Category: Uncategorized (Page 15 of 17)

Patterns, Flesh, and You

If you are Christian, you have probably heard the term “the flesh” used. Most describe it as your physical body and its desires. Some describe it as your lustful, sinning nature.  The so-called, “sin suit.” The flesh is “Satan in your skin” so they say.

Are you scared yet? Most would say you should be!

However, a further glance at scripture helps us to see that the flesh is really a description of a pattern of relying on and turning to our own abilities and understanding in our lives.

When Christ remade us into a new creation, the option and ability to rely on and turn to ourselves and our efforts remains. We can still turn to a life of striving  and performing our way to goodness, Godliness, value, and success instead of turning to Jesus and His work on the cross to save us, remake us, and give us life.

Every time we live holding onto guilt and shame, we are turning to the flesh. Every time we strive to please God through our performance in  life, we turn to the flesh. Every time we believe we are condemned to a life of repeated sin, we turn to the flesh. Every time we turn to ourselves, our understanding, and our performance instead of Jesus and His performance, we are turning to the flesh. Every time we allow people, their opinions and behaviors to define and negatively influence ours, we turn to the flesh. Every time we see ourselves any less than Jesus and His righteousness, we turn to the flesh. Why, because we are focusing on ourselves and our performance, not on Jesus and His.

Behind every sin, insecurity, anxiety, worry, destructive behavior  or mindset etc. is a pattern of the flesh. This is the essence of the flesh, a pattern of self-effort and reliance that leads to self-destruction.  All self-effort/reliance leads to self-destruction.

The flesh, therefore, is much more about destructive patterns in your life than it is about your personhood. In fact, your old, sinful nature was put to death with Jesus on the cross. There ends that issue. And one could even say, when Paul contrasts following the Spirit over the flesh in scripture, when  he refers to the “Spirit” he is actually referring to your Spirit, that is the Spirit that is Jesus in and as you.

Therefore, your Spirit has much more to do with your personhood than any idea of flesh has to do with your personhood.

Now here’s the kicker, following the impulses of the flesh can lead to doing things that are very well-intentioned and may even appear noble and deeply spiritual. The only problem being, we turned back to a pattern of self-effort, reliance, striving, rule-keeping, and performance in the process. That’s the flesh. It’s the opposite of faith.

One could say that many (if not all) of our spiritual disciplines as Christians can be and are often done “in the flesh.”  For example, thinking our hours of praying long-winded, emotional prayers can wrench a blessing out of God who apparently needs to be compelled to move a single muscle on your behalf.  This is the flesh, posing as faithfulness. Wow, I wonder how much of our modern Christian lives is really more about the flesh than it is about faith?

Paul was right when he alerted us to the lures of the flesh, unfortunately, we have confused the flesh with something about our nature, instead of a turning to and reliance on ourselves, not Jesus and His mercy, grace, and favor, despite our nature.  The flesh is not something that is an evil part of you that you cannot avoid, it is a pattern(s) left over from your old self and the world that you can turn away from as you focus on Jesus and who you are in Him. In fact, do a study ad take a look at what are described as some of the lusts of the flesh in scripture.  Behind every one of them is a destructive pattern of wrong believing and/or a reliance upon self. The same is true in your life and mine. Behind every wrong or negative behavior is a destructive pattern of wrong believing.

Grace is the great flesh, pattern breaker. The more you try and strive in life, the more you engage the flesh and succumb to its patterns. The more you rest, trust, and believe in the loveliness of Jesus and His perfect love of you, the more you walk in the Spirit. That is, you walk in the real you, completely whole, holy, righteous, forgiven, and divine in Him.

Greater is He that is in you. Your Spirit is far greater than the flesh.

Right believing leads to pattern breaking!

 

10 Relationship and Leadership Standards to Live By

Relationships and leadership go hand in hand. And to be sure, navigating both can be complicated and difficult at times. We all want healthy relationships where we can love and be loved in return. We also want our workplace relationships and endeavors with people to filled with harmony, fulfillment, and happiness.  Yet, some of the time, we find our relationship and leadership experiences falling short.  What we hope for is not exactly what is actually happening.  Conflicts, challenges, and change (to name a few) find their way in and make relationships and leadership more messy than we would prefer.

As a pastor, I am certainly not perfect. On any given day, I probably make more mistakes than I do in getting things right. Yet, these 10 standards have definitely helped in improving my leadership and relationships, if for no further outcome then enabling me to have an inner sense of assurance and calm in the midst of times when leadership and relationships are not so easy. But well beyond that, I have found these standards to go a long way at fostering healthy relationships and leadership for all involved.

The good news is, these standards reflect the Christ that lives in you and the new person you already are in Him. You are already fully capable of living these out as God has graced you with His mind, a new heart, and His power. These standards are not about things to strive for, but rather aspects of who you are already. Believe that these standards are already within you, because they are!  As you believe it, you will live it in your relationships and leadership.

Relationship/Leadership Standards to Live By: #1- never handle conflict through email, texting, or fb.

If you can’t deal with it face to face, don’t deal with it until you can. No, we shouldn’t avoid dealing with conflict, but handling it prematurely through ways that avoid or delay face to face dialogue can be highly problematic. What about a phone call or Skype? That is a good option “b” when getting your bumpers in the same parking lot is impossible or highly difficult.  60-70% of communication is non-verbal, and people often take a much different posture towards issues when they are face to face then when they can hide behind the distance and disconnect email, texting, and social media provide. If you want people to respect you and your leadership you are going to want to handle conflict personally and relationally through means that bring you face to face as much as possible. Every one brings two pails to issues of conflict, one is full of gasoline, the other full of water. Whether or not gasoline or water is poured on the issue will largely depend on how personally the issue is handled.

Relationship/Leadership Standards to Live By: #2- when receiving criticism, don’t take it to heart without first carefully considering the source.

