The Light of Christmas

We at Calvary Chapel of Monmouth County hope and pray for all of you a merry and blessed Christmas. Though there is much darkness in the world, there is also much light. More people are coming to Christ now than at any time in all history! Churches are being planted in all parts of the world at the rate of hundreds daily. The anti-Christian bias in our country grows fiercer and more open almost daily, but that is a reaction to the power of the gospel. When the light shines on the landscape around you, it shows you the way and makes for a friendly universe. When it only shines in your eyes, it blinds you all the  more, and brings pain to your eyes. As we surrender to the light, Christ, we no longer live in a menacing universe but it becomes a place where God's purposes are worked out. So this year,  when you sit around a lighted Christmas tree opening gifts with your name on them, remember that the Light of the World has come to give a personal gift to you - forgiveness of sins - eternal life - the joy of knowing a personal God. All yours, with your name on it, if you receive Jesus Christ the Light into your heart as your Lord and Savior. God bless you!

The Jolly Season

" 'Tis the season to be jolly." You are, of course, familiar with that song expressing one of the lighter moods of Christmas. It is a "jolly time". It is a happy time, with family gatherings, exchanging gifts and tales, sharing memories and food. But much more than all that, it is a joyful time. Joy is the most profound, far-reaching of the positive moods of Christmas. The angel's message was that the good news is news of "great joy." Then, family, friends, and loved ones return to their homes. Toys break and wear out. We soon have our fill of even the best of food. The happiness and pleasures of Christmas are short-lived, and not fully satisfying even at their best. But joy - that's different! It is a fruit of the Spirit, so it is fully satisfying. Its presence doesn't depend on things that don't last or that lose their fascination. It has to do with the mysterious but real Presence of God. With the forgiveness of sins. With a life that never ends, in the Presence of a loving God. No wonder the angel could speak of great joy, which would be for all people! Hallelujah!

The Shining Light

When we first come to Christ the Light of the World, we begin to notice how differently we see things. With His light now shining on everything, all of life looks different. Our values, issues of right and wrong, how we spend our time and money, how we think of others and treat others, what we do with our own body, whether we should cheat on that test, or keep quiet about that money we found. But what we may  not notice at first, is that while shining on life in general, that light is revealing something else - the blemishes on our won spirit! Self-centeredness, mean-spiritedness, greediness, lust, materialism, all show up like ugly blotches under a bright light. Run - don't walk - to your nearest prayer closet and confess it thoroughly to God and your loving Father will cleanse it from you with the precious blood of Christ.

Are you Ready For Christmas?

Are you ready for Christmas? It seems like we just got the stuff from last year put away, and it's time to get it all out again! Get a tree, get it all dressed up, get ready to bake some cookies and pies (Mrs. Smith's pies are real good!), go over the list again - don't miss Uncle Fred and Aunt Sadie this year! The house will soon be filled with the delicious aroma of pies, cookies, ham and beef roasts mixed with pine or spruce. All this is good. Christmas is, after all, a season of celebration. And how can we have a decent celebration without an ample offering of food, aromas, gifts, and relatives? The down part of all this good is that the temptation is to get so caught up in gifts and food that the real meaning and message of Christmas is lost. The celebrating can trump the reason for the celebrating. Christmas means that the eternal God has entered our time-space earth and mangled world to bring good news of healing and restoration. But not just to bring good news. Actually to be the good news that He brings. He has brought an external word, a message from outside our minds and hearts. One we did not make up, one most of us in fact resisted, in some cases for years. We cannot ascend to God on our own, He came down to us. And not in a way that any human mind would've expected. He came dressed as a little baby, born in a cave used as a stable, laid in a feeding trough for animals! The gospel is wildly improbable - but it happened! We know it as not a story made up from human imagination, for no one would have had the eternal God come to us in that way. If this God in Jesus Christ does not live in your heart, invite Him in. He is eager to be your Lord and Savior, but He won't without your invitation.

