You Don't Really Need to Go to Church; Do You?

 December 11, 2024

Wednesday

Why aren’t people coming to church? It’s simple. We told them not to.

We told them that they could never earn their salvation. We told them that their works were like dirty rags. We told them that there was nothing they could do to get God to love them more. And they believed us.

What is the use of going to church after you have faith in Christ and have been baptized? We certainly told these people incorrect information. However, we may never be able to correct our errors. They aren’t coming to church so that we can.

Some people come to Christ, get baptized and stay at that level of maturity all of their lives. They will admit that they don’t know what the Bible says and, therefore, believe all the junk that comes from social media and friends. They will adopt the values of the society they are in because that is the easiest way to get along this their society. They know they are going to heaven, so why not live this way?

They do not realize what believing in Christ really is. They are merely not objecting to Christ as Savior. They have no intention of following Him. They hear the words of self-denial and think that is giving a couple of dollars to the guy begging at the corner.

These people cannot imagine an abundant life that includes going wherever the Lord leads, giving whatever the Lord asks for, doing whatever and whenever the Lord calls, and putting all others ahead of themselves. They are like people receiving the greatest gift that could ever be given but they think the box is so exquisite that they don’t want to open it.

Going to church is something that is done when it is convenient. It should never be a sacrifice. And if it isn’t fun, it shouldn’t be done that often. And what’s the harm? It isn’t like there are any rewards for sacrifice in heaven, are there?

2 Corinthians 5:10 (NIV) ¹⁰  For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

Knowing God's Grace

 December 10, 2024

Tuesday

Hebrews 12:15 (NASB 2020) ¹⁵ See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;

The person with the root of bitterness has held onto his or her hurt. That might mean that there is a lack of forgiveness. It may mean that there is a lack of recognition that these hurts are being held onto.

Life is not always sweet for any of us. There are disappointments that may start out small but grow bigger and bigger. The person who never got married may resent the loneliness. The person who considers himself ugly may resent the perceived rejection received from that ugliness. There may be no one to forgive. And that's why it is so hard to recognize.

Most people grew up with either an expectation in their lives in how their lives would turn out. The circumstances they have faced have prevented that expectation. Those who saw themselves as bosses are extremely discouraged to find that they have never been a boss. Those who saw themselves as rich are filled with despair in their poverty. Those who thought life will be grand when they have children running around in the house cry out to God, asking "why?" when they can't have children.

Noticing that others have those things they only hoped for makes things worse. It isn't that they necessarily begrudge those around them getting their hopes, they simply become bitter over the fact that these others got what they wanted and they didn't.

At the base of the root of bitterness is a belief that they didn't deserve the life they have. They see themselves as good as those who received what they never had. The bitterness comes against circumstances rather than others.

This is why an assessment of what has been given to them must always be addressed. Counting only the bad things that happen will bring about a root of bitterness. Acknowledging the good things that happen will dispel that bitterness. 

Recognize that all people have bad things happen. Those whom you know that don't appear to have bad things happening are not showing those bad things that have happened. They may be rich but have relationship problems. They may be famous but have no friends. They may appear to be the happiest people you have ever known but have been betrayed by those close to them. Their happy faces may be facades that cover up their disappointments.

What do you truly deserve? The answer will be different for each person. Some will say good health and enough money to make ends meet. Some will say a happy family and friends. The truth is that we think we have been good enough to deserve these things. But our own goodness has nothing to do with what happens in our lives. 

And so we miss God's grace. The very fact that you are reading this blog is a testimony to God's grace. Somehow you have had access to a computer. Somehow you went to school and learned to read. Somehow you have the leisure time to read this blog. God's grace is all around you. It is yours to share with others.

Knowing God's grace kills the root of bitterness.

Trying to Find a Life

 December 9, 2024

Monday

Matthew 16:25 (NASB 2020) ²⁵ For whoever wants to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

Many people are looking for a life. Some try to find it in their careers. They sacrifice everything to climb the ladder of success. If or when they reach the top, they don't find it fulfilling. It certainly isn't abundant.

Others may try to find a life in the lives of an idol. They will change their schedules and pay enormous amounts of money to sit in an audience among thousands of other fans. They will stand in long lines just to get an autograph. Not ever really getting to know their idol keeps them going. It is the fantasy of knowing their idol that becomes their lives.

Still others try to find a life in money and possessions. They want the best of everything. They want the big bank account that goes with it. In the end they realize that it isn't everlasting. They take none of it with them when they leave this world. So, they donate to charitable causes that will put their names on buildings or name funds after them. But even this is left behind.

