WATERS NEVER PART UNTIL OUR FEET GET WET
For about a year, I’ve prayed that God would miraculously help me lose weight. I often prayed with a Whopper in one hand and a Big Mac in the other, believing that God would transform the fat, carbs, and calories into some magical weight loss formula. Obviously, it didn’t work. Instead I received a call from the military doctor telling me I’m pre-diabetic and if I don’t revise my eating and exercise habits, I’m going to end up with actual diabetes and on medicine for the rest of my life.
Sometimes when you ask for a miracle, God gives you work. It’s been 2 weeks since I received my diagnosis and I’ve lost almost 20 pounds in that time eating like an anorexic rabbit and exercising like a hamster in its wheel. God answers prayers, and provides miracles, but it always requires obedience on our part. He doesn’t miracle away problems—He provides “a way out” and empowers us to get to work.
“The Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing…until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground” (Jos 3.15-17). The waters wouldn’t part until their feet got wet. That is, God often won’t provide His promised results until we step out in faith to do our part. Jesus provided the miracle of forgiveness but only after He suffered the shame of the cross. Peter was miraculously rescued from prison, but he had to go to prison for that miracle to happen. The path to God’s blessings calls for taking His yoke upon us and not simply laying all our burdens upon Him.
As is often the case, I’ve learned the hard way that God will answer all my prayers, but often those answers require me to do my part.
AM I A PERSON OF F.A.I.T.H.? (5)
TRAINABLE
“Although he was a son, [Jesus] learned obedience through what He suffered… and became the eternal source of salvation for all who obey Him” (Heb 5.8). Jesus was trainable to God, learning obedience through the trials and tribulations planned for Him before the creation of the world. If the Eternal Son of the Creator learned from His sufferings, shouldn’t we also be willing to learn from ours?
When God disciplines us, He does so as a Father trains His children for adulthood. He’s forming us into His people, to serve as His ambassadors to this world; therefore, He needs people who are moldable both of action and of heart. Believing I know all I’ll ever need to learn about Christianity because I have a saving knowledge of Jesus is as silly as thinking I won’t drown when floating in the ocean because I know how to swim! Am I as willing to listen to Him and His people as I am for God to listen to me?
Being trainable means that I don’t just “go to Bible study” but study to share how God has trained me. I don’t just “go to church,” but should be open to opportunities to learn from anyone God places in the pew next to me. We don’t just HAVE faith, we are faithful, available and invested in the ministry of sharing our faith and training others to obey everything God has commanded us.
Jesus says, “everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher” (Lk 6.40). Paul reiterates, “Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you” (Phil 3.17). Training requires repetitious replication of the patterns established by those who have trained before us; whether that’s in the world of fitness, the profession of arms, or preparation for spiritual warfare. An unwillingness to follow a pattern depicts an untrainable heart.
A trainable person is faithful to God’s Word, available to those who wish to train him, invested in training and ministry, and willing to put into practice what God commands.
LOVE DEFINING FAITH AND HOPE (2 of 4)
The Greek, elpis, means “waiting expectedly” and is typically always defined appropriately by Christians. The problem is that we often us our hopes as our definition of faith. “For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and to give you a hope for the future” (Jer 29.11) is one of the most misused verses in the Bible for we believe that God promises to give us all that we hope. When read in context; however, we see a condition that hinges upon our willingness to put our faith in action.
“For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience” (Rom 8.24, 25). There is a part of salvation that is not dependent upon either faith or obedience. It's the part upon which this whole idea of “rewards,” “crowns,” and hearing “Well done, good and faithful servant” exists. We believe in the promise of the resurrected Son, obey His commands, and hope that our eternal reaping will be better than what we deserve.
A great example of faith and hope working together is prayer. God has promised to answer those prayers asked in the name of His Son but He hasn't promised to answer them exactly as we desire. I know my God will work for my good but I do not know if He'll sell my house. I hope He will and believe that He loves me enough to hear my prayer; but my faith is not what leads to a buyer. Understanding how to pray in love will teach us how to put our faith in God rather than just hope He hears us when we pray.
Posted with BlogsyMY RIGHTEOUS BUBBLE
2Tim 4.3
“The reality is that all platforms now constantly feed us content that aligns with our own interests, friends and belief systems. They are able to take what we browse or post about and feed us back our own thoughts gathered from other social media followers as though we have hundreds and thousands of friends feeling the same way,” Are you in a social media bubble? Here’s how to tell (nbcnews.com).
The other day I read the article linked above about social media bubbles and thought, “Yes, now I can ensure I always only hear what I know is Truth, instead of getting challenged by those who think they know Truth better than me.” Who better than me to know what is right for me: I need only to listen to my heart and ignore those who speak against what I know is truth (Jer 17.9).
The Bible says, “The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice” (Prov 12.15). You see, ensuring that I only listen to the advice of those I deem wise and truthful ensures that I am not the fool who goes with what “seems right,” but instead listens to the voice in their heart that tells them, “This is the way, walk in it” (Isa 30.19-22). Only I can define what is right for me and only I should choose who can speak into my life what is true and useful for “training in righteousness” (2Tim 3.16, 17).
