Orthodox Hypostasis versus Docetism, Arianism And Nestorianism

Introduction

At the center of the entire Gospel is the teaching that God came down to earth as a man and humbled himself.  In Philippians 2:5-8 we have the whole description of God humbling Himself and coming as a man, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”[1] So what if someone were to challenge the validity of the claim that has been traditionally accepted in Christianity?  This has happened and has resulted in many different counsels determining what is the Orthodox view of the Hypostatic Union of Christ.  I desire to show in this paper four different classic views of the union of the God-man and then use Scripture to decide which view is most Biblical and therefore should be espoused by Christians.  I will look at the three views that are not biblical: Arianism – error concerning the nature of God, Docetism – error concerning the humanity of Christ, and Nestorianism – error concerning the nature of Christ.  We will spend a lot of time looking at the Orthodox view and the supporting Scriptures.

Arianism – Error Concerning the Nature of God

            Arianism was founded by Arian, a priest in Northern Africa.  Arian taught that “Christ was created by God, and hence not deity.”[2]  He believed that Christ was a creature and not a God.  He believed that there was a time when Christ did not exist in the Godhead and then he was created by God to do His work on earth.  “Arianism has been known as the heresy which promulgated that, to use the slogans of its adversaries, ‘there was a time when the Son was not,’ that ‘the Son was a creature,’ and that ‘the Son is not equal to the Father.’”[3]  Arian even believed that on the earth Christ was not a God, but may be called God as a courtesy. “The Word was given the status of a demi-god.  He was seen as the highest of all the creatures, yet still a creature.  He was an intermediate being between God the Father and the rest of the creation, the agent by whom the Father had created them and continued to relate to them, but not God in the full sense.  He might be called God as a courtesy but he is at most a god, a created god, not the God, the eternal, uncreated being.”[4] 

In order to be able to espouse this view we would need to find that Christ is not taught about in Scripture other than the Gospels.  We would have to reject the notion that the Trinity was complete at the creation of the world and we would have to believe that Christ has no role in the current church.  I see that Arian tried to explain a difficult doctrine, but sacrificed the clear teachings of the Word of God in order to do that.

Docetism – Error Concerning the Humanity of Christ

Docetism takes its name from the Greek word dokeo which means to seem.  Docetists believe that Christ just seemed like He was a man.  “An early teaching, regarded as heretical, according to which Christ’s incarnation (i.e., taking human form) was only a matter of appearance (Gk. dokéō “seem”). Thus his suffering, death, and resurrection were aspects of the human Jesus’ life in which the divine Christ did not participate (that nature having withdrawn prior to these events).”[5]  Docetists believe that God and Jesus were united in activity but their nature was separate. “If we had been in Jesus' presence we would have been in the presence not of God in the sense that the man Jesus Christ literally was God, but in the sense that he was so totally conscious of God that we could catch something of that consciousness by a type of spiritual proximity: God and Jesus were unified in activity but not in nature.”[6] 

This view came into being because of the belief that matter is evil and God cannot be evil.  “This view was the logical sequence of their assumption of the inherent evil of matter. If matter is evil and Christ was pure, then Christ’s human body must have been merely phantasmal. Docetism was simply pagan philosophy introduced into the church.” [7] 

Once again the desire to explain Christ as a God-man apart from the faith required to simply believe that God is fully God and fully Man came at a great sacrifice to the Godhead.  “This particular Christology resolved the tension in the idea that deity and humanity were united in one person.  It did so by saying that while the deity was real and complete, the humanity was only appearance.  But the church recognized that this solution had been achieved at too great a price, a loss of Jesus’ humanity and thus of any real connection between him and us.”[8]  This is a failed attempt at the over explanation of a truth that must be accepted by faith.  With the step away from the simple understanding of Scripture came the heresy that is Docetism.

Nestorianism – Error Concerning the Nature of Christ

            Nestorianism was founded by Nestorius the patriarch of Constantinople.  Nestorius came up with this heresy following a discussion about the humanity of God in regards to Mary the mother of Christ. This was the founding of the “Nestorian idea that Jesus was two personalities—the Son of God and a man—under one skin.”[9]  They made the God-man into a separate pair, God and man. “Nestorius preferred to think in terms of a “conjunction” rather than a union between the two.  Perhaps the best possible summation of Nestorius’ thought is to say that while he did not consciously hold or overtly teach that there was a split in the person of Christ, what he said seemed to imply it.”[10]

