Out of This World!

The second Tuesday of February is Extraterrestrial Culture Day: the day New Mexico celebrates visits from folks not of this world. Aliens, if you will. It just so happens, a favorite scripture of mine is a reminder that we, too, are strangers to this planet. That while we walk for a time on earth, it is not our home. It was in Hebrews 11, the "by Faith" chapter, in which Paul outlines the lives of Able, Abraham, Enoch, and Noah: men whose lives reflected their faith.

¹³ All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. ¹⁴ People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. ¹⁵ If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. ¹⁶ Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. (italics mine)

"Foreigners and strangers on earth." We understand we don't belong here. As long as we reject the ways of this world -- as we are instructed in Romans 12:2 -- we have declared that we are, indeed in the world, but not of it. 

As Christians, we know we are citizens, not of the Kingdom of the Earth, but of the Kingdom of God. A higher, greater kingdom. Here, we'll have trouble. Money trouble, trouble with work, or with other people. People may not like us. Yet, because we are visitors here, we are Christ's ambassadors, sent to show His love to a lost world. And someday, our work here will be done, and we'll go again to our true home, seated at the feet of our Lord.

Spring Cleaning For The Soul

This week begins Lent, a time of celebration and renewal before we remember the death and resurrection of Christ. Today and tomorrow -- the two days before Ash Wednesday -- are Shrovetide. A time to cleanse the soul. Today, Shrove Monday, particular traditions will enjoy a breakfast of bacon and eggs, maybe clean the house, and meditate on a renewed spirit.

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:1-2)

The truth is, we don't need to wait for a particular time of year to renew our minds and souls. In fact, it is an ongoing, daily process. And we don't do it ourselves, but through God's mercy, and by His renewing of our minds. 

Our God is a transformational God. He doesn't simply come in, say you're forgiven, tell you to "go and sin no more," and be on His way. Instead, He gives us a Counselor, in the form of the Holy Spirit, to guide us onto a right path. You and I cannot simply cleanse ourselves once a year and go on with our lives. If we have been truly saved -- if we have truly received the gift of God's Spirit -- we allow Him to change us daily, and to make us into His perfect image.

Cards & Other Acts of Kindness

Today is Send A Card To A Friend Day. It's a simple concept. One I've personally never been very good at, but easy in theory. Show somebody you care by just sending a card. It may not seem like much, but occurs to me that Christians ought to excel at little, random acts of kindness. Kindness is, after all, an attribute of God and, indeed, one of the Fruits of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:22).

Colossians 3:12 reminds us that, if we are in Christ, kindness is a part of who we are.

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

So, what is kindness?  Being a word guy, I find the best, most descriptive definitions can often be found among the synonyms for a word. Another word for kindness is charity. Benevolence. Humanity. Sympathy, generosity, compassion. 

In short, kindness is a verb. It's not about simply having nice thoughts toward somebody. What good does that do, anyway? Kindness is not just another word for "being nice." Nice is too easy. No, kindness is using your actions to tell somebody, "you are a person of value."

I'm known for a lot of things, and not all of them positive. When I'm gone, I'll probably be remembered as being somewhat sarcastic. Cynical, even. Maybe, charitably, as quick-witted. But what I hope I'm remembered for -- the legacy I hope to leave behind -- is as somebody who reflected his Father's love in his kindness toward others. 

Maybe I'll send a card today. Nothing flashy. Just something to say, "You are important to me, and you are important to God." Because I think more people ought to hear that more often.

Lame Duck Christians

Today is Lame Duck Day, in honor of the signing of the 20th Amendment to the Constitution, which reduces the amount of time between the Presidential election and the inauguration of the incoming President. Originally, there was a four-month gap. The amendment changed it into a two-month gap, because, for the time between the election of a new President, and his or her installation, the nation is essentially leaderless. The sitting president is a "lame duck." In the final months, he is simply ineffective. This happens not only in government (and pretty much at every level), but in the work place, and other areas of life, too. At the end of high school, they call it "Senioritis."

As Christians, we know this world is not our home. That our permanent residence is with God. The temptation exists, therefore, to sit in our pews, to simply try to live pious lives, and just shut the world out. After all, it's a scary place, full of trouble and temptation. If we can just close ourselves in and avoid the sins of the world, we should be okay come Judgement.

Never mind that this approach entirely misses the point of Christianity.

Jesus tells the story of a man who gave his servants bags of gold (Matthew 25:14-30). To one, he gave five bags; to another, two; and to the last servant, one bag of gold. The servants with five and two bags of gold went out and increased their master's wealth.

²⁴ “Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. ²⁵ So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’

²⁶ “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? ²⁷ Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.

