One Nation Under God?

When you see cartoons like this one, what do you think? What feelings crop up? Do you get patriotic shivers or do you get a little sick at your stomach?

When did it become fashionable for Christians to tell people they are not Americans if they don't hold the same belief in the Bible? In which of our founding documents does it mention that belief in God is necessary to be a citizen? As a highly-qualified, state licensed teacher of American history I can tell you without doubt that there is no place in the Constitution that makes any "Christian" claim. There is no utterance of God, Jesus, the Bible, or the title "Christian" anywhere in the Constitution. In the Bill of Rights, which were added to the Constitution in 1789, it only mentions the word religion once in the First Amendment: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..."

The ACLU has no legal leg to stand on when it demands the removal of long-held American traditions that flirt with the values of Christianity. On the other hand, the Christian church has no right to demand that all people in public places hold to their set of beliefs or worldview.

As followers of Jesus, we must remember that we are strangers in a foreign land. Our citizenship is in God's kingdom first and foremost. Where we live here on earth is of no consequence to our standing in God's kingdom. Continued opposition to all things politically "conservative" continues to be a blemish on the face of Jesus' church. We must stop being political bullies and start loving people. As the apostle John said, "If anyone boasts, ['I am a Christian'] and goes right on hating his brother or sister (of an opposing political party or religious view), thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won't love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can't see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You've got to love both."

I know that these views are not popular. I'm okay with that. However, I would love to encourage some respectful dialogue on this topic. Feel free to leave a comment.

-Jason

www.theWay247.com

Tithing? Give Me Break!

I have been spending most mornings for the past several months using a study guide on basics of Christian discipleship as my morning quiet time with Father. But the past few lessons have disgusted me. Ironically, what disgusts me is exactly what I used to preach from the pulpit. So I guess I am disgusted, but laughing at myself at the same time.

It has to do with money. All of us realize money is a touchy subject within the Church. We've disagreed, debated, argued, fought, and even killed over money. It is a tough subject for sure.

Did you know that Jesus spoke more about money than almost any other subject in his earthly ministry? "Love" is the only subject He talked about more. He knew how inextricably linked material wealth was to our spiritual health.

There are two truths at work here:

1. First is the law of seeking and finding. Jesus said, "If you seek you will find." Think about that backwards for a second: this means that whatever we have found is what we were looking for, whether we admit it or not. That could be wealth, poverty, hardship, love, hate, etc.
2. The second law is the link between our treasure and our heart. Jesus said, "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Jesus knew that our hearts will follow what we treasure most. If we treasure family, our heart will be with them. If we treasure material wealth, our heart will be right there. It is impossible to deny this law. We try, but we cannot deny it.

If we are in debt up to our eyeballs it is because we sought it. It is also because our hearts were set on material things. If we find ourselves unable to help the poor around us--or unwilling--then that is because we sought not to do so. It is also because our hearts are not with the poor. The way of God's kingdom teaches us to seek His Kingdom and Jesus' righteousness above all things. It also teaches us to set our hearts on things not of this world.

Here's the rub. When I read books like the one I am studying these days and I get to part where they start teaching about money as a way to get God's approval, I find myself turning inside out with anger against Satan's schemes to keep Father's children in bondage. (And I laugh at myself that I used to teach the same things!) Most often, the method these books declare is that we will get God's approval when we tithe to a local church. For example, I read a "youth newsletter" recently that talked about money. It said if we realize that all we have is God's, shouldn't we want to give back to Him 10% as a way to say thanks? (To the local church, of course.) What? God doesn't need a tip for His service. :P

Like I said, even I preached tithing when I was a paid preacher. This message of tithing and all of its cousins (i.e. sacrificial giving, giving firstfruits, making pledges, honoring God with tithes, etc.) are all rooted in a false understanding of our relationship with Father. It is sad that Christians have come so far from the freedom that Jesus taught and we are now focusing on things like this.

Giving is not the point. Living freely in the hands of the Father--from whom all things come--is the point. When I realize that all that I have--not just 10%--is His and I am His manger, then the way I handle money will change. I won't simply give a portion to appease Him, get a blessing, or to say thanks; rather I will look for ways every day and in every situation to serve others with His stuff. It is His. What would He do with it had He not given it to me?

