The Vatican (the Catholic home base, you know, where the Pope lives) has recently held a conference on extraterrestrial life. They brought in experts from around the globe to ponder the possibility of life on other planet. They came up with there conclusions and you can search for them on your own (look at the links to the articles below and just Google it as you do everything else) but what I just though I would take a moment and add my two cents.
It is probably best to start out and say that I don't think that aliens have ever visited planet earth. I have seen my fair share of UFO's, each one explained by low flying planes and low flying helicopters. I have even watched my fair share of Sci-Fi movies, most of them so unrealistic and accompanied by really bad acting, however there are a few out good ones out there. But I really don't understand why the aliens always have the upper hand and are smarter, but, that's the movies. What can we say for real as Believers about aliens?
Here is what we know:
Genisis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
I am a creationist and fully believe God spoke the universe into existence. I don't know how this happened and don't know when it happened, but I do believe that God is timeless and His words had and have the ability to create, thus created the universe and all that is in it. On a side note and I will hash through this later, I kinda like the idea of the Big Bang Theory. How else would it look if God spoke the world into existence, Boom Baby! I'm not saying this is how, but good theory guys. So we have this universe that God has created and we really don't even know how big it is. NASA says; "No one knows if the universe is infinitely large, or even if ours is the only universe that exists."* Nova estimates the size of the universe at 28 Light Years in diameter, but that's just as far as we can see.** At any rate that's huge.
Right now we are trying to find out if there is life on Mars, just a little speck of bacteria would set scientist into a frenzy because there would be life on another planet. So how far is Mars away from the earth? Well at its closest it is 34 million miles away and when it is at its farthest 249 million miles, its different because of the different orbits of the Earth and Mars. We are still talking miles here, not light years. Also, we are in the Milky Way Galaxy and are only one of well hundreds of billions. The Hubble Telescope has visibly recorded 3000+ galaxies and estimates the possibility of 500 billion galaxies.
My conclusion is very simple and relies on logic and a high view of God. If we as humans cannot determine or find if there is life or not on a planet that is only millions of miles away how can we definitively say that there is not life on the billions of other planets in the billions of other galaxies, billions of light years away. Why limit God to only one planet of life. I do not know if there is life on another planet and I am not even saying there is. However, I do not ever want to limit God and His creation. If God has created life on other planets, then there is life on other planets. What He does and how He deals with them is His business.
So, UFOs? I don't think visitors from another planet have ever visited. If there are aliens out there with any kind of intellectual capacity, they are probably looking into the sky wondering if there is life out there beyond them.
Yahoo New's article on the Vatican and ET
Spaceship Fellowship's article
Google Search for the Vatican and Extraterrestrial life Conference
*NASA's response to "How Big is the Universe?"
**Nova's response to "How Big is the Universe?"
Friday, November 20, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Giving to God in Response to God and His Bling
I started thinking about the last post, "God and His Bling." Where does our tithes fit into this? God doesn't need our money, if fact He needs no money at all. Money is not valuable to God. If all this is true, why do we give or need to give our hard earned money to God?
Before we start, I need to make something real clear and probably should have made it clear in "God and His Bling", however that was not the point. The point of "God and His Bling" was to show that God does not need money and only uses it to bring glory to Himself throughout the Bible. The point of this blog is to now show that it is our responsibility to bring glory to God using our money, and anything else that we have. But I want to make this real clear so it doesn't come back to bite me.
God wants us to tithe to Him.
Clear enough. No?
You should be giving a portion of your money to God.
Leviticus 27:30
"A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the LORD.
Churches are struggling through this tough economic climate and there is no reason for it. What is really sad is churches struggling through a good economy. What is the cause? Only 5% of believers tithe and usually they only tithe 3%.* That is the absolute worst statistic that could possibly come to the surface. That is worse than the Christian divorce rate, decline of churches, rate of people falling away from the church and so on. People are not faithful to God, period! Simply the fact is that if people tithe faithfully, most of the bad statistics would disappear.
1 Timothy 6:10
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
I do not want to spend our time here harping on not giving, rather I want to take a brief look at how we as the church could be glorifying God.
There are 150 million protestants. 150 million X $3,200 = 480 Trillion!
Don't like that number lets say only half of the protestants are actually believers. 240 Trillion.
It doesn't matter how you slice this number, it is always going to be huge. If we are obeying God as believers, there should be a ton of money to glorify God with.
What could $240 Trillion do?