            Once again the error of trying to make this union into more than a God-man relationship led to a heretical view.  “The Nestorians said not that He was one person with two natures, but that He was two persons. They said, ‘He is God and man, a personal God and a personal man.’ They were so anxious to emphasize the two sides that they went too far and said that He was two persons, God and man, instead of saying that He was one person with a divine and human nature.”[11]

Orthodox Hypostasis – The Biblical View of the Nature of Christ

            Orthodox Christianity has taught that Christ was indeed one-hundred percent God while also being one-hundred percent man.  This can best be described as “the single person of Christ, as contrasted with his dual human and divine nature.”[12]  In order to explain this, Orthodox Christians have tried to use the simplest terms possible.  We note that the father of Christ was the Holy Spirit but the mother of Christ was Mary.  Many believe that Christ was man because of Mary, but He was God because he was fathered by God.  Thus the simplest explanation is that, “as a man, the Lord was 'fatherless,' whilst as God He was 'motherless’.”[13]

            I will spend the rest of the paper presenting Biblical truths that can be used to prove that Christ was indeed God from the beginning and that he was fully man.  This next section is the key to the whole understanding of the Orthodox position on the Hypostasis of Christ.

Biblical Evidence for the Orthodox Hypostasis Position

Jesus is God

            In Matthew 1:23 we see the description of Jesus as being Immanuel which literally means God with us.  So from the very beginning of the Gospels we have been introduced to the simple understanding that God has come to be with man in the man Jesus Christ.

            In Titus 2:11-14 the church is being told that we are to wait for the glorious return of the Savior Jesus Christ, who is God. “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.”[14]

            I could list other texts that contain such clear evidence to the fact that Christ is God, but in an effort to conserve space in a paper of this size I will let the strength of these two passages carry the burden of proof that Jesus is indeed God.

Jesus is Lord

            The angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds in the field as they were watching over the sheep.  And on the night of the birth of Christ they pronounced this baby as the Lord of all.  In Luke 2:11-12 the angels tell the shepherds to go to the manger and find the Lord.  So even from birth Jesus was known as the Lord.

            God has exalted Christ so that every knee will acknowledge Him as Lord.  Philippians 2:9-11 says, “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”[15]

            We see clearly that Christ is Lord.  To argue this fact would require some denial of the inerrancy of the Scriptures.

Jesus is a Man

            Galatians 4:4-7 says, “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.  And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.”[16]  God sent His Son to become a man in order to redeem us.

            II John 7 has become a warning to those who would be against the belief that Christ was God come in flesh.  It says, “For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist.”[17]  These are pretty strong words of warning for those who would deny the humanity of Christ. 

Conclusion

            We must ignore the wrong attempts to explain the Hypostatic Union as something other than the union of God and man in a complete and perfect union.  We must not commit errors concerning the nature of God like Arianism, concerning the humanity of Christ like Docetism, or concerning the Nature of Christ like Nestorianism.  We must fall on the line of the sufficiency of Scripture to explain these tough truths.  This is most accurately described in the Orthodox view of the Hypostasis.

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[1] The Holy Bible : English Standard Version. (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Php 2:5–8.

[2]Paul S. Karleen, The Handbook to Bible Study : With a Guide to the Scofield Study System (New York: Oxford University Press, 1987), 311.

[3]“Heresy and Heortology in the Early Church : Arianism and the Emergence of the Triduum,” Worship 72 no 2 (1998): 117.

[4] Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1998), 713.

[5] Allen C. Myers, The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1987), 289.

[6] “God incarnate: myth or truth?,” Presbyterian 4 no 2 (1978): 95.

[7]Augustus Hopkins Strong, Systematic Theology (Bellingham, Wa.: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2004), 670.

[8] Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1998), 730.

[9] J. I. Packer, Concise Theology : A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs (Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House, 1995).

[10]   Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1998), 744.

[11] David Martyn Lloyd-Jones, God the Father, God the Son (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Books, 1996), 281.

[12]Catherine Soanes and Angus Stevenson, Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 11th ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).

[13] “Christological dogma in Orthodox worship,” Greek Orthodox Theological Review 13 (1968): 241.

[14]   The Holy Bible : English Standard Version. (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Titus 2:11-14.

[15] The Holy Bible : English Standard Version. (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Phil. 2:9-11.

[16] The Holy Bible : English Standard Version. (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Gal. 4:4-7.

[17] The Holy Bible : English Standard Version. (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), 2 John 7.

Mature Youth Pastors (Can These Even Go in the Same Sentence)

I have read a lot of different blogs and articles by Pastors claiming that the current Youth Group model does not work effectively for the training up of the youth within a church.  I would like to address that topic in this blog as well as talk about the ways I think that we can fix it.

