Category: Christianity (Page 15 of 24)

If they’re an abomination, you are too.

April 10, 2015 / / 2 Comments

MovieAbominationIndiana’s recent passing of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act into law has reignited the discussion about how Christians should approach the LGBTQ community. Not that it was dying or ever went away, but the volume of the discussion definitely rises and falls. Right now, it’s at a 10 (I use 10 because when our kids turn the surround sound in our basement up to 10, we get to enjoy whatever they’re watching from the comfort of our living room, upstairs). With that, no matter where you turn, whether you want to participate or not, you’re bombarded with 8,000 different points of view. I have mine and I added to the conversation with a number of blogs. As I’ve read through many of the articles, and their comments, written by those Christians supporting the new law and exerting their “rights,” it isn’t uncommon to see scripture quoted to hold up the argument against homosexuality for “religious freedom” sake.

One of the most common verses of scripture is Leviticus 20:13. It says,

“If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.”

aedFirst, thankfully most Christians don’t focus on the second part of that verse. Some whack-jobs do, but they aren’t Christian. Most Christians tend to focus on the word abomination and use that as the basis of their argument. It is true that the bible says that; can’t argue with it. This article isn’t intended to prove or disprove whether Christians use that scripture appropriately, but regardless, I do not think that word means what you think it means. As a quick side note, I found a great word study article that lends some clarity to the Hebrew word that was used in that passage, and 103 other passages, and gives the probably interpretation of that word. Here’s the LINK. Instead of trying to convince my fellow Christians that the word, “abomination” shouldn’t be the crux (or involved at all) of any argument against people in the LGBT community, I’d like to level the playing field a little. Here’s how; if they’re an abomination, many of us are too.

Proverbs 6:16-19 says,

There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.

There it is. There are six, no seven things that the Lord views as an abomination; which by the way, homosexuality isn’t listed here, and the ones that are listed here are actually listed in other places, as sin, in the bible. And, King Solomon, noted as the wises man to ever live, wrote this. So let’s go through the list.

1. Haughty eyes: If you’ve ever looked down on someone with an arrogant attitude, that’s an abomination to God. Pride is a sin and is the starting point for a whole host of other sins. Let’s be honest, a lot of Christians view others’ sin like this when comparing it to their own. If you’ve ever felt or treated someone as if you were better, or less sinful, than them; abomination.

2. A lying tongue: If you’ve ever lied, even a little white lie to your kids because you were too tired to take them to the park, that’s an abomination to God. If you say you haven’t, you just committed an abomination.

3. Hands that shed innocent blood: Any ex-con that’s doing (or did) time for murder, whether it was planned or accidental, has committed an abomination. That’s an easy one for most all of us to agree with. If you agree with that… haughty eyes.

4. A heart that devises wicked plans: This is subjective, but if you’ve ever made plans to call into work and lie about being sick to go to a sporting event (or anything), that covers two things on the list, so you’ve committed a double abomination. Or if you’ve ever planned to cheat someone out of something, that’s an abomination to God.

5. Feet that make haste to run to evil: If you’ve ever excitedly gotten ready and rushed off to a night with the guys/girls, in which you knew you were going to be drinking to excess, that’s an abomination to God. Drunkenness is a sin and if you gleefully run off to join in that, you’ve committed an abomination just by simply going.

6. A false witness who breathes out lies: Man, God really hates lying enough that He put it on the list twice. Maybe it’s because the devil if “the father of lies” and he and God don’t see eye to eye. But I digress, if you’ve lied about someone else, for any reason, you’ve committed an abomination. There’s no way around it, lying is an abomination; end of story.

7. One who sows discord among brothers: If you’ve ever created disharmony within your family or your church, you’ve committed an abomination. This could include, but is not limited to, gossip, not agreeing with you pastor, being part of a church split, doing something to upset someone and causing a fight, lying about someone else, being rude or arrogant, being prideful, theres a ton more, but you get the point, you’ve committed an abomination.

For most of us that should level the ground at the foot of the cross. If it doesn’t, you’ve just committed an abomination. Here’s what I want to point out more than anything else. Nowhere in either of those scriptures does God call the person an abomination. Leviticus says, “have committed an abomination” and Proverbs says, “things…that are an abomination.” Both of those passages of scripture are directed at acts, not people. Whether or not you believe homosexuality is a sin, calling the person an abomination is not only hurtful, it’s possibly the most hateful and damaging thing you can say. You’re telling them that they shouldn’t exist. That’s not true, because God made them; He made all of us the same, with the same need, Him.