Money does not mean anything to God. But, God knows it means a lot to us humans. If we obey God and give tithes like we should, the God that we obey would be glorified in ways that we could never expect. Showing people the church does care and can meet the needs of people also shows them the love of Christ. Divorce rates go down, attendance rates sore, poverty all but disappears. Is this a dream world? Yes. Would Satan try to corrupt a church with that much money, yes. But, if Christians would simply give as they should to the church, the love of Christ would be able to spread extremely fast.
By the way, the average income in the world is $7000 and 2 billion Christians, if as the worldwide church gave 10%, there would be $1,400,000,000,000 every year in tithes, $1.4 quadrillion per year.
What could the world look like if Christians would just obey God?
* The Barna Group - "New Study Shows Trends in Tithing and Donating"
Note
Money still has no intrinsic value to God. He does not need money to build His kingdom. However, money does matter to Him in the sense that human can use it to glorify Him. I am asking that you don't get confused and say, "Well, Haley said that money doesn't matter to God so I am not giving." That is just stupid thinking.
Before we start, I need to make something real clear and probably should have made it clear in "God and His Bling", however that was not the point. The point of "God and His Bling" was to show that God does not need money and only uses it to bring glory to Himself throughout the Bible. The point of this blog is to now show that it is our responsibility to bring glory to God using our money, and anything else that we have. But I want to make this real clear so it doesn't come back to bite me.
God wants us to tithe to Him.
Clear enough. No?
You should be giving a portion of your money to God.
Leviticus 27:30
"A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the LORD.
Churches are struggling through this tough economic climate and there is no reason for it. What is really sad is churches struggling through a good economy. What is the cause? Only 5% of believers tithe and usually they only tithe 3%.* That is the absolute worst statistic that could possibly come to the surface. That is worse than the Christian divorce rate, decline of churches, rate of people falling away from the church and so on. People are not faithful to God, period! Simply the fact is that if people tithe faithfully, most of the bad statistics would disappear.
1 Timothy 6:10
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
I do not want to spend our time here harping on not giving, rather I want to take a brief look at how we as the church could be glorifying God.
- There are several numbers out there on how many Christians are in the United States, we will go with 230 million (yes, this includes all that claim to be Christian, but if you claim Christianity you should be obeying God).
- The average income of an American citizen is $32,000. (It's actually a little higher)
- 10% - Popular amount of money to tithe.
- 10% of $32,000 = $3,200
- 230,000,000 X $3,200 = $736,000,000,000
There are 150 million protestants. 150 million X $3,200 = 480 Trillion!
Don't like that number lets say only half of the protestants are actually believers. 240 Trillion.
It doesn't matter how you slice this number, it is always going to be huge. If we are obeying God as believers, there should be a ton of money to glorify God with.
What could $240 Trillion do?
- Take care of the US deficit within a year and a half.
- There are 850 million people starving in the world, Christians would have enough money to serve them a 3 hot meals a day will leftovers.
- A $30,000 well in Africa gets clean drinking water to 20,000 people for 20 years. Don't even worry about digging wells, we could run drinking water to every town and village and given them water sprinklers to water their gardens. What not enough money? Lets say we do it over 10 years, $2.4 quadrillion, that will do it.
- Restore New Orleans, done.
- Solve world hunger, done.
Money does not mean anything to God. But, God knows it means a lot to us humans. If we obey God and give tithes like we should, the God that we obey would be glorified in ways that we could never expect. Showing people the church does care and can meet the needs of people also shows them the love of Christ. Divorce rates go down, attendance rates sore, poverty all but disappears. Is this a dream world? Yes. Would Satan try to corrupt a church with that much money, yes. But, if Christians would simply give as they should to the church, the love of Christ would be able to spread extremely fast.
By the way, the average income in the world is $7000 and 2 billion Christians, if as the worldwide church gave 10%, there would be $1,400,000,000,000 every year in tithes, $1.4 quadrillion per year.
What could the world look like if Christians would just obey God?
* The Barna Group - "New Study Shows Trends in Tithing and Donating"
Note
Money still has no intrinsic value to God. He does not need money to build His kingdom. However, money does matter to Him in the sense that human can use it to glorify Him. I am asking that you don't get confused and say, "Well, Haley said that money doesn't matter to God so I am not giving." That is just stupid thinking.
Monday, August 10, 2009
God and His Bling
We place so much value on money. I once heard a really rich businessman and believer say, "Money is not as important as air, but it is close." Just to note, this guys opinion was that he didn't have to say, "wouldn't be cool if we had the money to help those people." He has the money to help and helps in amazing ways. His saying is true though. There are some people out there, more than we want to admit, that would rather have money that breath. But money has become so important to our society, that money controls all we do.
