Speaking the Truth in Love
A friend in The LIFE app www.thelifeapp.us recently brought to my attention an amazing concept out of 1. Chronicles 3:5. It is there and in 2. Sam. 5:14 that we learn of Bathsheba’s four children with David. Not only was Solomon born through this painful relationship, but another son was also born to David and Bathsheba. They named him Nathan. What an amazing thought; yes, most likely they named this little guy after the prophet Nathan, who was the friend who confronted David of his sin. And check out Luke 3:31 where we learn that Nathan and Solomon, as David’s sons, are the two chosen children to fulfill the prophetic lineage to Jesus Christ. David’s lineage splits off to Joseph and to Mary’s family lines from these two brothers.
Through Nathan is Mary’s lineage (Luke’s record) and through Solomon is Joseph’s (Matthew’s record). Grace upon grace! What a great lesson on friendship. “Faithful are the wounds of a friend.” Prov. 27:6 Nathan out of love, hurt David deeply, but he spoke the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15). Yet it was this wound of honesty that brought David to repentance and forgiveness. As a result, Psalm 51 was written.
We must speak the truth in love to our friends. A friend loves at all times (Prov. 17:17), even when it hurts. I was introduced recently to a business leadership book by Patrick Lencioni entitled “Getting Naked: A Business Fable About Shedding the Three Fears that Sabotage Client Loyalty.” It is a fascinating insight into establishing a culture of vulnerability and transparency. Any group would be benefited in seeking to build a community where the fig leaves are removed and where truth and honest conversation can take place in the safe environment of God’s gracious love. Who knows, in such an setting, you may even have a child named after you by a friend.
The LIFE
“He who has the Son has the life; and he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.” (1. John 5:12) All of life absolutely reduces down to the simple question, “Got Jesus?” In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus made it clear in Matthew 7 that there is a narrow gate to life and a broad way to destruction. There are two trees, one that bears fruit and one that is cut down and thrown into the fire. There are also two confessions; one that leads to eternal life and one that will hear the words, “I never knew you.” And finally there are two foundations, one of sand and one of rock. When Jesus said, “I am The Way, The Truth and The Life,” in John 14:6 He was not declaring that there are many ways to God.
Jesus alone IS the way to eternal life. No one can come to the Father except through Him. Though we live at a time when the majority embraces pluralism, this ideal is just the voice of the broad, fruitless confession that is founded on shifting sand of opinion, and not on the Rock of Jesus Christ. It is essential to know the truth as declared by God Himself in the Scriptures. And this is the truth that sets people free. Be encouraged to dig into the Word of God to know with assurance that you are holding onto God’s opinion and not your own. And it is this pursuit in life that leads to The LIFE. It is the goal of The LIFE App to encourage people to grow within this LIFE. This is the life of John 3:16 from the Wycliffe Bible Translations Da Jesus Book
www.pidginbible.org “God wen get so plenny love an aloha fo da peopo inside da world, dat he wen send me, his one an ony Boy, so dat everybody dat trus me no get cut off from God, but get da real kine life dat stay to da max foreva.” Be sure to sign up for The LIFE online discipleship tool Just go to: www.thelifeapp.us Be sure to join a group or start a group with your accountability peeps.
It’s Officially Wedding Season
It’s officially wedding season. That means men and women across the world will spend thousands of dollars on flowers, dresses, cakes and rings. As well as hundreds of hours on making sure the 7 hour extravaganza is absolutely perfect. The challenge with this picture is that in most cases very little time is invested in what’s most important: the lifelong marriage.
The Bible instructs us on our roles as husbands and wives. Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave his life for it. Wives, respect your husbands in all things (Ephesians 5:21-33). How to love God’s way, be patient and kind, as well as what love is not, jealous, boastful, proud or rude (1 Corinthians 13:4-8). It provides us with a Godly perspective on marriage which is very important particularly in our society that views marriage negatively. Marriage is good because God said so (Genesis 2:18). When we face challenges we can conclude that what we are experiencing is not good, but marriage is.
