These two verses are right next to each other in John 17, Jesus' prayer for His followers:
"Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you have sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world."
Sanctify means to make sacred or holy. If you think about the sacred or holy objects in the world, we tend to hide them away from public view, or put them under glass, or somehow protect them. Jesus is asking His Father to do exactly the opposite: make His followers sacred through your truth, then send them out into the world.
In other words, God has made His followers special through truth & holiness - but then we are to be "totally out there", not worrying about our self-protection, reaching those who are not yet followers of His. God protects His people (see the preceding verse, John 17:15), but not by taking them out of the world.
You and I are sacred and sent - do we act so?
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
How Long in Hell?
Many in & around our congregation are going through very difficult times. After one conversation, this question came to mind:
* How long are we to stay in hell for heaven's purposes?
This question was quickly followed by a response (not sure if it was the Lord or not, but I'm suspicious):
* For as long as the Lord will stay with you there.
Guess that means we can make it through today. And the one that follows.
* How long are we to stay in hell for heaven's purposes?
This question was quickly followed by a response (not sure if it was the Lord or not, but I'm suspicious):
* For as long as the Lord will stay with you there.
Guess that means we can make it through today. And the one that follows.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Revised Lord's Prayer
How often are our prayers more like this:
My ship come in,
My will be done....
Then "your kingdom come,
Your will be done...."
My ship come in,
My will be done....
Then "your kingdom come,
Your will be done...."
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Following Jesus, Union Eagle Article
Following Jesus
Jesus stood by the Sea of Galilee, teaching the crowds that were following Him. Acoustics were difficult, so He borrowed a boat, asking a local fisherman (Peter) to put out a little ways from shore. This enabled Him to sit down and share stories about God more easily & thoroughly with the people.
Jesus finished His presentation, turned to Peter, telling him to put out into the deep water for a catch. Peter respected this teacher – but He was certainly no fisherman – so explained that they’d worked all night and caught nothing. Jesus just looked at Peter, so he decided to humor his teacher. After all, what was one more cast before bed?
The fish exploded into the net. Peter and his brother could not haul them all in, to they signaled a second boat for help. Both boats were so filled that they began to sink.
Peter, typically, overreacted. “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man”. Jesus assured him that everything would be OK, but a career change was in order: now was the time to fish for men.
Matthew worked the tax booth diligently. Locals needed to file by him at some point during their week; he would remind them of their financial commitment, loudly if necessary. Matthew worked for the Romans, took excessive taxes from rich and poor alike; he was a despised man.
Except by Jesus. He ambled by the booth, looked into Matthew’s eyes, invited him along for a lifetime. The decision didn’t take long – riches with a poor reputation or poverty with a chance for significance – he took the poverty.
He also threw one whale of a party and invited his prior cronies: tax collectors and local sinners. The local leadership was outraged, Jesus was delighted. These were the people who needed Him. He was here for them.
John the Baptist was working the crowd, preaching, teaching, baptizing, arguing with the religious leaders. His ministry had tremendous impact. People were streaming in to hear him, to repent, to seek the Lord’s face for forgiveness. Then Jesus walked by.
John knew that he was not here for his own sake – not to build his own ministry or reputation - rather, to proclaim the one who was to come, Jesus. He pointed Him out to the crowds; then, the next day, specifically pointed Him out to two of His disciples. Look, there He is, follow Him – and they did.
John’s reaction: “He must become greater; I must become less.”
Did your Jesus completely change your life direction? Did He rejoice to reach out to you, and to others very much like and unlike you? Is He so important to you that you are willing to take a lesser role to share Him with others?
He did, and does – and I will - and that has made all the difference.
Jesus stood by the Sea of Galilee, teaching the crowds that were following Him. Acoustics were difficult, so He borrowed a boat, asking a local fisherman (Peter) to put out a little ways from shore. This enabled Him to sit down and share stories about God more easily & thoroughly with the people.
Jesus finished His presentation, turned to Peter, telling him to put out into the deep water for a catch. Peter respected this teacher – but He was certainly no fisherman – so explained that they’d worked all night and caught nothing. Jesus just looked at Peter, so he decided to humor his teacher. After all, what was one more cast before bed?
The fish exploded into the net. Peter and his brother could not haul them all in, to they signaled a second boat for help. Both boats were so filled that they began to sink.
