God was my co-pilot . . . .

God was my co-pilot . . . until I crashed into the Andes and I had to eat him.  That’s probably one of the most brash anti-Christian bumper stickers I’ve seen in a while.  Actually, I guess it’s not only anti-Christian, its anti-deist, period.  What it intimates is shear humanism; a belief summarized in William Ernest Henley’s poem Invictus: “I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.”  

But like many bold pronouncements made against God and His followers, there is irony to the bumper sticker jab.  The same thing occurred when the religious leaders in Jesus’ day asked Pilate to set guards over the tomb of Jesus to make sure His body would not be stolen by His disciples.  That very act proved to be more condemning on the authorities and provide more verifiable evidence to Christ’s resurrection (Matthew 27:62-28:4).  So too, the bumper sticker actually bolsters the Christian message rather than squelches it.  How?

Look at the statement again: God was my co-pilot . . . until I crashed into the Andes and I had to eat him.  In the end, who saves whom?  Isn’t it in the face of unthinkable cannibalism that the ‘co-pilot God’ provides life to the ‘pilot’?  Who is the desperate hungry one in the scenario?  Wasn’t the ‘death of God’ the impetus of life for the man?  

And so it is for the Christian message.  Jesus Christ gave His life for the many.  Christ was falsely accused and His life taken.  But the real victory was His.  It’s what we celebrate in the eucharist, or the Lord’s Supper; His life taken, so that those who recognize that they are utterly helpless in their death of sin can find life in Him.

Estranged No More

Isaiah 1:2-3

“Children have I reared and brought up,

but they have rebelled against me.

3  The ox knows its owner,

and the donkey its master's crib,

but Israel does not know,

my people do not understand.”

I believe that to understand our position before God as children to a Father is one of the most, if not the most, vital theological concepts to grasp as a Christian.  Our adopted position before a heavenly Father has practical implications that range from the believer’s sincere obedience, to assurance of their acceptance, to their confidence in every providential circumstance.  If we attempt to find security and confidence in anything but the Father’s love we will act as estranged children.  

Sinclair Ferguson writes, “No short-cut that tries to bypass the relationship to him as his children, can ever succeed in providing long-term spiritual therapy” (Children of the Living God, p.14). But, if you know, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that the Creator and the Sustainer of the universe loves you with an incorruptible love that never fades or wanes, than your life will demonstrate an assured, bold, compassion that is unshakable in the face of any circumstance.  

Henry Lyte’s hymn lyrics in “Jesus, I My Cross Have Taken,” reveal such a confidence:

Go, then, earthly fame and treasure, 

Come disaster, scorn and pain 

In Thy service, pain is pleasure, 

With Thy favor, loss is gain

I have called Thee Abba Father, 

I have stayed my heart on Thee 

Storms may howl, and clouds may gather; 

All must work for good to me.

How do we know God loves us this much?  How do we know that we are that secure?  The humility of Jesus coming in the flesh and suffering throughout His life and on to the cruel death of the cross is the picture of His love.  The resurrection is the sacrifice accepted by the Father in our stead revealing that He is satisfied.  “My grace is sufficient for you” (2 Cor. 12:9).  His grace is the giving of His Son on our behalf as our substitute.  That grace is all we could possibly ever need.  It is that complete . . . that final.  That “finished” (John 19:30).

As we find our confidence in the Fatherhood of God, then all of our relationships change.  We no longer have the need to feel rejected by our spouses, parents, or peers.  I John 4:18: “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.”   The Father’s perfect love shown in Christ is the confidence we have for all relationships.  We can then love as Christ has loved us without expecting any reciprocal love from those for whom we pour out our service.  In fact, when we do not receive anything in return, it only confirms what the Scripture says about not putting our confidence in the flesh (Phil. 3:3).  Our gain is not to be received from others, but only from Christ.  Therefore, when we do not receive what we might expect or want, we ought not be shaken.

Do we grasp the outward effects of such confident Father-love for us?  When our confidence is in His love for us, then we become an effective witness to His gospel.  Our spouses and children and friends find a gospel power of confidence in us.  Gospel light will shine brightly as it radiates from our whole countenance.

