The Forgiveness Baseline

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So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it.  For the message God delivered through angels has always stood firm, and every violation of the law and every act of disobedience was punished.  So what makes us think we can escape if we ignore this great salvation that was first announced by the Lord Jesus himself and then delivered to us by those who heard him speak?  Hebrews 2:1-3

If your doctor is like mine there are always tests with bodily fluids, machines, and thumping of my chest, knees and whatever else he’s curious about; lots of tests! 

The reason (I’m told) for these tests are for developing a baseline.  With blood pressure, not everybody has 120 over 80.  Some naturally have higher pressure, and some lower.  Few are constantly perfect at 120/80.  But that is the target; it’s the way (so say the experts) a heart pump operates best. 

If, after all those tests my doctor tells me I’m sick, he will start writing in Latin on the prescription pad.  And it’s understood that if I really want the sickness to go away I’d better follow through and take my medicine. 

Now, at the risk of offending the theological correctness police here, I want to say that my doctor is like Jesus; he’s very annoying.  Often, because of the expense or trouble involved in getting cured, I’d rather ignore an illness.  But, my doctor won’t let me do that; he gets in my face and says (with words or just a stare) do you really want to be well?  That is so-like Jesus!

Historic Methodist doctrine says it is possible to sin-away God’s work of grace, meaning Wesleyans are not part of the once-saved-always-saved camp.  You can get that down at the local Calvinist doctrine-leaning churches, but here there’s free will both in coming to Christ, or turning your back on Him in backslidden sinfulness.

In keeping with that doctrine the very idea of drifting away from the truth should scare the eternal fool out of each of us.  If even the angels who disobeyed were punished for drifting away from complete obedience to God,[2] and they are lumped in with such nefarious immorality as Sodom and Gomorrah, how could we NOT be overwhelmingly mortified to be considered along with that lot?

Now some people might be quick to say…but the grace of God.  Of course, the grace of God is the Father’s way of restoring us to right relationship with Him.  But a right relationship is only right when it is a holy relationship. 

Grace only works when it is received and responded-to.  Forgiveness extended demands a keeping of the relationship “right”.  And that keeping requires constant monitoring of our behavior, and confession of our sins to keep moving in the direction of growing as a believer.

This is a corollary to the works and faith connundrum; we do not do good works (like helping people, praying, attending church, tithing, and witnessing) to get saved…that is a matter of faith.  However, a faith which brings on salvation as the gift of God will always lead the one who is saved into good works.  We walk by faith, which, if we are being obedient to our Father’s will, results in good works. 

James, the half-brother of Jesus laid that out for us in his letter:

What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions?  Can that kind of faith save anyone?  Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing.  What good does that do?  So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough.  Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.  Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.”  But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds?  I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”  James 2:14-18

So, it’s never a matter of knowing all the right stuff about God and what’s right or wrong, if we’re not going to put that stuff to work doing what God has commanded. 

And therein lies the key to living the life of a disciple of Jesus; it’s less about talking the talk, and more about walking the walk.

Mark Twain, who was by all accounts something of a deist (allowing there is a god, but certainly not a follower of Jesus Christ), once said: 

I don’t so much worry about what I don’t understand in the Bible, as I worry about the things I do understand and don’t do.

And that is the forgiveness baseline.  That is the point at which we check our faith-pulse to see if we are really walking the walk of doing what we have had made clear to our hearts about following Jesus (or if we’re just talking the talk about following Jesus).

We come to this table to touch base with that baseline about our spiritual health and how we’re doing with keeping that relationship holy and right.  That is one of the reasons our liturgy or ritual is so important; it’s like a checklist:

          ·      We examine ourselves

          ·      We clear our hearts with other believers

          ·      We confess our sins, receiving forgiveness and offering it to others

          ·      We confess our faith and dependence on Christ

All of this frees us for joyful obedience and service in God’s kingdom.  We take our medicine and watch our test levels return to the baseline, forgiven, healthy, and useful.

The invitation to this table is not from me; it is from the Good Shepherd who loves all His sheep – the Great Physician who wants all his friends well. 

And this invitation is a reminder to not ignore the prescription to do this often, in rememberance of Him.

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit…Amen! 

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[1] Title Image:  Russell Brownworth (original work)      All Scripture from The New Living Translation (unless otherwise stated) 

[2] See the Book of Jude v.6-7

Running Skills - Dodge - Pursue

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Monday, May 7, 2018

But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction.  For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.  And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.  But you, Timothy, are a man of God; so run from all these evil things.  Pursue righteousness and a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.  Fight the good fight for the true faith.  Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you have declared so well before many witnesses.   

