Applying the Gospel in the New Year

It has been nearly a year of radio silence, or should I say blogging silence. A lot happened in 2015, much of it was wonderful: we finalized Gloria's adoption, I turned 40, and I became a doctor (of Education). Some of it was not wonderful: I have wrestled with diabetes, my contract at adult ed. wasn't renewed, and I got the flu. Throughout the year I found my resolved tested, and at times, I wasn't sure I would make it through, but by the grace of God, I have begun a new year.

Writing has always been a dream of mine, but somewhere in the back of my mind I didn't believe I had what it takes to be a writer. Having completed a doctoral thesis, I now know what I was lacking--perseverance. This blog got placed on a shelf as I did the hard work of writing my thesis and wrestling with my own insecurities.

During my course work at seminary, they called it "impostor syndrome." I think most people feel it no matter what they are doing: writing, studying, working, parenting, etc. It's a nagging voice somewhere deep inside that says, "You don't belong here. You don't have anything to contribute. If you don't turn back now, they will all know you're a fraud." Maybe you have felt that way. Maybe the voice you hear is meaner. Maybe it wants you to believe you don't have the right to enjoy your life.

But have you ever stopped to consider that the voice is wrong? The Bible teaches that every human being is created in the image of God (it also teaches that the image is marred because the presence of sin in the human heart, but that is a post for another day). Because we are image bearers, we all have something to offer. Whatever knowledge, experience, or skill set you possess, you are uniquely fitted to transform the environment in which you find yourself.

While you may be painfully aware of every one of your weaknesses and limitations, you must also become aware of your abilities, talents, strengths, and gifts. While it is not impossible to live a life of purpose without being aware God, it is certainly much more difficult. It is also much more dangerous because you might live your life for the wrong purpose.

The best way to combat that accusing voice is to apply the gospel. Humanity was made to be different, to live in communion with God, but sinned broke that relationship. All human beings are guilty of sin, and we feel it, even when we don't know how to express it, explain it, or even if we don't believe it. It manifests itself as guilt, shame, feelings of inferiority, feelings of superiority, pride, prejudice, and so on. God in his mercy sent his Son, Jesus to become like us, and to give his life as an offering for ours. He paid our penalty, so that we might share in his righteousness. Through that gift, God calls everyone everywhere to repent of their sin and believe in Jesus Christ. To accept his death and resurrection as the solution for our sin.

What does it look like to apply the gospel? Imagine the voice returns to you and says, "You don't belong." You can say, "Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ (see Rom. 8:31-39)." The voice tells you, "You're a failure!" You can say, "I have an advocate with the Father, Christ Jesus the Righteous (See 1 John 2:1-2)." The voice screams, "Nobody loves you." You can say, "But God shows his love to us in that while we were sinners Christ died for us (Rom. 5:8)."

If you are trusting Christ as the sole source of your righteousness with God, then you belong, and nothing can change that. To that end, I invite you to join me in the coming year as I renew my commitment to this project. I don't assume I have all the answers, but I want to share what I'm learning. The articles that I post will center on the things that view as most important: the gospel, the Bible, discipleship, family (marriage and parenting), and more. There will be several changes coming this blog in the weeks and months ahead. I hope you join me on this journey.

Some Good News

Good news is hard to come by these days. In a 30 minute report, there seems to be a lifetime of bad news. We all yearn for good news. Throughout human history, humanity longs for good news. Mark tells us some good news in his Gospel. It's good news that centers on Jesus. In Mark 1:1-8, we see several reasons that message of Jesus is truly good news.

1. Jesus is the subject of the gospel (literally "good news"). The message is about Jesus. The narrative focuses on his person and work.

2. Jesus is God's Anointed. The term "Christ" or "Messiah" means anointed. In the Old Testament, there were three offices to which people were anointed: prophet, priest, and king. Until Jesus, no one had been all three. Jesus is Prophet, Priest, and King. As Prophet he reveals God to his people, as Priest he sacrificed himself to redeem God's people, and as King he reigns over God's kingdom.

3. His is the Son of God. This term stresses the unique relationship Jesus has to the Father. It demonstrates his divinity.

4. He is the subject of prophecy. Most scholars point out two prophecies in Mark 1:2-3, they are Malachi 3:1 and Isaiah 40:3. The Scriptures that Mark quotes are of the Lord speaking of himself, but as Mark quotes them they are the Father speaking to the Son. These, too, point to Jesus' divinity.

5. Jesus brings the offer of forgiveness to the repentant. If the message of Jesus' forerunner, John, was a call to repentance with a promise of forgiveness, it is logical to conclude that Jesus provides that forgiveness to those who turn to him.

6. Jesus baptizes with the Holy Spirit. John's baptism was important, but not eternal. John couldn't change a person's heart with water. However, Jesus can and does change a person's heart through the indwelling of the Spirit.

The message of Christ is life changing. It has the power to transform anyone who receives it in faith. I hope this good news is transforming your life, too.

Broken Beyond Repair?

Have you ever been overwhelmed by a profound sense of being broken?  I'm not speaking of kind of broken spoken of by David in Psalm 51:17, "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise."  I mean do you ever feel like you are damaged goods.  Do you look at the shards of your life, and find them overwhelming.

While sitting in a meeting tonight, it hit me tonight.  For a brief and intensely uncomfortable moment, I felt broken beyond repair.  It felt like I was only fit for the garbage pile.  I felt childhood wounds burst open with a pus-like flow of negative emotions.  Memories cauterized by time were ripped open, scars, long healed, were opened anew as well.  In that moment, I felt like a shattered vase.

The truth is we are all broken.  You may not feel it, but you are.  The whole human race is in ruins.  Sin has ruined our fair race, and enslaved us to brokenness.  As Paul states, "We have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23).  We are all broken, and are only fit for destruction.

