From the Pastor:
June 18
Some people could sell anything. Think of the greatest salesman you know--not necessarily the pushy guy, or the obnoxious one, but the one who really does persuade people to part with their hard earned cash for his product, because they are convinced beyond any doubt it's worth it. No doubt, the person you're thinking of could get almost anyone to buy almost anything.
God is omnipotent--a fancy word that simply means "nothing is too hard for the Lord." If mere human beings can be great salesman, God's talent and ability are infinite--beyond limits--His power is so great that He can truly persuade anyone to do anything.
Now, like all good salesman, persuading someone is not the same as forcing him to do something. Dictators force; salesman persuade. God never violates our free will by coercion, making us act against our wishes, but instead He persuades us so powerfully that we freely choose to act in accordance with His wishes.
In "The Year They Hear" theme here at CIC, we must remember this great truth as we share the good news of Jesus with others. While God chooses to use us to take the witness stand before others, and testify to them about the things we have heard and seen, he does not call us to persuade others by our own power. Only God can persuade someone to believe. And anyone He chooses to persuade will be persuaded, no matter how good of salesman you and I are.
This really takes the pressure off! All we are commanded to do is go and tell, and He takes care of the rest (because only He can take care of the rest). This is why we should pray before and after we go and tell. If God can persuade anybody, then in response to our prayers He might choose to persuade that friend or family member to believe--no matter how tough of a case they may seem to be.
Aren't you glad He persuaded you by His irresistible grace!
June 3
It seems like more and more in the news a common story is heard. Someone takes a gun and kills any number of people, and then turns the gun on himself. Though this kind of thing has happened in the past, usually in the past the person would carry out his dastardly deed and then run for his life, sometimes making good his escape, sometimes not. Today, it's as if the murderer thinks that escape can be achieved by simply eating a bullet from the mouth of his gun. I'm convinced that the reason this kind of thing is so common is that popular culture, at least here in America, has abandoned a very critical, core belief--the belief in a real place called Hell.
This belief was critical in times past in preventing many of the heinous crimes we see today. At one time, even hardened sinners knew that there would come a day when they would have to give an account of all of their deeds to a holy God, and that this God would not hesitate to cast them into a burning hell of conscious torment--they knew they couldn't slink away to hide in a grave and escape their just reward!
But hell shouldn't be believed in only because it is a great deterrent to evil--it should be believed in because it is a reality. For those of us who believe in the Jesus Christ of the Bible, we have no choice but to believe in a literal place known as hell. Jesus spoke more about this awful place than any other person in scripture, and he always spoke of it as a definite future reality. To reject a belief in hell is to reject the words of Christ Himself.
Not only is hell a reality, but also hell is hot. It's not some great party place that we want to be "on the highway to". Jesus calls hell a "hell of fire". He describes it as "outer darkness," where there is "weeping and gnashing of teeth." In Revelation the Bible describes it as a Lake of Fire, a place of torment. Scripture calls it a place of punishment, which Greek word conveys a penalty that one is aware of, that hurts. Hell is not a place of instant annihilation or light duty. It is a place where "I am tormented in this flame."
Sadly, hell is final. Scripture is very clear that any person that finds their way into hell will never, ever, find their way out again. "Their worm dies not, and their fire is not quenched," it is "their lot," and those there are punished with "everlasting destruction," God "destroys (beyond remedy) both body and soul in hell." To go there is to "perish" and "be lost." With every strong term it can use, scripture warns us that there is no reprieve, there is no release, there is no rescue for any who have gone to this horrible place. They can never get out.
Gladly, hell is avoidable!!!! On the cross, the infinite Christ suffered the infinite punishment of our sins, so that all who are born again by faith in Him can find such a great pardon and release from guilt that when we stand before Him, it will be as people who are clean and holy, people who are IN CHRIST, and are thus fully righteous. Hell can only be escaped when we admit that we are sinners deserving to go there, and that our only hope is to be saved by Jesus Christ, who died for our offenses, and rose again to declare us "not guilty." And that fire escape is open to any who will take it. Have you passed through the fire escape? Its entrance is not at the mouth of a gun, but rather at the foot of a cross!
