NASCAR and the things I learned

Yesterday, I went to my first NASCAR event, the Coca Cola 600.  It is billed as the biggest Memorial Day Weekend celebration.  I believe it.  You could not leave the pre-race events without knowing that everyone there, appreciated our country and those who have given their lives to protect our freedom.  So before I begin, let me say thank you to all who have served our country and especially those who gave their lives ensuring and protecting our freedom.

I have lived in the backyard of the speedway for over 25 years and have never been to a race until yesterday.  It was fun, especially watching the people.  For the life of me, I cannot figure out why someone would think that waving at their favorite driver or signaling their hated driver with one finger, while a car is going by them at 200 MPH makes a difference.  By the time you got your hand up, the driver was already passed turn two.  And I am sure at 200 MPH the driver is watching the stands, NOT.  But if it makes them feel better, more power to them.

What I learned the most is the truth of what everyone had already told me.  You cannot appreciate the race, watching it on TV.   You really do not see how fast the cars are running watching a television.  You do not see the power of the cars and the drivers' mastery over them until you have been to the race.  I am amazed at all that I saw.

Which leads me to what I learned.  When you watch a race from a distance (via TV), you are not drawn to it.  It is only up close that you appreciate all that is involved.  Maybe that is our problem as a church.  We keep lostness at a distance.  We create our own Christian world with our friends and very rarely interact with lost people.  When we separate ourselves from them, we see them only from a distance.  From a distance, we are not drawn into their lives to find ways to share Christ.  Maybe it is time we find some lost friends to interact with them so that we can share Christ.

Words, Oprah, and Harold Camping

The words we use are fraught with meaning.  But what happens from time to time is that we use the same words with each other but change their meaning.  Harold Camping is an obvious example.  Instead of saying He was wrong in his prediction, he changed the meaning of the words.  Most Christians who use the word rapture, mean a physical disappearance of the saints when Jesus comes.  Camping, says now he was right but it was a spiritual coming.  That is on May 21, Jesus chose all who will be saved at the end of the world in October.  As he went onto explain, Camping demonstrated the source of all his predictions.  For he said, there is now no reason for anyone to go to church.  There is no hope, no one else can be saved.  Who else but Satan, would want people to stay out of church, and lose hope that salvation could be found. 


But what does this have to do with Oprah.  Yesterday, as she closed her show after twenty five years, Oprah made reference to God, Jesus, grace, life and hope.  Many Christians celebrated Oprah's coming out and proclaiming her faith in God.  The problem is that Oprah uses the same words but changes the definition.  Oprah admittedly has blended her "baptist" faith with her new age beliefs.  She believes that Jesus came to show us our own Christ consciouness or higher consciousness.  Oprah's gospel is another path to self help.  The gospel of Jesus Christ not only calls us to die to self but teaches us that we cannot do anything to save ourselves.  We must rest totally in the finished work of Christ on our behalf.

Words have meaning.  As Christians we need to be aware that many people in the world use the same words we do, but they may mean something entirely different.  We need to proclaim clearly to all what the gospel is, and explain the words we use.  Otherwise, we take the risk of assuming that someone is saved because they used the right words.  Think about it.

More Devastating than a Tornado

Our prayers go out to all the families that have been devastated by the tornadoes.  Some have lost their lives, others have lost their house and everything they owned.  I am grateful for the many volunteers who are working tirelessly to meet the needs of those who are hurting.  It is amazing how such destruction can bring out the best in so many.

But as terrible as the tornadoes have been, there is a destructive force that is sweeping across our nation, not destroying houses but destroying homes.  As I write this, I want you to know that my prayers are with those whose lives have been touched by this devastating force.  So what I write is not said in judgment but compassion for those whose lives have been hurt.

The devastating force that I am referring to is divorce.  Divorce has swept a path across our land and have left a path of destruction in its wake.  For some it comes because of unfaithfulness, for others it comes because the hard price of maintaining a relationship has not been paid.  For some it comes because of abuse for others it comes from abandonment.  Our nation chose to make marriage a commitment less binding then most business contracts and it has cost so many.

