Anybody out there ever struggled?
I guess that's kind of life asking "Anybody out there ever seen the sun". We all struggle in so many ways.
It's hard, sometimes, to accept the fact that we do mess up. It's harder when we mess up often, which most of us do. Sin is so pervasive in our lives, so programmed into our very core, that we almost can't not screw up often. It's a part of our human nature.
So, how can we ever be practicing Christians if we mess up so often? How could we ever become holy, become sanctified, if we are just a problem waiting to happen. It seems like it becomes hopeless for the human race when we realize that there is nothing we can do to help along our perfection.
That's the beauty of it.
Jesus never said we would be perfect here, now, on this sin torn planet. He never said we would say the prayer and then "Bang! You're no longer a sinner." No, Jesus rather said Christianity was a hard road, one that is difficult. We're supposed to struggle. It's not meant to be easy.
Paul says "Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose." (Philippians 2:12-13, NIV) Work out your salvation with fear and trembling? What happened to the easy gospel of today? The one where Jesus does it all and we just live as we always live?
The truth is, that gospel never existed. Jesus didn't say "Hey, guys, listen. I've already given my blood, and that should cover up all of your sins forever, so go ahead, and live like you want, okay?" No, Jesus spoke again and again against complacency, against simply accepting sin. The life he advocated was one where you don't simply give in. You fight.
The idea of war, the relation of the Christian to a soldier, is most clearly seen in one of the most well known (and marketed, you could say) passages of scripture:
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand." (Ephesians 6:10-13, NIV)
I may be a geek, but that totally reminds me of Aragon in the Lord of The Rings movies, when he gets up on his horse before the battle at the Gates of Mordor and he yells "I bid you stand, Men of the West!"
Christianity is all about the fight.
So why, if this is true, is the struggle looked so down upon in church today? Why is it that, if you struggle, and if you tell someone about this struggle, they instantly adopt a holier then thou attitude? Why do you suddenly become the twig of a Christian in a forest of Sequoias?
I'd say some of that is pride. Some of it, however, comes from this screwed up idea of ours that we have to have it all together to come to God, to be a "good Christian". Wrong. Nobody has it all together. And nobody will.
Check out Acts and the letters to the church. They were constantly messing up, constantly having to reinvent themselves, to change themselves, because they weren't perfect. And at no point in this did Paul say "Oh, you're struggling, church? There's no way you are all Christians." No, he admonished them. But usually, with this admonishment, came a praise of something they were doing right.
So Christians who are struggling can do something right? Really?
Another idea of the church is that if you are struggling, somehow God can't use you, or at least, not during the struggling time. Again, wrong. God delights in using works in progress. Abraham, Moses, David...the whole Old Testament is the story of screw-ups being used by an Almighty God to perform his will.
I'm not saying all this to say that you can live happily in sin. The key word in this whole talk is "struggle". If you are not struggling, then there is a problem. But if you are wrestling, fighting, in a constant match with the person you've left behind, you are in the right place as far as being a Christian. And just like wrestling and fighting will leave you stronger in your physical life, so it will make you a stronger Christian in your spiritual life.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
ONE
" Now I beg you, brothers, through the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfected together in the same mind and in the same judgment"
-1 Cor. 1:10
As the body of Christ, we are called to be of ONE MIND of ONE MOUTH, and of ONE WORD. This is vision that Christ had for His bride the church. Sure, there are differences in beliefs and worship styles, but that should not separate the body.
In the next two verses Paul explains:
"For it has been reported to me concerning you, my brothers, by those who are from Chloe's household, that there are contentions among you. Now I mean this, that each one of you says, "I follow Paul," "I follow Apollos," "I follow Cephas," and, "I follow Christ." Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized into the name of Paul?"
This means that we follow ONE SAVIOR, ONE LORD, and ONE GOD! We do not chase after different people's beliefs and follow them. Some say "I am a Calvinist", some say "I am an Armenianist", and some say "I am baptist", while others say "I Am" whatever denomination it may be. Is this really what God came to establish on the Earth? No! He came to establish ONE body, ONE Bride, and ONE people!
The foundation of Christianity is built upon several major doctrines such as: Jesus dies for us and rose again. Jesus Christ was flesh and blood, while still fully God; That Christ is a trinity: God the Father, Son, and Spirit; and that our salvation depends not on our works, but on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. These should be the doctrines that unite us. When someone denies a major doctrine, it is not wrong to stand for whats truth. These doctrines form the core foundation of the Church. This should be our uniting point!
In the New Testament, the Pharisees asked Jesus, " What is the greatest commandment of Moses" and Jesus responded saying "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and strength, and love thy neighbor as thy self. All the commandments fall into one of these categories."
