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Reflections on the Existence of God

Reflections on the Existence of God

by | Dec 23, 2022 | Book Reviews

Reflections on the Existence of God: A Series of Essays, by Richard E. Simmons III, is an excellent resource for small group study, to facilitate spiritual conversations with non-believers or, as in my case, to engage with a middle-schooler. I have a precocious granddaughter who is in the sixth grade but reads and reasons at the high school level. Recently she informed her mother that she no longer believed in God. As I spoke with her, it became apparent to me that she had not based her position on diligent study. Instead, hers might have been what the author called “irresponsible unbelief.” (Maybe. But I suspect she was just being contrary to irritate her mother because that is what kids her age do.)

The author asserts, “The question of God’s existence, in my opinion, is the most significant issue in all of life. As renowned French philosopher and mathematician Blaise Pascal said, you’re betting your eternal destiny that you are right.” (pp. 12-13). The core of the author’s rationale is belief in either theism or atheism depends on which view is in harmony with reality. From that position, he challenges the reader to “believe responsibly.” According to him. “We stubbornly hold on to our beliefs because they generally reflect how we want life to be rather than how life actually is. For this reason, evidence does not seem to matter.” (p. 19).

While I am certain God exists, that he made us and loves us so much he was willing to die for us, I found this work helpful in synthesizing what I already knew about God while providing solid arguments against disbelief. Two of the most surprising bits of information about atheists I gleaned from my reading had to do with their thinking as they neared death and the fact they knew next to nothing about the faith they rejected throughout their lives. He concluded, “The evidence for God is really of little use if a person does not want Him in his or her life.” (p. 22)

The author logically addressed the existence of evil in the world, the source of a moral standard along with truth, love, happiness and beauty. He recounted the efforts of Einstein to discredit a transcendental source of morality and the irony that his General Relativity theory demonstrated the universe was not eternal. He proved it had a beginning. One is left to wonder if it extends back to a “Big Bang” who or what spoke that “Big Bang” into existence? Since Einstein’s theory might have pointed to a creator, he introduced a fudge factor, which was later discovered and discounted by other scientists.

According to Simmons, Darwinism is, likewise, proving to be “a philosophical bias more than a coherent science.” (p.174) Some scientists find it easier to introduce aliens into the creation process than to acknowledge the existence of God. The author points to Dr. Paul Vitz who concluded “atheists often develop their beliefs because of non-rational psychological reasons, not because of investigation of the evidence and coming to a sound rational conclusion.” (p. 114) I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in adding logic to your faith.

Reflections on the Existence of God: A Series of Essays, by Richard E. Simmons III (Union Hill Publishing, 2019)

 

Jesus Revisited a discipleship resource recommends Richard Simmons' book Reflections on the Existence of God
My Church Dropped Jesus for Christmas

My Church Dropped Jesus for Christmas

by | Dec 22, 2022 | Just Sayin'

My church dropped Jesus for Christmas. That’s right. My church chose Santa over Jesus. The lights will be off on Christmas morning and I am left to wonder why. Worshipping on Christmas Day is implied in the very name–Christ’s mass or Cristes Maesse as it was first called in 1038. Christmas, of all days, should remind us Jesus is Lord. It isn’t so much a celebration of his birth as it is why he came. Too many self-professed Christians are good with letting Jesus be their Savior, but Lord, well, not so much. 

I pastor a senior congregation in an independent living facility. Normally I would be able to preach and worship with them on Christmas Day. But this year the residents, who couldn’t wait for a Christmas service, were placed in COVID-19 lockdown. Their proactive, facility administration would not allow us to meet for corporate worship. So, I decided to go to my home church. It is where I often worship, before heading over to the facility to preach.

Imagine my surprise to learn its doors would be locked that day. The reason given was, wait for it, because Christmas Day fell on, of all days, a Sunday. Christmas on Sunday has happened six times since 1983. In a brief video my pastor told the congregation his decision was made to allow staff to enjoy the day with their families. I have attended this church for many years. Such a decision must be a recent change. I recall attending the Saturday night candlelight service and returning for the one on Christmas Sunday morning.