The Bible says that when a couple gets married, the two become one flesh.  When they are separated it is like chopping off an arm.  There is hurt and pain both for the couple and for their children.  The family is the foundation of society.  It is an institution older than any other including the church and should be honored. 

We need to pray for our families.  We need to work hard to make our marriages and families strong.  We need to support those whose families have been broken for they are hurting.  We need to honor our homes.   Think about it.

Tornadoes, Floods, and the Judgment of God

After watching the devastation caused by tornadoes in Joplin Missouri and seeing the floods along the Mississippi River many people ask where was God in all this.  Some answer the question by saying there is no God, for if there was He would not allow such events to occur.  Although these same people will have insurance that cover "acts of God."  Others answer by saying, God was bringing judgment against sin.  Still others answer, "I don't know."

Obviously these events are not blessings from God but should we say they are God's judgment against sin.  I recognize when you say that it is God's judgment, some will cry out "but good people were hurt by these events".  Even Christians were injured and even killed by these destructive forces.  How could one call this judgment.

The answer lies in seeing judgment not as individual but as corporate.  There are tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, and tsunamis in the world because sin is in the world.  God created this world and in the beginning, nature was never designed to create such cataclysmic forces.  But when sin entered the world through Adam and Eve's sin, then a curse entered the world.  God said in Genesis 3:17, "cursed is the ground because of you;" 

Floods, tornadoes and such events are judgment not on individual sin but on a world that is fallen.  They will occur until Jesus comes again.  But why did God choose to curse this planet.  He did so not merely as punishment but for redemption.  In the midst of these terrible events, God speaks and calls people back to Himself, C.S. Lewis said, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains:  it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world."

It is through these events that God awakens us to Himself.  For some it will be the realization that they can gain the whole world but lose their soul.  For others it will be the compassion of individuals that will drive people to the cross.  By whatever means, God is speaking to people whose lives have been devastated by tragedy and calling them to Himself.  He is taking the worse of all circumstances and redeeming it and bringing something good out of it.

Now I cannot answer the question why were some were devastated by these events and some were spared.  I do not know.  I do know that these events occur and God is greater then them all.  My prayers are with all the people who are hurting.  I am grateful that God is allowing Christians to put feet to our prayers through ministries such as Baptist Men Disaster Relief and Recovery teams who are ministering to the hurts of so many.  I encourage you support such organizations with your offerings and with your volunteering.  We can be the hands of God to comfort the afflicted and bring the hope of the gospel to those in need. Think about it. 

The World Goes On

I was just thinking that many people who have mocked Harold Campings prediction will find satisfaction that the world did not end, the rapture did not occur.  Many of those, who are satisfied, will find this failed prediction as further evidence that there will not be a judgment.  But nothing can be further from the truth.  Just because Jesus did not come today, does not mean that He will never come.

The Bible says that Jesus will come like a thief in the night.  That is His coming will be unexpected.  People will be going on in their daily lives without concern.  And I am sure that after all the hoopla over this weekend, people will go on without considering that judgment day is coming.

As I said in my last post, our job as Christians is not to focus on when, but trust in the promise.  That promise drives us to be His witnesses for we need to make sure that as many people are ready.  The only way for people to be ready for the day of judgment, is to trust Jesus Christ, who faced judgment on our behalf.  It may be harder for people to believe for awhile, but that should not deter us.  We are called to continue to be His witness until Jesus does come again.  Think about it.

Not so Wise

Jesus told us to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.  We as Christians may be innocent but we are not always wise.  I was reading today the response to the Harold Camping's prediction that the "rapture" will May 21.  There are those who believe and are waiting expectantly and others are watching condescendingly.  A Facebook page has been created titled, "Post rapture looting".  It offers the following invitation.  "When everyone is gone and god's not looking, we need to pick up some sweet stereo equipment and maybe some new furniture for the mansion we're going to squat in." There are already nearly 200,000 who are attending the event. 