Security - Today and Always

This world is becoming an increasingly dangerous place in which to live, and its inhabitants are becoming increasingly vulnerable. New diseases have arisen that are debilitating and killing millions of people. New strands of bacteria have developed. Some of these are deadly, and some are immune to the antibiotic drugs that our scientists have developed. How badly people need the security and peace that is found in Christ alone! The securities of the world are being seen to be unsure at best, futile at worst. If you don't know Christ as your Lord and Savior, ask Him now for forgiveness of your sins and for eternal life. To change your lifestyle out of fear of AIDS or any other disease is not repentance of your sins. It is just prudence and common sense. But the diseases and dangers of the world may awaken you to the reality of your sins, and move you to trust in Christ as your Lord and Savior. This is eternal salvation.

Impossible?

It's amazing what can be accomplished when a person or a group decides it will be done. The human spirit itself is virtually indomitable when it pulls its resources together and goes with it. It finds resources it never knew it had. How much has been invented or discovered that we take for granted today, but it is only here by patient, courageous, dogged determination by someone who wouldn't give up! Besides the wheel, we think of electricity, the light bulb, modern miracles of medicine such as the MRI, the cat-scan, our manned rocket ships, etc., etc. If this is so of the human spirit, how much  more when the Spirit of God is the Primary Agent? We think of miraculous answers to prayer, mighty outpourings of revival, evangelistic movements that swept whole towns and cultures into the kingdom of God. Let's commit ourselves to God for the greatest work of His Spirit to hit this planet! Believe God for the impossible!

The Dicatomy of Strength and Weakness

God speaks of those who "in weakness were made strong." There was no greater weakness than for the Eternal God to be nailed helpless to a cross, hanging between heaven and earth. Yet in the greatest mystery of all time, that very weakness accomplished what nothing else could - the redemption of a lost world.
When we think of all the changed lives, and civilizations, and all that came from that cross, we realize how true are the words of the apostle Paul when he speaks of the "power of the cross!" It seems like those words don't belong together. We don't think of power in connection with a cross, but of the very epitome of weakness. But Christ's cross changed all that! The most powerful place in all the universe was that little hill outside Jerusalem where Christ died on a cross, and released such power that the world was never the same! That power is available for your life today.

First the need - then the prayer - then the miracle.

pastorshaw@gmail.com

On Disagreeing Agreeably

Sometimes we Christians think it a terrible thing to disagree with each other. It really isn't. In fact, it's inevitable. How could a group of people of multiple backgrounds, different religious traditions, varying levels of education and experience, different genes and temperament, possibly agree on everything? Granted, sometimes the Holy Spirit brings an amazing unanimity to a group, and supernaturally solidifies our opinions, and it's wonderful when He does that. But that is a miracle, so by definition does not always obtain. The rest of the times, we Christians must be very forbearing and understanding, not campaigning to bring others to our opinions, but recognizing any of us could be wrong, and the others right! And if we are right, and the others wrong, that's OK too! In the last analysis, it is Jesus who is Lord, and things are never out of His control. And He can even take the errors of the others (or our errors) and use them for the good! Remember always, it is God's kingdom we are promoting. It is advanced by love, patience, understanding, forbearance, gentleness, faith. As we allow Him to develop these fruits in us, and live them in our daily lives and relationships, He will bless us together - even in our points of disagreement.

Expect Much!

It is no compliment to one to have little expected of him or her by the church, or by the Lord Himself. God expects much of us - everything we are and have! The greatest compliment anyone can give us - our teachers, our employers, our parents, our children, our church, the Lord - is to expect much of us. Let's expect much of each other at our church. We have so much to offer because God has created us with so much. Let's be great givers of - time, talent, money, ideas, labor, skill. And see God's kingdom extended as a result! And parents, expect much of your children. If you don't, you make them think they are not much, and have little to offer. Don't shame it out of them, or threaten or intimidate or bribe. But expect much of them, and it will be there.