We burn with self-righteous indignation when we hear “Happy Holidays,” instead of “Merry Christmas,” and silently simmer because Starbucks adopted a generic cup design for the season. Yet, if we attend many, especially independent, larger, churches, the organs, drums, and guitars will be silent this Christmas morning. It has happened before. The last time Christmas fell on a Sunday was 2016.

In a Federalist article published that Christmas season, G. Shane Morris, citing a Christianity Today finding, praised Mars Hill and Willow Creek for bucking the trend by holding services on Christmas Day. Obviously, doors open on Christmas do not cover a multitude of sin. In those instances, the pastors knew to do right, but didn’t always do it. That’s a story for another day. Regardless, at least that year, their door were open on Christmas.

Morris also cited a Chicago Tribune article about a mega church pastor who gave this reason for cancelling Christmas Day services.

We don’t see it as not having church on Christmas. We see it as decentralizing the church on Christmas—hundreds of thousands of experiences going on around Christmas trees. The best way to honor the birth of Jesus is for families to have a more personal experience on that day.

Experience (smoke machines, laser lights and rock and roll worship music) is a staple of many consumer-driven mega churches. Those are the churches people attend to be entertained, but not sanctified. 

Church is not about an experience, but a relationship; vertically with God through Jesus and horizontally with brothers and sisters in Christ. We demonstrate that through our actions. It isn’t about how full the church is, but how full of Jesus the worshippers are. What good is it to have a sanctuary full of people if many of them are going to miss the cut at the final judgement because they were members, but not disciples? They know all about Jesus, but do not know him. And the pastors who pandered to their “worldliness” by “rockin’ around the Christmas tree “will have to give account to the one whose birthday they skipped to celebrate with Santa.

I just have to say I will never hear, “Keep Christ in Christmas” the same way again. Without actually admitting it, the decision of my pastors and others like them have demonstrated they have tacitly approved replacing Jesus with Santa Claus. The same folks who shake their heads 51 weeks of the year over church absenteeism for “frivolous reasons” bagged the second most holy day on the Christian calendar so families could open gifts together.

In an Op-Ed in The Christian Post, David Ruzicka, put his finger on what is really going on. “Christmas is about family, and presents, and eggnog and Santa Claus! That’s what the atheist argue. And by action (which speak louder than words) so does the church when it cancels the exact thing it does every other week of the year.” He went on to say, “We’ve bought into the secularization of Christmas and the idol of family over Jesus just like everyone else but talk a good game!”

Jesus said, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26 | NIV) That one is pretty hard to hide from. But the next verse clearly explains where some draw the line. “And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:27 | NIV) Apparently, they draw their “cross-carrying” line at celebrating the birth of Jesus on the one day of the year set aside for that purpose. 

Churches forgoing Sunday worship will still pass the plate during the services held the week prior to Christmas. The message sent and received is that it’s all about the bottom line in the First Church of Contemporary Culture. Perhaps that is why the pastors skipping Christmas church don’t take a public stand against Christian Nationalism or a stand for Christmas Day worship. It seems pastors of such attractional churches will do whatever it takes to keep butts in pews. If they think they must compromise principles to keep the lights on, how are they any different from other small business?

Another phrase I have heard in churches that are closed on Christmas is, “The church is a hospital for sinners.” Baloney! My daughter is an emergency room physician in a trauma hospital. How likely do you think it is that her administration would lock their doors to give her and her coworkers Christmas off so they can open presents with their families? Even as a hospital chaplain, I worked Christmas Day. Of all days, Christmas is the one on which many people feel most alone. It is the day they welcome the company of strangers.  

It is possible that I am overreacting, but I believe such churches had the opportunity to stand for something, but, instead, demonstrated they have sold out to the culture. They have abdicated responsibility for being hospitals for the lost to become temples to the idol of family and consumerism. Some people have given up the habit of meeting for worship, but we must not do that. We should keep on encouraging each other, especially since you know that the day of the Lord’s coming is getting closer. (Hebrews 19:25 | CEV)

The author of that passage was writing to people who risked everything by going to church. Are we such weak Christians we cannot even arrange our schedule around an hour or so on a Christmas Sunday morning? If so, haven’t we lost the true meaning of Christmas?

