"A ship in port is safe. But that’s not what ships are built for." - Grace Murray Hopper
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” - Mark Twain
Showing posts with label free. Show all posts
Showing posts with label free. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Handling of our freedom
Freedom always comes with a risk. The risk of misusing it. The risk of licentiousness to go uncontrolled in life. No wonder the churches over the ages teaches about freedom in Christ doctrinally, but never encourage people to apply it in practical life. For the practical purpose, they think, that people need law. At least some of them, like the 10 commandments for example. So they 'teach' freedom, but never let them live in freedom.
The result is slavery.
Slavery (law) is not the solution for the misuse of freedom.
Apostle Paul said "Everything is lawful, but not everything is profitable" (1 Corinthians 10:23). He also said, "do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another in love." (Galatians 5:13)
There is another passage which has a lot of implications in it: "Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak." - 1 Corinthians 8:9
Apostle Peter also encourages us saying "do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God." (1 Peter 2:16)
What is NOT the solution?
Apostle's solution wasn't suggesting to put us back under the law even while it was a fact they knew very well that people could misuse their freedom and indulge in sin. But, as a solution they did not give a set of principles along with the freedom they preached. In fact, Paul had some strong words against people falling back in to the law.
He said "stand firm in the freedom" and "do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery"
Is there a solution?
I have heard a great analogy about the difference between the country dog and city dog. The city dog usually live inside a fence, restricted from his freedom. So he is always looking for a crack in the fence, so that he can escape from his slavery. and He WILL sneak out, when he get a chance. Whereas, the country dog is totally free, he can go anywhere he wants, there is no fence, law or restrictions. But where would you find him all the time? At the feet of his master! He don't want to go!
He knows his master loves Him. He knows that His master has given him freedom. He sees His master's love and acceptance, and don't want to run away...
Knowing His love is the solution. As we get rooted and established in His love, we don't want to go, we don't want to misuse our freedom. Our desire is Him, His presence, His love and His grace. We realize that the temporary pleasures out there is nothing compared to His love and His presence in life. His grace "teaches us to say 'no' to ungodliness"(Titus 2:12). And as we see this truth, we would start living in His best interest.
The result is slavery.
Slavery (law) is not the solution for the misuse of freedom.
Apostle Paul said "Everything is lawful, but not everything is profitable" (1 Corinthians 10:23). He also said, "do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another in love." (Galatians 5:13)
There is another passage which has a lot of implications in it: "Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak." - 1 Corinthians 8:9
Apostle Peter also encourages us saying "do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God." (1 Peter 2:16)
What is NOT the solution?
Apostle's solution wasn't suggesting to put us back under the law even while it was a fact they knew very well that people could misuse their freedom and indulge in sin. But, as a solution they did not give a set of principles along with the freedom they preached. In fact, Paul had some strong words against people falling back in to the law.
He said "stand firm in the freedom" and "do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery"
Is there a solution?
I have heard a great analogy about the difference between the country dog and city dog. The city dog usually live inside a fence, restricted from his freedom. So he is always looking for a crack in the fence, so that he can escape from his slavery. and He WILL sneak out, when he get a chance. Whereas, the country dog is totally free, he can go anywhere he wants, there is no fence, law or restrictions. But where would you find him all the time? At the feet of his master! He don't want to go!
He knows his master loves Him. He knows that His master has given him freedom. He sees His master's love and acceptance, and don't want to run away...
Knowing His love is the solution. As we get rooted and established in His love, we don't want to go, we don't want to misuse our freedom. Our desire is Him, His presence, His love and His grace. We realize that the temporary pleasures out there is nothing compared to His love and His presence in life. His grace "teaches us to say 'no' to ungodliness"(Titus 2:12). And as we see this truth, we would start living in His best interest.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Some more "church" talk!
