When A Dead Man Says 'Walk'

The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses. And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all. (Acts 3:13-16)

I think Peter took a certain joy in reminding the pious men of Israel about Jesus' crucifixion. Remember: some of these men know good and well they can't explain the resurrection; that's why they had to bribe the guards at Jesus' tomb. So, Peter reminded them, they denied Jesus' claims about Himself were true, and killed him to prove the point. He made a rather strong counter-argument by refusing to stay buried. 

I can see why Peter enjoyed needling them about it a little. In this one paragraph, Peter stripped these men of their authority to criticize (i.e., "hey wait, didn't you only recently let a murderer go free so you could kill a just and innocent man?") and established the power and authority of Christ to accomplish His will.

Peter wanted these men to understand that they, Peter and John, were acting under the authority of Christ, who was given authority of the Holy and Just, as the Prince of life, by the God who raised Him from the dead. 

Put another way, this man Jesus was killed, but then by the power of God was raised back from the dead. That kind of power is unmistakable. That kind of power is so great that the mere name of the One who holds it is enough, through faith, to heal the hopeless.

But what kind of faith? That's the question. If His name is enough, through faith, to heal, how strong must one's faith be? Does anyone actually have that kind of faith? Verse 16 has the answer: the faith we need comes through Him in whom we have faith. If Christ has enough power in His name to heal, He certainly has authority, too, to provide the faith we need to make it possible.

Fear, Roller Coasters, and Learning To Let Go

I love roller coasters. I spent a good chunk of my childhood afraid of heights, until my parents took us (my sister, brother, and I) to an amusement park. I made the determination, on that day, to find and ride as many tall rides as they had to offer. It worked! I started small and worked my way up, until I got over my fear of heights and became an avid fan of the rides. I visited that park and others, riding every new roller coaster they built. They built them taller, and I just got more excited to try 'em out.

I discovered, in a sense, that the answer to both my fear and my cure was found in faith. See, I'm not somebody who likes letting go. I don't like situations in which I'm not in control. I get carsick if I'm not driving. I've never even been tempted to drink to excess, or to even try drugs, because I find the very idea of losing control over myself abhorrent. My fear of heights was not a fear of heights; it was a fear of falling, and having no control over my descent.

My cure, ultimately, was a rational one. I knew the statistics on roller coaster-related deaths. I knew that, if I belted myself securely into one of those cars, I could rest in the knowledge that many had gone before me, many would come after me, and that, ultimately, the engineer knew what he was doing when he built it. For the few terrifying seconds of my first ride, I made the decision to put my faith in the engineer who built the roller coaster. And after not dying the first time, I learned there was joy to be found in letting go.

My journey of faith in God was similar. I learned to trust the One who created life, who designed this journey. I learned to trust the Engineer who designed the Universe. And I learned the joy to be found in letting go and just enjoying the ride.

Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act. Psalm 37:5

Turtles, Timidity, and Timothy

It must be nice to be a turtle. Take your time getting where you need to go -- and then not even have to worry about getting back home before dark, because you brought it with you! Not to mention the relative safety! Trouble comes, and you just pop back under your shell.

If I'm being totally honest, there are days I really envy that in a turtle. Days when I want nothing more than to hide in my shell, and shut the world out until it leaves me alone. Because, let's face it, it's a cruel old world. It's not the easiest place to remain innocent and keep your eyes on Christ. It's not always easy to be bold
about your faith in a world that mocks the very idea of God and derides conviction as something medieval.

Some times, I wonder why Faith doesn't come with a shell to carry around with us, for when the enemy's arrows come raining down.

Timothy, a young leader of the early church, must surely have felt the same way -- and then some! Maybe that's why Paul, in his second letter to his young protege, made sure, right away, to encourage him.

I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.

For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God. (2 Timothy 1:5-8)

Yeah, says Paul, Christians have it tough. (And let's face it, Timothy's church, and churches around the world today, have it a LOT tougher than you and I!) But Christ gave us not only a mission to reach others, but a command to love them. And not only a command, but the strength and courage, in His Spirit, to fulfill it. 

So no, we don't have a shell. We have something much better: the Power of the Living God.

Does Jesus Hate Rich People?

Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” (Matthew 19:21-24)

Jesus seems awfully tough on rich people here, doesn't he? What's he saying here? Does wealth really keep us separated from God? It certainly can; this isn't even the first time Jesus spoke on this problem. In Matthew 6, He tells us to store up our treasures in Heaven -- that is, to put our effort into the things of God, rather than of this world. Because, He says in verse 24, "No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."

