An Inclined Heart

For the past few weeks, I have been part of several different discussions asking essentially the same question in a variety of settings.  This week I read the essential question in one of the textbooks I am reading for a leadership class:

Where is the supernatural, world-changing, life-transforming power of God?

At least part of the answer can be found in Joshua’s words to the people of Israel.

Put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your heart to the LORD, the God of Israel.  (Joshua 24:23 ESV)

Here are two thoughts on this verse. First, there is a very real tendency for many of us to define our life by the first part of this or similar verses. We identify our faith by what we do not do.  I do not worship false gods. I do not get drunk, I do not have sex with someone other than my spouse, I do not lie, I do not steal…. you get the idea.  It reminds me of a certain religious leader who said, “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.” (Luke18:11)

Second, we miss the life-transforming power of God in our lives if we fail to “incline our hearts to God”. In every aspect of our lives, our greatest desire should be nothing else but the Lord.  Many times we refer to the church in the book of Acts as a model of power and transformation. My textbook included the following statement about the faith of the earliest Christians as “nothing less than life-defining allegiance to Jesus – as recognized through Holy Scripture and revealed through the Holy Spirit – that resulted in increasing confidence in God’s decisive action on their behalf in Jesus Christ and in increasing conformity to the character of Jesus Christ.”

(Timothy Paul Jones and Michael S. Wilder in Christian Formation)

If our hearts seek Christ first in all things, there is no room for other gods among us. On this day. let us evaluate any “foreign gods” we may have in our lives and then let our greatest desire be to incline our hearts to the Lord.

No Clever Schemes

Skeptics are everywhere. From the early days of the church some have questioned the authority of God’s Word.  Not much is different today.

In his second epistle Peter wrote:

“For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty… knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation.  For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

2 Peter 1:16, 20-21

How would the disciples described themselves in the narrative of the Gospels if they were attempting to build a “cleverly devised myth”?

Without a doubt Peter would have edited out some of the more embarrassing moments in his life had the New Testament been a cleverly devised myth.  To the contrary Peter writes that man’s contribution to Scripture was one of obedience as “men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

Have you chosen to make the Bible your authority?

If you believe that the Bible contains the very words of God to mankind how should you respond?  Will it change the direction of my heart? How will it affect the way I think about the world I live in?  Will it change the direction of my feet as I make choices in my life?

Trials turned to Gold

2 Corinthans 12: 7- 9

7 So to keep me from being too elated by the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from being too elated. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. 9 But he said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.

Have you ever wondered what exactly Paul’s “thorn” was?  This week I’ve learned that theologians have been asking the question and supplying answers.  Lots of answers.
Think about the thorn in your life.  Satan’s goal is to harass and torment you – to discourage you.  He wants to paralyze you with fear.  A thorn may be in your flesh like Paul.  Or it may be in your mind; a persistent doubt.  Maybe it’s in your emotions; a grief that will not fade.

But God’s “causes all things to work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

Through the years songwriters have helped me express myself during hard times.  Take a minute to read Keith Green’s
Trials Turned to Gold.

He’s brought me here, where things are clear
And trials turn to gold
He shared with me, His victory
He won in days of old

Oh Lord, I don’t deserve
The riches of your word
But You’ve changed my filthy rags
To linen white as snow

The view from here is nothing near
To what it is for You
I tried to see Your plan for me
But I only acted like I knew

Oh Lord forgive the times
I tried to read your mind
Cause you said if I’d be still
Then I would hear your voice

My Lord, my King, my urge to sing
And praise the things above
No words can say the glorious way
You changed me with your love

He’s brought me low, so I could know
The way to reach the heights
To forsake my dreams, my self esteem
And give up all my rights

With each one that I lay down
A jewel’s placed in my crown
Cause His love, the things above
Is all we’ll ever need

He’s brought me here, where things are clear
And trials turn to gold

God, Government and You

Tonight I spoke with a physician who has two sons attending two very different schools.  The older son attends a school where any talk of God could cause trouble, while the younger son attends a private school in the Cleveland area where prayer to God is encouraged and expected.

Talk about controversy!  Just mention the government and God in the same sentence and all kinds of emotions are stirred.

After telling us to do our part to live in peace with others in chapter 12 of Romans, Paul now shifts his focus onto public life. The Christians of the first century were not exactly popular in their culture.  So why would Paul encourage the believers to be “subject to the governing authorities”?

The answer is in the sovereignty of God who has placed those in authority.  We are expected to follow the laws of the land.  As verses six and seven tells us, we are to pay our taxes.  We are to respect the laws of the land.  We are to honor those in authority.

He’s not saying we necessarily agree with them in all things.  I personally, don’t want to pay any additional taxes than what I owe.  But I am still to pay my taxes.  Before Paul wrote these words, Jesus answered the question on taxes and said to “give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God those things that are God’s.”

Now you might ask, do we honor authorities in all things at all times?  I believe the Scripture is clear on this.  Moses’ parents didn’t obey Pharoah’s command which demanded the death of their newborn.  When Peter and John were commanded to stop speaking in the name of Jesus, they answered with the question as to whether it is better to obey man or God.

There are areas where authorities may push us into a corner and ask for compromise in our Faith.  We are to stand firm just as those believers in the first century did.

I think a question to ask might be- Am I focusing on obeying God or am I using my Faith as a reason to oppose authority?

Here’s Some Hope

In a time of desperation for the people of Israel, Jeremiah wrote these words of hope.  Take a minute and read the scripture:

21 But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
22 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
24 The LORD is my portion, says my soul,
therefore I will hope in him.
25 The LORD is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.Jeremiah remembers and therefore has hope!  What is the source of his hope?  The steadfast love of the Lord is without end.  His mercies are new every morning. (Lamentations 3: 21-25 ESV)
Jeremiah’s hope is in the Lord.  He hopes in Him. He seeks Him.

