Convenience

$4 a gallon for gasoline is making a lot of people reexamine the way they do things. It's made me think a lot more about how much I drive and whether every trip is necessary. For example, yesterday I had a funeral to attend. The funeral home is just a couple of blocks down the road from the church building. I've been to lots of funerals there before, but I've never even thought about leaving my car at the church building and walking to the funeral home. Yesterday I planned to do just that--but it rained, so I drove.

So I started thinking. Why haven't I ever even thought about walking to a funeral from the church building? Why do so many of us get in the car and drive somewhere that we could easily walk to? Convenience. It wasn't that long ago when we thought $1.89 a gallon for gas was high (today in Fayette it's $3.89). But still it didn't cost all that much to fill up the gas tank, so we got used to driving wherever we wanted to go. It was convenient.

Life in America in 2008 is all about convenience for many of us. Who could imagine life without a microwave, cable tv, vcr's, dvd's, cell phones, the Internet, central heat and air, delivery pizzas, dishwashers, washers and dryers, and on and on and on? The lyrics from the song by Queen sums up the American way of life: "I want it all, I want it all, I want it all, and I want it now!"

Well I'm not advocating a return to "simpler times" or "the good old days." But I am concerned about what all of this emphasis on convenience has done to us spiritually. Physically, this mindset has made many of us Americans fat and lazy. The same thing will happen spiritually if we're not careful.

Good Bible knowledge takes lots of time and effort to acquire. But what does the convenience mindset do to that process? Too many Christians show up for worship services having never opened a Bible since the last time they were at church. Are they looking for a pre-packaged, ready-to-consume Bible lesson that will only take up a few minutes of their time? Bible class teachers can fall into this trap, too. Some want to be able to come into class with little or no preparation time, read the lesson from the book, complete the fill-in-the-blanks and the crossword puzzle and think they have taught a Bible class.

Paul told Timothy, "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15, NKJV). Notice a couple of things about this familiar verse.

First, look at the last part of the verse. The worker who does not need to be ashamed is the one who is capable of "rightly dividing the word of truth." The ASV, ESV, and NASB, respectively, translate that last part as "handling aright," "rightly handling," and "accurately handling" the word of truth. There is a right way to handle God's Word. We are not free to twist the Scriptures to make them sound like they teach what we want them to teach. You may have heard people say, "You can prove anything by the Bible." Well that statement is simply not true. You might be able to be dishonest with statements from the Bible and string together some verses so that it appears the Bible supports your proposition; but you have not "proved" anything by the Bible when you do that. Peter talked about some people who "twist" the Scriptures to their own destruction (2 Peter 3:16). Rather than being either dishonest or ignorant about the Scriptures, we need to be able to handle God's Word correctly.

Second, look at the first part of the verse. This is where we learn how to achieve the ability to handle God's Word correctly. "Be diligent." The KJV has the familiar word "study" here. Usually when people use the word "study," they use it in the sense of "applying the mind to the acquisition of knowledge." Certainly that is involved in what Paul was saying, but the word he used has a little more to it. That Greek word (spoudazo) means, "to do something with intense effort and motivation" (Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains). We must pursue the ability to handle God's Word correctly with intense effort and motivation. That will be neither convenient, easy, nor quick. It takes time; it takes effort; it takes deep thought and meditation.

Let's devote ourselves to being diligent, hard-working Christians not only in Bible study, but also in every aspect of service to the Lord. Christianity is not about convenience; it is about service to the Lord.

I wonder if my old bicycle is still in working order?

I'm Going to Quit

There was a recent news report that former NBA star, Charles Barkley, owed $400,000 in gambling debts to Wynn Resorts Ltd, a Las Vegas Casino. Mr. Barkley quickly made public statements accepting all responsibility for his failure to pay the debts by the date they were due. In a television interview, Mr. Barkley said he has paid the debt and that he plans to use this for something good. He vowed to stop gambling. Apparently, this is a major decision for the NBA Hall of Famer. In an interview with ESPN in 2006, Barkley estimated that he had lost a total of $10 million by gambling. He defended his actions by reasoning that he had not put himself in a financial strain, even after losing such a significant amount of money. Now he says he realizes it's time for a break. He plans to stop gambling. However, he doesn't know if this will be for life. He said it will be for at least a year or two.

