[Subversive Underground]
Jesus Is Our Blueprint
by Keith Giles
"Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world" - John 1:29
I've often referred to Jesus as our blueprint for living the Kingdom life because Jesus lived a Kingdom life for us to follow. He showed us how to humble ourselves and serve others, how to love those who are outside our comfort zones, and how to forgive those who hate us.
The life of Jesus was intended to show us that, in fact, it really is possible for us to obey His commands and live as He did.
This is what Jesus meant when he said "I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing" - John 14:12
If we trust in Jesus, if we really believe in what He taught us, we will put His words into practice and we will do the things we saw Him doing.
A few verses previous to this one, Jesus lets the Disciples know that all He has ever done is what the Father told Him to do- "The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work." v. 10
So, if Jesus accomplished all that He did by listening to Father, and doing what the Father was doing, then we also can, and will, do the things that Jesus did when we submit our lives to God in the same way.
A few verses later Jesus is asked a question: "Why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the World?"
The disciples are wondering why Jesus doesn't reveal His Glory to the entire planet at once. Here's what Jesus says in reply, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him." - John 14:22-23
Did you catch that? The Disciples want to know why Jesus only shows himself to the twelve and not to the whole World. Jesus answer? I'm showing myself to you and when you obey my teachings you show me to the World, then they will see me, and the Father.
Our obedience to Jesus allows the Gospel to be proclaimed in our lives each day.
The point of a blueprint is to read the plan and to duplicate it in the real world. Jesus death on the cross was intended to set us free and give us a new kind of life in the Kingdom of God, here and now, where we live and breathe.
His sacrifice gave us life. His death gave us access to the Kingdom. And now, our daily sacrifice not only allows us to follow after Him, it is intended to put to death our flesh so that He can live in us.
Because Jesus died, we can live. Because we die daily, Jesus can live through us.
Do people around you see Jesus in you? Are you daily taking up your cross to follow Him? There's still time to start living for the One who died to give you life.
"Behold, the Lambs of Jesus who die daily so that their Shepherd can live through them."
-kg
**
THE CHURCH JESUS BUILT - Free Podcast
If you use ITunes be sure to download the new podcast sermon, "The Church Jesus Built" over at [Subversive Underground] podcast.
**
This is too good not to share.
Read it and bookmark it. It's solid gold.
MODERN CHURCH TRANSLATION
Excerpt:
James 4:17
17 "Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it."
-New Living Translation
17 "Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it. Unless, of course, you instead give money to some type of organization that will do it for you. In this way you will be absolved from all responsibility to do anything and can sleep at night with a clean conscience."
- Modern Church Translation
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Thursday, June 19, 2008
THE CHURCH THAT JESUS BUILT
The Church That Jesus Built
by Keith Giles
In 2 Samuel, chapter 7, we read where King David looked around his opulent cedar palace and concluded that it wasn't right that he should live in such splendor while God lived in a tent outside the city, hovered over the Ark of the Covenant.
When David tells the prophet Nathan that he intends to build a house for God the prophet enthusiastically tells David that he is certain God will be with him no matter what he plans to do.
That night God nudges Nathan awake and lets him know that it's usually better to ask God what He thinks before you just go ahead and endorse someone's impulsive idea.
God tells Nathan to let David know that He doesn't live in that tent, and that He can go wherever He wants, and that He has never asked anyone to build a house for Him. Not ever.
Instead, God tells David, in verese 11, to sit back and allow Him to build a house for David. "The LORD declares to you that the LORD himself will establish a house for you."
What follows is a beautiful prophecy concerning the Messiah. "When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son." - (2 Sam 7:12-14)
I am amazed to see how God not only promised to build a house for David, but that this promised Messiah would be the only one to build a house for God.
Yes, we do know that Solomon was allowed to build a temple to God, but God was always clear that He did not reside in Temples built by men, nor did He require a special building to house His Spirit.
As I read this prophetic passage I have to wonder, "What house did Jesus build for God?" We know that Jesus didn't commission any buildings. We know that His Disciples didn't build any temples either.
The only thing that Jesus ever built that could qualify as a "House for (God's) Name" is the Church. This means that you and I are the fulfillment of this prophecy.
"Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple." - 1 Cor 3:16
What is the purpose of a Temple? It's a Holy Place. It's where people can go to find God, to approach Him and to enter into His presence.
If you and I are now the Temple of God on this Earth, this means that whenever people come to you, whether they know it or not, they are standing in front of the Temple of the Living God.
"But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast." - Hebrews 3:5-6
Even though we often think of the Church as a building, it is not a building. The Church is a organism, not an organization. The Church is made only of living, breathing people who carry around with them the Holy Presence of the Living God in their hearts.
"In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit." - Ephesians 2:20-22
God lives in you. He has made His home in you, by your faith in Christ Jesus and the finished work of Christ on the cross. This is not a small thing. In fact, the ripping of the veil in Solomon's Temple, the cloth separating God and man, was ripped from top to bottom the very instant that Jesus accomplished His work on the cross.
"And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom." - Matthew 27:50-51.
God didn't wait even one second longer than necessary to remove the veil which separated us from Himself. Let's be careful not to hang up a new veil in its place.
We are the only House that God has ever asked for. We are the only Temple ever commissioned by God to house His Holy Presence. That's who you are. That's who I am.
The True and Living God has built for Himself a living, breathing Temple on this Earth and we are it.
Meditate on this today. Realize that this is who God has made you to be.
-kg
**
POVERTY IN THE OC
I've set up a new resource website/blog over at
www.PovertyInTheOC.com
Check it out
HERE
[END TRANSMISSION]
by Keith Giles
In 2 Samuel, chapter 7, we read where King David looked around his opulent cedar palace and concluded that it wasn't right that he should live in such splendor while God lived in a tent outside the city, hovered over the Ark of the Covenant.
When David tells the prophet Nathan that he intends to build a house for God the prophet enthusiastically tells David that he is certain God will be with him no matter what he plans to do.
That night God nudges Nathan awake and lets him know that it's usually better to ask God what He thinks before you just go ahead and endorse someone's impulsive idea.
God tells Nathan to let David know that He doesn't live in that tent, and that He can go wherever He wants, and that He has never asked anyone to build a house for Him. Not ever.
Instead, God tells David, in verese 11, to sit back and allow Him to build a house for David. "The LORD declares to you that the LORD himself will establish a house for you."
What follows is a beautiful prophecy concerning the Messiah. "When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son." - (2 Sam 7:12-14)
I am amazed to see how God not only promised to build a house for David, but that this promised Messiah would be the only one to build a house for God.
Yes, we do know that Solomon was allowed to build a temple to God, but God was always clear that He did not reside in Temples built by men, nor did He require a special building to house His Spirit.
As I read this prophetic passage I have to wonder, "What house did Jesus build for God?" We know that Jesus didn't commission any buildings. We know that His Disciples didn't build any temples either.
The only thing that Jesus ever built that could qualify as a "House for (God's) Name" is the Church. This means that you and I are the fulfillment of this prophecy.
"Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple." - 1 Cor 3:16
What is the purpose of a Temple? It's a Holy Place. It's where people can go to find God, to approach Him and to enter into His presence.
If you and I are now the Temple of God on this Earth, this means that whenever people come to you, whether they know it or not, they are standing in front of the Temple of the Living God.
"But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast." - Hebrews 3:5-6
Even though we often think of the Church as a building, it is not a building. The Church is a organism, not an organization. The Church is made only of living, breathing people who carry around with them the Holy Presence of the Living God in their hearts.
"In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit." - Ephesians 2:20-22
God lives in you. He has made His home in you, by your faith in Christ Jesus and the finished work of Christ on the cross. This is not a small thing. In fact, the ripping of the veil in Solomon's Temple, the cloth separating God and man, was ripped from top to bottom the very instant that Jesus accomplished His work on the cross.
"And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom." - Matthew 27:50-51.
God didn't wait even one second longer than necessary to remove the veil which separated us from Himself. Let's be careful not to hang up a new veil in its place.
We are the only House that God has ever asked for. We are the only Temple ever commissioned by God to house His Holy Presence. That's who you are. That's who I am.
The True and Living God has built for Himself a living, breathing Temple on this Earth and we are it.
Meditate on this today. Realize that this is who God has made you to be.
-kg
**
POVERTY IN THE OC
I've set up a new resource website/blog over at
www.PovertyInTheOC.com
Check it out
HERE
[END TRANSMISSION]
Thursday, June 12, 2008
NO COMPROMISE
[Subversive Underground]
NO COMPROMISE by Keith Giles
"If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me." - Jesus, John 15:18-21
ESCAPING THE SWORD
Jesus promised his followers that the world would hate them, even as it had hated him. Resistance was to be expected. Living counter to the culture was an inherent element of God's Kingdom and the Gospel of Jesus was to be lived out in the midst of a society that was bent on snuffing the life out of it.
What happened to us?
How have we become a Church where the World doesn’t hate us the way it hated Jesus? Sure, some people do hate us, but many of those, at least in America, only find us horrifically annoying. They might hate being around us, but not enough to kill us. And those that do hate us don't hate us the way the Pharisees hated Jesus. They hate us because we're hypocritcal, hateful, intolerant and judgemental. The Pharisees hated Jesus because he was radically inclusive, spent time with the wrong sorts of people who were unclean and dirty and poor and sick and sinful. No one hates the Church for any of these reasons.
MODERN DAY MARTYRS
I know that Christians around the world are hated, and even persecuted and killed because of their devotion to Christ and the preaching of the Gospel. For those who endure this daily I offer my prayers for safety and for faith to continue sharing Christ in the midst of suffering.
Here in America, and most of the free, Westernized World, being a Christian carries no negative connotation or expectation of brutality other than being shunned by hipsters and perhaps mocked openly on prime time television.
FRIENDSHIP WITH THE WORLD
Jesus said that the World would hate us because we "do not belong to the World". Perhaps the World doesn't hate us the way it hated Jesus because we're just like they are? Instead of being "In the World, but not Of it" we have become the Church who is "Of the World, but In it".
The Gospel of Jesus was subversive and controversial. It challenged the status quo of an entire society. It held up the mirror to the Church of the day and convicted the actions of Kings and exposed the injustices of self-seeking Government. In America our Gospel is not dangerous. It is safe, safe, safe for the whole family.
The earliest followers of Jesus were constantly persecuted because of their commitment to a Jesus way of life which cloned the subversive nature of Jesus and multiplied it across the fabric of society. They loved extravagantly, sharing all things in common with the poorest among them and held defiantly to the Gospel of the Kingdom which declared that God's rule and reign had indeed come to each and every one of their lives. When they were enslaved they served their masters respectfully, as if they were serving God Himself. When they were arrested and beaten for refusing to renounce Jesus the Messiah they did not fight back or demand their inalienable rights as human beings. Instead they went quietly to their deaths or sang hymns of praise to God for the blessing of martyrdom. They were a people who loved others so much they would rather die than shed another person's blood.
LIKE LAMBS TO THE SLAUGHTER
For over three hundred years the followers of Jesus, the citizens of "The Way", took it on the chin and held on tight to their faith with perserverance because they knew that the enduring of trials and difficulties meant that God was working in them the character of Christ Jesus and depositing a quality of faith that would not let go of God, even in the face of imprisonment, beatings, persecutions or death itself. They also knew that their uncommon, radical posture of love and compassion for others, even those who beat them, persecuted them and put them to death, was having an impact of nuclear proportions in the lives of those outside the faith. The power of their love created ripples in the fabric of humanity that changed hearts and turned the world upside down.
SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY
When Emperor Constantine lifted the persecution of the Church in 313 A.D. it came with a caveat: The Church would have to submit to his vision of what Christianity should look like and how the faith should be practiced. For the first time in history a person could claim to be a follower of Jesus and still take up a sword and strike a man dead. Under Constantine's new rules of faith the Christian Church would take on the pagan practices of the day, worship in their converted temples and submit to the authority of a select Clergy wearing the robes of pagan priests and adopting the language of paganism.
Some might wonder if the price we paid for escaping the sword was too high. Some might wonder if we had forgotten the promise of Jesus that those who followed him would be hated and persecuted because of how they were unlike the world. Some might say that the Church befriended the religious system and practices of pagan Rome in order to save themselves any further persecution, rather than remain loyal to the same Jesus who said that we were to be set apart from the World and its systems.
There were some within the Christian Church in that day who refused to comply with Constantine's compromise. They attempted to continue gathering together in their homes as they had done for over three centuries, but Constantine issued a new law that made it illegal to continue this practice. Their choice suddenly became crystal clear; they could either submit to the Emperor's rule or face further persecution. In effect, Constantine's compromise was a mandate, not a friendly suggestion.
MAGNETIC NORTH
Around the world and throughout history, as the Church has been persecuted she has flourished. Whenever threatened she finds her inner compass and that always leads her back home, to the organic nature buried indelibly in her DNA.
In Soviet Russia, or Communist China or oppressive Korean regimes the Church of Jesus has not only survived, it has thrived and exploded as it remembers to be the church and reverts to the home-based, family model of worship revealed in Scripture.
So, even as the Church shifted slightly under Constantine and adopted a more relevant and culturally acceptable format of worship, these instances of persecution throughout history have revealed what essentially makes us the Family of God. It is at these times that she remembers her original mandate and reverts to the form once assumed in the very beginning.
OUT OF THE COMFORT ZONE
So what do we do about this today? How do we reconcile the promise of Jesus that the world would hate us because we are not of it as He is not of it?
Rather than focus on getting the World to hate us, perhaps it makes more sense to turn our energies towards being a people who love like Jesus loved. If we expect people to treat us they way they treated Jesus, I think it makes sense for us to do the things that Jesus did.
Whether or not you embrace the house church is irrelevant. You can be someone who follows Jesus with your everyday life whether you worship in a multi-million dollar building or under a tree in the park. The calling on you is the same as the one that is on me- to follow Jesus.
DANGEROUS FAITH
When we stay safely insulated inside our customized Christian comfort zone, our need for Faith is diminished. In fact, surrounded by hundreds of other Believers, from the safe vantage point of my padded pew, Faith is irrelevant. Faith seems to only be necessary for those who are in a dangerous place, outside their comfort zones, engaging the enemy, embracing the diseased, loving the poor, serving the least and the last. Faith is only necessary for those who choose to live a dangerous life outside their comfort zones.
Perhaps this is why Jesus wonders out loud if he will find any on the Earth who have faith when he returns? If we insist on remaining in our safe places, our zones of comfort, then our faith will grow weak and limp and useless. We can barely use it to generate personal wealth and unending health, much less to heal the sick, cast our demons, comfort the afflicted, or love the unlovely.
ADVANCING THE KINGDOM WITHOUT RETREATING FROM THE CULTURE
"You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." - James 4:4
This verse doesn't intend to drive us into the monasteries or to seek refuge among our Ahmish Bretheren, nor does it compel us to create Christian version of this world with cross-emblazoned products and holy goods and services. We are not called to retreat from the culture or to create a better, private version of the world we're supposed to change. Those first Christians didn't retreat from society, instead they obediently lived lives of such love among the heathen that people began to change from the inside out (see 1 Peter 2:11-12).
Simply put, if we would consider it our daily practice to serve others we might start to resemble those people who were so much like Jesus that they began to be persecuted for living lives of astounding love.
Jesus made no room for us to compromise our calling to be a peculiar people. We have no right to surrender our calling to love others in exchange for a better, more comfortable life in this temporary existence.
"Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also." - Jesus (John 15:20)
I pray that the Church would rise up again and become the people who are known for the way they love others, even those who hate them and who would stand for Gospel of Jesus, no matter what anyone else may say about us, or do to us.
"If you have love for those who have love for you, what credit is it to you? for even sinners have love for those who have love for them." - Jesus, Luke 6:32
-kg
**
HOW TO START A MINISTRY TO THE POOR IN YOUR COMMUNITY
This five part series is now running every Thursday over at TheOoze.com. Be sure to drop by and check it out if you haven't already.
**
ONE CHURCH UNDER GOD
I'd like to invite you to join me on Sunday, June 22nd as part of a special joint service between our "Mission" House Church and Soul Survivor Church.
John Thomas, who lead worship for us at the Non-Con, will be our worship leader and I'll be bringing a message about what the Biblical concept of Church is all about. If you're in the Orange County area be sure to drop by!
Details:
The Mission and Soul Survivor Church Celebration
on Sunday, June 22nd at 11am
at Soul Survivor Church in Triangle Square
1870 Harbor Blvd., Costa Mesa, CA 92627
*Directly underneath the Edwards Cinema, on the corner of Harbor and 19th.
Parking is free inside the structure.
There's a google map over here:
http://nonconsched.blogspot.com/
**
PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME DIRECTLY VIA EMAIL AT:
"ELYSIANSKY" (AT) "HOTMAIL" (dot) "com"
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
NO COMPROMISE by Keith Giles
"If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me." - Jesus, John 15:18-21
ESCAPING THE SWORD
Jesus promised his followers that the world would hate them, even as it had hated him. Resistance was to be expected. Living counter to the culture was an inherent element of God's Kingdom and the Gospel of Jesus was to be lived out in the midst of a society that was bent on snuffing the life out of it.
What happened to us?
How have we become a Church where the World doesn’t hate us the way it hated Jesus? Sure, some people do hate us, but many of those, at least in America, only find us horrifically annoying. They might hate being around us, but not enough to kill us. And those that do hate us don't hate us the way the Pharisees hated Jesus. They hate us because we're hypocritcal, hateful, intolerant and judgemental. The Pharisees hated Jesus because he was radically inclusive, spent time with the wrong sorts of people who were unclean and dirty and poor and sick and sinful. No one hates the Church for any of these reasons.
MODERN DAY MARTYRS
I know that Christians around the world are hated, and even persecuted and killed because of their devotion to Christ and the preaching of the Gospel. For those who endure this daily I offer my prayers for safety and for faith to continue sharing Christ in the midst of suffering.
Here in America, and most of the free, Westernized World, being a Christian carries no negative connotation or expectation of brutality other than being shunned by hipsters and perhaps mocked openly on prime time television.
FRIENDSHIP WITH THE WORLD
Jesus said that the World would hate us because we "do not belong to the World". Perhaps the World doesn't hate us the way it hated Jesus because we're just like they are? Instead of being "In the World, but not Of it" we have become the Church who is "Of the World, but In it".
The Gospel of Jesus was subversive and controversial. It challenged the status quo of an entire society. It held up the mirror to the Church of the day and convicted the actions of Kings and exposed the injustices of self-seeking Government. In America our Gospel is not dangerous. It is safe, safe, safe for the whole family.
