Come what may, preach the Gospel!

Some governments know how to mind their own business... 

I guess that's why we are allowed to beat each other up in peace. 

But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him before the tribunal, saying, “This man is persuading people to worship God contrary to the law.” But when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of wrongdoing or vicious crime, O Jews, I would have reason to accept your complaint. But since it is a matter of questions about words and names and your own law, see to it yourselves. I refuse to be a judge of these things.” And he drove them from the tribunal. And they all seized Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him in front of the tribunal. But Gallio paid no attention to any of this. (Acts 18:12-17, ESV)

LOL! Seriously, Gallio disdained the Jews and the Christians, so he simply didn't care what they did to each other.

This is the lesson... 

Whether the government approves or not, preach the Gospel.
If they kill us, preach the Gospel.
If they ignore us, preach the Gospel.
If other religions hate it, preach the Gospel.
No matter what, preach the Gospel.

Our mandate is unchanged. We are in charge of getting government to comply, but we are workers in the field. We are ambassadors of the Lord.
We are ministers of the Gospel.
We proclaim Him who has called us out of darkness and into His marvelous light.


It's not America's job to make legal our morality. It's the churches job to preach Christ's supremacy. 

Forgiving much?

It's strange that we want forgiveness for ourselves when we're wrong, but punishment for others when they are wrong. We want grace in our times of failure. We want others to have wrath in their times of failure. We expect our holy God to overlook our sin, but we who are corrupt tend to not overlook a single offense. We want understanding and love when we offend, but when we are offended, we want maximum penalty. These things reveal how self-centered our hearts are.

IF Christ has come to bear in our lives; IF we've been rescued from the darkness and live in the Light; IF we've heard His voice; IF we know forgiveness we don't deserve; IF we understand we are blessed when we SHOULD experience wrath... IF we know these things, we emulate them. IF we have Jesus running through our veins, He forgives THROUGH us...

I want to be forgiving. It's right.
I want to be forgiving. It's good (even for my own spirit!).
I want to be forgiving. It's how my Father is.

I want to be merciful. It's right.
I want to be merciful. It's good (even when it's hard!).
I want to be merciful. It's how my Father is.

"...and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." (Matthew 6:12, 14-15, ESV) "And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses." (Mark 11:25)

"Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." (Colossians 3:12-17)

taking down every high thing

Would you believe me if I say Jesus is at war?

His claims to being God were vindicated when He rose from the dead.
His redemption of the world of man was paid in full on the cross.
His claims to the throne are validated.
He is King.
Now, in the realm of man, and in the realm of the "principalities of the air," HE is at war against every one and thing that attempts to raise itself up or allows itself to be raised up by others.

Even. In. My. Heart.

He will rule everything, whether by choice or by force. Surely, one day every knee will bow, but that sounds like something so distant.

I believe, even now, the King wages war.

Even. In. My. Heart.

There are many places in Scripture to discuss in these matters, but I like the following as one chief example:

Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.” And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women. But the Jews were jealous, and taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd. And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.” And the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things. And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go. (Acts 17:1-9 ESV)

The Jews are upset because Paul is preaching Jesus.
The Gentiles are upset because Paul is preaching Jesus.
King Jesus is taking down every high thing that exalts itself over Him.

More accurately, every thing that TRIES to exalt itself above Jesus.

Jesus does turn the world upside down. Why? Because it's out of order. Sin is wrecking design. In God's love, He sends Jesus. In Jesus' righteous right to rule, He battles everything that resists His desire for order. Satan desires to rule, but the King encroaches on the Accuser's realm. Strong and valiant, Jesus wages war. Even through His Body, the Church, He wars. The Gospel is our constitution, and Jesus is our King.

Our King is at war!

That's all fine and dandy; right up until the moment when He starts to battle the high things in me. Pride. Self-centeredness. Greed. Lust. Self-dependence. On and on and on...

Praise God, the King is waging war.

Even. In. My. Heart.

Dressed to Impress

I wear name brand clothes. I have put on Christ!

"But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires." (Romans 13:14 ESV)
"For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ." (Galatians 3:27 ESV)

And I accessorize like a boss!

"Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony." (Colossians 3:12-14 ESV)

To get this fly finery, I had to realize I was clothed improperly...

"We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment." (Isaiah 64:6a ESV)
"Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him, 'Remove the filthy garments from him.' And to him he said, 'Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.' And I said, 'Let them put a clean turban on his head.' So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the LORD was standing by." (Zechariah 3:3-5 ESV)
"But that is not the way you learned Christ!—assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness." (Ephesians 4:20-24 ESV)

I have learned that it would NOT be wise to show up with the wrong clothes!