I heard a recording of the interview on a sports radio station, while driving in my car today. The two hosts of the program then started talking about how difficult it is to give up your worst vice, both of them citing their own struggles to give up vices. One of the two radio personalities said that he had given up two vices with great difficulty: drinking and gambling. I didn't really have time to admire the man for his decision to get rid of such dangerous (and sinful) habits, because he quickly qualified his statement by saying (in all seriousness) he had given up gambling for 9 months and drinking for 32 days.

I applaud anyone who decides to quit bad habits like drinking and gambling. But what is the rationale for deciding to give them up for limited amounts of time? What good does it really do to give up a sinful practice only to take it up again later? Obviously, these men did not view their habits of drinking and gambling as sinful activities, just practices that could lead to bad things if they let them get "out of control."

God calls upon us to rid ourselves completely of every sinful practice. When we become Christians we die to sin (Romans 6:1-2). We are to put to death certain sinful practices (Col. 3:5). The mindset that says, "I'm going to quit this sin for a while," is completely incompatible with righteousness. John said,

God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:5-7, NKJV).

Paul said that we must have "no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness" (Ephesians 5:11). How can we think we are in a right relationship with God while participating in things God condemns?

Let me leave you with the words of Peter. If a person decides to quit some sinful practice only temporarily, consider this:

For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: “A dog returns to his own vomit,” and, “a sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire” (2 Peter 2:20-22, NKJV, emphasis added).

Day of Silence

Today (April 25) is the day for the so-called "Day of Silence" in schools across the country. Never heard of the "Day of Silence"? I hadn't either, until someone called my attention to it. Apparently, this has been going on for several years. It is a day when students take something akin to a vow of silence. Now before all you parents of teenagers start asking, "Where can my kids sign up," let me tell you who sponsors this day and why. The Day of Silence is in its 12th year and is sponsored by GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network. According to their website, they envision "a future in which every child learns to respect and accept all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression." The Day of Silence is a form of protest against what GLSEN calls "anti-LGBT [Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender] name-calling, bullying and harassment in schools." They believe such harassment forces homosexual students to remain silent about their "sexual orientation and gender expression." So to protest the silence society has forced upon them, and to call attention to the problem of harassment, these people and those who support their cause have chosen to impose a voluntary silence upon themselves today. Those who are taking part will not speak today. Many will wear t-shirts and put up posters advertising the purpose of their silence. Some may hand out cards explaining what they're doing and calling attention to the problem of harassment. This is what this "Day of Silence" is all about.

First, let me say that name-calling, bullying, and harassment for any reason is wrong. Jesus teaches against that kind of thing in so many ways. There is the "Golden Rule" (Matthew 7:12); there is the command to love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:39); there is the command to preach the gospel to the lost (Mark 16:15-16); I could go on, but I think it is pretty clear that the Lord does not want us to be bullies. As Paul said, we must speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15). So I'm all in favor of doing away with the cruel treatment of other people, regardless of who is on either end of the cruel treatment.

But what about the GLSEN and their "Day of Silence"? They want every child "to respect and accept all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression." Let's examine their directive. Should every child learn to respect all people? Yes, if by "respect" we mean to recognize that person as a fellow human being who was made in the image of God. But what do they mean by "accept"? One definition of "accept" is, "to regard as proper, usual, or right." Here is where I have to draw the line. We cannot "regard as proper, usual, or right" all people, "regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression." God does not do that and neither should we.

Then Peter opened his mouth and said: "In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him." (Acts 10:34-35).

God deals with all people equally. He holds them to the same standard: the one He established. He accepts only those who submit to that standard. We cannot accept people "regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression" because God's standard clearly defines the acceptable conditions of sexual expression. Sex is limited to marriage; and marriage is for one man and one woman. Those who seek to "express" their sexuality outside of these boundaries are not acceptable with God, and therefore we should not regard their lifestyles as "proper, usual, or right." This teaching does not single out homosexuality, but it certainly includes it. All sexual activity outside of marriage is sinful, whether it is between a man and woman who are not married to each other, two men, two women, an adult and a child, or even a human being and an animal.

Maybe a day of silence is a good idea. The homosexual special interest groups have become so vocal over the past several years that it is almost impossible to get away from their influence. They complain that they are being discriminated against and denied their civil rights. Their willing accomplices in Hollywood seem to take about any opportunity they can to portray homosexuals in the most positive light, while often portraying those who believe the Bible as bigoted, corrupt, and immoral. If they would all remain silent about their agenda, it would be great. Maybe this day of silence is a great opportunity for those who believe the truth to speak up.

