Today is Special
Posted on by Jared B
How was your day?
Most of us answer that question reflexively, and usually, that answer depends on what has happened to us over the last few hours.
Maybe we received a parking ticket– “Ahh, not so good.”
Maybe you received a promotion at work– “Today is great!”
Overall most days are just like other days. In fact, most days are a little bit of both. The same day you get into a fender bender at a stoplight might be the day when the barista says the coffee is on the house (truly the makings of a good day in my book.)
Maybe that’s why we spend so much time thinking about the future. One of the great luxuries of modern society is that we have a reasonable expectation of seeing great things happen in our lifetime. There were less than 10 years between Kennedy’s pledge before Rice university that we would go to the moon before the end of the decade and Neil Armstrong’s immortal utterance, “That’s one small step for man…”
It’s easy in times of seemingly endless prosperity and possibility to forget that each day is unique. When we live for the milestones, the golden moments, the goals, and we forget that those things are built one day at a time. We talk about “one day” and “someday” without realizing how today fits in the overall picture of our lives.
Sometimes we let the fear of tomorrow keep us from seeing the care that God has for us each day. That’s truly a tragedy. We would do well to remember that in the same sermon in which Jesus taught us to look to God for our daily bread, He taught us that each day has enough trouble of its own (Matthew 6:34).
At other times, we let the promise of tomorrow and the belief that we command our destiny stop us from honoring God as if he holds our lives within his hand. (James 4:14-17) The rich fool of Luke 12 comforted himself with the belief that his prosperity would sustain him for many years but was ultimately told he would not live through the night. It’s that recognition that life is brief that focuses our attention on man’s whole duty, which Solomon wrote of in Ecclesiastes 12. (13-14)
Goals are essential, but we must also see the value of today. We must recognize that today is both a stepping stone toward the future and a blessing all its own. The first will teach us discipline, the second gratitude.
The 118th psalm addresses both of these. After giving thanks to the Lord for his enduring faithfulness, the psalmist tells the reader that because of God’s lovingkindness, they should anticipate His deliverance from their enemies. He taught his reader to expect God’s faithfulness culminating in this thought
Psalms 118:19-24 Open to me the gates of righteousness:
I will go into them, and I will praise the LORD:
20 This gate of the LORD,
into which the righteous shall enter.
21 I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me,
and art become my salvation.
22 The stone which the builders refused
is become the head stone of the corner.
23 This is the LORD’s doing;
it is marvellous in our eyes.
24 This is the day which the LORD hath made;
we will rejoice and be glad in it.
Even as he asks God to save him, the psalmist is confident in both the Lord’s ability and willingness to give him victory over his enemies. Ultimately, God’s faithfulness gives him reason to be glad in every day and every circumstance, To anticipate his salvation because God is righteous and the Lord is his salvation.
Let’s encourage each other to wake up every morning with gratitude and praise and go to sleep every night with thankfulness regardless of what success and setbacks the day held. And let us live every day to God’s glory, for it’s a day He has made.
–JB
A Passion for Purity
Posted on by Jared B
Matthew 5:8 (KJV) Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
What does it mean to be pure in heart? Like so many other words, purity has lost its way throughout the evolution of our language. For many, the notion of purity is simply an avoidance of sin; particularly, sexual immorality. Is it possible that the idea of purity could be so easily summed?
The Danish philosopher and theologian Søren Kierkegaard included, in what is perhaps his most regarded work, Upbuilding Discourses in Various Spirits, a discourse entitled “Purity of Heart is to Will One Thing.” In this, he explains that purity is not for the sake of reward, nor to avoid punishment, nor is it simply doing of good for the sake of good or altruism. Purity’s only motive is to seek for what he called the “eternal.”
Perhaps, dear reader, you may be asking why it is that you should consider the writings of a Danish theologian who died in the middle 1800s? The answer is simple; because he’s right. There can be no purity so long as we are of two desires.
Consider James
James 4:7-10 (KJV) 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. 9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. 10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
After urging the brethren to consider the fruits of heavenly wisdom (chapter 3), he then questions them as to the source of the strife and hostility among the brethren. Attributing both to their devotion to fleshly desires, he admonishes them to seek the Lord as a cure for their impurity. He does not prescribe better deeds or even urge them to set their affection on Heaven. Instead, James encourages them to first cleanse their hands of wickedness and- more importantly- to purify their hearts.
An abrupt turn toward purity will doubtlessly bring about pangs of conscience, but James concludes that the sufferings are worthwhile in service of returning to humility before our Lord. This is the nature of seeking the eternal. James concludes that they have forsaken that which brings them closer to God and adopted that which draws them away. The answer is not simply to cleanse the hands and do better but purify the heart of its double-mindedness.
