Month: October 2021

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His Only Begotten Son, so that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have Everlasting Life.” (John 3:16)

This was the first verse that Chris and Jon memorized when they were little. Jon was really young and after Chris recited the verse he ended it with “John 3:16.” Jon dutifully said the verse and finished it off by saying “Chris 3:16.” His assumption was that you finish the verse off with your brother’s name. He still got credit and an ice cream for his efforts.

Denver’s playoff game against Pittsburg in 2012 ended with an 80 yard touchdown pass from Tim Tebow for the win in overtime. Tebow wore “John 3:16” on his eye-black, threw for 316 yards, and averaged 31.6 yards per completion. When he wore the same verse (his favorite) in the national championship game in 2009, “John 3:16” was googled over 90 million times. After the Pittsburg game the googling started again and it was the most searched term on google the next day. It was a wonderful seeing so many people checking out one of the greatest verses in the Bible and it was really the best thing about both games (although the right teams won both times).  Still, it was sad to know that so many were totally unfamiliar with one of the most important truths of the Bible.

Of all the stars in the sky, the North Star has been the most useful to the mariner. This verse is a North Star of salvation, because is it has guided more souls to a life in Christ than any other Scripture. It is among promises what the North Star is among the constellations. It is the greatest truth wrapped up in one line so clearly that a child can believe it in a moment and adults can study it for a lifetime.

It has long been one of the most memorized verses in the Christian faith, but for us who know it well, it would surprise us that there are millions, even in our own country, who are oblivious to its existence. That was apparent when millions had to google their way to it after Tim Tebow wore it. As much as we believe this is a “Christian” nation, there are still millions of people who are unfamiliar with even the most foundational verses of the Christian faith. But even if millions are unfamiliar with John 3:16, the millions of us who do know it, need to understand its importance in our relationship with God.

In 1981, a Minnesota radio station reported a story about a stolen car in California. Police were staging an intense search for the vehicle and the driver, even to the point of placing announcements on local radio stations to contact the thief. On the front seat of the stolen car sat a box of crackers that, unknown to the thief, were laced with poison. The car owner had intended to use the crackers as rat bait. Now the police and the owner of the VW Bug were more interested in apprehending the thief to save his life than to recover the car. So often when people run from God, they feel it is to escape His punishment. But what they are actually doing is eluding his rescue. As we travel through our life God will use people and circumstances to try to reach us. He does not want to see us perish. He desires our rescue.

John 3:16 points us to the place of safety. Like the North Star, the words in the verse shine with incredible brilliance. In the first half we have the essence of God’s deep abiding love and in the second half we are told how we can receive that love. This verse is divided into three sections each of which explain God’s part and then our part in spending eternity with Him.

“For God so love the world,” gives a short description of fact. The word “for” indicates that because He loved us He was going to do something to illustrate that love. “That He gave His only begotten Son,” was that illustration of love. The word “that” marks the gift. He could give no more than the life of Christ on our behalf. God saw the need and filled it.   “So that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have Everlasting Life,” then describes our part in God’s wonderful plan of salvation. The word “so” directs us to believe on Him to receive the offer of eternal life. We cannot do anything to earn salvation. The cost was beyond our resources. God, however, paid that price in full and all we need to do is say yes to His payment on our behalf.

DL Moody, the great preacher and evangelist, once said, “The thief had nails through both hands, so that he could not work; and a nail through each foot, so that he could not run errands for the Lord; he could not lift a hand or a foot toward his salvation, and yet Christ offered him the gift of God; and he took it. Christ threw him a passport, and took him into Paradise.” God reaches out to us, helpless as we are, to offer us an eternal sanctuary. He reaches down into our hopelessness and saves us. In John 3:16 he changes the phrase “Christ is a Savior” to “Christ is my Savior.” That little personal pronoun makes all the difference.

So this verse is the North Star directing us to safety. Because He loves us, He gave his son and because we need Him, we need to receive His Son. This verse stands out brilliantly to guide us in the darkest time of our journey. We are all mariners trying to weather life on storm-tossed waters searching for that port of peace. Sailors knew there was no substitute for the North Star. Technology can fail, but the North Star will always remain brilliant against a black sky lighting the way to safety. It has always lit and will always light, the way to the safe waters of everlasting life.

“Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong.” 1 Corinthians 16:13

What is courage? Courage has been defined as bravery, but a synonym is really not a definition. I can see a conversation with a student going like this: “What is courage?”