How did America pick a president? The one who spent the most campaigning and who promised to fix the failing economy. How do girls shop? When something is on sale, only to spend more because they are "saving money." How do guys decide how to buy something. Well the cheap guys pick the lowest price and the ego-fools pick the highest price. How do we decide social status, money. How do you get better tickets for an event, pay more. What is the number 1 issue that married couples argue about, money. Need I go on. Okay, no problem. What put America in a financial crisis, buying more than we could afford. Why are their people worldwide going hungry right now, we love our money too much.
This isn't a new problem. People have always valued money. When king Solomon was building the Temple he had a so many things made out of bronze put in the Temple, they didn't even take the time to weight it because it was so much. (1 Kings 7 :47)
1 Kings 7:48-51
Solomon also made all the funishings that were in the LORD's temple:
the golden alter;
the golden table on which was the bread of the Presence;
the lampstands of pure gold, five on the right and five on the left, in front of the inner sanctuary the gold floral work and lamps and tongs;
the pure gold basins, wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, dishes and censers; and the gold sockets for the doors of the innermost room, the Most Holy Placce, and also for the doors of the main hall of the temple.
When all the work King Solomon had done for the temple of the LORD was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated - the silver and gold and the furnishings - and placed them in the treasuries of the LORD's temple
How did America pick a president? The one who spent the most campaigning and who promised to fix the failing economy. How do girls shop? When something is on sale, only to spend more because they are "saving money." How do guys decide how to buy something. Well the cheap guys pick the lowest price and the ego-fools pick the highest price. How do we decide social status, money. How do you get better tickets for an event, pay more. What is the number 1 issue that married couples argue about, money. Need I go on. Okay, no problem. What put America in a financial crisis, buying more than we could afford. Why are their people worldwide going hungry right now, we love our money too much.
This isn't a new problem. People have always valued money. When king Solomon was building the Temple he had a so many things made out of bronze put in the Temple, they didn't even take the time to weight it because it was so much. (1 Kings 7 :47)
1 Kings 7:48-51
Solomon also made all the funishings that were in the LORD's temple:
the golden alter;
the golden table on which was the bread of the Presence;
the lampstands of pure gold, five on the right and five on the left, in front of the inner sanctuary the gold floral work and lamps and tongs;
the pure gold basins, wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, dishes and censers; and the gold sockets for the doors of the innermost room, the Most Holy Placce, and also for the doors of the main hall of the temple.
When all the work King Solomon had done for the temple of the LORD was finished, he brought in the things his father David had dedicated - the silver and gold and the furnishings - and placed them in the treasuries of the LORD's temple
Catch my drift. Israel like their money. Solomon was the riches king in the entire world! (1 Kings 10:23) So what happened to all this money?
2 Kings 24:13. As the LORD has declared, Nebuchadnezzar removed all the treasures from the temple of the LORD and from the royal palace, and took away all the gold articles that Solomon king of Israel had made for the temple of the LORD.
This was not the first time all the gold and silver were take and it definitely wasn't the last. Now step back and think of about this. If you had a ton of money, on second thought, it doesn't matter how much money you have. Let's just say you got robbed. Anyone who gets robbed goes bananas and tries everything they can to get their money back or get justice by punishing the criminal. That's natural right? The writers of scripture note when the treasure is taken but as I was reading through 1 & 2 Kings I noticed something. Its what I call an "Ah Ha Moment", a moment when you get it, but at the same time this one was a "Duh Moment!"
God could care less what happens to all the gold in the Temple. He doesn't even care about money at all. We are suppose to give money to God, not because He needs it. God doesn't need your money, my money, Donald Trump's money or Oprah's money. FYI, God doesn't need money! When reading, I noticed that God didn't even flinch. In fact, God orchestrated the treasure being taken. He uses money to glorify Himself and His glory does not have anything to do with the money. So what is important to God?
Money is not a bad thing. Though Jesus says, " it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." (Matthew 19:24) The more money you have, the wiser you are with your money, the more you can pay for things to happen. But money is not the focus of God. We, as believers should focus our time on giving glory to the Father. Whatever it is we may be doing, the focus should be on giving glory to the King.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Who Gives This Bride Away? John 3:27-29
I do weddings from time to time and I find them a lot of fun. Not doing the wedding itself, but the time I spend with the couple before hand. I require that they sit down with me and I council them about marriage; Which is really funny, I'm not married. Its not like I really council them, I more of lead them through questions they need to think through of as a couple before they get married. It also allows me to share with them how Scripture views marriage. As I was studying for this latest couple I was listening to John Piper* and came across a part of the wedding ceremony that I know I hadn't thought about and always just considered it just part of the wedding, part of the tradition.