By The Sweat of Your Brow

It seems that most things of value do not come easy in this world. God wasn't kidding when He told Adam that, from now on, what Adam - and humankind after him - accomplished would be "by the sweat of your brow." Food for the table, a house to live in, a car to drive, all come by way of copious "sweat." It really is no different in the Christian life. To be a person of prayer takes time and focus. To be one skilled in the Scriptures takes diligent digging into the Word - not just a "precious promise for today," but diligent, systematic, determined study of the Bible. Five minutes a day won't do it. The last thing we can afford to be superficial in is the reading and study of the Word God has committed to holy men of old to bring down to us today.

New Creation!

The Bible everywhere calls upon us human beings to become new creations. Ezekiel quoted God as promising; “I will give you a new heart.” (36:26) Jesus Declared, “You must be born again.” The apostle Paul affirmed, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ – new creation!” This is also different from the tiresome, grinding, despairing attempts to please God and reassure our conscience by our own efforts. Religion as such only reinforces the futility of human striving for a satisfying righteousness. Religion can change the appearance or outwardness of things, but leave untouched the depths of the human heart. Saying prayers, receiving baptism, communion, and other religious acts or good works may look good and impress others, may temporarily relieve feelings of guilt or inadequacy, but apart from the experience of a “new heart” and being “born again”, it all ultimately proves empty and futile. But a religious, fabricated life can be replaced by a deep, rich life with God. When one comes to a realization that religious ritual is empty without this new life, places ones trust implicitly and explicitly in God for His forgiveness and grace in Jesus Christ, religious rituals take on a new meaning and reality. Baptism is an open declaration and depiction of an old life buried and a new one begun. Communion (the Lord’s Supper, etc.) pictures receiving Jesus’ blood as atoning for ones’ sins, acts of kindness no longer serves to point to the doers’ goodness or generosity, but to the goodness of God from whom all good things come. Only Jesus has the power and resources to give us life that really is life. Turn from sin and self-dependence to Jesus, and you will see!

What is Love?

Doubtless the most daring assertion ever put into words is the statement, "God Is Love." We may take it for granted, or may never have really let it "sink in" to our hearts and minds because of its familiarity. If we really knew what this love meant, we would never again think of it with dry eyes. We were sinners, yet He loved us. Sinners- rebels-selfish-unclean-stubborn-yet God loved (and loves) us. God is not an all-powerful Being who happens to also love. God is by His very nature love. Everything else that is true of God is a quality or attribute of His love. God loves us, not because we are lovable, but because He is love. This love was so compelling and unrelenting that it took Him all the way to a painful violent cross. That is love that never quits! As someone put it, "I asked God how much He loves me, and He stretched His arms out and let them be nailed to a cross." That's love! Incomprehensible, unrelenting, pure, holy, unconditional love.

The Fight For Faith

The life of the Christian is essentially one of faith. We are saved by faith, i.e., by looking away from all other means of salvation to Christ alone. He died for us, and it is He who saves us on the basis of His death and resurrection. And this life is continued by faith. We momently appropriate by faith the blessings of the Christian life. His love, His joy, His peace, victory over sin, doubt , and meaninglessness, all come about as moment by moment, we receive them from Christ. This vigorous faith is not automatic. It is fought for, contended for, struggled for, against tremendous odds. The inclination of our won flesh, the fascination of the world, the machinations of the devil, all relentlessly oppose the deepening of our faith. But we have something greater, more powerful than all of this put together! We have the powerful Word of God, the Bible, as made alive and understandable to us by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. So our faith need not be weak and wavering. Spend much time in undistracted study and meditation in God's Word, erading it, thinking about it, memorizing it, applying it, until you live and breathe its purity, its passion, and its power. Then you can say to this mountain - whatever that mountain happens to be - "be removed and be cast into the sea" - and it shall be done!

