Apparently, the only people that will be in Heaven are those incredible few who did not sin after they were saved.

As much as we do not like how that story ends, the part about Christians not sinning still sounds nice—especially on days that end in ‘y’. The trouble with the story is that it is fictional. We could go round and round discussing it, but why? This one is pretty well settled by a guy named John, who just happened to be an Apostle and and author of Scripture.

1 John 1:8–10 (NKJV)
8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.

Anyone who says Christians do not sin is a self-deceived liar who does not even know the truth. Worse, they make God a liar. They do NOT speak for Him.

Christians do sin, and sin is an affront to our holy Heavenly Father. Sin also makes us dirty. We need a mechanism to deal with the damage our sins cause. That mechanism is own up to our sinfulness before God. “Confess” means to call our sins the same thing God does—no hiding.

When we confess our sins, God forgives us, undoing the relational damage we caused. He also cleans us up. Turns out our relationship with God works quite a bit like any other relationship.

So what about the not guilty of sin part? When we receive Jesus as our Savior, God declares us not guilty. That verdict is rendered outside of time: past, present and future are completely irrelevant terms. So yes, I am guilty of sinning, but not of sin.

I have been accused of stating that God is not an “Indian Giver;” once He gives salvation, He will not take it back. I am guilty as charged—and not sorry. (Though I might point out that the term is culturally insensitive and needlessly disparaging—and I AM sorry about that. It was a poor choice of words on my part.)

I have been accused of teaching that we are secure in the hands of a loving, gracious, saving God. I am guilty as charged—and not sorry. The audacious passage I draw this particular point from is John 10:27-29.

John 10:27–29 (NKJV)
27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.

Understand what Jesus is saying here, and the picture He is painting. His sheep are those who hear His voice and follow Him (don’t miss the element of choice in that). He, in turn, knows them (His choice, too) and gives them eternal life. NO ONE can snatch them out of His hand.

Believer, picture yourself secured in the tightly closed hand of your Savior. Then picture His hand secured in the tightly closed hand of God the Father. Then picture Their hands sealed by the Power of the Holy Spirit.

Now tell me, who can pluck you from Jesus’ hand? NO ONE! That’s the point. But think about this, who can pry themselves out of Jesus’ hand? Again, NO ONE! That’s still the point.

Once Jesus gives you eternal life, it is yours. Period. Once you are saved, you are always saved. And I, for one, am glad for that.

Somewhere in the middle of my reply, it hit me that there is a concrete connection between justice and faith.

  
Just to refresh: our working definition of justice is “the rigorous exercise of moral principles resulting in rightness.” 

Daniel and his friends were just: despite the pressure to do what was wrong, they did what was right. Their commitment to being right put them in the cross hairs of their enemies but ultimately earned them success.

Esther was just: despite the pressure to hide her identity as a Jew behind her identity as the queen, she risked everything to bring about the salvation of her people as God intended.

And that’s where I made the connection between faith and justice. Justice is faith in action. When we have faith, we can do what is right regardless of the circumstance in which we find ourselves. The exercise of moral principles naturally becomes rigorous because we trust God enough to always do what He says, just like Daniel or Esther.

And what about those time when our exercise of moral principles is less than rigorous (translation: when we don’t do what is right)? I think our actions say we don’t trust God enough to do what He says. 

Ouch, I know. 

But maybe, just maybe, our bad behaviors do not indicate a lack of moral fiber so much as they demonstrate a lack of faith.

It was obvious that the promotion and pay raise I was hoping for were not going to happen.

Again.

To top it off, my boss wanted to talk about my goals: what extra work was I going to do this year for the same pay I earned last year?

I felt frustrated and stuck; I just couldn’t get ahead at work. After stewing for a while I came back to the realization that I had traded success for safety. “Back” because it’s not the first time I’ve had this thought.

Add being grumpy to feeling stuck.

At home, Kate tried to cheer me up. She reminded me that my job provides safety for our family.

Exactly.

But I didn’t see that as the benefit she did. Time for bed—still grumpy.

Que alarm clock and let Tuesday begin.

Still grumpy.

Still feel stuck.

