The Human Jesus

For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.
Hebrews 4: 15 NKJV

There is a belief out there that in order to fully understand a person that you need to walk awhile in their shoes.  That is, you need to share in the experiences they have gone through.  While this may enlighten us to their struggles they endure, many times it fails to shed light on the person we're seeking to know.  That may take a bit more effort.  That being said, there is something to be said about knowing the difficulties others have gone through.  If I am aware of the struggles my friend is facing, I have a better understanding of why he is doing things the way he does.  As believers, all too often we are left feeling as if we are on our own as we endure our life situations.  This is exaggerated by the teaching of the institutional church which tells us that our own relationship with God and Jesus is based on how we perform.  Too many times I have heard the message that if I am struggling that I must have done something to displease God.  I remember as a young Christian pleading with God to walk in my shoes and experience my struggles through my eyes.  As if God were unaware or somehow did not care about us.  Again, this comes out of a mistaken belief.  The belief that God is somehow separate from our own life.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  The issue is our belief of who God truly is.  Once we wrap our understanding around this, our view of Him changes.  So, who is God?  Well, the apostle John tells us that God is...love {1 John 4:8}.  Paul also reveals the Father to us as he tells us that it is Jesus who lives in him {Galatians 2:20}.  These are scriptures which we find in the bible, yet they are some of the most misunderstood passages I've come across.  As believers, we've been told that God cannot be in the presence of sin.  Whether this is true our not, it definitely affects our own interactions with Him.  I remember the times I needed to find Him, to make time for Him and to seek Him, as if God were somewhere else but with me in that moment.  Again, this comes straight out of church doctrine.  Now, how is it that I need to search for Jesus who lives in me?  This may seem a bit comical, but all too many Christians share in this belief.  I recall a church I once attended actually offering up a weekend retreat to seek God.  Really?  As I've said, this is a mistaken belief on our part.

The other disciples therefore said to him, "we have seen the Lord."  So he said to them, "unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."  And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas was with them.  Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst and said, "Peace to you!"  Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at my hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side.  Do not be unbelieving, but believing."
John 20: 25 - 27 NKJV

Do you believe that Jesus simply cannot understand your situation because He is holy and has never experienced any of the human troubles which plague our lives?  Well, you might want to rethink that. The author of Hebrews tells us that Jesus Himself has suffered through what we have {Hebrews 4:15}.  If we accept the belief that Jesus was Himself fully human as well as being fully God, then we also must accept the fact that He went through more than a few human experiences as well.  Simply put, Jesus is not perfect.    Now, before you label me a heretic, think of what it means to be human.  As humans, we do some pretty imperfect things.  Was Jesus immune from all of this despite His being human?  I don't buy that line of thinking.  We need to assume that Jesus endured insults, pain, illness as well as those all too familiar embarrassing moments we've all faced.  Can you imagine a young Jesus slamming His finger with a hammer and yelling, "Peace be with you, dad!?"  Can you see a young Jesus arguing with His parents about something He felt He should be able to do?  Indeed, the human side of Jesus is something which we all can relate to.  I can definitely relate to a guy who belched , farted and got angry on occasion.  Yet seeing Jesus in this way is a tough pill to swallow for many Christians.  This is why we keep Jesus in a box, holy and blameless.  Indeed, He was all of this, as well as being human.  Think of some of your most embarrassing moments, then imagine Jesus going through the same thing.  He got lost, He didn't always do what His parents told Him and He most certainly got the locals attention by hanging out with those boys in Galilee right?  This is the human side of Jesus.  Of course, when we understand who we are in Christ, we also understand that Jesus shares in our own human experiences as well.  We're not perfect, and we share in that with Jesus Himself.

~Scott~

A Life Of Value

Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God!  Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
1 John 3: 1 NKJV

Like most Americans, I've watched the devastation around our nation as a result of the death of George Floyd while in police custody.  Each day, it seems, brings new depths to which those who march in our streets will sink to.  We've seen everything from neighborhoods being burned to the occupation of city blocks.  Violence and chaos seem to be the rule of the day.  However, what I seldom hear anyone speaking to is what I believe is at the heart of this issue.   How is it that someone would carry such a low opinion of themselves?  Now, I've been around plenty of people who have spoken to some pretty hateful things in regards to race and religion.  While I feel that we are indeed living in ultra sensitive times, I also believe that our view of others as anything less than a child of the living God is wrong.  See, I have that confidence.  In my heart I know that I was lovingly created by my heavenly Father {Genesis 2:7}.  Now, while this gives me assurance as to my true identity, it is also a reminder to me of how I am to see those around me {2 Corinthians 5:16}.  Like it or not, we all have those filters by which we view the world around us.  As we've seen far too often, there are definitely those among us who see people of different races and religion as somehow inferior or not as blessed as ourselves.  Tell me where that's written in scripture.  What is written is that in the eyes of the Lord, race is but a product of His own creation.  In fact, it is not our race which defines us at all, but who we are in Christ Jesus {Galatians 3:28}.  It is here where we get lost in our beliefs of who it is we truly are inside.  God does not love me any more because I am a white man, nor does he bestow hatred upon others because they are different from ourselves.  One of the most beautiful things of the late Dr. Martin Luther King was that he always tried to get people to see themselves as God saw them.  Not as black or white, but as brethren in Christ.  Whatever thoughts you might have on our nations racial struggles, you cannot deny the fact that it is God who has created each and every one of us in His image {Genesis 1:27}.  I believe that you cannot know the truth about Christ Jesus and believe that race is a issue in His eyes.  The truth about Jesus centers around the belief that it is Jesus who lives through us.  The apostle Paul speaks to this in Galatians when he claimed this it is Jesus who resides in him {Galatians 2:20}.

