HE HAS OUR BACKS

Recently I listened to an “unconversion” story. A man, whose name is Paul, accepted (or felt he did) Christ when he was 16, married a woman who was a Christian (or felt she was) when in their 20’s, got involved in the church, went through some marital problems, rejected their faith, and became atheists. It was a sad story, but one I am sure happens with some frequency and for the same reasons that Paul mentioned as he told his story. I would say that it boiled down to two main reasons for him. The main reason was that he had never met anyone who seemed to live as though he or she had a personal relationship with the Creator of the universe. Secondly, he just could not reconcile the idea of a loving God and the violence that exists in the world and in the Bible. Both are common objections, but today I would like to share some thoughts on the first. The second will come up unexpectedly in a future devotion, I am sure.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:2)

The Apostle Paul left us this admonition in Romans and it leaves little doubt that our lives should change once we are filled with the Holy Spirit. The Paul from the story I was listening to said that he had never met a “transformed” Christian.  He believed that there were good Christians and bad Christians, good atheists and bad atheists, and a whole bunch of good and bad people in between. He said he had never seen a Christian who lived like he or she had a personal relationship with the great God of the Bible. He had never seen “miracles” that could not be naturally explained or seen lives that were radically different because of a spiritual relationship with Christ. Even though he had spent almost 30 years in the church, he had always had his doubts and finally gave up on ever finding convincing evidence that Christianity had any advantages over any other life choice.

It was sad to listen to him. It was sad for him because so much of what he experienced was not my experiences in the church.  But I was also sad because at times I understood what he was saying.  If, as Christians, we do have a personal relationship with the Creator of the universe, our lives should be radically different, not only from what they used to be before we knew Christ, but from the rest of the world. Too often- they are not. When the Apostle Paul addressed the Christians in Rome he was encouraging them to not only act different but to be different. Conforming and transforming are totally different concepts and until we, as believers, get a hold of this principle of a Christ-filled life, many more will leave the faith for lack of evidence in individuals who call themselves Christians.

On the CRU site (formerly Campus Crusade) there is a wonderful page of testimonies  (http://www.cru.org/how-to-know-god/my-story-a-life-changed.html) from people who have had their lives changed by Christ. Some of the stories are incredibly moving and others very dramatic, but all tell of lives left behind in exchange for new ones. The Paul in our story would say that he doesn’t deny that some people change, but that the same things happen in all kinds of religions, clubs, and groups. He believes that Christianity doesn’t have a corner on the “changed life” market. His belief is that if someone is changed by Christ and someone is changed by being in the Lion’s Club there should be a difference between the two. One involves the great Creator and the other involves a bunch of guys that do good deeds for needy children. Yet, he says, being involved in groups seems to be as an effective life changer as being a Christian. He is right- in part. There should be a difference between Christians and the rest of the world. I disagree, however, that no one lives that transformed life. I know many people who illustrate a renewed life, but Paul is right- it is not as typical as it should be.

There is a saying that states, “Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.”  There is a positive selfishness that needs to take place in our relationship with Christ. In all cases but one we should put others first. However, in our Christian walk we should not be examining the walk of others before our own. It was once said that a sermon is the “wise words of God for the fellow sitting next to me.” Before we make complaints about those around us who do not live a godly life, we should look within ourselves to see if we are living the lives we should be living. I sympathize with Paul. He is right to say there are many people who profess Christ but do not illustrate Christ. However, he is wrong when he says that there are no people who illustrate Christ in their lives. The Christ transformation should not be just barely noticeable, but striking. Should the adjectives godly, loving, kind, and generous jump the forefront of people’s minds when they try to describe us? Do the words “very spiritual” find their way into the conversation on our behalf? They probably should… we are in league with the Creator of the universe. He desires a personal relationship with us. There is no other relationship like it. We should live lives that reflect that incredible uniqueness.

In 1987 George Gallup, famous pollster, found the following: “There’s little difference in ethical behavior between the churched and the unchurched. There’s as much pilferage and dishonesty among the churched as the unchurched. And I’m afraid that applies pretty much across the board: religion, per se, is not really life changing. People cite it as important, for instance, in overcoming depression–but it doesn’t have primacy in determining behavior.” This sad conclusion is probably even worse now. In essence, what Gallup’s findings show is that the churched are as unethical as unchurched, but seem to feel less stressed about it. It is not only our feelings that should change when we are indwelled by Christ, but also our behavior. After all, it is our behavior that others see, not our feelings.

