There were several denominations who emphasized the ministry and passion of John the Baptist this month. His account is detailed in the Book of Luke in Chapters One and Three. John is clearly a pivotal figure in the salvation history of God.
Although most of his formative years were lived in obscurity in the desert, his public ministry ended nearly four hundred years of prophetic silence. John was truly that voice “crying in the wilderness” preparing the way for the coming Messiah. John preached the Good News without compromising his convictions or calling. This means going beyond the gentle, non-offensive sermon topics, and addressing the truth of the Good News that teaches repentance, freedom, healing, and restoration through Jesus’ death and Resurrection. John was truly a transitional Biblical figure, forming the connecting link between the Old and New Testaments. He spans the generations with one foot firmly planted in the Old Testament and the other squarely placed in the New. Our ministry really shouldn’t be any different than that of John’s. He had his specific mission and we have our mission. He lived his life in a way that continually prepared him for living out his particular calling. We should live our life in ways that do the same. We should desire to do our part in building God’s kingdom “on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). We should desire to see the lost come to Jesus through repentance and salvation. We should desire to live in a way that we preach and present the Good News (Gospel) in both our words and actions. As an Army military veteran, I was always told, as a soldier, to not only “improve my fox hole,” but to always leave any place I am assigned better than how I found it. It is that way as a Christian. Through our ministry, we should desire to leave this earth better than we found it. Spiritual investments. Legacy. Bearing fruit. The obvious fact in choosing to live this way is knowing that we cannot accomplish this monumental task by our human power. If, however, we will prepare ourselves and choose to willingly commit to proclaiming the Good News, empowered with the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the Lord will do the rest. Nothing He calls us to do will be impossible with Him. This gives us the freedom to leave all the results to Him and spend all our time investing ourselves in the tasks at hand. If we will, like John the Baptist, commit to making the effort and sacrifices necessary to fulfill what we know God is calling us to do, He will make our efforts fruitful when we do it in the Spirit’s power and guidance. John the Baptist, through his surrender to God’s will for him, fulfilled his mission to be the forerunner to the Savior, Jesus Christ. We, too, can commit to fulfilling our calling that God has on our life. So, beginning today, may we take the step of faith and let God work and speak through our efforts to live a sanctified, holy life pleasing to Him. Let the power of the Holy Spirit transform us into avid and passionate builders of the Kingdom of God that leads others to repentance and salvation in Jesus Christ. Let us look to John the Baptist and commit to focusing on fulfilling what God has called us to do.
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I have to admit that it can be mind-boggling when I learn something new that changes the dynamics toward understanding something I have been accustomed to knowing nearly all my life. Especially, if it involves “re-thinking” parts of a fairly adaptable “memorization” from the church such as Psalm 23, The Apostle’s Creed, and even the Lord’s Prayer.
One such encounter led our church into a full-hour discussion as our Sunday School lesson. It was part of the Lord’s Prayer found in Matthew 6:13, “And do not lead us into temptation….” What, exactly, does it really mean to “not lead us into temptation?” I found is that it does not literally mean “keep me from being tempted.” The key word here is “temptation” which means “trial” or “proving.” It has a stronger, spiritual meaning than a mere whimsical approach such as “help me resist the temptation to eat another slice of cake!” It also puts to rest that God is “messing with us” to see if we “take the bait” and choose to sin. James 1:13, “When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” God’s intentions are for our growth and maturity as well as to strengthen our faith while deepening our relationship with Him. Trials and temptations are not allowed for our demise or destruction. It is God’s desire for us to draw near to Him and through that relationship allow, by faith, to walk with us through each and every trial. As hard as it may be at the time, we must rest and trust that God has our best in mind by allowing such trials. James 1:2-3, “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.” 1 Peter 1:6-7, “So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.” God wants us to choose what is right. Sometimes, our resolve needs to be tested and tried to build a resistance towards anything that could entice us to be less than God created us to be. Our hearts desire is to please God and honor Him by choosing righteousness over an easy-fix-solution that is not of His plans or will for us. It has been said, “An untested faith is a weak faith, compared with one that has passed through a searching test and emerged victorious.” It is sometimes difficult and confusing when trying to fathom why God will allow testing and trials to come about in our lives. We can succumb to bitterness, resentment and self-pity. That, is yet, another trial to overcome “self.” Instead of immediately blaming God and accusing Him of being cruel, take a step back, take a deep breath, and ask God for help by asking what He wants you to learn through the