Original Thoughts?

Wow! Has it really been almost a month and a half since I last blogged? I apologize to the three or four people who really look forward to reading what I write. I guess I haven’t written lately because I have been working so much that I haven’t had time to have an original thought. Most of my thoughts aren’t original anyway but, as NBC used to say about their re-runs, “It’s new to you.”

Speaking of original thoughts, I want to write a little bit about something going around that proves the lack thereof. It seems an age old lie is making the rounds again stronger than ever. People are buying into it thinking that it is an original thought but it is as old as sin (literally). It is the lie that says “if it feels good, do it.” It also goes around in wiser sounding wrapping like, “I can only do what I feel is right” or “I have to be me…” All of it is an excuse for doing what we feel like doing and praying there are no consequences. It is driving me crazy to watch another generation buy into these lies. But it seems they are not just buying into it, the are enthralled by it. They act as if this is the deepest, newest wisdom ever.

The problem is that it is not new or original. It goes back to the book of Genesis. Sin is defined as doing what we think is right instead of what God says is right. I am particularly frustrated to see the ’60s version of this lie re-circulating. What they do not realize is that the philosophers of the ’60s who taught this stuff either overdosed or became responsible, people who do not just follow their feelings or “who they are.” They realized that who they are needed to change because it doesn’t work to go through life completely self absorbed. The hippies became the yuppies and now their kids are saying, “you don’t understand…” We understand. We ALREADY tried and rejected it. We know it does not work.

At the core that is exactly what this philosophy is, selfishness. The world is all about what I feel like, or who I am… Here is a good way to measure your philosophy, does it work for everyone? If your philosophy only works for you, it can’t be true. Here is what I mean: what if EVERYONE did what they felt like or what they thought was right? Suddenly they would be trampling your right to do what you feel like. Then who decides who is right? If it feels good to me to steal your money, who are you to tell me not to steal it. If it seems like hitting you is the right thing to do, who are you to tell me not to hit you? If “who I am” is a selfish jerk who treats you like garbage, who are you to tell me not to do so? What if I want to take the rent money and gamble it away? What if I want to abandon my wife and children? Society would fall apart and the world would be even worse than it is today. This philosophy cannot work for everyone at the same time and therefore is illogical, false, and must be rejected.

Another really funny thing about this kind of thinking is that it only “works” when you are surrounded by people who reject the philosophy who will support you. Who FEELS like going to work everyday to support their family? Those who FEEL like doing nothing, resist that feeling and go to work to support those who do what they feel like… Those who just follow their feelings are extremely grateful for the police, who do their duty instead of what they FEEL like, when someone else feels like ripping them off! The world would fall apart if everyone just accepted who they were instead of working to improve themselves.

Ok, I am not just ranting out of frustration. Anyone can criticize. You must have a better idea if you want to criticize. I do have a better idea and it isn’t original either, just not as popular. As a matter of fact, it is as old as the other philosophy… Submit yourself and your feelings to God and let HIM tell you what is right. He knows how we were made and what fulfills us. We must trust HIM. Usually the right thing to do is the opposite of what we feel like doing. Jesus also gave us a pretty good philosophy that works for everyone at the same time. He said DO to others what you would have them do to you. Imagine if we all did that. All the problems on this planet would be solved. I guess that makes it a true philosophy.

Keep Changing My Mind

One of the most dangerous things that can happen to one of YOUR followers is for us to begin to think we have perfect understanding of YOU and YOUR word. When that happens, we begin to think we speak for YOU and that our opinions are YOURS. It is dangerous when we stop listening to others and to YOU. We reject any thought that does not fit our system instead of being like the people of Berea and studying to see if it could be true. We are dangerous when we only study to prove things are wrong.

Even though this concept petrifies the average Evangelical (including me sometimes), YOU want us to remain open minded. In chapters 2 & 3 of Revelation, YOU address 7 churches. Out of those 7, YOU tell 5 of them to repent. To repent means to change ones mind and with a subsequent change in actions. So YOU seem to be telling people who are already YOUR followers that they still need to change their minds on some things. Could it be that even those who have followed YOU for many years may not have perfect understanding? Could we actually just be so stuck in tradition that we can never rethink the reasons for our traditions and/or repent from time to time?

