Drop Your Stone and Pray - The Right Response to Sin

I recently read of a local pastor who had been accused of a sinful and shameful act. This man was a leader, a teacher, a councilor, and a theologian lead astray by sexual temptation.  I can hear the murmurs of unbelievers who caught wind of the story, mocking the man, mocking Christianity, and generally using the account as an argument against God.  Not surprising because the unbeliever often looks for a slip of the tongue, an inconsistency in moral conduct, or hypocrisy to say, "Look, he's no different than anyone else; maybe even worse!"

Maybe you know this story or one like it.  Maybe you had feelings of disgust, anger, sadness, bitterness, or judgement.  What should the believer's response be to the sin of a fellow believer, even when the sin is particularly offensive or egregious? Not to be cliche-ish, but WWJD?  (For those not from this planet - What Would Jesus Do?)

Now let me first say that there are earthy consequences for breaking the law and for sin in general but this is not about what happens in the court of law but what happens in the human heart.  What is the internal dialogue that goes on in your head when you hear a story of someone else's fall? What is the external dialogue that happens as you discuss the story with your friends and family?  What is whispered from ear to ear down the length of the church pew and at the church's Wednesday evening potluck? "Can you believe . . .?"  "He seemed like such a nice man."

So, did you pick up your stone yet?

There was a woman "caught in adultery" who was brought to Jesus by the Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees.  They "made her stand before the group."  I assume "caught in adultery" means that someone walked in on the act which, I imagine, was quite embarrassing but then making her stand before the group was humiliating.  Deserved?  Maybe yes, maybe no but how did Jesus respond when the Pharisees asked him if she should be stoned, as required by Old Testament Law?  With his finger writing in the dust of the ground, Jesus said, "Let anyone of you who is without sin, be the first to throw a stone at her."  One by one the stones fell to the ground as they walked away.

If you have a stone in your hand, you might want to loosen the grip just a little.

In Luke chapter 6 Jesus said, "Do not judge and you will not be judged." Then, in chapter 7,  he followed with "For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged."

Loosening the grip a little more?

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus told his followers, "You have heard that is was said to the people long ago, 'You shall not murder and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment." and "anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart."

Feel the stone starting to slip from your hand?

The Apostle Paul will pry the last two fingers from your stone with these words: "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners - of whom I am the worst.  But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life." Herod Antipas (who beheaded John the Baptist), Cain (who killed his brother Abel), Jezebel (who sacrificed babies to the idol Baal and murdered many prophets), yet Paul says twice that he was the WORST OF SINNERS! Thud! Your stone should be on the ground.

Now within Christian leadership there is accountability and consequences for overt sin and rebellion which the elders will hopefully handle biblically with love and grace through prayer both to protect the flock as well as to bring the straying back in line through repentance.  Jesus was clear that leaders and teachers would be held to a higher standard and Paul taught us that God "chastens those he loves." But, this post is not about consequences as much as is is about the hearts of fellow believers toward the sinner. Hearts of judgment, bitterness, hatred, or disgust versus hearts of grace, compassion, combined with prayers for repentance, healing, and restoration.  God says his "grace is sufficient" for us, for little sins and for big ones.  I pray for this man, for his family, for his church, for his school, for those he offended, and for you and me (that we would remember without the Cross of Christ we too would be condemned).

Peace,

David

The God on the Shelf - Who is God to You?

Who is God to you?  Really.  I mean on any given day at any particular moment who is God to you.  Now the reality is that God is who God is regardless of what you think of him but who he is to you determines how you live and how you die. You might initially give me a laundry list of the usual Christian responses:

"He is my heavenly Father."
"He is my friend."
"He is my guide."
"He is my Lord."

I'd like to give you a picture of what I believe most of us have done with God and maybe what you're doing right now.  Be careful not to put up your shield of defense right away. Instead meditate on this and let it do its work in you.  I think we all can see a little of ourselves in this.

God is often a god on the shelf; a definable, compartmentalized, usable god.  We put him on three different shelves depending on where we need him.

First, is what I see as the work shelf.  It's like a shelf in a workshop, carrying a cordless drill, a belt sander, and a couple hammers. Oh yeah, and a tiny god. He sits on our work shelf silent and lifeless until we have a job for him to do. We go about our days and weeks with little or no acknowledgment  of his presence and we rarely if ever look at him in awe of who he is.  That is, until we need a little financial help, maybe maybe we're in legal trouble, or in a relationship struggle.  It's time to go to the shelf, dust him off and see it he can get the job done.  We cry out, "Why God? Why this or that and why me?  Help me please!" When the situation passes we place him back on the shelf in case we need him in the future.  Off we go,

The second shelf is more like a mantle above the fireplace.  It's a place where we keep our trophies and various awards.  It's the shelf of religiosity of pride.  It's where we place God to show others that we have him. It may look like a weekly trip to church where we really don't meet God or truly worship him. It may look like the donations we can tell our accountant about at tax time.  However, like the god of the workshop, this god is also lifeless and doesn't play any real part in the minute by minute reality of our lives.

The last shelf is like a shelf in the medicine cabinet or vanity. Like the mantle place god this is also a god of religion but based less on pride and more on guilt.  We look in the mirror and see a blemish a rash or a sore.  We are sick or just don't look very good. We open the mirror pull out the little Bandaid god or the makeup god and cover up the blemish.  This god doesn't heal the wound or make us younger, it just makes us look better.  Then back in the cabinet, on the shelf and the mirror closes.