I don’t need people telling me when or where I’m wrong or that what I believe or think isn’t accurate, biblical, or logical. I hate it when people correct you or tell you what you should think, don’t you!? Of course, you think it’s wrong for someone who isn’t you to tell you that you are in error because they think you don’t know “Scriptures or the power of God” (Prov 1.7; Mt 22.29). Who are they to tell you what to think—only a fool would think otherwise, and like me, you are no fool (Rom 2.1), don’t you think?
My denomination is right, and so I ingrained myself in their doctrines and covenants, listen only to lectures and podcast that agree with my faith, and surround myself with those whose congeniality is like kisses on my cheek, avoiding those whose words are like wounds upon my heart (Prov 27.6). Love keeps no record of wrongs, so it is not loving to tell me I’m wrong. Paul even says as much in 1Corinthians 13, the “Love Chapter,” wherein he would never dare to tell the Corinthians they were wrong in how they loved. Just read it and you’ll see.
I even believe 2Timothy 4.3 is translated wrongly as it ought to say, “For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine by surrounding themselves with teachers who say what their itching ears want to hear.” God wants us in bubbles and even surrounds us in bubble wrap like a delicate gift presented for the world to see but never touch. So, listen only to those who agree with you and to Hell with all those who do not. I mean that’s God’s attitude, right?
MIDLIFE CRIES
“I’m not Ok and that’s OK.”
Not many years ago that statement would’ve made me cringe. “What’s wrong with you that God can’t fix? You should be OK because God wants you to be joyful, perfect, whole, and happy. It’s not OK to not be OK.”
I always made fun of those who would balk at manual labor because their “back hurts.” And then I hurt my back and stopped laughing. I thought those who had “sinus headaches” or “migraines” from the weather were just making excuses so they could sleep more or sit in a dark room. And then my head started to pound like my stupidity was trying to break free right between my eyes. Those who were depressed, anxious, or suffered from a midlife crisis or were saddened by life’s changes, were the worst of all as surely, they were either creating unnecessary pain or allowing demons to bewitch them. And then I fell into my own pit and their pain became far more real.
When you’re slumped over in your pit, friends, family, coworkers, and even strangers love to tell you that if you really wanted out, you would simply climb on your own. They chastise, “Didn’t you see that pit before you fell in?” Maybe even preach at you that the “pit isn’t even real and you’re just laying on the ground like a moron.” Or they provide googled instructions depicting “How to crawl out of your pit like you’re not a worthless, hopeless piece of human garbage… and be happy about it!”
Or worse of all are those who tell you that your pit doesn’t even compare to theirs, which was twice as deep, or filled with man-eating worms, or that they had broken every bone in their body on their way down. In comparison, you’re not only a fool for falling in, but you’re also a lazy slacker who shouldn’t even complain about your insignificance. They think it’ll cheer you up to know that while you complain about your arm getting blown off, there are those who lost both legs. Or that if you lost your father, well they lost both parents. So, your complaints are weak, just like you are, and your pit doesn’t compare to theirs, just like you don’t measure up to them, and your pit gets ever deeper as they keep pressing your head into the mud.
If you’re lucky, there will be that one friend who sees you in the pit and silently crawls in there with you. They’ve been there before, they know that the way out can only be found by the owner of the pit, and they’re here to simply do what most will not: be present and listen. But it’s your pit, your exit strategy, your pain. And the best they can do for you is what someone did for them: Be there and be Ok with you not being Ok.
I didn’t write this to just anyone, because as is often the case, when you are just anyone, you tend not to care about anyone else. This also isn’t for everyone, as most everyone is like I once was and will just mock those wallowing in their pits. I thought that I would share this with no one as I convinced myself that it was no one who really cared. Even though being upside down in a pit is embarrassing, we should always speak to someone. Just anyone won’t care, everyone will mock you, no one will know what you feel, but there’s always someone to do the one thing most will not: be there and be Ok with you not being Ok.
Against the jibes of the nagging voice that shares this pit with me, I am going to share this with someone. For that someone (there was more than one) who crawled into the pit with me. For that someone (there’s always more than one) who’s also struggling in their dark, dank, and depressing pit believing what anyone is telling everyone. And lastly in praise to the only One who crawled Himself out of a pit as deep as the depths of Hell.
But it’s not OK to remain not OK. Anyone who doesn’t want help is a fool because everyone knows anyone is never a no one, for we are all someone who deserves to find the light of day no matter how deep the pit we’ve dug.
“But I tell you, in this you are not [Ok,] for God is greater than man…. He may speak… and terrify them with warnings, to turn man from wrongdoing and keep him from pride, to preserve his soul from the pit… Or a man may be chastened on a bed of pain with constant distress in his bones, so that his very being finds food repulsive and his soul loathes the choicest meals…. His soul draws near to the pit, and his life to the messengers of death.
