John 1:14 "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us..."

What are you celebrating this Christmas season? Are you glad the year is nearly over? Are you excited over the year-end bonus check you're expecting? Are you happy you finished all your gift shopping early this year? Are the decorations on your house far better than all of your neighbors' decorations? Are you awaiting a special present from your spouse? Do you delight in the family get-togethers or the Christmas office parties?

Have you thought about Jesus any?

Have you recalled that Christmas is about Christ?

Do you know the real reason for this season is to remind all of us that we're sinners... wreteched, poor, miserable, and awaiting the judgment of God (whom we've rebelled against in thought, word and deed)?

That's right. We're sinners (Romans 3:10, 23)... and unless something amazing and miraculous happened, we would all be doomed to death and hell forever for our sins (Romans 6:23 & Revelation 20:15).

But something amazing and miraculous DID happen. Some 2,000 years ago God Himself--the Word (John 1:1-3), the second Person of the holy Trinity--became a man (John 1:14). He was supernaturally conceived in the womb of a young virgin named Mary (Luke 1:35), and He was born for one primary reason: to die in our place for our sins so that we might be forgiven by God (Ephesians 1:7), adopted into His family (Galatians 4:4-5) and so that we might draw near to God (1 Peter 3:18). We were made for His pleasure (Revelation 4:11) and glory (Isaiah 43:7)--but until we trust in Christ we cannot please God (Romans 8:8) or honor Him with our lives (1 Corinthians 10:31).

God came near (Matthew 1:23)... He took on humanity (Philippians 2:6-7)... He was born and laid in a manger (Luke 2:7)... He grew and matured (Luke 2:52)... He preached, taught, and healed (Matthew 4:23)... He proclaimed that God's Kingdom was near and accessible to all who would repent (turn from sin) and trust in the good news about God's Son (Mark 1:14-15)... He suffered and was crucified (Mark 15:15)... He died and was burried (John 19:30, 42)... and on the third day He rose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:4)... 40 days later He ascended into heaven (Acts 1:3, 9)... He sits at the right hand of His Father and reigns on High until He comes again to judge the living and the dead (Hebrews 10:12, 1 Corinthians 15:25, Acts 10:42, 17:31).

Are you prepared to face this Jesus? Have you pondered that Christmas is more than just a day off and a time to give gifts to others? If not... stop, ponder, and pray: "Lord Jesus, forgive me. I am a sinner: I have sinned against You by my selfish actions and attitudes. I have done my own thing, I have gone my own way. But I humbly return to You. I bow before You for You alone are God, and You alone died for my sins on the cross. Have mercy on me, Lord Jesus. Cause me to be born again; come dwell in my heart forever, and transform me into the person You created me to be. In Your holy name I pray. AMEN."

Here is God's word: (Romans 10:9-10) For if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.

FULL DISCLOSURE: Just saying the above prayer or reading it won't save you from sin's penalty (i.e. hell); but if the above prayer truly expresses your personal desire to turn away from sin and trust in the Person and work of Jesus Christ, you will be saved--God said so. But only you can repent and believe. The prayer is simply the fruit of your faith... it is the expression of your repentance and belief in God's Word.

This Christmas receive the best gift you could possible receive: the gift of eternal life. It's free to all who receive Christ by faith.

Here's hoping you have a truly blessed Christmas.

A friendly (much needed) reminder to us church-going folk

As you know, if you have visited my blog in the past, I will occassionally post a blog I have read myself. Today's example is a much needed reminder for all of us who attend church regularly--especially if we have children. The blog is entitled: 5 Ways to Make Your Kids Hate Church (By: Thomas Weaver).

It's brief but potent... enjoy!

http://theresurgence.com/2011/03/26/5-ways-to-make-your-kids-hate-church

As Thanksgiving Draws Near...

1 Thessalonians 5:18 Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Hebrews 13:15 Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.

Psalm 136:26 Give thanks to the God of heaven, for His steadfast love endures forever.

Psalm 118:28 You are my God, and I will give You thanks; You are my God, and I will exalt You.

Colossians 1:12 Give thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

Psalm 100:4 Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise! Give thanks to Him; bless His name!