Holy Spirit?

Holy Spirit?

by | Dec 19, 2022 | What Does the Bible Say About?

Receipt of the Holy Spirit is a gift of God’s grace to the disciples of Jesus. Basic trinitarian doctrine holds there is one God represented by three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. A theology that does not recognize each person of the trinity as being co-equal departs from accepted Western Christian orthodoxy. The deity of the Holy Spirit, (Advocate, Comforter, Helper, Spirit of God, Spirit of the Lord, etc.) has been a core Christian belief from the beginning. Duffield and Van Cleve opine, “all three persons of the trinity work together for the accomplishing of the divine will.”1. There is little disagreement among most Christians regarding the Holy Spirit. He is considered the third person of the godhead. Being third does not make him less important than either God, the Father or God, the Son, although he proceeds eternally from both. He first appears in Scripture in Genesis 1:2 | ESV. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And we last encounter him in Revelation 22:17 | ESV. The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.

Cummings2. lists eighty-six references to the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament, OT. However, “The OT does not contain an idea of a semi-independent divine entity, the Holy Spirit.”3. Instead he is a source of God’s prophetic inspiration, creation and life. The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life. Job 33:4 | ESV. The OT prophets anticipated a time when God would pour out his spirit on humankind. “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female servant in those days I will pour out my Spirit.” Joel 2:28-29 | ESV

Although he enjoys varying degrees of acceptance in today’s churches, the Holy Spirit permeates the gospels. The New Testament, NT, word for him, pneuma, appears in 261 passages. John the Baptist prophesied Jesus would baptize believers with the Holy Spirit. “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. Matthew 3:11 | NIV The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus like a dove at his baptism (Like 3:22) and he faced Satan’s wilderness temptation full of the power of the Holy Spirit (Luke 4:1 and 14).“Christ’s humanity was sustained and His actions empowered by the Holy Spirit.”4.

The public ministry of Jesus began with a reading from Isaiah 61. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Luke 4:18-19 | ESV Jesus, himself, prophesied the Spirit would be made available after his ascension. On the last day, the climax of the holidays, Jesus shouted to the crowds, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water shall flow from the inmost being of anyone who believes in me.” (He was speaking of the Holy Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him; but the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet returned to his glory in heaven.) John 7:37-39 | TLB

The promise was fulfilled on Pentecost, but we saw evidence of how he would work with the Samaritan woman at the well. Jesus promised “. . . no one who drinks the water I give will ever be thirsty again. The water I give will become in that person a flowing fountain that gives eternal life.” John 4:14 | CEV She was given faith with power in a testimony that drew many of her friends and neighbors to Jesus. He promised to send the Holy Spirit to indwell his followers. “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. John 14:15-17 | ESV  Perhaps evidence of the Spirit is lacking in many congregations today because Jesus is accepted as savior, but not lord. Belief makes Jesus savior. Obedience makes him lord.

Jesus told his listeners God would fill them with his Spirit if they asked him. “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Luke 11:13 | ESV We have access to God through the Holy Spirit. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. Ephesians 2:18 ESV And the Spirit even prays for us when we can’t find the words to pray according to God’s will. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. Romans 8:26-27 | ESV

The power of the Holy Spirit was made available to believers. He is God living inside the believer. Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 1 Corinthians 3:16 | ESV According to Erickson,“The Holy Spirit is the point at which the Trinity becomes personal to the believer.”5. The last instruction Jesus gave his disciples before returning to his father was to share the gospel. And he promised to empower them to do it. “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” Acts 1:4-5 | NIV The promise of Jesus and the prophets was realized on the Day of Pentecost following Jesus’s ascension. When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. Acts 2:1-4 | ESV

