Derek Hopperton

How do you love?

2009-05-13T11:23:00.003-05:00

Interesting question, isn't it? First off, you may be thinking,"How does he mean? HOW do you love? How do YOU love? or How do you LOVE?" Well... to be honest, that's not important. Which ever way you spin the question, my point is the same.

I often struggle with talking about love in a Biblical, 'agape' sense. I'm willing to bet many of you all know what I mean. Most times when you talk about how a Christian should love God and love people, the hearers tend to nod their head in a "yea, yea, we know" sort of way. I do this all the time. I KNOW I'm supposed to live a life of true, Godly, agape love, but how successful am I in carrying that out? If you're like me, you don't really love like you should. Of course, I (try to) love my wife, brother, parents, extended family, friends, etc. with 100% effort, but even then I come up short. How then can we begin to live a life of love to the world around us, and particularly those in our lives that are not easy to love?

2 Peter 1:5-7 says, "For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowlege; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love."

To fully understand what Peter is saying here, we have to examine the context of this passage. First, verse 5 begins with, "For this very reason..." - which refers to verses 3-4 which says, "His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. Through these He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason..."

**It is only because we have been made alive in Christ by his grace through faith that we can live a life of godliness! In redeeming us He has given us all the tools and abilities and desires needed to live a life that glorifies Him!

"For this reason" -- that God has SAVED US as given us NEW LIFE-- we should dedicate our lives to glorify HIM by adding to our faith goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love.

The second aspect of the context of 2 Peter 1:5-7 is the verse immediately following, which says, "For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

**We dedicate ourselves to grow in these godly attributes because they are the means by which God uses us to advance His Kingdom!

Let's focus once again on the issue of love. So far we have discussed two major factors as to why love is an integral aspect of the Christian life: 1- God has graciously redeemed us and given us new life equipped with the tools, ability, and desires needed to live a that glorifies Him. 2- These godly attributes (including love) are the means by which God uses us to advance His Kingdom. The Question now is, "How does my life reflect these biblical truths?" Am I actively growing in my faith? Am I living a life of love?

Oswald Chambers in My Utmost for His Highest exhorts believers on this same topic. I'll leave you with his challenging words:

Love is an indefinite thing to most of us; we don’t know what we mean when we talk about love. Love is the loftiest preference of one person for another, and spiritually Jesus demands that this sovereign preference be for Himself (see Luke 14:26 ). Initially, when "the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit" ( Romans 5:5 ), it is easy to put Jesus first. But then we must practice the things mentioned in 2 Peter 1 to see them worked out in our lives.

The first thing God does is forcibly remove any insincerity, pride, and vanity from my life. And the Holy Spirit reveals to me that God loved me not because I was lovable, but because it was His nature to do so. Now He commands me to show the same love to others by saying, ". . . love one another as I have loved you" ( John 15:12 ). He is saying, "I will bring a number of people around you whom you cannot respect, but you must exhibit My love to them, just as I have exhibited it to you." This kind of love is not a patronizing love for the unlovable— it is His love, and it will not be evidenced in us overnight. Some of us may have tried to force it, but we were soon tired and frustrated.

"The Lord . . . is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish . . ." ( 2 Peter 3:9 ). I should look within and remember how wonderfully He has dealt with me. The knowledge that God has loved me beyond all limits will compel me to go into the world to love others in the same way. I may get irritated because I have to live with an unusually difficult person. But just think how disagreeable I have been with God! Am I prepared to be identified so closely with the Lord Jesus that His life and His sweetness will be continually poured out through Me? Neither natural love nor God’s divine love will remain and grow in me unless it is nurtured. Love is spontaneous, but it has to be maintained through discipline.

By His Wounds

2009-04-10T10:19:00.004-05:00

In the garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26), just hours before his trial and crucifixion, Jesus takes aside Peter, James, and John and says, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” Jesus then goes off by himself to pray and cries out, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” A second time, Jesus prays, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.” Jesus prays the same prayer a third time, in such anguish his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground (Luke 22). Soon after, Judas arrives with a mob sent by the Jewish high priest to take Jesus away.

The events that follow are almost certainly well-known to anyone reading this right now, so I won’t retell the story here. However, on this Good Friday, I feel lead to express my personal convictions on the core, foundational reason why we celebrate this event on Good Friday.

Matthew 26:38-39 is one of the most emotionally charged passages in the Bible. I don’t see how anyone could read it and imagine Jesus’ situation and not be affected spiritually and emotionally. Think about it: here we have JESUS - the Son of God, the eternal Word, The Anointed One, Messiah, King of Kings – and He’s sorrowful, grieved, burdened, anxious, anguished, and perhaps even terrified about “the cup” he was about to drink!

Most people read this passage and just assume Jesus is referring to his coming physical torture, mockery, and execution. I’m sure Jesus was indeed burdened with his coming crucifixion, but there is much more to his anguish than mere physical harm. There are historical accounts of hundreds- if not thousands- of Christians throughout history that have been persecuted, tortured, and executed for their faith. Many accounts say that the authorities were shocked at how joyful and peaceful these martyrs were leading up to their deaths. They would sing hymns and praises together just seconds before their execution. How then can we possibly claim that the Author and Perfecter of our faith, the Champion of grace Himself was this sorrowful and burdened about impending physical harm?

There is one critical question here that must be answered:

What was in the cup?

I believe it would be categorically false to claim that the physical torture and crucifixion were not at all in the “cup” that Jesus asked the Father to take from Him. I also believe, however, that there is so much more that so many Christians overlook or just miss completely. The Cup that Jesus drank was not full of merely physical, emotional, or mental pain. It was primarily spiritual.

So what was in the cup?

The Wrath of God.

Isaiah 53:10 says (NASB), “The Lord was pleased to crush Him (Jesus), putting him to grief.”

The word “pleased” here cannot be overlooked. The Hebrew word “caphets” distinctly means a subjective act with which one is very pleased and delighted. God unleashed His eternal wrath on His own son, and was pleased to do so! How can this be?

A lot of people are taught that when God saves us, he removes our sin and guilt and “forgets them forever!” God does not forget about our sins. He does not simply “remove it from his mind.” Yes, our sin and guilt are removed from us, but they are not forgotten. God does not simply choose to ignore them.

In Gethsemane, Jesus was “overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” He was not anguished because of mere physical harm; the spiritual wrath of God was about to be unleashed upon Him. For the first time in all eternity, God the Father was removing his connection from the Son. The Son, by himself, was to face the all-consuming, eternally powerful wrath of God.

The reason for this was that Jesus was not simply “showing his followers how to give up their lives for love or a good cause” as some today claim. Not in the least. Jesus - who was pure and completely sinless, unstained from sin and guilt and thoroughly holy - was about to carry the full weight of human sin and guilt from the past, present, and future.

- 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

- Galatians 3:13 says, “Christ redeemed from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: ‘cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.’”

This is what the saying “Jesus died for our sins” truly means. When we receive Christ in faith, our sins are not forgotten or ignored. Our guilt and punishment are transferred to Christ. The atonement has already been completed by Christ physically and spiritually through the Cross. Justification and Righteousness are imputed to us once we are born again through faith in Christ.

Isaiah 53:5-6 says:

“He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”

God would not be holy and righteous if he ignored our sin. God does not leave any guilt unpunished. We can either face the wrath of God ourselves, or we can have our punishment transferred to Christ through faith in Him. Jesus became sin for us, and by dying on the Cross and raising back to life on the third day, cancelled the power of sin and guilt for anyone who would ever put their faith in Him!

As we celebrate this Good Friday and the coming day of resurrection please remember that the work of Christ on the Cross was not merely a physical suffering but a deep spiritual punishment of the wrath of God because of our own sin and guilt. Because he suffered, we never will!

“Jesus drained the cup of God’s wrath- as the perfect sacrifice // Jesus drained his blood on our behalf- to resurrect us into LIFE!”