entire process of walking in this trial. The bottom line is faith! Is it in God? Can we accept the path which God knows to be His will for us? Can we choose resilience and trust in order to grow, mature, and strengthen our faith and relationship with our Heavenly Father? Many, I’ve seen become impatient, bitter, or resentful for the challenges and trials and wish nothing more than to “be rescued” or to “get out” of the situation as quickly as possible. Instead of patiently learning the lessons that could have matured and strengthened them, they, instead, turned to “self” and the world to get the “quick fix” “answers” that were more immediate and attractive. By doing so, what appeared to be the answer was actually more trouble and made things worse than ever before. We can sometimes be so fixated on our trials that we miss the lessons that will grow us out of the trial. Worldly ways of the “quick fix” will never offer solutions that give us the wisdom to prevent further disasters or messes later in life. There is always a way to “learn our way out.” 1 Corinthians10:13, “The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” God wants you to be victorious in and through any and all trials. So, the next time we pray the Lord ’s Prayer and ask “lead us not into temptation” may it be our resolve and our choice to stand firm in the times of trials so that our faith grows stronger and we become even more mature in our faith. By submitting to God in these trials, learning from Him, and letting go of “self,” we will soon see the truth of James 4:7, that we are able to, more than ever before, “Resist the devil…” and give even broader room for the trials to become our source of victory! The Sunday sermon. Just that statement, alone, provokes many different thoughts and opinions. It isn’t easy. The Pastor’s challenge is how to be faithful to the Scripture without diluting the truth to conform to the pressures of social norms, or the latest philosophical fads of progressive thinking. Also, there is the battle of not succumbing to the world of entertainment by downplaying the holiness of Scripture by the over-use of humor, theatrics and boisterous antics in the pulpit.
Where’s the balance? We don’t want to bore our people to sleep? We really don’t want people to mentally check out on us….do we? How do we maintain interest and connect with people on a deep spiritual realm so that they desire to listen, learn, and become dynamic members of the church who reflect the light of Christ? The dynamic involved is keeping the message simple. However, simplicity does not mean hovering in the realms of shallowness. Simplicity is not a “free pass” for the pastor not to study, try very hard, or carefully prepare a solid, Biblical message. Simplicity, to me, is stating the truth in a clear, direct, and understandable message. A pastor is not a salesman peddling light-hearted, feel-good stories and antidotes. A pastor must be a witness to the Truth of God’s Word. A pastor should never cheat their church out of learning deeper lessons from Scripture. The pastor is not an entertainer to provoke accolades and applause. A pastor is a change-agent to ignite a passion within others to go deeper in their faith and to forsake the godlessness of this world. The Apostle Paul wrestled with this, too! He didn’t want to miss placing the focus squarely on Jesus. 1 Corinthians 2:1-5, “In the same way, my brothers, when I came to proclaim to you God’s secret purpose, I did not come equipped with any brilliance of speech or intellect. You may as well know now that it was my secret determination to concentrate entirely on Jesus Christ and the fact of his death upon the cross. As a matter of fact, in myself I was feeling far from strong; I was nervous and rather shaky. What I said and preached had none of the attractiveness of the clever mind, but it was a demonstration of the power of the Spirit! Plainly God’s purpose was that your faith should not rest upon man’s cleverness but upon the power of God.” If a preacher is not careful, he or she will get in the way of the gospel instead of being a servant of the gospel. Pastors can obscure Jesus and drown-out the message by their preaching, either in the presentation or the message. Whether that is “toning it down” or “over-doing theatrics” a sermon should focus on one thing: Jesus Christ. There is a place for drama, puppets, videos, dance, and other illustration-based presentations as long as it isn’t a distraction, but aids understanding and creates learning and growth. If anything we do is nothing more to entertain, delight the senses, and to draw a crowd, then we have failed. The purpose of our calling should never be to use slick, entertaining, or even deceptive means to “lure” people into the church. Statistics, crowds, “results,” properties, and large campuses/buildings are not our main concern. That is why the principle stands: what you draw them with is what you draw them to. Is that Jesus? Pastors and churches must always evaluate and look at what they are doing and honestly see if they are just putting on an exhibition to win a crowd, or faithfully witnessing to bring direction, conviction, and truth in order to provide a new direction for people to encounter and accept the love of God through salvation in Jesus Christ. In all that we do, stay grounded by keeping it simple….remember the words of Paul to stay focused “entirely on Jesus Christ and the fact of his death upon the cross.” If we’ll do that, I am sure all the other things of concern will fall nicely into place. As a pastor, I have always thought of the people sitting in the Sanctuary during a Sunday morning worship service was much like the “one-room school house” I have seen many times in episodes of “Little House on the Prairie.” Why, so?