Yet if there is an angel on his side as a mediator, one out of a thousand, to tell a man what is right for him, to… say, ‘Spare him from… the pit; I have found ransom for him’… He prays to God and… is restored by God to his righteous state. Then he comes to men and says, ‘I sinned, and perverted what was right, but I did not get what I deserved. He redeemed my soul from going down to the pit, and I will live to enjoy the light.’
God does all these things to a man—twice, even three times—to turn back his soul from the pit, that the light of life may shine on him” Job 33.12-30.
Ravi Zacharias and the Old and Young Prophet
Recently I reread the story of the “old and young prophet” found in 1Kings 13. I have thought about it again in light of the revelation concerning the improprieties of the now infamous Christian apologist, Ravi Zacharias. I’d like to share my thoughts and would love to hear yours.
In case you don’t know, Ravi Zacharias (now deceased) was a well known Indian born, but Canandian-American citizen, who has shared the Gospel of Christ through apologetic ministries for over 40 years. He has been an influence on thousands (maybe million), and because of his messages, many thousands (possibly millions) have given their life to Christ or have had their knowledge of God and His Word positively altered by Ravi’s persuasiveness. But it was recently revealed, though evidently discovered and hidden long ago, that Mr. Zacharias was a sexual predator and used his position to manipulate people to please his flesh. This new revelation will likely cause those thousands who were influenced (probably millions) to now doubt the legitimacy of what they’ve heard, believed, or adhered to and has given the enemy and his countless minions the ammunition they need to shoot down our arguments with one simple phrase: “But aren’t you all hypocrites?”
You can read more about Ravi Zacharias’ debauchery in the letter written by his ministry and posted in February 2021: https://www.rzim.org/read/rzim-updates/board-statement?fbclid=IwAR0gPDD4iHaQtT0ntVOyKFxIl1QychU0SF-g1U7_V_5gtwRLTqspN1Jwa0ohttps://www.rzim.org/read/rzim-updates/board-statement?fbclid=IwAR0gPDD4iHaQtT0ntVOyKFxIl1QychU0SF-g1U7_V_5gtwRLTqspN1Jwa0o
As I stated before, I also recently read the story of the young and old prophet found in 1Kings 13 which has always stumped me with its odd “moral.” See a “man of God” preached against Jeroboam who had rebelled against Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, and took the northern kingdoms of Israel with him to fight against Judah and its king. Jeroboam built an altar with two calves of gold and “made priests from every class of people” and set up a holy day he “devised in his own heart” and told the Israelites, “this is your god.”
A man of God cried out against the altar and when Jeroboam sought to arrest him, the king’s hand withered, the altar split apart and then started to burn into ash. The king begged for restoration and the young man prayed for his well being and he was restored. When the king asked the man to eat with him, he replied, “I was commanded by the word of the Lord… to return the same way I came.” And so he obeyed God.
But then an “old” unnamed prophet heard about what happened and convinced the man of God to join him with this lie: “I too am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord saying, ‘Bring him back with you to your home that he may eat bread and drink water.’” The writer of the Scripture even adds “He was lying” (1Kin 13.18). But the young man believed the old prophet and went to eat despite what he had heard from God.
While they were eating, God actually did speak through the old prophet and told the young man, “Because you have disobeyed the Word of the Lord…. Your corpse shall not come to the tomb of your fathers.” As he left the old prophet’s house, the young prophet was devoured by a lion and was thereafter known as the “man of God who was disobedient to the word of the Lord” (1Kin 13.27).
Sometimes we forget that God’s message is in His Word, not in His messenger. God used Balaam, the prophet hired to curse Israel, to let us know that “God is not a man that He should lie… does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?” A man who murdered Christians as they professed their faith is the one who told us, “For it is by grace you have been saved… not of yourselves.” And even Satan himself quoted the words of the Psalmist after citing “For it is written!” And we already know about the murderer Moses, the adulterous David, and the “king who did evil,” Solomon! All messengers from which we have received the message of God.
There was only One who was both the Message and the Messenger, the Word of God who became flesh and lived for a while among us. Only One who was what He preached, lived what was written, and is forever what He claimed to be. (John 1.1, 14).
The rest of us are just like Moses, or Balaam, or David, or Satan, or Paul, or the dispersed demons who uttered before anyone else did what is now the Word of the Lord: “You are the Son of God!” (Luk 4.41). We, like Ravi Zacharias, and like the old prophet who first lied and then spoke God’s Word, are the tainted messengers through whom God has chosen to teach the untainted Truth of His Word. And we, like those who were swayed by Ravi’s persuasiveness, are also like the young prophet who when we hear God’s Word allow ourselves to be swayed by the messenger instead of the message.
Today, we care more about who said it than what is said. About who did it more than what was done. Who should we care about more than what should force us to care.
Like the old prophet, we should remember that God’s Word is not to be used as a means to please ourselves or it will lead to the detriment of others. Like the young prophet, we should remember to put our faith in the Message, not the messenger, and that we will be judged by whether we “obeyed the Gospel” and not alongside those who shared it with us.
MY GOD IS HATED
You know, I’m glad God is nothing like me.
When I don’t agree with people, I just unfriend them, unfollow them, unsubscribe, turn them off, swipe left, or just tune them out when their lips are flapping.
