Dear God

 

Do not worry about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. 

Philippians 4: 6, Concordant New Testament

It's one of the most talked about topics for every believer.  When we do it right, blessings abound.  However, when we are wrong, we're told that we risk having our heavenly Father not honor our requests.  A plethora of books has been written on the subject.  Many a pastor has spent many a Sunday sermon speaking to how it should be done.  However, in the end it comes down to just one simple concept, our time spent talking to God.  I'm talking about prayer, and it seems that everyone has a different opinion of how it should be done.  I recall a study a good friend of mine and I did on Jesus' sermon on the mount.  The Lords instruction on how we are to pray took us three months on its own.  So important was the message on how we are to communicate with the Father.  I grew up as many believers did, seeing prayer as something akin to a life preserver.  When times were good, I'd pray for the Lords provision.  When times were bad, my prayers would be for the Lords deliverance from said circumstances.  This was Gods job, it seems, to be there when we needed Him to be.  Yet, this is exactly what He has promised {Joshua 1:5}.  So, we're praying for something which He has already said He would do.  Sound familiar?  It should, believers seem to have a habit of praying for things which God has or will provide.  Maybe it's our way of assuring ourselves that He will do what He says He will.  Instead of trusting in the Father, we stack up prayers asking Him if He will do what He says.  Sounds a bit redundant to me.  Yet for something we spend A LOT of time doing, our own understanding of prayer seems to be lacking.  Are my prayers simply a wish list for God to consider?  Despite the fact that He has assured us that He already knows our requests before we even ask Him {Matthew 6:8}.  So this is what prayer has become for us.  Not a close, personal connection to the Father, but a glorified shopping list of requests.  Still, you might see where I'm going with this.  Prayer has never been simply a wish list, but a personal communication with God.  Somewhere along the way we've lost sight of that.  

And this is the boldness which we have toward Him, that if we should be requesting anything according to His will, He is hearing us.  And if ever we are aware that He is hearing us, whatever we may be requesting, we are aware that we have the requests which ye have requested from Him.  

1 John 5: 14-15, Concordant New Testament 

As I contemplated this writing, a thought occurred to me that we might understand prayer a bit better if we saw it in another context.  That is, a context few pastors speak to and fewer believers have come to know.  I'm talking about seeing our prayers as an intimate conversation with the Lord, which they always have been.  But how can someone who has never known God in a close, personal way see prayer as a close personal conversation?  Interesting question.  The traditional mainstream church all too often presents God to us in a way where He is often seen as separate from us.  God is in heaven while we are here on earth.  This is what we have been taught about God, I get it.  But is this how God wants us to know Him?  Does God desire us to see Him as some far off provider?  I doubt it.  From the beginning, God had a close relationship with His creation in the garden.  He interacted with man and most certainly communicated with Him.  Then IT happened.  Man was introduced to another voice, and the rest is history.  Adam and Eve chose to follow the voice of the accuser, accepting the lie that they could be "like God".  This produced the illusion of separation between God and man.  I say illusion because it's not true, which leads us straight into the truth of Christ Jesus we should all embrace.  The apostle Paul speaks to the truth of Christ in us in Galatians {Galatians 2:20}.  It is Jesus who became sin in our place {2 Corinthians 5:21}.  If we see Jesus for who He truly is, in us, then our prayers take on a whole new meaning.  The idea of a close, intimate conversation with the Father doesn't seem so far fetched anymore.  God is no longer simply a far off provider but an intimate part of our life.  

~Scott~ 

Prosperity Theology

 

"Therefore I am saying to you, Do not worry about your soul, what you may be eating, or what you may be drinking, nor yet about your body, what you should be putting on.  Is not the soul more than nourishment, and the body than apparel?" 

