Speaking to Please God

"but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts. For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children." (1 Thessalonians 2:4-7, ESV)

Saying what needs to be said from the pulpit is one of the joys and curses of ministry. I'm sure that anyone who has ever preached has had an argument with themselves when they are faced with speaking words that might offend. I know I have. There have been times where I was to speak about something that was sensitive subject matter and I had to determine in my heart... do I speak what I believe God wants me to speak or do I skirt the subject and go on to something else? In these situations I am reminded of the words above written by Paul to the Thessalonians when speaking from the Word of God. "so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts."(vs. 4)

We need to be reminded that preaching is not intended to please people. Hopefully the words we do speak from the pulpit do please people not because the pastor spoke with eloquence or tcreativity but because the truth was preached. The sad truth is he gospel message is offensive to many and if pastors continually preach it they will offend. Since this is the case we cannot let that affect the message we preach. Pastors have the great privilege to preach from God's Word, yet we are also held to higher standards in what we say BECAUSE we are "approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel."

However, this does not give us permission to be abusive or manipulative in the words we speak from the pulpit. We are to be "gentle" in our delivery and let the Word of God speak for itself. Our job is to deliver the Word of God to the people and if it offends some realize it's not because of us. They are offended by God and there is nothing we can do about that.

In conclusion, whether you are a pastor preaching from the pulpit or a believer who has been commissioned by Christ to preach the Word (As all Christians are commanded) then remember "Speak not to please man, but to please God..."

The Essentials

In my sermon prep this week I have been contemplating the following thoughts about the essentials of Christ. In my thoughts, prayers and research I have come to this conclusion...

1) If Jesus were not born of a virgin he would have merely been an average boy born out of wedlock.
2) If Jesus only came to this earth to show humanity the way to heaven that would have just made him a prophet; a false one at that.
3) If Jesus only came to die on the cross that would have only made him a martyr.
4) If Jesus didn't rise from the dead that would make him a rotting corpse/skeleton tucked away in a desolate cave.
5) If Jesus never ascended to heaven He could not be God.
6) If Jesus never gave his Spirit then Christians would be powerless religious lemmings serving a distant God who does not care about us.

I find it hard to believe that people who once professed Christ can actually believe all of this. I am not a scholar, nor have I exhausted my research scientifically, archaelogically, nor historically to know if the Bible and it's claims are true. However I find the evidence overwhelming that God's Word is accuarate, and it ultimately boils down to faith in something or nothing.

So to confirm my faith I say...

I believe Jesus was born of a virgin
I believe Jesus came to the earth to show us the way to God
I believe Jesus died on the cross for the sins of humanity
I believe Jesus rose from the dead conquering death and sin
I believe Jesus ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father
I believe the Spirit of Christ dwells in all who put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ.
I believe.

Serving God and the second coming

"and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come." (1 Thessalonians 1:10, ESV)

Sorry, I went off track for a few posts. I have had a lot on my plate and I have been trying to hash out some thoughts with my previous posts. Now I'm back in I Thessalonians and glad to be back...

Since the Thessalonians have turned from idols and worshiped the "living and true God" they now anticipated Jesus' return. They were living with the hope that Jesus would return soon and they anticipated the day. I can understand how they felt. I too look forward to Christ's return.

I know there are a lot of "theories" on how and when Christ will return. You have the Premillenial view, Postmillenial view and the Amillenial view. Theologians have argued for years about how and when Christ will return and I have my beliefs and convictions. However there are people who have predicted dates and they have been wrong, others play it safe and predict an era or a generation when he will return and even others have made a nice living getting people all worried about the idea that we are living in the "end times". The truth is we don't know when Jesus will return. God's word says, only God knows the day, the hour and the time. We get our boxers in a bunch arguing about when, where and how and I think we just need to live our lives as though Jesus may return any day. I don't know if I am being irreverant or even blasphemous but I don't really care how or when Jesus returns. I just want Him to return and I live in anticipation of that day.

Will there be a rapture? Will it be pre, mid or post trib? Will Jesus come back tomorrow? Will He be back today? I honestly don't know. I have actually stopped filling my mind with end times scenarios. All I know is Jesus will return some day (as the Bible says) and it will be a glorious day for the believer and it will be horrific for those who do not believe.