Absolute Truth, Absolutely

For years, those in our academic settings have mocked the idea of absolute truth. Truth is supposedly little more than personal preference, so there is one truth for one person or culture, and a totally contrary or even contradictory truth for another person or culture. But a group of Christian apologists who are presenting the idea of absolute truth revealed by a personal God and found in Christ are finding that the attitude may be swinging back to acceptance of truth as absolute. One of that group, Os Guiness, claims "There is no strong post-Christian rival to the gospel. This is the greatest evangelistic opportunity the church has had in 500 years." Pray for ways to present the gospel to seekers for truth. It would be a shame to look back one day on a missed opportunity.

Creating Good Relationships

Good relationships don't just happen. They require hard and persistent work. Several factors are helpful in creating and maintaining good relationships. A sense of equality is important. Neither one taking charge or feeling her or she is in charge of the relationship, but each feeling equal to the other with a mutuality of respect and appreciation, is important. It is important to be aware of our angry outbursts, tears, fears, ultimatums, threats, leaving decision making to the other, then chiding them if the decision turns out to be wrong. These are some (and the list is long) of the ways we manipulate each other, or defend ourselves, in our relationships. But relationships built on the shaky ground can never be satisfying. Confessing our faults, insecurities, fears to each other and being mutually understanding and forgiving forges relationships that are satisfying and enduring.

Experiencing Faith

Christianity is a religion of experience. It comes as a result of faith, but what comes is experience. Our faith is not a separate, compartmentalized aspect of us, it affects our total life - emotions, will, values, knowledge, all are changed as a result of faith in Christ as our Lord and Savior. While the Bible encourages our experience of God, it also warns us that not all experience is of God. Unfortunately,  we have an enemy(Satan) who is able to produce experience. Beware of lying wonders. All great revivals were accompanied bizarre behavior, but the revivalists (Jonathan Edwards, e.g.) warned the people of their dangers, and to seek God, not particular experience. It's one thing for God to bring a holy laughter upon a congregation, it is quite another to try to work that congregation into a time of laughter. The former is a spontaneous work of the Spirit, the latter is a manipulation that seems to distract from the reason we are gathered. Enjoy God, and let Him do what He wants to do in our midst. But the apostolic example is to leave the manifestations to Him.

Just Who Do You Think You Are?

Just who do you think you are? Do you know who you are? Just what is the Christian identity? The Christian is one who has certain definitive beliefs that set him or her apart from other people. The belief that Jesus is eternal God become Man to die for us sinners, and that He rose from the dead, having paid the full penalty for our sins. Belief in the authority of Holy Scripture, i.e. the 66 books that we call our Bible. Belief that this life is not the end of our existence, but that we will live forever with God and with all those who through the ages have come to put their trust in Him as Lord and Savior. But these beliefs are not compartmentalized, i.e. set apart as a belief-system only, for they transform the total existence of the believer. And here is where we see the difference between true, biblical belief and belief that is merely credal, or head belief. The true changes the life radically - the other leaves it virtually untouched.

Fruits of the Spirit

Paul tells us there are nine fruits of the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Paul uses the metaphor of fruit to paint a picture of the qualities of Christ's life as it works itself out in the character and relationships of His people. There are many people who don't know Christ as Lord who yet seemingly show many of these qualities. But only believers can consistently manifest these qualities, since they live as those whose eyes are opened to appreciate the beauty of God's holiness. And even in these believers, they don't manifest themselves perfectly, because we may let our own spirit rule at times instead of the Spirit of God. But how loving and full of joy and peace is that life that allows God to rule! Then the relationships can be those of patience and kindness and generosity, etc. Life like this is eminently worth-while!

Fire!