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you all are one in Christ Jesus.
Galatians 3: 28 NKJV

I have had the opportunity over the past few years to work with a man who carries with him the mistrust of many racial injustices.  I get it.  I believe that it is difficult for him to see the positive side of the Father while he sees all that is going on around him.  This is his filter.  In his world, he lives in a country where white people have been against him for as long as he can remember.  Of course, this becomes a ready made excuse anytime something goes wrong in his life.  Is this how Jesus responded to those who sneered at Him?  In His lifetime, Jesus dealt with plenty of the hatred of the rulers of His day.  In the end, it is these people who put Him to death.  Jesus did not carry this with Him because it's not who He was.  Jesus knew very well His own identity in the Father.  Were there times where the hurtful words and accusations got to Him?  I'm sure of it, yet Jesus never allowed the way they treated Him to change His filter.  Even at the cross, He asked for mercy for those who mocked Him {Luke 23:34}.  One of the challenges we face as followers of Jesus is in how we see others in the midst of all that happens around us.  Our own filters must never be clouded with the worries, cares and injustices of the world.  There will be those around us who speak of hate, but that does not define us.  If I was created in the image of God, then I must believe that He did not stop there.  I don't own the image of God, I share in it with the rest of His creation.  Likewise, I don't own the reality of Christ Jesus in me, I share it with all who know the truth of Jesus.

If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother who he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?
1 John 4: 20 NKJV

~Scott~

White Jesus

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.  For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers,  All things were created through Him and for Him.  And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.
Colossians 1: 15 - 17 NKJV

I read this week that a civil rights activist by the name of Shaun King has been calling for the destruction of statues of Jesus.  King takes this stand because he views the traditional images of Christ which we find in many Christian publications as standing for white European supremacy.  I get it.  I've heard many arguments over the years of which race it was that Jesus belonged.  Well, Jesus is the firstborn of the human race.  Without getting too much into the details, Jesus is recognized as the second Adam, who came along to fix what the damage that first Adam had done in the garden of Eden.  What Shaun King fails to realize is that Jesus, being one of the most broken men in our entire history, would more than likely agree with his stance if he were to have the ability to ask Him.  For Jesus was never white, European OR entitled.  He is the Son of the living God.  Along the way, He was also the son of a poor common family.  Despite His holy nature, Jesus grew up knowing and experiencing most of the pain and hardships which you and I face in our own lives {Hebrews 4:15}.  Jesus can sympathize with our shortcomings because He's been there Himself.  You want to talk about privilege?  Jesus was persecuted and put to death by the elitists of his day.  The Jewish authorities were hell bent on condemning Jesus because they didn't like what He was saying.  For one thing, Jesus condemned the Jewish authorities for their practices against their own people {Matthew 23:13}.  When you really look at the life of Jesus, He was as far from a elitist as one could get.  Perhaps Mr. King should ask the multitudes of people who have held Jesus up as that example of what is true and just.  Before I get away from the point Shaun King was attempting to make, let's address it shall we?  So, who is it that profits from the image of the white, European Jesus?  The same people who have been pushing this image of Jesus for centuries.  Hundreds of years ago, the followers of Jesus needed a image by which to know Him by.  Sort of like a family photo.  The church was more than willing to provide  their flocks with a image of Jesus to adore.  After the reign of Constantine (272-237), these images of Jesus became more prevalent.

"Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Devine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man's understanding."
Acts 17: 29 NKJV

One reason that I didn't take Shaun Kings comments all that seriously is because I know better.  I know that Jesus is more than just a image of stone or art.  If all of the statues of Jesus were torn down today, would that change who Jesus is?  Not at all!  I see the various paintings and statues of Christ as somewhat akin to idol worship.  Our friends of the catholic faith way be well aware of idols in the church.  Gods definition of idols is clear.

"You shall have no other gods before Me.  You shall not make for yourselves a carved image - any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth."
Exodus 20: 3 - 4 NKJV

Like the symbolism of the cross, the image of Jesus has almost become more important than the man Himself.  But what about this entire white Jesus thing?  Well, the truth of Jesus is that He is the image of the invisible God {Colossians 1:15}.  When we see Jesus, we see the Father as well {John 14:7}.  This is important to how those who actually knew Jesus saw Him.  Where was it that Jesus spent most of His time on earth?  That's right, in what we would today call the middle east.  How many white Europeans would you see walking around Jerusalem back in Jesus's day?  I'm guessing not many at all.  My point is that Jesus would appear to those around Him as one of them.  He was, for all intents, the son of a Jewish carpenter.  His physical appearance would associate Him with other young men of His time.  This was no white European Jesus.  However, if we want to really get down to brass tacks, the Jesus of today is white, black, Asian, European etc.  We do not define Jesus.  Jesus defines all who we are {Galatians 2:20}.

~Scott~

The Jesus I've Found

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
1 John 4: 1 NKJV

If I had never tested the spirts, I would never have come to this belief of Christ in me.  A few years ago, I was presented with a idea of Jesus so radical that I had to step aside and take a look at what I was hearing for myself.  The belief that Christ could ever dwell within me went against everything which I had been taught in all of my years of Christianity.  The belief which I had clung to for so many years had condemned me as a sinner, never worthy of being close to Jesus until that day He came again for those who follow Him.  That was my goal, to live my life where I could be enough like God all the while hoping my sins would not condemn me.  This has been the doctrine of the church for centuries.  Never had I been faced with anything that would make me question what I believed about Jesus.  Until he came along.  One day, a friend who continues to remain nameless introduced me to a truth of Jesus I had never heard of.  It seems that after all of those years in which I had been chasing Him, that Christ had been with me the entire time.  Not only with me, but living IN me {Galatians 2:20}.  When I was first introduced to the apostle Paul's revelation of Christ in him which we find in Galatians, I had difficulty accepting it.  This was not the Jesus I had come to know.  Then, my friend suggested something even more radical.  He asked me to "test the spirits" as he said, so that I could differentiate the truth of Christ Jesus for myself.  Now, there are many scriptures out there which can and have been interpreted in many different ways.  It is up to us to read these scriptures and see for ourselves just what is true and what isn't.  I believe that God has written the truth upon our hearts, that when we see it we will recognize it.  As I began to seek out the truth my friend had introduced me to, I began to feel within me a acceptance of what I was reading was the truth.  This wasn't some flash in the pan new idea, but a knowing of what I knew to be true in my own heart.  The idea that Jesus could reside in me seemed to agree with all that I was reading.  Also, the old idea of Christ which I had carried with me for so many years now seemed all the more impersonal to me.  Could it be that what I had been taught for so long was the wrong idea of Jesus?

