Lead Us Not Into Temptation

I want to start this entry in the series with a question. What is your biggest temptation? It might be those cupcakes that coworker brought into work. It might be speeding. For some it will be a bottle of alcohol, for others heroin or meth. For over half of men the answer to that question would be porn. What I want you to see is that there are temptations all around us. Everyday. We cannot escape temptation. And yet for most this is a petition to God for escape from a life of temptation. But that is not really what Jesus is teaching us.

People of Hope

The world is not over. The election has come and went and we are still standing. Some of you might say that this is only temporary; that we will see Armageddon soon. Some of you may be rejoicing that the right candidate won. There are probably many of you that are shaking your head and are in shock. You may not know how to move forward.

I never really started this blog just for Christians. Though it has a Christian focus I felt that this blog was for all who wished to read it. But today, this post, this is for my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. This one is for you. Whatever your feelings on the results of last night there is only once course of action for the future. We need to be people of hope.

The Fear of a Fence

Since when has the church cared about offending people? Like seriously? We create movies where we insult atheists. We boycott Starbucks because they took Christmas off the cup. We even try and pass legislation that forces transgender people to use bathrooms that they don't want to. But when we try and clean house, when the church tries to point the finger at itself suddenly we care about offense?! Seriously?! THAT is the line that we can't cross?! I hate to tell ya, but we have it ALL backwards people.

Black & Blue

I have spent this past week helping out with a camp of kindergarten through 3rd graders. It has been draining. But not as draining as the national news this week. It has been a week of contrasts. A week where my spotty cell phone service would tell me of another horrific shooting, followed by singing upbeat songs about Jesus. It has been a week where, everyday that I drove the kids to the pool, I passed a sign that said Blue Lives matter. The cogitative dissonance has been deafening. Our nation is tearing apart and we see the bruises. 

When Cold Winds Blow

Over a month ago I talked about Scars. I said that we all carry the wounds of past hurts with us. I mentioned that we have a choice. We can let these scars continue to hurt us. We can focus on the bad that happened and in turn become bitter evil people. Or we can choose to see them as something that God has used to make us better. 

I ended with an analogy of cold winds and talked about how there are times in our life when things happen that inflame these old wounds. Last weekend was one of these for me. I learned that God is with us even through these. I learned that God gives us people to help us through these times.

So Much More Than Zombie Jesus

It’s Easter so one might think that I am going to be talking about Bunnies and Eggs and pastel colors. Nope. I want to talk about Zombies. Yes you heard me right Zombies. At this point some of you might be thinking I have gone off the deep end. Well I might have, but that is not why I am talking about Zombies.

Why We Need Community

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It occurs to me that today is September 11. Though not directly related I realize that when I talk about the need for community one of the best examples was the numerous men and women who devoted time, energy and their lives in the wake of this horrific tragedy.

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Lately God has been talking to me about community. Why he designed us to live in community. What it means to live that out. Why we think we can be Christian by ourselves. How the community of God has blessed me.

I was pondering these things this morning as I sat down and watched a sermon by Alistair Begg. I noticed that the title was Membership Matters. Funny how God often orchestrates things just when we need them. If you want to have a look at the sermon you can view it here. One of his main points was that we often think we don't need the community. This started me to thinking about reasons why that might be.

Before I go any further a little sociology lesson.

When I was in undergrad I took a sociology class. One of the things we talked about in that class was the difference between the individual in Eastern and Western culture. Essentially in Western culture we talk about how everyone is unique and you are your own person. We have individual liberties, individual opinions, and individual beliefs. Eastern culture is much different. For many of those cultures the group is the most important unit. Your beliefs and opinions are not just yours.

My professor gave us this example from sociological studies. She mentioned that a class of kindergartners was used. This was a class with many first generation Americans whose parents came from Asian countries. It was the ideal class for such an experiment. Students were given a coloring page and told to choose whatever color they wanted to color with. Those students whose parents had grown up in the United States quickly took their favorite color and started. The students who parents were from Asia were unsure what to do. They could not decide what color to use.

Next the researchers told the students that their parents wanted them to color with a red crayon. At this the students who parents were from Asia perked up and began to gladly color with red. Some of the other students who had gladly colored with the color of their choice before got upset. Why should they have to color the way their parents wanted? It was their coloring page. They should be able to do what they wanted.

This is the difference between Eastern and Western culture. Here we are told to be your own person that what you do is important and no one can tell you what to believe. We live in a culture that tells us that we don't need anyone else. That we can do anything we put our minds to. This may be true of many things. 

But this is not God's design for the church.

In scripture we find the church described as a flock, a house, a body, and even a family. None of these things can operate on their own. They are all made up of various parts. As Begg puts it:

"One Sheep doesn't make a flock. One brick doesn't make a house. One limb doesn't make a body. One individual doesn't make a family."

The point is that God never designed us to be alone we were always meant to live in a community. But the question becomes why? What is it about humanity that makes us need and desire community?

The fact of the matter is that people cannot live the life God has called us to alone. We are broken people. We stumble we fall. In seclusion we can never become what we are called to be. We need other people to encourage us, to walk with us, to grieve with us, and yes even to rebuke us when we are wrong. This is the point of community. This is what the church is supposed to be to itself. A place for people to be people and place for people to grow, to rejoice, and to grieve. (If you don't believe me check out what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12)

So why is this important to me?

As I said in this post. I am divorced. That process was not an easy or clean one for me. It was painful and it was messy. Yet I was fortunate enough to be a member at a church that came along side me and grieved with me. They sat in ashes and wept with me. They prayed for and with me. The community of God was my faith when I had none. This community enabled me to grieve, to heal, to lean into God and to learn. 

That is what the church is for. But more than that the church is a place for us to be held accountable. Take a look at the things Paul says in his letters. They are not always encouragement. Paul understands that sometimes we need someone to come alongside us and rebuke us. We are not perfect. We need people to call us on what we do.

But the best part about the church is its diversity.

Take a look at Revelation. We see that all nations will come before God and proclaim His goodness and glory. Even Solomon understood that the temple was not just for Israel but for all nations. The blessing given to Abraham was so that he could be a blessing to the whole world. 

Now I'm getting a little ahead of myself. That really should be saved for tomorrow. But the point is that the church is to be a place where people come and learn from each other. Where we see the wonders of God's creation in all its diversity. The church is diverse because God's creation is diverse. 

This is my hope for us.

I hope that we can realize the need for the local church. That it can be a place where we come and are renewed. Where we are encouraged. Where we are blessed. Where we help each other. A place where we are rebuked in love. A place where we learn from each other. The church needs to be a community of God. It is not just a social club. It is a new way of life. It is something so different from the rest of the world that people look and wonder what it is all about. The church needs to be the community of God. In the words of Paul:

"May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Amen!