The Prayers of St. Paul – Part 2

Christmas Eve.

In my last post I noted that St. Augustine called the problem of our sin “Incurvatus in se,” which basically translates as curved in on ourselves. We live for ourselves, our lives are curved inward as opposed to the life God intended for us, which is life lived with an outward focus.

I thought about that today as I was reflecting on our Christmas Eve Candle Light Service. Our Choir Anthem is “Do You Hear What I Hear?” The truth is 99% of the people in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago did not notice anything unusual. Foreigners noticed the Star in the sky, but the people of God, for whom the Star was a sign of the coming of their Messiah, did not notice. Some of the shepherds out in the fields noticed and went into town to see what was happening. Others didn’t notice anything. People from outside of Bethlehem noticed and came to town. Those in Bethlehem apparently didn’t notice anything unusual. They were too preoccupied with self to notice and offer assistance.

In this series we are looking at the prayers of St. Paul to guide us into a better understanding of our own prayer life. Do our prayers curve in to ourselves, or out to others.

The second of Paul’s prayer we’ll look at is in 2 Corinthians 1: 3-4 (NLT)

^“3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. ⁴ He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.”

Are we looking to God as our comfort? When we received His comfort, are we seeking out others with whom we can share God’s comfort? This thought reminds me of a line in a benediction I like to use at weddings. As I pray a blessing over the newlyweds I say, “Bear witness to the love of God in this world so that those to whom God is a stranger will find in you generous friends.”

Live outwardly.

Selah,

Alex

The Prayers of St. Paul - Part One

The Prayers of St. Paul

For several months I have been thinking about prayer. I believe that prayer is the most misunderstood aspect of the Christian life.

On the one hand it is the one thing that Christians talk about the most. Christians are either asking for prayer or are promising to pray for others. Yet, if we are honest, I believe we have to admit that we see little evidence of answered prayers in the life of the church. Why?

I suspect the answer may be found in James 4:3 “And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.” (NLT)

James’ point is what St. Augustine called “Incurvatus in se,” which basically translates as curved in on ourselves. Augustine was trying to explain exactly what produces sin. He came up with incurvatus in se as a way of saying that we are essentially ego centric or self-centered. We live for ourselves, our lives are curved inward as opposed to the life God intended for us, which is life lived with an outward focus.

So, using Paul as an example, let’s look at his prayers and compare them to our own. Let’s see if Paul’s prayers are curving in or out. Then begin to listen to your own prayers, and to the prayer requests you receive. Are those requests curving in or out?

The first of Paul’s prayer we’ll look at is in Romans 15: 5-6, 13 (NLT)

“May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus. Then all of you can join together with one voice, giving praise and glory to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Selah,

Alex

Don't Give Up

A woman told the story on herself of the rainy day when she was stopped in the Yield lane trying to get onto I-4 in busy downtown Orlando. She heard a tap on her window and rolled it down. An angry man yelled, “For crying out loud lady, the sign says ‘Yield” not give up.”

We all have had experiences where we seem to lose hope of making it through the rainy days in our lives. While we may well have to Yield to the unavoidable circumstances of life, we never have to give up.

The Apostle Paul told his friends that he had learned he could do all things through the power of Jesus that strengthen him from within. And, Jesus said we would be amazed at the things we can do through faith, even faith as tiny as a mustard seed.

Maybe today is a good day to thank God for the faith that is helping you through life when things are going well and also to ask God to strengthen your faith when the difficult days of life come.

Faith Working in Love

Dr. Charles Allen, a preacher from Houston, Texas, shared, tongue in cheek, this survey about his church:

10% of the members cannot be found;

20% -- never attend;

25% -- never pray;

35% -- never read the Bible;

40% -- never give financially to the church;

70% -- never attend Sunday Evening Service;

75% -- never assume any church task;

85% -- never invite anyone to church;

95% -- never win a soul to Jesus;
100% -- expect to go to Heaven!