Criticism can be very valuable, but also destructive. One of the determining factors is the source of the criticism. The main question I have when discerning the source of criticism is, “Does this person have my best interests at heart?” If I conclude they don’t, my willingness to open the door to taking their criticism to heart diminishes. Helpful criticism usually comes from people who genuinely care about you. Does that mean we shouldn’t consider all criticism as having potential value? Of course not. Good criticism can come from bad people. But be very careful how you receive it and what you do with it. For sure, though all criticism should be considered, not all criticism should be taken to heart. Furthermore, not all criticism deserves your response or your action.

Relationship/Leadership Standards to Live By: #3- assume the best about people and focus on their goodness, but entrust them in steps, not leaps.

There is goodness in everyone. People are a gift from God. Focusing on what is good about people and their strengths is a powerful way to live. Unfortunately, we often fill in the blanks about people and their actions with the most negative conclusions. We think this protects us, but it often serves in depressing us and missing out on the value of people. Assume the best about people.

However, this does not mean entrusting people in leaps and bounds. It does not mean turning off common sense and fair discernment. You wouldn’t give your car keys to a 10 year old. Neither should we entrust people beyond what they are ready and capable of, even if they believe otherwise. This is a disservice to them and you. Entrusting in steps is key.  Those who are faithful with a little will be faithful with much. It’s important to see what people do with a little before you give them much. This will benefit them and you in the long run.

Relationship/Leadership Standards to Live By: #4- don’t waste your time trying to drag people into or keep them caring about you and/or your vision. If they can walk away, let them walk away.

Oh, how we want to be liked and loved. Unfortunately, not everyone will like and love us.  It’s our insecurities that attract us to people who aren’t good for us or who aren’t interested in us.  We somehow think we need to get them to be interested in our lives to prove that we are lovable and worthy.

Yet, trying to drag people into our lives and keep them caring about us and the things we care about is a royal waste of time. People will walk into and out of our lives for various reasons. You will likely only have a few over the course of a life time that will truly be “with you” for the long haul. If people can walk away from you, they were never really “with you.” They may have been “with” aspects of you, but not you as a whole. If you find yourself having to drag people along to be interested and involved in your life, stop wasting your time. Do your best to be a person of reconciliation and lasting relationships, but if they can walk away, let them walk away. Spend your time nurturing relationships of mutual love and respect.

Relationship/Leadership Standards to Live By: #5- connect the tubes of your identity, emotions, value, and merit to Jesus. Connect the tubes of your giving and blessing to people.

One of the keys to healthy relationships is to not turn to them for your everything, especially for you value, merit, and identity. Only Jesus can supply your deepest needs and fill your emotional tank. We run into trouble when we turn to people for what we should be turning to from God.

With God it is best to receive, with people it is best to give. Let God be your supply, and people, the recipients of your blessings.

Relationship/Leadership Standards to Live By: #6- Be generous with forgiveness. Forgiveness doesn’t mean what they did is now somehow o.k, or that the relationship is automatically back to normal. Forgiveness is emotionally releasing the person of the debt that they owe you, for your sake and potentially theirs.

Forgiveness makes sure we don’t write people off, but it doesn’t mean we automatically write them back in. Reconciliation and restoration are totally different from forgiveness. Forgiveness is what makes reconciliation and restoration a possibility not a guarantee. It takes two people to reconcile, it takes only one person to forgive.

Being a forgiving person means not hold grudges or harboring bitterness, but always keeping the door open (however slight) to the possibility of reconciliation.

Relationship/Leadership Standards to Live By: #7- Love negative people from a distance. Don’t stop loving, but don’t let their negativity stain your outlook or the outlook of others.

Some people and relationships can become highly toxic. People who are negative to a fault certainly fit into that category. Unfortunately, negativity is highly contagious, and can even rub off on ourselves if we are not careful. Many negative people love attention, and have for whatever reason, decided that utilizing negativity is their best (and maybe only) way to get attention or control.

Not everybody who has an opposing view or points out problems is negative. We need people who are willing to look for challenges and speak the hard truth we don’t want to hear. But negative people thrive on problems, drama, gossip, bad news, and things that could go potentially wrong.

Sometimes, as hard as we try, we cannot inspire them away from their negativity. The best we can do is to love them from a distance as we pray for God to do what only God can do in their lives. Allowing them too close to you and those around you in terms of having a voice, gaining an audience, or spraying their negativity around can be highly problematic. At times, loving them from a distance can even mean taking measures that remove that person from a project, group, or team as the best context to help a clinically negative person is outside of the context their negativity feeds upon. However, usually politely communicating that you have heard their views, but ignoring them in your mind and in your decisions will take the wind out of their sails for you and those around you.

Relationship/Leadership Standards to Live By: #8- with people, exchange the ideal for the real. Nobody is perfect. Surround yourself then with people who truly care about being in relationship with you. Nearly any imperfection can be worked through in that context. Mutual love is the glue to relationships, not perfection.

Love covers a multitude of things in relationships. Love everyone unconditionally, and draw people close to you with whom mutual love and respect occurs, not perfection. Some of my closest relationships are with people with whom I have differing views and beliefs. Furthermore, I and they have made numerous miscues in the relationship. The glue that holds it all together is mutual love and respect. Mutual love and respect in a relationship brings the ability to agree to disagree, say “sorry” when sorry is what is needed to be said, work through misunderstandings, and just about anything else.

Relationship/Leadership Standards to Live By: #9- When confronting a conflict or issue with a person, do it face to face and begin with questions. Questions like, “Help me understand, I heard…” or “Would you be open to some feedback about…” or “Maybe you could help me clarify something, what was your thinking behind…” etc. etc. Clarify first with questions that don’t accuse.