Remember, everything is His. Don't try to "tip" God with a tithe. Live knowing it all belongs to Him and He has put you in charge to take care of it and serve the poor with it. Don't use it to serve yourself and especially don't set aside a paltry sum to "give to the Lord" through the church. Serve people. Give to those who need it. It is an amazing feeling to see God's material wealth go directly from your wallet to a person in need--no middleman needed.

For more information about the origins of the "Christian tithe" I encourage you to read chapter seven of Frank Viola's book Pagan Christianity. Get a free copy from our website if you cannot afford one on your own. It is one way we as a church family give back to those in need. It is our gift to you!

Your friend on the journey,
Jason

P.S. For a neat little "test" on tithing, click here. I didn't read the whole test, but I did read enough to know that it is good.
P.P.S. Click here for a great site on church tithes and offerings.

God and Money

I am reading through a study book on the basics of Christian discipleship. It has about 56 lessons in it that cover everything from how to read the Bible, what prayer is, and church who's and why's. Overall it has been a pretty good book. Basic, but okay. As a matter of fact there have been a few of the lessons that have been "wow" for me. They hit me where I needed to be hit that day.

Each lesson takes about 10 minutes to go through and is structured where you read a verse or two and then answer a question on that text. This type of study is okay until a topic is covered that is a bit touchy. Proof-texting begins to occur. Then the verses and subsequent questions can be so leading that a person may walk away with a completely unbiblical idea about a subject just based on the question that was asked. I remember using this technique to indoctrinate my potential "converts" back before I had my Pharisectomy and truly came to know Jesus.

Yesterday's lesson started a five-lesson series on "Biblical Prosperity and Giving". The first lesson was actually very good and simply pointed out how a desire for wealth is a cancer to followers of Jesus. It really made me think about what I desire and how greed can easily slip up on me. Today's lesson continued the series, but this time flirted with the idea that God will financially bless those who live righteously. Now I know that this is a popular doctrine among the word of faith crowd, but this is heresy. God never promises all of His children financial wealth based on right living. Certainly there were times in the Old Testament when God promised the Israelites material blessings based on their actions, but this cannot be applied to all people who follow Jesus.

I am so sad to see how so many well-meaning followers of Jesus have been derailed in their faith because of false teachers who tell you that in order for God to give you blessings, you must first give to Him. We love because He first loved us. We live and move and have our being because of Him. Do not be fooled by those who pervert Scripture into a "get-rich-quick-by-living-right-and-tithing" doctrine that is unbiblical at best and heretical at worse.

-Jason

Sweet Fellowship

Thursday night, my wife went to spend some time chatting with a good friend over a cup of coffee. She hasn't been able to do that very much and I was so glad she got to do this. They had a great time and some good conversation.

While they were out I invited her friend's husband--who happens to be a great friend of mine--to come to my house with his kids so that we could hang out while our wives were out. We didn't have a deep spiritual conversation. Mostly we sat and talked about life, family, jobs, etc. as we drank a couple of root beers and our kids all played together. It was nice to get to catch up with him. You see, we used to get together about once a week for years for breakfast and prayer. Since his family joined in with our church family a year ago, we've lost that weekly time. I suppose we've come to rely on the fact that we're going to see each other at someone's home each weekend, so we don't make an effort to get together during the week. That's a shame.

On Friday night, I got the pleasure of spending some time at a restaurant with another good friend of mine whom I do not get to see often at all. He lives in Clarksville (an hour away). We met half-way between our homes and had a cup of coffee and a dessert as we discussed life in Christ and about our own journeys with Jesus. It was a rich discussion that lasted over three hours.

Saturday brought a brand new opportunity to fellowship with some folks I didn't even know. I went on a motorcycle poker run that benefited a local charity. There were only eight of us who showed up and I didn't know anybody. I got to spend the day riding with these folks and stopping at several bars and restaurants along the way to draw a card for our hand of poker. I'm not absolutely certain, but I am 99% sure none of my fellow riders knew Jesus personally. It was neat to sit and see them fellowship and enjoy the company of one another. No pretense. No weird questions or discussions. Not sure that I did anything super spiritual, but I was there. I was even invited to some other activities they were planning. It is good to get invited to activities hosted by non-Christians. (Where else are we supposed to plant the Gospel?)

