Parenting with Ephesians 1 in mind

In the first 14 verses of Ephesians, Paul lays out 6 benefits that God (the Father) has given to us through our immersion into Christ (the Son) (Romans 6:3-4). These benefits are “spiritual blessings” , enabling us to succeed in the new life we have been born into through (God) the Holy Spirit (John 3:5-8):

1. A privileged standing before Him (v.4)
2. A Father-son, family relationship with Him (vv.5-6)
3. A forever forgiveness from Him (V.7)
4. “Insider” truth about the purpose & end of human history (vv.8-10)
5. A shared inheritance with Christ (vv.11-12)
6. The Holy Spirit as a present benefit & guarantee of our inheritance (vv.13-14)

In reminding the Ephesians of these things, Paul encourages us  to live lives transformed as a result of keeping these realities on the forefront of our minds.

This leads to an important question:

Since every area of our lives are impacted by the Good News about the Kingdom of God, how can these six benefits help us to succeed in our everyday lives?

If I were to summarize the net effect of these blessings I would say the Father’s blessings transform us by changing our priorities. 

If we stop to examine  our interior lives, especially the sinful tendencies that reveal themselves in the trenches of marriage and parenting, and employment (anger, resentment, anxiety, selfishness, etc.), I think we will find we misvalue things and people. We tend to value personal projects, possessions, “me time”, convenience and comfort. We tend to misvalue the people who interfere with those “treasures”.

In considering the benefits the Father has given, we come face to face with a Divine Person who doesn’t operate that way. We are not obstacles to Him, so he doesn’t treat us as obstacles. We are made in His image, so he values us highly. The three persons of the Trinity always exist in perfect, loving community, so the Father doesn’t need our obedience or behavior to validate himself.

I’ll illustrate how these benefits have been personally helpful.

When I am doing something I enjoy, am immersed in, or “have” to do, I feel resentful when I have to intervene in a squabble with my children. Where does this feeling come from? It comes from my belief that my personal satisfaction is more important than my relationship to my children as their teacher and representative of their Heavenly Father. How can the six benefits help me?

1. Since I have a privileged status before the God of Everything, I should reflect on what he values.
2. Jesus died in order to secure a Father-Son relationship with me, therefore the relationship with my children which mirrors that most important of relationships is worth the small sacrifice of time I give.
3. Since I have forever forgiveness, I must remove all bitterness or resentment towards my children from my heart.
4. The Father’s long term plan is to unify all things in Christ. I should value helping my kids grow in their understanding and experience of life in Christ more than my personal comfort or entertainment.
5. I share in the inexhaustible wealth the Father will lavish on me. Why am I making a big deal out of things that are passing away? The novel I’m reading or the show I’m watching are negligible in the face of eternity with Jesus.
6. The Holy Spirit has been poured out on me as evidence of the transformed life I am called to. I have full access to the life of God through the Spirit so I can absolutely overcome my bad attitude or anxiety or anger.

In the same way that a board game will sit unused if you forget that you have it in your closet, these benefits–given to us by the Father in the Son through the Holy Spirit–can do nothing if we don’t keep them in focus. Remember, these are not things you DO they are blessings you HAVE. A sports car is meant to be driven. A gift card is not a bookmark. A gourmet meal is not a table decoration. Spend some time thinking about the things you misvalue and let the truth of God’s Word show you how to experience the benefit of living in the Family of God.

 

GOSPEL BEAUTY ON DISPLAY

During the month of February, with Valentine’s Day as the occasion, advertisers and other purveyors of culture naturally emphasize romantic love. The proliferation of balloons, cards and chocolate, while a delightful opportunity to  appreciate “beloved ones” is accompanied by the darker side of Cupid. What in former times was delicately  veiled and enjoyed within the protection of marriage is emblazoned on magazine covers, graphically described in popular music, and endlessly forwarded and tweeted about on social media platforms. Our children are flooded with ideas, words, images assumptions and expectations about sexual experience that are difficult to filter. As followers of Christ, living under his rule of Agape love, we as parents have been given a wonderful gift to help us steer our children through these turbulent waters.

In Mark 1, we are introduced to the concept of “the gospel” in the very first sentence, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God”,  or to put it in a more expanded way : “The start of the good news of Jesus the divine rescuing King”. Later in verse 14  “Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”  No cross is mentioned, no sin is mentioned, no resurrection mentioned. Instead, Jesus’ gospel is that 1) the time is fulfilled and, 2) the kingdom of God has arrived. What is going on here and how does this help parents?

Jesus understood himself as the climax of a huge story. Throughout the New Testament reference is made to Jesus’ ministry including his death and resurrection as the fulfillment of the entire Old Testament (e.g. Luke 24:25-27). His coming inaugurated God’s rule on Earth: the overthrow of rebellious spiritual rulers , the rescue of a humanity that had be enslaved to sin and death, the unification of Jews and Gentiles into one people empowered to live in perfect fellowship with God. Now, anyone who is in Christ is part of a renewed humanity, living lives of others-focused, self-giving love just as our Divine King has done. It is a beautiful, magnificent story, with a divinely given, Holy Spirit empowered calling! And it effects everything we do, think  and say.

Flash forward to now.