Jesus Christ is the perfect Son given for us, the estranged sons.  “God’s final purpose is nothing less than a new race of men and women, restored to what they were intended to be, through their relationship to the divine image-bearer and Son, Jesus Christ” (Sinclair Ferguson, p.10).

The Law Used Lawfully

Ezekiel 5:5-6

“Thus says the Lord GOD: This is Jerusalem. I have set her in the center of the nations, with countries all around her.  And she has rebelled against my rules by doing wickedness more than the nations, and against my statutes more than the countries all around her; for they have rejected my rules and have not walked in my statutes. 

The church today is as God’s people of old, a city, or a grouped people after God’s own choosing, commissioned as ambassadors of His grace and mercy.  Matthew 5:14 reads, “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.”  

In relation to the church’s commission in Matthew and Ezekiel, I like how one author challenged me to think differently about church membership. We are members certainly.  But his challenge was to think of membership as partnership.  Partnering together for the gospel of Christ.  We are to be, like no other institution on earth, the uniquely designed people who labor together to bring life to a death-filled world.

But contrary to witnessing the beauty of the church as a partnering institution which bears life-giving and light-bearing testimony to the surrounding culture, often we see the opposite; a back-biting, self-absorbed, rule-breathing, treacherous and exclusive society.  A church which has rebelled against my rules by doing wickedness more than the nations.  

Rules, even God’s laws, can be uglier than the compassion of a godless society.  Who hasn’t witnessed great compassion and philanthropy from the hands of unbelievers, often much more gracious than many a professing Christian?  You see, doing the rules does not a grace-channel make.  In fact, that’s what got the Jewish authorities in Jesus’ day their self righteous attitude and actions.  God’s rules can be done with wicked intent.  If our purpose in obeying God is to lord our obedience to Him over others, then we have broken the very law we say we keep.  When God’s laws create an “us and them” attitude (us being those in the church, them being those outside the church.  Or, in some cases, us in this particular church, and them in their particular church, practice, etc.), then we have entered the downward spiral of losing our first love:  “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent” (Revelation 2:4-5).

Remember.  Remember from from where you have fallen.  It was to the church in Ephesus that Jesus was directing his attention in this Revelation passage.  It was Ephesus that contained a mixed bag of Jews and Gentiles (different practice, baggage, etc).  The letter written by Paul to Ephesus some forty or fifty years earlier stressed the unifying power of Christ.  It was a breaking down the “us and them” paradigm.  Apparently, by the time of the Revelation of John, their unity was leaking.  The church at Ephesus was taking on the same characteristics as Israel in the days of Ezekiel.

When the theology or ethic we hold begins to create a people who see the law as the means to Christian virtue, then backbiting, judgmental attitudes, and exclusion will occur.  Gone will be the influence of light into a dark world, because gone will be the influence of grace and mercy within the people of God.

Repent.  Repent from using the law of God unlawfully; i.e. not as it was intended to be used.  Recognize your sinful attitudes and actions.  See how Christ has had compassion on you, a law-breaker, by removing the condemning power of the law over you . . . that same condemning power you have desired to hold over others!  See how Christ has given you the law as a great protection and directive for bringing Him glory as you wield it well and rightly.  See the law of God as good when we use it to bring life and light into other people’s lives with an attitude of mercy.  Pray for this attitude.  Choose today to love those around you the way Christ has loved you and without expecting anything in return.  As we as individuals grasp the mercy and grace of Christ, then we as a church begin to see the influence of Christ through us as a church within our community.  For a city set on a hill cannot be hidden.

Halloween Practice

Let me say at the outset that I understand that people have different convictions regarding Halloween.  And I also know that it is good to be challenged by the Scriptures in those convictions so that we are “thoroughly equipped for every good work”.  My own practice of the day (or night) of Halloween is constantly transforming and I would hopefully never say that my way is the right way.  With that said, please allow me to help us think together through (somewhat humorously . . . I hope) a balanced approach to Halloween.

Let’s lay out some options:

Option #1: Run/Hide Method

This option, along with option #2, is the easiest option requiring much less thought than the others.  You simply turn out the lights, go to the basement, and eat pizza by candlelight until the mayhem is over.  Or, you turn out the lights, leave, treat the kiddos to dinner and dessert (you’ll need to appease them with something), and pray no one eggs your house.

Option #2: If You Can’t Beat’em Join’em, or . . . Ignorance is Bliss.