When a bride walks down the aisle, it is her moment to shine, her time to be the center of attention, he is gorgeous and when she gets to the alter, the pastor asks the audience a question. His question is not to an individual, but to all that are gathered. The pastor asks, "Who gives this bride away?" The bride's father proudly stands up and says, "I do." Is this not just a formality. Check this out.
John 3:27-29 (NASB)
John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven." You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, "I am not the Christ, but, I have been send ahead of Him." He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice so this joy of mine has been made full.
John the Baptist has been baptizing people and then Jesus comes along. John the Baptist has the privilege of baptizing Jesus and points people to Jesus as the Christ. Now that Jesus is on the scene, more people are being baptized by Jesus' disciples than by John the Baptist, as it should be. But this upsets some people because they think that Jesus is stealing John the Baptist's followers. John's answer is perfect. John says Jesus is the bridegroom and the people are the bride. Here is the kicker, the people have been given to Jesus by the Father.
Verse 27 says, "A man can receive nothing unless it is given to him from heaven." Now who is in heaven to give things away? God the Father! In the picture of a wedding that is given throughout the New Testament as symbolizing the relationship between people and Jesus, God is the Father that gives the bride, the people, away to the groom, Jesus. Our Father in Heaven loves us so much that He has given us Jesus to save us.
Next time your in a wedding don't let this moment when the father of the bride proudly gives his little girl away slip you by as just tradition. It is God's plan of salvation. God sent Jesus as a man to be the groom so that we could marry him as the bride and give us His name. Guys get over it, you're the bride in this picture as well as the ladies, but you want to be. What a beautiful moment, when God the Father gives the bride, believers, to Jesus the Son and groom and we are taken into the family of God.
*John Piper's web site is www.desiringgod.org and is a great resource.
When a bride walks down the aisle, it is her moment to shine, her time to be the center of attention, he is gorgeous and when she gets to the alter, the pastor asks the audience a question. His question is not to an individual, but to all that are gathered. The pastor asks, "Who gives this bride away?" The bride's father proudly stands up and says, "I do." Is this not just a formality. Check this out.
John 3:27-29 (NASB)
John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven." You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, "I am not the Christ, but, I have been send ahead of Him." He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice so this joy of mine has been made full.
John the Baptist has been baptizing people and then Jesus comes along. John the Baptist has the privilege of baptizing Jesus and points people to Jesus as the Christ. Now that Jesus is on the scene, more people are being baptized by Jesus' disciples than by John the Baptist, as it should be. But this upsets some people because they think that Jesus is stealing John the Baptist's followers. John's answer is perfect. John says Jesus is the bridegroom and the people are the bride. Here is the kicker, the people have been given to Jesus by the Father.
Verse 27 says, "A man can receive nothing unless it is given to him from heaven." Now who is in heaven to give things away? God the Father! In the picture of a wedding that is given throughout the New Testament as symbolizing the relationship between people and Jesus, God is the Father that gives the bride, the people, away to the groom, Jesus. Our Father in Heaven loves us so much that He has given us Jesus to save us.
Next time your in a wedding don't let this moment when the father of the bride proudly gives his little girl away slip you by as just tradition. It is God's plan of salvation. God sent Jesus as a man to be the groom so that we could marry him as the bride and give us His name. Guys get over it, you're the bride in this picture as well as the ladies, but you want to be. What a beautiful moment, when God the Father gives the bride, believers, to Jesus the Son and groom and we are taken into the family of God.
*John Piper's web site is www.desiringgod.org and is a great resource.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Words from Joe: Part 6 - Your Suit
This is the last of the "Words from Joe" series. Joe is one of the wises and most humble men I have ever met. I hope I have shared his wisdom with you as much as he shared with me. The 30 minute conversation we had has impacted my ministry more than any single conversation I have ever had. Thank you Joe.
Joe said, "God designed your suit for your and it will only fit you. It will never fit anyone else and anyone else that attempts to put on your suit, it will always feel awkward. I would be too tight, too loose, too small or way to big. Your suit is designed to move with you and always be perfect. Our suits may be made out of the same material but one is made for me and one is made for you."
