Friday, December 15, 2006
Sunday, December 03, 2006
Serving the New Way of the Spirit
4So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God. 5For when we were controlled by the sinful nature,[a] the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, so that we bore fruit for death. 6But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code. - Romans 7:4-6
For those of us who have grown up in church, we are very familiar with what Paul calls the "written code." Even before we were introduced to the saving grace of Jesus Christ, our parents probably at one point or another told us not to eat cookies before a meal, or something to that effect. We were introduced to moral obligations and the rules we were to follow if we were to have happy coexistence with the rest of society.
The trouble is, many times we as a church don't take deliberate steps to go beyond this simple truth. True, there are rules to follow, but as Paul has said, "we are no longer law ..." Talking to many Christians, we seem to be struggling over keeping all these things, and forgetting the freedom that Christ's sacrifice affords us.
True, sin is still an ugly thing; and true, temptation still manages to ensnare even the most devoted Christian. And true, we have to be on guard for the "lion" that prowls, waiting to "devour" us. BUT! We have been "released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit"! No longer are we as the Israelites were; serving out of obligation to appease a wrathful God; we have a relationship with Christ that is like no other, and is unlike anything that people had experienced before His ultimate sacrifice. And yet .. we still fret about keeping the rules? Are we not in a sense cheapening the price He paid...if we are still so hung up on the details?
I respect those who try to live a holy life; by God's strength. But I believe it is impossible to live a holy and wholly satisfied life without being in relationship with God. We can do all the things we are able to: serve, study the scriptures, stay pure before marriage, etc., but if we do all these things outside of a living and breathing relationship with Christ; we've missed the point.
It saddens me that we have such a blessing and joy that is found in our relationship with God, yet we tend often to focus on the dos and don'ts of Christian living. I'm all for no complacency and of course as Christians we have to strive to live in purity because we are representing Christ. But, all this stems out of our relationship with God and our love for Him; not the other way around. Sometimes, it feels like we have things backward.
How can I keep from singing Your praise
How can I ever say enough
How amazing is Your love
How can I keep from shouting Your name
I know I am loved by the King
And it makes my heart want to sing
- How Can I Keep From Singing - Tomlin
For those of us who have grown up in church, we are very familiar with what Paul calls the "written code." Even before we were introduced to the saving grace of Jesus Christ, our parents probably at one point or another told us not to eat cookies before a meal, or something to that effect. We were introduced to moral obligations and the rules we were to follow if we were to have happy coexistence with the rest of society.
The trouble is, many times we as a church don't take deliberate steps to go beyond this simple truth. True, there are rules to follow, but as Paul has said, "we are no longer law ..." Talking to many Christians, we seem to be struggling over keeping all these things, and forgetting the freedom that Christ's sacrifice affords us.
True, sin is still an ugly thing; and true, temptation still manages to ensnare even the most devoted Christian. And true, we have to be on guard for the "lion" that prowls, waiting to "devour" us. BUT! We have been "released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit"! No longer are we as the Israelites were; serving out of obligation to appease a wrathful God; we have a relationship with Christ that is like no other, and is unlike anything that people had experienced before His ultimate sacrifice. And yet .. we still fret about keeping the rules? Are we not in a sense cheapening the price He paid...if we are still so hung up on the details?
I respect those who try to live a holy life; by God's strength. But I believe it is impossible to live a holy and wholly satisfied life without being in relationship with God. We can do all the things we are able to: serve, study the scriptures, stay pure before marriage, etc., but if we do all these things outside of a living and breathing relationship with Christ; we've missed the point.
It saddens me that we have such a blessing and joy that is found in our relationship with God, yet we tend often to focus on the dos and don'ts of Christian living. I'm all for no complacency and of course as Christians we have to strive to live in purity because we are representing Christ. But, all this stems out of our relationship with God and our love for Him; not the other way around. Sometimes, it feels like we have things backward.
How can I keep from singing Your praise
How can I ever say enough
How amazing is Your love
How can I keep from shouting Your name
I know I am loved by the King
And it makes my heart want to sing
- How Can I Keep From Singing - Tomlin
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Joy in the Morning
4 Sing to the LORD, you saints of his;
praise his holy name.
