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Living Debt Free
by Heath Taws

The USA is currently 18 Trillion dollars in debt. The average American owes 15k in credit card debt, 48k in student loans, 168k in mortgages, and 27k in auto loans. This doesn’t include debts we owe to friends and family, our debt to society, favors, promises made, back taxes, and things we have borrowed and have yet to return. (It also doesn’t include the astronomical spiritual debt that all of us owe the second we come into this world.)
And the crazy thing about debt, is that it really just creeps up on you. There are all sorts of hidden fees, and unexpected expenses, and by the time you realize what has happened, it’s too late; you are in over your head, and drowning in debt.
And yet, we are sort of in love with being in debt, aren’t we?
You will say, “That’s absurd! Nobody loves debt?”
And I think on the surface that is absolutely true.[ene_ptp] But I am talking about the very core of who we are as sinful humans with sin-sick souls.
Our sinful natures tell us that slavery, submission, and debt, are our only options in life.
Our sinful natures love being in debt, because the thought of true freedom terrifies us.
Think about “repeat offenders,” or, “career criminals.” Why do they choose a lifestyle that always ends in jail time, submission, and oppression? For many of these men and women, jail is the only life they have ever known. They get released, and immediately commit a crime in order to get put back into jail.
And this is sort of all of us, isn’t it? We don’t really learn from our past mistakes, so we keep making war, keep getting into debt, and we keep touching all those things that our parents told us not to touch.
Being in debt or owing something is comfortable because it gives us something to work for. It gives us a reason to wake up in the morning, to try and save, a purpose in life; a goal if you will. People who find themselves “free” also quickly find themselves panicking at the lack of structure and goal oriented living. They don’t have to work because they no longer have debt to pay, and they really don’t have to even get out of bed if they don’t want to. They are free to do as they please, and for many people that is absolutely the scariest thing they could ever imagine.
My cousin once told me that he was, “Scared to death of Heaven.” When I asked him why, he responded, “Because I have no clue what I am going to do for eternity.”
In Heaven, we will be truly free. No schedules, no meetings, just 24hr recess, and that freaked him out. (It’s interesting to note that 24hr recess sounds like heaven to a kid, and hell to a “productive” adult. It’s no wonder that Jesus says we must come as little children.)
And that is why freedom is so scary. If I am left to my own devices, no structure, no debt to pay, nothing to work for, who knows what I would do. I could try and accomplish something great, but if my resources were virtually limitless, I would probably end up in rehab from excessive living like so many “free” people in our society do.
Think about those who win the lottery. Did you know that 70% of them eventually go bankrupt?
It’s because our sinful natures don’t know what to do with freedom. It freaks us out.
Even when our sin seems to tell us the opposite, and encourages us to crave power and wealth, we soon learn from those who have it all that power and wealth can many times be a form of debt in itself.
Consider the wealthiest people alive today. Having vast amounts of wealth doesn’t necessarily mean you are debt free, and it certainly doesn’t make you truly happy.
Every year we read reports of famous rich people, both Christian and non-Christians, committing crimes, suffering from addictions, going bankrupt, having affairs, owing millions in taxes, and being found dead from suicide.
And every time we read these reports we tend to have three responses:
1. We are flabbergasted because we thought they had it all worked out, and yet somehow they are/were unhappy.
2. We are flabbergasted because we thought the mask they wore was actually who they truly were inside.
3. We are flabbergasted because they should have known better and it’s ultimately all their fault/hollywood’s fault/the Church’s fault/their parents fault/Obama’s fault.
With the first response, we are tricked because in our eyes they were “debt free” and they didn’t seem to realize it.
With the second response, we are surprised because they pretended to be “debt free” and yet secretly lived a life full of debt.
And with the third response, we are delighted, because we love to watch famous rich people crash and burn, and then come up with reasons for their train wrecks.
In all of this, our sinful nature is the true enemy.
This is ultimately why the Gospel is foolishness to the world and to our sinful ears.
The pastor stands at the pulpit and says, “I am here to tell you that Christ has paid your debt, and those who the Son sets free are free indeed.” And on the surface that all sounds great because we all hate debt, and nobody likes living in debt, and we all want freedom, right?
But at the core of our sinful natures we are squirming in the pews every Sunday. We are repeat offenders, and all we have ever known is jail. The thought of being truly free terrifies us because that would mean we would have to finally live on the outside.
And besides, we have all heard that nothing in life is truly free. Our sin makes us natural skeptics, and so the gospel message of freedom sounds too good to be true. There has to be a catch. What does Jesus really want from me? Doesn’t He actually just want to take away my freedom, and restrict my behavior?
That sort of thinking has come from years of Christian legalism which has really harmed the Church as a whole. The problem with legalism is that all of its power got taken away right along with death’s 2000 some years ago at the cross. Legalism doesn’t change hearts, but the Gospel does.
Wearing a “true love waits” ring is not a reasonable form of birth control. You could have one on every finger, and in 9 months that baby is still gonna be there. Instead of another lecture, that teenage girl and boy need grace, love, and good news. They need freedom, not more iron bars.
Okay, so what about those who accept the gospel message of freedom? Do they actually feel free? Not really, at least not on their own, because their sin wants to stay in debt. They want to pay something, they want to work. Unless the Holy Spirit enters into that jail cell and says, “I can bust you out of here, but you have to trust me,” they will never leave.
Christians sit at the dinner table with God, and when the check comes, they try to reach for it first.
Christians wake up everyday and look in the mailbox for bills that will never come.
Christians get on the treadmill of works, trying to burn off sin calories, even though the liposuction has already taken place.
If I am being honest, I wake up everyday and I try and earn God’s affection. Not only that, but my own salvation. I know that Jesus has set me free, but I don’t feel that I deserve it (which I don’t) so I try to work to earn it (which I can’t) in order to relieve my guilt (which is always with me). I understand grace, but it can’t really be amazing grace if its free, can it? Nothing good in life is free. What you pay is what you get.
And everyday as I am working to earn my salvation, I ultimately end up sinning all throughout the process, thus adding more sin calories to work off. It is a never ending cycle of work, and debt, and more work, and more debt, and at the end of the day I’m exhausted and I think, “Surely, God is disappointed in me. How much more grace can God afford to spend on sinful old Heath?”
“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”
This never-ending cycle has to end, and for me, and for you, it only ends when we are reminded of the Gospel. It ends at the cross of Christ, where we throw ourselves down, sweaty, tired, and exhausted from all of our work, and we finally rest.
Jesus has stacks on stacks of grace to give out, and when He enters the club, you better believe He makes it rain grace.
I remember growing up and reading the verse about storing up treasure for yourself in heaven. I never understood that verse until I actually was old enough to have money, and also have debt of my own.
You see, when you live in debt, there isn’t much saving or storing up that takes place. You can’t really save up money, because you are always paying off a loan, a credit card, or some other form of debt.
But what Jesus is saying in that verse is this, “since you are now free and your debt has already been paid, you are now able to store up treasures in Heaven. You are finally free to work on that nest egg. You are finally free to enjoy living.”
How much better does an expensive steak taste when you know you don’t have to pay for it? You can order anything on the menu, because the bill is covered.
Before we knew Christ, we stored up wrath for ourselves, as we accumulated more and more debt. After Christ, we are set free and our debt is paid once and for all on the cross. We are now free to store up treasures in Heaven, and also to withdraw the good works that God has deposited for us in advance.
The transition is from slave to son. It is from outcast to in-law. It is from living in debt, to living debt free.
This is what an exhausted debt-drenched world needs to hear.
My sinful nature will always be with me in this life, but the more I hear the gospel message, and the more I taste the freedom that only Jesus offers, the more I long for Heaven.
Everyday the Holy Spirit coaxes me closer to that door, closer to my freedom, and closer to the ultimate freedom that Heaven will bring. In the meantime, I can experience tastes and glimpses of that freedom here and now. His graces and mercies are new every morning.
If you want a religion that tells you to work harder, do more, and earn your way to Heaven, there are plenty of those out there.
If you want a religion where God has already done all the work for you, and now tells you to rest, enjoy Him, and live in freedom, then have I got some good news for you.
Stop living in debt, and be free. His yoke is easy, and His burden is light, and once He sets you free, you are free indeed.