Before you say, "Not me!!" think carefully about your typical day.  How does it start?  Does it start in prayer, in worship, in acknowledging Him?  How do you make the hundreds of decisions you make every day?  Is God  . . . GOD . . . in your life?  I mean a living, all powerful, all knowing, ever present, eternal, Holy, loving, creator GOD in your life?  Because whether we act like it, live like it, or acknowledge it, that's who he is.

God loves you (cordless drills, trophies, and mascara can't love). God can do amazing things in you, through you, and for you.  He is El Shaddai "God All Mighty", Elohim "God the Creator".  You see a hammer can't create.  It can only create if it is carried.  God needs no help.  He is there to help in times of need but not as a part time god on a shelf.  He is Yahweh-rapha "The God who Heals".  He heals our insides and outsides, not just covering up the wound but healing it. Jesus died so that we might have life.  He made blind eyes to see, deaf ears to hear, lame legs to walk, and brought the dead to life. If God has at times been a shelf god in your life (as he has in mine) ask him to forgive you and walk with him in a new way today.

Peace, David

Seeing vs. Perceiving and Hearing vs. Understanding ~ Turn and be Healed

So there was this kid who was playing videos games when his mother asks him if his homework is done. No response. She asks him again, this time a bit louder. No response. Finally, she claps her hands and asks him a third time, "Johnny! (name changed to protect the guilty) is your homework finished?" His eyes never leaving the screen and as his fingers continuing to control Luke Sky-walker's light saber, his head nods up and down. Mom, then opens the folder to see the blanks of the homework page just that . . . blank! Ah, hearing but not listening.

There is a big difference between hearing and listening and between listening and understanding. There is also a big difference between seeing and perceiving. I think that the difference lies in the wanting. Kids hear what they want to hear and see what they want to see. They will hear "yes" before "no" and will see the ice cream behind two packages of frozen peas but not the dirty underwear in the middle of the bedroom floor. We want what we want but not always what we need.

I have had so many discussions with people lately who are struggling with life and with faith. They seek wisdom from people they look up to and from books on the shelf. Some do church and some do not but often the result is the same, struggle, struggle, struggle. Some spend their time trying to disprove God while others complain that they just can't hear him in their lives. If any of these sound like you, I think this post is for you. I want to start by sharing a personal testimony and a little truth from the Word.

There was a time when I was religious on the outside. I went to church, prayed, put my money in the offering plate, served on a committee or two, and called myself a Christian. Although I lived a sinful life, it was easily rationalized and compartmentalized. I could argue that the Bible was just a book written by men so it didn't really pertain to me. God was nice and he certainly understood my needs and my desires. He knew I was basically good and certainly better than most of the heathens around me. I had some head knowledge about this God and this Jesus but it really meant little to me. When I struggled I'd complained to God that it was his fault because he could have told me what to do or just prevented the problem in the first place. When my life got bad enough I would just deny God's existence all together. I looked to others who lived like I did so that I could justify my actions and my thoughts. I read books that did the same. I did some inward seeking because surly I could heal myself. Me, Me, Me, Pride, Pride, Pride. I saw what I wanted to see, heard what I wanted to hear, and did what I wanted to do. And God let me wander in the desert until my feet burned and my thirst was unbearable. I lived the promise of Proverbs 16:18, "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall."

Do you really want to know God? I mean do you really want to know regardless of where it brings you? I think for me the answer at one time was really, no. I wanted to know God as long as it didn't cramp my style or make me set aside some firmly held beliefs about the world and about man. I wanted a God that would take care of my needs, tolerate my sin, and protect me from all harm. I acted like I wanted to know but didn't really. How about you? Are you doing some religion, some church, some youth group stuff, some rituals, and some repetitious and heartless prayer? If you are hungry for the truth of God and humbled before him, desiring his will in you life then you can sign off and catch us back here next week. If that doesn't really describe you right now then lets go a bit further.

Two men hung on crosses, their lives ebbing away. In between them a third man hung, a man named Jesus. One man mocked and jeered Jesus and, in his pride, ignored his own guilt and refused to believe in God's one and only Son. The truth was before him but he wanted it not. The second man became humble and admitted his guilt and understood the justice of his own death. He wanted to know the truth and to be accepted by Jesus who claimed to be the way and the truth and the life; this Jesus who said that the truth would set men free. "We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong. Then he said, 'Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.' Jesus answered him, 'I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.'"

Jesus stood before the Roman Governor of Judea, a man named Pontious Pilate, and Pilate asked him if he was a king. Jesus told him he was right in saying that he was a king. He said, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me." Pilate then asked, "What is truth?" But he didn't stick around for the answer. He was standing inches away from the truth, from God with us, and he walked away.

Paul spoke to the Jews who had questioned him about this Jesus and who refused to believe. He quoted Isaiah saying, "For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them."

Do you need healing? I did. I pray that God would help your eyes to be open and your ears to hear so that your heart can understand and be healed. If you want to know the truth you have to seek it with humility. God's Word tells us that God accepts a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart. I have to admit the process was sort of painful but his love and grace made it worth it. What a ride it's been! God is good all the time!~

I want to thank everyone who has sent emails and comments to the posts. We have had people from 23 different countries join us here and hope that you all have found food for your souls.

Peace in Christ,

David and The I-61 Project