The worst blunders we make when confronting issues come from either confronting them too soon without all the facts, or never confronting them at all, no matter the facts. The solution is to confront with the mindset of an investigator, not a judge. Then, when all the facts are in, people have had their voices heard, and you have had time to seek wise counsel, then begin to make decisions about how to move forward. Rarely, do we need to press the accelerator when confronting conflict, most of the time, what is needed is to apply the brakes. Slow down, be thorough, objective, and gracious.  And remember, face to face!

Relationship/Leadership Standards to Live By: #10- Don’t make a big deal about figuring out and living some great plan for your life. You becoming the person you already are in Christ is God’s big plan for you. In Him, you are already big and anything you do and pursue is big. The significance and magnitude of you and your life has already been taken care, God wants you to simply enjoy it. Life is God’s great plan for you.

The purpose of your life is to awaken (through faith) to the Savior (Jesus) who has already saved you, become the person you already are in Him, and live the life He has already given you… filled with power, authority, significance, and divine celebrity.

In Christ, anything you do, pursue, create, or endeavor is filled with perfect purpose and divine power and significance.

Enjoy your life, and live it. That’s the plan.

 

Top 5 Passages Religious “Anti-Grace” People Love (Part 6)

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5- 2 Corinthians 5:10 

“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”

At first glance, this passage might appear to be stating that like it is with Santa so to it is with God, you better “watch out” and “think twice,” because you may be in danger of some severe discipline and consequences if you don’t behave nice. Fortunately, that is not the true meaning of this passage.

Thankfully, for the Christian, what this passage is referring to is not our salvation, but our rewards in heaven. Second, what’s at stake in this passage are “rewards,” not punishment. Where some Christians may want to use this passage to influence you into living a “do good” life out of fear and a desire to get the best out of heaven that is offered, that is not the message of this passage.

In fact, we already know that without faith, nothing we do can please the Lord. Any of our striving efforts that try to appease God, justify ourselves, or earn His favor are not going to be rewarded. The only behavors that are “good” and that please the Lord are actiongs that come from a foundation of rest as you trust in His goodness for your Godliness. It is this trust that enables us to fully and accurately understand who we are and what we have in Him, and thus allows God to do “good” through us. For the Christian, the true essence of the judgement seat of Christ is that God rewards us for the work He actually does in and through us . He does the work, through our faith, and He credits it to our rewards-account in heaven. Now that is Grace!

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Top 5 Passages Religious “Anti-Grace” People Love (Part 5)

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4- James 2:14-26

What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?  If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food,  and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?  Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. But someone may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.”You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected; and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God. You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.  (Jas. 2:14-26)

So here we come to the passage many Christians use to justify the notion that you need to show your Christian faith to be genuine by living a life of doing more and becoming more for Jesus. And even then, you can’t be quite sure when you have done enough. Some have wrongly said that Paul preached Grace and James (the writer in this passage) preached “works,” and so our job as Christians is to balance the two in our lives. The legalist and religious love to use this passage to pressure and frighten people into all kinds of Christian activities and pursuits.

Yet, here again, a passage like this can appear to say a lot of things and be used to further a lot of agendas if a proper understanding of the context is not gained. Often times, we read into scripture our own experiences instead of allowing scripture to define them.

There are very important contextual and linguistic issues that greatly affect a proper understanding of this passage, they are the following…

a) James is writing to an exclusively Jewish audience

b) James makes a clear description of what “dead” faith looks like, and it’s not about a Christian’s performance.

c) James never says that a person is the one who produces or is responsible for producing “works.”

See, James is not talking about a genuine Christian’s performance, but rather, what he or she possesses and where it comes from.

Let’s break it down. First, what separated the Jews from the surrounding nations was their monotheistic belief in one God.  So there were many  Jews who thought that they were saved or justified simply because they grew up around a belief system rooted in the belief in the God of Abraham. They believed in one God in terms of a religious, intellectual conclusion. Thus, the Jews that James is addressing were unbelieving believers. They had a mental grasp of Yahweh and perhaps even Jesus, but not a trust in God for their salvation and lives. This is not faith, nor true belief. Thus, James points out this is not “saving” faith, nor is it any better than what the demons conclude.

Now here’s the kicker. Since it is not genuine faith, God is not working in and through their lives. The Holy Spirit is not in them, so fruits are not being produced by the Holy Spirit. They didn’t possess true faith in Christ, and thus, they won’t possess any works of God in and through them that give external evidence to genuine faith. Faith is what releases God to work in and through our lives. No faith, no works.

See, the “works” James is referring to are never described as works that a person is producing, rather they are works that the person possesses as God wills and acts according to His good pleasure (Phil. 2:13), because of their faith. In fact, James reasserts that it was in fact Abraham’s “faith” that was the foundation from which righteousness and works emerged in his life.

People who hold to the Gospel of God’s Grace do not believe that “works” will not be present in a genuine Christian’s life. Rather, they assert that these “works” come from a foundation of Grace through faith. They are the sole result of God working in and through us because of faith, not us performing, striving, and trying from a foundation of effort. Big, huge difference.

This passage in  the book of James does not topple the foundation of Grace through faith, it affirms it. James is simply saying, if you have true faith, you will see works. Not because you produce them through your religious striving, trying, and efforts, but because your faith releases God to work in and through you. You will “possess” works, not perform them by your striving, trying, and effort. That’s why for James, faith and works are inseparable, if you possess one, you will possess the other, not by your efforts, but by Christ working in and through you.

It doesn’t matter which appears to the eye first, works or faith, they both point to the same thing; not the person, but Jesus working in and through the person through their faith. The foundation is always faith, no matter which appears on the screen first.

