Yesterday I talked a little about my personal experiences, and how they have led me to a more grounded belief in God. I was thinking about this this morning... There was a time not so very long ago when I clung more to the idea of a God than to God Himself. I could tell you all there was to tell about how much He loved us, about Jesus, about the promise of eternity in heaven, because I had learned it all in Sunday School. But, I came to a point in my experiences where a concept wasn't enough to base my life on. I wanted to know for sure, once and for all, if this God I had always heard of, this God that I had tried to live for, was really real. If He really was everything I had been told. If He really loved me the way the Bible says. At some point, just knowing what I had been told by others wasn't enough. I needed my own experiences with God to be the real basis of my belief in Him. But in order to experience Him, I had to give Him a chance to show Himself to me.
I remember the night I made that decision. I was alone in my basement in our house in Toledo. I can remember giving it some seriously heavy thought, and in the midst of some significant doubts, coming to the conclusion that I would make a step of faith, try to align my life with what the Bible says, and start to get to know Him. I remember thinking, 'I'm not really sure where this is going to take me' since I really didn't know if it was all real or not. But I can tell you that the last 6 years have been consistently full of experiences that have far exceeded my expectations. Even though I still sometimes struggle with doubt (like I said a minute ago, it's sometimes a challenge to believe when we're faced with something we don't understand), it would be really difficult for me to imagine a scenario that could convince me of anything other than the fact that there is a God. He has made Himself real to me....because I asked Him to.
The events of John 4 are similar to what I've just described in my own life. In the beginning of this chapter, Jesus meets a woman by a well, and begins talking to her. As the conversation continues, He reveals Himself to her as the Messiah, the Anointed One. She then goes into the town and tells everyone 'Come, see a Man Who has told me everything I ever did! Must not this be the Messiah, the Anointed One?' So the people left the town and set out to go to Him. (verses 29-30). Now look what happens in verses 39-42:
39 - Now numerous Samaritans from that town believed in and trusted in Him because of what the woman said when she declared and testified, He told me everything that I ever did.
40 - So when the Samaritans arrived, they asked Him to remain with them, and He did stay there two days.
41 - Then many more believed in and adhered to and relied on Him because of His personal message [what He Himself said].
42 - And they told the woman, Now we no longer believe (trust, have faith) just because of what you said; for we have heard Him ourselves [personally], and we know that He truly is the Savior of the world, the Christ.
In verse 39, these people came to Him and believed in Him initially because of what they had been told by someone else. One woman's testimony sparked a flame of faith in them and caused them to move toward Jesus to see what He was all about. In verse 40, we see that when they got to Him, they asked Him to stay, and He did. Then the next two verses tell us that their belief in Him continued and was strengthened by their own personal encounter with Him. They no longer believed simply because of what they had been told by another, but they now believed because they had experienced Him personally. This is God's design for us. He may work through another person's teaching or testimony to draw us to Him, but ultimately, we must begin our own personal relationship with Him if our faith is ever to be based on something truly solid.
Like these Samaritans, my own personal experience has strengthened my faith, and has allowed me to firmly believe in the God of the Bible - the God of Genesis 1 - the God who has always been and who always will be.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
In the beginning God...
Genesis 1:1 - In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
'In the beginning God' - the first 4 words of the Bible. Very cool. It tells us much that we need to know about Him in the first 4 words. God is first. He is before us. He is ahead of us. We can never take Him by surprise or get ahead of Him because He always precedes us. He has always been. He is the source of creation. Only He was in the beginning.
The concept of 'beginning' and God's infinite being really challenges our human understanding, and therefore, our faith. Our faith is, perhaps, most heavily challenged when we are faced with what we do not fully understand. For some it is the concept of a three-part God. For some, untimely death, birth defects, illness, disease, change. For some, it is that we do not earn salvation, but that it is freely given. The Bible is full of truths about God that are difficult for us to comprehend. The concept of a God who has always been, who has no beginning and no end, is a challenge for us to understand and believe because our world is finite. Our reality is full of definite beginnings and endings, and we tend to believe in and understand concepts based on our experiences.
How then, do I make the leap from this finite reality surrounding me to a belief in an infinite God? Also based on experiences. My own personal experiences with God have formed a foundation that leads me to such a belief. Through experience I know that He is the God He says He is. I know that He is truth. He is faithful. He places utmost importance on His Word. His word is truth, and therefore I can, and must, wholly believe His Word if I am to believe in Him.
