A Dash of Salt

High-Sodium Christians Needed

Doctors caution us about eating too much salt.  But what are the benefits of salt?  Read carefully Jesus' warning in Luke 14:34-35 several times.  He's emphasizing that salt is good and useful.  Besides adding flavor to our food, what else is salt good for? 

Scholars have debated how salt can or cannot lose its saltiness.  It seems best to understand Jesus as referring to the common salt in ancient Palestine that was derived from the evaporation of the Dead Sea.  It had impurities such as carnellite and gypsum mixed in with it, and once the salt dissolved out, the remainder tasted bitter.  What good is salt that has lost its saltiness?  What do people do with it?  Compare Matthew 5:13. 

Consider this: Where do Christians get their saltiness?  What happens if the followers of Jesus are half-hearted in their commitment to Him?  How would that impact their world?  Sometimes Christians aren't very salty; they create little thirst for Jesus and his gospel.  In fact, by their hypocrisy and lack of love, they might be really good at raising the blood pressure of watching unbelievers, but not at arrousing their interest in Jesus.  Such half-hearted Christians don't attract or encourage unsaved people to surrender to Jesus.  To every one of his would-be followers Jesus says, "If you hear Me, pay attention to what I say!"

Can Christians Learn Anything from Atheists?

Yahoo! News posted an interesting story last week, "Christians and Atheists Start A Calmer Dialogue" (HT: Relevant).  It's important for believers in Jesus Christ to remember that those who have not yet trusted Christ are not the enemy; they are prisoners of the enemy.  Think about it: What's the difference between a debate and a dialogue?  What do you think of Christians dialoging with atheists and other non-believers rather than debating them? 

Lessons from a Wee Little Man

Remember the story of Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10?  It's more than just a cute Sunday School song about a "wee little man who climbed up in a sycamore tree, for the Lord he wanted to see."  One of the major lessons we learn from the story of Jesus meeting Zacchaeus is the answer to the question: "What kind of people get to go to heaven?"

• People who realize that they are spiritually lost.  Using the word "lost" to describe someone's spiritual state is nowadays viewed as insulting.  And certainly if it is uttered with arrogance or anger, then it is offensive.  But there's no way around the fact that all of us are lost when it comes to finding our way to peace with God.  Our lostness is not because we're stupid or insensitive.  What makes us lost is that we have sinned and broken God's law.  Zacchaeus was well aware of his own lost condition before a just and holy God.  We would do well to learn from his humble example.  Yet, in spite of his great wealth and power, Zacchaeus was eager to know Jesus, hence his climbing the tree to see Him.  What's sad in the story is that there were other sinners in Jericho that day, and not just Zacchaeus.  The crowd who loudly grumbled that Jesus was going to dine at the house of a "sinner" was just as sinful as Zacchaeus.  Because they focused on his guilt and lostness, they could not see their own.  How tragic!
• People who let Jesus rescue them by trusting Him, like Zacchaeus did.  His life was changed when he brought Jesus to his house.  Instead of being "gripped by greed" Zacchaeus became "gripped by compassion for the poor. Referring to Zacchaeus, Jesus proclaimed to one and all that "salvation has come to this house."  Jesus came to search for and rescue lost sinners like you and me.

"What Kind of People Get to Go to Heaven?" Find out in this audio message you can download: Download sermon05.06.2007.mp3.  Handout for taking notes: Download ZaccheusLk19.1-10.doc

Weekend Wonderings: Good Missionary Training

An ancient model for post-modern mission work: St. Patrick.  Read this informative bio on Ireland's patron saint written by Eric Hurtgen.  "So, this March 17, while everyone else is celebrating all things Irish by decking themselves out in green, drinking only the darkest Irish beer, or tuning in to Public Radio's celebration of Celtic music, let us be challenged by the sacrificial life of St. Patrick, looking for opportunities to turn our enslavements into blessings, speaking the message of the gospel message in a way that respects the culture of those around us while challenging them to change."