I recognize that Camping did not create the attitude, he just revealed it.  And what is sad is that when May 21 comes and goes and Jesus does not return, Camping not only makes himself look foolish but makes the cause of Christ look foolish.  Don't get me wrong, I believe that Jesus is coming again, we just do not know when.  But when we begin to set dates, are focus is on the wrong things.

In Acts 1, the disciples asked Jesus for a time and date, when he would establish His kingdom.  Jesus answer was it was not for them to know.  Our focus should not be on times and dates but we are to be witnesses of Christ throughout the whole world.  Our job is not to focus on the date, but to trust that one day Jesus is coming again.  Until then, we need to testify to the truth of Jesus Christ in order to help as many people as possible to be ready for that day.  When we focus on setting dates we not only forget our mission, we hurt it. Think about it.

A Matter of Honor

I heard a statement recently that I really believe that we as a church should learn to practice.  The person said, honor is given but respect is earned.  Our culture has forgotten that there is a difference between respect and honor.  We believe we should only honor those we respect.  But the Bible says in Romans 12:10 “Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.”  We should give honor to all people.  In fact it should be a competition in every church as to how much honor we give to one another.

You do not have to approve of someone’s behavior to honor them.  You honor them because of who they are not what they do.  They are your brother or sister in Christ.  They have been bought with a price.  They are God’s treasured possession therefore you can honor them as such.  We may not respect everyone when they behave in a manner not worthy of the Gospel.  But who hasn’t?  We are all saints and at the same time sinners.  We all at times do not live respectably, yet we are still children of God.

When we honor people we free them to earn respect.   If the church is not a place where people are loved and honored, then people will try to live respectably out of a since of obligation or out of fear that they will be rejected.   This becomes a drudge because the church is not a place of grace but of law.  The church becomes a place of judgment rather than a place of freedom.  Over time, people will give up because the burden is too great.  However, if people are honored then they live respectably because they are loved.   People will not be afraid that they will be rejected when they mess up and fail to live respectably but rather they will know that they are secure in the relationship and work harder to live the way they ought.

If find it difficult to respect the people around you, try honoring them.  In so doing you will create an environment where people are willing to change.  Think about it.

The End of the World

Will May 21 be the end of the world, as Harold Camping says?   Will it be 2012 as the Mayans say?  Is judgment day coming?  Well yes and no.  It may surprise some of you that judgment day has already happened.  Jesus said, "now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out.  In context, Jesus was referring to his death on the cross.  It is at the cross that judgment takes place.  All sin must be punished.  We will one day face that judgment unless that punishment has already been meted out.  If we put our faith in Jesus Christ then our sin was placed on Jesus and judgment has been made.

The deciding factor for you is whether or not you put your faith in Jesus Christ.  If you trust Christ, judgment has happened and the punishment for your sin has been placed on Christ.  If you choose not to trust Christ, then you will bear the punishment for your sin.  You will face a terrible day of judgment but remember by choosing to reject Christ, you are choosing that day.

When will that day be?  I don’t know, in fact no one knows.  I remember seeing a book entitled, “88 reasons why Jesus will return in 1988”.  Obviously, they were wrong.  Will it be May 21?  I don’t know. If I were God and were planning on that day, I would change it to make them wrong.  When will it occur.   It could be today or tomorrow.  It could be next year.  It could be at any time.  But I am not afraid.  I am ready for that day because I have trusted Christ.  How about you?  Think about it.