Unfortunately, Paul (not to be confused with the Apostle Paul) did not see enough differences in the behavior of Christians to keep him in the faith. Of course, the differences he should have really looked for should have been inside himself, not others. But we cannot deny the fact that views people have of Christians will influence the views people have of Christ. Our verse for today gives instruction on how our lives can change after we are filled with the Holy Spirit. Conforming means to take on the appearance of another and transforming is an inside change that is not dependent on surroundings. Only when indwelled with the Holy Spirit can we discern the good, acceptable, perfect will of God. That is how transformation takes place. If we accept Christ but live our lives separate from Him, we will not look like Him and Paul’s criticisms of the Christian faith will seem valid.

I have witnessed transformed lives and have read hundreds of stories of those who have testimonies of God’s life-changing powers in their lives. On the flip side, I have also heard horror stories of people who purport to have Christ and live like the devil. How can it be that in some parts of this world there are Christians on their knees receiving the sword because they will not deny Jesus, and in other parts of the world there are Christians who avoid any behavior associated with Him. The Apostle Paul tell us in 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” Why should we live like an old dying creature when we have become a new living one? Let us live lives that will not hinder the spread of the gospel.

I grew up in the sixties when being a radical was honorable pursuit to many. That kind of radicalism had ends that were very debatable. We need radicals today. We need those who will radically display the transformation that Christ can make in people’s lives. Raymond Williams, who was a writer-thinker and certainly not spiritual once said, “To be truly radical is to make hope possible rather than despair convincing.” Without him realizing it, he spoke to the Christian experience. We live in a world that is permeated with despair. Christ gives hope and our portrayal of that hope is instrumental in its spread. Today as we go through our day, we might ask ourselves, “Do my actions coincide with my position? Do people want what I have or do they see me and continue their search?” No one will confuse the butterfly with the caterpillar from which it came. No one should confuse our new life with the old one from which we came. John said it best, “whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” (1 John 2:6) Let’s watch our walk today.

“Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”   (1 Corinthians 10:12,13)

We are tempted every day.  Our whole marketing system is based on temptation.  Every sales pitch places a seed of dissatisfaction which then dangles a tempting solution in front of us.  Temptation is something that we must always be on the alert for or it will catch us with our guard down.  It is especially effective on those who think they are beyond temptation.  Those who think they are exempt are those who are most likely to take a fall.  The builders of the Titanic were not prepared for disaster, because they didn’t think disaster could befall them.  The tragedy was that they were not prepared for tragedy, and it resulted in an even greater tragedy.

The thought that we will be faced with temptation might be depressing, but today’s verse can prepare us and encourage us for what will be the inevitable.  Of course, being tempted is not the same as falling to temptation.  Jesus was tempted in the desert and in the garden and he remained strong. What he did with the temptation is what we are to do.  We are not to succumb to it, but defeat it.  It is a war within us, but it is a war that can be won.

I am reading a civil war series by the great historian Shelby Foote. He tells of a soldier who was wounded at the battle of Shiloh and was ordered to go to the rear. The fighting was fierce and within minutes he returned to his commanding officer. “Captain, give me a gun!” he shouted. “This fight ain’t got no rear!” The fight against temptation has no rear, no matter where we go it rages on and we must be aware and we must prepare.

First of all, Paul tells us in today’s verse that whatever we are tempted with, it is common to man. As much as we would like to say our situation is different, it is not.  We will not be the first to be tempted in that way and we will not be the last. Satan uses the feeling that our situation is different, to lure us in.  We arrive at the conclusion that our situation is unique, that no one else can possibly understand our plight. We believe that no one else has the excuses that we have to explain our behavior.  But excuses  are not reasons. If our spouse puts on a couple of pounds, it does not make it legitimate to look around at others a little more slowly.   There is a story about a man and wife who were walking through the mall and a shapely young woman in a short, form-fitting dress strolled by.  The man’s eyes followed her.  Without looking up from the item she was examining, the wife asked, “Was the stare worth the trouble you’re in?”  Never is giving into temptation worth the trouble it will get us into.  If we realize we are not alone in temptation, we will be strengthened and will also feel more free to ask others for help in the dilemma.  Remember, we are not alone in our struggles.

