There are a group of Christians out there who are trying to give certain sins a pass under the entire logic that "Jesus never said specifically it was a sin!"

I can't describe the absurdity of that belief.

Jesus wasn't some wild rebel that had no connection to God.  Jesus didn't come here to say that what God declared as sin wasn't sin and just because Jesus didn't talk on a particular issue doesn't mean we have a free pass to do whatever we want with something that was called a sin by God the Father.  In fact, Jesus himself said they are one:

"Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works." - John 14:10 (ESV)

Jesus says that he speaks on the authority of God and it's the Father working through Him.  That means that Jesus was speaking God's truth but also that means that Jesus was following God's rules.  Jesus clarified many things for people to make the Christian walk more understandable in terms of how we deal with others but it doesn't mean that he said some things were not sins any longer.

So when you run into someone trying to promote a sinful lifestyle within the church or as a Christian on the false basis that "Jesus never said it!" point out to them the scripture I referenced from John.  Jesus and God are one so Jesus couldn't have said or endorsed something that God called a sin.  Jesus may not have said it Himself...but since He and God the Father are one if God said it then Jesus said it.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/but_jesus_never_said_it.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/but_jesus_never_said_it.trackback

I sometimes have a hard time dealing with folks who blame God in the midst of bad situations and continually ask why God would do something bad to someone.  It's so easy at times to cast the blame on God because then it absolves other human beings of their part in any situation.  We cast free will to the side and say that because God allowed something to happen that He did it himself.   It's clearly not the case and the Word outlines how bad things can happen because of our own actions or the actions of those around us.

""But if you turn aside and forsake my statutes and my commandments that I have set before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them, then I will pluck you? up from my land that I have given you, and this house that I have consecrated for my name, I will cast out of my sight, and I will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples. And at this house, which was exalted, everyone passing by will be astonished and say, 'Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?' Then they will say, 'Because they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers who brought them out of the land of Egypt and laid hold on other gods and worshiped them and served them. Therefore he has brought all this disaster on them.' " - 2 Chronicles 7:19-22 (ESV)

Now, the skeptic would look at that verse and say that it proves God did the bad things to the people.  However, you have to look deeper and see the true meaning in those words.  While God threatened to carry out a divine judgment on the people, the blame itself fell completely on the shoulders of the people themselves.  God wasn't going to pull His hand away from them until they turned away from Him and worshiped other gods.  At that point, God pulls away his grace from them and as a result the disasters befall them. 

So while I know how we can question the Lord when bad things come our way I think we need to take a moment as see how much of the responsibility falls on our shoulders.  Were we worshiping other Gods?  Had we walked away from Him?  Only then will we truly understand the situation and see what God is doing around and through us.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/its_gods_fault_right.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/its_gods_fault_right.trackback

I've had a running theme this week.  It seems everywhere I go this week I run into Christians who say they just "live and let live" and that they just go with the flow because they don't want to offend anyone and possibly drive them away from Christ.  They are more interested in taking the easy path than getting into a situation where perhaps they will be uncomfortable or make someone else that way.

When pressed on it, these Christians say it's not their place to challenge others or to point out sin.  It's their job to live their life the best they can and hope that others might see Jesus in them.  I was thinking of that when I read this verse:

"Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many." - Matthew 7:13 (ESV)

If we just let people continue to live their lives without ever saying something they're doing might be harmful to them then we're just allowing them to joyfully run through the wide gate.  Jesus said it leads to destruction or in this case eternity away from the Lord. 

As Christians, we are called to not only go through the narrow gate ourselves but to show others that the narrow gate is the right path to choose.  If we just "go with the flow" and stay silent all the time then we're not fulfilling the call that Christ has placed upon all of us to tell others about Him. 

I know that it's very easy to say you're just going to live your life and hope it's a good enough example to others.   Unfortunately, we can't take that easy path...or that wide open gate.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/narrow_and_wide.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/narrow_and_wide.trackback

A quick blog today on being Christ-like.  If we are to be like Christ, should we do what he did?

"And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”" - John 8:11 (ESV)

We need to do both......right?