Sunday my family and I spent some time enjoying each other's company as we rode around Gallatin and partook of the beautiful weather. At lunch time we drove up to Bowling Green, KY to have lunch with a family of friends there. We stayed until almost 6:00 PM. The time we spent involved talking, laughing, and telling stories. We talked about our life in Christ and what wonderful things we see Father doing in our lives. It was great.

Fellowship is not meant to be a once-a-week scheduled activity. We should always be prepared to invest ourselves into others. After all, people are the only investments that will go from this life to eternity. We should learn to love them and be Jesus with them. I love my church family and I enjoy our times when we all gather together in Jesus' name. However, I do not want to get to a place a where I rely on those scheduled gatherings to provide my primary means of fellowship. Also I do not want those scheduled times to give me an excuse not to go do something with others. I don’t know about you, but sometimes if I have something planned for a weekend, I tend not to plan a second thing in the same weekend. For example, if I have a church gathering scheduled for a Sunday evening I tend not to plan to go out with or have another couple over for dinner in the same weekend.

As my family and I move further down the road on our journey with Jesus, we intend to spend a lot less time scheduling and attending church gatherings and a lot more time looking for opportunities to meet with those who are in our community who need to see Jesus. That is not to say I never want to gather with my church family—not at all! Rather I want to guard against becoming focused on scheduled meetings with the church and more focused on meeting others where they are.

-Jason

Gospel Planting vs. Church Planting

It is very popular to talk about "church planting" these days. I wonder where the idea of "planting" churches came from? After all, Paul was involved in the births of many local churches during his lifetime. We read about them in the New Testament. Even though he was prolific at helping churches flourish and grow, he never once referred to what he did as church "planting."

I can appreciate the organic nature of the phrase "church planting" but I find it increasingly disturbing as an unbiblical concept. Recently I have spent some time looking through the New Testament at all references to any type of "planting." Of course, I skipped over all references to physical plants and focused on the verb form of the word plant. Here's what I found:

In Matthew's Gospel, it is recorded that Jesus told this parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches."

The thing "planted" in this parable is the kingdom of heaven. The church--while it is a part of--is not the entire kingdom.

Matthew records that Jesus said, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit."

This is an eery warning against "planting" things that Father did not plant. How many self-professed "church planters" will be pulled up by the roots?

Matthew records another parable told by Jesus that goes: "There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and went away on a journey. When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit...."

As this parable goes on and is explained, the One who planted the vineyard is the King. He is the "planter" of the vineyard. Later in scripture we learn that all of us who follow Jesus are part of his vineyard.

Luke records this parable of Jesus: "A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, 'For three years now I've been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven't found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?'"

The fig tree can be interpreted into a number of things, but the point for our discussion is that the owner of the vineyard (i.e. Father) planted it. It did not produce fruit and was therefore cut down. Just because Father plants things does not guarantee success. Nevertheless, only those who produce fruit will remain.

Paul, in an address to the Corinthians about who was the greatest, said: "What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow."

We must ask ourselves, What was it that Paul "planted"? It doesn't take long to realize that Paul only preached Christ and him crucified. Essentially, Paul "planted" the Gospel. Nothing more, nothing less.

James admonishes us to get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in us, which can save us.

What was "planted" in us? The word. That is the good news about Jesus.

I haven't spent a ton of time researching this, but I am coming to the conclusion that it is Jesus who initiated His church, and we as His brothers and sisters help perpetuate His church by planting the Gospel of Jesus in the hearts and lives of people around the world. Perhaps we should focus on "Gospel Planting" and leave the church stuff up to Jesus. After all, He said He would build it.

I would imagine that all churches that have been "planted" by men will eventually be uprooted. On the other hand, where the Gospel has been planted, the church will come alive and flourish. Church, therefore, is the result of the Gospel being planted in the lives of humans. This is quite a new way of looking at it isn't it? All this time I have believed that it was the church's responsibility to spread the Gospel when in actuality it is the Gospel's responsibility to spread the church.