So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?"  And he said, "How can I unless someone guides me?"  And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him.
Acts 8: 30 - 31 NKJV

Whenever it is that I am asked why it is I believe what I do, I simply introduce them to what it was that inspired me to take a closer look at my life in Christ.  That is, the scriptures which I was introduced to which gave me a new understanding of who Jesus really is.  I have never seen it as my responsibility to convince others of the "right" way to see things.  My friend never spoke to me in a way that forced Jesus upon me, only that I discover the truth of Christ for myself.  The truth of Christ in us is meant to be introduced, not coerced.  As we see from the example of Philip and the eunuch, others around us might not see the truth of Christ Jesus unless someone guides them to it {Acts 8:31}.  That is my responsibility.  If I am called to anything, it is to show others the truth of Christ Jesus which I have found.  Those around us will also recognize Christ through the way we carry ourselves as well.  It is true that only Christ Jesus has seen the Father {John 6:46}.  However, we also know that Jesus is the image of the invisible God {Colossians 1:15}.  When we see Jesus, we see the Father as well {John 14:9}.  Knowing this, can we not say with confidence that if Christ indeed lives in us, that He will be manifested through us as well?  That is, if we are all which He is, then that will show to others around us.  Yes, there is nobody who has ever seen God, but what they will see is Christ Jesus living through us.  It is only through the testing of the spirits by which I have come to know Jesus in the way that I now do.  My introduction to His truth was but the first step in my knowing who He truly is.  Along the way, I came to know who I truly am inside as well.

Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us."  Jesus said to him, "Have I ben with you so long, and yet you have not known me, Philip?  He who has seen me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'show us the Father'?
John 14: 8 - 9 NKJV

~Scott~

O Wretched Man!

For I know that in me (That is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.
Romans 7: 18 NKJV

A conversation with a friend this week turned once again to that which many of us will not to do.  That is...sin.  I say that it is something that many Christians try hard not to engage in, but many times we fail.  Sin can be seen as a barrier and as a struggle.  For many who do not share a relationship with Jesus, sin may be seen as a barrier between themselves and God.  While I have found it hard to find a scripture to specifically tell us that God cannot be in the presence of sin, we know that God is holy {1 Peter 1:16}.  We can agree that the poster boy for sin is Satan himself.  If, as we've been taught, that sin cannot be in Gods presence, how is it that Satan came before God in the book of Job?  We know that by this time, that Satan's fall was complete.  Of course, with all this talk about sin, we might need to clarify just what sin is in the Lords eyes.  So, what is sin?  Well, Adam and Eve were said to have committed the first incidence of sin in our history in the Garden of Eden.  So, what happened at the fall?  What was the lie which Satan instilled upon Eve in his deception?  We can find this in Satan's response to Eve.  We're told that Satan convinced Eve that when she ate of that which the Lord had commanded her not to, that "Your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil"{Genesis 3:5}.  Of course, Eve could hardly know that this was a lie, because all that she and Adam knew was union with God.  They knew nothing else.  The fact is, Adam and Eve were already like God as His Devine creation.  It was Adam whom God formed from the dust of the ground {Genesis 2:7}.  As a result of the lie of Satan, Adam and Eve began to see themselves as being apart from God.  Knowing this, the argument can be made that sin is nothing more than our mistaken belief that we ourselves are separated from God.  As I mention this I jump on a slippery slope, because I am well aware that a part of the teaching of the institutional church is that we are somehow separated from God.  God is in heaven, and we are here on earth.  Far from being in union with Him, the best that we can ever hope for is to "be like" God.  So, is the church teaching the sin lie?  You're the best judge of that.  The apostle Paul makes a interesting point in Romans.  He claims that, "I would not have known sin except through the law"{Romans 7:7}.  Indeed, without a list of laws of things for us  not to do, there can be no bad behavior.

For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.  Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
Romans 7: 19 - 20 NKJV

We've all been there, struggling with ourselves over the behaviors which we know to be wrong yet we're enticed to do them.  Many people call this sin, but knowing what I know of our original sin, I'm not sure I can get on board with that.  If sin is merely our mistaken belief that we are separate from God, how then can our own bad behaviors be seen as sin?  Paul struggled with this issue of sin as well.  He grappled with his knowing what he knew was good, yet being enticed to go against that {Romans 7:19}.  It is my belief that, like Paul, we all have that inner knowing of what is good.  Some correctly have referred to this as our conscience.  It is simply Gods commandments being written on our hearts, so that we know what is good and what is evil (Remember, Satan used this to entice Eve).  Knowing this, I believe that those bad behaviors we show a times are not sin at all.  What is it?  Well, I believe that these wrong behaviors are simply forgetting who it is who we really are.  Sin does not define us.  What defines us is our union with God and Christ Jesus who lives within us {Galatians 2:20}.  We are not in sin, but in Christ.  If we believe that we are in union with Him, then we are rejecting the lie of sin.  Paul assures us that sin is not our true identity, but of our flesh {Romans 7: 25}.

O wretched man that I am!  Who will deliever me from this body of death?  I thank God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!  So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.
Romans 7: 24 - 25 NKJV

~Scott~

The Church Of Jesus

"By general law, life and limb must be protected, yet often a limb must be amputated to save a life, but a life is never wisely given to save a limb"
~Abraham Lincoln~

What is it that you think of when you think of the church?  Big ornate buildings?  A large group of people gathering in worship of the Lord?  For the most part, our own definition of church might be influenced by our experiences there.  Growing up, going to church was something akin to a requirement.  You did not miss church unless you were sick or near death.  That was my experience in the church.  The church for me was coming together on a Sunday morning to worship the Lord with music and the weekly lesson from the pastor.  Having experienced this, I can understand how others might have a somewhat skewed view of the church.  I was there at one time.  I read with sadness every now and then of someone who, after spending so many years in the church, finally decides that they can no longer stomach all that our perception of church involves.  I read about a single mother who was ostracized for only tithing two dollars in the collection plate, even though this was all that she could possibly give.  I read about the father of a homosexual son and how the church he had attended for so long told him that it was time for him to make a choice...his son or the church.  Thankfully he chose his son.  Is this the church which God has envisioned for His children?  Are we destined to worship the Lord under the totalitarian boot of church leadership?  Not so long ago, I became disillusioned with the church that I had attended for many years.  To me, it seemed as if the church was no longer about serving Gods people, but their own interests.  More than one Sunday we were encouraged to "give until it hurts" not so that we could help more people, but so that we could be the proud owners of a fancy new church building.  When I think about it, this is that idea of church that people are leaving in droves.  They are not abandoning God, but that idea of who we tell them  that God is.  No more is this illustrated than the call to worship each Sunday.  We are called to come into "Gods presence" in the church, as if this were the only place we can be in the Lords presence.  God is far off, and we can only come to Him if we're loyal church goers.  Over the past few years, I've learned that this is the error in teaching of the church.  You could say that God isn't the center of the church, but that the church is at the center of God.