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/should_we_be_like_jesus.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/should_we_be_like_jesus.trackback

I think that perhaps the devil is winning.

I know that's not something Christians like to hear because we are so hammered with preachers and others telling how in the end we win.  While it's true, we do win in the end, the reason we have to say the "in the end" is because before we reach that point Satan will be exerting his dominion over the Earth and the majority of the people in it.  He will be controlling those in positions of power and be doing all he can to make sure life is miserable for anyone who follows the teaching of Jesus.

This just reasserted itself in front of me this weekend as I was reading the blog of someone who says they're a Christian but promotes gay marriage even though they know the Bible speaks of marriage as a husband and wife, not husband and husband.  They were trying to rationalize not calling their friend who actually follows the word a bigot because "while they don't hate gay people they certainly are discriminating against them."

Why are they "discriminating?"  Because the WORLD is the one saying it's a case of discrimination!  The world, which pays no attention to the instructions and truth of God, will do all it can to try and neutralize Christians and then eventually put them in a place where they can be punished for standing up for Christian beliefs (like pastors around the world who have recently been arrested to speaking the truth in the Bible against homosexuality.) 

"You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." - James 4:4 (ESV)

You cannot be a follower of Jesus and at the same time promote the opinions of the world that conflict with His word.  I know it's not easy to stand up against the world's "popular" view especially when it means that you could lose things like friend or social stature.  However, remember there is nothing in the world that is better than what you will eventually have with Jesus.

Now, there are some Christians who try and say that you're supposed to love people and in their definition that means you ignore their sins.  That is not a Biblical position on their part.  Jesus never excuses sin and neither should you.  (Now, that doesn't mean you run up and condemn someone who is sinning.  It means that if someone is habitually sinning you do not approve of it in any way and when placed in a position that you are called to do it...even if it means losing that person's friendship...you have to stand for Christ.)

There are even some that say "Jesus never said anything about homosexuality."  That too is not a Biblical view.  Homosexuality was declared a sin by God and Jesus said he came to fulfill the law and prophets.  Jesus also told the woman about to be stoned to "go and sin no more."  Jesus spoke against this sin but those promoting homosexuality like to play a game of semantics and pretend that because Jesus himself did not utter the word homosexual in the recorded portions of His words in the Bible that Jesus was saying it was OK.  It's just another tool of the enemy to manipulate people and especially distort God's word.  If Satan can get God's people to be distortion God's own words then it will be easier for Satan to take over this world.

Still others will ignore the truth of the Word of God and immediately jump to the world's tactics of trying to smear you and degrade you.  They will call you a bigot or intolerant.  The uber-Christians will start to say how you're driving people away from God and that you need to show them love.  They will start laying down all the pre-programmed Christian guilt trips they learn to try and excuse sin.  Just remember that because someone professes they are a Christian it doesn't mean they love God or follow His word.  You need to judge what the people say regardless of who they are as a person and see if those words line up with God's word.  When someone says you're passing judgment on people and they start to tear into you just simply look at them and say you're passing judgment on the sinful actions you see because you love the people doing it enough that you don't want to see them end up in hell. 

So today you need to ask yourself if you stand for truth or if you stand for the world.  I know that some of you reading this blog are going to be very angry because of these words but the truth of the Bible does not sway just because social activist groups have convinced you that God's word is wrong.  You either love the world or you love God.  The choice is yours.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/the_devil_is_winning.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/the_devil_is_winning.trackback

I know that many Pastors and other Christians have used the illustration of Jesus standing at the door.  They usually only bring up the first part of the verse but what means so much to me is the second part...

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me." - Revelation 3:20 (ESV)

Think about when you have friends come over to your house.  After they knock on the door, if you can't see them through the windows, you will ask who is at your door.  When you hear their voice you're filled with happiness and throw the door open to welcome them into your home.

What usually follows?  You have dinner together and enjoy each other's company.  You celebrate the friendship you share and spend hours just soaking in the good will that comes from these times of fellowship.  You look forward to having these times and you usually share stories about this encounter in the days and weeks that follow the encounter.

