...As If...

      In keeping with finding out what Romans has to say, here is the question of the day.  Is your employer giving you a gift when you get the paycheck that you earned, or is it a debt that your employer owes?  Duh!  I think that all of us would agree that it is a debt.  When we are faithful to do our work, then our employer owes us the previously agreed upon sum for that work.  Right?  Well, good news, Romans 4 agrees.  The cool thing is that the Kingdom of God does not operate on the principles of the world.  The Kingdom is based on a debt that was paid before anyone reading this was able to 'do' anything.  In fact, Romans 4 explains that even though the standard of debt/work was mediated by the law during Abraham's lifetime,  Abraham was already getting credit for a paid off debt that had yet to physically occur.  Isn't God cool?  Jesus paid our debt in full in His submission to death on the cross, but that was not the end of the story!!

     Even though God has laws and man has laws, the thing that God really pays attention to is faith...our hearts.  Romans 4 (NIV) says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness."  He did not get credit for what his body did or did not do.  It was all about that heart.  O.k., yes, I know that Abraham was the one who fathered a child with his very, very, post menopausal wife.  He also watched as God provided a ram in the thicket so that he would not have to sacrifice his child, but he was just a man.  He was a documented liar, and I am fairly certain that he did have some doubt about how God would make him fruitful in his old age.  However, he ultimately believed.  He knew that God was his source, and he chose to believe.

     I don't know about you, but for me it is sometimes difficult to separate the truth of the Kingdom of God from the experience of the world.  I mean, we are living in the world and receiving input from the world nearly constantly.  We know how people judge one another, and it seems natural for us to judge ourselves with the same standards.  We find ourselves thinking, "What will happen when they find out about my past?...or...that I am not qualified to do this.  What will happen when they find out I am not perfect...or not as smart as they think...or that I am still struggling with this sin or that sin"...or...whatever else that we believe disqualifies us from something that we think is important?

     The fact is, if you are thinking like this, it probably means that you are a person of character.  God knows your heart.  He trusts you, and He has promoted you because you take Him seriously.  The good news is that as we place our faith in God, as we allow His spirit to move and influence us, all of the past is covered over and separated from our existence.  Yes, we sometimes still have to deal with the consequences, but God no longer associates the past with who we are today.  Shouldn't we do the same for each other?
   
      Ok...so read this phrase really fast and out loud, "Just as if I'd."  When you read it very quickly, what word does it sound like?  I heard this decades ago, and I am almost positive that someone else should get credit for it.  However, I honestly do not know to whom credit is due.  Anyway...it sounds like the word, justified.  The word, justified, in the Bible literally means to make the situation, "just as if I'd never sinned."  David wrote in Psalms, and his words are quoted in Romans 4:5-8:  "Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.  Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord will never count against them."  David knew this phenomena well, because he had committed all of the biggies.  Yet, God had his heart.  As soon as David realized what he had done he owned his sin, repented, and he knew that it was "just as if he'd never done it."

     So, who are we going to believe today?  Is God worthy of our faith?  What have you got to lose?  God is the One who does the justification.  He reveals truth.  He promotes those who trust Him.  Our only part in this is to take Him at His Word.  We owe nothing, but to love like God loves.

It is well!

Empty Handed

      Have you ever heard someone say that they were a "self-made man, " or an "independent woman?"  How about, "Well, I pulled myself up by my own boot straps," or "This accomplishment is all ME!?"  I recently had someone tell me that he/she needed no help and no grace.  (Literally, when the statement, "I do not need grace" was uttered, I looked around the room to see where the lightening was going to hit.)  All of this person's accomplishments would be his/her own, and that no one else would be able to take credit.  These statements remind me of my grandchildren who have frequently said, "I can do it myself!!"

    So, just like we do with our children and grandchildren, God will often let us have our way.  He often allows us to handle the situation.  All the while, He is watching and waiting for us to realize our desperate need for Him.  This is but one example of His kindness that draws us to repentance.  However, the truth of the matter is that we do need Him desperately.  By virtue of our very existence we should understand that our lives are a reflection of our Creator, but often it is just not the case.

     My inspiration this morning came from the song in the video above.  There is one phrase in particular that I think is key to being a fruitful follower of Christ.  It is the realization of the truth of this phrase that places us in the greatest position for success, power, and meaningfulness to the Kingdom of God:  "...Lord, I came here with nothing, but all that You have given me..."

     When discussing their physical problem of the day, I often quote Psalms 139:14 (NKJV),  "I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well" to my patients.  But, it is not only our bodies that were designed and actually formed by our Creator.  The totality of who we are, mind, body, and spirit, were "fearfully and wonderfully made."  The way our brains are wired in order to function creatively, analytically, or compassionately is all Him.  Our gifts and callings really have nothing to do with us.  He placed them within us for His glory, and He empowers their use for the furtherance of the Kingdom.  According to the world, the point at which we realize that we have NOTHING to offer the most important Person in our lives should be our weakest point.  But it is not!  That is the point at which we are the most useful, the most fruitful, and the most powerful.  II Corinthians 2:9 (NKJV), "And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”

      Although etiquette gurus would probably eschew this admonishment, God begs us to show up empty handed.  We do need grace.  We do need help.  We can not do it all by ourselves, regardless of what the "it" is.   We have nothing to offer Him, yet he calls us His treasure and assures us that He has given us everything that we could possible need to do life His way (II Peter 1:3).  It is good to grow up and know that we cannot do it all by ourselves.  Show up empty handed, and watch in amazement as God multiplies your nothing into something wonderful.