I’m glad God’s not like me.
“Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me” (Rev 3.19, 20).
When someone says something I don’t agree with, I tell them to shut up.
When someone does something I don’t agree with, I forever disassociate with them.
When someone isn’t a person I like to be with, I’d rather die than have anything to do with them.
When I say something God doesn’t agree with, He rebukes me in love.
When I do something God doesn’t agree with, He forgives me as I seek repentance.
When I am someone God doesn’t get along with, He dies on a cross to give me everything from Him.
Sure there are those who will eternally perish separated from God because they do not agree with Him, do not live as He commands, or are not someone He gets along with but until that day, our God knocks on the door and rebukes.
The road is wide and easy for those of us too holy to associate with a fallen world. It’s hard and narrow for those who live as God commands.
“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. 20 Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. 21 They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me. 22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin. 23 Whoever hates me hates my Father as well. 24 If I had not done among them the works no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. As it is, they have seen, and yet they have hated both me and my Father. 25 But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law: ‘They hated me without reason” (John 15.18-25).
CHRISTIANS NEED TO FEAR GOD DURING THIS PANDEMIC
Like me you’ve probably heard people—maybe even Christians—say, “There’s nothing to fear from this pandemic. Take life easy; eat, drink, and be merry” (Luk 12.19). Despite God’s command to “be subject to the governing authorities” (Rom 13.1) many churches, some Christian universities, and individual believers have defied logic and common sense claiming “The church is a hospital for the sick…. The way to handle a pandemic is through the healing hands of Jesus.” They even offer those with COVID to receiving public healing in the midst of the congregation. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/coronavirus/article241431126.html, http://www.liberty.edu/news/index.cfm?PID=18495&MID=379034
I get it. We should “fear not” because we are in God’s hands. We shouldn’t be afraid of the virus, of the impending free fall of the economy, or even of what trials tomorrow might hold. We shouldn’t be afraid. But we are commanded to fear.
After promising destruction for His people because they “turned their backs to me… would not listen or respond to discipline” and lived selfishly and unlovingly towards others (Jer 32.31-33), God continues:
“[But after] I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me and that all will then go well for them and for their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me. I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all my heart and soul. This is what the Lord says: As I have brought all this great calamity on this people, so I will give them all the prosperity I have promised them” (Jer 32.39-42).
God commands us to fear Him—He INSPIRES us to do so—in the midst of trials that may or may not come from Him. Fear Him amidst punishment for sin that may or may not be our own. Fear Him even when we believe we’ve done no wrong.
No matter how much a paratrooper trusts in God, they don’t jump without a chute. No matter how much I love God, I don’t say, “Jesus take the wheel!” while driving 100 and not wearing a seatbelt. We don’t trust God by testing Him with a gun to our head.
Being stupid and disobeying the commands of our “governing authorities” does not mean we trust God more than we fear the pandemic.
Trust God by trusting that He will do as He says if we do as common sense, intellectual investigation, and pragmatism dictates.
THE CHURCH NEEDS MORE PRICKS
PRICKING THE BODY TO HEAL
After 27 years in the Army, I have become what we call “broke.” I can’t run, can’t march, and can barely stand in formation for more than a few minutes. So I’ve been seeking physical therapy to help with my ailments. One day they recommended “dry needling,” which “works by pinpointing these trigger points in both peripheral and spinal areas, causing local bleeding and inflammation which the body will eventually heal by itself.” https://www.oaidocs.com/2019/03/08/hat-is-dry-needling/
I was wearing my uniform the first time the needle pricked my feet, so I tried with all my might not to whimper like an Army Private getting chewed out by the Sergeant Major. But I yelped like a hurt puppy, which startled the therapist as he inserted what felt like a 6 foot long steel spike into my heel and then proceeded to prick me with a dozen more, each as painful as the first! Luckily, they weren’t interrogating me or I would’ve told them everything.
All that to say, it hurts like God’s eternal punishment to get pricked!
But it works. Why? Pain forces the body to focus on a problem area and then invigorates it to work toward healing. All healing is preceded by pain.
WHAT A PRICK!
When I first started following Jesus, I didn’t want to read my Bible—seemed silly to read a book of fairy tales. I also showed up to Bible study but didn’t actually study it myself. I “memorized” the Scriptures everyone knew, but didn’t want to make it a habit of being a “Bible thumper.” Then one day an older Christian chastised me for being “stuck in first gear,” claiming that I’d eventually either “peter out” and forsake the One I called Lord or I’d be a lukewarm Christian spit out on the day of God’s judgement.
“What a prick!” I thought. That’s not a very loving thing to say. But it was what I needed. It’s always been what this lazy follower of Jesus has needed time and time again. Little or big pricks to needle me where it hurts, to pinpoint my problem areas, and to motivate me to either heal or suffer the pain of a thousand continuous pricks.
GOD’S BIGGEST PRICK
God has made it His habit of sending pricks to His Body: from Moses chastising those chagrin at the miracle of mana to Elijah ridiculing those who called a sleeping god named Baal, “Lord,” to Jesus who rebukes Simon for “petering out.” Every time God sends a prick, it’s with the promise of healing.