“Fire! Fire! God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” These were a few of the words written on a paper found penned on the inside of Blaze Pascal’s coat, after his death. While sitting in his living room he had an experience with the living God that he could only describe as fire. That experience transformed Pascal’s life. St. Thomas Aquinas had a similar experience while writing his famous Summa Theologica, a 13^th century work still studied in Christian seminaries. St. Thomas never finished that great work. He said that after that experience of fire everything he has written seemed like straw. Yet his famous work has lasted for centuries! What that experience must have been! The good news is that however the Holy Spirit manifest Himself in any given experience, and any Christian’s life, it is radical (going to the roots) and transformative. Pascal and Aquinas are only two examples out of many that could be given. God wants us to look to Him and wait upon Him for His outpouring of blessing. It may or may not be an experience like that of Pascal and Aquinas. We are to look to God for the blessing He has for us, not for the blessing He has or had for others. Like the songwriter wrote, “Once it was blessing, now it is the Lord.”

Ask Him for His blessing of His presence and power, however He chooses to send it to you.

The Void Left by Atheism

Atheism is losing ground! It has proven itself bankrupt spiritually, philosophically, culturally, psychologically and historically. It was tried extensively and intensively in Russia. The world watched and said, "We don't want a society like that!" Even the Russian citizens cried out, "We don't want this anymore!" Today's China is largely atheistic. Its citizens are crying out (to the extent they are able to) "Give us something else!" The human heart, made in God's image, gravitates toward God - or the spiritual, the transcendent, as the roots of a tree spread out in search of water. Nothing less than God will satisfy the human heart. Eventually atheistic society becomes dull, uninteresting, uncreative, unimaginative. It soon develops a sense of lethargy and despair as an inevitable result of life cut off from God. And as the world becomes aware of the empty shell of atheism, we Christians are obliged to  make sure they see in the community of believers the very alternative they have been missing.

Mosh Pits in the Bible?

Ever notice how many "mosh pits" there are in the Gospels? Well, maybe not exactly mosh pits, but certainly crowds of people pushing and shoving to get closer to this One called Jesus. Sick people ran, if they were able, to receive His touch. If they couldn't get themselves there, they got friends to carry them to Him. If nothing else, they yelled and screamed above the noise and clamor of the crowd to get His attention. "Hey!" they screamed, "Heal me! Heal me! Help me!" And those who weren't sick scooted off in all directions to find friends and ailing Aunt Bertha and Uncle Harold so they could be healed. One thing could be counted on - Jesus could not go anywhere that people were, without stirring up pretty intense reactions. Whatever they were doing, people dropped it to rush to Jesus. And this same Jesus lives in you, if you know Him as Lord and Savior. Not just super-saints of some sort, but you! Does your life call attention, not to yourself, but to Jesus living in you? Do people sense in you a love, a compassion, a caring - and power of some unearthly kind to help them heal them, make them whole again? It's a beautiful, broken, wounded, hurting, fascinating, scary world out there. And Jesus in you is just the One to fix it!

Excellence in Christ

God calls us to excellence as His people. Sometimes our actions for God are inferior to our performance in the world of business, education, etc.  Excellence in all areas of life is the true Christian standard. "Bless this mess" is not acceptable! (Pastor's desk may be the exception!) Excellence is a certain style of life, manner of living, largeness of spirit, set of priorities, zest for quality. Every person has the God-given potential to attain excellence. It is the fulfillment of your potential, not a frenzied attempt to keep up with someone else. The drive for success by others' standards or expectations may give you ulcers or nightmares, but the standard in God's sight is to be doing His will in His way with what He has given you. Relax in Christ. But this does not mean sloppiness or carelessness in fulfilling the talents and gifts that are your by nature, or that have been given you as a special gift of God. "The early Christian church conquered because the Christians of those days out-thought, out-lived, and out-died the pagans." T. R. Glover

Changed From the Inside

Jesus is the eternal Word of God, the Logos, as the Greeks put it. A giant step forward in our spiritual growth occurs when we come to realize that Christianity is not just a set of propositions to be examined - not just a set of truth claims to consider - but the means by which the eternal transcendent God has chosen to reach out to humanity and establish a relationship with us. As we seriously study the Bible, the written Word of God, the depth and richness of life opens to us. We begin to see the possibilities that before were hidden, and purpose for living takes the place of emptiness, joy replaces despair, hope moves in where before dread and anxiety ruled. We find a richness of meaning never experienced before, and worship and praise become a joy. Our sense of self-importance gives way to the awesome majesty and glory of God. Though we can't produce these qualities by any amount of trying or thought on our own, we find them being produced by the Holy Spirit when we give Him the material to work on - the Word of God taking deep root within.