--Jason

Why Are We Like This?

While we admit to being unashamedly radical (in the true sense of that word) in our reexamination of everything in relation to standard church practice, we are nonetheless quite deeply committed to the historic, orthodox, Christian faith. Don't be fooled by our somewhat unorthodox approach to life, mission, and church. While we are unafraid to critique church traditions, we are devoted to the Scriptures and unmoving on the core Christian doctrines. So, while you are [reading our posts and our website] and perhaps finding yourself bristling with objections, please be assured that what we are espousing is not unbiblical. Unconventional for the church in the West? Yes. Unbiblical? No.

-Adapted from the Introduction of The Shaping of Things to Come by Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch

Stop Mimicking Culture

In an article titled, The 'Missional Church': A Model for Canadian Churches? David Horrox writes,

"The church should stop mimicking the surrounding culture and become an alternative community, with a different set of beliefs, values and behaviors. Ministers would no longer engage in marketing; churches would no longer place primary emphasis on programs to serve members. The traditional ways of evaluating 'successful churches' – bigger buildings, more people, bigger budgets, larger ministerial staff, new and more programs to serve members – would be rejected. New yardsticks would be the norm: To what extent is our church a 'sent' community in which each believer is reaching out to his community? To what extent is our church impacting the community with a Christian message that challenges the values of our secular society?"

Thoughts?

-Jason

Two Rails on the Same Track

Over the past few weeks, as a church family we have been talking a lot about missional and incarnational living. To most folks, these terms have to be explained. I wish there were a better couple of words to use, but I don't know any.

"Missional" is a term that describes a missionary lifestyle; adopting the posture, thinking, behaviors, and practices of a missionary in order to engage others with the Gospel message. This does NOT refer to foreign missions or special mission trips, rather it refers to being "on mission" with Jesus every day, in every activity, in every relationship. To be "missional" you must be aware of how Father is working around you and be prepared to get involved.

"Incarnational" needs to be broken down into its root form in order to get it. The root word "incarnate" means to make concrete and real. This is about living AS Jesus in the world, making him concrete and real to those around us rather than Jesus simply being a great teacher who lived 2000 years ago. Eddie Gibbs says, "Everywhere we go, we are His church, His Body, His life with skin on. We are on holy ground everywhere that we are because He is with us, in us, and working through us." To be "incarnational" we must allow ourselves to be physically disciplined into the same posture and actions of Jesus.

These two ideas are the requisite rails running the same direction, forming a track to get us to where Father is glorified an the Gospel is proclaimed. On one side is the rail of incarnation. This rail is how we must physically be prepared to act as Jesus did. One way to do this is to practice the disciplines of Jesus: prayer, solitude, meditation, fasting, compassion, forgiveness, generosity, etc. When we do as Jesus did, we can identify with Him and be more pliable in the hands of Father to accomplish His will.

The other side of the track is the rail of mission. This rail is how we must mentally be aware of what Jesus is doing in and around us. Do we recognize the way He is working in the life of our family, friends, coworkers? Even more, are we aware of what He is doing in anonymous relationships like the teller at the bank, the cashier at Kroger, the driver in the opposite lane. We must stop focusing on our own desires and needs and broaden our scope to see what is going on all around us.

If we commit to laying these two rails in our lives, Father will indeed be glorified. We cannot lay one rail and expect to move in His direction. Both are necessary.

Simply,

Jason

Dead Men Can't Be Offended

What are you entitled to? Many things may come to your mind such as freedom, food, and housing. In fact, our country was founded on the fact that we all have rights afforded to us in the Bill of Rights, but when we examine our position as believers, what do we find? We give up our rights when we are born again, the old man dies and the claim we have to this world dies with it.

