Love is something worth fighting for

The last few weeks, God has been really impressing on me this verse. “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” This Sunday, my pastor talked about a man who was in a fox hole in the middle of a battle trembling, afraid, frozen with fear, and unable to get up and fight. Later, after the battle, a sergeant talked with him, and he told him that those who are able to fight are able to do so because they already know that they are dead.

Love is not something that is experienced and lived in the comfortable Christian-ease lifestyle. Love is something that is lived in the reality of the battles of life. Love is a theology that must be learned in the trenches, in the mud, and in the mire of life.

We often try to protect our hearts. We stay trembling in the fox hole, afraid because running out into the battle field makes our hearts vulnerable and puts us at risk of dying. We stay in our comfortable Christian-ease environment seeking “safe and holy” relationships. We believe . . .A Christian’s heart shouldn’t be broken or hurt or devastated or unprotected. Relationships shouldn’t be messy. . . But then Christ comes and shocks us. He doesn’t live a life of protecting His heart. He comes to love by dying.

He tells us to forgive those who have sinned against us. He tells us to turn the other cheek, when we are wronged. He tells us to serve more, when we are taken advantage of. He tells us to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him. He tells us to love as He has loved us. You see, you cannot love until you are dead.

The scripture tells us to protect our hearts from seduction and evil, but it never tells us to protect our hearts from righteousness and godly love. When it comes to godly love we are commanded to die.

Love is still a worthy cause - Sara Groves

"How beautiful are the feet of those who preach good news!"

I thought about titling this: Why Calvinists evangelize?

Psalm 33:4-9
4 For the word of the Lord is upright,
and all his work is done in faithfulness.
5 He loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord.
6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
and by the breath of his mouth all their host.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap;
he puts the deeps in storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!
9 For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.

2 Peter 3:5
For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God,

Hebrews 11:3
By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.

Here is what is significant. God the heavens and earth with His spoken word. God did this for a reason. The artist, the God who could have created the universe by any means, chose purposely and deliberately to use the spoken word. And even though the world sees this as foolish, by faith we know this to be true, because the word of the Lord is upright. God made this choice to create the worlds by His word, because He was going to use the same means to create something more significant and more difficult with the spoken word – new life. It is the foolishness of the preaching of the word that God uses to bring a dead man’s soul to life. And this word, this gospel, has power. This is why we preach the Gospel. Because the word of the Lord has power and will not return to Him void. When God says, “Let there be light”. There is light.

There is another significance to this. Christ is the Word. And just as all created things were made through him and are sustained by Him. So it is the same with this new life.

Romans 10:14-17
14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

1 Corinthians 1:21
For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

Preaching with people, not at people

Jesus spoke the truth. He confronted sin. He would not compromise. He turned over tables in the temple. He spoke against the Pharisees. He confronted men and took action even though it made others angry. I think a lot of us can identify with Jesus in these things. We to want to speak out against sin and injustice. But are we identifying with Jesus?

"Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi's house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him."
-Mark 2:15

You read what he taught and He did not say easy things. He spoke the truth. But Jesus didn't preach at people, He preached with people. Jesus spoke the truth with tax collectors and sinners. Even when it came to the Pharisees you see him coming to them and preaching with them, confronting them where they are at. Cutting to the heart of issues. Healing on the Sabboth, turning over tables, allowing them to ask him questions. Jesus engaged people.

Portraying Christ in our lives

Bruce Marchiano, the man who played Jesus in the Matthew movie, was speaking this Sunday morning. He said that when he got chosen to play the role of Jesus, he was overwhelmed. He felt the burden of representing Jesus in this film. And he cried out to God desperately asking God to make him like Jesus so that, who Christ is would come forth in the film.

He also talked about one scene where they used a real beggar. This man could be smelt before he even got close. Bruce had a hard time thinking about being touched by this man. But as the scene began, he was overwhelmed and kissed the man's hands. And when the scene ended, he grabbed the man in his arms and just began to weep.

We are ambassadors on behalf of God. We represent Jesus, not in a film but in something greater, the real world. This should cause us to desperately cry out to God and ask Him to make us like Jesus, so that Christ might come forth in our lives.

The cost of loving others

When Christ said that there is not greater love than one who lays down his life for another and commanded us to love as He has loved us. He meant it. Loving others will cost us our life. We must lay it down to love.

Al Mohler Live Dangerously

Personal thoughts on my neighborhood

I am not writing this to convict other people. I am writing this to convict myself, and ask God to teach me how to love and to preach the Gospel. I desire your prayers that God will do this in me, because in myself, there is nothing.