Matthew 6: 25, Concordant New Testament 

Growing up I learned pretty quick that there was one way to get what I needed from the Lord.  This required prayer, and adhering to what God wanted me to do.  In fact, I believe that many a Christian has grown up the very same way.  We're told to trust God to provide for our needs.  At the same time, we're told that if we have any needs, that we are to beseech the Lord through our prayers that He might deliver what we ask of Him.  I once heard a radio pastor refer to this as Prosperity Theology, but I do not know anyone who has gotten rich praying for God to provide for them.  Certainly I haven't.  Along the way, however, I realized that God did indeed provide for me when I needed Him to.  Yet the provision which He often provided usually didn't fall in line with what I was praying for.  See, I was praying for stuff like that new car, good clothes and higher credit and all the while God was doing nothing but providing for my food, shelter and income.  Indeed, my own requests of God overshadowed the day to day provision which He was blessing me with.  Of course, my own desires didn't seem too concerned with what I needed to survive.  Could I eat a car?  Probably not.  These days Facebook and social media are full of posts telling people to "Pray their way to prosperity."  Not to be outdone, more than a few well known pastors have jumped on the prosperity theology bandwagon and began to preach their own form of pray your way to wealth programs.  God is generous.  God created everything.  Pray that He gives you your share!  There is also a dangerous consequence in seeing God as nothing more than a bank account, which I will get to soon.  Not every congregation admits to seeing God as a resource that can be tapped, but they use Him as such nonetheless.  So it is that we have come to see God as simply One who gives us what we ask of Him.  Name it and claim it has become the order of the day.  

Whence are the battles and whence the fightings among you?  Are they not hence:  from your gratifications warring in your members?  You are coveting and have not, you are murdering and are jealous, and you can not encounter it.  You are fighting and battling, and you have not, because of not requesting. 

James 4: 1-2, Concordant New Testament 

There came a time in my belief in this prosperity theology where it smacked me square in the face.  As my mother lay sick in a care facility I often prayed that God would relieve her pain and deliver her from her circumstances.  In my thinking, that meant her being pain free and returning home to a life she wanted.  Never once did I attempt to see things from the Lords perspective.  I was doing what I had been taught, I was praying for Gods provision.  This is exactly what I was doing the night my mother passed away.  Suddenly, name it and claim it meant nothing to me.  I was angry with God for what I saw as His ignoring my prayer requests.  He had let me down.  How could I believe and trust in a God who would lie to me?  THIS is the consequence we face for trusting in prosperity theology.  When we see God more for what He can do for us than what He has already done.  We see God as a blank check for anything we might want or need.  This is NOT the God of scripture.  The God I now know is a loving God who has provided for me all which I ever will have.  My prayers for His provision may be in vain, for He knows my requests even before I ask.  Then what do we say of prayer?  Is it simply a gateway to the Father for our next request?  The Fathers desire is not to be a name it and claim it gift giver.  No, the true desire of the Lord is that His children would be one with He and His Son {John 17:21}.  Once we have this realization, our perspective will shift from a God who provides to a Father who loves.  

After my mother passed, a good friend consoled me in my grief.  I told him that I was angry with God for not honoring my prayers for my mothers healing.  He asked me what prayers God had failed to honor.  I told him, that my mothers pain would be healed and that she would be delivered from her situation.  It was then that I realized the gift God had truly given her.  Answered prayer.  

~Scott~ 

Mornings By The Sea

 

On the morrow John again stood, and two of his disciples.  And, looking at Jesus walking, he is saying, "Lo! the Lamb of God!"  And the two disciples hear him speaking, and they follow Jesus.  Now Jesus, being turned and gazing a them following is saying to them, "What are you seeking?  Yet they said to Him, "Rabbi (which, being construed, is termed "Teacher"), where art Thou remaining?"  He is saying to them, "Come and see," they came, then, and perceived where He is remaining, and they remain with Him that day.  It was about the tenth hour. 

