Following Jesus – Plattsville Church

Don’t be Scared to Follow

Fear is a subtle and sneaky thing. It steals good things, and turns them into bad things. It takes joy and excitement because of “what could go wrong.” And it happens so easily, and it happened to us a little while ago when we were trying to sell our house, and unsure why it hasn’t been moving.

And then through a series of unforeseen events, our house became sold. Which was great! This is something I had been stressing and worrying over, and it happened. But then rather than being excited, we got worried that we now have only have a little while to find another house.

All of a sudden this good thing, became almost a bad thing. All of a sudden something to celebrate became something to worry about. This is what fear does, but it also does something subtler and even more dangerous. It steals our gratitude towards God. Because all of a sudden rather than thanking God for what he did, we began to ask him about this worry or problem. Rather than appreciating the gift of our house selling, in his timing, we rushed forward to yet another issue for him to fix.

All of a sudden our focus shifted from God’s hand working in our lives, to what else we needed him to do in our lives.

But God is gracious, and good even when we miss the point.

So the next morning I went into my office to do my daily devotions. Still feeling a little apprehensive about everything. Knowing in my mind that God has the details worked out, but wanting to really know that in my heart. And the passage for my daily Scripture reading was, Number 13:31-14:25. A passage all about trusting, and not giving in to fear. A passage all about following where God has called you to go. A passage all about how God will provide, do miraculous things, and surprise you with the blessings he has for you when you trust. And in the margin I had wrote previously, “TAKE GODLY RISKS, Don’t be scared to follow”.

And while some people might just say it’s a coincidence that was the reading for today. Or some people might say I’m just reading into this, or it’s just random chance. All I can say to that is that it doesn’t feel that way. It feels like God was reminding me that he is with us, and has a future for us. It feels like God is reminding me that trusting in him is never wasted. It feels like God is drawing the attention back to him, and deepening my trust in him because that’s what it’s about.

So I share all this to just remind you of a few things. Don’t let fear steal the future God has for you. Don’t let worry shape your mind so much, that you lose trust in God. Don’t let the “what if’s” of life cloud the fact that God is with you, and for you. Don’t let our anxiety, and uncertainty stop us from taking Godly risks. Or as I needed to be reminded myself, “Don’t be scared to follow” in whatever it is that God has for you. Because the Israelites found out that fear just leaves you wandering in the desert, but trust is the thing that moves you forward.

Podcasts, Sermon Reflections

Lent: Seven Woes of Jesus ~ Week 3: Gnats, Mercy, and Cumin

spices-1-1523661-639x950 On Sunday we looked at the fourth woe of Jesus. And in the fourth woe Jesus says this,

What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things. Blind guides! You strain your water so you won’t accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel.

And here Jesus is confronting the religious leaders of his day for not living like God and for not prioritizing or orientating their lives in the way of God. The way they are living isn’t bringing them closer to God, or God closer to the world.

The truth is that if our religious energies go into the “minor” things rather than the “major” things of following God we can become an obstacle to God. And that is actually what Jesus is arguing that they are missing the more major, weightier, and important commandments. Apparently Jesus thinks some laws and commands matter more than others, and he’s right of course.

Jesus pulls an allusion to Micah saying what does God require mercy, justice, and faith. He says essentially what good is tithing your herb garden when you forget about the major things? What good is following the minor rules if you don’t get the major ones right?

And this is a really convicting and challenging teaching because here Jesus wants to change the metric of our holiness. Holiness isn’t about just following the rules, but which ones you actually prioritize and put the most effort into. Following Jesus is about the greatest commandments, mercy, faith, and justice.

So we ended with this main point: Some things matter more than others and we need to orient our lives around those things

The truth is we can be religious and still miss the point like the Pharisees. We need to have our lives orientated around the main things: faith, mercy, and justice like Jesus asks.

So we ended with a simple challenge. To sit and contemplate on this question:

Have I forgotten mercy, justice, or faithfulness?

Because that question matters. It matters to Jesus so it should matter to us.