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April 9, 2016
The Only Way? and Many Rooms: John 14:1-6

by Kent Ira Groff

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me.” Extremists abuse this exclusive-sounding text to kill or convert people against their will. Yet I want to show how this text about the “only way” and “many rooms” in John 14:1-6 is one of the most inclusive in the Bible. Jesus may not have said these exact words, but they echo the voice of Jesus through the community back then. What do they say to us now?
“I am the way…No one comes…but by me.” But what is the “way”? And who is the “me” that is the only way? Jesus was very clear about that in Matthew 25: “Just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” During Jesus’ brief ministry he went around touching the lives of people on the edges of society: lepers and tax collectors, filthy rich folks and beaten-down widows, prostitutes and Roman military officials—this despite his clear pacifist teaching.[ene_ptp] In high-tech culture we long to touch Jesus and be touched, like “doubting Thomas,” who said in John 20, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands… and put my finger in his side, I will not believe.” The beautiful thing is that by touching the broken lives of “the least of these”—people with AIDS, prisoners, dehydrated children and their starving parents—we do get to touch the living Christ in the wounds of others, as Mother Teresa witnessed. To ignore the least of these is to miss the only way.
It is the Way of dying and rising, the place where brokenness becomes a doorway to blessing. It is as if Jesus says, “Meet me at the edges, in the marginal people and marginal parts of yourself, for that is the only way to see me rise at the center.” It is the primal Way of life-giving sacrifice at the navel of the universe (Rig Veda). It is “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world’ (Revelation 13:8, KJV). It is the Tao Te Ching, the “Way that has Power”—by whatever name.
All this rings true to Jesus’ Easter appearances. Jesus seems unconcerned about name recognition: appearing in the guise of a gardener at the tomb, a stranger on the road to Emmaus, an advice-giving fisher on the shore. And when two disciples’ eyes are opened and they recognize the stranger on the road is Jesus in the breaking of the bread at Emmaus—”Poof”— he disappears! At the tomb when Mary recognizes the gardener is Jesus, she is told: “Do not hold on to me!” The final judgment of a true disciple is to be in touch with the least of these in genuine self-forgetting love: “Lord, when did we see you hungry…?” That is the Way that is Life and Truth.
Many Rooms? (and the Only Way): John 14:1-6
If ever there was a time when we need to think of various traditions of the Way as rooms in the world’s one big house, it is now. In The Next Christianity, Philip Jenkins warns of new crusades, in a mix of religious and political enemies. But in Mere Christianity C. S. Lewis gives us the wisest of words about these many rooms:

When you have reached your own room, be kind to those who have chosen different doors and to those who are still in the hall. If they are wrong, they need your prayers all the more, and if they are your enemies, then you are under orders to pray for them. That is one of the rules common to the whole house. (p. ix).