Lost in Translation

2009-04-04T18:44:00.002-05:00

A few weeks ago, a friend and I were talking about different Bible translations, and they asked me:
Why don’t they just make a Bible translation word-for-word from the original Greek and Hebrew manuscripts? Wouldn’t that be the most beneficial way to study the Scriptures?

Think about the myriad of modern English translations out there today: NIV, KJV, NLT, ESV, NASB, HCSB, etc. You could spend days sifting through each translation analyzing the differences. In order to make better sense of the Bible section at your favorite book store, a few questions need to be answered:

-Why so many translations? Why not just a literal “word-for-word” translation?
-What are the differences between translations? Which one is the best?

The first issue we need to discuss why there are so many English translations in the first place. Back to my friend’s original question: Why not just a literal word-for-word translation that everyone can use?

To put it simply, an absolutely literal translation is not feasible. Granted, one could transliterate each Hebrew and Greek word directly into English in the same structure and order, but such a translation would be completely unintelligible. There are three main reasons for this:

1) Syntax: The Grammar and sentence structure of biblical Hebrew and Greek is drastically different from English.

2) Vocabulary: Words in biblical Greek and Hebrew (especially Hebrew) carry a wide range of meanings in modern English. For example, the Hebrew word ruah can be translated into English as spirit, breath, or wind.

3) Context: Cultural language factors such as idioms and other figures of speech carry different meanings than what the biblical language literally says. For example, if someone 2,000 years into the future were to literally render the modern idiom “between a rock and a hard place”, they would be thinking about somebody in a physical location between a solid mass of earthy minerals and sediments and another place solid to the touch. Obviously a literal meaning of that phrase would not produce a proper meaning. This also applies to the biblical languages.

The inability to read, understand, or extract proper meaning from an absolutely literal word-for-word translation necessitates a translation rendered into the modern language of a given audience. In other words, the translation needs to conform to the every-day language of the audience.

The reason there are so many different English translations today is because of two different translation philosophies:

1) The Formal translation style seeks to make the English translation as close to the original languages as possible. The priority of Formal translations is the original form and structure of the original Greek and Hebrew texts. This is an attempt for the most “word-for-word” translation possible.

2)The Dynamic style seeks to make the English translation as close to the modern language as possible. The priority of Dynamic translations is keeping the true meaning of the biblical text through a highly modernized language style.

Here is a little continuum which places some of the more popular English translations on a scale according to translation style:

Formal-------------------------Dynamic
NASB---ESV---NIV---NLT---The Message

As you can see, the New American Standard Bible (NASB) is basically the closest to a literal translation as you can get, while The Message is certainly to the other extreme, with the NIV directly in between.

Which translation is the best?

There really is no concrete answer to this question (sorry!). Depending on your situation, different translations can be most beneficial. The NIV has become the most popular translation in churches because it as close to the original form and structure as possible while still being easily readable in modern English.

The NASB can be difficult to read at times, but is certainly beneficial for in-depth study and hard-core exegesis. The New Living Translation, on the other hand, does not prioritize the wording and structure of the original texts, but is very easily readable and is very useful for personal devotions and reading through some Old Testament passages. The Message is useful in certain contexts, but is more of a paraphrase than an actual translation, so I wouldn’t recommend using it for any Bible study, church service, or much personal devotional time.

I’ll leave you with a few examples of the translational differences between the English bibles discussed above.

Colossians 2:13-14:

NASB
13) When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,
14) having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

NIV
13) When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins,
14) having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.

NLT
13) You were dead because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins.
14) He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross.

Apples & Oranges

2008-06-25T21:21:00.002-05:00

“Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born? Jesus answered, “Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” (John 3:3-7, ESV).

The phrase “born again” has unfortunately turned into a political identifier in the United States since the “Moral Majority” and other religio-political forces have stampeded onto the scene. Setting that aside for the moment (better yet: forever) let us explore the genuine meaning of the phrase that Jesus proposed to Nicodemus in John 3.

As we continue to hang, swing, and climb (pun intended) on the “true vine” example from John 15, we come to the issue of exactly how a dead branch from the poisonous vine of sin becomes separated from the poisonous vine and becomes unified or “grafted” into the True Vine of righteousness and eternal life in Christ.

To make this as clear as possible, I’ll briefly try to use two common earthly symbols to illustrate this truth: apples and oranges. For the sake of this discussion, “oranges” will refer to the dead branches of the sinful vine, and “apples” will refer to the living, fruitful branches in Christ Jesus. In theological terms oranges = the lost, unregenerate, etc. Apples = those regenerated and redeemed by God’s grace through faith in Christ.

Using this analogy in light of John 15, oranges must become apples unless or they will be discarded to burn and wither away. Since only the apples truly thrive, the oranges desperately need to become apples. However, since the orange is held and nourished by an orange branch connected to the orange vine, that presents a major problem. In order for the orange to become an apple, the orange must realize three things:

1) Its immediate and eternal peril as an orange

2) The eternal life of an apple simply because it’s an apple

3) Its immediate and desperate need to change from an orange to an apple

These three “realizations” seem simple enough for the orange to grasp. However, the orange’s peril rests in the simple fact that the orange is an orange. The orange’s own “orangeness” is the reason for its disastrous fate. In John 3:6 Jesus says, “That which gives birth to flesh is flesh.” In terms of this example, that means the orange can only become more of an orange. Anything the orange does- because all it has is “orangeness”- only makes it more of an orange. In the same way, those dead in their flesh can only do fleshly things. This means that by our own power, we possess no capability to realize the three truths listed above. Even if we did, we would have no power to act on them. Just as an orange cannot sprout an apple, the flesh cannot give birth to Spirit.

Jesus says, “That which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” And because this is so, Jesus says, “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” Our issue as dead branches or “oranges” connected to the poisonous vine of sin is that of complete spiritual death. We don’t need to simply turn over a new leaf or change our way of thinking. In our flesh we have the capacity to change habits and to adopt new systems of rules and regulations. This gains us nothing- we are still of the flesh. We don’t need anything born of the flesh.

We need a spiritual RESURRECTION. We need to be BORN AGAIN.

Only by God’s grace through the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit are we able to recognize our desperate need to be united with Christ. Only then can we respond in faith, which leads to our justification. This is the only way in which an orange can be thoroughly and absolutely transformed into an apple that bears righteous fruit for an eternity.

Living to share and spread the Gospel is not about changing people’s minds. It’s not about devising clever schemes to play on people’s emotions to push them to say a pre-scripted “sinners prayer of salvation.” Salvation comes by a spiritual rebirth and a transformed heart through genuine faith born from the Holy Spirit working through us as we diligently present this Good News to a world full of dead branches.

Dead Branches

2008-06-18T22:16:00.000-05:00

My last post, “Bear,” illustrates how Christians need to bear God’s fruit (not produce it ourselves) by remaining steadfastly connected to Christ (the ‘true vine’) by the power of the Spirit. If you recall (read the post if you don’t), one part of the John 15 passage that stuck out to me was when Jesus said, “…apart from me you can do nothing.” After spending some time in Scripture this past week, I feel that in order for Christians (and non-believers) to more fully understand what it means to be “in Christ”, as a branch to the True Vine, we must first humble ourselves to the reality of why a connection to Christ is necessary in the first place.

Your first reaction to all of this may very well be: okay, enough theology already, why don’t we just go out and serve! In the end all that matters is what we actually DO for God!

Rest assured, I fully understand the perils of getting so caught up in “theology” that one fails to actually live out their life as a disciple/messenger/servant of Christ. But I must first bring you back to what Jesus says in John 15: Apart from me you can do nothing. I fully believe that the only actions of faith worth anything are those naturally produced by God through our connection to the True Vine. Therefore, the Scriptural truths regarding this connection to Christ is essential to effectively live out a God-glorifying life.

The reason we can do nothing apart from Christ- and the reason our union with him is absolutely essential- is the sinful nature of mankind. However, we must realize that sin is not merely an action that does not glorify God. Sin is a state of being; a condition of the heart and mind.

Romans 8:7-8 (NLT) says, “For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.”