Dr. Allen’s survey reminds me of the story of the man who took a walk to eat his lunch. He strolled through a park and purchased a hot dog and a soft drink. As he walked, enjoying the view, two different street people approached him one by one. Each asked, "Can you help me, I am hungry?" Each time the man looked straight ahead and kept walking. After finishing his lunch he stopped and bought a chocolate éclair for dessert. As he was about to take the first bite, he was forced to jump out of the way as a young boy raced down the sidewalk on his skateboard. The éclair went flying and landed on the ground. The man picked it up and tried to clean it off, but it was no use. It was now a dirty éclair. Before discarding it, however, he had an idea. He strolled over to one of the beggars who had approached him and handing the man the éclair said, "Here you are my good man. This is something for your hunger." The man walked away smiling and returned to his office.

That night the man had a dream. He was sitting in a large and crowded cafe. Waitresses were scurrying about bringing customers delicious cakes and tortes. All the waitresses ignored the businessman, even though he was waving his hands at them continually. Finally he caught the eye of a young woman and asked for something to eat. She returned a few minutes later with a dirty piece of pastry. The man was outraged. "You can't treat me this way. I have a right to be served like all the others. I expect good service and food for my money." "You don't seem to understand," the waitress responded kindly. "You can't buy anything here. We don't accept money. You have just arrived in heaven and all you can order here is what you sent ahead while on earth. I just checked the records and the only thing we have for you is this dirty éclair."

Selah,
Alex

Gods and Generals

Gods and Generals

Gods and Generals is an historical novel by Jeff Shaara about the first few years of the Civil War. One particular passage in the book is quite compelling. Some time after the Battle of Manassas (Bull Run) where General Thomas Jackson is given the name “Stonewall Jackson” one of his aides is asking him how he could remain so serene during the battle. Jackson’s reply was he faith taught him to know he was as safe lying in bed as when he was doing his duty – he entrusted his life into the Hands of God. As a military officer Jackson’s life verse was:
Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed,
we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven,
not built by human hands. (2 Corinthians 5:1)

Throughout the book one is impressed with the deep faith of men like Generals Lee & Jackson of Virginia as well as Joshua Chamberlain of Maine.

How is it that with people of such faith they were drawn to resolve their difference through war? Remember the magnitude of the Civil War war. In our present war we learn of a few casualties on a daily basis:
In three days at Gettysburg there were twenty-three thousand casualties;
In two days at Shiloh, a battle that proved nothing, there were twenty-three thousand casualties;
In ONE DAY at Antietam there were twenty-four thousand casualties.
In just three battles over six days more than seventy thousand casualties.

I do realize that looking back at circumstances is all together different than living in our present circumstance. Even so, I am convinced that our only hope to not repeat the mistakes of the past is living the life in Christ.

It seems to me that the faith of the Generals was centered on the sovereignty of God. I agree that God is sovereign over all. However, the Apostle Paul says that it is at the name of Jesus that every knee will bend and every tongue will confess that He is Lord, to the glory of the Father. Paul said that “. . . in him (Christ) we live and move and have our being.” (Acts 17:28)

I believe that a passion to live the Life in Christ will lead us to rightly order our lives to live to know Christ; to come to Him to celebrate His glory (not just to make our life better;) to trust His provision; to expect to become like Jesus; and to always affirm Thy will be done.

Selah,
Alex

The Simplicity of the Gospel of Grace

When I was attending a preaching conference earlier this year United Methodist Bishop Will Willimon was remembering a conversation he had while he was Dean of the Chapel at Duke University. He said he had been lamenting that despite all that he had tried, he could not increase student attendance at Chapel Services. One of his colleagues told him, “Will, you have to remember that Duke is an exclusive private university and the kids that come here are very smart – that’s why they don’t go to chapel.”

Bishop Willimon said he started to feel the sting of that comment until his friend continued, “They are smart enough to know that if they started to attend Chapel Services they would need to change they way they were living.”