In fact, when we try to produce works ourselves for any purpose, especially justifying ourselves and our merit, we are becoming the very evil, religiously-spirited person Jesus admonished. Because of the Gospel, we don’t have to become better or do better, we get to be better and do better. All because of Jesus. This is the foundation shift the New Covenant brings. Everything now is by Grace through faith, where in the Old Covenant everything was by condition through personal obedience (performance). There can be no mixture or balance of the two (Old and New Covenants), and certainly this is not the pursuit for which James is calling.

What James is stating by his description of “works” in this passage is not a condition of salvation or an appeal to become a performance driven Christian, never!  Rather, it is a beautiful description of “works” being a manifestation of salvation, and those works being not from our efforts, but through God willing and acting in our lives.

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Top 5 Passages Religious “Anti-Grace” People Love (Part 4)

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3- Philippians 2:12

“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling…” 

See, I told you this Grace stuff was too good to be true, it says it right here. Jesus wants you fearing, trembling, and working your tail off as a Christian doing the right things and not doing the wrong things. See, God does His part, but we need to do our part.

Well, that may be what some might want you to believe about the Christian life and the meaning of this passage, but that is not the Gospel truth, nor the true meaning of this passage. As you will see, once again, this is not a passage that is appealing to your performance, but to your faith.

The issues really hinges on what it means to “work” in the Christian life. For many people, they assume it means to get busy, try hard, roll up your sleeves, and accomplish some thing for Jesus. Become the best you, you can be and do the most good you can do.  The concept of “work” in our Christian culture is action and performance driven. Yet, is this the concept of “work” used here and many other places in scripture? Is this the kind of Christian life Paul was admonishing?  I think not.

Jesus said it best Himself… “Jesus answered, ‘The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.'” (John 6:29)

Truly doing the work of God is to “believe.” It is a matter of faith. This is the essence behind the use of the word “work” in this passage and many others. The “work” being referred to hear is not a matter of striving and trying to do more good things and show that your faith is genuine through “Christian” works. This is not about performing more or better as a Christian. Rather it’s about exercising your faith, focusing your beliefs and trust on Jesus.

This understanding of the concept of “work” is in harmony with the context of Philippians as Paul said the following only a verse later…

“For it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” (Phil. 2:13)

Paul understood, faith is what releases God to work in and through you. Our job is to believe, His job is to will and act in our lives.

One of the ways we tune our faith into Jesus (work) is by renewing our mind as we change our beliefs and focus. As we focus on His mercy, Grace, favor and provision, God’s work flows in and through us effortlessly.

To work out your own salvation is not to “work on” your salvation. In Christ, you all ready have everything you need for life and living. No, rather “working out your salvation” is growing into who you are and what you already have in Him as you focus your beliefs and trust onto Him and His Gospel of Grace. It’s not about doing anything, but believing everything you are and have in Him. It is this faith that releases God to work in and through you. His movement becomes yours, His promptings become your actions, all from a foundation of Grace, not striving and trying.

The work of God is to believe in Jesus, proclaim the Gospel, and be His Grace to the world. It is simply to believe in Jesus and be who you already are in Him. It’s not a life of effort, striving, and trying. It’s a life of resting and believing, which releases the movement of God in and through you. To rest is to believe. Resting is not inaction, rather, it’s the only foundation from which God acts and the only foundation from which any action you take can please God.

So what’s with the whole “fear and trembling” thing? Is about living with one eye open as you wonder if you have done enough and become enough for God? Is it a sense of, “you better make sure you got enough Jesus-notches on your belt, or else God might lower the boom?” Not it all, nothing could be further from the truth.

Over the last couple years, Amy and I have adopted two children from China, in addition to our two other biological children. In order to do so, we had to fly extensively in airplanes, ironically, one of the things we feared doing the most.  Especially during our first adoption, there were many moments where when we thought about all the flying, we didn’t want to do it. No way, no how! Why? Amy and I were afraid. In fact, there were two or three flights that had us both in “fear and trembling.”

Paul felt the same way about going to Corinth:

“And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling.” (1 Cor 2:1-3)

Amy and I didn’t want to fly, Paul didn’t want to go Corinth. Why? Fears.

Taking steps of faith can bring feelings of fear and trembling. This is the “obedience of faith,” and the “labor to enter into that rest” spoken of in the New Testament. The work of God is to believe even when you are shaking in your boots while getting on a plane for 15 hours flying around the world. It’s not about your performance, it’s about your faith. It’s about renewing your mind as you focus on the loveliness of Jesus and all that you are and have in Him. Faith often leads us into moments where we just might have a bit of “fear and trembling” as we live to put our faith and trust solely in Him as He moves in and through our lives.

keep reading… Part 5

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Top 5 Passages Religious “Anti-Grace” People Love (Part 3)

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2- Hebrews 10:26-31

If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left. (Heb 10:26)

So, here we are again, in the book of Hebrews, and so often what people want to make an issue of sin, the book of Hebrews (and Bible) makes as an issue of belief. The religious will always opt to make the issue their performance (and yours) instead of trusting in Christ’s performance.

That’s why religious people love to use this passage to suggest that if you are saved (a Christian), but you keep on knowingly sinning, you might as well stick a fork in you, because you are done. Fried, cooked, and battered.

Well, let’s do a little self examination? How many of you who are Christians have ever deliberately sinned since you were saved? Hmmm… that would be all of us. And even if it were just once, what is the cut off number? Is it 1 deliberate sin, 3 deliberate sins, 5 or more, 10 or more and your out?

Other religious people love to use this passage to present a “balanced” view of God. He may be a God of Grace, but He is also a God of judgement. Meaning, He may love and extend mercy to you, but if you screw up too much or have a bad month in the performance department, you are going to see the judgement side of God. One moment you can be His child, the next He may orphan you, it all depends on how you behave. They make God into a conflicted entity, He loves you unconditionally, with conditions. In one hand He waves for you to come to Him, while with His other hand, He slaps you in the face.