And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Ephesians 1: 22 - 23 NKJV

I have heard a few pastors speak to the fact that the church, as we know it, is not the church of brick and mortar.  God is not personified by how large of a church we have, or how ornate our worship services are.  These are mans creations all.  The truth is...WE are the church.  That's right, we who walk through those doors each Sunday morning are the ones who make up the church.  We are the church, and Jesus is the head of our church.  God doesn't show His favor to those congregations with the fanciest buildings {Acts 17:24}.  It is God who dwells in us.  The apostle Paul made this point clearly when he stated in Galatians that he, Paul, no longer lived.  For it was Christ Jesus who lived in him {Galatians 2:20}.  We do not need to walk into a church to be in Gods presence, because He's already in us.  I didn't come to this knowledge of Christ in me from any pastors Sunday sermon, but from the advice of a dear friend.  I would wager that if more people knew the true nature of what the church really is, that we might just see fewer people walking away from our churches.  However, I also know that a big reason for the exodus from the church are it's own teachings.  I'm reminded of this each week during our fellowship time when one or more people open up about how their own experiences in the church damaged their own perception of God.  How they were taught that God was in heaven and that, as sinners, we could never be close to Him.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Not only did Christ give Himself for the forgiveness of sins {2 Corinthians 5:21}.  It is also  Jesus who has defeated sin once and for all {Romans 6:6-11}.  We are now free, as the church of Christ Jesus, to rejoice in the freedom of being in Him.

"God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands.  Nor is He worshipped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things."
Acts 17: 24 - 25 NKJV

~Scott~      

Beleiving

Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness - by whose stripes you were healed,
1 Peter 2: 24 NKJV

Recently, a few friends of mine entered into a discussion of why it is that they believe in Jesus.  Indeed, I've had this very same discussion with a good number of people I've met.  It seems that whenever someone finds out that I'm a Christian, they immediately wonder why.  Why is that?  I mean, Christianity has been around for centuries in one form or another, yet it continues to draw questions as to why people believe.  So, I decided to get that big question out of the way before I continue.  Why do I believe?  Why do I believe in a system that continues to preach our unworthiness?  Why is it that I believe in a doctrine which preaches that I am separate from my creator?  My simple response is that I trust and believe in God and not in man.  It's not God who set up the doctrine by which all too many pastors preach of every Sunday.  It's not God who instituted the traditions which are followed in the church to this day.  No, this is our own fault.  I believe in God who created me from the dust of the ground {Genesis 2:7}.  I believe in a Father who loved me enough to save me from the man I once was {Romans 6:6-7}.  I also believe in the peace which I have found in union with Christ Jesus {Galatians 2:20}.  Why is this important to me?  Well, because most of the people I talk to about their belief in God usually fall into two categories.  You have those who believe in God because they fear the alternative.  That is, they fear what God may do if they do not believe in Him.  Believing in God is a better alternative than a eternity in hell it seems.  As silly as this sounds, there are believers such as this out there among us.  The next category is based upon fear as well.  These are the believers who continue to believe in the institutional church version of God for fear that if they don't, that God will not bless them abundantly.  This was a big portion of my belief in God when I was in church.  I was desperate for Gods approval and definitely wanted Him to keep blessing me, so I towed the line.  Of course, knowing what I know now, I know that my trust in God is not based upon the fear of what God could do, but on what He has done for me.  I love Him because He first loved me {1 John 4:19}.  I also believe  that it is not God who instills fear within us so that we will follow Him, for in God there is no fear {1 John 4:18}.

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment.  But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.  We love Him because He first loved us.
1 John 4: 18 - 19 NKJV

So, if you believe in God simply out of fear of what He might do are you doing wrong?  Well, to answer that question I would definitely say that recognizing that God exists is a step in the right direction.  But I will ask you a question, how is it that you will know what it is that God will do if you do not believe?  Has He told you that you better fear Him?  I highly doubt that.  The reason I ask this is because I was once where many church believers are today.  I have sat in those very same pews worrying if I was doing enough to make God happy so He would bless me.  It wasn't God who told me this, but the man in the pulpit.  That's right, most of my early belief in God was tied to what I learned in church on Sunday.  I learned that God loves and blesses the one who gives to and serves the church.  This was the benchmark I was shooting for.  In order for God to bless me, I had to perform in the right way.  Is this true belief in God?  Not in my book.  Consider what the apostle Paul tells us about our own salvation, that it is a gift from the Lord and not something we earn ourselves {Ephesians 2:8-9}.  Salvation has never been a thing to be bought, traded or sold.  What about those who follow God out of fear of his wrath?  That belief that God, out of His love for us, would bring about suffering upon us until we got back into line.  The belief that God has a reservation in hell for those who have never trusted in Him.  Once again, man made teachings have clouded our view of who God truly is.  It has never been the Lords desire to compel or punish us into believing  in Him.  But, it has been mans plan to use this false view of God to keep the flock in line.  I am reminded of our Fathers true nature, as told to us by the apostle John.  God...is love {1 John 4:8}.  So, why do you believe?

Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side.  Do not be unbelieving, but believing."  And Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!"  Jesus said to him, "Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed.  Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
John 20: 27 - 29 NKJV

~Scott~

What About Me?