The earliest followers of Jesus were constantly persecuted because of their commitment to a Jesus way of life which cloned the subversive nature of Jesus and multiplied it across the fabric of society. They loved extravagantly, sharing all things in common with the poorest among them and held defiantly to the Gospel of the Kingdom which declared that God's rule and reign had indeed come to each and every one of their lives. When they were enslaved they served their masters respectfully, as if they were serving God Himself. When they were arrested and beaten for refusing to renounce Jesus the Messiah they did not fight back or demand their inalienable rights as human beings. Instead they went quietly to their deaths or sang hymns of praise to God for the blessing of martyrdom. They were a people who loved others so much they would rather die than shed another person's blood.
LIKE LAMBS TO THE SLAUGHTER
For over three hundred years the followers of Jesus, the citizens of "The Way", took it on the chin and held on tight to their faith with perserverance because they knew that the enduring of trials and difficulties meant that God was working in them the character of Christ Jesus and depositing a quality of faith that would not let go of God, even in the face of imprisonment, beatings, persecutions or death itself. They also knew that their uncommon, radical posture of love and compassion for others, even those who beat them, persecuted them and put them to death, was having an impact of nuclear proportions in the lives of those outside the faith. The power of their love created ripples in the fabric of humanity that changed hearts and turned the world upside down.
SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY
When Emperor Constantine lifted the persecution of the Church in 313 A.D. it came with a caveat: The Church would have to submit to his vision of what Christianity should look like and how the faith should be practiced. For the first time in history a person could claim to be a follower of Jesus and still take up a sword and strike a man dead. Under Constantine's new rules of faith the Christian Church would take on the pagan practices of the day, worship in their converted temples and submit to the authority of a select Clergy wearing the robes of pagan priests and adopting the language of paganism.
Some might wonder if the price we paid for escaping the sword was too high. Some might wonder if we had forgotten the promise of Jesus that those who followed him would be hated and persecuted because of how they were unlike the world. Some might say that the Church befriended the religious system and practices of pagan Rome in order to save themselves any further persecution, rather than remain loyal to the same Jesus who said that we were to be set apart from the World and its systems.
There were some within the Christian Church in that day who refused to comply with Constantine's compromise. They attempted to continue gathering together in their homes as they had done for over three centuries, but Constantine issued a new law that made it illegal to continue this practice. Their choice suddenly became crystal clear; they could either submit to the Emperor's rule or face further persecution. In effect, Constantine's compromise was a mandate, not a friendly suggestion.
MAGNETIC NORTH
Around the world and throughout history, as the Church has been persecuted she has flourished. Whenever threatened she finds her inner compass and that always leads her back home, to the organic nature buried indelibly in her DNA.
In Soviet Russia, or Communist China or oppressive Korean regimes the Church of Jesus has not only survived, it has thrived and exploded as it remembers to be the church and reverts to the home-based, family model of worship revealed in Scripture.
So, even as the Church shifted slightly under Constantine and adopted a more relevant and culturally acceptable format of worship, these instances of persecution throughout history have revealed what essentially makes us the Family of God. It is at these times that she remembers her original mandate and reverts to the form once assumed in the very beginning.
OUT OF THE COMFORT ZONE
So what do we do about this today? How do we reconcile the promise of Jesus that the world would hate us because we are not of it as He is not of it?
Rather than focus on getting the World to hate us, perhaps it makes more sense to turn our energies towards being a people who love like Jesus loved. If we expect people to treat us they way they treated Jesus, I think it makes sense for us to do the things that Jesus did.
Whether or not you embrace the house church is irrelevant. You can be someone who follows Jesus with your everyday life whether you worship in a multi-million dollar building or under a tree in the park. The calling on you is the same as the one that is on me- to follow Jesus.
DANGEROUS FAITH
When we stay safely insulated inside our customized Christian comfort zone, our need for Faith is diminished. In fact, surrounded by hundreds of other Believers, from the safe vantage point of my padded pew, Faith is irrelevant. Faith seems to only be necessary for those who are in a dangerous place, outside their comfort zones, engaging the enemy, embracing the diseased, loving the poor, serving the least and the last. Faith is only necessary for those who choose to live a dangerous life outside their comfort zones.
Perhaps this is why Jesus wonders out loud if he will find any on the Earth who have faith when he returns? If we insist on remaining in our safe places, our zones of comfort, then our faith will grow weak and limp and useless. We can barely use it to generate personal wealth and unending health, much less to heal the sick, cast our demons, comfort the afflicted, or love the unlovely.
ADVANCING THE KINGDOM WITHOUT RETREATING FROM THE CULTURE
"You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." - James 4:4
This verse doesn't intend to drive us into the monasteries or to seek refuge among our Ahmish Bretheren, nor does it compel us to create Christian version of this world with cross-emblazoned products and holy goods and services. We are not called to retreat from the culture or to create a better, private version of the world we're supposed to change. Those first Christians didn't retreat from society, instead they obediently lived lives of such love among the heathen that people began to change from the inside out (see 1 Peter 2:11-12).
Simply put, if we would consider it our daily practice to serve others we might start to resemble those people who were so much like Jesus that they began to be persecuted for living lives of astounding love.
Jesus made no room for us to compromise our calling to be a peculiar people. We have no right to surrender our calling to love others in exchange for a better, more comfortable life in this temporary existence.
"Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also." - Jesus (John 15:20)
I pray that the Church would rise up again and become the people who are known for the way they love others, even those who hate them and who would stand for Gospel of Jesus, no matter what anyone else may say about us, or do to us.
"If you have love for those who have love for you, what credit is it to you? for even sinners have love for those who have love for them." - Jesus, Luke 6:32
-kg
**
HOW TO START A MINISTRY TO THE POOR IN YOUR COMMUNITY
This five part series is now running every Thursday over at TheOoze.com. Be sure to drop by and check it out if you haven't already.
**
ONE CHURCH UNDER GOD
I'd like to invite you to join me on Sunday, June 22nd as part of a special joint service between our "Mission" House Church and Soul Survivor Church.
John Thomas, who lead worship for us at the Non-Con, will be our worship leader and I'll be bringing a message about what the Biblical concept of Church is all about. If you're in the Orange County area be sure to drop by!
Details:
The Mission and Soul Survivor Church Celebration
on Sunday, June 22nd at 11am
at Soul Survivor Church in Triangle Square
1870 Harbor Blvd., Costa Mesa, CA 92627
*Directly underneath the Edwards Cinema, on the corner of Harbor and 19th.
Parking is free inside the structure.
There's a google map over here:
http://nonconsched.blogspot.com/
**
PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME DIRECTLY VIA EMAIL AT:
"ELYSIANSKY" (AT) "HOTMAIL" (dot) "com"
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Thursday, June 05, 2008
THE RADICAL CHURCH OF JESUS
[Subversive Underground]
The Radical Church of Jesus
by Keith Giles
When Jesus announced his ministry and proclaimed his Gospel of the Kingom it was like setting off a bomb in the heart of the city. People got excited. The religious leaders of the day got nervous. The political leaders took notice.
Jesus entered a religious society that was permeated with Jewish tradition and influenced by Pagan practice.
Both Judaism and Paganism share three commonalities: The Temple, The Sacrifice and The Priesthood.
What is the Temple?
It's the Holy Place. It's where God's Spirit dwells. It's where those who are hungry to meet with God go to connect with Him.
What is the Sacrifice?
It's intended to atone for the sins of the individual and to provide access to God.
What is the Priest?
These are the ones who perform the sacrifice. They are the ones who are worthy to enter the "Holy of Holies" and approach God. They hear God's voice. They relate the message of God to those who are outside the Temple. They are concerned with the Spiritual health and education of the people of God.
THE CHURCH THAT JESUS BUILT
When Jesus established the Church he did not build something with a physical temple or a daily animal sacrifice or a special group of elite clergy. The Church that Jesus built was out of the ordinary. It was radical. It was unlike anything that had ever come before it.
The Church Jesus built effectively destroyed all three conventions of Judaism and Paganism.
Take that in for a moment. Consider the implications of this fact. Jesus inspired and established the first system of religion without a physical temple, an animal sacrifice or an elitist priesthood. This was something brand new.
IN SPIRIT AND IN TRUTH
When Jesus came he told the woman at the well that the time was coming, and indeed had already come, when those who seek God would not worship Him in the Temple, or on the Holy Mountain, but in Spirit and in Truth.
Jesus told the Pharisee that if they destroyed the Temple he would build it again in three days. Of course, we know that he was speaking of the Temple of his body, but we also know that the actual Temple was destroyed in just a few short years following his crucifixion and it remains so to this very day.
JESUS - THE SACRIFICE
On the cross, Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice for the sins of the world. There is now no longer any need for a daily sacrifice to be made, which is why the Temple was, and is, unneccessary to the one who seeks intimacy with God.
JESUS - THE HIGH PRIEST
On the cross Jesus became the High Priest (see Hebrews chapter 4 and 10) who once and for all made the sacrifice for us and lives forever to intercede for us.
JESUS - THE TEMPLE OF GOD
As Jesus suffered on the cross, an earthquake rocked the city and the veil (all 300 pounds of it) was ripped in two, destroying the Temple and rendering it obsolete.
Why did Jesus do this? He did this in order to announce a new Kingdom. A Kingdom where you and I would become the Temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 3:16; 6:19, 2 Cor 6:16; Eph 2:19-22).
He did this so that you and I could become the new priesthood (1 Peter 2).
He did this so that you and I could become the daily sacrifice (Romans 12, Luke 9:23).
In this new order, in this new organic, vibrant and thriving organism called "The Church", Jesus gave birth to something the world had never seen before. He said it would require new wineskins and that the old wineskins or systems of thinking and living would not be able to contain it.
YOU ARE THE TEMPLE OF GOD
If we are God's new temple what does that mean?
It means we are now the Holy Place. Our souls are now the place where God's Spirit dwells. We carry around with us the immediate presence of God where those who are hungry to meet with Him can come and connect with Him.
YOU ARE THE ROYAL PRIESTHOOD
If you and I are the new priesthood it means that we are the ones who perform the daily sacrifice. We are the ones who are worthy to enter the "Holy of Holies" and approach God. We can hear God's voice. We have the honor of conveying the message of God to those who are outside the Temple. We now play an active role in the spiritual health and education of God's people.
YOU ARE THE DAILY SACRIFICE
If we are the daily, living sacrifice it means each of us have special access to God. Because of His ultimate sacrifice on the cross, our daily sacrifice bears witness to our desire to follow Jesus, surrender our lives to Him, and worship God with our entire being.
UNDERSTANDING WHO YOU ARE
You and I are this same Church. We are the people of God. We are part of something more unique and fabulous than any of us could have ever imagined.
Who are you in Christ? You are a new creation. You are the Temple of God. You are the Priests of God. You are the daily, living sacrifice to God.
We are a people unlike any the world has ever seen or imagined before. We are the Church.
"Conversatio Morem!"
-kg
**
SPECIAL THANKS: I want thank Frank Viola for bringing this amazing insight into focus for me. See his book, "Pagan Christianity" for more inspiration.
**
PRAY FOR CHARLES AND DIRK
My buddies Charles and Dirk are currently attempting to lead a traditional church into the house church arena. As you can imagine, it's not easy. Please join me in lifting them up in prayer as they humbly and obediently step forward into this exciting and uncertain new frontier.
**
HOUSE CHURCH IN SEATTLE
My two dear friends Heather and Daniel Cosby are looking for families and individuals in the Seattle area who are interested in meeting together to form a new house church. If you or someone you know lives in or near Seattle, Washington and might be interested in joining them, please contact me with their info at:
"ELYSIANSKY" (AT) "HOTMAIL" (dot) "com"
**
ONE CHURCH UNDER GOD
I'd like to invite you to join me on Sunday, June 22nd as part of a special joint service between our "Mission" House Church and Soul Survivor Church.
John Thomas, who lead worship for us at the Non-Con, will be our worship leader and I'll be bringing a message about what the Biblical concept of Church is all about. If you're in the Orange County area be sure to drop by!
Details:
The Mission and Soul Survivor Church Celebration
on Sunday, June 22nd at 11am
at Soul Survivor Church in Triangle Square
1870 Harbor Blvd., Costa Mesa, CA 92627
*Directly underneath the Edwards Cinema, on the corner of Harbor and 19th.
Parking is free inside the structure.
There's a google map over here:
http://nonconsched.blogspot.com/
**
TODD HUNTER'S "THREE IS ENOUGH" BLOG HOME PAGE
One of my mentors over the last several years has been a guy nanmed Todd Hunter. He is the former National Director of the Association of Vineyard Churches, the former President of ALPHA USA, and currently starting his own non-profit group - "The Society for Kingdom Living" which will also coincide with something called "Three Is Enough".
Be sure to go to the link below and read more about what Todd's up to and prayerfully consider starting a group like this in your sphere of influence.
FIND IT HERE
**
WITH THIS RING
My buddy Ken Eastman is the pastor of a series of six house churches locally called "The Well". His wife Ali started an astounding non-profit group called "With This Ring" where women are encouraged to donate their wedding rings, as she has done, to dig wells and provide safe, clean drinkng water for hundreds of impoverished children and families in Africa.
Find out more
HERE
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
The Radical Church of Jesus
by Keith Giles
When Jesus announced his ministry and proclaimed his Gospel of the Kingom it was like setting off a bomb in the heart of the city. People got excited. The religious leaders of the day got nervous. The political leaders took notice.
Jesus entered a religious society that was permeated with Jewish tradition and influenced by Pagan practice.
Both Judaism and Paganism share three commonalities: The Temple, The Sacrifice and The Priesthood.
What is the Temple?
It's the Holy Place. It's where God's Spirit dwells. It's where those who are hungry to meet with God go to connect with Him.
What is the Sacrifice?
It's intended to atone for the sins of the individual and to provide access to God.
What is the Priest?
These are the ones who perform the sacrifice. They are the ones who are worthy to enter the "Holy of Holies" and approach God. They hear God's voice. They relate the message of God to those who are outside the Temple. They are concerned with the Spiritual health and education of the people of God.
THE CHURCH THAT JESUS BUILT
When Jesus established the Church he did not build something with a physical temple or a daily animal sacrifice or a special group of elite clergy. The Church that Jesus built was out of the ordinary. It was radical. It was unlike anything that had ever come before it.
The Church Jesus built effectively destroyed all three conventions of Judaism and Paganism.
Take that in for a moment. Consider the implications of this fact. Jesus inspired and established the first system of religion without a physical temple, an animal sacrifice or an elitist priesthood. This was something brand new.
IN SPIRIT AND IN TRUTH
When Jesus came he told the woman at the well that the time was coming, and indeed had already come, when those who seek God would not worship Him in the Temple, or on the Holy Mountain, but in Spirit and in Truth.
Jesus told the Pharisee that if they destroyed the Temple he would build it again in three days. Of course, we know that he was speaking of the Temple of his body, but we also know that the actual Temple was destroyed in just a few short years following his crucifixion and it remains so to this very day.
JESUS - THE SACRIFICE
On the cross, Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice for the sins of the world. There is now no longer any need for a daily sacrifice to be made, which is why the Temple was, and is, unneccessary to the one who seeks intimacy with God.
JESUS - THE HIGH PRIEST
On the cross Jesus became the High Priest (see Hebrews chapter 4 and 10) who once and for all made the sacrifice for us and lives forever to intercede for us.
JESUS - THE TEMPLE OF GOD
As Jesus suffered on the cross, an earthquake rocked the city and the veil (all 300 pounds of it) was ripped in two, destroying the Temple and rendering it obsolete.
Why did Jesus do this? He did this in order to announce a new Kingdom. A Kingdom where you and I would become the Temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 3:16; 6:19, 2 Cor 6:16; Eph 2:19-22).
He did this so that you and I could become the new priesthood (1 Peter 2).
He did this so that you and I could become the daily sacrifice (Romans 12, Luke 9:23).
In this new order, in this new organic, vibrant and thriving organism called "The Church", Jesus gave birth to something the world had never seen before. He said it would require new wineskins and that the old wineskins or systems of thinking and living would not be able to contain it.
YOU ARE THE TEMPLE OF GOD
If we are God's new temple what does that mean?
It means we are now the Holy Place. Our souls are now the place where God's Spirit dwells. We carry around with us the immediate presence of God where those who are hungry to meet with Him can come and connect with Him.
YOU ARE THE ROYAL PRIESTHOOD
If you and I are the new priesthood it means that we are the ones who perform the daily sacrifice. We are the ones who are worthy to enter the "Holy of Holies" and approach God. We can hear God's voice. We have the honor of conveying the message of God to those who are outside the Temple. We now play an active role in the spiritual health and education of God's people.
YOU ARE THE DAILY SACRIFICE
If we are the daily, living sacrifice it means each of us have special access to God. Because of His ultimate sacrifice on the cross, our daily sacrifice bears witness to our desire to follow Jesus, surrender our lives to Him, and worship God with our entire being.
UNDERSTANDING WHO YOU ARE
You and I are this same Church. We are the people of God. We are part of something more unique and fabulous than any of us could have ever imagined.
Who are you in Christ? You are a new creation. You are the Temple of God. You are the Priests of God. You are the daily, living sacrifice to God.
We are a people unlike any the world has ever seen or imagined before. We are the Church.
"Conversatio Morem!"
-kg
**
SPECIAL THANKS: I want thank Frank Viola for bringing this amazing insight into focus for me. See his book, "Pagan Christianity" for more inspiration.
**
PRAY FOR CHARLES AND DIRK
My buddies Charles and Dirk are currently attempting to lead a traditional church into the house church arena. As you can imagine, it's not easy. Please join me in lifting them up in prayer as they humbly and obediently step forward into this exciting and uncertain new frontier.
**
HOUSE CHURCH IN SEATTLE
My two dear friends Heather and Daniel Cosby are looking for families and individuals in the Seattle area who are interested in meeting together to form a new house church. If you or someone you know lives in or near Seattle, Washington and might be interested in joining them, please contact me with their info at:
"ELYSIANSKY" (AT) "HOTMAIL" (dot) "com"
**
ONE CHURCH UNDER GOD
I'd like to invite you to join me on Sunday, June 22nd as part of a special joint service between our "Mission" House Church and Soul Survivor Church.
John Thomas, who lead worship for us at the Non-Con, will be our worship leader and I'll be bringing a message about what the Biblical concept of Church is all about. If you're in the Orange County area be sure to drop by!
Details:
The Mission and Soul Survivor Church Celebration
on Sunday, June 22nd at 11am
at Soul Survivor Church in Triangle Square
1870 Harbor Blvd., Costa Mesa, CA 92627
*Directly underneath the Edwards Cinema, on the corner of Harbor and 19th.