In other words, every single person on this earth is a branch connected to the poisonous vine of sin. Not only do we bear the poisonous fruits of sin (see Romans 1:18-32), we ourselves are helplessly connected to the vine with no means (or desire) to break free. In this state, we are spiritually DEAD. Ephesians 2:1-3 (ESV) says, “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience- among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.”

This is certainly a pessimistic view of the world (mankind). However, it accurately reflects Jesus’ own teaching, that apart from connection with HIM as the true vine, we are dead in our trespasses and sins, completely unable to please God. Apart from Him, we can do nothing but wither away.

Those connected to Christ “are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do. But not the wicked! They are like worthless chaff, scattered by the wind. They will be condemned at the time of judgment. Sinners will have no place among the godly. For the LORD watches over the path of the godly, but the path of the wicked leads to destruction” (Psalm 1).

How then, is this union with Christ obtained? Lord willing, I will attempt to discuss that issue later. However, I think John chapter 3 would be an excellent start!

Bear

2008-06-03T19:19:00.003-05:00

I haven’t posted anything for quite some time. Part of the reason was finishing school, but that excuse became void after my graduation in May. The truth is, I simply haven’t felt lead to write anything.

Current events in my personal life have also played a factor in my writing drought. I’m working full-time, getting ready for my upcoming wedding (just under two months!), and trying to find ministry/job opportunities for the future while preparing to start seminary. Until recently, all of these things would have been my exhaustive list of explanations for my lack of blogging enthusiasm. In fact, now that I think about it I haven’t been very enthusiastic about much of anything Spiritually-related lately. Thankfully, through John chapter 15, God has once again opened my eyes to see His truth.

I have found the cause of my recent lack of passion for “ministry stuff” to simply be my lack of connection to Christ in my daily life.

In John 15:1, 4-5 Jesus says, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser… Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”

That last phrase sticks out to me: Apart from me you can do nothing.

In its immediate context, “nothing” refers to “quality spiritual fruit.” Producing fruit is something Christians learn and talk about all the time, but I think we’re missing something. Notice, Jesus does not tell us that we should be producing fruit. Some translations may use the word “produce” but the literal meaning is to bear fruit- not produce.

The difference in bear and produce is highlighted in verse 4: …as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.

A branch bears fruit- which means it merely holds it. The vine, connected to the roots, actually produces the fruit. Just like a coat rack does not “produce” the coats it holds, a branch does not produce fruit. Obviously, a branch can only bear healthy fruit (or any fruit at all for that matter) if it is properly connected to the vine.

When we as Christians think that “producing” fruit on our own is God’s desire for our lives, we dry up and crack like a branch separated from the vine. The only way we live our lives in a God-glorifying way is to abide Christ so that through the Holy Spirit we may bear the fruit that God produces. The Greek word for “abide” here is meno, which implies steadfast dwelling and enduring. Any and all fruitful actions in our lives will merely be an overflow of God’s Spirit filling us up from the inside out (John 4:14).

My previous post attempts to briefly highlight the supremacy of Christ in the universe and “reality” as we know it (and the infinite ways we cannot know it). As Paul in Colossians 1 declares, Christ is above and beyond all things as God incarnate. As Christians, we are called to an intimate relationship with Him, through which He chooses to work through us for His glory.

The need for us to constantly abide in Him cannot possibly be overstated.
Apart from Him we can do nothing.

Spiritual Cogitation V -- Existence

2008-01-20T20:39:00.000-05:00

There’s nothing greater than Christ. The entire Bible (old testament, gospels, and epistles) points to Christ. Each and every truth in the Bible is founded upon and held together by Christ. Therefore, any scripture study is a study of the Good News of redemption through Christ in one way or another. Recently going through John’s Gospel, I’ve realized there are many events and discussions documented in the gospels that are intimately connected with many other areas of Scripture.

These passages have sparked my interest and imagination in the earthly and spiritual aspects of Christ like never before. I’d like to share some of these passages with you and illustrate how God has used them to bring me closer to Him.

First, I want to talk about the spiritual aspect of Christ. Too often we experience “Jesusanity” and not “Christianity”. In other words, we sometimes humanize Jesus too much. Yes, he was fully human- but he was also fully God. Now I’d like to share what that actually means.

Ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus (circa 500 b.c.) was one of the first to establish the term “logos” as the center of the universe. Heraclitus described the “logos” in several ways:

1) Orders all things in existence

2) In and throughout everything- it makes up the entire universe

3) Natural laws, society, morality, lifestyles, etc. should be based on the logos

4) All can comprehend and acknowledge its existence

5) Logos develops character / character determines human actions and behavior

The apostle John certainly had this idea of “logos” when he wrote the beginning of his gospel 500 years later. When John uses the term “Word”, the actual translation in the original Greek is “logos”; so I’m substituting the word “Logos” where your translation will say “Word”:

“In the beginning was the Logos, and the Logos was with God, and the Logos was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” – John 1:1-4

John’s target audience (Greeks) would have had a full understanding of what was meant by the term “Logos.” Therefore John establishes that he is referring to the very thing that existed before, brought about, and holds together everything we experience as “reality”.

In fact, in saying this “Logos” was with God and was God, he also establishes the connection with the Hebrew idea of “YHWH” (“Yahweh”), which found in Exodus chapter 3 is God’s “name”. Hebrew names all have meanings, so for God’s “name” to be YHWH means God’s deepest characteristic is simply that “He Exists Eternally” or in the first person form: “I AM that I AM” or “I Will Be Who I Will Be” or “I AM” (that’s as far as our finite minds can comprehend).

What can be established here is that the Logos (Word) is infinitely above, beyond, and superior to the universe. Understanding this makes John 1:14 extremely profound- especially to his Greek audience:

“And the Logos became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

The infinitely supreme foundation and “glue” to the universe actually became a part of that universe! This is further illustrated by Paul in Colossians 1:15-17: “… all things were created by Him and for Him… He is before all things and in Him all things are held together.”

THIS is Christ Jesus! The eternally existing “I AM” wrapped in human flesh. Therefore, when we study the person and work of Christ, along with all other scripture that points to Him, we are looking at the most ultimate being in existence and beyond.

War & Poverty -- I Pledge Allegiance pt. II

2007-11-26T00:14:00.000-05:00

While I’m thankful for the blessings and privileges we have in America, I’m disgusted at how we’ve become blind to the world around us. We live in such comfort and wealth that we not only ignore fellow Americans who are starving and homeless, but those who are suffering all around the globe. The American Church is so financially blessed, yet we waste most of this money on super-mega-church buildings and our own personal crap. I‘ll use myself as an example: I have too many DVD’s and music CD’s, a Playstation 2 with too many games, a nice laptop computer, a flat-screen tv, a decent car (while it lasts), and a great college life. Shall I continue? I’d rather not, because I’m sure my list could go on for ages…

It’s obvious to me that the Church in America (generally speaking) has become caught up in financial and “luxury” issues instead of global service and discipleship. When will we see that the world around us is full of people suffering and dying without Christ on a second-by-second basis?? It’s time to open our eyes and do something about it. As Bob Dylan so poetically put it:

“How many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry?
How many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died?
How many times can a man turn his head,
Pretending he just doesn't see?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind,
The answer is blowin' in the wind.”

These lyrics can also be applied to the Church and the issue of war.

Along with vast majority of Christendom supporting the Republican Party comes a seemingly undying, passionate support for the war. Now, as I stated in the previous post, I am not writing this from any political sideline (I’m a registered Independent, in case you wanted to know). And before I go any further, don’t freak out and take this as a soldier-bashing message of treason, or anything like that.

Let me ask you a question: What do you think about war? Not the war in Iraq or the “war on terrorism”, just war in general.
Once you get your answer, answer this question:

What does Jesus think about war?

Not sure? Read the book of Matthew and tell me what you think. Specifically look at Matthew chapter 5. In verses 5, 7, and 9, Jesus says, “Blessed are the gentle… blessed are the merciful… blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” In v.13-20 Jesus says that his followers should be the “light of the world” and the “salt of the earth.” Matthew 5:22 says, “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever shall say to his brother ‘you fool’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.” Not only that, but in 5:43-48 Christ tells us to LOVE our ENEMIES just as we love our “friends”.