Good Enough

One of the truths of the Christian life is that you will not grow in holiness until you grow in grace.  That is you will never progress in the Christian life until you truly begin to understand the grace that saved us.  As a Christian, you not only are called to repent of your sins, you are also called to repent of your good works.  The Bible teaches us that our righteousness is but filthy rags in the sight of God.  Most Christians understand that verse to mean that we cannot earn our salvation, which is true.  But most Christians somehow think that our righteousness is transformed after we trust Christ for our salvation.  We work to make God pleased with us.  What we fail to understand is that even after we are a saved our works are still filthy rags.  We grow in holiness but we are only as holy as a saved sinner can be.  That is our holiness and our good works in this world are still tainted with sin.

The truth of the matter is that we cannot work as a believer to make God pleased with us.  God is already pleased with us because He sees Christ’s righteousness in us.  When we come to comprehend how gracious God is towards us in Christ, we begin to fall in love with Him.  As we love Him and become obsessed with Him, then we grow in holiness.  And as we grow in holiness, we grow in our understanding of how gracious God is.  Think About It.

Greater than the National Debt

The United Sates national debt is so astronomical that it is hard to fathom.  For me to write the number would not serve a purpose because before I could finish it, the figure would be obsolete.  But here it goes anyway.  As of this writing the debt is $14,368,471,397,764.  We have forgotten the words of Thomas Jefferson who said that our greatest fear as a nation should be public debt.  With the amount we owe, we have lost our fear.  Yet there is a debt far greater than this.



The debt that is greater than our national debt is the debt I owe to God.  Jesus taught us to pray forgive us our debt as we forgive our debtors.  Our sin is a debt that we owe to God.  Our sin has made us indebted to a holy God.  It is greater than the national debt because of who we owe. 

The good news is that God has chosen to pay the debt for us.  The price was paid on the cross and the receipt was given at the resurrection.  When we put our faith in Christ, our debt is gone and now there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Yet, Jesus told us to pray forgive us our debts.  Why? Although we do not lose our relationship with God, we do fall out of fellowship with Him.   Yet God continually chooses to forgive us.  When we have been forgiven, our outlook changes and we are able to continually forgive others.  The ones who have been forgiven find it easier to forgive.  God has forgiven you more than the national debt.  That fact should transform you.  Think about it!

Osama Obama and the Truth

Shortly after the announcement of Osama Bin Laden's death, people began clamoring for proof that he in fact was dead.  President Obama then began considering the decision whether or not to release the photographs of Bin Laden's corpse.  I believe he made the correct decision not to release the photos.  There is no legitimate need for us to see the photographs.  Bin Laden is dead, that is all we need to know.

But why the clamor about releasing the photographs.  Why do people need proof.  The answer is that too many people did not trust the messenger.  Some people want proof because they will not believe President Obama, just as there are some people who would not believe President Bush.  Some people will not believe because it is the government who tells them.  What I find interesting is that the very same people who will not believe the word most likely will not believe the pictures if they saw them. 

Which leads me to a truth about witnessing.  There are people who have legitimate questions about our faith, which we are called to answer.  We are called to give a reason for the hope that is in us.  And we do have reasons.  Yes, we come to Christ by faith, but our faith is reasonable.  Our faith is not a blind leap but a rational faith based on the evidence. 

Some people who ask us questions are genuinely searching for the truth.  Some who ask questions do not care to have the answers.  They will not believe no matter how reasonable our explanation is.  How do we tell the difference between the two?  Sometimes it is attitude, but sometimes we do not know.  Therefore, we still give the reasons and leave the results to God.

Fall From Grace

When you hear the words fall from grace, you may think of people who committed really serious sins.  You may even think of a preacher or an evangelist who has committed sexual sin or fraud.  But how the Bible speaks of falling from grace may surprise you.  Galatians 5:4 says, "you are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace."  When we try to save our selves by following the law, we fall from grace.

But who would want to do that?  Surprisingly, many Christians know that they are saved by grace but try to live the Christian life by their works.  We can substitute many things for grace.  Some of us substitute grace with formalism.   As long as I attend church, carry my Bible, give my offering, I am growing in grace.  Doing these things may be important but it doesn't change our lives.