Revelation 7:11-12 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, "Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen."

As Thanksgiving draws near, in the midst of family traditions, wonderful food, recreation and relaxation... please don't forget to give thanks to the One who formed you in your mother's womb (Psalm 139:13), who sustains you each day (Psalm 3:5), who gives you the ability to make wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18), who provides your daily bread (Matthew 6:11), who blesses you with good things (Psalm 103:5), who graciously redeemed your life from the pit (Job 33:28), who keeps you from turning away from Him (Jeremiah 32:40), and who one day will make you like His beloved Son (Philippians 3:21 & 1 John 3:2). He is worthy of our thanks and praise. May we give thanks to our awesome God--Father, Son, and Spirit--who alone deserves all glory. AMEN.

PAIN... does it drive you to God, or away from Him?

PAIN. It's not a fun word to write or read--but it's even less enjoyable to experience personally. But even though we tend to avoid pain as much as we can, the truth is all of us face it at one time or another. It may be emotional pain, physical pain... maybe even the pain of feeling far away from God. In those moments we want relief. In those moments we want the pain to disappear. In those times, we typically long for the circumstances of life we knew just moments before the pain started.

Recently, my oldest brother, Jeff, lost his vision in his right eye. He was driving down the road and all of a sudden he could not see. WOW! I can hardly imagine that experience--the terror that must have stricken his heart/mind in those moments. He had emergency surgery (and has had another surgery since then), but as of right now his vision is still very compromised. [If you're reading this, may I humbly implore you to pray for Jeff's healing--that his sight might be restored completely. THANK YOU!] How does one deal with an experience like that? How should we respond to the pain in our lives?

One of the resources I use for my own personal devotions is a magazine called Tabletalk (produced by Ligonier Ministries), and in this month's edition they have printed an interview with one of my favorite persons: Joni Eareckson Tada. If you don't know her story, type her name into Google and discover an amazing woman of God. Some 44 years ago (at age 17), Joni dove into the Chesapeake Bay (without checking the depth of the water) and struck her head against something hard. Her neck snapped--and on that day Joni became a quadriplegic. As a child, I can remember my parents taking me to see her life's story at the movie theater (Joni the Movie), and ever since that time Joni's life has both humbled me and amazed me.

The interviewer asked Joni this question, "Your most recent book is A Place of Healing: Wrestling with the Mysteries of Suffering, Pain, and God's Sovereignty. Can you tell us why you wrote the book?" Her reply was: "For more than ten years I have dealt with chronic pain (very unusual for a quadriplegic like me). Piled on top of my quadriplegia, at times it seemed too much to bear. So I went back and reexamined my original views on divine healing to see what more I could learn. What I discovered was that God still reserves the right to heal or not to heal as He sees fit. And rather than try to frantically escape the pain, I relearned the timeless lesson of allowing my suffering to push me deeper into the arms of Jesus. I like to think of my pain as a sheepdog that keeps snapping at my heels to drive me down the road to Calvary, where, otherwise, I would not be naturally inclined to go."

Trust me, if you've never listened to Joni speak or if you have never read anything she has written, she really has learned a lot from her experiences with pain and suffering... but the bottom line is that she chose to allow her pain to drive her towards Christ rather than away from Him.

This has become my prayer for myself, my brother, and others who are experiencing great pain in their lives. Yes, I do pray for God to mercifully remove the pain--but I trust God's wisdom, love, and goodness enough (after 20 years of walking with Him) to know that if He chooses to allow the pain to remain, His desire is for that pain to drive His children toward Him, not away from Him.

Do you remember when you were a child and you would fall and scrape your knee? What was your initial inclination? You wanted your Daddy to come, scoop you up into his arms and hold you close, right? Well, your heavenly Father wants you to have the same response in the midst of your adult (REAL) pain. Run to your Father. Let Him love you, hold you, and comfort you. The pain might not go away immediately... but the peace you will experience in your Father's arms will be something you can't find anywhere else in the world. Joni has dealt with her pain for 44 years, and yet, God's grace and peace have been sufficient to satisfy her soul (even in the midst of great pain and suffering). My prayer is that God's grace and peace will be enough for you too--trust in Him today and always.

