DISCOVERING THE HEART OF GOD

God Not Answering Your Prayers?

2009-12-10T16:10:00.010-06:00

Many Christians I know have lived with the frustration of feeling like they're talking to the walls when they pray. "I'm ready to give up" I sometimes hear. "God obviously doesn't care about my problems. I'm finding it really hard to believe Christ's prayer promises anymore." But is the problem with God's promises, or is the problem somewhere else?

God's Word gives us very specific direction regarding the practice of prayer. Without question He wants us to come to Him in prayer -- day in and day out -- and with great expectation, hope, and trust. But He also makes it clear that the door is closed if we don't meet certain expectations.

Listen to the Apostle John in his first letter to the Church:

1 John 3:22
And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.

Short, sweet, and to the point! John has great confidence in his prayers. Why? Because he knows that he's met God's requirements to be heard: "we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight." That's the positive side of this equation. Now let's look at the negative side.

Psalm 66:18 says this about unanswered prayer: "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not listen."

You see, we might have all the faith in the world that God CAN answer prayer and accomplish anything, but if we are not obeying His commands and doing the things that please Him, we should not expect that we will receive anything from the Lord "being double-minded and unstable in all our ways" (James 1:8) The reason that God holds back on His promises is not that He isn't faithful to keep them with us, but that we have hindered our prayer lives by not keeping His commands and not doing the things that are pleasing to Him. Conversely, those who have a demonstrated pattern of answered prayer in their lives are the ones who have been keeping His commands and doing the things that are pleasing to Him. The problem with unanswered prayer isn't ever with God; it's always with you and me.

So what do we need to know? Well, "keeping His commands" isn't the toughest thing to figure out if you've been reading His Word. If we've been studying His Word and praying for enlightenment we will know quite clearly what God's will is on many matters. But God wants us to go beyond the "do's and don'ts" that are so clear and to the point! He also wants us to learn how to use a sensible spiritual judgment in pleasing Him, especially in what we call the gray areas -- things He hasn't specifically spoken on. For example, whether or not we should be smoking, or doing a little drugs from time to time.

Here then, friends, is where the "do the things that are pleasing to God" principle comes in. Having drawn close to God through our study of His Word and prayer as we've been commanded, we will have a greater intuition about all the gray matter that we encounter in life. And instead of asking "what would Jesus do?" we might be better off asking "If I do this will my heavenly Father be pleased with me?" Of course, if you don't know God very well you're going to have a tougher time answering that question. But if you have spent even a modest amount of time with Jesus over the years you'll likely realize that God's not going to be too pleased if you poison your body with tobacco, pot, or 14A movies, ....even though His Word doesn't specifically forbid any of these. And that's because you've been sanctifying your conscience with His Word, and learning to lean on the promptings of His Spirit to move you in directions that are pleasing to Him -- especially in those gray areas.

So if you've been struggling with the question "Why does God hardly ever answer my prayers?" consider John's words another time:

"Whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight."

God's promise to bless us is always there, but the fulfillment of those promises must be met with certain conditions before we can receive them. Are you doing everything that you know that God has commanded you, and are you eagerly seeking to be pleasing to Him in all you do?

Has Your Pastor Become Dull-Hearted?

2009-12-10T12:01:00.005-06:00

Does your pastor look more
like this or like this? Notice...they're both spending time in green pastures.

There are a lot of churches in North America that have grown stagnant and are dying. And while sometimes it's because God has removed His lampstand as a result of persistent disobedience and sin among His people, it might also be because their pastors and elders have switched pastures. They've traded their shepherd's staff for a 9-iron, if not physically, certainly emotionally and spiritually.

I've had my turn at this more than once. Struggling in my ministry I would look down the road with envy at the huge churches that seemed to be reaching the community and saving souls. And I'd think to myself "I'm a better preacher than that guy...how come he's doing so well? How come his church is prospering and my church is barely making it? Maybe I should just quit and go sell cars."

Then I'd move into a period of complacency and self-pity, where I'd switch my shepherd's staff for a 9-iron, spending too much time in my office on the computer, or literally golfing when I should have been praying or visiting.

Finally, at the end of my rope and complacency, I would search the Scriptures for an easy answer (all the while knowing what the answer probably was). And sure enough, God would bring me back time and again to Jeremiah 10:21

"For the shepherds have become dull-hearted, and have not sought the Lord; therefore they shall not prosper, and all their flocks shall be scattered."

There it was in black and white...and I knew it applied to me. I had become dull-hearted and distracted. I'd go to my office and think about anything but God and His precious people. Blaming exhaustion and stress I'd let my mind wander out to The Links or to the Internet and waste a lot of time in the wrong pasture.

Do you suspect your pastor has become dull-hearted? It might be because he's been forced into it by the unreasonable demands of your church's culture. Or it might be that he's just grown soft and lazy. I don't know your church or your pastor, so I can't say for sure.

But if your church has become dull and listless, or fallen into a mess the last few years, it's likely that he's spending too much time in the wrong green pasture. Friends....the calling of our pastor and elders is to seek the Lord's will for His sheep through diligent prayer and Bible study (Acts 6:4). If they are not doing that i's either because your church has forced them away from it, or they've grown soft and lazy. Either way, you will need to pray for them that God will revive them and release them to return to their first love and calling. You might even need to advocate for them if the demands of your church have become too unreasonable.

But whatever you do, don't just let it drift along. They need your help!

Is Retirement For Christians A Real Option?

2009-12-03T10:47:00.004-06:00

Thinking of retirement, the good life, sun and beaches, and lots of golf? Then stop it! This isn't God's will for you.

I've pastored long enough to know that many Christians retreat from church life once they hit their senior years. Sometimes it can't be helped; poor health has put them on the sidelines. But most retirees still have lots of energy; they're just spending it in all the wrong places. Suddenly being a grandparent is the most important thing in their lives. Or touring the country. Or hitting the links. And little thought is given to what God might have in mind for them now that they're free from work. "Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we may die" seems to be the creed for far too many seniors. Some even believe that this is God's will/reward for sticking it out to 65.