I recalled Bishop Willimon’s comments this week as I thought about the simplicity of the Gospel of Grace. The essence of the new life in Christ the Apostle Paul continually affirms is quite simple. Dr. Larry Crabb in his book, The Pressure’s Off, summarized it by setting forth the foundational principals of life in Christ:

Core Passion: I live to know Christ
Core Experience: I come to Him to celebrate His glory
Core Strategy: I will trust His provision
Core Hope: I expect to become like Jesus
Core Attitude: Thy will be done

Admittedly, putting those principals into daily living is difficult because they are clearly counter cultural. There is much to ‘un-learn’ to make room for the new way of living. But, as G. K. Chesterton noted, "The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried."
There’s the rub. For so many people it is not that they do not believe the Gospel message; it is that they do not want to believe it. They don’t need Bonhoeffer to tell them about cheap grace and the cost of discipleship. Intuitively, they know they would have to change the way they are living and they are not ready to do that.

Hopefully, prayerfully, there will be a remnant living the Life in Christ when they have ears to hear.

Selah,

Alex

For Freedom Christ Has Set Us Free

If you have used a personal computer for awhile you have experienced the dreaded ‘slow down.’ The pc seems to take longer, sometimes much longer, to process or retrieve information – it just isn’t operating as efficiently as it was designed to operate. People are like that too. No, I don’t mean we slow down as we age – I mean we realize we are not operating as efficiently or as effectively as we are able.

With computers there are many reasons why they slow down, not the least of which is the pc becomes infected with a computer virus that causes the operating system to lose efficiency. The human operating system can also be compromised with a virus – the disease we call sin. Remember, sin isn’t something on a list of stuff we are not supposed to do – sin is anything that interferes with loving God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength,

Sometimes computers slow down gradually and we become accustom to their reduced effectiveness. Then something happens and we realize something is wrong and we can take the necessary steps to fix the problem.

Sometimes we become accustomed to our own sins that prevent us from fully being the people of God. But God, who is rich in mercy, is working to help us realize something is wrong in our life. Then we can remember Jesus gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed God.

Maybe there is something God wants you to see in your life. Don’t be afraid to ask God to show you – remember He is rich in mercy.

Selah,

Alex

Is the Christian Faith Meant to be Personal or Corporate?

Is the Christian Faith Meant to be Personal or Corporate?

Yes.

Some writers can be so focused on the followers of Jesus fully understanding the fullness of a personal relationship with Christ that they seem to forget Jesus teaching his followers to pray, “Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

Brennan Manning comes to mind. He is one of my favorite authors. His books Ragamuffin Gospel; Abba’s Child; and Ruthless Trust have been very helpful to me in my journey. Currently I am reading his newest book, The Furious Longing of God. His suggestion of a daily meditation focusing on the affirmation, “Abba, I belong to you” is powerful and can certainly be used by God to help people claim their true identity as God’s beloved children.

The Apostle Paul continually stressed the importance of the followers of Jesus understanding, appreciating, claiming and living out of their core identity as the children of God. 'For in him we live and move and have our being.' is how he put it in Acts 17:28.

However, Paul also stressed that God has adopted us as his children so that we can live in community as we build for the Kingdom of God. For Paul, the clearest evidence that we are being transformed into the life of Christ is in our adopting the mind of Christ and become willing to live self sacrificing lives for the good of others. (Philippians 2: 5-11)

Rejoicing that we are God’s beloved is simply self indulgent if we are not living for others out of the Christ life.

And living for others without being grounded in the truth of our identity as the Beloved of God is tiring, frustrating, and lacking in fruit.

The Christian faith is deeply personal and lived and expressed corporately.

Selah,
Alex

Zephaniah 3:17

Zephaniah 3:17

Below are two renderings of Zephaniah 3:17.

First, from the King James Version of the Bible:

(Zep. 3:17 KJV) The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.

