The Journey Dialogue: Articles

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Articles

(2/8/11) A recent issue of Mission Frontiers (Jan.-Feb. 2011), published by the U. S. Center For World Mission, was dedicated to the theme of discipleship and why it is not working in the USA. Several of the featured articles offer a critique of our predominant "church systems" and their lack of success at developing disciples who can disciple others. Are they failing? See what you think. You can read any article at the following link - http://www.missionfrontiers.org/issue/archive/discipleship-revolution. In case you're interested, you can listen to a podcast I did about this dated February 7, 2011. There I talk about some practical things to think about when considering discipling others.

(1/4/2011) Here's an interesting article about a group that has elected to meet outside the box of organized religion in homes. You can also glean some pratical examples regarding how they are learning to love and encourage one another in their God journey. Click on this link to read about "Home church: Fellowship in the living room"...
- http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2010/12/08/home-church/

(12/27/10) The George Barna Group offers some interesting insight into how the religious landscape is continuing to morphe into something new in the following article - "Six Megathemes Emerge From Barna Group Research in 2010". Good reading! You can access the article by simply clicking on this address - http://www.barna.org/culture-articles/462-six-megathemes-emerge-from-2010

(1/21/10) Georga Barna recently published his "Year-in-Review Perspective". This article summarizes four themes that surfaced from all of the research his firm conducted regarding religion in 2009. It seems to reflect upon the effectiveness of, and disenchantment with, the discipling methods currently practiced in the body of Christ. Click here to read or copy it - http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/12-faithspirituality/325

(1/21/10) Newsweek published a brief article in December 2009 that continues the discovery of shifting patterns in America's spirituality. This is their lead sentence for their article "House of Worship, Finding Spirituality At Home" - "Seven percent of Americans say they attend religious services in someone's home." The shaking and shifting continues unabated within God's family. I am not enamored with "house churches" but with the evolution of the spiritual landscape away from organization and institutional expressions to more family and organic expressions. I don't think this shift is a fleeting phenomenon - but rather it is continuing to gain momentum. Click here to read or copy the article - http://www.newsweek.com/id/228722

Here is what the relational journey with Christ can be like. Check out this article by Wayne Jacobson - Friends and Friends of Friends: Living in the Relational Church - Part 11. "Participating in the Life of the Church has less to do with rituals and doctrine as it does relationship. Here's a way to define the church that transcends all the organizations in which people try to contain it." Click here to read or copy it - http://www.lifestream.org/bodylife.php?blid=55

Below are some other very informative articles written by Wayne Jacobson that provide a great deal of insight regarding the relational journey. Click on the web address to go to the article. (Added 10/19/09)

Living In The Relational Church - Part 1- What would happen among believers who really saw the church in the same way God sees her? http://www.lifestream.org/bodylife.php?blid=21

Living In The Relational Church - Part 2 - A continuation of our look at the church as God views her and how we can truly participate in its life. http://www.lifestream.org/bodylife.php?blid=22

The Spirit of Family: Living In The Relational Church - Part 3 - Why we don't experience more family life with other believers and what we can do about it. http://www.lifestream.org/bodylife.php?blid=28

Why I Don't Go To Church Anymore: Living In The Relational Church - Part 6 - Questions and answers about the nature of the church in our day and how it is that we can relate it with life and vitality. http://www.lifestream.org/bodylife.php?blid=32

Why House Church Isn't The Answer: Living In The Relational Church - Part 7 - Those who look to House Church as a panacea for what ails the church may be sorely disappointed when they get there. What do we really have to fix for church life to be productive and powerful? http://www.lifestream.org/bodylife.php?blid=35

We Already Have A Shepherd! Leadership In The Relational Church - Part 8 - How did Jesus intend leadership to function in his incredible family. http://www.lifestream.org/bodylife.php?blid=39

Shared Dependence: Living In The Relational Church - Part 9 - Unless our dependency is squarely on Jesus and not on each other, we'll never know the beauty of church life. http://www.lifestream.org/bodylife.php?blid=40

