On Being A Christ Follower (11)
We unlearn bad behaviors by repeating and practicing good behaviors. That is built into human development. We have erred in making discipleship all about “what we know” instead of “what we do”. The former can be driven by pride; the latter must be driven by humility. Jesus’ disciples wanted chief seats, used a little
On Being A Christ Follower (10)
Early in my life I came to think that conversion fixed me for good from now on. In fact, initial faith is the beginning of a life-long journey. Justifying grace is set on taking us somewhere. The goal of the grace of Christ in our lives is character transformation. When we intentionally put into
On Being A Christ Follower (9)
It is not possible to follow Jesus as we should without the Holy Spirit. It takes more than careful imitation; it takes more than setting your jaw saying, “I can do this.” We need the grace of the Holy Spirit. We need an inner strength. In short, if we would truly follow Christ we
On Being A Christ Follower (8)
We often aspire to being like Christ in His gentleness, kindness and compassion; yet, we shrink back from participating in His suffering. Suffering can be part and parcel of life itself; most of us don’t get through life without a generous portion of it. The question is this, “How should we suffer?” If we
On Being A Christ Follower (7)
Jesus was a person of prayer. He was in constant communication with His Father on what He should do and say. If the Son of God so depended on His Father, so should we. Spending time with the Father enables us to hear the heartbeat of God; we hear the heartbeat of God clearer
On Being A Christ Follower (6)
Jesus had a mission; we have a mission. Our mission in the world is inseparably tied to His mission of advancing His kingdom. Jesus spent three and one half years preparing His disciples for ministry. There were “trial runs” in the sending out of the 12 and the 70; this was to help prepare
On Being A Christ Follower (5)
3) You are to treat people as if they were Jesus (Matthew 25:40). We understand that when it comes to helping the least among us. But what about demonizing a fellow human? The Hidden Christ can even come to us in our enemies, whom we are admonished to love and care for. When we
On Being A Christ Follower (4)
2) You are to treat people like Jesus would treat them (Modeling Christ). Follow the steps of Jesus. Look at how He treated people in His life. Look at the compassion with which He received the broken. Look at the personal acceptance sinners had in His presence. Consider the breaking of cultural taboos by
On Being A Christ Follower (3)
My reading of the NT has taught me three ways that followers of Christ are to treat other people. 1) You are to treat people like you would like to be treated (The Golden Rule). 2) You are to treat people like Jesus would treat them (Modeling Christ). 3) You are to treat people
On Being A Christ Follower (2)
Being a follower of Christ can never be reserved for one compartment of our life or one day of our week. We cannot separate our spirituality from any of our actions. We must not hold to a moral and ethical duplicity. We cannot claim to be a friend of Christ and at the same
On Being A Christ Follower (1)
Being a Christian is much more than having a paid-up fire insurance policy; it is much more than having a ticket to heaven. The first century Christians understood that being a Christian means that you seriously follow Jesus; they were even called followers of the Way. Until we get serious about following Jesus’ prescribed
From Confusion To Story
God is not the author of confusion. Confusion, disunity and chaos comes from human choice and sometimes demonic activity. God is a God of order. He brings order out of chaos and makes music from what would otherwise be discord. He brings unity out of division. He takes our messed up lives, even our
Descending To Communicate
When the infinite God comes to finite humans, He tailors His approach to us. If not, we could not hear His communication. He speaks to us in our language. He comes to us through the experiences of our unique history. He knows our DNA. He bends to our weakness. He communicates within our limited
The Unresisted Kingdom
In Heaven God’s kingship is fully acknowledged. It is the place where God and the Lamb sit on the throne. God’s will is done without resistance on the part of angels, elders and living creatures. All of Heaven bows to His rule. There is no rival king. There is no alternative government, no other
Divine-Human Friendship
Abraham was God’s friend. Think about that! We claim Jesus as our friend. It is a two way street; Jesus also calls us His friends. Friends are faithful; friends do not let each other down. They look out for each other; they stand up for each other. It is a lifelong partnership. Secrets are
The Desolate Place
Flowers grow in rocky places. Birds sing in the wilderness. God makes streams flow in the desert. Angels ministered to Jesus there. Growth occurs there. Maturity is developed there. Your desolate place is not meant to ruin you, it is meant to change you; it is meant to make you like the One who
The Royal Law
“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” James called this the royal law (James 2:8). It is the royal teaching of King Jesus. It looks a lot like doing unto others as you would have them do unto you. It flows out of the Great Commandment. It is the high road; it is the
Consuming or Refining Fire
God is spoken of as a consuming fire (Deuteronomy 4:24) and a refining fire (Malachi 3:3). Because of the love and covenant faithfulness of God we are not consumed (Malachi 3:4). God is love; love is both a refining and consuming fire. Wrath is the underside of God’s love. How does that work? It
The Spirit Now
The grace of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit Himself, is not merely given to get us ready us for an eternal future; He is given to ready us for living the Christ life today. If, for me, a future life is the sum-total of my goal, then I will miss all that God is
Personal Value
Beauty contests put supreme value on physical attraction. The wealthy will value you for the amount of money you have. The entertainment industry values famous people. Politicians and corporate bosses often value power the most. But my friend, our value rests in the divine image in which we are made; it rests in the
Spiritual Breakthrough
They say that there are 10 dimensions discovered in quantum physics; we mostly live in three of them. I admit that quantum physics is over my head, but what I do know is that in our spiritual lives we have breakthroughs into new dimensions. Most of this ascending to new heights is tied to
Getting to the Father
We are fond of saying that Jesus is the “only way” to the Father, and He is. However, some have made it to mean that their salvation formulas of receiving Christ are the way. Sometimes, we want to control the way to the Way. Jesus as the Way was understood in a far deeper
Fill All Things
Jesus descended to earth by way of the incarnation. When He completed “the work the Father gave Him to do” here, He ascended back to the Father. He said, “I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father" (John 16:28 NIV). We
The Spirit and Divine Likeness
The Holy Spirit comes primarily to reshape us in the divine likeness. He, being God, works to make us look like Jesus, who is “the visible image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15). Jesus said that when the Spirit comes “He will testify of me”. He is not only witness to who Christ is