Second, a paraphrase of Zephaniah 3:17 from worship leader and song writer Dennis Jerrigan:

(Zep. 3: 17 Dennis Jerrigan) "The eternal self existent God, the God who is three in one, He who dwells in the center of your being is a powerful, valiant warrior. He has come to set you free, to keep you safe and to bring you victory. He is cheered and He beams with exceeding joy and takes pleasure in your presence. He has engraved a place for himself in you and there He quietly rests in His love and affection for you.

He cannot contain Himself of the thought of you and with the greatest of joy spins around wildly in anticipation over you and has placed you above all other creations and in the highest place in His priorities. In fact He shouts and sings in triumph, joyfully proclaiming the gladness of His heart in a song of rejoicing.

All because of you. "

Now, what if the second rendering is an accurate interpretation of Zephaniah 3:17?

If it is in fact an accurate interpretation and you believed it, how might your life be different?


Selah,
Alex

Grace Sufficient

“Grace Sufficient”
2 Corinthians 12: 7-10

Someone asked President Lincoln if he was troubled by all the parts of the Bible that were so difficult to understand. President Lincoln replied, “No. What concerns me are all the parts I do understand.”

That simple exchanged reveals two important truths. First, there are teachings of Scripture that are fairly straight forward and simple to grasp – such as love God and love your neighbor – that can keep us busy 24/7 for the rest of our lives. And, there are other parts of the Bible that are a mystery to us. If we are not careful we can spend more time trying to solve the mysteries of God than we do fulfilling the commands of God.

In 2 Corinthians 12 Paul says that he has a thorn in his flesh that has caused him great pain. There have been many theories as to what exactly this thorn was—so many theories in fact, that it is impossible to diagnose Paul's situation with complete assurance. But that hasn't stopped people from speculating. Google the phrase "thorn in the flesh" and you will get 316,000 hits. Some have suggested that Paul's thorn came in the form of Jewish persecution, or maybe that Paul's own remembrance of his past was his thorn; Paul's past included the persecution of the church which may have continually haunted him and kept him humble. Some even propose that Paul dealt with either carnal temptation or depression. Others suggest a physical ailment such as malaria, Malta fever, epilepsy, convulsive attacks, and chronic problems with his eyesight.

All of this speculation is evidence of our human need to try and understand everything that touches our lives. We can get so caught up in trying to understand why one person seems blessed and another person has a life of trouble that we miss the point Paul is making when he shared this part of his life. Paul experienced the sufficiency of God’s grace. God has promised His presence is always with us – through the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives – and His presence is grace sufficient to meet every need of our life.

Someone said that a person with an experience is not at the mercy of a person with an argument. I think for Paul that meant that neither the arguments of his opposition or the difficulties of his circumstances were able to diminish the sufficiency of his personal experience in God’s grace.

In our present time Matt Redman has captured this thought in his song of praise, “Blessed Be Your Name.” The lyrics include these words:

Blessed Be Your Name;
In the land that is plentiful;
Where your streams of abundance flow;
Blessed be your name

Blessed Be Your name;
When I'm found in the desert place;
Though I walk through the wilderness;
Blessed Be Your name
Blessed be Your name;
When the sun's shining down on me;
When the world's 'all as it should be';
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be Your name;
On the road marked with suffering;
Though there's pain in the offering;
Blessed be Your name

Every blessing you pour out;
I'll turn back to praise;
When the darkness closes in;
Still I will say;
Blessed be the name of the Lord

Selah,
Alex

“Dandelions”

“A man who took great pride in his lawn found himself with a large crop of dandelions. He tried every method he knew to get rid of them. Still they plagued him. Finally he wrote the Department of Agriculture. He enumerated all the things he had tried and closed his letter with the question: “What shall I do now?”

In due course the reply came: “We suggest you learn to love them.”