Parking is free inside the structure.
There's a google map over here:
http://nonconsched.blogspot.com/
**
TODD HUNTER'S "THREE IS ENOUGH" BLOG HOME PAGE
One of my mentors over the last several years has been a guy nanmed Todd Hunter. He is the former National Director of the Association of Vineyard Churches, the former President of ALPHA USA, and currently starting his own non-profit group - "The Society for Kingdom Living" which will also coincide with something called "Three Is Enough".
Be sure to go to the link below and read more about what Todd's up to and prayerfully consider starting a group like this in your sphere of influence.
FIND IT HERE
**
WITH THIS RING
My buddy Ken Eastman is the pastor of a series of six house churches locally called "The Well". His wife Ali started an astounding non-profit group called "With This Ring" where women are encouraged to donate their wedding rings, as she has done, to dig wells and provide safe, clean drinkng water for hundreds of impoverished children and families in Africa.
Find out more
HERE
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Friday, May 30, 2008
GOD CALLED. HE WANTS HIS CHURCH BACK
[Subversive Underground]
God Called. He Wants His Church Back
by Keith Giles
For far too long men have wrestled with God for control over His people.
Jesus modelled a servant leadership style for His disciples, and today our leaders emphasize a CEO brand of leadership patterned after the world of big business.
The Apostle Paul told us that we were the Temple of the Holy Spirit, yet Ministers today insist on collecting millions of dollars from their flock to build a temple where people can worship.
The Apostle Peter told us that we are the living stones God is building up to become His Church, and instead we are convinced that building the Church involves putting butts in the seats on Sunday morning.
Jesus commanded us to make disciples, those who would follow His teachings and apply them to their everyday life. Instead we have become experts at entertaining the Saints each week and occasionally converting a few to our denomination.
A SPIRITUAL HOUSE
The other day I read a familiar verse of Scripture and it hit me in a new way. Here's what I read:
"As you come to him, the living Stone...you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." - 1 Peter 2:4-5
What struck me about this verse was the simplicity of the promise here. As we come to Jesus, who is the Living Stone, we are also built into a spiritual house (The Church). Coming to Jesus doesn't involve coming to a place, it simply means coming to Him. It means seeking His Face and falling at His feet. As we come to Jesus, we will become like Jesus and He will build us up into a people who will reflect His character to the World.
OLD WINESKINS
A few weeks ago I visited a protestant church where there was actually a Holy of Holies at the front of the church where only the Priest and the ordained ministers were allowed to enter. It made me sad to think that Jesus had come and suffered so much, even torn the veil of the Jewish Temple in two, only to have His people create a new version of the same thing when they built the Church and named it after Him.
Why do we insist on returning to a place where professional clergy interact with God on our behalf? The Children of Israel begged Moses to speak to God for them because they were not comfortable hearing His voice or being in His presence. The Pharisees and other Jewish Leaders of Jesus' day created rules and regulations and barriers to the Temple so that very few people had access to God.
SAME OLD STORY
Have we built a Church today where our structures and rules have kept God's people from Him? Have we knowingly participated in a system of religion where only a select few have access to God on our behalf? Are we more comfortable being in the background while a paid clergy seek God for us?
YOU ARE A CHOSEN PEOPLE
God calls us a "royal priesthood." He has put His Holy Spirit within each individual believer and follower of Jesus. He has called every single one of us to be His Ambassadors to a fallen and broken world.
I believe that God is in the process of tearing down the man-made barriers we have built in order to get His Church, His Bride, back.
HE HAS A DREAM
God's plan has always been to have a living, breathing, active, passionate people on this Earth who will live out His Word and demonstrate His incredible love to those in darkness. He is a jealous God, according to His Word and "the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely" (James 4:5). God will not share us with a system built to keep Him out or us away from Him.
UNREALIZED POTENTIAL
God is calling all of us to step into the destiny He has bought for us with the blood of His Son. We are a royal priesthood. Each of us has the Spirit of the Living God within us if we have surrendered our hearts and lives to Jesus. We are empowered to preach. We are deputized to serve. We are qualified to love. We are energized with His power to accomplish all that He has called us to do.
Maybe that's why we prefer the safety of the pew? We are afraid to believe that this amazing promise of God could really be true. It's so much easier to send Moses to speak for us, or to build a Holy of Holies where only special clergy go and minister, or to pay a professional to go and preach and serve and love for us.
Like it or not, God wants His Church to step into the freedom and destiny He has called Her to. God will have His way. We cannot deny Him. Even if we deny it, we are still priests and kings who have been called upon to serve, and love, as Jesus did.
Will you believe God? Will you accept your place among the living stones who are being built into the temple of God?
Step forward. Accept your ordination into the service of the King.
You and I have a job to do.
-kg
www.keithgiles.com
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
God Called. He Wants His Church Back
by Keith Giles
For far too long men have wrestled with God for control over His people.
Jesus modelled a servant leadership style for His disciples, and today our leaders emphasize a CEO brand of leadership patterned after the world of big business.
The Apostle Paul told us that we were the Temple of the Holy Spirit, yet Ministers today insist on collecting millions of dollars from their flock to build a temple where people can worship.
The Apostle Peter told us that we are the living stones God is building up to become His Church, and instead we are convinced that building the Church involves putting butts in the seats on Sunday morning.
Jesus commanded us to make disciples, those who would follow His teachings and apply them to their everyday life. Instead we have become experts at entertaining the Saints each week and occasionally converting a few to our denomination.
A SPIRITUAL HOUSE
The other day I read a familiar verse of Scripture and it hit me in a new way. Here's what I read:
"As you come to him, the living Stone...you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." - 1 Peter 2:4-5
What struck me about this verse was the simplicity of the promise here. As we come to Jesus, who is the Living Stone, we are also built into a spiritual house (The Church). Coming to Jesus doesn't involve coming to a place, it simply means coming to Him. It means seeking His Face and falling at His feet. As we come to Jesus, we will become like Jesus and He will build us up into a people who will reflect His character to the World.
OLD WINESKINS
A few weeks ago I visited a protestant church where there was actually a Holy of Holies at the front of the church where only the Priest and the ordained ministers were allowed to enter. It made me sad to think that Jesus had come and suffered so much, even torn the veil of the Jewish Temple in two, only to have His people create a new version of the same thing when they built the Church and named it after Him.
Why do we insist on returning to a place where professional clergy interact with God on our behalf? The Children of Israel begged Moses to speak to God for them because they were not comfortable hearing His voice or being in His presence. The Pharisees and other Jewish Leaders of Jesus' day created rules and regulations and barriers to the Temple so that very few people had access to God.
SAME OLD STORY
Have we built a Church today where our structures and rules have kept God's people from Him? Have we knowingly participated in a system of religion where only a select few have access to God on our behalf? Are we more comfortable being in the background while a paid clergy seek God for us?
YOU ARE A CHOSEN PEOPLE
God calls us a "royal priesthood." He has put His Holy Spirit within each individual believer and follower of Jesus. He has called every single one of us to be His Ambassadors to a fallen and broken world.
I believe that God is in the process of tearing down the man-made barriers we have built in order to get His Church, His Bride, back.
HE HAS A DREAM
God's plan has always been to have a living, breathing, active, passionate people on this Earth who will live out His Word and demonstrate His incredible love to those in darkness. He is a jealous God, according to His Word and "the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely" (James 4:5). God will not share us with a system built to keep Him out or us away from Him.
UNREALIZED POTENTIAL
God is calling all of us to step into the destiny He has bought for us with the blood of His Son. We are a royal priesthood. Each of us has the Spirit of the Living God within us if we have surrendered our hearts and lives to Jesus. We are empowered to preach. We are deputized to serve. We are qualified to love. We are energized with His power to accomplish all that He has called us to do.
Maybe that's why we prefer the safety of the pew? We are afraid to believe that this amazing promise of God could really be true. It's so much easier to send Moses to speak for us, or to build a Holy of Holies where only special clergy go and minister, or to pay a professional to go and preach and serve and love for us.
Like it or not, God wants His Church to step into the freedom and destiny He has called Her to. God will have His way. We cannot deny Him. Even if we deny it, we are still priests and kings who have been called upon to serve, and love, as Jesus did.
Will you believe God? Will you accept your place among the living stones who are being built into the temple of God?
Step forward. Accept your ordination into the service of the King.
You and I have a job to do.
-kg
www.keithgiles.com
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Friday, May 23, 2008
RIGHT WHERE I WANT YOU
[Subversive Underground]
Right Where I Want You
by Keith Giles
(NOTE: This article is exercepted from my forthcoming book "The Power of Weakness")
Chapter 5 - MOSES
He was the chosen one. Pulled miraculously from the river by the daughter of the Pharoah, this promised messiah grew up among royalty. He had the best education possible in the greatest Empire of his day.
If the rest of this story were up to us, we'd probably have Moses assume the throne of Egypt through some Shakespearean tactic or strategic maneuvering and, voila, the oppression of the Jews would have ended as Moses took political power with the crowd cheering him on.
Moses himself probably assumed this was where things were going to end up. Why else would God have allowed him to be found and raised by the daughter of the King if it wasn't to have him use his influence to gain political favor for his people?
God had a different plan for Moses' life, however. One that would take him through the desert and strip him of his power, favor, wealth, influence and authority, leaving him with nothing more than a curled walking stick and the simple clothing of a common shepherd.
WHERE IT ALL WENT WRONG
In the beginning we meet a young Moses who is impulsive, presumptuous and headstrong.
Moses reveals his arrogance when he attempts to take control of his own destiny, as he understands it, and takes the life of an Egyptian soldier in the process of settling a simple dispute. In his own strength, Moses demonstrated how easy it can be to get in God's way.
Failing to successfully liberate even one Jewish man from a street-side argument, Moses is soon wandering in the desert alone, thirsty and disillusioned. He's almost nearly where God wants him to be.
CHANGE OF HEART
As Moses begins to let his assumptions die, God slowly unravels His plan for how Moses might liberate his people from their oppression. Again, God's plan isn't thrown off by Moses. God's plan, all along, was to have Moses rescue his people through a demonstration of God's power, and the weakness of Moses would have to be revealed before anyone, especially Moses, could recognize that power.
After forty years in the wilderness, a smaller, more humble Moses encounters God for the very first time. When he is given the call to return to Egypt to rescue his people from their slavery, it's the heart of Moses that is revealed when he responds, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharoah to bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"
Now we see a changed man. Moses has lost his youthful bravado. He no longer believes that he has the big red "S" on his chest. He's older, wiser, and more humble now. You can almost hear God saying to Himself, "Ah! Now he's right where I want him."
God's answer to Moses is simply, "I will be with you."
GRACE TO THE HUMBLE
It's no coincidence that God came to call Moses to this task at a time when this man's heart was humble and soft. It's no coincidence that God's Word assures us that, "God opposes the proud, but gives Grace to the humble."
If we're truly wise, we know that we don't ever want God to be opposing us. To tangle with a being like God is to play with your own eternal destiny. However, the good news is that Grace is freely available to the humble, the weak, and the sincere of heart.
When you see a person who is supremely confident in themselves, ready to take on the world, you know that there's a disaster coming soon. "Pride," God tells us, "Comes before a fall." (Proverbs 3:34)
Before God humbled Moses in the wilderness, he was on his way to becoming a powerful, headstrong, failure. With all the political power at his disposal, with all the influence of the Egyptian Empire, Moses' story would no doubt have had an entirely different ending. Moses may have ended up with a legacy more akin to that of Samson or Solomon than to the events we see recorded in Exodus.
MILD AT HEART
The truth is, the best a man can do is the best a man can do, and in the end, that's not very much. One of the most amazing truths I have discovered is that the person who waits for God to fight his battles is far more influential than the one who takes matters in his own hands.
It's more popular today to talk about men being adventurous and created for battle than it is to suggest that a real man's character is more like that of Jesus, who turned the other cheek and stressed love and forgiveness for enemies, rather than violence.
The man who follows the example of celluloid heroes like John Wayne or "The Gladiator", is in reality a very small person. The man who acts aggressively, who confronts the bully in the school-yard, or the work place, or lays down the law in his own home, is only able to hold influence over those within his own limited grasp.
Using his fists, or violence or intimidation, such a person might appear, at first, to be a natural leader, a hero, or a "Real Man". While this "Man of Action" might be the king of his castle, the most feared person at work, and win the admiration of those other men who personally love him because of his "take charge" attitude, the truth is, according to God's Kingdom, such a man is no different than the pagans around him. "If you only love those who love you, what credit is that to you?" Jesus asks in Matthew 5:46.
Not only is this kind of person small, he is also in direct opposition to all that Jesus stood for. The Gospel that Jesus came and died to proclaim was the Gospel of the Kingdom. He proclaimed that it was to be entered by way of obedience to God. "Not everyone who says to me 'Lord, Lord' will enter the Kingdom of God, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." (Matt 7:21).
THE LOST ART OF FOLLOWING JESUS
For many of us, the words of Jesus seem to be for another place and time. We can hardly imagine anyone living by the commands of Jesus on a daily basis. What good could it possibly do to turn the other cheek when we're assaulted? Or to hand over our wallet to the thief who wants to steal our Ipod? Surely Jesus doesn't actually expect us to put these insane ideas into practice? Maybe these are meant to illustrate a delicate matter of theology far removed from actual life? But, then again, maybe not.
Jesus very simply called people to follow Him. This meant, in a very practical sense, living a life here and now where we put His words into practice in our actual lives.
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash." - Matthew 7:24-27
Over and over again Jesus makes it plain that the one who loves him is the one who does what he says:
"If you love me, you will obey what I command." - Jesus (John 14:15)
"You are my friends if you do what I command"- Jesus (John 15:14)
"Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me." - Jesus (John 14:21)
"If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching."
- Jesus (John 14:23)
"If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love.."
- Jesus (John 15:10)
He who does not love me will not obey my teaching."
- Jesus (John 14:24)
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven"- Jesus (Matthew 7:21).
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you."
- Jesus (Matthew 28: 19- 20).
The rest of the New Testament continues to echo this idea that to be a Christian is to be one who puts the words and teachings of Jesus into practice"
"Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from Him anything we ask, because we obey His commands and do what pleases Him." - 1 John 3:21-22
"Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil" (Ephesians 5:15-16).
"Those who obey His commands live in Him and He in them."
- 1 John 3:24
"This is love for God: to obey His commands." - 1 John 5:3
"And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands."
- 2 John 1:6
WHO WEARS THE CROWN?
So, a person who chooses to live their life by the words of Frank Sinatra, "I Did It Myyyyy Waaayyyy", cannot enter the Kingdom of God. Jesus is clear on this point. We cannot wear the crown and still maintain that Jesus is our King. Either Jesus is the King, and we are humble, obedient servants of His Kingdom, or we wear the crown and then we can do whatever we want. But we cannot have it both ways. We cannot be humble and obedient, while at the same time kicking butts and taking names in order to impose our own territorial empire.
"This, then, is how you should pray...'Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven'" (Matt 6:9-10) It's God's Kingdom that must come to earth, and it's God's will that must be done here as well, not our own.
REAL POWER
Where is real power? Where is real influence? Even taking a look at our own human history we can see that the greatest among us, those who stand head and shoulders above the rest, are those who stood for the least and defended the oppressed.
The person who chooses to turn the other cheek like Jesus, or to love instead of to fight back like Ghandi, or to heal instead of condemn like Mother Teresa, or to march instead of to take up arms like Martin Luther King Jr., is the sort of person who is able to influence entire nations and to inherit a legacy that will live beyond the grave and inspire others to do the same.
What sort of person do you want to be? Do you prefer to rule by your own two hands? Do you feel more at ease when others tremble before your influence and power? Or do you long for a life that inspires others to do great things?
THE GIFT OF WEAKNESS
When Moses is finally called by God to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, his response is that he has a weakness which inhibits him. He complains that he is "slow of speech," yet God's answer to him is most revealing; "Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him site or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord?" (Exodus 4:11)
According to God, in this passage, the weaknesses we have are given to us by God. He created Moses with a speech impediment. Why would He do that? Perhaps so that Moses would learn to lean on God, and not on himself, when it came to speaking to the people and to Pharaoh?
Moses was a man who, with God's help, was able to realize the true secret to power through humility, and his own God-given weakness. We also can learn to find the power of Christ at work in us when we submit ourselves to God, lay down our agenda, and simply say "Yes" to His perfect plan for our lives.
-kg
http://www.keithgiles.com
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Right Where I Want You
by Keith Giles
(NOTE: This article is exercepted from my forthcoming book "The Power of Weakness")
Chapter 5 - MOSES
He was the chosen one. Pulled miraculously from the river by the daughter of the Pharoah, this promised messiah grew up among royalty. He had the best education possible in the greatest Empire of his day.
If the rest of this story were up to us, we'd probably have Moses assume the throne of Egypt through some Shakespearean tactic or strategic maneuvering and, voila, the oppression of the Jews would have ended as Moses took political power with the crowd cheering him on.
Moses himself probably assumed this was where things were going to end up. Why else would God have allowed him to be found and raised by the daughter of the King if it wasn't to have him use his influence to gain political favor for his people?
God had a different plan for Moses' life, however. One that would take him through the desert and strip him of his power, favor, wealth, influence and authority, leaving him with nothing more than a curled walking stick and the simple clothing of a common shepherd.
WHERE IT ALL WENT WRONG
In the beginning we meet a young Moses who is impulsive, presumptuous and headstrong.
Moses reveals his arrogance when he attempts to take control of his own destiny, as he understands it, and takes the life of an Egyptian soldier in the process of settling a simple dispute. In his own strength, Moses demonstrated how easy it can be to get in God's way.
Failing to successfully liberate even one Jewish man from a street-side argument, Moses is soon wandering in the desert alone, thirsty and disillusioned. He's almost nearly where God wants him to be.
CHANGE OF HEART
As Moses begins to let his assumptions die, God slowly unravels His plan for how Moses might liberate his people from their oppression. Again, God's plan isn't thrown off by Moses. God's plan, all along, was to have Moses rescue his people through a demonstration of God's power, and the weakness of Moses would have to be revealed before anyone, especially Moses, could recognize that power.
After forty years in the wilderness, a smaller, more humble Moses encounters God for the very first time. When he is given the call to return to Egypt to rescue his people from their slavery, it's the heart of Moses that is revealed when he responds, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharoah to bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"
Now we see a changed man. Moses has lost his youthful bravado. He no longer believes that he has the big red "S" on his chest. He's older, wiser, and more humble now. You can almost hear God saying to Himself, "Ah! Now he's right where I want him."
God's answer to Moses is simply, "I will be with you."
