Day by Day - The Renewed Restorationist

Just Say Yes

2011-10-11T14:12:00.001-07:00

History is changed by people who say “yes” when others say “no”. People who say “yes” to service and “yes” to God. Ordinary people live their lives without a sense that God is ever present. Without God, every situation is evaluated by the obvious facts and apparent strengths and weaknesses. No wonder they say “no”.

In the world of the ordinary, life and its possibilities are always limited by these observations. People say no because they are afraid. They are afraid to fail, fearing to be exposed as failures. They say “no” without realizing that God wants them to say “yes” to opportunities, “yes” to personal growth, “yes” to positions of service and “yes” to a higher pattern of life where God’s glory is more important than personal reputation. Without faith they do not believe in the possibilities available through a power beyond themselves.

To what are you willing to say yes? Probably you say “no” far too often. Perhaps you isolate yourself from a more challenging life by maneuvering life’s situations to avoid the question.

Do you communicate that you are unable, unskilled, unlearned, untalented, and unexcited? Does your life seem to announce to everyone, “I am unable”, when the truth is simply that you are just unwilling?

I have a goal, and it is to encourage you to say “yes”. If you are a follower of God, it means to say “yes” to God. I means viewing your life as belonging to God and accepting a mission and responsibility to obey God when he puts opportunities in your path to glorify his name.

If you are not a follower of God, it means that you have the wonderful opportunity to have your life changed. You can have a life that will never be limited by your genetic and social circumstances. You can have a life of faith like that of the Apostle Paul who declared: “I can do all thing through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

Jeff Custer

Anything Worth Doing Is Worth Doing Badly!

2011-09-20T20:34:00.000-07:00

I read this simple advice: "Anything worth doing is worth doing badly." It is a truth that I am going to strive to apply to my spiritual life.

It's hard to lead a disciplined spiritual life. We can resolve to practice spiritual disciplines but too often we fail to live up to our own expectations. It is those moments of disappointment with self that we need to remember that anything worth doing is worth doing badly. Missed your daily Bible reading yesterday? Too bad! Get back on track today! Failed to journal for week? Get your pen and get started again today! Neglected to pray recently? Get on you knees again! The practice of spiritual disciplines is worth doing badly.

The Christian’s New Clothes

2011-02-08T10:13:00.000-08:00

The short story “The Emperor’s New Clothes” by Hans Christian Anderson, is known around the world. He tells of two weavers claiming to be able to weave a beautiful suit of clothing from a fabric invisible to those unfit for their positions or “just hopelessly stupid.” Soon the king is wearing his new suit that he pretends he can see. Together with his ministers, who of course are afraid to be honest, he sets out showing his nakedness to the people. Only the unpretentious honesty of a child faced the truth that the clothes were nonexistent. Honesty sometimes means sticking your neck out.

Let me stick my neck out, and prayerfully you will join with me in affirming a bare truth. Many Christians who should be clothed with the virtues of Christ are parading naked!

The process of growing as a Christian in Colossians is described using a verb that means to “put on/off” or to “clothe oneself.” There is a “putting off” that must take place and we are reminded that we can’t continue to be dressed in the sinful clothing of the old life: “But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices.” (Colossians 3:8-9).

But the dressing of a new Christian is more than just the putting off of the old self, we must also put on the new: “… put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator” (Colossians 3:10). Here we sometimes fall short. Failing to accept the responsibility to put on the new clothing, we parade before the world undressed.

Spiritually there is certainly a clothing with Christ that is true and real from the very first day of our Christian lives. Galatians 3:26-27 says: “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” This clothing with Christ is real and God can see it, even though people on earth cannot. But clothing ourselves with Christ is more than the initial surrender to Christ in faith. We are also given the responsibility to clothe ourselves with actions and characterstics consistent with our spiritual position: “Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” – (Col 3:12).

We need the honesty of a child to face the truth about our lives. Are we clothed or are we parading naked? Are we smugly content that we have stopped certain sins but failing to put on the virtuous clothing of the Christian life? Do not despair. It is never too late to get dressed in garments suitable for those who are becoming like Jesus.

Jeff Custer

We Must Grow in the Fear of the Lord

2011-02-02T07:51:00.000-08:00

We have all had those moments when we become aware of our smallness and insignificance. Maybe you have felt it gazing at the star-filled sky on a midsummer night. Who doesn’t sense it when walking along a windy beach with the sound of the surf pounding and the sea disappearing into the horizon. All of us who have stood on mountain peaks, perched on the edges of rock overlooks, or just climbed a tall tree to look out over the forest have been reminded of the immenseness of the world around us. If we care to go deeper, we can also be reminded of the God who made it all. In this meditation we are reminded of the difference between God and ourselves. We become conscious of a gap between infinite God and finite man.