Furthermore, many false interpretations like the ones I describe above are mixed with nuggets of truth. Yes, God does judge, but the interpretation is wrong. God does judge you, but not based on your performance, but based on His son’s performance on the cross, received through faith. See, it’s not an issues of your sin or actions, it’s an issue of your belief.

Besides, how could Hebrews 10:26-31 be an eternal warning against sinning for the Christian, when just a chapter early, the same writer says in Hebrews 9:26 that Christ appeared once for all “to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself?” So, is Jesus’ work on the cross a finished work or isn’t it? The good news is that Jesus is the once and final solution for sin. Because of Jesus, God chooses to remember our sins no more. There is no mixture, there is no balance. God is love and His Gospel is Grace. Did God go soft on sin, your sin? No way. His son Jesus took it all upon Himself. Nothing soft about the cross!

So what is Hebrews 10:26 all about?

Well, once again, as with Hebrews 6:4-6, this passage is addressing those who are unbelievers who refuse to believe in the Gospel of Grace. They have heard the truth, the Gospel of Grace, but they deliberately sin by their unbelief and rejection of Jesus. There is no other sacrifice for sin other than Jesus, He is the only solution. There is no other provision, no other Name under heaven.

For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith. (Heb 4:2)

Yet, I believe there is also a warning here in Hebrews 10:26-31 to believers who mix Law and Gospel.

But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved. (Heb 10:39)

Some people hear the Gospel of God’s grace and shrink back. They cannot completely believe it. “It’s too good to be true,” “I’d better cover my backside by doing some good works.” “God has done His part, but I had better do my part.”

That’s where things get sketchy and dangerous.

“You cannot cover yourself. This is idol-worship. You are elevating yourself to co-savior with Christ. You are insulting the Spirit of grace by trying to pay for what God has already given you. This is why sermons that put the emphasis on you and your performance are dangerous. Don’t buy into any message that purports to give you a list of keys or steps that will help you achieve/accomplish/appropriate what you already have. It is impossible for the blood of bulls and the sweat of men to take away sins and it is faithless to strive for what you already have (every good thing!).”  – Paul Ellis

In these passages (Hebrews 6:4-6, 10:26-31), sin is not the variable, faith is.

keep reading… Part 4

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Top 5 Passages Religious “Anti-Grace” People Love (Part 2)

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1- Hebrews 6:4-6 

It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. (Heb 6:4-6)

Like all the passages we will be dealing with, if you wear the lenses of performance-driven, rules-keeping, Law-mixing Christianity, this could be a frightening scripture. It sounds like your salvation hinges on your behavior. Do good, be good, don’t drink, don’t chew, and don’t go with girls that do, but back-slide and your out-of-here, game over. Sizzling in the eternal barbecue pit way down under.

The question, is as always, a matter of context. Don’t get the context right, and you can make a “con” out of the text. So, what is the context, is this speaking to believers or unbelievers?

If it’s speaking to believers, there is a huge interpretive problem. The Bible is so clear, in the work of your salvation, the moment you believed you received a completely new nature. You became a new creation, reborn from above. As a Bible writer John puts it “born of God.”  You are the righteousness of Christ, a child of the living God. Your identity is not based on your performance. Just because we act contrary to our nature or identity, does not me our identity or nature has changed, nor God’s promises to us and His affections for us.

Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. (Heb 12:14)

The phrase “be holy” is not an instruction for improving your performance, rather,  it’s an admonition to be who you truly are. Be holy, because you are, in truth, holy.

“We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus once for all” (Heb 10:10).

So, to unborn your rebirth, to undo what Jesus did to you, to unholy your holiness is impossible. Once you’re born, you’re born, it’s a no brainer! To assert that you can lose your salvation, that you can undo what God has done, is like saying that God makes mistakes and His finished work is flawed and unfinished. Thankfully, He doesn’t make mistakes, and His finishing work on the cross isn’t flawed.

So, who is this passage addressing?  You got it, unbelievers. It is addressing those who have heard the Gospel of God’s Grace, tasted His goodness and mercy, seen the light of His love, experienced His presence, and even have perhaps changed their minds (repented) about who Jesus is, but yet at the end of the day, they have refused to believe and trust in His Gospel of Grace. They like Judas, have hardened their heart and refused to receive His strength for their weaknesses. They have fallen away in disbelief and pride, rejecting the Grace that is so sufficient for their every need. They have landed on preferring a do it yourself, religious approach to God, instead of His Grace.

As it says in Galatians 5:4…  For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace.

Hardening your heart to the Gospel of Grace, as this debated passage describes (Hebrews 6:4-6) is indeed, a dangerous thing.

keep reading… Part 3

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Top 5 Passages Religious “Anti-Grace” People Love

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Mixing is for Gin not the Gospel

Most Christians and Christian leaders love the concept of God’s Grace, but up to a point. As long as it’s mixed with what they would say is a “balancing” bit of Law (religious rules you obey) they are more than willing to cozy up to “Grace.” So, what has happened is that when it comes to salvation and the Christian life, “Grace” is seen as a kind of partner or side-kick within the Gospel. It’s seen as the softer aspect of God that tips our hat to His loving side. Conversely, the Law is seen as what makes sure people clean up their acts, do religious things, hunger for more “to do steps and strategies” and take sin seriously.  That’s why when you present God’s Grace in its purity (without the Law), typically, all bets are off as some Christian leaders become afraid of what they would call, “too much Grace.”

Yet, the Gospel is either all Grace or it’s all Law, there can be no mixture (balance) of a little bit of Grace and a little bit of Law. In fact, the Bible makes dramatic separations and distinctions between the two. A couple, among many examples…

Romans 6:14 …because you are not under the law, but under grace.

John 1:17  For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Galatians 5:4  For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace.