But one verse in Revelation 14 seems to put that lie to rest:

Rev 14:13
Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, "Write: 'Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.'" "Yes," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them."

Somebody once told Mother Theresa, who was still hard at it in her 80s, that it was time for her to step back and take a well deserved rest. Her response? "I'll rest when I get to heaven. Right now there's lots of work to do." Bless her! She understood God's heart.

How about you? Hasn't God freed you up from "work" so that you can now pour yourself into local ministries and/or missions? Death is our official retirement! It's at death that we get our rest and rewards.

DISCIPLESHIP: You Can't Fool Jesus!

2009-12-01T15:07:00.003-06:00

There's so much "easy believe-ism" in the Church today that it's scary. I myself have fallen prey to this error from time to time, and have needed a wake-up call from the Holy Spirit to get me back on track.

Jesus asked His disciples if He'd find faith on the earth when He returned (Luke 18:8). He was wondering out loud how many professing Christians He'd have to confront by saying, "I never knew you. Depart from Me you who practice lawlessness."

Jesus gave some very stern warnings about easy believe-ism in Matthew 7:13-29. "The gate is wide and broad that leads to destruction. Enter by the narrow gate." He then goes on to immediately warn professing Christians that what they do for Him, or in His name, will carry no weight whatsoever on Judgment Day. "For every good tree bears good fruit; a bad tree cannot produce good fruit. So you will be known by your fruits. Not everyone who says to Me Lord, Lord will enter the Kingdom of heaven; but only he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven."

True Christianity....the faith that Jesus measures.....is weighed by the fruit of the Spirit ("for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth" - Ephesians 5:9). Christian character will be weighed on the balance; fruitful obedience to God will be the measuring stick. You cannot belong to God and live any old way that you please. The evidence of conversion is the growing fruit of truth and righteousness in your life.

"Therefore, anyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon them, may be compared to the wise man, who built his house upon the rock. And....." well, you probably know the rest of the story. If you don't, you'll find it in Matthew 17.

Easy believe-ism says "Yee-haw. Got my ticket to heaven thanks to Jesus death on the cross. Now let's eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we may die."

True Christianity is the display of godly character and temperament, as I've already explained.

The Curse Of Catholicism?

2009-12-01T11:33:00.006-06:00

Let me start by saying that I spent my formative Christian years in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada. It was a rather happy mix of evangelical fervor and catholic (small 'c') ritual. I came to know the Lord in this setting, and learned the richness of catholic symbolism.

But that being said, in my early twenties I left the Lutheran church seeking a setting with more emphasis on God's Word and less emphasis on liturgies and rituals. My pendulum swung me all the way over to a conservative Baptist seminary, where I trained for ministry. I have long since settled into the Evangelical Free Church of Canada, where I have pastored for many years. But I tell you all this because I have a soft spot in my heart for the catholic movement.

However, I've long been concerned about the growing desire within evangelical circles to repatriate our Protestant flag into the Catholic camp in the name of spiritual unity. Some very good men (e.g. Chuck Colson, J.I. Packer, the late Bill Bright) have been promoting this union for over a decade now, and while they shun the notion of a common church polity, they are open to shared doctrines and purposes. I think this could be a slippery slope.

This morning while I was reading God's Word I was reminded again of the great error of Catholicism which led to the Protestant Reformation. Christ was rebuking the Scribes and Pharisees for adding traditions and new precepts to God's Word. This, of course, has long been the practice of catholicism, and we should not take it lightly. Christ got pretty hot under the collar when He was faced with a church system that "taught as doctrines the precepts of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men--the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do. All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition." (Mark 7:8-9)

Just a cursory look at the the past and present history of Catholicism reveals the same mistake entrenched in their system. Like the Scribes and Pharisees they have long maintained that the papal edicts and decrees issued to their Church through the centuries have been God-given interpretations and additions to God's Word, even though they often contradict it. This, as well as the old practice of hiding God's Word in Latin so the people can't read it, has led to great distortion and misunderstanding of the heart of God among Catholic people.

And lest we think this is a thing of the past, let me tell you about the summer class I took at a Catholic seminary for extra credit. I was the only Protestant in a room full of Catholic "priest-wannabes". I felt a little like a sheep among the wolves. Our teacher (himself a priest) knew that I was a Baptist and so took great delight in highlighting my position. In fairness, he was a kind and generous man, not malicious at all, and he was trying to get his seminary students to understand some of the advantages that we Protestants had when it came to personal Bible study. But I will never forget the day when several of the Catholic students protested vigorously that lay people should not be allowed to study God's Word on their own, and that permitting this in the local church was a very dangerous practice. I was then confronted about it again in the hallway after class. These men were incensed that we Protestants were so "careless" with God's Word. I was a little stunned, since I thought these attitudes in Catholicism had changed somewhat since the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s. Guess I was wrong.

Yes, the curse of Catholicism remains: it is still an organization that neglects and/or trumps God's Word by relying on the traditions of men. We must be careful not to join hands with this.

Self-Hatred

2009-11-24T11:41:00.012-06:00

My Dad, God rest his soul, struggled his whole life with self-condemnation as a Christian. I often heard him say to himself "You stupid idiot!", as he messed things up again and again. I believe that he died feeling very defeated in his walk with Christ. Somehow he had missed the secret to peace and joy.

Some of you may be in that very same place. You've given your lives to Christ, received His salvation and Holy Spirit, and yet, it seems that you just can't overcome sin -- and you hate yourself for it. You hear Paul's words "Walk by the Spirit and you won't carry out the desires of your flesh" (Galatians 5:16), and yet you identify much better with his words in Romans 7:19: "I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway."