In the words of Derek Webb, “How can I kill the ones I’m supposed to love?”

Shall I continue through Matthew to find some more (I’m only up to chapter six!)? Or how about the rest of the Gospels? I trust that you’ll find no words of Jesus that support violence of any sort- let alone war!

Think about it- as a follower of Christ, what are you called to be? How are you called to live? Go over all the “beatitudes” (Matt 5:3-12). Is there any way to twist and turn those into a support for violence and war? If we cannot find support for war from Christ (or paul, or peter, or john, or jude), then where has this mentality come from?

The major source of the problem is our imaginative link between being a good Christian and a “true American”. If we view Patriotism as an element of our religion (read my first ‘I pledge allegiance’ post if you haven’t already), then we’ll fall into the mindset that war is okay because we’re giving our lives for our country.

Now, I certainly have a great respect for those who sacrifice so much to protect the freedoms of this country. However, personally, as a servant of Christ striving to be like Him in every way, how can I support or participate in WAR? The thought itself just seems like a hypocritical ideology to say the least.

Let’s bring back Christian singer/songwriter Derek Webb for some more wisdom:
“Peace by way of war, is like purity by way of fornication.
Its like telling someone murder is wrong,
and showing them by way of execution.” (from ‘My enemies are men like me’)

Let me know what you think.

I Pledge Allegiance...

2007-11-20T13:13:00.000-05:00

This is not meant to be a “political” message, but I’m sure it may be interpreted that way by some. Political issues are certainly affected by what I’m about to say, but I am NOT approaching this through Blue or Red lenses. I am writing this first and foremost as a Bible studying follower of Christ.

(Before I go any further, please note that I am addressing the American Church in general. I pray that God will show you how this applies to yourself and the local Body to which you belong)

Let me cut to the chase. Why has American “patriotism” become such a dominate focus of the American Church? I mean, it seems like we (meaning the American Church in general) have made “Christian” and “American” synonymous terms. Basically, most Churches view the U.S. as “God’s Chosen Nation”, to whom we pledge our allegiance and dedication without reservation. Friends, this is ridiculous.

Just look at what’s going on lately with the pledge of allegiance and the dollar bill. Secular powers have been pushing to remove “one nation, under God” and “In God we Trust.” Boy oh boy have we gotten upset over this crap! How dare these people commit such blasphemous travesties!

No, the real blasphemous travesty is how we place our allegiance to the U.S. over our allegiance to Christ and His Kingdom. For one, how ironic is it that we are fighting for “In God we Trust” to stay on the dollar bill, when we as a country have turned to those very green pieces of paper as the only “god” that we worship? THAT, my friends is a slap in God’s face. Attributing God’s name to something that symbolizes a false god that “is a root of all kinds of evil.”

My point here is that we get so upset and defensive (or better yet offensive) over things like this, but ignore the corruptions, scandals, hypocrisy, and blasphemies that are happening in our very Churches and seminaries! To narrow it down, we point the finger at the splinters in the eye of the unbelieving world around us, while our own personal eyes contain the very same splinters and beams.

The bottom line is we have begun to look at the United States as our source of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness and not to the One True God who has adopted us as his very own children through Christ.

Christian singer/songwriter Derek Webb says it best in his song “A King A Kingdom”:
“My first allegiance is not to a flag, a country, or a man. No, my first allegiance is not to democracy, or blood- it’s to a King and a Kingdom.”

As a citizen of Heaven (Phil. 1:27), my allegiance has already been given to Christ and the work of His Kingdom. The United States of America in my opinion is a blessed nation in many ways. I DO thank God for the freedoms and privileges of this place. However, the United States of America is merely a temporary stop for ministry in my eternal mission for the Kingdom of Christ. It is not my home and it is especially not the object of my faith or my source of security and freedom.

The Church has become so dedicated to America that political activism has taken the place of discipleship as our “great commission.” Why are we protesting gay marriage, abortion, etc. instead of going out into the world around us and leading people to Christ? How will mere legislation solve the saturation of sin in this country? It’s not the governments job to enforce Christian moral doctrine. The U.S. Government is not a Christian institution and never will be. Why are we looking to the government to do our job for us? It’s our job as Christians to make disciples of all nations (including our own!), no matter what the current legislation allows or dictates.

The reason the Church has gotten so caught up in these issues is because it’s trust has been misplaced. When we look at our country as our stronghold and pledge our unconditional allegiance to a fallible, finite, sinful, self-serving government comprised of fallible, finite, sinful, self-serving individuals, we find ourselves trapped in this quagmire. We have found ourselves more worried about how “christian” our government legislation is instead of our own duties as Christians to advance the Kingdom we already have absolute allegiance to.

This problem has also manifested itself is in the issues of war and global poverty, which I will talk about in part two (coming shortly).

Good News!

2007-10-03T22:03:00.000-05:00

Put a hold on anything you think you know about the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Please hear me out. Read all I have to say before coming to an opinion.

My focus here is not to try to guilt you into joining up with some fanatical religious group. My goal is to simply share the truth about Christ, so that you may hear it without any strings attached. All you need to know is that I am a believer in Jesus Christ and I want to share with you what that truly means in this life.

I’m a sinner. Yes, that’s right. I’m a Christian, and I’m admittedly a sinner. Any Christian who says they no longer sin is, well, sinning because they are obviously a liar. Before I put my faith in Jesus Christ, I was a sinner. You, whether you think you’re a Christian or not, are a sinner just like me.

Romans 3:23 says: “ALL have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God.”
So, let’s take the focus off of you or me as individuals, and look at humanity as a whole.

Everyone has sinned, so everyone falls short of the glory of God. What does this mean? Well, if God is holy and pure, and we are sinners, that makes us pretty much the opposite of holy and pure. Because of this, humans are separated from God, because God refuses to have anything to do with imperfection.

To illustrate, let’s say God is a very very very large island- like a continent, if you will. Before we sin, we live on that island with God, if perfect union with Him. Once we sin, however, we must be sent away from that island, because nothing imperfect can live there. As a result, we are banished to some island that is immeasurably far away from God’s island.

Nothing we can do can get us back to God. Once we become sinful, we can do nothing to cleanse ourselves. Some people like to think (and every religion in the world besides Christianity claims) that “doing good works” or simply “being a good person” earns us the right to enter heaven. The reality is, we become spiritually dead when sin enters our life, and there’s nothing we can do to fix it.

God, however, LOVES us, and has fixed the problem HIMSELF!!

Here’s where Jesus Christ comes in. He is referred to as “God’s Son” and “God in human flesh”.
He lived a perfectly sinless life, performed many miracles to show his Divine power, and taught us the right way to live. Many people preach and teach THIS Jesus, but they forget the most important part.

Jesus claimed to BE GOD. Now, this means that when YOU (yes, I’m talking specifically to YOU now) have to put Jesus into one of three categories: 1) He’s insane, 2) He’s just a liar, or 3) He’s telling the truth. Jesus cannot simply be “a good moral teacher”! The man claimed to be the SON OF GOD! If I told you that I was the Easter Bunny, and if you put your faith in me I would pop out golden eggs for you, you would either call me crazy, call me a liar, or you might believe me. You would be a fool to merely say “He was a good guy who taught some nice things.”

Jesus was telling the truth. How do we know this? Because he was killed on a cross and raised from the dead three days later. Why did all of this happen? So God could save you.

Dying on the cross, Jesus put YOUR sins on his own shoulders, and therefore it’s as if YOU were nailed to the cross with Him. In other words, Jesus took the punishment for YOUR sins! He then raised from the dead in order to defeat that sin and eternal punishment forever!

Here’s a trustworthy statement: GOD WILL TAKE CARE OF YOUR SIN. He either punishes YOU, or He punishes your sins on the cross with CHRIST.