I think I've got more to share on this, but for now, I'll leave it at that. It's enough for me today to meditate on the expansiveness of God. He's so much more than we are humanly able to comprehend, but it is amazing when we really think about who He is and we finally begin to see Him for even just a bit of all that He really is.
'In the beginning God' - the first 4 words of the Bible. Very cool. It tells us much that we need to know about Him in the first 4 words. God is first. He is before us. He is ahead of us. We can never take Him by surprise or get ahead of Him because He always precedes us. He has always been. He is the source of creation. Only He was in the beginning.
The concept of 'beginning' and God's infinite being really challenges our human understanding, and therefore, our faith. Our faith is, perhaps, most heavily challenged when we are faced with what we do not fully understand. For some it is the concept of a three-part God. For some, untimely death, birth defects, illness, disease, change. For some, it is that we do not earn salvation, but that it is freely given. The Bible is full of truths about God that are difficult for us to comprehend. The concept of a God who has always been, who has no beginning and no end, is a challenge for us to understand and believe because our world is finite. Our reality is full of definite beginnings and endings, and we tend to believe in and understand concepts based on our experiences.
How then, do I make the leap from this finite reality surrounding me to a belief in an infinite God? Also based on experiences. My own personal experiences with God have formed a foundation that leads me to such a belief. Through experience I know that He is the God He says He is. I know that He is truth. He is faithful. He places utmost importance on His Word. His word is truth, and therefore I can, and must, wholly believe His Word if I am to believe in Him.
I think I've got more to share on this, but for now, I'll leave it at that. It's enough for me today to meditate on the expansiveness of God. He's so much more than we are humanly able to comprehend, but it is amazing when we really think about who He is and we finally begin to see Him for even just a bit of all that He really is.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
There's truth in His Word
During church today God put on my heart two topics that are vital to knowing and understanding Him better. The first - and the topic of church today - is the truth and validity of the Bible as His Word. The second is the reality of hell. He challenged me to take the initiative to study these two areas much more fully than I have until now, so I know already that there is much more for me to learn. But I want to start with where I am now and with what I know so far.
In the past two years I've gone through a lot regarding my walk with God. I've come a long way from where I was, but I still have a ways to go. Part of my growing up process has been to go through struggles and even some significant doubts. But I made the choice through those difficult times to give God the benefit of the doubt and see if He would prove Himself to me. Each time, without fail, He ultimately walked me through it, gave me the answers, showed me what I was looking for. And He waited patiently for me to work my way through it, reminding me and encouraging me to lean on Him in the process.
Well, one of those trying times was my struggle to actually accept that the Bible is what it claims to be. I'm sure you've heard the arguments before that go against the claim that the Bible is God's inspired word... it's full of contradictions, it doesn't agree with science, it was written by men, it's stories are far-fetched, and on and on. While I never pointed to one of these arguments as being a barrier for me as far as believing wholly in the Bible, there was always just an underlying hint of a doubt that kept me a little reserved in fully trusting it.
I remember praying about it - I was begging for some reason to REALLY buy into it. I wanted to believe, but just couldn't convince myself by myself. And really, if the Bible is the foundation of Christianity, and I struggle to believe in the Bible, then how can I really commit to live for Christ? Well, this struggle had been going on inside me for some time, but I stuck with my studying and my prayer time, waiting to see if God would show up with something convincing beyond question. And I must say, He did, and He did it in a way I was totally NOT expecting.
I was lying in bed one night thinking over some things that were going on in my life at the time. Now, I can't even remember what those things were specifically, but I remember being distracted by my own life and circumstances. I was rolling things over and over in my head, working and rearranging and trying to come up with solutions. Then, all of a sudden, my thoughts were interrupted mid-stream and God said very plainly to me, "I've said that I've put My word even above My own name. If you believe in Me, then you must believe My Word. Otherwise, You do not believe in Me at all." End of interruption. WOW. I got chills. And I laid there thinking about what He had just said. That was pretty big. The next day I woke up thinking about it, and all through the day, I thought about it. And as it started working its way down into my spirit, like only the Word of God can, I began to realize that I must choose whether or not I believe in the Bible, just as I choose whether or not I believe in God. But any unwillingness to believe would not change the truth of what it is. God is still God, even if I don't believe in Him. And, likewise, the Bible is still the Word of God, whether I choose to believe it or not.