YOU have not called us to a destination but to a journey. As we walk out this journey, we will need to continually change the way we think about things. We cannot assume YOU will always work the same way or speak the same way. We cannot assume that we understand YOU as well as we think we do. As Tony Campolo says, we should be humble enough to know that “we are never as right as we think we are or as wrong as we think we are.” YOU are constantly amazing us and showing new facets of YOUR character. If we close our minds and lock into one way of thinking, we may miss YOUR beauty. The minute we think we know it all and have it all together, we start falling apart.

My Brother’s Slave

I am amazed at the way James, the brother of Jesus opens his letter. If I was writing to a bunch of people and I wanted them to listen to what I had to say, I would open with something like, “James the brother of God, the one who knows Him better than anyone, acknowledged leader of the church in Jerusalem…” Instead, James simply says, “James a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.” The only title he claims is servant. Actually, he calls himself a slave. There was no such thing as a hired servant in those days, you bought your “servants” at the slave market. So James is calling himself his brother’s slave. Talk about humility!

This attitude seems to differ with much of the teaching I hear these days. We are always trying to talk about who we are in Christ. It doesn’t matter who I am in Christ. What matters is who Christ is in me! I am a slave, He is everything. I don’t need to pump myself up with pop-psychology, self esteem building words. I choose the words of James, I am a slave. This doesn’t mean I walk around with a woe is me attitude. It is better to be slave to the king than to be owner of nothing. He is the best master in the universe. He cares for His slaves!

Lord, help me find myself in You. Help me humble myself and trust You. Simply being Your slave is better than anything this world has to offer.

Rights or Freedom?

The other day I read a really weird story in the Bible.I know, I know, I will need to be more specific than that: There are a lot of strange stories in the Bible. But this one is not actually spelled out in the Bible. It is the back story behind a letter. It takes place while Paul is in prison. He meets a man in this prison and leads him to the Lord. Then he finds out that the man was a runaway slave. Coincidentally, the slave, Onesimus, belonged to another man, Philemon, that Paul had led to the Lord. So Paul insists that the slave go back to his master. He writes a nice letter using guilt better than just about anyone to make sure the master takes the slave back without hurting him. Paul even offers to pay anything the slave may owe the master or that he may have stolen. Very nice of him, don’t you think? But I still have a hard time with the fact that Paul sent the runaway slave back to his SLAVERY. What is up with that?

I believe Paul is more concerned for the slave’s spiritual freedom than his physical freedom. Onesimus would be free spiritually if he submitted and did the right thing even when it was incredibly hard. Paul chose not to make a political statement by resisting slavery at that moment. He knew that when an individual fights for his/her rights they usually becomes so independent that they tell God what to do. Whenever we defend our own rights, it creates bitterness in our hearts. Bitterness is more dangerous than outward injustice. Bitterness can kill us inside where it matters, injustice can’t. Whenever I start thinking in terms of what I deserve, I become hard and dry in my spirit. Maybe I am struggling for the wrong kind of freedom. Maybe I need to fight for  spiritual freedom and let God deal with the injustice that has been done to me.

I know there is a time to stand up against the system. I know there is a time for political statement. Without the Word of God, slavery would still be widespread in the world. We all need to stand up together against injustice. But maybe it is not for ME to defend MY rights.  I need to stand up for YOUR rights but demanding my own makes me self-centered and angry.

Whatever the implications of this little letter in the back of our Bible, it does show that spiritual freedom is more important than physical freedom. My flesh does not like that. But maybe that is why my flesh needs to be crucified daily. Lord, help me understand that the softness of my heart is more important than being right and more important than making sure everyone else treats me right.

I Gotta Know Who I Am

This is the last in the series of posts about how Jesus connected to world by humbling Himself, making Himself a slave, and serving the world. If this is how Jesus lived, shouldn’t His followers follow?

In John 13 we see a very interesting story. We all know the story. It is the one where Jesus washes His disciple’s feet. Read it one more time, “3 Jesus knew that the Father had given Him authority over everything and that He had come from God and would return to God. 4 So He got up from the table, took off His robe, wrapped a towel around His waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then He began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel He had around Him.” Usually, we are so grossed out by the foot washing thing that we miss verse 3. Before Jesus started wash camel poo out from between grown men’s toes, John tells us HE knew who HE was, where He came from, and where He was going. We cannot serve without understanding these things.

