Tag Archives: Discipleship

Daniel & His Faith Community

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-A Place For Spiritual Transformation!

(NOTE: This Continues A Series Of Posts On Daniel’s Life)

I have personally witnessed great spiritual transformation in the lives of believers when they changed ONE thing—they began living in the community of faith! They got involved with other believers! They joined a Small Group; and, they began to share their lives & do life together! When King Nebuchadnezzar, of Babylon, demanded that his wisemen & counselors reveal the meaning of his dream—and, what he actually dreamed—Daniel responded, to the crisis, by taking it to his faith community! “Then Daniel went to his house and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah about the matter” (Daniel 2:17).

-We Weren’t Created For Isolation!

Don’t try and wing life on your own! God didn’t create us for isolation—He created us in His image…He of the triune community! He created us for community with Himself; and, for community with each other! “Without guidance, people fall, but with many counselors there is deliverance” (Prov. 11:14) Daniel did more than just hang out with his friends—he prayed with them! He urged “…them to ask the God of heaven for mercy concerning this mystery, so Daniel and his friends would not be killed with the rest of Babylon’s wise men” (Daniel 2:18).

-The Community That Prays Together!

Earlier, in the passage (v.10), the King’s counselors and advisors had told him that he was demanding something, from them, that “…no man on earth could do.” And, they were right! But, Daniel knew that a man fully connected to God, through prayer, could move God to do what “…no man on earth could do” & God responded! He answered their prayers & did the impossible. He gave Daniel the dream & the interpretation: “The mystery was then revealed to Daniel in a vision at night” (2:19).

-Praise: The Appropriate Response!

And, Daniel responded with praise (2:19-23); or, the only appropriate response when we’ve experienced a movement of God! He praised God’s name; or, His character & reputation! He praised God for His wisdom & power; and, for His Sovereignty over the times, the seasons & the nations! He praised God for the gift of wisdom & understanding that He shares with men! He praised God for revealing “hidden things” like dreams; and, for the grace He had personally extended him!

-How God Uses “Impossible” Situations!

Daniel’s story shows us that God uses the “impossible” situations, in life, to expose counterfeits—the Babylonian religion was the idolatrous worship of demons! God is beginning to kick out the props holding up the King’s “faith” in his counterfeit idols. God also uses the “impossible” situations, in life, to introduce Himself— “Here I am, King! I’m the one you’re really looking for!” Daniel answered the King: “No wise man, medium, diviner-priest, or astrologer is able to make known to the King the mystery…but, there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries” (2:27) God also uses the “impossible” situations, in life, to sanctify & grow His disciples! With every obedient step, that Daniel took, he was growing more confident in God! Life is rarely just about YOU—it’s intertwined in the lives of others!

 

The Church: Designed To Change Us!

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The Local Church Community Sanctifies Us

Jesus never intended that we would “lone wolf” the Christian life as an individual! Rather, it was His plan to use the local church “community” to sanctify and change us! Read Paul’s letter to the Church of Ephesus; especially, chapter 4. It was clearly NOT his intent that we view “the Church” as some “universal body” out there somewhere! He spoke to the body of faith that made up the local Church of Ephesus.

The Body Ministers To The Body

In v.16 he tells this church that it’s the “WHOLE BODY” that ministers to the “WHOLE BODY” & spiritual growth happens in the corporate life of the church when all the individual members are working together properly— “In LOVE, building each other up!” Clearly, the “each other” referred to the believers in the Church of Ephesus; not, some “universal church” on the other side of planet earth—we can pray for believers on the other side of the planet; but, it’s simply impossible to build up believers with whom we have no contact!

Jesus Uses Other People To Change Us

Jesus intends to use all the different people, with their diverse personalities & traits, to change us! He uses the difficult people, the annoying people, the “special grace” people, and, the sinful people to smooth out our rough—and, sometimes sinful—edges! “From Him the whole (“local church”) body, fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of the (“local church”) body for building up itself in love by the proper working of each individual part (of the “local church”)” v.16.  It is by our unique, diverse, spiritual experiences, with God, that together—as a “local church”—we have the opportunity to provide rich counsel & support to each other! For the one struggling with alcohol addiction, there are believers, in the body, who’ve been delivered from it! For the one struggling with sexual sin, there are believers, in the body, who are winning that battle with the Spirit’s help! So, there’s someone who will stand with you & encourage you in the fight! For those who admit they are a gossip; or, a liar; or, have anger issues; or, a cursing tongue; or, they’re bitter—someone in the local church body has been there; or, they’re fighting the same battle; and, together there’s mutual support!