Values, Fact or Fiction?

The secularist (one who lives his or her life without God and advocates the same for all society) insists that the world of facts is the scientific world and the world of values is the world of religion. Facts are "brute" facts, i.e., they are simply there, the stuff of reality, whereas religion is a result of preference, more or less arbitrary. But no such dichotomy exists, except in the mind of the secularist. Values, in fact, are based on facts. Christians, for example, hold to certain specific values because of particular facts.  Facts such as the existence and self-disclosure of a holy God who loves us and wants us in His forever family. Facts such as the coming of this God to earth in the person of Jesus Christ to die in our place, pay the price for our sins, and rise from the dead. Then the further fact of the coming of the Holy Spirit into our lives to transform us from the self-centered, self-guided persons into persons who live for God and others. These are history-changing, life-transforming, history-substantiated facts, facts that have been experienced throughout history by many millions of people, and are no less powerful than today.

He never Promised Me A Rose Garden

Much harm has been done by the ill-advised belief that to be an effective Christian, certain principles must be mastered. Get a good grasp on these principles, these formulas, and the rest of the story is success, and sunshiny days. But the story - of your life, of reality - is too uncertain for that. The road is full of swift, unmarked turns and curves. And many ambushes await you - ambushes of doubt, depression, temptation, establishing your own security instead of trusting God. It just can't be pushed down into principles or forced into formulas. The effective, useful, fruitful, enjoyable Christian life comes by a dynamic, intimate, fellowship with God. Knowing about Him is not enough. Mastering His principles is  not the way, though outwardly it may appear to be. Good P.R. - expert marketing - may give the appearance of health and growth, but lasting, living, spiritual growth comes from within. Develop and nurture an intimate fellowship with God by committing your life to Him. Let Him walk you to the secret sins of lust or pride or doubt or greed or gluttony or laziness - and give them all to Him. Then ask Him to fill you to overflowing with the Holy Spirit.

Defining a Clean Heart

"Create in me a clean heart", cried the Psalmist, "and renew a right spirit within me!" A clean heart is one that is being cleansed by Jesus' blood. It is a heart that does not have an easy toleration for sin, but is distressed by it, and confesses sins to God as soon as there is awareness of their presence. And God promises, "if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins". A right spirit is one that is fixed upon God. It is optimistic and positive, not dwelling on the negative and hurtful. A right spirit is free from slander, gossip, criticism, and all the negative aspects of our human life. The Christian can be lifted above all the negative, and live in the glory of a life in God. Negative emotions are always losers. We lose when we permit them to gain control of us, and others lose because instead of our encouragement and example, they get from us the discouragement that negative emotions always produce. So make David's prayer yours today---tomorrow---always- "Create in me a clean heart" and live in the victory and cheerfulness of a spirit made right.

How To Become A Christian

It only takes a moment to become a Christian. To recognize that one has sinned, indeed is a sinner, and has no way to absolve those sins, then repents and relies on Christ and His work on the cross for the removal of sin and the bestowal of Christ's righteousness. A change takes place in that person's life. We cannot offer our own moral solution to our sinfulness but we can accept God's solution, His atoning sacrifice for us, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit to enable us to live a holy life. The reservoir of evil within us is deeper than we know, but the Holy Spirit is able to give us  daily victory over it. Thus the moment it takes to become a Christian is followed by a lifetime of becoming a mature Christian. It takes a moment to become a Christian. But surrendering our will - our agenda - our desires - to the Lordship of Jesus so He can mold us into maturity - is a lifetime process.

