Why Forgive?

Jesus is telling a story about a man who was forgiven a great debt by the king, but then refused to forgive another a much smaller debt.  When the king found out, he called the servant he forgave back before him and re-applied the debt.  This story in Matthew 18 concludes with these sobering words;

  32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

   35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

Jesus saved his harshest words, not for sins of the flesh, but for sins of the spirit.  All humans commit sins of the flesh.  This does not lessen them, but it makes the universal.  Sins of the spirit, however, can only be committed by those who have committed themselves to live under the direction of the Holy Spirit having trusted in Christ.  It is a bit ironic, but true that only those who have committed themselves to following Christ are capable of the most destructive kinds of sin. 

There is no long explanation needed here.  A lack of forgiveness does not accomplish justice.  It does not satisfy our need for revenge or to make things right.  It does not harm the other person, make them accountable, or lead them to a place of regret, sorrow, remorse or repentance.  All it does is destroy the one who will not forgive. 

We can chose to hold on to pain and resentment and anger, and let life slip away.  Or we can forgive, and in doing so, choose life. 

One last thought here.  Who do you need to forgive?  Let God set you free and forgive that person.  If they are aware of the offense, call them and let them know you forgive them and are putting that episode in life behind you.  Make that call and have that talk.  Let me also ask, who is it that you need to go to for forgiveness?  Who have you wronged?  Maybe you need to have a hard conversation with someone and confess what you have done and ask for their forgiveness.  

May you find the grace of God growing in your heart to the point where forgiveness flows naturally.  May you find in that grace the courage and strength to let go of the wrong done to you.  May you come to understand that God's work of forgiveness is not complete in you, until you are one who also freely forgives.  And may you know the joy of living in the freedom of forgiveness - that which you receive, as well as that which you give.  

You Are Currently Engaged in Dangerous Activity

Philippians 3:12 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. 13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. 15 Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things.

Don't think you are engaged in dangerous activity?  Oh yes, you are!  Chances are you are reading this on some computer screen or mobile device.  Even if you are sitting in a chair in your office or home, this activity can be quite hazardous.  I know that in comparison to your stove, or knife set or power tools in the garage, your computer seems pretty safe.  But think again. 

More and more of us are spending more and more time online cruising around facebook, twitter, our favorite blogs and news sites, youtube, etc.  All of the virtual activity comes at a price.  It's not just carpal tunnel syndrome or weight gain from inactivity.  It's the loss of the life God intended you to live. 

It's the relationships that never get started, the dreams that don't get pursued, the prayers that do not get prayed, the conversations that never take place, the journeys that never get taken, the goals that are never achieved.  It is the hungry that never get fed, the naked that are never clothed, the sick that are never cared for, the prisoner that is never visited, the homeless that are never taken in, the single mother that is never befriended, the orphan that is never given a home, the alien that is never welcomed.  It is the example of self-less service to others we must set for our kids that they never see.

It is the bold adventure with God that Jesus came to empower us to live that never gets lived out in us.  To live apart from this adventure - no matter what keeps you from it -  is far more dangerous to the health of your soul than most of us ever realize or imagine.

So let's keep this short today.  May you get up, get out and start living!  And be encouraged!

The Value of Community

Acts 2:42 All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer.

 43 A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. 44 And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. 45 They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. 46 They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity— 47 all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

Most churches have a seating arrangement.  The seats are not officially assigned, but everyone who attends regularly knows where to sit, and in some churches, where not to sit.  I was on staff at a church not too many years ago where the ministers did not sit on stage - excuse me, on the chancel area.  We sat on the floor, chancel area left. 

There was a couple who sat across the aisle from us, one row back.  They were there every week.  One week, a family of first time guests came in and sat in the place normally occupied by the couple.  When that couple arrived and saw their seats taken, the look of shock on their faces accompanied by spastic little mini-convulsions was actually quite comical.  But that's not the point of my story.  I just thought it was funny.

I talked with the first-time guest family after church and they said they had been attending one of the three mega-churches within two miles of us.   We were joined by another couple (good friends of mine) who had joined our church a couple of years earlier.  The new family shared that they were looking for a church where they would not get lost and could know and be known by everyone.  The couple who were already members chimed in that they had joined for the same reason (and they actually had) and just loved it at our church. 

At this point, I did something some might consider risky.  I asked the couple who were members if their hope had been realized.  Did they know everyone in the church now?  We had about 1000 members and about 500 - 550 attending weekly.  Their response was, "Well, we don't know everyone yet."  So I took it a step further.  I asked them what side of the sanctuary they sat on, even though I really already knew.  They said the left.  Now, you need to understand I am really good friends with these people, so cut me some slack on this next part.  I then, smiling the whole time, challenged them saying, "Tell me the names of three people who sit on the right side of the sanctuary."  They smiled back because they could not do it. 

We all have this desire to know and be known.  It is built into us by a God who also desires to know and be known.  That's kind of why you and I are even here.  But unlike God, we have a limited capacity for knowing and being known.  This is why we need each other.  It is why we need circles of friends and churches establish small groups.  No one can do life alone, but it is also true that we cannot do it as a crowd.  That's why mega-churches break down into small groups or life groups, or whatever they want to call them.  This is where the knowing and being known takes place.  So let's lighten up on the big, evil mega-churches.  When we criticize them it just makes us sound a little sad and jealous. 