“I too had a lawn I prided myself on and I too was plagued with dandelions that I fought with every means in my power. So learning to love them was no easy matter. I began by talking to them each day. Cordial. Friendly. They maintained a sullen silence. They were smarting form the war I had waged against them and were suspicious of my motives. But it wasn’t long before they smiled back. And relaxed. Soon we were good friends. My lawn, of course, was ruined. But, how attractive my garden became.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“He was becoming blind by degrees. He fought it with every means in his power. When medicine no longer served to fight it, he fought it with his emotions. It took courage to say to him, "I suggest you learn to love your blindness.”

It was a struggle. He refused to have anything to do with it in the beginning. And when he eventually brought himself to speak to his blindness his words were bitter. But he kept on speaking and the words slowly changed into words of resignation and tolerance and acceptance . . and, one day, very much to his own surprise, they became words of friendliness . . . and love. Then came the day when he was able to put his arm around his blindness and say, “I love you.”

That was the day I saw him smile again. His vision, of course, was lost forever.

But how attractive his face became!”

(Anthony DeMello, “The Song of the Bird”)

***
"Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." (2 Cor 12:8-9 NIV)

Is there anything in your life that you need God to help you love?

\O/

Selah

Alex

LAW AND GRACE

The Life in Christ is rooted in grace. Grace as a way of life is completely different from the norm in our culture. Our culture is steeped in Performance Based Acceptance which is rooted in a legalistic approach to life.

Legalism sets a standard for excellence but offers no help to achieve that standard – only condemnation when you do not achieve it.

Grace also sets a standard of excellence – “But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48 NLT) But, unlike legalism, grace helps you achieve that goal – “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.” (Philippians 2:13 NLT) – And grace does not condemn when you fall short of the goal -- “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1-2 NLT)

Martin Luther wrote “Either sin is with you, lying on your shoulders, or it is lying on Christ, the Lamb of God. Now if it is lying on your back, you are lost; but if it is resting on Christ, you are free, and you will be saved. Now choose what you want. “

Here are the differences between law and grace to help you choose whether you want to be free in Christ.

Law says do
Grace says done

Law emphasizes what man does
Grace emphasizes what God does

Law lives out of the flesh life (self Life)
Grace lives out of the Spirit (Christ Life)

Law draws on man's resources
Grace draws on God's resources

Law deals with externals: rules; standards; regulations
Grace deals with inner - heart attitude

Law's primary focus is: Ought to's; should've; have to; must
Grace's primary focus is on want to's

Law creates bondage, duty, and obligation
Grace creates freedom

Law lives from the outside in
Grace lives from the inside out

Law declares do in order to be
Grace declares you are, therefore do

Law produces guilt, condemnation
Grace produces acceptance, security

Law leads to defeat
Grace leads to Victory!

Selah,

Alex

"The Return of The Prodigal Son"

"The Return of The Prodigal Son"

Henri Nouwen, in his book, "The Return of The Prodigal Son", says, "If the only meaning of the story (Luke 15, The Prodigal Son) were that people sin but God forgives, I could easily begin to think of my sins as a fine occasion for God to show me forgiveness. There would be no challenge is such an interpretation. I would resign myself to my weaknesses and keep hoping that eventually God would close his eyes to them and let me come home, whatever I did. Such romanticism is not the message of the Gospels. "What I am called to make true is that whether I am the younger or elder son, I am the son of my compassionate Father. I am an heir. . . . as son and heir I am to become successor. I am destined to step into my Father's place and offer to others the same compassion that he has offered me. The return to the Father is ultimately the challenge to become the Father. . . .

"I know how much I long to return and be held safe, but do I really want to be son and heir with all that that implies? Being in the Father's house requires that I make the Father's life my own and become transformed in his image."

