New Beginnings with Heavenly Leanings

Friends,

The story is told -- At the beginning of a new year, a high school principal decided to post his teachers’ new year’s resolutions on the bulletin board. As the teachers gathered around the bulletin board, a great commotion started. One of the teachers was complaining. "Why weren’t my resolutions posted?" She was throwing such a temper tantrum that the principal hurried to his office to see if he had overlooked her resolutions. Sure enough, he had mislaid them on his desk. As he read her resolutions he was astounded. This teacher’s first resolution was “not to let little things upset her in the New Year.” Or how about this one…a son called his parents to wish them a happy new year and when his Dad answered the phone, He asked his dad,” well Dad, what’s your new year’s resolution? His dad replied, "To make your mother as happy as I can all year," When his mom got on the phone he asked her the same question. His mom replied my resolution is "To see that your dad keeps his New Year’s resolution." Or some of you may have given up on resolutions taking the same attitude as the characters in the cartoon Calvin and Hobbes: The cartoon character Calvin from Calvin and Hobbes once said, “God put me on this earth to accomplish a certain number of things. Right now I’m so far behind I’ll never die.”  This might be the case with you…just keeping up with what you have may be enough.  But, even if this is the case, it is important not to forget that we have responsibilities to focus in on eternal matters of the spirit and soul…to keep our commitments that the Lord wants and expects us to keep.  We need to consider keeping first things first as we enter into the New Year. If we do, we will be blessed beyond the season.

Philippi was a Roman colony on foreign soil.  In a like way, the church is a “colony of heaven on earth.” Paul has been the athlete in his letter to the Philippians…now, he is the alien (3:17-21).  We are all aliens…citizens of another world, living on earth.  This should help our perspective as it relates to the lives we live.  Paul continues to deal with the difficulties presented by the Judaizers, or culturally Jewish Christians.  He uses some strong language to describe them, calling them “the enemies of the cross of Christ.”  These people are not spiritually-minded, but earthly-minded…holding to rituals and beliefs that God had given to Israel, but fulfilled in Christ.  Following regulations under the guidance of flesh, rather than submitting to the Spirit, is their calling card and it shows their allegiance. Jesus has already broken down the wall separating Jews and Gentiles (2:14-16)…now the Judaizers are trying to rebuild it.  Unfortunately, this is a problem that still exists today.  Some choose to build walls and regulations where the Lord never intended, rather than build the unity of the Spirit.  It is bad enough that such ones go astray…worse, still, that they lead others astray.  It is no wonder that Paul weeps over them.

When a lost sinner becomes a Christian, this person becomes a citizen of heaven, and his or her name is written in the Book of Life (see 4:3). This person begins eternal, heavenly living at that point.  Paul’s point, in relationship to conversion is -- we may have to live in this world, but we should not be citizens of it.  It is necessary to continually remove the yoke of the world’s pleasures and priorities that seek to bind us.  The good news is that we who are believers can be and need to be exemplary citizens…any person can choose to be a “spiritual citizen” – it is a choice.  Citizens of heaven understand spiritual matters; they are governed by heaven’s laws.  And the greatest spiritual matter that governs us is love…we are more concerned about others than ourselves, more interested in giving than getting.  The heavenly citizen glories in the cross (Galatians 6:14), not in self and experiences a new vision – looking ahead for the Savior. He or she is willing to share the Good News.  When Joseph was revealed to his brothers, he chose not to dwell on his brothers’ past, but to see matters from God’s point of view – He looked ahead at God’s plan for them.  The fact that Jesus is returning is a powerful motive for living a dedicated life of service…today.

Christians who are looking ahead, Paul says, will receive a glorified body, like Christ’s (1 John 3:1ff). This will happen in a moment (1 Corinthians 15:42ff)…and at that moment, everything in this world will be completely worthless to us, which relatively speaking, is how it ought to be today.  But, we say – I like my things. This is fine…there is nothing necessarily wrong with this…just don’t hold on to them too tightly.  When Jesus comes again, He will “subdue all things unto Himself” (3:21b) or “arrange in ranks” or “bring everything under His control” may be a better way to interpret it.  Citizens of heaven allow Jesus to arrange matters in their lives according to the proper priority, living for things that truly matter…with eternity’s values in view.  Even though matters increasingly crowd our priorities and choices, being a citizen of heaven should be the most prized possession we have!  Let’s remember this as we enter into 2015. 