The Vicar of Christ

You've probably seen the news coverage of the pope's visit to America. How could you miss it? I have not really paid much attention to it, but I happened to be watching TV when they broadcast the papal mass at St. Patrick's cathedral in New York. I watched a few minutes of the proceedings here and there and then turned away. Quite a while later I turned back to the Fox News Channel and the pope had finished and he was walking down the aisle, leaving the cathedral. I was interested to see, alongside the pope and other members of the Catholic clergy dressed in their official costumes, a number of security guards, wearing dark suits, walking up the aisle with the pope and his entourage. I knew these had to be security guards because they had the tell-tale wires running out from under their shirt collars into ear pieces they were wearing for communication. Now the thing that really caught my attention was that the pope was waving to the crowd as he passed down the aisle and most people were waving back and taking pictures. But there were a few people who were especially zealous in wanting to greet the pope and they reached out to touch him. As soon as someone tried to reach out to the pope, one of the security guards would position himself between that person and the pope and push his hands away from the pope.

So I started thinking. One of the official titles the pope wears is "the Vicar of Christ." It basically means that the pope is Christ's representative--he operates in the place of Christ. If the pope is supposed to operate in Christ's place, shouldn't he try to act like Christ? Jesus often had to deal with crowds of people who wanted to see Him, to talk to Him, and to touch Him. What if the apostles acted like the pope's security guards and pushed people away from Jesus? Well, there was at least one time when they did. Mark 10:13-16 says,

Then they brought little children to Him, that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who brought them. But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.” And He took them up in His arms, laid His hands on them, and blessed them.

From the ornate costumes, to the elaborate security, the pope bears little resemblance to Jesus. There's a very simple reason for this: the Roman Catholic Church is the product of human ideas and doctrines. When human beings do things their own way instead of God's way, they make choices that bring glory and honor to them, not God.

Spiritual Lessons from Nutrisystem

You've seen the commercials on TV. " 'Mary' lost 57 pounds on Nutrisystem!" Then they show lots of before and after pictures of "Mary." She's so happy now that she's lost all that weight. Before, she was unhappy, unhealthy, people didn't like her, she didn't feel good about herself, and so on. But now she's happier than she's ever been, she's able to do things she never could do before, people think she's the life of the party. She loves the way she looks and feels now and she never wants to go back to the way she was before. One of the commercials even has the client talking about herself as a different person before she lost the weight, and saying, "You'll never see that person again" (referring to a picture of her before she lost weight).

Well let's go two completely different directions here.

First, I hate those commercials. I know it's not healthy to be overweight; but how shallow are we when we start thinking the way these commercials tell us to think. That woman on the commercial thinks she was a different person when she was fat? Really?? American culture frowns on prejudice and discrimination. Or does it? When it comes to race, gender, religion (other than Christianity), and (sadly) sexual orientation, we're told that prejudice and discrimination are abominable. But apparently it's OK to be prejudiced against fat people. You can make fun of them, you can make them pay extra for airline tickets, you can treat them like dirt--all because they are fat.

But all people are valuable in God's eyes (1 Timothy 2:3-4). Jesus died for everyone (John 3:16). Just like the children's song says, "Red and yellow, black and white, all are precious in His sight." It wouldn't make for very good poetry, but maybe we should add "skinny and fat" to that song somewhere. If losing a lot of weight makes someone a "new person" I'm not sure I would be interested in getting to know the "new person." What counts the most is what a person is like on the inside. It is the heart of a person that matters, and the person whose heart has been cleansed by Jesus' blood (Hebrews 9:13-14; 10:22) is acceptable in God's sight, and therefore ought to be acceptable in ours as well. If that person's heart is not right with God, God still loves him and we should, too. Jesus told us to preach the gospel to him (Mark 16:15-16). We do that because we love him; and we love him because God loves him.

Second, the Nutrisystem commercials illustrate a positive thing for us. Even though I don't like the way they present themselves, I do like the illustration their attitude provides. These people have seen a drastic change take place in their lives. That change is so great that they see themselves as different people now. They enjoy the change so much that they are determined never to go back to the way they were before.

Isn't this the way Christians ought to view the change that has taken place in their lives? Paul talked about putting off the "old man" and putting on the "new man" (Ephesians 4:22-24). In Christ, we truly are a "new creation" (2 Corinthians 5:17). Do we have the same joy over the change that has taken place as the Nutrisystem clients seem to have over their change? Do we see the same drastic differences in lifestyle and direction as those people do? Are we as determined to maintain the change and never go back as those people are? We should be. Sin holds nothing for anyone, except death (Romans 6:23; Revelation 21:8). But in Christ we have all spiritual blessings (Ephesians 1:3). We have an abundant life (John 10:10). We have the hope of Heaven (John 14:6).

