07/31/18 - 2Cor 2

July 31, 2018

For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.  2Cor 2:15

Living holy for Jesus encourages those who are following God and challenges those who are not---don't be upset about it, expect it.

Just because something smells good doesn’t mean everyone will like it.

I worked for a small company many years ago that shared the floor of our building with another company.  One of the men in that other company wore a specific cologne, and often put it on in the men’s bathroom, where the odor could travel the hallway and bathrooms.  He must have liked the cologne, because you could smell it for hours after he put it on.  It wasn’t a bad smell, even as heavy as he applied it, but the secretary in our office often complained about it.  I asked her one time why she disliked it so much, and she answered it was the cologne an old boyfriend used to use.  It reminded her of him, as well as the pain they both had inflicted on each other.

Paul calls those who believe in Jesus the aroma of Christ.  He is referring to the Jewish sacrifices done for years as an offering to God at the Temple.  Paul believed that Christians didn’t sacrifice animals to please God any longer.  Instead, they sacrificed themselves as a living offering.  By doing so, it brought honor to Jesus and changed our lives.

But that aroma has two effects:  It becomes an encouragement to others who believe, giving them the strength and desire to serve God better and not give up.  But it also became aromatic reminder to those who don’t believe that they were not following God.  Some would get upset about that, and want to stop the smell.  Either way, the aroma has an effect.

Paul warns the church to expect both reactions.  Some will like the smell of our living for Jesus, and others will reject it.  Instead of trying to please everyone, keep sacrificing your life on the altar to God.  Be an encouragement to other believers, and be a blessing to God.  And who knows, your life might just inspire someone far from God to consider Him when they face a crisis.

07/30/18 - 2Cor 1

July 30, 2018

On Jesus we have set our hope that He will continue to deliver us.   2Cor 1:10

Believers don't fear the future, but trust God to deliver them through the struggles ahead.

It’s easy to read the letters of Paul in the New Testament like he was a mega-church pastor exhorting his multi-site church with well-prepared messages.  But that’s not at all the case.

Paul was a traveling evangelist, not a well-paid position, starting little house churches in various countries.  He had dozens of challenges and barriers – everything from language issues to terrorist level persecution.  When Paul wrote, he often needed help either due to his imprisonments or poor health.   While others lived the comfortable life at his expense, Paul constantly maintained a faithful lifestyle.  His persecutions and trials were beyond what most martyrs ever faced, and he eventually died for his faith.

This is the Paul that writes a follow-up letter to the Corinthian church and encourages them that our source of hope is not found in bank accounts, life comforts, or superior intelligence, but in Jesus alone.  It won’t be the Roman government or the Jewish army that will save them, but faith in a story about a Jewish carpenter. 

Notice that Paul didn’t talk about deliverance as a one-time event.  Paul saw deliverance as a daily activity of God.  Deliverance simply means rescue from something you have no ability to escape.  Paul believed that Jesus was our source of deliverance all the time, every day, from sin AND suffering.  If we were to ever escape the dangers of life, it would only be through the grace of God given by Jesus and His death on the cross.  That’s why Paul could remain faithful, because he anticipated the deliverance of Jesus every day.

Our culture doesn’t see Jesus as a daily deliverer.  We like to act like we have control and power to deliver ourselves, and only call on God for the few situations we need Him.  What we don’t see is that we need God’s deliverance from temptation, sin habits, idol attractions, and satanic attack.  Our only hope as believers is not just in Jesus to save us from hell, but to save us from the world. 

When we realize the Deliverer is working every day for us, it allows us to stop fearing the future and start counting on Him to decide the future.  Every problem becomes a possibility for God’s deliverance.  Every crisis is a way for the Deliverer to prove His salvation.  Our relationship grows stronger when we keep looking to the Deliverer to save us and lead us, and that grows our hope.

If you’re facing some struggles, check out who or what your hope is in to deliver you.  Maybe it’s time for a new Deliverer for your life.

07/27/18 - 1Cor 16

July 27, 2018

Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. Do everything in love. 1Cor 16:13-14  

The life of faith calls for all we have, to honor the One who gave all He had.

Some instructions may be easy to understand, but are not always easy to do.

My uncle liked building model airplanes, and taught me how to do it one summer when we had a vacation with him.  He was patient and supportive as we navigated through the instructions step-by-step, building the model he had purchased for me that week.  He gave me a simple instruction: keep the cap on the cement glue so that we didn’t have an accident.  I did pretty well with that instruction the first two nights, but then got lazy on the third night, and eventually glue dripped out on his table and all over my hand.  It was an easy rule to follow, but I got lazy and made a mess.  (Thank God he was kind to me afterwards.)

In Paul’s final words of this letter to the Corinthian church, he gives the church some simple instructions.  They are common, something parents would tell their kids and preachers would tell their churches.  But though they are easy to understand, they are often hard to do.  Being on your guard is done well when we talk with a high-profile personality, but ignored when talking in the presence of an old friend.  Standing firm in the faith happens better around fellow believers than it does surrounded by influential unbelievers.  Being courageous & strong is much simpler when we’ve succeeded before, but not as much when we’ve failed trying.  And doing everything in love works much better around our favorite people than it does around people who hurt us.  Yet Paul didn’t make exceptions or excuses, he called for those behaviors out of our devotion to Jesus.  We don’t do the right things because people have earned them, we do them because Jesus deserves them. 