As I continued studying, and reading books related to this fundamental element of Christianity, I began to see that even those arguments that many make against the Bible hold no weight. It does not contradict itself. It is not contrary to solid science, and it's 'stories' are historically documented by sources outside of the religious community. I began to see that the Bible is an amazing and almost unthought-of piece of literature. Think of it - it was written by around 40 different authors, over a course of 1500-ish years, yet the consistency of facts, characteristics, ideas, and teachings are astounding. It is full of prophecies that have been fulfilled hundreds of years after their telling. It is full of facts and circumstanced that have been supported and solidified by scientific research hundreds, or thousands of years later. Even today our pastor told of 2 circumstances where current-day men found undiscovered oil reserves based on facts and details documented in the ancient Old Testament. Want more consistencies with science?Long before the time of Christopher Columbus, when people believed the earth was flat, Isaiah told of the 'circle' of the earth (Isaiah 40:22). Long before we had a scientific understanding of the emptiness of space, Job wrote of a God who 'hangs the earth upon or over nothing' (Job 26:7) Amazing.
As I began to see the bigger picture of the Bible, it became harder and harder for me to doubt its validity and truth. Yes, there are things in it that I do not understand, but that does not make it invalid. That makes me short on understanding and wisdom. This, for me, was the start of a more grounded walk with God. When I finally made the decision to lean my trust completely on the Bible as the true Word of God, it opened up for me a whole new aspect of faith. This decision has been, for me, a catalyst into a stronger, closer relationship with Jesus, and a trust in Him that I've never known before.
For I am the Lord; I will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall be performed (come to pass); it shall be no more delayed or prolonged, for in your days, O rebellious house, I will speak the word and will perform it, says the Lord God. (Ezekiel 12:25)
I the Lord have spoken it; it shall come to pass and I will do it; I will not go back, neither will I spare, neither will I relent... (Ezekiel 24:14)
In the past two years I've gone through a lot regarding my walk with God. I've come a long way from where I was, but I still have a ways to go. Part of my growing up process has been to go through struggles and even some significant doubts. But I made the choice through those difficult times to give God the benefit of the doubt and see if He would prove Himself to me. Each time, without fail, He ultimately walked me through it, gave me the answers, showed me what I was looking for. And He waited patiently for me to work my way through it, reminding me and encouraging me to lean on Him in the process.
Well, one of those trying times was my struggle to actually accept that the Bible is what it claims to be. I'm sure you've heard the arguments before that go against the claim that the Bible is God's inspired word... it's full of contradictions, it doesn't agree with science, it was written by men, it's stories are far-fetched, and on and on. While I never pointed to one of these arguments as being a barrier for me as far as believing wholly in the Bible, there was always just an underlying hint of a doubt that kept me a little reserved in fully trusting it.
I remember praying about it - I was begging for some reason to REALLY buy into it. I wanted to believe, but just couldn't convince myself by myself. And really, if the Bible is the foundation of Christianity, and I struggle to believe in the Bible, then how can I really commit to live for Christ? Well, this struggle had been going on inside me for some time, but I stuck with my studying and my prayer time, waiting to see if God would show up with something convincing beyond question. And I must say, He did, and He did it in a way I was totally NOT expecting.
I was lying in bed one night thinking over some things that were going on in my life at the time. Now, I can't even remember what those things were specifically, but I remember being distracted by my own life and circumstances. I was rolling things over and over in my head, working and rearranging and trying to come up with solutions. Then, all of a sudden, my thoughts were interrupted mid-stream and God said very plainly to me, "I've said that I've put My word even above My own name. If you believe in Me, then you must believe My Word. Otherwise, You do not believe in Me at all." End of interruption. WOW. I got chills. And I laid there thinking about what He had just said. That was pretty big. The next day I woke up thinking about it, and all through the day, I thought about it. And as it started working its way down into my spirit, like only the Word of God can, I began to realize that I must choose whether or not I believe in the Bible, just as I choose whether or not I believe in God. But any unwillingness to believe would not change the truth of what it is. God is still God, even if I don't believe in Him. And, likewise, the Bible is still the Word of God, whether I choose to believe it or not.
