Are you more loving?

Jesus made plain that the greatest commandment was to love God and love people. As a way to further spell out the implications of that kind of love, John wrote, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters" (1 John 3:16). I get the concept. I believe it. I accept it. I want to pattern my life around it. I want it to be self-evident in every area of my life.

The problem is that it's one thing to understand and accept a concept and quite another thing to see it fleshed out in my life with real people. Jesus expressed this clearly in the Sermon on the Mount. He said:

You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven . . . If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:43-48)

Being perfect means to get to the place where we are perfect in love. That is the love standard of Jesus that we must strive for. But we all know that we fail to achieve it.

Donald Whitney writes, "The test of Christlikeness is not the greatness of your love toward those who love you, but the bounty of your love toward those who do not" (pg. 44).

I don't know about you, but loving difficult people is the greatest challenge for me. They don't deserve my love. They may take advantage of my love. They may reject my love. They may manipulate me as a result of my love. All of this is a real possibility whenever we love people - ALL people.

Yet somehow we are called to grow in love despite all the risks involved. The only way this is possible is for us to be filled up with God's love for us so that we know what real love is and are able to offer it to others. We also need to be wise and discerning, which is another gift from God. Our world has a warped understanding of love and what someone may consider love isn't really love at all. God doesn't want us to offer a warped, worldly love to others. He wants us to offer His love to them. That means sometimes love means standing for truth when it would be easier to lie. It means protecting someone when it would be easier to let them go. It means saying no because its the right thing to do or the best thing for that person even when it would be easier to say yes. And it means we will have to sacrifice when it would be easier to just take care of ourselves.

I don't have all the answers to loving as God would have me to, but I want to grow in His love.

Do you see His love growing in your life or are you regressing? How?

How is God helping you to grow in love?

Are you governed increasingly by God’s Word?

Psalm 1 says this:

¹ Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
² but whose delight is in the law of the LORD,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
³ That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.

It makes sense that one would be blessed by God if they do not walk where the wicked walk, stand in the way sinners stand or sit where those with those who mock God sit. Being in those places will be destructive to any life in pursuit of God. That makes sense.

But how do we know what steps to take to move forward? By delighting and meditating on the "law of the LORD." When that Psalm was written centuries ago the "law of the LORD" meant the first five books of the Old Testament and the prophets. The people of Israel knew that as "the law and the testimony." That was to govern their lives.

As Christians we accept the Old Testament and the New Testament because that contains the words of Jesus, the stories of his saving life, the birth of the church and the life of the Holy Spirit poured out on God's people. We believe and testify that God breathed and inspired every aspect of the message of the Bible.

It is the truth of God, God's truth for us together and God's truth for us personally. That means we can trust it and rely upon it. It also means we cannot ignore it. We must obey it. It is not some generic source of truth. It is true for all of us whether we accept it or not. It explains and defines reality. And its promises and commands are ours personally, not just for some "other people." We can count on it.

When we "meditate" or think on the truths of scripture and apply it to our lives it forms our character and our practices. There is nothing in our lives that the truths of God's Word won't touch and we will be like a well planted, growing and fruit-bearing tree. That is the life we are seeking.

What have you done to make sure your life is governed more and more by God's Word? What advice can you give to help us overcome some of the obstacles along the way?

Do you thirst for God?

Listen to these words from Psalm 42:

¹ As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, my God.
² My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?

Or Psalm 63:

¹ You, God, are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you,
my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
where there is no water.

Saint Augustine said this, “Thou hast made us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee.”

These words shine a spotlight directly on the need we all have to have our thirst quenched by God. The general activities of our life can make us dry. The stress and anxiety we face can make us dry. Adding “everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles” (Hebrews 12:1) to the mix and our soul can seem pretty parched.

There is no one who has not faced these realities and no one who will ever be immune to them. That is why we need God so much. That is why we need to be thirsty for Him. We need Him to quench our thirst and renew our souls.

Apart from this, we are doomed to life in that “dry and parched land.” And it doesn’t need to be that way. Even in the midst of running from God and worshipping other gods, the Israelites were told, “But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deuteronomy 4:29).

Our pursuit of God begins with our thirst for Him. The question isn’t primarily one of mechanics but one of deep soul thirst. Are we thirsty for God?

A.W. Tozer offers this wonderful prayer that illustrates this desire:

O God, I have tasted thy goodness, and it has both satisfied me and made me thirsty for more. I am painfully conscious of my need for further grace. I am ashamed of my lack of desire. Oh God, the Truine God, I want Thee; I long to be filled with longing; I thirst to be made thirsty still (Whitney, pg. 23).

Are you dry? If so, can you identify what has made you dry? Are you thirsty? What are you doing to have your thirst quenched?

Passing the Right Test

Imagine going to the ER with a tremendous pain in your stomach, thinking it could be an appendix, gall bladder, heart attack, kidney stone or some other terrible problem. Now imagine the doctor coming into the room calmly with one of those little hammer-like tools they use to check your reflexes and all he does is tap your knees and elbows. While you a writhing in pain he is checking reflexes! How crazy is that!

While it is important for you to have good reflexes that is clearly NOT the right test to pass at that moment. You need to take the right test.

Unfortunately sometimes we measure our spiritual health with similarly ridiculous tests:

• In the same way that perfect attendance in school doesn't guarantee that the person is a good student or even well educated, perfect attendance in church doesn't guarantee spiritual maturity.
• Even though people can go to a prestigious university and get a great degree that doesn't necessarily mean they will be the best employee to hire. In the same way, someone can grow up in a good, Godly home or go to a great church, but still be very far from God.
• There are a lot of people who pass the written test perfectly, but who turn out to be the worst drivers on the road. In the same way, people can know all the right answers about scripture and theology, but never put them into practice in their lives.

