Religious Roadblock

In Acts 10, Peter is hanging out on a rooftop while waiting for lunch to be made. While up there, God suddenly got his attention by giving him this vision:

He saw the sky open, and something like a large sheet was let down by its four corners. In the sheet were all sorts of animals, reptiles, and birds. Then a voice said to him, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat them.”

So…that’s kind of weird. Can you imagine laying in bed, counting down how many hours of sleep you’re going to get and then…BAM…you see a sheet with animals on it. Now, imagine it happening 2 more times. That’s what happened to Peter. With Peter being really confused (understandably), he asked what this vision meant:

“Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.”

What did this vision mean? Well, it was against the Jewish religion to eat anything that was considered “unclean.” All of the animals that appeared in Peter’s vision were animals that he would never eat due to his devotion to his religious practices. But, God was preparing Peter for something He was doing behind the scenes.

Immediately after his vision, 3 men showed up at the house, who were sent by a man named Cornelius. They told Peter, “We were sent by Cornelius, a Roman officer. He is a devout and God-fearing man, well respected by all the Jews. A holy angel instructed him to summon you to his house so that he can hear your message.” What’s the big deal about this? In the past, Peter would not have gone to Cornelius’ house because he wasn’t a Jew and therefore considered to be “unclean”. But, when the men showed up, Peter knew exactly what his vision was all about. When Peter arrives at Cornelius’ house, he tells him and the 3 men:

“You know it is against our laws for a Jewish man to enter a Gentile home like this or to associate with you. But God has shown me that I should no longer think of anyone as impure or unclean. So I came without objection as soon as I was sent for.

That made me think: Sometimes our religion can get in the way of our relationship with God and His people. Man, I know I have been guilty of this! How about you?

America a Christian Nation???

Our small group got into a discussion a few weeks ago that paralleled with a book I’m reading (The Tangible Kingdom- which is REALLY messing with me). We were discussing the school system’s new anti-bullying curriculum that also teaches tolerance of all different religions, sexual orientation, etc… The comment that made me start thinking was, “America was founded on Christian principles and beliefs. Just read the constitution.” I totally, 100% agree with that. But, are we still a Christian nation?

Tangible Kingdom, along with unChristian, provide unbelievable evidence and statistics that show America is definitely not a Christian nation anymore. Of course, you can turn on the TV or look around your community and see that to be true. How does that make you feel? Personally….I’m glad to see us coming to grips that we aren’t a “Christian” nation. For one reason, the label of “Christian” has become so deluded, misrepresented, and tainted over the years that it’s real identity has been lost. Many have done or said things under the “Christian” banner over the years that I think would have really ticked Jesus off!

Tom Clegg and Warren Bird said this:

“The inescapable conclusion is that we must throw out any notion that God is truly at the center of the church’s heart in North America. The shift in society’s view of the church has resulted in the marginalization of the church and the secularization of society. Christians must learn how to live the gospel as a distinct people who no longer occupy the center of society. We must learn to build relational bridges that win a hearing.”

So what’s the answer? What are we supposed to do? I’m not totally sure. But, one thing is for sure: if we keep doing the same things, we are going to keep getting the same results. Maybe we’ve made church something it wasn’t supposed to be? Maybe we are now seeing the byproduct of the unchanging church structure or institution with an ever changing culture? Maybe God is calling us to something different, and maybe that something is actually found through returning. Hugh Halter says, “It’s not about success, size of buildings, budget, or ’salvations.’ It is about being faithful to live Christ’s alternative ways in the world again…It’s about the type of church that Jesus would go to, the type he died to give flight to.”

See what I meant? The Tangible Kingdom is really messing with me!

La,La,La…I Can’t Hear You

Remember being a kid, and someone would try to tell you something you didn’t want to hear? What would you do? Did you ever cover your ears, sing “la-la-la”, and yell at the person “I CAN’T HEAR YOU”? How many of you still do that? I recently saw a friend do it because they had Tivo’d a game and didn’t want to hear the results as a group of guys discussed it. Immature? Yes. Effective? Oh yeah.