Progressive faith wants to hold together the paradox of “only way” in John 14:6 with the “many rooms” in John 14:2: “In my father’s house there are many rooms.” This is the voice of same Jesus who says in John 10, “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold.”

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Kent Ira Groff, a spiritual companion for other journeyers (by Skype or in person), a retreat leader and author of ten books, calls himself “one beggar showing other beggars where to find bread.” Portions are adapted from Kent’s book What Would I Believe If I Didn’t Believe Anything?: A Handbook for Spiritual Orphans (Jossey-Bass) and Clergy Table Talk (Energion). Founding mentor of Oasis Ministries in Pennsylvania, he now lives in Denver, Colorado. See www.LinkYourSpirituality.com Email: kentiragroff@comcmast.net

April 8, 2016
The Jesus Manifesto

by David Moffett-Moore

I expect most of us grew up with images of Jesus that were “Gentle Jesus, meek and mild,” with children gathered about him or as a shepherd with his flock. Certainly understandable for little children, but this gentle Jesus would never get crucified. In this season of Eastertide, it might be good for us to wonder “Why?”.
I think it is important to remember that Jesus was not executed for religious reasons but for political. The title over his head on the cross was “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews,” a political charge. He preached good news of the coming Kingdom of God, where the last would be first and the first be last, a radical upsetting of the status quo. I’ve long held that what got Rome involved with Jesus was his clearing of the temple. In addition to being the only place on earth where Jews could offer sacrificial worship, the temple was a major market place, a mint, and the place of the Sanhedrin, their high court. Imagine someone taking over Fort Knox, Wall Street, and the Supreme Court. We would not see that as strictly religious activity.[ene_ptp] Who was this firebrand prophet Jesus and what was so explosive about his message? Christians for centuries have views on the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew chapters five through seven, as the summary of Jesus’ teachings. We might look at it as the Jesus Manifesto.
A manifesto is a summary of someone’s teachings and beliefs, written to inspire and provoke. It is designed to make the message clear, plain and evident. It is a public declaration of motives and intentions and meant to be of public importance. It is radical in that it strikes at the root, reveals the core and foundation of the message. The Communist Manifesto is a brief pamphlet, yet it is recognized as one of the world’s most influential manuscripts. The same might be said of the Sermon on the Mount.
The Sermon on the Mount is three chapters long, in most translations no more than five pages. It would take less time to read aloud the Sermon on the Mount than most sermons take to preach. In his Daily Study Bible commentary, William Barclay writes over 200 pages of commentary on these five pages of text! St. Augustine and Martin Luther both wrote volumes of sermons on these three chapters. Martin Luther King Jr., Doris Day, Mahatma Gandhi and Leo Tolstoy all wrote of the significance of this brief message. It certainly satisfies the parameters of being a Manifesto!
In this passage, Jesus declares what is and challenges us, boldly and practically, on how were are called to live. He says “blessed are; theirs is.” The beatitudes are not a new law for us to submit to, a discipline for us to strive after; he declares how things really are, already. He fulfills the law, not overthrowing it but completing and perfecting it. We can’t help but be both challenged and comforted by his words.
I enjoyed writing my own take on the Sermon on the Mount, entitled appropriately The Jesus Manifesto, adding my “meek and mild” name to the more famous ones. It is part of Energion’s “Participatory Bible Studies” series. I invite you to consider it in your next study. I think it will help you find new meaning, depth and inspiration from these familiar words of Jesus, the prophet king who is pioneer and perfecter of our faith.

April 7, 2016
Is the Church Responsible for the Environmental Crisis?