So, what's Jesus' problem with money? After all, Job is an example of great faith, even now -- and he was filthy rich! Actually, Job illustrates the issue nicely. See, it's not that Jesus has a problem with money. It's that we do.  

Job is what you call an exception that proves the rule. His trust was in God -- so much so, that even when his great wealth was stripped from him, he still cried out and put his faith in his Creator. 

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
    and naked I will depart.
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;
    may the name of the Lord be praised.” (Job 1:21)

 
For Job, his wealth was a gift from God, and therefore belonged to God. 

What Jesus was pointing out was that so many who were -- and are -- wealthy, can't seem to put their trust and faith in Him. Jesus told the rich young man in Matthew 19 that, if he sold all he had and gave it to the poor, he would have treasure in Heaven -- that is, everlasting treasure. But the young man couldn't believe. His faith was in his worldly possessions. More to the point, he believed in the security he got from his wealth, and when asked point blank, couldn't transfer that security and faith to the God he claimed to serve. 

Today, that's not a problem for only the rich. How many of us put our faith and our trust in a job; in our ability to make money? How many would willingly sell everything we have, give it to the poor, and put our faith wholly and completely in God? It's easy to say we would -- or even that we are. But think carefully: if the rubber hit the road, and you heard Jesus' voice telling you to give up everything and trust completely in him, could you do it?

Fortunately, we -- and even that rich young man -- needn't rely on the limits of our own very human faith. 

When Jesus made his point about the wealthy, and a camel fitting through the eye of a needle, His disciples were incredulous. If not the rich, then who could be saved? And were the rich without hope?

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26)

A desperate man once told Jesus, "I do believe. Help my unbelief." 

Our own beliefs may seem small and unworthy. But through Christ, even the wealthy may find faith enough to trust Him.

Taste & See

Today is Holy Experiment Day: we celebrate giving faith a try. Whether it's praying, or studying the word of God, or even joining a group bible study, today is a day where you're encouraged to "try it out."

While days like today are certainly open for both abuse and interpretation, Scripture itself suggests the same thing. "Taste and see that the Lord is good," invites the Psalmist (Psalm 34:8). "Blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him."

Of course, this is tricky. It's not as though God is a new car. You don't just hop into faith and take it for a spin to see how she handles. In fact, God has already proven Himself as trustworthy and good. Paul reminds us in Romans 5:8, "God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." What we need to do, then, is to accept this great gift of Love. To recognize ourselves for who and what we are -- wayward children of God -- and to trust in Him to bring us home.

This trust isn't always easy, but then, nothing worthwhile ever is. If faith was as simple as deciding what we liked or didn't like -- like going to one of those pizza buffets -- it would be worse than useless. It would be about us, instead of about Him. But Scripture says, when we put our Faith -- our true, real faith -- in God, that trust will be rewarded.

So if it's not just a matter of "taking God for a spin," how do we taste and see? Romans 4 tells us we are, like Abraham, justified -- that is, made right by God -- through our faith in Him. Romans 5 reminds us that though we -- man -- brought Sin into the world, Jesus Christ bring Grace and healing.  Recognize the sin in your life. Give it over to Christ, who died for that sin. Willingly submit your life to the One who breathed it into you. And you will see that He is good.

Extreme Landscaping, Jesus-Style

A story from Matthew: 

When [Jesus and His disciples] came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.”
 
“You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment.

Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” 

He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew17: 14-20)

I'll be honest: I've never really been sure what to think of all this mountain-moving business. I've never really tried it. For one thing, it seems like it'd be awfully inconvenient for everyone else to have a major geological feature just sort of get up and go someplace else. 

Of course, the mountains that actually matter are another thing entirely. Mountains in my life. Whether those mountains are financial, or personal, or spiritual, or whatever they are, the real question is: have I told those mountains to move? And have they?

The important thing I often overlook about this idea -- that I can move the mountains in my life -- is that it can be very easy to mistake that whole "faith" thing, whether deliberately or unconsciously, as having faith in one's self. 

As a matter of fact, if you look closer, Jesus isn't even saying I can move those mountains. He is saying I can tell it to move, and it will do so -- but the power to make such a movement possible isn't mine. The real issue of faith is acknowledging that it is God who supplies the power and authority over the Heavens and the Earth, and that we are vessels for His Will, if and when we act in His Spirit.  

It isn't me who moves mountains, and it isn't you. It is faith in the God who created those mountains. If God wants those mountains moved, and if I have the faith to be the instrument He chooses, those mountains will move when I tell them to.

