It's the Thought That Counts 5/18/2011 and The Apocolypse 5/25/2011

First off I have to apologize for not getting this out last week.  Things got a little crazy, so this is a combination of last week and this week.  Last week's discussion dealt with our thoughts.  This week we tackled the contraversy surrounding Saturday's failed rapture predictions.  Let's look at the battle that takes place in our mind.  The question was asked if it is a sin to think about doing something sinful.  In other words if I think about stealing something and kind of plan out how I could get away with it is that a sin?

Temptation:

There are too many variables in this question to give a yes or no just to the question.  I think the circumstances and the motive of the heart come into play on this one.  If we are dealing with a situation where you are tempted to do something and then pray and fight against that temptation trying to dismiss it from your mind that is not sin.  It is not sin to be tempted.  Jesus was tempted in the wilderness (Lk 4).  Hebrews tells us that Jesus was tempted just like we are and yet He didn't sin (Heb 4:15).  Take comfort in knowing that God is on your side when you are tempted and He will help you find a way out (1 Cor 10:13).  Also know that God is not the one tempting you (Jas 1:13).

The Battle for the Mind:

Romans tells us that we are to be transformed by the renewing of our mind (Ro 12:1-2).  I believe this means that we are to daily surrender our lives and our thoughts to Christ.  We need to submit them to His will in order to live a life that is pleasing to Him.  Colossians 3:2 tells us to set our mind on things above.  In other words we should occupy our thoughts with the things that matter to God not the things of this world.  We should definitely not occupy our minds with thoughts of sin and how we can disobey God's commands.  There is a spiritual battle (2 Cor 10:5) that takes place in the mind long before we ever commit and sin physically.  If we can win that battle we will be way ahead in that battle to stay pure and live a holy life.  From this we can see that there is a thought process that leads to sin.  It may not be sin in itself, but it will lead to destruction if we don't submit that to God.

What are you thinking?

Now onto those thoughts that are sin on their own.  I think the big one is probably thoughts and fantasies of a sexual nature.  Jesus said if you even look at a woman with lust you've commited adultery in your heart (Mt 5:28).  That applies to women looking at men too.  The Bible also tells us that if you hate your brother that is murder (1 Jn 3:15).  If we constantly dwell on thoughts of sin or impure thoughts.  Those will lead our hearts in a wrong direction and be sin to us.  The Bible also says what you think in your heart you are (Pr 23:7).  So we need to make sure to guard our minds.  The things that we think can easily be sin to us.  It is not a sin to be tempted, but we need to be careful what we immediately do with that temptation.

Rapture:

This past weekend the news was filled with reports of a man who predicted the rapture was going to take place at 6:00 PM on Saturday.  The term "rapture" is not actually found in the Bible.  Rapture means to be "caught up" or "carried from one place to another."  So even though the word itself isn't in the Bible the teaching behind it is there.  We definitely believe in the rapture of the Church (1 Thess 4:13-18).  We also believe that no one knows when that will happen.  We believe that Jesus could return at any moment (Mt 24:36; Mk 13:32)  I'm not going to try to figure out the motives of a man who would predict something that is clearly against scripture.  I'm also not going to try to guess at how God will judge that.  That is for God to sort out.  However let's look at what all this means for us.

Are You Ready?

The fact that the rapture is going to happen should lead us to ask the question, "am I ready?"  Jesus is coming back for a spotless bride that is prepared for His return (Rev 19:7).   The church is referred to as the "bride" in scripture.  Sorry guys you just have to live with  it.  This actually kind of fits with the whole discussion on our thoughts.  In order to be ready for Christ's return we need to be living a holy life.  That doesn't mean that we are never going to sin, but we should not be living intentionally in sin and not asking for God to forgive us of our sins.  If we do sin we should ask for forgiveness and determine to turn away from it (1 Jn 1:9; Ac 13:9)  Paul's purpose in writing the Thessalonians passage was to comfort and encourage them about what is going to happen.  If we are ready for the Lord's return we do not have to be afraid of it.

Who are you bringing with you?