They went out into the streets preaching the “mighty works of God” in the native language of the foreign Jews visiting Jerusalem for the holiday. As the crowd grew, Peter, who not too long ago cowered in fear, boldly stood to preach the crowd’s culpability in the death of Jesus. He went on to tell them Jesus was alive and sitting at the right hand of God. God had given his Son the Holy Spirit, which he poured out on his followers. The Spirit produced what the people were witnessing. It was proof, Peter said, God had made Jesus both lord and savior. Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:37-38 The church began with and continues through the work of the Holy Spirit. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. Ephesians 2:22 | ESV

Hope is evidence of God’s love and the Holy Spirit in a believer’s life. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. Romans 5:5 | ESV He is the source of resurrection hope. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. Romans 8:11 | NIV Finally, the Spirit is the guarantee of our inheritance as Jesus-followers. The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him. Ephesians 1:14 | NLT

“The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment.”6. Without his influence and conviction we would not recognize our need for a savior, and miss out on God’s gracious forgiveness. Jesus said, “But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because people do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. John 16:7-11 | NIV Unbelief is the unforgivable sin. Those who do not avail themselves of God’s grace are destined to spend eternity separated from God in a place prepared for Satan and his angels.

Some believe that the initial evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues. There is no Scripture that asserts that is the rule, but that seems to have been the pattern in the 1st century church. Practically every time we read about people receiving the Holy Spirit, they spoke in tongues. (Acts 2:4, 10:46, and 19:6) The apostle Paul considered it important, “ I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you.” 1 Corinthians 14:18 | ESV 

It is, however, possible that we are filled with the Holy Spirit the instant we place our faith in Jesus. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit . . . Ephesians 1:13 | NIV If it is the case, it would make speaking in tongues an option available that can remain untapped in the life of a believer. But that is an argument for a future post. One certain evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit is by exhibiting the Fruit of the Spirit. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23 | ESV

The misunderstandings surrounding the Holy Spirit today have to do with the gifts of the Spirit; how, or even if, they are available to the contemporary Church. There are two views on that: cessationism and continuationism. Cessationism holds that the “miracle gifts” have ceased—that the end of the apostolic age brought about a cessation of the miracles. In the late fourth century John Chrysostom could speak of the spiritual gifts as belonging to an age in the past.”7. Most cessationists believe that, while God can and still does perform miracles today, the Holy Spirit no longer uses individuals to perform miraculous signs. Continuationism is the belief that all the spiritual gifts, including prophesy, healings, tongues, and miracles, are still in operation today, just as they were in the days of the early church.

The reason we don’t hear much about spiritual gifts in many contemporary churches today is when it happens, God, not man, is in control. Consequently belief that they are no longer available results more from lack of experience, rather that solid exegesis. There is no biblical evidence that they ceased with the apostles or that they have even ceased at all. The apostle Paul took great pains to explain the importance of spiritual gifts to the Church in 1 Corinthians 12. In 1 Corinthians 14:1 | ESV, He encouraged believers to “Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.” There is so much more to be said about this topic, but that will have to wait. For now, I will end with this final blessing. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Romans 15:13 | ESV

Footnotes:

1. Guy P. Duffield and Nathan M. Van Cleave, Foundations of Pentecostal Theology (Los Angeles:Foursquare Medis, 2008), 272.

2. James E. Cummings, Through the Eternal Spirit (Stirling, Scotland:Stirling Tract Enterprises, 1937), 50.

3. Thomas S. Caulley, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology (Grand Rapids:Baker Academic, 2001), 568.

4. John F. Walvoord, The Holy Spirit (Grand Rapids:Zondervan Academic), 27, Kindle edition.

5. Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids:Baker Academic, 1998), 862.

6. Duffield and Van Cleave, 273.

7. Caulley, 570.

 

Why Are People Leaving Church?

Why Are People Leaving Church?

by | Dec 7, 2022 | Just Sayin'

The author of Hebrews warned against missing corporate worship and yet, people are not only missing church, they are leaving for good in fairly large numbers. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. Hebrews 10:25 | NLT Those leaving are losing out spiritually and relationally and churches are hurting financially. What’s going on? What causes a person who has been taught the importance of Christian fellowship to walk out the back door? I would argue that there are many reasons people offer for leaving, but only one underlying cause.

