“Picture a beggar. Not someone you might find on the streets of a North American city, strolling along looking for change to buy beer or cigarettes. Rather, picture a person in such abject poverty that he is incapable of doing anything more than lying in a corner with a palm upraised, hoping someone will take pity on him. Picture someone who knows he will die unless someone has mercy upon him.”
How often do we really see ourselves in such need? I was with two brothers in a meeting yesterday and we discussed some of our struggles that occurred over the holidays. I told them that we have two things in common. One: We are very needy people. Two: We realize it. I shared that it was a gift that we realized how needy we are.
As you find that you are needy, don’t let it lead you to despair. It is actually the very thing that God has placed in our lives for a reason. God will never lead us to a point where we will stop needing Him. As we grow in the Christian life, we should become more acutely aware of how needy we actually are and thus depend on God more each day.
This Christmas, Ginger, Thomas and I are making our usual rounds to Memphis and Knoxville to visit our families. As we go from home to home (and eventually back to our home in Louisville), I think about what makes a home. There is the old cliche’ “Home is where the heart is,” and in many ways, this could be true for all of us. I continually look at the struggles and heartaches of those in my world as well as the fading things that so many put hope in. We often find ourselves dreaming of some tomorrow that will never materialize. We end up blaming others or ourselves for our dissatisfaction.
C.S. Lewis wrote, “Creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for those desires exists. A baby feels hunger: well, there is such a thing as food. A duckling wants to swim: well, there is such a thing as water. Men feel sexual desire: well, there is such a thing as sex.”3
So we all long for a home, but no one will be fully satisfied with any home or acceptance that is found on this earth. Even the best home cannot fill the gap of eternity because everything is fading away. So it does make sense that we are not truly home yet.
I’ve been meditating on 2 passages that point to this fact. Hebrews 11 is often called the “Hall of Faith” as it describes many of the Old Testament heroes who believed in God. It wasn’t that they were great, but rather, it was the God they were trusting in who is great. “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. 14People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them”(Hebrews 11:13-16). Later, Hebrews 13:14 says, “For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.”
Many times, the greatest gift we can receive is a life of hardship like these Hebrew Christians. When all is going well, we can subtly be tricked into believing that this is as good as it gets. However, we are lulled to sleep and complacency when so much more is offered. When we are shaken to the core and things do not go our way, let it be a reminder that you are not yet home and this should not be a surprise to us. Our best life is not now, but our best life is to come. Let us continually look to the author and perfecter of our faith and hold fast to believing that His ways are always right and best. He is worthy of all trust and praise!
Last weekend, I preached a sermon entitled “Even a Good Church Needs Reminding.” The text was Romans 15:14-16. As you listen to this sermon (also available for download at sojournchurch.com), be reminded of the gospel and how we need to be reminded of these truths everyday.
My throat has been hurting for a few days. It felt like a mini-fire this morning. I may have strep so I’m running by the doctor before I go to speak to some students on a retreat this weekend.
This summer and fall have been quite an experience for me. I have had ongoing fatigue and some reoccurring sicknesses for about 4 months now that I just can’t kick. The doctors have done a battery of tests and we’ll keep on trying to what the true source is.
As I was driving today, I was reflecting on what I am currently doing in a fatigued state. I then wondered what I could do if my energy and health returned. It is important to note that it is easy to fall into the subtle trap of “doing” more stuff and thinking that makes us more spiritual or more acceptable before God. So when I talk about “doing”, I am always trying to remind myself and others that our “doing” must flow from our “being”. So, back to my main idea.
What would flow from my life if I did have more energy? I didn’t really know how to answer this question. I was pondering what would happen if I really saw my neighbors on my block as family and starting treating them as such. We already reach out, but I still believe it would look a lot different if I really started believing this. I wondered if I would record another C.D. and play out again. This wouldn’t be for the sake of seeking to “make it” but simply to build relationships to share my life and the gospel with others.