So that’s what we did on Sunday, but it’s also worth doing right now, because whenever our lives major on the minors we are missing the point.

Sermon Notes:

Big Idea: Some things matter more than others and we need to orient our lives around those things

Teaching Points:

Their way of living will not bring them closer to God, or God closer to the world
Jesus believes some commands matter more than others.
The things we often measure our holiness and righteousness against aren’t always the things God is measuring.
It is so easy to neglect the most important things while keeping other religious things going.

Adult Discussion Questions:

What stuck out to you from the sermon? What was challenging to you? What was new? Have you practiced Lent before? Why or why not? Is there something you could give up this year for Lent? Have you ever considered that you might be “spiritually blind”? Can you think of other examples of “spiritual blindness”? Why is being spiritually blind so very dangerous? Are there any areas you feel you might be blind to?

Challenge for the Week: God reveal the areas of blindness in me.

Sermon Preview

Sharing Spices and Missing the Point:

spices-1477563-640x425 On Sunday we are going to be looking at something that is controversial, but well Jesus says it so we should believe it – and it’s this:

Some rules matter more than others.

And while that might strike you as odd or even untrue – the trouble is it’s biblical. Biblically speaking while there are lots of important rules, or rhythms we should have as Christians there are some that matter more than others. And that even if you do some of the minor obligations, or regulations but miss the big ones – Jesus isn’t happy.

And while it sounds funny that there is actually a hierarchy of importance in the way of following Jesus it is true. Jesus himself says that there is a “greatest commandment’ which means there are “minor commandments”. And here is the tension: sometimes we value or prioritize the minors over the majors.

So that’s where we are going on Sunday. But here is the question I have for you before we get there: what do you think the majors of faith are? Think about it, pray about it, and then on Sunday let’s see what Jesus has to say about it.

Podcasts, Sermon Reflections

Lent: Seven Woes of Jesus ~ Week 2: Blind Guides, Hell, and Learning to See

glasses-1554870-1280x960 On Sunday we looked at the second and third “woe” of Jesus. And a series examining the “woes” of Jesus isn’t something that is generally fun, but it’s so needed. We, as a culture, don’t do great with responsibility and reflection; we do blame, turning a blind eye and busyness really well. Which is why we need Lent to slow down, reflect, and listen to God’s Spirit.

So on Sunday we looked at how Jesus calls the Pharisees blind. How they believe they are helping God, but are in the way of God’s movement. How they go to great lengths to make converts but because they are blind, make them twice as bad. How rather than condemning making oaths that you intend to get out, they implicitly agree with it. How they are blind and don’t even know it.

And that’s the trouble with spiritual blindness, you don’t know you are. You think you see things clearly when you are actually on the wrong side of God’s movement.

And we only have to look back a little ways in history to see how often people in the church have been on the wrong side of the Spirit of God’s movement. When we look at how people argued slavery was ordained by God, how women are inferior to men, how it’s right to kill in Jesus’ name in the crusades, or more recently, how the church treats people with mental health challenges. I could go on and on about how we have clearly been blind in the past to the movement of God.

I brought this up because if people in the past were sure they weren’t blind, but turned out they were – then we need to acknowledge the fact that we most likely are blind in some ways to the move of God as well. That if the religious, moral, and spiritual elite (Pharisees) got it wrong, if the church has got it wrong in the past, how can we be sure we have it all right? So the challenge though is that we don’t know what we don’t know. We don’t know where we are spiritually blind.

So we landed on this main point: In our blindness we can oppose the movement of God. And the way we discover our blindness certainly doesn’t come from listening to my voice or words, but from the voice and words of the Spirit. So we challenged ourselves to pray a radical prayer daily this week: God Reveal the areas of blindness in me.

The only way we will discover our blindness and be healed from it is if we listen and hear the Spirit speaking to us. Because I know there are areas in my life I’m spiritually blind, and I need to see clearly to follow clearly. So that’s our challenge ask Jesus to reveal areas of blindness to you, and listen for him so we can follow clearly.

