An Armchair Christian

An Armchair Christian

If you did not really know the guy, you would assume he was an amazing athlete. He can really talk the game.  But, that’s all he is can do.  He has no real ability because he has not honed his skills or refined his reflexes.  I am guilty of this during football season. While watching my beloved Patriots, I criticize Tom Brady’s decision to throw short instead of long or  the coach’s decision to go for 2 instead of kicking the extra point.  I yell at the receiver when he drops the ball as if I could do better!  In fact, I do not have any real football skills. I have never played a minute in a competitive game.  But, we forgive an armchair quarterback his delusions as long as he is not too obnoxious, right?

A more serious issue is what I’ll call the ‘armchair Christian.’  He offers up half-baked opinions on difficult Bible passages.  He critiques other Christians relentlessly. “Why doesn’t he get a grip on that gambling habit?”  “Doesn’t he understand why his wife struggles to love him?”  He knows the failings of the church and has no reluctance about pointing them out. “Our church needs more love, nobody really cares about others!”  “Nobody comes to Christ anymore around here. The pastor needs to preach more Gospel sermons.”  All the while, this same person spends no time with Scripture,  is not involved in ministry,  is blind to his own sins, and has never brought anyone into a relationship with Jesus.  It’s just all talk, an interesting diversion, not discipleship at all.  Jude warns of the danger of turning Christianity into talk:   "When these people join you in fellowship meals celebrating the love of the Lord, they are like dangerous reefs that can shipwreck you. They are shameless in the way they care only about themselves. They are like clouds blowing over dry land without giving rain, promising much but producing nothing. They are like trees without fruit at harvest time. They are not only dead but doubly dead, for they have been pulled out by the roots. They are like wild waves of the sea, churning up the dirty foam of their shameful deeds. They are wandering stars, heading for everlasting gloom and darkness." (Jude 12-13, NLT)

St. Paul urges us to ‘work out your salvation.’  No, this is not a command to save ourselves through scrupulous religiosity. That mistake is as deadly as empty talk. We are called to practical application of the truth to everyday life.  We carefully think through God’s plans,  pray for the Spirit’s power, and enter fully into the high calling of bearing the Name of Christ Jesus.  God, the Holy Spirit, enters into a partnership with us. Isn’t that amazing? He does not just point us in the right direction. He walks with us, lives in us, coaches us to maximal effectiveness.   And, in Him, we will be "able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us." (Ephesians 3:20, NKJV)

In this word from the Word there is a promise of real blessings for those who roll up their sleeves and become authentic disciples (followers) of Christ.  Hear and do!  "But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does." (James 1:22-25, NKJV)

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Bless the Lord, O my soul,

O my soul,

Worship His holy name.

Sing like never before,

O my soul-

I'll worship Your holy name.

The sun comes up, it's a new day dawning.

It's time to sing Your song again.

Whatever may pass and whatever lies before me,

Let me be singing when the evening comes.

You're rich in love and You're slow to anger,

Your name is great and Your heart is kind.

For all Your goodness I will keep on singing

Ten thousand reasons for my heart to find.

And on that day when my strength is failing

The end draws near and my time has come.

Still my soul will sing Your praise unending,

Ten thousand years and then forevermore!

    Jonas Myrin | Matt Redman

    © 2011 Thankyou Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)

    Said And Done Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)

    sixsteps Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)

I'll see you in court

I’m taking it to court

Lawsuits are as American as apple pie! That’s a tragic and expensive fact.  One source estimates that suits drive up the cost of providing goods and services costing the average person in the US about $900 per year. Good projects are sometimes abandoned for no better reason than the risk exposure involved.   In 2003, I was sued over an incident 20 years after the fact and the person got $15,000 just to settle the case.  It happened because there was a lawyer looking for a quick insurance pay-off!  A couple of years ago, I read a story of a retired pastor, a man far from poverty, suing his former congregation for a large sum of money he felt he had coming to him, even as the church descended into bankruptcy because of bad management. 