More often than not you start to make plans for the next time you can have that experience with your friends.  You seek out the opportunity to have that joyful encounter.  You plan parts of your life around that experience.

The last part of that verse says that when you accept Jesus as Savior and invite Him into your life that you are essentially having that kind of dinner party experience with Jesus.  It's a relationship with your best friend where you celebrate that friendship and long to spend time together.  Jesus wants to be right there laughing with you, crying with you, talking with you and savoring the intimate friendship. 

The key is that we need to look at our relationship with Jesus in the same way.  If we look at Jesus as some mighty Lord who is standing on high looking down at us it opens the possibility that we really never develop the loving relationship that Jesus wants to maintain with us.  We have to view Jesus as wanting to show up at our door for a dinner party and be a focused center of our lives. 

And...thanks to what Jesus did for us...that dinner party can last for eternity!

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/the_big_holy_dinner_party.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/the_big_holy_dinner_party.trackback

I have a problem.

I get songs stuck in my head very easily and sometimes they can stick around for days at a time.

Right now, "My Savior, My God" by Aaron Shust is echoing around the ample space in my brain cavity.  If you're not familiar with the song, I'd recommend checking it out.  The song opens with Aaron singing:

" I am not skilled to understand what God has willed, what God has planned.
I only know at his right hand stands one who is my savior."

I look at those lyrics...and hear Aaron singing them in my head...and I just lay here in awe of the mighty truth in those words.  The scripture often talks of the fact we as men can have no idea what God has planned for those who love him and are called according to his purpose.  The rest of our lives are all mapped out ahead of us and God knows every decision we will make and every sin we're going to avoid or commit.  Nothing is going to surprise him but all of it will likely surprise us.  We cannot say with any certainty about anything because it's all on God's hands except for the one truth that Jesus, our Savior, is right next to God.

"And [Stephen] said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”" - Acts 7:56 (ESV)

He was there for Stephen and He is standing there right now for all of us.  For how long you ask?  Forever.  As Aaron sings in the chorus of the song:

"My savior loves, my savior lives, my savior's always there for me
My God he was, my God he is, My God he's always gonna be "

No matter where we go or what we do we're going to have Christ right there beside us.  It doesn't matter if you're praising the Lord for answered prayers in Lubbock, Texas or fighting off a massive Satanic attack in Jacksonville, Florida or just facing the day-to-day in Boise, Idaho.  Christ is always at the right hand of the Father and stepping in on our behalf because he paid the penalty for all of our sins.  Personally, I can't thank Him enough for that!

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/at_the_right_hand.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/at_the_right_hand.trackback

I had planned a long, involved blog when I came across this verse in Psalms:

"And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you." - Psalm 39:7 (ESV)

It's a very simple, gentle reminder that no matter what we are expecting in life that we have only one place to put our hope...God.

Where is your hope placed?

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/quick_thought.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/quick_thought.trackback

I came to write the blog this morning in the midst of major spiritual attack when I came across this verse and practically laughed out loud:

"Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you." - 1 Peter 4:12 (ESV)

It made me laugh because of the "something strange" portion of the verse.  Over the last few weeks I've faced trials like I haven't seen in ages.  I've seen temptations in every major area of weakness that in my previous life I would have given in without a second thought.  Areas that even after I came to Christ I still would have given in and fallen.  I've been able to stand thanks to God's grace and power thus far but it's hard and has taken a physical & mental toll on me.

As a believer, I know spiritual attack will come upon us.  I know there will be times that we have temptations and when we have to literally flee from sin. 

"But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness." - 1 Timothy 6:11 (ESV)

However, have you ever been to the point where you look around you and wonder where you ended up in this mess?  The attack seems beyond anything you could have imagined or have seen before and you can't help but wonder if something strange is going on.  I can speak right now from experience it's a weird place to be.  I feel tired, hurt and discouraged but also a strange encouragement that all will be well and that there is an eternal purpose for all I'm seeing and feeling today. 