It is well.

Good?

       I had a recent conversation with someone very close to me about being a good person.  So, I have been thinking about this topic in one of the numerous open "windows" in my mind.  What do I know about this?  What do I think I know about this?  Well, God is good, and my certainty on this subject ends there.  So, this morning Roman's 2 chimes in on the subject.  With all of the political rhetoric swirling around us, not to mention all of the rest of life, it might be hard for us to judge what is good.  As I opened the Word, the heading, God's Righteous Judgment, was over the 2nd chapter in Romans.  So, here we go.

       In my mind, there are many factors to consider. So much of scripture is like putting a giant puzzle together.  We must consider the whole of scripture in order to be able to see the full picture.  It's a bit like pulling a few pieces out of a 5000 piece Christmas puzzle box, taking a glance only at the pieces, and declaring that we have seen the full picture.  Not possible.  But, isn't that what we do sometimes?  In this section of scripture, Paul writes, " You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things."  Now, immediately our minds go to things like murder, adultery, thievery, etc.  How dare you say that I am guilty of murder if I judge a murderer!  O.K....Simmer down...that is not what this means.
  
        I believe that this section of scripture has to do with how we judge situations, motivations, and interactions.  Yes, it is talking about what we perceive to be sin, but I do not think that this is talking about the things that we humans would label as the big sins.  God dealt with several of those in Chapter 1.  He is seldom redundant.  In my opinion, He is dealing with the way in which we judge the hearts of others; the ways that we become offended at someone's actions or choice of words; the way that we are sure that we know the whole story, when the truth is that we have no idea. These are the judgements that we make just before we roll our eyes, or whisper, "How dare she speak to me like that," to a close friend.  These are the assumptions we mistake for truth when we hear of a divorce or a public accusation.  Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about. 
  
       Yes, we think that we are discerning rightly because, after all, isn't the church supposed to judge sin?  Again, we have to look at the whole of scripture.  Yes, there is a time to judge sin and bring correction, restoration or separation, but in Romans 2, God is dealing with something else altogether.
God takes our hearts very, very seriously, and He reserves the judgement of hearts for Himself.  We excuse our own "bad moods" or lapses of our standards.  Things come out of our mouths before we know it, and we think that a quick, "Oh, I didn't mean that," should fix things up.  However, when someone else does the same things there MUST be a more insidious reason that it happened.  Right? 
   
       Well, here's how that story ends:  God takes our judging of another's heart very seriously.  It is His desire that our human failings be covered by His grace and mercy, but we put Him in the position of having to judge us when we try to do His job for Him.  Romans 2:4 even states that we, "...show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?"  Verse 5 goes on to explain that as we continue in our ways of judgement we build up a huge pile of wrath that will be unleashed upon us when judgement day arrives.  Some versions of the Bible paint this pile of wrath as a wall that brings more and more separation between God and us, and this is a wall that we are building out of our own willful, haughty, judgemental hearts. (As I wrote this my thoughts strayed to Ronald Regan declaring, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.")  The good news is that we can allow the Word of God to change our hearts.  We can repent and submit to God's process of changing our judgemental ways.  As we repent and submit, the wall crumbles into to nothingness, and fellowship is restored. 

     Isn't He sweet!!  His desire and His provisions are all for our good, because He is good.  I think that I have found my answer.  I really do not believe that any of us are inherently good.  Only He is good.  The good that we see in each other is Him, not us.  Knowing this fact keeps us from polluting our own hearts with pride, and helps to shield us from standing in judgement of someone else's heart.

It is well!

How is My Breath?