"But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. And he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen." (Matthew 22:11-14 ESV)

I am going to hang on to this mighty fine wardrobe until The Designer clothes me in something else...

"The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels." (Revelation 3:5 ESV)

Woah woes!

Woe.

It's got one more letter than "if," so you know it's strong.

It's an interjection.

It can be a threat, or a lament or an admonishment. In the case I'll reference today, it is most definitely a threat.

Isaiah 5:18-23 finds the prophet issuing four laments over the People of God.

This first:

Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of falsehood,

who draw sin as with cart ropes,

who say: “Let him be quick,

let him speed his work

that we may see it;

let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw near,

and let it come, that we may know it!” (Isaiah 5:18-19, ESV)

Woe to those who are quick to run to evil / sin and who dare God to do something about it. Whew... I shook my fist at God one time and dared Him to do something about it, too. Having survived that and grown to a completely different understanding of God, I wouldn't do it now! 

There are a lot of people around who love to mock God. Recently, I listened to a debate between two scientist. One said, "I wish God would come and do something to me right now! Show up! Kill me! Prove he is real!" Oy vey. 

The second: 

Woe to those who call evil good

and good evil,

who put darkness for light

and light for darkness,

who put bitter for sweet

and sweet for bitter! (Isaiah 5:20, ESV)

There is just not a lot that needs to be said here...
Take a gander at the Scriptures; see there what God calls sin, and see how much of our lives and culture is rife with it. Much of it we not only refuse to call sin, but we call it "okay" or "legal" or sometimes even "good."

The third: 

Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes,

and shrewd in their own sight! (Isaiah 5:21, ESV)

The thing to remember here is simple: God opposes the proud. Lots of folk think they have everything figured out; even God. Woe. We must stay humble. When we think we've arrived it's usually a clear sign that we're more lost than ever. 

The fourth: 

Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine,

and valiant men in mixing strong drink,

who acquit the guilty for a bribe,

and deprive the innocent of his right! (Isaiah 5:22-23, ESV)

Facebook is strange and constant place to see this first one played out; people brag constantly how about hard they partied or how much they drank. The Scripture is pretty clear: "Woe to those who are heroes at drinking..." It goes back to calling evil good and good evil. We're just mixed up!

The second part is about not meting out justice properly. It's about people who can be bought. Not everyone is bought with money. Sometimes we are bought with friendship. Sometimes we won't even tell those closest to us the truth. We are bribed by the devil, thinking we'll lose a friend if we speak the truth, so our silence is purchased with the currency of fear. There's no justice in it! 

More so, we steal freedom from those who are designed for it! It's a deprivation! 

I'm moving on into Isaiah today, but these woes have my attention. Let me finish these thoughts off with Isaiah's prophecy for those who will not respond to these laments: 

Therefore, as the tongue of fire devours the stubble,

and as dry grass sinks down in the flame,

so their root will be as rottenness,

and their blossom go up like dust;

for they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts,

and have despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.

Therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against his people,

and he stretched out his hand against them and struck them,

and the mountains quaked;

and their corpses were as refuse

in the midst of the streets.

For all this his anger has not turned away,

and his hand is stretched out still. (Isaiah 5:24-25, ESV)

All sexual sin is sin...even the heterosexual sin that I often struggle with

I'm not trying to get in an argument with anyone, but people who use Leviticus as simple property Law are dead wrong in their exegetical interpretation of Leviticus. The entire section often used to tell someone homosexuality is a matter of property law is not addressing property law, and the book of Leviticus is not property law alone. It's Covenant Law, which God made with Israel, and is often called "The Law" or "The Law of Moses." The section often in question is a section dealing with sexual sins of various kinds. That section does indeed indicate that God considers homosexuality a sin. He makes that part of His covenant law with Israel.

However, we Gentiles are not Jewish. Also, the Mosaic Covenant has been completed.

Jesus completed the Law. We are not under Old Testament Law. And, no New Testament believer is allowed to hold Mosaic Law over someone's head. God is not holding it over their head. We are under the "the law of the Spirit" as New Testament (or "New Covenant") believers.

There is something to learn from the Old Testament laws (which include more than the Mosaic Law). We know God is holy, and the laws of the Old Testament do much to reveal His nature to us. In other words, we know well what is not of Him and what offends Him by understanding His laws.

That being said, we are New Testament believers, and must turn to the New Testament for our answers.

Many will say Jesus never addressed homosexuality. While Jesus never mentioned the word, nor the issue directly, He did address sexual sin. See, that's where we're getting all jacked up. We need to be addressing sexual sin, which includes MUCH MORE than homosexuality. In Matthew 5:27-30, Jesus addresses the issue of adultery. He basically lumps EVERYTHING that isn't right into that statement. Rather than simply picking on one kind of sin or the other, Jesus nails them all. If it's in our heart, we're in sin. Whew! That's tough!