“Courage is bravery.”

“What is bravery?”

“Bravery is courage.”

“But what do bravery and courage mean?“

“They mean the same thing.”

Some have tried to explain it in a little more detail than that. One writer defined it as “fear that has said its prayers.”  Mark Twain said, “Courage is the mastery of fear, not the absence of fear.” A courageous person is not someone who is fearless. (That is, in most cases, a stupid person).  A courageous person is someone who can control his or her fear and then act. It is overcoming the fear that we naturally have.

Ray Blankenship was preparing his breakfast one day when he saw a small girl being swept down a flooded drainage ditch. He knew if she was not rescued she would be swept into the main culvert which would certainly result in drowning. He raced ahead of her and jumped into the water and when he surfaced he grabbed the girl’s arm. They went under the surface and came up again, over and over until they were only a few feet from the lethal waters of the main culvert. Ray’s free hand touched a rock protruding from one bank and as the water tore at him and the young girl, he hung on until help arrived. He was later awarded with the Coast Guard’s Silver Lifesaving Medal. His courage was more than the medal could signify. Ray Blankenship couldn’t swim.

We read of acts of courage everyday in these difficult times. We see courage on display among those who are first responders. Firemen and police officers learn to put others before themselves in times of crisis. Certainly the soldiers serving our country display courage every day. These kinds of people tend to go toward danger rather than away because… well, because that is what they do. That’s their job.

Besides the courage fire fighters and soldiers show, there are other kinds of courage, too. There is moral courage, which is the ability to do right in the face of opposition or discouragement. We will be faced with these kinds of situations much more often than we will be faced with saving a child from a burning building. In 2 Timothy 1:7 Paul tells us that “God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.” Everyday we will be tested to do the right thing and tempted to do the wrong. God gives us the power to show moral courage by being honest and having integrity. Having the power of the Holy Spirit means that we don’t cheat on the test, cheat on our taxes, cheat on others, or cheat in life. Moral courage is honoring others by honoring our word, even when we don’t feel like it. It is saying our “yes, is yes, and our no, is no,” and not turning a yes into a no just because it is convenient for us. God has equipped us with courage, we just need to use it.

It also takes courage to follow Jesus Christ. It takes courage to stand up for Christ.  It takes courage to share Christ. We are living in an ABC culture today: “Anything But Christ.”

People are fine with whatever we believe, unless we say, “I believe in Jesus Christ, and I believe the Bible is the Word of God.” Suddenly we will have joined group of backward intolerants who at the best are laughed at and at the worst are branded public enemy number one.

It takes courage to invoke the name of Jesus Christ. In some countries it takes the courage of first responders to be believers. They are, in essence, running toward danger by standing for Christ.  In our country, in most cases, we merely face discomfort. Of course, it is getting worse and in some cases people might face job loss or public ridicule or more. But let’s face it, bullying is not the same as bullets.

The Prussian king Frederick the Great was widely known as an agnostic. By contrast, General Von Zealand, one of his most trusted officers, was a devout Christian. At a party the king began making crude jokes about Christ until everyone was rocking with laughter–all but Von Zealand, that is. Finally, he arose and addressed the king: “Sire, you know I have not feared death. I have fought and won 38 battles for you. I am an old man; I shall soon have to go into the presence of One greater than you, the mighty God who saved me from my sin, the Lord Jesus Christ whom you are blaspheming. I salute you, sire, as an old man who loves his Savior, on the edge of eternity.” The place went silent, and with a trembling voice the king replied, “General Von Zealand–I beg your pardon! I beg your pardon!” And with that the party quietly ended.

Von Zealand, a man of great courage, may have found it more difficult to confront his king than to confront the enemy, but he did it. We live in an age of artificial courage. People suddenly become “gallant” behind the anonymity of the internet. But courage is not a unsigned castigation of someone who offends Christ in cyberspace. Courage is the reasoned, loving, defense of our Savior with those that we can look in the eye.  Years ago I heard a coach on the other side of the lockers make an offensive Jesus joke.  I did not approach him.  I don’t know why.  But even to this day, it haunts me.  I wonder if that wasn’t my chance to stand strong and in doing so to share the gospel with someone who needed to hear it.

