I was reading 10 Attributes of a Humble Leader at Catalyst Space (link here) when I came to this:
“Humble leaders know the vision is bigger and will last longer than they will, so they willingly invest in others, raising up and maturing new leaders.”
You will not find more prominent leaders in the New Testament than Jesus and the Apostle Paul, and this is exactly what they were doing. Continue reading
During his lifetime Jesus was an observant Jew. But doing more and more religious things is not the same as living a life that is being transformed into the image of Christ. The following was originally published June 22, 2009.
I’ve said before that the problem with religion is that it’s easier than following Jesus. It is usually a given that something is wrong with us, wrong with the world, perhaps critically or else just a little off, but most people agree that something must be done because all is not right in the world as it is. Religion, in most cases, offers us the chance to do something. If we read the right book, say the right things, act right, talk right and treat each others the right way we can “fix” what is wrong. Religion, as such, is worthless. But what could I mean that Jesus was not religious?
The religious leaders of his day were the Pharisees, and a careful reading of the Gospels shows that Jesus never really had much good to say about them. He was always willing to share with anyone seeking to understand the truth (i.e. Nicodemus), but as a group Jesus was most likely to call them hypocrites, false teachers, spiritually blind, and sometimes worse. Continue reading
There’s an old saying that goes “To have a friend, you have to be a friend.” The implication is that if you are friendly others will be friendly toward you. There is no guarantee that if you put yourself out there others will reciprocate. Even if you don’t have a friend, the Christ-like thing to do is be a friend anyway.
Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13, ESV) Jesus had 12 chosen apostles and a multitude of followers, but during his trial and crucifixion nearly every single one of them ran away. Jesus was a friend of sinners, healed legions of the sick and afflicted, feed thousands, but when the time came… he was left alone. His mother was there, and perhaps one disciple. Peter denied Jesus three times, and even invoked a curse on himself. After Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, the rest had fled in fear.
Yet on the cross, Jesus extended mercy even toward the people that were nailing him to the tree. “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” We are told to give without expecting repayment, to walk the extra mile (literally) and to turn the other cheek. Jesus’ final command was to love. We are to have the same mind is us that Christ had. Regardless of what anyone else does or doesn’t do…
You have to be a friend.
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I love Jesus. I am not ashamed of the Gospel. But I’m not guilted into copying & pasting nor reposting every lame statues update, jpeg image and gif file that tells me I have to. “If you love Jesus you will repost, if you love Satan you will keep scrolling.” Bull crap! Today it’s Facebook, but we went through the same thing for about a decade with e-mail. There is something that compels people to dream up new ways to get people to re-forward. It doesn’t have to be religious; Facebook is not donating 3 cents each time you retweet that sick image of the little girl with cancer (if that’s even what the picture is of).
The e-mail petitions used to kill me. Let’s say you get a petition in your inbox for a cause you really believe in. If you add your name and forward to 10 people, as soon as those people sign and forward you’ve just created 10 different permutations of the petition list. There is no way to consolidate that raw data back into one list. Even if the 1000th person forwards it to whomever, what they will end up receiving is hundreds, possibly thousands of different lists. Many of the names will be duplicates, especially of the early signatures, but each petition will be unique. If you sign and forward, a day or two later you will start getting the petition again, and no two will be alike even if your is signature is #25 on each one.
I am not ashamed Jesus, so not forwarding your email or reposting your status will not cause him to be ashamed of me before his father. You can read my Facebook profile or any one of 400 blog posts to know how I feel about Jesus. I teach Bible at a Christian school, and preach frequently in our chapel and at a small church nearby. I lead a youth group, play and sing praise & worship music, have driven a church van and some years ago played on a men’s church softball team. When I “keep scrolling” it’s not because I love Satan. Just for the record.
In the first chapter of Mark’s Gospel, Jesus begins his public ministry and gets right to it, so to speak. By the end of Mark 1 Jesus has been baptized by John, tempted by Satan, called the first 4 apostles, cast out a demon and healed many people, including Simon Peter’s mother-in-law.
Jesus’ apostles know that he can heal the sick and cast out demons. They were given power and authority to do those same things. But at the end of Mark 4 they are filled when fear when Jesus calms a storm. “Who then is this, that event the wind and sea obey him?” They were surprised by Jesus, their own leader and teacher. They had been given power to heal the sick, but seeing Jesus command the raging storm to be peaceful was more than they expected. It appears they woke him up to help bail water. He criticized their lack of faith, and it appears that even they don’t get.
I set out to write a sermon titled “Don’t be surprised by Jesus.” He was, after all, the Son of God. After everything else they have already witnessed and been a part of, how could they still not understand? Along the way I realized that it is unreasonable to not be surprised by Jesus. He is surprising, his grace is amazing, and his love and mercy surpass our understanding. Throughout his ministry he is talking to women, eating with tax collectors, and touching lepers. As he is nailed to the cross to die, he prays for the people crucifying him. “Father forgive them, they know not what they do.” If you’re not surprised yet, read further into the New Testament where we are commanding to think that way. (Try Philippians 2)
We must not become so comfortable that we are not surprised by Jesus. We can be lulled into such a sense of complacency that we miss the spiritual warfare going on around us. There’s a line in The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe that says of Aslan “He’s not a tame lion.” Jesus is incarnate deity, maker of heaven and earth, who will one day judge the nations. It’s a shame that after a time we get used to it. Just don’t be surprised when you get surprised.
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Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. (Hebrews 1:1-4 ESV)
Jesus alluded to this truth in the parable of the tenants. Colossians 1 describes the preeminence of Christ in all things, calling him the images of the invisible God. Galatians 4 describes how God sent his son “when the fullness of time had come.” Ephesians 2 elaborates on Christ making peace by the blood of his cross. But this passage in Hebrews has a poetic quality to it. This one paragraph encompasses all of these other references in one beautiful synopsis. It’s about Old Testament prophecy and New Testament fulfillment. It tells the reader who Jesus is and what he has done. It describes the incarnation, ministry of Jesus and his current office as high priest.
I find this short passage simple, beautiful and powerful. This is just the opening statement; have you read the rest of Hebrews lately?
Okay, so here’s one more Tim Tebow blog post. How can I talk about media saturation and then write another article? Well, if it helps, it isn’t really Tim Tebow I’m ranting about/worshiping.
These kids are in trouble for Tebowing in their school hallways. Some Christians are up at arms over rights of expression. Some athletes are ranting about Tebow getting media coverage for either winning games and/or for being a Christian while their accomplishments and faith are overlooked. My beef is this: kneeling on one knee and bowing the head is now called Tebowing. Who gets the glory there? Continue reading
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
In Luke 2 the sky was filled with the heavenly host proclaiming the gospel of peace to a few lowly shepherds. Last week, Joy, was about the shepherds. They found the baby as the angels had said, and went out of Bethlehem rejoicing and praising God. This week we celebrate Peace and light the Angels’ Candle. Continue reading
The Master's Table 