God has put me in the very spot he wants me. Better yet, when God wants me in a different context or different situation, He will put me there. I only have to obey and wear my suit. Same for you. You have a unique suit that is made just for you, it will fit no one else like it fits you. Know that God has you where He needs you and you only need to obey and wear your suit. Don't try to wear a suit that belongs to someone else, you know it won't fit you.
Jeremiah 1:5 (NIV) "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you..."
Joe said, "God designed your suit for your and it will only fit you. It will never fit anyone else and anyone else that attempts to put on your suit, it will always feel awkward. I would be too tight, too loose, too small or way to big. Your suit is designed to move with you and always be perfect. Our suits may be made out of the same material but one is made for me and one is made for you."
God has put me in the very spot he wants me. Better yet, when God wants me in a different context or different situation, He will put me there. I only have to obey and wear my suit. Same for you. You have a unique suit that is made just for you, it will fit no one else like it fits you. Know that God has you where He needs you and you only need to obey and wear your suit. Don't try to wear a suit that belongs to someone else, you know it won't fit you.
Jeremiah 1:5 (NIV) "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you..."
Words from Joe: Part 5 - Obey
Just a few more words from Joe that really struck me. He mentioned this thought several times. It was almost like he knew what had to be done so that he could hear "well done you good and faithful servant" when he knelt before the Lord. He kept saying..
"It would be so good for someone to say, 'I just did as the Lord told me.'" Of course it would Joe.
He said, what if you were at a pastor's conference and they asked you "what did your do for the Lord in the past year."
And you said, "We obeyed God and spread taught his word."
They followed up with another question, "But, how many people came to Christ?"
And you responded, "none, in fact people left. But, we did exactly what we were told to do, we obeyed God the best we could."
Nobody would care, they just want to know about the converts and the successes of the ministry. They would ask for another testimony that had people coming to Christ. The point is not that you are successful, the point is that you obey Christ.
People want to be great and do wonderful things for Christ. The most wonderful thing you can do for Christ is to obey the word of God and His calling on your life. No matter, what you do, do it for the Lord and obey His word, the Bible.
1Corinthians 10:31 (NIV) "...do it all for the glory of God."
"It would be so good for someone to say, 'I just did as the Lord told me.'" Of course it would Joe.
He said, what if you were at a pastor's conference and they asked you "what did your do for the Lord in the past year."
And you said, "We obeyed God and spread taught his word."
They followed up with another question, "But, how many people came to Christ?"
And you responded, "none, in fact people left. But, we did exactly what we were told to do, we obeyed God the best we could."
Nobody would care, they just want to know about the converts and the successes of the ministry. They would ask for another testimony that had people coming to Christ. The point is not that you are successful, the point is that you obey Christ.
People want to be great and do wonderful things for Christ. The most wonderful thing you can do for Christ is to obey the word of God and His calling on your life. No matter, what you do, do it for the Lord and obey His word, the Bible.
1Corinthians 10:31 (NIV) "...do it all for the glory of God."
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Words from Joe: Part 4 - God's Plan
Thirty minutes with a guy that I have just met is not a lot of time to give him credibility and listen to his words. But Joe, earned trust in a matter of seconds. It was his spirit, his humble spirit. It is his uselessness, humble, kingdom minded spirit that was apparent and drew me in. This was Joe's first lesson he gave me and I saved it for last.
I have been looking for a full time job in the ministry and getting frustrated as time goes by. I'm ready! As I finished introducing myself, I told Joe I had graduated seminary a few months earlier and looking for a job. "I just am tired of waiting", I said. In his mellow, South African / Australian, deep voice he said...
"Waiting is hard, but you can't have plans for God."
So why do so many of us try to plan out how we are going to do ministry? How we are going to restore the church? How we are going to ...
Joe continued. Noah didn't have a plans to build a boat and definitely no plans on how to build an ark. God provided the wood and the plans on how to build the ark. Then He provided the animals and the rain, remember, God even shut the door. Noah was not involved in the plans, he just had to show up
Moses didn't have any plans of freeing Israel from Egypt, that would be ludicrous. God made the plans, gave him the words and the miracles. What are Moses' plans when he gets to the Red Sea, nope he doesn't have any, God did. How does Moses plan to feed an entire nation in the middle of the desert, he had no plans, God did. Ten Commandments...God. How about building the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant. Moses was given all the plans by God, who provided all the material. Even Moses' kid, God had the plan, Moses' plan messed up.