New Models of Youth Groups
The newest model as taught by Mark Driscoll and other leading pastors is the small group model.  They believe that this model will work as a better tool to disciple the teens within your youth group.  I agree that this would help with discipleship, but I am not sure how well it would work with outreach.  Just imagine the amount of concern that could come from being the first time youth kid in some random dudes house with some random kids you really do not know.

I think that within the youth group we need to setup small groups and encourage intentional discipleship, but I do not think it is the only answer.

The Old Model
The old model is to have a young man, barely older that the teens, get up and have an exciting game planned and maybe a 15-20 minute devotional about some sort of life principle.  This model has drawn many kids in, and depending on the excitement of the leader has helped some kids get involved faithfully.  The downside is that many kids are going through the whole program and then graduating and abandoning their relationship with Christ for something bigger and flashier.

My View on the Ideal Youth Group
I want to share something that I feel we need to change within churches around the country in order to make our youth groups more effective.

1. Mature Youth Pastors
     The current model of the youth pastor is generally a young man who has just graduated from Bible College and is using this ministry as a stepping stone to the eventual senior pastor position they desire.  Here are the problems in that.
    a.   Immaturity
           A lot of these youth pastors will enter this ministry ill prepared to truly lead these kids in their spiritual growth.  The will become easily discouraged when the kids present challenges (and that happens daily).  It will be easy for them just to pack up and leave instead of trying to stick it out.
           Another potential problem is that they will strive to be cool with the kids too much.  Sometimes in the desire to win the affection of the teens the youth pastor will compromise their spiritual leadership to do something foolish.  This leads in confusion for the teens when they know what their youth pastor is really like, but then hear him talking about being different that the world.
     b.     Further Education
              A lot of youth pastors will leave the youth pastorate in order to go to seminary and pursue further education.  There is nothing wrong with this, but it does add unnecessary change to the teens high school years.
     c.     Unorganized
              A lot of young youth pastors do not take the time to setup a plan for their lessons.  This leads to unorganized youth meetings that are nothing more than a recreational activity.
     d.     Job Promotion
              If the youth pastor is there only until they can find a better job then at the first sign of a better job they will leave.

I have heard it said that the average length of stay for the youth pastor is between 18 months and 3 years.  This is too high of a turnover rate and needs to be fixed to better minister to and disciple our teens.

I propose that churches bring in mature youth pastors that feel God has specifically called them to lead teens in their walk with the Lord.  This man will be mature which will help the kids learn by example.  This man is already educated at a graduate level and can disciple the kids on a deeper level without the distracting call to pursue more education.  He will more than likely be organized after having to juggle school, family and work duties.  If he feels called to the youth pastorate then he is more likely to stay for a longer period of time and will help the kids grow in the most effective ways all the way through their seminary time.

2.     Use both modes of discipleship
I think that the church should use both means of discipling kids.  Have a great program with teaching on intentional topics of spiritual growth, but then also be intentional in your approach to discipling the kids.  Assign the youth leaders to different care groups that they actively pursue in helping them grow through; one on one discipleship, attending their events, and praying for them on a regular basis.  Always keep a good portion of time open for the kids to seek counseling.  Never just counsel them one time on a specific topic, but stick with them and help them grow.

I do agree that the current system is broken, but with some adjustments I think it could be extremely effective.

GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME!

When I think about the serious things in life, my relationship with God and my church I cannot help but be overwhelmed by the wonderful ways God has blessed me.  As I sit at my desk today and work on Greek and Hebrew and a message for an upcoming chapel message, I cannot help but be overwhelmed at how great our God is, but what if all of that was ripped away from me.  Would God still be good, would I still love Him, would I do everything in my power to save my family, and would I give my time, my money to my church?

Today started a little bit emotional for me as I sat in the doctor’s office and listened to my little baby.  I cannot help but be overwhelmed by the joy of one of the things I have wanted for most of my life, a baby.  I love way that God has chosen to bless me with this even though I am so underserving of being able to bring up a youngster in the ways of the Lord.  Thank you, God!

My mood changed quickly when I got back to work and realized that my tire still was flat.  As I changed it I realized that all my tires were cracked and in rough shape, I could not help but begin to think that God was being so unfair to expect me on a limited income to come up with $500 to replace my tires.  Woe is me, my life is so unfair, why do I even own this stupid car, is God not aware of how hard I am working for me, all flashed through my brain.  Even as the bad attitude started to slip into the forefront I got a call from a young man who I have had the opportunity of watching be changed by the power of God’s Word.  So if God wants my car to sit unused for a while, that is okay, we have two anyways.  Thank you, God for allowing me to go through this challenge in order to be changed to be more like your Son.