1 Timothy 6:9-12^(NLT)

I’ve never particularly enjoyed running just for the sake of running.  I did run years ago as part of a weight-loss regimen, but that was torture!  On the other hand, if you put a ball in my hand to bounce while I’m running, jumping, and scoring….we call it basketball, and that’s fun!  Spiritual running can also be torturous, and immensely rewarding. 

Timothy was a young pastor, and his mentor, Paul, encouraged him in two directions; he was to dodge and pursue.  Of course the things the young man were to dodge are a shopping list of human cravings, the evil that leads to the moral failure so common to humankind.  And then, every time you’re running away from something, you’re also running towards something else.  Paul told Timothy he needed not just to run from evil, but to PURSUE righteousness…a godly life. 

Then the apostle got really specific:

Faith – Love – Perseverance - Gentleness

Each of these attributes (by Scriptural definition) touch another word:  character!

Faith places us in someone else’s hands; a Christian dedicates his life to God’s leading.

Love is allowing the character of God to seep into his own bone, marrow and flesh to live the life of God for the sake of others.

Perseverance is that “hang-in-there” quality that doesn’t give up on others.

Gentleness is tied to the patience we must have to encourage the weak or troubled spirit of another person.

This four-fold running plan, to lose the weight of evil and develop muscles of righteous living, requires attention to learning God’s ways, above all through the study of God’s Word and prayer.  One of the chiefest reasons I chose to begin writing these daily devotionals was to encourage just that – a daily embrace of truth for the nourishment of godliness in our lives. 

My bride developed a substantial pain in her foot.  When she couldn’t stand it any longer she went to the podiatrist, who told her she had a mechanics problem.  The way she walked was different than the way God created her to walk.  The answer was a mechanical treatment – better shoes to support walking correctly. 

Spiritually-speaking, if our mechanics is off in faith, love, perseverance or gentleness, we cannot walk the way God desires; we walk crooked…sinfully.  And, in those moments of discovery, it is time to turn around, straighten-out the path, and walk the way we’ve been called; it’s time to dodge and pursue!

For You Today

So…how’s your walk of faith?  Is it filled with His love?  Are you wavering or persevering?  Is there gentleness, or are the edges a little rough? 

Are you dodging and pursuing?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day. 

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[1] Title Image:  Courtesy Pixabay.com

Lenten Walk - Part 7

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Friday, February 23, 2018

Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had not been able to bear children for him.  But she had an Egyptian servant named Hagar.  So Sarai said to Abram, “The Lord has prevented me from having children.  Go and sleep with my servant.  Perhaps I can have children through her.”  And Abram agreed with Sarai’s proposal.  So Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian servant and gave her to Abram as a wife.  (This happened ten years after Abram had settled in the land of Canaan.)  So Abram had sexual relations with Hagar, and she became pregnant.  But when Hagar knew she was pregnant, she began to treat her mistress, Sarai, with contempt.  Then Sarai said to Abram, “This is all your fault!  I put my servant into your arms, but now that she’s pregnant she treats me with contempt.  The Lord will show who’s wrong—you or me!”  Abram replied, “Look, she is your servant, so deal with her as you see fit.”  Then Sarai treated Hagar so harshly that she finally ran away.  Genesis 16:1-6^(NLT)

Abram [later Abraham] is called the father of the Jewish community.  It is said of him in Scripture that he believed, or placed his faith in God, and that was why God accepted and blessed Abraham.  It is also true that Abraham was not perfect in this; he caved to his wife’s “plan B” of gaining an heir through a servant girl.

Trying to put myself in Abram’s shoes when it comes to walking the walk to which God has called me, I can imagine how tough it was to face the reality that he was over 80 and still without an heir.  In terms of sticking with Plan A, it was getting really problematic!  And then there was the voice of Sarai, his wife of many years, apparantly barren, and depressed over that, and the heir problem; she suggests Plan B and the conflict is game-on! 

What is a guy to do?  Should he hear his wife’s plan?  After all, having a child with a servant wasn’t unheard of in that culture.  Should he stick to the original promise?  The biological reality was looming large; Sarai was way past child-bearing age and perhaps this thing about having a child with the servant girl, Hagar could actually be God’s will…what is a guy to do?

