You live in a ‘what?’

Two days ago, I wrote that Paul was a tent maker. Afterward, it occurred to me that his spiritual calling was not so dissimilar. In writing to the Corinthians, Paul said we are living in a tent (this body) that will be replaced by a permanent spiritual house. Paul may have been a tent maker by day, but he taught house building by night.

Coincidentally, Jesus is called the architect of our faith (Heb. 12:2). And our inner man is called God’s temple (1 Cor. 6:19). But more to the point of this post, Paul says we are God's ‘building,’ which is a verb (not a noun), meaning and emphasizing the “process of building.”

The basic idea in 2 Cor. 5:1 is that God is building a completely new house for the believer’s spirit, “a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” What a difference it would make in our daily choices if we had a revelation of this truth: In cooperation with God, we are now building the house we will live in forever. 

Where are the Tears?

“While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could rescue him from death” (Heb. 5:7). 

Of Andrew Bonar, a Scottish minister used mightily of God during the great Revival of 1839-1840, it is said, he cared, wept and prayed like Jesus.

In the 17th century, Samuel Rutherford, said, “A bed watered with tears, a throat dry with praying, eyes a fountain of tears for the sins of the land are rarely to be found among us.”
 
Recently, David Smithers of the “Awake and Go Prayer Global Network,” wrote, “Far too often our own eyes are dry because we are blind to the needs around us... blinded by the temporal, we can no longer see the holiness of heaven and horrors of hell.” (edited)

Footprint

My carbon footprint is the amount of the earth’s resources I will consume in my lifetime. It’s a negative. On the other hand, what I have given ‘in time’ will leave behind my life's footprint. That’s a positive.

Every year, millions of tourists travel to our Nation’s capital to see the monuments to larger-than-life men and women whose influence lives beyond their mortality—their footprint. But is this appetite for perpetuity an evil part of human nature? Not at all. In fact, it is a divine quality turned inward. Solomon said, “God has put eternity in our hearts.” The natural man tries to satisfy this through immortality. But “immortality” —never dying— is not the same as “eternity” — always living.

None of us knows what footprint we will leave behind. But Jesus did. And though His feet may have touched the same ground we walk on, the footprint he left behind transcends time and space. He is not immortal; He is eternal. And now, as we walk with Him, each of us is a part of His footprint on the earth.

Is the Afterlife Just an Afterthought?

Thanksgiving is over; Christmas will be here and gone before we know it. Life moves on; time flies…

The Bible tells us that our days on earth are short: "We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone so soon without a trace" (1 Chron 29:15 NLT).

Paul says we all will give an account for our time on earth—whether we were storing up things ‘in time,’ or saving up ‘eternal’ treasures. The measure of our worth will not be our cleverness, charisma or competence, but our character.

Paul compares building a character to building a house (1 Cor 3). Either we’re building a house of eternal worth or a house that will perish with time. Someone has said the Lord inspects our house by walking through it and throwing matches. Will the house you are building survive the test of holy fire? Sadly, too many believers live as though life on this earth is all there is. And the afterlife is just an afterthought.

One Olympian Wins the Gold and an Eternal Reward

The Olympics may be over, but the rewards live on—in time. But there is at least one Olympian whose reward has eternal value—American David Boudia, a born-again believer who won a gold medal in diving competition, and gave God the glory. What makes David’s feat especially outstanding is that in the qualifying rounds on Friday, he came in 18th place—dead last.  But in the finals on Saturday, his diving was gold worthy.

When David Boudia competed in the Olympics in 2008 in Beijing, he says, “Diving was my God. It was a forced competition. I needed to do well there if I wanted to do well later in life.” Then David’s coach led him to Christ. This is David’s testimony:

I started reading scriptures about what it meant to live for God’s glory. Competition started to look a lot different. Competition is about feeding your selfish needs. You start to worry about what happens if you don’t win. You start to fear man because you want praise. You start thinking about how winning will lead to more money.  So now when I go into competition, I take my thoughts captive and use God’s Word to fight that battle. It’s totally freeing when I stay in tune with scripture. I don’t have to worry if I miss a dive. If I do well, that’s awesome. I praise Him. If I don’t do well, praise Him even more. 

"Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better,

promising benefits in this life and in the life to come" (1 Tim. 4:8).

Global Weirdness

The hottest summer on record is causing even sensible people to wonder, ‘Has global warming arrived?’ A brand new book called, “Global Weirdness: Severe Storms, Deadly Heat Waves, Relentless Drought, Rising Seas and the Weather of the Future,” has advanced the debate. The dry summer of 2012 is likely to spark heated discussions in the 2012 presidential race.

Should this be a hot topic for Christians? “Aren’t we called to be stewards of God’s creation?” you ask. The short answer is ‘yes.’ But the long answer must include an eternal view. Two thousand years ago Peter warned of global warming. “The present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, in which the heavens will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works burned up. Then, a new heaven and earth” (2 Pet 3:7-10, ed.).

Peter's next words are key in answering our question. “Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness? Be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of the Lord” (2 Pet 3:11-12, ed.).  Peter emphasizes issues of the heart before the environment.  But that doesn't give us permission to abuse the earth while we're here.  It's not ungodly to recycle!

The Day She Ran Out of Wine

There are two sides to every story, right? Think about the story of the wedding at Cana from the hostess’ point of view—possibly one of the worst, most humiliating days of her life—the day she ran out of wine (John 2). This first installment of Jesus’ ministry is followed by many such others—of people running out of something and His offer of fulfillment.

It's pretty elementary. Nothing lasts.  Only Jesus. The gospel stories illustratae this fact.  For example, the woman at the well was daily running out of water; Jesus offered Himself as living water (Jn. 4:10). When the crippled man sitting by the pool of Bethesda had run out of hope (John 5), Jesus restored his health and his hope. And when the multitudes ran out of food, Jesus offered Himself as the bread of life (John 6-7). The message is that His supply of grace, love, hope, joy, peace, and power will never run short: “out of His fullness we have all received” (John 1:16).

But Jesus patiently waits until our natural talents and abilities run their course. That’s when we discover that in the fullness of Jesus we are complete (Col. 2:9-10). I think the best day of the Cana Wedding hostess’ life was that day she ran out of wine.

What’s Holding You Up?

After writing yesterday’s post about ‘things,’ it occurred to me that if you let go of your things, if you had no thing, you would have “nothing.” It’s not easy letting go of our things, because we think the things we possess and the things we do are who we are. Without these things, we believe we are nothings!  That's what holds up our progress in faith.

We hold tightly the belief that our things are what holds us together.  So God holds up His Son as an example of one who wouldn't be held back, by things of the world.  It behooves us to consider what things are holding our attention, and may be holding us down.  We need to make an honest assessment of what prevents us from laying hold of the very truth that holds the key to life.  In the following verses, look at how Paul approached his holdings.

“I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. That means I examine every "thing" carefully, holding fast to that which is good (godliness) since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." (Phil. 3:12; 1Thess. 5:21; 1 Tim 4:8). Paul would let nothing (no thing) hold him up.

Remember the Great Reward

Is God allowing you to go through hard times? Then now is a great time to learn endurance! Don't give up! Don’t avoid it! Endurance is learned by enduring, not by avoiding it. How could Paul have said “I exult [revel, rejoice] in my tribulations?” Because Paul knew it was not only God’s way of building his character, he knew it was producing a great eternal reward.

In case you’re wondering if this is my automatic reaction to hardship, the answer is a resounding ‘no.’ It is not natural to welcome hardship nor to revel in our hard times. Avoiding hardship is what natural people do. But you and I are not “natural,” but “spiritual” persons. And in order to welcome hardships, and even more, to have joy in them requires a “supernatural” mindset—to see God’s great reward.

“Think back on those early days when you first learned about Christ… Remember how you remained faithful even though it meant terrible suffering. You suffered along with those who were thrown into jail, and when all you owned was taken from you, you accepted it with joy. You knew there were better things waiting for you that will last forever. So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God's will. Then you will receive all that he has promised” (Hebrews 10:32, 34-36).

Are you Unprofitable?