Traffic on the highway totally enhanced my mood. Arriving at work didn’t help either. At this point, I was determined to have a bad day (I was even singing the song in my head—but I didn’t hum it; you can’t hum and scowl at the same time).

Then, I heard a question. “Do you believe what you preach or don’t you?” I had just preached about feeling stuck on Sunday (and yes, I get the irony).

 As “luck” would have it, I had a copy of my notes with me, so I read them. The works of the flesh found in Galatians five seriously contribute to feeling stuck. Selfish ambition is one of those works.

Ouch.

A moment of confession and I didn’t feel stuck anymore. Nothing changed but me.

Does this stuff really work? Yes.

That may sound too easy. I assure you it’s not. The back-story is this: many years ago, I committed myself to the idea that my  job was just a job, not a career. Its purpose was to provide the financial safety my family needed while I pursued my calling. My calling, my real career, is pastoral ministry.

There is nothing wrong with ambition and working to succeed in your career. Having a good work ethic and being fairly rewarded are actually quite biblical. But for me, in my job, that ambition is selfish: all about, and only about, me. When I let it go, I didn’t feel stuck anymore.

Your scenario is probably different. But I can tell you this stuff really works, if you’ll let it.

 18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.

Joseph and Mary were betrothed. We don’t have a comparable relational status. Relationally, being betrothed is like being engaged (meaning you are still single—and all that implies). Legally, being betrothed is like being married (even requiring a divorce if you decide to break up). We might think of it as a step between being engaged and being married, kind of like pre-marriage.

Then, Mary was found with child. Joseph discovered that his “pre-wife” was pregnant and knew that he had not been involved in the process. That presented a problem for Joseph; he had to decide what to do with Mary.

Matthew describes Joseph as a just man. He then tells us that Joseph was leaning toward a private divorce, not a public spectacle. But, what did justice require of Joseph?

then they shall bring out the young woman to the door of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death with stones, because she has done a disgraceful thing in Israel, to play the harlot in her father’s house.  So you shall put away the evil from among you. Deuteronomy 22:21 (For fuller context, see verses 13-21.)

Ouch.

So, a man who was not doing what justice required was described as just.

Fascinating.

Clearly, we’re missing something. “Just” must not mean what we think it means.

“Just” is an adjective that is used to describe a person who fulfills his duties toward God or man.  In the New Testament, “just” is synonymous with “righteous”. It denotes someone who is right when judged by a divine standard. More dramatically, it implies agreement between God’s nature and a person’s actions.

While justice required Mary’s life, Joseph was within his legal right to spare her life and simply divorce her. The mercy that action demonstrated was in keeping with God’s nature, thus Joseph was described as just.

But Joseph didn’t stop there. God’s express desire was for Joseph to take Mary as his wife. So Joseph did. The grace that action demonstrated was also in keeping with God’s nature.

Matthew’s description of Joseph as a just man was accurate. For Jesus’ earthly father, God chose a man whose actions modeled His nature. In the process, He moved Joseph to the very front of a line of men whose lives serve as a model for our own.

I’m normal (I’m pretty sure).

We’re nothing alike.

What does that say about normal?

Perhaps, normal isn’t.

And, perhaps, we spend too much time worrying about being normal…whatever that is.

What do you think? Leave a comment and share the wealth.

When there is a dearth of godly leadership, one of a few scenarios typically occurs:

• Autocracy – the biggest bully in a given community rises up and asserts his or her will over all whom they can influence.
• Anarchy – everyone in a given community asserts their own will even if it is in conflict with the remainder of the community.
• Both – a strange and destructive juxtaposition lately observed

Regardless of its manifestation, insufficient godly leadership often causes people to act according to their own self-interests. It shouldn’t, but it does.

When this happens, people get hurt. Autocrats quash dissent with vigor, hurting those who do not bow and those who are considered a threat. Anarchists pursue their preoccupation with equal vigor, hurting those who are in the way and those who are considered less important.

Sadly, these attitudes are contagious. When they are demonstrated in a community, they soon replicate. Even children begin to model this behavior. It seeps into every area of a community until the community fractures from the accumulated pain. God need not judge this ungodly behavior, it brings its own judgment; and leaves ruined lives in its wake.