²⁸ “‘So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. ²⁹ For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. ³⁰ And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

You and I may not belong to this world, but we have work to do while we're here. We don't have the privilege to sit back, to simply shut ourselves in as pious hermits, and wait for Jesus to return. As I mentioned yesterday, He is coming back, and He expects us to prepare the way. There's a world of souls who need to know Christ. A field prepared for harvest. So what are you going to do about it?

Don't Need To Be A Weatherman...

The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested him by asking him to show them a sign from heaven.

He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away. (Matthew 16:1-4)

Today is National Weatherman's Day: a day to appreciate the folks who know how to read the signs and make a -- usually reasonable -- prediction about what the weather will be doing. Of course, the prevailing wisdom is they quite often have no idea what they're talking about, and that we'd be just as better off simply opening a window. 

Actually, though, meteorologists have studied quite a bit to get where they are, and they do have the ability to be more accurate, thanks to their readings of the signs, than you and I can be simply sticking our heads outside or sticking a wet forefinger in the air. But yes, sometimes they're wrong.  They're wrong because they simply don't have access to all the information in the universe. They can't know what's beyond their own instruments and readings that may have an effect on the future. 

This was not true for the Pharisees and Sadducees of Jesus' day. They actually had everything they needed to see the signs of the times; they simply failed in their interpretation. They knew the prophecies of the coming Messiah, but they built their own interpretation around those prophecies, and failed to look for anything outside of those interpretations. They created a Messiah in their own image and, basically, stopped looking. This would be like a weatherman sniffing the air, testing the wind, and declaring a sunny day -- and then refusing to accept the instrument readings to the contrary. He'd stand outside in his shorts and loafers, and get soaked when the rain came. 

Because the Jewish teachers refused to alter their own interpretations, they would be shown their error by the reality coming to life: that Jesus would die and rise again in three days. 

God has also given His children today signs and prophecies. We know we're living in the final days. We have been. We may not know exactly what that will look like -- we argue about the timing and process, for example. But we know time is short. We know we have work to do in the meantime. We know we need to be ready, and to help others prepare as well. 

As Bob Dylan sang, you don't need to be a weatherman to know which way the wind blows. Jesus is coming -- and the hows and whens don't matter nearly as much as what you are doing in the meantime.

World Cancer Day: the Arms of Christ

Today is World Cancer Day. A day to remember the millions of people afflicted by some form of the illness. In fact, nobody's life is untouched by some form of this disease. Whether it is a father-in-law with Leukemia, an aunt with breast cancer, a mother with melanoma -- maybe you are yourself dealing with cancer -- all of us are affected.

But for all the uncertainty in dealing with such a painful, potentially deadly affliction, we can know two things for sure: that our Savior understands our suffering, and that His people are people of prayer and of care.

We don't always know why some people have to deal with this disease while others are seemingly untouched. The fact is, some of the best, most faithful people I know have been afflicted with some form or another of cancer. People who I know don't deserve it. But we know our God is faithful. He cares for those with cancer, and we -- His children -- are His hands and feet and arms.

Have you encouraged somebody with cancer today? Have you given a hug to somebody who needs it? Brought food to somebody too sick to get up and get it?

³¹ “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. ³² All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³ He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶ I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ (Matthew 25:31-40)

Free Indeed!

Today is Freedom Day, commemorating the date in 1865 when Abraham Lincoln signed the 13th Amendment, ending slavery in the United States.

History tells us a slave is somebody who labors without pay. A person who, for all practical purposes, has no will but that of his master. Slavery, as it was in the early days of this country -- indeed as it is practiced in various forms around the world even today -- is a horrifying symptom of human nature.

And yet, humanity is itself enslaved to the very nature that makes slavery possible.

Jesus tells us, in John 8:34, "everyone who sins is a slave to sin."

We have surrendered our autonomy -- our wills -- to our sinful human natures. We don't have the choice to be sinless. We, in our humanity will sin, because we must. We are enslaved to our desires. Otherwise "good men" will throw away their families to indulge lust. Good children will behave selfishly. A person with a fish on his car will tell a little white lie to get out of a speeding ticket.

As Paul said in Romans 7:15, "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do."

We simply can't get away from sin, because it owns us. 

Except that, it doesn't have to. When Christ died on the cross, and arose three days later, it wasn't a publicity stunt; He had a purpose. That purpose was to accept the payment for our sinful natures, to purchase all of us, the human slaves of iniquity, and to emancipate us. He bought us out of our chains and set us free. 

What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness. (Romans 6:15-18) 

Because Jesus paid the price for us, we have the ability to shrug off the chains of slavery and to take up His yoke, which is no burden at all (Matthew 11:30) Christ's burden is freedom. True freedom from both sin itself and from the wage of sin, which is death. And all we have to do is recognize that we are slaves, and accept the release from our bondage. 

Remember: "if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed! (John 8:36)"