Peter, typically, overreacted. “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man”. Jesus assured him that everything would be OK, but a career change was in order: now was the time to fish for men.
Matthew worked the tax booth diligently. Locals needed to file by him at some point during their week; he would remind them of their financial commitment, loudly if necessary. Matthew worked for the Romans, took excessive taxes from rich and poor alike; he was a despised man.
Except by Jesus. He ambled by the booth, looked into Matthew’s eyes, invited him along for a lifetime. The decision didn’t take long – riches with a poor reputation or poverty with a chance for significance – he took the poverty.
He also threw one whale of a party and invited his prior cronies: tax collectors and local sinners. The local leadership was outraged, Jesus was delighted. These were the people who needed Him. He was here for them.
John the Baptist was working the crowd, preaching, teaching, baptizing, arguing with the religious leaders. His ministry had tremendous impact. People were streaming in to hear him, to repent, to seek the Lord’s face for forgiveness. Then Jesus walked by.
John knew that he was not here for his own sake – not to build his own ministry or reputation - rather, to proclaim the one who was to come, Jesus. He pointed Him out to the crowds; then, the next day, specifically pointed Him out to two of His disciples. Look, there He is, follow Him – and they did.
John’s reaction: “He must become greater; I must become less.”
Did your Jesus completely change your life direction? Did He rejoice to reach out to you, and to others very much like and unlike you? Is He so important to you that you are willing to take a lesser role to share Him with others?
He did, and does – and I will - and that has made all the difference.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
What Would You Fight Over?
I received an email this afternoon from a person who was upset about eternal security - he disagreed with another's viewpoint that one could lose their salvation.
I can understand his frustration, this does seem to be a key issue - and that debate has raged for over 500 years. It's important, but I'm not sure I would fight over it. There are more similarities to the two sides than one would initially think - and they can meet over how one should reach out to someone who has made a profession of faith, but does not follow the Lord over an extended period of time (deal with them as an unbeliever first).
What would I fight over, stand up for, even die for? I would "fight" for Christ's person and work - particularly for salvation by faith. I would fight for our freedom to worship - not necessarily in a church building or formal way - but together with other believers, even "underground". I would fight for scripture being inspired by God, inerrant. I would fight for our "right" to share our faith - or I would at least go ahead and share anyway. Many of the Evangelical Free doctrines are basic enough to "fight" for.
I doubt that I would fight for one particular position on the Lord's coming.
How about you?
I can understand his frustration, this does seem to be a key issue - and that debate has raged for over 500 years. It's important, but I'm not sure I would fight over it. There are more similarities to the two sides than one would initially think - and they can meet over how one should reach out to someone who has made a profession of faith, but does not follow the Lord over an extended period of time (deal with them as an unbeliever first).
What would I fight over, stand up for, even die for? I would "fight" for Christ's person and work - particularly for salvation by faith. I would fight for our freedom to worship - not necessarily in a church building or formal way - but together with other believers, even "underground". I would fight for scripture being inspired by God, inerrant. I would fight for our "right" to share our faith - or I would at least go ahead and share anyway. Many of the Evangelical Free doctrines are basic enough to "fight" for.
I doubt that I would fight for one particular position on the Lord's coming.
How about you?
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Discipleship
"We teach what we believe, but we reproduce what we are."
Scary statement from Conformed to His Image by Kenneth Boa - sounds like my "are" needs to catch up with my beliefs.
Scary statement from Conformed to His Image by Kenneth Boa - sounds like my "are" needs to catch up with my beliefs.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
A Very Different Perspective on Worship
From Eugene Peterson's "A Long Obedience in the Same Direction" (book about discipleship):
"An excellent way to test people's values is to observe what we do when we don't have to do anything, how we spend our leisure time, how we spend our extra money. Even in a time when church attendance is not considered to be on the upswing in the United States, the numbers are impressive. There are more people at worship on any given Sunday, for instance, than are at all the football games or on the golf links or fishing or taking walks in the woods. Worship is the single most popular act in this land."
Now there's a different perspective....
"An excellent way to test people's values is to observe what we do when we don't have to do anything, how we spend our leisure time, how we spend our extra money. Even in a time when church attendance is not considered to be on the upswing in the United States, the numbers are impressive. There are more people at worship on any given Sunday, for instance, than are at all the football games or on the golf links or fishing or taking walks in the woods. Worship is the single most popular act in this land."
Now there's a different perspective....
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