Jerry Bridges wrote “The fear of God is a heartfelt recognition of this gap – not a putdown of man, but an exaltation of God. This fear of the Lord is a necessary ingredient in the life of a devoted Christian.

The Bible confirms the importance of the fear of the Lord:

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge. - Pv 1:7

The fear of the Lord is the key to treasure. - Isaiah 33:6

The household of Cornelius is presented as “god-fearing.” - Acts 10:2

Jesus is heard because of his reverent submission. - Hebrews 5:7

We are told to worship with reverence and awe. - Hebrews 12:28

To increase your reverent fear of Lord, meditate on his glory, majesty, and power. Use experiences in nature to remind you of his splendor. Seek scriptures that emphasize the gap between you and the Almighty.

Remember that for the Christian “there is no condemnation in Christ Jesus”. Our fear is a reverent awe as we stand before him, it is not a slavish fear of punishment. We must temper our fear of God with the equally powerful truth that God loves us! We must fear our God, but from the foot of the cross, the view is awe-inspiring. There is no need to view God with horror when you stand at the side of Jesus. Through Jesus the Almighty One becomes our Father.

Revolution

2011-01-21T13:58:00.000-08:00

I missed you all! I have just returned from the Christian Educator’s Conference in San Antonio. It was probably one of the most rewarding conferences I have attended in many years. I gleaned not only encouragement in ministry, but some great ideas that I hope will be beneficial to the congregation here in FWB.

I read Revolution by George Barna during down times of the conference. It is not a read I would recommend generally, but it did introduce me to trends in the nation that draw people away from local churches and onto their own self-determined paths of spiritual discovery. In Barna’s terminology, these people are Revolutionists. Negatively speaking, he presents these people as abandoning their churches and freeing themselves of the oversight of others. Positively, he presents these people as zealous and sincere believers.

The Revolutionists are tired of the lukewarm and apathetic Christianity they have experienced through their church experience and are looking for something deeper and more authentic. How about you?

I am not a Revolutionist in the Barna sense. I believe in God’s plan for the church and also for the spiritual need for guidance and encouragement of elders, ministers, and other leaders that God has given his church. But I must confess that I am tired of tepid and lethargic Christianity. Aren’t you tired of it too?

Why don’t we recommit to zealous and fervent Christianity? Instead of abandoning the church, let’s fire it up! Let’s restore New Testament fervor in the the 21^st Century church!

Jeff Custer

Confronting “Stinking Thinking”

2010-09-10T12:26:00.000-07:00

I am convinced that “stinking thinking” by Christians injures more faith than attacks from skeptics. You expect negativity from a skeptic or atheist, but you don’t expect it from a Christian. Here are some examples of “stinking thinking”:

A Christian with a “woe is me” attitude.
A Christian who is so afraid of what he fears is happening to the Lord’s church that he shares it with everyone who will listen.
A Christian without hope.
A Christian who always expects that things will get worse.
A Christian who is so deeply bothered by the apathy of the Christians around him that he just can’t get excited about worship.
A Christian who is fearful.
A Christian who believes that there aren’t any others around who share his desire to be truly committed.
A Christian who thinks it is better to stay away from other believers who have proven to be such a disappointment.
Etc.

Many of these attitudes can be seen in the life of Elijah (1 Kings 19) when he comes down off of Mount Carmel only to find that things aren’t so great in the valley. Jezebel wants him dead and the followers who proclaimed God yesterday have melted back into the society. He fears, he flees, despairs, and he hides. But God didn’t leave him alone with his stinking thinking. Instead, God confronts him, speaks to him, reassures him, and brings him back into contact with others for support and help.

I believe that the treatment of “stinking thinking” today should be similar. Left alone, stinking thinking is like a disease… growing, progressing. and infecting others. It must be confronted but with a spirit that demonstrates concern. God sent an angel to support Elijah in the desert and spoke to him in a quiet voice in the cave. We too, however frustrated we might be with the “stinking thinking”, must temper rebuke with love. We must remember that the greatest victim of negativity is the bearer of the message.

Jeff Custer

God Loves Us Despite Our Razzies

2010-03-13T13:22:00.001-08:00

Sandra Bullock won both an Oscar and a Razzie last week. It was the first time in history that this has ever been done!

The Oscar was in recognition for her excellent performance in the movie “The Blind Side.” With the award, the academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognized her as the best actress of the last year. After many years of filmmaking and plenty of memorable performances, she finally reached the pinnacle of her craft.

