Quick Thoughts #1

I am so bad at being consistent with this blog. Here's my latest attempt to put my thoughts on paper to enrich my soul and those of whatever readers may come. I sometimes have quick thoughts, just small, pithy little bits of wisdom, that come to me while I'm in the Word. In addition to big posts, I'll put these up every once in a while. If you're reading, I hope this blesses you!

Quick Thoughts #1:

• To be a good encourager, one must be easily and regularly encouraged.
• Discipleship is a gourmet meal, which must be prepared with great care and practiced skill. Too many Christians make their spiritual nourishment depend upon a drive-thru meal prepared by someone else, which is ultimately neither nourishing nor satisfying.

God, make me a faithful witness of your power, grace, and love to whomever I meet today.

Great illustration of last post

Last night I went to a Texas Rangers game with my dad. It was fantastic, because the Rangers have never gone so far in the playoffs and I got to watch as my home team spanked the New York Yankees, 7-2. It was a great, down-home, old-time whoopin'.

There was a triumphal procession during and after the game, but not everyone enjoyed it. In the seventh inning it was already 7-2 and the Yanks weren't putting up much of a fight anymore. One woman with a Yankees jersey led her boyfriend down the aisle to leave. A Rangers fan yelled out, "Yankees fan, don't leave early!" in a mock-begging tone. She turned around and promptly flipped him the bird for everyone to see. Offended by this crass slight, three whole sections began to shout as one: "Yankees suck! Yankees suck!" This was the soundtrack of her shameful exit.

All down the ramp as we left, defiant and exultant cheers of "Let's go Rangers!", "Yankees suck!", and just raucous cheering escorted us out of the stadium. It was a wonder how 50,000 people could do the same thing at the same time, like one organism all together. I thought as we left...if we are this excited about a stupid game whose fame will last for a few years and be forgotten, why aren't we so excited about the victory of Christ, whose fame will last forever? Why am I so worried about what others will think of me, when I have such good news to share? Sure, they may take it as the smell of death, but my job isn't to make people like Jesus. My job is to faithfully live and proclaim His good news everywhere I go.

How can I be Jesus-smell today?

The Aroma of Christ

Wow, haven't posted in a while. I'm gonna get back to the roots of what this blog is about...taking the Word of God and thinking through it so I can apply it daily. I hope that anyone who happens to read this is built up by what I hear the Spirit saying to me.

"¹⁴But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. ¹⁵For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. ¹⁶To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task? ¹⁷Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, like men sent from God." - 2 Corinthians 2:14-17

What a vivid passage that describes our evangelistic dilemmas even today. The picture of a triumphal procession is used here, a victorious parade that would occur after a major win in battle. The generals and army would parade through the capitol and bring with them the plunder and slaves captured in the war...a way to show all the people that victory has very clearly been won. Incense and flowers were a big part of that parade, so that the usual stench of ancient cities would be covered up and people could not only see victory, they could SMELL victory.

Who are we in the triumphal procession? The generals? The soldiers? The captured slaves? None of the above. We are the incense! We are not even described as the active agents in achieving the victory. Christ our general has won the war already and it had nothing to do with our activity. Our job is to signify that the war has been won, merely to give the active, vivid sense to the world that the victory belongs to Christ. To some that victory will smell putrid, as I'm sure it did to the captives in the procession.

To the losers that fragrance would have been the worst smell in the world. To those who identify themselves with this world, with Satan, with hedonistic self-love, with anything that goes against the values of the kingdom of God, the smell of Christ's victory will be the smell of death. Death to my self-will. Death to my dreams. Death to success in the world's eyes. Death to respect, reputation, and the illusion that we are in total control.

But to the victors, that aroma would have been the best smell in the world. They would have stood in the crowd, taking a moment to rest from work and join in the sights, sounds, and smells of absolute victory. I can imagine them standing still, closing their eyes, and savoring the moment with a deep, long breath. To those who have surrendered themselves to Christ, the smell of Christ's victory is the smell of life. Life to our broken hearts. Life to a purposeless existence. Life to God's dreams. Life eternal.

So, how do we smell? Are we even giving off a smell? Are we incense that smells strongly, filled with fragrant spices, or are we a bland mixture that can only stimulate the senses when surrounded by other incense? In my workplace, apartment complex, grocery store, body shop, gym, etc., am I constantly giving off the aroma of Christ? Lord, let me stink of Jesus this week!

Undercover Jesus

I was watching a video on Funny or Die today where the hit singer/songwriter Jewel goes undercover at a karaoke bar and performs some of her own songs. It was pretty cool to watch this room full of people completely surprised as "Karen" belted out some amazing melodies. She took the stage as a dumpy, everyday woman that most of them would never give a second thought. It wasn't until she belted out those beautiful songs that they began to realize they were in the presence of something special. Once Jewel came out of her disguise, the crowd went wild!