So how do you get Jesus Christ’s sacrifice to apply to you? By putting your faith in Him. Simply by accepting Him as the ULTIMATE TREASURE of your life for who He is (God in flesh) and for what He’s done (dying for your sins and raising again to give you new LIFE!).

Remember Romans 3:23? “For ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. Well, let’s read the very next verse and see what it says…
“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified FREELY by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

FREELY justified through Christ Jesus! “Freely” here means that there are no behavioral pre-requisites to accepting Christ as your savior. You don’t have to “clean your life up” and become a “good person” so God will accept you. He wants you NOW, just as you are! You don’t have to worry about getting your act together! Once you allow Christ to cleanse you, HE will start transforming your heart and mind into the person He wants you to be.

Regardless of what many Christians may act like, being a believer in Christ does not mean you’re a perfect “goody-goody”, it simply means that you are FORGIVEN (no matter what!) for your mess-ups and that you have a heart for God and try to live a Christ-like life, always growing closer to Him.

Now, you may be thinking “nah, this isn’t for me”. Why do you say that? Is it because in your heart of hearts you fully deny that Jesus Christ is God? Or that God even exists? Or is it because your desires for worldly things is greater than your desire to be fully redeemed through Christ?

Before you shrug this off, take some time to take this in, and even say a simple prayer for God to reveal Himself to you. Also I’d love to answer any questions or comments you may have.

It’s all for the glory of Jesus Christ,
Derek Hopperton

Endorsing Evil

2007-09-19T13:38:00.000-05:00

Many of you may not like this. I know that because when I first starting going through this realization, I didn’t like it much either. Before you get upset and try to come up with a dozen ways to rationalize your opinion, prayerfully go through this scripture yourself through the lens I am about to give you and let God reveal HIS truth to you. Shall we begin?

I love music. I love how certain kinds of music just hit me and affect me when I’m in certain moods or when I’m going through certain experiences. It took me a while to realize it, but the songs I listen to actually resonate with me and affect the way I think about different aspects of life. It’s more than just getting a song stuck in my head. When I listen to a song, I pay attention to the lyrics and the overall message, and even though I fail to realize it a lot of the time, the songs I listen to make an impression on my every day thoughts.

Nowadays with the internet, music videos, magazines, iTunes, etc., the music industry is one of the most influential aspects of western culture- especially in the U.S. We are constantly bombarded with images of certain artists or groups that directly affect the styles of clothing, language, haircuts, automobiles, and even personalities of the consumers (which include you and I). I you get the point: the music industry is extremely influential on our every day lives. Now keep this fact in mind as we dive in to some scripture…

ROMANS 1:28-31:
And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; (NASB).

I want all of you to consider today’s “Top 40” American music. The September 22 edition of the Billboard Chart’s “Hot 100” proves what should be obvious to you. Today, Hip-Hip music and Hip-Hop culture are dominating the air-waves and are heavily influencing young adults and teenagers like music never has. And when I refer to “hip-hop” from now on, I’m including all rap and r & b music (from kanye west and 50 cent to r. kelly and usher also artists like Gwen Stefani and Justin Timberlake). On the latest “Hot 100” chart, 33 of the top 50 songs are hip-hop, including 9 out of the top 10.

Therefore, because of the increasing popularity of hip-hop and my familiarity with it as a whole, I’m going to narrow this focus to this genre.

Take for instance on of the top songs on the charts today, “Stronger” by Kanye West. I don’t listen to the radio, so I’ve never really heard the song, but I downloaded some lyrics. Here’s the 2nd verse:
“I don't know if you got a man or not
If you made plans or not If God put me in your plans or not
I'm trippin', this drink got me sayin' alot
But I know that God put you in front of me
So how the hell could you front on me
There's a thousand yous And only one of me's
I'm trippin', I'm caught up in the moment right?
'Cause it's Louis Vuitton Don night So we goin' do everything that Kan like
Heard they'd do anything for a Klondike
Well I'd do anything for a blonde dyke
And she'll do anything for the limelight
And we'll do anything when the time's right”

The sad thing is, Kanye West is probably one of the “cleanest” secular rappers out there today. (side note: compare this song to “Jesus Walks”. Actually, compare just about any other Kanye song to “Jesus Walks”. I wonder which “Jesus” Kanye is walking with. Certainly not the Jesus of the Gospel. Or the Jesus the apostle refers to in 1 John.)

Or, if you want some more, check out 50 Cent’s new video with Justin Timberlake.

If that’s not enough pathetic sexual objectification of women, along with a lust-provoking item for men, then how about the popular dance hit “Baby Got Back”. I see Christians dance and jam out to this song so much I want to vomit. Lines like “a round thing in your face, you get sprung” and “my anaconda don’t want none unless you’ve got buns hun”. Here is a link to the full song. Check it out and see if you can number with one finger the amount of times the lyrics go along with the Bible and glorify the Christian lifestyle…
http://www.lyricsondemand.com/s/sirmixalotlyrics/babygotbacklyrics.html

Now, I could go on and on, but I think I’ve made my point. Now, take the “Stronger” lyrics, 50 Cent’s video, and any “club” song like “Baby Got Back” and place it under the microscope of Romans 28-31.
Unrighteousness
Wickedness
Greed
Evil
Full of envy
Murder
Strife
Deceit
Malice
Gossips
Slanderers
Haters of God
Insolent
Arrogant
Boastful
Inventors of evil
Disobedient
Without understanding
Untrustworthy
Unloving
Unmerciful

These characteristics are clearly applicable to most secular hip-hop/rock music but especially rap. Think about the music you listen to. Disregard how the music “sounds”, examine the message, and see how many of these characteristics fit your music.

Now take a look at Romans 32. Right after listing all of the “evil” characteristics, verse 32 says:
“And, although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.”

If we KNOW God’s ordinance, that those who practice all those sinful things in the depravity of their flesh are worthy of eternal punishment, then 1) why do we as believers still get caught up in this stuff, and 2) why do we continue to support, encourage, and “give hearty approval” to those who do it?

If these songs are full of these things, then how can we pollute ourselves with the message? Not only that, but what does it say about our personal commitment to dedicate our lives as sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God (romans 12:1) when we listen to this stuff and even purchase it?

This is by no means a condemnation of believers who listen to this music. This should also NOT be restricted to JUST music. It is merely an attempt to get serious about every aspect of our lives and examine how we are or are not glorifying God in everything we do. We must always be growing. I’ll leave you with this:

“Do not love the world or anything in the world, If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world- the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does- comes not from the father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the one who does the will of God lives forever.” 1 John 2:15-17

Watch Yo' Mouth!

2007-08-06T20:18:00.000-05:00

I haven’t posted in a while… at least, not anything worth reading. I’ve posted a few items in the last few weeks, but I deleted them a few days ago. When I first started this blog, I wanted it to simply be a way for me to express my random thoughts about God. It slowly turned into a soap-box upon which I began barking annoying rants concerning my stances on certain issues. I like to debate on issues on which I have strong convictions, but I don’t feel like this blog is where I want to do that. I want this blog to be a place where I can drop some of my cogitations on God, and hopefully encourage and challenge some of you along the way.

This one might fall under the “challenging” category… (sorry!)

Somebody I admire as a mature brother in the faith directed me towards a passage of scripture that has really been annoying me for the past few weeks. But, this isn’t the little brother who won’t stop poking you with a stick annoying, but the “I know what this says is right but trying to follow it is so hard and I can’t stand it and every time I mess up I think about that passage and it‘s driving me crazy!” annoying. I really hope you understand what I’m saying here. If not, just disregard this paragraph completely.