The day before the Oscars, Sandra was remembered for something other than excellence at The Golden Raspberry Awards (Razzies for short). Bullock, magnanimous on the same weekend she would win a Best Actress Oscar for “The Blind Side,” was willing to acknowledge the universal loathing for “All About Steve” by accepting her Razzie Award for Worst Actress in person, something stars almost never do.

Sandra commented on winning the two awards, "You take the good with the not so good." She joked about where the two statuettes would go on her mantle. "They'll sit side by side in a nice little shelf somewhere, the Razzie maybe on a different shelf, lower," she laughed.

My own life has had a few “award-winning” performances. Too seldom I have had some Oscar worthy performances and too often I have been deserving of a Razzie Award. It is amazing that all of us humans have so much potential for both stellar good and dismal failure. If our value were determined by single horrible performances, we would be in a sorry state. Thankfully God loves us despite our Razzies.

The greatest award in life is not determined by our own performances. It was long ago determined that we “fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) and that we needed to be saved by the grace of God through faith in Christ (Eph. 2:8-9). The Award of Eternal Life is granted because we love God and place our faith in Jesus Christ. It was his deed on the cross and not our performances in life that win salvation. We deserve worse than a Razzie but will receive better than an Oscar.

Jeff Custer

Outward, Inward, and Upward!

2009-12-29T18:19:00.000-08:00

The end of every year gets me thinking about what has happened in the last twelve months. In ministry it makes you wonder how much difference you have made. Have your sermons inspired? Have your interactions and counseling helped anyone? Have the visits made a dent in loneliness or eased any suffering? Have any Bible classes enriched the spiritual understanding of students? Every Christians should be concerned about whether he is bearing fruit (see John 15).

I certainly pray that we have done some good... but I am not satisfied or content. It is time for new goals and new commitments. In the next year I pray that the church will grow outward, inward, and upward. Outward in evangelism, inward in service to one another, and upward in our relationship to God. Would you join me in making some commitments?

Insights into Fasting.

2009-09-15T12:44:00.000-07:00

Fasting can help be a reminder of your spiritual need for God. But for this to happen, I believe that you need to be clear about your purpose in fasting. It is important that you not over focus on the fasting itself. It is not your sacrifice of the physical comfort of food that is honoring to God, but the humbling of yourself before him. If the fasting takes your mind away from God and focuses instead on your hunger, you have been defeated in your spiritual purpose.

I suggest that when you fast you have a clear purpose. To simply fast as a form of self flagellation, is morbid and unbiblical. Fasting should be accompanied with prayer and focus the mind on God’s will. When you pray and fast, form follows purpose. If you are fasting for spiritual renewal, then your prayer should certainly be centered on seeking God’s transformation through his Spirit in your life. If you are fasting in repentance, your prayer throughout the day should be centered on your contrition and desire for forgiveness and cleansing. If you are fasting about a specific major decision in your life then your supplications should seek God’s wisdom. If you need God’s intervention, then your prayers would be an open beseeching of God for his help.

I suggest that you use the time you would normally be eating or preparing a meal to separate yourself from your daily activities and dedicate yourself to prayer. Then in the last hour of your fast, separate yourself again and pray. In this way you will be reminded of your purpose and your dependence on God. The Heavenly Father loves you and when you humble yourself and fast in this way, your sincerity and humility will be recognized by God and He will answer your prayer.

I Believe

2009-08-15T14:27:00.000-07:00

There are a lot things conspiring to destroy our confidence in the future. One of the greatest is the simple human difficulty in trusting that the future really is in God's hands. It is easy to contend that we are pessimistic because we are realistic... but that seems to prove our lack of faith...doesn't it? God simply isn't real to us if we hold that reality demands pessimism.

I would rather believe God. I believe that God will bless my life and health. He will take care of me and help me through any difficulty. I believe that God will bless my family and help my girls find godly husbands and my son to find a great woman who will help him live his life for the Lord. I believe that God will bless me with work that will bring him glory . I believe that whenever a door closes, another will open. I believe that God will bless the church that I am part of. He will bless it with numerical and spiritual growth. I believe that hundreds of people will be blessed through the outreach of the congregation and that their lives will be enriched as they are prepared for heaven! I believe the future is bright, not because of he facts of the moment, but because of the fact of the eternal. I believe God.

I prefer to believe. I prefer to be optimistic. How about you?

The Restoring of a Heart for Evangelism

2009-07-06T21:06:00.000-07:00

"Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them,

because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers."