Random thought: Don't worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will take care of itself. Live your life in anticipation of the Lord's return today and be ready.

Should We Be Relevant?

" So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: "Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you." (Acts 17:22, 23, ESV)

I am working on my Sunday sermon today and I have been researching and praying through Acts 17:16-34 and my "overall" theme is Christianity and relevancy. Is it important for believers and/or the Church to be relevant? Was Paul using relevance in his preaching to the Athenians or was he merely giving a "fluffy" message to the Athenians?

Personally I feel Paul was setting an example for how we are to engage non Christian individuals. In my studies I came across a quote from John Stott where he writes, "There is an urgent need for more Christian thinkers who will dedicate their minds to Christ, not only as lecturers, but also as authors, journalists, dramatists and broadcasters, as television script writers, producers and personalities, and as artists and actors who use a variety of art forms in which to communicate the gospel."

Christians need to engage in culture so we can spread the gospel of Christ to the world yet we must be careful not to embrace the culture forcing us to compromise our walks with Jesus Christ. Ajith Fernando in his commentary on Acts writes, "What is most important is faithfully proclaiming the gospel. If we can find points of contact withour audience along the way, we should use them, but the gospel is always what is primary." In other words, if you can engage a non-believer in a conversation and use culture as a means to share the gospel message then go for it. However we must not compromise the biblical message of salvation for the sake of relevancy.

Random thought: Go out in the world and find "creative" ways to share the gospel message of Jesus Christ but remember to always communicate the truth of Scripture without compromise.

Rough Draft

This is the rough draft for the newsletter article for our church newsletter. I'd like to have your thoughts, comments and suggestions about it. I have always wanted to write an article concerning the importance of Church attendance but I want it to be one that is challenging, stirring and encouraging. So you can either email me or write a comment with your thoughts and suggestions.

I Don’t Wanna Go!!!

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near
Hebrews 10:24, 25 (ESV)

It’s a beautiful Sunday morning as you sleep in your comfortable bed when suddenly the alarm summons you to arise from your slumber. Annoyed by the disturbance of your sleep you reach for the snooze bar and silence the ear piercing squealing of your alarm. Approximately 3 minutes later the screeching resumes awakening you from an even shorter doze. You repeat this process a number of times. Finally you silence the alarm indefinitely as you turn off the alarm and roll over and say, “I don’t wanna go to church today! I’m too comfortable; it’s too nice of a day. I can miss one Sunday no one will notice and plus God doesn’t care whether I go or not.”

Have you ever felt this way? I know I have. Yes, even “perfect” pastors have mornings like this. As I read the words of Hebrews 10:24, 25 I wonder if people felt like this in past Church history. Can you imagine the Apostle Paul saying, “I don’t feel like preaching today, it’s too nice outside? I think I’ll skip synagogue this morning and spend a day at the beach. I deserve it don’t I? I mean in the past year I have been beaten, shipwrecked, thrown out of numerous cities, threatened, and there is a band of Jews plotting a way to kill me this very day.” Thankfully he never did. Did he ever feel this way? I’m sure he did (However, I have no biblical proof to back this up though).

It is so easy to justify and make up excuses for not attending church. The truth is you won’t go to hell if you skip church occasionally. It is true some people may not even notice or acknowledge your absence. The fact is the pastor probably won’t even call you to see where you have been (unless he hasn’t seen you in a looooong time). So why bother? Right? WRONG!

Let’s look at the words of Hebrews. In the text above the author writes, “Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, NOT NEGLECTING to meet together, as is the habit of some…” It’s funny; this verse proves that skipping church was a habit of some people even in the early church. Some people (we don’t know who) had a habit of skipping church! Apparently this was a concern because the author or Hebrews acknowledges this trend of some and he feels he should address this. Why did he believe missing church was not a good thing? Why did he feel church so important?