Some of you may have read my post a month or so ago titled “faith and works” where I dissected the James 2 passage that deals with works and faith. In that post I got up on that deceivingly small soap-box and declared what I believed to be the ultimate death blow to the “Salvation by works” regime. While I still feel I had a pretty good argument, that mature brother in the faith whom I mentioned earlier reminded me that many, many, many intelligent and godly men have been conflicted over the James 2 passage for a long, long time. He then directed me to that passage I talked about in the previous paragraph. You see, I knew that post would probably get some people riled up, but I didn’t care because I “knew” I was right. But that passage he showed me has really been serving as a tutor for me in thinking about my next blog post or my next sermon or devotion. But even more than that, it has really been messing with me in my everyday speech. Which, as many of you know, I need some help with :)

The passage is (ironically) James 3:1-12. Go read it now. Like for real. I'm gonna go read it again right now. I should probably memorize it because I really need this seed to start blossoming in my heart.

James is basically telling us to watch our mouths. Why? For one, even though our tongue seems like a very small part of our body, it can do more damage than we can possibly imagine. Hitler was not physically intimidating by any means, but look what he did with the words he spoke. Just think about it as a Christian. Verses 5-6 say: “Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue is also a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.” Think about how Satan has used the things spoken by Christians to advance his own cause. It’s hard telling how many people I may have turned away from Christ by some of the things I’ve said without even thinking.

Verses 9-12 shows us how we praise God one moment, and curse men the next moment with the same tongue. James, being a straight-shooter who likes to illustrate using “black vs. white” comparisons, says, “Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?” In other words, if you’re born of God through Christ Jesus, your speech needs to show it! I’m reminded of an amazing passage in the Gospel of Matthew in which Jesus says, “What goes into a man’s mouth does not make him ‘unclean’, but what comes out of his mouth, that is what makes him ‘unclean’ (15:11).” Jesus was saying that if a person’s heart is full of evil thoughts, murder (and/or hatred), adultery, sexual immorality, theft, dishonesty, slander, etc.(v.19-20), then that’s what will come out of his mouth- showing the person to be “unclean”. I don't know about you, but that really challenges me to watch what I say- no matter the context of the conversation. As you also read in the James passage, our own tongues can lead us to wreckless behavior.

As Christians, we are in spiritual warfare with Satan and his evil schemes. Satan will use our corrupted flesh any way he can- especially our mouths. So as believers we must prayerfully study scripture and grow closer to God so the Holy Spirit can help us tame our tongues so that they can be used to glorify God.

May He grant us wisdom, and a bar of soap.

Revelation 19 11-16 (the message)

2007-06-12T21:11:00.000-05:00

"Then I saw Heaven open wide - and oh! a white horse and its Rider. The Rider, named Faithful and Tru, judges and makes war in pure righteousness. His eyes are a blaze of fire, on his head many crowns. He has a Name enscribed that's known only to himself. He is dressed in a robe soaked with blood, and he is addressed as "Word of God". The armies of Heaven, mounted on white horses and dressed in dazzling white linen, follow him. A sharp sword comes out of his mouth so he can subdue the nations, then rule them with a rod of iron. He treads the winepress of the raging wrath of God, the Sovereign-Strong. On his robe and thigh is written, KING OF KINGS, LORD OF LORDS."

...how cool is that? William Wallace, step aside.

Spiritual Cogitation IV -- Habits vs. Heart

2007-06-04T21:44:00.000-05:00

My varsity basketball coach always called it “going through the motions”. This is something I (regrettably) did on a constant basis throughout my high school career. I’d do what the coach told me to do: I ran through all the drills and successfully ran all the offensive and defensive plays. The problem was, whenever I just “went through the motions” and did all of those things without that burning desire in my heart to go as hard as I could with no other desire but to improve my game, I never really got better. In actual game situations, I would be at the right spots and make the right moves, but I wasn’t very successful. Every now and then I’d have a great game, but the next three or four games I would struggle.

I have experienced many stages of “going through the motions” in my walk with Christ. So many times- especially throughout high school- I would experience those spiritual-emotional ’highs’ that would cause me to drop to my knees and declare to God that I would be an all-out warrior for Him and do anything and everything He wanted me to do. As most of us know, that emotion-driven mindset normally lasts no longer than 20 minutes. Each time I genuinely thought that I was getting my spiritual life back on track.

Therein lies the problem. You see, Whenever I tried to “get my spiritual life back on track”, all I knew to focus on were my actions. The words I said, the music I listened to, the shows I’d watch and the websites I looked at. I always thought that being the best Christian I could be meant forcing myself to strictly behave a certain way.

Boys and Girls: that line of thinking gets us nowhere. Trust me, I’ve tried it a dozen times. I’d force myself to stop my sinful habits (at least as best as I could) for as long as I could.

And then I’d break. And when I say break, I mean snap. And when I say snap, I mean explode.

And then, as we all know, that condemning, convicting, guilty feeling takes you over and you’re left begging God to forgive you for failing miserably yet again. You beg and beg for a second chance, promising God you won’t fail Him this time. (for more on this, see my post: “are we forgiven or what??”) Believers in Christ: that gets us nowhere!

I’m not saying Christians shouldn’t worry about sin in their lives. I’m simply saying that training yourself not to sin should not be the ultimate goal and/or priority of believers in Christ. If I focus solely on training myself to not sin, I’m merely forming habits. I’m just going through the motions. As Christians, our ultimate goal should be focusing on GOD and GOD ALONE, allowing Him to change our hearts.

To attack the roots of sin in our lives, we must look no further than our own hearts. Jeremiah 17:9 says “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?” (NASB).

In Matthew chapter 15, Jesus says, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.” Also all throughout the new testament, Paul refers to our own flesh as our “sinful nature” that Satan uses as an agent to lead us to sin.

Look at it this way. Simply changing our habits gets us nowhere because we are using our flesh to satisfy our flesh. We are taking that which makes us sinful and trying to twist and manipulate it to the point where it makes itself the opposite of what it once was. That, along with confusing, is impossible and therefore fatally unproductive. So many Christians “burn out” because they find themselves incapable of shedding their sinful habits and eventually give in to them completely. I’ve also seen many Christians get so caught up in their behavior that they forget why their behavior is even important.

Here’s an example that I hope will illustrate my point further. Take an ice cube. Seriously, go right now (or after you finish reading), grab an ice cube, and hold it in your hand. The ice cube, by its very nature, is cold. Your hand, as a result, becomes very cold. Because you don’t want your hand to be so flippin’ cold, you take the ice cube and rub it and blow hot air onto it. Eventually the ice cube melts and you’re left with a small puddle of water in your hand. You let out a sigh of relief because your hand is no longer freezing. Your hand is by no means warm, or even normal functioning temperature, but it certainly feels much better than freezing. Your hand now is actually experiencing the absence of extreme cold- not the abundance of warmth and comfort. Your hand, though, doesn’t really seem to care about how nice it would be to feel such warmth when all it can think about is how it is no longer unbearably cold.

You see, so many times in my walk with Christ I find myself getting too accepting of the mere absence of extreme cold, when I could be experiencing an abundance of warmth and comfort. It’s like going from the top of Mount Everest to Lexington, Kentucky, all the while not realizing you could be living on a beach in Hawaii.

All of that is to say this: Just as you can’t find an abundance of warmth from an ice cube, you cannot experience the abundance of joy, peace, strength, and love from behavioral habits. You must go to the source.

In Mere Christianity C.S. Lewis puts it this way: “If you want to get warm you must stand near the fire. If you want to be wet you must get into the water. If you want joy, power, peace, eternal life, you must get close to, or even into, the thing that has them. They are not a sort of prize which God could, if He chose, just hand out to anyone. They are a great fountain of energy and beauty spurting up at the very center of reality. If you are close to it, the spray will wet you. If you are not, you will remain dry. Once a man is united to God, how could he not life forever? Once a man is separated from God, what can he do but wither and die?”

We can’t overcome our flesh by manipulating our flesh! We must GO TO GOD, who is the ultimate source of everything Good, and allow him to change our hearts, infecting us with Himself! Then, and only then, are we truly living for Him. When our hearts have a passionate desire for God, our behavior will naturally change.