A few years ago shared Christ with a homeless woman at a rest stop. It still took me awhile to get to the point. Afterwards I ask myself why was I so nervous about sharing Christ with someone I did not know, who I would never see again, who needed to hear about Jesus. Her cardboard sign was not a weapon and the only negatives I faced was maybe a sneer or an unkind word. I really didn’t fear those things as long as I held a few bills in my hand. I talked to her about the Lord, gave her some literature, and had a nice talk, but I was struck by my hesitancy.

If I am this nervous about conversing with a complete stranger, how can I muster up the courage to speak to a co-worker, friend, or relative. Gosh, I might have to see them the next day! I have been equipped, but sometimes I leave my armor at home.  I must put it on everyday.  I know better than to fear.  In all my years of sharing the Lord, I have never had a terrible experience.  I have maybe had some pushback, but never more than that.  Sure, I did get one negative remark on a teaching evaluation once about “sharing” a bit too much, but whoop-de-do.  The firing squad must have been off duty that day.

We should have more courage than those who don’t have the truth, but there are times that we seem more fearful. It is funny that many around us have no compunction about offending others. They mistake that for courage. But, insulting others is not courageous. Offending others is not courageous. Truthfully pointing out sin, the need for redemption, and the way to salvation is courageous. Doing that is much more difficult than just insulting someone.  The gospel is the most important thing we can share. It can be life changing. Name calling is easy, asking someone to call on His name is more difficult.

Courage starts with the little things in our daily lives. I used to tell the athletes I coached that they needed to work as hard as they could in practice because victory over the little things in practice when there was no opponent prepared them for victory over the bigger things when there is an opponent. If we cannot stand for right in the face of little opposition, how will we ever stand against the real enemies.

A boy was trying to impress a girl he liked by saying, “I will climb the highest mountain, swim the swiftest river, and cross the driest desert for you, and I will come over tomorrow if it is not raining.” Can we do great things for God during times of great trial, if we struggle to do simple things for Him in everyday life?

Psalm 27:1 says, “The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?”  We all want to believe we are courageous, but courage is action, not just belief. We must stand firm in the faith. We must be courageous. We must be strong. That’s our job.

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”  (Mark 12:30)

Last week I referred to a Pew Poll that many took as the harbinger of secularism’s coming triumph over Christianity. I tried to explain why I thought reports of Christianity’s death were premature. Today I would like to explain in a little more depth (but not length) why I think that a wise bookie should not bet against Christianity, even weighing the present cultural shifts we are experiencing.

In passing in my last post I mentioned three groups of people who purport to be Christians on most surveys and polls. About a dozen years ago a large survey called ARIS (American Religious Identification Survey) used its statistics to predict the demise of Christianity.  It found that self-identifying Christians had dropped from 86% in 1990 to 76% in 2009.  During that same time period the “nones” (those declaring no religious affiliation) had risen from 8% to 15%. All kinds of magazine articles, blog sites, and news outlets ran headlines that expressed the need to call hospice for Believing America.  A Pew Poll a few years ago added fire to the flames, and the death knell has been ringing even louder.

If statistics alone were the measuring stick, Christians might be pulling out the life-support gear, but as with most statistics there are other facts beneath the numbers. What I think the numbers tell us is that people are just being more honest than they have in the past.  The choices on most surveys are pretty limited, very nondescript, and fairly black and white.  If the survey was set up to give more accurate definitions of terms, I don’t think we would see the “decline” of Christianity in the same way as most are seeing it now.  The fact is that most people who are no longer calling themselves Christians are not doing so because they have changed their minds about Christianity; it is because they are coming out of the closet with their true feelings about Christianity.

Last week I talked about three classifications of Christians.  Within those groups there are smaller classifications, and it is with these is mind that we should check the numbers.  Of course, these are broad categories and the numbers are not exact, but I think classifying different “types” of Christians is the only way to really evaluate the data we are seeing.  In a way, it is still disheartening, but in another sense, it is enlightening.

These categories- cultural, congregational, and convictional have always existed, but as culture loosens its reigns on what is acceptable morality, the numbers in these groups will be affected.  In descriptive terms they might be categorized like this: the poorly committed, the conveniently committed and the truly committed, but those are probably too broad of strokes to really build a strong argument on.

Cultural Christians are generally the “I live in America, so I must be a Christian group.” They have inherited their faith from others, but have never experienced it themselves.  They believe what others have told them, are possibly loosely affiliated with a church and might know its general location and would have marked the box Christian because they knew they were not Muslim.  These folks make up about 33% of self-professing Christians.