There is a particular blog that I have wanted to read, but I have not yet because of busyness, but today I carved some time aside for it.  As I read about Matt Chandler, a 35 year old pastor who last Thanksgiving had a seizure and found out he had a large tumor on his brain.  He talked about Hebrews 11 and how so many of the people in that chapter saw God do great things on their behalf, but some of them were tortured and struggled and died for the cause of Christ.  The story of Matt Chandler struggling through 18 months of chemo and yet still praising God for allowing him to experience God’s goodness in all this.  Matt Chandler, I am so thankful for God allowing me to read about you being faithful in all of this.  Thank you, God!

I read about friends who are struggling to pay their bills, keep their marriages, or even enjoy life, and think about God’s purpose in their life.  I hope they will use this opportunity to grow in the Lord.

Deuteronomy 32:4 “The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he.

Whatever you struggling with today remember God is good and He has a purpose for your trial.  Do not blame God, but trust in Him and remember the very fact you have an opportunity for forgiveness of your sins is way more than you deserve.

GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME!

Letter to My Little Son or Daughter

Hi __________TBD_____________,

     Let me introduce myself.  I am the owner of the loud voice and the constant laugh that I am sure you can hear.  I am your daddy. Let me tell you something, I am tired of waiting for you to come to stay with me.  I really love you so much and hope you will keep growing.  I wish you could see your mom right now.  She is so cute.  She loves you so much, but you are already wearing her out.  She likes to sleep now more than normal.
     When you get here I want you to know that we are going to protect you so much.  We have so many plans to spend the time making sure your stay will be comfortable.  One piece of advice I want to give to you is to learn how to be patty trained as soon as possible.  While I am sure we will have fun changing your diaper, it will just be better when you can use the big people toilet.
          Right now mommy and daddy are working so hard to get ready for you and to make a better life in the future.  We are going to be involved in full-time ministry for the rest of our life, so I know that might add some extra work in our schedules.  It will be worth it though in the end.
     I am going to let you go now but I wanted you to know how much I love you.  So tonight when we pray together again I hope you will recognize my voice and know that your daddy is right there with your mommy and we are all in love with each other.

Love You,
Daddy

Do The Work of The Ministry Even When You Don't Get Paid for It.

This will be a short blog due to my work and school load, but I wanted to share this.

Today after lifting weights I was showering up and getting ready for the day.  The same group of guys are always in the locker room at the same time and we have developed a bit of a relationship.  There are usually a bunch of older guys who joke with each other about politics and sports and ask me every day how much weight have I lost.  I love these guys.  Well right as we are all about done getting dressed a certain man comes in who is a little bit grumpy and gives us his update about his cancer treatments.  I always ask him how it is going and tell him I am praying for him.
One of the other members of my locker room changing game is a man who is a full-time minister.  I noticed today that when the opportunity came open to share the gospel with this older gentleman he was all of a sudden in a hurry and left.  The moment was lost and I wanted to get back to talking about it, but I did not know how.  Then the head of maintenance for the Community Center came in and opened a conversation with the man and showed him he was concerned for him.

I left today with two thoughts in my mind.

So often Christians are disgusted by the story of the two priests who passed by the man on the side of the road in the story of the good Samaritan, yet practically they do it all the time to others.


Even when it is not your job to care for others and share the Gospel, it is still your job.


Thank you Tony Costa for helping me see this truth.

Some Ridiculously Romantic Thoughts about the Best Girl In the World, Tori Kjaer

So I started this blog to talk about the lessons that I have been learning during my seminary experience.  On Mondays I write about the lessons I am learning in the classroom and on Fridays I write about the lessons I am learning in my practical ministry opportunities.  I enjoy doing this because if I only focus on Theology then I fall into the potential trap of worshipping at the altar of academia and if I do not balance my ministry with theological training then I run the risk of being a person doing nothing more than running a program.

This morning though my mind is filled with nothing more than the biggest lesson I will learn during the next three years and all the subsequent years.  That lesson is that I have the most amazing wife in the world.  Although I do not get to spend as much time with her as I would like, I cannot help but be excited at the very sight of her.  I feel like a puppy wagging my tail every time I see her coming into view.

So today I devote this entire blog to my best friend, hugest supporter, most awesome counselor, favorite taste tester, hardest worker, most beautiful companion, and most loving mother that has ever been made.  Tori Kjaer I love you and here are the reasons why.