An entire army bearing down on Israel and mocking them. Does Saul have a plan? Nope. God Does. Example after example, over and over again, it's God's plans. How about saving Christians from Saul's (Paul's) wrath. No plans there, but God shows up and not only stops Paul from harming believers, sends Paul out to bring the message to Gentiles. Bet that was never on Paul's radar. What are the disciples to do, Jesus is gone and they have no plans. That's right, God has plans and saves thousands with one sermon from Peter.
Here was Joe's question to me, "Why is it that we try to make plans to grow a church? Is it not our job to just show up and do God's plan?"
Matthew 16:18
"And I tell you that you are Peter,and on this rock I will build my church,"
Who is building who's church? Jesus will build His church. It is not our job to build the church, that's Jesus' job, God's plan. Our job is to follow God's plan.
Matthew 28:18-20
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
That's the plan. Jesus will build his church if we are making disciples.
I have been looking for a full time job in the ministry and getting frustrated as time goes by. I'm ready! As I finished introducing myself, I told Joe I had graduated seminary a few months earlier and looking for a job. "I just am tired of waiting", I said. In his mellow, South African / Australian, deep voice he said...
"Waiting is hard, but you can't have plans for God."
So why do so many of us try to plan out how we are going to do ministry? How we are going to restore the church? How we are going to ...
Joe continued. Noah didn't have a plans to build a boat and definitely no plans on how to build an ark. God provided the wood and the plans on how to build the ark. Then He provided the animals and the rain, remember, God even shut the door. Noah was not involved in the plans, he just had to show up
Moses didn't have any plans of freeing Israel from Egypt, that would be ludicrous. God made the plans, gave him the words and the miracles. What are Moses' plans when he gets to the Red Sea, nope he doesn't have any, God did. How does Moses plan to feed an entire nation in the middle of the desert, he had no plans, God did. Ten Commandments...God. How about building the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant. Moses was given all the plans by God, who provided all the material. Even Moses' kid, God had the plan, Moses' plan messed up.
An entire army bearing down on Israel and mocking them. Does Saul have a plan? Nope. God Does. Example after example, over and over again, it's God's plans. How about saving Christians from Saul's (Paul's) wrath. No plans there, but God shows up and not only stops Paul from harming believers, sends Paul out to bring the message to Gentiles. Bet that was never on Paul's radar. What are the disciples to do, Jesus is gone and they have no plans. That's right, God has plans and saves thousands with one sermon from Peter.
Here was Joe's question to me, "Why is it that we try to make plans to grow a church? Is it not our job to just show up and do God's plan?"
Matthew 16:18
"And I tell you that you are Peter,and on this rock I will build my church,"
Who is building who's church? Jesus will build His church. It is not our job to build the church, that's Jesus' job, God's plan. Our job is to follow God's plan.
Matthew 28:18-20
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
That's the plan. Jesus will build his church if we are making disciples.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Words from Joe: Part 3 - The King
Joe continued to tell me about his feelings on ministry. Like I said in Part 1, this was a divine meeting. His talking had a natural flow to it, like he had prepared this lesson just for me. Like I have said before, South Africans do not talk unless they have something to say and Joe had more that he felt that I needed to hear. From useless to pride and now the King.
Beyond pride the number one issue among churches today is serving the Kingdom. It is church culture that the church be served. And the pastor is being forced in many cases or gets caught up in serving the church or the kingdom. Now there is nothing wrong with serving the kingdom.
Matthew 6:33
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
The danger is that the kingdom is being served and not the King. Joe said, "follow and serve the King, not the kingdom. You can serve the kingdom and not the King, but if you serve the King you will always be serving the kingdom...His kingdom." If you are serving God, then there is no way that anyone can say that you are not serving the kingdom and you will be sure that you are following what God is having you to do.
Israel found themselves serving the kingdom. In there case the kingdom was the law. They were attempting to be completely obedient to the law. There problem was that in their attempt to be obedient to the law and the kingdom, they forgot God. My prayer is that the church will wake up and be obedient to God and not to just to church culture. I understand these are hard and difficult words for some and might even be dangerous and misunderstood. I hope they aren't and I hope you as the reader understand that we must serve the King, after all, it is His kingdom.
Beyond pride the number one issue among churches today is serving the Kingdom. It is church culture that the church be served. And the pastor is being forced in many cases or gets caught up in serving the church or the kingdom. Now there is nothing wrong with serving the kingdom.
Matthew 6:33
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
The danger is that the kingdom is being served and not the King. Joe said, "follow and serve the King, not the kingdom. You can serve the kingdom and not the King, but if you serve the King you will always be serving the kingdom...His kingdom." If you are serving God, then there is no way that anyone can say that you are not serving the kingdom and you will be sure that you are following what God is having you to do.