It's interesting to see people spending a lot of time and energy to debate, discuss and figure out whether we should attend institutionalized churches or "house churches". How did a institutionalized church become institutionalized? Was it because it was in a special building? Or was it because people implemented their agendas, knowledge of half truths, ideas, personal preferences, rituals, falsehood etc? If so, how much it takes to have a "house church" institutionalized? It wouldn't take much. It's even easier because you have more 'control' there.
Some people all of a sudden get influenced by a "liberal demon" and jump from Presbyterian to Wynyard or Emergent and think that they are 'free' now. They aren't. The only difference is now they are thinking the Emergent church is "the" church or the Wynyard is "the" church (BTW, I have nothing against any of these organizations in particular). None of these are churches, there are merely some organizations. And yes, there are people under those roofs who are truly part of the invisible, universal, ever growing church of Jesus Christ.
None of these "movements" are going to resolve anything. Doesn't matter how frustrated you were when you were in the Baptist church and how "happy" you are in the Pentecostal church. The happiness we get when we jump from one building to another is not really the happiness God supplies. It is just the happiness coming from a sense of adventure, that you think that you are doing something "different" - like bungee jumping.
The REAL adventure is not jumping from one church to another. The real adventure is losing all our securities, which includes people-provided, church-provided, community-provided, clergy-provided and doctrine-provided securities and abandon ourselves into the hands of a perfectly loving God and hang in there, see what HE does in our life. That to me is adventurous.
The more we talk about "church", it shows how less we care about the "Head". The moment people come to know that I am a Christian, the next question is where do I go to church. Give me a break! My wife lies to people that we attend a non-denominational church just to avoid further questions. And I am teaching her to tell the truth! And she says she doesn't know how to give a proper answer why as Christians we do not park our bodies in a building on Sundays. I see her point because it isn't that easy to explain.
I want to stop jumping from one building to another building, because when I do it, all I am thinking is about the building. What can it offer to me? I am thinking about ME. I love ME! I love the fact that when I have flood in my basement there is a church member dispatched by the pastor to help me drain water. But now I am obliged to do the same thing when he has a flood. That's not selfless love. That's people working for each other. They are just not paying any monetary wages, instead they pay with their work. For doing the dispatching pastor gets his pay check. So, where is love in the whole deal?
Paul said: Love is not self-seeking.
I think love is not love if it's not selfless. That is the problem of building-bound spirituality, it is almost impossible to extend and receive selfless love while we are bombarded with building issues - how to maintain it, how to grow it, how to beatify it, how to make it more marketable etc.
I have criticized the 'building' I left but I think the issue was that I didn't really know the love of Christ the way I know it today (I am not claiming I know it fully, I will never know until I see him face to face). It was more of a intellectual understanding of that particular church's doctrines. I wasn't really free! It was my own struggle while I was still bound.
I thought moving the "worship" from that building to my home would change everything. It changes nothing! You move your bondage from a special building to a "house church" thinking that you are very trendy and adventurous, I am telling you it changes nothing. What changes us is the truth. The truth that Jesus loves us regardless of whether we are sleeping in the comfort of our bed on Sunday morning or we are sitting in a pew. It is the love what transforms us, not our changing of parking places.
As we get hold of this love, the "building" becomes a nonissue. The temptation to criticize all the "churches" subsides. Our focus changes. The source of our joy is no more depended on the beauty of the songs sung by the choir. And since it comes from the right source, it stays, it's consistent and we know it's priceless. No buildings can ever give us this, only Jesus can.
Some people all of a sudden get influenced by a "liberal demon" and jump from Presbyterian to Wynyard or Emergent and think that they are 'free' now. They aren't. The only difference is now they are thinking the Emergent church is "the" church or the Wynyard is "the" church (BTW, I have nothing against any of these organizations in particular). None of these are churches, there are merely some organizations. And yes, there are people under those roofs who are truly part of the invisible, universal, ever growing church of Jesus Christ.