Sermon Notes:

Big Idea: In our blindness we can oppose the movement of God.

Teaching Points:

We, as a culture, don’t do great with responsibility and reflection; we do blame, turning a blind eye and busyness really well.
Holy Spirit if we are missing the point show us.
It’s not enough to follow God, You have to follow God in the right way.
If you have a false idea of God, the more religious you are, the worse it is for you – it were better for you to be an atheist. William Temple
In our blindness we can oppose the movement of God.
We’re all blind but didn’t know it.
The way we will discover our own blindness is to listen to the Spirit.
Reveal the areas of blindness in me.

Adult Discussion Questions:

Challenge for the Week: God Reveal the areas of blindness in me.

Podcasts, Sermon Reflections

The Book that Almost Wasn’t: Faith, Lists, and Works ~ James 2

On Sunday we opened up probably the most famous verse of James in James 2 where he says, “Faith without works is dead”. This is a verse that is deservedly famous, but also does bring up a tension. Because this verse looks almost directly contradictory to some of the teaching of Paul. For example Paul says this:

Ephesians 2:8-9. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works”

Romans 3:27, “Can we boast then that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No because our acquittal is not based on our good deeds. It is based on our faith. So we are made right with God through faith and not by works”

Galatians 2:16, “And yet we Jewish Christians know that we become right with God, not by doing what the law commands, but by faith in Jesus Christ…for no one will ever be saved by obeying the law”.

This tension though is more in perspective than in reality. James is writing to people who are using their faith as an excuse to not do works. Paul is writing to people who are seeking to use their works as reason to be accepted. And the different contexts make all the difference.

James is not arguing that works must be added to faith, but that genuine faith includes works.

Douglas Moo puts it this way,

The difference between the [teachings of James and Paul] is the context in which these works are done. Paul denies that works can have any value in brining us into a relationship with God; James is insisting that, once that relationships is established, works are essential”.

So works don’t save you, but show that you are saved.

Or as Calvin puts it, “Paul contends that we are justified apart from the help of works, so James does not allow those who lack good works to be reckoned righteous”.

So we ended with James’ main point: Faith without works is dead. And we challenge people to actually put James’ point into practice.

At the beginning of the service we had everyone write down five needs they see around them. Which is a great practice, and one you should do right now actually.

But at the end of the sermon I called people to look at their lists, and remember faith without works is dead. And that they each had a list of needs they could meet. So I challenged them to meet some needs. Because if faith is about works, it’s time to get to work.

Sermon Notes:

Big Idea: Faith without works is dead.

Teaching Points:

Faith leads to change.
James is arguing that genuine faith includes works.
Works don’t save you, but show that you are saved.

Adult Discussion Questions:

What stuck out to you from the sermon? What was challenging to you? What was new? What were some of the needs on your list? Which ones are hardest to meet? Are there people who can help you meet them? Why do you think faith needs works? What happens when faith doesn’t include works?

Discussion Questions for Young Families

Talk to your kids about how when we follow Jesus we need to actually “do things”. Ask them the things that Jesus did, and then ask them which things they could do. Take time to do it then together.

Challenge for the Week: Put faith into action and meet a need.

Personal Musings, Theological Musings

The Slavery of “Freedom”

I think our culture is obsessed with Freedom. Freedom to do whatever we want, and whatever pleases us. It drives a lot of culture, a lot of the stuff on TV, and a lot of the relationships around us.

We think that standing up for our “freedom” to follow our desires and impulses is what it means to be human. That we all have a right to do what we want, when we want, as long as it doesn’t hurt others (or hurt them too much).

But this idea of freedom, isn’t actually “freedom”, it’s slavery.

All we have done is become absolute slaves to our wants, desires, and impulses and call that “freedom”. That “freedom” is to do whatever – our desires, wants, or impulses are. The problem is that not only isn’t that freedom, it actually doesn’t lead to life. Slavishly following our desires leads to instant gratification, debt, divorce, and all sorts of hurt. When we think following our desires is freedom we become slaves to our basest and worst selves.