It occurred to me the other day how ironic it is that churches are called “non-profit" organizations. What a gross mis-characterization!  If there is any place on earth that is profitable, it is a good Bible-teaching church.  I guess it all depends on how you define "profit!"

Paul said “All Scripture is inspired by God and [is] profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). And as if to underscore the materialistic, inside-out, upside-down values of our culture, Paul says: “godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come” (1 Timothy 4:8). Then, the third (and only other) time this word is used, Paul says believers “will devote themselves to doing good [because] these things are profitable…” (Tit. 3:8).

What greater indication is there of a maligned Christian culture: even the sovereign USA characterizes our churches as "non-profits"—unprofitable! Wow! Do they have it wrong!

Can you see the other side of suffering?

Unfortunately, many Christians see suffering as a sign that they're out of God's will—that something is wrong. But because we live in a ‘fallen’ world, we suffer. (That’s not to say that we don’t bring suffering on ourselves by our own bad choices.) But Paul gives us this principle of correlation: “All those who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12).

Not understanding this, many Christians try to avoid anything that causes them discomfort, even when it could be that God wants them to endure some distress for His sake. It would seem that God is more concerned with our eternal rewards than we are. “If we suffer with Him we will reign with Him;” and to do that, we have “need of endurance” (2 Tim. 4:7; Heb. 10:36).

Now you will probably never be thrown to the lions for your faith or have your head chopped off and put on a platter, but you may be ridiculed by unbelievers. Or, surprisingly, because of your single-mindedness, you may even be misunderstood and maligned by less ardent Christians. But one thing is sure: if you seek to live a godly life, you will become familiar with suffering.

Nevertheless, when you endure, you will share in the same glorious reward as Daniel or John the Baptist or Paul. The Bible assures us that our present sufferings are “producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison” (2 Cor. 4:17).

What do PCs, Typewriters, and Dinosaurs have in Common?

Things are moving too fast. Every year newer, faster digital devices replace the old ones. Sitting at Starbucks, with my 3-year old laptop, next to young people with I-Pads and Tablets makes me feel self-conscious. I imagine they must be thinking, “He’s just an old man; what do you expect?”

The first personal computer I ever bought sits on the book shelf in my library. I just can’t bring myself to throw it out—after all, it's an antique—an original Apple Macintosh (circa, 1984). It’s now a dinosaur, of course. But undoubtedly, the laptop from which I am writing at this very moment will also be a dinosaur in twenty-seven years. It’s only a matter of time before the PC goes the way of typewriters, cassette recorders, and 8-tracks, as the sale of  hand-held mobile devices already outpaces them.  And you can bet the PC's days are numbered by the invention of “gizmos” that Steve Jobs and the like haven’t even dreamed up yet!

So what is my point? Everything in the world is passing away (John 2:17). Everything has a limited existence on this Earth. Nothing lasts forever. Our life on earth is a temporary assignment. “Our days are numbered… we are here on earth for just a little while” (Psalm 39:4; 119:19). Let us, then, “fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen; for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal" (2 Cor. 4:18).

I may run out of time, but I have lots of eternity

I am so busy all the time—usually thinking about how little of it I have, or how fast it is going—I forget I am eternal. How much ‘time’ do you spend thinking about ‘eternity?’

When we get tired of waiting, we may say it feels like an eternity. In other words, we think of eternity as an extremely long time. But eternity actually isn't a long time at all. It has nothing to do with time. And it is more of a sphere than place. And most significantly, it is where God lives. “For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy” (Isaiah 57:15).

Jesus told us “In my Father’s house are many mansions” (John 14:2). The word “mansions” is an unfortunate translation, found only in the King James Version. It literally means abode (dwelling). The word appears only one other place in the Bible.  Later in John's gospel, Jesus tells his disciples, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word; and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our abode with him” (14:23).

God is eternal, lives in eternity, and (amazingly) dwells in our hearts.  Now can you understand Solomon's words: God has “put eternity in your hearts.”   (Ecc. 3:11).  That should be reassuring to us who are concerned about running out of time.  More importantly, thinking "eternal" will certainly put a proper perspective on what happens "in time."

