Even If i Walk Alone

Instructing and encouraging you to live your life as a disciple of Jesus

Daily Life

Which Parts of the Bible Do You Ignore?

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In my reading this week I was challenged by a question that, on its face, seemed ludicrous. Yet I could neither ignore it nor get it out of my head. The question was, “Which parts of the Bible are you choosing to ignore?” It was preposterous in both its implication that I would even think of picking and choosing parts of the Bible to ignore, and also by the insinuation that I indeed was ignoring parts of the Bible. I have been diligently striving to follow in the way of Jesus Christ, to do the things that He would do. That involves not allowing any compromise along the way. So how could I possibly be ignoring parts of the Bible, much less by conscious choice? This story, however, does not have a happy ending. Prayer and introspection revealed that indeed I have been ignoring parts of the Bible. In fact, I have been ignoring multiple parts of Scripture. This realization has been both sobering and challenging. Allow me to share a couple of areas I have been choosing to ignore.

The second greatest commandment, according to Jesus, is to love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:28-31). I do my best to show kindness to my neighbors. I always smile and wave whenever I see them outside. In the winter I even clear their driveways and sidewalks with my snow blower. Therefore, I must be demonstrating love to my neighbor. So apparently I can check this box with an affirmative. Or can I? I am ashamed to admit, I’ve never invited one of my current neighbors over for dinner; I’ve never stopped over just to see if I can help in any way. I’m a great neighbor as long as we happen to be outside at the same time. Otherwise it takes a little work, and apparently that’s been a bit too much for me. For those who are way ahead of me at this point and are still content that they can easily check off the “love my neighbor as myself” box, let me ask you a question. Have you, like a great number of Americans, purchased one of the new, large, flat screen televisions in the past couple of years? If you answered yes to that question, did you purchase one for your neighbor as well? If not, why not? Do you not love your neighbor at least as much as you love yourself? In the interest of full disclosure, I picked the flat screen television example because I don’t have one. I figured that was fair since I took my lumps in the first half of this paragraph. How about groceries? When you purchase food each week, do you purchase a bag for your neighbor as well? I hope you see my point.

Most of us do just enough to make us believe we are doing what Jesus commanded us to do. But when we look a little deeper, if we’re honest with ourselves, we will be forced to admit that we are indeed ignoring parts of the Bible. We ignore that which makes us uncomfortable or requires too great a sacrifice. We give money to those in need, but will we sell all we have and then turn around and give all the proceeds to the poor (Luke 18:18-22)? We’ll volunteer at the soup kitchen, but will we take a stranger in to live with us (Matthew 25:35)? We are ignoring the parts of the Bible that most reflect the mission of Jesus. How dare we call ourselves disciples? We are at best a weak and hypocritical people. The Church is supposed to be the unified body, the very hands and feet, of Jesus. We are to be ushering in His Kingdom by doing the things He commanded us to do while we are still on this earth. We are only half committed; we speak the language but we fail in the execution of the plan.

We must all repent of the parts of the Bible we have ignored out of our selfish sense of comfort. If we would indeed be a follower of Christ, we must look again at what He expects of us. We must look again at the way He lived and the things He did. We must repent of the words He spoke that we have ignored. It is time to rise up as the body of Christ and leave behind the half-hearted effort most of us have given to this point; it is time to work in unison to accomplish the mission of Jesus. As you prayerfully consider the way in which you will live for Him, give fresh consideration to the parts of the Bible you have been choosing to ignore.

What does it mean to be a Christian?

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Since we talk so much about Christianity here, I thought it might be worthwhile for some to take a step back and define what being a Christian actually entails. Christianity in the traditional sense simply means one who is a follower of Christ. In modern evangelical terms (if you are new to Christianity, you’ll find we have A LOT of terms), a Christian is defined as someone who has prayed “the sinner’s prayer” and accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior. My purpose is not to find fault with either definition, but rather to elaborate on them, with an emphasis on what Jesus commanded of His followers.