May 12
Last week we talked about how to be filled with the Spirit. But what are the advantages of the Spirit-filled life?
1) Joy.
Joy is basically what we all are searching for. Worldly things can bring happiness, but happiness fades into depression and discontent. Joy remains! When one is Spirit filled, they have an ongoing intimate relationship with the God of the Universe, the Creator of all. From this close fellowship springs a satisfaction, a peace, a fulfillment for which nothing else can substitute. If you have ever been filled with the Spirit, you know the joy of which I speak. Have you traded other things for that joy?
2) Power
Christians face insurmountable odds. How do you maintain your testimony in the face of temptation? How can we raise our children in a cesspool culture? How can we make an impact against such an entrenched foe? The Holy Spirit gives us a power that is way beyond ours, and when He fills our life, our witness, our walk, our words have a power that is far beyond any scientific or psychological explanation!
3) Fruit that Remains
Many men have a midlife crisis because they are suddenly aware of how rapidly their life is slipping away and how little they have accomplished. The power of the Spirit filling our life guarantees that we will make a lasting difference in this world for good.
4) Exponential Growth in the body of Christ
How valuable to your body is your liver, your heart, your brain? All these organs are beyond quantifiable value because without them the body would die. When any of these is damaged we are anemic, frail, and miserable. But when all are functioning perfectly we can do great things and enjoy the bloom of health! Each of us is a member of the Church, Christ's body. Each of us is essential. Yet many of His members are diseased and barely functioning--no wonder His Church is so anemic and weak. But as each member becomes surrendered to the Spirit's Lordship in his life, we begin to start functioning within the proper performance numbers that a healthy organ should. And when we do, the Body of Christ grows immeasurably stronger, immeasurably more healthy, and immensely more powerful. What a difference a tiny organ our body makes! What a difference one tiny, Spirit filled member can make in the Body of Christ!
May 6
It's been a long time since I've written here, but things have been unbelievably busy for the last two and a half months! Thank God, it seems like things have finally settled down a little.
Over the last few weeks the Lord has been stressing to my heart the absolute importance of the power of His Spirit in our ministry here at CIC. Although I am all for programs, excellence, and for endeavoring to meet people where they are using the best of our knowledge, talents, and resources, (not doing so is a mark of laziness or uncommitment, and the Lord doesn’t bless those two attitudes), these things themselves are poor substitutes for the Holy Spirit. It's sort of like our bodies: we should want to look presentable, be clean, etc., but up at Grayson's funeral home they do those very same things to corpses. It is the spirit of life that makes all the difference, way more of a difference than all the little niceties of outward appearance.
In my own life, my sermons can be well-studied and well-articulated, my illustrations can be gripping, my outlines organized, my transitions impeccable, but if I as a preacher am not filled with His Spirit, my impact will be infinitesimally small compared with what God can do when I am filled with His Spirit. The same is true for the unique ministry that every single member of this church has.
How do we become filled with the Spirit? First, we must be clean. If there is any sin that we are defiantly holding onto, instead of confessing and forsaking, we will not be filled. Second, we must be surrendered to His will for our lives. As long as money, pleasure, power, or people are on our life's throne, He cannot sit there. Next, we must be separated from the world--willing to be different, to be shunned, to be peculiar, willing to take our stand for a set of priorities that the world doesn't understand. Fourthly, we must be dependent. Only when we become humble enough to realize that we are nothing and can accomplish nothing apart from His Spirit, can His Spirit do the work that He does for those who let Him have the power and the glory. Finally, we must be devoted to Christ--we must come to love Him supremely by spending time communing with Him in personal prayer, scripture meditation (reading and thinking about what you read in the Bible), personal praise and worship of Him, fellowship with His people by participating in the church, and giving of our time, talent, and treasure to things dear to His heart--His Kingdom.
When we meet these conditions, He guarantees that His Spirit will fill us: place us under His influence and enliven all that we do with His power. Next time I'll write about the wonderful advantages that come with being filled with the Spirit of God.