No matter how beautiful the dress, bomb the food, or carats in the rings, it has very little to do with the success of your marriage. What will have the most significant impact on you having a great marriage is you laying a solid foundation before the big day as well as the amount of time, creativity and effort you invest in your marriage. Time; spend time growing in your faith by reading the Bible and praying alone and together. Take the time to become a master of your spouse. Creativity; the God who made the heavens and earth as well as all the creative things in it, created marriage so ask God to hook you up with some creative ways to display your love to each. This will prevent it getting stale or you shifting to auto pilot marriage. Effort; always bring your best to your marriage, and not leftovers. “I promise to love you in sickness or in health, in good times and bad til death do us part, that’s an incredible promise we made but that’s just the beginning. Gods word says “ and whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly as unto the Lord and not unto men (Colossians 3:23). Husbands and wives lets not sit around and wait until we get to the end. God has big plans for married people so don’t settle for anything other Greatness in your marriage! Play hard and have fun. If for any reason its not what you want it to be, fix yourself first.
The L.I.F.E.
At the Rock Church we are dedicated to ensure that every person has an opportunity to grow in God’s love. Over the past 2 years we have developed an online discipleship tool that creates community called the L.I.F.E.
The purpose of The L.I.F.E. is to bring followers of Jesus Christ into a deeper level of authentic spiritual growth in relationships, evangelism, ministry and stewardship. The L.I.F.E. is a relational and value-driven Gospel-centered model of discipleship that provides a strategic pathway for living out the Christian faith through the L.I.F.E. transformational paradigm (Loving relationships,Impacting ministry, Faithful stewardship, Evangelizing the lost).
In 1 John 5:12 the Bible states, “He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.” It is hoped that this online tool will help strengthen this life of God within your soul.
The L.I.F.E. is a means to support believers as they are guided through a process of living out the call of what is traditionally referred to as Jesus’ Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). Within the Great Commission believers are challenged to become disciples who disciple others, as they engage God within transforming relationships. Current research and historical record affirms that Biblical training moves people in a process of spiritual formation and transformation that will bear the fruit of Christlikeness. It is within one’s intimacy with Jesus Christ that he or she will experience growth in character, faith-enriching relationships, ministry engagement, evangelism experiences, stewardship and personal mission. It is believed that a participant’s personal commitment to grow within the means of God’s grace and obedience is most greatly influenced by spiritual relationships in community as people live life together in reciprocal faith development (i.e. mentors, spiritual friends, spiritual coaches, directors, small groups, etc.). It is also essential that processes of discipleship need to recognize that people live through seasons of great success as well as through times of brokenness and loss. It is appreciated that people live within a variety of relationships that often adjust throughout the different stages of the life cycle. The L.I.F.E. tool intends to provide access to resources and online group functions that empower people to move from initial stages of exploring Christ to a more Christ-centered life through a holistic approach to spiritual growth.
The L.I.F.E. provides a wide array of resources that are seen as beneficial in nurturing people in one or more of the L.I.F.E. categories. The resources may include books, websites, online Bible studies, articles, videos, blogs, activities, ministry opportunities and much more. The goal is to provide various means of study and experiences that are both informational and transformational.
Sign Up Today and begin your journey at www.thelifeapp.us
Pastor Shawn Wagner
God’s Scandalous Grace
Unmerited favor. This is the typical definition of the word grace. It sounds nice and I suppose it sort of explains grace in a short pithy statement, but what does that even mean? And is that what God intended for us to understand about his grace? I will boldly declare the answer is no! Grace means much more than “unmerited favor.” It is the act of God in saving and sustaining mankind throughout the Bible and continuing into today. And it is scandalous! The Bible is filled with stories of people making decisions. Some people obeyed God, and he blessed them. Others made poor decisions that had drastic effects on them, and God redeemed those poor decisions for an even greater purpose. Lets look at two of those stories.
First is the story of Abraham.