The pure Gospel of God’s Grace (a term Paul used in Acts 20:24) has always brought a stirring of criticism among the religiously spirited. I should know, I was one of them. Thankfully, God captured my heart and changed my mind about who He is, who I am, and the Gospel of His Grace.

I suspect there are many Christians who don’t even realize how much of what they have been taught and believe is contrary to the Gospel. I certainly didn’t. Like many unknowing Christians and spiritual leaders, my heart was in the right place, but my beliefs were not. As a pastor of 18 years, I did not realize (until a couple years ago) how much of my teaching, preaching and counsel actually placed people in bondage instead of the freedom I (and God) desired for them. When it came to the Gospel, I was so close, yet so far away.

So, what is the pure Gospel of Grace? In simple terms it is this…

The Gospel

We are all born sinners in a broken world. Everything about our lives has en expiration date on a pathway to death. In the Garden of Eden, our lives were forever changed as our first parents chose selfishness and distrust over faith in God.  Sin and death became realities and it’s shrapnel has penetrated everything, breaking our fellowship with God.  What God intended for our lives and living was poisoned through and through.Without an act of pure Grace, all of humanity in its sinful brokeness was destined for death, spiritually, emotionally, and physically as our best efforts could never repair our broken relationship with God and the depraved nature of our lives and living begun at the fall of Adam and Eve.

Yet, despite all of this. God is love, and God loves you perfectly, completely, and unconditionally, no matter who you are or what you have done or are doing. So much that He sent His son Jesus, fully God and fully man to die for your sins, and all of humanity. On the cross, Jesus took upon Himself the brokeness of all creation, including you. In His death and resurrection, Jesus put your sins to death and gave you His life. A new covenant was put into place where Jesus’ performance on the cross becomes your righteousness, holiness, and salvation. It is no longer about performing to get to God (as it was in the Old Testament), but God’s performance on the cross to get to you. His life becomes your life. His identity becomes your identity. The redemptive work in your life was completed, completely. You became a new person in Christ, a new creation in fact. Your sins, past, present, and future were all forgiven once and for all. It is no longer your nature to sin (though we still do), your old nature was crucified with Jesus on the cross. Sin no longer defines you, Jesus defines you. You old self died, you new self was reborn. You have the mind of Christ. You are a partaker of the divine nature, lacking no spiritual blessing. You are in fact, the righteousness of Christ, with no condemnation over your life whatsoever. You are not only a son (or daughter), but a king and priest in the Kingdom of God. As He is (seated at the right hand of God) so are you in this world. God’s favor and Grace are forever over your life.

All of this, Jesus provided and accomplished on the cross on your behalf, and that of the whole world. The moment you believe in who Jesus is and what He did, you receive it all. Done deal. We are saved by Grace through faith.

Now, it is no longer you who lives, but Christ living in you, and as you. The same Grace that saved you is the same Grace that sustains and sanctifies you. The Christian life is about growing into who you already are in Christ. Your part is to realize you have no part, only to believe. That’s why this growth happens through faith, not your efforts. You cannot produce spiritual fruit in your life, only bear the fruit God produces.  It’s no about striving and trying to be a better person, it’s rather about believing you already are a better person and living from that identity. It’s not about shame, guilt, punishment and religious rule keeping as you live a life focused on sin and your obedience. That system of living was canceled on the cross, at the moment of His resurrection, a new system was ushered in by Jesus Himself. It’s a life of complete and ever present forgiveness, freedom, peace, and rest as you focus on Jesus and His mercy, favor, and performance in your life, not yours. It’s an obedience of faith, not of actions. It’s a life of living from His Grace, in His Grace, to be Grace to others.

This is the Gospel.

So What’s The Beef?

Sounds wonderful doesn’t it?  Yet, what sounds like true love, freedom, and life, to the religious sounds like heresy! The Gospel can’t be that good. Give people Grace and they will just sin more. Besides, how are we going to be able to manage people? You are going too soft on sin, and what about repentance! Repentance, repentance, repentance! If we don’t give people something to work on, strive for, and do, how can we keep them coming and interested in church? God does His part, but we have to do our part, or else.

A Quick Clarification

Now, let me be clear with you. There are various variations of what people believe about the Gospel of Grace. So, if you couldn’t tell from my explanation of the Gospel written above, let me be sure you know what I am not… I am not a Calvinist nor a Universalist. I don’t believe God predestined, through what they call “irresistible Grace,” to regenerate some and not others so that some believe, but others do not, thus having some go to heaven and others to Hell. How that is considered Grace, I will never know. Yet, I am also not a Universalist who believes all are going to heaven, whether they really want to or not. I find both these systems of beliefs not congruent with how I understand the Gospel. I love my Calvinist and Universalist friends, by I respectfully don’t agree with them.

5 Passages Religious “Anti-Grace” People Love

That said, there are many people who are against and critical of the Gospel of God’s Grace as I (and others) understand it. They call it “hyper-grace,” cheap Grace” and a host of other names. And, they line up their Bible passages to refute it. Here are the top 5 passages (not in any particular order) they use and an explanation of how these passages in fact, do not refute the message of the Gospel of God’s Grace. One of the blessings of believing the Gospel of Grace is that it transforms the way you read the Bible. You realize that God is not in the bait and switch business of drawing you in with love only to blast you with Law. No, He is love from top to bottom and inside and out, and He perfectly loves you. When you see this you will no longer become frightened or confused when you read passages like those listed below.

keep reading… Part 2

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Stuff Jesus Never Said

To many believers and non believers, Jesus is a powerful person. His words have often been quoted and interpreted by people of varying views. But as with any person, sometimes Jesus has words and assertions put into his mouth that He never said, or even suggested.  And truth be told, the largest culprit in all of this is often we Christians. Yet, no matter where you are in the conversation about Jesus, sometimes we come to Him with our own perspectives and hope we can find a way to make His words sing our song.