The spiritual discipline of Lent is a mystery in terms of what constitutes the most beneficial way to wade through the waters of seven weeks of spiritual preparation for the most important event we celebrate in the calendar of human existence…the anniversary of the resurrection of Messiah.  This whole season is designed for introspection and clearing the pathway for a King to reside in our hearts.  The reality about such discipline is the more deeply you look inside, the more muddy the waters can become.  How do you make preparation for the God of the universe to live in you?   

Well, one of the things we can say in response to that is to remember how wrong it went for Abram and Sarai to derail Plan A in favor of bringing Hagar into the bedroom.  Hagar became a thorn in the side of this operation, and the result has been contention down through the centuries between the children of Hagar and the offspring of Sarai.  It’s always a clearer decision in the daylight of retrospect, but choosing to do God’s will, no matter what, is always the right response to God’s call…even when it looks like the well has gone dry on God’s promise.

For You Today

If you’re wrestling with a decision through this season of preparing a clean place to host your Savior, try to remember that your cleaning tool must also be clean.  The most expedient answer isn’t always the best, and the easiest pathway is seldom the best.  Accept the burden of being kind, going the extra mile, and being a source of extravagant, unknown generosity towards those who are in the center of your decision.

Then watch God unfold his plan.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.

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[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com

The Voice of God

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Monday, February 12, 2018

So Moses returned from the mountain and called together the elders of the people and told them everything the Lord had commanded him.  And all the people responded together, “We will do everything the Lord has commanded.”  So Moses brought the people’s answer back to the Lord.  Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will come to you in a thick cloud, Moses, so the people themselves can hear me when I speak with you.  Then they will always trust you.”  Exodus 19:7-9^(NLT)

So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it.  For the message God delivered through angels has always stood firm, and every violation of the law and every act of disobedience was punished.  So what makes us think we can escape if we ignore this great salvation that was first announced by the Lord Jesus himself and then delivered to us by those who heard him speak?  And God confirmed the message by giving signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever he chose.  Hebrews 2:1-4^(NLT)

Every weekday morning Elizabeth and I listen to the raspy-voiced guy who delivers our devotion via the internet.  Over that first cup of coffee we discuss the Scripture we heard and how it impacts us, and what we should do about what we’ve heard.  That guy can be annoying!  The discussion last Thursday (after Mr. Gravel-in-the-throat spoke about the prophet hearing from God) was all about whether we can actually hear the voice of God.  We decided it’s entirely possible; it’s just improbable in the noise of our culture these days.  A church sign I saw recently says:  In order to hear God’s voice you have to turn this world’s volume down.

That is most likely the most theologically and sociologically-accurate statement I’ve ever heard, with the possible exceptions of these two:

·       Every person is a sinner

·       God never knew a someone who was too big a sinner to save

If you noticed in the account of Moses coming down from the mountain to tell the people what he’d heard from the LORD, the people agreed to terms…they would do everything God required.  If you back up a chapter or two and read the lead-up to this point you find there’s a lot of preparation required if you’re going to meet with God on His terms (and hear His voice). 

Now, that’s a whole lot different than what we generally do to prepare for our meetings, isn’t it?  Usually our preparation is limited to putting-on clothes and showing up at the church-house, expecting the preacher to deliver the Word in a 15 minute package, so we can get out a little early to meet Mary and Jim down at Golden Corral.   Instead of reading our Bible lesson for Sunday School, we expect the teacher to give us all of it in 30 minutes and leave plenty of time to talk about last night’s ball game before we have to get quiet in the sanctuary.  Frankly, I’ve always wondered what that conversation was all about under that shade tree in the parking lot in-between Sunday School and worship…were those guys discussing when they were going to meet to bring a meal to those homeless folks, or was it something more spiritual?

Paul said we have to be really careful to pay attention – both to listen and do what we have heard in God’s Word to us.  We have a tendency to drift…to wander from the truth and what it demands of our attention, stewardship, and witness. 

God’s Word – His voice – whether spoken audibly, or printed and shared, is much too important for our souls to be treated casually, haphazardly, or with lifeless lack of enthusiasm.  When you undertake to serve God, you should do it with every bit of excellence you possess, employing every gift the Holy Spirit of God placed in your life.

Those are the terms of this great salvation Paul was preaching.

For You Today

Was your service to God last week enthusiastic – your best?  What will it be like this week?  Will you hear the voice from the mountain?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.

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[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of Pixabay.com