The Church That Jesus Builds: Living In The Relational Church - Part 10 - Unless Jesus is our focus and passion we'll never discover what life can be like between believers who are sharing that passion together. Here are ways you can connect with the church Jesus is building around the world. http://www.lifestream.org/bodylife.php?blid=46

This February 2008 article from The Barna Group - "Americans Embrace Various Alternatives to a Conventional Church Experience as Being Fully Biblical" - provides some insight into the major shifts taking place in people's spirituality. http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/19-organic-church/47-americans-embrace-various-alternatives-to-a-conventional-church-experience-as-being-fully-biblical

Newsweek published an interesting article in March 2009 entitled - "A Christian By Any Other Name". It provides some insight into the reasons many believers are abandoning the identity statement "Christian" and embracing the description "a follower of Jesus" instead. Here is the link to the article - http://www.newsweek.com/id/188198

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Steve's Blog

February 28, 2015

I'm 39 years into my spiritual journey and it seems there is more confusion today regarding the relationship of the Old Covenant with the New Covenant than since I first began my journey. Syncretism wasn't good under the Old Covenant and it is equally so under the New Covenant. The problem is the church can't seem to "rightfully divide" between what is New and what is Old. What applies and what doesn't. When I look at what is known as the institutional church - what most Christians believe is the real expression of church - I see very little difference between it's teachings and practices and those prescribed under the Old Covenant. Is that really what Father wants?

It's interesting to me that when you read Jeremiah's foretelling of the New Covenant, he introduces it with 5 key words - "it will not be like." Like what? Like the Old Covenant! Hebrews says the Old Covenant was "weak and useless" and it has been "set aside" by a "better covenant." Why then do the practices and beliefs of most New Covenant Christians resemble more an Old Covenant life than a new? I thought it was meant "not to be like" the Old Covenant. Paul said to mix the Old and New was to nullify the New (Gal. 2:21). Have you ever wondered why we seem so powerless as Christ's body? Why we are plagued with so much dysfunctionality? So legalistic? So unmerciful? So unloving? I believe it's because we are trying to get New Covenant life out of Old Covenant beliefs and practices! An impossibility!

For years I struggled with the same problem of mixing the Old and New and came up with a truncated concoction of church life that I've since learned looks nothing like New Covenant church life. Though my intentions were noble, it was still a mixture thereby diluting and rendering mostly ineffective the teachings and practices of church life under the New Covenant. I thought if I tried harder and preached better I could produce New Covenant life out of that mixture I called "church". I was totally wrong! I've since repented and dedicated the remainder of my life to studying, teaching and practicing the truths of the New Covenant as best as I can understand them, free of Old Covenant influence. What I've learned so far has been transformational in my own life. And I've been blessed to see the same thing in many lives of the people around me.

So if you're interested to know what I'm learning, I intend to share the fruit of it on this site and on my podcast. I welcome any feedback and will do my best to respond promptly. Blessings!

January 9, 2013

I meet fellow believers almost every day who speak about and reflect upon God as someone who is way off in the distance somewhere and mostly oblivious to much of what goes on in their lives. As far as they are concerned what they believe is reality to them and they live their life based upon that view. I can identify with them because I lived the major portion of my spiritual life with the same view of reality. But no longer.

Over the last 7 years or so of my journey I have really focused upon putting Jesus back into the center of my life - right where He belongs! Part of this transition has involved challenging and then changing my view of reality. I didn't know it then but some really detrimental beliefs were central in my life. One of the most significant was my understanding of God and His involvement (or lack of) in my life.

As I began to take a fresh look at the Jesus I said I believed in and followed, I realized His view of reality and mine, relative to the Father, were very different. I thought of Father as someone distant, removed, and basically reluctant to help unless I did something really "heroic" like fast for days, pray for hours, read loads of scripture, and so forth to entice Him to help me out. (How warped!) Jesus' view of reality was much different.