Just give in and join the masses.  The only real decisions here are how much candy to buy and in what costumes to dress your offspring or what to allow them to wear.

Option #3: Quick! Find an Alternative!

This takes a little research, or at least a little church history knowledge.  Martin Luther tacked his 95 Theses on the Wittenberg Door in Germany on October 31, 1517 sparking the Protestant Reformation.  This is a nice alternative with a Christian twist . . . your kids can dress in monk outfits as you celebrate Reformation Day!  Hopefully no one will mistake them for Jawas from Star Wars and strike them down with a light saber.

Option #4: Quick! Find an Alternative! Take 2

If option #3 is more of a “thinking Christian’s” alternative or too theologically-driven, then #4 is a more broadly evangelical approach.  The common name is “Trunk or Treat.”  The idea is to provide candy from the trunk of member's cars in the church parking lot for all who would participate.  Clever.  Here, churches typically cater to their own members who have a conscience about Halloween and any on the outside who may have tighter morals.  Or they cater to parents whose consciences bother them and they want for their kids what they themselves feel they should do or be.  Or, it invites greedy hoodlums who prey on the vast generosity of naive church-types.  This option is mildly evangelistic.  

Option #5: Quick! Find an Alternative! Take 3

This option is the more overtly evangelistic.  Use all of the world’s devices of gore, blood, and terror then claim it in the name of Jesus.  Name it something like Hell-House, Hell-o-ween House, or Gehenna for Good.  Host it as a haunted house in the church building and then give a fiery sermonette to “scare the hell” out of the kids as you have them dangling over Hades.

Option #6: Love Your Neighbor as Yourself

This one requires the most thought and introspection.  It demands us to think through our natural sinful inclination to avoid conflict, serve our own wants and desires, and to avoid thinking critically about the day, events, and people around us.  This option drives us to reflect on the fact that this is the one day of the year when the vast majority of our neighbors are on our streets, coming to our doors, and asking us to join, share, and celebrate with them.  How many times does that happen?  It requires us to think through our motives behind the options we have chosen in the past and what dividends resulted for ourselves, our neighbor, and the kingdom of God.  It requires us to reflect on what we are communicating, not only to our neighbors, but to our own children about how to relate to our neighbors and their friends.  It requires us to be in God’s Word to recognize the grace that He Himself has displayed toward us in coming to us “while we were yet sinners” and to act out of the mercies of God for us as we serve others.  

There is no specific program for this option.  It simply asks us to love as Christ has loved us.  That could take on a thousand different forms depending on our personality, our giftedness, the particular make-up of our street, our children’s personalities, etc.  

In conclusion

I am in no way advocating the worship of Satan, witchcraft, rebellion, or evil of any sort.  That would be sin.  What I am advocating is developing a solid biblically-based conscience toward the kingdom of God and the people to whom He has sent us to be ambassadors for that kingdom.  May God bless your efforts toward kingdom-mindedness this Halloween . . . er . . . Reformation Day.

Do I believe that God does good . . . for me?

Do I believe that God does good . . . for me?

Many of us have grown up being told our whole lives through that God is good.  It has become a well-versed mantra used over the dinner table, beside the hospital bed, or across the table from a hurting friend.  

But are we convinced at every minute of every day that God means the Christian no harm but constantly and consistently has our best interest at heart and will provide His very best for us all of the time?  Is His good such a goodness that we receive our daily confidence from it never shirking back from difficulties?  Or have we recited an empty mantra . . . words that we want to believe but in reality are more like hopeful dreams?   Have we rather said, “God is good . . . isn’t He?  

One of our most beloved hymns confesses a surety in the goodness of God. John Newton’s “Amazing Grace” speaks of a confidence that we can and should have in the goodness of God:

The Lord has promised good to me,

His word my hope secures;

he will my shield and portion be,

as long as life endures.

Notice Newton’s confidence: 

The Lord has promised

His Word does secure

He will be a shield and portion . . . always.

This seems such a far cry from our daily griping and moaning about a late contractor, a worrisome bill, a “what if” future, a dented car, an unknown prognosis, a looming test, an anxious conversation . . . 

If we lack confidence in God’s goodness (and we do), we are surely in good company.  David, a future king of Israel, and described as a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam. 13:14), needed the reminder of God’s sure goodness.