John 1: 35-39, Concordant New Testament

I made the comment this past week during a discussion that I lamented the fact that very little is written in scripture about the day to day life of Jesus and His disciples.  Granted, we are given more than a few clues as the bible tells us of those moments where Jesus chose those whom would follow Him.  This, of course, was in a time well before social media, so all too many of us are clueless as to what life must have been like in Jesus' inner circle.  However, what we lack in scripture we can more than make up for in the history of those who lived as Jesus did back in the day.  We can assume that Jesus and His disciples spent a lot of time outdoors in the open air.  We're not told that Jesus Himself had a permanent dwelling.  We do know, however, that He would often spend time among His friends and family of which He had a good number.  We can assume that Jesus would occasionally stop by the home of His parents Joseph and Mary for visits.  If we remember one thing about Jesus it is that He is very family and relationship oriented.  Family is important to Him.  Likewise, Jesus must have spent a good amount of time among His siblings as well as the families of His followers.  I can imagine that wherever Jesus traveled there was a good sized crowd.  But what was the day to day life like for Jesus and His friends?  Well, I'm certain that it wasn't too much different, more or less, than our own.  For daily tendencies have not changed all that much over the centuries.  Mornings might have been spent with teaching and connecting with those in the area while Jesus and the disciples contemplated what to have for their morning meal.  I imagine that more than one disciple got tired of eating fish all the time.  Perhaps they would dine by a fire by the sea, or in the company of friends in town somewhere.  We can assume that they would spend a good deal of time traveling as well.  There was no mass transit of express buses to catch, so walking was their only option.  One glance at the map of Israel in the time of Jesus and you get a idea of the distances they covered during the ministry of Jesus.  This was the life they had chosen. 

And He is saying to them, "Hither! After Me, and I will be making you fishers of men!"

Matthew 4: 19, Concordant New Testament

I had a bit of fun this week thinking of the kind of posts that Jesus and His disciples might have posted had they had the social media opportunity.  In fact, there are times I wish that they had had such an opportunity.  I believe that the world would profit from knowing more of the day to day life of Jesus and His followers.  Can you imagine the Facebook posts of Jesus' disciples as He fed thousands with only a basketful of food?  Social media of the day would have blown up!  We can only imagine the impact such a record of history would have.  This is exactly why I took such an interest in the streaming series The Chosen.  While it's not an eye witness account, it does provide us with an insiders glance of what life must have been like in the inner circle of Jesus.  I believe that this is also why the series has become so popular among believers and non believers alike.  The Chosen shows the nitty gritty image of Jesus and His disciples we have been longing to see.  The arguments, the struggles, the REAL Jesus.  As a believer in the theology of the indwelling Christ, this series was a invaluable resource for me.  I wanted to learn and know more about the Jesus in me.  The apostle Paul speaks more than a few times in scripture of the truth of the indwelling Christ.  Of Jesus in me {Galatians 2:20}.  Of Jesus' overcoming of sin {2 Corinthians 5:21}.  Indeed, the scriptures describing Jesus as He is are there for us to see.  I just wish that we had more.  If you long for the opportunity to know Jesus, start with the realization that He not only welcomes the opportunity, but is waiting to reveal Himself in you.  

~Scott~ 

The Unlovable

 For ritual clean and undefiled with God the Father is this: to be visiting the bereaved and widowed in their affliction, to be keeping oneself unspotted from the world.  

James 1: 27, Concordant New Testament 

I was interested in a comment made by a friend the other day about a group of people whom they were wondering how to show the indwelling Christ to.  The trouble is, this group has often been labeled by society as being different and out of the norm of social behavior.  Consequently, the church has not made too many friends within this community.  The community I speak of are those in the LGBTQ community.  When was the last time you saw a mainstream church celebrating LGBTQ rights?  While I agree with the moral stand the church has taken on this issue, I would also point to the trail of damaged brethren it has left in its wake.  For those who may not know, the LGBTQ community is one where suicides have been on the rise over the past few years.  While I do not find this surprising, what I do find alarming is the seemingly "Let them kill each other off" attitude of the church.  Granted, the church may not have openly advocated for the elimination of this group from society, they have very little in the way of accepting them into the church family.  Why is that?  We often welcome those formerly addicted to alcohol and drugs back into our church families.  In fact, they are often seen as those who have overcome and brought forth as examples of such.  Their former sins are seemingly worth forgiveness.  But what about those in the LGBTQ and gay rights communities?  Are their behaviors so egregious that even God cannot find His way to forgive them?  No.  Thankfully, God does not share in mans idea of who should be worthy of His forgiveness.  I would say that if each and every person who has ever engaged in deviant behavior, be they sexual in nature or not, suddenly came to the revelation that they have a life and future in Christ Jesus that Jesus Himself would accept them even if the so called church does not.  If the sin of the one involved in the LGBTQ lifestyle is so unforgivable, what other offenses has God set aside which can never be forgiven?  Jesus has proclaimed that He has not come to condemn...but to lead the unsaved to salvation {John 3:17}.  