And that's when the self-hatred kicks in. You hate your lack of progress; you hate your propensity to sin; and you feel ashamed to go to Christ over and over again, as if somehow or another you have just lashed Him again with your sins. So what do you do? You wallow around in the muck and the mire, slowly sinking in the quicksand of self-despair. And you wonder "where's the victory in that?"

Well, this isn't the way it's supposed to be friends! Let me tell you the secret that I wish my Dad had learned. You're living the devil's lie. God has made you a promise that He intends to keep -- every single time: "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9) "For if any man sins we have an Advocate with the Father, and He himself is the atonement for our sins." (1 John 2:1)

That's where the freedom is found, friends. In the blood of Jesus. God intends for the pricking of our conscience, not to condemn us or make us feel shame when we sin, but to remind us (and draw us back to) the blood of Jesus which cleanses us from every sin. That's the place of peace; that's the place of joy. The cross was the most significant event in history. The shed blood of Jesus was the most powerful act of love ever shared. God wants to draw us back to that again and again. And instead of feeling guilty, He wants us to feel thankful.

So throw all that shame back in the devil's face. There is no need to feel defeat. Instead we are to feel relief and joy! "There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1). When you stumble back in to sin from time to time just head back to the cross, and back to the blood, and rejoice that every time you stumble in sin it gets washed in the blood of the Lamb. Isn't that both liberating and exhilarating?

God no longer condemns you when you fall. Your conscience isn't there to shame you. It's there to lead you to peace, joy, and victory which is found in the cleansing blood of Jesus --- every single time!

So why don't you try to stop hating yourself today?

The Mercy Of Hell

2009-11-20T14:30:00.010-06:00

Many people today believe that Hell is a figment of the imagination -- that a "merciful" God would never consign unrepentant men to Hell. "God is love", they say, "and a loving God would never refuse to forgive me".

And so they continue to trample on His laws, despise His authority, abide in sin, and presume upon His mercy. "But", Jesus said, "Fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." (Matt 10:28) "Unless you repent you will all likewise perish!" (Luke 13:3) There is NO MERCY for the impenitent! But for those who repent, there is salvation and mercy for all of eternity. It is the repentant who are "vessels of mercy". (Romans 9:23) "For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward them that fear Him." (Psalm 103:11)

Okay, so we've established that. Now what about Hell? How can Hell be an act of mercy? Like this: it is God's mercy to the Elect. Wouldn't it be dreadful if God required those who are raised from the dead and cleansed of all their sin to continue to fellowship with blasphemers and the wicked forever? Hell is God's mercy to the Redeemed! In Psalm 143:12 David prayed: "And out of Your mercy cut off my enemies and destroy all them that afflict my soul; for I am Your servant." In Psalm 136:15 we read that God "overthrew Pharaoh and his hosts in the Red Sea; for His mercy endures forever." Mercy to whom? Pharaoh and his wicked host? No. Mercy to the Redeemed. "For by no means shall the guilty be cleared" (Exodus 34:7), for "the wicked shall be turned into Hell, all the nations that forget God." (Psalm 9:17)

So, while Hell is the eternal absence of God's mercy toward the wicked, it is indeed God's mercy toward the Chosen and Elect!

Can I hear an Amen to that?

Health And Wealth Be Damned!

2009-10-29T11:30:00.003-06:00

There is a branch of Christianity that is convinced that lack of health and wealth is a discipline against your stubborn sin, or worse yet, an evidence of your lack of faith. Good luck convincing Job of that, but let's leave him aside for the moment.

Christ was deeply loved by the Father, yet He had no place to lay His head, and had to fish for money because one of His disciples was a thief with even what little He had been given. Jesus hungered and thirsted. Jesus suffered poverty, disgrace, and persecution. Life was often "unfair" for Him. He was hassled, misunderstood, spit upon, and beaten. Yet this didn't mean that He suffered because He lacked faith and/or obedience. For Christ was faithful to the end.

Somewhere in God's infinite and immutable love for us is an allowance for poverty, shame, and pain as He hammers out His will and glory upon the anvil of our life. So let none of us accuse God, or each other, of lack of faithfulness or love when we suffer poverty or poor health. Both Job and Jesus demonstrate that one can be perfectly righteous and still suffer greatly.

The lesson we must learn from this is that the principle gifts of Divine love are spiritual blessings not temporal ones.

Temptations & Faith

2009-10-12T15:21:00.012-06:00

Jesus makes some interesting statements in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 17. Let's take a look at a few:

There will always be temptations to sin, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting! It would be better to be thrown into the sea with a millstone hung around your neck than to cause one of these little ones to fall into sin. So watch yourselves! (vs. 1-3)

I run into temptations every single day because here in North America I live in a culture full of temptation -- it's at the heart of all marketing and advertising. And I have three options at my disposal for handling it:

1. Jesus taught us to pray that the Father would not lead us into temptation (Matt. 6:13). This doesn't mean that God does the tempting (James 1:13), but that He has the power to lead us away from temptation. If something is constantly tempting us we must pray for the Spirit's assistance. To His disciples Jesus said: "Pray that you may not enter into temptation." (Luke 22:40-41)

2. We can take every thought captive to Christ (2 Cor. 10:5). That means bringing those tempting thoughts before God's Word so that His truth can take them prisoner. Jesus' prayer in John 17 included this promise: "that we are sanctified by God's Word." By taking our thoughts captive, and hauling them before the glaring truth of God's Word, we can bind them in the name of Jesus, and sanctify our minds as His truth penetrates our heart. But -- "taking every thought captive" also means, again, bringing our thought life to God in prayer: "Lord, remove these thoughts from me, I pray." And God's promise to those who "walk by the Spirit" is that "they will not carry out the desires of the flesh" Galatians 5:16).

3. We can also "flee temptation" (2 Tim. 2:22). If there are hotspots in your life, you need to pro-actively avoid them, and if they blindside you in any way, run from them as if a grizzly bear is chasing you.

