Jesus in the everyday

(Note: This is a slightly updated version of a blog post from over a year ago, still working on it.) :)



Today was one of those days that you never think about as a kid. You know, the days when being a grown up is "boring." I went grocery shopping, cleaned the dishes, and took out the trash. (Yes, kids it's one big party. WOO-HOO!) :) The highlight of the day was making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and watching Chuck on Hulu. I enjoyed it though mostly 'cause it makes me laugh to think about how naive I was as a kid. Somehow I envisioned myself going to parties every night of the week and just hanging out being "cool", whatever that meant. Now my idea of cool is getting wheat bread buy one get one free. I almost did the happy dance right there in the bakery isle. Until I remembered that, a.) I'm white b.) it's just bread and c.) I'm in the middle of Mejier. Thinking about doing "boring" stuff reminds me of Acts 16:11-12. Luke gives what seems to be really pointless information about their traveling. "So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothrace, and the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days." I'm always struck by how mundane this all sounds. There are no miracles, no angry mobs trying to kill someone, nothing earth shaking happens anywhere in these verses. And I wonder, “why is this even in the Bible? Are Paul's traveling habit's that important?” But I stop and think about what the Bible is all about, Jesus, and His Gospel. Then it takes on a slightly different appearance. Jesus was there with them in the middle of all that, the boring, everyday, unexciting routine of life. Just like He was there with me while I was shopping for bread, washing dishes, and eating PB&J. Also the fact that they were able to do all that uneventfully shows God's protection. They didn't get caught in any major storms, pirates didn't attack their ship, and nobody got sea sick. Similarly today I didn't get in a wreck, cut or poke myself doing the dishes, and I'm very thankful that I'm not allergic to peanuts. So really far from being boring this is actually a fairly comforting passage. It shows that God is always there with us not just when there's some big miracle, but when we're able to get out of bed in the morning and make it through a whole day without anything seriously awful happening to us, that's cause for praise too.

Who is Jesus? Take 2

(Authors note: This is the new and improved version of "Who is Jesus?" Still looking for feedback, especially as the first round of comments was so helpful. Thanks. )



“The Jesus of suburbia is a lie” - Green Day, Are we the waiting?


“Who do you say that I am?”

Jesus asked his disciples this question over two thousand years ago and it still holds true for us today. Who do we say Jesus is? A great moral teacher? A loony whack job with delusions of grandeur? Some mystical sky fairy that does whatever we ask Him to, like a supernatural PEZ dispenser? Or God’s own son sent to earth to pay the price for sin? These are just some of the possible reactions to Jesus, but which one is the right one? Is there a correct answer, or is it simply left up to the individual to decide which version they prefer to believe in?

In a culture where the customer is always right we want to believe we should get whatever version of Jesus we want. Today’s evangelical Christian culture has practically become a giant Baskin Robins, helping us find the flavor of Jesus that best suites us. You don’t like hippie Jesus? Try 80’s rock star Jesus, complete with feathered hair! Still not what you’re looking for? Try health and wealth Jesus, or holier-than-thou Jesus, now with three new pious sayings!

The problem is Jesus is not consumer friendly, he never intended to be. He was homeless (Matt. 8:20), His teachings were often hard to understand (Luke 8:9-10), and the ones that could be understood were incredibly challenging (Matt 19:25). Jesus never did a four week series on how to have a better marriage, there was no twelve steps to financial security (honestly, who’s going to take financial advice from a homeless guy?) He never taught people how to improve their self esteem, or how to achieve “your best life now.” Jesus’ teaching was actually shockingly simple. At the heart of all the parables, the miracles, and the healings, was His claim to be God (John 10:25-30). There are only two reactions to this teaching; you can receive His free gift of salvation and live your life centered on the reality of who He is and what He’s done, or reject Him and set yourself up as your own god.

The Lordship of Jesus is not a popular concept in our society because it means we have to shape our idea of Jesus to what the bible teaches about him, instead of shaping Jesus to our ideas of what He should look like. Suddenly Jesus goes from being our golfing buddy who knows all the good jokes, to the holy, all-encompassing God of the universe. This isn’t a Jesus who sits and drinks herbal tea with us while stroking our ego and giving us the warm fuzzies. Instead He’s the terrifying, just, God who punishes those in opposition to Him in a fury of Holy wrath (Gen 19:23-30). Has God allowed us to have a personal relationship with Him through the person and work of Jesus and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit? Yes. Does God love us more then we can fathom, desiring to bless us and give us joy? Yes. But I fear we’ve over emphasized His love and mercy and in doing so turned the awesome, powerful, fear-inducing Lion of Judah into a neutered house cat.

