A Lot to Learn

Several years ago one of the members of a Bible study I was teaching made a comment that I may never forget; but before I tell you what he said, let me tell you a little about him.

He was a dentist in the small town where we lived. He was married and had two children who were both active in the church’s youth program. He sang in the choir and served on a committee or two in the church. He was also active in the local chapter of a men’s service organization.

One evening about halfway through the thirteen-week course he shared this comment: “I just have to admit that there has been something that has puzzled me for a long time. I mean I see people in their sixties and seventies carrying their Bibles to Sunday School class and I think, ‘Well, it’s a big book, but it’s not that big. Don’t they know what it says yet?’”

It was a real breakthrough moment for him. Up to that point he had considered the Bible to be one of the many books in the world. He had studied lots of textbooks and still read scores of journal articles to practice his profession. He kept up with news and sports and encouraged his children to be good students (which they were); but somehow the Bible had remained just another book to him.

Accepting the free gift of grace God offers us through Jesus Christ is essential to becoming a person of faith. “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). Nevertheless, Jesus told his followers there was more to making disciples than just initiating them into the movement. “Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you” (Matthew 28:20).

The world is a complex and confusing place in which to live. New issues seem to arise daily and many of the enduring problems we face seem to defy all solutions. While it may not have the answer to which cell phone provider you should choose or when you should refinance your house, the Bible does have much to say about the most important issues of life: how we should order our priorities, the standards by which we should evaluate our relationships, the responsibilities we have for one another and for the world.

Here’s the truth: The Bible is a big book, not that big; but big enough to hold the answers to many of your deepest questions—if you will take the time listen to all that God has to say to you through it.

60 Seconds

“If your house was on fire and you had 60 seconds, what would you take?” That is the question that Declan O'Callaghan asks Anna Brady in the movie, Leap Year, as they are waiting for the train to Dublin. Anna has traveled from New York to surprise her boyfriend, Dr. Jeremy Sloane, after her father reminds her of the Irish tradition that a man who receives a marriage proposal on a leap day must accept it. With a successful career and the prospect of a prestigious address, Anna is convinced that this marriage will be the fulfillment of all her dreams. Still she has no answer to Declan’s question. She really can’t come up with an answer to what she values most; but the question lingers in her mind.

Once she finally reaches Dublin, she is the one who is surprised when Jeremy proposes to her. A few days later while they are getting ready to host an engagement party in their new condominium, Jeremy tells Anna about a call he got from the president of the condo association while they were in Ireland. During the call he thought it would improve their chances of making the purchase if he told the woman that they were engaged to be married. Declan’s question springs to mind.

While their guests are enjoying the party, Anna steps out into the hall and pulls the fire alarm. She helps her guests find their way to the stairs and then goes back in to watch as Jeremy rushes to grab all his electronic devices before heading out. In the next scene, Anna is back in Ireland. She tells Declan, “When my 60 seconds came around I realized I had everything I ever wanted; but nothing I really needed.”

What is important to you? What do you get enthusiastic or excited about? Most people answer these questions by talking about friends, family, sports, music, or movies. They may tell you about their work or some cause they are working on. Rarely will someone mention their religious beliefs, experiences, or practices.

As Paul closes his first letter to the Corinthians, he reminds them, “I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said” (15:3).  As we work together to think clearly about the truth, it is crucial that we understand what is most important so that our lives are not so full of the things we want, that we have no place for what we need.

Three in One

Controversy is nothing new to the church. Within a few weeks of Peter’s first sermon, the disciples had to deal with a group who was concerned that “their people” were not receiving the attention they deserved. Soon after that, Peter is invited to the home of Cornelius, a Gentile—someone he had been taught was “unclean.” When Peter returned to Jerusalem, he knew he had some explaining to do. Much of the Book of the Acts of the Apostles recounts the way the early community of faith dealt with one controversy after another.

When you read the letters of Paul, Peter, James and John (and even the short letter of Jude), it is not too difficult to imagine some of the controversies they were trying to address. There were procedural questions and doctrinal issues and interpersonal conflicts. One important principle runs through all of this discourse. Paul puts it this way: “Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone” (Romans 12:18).