by Bill Tuck
www.friarsfragment.com

We need to ask some questions about the whole problem with the environment, pollution and ecology. The first question is this– do churches and Christians have any responsibility for the crises in which we find ourselves today? There are some scientists who are saying, “Oh yes, Churches and Christians are largely responsible for this crisis.” Lynn White and other scientists are expounding that attitude. They point to the passage in Genesis which says, “Man is supposed to subdue the earth” and note that we have subdued it to the point of devastation. These scientists believe that Christians are responsible because of the philosophy and theology taken from Genesis, of subduing the earth. Are we responsible? Well, yes and no.
The Prodigal Way of Humanity
[ene_ptp]What then is the nature of our responsibility? Humankind has been like the prodigal son. We have taken all the blessings God has given us and we have wasted them in riotous living, sometimes in excessive living. We have received the bounty of God’s creation and we have exploited and sometimes ruined it. I wish I could stand in this pulpit to¬day and tell you that all of our rivers and streams are pure, and that our air is pure, and the water we drink is fine. But no person can truthfully tell you that today. Many of the trees on the mountaintops of North Carolina are dying because of pollution. It is a serious problem. Just a few years ago, we couldn’t eat oysters taken from our own coast because of the refuse and waste that had been dumped into our waters making them so impure. Even the ocean itself was polluted. We still have factories that spew impurities into our water and into our air today.
Did you know that there are some cities where the air is so thick with pollution that when you breathe the air it is the equivalent of smoking thirty-eight cigarettes a day? I am convinced that one of the reasons we have such a rise in cancer is because the water we drink and the air we breathe and the foods we eat are polluted. Much of life is filled with the problems of living with pollution. You and I, as citizens have to work hard to overcome these abuses of our land, air and water.
Suppose someone told you that you have a bank account with enough money in it to take care of you all your life, if you don’t overspend. If you spend carefully and wisely, you will always have enough in your account. You don’t know the exact amount in your account and you are never going to be told that. But you do know that if you just spend wisely you will always have enough. You would be very careful wouldn’t you?
Our environment is that way. We can’t keep on abusing and destroying rainforests and other parts of the natural world without bringing devastation upon ourselves and our world. Some view environmentalists as “coo-coos” and pretend that we do not have a serious problem. But, it is serious! We have to realize that our children and grandchildren and others may not be able to live in our world unless we take care of it.
Caretakers of Our Planet
As Christian people we have a responsibility. What is that responsibility? Our responsibility is to be stewards and caretakers of God’s universe. The Genesis story doesn’t tell us that we are to devour the earth or we can do anything we want with nature. God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden to take care of it. They were to be caretakers and “to tend the earth.” We are to work with nature and learn how to live in harmony with creation. All of God’s creation is our home. And it is a beautiful home. We have got to learn how to live in harmony with God’s creation and do the very best thing we can to care for it and make it a place that is beautiful and productive. One of our responsibilities as Christians is to do those things which can make this earth the very best place where we can live. It is our home—our only home—and we have to take care of it by conserving its resources and productivity. The scientist, Teilhard deChardin, reminded us that, “The Age of Nations is past. The task before us now, if we will not perish, is to build the earth.” We are all responsible for our planet. We can’t pass the responsibility to others.
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April 6, 2016
Rich and Poor

by Elgin Husbeck, Jr.

One of the key differences between left and the right, both religiously and politically is over how they view the “rich” and the “poor.” The Bible has a lot to say about both of these. For example, in response to an earlier article I wrote, the writer cited, Luke 19:25 “Indeed, it’s easier for a camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to get into the kingdom of God.” He contrasted this with the poor saying, “Jesus, for instance, extols poverty ‘blessed are the poor, for theirs is the kingdom of God.’”
While the latter is probably not the best verse to cite in this context as it is referring to spiritual rather than economic poverty, there is no doubt that we are called to be concerned for the poor and to minister to their needs. But does this mean that God only wants poor people in his church? If you are “rich” must you, like the rich man in Mark 10:17-21, sell everything you own and give it to the poor?
[ene_ptp]If so this would be a very strange commandment; after all, are we called to help the poor, or to be the poor? Is poverty a condition to be obtained or relieved? If we are all poor, who will be left to relieve our poverty? As I pointed out in an earlier article, it is pretty clear that selling all of one’s possessions was not a universal injunction.
But that still leaves us with the question of who are the rich and who are the poor. For rest of this article I will focus on the poor. In the time of Jesus, the dividing line was pretty clear and stark. That is no longer true in the developed world as “poor” here has a vastly different meaning than in the third world. With the possible exception of the homeless, the “poor” in western countries would often be considered “rich” in developing countries.
But the difference even varies among western countries. For example, it is common to hear criticism about how little the United States does for the “poor” when compared to the Social Democracies in Europe. But again definitions vary from country to country. Some define “poverty” as simply being lower than the national median income, others define it as the lower 30% of median income or some other value. The income level chosen will have a huge effect on the number of people in poverty.
Another problem is that US poverty statistics often do not take into account assistance such as the earned income tax credit and food stamps. A study in 2000 showed that when these difference are taken into account the differences in the poverty rates between the US and European countries becomes very small. While poverty in the US has increased since that study, benefits have increased even faster, such that when adjusted for inflation those receiving benefits are slightly better off.
When government assistance is taken into account the poor in the US are nowhere near poverty as it would have been understood in Jesus’s time. In fact, based on Census Bureau data of those classified as “poor,” 80% have air conditioning, 75% have a car and 31% have two. Most have cable or satellite TV, and over 50% have a computer with over 10% having 2 or more. More than half have a PlayStation, Xbox or other gaming system, and over 40% have internet access and a wide screen TV, and 25% of these have a digital recording system such as TIVO.
In a recent GCP, co-host Chris Eyre commented on how difficult was to get by on assistance in England and often people did not even have enough food week to week. Yet here in the US, only 4% of poor children and 18% of poor adults report being hungry for lack of money within the last year, and on average their nutrition is virtually identical to the middle class. Only 4% report being temporarily homeless, nearly 50% live in single family homes or townhouses, while 42% own their own home. The average home of the poor in the US has 3 bedrooms, and over 2/3 have more than two rooms for each person.
This means that he average poor person in America has more living space than the average person in most European countries. By their own descriptions, most of the poor in America had enough money to meet their essential needs and were able to access medical care for their family. In fact when factors such as buying power and cost of living are factored in, the standard of living for the poor in America falls into the range of the middle class in much of Europe.
Now to be sure, these are statistics based on the whole. There will be exceptions and special cases. There will be those who fall between the cracks, so to speak. While the vast majority live homes that are “in good repair and without significant defects,” the vast majority is not all. But it is just as true that this hardly paints a picture of neglect.
As a percentage of GDP, total US spending on social welfare is less than in Europe, but since the US is wealthier, per capita spending is higher. In addition, there are the personal factors. Some people, such as the mentally ill and drug addicts are particularly difficult to help and we need to do more in this area. But for most people in the US, the statistics are pretty clear that if you finish High school, and wait to get married before having children your chances of being poor are greatly reduced. In addition, there is a generational component here in that children who are raised in a married family are 80% less likely to be poor.
Given this, perhaps the real way to combat poverty is to be found more in the church, and society as a whole, taking about the values of intact families, rather than pushing for a larger government and increased benefits.
http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2015/09/poverty-and-the-social-welfare-state-in-the-united-states-and-other-nations#_ftnref8
http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2010/09/marriage-america-s-greatest-weapon-against-child-poverty
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April 5, 2016
On Resurrection Life