Secondly, God is faithful. The Greek word, “pistos” which is translated as “faithful” in the verse above means “worthy to be believed, trustworthy.”  So God is trustworthy. We can believe that He will do what He says He will.  There may be many ways to fight the battle of temptation, but one of the best might be cowardice.  Not cowardice in the way we usually interpret it, but cowardice in that we flee from temptation just like Joseph did. When we flee from it, we should not leave a forwarding address. Instead, we need to enlist God in our battle of temptation. If we think we are strong enough to handle it on our own, we will fail. Only with God’s help can we win.  He sits immediately behind us waiting to be pulled to the front to take on the enemy with His power and strength. It is tag-team match and once we let Him in the ring, He will not tag out to us. He is there to stay.

The third thing we should notice from today’s verse is that we will not be tempted beyond what we can bear. God knows us better than we know us.  He knows how much testing we can take.  It is said that when we are in the oven, God watches us with one hand on the temperature gauge and one hand on the timer.  He knows how much we can take and how long we can take it.  He will never give us more than we can bear.  Sometimes we might break, but that is not because it it too much, but because we fought too little.  We are all temptable, but only when we allow ourselves to fall for the con, will we become contemptable.

Fourth, with every temptation, God will provide a way out. We have an escape route for every conceivable temptation we could ever possibly experience. Sometimes He has provided an escape that we don’t even know about.  He saves us in spite of ourselves. In other cases, he will have an exit door with a flashing sign above it making the escape very clear.  There is an old joke I have used several times in my long career.   If someone says he has broken his arm in two places.  I tell them not to go to those places.  One of the best things we can do to keep God from having to give us exits, is not to go certain places in the first place. Avoiding temptation is our way of making God’s job easier.  It is easier to suppress the first desire than to fulfill all those which follow it.

The most encouraging thing is that God is on our side. He wants us to walkin victory over sin and temptation, and he is there, ready and willing to assist us. We will be tempted, but we need not lose.  God will guide us, help us and protect us if we allow Him to. He has withstood temptations and He will stand with us against them, as well.

“Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:16-17)

There is a pretty widespread belief out there that Christians can’t and don’t have any fun. The typical picture of Christians is a group of people who live lives of do nots and go through each and every day like they are sucking on lemons.

But that perception is wrong and if there are Christians who live that way, they would be hard pressed to find Biblical evidence that justifies their lack of enjoyment. There is nothing in the Bible that suggests that God does not want us to enjoy our lives. If we read the Bible objectively, thoroughly, consistently, that is not the picture we will get. Jesus did not say “follow me and I will make you miserable, you will hate getting up in the morning, you will never laugh or have fun, and your entire existence will be being unhappy and I want you to make sure that those who know you are unhappy as well.”  I am pretty sure that is not what the Bible says and it is frustrating to see it interpreted that way. To put all the verses together in one verse, God actually tells that He will “give us life and give it to us more abundantly.”  That sounds like fun to me.

Look at our verse for today in James, it doesn’t say that God

is trying to keep us from good things. He is actually the source of all good things. According to the dictionary, fun is “a source of enjoyment, amusement, or pleasure.”  There is a misnomer out there about what fun is.

There is the idea that fun is a static thing that remains the same throughout our life.  But our view of what is enjoyable changes as we change regardless whether we are Christians or not. Take the partying college student who sees fun as getting blasted, throwing water balloons off the dorm roof, while mooning passers-by. He may not think that is as fun when he is thirty years old with his own business and is raising two children.  Does that mean he doesn’t have fun anymore?  It means that the definition of fun for him has changed.

People try to paint a singular picture of fun that often includes activities that they think Christians wouldn’t be involved in, so thus, Christians don’t have fun. The opposite is actually true.  God created friendship and smiling and laughter.  Why would he not want us to enjoy them? People like people who seem to enjoy themselves, so does God want us to be people that no one wants to be around? Holiday Inn, when looking for 500 people to fill positions for a new facility, interviewed 5,000 candidates. The interviewers automatically excluded all candidates who smiled fewer than four times during the interview. If Holiday Inn wants to see smiling people, why wouldn’t God want that!

When we become Christians we change and our viewpoint of enjoyment, amusement, and pleasure will change. We no longer have to accept the world’s definition of fun.  For the first time, we can have real enjoyment in our lives, the way it was created to be experienced. Recently a big time celebrity excused his very public affair by saying God wanted him to be happy. This man purports to be a Christian so has brought God in as a co-conspirator in the affair. Our fun does not need to be outside God’s perimeters.  There is plenty of fun to be had within God’s framework.  God never wants to steal our fun, He wants us to experience the real thing, not the vaporous fun the world often supplies.  When we become Christians, we won’t stay the same. Like the middle-aged man who is living his life to the fullest and looks back on his escapades of the past and just shakes his head, we will often do that when we start truly living the Christian life.