Congregational Christians are occasional church attenders, and might even have a church “home” of sorts. They are often called “Churchtains” because the church experience becomes a substitute for the Christ experience.  They lack vibrant Christian lives and are quick to back away from a real openness about their faith. They confidently mark the Christian box because they believe of all the relationships they have, Jesus is somewhere on the list. They also make up about 33% of professing Christians.

The final group, Convictional Christians, are people who take their faith seriously and live according to that faith.  They believe in the spread of the gospel and place their work for Christ on the top of their priorities. Jesus is not just a spoke on the wheel of their lives, but the hub. He is not intermixed with other life pursuits all of which (including Christ) are at the same level.  Christ is demonstrably the lynchpin of their lives.  Of course, they make up the final 34% of professing Christians.

Within the Convictional Christians are two main subgroups.  Evangelical Christians and mainline Protestants.  Here is where the numbers start to get interesting.  Evangelical have a more defined set of beliefs.  They accept the Bible as the Word of God, believe Jesus is the only way to salvation, and believe personal conversion through the acceptance of Christ as the only way to bridge the gap between God and man.  Mainline Protestants are more liberal in their thinking and believe that there is flexibility in the Word of God, there may be leeway in the “Jesus is the only way” argument, and they tend to be less concerned with personal conversion.  Evangelism is less of a concern to mainline Protestants who tend to rely on activities of good will which are often void of the gospel message.

The good news in all of this, maybe surprisingly, is that the only group that is actually growing is the Evangelical Christians.  They have made up in increase what mainline Protestants have lost in numbers.  Overall, Convictional Christians have held their own through this decrease in self-professing Christians.  The losses have been drawn from the first two groups.  The lesson here is this- committed, convicted, spirit-filled believers are holding the line.  As people purport that Christians suffer from the same declining morality as the rest of society, they are pointing not to those who have a deep, prayerful, heartfelt relationship with Christ, but to those in the first two categories.

Paul says in Romans, “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:1-2) Clear back in Deuteronomy we are told, “You shall follow the LORD your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him.” (Deuteronomy 13:4)  It is my belief that if we love Christ with “all our heart and all our soul and all our mind” our chances of marking the “none” box is pretty slim- not because we are faithful, but because He is faithful.

There may come a time, even sooner than later, when we will be asked to openly reject our faith or face persecution.  Nominal Christians won’t mind making that profession because they are giving up nothing.  It will really only apply to those who make Christ their head who will really have a decision.  I have heard many people say they would die for Christ who cannot even find time for Him in their busy day.  It smacks of the man who says, “If I was a millionaire I would give half of it to the Lord,” and yet gives nothing from what he does have.  If we can’t love Christ openly without duress, how can we stand for him in the face of threat?

If a one-fourth of the people in this country remain spirit-filled, loving Christians, we will maybe be able to face the immorality onslaught and win. If this group starts to decrease, there will be trouble.  History teaches us that where Christianity is persecuted it grows even stronger.  We read in John, “I assure you: Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains by itself. But if it dies, it produces a large crop.” (John 1:24)  In times of difficulty Convictional Christians will respond because they have Someone in their lives who gives them comfort, power, and strength.

Do not be discouraged.  Usually, those who are leaving the faith were never there.  Hopefully, those of us who truly love Christ will not be confused with those who love Him when convenient.  It is those who truly love Him who will change the world, others will change to fit the world.

There was a recent Pew Poll that showed a decline in Christianity in America.  Before we get into a funk and say that the Pew Poll stinks, we need to take a look at the numbers a little more closely.  Although the stats do show that parts of Christianity are decreasing, there are a few bright spots and I think that those are worth a  little bit of examination.  The picture might not be as bleak as many want to paint it.

Proverbs 25:4 says, “Remove impurities from silver, and a vessel will be produced for a silversmith.” 

In Malachi we also read, “And He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.” (Malachi 3:3) 

I think these two verses have corporate and individual implications. I also believe that we can find comfort in these words in relation to our present times.

There is a story of a few ladies who came across these verses and they decided to visit a local silversmith to find out more about the refining of silver and how it applied to these words. They had already decided that the verses were intended to convey the sanctifying influence of the grace of Christ, but they wanted to know if there was more to the verses. So one of the ladies went to the silversmith and he explained the whole process. “But, Sir,” she said when he was finished, “do you sit while the work of refining is going on?”