David Foster Wallace noticed this and criticized our culture for exposing our kids to it so early. He writes this – this is what we teach our kids:

“That you are the most important and what you want is the most important. And that your job in life is to gratify your own desires…This does not work as well when it comes to educating children or helping us help each other know how to live… and to be happy – if that word means anything. Clearly it means something different from ‘whatever I want to do’ – ‘I want to take this cup right now and throw it! I have every right to! I should!’ We see it with children: that’s not happiness. That feeling of having to obey every impulse and gratify every desire seems to me to be a strange kind of slavery.”

And I think he is right on. The feeling that we need to follow our impulses and gratify our desires is a kind of slavery. It doesn’t lead our kids to happiness to let them do whatever they want, so why should it lead us to it?

But we’ve fallen for that lie and that trap. We use language like, “I just need to follow my heart”, “Well it wasn’t true for me”, “I deserve this because I want this” all the while not realizing we are slaves to our desires rather than masters of them. True freedom doesn’t consist in doing whatever you want when you want, true freedom consists in having these desires transformed and aligned so we can live whole lives. This is why Paul says that he is a “slave to Christ” because he knows that he needs his heart, desires, and impulses changed. He needs to have self-centeredness, greed, violence, and hurt rooted out. Ironically then for Paul to be truly free is to be a slave to Christ, rather than a slave to our desires because Christ sets free in us who we were meant to be.

My point in all of this is fairly simple. Following our impulses and desires isn’t freedom. Those things need to be shaped and transformed or they become self-centered, greedy, and ugly. And having those desires changed doesn’t happen through embracing our “pretend freedom” but submitting to a master, submitting to a path, or as Paul says, “becoming a slave to Christ.” And there is nothing in this world that will set you free for true freedom like Jesus Christ.

Theological Musings

Do you love Jesus, or your theology about Jesus?

It is the deconstructive work that is painful because we have learned to emotionally invest , not in Jesus, but in our theology. A good test to determine whether Jesus or our theology takes precedence is to discern the degree to which we are willing to unlearn something and learn something new about Him. Michael Hardin

Ooh that one hits home. The truth is our theology is never perfect, but are we actually open to having it be changed by God? Are we actually willing to unlearn something, to learn something new?

As I look back on my life as a Christian, pastor, and theology-nerd the amount of stuff that’s changed is dramatic. The question though isn’t how have I changed, but am I willing to continue to be changed by the prompting of God’s Spirit and Truth? Because one thing is for sure, I don’t have it all perfectly together. And I need to invest in Jesus, not in my theological thoughts about Jesus. And the difference between those two things can sometimes be wider than we think.

But what about you? How have you changed and grown in depth with Jesus? How has your theology changed? How is it changing?

Because one thing is sure, we all need to become more like Jesus and that process involves change and it never ends. May we be open to that process and to the prompting of God’s Holy Spirit to conform us more and more into the likeness of Christ.

Theological Musings

Following “God” Is Easy, Following Jesus is Difficult

This quote is just so true:

Jesus is particular, God is generic. It is easy to follow a generic God because you can fill the term “God” with any presupposition you please; it is difficult to follow Jesus because then you have to take seriously his teachings on discipleship, on what exactly following him entails. Michael Hardin

Following “God” is easy, because it is generic. You can be a “spiritual” person, or a person connected to the “energy” of the world or anything like that easily. Because as Michael Hardin points out, you can choose the things that you will follow or connect with. You can create the path you want to follow. Following Jesus though means following his path. The difficulty path of self-denial and other-centred love. The path that values sacrifice for others, and loving at a level that seems ridiculous at times. But that’s the beauty of Christianity; it’s about Christ. It’s about following him, and not giving into the easy things but shooting for the difficult life transforming things. Things that Jesus teaches us to do like:

Love your enemies
Forgive everyone
Judge Not
Fear Not
Worry Not

Each of those things is simple to understand, and will take a life-time to learn to practice. Which is precisely the point. Following Jesus is a path and a journey that takes a lifetime to learn. Learning to love your enemies and that there is no them, only us is incredibly hard. Learning to not let fear and worry have holds in our hearts isn’t a weekend retreat thing. It’s a lifetime thing.