We worship and serve The Almighty God.  This is not a god who competes or must earn our ongoing devotion, He is the God who has no competition.  His gifts of life and salvation are beyond anything men ever deserved.  And He proved it by coming in the flesh to give His all for us.  As such, God deserves ALL from us.  The bar of devotion is not just high, it calls for 100% complete.  That includes our behaviors toward His creation as well as our worship toward Him.

So be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.  Do everything in love.  Because that’s what Jesus did for you.

07/26/18 - 1Cor 15

July 26, 2018

For this is the gospel I passed on to you : that Christ died for our sins.., that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day... 1Cor 15:3-4

The Gospel is either the greatest lie or the most life changing truth --- and we can tell how true it is in our lives by how much it changes our behavior.

Our behaviors don’t always match the facts, but usually match our beliefs.

A pilot took off in his single-prop plane from a Northeastern U.S. airport, and found itself in the fog common to the region.  Soon his sense of direction became confused, and his plane started plunging to the ground, even though he thought he was traveling parallel with it.   After the crash, the NTSB discerned his instruments were accurate, but ignored, because the pilot did not believe them.  His tragic end was because he behaved according to his beliefs instead of the facts available to him.

Like that pilot, we also are navigating the spiritual journey of our lives.  We often find ourselves flying through seasons of fog, and God provides to us the instruments of His Word, His voice through prayer, and His saints to guide us properly.  Most importantly, God gives us the Gospel as our instrument of assurance to Trust Him.  Yet many people ignore the Gospel and prefer to fly based on their beliefs. 

The Gospel of Jesus was made simple and clear so that EVERYONE could believe.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out the message of God – we were made for God, we became sinners, sinners cannot enter the Presence of a holy God, Jesus was holy, He died in our place for our sin, we can accept His replacement as payment for our sin and become holy, by believing we can enter the Presence of God.

Some don’t believe the Gospel.  Some accept it as an option.  Some believe about the Gospel, but don’t want to believe IN the Gospel.  Some believe and are changed.   Where do you stand with the Gospel?  The way God knows we believe will be by our behavior. 

07/25/18 - 1Cor 14

July 25, 2018

Friends, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults.  1Cor 14:20  

We can either waste time educating ourselves on sin, or seek to be wise about Godly things.

In 2008, New York Magazine published a story about kids and lying. In one study, researchers gathered a group of children and read them The Boy Who Cried Wolf.  They assumed the story would teach kids not to lie, but the children continued their usual rate of lying.  In the next study, researchers taught the story of George Washington and the cherry tree, where George confesses to his father and the father replies, "Hearing you tell the truth instead of a lie is better than if I had a thousand cherry trees."  The study discovered that it reduced kids lying by 43 percent.  The research concluded that the threat of punishment simply teaches children to learn how to lie better, but learning the value of honesty reduced the propensity to lie.

The Bible has been saying that same principle for years:  If we focus on sin, we’ll just figure out new ways to avoid consequences.  But if we focus on righteousness, we’ll discover less temptation to sin.

Paul tells the church to get away from evil by focusing on the Lord.  Much like a child, if you tell a person NOT to do something, they lock onto the forbidden fruit in their brains, trying to find excuses or methods of obtaining it.  But when we put value on high character qualities, it stretches us to pursue them and thereby avoiding temptations. 

Do a little inventory on your life and the things you have “learned” or are “learning” right now.  Some of those activities are at best useless, and at worse quite sinful.  Consider how educated we have become on ‘safe sex’, the number of drinks before becoming intoxicated, what is appropriate or offensive talk, how to drive fast without getting caught, what rating is acceptable for us to watch or play, you name it.  We have worked hard at learning more and more about sin, and spend less and less time learning about truth and righteousness.  Paul said it well:  childishness focuses on how to get away with the wrong, maturity looks for what we can do to grow the right.

It’s time to quit getting better at avoiding consequences and start getting better at gaining blessings.  Make a few changes in your life to elevate the values of God, and quit learning the methods of sin.  That may mean removing some things in your life, changing your schedules, even staying away from improper friendships. 

After all, God gave us this incredible mind for a reason!

07/24/18 - 1Cor 13

July 24, 2018

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 1Cor 13:6

Being a loving friend means encouraging them with truth instead of inflating them with lies.

Many weddings use the famous Love Chapter from 1^st Corinthians as either a sentimental thought or the main commitment.  It is read at most Christian weddings, and even used in many less religious ones.  Yet most people seldom reflect on those words as the definition of love.  Our culture defines love as sentimentality or sensuality – but not truth and grace.

That’s what makes this verse so powerful!  Imagine if your marriage or family VALUED each other’s love when you attempted to live out this verse.  If a commercial came on TV that was a temptation for sin or inappropriate for viewing, the loving person would speak up and say so.  If a false statement was made, the loving family would be sure to correct it.  The husband that is too focused on work would be loved enough by his wife to hear a discussion about balance.  The wife that is far too attracted to appearances and control would be lovingly redirected by her husband.  Those covenant comments made at the wedding would be saving truth in the behaviors of their lives.