For thus God loves the world, so that He gives His only begotten Son, that everyone who is believing in Him should not be perishing, but may be living life eonian.  For God does not dispatch His Son into the world that He should be judging the world, but that the world may be saved through Him. 

John 3: 16-17, Concordant New Testament 

I've always found it funny that one of the main verses we Christians use in our so called ministries is what we find in John 3:16.  We see it at public events on television, on t shirts and spoken unto those we deem needing of salvation.  I do not dispute the message of this passage, all who believe in Christ Jesus WILL be saved.  Yet what do these verses tell us about the unloved?  John 3:17 tells us all we need to know.  Jesus DID NOT come to judge the world, but that the world may be saved through Him.  It has never been the Lords intent that the unloved be left behind in torment.  In fact, it has never been Gods intent that there would be any unloved among His children.  When I refer to the term unloved, I refer to the designation the world has slapped on those it does not desire.  LGBTQ, the homeless, unbelievers...the unloved among us.  We are the ones referring to them as unloved, not God.  It is God who has proclaimed them loved and worthy.  Is it any wonder too many people refrain from attending church?  To a certain segment of the population, the church is a place of condemnation.  So how is it that we show the light of Jesus to the unloved?  How is it that we show them the love which God has made known to us?  Well, a good friend once told me that the world will see Jesus through those who truly know Him.  The indwelling Christ is more than ready to reveal Himself unto those needing to know Him.  Our place is not to condemn, but to be that revelation.  

~Scott~ 

Nothing Like Me

 

"Two men went up into the sanctuary to pray, the one a Pharisee and the other a tribute collector.  The Pharisee, standing, prayed to himself, 'God, I am thanking You that I am not even as the rest of men, rapacious, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tribute collector.  I am fasting twice of a Sabath, I am taking tithes from all whatever I am acquiring.'  Now the tribute collector, standing afar off, would not even lift his eyes to heaven, but he beat his chest, saying, 'God, make a propitiatory shelter for me, the sinner!'  I am saying to you, this man descended to his home justified, rather than that one.  For everyone who is exalting himself will be humbled, yet he who is humbling himself shall be exalted."

Luke 18, 10-14, Concordant New Testament 

How many times have we found ourselves in that situation?  That moment where we tell ourselves, "Gee, I'm glad I'm not like that guy."  As if we ourselves are any different from those we are criticizing.  The Pharisee in Jesus' parable thought that his adherence to religious laws somehow made him much different than the tax collector he looked down upon.  But was he really that much different?  In His response, Jesus does not tackle the deeper issue, but lets us know that placing ourselves above others is never a good idea.  For those who exalt themselves will be humbled while those who humble themselves will indeed be exalted in the Lords eyes {Luke 18:14}.  As I said, this in no way addresses the underlying issue we run into whenever we look down on those around us.  Yet, why is it that we diminish others and prop ourselves up?  Most would say that self confidence is a good thing, and I agree.  However, my own self confidence has never involved putting others down.  We can be confident in our abilities without making others feel lower than dirt.  In the end, however, I would suggest that even the most devout believers will not hold themselves to the beliefs of what we know to be true.  What is this truth?  The truth that we were created in the very image of our heavenly Father {Genesis 1:27}.  Even though I tried, I have not been able to locate anywhere in scripture where it says that I, Scott, am the only one created in my Fathers image.  So what does this mean?  Well, that very same person whom we have looked down upon occasionally has also been created in our Lords image.  The Pharisee in the parable of Jesus might have realized that he was created in the image of God, but he failed to acknowledge that the lowly tax collector shared in his lineage.  Jesus may not have mentioned this in His story, but He nevertheless knew it to be true.  

Who is the image of the invisible God, Firstborn of every creature.  For in Him is all created, that in the heavens and that on the earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones, or lordships, or sovereignties, or authorities, all is created through Him and for Him. 