So, here is some stuff you may have heard said or suggested, that Jesus never said or suggested at all…

1) “I am a card carrying, camouflage wearing, conservative republican.”  

No, Jesus stands above and outside of any one political group. Though His message is very relevant to politics and all of life, He himself exists and stands by Himself, outside of any one political affiliation. And, take it from His brothers, Jesus isn’t a fan of being used for political gain or being pimped out as a political figure. (John 7:1-14)

2) “Danger Will Robinson, gay people are especially disgusting”

Though some in our culture do and would say Jesus does, the truth is Jesus never said nor suggested that homosexuality is any more dirty or disgusting than other sins. Where some churches and Christians take a hands-off, arms length approach to this issue and the people involved, Jesus is found drawing close to the people who the religious would just as soon condemn, discard or disregard.  Debate as you will the issue of homosexuality and sin. No matter your conclusion, Jesus never shows by example nor words any kind of assertion that homosexuality is a special class of sin, and homosexuals a special class of sinner.  If homosexuality is a sin in serious need of confronting, so is the flan-fed, fat back… Jack.

3) “The bigger and slicker the church and its pastor, the better”

Indeed, today we live in the age of the celebrity pastor and the franchise church. Some are healthy, some are not. We have been led to believe that when it comes to church and ministry, bigger and slicker is automatically better. In fact,  it would take some digging through the tons of mailings sent to churches every day to find me a ministry conference for pastors that doesn’t have church growth and pastor performance as top topics of emphasis. Don’t get me wrong, I am all about ministry effectiveness in reaching people far from God etc. etc. God’s church should be a growing movement where creative and freedom flourishes. But, bigger and slicker does not automatically equate to better. A church and a pastor can have a lot of sharp, impressive looking activity and avatars going on without accomplishing near their redemptive potential. The way we do ministry these days as Christian leaders, you would have thought that Jesus actually said, “Brand it, buff it, build it, box it, as big as your ego can bake it.”  Indeed, we have replaced “shepherd” with “franchise owner,” and “church” with spiritual “consumer club.”

4) “You should make sure people notice how devoted and super-duper in love with Me you are”  

I know what you are thinking, but what about when Jesus says things like, “Let your light shine…?” Jesus’ words about “letting your light shine” are not a reference to your love for Jesus, but the new person you are in Christ. In fact, Jesus says ” you are” the light of the world. It’s about Christ shining as you and in you, not you shining how much you love Jesus.

Take it from Peter, boasting of your love for Jesus places the emphasis and burden on you and your performance, and in the end, shows you up as the denying hypocrite. However, boasting of Jesus’ love of you, like John, puts the emphasis and burden on Jesus, and leaves you reclined with Him at the table, resting in His Grace. Boasting of your performance and passion for Him leads to denying His, boasting of His performance and passion for you, leads to receiving and resting with Him and in Him.

5) “I prefer hymns, choirs, and organ music”

The way some churches feel about modern instruments and styles of music, you would have thought Jesus would have said just that, “I prefer hymns, choirs, and organ music.” Holy sacred cows batman. The truth is, Jesus never said nor suggested anything close to that, and there is no such thing as a Christian “style” of music. What makes music “Christian” or “sacred” is the words, not the style. A style that is worshipful to some may not be worshipful to others, but it does not make it any less worshipful to God. Furthermore, the same traditional hymns and instruments deemed to be exclusively sacred by some  today, were in fact, highly controversial, contemporary, and even deemed “satanic” as little as 50-100 years ago.

6) “Your Bible is actually best used as a taser”

The way some Christians uses their Bibles, you would have thought Jesus had said, “Memorize it, mark it, and make it sting”

Jesus in fact said, “You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” (John 5:38). Jesus said this as a message to make sure we never place the Bible and our use of it over Him and understand the purpose of the Bible is to lead us and people to an encounter and experience Jesus and the life He brings, not to tase them with it! Religious people use the Word of God to condemn, corner, control, and complicate. Jesus wants us to use the Bible to give His life, healing, Truth, freedom and Grace. The goal is not memorization and highlighting, but receiving, experiencing, and giving His life.

7) “Drinking beer will just make you burn brighter in Hell”  

The very one who turned water into wine, and drank with sinners said that?  Nope.

For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’  Matthew 11:18.

Yes, drinking can be dangerous. Getting drunk is an obvious no brainer.  And, in some instances and contexts, it can work against our ministry to people.

Yet, condemning those who drink responsibly as hell-bound sinners and second class Christians (and leaders) is both unfair and misguided. Furthermore, I would say in some contexts this attitude has done more to damage potential ministry to people than the puritanistic, religious approach to alcohol Jesus (and I) referenced above.

8) “The fast track to spiritual maturity is reading books by popular pastors”

We pastors and teachers are used by God in powerful ways to help people understand and experience God and His life. You would do well to learn from people who are wise in the ways of God.

Yet, what pastors teach and preach are often revelations from God they have experienced from their own study of the Word or other pastors/teachers who have studied the Word. Either way, somewhere along the way, someone has done the chewing on the Word so that there is something to teach/feed you.

As a Christian culture we have become fast-food spiritual consumers. There is a lot processed food out there. Book after book, conference after conference. Processed from some pastor or teacher who did the chewing, into your mouth.

This is perhaps a good start for the new believer or even a nice appetizer for the experienced Christian.

Everyone of my children started with processed, pureed foods that required little to no chewing.  Later however, they started to chew it for themselves; having to process it, taste it, chew it, and digest it for themselves, over and over.  To eat processed, pureed food now as emerging adults would leave them hungry, malnourished, and lacking the joy of real food.

This is what the Bible calls meditation. Meditating on the Word of God.  Tasting, chewing, processing it for yourself. A direct revelation from God to you, for you, through you.  Nothing wrong with listening and learning from pastors/teachers like me, but it never should take the place nor become more of your spiritual diet than you personally tasting, chewing, and processing the Word of God for yourself. What makes for a nice appetizer, won’t make for a good meal.