"But, what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting."

Are you a person who tempts other people? Are you tempting your children to hate you? Are you tempting your spouse to despise you? Are you tempting a fellow employee to lust after you? "What sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting" God says. When you are the one doing the tempting you are playing with fire, and some of your current misery may be a direct result of your actions. " It would be better to be thrown into the sea with a millstone hung around your neck than to cause one of these little ones to stumble."

The apostles said to the Lord, “Show us how to increase our faith.” The Lord answered, “If you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘May you be uprooted and thrown into the sea,’ and it would obey you! (vs. 5,6)

Does this mean that if we have even a tiny little bit of faith we can throw our spiritual authority around all over the place? Of course not! What Jesus is teaching us here is that if we know that it's the Father's will to uproot a mulberry bush and throw it into the sea, then we can pray in confidence, through our faith, that when we command the mulberry bush to be uprooted, He will do it. We can only pray the Father's will; we don't receive if we're simply praying for our own desires to come true (James 4:4).

“When a servant comes in from plowing or taking care of sheep, does his master say, ‘Come in and eat with me’? No, he says, ‘Prepare my meal, put on your apron, and serve me while I eat. Then you can eat later.’ And does the master thank the servant for doing what he was told to do? Of course not. In the same way, when you obey Me you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.’

This one is very interesting! Many Christians believe that they are serving God because He needs them; or that they should get something in return because they have served Him; or that they are special to God because they have sacrificed for Him. But Jesus is teaching us here that it is OUR DUTY to serve God, and that God owes us nothing. God doesn't need us. Quite to the contrary, we are the ones who need Him. And by being obedient to Him and following Him, we are participating in His good and perfect will. But that does not mean that we should expect Him to turn around and bless us, simply because we are doing what He expects us to do anyway. God may say "Well done thou good and faithful servant", but the obedience He expects from us in no way obliges Him to pour out His treasure chest of blessings for us.

"Ardi": Apparently Darwin And The Evolutionists Were Wrong

2009-10-02T19:58:00.007-06:00

Scientists have recently unveiled research done on a fossil find they made almost two decades ago which throws a serious wrench into the "man evolved from apes" theory that has plagued our schools for decades.

ARDI is the name of a "humanoid" that is neither human nor chimp, but throws a lot of scientific weight behind the development of a new theory that should completely rid science of its desperate search for the Missing Link.

My question is, "Why can't they just finally admit that God created man from the dust of the ground and not through evolution?" After decades of insisting that only blind religionists and morons would reject the theory of "ape-to-man" evolution, this latest find has thrown egg all over the faces of leading anthropologists. Oh, you can be sure that they will put a new spin on it to serve the purposes of evolution, but how wonderful to see science itself finally starting to toss this decades-old deception out the window.

If only they had listened to us all along. For a Wall Street Journal vid clip on this go here.

Extreme Makeover

2009-08-12T10:50:00.005-06:00

Tired of how you look? Hate that crooked nose? The beady eyes? Hate that you can't afford plastic surgery? Frustrated that, for the most part, you'll look like this until you die?

Well, for starters, God made you how you look, so it shouldn't matter how you fit in. "But God gives [you] a body as He pleases, and to each seed its own body." (1 Cor 15:38-39) But even if God didn't make you handsome or beautiful, He doesn't care about that anyway -- and neither should you, the Bible says. Your outer man is corrupted and decaying, and God's far more concerned about giving the inner you a complete makeover. For now you're just living in a temporary shell, warts and all. Your body is just the luggage that gets you from birth to death.

I used to think that when God raises you from the dead you'll look exactly the same, and so we should show great respect to it, even at death. But that doesn't seem to be the case. The Bible clearly teaches that "flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of heaven" (1 Corinthians 15:50), and that the body is "sown a natural body and raised a spiritual body; there is a natural body and there is a spiritual body" (15:44) What God raises from the dead will look very little like what you're walking around in now.

So why worry so much about what you can't take with you? God's makeover will be extreme. When He raises you from the dead -- or transforms you if you're alive when He returns -- you will look quite different. Proof of this is when Jesus rose from the dead. Mary Magdalene stared right at Him and didn't recognize Him. She thought He might be the gardener. When He walked with some disciples along the road to Emmaus they had no clue who He was. Why? Because His raised body was not the same as what He had been born with. It was quite different.

This will happen to you too. At death you'll get the surgery you always wanted. Your whole body will decay back into dust, and God will raise it up as a new creation....a spiritual body of some sort. "And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man." (1 Cor 15:49)

I'm guessing that if you're not happy with your body now, you'll be very happy with it then! Meanwhile, put a little more effort into making-over the inner you instead of the the outer you that's going to rot and disappear.

BETRAYAL: Learning To Love Our Enemies

2009-08-11T22:25:00.003-06:00

You may be reading this post today with the sharp edge of betrayal fresh in your mind. Perhaps your spouse has been cheating on you, or one of your kids has just been arrested for drug possession, or that person you confided in went and blabbed everything all over town. And the anger in you is starting to swell; there are days when you simply lose control.

Jesus can sympathize with you. But when we face these situations we must look at how Jesus handled Judas Iscariot, and take our cues and strength from Him.

Before He selected Judas to be His disciple Jesus had spent a whole night in prayer speaking with His Father in heaven. We can assume that God spoke very clearly to Him about whom He should choose, and I believe that the Father made it clear to Jesus that Judas would be His betrayer. But He was still to teach him, love him, and treat him as a brother.

I can't imagine how hard it would be to be told that you must select and love the person who would eventually turn you over to terrorists to be tortured and killed. But this exactly what Jesus did. Never, at any time, did He let on to the other disciples what He knew about Judas. They were stunned to meet him at the edge of the Garden that dreadful night.