So what is this saying? We as individual Children of God must love Him first and foremost. That at the core is the center of all of our beliefs. Then from that flows loving those around you! Think of it this way:
God
Love (He loves us regardless, but we begin to love Him more and more)
Man------love-----------Others (We reflect the love of Christ to the world around us)
Now another thing to think about, We as the body of Christ are to be a whole. It is our duty to wage "war" upon this culture. Not of war of violence and hatred, but taking the word and doing the exact opposite. We wage a war where our greatest weapon/power is the Love of a Living, Breathing, Immanent,Intimate, Transcendent God! Who loves each and everyone individually.
One last thing,
This idea of a change in Christianity really begins at the origin of the church. Christ founded the church, His bride right? But who led the first believers when He ascended into heaven? Peter and the apostles did. the early Church of Acts as Paul explains was a community of believers who were apart of "The Way" as it was called back then. there church was not big pretty ornate buildings. Their church were families that shared what they had with each other, the community, and the poor. They were about relationships. The early church reached many people throughout Acts on a daily basis. If we lived as the early church, America would have been reached by now. That might seem like a big statement, but Paul states twice in in Acts 2, "and more believers were added to the church day by day"!!!!! Does it get any better than that? A body that was about relationships, not a system, not a building, not just going through the motions. A church that genuinely had a burning passion at the core of their spirit to worship God!
This generation has failed the next. They have handed America over all brittle and broken. There is a cry among students today both saved and unsaved to see truth. Not hypocrisy or judgementality or lies, but TRUTH! So Followers of Christ, I challenge you, Show this generation what is real truth! Show them the love of God, mourn with those who mourn and laugh with those who laugh, cry with those who cry. Show the LOVE OF GOD AS A BODY UNIFIED IN ONE MIND, ONE MOUTH, and ONE WORD, and most important ONE HEART THAT PASSIONATELY BURNS FOR CHRIST.
We must take it back to the early church and start again, that is the hope for the broken church of America, start from a relationship with Christ and with each other, then we will find the true meaning of church
God bless,
Jesse
-1 Cor. 1:10
As the body of Christ, we are called to be of ONE MIND of ONE MOUTH, and of ONE WORD. This is vision that Christ had for His bride the church. Sure, there are differences in beliefs and worship styles, but that should not separate the body.
In the next two verses Paul explains:
"For it has been reported to me concerning you, my brothers, by those who are from Chloe's household, that there are contentions among you. Now I mean this, that each one of you says, "I follow Paul," "I follow Apollos," "I follow Cephas," and, "I follow Christ." Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized into the name of Paul?"
This means that we follow ONE SAVIOR, ONE LORD, and ONE GOD! We do not chase after different people's beliefs and follow them. Some say "I am a Calvinist", some say "I am an Armenianist", and some say "I am baptist", while others say "I Am" whatever denomination it may be. Is this really what God came to establish on the Earth? No! He came to establish ONE body, ONE Bride, and ONE people!
The foundation of Christianity is built upon several major doctrines such as: Jesus dies for us and rose again. Jesus Christ was flesh and blood, while still fully God; That Christ is a trinity: God the Father, Son, and Spirit; and that our salvation depends not on our works, but on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. These should be the doctrines that unite us. When someone denies a major doctrine, it is not wrong to stand for whats truth. These doctrines form the core foundation of the Church. This should be our uniting point!
In the New Testament, the Pharisees asked Jesus, " What is the greatest commandment of Moses" and Jesus responded saying "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and strength, and love thy neighbor as thy self. All the commandments fall into one of these categories."
So what is this saying? We as individual Children of God must love Him first and foremost. That at the core is the center of all of our beliefs. Then from that flows loving those around you! Think of it this way:
God
Love (He loves us regardless, but we begin to love Him more and more)
Man------love-----------Others (We reflect the love of Christ to the world around us)
Now another thing to think about, We as the body of Christ are to be a whole. It is our duty to wage "war" upon this culture. Not of war of violence and hatred, but taking the word and doing the exact opposite. We wage a war where our greatest weapon/power is the Love of a Living, Breathing, Immanent,Intimate, Transcendent God! Who loves each and everyone individually.