So if you're facing trials today and you find yourself in wonder at the scope and intensity of the attack just pray and thank God for being there for you.  Plus...as strange as this sounds...enjoy the ride.  God must have something waiting for you on the other side that Satan doesn't want you to have in your life.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/something_strange.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/something_strange.trackback

One of the passages I use to help boost my spirit when I'm feeling tired and worn down is in 1 Corinthians:

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it." - 1 Corinthians 9:24 (ESV)

I think about marathon runners and the way they have to face the challenges of their sport.   I've never run a marathon...usually running a mile causes me to need to stop and walk a little after that run...but I can imagine that during the course of that run they feel as if they need to slow down or even stop.  Their muscles will start to burn a little bit or they won't be able to catch their breath as they would like to do.  The thing with marathon runners is that they know if they stop that it's all over for them.  They will lose their rhythm and even if they start running again it won't quite be the same.   So they press on.

The Christian walk is very similar in nature.  We face times in our lives where we feel like we want to stop or we face times where we come to a stop because we've slipped up and fallen.  The good news is that when we get up and start walking forward again that unlike the marathon runner our path can be better than before we fell!  We learn the lesson of whatever it was that made us fall so we can avoid making that mistake in the future.  We know Jesus never changes so the goal will always remain the same.

So look at the unchanging goal and keep pressing on.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/marathon_man.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/marathon_man.trackback

Romans 8:1 (ESV) says:

"as it is written: “ None is righteous, no, not one.""

Ouch.

The Bible is filled with similar statements that we are sinners and unworthy of being in the presence of God.  We, ourselves, are so drenched in sin that the stench of it makes us so repulsive to the Lord that sacrifice after sacrifice would not be enough to make it into heaven on our own.  If you allow that mindset to creep into your life it can put you in a place of depression or if you haven't accepted Christ be used as a tool to keep you from knowing Jesus.

The good news is that despite our sins, despite our failures and despite our shortcomings we have a God that sees us in a completely different light. 

"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." - Romans 8:1 (ESV)

The easiest thing for us to do is allow ourselves to be wrapped up in a web of self-condemnation.  We know ourselves, we know our hearts and we know all the actions that we take every day just like God knows them.  Many times we will sin because we don't even realize it's going on.  Sin's sneaky that way!  We'll see someone with a brand new sports car and think "man, I want that!"  Boom!  You've coveted without even realizing it!  Now you're on the road to hell!

If you've accepted Christ as savior, then you know you're not going to hell but you still feel the guilt of the sin.  The good news here is that when you ask forgiveness and repent of that sin God doesn't see that sin anymore.  If the sin is gone then there is no basis for you to feel guilty or feel like it's a burden crushing down on you.  If you view it the way God views it then you won't be in a place to allow that sin to weigh you down.

That doesn't mean you don't learn from your mistake to try and avoid it in the future.  It just means you don't have to sit there and dwell on it!  You move on and try to be a better person.

You also need to remember your importance to God:

"For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!"  The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him." - Romans 8:15-17 (ESV)

Once you accept Christ then you become an adopted child of God.  God then sees you as He sees His own Son...flawless, beautiful, perfect, holy.  All of the things that we cannot be without Jesus in our lives.  That means the sin we see isn't seen by Him and not used to mark us as unworthy.

Think of your children or your parents if you have no children.  Sure, you get mad at the kids and do things to punish them to correct mistakes but you never lose that love and concern.  They're always on your mind and each one of them is important regardless of how many kids you have.  God views you the same way.  Even in the crowd of millions who will be spending eternity with Christ in Heaven you as an individual are so important to God.  He knows you by name, He loves to spend time with you and He wants to be right there with you throughout life.

No condemnation and co-heir with Christ.  It's all right there in the Word.  Let it be right there in your heart.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/how_god_sees_you.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/how_god_sees_you.trackback

On the heels of my last blog I was reading Romans when I this verse seemed to jump off the page:

"Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." - Romans 12:2 (ESV)

It made me think of the times when you're confronted with something in your church or Bible study group that you feel isn't right but the group as a whole is marching forward.  It can sometimes be a challenge to hear the voice of God and discern his will when you're surrounded by a group of other believers because the voice of the crowd and overcome the voice of the Lord.