Still as the church grew and became more diverse, it struggled with a variety of issues. Interestingly, some of the earliest and most passionate disputes grew out of the different ways people tried to explain the nature of God. Great controversies arose around conversations about God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Constantine was the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. About a decade after he made religious tolerance the policy throughout the Roman Empire, he authorized the leaders of the church to convene in Nicaea (at public expense) to address the most divisive controversies of the day. From these discussions arose the classical doctrine of the Trinity: God is understood as “one substance,” but “three persons.”

While the Council of Nicaea was able to hammer out a consensus about the way the church would talk about God; it could not fully explain the character and substance of God’s relationship with those he loves. So we continue to struggle with ways to describe the nature of God.

Perhaps we would be better served by focusing on our experience of God. Perhaps we should meditate on the ways God reveals himself to his people. Perhaps then we can come to a more helpful understanding of our God who has revealed himself in a threefold way—Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer; but who has always revealed himself as the one, complete, perfect, undivided God.

Live the Life

Perhaps you have noticed the sticker on the back window of the pickup in front of you at the light. Or maybe one of your kids or grandkids has it emblazoned on the t-shirt they’ve been wearing. You may have been invited to a party by one of your friends and they offered you a koozie with this same logo. Maybe that’s when you stopped and asked, “What is ‘Salt Life’?”

What has become a ubiquitous business logo started out as a saying two of the company founders had tattooed on their necks. It was their way of expressing their love for the ocean and aquatic sports. According to their website, “The four partners of Salt Life are avid ‘watermen’ and extreme surfers, free divers, spear fishermen and blue water fishing experts. All have traveled the globe surfing, fishing and diving in pursuit of the Salt Lifestyle.”

Since its beginning in 2003, the Salt Life merchandise line, which includes T-shirts, hats, visors and—of course—stickers, has grown into a surfing, fishing and diving-wear empire, selling online and in more than 1,000 independent retailers and six regional and national companies, including Bass Pro Shops, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and Belk. In 2010 the company signed a licensing agreement with a group of partners in Jacksonville to expand the brand to include a restaurant called “Salt Life Food Shack.”

The people at Salt Life are committed to promoting the lifestyle of an avid beach lover. “Be it surfing, fishing, diving or just enjoying a day at the beach, we all have one thing in common... the ocean and all it has to offer!”

While that is a touching sentiment; as members of a community of faith, we have something much more significant that we share in common: God’s gift of life through his Son, Jesus Christ. As John tells his congregation: “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13).

What’s more, Jesus calls his followers to be salt. We're not supposed to let the world transform us; we are called to transform the world. “Let me tell you why you are here. You're here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You've lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage” (Matthew 5:13, The Message). So, live a salty, eternal life!

Put to the Test

When most people begin to think about buying anything, one of the first questions they consider is whether their purchase will be a good value. I mean most folks don’t have money to throw around; and money you spend on one thing is money you don’t have to spend on something else.

Everybody likes low prices (well, maybe not that baby that keeps throwing cereal at Jimmy Fallon); but low prices don’t always mean great value. If something breaks soon after you buy it because it is made with inferior materials; even if it has a full replacement guarantee, that’s not a good deal. Most people hope that whatever they are buying is produced with quality.

That’s really what most folks consider when they think about value: that combination of price and quality. Some people focus on the price, while others put more emphasis on the quality. The price is pretty easy to determine. It’s the quality that is more difficult to discern.

For those people who are particularly concerned with the quality of the products they purchase, one of the references they frequently check is Consumer Reports. For over 75 years the staff of Consumer Reports has been testing products to help consumers “distinguish hype from fact and good products from bad ones.”

According to their website, “More than 100 testing experts work in seven major technical departments—appliances, auto test, baby & child, electronics, foods, health & family, and recreation & home improvement, while more than 25 research experts work in three departments—product acquisition, product information, and statistics & quality management.” That is some serious testing, but it is what has made Consumer Reports one of the most trusted independent and impartial sources of information in the world.