In 1 Samuel 23:15-18, Jonathan sees David’s shaken confidence in God’s goodness because King Saul (the presiding king of Israel) continues to seek David’s life.  So Jonathan reminds David of God’s covenant promises to Him:

David saw that Saul had come out to seek his life. David was in the Wilderness of Ziph at Horesh. And Jonathan, Saul's son, rose and went to David at Horesh, and strengthened his hand in God. And he said to him, “Do not fear, for the hand of Saul my father shall not find you. You shall be king over Israel, and I shall be next to you. Saul my father also knows this.” And the two of them made a covenant before the LORD.

As the story unfolds, we find David on one side of a mountain with Saul close at his heels and gaining.  I can imagine David asking our question, “Is God good . . . for me?  Will He stand by His professed good?  Were the words of encouragement from Jonathan just the sweet well-meaning words of a friend, or will they bear weight?”  Verses 27-28 answer David’s questions and fears:

“ . . . a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Hurry and come, for the Philistines have made a raid against the land.” 28  So Saul returned from pursuing after David and went against the Philistines. Therefore that place was called the Rock of Escape.”

God routed Saul by using Israel’s enemies, the Philistines, to distract him from pursuing David.  Could David have ever guessed that God would use such means for deliverance?  Surely not!  That is a good God who is faithful to His promises.

Someone may say, “This is all well and good, but come on, David was going to be the king of Israel.  Surely we can’t make the jump from David to our particular circumstances” . . . or can we?  Yes . . . yes we can.  Hear the words of Romans 5:1-5:

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. 

The Son of David, Jesus Christ, secures God’s love and goodness to us!  This is the self-same love that David experienced.  Who knew that a Son of Man who had no kingly appearance, and who would be stricken, smitten, and afflicted would be our deliverance to route our sin and all of our enemies?!  

Paul continues in Romans 8:31-32; 37-39:

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Do I believe that God does good . . . for me?  “Lord, help me to believe.”

Music and Corporate Worship: the balance between spirit and truth

“It is not good to have zeal without knowledge”
- Proverbs 19:2

“God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth”
- John 4:24

Worship of God is directed by God in His Word. In our fervor to worship as His people, we often make mistakes in the manner in which we bring our worship. Music, because it is an emotional vehicle for worship, and one which is subject to preference, can present some challenges. Yet with a biblically balanced foundation we can have God-honoring music in worship. Here are some pitfalls to avoid as well as some balance to promote:

Reckless abandon (spirit without truth).
“It is not good to have zeal without knowledge”
- Proverbs 19:2

“God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in . . . truth”
- John 4:24

Reckless abandon in regard to song choice for worship, is music with no restraint. It sounds very spiritual. The attitude from advocates might be that we do not want to stifle the Holy Spirit's leading. We ought to allow our Spirit-controlled emotions to move how we worship. How is this controlling God?

Basically, reckless abandon is setting our emotions as the criteria for right worship. Emotions, though, then become the prime principle for right worship over and above God's Word. Thankfully God has given us His Word which directs how our hearts ought to worship. Hopefully, we strive to worship in spirit (yes), and truth. The truth of the words ought to move both the music which accompanies, as well as the emotions which follow. His truth oversees, or guides, our spirit. Our hearts are sinfully drawn to worship selfishly but the Word draws us to a balance of truth and spirit.

Liturgy for the sake of safety (truth without spirit)
“God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in spirit . . .”
- John 4:24

This extreme leads to dead orthodoxy, or cold religion. If reckless abandon is dangerous in its lack of Godly truth-control, blind liturgy is dangerous for its cold form from too much control.

We can become so fearful of change or doing the wrong thing, that a knee-jerk reaction takes place and we find no place for emotion. The words become sterile and unfeeling and we are discouraged from emoting. This too is controlling God by keeping Spirit-induced emotion at bay.


Closing the canon on hymnody. Using preference as main criteria for biblical worship.

There is a real temptation to not shake the tree any more than necessary by not allowing for any diverse music into the church. Yet this is irresponsible to the continuing work of God in and among the Church. Granted, there has been little music composed in the last century worth utilizing. But this is a new day!