This reminds us of what God not only expects, but enables us to do with our enemies. Jesus said, "Love your enemies and do good to them", not as a wonderful ideal but straight out of His personal experience with Judas. For three years He practiced love, compassion, forgiveness, and patience with Judas....all the while knowing that in end Judas would not repent, and would still carry out his betrayal.

This is our calling too! Whether it's with a difficult spouse, a wayward child, an ornery boss, or an unfaithful friend God calls us to love them, forgive them, and do good to them in spite of what they have done, or may still yet do, to us.

May God give you the grace, strength, and peace to accomplish His purposes in your life....especially with those who continue to hurt you.

Praying For Our Kids!

2009-08-11T11:10:00.003-06:00

With so many temptations and pressures that our kids face today it is imperative that we as parents and grandparents pray every day for our kids. But what should we pray? Jesus answers that question in John 17.

"I have revealed You to the ones You gave me; for I have passed on to them the message You gave me. All who are mine belong to You, and You have given them to me; protect them by the power of Your name so that they will be united just as we are."

Of course, He was speaking of His disciples, but can't we speak the exact same way about our kids? The principle is identical: we are responsible for passing His love and truth on to all the little ones He has entrusted to us.

And then Jesus gets into the heart of what we must pray:

"I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should KEEP THEM FROM THE EVIL ONE. SANCTIFY THEM BY YOUR TRUTH." (17:15,17)

This must be our prayer too: "Father, as much as I would like to protect my kids from the evil one, there is only so much I can do. You are their Father.....protect them from the evil one. Watch over them constantly. Lead them not into temptation. And Father, sanctify them by Your truth, for Your Word is true."

Praying this way for our kids is a humble recognition that we can't be there for them all the time -- but God can. And it's also a recognition that in order to keep their minds and spirits clean we must bathe them every day in the Word of God.

I have to confess that when my children were growing up I washed my hair more often than I washed my kids' minds with the Word of God. It was so easy to get distracted from that important time of family devotions, and it's a mistake that I wish I could go back and undo.

If I want my kids to make healthy choices and remain innocent and untouched by the evil one, I need to diligently pray for the Father's protection and consistently model and teach God's Holy Word for their sanctification. They simply cannot be sanctified when I get lazy about teaching them His Word....especially when they become teenagers.

Moms, Dads....be diligent in your prayer for your kids! And be just as diligent in protecting and cherishing those quiet family times when you gather your kids together each day to sanctify their hearts and minds with God's Word.

A Drop Of Eternity

2009-08-06T12:36:00.003-06:00

Go find your Bible, hold it in your hands, break it open before your eyes, and spend some time immersing yourself in it.

Did you know that your Bible is THE ONLY ETERNAL THING that exists in this world? It is God's spoken Word to His people, and Jesus said: "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My Word will by no means pass away."

When you hold the Bible in your hands, you are touching the only concrete piece of eternity in all of creation. Everything else is entirely temporal. Everything else had a beginning and will have an end. But God's Word has always been, and will always be.

When you hold your Bible you are holding a drop of eternity in your hands! Respect it; cherish it; love it; read it often.

Real Hope For Beating Sin!

2009-08-06T10:27:00.006-06:00

In my 20-year ministry as a pastor I have met more defeated Christians than I wish I ever had to see. They know what pardon is; they know what it is to come to the Fountain; they know that they can come to Jesus in times of difficulty; and they know that they can return to Him with all their guilt and get forgiven; but if you were to describe the pattern of their lives in regard to sin and their desire to live righteously, they would tell you that for the most part they've been on the losing side. They can identify quite well with God's warning to Cain: "sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." (Genesis 4:7) They're very familiar with the desire of sin, but not so familiar with the ability to master it.

The Apostle Paul talks about this battle in Romans 7: "I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing." (Romans 7:14-19) This is the testimony of the defeated Christian! "Wretched man that I am. Who will deliver me from this body of death?"

You see, Paul recognizes that your struggle with sin has to do with your flesh -- your body. "So it is no longer I who do it, but sin which dwells in me....I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind (which delights in God's Law - vs. 22), making me a captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members." (Romans 7:23) So then his question is, how can I get free from this losing battle? Who can deliver me from this body of death?

The answer is found in the little phrase "IN CHRIST", but first let me introduce you to verse 25: "So then, I MYSELF serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin." This is the mistake that many of us make: I MYSELF love God's Law inwardly, and I MYSELF try to live for Christ out of that love. It's a losing battle.

Jesus said: "Without Me you can do nothing" (John 15). We must be IN CHRIST if we're ever going to win this battle. So what do I mean by that?

Let me illustrate: SIN makes us like a lead pipe in water -- it's constantly dragging us down. But when we receive Christ as Lord and Saviour we have a new desire in our hearts to love and follow Him. So we want to get that lead pipe up above the water. But the mistake we make is tying an I MYSELF cork to the lead pipe, so that I MYSELF not only wants to please the Lord, but I MYSELF tries to make this lead pipe float. The result is that I bob around -- sometimes up, sometimes down, depending on the currents and depth of the water that my life is in.

This is where SO MANY CHRISTIANS are living today! Their desire is heavenward; their will is on the right side, but they lack the adequate power to overcome; sin is ultimately stronger than the strength of thier will. And so they encounter failure, fruitless struggle, painful effort, continuous conflict and defeat.

Is that where you are today? Let me give you hope with God's simple solution: IN CHRIST. We must be IN CHRIST, not only positionally, but also practically in our day to day battles.

Let's suppose for a minute that you take your lead pipe and knock the cork off; then stick it squarely into the middle of a life-belt and throw it back into the water. What will happen? It will float! It will not sink, come hell or highwater. Why? Because there is a superior law at work. The buoyancy of the belt is STRONGER than the law of gravity which the lead pipe is subject to.

