A Stumbler's Walk | NO CONDEMNATION

God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

-  John 3:17 

Even those completely unfamiliar with the Bible are familiar with a few things found within. 

Among these are: "Judge not…," (usually quoted out of context - but that's for another post), "The Golden Rule," and John 3:16. (Does anyone remember the multi-colored afro guy that used to hold the sign up at sporting events?)

There may be no better synopsis of the gospel than, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." In this one verse we find God's motivation: love; his action: the sacrificial gift of his Son; our response of faith: believe; and the result: life.

The gospel is good news. It is actually better than that. It is the best news! It is the news of a gracious God who cares intimately and intensely for us. It is the news of this God doing for us what we can not do for ourselves.

And yet, the verse following "For God so loved the world…," gets right to the heart of an issue that many of us deal with - usually quietly, secretly. What is it you ask? Condemnation. The word itself casts a bit of a dark shadow.

Many faith-people deal with a sense of condemnation from time to time. We feel guilty and unworthy. Worse, we feel that God's love is conditional; that it is based on what we do and don't do.

We know this is not true theologically, biblically; but we can't escape the sense. We sometimes go about our days with the feeling God will love us and be pleased with us only if we do more (or stop doing some things). We feel that we must win God's approval and blessing. This is a damaging lie, and a self-defeating place to live.

"God didn't send his Son into the world to condemn… but (to) save…" (John 3:17). Paul emphatically states, "There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ…" (Romans 8:1).

To tell someone to stop feeling condemned is like telling them to stop being depressed. It just doesn't work. The only way to work out of a sense of condemnation is to know the heart of Christ more intimately. We do this by spending time in his word and in prayer; by investing in relationships with believers, and by doing the things we know to do - small steps of daily obedience. Condemnation is a dark place. But remember Jesus - the light of the world - meets us in the dark places.

One last scripture from the Apostle Paul: "For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death," (2 Corinthians 7:10, NASB). There is a massive difference between conviction and condemnation. The first turns our face toward God. The second causes us to hide our face from God.

God, I turn to you.

For now...
D

A Stumbler's Walk | WINE

Fill the jars with water…

- John 2:7 

Jesus' first recorded miracle seems odd; almost insignificant. He turned water in to wine at a wedding. In comparison to sea-walking, storm-calming with just a word, feeding thousands with a two fish happy meal, and raising a dead man… well, it pales. Unless you are the groom.

The groom was traditionally responsible for the wine, both its quantity and quality. Here is a man on the happiest day of his life. All should be smiles and celebration, but he has a sinking feeling and a knot in the pit of his stomach. He's been told the wine is running low and the reception is only half over. He (and his new bride) are about to suffer the ultimate in public humiliation.

"Fill the jars with water…" No one asked for Jesus' plan. They just did it. Six Gatorade sized wash jars are filled to the brim. "Now take it to the master of ceremonies." The MC's reaction? "Usually people serve the best first, then follow up with the cheap stuff when everyone is tipsy. You have saved the best for last!"

The miracle may seem insignificant - again, unless you are the groom. Only the servers, groom, Jesus, his mom and his little group even knew it took place. At face value, it is a very personal and pretty cool thing. 

I don't want to stretch too far, but it is worth thinking on some of the biblical symbolism. Biblically, six is the number symbolizing man - created on the sixth day. Six also signifies incompleteness; seven being the number of completeness. It is not trivial that there were six stone jars that needed to be filled. Six common jars, used for common purposes, became the vessels of a miracle. Do you see where I'm going with this? You and I are common pots. In the hands Jesus, we can be the vessels of miracles.

It is significant that the jars were filled with what was on hand - water - and entrusted to Jesus. The water of the day was usually less than desirable. Jesus once said to a woman at a well in the heat of the day that he had "living water" that he would cause to spring up inside us. So again, common pots filled with common water… the result? The best wine.

Wine is symbolic in scripture of the Holy Spirit and newness. Jesus spoke of the new wine of the Spirit in Matthew 9. Jesus is still in the "water-to-wine" business.