First, when they met together they stirred one another up in love. They were encouraging one another to show and live in the love of Christ, they stirred one another up in fellowship and worship. Second, they roused one another up for good works. When they worshipped together they came up with ways to show and do good works for the glory of God. By gathering together they cared for the sick, helped meet the needs of the needy, comforted the lonely, took care of widows and orphans, fed the hungry, shared the Gospel message of Jesus, and so on. Last, they encouraged one another in the Lord, especially in regard to his return. When the church met together they also encouraged one another by praying, reading Scripture, singing hymns all in anticipation of the Lord’s return. Much like today the early church prayed for Jesus’ return so He would establish his Kingdom here on earth. That day never came (and still hasn’t) but lived their lives in hope that He would return soon and this hope encouraged the believers to keep strong in the faith.

As you can see meeting together for worship (or church) was not an option for the early church. It was a priority because attending church wasn’t based on whether they “felt” like going or not. They didn’t decide to neglect worship because they didn’t like a certain aspect about the music, worship service or the pastor. They even understood that worship wasn’t about what “they got out of it”. Instead they knew that it was about what they were able to give back to encourage and strengthen the body of Christ and his kingdom. The bottom line… Church was an important aspect of the believer’s lives.

As I conclude, I’m sure any of you reading this article are either encouraged, offended or indifferent. I pray it is one of the first two. However my intent is not to offend I am merely using the powerful Word of God to challenge believers to be ACTIVE members of the body of Christ. Whether it is at Spring Valley Congregational Church or any other local church body I pray you will see the need and importance of gathering together with other believers to encourage and care for one another and strengthen one another in faith as we anticipate the Lord’s return.

Starstruck

1 Thessalonians 1:9 (ESV)9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,

We are such an idolatrous society. We worship everything (by worship I mean we adore with great affection and honor over the true God)! We elevate people, things and relationships above God with such frequency that often we don't realize we are idolizing. We are shameless in our idolizing people (I mean we have a TV show that advocates our idolizing in American Idol). We put movie stars, sports figures and men and women of power on pedestals and honor them unconsciously as "mini gods and godesses". Now, you may be reading this and say, "I'm a Christian, I don't have any idols." I hope this is true, but I would ask you to think... really think; are you maybe a "little guilty"? When you see some sort of famous person do you like to brag a little to those around you? I was in the city the other day and I saw (fill in the blank of a celebrity)! Or have you ever stood in line to get an autograph of a person? Maybe this famous person was even a Christian! Let's be honest we all idolize a little. Is this ok? I think the scriptures are very clear on God's views of idolatry, even if it is a little bit. He doesn't like it and He will share his thrown with NO ONE!

This is another quality about the Thessalonians that I admire. They turned from idols to serve the "living and true God." They weren't star struck with royalty and celebrities. They didn't allow money or possessions to rule their lives. They had forsaken all of that for the living God.

Take a look at your heart. Do you have idols in your life that you have placed before God? Are you idolizing your family, or maybe your finances, possibly a relationship, how about a celebrity or (Lord forbid) a television show? Is there a preacher , Christian author or Christian musician that you are elevating above God and his word? If so, take some time and repent and seek to put God back on the throne of your life... right where he belongs.

Random Thought: Turn from your idols and serve the living and true God.

Preaching the Gospel

1 Thessalonians 1:8 (ESV) For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything.

As a church it is important to be and be known as a church that preaches the Gospel message of Jesus Christ. Unfortunately too many churches today spend so much of their time, energy and resources trying not to be too "churchy". They want to be a "cool" and "hip" place to go where people don't feel like they are in church (personally I don't think it's horrible for churches to do this but I do feel they soon lose their identity as a place of worship when they focus too much on trying to be relevant). However there are also some churches who don't want to be too preachy because it will not attract people. Or some go so far as to eliminate words like sin, salvation and Hell because this is too archaic or "not relevant" to this post modern society. It's funny how we as humans have complicated the Church institution.

I think Jesus' plan for the Church was/is much simpler than what we have made it. We often think of the churh as the building and forget that the Church is not necessarily a physical place but a gathering of fellow believers who set out to live and proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know for the church I pastor, I would rather be known as the body of believers who "sound forth the word of the Lord" instead of being a church with a nice building and "keeping up with the times all the while neglecting the Word of God".

