answered this question for you. If not, why not respond to this blog, and we'll strike up a conversaiton about it. I promise not to give you my opinion, just God's Word. Why not drop me a line?