GRACE TO THE HUMBLE
It's no coincidence that God came to call Moses to this task at a time when this man's heart was humble and soft. It's no coincidence that God's Word assures us that, "God opposes the proud, but gives Grace to the humble."
If we're truly wise, we know that we don't ever want God to be opposing us. To tangle with a being like God is to play with your own eternal destiny. However, the good news is that Grace is freely available to the humble, the weak, and the sincere of heart.
When you see a person who is supremely confident in themselves, ready to take on the world, you know that there's a disaster coming soon. "Pride," God tells us, "Comes before a fall." (Proverbs 3:34)
Before God humbled Moses in the wilderness, he was on his way to becoming a powerful, headstrong, failure. With all the political power at his disposal, with all the influence of the Egyptian Empire, Moses' story would no doubt have had an entirely different ending. Moses may have ended up with a legacy more akin to that of Samson or Solomon than to the events we see recorded in Exodus.
MILD AT HEART
The truth is, the best a man can do is the best a man can do, and in the end, that's not very much. One of the most amazing truths I have discovered is that the person who waits for God to fight his battles is far more influential than the one who takes matters in his own hands.
It's more popular today to talk about men being adventurous and created for battle than it is to suggest that a real man's character is more like that of Jesus, who turned the other cheek and stressed love and forgiveness for enemies, rather than violence.
The man who follows the example of celluloid heroes like John Wayne or "The Gladiator", is in reality a very small person. The man who acts aggressively, who confronts the bully in the school-yard, or the work place, or lays down the law in his own home, is only able to hold influence over those within his own limited grasp.
Using his fists, or violence or intimidation, such a person might appear, at first, to be a natural leader, a hero, or a "Real Man". While this "Man of Action" might be the king of his castle, the most feared person at work, and win the admiration of those other men who personally love him because of his "take charge" attitude, the truth is, according to God's Kingdom, such a man is no different than the pagans around him. "If you only love those who love you, what credit is that to you?" Jesus asks in Matthew 5:46.
Not only is this kind of person small, he is also in direct opposition to all that Jesus stood for. The Gospel that Jesus came and died to proclaim was the Gospel of the Kingdom. He proclaimed that it was to be entered by way of obedience to God. "Not everyone who says to me 'Lord, Lord' will enter the Kingdom of God, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." (Matt 7:21).
THE LOST ART OF FOLLOWING JESUS
For many of us, the words of Jesus seem to be for another place and time. We can hardly imagine anyone living by the commands of Jesus on a daily basis. What good could it possibly do to turn the other cheek when we're assaulted? Or to hand over our wallet to the thief who wants to steal our Ipod? Surely Jesus doesn't actually expect us to put these insane ideas into practice? Maybe these are meant to illustrate a delicate matter of theology far removed from actual life? But, then again, maybe not.
Jesus very simply called people to follow Him. This meant, in a very practical sense, living a life here and now where we put His words into practice in our actual lives.
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash." - Matthew 7:24-27
Over and over again Jesus makes it plain that the one who loves him is the one who does what he says:
"If you love me, you will obey what I command." - Jesus (John 14:15)
"You are my friends if you do what I command"- Jesus (John 15:14)
"Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me." - Jesus (John 14:21)
"If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching."
- Jesus (John 14:23)
"If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love.."
- Jesus (John 15:10)
He who does not love me will not obey my teaching."
- Jesus (John 14:24)
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven"- Jesus (Matthew 7:21).
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you."
- Jesus (Matthew 28: 19- 20).
The rest of the New Testament continues to echo this idea that to be a Christian is to be one who puts the words and teachings of Jesus into practice"
"Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from Him anything we ask, because we obey His commands and do what pleases Him." - 1 John 3:21-22
"Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil" (Ephesians 5:15-16).
"Those who obey His commands live in Him and He in them."
- 1 John 3:24
"This is love for God: to obey His commands." - 1 John 5:3
"And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands."
- 2 John 1:6
WHO WEARS THE CROWN?
So, a person who chooses to live their life by the words of Frank Sinatra, "I Did It Myyyyy Waaayyyy", cannot enter the Kingdom of God. Jesus is clear on this point. We cannot wear the crown and still maintain that Jesus is our King. Either Jesus is the King, and we are humble, obedient servants of His Kingdom, or we wear the crown and then we can do whatever we want. But we cannot have it both ways. We cannot be humble and obedient, while at the same time kicking butts and taking names in order to impose our own territorial empire.
"This, then, is how you should pray...'Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven'" (Matt 6:9-10) It's God's Kingdom that must come to earth, and it's God's will that must be done here as well, not our own.
REAL POWER
Where is real power? Where is real influence? Even taking a look at our own human history we can see that the greatest among us, those who stand head and shoulders above the rest, are those who stood for the least and defended the oppressed.
The person who chooses to turn the other cheek like Jesus, or to love instead of to fight back like Ghandi, or to heal instead of condemn like Mother Teresa, or to march instead of to take up arms like Martin Luther King Jr., is the sort of person who is able to influence entire nations and to inherit a legacy that will live beyond the grave and inspire others to do the same.
What sort of person do you want to be? Do you prefer to rule by your own two hands? Do you feel more at ease when others tremble before your influence and power? Or do you long for a life that inspires others to do great things?
THE GIFT OF WEAKNESS
When Moses is finally called by God to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, his response is that he has a weakness which inhibits him. He complains that he is "slow of speech," yet God's answer to him is most revealing; "Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him site or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord?" (Exodus 4:11)
According to God, in this passage, the weaknesses we have are given to us by God. He created Moses with a speech impediment. Why would He do that? Perhaps so that Moses would learn to lean on God, and not on himself, when it came to speaking to the people and to Pharaoh?
Moses was a man who, with God's help, was able to realize the true secret to power through humility, and his own God-given weakness. We also can learn to find the power of Christ at work in us when we submit ourselves to God, lay down our agenda, and simply say "Yes" to His perfect plan for our lives.
-kg
http://www.keithgiles.com
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Friday, May 16, 2008
MORE THAN A MANIFESTO
by Keith Giles
You probably had no idea, but recently several key Evangelical Christian leaders gathered together to write an Evangelical Manifesto.
In this document the authors (Os Guinness, Dallas Willard, Rick Warren, etc.) admitted that the title "Evangelical Christian" has lost its original meaning due to years of poor behavior on the part of those who carry the name. They say, "the confusions and corruptions surrounding the term Evangelical have grown so deep that the character of what it means has been obscured" and admit that those who wear the label Evangelical "have become known for commercial, diluted and feel-good gospels of health, wealth, human potential, and religious happy talk."
They go on to admit that Evangelicals have strayed from their initial practice of loving people, showing compassion to the poor and protecting the weak and the innocent, all of which I whole-heartedly agree with.
IT MEANS SOMETHING
When heavy-weights in the Evangelical Christian Community come together to identify a problem of this magnitude and speak out in solidarity against the failures of the Christian Church it should give us all pause to reflect and take notice.
This Evangelical Manifesto goes a long way towards admitting where the Church has gone off track and pointing the way forward for those who have wandered off the path.
I cannot find myself disagreeing with anything these men of God have to say regarding the state of the Church today and the need to reform ourselves in practice. I applaud them for seeing what many of us have seen for years now and for taking the time and energy to pen such a unified statement of confession.
There's just one problem: It won't make any difference.
How can I say this? Well, to begin with no one in the Evangelical Christian Community will do anything different tomorrow because of this Manifesto. Your pastor will not preach a sermon on this on Sunday. Your Christian friends will not be buzzing about this document. They will not read it. They will not do anything different tomorrow because it has been written.
While I agree with the Manifesto, and I highly respect the men who took the time to write it, I have to admit that it will do absolutely nothing to change the way Evangelical Christians live out their daily faith.
THE BASIC PROBLEM
The real problem is revealed in the Manifesto itself. We who call ourselves "Evangelical Christians" are largely unconcerned with actually following Jesus on a daily basis and have no intention of living out the commands of Jesus in our actual life.
If we were committed to those things we wouldn't have need of a Manifesto. If our Pastors were teaching us to follow Jesus on a daily basis, we would not have such a bad reputation in our land. If our airwaves were filled with teachers and preachers and evangelists who communicated the Gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus preached, we wouldn't have churches filled with people who think that being a Christian means saying a prayer so you can go to Heaven when you die.
The reason why people are not following Jesus today is because we are not asking people to follow Jesus, we are asking them to become Christians.
JESUS AND HIS CHURCH
Warren and Willard and Guinness are correct: The term "Evangelical Christian" is one that refers to someone who is more interested in being right than in daily following Jesus. My solution is to stop asking people to become Christians. My solution is to encourage people to start following Jesus.
"It's not that Christianity has been tried and found wanting; it's that it has been found difficult and left untried." - G.K. Chesterton
Whenever you identify yourself as a "Christian" in today's culture you align yourself with someone who looks like anything but the imitation of Jesus.
What was Jesus like? Let's look at some of his qualities:
*Compassionate
*Loving
*Caring
*Comfortable around sinners (drunks, prostitutes, tax collectors, etc.)
*Concerned for the poor, the sick, the outcast
*An advocate for peace
*Radically Inclusive
*Interested in the lives of others
*Introduced a spiritual solution to society's problems
What is the Christian Church like? Here's a short list:
*Intolerant of those who are not like themselves.
*Uncomfortable around drunks, prostitutes, sinners, etc.
*Concerned for their own personal success
*Not very concerned with the poor, the sick, or the outcast
*Obsessed with a political solution to society's problems
*Defined more by what they hate/dislike
*Largely supportive of war against our enemies
NOT A CHRISTIAN
The reason why Christianity in America is toxic to most people is that those who are called to be representatives of Jesus have done a terrible job. This is why I cannot bring myself to be indentified as a "Christian" to someone outside the Church. They hear that term and they equate me with the big-haired, money-hungry, gay-bashing, waiting-for-the-rapture brand of Believer. That is not who I am. That is not the Jesus I follow.
What needs to happen is that those who call themselves followers of Jesus begin to actually follow Him. Each and every day, one at a time, we must begin to live out the calling of Christ to take up our cross, die to ourselves, and follow Him.
There is no other way.
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock" - Jesus, Matthew 7:24.
-kg
http://www.keithgiles.com
**
TO REPLY PLEASE EMAIL ME DIRECTLY AT:
elysiansky (at) hotmail (dot) com
**
MIKE PILAVACHI - "The Ministry of The Holy Spirit"
When: Saturday, June 28th 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Where: Soul Survivor Church at Triangle Square in Costa Mesa
Cost: $8.00 (includes lunch)
REGISTER ONLINE NOW (Seating will be limited and this will fill up quickly)-
ONLINE REGISTRATION IS
HERE
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
You probably had no idea, but recently several key Evangelical Christian leaders gathered together to write an Evangelical Manifesto.
In this document the authors (Os Guinness, Dallas Willard, Rick Warren, etc.) admitted that the title "Evangelical Christian" has lost its original meaning due to years of poor behavior on the part of those who carry the name. They say, "the confusions and corruptions surrounding the term Evangelical have grown so deep that the character of what it means has been obscured" and admit that those who wear the label Evangelical "have become known for commercial, diluted and feel-good gospels of health, wealth, human potential, and religious happy talk."
They go on to admit that Evangelicals have strayed from their initial practice of loving people, showing compassion to the poor and protecting the weak and the innocent, all of which I whole-heartedly agree with.
IT MEANS SOMETHING
When heavy-weights in the Evangelical Christian Community come together to identify a problem of this magnitude and speak out in solidarity against the failures of the Christian Church it should give us all pause to reflect and take notice.
This Evangelical Manifesto goes a long way towards admitting where the Church has gone off track and pointing the way forward for those who have wandered off the path.
I cannot find myself disagreeing with anything these men of God have to say regarding the state of the Church today and the need to reform ourselves in practice. I applaud them for seeing what many of us have seen for years now and for taking the time and energy to pen such a unified statement of confession.
There's just one problem: It won't make any difference.
How can I say this? Well, to begin with no one in the Evangelical Christian Community will do anything different tomorrow because of this Manifesto. Your pastor will not preach a sermon on this on Sunday. Your Christian friends will not be buzzing about this document. They will not read it. They will not do anything different tomorrow because it has been written.
While I agree with the Manifesto, and I highly respect the men who took the time to write it, I have to admit that it will do absolutely nothing to change the way Evangelical Christians live out their daily faith.
THE BASIC PROBLEM
The real problem is revealed in the Manifesto itself. We who call ourselves "Evangelical Christians" are largely unconcerned with actually following Jesus on a daily basis and have no intention of living out the commands of Jesus in our actual life.
If we were committed to those things we wouldn't have need of a Manifesto. If our Pastors were teaching us to follow Jesus on a daily basis, we would not have such a bad reputation in our land. If our airwaves were filled with teachers and preachers and evangelists who communicated the Gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus preached, we wouldn't have churches filled with people who think that being a Christian means saying a prayer so you can go to Heaven when you die.
The reason why people are not following Jesus today is because we are not asking people to follow Jesus, we are asking them to become Christians.
JESUS AND HIS CHURCH
Warren and Willard and Guinness are correct: The term "Evangelical Christian" is one that refers to someone who is more interested in being right than in daily following Jesus. My solution is to stop asking people to become Christians. My solution is to encourage people to start following Jesus.
"It's not that Christianity has been tried and found wanting; it's that it has been found difficult and left untried." - G.K. Chesterton
Whenever you identify yourself as a "Christian" in today's culture you align yourself with someone who looks like anything but the imitation of Jesus.
What was Jesus like? Let's look at some of his qualities:
*Compassionate
*Loving
*Caring
*Comfortable around sinners (drunks, prostitutes, tax collectors, etc.)
*Concerned for the poor, the sick, the outcast
*An advocate for peace
*Radically Inclusive
*Interested in the lives of others
*Introduced a spiritual solution to society's problems
What is the Christian Church like? Here's a short list:
*Intolerant of those who are not like themselves.
*Uncomfortable around drunks, prostitutes, sinners, etc.
*Concerned for their own personal success
*Not very concerned with the poor, the sick, or the outcast
*Obsessed with a political solution to society's problems
*Defined more by what they hate/dislike
*Largely supportive of war against our enemies
NOT A CHRISTIAN
The reason why Christianity in America is toxic to most people is that those who are called to be representatives of Jesus have done a terrible job. This is why I cannot bring myself to be indentified as a "Christian" to someone outside the Church. They hear that term and they equate me with the big-haired, money-hungry, gay-bashing, waiting-for-the-rapture brand of Believer. That is not who I am. That is not the Jesus I follow.
What needs to happen is that those who call themselves followers of Jesus begin to actually follow Him. Each and every day, one at a time, we must begin to live out the calling of Christ to take up our cross, die to ourselves, and follow Him.
There is no other way.
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock" - Jesus, Matthew 7:24.
-kg
http://www.keithgiles.com
**
TO REPLY PLEASE EMAIL ME DIRECTLY AT:
elysiansky (at) hotmail (dot) com
**
MIKE PILAVACHI - "The Ministry of The Holy Spirit"
When: Saturday, June 28th 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Where: Soul Survivor Church at Triangle Square in Costa Mesa
Cost: $8.00 (includes lunch)
REGISTER ONLINE NOW (Seating will be limited and this will fill up quickly)-
ONLINE REGISTRATION IS
HERE
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Exploitation or Empowerment?
[SUBVERSIVE UNDERGROUND]
Exploitation or Empowerment?
By Keith Giles
Just imagine for a moment that you could be part of a church where the one thing they were extremely good at was to help everyone discover what their calling and gifting was. Then imagine that the one thing they always did next was to set you free and encourage you to follow that dream and live out that God-given calling. Wouldn’t that be amazing?
Wouldn't it be so incredible to be part of a church that was passionate about helping others realize their hopes and live out their dreams? Can you just imagine how others would speak of a church like that to their friends?
"Do you know what these people did for me? They loved me, they supported me, they encouraged me, they gave me confidence, they cheered me on and they put their resources towards making my life-long purpose a reality."
Wouldn't you want to know how to get to a church like that? Wouldn't you be excited to get in line and have your turn at being empowered and loved and supported and set free to live out the calling and utilize the talents God gave to you?
I just have to wonder, why isn't every Christian Church on the face of the planet like that?
Wolfgang Simson, author of "Houses That Change the World", put together a fascinating list to help us see the difference between Church as God intended it and Church as we so often experience it.
HOW TO EMPOWER OTHERS vs HOW TO EXPLOIT OTHERS
*Give people something to do OR *Give people something to attend
*Believe in people OR *Make people believe in you
*Delegate authority OR *Require submission to your authority
*Further God's plan for their life OR *Make them part of your plans
*Invest in them OR * Use them
*Love them and show it OR *Love the task more than the people
*Give them what you have OR *Take what they have
*Provide resources for growth OR *Harvest their resources for your own use
*Discuss with them OR * Preach at them
*Spend time freely with them OR *Require appointments that suit your schedule
*Give them the keys now OR *Hold back until you retire
*Serve them OR *Get them to serve you
*Praise them OR *Accept their praise graciously
*Transfer masterhood to them OR *Demonstrate your masterhood to them
APPLE TREES, NOT JUST APPLES
Someone once pointed out to me that the goal of an apple tree is not to produce more apples. It's to produce more apple trees. This is the organic purpose found in nature, and it's the organic purpose of the Body of Christ as well.
When an apple tree produces apples that's important. You can't really be an apple tree and not produce apples, of course. But if everything ended there the apple tree would not have achieved the purpose for which God designed it. The apple tree must produce more apple trees in order to realize its full potential. Otherwise, when that tree dies, so does the potential for creating more apples.
In the context of the Christian church I see too many pastors and church leaders who are terrified of taking their brightest and most talented and releasing them into the world. They feel that losing those gifted, intelligent, talented individuals will somehow make their church poorer and weaker. So they expend a whole lot of energy trying to keep those people busy and connected and plugged in to what they are doing instead of encouraging them to discover their gifting and calling and releasing them to go and to do whatever it is that God has created them for.
A church that practiced encouraging growth like this would be responsible for spawning ministries and providing good fruit for the community on an exponential level. It would also be living out the command of Scripture to seek the good of others around us rather than selfishly seeking our own good. (Philippians 2:3)
Usually the only way someone with talent and vision ever leaves one church to start another is when they leave under protest and start something all by themselves. Why? Because most pastors will tell you that they are not ready to start planting a church until they reach 500 members. The problem with that is when you realize that the average church in America is only about 250 to 300 people. Most never reach the 500 mark, and honestly when they do reach that milestone few of those churches ever actually plant another church because they have not planned to do so.