Steve Ely offers this -- During a practice session for the Green Bay Packers, things were not going well for Vince Lombardi’s team. Lombardi singled out one big guard for his failure to "put out." It was a hot, muggy day when the coach called his guard aside and leveled his awesome vocal guns on him, as only Lombardi could. "Son, you are a lousy football player. You’re not blocking…you’re not tackling…you’re not putting out. As a matter of fact, it’s all over for you today, go take a shower." The big guard dropped his head and walked into the dressing room. Forty- five minutes later, when Lombardi walked in, he saw the big guard sitting in front of his locker still wearing his uniform. His head was bowed and he was sobbing quietly.  Vince Lombardi, ever the changeable but always the compassionate warrior, did something of an about face that was also typical of him. He walked over to his football player and put his arms around his shoulder. "Son," he said, "I told you the truth. You are a lousy football player. You’re not blocking…you’re not tackling…you’re not putting out. However, in all fairness to you, I should have finished the story. Inside of you, son, there is a great football player, and I’m going to stick by your side until the great football player inside of you has a chance to come out and assert himself." With these words, Jerry Kramer straightened up and felt a great deal better. As a matter of fact, he felt so much better he went on to become one of the all-time greats in football and was recently voted the all-time guard in the first 50 years of professional football.

This entire message is about perspective.  We need to consider our perspective as it relates to how we live.  Christians allow the Lord to set their priorities.  We should not be looking to set our own priorities and then say…okay, Lord, give it your rubber stamp of approval.  When we are living for Christ, everything changes.  We may all be busy, but is it the Lord that is guiding us in our busyness?  Or is He left behind, because we are not following His priority for our lives.  This is what we mean when we say, Jesus is Lord.  He is Master, Ruler over everything.  When we dedicate our lives to Christ, this is what we claim.  I am no longer Master.  My attention is on Him.  If I am heavenly living on earth, this affects everything.  When we are living as citizens of heaven, we should dedicate a certain amount of time every day to be with the Lord, in study and prayer.  We should come to worship focused on him, having prepared ourselves for it.  Our prayers should be in tune with the prayer leaders.  We also sing from our hearts, and not just our mouths.  We should be intently focused on the Lord’s Supper.  The first checks we write each month should be to the Lord.  We should not only hear the sermon, but live it out in our lives.  When we live as citizens of heaven, it changes…not only our perspective, but our priorities, as well.  Be a winner at the most important thing that matters in this life…living as a heavenly citizen on this earth.

Blessings, Don

Living Outside the Box, Pt. 2

Friends,

I posted something on Facebook the other day that the Lord put on my heart. We live in a culture where many things come easy. As it relates to closeness with God, this is not necessarily the case...it requires desire, humility and diligence. He wants us to be close to Him...and we certainly need it. (James 4:8a) I believe many people assume, and even expect, that faith should come easy, but that is just not the case. And when they find themselves struggling to believe, they do not understand it. As the old saying goes, when there is distance between you and God, He hasn’t gone anywhere. It is you and I who create the gap through our lack of faith, or even worse, living worldly. So, as we come back to consider what is taking place in the life of a fascinating individual…who by all rights and understandings, should not have faith in God…we are inspired to live more faithfully for the Lord

The Roman centurion is a person of great faith who is not afraid to cross racial and social barriers (Luke 7:1-10). He displays a deep love and affection for a servant who is ill to the point of death, and He seeks out a Jewish religious leader for answers. He also desires to immerse himself in the work of God, even making a significant contribution to the building of a Jewish synagogue. Here is a gentile soldier that is concerned about Jewish worship, which is remarkable. As we continue to examine the characteristics that reveal this centurion to be a person of amazing faith, we see that this man approaches Christ with great humility (vv. 6-7a). These verses reveal two essential components of the Christian faith – an understanding of whom Christ is (Savior) and an understanding of who we are (helpless sinners).