There’s An App For That

Jesus designed the Church to be that community, or family, that meets one another’s needs! Someone, in the local church family, has either overcome the sin your struggling with; and, can offer support; or, someone is fighting the same battle & together you can keep each other accountable & see God do a sanctification work in your lives!  In summary, here’s what Paul is telling the local Church of Ephesus: God makes us stronger “collectively” than we will ever be “individually.” It’s the lone ranger sheep, not engaged in the community life of the Church, that the wolf goes after! He’s easy prey! Now, perhaps your wondering where you can find this kind of church! I’m afraid they are few; and, far between! Pray! Ask God’s Spirit to direct you! Search out this kind of church; and, BE that kind of church member! God Bless!

 

 

God’s Law Of Sowing & Reaping

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-My Parents Had Eyes In Back Of Their Head!

I grew up convinced that my parents had eyes in the back of their head! You too? Or, they had a spy reporting back to them every time I disobeyed; because, I never got away with anything! The Apostle Paul sets the record straight:  “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life” Galatians 6:7-8.  So, it wasn’t my parents! It’s an all-knowing, omnipresent God who knows everything about me.

-Why Do We Think We Can Fool God?

And Paul says that God will NOT be mocked!  That word “mocked” literally means “to turn up one’s nose.” We can’t turn up our noses at God and live a life contrary to His Word without facing the consequences. We won’t get away with it! There’s always a time lapse between the time of sowing & the time of reaping—in the spring, the farmer is out sowing seed in the fields; but, harvest can be 6 months away! Don’t be deceived! You may have sown a seed. You may have acted sinfully. You may think you got away with it; but, the harvest is still coming in!

-Sow An Act, Reap A Consequence!

Or, perhaps you’re a follower of Jesus who is troubled by the godless individuals around you who seem to get away with their sin—remember the time lapse between planting & harvest! In time, God will right all wrongs:  “…vengeance belongs to Me; I will repay, says the Lord” Romans 12:19.  The “Law of Sowing & Reaping” assures a harvest of corruption for the one who sows everything to the flesh—the one who’s consumed with this present life; and, has little to no regard for the eternal! They’re placing time deposits in all the stuff that will one day pass away. They have no treasure being stored up in heaven because everything they’ve sowed will only produce a harvest here in this life—corruption, Paul says!

-Reaping A Harvest Of Eternal Life!

The “Law of Sowing & Reaping”, however, produces a harvest of everlasting life for the one who sows to the Spirit. We sow to the Spirit as we plant a new affection for God. It’s an intentional pursuit of Him! It’s overriding the desires of our flesh with the desires of a new heart He gives us at salvation! It’s fleeing those lusts, of the flesh, as the Holy Spirit directs & empowers us!

-Sowing To The Spirit

We sow to the Spirit when we say “YES”, on purpose, to everything that will strengthen Holy Spirit inspired desires in us! We repent of sin quickly as the Spirit points it out to us! Sowing to the Spirit means turning our back on the lies about God—changing our mind by intentionally filling them with the truth about God! Sowing to the Spirit means we submit to those things that God uses to strengthen His Work, of Grace, in our hearts! God uses the Scriptures to prepare the soil, of our hearts, to sow to the Spirit! God uses prayer to prepare our hearts for sowing seed to His Spirit! He also uses worship to convince us God is better than anything our flesh offers & He uses the local church to keep us accountable to spiritual decisions we’ve made. When all is said and done, God gets the glory for the changes, in our life, because it was by His Spirit that it happened!

 

 

God’s Plan For World Evangelism

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-We’re Insulated From The Real World!