In his book titled “A Scandalous Freedom” Steve Brown says this: “The greatest cause for our not ‘getting better’ is our obsession with not ‘getting better’. There is a better way of getting better than trying harder. Sanctification becomes a reality in those believers who don’t obsess over their own sanctification. Holiness hardly ever becomes a reality until we care more about Jesus than about ‘holiness’” I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Once again…

We can’t get better by obsessing over getting better. We get better by obsessing over Christ and allowing the Holy Spirit to change our hearts.

So STOP gauging your walk with Christ on your behavior. Don't think about spiritual "maturity" in terms of what you do and don't do. Instead, fix your eyes upon Jesus. Focus solely on getting closer and closer to Him, and everything else will naturally follow.

Habits vs. Heart -- Introduction

2007-05-31T20:34:00.000-05:00

The concluding remarks on my last post went something like this: “We can’t “get better” by obsessing over ‘getting better’ and simply changing habits, we get better by obsessing over CHRIST and allowing the Holy Spirit to make us better by changing our hearts.”

I have every intention of digging deeper and deeper into this issue, but before I do, I want to ‘scratch the surface’ to get the rusty wheels in your brains turning.

Ever heard of Matt Wertz? If not, shame on you! Matt Wertz is a quasi-independent singer/songwriter based out of Nashville. While you won’t likely find any of his albums at a LifeWay or Family Christian book store, Matt is a very mature and outspoken believer in Christ and it shows through his music. On each album, Wertz has two or three songs (all written by him) that are based on his relationship with Christ. On his first full-length studio album ‘Somedays’, he has a song called “External Fix-it Remedies”. I’m sure Wertz would not claim to be a master of practical theology, but as far as the issue of “habits vs. heart” is concerned, this song NAILS it on the head. The lyrics pretty much speak on their own. Let’s break it down, shall we?

Verse 1:
These weeds keep poppin up
You thought you’d killed them all last week
Cause you dowsed them with that poison
Whose label read extra strength
But sure enough they’re still there
Just as green as they’d been before
Strangling all the flowers
You’d created that garden for

Chorus:
You’ve tried all the external fix-it remedies
And you’ve exhausted every ounce of your own strength
But until you dig deep enough to find the root
All you’re doin is, all you’re doin is yankin out the leaves

(now if the deeper meaning behind the first verse flew over your head, the second verse should hit you right on the nose)

Verse 2:

You say, my sin keeps poppin up
Thought I’d killed it all last week
Cause I told myself I could stop it all
And I prayed I’d be released
But sure enough it's still there
Just the same as it’d been before
Distracting you from righteousness
And rotting out your solid core

Chorus:

You’ve tried all the external fix-it remedies
And you’ve exhausted every ounce of your own strength
But until you dig deep enough to find the root
All you’re doin is, all you’re doin is yankin out the leaves

(next Wertz gets to the ‘root’ of the problem- and hints at the solution)

My garden was once my favorite part about this place
Its beauty overshadowed all others in this town
You see, I hired a man to care for it and keep it
And he was the best gardener around

But soon my old pride got to thinkin
About doin' this job on my own.
I fired the man that perfectly had kept it
And that’s when these weeds started grow’n

and then I tried all the external fix-it remedies
And I’ve exhausted every ounce of my own strength
But until you dig deep enough to find the root
All you’re doin is, all you’re doin is yankin out the leaves

Let all this sink in, there will be more coming soon...

are we forgiven or what???

2007-05-21T21:49:00.000-05:00

This is not meant to be a deep safari into the jungle of theology, but to some it may seem that way. This is just something that God has put on my heart and so I must share, although I might get into some trouble with this…

Allow me to get straight to the point.

I heard a Christian song the other day- and a different one today, now that I think about it- that talked about the singer’s walk with Christ and how they keep sinning every day, even though they’re trying their hardest to stop. The song(s) contained lyrics that begged God for one more chance, one more opportunity to get it right, and words that expressed a viewpoint that they knew God was disappointed and that they upset Him every day, but they still asked for forgiveness yet again, begging God to give them another shot.

I remember around this time a year ago when I was struggling with this issue. I was trying so hard to get better, to grow in my faith, but every morning it seemed like I woke up in the same spot. I’d commit the same sins, satisfy the same ol’ habits, and I was so fiercely passionate about getting better that each time I screwed up, I could just feel the cloud of God’s disappointment hovering over me. But I knew that that same God who was disappointed in my sin was the same God who loved me unconditionally and would help me start over.

I see and know so many Christians who still experience their walk with Christ as a series of attempts to “get better” by reducing the sinful habits in their lives. Each time they sin, they feel convicted, bow their heads in shame and in anger (mostly at themselves). They say prayers like, “God, I’ve sinned against you once again. I know you’re disappointed and upset that I keep (fill in the blank), but I’m sorry. Please forgive me, Father. Forgive me once again like you have so many times, and help me to start over and try again.”

**Attention fellow believer in Christ: YOU ARE ALREADY FORGIVEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When Christ Jesus put your sins on His shoulders and nailed them to the cross, THEY DIED.

Or look at it this way, YOU were nailed to the cross with Christ, along with every sin you have ever committed- AND any sin you will ever commit. Your sinful fleshly body was killed with Christ and buried in a tomb.

Now, along with Christ, we were resurrected as new creations, holy, pure, justified and righteous. That means that to us as believers in Christ, SIN IS DEAD. In regards to sin and our flesh, we are dead. In regards to God in Christ Jesus, we are fully alive!

Don’t believe me? Check out Romans ch.’s 1-8 and get back to me.

In Jeremiah, God tells us that Christ is ALWAYS interceding for us. In other words, Christ takes our sins and hides them from the Father, so it is as if we never even commit them! Psalms says that “as far as the east is from the west, so far is how the Lord has taken our sins from us.”

Galatians says that we are “adopted as sons” to God the King. And, as Paul says, if we are children of the King, we are HEIRS to His throne!

We are no longer lowly, dirty, filthy rags who just happen to be saved from hell when we die. We are given the holiness and righteousness of Christ Himself! In other words, because of what Christ has done for us, the Father looks at us just as He looks at CHRIST!

I don’t say this because I think we can do whatever we feel like just because we are already forgiven and made holy. I’m saying that the freedom we experience from fully understanding what Christ has made us allows us to LIVE FOR GOD with so much more strength, peace, and joy.

We can’t “get better” by obsessing over “getting better” and simply changing habits, we get better by obsessing over CHRIST and allowing the Holy Spirit to make us better by changing our hearts. (more of this is to come for certain).

Spiritual Cogitation III -- "My Tiny Little God-Box"

2007-05-17T12:21:00.000-05:00

(originally written Feb 28, 2007)

Get out your Bible cuz your're gonna need it. (That’s a direct order, by the way.)

Did you all know that my God lives in a tiny little box? It’s quite convenient for me because it fits comfortably in my pocket so whenever I feel like taking Him out with me its not too much of a hassle. Not to mention its easy to open, so whenever I feel comfortable enough I can let Him out for a few minutes to see if He might do something for me. Most times though I just leave it on my desk just in case a random non-believer might accidentally find their way into my room and curiously open it to see what’s inside. That way, God does all the work and I don’t have to waste any energy or risk being rejected…

…okay, that was sarcasm.

…but then again, it wasn’t.

In our hearts I know all of us don’t really believe that God lives in a tiny little box. Why is it, then, that we live and act like He does? I don’t know about you, but this is something I struggle with on a daily basis. We hear all the time about how “God works in mysterious ways” and that we have to believe that “God is in control” so therefore “anything is possible with God.” All of these are true, but once again I think we fail to realize the power of these statements.

I believe that anything is possible with God and that He has a perfect plan that is infinitely beyond my comprehension. If I believe that, then how come I have a set number of assumptions and expectations on how God’s work will be manifested in my life? Why is it I expect God to do His thing at Jonathan Creek youth camp, 608, or TNT services, but not in my Communications class or at a basketball game? It seems like my brain has somehow been trained to think “God will work in astonishing ways…in certain contexts and with only certain people.”

This, my friends, is putting God in a box. Not realizing God can do anything at any time and any place with any person is putting God in a box. Not EXPECTING God to work at any time and any place with any person is putting God in a box.