Made in God's Image

Because you are a person made in the image of the infinite, eternal God, you are a creature of more potential than you can possible realize. This is not a matter of pride, but of reality that honors God for the creative and all-powerful God that He is. It does nothing for your ego to realize the great potential that is within you. You had nothing to do with it! But you are responsible to this Creator God to develop to the fullest all that God has put in your spirit, soul, and body. Just as you could never imagine the tremendous tree that lies latent and resident in the acorn - or the array of colors and beauty within the dried up bulb- so it is beyond your imagination the skill, talent, powers, possibilities, that reside in you. Much of it will only be revealed in eternity. But don't miss the thrill of the discovery!

Help and Compassion for the Stranger

Scripture everywhere shows concerns for the stranger among us. The Old Testament lays down laws regarding care and hospitality , the New Testament speaks of compassion, and Jesus' parables teach concern for the stranger. Recently I read of a stranger looking for a church in a new community. She tells of looking for nonexistent directional signs, of having to interrupt greeters busy talking to one another, and of other indications that the church was simply not "tuned in" to the seeking stranger. Do we show God's concern for the stranger in our churches and in other areas of our lives as well? Someone who moves in next door or someone just coming onto the job beside us...Can you feel their loneliness, isolation, and confusion? Let's really enter into God's concerns for the stranger among us - at church; in our neighborhood; at work. You never know the depths of loneliness and separation they may be feeling. You can help them feel Christ's compassion and concern through you and your actions. 

It's Not MY Fault!

This is an age that is famous for shifting responsibilities to another. People spill hot coffee on themselves and sue the one who sold it to them! Or get overweight by eating too much fast food and sue the fast food companies! A burglar gets hurt or shot while robbing a place and sues the owner! I guess our homes and places of business are to be kept burglar-friendly! The church must not get caught up in the buck-passing. Changing the world has been left up to each local church. We can't pass the buck to our favorite political party - or to the  mega-church in California or Texas. We - this church - are called to be a world-tranformer. Let's use every legitimate means at our disposal to carry out our Lord's commission. It matters if we fail - and there is no one to whom we can pass the buck. It is our responsibility.

New Worldview Sighted

The new biotechnology of our day has become a total worldview for many people. It is a promising science and promises to make life easier, cure or mitigate many diseases, and add many years to our lifespan. But, as with all things in a fallen, finite world, it is not good without remainder. The remainder can be fatal to the Christian worldview, for it ends up sacrificing human dignity and spiritual value at the altar of physical and longevity. The new biotechnology assumes that we can smooth out all the rough edges of human nature, disposing of all that is infirm or bothersome, making ourselves completely at home in this world. This is a secular approach to bringing in the kingdom of God, an ersatz(substitute in an unworthy manner) Paradise, and has too many implications that can be destructive of Christian values. The lived-out and proclaimed "Jesus - is - Lord" life is the only thing that can replace the frenzied drive for immortality and wholeness. The drive for wholeness cannot be satisfied with any quantity of life, for the reach of natural desires always exceeds our grasp.

Disaster May Come Your Way

Remember the infamous sniper case, among others, that have been solved. What, if anything, might we learn from this? Perhaps the incredible depths of evil that can exist in the human heart, for one. To derive pleasure from the stopping of a life, especially a human life, in this case lives, that caused no conceivable harm or disturbance to the killers, is simply beyond the comprehension of normal minds. So many people were deprived of the presence, love and companionship of a loved one! This, along with the World Trade Center Twin Towers, Columbine High School, the government building in Oklahoma, and numerous other murderous incidents in the last 10 years, stunningly reveal what a life out of God's control can do. Might it also inspire us to a new zeal to reach out in love, to our neighbors and co-workers with the gospel of Christ? Who knows whether a more diligent word of witness - one or more invitation to church - a more loving attitude toward a neighbor - might have made things be far different in one or more of these disasters.

Who IsThe Lord of Your Life?

