Before you head off for the weekend, here are three quick things that I have read and been thinking about this week. I hope they are as helpful and challenging to you as they have been for me. Have a great weekend!
#1
The Christianly virtuous person is not thinking about his or her own moral performance. He or she is thinking of Jesus Christ, and of how best to love the person next door.
After You Believe by N. T. Wright
I’ve been in a wonderful conversation concerning how the Bible and “church” speak into our lives. Does following a set of rules and regulations prescribed by the church lead to a better existence? That questions has been at the heart of our conversation.
The above quote from N.T. Wright hits at the core of what I tried to express. Truth is not a set of standards, rule, regulations but a person. Truth is revealed by a person and received through grace. Truth is then embodied by faith. Follow Jesus…you always get truth. Focus on Jesus and you will always get a love for God and neighbor. Fix your life to Jesus and you will get true life. Does Jesus set a standard for living that includes doing some things? You bet. Forgive 70×7. Don’t act piously in order to gain favor with others. Give generously. The list goes on. But the reason we do it comes from a relationship with him and NOT from attempting to earn favor or live our best life.
Pilate asked Jesus during his trial, “What is truth?” Little did Pilate know that he was staring truth in the face.
#2
There is all the difference in the world between power and coercion, power and force. I don’t think we preachers today have enough trust in the power of God to create a truly free-thinking person.
And God Spoke to Abraham by Fleming Rutledge
Trusting God to work through the Holy Spirit. Novel idea that often comes up in sermons! Rutledge challenges me to have the faith that I preach not only for my life but for congregation too. If the presence of God is the place of possibilities, then helping people have that opportunity is key. How? It truly begins in my personal discipleship. Have I tended to my own soul in a way that opens it to the work of the Spirit? If so, similar to Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration, it will be evident.
This can be a great word for our personal lives. You want God’s transformation in the people around you? Be the vessel of grace that brings the Kingdom of God to them in every interaction.
#3
The subjective witness of the Spirit must be balanced by the objective witness of the Spirit through Scripture and in the church. If we neglect Scripture and fail to live in mutual submission within the Christian community, we have no context in which to assess whether the inner witness we have is truly from the Spirit of God.
Listening to God in Times of Choice by Gordon T. Smith
How do we know if we are hearing a word from God or one bubbling up from our own selfish desires?
Submit to the authority of Scripture and the Christian community (ie. church). But we don’t like to submit to authority. Whether that be the authority of Scripture or authority of Christ working through his church. We fear missing out. We fear getting taken advantage of. How do we know if a church has our best interest at heart?
Here is how…
Look for the fruit. Get to know leadership and become regularly involved. Pay attention not just to the preaching but the ways leadership interacts when they are not “on”. In addition, listen for the stories that people are telling about their own growth in Christ as a result of being involved.
And then…you have to take a leap of faith.
How do we know what Scriptures says for our lives? By being in a consistent small group with others seeking to know God’s will and love you dearly. There is surely a place for personal study. But Scripture is best interpreted in community. I would even argue that it Scripture is designed primarily to be a communal experience.
todd nelson 