Mar. 19
What does the Resurrection of Christ mean to me?
First, it means reality! My faith isn't some mystical feel-good-ism based on a sweet fictional myth! It is based on a cold, hard, literal, touchable reality. The Person my trust is in lay dead in a tomb for three days and three nights, and then bodily got up and vacated the place, never to die again. His living flesh and bones were touched by witnesses; He walked, talked, ate, and lived and then bodily ascended into heaven, from where He will bodily return some day! The resurrection means reality!
Second, the resurrection means life beyond death. I KNOW death is not the end for me or anyone whom I love who is in Christ. Because He lives, we shall live also, even though we die.
Thirdly, the resurrection means forgiveness. I know Christ's sacrifice was sufficient to wipe away every sin I've ever committed, or ever will commit. I know this because God proved He accepted Christ's sacrifice for me by miraculously raising Him from the dead. Death could not hold Him, and my sins can not hold me because He died and lives again!
Fourthly, the resurrection means proof. The tomb was and is empty, and by that amazing miracle, that defies all the course of nature, I know that Christianity is no fraud. I know my redeemer is true!
Fifthly, the resurrection shows me God's love for Jesus. God loved Him so much that nothing, even death, could quench that love. And since I am in Christ, He loves me just the same!!! What can separate us from the love of God? Not even death!
Sixthly, the resurrection means I know He lives to hear my prayers and intercede on my behalf. My Jesus is alive, and I can talk to Him today.
Finally, the resurrection for me means unbridled joy. Death is a defeated foe! Everything will work out in the end for we who believe. No more tears, no more pain, no more goodbyes, and no more sickness and decay for the faithful. Just like spring bringing new beautiful life out of the barrenness of the winter, I know that no matter how dark and cold the night, how barren and empty our lives, or how dormant and dead our hopes, we shall rise again to an eternal spring of color, light, sweetness, and everlasting joy. In short, life is truly worth the living, just because He lives!
The Lord is Risen!
He is Risen Indeed!
Jan. 29
Today I’m thinking about thinking. The Biblical word is “meditation.” Not some kum-bah-yah chant while sitting in an uncomfortable pretzel position, the Biblical definition simply means, “What your mind runs on,” or “intense thinking” about a situation. Unfortunately, most of my meditation is the mental equivalent of junk food—miscellaneous trivia, politics, sports, my to-do lists, etc. Much like real junk food, where “you are what you eat,” the Book of Proverbs says, “As a man thinks in his heart, so he is—“ we are what we think about.
Now, imagine if instead of the fast-food thoughts I entertain, I instead began to concentrate on some of the great truths of scripture: for example, the verse from Zechariah “It’s not by might, or by power, but by my Spirit says the Lord.” Say I dwell on that thought and develop it into meditating on just how powerful the Holy Spirit is, how able He is to remove any mountain through me, to energize me to successfully complete any task. I would find it hard to get too distressed, depressed, or discouraged with my mind on that thought. Or perhaps if I ruminated on “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man, the things that God has prepared for those who love Him.” Imagining all the eternal glory that God has in store for me, contemplating my awesome ultimate destiny, resting my thoughts on the solid security of His promise—it’s hard to imagine I’d find much to make me irritable, angry, or petulant about that day.
How’s your mental health? Maybe you, like me, need to change your thought diet and start meditating on the great truths of our Christian faith. Because, “you are what you think about!”
Jan. 15
What are your favorite amusements? I like watching movies and some TV programs (especially NCIS), college basketball (go IU!), following politics (real clear politics has a great website); I love hiking in the woods, reading, and above all traveling (when I have money and time). If you notice, church is not listed as one of my favorite amusements--in fact, it is not on my list of preferred amusements at all.
Because church is work. I don't mean that it is my job, which it currently is, but whether I remain in the ministry or not, church must never become an amusement to me--it must always be a work.
An amusement is something we do when we have time or money, something that shouldn't require too much effort, and definitely something that should not be done when it becomes painful, exhausting, or stressful.
Work, on the other hand, is something we do because it has value. We do it when we don’t feel like it, when it isn't fun, when it hurts, when it exhausts, when it stresses, when we don’t have time, and when we'd rather be doing something else.