"... God is a living, personal presence, not a piece of chiseled stone . . . Nothing between us and God, our faces shinning with the brightness of his face. And so we are transformed much like the Messiah, our lives becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him."
The Message, 2 Corinthians 3: 16ff

Selah,

Alex

Performance Based Acceptance and Life in Grace

Performance Based Acceptance
and
Life in Grace

“Seeking the life in grace as the way of life” is my personal vision statement. Often I am asked if it is really possible to live a “life in grace” in our performance based acceptance culture. Yes, it is possible to live a life in grace, but such a life requires training. Discipleship, or maturing in Christ, is a process of training our minds to understand ourselves the way God does.

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” (Romans 12:2 NLT)

Pastors have their performance reviewed by congregations every Sunday. Schoolteachers are evaluated on the basis of the test scores of their students. Test scores may have an important place in education, but they certainly do not give a complete evaluation of a teacher’s effectiveness in the classroom; and they are by no means an indication of the worth or value of the teacher as a person.

For me, there are two important keys in the training or transformation process that lead to a life in grace.

The first key is in understanding that our performance in life does not determine our worth or value as human beings. A Christian, at the very core of their being, is the beloved child of God, with whom God is delighted and upon whom God’s favor rests.

Whether I stammer and stutter aimlessly through a sermon or powerfully preach God’s Word in a way that leads people to God’s throne of grace, God’s love for me is the same.

However, this wonderful, marvelous grace of God does not give the believer license to become an under-achiever. God’s Word calls us to perfection, not mediocrity. This is the second key.

God’s unfailing love for us enables the believer to see the difference between our identity as the beloved child of God and our performance in the world. Both are important. Because we can rest in the security of God’s unchanging love for us, we do not have to be afraid of failure.

God’s perfect love is intended to remove all fear from the believer’s heart. As we live in grace, no matter how miserably we may fail to meet cultural standards, God is not ashamed of us. And, as we live in grace, we are not ashamed to rest in God’s love for us, regardless of the world’s judgment of our performance.

Because of God’s love for me, I want to offer my very best work to God. This I believe is true worship. Offering my very best requires that I am open to receive criticism, direction and correction from my supervisors, peers, and those I serve. Why? Because, with all that I am and all that I have, I desire to honor God, not to earn His favor, but as my response to His love and acceptance of me, just as I am.

This process of transformation is not easy. At times it is very painful. But God has high hopes for us. As we move on toward perfection, we are destined to become just like Jesus. Let us fix our eyes on that goal.

Bill Gillham has a wonderful book that deals with grace and performance based acceptance: Lifetime Guarantee.

Also, Gene Edwards has two good books that may help you understand our trials along the journey to become like Christ: A Tale of Three Kings and The Prisoner in the Third Cell.

\O/
Selah,
Alex.

Attitude Adjustment

Attitude Adjustment

The more that we exert ourselves in physical activity the more we will perspire. The more we perspire the more we, and others around us, become aware of the odor we give off. This is true in the spiritual realm as well. The more stress in our lives the more there is an opportunity for anxiety. When anxiety is present we can give off an odor of worry and fear. But the Apostle Paul says our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God, therefore instead of fear and worry we can give off the fragrance of Christ which is like a sweet perfume. Is this really possible?

As I write this my wife is preparing to fly to St. Louis. Our daughter Katherine is pregnant – her due date was three days ago! Katherine had a difficult delivery in her first pregnancy 2 ½ years ago and we have been a bit concerned for this one. We learned this morning that Katherine’s husband has the flu. What if Katherine’s gets the flu? Now there is something else to worry about. So, what will Cheryl take with her to St. Louis? Will the spirit within her be giving off an odor of fear and worry? Or will her spirit give off the Christ-like fragrance of the peace of God?