Jesus knew the Father had given HIM authority. Do we know that? I am not talking about authority to boss people around or to command the seas to be still. The authority here is the authority to serve. It is the authority of being a son. Jesus knew He was the Father’s son. HE had nothing to prove to anybody. The reason I can’t serve is that I am afraid someone will treat me like a servant. I am always concerned about my position. Jesus didn’t worry about HIS position so HE could freely serve. If I really understand that I am the son of the Father and HE loves me no matter what, I can humble myself. You can treat me how you want to, it won’t change who I am.

Jesus also knew where HE came from and where HE was going. Many times, I don’t know where I am going but I do know WHO I am trying to follow. I know I am going to be with HIM. I can lay down my life and stop demanding my rights and respect because I am am following the ONE WHO showed me how. There is freedom there. There is life there.

My life will be much fuller when I stop trying to impress people. I will be free when I stop trying to fight for my position in the hierarchy. I will be truly and fully alive when I realize my worth comes from being a son of the Living God and not from how you treat me or judge me. After all, the true test of a servant is how we act when we are treated like a servant. Jesus filled the role; Will I?

Serving is the Point

A couple weeks ago I did a talk on how Jesus connected to the world. I believe the Lord would have all HIS followers follow him in connecting to the world the same way HE did. So how did HE do it? He connected by serving the world and according to Paul, we all need an attitude adjustment to learn to serve the way Jesus did.

Another reason we have a hard time following Jesus as He made HIMself a slave to others is that we think service is just a minor point. There is only one (BIG) problem; when we read Jesus’ words, we find that service is THE point. The goal is to become a slave to others. We read in Matthew 20:25 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave– 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” James & John’s mother had just asked Jesus if they could be 2nd & 3rd in command. They wanted to most important positions in the kingdom that were left since “God” was already taken. Jesus explains that the point is to become a servant/ slave, not to work your way into being the boss. This is not minor, it is important.

We sometimes think that serving is just something we did early on in our walk with Jesus but now we have “paid our dues.” We would not say it but we think we are too important to serve others any more. I once served as the “Minister of Helps” in a church. That meant I painted the ten rental houses the church owned. Then I became the Youth Pastor of the same church. They paid me $100/month and I paid them $350/ month to live in one of the rental houses that they owned free and clear. That pastor believed that everyone should pay their dues in ministry. But that was just something you did until you got important enough to be served by some other kids paying his dues. The danger in this thinking is not about paying a pastor, it is the thought that there comes a time when you stop being a servant. When did Jesus stop being a servant? If HE didn’t stop until HE went back to heaven, should I stop before I go to heaven? When I think I am too important to do a certain job, I am missing the mark of the high calling of God for my life! When I do just enough to get by in any area of my life, I am falling short of HIS abundant life for me. Servanthood is the high calling; it is abundant life; it is the point.

Serving Is Spiritual

A couple weeks ago I did a talk on how Jesus connected to the world. I believe the Lord would have all HIS followers follow him in connecting to the world the same way HE did. So how did HE do it? He connected by serving the world and according to Paul, we all need an attitude adjustment to learn to serve the way Jesus did.

One reason it is so hard to follow Jesus as HE took on the form of a slave and served others is that we don’t really think serving is very spiritual. I have always been a part of a Pentecostal tradition where we ridicule workers. For many years I have heard the story of Mary & Martha (Luke 10:38-41). Preachers always seem to beat poor Martha up for working so hard. Mary is made out to be the good one because she sat at Jesus’ feet. Then one day I read a book by Tommy Tenney titled Chasing God and Serving Man. Tenney points out that although Jesus said Mary had chosen the “better part,” HE still ate the dinner Martha made. HE did not tell Martha to stop working. HE told her to stop whining about Mary. Then HE probably asked her to add some more salt. In other words, serving is spiritual too.