This is our only way to win! We have to let go of the I MYSELF strategy, and place ourselves squarely, every day, IN CHRIST for the waves ahead. "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death." (Romans 8:2) So long as we abide in the life-belt of Jesus Christ, we will not sink. But take that lead pipe out of the life-belt, and it will quickly find the garbage at the bottom once again.

James said it best in his epistle: "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Resist the devil....." (James 4:7) Flee from his demonic laws and sink yourself into the safety of Christ's "law of the Spirit of Life". Make a habit of putting yourself IN CHRIST every day, just like you do when you get out of bed in the morning and put yourself in a set of clothes to cover the shame of your nakedness.

IN CHRIST there is victory, but we must place ourselves IN HIM every day. We must clothe ourselves with Jesus each and every day, for only the law of the Spirit of life is greater than the law of sin and death! I MYSELF is a losing battle.

Could Michael Jackson Be God?

2009-07-07T18:15:00.006-06:00

As they wheeled MJ's coffin into the Staple Center today, the great old classic gospel song "Soon And Very Soon, We Are Going To See The King" was played....a clear reference to the king of pop. Trouble is, the song was written about the return of Christ, not the career of Michael Jackson. To me, this was the icing on the cake, capping off a week of unparalleled idol worship and resurrection -- secular style. The only thing that's come close in my lifetime was Princess Diana's death. Let me explain.

Diana, as we all know, was ridiculed and mocked by the press for years until she died -- then, suddenly, she was a goddess. The same is true of MJ. Until he died a few days ago, Michael Jackson had been largely forgotten by most of this planet. Mocked and ridiculed, scorned and hated by many, he fled to the Middle East to escape the persecution for several years. Even when he announced a "London Comeback" he was laughed at by most.

Then he died. And all of a sudden we've seen a resurrection that almost rival's Christ's. Whipped and crucified by the press and popular culture, like Princess Diana his reputation has been magically raised from the dead, as the same press who mocked him, now milks him for every dollar they can squeeze out of this. Now, all of a sudden, like a phoenix rising from the ashes he's a hero....a god of extraordinary proportions, full of mystery and intrigue.

And in the most distasteful of blasphemies, a song that was composed to celebrate the return of Jesus Christ was used today to celebrate the king of pop and his newly minted reputation. The profanity of this event is now complete, it seems to me.

"Forgive them Lord, for they know not what they do."

Michael Jackson: That's Not My King!

2009-06-27T10:42:00.007-06:00

It's happened at least three times before in my lifetime-- an icon dies! A god is dead.

I was just a kid when J.F.K. died, but I still remember hearing about it. Then, in 1980, I was in my fiancee's apartment waiting for her to get home when I heard about John Lennon's death. Another "god" died in 1997. It was my wife's last day of work as a practicing nurse when news hit the world that Princess Diana had died. And now we hear that Michael Jackson is suddenly gone.

All kings and queens in their own right....but, friends, I can assure you THAT'S NOT MY KING! While the world grieves its loss of another mortal god, I still celebrate my gain of salvation through the resurrection of the King of kings.

And nobody says it better than that old Baptist preacher, S.M. Lockbridge in this clip as he exalts the Lord Jesus Christ.

Take three minutes to listen to it. You'll be glad you did, and I'm guessing you'll come away saying: NOW THAT'S MY KING!!!

Kate Gosselin And The Divine Scandal

2009-06-23T14:19:00.006-06:00

We live in an age of scandal. If it isn't Jon & Kate Gosselin, it's Perez Hilton and Carrie Prejean, or swimmer Michael Phelps and his bong. The darkness inside of us thrives on human train wrecks; it feeds on the demise of people that our world has made into little gods. We scream "hypocrite" every time we see good people go horribly wrong, as a way to justify our own bad behaviour.

This is why Jehovah God needed to remove the scandal that hung around His own good name for thousands of years. Accused of hypocrisy, He was seen by unbelievers as a two-faced God. On the one hand He demanded holiness; on the other hand He was the friend of sinners. Men like Abraham, Jacob, Moses and David.....all men steeped in sin.....all men He dared to call His friends.

First, there was Abraham, a coward, a man who farmed his own wife Sarah out to other men in order to save his life. Yet God called Abraham "the friend of God"?

Then there was Jacob, the liar and cheat. Yet God identified Himself as "the God of Jacob"?

And how about Moses, the murderer and fugitive from the law. Wasn't he the one that God gave His holy commandment to "Not Kill" to wave before the people? Wasn't this pure hypocrisy on Moses' part, and bad judgment on the part of God?

And then there was David, an adulterer and murderer: God actually called him "a man after God's own heart". Doesn't that seal the scandal for those who don't believe? How could a holy God keep company with, and exalt, such seedy and imperfect men as these? Wasn't this a scandal of epic proportions?

Yes it was!!! God knew that it wasn't righteous or just to forgive guilty sinners and not punish them: He said so Himself. So how could He keep company with these kind of men, calling them "friends of God", and "men after His own heart"? Wasn't this the ultimate in unholy hypocrisy?

Without question it was a stain on God's good name for almost 4,000 years. Until He sent His Son Jesus, He had to endure the catcalls and accusations of people who questioned His integrity. But then, He sent Jesus to pay the penalty for Abraham, Jacob, and David's sins...going all the way back to Adam....and all the way forward to you and me.

"To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be known as just, and the Justifier of those who believe." (Romans 3:26)

In Christ the scandal is removed! In Christ God punishes all our sin. In Christ God fellowships with believers from every age, so that even men like Abraham (and you and me) could be justified and pardoned through the shedding of the blood of Jesus Christ (Romans 4:1-8).

The cross is the scandal removed! Not only does it remove the stain of our sin from our own record, it also removes the stain of apparent hypocrisy on God's part. In Christ He carried out justice for all our sins, and cleared His own Name in the process!

Amen to that?