Further, Jesus says (in layman's terms), "Y'all know how God designed stuff. That's the way it ought to be." In other words, Jesus hearkens back to creation and God's original design. This is what He said: "He answered, 'Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh?"'"

God created man and woman to be together. #1 The issue is the heart. Anything not right is not right. #2 The design is man and woman. Go by design and have the right heart about it.

Really, A LOT of us are in trouble! You know what the Bible says, "ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." And, you know what, sexual sin jacks all sorts of people up. It's not just homosexuals, but heterosexuals like me commit sexual sin.

And the New Testament has MUCH to say on sin, sexual sin, relationships, marriage and a host of other things that heteros are getting wrong and ignoring every day.

I think it's genuinely interesting that the Jerusalem Council came up with four stumbling blocks Gentiles had to watch for in order to not hinder Jews (ref. Acts 15):

• Don't eat anything that's been sacrificed to idols
• Abstain from sexual immorality (NOTE: not one kind, but ALL kinds)
• Don't eat anything that has been strangled to death
• Don't eat or mess with blood.

The issue here was hindering the Gospel. Sexual sin and certain food habits would so alienate Gentiles that Hebrews would not care what they were saying about Jesus for what they were doing with their lives.

SEXUAL sin is sin. It's bondage. It's captivitiy. ALL sexual sin. It's ridiculous to only concentrate on homosexuality. ALL sexual sin is sin. 

All sin hinders the Gospel. 

Sexual immorality hinders the Gospel.

When those ol' New Testament boys mention "sexual immorality" they are ALL hearkening back to Old Testament law. Sure, we're not under it; right. You got it. But, we are. WHAT? We aren't under the law for salvation; Jesus takes care of that. BUT, that same law points out all of our bondage and gives words to the things that bind us. We are under it as our tutor; it teaching us of our great need for God's grace.

Often a thief is a thief before they ever learn the word. The Law gives us words for what we already have affections and actions.

What it boils down to is whether we will agree with God or not. It's that simple. Will I agree with God that my eyes often take in what is innocent and my heart treats those images with lust? Yes, I agree. It ain't right, either! 

I don't want to hinder the Gospel. That's what it boils down to me. I am going to agree with God. I am going to seek His help. I am NOT going to try to justify the things I think or do by saying God's not right in His holy nature. 

Sexual sin is sin. Immorality is immorality. Though we are not under Old Testament law for salvation, what it still calls sin is sin. We are under the New Convenant, and I'd maintain ANY DAY OF THE WEEK that it is stricter than the Old Covenant. 

We are tempted to make this thing or that thing the hot topic of sexual immorality.

SEXUAL immorality needs to be the issue. Jesus IS the answer. Let us seek the answer for the issue.

Mission Minded EVERY day

Christian: celebrate Jesus today. There is no such thing as "Easter Monday." It's just Monday. It's a day to serve the Lord. It's a great day, no doubt, but it's not a holiday. Even if we are with family, IF we are believers, we are on mission for the Lord. Perhaps we should see what the early disciples were doing on the day after Jesus rose from the dead.

If we want to be like the early disciples, Do this:

"And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple blessing God. Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey away. And when they had entered, they went up to the upper room, where they were staying... All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer..." (Luke 24:52-53, Acts 1:12, 13a, 14a)

But, we're not waiting for the Holy Spirit to come. We might be waiting on Him to move, but not to come.  He's arrived. He's here. He's filling the Body of Christ in the world, that The Body may do the works of Jesus.

Maybe we ought to heed this counsel of Jesus: "For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11:10-13)

The Holy Spirit has come down in power. Have we received Him in power?

You'll know by this: [Jesus said,] "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses..." (Acts 1:8a)

God has not called us to know everything, but He has called us to be a witness of what we've experienced in Christ Jesus. Perhaps the church seems so silent because she's witnessed so little. Perhaps it might explain why we complain more about politics than we do preach Jesus. Perhaps it is why we jump up and down for sports, but barely sing for Jesus. Perhaps that is why we'll brag about a sale, but won't whisper Jesus' name.

To be saved is a miraculous event. It changes people. It's something to witness and to witness about! Salvation is not a decision of man, but a massive move of God that puts to death our old man and gives our flesh and bones the life of Jesus. Many people can tell us they "go to church" but I want to hear the witnesses who tell what JESUS has worked in their lives. What has He done to give you the mind and heart of God?

There's a lot to do on this Monday. If you are a believer, you are a witness. Never take a day off from Kingdom work.