There’s something about living in America that insulates us from the real world. When we see pictures of some of the horrors that choke the rest of the world, they seem so far away that they’re almost surreal! Well, Church, we need to awaken from our slumber; and, we need to see the world through the lens of Scripture. We need to face some realities—at best, 1/3rd of the world knows Christ if you count everyone who claims to be a Christian! Even if we give them the benefit of the doubt, that still means that 4.5 billion people are, by their own admission, non-followers of Christ. They remain eternally separated from the God of creation at this moment!

-We’ve Failed The Rest Of The World!

What is God’s will for these? “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” 2 Peter 3:9.  It’s not God’s will that any of these would perish? So, why are many of them dying without ever hearing the Gospel? It’s because we—Christ’s Church—have failed them! And, we are without excuse! It is God who empowers us to be His witnesses to the whole world! We can’t ratchet up enough strength to follow through on the Great Commission. Jesus told His disciples, “…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you…” Acts 1:8. His Spirit has come; and, He indwells each of us! God commands us to embrace the lostness of the whole world—”…you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

-Jesus Didn’t Just Die For “US”; Or, The “U.S.”!

We need to face a humbling truth that Jesus didn’t just die for US! We may not say it; but, we live like we think God is an American! But, John 3:16 doesn’t say that “God loves ME so much He sent Jesus to die for ME.” The message of Biblical Christianity is that God loves me so that I might make HIM known among ALL the NATIONS! It’s about the LOSTNESS of the whole world before God; and, reconciliation by the work of Christ! The total depravity of the world requires our faithful witness to the Gospel’s work on behalf of sinners!

-The Gospel Is Intended For All Ethnic Groups!

He says, “…YOU will be MY witnesses…” We are witnesses of the Gospel work He has done in us! In Christ’s commission— “Go and make disciples of all NATIONS…”—that word, “nations”, is “ethnos” in the original Greek. It’s the word we get “ethnic” from in English. So, it’s “ethnic” groups or “people groups.” And, in Matthew 24:14, Jesus says, “…this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the NATIONS, and then the end will come.” Same word! So, it seems that God intends for all people groups to hear the Gospel before the end comes! Let’s be faithful to our calling

 

You Can’t Do Anything Without Jesus!

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-Strength And Courage Won’t Do!

The beauty of Christ’s Commission, to us, is in it’s simplicity—“Go…make disciples of all the nations.” It’s hard to imagine how that could be misunderstood. As a teenage convert, to Jesus, the hard part was not the understanding; but, the doing! I understood the command perfectly well; but, carrying it out terrified me! I’d nearly go into a cold sweat every time I thought about sharing my faith with my high school friends. How could I ratchet up the strength and courage to do it? How would I know the right things to say?

-Arm Wrestling Doesn’t Work!

It wasn’t until many years later when someone finally shared with me, from Scripture, that I didn’t have to depend on my ingenuity to convince people they needed Jesus! I couldn’t arm-wrestle anyone into the Kingdom if I tried! In John 15, Jesus tells us that plan will never work! No one has ever come to Christ because of a big beautiful church building; or, a “professional” Worship Band; or, a multi-media experience!

-Regeneration Is God’s Work!

The work, of regeneration, is God’s work ALONE! It’s impossible for us to do the work of God in our own strength—“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing” John 15:5.  This is at the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry; and, He’s preparing His disciples for His departure. “I will build My Church,” He told them, “And, I’m going to use YOU.” But, they had to get one thing straight—“You can’t do it without ME! I am the Vine, you’re just the branches,” He taught them.  All the LIFE & all the POWER & all the RESOURCES to fulfill His Great Commission came from Him!

-Being A Fruitful Branch

And, the key to being a branch that produces fruit,  Jesus said, was to be connected to Him, the Vine! If we’re not abiding in Him we’ll shrivel up and die, Jesus says in v.6. We can’t make disciples in our own strength—by reading books about making disciples; or, witnessing to 5 people a week; or, memorizing Scripture; or, making ourselves accountable to someone else. That’s NOT where we find the POWER to do Jesus’ work! He alone is the source! This is one of the most devastating mistakes any Church ministry can make—doing God’s work “in the flesh.” Man’s effort won’t get it done!

-God Is Glorified When We Ask Him To Do It!