It is time for a restoration of heart and not just doctrine. 1 Timothy 4:16 is a great passage that reminds us to watch not only our doctrine but our lives. It is my sad observation that many choose to watch one or the other but fail to give attention to both. I want to avoid this pitfall.

Among the “life” factors that I want to restore is a zeal for sharing the faith with others. I marvel at the thrilling stories in the Book of Acts as Christians share their faith everywhere they go. I wonder at the excitement of the rapid spread of the faith and the thrilling stories chronicling dramatic conversions and thankful post-baptism rejoicing. I can personally attest to the joy of teaching and baptizing men and women in my own ministry yet paradoxically I find plenty of pulls to fill my time and expend my energy on things less rewarding. This has to stop.

Why is it that I do this? Am I the only one? Why do I admit the high importance of evangelism in my service to God, yet relegate it to a secondary position in my allocation of time and energy?

So, if I am serious about the restoration of the evangelistic heart, something must change. Evangelistic concerns need to infiltrate my prayers, my conversations, and my agenda.

As I work on this restoration in my own life I would be thrilled if others would join me. It is a journey best made in the company of others of like mind. Let me know if you want to make the same commitment.

In Praise of Women

2009-05-13T13:51:00.000-07:00

When God made women, He reached the pinnacle of creation. Of course, Adam was also God’s handiwork. He, like David (who years later would remind us that as a man he was “fearfully and wonderfully made”) was the culmination of God’s creative energy. Nevertheless, Adam was alone and incomplete without Eve. It was a woman who was God’s incomparable masterpiece. With Eve the Heavenly Father ended the creative process with a flourish. Every woman today bears a resemblance to Eve and is a handiwork of the Creator himself.

In women I see the loving nature of God. It is them that I best see the caring and nurturing nature of the divine. It is only inside the woman that life is created and sustained. It is womankind that raises all of humanity, both male and female. In her arms we have all been comforted, sung to, nurtured, and protected.

In the Scriptures women sustain the ministry of Jesus and the apostles. It is in their homes that congregations of God’s people are born. Women of financial clout and prominent women in society join to nurture the infant church. They worked behind the scenes, labored at the side the Apostles and Jesus, and taught the Bible to children as well as future church leaders. When married to Christians they helped their husbands in God’s work but when they found themselves married to unbelievers they rose to the occasion and won their husbands to the cause of Jesus through the power of their godly examples.

God’s church continues to be blessed by godly women. These sisters participate in nearly every ministry of God’s work. Churches would grind to a halt without the wonderful contributions of female members. To best bear the image of God, both men and women are needed. Together they can complete the task of representing God to the world. If you are a woman, would you help us?

2009-04-21T08:43:00.000-07:00

Can We Dismiss Paul’s Teaching on Cultural Grounds?

Paul’s teaching about women’s role in the church, and specifically in the assembly, grates on modern sensibilities. Many would prefer to dismiss the teaching as relevant only to the culture of Paul’s day and not to the culture of 21st century America. There are other activities such as foot washing and the holy kiss which we have said were cultural and not binding on today (though the principles behind them are eternal), so why not consider Paul’s explanation of the role of women as cultural?

The passages that deal with the role of women need to be reexamined. It is here that the cultural argument fails. Note how Paul in every case discussing the submissive role of women below, links his teaching to something eternal:

1 Cor 14:33-34 As in all the congregations of the saints, 34 women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says.

1 Cor 11:8-10 For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; 9 neither was man created for woman, but woman for man.

1 Tim 2:11-13 A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent. 13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve.

Eph 5:22-24 Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

The way a woman demonstrates submissiveness may be indeed be cultural. A sign of submissiveness in the first century was that women covered their heads, in other cultures a woman might wear a mark on her forehead or walk three steps behind the husband when in public. The manifestations are cultural, but the principle is eternal. The Bible says that the woman’s role is anchored in creation.

Worship in the assembly specifically is a place where Paul says submissiveness should be shown. His purpose was not to establish the role of women, but to regulate worship. Since the teaching was meant to be eternal, women must continue to express their submissiveness in how they participate in worship assemblies.

Women Keep Silent - Part 2 "Was Paul a Mysogynist?"

2009-03-11T13:28:00.000-07:00

Some who attack the teaching of the Apostle Paul seek to discredit him and be freed from his teaching about women. It is this motive that incites some to call Paul a misogynist (woman hater) and to view Paul is an ally of “Christian conservatives” who wish to keep women in a subordinate position to men. I deny this emphatically!