This is why G.K. Chesterton said something truthful in, Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried

But I believe it’s in the trying that life is found. It’s in the striving after following Jesus, his path, and his way of life that life is found.

And my question in all of this is this: if you’re a follower of Jesus are you following his path?

Because as Michael Hardin reminds us, it’s easy to follow “God” following but Jesus means following his path. And his path leads to life, it’s not easy, it’s hard but it’s absolutely worthwhile.

So out of those 5 things listed above (judge not, fear not, worry not, forgive everyone, love your enemies) which one do you need to work on today? Which one do you need to focus on and give some attention to? Which one do you need to try to follow today? Because following Jesus means walking his path, and this is the path he laid down. It’s not an easy one, but it is a life-changing one.

Theological Musings

A Christian is less about avoiding sin, than actively doing God’s will

I want to think a little bit about a quote from Bonhoeffer. Its really deep – okay most of what he writes is deep. But this one quote gets me every time. He says this:

Being a Christian is less about cautiously avoiding sin than about courageously and actively doing God’s will.

And I think that is so true. The reason that I don’t think that “sheltering” or “Christian Bubble” thinking or practice works is because the focus is off. In those paradigms the focus is to avoid sin, to stay safe, to be cautious, and only to be involved with things that are “approved” (by whomever has the authority). And please hear me clearly, I’m certainly not against avoiding sin or avoiding dangerous or compromising situations. My issue is with the central focus.

In the “sheltering” or “Christian Bubble” thinking the central focus is actually sin. Sure the focus is avoiding sin, but the focus is still sin. The entire paradigm is driven by fear (don’t fall into sin) negativity (don’t don’t don’t) and staying “safe”. And this is Bonhoeffer’s point. The central activity of being a Christian isn’t what you are again, staying safe, or of fear of the world.

The central mark of being a Christian is courageously following God.

Focusing on following God needs to be the central defining aspect of a Christians life. And yes that entails avoiding sin, and compromising situations but those are secondary to the primary Christian calling: courageously following Christ.

My point is that Bonhoeffer is right. The focus of Christianity isn’t just about avoiding sin, but courageously doing God’s calling. Christianity isn’t best thought of as a retreat, or evacuation from the world, or a refuge from the world; it is best thought of as an adventure in partnering with God to save the world.

Theological Musings

Being Missional Isn’t Just About Acting, but About Seeing

A lot of discussion about being “missional” focuses on doing. Being missional means partnering in what God is doing all over the world, and in your neighbourhood. Being missional is about remembering that Christians are geared for mission – to serve, love, and change lives. And being missional matters.

Many of the seminars and speakers I’ve heard focus on some great actions to get us out into the community and caring. Things like throwing BBQ’s, being a real-life blessing to those around us, and caring for those who are hurting in our communities. Great stuff.

But I think the real art to being missional isn’t about doing, but about seeing.

The truth is God is already active all around us. God is doing things in our neighbourhoods, families, and communities right now. We follow an active, and dynamic God. A God on the move.

And so while certainly it is important to move and “do mission” with God – the most important practice is to first learn to see where God is moving. We, as Christians, need to become experts at spotting the initial moves of God’s Spirit in our lives, communities, and neighbourhoods. We need to become so in-tune with God’s Spirit that we catch his harmonies in conversations, that we sense his movements in the lives around us.

It’s important to act, but first it’s important to have “eyes to see” where God is already moving.

So how do you do that? Well sometimes the best answer is the simple answer. Start to pray. Pray as you walk around your street. Pray as you talk with neighbours and families. Pray that God will give you eyes to see how he is already moving around you, and how you can join him.

And trust me – this is a prayer God not only will answer, but I think one he wants to answer.