     This morning I began in Romans.  I have no idea how many times I have read the book of Romans, but there is always something new in scripture...always. In Romans 1:9 Paul writes, "God, whom I serve in my spirit..."  For some reason this phrase jumped out at me.  So, I went to Strong's concordance to see how it was translated from the Greek.  "Serve" is a verb and can literally be translated as being active in doing something.  No surprise there.  "In" is a preposition, and it literally links the aforementioned action to a specific moment in time.  It links the action and the "spirit" to right now...this moment...today.  The word "spirit", in this passage, is the word for breath, and it is also the word used for Holy Spirit.  Both are essential to life, and neither can be seen (except when it's really cold outside : ).
     I am fairly certain that I had not seen this nuance before.  Paul knew that he was performing the exact action at the exact moment that was ordained by God and empowered by Holy Spirit through Paul's breath...or his words...his words that were being breathed by Holy Spirit and that are still speaking life to us today. 
     As I sit her pondering how this relates to me, I can't help but realize that Roman's 1:9 did not just mean Paul's breath.  It meant my breath as well.  It meant your breath.  It meant our collective breath as the Body of Christ.  There is a popular worship song that I love called, Great are You Lord, and part of the lyrics say, "It's Your breath, in our lungs, So, we pour praise, pour out our praise..."  How awesome is it to know that our breath is that of Holy Spirit.   Or, is it?  Have you noticed that God always gives us choices in following Him?  As Romans 1 continues we see that God has made Himself clearly seen by all.  No one has an excuse to not know Him, but some make the choice to not follow Him.  Paul says in verse 25 that, "They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator..."  The chapter ends with vivid descriptions of how this choice leads to judgement and separation from God.
     The good news is that we can also make the choice to take Him at his Word.  We can embrace the truth and serve Him in our spirits.  However, we need to realize that to serve Him continuously it is a moment by moment event.  Each breath is marked in time.  Each word, each breath, and each act counts eternally.  My prayer today is that my breath will honor Him; that my breath will reflect the truth of Who He is; and that I will pour out praise.  Thank You, God, that You are not done with me yet.  Thank You for Your mercy, Your kindness, and Your never failing love that forgives and forgets as I repent.  Thank You for Your breath of life and Your empowerment to serve You.  "It's Your breath in our lungs.  So, we pour out our praise.  We pour out our praise."

It is well!

Love Peter...What does that mean?

 
          A few days ago I shared a post on my Facebook page that compared Peter and Judas.  It basically said that Peter had a bad day, but Judas had a bad heart.  Love Peter and lose Judas.  This morning I was worshiping and praying...just spending time with God, and so many people came to mind.  As they came to mind I prayed for them and went back to singing and enjoying.  After awhile I began to realize that the people and situations that were coming to mind had a theme, but it wasn't the theme that I would have assumed. 
          So, before I get into this, here is some background.  I have been a Christian for approximately one half of a century.  Now, I did not say that I have acted and thought like a Christ follower for all of 50 years, but I HAVE been in the process of God working on me for that long.  How long does it take?  All I know is that 50 years is not enough, but God is faithful to complete the work that He started.  So, having been in church for that long I have been wounded and hurt.  I have been misunderstood.  I have been guilty by association and just straight up guilty.  I have believed the truth and I have believed some lies.  I have trusted in God and I have trusted in people (but since I am a person... I should have known better than to have done the later.)
         This is where my mind went in this conversation with God this morning.  Of course, Peter was the guy that Jesus called a rock upon which He would build the church.  He was a strong willed, trustworthy, tough guy with a heart so turned toward Jesus that he was seen by Jesus as foundational to the entire body of Christ.  Judas, on the other hand, was a slimy, money grubbing, yes-man who sold Jesus out for some pocket change.  Yes, Peter was also the guy who denied Jesus, but it wasn't a matter of weak character or corruption (like Judas.)  It was a matter of a weak moment and just plain being a human.  Afterwards he owned the sin and it made him even more strongly committed to his Savior. 
          In my years in the church I have seen Peters expelled...ridden out on a rail...crucified and completely demolished.  Heck, I have been Peter.   And...I have seen Judas loved, exalted, and declared infallible.  WHAT!!!  So, I started asking God about this.  How does this happen?  What makes some Peters so easy to discard while some Judases get catapulted into greatness?  How can good christian people be fooled?  Aren't most of us Peters at some point.  I mean...don't we all make mistakes or even choose the wrong path at times. (Hint:  the answer is yes!)
          As I asked God about this, the story of Abraham and Issac came to mind.  Issac had as much favor with Abraham as anyone could ever have.  He was the son of promise.  Yet, Abraham held on to Issac very loosely.  When God told him to sacrifice Issac, Abraham had no hesitation.  The picture that I got was that Abraham sought God and obeyed unconditionally.  So often we see people differently than Abraham saw Issac.  We treasure their skills, their opinions, their longevity in our lives, and because we see them as treasure, we begin to value them above others...we even value them above our relationships with God.  As people become treasure, we become blinded by their shine and sparkle. They sometimes become like jewelry because they make us look good.   I am not saying that we should not love and nurture our relationships.  On the contrary,  God is love and love is expressed between people.  What I am saying is that we need to find our treasure in God alone. God is never tarnished.  He is never a Peter having a bad day.  He is always wise counsel, and He is the ONLY one who can truly judge the heart of another.  We can't even accurately judge our own hearts.
          We need to be able to love God and one another so purely that we can easily give up the value that another person adds to our lives.  We need to be able to speak about and receive the hard conversations that need to be discussed.  We need to be able to join with and work with people who are not who we would pick, and we need to be able to leave situations that we adore if the leading of God moves us.  In Matthew 8 Jesus talks about the price of following Him.  When He calls us to follow Him we are not to question.  He expects us to drop what we are doing and take off after Him.
           We need to hold one another like Abraham held Issac...with open arms ready to give him up.  We also need to guard against discarding the Peters in our lives...just give them a chance to say they love you three times and get on with life.