What is one to do?

It turns out that Israel was not completely without godly leadership: God, Himself, was their leader—they just needed to follow Him. Additionally, He provided godly leadership in times of trouble—they just needed to find that leader and follow him or her.

That’s what one is to do.

When there is no godly leadership, follow God. When God provides godly leadership, follow him or her. But whatever you do, don’t fall into the trap of self-interest: the pain you will cause and the pain you will experience are more than anyone can bear.

We shouldn’t.

But we do.

Perhaps it is discrimination in a society that is overly image conscious. But, perhaps, it is something more. Are physical and mental discipline so far removed from each other?

Good question.

Especially since so many of us are, statistically speaking, obese.

Regardless of which side of the assumption you are on (making it or having it made of you), the question is the same: What are you going to do about it?

Leave a comment and share the wealth.

These words are semi-neatly handwritten on a Post-It note that is stuck to my monitor. I see them every day. I read them every day. I live them every day.

Unforunately.

As I hear about new discoveries and new breakthroughs, I often lament that there is no remedy for inconsistancy. I suffer from this malady and experience its side-effect of mediocrity. But, I don’t want to!

So I started thinking about it. Here’s what I came up with.

“Choice. The problem is choice.” -Neo

In every moment, I must make a choice. I can choose to do what I decided to do WITH this moment. Or, I can choose to do what I feel like doing IN this moment.

The former is, by definition, the path of consistency: my actions are consistent with my decisions. The latter is, by definition and experience, the path of incosistency: my actions may, or may not, be consistent with my decisions.

What am I, or you, to do? There are three options:

1) Make better, or more realistic, decisions about how I should spend my time.

2) Make better choices in the moment so that I am doing what I decided to do.

3) Get comfortable with my own incosistencies.

Options 1 and 2 are complimentary. You may need to choose one, or both, of these options. Realistic plans are readily lived with; unrealistically aggressive plans–not so much.

Option 3 is a genuine choice that we shouldn’t dismiss too quickly. There is a definite mental health benefit to dismissing the entire conversation. You can say “what ever” but you have to mean it.

“As you adequately put, the problem is choice.” -The Architect

“We can never see past the choices we don’t understand…you’ve already made the choice. Now you have to understand it.” -The Oracle

Have you made a choice? Do you understand it? Leave a comment and share the wealth.

Their lips are moving.

How can you tell when a politician is lying?

Their heart is beating.

I totally made the last part up. But, I think it’s reflective of how most Americans view politicians.

That’s sad, really.

The political and ideological divide in our country has been widening the last couple of decades. That divide is the widest, most clearly defined, and most ardently defended amongst politicians. That makes for entertaining debates, if you’re into that sort of thing. (Personally, if I want to watch people squabble, I can turn off the television and tune in the Sonic Six…and for fighting I prefer the UFC to CNN.) Unfortunately, that doesn’t make for civilized, productive conversations that might actually address the challenges our society faces.

Sigh.

So what should we do today? If you have the feeling that your vote doesn’t count, you’re not alone. You’re also probably not wrong. But that does not mean that your vote doesn’t matter. Your vote is your voice in this conversation. You should use it.

But don’t stop there. We experience more than just the great societal challenges of our day. There are challenges that are more local: your home, your church, your school, your town. The challenges these face are no less real. In many respects, local challenges impact your life more than societal challenges can. They are also areas in which your voice can have more impact. You should use it.

Do you see a challenge? Define it. Have you defined a challenge? Talk about it. Have you talked about a challenge? Solve it. Have you solved a challenge? Then, by all means, let us know!

Did you let us know, and someone disagreed? Then listen. And consider what you hear. Is there a valid point? Can it be worked into your solution? Does it provide a different solution? Then, by all means, let us know!

Rinse. Repeat.

That’s the nature of conversation. People talking with each other—not at each other. Join a conversation. Start one if you have to. The solution you are a part of may surprise us all and could change the world…or at least a localized part of it.

Join the conversation. Leave a comment and share the wealth.