It seems that, even though I am fatigued, that I am doing more than ever before. I have more relationships than ever, people probing into my life, new initiatives to equip the body, and the list goes on, but even so, I sense that my heart wants to hold back some things for myself. I am tentative to give away my time to others and continually put myself on the line and surrender all to God today. I’m on this journey and I know that God is at work. I long to continue to put myself in the place where God is bringing to light the things that I cannot see. I long to be used by God to do what He desires for me to do. This is not to earn His approval or to live a life that will be remembered. I long (and want to long) to live on mission because God has captured my heart and made me new. I want to do this because my Abba knows best and I do want to hear, “Well done My good and faithful servant.”
The reality may be that I will be more useful as a weary and scik man than as one who can play basketball all day or go about everyday with massive amounts of energy. I know Paul found this to be true for him (2 Corinthians 12). So whether this is a lifelong thorn or I get my energy back tomorrow, I will seek to trust in the One who gave Himself for me.
Many of us grew up in a church culture that rarely saw real life, messy, redemptive relationships in action. I’m sure that there are many reasons for this. Some people wanted to be left alone so they left them alone. Others just assumed that everything was going great in other people’s lives until they spoke up or tragedy happened. Many others felt inadequate to give counsel on tough life problems so they just left the messy stuff for the trained professionals.
However, as we look at the Scriptures, we see that our calling is to be intentionally intrusive in each others lives.
Galatians 6:1-6 is just one passage that teaches this idea. Paul writes, “1Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. 2Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, 5for each one should carry his own load. 6Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor.”
I have a dream about our body of believers growing together in what it means to live in a gospel-saturated way. This will look messy. This will be hard. But at the end of the day, I want people seeing me everyday, probing my heart and challenging me to look to Christ. Without this, I know that I will be spiritually lazy. Without this, I know I will be prone to believe lies. Without this, I am at risk of seeking pleasure in some lesser love and missing out on the wonders of walking in an intimate relationship with Christ.
As our body gathered again for our monthly prayer service, our focus this morning was on the section of the Lord’s Prayer, “give us today our daily bread.” One of my fellow pastors, Robert Cheong, led us with the following thoughts this morning.
First, Robert reminded us that we depend on God for physical provisions. He said, “We take for granted so many aspects of our daily routine – the air we breathe, going to bed and waking up in the morning, walking, eating, and as a result, we forget to ask the Lord for the most basic physical provisions.” Even though God knows what we need before we ask Him, He delights in us realizing our need and bringing it before Him. This is another act of daily dependence upon Him and it reminds us that we are not only dependent in physical matter but also spiritual matters. As Jesus said in John 15, ” “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” Do we really believe this truth? Our lives will show it if we do.
Secondly, Robert reminded all of us this morning that we need to depend on God for all of life. He said, “So we must not only ask the Lord for our daily physical bread, but we must also ask, ‘Give us today Christ and His gospel!’”
To close, Robert gave us the following to meditate on. It is a way to use “give us today our daily bread” within the entire Lord’s prayer. Let this be your prayer today.
**Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your Name-Lord, give us this day the grace to believe You are good, great, gracious, and glorious.
**Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven-Lord, give us this day the grace to seek Your kingdom and righteousness, as we believe that our basic needs will be given to us as well.
**Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors-Lord, give us this day the grace to forgive and love others as Christ has forgiven and loved us.
**And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one-Lord, give us this day the grace of your presence and power to fight this fight of faith as we battle unbelief.
I had the privilege of preaching and doing some training at Sojourn Huntsville in Alabama last weekend. Like Sojourn in Louisville, KY, they are an Acts 29 church plant. They are seeking to reach out to the city through living lives that are impacted by the gospel. The sermon that you see above is based on four “one another” passages. As we really do life together, the world should see something that is amazing and puzzling – a group of people who have been so captured by the love of God that they love each other, reconcile with each other, serve each other, and fight for faith together. As the world sees this, they will be drawn to the God who makes these things possible.
As I continue to meditate on the Lord’s Prayer and use it as a structure for my prayer life, my heart continues to be awakened to the awesome privilege it is to have the God of the Universe capture my heart and give me nourishment for each day to live.