In verse six we find this, “Then Jesus went with them. And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof. (7) Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to you.” Before Jesus could reach his house, the Centurion sends a second representative to Jesus, telling him that it is not necessary for Him to come to his house. Because he was familiar with Jewish religious customs, the centurion did not wish to put Jesus in a position of having to enter the house of a Gentile. This Roman soldier, a man of considerable influence and power, is uniquely humble, regarding himself as undeserving of having Jesus come under his roof. He even felt unworthy of meeting Jesus in the street. This soldier, unlike the Pharisees, does not ask Jesus for a sign that he is who he says he is. This man doesn’t even ask to meet him.

Finally, we see this Roman trust, as the song says, “in Christ alone.” (vv. 7a-8) “… But say the word, and my servant will be healed. (8) For I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” The centurion apparently realizes that Jesus has the power of life and death…that He could heal with a word, and therefore, must be God. And if Christ is divine, then he…a Gentile sinner…is unworthy even to meet him. Respectfully, he kneels before his divine authority. All Jesus has to do is say the word, and the centurion believes that it is as good as done. There is no evidence that this man has ever personally heard Jesus preach and yet he believes! He makes his request based on what he has heard concerning Jesus. And Jesus promises a special blessing on people like this centurion. When Jesus appears to Thomas and removes all of his doubts, proving that he has risen from the dead, he says to Thomas, “Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” (John 20:29). This blessing extends to the centurion and to every believer today. In the word “also” in verse eight, the centurion sees a parallel between the way he commands his soldiers and the way Jesus commands diseases. If this man, with very little spiritual instruction, has this kind of faith in God’s Word, how much greater should our faith be?
In verse nine we see Jesus’ reaction, “He marvels at him, and turns around and says to the crowd that follows Him, “I say to you, I have not found such great faith, even in Israel!” This man’s remarks amaze Jesus…that they have come from a Gentile. He marvels at a Roman centurion, whose background and circumstances ought to have made it difficult for him to have faith. Here is a man whose occupation is one where he has to be “the tough guy”…a man who should be steeped in the paganism of the day…a man hated by the Jews because he is a Roman. Yet in spite of all the circumstances that go against him, he is a striking example of faith. And almost as an afterthought, Luke adds verse 10…and oh by the way, “When those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.” Faith that is genuine is fulfilled in and by Christ Jesus.

Pat Summerall has to be my favorite broadcaster of all time. He passed away this past spring at the age of 82. Pat spent 50 years with the National Football League. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in 1952 and played with the Chicago Cardinals and New York Giants until 1961. After his retirement from the game, he joined CBS as a broadcaster and in 1993 switched to Fox. During his CBS years he and a fellow broadcaster partied hard off the field. "We raised Cain” he says, “I was the first guy at the bar and the last to leave." His love of alcohol was well-documented. Summerall was told that if he kept on drinking he was going to die. After checking himself into the Betty Ford Clinic, his counselor urged him to seek a better life through faith. At age 66, Pat Summerall was baptized. In USA Today he told a reporter that when the minister "leaned me back in the water, I never felt so helpless." Summerall testified, "I knew I just became a Christian. I can’t tell you how great life has been since then." Summerall spent much of the past sixteen years of his life living outside of what had been his box. He spent his time telling people about his story, and how he left the world behind to become a Christian -- what a testimony!

Pat Summerall recognized that his life was not going to make sense and he was going to be enslaved to addiction unless he received some help. When we come back to the story of the centurion, he realizes that he needs help. What startles and impresses Jesus are the positive characteristics that are displayed in the life of the centurion. These characteristics can be displayed in the life of anyone who is willing to trust in Him. We do not have to settle for a mediocre faith. We do not have to hang out on the fringes of Christian society and the body of Christ. We can and should be “all in.” Jesus really does not expect anything less than this for us. He must be Lord of our lives, and not just some part time Christ. We need to prioritize and continue to prioritize our lives in a way that we are living as citizens of heaven on earth, first! This is our continual challenge.

Blessings, Don