Is Jesus Christ really the Lord of your life? There is a tendency in Christianity, at least contemporary American Christianity, to separate Jesus as Savior from Jesus as Lord. If this is possible, it is certainly not proper, nor does it give Jesus much credibility as truly a Savior. Jesus does not save us merely to give us a ticket to heaven. He saves us to create another outpost of His kingdom in an alien and lost world. He advances His kingdom as He finds people willing to claim Him wholeheartedly and relentlessly as Lord of their life. He is Lord of our time. If He is truly Lord, He sets the agenda of our life. We don't tell Him what we will do, we allow him to tell us. Otherwise, "Jesus is Lord" is less than an empty slogan. It is a mockery of Christianity. He is Lord of our activities. Not just rank pornography, but movies that cheapen sex and incite violence, could hardly be consistent with "Jesus is Lord". And even things good in themselves can be instruments of evil if done in excess, in the wrong way, or at the wrong time. If "Jesus is Lord" is true in each of our lives and in our church as a whole, we can be an effective instrument for advancing God's Kingdom in such a time as this. 

Defining Terrorism

God is present in the world he has created. His presence creates the truth, goodness, beauty, justice and righteousness that flow from His being and mark His reality. The divine absence is seen in the false, deceptive, illusionary, ugly, evil and cruel existence of the fallen world. Where God is accepted, even in a superficial way, His qualities are felt in the world. The absence of God, and substitutes for God, leave the negative, hurtful characteristics mentioned above. The terror being inflicted upon the world by some in the name of religion, demonstrates the terrible negative power religion can have, when that religion is not the revealed religion of the Bible. Terrorism is not the product of ethnicity - it does not occur because one is Iraqi, Iranian, Palestinian, or of any other national origin. Terrorism is a product of a perverse understanding of who God is and what He expects of His people. The failure to discern the Spirit - and spirits - in religions, leads to the terrible misunderstanding of God and religion. And to the sad outworking of the wrong qualities in human existence.

How Should We Legislate Morality?

Any civilization needs God and belief in God, to survive. As someone sarcastically, but truthfully put it, "If chance be the father of all flesh, disaster is his rainbow in the sky, and when you hear 'state of emergency! Sniper kills ten! Troops on rampage! Bomb blasts school!' - It is but the sound of man worshiping his maker'." Morality is pretty hard to defend apart from God. Certain things can be legislated, but how to defend whose values and whose morality and whose justice should prevail is hard to consistently define and defend without the God of Holy Scripture. We are seeing this reality coming to the surface more and more in our country and all indications are that it will continue to do so. The moral law of God is reenacted in a nation in response to God and His law, and out of love for Him and fear of disregarding Him. If nothing else, simple self-interest should cause people to think about God, what He has to say to us, and what should our relationship to Him and His Word. This awareness in turn comes about as Christian people - those who have a personal relationship with Him, seek Him earnestly for an outpouring of His Spirit upon the Church, and upon our nation. Pray for revival among His people, and conviction and awareness among those who don't yet know Him.

What's Happening?

What in the world is going on? Catastrophic debt and unemployment in the U.S., riots in London, and other cities in the U.K., economic disaster in Greece and other countries. Terrorism remains a universal threat. No country is safe from it. Genocide is a way of life in countries in Africa, where some tribes and nations are determined to exterminate others. We can’t help but wonder what will happen next and where. Granted, we have more access to disturbances worldwide, and that could account seemingly for a more troubled world, but even granting that, who can deny the increased vulnerability and viciousness of debate and security in our country and others? There seems little doubt that a tumultuous and somewhat terrifying times portrayed in the Bible, in the book of Revelation and other parts of inspired scripture is upon us.  Will things ever go back (or ahead) to the relatively quiet, peaceful times, say the 1950's? Every decade   has its fears and problems, for we live in a fallen world. The striving for place and power push people to trample others in their own selfish pursuits. But the present time seems unique in the sense of the universality of the tragic in every area of life. But our hope is a sure one in Christ. When all else fails, or at the very least, peace does not seem prevalent, we find that Christ and His everlasting, true nature does not and will not fail us when we lean on Him.