Israel found themselves serving the kingdom. In there case the kingdom was the law. They were attempting to be completely obedient to the law. There problem was that in their attempt to be obedient to the law and the kingdom, they forgot God. My prayer is that the church will wake up and be obedient to God and not to just to church culture. I understand these are hard and difficult words for some and might even be dangerous and misunderstood. I hope they aren't and I hope you as the reader understand that we must serve the King, after all, it is His kingdom.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Words from Joe: Part 2 - Pride
A little refresher or a catch-up for those who didn't read part one.
Joe is the uncle of my neighbors at the lake. He was born in South Africa and now lives in Australia where he serves other churches, helping to revitalize their leadership. He came over to meet me and I am now sharing his words with you from our 30 min. conversation. He started by telling me how blessed he was to be useless. By being useless, God has used him in incredible ways. After telling me about being useless, he paused for a moment leaning back in his chair, then like a breath of fresh air, sat up on the end of the chair and said...
"And Pride. Pride will take you down faster than anything else and that's why I was so blessed to be useless." He sat back in his chair waiting for a response and so I obliged him, "Pride seems to be the root of all sin." Joe quickly responded. "You have to wake up every morning and see if pride is sticking its head up over the horizon."
It is pride that gets in our way and makes us so we can not be used by God. Reality is that when we sin we are being extremely prideful. We are telling God that He does not know what is best for us and we know better. What an arrogant statement to a loving creator. Now this is not the statement that believers think they are making but one that is made repeatedly. As a follower of Jesus, I know that He knows what is best for me, yet I still am arrogant enough to do what I think is best. And yes, Pride is at the base of all sin. Pride is a heart issue and the heart is source of our sins.
The fruit in the garden...Pride
Striking a rock to produce water...Pride
Being swallowed by a fish...Pride
Sleeping with another man's wife...Pride
Not giving your tithe to God...Pride
Not sharing the Gospel...Pride
And the list goes on...
As Joe was telling me about pride, is message was to a young pastor who has goals, ambition and wants to see many come to faith and the church where I serve grow. It is because of those goals that I and all the other pastors must become like John the Baptist. "The bride belongs to the bridegroom." (More on this later)
Wake up every morning and look to see if pride is sticking its head up over the horizon. Joe does and he is useless.
Joe is the uncle of my neighbors at the lake. He was born in South Africa and now lives in Australia where he serves other churches, helping to revitalize their leadership. He came over to meet me and I am now sharing his words with you from our 30 min. conversation. He started by telling me how blessed he was to be useless. By being useless, God has used him in incredible ways. After telling me about being useless, he paused for a moment leaning back in his chair, then like a breath of fresh air, sat up on the end of the chair and said...
"And Pride. Pride will take you down faster than anything else and that's why I was so blessed to be useless." He sat back in his chair waiting for a response and so I obliged him, "Pride seems to be the root of all sin." Joe quickly responded. "You have to wake up every morning and see if pride is sticking its head up over the horizon."
It is pride that gets in our way and makes us so we can not be used by God. Reality is that when we sin we are being extremely prideful. We are telling God that He does not know what is best for us and we know better. What an arrogant statement to a loving creator. Now this is not the statement that believers think they are making but one that is made repeatedly. As a follower of Jesus, I know that He knows what is best for me, yet I still am arrogant enough to do what I think is best. And yes, Pride is at the base of all sin. Pride is a heart issue and the heart is source of our sins.
The fruit in the garden...Pride
Striking a rock to produce water...Pride
Being swallowed by a fish...Pride
Sleeping with another man's wife...Pride
Not giving your tithe to God...Pride
Not sharing the Gospel...Pride
And the list goes on...
As Joe was telling me about pride, is message was to a young pastor who has goals, ambition and wants to see many come to faith and the church where I serve grow. It is because of those goals that I and all the other pastors must become like John the Baptist. "The bride belongs to the bridegroom." (More on this later)
Wake up every morning and look to see if pride is sticking its head up over the horizon. Joe does and he is useless.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Words from Joe: Part 1 - Useless
I had a divine meeting this past weekend. My next door neighbor at the lake brought his wife's uncle over to introduce him to me. He was telling this man about my story (more to come on that later) as a young pastor and he wanted to meet me, a fellow pastor. My neighbor's are from Johannesburg, South Africa and have this really profound dialect and sentence structure, they never say a word unless it is thought-out and adds to the conversation and knowledge. So, these two men walk onto our porch as we are singing Jimmy Buffet song's and playing cornhole, that's how you know when your relaxing. My neighbor introduces his uncle, Joe. Joe politely sits down and remains quiet as our neighbor jumps in to play. I sit down next to Joe and knowing he is a pastor from South Africa, I make a simple comment / question as Southerners like to do, "So your a pastor from South Africa." In that moment this quiet reserved man turned into the most humble, wise man I have ever met.