5 For his anger lasts only a moment,
but his favor lasts a lifetime;
weeping may remain for a night,
but rejoicing comes in the morning.
10 Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me;
O LORD, be my help."
11 You turned my wailing into dancing;
you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
12 that my heart may sing to you and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever.
- Psalm 30:4-5,10-12
Thursday, November 16, 2006
A Holiday at the Sea
A post by mel prompted me to think. An excerpt from Andrew Murray got me thinking:
"The enthusiasm of the kingdom is missing. And that is because there is so little enthusiasm for the King"
Why is there no enthusiasm for the King? Can we really face ourselves as a Christian church/community and admit to the fact that we've lost the apple of our eye? We often say and do things to spur each other to focus on Christ, but what does it really mean? Looking at my own life, I can say that I often settle for mediocrity instead of taking the high road that was meant for me. But the question comes around again, Why?
JP compares our plight as a child who chooses to play in the slums, when we are offered a holiday at the sea. To put it more in our terms, it's like being offered an all-expense paid vacation to Hawaii, and instead choosing to play in a junkyard. I think the question really isn't our choice, the question is whether we are actually informed when are making the decision. And I submit that we are not. This is not at all an excuse for not being excited for the King, but I think it plays in as a big factor of why we settle for mediocrity.
The simple fact is that many times we simply don't KNOW who God is, and who we are in relation to Him. In some sense it's like the child in the slums; he has no idea what a holiday at sea is, and the wonderful things that come from it. If anything, he merely knows that it may be wonderful. Without giving it a chance, the child will never experience the wonders and beauty that is the sea.
The same goes with us, though often I think it is more because we seem to have a really short memory. Looking throughout the old testament, we can see that Israel repeatedly runs away from God in spite of the way that He miraculously takes care of them. In the same way, we forget easily how God has changed our lives, and who He is. Without constantly reminding ourselves who God is, and without being captivated by him daily, we quickly forget.
So back to the point where I said that we aren't informed. This is quasi-true, but the crux of the matter lies in the the fact that we simply forget who God is. And without refreshing ourselves daily in His presence, it is easy to lose sight of who He is and that complete joy is found in Him.
Without coming to Him in constant prayer, devotion, relationship, we are almost guaranteed to quickly forget. Finally, though obvious, I would submit that the North American church has come and stood in awe at the foot of the world. Of fame, power, money; everything that the early church fought so hard to avoid. It is easy to see how coming before substitute idols made with the hollow charm of the world reduces our appetite for the word, and wastes the true worshippers that we were created to be. Our worship 'sapped', so to speak, by the things of this world. It is no wonder that when God asked for us, He asked for all of us; knowing that if we let but a sliver of ourselves to the world, that we could be easily consumed.
Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. - Deuteronomy 6:5
"The enthusiasm of the kingdom is missing. And that is because there is so little enthusiasm for the King"
Why is there no enthusiasm for the King? Can we really face ourselves as a Christian church/community and admit to the fact that we've lost the apple of our eye? We often say and do things to spur each other to focus on Christ, but what does it really mean? Looking at my own life, I can say that I often settle for mediocrity instead of taking the high road that was meant for me. But the question comes around again, Why?
JP compares our plight as a child who chooses to play in the slums, when we are offered a holiday at the sea. To put it more in our terms, it's like being offered an all-expense paid vacation to Hawaii, and instead choosing to play in a junkyard. I think the question really isn't our choice, the question is whether we are actually informed when are making the decision. And I submit that we are not. This is not at all an excuse for not being excited for the King, but I think it plays in as a big factor of why we settle for mediocrity.
The simple fact is that many times we simply don't KNOW who God is, and who we are in relation to Him. In some sense it's like the child in the slums; he has no idea what a holiday at sea is, and the wonderful things that come from it. If anything, he merely knows that it may be wonderful. Without giving it a chance, the child will never experience the wonders and beauty that is the sea.