We’ve been talking about trials for the last few weeks and it is easy to feel a little worn down during a trial.

On this day read this portion of scripture again. And again.  Believe it deep in your soul.

Experiencing the Grace of God

Genesis 15:6 tells us, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

The Grace of God is so radically different from other world views and religions. When was the last time you heard someone refer to their karma? Or maybe someone mentioned how their good works put them in good standing with God?

What justified Abraham? Belief. When God promised Abraham’s offspring would be greater than the stars of the sky, Abraham simply believed.

Belief means to put your faith, trust or confidence in someone. Belief in God as Abraham did requires surrender.

In his book The Prodigal God, Tim Keller relates the following story of a woman who struggled with the thought of God’s Grace.

“If I was saved by my good works – there would be a limit to what God could ask of me or put me through. I would be like a taxpayer with rights. I would have done my duty and now I would deserve a certain quality of life. But if it is really true that I am a sinner saved by sheer grace – at God’s infinite cost -then there’s nothing he cannot ask of me.” She knew that if Jesus had really done this for her – she was not her own. She was bought with a price.”

An old song says:

I owed a debt I could not pay.
He paid a debt He did not owe…

The price has been paid. Will I respond with the simple belief of Abraham?

Sowing Seeds

After a Bengals game,  my son Jacob and I encountered a man passing out Super Bowl Trivia cards. I suspected he was doing something more.  He was.

The man stood quietly outside the stadium offering his cards to people as the left the game.  Some people reached for the cards. Others walked by quickly.  Some took a card and then dropped them onto the street because they didn’t value the message of Christ printed on the reverse of the trivia cards.

It reminded me of the parable of the sower.

Matthew 13: 3-9

3…”A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. 7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. 8 Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears, let him hear.”

If you’re reading this, you can relate to the man outside the stadium in two ways or maybe more. First, as people who have received the word, we have a responsibility to spread the seed to others.  Secondly, if you can see a stadium full of people and not see the need for the Savior, then maybe there is a need to take a second look at the soil.

A friend of mine from long ago, reminded me to of Jesus’ warning in verse 22: ”As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.”

It is so easy to be caught up in the cares of this world.  Is there any area where you are preoccupied making you unfruitful? If so, what will you do to weed your garden and remove the thorns that choke the message of Christ?

God’s Compassion for Cain

Genesis 4: 3-7

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.”

This afternoon, this familiar story came to my mind and as I considered the passage, I was struck by the care God showed for Cain.  What a compassionate God!  He cared so much that he searched Cain out for a heart-to-heart talk and lovingly warned him of the sin that could destroy both of the sons of Adam.

The first chapter of James gives us a similar warning and a promise to those who persevere.

James 1: 12-15

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Instead of repenting and bringing God the best of his crops instead of “some of the fruits of the soil”, Cain was mastered by the sin of his heart. He yielded to sin and missed an opportunity to really know and honor his Creator.

The Manhattan Declaration and Apple

I do some creative work in my spare time and use a number of Apple products. Why?  Over the years I have found both the hardware and software applications to be dependable and effective.

I expect Apple products to work.  I generally don’t expect Apple to share my worldview.

But recently, I have faced a dilemma regarding Apple’s hostility toward the Manhattan Declaration.  I pulled the following quote from the home page at www.manhattandeclaration.org.

“Christians, when they have lived up to the highest ideals of their faith, have defended the weak and vulnerable and worked tirelessly to protect and strengthen vital institutions of civil society, beginning with the family. It was in this tradition that a group of prominent Christian clergy, ministry leaders, and scholars released the Manhattan Declaration on November 20, 2009 at a press conference in Washington, DC. The 4,700-word declaration speaks in defense of the sanctity of life, traditional marriage, and religious liberty. It issues a clarion call to Christians to adhere firmly to their convictions in these three areas.”

What’s the beef with Apple?  The Manhattan Declaration created an app for the iPhone only to have it pulled by Apple in response to some well targeted complaints.  Apple said, “the app contains references or commentary about a religious, cultural or ethnic group that are defamatory, offensive, mean-spirited or likely to expose the targeted group to harm or violence will be rejected.  We have evaluated the content of this application and consider its contents to be objectionable and potentially harmful to others.”

Apple has a right to reject an app.  It’s their store.  But is an organization that stands for Life, Marriage and Religious Liberty really that controversial?

Unfortunately today the answer may be yes.

For All of Us

When Patrina and I traveled to Chicago a few weeks ago, the group was polled to see just how many miles people had logged to reach the destination.  I think something like twenty-seven states were represented and people made the trip from Seattle and Los Angeles and some made the trek from Canada.

What kind of commitment would you be willing to make if you had to travel on foot or by camel?  We know the shepherds were the first to arrive and worship Christ the Lord, but some time later a group of wise men made a trip of several hundred miles to pay tribute to the King of the Jews.

God’s Gift is intended for all of us.

The first thing we notice is that the wise men were not of Jewish descent so their journey was a kind of foreshadowing of the promise Simeon spoke when he held Jesus, “for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”  Luke 2:30-32

Next we see that the wise men had a single focus to find the one who was born King of the Jews.  They would accept no counterfeit.

Finally, when the wise men entered the house where Jesus was they fell down and worshiped Him and then they offered their gifts.

What lengths will you go to seek Christ?  Will you be single-minded in your focus?  Will you worship Him and offer yourself as a living sacrifice?

It is something to think about today.