We are not called to call out what we perceive as sinful in others’ life. When we approach others with that agenda, it doesn’t follow the Apostle Peter’s direction to share our hope with gentleness and respect. Maybe we go to God and start dealing with our own issues, first. Maybe we pay less attention to what we think is a more egregious sin and figure out where calling out others’ sin is really coming from. Is it from a deep desire for them to know the same love of Jesus that you enjoy? Or is it because it’s easier to tell others what’s wrong with them, then dealing with what’s wrong in us? If it’s the first, the word abomination should never cross your lips and you should ask God to remove it from your mind. There are far better ways to communicate others’ need for Jesus and share the radically intense love He gives. Maybe one of those ways is that you bake them a cake.

What are some ways to communicate Jesus’ love to others, with gentleness and respect?

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I’m so Fortunate.

April 8, 2015 / / 0 Comments

PovertyMy son has recently decided to join a team going on a mission trip to Haiti this summer. I was pretty excited for him when he told me because this will be his first. After he told me I started thinking about what God might do to his heart through this trip. My prayer for him leading up to it, appropriately picked from the book of James (my son’s name is James), is that he would visit and help and care for widows and orphans in their affliction  and need and that through that he would remain unstained by the world. Haiti seems like a good place for that to happen.

Before I go any further, full disclosure, I’ve never been on a mission trip. I know I’m a bad Christian. But, I’m living on mission right now, so that works, right? With that confession out-of-the-way, I also thought about how I’ve heard people respond when they return from mission trips. I feel like one of the most common responses is, “I saw how little the people had and it really made me appreciate how much I have. It helped me realize how fortunate I am and how much God has blessed me.”

WHAT? No, just no. On the surface, that’s a harmless, possibly even a good realization. But really what’s being said is, “Thank God I don’t have to go through what they are.” If a statement or realization like that isn’t followed up with something like, “So I decided to do something about that. Since then I’ve used the blessings that God has poured out on me to…fill in the blank” then the point of the entire mission trip is lost. I’m certain that the point of a mission trip to a country, like say Kenya, is not so that we can do them some big favor, like build a school and to remind us how fortunate we are so that we can go home and rest easy in our comfy bed knowing that we did our due diligence as a good Christian and that we’re well blessed for it.

I’m not saying that having stuff is bad. I’m not even saying that we ought to sell all we have and give it to the poor (Jesus said that, I didn’t). What I am saying is that if our response to seeing people hurting and in need is not to give out of our abundance, then maybe we missed the part of Jesus’ ministry where He said, “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.” Maybe we don’t take serious the early churches example when they “were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.” Maybe we’re so content in our blessing that we’ve forgotten that God’s abundant supply is intended for us to abound in every good work. That we are blessed to distribute freely to those in need.

I’m years into my walk with Jesus and I’m just learning to do this. I don’t pretend to have it figured out and I’m not pointing fingers at anyone, before I point it at me. We are so fortunate in our country. Many of us don’t go to bed hungry. We don’t have to walk to get our water. We feel safe in our homes. We have cars and money and flat screens and iPhones. And there’s nothing wrong with any of that. But our trips to third world countries or poor neighborhoods in our own cities shouldn’t draw us to relief, it should move us toward Jesus with an urgency to remedy those needs that God has enabled and equipped us for.

My wife and I recently decided to add a generosity line item into our budget. Our desire is simply to find opportunities to be generous and fill a need. I’d love for you to join us in that. Because I’m a Twitter and Instagram glutton I would love to see people tweets and instagrams of people being generous, but I don’t want to make this some crazy social media circus. Not that there’s anything wrong with sharing that stuff as testimony, with our community and close others that will be blessed and benefit from the word of it. In addition to that I want to honor Jesus’ instruction to “not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret.” So, we’re not going to do that, but we can share ideas for generosity and blessing others out of our blessing in the comments, so…

How are some ways we/you can bless others? #FortunateForOthers

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Thanks.

My Kingdom Come, Not Yours God

April 6, 2015 / / 0 Comments

used from http://christinaammerman.com/why-you-cant-make-more-money/

I’ve been on a little bit of a John the Baptist kick the last couple weeks. My favorite thing about John is his dedication and faithfulness to his call to prepare the way for Jesus. In addition to that, I love the humility that comes with his faithfulness. His whole ministry revolves around him decreasing so that Christ can increase. I hope to be half that type of leader and follower. There have been times, while leading various ministries that I have had to stop and check myself to make sure that I wasn’t trying to build my kingdom, over God’s Kingdom. In those times I would reflect on John the Baptist to help baseline what I was doing and to check myself before I wrecked myself. I am truly sorry for that, but it was necessary.

In that baseline, there were a few measures that I used as filters to help determine whose kingdom was being built. Obviously this isn’t all inclusive, but they were helpful. Here’s three ways that know that your pastor/church leader is more concerned about building God’s Kingdom, rather than his.