None of these "movements" are going to resolve anything. Doesn't matter how frustrated you were when you were in the Baptist church and how "happy" you are in the Pentecostal church. The happiness we get when we jump from one building to another is not really the happiness God supplies. It is just the happiness coming from a sense of adventure, that you think that you are doing something "different" - like bungee jumping.
The REAL adventure is not jumping from one church to another. The real adventure is losing all our securities, which includes people-provided, church-provided, community-provided, clergy-provided and doctrine-provided securities and abandon ourselves into the hands of a perfectly loving God and hang in there, see what HE does in our life. That to me is adventurous.
The more we talk about "church", it shows how less we care about the "Head". The moment people come to know that I am a Christian, the next question is where do I go to church. Give me a break! My wife lies to people that we attend a non-denominational church just to avoid further questions. And I am teaching her to tell the truth! And she says she doesn't know how to give a proper answer why as Christians we do not park our bodies in a building on Sundays. I see her point because it isn't that easy to explain.
I want to stop jumping from one building to another building, because when I do it, all I am thinking is about the building. What can it offer to me? I am thinking about ME. I love ME! I love the fact that when I have flood in my basement there is a church member dispatched by the pastor to help me drain water. But now I am obliged to do the same thing when he has a flood. That's not selfless love. That's people working for each other. They are just not paying any monetary wages, instead they pay with their work. For doing the dispatching pastor gets his pay check. So, where is love in the whole deal?
Paul said: Love is not self-seeking.
I think love is not love if it's not selfless. That is the problem of building-bound spirituality, it is almost impossible to extend and receive selfless love while we are bombarded with building issues - how to maintain it, how to grow it, how to beatify it, how to make it more marketable etc.
I have criticized the 'building' I left but I think the issue was that I didn't really know the love of Christ the way I know it today (I am not claiming I know it fully, I will never know until I see him face to face). It was more of a intellectual understanding of that particular church's doctrines. I wasn't really free! It was my own struggle while I was still bound.
I thought moving the "worship" from that building to my home would change everything. It changes nothing! You move your bondage from a special building to a "house church" thinking that you are very trendy and adventurous, I am telling you it changes nothing. What changes us is the truth. The truth that Jesus loves us regardless of whether we are sleeping in the comfort of our bed on Sunday morning or we are sitting in a pew. It is the love what transforms us, not our changing of parking places.
As we get hold of this love, the "building" becomes a nonissue. The temptation to criticize all the "churches" subsides. Our focus changes. The source of our joy is no more depended on the beauty of the songs sung by the choir. And since it comes from the right source, it stays, it's consistent and we know it's priceless. No buildings can ever give us this, only Jesus can.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Freedom From Bondage
Have you been living in hopelessness, pain and rejection?
Have you been struggling with some worst sins in your life?
If there is anybody out there bound in any kind of sin, I have news for you: you cannot out-sin the grace of God no matter what...
But where sin increased, grace increased all the more (Romans 5:20)
I would like to share this true story I found on realanswers.net: (Please click the below link to read the story)
Freedom From Bondage
Have you been struggling with some worst sins in your life?
If there is anybody out there bound in any kind of sin, I have news for you: you cannot out-sin the grace of God no matter what...
But where sin increased, grace increased all the more (Romans 5:20)
I would like to share this true story I found on realanswers.net: (Please click the below link to read the story)
Freedom From Bondage
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Santa myth
It seems that in Christianity there are several myths that we cling to for years and years as the kids cling to the Santa myth. One such myth is about God's free gift of forgiveness. Many are skeptical about the word 'free' when it comes to sales and marketing because most of the time there is a catch in that deal. But the question is , is that true in the issue of our free forgiveness through Christ Jesus? Here is an article from lifetime.org addresses this very issue:
When you were born you began constructing a "truth" screen over your mind. You filtered everything through this screen, rejecting anything that stuck in its web. You were super naļ¶„ and soon accepted the Santa Claus myth. You didn'tquestion how he and his reindeer could fly or how this round man could slide down chimneys and keep his suit clean including its white collar! Santa lives! Mom and dad said so.