As we—Christian parents—grow in our capacity to grasp the immense love of God for us displayed in Christ, and the beyond-our-wildest-imagination privilege we have as belonging to God’s divine family, we must paint in vivid colors the beautiful vision of the good news: God’s divinely-appointed King has established God’s Kingdom and we can all live in it — right now. When we talk about learning, or playing, or music, or marriage, nature or anything, we bring the good news about the Right-Now-Kingdom-of- God into the conversation. We commend to our children the beautiful vision of a deeply loving, merciful Creator, a self-giving rescuing Savior, and an ever-present teaching, guiding, helping and comforting Holy Spirit who free us from the chains of depression, anxiety, hopelessness, loneliness, worthlessness, bitterness and every other torment of that other kingdom . We have been given everything we need to live in the new Kingdom and to lives of joy in the face of difficulties and hope in the face of suffering. Our worth and value are unshakable because we are hidden inside the perfection of Jesus.

We are not called to be fearful of our culture: it is passing away. We are not called to be anxious parents: we have a Heavenly Father who cares for us and for them. There is a place and a time to talk with our children about the empty temptation and confusion that our culture offers up under the guise of sexual pleasure and fulfillment. It is tempting for us to focus on the negative consequences of engaging in sexual contact outside of a marriage covenant… but that is not the best way.

The best way, or as Paul put it , the more excellent way, is to commend a massive and breath-takingly beautiful vision of life in the Kingdom of the Beloved Son, including the complimentary nature and shared purpose of male and female image-bearers of God, and God’s design for sexual union in Marriage. To paraphrase a well-known hymn, when you consistently show the beauty in the face of Christ, “the things of Earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace”.

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QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION

1. Are you fearful and anxious for your children when you think of the direction our culture is moving in?
2. When thinking on the topic of sexuality—especially in regards to teaching your children—do you mostly think about the negative consequences of sexual sin (e.g. disease, teenage pregnancy, gender confusion, divorce) or do you think with wonder and joy at God’s design for men and women, living in a community of love, whether married or unmarried?
3. Has your grasp on the massively beautiful story of God’s love revealed in scripture, in Jesus and in your own life, grown over time?
4. How can you make a beautiful picture of the gospel central to all your discussions about life with you children?
5. Read Ephesians 3:14-21. Paul prays for the Ephesians to have supernatural power by the Holy Spirit to grow in their comprehension of God’s love so that they may filled with the “fullness of God”, in order to live like He lives. Take time to pray for yourself and your children this way. God’s love is so massive, you can’t understand it without His help.

Rethinking Your News Diet

“This idea–that there is a content called “the news of the day”–was entirely created by the telegraph (and since amplified by newer media)… the news of the day is a figment of our technological imagination. It is, quite precisely, a media event. We attend to fragments of events from all over the world because we have multiple media whose forms are well suited to fragmented conversation. Cultures without speed-of-light media…do not have news of the day.”
–Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death (1985)

“And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” –1 John 2:17

An article published on the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission website addresses a significant but often invisible element of modern society: the News. As Christian parents, we communicate our values and beliefs by more than just what we say. As the adage goes: “More is caught than taught”. What lessons are our children learning by how we engage with and respond to our news sources?

As children of God, we are called to live in the light of Eternity  (i.e. act like our Father, 1 John 1:5-7), ambivalent to the attitudes and desires of the world which continually pass away (1 John 2:15-17). Few things are more temporary than the daily news cycle which constantly shifts its gaze–more to titillate than to educate–through stories seemingly selected to stir fear, outrage, anxiety or pride… only to be forgotten and replaced in 24 hours. Is this emotional tug-of-war in harmony with the new life we have in Christ? In an effort to be well-informed world citizens are we instead being co-opted into conforming to old habits and desires?

Paul writes in Ephesians 4:11-24: 

Christ himself gave [variously gifted servants] to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ…

…you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding …Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.

That, however, is not the way of life you learned …You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

Rather than be “tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching”, we are commanded to actively develop a kingdom perspective characterized by:

• Unity in the Faith & Knowledge of the Son of God
• Maturity in living like Jesus, speaking truth in love
• Stable in our understanding, no longer misled or distracted
• Renewed in the attitude (direction) of our minds
• Living as true image-bearers of God: overflow with goodness and life

Take some time to consider how your media consumption impacts both your spiritual maturity and the spiritual and emotional health of your family. As  Neil Postman wrote, “daily news” is itself a new and limited idea, and while it constantly passes away, “the Word of the Lord remains forever.”  (1 Peter 1:25)

REFLECTION QUESTIONS

1. Where do you get your news (TV, Radio, Social Media, Friends, Magazines, Newspapers)?
2. How much time do you spend in a week absorbing, sharing news, and being emotionally affected by the news media?
3. What are the positive results of your news diet?
4. Are there any “benefits” that are actually sin? (e.g. pride at being “in-the-know” , self-righteously comparing yourself to the world, people pleasing by being able to commiserate with friends)?
5. Read Colossians 3:1-10. Is your news diet a source of life that draws you into living in the manner Paul describes?
6. Read Romans 12:2. Does your news diet renew your mind, enabling you to live with confidence in the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God?
7. What steps can you take to be more spiritual healthy in how you interact with the news?

>>> READ THE ERLC ARTICLE

A Parent’s Worst Nightmare

Being a parent means being vulnerable to unexpected suffering. From health and safety concerns (“Will my child survive to adulthood unharmed and whole?”), to worries about success and happiness (“Will my child make good life decisions?”), to issues of character ( Will she overcome her self-centeredness” ?), there are many ways for parents to be hurt through our children. Additionally, of fundamental concern for Christian parents is whether or not our children will put their trust in Jesus Christ. How do we handle these possibilities? We can try to ignore them, but life doesn’t always accommodate us. We can choose to worry and wear ourselves thin. We can try to create our own “Bible Code” of promises that we can hold God accountable to.  Or we can renew our minds with God’s word so the truth, wisdom and confidence of the gospel can guard our hearts and minds.