He introduced the idea of double-mindedness in the first chapter, where he warned in verse 8 that the man who asks God for wisdom to deal with various trials should do so without doubting. The one who asks of God when he is not earnest in his desire to overcome temptation is unstable in his ways. He has no true allegiance. How can a man will the one thing when he is devoted to two? (Matt. 6:24)
Wholehearted
Elijah posed the same question in 1 Kings 18, raising the challenge, “How long halt ye between two opinions?” Challenging them to be either entirely devoted to Baal or to God, Elijah understood that a half-measure of devotion is no devotion at all. This is truly a lesson for the modern age and the modern Christian.
We’ve become satisfied with the half-measure, and it’s evident in the morality of the day. Modern character, which often resembles the immorality of decades past, can only mean that our devotion to purity and our will for the eternal has become corrupted. Morality, in which long-settled questions are reopened with a view toward being more permissive of worldliness, does not speak to a single-minded imitation of the Father.
Encroachment is visible even in the most fundamental aspects of faith. Countless sermons are taught defending baptism as essential, but how often do we teach on the transition within the heart as one forsakes the old self and puts on Christ? Are we emphasizing the action at the expense of devoting the heart? When we disregard the notion of the Spirit of Christ dwelling in us, a spirit that leads us (Romans 8; Galatians 5) instructs us and even teaches us to cry, “Abba, Father” (Romans 8; Galatians 4) in favor of rudimentary and easily digested lists of works and restraints, can we really say that our hearts are wholly devoted to the Lord? How can we say that we have but one will when we’ve barely scratched the surface of what it means to surrender our will to His?
No amount of good doing or good teaching can replace the example of a heart that is devoted to the cause of being like the Father. Is it any surprise that our young are being lost to attrition when they observe less than the Father’s will in us? Can we fortify our claim of purity based on abstaining from sin when the heart’s devotion is evidently not in the fullest measure to the Father?
They Shall See God
The beauty of the purified heart is that it builds a deep connection to the Father. They become imitators of Christ who died to bring many sons to glory (Ephesians 4-5; Hebrews 2). They receive from Him wisdom to overcome their trials of faith (James 1). They bear righteous fruits which are sown in peace because they seek the heavenly wisdom (James 3).
(Matthew 5:8 KJV) Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God
It would be easy to see this commendation as a blessing for some future time. Truly those who have purified their hearts will see God for all eternity, but the beauty of the purified heart is not that we will see God one day but that we see God in our lives every day.
Why?
Posted on by Jared B
Blog
“Why?” It’s the question I hear most as a preacher and a Christ-centered content creator.
Sometimes the question is, “why did you choose this life?”
The answer is simple. It was a way of keeping in touch with my passion for teaching others about God and His word. Preaching is what I love, and I am fortunate to have brethren who love and support me.
Sometimes the question is, “Why did you move your family to Portland, OR?”
That answer is a little more challenging, but in short, I saw an area where few were willing to go and teach, and I thought for this season, however long that may be, maybe God can use me there. I thought about how many lives were changed forever because Paul listened to the Macedonian call. And while I am no Paul, and Jesus never spoke to me, people were asking if my family would come here and help them.
Sometimes the question is, “why do YOU believe in God?”
I get it. It’s strange to see someone passionate about the geek life and God; the world sees them as incongruous. Most people believe that it’s impossible to affirm God as the creator and wonder how humanity will reach further into the universe unlocking His secrets. My answer is again simple, God is the only thing that makes it all make sense. Genesis 1 is the only explanation that speaks to the order of the universe because order implies a designer, a creator, someone who sets the balances and spins the motion. Being a Christian doesn’t mean the end to wonder or discovery. In fact, it’s the beginning. I get to spend my day fathoming an unfathomable God and comprehending that which is incomprehensible.
While that may seem frustrating, even maddening, when it’s tied to the unfathomable love through which He gave Jesus for our sins, it inspires my faith and deepens my love for Him.
Solomon tells the reader in Ecclesiastes 3:11 that God has placed eternity in our hearts, and no one can fathom God’s work from the beginning to the end. That’s a beautiful way of saying that our creator has made us to wonder about Him. I guess I am just fulfilling the purpose for which I was created.
Sometimes they ask, “Why did God…“
If the question is biblical, we go to the text and let the Bible tell us why.
If the question is about their sorrow or pain at the moment, then we pray together.
“Why” isn’t a question we should be afraid to answer.
It’s the reason for our passion, our decisions, and our walk with God. Allow people to ask, and don’t be afraid of giving an honest answer. And if you don’t know your “why,” particularly when it comes to life’s more challenging questions, then slow down and figure it out. Not only will it affect your walk with God, but it may also inspire others as well.