Abraham is from the Mesopotamian town called Haran. God calls Abraham to leave his father, his culture, his gods, and all he ever knew to follow him. Now Mesopotamia was a cultural hub of the Ancient Near East world in his day. Each tribe of people had their own language, their own gods, and their own identity. When God calls Abraham, in Abraham’s mind he is one of many gods, but the only difference is this specific god calls him, and tells him to follow him into a new land. And out of this new land, Abraham is promised to be the father to offspring that outnumber the stars in the sky and will make Abraham a great name (Gen. 12:1, 15:5). So, like any good follower of their god, he followed.
One evening Abraham asked God how this whole thing was going to happen? God told him to bring him a heifer, a goat, and turtledove, all three years old, and to slice them in half and divide the pieces opposite each other (Gen. 15:9). In Ancient Near East cultures, in order to make a covenant, or agreement between two people, the slicing of these three animals were necessary (sort of like a modern-day pinky promise, but bloodier and much more real). Then each person would walk between these three sliced animals. Why? Because if one person breaks this important covenant, then that person will likewise be sliced in half. Yes, that is correct, sliced in half, blood, guts, and all. To make and oath or covenant was serious business. All they had to offer was their word. There is an interesting twist in this particular covenant. Later in the night, God places Abraham into a deep sleep and explains to Abraham what is going to happen to his promised offspring, the slavery for four hundred years, and the powerful work of redemption by which God would save them. While Abraham is still in this deep sleep the story takes an amazing turn. “When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On this day the Lord made a covenant with Abram saying, ‘To your offspring I give this land… (Gen. 15:17-18)’” God made the covenant alone! He is alone handling the work and bearing the responsibility of the covenant. Abraham didn’t (and really couldn’t) make this covenant. Any act of disobedience would show that he couldn’t hold his end of the covenant and therefore would lead him to be sliced in half. Rather, God made the covenant by himself. This was the promise that he made to Abraham. In a sense it showed Abraham that this God was serious and he meant business, and thus propelling Abraham in full submission, which attributed him as the father of faith (Gen. 15:6; Heb. 11:8).
This is Grace!
The ultimate outcome of Abraham’s offspring would be Jesus, the promised Messiah and King of Israel and all mankind. He would serve as the judge and redeemer of the world. God’s ultimate grace of salvation through Jesus started with his gracious covenant through Abraham. He did it utilizing the cultural background and understanding of Abraham of his day. God is personal and particular. When we read the stories of the Old Testament and see some of the strange ways that God acted, it helps to understand that what is strange to us was normal to them. When we say that God transcends time, we have to remember that this also means he is active in it across cultural boundaries. He moves in our cultural understandings as much as theirs. Typically we think that God moves in supernatural terms, which he most definitely does, but he doesn’t ignore what we know as natural terms. God’s grace is involved in all details of life. We are not robots by any means, but God lovingly uses our life choices, whether good or bad, for ultimate and greater outcomes.
This leads to the next story of Judah and Tamar.
This story comes at such an odd point in the Genesis narrative (Genesis 38). Genesis 37-50 is all about Abraham’s great-grandson and Judah’s brother Joseph, but the author takes a brief pause in the Joseph story to fill us in on an interesting event about Joseph’s brother Judah.
Judah had three sons, Er, Onan, and Chezib. His oldest son, Er, had a wife named Tamar, but God killed Er because he was so wicked and therefore he had no children. The custom of that day was that the next brother-in-line would marry the wife of the previous brother so she could have offspring for her deceased husband. Unfortunately, in continued wickedness the next son, Onan, would have sexual relations with Tamar, but would refuse to get her pregnant, so God had him killed too. Well, by this time Tamar reasoned with herself that she would find a way to get Judah to impregnate her. She poses as a prostitute, he sleeps with her and she becomes pregnant, with twins. These two illegitimate children were named Perez and Zerah.