Of course there are people who go too far the other direction and turn God (Jesus) into some crotchety old man who does nothing but sit around all day taking joy in judging people on every last thing they do. Somehow they manage to forget that the act that our entire belief system is based on; the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus on our behalf for the payment our sins, is the most loving, gracious, merciful, selfless act in all of human history. How could we forget that this is the same God that spared the entire human race through Noah and his sons (Gen. 6 and 7), that saved Lot from certain destruction in Sodom (Gen. 19). Most astonishing of all in Exodus 34:6 just two chapters after the Israelites had built the golden calf, essentially spitting in the eye of the God who had just rescued them from Egypt, God describes Himself to Moses and the entire nation this way:

"The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,”

Which leads us back to the original question, who do we say Jesus is? The judgmental kill joy in the sky? Or the benevolent, passive, fairy from Heaven with Holy pixie dust that He sprinkles on everyone so that no one will go to Hell? Hopefully by now you can see that neither of these is a true depiction of the Jesus we see in the Bible, but it still doesn’t answer the question.

The best description came from Jesus Himself, a shepherd (John 10:7-18). A shepherd is violent when his flock is threatened. He takes whatever measures are necessary to defend his sheep, not allowing anything to get close to them that may harm or kill them. At the same time a shepherd is loving and gentle with his sheep, tending to their needs, not wanting any of them to suffer harm. In the same way Jesus defends His church with a mighty and terrible love. To those who would defile and corrupt His Holy bride, he is fierce and relentless. Habitual commandment breakers, false teachers, liars, and heretics are met with His demand for Holiness and sentenced to eternity in Hell. With those He’s called and redeemed He is merciful and long suffering, not willing to lose even one to Satan’s schemes. There are times when a believer needs to be reprimanded but it’s done out of Jesus’ love for them and His desire to draw them closer to Himself. Not out of some cruel, twisted joy in watching them suffer.

The Jesus of the Bible is not some junior high kid flying from one extreme to another on a whim, but rather a loving father taking whatever stance is necessary to protect and nurture His children.

Who is Jesus?

(Authors note: This is a rough draft of something I'm working on, feedback would be very helpful.)

“The Jesus of suburbia is a lie” - Green Day, Are we the waiting?


“Who do you say that I am?”

Jesus asked his disciples this question over two thousand years ago and it still holds true for us today. Who do we say Jesus is? A great moral teacher? A loony whack job with delusions of grandeur? Some mystical sky fairy that does whatever we ask Him to, like a supernatural PEZ dispenser? Or God’s own son sent to earth to pay the price for sin? These are just some of the possible reactions to Jesus, but which one is the right one? Is there a correct answer, or is it simply left up to the individual to decide which version they prefer to believe in?

In a culture where the customer is always right we want to believe we should get whatever version of Jesus we want. Today’s evangelical Christian culture has practically become a giant Baskin Robins, helping us find the flavor of Jesus that best suites us. You don’t like hippie Jesus? Try 80’s rock star Jesus, complete with feathered hair! Still not what you’re looking for? Try health and wealth Jesus, or holier-than-thou Jesus, now with three new pious sayings!

The problem is Jesus is not consumer friendly, he never intended to be. He was homeless (Matt. 8:20), His teachings were often hard to understand (Luke 8:9-10), and the ones that could be understood were incredibly challenging (Matt 19:25). Jesus never did a four week series on how to have a better marriage, there was no twelve steps to financial security (honestly, who’s going to take financial advice from a homeless guy?) He never taught people how to improve their self esteem, or how to achieve “your best life now.” Jesus’ teaching was actually shockingly simple. At the heart of all the parables, the miracles, and the healings, was His claim to be God (John 10:25-30). There are only two reactions to this teaching; you can receive His free gift of salvation and live your life centered on the reality of who He is and what He’s done, or reject Him and set yourself up as your own god.