by Harvey Brown

One week ago the western Church celebrated Easter—or if you prefer, Resurrection Sunday. The Eastern Church (Orthodox) will celebrate on May 1. Resurrection Sunday is preceded by six weeks of Lent, beginning on Ash Wednesday and ending on Maundy Thursday. Holy Week culminates in the greatest of all celebrations, Easter Sunday.[ene_ptp] Shortly after Marilyn and I were married (a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away), I heard a television preacher on a tirade against churches that recognized the season of Lent. “If you can show me a single place where Lent is mentioned in the Bible, I’ll give you $10,000!”
My quick search in the King James Bible (the most used English language Scripture of that day) led me to Jeremiah 15:10, part of which reads “… I have neither lent on usury, nor men have lent to me on usury….” That’s not just a single place where “lent” is mentioned. It’s a double mention in a single verse.
I didn’t bother to let the preacher know. I doubted he would stand by his challenge.
Lent really is a challenge, and a good one for us to recognize and stand by. Those six weeks before Easter can serve as a conscious reminder of Jesus’ call to take up our cross and follow him. If we are crucified with Christ, we will have died to ourselves and begun walking in Resurrection power as true Easter people.
For centuries much of the Church has honored the season of Lent as a time of reflection, denial of the flesh, and preparation of the human heart for the true celebration of the Resurrection. Early church father Irenaus of Lyons (c.130-c.200) wrote of such a season in the earliest days of the church, but back then it lasted only two or three days, not the 40 observed today.
In 325, the Council of Nicea discussed a 40-day Lenten season of fasting, but it’s unclear whether its original intent was just for new Christians preparing for Baptism. Nonetheless, it soon encompassed the whole Church.
It seems to me that an opportunity to grow in grace has been lost for many in the modern, growing, evangelical church who are disconnected from the Lenten traditions— especially since Lent is one of the oldest observations on the Christian calendar. Like all Christian holy days and holidays, it has changed over the years, but its purpose has always been the same.
For much of twenty-first century culture, these changes have resulted in the loss of the true significance of the season through which we have just come. In the same way as Christmas, Easter has been subsumed by symbols and non-religious traditions (think jolly old Saint Nick and the Easter Bunny… although I will gladly accept a 65% cacao dark chocolate candy rabbit). Regrettably, these secular holiday observances around Easter have obscured the Truth: Christ is risen. He is risen, indeed!
For over two centuries, the first song in the book of hymns of the Methodist Church has been “O for a thousand tongues to sing.” The words of the fourth stanza mirror the reality of Resurrection life for hymn writer Charles Wesley:
He breaks the power of canceled sin,
He sets the prisoner free;
His blood can make the foulest clean,
His blood availed for me.
I have always thought of breaking the power of canceled sin in two ways. The first is in regard to my own sin. It is absolutely true that the cross of Christ settled once and for all everything that needed to be done to atone for our sins. Sin’s power was canceled at Calvary. But having the application of this forgiveness in my life—the breaking of the power of sin—only happened at the time that I accepted Christ. Once I knew Him, the sin canceled on Calvary could no longer accuse and condemn me. The power of sin was broken and no longer could hold me in bondage. I was born again, and released from the entombment of living death to become alive in Christ.
The second way to think about breaking the power of canceled sin is in breaking the power of others’ sins against me. I might remember the events and the specific occurrence of some offense, but that memory—and its power to control my thoughts and actions—no longer can exert any influence over my life. As Lewis Smedes says, “Forgiving does not erase the bitter past. A healed memory is not a deleted memory. Instead, forgiving what we cannot forget creates a new way to remember. We change the memory of our past into a hope for our future.”
We believers in the Risen Lord carry the DNA of the joyous reality of Resurrection. We have become year-long, day-by-day witnesses to Him who is Life. Hopefully (in its most literal sense) we are infectious carriers of the Marian message: “I have been to the tomb, and He is not there.” HALLELUJAH!