Because we all become accustomed to speaking of ourselves as having a "human nature," it may make it clearer f we speak of the self as never being an independent self.  It has never been a self-operating self, and thus has never operated by expressing a nature of its own.
No Independent Self ~ Norman Grubb

I overheard a radio pastor this week bemoaning the fact that many Christians today have switched from living a life of following the rules of the Lord to one of simply doing what feels good to them personally.  Now, I will say that every time I hear the words God and rules in the same sentence I cringe.  For this is the format of the institutional church as many Christians have come to know it. Listen to most sermons and you're sure to find plenty of "thou shalt" commands from beginning to end.  So, I can understand why it is that many believers have come to the point o simply doing what feels good to them.  After all, we know right from wrong, right?  Perhaps, but when we simply live in a way that is pleasing to ourselves we're treading on dangerous ground.  For one persons view of what is right and just may differ from our own.  We see this all too often all around us.  Part of this depends on how it is that we see the bible.  Do we view the scriptures as simply a list of do's and don'ts which God has provided for us?  Or, do we see the scripture as something more?  I think back to something a good friend related to me a few years back.  He said that the scripture was basically a love letter from God to His children.  I see the scriptures as our introduction to Christ Jesus.  Indeed, from Genesis to Revelation, the story of Jesus unfolds before us.  But, I'm getting ahead of myself.  Why is it that many Christians today seem to have adopted a mindset of doing what feels good to them?  I mean, we all want to feel good right?  I believe that this practice lies with our own false belief that we are our own self.  That is, that we and we alone make up our being.  Sure, God created us, but we live our own life now!  My answer to anyone who believed in this has always been...how can you be separated from He who created you?  As Christians we believe that it is God who created us.  It is He who breathed into us the breath of life {Genesis 2:7}.  To believe that we can somehow be separate from Him is in error.  So, when we are simply doing what feels good to ourselves, we are giving in to that deceiver inspired belief that we are our own self.

The good is a self which expresses God and other-love; the evil is a self which expresses Satan and self-loving love.
No Independent Self ~ Norman Grubb

So, what is it that we are expressing when we display a self which loves ourselves and does only what feels good to us?  Well, Norman Grubb would call that a false identity.  When we engage in what simply feels good to us, we put God on the back burner.  I challenge anyone to locate a scripture that identifies us as independent from God.  Far from being separate from God, which is the lie of the deceiver, we are all one in Him {John 17:21}.  Our own identity has never been with the belief that we are independent beings.  The apostle Paul reminds us of our true identity when he tells us that it is Christ Jesus who lives in us {Galatians 2:20}.  So, how is it that we can be our own self if Jesus is in us?  The lie which Satan used to deceive Eve in the garden instilled in mankind the idea that we are our own being.  It is Satan who said to Eve that she could "be like God" {Genesis 3:5}.  The truth is, she already was like God.  Norman Grubb describes Adam and Eve as being "unconscious expressers of Gods other-love nature."  Adam and Eve were one with the Father, that was all which they knew.  When we understand this, we begin to see that living for ourselves is living in the belief that we are apart from God.  Sure, it might feel good to be footloose and fancy free as they say, but we still cannot escape the truth that lives in us.  I can believe all day long that I am my own self, but that does not change the truth of who I really am in Jesus.  I did not create myself, so how can I be my own self?  Sadly, I believe that the reason that so many Christians are turning to a life of doing what feels good stems from a weariness of being taught that we can never come close to measuring up to God.  I am reminded that it's not God who instilled in us the belief that we are separated from Him.  This is the lie of the deceiver, and it continues to be accepted as normal today.

They were at first unconscious expressers of God's other-love nature.  Adam was in harmony with all creatures and could give each its proper name {Genesis 2:20}; they knew no opposite to other-love in union with the Father.
No Independent Self ~ Norman Grubb

~Scott~

         

Who Is God To You?

They are of the world.  Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them.  We are of God.  He who knows God hears us; He who is not of God does not hear us.  By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
1 John 4: 5 - 6 NKJV

It has long been a debate among Christians inn recent years that the churches we grew up in have become….too strict.  Too strict in their teachings.  Too strict in their interpretations of the word.  I was reminded of this this past week by a coworker who let it be known to me that he and his family were leaving the church they had attended for many years.  The reason, as he told me, was that he saw his church as "Stuck in their old ways."  This was one I hadn't heard in awhile, but have heard from others before.  The view that somehow, the church has lost touch with the people because of its adherence to the scriptures of old.  Not only that, but in its teachings of "The old ways."  Somehow, we have this idea that the church should evolve with the times in order to keep the congregation interested and engaged.  The first indication I had of this was in my former church where the head pastor made a grand entrance one Sunday morning as he rode down the aisle on a motorcycle.  He had the congregations attention for sure, if not for a brief time.  It wasn't long, however, before the grumblings of boredom began once more.  Now, we've all heard the hundreds of jokes about boring sermons and falling asleep in church.  Believe me, I've been there more than a few times.  As I sit here this morning, the very thought of once again sitting through another sermon makes me cringe.  I'm the type of guy who would rather have the padre cut to the chase and tell me what I need to know so that I can get home in time for my football game.  Less is more.  So, in order for our churches keeping the flock interested in the old and stale sermons of old, we've come up with more than a few gimmicks to sell the message.  I suppose that if it works for you, keep doing it.  As for me, I can usually tell when a pastor is sugar coating another potentially long, boring lecture on the way I need to behave in order to have favor with God.  Of course, these teachings butt heads with many people who enjoy life in this day and age.  The obedience and adherence message of the scriptures is usually forgotten within the first minutes after leaving church on Sunday morning.  It's here where real life begins.

"God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands.  Nor is He worshipped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things."
Acts 17: 24 - 25 NKJV

The first question I would ask someone who was considering leaving the church is, "Who is God to you?"  That is, what is their own view of God?  Believe it or not, this is a key question.  The way we view God also has a big impact on how we interpret His word.  When I walked out of the church I had attended for so many years for the last time, I saw God as one who was only present to Lord over me when I failed.  For this was the message I had heard from that pulpit for so many years.  I believe that I'm not alone in my view of the mainstream church.  It turns out that I had a mistaken view of God.  God has never been out of touch with His children.  On the contrary, it has always been His desire that we would be one with Him.  This was reflected in the prayer of Jesus in the garden {John 17:21}.  When I began to see myself as more of a reflection of God who created me, my relationship with Him changed {Genesis 2:7}.  Suddenly, God was not the distant overseer I had been taught that He was.  I believe that mans message, the churches message over the years, has done many a believer a disservice.  So, I can understand when someone becomes discouraged enough to get up and leave a congregation they've spent years attending.  The funny thing about those who are leaving the church, it's not the people of the church that they are walking away from.  On the contrary, many people continue those friendships they've developed while in the church even after they're gone.  This, more than anything, should be screaming to us that it's not the building or the people, but the message of God the church preaches.  As I have said, that message does not reflect who God truly is.  For we, as His creation, are that resemblance of Him.  We...are the Spirit of Christ Jesus who lives in us {Galatians 2:20}.  Now, as for the subject of the outdated teachings of the modern church, that will have to wait for my next writing.  What advice would I give to someone wanting to walk away from the church?  Who is God to you?