If I were to boil down gospel hope into one phrase it would be this: God definitively demonstrated the full extent of his faithfulness, love, mercy, goodness and justice when the Unique Son entered human history to be a willing sacrifice for human evil. Since God has shown his character once and for all in the person and work of Jesus, we can choose to trust Him and experience a freedom of mind and heart that does not depend on our life circumstances.

GOD SUFFERED
A rescued and renewed humanity was so valuable to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit that the Father sent the Son into the world (John 3:16). Disease and death are so hateful to God that the Son took them on himself to destroy them (Acts 3:15, Hebrews 2:14). Having conquered death, he always lives to intercede on our behalf (Hebrews 7:25) and his Kingdom is growing, culminating in the conquering of death (1 Corinthians 15:25-26).

Conclusion: Human sickness, frailty and death cannot undo the New Life. Even though we as parents may experience the pain of watching our children suffer, perhaps even die before we do, the Good News of Jesus the King removes the sting of death.

GOD PROVIDES
If we are to trust God with our own lives, let alone the lives of our children, we have to first listen to what he promises. After all, it is unjust to demand from God a promise He never gave. A few things not mentioned in the Bible: college acceptance, financial stability, retirement benefits, protection from the earthly consequences of foolishness and sin. Jesus did say that if we set our hearts on the things of God’s Kingdom we could trust that he would take care of our basic needs (Matthew 6:25-34). Jesus also promised suffering and a degree of persecution when we live like he did (John 15:20. Yet he also assures us that he has overcome the source of our suffering (John 16:33). Furthermore, in Christ our children can have the highest status possible: the right become Children of God (John 1:12-13) and co-inheritors of Eternal life with Christ (Romans 8:17).

Conclusion: The Good News about Jesus enriches our kids beyond anything a Fortune 500 company or government pension could do and offers a security that not even death or taxes can beat.

GOD TRANSFORMS
After his resurrection and assention, according to the long-standing promise of God, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit into the world (Joel 2:28, Acts 2:17, Jeremiah 31:33-34, Hebrews 8:10-12). He brings conviction, cleansing & renewal, transforming power (Titus 3:5-6) and understanding to live like Jesus (John 16:7-15). His purpose, to draw people into relationship with the Father through the Son, stems from his desire to rescue all who will come to him (2 Peter 3:9).

Conclusion: Connected to the life of God through the Holy Spirit, our children have everything necessary to develop godly character (2 Peter 1:3-4)

GOD SEEKS
The last concern “Will my child receive or reject the gospel?” is in many ways the most painful. The other questions and answers grow from this one. Rather than hunt through scripture for promises that we can force God to keep in a legal fashion, the hope we have is grounded in the revealed character of God. Right out of the gate God promises to send a rescuer to crush the power of the Deceiver whose lies had corrupted humanity (Genesis 3:15). In his covenant with Abraham, God promises a descendent who will bless all the families of the earth (Genesis 12:3). Through the nation of Israel, YHWH makes a case study of his long-suffering, merciful, loyal love (Exodus 34:6-7) while consistently giving examples of his love for all people (Jonah 4:11). When Jesus comes on the scene he says he has not come for those who are morally pure but for the lost, the sinners, the strays (Luke 15:1-32, Luke 19:1-10). Finally, God’s own beloved Son, sent by the Father for this purpose, willingly takes the punishment we and our children deserved so that we could have life. No expense was spared.

Conclusion: We can rely on God’s amazing love to woo and guide our children to His Son despite sin, doubt, anger, pride, and hardness of heart. Anything that can be done will be done since God did not spare His own Son. (Romans 8:31-32)

GOD LISTENS
Finally, God who is a Father to us, want to walk with us, comfort us and carry us through our parenting anxieties. Parents, we must, we can, and we get to talk to our Father. We are called to cast our anxiety on Him for the very reason that He does care for us (1 Peter 5:7). We are reminded not to be anxious about anything but in everything to bring our requests before the Lord so that we can experience the peace beyond circumstances that only He can give (Philippians 4:6-7). If we parents, who are imperfect, can give and wish good things for our children, we can rely on our perfect, merciful, persistent Heavenly Father to exceed our care for our children in every way when we ask ( Luke 11:13).

CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS PASSAGES

If you’ve grown up in the post television world, it’s likely you have watched one or two Christmas specials. One of my favorites is “A Charlie Brown Christmas” in which Charlie Brown picks the most pitiful and neglected Christmas “tree” to bring home. This year  I am preparing to give the Christmas Eve sermon. In anticipation of that opportunity I have been readings those neglected or underrepresented incarnation passages that don’t contain sheep, stars, angels, or wise men.

Humans are created for story and we are interested in almost anything if it given to us in the shape of a story. Case in point: although I am the opposite of a sports enthusiast I am a huge fan of sports movies because gifted writers focus on a few key characters, revealed their motivations, identified a conflict, plotted the most important moments and left out extraneous details. Yep, we sure like stories.

Problems arise in the real world when we over simplify stories. Important realities can get lost. The Christmas Story has a lot of rough edges and startling twists that don’t fit into the “all is calm, all is bright” vision of the holiday that we all enjoy. It’s important to remember that Matthew and Luke (the only two gospels from which we get the pieces of the popular narrative of Christmas) were NOT writing the “Christmas Story”. Those events we commemorate in December were a small part of a larger purpose. As Luke put it: “it seemed good to me also…to write an orderly account for you… that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.” How can we recover for ourselves and our families the grand, pre-commercialized, story of Immanuel?

