Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Do you yearn for Heaven and to be with Jesus?

Every time I try to think about eternity and Heaven I am overwhelmed by the vastness of it all. I have said many times it seems to me like a vast ocean that can never be fully explored or understood, but can be experienced in part. I know a bunch of the theological explanations about eternity and I accept them, but that still doesn't mean I understand the concept. Eternity is forever, totally void of our understanding of time and space. History, current events, future planning - none of that really makes sense when you really try to focus on eternity. Here is what I believe in a nutshell:

  1. Eternal life is real - and I'm living a taste of it now!
  2. Depending on the life we choose, we will take one of two eternal paths - what the Bible calls Heaven and Hell.
  3. The offer has been made to every person to embrace the man Jesus as Son of God, Savior of sins, Lord of life. Doing that grants one entry into the eternal kind of life I am living now.
  4. Somehow, in ways I don't fully understand, aspects of that eternal life - peace, joy, deliverance from sin, transformation into Christlikeness, hope, etc. - are already taking shape in me. Indeed, as the days and weeks go by I can see it taking shape more and more.
  5. The eternal kind of life I hope for in Heaven is so much different and greater that it simply blows my mind to try and define it.
  6. Sadly, the hellish alternative is just as impossible to fully grasp in all its terrible consequences . . . and I am thankful Jesus has kept me from that experience. And I pray that my life will be used by Him to keep others from that experience as well.
  7. In the present, based on my eternal trajectory, I am either bringing Hell to earth or Heaven to earth. Not that my life will be Heaven on earth, but my life in Christ should bring tastes of Heaven to me and to those around me. For those who are not in Christ, the opposite is the case.

I long for more and more signs of Heaven in my life, for more signs of the holiness that Jesus is bringing and seeks to bring to me. And I also long for more and more people to experience Heaven with me some day.

How about you? How do you understand God’s eternal reality to be shaping your life?

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Are you a quicker forgiver?

Forgiveness is a non-negotiable in the life of a Christian. On one hand, we must be forgiven for the offenses we commit. On the other hand, we must forgive those who commit offenses against us.

There are far too many texts in the Bible to mention on this subject, even if we limit them to Jesus own words. However, here are a couple of key passages from the mouth of Jesus:

“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.” – Matthew 5:23-24

“For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” – Matthew 6:14-15

“And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” – Mark 11:25-26

“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” – Luke 6:37-38

We cannot ignore these powerful commands or treat them as optional and still be followers of Jesus. That means we have to come to terms with the unforgiveness in our lives any time it appears.

In my experience, when people hold onto unforgiveness it’s usually because they don’t understand what forgiveness is or they have never received it themselves. Here are some examples:

1. People mistakenly believe forgiveness says what was done against us is “OK.”

2. People wrongly believe that forgiving someone means getting into the position where they are free to hurt us again.

3. People have only received a poor substitute for forgiveness, like when someone makes it conditional or temporary.

4. People incorrectly believe that if they truly forgive they will forget what happened.

All of these (and many more like them) notions are wrong and if they get mixed up in our understanding of forgiveness we end up poisoning this beautiful gift God offers us.

Instead, forgiveness is about allowing God’s forgiving love and peace for us to bring us to the place where we can be whole and free. It is about His supernatural power vindicating us, making clear to us and to others that we were wronged. It is about protecting us from the offender in such a way that we do not become like them. It is about receiving the unconditional acceptance and love of God in such a way that we are able to offer a portion of it to others. Finally, it is about remembering that offense as it truly is, but releasing our right to take revenge for it because God has allowed us to be free from it. In that regard it is about a supernatural victory we gain from God that brings us peace and right relationship with Him and, at least on our part, with others.

What role has forgiveness played in your life?

What areas do you need to grow in to better resemble Jesus?

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Do you still grieve over sin?

English Puritan pastor Jeremiah Burroughs wrote these words in his book The Evil of Evils over 300 years ago:

There’s a great mistake in the world in the matter of trouble for sin. They think repentance or mourning for sin is but one act, that if once they have been troubled for sin they need never be troubled anymore. It is a dangerous mistake, for we need to know that true sorrow for sin, true repentance, is a continual act that must abide all our lives. And it is not only at that time when we are afraid that God will not pardon our sins, when we are afraid that we shall be damned for our sins, but when we come to hope that God will, yes, when we come to know that God has pardoned our sins.

How do you react to this statement?

As you grow in Christ, how do you respond to sin that seems to continually show up in your life?

Do you need God’s forgiveness more or less the longer you are a follower of Jesus?

I have found that the longer I am in Christ the more and more I am aware of how much God has done to transform me and how much more He still needs to do to fully conform me into the image of Jesus. I can never be too far along that I don’t stand in need of God’s grace, forgiveness and help. As a result of this, I still find times in my life where I grieve over sin and am stirred to repentance and change as a result.

How about you? What is your story?