Humility

2009-06-17T11:46:00.001-06:00

I'm not sure what your experience has been, but I've bumped into more than a few Christians over the years who regularly express moral outrage at not only "the big issues" on the cultural landscape, but also at the little ones too. In fact, I have had a rather regular encounter with a fusspot I meet in the mirror every day. But I recently read something both simple and profound from a man who always scratches my itch and anoints it with the healing balm of compassionate wisdom. His name is Brennan Manning.

Reflecting on Peter's words to "wrap yourselves in humility" (1 Peter 5:5) Manning writes: THE HUMBLE MAN IS SURPRISED BY ALL THE GOOD THAT HE SEES AROUND HIM RATHER THAN BEING SCANDALIZED BY WHAT HE CANNOT JUDGE ANYWAY.

I've put it on my wall, right behind my computer screen. Maybe I'll stick it on my mirror too.

Bono To Instruct God's Church?

2009-05-20T13:54:00.004-06:00

I'm starting to realize how out-of-the-loop I seem to be for "effective" pastoral ministry. Today I was loaned the promo for Willow Creek's 2009 Leadership Summit, and was stunned to discover that one of the headliners who will instruct God's people is going to be rock star and celebrated humanitarian Bono. But, hang on, it gets worse.

As I read through the lineup I found names like David Gergen -- one of CNN's political talking heads; Gary Hamel -- the founder of Stratego, a worldwide financial consulting company; Carly Fiorina -- Fortune magazine's Businesswoman Of The Year in 1998; and others.

Maybe I'm just too old-fashioned, but when exactly did God ask us to take our cues from the world on church matters? I remember the days when headliners at church conferences were great men and women of faith, proven leaders in the Kingdom of God, not the Kingdom of Mammon. Where in the Gospels do we see Jesus bringing in Roman dignitaries and philosophers to instruct His disciples on Kingdom living and evangelism?

Maybe I've misunderstood Willow Creek's intention. Maybe this isn't about instructing the church about leadership at all. Maybe it's an attempt to inject Christian values into the secular world. I'm not altogether sure.

But of this, I am definitely sure: if this conference is primarily to instruct Christian leaders on leadership principles for the 21st century church, then in my humble, perhaps uninformed view this is cultural relevance gone to seed.

Why God Lets Us Suffer

2009-05-19T21:57:00.006-06:00

I'm 50 now, meaning that most of my earthly life is now behind me. Several events in the past little while have jarred me out of my lingering complacency about death. My wife of 28 years has spent 20 of those years suffering greatly, in and out of hospital. We patiently wait for the Lord to relieve her of her misery and take her home. Last year my father died. This month I have faced my own mortality as I await the results of a biopsy. This, and other creeping problems, remind me that I (we) am not long for this world.

I recently came across a passage on this subject written by John Calvin, the great reformer. I'd like to paraphrase it here. It's a wonderful reminder of why God lets us suffer.

"Whatever affliction we may be facing, we should always keep this end in view --- to make it a habit to have some contempt for this present life so that we might be more excited to meditate on the life which is to come. For the Lord, knowing our strong inclination to love and cherish this world, uses a most excellent method to reclaim our attention so that we won't remain tenaciously attached to our foolish affection. To oppose this great evil, the Lord, by continual lessons of misery, teaches his children the vanity of this present life. So that they may not promise themselves profound and secure peace in it, He permits them to be frequently upset by wars and tumult, robbery, and other injuries. So that they may not aspire too much after the temporary pleasures of this life, He will reduce them to mediocrity or even despair through exile, pestilence, drought, fire, bankruptcy, or many other means. That they won't be too complacently delighted with the hearth and home, He may cause them to be distressed by a difficult spouse, wicked offspring, or want or loss of children. He is quite willing to show them by disease and dangers the unstable and transitory nature of all mortal blessings. We therefore truly derive great advantage from this discipline of carrying our cross only when we learn that this life is, in itself, restless, turbulent, miserable in many instances, and in no respect altogether happy; and that all its reputed blessings are uncertain, transient, vain, and adulterated with a mixture of many evils; and that when we think of a crown we must raise our eyes toward heaven. For it must be admitted, that the mind is never seriously excited to desire and meditate on eternity, without having previously imbibed in a healthy contempt for the present. However, this being said, believers should nevertheless be thankful to God, and not ungrateful, for the many blessings and comforts He has provided in this life. To hate life altogether then, is to indulge in another evil. But to understand that it is quite temporary, and much better lies beyond, is the reason that God lets us suffer."

What great love, then, God has for us in allowing us to suffer. He is weaning us from idolatry and turning our hearts toward home.

The Most Important Thing!

2009-04-28T09:32:00.012-06:00

When I was growing up my mom had a little plaque that hung on the wall behind her sewing table, which read: Only one life, 'twill soon be past; and only what's done for Christ will last. Those words of wisdom have stuck with me my whole life.

Do we see the bigger picture? I mean, do we? Really? When the Apostle Paul wrote his letter to the Colossians he had the "big picture" firmly planted in his mind.

If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. (Col 3:1-31)

So many of us simply haven't died. The Bible tells us that true Christians have "crucified the flesh with its passions and desires" (Gal 5:24), and yet, if we're really honest, those passions and desires are still what drive many of us when we get up in the morning.

But I suspect that if God were to give us just a 24 hour glimpse of heaven and hell there would be few of us anymore who would waste much more time on what our friends and neighbors chase. Suddenly our manic coveting would turn to a more speedy and diligent care of our souls.

Friends, it is lack of faith that makes us worldlings: we simply don't see what is in the billions of years ahead of us. We're too focused on the here and now. Oh yes, we believe our creeds and we do our devotions, but we don't really believe in the day of judgment, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting, otherwise we'd be more applied toward it if we did. You know why? Because you always live what you believe!