Paul respected and loved his sisters in Christ. The writings of Paul do have passages that are difficult to accept in our present society (i.e. I Corinthians 14:33-35; Ephesians 5:22-23; 1Timothy 2:8-15) but those teachings are God’s, not just Paul’s. The issue balances on whether we believe that Paul’s writings are inspired by God. Those who take the discrediting route are in fact suggesting that the Bible is not inspired in these teachings by Paul about women. The discrediting process begins with a dislike of the Bible’s teaching and moves on to discard it by accusing Paul of hating women. This path tragically opens the door to subjective judgments. Disgruntled readers then are liscensed to discard the teachings of Scripture whenever the teachings conflict with their own beliefs and preferences. Biblical authority is destroyed and man sets himself up as the legislator of right and wrong.

Paul obviously loved and respected the Christian women with whom he worked. You can see clearly his attitude towoward women in the sixteenth chapter of Romans. There Paul commends and greets affectionately a large number of women, including Phoebe, Priscilla, Junias, Mary, Apelles, Tryphena, Tryphosa, Persis, Julia, the sister of Nereus, the mother of Rufus, and Olympas. His comments show deep affection and respect for these women.

In fact, Paul is better described as a defender of women, teaching faithfully the equality of men and women before God. Consider his teaching:

Gal 3:26-28 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

1 Peter 3:7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.

No Paul is not a misogynist. The next post will discuss the position that dismisses the Bible’s teaching on cultural grounds.

Women: Keep Silent!

2009-02-05T08:37:00.000-08:00

Paul's teaching about women is a problem for many, especially in a time when the roles of women have been changing in society to eradicate all distinctions from men. What are we to do with Paul's teaching?

1 Cor 14:33-34 "As in all the congregations of the saints, women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. " NIV

1 Cor 14:34 "The women are to keep silent in the churches; for they are not permitted to speak, but are to subject themselves, just as the Law also says. "NASU

1 Cor 14:34 Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law." KJV

In the coming days I hope to probe this teaching of Paul and move toward an understanding that will help us to honor the Scriptures without unduly restricting women. I believe that this teaching cannot be ignored either by dismissing Paul as a misogynist (woman hater) or dismissing the passage as only relevant to the culture of that time. We must first accurately understand what Paul is addressing in the Corinthian congregation and correctly understand what silence means in the context. If we don't do this homework first it will inevitably lead to misapplications that stray from God's intent.

Desert Training

2009-01-13T13:26:00.000-08:00

It was a tough time for Isaac. There was a famine in the land. It was not simply an economic downturn, people were starving! As leader of the family, Isaac had an example to follow. He could take the family to the fertile Nile Egypt as Abraham had done years earlier during another famine. But God said no!

“The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, "Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you” (Genesis 26:2-3).

There in deserts of southern Palestine God got busy with the training that Isaac needed. In the midst of famine, Isaac had to learn to rely on God. In the midst of the worries of survival God said simply “I will be with you and bless you.” There was no announced economic plan or discussion of survival strategies. God wanted him to learn that His presence and blessing were enough! If he were to go too soon to Egypt, the lesson would be missed. The Egyptian government would have been seen as the savior and provider. But it was in the desert that they came to see God alone as the one who would sustain and bless!

Throughout the Bible the desert is a place of preparation. Into the desert go the Israelites under Moses, Elijah fleeing from Ahab, David fleeing from Saul, Jesus preparing for his ministry…. There they all deepen their reliance on God and fortify their courage to face the future.

We too face our own kinds of deserts. Loneliness, financial hardships, physical sickness, emotional traumas, and the loss of loved ones can make us feel as if we were alone in the wilderness. But in tough times God’s message to Isaac is His message to us: “You are not alone! I am with you! Hang on, for I will bless you!”

Days later, God spoke again to Isaac when he was in Beersheba: "I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you.” Isaac was not to live fearful of the tomorrows and neither should we. Face the future with courage and see the tough times of life as opportunities to learn dependence on God!

Jeff Custer

What Constitutes the Observation of a Religious Holiday?

2008-12-20T19:50:00.000-08:00

I have searched the Scriptures for guidance about how to approach Christmas. In Galatians 4:10 the apostle Paul is concerned that the new converts in Galatia are “turning back...” His illustration of their weakened faith is that they are “observing special days and months and seasons and years.” This leaves me with two questions: ‘Is Paul referring to a holiday like Christmas?” and “What does it mean to ‘observe’ a holiday”?