I was reading in Acts the other day about a guy named Stephen. He was a regular guy telling anyone and everyone about how Jesus was the Messiah they have been waiting for. Well, the higher-ups in the government/religious leaders didn’t like this. So, they falsely accused Stephen of telling lies, which was a crime that carried a death sentence. Right before the council stoned him to death, Stephen says, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand!” (Acts 7:56).

If someone says this, whether you think they are crazy or not, you stop what you’re doing to look and listen. But, that didn’t happen. Check out the response of these “wise” and “distinguished” religious and government leaders from Acts 7:57, “Then they put their hands over their ears and began shouting.”

Can you imagine what that scene looked like? These men knew Stephen was telling them the truth, but they didn’t want to hear it. That’s because, if they heard it, it would require action and belief in a direction opposite of where they were heading.

Are there areas, people, circumstances, etc… in your life that are causing you to put your hands over your hears and say “I CAN’T HEAR YOU”? If so, how’s that working out for you?

What is Worship?

When you hear the word “worship”, a number of different things can come to mind. A music style, a religious service, a specific time during a religious service, a sport, a celebrity, a significant other, a hobby, a passion, etc… But what is worship? I love Louie Giglio’s definition in The Air I Breathe, “Worship is our response to what we value most.”

Louie goes on to write, “You simply follow the trail of your time, your affection, your energy, your money and your allegiance. At the end of that trail you’ll find a throne; and whatever, or whomever, is on that throne is what’s of highest value to you. On that throne is what you worship…In the end, our worship is more about what we do than what we say.”

So, where does your trail lead? What does your life, time, affection, and money say that you worship?

i am not, but i know I AM

I was reading the Louie Giglio’s book, “i am not, but i know I AM” and I came across a section that I thought was very applicable to today. Louie, if you read this blog, I hope it’s cool if I share this:

And God is doing well today, thank you. He has no dilemmas. No quandaries. No counselors. No shortages. No rivals. No cracks. No worries. He is self-existent, self-contained, self-perpetuated, self-powered, and self-aware. In other words, He’s God and He knows it. HE IS TIMELESS. AGELESS. CHANGELESS. ALWAYS.

After an eternity of being God, He shows no signs of wear and tear. He has no needs. His accounts are in the black. He’s the owner, not to mention Creator, of all the world’s wealth and treasure. He made the gold and silver, and the trees we print our paper money on. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and all the hills the cows are standing on. He holds the patent on the skies above–not to mention the earth, the seas and their depths below, the breeze, the colors of the sunset and every flowering thing. They all are His invention. His design. His idea.

God does whatever He wants. His purposes are a sure thing. There’s no stopping Him. No containing Him. No refuting Him. No cutting Him off at the pass. No short-circuiting His agenda. God is in control. He sends forth lightning from His storehouse, He breathes out the wind, waters the earth, raises up rulers, directs the course of nations, births life, ordains death, and, in the midst of it all, still has time to be intimately acquainted with the everyday affairs of everyone on the planet.

God knows everything about everything and everyone. His eyes race back and forth across the cosmos faster than we can scan the words on this page. There is not a bird flying through the air or perched on a branch that escapes His field of vision. He could start with Adam and name every man, woman, and child who has ever lived, describing every detail about each one. To Him, pitch darkness and midday are one and the same. Nothing is hidden from Him. He wrestles with no mysteries. He doesn’t need to wait for a polygraph machine to decipher the truth. He sees clearly, and comprehends all He sees. He’s never known what it is to have a teacher, a role model, an advisor, a therapist, a loan officer, an adjuster, a doctor, or a mother.

God’s rule and reign are unrivaled in history and eternity. He sits on an everlasting throne. His Kingdom has no end. Little gods abound, but He alone made the heavens and the earth. God has never feared a power struggle or a hostile takeover. He doesn’t have to watch His back. He has no equal. No peer. No competition.

It makes perfect sense that His name should be I AM. And even more sense that my name is I am not.