This reveals God’s grace in the greatest detail! First, there is no hidden agenda in the story. Judah, his sons, and Tamar are all wicked, and live and act in complete disobedience. However if we notice the genealogy in Matthew 1, it states that Jesus comes from the lineage of Judah, Tamar, and Perez (Matt. 1:3). This is incredible! God did not condone wickedness at all, and two people in this story died because of it, but he still used a horrible decision of Judah and Tamar to bring about the ultimate hope that would come through their son Perez, culminating in the hope found in Jesus.
This is Grace!
What is even more incredible about the placement of this story is that it rests in the middle of the Joseph story. If we read the story of Joseph clearly, we see a man of faith and patience and obedience to God. It would appear that the coming king of Israel would come through the line of Joseph. Nope! Jesus would come through the line of Judah, and not one of Judah’s legitimate sons, but his illegitimate son Perez, who was conceived from a sexually immoral act.
This is Grace!
God’s radical and unfathomable grace in the Old Testament led to the ultimate grace of giving his son Jesus to die for the sins of the world. This act of total redemption set forth the redeeming act of the Holy Spirit through the continued act of proclaiming the good news of Jesus by the Church throughout the entire world today. You and I are not a chess piece in a crazy cosmic chess match. You and I are loved and cherished creatures of an Almighty Creator that allows us to live our lives and make choices. We will make very bad choices and yet in Christ, we are still loved and redeemed (1 John 2:2). God’s grace is salvific in that it is only by his love and patience and providence that we are saved, but it is also sustaining in everything we do. I challenge you to view God’s grace as pervasive in all aspects of your life. Praise God for the fact that your heart beats and for the food he provides. Praise God for seeing you through bad choices, and redeeming you in spite of them. Praise God that through wicked and sinful people, that he sent Jesus to live, die, and rise for us, that in him we have life eternally, and in him we have hope eternally.
This is Grace!
Be Strong and Very Courageous…in God’s Word!
This is a passage from today’s Bible reading through the Rock Church. http://www.sdrock.com/bible/
“Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.” Joshua 1:7-8
When my children were young, my wife and I had them memorize Psalm 1, which eventually became our family life Scripture. I can only think that Joshua’s writings here were probably influential upon David’s poetry. Both my wife and I each came to complete faith in Jesus Christ through the reading of the Bible. It wasn’t through a pastor or through some evangelistic event, but rather through a search of the Scriptures to see if the things of Jesus were true. As a result of this early revelation, we have daily made a commitment to read through the Scriptures together as husband and wife. And this is not a religious duty, obligation or boast, but is rather our life source in love.
We have been overwhelmed by the graciousness of the Lord towards our friends and family as God continues to transform us through His Word. And this we confidently know is a direct relationship to His promise as affirmed above. Jesus desires to lavish upon us His abundant blessings. Yet it is our choices of obedience or rebellion that puts us in the place of directly receiving or negating these blessings. Personally it is this desire for God’s blessings upon your life that I feel compelled to write these thoughts. It is my utmost hope and prayer that you would align your heart’s pursuits within God’s will and destiny for your life. As you fall in love with Jesus, you will fall in love with the Bible and the Word of God will transform you into a faithful witness to carry out the Great Commission with a passion that brings hope to the world.
Find Your True Love
In the aftermath of Valentines week, a time when those that are single are reminded of how painfully single they are—which can be more that a little depressing. I thought it appropriate to share some thoughts about true love, especially since the culture communicates something entirely different than what the Bible does.
First, true love is comprised of three components: Romance, Emotional Intimacy, and Commitment. Romance is often referred to as “chemistry”; at it’s most basic level it is physical attraction. If a relationship only has this it is shallow and will fizzle out in time. Emotional Intimacy is about connection; this is when two people share what’s deep within their hearts with no walls, instead of pushing each other away they draw one another closer. If a marriage only has emotional intimacy the spouses become roommates, it can become a passionless relationship. Commitment is all about loyalty. Those involved in relationship with a high level of commitment are not looking for something better but are willing to stick through the tough times and make things work. Any relationship without all three components will eventually breakdown but a relationship with all three is considered “True Love”.
