Not what I expected

On Sunday we started the mini-series on why we believe. But I wanted to take the approach by looking at the objections to Christianity. Well I was surprised. One of the main objections that the class said that people had to Christianity was the problem of suffering. However, what surprised me was that it was the question that seem to give the class members the most difficulty as well.

He just doesn't get it.

Deepak Chopra said in the Washington Post; "The Rev. Rick Warren has a record for trying to smooth the waters, but he also flirts with intolerance - toward gay marriage - and since his rational is that a "loving" God shares the same prejudices, what's to stop others with worse tempers from following the same logic? When your God hates, you have permission to hate."
Sin is nothing but a prejudice to Chopra and hate is when you stand against sin. He just doesn't get it.

You can't see through everything

Some people's approach to truth is as if they can see through everything, explain everything, approach everything as if it is relative. However there comes a time when you have to see something. What if you looked through a window and could see through the garden. What then, what are you looking at? It is like Mathematics. Sometimes you have to accept some facts as truth or you have nothing left.

A bear in the tent

I used to go canoeing and camping with my sons and sometimes we would encounter bears who would not leave us alone. If you had food in or near your tent then the bears would be there.
Suppose one of the boys told me that there was a bear in the tent. It would only take a moment for me to tell if that was the truth. However, if he said that there was a no-see-um in the tent then just because I couldn't see it doesn't mean that it wasn't there.
Likewise just because we cannot see a reason why God might allow something to happen doesn't mean there can't be one. Sometimes we may see the reason and other times we may not but because we cannot see doesn't prove that there wasn't a reason.

How do you describe an elephant?

One of the arguments against the exclusivity of Christianity is that each religion sees part of the spiritual truth but none can see the whole truth. The use the example of the blind men that try to describe an elephant by the part that they touch. One says it is long and flexible like a snake as he holds the trunk. Another says it is like a tree trunk as he feels the leg. A third says it is flat like a wall as he examines the side.

So what is the problem with this example? The problem is that it is told from the point of view of someone who is not blind. How could you know that each blind man only sees part of the elephant unless you claim to see the whole elephant?
So "how could you possibly know that no religion can see the whole truth unless you yourself have the superior, comprehensive knowledge of spiritual reality who just claimed that none of the religions have." Tim Keller in Reason for God.

More than what we believe

The next two Sundays I want to address the issue of why we believe what we believe. I think many of our youths as they leave High School and head off to university often find their faith challenged. Now they know what they believe but they don't know why so when they are challenged they have no argument to put forth themselves.
The first question that we must address is the one about the exclusivity of Christianity. Many will say that all religions are leading to the same thing and often they will go so far as to say that we all worship the same God. The argument is that we who call ourselves Christians have a superior attitude but this should never be the case. We did nothing to earn our salvation. It is by grace alone. That does not make us superior to anyone else but it make Jesus superior.

Computer Crash Therefore Change of Plans

The one who is doing the graphic layout for our study guide had a major computer malfunction on Friday therefore we have decided to delay the lessons on Hebrews for a couple of weeks. Meanwhile I would like to look at some issues involving the objections that people have to Christianity. I will start listing those tomorrow.

Today we saw Jesus high and lifted up.

Today was a great day at church. This morning we sang songs of praise to God and lifted up our Lord through our praises. Brian Doerksen's video of his song "Creation Calls" was truly a time of praise to God. Pastor preached a great sermon which lifted up Jesus. I wrote a few days ago about why I didn't like church well today showed me why I love church.

New Series

Next Sunday evening we will begin a new series for Sundays at Six. This fall and into the winter we will be looking into the book of Hebrews. The book begins by telling us that God spoke in the past by prophets. The prophets were not often well received by the people and many times they were even put to death. Prophets were men (or women) who spoke God's word to man. However, when Jesus Christ came there was no further need of additional revelation as Jesus was God's final word to man.