The word used for “observe” in Galatians 4:10 is parateereisthe which means to “observe scrupulously” as in the observance of legal prescriptions. It is especially used this way in the observance of festivals. In this passage the context suggests that some of the young Galatian Christians were being drawn back to the following of Jewish traditions (though some claim it was pagan traditions) regarding special days, months, seasons, and years. The Judiaizing teachers in Galatia altered the gospel by suggesting that true followers of Christ must continue to scrupulously observe the law, and some young Christians began to submit to their teaching. Just as Paul earlier refuted circumcision, here he refutes the teaching that religious holy days must be observed.

The observing of a religious holiday is not the simple recognition of the holiday. It is the scrupulous observation of the laws of the holy day in order to be right with God. This is contrary to the Gospel, because by the observation of the law, no man will be justified. By implication, anyone who would suggest that we must scrupulously observe Christmas in order to be right with God would be similarly rebuked by this passage.

It is also clear that “observing” a holiday does not mean the simple recognition of the day’s import in society or to people in the community. Nor does it mean that we should avoid speaking of what is in the minds of people (i.e. the birth of Jesus, during the Christmas season). While it is always appropriate and right to be thankful for Jesus, the Christmas season is a time when people on our society are thankful for his coming. We should take advantage of this opportunity.

Sadly, people like the baby Jesus who is confined to the manger but reject Jesus as Lord. They like the theme of good will to men but resist the Gospel. It is time for clear preaching. It is the preaching of the Gospel that turns people from the manger to see the Lord on the cross. We should express our joy for Jesus’ birth during the Christmas season but not stop there. We must show that the birth of Jesus was empty without his death, burial, and resurrection! It was only through the cross that peace with God was made possible!

Conflicted and Thankful This Christmas

2008-12-20T19:44:00.000-08:00

I find myself conflicted at this time of the year.

On one hand, I recognize that Christmas is not a holiday prescribed in Scripture. I believe that this clearly means that it was not meant to be a holy day. For this reason, I believe that as a people guided by the Bible alone, we should not recognize Christmas as a religious holiday.

On the other hand, I believe that this holiday celebrates a true historical event for which I am supremely thankful. I recognize that sometimes even people in the world stop at this time of year to be thankful for Jesus. I can’t help but be glad about this.

On one hand, I cringe at the thought that anyone would think that I follow a human religious tradition rather than the Scriptures. In consequence, I wonder if I should do anything that might lead an outsider to the conclusion that I believe Christmas to be a holy day.

On the other hand, I cringe at the thought that any outsider would think that we are not thankful for the birth of Jesus. In consequence, I wonder if not expressing thankfulness for the birth of Jesus at this time of year might do more harm than good.

Perhaps you are not conflicted and see this plainly as a black and white issue. If so, you probably are frustrated when others struggle. Personally, I try to make clear in my own example that I believe that Christmas is not a religious holiday but that I am thankful for the gift of Jesus. I want to be faithful to the Scriptures and genuinely express my heartfelt joy for the Lord.

In today’s worship service we do not celebrate Christmas, but we want everyone to know that we as a people are incredibly thankful for Jesus. The sermon and songs are meant to do just that. With Paul we exclaim: “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” (2 Cor 9:15).

Strength Is Available!

2008-12-12T13:33:00.000-08:00

Life can be hard and anybody can get worn down by the circumstances of life. Where do we turn when our own strength gives out?

The good news is that God promises us support when we are weak! His agent for this strengthening is his own Spirit who he promises to each and every Christian. In Acts 2:38, those who cry out for salvation are told to repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of their sins. But God's blessing doesn't end there! They are told: "And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit" NIV.

This gift is the Spirit of God living inside every obedient Christian (see Acts 5:32). It is not a gift for the "elite" but for all of us who are normal and ordinary and in need of God's power. The divine promise of support depends on our activating this power in our lives! It is not optional. God commands that we activate and live with this strength!

Consider 1 Peter 4:11: "If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen." NIV

If you are in need of help, we are here ready to respond! We would be glad to pray for you and do whatever we can in your support. But most of all, we want you to find your strength in God through his Spirit. If you need help in your search for God's strength please contact us at the Fort Walton Beach church of Christ. We Care Because He Cares!

Who’s Calling?

2008-12-05T12:55:00.000-08:00

Florida Congresswoman, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, hung up twice on telephone calls from President-Elect Obama this week. She wasn’t mad at him, in fact, she was honored. She just thought they were prank calls! She marveled that she had received the call saying, “I’m just another slug on the planet.” President-Elect Obama was amused and graciously called a third time after the confusion cleared. She was not accustomed to getting calls from such high officials, but once she understood, she opened herself to listen.