JUST IMAGINE
If we go back to my imaginary Church above, you know the one where everyone is encouraged and empowered and released to live out the calling God has placed on them? Any church that actually lived that out and practiced this sort of extravagant empowerment wouldn't be able to contain the people who flocked to their doorstep. They also wouldn't be able to survive the flood of people unless they were continually sending people out and giving away their brightest and best to fulfill the destiny God had placed on them.
I can't help but feel that this was what Jesus had in mind all along. When he commanded us to love one another and share everything we had with others, Jesus was deputizing us to do the work he started. Jesus trained a handful of men to be salt and light in the world and then he cut them loose and set them free to live out the things he had taught them. He also commanded them to repeat that pattern over and over again. "Go into the world and make disciples of all nations...teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you..." he said. And that's exactly what they did. Over and over again. They followed Jesus and they taught others how to follow Jesus so that they could go out and teach others how to follow Jesus too.
A SCHOOL THAT YOU NEVER GRADUATE FROM
My friend Brent once said that traditional Churches today are like an eternal school full of people who will never graduate. Everyone has to sit through essentially the same lecture each week and there is no homework (so the pastor doesn't test who is putting things into practice or not), and worst of all no one ever graduates and becomes an instructor themselves.
Here's a great solution: Teach your people to become teachers. If you are in the habit of training others to become trainers of others (this is a very basic principle of discipleship), you will eventually end up with a church full of teachers and trainers who are training others to also be teachers and trainers. Over time your church will become so full of mature ("Graduated") leaders and disciple-makers that your small staff will act mostly as facilitators and not the one's who must always be "hands-on" for every single event/class/lesson/bible study, etc.
LACK OF TRUST
I have personally been shocked to see a lack of basic trust among most lead pastors to "give away the ministry" in this way. Many pastors are too afraid to actually empower and release others to do their job. Why? Well, it's pretty obvious that this threatens their authority and job security. But, it doesn't have to. I believe any pastor who actually put this into practice would quickly become the envy of other pastors in their community. They'd get phone calls from other pastors asking, "How do you do it?" and "Can you show me how to do what you're doing?"
RETURN TO THE PRIESTHOOD OF BELIEVERS
Most pastors and on-staff ministers can relate to the fact that only a handful of people do all the work and ministry in the Body while 80% to 90% sit back and do nothing. This creates frustration, burn-out and, honestly, a large group of underdeveloped disciples.
What happened to the Priesthood of the Believer? What happened to opening the Word of God and trusting the Holy Spirit to lead you into all truth?
“But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.”
– 1 Peter 2:9
The liberty offered to us in Christ Jesus was meant to empower every believer to become a committed and devoted disciple who, then in turn, goes and creates other committed and devoted disciples. The early church was not full of seminary trained Bible teachers. Most of those who lead the weekly gatherings in their homes were average, ordinary people like you and I. They were lead by the Holy Spirit as they prayed, studied the Scriptures and met together with other followers of Jesus each week.
In my experience as a house church pastor I can testify to the truth of the scriptures where God promises that He will build His church. He doesn’t need our help. He is also true to His word and promise that the Holy Spirit will lead us into all Truth. (John 16:13; 1 Cor 12)
THE POWER OF LETTING GO
We have a tendency in our traditional churches to centralize certain people as leaders and, in turn, we disqualify everyone else from participating. I believe that this is not the way God intended things to be. We were not saved and filled with the Holy Spirit to simply remain spectators as a select few act out their calling and live out their purpose.
Each of us in the Body of Christ has a specific calling and gift. If we are not set free to use it as God intended not only will we suffer as individuals, we will suffer as a Body, and the Nation will suffer due to our unrealized potential.
(See 1 Cor. 12)
Let me encourage you to discover your calling as a valued member of God’s Family. Once you’ve heard God’s voice and you’ve understood the purpose God has for you as an agent of change within this culture, let me be the first to urge you to step outside the nest and spread your wings.
If you feel called to start a Bible Study in your home, do it. If you feel called to go out into the streets and reach out to the homeless, or the prostitute, go for it. If you have a passion to start a new kind of church that facilitates community and reaches a new generation, make it so.
Don’t allow anyone to hold you back. The Kingdom is wide open. Take that first leap...and soar!
-kg
**
MIKE PILAVACHI: THE MINISTRY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Mike Pilavachi, the founder of Soul Survivor Ministries, will be coming to America and speaking here in Orange County at a special one day conference on the Holy Spirit.
Mike Pilavachi is a powerful, and inspiring speaker. I've been very blessed by Mike in the past, as he shared at Soul Survivor events over the years and I am thrilled to be able to invite everyone to be part of hearing him speak on the Ministry of the Holy Spirit next month.
Mike will be sharing on Saturday, June 28th, from 10am to 2pm at Triangle Square on the Holy Spirit and provide practical training on how to pray for people, how to minister to one another, how to operate in your spiritual gifting, etc. Registration is just $8 and lunch is included. This date will fill up quickly (only 100 seats are available). If you can make it please register today, or at least sometime this week.
I will be at this event with my family. I encourage you to join us.
Please- Don't miss it!
When: Saturday, June 28th 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Where: Soul Survivor Church at Triangle Square in Costa Mesa
Cost: $8.00 (includes lunch)
REGISTER ONLINE NOW (Seating will be limited and this will fill up quickly)-
ONLINE REGISTRATION IS
HERE
**
SEND GAP A MESSAGE
My friend Jarred's SENDGAPCLOTHESBACK.COM initiative continues.
In order to protest the use of child slavery to produce clothing for the Gap Inc. store chain (which includes Old Navy and Bannanna Republic), my friend Jarred set up this website and activist initiative to send Gap, Inc. a message.
Phase 1 saw hundreds of people returning their Gap clothing en masse at stores in Miami, Orange County, New York (Times Square) and San Francisco.
Phase 2 is a little more...subversive.
Find out more and participate
HERE
**
TODD HUNTER: THREE IS ENOUGH MP3
Todd Hunter gave a great talk last Thursday concerning the state of Christianity in America today and what he feels we can do to change things for the better.
This was a very inspiring session and it's now available as a free MP3 download over at my podcast page on ITunes.
IF YOU USE ITUNES: GO TO [SUBVERSIVE UNDERGROUND] PODCAST
You can find Todd Hunter's "Three Is Enough" mp3 for free on ITunes under my [Subversive Underground] podcast page (which also has all 3 Non-Con messages).
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Exploitation or Empowerment?
By Keith Giles
Just imagine for a moment that you could be part of a church where the one thing they were extremely good at was to help everyone discover what their calling and gifting was. Then imagine that the one thing they always did next was to set you free and encourage you to follow that dream and live out that God-given calling. Wouldn’t that be amazing?
Wouldn't it be so incredible to be part of a church that was passionate about helping others realize their hopes and live out their dreams? Can you just imagine how others would speak of a church like that to their friends?
"Do you know what these people did for me? They loved me, they supported me, they encouraged me, they gave me confidence, they cheered me on and they put their resources towards making my life-long purpose a reality."
Wouldn't you want to know how to get to a church like that? Wouldn't you be excited to get in line and have your turn at being empowered and loved and supported and set free to live out the calling and utilize the talents God gave to you?
I just have to wonder, why isn't every Christian Church on the face of the planet like that?
Wolfgang Simson, author of "Houses That Change the World", put together a fascinating list to help us see the difference between Church as God intended it and Church as we so often experience it.
HOW TO EMPOWER OTHERS vs HOW TO EXPLOIT OTHERS
*Give people something to do OR *Give people something to attend
*Believe in people OR *Make people believe in you
*Delegate authority OR *Require submission to your authority
*Further God's plan for their life OR *Make them part of your plans
*Invest in them OR * Use them
*Love them and show it OR *Love the task more than the people
*Give them what you have OR *Take what they have
*Provide resources for growth OR *Harvest their resources for your own use
*Discuss with them OR * Preach at them
*Spend time freely with them OR *Require appointments that suit your schedule
*Give them the keys now OR *Hold back until you retire
*Serve them OR *Get them to serve you
*Praise them OR *Accept their praise graciously
*Transfer masterhood to them OR *Demonstrate your masterhood to them
APPLE TREES, NOT JUST APPLES
Someone once pointed out to me that the goal of an apple tree is not to produce more apples. It's to produce more apple trees. This is the organic purpose found in nature, and it's the organic purpose of the Body of Christ as well.
When an apple tree produces apples that's important. You can't really be an apple tree and not produce apples, of course. But if everything ended there the apple tree would not have achieved the purpose for which God designed it. The apple tree must produce more apple trees in order to realize its full potential. Otherwise, when that tree dies, so does the potential for creating more apples.
In the context of the Christian church I see too many pastors and church leaders who are terrified of taking their brightest and most talented and releasing them into the world. They feel that losing those gifted, intelligent, talented individuals will somehow make their church poorer and weaker. So they expend a whole lot of energy trying to keep those people busy and connected and plugged in to what they are doing instead of encouraging them to discover their gifting and calling and releasing them to go and to do whatever it is that God has created them for.
A church that practiced encouraging growth like this would be responsible for spawning ministries and providing good fruit for the community on an exponential level. It would also be living out the command of Scripture to seek the good of others around us rather than selfishly seeking our own good. (Philippians 2:3)
Usually the only way someone with talent and vision ever leaves one church to start another is when they leave under protest and start something all by themselves. Why? Because most pastors will tell you that they are not ready to start planting a church until they reach 500 members. The problem with that is when you realize that the average church in America is only about 250 to 300 people. Most never reach the 500 mark, and honestly when they do reach that milestone few of those churches ever actually plant another church because they have not planned to do so.
JUST IMAGINE
If we go back to my imaginary Church above, you know the one where everyone is encouraged and empowered and released to live out the calling God has placed on them? Any church that actually lived that out and practiced this sort of extravagant empowerment wouldn't be able to contain the people who flocked to their doorstep. They also wouldn't be able to survive the flood of people unless they were continually sending people out and giving away their brightest and best to fulfill the destiny God had placed on them.
I can't help but feel that this was what Jesus had in mind all along. When he commanded us to love one another and share everything we had with others, Jesus was deputizing us to do the work he started. Jesus trained a handful of men to be salt and light in the world and then he cut them loose and set them free to live out the things he had taught them. He also commanded them to repeat that pattern over and over again. "Go into the world and make disciples of all nations...teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you..." he said. And that's exactly what they did. Over and over again. They followed Jesus and they taught others how to follow Jesus so that they could go out and teach others how to follow Jesus too.
A SCHOOL THAT YOU NEVER GRADUATE FROM
My friend Brent once said that traditional Churches today are like an eternal school full of people who will never graduate. Everyone has to sit through essentially the same lecture each week and there is no homework (so the pastor doesn't test who is putting things into practice or not), and worst of all no one ever graduates and becomes an instructor themselves.
Here's a great solution: Teach your people to become teachers. If you are in the habit of training others to become trainers of others (this is a very basic principle of discipleship), you will eventually end up with a church full of teachers and trainers who are training others to also be teachers and trainers. Over time your church will become so full of mature ("Graduated") leaders and disciple-makers that your small staff will act mostly as facilitators and not the one's who must always be "hands-on" for every single event/class/lesson/bible study, etc.
LACK OF TRUST
I have personally been shocked to see a lack of basic trust among most lead pastors to "give away the ministry" in this way. Many pastors are too afraid to actually empower and release others to do their job. Why? Well, it's pretty obvious that this threatens their authority and job security. But, it doesn't have to. I believe any pastor who actually put this into practice would quickly become the envy of other pastors in their community. They'd get phone calls from other pastors asking, "How do you do it?" and "Can you show me how to do what you're doing?"
RETURN TO THE PRIESTHOOD OF BELIEVERS
Most pastors and on-staff ministers can relate to the fact that only a handful of people do all the work and ministry in the Body while 80% to 90% sit back and do nothing. This creates frustration, burn-out and, honestly, a large group of underdeveloped disciples.
What happened to the Priesthood of the Believer? What happened to opening the Word of God and trusting the Holy Spirit to lead you into all truth?
“But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.”
– 1 Peter 2:9
The liberty offered to us in Christ Jesus was meant to empower every believer to become a committed and devoted disciple who, then in turn, goes and creates other committed and devoted disciples. The early church was not full of seminary trained Bible teachers. Most of those who lead the weekly gatherings in their homes were average, ordinary people like you and I. They were lead by the Holy Spirit as they prayed, studied the Scriptures and met together with other followers of Jesus each week.
In my experience as a house church pastor I can testify to the truth of the scriptures where God promises that He will build His church. He doesn’t need our help. He is also true to His word and promise that the Holy Spirit will lead us into all Truth. (John 16:13; 1 Cor 12)
THE POWER OF LETTING GO
We have a tendency in our traditional churches to centralize certain people as leaders and, in turn, we disqualify everyone else from participating. I believe that this is not the way God intended things to be. We were not saved and filled with the Holy Spirit to simply remain spectators as a select few act out their calling and live out their purpose.
Each of us in the Body of Christ has a specific calling and gift. If we are not set free to use it as God intended not only will we suffer as individuals, we will suffer as a Body, and the Nation will suffer due to our unrealized potential.
(See 1 Cor. 12)
Let me encourage you to discover your calling as a valued member of God’s Family. Once you’ve heard God’s voice and you’ve understood the purpose God has for you as an agent of change within this culture, let me be the first to urge you to step outside the nest and spread your wings.
If you feel called to start a Bible Study in your home, do it. If you feel called to go out into the streets and reach out to the homeless, or the prostitute, go for it. If you have a passion to start a new kind of church that facilitates community and reaches a new generation, make it so.
Don’t allow anyone to hold you back. The Kingdom is wide open. Take that first leap...and soar!
-kg
**
MIKE PILAVACHI: THE MINISTRY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Mike Pilavachi, the founder of Soul Survivor Ministries, will be coming to America and speaking here in Orange County at a special one day conference on the Holy Spirit.
Mike Pilavachi is a powerful, and inspiring speaker. I've been very blessed by Mike in the past, as he shared at Soul Survivor events over the years and I am thrilled to be able to invite everyone to be part of hearing him speak on the Ministry of the Holy Spirit next month.
Mike will be sharing on Saturday, June 28th, from 10am to 2pm at Triangle Square on the Holy Spirit and provide practical training on how to pray for people, how to minister to one another, how to operate in your spiritual gifting, etc. Registration is just $8 and lunch is included. This date will fill up quickly (only 100 seats are available). If you can make it please register today, or at least sometime this week.
I will be at this event with my family. I encourage you to join us.
Please- Don't miss it!
When: Saturday, June 28th 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
Where: Soul Survivor Church at Triangle Square in Costa Mesa
Cost: $8.00 (includes lunch)
REGISTER ONLINE NOW (Seating will be limited and this will fill up quickly)-
ONLINE REGISTRATION IS
HERE
**
SEND GAP A MESSAGE
My friend Jarred's SENDGAPCLOTHESBACK.COM initiative continues.
In order to protest the use of child slavery to produce clothing for the Gap Inc. store chain (which includes Old Navy and Bannanna Republic), my friend Jarred set up this website and activist initiative to send Gap, Inc. a message.
Phase 1 saw hundreds of people returning their Gap clothing en masse at stores in Miami, Orange County, New York (Times Square) and San Francisco.
Phase 2 is a little more...subversive.
Find out more and participate
HERE
**
TODD HUNTER: THREE IS ENOUGH MP3
Todd Hunter gave a great talk last Thursday concerning the state of Christianity in America today and what he feels we can do to change things for the better.
This was a very inspiring session and it's now available as a free MP3 download over at my podcast page on ITunes.
IF YOU USE ITUNES: GO TO [SUBVERSIVE UNDERGROUND] PODCAST
You can find Todd Hunter's "Three Is Enough" mp3 for free on ITunes under my [Subversive Underground] podcast page (which also has all 3 Non-Con messages).
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
SUFFERING AND THE KINGDOM OF GOD
[Subversive Underground]
Suffering and The Kingdom of God
by Keith Giles
"What do we do about Suffering?" Larry asked.
My good friend Larry has been part of our house church now for over a year. In this time I've seen him grow spiritually and take radical steps in his faith. Recently he started meeting early on Sunday mornings to disciple a co-worker and on Tuesday's he helps to lead some of his family members in weekly Bible Study. The discussions spinning outward from these have sent him back to his own Bible to understand more of God's Word and to answer the hard questions being thrown at him.
As we sat at a local coffeeshop one night, Larry admitted that he really didn't have an answer to the question of suffering in the world today. "It seems to be one of the hardest things to explain to people," he said, "Because they wonder how God could be good and still allow innocent people to die."
Larry is right. The problem of suffering is one of the most difficult questions to answer for most of us who believe in and follow Jesus. For some the question is a smokescreen. They really don't want an answer to the question, it's more of a challenge to a faith they've already dismissed as irrelevant. To them the question of suffering is more like a slap from a leather glove across a believer's face, intended to end any further discussion of faith in a personal God.
For others, the question of suffering is a serious stumbling block. They want to have faith in a God who loves them and is good and who has a wonderful plan for their lives, but the suffering of innocent children due to poverty, or natural disaster or violence leaves them puzzled and full of doubt.
SORTING IT ALL OUT
There have been numerous apologetics written to address this problem. Most point out that no one is truly innocent, or that God has an eternal perspective that transcends our finite, mortal existence in this physical world.
While I do acknowledge that suffering is difficult to endure, on some level I have to confess that it's always puzzled me why people get hung up on this question so often. Part of me wants to ask what world they were born into? Don't they live in the same world we all live in? Aren't we all very acquainted with the fact that people die, accidents happen, sickness is real and tragedy strikes all of us sooner or later? Why do we expect God to step in and prevent every accident, tragedy and act of violence? What has given us the idea that this is God's job function?
As Larry and I discussed this I realized that our desire to have God intervene in our suffering, and the suffering of others, is connected to the eternal Kingdom of God itself. Why? Because for us to live in a world where God prevented every accident, healed every sickness and averted every natural disaster on every continent twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, we would have to live in a world where God was the absolute ruler and King of every minute detail of our lives.
When people genuinely cry out for a world where God prevents suffering and manages natural disasters and eliminates pain, they are revealing an inner desire to live in the Kingdom of God itself. Any world where God plays the role of cosmic policeman and perpetual rescue worker is also one where we are fully submitted to His rule and reign.
A BETTER WORLD IS ON THE WAY
Of course, it is doubtful that most of those who complain the loudest about the problem of suffering would really want to live in a world ruled completely by God, and obey His rules and submit to His absolute authority. If they did, then they would have already submitted their lives to Him and placed their hope in God.