Now, don’t get me wrong: serving God has moments of great fun, joy, and excitement. Most work does as well. I love the feeling I get when I see my freshly mowed lawn, but I don’t mow just to feel good--I do it because its my work, my job.
God doesn't name us "fans" or "customers" or encourage us to join His Kingdom to be entertained. "We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, that He has before ordained that we should walk in them (Eph. 2:10)." God calls us all to work for Him. That means we don’t treat His service like an amusement, only doing what feels good when we feel like it. It means sometimes we do hard things we dislike--like sharing our faith, worshipping Him in the middle of a hard trial, perfecting personal holiness, confessing our faults to one another, attending that service, visiting that wayward brother, giving to that need, reading His word, spending time in personal prayer. It means we don’t get in a huff if someone says something we don’t like, doesn't shake our hand, or doesn’t sing our favorite style of music. It means that we put our nose to the grindstone and work for the advancement of His kingdom, and for His glory.
Is your Christianity merely an amusement, or is it your life's work?
Nov. 15
There are four reasons that I have been tempted to not give in the past. I'm sure I'm not unique in these temptations:
1) I'll invest my money now, and give more later. If I took my tithe and invested it, theoretically in a few years I could tithe more with the interest earned than I would have by faithfully tithing all those years. This is perhaps the most tempting of these temptations to me. But I realize it has two key flaws. The Bible says "Boast not yourself of tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth" (Proverbs 27:1). Yes, I might give more later, but I also might die tomorrow or see all my investments falter or fail (like happened to some in Enron). The other applicable verse is "He that is faithful in little is faithful also in much" (Luke 16:10). In other words, if I won't tithe on a little, I won’t tithe on much. What if my investments did very well? Then the tempatation would be to wait to tithe till they did even better, so that I could give God even more--and if they pattern continued, He would ultimately get nothing from me but good intentions.
2) It's tough right now--I'll give when I can afford to. Once again, there are two fallacies: 1) How do I know I'll ever be doing better? And 2) If only those who did well gave to God, would His kingdom have reached me? Probably not. The Bible says that "God has chosen the poor of this world rich in faith…" (James 2:5). It has always been through the gifts of the poor, not the rich, that the gospel has gone forth (Luke 21:1-4).
3) The church won’t administer it wisely. 1) Then let's be consistent: do you always administer all your money wisely? Would others agree that you always do? Would God? What if God removed all money from those of us who in His eyes are not administering wisely? As we judge others, we shall be judged (Mt. 7:1-5). 2) God never in scripture holds the giver responsible for how the gift is administered. In the days of the Priest Eli, his corrupt sons misused the gifts to God's temple. God didn't punish the givers for that, but He did fully punish Eli and his sons--severely. We have seen God's judgment on those ministries that waste or misuse his gifts--He will sort it out (Luke 20:47). 3) As a member of this church, you have a right to see where the money goes and speak to our deacons or me if you believe a habit of waste or unscriptural spending has cropped up. Our financial statements are placed in the foyer each month with every dollar specifically accounted for (by the way, you'd be surprised at how big some of the bills are around here!). Our congregation must ratify our deacons and our budget in order for any money to be spent.
4) God wants me to take care of my family first. Actually in scripture, this isn’t an either/or thing. That's why it's a sin not to give and a sin not to take care of our family. I believe it would be wrong for me to give 90% to the church and let my daughter and wife go hungry or naked. But God doesn't ask for 90%. Instead, throughout scripture he asks for the first fruits--He asks to be paid first. The prophet Elijah once asked a poor widow for a meal. She told him she was down to the last meal for her and her son and that after they ate it they would die. But he asked again to be fed first. When she did, God somehow made her supply of food and cooking oil keep on lasting for many months to come--she and her son did not die. Sometimes it takes faith for me to put God above my family--but when I do, I find that He does a better job of providing for them than I do.
Remember, giving is God's antidote to the power of greed in our lives. Give consistently as God directs you; show your gratitude to Him and place your faith in Him. You may not end up rich, but He will somehow meet your needs, His kingdom will go forward because of you--as those in the past gave so that it could be brought to you.