Step 1: Repentance
“At Christmas time? What are you a Scrooge? A Grinch? Christmas is for feeling good. What do I have to repent of?” No, really, recognize that our memories, cultural expectations, traditions and desires for Christmas may not entail the message that God’s word is telling us. Then ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand the incarnation of the Son of God more fully so it connects to the BIG STORY in a way that transforms you into the likeness of Jesus.

Step 2: Recognize the Author’s Intent
Even for the well-known Christmas passages, ask yourself why Matthew and Luke included certain details. Hint: It’s not to fill scroll space or  provide a backstory for your nativity set.

• For what purpose are the genealogies (Matthew 1:1, and Luke 3:23) included?
• Why does Matthew focus on Kings, and foreign dignitaries (no shepherds, or Angelic host)?
• Why does an army (not a choir) of angels show up? Why are they praising God at the events they are now witnessing? Just what do their words really mean?
• Why does Luke include Simeon and Anna (Luke 2:25, 36)?
• In fact, why the whole temple scene in Luke chapter 2?
• Why does Luke include two long songs in chapter 1?
• What’s with the brutal scene in Matthew 2:16? There is no Herod figure in my nativity set. Why did Matthew include this information? It’s not in Luke’s version.

 

 

 

 

 

Step 3: Re-examine scripture to find the point of Christmas

Mine God’s word for Christmas gold and silver. A place to start might be the Old Testament passages quoted within Matthew and Luke. What’s the context of those passages?

• Genesis 3:15
• Genesis 12:1-3
• 2 Samuel 7
• Daniel 2:36-45
• Daniel 7:13-14

Turn to other books in the New Testament to find the significance of the Incarnation. Who was this “Son of God”, this “Word that was with God”? Were the biblical writers simply given us facts to be believed or were they describing the “engine” of our new life in Christ: live like your King, serve like your Savior.

• John 1:1-3, 14
• John 17:4-5
• Galatians 3:29-4:5
• Philippians 2:5-11
• Hebrews 2:10-18
• Romans 5:8
• Romans 6
• Romans 8:1-10
• Revelation 21 & 22

Step 4: Recommit to having a transformative Christmas
Can you look back and say that because of Christmas 2016 you were a more faithful spouse or parent, a more joyful child of God, a more faithful disciple in 2017? Or did the good feeling, wrapping paper and food give way to a ‘business as usual’? In Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, Scrooge promised to keep Christmas all year round. Let us commit to living the full gospel all year round in a deepening, life-transforming way.  View the Incarnation as an example of how we ought to live (Philippians 2:5-11) along with the expectation of our glorification at Christ’s return.

Enjoy the family and friends, the warmth an laughter, the music and lights, the wonder and delight. It is a small taste of the Banquet we await with a certain hope because the God of Everything entered human history!

THE EXAMINED LIFE

Socrates is quoted saying “the unexamined life is not worth living”. The Greek philosopher was doggedly committed to understanding and living a life of virtue. As parents we might try our own variety of Socratic questioning with our children: “What were you thinking?!”.  Admittedly, when asking those kind of questions, I am usually asking from a self-understanding of superiority, of having “arrived”. More often than not, I am less concerned with my beloved child’s thought process than with the violation of my “perfected” preferences and standards. In God’s kindness, the gospel gives us power to address the unexamined assumption of our own moral superiority.

We first encounter the gospel through a revelation of the self. In John 16, Jesus promised that when he returned to the Father, he would send the Holy Spirit to convict the world of sin, specifically of our unbelief in Jesus as the Father’s rescuing provision. (vv. 8-9) Right out of the gate we are shown that it is not moral failure that keeps us in sin, but the unwillingness to recognize our need and God’s kindness in the Cross.

The examining continues. Once we are brought into the Family of God, we continue to gravitate toward our old self-defining, self-centered patterns. This is why the Holy Spirit continues to bring to our attention our sinful actions and attitudes so that:

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

It is even possible for us to be deceived into thinking that our way of living is perfectly consistent with that of Jesus. So Paul urged the Corinthian church:

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! 2 Corinthians 13:5

The gospel tells us that we are recipients of the Father’s unearned love which He has proved in the life, death and resurrection of the Son applied to our lives by the Holy Spirit. It tells us that we have a present, permanent status: children of God. (2 Corinthians 5:17)  But it also says that we are in a process of transformation and have not yet arrived at the end of that process. (1 John 1:8, Romans 12:2) This gives us gospel power to stand in confidence because of what God has accomplished yet at the same time with great humility because of our continual and unending need for grace. We will best point our children to the “Magnificent Three” when first , we accept them as God has accepted us — by grace, not on merit, and when we come alongside them as fellow participants of that grace.

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REFLECTION QUESTIONS:

1. Jesus said to take out the log in your own eye so you can see clearly to take the speck out of your brothers eye. (Matthew 7:4-5). Do you ever consider this passage before acting to discipline your children?
2. How might inviting the Holy Spirit to examine your heart transform your relationship with your spouse and children?
3. Some attitudes and behaviors require varying degrees of disciplinary action. How is your heavenly Father kind to you when you are in need of correction? How might remembering that your acceptance by God comes not from your own merit but because of Jesus’ perfect life and the realization that you (and your children) constantly need that grace affect how you approach discipline?
4. Do you often pray for God to examine you and for God’s counsel before disciplining your children? How could you start a pattern that you can implement even in the heat of the moment?
5. In Romans 12:2 Paul writes:
   Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
   In what ways have you grown in your understanding and application of God’s will in the area of training your children?