Yet, this is the sort of world that Jesus invites all of us to enter- a world where God is our King and His perfect will is always done in every aspect of our lives. Jesus called it the Kingdom of God and his message, his good news for all of us, was that we could enter this Kingdom immediately, on the spot.
Admittedly, the world we live in today is not a pain-free world. Suffering is part of our daily experience and reality. But this does not mean that God isn't working, even now, to bring mankind to a better reality. He really does have a plan to take us to a place free from suffering.
FROM EDEN TO EDEN
It has been said that all of creation is from Eden to Eden. In the beginning God created an Eden where He and mankind were co-laborers together in the creation, where He was King and there was no sin, or pain or death. At the end of the story we see that God will bring everything back again, ultimately, finally, eternally, to a place where we are co-laborers with Him in His renewed creation, and He is King and there are no tears, and there is no pain or death.
In the meantime, we are invited to step into the story and join with God in His plan. We can become co-laborers with Him in advancing His Kingdom here and now. We can submit to His rule and reign in our actual lives today.
When Jesus announced the Kingdom of God at the beginning of his ministry he invited those who were ready to enter to follow him. He provided the blueprint for all of us who were eager to enjoy the Kingdom reality. His message, his Good News, was that this Kingdom was at hand, even near enough to reach out and touch.
Sadly, even those who call themselves after his name today are largely unaware of this message. In churches across this nation, week after week, this message of Jesus is rarely spoken. Many who consider themselves followers have yet to take up their cross daily and pattern their life after the teachings of Jesus.
If those who are most familiar with Jesus are ignorant of his message, we should hardly be surprised that no one else has heard the Gospel.
The world we live in now is one where suffering and pain and evil are continually present. As we live our lives, day by day, we wait for God to complete His plan and establish His Kingdom in every heart, and in every nation. Until then, we can take heart that God has a plan to use even the suffering we endure as a tool to shape our faith and inner character after that of His own son, who was a man of sorrows, and acquainted with suffering. We can even partner with God to comfort those who are suffering and extend to them the compassionate heart of Jesus in the midst of their pain.
PERSONAL PAIN
My wife and I have been through a lot of suffering over the last few years. We've endured financial hardship, persecution, miscarriage, and uncertainty. Yet, even as hard as all of that was for us, I wouldn't take any of it back. God taught me things during those times that I could never have learned from a book, or a sermon, or a seminar.
Better still, God has taught me about suffering and enduring hardships so that I can help and encourage others who find themselves in similar places.
"But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer;" - 2 Cor 1:16
So often the popular Christian message is that God wants you to be wealthy and healthy and happy all the time - but when we discover that this isn't the Gospel, and that God's Word actually teaches that God works through our suffering and pain to make us like His Son, we can more fully understand why God allows pain and realize that He is "the God who is with us" in the midst of our suffering.
"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." - James 1:2-4
So, I just wanted to encourage each of you today that your pain isn't for nothing. It's meant to give you a faith that won't let go, a perserverance that will cling to God in all things.
No matter what suffering and pain you've been through, all of it is (in some strange way) part of how God reveals His love to us. (see Hebrews 12:5-11).
During the darkest times of my own personal suffering, I have often repeated these words to Jesus in the dark, remembering the words Peter spoke when he felt the urge to abandon his faith, "Where else can we go Lord? You have the words of life."
-kg
**
TODD HUNTER - "Three Is Enough" MP3
Todd's talk last Thursday was very inspiring and it's now available online now as an MP3 download at [SUBVERSIVE UNDERGROUND] PODCAST on ITunes.
You can find it on ITunes under [Subversive Underground], my podcast page (which also has all 3 Non-Con messages). Whether you use IMac or Ipod or PC it will work on your computer. You might have to download ITunes first, but there's no charge.
In this message Todd has some great things to share about the state of Christianity in America and his vision to help people to re-imagine their daily life in a Kingdom perspective. Worth a listen to two.
**
"WHAT ABOUT THE RAPTURE?"
We can get so hung up on the signs of the times and our version of the Rapture, the End Times, etc. that we forget to live our lives here and now.
FULL ARTICLE
HERE
**
CONSTANTINE: THE FATHER OF OUR FAITH?
Why did the Church allow a man who held the title of High Priest in the Pagan Temple to influence the way they worshipped and practiced their faith?
Maybe it was because he was their largest financial supporter? Or because he ended the brutal persecutions of his predecessors? Or because he gave them non-profit, tax-exempt status in the Empire? Maybe it was because he promoted several of the clergy to high-ranking offices within the Empire? Or because he built large temples for them to worship in?
FULL ARTICLE
HERE
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Suffering and The Kingdom of God
by Keith Giles
"What do we do about Suffering?" Larry asked.
My good friend Larry has been part of our house church now for over a year. In this time I've seen him grow spiritually and take radical steps in his faith. Recently he started meeting early on Sunday mornings to disciple a co-worker and on Tuesday's he helps to lead some of his family members in weekly Bible Study. The discussions spinning outward from these have sent him back to his own Bible to understand more of God's Word and to answer the hard questions being thrown at him.
As we sat at a local coffeeshop one night, Larry admitted that he really didn't have an answer to the question of suffering in the world today. "It seems to be one of the hardest things to explain to people," he said, "Because they wonder how God could be good and still allow innocent people to die."
Larry is right. The problem of suffering is one of the most difficult questions to answer for most of us who believe in and follow Jesus. For some the question is a smokescreen. They really don't want an answer to the question, it's more of a challenge to a faith they've already dismissed as irrelevant. To them the question of suffering is more like a slap from a leather glove across a believer's face, intended to end any further discussion of faith in a personal God.
For others, the question of suffering is a serious stumbling block. They want to have faith in a God who loves them and is good and who has a wonderful plan for their lives, but the suffering of innocent children due to poverty, or natural disaster or violence leaves them puzzled and full of doubt.
SORTING IT ALL OUT
There have been numerous apologetics written to address this problem. Most point out that no one is truly innocent, or that God has an eternal perspective that transcends our finite, mortal existence in this physical world.
While I do acknowledge that suffering is difficult to endure, on some level I have to confess that it's always puzzled me why people get hung up on this question so often. Part of me wants to ask what world they were born into? Don't they live in the same world we all live in? Aren't we all very acquainted with the fact that people die, accidents happen, sickness is real and tragedy strikes all of us sooner or later? Why do we expect God to step in and prevent every accident, tragedy and act of violence? What has given us the idea that this is God's job function?
As Larry and I discussed this I realized that our desire to have God intervene in our suffering, and the suffering of others, is connected to the eternal Kingdom of God itself. Why? Because for us to live in a world where God prevented every accident, healed every sickness and averted every natural disaster on every continent twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, we would have to live in a world where God was the absolute ruler and King of every minute detail of our lives.
When people genuinely cry out for a world where God prevents suffering and manages natural disasters and eliminates pain, they are revealing an inner desire to live in the Kingdom of God itself. Any world where God plays the role of cosmic policeman and perpetual rescue worker is also one where we are fully submitted to His rule and reign.
A BETTER WORLD IS ON THE WAY
Of course, it is doubtful that most of those who complain the loudest about the problem of suffering would really want to live in a world ruled completely by God, and obey His rules and submit to His absolute authority. If they did, then they would have already submitted their lives to Him and placed their hope in God.
Yet, this is the sort of world that Jesus invites all of us to enter- a world where God is our King and His perfect will is always done in every aspect of our lives. Jesus called it the Kingdom of God and his message, his good news for all of us, was that we could enter this Kingdom immediately, on the spot.
Admittedly, the world we live in today is not a pain-free world. Suffering is part of our daily experience and reality. But this does not mean that God isn't working, even now, to bring mankind to a better reality. He really does have a plan to take us to a place free from suffering.
FROM EDEN TO EDEN
It has been said that all of creation is from Eden to Eden. In the beginning God created an Eden where He and mankind were co-laborers together in the creation, where He was King and there was no sin, or pain or death. At the end of the story we see that God will bring everything back again, ultimately, finally, eternally, to a place where we are co-laborers with Him in His renewed creation, and He is King and there are no tears, and there is no pain or death.
In the meantime, we are invited to step into the story and join with God in His plan. We can become co-laborers with Him in advancing His Kingdom here and now. We can submit to His rule and reign in our actual lives today.
When Jesus announced the Kingdom of God at the beginning of his ministry he invited those who were ready to enter to follow him. He provided the blueprint for all of us who were eager to enjoy the Kingdom reality. His message, his Good News, was that this Kingdom was at hand, even near enough to reach out and touch.
Sadly, even those who call themselves after his name today are largely unaware of this message. In churches across this nation, week after week, this message of Jesus is rarely spoken. Many who consider themselves followers have yet to take up their cross daily and pattern their life after the teachings of Jesus.
If those who are most familiar with Jesus are ignorant of his message, we should hardly be surprised that no one else has heard the Gospel.
The world we live in now is one where suffering and pain and evil are continually present. As we live our lives, day by day, we wait for God to complete His plan and establish His Kingdom in every heart, and in every nation. Until then, we can take heart that God has a plan to use even the suffering we endure as a tool to shape our faith and inner character after that of His own son, who was a man of sorrows, and acquainted with suffering. We can even partner with God to comfort those who are suffering and extend to them the compassionate heart of Jesus in the midst of their pain.
PERSONAL PAIN
My wife and I have been through a lot of suffering over the last few years. We've endured financial hardship, persecution, miscarriage, and uncertainty. Yet, even as hard as all of that was for us, I wouldn't take any of it back. God taught me things during those times that I could never have learned from a book, or a sermon, or a seminar.
Better still, God has taught me about suffering and enduring hardships so that I can help and encourage others who find themselves in similar places.
"But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer;" - 2 Cor 1:16
So often the popular Christian message is that God wants you to be wealthy and healthy and happy all the time - but when we discover that this isn't the Gospel, and that God's Word actually teaches that God works through our suffering and pain to make us like His Son, we can more fully understand why God allows pain and realize that He is "the God who is with us" in the midst of our suffering.
"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." - James 1:2-4
So, I just wanted to encourage each of you today that your pain isn't for nothing. It's meant to give you a faith that won't let go, a perserverance that will cling to God in all things.
No matter what suffering and pain you've been through, all of it is (in some strange way) part of how God reveals His love to us. (see Hebrews 12:5-11).
During the darkest times of my own personal suffering, I have often repeated these words to Jesus in the dark, remembering the words Peter spoke when he felt the urge to abandon his faith, "Where else can we go Lord? You have the words of life."
-kg
**
TODD HUNTER - "Three Is Enough" MP3
Todd's talk last Thursday was very inspiring and it's now available online now as an MP3 download at [SUBVERSIVE UNDERGROUND] PODCAST on ITunes.
You can find it on ITunes under [Subversive Underground], my podcast page (which also has all 3 Non-Con messages). Whether you use IMac or Ipod or PC it will work on your computer. You might have to download ITunes first, but there's no charge.
In this message Todd has some great things to share about the state of Christianity in America and his vision to help people to re-imagine their daily life in a Kingdom perspective. Worth a listen to two.
**
"WHAT ABOUT THE RAPTURE?"
We can get so hung up on the signs of the times and our version of the Rapture, the End Times, etc. that we forget to live our lives here and now.
FULL ARTICLE
HERE
**
CONSTANTINE: THE FATHER OF OUR FAITH?
Why did the Church allow a man who held the title of High Priest in the Pagan Temple to influence the way they worshipped and practiced their faith?
Maybe it was because he was their largest financial supporter? Or because he ended the brutal persecutions of his predecessors? Or because he gave them non-profit, tax-exempt status in the Empire? Maybe it was because he promoted several of the clergy to high-ranking offices within the Empire? Or because he built large temples for them to worship in?
FULL ARTICLE
HERE
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Thursday, April 24, 2008
JESUS FIRST
[SUBVERSIVE UNDERGROUND]
JESUS FIRST
by Keith Giles
I recently read a thought-provoking post on a friend's blog that has set me off.
My friend posted a list of the Top 10 Most Influential People on American Christianity. Top of the list was Paul the Apostle and tied for last place was Jesus (and John Wesley).
This list made an excellent point, which I must say I agree with. (Except that maybe I would have put Constantine on there somewhere, but whatever). American Christians are much more students of Paul than they are students of Jesus.
How can I say this? Well, to start with, whenever I speak to people about the words of Jesus, most look at me with blank stares, or quote something that Paul said back at me to clarify what Jesus must have meant.
A few years ago I taught a series on the words of Jesus (along with two other pastors at Soul Survivor church). It was quite refreshing and, surprisingly inspiring to spend several months meditating on the parables and the beatitudes and the radical statements of Jesus, our Lord and Savior and King. His words seemed fresh and powerful and, strangely, brand new to me.
Many of those who attended these services came up afterwards to express their shock and surprise about the words of Jesus. Several had never heard a sermon on these subjects in their life. I was among them.
As I sat down last week with several of the men from our house church we discussed this subject over coffee. I asked them why they thought American Christians were so enamored by Paul and so ignorant of Jesus (the one they are supposed to be following).
One of my friends, John, responded by saying that he felt like Paul was very methodical and logical. It was his theory that Americans want answers and love details, so Paul was more within our comfort zone in a way. Jesus, he said, was much too mystical. He told stories that were difficult to understand. He expected his followers to put his words into practice. He challenged his disciples to live radical lives of inclusive love, to be agents of change in their homes, and in their communities. In short, Jesus was a little scary. Paul was someone we could study and that made us feel as smart as he was.
As we continued to discuss this I made an observation- American Christians would rather ask Paul to explain Jesus to them than to go to Jesus themselves. It's like sitting down with both Paul and Jesus and insisting on only speaking to Paul while ignoring Jesus the entire time.
Many American Protestants criticize Catholics for getting to Jesus via Mary or by praying to the Saints. Are we doing the same thing with Paul the Apostle?
I want to be careful to say that, in our discussion about America's fascination with Paul, we are not down-playing the importance of Paul or his teachings. Both Paul and Jesus are authoritative and their words are meant to be taken as Scripture, we are not cutting the letters of Paul out of our Bibles.
However, both Jesus and Paul are represented within our New Testament. Why would we skip those four Gospels and ignore the very person whom we claim to follow and worship?
Paul himself argues that it is Jesus whom we should follow and obey as our Lord in his first letter to the Corinthians:
"One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas (or Peter)"; still another, "I follow Christ." Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, so no one can say that you were baptized into my name....For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." Paul the Apostle (1 Corinthians 1: 12-17; see also chapter 3).
If we are truly Christians - which means "little christs" - and we are serious about following Jesus, then we cannot deny that Jesus is our first and main example, and teacher and Lord. Paul is a great teacher and theologian. God certainly called him and used him to shape the early church, and the development of the Christian faith, to this very day. But let us not forget Jesus. He is God in the flesh. He is the one we are called to follow and to emulate. His words should hold weight with us. We should daily seek to learn from Jesus, to seek His face, to follow in His footsteps.
Becoming experts on the letters of Paul and ignoring Jesus is like studying travel guides for exotic tropical paradises and never actually going there ourselves.
When Jesus walked this earth he called people, one at a time, to simply follow him. He laid out very clear and specific instructions regarding what it would cost to follow him, and what he expected of those who followed him, and the scriptures themselves (including the writings of Paul, and Peter, and James and John, etc.), elaborate on what following Jesus is all about.
Let us not just read about following Jesus, let us actually follow Jesus.
"This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did" - 1 John 2: 5-6
I would encourage everyone who reads this to begin studying the red letters in Matthew. Let the words of Jesus nourish your soul like warm bread from the oven. Let the wisdom of Jesus refresh your life like cool water on the tongue.
Become students of Jesus. Apprentice yourself to Him. Put his teachings into practice in your daily life. Answer His calling on your life to follow after him.
"Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." - Jesus (Luke 9:23)
At the end of your life you and I will stand before Jesus. Make sure that you have a cross in your hand when you get there.
-kg
http://www.keithgiles.com
**
WHAT REMAINS ART GALLERY
Photos are online now from last Saturday's opening night with Scott Laumann, Heather Wright and Bill Burgess...plus a few surprises.
CHECK IT
**
THE KINGDOM REALITY
by Keith Giles
The Kingdom of God is the present reality which breaks into this illusion of ours intermittently, like very bad cell phone reception. It's God's way of saying, "Can you hear me now?"
ARTICLE HERE
**
THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE IN AMERICAN CHRISTIANITY
Read Brant Hansen's Amazing Blog
HERE
**
JOIN THE MOVEMENT
by Keith Giles
The truth is, all anyone can do is to join the movement, no one can actually start one. At least, not on purpose anyway.
Most of the time, whenever you hear someone say, "I want to start a movement" you can bet on one thing: They will not start a movement.
READ MORE
**
CONSTANTINE: THE FATHER OF OUR FAITH?
By Keith Giles
Why did the Church allow a man who held the title of High Priest in the Pagan Temple to influence the way they worshipped and practiced their faith?
Maybe it was because he was their largest financial supporter? Or because he ended the brutal persecutions of his predecessors? Or because he gave them non-profit, tax-exempt status in the Empire? Maybe it was because he promoted several of the clergy to high-ranking offices within the Empire? Or because he built large temples for them to worship in?
Whatever the reason, Constantine was allowed to dictate to the Church how and when and where they would worship God.
READ MORE
**
WANT TO TALK? EMAIL ME DIRECTLY AT
"ELYSIANSKY" (AT) HOTMAIL (DOT COM)
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
JESUS FIRST
by Keith Giles
I recently read a thought-provoking post on a friend's blog that has set me off.
My friend posted a list of the Top 10 Most Influential People on American Christianity. Top of the list was Paul the Apostle and tied for last place was Jesus (and John Wesley).
This list made an excellent point, which I must say I agree with. (Except that maybe I would have put Constantine on there somewhere, but whatever). American Christians are much more students of Paul than they are students of Jesus.
How can I say this? Well, to start with, whenever I speak to people about the words of Jesus, most look at me with blank stares, or quote something that Paul said back at me to clarify what Jesus must have meant.
A few years ago I taught a series on the words of Jesus (along with two other pastors at Soul Survivor church). It was quite refreshing and, surprisingly inspiring to spend several months meditating on the parables and the beatitudes and the radical statements of Jesus, our Lord and Savior and King. His words seemed fresh and powerful and, strangely, brand new to me.
Many of those who attended these services came up afterwards to express their shock and surprise about the words of Jesus. Several had never heard a sermon on these subjects in their life. I was among them.
As I sat down last week with several of the men from our house church we discussed this subject over coffee. I asked them why they thought American Christians were so enamored by Paul and so ignorant of Jesus (the one they are supposed to be following).