Sadly, a love like that is seldom considered real love.  Speaking the truth these days is considered harassment, abuse, narrow-minded and even bigoted.  Certainly truth must be delivered in a kind-hearted fashion, but most people don’t see critique or correction as love.  Instead, the culture defines love as accepting the sin, neglecting correction, and feeding feelings.  Maybe we just need to re-write the Love Chapter to say: Love doesn’t correct any evil and ignores the truth.

We’ve seen that kind of ‘love’ before – it was the so-called love that Cain had for Abel.  It’s the type of ‘love’ that David had for Uriah the Hittite.  Feel-good love like that was what Judas had for Jesus.

We don’t need more of the ‘feel-good’ style of inflating love.  We need the tasty steak kind of love that Paul described in the Love Chapter.  Of course – that means learning HOW to share the truth in a kind and grace-filled way, but better we share truth poorly than push lies well.  If the greatest of all things is love, then let’s be great. 

Maybe we should all re-read the definition of love again from Paul.  Take a look at 1^st Corinthians 13:4-7 and see if it is the love you show to your spouse, family, friends and to God.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails.

07/23/18 - 1Cor 12

July 23, 2018

Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 1Cor 12:7

The first step in discovering what gifts God has blessed us with is a desire to serve the Body of Christ.

Have you ever taken one of those career aptitude tests given to high schoolers?  They can be so disappointing.

I took a Career Aptitude Test MANY years ago, hoping it would show I was skilled to be a doctor or scientific engineer.  Instead, my ratings in those areas were mediocre, but what the test identified as my aptitudes was teaching and sales.  UGH!   Standing in front of people was one of my greatest fears, and my opinions about salespeople were not very positive!   Sadly, I continued to pursue my passion for computers, and started a very productive career as a computer systems developer. 

Years later, the church we were attending started involving me in teaching roles – and the path I dreaded started becoming a regular part of my life.  About that time, my career changed from back-room technical activities into pre-sales, design, management & educational leadership.  When I finally gave up fighting it, and embraced them as opportunities, God sent my career AND my spiritual life a huge leap forward.

What’s the lesson from that?  It was when I embraced those gifts for God’s Kingdom, that I discovered their value and importance in both the Church and the career!

I would venture to say most people take a similar path – trying to pursue their own passions and visions for a career BEFORE discovering and appreciating what God has gifted them to do.  Paul was trying to play Pharisee Enforcer before he finally discovered the gift of leadership and church planting God had equipped him with.  Peter pursued a fishing career before discovering God’s gifting of evangelism and preaching.  Matthew preferred a career in finance until God showed him the gifts he had as a writer.  Imagine what great gifts are at your disposal, if you only would put them to effective work for God!

The secret is to discover them in the Body of Christ!  Start by desiring to be a part of His body (the Church), and find your gifts by serving the Body.  When you discover what those gifts are, turn and start using them in your career as well.  You’ll not only minister and support God’s work on earth in saving people for eternity, you might just discover a career that fits well with who you were designed to be.

The first step in discovering your gifts is wanting to serve the Church Jesus died for.

07/20/18 - 1Cor 11

July 20, 2018

Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ. 1Cor 11:1

Everyone sets an example, but is our example worth following?  Are we drawing people closer to Jesus or closer to something else?

Following something you don’t see is very difficult.

Often, Dianna will ask me for directions to some place, and I will give her directions like a map – ie. 2^nd right, follow it north, take your third left, etc.  About three statements into the explanation, a glazed look will come over her eyes, and I’ve lost her.  She doesn’t do well with a verbal map.  She needs visual landmarks or a visible map to understand how to get there.  Better yet, she does even better when following someone or having a navigator go with her.

Following Jesus has the same challenges as a verbal map.  God has given us a verbal instruction manual that is very complete and helpful, but for most of us, it’s hard to follow.  We don’t do well transferring the instructions of the Gospels into daily behavior patterns.  Like trying to remember navigational directions, it’s easy to make mistakes or take the wrong turn.

That’s one reason Jesus created the Church… to give us other people traveling the road with us.  Often when we don’t understand what route to take, another more seasoned Christian will come along and show us how to navigate the journey.  Our best method of traveling life is often through the examples of others ahead of us.

But that is also the danger … because if the example we follow takes the wrong turn, we likely will be headed the wrong path with them.  Choosing our example is paramount to successfully navigating life well.

Paul figured that out as he went around starting churches.  After spending time in an area, he would bring people to Christ and grow them in faith, and then select leaders worthy of following.  These leaders needed to be excellent examples for the church (and community) to follow.  But who would they follow?  Paul told them: follow me as I follow Christ.  Paul was gifted with a special direct relationship with Jesus, and the closer he drew to Jesus, the better path others could follow.  Oh HOW IMPORTANT it is to have an example worth following.

You are both a leader & and follower.  Someone in this life is watching your example and learning from it.  And there is someone (probably many) whose example you are following.  Remember two things:

1.       The examples you follow NEED to be getting closer to Jesus for them to be worthy of following.

2.       You also NEED to be getting closer to Jesus for those who are following your example.

Take a personal inventory of your life regularly.  Who are you following?  Who is following you?  Is your example worthy following?  Because the eternities of you and everyone in your life is at stake!