The work of God gets done; and, He is glorified, when we ASK Him to do it! Back to John 15, vs. 7-8 “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified,” Jesus says, “that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.” Jesus does the work, of God, for us & through us! Making disciples is HIS WORK! Every spiritual work is a supernatural work & only Jesus can do the super-natural! We’re just a branch; but, when we’re tapped into Jesus Christ, the Vine, He does great things through us! God is glorified!

 

 

When Good Things Become Bad Things!

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-Is There Passion For God & Man?

I appreciate believers that are “free thinkers”; who, think outside the box; who, challenge the way things have always been done! Not with a spirit of rebellion; but, brothers & sisters, in Christ, that are just passionate for God; and, passionate for the souls of men! And, they’re always questioning whether there’s a better way to do God’s work more successfully—men & women given to prayer; who, are begging God for wisdom to do His work His way! Followers, of Jesus, that are not trapped by the traditions of men; even, traditions of the church that can be elevated to a place of idolatry & prominence above the Word of God, if not viewed carefully!

-It’s Time To Look In The Mirror, Church!

It’s time to look at ourselves through the mirror of God’s Word, Church! It’s time to ask ourselves the tough questions; to, investigate whether we’ve gotten off course; if, we’ve settled for something less than the best of God’s plans for us! Because all the good things we do can become bad things when our motive isn’t pure and holy!  The Apostle Paul called out the Church of Corinth for using their gifts, for ministry, only when they could be seen prominently!  The praise of men can be intoxicating! Jesus noted that many religious leaders, of His day, prayed when they could be heard in public; and, fasted only to be seen of men; and, gave money if honored for it! We all have to guard against false motives when doing our ministry! Are there certain things that are “beneath us” because no one would see us?

-The Church’s Sole Purpose For Existence!

The Apostle John, in 1 John 3:16-18, says that our ministry is properly focused when it’s motivated by a love for Christ; and, a love for others! Jesus’ ministry was others-focused—“love” for the Father; and, “love” for a humanity crushed by sin! Good things also become bad things, for the Church, when they are given priority over Jesus’ mandate to “…make disciples…” That is our sole purpose for existence! That has to be the grid through which we make all our decisions, Church! If that’s not how we do ministry, the “tyranny of good things” will rule instead! We can do a lot of “good things” disobediently!

-Are We Living Like A Pharisee?

It’s always been man’s way, since “the Fall”, to form our own rules; and, ask God to bless them! Like the Pharisees, in Jesus’ day, we wanna play god! We’ve organized our churches as if God exists to meet our needs & cater to our comforts! Our discussions often revolve around what we want rather than what He wills! It’s time to repent; and, come home to the Father, Church! It’s time to admit how prone we are to exalt our work over God’s will; and, our dreams over God’s desires; and, our plans over God’s priorities! God’s blessing only comes to His Church when we live to make Him known among the nations!

 

Don’t Expose My Idols!

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-Jesus Said Some Hard Things

Jesus earned quite the reputation for crazy, difficult, and hard sayings during His 3 1/2 year ministry on this planet. He said things like “…unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you”; and, “…it’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God”; and, “…let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God”; and, perhaps the craziest, “…if anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.”

-Does This Offend You?

At one point, the Apostle John says the crowd, that followed Jesus, could take it no longer and said: “…this is a hard saying; who can understand it?” At that point Jesus turned to them & asked them, “Does this offend you?…there are some of you who do not believe.” (John 6:60ff) In that statement, we gain some insight into the reason for Jesus’ hard sayings—His intent was to flush out the unbelievers, in the crowd, so they might acknowledge their unbelieving heart & come to genuine faith; that, they might trust Christ for salvation.

-Don’t Sanitize Jesus’ Message!

Unfortunately, I’ve read more than one commentary try and explain away what Jesus said….trying to soften the blow of His message by making it more palatable and politically correct! But, when you try and “sanitize” His message it loses the impact of the Gospel. Jesus fully intended to be offensive to His self-righteous audience; and, to shake up the religious leaders that taught a works-based, performance-driven salvation—“If your righteousness does not exceed that of the Pharisees,” He said, “you’ll never see heaven.” To the rich man, He said: “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.” In all His “hard sayings,” Jesus was putting a spotlight on the false gods and idols in people’s lives. These were the things that people valued more than Creator God; and, Jesus exposed their idolatry!