This is where it's vital that we as individual believers spend time in the Word ourselves and spend time in prayer so we can build our relationship with the Lord.  Without this as the rock for us to build our faith there is no way we can reasonably expect to be able to discern His will when the time comes to stand against the crowd.  We may feel a tugging of the Spirit to say that what is happening isn't really God's will in a situation but because we do not have that firm foundation for our relationship with Christ we open the door for doubts that usually render us silent and compliant. 

God's will is perfect.  It is the only thing that is perfect when it comes to determining the steps for our lives because we are humans certainly mess it up.  So why do we avoid taking the time each day to build the relationship to determine that perfect will?  If we were tune ourselves into God it could provide the peace that no matter the circumstances we are where the Lord wants us to be and we can move forward knowing without a doubt that regardless of the pain we may face or the frustrations or retribution by those who do not follow the Lord that Jesus is right there with us. 

Jesus even said that himself:

"But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." - Matthew 6:33 (ESV)

Take the time today to start to rebuild that relationship if you realize that you haven't been building your life on the foundation of a solid Christ-centered life.  God will not shun you if you turn back to Him in repentance and truly seek His face.  Mercy, grace and love do not just fade away forever if you make the mistake of losing your focus on Christ.  Third chances can happen just as much as second chances. 

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/wheres_your_focus.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/wheres_your_focus.trackback

I've been running to a group of overly-energized Christians lately taking massive offense to anyone who has an issue with "the church."  They'll start to aggressively post or say things about how church doesn't suck (a blog I recently saw on MySpace) or they'll start to talk about how their church has this program or that program and how it helps so many people.  They rant on and on about all the good things of their "church" and take pointed issue with anyone who doesn't march along to that happy-go-lucky beat that the "church" is wonderful.

The fact of the matter is that the modern definition of "church" is not wonderful and in many cases is does indeed "suck."  It's time that we wake up to the real state of what's going on in regards to God's church and quit trying to spin things to make ourselves feel better about the situations that we tend to find ourselves.

I'm not trying to say that there are not churches out there who are doing what God has called them to do and what they were instructed to do by Paul, Peter and the other disciples.  Unfortunately, the majority of "churches" in America do not really put God's word first in all they do but rather set up man-made rules and regulations and lean on those before they lean on the word of God. 

I'm talking about doctrinal statements and by-laws.  The "church constitutions" and other documents that churches use to define who they are and what they believe.  In and of themselves there is nothing wrong with having these documents but more often than not they become the basis for everything a church does regardless of whether or not the situation they're facing is a movement of God.  These rules and regulations can establish themselves to the point where pastors, deacons and elders will go to the church by-laws before they will crack open their Bibles.

We as Christians cannot stand for this.

The true church is God's people...you, me, your pastor and other Christians that you know.  In the truest sense of being the church, we could meet together in an abandoned bagel shop and sit around with flashlights reading the word, teaching each other and singing praises to our God.  It doesn't have to be a building with set service times and organizational committees.  It doesn't have to be a structured order of leadership with by-laws and doctrinal statements.  It just has to be a group of believers gathering together to worship the Lord and learn from His word.

That is the church that Paul and Peter and others in the Bible were writing to with their instructions.  They were meeting in houses or they were meeting together in open places.  They had people who rose up through gifts of the Spirit to be teachers and pastors but it wasn't about the order of service or the doctrinal by-laws.  It was about what God said and how the teachings stood up to the scrutiny of the Word of God.  The church was...and still is... the individuals that made it up.

For example:

"And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles." - Acts 8:1 (ESV)

The persecution was against "the church in Jerusalem" but the verse goes on to use the description that THEY were scattered throughout the regions.  If the "church" was just one entity...a single gathering within a building...then how could THEY be scattered?  You can't use "they" to describe one individual thing.  If you look through the Bible you will see many places where the word church is used with other words that describe groups of individual people. 