At times like this I remember that the Life in Christ is about an attitude adjustment -- be transformed by the renewing of your mind is the way the Apostle Paul put it in Romans 12 – because it is so easy to drift away from the truth. Before you realize it the Christian life is reduced to trying to live by a moral code. “It's crucial that we keep a firm grip on what we've heard so that we don't drift off” is how the writer of the book of Hebrews puts it. (Hebrews 2:1 The Message)

When I need an attitude adjustment I like to re-read "Principals of Spiritual Growth" by Miles Stanford. In his book Stanford list some of the attributes of The Attitude of the Child of God Under Grace:

To believe you are a child of God, and to consent to be loved while unworthy, is the great secret.
To refuse to make resolutions and vows; for that is to trust in the flesh.
To expect to be blessed, though realizing more and more lack of worth.
To "hope to be better" (hence acceptable) is to fail to see yourself in Christ only.
To be disappointed with yourself, is to have believed in yourself.
To be discouraged is unbelief, as to God's purpose and plan of blessing for you.
The lack of Divine blessing, therefore, comes from unbelief, and not from failure of devotion.
To preach devotion first, and blessing second, is to reverse God's order, and preach law, not grace.
The law made the child of God's blessing depend on devotion; Grace confers undeserved, unconditional blessing; Our devotion may follow, but does not always do so, -in proper measure.

I have found these attributes helpful in developing an understanding of the Life in Christ. I hope you do also.

Selah

\O/
Alex

Interchanged or Exchanged?

Interchanged or Exchanged?

"The term 'Exchanged Life' refers to the Christian’s core identity in Christ. The Christian is a new creation, born of God. They are not what they were before – all things are new.
The missionary J. Hudson Taylor made the term 'exchanged life' popular through his testimony of how God made him a new man.( Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret, page 154) " The word "exchanged" means that God has made it possible for us to exchange our complete inability to live the Christian life for Christ's total sufficiency to live His life through us. (I discussed the Exchanged Life in my first post to this Blog on December 3, 2008.)

I came across another term for this same concept. Noted theologian and scholar Bishop N.T. Wright uses the word ‘interchanged’ in his commentary on Second Corinthians. Wright says that at the heart of the gospel proclaimed by the Apostle Paul is the fact that “what is true for the Messiah is true of his people.” For Paul this is not just a powerful thought or belief but a fact of experience.

Wright explains this ‘interchanged’ as: “the Messiah died, so his people die in him, sharing his suffering; the Messiah rose again, so his people rise again in him, knowing the power of the resurrection to comfort and heal, already in present time, and cherishing the hope that one day they will be given new, resurrection bodies like the one the Messiah himself has now.[1]”

Wright’s explanation of ‘interchanged’ gives great insight to the depth of Paul’s prayer in 2 Corinthians 1: 3-7. In this brief passage of scripture the Apostle Paul uses the word comfort, in one form or another, ten times. Ten times in five verses. In using this word Paul does not mean comfort like someone giving you a hug and assuring you that they care for you. He means so much more. He means a comfort that meets you where you are and then raises you up to where you can see new hope, new possibilities, and a new way to move forward. Paul says this is the comfort of God for us when we are suffering. Paul also says that this comfort is so real, that once you have experienced it, you can actually share God’s comfort with other people.

In this brief passage Paul reveals the essence of The Exchanged Life: What is true of Jesus becomes true for His people. What was true for Jesus is that he was comforted by God. Paul says Jesus’ people can experience the comfort of God. What was true for Jesus is that he comforted and healed others. Paul says that Jesus’ people can share the comfort and healing of God with others.

I appreciate Wright emphasizing that for Paul (and Hudson Taylor) this is not just a powerful thought or belief but a fact of experience. Whether you use the word exchanged or interchanged the result is the same. You give up one so that you can accept the other.

Maybe this helps us understand why, on the whole, the Twenty-first Century American church is so lukewarm in its witness for Christ. Our culture believes “it can have its cake and eat it too.” Experiencing what is true for Jesus as being true in your own life comes from giving up your life so that you can embrace new life in Christ.