In time, you became more sophisticated at screening. Your parents admitted they'd gone along with the Santa story for your enjoyment-that dad really was Santa. You reconstructed your truth screen and ricocheted Santa, his elves, and reindeer into outer space. Over the years you've done more reconstruction than the NYC Street Department.
There's a portion of your truth screen that I want to focus on-your "religious" screen. Just as your early belief in Santa affected your behavior, what you believe about Christianity will influence the way you live. You want to get it right.
Pretend you're a member of a first century church near Ephesus. The apostle, John, has written a circular letter (First John) that will be read to the congregation this morning. Certain influential men in your church are openly immoral, sleeping around, leering at the sisters, and recruiting others to join them. John is very concerned about these "early Gnostics" and believes they're lost. He contrasts the saved wheat against the lost tares thirty-one times in this brief letter! Aust your truth screen to accommodate this scene. Remember now, you've never heard of 1 Jn. 1:9, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness," so remove your knowledge of that information from your screen.
Gnostics believed all physical matter was evil; therefore Christ couldn't have had a body, thus making the crucifixion a myth. In their minds, Christ was not a human being, but a phantom. They also believed it was not sinful, but normal to practice pious religion and immorality simultaneously! Gnostics believed they had no sin; they were not born again.
The pastor begins to read. (You're "listening" with the mindset that John is contrasting two groups-born-again folks vs. Gnostics. I've used footnotes to identify the players whom I believe his pronouns represent. Since Gnostics believed Christ had no body, John, an eyewitness, begins by establishing that Jesus was both divine and human.)
1 John 1 (It's a good idea to read the footnotes before you go on!)
(1) "What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we1 have seen with our1 eyes, what we1 beheld and our1 hands handled, concerning the Word of Life (Jesus)
(2) and the life (Jesus) was manifested, and we1 have seen and bear witness and proclaim to you4 the eternal life (Jesus), which was with the Father and was manifested to us1.
(3) what we1 have seen and heard we1 proclaim to you2 also, that you2 also may have fellowship with us4 ; and indeed our4 fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.
(4) And these things we1 write, so that our4 joy may be made complete.
(5) And this is the message we1 have heard from Him and announce to you2 that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
(6) If we2 say that we2 have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we2 lie and do not practice the truth;
(7) but if we4 walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we4 have fellowship with one another3, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us4 from all sin.
(8) If we2 say that we2 have no sin, we2 are deceiving ourselves2, and the truth is not in us2.
(9) If we2 confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us2 our sins and to cleanse us2 from all unrighteousness.
(10) If we2 say that we2 have not sinned, we2 make Him a liar, and His word is not in us2."
John says these early Gnostics needed to be saved and 1 Jn. 1:9 tells them how! Today, however, well-meaning mentors mistakenly teach that 1 Jn. 1:9 tells Christians how to deal with "unforgiven" sin. Unforgiven sin? Gang, the only folks with unforgiven sin are the non-believers! New Creations are forgiven of all sins. Look what John says thirteen verses later in the same letter, "I am writing to you4, little children, because your4 sins are forgiven you4 for His name's sake" (2:12). New Creatures' sins are forgiven!
Caution: Never evaluate teaching via your emotions. They can't even think! Trust only the Holy Spirit, not this writer or religious tradition. Our forgiveness benefits two parties, not one. A lover can best demonstrate the magnitude of his love via the objects of his affection: the more unworthy the object, the more glorious the lover. God demonstrated His unparalleled love by sacrificing Jesus to forgive a bunch of hammerheads. We, on the other hand, needed God's forgiveness so we could gratefully snuggle up to Him in return. However, it's more complex than that. Since God is not a time restricted Being, He sees forever into what we time-critters call "the future" as well as what we call "the past." Time is a meaningless concept to Him. While we see our sins one by one, to God they're simultaneous. You could say human beings march in the time parade, while God hovers over it like a helicopter. 2 Pet. 3: 8 says, "…with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day." 1,000 = 1 = 1,000? What kind of math is that? It's God's math! Our sins are all present tense to God. God washed away ALL your sins in Jesus' blood! They're not covered; they're gone!
