Rejection: On What Grounds?

For a brief moment, the world remembers the risen Savior. Perhaps you went to church, but it had no impact on you. Perhaps at an Easter celebration, a family member said something. You may have had a thought, a recollection, of what the Easter message really is.
Did you believe?
I came across this plea from M. Lloyd-Jones this morning. The question cannot be asked any more directly than this:

What can you reasonably say against the person of the Lord Jesus Christ? What have you got against Him? Look at that young man working as a carpenter in Palestine. Look at Him at the age of 30, beginning to preach. Follow Him along, look into His eyes, come near Him as the people did -what is your objection to Him? What is lacking in Him? What is wrong with Him? Did He come into the world to blast it and destroy it? He spent all this time healing people, talking to the outcasts, sitting down and eating and drinking with the tax collectors and sinners. Look at Him; read the record. Tell me in the name of reason, what have you got against Him? Look at this unique personality who still dominates the whole world. Even the world that rejects Him cannot get rid of Him. Look at Him-what possible objection can there be to the Lord Jesus Christ? I would like to know on the grounds of reason what that objection is.

 

“Why God, Why?”

The tragic murders at Sandy Hook Elementary have spawned a lot of questions. Reading through tweets and Facebook posts, you see a variety of responses. I’ve answered some questions privately, and tried to make some comments on friends posts, but I wanted to give what I think is a biblical perspective, answering as best I can, the “why” question.

The real answer to these things will either make sense to you or not, but it likely depends on your faith, and the philosophy you hold to regarding the nature of man. Most likely, your beliefs about the nature of man will, in turn, be dependent upon your beliefs about the nature of God.

The bible makes both the nature of man, and the nature of God clear. Man, in his fallen state is utterly sinful.
The prophet Jeremiah wrote: ”The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it? -Jer 17:9 Of course, the bible is filled with verses that say this same thing, over and over.
Yet, most people, even people of christian background, believe that most people are basically good.
The scripture knows nothing of that reasoning, quite the contrary, we are all sinners.

Correspondingly, the bible declares God good. Well, not just good, but the very essence of love, truth, and goodness. Thousands of years ago, God spoke to Moses and declared Himself the following way:  ”The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.” -Ex 34:6-7

It’s the sin of man that we see rear it’s head in naked full force with events like Sandy Hook, or the Clackamas, Oregon shooting. It’s a sickness of heart that caused a young man to arm himself and open fire on movie goers in Colorado. It’s the same sickness that we see in the images of terror attacks like 911, or the holocaust.
We can either ignore this fact and treat symptoms, or we can put our man pants on and address it like men.
Whatever you philosophy, bear with me.

It was not guns, video games, bullying, or any other symptom that caused any of these tragedies.
Men use their hands, knives, guns, poison, and even airplanes to accomplish evil.
…it came about when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him. -Gen 4:8
Cain likely accomplished his murder with a club or stone, and he needed no motive other than jealousy.
It’s been that way since the beginning of time. What Cain needed, and what all men need, is a remedy for sin, something to actually address the wickedness of our hearts.

I remember the day that I realized that I was a sinner, not just a “bad boy” but I was the devil that I feared.
With a motive of stealing some drugs, a buddy and I were in the process of breaking into an apartment of a known drug dealer. We pried open a bedroom window, and he lifted me up to crawl in… I’ll never forget the instant I locked eyes on the toddler who’s bed I was suspended above. It broke my heart, realizing that I was the bad guy that as a little kid I often imagined was at my bedroom window.

Later, I came to realize that there is a vast gulf fixed between sinful man and righteous God. He is willing to forgive the sin of man, but He has given us a prescribed way that that sin needs to be dealt with. The problem is, if you reject the idea of your own sinfulness, or the biblical nature of man, you will never submit yourself to the purpose of God. And, you will never arrive at the answer to the question, “why?”

In His sovereignty God allows sinful man to choose his own path, and his own future, including his final destination. When men choose to reject God to the degree and finality that some do, the consequences are tragic. Sin, left unchecked, always brings about death.