The same goes with us, though often I think it is more because we seem to have a really short memory. Looking throughout the old testament, we can see that Israel repeatedly runs away from God in spite of the way that He miraculously takes care of them. In the same way, we forget easily how God has changed our lives, and who He is. Without constantly reminding ourselves who God is, and without being captivated by him daily, we quickly forget.
So back to the point where I said that we aren't informed. This is quasi-true, but the crux of the matter lies in the the fact that we simply forget who God is. And without refreshing ourselves daily in His presence, it is easy to lose sight of who He is and that complete joy is found in Him.
Without coming to Him in constant prayer, devotion, relationship, we are almost guaranteed to quickly forget. Finally, though obvious, I would submit that the North American church has come and stood in awe at the foot of the world. Of fame, power, money; everything that the early church fought so hard to avoid. It is easy to see how coming before substitute idols made with the hollow charm of the world reduces our appetite for the word, and wastes the true worshippers that we were created to be. Our worship 'sapped', so to speak, by the things of this world. It is no wonder that when God asked for us, He asked for all of us; knowing that if we let but a sliver of ourselves to the world, that we could be easily consumed.
Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. - Deuteronomy 6:5
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Desiring God
At the risk of emphasizing one man's work as it relates to the work of God, I must say that John Piper's work has definitely had a noticeable impact on my life as of late. This is one of the reasons why I have chosen to come back after a long hiatus of not journaling my thoughts.
I'm sure you must've heard his famous quote, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him" (Piper, 2003) or something to that effect. As I've shared with many, God's mandate for me this 2006-07 year is to be able to find complete joy in Him. Albeit it has been a journey, but one man's thoughts (thanks jon) has prompted me to start to record my thoughts again.
It seems that this pursuit of joy in itself is a weird exercise, and something that is so foreign to the Christianity that many of us have been brought up with; but yet it is such a foundational and central theme of the gospel. It's a wonder how I could have missed it for so long.
I guess the first lesson that I have been learning is simply to understand what joy is, which naturally leads to the seeking out this aspect of God. Practically, this translates in making an effort to spend time with the Lord, and attending prayer meetings I can. I find that... life is very much placed into a sensible perspective when I enter the above frame of mind. It scares me often that I could be a Christian and yet retain cynacism and criticism of my own faith. True, upright justice is warranted at times, but there I don't believe that God requires all of his bearers of justice to constantly be crushed under the weight of the Church's unrighteous deeds sapping them of their joy.
So, it begins. This pursuit of joy. Footstop. Nothing comes after...it is simply the pursuit of God that consumes me. As Piper put it recently "there are no 'so thats' in joy", joy is simply joy. For example, husbands don't love their wives so that they will cook well, in the same way we pursue joy for joy. We pursue God for God. It is one in the same. Seems so simple, yet it can be so profound.
I'm sure you must've heard his famous quote, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him" (Piper, 2003) or something to that effect. As I've shared with many, God's mandate for me this 2006-07 year is to be able to find complete joy in Him. Albeit it has been a journey, but one man's thoughts (thanks jon) has prompted me to start to record my thoughts again.
It seems that this pursuit of joy in itself is a weird exercise, and something that is so foreign to the Christianity that many of us have been brought up with; but yet it is such a foundational and central theme of the gospel. It's a wonder how I could have missed it for so long.
I guess the first lesson that I have been learning is simply to understand what joy is, which naturally leads to the seeking out this aspect of God. Practically, this translates in making an effort to spend time with the Lord, and attending prayer meetings I can. I find that... life is very much placed into a sensible perspective when I enter the above frame of mind. It scares me often that I could be a Christian and yet retain cynacism and criticism of my own faith. True, upright justice is warranted at times, but there I don't believe that God requires all of his bearers of justice to constantly be crushed under the weight of the Church's unrighteous deeds sapping them of their joy.
So, it begins. This pursuit of joy. Footstop. Nothing comes after...it is simply the pursuit of God that consumes me. As Piper put it recently "there are no 'so thats' in joy", joy is simply joy. For example, husbands don't love their wives so that they will cook well, in the same way we pursue joy for joy. We pursue God for God. It is one in the same. Seems so simple, yet it can be so profound.
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