The Gospel and Racism

Racism. It's not a pretty word. It creates pictures in my mind of hatred, violence, misunderstanding, etc. Sadly, we all can be tempted or trained to act in a racist fashion.

I remember in 6th grade reading "The Diary of Anne Frank", and discussing the Holocaust in class. Soon my friends--who knew that my parents were born in Germany and came to America from Germany--looked at me with eyes full of disdain. They failed to realize that at age 12 I couldn't have possibly killed any Jewish people during the Holocaust... nor did my parents (who were also just children at that time). And yet, simply because I was "German", I was being pre-judged.

Recently, a documentary featuring John Piper was made. It chronicles his own battle with racism and how the Gospel of Jesus Christ radically changed his attitudes about racism. For the sake of unity in the body of Christ, and for the sake of loving our neighbor as ourself, I encourage you to take 20 minutes to view it.

http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justintaylor/2011/09/30/john-pipers--bloodlines--documentary/


May God change our hearts and minds to see correctly that we all are a part of the human race, and enable us to love one another even as we have been loved by our gracious and benevolent God and Savior. Amen.

Water Baptism 101

Have you been baptized in water? How old were you when you were baptized? Do you remember the experience? Did you decide to be baptized or was the decision made by someone close to you (e.g. your parents, grandparents, etc.)? Were you sprinkled, dipped all the way under, or poured on?

These may seem like odd questions--but they're not as odd as you may think. Because baptism is understood (theologically) in various ways in various denominations these matters are not necessarily inconsequential. My hope today is to supply a relatively brief summary of water baptism as I understand it according to the New Testament; and to challenge you to consider what the Scriptures say about baptism. If you have never been baptized, I also encourage you to prayerfully consider being obedient to the command of Christ.

WHO: Who should be baptized? Anyone (male or female, young or old, black or white, etc.) who has personally repented of his or her sins and placed his or her faith in the Person and (saving) work of Jesus Christ alone for the free gift of salvation (forgiveness of sins, the gift of eternal life, the promise of heaven, etc.). In other words, every disciple (i.e. follower) of Jesus Christ is to be baptized in water. [See John 3:16; Acts 2:38; Ephesians 2:8-10; Matthew 28:19]

WHAT: What is water baptism? It is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I understand that many denominations practice or encourage sprinkling water or pouring water over the heads of those being baptized (whether child or adult), but all of my research and understanding of the Greek language has informed me that the Greek word baptizo means to dip, immerse, or plunge. In fact, the Greek word is used in non-Christian literature to mean sink (e.g. a sunken ship under water) or soak (e.g. to submerge cloth into a dye). Therefore, it seems best (in my humble opinion) to immerse a disciple in (under) water rather than apply water to the head (by pouring or sprinkling). At the same time, while I believe in and practice full immersion, I do not believe the mode of baptism is an issue Christians should divide over. I can certainly call my friends who sprinkle or pour "brothers and sisters in Christ"... we just agree to disagree over the mode of baptism. [See Matthew 3:16; Mark 1:5; John 3:23; Acts 8:38--these texts indicate the need for much water, which at least suggests the mode of immersion rather than sprinkling or pouring... Matthew 28:19 notes that disciples are to be baptized in the name of the Trinity]

WHEN: When should a disciple be baptized? As soon as possible after a person has repented and believed on Christ (i.e. once a person has been converted). It is sad in our day that so many Christians either put off being baptized in water, or think it is unimportant. The very first commandment to be obeyed by any new disciple of Christ is this: be baptized! [See Acts 2:38; Acts 10:47-48; Acts 16:33; Acts 22:16]

WHERE: Where should someone be baptized? Does it have to be in a church? Is baptism about a special/holy/sacred place? That does not seem to be the thrust of the New Testament's teaching on the matter. I think you can be baptized in a pool, in a river, in an ocean, in a hot tub, in a baptistry, in a pond, etc. The point is BE BAPTIZED in obedience to Christ's word. [See Matthew 3:6; John 3:23; Acts 8:36]

