I sure hope he gets caught

The other day I was travelling down the highway about 18 km/hr over the speed limit when someone went by me going much faster than I was travelling.  My reaction was "I sure hope he gets caught by the police."  Sure enough a few minutes later there he was at the side of the road while the police officer wrote out a ticket.  As I went by I suddenly realized that I also was breaking the law but the police had decided to ignore those that drove under 20 km/hr over the speed limit.  Was I any less guilty that the one who got the ticket?  We were both speeding.  Sometimes that is the way we look at sin.  There are little sins and big sins.  I may never commit the big sin but I am guilty of the sin and any sin can keep us out of the relationship with the Father.

Contextualization

First let me define what is meant by contextualization.  According to Dictionary.com it is "to put (a linguistic element, an action, etc.) in a context, especially one that is characteristic or appropriate, as for purposes of study."
I have always disliked answers to questions that are yes and no but I think we will use a similar point here.
Contextualization is necessary.  Cultures do not understand the meanings of words the same as other cultures and to explain things you do have to put it in the context of the culture.

However, having said that it seems taht we cannot make the culture "king" in this.  We need to remember that the message is what is important.  We contextualize so that the message will be understood.  We don't contextualize to be "hip", "with it" but rather to make the message clear.  Someone said that we should teach with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other.  Just remember that the newspaper does not interpret the Bible but the Bible will interpret the events recorded in the news.

God hates the sin but

I have always heard in churches that God hates the sin but loves the sinner.  However, I was reading in the Psalms this morning and I read this:  "For you are not a God who is pleased with wickedness; with you, evil people are not welcome.  The arrogant cannot stand in your presence.  You hate all who do wrong; you destroy those who tell lies.  The bloodthirsty and deceitful you, Lord, detest." Psalm 5:4-6.  In another Psalm we read, "The Lord examines the righteous, but the wicked, those who love violence, he hates with a passion."  Psalm 11:5
So what does this mean and what are the implications for us?  We need to remember that we are not God and we cannot make judgments as if we were God.  We cannot assume that everyone who is not a believer is hated by God as He has also said that He is not willing that any should perish but that all should be saved.  Here is where we hear the Gospel call.  The God who hates sin reaches out to the sinner because of the atoning work of His Son.  The Gospel is for all but we are all under condemnation and without the Gospel we are condemned.  We deserve death and destruction but God took it upon Himself in His Son.

Gospel Slide

I heard once that the first generation believed the Gospel and knew that there were attachments.  The next generation assumed the Gospel and focused on the attachments.  The third generation focused completely on the attachments and had nothing to attach the attachments to. 

Machen once said that we can apply Christianity until there is little left to apply.

We need to remember that the attachments to the Gospel are important but we must not forget first is the Gospel.  The world may need food, clothing, water, education but as my friend Paul repeats in every sermon, "What this world needs more than anything else is the living Word of God." 

We want a king.

In 1 Samuel 8 the people asked Samuel for a king.  They wanted to be like the other nations.  Today we have the same problem in our churches.  We don't desire a king but we do desire to be like other nations.  We want programs that are appealing, buildings that are comfortable and we don't want to offend anyone.  Now good programs are important and we should have buildings that are pleasant to come to, buildings that turn our thoughts and worship to God.  But we must remember that the church is to stand as a counterculture to the world.  When the church tries to be like the world to show the world that they shouldn't be the world the world sees through that hypocrisy. 
We have a King, He is the King of kings.  We don't need to be like the world to win the world we need to be different than the world. 
Enjoy this song by Andrew Peterson.

Sit, Walk, Stand

I was reading Psalm 1 this morning and Psalm 1:1 says, "Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers."  I couldn't help but notice that the order is so different from the book of Ephesians where we are instructed to first find our rest in Christ, then we can walk in this world and finally we can take a stand against the enemy.  The wicked man in Psalm 1 first walks with the ungodly (going along with the crowd) then he takes a stand with them (his world view has been shaped by the wicked) and then he sits with them (finding his rest in those that are opposed to the Gospel).

The Gospel tells us that we are first to find our rest in Christ, then we can do service for Him and finally take a stand with Him against the enemy.  This is the same order as creation.  Man was created on day 6 and his first day was a day of rest.  He then was given work to do in caring for the garden.  But when the opportunity came for him to take a stand against the enemy he failed. 

Deep and Wide

We used to sing a chorus when I was growing up called Deep and Wide.  It was a fun chorus and as we sang it we would do the actions leaving out first the word "deep" and then "wide' then both words.  However, as a child I only knew it as a chorus, a fun chorus and I didn't understand what it meant at all. 

However, I want to go away from the meaning for a moment and talk about the church.  We have heard of churches that are a mile wide and an inch deep.  They reach hundreds of people but change very few.  On the other hand there are churches that are very deep but not very wide.  They dig into the Word but have very little influence in the community or the world.  The churches influence is to be both deep and wide.