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April 3, 2016
Overcomers in Christ

by Iris Subel Davis

Hello Reader:

Prayers for you as you read today; may the Lord have brought you here for a special reason in your life.

Last month, we talked about negative experiences. This month’s entry will continue to discuss those in terms of what they can produce in our lives.

I found the picture above as I was preparing for an upcoming Google Hangouts session with Energion founders, Henry and Jody Neufeld. We will be discussing the topic of “Overcoming” on April 5th at 7pm CST.
It struck a chord with me because I have recently found out that my genealogical roots lead back into the royal families of England, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway. Some of my grandparents made some choices that altered the course of their lives and of countries. Along with that came a few exiles and public executions. In another branch of my family tree, there were broken families due to sworn allegiances to different countries. A common thread in all of the branches was a certain amount of shame as a result of the things they chose to do, whether right or wrong. This tendency was found from 800 A.D. right up to the 1900’s.
If you study genealogy, you know that a positive effect is learning what you are made of and how the past generations are still affecting you through your DNA. I have learned through my 20+ years of study how, I—an only child— fit into this world and how my genealogical past has affected my past, present, and future. Through study, I have learned how man has viewed my bloodline. Sometimes, that has been as great and important people. Other times, it has been as a simple, poor farmer. But, what I see about my family is more important. They have all been overcomers. Whether rich or poor, they all had something of great importance that had to be overcome—and the bloodline continued.
In reading about my generations, I am called to pray for those who came before me. He lays their burdens on my heart for a split second so that I can feel what they felt. Compassion comes in waves as I realize that though times were different, men were not. Their humanity is palpable as I read their stories and view pictures, paintings, and artist renditions of them and their circumstances. It is heart-breaking for a few moments.
Then, as I return to the present, I realize that He is revealing this to strengthen my vision of myself in spite of my past and circumstances. He is reminding me that I am someone special, to Him first and then to man. He needs to remind me of that often! It is necessary because there is a plan for my life that has yet to be fulfilled. I must walk with the One who has overcome the world in order to fulfill it. Each day that I take a step, or you take step, is one more day of that plan coming about. We are still here, so our purpose is still being fulfilled. It is promised, NO MATTER WHAT THINGS LOOK LIKE TODAY. His word says that His plans are for good and will be completed. Say that out loud a few times!
Through the gift of His Holy Spirit, we can overcome whatever barriers we are experiencing through prayer. As He reveals, we can pray about things and help free ourselves from our past to be all that He desires us to be, and to do all that He needs us to do.

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April 2, 2016
Don't Take Jesus Seriously

by Chris Surber

The most dangerous thing you can ever do is take Jesus seriously. If you like your life the way it is, then don’t do it. If you are comfortable and want things to stay the same, take Jesus teaching as mere metaphors and nice ideas, but don’t ever, ever, take Him seriously.
Was it a figure of speech when Jesus told the rich young ruler to sell everything he owned, give it to the poor, and only then he could be His disciple? (Mark 10:21) I’ve taught it that way. I’ve heard others teach it that way. Truth is, we were both wrong. Jesus simply told that man, “Hey, sell your stuff, give it to the poor, and then you can be my disciple. Oh, and by the way, you’ll be trading wealth in this passing, fleeting world for wealth in Heaven that can never pass away.” He said what He said. That’s what He said and that’s all He said!
We cling so tightly to the stuff of this life that we seldom experience the rich, deeper beauty that is available to us when we let go of this world. We are in love with houses that constantly need maintenance, cars that break down, entertainment that only lasts a few minutes, and all the while Jesus is saying, “That stuff will never satisfy the inner cravings you have for meaning. I’m offering you a better way.”
My wife Christina recently came back from leading a week-long mission team to Haiti to work and support our friends and activities there with our ministry Supply and Multiply. She came back from giving her life away for a week refreshed. A very sweet older woman in the church I Pastor told me, “She just looks so beautiful after having come back from Haiti.” The truth is that she looks the same. The difference is that her countenance is different. Her soul is smiling through her eyes and face.
You see, what she and I have discovered is that the more we give away this world the more God gives us things that really matter. The less money we have the more joy we have because we’ve used God’s money for things of eternal value. The less time we have, the better we sleep because we’ve used our life for lasting Kingdom things.
When you share a cup of cold water with the least of these, you are in turn unleashing the cool refreshing spiritual water of the Holy Spirit in your own life. That’s not to say that we serve to be served. That is simply to say that when you participate in God’s plan for your life in this world you step into the stream of His pure love and gain things far greater than things.
In Matthew 10:39 Jesus says, “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (ESV) Material stuff is only as valuable as its intended purpose. If I were drowning I’d not want a life preserver made of gold. Today, people are drowning in oceans of meandering meaningless connection to stuff that is dragging them down. The only way to float is to let go of those heavy earthen treasures so we can swim to shore grace.
If you love this world be careful taking Jesus too seriously. When you lose your life for His sake, His promise is that you’ll enter a life of sacrifice where His joy becomes your treasure.