Best Friend

Have you ever been to a slumber party with your best friend? The sleeping bags, the late night conversations, the greasy pizza and silly jokes can never compare to the real excitement of the friendships that you are building and enjoying.  Well that is how every day with Tori is.  We go to sleep having late night conversations about anything and everything.  In fact many times we fall asleep in the middle of a sentence.  We do not eat the greasy pizza but nothing spices up a meal better than the opportunity to look across the table at the person I love more than anyone else in the world.  Well the silly jokes are definitely there.

I remember hearing that I should marry my best friend in the world.  As a young man I thought it was hard to understand that because all my best friends were guys and therefore not to be married.  After I met Tori though I found out what that means.  Every day I get to be with my best friend and I would never change that.

Hugest Supporter

If most husbands looked at their wife and said, “Ok well for the next three years I am going to be working in an internship, getting a master’s degree and rarely sleeping.  So what I need you to do is to keep your job and work hard to pay the bills.  Oh by the way I will be provided housing and utilities but I will not bring home a paycheck.”  I had that conversation and she did not even think twice about whether or not she would support me.  That is what is nice about having someone who is your biggest supporter.  Did I mention the fact that when I am called upon to serve she is right there serving with me.

Awesome Counselor

So being in the ministry brings a large amount of stress into a person’s life.  Every day you carry the burden of helping others be more like Christ.  In my previous ministry before I had Tori as my support I turned to food to try to cope with this, but now I go home to a wonderful counselor who will listen, advise and love me no matter what the situation is.

Taste Tester

Ok so I am a self proclaimed cook.  I love cooking for everyone and every occasion.  I know that not every time do I put out absolutely delicious food, and it would be tempting for someone who loves me to pretend like it is good.  I love Tori because she will never lie about the truth.  If it does not taste good she will tell me it is gross and how she thinks I can fix it.  This is in every area of my life, I can always count on honest answers that intended to help me grow.

Hard Worker

In my life I have known some hard workers, but none can hold a candle to the girl who gives her whole life to working and serving for others.  She goes to her job whether she feels good or not (and lately it has been more not).  When she comes home she works tirelessly to keep our house running smoothly.  I bet right now she is working on something.

Beautiful Companion

My wife is by far the most beautiful girl in the whole world.  Just seeing the sun glisten off her red-blonde hair that is made of pure gold makes me know that I am about to experience something gorgeous.  One glimpse of her smile will make my heart melt completely.  I can honestly say that this is one dude who married outside of his league.  I am so lucky to be married to a girl this beautiful.

Her looks are gorgeous, but just hearing the sound of her voice is enough to make all the problems in world right.  The sayings that she has taught me and beautiful softness of her life fill my mind and heart at all times.

Loving Mother

In about 6 months we will get to hold the most incredible gift that God has given us as a couple.  I am so confident that Tori will be the best mother.  I have observed be a loving mother to our puppy and watched the way she has cared for the 2 International Students we have been able to serve in our home.  I cannot wait to parent this family with her.

Tori, I love you more than anyone else, ever.

Convenience Store Christianity

I have noticed a growing trend among Christians these days.  They are an incredibly fickle group of followers.  If ever there was a time where we need some adjustment this would be the time.  The church is struggling in a lot of areas because people do not want to sell out to following Christ.  I call the current trend in Christianity, convenience store Christians.

Pick and Choose What You Want

One of the scariest trends is the idea of choosing what you want in a church, in a doctrine and in your God.  I see a lot of Christians who jump from church to church as soon as they are approached about a sin in their life or they are confronted with a doctrine that they do not like.  Let me lay out some specifics that I see.

Standards taught different than their personal standards

I see this in two different ways.  First is the group of people who have standards that are higher than the church that they are leaving.  Even though these standards may not be Biblical (i.e. pants on women, drum beats, mixed swimming).  They attend a church and attempt to change the church but once they realize that is not going to happen they abandon or worse yet they destroy the church they are attending. 

The second group feels that the standards that the church encourages are too strict.  Obviously this happens quite a bit.  I am not saying that you should go to a church that is unbiblical in their strictness, but I am saying if the church is teaching the Scriptures clearly and you just are not comfortable with the truths being taught then this is your category (homosexuality, abortion, drunkenness, gluttony, etc.).  A lot of “Christians” fall into this category and will leave their church or even the church altogether.