We get a real good look at His view of reality in Matthew 6. Here Jesus portrays His Father as someone "who knows" what's going on in a persons life before they ask - in fact, Jesus tells His followers not to pray like He doesn't know. He says not to worry about the stuff we tend to worry about because Father "knows" about that stuff too. A totally different view of reality! To Jesus, Father was not someone who was distant, removed, ignorant or reluctant to help. He was the exact opposite! As I came to terms with that truth it began to reconstruct my concept of reality - and my picture of Father. I said to myself, "If Jesus is going to be central in my life then I'll make His concept of reality my concept of reality." It worked! It has radically altered how I view and relate to my Heavenly Father.

What I've learned is that Father is not absent; rather, we don't see. Our minds are blinded to Jesus' view of reality - we don't understand it, so we don't believe it. We live as if Father is way off somewhere. Unfortunately a lot of the religion I've been around promotes and reinforces that wrong concept. Sure Father is out there somewhere, but He is also right here with you and me right now. Theologians call that understanding about Father "transcendence" (beyond) and "imminence" (nearness). Most believers hear a lot about God's transcendence but very little, if any, about Father's imminence (nearness).

Two words captures Jesus' view of reality regarding Father's involvement in our lives - they are "Father knows." He even "knows" the secret stuff. So no matter what you are facing right now "Father knows" and He also cares! He's involved in your stuff! Read Matthew 6.

So now in my conversations with fellow believers I try to encourage them to adopt Jesus' view of reality. It's really hard to convince most of them. Why? They don't believe it. But if you believe in what Jesus taught then it's true, regardless of what you've heard from someone else. And if Jesus believed it then shouldn't we? I do believe it and it has made a difference in my life! I believe it will in yours too.

August 1, 2011

About a month or so ago I was doing the channel surfing thing when I came across Lawrence O'Donnell interviewing Franklin Graham. (I highly respect Franklin Graham and love his work through Samaritan's Purse.) I immediately put the remote down and eagerly began to listen.

It didn't take long to catch up on their conversation - one focused upon President Obama's claim to be a Christian. Apparently Franklin, in response to a question put to him by Lawrence, questioned whether or not President Obama was truly a Christian. As a follow-up, Lawrence pointedly asked Franklin, "What evidence can you point to that would tell others you're a follower of Christ, a Christian?" I could tell that the question stunned Franklin. He thought for a few seconds and then responded by reciting his own conversion experience, like most others would as well. I didn't pay attention to much after that - my mind had begun to wander.

As I thought about their dialogue I began to wonder if Franklin's answer was really the "answer key" to the test of whether or not we are Christians - i.e., followers of Christ. I thought about 1 John 2:6 that says, "Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did." That's an interesting scripture. I didn't stop there.

I immediately thought of Mother Teresa. I wondered, first of all, if she would have answered Lawrence's question as Franklin did? And then I wondered what her response would have been had she been asked?

And then I thought of John the Baptist while in prison just shortly before he was to be executed. He asked a similar question about Jesus - "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?" Did Jesus respond with his conversion experience? Notice what He said, "Jesus replied, "Go back and report to John what you hear and see: [5] The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. [6] Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me." I think that would have been close to Mother Teresa's response as well.

I then posed the same question to myself in this way. "Is there enough evidence of Christ living His life in and through me that people can see it, or do they need to ask me for proof?" And if asked, to what will I point?

One time Jesus' disciples asked Him to "show us the Father." Jesus didn't give them His "born of a virgin" testimony. Jesus said (my paraphrase), "You can't see the similarity? Then you don't know the Father. For if you've seen me, then you've seen the Father; and if you've known me, then you've known the Father." It seems, according to Jesus, follower's look and act like the One they follow - people should see that and know that. It should be self-evident.

How would you answer Lawrence O'Donnell's question? Think about it.

November 10, 2010

During a recent Wayne Jacobson podcast he shared an interesting quote from Billy Graham. I have the book he took it from so I looked it up and thought I would share it with you. It’s interesting.