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
2 Corinthians 5: 17 NKJV

~Scott~

The Freedom Of Living

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.
Romans 8: 2 NKJV

Freedom is a funny thing, because it has different meanings to different people.  This past week our nation witnessed freedom on display as thousands took to the streets and marched that their voices might be heard.  I have no problem with this expression of freedom.  The issue I have is when those intent on destruction and chaos ransack a city with looting and vandalism.  Again, some would call that freedom, I call it a crime.  In Seattle, a group of armed protestors has taken over a six block area of the downtown area and declared it by a new name.  This area is no longer referred to as a section of Seattle, but as the Capital Hill Autonomous Zone,  Depending upon which side of the political aisle you sit on, this is either a expression of freedom, or an act of insurrection.  The apostle Paul tells us of another form of freedom in the book of Romans.  Paul tells us that, through Christ, we are no longer "Slaves of sin"{Romans 6:6}.  Now, I did not really see the significance of Paul's words until I came to the realization of the man I am in Christ.  Many of us know the hamster wheel effects of sin because we've all been there.  We sin, we feel bad, we seek the Lord to express our guilt, we sin again.  It seems that the cycle is never ending.  Well, for those who know their true identity in Christ, the cycle of sin has been broken.  Paul tells us that we should "Reckon ourselves to be dead indeed to sin"{Romans 6:11}.  Why?  Because it is Jesus who became sin so that our freedom would be secured {2 Corinthians 5:21}.  I no longer need to worry about the cyclical cycle of sin in my life because it no longer exists.  Yes, there are times when my behaviors may cry out sin, but is that really sin?  There may be some who would scoff at my claim that I am now living free of sin, but in my heart I am assured that Christ has set me free.  I no longer see my bad behaviors as sin, but a reminder to myself of the man I no longer am.  That's right, I don't see them as sin, but as me forgetting who I am in Jesus.  I'm telling you, that as a Christian there is no satisfying form of freedom than the freedom of living in Christ.  Again, it is Paul who reminds us of this most important realization.  When bad behavior overtakes me from time to time, I am not reminded of the man that I once was, the man that has been put to death on the cross.  No, I now see myself as one with Christ who is in me {Galatians 2:20}.  THAT, is freedom in Christ.

"Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed."
John 8: 36 NKJV

I cannot explain what the freedom I've found in a life with Christ feels like.  However, what I can do is tell you what it is that I no longer partake in.  Gone are the days where I felt the guilt of missing a church service or small group meeting.  For it is not the church or those who attend it who have made me free.  Gone also are the days where I would waste my time in worry over what someone thought or said about me.  Say what you want, for I know the man that I am in Jesus.  I can only describe the feeling I have as a feeling one would get after being held captive for so long and was suddenly set free.  For in essence, this is what Christ Jesus has given me.  Now, I know that Jesus bestowed this gift upon me years earlier, but I simply did not realize the gift I had.  Likewise, there are believers out there among us who share in the very same freedom in Christ yet simply have not realized the gift they possess.  Like me, there is no way to gauge when our own realization of our life in Christ Jesus  will arrive.  In order for that realization to take hold, however, we must first come to the knowledge that, as Paul tells us in Galatians, it is Jesus who lives and not ourselves.  For as Paul claims, "It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me."  I believe that this is what Jesus was referring to when He called on us to shoulder His burden, for "You will find rest for your souls"{Matthew 11:29}.  It is the desire of Jesus that we come to the realization that we are indeed one with He and the Father {John 17:21}.  His desire is not that we should live a life of sin and torment, but one the freedom of knowing we are in Him.  And, if Jesus has set us free, we are free indeed.

"Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and My burden is light."
Matthew 11: 29 - 30 NKJV

~Scott~

As We Are

Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.  For he who has died has been freed from sin.  Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more.  Death no longer has dominion over Him.  For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.  Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6: 6 - 11 NKJV

How many of us suffer from a sin issue in their lives?  Indeed, our own guilt over sin can be a roadblock to our relationship with Jesus.  How could Jesus possibly be in the presence of sin?  I heard a radio pastor this week make the statement that, when we first come to Jesus, we come to Him as sinners.  I agree with him in that when we first come to accept Jesus, we acknowledge that we HAVE sinned and fallen short and are in need of His grace and forgiveness.  Now, whatever your belief on sin, you have to admit that it our own guilt over sin that drives a wedge between ourselves and God.  In fact, many Christians feel deep down that God is simply unapproachable because of the sins they carry with them.  I was the same way not so long ago.  Even now, the accuser still attempts to remind me of the wrongs I have done in my life.  However, when I dig deeper I get two different answers.  For Satan's automatic response is that, yes, we are all sinners and deserving of our Lords just punishment {Romans 3:23}.  Yes, Satan also knows the scriptures and will all too often use it against us as He did to Jesus {Matthew 4:5-7}.  However, when we continually come before the Lord with the full intent to disclose that which we've already admitted to Him, His response may very well be, "What sin?"  What sin indeed.  Tell me, believer, how many times would you crucify Jesus?  Your response might very well be, "I would never!"  Yet, each and every time that we come before the Lord with a heavy heart over our sin condition we are, in effect, calling for the crucifixion of Christ once again.  The apostle Paul reminds us in Romans of the sacrifice made by Jesus for our sins.  It is Christ who died to our sins "Once for all"{Romans 6:10}.  The death which Jesus died upon the cross was meant to put an end to sin forever.  His death, in essence, was the death blow to our sin condition.  That which we once carried with us, is no more.  However, like a phantom pain, many Christians hold to the lies of the accuser that they are but filthy rags not deserving of the Lords presence.  The best that we can do, it seems, is to somehow "be like" Jesus.  Well, that is but another lie of the accuser.  For we are not like Jesus, but WE ARE Jesus.