While Consumer Reports has made a science out of product testing, it is still difficult to determine the quality of many elements of your life. If you are concerned about the quality of your faith, let me suggest you look carefully at the first few verses of 1 John 5. John seems to outline three simple tests that indicate the quality of a truly victorious life: faith, love, and obedience.  The assurance of a place in God’s kingdom is something you’ll value, no matter what the price.

Fear Not!

Once Adam and Eve ate the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the hiding began. First they hid themselves from each other; and then when God came to take a stroll through the garden with them that evening, they hid from God. Why were they hiding? Adam says it clearly, “I was afraid.”

While God does send them out of the garden, God shows his continuing love and care for them by making them clothes and giving them a new place to live that has all they need to thrive. God has standards and God expects his children to live by those standards; but when we fail to live up to those standards—even when we knowingly and willfully break God’s standards—God’s love continues.

Consider this: When Adam and Eve’s son, Cain, kills his brother and tries to hide it from everyone, there are consequences; but God doesn’t annihilate him. Cain’s own actions have made it impossible for him to live in community with his family of origin. When Cain says God’s punishment is more than he can bear, God promises to put a mark of protection on him, “so that no one who found him would kill him” (Genesis 4:15).

In spite of this lavish display of grace, throughout the Bible you find people still have to be reassured every time God shows up. When God approaches Abraham to offer him the opportunity to be the father of the covenant people, God’s first words are, “Do not be afraid.” When he appears to Moses and invites him to lead the Israelites out of slavery, God’s first words are, “Do not be afraid.” When Joshua is left with the task of leading the conquest of the Promised Land, God comes to him with the message, “Do not be afraid.”

And it doesn’t stop with the Old Testament. Indeed, as God begins the work of establishing a new covenant; one holy messenger after another begins with “Do not be afraid.” During their last meal together Jesus tells his disciples, “Do not be afraid.”  When the resurrected Jesus meets the women in the garden on Easter morning he tells them, “Do not be afraid.”

When John writes his letter to the church he reminds them that God loves them. Indeed, God loves them so much that God “sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:10).  So when you know and rely on the love God has for you and accept the power the Holy Spirit gives you to live a life that is pleasing to God, there is no reason for you to be afraid. 


May we grow to love each other the way God loves us.

Building Something Great

Many years ago a man was on a journey. As he began to enter one village, he noticed that it seemed more prosperous than many he had been through. As he continued along the main road, he found himself before a large construction site. He wondered what was being built.

There were three men working near the road. So he approached one of them and asked him what he was doing. The man was clearly annoyed by this interruption. He looked up from his work with contempt in his eyes. “Can’t you see what I’m doing? I’m chiseling this huge rock into smaller stones. I’ve been doing it for years; and it looks like I’ll be doing it until the day I die.” He muttered something under his breath the traveler was glad he couldn’t understand and went back to his work.

Still curious about the project, the traveler moved on to the next man who was engaged in the same activity just a few yards farther on. “Can you tell me what you are doing?”

The man relaxed his grip on his hammer and looked up. He seemed pleased for the chance to take a break. “We are shaping these stones to build a wall here,” he said as he pointed along the ditch that lay beside him. “It’s hard work, but I’m glad for the opportunity to earn the money to provide a home and food for my wife and children.” He looked back down at the stone on his bench and raised his hammer once again.

“Better,” the traveler thought to himself; but he still didn’t have any news worth sharing. There was one more man busy chiseling stone. “Perhaps this fellow can tell me more.”

“Excuse me. Can you tell me what you are doing?”

Like the others, the man was covered with dust and his hands were rough; but he laid down his hammer, straightened his back, and looked toward the sky. As he raised his hands over his head, his face broke into a huge smile. “We are building a cathedral—a shrine to God. It will be a light for the world and will proclaim God’s glory to generations yet unborn.”

John tells the community of believers, “It is not yet clear what we shall become. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he really is” (1 John 3:2). As we live in the light of the glory of the resurrected Christ, may we more clearly catch the vision that “we are now God's children.” Let that reality give you power to live a life of faith—especially when the work is hard.