As I continued studying, and reading books related to this fundamental element of Christianity, I began to see that even those arguments that many make against the Bible hold no weight. It does not contradict itself. It is not contrary to solid science, and it's 'stories' are historically documented by sources outside of the religious community. I began to see that the Bible is an amazing and almost unthought-of piece of literature. Think of it - it was written by around 40 different authors, over a course of 1500-ish years, yet the consistency of facts, characteristics, ideas, and teachings are astounding. It is full of prophecies that have been fulfilled hundreds of years after their telling. It is full of facts and circumstanced that have been supported and solidified by scientific research hundreds, or thousands of years later. Even today our pastor told of 2 circumstances where current-day men found undiscovered oil reserves based on facts and details documented in the ancient Old Testament. Want more consistencies with science?Long before the time of Christopher Columbus, when people believed the earth was flat, Isaiah told of the 'circle' of the earth (Isaiah 40:22). Long before we had a scientific understanding of the emptiness of space, Job wrote of a God who 'hangs the earth upon or over nothing' (Job 26:7) Amazing.
As I began to see the bigger picture of the Bible, it became harder and harder for me to doubt its validity and truth. Yes, there are things in it that I do not understand, but that does not make it invalid. That makes me short on understanding and wisdom. This, for me, was the start of a more grounded walk with God. When I finally made the decision to lean my trust completely on the Bible as the true Word of God, it opened up for me a whole new aspect of faith. This decision has been, for me, a catalyst into a stronger, closer relationship with Jesus, and a trust in Him that I've never known before.
For I am the Lord; I will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall be performed (come to pass); it shall be no more delayed or prolonged, for in your days, O rebellious house, I will speak the word and will perform it, says the Lord God. (Ezekiel 12:25)
I the Lord have spoken it; it shall come to pass and I will do it; I will not go back, neither will I spare, neither will I relent... (Ezekiel 24:14)
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Sunday's coming!
'It's Friday but Sunday is coming.' - These are lyrics from one of my favorite songs right now. And I just keep thinking about how awesome they really are.
I think there are two ways to look at it - both important. The first, and probably most obvious - and most powerful - is through the perspective of Jesus' death and resurrection. For Him, and for those closest to Him, Friday was the worst day imaginable. They were suffering great loss, darkness, confusion, despair, and internal struggle and anguish. Even Jesus reached a point on Friday where He felt forsaken by God and cried out to Him. Friday was the worst of the worst. It was every bad thing we could imagine. It was suffering, death, betrayal, loss, doubt, persecution. Friday was not easy to live through. But it's only Friday...
Sunday comes!! On Sunday God shows Himself to be faithful. Jesus is resurrected. Darkness is defeated. Those who followed and loved Jesus rejoiced in His victory and triumph. Faith was reaffirmed. And the world sees that Jesus is who He said He was. What an awesome day Sunday is for them. Full of everything good - victory, happiness, rejoicing, redemption, faithfulness and truth. What a difference from Friday - such a difference in such a short time.
In my relatively brief time of being serious about my walk with God, He has taught me one thing for sure. When He makes a promise, He keeps it. When He says something, He does not later change His mind. Above all things, I can depend without question on the fact that God's word is true, and He is faithful to His word. And while I have not had any serious trials in this area - I've not suffered great loss, I've not faced persecution, I've not endured suffering - He has quite effectively taught me this lesson through every-day circumstances. Now, when I know that God has promised something, I often write it down so that I can come back to it and lean on His promises in times of fear, doubt, struggle, or waiting. This helps me to live today like I KNOW I already have what He has promised me, even though I can't yet see it. So even if today is Friday, I KNOW that Sunday is coming. How incredible is that! What an awesome way to live life!
So that's the first part of it - the PROMISE of Sunday, even when Friday feels impossible to live through. It's really about having a posture of faith...standing on God's word when there is little else to stand on. It's KNOWING in your spirit that God is faithful.
The second part is a posture of preparation. If my mom calls me on Friday and says she's coming to dinner on Sunday, I live like she is coming to dinner on Sunday. I get groceries for our meal...and maybe even clean the bathrooms for her (LOL). I make plans to be here at the time she expects to arrive. I prepare NOW for something that I know will happen in the FUTURE.