David tells us, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forever more.” (Psalm 16:11)  That sounds like fun to me.  Pleasures forever more doesn’t sound like a life full of lemon-sucking and blah, blah, blah every day.

I have never been accused by anyone of never having fun, but I have been accused of not having their kind of fun. That is a different thing. When we let others define what our happiness, enjoyment, and satisfaction should look like, we are letting them define us as people. Six weeks before he died, a reporter asked Elvis Presley, “Elvis, when you first started playing music, you said you wanted to be rich, famous and happy. Are you happy?”

He replied with a line from one of his songs, “I’m so lonely I could die.”   He had lived the good life, according to the world.  He should have been happy, yet he was not. People look for happiness, when they should be looking for contentment. They look for fun in sin rather than fun in holiness. I know a lot of Christians and a lot of them have a lot of fun. They do cool activities, they goof around, they tell great jokes, and they enjoy life. Are there activities that would be hard to justify as Christians? Are there endeavors that we probably can’t tweak to fit the Christian life?  Sure, but if our idea of fun is snorting cocaine or running around with the neighbors wife, our definition of fun needs to be reexamined.

Many do not know what constitutes happiness but are killing themselves to reach it.  If our goal is happiness, we will never reach it.  But if our goal is to “strive first for the kingdom of God, then all things (happiness and fun included) will be added… unto us.”  A minnow flopping on a flat rock cannot be happy because it is outside where it should be.  We cannot be happy flopping around on the flat rock of this world when we should be in the deep waters of God’s love.  Fun is being free to be who we can be, not in the eyes of the world, but in the eyes of God. Believe me, if we think our cup is full but it is of the world’s happiness, satan will surely jog our elbow.  If our cup is full of God’s contentment, He will steady us and we won’t spill a drop.

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.”  Romans 8:28

There are many questions that Christians face, but I suppose one of the hardest questions to answer is: “Why do we have to deal with so much adversity?” Ironically, the other morning when I was walking  Cody and listening to Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis he related a dog walking analogy that gave a pretty good answer. Lewis likened God’s use of adversity to walking a dog. If the dog gets its leash wrapped around a pole and tries to continue running forward, he will only tighten the leash more. Both the dog and the owner are after the same end: going forward. But the owner must resist the dog by pulling him opposite of the direction that he wants to go. The master, sharing the same intention, but understanding better than the dog where he really wants to go, takes an action precisely opposite to that of the dog’s will. It is in this way that God uses adversity!

We really don’t like being pulled and corrected by the Lord — but when we understand there’s a greater purpose involved, then we can pass through adversity with hope, expectation, and steadfastness, knowing these events are for a greater good! Unlike the dog, who often has no understanding of this pulling and tugging, we can learn from our trials and tribulations and not fight God so much as he tries to direct us for our own good. “Enduring trials faithfully will

produce perseverance, character, and hope. And hope will not disappoint us for the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit.”  Romans 5:4-5 We truly can trust in the God who loves us with an everlasting love because He knows the direction we need to go, AND He knows exactly how to get us there.

If we are struggling with our difficulties it is good for us to remember that these same difficulties can strengthen us . We are in a battle against the enemy and God prepares us for bigger and bigger battles through His protection and His training. The Lord’s weapons are spiritual; they include a knowledge of the scriptures, the power of the Holy Spirit which increases with a devoted prayer life, the courage which comes only with deep trust, and His wisdom which reveals His strategy for our present situation. We will never grow short of these weapons unless we fail to avail ourselves to them.

In the 1940’s, the world fought against the greatest evil it had ever seen, Adolf Hitler and his terrible regime. In the midst of this war, Winston Churchill said, “We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.” U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt said, “The only thing we have to fear — is fear itself!”

Even though those are well-known quotes, probably the most famous quote of the war was just one word, “Nuts.” Gen. Anthony Clement McAuliffe and the American troops had been holding the Belgian town of Bastogne “at all costs,” and on Dec. 22, Gen. McAuliffe received the encouraging news that the 4th Armored Division was beginning its drive north to relieve the 101st. They just needed to hang on a few more days. Later that morning, they saw four Germans coming up the road carrying a white flag. Everyone hoped they were offering surrender, but instead they presented two pages demanding the Americans’ surrender: “To the USA Commander of the encircled town of Bastogne…There is only one possibility…the honorable surrender of the encircled town.”