You get the point . . .

We need to pass the right test and the right test for measuring spiritual growth and maturity is a heart test, a test that measures the gracious love of God in our hearts.

Everyone who receives Christ does so only by grace, through faith. They accept the gift of Jesus' salvation, which forgives them of their sin, makes them alive spiritually and right with God. It also fills and keeps filling up their lives with the love of God. And as the love of God fills their hearts it naturally is poured out to others around them.

In other words, having received grace, they become gracious. Having received forgiveness, they become forgiving. Having received love, they become loving.

That means the right test for spiritual growth and maturity isn't an IQ test - measuring what you know - but an EKG - measuring what is happening in your heart.

That is the right test, the test you really need to pass.

I would love to hear your reaction and thoughts to this. How do you make sense of this in your life?

Standing on Shoulders

I ran across a prayer recently that was used by Christians originally over 1900 years ago! These early Christians, some suffering under persecution and trial, prayed this prayer fervently. They expected God to act and because of their work and God's power we are here today generations upon generations later. We stand on their shoulders as a result of their faithful life and ministry. Some day younger generations of Christians will stand on our shoulders because of our faithfulness. Here is their prayer:

"We give you thanks Holy Father, for your holy name which you have caused to dwell in our hearts, and for the knowledge and faith and immortality which you have made known to us through Jesus your servant; to you be the glory forever.

You, almighty Master, created all things for your name's sake, and gave food and drink to men to enjoy, that they might give you thanks; but to us you have graciously given spiritual food and drink, and eternal life through your servant Jesus. Above all we give thanks because you are mighty; to you be the glory forever.

Remember your church, Lord, to deliver it from all evil and to make it perfect in your love; and gather it, the one that has been sanctified, from the four winds into your kingdom, which you have prepared for it; for yours is the glory forever.

May grace come, and may this world pass away. Hosanna to the God of David. If anyone is holy, let him come; if anyone is not, let him repent. Maranatha! Amen." (from the Didache, 2^nd Century)

More and more, I am keenly aware of the shoulders I stand on. That challenges me to think of those who will stand on my shoulders some day as I remain faithful to our Lord.

Whose shoulders do you stand on? Who is or will stand on your shoulders?

Actually Being Changed by Jesus

Last week I attended a conference in Dallas where a group called Gungor led worship. One of their songs entitled You Make Beautiful Things goes like this:

You Make Beautiful Things

All this pain
I wonder if I’ll ever find my way
I wonder if my life could really change at all
All this earth
Could all that is lost ever be found
Could a garden come up from this ground at all

You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of the dust
You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of us

All around
Hope is springing up from this old ground
Out of chaos life is being found in You

You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of the dust
You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of us

You make me new, You are making me new
You make me new, You are making me new

As I thought about those powerful lyrics it hit me that there would be almost no way a hymn writer 40 years ago or more would ever write a song with those kind of words. They simply didn't think or speak in those terms. That's not right or wrong, but just the way it is.

But is the notion of pain and brokenness something new? Of course not! It may have looked different, but it was still there. This brings me to the issue I want to raise for us:

It seems to me, based on my experience at least, that often people in older generations experienced just as much pain, shame and brokenness. They simply stuffed it and hid it from others. They didn't want to "air their dirty laundry." Yet keeping all of that stuff tucked "in the closet" didn't make the problem go away and certainly didn't give them true spiritual victory.

On the other hand, I often see people in younger generations transparently wear their pain, shame and brokenness on their sleeves, talking about it to whomever will listen sometimes, including indiscriminant followers on Twitter and Facebook. In essence, they are very comfortable sharing their stuff, but they aren't necessarily interested in being made well, gaining spiritual victory over it. In fact, many of them can't see past the garbage at all and assume they are stuck.

To me both approaches are wrong and mutually destructive. One keeps you locked up and hidden away and the other keeps you stuck wallowing in the garbage. Neither brings true freedom in Christ or the spiritual victory Jesus promises us.

So what are we to do? How can we stop hiding on the one hand and stop wallowing on the other in order to actually be changed by Jesus?

A Christian Response to bin Laden's Death

You have to be living under a rock not to know that U.S. Special Forces raided a compound where Osama bin Laden was hiding out in Pakistan, killing him. Upon hearing the announcement, major celebrations erupted in various locations, especially in New York and Washington. I briefly watched some of the comments made by people in the crowd and their comments and reactions, as well as many other news reports, etc. They have caused me to reflect as a Christian about this issue.

As a Christian, do I believe that there are times when war is justified and useful for an ultimate good? Yes. In self defense or in order to take up the cause of a defenseless innocent person or persons there are times when violence is the only remaining option. Though it should be avoided at all costs, there are times when it simply cannot be avoided and in those times it is justified.

However, I must take very seriously the words of Jesus, not just when they are convenient to my patriotic or self-interested leanings, but especially when they are a challenge to them. In those times my true commitment to Jesus and His teachings are measured. Am I faithful to Him at all times or only when He seems to agree with me?

At any rate, here are Jesus' words:

“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell. 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. Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny" - Matthew 5:21-26

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven." - Matthew 5:43-44

I'm not sure I would call Bin Laden's death a murder. It was part of an ongoing war. However, as Christians we need to be careful about celebrating the death of anyone - even someone as evil as he was. I would be much more comfortable if we did what we felt we had to do to protect ourselves and other innocent persons from present and future harm and then stopped there without any fanfare or bragging.

In other words, as a Christian I don't think I should ever celebrate the death of another person even if his/her death was justified and necessary to hinder greater evil. There should always be a part of me that wishes there could be another way and hopes that next time there will be.

What do you think?