So if the "church" is really the people who believe in Christ, seek His face and want to do His will, then we need to make sure our focus is on them and not an entity known as "the church."  When we get to the point we focus on "the church" instead of the people within it then you reach a point where ministry and reaching out to the lost and needy becomes second to the purpose of advancing "the church."  The focus becomes building projects and church attendance levels and ways "the church" can be "seen" more in the community. 

Now, I've heard those who are fervently enamored with the "modern church" say that these doctrinal statements and rules are all lined up with scripture and because of that there is nothing wrong with them.  I'm sure there are many cases where doctrinal statements line up with scripture but it doesn't mean by default they are scripturally valid.  Doctrinal statements and other church writings are done by men and as such can be filtered by the biases and desires of the people writing those laws. 

For example, I know a church that has within it's by-laws that ten percent of the money it takes in each week has to go back out to mission work.  This church has taken all of that money and given it to foreign missions because the elders say that is what their by-laws tell them they have to do with the money.  It feeds the poor and clothes the naked in countries around the world.  Does that line up with scripture?  Yes, it does.

However, what about the hungry within their own community?  When this church refuses to give some of that money to help the needy within their own area are they lining up with scripture telling us to feed the hungry?  Now we have a case where the man-made doctrine which runs "the church" is in fact in direct conflict with the teachings of Christ.  Why should that attitude be celebrated?  Wouldn't you say a "church" that knowingly allows people in need to continue to suffer because they have rules about not helping them would "suck?"

What people need to realize is that the "church" as it's defined by the modern society is actually a subdivision of the real church and needs to be looked at as being exactly what it is.  The "church" can be a valuable asset and tool for the real church to grow and learn and have fellowship and help others but it cannot be the focus of what is done.  The focus has to be on Christ and Christ alone.  The Bible has to be the final authority when it comes to a conflict between the "way we've always done it" and when someone says that perhaps that way isn't correct. 

The people who are so quick to point the finger and judge others as "church bashing" should perhaps look deeper.  No matter how much we want to sit around and pretend that everything is fine and that "the church" is as healthy as it ever was there is a serious cancer within the real church.  We need to get in and root out the problem of focus on man's issues so that we can all come together as Christ's church and reach out to make an impact on this lost world. 

If you're someone who has for years clung to the concept that "church" is where you go every Sunday and Wednesday then I want to encourage you to think bigger.  Realize the church is your brothers and sisters in Christ at work, at school or just living down the street.  The "church" can gather together in a living room and just learn from each other as the Lord moves them to speak.  The "church" can be a group of friends at a coffee house on Friday night singing praise songs.  Once you realize the big picture of the true church then you can find it's easier to reach out over the lines drawn by man's doctrinal statements and by-laws and bring Christ's love to the world.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/the_church_is_not_a_building.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/the_church_is_not_a_building.trackback

I was visiting a website and there was a group of people slamming Christians for giving any blame to Satan when we commit a sin.  They tried to claim that the only sin comes from within us and when you say it's Satan you're doing nothing but avoiding your personal responsibility. 

They get this idea from passages like this:

" So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being,but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members." - Romans 7:21-23 (ESV)

I can see where someone could try and build a case for the contention that sin only comes from us.  In the purest sense, Satan cannot make us sin.  We can give into the temptations he puts in front of us and therefore we commit a sin but in the strict sense sin comes from within ourselves.

Still, the impression left is that sin is independent from temptation.  That sin is just there, it's always there and if you give into sin then it's purely your fault.  It puts the onus completely on your shoulders as if you were out seeking to fulfill the desires that come in your weakest areas of life.

While I'm all about personal responsibility and taking ownership of the sins you make and asking for forgiveness it's an incomplete picture to discount the level of impact Satan can play in the way sin eats away at our lives.  We can be going along in our life perfectly fine and not even thinking about something that can tempt us to stray when Satan will have the perfect temptation cross our path.  Yes, if we give into sin, it's our fault for doing so.  That doesn't mean Satan didn't play a part in it.