-But, Aren’t Idols Bad Things?

That’s what we think; so, we try to re-interpret what Jesus said because He just couldn’t be calling all those good things we love—like family, career, our standing in the public eye—as idols, could He? We want to believe that idols are bad things; but, that’s rarely the case! Tim Keller, in his excellent book Counterfeit Gods, says, “…the greater the ‘good’, the more likely we are to expect that it can satisfy our deepest needs and hopes. Anything can serve as a counterfeit god, especially the very best things in life.”  Jesus came to set things in order—God’s in charge; He is King; He is Lord; and, He alone is to be worshipped! He has all authority over my life; and, He is to be valued as the ONLY treasure, above all His creation!

 

 

Do You Believe It Can Happen Again?

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-The Church Of Acts Made Disciples

The book of Acts is an exciting book to read if you’re a genuine follower of Jesus Christ. Filled with the Holy Spirit, the early Church was bold & intentional to obey Jesus’ Great Commission to “make disciples”; and, the results were inspiring— “…that day there were added about three thousand souls” (ch. 2:41);  and,  then we read that “…the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved” (ch. 2:47).  A couple chapters later we read, “Many who heard the message believed…and the number of the men came to be about five thousand” (ch. 4:4). The next chapter uses the term “multitudes” to describe those added to the church, “…all the more believers…multitudes of men and women were added to their number” (ch. 5:14).

-The Math Of Disciple-Making

From that point, the text says the number of disciples was “multiplied”; and, “…the word of the Lord was being spread through the whole region” (ch. 13:49).That’s the math of disciple making—God first “added” to the church; then, “multitudes” were added; and, finally, the number of disciples “multiplied.” Once the Spirit begins to “multiply” the number of disciples, you have an incredible movement of God!

-Just A Nice Story?

What’s in your heart as you reflect on those events? Is it simply “historical” to you—another great BIBLE STORY that doesn’t hold much meaning for today? Or, do you believe that God still works like that when His people are genuinely broken enough to repent of their disobedience to His Commission; and, begin to intentionally love people & disciple them into the kingdom? Do you believe it can happen again? I spent yesterday morning at a Gospel Coalition meeting in Omaha; and, found it incredibly refreshing talking with a number of “20 somethings” passionately taking the Gospel to the city of Omaha. The number of new believers, coming to Jesus, is happening so quickly that they hardly have enough workers to disciple them! By faith they simply believe what Jesus said: “The fields are white, ready to harvest…pray the Lord of the Harvest, that He will send forth laborers!” God, bless us with laborers who just believe Jesus & act!

-Yes! It Can Happen Again!

Steve Smith, who wrote “A Discipleship Re-Revolution”, said this: “A discipleship revolution ignited a firestorm of loving evangelistic zeal and fervent obedience that took the kingdom into the remotest corners of the known world in a period of years & decades, not centuries…This process of winning new believers and training them to witness to others who believed & witnessed to others cascaded out in ripples that touched the farthest reaches of the empire.” Hey Church—let us repent! Let us come back to “ground zero”! We are called to “make disciples”! That’s the way we change America and the world!

 

 

Worship God Or Save Souls?

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-What’s The Church’s Highest Purpose?

What is the highest purpose of the Church? Let me break it down for you— “Soteriology” is “the study of the doctrine of salvation in Jesus Christ”; and, “Doxology” is “the study of the doctrine of worship and praise.” The debate is over which is the highest purpose of the Church:  The salvation of souls; or, the worship, praise, and glory of God?

-Answering That Question With Another Question

Let me answer that question with another question—the question that Jesus was asked by one of the Pharisees, “Teacher, which command in the law is the greatest?” And, Jesus responded:  “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command.  The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself” Matthew 22:36-39. NOTHING is to be placed above our love, loyalty & worship of God! NOTHING! For those, of you, fearful that I’m kicking evangelism and disciple-making to the curb, your fear is unfounded! Here’s why—we cannot worship God with all our heart, soul, and mind without actively discipling the lost because that is the Commission Jesus has given the Church; and, “If you love me,” He said, “You will keep my commandments.”