Only a Matter of Time

Some are saying it’s only a matter of time before the economy improves. Others are saying it is only a matter of time before the government goes bankrupt. Some are saying it’s only a matter of time before Iran has the nuclear capability to blow up Israel. Israel is saying it’s only a matter of time before it blows up Iran’s nuclear facilities. Some are saying it’s only a matter of time before we can safely leave Afghanistan in the hands of their own security forces. The Taliban are saying it’s only a matter of time before we get tired and go home and they retake the country.

In this world, time is all anyone has—they live in it, worry about it, are limited by it.  No one can change the past or control the future. It is indeed a worrisome condition—this thing called time.  But the one who is "born from above" lives outside of time (John 3:3).

Jesus left eternity and came to live in time. But He was never controlled by it.  He said it was not only pointless, but sinful, to worry about time—past, present or future. “Are there not twelve hours in a day?” (John 11:9) “Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Mat. 6:34) means there is a daily quota of trouble. And His assurance is that our Father will never allow us to exceed our quota.  But if we carry yesterday or tomorrow with us into TODAY we will certainly exceed it. We would be wise to follow Jesus’ pattern of living each day as a unit in and of itself, living in the ever-present, eternal reality of TODAY (Hebrews 3:7). To us, it is not a matter of time, but a matter of eternity.

Investing in the Future

I’ve not posted on this blog since last Monday. As you know from my previous postings, I have returned to school (Liberty University Online) to get my Masters in Theology. (I want to be able to teach at a Bible College.) For some of you this may beg the question why someone at retirement age would be going back to school to start a new career. My answer: Is it ever too late to invest in eternity?

Maybe you haven’t thought of it, but every day you are deciding how to invest your life. And whatever you invest in has the promise of a treasure in heaven that is waiting for you—like making deposits to your eternal "bank" account. Jesus said "Don't invest in things on earth where they can be eaten by moths and get rusty, and where thieves break in and steal. Invest in things in heaven, where they will never become moth-eaten or rusty and where they will be safe from thieves” (Mat. 6:19-20, author’s translation!).

As you make important educational, career, and life choices, don’t forget you are making deposits into eternity. You have one life to live. It can only be invested once. “Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? ... Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days” (Is. 55:2; Ecclesiastes 11:1). If you don’t hear from me as often these days, don’t worry—I’m probably at the "bank," making some deposits.

What is the Breakfast of Champions?

Wheaties? Not necessarily. However, studies do show that children who eat breakfast do better in school. And commons sense indicates the same for adults. The human body is a machine that needs fuel to start the day. And substituting a cup of coffee and a pastry for a protein-rich breakfast isn’t likely to keep you from that mid-morning slump.

Just as we need to fuel our bodies—which are temporal, we need to fuel our spirit and souls—which are eternal. Job said, "I have esteemed the Words of His mouth more than my necessary food" (Job 23:12). Why do we think we can begin the day without feeding our spirit and soul? "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God" (Matt. 4:4).

In the morning (12:8), God spoke to Ezekiel, saying: Son of man, eat what I am giving you—eat this scroll! Then go and give its message to the people of Israel. So I opened my mouth, and he fed me the scroll. Eat it all, he said. And when I ate it, it tasted as sweet as honey. Then he added, Son of man, let all my words sink deep into your own heart first (Ez. 3:1-3, 10). You cannot expect to champion God’s Word today if you don’t eat it first and let it go deep into your heart.

ARE YOU A “LOSER”?

Since you are a sanctified person, I am sure you never even think about calling someone a “loser.” The Online Dictionary defines loser as “a failure, dud, flop, washout." But speaking as a psychologist, I believe it connotes someone caught up in self-defeating behaviors. Given that, who of us has not felt like a “loser” at times?