07/19/18 - 1Cor 10

July 19, 2018

You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord's table and the table of demons. 1Cor 10:21

Don't worship Jesus on Sunday and then pursue sin the rest of the week – it’s inviting evil into the temple of your heart.

In the Old Testament, Moses records the Great Commandment of God in the book of Deuteronomy as: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and mind and strength.  Later, in the Gospels, the Jews had modified it to say: heart, soul, mind & strength.  That’s because they had determined that the heart was both the temple for our emotions/passions as well as our soul.  By that generation, the heart had been divided into two parts.  So it was crucial that the Scripture was taught to love God both with the heart of our passions as well as the heart of our soul.

Unfortunately, the nature of humans is to want to divide the heart up for our own selfish interests.  We want God to save our soul, and are glad to have Him take ownership of that portion of our heart, just as long as we can use the other portion of our heart for our own passions.  Somehow, we convince ourselves that it’s okay with God to have a split heart.  But we don’t realize how deadly that thinking is.

Paul makes the point clear when it comes to the believer’s lifestyle that we cannot divide our hearts that way.  Believers in Corinth were worshipping God in the communion of the saints, but then joining in with the unbelievers in their parties and pursuits of worldly passions.  Paul equates that to a divided heart – one that pursues God on Sunday but then pursues its own pleasures the rest of the week.  It’s like trying to dine with angels and demons together.

Followers of Jesus will struggle with the temptations of sin, but they are not supposed to actively pursue sinful lifestyles.  It’s one thing to fail or fall, and another thing to brazenly participate. 

So let’s be real here.  If you’re in an immoral relationship, leave.  If you’re participating in activities that God calls sin, stop them.  If you have an addiction or an attraction to alcohol, drugs or other vice, throw it out and avoid the places that offer it.  If your tendency is to gossip, fight, react in anger, get help.  Stop inviting demons into your heart and seek the cup of communion with the Lord.  Make your worship on Sunday a reflection of the lifestyle you live Monday thru Friday.

07/18/18 - 1Cor 9

July 18, 2018

In a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize. Run in such a way as to get the prize. 1Cor 9:24

Instead of watching other runners, work to finish well our own race.

It’s amazing how quickly everything can turn into a competition.

As a guy who grew up in athletics, it’s easy to turn every activity into a competition, whether it is a sport, or a hobby, or even a conversation.  One-upping the other males in the room is common.  Even when nobody is around, there can be a competition going on with ourselves sometimes – trying to get better than the last time.  Part of that striving to improve is healthy, but it often gets interlaced with comparing ourselves to others.

But over the years, I’ve discovered this is not a male athlete thing.  I’ve watched women do the same thing in comparing their houses, husbands, body-shapes, and lifestyles, turning them into a competitive private battle.  I’ve seen even little children compete for the attention or approval of a parent.  Certainly businesses have invested mega-bucks in trying to outwit their competition, and countries have done the same.  It may not be on an athletic field, where runs or touchdowns or goals measure success, but there is certainly a lot of comparison and competition happening every day.

Paul didn’t condemn the race, he just taught us to change the comparison.  Instead of comparing ourselves with others, compare ourselves with ourselves.  And instead of looking at improving from our past, look to become what God designed us to become.  Then the comparison will have both compassion and conviction.  We’ll continue to run the race, but at the pace God designed us to run.  And the prize at the end will be the Well Done Jesus had promised us, no matter what the results look like compared to others.

That’s easier said than done.  It takes some training and practice.  We’ll make mistakes in starting out to fast or taking too many breaks.  Sometimes we’ll fall or slip up, and need correction.  Keep running! 

Paul said only one gets the prize, which sounds like we need to compete to beat out the next person.  But in the spiritual realm, YOU are the only person that can win the prize assigned to you!  And unlike the culture today that wants everyone to get the same trophy, this prize is custom made for YOU.  You cannot win someone else’s prize, and they cannot win yours.  So run in such a way as to win your prize. 

So stop trying to be like your neighbor, or better than your brother, or more successful than the other leader.  Start running the race you’ve been given, and run it the best you are designed to run it.  Don’t compete with your past, but pursue your best.  And cross the finish line marked out for you.

That’s a race worth running, and a prize worth winning. 

07/17/18 - 1Cor 8

July 17, 2018

We know that "We all possess knowledge." But knowledge puffs up while love builds up. 1Cor 8:1

Instead of trying to tell people what you know, help them discover it for themselves.

I was in a conversation with an acquaintance years ago, and the topic eventually turned to raising children.  Being a new dad in my recent marriage, I was struggling with the challenges of parenting and feared making mistakes or doing something wrong.  As I opened up a little about my struggles, the man I was talking to started giving me advice and correcting me on a few things.  He went on and on about how to parent my child, and what I should be doing, and some of the things were not sounding practical nor appropriate.  Somewhere in the conversation, I think God whispered into my spirit to ask a question, so I did: “how many kids do you have?”  His answer was a bit defensive: “well, none, but I know what I am talking about.”  Somehow, his advice seemed to carry a lot less weight after that.

Humans have a tendency to turn knowledge into arrogance.  We are taught things in college and think we have the expertise now to advise other people.  We learn stuff in our own life and start using it as a hammer to fix everyone else’s problems around us.  It’s amazing how quickly we can take something we have seen and turn it into expertise for ourselves.  All of that becomes a bit arrogant when we start asserting opinions as facts, and start pushing our ideas in areas we were not knowledgeable or responsible for.