So many people want to be famous themselves. The internet has placed this within their reach. They have YouTube channels and podcasts and fill Tik-Tok with their experiences and opinions. Others know their names but they know very few people. Being famous isn't a life.

Yet, as long as people can't see the life that Christ offers, they will hold onto lives that are not lives at all. They cannot understand how giving away their lives will actually gain them a life. They think that faith in Christ is going to boring church services, living lives of self-sacrifice and serving others. They cannot imagine that this can have more meaning than they can find in anything that they chased. They can't imagine that church services will become exciting. The Bible will become something read daily. Sacrifice won't seem like sacrifice. And serving others will become meaningful. 

In short, people can't imagine that the Holy Spirit will come to inhabit them and real, abundant meaningful life will emerge without those pursuits that promised life but never delivered. They can't imagine being changed.

The world has set a trap for people. It tells them that life is found in the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. It seeks to conform Christians into this image if it loses them at some point. But this life is like driving down a road making good time with little traffic not knowing that the bridge is out ahead. The destination that is hoped for isn't the destination that will be reached. People who drive off a bridge don't realize that until it is too late.

Forgive Even If You Never Forget

 December 8, 2024

Sunday

Matthew 6:14–15 (NASB 2020) ¹⁴ “For if you forgive other people for their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive other people, then your Father will not forgive your offenses.

You forgive but you can't forget. Some think that forgetting is the true test of forgiveness but it isn't. Forgetting a wrong is dementia not forgiveness. Forgiveness would mean very little if it was merely forgetting. The wrong that was committed against you has left a deep wound. The wound must heal. It will never heal without forgiveness. Healing is more than forgetting the pain. It is knowing that the pain was caused and never bringing it up again. That is much more than a human can do by himself.

Every human being was created in the image of God. That image has been indelibly imprinted on us with the characteristics of God. However, each and every one of those characteristics were corrupted when we sinned. Yes, all have that sin nature passed down to them from Adam. We have made justice into revenge. Revenge is never satisfied. Revenge does more than remembers. It consciously brings up the hurts and rehearses them to make them worse than they originally were. Those who hold onto revenge have corrupted the image of God who forgives so severely that they cannot come into His presence. They reject the forgiveness of God because that will require that they forgive.

Do Christians have trouble forgiving? Absolutely, but they will be chased by their unforgiveness if they truly belong to the Lord. He will continue to remind them. He will continue to convict them. They will be tortured by their unforgiveness. 

When the moment comes that they forgive, they will still remember. They will also remember that they have forgiven that hurt against them. They will accept the characteristic and strength of God to forgive. It will be a testimony of God working inside of them. They will know His presence and His strength will flow through them. They will be released from their torment. They will still remember what was done if they are asked about it. They just won't force themselves to bring it up. They won't rehearse the pain. They won't continue to fall into the pit of revenge.

Don't expect to forget what happened to you. Your ability to forgive yet remember will be the true strength of God's forgiveness in you. When you know how He forgave what was done to you, you will know what His forgiveness is like when He forgave you. 

Hearing What You Have Never Heard Before

 December 7, 2024

Saturday

Hebrews 5:13 (NASB 2020) ¹³ For everyone who partakes only of milk is unacquainted with the word of righteousness, for he is an infant.

There are times for all of us that we read familiar passages from the Bible and see something we have never noticed before. Where did that come from? Why didn't we notice this before? It is the same reason that people will hear something taught and ask why I have never taught this significant revelation before. I have, but they weren't ready for it.

Just like a juicy steak won't appeal to a baby, some of the essential spiritual teachings won't appeal to us. We filter these things out because we have no means of processing them. As we mature, or I should say, if we mature, we become ready to "hear" what we haven't heard before.

Since Paul and the author of Hebrews chastise people for not being ready to hear after they have had a sufficient time to mature, we should recognize that we have something to do with our readiness. It isn't like a child simply not being "reading ready" before we teach them to read. Peter encourages his readers:

1 Peter 2:2 (NASB 2020)² and like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation,

Craving the word of God is not natural in the flesh. It is essential in the Spirit. It is a discipline that must be maintained. Disciplines themselves are not natural. It is not natural that a person exercises. The body would rather sit at rest. It takes discipline to exercise. It takes time with discipline to make a significant change. The same is true of our spiritual selves. We have lived in the world among a people in the flesh more than living with Christians who are themselves disciplined to be in the Spirit. Thus, we must make the decision to set our minds on the Spirit and crave the word of God. This is when our eyes begin to be opened and we become ready for the solid food of God's word.