One of my friends, John, responded by saying that he felt like Paul was very methodical and logical. It was his theory that Americans want answers and love details, so Paul was more within our comfort zone in a way. Jesus, he said, was much too mystical. He told stories that were difficult to understand. He expected his followers to put his words into practice. He challenged his disciples to live radical lives of inclusive love, to be agents of change in their homes, and in their communities. In short, Jesus was a little scary. Paul was someone we could study and that made us feel as smart as he was.
As we continued to discuss this I made an observation- American Christians would rather ask Paul to explain Jesus to them than to go to Jesus themselves. It's like sitting down with both Paul and Jesus and insisting on only speaking to Paul while ignoring Jesus the entire time.
Many American Protestants criticize Catholics for getting to Jesus via Mary or by praying to the Saints. Are we doing the same thing with Paul the Apostle?
I want to be careful to say that, in our discussion about America's fascination with Paul, we are not down-playing the importance of Paul or his teachings. Both Paul and Jesus are authoritative and their words are meant to be taken as Scripture, we are not cutting the letters of Paul out of our Bibles.
However, both Jesus and Paul are represented within our New Testament. Why would we skip those four Gospels and ignore the very person whom we claim to follow and worship?
Paul himself argues that it is Jesus whom we should follow and obey as our Lord in his first letter to the Corinthians:
"One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas (or Peter)"; still another, "I follow Christ." Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, so no one can say that you were baptized into my name....For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." Paul the Apostle (1 Corinthians 1: 12-17; see also chapter 3).
If we are truly Christians - which means "little christs" - and we are serious about following Jesus, then we cannot deny that Jesus is our first and main example, and teacher and Lord. Paul is a great teacher and theologian. God certainly called him and used him to shape the early church, and the development of the Christian faith, to this very day. But let us not forget Jesus. He is God in the flesh. He is the one we are called to follow and to emulate. His words should hold weight with us. We should daily seek to learn from Jesus, to seek His face, to follow in His footsteps.
Becoming experts on the letters of Paul and ignoring Jesus is like studying travel guides for exotic tropical paradises and never actually going there ourselves.
When Jesus walked this earth he called people, one at a time, to simply follow him. He laid out very clear and specific instructions regarding what it would cost to follow him, and what he expected of those who followed him, and the scriptures themselves (including the writings of Paul, and Peter, and James and John, etc.), elaborate on what following Jesus is all about.
Let us not just read about following Jesus, let us actually follow Jesus.
"This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did" - 1 John 2: 5-6
I would encourage everyone who reads this to begin studying the red letters in Matthew. Let the words of Jesus nourish your soul like warm bread from the oven. Let the wisdom of Jesus refresh your life like cool water on the tongue.
Become students of Jesus. Apprentice yourself to Him. Put his teachings into practice in your daily life. Answer His calling on your life to follow after him.
"Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." - Jesus (Luke 9:23)
At the end of your life you and I will stand before Jesus. Make sure that you have a cross in your hand when you get there.
-kg
http://www.keithgiles.com
**
WHAT REMAINS ART GALLERY
Photos are online now from last Saturday's opening night with Scott Laumann, Heather Wright and Bill Burgess...plus a few surprises.
CHECK IT
**
THE KINGDOM REALITY
by Keith Giles
The Kingdom of God is the present reality which breaks into this illusion of ours intermittently, like very bad cell phone reception. It's God's way of saying, "Can you hear me now?"
ARTICLE HERE
**
THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE IN AMERICAN CHRISTIANITY
Read Brant Hansen's Amazing Blog
HERE
**
JOIN THE MOVEMENT
by Keith Giles
The truth is, all anyone can do is to join the movement, no one can actually start one. At least, not on purpose anyway.
Most of the time, whenever you hear someone say, "I want to start a movement" you can bet on one thing: They will not start a movement.
READ MORE
**
CONSTANTINE: THE FATHER OF OUR FAITH?
By Keith Giles
Why did the Church allow a man who held the title of High Priest in the Pagan Temple to influence the way they worshipped and practiced their faith?
Maybe it was because he was their largest financial supporter? Or because he ended the brutal persecutions of his predecessors? Or because he gave them non-profit, tax-exempt status in the Empire? Maybe it was because he promoted several of the clergy to high-ranking offices within the Empire? Or because he built large temples for them to worship in?
Whatever the reason, Constantine was allowed to dictate to the Church how and when and where they would worship God.
READ MORE
**
WANT TO TALK? EMAIL ME DIRECTLY AT
"ELYSIANSKY" (AT) HOTMAIL (DOT COM)
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Feed My Sheep
[Subversive Underground]
Feed My Sheep
by Keith Giles
"We've never heard these things," he said sheepishly, adding quickly, "Before today, that is."
Everyone in the room quietly agreed with his sad confession. The facilitator's mouth dropped open in shock for a moment, and then closed silently as her eyes moved around the room.
I involuntarily clenched my teeth from the back row and nodded silently to myself. It was true. Thousands of people in churches across this nation are ignorant of the basic message of Jesus and the Gospel that he came and died to proclaim.
We were in our final session of the Non-Con and Jackie Pullinger, who had flown in from Hong Kong, by way of London, was sharing with all of us about the Gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus preached and how the call to care for the poor in our midst was woven into the very fabric of His message. Most of those in the room, just over 100 people from all over the United States, had never heard this message before.
In my mind I went back over my own Christian experience. Raised in the Church after my initial conversion experience at age 10 and eventually licensed and ordained as a minister of the Gospel at age 22, I myself had been largely ignorant of the Gospel that Jesus proclaimed and had no concept of His heart for the poor or how my love for others reflected my love for God.
After spending over thirty years as a pastor, teaching others the Scriptures, mostly regurgitating what I was fed to others, being careful to stay within the bounds of doctrine and acceptable religious language, my own epiphany had come with a shock that literally took days to recover from. Now, years later, at 41 years of age, I am like a new convert to my own faith. Learning for the first time what was there all along in the Bible I kept at my bedside table.
How can it be that we have become a nation, and a generation, of Christian Americans who have no idea what the Gospel is all about? How can it be possible that we can be good Christians and yet still not be familiar with the teachings of Jesus or the basic elements of his message?
Can you imagine a Muslim who knew nothing of the teachings of Muhammed? Or a Jew who wasn't familiar with the words of Moses? How then can we be a generation of Christians who are unfamiliar with the words and the teachings of Jesus?
If our pastors across this land are not preaching about Jesus, are not communicating the Gospel of the Kingdom as He did, then what are we preaching?
A quick flip through the television stations and you'll know. It's mostly about getting what God wants to bless you with. It's about giving your money to this person or that ministry so that God can adorn you with money and success and material wealth.
What shocks me the most is when I hear these televangelists take the words of Jesus and twist them completely around with a great big smile on their faces. "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible," Jesus said, as the Rich Young Ruler walked away from him, head down, ashamed of his inability to let go of his great wealth in order to take up his cross daily and follow Jesus.
"With man this is impossible," says the televangelist with the best-selling book and the largest church in America, "But with God all things are possible." He then proceeds to explain how this proves that God will grant your every wish for a new car, a better job, a larger bank account.
These words from Jesus are meant to give us hope that, with God's help, we can find the grace and power to let go of our material wealth in order to follow Him with our whole life. These words are not meant to express God's desire to load us up with even greater riches and material goods.
What are teaching today from our pulpits if we're not teaching people to follow Jesus or to study his teachings?
Our churches are full of people who are taught to know the right information, and to stand against evil (as defined by the pulpit), and to invite others to attend the weekly gathering. But are we taught to know the words of Jesus? Are we encouraged to daily place our actual lives in His hands? Are ever told that unless we daily die to ourselves and take up our cross we cannot follow Him? Are we familiar with the parables of Jesus or the Gospel of the Kingdom? Do we know that we can enter the Kingdom of God anytime we want? Do we know that God only wants our entire life to be surrendered to Him?
I can't tell you how many times I have heard pastors demand that their flock should feed themselves. "They have Bibles, don't they?", "They can study the Word of God for themselves," they say. But Jesus didn't say, "Teach my sheep to feed themselves" he said, "If you love me feed my lambs". That means it's our job to make sure the people in our pews (or on our couches) know the Gospel and understand the message of Jesus.
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you" - Jesus, from Matthew 28:19-20
A disciple is a follower of Jesus. Obedience is built into our marching orders.
More and more I am becoming convinced that to be a "Christian" in our culture today, and being a follower of Jesus, are not the same thing at all.
-kg
**
"Christianity is the story of how the rightful King has landed, you might say in disguise, and is calling us all to take part in His great campaign of sabotage."
--C.S. Lewis
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Feed My Sheep
by Keith Giles
"We've never heard these things," he said sheepishly, adding quickly, "Before today, that is."
Everyone in the room quietly agreed with his sad confession. The facilitator's mouth dropped open in shock for a moment, and then closed silently as her eyes moved around the room.
I involuntarily clenched my teeth from the back row and nodded silently to myself. It was true. Thousands of people in churches across this nation are ignorant of the basic message of Jesus and the Gospel that he came and died to proclaim.
We were in our final session of the Non-Con and Jackie Pullinger, who had flown in from Hong Kong, by way of London, was sharing with all of us about the Gospel of the Kingdom that Jesus preached and how the call to care for the poor in our midst was woven into the very fabric of His message. Most of those in the room, just over 100 people from all over the United States, had never heard this message before.
In my mind I went back over my own Christian experience. Raised in the Church after my initial conversion experience at age 10 and eventually licensed and ordained as a minister of the Gospel at age 22, I myself had been largely ignorant of the Gospel that Jesus proclaimed and had no concept of His heart for the poor or how my love for others reflected my love for God.
After spending over thirty years as a pastor, teaching others the Scriptures, mostly regurgitating what I was fed to others, being careful to stay within the bounds of doctrine and acceptable religious language, my own epiphany had come with a shock that literally took days to recover from. Now, years later, at 41 years of age, I am like a new convert to my own faith. Learning for the first time what was there all along in the Bible I kept at my bedside table.
How can it be that we have become a nation, and a generation, of Christian Americans who have no idea what the Gospel is all about? How can it be possible that we can be good Christians and yet still not be familiar with the teachings of Jesus or the basic elements of his message?
Can you imagine a Muslim who knew nothing of the teachings of Muhammed? Or a Jew who wasn't familiar with the words of Moses? How then can we be a generation of Christians who are unfamiliar with the words and the teachings of Jesus?
If our pastors across this land are not preaching about Jesus, are not communicating the Gospel of the Kingdom as He did, then what are we preaching?
A quick flip through the television stations and you'll know. It's mostly about getting what God wants to bless you with. It's about giving your money to this person or that ministry so that God can adorn you with money and success and material wealth.
What shocks me the most is when I hear these televangelists take the words of Jesus and twist them completely around with a great big smile on their faces. "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible," Jesus said, as the Rich Young Ruler walked away from him, head down, ashamed of his inability to let go of his great wealth in order to take up his cross daily and follow Jesus.
"With man this is impossible," says the televangelist with the best-selling book and the largest church in America, "But with God all things are possible." He then proceeds to explain how this proves that God will grant your every wish for a new car, a better job, a larger bank account.
These words from Jesus are meant to give us hope that, with God's help, we can find the grace and power to let go of our material wealth in order to follow Him with our whole life. These words are not meant to express God's desire to load us up with even greater riches and material goods.
What are teaching today from our pulpits if we're not teaching people to follow Jesus or to study his teachings?
Our churches are full of people who are taught to know the right information, and to stand against evil (as defined by the pulpit), and to invite others to attend the weekly gathering. But are we taught to know the words of Jesus? Are we encouraged to daily place our actual lives in His hands? Are ever told that unless we daily die to ourselves and take up our cross we cannot follow Him? Are we familiar with the parables of Jesus or the Gospel of the Kingdom? Do we know that we can enter the Kingdom of God anytime we want? Do we know that God only wants our entire life to be surrendered to Him?
I can't tell you how many times I have heard pastors demand that their flock should feed themselves. "They have Bibles, don't they?", "They can study the Word of God for themselves," they say. But Jesus didn't say, "Teach my sheep to feed themselves" he said, "If you love me feed my lambs". That means it's our job to make sure the people in our pews (or on our couches) know the Gospel and understand the message of Jesus.
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you" - Jesus, from Matthew 28:19-20
A disciple is a follower of Jesus. Obedience is built into our marching orders.
More and more I am becoming convinced that to be a "Christian" in our culture today, and being a follower of Jesus, are not the same thing at all.
-kg
**
"Christianity is the story of how the rightful King has landed, you might say in disguise, and is calling us all to take part in His great campaign of sabotage."
--C.S. Lewis
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
You're Invited!
[Subversive Underground]
You're Invited!
by Keith Giles
An invitation is a very personal thing. It means someone is thinking of you and they want you to be with them for a special celebration or gathering.
Yesterday I attended a marketing seminar on social media. The presenter made one interesting comment and I wrote it down. Here's what she said, "It's easier to get people to attend a real, physical event than to get them to show up at a virtual, online (social media) discussion."
As someone who has tried, more than once, to assemble an online community I've learned the hard way the truth of that statement. Even when I attempted, most recently, to create an online community for [Subversive Underground] I only managed to attract four people (including me) out of a possible group of 225 subscribers. However, when I recently invited people to join us for an all-day open dialog called "Non-Con" I sold out a month in advance and had to manage a stand-by list for those who didn't make the deadline for registration.
I've been thinking pretty hard lately about the invitation that Jesus offered his disciples. "Follow me" was his only tag line. Simple and to the point, Jesus invited people, personally and to their face, if they would consider living their lives after the pattern he would establish. Those who responded did so with their feet, with their actual lives. They stood up, dropped their nets, left the money on the table, abandoned family and friends, and dedicated three years of daily, continual following after Jesus.
Of course, all but one of them extended that initial three year commitment into an endless, day-by-day surrender of their entire life to follow Jesus to the very end. Thousands more followed their example and soon there was an overwhelming flood of people who were actively following Jesus with their actual, every day lives, and teaching others to do the same.
Sometimes I wonder why we make the invitation so complicated. We invite people to attend our meetings, or to join our club, or to wear our t-shirts, listen to our music, put our bumper stickers on their car and adopt our slang. But all Jesus ever did was to invite people to follow him.
We must respond to this same invitation. Jesus called people to be his disciples, his followers, and his life was a blue-print for each of us to emulate.
When we consider what it means to be a follower of Jesus, and especially when we feel compelled to invite others to do the same, let's keep it simple. Just ask people if they're interested in following Jesus too. Then you can both follow Jesus together, teaching and encouraging and inspiring one another to obey his teaching, to serve others as he did, and to learn to love people with your whole life.
You're invited to a wonderful new pattern of life. I've just started down this road so it's not too late to join me and catch up. We can follow Jesus together, if you want to.
Are you coming?
-kg
**
POVERTY IN THE O.C.
This Sunday afternoon, after our house church gathering, I'll be having lunch and sharing with another local house church about what poverty looks like in Orange County. It's always a privilege to speak to fellow followers about what poverty looks like in our community, alongside what God's Word has to say about His heart for them, and His expectations of us as His Earthly representatives.
Pray for me as I lead this interactive, artistic experience. I'm always amazed at what God does each time I facilitate this discussion. I've done this for small groups, mega-church staff members and our own house church, and each time God shows up and touches people deep down where it counts. I'd love to see that again on Sunday afternoon. Thanks for your prayers.
**
[SUBVERSIVE UNDERGROUND] PODCAST NOW LIVE AT ITUNES!
Well, we finally did it. There is now an official [SU] podcast page online now at ITunes. Go and search us under "Podcasts" in the Music Store and be sure to click the "subscribe" button to keep up with our infrequent mp3 uploads.
Totally free, of course.
**
NON-CON ARTISTS GET THEIR OWN ART SHOW
"WHAT REMAINS" FEATURING ARTISTS:
HEATHER WRIGHT, SCOTT LAUMANN, BILL BURGESS AND ANDREW DUNN.
If you're in the Orange County area, be sure to drop by The Artery Gallery (at the Lab in Costa Mesa) on April 19th for the opening of the new 2 week exhibit featuring our very own Non-Con artists.
Come join us on opening night at 7pm on April 19th at The Artery Gallery in Costa Mesa and show your support for these artists of faith.
**
NON-CON PODCASTS NOW LIVE
Whether you were lucky enough to join us for the Non-Con or not, we've got all 3 main session recordings available online now for download.
You can either go online to ITunes and find our [Subversive Underground] Podcast page to download the MP3's to your computer or IPod, OR you can go to
the website link below and download the same 3 sessions as MP3 files.
For those who choose the ITunes podcast option keep in mind that we will be uploading new podcasts to that page throughout the year.
Session 1 - David Ruis
Session 2 - Keith Giles
Session 3 - Jackie Pullinger
Download Here
**
START YOUR OWN NON-CON?
When I first came up with the idea for this "Non-Conference" I wanted it to be something simple, and easy to duplicate.
I'd love to help you start your own Non-Con in your community and I'm willing to help with website, marketing and logistics issues for no charge whatsoever.
If you're interested in finding out more about starting your own Non-Con…
READ THIS
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
You're Invited!
by Keith Giles
An invitation is a very personal thing. It means someone is thinking of you and they want you to be with them for a special celebration or gathering.
Yesterday I attended a marketing seminar on social media. The presenter made one interesting comment and I wrote it down. Here's what she said, "It's easier to get people to attend a real, physical event than to get them to show up at a virtual, online (social media) discussion."
As someone who has tried, more than once, to assemble an online community I've learned the hard way the truth of that statement. Even when I attempted, most recently, to create an online community for [Subversive Underground] I only managed to attract four people (including me) out of a possible group of 225 subscribers. However, when I recently invited people to join us for an all-day open dialog called "Non-Con" I sold out a month in advance and had to manage a stand-by list for those who didn't make the deadline for registration.
I've been thinking pretty hard lately about the invitation that Jesus offered his disciples. "Follow me" was his only tag line. Simple and to the point, Jesus invited people, personally and to their face, if they would consider living their lives after the pattern he would establish. Those who responded did so with their feet, with their actual lives. They stood up, dropped their nets, left the money on the table, abandoned family and friends, and dedicated three years of daily, continual following after Jesus.
Of course, all but one of them extended that initial three year commitment into an endless, day-by-day surrender of their entire life to follow Jesus to the very end. Thousands more followed their example and soon there was an overwhelming flood of people who were actively following Jesus with their actual, every day lives, and teaching others to do the same.
Sometimes I wonder why we make the invitation so complicated. We invite people to attend our meetings, or to join our club, or to wear our t-shirts, listen to our music, put our bumper stickers on their car and adopt our slang. But all Jesus ever did was to invite people to follow him.