Colossians 1: 15-16, Concordant New Testament 

What knowledge of the Father can I claim if I ignore the fact that ALL are created in His image?  This isn't a popularity contest.  I cannot claim to be created by my heavenly Father all the while insisting that the mean guy at work does not share in that reality with me.  We are one in the same.  Each one of us lovingly created in the Fathers own image.  Of course, this throws a monkey wrench into our entire attitude of dealing with people.  Don't like that bully at work too much?  Well, he shares in his creation along with you.  Don't like that homeless guy downtown?  Yep, he was created in the Lords image just as we are.  God doesn't deal in favorites.  The scriptures tell us that God created man in His image.  We either accept this truth or we consider God to be a liar.  Which would you choose?  Along those same lines, it was never the Lords intention that we treat our brethren unfairly {1 John 4:7}.  It is only through our own ignorance and disregard for others that we have created a hierarchy among the Lords creation.  Rich, poor, smart and dumb are all ways we have chosen to marginalize what God has created.  It is Jesus who embraces those we look down upon when they come to Him {Matthew 11:28-30}.  It is also Jesus who proclaims that we are to love one another {John 13:34}.  Notice that Jesus did not say that we were to love one another...except those Pharisees.  Jesus doesn't choose sides.  When we speak of our brethren, we do well to acknowledge the entire brethren. 

Beloved, we should be loving one another, for love is of God, and everyone who is loving God is begotten of God, and knows God. 

1 John 4: 7, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

The Mystery

 

To whom God wills to make known what are the glorious riches of this secret among the nations, which is; Christ among you, the expectation of glory. 

Colossians 1: 27, Concordant New Testament

Have you ever wondered about God?  Wondered why it is that He does what He does?  I have.  In the past, growing up in a Christian home, I was told to pass these feelings off as simply being "God's will."  That worked for awhile, until I had even more questions on the way God did things.  Now, I understand that there are ultimately more than a few things we will ever understand about the Lord, but I feel that He does His best to reveal Himself to the willing.  I've never wanted to know God as a mystery, as something I could not understand nor explain.  Yet, if you read from the apostle Paul, this is exactly how the nations of the earth view the truth of Christ Jesus.  It's Paul who proclaims this truth to be the "Secret among the nations."  Do you know this secret among the nations?  Has it been revealed to you as it has me?  The more people that I talk to these days, I understand why it is that Paul referred to the indwelling Christ as the mystery.  Many Christians just don't understand.  In fact, they would rather embrace the Jesus they know than the one they don't know.  Yet it is the Christ which we don't know that hold the key to our deep relationship with Him.  It is this Jesus we have never known who is the mystery which Paul spoke to.  Of course, he also explained the mystery for any and all willing to accept it.  What is this mystery among the nations?  Christ in you.  That's it.  The Jesus whom you've never known is none other than the indwelling Christ you've never known.  Too many believers hear of Jesus dwelling in them and immediately began to worry if they are worthy.  They accept the church mantra that Jesus Himself can never dwell amongst sin and therefore believe that He could never dwell in sinful man.  Our own sin, it seems, is the stumbling block preventing us from knowing Jesus as He is.  Until we resolve our sin, Jesus will continue to be apart from us, or so the institutional church mantra goes.  But what if that sin which impedes us has already been dealt with?  If you knew that you are no longer guilty of sins past, wouldn't you willingly embrace the Jesus you've never known?  Yet the mystery remains.  

With Christ have I been crucified, yet I am living; no longer I, but living in me is Christ.  Now that which I am now living in the flesh, I am living in faith that is of the Son of God, who loves me, and gives Himself up for me. 

Galatians 2: 20, Concordant New Testament

To be perfectly honest, I'm not really certain how sin could continue to be a stumbling point for so many believers.  Mainstream church theology teaches us that Christ Jesus was crucified on the cross so that our sins would be wiped away.  This is one of the core beliefs of Christianity.  So I pose the question, how many sins did Jesus miss?  How about this, how many times do we need to crucify Jesus?  I'm not just rambling here, but seeking answers to the mystery.  If you cannot accept the indwelling Christ because of your past sins, how is it that you can accept one of the core teachings of the church?  If you believe in your heart that Jesus gave Himself for you, then why does sin continue to be an issue for you?  I believe that the real mystery here is how believers can continue to resurrect something that's dead.  That's right, as a follower of Jesus you are dead to sin {Romans 6:11}.  Sin is no longer an issue.  However, the church continues to sell the idea that we are to beware of sin.  I get it.  It's hard to accept what we know in our hearts to be true when we are continually told something different.  In order to understand the mystery we need to break through many years of church teaching.  As I said, there is a reason by which Paul referred to the indwelling Christ as a mystery.  The mystery will remain until Jesus is revealed in you. 