“Your kingdom come,
Your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven”
We long for the day when we will be able to live in the fullest expression of God’s kingdom when Jesus comes again, but what do we do in the mean time? Many helpful books have been written on this subject. If you are a reader, Russell Moore’s book The Kingdom of Christ: The New Evangelical Perspective might be one that you want to pick up. But what can you pick up from God’s Word yourself?
A few of our pastors and staff were able to hang out with Harold Best this week. He defined prayer as “getting in God’s face with His Word.” We all thought this was a beautiful definition.
Do you think Paul prayed for things that were within God’s will? That would be a definite “yes.” If you look at Colossians 1:9-14, we see Paul praying for the following things for the Christians at Colossae.
–That God would give them complete knowledge of His will
–And to give them spiritual wisdom and understanding.
–The result would be that they would live in a way that would always honor and please the Lord
–Producing every kind of good fruit
–All the while, that they would grow as they learned to know God better and better.
–That they would be strengthened with all God’s glorious power (so that…)
–They would have all the endurance and patience they need.
–That they would be filled with joy…
–Always thanking the Father.
The remaining part of the passage reminds them what they have to be thankful for.
So if you are having problems praying God’s will for yourself and others, just pull out one of Paul’s prayers and maybe focus on one or two thoughts. In doing this, you will know that you are praying God’s will for yourself and others.
As I continue to reflect on the Lord’s Prayer, I would like to take a look at the second phrase of the prayer, “Hallowed Be Your Name.”
Before we ever ask for anything from God, it is a helpful practice to remember who we are talking to. We must remember that this is our Father who adopted us. He rescued us from the domain of darkness and brought us into His family.
Then we set His Name apart and remember Who He is and this brings about worship. This also brings about confidence. Names were a big deal back in Bible times. God often changed people’s names when He was doing a new work in their lives. Abram to Abraham, Jacob to Israel, Cephas to Peter. When you know someone’s Name, you know something about them. When we look at the Names of God, we know more about Who He is and what He does.
Knowing who God is informs our prayers. Knowing Who God is gives us greater confidence and faith in our asking and it sets our hearts to make much of God.
I imagine it is like we have our requests in our hands directly in front of our eyes. If we begin our prayers in this posture, our requests seem huge and overwhelming because they are all that we see. But, if we spend some time remembering Who God is and what He has done and what He promises to do, we have a better perspective on reality.
If you hold a coin up to your eye, it will look huge. But if you set it on the ground, you will see how big it really is in relation to other things. Our concerns, though they may be overwhelming, are nothing compared to the size and strength of our God.
So what are some Names of God that you need to meditate on today? Provider, Healer, Savior, Emanuel “God is with us”, Shalom “God our peace”, Creator, Savior, and the list goes on and on.
So, after we remember God is our Father, and after we adore Him for aspects of Who He is, we can seek to center ourselves on His Kingdom and His will and pray for that to come. All the while, remembering Who He is. Then we come with boldness and confidence asking for our needs to be taken care of and we pray for others in need. After all of this, we remember how we have wronged God and remember that we must forgive. Then we pray to be kept safe from temptation and the evil one.
I will seek to go deeper into the other aspects of this prayer in the weeks ahead. Spend some time today remembering, “He is the Lord. He is to be honored, obeyed and worshiped before all and in all we do. Ponder who He is and adore His majesty, holiness, sovereignty, goodness and beauty.”
I look forward to writing more on the Lord’s Prayer in the weeks to come, but I felt led to throw up the above sermon that I preached at Sojourn a few weeks ago. Tons of confusion exists about baptism. In this sermon, I attempted to answer 2 questions. What does the Bible teach about baptism? What does this mean for us as individuals and as a community? This sermon focuses mainly on what baptism symbolizes. If we are Christians, we have passed through the waters of judgment, we have died and been raised with Christ, our sins have been washed away, and we have been baptized into one body. If you would like to download the sermon so you can listen on the go, you can go to this link, scroll down to “Baptism: A Sacred Symbol” and click download. I pray that you will be blessed as you remember these amazing truths of what God has done. This is the good news of the gospel!