Stop relying on popular pastors for your spiritual diet and making them your main meal. You won’t grow through reading their books until you have made reading God’s book for yourself your primary way of encountering Jesus and His wisdom and revelation for your life.

Reading books by popular pastors isn’t a fast track to spiritual maturity. Besides, some (if not many) of them just present the Christian life (and the Gospel) as a bunch of new things you need to be doing more or better. To be sure, we live in the age of the performance-driven Christian, and there are tons of books to get you feeding on a diet of steps, strategies, and “to do” lists that will ultimately still leave you hungry.

Spiritual hunger for the Christian is a sign of immaturity, not maturity. Jesus actually said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” (John 6:35)

No, the fast track to spiritual maturity is to realize in Christ, as a new creation, you have already been made fully mature!  Now, believe it and go live what Jesus has already made you.

Spiritual maturity isn’t a process of performance-progress, but a process of believing more in who Jesus already made you into through His performance, not yours. It’s not about becoming a son (or daughter), it’s about living out your sonship that God has already given you and made you to become.

True Friendships

Relationships are the marrow of life, and friendships being a very important aspect.

Seems to me though, maybe we throw the term “friendship” around a bit too freely. Just about anything qualifies for the term, “friendship” these days.  The person who knows a person who knows a person that you know… boom, that’s a friend.  The person on Facebook who you can’t even remember how you were “friended” in the first place… there you have it, another friend. The term “friend” could mean just about anything today and describe a wide variety of levels of intimacy between people. Nothing necessarily good or bad about that, just our cultural reality.  We all want to be “friend” heavy.

Yet, though we may know a lot of people, call a lot of people friends, and love to increase our “follower” and “friend” totals on our social networks, I would venture to say we are a culture lacking in “true friendships.”

The truth is, especially in our culture today, that over a life time you may have only 1-5 true friendships. And after reading further, you may realize you only have one or two, if that. The irony is deep as like never before we have so many ways to connect with people, but yet we lack true friendships in our life.

This is not anything necessarily new I guess, Jesus (while on earth) only really had three (Peter, James, and John).  Yet, I would say we are less prepared as a culture to develop and maintain true friendships, not because of a lack of ways to connect, but rather because of a kind of aversion or maybe even inability to connect at the level of true friendships.

What are the hallmarks of a “true friendship?”  Here are 5 ways to know if you have one…

1) You don’t have to inspire nor solicit them to be interested or engaged in your life-  If you have to be the primary one to keep a true friendship going, you don’t have one. In a true friendship, you don’t have to work to keep them interested and interacting with you. They have their own energy to be consistently interested and involved in your life. It’s never a one way street. You don’t have to drag them along into having a genuine care, concern, and consistent investment in your life. It’s not a “we only talk when I am the one to call” deal. Both of you are holding up the relationship, not just one of you. If you feel a consistent imbalance in the shared energy towards the friendship, you don’t have a true friendship.

2) They are with YOU- If a person is merely “with” something about you, you don’t have a true friendship.

The foundation of a true friendship is to be “with” that person, for life. Most people with whom we are friends, though they may be “with” something about us (our vision, cause, opportunity, shared interest, work, children, neighbors, project, etc.) that is shared in common, they are not “with” us.  Given the removal or diminishing of what they are “with” about us (vision, cause, job, opportunity, or benefit we bring, etc.) they would likely not be truly be “with” us.

In a true friendship, there is a deep loyalty to be with YOU above all else. By your side (where possible), on your side, with you. This is true whether you are right, wrong, up, down, or somewhere in between. Whether circumstances, settings, locations, etc. remain the same or change.  It is an unconditional devotion to be with YOU.  All relationships have ups and down and times where things are going well and when they are perhaps not, but a true friendship always lands “with you.” Any moments of tension are few, and that, quickly remedied. Oh, and by the way, you can be by somebody’s side and on somebody’s side without agreeing with them. This is a special dynamic, nuance, and skill of true friendship.

3) They have your best interest at heart- Because they are “with you” they want what is best for you. They rejoice when you rejoice, and mourn when you mourn, not the opposite.  They want to see God’s work in you come to completion to the point they highly invest themselves into you that you might be blessed. Theirs is an investment of themselves into yourself. And if ever push comes to shove or a crossroads is met, they put your best interests even above their own. They have your back, your best interests, and will protect what God is doing in and through you at all costs. They are givers in the relationship, above and beyond being a taker. This is a cornerstone of true friendships.

4) They speak the truth in love- These are not people who are playing you, saying what you want to hear, or flattering you because of what you bring to their table or can give them down the road. These are people who speak truth into your life. When they do, they wrap it in love.  You can trust that what they are saying, however hard to hear, is coming from a pure place and a pure agenda. They show up for the relationship with openness and honesty, always chasing any darkness in the relationship out of the shadows and into the light.  They are willing to confront you when you are wrong, and willing to confess to you when they are. They don’t let things fester or go underground, bur rather value having a clear and clean atmosphere in the relationship. They don’t just tolerate you, they love you.

5) They believe in you- They are your greatest fans and encouragers. They assume the best, not the worst. And when you fail, their hope remains. They do not give up on you.  No, they may not believe in everything you do or don’t do, but they still believe in you. There is a loyalty to you that is unbreakable. They want to lift you up, not bring you down, cheer you forward, not gloat when you fall backwards. They believe in you. They see God’s divine hand upon your life and the Master at work.  They see you as God sees you, like only a true friend can and would. They love you, like you, and believe in you. They bring out the best in you, and call you away from the worst. They aren’t perfect, the relationship isn’t perfect, but they are a true friend.

That being said, a couple questions…

Who are you true friends?

To whom are you a true friend?

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