Nov. 7
I have been talking to Christians about giving of their treasure to God. I still want to do one more column on the reasons we sometimes fail to give, but before I do that, I wanted to talk to you a little today about the way our Church views giving as it relates to our ministries here.
It is the firm conviction of our church that the Bible commands our ministries to be funded solely by the free gifts of God's people. For that reason, our church never sells anything, conducts any fundraisers, or solicits any grants from the government in order to fund the ministries of this church. Over the years, rather then do a bake sale or car wash, we have just published needs in the bulletin or taken up special offerings. By doing things this way, God has always used His people to abundantly supply the ministries here that he has called our church to carry out.
Ministries that are not affiliated with our church or members have to come to their own conclusion about how God wants to finance them. When we invite them here as guests, we allow them to do some things that our church doesn't feel right about doing for ourselves. For example, we do not sell tapes of our sermons or services, but provide them free of charge; but we allow outside groups that come in to make their tapes, books, or other products available for sale because how they raise revenue is between them and God and is none of our business. Since some of these outside ministries are not churches, they do not have the luxury of receiving tithes and offerings the way we do.
Sometimes we provide products that other ministries offer to our people for the prices they ask. For example, AWANA uniforms, patches, etc. are ordered from the AWANA ministries via our church, so we do collect the money and forward it to them--but none of that money goes to support our AWANA program. The Perry's, one of the nations top southern gospel groups, are coming to do a concert for us this Friday evening--it should be awesome! They fund their ministry by asking a flat fee of churches of $3500 to cover their expenses, lodging, insurance, and their salaries (since they do this full time), so, knowing that many folks from other churches would be attending, we decided to divide this cost up among the 500 seats that are available here so that those coming to enjoy the concert would handle the burden rather than our church and its members exclusively paying out the cost by our offerings and tithes. None of our members or our church will receive any of this money, however. In the past we've offered Wednesday evening meals as a convenience to those attending church that night, and simply charged just enough from the meal to cover the cost of paying the store back for the products. We felt that only those who wanted that convenience should bear the cost, rather than the whole church bearing the cost of those who preferred not to do their own cooking on Wednesday evenings. In any of these cases, if a member wants to be involved but is unable to due to money, someone here will gladly pick up the cost for them, if they make us aware.
The Lord has always met the financial needs of our church's ministries and members exclusively through the gifts of our members--and he has done so abundantly above and beyond what we can ask or think! In gratitude toward God, our church gives away 10% of our budget to other ministries. Thank you so much for your gifts that alone make Charlestown Independent Church and all its ministries possible. And thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!
Oct. 31
Last week we talked to Christians about the importance of giving of our treasure to God. This week we'll address where to give and how much to give.
First, giving to God is not the same as generic giving. Giving to your kids, a political candidate, the football boosters, PBS, or the Boy Scouts are all noble and giving things, but Biblically they aren't the same as giving to God.
Giving to God throughout scripture always is listed as either a sacrificial act of worship (offering up a sheep on an altar to God) or as a gift to the work of God. When one gives to the work of God the gift should always begin with the work that is regularly ministering to you--throughout scripture, offerings were given to the local priest/tabernacle/temple/church (depending on the time in history) and those offerings were listed as being given to the Lord.
How much should we regularly give? From the earliest accounts in the Bible, people always gave God automatically 10% (a tithe). The Bible merely comments that people did this and does not explain why that figure is significant or why ancient believers gave that particular percent. Later, when Moses gave the law, he didn't specifically issue a new command for people to give 10%--he just explained where and when to give it--he assumed they already knew to do so. Later prophets condemned the Israelites for not tithing and not giving offerings above their tithe. Jesus praised the Pharisees for being very careful tithers, but condemned them because they forgot to do things that were more important than tithing--like showing mercy to people. He told them they should do both. After the Church was established the Bible never commands us to tithe; but it doesn’t say that we aren't to, either. Instead, it says that we should never give grudgingly or out of obligation, but cheerfully. And it reminds us that if we give stingily to God, we'll reap accordingly.