Americans are over-burdening the court system, using the judges to settle disputes that need never go that far.  Why do we do it? Some see a settlement as a windfall, like winning the lottery. Others feel so entitled that they are unwilling to accept the slightest perception of ‘injustice.’  Some are unable to accept that risk is part of living and use the courts to try eliminate even the tiniest threat to their personal well-being.

The Scripture speaks to Christians about going to the law, especially when it involves another Christian. "When you have something against another Christian, why do you file a lawsuit and ask a secular court to decide the matter, instead of taking it to other Christians to decide who is right? Don’t you know that someday we Christians are going to judge the world? And since you are going to judge the world, can’t you decide these little things among yourselves? Don’t you realize that we Christians will judge angels? So you should surely be able to resolve ordinary disagreements here on earth. If you have legal disputes about such matters, why do you go to outside judges who are not respected by the church? I am saying this to shame you. Isn’t there anyone in all the church who is wise enough to decide these arguments? But instead, one Christian sues another—right in front of unbelievers! To have such lawsuits at all is a real defeat for you. Why not just accept the injustice and leave it at that? Why not let yourselves be cheated? But instead, you yourselves are the ones who do wrong and cheat even your own Christian brothers." (1 Corinthians 6:1-8, NLT)  Justice Scalia, Associate of the US Supreme Court, wrote that this passage speaks to Christians today. “Mediation of a mutual friend, such as the parish priest, should be sought before parties run to the law courts… I think we are too ready to seek vindication or vengeance through adversary proceeding rather than peace through mediation… Good Christians, just as they are slow to anger, should be slow to sue.”  (as quoted by Ken Sande in The Peace Maker, Baker Books, 2004)  T

Perhaps you’re reading this and wonder why I’m writing about lawsuits.  “This isn’t for me, Jerry, I’m not suing anyone.”   It’s the underlying attitude that we all need to address.  The same impulse that fuels a lawsuit makes us talk down a fellow Christian to others when we feel the need to ‘even the score.’  The same sense of being entitled to ‘our rights’ causes us to push people that offend us out of our lives, to turn our backs on those who hurt our feelings, and even to abandon a church fellowship when we run into relational problems.  If Jesus is our Lord, we are called to peace and unity.  The Word directs us to be peace-makers. "Live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble… He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it." (1 Peter 3:11, NIV)

Justice will come to those who belong to the Lord, but perhaps not tomorrow or the next day!  He will secure those who make Him their Rock and Refuge.  Our word from the Word are part of Jesus’ amazing Sermon on the Mount.  Let His wisdom change your heart and mind today.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’
But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.
If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also.
And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.
Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’

But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

For if you love those who love you, what reward have you?
Do not even the tax collectors (ordinary sinners) do the same?
And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so?
Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect." (Matthew 5:38-48, NKJV)

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    Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,

    Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

    Where there is injury, pardon;

    Where there is doubt, faith;

    Where there is despair, hope;

    Where there is darkness, light;

    Where there is sadness, joy.

    O Divine Master,

    grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;

    to be understood, as to understand;

    to be loved, as to love.

    For it is in giving that we receive.

    It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

    and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.

    Amen.

Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi

Swinging at Curve Balls?

Just when I think I have it all figured out, with all my plans in order, something changes somebody moves, a key player decides to go in another direction. Ah, well - so much for best laid plans.  

Ask a baseball player about that pitch that he swings at because it looks like a straight-in fast ball! But, he misses because, right in front of the plate, it breaks away from the trajectory he expected. That’s a curve ball! A curve ball, for the record, is a fast pitch that appears to 'break' out of a straight line. The ball doesn't really curve but rather travels in an arc, but to the batter, it looks like it curves. If a batter realizes the pitcher has thrown a curve ball and does not swing at it, it will often end up being called a 'ball' since the arc of travel will usually cause it to travel outside of the strike zone- or so I'm told.

Has life thrown you any curve balls recently? If it has not, it will! The important question that demands an answer is this: Am I at the mercy of circumstances? Must the unexpected, the unanticipated, strike us out, sidelining us from the game?