One time, a rich young man came to Jesus saying “I have kept the law; is there anything I lack in order to have eternal life?” He was anything but a loser; he was a ‘gainer’—in effect, saying, I have made a lot of gains in righteousness. Is it enough? Am I lacking anything? (Mark 10:20-21)

Jesus’ response must have surprised him. Jesus explains that in God’s economy, gains are losses and losses are gains, saying, ‘you must lose everything you own.’ The young man went away sad because he was rich—his identity was tied to his gains. He could not bring himself to be a “loser.” Jesus has called all His disciples to lose: dare we say to be “losers?”—But NOT defined as those with self-destructive behaviors, but those who willingly lose everything if it means gaining Him.

Paul said “I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus…for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish that I may gain Christ” (Phil. 3:8 NIV).

Time is the One Thing You can Spend, but You Can't Save

One year ago this month, I wrote in my journal “today is the first day of the rest of my life.” It was the day after I retired from my job with the Federal government.

For 25 years, I worked two jobs and never seemed to have enough time. Time was a precious commodity. And now I have time—more time than I have ever had; and I savor it! But even though I have a lot of it (my bank account is full!), I have to spend it every day: I cannot save it!

When I turned 60 I became very conscious that I have much less time ahead of me than behind me. And it has made me conscious of “spending” my time wisely. How? I “spend” my time on people: investing in people. These are good deposits that will go into my ‘heavenly’ account!

But you don’t have to be “old” like me to value your time. I know two young men who are currently “under-employed,” and waiting for God to open the next door of opportunity. They have time on their hands. They can be bored and restless, or they can enjoy this "season" by spending this “spare time” on making deposits, good investments into their heavenly account.

It’s possible to waste your time, ‘waiting’ for the next opportunity, but miss the one right in front of you today. Every day God gives you opportunities to “spend” your time on something eternal.

The Psalmist said: “Teach us to number our days”.

Paul said, “Buy up the time [use it wisely] because the days are evil.”

Herb Caen said: “Live every day as if it’s your last. One day you’ll be right!

Houses, Cars, and Faith

I was having coffee with a friend yesterday, and about half-way through, our conversation turned to politics and the current financial crisis. It’s not our usual subject matter. We usually talk about what we are hearing and learning from the Lord. Please don’t get me wrong, I read three newspapers a day and am quite a news junky, but I couldn’t help thinking that our conversation was no different than similar discussions going on at other tables in the restaurant. Instead of having what I would call a “higher” conversation, we were speaking of “houses and cars.” Now the reason I am characterizing it as a conversation about “houses and cars” is this. It seems to me that the base of our economy is the housing market and the auto industry. Why? Because everyone in America needs houses and cars. And aren’t those the two industries the economists keep talking about. Get the banks to loan more money to people so they can borrow more money and buy houses and cars.

In talking about people’s anxiety over the material concerns of this world, Jesus said, “Take no thought, saying, what shall you eat or drink or with what shall you be clothed? For all these things the Gentiles eagerly seek.” Bringing it into our modern vernacular, the Gentiles (unbelievers) spend their energy (and their money) on houses and cars. But Jesus says don’t have anxious thoughts about houses and cars. In fact, He says we shouldn’t speak with anxiety about them either. If we, like the unbelievers, speak out of fear that we won’t have houses and cars, are we not just like them? Houses and cars are what they “eagerly seek.” But Jesus says we ought to “seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” Today’s perilous economy is an opportunity for us to show that we belong to a higher realm, the realm of faith where we see everything in the context of God and eternity. Let us not betray our faith in our conversations of houses and cars; let us walk by faith, not by sight.

What Do You See?

When Adam and Eve sinned, their “eyes were opened, and they knew that they were naked.” Their view of themselves, of God, and of their environment changed from holy to profane, from eternal to temporal, from spiritual to material.

So it is not surprising when Paul prays for the Ephesians that the eyes of their hearts will be opened so they can see the heavenly things again—no longer “earthbound," focused on temporal and material things. When our eyes are opened to see as God does, these eternal things of the Spiritual realm become more real to us than the things which are temporal and material. You "see" by faith, (not sight). You see God's purposes in all your circumstances. You see God's opportunities in everything. Through God's eyes you view people, whom you formerly found hard to like, with compassion and kindness. You see sin and how horrible its consequences are. And you will hate sin all the more because it prevents you from seeing all of this, focusing you once again on yourself and all that in the earthly realm!!

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.