All this is flashy rhetoric about loving you. I never had a selfless thought since I was born. I am mercenary and self-seeking through and through: I want God, you, all friends, merely to serve my turn.
Peace, re-assurance, pleasure, are the goals I seek, I cannot crawl one inch outside my proper skin: I talk of love --a scholar's parrot may talk Greek-- But, self-imprisoned, always end where I begin
Only that now you have taught me (but how late) my lack. I see the chasm. And everything you are was making My heart into a bridge by which I might get back From exile, and grow man. And now the bridge is breaking
For this I bless you as the ruin falls. The pains You give me are more precious than all other gains.
Let me test your ability to
discern. Which of the following is an actual joke?
A priest, a minister, and a rabbi walk into a bar. The bartender looks up and
says; “Is this a joke?”Or: A woman
walks into a church and is told by the ‘man of God’ that if she can’t come
every Sunday and every holy day, she is going to hell. The woman says; “Is this
a joke?”
If you guessed the first one,
you guessed correctly. In fact it is probably the simplest joke that when told
by me can still get a smirk from my wife Cathy. She said that it is part of my
job description to make her laugh and to keep her warm (we live in a place in
which the winters get cold).
Sad to say, the second one is
a true story that happened recently to someone who, when telling the story to
me, said; “I haven’t been back to that church or any church since then, so I
guess I am going to hell.”
Now I work hard to build
bridges between ministries and between denominations; making “everyeffort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”
(Ephesians 4:3); believing that the church is ALL a part of the Body of Christ
and under His Lordship. So, I watch what I say looking for ways to build up,
not tear down.
But inside I got mad at how
poorly that ‘man of God’ represented God; he is supposed to be a ambassador for
God! Now, I don’t expect the ‘man of God’ to be perfect; without the Lord’s
grace and mercy hell should be my destination. The truth be told, all of us
who are ministers have at one time or another misrepresented God; myself included and I owe the world an apology. But if he is going to
be an ambassador for God, shouldn’t he represent the Lord? I want to personally
ask the ‘man of God’ in this story; “And who are you an ambassador for?”
Certainly it isn’t for the One whom died for this woman!
In the Apostle Paul’s second
letter to the church in Corinth, he writes that when we come to Jesus, we are
new creations; “…old things have passed away; behold, all
things have become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
Paul goes on to make clear what that new life means. It goes on to say that
God; “…has given us the ministry of reconciliation” (v18) and has “committed to
us the word of reconciliation.” (v19). In other words He wants to use us to
tell others the gospel story; a story of hope that we can be reconciled to God
through Jesus Christ!
Paul makes
it really clear whom it is we represent; it is God. Paul wrote: “Now then, we
are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you
on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.” (v20). The Greek word Paul uses for “ambassadors” means to be
a senior, that is, (by implication) actasarepresentative
(figuratively preacher): - to be an ambassador.
The Greek
word that Paul uses for “pleading “means to callnear, that is, invite, invoke (by imploration,
hortation or consolation): - beseech, call for, (be of good)
comfort, desire, (give) exhort (-ation), intreat, pray.
Did you
catch that? We are supposed to be talking and acting as His ambassadors, “as
though God were pleading through us…” In other words, what God would say and is
saying. We are supposed to be inviting people passionately to come through
Jesus; not informing them they are going to hell if they don’t come to church “every Sunday and every holy day”.
Hell is the destination for
those who reject what Jesus accomplished on the cross with His death, burial,
and resurrection, and choose instead to pay for their own sins; not necessarily
for those who don’t come to church each week. Keith Green once said; “Going to
church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than going to McDonalds makes you
a hamburger”
The Bible tells us that we
come to God through GRACE! NOT by keeping man made rules like “you have to go
to church or else or will go to hell”.
“For by grace you have been
saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
There is
nothing you can do to earn salvation. God does not require you to do something otherwise Jesus wouldn't have had to die!
Jesus Christ has done it all. Salvation is finished; all you have to do is take
it; receive it by faith. God simple wants us to say “yes” to His grace that is available
and to receive His gift of salvation.
When
Jesus was asked;
“… “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”Jesus answered and said to them, “This
is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” (John
6:28-29)
To all who have been pushed
away by ‘men of God’; intentionally or unintentionally, I want to say that I am
sorry. I’m sorry that we haven’t represented Him. Please don’t stop seeking him
just because you’ve met some of us.
Children love to play “make-believe”; did you when you were a child? Who
did you like to pretend that you were; a mom
or dad, or maybe it was a doctor or policeman or a fireman; a maybe even a
mayor? Or did you like to take on imaginary adventures such as slaying dragons
and rescuing princesses who were held captive in castle towers?
Eventually, children grow up and learn to live a little bit more in the
“real world” and let go of make-believe; or at least for most areas of our
lives. Sometimes even as adults we will make believe that we are someone great
and live vicariously through their life.