 

Treasuring Good News Amidst the Bad

America’s moral, cultural and societal trajectory is disturbing to many Christians. These changes are particularly worrying when they impact our children. Among other things, parents are forced to have conversations about sexuality, pornography, and identity in a manner and on a timetable we likely would not have chosen. News headlines once reflecting realities “out there” are now openly discussed in elementary school classrooms. In the midst of anxiety and feelings of being overwhelmed, its good to reflect on what is true. When we treasure Gods’ Word—the definitive proclamation about reality—we can be at peace in the storm and give our children the gift of an unshakable and certain hope.

To begin, here are five pieces of Good News:

1. John 10:14-15 The Good Shepherd knows his sheep, and they recognize his voice. They will come when he calls. Lost family members, friends, even those who seem hostile to the kingdom of God may find themselves listening to the call of love; a strong, kind voice above the din of lies and deception that permeate our modern lives.
2. Hebrews 7:23-24 Jesus is able to save to the uttermost those who come to him. As John Wesley wrote, “all the guilt, power, root, and consequence of sin” are destroyed by the work of Jesus. He is in the business of transforming lives.
3. John 3:8, John 16:8-11 Nothing can prevent the Spirit’s ongoing role in calling people to trust in the Wounded Son of God who rescues the lost sons and daughters of Adam & Eve.
4. 2 Timothy 3:12-15 Jesus told us in advance how this world’s pattern plays out and what we are to do in the meantime as we wait for the glorious appearance of our great God and Savior.
5. 2 Corinthians 2:14-16 Resting in the love of Christ, he always leads us in triumphant procession and the aroma of our lives is breathed in by those who will respond to God’s gift of life.

AVOIDING THE TRAP OF A BLURRY GOSPEL
Without being immersed in the renewing Gospel of Peace, we fall into fear and anxiety and end up sharing a blurry gospel, obscured with side issues.

In a recent conversation regarding morality in America,  I found I had accidentally drifted into a political “fencing match”. Undoubtedly, there are important political, cultural, and social implications of the Gospel. Loving your neighbor as yourself in a multi-cultural, global economy must have public expression. But without the initial gift of grace, any external shift is a surface change.

SPIRITUAL TRAINING: GROWING IN GRACE
The best training we can commit to, for ourselves and our children, is to uncover the depths of the riches of the God’s love so that we who have been forgiven much can love much. Just as Paul, set aside the lofty speech and human wisdom of the Greek philosophers of his day (1 Corinthians 2:1-2), we should “resolve to know nothing but Christ, and him crucified”.

Training our minds with the knowledge of God informs our actions in the world. Remembering  we are a people in possession of a certain, living and unshakable hope, we don’t lose heart or give in to despair. Acknowledging we are more than conquerors through him who loved us, we endure evil without bitterness and personal indignation. Recalling Christ came for sinners of whom we are the worst, we have great love and grace toward each other and the lost:  the calling card of those who follow Jesus (John 13:35).

SHARING THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD
My house is often disorderly and cluttered; “creative chaos” is how I like to think of it. The point is, the state of my house would likely raise the eyebrows of the immaculately neat. If we are honest, sometimes we wish others in our society would simply conform to our personal moral standards instead of making our lives more challenging and our television-watching options more narrow. We might not particularly care if they were still dead in their sin as long as it didn’t splash on us. This is not the gospel. The gospel targets something much deeper than individual sins: righteousness.

When we think of the Good News about Jesus the King, repentance from sin is front-and-center. A Kingdom mindset requires us to understand the morally perfect nature of  God, a standard of righteousness required for all who would live with Him in His Kingdom. John the Baptist proclaimed that the reason for repentance from rebellion to God was because “the Kingdom of God is at hand”. John’s was a general call based on the general reality of the rebellious treason against God’s rule at the center of the human heart that had existed since the Fall in Genesis 3. But was this a call to “clean up your act” in order to merit a place in God’s Kingdom? That seems like a righteousness based on human effort. What about “through grace alone by faith alone”?

After describing the ineffectiveness of the Law to generate inner righteousness. Paul gives a shout of joy:

For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. … It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.  — Romans 3:20-26

To stand in God’s righteous presence, in God’s righteous Kingdom, we are GIVEN God’s righteousness through trust in the saving work of Jesus who died on the cross to rescue us from sin and death and lives to give us life.

Here’s where repentance comes in. Jesus said on the Sermon on the Mount that “those who hunger and thirst for righteousness” will have their hunger completely satisfied. Those who hunger for the righteousness only God can give, cast away all rebellion and self-righteousness, eagerly anticipating the appearing of the “bread of heaven” that alone gives life and, when He appears, put their trust in Him alone, the only Way to Truly know the Life-giver. (1 John 4:9-10)

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER
To bring this airplane in for a landing, here’s what we can “teach” ourselves and pass on to our children:

1. We ourselves were once prevented, by our own inadequate self-righteousness, from enjoying the life-giving presence of God, the author and source of all that is good, beautiful and enjoyable. (Titus 3:3).
2. Because of His great love, God temporarily overlooked our sins (Romans 3:25-26) until He provided us with His own righteousness through His beloved Son by means of the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:4-6) and not because of any good thing we could do.
3. As a result, we now have the righteousness of God, an equal inheritance of eternal life and are being renewed so that we now live and think like our Father in Heaven (Titus 3:7, Romans 12:2). Everyone who has put on the righteousness of God, is a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17).
4.  As a result of this new creation reality, we find ourselves increasingly in conflict with the righteous standards of imperfect, humanity (John 3:20). In fact, we are guaranteed two things: 1) if we want to live in this new, righteous life of our adoptive Father, we will face persecution, and 2) people who reject Jesus will continue down a slope of unrighteous living ( 2 Timothy 3:12-13). But we don’t let those things bother us or stop us from sharing this live-saving Good News, because Jesus, God in the Flesh, willingly suffered rejection so we could have his righteousness (Hebrews 12:1-3).
5. Now, we are ambassadors of reconciliation—we can meet God’s demands of perfect righteousness offered in Jesus. (2 Corinthians 5:20). Since our future is assured and we have fellowship with God that can’t be taken away (Romans 8:38-39), we aren’t silent in sharing that God’s Kingdom has drawn near and is open to all who turn from their own self-righteousness and receive the perfect righteousness of the Risen Son. No sin is too ugly, no sinner too distasteful for Jesus, who came to our rescue in full agreement with the Father’s love (1 Timothy 1:15) .
6. Everyone who hears and trusts in the righteousness of Jesus is a full participant in the story (2 Peter 1:1) and receives the full, rich, quality of life and unshakable future hope that Jesus came to give (John 10:10).