We are seeing a revival of hymnody. A resurgence of Reformed theology has brought with it a hunger and thirst for rich words accompanied by engaging music. In my own denomination's ministry, pastors and congregants alike, have been instrumental in writing new music and offering it to the Church. Students, pastors, and church musicians have come in contact with old hymns and have re-worked them so that they are more singable to today's ear and have given us a vast quantity of songs from which to choose.

A new love for old hymns.


Hymns are didactic by nature. That is, they teach us theology. Putting new tunes to old hymns has caused new and old ears alike to love hymns and to love what they say and stand for. Folks who thought the hymns of old were cold and boring, now embrace the richness of the historicity and theological depth of the hymns.

So what is our responsibility as a church in relation to God?s working today through music in the church?

Biblically responsible

We are to be biblically responsible for the music we sing. "Spirit and truth" worship means that we sing songs which convey the deep soul-refreshing words of Scripture so that people are brought before the throne of grace. We also utilize music which accompanies the words well, conveying the rich sentiment of the words so that it helps, not hinders, a proper understanding of the text of the song.

Culturally relevant

What?! Christians live in culture too. Cultures change. Music changes with culture. There is nothing especially sacred about 18th century hymnody as opposed to 21st century hymnody. The musical styles within our own Trinity hymnal show the wide diversity between eras. Look at the dates of the songs in the hymnal and you will see some written as far back as the 4th century and as recent as 1984! Listen to the different tunes for those eras and you will hear distinct cultural differences.

The revival of hymnody within our culture is catching on!

Teachable

We need to be willing to learn. Are you one who is more prone towards newer tunes? Learn the hymns! Don't neglect the work of God among the Church throughout history. Are you one to disdain change and things new? Try it. See the end goal. Help the church to teach well the richness of our faith through song.

Hummingbirds and Kamikaze Hearts

Recently the church’s administrative assistant kindly suctioned a hummingbird feeder directly to my office window.  It’s one of those bright red feeders that has four “flowers” to, in theory, provide for four birds at one time.  What a kind gift for these birds - an endless supply of sugar water to inject carbs into the rapid heart-rate and wing-beat so necessary for survival.  And what a treat for me to be able to watch these amazing living avions dart to and fro.  

But then something struck me as peculiar.  As I watched one of these creatures alight to flick their tongues into this succulent gift, another dropped from a nearby perch like a kamikaze pilot to knock him off the faux flower thereby denying him his meal.  What a selfish beast!  And it happened again and again and again as these winged wombats tussled over the right to the sugar water.  To make matters worse, remember, there are four flower opportunities, not just one, yet they couldn’t seem to get along.  There was abundance of gift but not the grace within their minuscule hearts to share.

James 1:14-20

14  But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15  Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. 

16  Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 17  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. 18  Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first-fruits of his creatures. 

19  Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20  for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness that God requires.

So we learn a lesson about the human heart as well.  God has given us more than enough (think twelve baskets of bread leftover from feeding the five thousand) yet our own sin carries us away into a selfish rebellion against the Gift-giver and our fellow man.  When we should be the most esteemed creature of all God’s creatures demonstrating His own righteousness through merciful and grace demonstrating hearts (verse 18), we are the foulest of all beasts (we are the only creature that rebelled against God thus bringing the curse upon all other creatures).  James 4:1-2 asks and then answers, “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 2  You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.” 

The requirement of God is righteousness - the opposite of un-right-ness.  We are un-right.  That’s why we bicker against each other.  If I am truly right about something and someone takes issue, the reason I enter into an argument is because my attitude is un-right.  I have used something right against someone for the sake of being right!  Who’s wrong now?

Only Christ is truly righteous.  Therefore, I must find my identity in Him rather than in my need to be right on my own merit.  I need to be reminded of this daily as people knock me off the flowers upon which I feed.  I need to be reminded of this daily as I seek to knock others off the flowers God has given them.  To know Him and to have my identity in Him is greater than any food, literal or figurative, that I think I must have to feed upon at any given moment for my sustenance.  I’ve got to ask myself what I need so much that I am willing to boil with anger, steal with malice, covet with passion, guard with paranoia, and kill with my heart in order to get it.  And then I must go to the One from whom is every good gift and every perfect gift  . . . from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change and ask for forgiveness and for thankfulness of heart and for the power to change through faith in Jesus.