God has provided salvation for us through Christ, and we must be about the business of preparing our souls and others for eternity. Let me leave you with these closing verses from God's Word:

"Take no thought for your life, what you shall eat or drink, nor for your body, what you shall put on....for your Father knows that you need these things." (Matt 6:25,32)

"Be anxious about nothing." (Phil 4:6)

"Cast all your care upon Him, for He careth for you." (1 Peter 5:7)

"Don't labor for the meat that perishes, but for that which endures to eternal life." (John 6:27)

"Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these other things will be added unto you." (Matt 6:33)

These verses indicate that we have now become so heavenly-minded that we are no longer worldly in our daily business. We're so absorbed with preparing ourselves and others for heaven that hanging out at the mall just doesn't fit into our plans anymore.

There is a greater good than the accumulation of "stuff", my friends! Are you walking securely in "the good works which God prepared beforehand" for you to do?

More Please!

2009-04-14T11:41:00.006-06:00

When my kids were growing up they enjoyed watching the movie OLIVER at their grandma's home. One of the most memorable moments in the movie is when Oliver works up the courage to approach the headmaster, who is feasting, and ask for more food. He wasn't happy with his provision; he wanted more.

Most of us would think that's a fair desire, especially given his circumstances and the miserly way that the school handed out provisions. But it begs a question for me: Am I generally unsatisfied with God's provision in my life?

I've been thinking a lot about coveting lately....what is it exactly?......is it something that I'm guilty of?......all the time?

The tenth commandment instructs us to not covet anything in life; to be happy with what we're given, and to not insist that we have more. Or, as the Apostle Paul put it:

"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." (Philippians 4:11-13)

So here's a checklist for discovering a covetous heart:

1. If I buy things too cheap, I have a covetous heart.
2. If I hold out for a higher price when I sell, I have a covetous heart.
3. If I give too little, I have a covetous heart.
4. If I must have that dress, I have a covetous heart.
5. If I read romance novels or look at porn, I have a covetous heart.
6. If I long for attention, approval, or admiration, I have a covetous heart.
7. If I'm not happy with what God has given me, I have a covetous heart.

Now, we certainly need to qualify the first two. If I buy things too cheap, or hold out for more money on the sale of my house so that I can use what I save to get other things, then I have a covetous heart. However, if I'm buying cheap and selling expensive so that I can facilitate my generous heart, then I'm certainly not being covetous...I'm being a wise steward of God's resources, which He gives me to share with others. But this only works if I'm a generous giver.

So, where are you at with that list? Are you content with all that you've been given, or do you eagerly seek more so that you can lavish your self-worth with gifts of self-love?

Life Is A Model "T"

2009-02-13T15:00:00.004-06:00

Years ago a young man was stopped by the side of the road with the hood of his Model T Ford raised up, trying to figure out how to get it started again. While he was bent over the motor a limousine pulled up behind him, and out stepped a well-dressed man. "Can I help you with that?" the stranger asked. "Nah....I'm just tinkering around 'till I get it fixed. I think I can handle it, thanks."

After watching the young man for a few minutes the stranger offered a couple of suggestions: "You know, you might try jigging that thing right there, and then crank up the engine again." Frustrated that he hadn't figured it out for himself the young man snorted, "Fine", and gave it a whirl. To his surprise the motor roared to life again.

"Wow. How'd you know to finagle that thing?"

Reaching his hand out the stranger said, "My name is Henry Ford, son, and I designed and built that thing."

You know, friends, life is like a Model T. God has designed and built it for us to use and run at peak perfection, but sometimes things break down, and we can be as stubborn as the young man by the side of the road: "I think I can fix it on my own, thanks."

But why not go straight to the Designer and His Owner's Manual for our fix-it advice? He knows better than any of us what needs to be jigged and tweaked.

Ps 139:13-24
"For You formed my inward parts;You covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed and in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them. How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;When I awake, I am still with You.

Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties, and see if there is any wicked way in me..... and lead me in the way everlasting.

The Shack

2009-01-16T13:04:00.009-06:00

Apparently everyone's reading The Shack. And after several requests from people in my congregation, I gave it an honest try myself. I really did. But I just couldn't get in to it. I tried, and I tried, but it just didn't grip me the way it seems to have gripped so many others.

So, I gave it back to its owner, and looked up some summaries and synopses of the book. I've also read many reviews from several quarters -- most of them positive and affirming.

But here's my question: if most readers acknowledge that Mr. Young has skewed the biblical revelation of the person-hood of God, then why are we promoting it at our conferences, churches, and bookstores? Is it because we believe that we can discern the difference between good and evil, truth and deception, so we should feel free to cull the book for "its blessings" while ignoring its obvious mistakes? Is it because we don't want to be accused of throwing the baby out with the bathwater? But isn't this the same virus that affects the way we approach 14A movies and some of the other things we like to fudge on?

Here's what my Bible tells me:

1. that I should "....set no wicked thing before my eyes" (Psalm 101:3) Is there anything more wicked than misrepresenting the person-hood of God?

2. that Job was a righteous man who "...shunned evil" (Job 1:1) Shouldn't I be shunning it as well?

3. that "any one who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God....and if any one comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting; for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deeds." (2 John 9-11)

It couldn't be more clear to me -- I should shun this book, not embrace it. I think it's unfortunate that there are so many well-meaning Christians today who are willing to pay Mr. Young good money for a book that clearly diminishes and misrepresents God. There are plenty of books around that tell the same story of restoration, forgiveness, and relationship-healing that we find in The Shack, without reducing the glory and majesty of God. Why then do we give this man the floor?

I used to be a fan of William Barclay, that great old Bible commentator from a couple of generations ago. That is, until I discovered in his biography that he didn't believe that Christ is God. I haven't read his books since, because, as good as some of his insights can be, if he is wrong in the most important and fundamental doctrine of our faith, how can I trust him with anything else --- and why would I participate in and support him in his terrible error?

I have the same question about Mr. Young. Maybe you have an answer?