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION:
Imagine a conversation with someone who holds onto their own righteousness (e.g. “My lifestyle is OK.” “I can do what I want with my body/money/time” “I can define myself anyway I choose” “As long as I don’t hurt anyone else…”. “The government agrees with me”, “I’m basically a good person, I never killed anyone.” etc.) 

1. How would you share the good news about the Kingdom of God and the way through Christ to enter into friendship with God?
   • What potential pitfalls would you need to be aware of to prevent slipping into a political or sociological discussion?
2. Do news headlines cause anxiety and fear? Does it help to know that we are promised a degree of suffering? Does it help to remember what Christ endured to rescue you?
3. Is it helpful to think about self-righteousness vs. God’s righteousness rather than the sins of others vs. Christian morality?
   • How can you communicate this in a discussion with someone who has not turned from their self-righteousness to receive God’s righteousness?
4. How will this understanding change your conversations with your children about the issues they face in the media, in school, and with their peers?
   • How might you differentiate between good moral behavior and the righteousness of God?
   • How do you differentiate between the good works that grow out of the new life in Christ and the morality that is common to most people from every nation and culture?

Love The Lord With All Your Mind

Assumptions are like leeches: they easily attach themselves to you and can severely impact your health. As Christians who live in a particular culture and time, we wade through a constant flood of messages that contain hidden assumptions, many of which are false. Left unchallenged, these “belief-lets” can deeply affect our lives and diminish the freedom, joy and confidence we have in the New Life Christ has purchased for us.

Currently, a prevailing assumption in our cultural conversation concerns the definition of faith. Of course those who reject God and religion view faith as “belief  despite lack of evidence”. Even among people who identify as spiritual along with members of religious groups (including many Christians), faith is articulated in mystical terms not unlike the Force in Star Wars: it does something for you but it’s terribly mysterious. Some even agree with Obi Wan Kenobi that the best way to understand faith is to “use your feelings”. Left unchallenged, this assumption about faith, (subjective, mystical, unverifiable), has real and negative effects:

• Gospel conversation with unbelievers becomes difficult because subjective feeling isn’t transferable.
• The Christian life becomes a more passive endeavor rather than a victorious one.
• Faith is viewed as a commodity that some have more of and some have less. Guilt over not having “enough faith” can become oppressive.
• It becomes a challenge to strengthen young people in the Christian life because the “concrete” answers they receive from other corners of their life are matched with a hazy inarticulation when it comes to faith.
• Even historical evidence that supports our faith seems more relevant to moment of initial faith and less than useful in day to day living. How does the empty tomb help me with my skeptic in-laws or co-workers.
• We might become attempted to chase after feelings to verify our New Life.

How does the Bible depict faith?

Even a quick examination shows that faith is closely, even inseparably,  connected with knowledge. The  the mind, not feelings is the primary domain of faith.

A Biblical Pattern of Evidence-founded Trust
There is no instance I am aware of in either the Old or New Testament in which God requires trusting obedience without evidence. In every circumstance, God provides evidence of himself and/or his trust-worthiness prior to asking for obedient cooperation (Deuteronomy 29:2-9). From Noah, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to Moses and beyond, God provides ample proof of His unique credentials and that trust in Him is a reasonable. The authentication God provides is exhaustively extensive and included:

• person encounters (Genesis 7, Genesis 12:1, Genesis 16, Genesis 18, 26:2, Genesis 32:22, Exodus 3, to name a very few.)
• group encounters (pillar of cloud/ fire, Moses’s glowing face)
• legally binding covenants (Genesis 9:9-11,17, Genesis 12:1, Genesis 15, Exodus 24, Jeremiah 31:31/ Hebrews 8:8)
• displays of power (miraculous birth of Isaac, burning bush, 12 plagues, parting the Red Sea)
• miraculous provision (manna from heaven, quail, water from rock)
• miraculous victories ( defeat of the Egyptian army, the outward collapse of Jericho’s walls, Gideon defeating thousands of Midianites with a couple hundred soldiers)
• future telling (captivity and release of Israel by Egypt, division of Isreal and the Babylonian captivity, the fall of Babylon and the rise of 4 other great kingdoms, the return to Jerusalem and rebuilding of the temple, the appearance, rejection, suffering, death, resurrection and exaltation of the Messiah, the sending of the Holy Spirit, the inclusion of non-Jews into God’s family, destruction of Jerusalem and the 2nd Temple).
• the incarnation, life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the Son of God.

Outside of the Bible:

• the unlikely persistence, expansion and longevity of the Christian church.
• countless personal stories of people throughout history who have been transformed through a personal encounter with the living Christ. (for spirit-enriching binge-watching, view the testimonial accounts on the “Sacred Groves” and “One For Israel” YouTube channels.)