Knowledge is a good thing if used properly. When we offer something as an idea, or a question, or a possibility, it allows the receiver to think through the scenario and consider how the idea might work.  But when we assert it as truth, we are stealing the person’s own experience and judgment away, making our thoughts the standard.  Offering knowledge can help build up the receiver, but pushing knowledge only builds up the sender. 

Paul tells the Corinthian church that we should build each other up.  The best learning is not done through instruction, but through experience.  Love offers its help in whatever way the receiver needs.  Pride pushes its help in whatever way the sender needs.  Be a person of love instead of a person of pride.  Turn our knowledge into questions, curiosity, and options.  Allow the person the chance to analyze and grow themselves in the process.  Who knows … we ALL might get a little wiser if we learn together instead of trying to assert our own opinions.

God has full knowledge, yet He chooses to reveal it slowly at a pace we are ready to learn.  He has the ability to advise us on everything, but waits until we are ready to seek the answers.  Because God is love, He chooses to use ways that build us up instead of beat us up. 

And He should know … since He has been there before.

07/16/18 - 1Cor 7

July 16, 2018

Each person should remain in the situation they were in when God called them. 1Cor 7:20

Trust God to use you IN your marriage, your work, and your town until He changes it.

Often people come to Christ and discover loneliness in the early stages of their walk with Jesus.  Their spouse will not be a believer and the marriage becomes strained.  Others in the family are not as excited about taking with them, and tension builds in family gatherings.  Friends who once were tightknit become distant.  Family members avoid them.  It’s in these days that one of two reactions tend to happen:  either the believer starts growing colder in their devotion to Christ, or they begin to think starting over in a new situation would be better.

The scenario is not just true for newer believers, but for Christian leaders and business-people as well.  As challenges and setbacks occur, the tendency is to believe a new location would be better than sticking around the old one.  Many use these seasons of loneliness to start looking for new positions, thinking that God has a better place for them.

Loneliness is a sign to change many things, but changing where God has you is not one of them.  God left Moses, Joshua & Caleb in the desert 40 years before they moved on.  He had David on the run for years before removing Saul from power.  God left Daniel in a pagan kingdom during the exile, and even sent Joseph & Mary with Jesus to Egypt for several years before calling them back to Israel.  His principle is the same for us – stay where God has you until He calls you away.  You don’t know what God is doing with you in your marriage, your family, your work environment or your neighborhood.  And if you’re a leader in your church --- you don’t know what God is doing with you there either!  So stay put until God calls you away.

A word for ministers… applying for jobs to “seek God’s calling” is often a manipulation.  Be careful you don’t try to force God’s hand or pursue a new ministry ahead of God.  He may have you where you are to rebuild something, to stand against something, or even to grow you as a leader.  Being in the desert may be EXACTLY the right place, even if it looks weak or disappointing compared to the mega-church on the other side of town.  Stay where God calls you until He calls you away.

Trust God to be God – and work out His purposes through you in your marriage, your work, or your situation.  He is very capable of doing that.

07/13/18 - 1Cor 6

July 13, 2018

(Sinful) is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.  1Cor 6:11

Don't live like the sinful after we have been washed clean.

When our daughter Heather was a child, one of my favorite times of the day was ‘bath time’.  Not just because she got cleaned up and I got a little quiet time, but because of what happened after bath time.  We would get to spend time after she was all cleaned up sitting together in the rocking chair or on the couch, reading books, talking and enjoying the last hours of the day together.  No more running in the dirt … she was clean and sweet-smelling.  (I enjoyed that with my grand-daughter years later, too!)

Probably one of the hardest changes that happens in coming to Christ is the change in relationships with people.   Giving our lives to Jesus starts out so cleansing, like a warm clean shower after a sweaty day of yard work.  We don’t think it changes us drastically at first, expecting to keep the same friendships, and not impact our families.  But little by little, the Spirit of God on the inside starts making changes.  Language starts getting healthier, activities become different, new friendships start forming, and before you know it, we find ourselves spending less time with the old relationships.  Something gets said and we try hard to keep them going, but you can tell the separation is happening.

That’s not just true with coming to Christ.  It’s also true with believers who start turning towards selfish or sinful behaviors.  The gap in relationships starts forming then too, and the same process starts happening in reverse.  Soon those people who were your strong models of faith take a back seat to the ones who suck us into worldly pleasures.  The gap grows larger, and the activities change, and soon we find ourselves back in the dirt we had left years earlier.  It’s easy to blame or judge those “holier than thou Christians”, but the fact is we’re the ones who are wearing the dirty clothes again.

Paul tells the Christians to remember what they came from – and what Jesus did for them.  He tells them they had received three special gifts:

1.       They were washed – Jesus didn’t just forgive us for getting dirty and then leave the dirt on us; He washed the dirt away.  We no longer need to feel guilt or disqualification for our past.

2.       They were sanctified – Not only does Jesus cleanse us from our past, but He starts transforming us into a new creation.  Sanctification is the work God does on us to rebuild the damaged life into a holy life.  (Which is why relationships, activities, and passions change!)