If we believe that, we become helpless victims, corks bobbing along on the river of fate. God gave us a gift - to learn about life’s curve balls and to choose how and when we swing at them. It is our privilege it is to rest in Christ Jesus, to put those things we did not foresee before Him, and to know that He will be our faithful coach, One who guides. In Hebrews 6 we find this assuring declaration, "we who have fled to him for refuge can take new courage, for we can hold on to his promise with confidence. This confidence is like a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls." (NLT)

Are you anchored in the unchanging Christ? Settling ourselves in His Presence will keep us from swinging wildly, so that we strike out. Baseball players strike out at the plate, not for lack of skill, but often because they are unnerved by a canny pitcher who throws a couple of unexpected pitches at them.

If we get panicked when the things come at us for which we are not prepared, we turn into reactors. Did you know that if you’re just reacting to circumstance you put someone else in control of your life? Don’t do it! Instead, reset you anchor by renewing faith. How?  

• Pray, even if only with sighs or quiet waiting.
• Worship, not superficially, but from the heart. 
• Claim the Truth, by reading passages of hope and affirmation to yourself. (Psalm 37 is one. Ephesians 1 is another.) 
• And, don’t neglect renewing yourself!
  
  Each of us will do that differently. I love to go and sit at the piano for a while, playing songs that come from memory (usually fracturing the lyrics!) and letting the music become an expression of my heart. For you, it might be a walk in the early morning, or listening to classical music, or talking with a trusted friend, or painting a picture, or working on your car.

Has life served up a few 'curve balls?'

Are you feeling unsettled by them, unsure, maybe even fearful? 

Right now, take a moment to talk to the Lord - in your own words - about it. "Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes."

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He's my rock, my sword, my shield

He's my wheel in the middle of the field

He's the lily of the valley

He's the bright and morning star

Makes no difference what you say

I'm goin' on my knees and pray

I'm gonna wait right here for my Jesus

‘Till he comes.   

Public Domain

Trapped in lies?

When I asked the young man about his choice, he offered an excuse, obviously lame; but he chose to believe it! He is the captive of a deception of his own making, trapped in a house of mirrors, illusions he loves more than the truth. We tell ourselves many different comforting lies. It’s our ‘truth.’   Of course, it isn’t really true at all, but we choose to think that it is. By way of example, we can see those who live with some medical issue that they will not acknowledge. The symptoms are there. Others see them, but the sick person ignores them, offering explanations, avoiding the truth. Admitting that the symptoms are real would demand action so some choose to deceive themselves. The lies we tell ourselves keep us enslaved to sin, sick in body, and rob our success.

What freedom is found when we choose to live in truth.

The Scripture urges us to pursue the Truth and to obey it.

"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it-he will be blessed in what he does." (James 1:22-25, NIV) 

If we desire to live in the truth, we need a standard outside of ourselves. The Scripture serves that purpose. The Word of God tells us what is right, what is wrong, who God is, and what pleases Him. But, does knowing what is right mean we will do it? No! The Word laments this tragedy. "It seems to be a fact of life that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God’s law with all my heart. But there is another law at work within me that is at war with my mind. This law wins the fight and makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin." (Romans 7:21-25, NLT)

Good intentions, self-discipline, accountability partners have their limits, don’t they?   A truth confronts us: "we’ve compiled this long and sorry record as sinners (both us and them) and proved that we are utterly incapable of living the glorious lives God wills for us. " (Romans 3:23, The Message) There’s a word for this - depravity.   

If we desire to live in the truth, we need a Savior who is bigger than our sin. There is a truth that wraps around our incapability, that makes all the difference. "But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)." (Ephesians 2:4-5, NKJV) In faith, we accept His intervention and we find liberation from the sin that holds us back as well as the trap of our lies. 

If we desire to live in the truth, we need the Spirit who is constantly present to guide. Christians enjoy an amazing gift. God, the Holy Spirit, lives in us. Jesus promises "The Spirit shows what is true and will come and guide you into the full truth. The Spirit doesn’t speak on his own. He will tell you only what he has heard from me, and he will let you know what is going to happen."(John 16:13, CEV) He makes living in the Truth possible! We learn to ‘walk in the Spirit.’ 