Have you ever used Operation World by Patrick Johnstone?  This remarkable book highlights every country of the world, focusing on prayer needs relevant to spread of the gospel and the growth of the church.  Now this helpful missions tool is online!  Mr. Johnstone has compile a massive amount of information on each country, including its religious, political, economic, and ethnic climates and how they affect missionary work.  Read Operation World to improve your geographical knowledge, expand your vision of God's work around the world, and pray about things that matter for eternity.  Visiting this site each day and praying for a few minutes for a country will do much to advance the kingdom of God.  (HT: Justin Taylor.)

You can also come to my house today and help me shovel the 8" of snow we received yesterday (Friday).  Just kidding, but it definitely is GMT...should God ever call you to Greenland. 

Weekend Wonderings

American Government 101:  "In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is  a shame, two is a law firm, and three or more is a congress." -- President John Adams 
(HT: Michael Kruse) Click picture to see it better.

Muslims rioting over Israeli excavations near the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem.  Here's a report from TIME.  I'm paying attention to this.

What do you think about Leonard Sweet's claim that the way we (us American evangelicals) are doing church might be "killing the West"?  Read his provocative article here.  What do you think he means by "not 'come and see' but 'go and be'"?  His thoughts are radical, but I think they're on target.  What's your opinion?  (HT: Michael Kruse)

Coffee Smackdown!  Guess what Consumer Reports found out when it taste-tested Starbucks', Dunkin' Donuts', Burger King's, and McDonald's coffee? Yuppies everywhere are in denial and shock! (HT: Justin Taylor)

And speaking of coffee, Jessica Robinson introduces her cool redesigned blog and features some delicious-sounding specialty coffee recipes, like "Iced Coffee Slushie," "Mocha Coffee," and more.

Harvesting Good Works

"That you might walk about in a manner worthy of the Lord, so to please him in all respects by bearing fruit in every good work..."  (Colossians 1:10)

Christians are called to bring forth fruit and so please God.  Believers are like trees (Psalm 1) that need the constant nourishment of God's Word in order to bear fruit.  Galatians 5:22-23 reminds us that the Holy Spirit is the one who ultimately makes fruit grow in our lives as he takes the Word of God, shows us what we need to do with it, and then gives us the strength we to obey it.  Fruit bearing is not a one-time event, but is to be an ongoing process thoroughout our lives. 

The fruit that the Spirit and Word of God produce within us are good works, which are deeds of loving service for others.  By nature we do evil works because we are born sinners and are in rebellion to God.  Through salvation, He transforms us so that we produce works of unselfish service for others in need.  I think what Paul meant by "every good work" is that there are a wide variety of ways we can serve others for Christ's glory.  Whatever our spiritual gifts, heart passions, abilities, personality, and experiences of life, God can use all of these in a variety of ways to accomplish his will for the benefit of others.  Will we let him grow loving deeds of service through us?

Just like this Winter's unseasonably cold weather has destroyed most of southern California's citrus crop, so selfishness and fear in our lives can spoil a harvest of good deeds of service.  Paul is praying for an abundance of good works and loving service to grow in his readers' lives.

How to Make Disciples

"...The grace of God in truth; just as you learned from Epaphras, our beloved fellow-slave, who is a faithful servant of Christ on your behalf, who has also shown to us your love in the Spirit."  (Colossians 1:6b-8)

As Paul concludes his thanksgiving for what God has done among the Colossians, he remembers that whatever progress toward spiritual maturity they have made, it's all because of the hard work of Epaphras.  We know from Colossians 4:12 that Epaphras was from Colossae.  Perhaps he had heard that gospel from Paul previously and then brought it back to Colossae and the Lycus valley, and then systematically taught the people of that region the good news of Jesus Christ.  In Paul's letter to Philemon, he also mentions that Epaphras was his fellow-prisoner for the sake of Christ Jesus (v. 23).  Apparently, Epaphras also brought a gift from the Colossians to Paul while he was in Rome, and this act of generosity proved to Paul that they loved him.

Why did Paul consider Epaphras a beloved and faithful fellow-slave of Christ?  Because he knew how to effectively make disciples Jesus Christ...