McAuliffe glanced at the message and said, “Aw, nuts!” When trying to decide how to respond, the consensus of the officers was to send back McAuliffe’s first response. Everyone laughed as a sergeant typed up the succinct response: “To the German Commander: ‘Nuts!’ The American Commander.”  Between this stoic reply, Patton’s troops from the south, and a change in the weather that allowed air reinforcements, the 101st was able to hold Bastogne for the needed time. These actions helped assure the final defeat of the Germans.

McAuliffe’s response became a lasting symbol of American courage and determination under fire. His response was basically a one word answer that meant “We will not surrender at any cost and you can go hang yourself.” We are constantly getting surrender demands from the enemy. Satan and the world try to goad us into giving up. They promise that survival will be the result and if we don’t surrender we face annihilation. But surrendering is not an option. We have reinforcements poised and in position. We have a commander who sees our situation. If we just remain strong, He will relieve us. When we feel wrapped around a pole or trapped within our soul, God has not abandoned us. We can stand firm and send the message back to the enemy, “Nuts.” Let’s recognize that in truth victory is already ours because ”Greater is He that is in us, than he that is in the world!” We will be stronger than we were before because we will have tapped into the power of God and used it to defeat the enemy. Keep battling- We win- I have read the Book. 

I remember watching an interesting show a few years back and it stuck with me. Bear Grylls is a well-known outdoors adventurer and had his own show. Bear would take out a celebrity guest each week and they would spend two days in some remote area, facing the elements, experiencing some wild challenges, and living off the land.  They actually faced some pretty dangerous situations, as well.

I was amazed at the similarity between each of the guests from one week to the next.  All of them  had very good careers and the money and fame that so many seem to wish for.  But each one talked about how unfulfilling that life was by itself.  I don’t know what it is about the outdoors, especially when there are stressful situations involved, but people seem to open up a little more about their lives.  I remember especially the episode with Deion Sanders, the speedy, flashy, brash all-pro super-bowl winning football player of the Dallas Cowboys. He talked about sitting in the motel room after winning the Super Bowl and wondering why there was still an emptiness. He went on to say that he had to turn his life over to The Lord because there was nothing that the world could offer that would fill that void within him.

The apostle Paul told Timothy that life need cannot be met by anything the world has to offer. That has been proven out time and time again by thousands upon thousands of people who seemingly have it all, but still need something more. The verse below is a talking about money, but by extension, it could be talking about fame and power. They all come from the same shaker.

“But those who want to get rich (famous, powerful) fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money (fame, power) is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”  1 Timothy 6:9-10

All people search for fulfillment in their lives.  Unfortunately, even some who know Christ still look for the things of the world for that fulfillment. Christ can give our lives meaning like nothing else can.  That relationship is the only thing that can fill that void that we are born with. Jobs, relationships, hobbies, family are all important, but they are not shaped like the hole that lies within all of us and are never meant to fill it.

When we consider the incredible efforts we make to find fulfillment, there seems to be a common thread of error that frustrates the search.  Our desires hinge on self.  We want fulfillment in ourselves and for ourselves. But according to God’s Word true fulfillment can only take place if we desire to seek God’s will in our lives. Matthew tells us, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (Matthew 6:33) When we attempt to serve self rather than God an irreconcilable conflict sets in because God has a purpose for all of us and we will never find fulfillment when we choose desires that are outside of His purpose. No matter how much we have; no matter how much we do; no matter how much we know; if we live for self satisfaction, we will never be satisfied.  If we live for God then we are not battling against Him, but are empowered by Him.

Every few months I pull out a favorite poem of mine just as a reminder of God’s grace. It is by an unknown confederate soldier.  It epitomizes a life that has the fulfillment we all seek.  The life that is not all smooth, but has meaning.  The life we all want even though we may not know that is what we want.

I asked God for strength, that I might achieve. I was made weak, that I might learn humbly to obey.

I asked for health, that I might do greater things. I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.

I asked for riches, that I might be happy. I was given poverty, that I might be wise.

I asked for power that I might have the praise of men.  I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God.

I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life.  I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.

I got nothing that I asked for but got everything I had I hoped for.

Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.

I am, among all people, most richly blessed.

A life with Christ should not be sullied by trying to make it meaningful with meaningless endeavors.  Our lives can be meaningful beyond measure if we let God have His way in our lives. 

Then and only then, will we see why we are here, what we can do, and how wonderful life can be.  …and that’s the truth.