I have been talking with a few people how the economy is affecting this area, how crime is on the rise. I have been thinking not so much on how to fix this, but on how do I faithfully respond to this. Is it right for me me to turn my face the other way? I was talking to my neighbor about a part of town I went to several years ago. He told me not to go back, because I would get jumped. And I am thinking we are willing to send men off to war. Even in the church we send missionaries off to dangerous places, but am I willing to go to these hard places here next to me to love my neighbor.

So where does this begin. I don't know. But I don't want turn my head away.

Christians are not morally superior than non-Christians

"The Gospel is the only faith system I know that leads you to expect that people who don't believe like you believe will be better than you. What!? Yes! Because the Gospel says your not saved because your wise; your not saved because your good; your not saved because your virtuous; your not saved because your performing the truth. You are saved because Jesus performs the truth. And you can't get a salvation unless you admit that you are not any better than anyone else, that you are a sinner and that you need grace. And therefore the Gospel leads you to expect that the people who don't agree with you could easily be and usually are better people than you, wiser, nicer, more disciplined, more self controlled, kinder, less likely to fly off the handle; and they are. Every other system of thought leads you to believe that you will be better than the people who do not believe the right things, but the Gospel says if you believe the Gospel you are likely to see other people who don't believe the Gospel better than you. In other words, the Gospel humbles you before the people who don't agree with you. Humbles you! I don't know of any other system that would do that."

--Timothy Keller
Exclusivity of Christianity

Words on Evangelism from an unbeliever

Give Me Your Eyes

Smelly Dead

When I see the druggie, the alcoholic, the person who is down and out, the guy with AIDS, the homosexual, the sick, the dying, the leper, the only difference between this guy and them is the grace of God. I can't stand aloft and feel like somehow I am here because I made a better choice. I don't have it in me to make a better choice. I was dead, smelly dead, in my trespasses, an enemy of God, so horribly lost that it took Jesus dieing on the cross and Christ bearing the vileness of my sin, so vile that it caused Him to sweat blood. No, I am no better than the worst. And I am not here because I made a better decision. I am here because of Christ. It was Christ who was willing to take on the depths of my sin, to become vile. And it was His grace and the strength of His power that reached down to my dead and vile heart and gave me life from the dead. And I have to believe that that grace which is big enough for me is big enough for them. I once was one of them and so I long for them to come into the Kingdom. I know His grace reaches down to the worst of who we are and He can give life even to us, the most smelly of the dead.

Listening

A while back my pastor was talking about ministering and presenting truth. He asked the question, "Are you more focused on teaching, then listening?" I look back on some of my experiences since my pastor spoke these words. Without realizing it the Lord has been working this in me. And listening has given me the opportunity to present the gospel in some powerful ways. When you present the Gospel, you are not just presenting the truth, but you are you are presenting Christ.

never ever

never, ever, ever, ever ,erver, ever stop preaching the Gospel.

Gospel

Wisdom cries aloud in the streets,
--in the markets she raises her voice;
at the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
--at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:

----------Proverbs 1:20,21

Evangelism

http://www.wayofthemaster.com/hbks.shtml

Lord, You know me. You have examined my heart. You know my coming and going. You know my deepest motivations. Lord, you know my desires. Break anything that is not of You. Confront my heart and let truth, authenticity, and itegrity stand. Father, you know that my heart is yours, show me how to follow after You.

Lord, you have asked me to step out where I know I will be hurt. I am willing. God I trust you and I surrender all. Oh God, thank you that in the midst of what is hard You are there. And you are good to me. Help me to obey. Uphold me in your love and truth and integrity. Don't let me go my own way. God my desires are before you and I lay them at your feet, all I want is obey you.

Lord, I have nothing to bring. You are my strength and refuge. You set the paths straight before me, so that i may run after You.

Written Sunday, April 17, 2005

God’s heart is not to reach the world through “great” men, but through faithful men; the normal everyday people bringing people to Christ.

reaching out

I was walking along the trail, this Wednesday and I was like, "I am going to try to talk to people, at least say 'Hi'". I was walking up to this man and I could tell that I would atleast be able to say, "Hi" and he would atleast say "Hi" back. He walked up to me, turned around and started walking the samed direction as me. I prayed something like this "Thank you Lord for making this easy, ok what are you doing Lord, help me Lord to talk." We walked I think about 2 miles. He told me about some of his struggles. I really enjoyed our talk. At the end we exchanged phone numbers and said we would try to walk together sometime. And again I thanked the Lord. I'd been asking to provide someone that most people wouldn't notice or spend the time with for me to witness, not just a quick presentation of the Gospel, but someone I could spend time with and walk with and get to know. I don't know what will happen, I may call him and nothing may come of it, but durring the time I spent I found out that I was not the only person this man had given his phone number to. And that thought broke my heart. There are many people to reach out to if we are willing. For me it has started with a prayer, God provide oportunities and help me to be obedient. And He has been providing more of those in my life.