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Poverty in America

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Last night I attended a photo exhibit called “Fighting for the Forgotten”, an event sponsored in conjunction with AmericanPoverty.org. Several photo journalists from around the country have been photographing the poor in America. The pictures were both sobering and heartbreaking. America is the richest nation in the world and has more churches and ministries than any other country. I discovered last night that I live in the 4th most affluent county in America (Who knew… and how the heck did they let me in?). Yet even in my county, the poverty rate is nearly 5% (source). In America the poverty rate is greater than 15% (source). By many estimates, the percentage of those living in poverty has already hit 20%; that’s one out of every 5 families that are living in, or very close to, poverty. How can we who claim to be followers of Christ sit on the sidelines and watch this happen? God forgive us for our apathy and hardened hearts when it comes to our response to the poor.

People in poverty are no different from you or me. The only thing we have that they don’t is a larger bank account. God loves each and every homeless or hurting individual exactly as much as He loves us. He longs to hold them and talk to them in the same way that He longs to hold and talk to us. We are blessed beyond compare and beyond explanation. God doesn’t play favorites. He hasn’t chosen some to live in poverty and some to live in plenty. He has chosen all to live in love, and He has chosen all to live in community, caring for the needs of one another. There are individuals in America today who preach what is often termed a “prosperity gospel”. They teach that God wants you to be wealthy, and that if we simply do what Jesus commands, we will be financially rich. Those who aren’t obviously aren’t yet right with God. Nothing could be further from Scriptural truth and it insults the poor that Jesus told us would always be among us. Christ taught that whatever we do for the poor, we do for Him. Jesus obviously did not come preaching a prosperity gospel. My point is that our culture, and even our churches, teaches us to look down on the poor. We have been conditioned to think of those in poverty as lazy, addicts, people far from God’s will.

Actually they are indeed far from God’s will, but not of their own doing (in most cases). God never wanted this for His children. He created them to live in perfect unity and fellowship with Him. We messed this up in the Garden of Eden, and we continue to mess it up today. We make bad choices, destructive decisions that lead to a downward spiral in our fallen world. Yet He still loves us and wants the best for us. He wants to reach out and help us, to walk with us. We are His hands that must reach out to the poor, and we are His feet that must walk with them through the hard times of their life. We are God’s people, Kingdom citizens called to care for the widow and the orphan, to feed the hungry and clothe those in need. The poor are not less than we are; they are greater than we are. Jesus proclaimed that the last will be first, and always gave special attention to the poor both in word and in deed.

It is our job, indeed our mission, to eradicate poverty. We are commanded to give to anyone in need. Don’t worry about tomorrow or think of setting something back for the future. The need is now; it’s all around us, and it is growing. One day we will have to give an account for how we utilized the resources God has given us. What will our excuse be then? Give out of your abundance; give out of your lack of abundance. Whatever you do, you must give; give of yourself, your time and your money. Poverty in our nation and throughout the world has reached staggering proportions. We cannot win a battle in which we will not engage. Don’t turn away from those in poverty. Don’t reject the call of Christ to care for the poor. Don’t keep the good news of His true Gospel to yourself. It has to start somewhere, it has to start some time, and it has to start with someone. Why not here, why not now, and why not you or me?

Your True Identity

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Are you living with a case of mistaken identity? Many, if not most, of us go through life with a misconception of who they really are. Satan loves nothing better than to plant seeds of doubt and disillusion within our minds. He works to create images of ourselves in our mind that are inconsistent with whom we are in Christ. He seeks to convince us that we are not strong enough, not attractive enough or not talented enough to accomplish the things in life we are created to do. We become accustomed to seeing ourselves as the person Satan paints us to be, to the point that we forget who we are in Christ.

In Christ, we have the strength to overcome any obstacle that is placed in our path. Christ tells us that through Him we have overcome everything in this world. We simply must have the faith to believe it. But Satan plants images in our mind that cause us to see ourselves as too weak to handle certain situations; he deceives us to be afraid. Fear has no place in the Kingdom of God. There is no force that does not tremble at the name of Jesus. If we are devoted to following and serving Him, that same Spirit of courage and confidence resides within each of us. We have nothing to fear when we walk with Christ. We have been conditioned to fear for so long, that we are now paralyzed and unable to move at all. As the hands and feet of Jesus, to not be able to move is the worst situation in which we can find ourselves. Take courage, realize that Christ is with you and His power is available to you. We need simply to ask and to believe.

