When is it sin?

After one of our recent teachings on 1 John, Lisa felt it might have been profitable to be clear, to elaborate, on those kinds of things that are sin. Where are the boundaries?

Of course, the Bible is a good place to look to find God's guidelines - particularly Matthew 5-7 (also known as The Sermon on The Mount). We could make a list.

But I find the graphic above to be most helpful. (Click on it to get a larger version.) Why? Because it reminds us that the MOST IMPORTANT thing is NOT having some mental list of rights and wrongs in our heads, no! The MOST IMPORTANT thing is our relationship with God. Are we close to Him? If we are, we will do those things He values and not want to damage our relationship by going outside of his good boundaries for our lives.

Also, this graphic shows us that essentially - as humans - God created us GOOD. These tendencies are good.

But we always take things beyond what we should - don't we?

This graphic was done by an Alliance pastor of many years - David Mitchell.

Jesus had a big family and they're all buried in a rich man's tomb? Uh, no.

You may have heard about this... James Cameron, who directed the "Titanic", says he's found where Jesus was maybe buried. Not only Jesus, but his whole family. Apparently, according to this idea, Jesus married Mary Magdalene and the two of them, with their children, are all buried in a tomb that was discovered 27 years ago.

Archaeologists aren't buying it. Basically, it looks like a wealthy family's tomb. Even a lot of people who don't believe in Jesus' resurrection find this ridiculous.

And needless to say, theologians don't buy it.

Neither should you.

News story

Hiding Place

Last Sunday we sang an older worship song called "You Are My Hiding Place". Now it's easy for us to think of playing "Hide and Seek" as kids, but really the song (as well as the Bible verses it's based on) is talking about where we go when we're stressed.

People often think about a favorite place when they're stressed. If they can just get there, they can unwind, they can relax. Sometimes it's a vacation spot, or maybe a favorite spot to go on the weekends, or maybe it's a comfortable chair at home. "If I can get there, I can leave my problems behind." Sometimes it's an activity that we use to 'escape' - like shopping at an expesnive mall, fishing, playing a video game, or watching an action/adventure or romance movie (they're called "escapist" movies). If we can just get there, and 'ensconce' ourselves (this means to be totally surrounded by comfort), THEN we can find peace and leave the disturbing things and the fears and the stresses behind.

But as I was fasting and praying on Wednesday, I was thinking:

There is no perfect place. Development, crime, bad weather, and unexpected accidents all conspire to ensure this. However, if that "secret place" we can go to is simply to be in God's presence, with Him - then we have a perfect place. A spiritual "hiding place" that is sure, and that will refresh us.

See, this is yet another advantage believers in Jesus have over other people. They have no sure retreat. Their comfortable diversions won't satisfy them - not for long.

So non-believers fight (like wild cats) to protect earthly things (including their vacation spots and their backyards) that make them comfortable, even those things are temporary and someone else will get them when they die (See Luke 12:13-21). As Bob Dylan sings: "Funny, how the things you have the hardest time parting with/ Are the things you need the least".

The biggest danger of becoming wealthy is anxiety. Will your little kingdom crumble?

Yet, David sang of his confidence in God at those times he had nothing and was running away from evil kings with big armies hunting for him. (See Psalm 16.)

Those who know their God have no need to fear. He is their hiding place.

(By the way, the picture at the top is from Cappadocia, a place where Christians hid from Roman emperors who were killing Christians. It's in central Turkey.)

You Can't Do It!

Thinking about our last teaching at 2nd Vision, and the importance of "walking as Jesus did"... asking ourselves "What Would Jesus Do?"... and being "little Christs" in our workplaces, in our shopping, and at home...

It is a tall task. Jesus tells us "be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:48, NIV) And when he says that, he's wrapping up a talk on loving your enemies. Man, how on earth do you do that?

On our own, we cannot do it.

However, when you made Jesus yours by trusting in Him, by surrendering to Him, you also got a Helper.

I want to quote Jack Taylor in The Key to Triumphant Living (page 41):

There is a simple secret to the Christian life. It is, in fact, so simple
that millions miss it. There is a dynamic so mighty that no life can
remain the same after discovering it. Paul called it a "mystery which hath
been hid from ages and from generations, ut now is manifest to his saints" (Col.
1:26). It is THE SECRET, THE KEY, THE SUPREME DYNAMIC, THE GLORIOUS SECRET of the Christian life. I bless the day I began to see it!
True Christianity is simply, "Christ-in-you-ity" and "Chrsit-in-me-ity."

How do we access that power of Christ in us for living?

Do we really know that "I think I can" is not good enough? Are we really ready to turn over the control of our lives to Jesus? "Jesus, I'm yours. Teach me. My time is yours. My stuff is yours." And then are ready to respond to Him by doing what He's showing us to do? (I gotta give the credit to Dann Spader & Gary Mayes - this is basically the process they outline at the end of their helpful book Growing A Healthy Church - KNOW, YIELD, and RESPOND.)

May God bless you as you day-by-day ask Him for His help.

Daily Dirt

When I was a middle-schooler, I remember seeing reruns of an old TV sitcom called "Carter Country". I can hardly remember anything about the show, but I do remember a vigorous debate between the police chief and his sergeant about whether it was better to take a shower in the evening or in the morning. The sergeant (like me) was arguing that the morning shower was best.

The chief had a great response, though: "So you take all your daily dirt to bed with you?" Or words to that effect, but I won't forget the phrase "daily dirt".

Confession of sins is so important to maintaining a right relationship with God, which is why we've talked about it for the past two sermons. We must keep "short accounts" with God, to use other words. I spend much of my daily prayer time confessing sins - typically I go through each of what the Christian scholars from the Middle Ages called "The Seven Deadly Sins", that is, pride, greed, gluttony, lust, envy, wrath, and sloth, and ask God to wash me clean of instances of each. Often I am not aware of sins I have done - but God knows that.

We want our relationship with the living and loving God to be close, don't we? Then let us spend time every day -- and any time we are aware of doing something wrong or selfish -- to confess our sins before His feet, and receive the washing and cleaning only He can do in our lives.

In fact, doing this before bed is probably a good idea... who wants to take their "daily dirt" to bed?

Reviving the Blog

Ed has encouraged me to get the blog going again, which I'm glad for, because it's nice to know somebody wants to read it! I was beginning to think I was typing into the void of space!

Anyway, I have three blog posts kicking around in my head and hope to get them out later this week. All of them have to do with different aspects of living Christianly despite the real presence of sin in our world (reflections on our studies in 1 John).

God is good,

Rob