As a matter of fact, when you think about it, God sent His biggest prick to eternally condemn the conscience of every living soul to Hell for our undying devotion to the god we call “self.” But instead of entering our bodies that prick pierced the hands, feet, and side of His own Son who bore the pain so we might receive eternal healing.
Jesus was pricked for our transgression so that we might find healing through His pain.
BETTER IS OPEN REBUKE…
Pricks bring healing and though we ought to be open to receive them, we should not be eager to become them. God says, “Better is open rebuke than hidden love” (Prov 27.5) because, as He continues, “wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.”
Friends “tell you like it is,” but should always do so with the desire to remain “friends,” not just to wound us like an enemy would. Where a friend pricks us to bring us healing, an enemy will prick us simply because they want to be a prick.
When those needles pierced my foot I looked back behind me expecting to see the therapist laughing maniacally as he enjoyed my suffering, but he wasn’t. It was like his pricks were “spurring me on to love and good deeds” while his words were encouraging me as the end of the pain was approaching (Heb 10.24,25).
GIVE A PRICK, DON’T BE ONE
“But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry. He prayed to the Lord, ‘Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live’” (Jon 4.1-3).
God sent Jonah to prick the collective conscience of the Ninevites but the prophet fled, not because he was afraid of the message, but because he was peeved knowing God would heal the people Jonah was sent to prick. Jonah wasn’t just giving a prick, he was being one.
When we rebuke, chastise, correct, or warn another without the desire to bring them to repentance, we’re not just providing a prick—we are one!
I think a lot of us are Christian pricks (I’ve been one of them) who love to tell others they’re going to Hell if they don’t believe as we do or live as we approve. But the Church doesn’t need more people acting like pricks. Instead, the Church needs more loving disciples willing to cause pain through pricking and healing through maturation.
Give a prick, don’t be one!
“And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth” (2Tim 2.24, 25).
ROUGH DRAFT BIBLE STUDY
Why do you write this crap?
Probably one of the most snide, yet introspective questions asked of me by someone who has actually read one of my Bible studies is “Why do you write this crap if no one reads it?” It’s honestly a question I’ve asked myself several times always with the same answer—“real writers don’t write for recognition or fame or notoriety…. They write just to write” (https://goinswriter.com/writers-dont-write-to-get-published/). Or as Mark Twain once said, “Write without pay until somebody offers to pay.” In other words, write whether people read it or not. It’s a proven fact that the act of sharing one’s ideas or thoughts through writing or speaking serves as a catalyst for better comprehending one’s ideas or thoughts. As one of my favorite Latin phrases says, docendo discimus, “by teaching we learn.”
So I write to learn, but why is it “crap?” Let me explain:
Sh***y First Drafts
I taught writing for a number years and would often start with an article written by Anne Lamott wherein she uses a scatological term far less acceptable by Christians than “crap” to describe “first drafts.”
For me and most of the other writers I know, writing is not rapturous. In fact, the only way I can get anything written at all is to write really, really [crappy] first drafts…. Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. (https://wrd.as.uky.edu/sites/default/files/1-Shitty%20First%20Drafts.pdf)
Because writing students always like to say “Writing only takes a minute if you do it in the last minute,” I warned them that unless they were the reincarnation of Mark Twain himself, their first draft, just like mine, would always, always be an F effort.
Actually, Mark Twain writes, “The time to begin writing… is when you have finished it to your satisfaction. By that time you begin to clearly and logically perceive what it is that you really want to say.” Meaning, our first drafts help us figure out what we are actually thinking so that when we finally share our thoughts with others, it’s not a pile of manure. https://www.onlineuniversities.com/blog/2010/07/12-timeless-writing-tips-from-mark-twain/
3 Reasons everything but the Bible should be a Rough Draft
For me, I begin with the Christian premise that only the Bible can serve as God’s final draft: what we call Sola Scriptura—by Scripture alone. The 66 books of the Bible relay God’s ideas written by prophets and apostles through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (2Pt 1.20,21; Eph 2.20). It is the final draft, everything else—that sermon by Spurgeon, the book by Olsteen, the audio recording of Billy Graham, your favorite pastor’s podcast, or even your own Bible study, are all crappy first drafts in comparison.
Here are three reasons I think Christians should see everything but the Bible as “crappy first drafts”:
1- I am not writing Scripture (I can be wrong)
When we complete our studies, and especially when we plan to share them with others, we often believe they are “inspired by God.” We (or someone else) even prays before we begin, “May God speak through [this guy or gal].” We, like the Pharisees who challenged the “final draft” Jesus with their “crappy draft” critiques, become convinced that what we studied, what we gleaned from Scripture, what we think we heard God Himself speak through the whispers of the Holy Spirit is the final copy, the very words of God.
Jesus rebuked them, as He rebukes us, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God” (Mt 22.29). Obviously, the Pharisees, the Bible scholars of Jesus’ time, “knew” the Scriptures, but they didn’t seem to know that their thoughts, their ideas, their “Mishnah” of people’s traditions and doctrines.