3.       They were justified – at the completion of His work on us, Jesus then hands us over to the Father as we were designed to be – not perfect, but perfected people under God’s Grace.  It’s as if we never sinned.

We don’t have to reject people or turn our backs on them when becoming believers.  Certainly our new-found salvation is worth sharing to others we know & love!  But don’t be defensive or surprised if the new life you start living pulls you away from the old lifestyles.  That’s what happens when we are washed clean, we no longer roll in the dirt, but sit in our Daddy’s lap and enjoy the evening together!

07/12/18 - 1 Cor 5

July 12, 2018

Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch - as you really are. 1 Cor 5:7

Jesus sacrificed Himself so that we can be forgiven and become what He originally designed us to be --- don't settle for sin, be holy again.

She was devastated by the breakup, and swore she would pursue a relationship God’s way instead of trading her body for affection --- until the next guy came along.  He was committed to ending his credit-spending ways --- until BMW came out with an incredible new model vehicle.  He served his time --- only to repeat the same crime with the same old buddies later.  She started her new diet --- only to resort to chocolate and ice cream after the next disappointment.

Why is it we keep going back to the old sin habits after seeing how they failed us before?  Isn’t that the so-called definition of insanity (expecting different results from the same activities)?

Jesus didn’t take on our sins so that we could keep committing them!  He took them on so that we would be FREE from them.  His goal wasn’t to just sneak us into heaven, but to return us to holiness so that we could enter the presence of God the Father.  Yet we cry out for His forgiveness, accept His sacrifice, and even participate in His death & resurrection, only to turn right back to the sin habits that got us in trouble in the first place.  What a wretched people we are!

How do we get rid of those sin habits permanently?

The answer is found in one of the staples of life: bread.  When bread is made with yeast, the yeast makes it rise & puff up (just like sin).  Often, people treat their lives like a batch of bread dough.  We think that splitting off the dough will change the yeast.  Or we try putting a portion of our dough into an batch without yeast.  Or sometimes, we try to burn out the yeast or delay the yeast from rising. Trying to take a small portion of the bread away from the infected batch doesn’t rid the bread of yeast.  The yeast travels with the dough.  The only way to get rid of the yeast is to start with a different batch of dough.

We can’t hold onto our old lives and expect to get away from the sins of the past.  In order to be free of the past, we must leave it ALL behind!  That not only includes our guilt & shame, but our habits and activities, our negative relationships and associations, our wrong passions & pursuits.  We must let go of ALL of the old dough in order to discover the new life God has for us.

That may not mean leaving your location, but it does mean leaving your life.  You may not be able to quickly change your consequences, but you can urgently change your habits.  It means we stop trying to upgrade the old dough, and start creating a new batch.  Don’t settle for sin, start holy again.

What needs a new batch of dough in your life these days?  Commit to starting new again… TODAY!

07/11/18 - 1Cor 4

July 11, 2018

Therefore I urge you to imitate me... For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. 1 Cor 4:16, 20  

Faith is passed on by the power of imitation, not intimidation.

Parents – we have been deceived!  We have been convinced that either we must command faith out of our kids, or not “push our faith” on our kids.  Depending on our upbringing, we tend to think faith is passed down by intimidation or by abdication.

But that’s not what God instructed us to do.  Deuteronomy 6 tells parents to pass along their faith by IMITATION!  When we imitate people of great faith, it has power to transform our children.  When we walk, talk, live it out, they learn what faith looks like. 

One of the greatest lies of our current generation is to believe that faith is up to our kids.  We’ve been deceived by past pain or overbearing parents to believe that not pushing our religion on our kids is the best way.  So a generation of children are growing up WITHOUT knowing God and without learning about Him.  They lose out in experiencing the power of God, until later in life (hopefully).

The previous generation had the opposite approach, thinking that rules and commands were enough to pass along faith to their children.  Rules are often necessary, but do nothing more than forge a religious mindset instead of helping grow a relationship with God.  So that generation grew up knowing about God, but not knowing God personally.

Paul gave a simple method to the Corinthian church on how to pass along faith – imitate a faithful person!  And THAT’S the BEST WAY!  Look for a faithful person in marriage, and imitate what they do to keep your marriage strong.  Imitate a leader to develop your leadership skills.  Imitate a strong parent to learn more about being a better parent.  And imitate a person of faith to grow your faith.  THEN… as we imitate faithful people, our kids learn to imitate us.

The best way to grow the faith of your kids is to bring them along as you follow God.  They watch your faithfulness and learn from your faith.   Leverage the power of imitation … it’s much more effective than intimidation.

07/10/18 - 1Cor 3

July 10, 2018

Neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 1Cor 3:7   

Appreciate the privilege to play any part in what God is doing to transform people’s lives.

Our first baptisms at the new church we were planting happened BEFORE we actually launched the church!  Talk about exciting … it was a huge joy to see this couple who lived across the street come to know Jesus, get involved in the church band, and give their lives to Christ weeks BEFORE the first preview service of the church.  Thinking back to that whole story is amazing, but the night they were baptized in the hot tub, I wasn’t thinking about that … It’s humiliating to admit, but I was disappointed that another member of our team got to baptize them instead of me.  (Yes – it was a terribly self-centered moment!)