In 1989 a bottle of Chateau Margaux, 1787, was on auction at a dinner in a fancy New York City event. It was at the time the most expensive bottle of wine ever. Each pour was valued at $37,500. However, no one ever tasted the Chateau Margaux. Its cork was never smelled or the first pour swilled; its merits and bouquet never pontificated. Instead, it was broken against a tray when being brought to the front of the room. The bottle, valued at nearly $400,000, and once owned by Thomas Jefferson, spilled out on the fancy New York City carpet.

We are common jars. By faith we are to fill ourselves with what we know, the best we know. And it still feels so very common. Then, at a time of God's choosing, we are poured out. And amazingly, he has produced in us a Chateau Margaux for others to taste and enjoy.

Like the groom of Cana, we sit back and smile in amazement. Because we know the vessels that winemakers will be trying to emulate in the future were just common wash jars. And the Chateau Margaux… it was just water. 

But in the hands of Jesus…

God, In faith I will fill what I have with what I have, and I will leave the results to the Winemaker.

For now...

D

A Stumbler's Walk | GOD GOT PERSONAL

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. …and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

- John 1:1; John 1:14 

John’s account has been called “the gospel from above.” Where the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) begin from an earthly perspective – the birth of Jesus in a Middle-Eastern stable; John begins with a view from heaven. Jesus, the Word who has always been… who spoke and creation leapt into existence… Jesus, the life-giver... the light of the world… steps in to time and space. Emmanuel, meaning “God with us,” has come.

God got personal.

Religion can be personal. Often it is not. The major religions of the world teach of god or gods. The three great theistic religions teach of an all-powerful god. But there is a divergence. The Bible alone speaks of this all-powerful God as a personal God. More than that, he is an intimate God. He is Emmanuel, God with us; the Word become flesh.

And the result of incarnation? Life and light. Later in John’s writing we will come across these words of Jesus: “I came that you might have life, and have it abundantly,” (John 10:10).

Emmanuel desires intimacy with us today. He desires to give us life and light by which to live it. I write this confidently, not because I can speak for God, but because he has made it plain in scripture. We can be confident of God’s great desire for intimacy with us because “…the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”

God, “Forgive me for being so ordinary while claiming to know so extraordinary a God.”
― Jim Elliot

For now...

D

A Stumbler's Walk | JOYTITUDE

Rejoice in the Lord always…

- Philippians 4:4 

Joy and happiness are cousins. They are not twins. And they are definitely not one in the same. 

Think of the hap in happiness. It is the same root found in happenstance or happening. (I'll leave further Google-search etymology to you). Happiness is, at least in part, based on haps or outside circumstances. As a matter of fact, in ancient days, happy and lucky were synonyms (these were the twins). 

OK, a lot of words to get to this point: happiness is typically dependent on something outside, and it works its way in. Think child… Christmas… box… puppy. Circumstances make us happy.

Joy however, is not based on externals. Joy is internal. Joy works its way from the inside out. Joy is not dependent on circumstances. Joy is an attitude of the heart and a choice of the will. Joy is the response of intimacy with Jesus, who said, "… my joy may be in you… that your joy may be full" (John 15:11). I have witnessed unfiltered joy in areas of the world and among people that seemed to be in the unhappiest/unluckiest of circumstances.

Paul tells us - in very strong terms - to rejoice. It is active. We may say, "but wait, my circumstances are…" It doesn't matter, rejoice! Why? How? "… in the Lord…." It is God's imminent and abiding presence that enables us to have this joy. And how often should we actively rejoice in the Lord? "Always." In case we didn't get it, Paul repeats the command; "...again I will say, rejoice."

A joy attitude determines our life altitude. Sorry for the cliche, but it is true. We often quote (and very often without context) a verse later in chapter four: "I can do all things through Christ…" (v.13). What is easy to overlook is the tie that the power of overcoming in v.13 has to the rejoicing of v.4. It is the attitude of joy, no matter the circumstance, that produces the contentment (vv.11-12) that empowers Paul to exclaim: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!"

There is so much more about joy to be said… and lived! For now, I am going to joyfully go to sleep.

God, I rejoice in you.

For now...

