” TOO MANY COMPROMISES… TOO MANY RETREATS. THE LINE MUST BE DRAWN HERE, THIS FAR AND NO FURTHER.”

Now, think with me of Peter’s response to the reality of the world’s future as it rejects the gracious work of God, and pursues its own selfish course of destruction. The Apostle writes, “Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness.” 2 Peter 3:10

God’s calling for all of us is to pursue holiness. It has always been the pinnacle of God’s desire for his people. It was the subject of Jesus’ teaching on the Sermon on the Mount and the burden of Paul’s treatise on Romans, and yet with each year that passes, we fall further back.

Over 200 years ago, Jonathan Edwards challenged his people to pursue holiness in spite of the many allurements of the world; which might surprise you to discover are the same we find today: greed, wanton sensuality, and the many distractions offed up as privileges in worldly living. It was the subject of countless sermons, the focus in his personal diary, and the capstone of his research in his “Miscellanies.”

And it should be the driving compulsion of our own lives, for anyone as Begg notes,”Having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 2 Peter 1:4

The challenge remains for all of us; maybe it is high time to draw the line in the sand, and fall back no further…

TRANSITIONS ARE IMPORTANT IN OUR LIFE, AND HERE’S WHY…

MJC 

THE MEANING OF “COME TOGETHER” AND WHY IT MAY NOT ALWAYS BE A GOOD THING.

Consider this from Genesis 11. Those who were seeking a consensus to build a tower to the heavens, had neither God in mind or the worship of His Person– a fact that I hope to bring out on Sunday. Their interest was a self-centered, even demonic push to unite around the god of this world. God put an end to such nonsense then as He always will when the cause is not just, and the direction is not true. It may not happen today, nor tomorrow, and my plea is that we would find our hope in God and our salvation in Jesus alone. I’m not at all bitter, only hopeful that the “Angels of our better nature”, will fall at God’s feet and seek his presence and his perfect will.  

Now, that is something that we can come together to believe. 

MJC 

THE NEXT BIG THING: WHAT GRADUATES REALLY NEED.

Your success in life will depend upon certain essentials, especially when your life enters a new phase! I’ve enjoyed several new phases in my life- and whether it was college, the army, marriage, family, seminary, business, church planting, or non-profit, I have faced decisions… And I have discovered: Every decision matters, because they all have consequences. 

The Great Noah of the Bible spent just over a year, in transition from what he was before, to what he would become in a brave new world! He was stripped of most everything he owned when he entered the ark. When he emerged from his hibernation there were but a few essentials at his disposal- the same, by the way, that are yours as well.

For starters: 

And every day of your college life, work life, or private life, you will bump up against situations that will challenge these essentials. The expectations for your walk with God don’t change because you’re now an adult, you’re retired, you’re in a tough profession, or you’re suffering under duress. 

The point is, that every decision matters, because they all have consequences. Choose wisely!

MJC 

PATRIOTISM LOST!

God bless America– please!

MJC 

LET’S HANG OUT TOGETHER!

ARE WE ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS?

Someone asked me a few weeks ago, “Hey pastor, who do you think was Cain’s wife?” I did my best impression of a pastor who knows, and I do think I offered the correct answer but here’s a thought… often the questions we ask in response to an assertion or question, will help further understanding. The other day, another person asked me, ” how would you respond if someone said that their sinful behavior is acceptable before God because the Holy Spirit said it was okay?” Again, the best answer might be found at the end of the questions we ask.

In a great piece by John Stonestreet from Breakpoint Daily, Stonestreet provides a toolkit for responding to especially controversial questions that come our way. I’ll include the link to the article at the end, but the take-away here is a series of questions that can be offered, “When you know that to have an opinion counter to the new cultural orthodoxy is to be thought of as hateful or intolerant.”

I might add that one of the skills most used by Jesus was the practice of asking poignant questions to drive the individual back to the real issue behind their question. I’ll list Stonestreet’s toolkit for you:

WHY THE OBITUARY SHOULD BE REQUIRED READING

Do you know why I like Sunday evening gathering at our church? Because the tone is different and the worshipful setting of the morning is augmented with a equally worshipful evening interaction between pastor and people. It’s the off-camera, unprepared, and vulnerable responses from people that make these services distinctive and beneficial. In honor of Mother’s Day, I asked the question, ” What is the best memory and the worst memory of Mothers’ Day you have?” One of our dear ladies, replied in part, ” It’s losing a child (children), and confronting the helplessness and anger that follows, challenging your trust of the Savior and your attitude.” 

Death is that awful enemy, isn’t it, that relentless pursuer of your dreams, and the one adversary we cannot shake in life. But as I will remind you on Sunday from Genesis 5, in a world where death is the constant companion for everyone, God injects Himself into that world in three very distinctive ways:

In a world where the culture of death reigns over the spiritual and physical world,depriving it of longevity and laughter, there is yet good news.

God is not dead, He continues to pursue individuals, in order that He might draw them to Himself; He will maintain a remnant on the earth until He comes; and, He sustains the presence of Family through His church and those who boldly confess His name before the world. 

HYPOCRISY GETS A FACE LIFT

I had two experiences as a soldier in the late 70’s that have shaped my understanding of human nature these many years since. Throughout the 7 weeks of our basic training, we were instructed in Judo (martial arts self defense) as a part of hand-to-hand combat instruction. I will never forget the drill sergeant’s final words that day, “Men,” he said, “you have learned exactly enough to kill yourselves.” The second lesson also occurred in the military, this time as we were preparing to deploy to Germany for a readiness exercise. Having completed a “short course” in German, we ready… only to discover we were asking the locals,”Who is the toilet,” rather than “Where is the toilet.”

What does this have to do with you? Plenty! Truth is, we can become very proficient at knowing the “language” of Christianity without every knowing the righteousness associated with a life in pursuit of God’s holiness (I Thess. 4). We learn just enough to become dangerous– able to fool ourselves and others into believing that we are in a right relationship with God. After all, no-one knew the finer points of the law better than the Pharisees, and yet I find it almost unimaginable that these same leaders were willing to prostitute themselves (or at least one volunteer) by committing fornication, if only they could trap the Lord Jesus– and all because they could not conquer their own pride. 

A world evolving badly

Many years ago, as our children were growing up and the digital world was still in it’s infancy, Debbie and I were determined to put toys and activities in front of our kids that were designed to nurture their creativity, build their problem solving abilities, and counteract the mind numbing effects of a steady diet of only television. With that in mind, they received “Lego’s” for Christmas presents, were required to take piano lessons, and were restricted in the amount of computer access they could have. One game both of our boys enjoyed was “Sim-City”. Its premise was that you were in charge of building a city; laying out its dimensions, creating the industries and amenities it would offer, and determining how the culture would function. Josh and Daniel loved playing the game and would spend hours creating their own cities; cities as you might guess, vastly different from one another in their makeup.  

Unfortunately, that is the burden that Cain was saddled with but in his case, he was a murderer, now without a home, and soon,, a husband and father without a purpose, or spiritual legacy. He was as it is said, a “man without a country,” and more importantly, no God in his life, with which to give him a vision, or hold him accountable. When we throw off God’s accountability, we’re left with ourselves as the sole authority for our behavior, and honestly, that is often discouraging, and aways dangerous. In Cain’s case, he marries and then builds a city, and with those two actions, the secular world was born; from then on, it will pose a threat to the blessings and potential that can come to culture when God is exalted, His wisdom sought after, and His authority respected. 

With Cain, all were left with is, “Sin-City.” 

MJC