“Oh, yes, madam,” replied the silversmith; “I must sit with my eye steadily fixed on the furnace, for if the time necessary for refining be exceeded in the slightest degree, the silver will be injured.”  The lady at once saw the beauty, and comfort too, of the expression, “He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.” Sometimes we wonder if God sees our difficulties, but God is intently watching, knowing exactly how much heat will refine and not damage.  As the lady was leaving the shop, the silversmith called her back, and said he had forgotten to mention that the only way that he knew when the process of purifying is complete when he could see his own image reflected in the silver….

God is refining us as individuals through the sanctification process and as He can see His reflection in our lives, we will be more and more equipped for the spiritual challenges we face.  As the silver is heated the dross or impurities are brought to the top where they can be removed a little at a time, making the silver purer with each scoop. It is reassuring that God is not absent in our refining, but He is a Master Craftsman watching every part of our process. He knows how much heat we can take to remove the bad until that day when we go to be with Him and are perfected.

What then does this have to do with the Pew Poll that shows Christianity declining in America?  I will go more into this tomorrow, but for now let’s say that God is refining the Body of Christ much in the same way that He is refining the members of His body.  The Pew Poll finds that those who consider themselves Christians have dropped from 78% to 70% in just a few years and the drop is incrementally increasing every year.  I don’t think this is indicative of a fleeing from the church as much as it is an admission of the truth.

We have had what are called nominal Christians in our churches for a long time.  They have just not felt as free to admit it before now.  In the past if someone revealed that he was an atheist, agnostic, or secularist, there was a certain amount of baggage that came along with the admission.  We were a predominantly Christian nation, so to claim a non-believing status was a bit dangerous for the reputation.  Not any more.  Society has loosened the reigns and now people feel free to admit their non-religious feelings without any negative repercussions. In fact, it has reached the point where admitting a deep-held set of spiritual beliefs carries more danger than the alternative.

What the Pew Poll really reveals is the true and long-standing beliefs of many who have been marking the box Christian for expediency sake.  Many were never committed to the Christian faith to begin with.  

There are three types of Christians in America today.  Cultural, Congregational, and Convictional.  Nominal Christians are usually found in the first two categories, which also include certain types of churches. Convictional Christians are on the rise and cultural and congregational Christians are on the wane.  The dross is being removed.  As the heat against Christianity rises, more and more people reveal their true relationship to the Lord.

In some parts of the world the pot boils over.  Many Christians are facing imprisonment and death for their beliefs. Are any of those people who refuse to deny their faith of the nominal type?  No, these are sold out believers who know that God is real, Jesus is the Savior, and the Holy Spirit is the Comforter.  Do we really think that any of these martyrs are once-a-year churchtains who live lives totally separate from Christ’s teaching.  It is doubtful.  Who would be willing to die for Someone they aren’t even willing to live for?

So the Pew Poll (which I will break down more next week) is just an opportunity for people to openly reveal their true selves.It must be a relief for many to be able to finally check the “none” box on religious affiliation instead of trying to fool the world.  The poll separates out those who believe “the LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.”  (Exodus 15:2)  Many have said that with their lips because it used to be the thing to say. That is no longer the case, so more and more are admitting what they really praise.

There are, of course, people who were committed to the church who have left.  Often times they have been faced with a fork in the road where God’s desires and their own desires diverge and they leave the faith.  But for any one committed Christian who deserts the church there are hundreds who leave never being committed in the first place.  When a battle begins, those who stay the longest are the ones most committed to the cause.  Right now in the Middle East there are thousands who are committed unto death.  We are finding out in America that often times commitment is not an act, but just a word, so it is easily set aside.

We cannot have true fellowship with Christ without commitment.  If we want to experience the abundance of being sons and daughters of  Christ we must be committed to Him.  As things get more difficult in our world we will see who is committed and who is not.  The Pew Poll does not reveal a new phenomenon, but a long-existing condition.  There is an old joke about a guy who dons a devil costume around Halloween and thinks it would be funny to run into a church service.  As he runs up and down the pews scaring people who are scattering all over the place, one man stands up and says, “I don’t know about the rest of these people, but I have been on your side all along.”  We don’t have as many people jumping ship as we have people revealing what ship they have always been in.  What the Pew Poll does tell us is that we have a greater need than ever for the spread of the saving knowledge of Christ.  Nominal Christians will not do that.  Committed Christians must.