The most recent reason suggested is that folks simply got out of the habit of attending church during the pandemic. Perhaps they discovered the world doesn’t end if they miss a Sunday service. Or it may be that they found it is more convenient to watch from home in their pajamas. After all, when they stay home, there is no implicit obligation to say anything to those seated around them and no one passes an offering plate. Still the doors of the church remain open. And the heat and light bills haven’t stopped. Many churches are hemorrhaging people and we, those of us who remain, must do our part to stop the bleeding. And that involves more than simply giving more money.

Even before COVID, people were leaving churches for a myriad of reasons. But the virus introduced a new one—politics. People began leaving over wearing masks, vaccinations or the fact people were too “woke,” whatever that now means. Long-standing church relationships were sacrificed on the altar of partisan politics. In his blog, N.T. Wright summed it up like this:

“Lifetime friends have divided over the past year or so with no plausible pathway to reconcile. And, of course, pastors in congregations are in the middle of the rancor and nastiness trying to hold their people together with a focus that is beyond the campaigns and election. But I know how much of a toll that takes on shepherds of the flock. In the U.S., it is not very hard to find a congregation and a pastor who is ‘on the same page’ politically. Thus, it is not unusual for people to leave their congregations because of political loyalties.

Most of those who left for political reasons did not abandon church altogether. Many left their former churches for those where most people share similar political views. They left but landed in another community of faith. I call them “sortas.” They “sorta” follow Jesus, but their actions indicate that they view politics as being more effective in achieving God’s will than prayer. And the person in the White House is more trustworthy than a prayer-answering God. We’ll come back to the “sortas” later. What about those who have left church for good? They will be the primary focus of this article.

A November 29, 2022 bulletin issued by the Office for National Statistics United Kingdom, indicating a census finding that England and Wales were no longer Christian majority countries. On December 1, 2022, the Catholic News Agency highlighted the dramatic decline in those two countries from 71.7% in 2001 to 46.2% today. Shortly thereafter, the December 2022 edition of Christianity Today included a book review by Arthur E. Farnsley II, of Nonverts: The Making of Ex-Christian America by Stephen Bullivant, an author who lives and works in Britain.

The same thing is happening in the United States. According to Pew Research Center only 65% of Americans identified as Christians in 2019, down from 77% in 2009. The situation is even worse than it might appear when considering practicing Christians. According to the Barna Group, practicing Christians are characterized by “calling oneself a Christian, strongly prioritizing faith and regular church attendance.” That number has fallen from 45% in 2000 to 25% just twenty years later. And there is little doubt that number has dropped even more in the ensuing twenty-two years.

According to Farnsley, in the first part of his two-part book, Bullivant describes the experiences of “nones,” those who had left Christianity and now consider themselves as having no religious affiliation. This is a very different group from those he calls “cradle nones,” people who have never had a church affiliation. The second part of the book describes why and how the church exodus occurred. He noted many of those who have left organized religion did so for strong, often emotional or painful reasons.

I want to focus on a statement Farnsley makes. “If you pay attention to much religious journalism, you can correctly guess what soured ex-Mormons, ex mainliners, exvangelicals, and ex Catholics on the religion of their youth.” What I have read fairly coincides with my experience. But we should keep in mind that not everybody who leaves church, leaves Jesus behind. As a chaplain I have heard many reasons folks have left the church of their youth, but they generally fall into four categories: the Bible, the money, the people, and/or the message.

For some it was the incongruence between science and biblical accounts. This typically occurs when literal meaning is the test for inerrancy. Essentially, those who leave for this reason are saying, “If I can’t believe in Jonah, I can’t believe in Jesus.” They fail to recognize that the Bible was not written to be a science textbook. It is an ancient text written to an ancient people containing many literary genres.