The positive note on this is that "hearing" something that you believe you never heard before proves that you are maturing or you would not have heard it now. So, continue to "hear" what you have never heard before.

Don't Put Jesus First

 December 6, 2024

Friday

Luke 14:26 (ESV) ²⁶  “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

It is common to hear Christian leaders urging people to put Jesus first. I think that is a misconception of our relationship with Him. It isn't so much wrong as it is limited. To put something first is to put it at the top of a list of other things. It may give it value or even priority but that isn't what Jesus seems to be saying here. There is no mention of love in this verse. Hate is the central word. It places everything on the list that Jesus gave us in a different category. He is not first among the loved but "the Only" set apart from the other things that may be loved. In other words, He is in a category all by Himself. He is not on a list with other people or things.

This is why we don't understand the word "hate" used here. Jesus wasn't telling people that His disciples must refrain from loving family, others and even their own lives. He was setting Himself in a different place from that love. He is central to all that we are if we are His disciples. That is beyond simply stating that a person is saved. This is truly following Him. Very few people get to this place in their lives even if they are saved.

Matthew 10:37 (ESV) ³⁷  Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

This verse speaks of being worthy of Him rather than being a disciple. The word here for love means "a strong kinship type of love." A person is not worthy of Jesus if their kinship with their family is stronger than that with the Lord. The word "worthy" means deserving of. Of course, none of us is deserving of Jesus. When it comes to love, we must make sure that our love exceeds that of all other people or things. Again, this is not the conception of first. This is the ranking of an amount. While I may put someone first because I love them more, it still refers to an amount of love rather than a place with others in that category. 

So, we should place Jesus in a whole other category. It is so different that those whom we love do not rank in this category. Otherwise, we will be making excuses when we choose to be disobedient to the Lord. We will say, "I love you, Jesus, but I can't give like you have told me to because my family wants something," or "I love you, Jesus, but I can't serve you because my family needs me now."

Remember there was a man who told Jesus he needed to bury his father before he could follow Jesus. Most don't understand the Lord's attitude here. It seemed that Jesus should have allowed him to bury his father before he followed Jesus. That wasn't the case. Why not?

Have You Noticed How Much You Have Sacrificed to the Lord?

 December 5, 2024

Thursday

Matthew 19:27 (NASB 2020) ²⁷ Then Peter responded and said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?”

If we have served the Lord we wouldn't notice what we have sacrificed to do so. We would be so amazed to be in His presence that nothing we do will seem like a sacrifice. There are rewards that go beyond our imaginations in heaven but that is merely the result of serving. It is not the glory of His presence.

When people are in love they hardly notice the sacrifices that are being made for the ones they love. Our response to the Lord is one of love. Noticing the sacrifices turns the attention back on us. We notice our sacrifices and want to know what is in it for us. We have forgotten the privilege of having someone who loves us deeply. 

When people are in love, they lose track of time. They only notice what they are doing at that very moment in the presence of the one they love. It doesn't matter how much sleep or expense or sacrifice or work that needs to be done to please the one they love. 

It is natural to think that you have served the Lord much more than others and there should be some payday coming soon. In fact, it is natural to think that you are the only one truly serving the Lord. Elijah would think that. Peter is thinking something like that. He is thinking that this small band of disciples are the best of the best when it comes to serving Jesus. 

When the married couple continue to evaluate what they should receive according to what they have done for each other, the relationship takes a turn from loving the other person without measure to loving with measure. This is true in our relationship with the Lord. We have essentially lost the love we had for the Lord when we first came to know Him. We are seeking the benefits and thinking we have paid way too much for what we are getting.

This is the moment we are vulnerable to leaving the Lord even if it doesn't look like it to others. Sure, we may continue in church but we back off from having the fervency that we once had. Yes, we are present but our hearts are not all His anymore.

Is it time to sell out again? Is it time to admit that the love you once had is not the love that you have now for the Lord? Is it time to cry out to the Lord asking Him to restore what you once had?

Just one more question: Have you been noticing how much you have sacrificed for Him?

Did I Abide in Christ?

 December 4, 2024

Wednesday

John 15:5 (NIV) ⁵  "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

We should never be elated or sad because of the observed results of our work. Whether we win ten people to Christ or no one comes to Christ for weeks on end, our attitude toward it all should remain the same. The question after seeing what appears to be a failure should be: Did I remain in Christ? If I did, there will be fruit. If I didn't, any fruit that appears will be no fruit at all.