D

A Stumbler's Walk | PRESENT POWER

"…forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal…"

- Philippians 3:13-14 

Things from the past often hinder us from moving forward. They are the anchor ropes we need to let go (see post from Nov. 10th, Acts 27). Not all of these are bad or negative. We can at times be most hindered by the positives, by victories of the past.

Paul is not saying that we need to erase the past from our memories. Frankly, that would be frustrating and impossible. As a matter of fact, reading verses 13 & 14 in context, we see that Paul has a vivid recollection of his past (he repeatedly tells his story - something to keep in mind since we each have a unique story).

Paul is telling us that our past is just that, past (or better, passed). You are not your past. Neither am I. Our past helps to shape us, to forge us and our character. But our past does not define us. Our past cannot hold us captive. Or maybe better said, it can only control us to the extent we allow.

Turning:

In verses 13 and 14 there is a turning. Paul glances over his shoulder down the pathway of his past, then he abruptly turns to his present. Wait, you expected me to write that he turns toward his future. But I don't think that is accurate. "Straining… I press on…;" these are current actions. They are present tense.

In the first chapter of the letter Paul speaks of his longing to be at home with Christ; "absent from the body," he calls it. But he declares "for to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain" (Philippians 1:21). For Paul, the goal is ahead, the straining, the pressing on, are now. This is important. We are often as controlled by the unknowns of the future - its worries, fears or even its dreams and desires - as we are by the past.

So let's take a glance over our shoulder now and again. But the past is passed. The future? We can't live in tomorrow any more effectively than in yesterday. But the present… the now; this is where God meets us. And this is where we strain, where we press on to know him and to join him.

God, thank you for my past - the good, the bad, the ugly. And thank you for my future; it is secure in you. Most of all meet me in my present, and let me know your presence, as I turn to you... 

For now...
D

A Stumbler's Walk | GOD AT WORK

…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you…"

- Philippians 2:12-13

Part 1:

There are things only God can do. 

However, God will not do for us we he has called us to do in faith. We must understand this. If not, we remain stuck in the same spiritually-stagnated spot. No progress, and we somehow blame God. 

Spiritual stagnation is evidence that we have not been faithful to act on what we know. James, in the book bearing his name, makes the argument that faith is demonstrated in action.

Paul tells us to work out our salvation. We do this by acting on what we already know, and trusting God for what we don't. The biblical narrative is chalked full of examples of the greats of the faith acting on what they knew and relying on God for what they didn't. Faithful action, steps of obedience, trust in God; this is working out our salvation.

Notice Paul writes, "…your OWN salvation…" No one else can do it for us. Not our parents, pastor, friend, spouse, favorite author, etc. We are responsible and accountable for the incredible gift God has given us. No one can be faithful and obedient for us.

God, I will take the steps I know; help me to trust walk the steps i don't see.\

For now...

D

A Stumbler's Walk | AT WORK

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

- Philippians 1:6

Years ago (wow, decades!) there was a popular Christian song that included the lyric: He (God) didn't bring us this far to leave us. He didn't lift us up to watch us fall." Moses said it more poignantly to his protege Joshua: "It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” (Deuteronomy 31:8)

God begins a work of transformation in us when we say yes to Christ. Actually, we really don't know how, and how long, he has prepared us. And this God who has prepared us; this Christ who laid down his life for us; this One who has given us forgiveness and new life by his powerful grace; He promises to continue his transforming work in us until the day we see him face to face. (That last sentence was a little long, but we need to grasp it. I need to grasp it - more today than ever.)

Paul writes: (He) is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us. (Ephesians 3:20)

It is God's power, according to his plan, that is at work in us. Our part? Simply put… cooperation. Cooperation with the Spirit of God requires surrendered humility and audacious faith. 

In the second chapter of Philippians Paul exclaims, "…it is God who is at work in you…" (If you don't mind, I need to add an exclamation point!) Ponder it. The Creator, who said, "Light!" and light happened; who breathed life into clay and you and I happened...

...that God works in us!

God wants us to be more than we are; to be ever growing. His desire is that we would be, "… continually being transformed…" (Romans 12:2). He wants us to live more, love more; to serve more, to dare more.

Paul is convinced: "...I am sure of this..."

God, work in me.

For now...

D