HOW: How should a person be baptized? I think there is some freedom to be observed here. The Bible says "be baptized", it says "be baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit", and since baptism is a passive experience for the convert (i.e. he or she is placed under the water by someone else), someone needs to baptize them. So, let me try and tackle two questions: 1) Who should do the baptizing, and 2) In what manner should a person be baptized? First, I think the best person to do the baptizing (i.e. the one actively placing the convert under the water) is the one who led the convert to faith in Christ. If that person is unavailable or physically unable to do so, certainly it seems ideal or logical for another Christian or church leader (pastor, elder, staff member, etc.) to adminster the ordinance. Worse case scenario, I'm even liberal enough to think a non-Christian could do the baptizing--assuming the heart of the person being baptized is right (i.e. he or she has truly repented and trusted Christ by faith). I think the point is the disciple's obedient heart not all of the external peripherals (though I know many in the body of Christ at large may disagree with me on that point). Second, I think the fine details of how the bapstim occurs are also open for debate/discussion. Should the person be immersed once or three times? Should the person be immersed face down or face up? Is it absolutely essential for every part of the body or clothing (as well as every single hair) to be fully submerged? These are matters that legalists often fight over, but which I give very little attention to. At my home church, we typically stand next to the convert being baptized, ask him to plug his nose, we place one hand on the person's back and one hand on the arm of the indivdidual, tip them back under the water and then raise them up. Is that the RIGHT way to do it? I don't know if it is or not, but that's how I have baptized many people. I don't think the New Testament gives us a manual on the "how to's"... it just commands us to baptize disciples.

WHY: Why should a person be baptized? Well, I think the Bible gives several reasons. First, a person is baptized to be obedient to Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:19). Second, a person is baptized to express his or her repentant and faith-filled appeal to God for salvation. Many people speak of "The Sinner's Prayer" when leading a person to faith in Christ, but it seems more biblical to me to instruct people to call upon God in repentant faith while standing in the waters of baptism (see Acts 22:16 & 1 Peter 3:21). This is not to say that a person can't call out to God in faith prior to beng baptized in water--I just think water baptism is the "God-ordained" place to express one's repentance and faith in Christ, and it should ideally occur as soon as a person has decided to follow Christ. Lastly, the Bible also says that baptism is where a convert identifies himself as a follower of Christ (Galatians 3:27). The person who is baptized wants to be treated or regarded just as Christ was treated and regarded in this world (1 John 4:17). What's more, the disciple who is baptized wants to identify with Christ's death and resurrection--and baptism beautifully portrays our death to our old life (as we are placed under the water) and being raised to walk in newness of life in Christ (as we come up out of the water) [see Romans 6:3-4].

So, now that you know a bit more about baptism... let me ask you: Have you been baptized in water? If not, why not? Repent, put your faith in Christ, and be baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. You will be [eternally] glad you did.

Something to Think About

Recently, as I was visiting some of my favorite blog sites, I came across a fellow pastor's (my age) blog where he was reviewing some of the questions he posed to his own congregation after a message on "mission" (see Matthew 28:19-20).

This grabbed my attention since I recently reminded our own church family about being obedient to the Great Commission. His questions forced me to ponder, think, and examine myself... and well, I guess I thought his questions might be good for you to ponder and think about.

So, here they are (in no particular order)... [I'm adding some Scripture references too]:

1) Are you a disciple of Jesus? (see Luke 9:23-26; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:8)

2) Are you growing? (see 2 Peter 3:18; Ephesians 4:15; Colossians 1:10; 2 Thessalonians 1:3)

3) Are you pouring into other people? (see 2 Timothy 2:2)

4) Do you have just as much outflow of the gospel and teaching as you have intake (see Mark 16:15 & James 1:25)

5) Are you drinking deeply of Jesus and talking to others about Him? (see John 4:14, 6:35, 17:3 and Matthew 9:9-12)

6) Or do you just come to church because you like the moral conservative base?

My humble thanks to Pastor Matt Chandler (The Village Church; Dallas, TX) for these very good reminders/questions. May we all be challenged to be Christians on mission (i.e. fulfilling the Great Commission through our lifestyle, intentional witness, and financial investment of global missions).