Peace in the storm

Mike taught us about having peace in the storm this past Sunday morning. The first point was to have a proper view of heaven. The second was the presence of the Holy Spirit and the third was God's church.
Jesus told His disciples in John 16 "But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you." The Holy Spirit comes as our counselor and our comforter but we see Him as making us comfortable from the storm not comfortable in the storm. Often we view the Holy Spirit as a fire and He is but He is a wild fire not a controlled fire. We often want the fire of the Holy Spirit but we want Him contained in our fire place. That is far from who the Holy Spirit is. Do we really want the wild fire of the Holy Spirit?

Why I don't like Church?

Sometimes I have a love hate relationship with the church. Now don't miss understand me: I love the church but I don't want to go to church to sing about me or to hear sermons about what I am to be doing. It is those times I don't like church. I go to church to sing praises to my God and there are times when I want to praise Him for what He did for me but mostly I want to praise Him for who He is. Also, I know what I need to do. I don't go to hear about what I can do for God but I go to see Jesus. If my thoughts are not drawn to Him then why did I go? I need to hear the Gospel and though there will be times I need to be reminded of our marching orders I don't need to hear that too often but we cannot hear about Jesus too often.

The Days of Elijah Conclusion

10. We need to pray for the success of our successors.

Many works that have begun in Spirit and in power have failed after the founder has died. Most of the time this happens because the founder has failed to mentor a successor or has failed to pray for his successor. Moses mentored Joshua, Paul mentored Timothy, Jesus mentored his disciples and Elijah mentored Elisha. When Elijah asked Elisha what was his desire Elisha asked for a double blessing of his spirit. When the Lord told Solomon to ask for anything he wanted he asked for wisdom to lead his people. Because his desire was not for wealth or prosperity the Lord gave him wealth and prosperity as well as wisdom. The Lord gave Elisha the blessing of Elijah and Elisha became the most influential prophet of his time. His ministry was longer than Elijah’s and also his sphere of influence was much broader.

Whatever happened to heaven?

Yesterday Mike started his series of Sunday morning lessons on the Holy Spirit. He began in John 13 - 17 and he taught about peace in the storm. The first point was from John 14:1 - 3. Heaven.
We don't think about heaven much these days. Let me make three points why I think heaven has faded from our thoughts, our teaching, our preaching, our singing, our worship etc.
1. Affluence has brought us in this life what former generations could only anticipate in heaven.
2. A creeping paganism invites us to accept death as the culmination of life on earth, not as a violent transition into an ongoing life.
3. The older, biblical images of heaven have lost their appeal.
Take time to read Randy Alcorn's book called Heaven. He may not know everything about heaven (who on earth does) but he will challenge your thinking about heaven.

How to start a church God's way.

Today if you want to start a church you have to go into the community and do a survey. You have to plan around the "needs" of the community. When God started the church (not a church) He started it in a prayer meeting. The people at that prayer meeting had no idea what would be the result of their prayer but they knew that God was going to do "exceedingly more than they could ask or imagine". And He did. He birthed the church.
It is time for us to return to God's model and save our money by not buying all those books when we have The Book and the Holy Spirit.

The Days of Elijah Part 10

9. There will be times that others will not understand our prayers.

Often I have found that prayer meetings are a burden and I have asked myself why that is so. Prayer should be a time of great pleasure rather than a burden. What happens at so many prayer meetings is that we come with a list of requests and people expect that we will pray for those requests. How do you pray for someone who has cancer or someone who is going through a difficult time? If we pray as Paul did for the church at Ephesus we would spend little time in public praying for the physical needs and pray for their spiritual growth and their relationship with God. When an unbeliever asks for prayer and we pray for their relationship with God they cannot understand why we saw that their primary need was their salvation and not their physical need.