So when you face that person telling you that a Christian who falls into sin needs to "suck it up" and own what they did agree with them.  Then explain the bigger picture to them.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/its_not_all_us.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/its_not_all_us.trackback

I've been reading a lot regarding spiritual warfare and thinking about the many different ways that Satan can attack and try to twist us away from the will of the Lord.  He's very sneaky and very good at what he does.  I've had many of my fellow Christians jump on me for giving any "credit" to Satan but I think until we really understand our enemy we cannot really be ready for his assaults upon us.

I was thinking about one of the most creative ways that Satan can work against us and we don't even realize it.  Indeed, this attack can take a form all it's own where we end up taking the ball and running with it for Satan.  It's when we get to the point we have to ask ourselves "is God telling me to do..."

Now, it's not that God doesn't allow us to be tested and that He wouldn't let us be in a place where we need to turn to Him to discern His will for us.  Of course that's Scriptural...just look at Job.  However, it's not always the case and if Satan can get in front of us with ideas that God has different plans for us he can render us ineffective.

"But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil." - Hebrews 5:14 (ESV)

The part that jumps out at me is the "constant practice."  Wouldn't it be great if we only had to do that once or twice to know if it's God giving us direction or if it's the enemy misleading us?  I strive to get to the point where I'm eating the solid food and can know right away good from evil but I'll admit that there are times when I'm just not sure. 

So when you face a situation where you wonder something huge regarding your walk with Christ and where you are in your calling in life ask yourself if it's from Him or not.  Take the time to determine who is creating the situation around you.  Are you feeling like you should leave your church because you really have no impact and that God is calling you somewhere that you can actually make a difference in ministry?  Is that from God or is that Satan trying to make you think that so you can be taken away from a place that God is preparing you for greater things? 

Take caution to approach these situations with prayer and a sincere desire to see the will of God.  Only then can you make a wise decision about where to go.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/decisions_decisions.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/decisions_decisions.trackback

Just a quick blog today that hit me as I was gearing up for work.

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven." - Ecclesiastes 3:1 (ESV)

We all know that verse...even those of us who aren't Christians and never read the Bible thanks to that great song by the Byrds.  We place the events of our day in a schedule and we launch into it.  Many times things that we didn't schedule...but are important...get forgotten until we have an "oh no" moment and scramble to get it done.

Most of the time it's time with God, our Bible study, our daily devotionals or just simple prayer time.  We don't schedule it...we just take it in stride through the day.

Today, I challenge you to rewrite your schedule to make sure God is first.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/fit_this_into_your_schedule.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/fit_this_into_your_schedule.trackback

There's an old saying that there are three sides to every story...yours, mine and the truth.  No matter how hard we try there are always going to be little things that we see through the filter of our own self interest.

I remember a scene from the latest James Bond movie where M tells Bond to "take your ego out of the equasion and judge the situation dispassionately."  Bond responds in his usual glib way saying "so you want me to be half-monk, half-hitman?"  I laughed at it but the more I think about it we are in the same situation as Bond many more times than we would like to admit.  We get into the heat of whatever the situation and we can't take our emotions out of the equasion and make sure that we see the actual truth and base our decisions from that point.

I think of all the times we call on the Lord when we're in a situation asking Him to do something for us.  We want Him to bring us that great job or the love of our life or the fancy car, house, boat or HDTV.  We ask for "stuff" and very rarely do we sit back and look at our situation enough to ask Him for what we truly need in our lives.  The truth of the situation is hard for us to accept so we just spin the truth to fit our needs.

"The LORD is near to all who call on him,to all who call on him in truth." - Psalm 145:18 (ESV)

I'm ashamed to say there are many times where I've called on God and it hasn't been in truth.  I may have THOUGHT that it was in truth but I was so emotionally invested in a situation that the actual truth was the furthest thing from what was in my head.  It's sometimes almost impossible to pray completely in truth but fortunately God understands us and our emotions. 

It's one of those times where we need to just pray for God's will to be done because no matter what the situation there is one truth that we can always count upon...that God's will is perfect for us.  The truth we can always pray is that God's will be done in our lives.  I don't know about you but that's the only truth I really need.

Permalink:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/just_like_james_bond.html

Trackback URL:
http://www.myccm.org/post/bible/blog/just_like_james_bond.trackback