The standards that you should be following need to be based upon the Word of God.  The Bible does not clearly define what is right and what is wrong in some areas, but the principles need to be applied.  For instance nowhere does the Bible say, Thou shalt wear culottes, but it does clearly teach that there needs to be modesty.  Obviously modesty can be accomplished without forcing women to wear the old split skirt.  The Bible also does not say that a person cannot drink alcohol (in fact in some places it seems to encourage it, but that is a different blog post), but it does say do not be drunk with wine.  So a person can drink and not be sinning, but some people personally cannot drink and not be sinning.  In other words if you have established your standards before God as long as they do not contradict God’s Word then you should follow them, but this does not give you the right to force them on others.

We have way too many church bouncers because of this issue.

The practical application of ministry

People leave churches all the time because they do not like the way this is run or that this program is not there.  The purpose of the church is lead souls to Christ, disciple them, and equip the saints to repeat the process.  The church does not exist to have the world’s largest Sunday School, or to run  AWANA versus some other kids program.   The choice of church is too often based upon whether or not the church does things my way or if it is possible to do it my way. 

The biggest question is whether or not the church is fulfilling the mission that God has given them.  If not this needs to change, which does not mean that it has to change to be right in your eyes.  Follow the direction of the church, get involved with it and understand and embrace the vision of the church’s practical application.

Pick it up when you feel you need it

Every once in a while I will be standing in the check-out line with someone who has been distracted by the brown glow of the snicker’s wrapper.  The next statement always cracks me up, “I really need a Snickers right about now.”  Now what changed from your daily routine of living life without a snickers to needing to indulge in one right now?  Is the snickers bar the answer for your long term needs or is just a quick fix for low sugar, hunger or junk food fix?  The truth is there is some need felt for a snickers and you went to it.  This makes sense in the convenience store, but does it work out in the spiritual life.

I am often amazed by the number of people who want to have nothing to do with God’s Word and then when something tragic appears in their life they begin to beg for God to be there for them.  What is even worse is when they doubt the validity of God’s existence but then when things go bad they blame God for not preventing this thing from happening.  Often they fill their life with a bunch of positive quotes that have no real bearing in their life.  Quotes like, God will send a guardian angel to watch over me, or I guess there is a reason why this is happening.

Romans 8:28-29 clearly teaches us that everything in life does happen for a reason, and that reason is to make us to be more in the image of the Son of God.  This means that we are striving to be more like Christ and God is allowing situations to push us in our desire.  Think about Christ’s life, it was not what we would describe as easy, in fact it was horrible.  He was perfect and the people rejected Him as a blasphemer.  He came to His own people and they rejected Him.  He was beaten for sins He never participated in.  He took my disgusting sin on Himself and hung and died the most brutal death that was known to mankind.  And we think it is bad when we are faced with our tragedies that we deserve because of our sin.

My whole point is that we need to stop viewing God as our medicine.  You cannot just take 6 John 3:16’s and fix all the problems in your life.  The goal of the church is to help with your struggles, but also to help you prevent the sin from destroying your life.  Don’t view God as something you can pick up whenever you need it, but rather view Him as the substance for your life. 

Return it when you do not like it anymore

I recently read about a young lady who willingly disobeyed the Word of God, the instruction of her family, and conviction of the Holy Spirit and fell into a sin that caused her to have long lasting consequences.  This young lady was angered with those who would be disappointed with her decision, show her the error of her way, and encourage her to please God from now on.  The idea was that if people or God were not going to accept her for who she was then they are unneeded.  The truth is God will accept you for who you are but He will desire for you follow His leading.  When you do wrong there are consequences for the wrong and unless you submit to those as God’s direction you will have to decide to reject God. 

A lot of Christians fall into this trap.  They feel that because God or the church is not “meeting their needs anymore” they can return it for a refund.  This is not a trinket, it is a life choice. 

Maybe you are reading this post (and I know some of you fit this category) and you have rejected the notion of going to church or intentionally growing in God’s  Word then let me ask you this question, What is the purpose of your relationship with God?  I hope you will consider this.

What did God teach about this topic

Matthew 16:24-26 says,

   ²⁴ Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. ²⁵ For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. ²⁶ For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?^[1]

The picture of taking up your cross was a picture that would have no possible confusion as to what the meaning was.  The cross was the sign of death and not just death but of a torturous death.  We may think of cute little jewelry figures or of a signal we make in the air, but the picture was clearly of death.  God was not suggesting that people merely follow Him on their own terms He was specifically asking them to follow Him through death.  You can take this figuratively to mean that He was saying they should die to themselves.  They should lay aside all of their desires, dreams and goals in order to please God first.  You could also take it to mean that they should follow Him even to the point of death.  Both interpretations point to the same concept that God wants us to be sold out to Him.  This means in every area in your life.  Yet we want to pick and choose the areas we will give to God (like a person in a convenience store), but God says give me your all.