Now just for a minute imagine with me the silliness of that thinking.  I didn’t create them or knit them into being.  I didn’t take care of their daily needs, or direct their lives.  I didn’t bring them to California and position them two doors down the street from a new church planting team.  I CERTAINLY didn’t die on the cross for them, and didn’t write a single word of the Scriptures that called them to salvation.  Honestly, I did VERY LITTLE in their salvation, other than move in, open up our lives to them, and try to encourage their faith.  God has done WAY MORE for them, and for EVERY OTHER PERSON to bring them to faith than I could ever do.  If anyone should have baptized them, it should have been Jesus!  It’s just CRAZY to imagine why Jesus would delegate ANY of the transformation process to us!!!   What an honor and privilege to be a part of it in any way.

That self-centered moment was eye-opening to me, and changed me forever.  I made a covenant with God the next day … Instead of looking to be the ‘baptizer’ of people, I would look for ways to help involve others to do the baptizing.  Instead of trying to be the transformer of people, I would play whatever part the Great Transformer wanted to use me for.   Never again would I be disappointed in who did the baptizing.  Instead, I would look for every way possible to help others baptize people into Christ.

Over the years, God has used me in the transformation process in hundreds of ways.   It’s still the greatest privilege to see a person give their lives to Christ and be baptized.  But more and more, I gain so much more joy out of seeing members of our church baptizing their kids, their spouses, their friends.  There’s nothing like it! 

Whatever part we do, it’s just an amazing blessing that God involves us in the transformation process.  And just to be extra clear about it – EVERY PERSON in a church body has a part they play in each transformation.  Every attender sitting in the service helps show trust in the Words of God.  Every servant who helps with children, ushering, hosting, greeting, playing the music, serving the guests … each one is a transformer of people.  Every family that gives generously to the Kingdom is funding the transformation of lives!  There is no small part in transformation, and we should be honored to help with anything God gives us to do – because after all, one transformed life changes not only that person’s eternity, it changes hundreds & thousands of lives forever.

07/09/18 - 1Cor 2

July 09, 2018

My message & preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power..  1 Cor 2:4 

People don't surrender to Christ based on our knowledge or arguments, they come based on experiencing His power.

Some will think this is weird … but I like salt on my watermelon.

My wife and family tease me every time.  I’ve heard it from others, who think it’s crazy to damage the sweet flavor of juicy fruit with a dash of salt.  Nothing I say or do convinces them differently, and nothing they say or do stops me from liking it (well --- except for the doctor’s advice to reduce the salt intake in my diet).   So in spite of the objections, I dash on some salt and enjoy the contrasting flavors!

Here’s the funny thing:  when I was a kid, one of my family started putting salt on their watermelon, and I thought it was crazy!  Along with the rest of the family, I ridiculed their decision, and argued against it.  That is … until I finally tried it for myself.  WOW!  The combination of sweet & salty was like a taste explosion in my mouth!  It wasn’t the persuasion or the logic that convinced me … it was the power of a good taste in my mouth that changed me forever.

Many Christians try to use arguments and logic to sway people into belief, but that seldom works!  In fact, most apologetics will tell you that their arguments seldom convinced the unbeliever to change.  Apologetics work better to strengthen the faith of the believer, and help the doubter overcome their struggles.  But they don’t convert the unbeliever.

What DOES work for the unbeliever is a taste of the power of God.  When our words are combined with God’s power, it becomes salt & sweetness in our mouths, and can impact our lives forever.  So before sharing your gems of intelligence, watch for an opportunity to serve.  Before trying to convince, look for a willingness to taste.  Then when you share your salt and sweetness of God, they will taste the power of God as well.

I doubt many people reading this will change their minds about salt on watermelon (my family hasn’t changed their minds for decades!)  But maybe it will change our approach in sharing the message of Jesus with others.  Don’t expect people to be convinced by our fancy arguments, look for a way to be salt & light in their lives.  Allow the power of God to be the convincing element … and then they will be receptive to the logic.

And while you’re at it … be receptive to a little salt in your life as well.

07/06/18 - 1Cor 1

July 6, 2018

The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Cor 1:18 

The cross wasn't endured to improve our living, but radically change our lives.

They showed up at church one Sunday, and sat observing the services with a skeptical eye.  Both came for different reasons --- the wife came hoping it would fix her husband, the husband came hoping it would appease his wife.  Both came thinking maybe God could help their marriage.

Sunday after Sunday, they started discovering AHA moments in the services, as both encouragement and challenge came out of each Sunday.  Over time, their relationship DID improve, they made new friendships, and they started enjoying a new season in their lives with God.  It seemed like God was helping them do better in life.  Soon afterwards, they started taking trips, spending more time together, and pursuing a much better life together as a married couple.  Or at least that was the impression everyone had --- because we didn’t see them around as much any more.

But did it really help?

Many people come to God looking for help with their lives, and often find it.  But just because God’s ways help our lives doesn’t mean God is Lord of our lives.  Jesus didn’t die on the cross to fix our lives on earth, He died to TRANSFORM them!  There’s a BIG Difference!

Changing our life improves our time on earth – transforming our life prepares us for heaven.

Changed living looks for forgiveness of the past – transformed living looks for holiness in the present.