Personally, I think the tithe is a good guide to help us out; without that guide, I would naturally assume that God should get something like 90% of my income, and I should make due on the rest--after all, he's worthy of it all! Instead, to me it's like God is saying, "No, 10% is more like what I had in mind." Since I started regularly working in '92 as a teacher I determined that 12.5% was the percent God wanted me to give. So each year I figure out what my gross weekly income is, and off the top give that percentage to God. Every year, a funny thing happens. When I figure up at the end of the year how much I actually made, I discover extra money has come in and that at my current rate I was only giving God 10% after all. Very odd.
This July when I was making out my family budget, I thought about how much I could use a little of that money I normally give. I rationalized: well, I'm giving above a tithe anyway, so I'll just cut this down to 10.6%. And I did. But I never felt right about it. Three weeks ago I was reading my Bible about David talking about offering to God, and he said, "I will not give to God that which costs me nothing." In other words, there should be a sacrificial dimension to what we give. I knew then that my 10.6% was not costing me enough. So I repented and changed it back to 12.5%.
The point is, I can't tell you how much to give. God says give cheerfully as God has prospered you. He gives us the tithe as a general idea of what he's looking for. He says to give in a way that costs us something--we should have to give up some things in order to give. And He tells us to listen to His voice in this matter. Are you giving cheerfully, in accordance with how you've been blessed, and in a way that costs you something? Are you giving in a way that uses 10% as a general guideline? Are you listening to God has He directs you in an individual way? I hope so.
Next week I'll talk about some personal arguments I myself have considered against giving, and I'll discuss some of the ways I think God has blessed me for giving despite them.
Finally, let me stress again that giving to God is only for believers to do. If you aren't a believer God wants you, not your money!!! And, by the way, I don’t get a commission on how much the church brings in--my salary is fixed either way. In fact, our church itself tithes--we give away 10% of our budget to other churches, ministries, and missionaries that are doing God's work, as our corporate way of worshipping and sacrificing for Him.
Oct. 23
This column is only for those who know Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.
The reason I'm only writing to you all is because this is a family matter we need to discuss. Sometimes people outside the family don't get "family stuff", and that's just as well because this topic has nothing to do with them anyway.
The subject I want to talk to you about is "giving". It's not something I like to talk about often, because there are so many con artists out there who rant and rave about this topic just to make a buck. A lot of people are in Christian ministry for money.
But I am very glad that my Pastor and Spiritual leaders when I was growing up taught me about giving, because my life is different in a bunch of positive ways thanks to the Biblical advice they gave me. As a Pastor, I am required to give out the "whole counsel of God," so that folks can grow to be mature Christians--so, just because a subject is twisted and abused by some does not excuse me if I fail to bless others with the truths of scripture that I have learned.
First, why is giving our money to God important? There are several reasons: 1) It breaks the power of money over our lives: God knows that we all face the danger of becoming materialistically obsessed, ala Ebenezer Scrooge. Consistently giving money away is an antidote to that poison. 2) It acknowledges where the money came from. The Bible says in Deuteronomy that it is God who gives us the "power to get wealth" (8:18). We may work hard, but our health, our mind, our freedom, our economy, and much of our circumstances are a gift from God--there are people who work a lot harder than you for a lot less, in places like Africa or even here at home; and there are people who are truly incapable of working. So, giving to God is a way we acknowledge that what we have comes from Him. 3) It stretches our faith. Do we truly believe that "My Father owns it all" and that "He will supply all our need according to His riches in glory (Phil. 4:19)?" Nothing tests our faith like shelling out and giving away part of our income to Him. Just like you, I look at my budget and imagine how much cleaner it would be with that extra cash--but I have also learned another principle--somehow it ends up working out anyway, because God blesses me when I give because by giving I put my trust in Him. The Bible never says that if we give He'll make us a million dollars, but He does promise that if we give He will somehow make the dollar we have left go further than we ever thought it would--and I have experienced this.
Next time we'll look at determining how we should give, and then look at some arguments we all sometimes make against giving.