But some people run to the extreme in the other direction ,avoiding people entirely.  This is far worse than any hurdle that might exist in a larger church.  Even Jesus needed the twelve.  Not even Jesus tried to do life and ministry alone.  So the "I don't need anything but my Jesus, my Bible and my TV" folks are missing it too.  And so are the "I don't need anything but God and to be out in nature" folks.  We need each other, because Jesus usually shows up in the face, or the voice, or the actions of others with whom we are in community. 

May you find your community of friends that will encourage and love you as you grow.  And may you be an encouragement to them as well.  May you know what it's like to know and be known by a wonderful community of friends.  And may you see Jesus in the face of another, even as they see his face in yours.   

Can You Be Holy?

Leviticus 19:1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying:

 2 “Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy."

So does God give commands that are impossible to keep?  This question tends to come up whenever this verse in Leviticus is discussed.  How are we supposed to be holy, for crying out loud?!  And even if you understand that holy, as it relates to us humans, does not mean perfect, rather it means to be set apart for God's purposes and God's use, it is still a daunting command to have to keep. 

Here is where grace steps in.  When you and I come to faith in Christ, we receive and experience grace primarily as forgiveness of our sins.   But once we are in the community of faith and understand ourselves to be a people set apart for God, we then receive and experience grace primarily as the power to live a God-honoring, sanctified (set apart) life.  Grace empowers us to live in a way we could never hope to live otherwise.

 

The founder of Methodism, John Wesley called this sanctification process, "going on to perfection."  By that, he meant we would grow and mature to become perfected in love, not mistake-free human beings incapable of error.  Instead grace makes it possible to make every act, every conversation, every relationship, one that is marked by love.  Grace also gives us the wisdom to understand what love really is and what it is not. 

Of course we will not always get it right.  And grace meets us there as well to pick us up, forgive us and set us back on the journey toward becoming fully set apart for God.  For those who set their hearts and minds to this, God is the producer of wave after wave of opportunities for us who would ride those waves toward our goal.  As Rick Warren says, when we botch it and blow it and fall off the wave, God sends another and then another.  He is like a wave machine.  And this is what we call, grace!

So when you come across a verse that says we are to be holy as God is holy, this is not something that God has thrown out there without also giving us provision for actually doing it.  But we have to lean into grace..  You and I do not have the resources on our own or within ourselves to do this.  But by the power of the Holy Spirit, through the grace of God made available to us in Jesus, we can do this, and we must.  To move through this life as agents of grace and love, serving as ambassadors for a a greater kingdom is what we were created for.

So may you be holy as your heavenly Father is holy.  May you surrender the effort to be good on your own, and lean into the grace that is yours in Jesus Christ.  May you then become more and more perfected in love.  And as you do, may your life and all of its days be a blessing to this world, and the people God loves and longs to redeem. 

No! Not the "E" Word!

1 Peter 3:14 But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats. 15 Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. 16 But do this in a gentle and respectful way.  Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.

Notice the escape clause here?  "(I)f someone asks...," Peter says.  For Christians who do NOT want to have to share or "witness" to their faith, this is the three mile wide door out of that sticky predicament.  Or is it?

When you place this in the larger context of Jesus' command to "Go, make disciples of all nations...," one begins to understand that it is also our job to engage in relationships, and in conversation within those relationships, in a way that prompts others to ask.  I am not talking about manipulation here.  I am talking about living and conducting yourself in a way that sets you apart as distinctively loving, gracious, forgiving, humble, joyful, self-less and patient.  This also means that you speak in such a way - not with religious language - but with grace, without criticism or malice or gossip, and in a way that blesses and encourages. 

Friends naturally talk about what is going on in their lives with friends, right?  Heck, we do it with passing acquaintances as well.  When in a conversation with friends, do you ever bring in any spiritual content in a natural way?  Like when a friend tells you about a neighbor whose parent dies, would it occur to you to say, "I hope that when that time comes for me, God will give me the strength to deal with it.  I just can't imagine how hard that must be."  You are not being fake or disingenuous.  As a believer, you probably really feel that way.  So why not say what you think and feel that will not be seen as out of place, and also lets people know that there is some spiritual content to your life?  I could give a hundred other examples, but you get the picture.  If people know there is some spiritual content to your life, they may be prompted to ask about that, especially when they feel it might be of some benefit to them. 

In fact, to go one step further, the Bible does not prohibit you from asking others to ask you.  In the example above, after saying, " I hope that when that time comes for me, God will give me the strength to deal with it.  I just can't imagine how hard that would be," what if you turned to your friend and asked, "What do you lean on for strength when something tragic happens?  How do you get through it?"  Who knows what kind of doors for a spiritual conversation that might open up?  So why don't we do more of that?

Yes, it is easier to avoid this and just keep any spiritual or God/Jesus references to yourself.  So why risk it?  Because people matter to God!  And as author Billy Hybels has said, if they matter to God, they had better matter to you!  That's why there is no escape hatch on this one.  All of us, if we interact with other humans at all, are called to do the work of  - here comes that word - an Evangelist.  But really, all that word means is someone who brings the Good News of God's love in Christ. All of us already do that anyway.  Our friends and all of those closest to us know what we value.  They have probably heard us talk about it many times.  Why is our faith in Christ any different?  

May God give you the grace to live and speak in such a way that others are naturally drawn to engage you in spiritual conversation.  May you pick up on the cues and pave the way for that conversation to happen.  And as you do, may the Holy Spirit guide your words and help you to bring your friend one step closer to knowing Christ as Savior and Lord.