In Matthew 25, Jesus describes the poor as an undercover version of Himself. In the final judgment, we will all be held accountable to how we treat the poor, needy, unclothed, imprisoned outsiders. This video today reminded me that God is always in our midst and that we simply need to be looking for Him in the most unlikely places...the homeless shelters and karaoke bars of our world. How many times this week have I passed Jesus by without even a second thought?

I Heart Speed Limits?

I read Psalm 119 today, the longest chapter in the Bible at 176 verses. It's all about one thing: loving God's law. I remember reading this in high school and thinking, "What? Loving the law? That makes no sense!" After all, who would say they love the laws we must follow. Of course, we love when those laws protect us or give us a complaint against someone else. But who can say they love speed limits when the officer asks for your license and registration? We like laws when they make us feel good, when they force everyone but us to change.

I don't know if I love anything as much as this psalmist loves God's law:

"I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches." - v. 14

"Your statutes are my delight; they are my counselors." - v. 24

I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free." - v. 32

"Your decrees are the theme of my song wherever I lodge." - v. 54

"I open my mouth and pant, longing for your commands." - v. 131

"Streams of tears flow from my eyes, for your law is not obeyed." - v. 136

"Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws." - v. 164

This is why the length of Psalm 119 flabbergasts me...how can anyone talk so long about law? Only if they desperately love it. But what we see in Psalm 119 is that the only reason the psalmist loves God's law so much is that he loves the God who wrote it. As I read this, I pray that God will place in me a love for Himself so deep that I will long for every word that comes from His mouth, and not only the parts that make me comfortable. I want to love the boring genealogies, the lengthy descriptions of the building materials for the Temple, the harsh words Jesus had for the Pharisees, the gory slaughters of the Israelites, Midianites, or whatever "ites" get killed in battle. I want my heart to long for every letter of every word on every page of God's Word, because in it I will find Him.

"I open my mouth and pant, longing for your commands." - v. 131

Give me a hunger and thirst for You, Lord, and the beauty of Your Word.

Is God Everyone's King?

"The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all." - Psalm 103:19

Our LifeGroup is going through Tim Keller's The Reason for God, and it is rock-awesome. Keller examines the popular arguments against God's existence, compassionately exposes their fallacy, and demonstrates how solid, biblical theology can answer our doubts, all in words that a non-Christian can grasp. It's heady stuff, but it fills the soul.

Last night's discussion was on this question: how can a good and all-powerful God allow suffering? We ended up talking at length about the sovereignty of God, a.k.a. His Kingship and ability to rule over all things. I have struggled for a long time with the idea of free will and its relation to God's Almighty-ness...if God is totally in control, then do my choices matter? If I choose not to follow God, is that something I've really chosen, or is it something He's chosen?

I read this verse this morning and it struck me hard. I used to think that our free will limited God's sovereignty, that He has limited Himself to operate only in places where He is welcome. But in light of this verse, that idea seems incredibly prideful. It doesn't say "His kingdom rules over all those who allow it to rule over them"...it says "His kingdom rules over all", and we might add "whether they know it or not". God is the Lord of everyone, and He will utilize everything, even negative choices, to achieve His own will. God is our King whether we acknowledge it or not. He has total rights to our lives simply by His act of creation. And the day will come when every knee will bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord...everyone will see God for who He truly is. As a good friend of mine used to say, "dead atheists know the truth".

But I think our choices do matter. Many times in Scripture we see where God chose not to work miraculously for a people who didn't trust Him, and Jesus couldn't do miracles because of unbelief. God respects our choice to say "you are not welcome". But He is still King, and He still rules, and He will still use unwelcoming people to draw others to Him. We don't always understand it, but understanding isn't required of a King's subject...only submission is.

Today, Lord, I will trust in Your wisdom, in suffering or in joy. I surrender my autonomy to Your sovereignty, whatever may come. Test me in this, Lord, that I may be shown to be true.

Random Scriptures for the Day

Sometimes I think we spend too much time interpreting Scripture and not enough just letting it flow over us. God has put significant power into His Word (Heb 1:3), and every once in a while we could let it read us instead of us trying to read it. A few Scriptures from my reading today that lightened my heart, without commentary:

"You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to you." - Psalm 86:5

"Teach me your way, O LORD, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths of the grave." - Psalm 86:11-13

"Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, O LORD. They rejoice in your name all day long; they exult in your righteousness. For you are their glory and strength, and by your favor you exalt our horn. Indeed, our shield belongs to the LORD, our king to the Holy One of Israel." - Psalm 89:15-18

"I will punish their sin with the rod, their iniquity with flogging; but I will not take my love from him, nor will I ever betray my faithfulness. I will not violate my covenant or alter what my lips have uttered." - Psalm 89:32-34

May God be praised and glorified through my thoughts, words, and actions today.