One last thing,
This idea of a change in Christianity really begins at the origin of the church. Christ founded the church, His bride right? But who led the first believers when He ascended into heaven? Peter and the apostles did. the early Church of Acts as Paul explains was a community of believers who were apart of "The Way" as it was called back then. there church was not big pretty ornate buildings. Their church were families that shared what they had with each other, the community, and the poor. They were about relationships. The early church reached many people throughout Acts on a daily basis. If we lived as the early church, America would have been reached by now. That might seem like a big statement, but Paul states twice in in Acts 2, "and more believers were added to the church day by day"!!!!! Does it get any better than that? A body that was about relationships, not a system, not a building, not just going through the motions. A church that genuinely had a burning passion at the core of their spirit to worship God!
This generation has failed the next. They have handed America over all brittle and broken. There is a cry among students today both saved and unsaved to see truth. Not hypocrisy or judgementality or lies, but TRUTH! So Followers of Christ, I challenge you, Show this generation what is real truth! Show them the love of God, mourn with those who mourn and laugh with those who laugh, cry with those who cry. Show the LOVE OF GOD AS A BODY UNIFIED IN ONE MIND, ONE MOUTH, and ONE WORD, and most important ONE HEART THAT PASSIONATELY BURNS FOR CHRIST.
We must take it back to the early church and start again, that is the hope for the broken church of America, start from a relationship with Christ and with each other, then we will find the true meaning of church
God bless,
Jesse
Friday, September 26, 2008
introduction to the madness.
Change is one of the most powerful, emotion-provoking words in the English language. Sometimes we're all scared of it, hesitant to embrace it. But sometimes it's what we want more then anything else. We know it's what we need.
The youth are always more attuned to this desire, because we look at the world from a vantage point unclouded by habit, clear of "This is how it's always been"s and "This is the way I grew up"s. Adolescence is a precious time when you can see the world clearly, if just for a few years. We'll come back to how important this is later.
The church is dying for change. Or dying because of lack of it. Depends on how you look at it. Sure, we have more megachurches then ever. But if you look around those churches, you won't see youth beyond high school. And for every ten high schoolers you see in the church, probably only two will remain after graduation, if you trust the statistics.
Why?
Because the church has strayed from where it is supposed to be. Modern churches are like shells you find on the beach. They look good on the outside, but the living thing inside has been dead and gone for a long time.
There's been story after story of people pressured away from the body because of how they dress or how they look. Story after story of kids who's hearts have been broken by people they expected to love them who have pushed them away.
This is not the way it was supposed to be. The hatred, the malice, the drama, the betrayal, the shallowness of the church today.
The fault is with the lack of love.
Church has become a cold institution, a college of high-minded theologians in their ivory towers, looking down on the rest of the masses, while the world is dying around them. The community is gone.
All the youth recognize this. So naturally, they bail. It's completely understandable.
But maybe, instead of throwing our hands up in defeat, we can change. We can step up. We are the future. Tomorrow rests in our hands.
John Mayer wrote a song called "Waiting on the World to Change". Here's some of that:
The youth are always more attuned to this desire, because we look at the world from a vantage point unclouded by habit, clear of "This is how it's always been"s and "This is the way I grew up"s. Adolescence is a precious time when you can see the world clearly, if just for a few years. We'll come back to how important this is later.
The church is dying for change. Or dying because of lack of it. Depends on how you look at it. Sure, we have more megachurches then ever. But if you look around those churches, you won't see youth beyond high school. And for every ten high schoolers you see in the church, probably only two will remain after graduation, if you trust the statistics.
Why?
Because the church has strayed from where it is supposed to be. Modern churches are like shells you find on the beach. They look good on the outside, but the living thing inside has been dead and gone for a long time.
There's been story after story of people pressured away from the body because of how they dress or how they look. Story after story of kids who's hearts have been broken by people they expected to love them who have pushed them away.
This is not the way it was supposed to be. The hatred, the malice, the drama, the betrayal, the shallowness of the church today.
The fault is with the lack of love.
Church has become a cold institution, a college of high-minded theologians in their ivory towers, looking down on the rest of the masses, while the world is dying around them. The community is gone.
All the youth recognize this. So naturally, they bail. It's completely understandable.
But maybe, instead of throwing our hands up in defeat, we can change. We can step up. We are the future. Tomorrow rests in our hands.
John Mayer wrote a song called "Waiting on the World to Change". Here's some of that:
"One day our generation
Is gonna rule the population
So we keep on waiting
Is gonna rule the population
So we keep on waiting
Waiting on the world to change"
One day, we will rule the population. The future of Christianity is in our hands.
That's what this blog is all about. Deciding what needs to be changed. Planning for the future. Moving above our differences in minor doctrines and our disagreements to form the Christian community of tomorrow.
That's what this blog is all about. Deciding what needs to be changed. Planning for the future. Moving above our differences in minor doctrines and our disagreements to form the Christian community of tomorrow.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)