2- I am not reading Scripture (they can be wrong)
Jesus told the Pharisees, “You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your traditions” (Mk 7.9), because they believed the doctrine of their beliefs judged the accuracy of God’s Scriptures. There have been times I’ve shared my beliefs about God’s Word and have heard someone say, “What scholar backs up your beliefs?” Well, this is literally what it says in Scripture, so I guess God?
Unless we are reading the final draft, God’s Word, then we are always reading someone’s crappy first draft.
3- Scripture should inspire us to research questions not solidify answers.
“You diligently search the Scriptures,” Jesus begins His rebuke of the Pharisees with a compliment, but then adds, “Then testify about Me, yet you are unwilling to come to Me to have life” (John 5.39,40). They study the Scripture but didn’t ask questions of He who inspired it.
I think we too often use the Scripture as commentary for our beliefs, citing it secondary to the beliefs of those who agree with us because we think the Scripture exists to provide answers to our questions. When in reality, God’s Word exists so we might question who we are, how we ought to live, and why we believe the crap we write is more inspired than the truths God actually speaks.
Write, preach, teach, share only first drafts
So my approach to studying the Bible and sharing what I’ve learned with other is to always see my efforts as a crappy first draft. I don’t refer to previous crappy first drafts (my Bible study notes) but instead start afresh with just the Scripture—God’s authorized final copy. Although I will use commentary, doctrine, and other teaching of far smarter Christians than me, I always view them as other people’s crappy attempts at understanding God’s unfathomable wisdom. Like reading the drawings of a five year old trying to explain the laws of physics.
That’s my approach: what’s yours?
WATERS PART ONLY WHEN OUR FEET GET WET
HOME CHURCH OR CHURCH HOME (last part)
Part the Last
CHOOSING THE BETTER
“Which is better, modern home church or more traditional church homes?” I started this series because I’ve been asked that question by some well-meaning friends who’ve wondered my opinion. But I also wrote this series because many well-meaning fellow disciples of Christ do not ask this question of themselves: they just simply assume that what they have chosen to do—have church in their home or in building—is better without considering how they came to their conclusions.
The problem with the word “better” is that it can mean different things: let’s discuss 2 of them here. Life is better than death means that one is far superior to the other to the degree that “death” would never be preferred. “Life” exposes what is “wrong” with death making it better than its comparison. Contrarily, Paul tells us that it is “better” to be single than to be married; however, a person hasn’t done anything wrong by being married, it is simply more “profitable” to be single than married. Sometimes when we say “better,” we mean the thing compared is unacceptable. Other times, we simply mean we would take the latter, but prefer what we deem “better.”
BETTER THAN THE CHURCH OR BETTERING THE CHURCH?
From my experience and studies, the majority of Christians who attend a church home would be willing to endorse that those in home or house churches are simply “worshipping another way.” They might even admit that for particular reasons like intimacy, security, or interactivity it is “better” to have church in a home than a dedicated edifice.
However, those who attend home or house churches tend to “form directly as a result of dissatisfaction with specific doctrines. Too many house churches are filled with people who got burned by the more institutionalized church. Thus, house churches tend to attract dissatisfied people—sometimes the angry children of evangelical megachurches.” https://www.christianitytoday.com/edstetzer/2017/may/house-churches-good-or-bad.html.
In other words, those in home/ house often gather together because of a dislike for “the church” (traditional churches) not because they believe the house church methodology is better for accomplishing the commands of God.
Listen to this common opinion among those who attend house churches: “There is nowhere in Scripture where Jesus commands us to go to a building called ‘Church.’ It was always about sharing life with people. All that existed in the New Testament were house churches where people were already living together in deep, relational community. The idea that we need to travel to sit in a space with strangers and consume religious entertainment is not at all Biblical. So while it may be helpful (and to many it is), it is not necessary. If people try to make you feel guilty for not attending a church building, know that they have missed the point, not you.” https://www.beliefnet.com/faiths/christianity/articles/does-god-care-if-i-dont-go-to-church.aspx
Believing that Christians who “do church” in buildings are disconnected, hypocritical, superficial, and ultimately, wrong, does little to build unity in the Christ’s Body, His Church. Not only is it dissenting, it is also based on erroneous “feelings” and not on pragmatic, proven, logical truth.
IT’S NOT US VERSUS THEM
Church homes are better than home churches for the reasons I’m going to share below, but let’s first consider the point previously made. Those in church homes do not think they are better than those who meet in houses while those who meet in homes often believe they are far better than those who do not follow the same practice. God commands us to “consider others better than yourselves” (Phil 2.3, 4). If I’m always believing I’m “better than them,” then how can I ever be united with them?
3 REASONS CHURCH HOMES ARE BETTER THAN HOME CHURCHES
- THE PURPOSE OF CHURCH
The entirety of this series rests in the complex question: what does the church do? What’s her purpose? Can a house church accomplish God’s purpose for the Church or does it also require church homes to obey God’s command for His Bride?