I should note that I am not saying if you have a nice church and relevant worship you aren't preaching the Gospel because it's possible to be both. What I am saying is as soon as we start focusing on our "worship style" and neglect preaching the life changing Gospel message of Jesus Christ we will become a Church that has no impact on society. We will become a Christian club designed to make our patrons happy.

Random thought: Preach the Gospel, it never goes out of style.

Affliction and Joy

1 Thessalonians 1:6-7 (ESV) for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.

Affliction and joy; two words that you rarely see together in a positive manner. I have been doing nearly a year long study in the Book of Acts with my church and one common thing I see happening throughout the book is how the Apostles and followers of Christ were able to remain joyful during times of trials and persecutions. For example the Apostles get a beating and they leave rejoicing because they were considered worthy of the cause, Paul and Silas were singing in the prison... Singing??? There are so many times that we read that the believers rejoiced after or during trials and persecution. I think about persecution and the church in America today and we are far from the example of the early church. We have become sort of "whiney" in America. If we face injustice we cry out to the public and shout, "NO FAIR!" Our name gets dragged through the mud and we call the lawyers to fight for us. We face any kind of trial or persecution and we immediately question why God is allowing this to happen to us.

I want to imitate the Thessalonians and no matter what I face, I want to receive the word of God with joy of the Holy Spirit. I pray that when I am reviled, made fun of or physically harmed for my faith that my response will be joy; because God is worth it. Does joy mean I will be happy and have fun in these times? Not necessarily. It means I will rejoice because I am counted worthy to suffer for the sake of Christ.

Random thought for the day: Seek to be filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit in all circumstances of life.

Imitate Christ

"And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit," (1 Thessalonians 1:6, ESV)

The evidence of salvation in a person is a changed life. Paul writes to the Thessalonians that after they received the Gospel by word and through the power of the Holy Spirit they became imitators of them (Paul and his travel companions) and imitators of Christ.

There are a number of times in the Bible where Paul tells his readers, "Imitate me". Most of the time he writes, "Imitate me and the Lord." He actually equates the two, he essentially says, "If you imitate me, then you imitate Christ." I don't think Paul is exalting himself by saying these things. I think he was simply saying, "Do as I do because I am imitating Christ." Imagine for one moment that your life was so dedicated to Christ that you could honestly tell others to imitate you what that would look like. How would that change the way you live your life? If you knew people were watching you and using you as an example what would you do different? What would I do different? Would I change the way I talk? Would I change the way I treat others? Would I change the way I drive? The list goes on...

The fact is, people are watching us and they are not impressed. It's a sad thing when I hear the reason someone does not want to be a Christian or attend church is because "they are all a bunch of hypocrites." They look at us and see we don't always practice what we preach. Our response is often, "Hey don't look at the actions of God's people, look to God." This is unfortunate that the people who supposedly represent Christ here on earth say, "Don't look at us, we are merely human and imperfect" (which is true). I know I long to be like Paul (and I am a long way from being like him) so I can say with an honest heart, "Imitate me because I am imitating Christ."

Random thought... Strive to be imitators of Christ; not for our benefit but for his glory.

The Chosen One

"For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you," (1 Thessalonians 1:4, ESV)

How is that for reality? For we KNOW that God has chosen you. Do you know this and believe it? God chose YOU! Do you ever "feel" like your not worth much? Remember God chose you! Ever think that no one cares? Remember God chose you! Isn't God good? I'm going to stop here because I don't want you to think I am going to get into this fluffy rant about, "How special you are" and so on. That's not the point. God didn't choose you because you are special or because you are a likeable person or even because he saw a great potential in you to do great things for the Kingdom. So why did God chose you? Because He is God and He is good. In his grace He reached down and saved you, FOR HIS GLORY. Why did He choose you and not your neighbor next door? I would answer, you don't know that he hasn't chosen your neighbor next door. This is why we are to take the Gospel and preach it. We are to plant the seeds of faith and then let God do the rest. We certainly cannot save anyone, but we can certainly introduce them to the saving faith of Christ.