Samuel was another credulous recipient of a call from on high (1 Samuel 3:4-11). His call was from God. Similarly, he was unprepared for the unexpected summons. Three times God called out to him in the night, and instead of answering, Samuel ran to Eli the High Priest, supposing the call had been from him. After all, Samuel was just a boy, and had no experience of speaking directly with God. But Eli realized that the LORD was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, "Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, 'Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.'" He did listen and his life was never the same.

Saul of Tarsus was on the road between Jerusalem and Damascus when Jesus called him in Acts 9:3-4: “As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" Understandably, he asked who it was who was speaking to him. Graciously Jesus identified himself and Saul believed. The Lord called, Saul listened, and his life was never the same.

Today God continues to call us through His Word. If we believe that the Bible is from God, we need to see the Scriptures as God’s call to us! How will we respond? How could we dare hang up on God and ignore his call?

Saul responded, “What shall I do?” If we accept the call from God in the same spirit, we will give the same answer. If we receive the call and listen to God, our lives will never be the same!

A Great Day of Thanksgiving

2008-11-28T10:17:00.000-08:00

I enjoyed a wonderful day with my family as we shared the holiday with one another. It was the typical food, family, and fun. We did try something different. I read the poem "Five Kernels of Corn" by Hezekiah Butterfield and explained why we had five grains of corn on each plate. The kernels of corn were a reminder to us all of the blessings we have from God. It may have been a little long, especially with three toddlers at the table, but everyone thought it was neat. It needs some refinement before it becomes a family tradition, but we all need to be reminded of how blessed we truly are. After the reading we went around the table and everyone shared something for which they were thankful.

Here is the poem in its entirety:

Five Kernels of Corn
by Hezekiah Butterworth

'Twas the year of the famine in Plymouth of old,
The ice and the snow from the thatched roofs had rolled;

Through the warm purple skies steered the geese o'er the seas,

And the woodpeckers tapped in the clocks of the trees;

And the boughs on the slopes to the south winds lay bare,

and dreaming of summer, the buds swelled in the air.

The pale Pilgrims welcomed each reddening morn;

There were left but for rations Five Kernels of Corn.

Five Kernels of Corn!

But to Bradford a feast were Five Kernels of Corn!

"Five Kernels of Corn! Five Kernels of Corn!

Ye people, be glad for Five Kernels of Corn!"

So Bradford cried out on bleak Burial Hill,

And the thin women stood in their doors, white and still.

"Lo, the harbor of Plymouth rolls bright in the Spring,

The maples grow red, and the wood robins sing,

The west wind is blowing, and fading the snow,

And the pleasant pines sing, and arbutuses blow.

Five Kernels of Corn!

To each one be given Five Kernels of Corn!"

O Bradford of Austerfield hast on thy way,

The west winds are blowing o'er Provincetown Bay,

The white avens bloom, but the pine domes are chill,

And new graves have furrowed Precisioners' Hill!"

Give thanks, all ye people, the warm skies have come,

The hilltops are sunny, and green grows the holm,

And the trumpets of winds, and the white March is gone,

Five Kernels of Corn!

Ye have for Thanksgiving Five Kernels of Corn!

"The raven's gift eat and be humble and pray,

A new light is breaking and Truth leads your way;

One taper a thousand shall kindle; rejoice

That to you has been given the wilderness voice!"

O Bradford of Austerfield, daring the wave,

And safe through the sounding blasts leading the brave,

Of deeds such as thine was the free nation born,

And the festal world sings the "Five Kernels of Corn."

Five Kernels of Corn!

The nation gives thanks for Five Kernels of Corn!

To the Thanksgiving Feast bring Five Kernels of Corn!

Restoring the Centrality of the Gospel

2008-11-14T12:36:00.000-08:00

The Gospel is …. Finish the sentence. Can you? It is not the Bible, but it is in the Bible. It is not all truth, but it is truth. It is not all the words of God, but it is the word of God. Paul said that the gospel was:

1. God’s power for salvation:
Roman 1:16: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” NASB

2. The good news concerning Jesus Christ:
Rom 1:1-4: “Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning His Son…”NASB

3. The good news about what God did for us:
1 Cor 15:1-3: “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” NASB

The gospel is the good news about what God did for us in sending Jesus. The preaching of this gospel has the power to save, and is as appealing to people today as it was in the first century. I believe that if we keep the preaching of the gospel as central in our mission, it will keep us close to God. While the gospel calls sinners to salvation, it also reminds Christians of their debt to God.

We must not ignore the preaching of the gospel while we concern ourselves primarily with lesser matters. There are many other important doctrines in the Bible that the Christian must not ignore or disobey, but we must remember the centrality of the gospel of Christ.