In part 4 of this series, I discussed defining the Church by its purpose, why it exists, as found in Ephesians 4, what the Church needs in order to function (clergy, logistics, etc), and lastly what the Church is commanded to do (tasks) summed up in the W.I.F.E. acronym (Worship, Instruct, Fellowship, and Evangelize).
In every part following, I presented a study that explained how the church home and home church compares according to the tasks, purpose, and requirements. And in nearly every part, I explained how the church home is more apt to accomplish the tasks God commands the Church to perform than a house church made up of only 10-15 Christians ever feasibly could.
A Church Home with a full-time clergy, a worshipping body of believers made up of varying gifts and callings, and a facility large enough to house them and resources enough to send them out into the “mission field” will always be “better than” a house church of committed, devoted followers of Jesus limited by the constraints of time, logistics, and resources.
Which brings us to the second point.
2. Church homes are inevitable.
The Church began when one Carpenter shared His knowledge with a small group of men and women, from house to house, then from synagogue to synagogue, until that Man was crucified and others rose in His place. They carried the Gospel to “temple courts” and from “house to house” (Act 5.42) until it eventually became the religion of the modern world. Then one man nailed some complaints to a wall and the Church was reformed again from house to house and within the confines of “temple” walls until it spread across the seas into huts and homes and eventually missions which expanded into cathedrals. Because community is inevitable, and Church is a community, and community requires organizations; therefore, organized church is inevitable https://careynieuwhof.com/a-response-to-christians-who-are-done-with-church/.
The Church began and continues in homes and houses but because the Church is the people of God and not some edifice, when the people of God grow beyond the confines of a home, larger meeting places are needed. They are not “the church,” but they simply house the church.
As I highlighted in part 10-12 of this series, church homes are the inevitable product of a growing body of believers. Even if we are in a house church today, it will inevitable grow into something unable to be sustained in a house.
3. Church isn’t about what’s best for me but what’s better for God’s Church
Whomever you wish to call “church” is between you and God, but I do know that God will hold us to account for not loving those whom He calls His Church. We’d be wise to ensure that whatever is “church” to us, is also “Church” by God’s definitions.
In my opinion, many of the activities performed in “church,” whether that’s in a home or building, are ritualistic, dogmatic, and impractical. But I have learned that it is NOT my opinion that ought to shape what God says and other’s believe, instead, I, just like everyone else, should consider whether what is important to God and other brothers and sisters ought also be important to me, if for no other reason than that God or other Christians deem it significant.
Many in home churches choose to church in a house because it best “fits me” or it “helps me to grow” or it “helps me achieve God’s calling on my life.” Similarly, many of us choose our church home based upon what best suits our tastes in worship, or demographic preferences, or the teaching and doctrine to which we most agree. We pick a church because we believe it best helps us.
Maybe we’ve got it backwards? Maybe we should say, “Here I am, Lord, send Me” and then see if the direction of His Word, His people, and His prompting through our conscience leads us to call our home a church or to find a church to call home.
THANKS FOR READING
Anyway, thank you to those who have read thus far and let me know where you think I’m off and how I can improve my thinking. May God bless you as you minister with Him in a home you call church or a church you call home.
HOME CHURCH OR CHURCH HOME (part 12)
Church Task Eight
Evangelism*: GROWING THE CHURCH THROUGH MISSIONS, CHURCH PLANTING, AND SPIRITUAL REPRODUCTION
CONFESSION
When I first got involved in discipleship, I was taught that we were “born to reproduce”—God commanded us to “be fruitful and multiply.” I don’t think I’ve ever disagreed with this fact; however, what I eventually grew to understand was that my beliefs about “multiplying laborers” was synonymous with the medical definition of cancer. Let me explain.
Paul warns, “And their message will spread like cancer… who have strayed concerning the truth… and overthrow the faith of some” (2Tim 2.17-18). Cancer is defined as the “uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body… old cells do not die” but instead reproduce out of control, forming new, abnormal cells that eventually form tumors and could metastasize to the rest of the body (https://www.cancercenter.com/what-is-cancer). What is an abnormal cell? It does not “mature into very distinct cell types with specific functions,” which is one reason why cancer cells “continue to divide without stopping.” (https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/understanding/what-is-cancer#cell-differences)
God calls “the Church,” His Body; however, what is “Church?” We’ve discussed the definition in this series—it’s kind of the point of the study—but to summarize, Church is defined by its purpose—the why—not just the what. God’s Church consists of ALL believers, not non-believers who “go to church,” and not traditional buildings or living rooms. But the people themselves who are doing the “works of service” for which they are equipped (Eph 4.16).
An abnormal “cell” would then be a person who considers themselves a part of the Church but does not mature—doesn’t fulfill God’s purpose for the Church—yet reproduces (makes disciples) anyway creating an ever increasing mass of non-productive “cells” that will eventually kill the Body if it is not cured.
I believed my purpose was to be a disciple of Jesus and to make other disciples of Jesus, but to do it as quickly as possible by helping others rapidly grow from being new believers who didn’t know Judas from Jonah to makers of disciples planting churches in every home across America. But was I reproducing healthy cells within God’s Body or creating a cancer that would harm it?