Now the question becomes, “How do you find True Love?” The answer is simple; before you can find your true love you must first find your First Love. The problem that plagues most relational paradigms is that people are looking for the right person, hoping to find wholeness in a relationship, thinking the answer to all their problems is found in Mr./Mrs. right. But the truth is that no one will ever complete you or make your life better. If anything, relationships don’t fix your problems, they expose them. If you want to find true love, you need to stop looking for the right person and start becoming the right person. If you are not the right person, when you find true love you will end up destroying it.
How do you become the right person? Return to your First Love. In the hustle and bustle of life it is easy to forget your First Love. In Revelation 2:2-5 Jesus says, “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary. Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works”. It’s interesting, these people did all the right things, they looked good on the outside, but they had left their first love. The state of their heart did not match the appearance of their lives. Does yours?
What do you do when you realize that you have left your first love? Remember, Repent, and Return. Remember from where you have fallen—can you think of a time when you were more in love with Jesus and aware of His presence than you are today? If you can, remember what it was like. Next, Repent. Realize that if you are farther from God today than you were a few months ago or even a year ago, that is no okay—you need to repent! Finally, return to the first works. There are things you can do to nurture a deep and abiding love of God (e.g. prayer, meditation, solitude, study, etc.), begin engaging in those activities once again.
Don’t let your fire for God dwindle into smoldering ashes, stoke the flames and let your love for the Lord burn brightly. Remember, if you lose your First Love, you’ll never be able to find your true love.
Bamboo Trees and the Art of Perserverance
In the Far East the Asian people plant a tree known as the Chinese Bamboo. During the first four years they water and fertilize the plant despite seeing little or no results. Then during the fifth year, they again water and fertilize the tree – and in five weeks’ time the tree grows ninety feet! The obvious question to ask is: Did the Chinese bamboo tree grow ninety feet in five weeks, or did it grow ninety feet in five years? The answer is: It grew ninety feet in five years. You see, if at any time during those five years the people would have stopped watering and fertilizing the tree, it would have died.
Many times our dreams and plans appear as if they are going nowhere, and we are tempted to give up and quit trying. But on the contrary, we must keep watering and fertilizing those dreams and plans God’s placed inside us. Because we know that if we do not quit, if we show perseverance and endurance, we will also reap a harvest.
As we enter into this exciting new year, take this story, and implement it into your ministry team, your community group, or your own walk with Christ. Remember that outward results may or may not accurately reflect inward realities. Don’t forget that small acts of kindness, often reap huge dividends even if you don’t immediately see the effect. Galatians 6:9 says “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Bamboo Trees and the Art of Perserverance
In the Far East the Asian people plant a tree known as the Chinese Bamboo. During the first four years they water and fertilize the plant despite seeing little or no results. Then during the fifth year, they again water and fertilize the tree – and in five weeks’ time the tree grows ninety feet! The obvious question to ask is: Did the Chinese bamboo tree grow ninety feet in five weeks, or did it grow ninety feet in five years? The answer is: It grew ninety feet in five years. You see, if at any time during those five years the people would have stopped watering and fertilizing the tree, it would have died.
Many times our dreams and plans appear as if they are going nowhere, and we are tempted to give up and quit trying. But on the contrary, we must keep watering and fertilizing those dreams and plans God’s placed inside us. Because we know that if we do not quit, if we show perseverance and endurance, we will also reap a harvest.
As we enter into this exciting new year, take this story, and implement it into your ministry team, your community group, or your own walk with Christ. Remember that outward results may or may not accurately reflect inward realities. Don’t forget that small acts of kindness, often reap huge dividends even if you don’t immediately see the effect. Galatians 6:9 says “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
It is Written
5 Now the Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. 6 And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7 keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.”
8 So Moses made haste and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshiped. 9 Then he said, “If now I have found grace in Your sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray, go among us, even though we are a stiff-necked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us as Your inheritance.”
The Covenant Renewed
10 And He said: “Behold, I make a covenant. Before all your people I will do marvels such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation; and all the people among whom you are shall see the work of the Lord. For it is an awesome thing that I will do with you.
Exodus 34:5-10