We must respond to this same invitation. Jesus called people to be his disciples, his followers, and his life was a blue-print for each of us to emulate.
When we consider what it means to be a follower of Jesus, and especially when we feel compelled to invite others to do the same, let's keep it simple. Just ask people if they're interested in following Jesus too. Then you can both follow Jesus together, teaching and encouraging and inspiring one another to obey his teaching, to serve others as he did, and to learn to love people with your whole life.
You're invited to a wonderful new pattern of life. I've just started down this road so it's not too late to join me and catch up. We can follow Jesus together, if you want to.
Are you coming?
-kg
**
POVERTY IN THE O.C.
This Sunday afternoon, after our house church gathering, I'll be having lunch and sharing with another local house church about what poverty looks like in Orange County. It's always a privilege to speak to fellow followers about what poverty looks like in our community, alongside what God's Word has to say about His heart for them, and His expectations of us as His Earthly representatives.
Pray for me as I lead this interactive, artistic experience. I'm always amazed at what God does each time I facilitate this discussion. I've done this for small groups, mega-church staff members and our own house church, and each time God shows up and touches people deep down where it counts. I'd love to see that again on Sunday afternoon. Thanks for your prayers.
**
[SUBVERSIVE UNDERGROUND] PODCAST NOW LIVE AT ITUNES!
Well, we finally did it. There is now an official [SU] podcast page online now at ITunes. Go and search us under "Podcasts" in the Music Store and be sure to click the "subscribe" button to keep up with our infrequent mp3 uploads.
Totally free, of course.
**
NON-CON ARTISTS GET THEIR OWN ART SHOW
"WHAT REMAINS" FEATURING ARTISTS:
HEATHER WRIGHT, SCOTT LAUMANN, BILL BURGESS AND ANDREW DUNN.
If you're in the Orange County area, be sure to drop by The Artery Gallery (at the Lab in Costa Mesa) on April 19th for the opening of the new 2 week exhibit featuring our very own Non-Con artists.
Come join us on opening night at 7pm on April 19th at The Artery Gallery in Costa Mesa and show your support for these artists of faith.
**
NON-CON PODCASTS NOW LIVE
Whether you were lucky enough to join us for the Non-Con or not, we've got all 3 main session recordings available online now for download.
You can either go online to ITunes and find our [Subversive Underground] Podcast page to download the MP3's to your computer or IPod, OR you can go to
the website link below and download the same 3 sessions as MP3 files.
For those who choose the ITunes podcast option keep in mind that we will be uploading new podcasts to that page throughout the year.
Session 1 - David Ruis
Session 2 - Keith Giles
Session 3 - Jackie Pullinger
Download Here
**
START YOUR OWN NON-CON?
When I first came up with the idea for this "Non-Conference" I wanted it to be something simple, and easy to duplicate.
I'd love to help you start your own Non-Con in your community and I'm willing to help with website, marketing and logistics issues for no charge whatsoever.
If you're interested in finding out more about starting your own Non-Con…
READ THIS
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Thursday, April 03, 2008
The Paradox of Free Will
[Subversive Underground]
NOTE: I debated long and hard about whether or not to publish today's article. It is an attempt to resolve a long-standing and painfully bitter disagreement in the Family of God. I would ask, in advance, for you to extend me a little Grace and to read the following with an open heart and mind. This is an open dialog and my intent is to bring peace to the Body of Christ over a divisive issue. Thank you in advance for reading this with an attitude of love towards me, your brother and friend in Christ Jesus. - kg
**
The Paradox of Free Will
By Keith Giles
As human beings we strive to understand the world we live in. I believe our Creator built into us a healthy level of curiosity which compels us to seek answers and strive for knowledge. Our inquisitive nature is a large part of what makes us human.
However, there are some things we cannot fully know or understand, particularly when it comes to God Himself. In these instances the best we can do is to accept what He has revealed to us about His nature and leave it alone. We cannot fully comprehend a being who has no beginning, or imagine an entity with no boundary or limit. In those areas where our ability to comprehend is challenged we simply have to take some things on faith, whether we understand them or not. In fact, we have to accept these truths as being true even though we know we are currently incapable of understanding at all.
Whenever we encounter an aspect of God's character which defies the bounds of our reason we call this a paradox because it involves one or more seemingly contradictory conditions at work.
This phenomenon isn't limited to the spiritual realm, by the way. In the world of observable science we encounter several examples of seemingly contradictory facts and conditions which we must simply accept as being true whether or not we can understand or explain them in common terms.
One such example is the nature of light. Scientists who were attempting to determine the nature of light tried several experiments with the smallest unit of light (a single photon) in order to answer the riddle of whether or not light was a wave (a frequency within a spectrum) or a particle (made up of many photon-bits).
Their experiment proved that light was a wave. It also proved that light was a particle. Depending on the experiment they performed and the conditions of the test, they got both answers. This lead to the new idea that somehow light was actually a wavicle (part particle, part wave). Of course, no one has a real definition of the properties of a wavicle, and other than light (apparently) nothing else exhibits these qualities or conditions. Yet, we all still believe that light exists and scientists still continue to talk about light and to manipulate it even though they still have absolutely no idea what it really is.
*Read more about this amazing phenomenon
HERE
I share all of that with you so that my next section won't sound like convenient wordplay. There really are elements within our known sphere of understanding which are beyond our comprehension and classification. Paradoxes are common. They are not evidence of some faulty bit of logic or a failure of the mind to connect the dots.
In Christian theology we must become comfortable alongside some paradoxes such as the Trinity (Christ, the Spirit and the Father are all referred to as the One God, and yet they are not each other, nor are they three Gods, but the One). We cannot understand how this can be so, but we must accept the nature of God as He has revealed Himself to us through His Word and declare that, somehow, someway, even though we are powerless to understand or define or comprehend it, God is a being beyond our complete understanding. His very nature defies our limited capacity for apprehending Him. We can only accept what we know by faith.
Alister E. McGrath has a wonderful way of communicating this ineffable quality of God's nature by demonstrating that none of us, using mere language, could ever describe to someone who had never tasted coffee exactly what it tasted like. Unless they were to taste coffee for themselves, the conversation would be endless and our descriptions useless. However, once we have both tasted coffee we can talk all day about it and both us will have a common ground to understand what the other is saying, but our inability to explain the exact quality of the flavor of coffee using human language will remain outside our feeble grasp. (from his book, "What Was God Doing On The Cross?")
One of the oldest, and most bitter and brutal debates that has divided Christendom since around 400 AD is the one surrounding the doctrines of free will and predestination.
On one side we have the Calvinists who represent the predestination side, and the Arminians who represent the side of free will.
Without going into a lot of detail about the history and the various nuances of each side and their arguments regarding the best way to believe on this issue, let me make things very simple. Those on the side of predestination feel that for God to know the end before the beginning, His sovereignty must be greater than our frail human will and therefore God has already determined, before the beginning of time, who will be saved and who will not. Those on the side of free will, the Arminians, feel that God cannot decide beforehand to create beings whom He knows are destined for an eternal hell, and therefore are convinced that man ultimately must decide for him or herself whether or not to accept the free gift of salvation.
Both sides offer copious amounts of Biblical text to support their view. To be sure, the Scriptures contain very plain and direct language to support the theory that God knows the end from the beginning and even that God "predestined those He foreknew" (Romans 8: 28). However, there are just as many scriptures to support the idea that God allows mankind the freedom to choose for themselves whether or not to follow Him and to love Him. We know that God does not create robots who are hardwired to love Him any more than He creates beings for the purpose of destroying them.
Both doctrines are Biblical. Both doctrines seem to contradict one another. We cannot possibly see how one could be true if the other were also true. This leaves us with a conundrum of sorts, or a paradox. Somehow God is able to see into the future and to know, in advance, the outcome of our choices which are based on free will.
However, because God knows in advance what you and I will freely choose to do, it does not necessarily follow that His foreknowledge of our choice is what caused us to make this choice. For example, if I am watching someone from a distance and I know what they are about to do, I am not held accountable for their actions when they carry out the action I predicted.
So, does God know in advance who will choose to follow Him? Yes, he most certainly does. The scriptures support this and we should embrace this truth. But, does the Bible also teach us that we are accountable to God for our own decisions and actions? Yes, it most certainly does. We alone are the ones who must choose to accept or reject the love of God that has been offered to us. The scriptures teach us this and we should embrace this truth as well.
This is a paradox, like many other paradoxes of faith, where we are called upon to exercise our faith in God and take Him at His Word.
For those Calvinists who argue that the doctrine of Free Will encroaches upon the sovereignty of God I would point out that there are many doctrines where God limits Himself for our benefit. For example, God is omniscient (knowing all things), but we also know that, for our sake, He willfully forgets our sins once they are forgiven. He surrenders His infinite knowledge of all things for our sake and tosses our sins into the sea of forgetfulness. Why would we be surprised that, in order to preserve our freedom of choice, God might surrender His power of sovereignty?
For those Arminians who argue that God's foreknowledge of an event determines the outcome, let me point out that knowing something will happen is not the same as making that event turn out a certain way.
As this is a subject where the scripture is less than crystal clear, where those on both sides of the issue have ample scriptural evidence for their position, let us agree that this is not something we should divide over.
"God will not hold us responsible to understand the mysteries of election, predestination and the divine sovereignty. The best and safest way to deal with these truths is to raise our eyes to God and in deepest reverence say, Oh Lord Thou knowest. Those things belong to the deep and mysterious Profound of God's omniscience. Prying into them may make theologians, but it will never make saints."
– A.W. Tozer
Our love for one another, as brothers and sisters in Christ, should never suffer due to our petty disagreements. Nor should we ever allow differences of opinion over the doctrines of baptism, or the end times, or the way we worship, or speaking in tongues, or what have you, to separate us from one another. We are the Family of God and we are called to love one another, in fact, we've been commanded to love one another. It is not optional for us.
In His Grip,
Keith Giles
http://www.keithgiles.com
**
IF YOU WANT TO EMAIL ME DIRECTLY
Please send all encouraging, thoughtful and constructive comments to me at
"Elysiansky" at (Hotmail) dot (com).
You may also leave a comment on the [Subversive Underground] blog
HERE
**
START YOUR OWN NON-CON?
Find out how right
HERE
**
WHAT REMAINS
Our Non-Con artist panel will be headlining an amazing art show on April 19th at the Artery Gallery in the Anti-Mall/Lab in Costa Mesa, CA.
"WHAT REMAINS" FEATURING ARTISTS:
*HEATHER WRIGHT
*SCOTT LAUMANN
*BILL BURGESS
*ANDREW DUNN.
2 WEEKS EXCLUSIVE ENGAGEMENT STARTS APRIL 19TH AT THE ARTERY GALLERY.
I am so excited to announce that three of the most gifted artists I personally know will all be together in the same gallery space at the same time. This will be so amazing!
Find out more
HERE
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
NOTE: I debated long and hard about whether or not to publish today's article. It is an attempt to resolve a long-standing and painfully bitter disagreement in the Family of God. I would ask, in advance, for you to extend me a little Grace and to read the following with an open heart and mind. This is an open dialog and my intent is to bring peace to the Body of Christ over a divisive issue. Thank you in advance for reading this with an attitude of love towards me, your brother and friend in Christ Jesus. - kg
**
The Paradox of Free Will
By Keith Giles
As human beings we strive to understand the world we live in. I believe our Creator built into us a healthy level of curiosity which compels us to seek answers and strive for knowledge. Our inquisitive nature is a large part of what makes us human.
However, there are some things we cannot fully know or understand, particularly when it comes to God Himself. In these instances the best we can do is to accept what He has revealed to us about His nature and leave it alone. We cannot fully comprehend a being who has no beginning, or imagine an entity with no boundary or limit. In those areas where our ability to comprehend is challenged we simply have to take some things on faith, whether we understand them or not. In fact, we have to accept these truths as being true even though we know we are currently incapable of understanding at all.
Whenever we encounter an aspect of God's character which defies the bounds of our reason we call this a paradox because it involves one or more seemingly contradictory conditions at work.
This phenomenon isn't limited to the spiritual realm, by the way. In the world of observable science we encounter several examples of seemingly contradictory facts and conditions which we must simply accept as being true whether or not we can understand or explain them in common terms.
One such example is the nature of light. Scientists who were attempting to determine the nature of light tried several experiments with the smallest unit of light (a single photon) in order to answer the riddle of whether or not light was a wave (a frequency within a spectrum) or a particle (made up of many photon-bits).
Their experiment proved that light was a wave. It also proved that light was a particle. Depending on the experiment they performed and the conditions of the test, they got both answers. This lead to the new idea that somehow light was actually a wavicle (part particle, part wave). Of course, no one has a real definition of the properties of a wavicle, and other than light (apparently) nothing else exhibits these qualities or conditions. Yet, we all still believe that light exists and scientists still continue to talk about light and to manipulate it even though they still have absolutely no idea what it really is.
*Read more about this amazing phenomenon
HERE
I share all of that with you so that my next section won't sound like convenient wordplay. There really are elements within our known sphere of understanding which are beyond our comprehension and classification. Paradoxes are common. They are not evidence of some faulty bit of logic or a failure of the mind to connect the dots.
In Christian theology we must become comfortable alongside some paradoxes such as the Trinity (Christ, the Spirit and the Father are all referred to as the One God, and yet they are not each other, nor are they three Gods, but the One). We cannot understand how this can be so, but we must accept the nature of God as He has revealed Himself to us through His Word and declare that, somehow, someway, even though we are powerless to understand or define or comprehend it, God is a being beyond our complete understanding. His very nature defies our limited capacity for apprehending Him. We can only accept what we know by faith.
Alister E. McGrath has a wonderful way of communicating this ineffable quality of God's nature by demonstrating that none of us, using mere language, could ever describe to someone who had never tasted coffee exactly what it tasted like. Unless they were to taste coffee for themselves, the conversation would be endless and our descriptions useless. However, once we have both tasted coffee we can talk all day about it and both us will have a common ground to understand what the other is saying, but our inability to explain the exact quality of the flavor of coffee using human language will remain outside our feeble grasp. (from his book, "What Was God Doing On The Cross?")
One of the oldest, and most bitter and brutal debates that has divided Christendom since around 400 AD is the one surrounding the doctrines of free will and predestination.
On one side we have the Calvinists who represent the predestination side, and the Arminians who represent the side of free will.
Without going into a lot of detail about the history and the various nuances of each side and their arguments regarding the best way to believe on this issue, let me make things very simple. Those on the side of predestination feel that for God to know the end before the beginning, His sovereignty must be greater than our frail human will and therefore God has already determined, before the beginning of time, who will be saved and who will not. Those on the side of free will, the Arminians, feel that God cannot decide beforehand to create beings whom He knows are destined for an eternal hell, and therefore are convinced that man ultimately must decide for him or herself whether or not to accept the free gift of salvation.
Both sides offer copious amounts of Biblical text to support their view. To be sure, the Scriptures contain very plain and direct language to support the theory that God knows the end from the beginning and even that God "predestined those He foreknew" (Romans 8: 28). However, there are just as many scriptures to support the idea that God allows mankind the freedom to choose for themselves whether or not to follow Him and to love Him. We know that God does not create robots who are hardwired to love Him any more than He creates beings for the purpose of destroying them.
Both doctrines are Biblical. Both doctrines seem to contradict one another. We cannot possibly see how one could be true if the other were also true. This leaves us with a conundrum of sorts, or a paradox. Somehow God is able to see into the future and to know, in advance, the outcome of our choices which are based on free will.
However, because God knows in advance what you and I will freely choose to do, it does not necessarily follow that His foreknowledge of our choice is what caused us to make this choice. For example, if I am watching someone from a distance and I know what they are about to do, I am not held accountable for their actions when they carry out the action I predicted.
So, does God know in advance who will choose to follow Him? Yes, he most certainly does. The scriptures support this and we should embrace this truth. But, does the Bible also teach us that we are accountable to God for our own decisions and actions? Yes, it most certainly does. We alone are the ones who must choose to accept or reject the love of God that has been offered to us. The scriptures teach us this and we should embrace this truth as well.
This is a paradox, like many other paradoxes of faith, where we are called upon to exercise our faith in God and take Him at His Word.
For those Calvinists who argue that the doctrine of Free Will encroaches upon the sovereignty of God I would point out that there are many doctrines where God limits Himself for our benefit. For example, God is omniscient (knowing all things), but we also know that, for our sake, He willfully forgets our sins once they are forgiven. He surrenders His infinite knowledge of all things for our sake and tosses our sins into the sea of forgetfulness. Why would we be surprised that, in order to preserve our freedom of choice, God might surrender His power of sovereignty?
For those Arminians who argue that God's foreknowledge of an event determines the outcome, let me point out that knowing something will happen is not the same as making that event turn out a certain way.
As this is a subject where the scripture is less than crystal clear, where those on both sides of the issue have ample scriptural evidence for their position, let us agree that this is not something we should divide over.
"God will not hold us responsible to understand the mysteries of election, predestination and the divine sovereignty. The best and safest way to deal with these truths is to raise our eyes to God and in deepest reverence say, Oh Lord Thou knowest. Those things belong to the deep and mysterious Profound of God's omniscience. Prying into them may make theologians, but it will never make saints."
– A.W. Tozer
Our love for one another, as brothers and sisters in Christ, should never suffer due to our petty disagreements. Nor should we ever allow differences of opinion over the doctrines of baptism, or the end times, or the way we worship, or speaking in tongues, or what have you, to separate us from one another. We are the Family of God and we are called to love one another, in fact, we've been commanded to love one another. It is not optional for us.
In His Grip,
Keith Giles
http://www.keithgiles.com
**
IF YOU WANT TO EMAIL ME DIRECTLY
Please send all encouraging, thoughtful and constructive comments to me at
"Elysiansky" at (Hotmail) dot (com).
You may also leave a comment on the [Subversive Underground] blog
HERE
**
START YOUR OWN NON-CON?
Find out how right
HERE
**
WHAT REMAINS
Our Non-Con artist panel will be headlining an amazing art show on April 19th at the Artery Gallery in the Anti-Mall/Lab in Costa Mesa, CA.
"WHAT REMAINS" FEATURING ARTISTS:
*HEATHER WRIGHT
*SCOTT LAUMANN
*BILL BURGESS
*ANDREW DUNN.
2 WEEKS EXCLUSIVE ENGAGEMENT STARTS APRIL 19TH AT THE ARTERY GALLERY.
I am so excited to announce that three of the most gifted artists I personally know will all be together in the same gallery space at the same time. This will be so amazing!
Find out more
HERE
**
[END TRANSMISSION]
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)