If we're talking about physical life, let's not be as shallow as some of the Nutrisystem success stories seem to be. Regardless of physical appearance, every person is precious in the sight of God and therefore ought to be precious to us as well. But if we're talking about spiritual life, let's try to develop the same passion for the new, better life we have in Christ, along with the same determination not to go back to the way we were before, like we see illustrated in those weight loss success stories.

Some People Just Have to Be Recognized

You know the kind of people they are: always pointing out the good things they do, and getting their feelings hurt if no one notices or makes a fuss over them. Take my friend, Bob McEachern, for example. I don't know how many times he has said something to me about giving him credit on here for taking the picture of me and Jan that appears on the blog. OK, Bob, here you go. You took a great picture (considering half the subject matter, anyway). Seriously, though, I'm only kidding Bob, and he's the kind of person who both knows that and can take the kidding. Truth be told, Bob is the exact opposite of the kind of person I'm talking about. He will gladly sacrifice himself to help out other people and never seek, expect, or want any kind of public recognition.

But there are plenty of people who want the recognition. Why is that? It's a problem with "self." When "self" becomes too important in a person's life, all kinds of problems emerge. Seeking recognition for what they do is only one of them. Jesus talked about people who made a big commotion to call attention to themselves whenever they did some charitable deed (Matthew 6:1-4). Their motivation was to receive glory from men. Now think about the dynamics of this. They performed some charitable deed. That would obviously help someone who needed the help. But the kindness and aid given to someone in need wasn't significant enough to them to satisfy them. This act also should have brought glory to God. After all, God was the One responsible for their ability to give in the first place, and He was the One who taught about the giving nature of true love. But not even this was significant enough for them. Why? Because "self" was more important than the needy, and even more important to them than God.

This is the problem with seeking recognition. It shows that we think we are more significant in the grand scheme of things even than God! This kind of thinking causes us to undervalue everything everyone else does (even including God) and to overvalue everything we do. This person might as well just come out and say, "Since I'm so important, what I do must be worthy of recognition."

Maybe this little exercise will help us to put ourselves in perspective. Anytime you are tempted to think people ought to recognize you for something you did, try to see your good deeds in light of life as a whole. "I bought some food for a hungry family," someone might say. OK, that's great; but what's going to happen when that food runs out, and how many other hungry families are there in the world that you could not buy food for? Another might say, "I spent an afternoon repairing some things on a widow's house." Again, that's wonderful; but think of all the other people in similar situations that you were not able to assist. "I had a home Bible study with someone." Terrific! But are you the only person in the world trying to save the lost? What about the billions of people in the world who are still in sin?

The point of this is not take away from the importance and significance of doing good works. These kinds of things are wonderful and we need more people who are willing to do them. But our attitude toward doing them needs to be right. Jesus said, "So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do’ " (Luke 17:10). We do what we do in service to the Lord because we are servants and that's what the Lord expects of us. If we want to please our Master then we will gladly serve Him by doing good, whether other people recognize us for it or not.

On Being Sick

You may have noticed that a few days went by without anything new on the blog. That's because I've been sick. Yes, I caught whatever bug this is that's going around here. I hate being sick like this. The general aches and tiredness that come with fever, the coughing, the sore throat, the congestion, the runny nose, waking up throughout the night either drenched in sweat or shivering with chills: it all gets old quick and you're ready for it to be gone long before it goes away. So what do you do? You go to the doctor. He may give you a shot and prescribe some medicine to take, and you wait for all of that to work. Meanwhile, you gradually try to work your way back to some semblence of a normal day's routine. But then even though you're starting to feel better, you still run out of energy about as soon as you get started doing anything. It just takes time and patience.

Now I'm not fishing for any sympathy here, I'm just setting up an object lesson for us. Physical sickness is obvious and we generally do something to address it; but what about spiritual sickness? There are obvious symptoms of spiritual sickness: a dying prayer life, dwindling zeal for the work of the church, lack of interest in studying the Bible, giving in to temptation more and more, and so forth. When we see symptoms like these in our spiritual lives, how do we respond? We ought to respond in a similar way to the way we do with physical illness. Jesus alluded to Himself as a physician, when He said, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance" (Mark 2:17). Sin is the greatest sickness of all and Jesus is the only physician who can make us well. When we see symptoms of spiritual sickness in our lives, we need to turn to the Great Physician and seek the healing only He can give.