Must we accept, literally, a passage such as this? You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.Isaiah 55:12 | NIV Obviously, mountains don’t have voices and trees lack arms and hands. We, as Bible teachers, have an obligation to identify and explain the hyperbole and genre contained in the passages we are teaching and allow, when appropriate, for alternative interpretations.

Another frequently cited reason people leave is money. Whether it is the consistent pleas for people to give or the lack of transparency regarding how contributions are distributed, money is often a friction point. And it has been throughout the history of the Church. And the larger the church the more of a problem it is.

The rationale for giving should be included in the discipleship process, but not part of the evangelistic outreach. That presents a problem in seeker-sensitive churches that lack an effective discipleship process. Giving is a family matter best left to a venue that includes members and regular attenders, not first or second-time visitors. And when it comes to money, absolute transparency is key. Jesus, not the light bill, is the message. Fixing this disconnect is the responsibility of church leadership (e.g., deacons, elders, session, etc.).

Finally, the most frequently cited reason for leaving church for good is the people, or rather, the “hypocrites” who warm the pews of every church. And, brothers and sisters, those hypocrites are us. By far, the greatest disincentive to Christian affiliation is the behavior of other Christians. Is our church defined by what we are for, rather than what we are against?

How encouraging have we been to one another? Instead of befriending and lifting people up as they enter the front door, are are pushing them out the back door? Apparently that is the case, especially with younger prople. Why can’t we see that we are the reason they left? We are all sinners and pharisees in recovery. Can’t we just take off our masks and allow others to see the person God sees?

Those who leave because of our phoniness know they are not the perfect people many of us are pretending to be. They must be let in on our dirty, little secret. And that secret is we are all on the same journey. We all stumble. We all fall. But as members of one body, we rely on others to reach down and help us back on our feet. It is our failure to acknowledge our own weakness that comes across as hypocrisy. And it is our reluctance to extend a hand to help that makes them feel unwelcome and alone.

It is time we Jesus-followers become vulnerable and make our churches feel more like a hospital for sinners, rather than a sanctuary for saints. People hungering for something to believe in don’t come to church to feel isolated, inferior, or to play yet another role in life. They just want to be seen, heard, and understood. This can only be corrected when we keep our eyes on Jesus and follow the leading of his Spirit in our interactions with others both inside and outside the church.

Finally, and I believe this is the underlying reason people, including the “sortas” leave the church, regardless of any other rationale they might offer. They leave because they have never had a genuine, personal encounter with Jesus. They have never recognized and admitted they are sinners, repented and accepted God’s offer of grace and reconciliation. They have no relationship with a living, loving God. Their god is religion. Religion is what remains when we take our eyes off Jesus and go through the motions of church. It points to never having fully surrendered to him by making him both lord and savior.

When the focus is on flawed people and flawed institutions rather than Jesus, disillusionment is inevitable. Jesus must be our sole focus. We must be all in, completely surrendered, to him. Anyone or anything else is an idol that erects a wall between us and God.

If we hold anything back, if we allow ourselves to worry or be afraid about anything, we are not followers. We are still “sortas,” worshipping idols. When totally surrendered, it doesn’t matter who sits next to us, how the church money is raised and spent or whether we believe the world was created in seven, 24-hour days. All that matters is our unshakable faith in Jesus and our desire to be more like him.

The only time we should leave a community of faith is unbiblical teaching or the leading of the Spirit to service elsewhere. It is time started walking our talk and we changed our focus, not our church.

God’s Love?

God’s Love?

by | Nov 23, 2022 | What Does the Bible Say About?

God will never love you more than he does right now and he will never love you any less. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. (1 John 4:9-10 | NIV) 

In the New Testament four Greek words are used for love: eros (romantic), storge (family), philia (brotherly) and agape (God’s divine). The focus of this article is agape. For many, God’s love is a difficult concept. Unless they are acquainted with the back story, the God of the Old Testament appears harsh and angry. And when we refer to him as father, those with a difficult childhood may find it hard to equate father and love. Yet, here is the unvarnished truth, God loves you simply because he does. It has nothing to do with who you are or what you do.