Or we will sing in the shower as we imagine ourselves on a stage wowing
the fans who have come to hear us sing. Or how about the times we have stood on
the sidelines watching one of our children playing a sport and make-believe
that we too could still play great….as one parent told me; “The older we get
the better we were”.
Make-believe is OK as long as we are honest with
ourselves and not ripping off others. What I mean is playing make-believe at
work and pretending that we are actually working only when the boss is looking
is not only wrong it is also stealing. Or make-believing that you love your
spouse and are faithful, when you are actually not true to them. Or “lip-singing”
instead actually singing.
Make-believe exists everywhere, even in the Church’
“Make-Believers” I call them. They are people who really don’t have a
relationship with Jesus and pretend that they do. They play Christianity as
though they were playing a doctor or a fireman as a little child.
Part of the reason why the church is not doing what it
should be doing is that the church today is filled with nominal make-believers
who go to church like it is a social club. They are playing make-believe and
upon closer examination, you will discover that they are hardly different in a
substantive way from members of secular society.
“Make-Believers” are people who have lost their
saltiness and need to get back the distinct flavor of what it means to be a
“True Believer”; in other words a Christian.
The world needs true believers; people who will let
their lives be filled with the reality of God in every area of their lives and
in every place that they go. Truly following Jesus Christ; led by His Holy Spirit.
Or, as Phil Keaggy wrote;
“The true believers stand on every word You say, The true believers made alive
in Christ today, This is how we survive and where we mean to stay. The true
believers.”
I love autumn in Minnesota! Autumn (along with springtime) is a season of changes; radical changes! All around, the trees are changing from green to vibrant colors as a way of distracting us from the fact the temperatures are plummeting from the eighties towards the freezing mark.
Along with these changes come opportunities for disappointment as we ponder how we could have better used our summer and things we never got to instead of being grateful for what we DID do.
I love autumn in Minnesota because during this time of year we spend our leisure time watching (pro and college) football and hockey, along with the World Series. Rivalries are brought out as we choose our team and make our boasts as to what will be the outcome of a season, a series, or even a single game.
In a moment, hearts can be broken and lives can be changed forever with the outcome of a single game. Along with these changes come opportunities for disappointment for what could have been as trophies and “pink slips” are handed out; sometimes on the same day.
Too many people spend their lives stuck on what could have been as they fail to fulfill the expectations or wishes of themselves or others for their lives. Too many live their lives frustrated by the defeat of the fulfillment of their hopes and plans and disappointment becomes the new focus of theirr existence.
Singer and songwriter Phil Keaggy wrote; "Disappointment - His Appointment. Change one letter and you see that the thwarting of my purpose was His better plan for me."
The Bible says; “A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.. (Proverbs 16:9 NJKV)” In other words, just because we planned some path for our lives, it may not go that way; God may have a different direction. And grasping this truth will make the difference between disappointment and “His”-appointment.
"Disappointment - His Appointment. Change one letter and you see that the thwarting of my purpose was His better plan for me."
Grasping this truth can change your perspective and can give an opportunity for anticipation of what God might be up to; rather than disappointment for how things appear to turned out.
The motivational speaker W. Mitchell says; “"Before I was paralyzed, there were 10,000 things I could do. Now there are 9,000. I can either dwell on the 1,000 I lost, or focus on the 9,000 I have left. It’s not what happens to you, it’s what you do about it”
My friend, you don’t need to live your life weighed down by disappointment. Flexibility is about bending and adjusting with the changes that come our way. Being rigid can leave things broken (physically, relationally, emotionally…).
Let’s choose wisely how we respond and stop the mental erosion by asking the Lord to open our eyes to see what He is doing.
My friend, your story isn’t over yet! My guess is that His plans are so much better than what you would have ever thought or planned. Let Jesus Christ change your story for HIS-story. The best is yet to come!
"Disappointment - His Appointment. Change one letter and you see that the thwarting of my purpose was His better plan for me."
Not sure where to start and need help? Call 1-888-NEED- HIM
DisappointmentBy Phil Keaggy
Disappointment - His appointment,
Change one letter, then I see
That the thwarting of my purpose
Is God's better choice for me.
His appointment must be blessing
Though it may come in disguise
For the end from the beginning,
Open to His wisdom lies.
Disappointment - His appointment
Whose? The Lord's who loves best.
Understands and knows me fully,
Who my faith and love would test.
For like loving, earthy parent
He rejoices when He knows
That His child accepts unquestioned
All that from His wisdom flows.
Disappointment - His appointment
No good thing will he withhold
From denials oft we gather
Treasures from His love untold.
Well, He knows each broken purpose
Leads to fuller deeper trust
And the end of all His dealings
Proves our God is wise and just.
Disappointment - His appointment
Lord I take it then as such,
Like the clay in hands of potter
Yielding wholly to Thy touch
All my life's plan is Thy molding
Not one single choice be mine
Let me answer unrepining,
Father not my will but Thine. Oldie but a good message....