Knowledge of the Real
In addition to the pre-trust authentication God gave,  the terminology of trusting-loyalty used in scripture is the language of ‘knowing’ and the mind, rather than feeling. The consistent assumption ( a rational assumption given the evidence), is that people in God’s family can really know things about Him and about reality. This comes as a shock in our era of subjective, experiential, my-truth-your-truth relativism. Here are just a few examples of this kind of language:

Old Testament

• Genesis 15:3  Then the LORD said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years.
• Exodus 6:7  I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
• Exodus 14:4 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD.” And they did so. (Notice even for defeated enemies, certain knowledge of who defeated them is the point, not a vague belief)
• Deuteronomy 4:39 know therefore today, and lay it to your heart, that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other.
  
• Deuteronomy 18:21-22 And if you say in your heart, ‘How may we know the word that the LORD has not spoken?’— when a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the word does not come to pass or come true, that is a word that the LORD has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously. You need not be afraid of him.

New Testament

• Luke 24:45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures
• Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
• Romans 14:5 Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind
• 1 Corinthians 2:16 “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
• 1 Corinthians 14:15,19 What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also… Nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue.
• Ephesians 4:23 … be renewed in the spirit of your minds
• Colossians 3:9-10  Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.
• 1 Peter 3:15 in your hearts [center of your being, not feelings] honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
• 1 John 5:13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.

Hopefully the picture is clear: the righteous, God-honoring faith depicted and commended in scripture is a trust that involves the entire person, including our reasoning faculties. As Jesus said in Mark 12:30 (quoting Deuteronomy 6:5)  “you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” Any faith that denies or ignores the importance of the mind is not the faith of Christianity.

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PERSONAL  APPLICATION:

1. Can you think of a time when the assumption of “faith as a feeling” or “faith as irrational belief” was communicated to you by another person or through a form of media?
2. What words would you use to describe Christian faith?
3. When you think about the Christian life do you strongly associate the mind with faith?
4. In John 8:31-32 Jesus says, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” In the Christian life, freedom comes from an encounter with, and personal assimilation of, God’s revealed truth, especially in the person of Jesus. Where in scripture do you recognize the relationship between ‘truth’, knowing/knowledge/wisdom/certainty/conviction on the one hand and faith/trust/belief/obedience on the other?
5. Do you value facts and data or  relational knowledge more? Which have been more helpful or powerful in your life? Do you draw a distinction between “knowing facts” and “knowing a person”? Could this distinction in modern minds explain why Biblical faith is so misdefined and misunderstood?
6. Practice explaining the biblical understanding of faith as if to a young child. What questions might come up? How would you address them from scripture?

 

The Economics of Eternity

In only four short years our son will turn 18; I will be the father of my first adult child. Early parenthood is largely occupied with keeping our kids alive and healthy. We switch gears in the school years, focusing on preparing our children with knowledge, skills and experiences to help ensure future prosperity. Jesus posed a provocative business-minded question: What’s the profit in gaining everything the world offers only to lose your soul? How confident can we be that we are imparting “strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow” to our children? 

As people of the Kingdom of God, we live in the present confidence of what Jesus has accomplished in the past (1 Corinthians 6:11), yet with the expectation of a future renewal of all things(2 Timothy 4:1). It is in this in-between time that we are nurturing and training our children. And times are tough. I will resist the urge to delineate the issues that we, let alone our children, face on a daily basis. The pressure is strong to be silent, to conform, to approve evil, to be “private” in our beliefs. Without constant power to live transformed lives we (and our children) will slowly coast to a stop.

At the same time, times have always been tough and we have an opportunity in our place and time in history to reveal the beauty in the face of Christ by our commitment to living, speaking, and thinking in partnership with the rescuing love of God in Christ Jesus.

Attempting to shield our children from the temptations and dangers of a world pattern contrary to God’s kingdom and is continually mutating (1 John 2:15-17) are naive and impossible. Be we can be wise. We can continually impart spiritual power to help our children have a dynamic understanding of the grand story of the God of Everything who entered into human history to rescue his rebellious creatures at great cost. We can daily demonstrate that this rescuing King has won our total allegiance; he is more important than a job, a 401K, retirement, a doctorate or public acclaim.

We can do these things, but not on our own power. We can do these things, but only when, with the help of the indwelling Spirit of Christ, we humbly let God evaluate our value system and accept his gentle correction. There is no more powerful evidence of the truth of the gospel than a transformed life.

Action Step: Evaluation
Self evaluation is an important component of the Christian life (1 Corinthians 11:28, 2 Corinthians 13:5). Empowered by God’s word our heart can be laid bare, our true intentions revealed (Hebrews 4:12). Below are some areas that you and your spouse may want to pray through and discuss together.  Whether you feel encouragement or conviction from your responses, thank God for revealing this to you and ask for grace in your time of need (Hebrews 4:16).

• Time Compare personal and family bible study, prayer, gospel conversation and service to time spent on school, work, sports, and entertainment.
• Heart Based on your expenditure of time and money, what things do you and your family value? How do these square with the values of Jesus’ Kingdom?
• Community Do you value caring for the church family as a family?
• Hospitality As a family do you welcome others into your life, seeking to serve them with all the gifts your family has been equipped to share?
• Joy Are you and your spouse joyful people? Do you enjoy one another and invite your children and others into that joy?
• Future plans When you think about your desires for your children’s future and your own future do your plans sound like things Jesus would smile on? Do you have expectations of your children that are not gospel issues?
• Maturity Are you and your spouse maturing in faith? Do you see more spiritual fruit today than last year? Do you feel competent to teach the truths of God’s word?(Galatians 5:22-23, 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, 2 Peter 1:5-8, Hebrews 5:11-12).