In Micah 6:8 the Lord tells us what is expected of us: “He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” If we are to act justly then we are to seek justice for all people, even those that we do not agree with. Some people will judge us that we are not seeking justice for certain groups of people but that should not be the case. If we seek justice for the unborn some will judge that we are not seeking justice for women. When we pray for the unborn some will judge that we are praying against rights for women. We can expect to be misunderstood in cases like this. We are to pray for mercy for ourselves and for others. How can we pray for mercy upon those who are enemies of the truth? There will be those both in the church and outside the church that will not understand our prayers.

When Elijah prayed for judgment there were those in his day, and there are today, who stand in judgment of Elijah. Elijah was concerned with the glory of God and not what others thought of him.

The Days of Elijah Part 9

8. Our prayers may lead us to confront sin in the church and the world.

It is never easy to confront sin. However, the Christian is called to be a light set upon a candlestick. Light dispels darkness and reveals the dirt and decay around it. If a Christian is a light to the world then the dirt and decay will be revealed. We must remember thought that it is not enough just to reveal the sin but we must speak out against it. Sometimes it is easier to speak out against the injustices and the immorality of the world than it is to speak out against the sin in the church. Jesus spent more time condemning the Pharisees than any other group of people. The Pharisees were the religious leaders of their day but as Scripture tells us judgment must begin at the house of God. The sins in the church that need to be revealed are pride, disunity, bitterness, grumbling, complaining, unbelief and immorality. The sins in the world that we need to speak against are injustices and lack of compassion. We cannot expect the world to be like the church so it is important that the church be the church and show to the world what the kingdom of God really is.

The Days of Elijah Part 8

7. Sometimes we miss God’s voice because we are looking for the wrong things.

After Elijah’s flight from Jezebel the Lord gently restored his spirit. Elijah had been busy for the Lord and it was food and rest that he needed. So often that is what we need to help us in our spiritual life. After that the Lord appeared to him and asked him what he was doing so far away from Jerusalem. Elijah complained to the Lord that he had been very zealous for the Lord and he was the only one left who truly trusted the Lord and now they were trying to kill him as well. Often we have felt the same. We have grown weary in our service for the Lord and it appears that we are the only one who is committed to Him and His work. The Lord knows that it is in times like this that we do not need more strength but we need a fresh glimpse of our God. Like Elijah we feel that God will come to us in signs and wonders but often He wants us to be still in His presence. If we expect that God comes in the same way every time we may miss Him when He doesn’t come in the same manner. We cannot put God in a box. If we only look for Him in signs and wonders we will miss Him when He comes in the still of the moment. If we want the fire of the Holy Spirit in our lives then we must be prepared that it will not necessarily be a controlled fire but rather a wild fire. The Holy Spirit is not a person who can be controlled but rather He wants to control us. Let us not miss Him because we have our own preconceived ideas of how He should act. He is God. Let us let Him be God.

The Days of Elijah Part 7

6. Sometimes God doesn’t answer our prayer for our own good.

It has been said that God always answers our prayers, sometimes He says “yes”, sometimes “wait” and other times “no”. I do not believe that it is always that simple. Isaiah tells us that “Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” Isaiah 59:1 – 2 (NIV). The Psalmist writes, “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.” Psalm 66:18 (NIV). James tells us, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” James 4:3 (NIV)
John Piper says that many of our prayers go unanswered because we forget that we are in a battle and prayer is like using a walkie talkie to get instructions from our Commander in Chief. Instead we look at prayer as an intercom where we are requesting things from the kitchen for our comfort in the den. James tells us that many of our prayers are ineffective because we ask with the wrong motives. If our prayers go unanswered we should not just say that the answer was “no” but rather we should examine ourselves. First, our prayers may have gone unanswered because of sin which we must deal with. Second, our prayers may have gone unanswered because they were not in the will of God. We need to spend time in the Word to know what God’s will is and then pray accordingly. Third, our prayers may have gone unanswered because we have asked with the wrong motives. This is similar to the second reason and it usually arises because we have focused on our own comforts instead of the glory of God. Finally I should add that sometimes our prayers appear to be unanswered but the answer has been delayed as in the case when Daniel prayed and Satan blocked his prayer. Elijah’s prayer to die was unanswered because he had taken his eyes off his God and saw only his circumstances. God was gentle with His servant and showed him that he would not die but that there were greater things in store for him.