Why is this so important? The answer is that most of the things that keeps us from the full service of The Lord are things that we feel we have a right too. Let's look at a simple example of this. If somebody does something that I don't approve of I can become offended, but shouldn't we look at why we are offended? I believe that you cannot offend a dead man. What ever you say to me are words spoken over a dead man. If it offends The Lord who better to defend the Lord than the Lord Himself? Is HE not the judge off all? Many times we are offended and judge very quickly because we are hurt right? But can you hurt a dead man? It's no longer that I live but Christ that lives in me. Get the point? A dead man has no rights! We are to be hidden in Christ, therefore if attacked who are they attacking me or Christ?

I really want to look at this on a personal level relevant to our everyday life. Many are walking around carrying judgment and hurt that they don't even have a right to have since they claim to be born again. Hebrews 12:14-15 deals with this very matter read it very carefully and pray over it. Pursue peace with everyone. Who is everyone? Whats it matter if you are dead? The pursuit of peace and holiness is totally foreign to the carnal man but not the spirit man. What happens when we are offended? Most of the time we hold judgment against the one who offended us. But, if we are dead and Christ is living in us then it is the Lords battle. Hebrews in this chapter warns us not to let the root of bitterness spring up in us. This is what happens when we do not forgive! We must let our rights, our life be hidden in Christ. This allows us to live in the Spirit, to walk in the Spirit and love in the Spirit.

First John 4:17 read very carefully says "as He is so are we in this World"!! Did you get it? As HE is so are we in this world. This means that the power of God is in us for all things. When I pray for someone, I step back and quote this verse then say Lord as you are so am I in this world so its you praying not me. The same with offense, I say Lord, as you are so am I in this world this is coming at you and you alone are able to withstand! We must be dead to ourselves and alive to Christ. Only Christ can save, only Christ can heal, only Christ can forgive. Brothers there are offenses that are so deep, so painful that come into our lives that are not humanly possible to forgive, but Christ in me the hope of glory can.

The principle of the Cross is all but lost in the modern church. We must regain it for this generation. If we want to see the full measure of Christ we must die to our self. We must give over our rights to our Lord. Remember, you were bought with a price, you are not you own any more if you are Born Again you are Christs own. This requires much sacrifice but brings about much glory.

Right now maybe you are going through one of these wonderful opportunities to die to your self and to pick up the cross and follow Him. Maybe you haven't looked at it in this light; maybe you feel like you are being treated unfairly, or maybe you have already been offended. Please take some time to seek the Lord and let Him guide you through to victory. We must not gage our walk by what the world deems successful, but only in the light of the Lord. We are to be the Church of the Overcomer. Read the letter to the Churches in Rev.2-3. All of these promises are made to those who overcome. How can we overcome if we are not challenged? If this letter speaks to where you are please stand firm in Christ. If you need prayer please contact us and we will pray for you. But remember, you are not alone, we are all being shaken right now to the very foundation but those who are His shall overcome.

[Adapted from an article written by Darren Smith of Streetscape Ministries]

Dead Men Have No Rights

One of the hardest things for us to do as believers is to give up our sense of entitlement. Whether we call it pride or self love, we all struggle with thinking we deserve better. In Colossians 3:3 the Bible tells us we are dead and our life is hidden in Christ.

If we are dead we have no rights.

Anytime that a circumstance in our life challenges us to the point we think we deserve better, we must remember we don't have any rights. Jesus said to take up our cross daily and follow Him, but it is far easier to talk about the cross rather than to embrace it. The cross is symbolic of death and our self-love doesn't want to die. The Father must allow things to come into our life that bring us to the cross.

When we let go of our life for God we gain the life of Christ. This brings up the point: do we want the life of Christ? His life on earth was full of sacrifice and sorrow. He didn't have a house or any type of comfort at all. His whole life was about doing His Father's work. He was always in company with sorrow and suffering right up to the cross. Even though he was the King of Kings he lived among the poor, never asking for anything for himself. I think we really only want the life of the king not of the servant.

As we strive towards living as Jesus did and being on mission with Jesus every day, then we must realize we have no rights. We should simply live in full submission to the will of Father.

"I was put to death on the cross with Christ, and I do not live anymore—it is Christ who lives in me. I still live in my body, but I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself to save me." (Paul, to the Galatians)

[Adapted from an article written by Darren Smith of Streetscape Ministries]