Friend, I hope that you understand these things. I hope that you have put your faith in Christ and asked Him to forgive you for your sins. This is the plan of God, to redeem man, by the sacrifice of His Son Jesus.
Through this act of turning to God in faith, you can have your nature changed from within. The scripture tells us that the Holy Spirit comes to reside within the believer. This is truly the only hope of mankind, -a spiritual transformation from within. The Apostle Paul put it this way: “if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.  -Romans 8:13-14

Unfortunately, as we live in a world that is spiritually at war with God, we will continue to see tragic events like what has happened recently in our country, until the Prince Of Peace comes to rule on earth.
Until then, it’s our job as believers, to help transform the world, bringing the good news of God’s love and forgiveness in Christ to every human on the planet. But, it has to start with you.

I welcome your comments and questions.

 

What “Amish Mafia” Teaches Us

John, Alvin, Levi, & Jolin -the Amish Mafia

I know, it’s a crazy title isn’t it, “Amish Mafia,” really? It’s the one that the Discovery Channel folks gave to their new shocking reality series about the inner workings of a gang of thugs who protect the interests of a group of Amish in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It was promoted well enough, that I had to watch!

I’ve watched two episodes of the show, and I have to admit, the title that Discovery gave it, fits well.
Every episode chronicles this gang, led by “Lebanon Levi” as they investigate accusations of wrongdoing, dole out vigilante justice, and profit handsomely for the protections they provide to their Pennsylvania-Dutch community.

Like a lot of the Discovery Channel and History Channel “reality shows” this one is based upon real people and the real things that they do. One of the compelling aspects of these shows, is that the viewer (or rubbernecker), learns about people and cultures of which they might otherwise be unaware. Just as shows like “Deadliest Catch” have given us a deeper appreciation for king crab, and an understanding of why it’s costlier than gold, Amish Mafia shows us a world heretofore unimagined.

When I think Amish, perhaps like you, I think of a quiet, reserved, people living out a faith in a cloistered yet idyllic environment belonging to a bygone era. I think of hardworking people, who typify the Pauline exhortation to “make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands -1 Thess 4:11 (NASB)

Man, was I ever wrong.

What Amish Mafia shows us, is the ugly underbelly of a religious community trapped in a cultural heritage that has an appearance of propriety but practices that are no different than what they refer to as the “English” world.
In the two episodes that I watched, I saw gun-toting, redneck cussing, and greedy gang members behaving similarly to inner city street gangs. I saw the non-gang members engaged in acts of collusion, secrecy, adultery, gossip, slander, and more, -even secret parties where licentiousness was condoned with profit, and inner lusts were given temporary sanction.

What can we learn from watching? Something very significant I think. What the Amish, and specifically this shock Discovery offering shows us, is the utter impotence of religion. (gasp)
The Amish have all the trappings of religion, but it’s merely a form having no substance.
They have restrictions on dress, conduct, ethics, and all kinds of moral trappings -all based on isolated and un-contextulaized scriptures. They go to church faithfully, and have a high regard for church authority, and supposedly, for God Himself.

The lifestyle illustrated vividly by the Amish, or any religious cult, show us the inability of religion to transform the human soul, let alone temper sin. Rather, religion only casts a shroud on it.
And the following verses are proven:

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit -Romans 8:2-4 (NASB)

The only thing that can truly transform the human soul is the Spirit of God, and the Spirit of God does not work in the efforts of human religion. The transformative, empowering, work of the Spirit of God, is imparted to those who, by faith in the person and work of Jesus, yield themselves to His magnificent grace in love.

Did you watch the show? If so, what was your takeaway?

 

 

My Boy Mason

Today I am going to read with a young boy named Mason. Every week I get the privilege of going to the school that our church rents, and participate in their reading program. It’s the simplest, most wonderful part of my week. All I have to do for a half hour is listen and encourage.

Listen, means I’m following along, not leading, not teaching, but letting him work out the words, with only occasional help from me.

Encourage, means I’m helping, there by his side, saying stuff like “way to go,” and “good job.” (Secretly, I’m praying for him and his family, but it’s a public school, so don’t tell anyone, as I’m sure it’s illegal.)

I think about how Jesus has this kind of ministry with us. He listens, He encourages. The Holy Spirit is literally “one called alongside to help.”

When we are serving, we can be accomplishing a work just like the Lord.
I wanna be like Him.

• Find someone to listen to today. Don’t talk, just listen.
• Find someone to encourage today. Don’t correct, just encourage.