Right on Kellen

This past Sunday one of our own came back to preach. Kellen did an excellent job in teaching us about service. His sermon was based upon John 13:1 - 17 and he showed us again that we have been called to serve. One thing he pointed out was that though we are called to serve it is only for the glory of God that we are to do it and He also enables us to do it. We don't serve to just feel good about what we are doing but that Christ is glorified when we serve Him.
Kellen knew his material which was Biblically based. He was relevant and relaxed. He did an excellent job. He served his Saviour well.

The Days of Elijah Part 6

5. Sometimes we need to wait upon our God.

When Elijah prayed in public his prayer was specific and concise. He could pray like this because he had spent time in prayer in private. However, when it came time to pray for rain his prayer was laboured and long. Even though he knew that God had promised rain and that he had told Ahab that the rains were coming he still went to the top of the mountain along and prayed for rain. He prayed seven times before he had evidence that God was about to answer his prayer. Many of us would have prayed once and then left it with God thinking that we had done our part. I wonder what would have happened if Elijah had quit before the seven time and why did the Lord wait until the seventh time before he gave Elijah any evidence that his prayer was about to be answered. In the Bible seven is the number of perfection and is often associated with God. Six is the number of man and if Elijah had received the answer after six times it is possible that he could have assumed that God answered his prayer because of who Elijah was or what he had done. God will not share His glory with anyone else and He wanted Elijah, Ahab and all of Israel to know that He was the one that had sent the rain.

How often we think that the answers to our prayers have come because of us. We have had great faith, were great prayer warriors or God has looked with favour upon us. I do not understand why God chooses to use our prayers to accomplish His purposes on earth but He does and it is our privilege to be able to share in His work on earth.

The Days of Elijah Part 5

4. Our public prayers can have power if we have a private prayer life.

In the show down on Mount Carmel the prophets of Baal prayed for hours for fire to consume their offering. However, when it came time for Elijah to present his offering to the Lord his prayer was short and powerful. Jesus condemned those who prayed long prayers for show. Elijah did not pray so that those around him could see that he was a man of God. He prayed to show that the Lord God was the God of Israel and the only true God. Public prayers are not a time to show off our spirituality, remember Jesus condemned the Pharisees for doing that, but it is a time to acknowledge that God is God and Lord of Heaven and earth. Even though Elijah’s public prayer was short before he prayed he took time to prepare. First he called the people to come near. The invitation from our Saviour is always to come near. If we draw near to Him He will draw near to us. Elijah then took time to repair the altar of the Lord. Again, even though his prayer was short he did not come casually into the Lord’s presence. Everything had to be in order. He took twelve stones reminding the people that God was not just the God of Elijah but the God of the whole nation, all twelve tribes. In doing this Elijah acknowledged the covenant relationship that God had made with Jacob. The altar that he made was made in the name of the Lord God of Israel, not in the name of Elijah. He knew that God should receive the honour and glory for what was about to happen. After Elijah had flooded the altar and the sacrifice with water he then prayed. In his prayer he addressed God as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel. In doing this He acknowledged the covenant relationship that God had with His people. His prayer had two purposes. The first was to show to the nation of Israel that Yahweh was the only true God and second, to turn the hearts of the people back to Him.