Nothing can ever cause God to stop loving you.  And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. (Romans 8:38 | NLT) He will lovingly give you what you want even if you decide to live your life apart from him.

It has been said Christianity is the greatest story ever told. If that is the case, it is also history’s greatest love story. And it began with creation. God’s Word spoke us into existence and in his image. Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness . . . Genesis 1:26a Apparently Jesus is the pattern he used. Jesus, God’s son, took on human form to walk in this world to show us the character of our creator.  The Son is the image of the invisible God, (Colossians 1:15a | NIV)

Jesus is actually the one who made us. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. (Colossians 1:16 | NIV) Although we bear a strong family resemblance, Jesus did what no human has ever done or will ever do. He lived a perfect, sinless life. His obedience glorified God. It was his sinlessness that made him what John the Baptist called “the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29.)

You were created to be in relationship with him. God loves his creation unconditionally. But we pridefully chose a different god, ourselves. Sin of our first parents, Adam and Eve, recorded in Genesis 3, began a separation from God that continues to this day. When they realized they were naked, they fashioned clothes from leaves. They could hide their bodies, but they could not hide from God.

Their disobedience set into motion the promise of a savior, a Messiah. God punished the couple and cursed the serpent who enticed them to sin and promised there would be a day of reckoning. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” (Genesis 3:15 | NIV). After God received the couple’s confession of disobedience, he clothed them in animal skins. From then on animals were sacrificed.

The Jewish practice of regular animal sacrifice in response to sinful disobedience was not observed until Moses received God’s Law, the Ten Commandments. Every year on the Day of Atonement, which Jews call Yom Kipper, the high priest sacrificed a perfect goat to atone for the sins of the people. Animal sacrifice for sin continued until the destruction of the Jerusalem temple in 70 AD. Jesus fulfilled the Law by becoming the perfect sacrifice that takes away sin once for all. (Hebrews 10:10)

God’s love and desire to call his family to himself (reconciliation) was made complete in the birth of Jesus. Christ’s birth (incarnation) was described by Jesus like this, For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16 | NIV) The Apostle John said it like this, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. . . The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-2, 14 | NIV)

This is an aside, but an important one, nonetheless. On August 30, 2020, the Christian Post reported 30% of evangelicals did not believe Jesus is God. And on December 8, 2021, Christianity Today reported a Lifeway survey that found only 63% of professed Christians believed Jesus existed before his birth in Bethlehem. Apparently, it has been a while since nearly a third of us read the Book of John.

Because of his great love for his creation, God offers life in abundance here and eternal life when our time on earth has come to an end. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. (Ephesians 2:4-5 | NIV)

As difficult as it may be for us to wrap our minds around it, the torture and brutal, barbaric death Jesus endured in obedience to his father’s will is a manifestation of his love for us. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8 | NIV)

When we accept Jesus as both lord and savior, his Spirit lives in us and leads us to glorify God in all we do. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20 | NIV) 

We cannot live God-honoring lives unless we have received his Holy Spirit. And, like salvation and forgiveness, God’s Spirit is an act of grace. It is free for the asking. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13 | NIV)

When our faith is in Jesus, we become part of the family of God. See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! 1John 3:1a  Faith in Jesus involves believing you are lovable simply because you are breathing in and out. You are his creation and if your eternal faith is in him, you are God’s child. And if you are his child, there is no force stronger than his love for you.

As part of God’s family our behavior should reflect the love for others that God has for us. When asked which was the greatest commandment, He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind;’ and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'”(Luke 10:27 | NIV). He wasn’t just speaking of those neighbors we like. He directed us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us, that we may be children of our Father in heaven (Matthew 5:44-45a). We haven’t been tasked with liking them, but we are to love them.

As disciples of Jesus, God’s love not only saves us, it defines us. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35 | NIV) That brings to the heart of God’s love. Scripture tells us not only that God loves, but that he is the very definition of love. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. (1 John 4:16 | NIV)

Finally, because of God’s love for us, love is the litmus test for Jesus’s disciples. Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. (1 John 4:7-8 | NIV)

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