If we desire to live in the truth, we need to be part of the Body, the Church, that encourages us. I am blessed to have people in my life who will tell me the truth, no matter what. They hold up a mirror for me! Thank God for them. The Word reminds us to “encourage one another daily.”

Here’s a word from the Word. Lord, call us to live in the Truth.

"See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first. As has just been said: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.” Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert? And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief. Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it."

(Hebrews 3:12-4:1, NIV) 

Come To Dinner, forever.

Come to Dinner!

Bev and I spent the weekend with friends from a former pastorate.  Each encounter was sweet; hugs, stories, catching up on where the road has led.  I visited the grave of a man with whom I walked for just four years, but he played a pivotal part in my life at that time. I choked with emotion while standing where Dean’s body lies.  Memories of that era when we were raising our first family just overwhelmed me.  After a celebration on Saturday night, Chip wrote to me, “wish we had more time, we will have eternity.”  Then, this man’s man, wrote, “I love you,” unashamedly.  What a glorious thing to love and be loved!   We are made for relationship, aren’t we?  Just as the Holy Trinity lives in perpetual relationship, rejoicing, we are called to share our lives.

The Psalmist praises the Almighty because He "sets the lonely in families." (Psalm 68:6, NIV)  Because relationships are so critical to our spiritual, emotional, and physical health is it any wonder that the enemy of all that is good invests so much in sowing the seeds of alienation, mistrust, and hatred among humanity?  Amazing things are accomplished when people cooperate for mutual benefit. Where love exists,  life becomes beautiful. Our weekend was a celebration of love and cooperation, of people to whom we gave love and who gave love to us!  That is why the Spirit urges us, at every turn, to " live a life of love,”  and not the cheap, erotic, selfish kind of ‘love’ that replaces real love, but a love modeled after “ Christ (who) loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." (Ephesians 5:2, NIV)

When we give love, we will find it.  Remember, love is the mark of the Christian; not orthodoxy, not holiness, not esoteric spiritual experiences.  Yes, we need sound doctrine, we must live holy lives, and our hearts will  overflow when the Spirit comes, but those things will ebb and flow, and eventually die, but there are only "three things that will endure—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:13, NLT)

Before we went to church, Bev and I tuned the television to the program that featured one of America’s best known celebrity pastors.  We were sickened by his ‘sermon’ that urged the thousands listening to seek their happiness in selfishness!  His advice was to limit the ability of needy people to hinder self-fulfillment. “Tell them it’s time for them to stand on their own two feet,” he declared to resounding applause.  “Don’t let anyone control you with their needs.”  In a terrible abuse of the Scripture, he reminded us that that father of the prodigal son never went after him. He just let him go and got on with his own life. Really?  My Bible says that the father was waiting, looking down the road, longing for the return of his wayward son.  He was not self-absorbed. He was loving to the maximum.  Don’t be fooled by the lies of self-expression that insist that your best life is found in preservation of Self.  Love is the way to live – fully, joyously, and with Heaven in your heart.

When the Glorious Day comes,  our Father will call – “Come to Dinner!”   We all sit down to an eternal feast.  Take these words from John’s Revelation. Let them become an inspiration for a life of love that begins now and stretches into eternity.  "Then a voice came from the throne, saying: “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, both small and great!” Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.) Then the angel said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!’” And he added, “These are the true words of God.” (Revelation 19:5-9, NIV)

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Oh Love That Will Not Let Me Go

Oh love that will not let me go

I rest my weary soul in Thee

I give You back this life I owe

And in Your ocean depths its flow

May richer fuller be

Oh light that follows all my way

I yield my flickering torch to Thee

And my heart restores it's borrowed ray

And in Your sunshine's blaze its day

May brighter fairer be

Oh joy that seeks me through the pain

I cannot close my heart to Thee

I chase the rainbow through the rain

And feel the promise is not vain

That more shall tearless be

Oh cross that lifts and hold my head

I dare not ask to fly from Thee

I lay in dust life's glory dead

From the ground their blossoms red

Life that shall endless be

Public Domain
Albert Lister Peace, George Matheson