Billy wrote, “Because the church, in turning to naturalistic religion, increasingly proclaims a humanistic gospel, thousands of laymen and clergymen alike are asking penetrating questions about the purpose and mission of the church. Thousands of loyal church members, particularly in America, are beginning to meet in prayer groups and Bible study classes. Multitudes of Christians within the church are moving toward the point where they may reject the institution that we call the church. They are beginning to turn to more simplified forms of worship. They are hungry for a personal and vital experience with Jesus Christ. They want a heartwarming, personal faith. Unless the church quickly recovers its authoritative Biblical message, we may witness the spectacle of millions of Christians going outside the institutional church to find spiritual food.”

He wrote this in 1965. That’s not a typo! It’s taken from his book, World Aflame, p. 74. The penetrating questions asked by God’s people have not abated over the ensuing years – if anything, they have intensified. The tipping point for rejection of much of institutional and organizational Christianity has been reached and the turn to more simplified forms of experiencing the Christian life has begun. Billy “saw” a need to return to the “Biblical authoritative message” in order to stem the tide – perhaps what Billy had in mind as he wrote these words was not what God had in mind when He got Billy to write them. Prophecy works that way – there’s more meaning in the prophetic word than the originating author knows about. You can see that displayed throughout the Old Testament – particularly in the prophetic books, and especially as the OT scriptures are applied to Jesus.

I believe what Billy saw was a trend – the marginalization of Jesus, and by prophetic insight he could see the ultimate outcome for God’s people. Forty-five years later we can see and experience some of the “fruit” such an insight predicted. In what is commonly known and experienced as the “church” in our culture, Jesus is still being marginalized (i.e. pushed from the center of a persons life to its edges) and the institution, hierarchy and organization are increasingly being pushed to the center of “its’” life. Today, people are growing increasingly tired of, bored with, and weary of what “church” has become, but they are not tired of Jesus! People still hunger for a sincere and transformational relationship with Him but are increasingly finding it outside of the institutional church setting – just as Billy predicted.

I’m reminded once again about a prophecy Jesus gave. You know it well. It’s recorded in Matt. 16:18 – Jesus said, “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” Jesus stands at the center of that church!! Marginalize Him at your own peril!

September 14, 2010

Jesus' words recorded in Luke 6:40 are instructive for His followers. He says, "A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher." Apparently there aren't many "fully trained" follower's around because we see way too little of Jesus' "likeness" in His family. That's a concern all of His family should take to heart. I do.

When I ponder what Jesus was "like" I can't help but conclude that He was very unlike what we commonly think He was like. Think for a bit about how people responded when He was around. They flocked to Him, they pressed through crowds to get to Him, they tore a roof off a house to get a loved one near Him, little children fought to get into His lap, shunned people and despised people felt comfortable being near Him, and so forth. What was Jesus like? He was likeable! There was something about this "holy Man" that was remarkably different from the other "holy men" in Israel. Jesus was both holy and liked. (An oxymoron?) The "vilest sinner" felt something emanating from Jesus he or she had never felt from any other religious leader - things like unconditional love, acceptance, worthiness, respect, inclusion, etc. Is that the way we've been encouraged to live our lives toward "outsiders" as followers of Christ? I don't think so, at least not for the vast majority. Think for a moment. What has been our prevalent Christian posture toward homosexuals, liberals, feminists, illegal aliens, etc? How do they feel when they get around us? What do they think about us? What do they say about us? Now think about this. How would Jesus' contemporaries answer those questions about Him and His relationship with them?

What I've concluded is that there is something radically different about Jesus' style of holiness as opposed to our contemporary Christian concept of holiness. I believe in order to be "like" Him we need to recapture Jesus' style of holiness. We need a holiness that affects people the way Jesus' holiness affected people. If our holiness results in attitudes or actions different than Jesus', then we need to seriously rethink our style of holiness. For Jesus said that when His followers are fully trained they will be like their teacher (i.e. Him).

What I'm learning on my journey is that this is a lot easier to do if you are living with complete confidence that you are loved by the Father, not living to be loved by Him. Let me encourage you if you are a follower of Christ to sincerely reflect upon John 13:34-35. My own continual reflections upon these scriptures are helping me to understand I'm to live loved - not live to be loved (which is actually how most of us in the body of Christ have been trained to live). I'm learning that living loved equips me to love those around me in the same way Jesus did. That's what a "student's" life looks "like" when lived in Father's love.