DISCUSSION
Surveys vary but most say about ~30% of the earth’s population is “Christian;” however, under the category of “Christian” is everything from Catholicism to Mormonism to Jehovah Witnesses and the large umbrella of “Protestantism” that includes those who preach the prosperity gospel or a Christianity without any consequence to sin (https://www.indexmundi.com/world/religions.html). There are many “churches” but not all of them actually belong to God’s Church.
Therefore, those who do belong to God’s Body, His Church, seek to reproduce actual “cells” by planting churches either in people’s living rooms or constructing sanctuaries for Christians to gather in larger groups than a home could support. In other words, we are born to reproduce disciples of Jesus and the planting of churches is how we do it. But how do we ensure we aren’t simply spreading cancer?
HOME CHURCH
Francis Chan’s “We are Church” network of home churches espouses what many home churches believe about reproducing churches: “We multiply to preserve the healthy number of 10-20 people in a church…. Multiplication is not something we force, but we do push for it.” They urge for “regular multiplication” that should occur according to “target dates” as goals and not ultimatums; however, they are milestones established based on logistics and not always maturity—a need for space, not necessarily because others are mature enough to “make disciples.”
In other words, more often than not, home/ house churches “reproduce” by splitting apart a “cell” and creating additional churches, not because the leaders are mature enough to train disciples of Jesus, but because more room is needed to “have church.”
CHURCH HOME
According to missiologist, C. Peter Wagner, “Planting new churches is the most effective methodology known under heaven.” Tim Keller, who quotes Wagner, continues, “New churches best reach the unchurched-period.” New churches are planted because people are always searching for what is “newer” and thereby “better.” According to Keller, “60-80%” of a new churches members are “from the ranks of people who are not attending any worshipping body, while churches over 10-15 years old gain 80-90% of new members from transfers” (https://www.acts29.com/why-church-planting/).
In other words, church planting is needed because it helps God’s Church grow and reproduce. When a “traditional” church (one with a dedicated facility and ministerial staff) is planted, it is usually designed with growth in mind—not how many people are attending, but how many people will attend. Similar to house/ home churches, new church homes might be built because of a “need for room;” however, this “need for space” is not as significant a reason as it is for those crowded into a living room. Most church homes are planted because another church home has sent out “missionaries” to reach the “unreached” by planting churches were none already exist.
MISSIONS
“Missional” is a word that has become in vogue lately, particularly as it relates to “church planting,” be that in a home or a traditional building. What we usually mean is that those who start these churches are akin to historical missionaries who carried the message of Christ from the “civilized” world to the rest of mankind. Today, most American Christians would consider “missionaries” those who go “abroad” (other countries) to share God’s Word; however, there are those who would also consider starting a church in a home or an abandoned store front synonymous with missional work.
The Gospel Coalition, who define “church” the “traditional”—Church Home—way (https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justin-taylor/what-is-the-church/) explains “missionary” work in 3 parts:
“Evangelism, discipleship, church planting—that’s what the church in Antioch sent Paul and Barnabas to do, and these should be the goals of all mission work. Missionaries may aim at one of these components more than the other two, but all three should be present in our overall mission strategy. The work of discipleship and church planting cannot take place unless some non-believers have been evangelized and some of them converted. At the same, we cannot leave new converts on their own once they come to Christ. They must be grounded in the faith and taught what it means to turn from sin, flesh, and the devil and follow Jesus. And if our missionary work only focuses on evangelism and discipleship, without a vision for the centrality of the local church, we are not being faithful to the pattern we see in Acts where conversion always entails incorporation. Missionary work is a three-legged stool: if we are missing any of the legs, the ministry will not be healthy, stable, or strong.” https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevin-deyoung/goal-missions-work-missionaries/
Missionaries may start in homes, but they inevitably, and historically, grow into “traditional” church homes. When you consider that every missionary requires training, support, and supervision, it’s easy to surmise that the Church Home is far more capable of sending missionaries into the harvest field than those who call their house church.
HOME CHURCH OR CHURCH HOME?
I once asked one of the men who God first used to train in me discipleship how long it would take to “make a disciple-making disciple?” He told me that it took Jesus, God in flesh, 3 years to train 12—and one was Judas. After Paul’s conversion, he spent 3 years alone in the desert and 10 years training with Barnabas in Antioch before he started “planting churches” across his known world. If it took Jesus 3 years to make a disciple, and Paul 13 years to become a laboring disciple, then how long do you think it should take before a Christian should become the leader/ pastor of his own church?
Out of necessity, home churches are far more likely to speed up the process of reproducing church leaders than traditional church homes. It takes years to educate a pastor or missionary, many more to construct a building, and even more to fill it with followers of Christ. One of the benefits of home church is that they can be “raised” in days, or even months, but it’s also one of the pitfalls.
Though a church may begin in a home, if it is reproducing and growing it will either morph into a network of house churches, many indubitably led by immature, untrained followers, or it will grow into a local church home lead by a few experienced, mature disciples. Though a cancer can be small or it can be huge, it’s the small ones that are hard to find. The big ones are easy to identify.
A Disciple's Thoughts on Discipleship 