The Lordship of Jesus is not a popular concept in our society because it means we have to shape our idea of Jesus to what the bible teaches about him, instead of shaping Jesus to our ideas of what He should look like. Suddenly Jesus goes from being our golfing buddy with the solid handicap, to the holy, all-encompassing God of the universe. This isn’t a Jesus who sits and drinks herbal tea with us while stroking our ego and giving us the warm fuzzys. Instead He’s the terrifying, just, God who punishes those in opposition to Him in a fury of Holy wrath (Gen 19:23-30). Has God allowed us to have a personal relationship with Him through the person and work of Jesus and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit? Yes. Does God love us more then we can fathom, desiring to bless us and give us joy? Yes. But I fear we’ve over emphasized His love and mercy and in doing so turned the awesome, powerful, fear-inducing Lion of Judah into a neutered house cat.

The reminder of pain

Pain, we all live with it. Whether it’s emotional, physical, or spiritual, pain is probably the most common part of the human experience. Ever since The Fall pain has served as the constant reminder that something in our world is out of sorts, that things are not as they should be.

We can’t enjoy our playing our favorite sports because of arthritis; we hold back from giving ourselves completely to the ones we love because of some emotional wound, we distrust God because of some spiritual betrayal in the past. Pain is the silent messenger whispering to our soul that there is something about us that is corrupt and foul. We believe that we’re somehow of lesser value because of it. If it’s physical pain we’re ashamed that we can’t contribute more to society. Emotional pain leaves us feeling dirty and that we somehow deserved whatever it was that happened to us. Spiritual pain convinces us that God must not love us and that our darkest fears of being to sinful to be saved are true.

Pain points to the ugly reality of sin and death, while at the same time pointing us toward the glorious hope of Heaven and the restoration of our bodies to their original perfect, sinless form. That’s why we must learn to embrace it, not in a masochistic kind of way, but in a redeemed God glorifying way. We need to learn to use it to remind us that God has promised us perfect, sinless, bodies, hearts, and minds, and that pain now is a small price to pay for an eternity without it.

Oasis and The Gospel

“Some might say we don’t believe in Heaven, go and tell it to the man who lives in Hell.” – Oasis, “Some might say”

As some of you know I’m a big fan of the British rock band Oasis. Today Noel Gallagher, their lead guitarist, left the band after getting in yet another fight with his younger brother Liam who’s the lead singer. There’s a part of me that would love to pull out the Kleenex and play “Wonderwall” full blast. I’m going to resist that urge and instead use it as a springboard to write about something meaningful.

As I was talking (texting) with Jimmy about this I made the comment that they were gifted musicians but incredibly lost people, which he pointed out is the general story of rock n’ roll and that it makes him look forward to the day we’ll be in Heaven. As much as I love Oasis’ music, I love the prospect of spending eternity with Jesus an enumerable amount more than that.

In moments in my life where something shakes up my world to some degree, I find it’s often easier to see life in light of the reality of The Gospel and eternity. While I’m saddened by Oasis’ split, I’m reminded that it’s God who gave me my love for music because He loves me and wants me to enjoy His creation. Someday I’ll join a choir of millions singing creation’s most perfect love song, and the loss of one rock band will be a distant memory.

Markers along the way

I think it's important for people to have mementos from important moments in their life. Birth certificates, diplomas, wedding rings, these are all reminders of significant events in our lives. For Christians it's also important to have things that remind us of the times in our spiritual lives that God provided for us in unforeseen and amazing ways. We see this repeatedly throughout the Bible, especially the Old Testament. After their miraculous crossing of the Jordan river the Israelites set up a stone memorial to remind them of what God had done for them there. (Josh 4:20-24) In fact in the book of Joshua alone the Israelites set up seven memorials to remind them of important moments in their history. (Josh 4:20-24, 7:26, 8:28-29, 8:32, 10:27, 22:34, 24:26-27)

In my own life there are things that are markers of times God has worked, for, in, and through me. Anytime I see a Pizza Hut I'm reminded of my salvation and the joy and freedom I have in that. My charcoal and navy blue fleece is a reminder of my mission trip to Vietnam, what I saw God do there, and that I'm supposed to live as a missionary where I am. My newest marker (and the one that prompted this post) is the skyline of Denver and the Rockies. I was driving home last night from Buffalo Wild Wings and came over the crest of a hill and there below me was Denver. Between the street lights, the skyscrapers, and headlights, it looked like a giant living Christmas tree. I was reminded of everything God had done on my behalf for me to arrive here. An Air Guard recruiter so determined to fill slots that he looks through the IRR records to find people in those career fields, the only one in Colorado who does that. A new GI Bill that provides me with the income I need to live here. Putting me in touch with an Acts 29 church that's not even a year old yet, thus making it the perfect learning opportunity for me. Helping me find and sign for an apartment in less then a week that "just happens" to only be three and a half miles from where I go to school and church. Those are just some of the things I'm reminded of when I see the Qwest building, or The Flatirons. I smile, laugh, and thank God for providing for me far beyond what I deserve in spite of the fact that I never have, and never will, do anything to deserve it.