Without total forgiveness, God would constantly view our sins. He could never fellowship with us, nor could He receive us into His holy presence, let alone indwell us, were we not holy through our crucifixion and rebirth in Christ. "For the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are" (1 Cor. 3:17). We are holy, forgiven saints or an intimate relationship with God would be impossible! God calls you a saint (holy) in sixty-three post-cross verses! Will you bounce all sixty-three off your religious-tradition screen?
For a born-again person to ask God to forgive and cleanse him from all unrighteousness (1 Jn. 1:9) is unbelief. We saints were "forgiven (Eph. 4:32) and cleansed from all unrighteousness" (1 Cor. 1:30) at salvation. Asking for forgiveness is similar to repeatedly asking Jesus to save you or continuing to ask your spouse to marry you. God must agonize when a born-again person repeatedly exhorts Him to "be faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness," as if He had failed to accomplish this through Jesus! Our obligation is to believe Him.
Therefore, what should we do when we've sinned? I believe quickly acknowledging our sin to God keeps us spiritually honed. Failing to do so tempts us to become dull, casual or even indifferent about our sin. (Hey, we say we're sorry when we bump someone on the sidewalk, for heaven's sake!) Then thank God that He forgave us of all our sins at salvation and snuggle into His lap again. Such grace, dear relative, motivates us to holy living. What a God!
**************************
FOOTNOTES:
1 John
2 Early Gnostics
3 Father, Son, Holy Spirit and saints
4 saints
When you were born you began constructing a "truth" screen over your mind. You filtered everything through this screen, rejecting anything that stuck in its web. You were super naļ¶„ and soon accepted the Santa Claus myth. You didn'tquestion how he and his reindeer could fly or how this round man could slide down chimneys and keep his suit clean including its white collar! Santa lives! Mom and dad said so.
In time, you became more sophisticated at screening. Your parents admitted they'd gone along with the Santa story for your enjoyment-that dad really was Santa. You reconstructed your truth screen and ricocheted Santa, his elves, and reindeer into outer space. Over the years you've done more reconstruction than the NYC Street Department.
There's a portion of your truth screen that I want to focus on-your "religious" screen. Just as your early belief in Santa affected your behavior, what you believe about Christianity will influence the way you live. You want to get it right.
Pretend you're a member of a first century church near Ephesus. The apostle, John, has written a circular letter (First John) that will be read to the congregation this morning. Certain influential men in your church are openly immoral, sleeping around, leering at the sisters, and recruiting others to join them. John is very concerned about these "early Gnostics" and believes they're lost. He contrasts the saved wheat against the lost tares thirty-one times in this brief letter! Aust your truth screen to accommodate this scene. Remember now, you've never heard of 1 Jn. 1:9, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness," so remove your knowledge of that information from your screen.
Gnostics believed all physical matter was evil; therefore Christ couldn't have had a body, thus making the crucifixion a myth. In their minds, Christ was not a human being, but a phantom. They also believed it was not sinful, but normal to practice pious religion and immorality simultaneously! Gnostics believed they had no sin; they were not born again.
The pastor begins to read. (You're "listening" with the mindset that John is contrasting two groups-born-again folks vs. Gnostics. I've used footnotes to identify the players whom I believe his pronouns represent. Since Gnostics believed Christ had no body, John, an eyewitness, begins by establishing that Jesus was both divine and human.)