Changed lives want to just get into heaven – transformed lives want to see more of Jesus.

The cross wasn’t a “get out of jail free” card so we could live it up on earth.  The cross was a “get out of sin free” card so we could come face to face with a Holy God.  Jesus doesn’t call us to simply change.  He wants to transform our lives!  That’s why it’s foolishness to the perishing, because they really weren’t looking for transformation, just some simple changes.

I don’t know what happened to that couple many years ago, but I can tell you that if we don’t seek transformation, then nothing else that gets better in this life really matters.  Go back to the cross today and ask Jesus to use the power of the cross to Transform your life!  Don’t just change it for the temporary, live for the eternal!

07/05/18 - Romans 16

July 5, 2018

Watch out for people who are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people. Romans 16:18

Christians are not supposed to be satisfying themselves, but satisfying The Lord.

“You’re worth it!” … “You deserve a break today” … “Calgon, take me away!”

Those are some classic promo lines of commercials many years ago, that supported the idea we each need some “me time”.  It’s considered both appropriate and healthy to have some personal time, doing the things we enjoy and satisfying our own appetites.  The only problem is that someone forgot to tell God about it.  Apparently Lordship is not defined that way in His book – He sees Lordship as living for Him, not living for ourselves!

Now … before you read this and start defending your own hobbies, let me be clear!  God GAVE us life and breath and everything that is good.  Hobbies, entertainment, and activities are not in themselves bad things.  In fact, used properly, they touch the heart of everyone when it matches what we were designed for.  However, turning a hobby into an expectation is how idols are formed in our lives, and soon Jesus is no longer Lord of our lives, but a scheduled activity in our lives.  Satisfying our own appetites is often the bait that hooks us into Satan’s deadly traps of sin.  SO BE CAREFUL!

Notice something about all of those things --- when we start participating in those activities regularly, you will hear The Voice of Justification start speaking!   Deep in our spirits, we’ll start questioning ourselves, and The Voice starts trying to convince our minds that we deserve it, or we’re not so bad, or it’s a good thing that makes us happy.  Then, The Voice shows up in our friendships, as we surround ourselves with others who ALSO enjoy those hobbies, giving us leverage to believe indulging ourselves is acceptable.  Finally, The Voice starts talking through convincing people or even partial Scriptures, turning true advice into half-truths, and affecting our beliefs about God, life, and our own purpose.

The Voice has great power – flattering us and deceiving us into thinking our preferred activities deserve priority in the schedule, first dibs on our money, and all of our best energy.  You know The Voice is working well when worship is no longer the priority, giving is not the first action, and serving God becomes an obligation. 

But the bottom line is always the same --- when satisfying our own appetites becomes more important than satisfying God’s appetite, we have switched Lords!  And that’s when you know The Voice has taken over. 

If you claim Jesus as your Savior, then make it your appetite to please Him as your Lord.  Don’t listen to The Voice any longer – listen to His Word!  Find the happiness and joy in satisfying HIM in your activities (yes, even occasionally the righteous activities He created you to enjoy).  But instead of doing them to satisfy yourself, find out how God wants to use them to help satisfy His desires.

07/04/18 - Romans 15

July 4, 2018

Each of us should please our neighbors for their good, to build them up. Romans 15:2

Loving our neighbor means doing what helps them grow, not just doing what they want.

Celebrating our Independence is much easier AFTER the war was over, but it wasn’t so easy for those who decided to sign the Declaration of Independence. 

According to Paul Harvey on one of his broadcasts years ago, of the 56 signers of the Declaration, few were long to survive.  Five were captured and tortured before dying, twelve lost their homes to the enemy, two lost sons in the war, nine died as a result of the war, and much more suffered from its anguish.  Paul Harvey also said: they had learned that liberty is much more important than security, and paid their lives for it.

Loving your neighbor doesn’t mean pleasing them with what they want, but doing what’s best for them.  In the case of those 56 men, it meant being willing to take the heat and lay down their wealth, families, and their own lives for the sake of liberating their neighbor.  Doing what is best for a neighbor may not always make them happy, and certainly may cost us dearly, but it is the stuff that true love pursues. 

The example of those 56 men has been carried out millions of times since.  We have seen the sacrifice of our military, and often our citizens, all in pursuit of loving their neighbor.  We’re not just talking about dying for your country – we’re talking about living for your neighbor.  That includes everything from showing kindness to dying on the battlefield.  Loving our neighbor does what is best for them … not for the rewards, or for their gratitude, or even for our future generations.  We do it because it is right, and it is what we need them to do for us.

There was one other person in that room the day those 56 signed the Declaration, and His Name is not written with the list, but it does appear several times in the document.  His Name is the reason we would ever consider helping our neighbor.  He was the one who showed us what loving our neighbor looks like, both in the acts of kindness He showed and the price He paid for us.  In fact, it was His example they followed when they concluded the Declaration with these words:  And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

You may not be called to lay down your life for your neighbor like Jesus did, but you certainly have been called to love your neighbor like Jesus did.  You’ve already had many sacrifice for you, and One who paid it all for you eternally, so jump in and do your part to love your neighbor too – not necessarily with what they want, but with what is right and best for them.

And take a moment today to celebrate 56 men who did that for you, because without them, we may not be living in our neighborhoods today.