Then there is John 11:5 where the Bible says that Jesus loved Lazerus and Martha and her sister… Don’t tell me that the person who sits at Jesus’ feet is more spiritual and more loved than the one who serves. Jesus came to this world to show us how to live abundantly full lives. HE modeled it for us. It consisted of times of prayer AND times of serving people. No wonder our lives are empty and meaningless when all we think HE has called us to is a life where we do our thing all week and then go to “worship” for a couple hours (remember, I am Pentecostal. I have never been in a one hour service in my life) on Sunday. We think we have really grown spiritually if we have quiet time every day before we do our own thing and focus on our needs. The truth is we need to be in HIS presence to get the strength to live as voluntary slaves to others. Only there is abundant life to be found.

How Jesus Connected to HIS World

Last Sunday I did a talk on how Jesus connected to the world. I believe the Lord would have all HIS followers follow him in connecting to the world the same way HE did. So how did HE do it? He connected by serving the world and according to Paul, we all need an attitude adjustment to learn to serve the way Jesus did.

I get all of this from Phillipians 2:5-8 where Paul says, your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had. Though HE was God, HE did not demand and cling to HIS rights as God. HE made HIMSELF nothing, HE took on the humble position of a slave (NLT)… I know that we are used to that passage being translated as HE took on the nature of a servant… This is one of those places where the translators are trying to make something sound better to our modern ears but in doing so, they lose the power of the passage. The only real translation of the original word here is slave. In Bible days there was no servant like there is today. Today the word servant evokes pictures of housekeepers, nannies, gardeners… People we pay to do things we don’t want to do. That is humble enough but in Bible days there was no such thing. When you wanted a “servant” to clean your house, you went to the slave market to buy a “servant.” In todays language, we would call that a slave. There were two kinds of slaves in ancient times, house slaves and field slaves but there were no servants in the modern sense. So Jesus became a slave in order to connect to the world around HIM.

As if being a slave was not enough to turn the modern American stomach, HE did not demand or cling to HIS rights as God… That is about as un-American as you can get! How can we possibly give up our rights??? You might say, “no one can take my God given rights from me.” That is true. No one took Jesus’ rights away from HIM either; HE laid them down freely by HIS own choice. “But I might become a doormat for someone.” Thank God Jesus became a doormat for me!

As I read this passage, I realize I need an attitude adjustment. My attitude is anything but that of someone who freely gives up his rights and chooses to become a slave. But if I call myself a follower of Jesus, I must follow HIM. That means that if HE gave up HIS rights and became a slave, I must follow. Only there is true life found. Not in using God as a cosmic slot machine to make me rich in return for my goodness.

The Measuring Rod

Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, for each one should carry his own load (Gal 6:4-5 NIV)

This verse really jumped out at me this morning. So many times I spend my time comparing and measuring myself against others. I spend so much time trying to see if I am better than someone else at this or that instead of just judging if I am doing the best I can. What good is it to be better than someone else at something but not the best at it that I can be? We do this in physical training. When I ran I always timed myself and compared to my fastest time. When I lifted weights, I recorded everything to compare to my “max” or personal best in that lift. What good was it to lift more than a child if I wasn’t challenging myself to grow stronger? That is what it is like when I judge myself by comparing myself to others. That is a sure path to either pride and judgmentalism or jealousy and depression.

One way I need to apply this verse is in regards to those I think I am better than in certain areas. Many times I find myself judging people harshly because I do not struggle with what they struggle with. And then I give myself grace in the areas in which I do struggle. For example, I feel holy because I don’t smoke but excuse jealousy and laziness in myself. Paul says I should test my own actions. I know the filth and selfishness that dwells in me. I need to judge my holiness but how much of that I am turning over to You not by how long ago I got over what so and so is doing. Doing this simple thing will keep me humble.

The other way I need to apply this verse is in regards to those I think have it better than I do. Just yesterday I found myself struggling with jealousy over a young couple in ministry who are being blessed. I was jealous that I who have been in ministry for 20 years am struggling to pay bills while they who have been at it for just a few years have lots of cool toys (this refers to some of the ugliness mentioned above). You are telling me to judge or test myself against myself. You have taken care of me every step of the way and I need to focus on that not on comparing myself to others.

Lord, please help me today to only measure myself against myself and against You. This will drive me to Your grace and strength. I can’t do this without Your power.