• He faithfully taught the gospel to the Colossians.  The idea behind "learned" (manthano) is receiving systematic instruction, not just a superficial, "flimsy outline" of information.  O'Brien suggests that Paul uses this word to emphasize the thoroughness of Epaphas' teaching compared to the shallowness of the new heresy the false teachers were promoting.  This challenges me to carefully explain the the significance of the gospel, and to remember that the significance of who Christ is and what He has done to save us is deep, and not merely a four-bullet-point plan to share with sinners.
• He faithfully prayed for the Colossians.  Paul mentions this in 4:12, where he claims that Epaphras prays for them with the intensity of a wrestler trying to pin his opponent.  Epaphras was committed to their life-change, not just increasing their knowledge.  After planting the seed of God's truth in the Colossians, he prayed for them, that they would believe and obey the Word.  Often when I'm finished preaching or teaching, I'm just happy to be done.  But I'm really not done; I need to keep praying for myself and for those who have heard the Word, that the Word would be mixed with faith (Hebrews 4:2).

None of us can do the work of Christ alone.  Paul was deeply grateful for Epaphras' ministry.  What is remarkable to me is that Epaphras was not gifted like Paul to be an apostle; he was a layman in the church who was willing to let God use him to teach the Word and pray.  He had a burden for the Colossians and the zeal for helping them understand and live the gospel, and this makes him a model disciple-maker to me. 

Model wholehearted commitment to Christ.  Teach the Word.  Keep interceding for others even when it's hard.  That's what it takes to do a good job of making disciples of Jesus.

Living Proof of Jesus

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."  (Acts 1:8, NIV)

"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."  (Matthew 5:13-16, NIV)

(Photo by Ed Karjala of the Portland Head Lighthouse, Fort Williams, Cape Elizabeth, Maine)

Living Nativity Highlights

I thought you might enjoy looking at some photos of the teens' Living Nativity and Christmas Coffee House program this past Saturday night at the Chapel.  We had a great evening remembering why Jesus was born in Bethlehem that first Christmas so long ago. 

You and I are the reason for the season.  "The Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost."  (Luke 19:10, NIV)

Just click on the pictures to enlarge them.

 



                                                                                                      

Jesus' Agenda for His Church: Go

What on earth are we here for?  Christ’s final command to his followers was to “make disciples,” to lead people from all the nations to follow Him.  The trouble is they won’t come to us, so we need to go to them.  That’s why Jesus tells to go and make disciples.  The “go” should be understood as a command in this passage along with “make disciples.”  If we don’t go to people who have not yet trusted Christ we’ll never be able to show them how to follow Him.  To whom do we go?  Jesus spells out his expectation: We must go to all the nations (Matthew 28:19-20).

We are not here just to win an argument, nor simply to get our candidate elected.  Jesus' agenda for us also isn't about spending all our time and energy making our lives comfortable and happy.  Christ left us here to persuade other people to trust and obey Him.

Essential to making disciples is proximity.  We have to go to them.  Don't wait for them to come to you.  Build a relationship with them that invites conversation about the deeper issues of life.  Every Christian can walk across the room, as Bill Hybels writes, to initiate a conversation with a stranger at a holiday party.  All of us can use opportunities like that to ask questions and discern mutual points of interest.  (That’s just being friendly!)  We can listen thoughtfully and pray for them.  We can look for the openings God gives us to serve them and share the gospel with them.

Once we are close enough, how can you and I increase our persuasiveness with people who have not yet trusted Christ?  Try these...

• Love them.  This is a major issue.
• Be genuine.  This, too, is a major issue.  So follow Christ...humbly, faithfully, gratefully.
• Speak up and tell about Christ when the time is right.

Jesus has appointed you and I to be his missionaries, and it’s up to us to go and urge others to follow Him.  We have to go to lost people and tell them about salvation through Christ!  They need to see the reality of our love for Jesus and how He has transformed us.  Some of us need to do that cross-culturally with people of other races and languages in other locations.  All of us can do it here in our neighborhoods.  It certainly starts with our children, but it cannot end there.  Go and make disciples wherever you are.