-Clarifying The Argument

So, the argument is not whether we disciple the lost or not! We have no option—if we love & worship God we will evangelize and disciple the lost! The debate is over “priorities”—if we give higher preference to winning the lost than we do to love, loyalty, and the worship of God, we’re guilty of IDOLATRY! We’ve become “man-centered” rather than “God-centered.” If God placed the salvation of souls above the worship of God, He would be guilty of IDOLATRY! When the worship of God is revived in the hearts of His people, God sends a “revival”—God sends revival when we worship Him with humble, repentant hearts; and, when we stand in awe of HIS beauty & great worth! John, the baptizer, had it right:  “He (Jesus) must increase & I must decrease.” The word “vive” means “to be alive”; so, “revive” means “to make alive again.”  Like the doctor who “revives” a clinically dead patient, God “revives” the believer who has flat-lined spiritually!

-The Holy Spirit Does The Resuscitating

Has your walk with the Lord become dormant or stagnant? Have you been lazy about your faith? Has it trickled down to your attitude toward the lost? When was the last time you gave testimony of your faith; or, been in a disciple-making relationship with someone? Pray for personal revival—when God “revives” you, you’ll be engaged, once again, in worshipping Him; and, loving the lost that Jesus came to save! God is so good to start over with us! Let Him make your heart sensitive and broken once again! Let Him remove the leanness that has overrun your soul! Let Him make you painfully aware of your sin!

 

Longing For Something Bigger

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-Living A Conflicted Life

When I came to faith, in Jesus Christ, as a 13-year old boy, I suddenly had this longing to live for something bigger! Like my life had suddenly taken on a bigger meaning than it had before; and, I didn’t want to waste it. My spiritual mentors taught me about Jesus’ 2nd Coming; and, challenged me to be looking for Him with eager anticipation! Instead, I found myself becoming this double-minded man—if Jesus returned, while I was 13 years old, I’d never have the chance to grow up & be an adult. That meant I’d never experience marriage; never have kids; never fulfill all my dreams! So, I was conflicted!

-Aware Of Our Brokenness

It wasn’t that I didn’t want Jesus to come back… I just wanted Him to wait 20 years or so! Perhaps that resonates with you because you thought the same way if you knew the Lord Jesus as a teenager. For those of us truly “born again”, we live in that tension between today and eternity, don’t we? God created us with this survival instinct; so, if we’re mentally and emotionally healthy we wanna live! But, spiritually we’re aware of our brokenness; and, we long for something bigger!

-Made For Vertical Worship

In his excellent book, Vertical Church, James MacDonald starts the 1st chapter with these words:  “Deep in the soul of every human being is a longing for transcendence created within us by God Himself.” Our ministries are not primary; nor, is our fellowship with our faith community! Vertical worship is primary! We are called to make much of our Awesome God! He has called believers out of this world to be His “worshippers”!

-Nothing Bigger Than Pursuing Jesus

Because He alone is worthy of worship, theologically we speak of His “Transcendence”—that He surpasses & exceeds the universe, time and space! His wisdom transcends human wisdom and logic! Scripture puts it like this:  “His ways are not our ways” Isaiah 58:9.  The Apostle Paul’s words to the Church of Ephesus probably define what we mean by God’s Transcendence as accurately as any:  “One God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all” Ephesians 4:6. That’s what we mean by His Transcendence—God is “above all”; He is “through all”; and, He is “in all.” As believers, there’s nothing we could pursue in life that’s bigger than Jesus! Chase Him!

-All Of Life Is Sacred

The book of Ecclesiastes details Solomon’s experimental pursuits of the intellect, of wealth & luxury, of politics & religion; and, he concluded that all of life’s pursuits are futile by themselves! Solomon concluded:  “When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is: fear God and keep His commands, because this is for all humanity.” (ch. 12:13) He learned that you can’t “compartmentalize” life! You can’t separate the “spiritual” from the rest of life; or, you can’t separate the “sacred” from the “secular.”! He’s saying that ALL of life is “sacred.” “Fear God & pursue Him” in all things! Otherwise, life is futile!