1 John 1 (It's a good idea to read the footnotes before you go on!)
(1) "What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we1 have seen with our1 eyes, what we1 beheld and our1 hands handled, concerning the Word of Life (Jesus)
(2) and the life (Jesus) was manifested, and we1 have seen and bear witness and proclaim to you4 the eternal life (Jesus), which was with the Father and was manifested to us1.
(3) what we1 have seen and heard we1 proclaim to you2 also, that you2 also may have fellowship with us4 ; and indeed our4 fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.
(4) And these things we1 write, so that our4 joy may be made complete.
(5) And this is the message we1 have heard from Him and announce to you2 that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
(6) If we2 say that we2 have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we2 lie and do not practice the truth;
(7) but if we4 walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we4 have fellowship with one another3, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us4 from all sin.
(8) If we2 say that we2 have no sin, we2 are deceiving ourselves2, and the truth is not in us2.
(9) If we2 confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us2 our sins and to cleanse us2 from all unrighteousness.
(10) If we2 say that we2 have not sinned, we2 make Him a liar, and His word is not in us2."
John says these early Gnostics needed to be saved and 1 Jn. 1:9 tells them how! Today, however, well-meaning mentors mistakenly teach that 1 Jn. 1:9 tells Christians how to deal with "unforgiven" sin. Unforgiven sin? Gang, the only folks with unforgiven sin are the non-believers! New Creations are forgiven of all sins. Look what John says thirteen verses later in the same letter, "I am writing to you4, little children, because your4 sins are forgiven you4 for His name's sake" (2:12). New Creatures' sins are forgiven!
Caution: Never evaluate teaching via your emotions. They can't even think! Trust only the Holy Spirit, not this writer or religious tradition. Our forgiveness benefits two parties, not one. A lover can best demonstrate the magnitude of his love via the objects of his affection: the more unworthy the object, the more glorious the lover. God demonstrated His unparalleled love by sacrificing Jesus to forgive a bunch of hammerheads. We, on the other hand, needed God's forgiveness so we could gratefully snuggle up to Him in return. However, it's more complex than that. Since God is not a time restricted Being, He sees forever into what we time-critters call "the future" as well as what we call "the past." Time is a meaningless concept to Him. While we see our sins one by one, to God they're simultaneous. You could say human beings march in the time parade, while God hovers over it like a helicopter. 2 Pet. 3: 8 says, "…with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day." 1,000 = 1 = 1,000? What kind of math is that? It's God's math! Our sins are all present tense to God. God washed away ALL your sins in Jesus' blood! They're not covered; they're gone!
Without total forgiveness, God would constantly view our sins. He could never fellowship with us, nor could He receive us into His holy presence, let alone indwell us, were we not holy through our crucifixion and rebirth in Christ. "For the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are" (1 Cor. 3:17). We are holy, forgiven saints or an intimate relationship with God would be impossible! God calls you a saint (holy) in sixty-three post-cross verses! Will you bounce all sixty-three off your religious-tradition screen?
For a born-again person to ask God to forgive and cleanse him from all unrighteousness (1 Jn. 1:9) is unbelief. We saints were "forgiven (Eph. 4:32) and cleansed from all unrighteousness" (1 Cor. 1:30) at salvation. Asking for forgiveness is similar to repeatedly asking Jesus to save you or continuing to ask your spouse to marry you. God must agonize when a born-again person repeatedly exhorts Him to "be faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness," as if He had failed to accomplish this through Jesus! Our obligation is to believe Him.
Therefore, what should we do when we've sinned? I believe quickly acknowledging our sin to God keeps us spiritually honed. Failing to do so tempts us to become dull, casual or even indifferent about our sin. (Hey, we say we're sorry when we bump someone on the sidewalk, for heaven's sake!) Then thank God that He forgave us of all our sins at salvation and snuggle into His lap again. Such grace, dear relative, motivates us to holy living. What a God!
**************************
FOOTNOTES:
1 John
2 Early Gnostics
3 Father, Son, Holy Spirit and saints
4 saints
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