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us
1 John 1: 8 NKJV

Usually, my first response to someone who tells me that their sin is keeping them from knowing God is to pose the same question I believe the Lord would in the same situation...what sin?  What sin are you carrying?  Let me rephrase that.  What sins are you carrying that Jesus did not cover?  Did Jesus somehow miss a sin or two as He was hanging on that cross?  No, we're told matter of factly that He died "Once for all."  His death covers a world of sin.  Now, instead of a phantom pain, I believe that people carry with them a phantom guilt.  The scripture says all have sinned, so I'm a sinner!  As a sinner, how can I ever be close to God?  How indeed.  Yes, the scriptures claim that we have all sinned and have fallen short of our Lords glory {Romans 3:23}.  Yet, most well meaning Christians leave out verse 24 of this passage.

Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus
Romans 3: 24 NKJV

Yes, we have all sinned and fallen short of our Lords glory, yet we are now justified by God through redemption in Christ Jesus.  Paul tells us that our "old man" was crucified with Jesus on the cross.  Sin no longer defines who it is that we are.  Paul also reminds us in Galatians of who it is we are in Christ.  For it is Jesus who lives in us {Galatians 2:20}.  If we once feared that our sin kept us from a relationship with God, it is Jesus who reminds us that He has dealt the death blow to sin.  I don't blame myself for not realizing earlier that I was dead to sin.  As I said, our accuser will stop at nothing to drive a wedge between ourselves and God.  To continue to claim that what Jesus put to death is somehow still alive and well is a lie of the enemy.  Indeed, when we come to the throne with our sin debt, we will be reminded of the truth...what sin?

"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."
Galatians 2: 20 NKJV

~Scott~

Yes Lord

And He was withdrawn from them about a stones throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is your will, take this cup away from me; nevertheless not My will. but Yours, be done."
Luke 22: 41 = 42 NKJV

One definition of submission is to put oneself under the control of another.  We hear a lot in Christian circles about submitting in our own relationships{Ephesians 5:21}.  We're told that we must submit ourselves to God {James 4:7}.  Indeed, to talk of submission is easy, to put it into practice is something else altogether.  I can talk all day long about how I need to submit my own life to the Lord, yet until I actually begin the process these are simply empty words.  Are we truly submitting our lives to the Lord?  Let's follow the example of Christ Jesus for the answer to that question.  As He prayed in the garden prior to His crucifixion, Jesus Himself wished that what awaited Him would somehow be removed {Matthew 26:42, Luke 22:42}.  Jesus was staring death in the eye, and He knew it.  Although His human desire may have been to avoid that which was in front of Him, He knew that was not possible.  Don't get me wrong, Jesus had the very power to remove Himself from His situation, yet He chose not His own will, but the Fathers.  I see this to be the very definition of the act of submission, to submit ourselves to another no matter what.  Jesus knew His death was near, yet He accepted it with those few words, "Your will be done."  Jesus also knew that submitting to the Fathers will would eventually bring about a greater reward.  Without the submission of Jesus, we would never have the forgiveness of our sins {Matthew 26:28}.  Without the submission of Jesus to the Fathers will, we would continue in our sin {Romans 6:11}.  I believe that it is this act of submission that James was referring to when he spoke of submitting ourselves to the Lord {James 4:7}.  When we submit ourselves to His will, we put aside whatever concerns or worries we might have.  At this point, all that we're focusing on is Christ.  Your will be done, Lord.  I've always said that one of the roadblocks to believing the truth of Christ in us is believing in that which we cannot physically see.  Paul tells us of the truth of Jesus {Galatians 2:20}.  Yet, when was the last time you physically saw Jesus?  Well, if we believe that He is in us, then we see Jesus in those around us as well.  The words of Paul are not simply directed at us, but to all who know Jesus.

Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.  Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.
Philippians 2: 3 - 4 NKJV

This past week I took the advice of a friend and steered away from watching/reading anything in the media.  He claimed that this would give me a better outlook on things.  Well, he was right!  When I removed myself from the negative stories of the current events in our country, I began to have a more positive outlook.  This, more than anything, should be a example to all that the media is nothing but a political machine.  What does this have to do with submission?  Plenty, for I took my eyes off of what was in front of me and focused on what it was that the Father desired.  Your will be done, Lord.  I don't believe that it is the Fathers desire that I would tear my insides out with worry each and every day over what I see in the news.  However, when we realize that God is all in all, even in the current events of our nation, we find peace in His will for our lives.  This is our submission to the Father.  I know what's out there, I see it every day.  However, I also know that it is not the Fathers desire for me not to have hope {Jeremiah 29:11}.  To trust in the Fathers leading, that is the essence of my submission to the Lord.  What does this mean for our relationships?  We hear a lot of wives submitting to husbands, and many people have raised concerns that this is something akin to abuse and slavery.  This has never been the submission which God has desired for us.  After observing more than a few Christian marriages over time, I've noticed something common about all of them...trust.  The wife trusts in the leadership of her husband.  Could this be the marriage submission which Paul was referring to in his letter to the Ephesians?  Paul tells us that wives are to, "Submit to their husbands as to the Lord" {Ephesians 5:22}  Again, Jesus is our example.  We see Him submit to the Fathers will in the garden.  We ourselves trust in the Father above all else.  As Jesus submitted to the Fathers will, so do we who live as Jesus.

~Scott~

Yes Men

And the LORD God said, "It is not good that a man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him."
Genesis 2: 18 NKJV