Even the ones in my own life.

The God of Bursting Your Personal Bubble

Sometimes,  serving God can be just plain scary. He leads where He will,  and invites you to follow whatever course He has laid out for you. And, if it suits His purpose, sometimes, He even shows you what the next step will look like. Sometimes. And sometimes, He just asks us to trust Him.

My life has recently become a lesson in trusting God in everything. From the decision to move my family a thousand miles from home to the finding of a church, I'm learning that it can be just as difficult to take that next step of faith in the Spiritual as it can in the Physical.

I am learning lately that God moves in ways I'm not always ready or willing to understand. That God can be unexpected. That the movement of God can defy a lifetime of instruction, of comfortable religiosity, or even of common sense.

An example: the church where my family and I have been led -- and I can have no doubt it was God who brought us there -- is challenging me on some pretty deeply held doctrines. Nothing necessarily biblical, but you know how it is: you grow up in a church, under a set system of beliefs, and it can become ingrained.

The implications of this challenge are in some ways uncomfortable. What if I've been wrong about this? Uncomfortable, yes, but not insurmountable. It is a challenge that, at least, requires study. It will require getting to know more about God and His word. And it will require allowing Him to move in my life in ways I haven't considered.

Maybe that's the most uncomfortable thing of all.

But, if God wants to bless me in ways I've never been blessed, am I willing to turn Him down, just because the blessing may challenge my personal paradigms?

Romans 15:13 - May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

God In The Midst of Tragedy

Yesterday was the anniversary of the biggest, most wide-scale tragedy, certainly in my own lifetime. The words Nine Eleven, now forever etched in the American collective consciousness, as the day we lost 3,000 fellow countrymen, and were catapulted into war and political turmoil. A day where sadness mixed, for many, with rage, and with confusion, but also with hope and love. 

Many of us took to our knees that day, while still others decried the very existence of God. “Why,” they said, “would a loving God allow such a thing to happen?”

This, of course, wasn’t the first time in history such a question was asked, nor the last. The question is asked, often on a smaller scale, every hour of every single day. Why do bad things happen to good people? Does God even care? If He does, can He do anything about it? Or does He exist at all?

Romans 8:28 tells us, “… that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

Not, you will note, that God MAKES these things happen. Rather, God allows them to happen. He allows mankind to act, and allows him the consequences of those actions. BUT, we can have faith that, even in the midst of tragedy, the Creator of the Universe WILL turn those curses into blessings. 

Remember what Joseph told his brothers. They cast him into a well, sold him into slavery. He spent time in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. But, when the time came, and his family needed him, God had put him into a position of authority, and enabled him to help his family, and indeed the entire region. Joseph said to his brothers, “And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. (Gen 45:5)”

Joseph’s brothers meant to do evil to him. And it was many years before Joseph could learn the plan God had for him. The good God had in store didn’t come right away, but Joseph kept his faith, and when the time came, God rewarded that faith, and used Joseph to accomplish His holy purpose.

The question, then, is not WHY do bad things happen, but instead, WHEN bad things happen, who do YOU trust to work those tragedies into blessings?

Hoax!

Another day, another celebrity death hoax. 

Yesterday, it was Morgan Freeman (don’t worry… he’s still alive and well). It’s always a little surprising to me how quickly these sorts of rumors spread, and how even otherwise intelligent people are the ones passing them on. It is as though, when it comes to Celebrity Mortality, Facebook and Twitter are the prime authorities, and we forget just how easy it really is to find the truth before passing along the information. You don’t even have to leave the Internet to find the real story, but suddenly, typing an actor’s name into a search engine becomes a task we don’t even consider in the face of his untimely demise. 

Or maybe, some things are just too juicy, too good, to be bothered with fact-checking. In that thirty seconds it takes to Google “Morgan Freeman,” somebody else within our circle of influence might beat us to the punch! 

Unfortunately, we can often act the same way when it comes to the Word of God. I’ve lost count of how many times the world was supposed to end last year, at least according to some supposedly Christian “prophet” or another. And don’t even get me started on the whole Mayan Calendar thing. 

But of course, false doctrine usually comes on a far less grand scale. Tiny heresies we find ourselves embracing, because they’re just too good to let go. And yet, so often, the answer – the Truth – is right in front of us, if we just open the Word of God. 

2 Peter 2:1 But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.

Test what you hear. Does it line up with Scripture?

When you hear something on the Internet, you check it against a reliable news source.

When you hear something about GOD, however, we can check it against the Good News, and see what God HIMSELF has to say.