Jury Duty

While I work on the articles through the week, Mondays are the days normally dedicated to finishing and posting them. However, today I spent almost the entire day in the Harris County District Courthouse as a potential juror. Although I wasn’t ultimately selected, it took them until 4:00 PM to come to that conclusion, so I won’t post an article this week.

However, I have been working on the website, making it easier to navigate the website, so now might be a good chance to explore the site, and perhaps, review some of the older articles. There are two ways you can go about that.

The first is to go to the “Blog” menu at the top right side of the page. On that pull-down, there is a “Find An Article” option. The will take you to an Archive Page were you can navigate the site by page, by month, by category, or by a simple list of all articles posted.

Under the category section, I have created a category for each of the series of articles, so, if you want to review a series, look for the category for that series.

The second option is to use the pull-downs that now appear in the right column of each page. There is a pull down to search by date, and there is a pull-down to search by category. The series categories appear in this location as well.

I really hate that the articles have been interrupted so frequently of late, and look forward to resuming them next week.

Garth

Exploring Dependence – Rich Young Ruler – Part 2

As we resume the story of the Rich Young Ruler, we recall that the main character came to Jesus with a strong confidence in man’s ability to merit eternal life. And we saw Jesus repudiate that very notion. If the young man wanted to find Life, he would have to completely abandon everything on which that confidence was founded, renouncing it all to follow Jesus. That was the path to eternal life.

Unfortunately, this young man owned a lot of property, and was unwilling to let go of it, and the confidence that it gave him. So, instead of finding Life, he went away sad and grieving.

But the episode doesn’t end there. As we pick up the story, we find Jesus using the encounter to drive the point home to the disciples.

He turns around, and speaking to the disciples now, says, “How hard it will be for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God.” (Mark 10:23)

Now, place yourself in the disciples’ shoes. How would you respond to that statement?

If you are like me, and have been influenced by teaching from the rest of the New Testament, this statement may seem like a given – somethings so obvious, it almost seems needless to say it.

But note the disciples’ response. It wasn’t obvious to them. They were amazed (Mark 10:24). See they still had some of the same world-view as the rich, young ruler. The prevailing assumption of the religious community was that riches were a sign of God’s blessing, and evidence that your righteousness was pleasing to Him.  Read more

Exploring Dependence – Life & Death

As we have followed Jesus’ teaching and the training of the Twelve through the Gospels, we have seen Him emphasize this issue of dependence. Having taught the concept in the Sermon on the Mount, He sent the disciples out in pairs to proclaim the Kingdom, and to experience God’s daily provision for their personal needs. In feeding the multitudes, He stretched them further, putting them in positions where they had to trust Him, not only for themselves, but also for the needs of those they were ministering to.

Now, let’s look at His interaction with the Rich Young Ruler (Matthew 19:16-30; Mark 10:17-31; Luke 18:18-30), where He will stretch the disciples further yet. Read more

Exploring Dependence – Sending of The Twelve

So, how seriously should we take Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount?

When He said not to worry about food, drink, or covering (Matthew 6:25, 31), was He speaking of worry as distinct from concern? Is it ok to be concerned about these things, as long as we are not worried?

When He said to seek His Kingdom instead of worrying about food, drink and clothing (Matthew 6:32-33), did He really expect us to reorient our attention away from our basic needs in order to focus completely on His Kingdom and the righteousness that we need to participate? Or is it ok to pursue basic provisions as long as they don’t keep us from serving Him?

And when He said not to worry about tomorrow (Matthew 6:34), did He literally expect us to focus only on the current 24 hour period of our existence, or is “tomorrow” a reference to an unspecified, more distant future?

Well, let’s look at His expectations for the disciples the Story progresses. Read more

Exploring Dependence – The Lesson of the Manna

As we began to explore the issue of our dependence on God in the last article, we set out the notion that, as Christians, we tend to be ok with the idea of this dependence in theory, but practically manifest an ongoing desire to live independently of God. Perhaps this is most evident in the area of provision and protection. The fact that we see money as the most immediate path to provision and protection suggests that it, not God, may be the true source of our confidence.

We looked at some of the highlights of this theme, as The Story unfolded through Genesis. Through these events, God is revealed as the One who Provides for and Protects those He has chosen.

This week, we want to pick up with the next major event in the Story – The Exodus.

Abraham had Isaac, who had Jacob, who had sons that became the 12 Tribes of Israel. Because of a famine, they went down into Egypt, where they spent 400 years growing into a nation. Now God is ready to bring them out of Egypt and back into the land that He first promised to Abraham. After He magnifies himself through the plagues, Pharaoh finally lets Israel go, only to change his mind and chase them down as they are trapped against the Red Sea (Exodus 14-15). Here Yahweh manifests Himself as their Protector, parting the Red Sea to allow them to escape, and then destroying the Egyptian army as they pursue Israel through the Sea. With this, their deliverance from the threat of the Egyptians is final, at least for this stage of their history.

Now, the focus of the story turns to Yahweh’s as Provider – His provision of the Land He has promised, and more fundamentally, His provision in their day-to-day existence, even as they are traveling to the Land.  Read more

Waiting On God

Well, it’s 1:56 am on Tuesday morning and I have been working since before noon to get this week’s article out.