June 29, 2010

One of the chief lessons I'm learning on my journey is this: keeping Jesus central to my life. It's not just my idea; it was in the heart of the Father long ago. Regarding this Paul expressed Father's heart when he wrote, "And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. [19] For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, [20] and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." (Col. 1:18-20) Notice it says "in everything he might have the supremacy". I think Christ's body has been basically detached from its Head. He is no longer central. That's why His family is so fractured and disjointed from one another.

When we lose Christ as the center of our spiritual life we start defaulting to something very destructive to His family. We begin to install rules, requirements, and rituals so we can determine who is "in" and who is "out", who is with us and who is against us. To enforce it we patrol the perimeter of our particular brand of spiritual life to measure (judge) where other people fall in comparison to what we believe and practice. When we do this we take a very different posture than the one taken by Jesus - we become very exclusive. We highlight and focus upon the differences we have with others and why those differences should keep us apart. That was a problem that soon developed in Corinth, which Paul had to address in one of his letters (see 1 Cor. 1-3). They had lost their "center" and had begun to patrol their perimeter resulting in a fractured body.

I'm learning that when I keep Jesus in the center of my spiritual life it opens tremendous opportunities to relate to other parts of His family though we may share major theological differences. I'm learning how to live a Christ-centered "borderless" life - one that is inclusive rather than exclusive. If you seriously study the life of Christ you will see that He lived a Father-centered "borderless" life. He embodied a boundary-subverting inclusiveness. The only people He didn't get along with were religious ones. They were the people who patrolled their religious borders. In contrast to them, Jesus reached out to and included people the religious elite avoided and excluded, the ones they said were "out" He said were "in". When we lose our "center" we are in danger of defaulting to behavior that does the very same thing to members of Christ's family who are "different" than we are.

How can God's people become so unlike Jesus? They lose their "Center". They live in their spiritual perimeter. This leads to exclusiveness. To prevent this from happening Christ must have the supremacy in all things in our lives. He didn't come to begin a rival religious system so His growing family could be in different "religious camps" but to make all religious systems superfluous. He taught His followers how to have a family type relationship with His Father and with one another. If we want to know what a life would look like when filled with God we need look no further than to Jesus. If we want to know how we can relate to others who are unlike ourselves we need look no further than to Jesus. Our goal is to live as closely to His example as possible. If we will re-center our lives around Jesus and stop focusing exclusively around our borders it will open some amazing avenues for personal spiritual advancement.

If Christ is in your life then we are family though we may have differences. The key to being a united spiritual family that lives and relates across borders is to focus on Christ, not our differences. Learning to consistently do this is part of the educational process on the journey. Will you join me?

May 23, 2010

Well, I think I'm finally back. In case you haven't noticed, I've been inactive on this site for quite a while. Why? Because of a two-week bout with a sinus infection, sleep loss, etc. that left me totally exhausted for almost a month afterwards. It has taken me this long to regain my stamina and desire to "work".

Though I've been inactive I haven't stopped reading. I just finished another good book - The End Of Religion by Bruxy Cavey. Though there is much I could commend from the book, one string of sentences stands out to me the most. It has to do with the man Jesus Christ and His relationship to scripture.

The Bruxy quote, which I will share below, reminds me of something Jesus said one day to a bunch of religious people who were "standing" on their understanding and application of scripture to challenge what Jesus had just done on the Sabbath (He healed someone). In defense Jesus said, "You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life" (Jn. 5:39-40). In effect what Jesus is saying is this: "Scripture is there to lead you to a relationship with Me, not to become a substitute for that relationship. And if you want to grasp something beyond a mere intellectual understanding of scripture and its application to life, then you need to know (have an intimate relationship with) Me. Stop short of that and you will never really understand Me nor will you comprehend or embrace the kind of life I came to give you."

Bruxy writes, “The life of Jesus functions as God’s illustration of everything He has been saying to humanity throughout history. It is as though God paused from teaching the world lessons and said, “Here’s what I mean – watch this.” When we look at Jesus, we are seeing what all the biblical teachings should look like when lived out the way God intended.”