I can't remember much all the details about Joe, I was too captivated on the humility of who he was and what he was saying. I would tell you about Joe, but I will try to get him to tell you his story. But in short, he was a part of a group of pastors that joined forces and served a congregation of 15,000+. He felt the Lord calling him to go to Austrailia, so he went. He now helps churches restructure their leadership and speaks internationally at confrences. Enough about Joe, he wouldn't want me to talk about him, he would want me to talk about his King.
So here, is the first lesson I learned from Joe in our short, 30 minute conversation.
He said, "I was born useless. I was useless when I was in the catholic church, I was useless when I joined the team of pastor's and I am still useless." He knows people in most every city around the world, London, Paris, New York, Atlanta, Miami, L.A., you name it and he knows someone. However, God sent him to Melbourne, Austrailia and place that he knew no one. He said, "You know God found a place where I was useless again and sent me there. I could have called Brain Houston from Hillsong at any time, but God didn't lead me to Sydney." Here is a man who has trained pastors from around the world, very successful pastors and he calls himself useless. What gives?
Joe understands that the less he gets in the way, the more Jesus can shine. Joe isn't useless, he is one of the most usefull guys I have ever met, look what he has done. Wait, there it is. American culture seeping into God's Kingdom. That's is percisely what Joe doesn't see. Joe never said, "Look at what I have done." No, Joe said, I am useless and God is faithful. It is simply the vine and the branches.
John 15:1 & 5 (NIV)
"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener."
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."
A hammer is can do nothing alone. Neither, can a shovel, grill, pen, airplane, or even a computer. Someone has to pick it up and use it. Another way of saying "you can do nothing", is "you are useless." Joe is a useless tool that has been picked up and used. Joe knows as long as he is useless, God can use him.
John 3:30 (NAS)
"He must increase, but I must decrease."
But I don't want to be useless. That's the point, the more you get our of the way; the more you allow God to work, the more used you will be. Just be careful not to think you did it, then you really are useless to God because then you are using you and God will have to fight you to use you.
Be Useless and Be Used.
I can't remember much all the details about Joe, I was too captivated on the humility of who he was and what he was saying. I would tell you about Joe, but I will try to get him to tell you his story. But in short, he was a part of a group of pastors that joined forces and served a congregation of 15,000+. He felt the Lord calling him to go to Austrailia, so he went. He now helps churches restructure their leadership and speaks internationally at confrences. Enough about Joe, he wouldn't want me to talk about him, he would want me to talk about his King.
So here, is the first lesson I learned from Joe in our short, 30 minute conversation.
He said, "I was born useless. I was useless when I was in the catholic church, I was useless when I joined the team of pastor's and I am still useless." He knows people in most every city around the world, London, Paris, New York, Atlanta, Miami, L.A., you name it and he knows someone. However, God sent him to Melbourne, Austrailia and place that he knew no one. He said, "You know God found a place where I was useless again and sent me there. I could have called Brain Houston from Hillsong at any time, but God didn't lead me to Sydney." Here is a man who has trained pastors from around the world, very successful pastors and he calls himself useless. What gives?
Joe understands that the less he gets in the way, the more Jesus can shine. Joe isn't useless, he is one of the most usefull guys I have ever met, look what he has done. Wait, there it is. American culture seeping into God's Kingdom. That's is percisely what Joe doesn't see. Joe never said, "Look at what I have done." No, Joe said, I am useless and God is faithful. It is simply the vine and the branches.
John 15:1 & 5 (NIV)
"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener."
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."
A hammer is can do nothing alone. Neither, can a shovel, grill, pen, airplane, or even a computer. Someone has to pick it up and use it. Another way of saying "you can do nothing", is "you are useless." Joe is a useless tool that has been picked up and used. Joe knows as long as he is useless, God can use him.
John 3:30 (NAS)
"He must increase, but I must decrease."
But I don't want to be useless. That's the point, the more you get our of the way; the more you allow God to work, the more used you will be. Just be careful not to think you did it, then you really are useless to God because then you are using you and God will have to fight you to use you.
Be Useless and Be Used.
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