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April 1, 2016
What's Hampering Our Congregations?
By Steve Kindle

It’s almost impossible for a congregation to spiritually thrive in America. The American ethos is constructed to oppose it at almost every turn. According to the apostle Paul and the witness of the Book Acts, New Testament churches were egalitarian societies—societies whose chief concern was the well-being of the community. Everyone looked out for the other, and suffered and rejoiced together. Power was conceived as service, and wealth was God’s blessing for the community. Quoting Exodus, Paul declared, As it is written, ‘The one who had much did not have too much, and the one who had little did not have too little.’ In a later time he might have said, “All for one and one for all!”
[ene_ptp]But here in the West, we acknowledge the individual as the highest form of human achievement. The ego rules, self-esteem is our pursuit, self-aggrandizement is our religion, and “It’s all about me.” When we think about others, it’s always after we’ve satisfied ourselves. We’ve elevated John Wayne to national sainthood largely due to his personal motto that “I ask nothing of anyone, and give nothing.” No wonder Robert Ringer’s book, Looking Out for #1, became a New York Times #1 best seller. (His first book, also a best seller, was Winning Through Intimidation.) Independence is our goal and anything short of it spells failure—in our own eyes and others.
Capitalism has the status of a godsend where we are taught that competition achieves the best results. We honor, even glorify winners. We look down on, if not denigrate, losers. “May the best man win,” is not restricted to boxing matches; it’s a way of life. Gordon Gecko said it all when he declared, “Greed is good.” One’s value is measured in dollars, not in worthwhileness.
Now, plunk average Americans down in a pew and what do you get? To be realistic, their main concern is for themselves and their families. The extent of their involvement is limited to how it impacts their lives and the lives of their loved ones. And why not? This is how we are expected to behave; anything else would be un-American!
Certainly it is true that our congregations are filled with people who understand the gospel and lovingly serve their neighbors, who sacrifice their time and resources for the betterment of others. But we burn these wonderful people out because they are largely left to do the meaningful work of the church by themselves. Too many others are willing to be served while sitting on the sidelines, observing, appreciative, but idle.
What needs to happen for a congregation to truly deserve the name Christian is transformation. The ethos of the West needs to be exchanged for the ethos of the servant gospel. The fact that transformation so seldom happens—congregation-wide—is a testimony to its difficulty if not its impossibility.
What you are about to read will appear to be outrageously off the mark by some and blasphemous to others. The degree of hostility will be in direct proportion to how committed to a certain form of idolatry one is.
I was raised in a pro-family home. I heard over and over again from my parents, “The only people you can truly count on are family.” Over the years I have learned that families are as untrustworthy as even the highly touted biblical families. Our biblical heroes’ families were full of intrigue (Jacob and Rachael), unfaithfulness (David), fratricide (Cain), betrayal (Aaron), and treachery (Laban), just to mention a few. There is nothing inherently superior of family over any other institution. All human institutions are flawed to one degree or another.
Of course, the church is also a human institution; yet, it is also divine. Instituted by Jesus as the principle vehicle of the Kingdom, it is ruled over by him and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Members of the church of God have a “leg up” over any of its rivals, including family. Choosing family over church is selling our birthright for a mess of pottage. It is to commit idolatry.
But, can’t we have both? Some of Jesus’ statements are true on their face, especially this one: “You cannot serve two masters.” Making a successful life is, in part, prioritizing properly. Something must come first and all else subordinated to it. What we select as our first priority will determine how well our life goes, or not.
What, exactly, is this idolatry?
It is the placing of our family over every other commitment in our lives, especially the church.
We often hear people say, “My family comes first,” or “My priorities are God, family, church, nation, society,” or some other order after family. A high commitment to our families is honorable and certainly necessary. Nothing I write here should be in any way taken to denigrate the importance of family. But the family is only well-served when it is prioritized after the church.
How is it that the family becomes an idol?
One way to answer this is when the needs of the family conflict with the needs of the church—the family wins.
1. “We’d like to help out, Deacon, but Bobby has a game this Sunday and it starts at 10:00.”
2. “Well, pastor, with all the running around I have to do to get the kids to their lessons, scouts, athletics, and play practice, I’m too tired to be on that committee.”
3. “We’ll be fairly regular until summer. That’s when we’re spending weekends at the lake so the kids can enjoy the outdoors.”
4. “Confirmation? Saturday morning interferes with Beth’s basketball league. Sorry.”
5. “I won’t be able to continue as church moderator. I got a promotion and am being transferred to another state. We will miss this church, but I need to think of my family.”[i]
In each of these examples, the interests of the family take priority over the needs of the church. What are we teaching our children here? We are teaching them that the family is more important than the community of saints that cares for our bodies and souls.
“But,” you say, “my church is hardly the place I’d commit my well-being to.” Yes, poorly serving congregations are a fact. But why are they so? I believe it’s because we don’t teach and/or expect anything more from our families than what we get. After a few efforts to increase involvement, we fail and fall back on our ready-to-burn-out servants. This has to change. And it will only change when we recognize the problem. The status quo is killing congregations.
Here’s how to avoid the idolatry of family. Prioritize this way: Church, family, (the rest is up to you).
If God is indeed one’s highest priority, worshiping and serving God is how we live this out. For most Christians, this means we do so in the context of a congregation. Whereas many today think the church should be at the service of the family, in actuality, the family should be in the service of the church. The former is idolatry; the latter is discipleship. In this way we teach our children and order our own lives in such a way that seeking first the Kingdom is our highest priority.
The answer—form true community
Churches are, in part, human institutions, and suffer from human foibles. All the imperfections found in our biblical families are alive and well in the church. This can lead to the false assumption that putting the church as our first priority is misguided. I would argue that this is true because the church is not the first priority of its members. Because our commitments are to other things, we allow the church to wither. The answer is to create true community in a congregation where each member lives for the well-being of the others. This is how “the last shall become first and the first, last.” By serving one another, we are all served well.
How does your church measure up? Better still—how do you and your family measure up?
[i] This is a particularly difficult example. In this case the decision to move may very well be the right decision, but it too often is made without any consideration for the needs of the congregation. It is just assumed to be correct on its face.
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March 31, 2016
Toward a Biblical Church