What a powerful statement. Do you believe it? Is that really in view when we study and teach scripture? Yes, we must affirm that scripture is our guide, but we must never forget that Jesus is our model, His lifestyle our goal. Scripture is our personal "treasure map" but it is not the "treasure". It leads us to the Treasure - a living, daily relationship with Jesus Christ, His Father and the Holy Spirit. That's what Jesus said.

So, if we want to know what the scriptures look like when fleshed out in human form then look no further than Jesus. What I've found is that He looks and acts a lot differently than what I hear many Bible teachers say how we should "scripturally" look and act. There was something different about Jesus' style of holiness. When He applied the scriptures to His own life it made Him speak, act and look a lot different than the religious people around Him. In fact it turned off religious people and turned on sinners. I believe it should have the same effect in a Christ-followers life today. Jesus' life allows us to see first hand what the application of scripture should look like when applied to our own lives.

What is my advice to those who want a better understanding of scripture? Get to know Jesus - He is the Word incarnated (made flesh). Look, knowing scripture and knowing Jesus are not the same. I think we've all met plenty of people who have those two confused. The religious people of Jesus' day already made that mistake. Hopefully we won't repeat it.

March 4, 2010

The primary reason I started this blog site was to share what I'm learning on my own spiritual journey. This site, under its various menu headings above, has a lot of information about that specific issue. But there are other things I'm learning.

Among other things, one of the current things really coming home to me more and more each day is the strange feeling of increasing alienation I sense. What do I mean? Just this - I'm living between a culture (i.e. world system) that I can't embrace and a "church" (i.e. religious system) I increasingly find I can't relate to. I wonder if Jesus felt this way? I think He did, more than we can imagine.

I’m learning that living outside of both systems doesn’t endear you to either one. In fact, both feel you are somewhat of a threat to the status quo. Is that wrong? I don’t think so.

If we take a serious look at how Jesus lived His life we will see that He was quite a bit unsettling for both systems. He refused to get sucked into the greed, consumerism, hostility, and competitiveness of the world system or to become a part of the religious system of His day. Actually Jesus lived far differently from the way we are told to live today. As we read about Jesus’ life in the Gospels we find that He reveals a whole different set of values that transcend the normal expected allegiances.

I have found that most people who identify themselves as a "Christian" are more loyal to their patriotism and their religious system than they are to their Lord. Perhaps saying that won’t endear me to many of you. Does that mean I’m wrong in my observation? I don’t think I am. Why? Because that’s the kind of life we’ve “really” been taught to live. Don’t believe me? Start seriously studying and faithfully practicing the kingdom lifestyle as taught and practiced by Jesus and see what kind of reaction you get. It will probably be the same reaction that Jesus got from the world and religious systems of His day. Why? A kingdom lifestyle is favorable to neither one.

If Jesus were physically present with us today, where would we find Him? In which major corporation would He sit on the board of directors? Which political party would He join? Which of the religious systems/institutions/ denominations would He join thus excluding all others? Which “local church” would He pick out in our community to make His “home” church? Which theological doctrines would He embrace? (God knows He would have a lot of choices.) Do you think Jesus would be concerned about any of those things?

I think if Jesus were physically present with us today He would feel the same alienation I am experiencing. He would find a culture He can’t embrace and a religious system He can’t relate to. Yet, He would be happy and fulfilled living loved by His Father and sharing that love at every opportunity with the people around Him. On my journey, I’m trying to learn to live that way too.

Posted: February 24, 2010

Below are some quotes from the Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch book, ReJesus.