However, destruction is not the desire of God's heart.  Peter states, "the Lord . . . is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance"  (2 Pet. 3:9, ESV).  Even though we should receive death, because of the sin in our lives, God in his grace welcomes us to come to him through Jesus Christ the Son (see Rom. 6:23).  As we reflect on the brokenness sin has inflicted in our lives, it is easy to say with Paul, "Wretched man that I am! Who will save me from this body of death?" (Rom 7:24, ESV).

If we will cry out in earnestness with Paul we can share in his consolation: "Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!  So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.  There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 7:25-8:1, ESV).

If you feel broken beyond repair, if your emotional scars feel ragged and fresh, if you yearn to put the pieces back together, then reach out, in faith, and cling to Christ Jesus.  Are you ready to place yourself in his hands and allow him to mend your brokenness?  He is able to transform the shards of your life into a work of beauty.

Good News of Great Joy

"And the angel said to them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord'" (Luke 2:10-11, ESV).

As we gather to celebrate the coming of Christ, we are proclaiming good news of great joy.  We are sharing a message that has brought hope and transformation for nearly two thousand years.  We are proclaiming that the long awaited hope of deliverance has come into the world.  We are proclaiming that sin and death no longer have the right to reign over mankind.  The rightful King as come, and in his coming he brought life.

The heart of the message of Christmas is that sinners no longer have to fear the wrath of God.  The proclamation of Christmas is that God has sent his Lamb into the world, to be a substitutionary atonement, on behalf of fallen man.  Christmas means that God is pleased to dwell among the image bearers, and has made it possible by reconciling all things to himself through Jesus Christ.

Christmas proclaims the reality of sin, and the truth that man needs a Savior.  The angel says, "For unto you is born . . . a Savior, who is Christ the Lord."  The fact that he was born to be the Savior indicates that Creation needed to be saved.  Even the name Jesus means Salvation.  The title Christ (Messiah) reminds us that he was "anointed" for this task.  Thus, the anointed Savior came into the world to redeem mankind by offering up himself as a ransom.

So this Christmas, take time to consider if you have received the greatest gift of all, the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ our Savior.  Savor the goodness of the message--Jesus saves.  Rejoice with great joy that he has stilled your fears, and brought peace between you and God.  And Remember, that Jesus has ascended on high, where he reigns over all of Creation, and that he still delights in saving those who don't yet know him.

Art work from: PicturesofJesus4You.com.

Come, Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy

Come, ye sinners, poor and needy, Weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you, Full of pity, love and pow'r.

Come, ye thirsty, come, and welcome, God's free bounty glorify;
True belief and true repentance, Ev'ry grace that brings you nigh.

Chorus:I will arise and go to Jesus, He will embrace me in his arms;
In the arms of my dear Savior, O there are ten thousand charms.

Come, ye weary, heavy laden, Lost and ruined by the fall;
If you tarry till you're better, You will never come at all.

Let not conscience make you linger, Nor a fitness fondly dream;
All the fitness he requireth Is to feel your need of him.
Joseph Hart

"If you tarry till you're better, You will never come at all." These words powerfully capture the heart of our predicament. We have been so weakened and ruined by the fall that we need the Lord to enable us to trust him. We lack the moral fitness necessary to please God, but he does not require us to be fit. He makes us fit when we trust him. This hymn, "Come, Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy," offers a living hope to a dying world.

This song captures the essence of the gospel. It begins with the fallen condition of mankind and drives the listener to flee to Christ as our only source of hope. The song reminds us that conviction of sin is a grace meant to draw us to Christ in true faith and repentance. It reminds us that Jesus "ready stands to save" us.

Several years ago, I heard the gospel call and my heart echoed these words: "I will arise and go to Jesus, He will embrace me in his arms; in the arms of my dear Savior, O there are ten thousand charms." To this day he has not let me go, nor will he ever. And for that, I will be eternally grateful.

The Lord Our Shepherd

I used to wonder what it meant in the Scriptures when it said that Jesus looked at the people like they were sheep without a shepherd. The more I am beginning to understand the depth of the fallenness of our world the, the more I understand. When you look at a mother, brokenhearted, sitting by the bedside of her sick child, or a man confused about why his wife left, or someone trapped in addiction spiraling out of control, It isn't hard to understand what it means.]

Satan is like a wild animal, tearing at the lambs of God. His tactics are usually the same. First, he separates them from the flock. It's easier to pick them off one at a time. When people start missing the worship gatherings at their local church, it is wise to see if you smell "wolf" in the air. Maybe they are sick, maybe it is something much more dangerous.

Once he has got them alone, he begins to terrorize them. He howls blood-curdling accusations at them, speaking guilt and condemnation. He then begins to come at them from different sides. His goal is to keep their eyes off of the Shepherd. He has to keep them blind to the fact that the Shepherd is near by, or else they would call out for help. He keeps them helpless and hopeless, so they think that crying out would be useless.

They have forgotten that the gospel informs us that our condemnation has fallen on Jesus. He paid for our sin on the cross. This truth doesn't give us the authority to sin at will. It informs us of his gracious love towards us that saves us from sin--past, present, and future. It shapes in us the motivation to live righteous lives.

We must continually reach out to the harassed and helpless with the truth of the gospel. Jesus doesn't just want to save, he wants to shepherd. When the Lord is our Shepherd we shall not want. When the Lord is our Shepherd he guards us with his rod and staff. When the Lord is our Shepherd, we share in his desire to increase his flock the the proclamation of the gospel. We all like sheep went astray, but having been found by the Great Shepherd, we must seek to help the "lost" sheep we encounter find their way to the Shepherd.