So where do you fit in?  Are you willing to stop living a Christian life on your own terms or are you going continue being the driver of your life and tell God to take the back seat.

Christianity is not a part of life, it should be your life!

---

^[1] The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Mt 16:24–26). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.

Come Ye Sinners, Jesus Ready Stands to Save You

This past Sunday our worship Pastor was out of town and the worship leader for the service was one of my best friends.  He crafted a worship service that centered around the love of God for unworthy sinners.  I was really moved by the very thought of His love and my unworthiness.

Later that night I watched Matt Chandler talk about The Rose and I could not help but be moved by God's Grace. To end the night I read Ephesians 2 which is all about God's grace and our inability for salvation.

I just thought of a couple of things that I would like to share with you.

We are all unworthy


So many times in Christianity we tend to categorize who deserves to come to Christ and who does not.  We tend to view that people are in different categories of sinners.  There are the perverts, the violent, the thief and the petty sinners.  Romans 3:23 clearly teaches us that all have sinned and come short of God's glory.  It does not matter your sin it is all a reason for separation from God.  But according to Romans 6:23 God has given us a gift of eternal life that we must accept.

I am so thankful that God loved me enough to rescue me when I did not even seek righteousness.

Reach out to the unworthy


I pray that every week our church will be filled with perverts, violent people, thief, and petty sinners.  These are the people that need God.  The purpose of our life is to reach these people and disciple them to follow Christ.

Your Church is Not a Country Club


Stop viewing the church as your comfort zone and reach others.

I Challenge you to read the words of this song and think about it.

Come Ye Sinners



Come ye sinners, poor and needy
Weak and wounded, sick and sore
Jesus ready stands to save you
Full of pity, love, and power


Come ye thirsty, come and welcome
God's free bounty glorify
True belief and true repentance
Every grace that brings you nigh


Chorus:
I will arise and go to Jesus
He will embrace me in His arms
In the arms of my dear Savior
Oh, there are ten thousand charms


Come ye weary, heavy-laden
Lost and ruined by the fall
If you tarry until you're better
You will never come at all

When Your Ministry Requires More Than You Feel You Can Give

This last week here at Faith we hosted the National Association of Nouthetic Counselors annual conference.  This meant the opportunity to have over 1200 people on our campus that are passionate about helping the hurting with Bible-based counsel.  Part of the internship program that I am privileged to be a part of allows for us to get some practical training with hands-on work.  This being said we were asked to be in charge of the facilities set-up, changes and tear downs for the conference. 
Starting last Saturday afternoon we began an excursion that would require us to work 60 hours in the next five days.  Including tearing down and restoring all the rooms to their school setup in 3 hours on Wednesday.  Needless to say we functioned on ibuprofen and coffee as we worked hard.  To make matters even more interesting we had our Greek midterm on Thursday.

It was interesting to say the least to see how my outlook on the event greatly affected my effectiveness.  Here are 4 main points I came to realize over the last week.

Pray for God to Change Your Focus

On Monday morning as I began to unlock all the facilities I was thinking to myself here goes an incredibly long week with nothing productive getting done.  I watched with interest as people began to poor in.  I thought about how they were going to destroy the work I had spent so much time trying to make perfect.  My focus was entirely on myself and the poor me syndrome was setting in.

At lunch time on Monday a call went out on the radios for the conference directors that a man was having heart attack like symptoms and kept fading in and out of consciousness.  I rushed over to the area where things were happening to help open doors for the EMTs and to keep the crowds back.  As the next 30 minutes unfolded I found myself having the opportunity to personally minister to man's wife.  On my drive back from the hospital I could think of nothing else but how awesome God was to allow me to minister to this family. 

When your focus starts to turn negative put your attention on the reason you are there.  God obviously has a plan for you to be there.  Nothing of value comes without a sacrifice of some sort.  You may be making a sacrifice of your time, strength and study time, but that all pales in comparison to the sacrifice God made for you when you were undeserving.

Maximize Your Time

So a Greek midterm is a pretty big deal (especially with my history in Greek) and I needed some serious study time for it.  Working 16 hours a day leaves no time for anything but sleeping.  I learned this week that if you add up all the time that you are not physically doing something it can equal a pretty nice study session.  I studied my flashcards and read through my books all when I thought I would not have time.  There are a lot of holes in our time that we call our busy time.  Learning how to maximize these times will allow us to be more effective.

Look at your schedule and find the natural holes that fall between your obligations and then use them for something productive.