Abiding in Christ is remaining with Him. It is walking with Him, listening to Him and absolutely obeying Him. It has no room for own ideas that spring up because we want to do something creative. All of the creativity should come from the One we are abiding with. 

That doesn't mean that we won't study and work very hard. But that study and work will be done with the Lord rather than separated from Him. We can't say: Lord, you remain here while I go do something fantastic for you. No, our response is simply, "Here I am Lord, send me."

Of course, the work must be covered in prayer. We should pray, "Lord, don't let me try to get ahead of You. Don't let me get behind You. Lord, let me stay with You." Then, if the result is good or bad, it is the Lord's result. Then, you can honestly give Him the glory regardless of the results. Sometimes we can't see the results. In fact, we may never see the results while on this earth for some of the things we do. We simply remain in Him and trust that we will bear much fruit because of Him rather than us.

So, the next time you evaluate your work, don't look at the results. Always ask, "Was I abiding in Him the whole time?" Then, praise Him for He will do something great even if you can't see it.

Emptying Yourself from Self Loathing

 December 3, 2024

Tuesday

The Oxford Dictionary defines narcissism as: excessive interest in or admiration of oneself and one's physical appearance. 

Now, I have a twist on this. Many people have trouble forgiving themselves for the things they have done. In fact, they think of this frequently and lament over their failures constantly. They are spending time think of themselves negatively but they are still dwelling on themselves. Is this a back-handed way of being a narcissist? 

I have often tried to convince people they are forgiven. Some simply do not accept it. They have locked themselves in a prison in which they can't escape for the jailer will not give them the key. I have wondered: Do they remain in this condition to keep themselves from repeating their mistakes? Regardless of the reason, they will not let themselves out of their own lack of forgiveness.

I have often told them that they are forgiven on the basis of the sacrifice of Jesus. If God accepts this payment for their sins and they won't, they have a higher standard than God. In other words, there is no way they can ever forgive themselves. They have given themselves a life sentence.

But this morning I was thinking of someone who won't forgive himself. He spends time trying to put himself down and calling himself a failure at every opportunity. He is spending so much time condemning himself that he has little time to consider others. If a narcissist focuses too much on himself, this man has nailed it as a narcissist.

Humble people are not people who think little of themselves. They are people who think of others more than they think of themselves. Thus, not forgiving self is a form of pride. While normal pride seeks to tell others how much better a person is. This one spends the same amount of time telling others how bad he is. The truth is that the unforgiving narcissist hasn't emptied himself of himself. He is continuing to fill himself with himself.

The person who refuses to forgive himself must admit that he is focusing on himself. He must accept the payment of Jesus to God as the forgiveness that he needs. He must know that God has forgiven him and quit thinking of himself so much. He must set his mind on the Spirit who thinks as God thinks. The failures of the past cannot continue to be dug up and hung around his neck. For if God has declared him forgiven, who can legitimately condemn him.

There is no way a person can look to the interests of others as long as he is constantly thinking of himself. Therefore:

Philippians 2:4-7 (NIV) ⁴  Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. ⁵  Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: ⁶  Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, ⁷  but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.

What Has Your Heart?

 December 2, 2024

Monday

Matthew 19:16-22 (NIV) ¹⁶  Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?" ¹⁷  "Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments." ¹⁸  "Which ones?" the man inquired. Jesus replied, "'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, ¹⁹  honor your father and mother,' and 'love your neighbor as yourself.'" ²⁰  "All these I have kept," the young man said. "What do I still lack?" ²¹  Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." ²²  When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

If this young man came into the church today, we would be so excited just to have a young man who appears to be fervent for the Lord that we wouldn't challenge him in what keeps him from the Lord. We would have run after him saying, "That's okay. Just come to church when you can." But Jesus was willing to let him walk away rather than remain at a distance because of his money.

Many times I have been told that I shouldn't mention money in the church because that might run people off. I disagree. There is no might about it! It will run people off! But is attendance at church the main goal? Is it better to have a full church building who have something between them and the Lord or a sparsely attended church with people truly committed to the Lord. And even that is a dilemma. A fully committed church will not be sparsely attended because it will attract people who are coming closer to the Lord. A fully committed church isn't satisfied with leaving people in the state they are in. It seeks to remove the obstacles. It seeks a deeper walk with the Lord. It is full of testimonies because God has worked in the lives of the members.

I would have liked the story of this young man to have a happy ending. I would have liked to hear that he repented, gave away all that he had a followed Jesus. We have no record of this and I believe the Bible would have recorded such an event. He went away sad because he loved his money more than Jesus. Money had his heart.

On the other hand, a widow came and gave her last two cents. What happened there?