The Shift to Emotion: Our Response?

2008-11-12T13:37:00.000-08:00

It has been suggested that one of the characteristics of our society that has fueled the desire for change in the church is the shifting preference from logical thinking to emotional feeling. You may disagree, but it seems to me that many Christians, who most desire changes in worship services, often appeal to unmet emotional needs. I have been told (more than once and by more than one) that our worship is dead (i.e. it lacks emotional expression and appeal) and something should be done about it. I have been told that it is discouraging to see people who are “just going through the motions.”

My reactions are varied.

First, I sense that we probably are not well served in worship when we are critically examining the audience to see who seems to be sincerely worshiping. I suspect that this kind of judgment would be best left to the Lord.

Second, I believe that the statements that I have heard were sincere expressions (though I did not fully agree with the specifics or intensity of some of the assertions). I believe that the persons communicating to me a desire for more emotional expression in worship were not inventing the need just to be critical. They lamented the lack of something they felt was desirable.

Third, my immature and frustrated reaction to the demand that I should do something about it is: “You do something about it!” (Thankfully I have held this in check).

But the question remains, “What should be done?”

Should we label those desiring changes as immature emotion junkies who have grown up needing too many emotional fixes? Do they need to be reformed by teaching them greater appreciation for logic and Bible doctrines?

Should we conclude that a minimum of outward emotional expression is superior and is a sign of greater logic based spirituality?

Or should we take a look at the claim of needing more emotion and see if there is any merit? Could we admit that more joy, happiness, love, remorse, etc. might not be so bad? Could we teach people to honor and know the Scriptures at the same time that we encourage them to respond to the Bible with both mind and heart?

Jesus in Matthew 22:37 said: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” We do not have the liberty to love God with just one of the three (heart, mind, or soul). Worship extends from this loving of God and it too should be expressed fully from our whole being. We must worship in spirit and in truth and with mind and heart. If we can do this better, I think we ought to try. Don’t you?

Restoring True Repentance

2008-11-06T13:43:00.000-08:00

We need a restoration of sensitivity about our own sin. Worried about crushed egos and damaged self esteem, modern psychology encourages men and women to take it easy on themselves. They are encouraged to ease up on guilt, to not take things so seriously, and to give themselves a break! We have become so worried about being overly negative that we have become too light with the gravity of sin.

What happened to being "cut to the heart" like the crowds listening to Peter in Acts 2:37?

Reformation or Restoration?

2008-10-31T07:41:00.000-07:00

What needs to happen in the life of people? Do we need reformation or restoration? Do we need God to tinker a little under the hood or replace the engine? Do we want to be slightly better or do we want to be new creatures?

The Bible calls for restoration. Restoration means major change and not simple modifications. In the church it means striving to be all that God loved and planned. The church of Christ was not an afterthought, it was God's strategy. It cannot be swapped and must not be abandoned. We must continue the divine strategy by patterning the church of today after that of the Bible.

This won't be appealing to everyone. Some don't want to be restricted to the guidelines of the Bible. It seems that man believes that his human strategies and organizations will work better in today's world. That's a shame.

In the lives of people there is also a need for major change. The natural tendency is to resist admitting our need. We might agree that there is room for improvement but emphatically deny the need to put to death the old man and to be born again.

In 2 Cor 2:16 The Apostle Paul speaks of different responses to the sweet fragrance of Christ: "To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life." NIV

So it is today. Some respond wholly and joyfully to the lordship of Jesus. They are those who know they need major work done in their lives and are thrilled that God would make them new creatures. Others, who fail to see the need for restoration, see only the demands and the threat that the Gospel makes against their lives. Content with minor modifications, they fail to respond to Christ. They fail to become true disciples.

We need restoration, not just reformation.

What is a Renewed Restorationist?

2008-10-28T14:03:00.000-07:00

I am a "renewed restorationist". The word "restorationist" can be a label that means different things to different people (I hate the way labels are used to distort perceptions). I use this label for myself (with reservations) because it identifies me in two ways:

First, it connects me to others who have been profoundly influenced by the Restoration Movement in the United States.

Secondly, it reaffirms my belief that we should continue to plead for people and churches to return to the simple truths and teachings of the Bible.

I use the word "renewed" because I am newly revived and committed to the importance of restoration. In the coming days I hope to discuss what needs to be restored. I know that true restoration is often more than we think. If you think it is merely doctrinal or congregational, think again. Restoration is needed in the heart and is a deeply personal and spiritual necessity for every person.

May God continue to renew and restore us all!