We Try Harder

Growing up my parents gave me plenty of opportunity to try many extra curricular activities. One of those happened to be Boy Scouts. While I thoroughly enjoyed my time as a scout (never made Eagle, settled for First Class) I traded that experience in for sports soon before my teenage years began. The camping and survival skills obtained benefit me to this day and leave me with lasting memories. Our motto in Troop 218 was "We Try Harder." I have the T-shirt to prove it.

As you can see that motto became the goal for most of us kids at a very early age. That goal remains the goal for many of us as adults. However, through the years I have also found this motto to be the mantra of many in their Christian life and is the motto held both explicitly and implicitly by most church leaders. The challenge for holding this view is that it contradicts the essence of the Gospel. Remember this quote? "Give God your best, and He'll take care of the rest." I fail to remember anyone rejecting this notion with the verse from Isaiah 64:6 where God essentially said, "your best is like filthy rags." Do a word study on filthy rags. Comment on what you find God saying about our best.

Don't get me wrong trying harder makes sense when it comes to our jobs, sports, etc., but not in our Christian life. Here's why. The Christian life is not about trying, but dying. It's not committing (rededicating the rededication) to try harder but dying to self-reliance. "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."(Gal. 2:20) The apostle Paul reminds us of how easily we forget that living the Christian life is accomplished by the same way we received that life, by faith. "Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, (by faith) so walk in Him,"(Col. 2:6). So many of us think that we live the Christian life by simply trying harder hoping we accomplish it. This takes on so many forms (quiet time quotas, church attendance, witnessing quotas, 10% tithes, etc.) Paul goes on to challenge us in Galatians 3 when he writes,

"1You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? 2This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law (trying harder), or by hearing with faith? 3Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh (trying harder)?"

Do we get what Paul is saying? You received eternal life by God's Spirit and the channel (Greek word 'dia' - through) was faith. You live in your new life "pleasing" God not by trying harder but by dying harder (see Galatians 2:20).

So what about pleasing God? He is pleased with you. As a son or daughter who has placed your faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross your work is finished trying to please God. That's what Jesus meant when He said, "It is finished." The work of man trying to do enough things for God to remove His wrath over their lives is over. This is the Gospel! The idea of "working hard for God" should not be to make God pleased with us but should be motivated because His is pleased with us.

Is there work to be done "for God?" Yes. Again, Paul tells us what this looks like. "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them."(Ephesians 2:10) How do we walk in them? By faith. How do we accomplish it? We don't but God's Spirit inside of us does. Paul again, "for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work (He tries harder) for His good pleasure." (Phil. 2:13) Do you see a pattern here? It is all God! Why? So He receives the glory alone. He told us He will share His glory with no one (Isaiah 48:11). He is only impressed when He looks at us and sees Himself.

The Glory of God Displayed in the Lives of the Ambiguous

I am blessed to work for a Christian organization. On many occasions I ride the elevator there with employees of a contracted janitorial service. Two particular employees from that service always bless me by their sweet smiles, positive attitudes, and uplifting comments, even though they are on their way to their next not so glamorous task. It is a constant reminder that God displays His glory in the lives of the sometimes ambiguous. It also reminds me of a group of people in the Bible who were also ambiguous, The Sons of Korah.

Several years ago I found this site that articulates their story.

The name ‘Sons of Korah’ comes from a group of Old Testament Levitical musicians to whom at least 13 of the Psalms are attributed. The original Sons of Korah were responsible for the ministry of music and song in the Old Testament worship and particularly with the musical composition and performance of the Psalms. What follows is a short account of the biblical genealogy of this family.

In the Old Testament text of the Psalms reference is made to those who were involved in the composition of the psalm. Psalms 42 to 49 as well as Psalms 84 to 88 are attributed to a group known as the "Sons of Korah" (see the small print titles under the numbers of the psalms) It appears that this family of musicians were descendants of the same Korah who led a rebellion against Moses in the desert (Numbers 16). This was a serious crime that led to serious consequences for all those involved. We read that God caused the ground to open up and swallow all those who were involved in the rebellion along with their families (vs31ff). The idea of a judgement like this that involved the wiping out of the rebels as well as their families was that the line of the rebellious should not continue in the earth. It is therefore quite surprising that in Numbers 26:11 we read the words: "The line of Korah, however, did not die out." And sure enough as we follow the genealogies through Chronicles we see that that the line of Korah did indeed continue. According to 1Chronicles 6:31ff, David, when he was organizing the different tasks for the temple worship, assigned the ministry of song for a large part to the Kohathites. The head of this group was Heman who is the writer of Psalm 88 and more significantly is a direct descendant of Korah the Kohathite. Hence the psalm is also attributed to the Sons of Korah. It seems that at some point this musical family came to be called after their rebellious forefather. Korah was an infamous historical figure in the Israelite consciousness, remembered as an example of rebellion against God. To be related to him would have been a notable thing, though not necessarily a negative thing. The continuing existence of this family line was a testimony to the grace of God who although He would be right to wipe out the memory of sinful men from the earth, is nevertheless forgiving and Whose heart is always for restoration and redemption rather than for destruction.

Worship

I've been thinking about the word worship in Scripture lately and remembered a short excerpt my former pastor, Wayne Barber, wrote several years ago. It was a good reminder and challenge to me so I decided to post it.

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We hear much today about worship. It is defined everywhere from emotions felt during a song to chill bumps when the preacher gives an illustration. But, what is true worship? How do we know we have worshipped?