The words have come in spurts, sometimes after much struggle. And I have words on paper. Many words. But I am not sure they are God’s words.

As I was asking God to help me complete the article, the following passage came to mind -

“As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever.”

(1 Peter 4:10–11 NAS95)

Looking at the words I have written, I’m not sure they are the utterances of God. I’m not sure that God will be glorified in them. So, I am going to obey God’s prompting. Rather than following my first instinct and pressing on, I am going hang on to the words I have written until I can be sure they are His words, ready to be shared.

In the meantime, I sense He wants me to leave you with this passage and this thought -

How many of our struggles are the result of us doing “God’s work” independent of His provision?

The Practical Pursuit of God’s Pleasure – An Unexpected Consideration

In our pursuit of God’s pleasure, which is to say, our pursuit of His will, I have tried to make two important points these past two weeks. First, God’s will is not, at it’s core, about a list of predetermined decisions that we have to get right. It’s about representing Him and reflecting His character.

Second, God does not score us against some standardized scale of performance. He is not our Examiner, He is our Father, Who, through faith in Jesus, has given us His nature, and Who delights in watching us grow increasingly into His likeness.

Clearing these issues up is critical. Otherwise, the misconceptions leave us chasing a notion of God’s will that has no more substance than a truckload of post holes. For you nautical types, that’s a lot like a boatload of sailboat fuel.

This week, I was ready to look at knowing God’s will/desires at a personal level. But in my time with Him this morning, I realized that there is another common, and fatal, misconception that frequents our notions of God’s will.  I’ll let Peter introduce it -

“Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God…” (1 Peter 4:19 NAS95).

Did you catch that? At least for some, God’s will involves suffering. Read more

The Practical Pursuit of God’s Pleasure

Seven months ago, we began a journey to understand what it means to love what God loves and hate what He hates. That journey has brought us to the discovery that God’s soul has no pleasure in those who pursue life according to their own agenda. While I doubt we have arrived at our final destination, the place we now find ourselves is surprising. Not so much in the description of those with whom God is displeased, but with the realization that it can so readily include believers.

This is unsettling. Our journey was partially prompted by David’s commitment to align himself with God, against those who hate God. This seemed like choosing up sides – “us vs. them.” Just a simple matter of figuring out which of “them,” or of “their deeds” we should hate. But now we discover that we are at risk of becoming objects of God’s displeasure as well.

In this discovery is another refinement in our thinking that should be noted. We began with a focus on “hate,” which implies total rejection. But our journey has brought us to the realization that it is not enough to avoid being hated by God. Being the object of His displeasure, even as His child, is a fearful place to be.

So we are still unsettled, with questions that need answers. The last article has come up in conversations several times this week, and several versions of the same concern have been raised:

• “How do we move this beyond the cliche of ‘pursuing life according to God’s agenda, rather than mine’ ?”
• “I am still afraid that I might be that third guy from the parable of the minas.”
• “In pursuing the pleasure of God’s soul, don’t we end up back at either salvation by works or Lordship Salvation?”

Read more

The Pleasure of God’s Soul – Part 12 – The Choice

So, we have spent the last 11 weeks reviewing the The Story, to understand the background of the warning of Hebrews 10.

As the story unfolded, we found three key developments.

Life

When The Story began, we had Life. That is, our existence had meaning.

We had an identity. We were created to represent God – to bear His image. When you look at us, you were to see Him. We were somebody.

We also had significance. As His representatives, we were given the responsibility to rule over creation, administering His agenda, and fill that creation with others who would do the same. Our lives made a difference – we had an impact.

And our lives were full. As His representatives, we walked with God. He gave us a place to live — the Garden — a place of beauty and abundant provision. And, He gave us a mate — someone who would perfectly fulfill the needs and desires that we had for assistance, companionship and intimacy. We had fulfillment.

So, in the beginning, we not only had existence, but that existence had meaning – identity, significance and fulfillment.

Death

But, very early in The Story, our role as God’s representatives was tested. Rather than choosing to administer God’s agenda, we decided that we could be god-like ourselves, and began to pursue life according to our own agenda. In this betrayal of God, we abandoned our relationship with Him and became rebels. In this  choice, we abandoned our identity as His representatives. And since we no longer represented Him, we forfeited the significance and that came with ruling as His representatives. God  responded with a curse, bringing futility to creation and physical death to us, and then kicked us out of the Garden.

So, we became objects of God’s wrath, doomed to return to the dust, and abandoned the identity, significance, and fulfillment that gave meaning to our existence. We died.

Hope Read more

The Pleasure of God’s Soul – Part 11 – Serving The Christ

So, if I get to go to heaven simply by trusting Jesus for forgiveness, and if this discipleship-thing is so demanding, why go to all the trouble? Sure, it might make me a “better person,” but I’d rather do my own thing. And, if we’re Christians, we’re all going to end up in the same place anyway. Yeah, a really committed Christian might get a few extra perks, but the difference is not really much of a big deal, right?

Not exactly. Actually, not even close.

Aside from the audacity of rejecting portions of the offer of the Christ, and aside from the foolishness of choosing to work things out on our own – aside from that, there are ramifications.  Read more

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