Watch what you say.

The Bible has a great deal to say about our words, how we should talk.  Our words can build up or tear down.  Our words can build bridges or fences.  Jesus, Paul, James and others remind us that our words are not just words.  I was thinking about that as I have listened to Christians talk.  Here are a few words or expressions that the use without thinking about the implications of those words.

"Oh my God" or OMG is used over and over again as an expression without thinking that God is a holy and awesome God and we are called to stand in awe of Him not to use His name lightly.

Damn.  I have heard Christians use this without realizing that it is not our right to damn anyone.  We are called to witness to the truth yet I have heard Christians damn others, damn things, damn events as if they were God Himself.

Hell.  If we truly understood hell we would be careful how we used that word.  A christian should never tell another to "go to hell" but they should never use the word "hell" lightly either.  It is a real and terrible place that we should desire that everyone should avoid.

There are other words, some are vulgar words, some are just careless words.  "Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." Colossians 3:6

Christians, watch what you say.

Branches

As Jesus left the upper room I imagine that He and His disciples passed by a vineyard.  He took the opportunity to teach them another incredible lesson. 
After telling them that the Father is the Gardener and that He is the vine He then teaches them about the branch. 

The vine needs branches, without branches it cannot bear fruit.  The nature of the branch is the same as that of the vine. Though the branch is the perfect likeness of the vine the difference is that the vine is strong and the source of strength while the branches are weak and have nothing but what the vine provides.  The branch has no cares; the vine provides everything; it only has to yield itself to the vine to receive.

Sometimes we think that we must try harder, believe more, just be a better Christian.  You know, "Read your Bible, pray everyday and you'll grow".  The branch cannot grow because it wants to grow.  It cannot produce fruit because it wants to produce fruit.  It can only grow and produce if it remains in the vine.  The vine supplies all that the branch needs to grow and produce fruit.

We need to remember that if we are to grow and produce fruit it will not be because we have more faith but because we have faith in the One we are to remain attached to and He will make it happen.

Humbled and more

Today  we took an offering for two ladies who are going to Cambodia this summer.  Once again I am overwhelmed with the generosity of God's people.  When we counted the offering and saw that there was $660 I didn't know whether to cry or shout or maybe both.  It is humbling to know that God's people care and can be so generous.  It also makes we want to bow in humble submission to our great God.
Then we followed that with two wonderful baptisms.  Testimonies of how God can redeem lives, put marriages back together, heal relationships and give people hope.  What an awesome God.

Missed the Point

Jesus was a master teacher and He knew how to use the disciples' questions to teach them truth.  Philip had missed the point about Jesus and he said that if he could see the Father he would be satisfied.  Jesus rebukes him gently telling him that if they had seen Himself (Jesus) they would have seen the Father.  Now Jesus is not saying that He will lead them to the Father but by seeing Him they see the Father.

That's Incredible

Thomas asks Jesus a question about where He is going and Jesus responds with incredible claims.  He says that He is going to the Father and the only way for them to go to the Father would be by Him taking them.
When we were living in the Philippines we found it difficult to get to places.  If we asked directions we would always get an answer but that didn't mean the answer was correct.  The Filipinos always responded positively even if they didn't know.  The only way we found to get anywhere was to have someone lead us to our destination. 
We don't need directions to get to the Father, we need Someone to take us.  That someone is Jesus.  Do you want to go to the Father?  Let Jesus take you.  He is the only One who knows the way.

Questions

A good teacher uses questions but a great teacher uses the students' questions.  I worked with a man who was a master at using the students' questions.  The students always thought that they were drawing him off topic but he used their questions to teach them the principles of the lesson.  He was a master at this.
Jesus was a master teacher.  In John 13 and 14 the disciples ask Jesus many questions and He uses those questions to teach them.  Now it wasn't that they were trying to get the Teacher off topic but they had a real desire to know.  Parents do this with their children.  The average three year old will ask about 300 questions per day.  How a parent answers those questions will determine how that child learns.  That is why Moses instructed the people to talk to their children while they were sitting in the house or going for a walk.  Do we turn off the TV or the radio so that we can talk to our children and answer their questions?

Mark Driscoll on Humility

Listen to what Mark Driscoll has to say about humility:

Piper on Humility

In John 13 Jesus gives His disciples a lesson in humility.  What exactly is humility and why is it so important to a Christian?  Why is humility so admired but so lacking in Christians?  Listen to John Piper talk about humility.
It appears that the video clip that I put up is no longer available.  John Piper says that the sense of entitlement is the opposite of humility.  He reminds us that we desire hell (that is what we are entitled to) but by God's grace we are given heaven.  If you have a sense of entitlement or you insist on your rights regardless of the circumstance then you cannot claim to be humble.
Sorry about the missing video clip.