Take Joy in the Good Moments

In the middle of all the craziness find the good moments and focus on them.  This may be an opportunity to see your ministry affect someone else personally.  Or it may be a totally unrelated incident that reminds you of the goodness of God.  On Tuesday I slipped away from the conference to take my wife to the doctor.  As I sat there and listened to the heartbeat of my precious little baby coming from inside of precious wife, I could not think of anything but how unworthy I am to have God bless me like this.  I love my wife and I love my baby but most of all I love that God has brought them into my life to help me in ministry.  After that doctor's appointment I could have worked around the clock for a month straight and never be discouraged. 

Remember even the worse things that can happen in your life are better than what you truly deserve (eternal separation from God in hell).

Remember Your Role Is Important in God's Eyes

Whatever your hands find to do, do it heartily as unto the Lord and not unto man.  Even the mundane task of moving tables and chairs can impact the eternal future of other souls.  By making sure that the tables and chairs were setup I allowed there to be an opportunity for 1200 people to go out and minister to others.  If every one of them will go out and impact just 5 more people that is a total of 6000 people who will be helped.  In no other capacity could I reach 6000 people in just 3 days.

Do it all for God's glory.

The Internet: Good, Bad or Both

So lets be honest you like to use the internet.  That is obvious because you are here on the internet reading this post.  Obviously there are some really good things that you can do on the internet, there are some really bad things you can do on the internet and there are some really good things that you can do way too much on the internet.

This week in Youth Group we had a guest speaker who talked about a Biblical View regarding the Internet.  This made me do some thinking about the internet and the things we do on the internet.

The Good


Well when Al Gore or whoever invented the internet, I wonder if they knew how much this constant stream of information would be used.  Everyday people pour on to the internet for many different reasons.  The newspaper industry is slowly collapsing because why would anyone wait til the next day to read the newspaper when with two clicks they can have immediate coverage.  Social networking has become the biggest user of the internet.  1/3 of internet users are going to social networking sites.  In fact if Facebook were a nation they would be the 3 largest nation in the world (500,000,000 users).  Social networking is good but do we really need to know that you ate three large chimichangas and now you are bloated?  I also find value in research on the internet.  Obviously I have to be careful to use a trusted source, but if I have a question about the average size of the human head I can type it in and immediately find out the answer (proving Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa have larger heads than others, hmmm :).

The Bad


There are a number of bad things that are involved in the internet.  Every day thousands of people have their financial and personal world rocked by the lack of security involving their credit card numbers.  Sometimes people use the information in your bio on facebook to find out pertinent information about you that they can use harm you.  There is always the problem of inappropriate content on the internet.  Every minute of the day there is estimated to be over $3,000 dollars spent on adult only sites.  It does not just stop there, because even You Tube is able to provide junk for free.  The internet can also provide a sense of boldness for people to say things to others that they would never say in person.  I find it sad to read new stories about a tragic event that has happened only to read someone making extremely insensitive comments immediately after it in the comment section.

The Really Good Things that We Do Way Too Much


As is the case with everything in life, we have a tendency to take good things and overdo them causing us to have an inappropriate need to have them for our satisfaction.  Families literally sit in the same room on different computers and never really pay attention to their family.  Husbands learn more about their wife by reading their statuses than by talking to them.  Children develop their worldview because of the constant flow of media in their life as opposed to the Bible.  Many companies have blocked certain websites because the production of their company has gone down because of the staff constantly networking.  We must be careful not to get so connected we lose touch with reality.

So What Should I Do with the Internet


1.   Shut it off.  That's right when it means taking away time from people who are their with you in person, turn the stupid thing off.  Life can go on without you on facebook.  I have told my wife that unless I am doing schoolwork or sending a work related email I will stay off of the internet when I am with her.

2.    Get some accountability.  You need to determine what form of accountability you need to help your internet usage to be pleasing to God.  In your office you may need someone to remind you to do your work.  In your house you may need someone to remind to pay attention to your family.  In your private use you may need to use an accountability tracker to make sure you are not going to inappropriate sites.  I have installed X3 watch to send accountability reports to one of my friends.

3.    Use the internet for the right reasons.  Set a goal for every time you go on the internet.  Check your email, read the news, check your social networks and then get off the internet.   Too many people get in trouble because they drift with no purpose and end up doing foolish things.  There do not need to be any more Facebook stalkers.

4.    Identify if it has become an idol.  Do not just blow this thought off!  Did you spend more time with God or with the internet today?  Do you read more posts that verses?  If you answered yes this will help you answer your idols question.  Get your Bible out and read about the One who died for you instead of someones taco dinner recipe.