Others of us substitute legalism for grace.  We want a set of rules to follow.  The good thing about our rules is that they reflect what we find easy to keep.  A good Christian doesn't drink, play cards, chew tobacco, go to movies.  Just fill in the blank with something that does not tempt you and you keep the rule.  But rules do no change our lives.

Some of us what to substitute grace with Bible knowledge.  We know what the Bible says, but do not live it.  The list goes on of things that we do rather than trust.  Christian growth does not happen when we focus on what we do, keep the rules, or increase our knowledge.  Christian growth happens when we obsess about Jesus.  The greatest work we have to do as a believer is to believe, trust and love Jesus.  When we do we remain in grace.

Conditionally Unconditional

Is God's love unconditional?  I may very well surprise you with my answer.  But before I do, let me preface my answer with a comment.  I have said before and still believe that there is nothing that I can do to make God love me more and there is nothing I can do to make God love me less.  Sounds pretty unconditional but my answer to the question is that God's love is conditional.

I know it sounds like I am contradicting myself, but I am not.  God's love is not unconditional, He just chose to meet the conditions for me.  That is grace.  God's conditions for love and acceptance is perfection and I am far from perfect.  But God met that condition for me in Christ.

In order for me to attain perfection, I must not have any sin.  Therefore, Christ was not only the propitiation for my sin (He covered my sin with His blood, so that His wrath was borne by Jesus rather than me) but He is my expiation.  My sin has been carried away by Christ.  My sin has been cast as far as the east is from the west.  It has been carried away from God's presence so that He sees me without sin, because it went on Christ.

But that is only half of the story.  Without my sin, I am still not perfect.  In order to be perfect, I have to have a perfect righteousness.  I have to keep God's commandments, perfectly.  Obviously, I have not, but Jesus has.  Therefore, God takes Christ's righteousness and credits it to my account.  When God sees me, He sees His Son's righteousness and says to me well done.

It is no wonder that John Newton could write the words, "Amazing Grace how sweet the sound."  God has required so much to love me, but has met those requirements Himself through His only begotten Son.  I receive all that God has for me by grace through faith in Christ alone. Have you received what you desperately need from God.  Think about it.

Love Wins and Osama Bin Laden

I did not hear about the death of Bin Laden until this morning.  I turned on the television and saw video of people cheering about the news outside of the White House.  So I asked myself, should a Christian cheer the death of Bin Laden?  I definitely understand the feeling, after all this was the man who was the one who ultimately was responsible for 9/11 and the death of so many Americans.  Why would we not cheer?

But to cheer the death of Bin Laden without reflection is to miss the point.  We cheer because justice was served.  Human justice that is.  An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth was met.  Bin Laden ordered the attacks that killed so many, and now he died from a bullet from an American Navy Seal.  Now, Bin Laden faces divine justice and love wins

 But what does love have to do with justice?  Love does not rejoice in wrong doing  but rejoices in the truth 1 Corinthians 13:6.  Ultimately love cannot allow wrong doing to go unpunished it must be judged.  And it will be Bin Laden and it will be for all of us.  But rejoice at Bin Laden's death without realizing that we will all face God's judgment one day is folly.

We must all realize that the hate that caused Bin Laden to kill so many, lives in each of our hearts.  We may not have taken someones life, but the anger, resentment, and contempt we show for others that leads to murder is in our hearts.  God's standard is perfection and we have all fallen short.  We will all meet God's judgment.

The good news is that God has provided us a way to stand in the judgments.  At the cross of Christ, God's love and justice meet.  God loved us enough to take the punishment that we deserve for our sin and place it upon His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.  In order to stand in the judgment, we must stand with Christ and we can do so by putting our faith and trust in Him today.  Have you trusted Christ, if you have not you will stand alone in the judgment and you will not rejoice on that day.

So should we rejoice at the death of Bin Laden, I don't know.  But I do know that I can rejoice, because God has provided grace.  Love wins, when you trust Christ alone for your salvation.