 

Apologetics, Relationship-style

“Dad? My friend is Hindu and she worships lots of different gods. How do we know that Christianity is true?”

“Mom? Ross’s grandma died last week. Will she go to heaven even if she wasn’t a Christian?”

“If God is good, why do bad things happen? Please pass the potatoes.”

These type of questions should be welcomed by every parent who trusts in the Good News about Jesus the King. They are indications that our children are engaging with serious matters of eternal significance. The question is, when your kids ask are you “ready to give a reason for the hope you have”.

Here’s what Peter says in his first letter:

But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. – 1 Peter 3:14-16

This is the passage from which we get the word ‘apologetics’, a reasoned defense of the one in whom we have placed our hope. In the passage, Peter is addressing the possibility of persecution and the proper, Christ-honoring response to the hostile skeptic. Typically, focus is placed on the “reason”, the intellectual rationale behind the defense. Yet, the reasoned defense is the fourth, not the first.

THE CONTEXT FOR OUR REASONED DEFENSE

Before getting to the “reasoned defense”, take a moment to consider the context of that defense which is centered on “the hope that in [us]”. In addressing anyone who has complaints or questions against what they perceive in the Christian message we focus first on internal realities.

1. “if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. 
   We serve a resurrected king who defeated death and was himself mistreated for his perfect righteousness. Therefore the conflicts we or our children experience for our gospel-motivated living are to be expected and embraced, not avoided. Our hope is secured by Jesus.
2. “Have no fear of them, nor be troubled”
   The negative responses we experience have no ultimate power to destroy us. We trust ourselves to the promises and loving care of our Father who did not spare his own Son on our behalf. Nor should we get agitated. Again this is not unexpected, it is exactly what Jesus said about himself:  he is a spiritual watershed that divides public opinion. Jesus resisted public outrage and public opinion, forgiving his enemies and suffering for a brief moment in order to obtain the “joy set before him”. Our hope is secured by Jesus. 
3. “but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy”
   Who Christ is and what he has accomplished are unique in all of history. There is no one like him in any other spiritual or historical book. As author G.K. Chesterton explains in The Everlasting Man, ‘founder of a major world religion’ is an artificial category. All actual comparisons between Christ, Mohamed, the Buddha, etc. are superficial at best. In our hearts, the center of our being, we have crowned Jesus King. Any contenders must compete with his deity, his incarnation, his self-offered sacrifice on behalf of his rebellious creatures and his resurrection. He is set apart; there is no close second.  Our hope is secured by Jesus.
   

When we stand in these internal realities, we are more than able to give a reasoned defense for our Hope. Our hope is not a set of doctrinal statements, we have a living Hope, Jesus Christ, “he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.” (Hebrews 7:25)

ANSWERING QUESTIONS WITH OUR HOPE

Remember that at the time of Peter’s writing, eyewitnesses to the resurrection were still alive. Miracles were able to be attested to. Greek was a commonly used language. The Old Testament was the primary scriptural evidence for the claims of Jesus. There was no need for ‘archaeological evidence’. Our situation differs from the first century Christians in many ways, but  it is important to note that Peter was not urging his readers to present a scientifically air-tight case, but to explain the interpersonal reality, the “hope that is in you“. Jesus really rose from the dead so he is really alive and his Spirit gives us real power and real, certain hope.

A RELATIONAL ANSWER TO RELATION-BASED QUESTIONS

When we hear questions from our kids like the examples above, it is important to look beyond the theology of the question to the motivation of the question. The examples I gave all have a personal, relational connection in mind. The question isn’t ‘What does the bible say about Hell?’, but something closer to ‘Why would my friend go there? We eat lunch together.’ A relational question needs a relational answer.

Thankfully, the gospel is relational.

Since we have a treasured Friend and Savior, one who is not like anyone else and has done more for us than anyone else ever can or will, we “preach Christ and him crucified” as the reasoned response. We explain our situation as rebels before a holy God. We explain His great love for us in sending his unique Son who came willingly to die in our place. We share the good news that because He has risen again Jesus reigns as King of kings and will adopt anyone into his family who will turn from our rebellion and trust in His free gift of grace. Then the question changes from ‘Why would God send my dodge ball friend Bridgette to Hell?’ to “Why would Bridgette reject the free gift of life secured by the willing sacrifice of Jesus the Son, who was sent by a loving Father in order to rescue us from our self-inflicted curse of death and adopt us as His own beloved children?”

QUESTIONS FOR YOU

Someone once told me, “You cannot impart what you do not possess”. Any gospel-transformed parent is up to the task of answering these deep questions. The hope we have is a life connecting to the Father, through the Son, by the Holy Spirit. It is not a prize we get for being good. It is not a payment we receive for believing the right facts or belonging to the right group. It is an interpersonal connection to the Living God who, because we have been immersed into Christ’s death burial and resurrection (Romans 6), has become our Father.

1. Do you receive the possibility (or reality) of persecution for righteousness as a gift?
2. Are you full of fear and anxiety at the thought of conflict over spiritual matters?
3. Have you set apart Christ as Holy in your own heart or do other things compete?
4. Do the reasons you give for your hope sound like you know some things or like you know some one?
5. Do you listen for the personal or relational heart of questions asked, whether in curiosity by children on hostility by adults?
6. When you hear questions or attacks on Christian faith, do you think of theological rebuttals first, or do you consider the living Hope, the Love of God in Christ Jesus, shown toward you in this, “that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us”. (Romans 5:8)
7. Do you look at the Good News like a jewel, allowing the story’s facets to address questions that come?