Knowing this, that our old humanity was crucified together with Him, that the body of sin may be nullified, for us by means to be still slaving for Sin, for one who dies has been justified from sin.  Now if we died together with Christ, we believe that we shall be living together with Him also, having perceived that Christ, being roused from among the dead, is no longer dying.  Death is lording it over Him no longer, for in that He died, He died to sin once for all time, yet in that He is living, He is living to God.  Thus you also, be reckoning yourselves to be dead, indeed, to sin, yet living to God in Christ Jesus, our Lord. 

Romans 6: 6-11, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

A Cynical Disease

 

Be rejoicing always.  Be praying unintermittingly.  In everything be giving thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 

1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18, Concordant New Testament

I know a guy.  A Guy I've known for awhile.  I've always found him to be a faithful man, never failing to give a scripture reference to apply to life's situations.  Yet, after spending a bit of time with him you will undoubtedly notice something.  Positivity runs from him like a wounded dog.  See, he has the habit of seeing even the most positive of situations in a negative light.  Now, there will be times in our lives when positivity is difficult to see.  I get it.  However, to have a continuous negative outlook not only infects you but those around you as well.  Let's be honest, who wants to be around someone who is constantly negative?  The only reason that I tolerate it as much as I do is because I know him to have a good heart, and I get paid to be there.  Indeed, I have spent more than enough time with him to have gained a understanding in to why it is that he acts like he does.  Like most of us, he's had some rough circumstances in his life.  Whether these instances have led to his negative attitudes I cannot say.  However, I do know that he has been affected by them.  Many Christians would be shocked to learn that, as believers, we are never promised that our lives will be all smiles and sunshine.  Yes, we have been blessed with the love and grace of our heavenly Father.  Yet receiving His blessings in no way guarantees that our lives will be free of bad circumstances.  I believe that the key to helping us overcome those circumstances in our lives is to keep our minds centered that we are buffeted only for a season.  What we might seem as an eternity in our eyes is but a blink of an eye to the Lord.  To God, time is of no consequence.  Shouldn't the very fact that God has us in the palm of His hand be cause for rejoicing for us?  Yes, life has its pitfalls, but we have far more to rejoice over than to think in the negative.  

Now we are aware that God is working all together for the good of those who are loving God, who are called according to His purpose. 

Romans 8: 28, Concordant New Testament 

I asked a friend some time ago, "When have you thought of God and not felt happy?"  To my relief, he couldn't think of one time.  Yet my question rings true to anyone who is fed up, frustrated or ready to throw in that towel.  When has hearing about God not made you happy?  Now, I'm not talking about some doom and gloom Lords punishment sermon here.  No, I'm asking you, how do you feel when you think of God?  For me, thinking of the Lord lifts my heart and gives me a sense of relief and happiness.  I would suggest that in those times where we feel that we are being far too cynical that we recall a time when we were happy in the Lord.  See, I believe that God has no place at all for cynicism and that His desire is for us to be happy in Him.  But for someone who has felt the pain of bad circumstances, God might be the last thought on their minds.  If they do think of Him, it will more than likely be that He is punishing them in some way.  Sadly, the mainstream church has perpetuated this idea in its theology.  God loves me.  He created me in His image.  He has provided for my future in Him.  BUT, this is all contingent on how I behave.  If I fall short, the fire and brimstone punishment of the Lord will certainly come to pass.  So says the church.  But Jesus tells us a different story.  It is Jesus who proclaims that if one of the Fathers sheep is lost, that He will gather it once again to Himself {Luke 15:4-6}.  What do I have to feel negatively about?  My life?  My life is but a vapor and I will be with my Father for eternity.  My circumstances?  There is NOTHING which God cannot overcome.  In fact, in everything I do He is working it for the good.  God does not evoke negativity, but happiness.  We shall rejoice in Him.  

"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, and loosing one of them, is not leaving the ninety-nine in the wilderness and is going after the lost one, till he may be finding it?  And finding it, he places it on his shoulders, rejoicing.  And coming into the house, he is calling together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, "Rejoice together with me that I found my sheep that was lost!" 

Luke 15: 4-6, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~