Regardless of what grade the children were in and no matter what level of their true knowledge and wisdom, they were still altogether in one room learning together under the guidance of one teacher. However, in the learning process, it was expected that all students show patience and respect towards their fellow students who struggled with learning or were much younger and at a different level of curriculum. It would be cruel for a senior student to laugh and jest at a six-year-old learning to read for the first time. The difference between 12th grade and Kindergarten is beyond obvious and should be understood and respected. It is no different in the Church. Sitting in our church pews (chairs) each Sunday is a group of people who are literally in “different grades” in the “school of faith.” Some are “senior saints” while others are struggling in the grade of “kindergarten” because they are new to the church or recently “born again” and have been experiencing everything for the very first time. There are those who are just 2-3 years into salvation are struggling with doctrine, church membership, and learning to live in holiness while those 40-50 years into their faith are solid believers and able to lead Bible studies, small groups, and serve in key leadership roles in Church. We must keep in mind that everyone attending Church are all at different levels of their faith. Therefore, we must respect and accept each other at whatever “level” they may be on their faith journey. And yes, the Apostle Paul had something to say about that! We find it in Romans 14:1, “Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters.” Let’s first clarify what Paul is NOT saying. He isn’t singling out any particular person or group as being the ones who are weak. He’s talking to all believers. We all have our weaknesses and blind-spots to work on in seeking holiness. Neither is Paul addressing preferences or opinions. For example, I love the old Hymns that are rich in doctrine and are theologically solid. With that, I cannot look down on a fellow believer as “weak” because they don’t understand these hymns and would prefer to sing more praise choruses in worship. We can “agree to disagree” and sing together. What I believe Paul is hitting on is found in his statement not to be “quarreling over disputable matters.” This has nothing to do with fussing over “wine or grape juice” for communion, or if we should have crosses, banners, candles and other religious articles decorating the sanctuary. Paul says we must NEVER argue over our opinions. Paul says to “accept” each other regardless of where we are in our faith journey. The word “accept” simply means to “receive” or “welcome.” So, Paul says to welcome them as a fellow believer in love without judging or condemning because they like or prefer things you don’t or possibly see a different application of key Bible passages than your interpretation. You can “agree to disagree” and still get along together. Growing in our faith and living sanctified to become holy is not easy. In fact, it is hard and challenging in a sinful world. So, growing spiritually is like growing physically – everyone grows at different rates as God works in their life. The word “accept” is powerful because it allows room for growth and maturity to continue. Bashing them over the head with rules, regulations, and stipulations trying to “change them” or “turn them from their sins” will only stunt their growth and possibly turn them from God. Just because they “aren’t like you” doesn’t mean they must change and become like you. This is nothing more than my opinion, but if your differences within a particular church body are so different, challenging, frustrating, and stunting your own growth, then perhaps the easiest solution towards “Romans 14:1” is to first study the background of the Church you are attending. I think the matter is not a “people problem” but a “denomination problem.” I think your issues could be resolved by simply understanding the denomination of the Church you are currently attending. Find out WHY they are Baptist, Methodist or Presbyterian. Ask the pastor to help you understand the basics of that denomination and what builds the foundation for being that denomination. This is very important. For example, if you enjoy and thrive in the church that is formatted with deep formality such as hymns, responsive readings, choir music and sermons delivered by a pastor in elaborate vestments such as robes/stoles or cassocks, then you are probably going to struggle with Romans 14:1, in a Baptist, Pentecostal or Assemblies of God church. You might want to find and explore the Anglican, Episcopal or Methodist churches. Your faith is not proven by how strictly you go about obeying rules, regulations, laws and ordinances. Your faith is how you live out your faith spiritually in pursuit of holiness and the commands of Jesus. You can follow all the rules and still miss heaven. It’s not so much about rules as it is about Jesus. It will never hurt to focus more on ensuring you have yourself in order before you begin worrying about trying to get others ‘in order.’ Above all, just remember this time-tested charge: In the essentials, unity. In the non-essentials, liberty. In all things, love (charity). |
AuthorPastor Charles - Archives
April 2024
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