by Henry Neufeld, owner and publisher of Energion Publications

The word “biblical” is one of the most misused words in theological discussion, possibly even more abused than the word “church.” As a linguist I must note that calling a word “abused” is itself a mite linguistically abusive, as the meaning of words is determined by the way they’re used. What I mean by “abused” in this case, however, is that these words are used in such a way, or such a variety of ways, that it’s nearly impossible to determine their meaning.

So when I title this post “Toward a Biblical Church,” I’m intentionally being obscure. What on earth (or in heaven, in the sea, or under the sea), can I be talking about? Depending on where I go in scripture, and how I approach its interpretation, I can find (or produce, as if ex nihilo) very different views of the church.[ene_ptp] Cue expressions of horror.
If we can’t discover what the church is from scripture, or precisely how we should do church, then what good is any of it? Why read the scriptures if they do not inform us of what to do, particularly on such an important point? Yet we have honest and well-meaning people who differ profoundly on how we should be the church and how we should organize ourselves to be whatever we should be. When Allan Bevere, right here on the Energion Discussion Network, suggests we should perhaps be celebrating 50 days of Easter, Dave Black notes that his church doesn’t really do Lent at all. And they’re co-editors of the same book series at Energion, not to mention friends!
By now you’re all nodding or shrugging or getting annoyed at yet another post telling you that you can’t really know what the Bible says. What good is it in that case? But that’s not my point. In fact, I think we can get quite a lot from the Bible. It’s just that quite frequently the Bible doesn’t tell us what we want to know.
No, I’m not referring to the fact that the Bible (or the God of the Bible) will frequently challenge our comfortable assumptions and suggest that we ought to do things we’d really rather not. It does that from time to time. Rather, the Bible often doesn’t answer the questions we want answered.
In this case what many of us would like would be a divine guide to church structure. How should I structure my church so that it will fit God’s directions? Should we have bishops who appoint pastors or a congregational structure? Who should be in charge (at the human level) in a local church congregation? We take these questions to the Bible, and when it fails to answer them, we find a way to bend it to our will.
I’ve been writing a series of posts going through Dave Black’s book Seven Marks of a New Testament Church. You may be thinking I’d anathematize such a book based on the preceding paragraphs. No, I publish and personally recommend it. I am nearly done blogging through it, in fact. I’m including quotes from two other books, Thrive: Spiritual Habits of Transforming Congregations by Ruth Fletcher and Transforming Acts: Acts of the Apostles as a 21st Century Gospel by Bruce Epperly. Dave is a Southern Baptist. Ruth is a Disciples of Christ district superintendent. Bruce is a United Church of Christ pastor. All of them are writing about how we should do church. All of them consulted the Bible in the process. In addition we have Dave’s book The Jesus Paradigm, and forthcoming this month The Jesus Manifesto: A Participatory Study Guide to the Sermon on the Mount by David Moffett-Moore. Lots of people are looking at what it means to follow Jesus and to be the church.
Are there differences? Yes. Are there similarities? Yes, remarkable ones. I find it distressing how few people are likely to read all three, often because they presume theological differences will negate the value of one or the other book.
There are a number of perspectives on Jesus that we find in the Bible, though all lead to the idea that we should be following Jesus. Following Jesus has many details, as well, but also many similarities. The Bible never gets around to straightening out all of those possible understandings. The way the Bible is structured tends to prevent neatly ordered answers to all our questions.
And that in itself is something I think is one of the clear messages of scripture. We have many perspectives that are understood differently by many people. We moan and groan because the church isn’t unified enough, because we haven’t figured out the same answers to so many questions.
Perhaps it’s time we consider the possibility that the Bible is accomplishing exactly what God wants it to. We complain that His Word is coming back void, and not accomplishing the purpose for which God sent it out when really the problem is that it’s not accomplishing our purpose.
God may be just fine with lots of people doing their best to follow Jesus in their own, limited way, organizing themselves in very human fashion do try to do God-sized things, and learning new lessons about working together with every passing day. Perhaps what we need in order to be more in unity is not greater doctrinal or organizational likeness, but more Christlikeness in the way we respond to our differences.
God made people in amazing variety. Maybe he wanted his church to be that way too.
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March 30, 2016

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