Well, there are three Greek words for worship in the New Testament. The first word used that I would like to address is the word proskunew. This is the word used when the “magi” came from the east to worship the Christ child. Matthew 2:2 “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east, and have come to worship Him.” This is the word that means to lie down prostrate before one that is worthy to be worshipped. It involves the attitude of humility on the person doing the bowing. It involves an understanding and recognition of what one is not in the presence of THE ONE THAT IS WORTHY. It is a response word, not an emotion, but an immediate response in the presence of DEITY.

The next word we want to look at is the word latreia. This is the word that means to serve. It is the word used in Romans 12:1, “I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” Isn’t it amazing how many people say that they have worshipped and have never bowed down and have never said “yes” to Christ and to His perfect will in their lives?

The next word that we want to look at is the word se,bomai. This is the word that involves one’s lifestyle that has bowed before Christ and has said, “yes” to Him. It is the word that is translated as “devotion” among other things. It is what one is like during the week that shows others that he is under the Lordship of Christ. It is the word used in Philippians 3:3 “For we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.” Our lifestyles are determined by our attitude towards Christ and who He is.

Now, just think about something. The next time you hear a wonderful song, or a sermon that touches you, remember that you have not worshipped until you have responded with a surrendered heart to what you have heard. Until it affects your lifestyle you have not yet worshipped. Praise is that which emanates from having worshipped God in our lives. There is no praise unless there has been true worship.

Play with your kids before you get cancer

When I was growing up we had a neigbor kid that lived a few houses down from us named, Chris. We never could remember his last name so we always called him, "Chris Down the Street."

Now as an adult with two kids of my own we have a neighbor two doors down named, Chris. He is the dad of two boys. My kids do not remember his last name and so we affectionately call him, "Chris Down the Street." It's amazing how life repeats itself. I have always admired our Chris Down the Street. During the 6+ years we have lived here there is not one moment I can recall seeing Chris outside without his kids. They are always playing hard with each other. This takes on many forms such as, racing bikes, repairing motors on dirt bikes, chasing each other, or preparing for a day at the lake on their boat. Chris is one of the nicest guys you could ever meet. They have always seemed to honor a commitment to church on Sundays but choose the 8 am service in order to have the rest of the day as a family.

Unfortunately, Chris was diagnosed several weeks ago with a form of liver and small intestine cancer that has a 50% chance of treatment. As always, Chris maintains a positive and hopeful outlook but was honest about his odds. I have learned so much about life from Chris just by observing his commitment to his family. You never know when your life may be cut short by cancer news. I hope I always play hard with my kids, not because of fear, but because they deserve a father who loves them enough to play hard with them every day.

Chris has another scan on June 30th which will determine his ultimate prognosis. Pray for Chris Down the Street.

Famine

Anyone hungry? Dr. Walter Kaiser may help us understand why from his book, Revive Us Again.

"Too often the Bible is little more than a book of epigrammatic sayings or a springboard that gives us a rallying point around which to base our editorials. But where did we get the audacious idea that God would bless our opinions or judgments? Who wants to hear another point of view as an excuse for a Bible study or a message from the Word of God? Who said God would bless our stories, our programs for the church, or our ramblings on the general area announced by the text? Surely this is a major reason why the famine of the Word continues in massive proportions in most places in North America. Surely this is why the hunger for the teaching and the proclamation of God’s Word continues to grow year after year. Men and women cannot live by ideas alone, no matter how eloquently they are stated or argued, but solely by a patient reading and explanation of all Scripture, line after line, paragraph after paragraph, chapter after chapter, and book after book. Where are such interpreters to be found, and where are their teachers? "

Six Steps...& I'm Still Alive

I was reminded again today how often I fail to praise God for the gift and mercy of life. Often times my thanksgiving is offered to Him as a result of a tedious task accomplished or a narrow miss of a side-swiping accident on I-65.

The children of Israel lived periods of their existence during the Old Testament completely separated from the presence of God. Most of the time this absence ensued as a result of rebellion. However, in the midst of hellish consequences (separation from God's presence), God's mercy and grace reached down and invaded their dark space. So grateful were the Israelites in 2 Samuel 6:13 they stopped every 6 paces and offered a worship sacrifice, thanking God they remained alive after carrying the Ark of God. They worshipped for two reasons:

1. God's mercy and grace alone allowed them to experience His presence again
2. Their earthly life was still in existence after 6 steps.

I do not slow down enough in life (even after 6,000 steps) to offer thanksgiving and praise to God for His breath in my lungs on a daily basis. What about you?

What is your goal in life?

"Devote yourself with all your mind, and all your heart, and all your strength to pursuing your joy in God. You should pursue the enlargement and the intensification and the deepening of your joy so hard, that that joy in Christ can be shaken by no pain, and can be competed with by no pleasure. That is your goal in life." - John Piper (Passion '05)

Live from Austin Music Hall

Where have I been? I just completed my purchase of Chris Tomlin's Live from Austin Music Hall album on iTunes. If you are a Tomlin fan (& even if you are not) this has some of my very favorite Tomlin/Passion tunes in an accoustic format. If I had to pick the best song on the album I would vote for "This is Our God" which includes a cameo from David Crowder. They sound great together. Happy listening!

Our rear guard...

If you're like me there are many things, if we let them, that would keep us from moving forward in life. Yes, its the dreaded phrase, "our past." I have often found myself identifying with the children of Israel. While many find commonalities between the disciples and themselves I find my commonality somewhere in the million plus parade line of Israel, specifically as they crossed the Red Sea and the Jordan. Both times they feared their past oppressors as they looked over their shoulder.

Twice in Isaiah God promises to go before them into their future and will protect them from their past as He will be their rear guard. Many of us, myself included, live for the future trying to forget our past while failing to embrace the promised protection that comes on our behalf.

Let's live life forward while recognizing the Safety we have on our back side.