Even the 12 disciples, who walked with God-in-flesh on a daily basis, struggled with this. Scripture gives us many specific examples of this and I feel like examining them gives us insight into at least 6 different kinds of “God-boxes” that we have in our pockets. Lets look over them briefly (I encourage you to read through these passages yourself and pray that God will reveal His truth to you).

1) The “I’m in trouble and I know God is with me but I don’t know if He can help” Box. Matthew 8:23-27

2) The “Something amazing but uncomfortable is going on and it’s not what I’m used to so I’m scared to death” Box. Matthew 14:25 / Mark 6:48-51

3) The “I’ve tried my hardest and nothing has happened so there’s not much God can do for me” Box. Luke 5:4-11

4) The “what we have is not enough and we don’t know how God can provide” Box. John 6:6-14

5) The “Why would God choose to use THAT person?” Box. Matthew 9:9-17 / Luke 5:27-39

6) The “we’re trying to follow You God but nothing’s working” Box. Mark 9:14-29

This is in no way an exhaustive list of all the different ways we can put God in a tiny little box. As I was looking through the Gospel of Luke, I came upon a story in which the people involved exhibited a bewildering amount of faith and realized that God could do anything, anywhere, at any time, with any person.

These men weren’t even disciples. Check it out for yourself: Luke 5:18-26.

This is the kind of faith that I’m praying for. The kind of faith that not only let’s God out of that tiny little box, but EXPECTS God to work in amazing ways at any time in my day-to-day life and that i don’t freak out and get scared WHEN it happens.

p.s. if you come up with any more "boxes" feel free to talk about them is the 'comments'. that would be awesome to examine some more!

Spiritual Cogitation II -- "Heaven Came Down"

2007-05-17T12:19:00.000-05:00

(originally written Dec 29, 2006)

I’ve been dwelling on this one for about a week now. It’s not profound or controversial (well, you never know I guess). You may not even think its relevant, but I’m still in the Christmas spirit and I just can’t help myself. I know Christmas has passed, but hey, Jesus wasn’t even born on the 25th of December. And for that matter, did you know that most historians now think Jesus was born between 4-6 b.c.? weird, huh. Anywho, I hope you enjoy. And if you’re sick and tired of Christmas-related messages, well you don’t even have to read it, do you? But if you don’t, you’ll make baby Jesus cry.

So here goes… Spiritual Cogitation II, “Heaven Came Down"

Does everyone know the TRUE meaning of Christmas?
…are you SURE?
…POSITIVE?!
Do you know that it’s not about what presents you get?
…Do you know it’s not even about what you give?
The birth of Christ is the true meaning of Christmas! I mean just look at the word itself: “CHRISTmas"! Can’t you see it?!

As a Christian during this holiday season (can Christians still use the word ‘holiday’?), I was reminded at least 80,000 times (give or take) that Christmas is NOT about gifts under the tree. Jesus is the reason for the season. Jesus is the reason for the season. Jesus is the reason for the season. Jesus is the reason for the season. Jesus is the- you get the point. I’m fairly confident that I could guess what 99% of the sermons in Christian churches the past month have been based upon. “Welcome, friends. Please open your Bibles and turn to Luke chapter 2…"

I went to bed on Christmas night discouraged that after all of the “Jesus talk" I had been hearing from pastors, family and friends (and myself, of course), Christmas was still just another day of shiny wrapping paper and gift-cards. As I lay there in my bed, I just began wondering about the “true" meaning of Christmas. Of course I know the story: The virgin Mary gave birth to a son. And that little kid grew up, lived a sinless life, died on a cross, and came back to life.

Reading that makes it seem boringly simple and void of much spiritual meaning, doesn’t it? Every time I heard the nativity story that is what I thought of. Don’t get me wrong, a virgin giving birth to a child is pretty cool. Nothing short of miraculous- especially since GOD had a hand in it, am I right?

This is where I froze.

God didn’t have a hand in it. God WAS IT! The child’s name was “Immanuel" - which is Hebrew for “God with us." Its not “God made this kid and gave him powers". The name is “God With Us"

John 1:1-5;14 says:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. (v.14) And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth."

This has only recently begun to click inside of my brain. The 2nd Person of the Trinity, the eternal WORD that caused everything to come into being. Colossians 1:16-17 says: “For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities- all things have been created by Him and for Him. And he is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

The Alpha and Omega. The beginning and the end. The One through whom Genesis 1:1 occurred. The One seen by John in Revelation 19:13: “And He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood; and His name is called The Word of God."

THIS is who invaded our world that day. It wasn’t some child with special godly powers. It wasn’t just a teenage girl giving birth to a kid God put in her womb. The WORD of God Himself became one of us. The Eternal became flesh.

For the first time, God revealed to me the true miracle of Christmas. Not just that our Savior was born, but that The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. This alone was a sacrifice that we can never comprehend.

That is all.

Merry CHRISTmas.

Spiritual Cogitation I -- "Trinity of Love"

2007-05-17T12:16:00.000-05:00

(originally written Dec 4, 2006)

Every so often a random item of theology works its way into my brain and gets stuck there for a few days. So instead of keeping these deep (note the sarcasm) and often times incoherent/irrelevant spiritual cogitations inside of my brain to rot away into oblivion, I’ve decided to share them with the hoi polloi of the internet society. So here goes “Spiritual Cogitation I (that’s “1" in roman numerals. For an extensive guide to deciphering roman numerals go here: http://www.novaroma.org/via_romana/numbers.html) PLEASE NOTE: In no way do I consider myself an expert in theology. These ramblings are meant to just give you something to think about- hence the name “Spiritual Cogitation". Enjoy.

What is love? According to theological geniuses Kevin Max, Toby McKeean and Michael Tate, “Luv is a Verb." We all know the 1 Corinthians passage: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, self-seeking, not easily angered, keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, trusts, hopes, and perseveres."

1 John 4:8 says, “God is Love." It also goes on to say that God displayed His love by sending is only begotten Son to die for our sins. When this text is matched up with the 1 Corinthians passage, we can infer that God is patient, God is kind… God does not delight in evil, etc. While each of these characteristics are certainly true, a question comes to mind.

Scripture tells us that God is eternal. The Alpha and Omega. Always was and always will be (Psalm 90). Scripture also tells us that God is unchanging in His nature (Malachi 3:6). That leaves us with three “characteristics ? of God: 1)God is Eternal; 2) God is unchanging in nature; 3) God is Love.

So the question is, if God is eternal and unchanging, how could He have been “Love" before he created everything? How can there be “Love" when there is nothing to be patient with, kind with, nothing to envy, nothing to boast in or be proud of, etc. etc. etc.?

This is where the doctrine of the Trinity comes in. When we talk about God, we often forget that God is triune. The Father is God. The Son is God. The Spirit is God. There are not three Gods, but ONE God consisting of three ‘persons’. Many times we think of “God" as merely “The Father" and of Christ as “God’s Son" and not “God in Flesh". So in regards to this topic, when I say “God" I mean “The Trinity"- not just The Father.

The Triune nature of God allows there to be love even though before creation nothing existed but God. C.S. Lewis explains this idea much better than I ever could.
“…in Christianity God is not a static thing- not even a person- but a dynamic, pulsating activity, a life, almost a kind of drama. The union between The Father and The Son is such a live concrete thing that this union itself is also a Person. I know this is almost inconceivable, but look at it thus. You know that among human beings, when they get together in a family, or a club, or a trade union, people talk about the ‘spirit’ of that family or club, or trade union. They talk about its “spirit" because the individual members, when they are together, do really develop particular ways of talking and behaving which they would not have if they were apart. It is as if a sort of communal personality came into existence. Of course, it is not a real person: it is only rather like a person. But that is just one of the differences between God and us. What grows out of the joint life of the Father and Son is a real Person, is in fact the Third of the three Persons who are God."

I’m still trying to figure out a kind of practical application to this, but one just isn’t coming to mind. Perhaps some of you can come up with something, but hopefully at least this gives some of you something to ponder.