One of the great tragedies of modern society is the way that advertising projects those who are purported to be the ideal men and women. Many teens, as well as those younger and older, see themselves as falling short of that ideal and become both obsessed and depressed concerning their appearance. We live in an age where nearly any body feature can be altered if one is not satisfied with the way God created them. God loves us exactly as we are; nothing we change about our appearance will make Him love us any more than He already does. Who are we trying to impress anyway? For whom are we living? Besides, who are we to presume that we can improve on what God designed? Outside of a legitimate birth defect or an accident, both results of our fallen world, it seems a bit arrogant and dangerous to proclaim that we can create something more beautiful than God. This is simply one of Satan’s oldest ploys. If he can get you focused on your appearance, he knows he can neutralize any effectiveness you might have for Christ. That’s his whole goal; if he can get your focus off of God, he considers it a victory. Don’t let him convince you of this lie. See yourself as Jesus sees you: a beautiful and absolutely stunning representation of His creation.

God has given each of us talents with which to serve Him. Satan does what he can to discourage us in hopes of getting us to avoid using our gifts. If he can convince us we are not good enough or talented enough to make use of our gifts, he knows far fewer people will be reached with the good news of Jesus Christ. Don’t believe the lies that he feeds you. God gave the gifts you have within you for the purpose of telling others about Him. It’s through the use of our gifts that we are able to serve others. Regardless of what your gifts may be, use them to their fullest. If God gave you the gift, and He did, then He also made you more than able to adequately make use of that gift. The next time you doubt your ability to use your talent, remember that those thoughts come from Satan. You scare him to death, so he will do whatever he can to render your gifts useless. Recognize the doubt for what it is: a clever ruse of the devil. Don’t bite; rather, be encouraged that he is terrified of what you will accomplish with your God-given talents.

Don’t believe the lies Satan has placed in your mind. Study the Bible to remind yourself who you are in Christ. We are fearless conquerors designed to bring justice to the poor, the widows and the orphans. We are a beautiful creation, our lives a fragrant sacrifice to God. We have been given talents that will invade the very depths of Hell and win back those who have turned away from Jesus. Don’t buy the deception that Satan tries to sell you. Be strong, take courage, and reject the lies; you are beautiful and talented beyond words.

Rest

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Following Jesus is an adventure in passion and energy. Every day we seek out others in need in order that we may demonstrate the love of Christ by serving them. It is often a thankless job, as we serve them when no one else is looking. We work tirelessly not only to complete our own tasks, but works of service for others as well. A person willing to serve freely quickly gains a reputation, and soon you are on the speed dial of numerous committee’s and organizations. This is why so many who start with good intentions burn out not long after they started. What’s the secret of living a life of burning passion without being consumed by the flames? The answer, as always, is found in Jesus.

Jesus was intimately involved in the creation of our world; the cycles of that creation offer ready clues as to how we should live our lives. Looking simply at the twenty-four hour cycle of each day, it becomes obvious that each day was created with a time to work and a time to rest. In our modern electrical society, the lines have been blurred and we no longer have such a clear separation between work and rest hours. Just because we can work twenty-four hours per day does not mean we were created to do so. We should work diligently while there is light, and rest when night falls. While we must occasionally make exceptions to this rule, we need to be careful that they are indeed exceptions and do not become the rule.

The six days of labor and one day of rest model that God demonstrated for us has been frequently discussed and analyzed. Still, it seems that six thousand years later (give or take), we still haven’t gotten the point. Work passionately for six days every week. Work at your vocation, work on chores around your residence, and work in service to your family and others. But when the remaining day of the week (traditionally Saturday or Sunday depending upon your perspective, beliefs or upbringing) rolls around, take that day off. Taking the day off does not mean that you save all your household tasks for this day. Taking the day off means a day without tasks. Go to church, spend time with your family and friends, read a (non work-related) book or watch a positive movie. Take a nap, take a drive, take a break! This is your recharging day. God said to work for six days and rest on the seventh. That’s good enough for me.

You have been created for both work and rest. They work hand in hand, and must be kept in balance if we are to maintain good health and vibrant energy. As ambassadors of the king, we must always be at our best. We are at our best when we are healthy and energetic. Follow God’s model of both work and rest. When we are operating our bodies in accordance with the way He designed us, we will find that we can accomplish more and feel better than we ever have before. Work diligently in service to others as you pursue a life that looks like Jesus. But don’t neglect to recharge your spirit with sleep and prayer. Don’t forget to rest.