1.  He points people toward Jesus, rather than himself.

The most important thing that John knew to be true was that nothing was about him. He knew that he existed for one purpose and that was to point people to Christ. He spent his life preaching the coming of The Christ and that rattled and frustrated the religious leaders. There was a lot of speculation that he might be the Messiah, or Elijah or the Prophet of old, but John was quick to confess, “I am not the Christ.” In fact, John was very clear in what his purpose was. He said that he baptized with water “that he [Jesus] might be revealed to Israel.” Everything John said pointed people to Jesus. 

I heard a story at work last week about a lady that said she was surprised at how much they talked about Jesus during an Easter Sunrise Service. I’m not going to mention how ridiculous that statement is. The point is, that should never be anyone’s response to our churches. Even if the only thing an unbeliever knows about Jesus is His name, they should not be shocked to hear it over and over in our churches and dare I say our everyday life. As Christians in general, everything we do; the way we talk, work, interact with others, lead, follow, serve, love, everything, should point toward Jesus. That requirement is increased with church leaders and pastors because their positions only exist to point people to Jesus; and yes that includes preparing people to work in His ministry. Leaders that talk about their accomplishments more than what God is doing, are probably more concerned about their kingdom.

2.  He prepares goers.

Even before Jesus commanded His disciples to “go and make disciples of all nations,” John the Baptist was preparing disciples to follow Jesus. John explained himself as “the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’” He saw himself a person called to prepare people to follow Jesus. He knew his task, his calling, was to prepare people for Jesus’ arrival, identify Him once He had come and then move out of the way. A leader that is concerned with building God’s Kingdom prepares people to follow Jesus and equips them to go “do the work of the ministry.” Leaders and pastors are preparers; they are equippers. If a pastor doesn’t understand that, then they don’t understand their role in the body and they’re likely to be less concerned about building God’s Kingdom and more about building one around them.  The other side of that coin reveals a leader’s willingness to release people as they’re prepared. Not only did John prepare people to go with Christ, he didn’t stop them when it was time for them to leave. That brings us to our last point.

3.  He doesn’t discourage people from leaving.

John the Baptist was a pro at this; you might miss it if you don’t read carefully. John 1:35-37 says, “The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.” John was so pro, he didn’t even say anything to the two disciples; he just let them go. They knew what they were called to and they followed, with no objection from John and both stayed with Jesus. John had been preparing people for Jesus’ arrival and that included his disciples, who he obviously expected to eventually leave him so that they could follow Jesus.

I once heard a pastor say, “The right way to view your congregation is to consider every person, sitting in every pew a church planter.” The point he was making was that Jesus didn’t make any of His followers exempt when He said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” and “…you will be my witnesses…to the end of the earth.” All His followers received the Great Commission and we’re all obligated to building His Kingdom. Of course that doesn’t mean that every congregant will plant some huge mega-church, but everyone is gifted to contribute to building The Kingdom in some way. When I’ve had the opportunities to lead, I always tried to encourage an atmosphere of “Yes”. If someone came and said they wanted to start something new, my first response was “Yes.” That didn’t mean I led it, funded it or even resourced it, but I absolutely encouraged them, spent time cultivating the passion for it and providing guidance and counsel as I was able. If it didn’t work, ok, try again next time. If it did work then sweet. While discernment is a gift and wholly important, I struggle with the idea that a leader can or should tell someone that they’re not called or meant to lead or minister in a certain area or way. It almost places your vision higher than what God may be calling them to and because we’re not able to see how God works in another’s heart, I’d rather say yes, than be the roadblock to God doing what He wants.

I never wanted to lose people, I loved them and moving on sucks, but if they came to me and felt like God was calling them to something new, I didn’t try to make them stay or discourage them from what they felt God was saying to them. As a leader it wasn’t my place to define God’s call on them. Instead, I was called to equip them to leave. When you view it that way, it becomes far less about your ability and kingdom and completely about God’s infinite ability and The Kingdom. 

Building our kingdom is about adding. We add until we overwhelm an area. We add until we’re confident we have enough to be a “major player” in whatever game we’re in. It rarely involves multiplying. It may involve duplication, because we can still control that because it’s simply and extension of the same. But, multiplication is different than duplication. (To be clear and before any pastors flip out, this is not a dig on churches planting campuses. I attend a church with seven campuses and they have a heart for sending and it’s evident that the lead pastor is wholly concerned with building God’s Kingdom.) Multiplication is not “more of the same” and brings the very real and almost assured element of change. There may be similarities, but multiplication in God’s Kingdom, surrenders human control to divine control and allows that new thing to be what God has called it to be, for the sake of His Kingdom. Not everyone will go, but as leaders our commission it to prepare everyone as if God is going to call them to go.

What are some other ways that might show a leaders heart for building God’s Kingdom?

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