Giving up control, giving up living by the ways of the world culture, giving up on the idea that God became incarnate in Christ so that we would or could be better – giving up is hard! But God doesn’t want us to improve our lives. He wants us to exchange – interchange – our lives. We give God all that we are, -- spiritually dead, guilty sinners and Christ gives us all that He is, -- Resurrected life, forgiveness, righteousness, acceptance.

Imagine what the witness of the church would be if just one small group embraced their new life in Christ and began to live their exchanged life each day. Actually, you have an example of that. The Apostle Paul described the life of his church in Acts 17:28 “'For in him we live and move and have our being.”

Because of that witness here we are --- the followers of Christ 2,000 years later.

Selah
\O/
Alex


[1] Tom Wright, Paul for Everyone 2 Corinthians (London, SPCK) p.4

Light For Our Journey

The New Year is only seven days old and already I am feeling stressed from what seems like too many things to do and so little time available. When I start feeling this way I pull out my file of Grace Thoughts and let some of the little gems I have collected over the years help me regain perspective.
Light For Our Journey is one of my favorites and one that I turn to often:

Light For Our Journey *
"Older men served as night sentries for our missionary homes. They swept our yards, heated our bath water, guarded our houses, and were most useful in carrying notes at night between homes. One night I heard a familiar cough. When I went to the door, I could just make out the figure of Papa Jean, {one of the most dedicated sentries}, holding out a note. It was a dark, tropical night. No moon or stars were shining. There were no street lights on this isolated mission station. A small, six inch kerosene lantern with a smoky chimney in Papa Jean's hand gave the only smattering of light.

Such a pitiful little light in such a dark night I thought. "That lamp doesn't give much light, does it, Papa?" I said to him.

"No, it doesn't," he answered. "But it shines as far as I can step."

How often I remember {Papa Jean}.

I can learn to trust God for my future, for I have learned that His light does always shine as far as I can step."

* Virginia Law Shell in Good News magazine, July/August 1990, p.36, quoting from her book As Far As I Can Step

\O/
Selah,
Alex

Happy New Year???

Happy New Year???
We are so used to giving this greeting at the dawn of a New Year. However, I had to pause to reflect on this greeting as I skimmed the newspaper while brewing my morning coffee. A lead story in the Business section quoted a marketing professor: “I think 2009 is going to be a blood bath. I think it’s going to be very, very ugly.”

Not much of a cheery thought to begin the first day of this New Year. The article with that quote went on to list all the businesses that failed in 2008, which included: The Bombay Co.; Lehman Brothers; Bear Stearns; Aloha Airlines; Skybus: Linens’ N’ Things; Sharper Image; KB Toys; and many others. (The last figure I saw recorded more than twenty restaurants in Manatee County Florida went out of business during 2008)

Whoa, maybe we should skip all the New Year’s Day Football Bowl games, go back to bed and pull the covers over our heads.

Or, we can remember as we enter this New Year there is both Good News and bad news.

The bad news is that this economic recession may make 2009 the most challenging year in our lives.

The GOOD NEWS is there is no spiritual recession for those who put their faith in God the Father Almighty. Our God is faithful; His mercies never come to an end. In God’s economy there is never a lack.

“Tell everyone to sit down,” Jesus said. So they all sat down on the grassy slopes. (The men alone numbered about 5,000.) Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks to God, and distributed them to the people. Afterward he did the same with the fish. And they all ate as much as they wanted. After everyone was full, Jesus told his disciples, “Now gather the leftovers, so that nothing is wasted.” So they picked up the pieces and filled twelve baskets with scraps left by the people who had eaten from the five barley loaves. When the people saw him do this miraculous sign, they exclaimed, “Surely, he is the Prophet we have been expecting!” (John 6: 10-14 NLT)

For EVERY follower of Jesus, God has called us for just such a time as this. I believe the Apostle Paul has a word that can guide all of our lives throughout this year:

"All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us."
(2 Corinthians 1: 3-4 NLT) ( Emphasis Mine)

May we all experience God’s grace and power in our lives, each and every moment of 2009.