People have problems with knowing that God chose them and not vice versa. I guess I don't understand why, maybe because they think it takes away free will? However Jesuse said "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you." (John 15:16, ESV) God chose us unto salvation. He gave us the faith to believe. We are saved and redeemed. Now we are truly free to choose! We have the freedom to turn our backs on sin. We are free to choose to do good works. We are free from the bondage of sin and Satan. Through God's sovereign grace I am now truly free.

I personally don't have a problem with theological issues like sovereignty, election and predestination because they are biblical. Nowhere have I found in the Bible the doctrine of us choosing God, everywhere I look in the Bible it talks about God choosing us. You may not understand why but take comfort in knowing this. God chose you! I love what Warren Weirsbe wrote, "A seminary professor once told me, 'Try to explain election, and you may lose your mind. But explain it away—and you may lose your soul!”

Random though of the day... God chose me by His grace. This does, in many ways, make me special.

Chosen in Christ,

Jeff

The Source of Our Strength

I Thessalonians 1:2, "We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers."

Aren't you glad people are praying for you? I know I am. I believe the reason I am a pastor today is because someone has been praying diligently for me. Nothing makes me happier than knowing someone cares enough about me that he/she would take time out of his/her busy life to lift me up in prayer. Isn't that mind boggling? Maybe it's not to you but it certainly is for me.

I am sure most of us desire to have someone like Paul in our life; to have a man or a woman who constanly lifts you up in prayer. To have a person who says, "God, I don't know what Jeff (or insert your name) is up to this day or what needs he has, but I want to mention him to you today and ask you bless the heck out of him and his ministry" is so much more valuable than any riches in life.

Prayer is such a powerful tool and I think we as Christians don't utilize it nearly as often as we should. I am as guilty as the next person concerning neglect of prayer, but I know that this is one avenue that God has given me to keep in communication with him and I must be disciplined to maintain that line of communication. I think God must be in heaven scratching his head in wonder as to how I must be disciplined to make time for him. I can get so consumed in life that I forget to talk to the Creator and the one who matters most in life. I forget!? How often I neglect my primary source of power simply because I either forget, don't want to or we think I don't have the time.

The reality is I don't feel like praying everyday. I don't make time to pray. I sometimes think prayer boring. Nevertheless I think it is an important and necessary part of every believers life. However God constantly reminds me of the words and actions of Paul and the Apostles in the Scriptures. I'm sure when they were in prison for a crime they never committed the last thing they "felt" like doing was praying... But that's what they did. I'm sure when the mobs were surrounding them and beating them they didn't have the time to pray... But that's what they did. I am also sure that there were times when they would have rather been out doing something other than praying... But praying is what they did. WHY? Because it was their lifeline and they saw the value of prayer. That's where I want to be in my walk with the Lord.

In conclusion, what is my random thought for the day? It's time to MAKE TIME and PRAY.

Prayerfully yours,
Jeff

Welcome To My World

Thank you for visiting my blog. As you can see this is my first blog. Now this is not actually the first blog I have ever written as I have unsuccessfully made many attempts at blogging all to see them wind up in black hole of the internet and never seen again (by me).

So what makes me think I can make another attempt at blogging and maintain it successfully? Well... nothing. I gues I will just hope you, the reader, will find this page interesting enough to keep coming back and giving me your two cents on my "random thoughts".

I am a pastor. I have been a senior pastor for a small church in WI for close to ten months. Prior to that I was a youth pastor for 14 years (yep you read that right 14 years!). I enjoy pastoring and I love to read God's Word. One of my "jobs" as a pastor is to read, study and communicate God's Word to others so they may be encouraged, edified and challenged. Hopefully this is what will happen as you read these posts.

The purpose of this blog is three-fold...

1) It is important, as a pastor, to stay rooted in God's Word and this blog is basically going to be random thoughts that I have concerning the Scripture that I am reading; so it is going to be sort of an open journal for anyone to read in regards to my thoughts on the scriptures.

2) To encourage and hopefully challenge you, the reader, to dive a little deeper in God's Word and see how it is still relevant for us today.

3) To spout off about whatever is on my mind at the time of writing.

Well, I guess that's all I have right now. I hope you enjoy and come back often.