The Days of Elijah Part 4

3. The answer to our prayers may bring hardship upon others.

When someone asks us to pray for them they usually expect that the answer to the prayer will make a difficult situation better and in doing so relief their suffering. However, sometimes when we pray for others God has a different agenda than ours. He does not look only at the immediate situation but He sees the situation how it fits into His plan for our lives. Sometimes the person that we pray for has to go through the refining fire to purify them. When Elijah prayed for the widow of Zarephath with whom he was staying her life became more difficult. When her son died she immediately blamed Elijah and in doing so she also blamed his God. She had forgotten that if Elijah had not come to her home both her son and herself would have died. She had forgotten that her very life was the result of Elijah coming into her life. How often it is the same with us. We see the immediate hardship and forget the blessings that God bestowed upon us in the past. Our concern is for our immediate comfort while God’s concern is for a holy life. When the son was returned alive to his mother she knew that Elijah was truly a man of God and that he spoke the truth. She knew that there was no God but the God is Israel.

The Days of Elijah Part 3

2. The answer to our prayers may bring hardship upon us.

When Elijah prayed that it would not rain for three and one half years the result of that prayer was drought and famine. That drought did not just affect the king and his court but it affected the whole region. Elijah was not immune to the drought. As he sat by the stream he saw the stream become smaller and smaller. As he watched the water dry up he knew that eventually he would lose his source of livelihood. Some people today think that when they pray that God will bring them comfort and ease. The comfort may come but it will not necessarily be through ease, it may be through hardship. We may pray for a closer walk with the Lord and find that we have cancer. Does that mean that God didn’t hear our prayer? God may use the cancer to show that we need to depend upon Him. Many people have testified that they thank God for the trials that He allowed to come into their lives. They would not pray for those trials but they knew that those trials are what brought them closer to their God.

The Days of Elijah Part 2

1. Our prayers need to be based in Scripture.

Many people wonder if they are praying in the will of God. They read that Jesus told them to pray in His name (John 14:13; 14:14; 15:16; 16:23-24; 16:26) so they pray for whatever they desire and add the phrase “In Jesus name” to their prayer and feel that they have prayed in the will of God. When Jesus said that we are ask in His name He was telling us that we have to pray in union with Him. So the question is, “How do we know if our prayers are in union with Him?” The basis of knowing the will of God is to spend time in His word. He has revealed Himself in His word and His word can become the basis of our prayers. Elijah knew the word of the Lord so He could pray in confidence that it would not rain on the earth. Our prayers will lack power and content if we are not in the Word.

The Days of Elijah Part 1

“Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.” James 5:17-18 (NIV)

"Where now is the LORD, the God of Elijah?" 2 Kings 2:14 (NIV)

We need to learn to pray like Elijah. James tells us that he was a man just like us and if that is true then we need to pray like him. What was it that made Elijah significant? First, he was award of the reality of God. Second, he was aware of God’s presence in his life. Third, he was not afraid to stand alone with God. Fourth, he was aware that God reveals Himself through Scripture. And finally, he was aware that God is a God of judgment against sin but He is a God of mercy and grace. As James wrote, “Mercy triumphs over judgment!” James 2:13 (NIV)

What are the lessons that we can learn from the prayer life of Elijah?

Spiritual Leadership

I have just finished reading Henry Blackaby's book, Spiritual Leadership. The main point that I appreciated about this book was that he said that the church does not need vision but revelation. Vision is often man centered, man generated but revelation comes from God. It is good to dream big dreams but remember that God is able to do exceedingly more than we could ask or imagine. Let us pray that God will give us His revelation. We may be surprised that our dreams are too small.

Who is ripping off whom?

Our Premier is upset at the Ontario Lottery Commission. They have been found to be using money for their own pleasure and wants. The Premier says that they are ripping off the taxpayers. I wonder if he is upset because they are honing in on the government's territory. After all the government set up the lottery commission and lotteries rip people off all the time. It seems strange to me that they can be so self-righteous about it but do not realise that they are guilty themselves. The government assumes that all taxpayers 'play the lottery' but there are many of us who do not and we believe that it is wrong. In light of the Ten Commandments how can a Christian consider that there is anything right in lotteries?
Now don't misunderstand me. Those who are abusing their position by scamming monies from the OLG should be punished as should all thieves.