We need to see the urgency of the task that Jesus gave us (Mk 16:15-16)  We don't know when the rapture will happen or when someone's life will end.  We should be sharing the gospel every chance we get.  I remember a time when I was a teenager and doing some ministry in Detroit.  The guy I was with was going up to everyone that walked by and getting their attention with an urgency.  He said he needed to talk to them right away and they needed to hear what he had to say.  It was almost as if he was warning people about a fire or some impending danger they weren't aware of.  He had a serious urgency about what he was doing.  I learned a lot from that day.  We need to have that kind of urgency in sharing the gospel.  The time is running out.  We need to give as many people as we can an opportunity to know Jesus.  I hope that when that day comes you are ready to meet Jesus.  I also hope that you have a huge crowd of people with you that are ready to meet Him because of your influence in their lives.  Let's get busy doing the work God has called us to do.  Time is running out.

Does God Hate Sinners? 3/2/11

Tonight in r@Nd0m we discussed the supreme courts decision in the case against Westbobro Baptist Church.  In case you’ve been living under a rock or just don’t pay attention here’s the link to the story:  

There are several questions to consider here.  Was the decision right?  Is what the church is doing right?  What would motivate them to do this?  What does it mean for me?

Is it Legal?

Westboro Baptist Church has not broken any US laws (I’m not sure they would pass the test on the whole “love your neighbor as yourself” law of God).  Legally the supreme court made the right decision, and I am immensely thankful that they did.  As crazy as it sounds this is a legal win for the Church.  They have set a precedent that free speech is protected by the first amendment – even when that speech is telling the truth about sin when it comes to things that might offend some.  We are free to teach what the Bible says and it’s protected by the first amendment right to free speech.

Is Westboro Baptist Right?

Absolutely NOT!!!  This is not what God has called us to do in fulfilling the Great Commission.  Their protest signs send a message that God hates the sinner.  I took the time to read every scripture in the KJV with the word “hate” in it.  I only found a handful of references that said God hated something.  Here are a few of them:  Proverbs 6:16-19 says that God hates a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart the deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that are swift in running to mischief, speaking lies and sowing discord.  Notice here God hates the action of the sinner, not the sinner.  Again in Zechariah 8:17 God mentions the “things” that he hates, not the people that He hates.  Finally Revelation 2:6 and 15 talks about God hating the doctrine and teaching of the Nicolaitans.  It does not say that He hates the Nicolaitans.  The key here is that we need to realize there is a difference between who I am and what I do.  When we sin God hates what we do, but he DOES NOT hate us. 

What’s the Motive?

What would motivate a church that is supposed to be serving a loving God to do something that seems so cruel.  I can’t speak for them for sure, but here is my guess on the motivation.  I think their desire is to have people come to Christ and repent of their sins.  They are trying to keep people from an everlasting torment.  I get that.  Let me illustrate it further.  I shared this in our meeting, but I think it’s worth repeating.  The other day I yelled at my two year old son and scared him to the point that he started crying.  On the surface it seems that I’m just a mean dad.  Now let me fill in the details.  I yelled across the room as I saw him reaching for an electrical outlet.  Now it makes a little more sense I hope.  In my attempt to protect him from great pain I caused temporary pain.  He didn’t quite get it and thought I was being mean.  But he also didn’t stick his finger in an electrical outlet.  The apostle Paul started off the same way.  You can read his story in Acts 7 – 9.  He was persecuting the church and even stood by while Stephen was stoned in an effort to worship God.  His motive was pure.  He was just a little misinformed.  God straightened him out on the road to Damascus.

What Does All This Mean For Us?

We need to make a stand for Christ.  We need to be honest when it comes to areas of sin.  People may not like what we say, but we still need to give them the truth.  When it comes to truth on this issue you can check out Romans 1.  God is very clear that homosexuality is a sin.  Does that mean that God hates homosexuals? 

NO WAY

!!!  He wants them to be free from that and come to Christ.  The problem here is that we have a group of people that missed the instructions in Ephesians 4:15.  We are told to speak the truth in love.  Our goal is not to beat people down and tell them God hates them.  We need to lovingly bring truth in hopes that people will turn to God and live a life free from sin.  Be honest.  Be loving.  Remember God is the judge, not us.  We are all sinners deserving of judgment.  Thankfully God is rich in mercy and sent His Son to die for us so that we could have eternal life (Eph 2:1-10; John 3:16-17).