Happy wife happy life.  We've all heard that phrase tossed about before.  The premise is that in order to have a happy and functional home, the wife must be satisfied and happy.  Did I miss something along the way?  Was anyone concerned about the other half of the equation?  I never heard too many people say, happy husband happy life.  Probably because it does not rhyme too well.  While I am a firm believer in harmony in the marriage relationship, I believe that it goes both ways.  I have listened this week to series by pulpit pounder Alistair Begg on just what it takes to make a good marriage.  A few of his points I could get behind, but there were also those that sort of made me nauseous.  I get the entire God created a suitable helper bit, that goes without question.  See, I see many married guys as simply yes men.  Echoing their own wives opinions and views without even realizing that they themselves are part of that equation.  Now, notice that I did not say all married men, but many.  For I have been blessed to be around more than a few guys who have shown me what a solid marriage relationship is.  This union, this relationship, has never been about placating one half of the pair at the expense of the other.  I've seen far too many men spend way too much time worrying about what they should do or say as to not offend their wives.  Does it really matter?  Isn't part of this union the idea of compromise as well?  And, compromise doesn't sit too well with the idea of happy wife happy life.  For nothing screams self importance loud enough than one person in a relationship becoming more important than the other.  The fine line between what Norman Grubb saw as our self for self or self for others is all too often crossed when one desires to be a controlling part of a relationship.  So, what is it you are looking to accomplish when you say happy wife happy life?  Are you seeking to place upon your mate the love and honor she rightly deserves, or is her desire to be in control over you?  The latter, I'm afraid, isn't biblical at all but a good demonstration of self for self thinking.  We enter into this as well whenever a man desires to be the head of the family at all costs.  Each decision goes through him.  He's the money maker and the leader over his wife simply because some Christians have mistakenly claimed that this is Gods desire.  Self for self.

And He answered and said to them, "Have you not heard that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' "and said, 'for this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'?  "So then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."
Matthew 19: 4 - 6 NKJV

Tell me something, how does our idea of happy wife happy life fit in with what Jesus desires for us?  What is it that Jesus desires for our marriage relationships?  He tells us in Matthew 19.  See, the Pharisees of His day asked Jesus about the subject of divorce.  Jesus's answer was simple, 'And the two shall become one flesh.'  Does Gods idea of "one flesh" agree with your idea of happy wife happy life?  Not in my book mister yes man.  Although the temporary peace we may acquire is nice, what happens the next time there is a disagreement, or the next?  There comes a point where it's no longer about one flesh but about a self for self relationship.  Yes men.  This is why Gods idea of marriage fly's in the face of all we have tried to make it.  There is no room for a true union in a happy wife happy life relationship.  In fact, I'm actually in error when I refer to it as a true relationship.  For that idea of happy wife happy life is but a relationship of convenience.  I'll leave it to you to figure out who it is most convenient for.  Is a 'suitable helper' one whom you serve or lord over without question?  I believe that when we look upon our Lords true intentions of our marriage union, we might just be surprised by what we find.  A relationship where two are equal. where two are one flesh.  Indeed, without the happy wife happy life scenario there will be times when disagreements arise.  However, what more true for of union is shown than when two people realize that it is not a certificate of paper or a wedding band which binds them, but who they are in Christ Jesus.  One flesh, in Christ {Galatians 2:20}.

So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself.  For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church.
Ephesians 5: 28 - 29 NKJV

~Scott~

Looking For God

There are no Atheist's in foxholes.


I read a Instagram post this past week in which popular Christian singer Jon Steingard claims that he no longer believes in God.  Now, I consider this a audacious statement by anyone, but to each his own.  As I read the article, I began to wonder just when the moment came in which this young man would denounce his faith in the Lord he so often worshipped.  To his credit, Steingard says that he is "leaving the door open" to forming a relationship with God.  Right then and there I saw what the issue with this man was.  I, like Jon Steingard, have been to that place where I hoped, wished and yearned to see and hear from God.  We are taught in Christian teaching that He is there if we only ask Him.  That where two or more are gathered, He is there {Matthew 18:20}.  We hang our belief in God upon His being there whenever we need Him.  But what happens when God doesn't show up?  I'll put it another way, what happens when God doesn't show up when we ask Him to?  Well, speaking from my own experience, we may all too often start to have a negative view of God.  There have been a few times in my own life when I was angry enough with God to give up on Him.  One of those times was immediately after my mother passed away.  I had been praying that God would heal her as she suffered through her final days.  When that didn't happen, I wanted to know why.  I asked, prayed and pleaded with God to show me why it was that He couldn't answer my prayer.  Was He angry with me?  Did I have some underlying sin I wasn't aware of?  This is the conversation many Christians have with themselves whenever God seems so distant and far off from our own lives.  How could a God who promises to never leave me nor forsake me, let me down in such a way?  Well, it turns out that God had indeed answered my prayer, just not in the way in which I was expecting.  See, I was expecting my mother to be physically healed of her pain and illness.  Again, we're told that if we ask anything in His name, it will be done {John 14:13}.  I was simply doing what I had been taught to do.  Then, God did His part.  I don't recall the day, but I do remember driving to work one winter morning not long after my mothers memorial service when the thought suddenly occurred to me...she's no longer in pain.  Through my grief, I had failed to realize that my prayer for healing was answered, just not in the way I wanted.  I guess you could say that I spent some time talking to God apologizing for my thoughts.  I think He gets it.

I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
Galatians 2: 20 NKJV

There is a common phrase thrown about whenever we see someone who claims to not believe in God.  There are no atheist's in foxholes.  That is, when the pressures of life finally catch up to us all, we all eventually turn to a higher power.  When things are out of our own control, we suddenly look for someone who HAS control over the situation.  Why is it that when even the most diehard atheist's are faced with their own destruction, possibly the first words out of their mouths are "HELP ME GOD!"  Many Christians know of the apostle Paul's Damascus road conversion.  What were Saul's first words uttered after Jesus introduced Himself to him?  "Who are you, Lord?"  See, Saul knew that he was dealing with something beyond his comprehension here.  He might not have recognized the voice of Jesus, but as a persecutor of the early church he definitely knew OF Jesus.  I said that I recognized what Jon Steingards issue seemed to be.  As Christians, we're taught that there is a separation between ourselves and the God who promises never to leave us.  Sounds confusing I know.  I can see Jon Steingard struggling with THE question, "How can I have a relationship with God when I am a sinner?"  I don't blame him for claiming he no longer believes.  I blame the system we've created.  Paul tells us in Romans that we are to consider ourselves "Dead to sin"{Romans 6:11}  So, if you feel that your sin is keeping you from knowing God, you're in luck.  God wants to know and love you.  If He didn't, He wouldn't be God.  Too many Christians spend too much time searching for a geographical location of God and heaven, I get it.  Paul tells us that He is closer to us than we have ever known.  For it is Christ Jesus who lives in us {Galatians 2:20}.  It's definitely a tough thing to wrap our understanding around, but knowing that Jesus has provided for the death of all sin opens the door to our realization of who it is we truly are.  We don't need to look for God, He's in us.

~Scott~