These are some of mine, I would encourage you to stop and take a few minutes to think about times God has moved mightily on your behalf and what some things are that remind you of that. Because there will be times that you'll feel forsaken and need those things to remind you that the God who was with you then is still with you now.

What is The Gospel?

I talk about The Gospel a lot in my blog but I haven't every really defined what I mean when I talk about The Gospel. Today I want to try to address the fact that I think most Christians aren't really sure what The Gospel is. This interferes with their ability to live lives centered around The Gospel, negatively affecting their children, and rendering them impotent as missionaries in their culture. Before I get to far into this post I want to make it clear that I'm a Calvinist and that my view of The Gospel and salvation stems directly my theology.

First we have to define what The Gospel is. I have to admit this is something I struggled with a great deal when I felt the Lord first calling me to church planting 2 years ago. Because of the people that I was reading and listening to, primarily Acts 29 guys, the common theme was The Gospel. I kept coming across things like; the local body of believers needs to be Gospel centered, preaching needs to be Gospel centered, mission needs to be Gospel centered, essentially everything that is done by Christians was to be centered around The Gospel. This sounded reasonable, the only problem was I didn't have a clear enough understanding of what The Gospel was to make any sense of what they were trying to say. I think it's important to point out that I've grown up in the church, sat under solid bible teaching for most of my life, and have a mother who is gifted at teaching children the concepts and doctrines of the bible. Yet, somehow, I was never taught The Gospel clearly and repetitively enough that I could clearly articulate it. I understood enough to know that it was more then simply doing certain things and refraining from participating in others, but I was unable to get much farther then that without getting confused. I continued to read and research what exactly The Gospel IS and how to explain it to myself and then to others. The quotes I came across that helped me the most are these three:

"The Gospel is: God has come to rescue and redeem creation through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ on our behalf." - Tim Keller

"For to Calvinism there is really only one point to be made in the field of soteriology: the point is that God saves sinners. " - J.I. Packer

"Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you— unless you believed in vain.

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures" - 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 ESV


At it's core The Gospel is simply the fact that we're all sinners, living contrary to God's law, incapable of saving ourselves.(Romans 3:23) That our only hope of being seen as holy and perfect in God's eye's is through receiving His gift of salvation that was bought through Jesus' sinless life, His death on the cross in our place, and His resurrection from the dead three days later, forever defeating Satan, sin, and Death. (Mt. 27:32-50, Mt. 28:1-10, Rev. 19:11-21) Thus securing eternal life for all those He calls to Himself. (Romans 9:1-29)

So how does this affect us as we attempt to live lives based on this reality? Simply, one day Jesus will return and restore the world to it's original perfection. (Romans 8:19-23) In the mean time we are called to be agents of His kingdom here on earth proclaiming what He accomplished during His time here on earth, assisted and guided by the Holy Spirit in our actions. (Mt. 28:18-20, Acts 1:2-8) This means we should view our time, talents, and money not as ours but as tools given to us by our Heavenly Father for the advancement of His Kingdom. This means our lives aren't based on what's best for us, but what brings God the most glory.

I know one pastor who drills the idea that everywhere we go we're to be missionaries into his kids minds by having the following kinds of conversations with them on a regular basis:

"Why do we play in little league?"

"So that we can tell people about Jesus."

"And....?"

"To have fun and play baseball."

This is a brief overview of The Gospel and how it is to be intertwined with our lives. It's not a very good one (I think) so I would encourage you to order Tim Keller's study guide on The Gospel and have your entire family go through it together. Also, Ed Stetzer is a brilliant missiologist (The idea that we're to be missionaries right where we are) and has many excellent resources available that would be well worth your time to make use of.

I hope you've found reading this to be a profitable use of your time.