"The ultimate problem which has caused our theological helplessness, lies in the separation between Jesus Christ and the Church." (D. Ritschl)

"The Indian is making an amazing discovery, namely that Christianity and Jesus are not the same -- that they may have Jesus without the system that has been built up around Him in the West." (E. Stanly Jones)

"Why are there such glaring discrepancies among churches regarding what it means to be a follower of Christ? If they're all talking about Jesus, why does the Jesus they're talking about look different in different churches?" (Frost & Hirsch)

"I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." (M. Gandhi)

"If the church had only the four Gospels to go by, what would it look like?" (Frost & Hirsch)

"There is no disjunction between Jesus' example and Paul's ecclesiology. One is the outworking of the other. But its all seminally there in the Gospels themselves. The renewal of the church in our time is dependent on the renewal of the gospel. And the renewal of the gospel requires the recovery of the centrality of Jesus for faith and thought. We must reJesus our theology as well as our churches." (Frost & Hirsch)

"It appears that a good church upbringing will do many marvelous things for you, but one of the unfortunate things it also does is convince you that Jesus is to be worshipped but not followed." (Frost & Hirsch)

Posted: January 21, 2010

This is a one-sentence biblical summary regarding God’s ultimate intention for you and me – God’s plan for us began with a decision to enter into a relationship with us in order to direct us to a particular goal. All of history is the unfolding and fulfillment of that plan.

What was the goal of that plan? Was it to get His people to establish systems of religion and worship – each system separate from (Lutheran, Baptist, Pentecostal, Roman Catholic, etc.) and different than (liturgical, free, open, contemporary, traditional, etc.) the other? Is that what God hoped to accomplish through all His planning? I don’t think so – not according to 1 Corinthians 1:13.

What was the goal of God’s plan? Ephesians 1:4-5 gives us some insight, “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will.” God’s eternal goal is that He would have a family of “sons and daughters” who resemble His only Son. Romans 8:29 adds additional support, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.”

Jesus came from the Father, in accordance to the plan they decided upon before the first star was hung in the sky, to make a relationship possible with His Father and to provide a “pattern” (model, example) of life for other sons and daughters to follow.

That’s the goal of the journey. The goal of the journey is Christ-likeness. He is the pattern Son for His family members (i.e., brothers and sisters) to follow and emulate. Not just Christ-likeness in our behavior toward others, but also Christ-likeness in our relationship with the Father. The journey is about working out those relationships in real life. What characterized Jesus’ life is to characterize ours too. That is God’s plan – one He settled on before the foundation of the world was laid.

Where are you in that plan?

Posted: December 20, 2009

1 John 4:10 says, “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” This scripture accurately summarizes God’s good news – the gospel. In verse 16 of the same passage, John hits the “summary button” so to speak to bring together all that he had just been writing about Father and His love for us. He writes, “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.” Notice it doesn’t say, “We are to know and rely on our love for God.” That’s not what we are to “know and rely on”. We are to know and rely on His love for us. That changes everything.

For too long we’ve tried to fulfill the first “Great Commandment” where we are told that all of the law is summarized in loving God with “all” our heart, mind, soul and strength. Honestly, even on our best day, how many of us are really able to do that with our “all”? We can’t and we don’t. That’s why Jesus gave us a new command and that command has a different origination point. It shifts the focus away from us and upon Him. It starts with God, not with us.

Jesus said, "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (Jn. 13:34-35) They key to understanding this new love command is the phrase “as I have loved you”. Rather than spending our time trying to prove to God that we love Him with our “all”, we are to learn to love others out of the revelation of Father’s love for us. In effect Jesus is saying, “live loved to live love.” The new starting point is living loved.

That’s what the journey is about. Our journey as followers of Christ is really about gaining understanding about Father’s incredible love for us. The new life we are called to live in Him revolves around an accurate understanding of that love and how it is to be shared with those around us.

I believe there’s a lot more security in a relationship when we are living loved rather than living to be loved. Would you agree? Living to be loved opens us up to all kinds of shame, guilt, fear and condemnation for our failure(s) to love adequately enough to be loved. It puts “conditions” on a relationship that don’t need to be there. It opens us up to a performance trap that no one can succeed in. God wants us secure in our relationship with Him. That’s why Jesus said He wants us to live loved in Him – not live to be loved by Him.

“This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us.” Every follower of Christ needs to know and rely on that love. It will change your life.

I want to leave you with two questions. Am I living loved? Or, Am I living to be loved? Which question best describes your spiritual life? I would love to know your response.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

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