So not only do we stand on God's promises, but we prepare ourselves to receive them. That's part of knowing that Sunday is coming. If I don't get groceries, then I can't prepare a meal for my mom's visit. So even when she does come like she said she would, I am not ready, and the opportunity for a nice dinner and visit passes by........okay, so in reality we would just go eat at Applebee's instead, but you get the point. If God makes a promise that requires some action on our part, we should take the necessary actions to get ourselves in position to receive His promises when they do come.
The Bible says the promises of God are for 'whosoever will' do what He asks of them. That means, everyone can, but not everyone does benefit from the promises of God - only those who act accordingly, who are obedient, and who continually work with the Holy Spirit to prepare their hearts, their circumstances, and their lives, for receiving those promises.
In my mind, the ultimate 'Sunday' is the return of Jesus. He has promised it, so I know it will happen. I also know that I must continually work with the Holy Spirit to keep myself prepared for the moment when that Sunday comes. Of all things, that is worth living for.
I think there are two ways to look at it - both important. The first, and probably most obvious - and most powerful - is through the perspective of Jesus' death and resurrection. For Him, and for those closest to Him, Friday was the worst day imaginable. They were suffering great loss, darkness, confusion, despair, and internal struggle and anguish. Even Jesus reached a point on Friday where He felt forsaken by God and cried out to Him. Friday was the worst of the worst. It was every bad thing we could imagine. It was suffering, death, betrayal, loss, doubt, persecution. Friday was not easy to live through. But it's only Friday...
Sunday comes!! On Sunday God shows Himself to be faithful. Jesus is resurrected. Darkness is defeated. Those who followed and loved Jesus rejoiced in His victory and triumph. Faith was reaffirmed. And the world sees that Jesus is who He said He was. What an awesome day Sunday is for them. Full of everything good - victory, happiness, rejoicing, redemption, faithfulness and truth. What a difference from Friday - such a difference in such a short time.
In my relatively brief time of being serious about my walk with God, He has taught me one thing for sure. When He makes a promise, He keeps it. When He says something, He does not later change His mind. Above all things, I can depend without question on the fact that God's word is true, and He is faithful to His word. And while I have not had any serious trials in this area - I've not suffered great loss, I've not faced persecution, I've not endured suffering - He has quite effectively taught me this lesson through every-day circumstances. Now, when I know that God has promised something, I often write it down so that I can come back to it and lean on His promises in times of fear, doubt, struggle, or waiting. This helps me to live today like I KNOW I already have what He has promised me, even though I can't yet see it. So even if today is Friday, I KNOW that Sunday is coming. How incredible is that! What an awesome way to live life!
So that's the first part of it - the PROMISE of Sunday, even when Friday feels impossible to live through. It's really about having a posture of faith...standing on God's word when there is little else to stand on. It's KNOWING in your spirit that God is faithful.
The second part is a posture of preparation. If my mom calls me on Friday and says she's coming to dinner on Sunday, I live like she is coming to dinner on Sunday. I get groceries for our meal...and maybe even clean the bathrooms for her (LOL). I make plans to be here at the time she expects to arrive. I prepare NOW for something that I know will happen in the FUTURE.
So not only do we stand on God's promises, but we prepare ourselves to receive them. That's part of knowing that Sunday is coming. If I don't get groceries, then I can't prepare a meal for my mom's visit. So even when she does come like she said she would, I am not ready, and the opportunity for a nice dinner and visit passes by........okay, so in reality we would just go eat at Applebee's instead, but you get the point. If God makes a promise that requires some action on our part, we should take the necessary actions to get ourselves in position to receive His promises when they do come.
The Bible says the promises of God are for 'whosoever will' do what He asks of them. That means, everyone can, but not everyone does benefit from the promises of God - only those who act accordingly, who are obedient, and who continually work with the Holy Spirit to prepare their hearts, their circumstances, and their lives, for receiving those promises.
In my mind, the ultimate 'Sunday' is the return of Jesus. He has promised it, so I know it will happen. I also know that I must continually work with the Holy Spirit to keep myself prepared for the moment when that Sunday comes. Of all things, that is worth living for.
Saturday, September 8, 2007
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