Walking With Jesus: The All-Or-Nothing God

About ten years ago, Stephen Curtis Chapman wrote a song that I very much liked called "Dive", in which he sang: But we will never know the awesome power / Of the grace of God / Until we let ourselves get swept away / Into this holy flood / So if you’ll take my hand / We’ll close our eyes and count to three / And take the leap of faith / Come on let’s go!

I've always loved the imagery of "diving" into a relationship with God -- when you dive into a pool, there's none of this toeing the water nonsense to see if the temperature is to your liking. You jump in, and it's all-encompassing. It's everywhere around you, and there's no going back.

One of my college friends posted a great quote that from C.S. Lewis about our All-Or-Nothing God: "Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important." Or, in the words of Miyagi in Karate Kid, "Walk on road, hm? Walk left side, safe. Walk right side, safe. Walk middle, sooner or later get squish just like grape. Here, karate, same thing. Either you karate do 'yes' or karate do 'no.' You karate do 'guess so,' *squish* just like grape. Understand?"

Many faiths and religions try to straddle the middle line in an effort to lure more people in -- make it accessible, don't make it too offensive, and certainly don't stress that this is an all-encompassing way of life. It's just a fashion accessory, to slip on and off when you feel like it.

God is a self-described "jealous" God (Exodus 20:5) -- He wants ALL of your life, not just a bit, not just part, and not even most. He's willing to give you everything for free -- eternal life, purpose, rewards, forgiveness, guidance -- but He's not willing to compromise on what He wants from you either. He doesn't want to share you with the world, to be "another" god in your life; He wants to be your All-Or-Nothing.

A great example of this is in Matthew 19:16-30. A rich man who was also pretty religious comes up to Jesus and asks what he has to do to get eternal life. Jesus knows that this man's love of money is competing with God for importance in his life, so Jesus tells him to give all of his riches away -- a test, to see if this man could give it all up to dive into God without any distractions. Yet the man couldn't -- he walked away sadly. God was important to him, but not as important as other things.

Diving into the All-Or-Nothing God is absolutely terrifying to consider. It's a huge risk. It demands everything from us. It certainly will change our lives. It might force us to get rid of things we love that distract us from our walk with Jesus. It might make some people like us a lot less. It might cost us dearly.

And yet, as C.S. Lewis said, it is of "infinite importance" -- nothing is more important than whether we surrender ourselves fully to God or not. There really is no middle ground, no matter what you may like to believe.

A Disposable Life

As yesterday was the anniversary of Roe vs. Wade, we're once again reminded that civilization is a paper-thin covering for the horrors that we can and do still perpetrate on others and our own people. As President Obama moves to open up stem cell research on human embryos and reduce restrictions on abortion, thousands have prayed for this country to not be hypocritical on its stance toward life -- that all human life, whether inside the womb or outside, is precious and sacred, to be protected and cherished.

It is only in the fiction that a human being doesn't actually start "being" until near the end of a pregnancy or the first second outside of its mother that enables people to live with the decision of legalizing and endorsing abortion under the banner of "choice". Just because we can't physically see something does not mean it doesn't exist or have the right to exist. Because, of course, the second you acknowledge that a baby is a person and not a fetus without feelings, a soul or a mind, that's the point where it becomes murder. And we don't murder -- we just relabel the term to make it more palpable.

In 2005, the number of abortions since Roe vs. Wade was passed exceeded a heartbreaking 46 million children. 46 millions lives ended before they had the chance to grow, to experience, to fulfill their potential in our world. 46 million that we as a civilization looked at and declared "non-human" and disposable.

Abortion in our country is one of the sorest points in the framework that links us all together -- one side seeing it as murder, the other as the denial of a woman's choice and control over her body. "Greater love has no man than this: that he lay down his life for his friends," Jesus said. He did not ask us to demand other's lives to ease our own, however. He wept over death because life was precious.

If Mary happened to live today instead of back then and became pregnant as a teenager, how many would urge her to abort? Having that child, making the decision to bear it to term, had to be terrifically difficult on her -- either back then or in the hypothetical now. If she had the choice to be rid of it, would she?

Look at her response in Luke 1: she is fearful but trusts in God, that He has a plan for all things, including this child. She is excited over this blessing that she would be the mother of the Messiah. She praises God and affirms her role as His servant. The baby Jesus, still in her womb, had tremendous worth to her, an indisposable life.

Now, receiving the news that your baby is going to be the Son of God isn't the same as finding out you're pregnant and not ready to have a child today -- but what if God could open the curtain for all expectant mothers to show them just what potential and purpose that baby would have if it just got the chance to be born and nurtured? What if more pregnant mothers were impressed that they do have a choice -- to keep their child or put them up for adoption to one of the millions of adults that desperately want (but can't have) children of their own?

What if we, as a civilization, said that all human life is precious and not subject to being disposed of just because it is an inconvenience to another? Would we finally be growing up at that point?

Awesome God

“Awesome” is a word that I toss around far too often, too casually, to the point where it has little meaning. It’s a filler word that could easily be substituted with “terrific” or “great” or “huh” in many cases. And yet its use in the Bible is anything but mundane – something that is awesome is literally “worthy of awe”.

Have you ever been so full of awe that you just stop, unable to fully develop a thought as an experience, or a vision, or a thought washes over you? Perhaps it was a vista at the top of a mountain, or the innocence of a newborn’s face, or the first time that you ever heard someone truly special say “I love you.” Awe works in quiet, still moments of supreme importance – something our society has too little time for these days. No wonder that it’s hard to look at God with anything approaching awe, even as our mouths sing “Our God is an awesome God” on Sundays.

The Bible uses the word “awe” or “awesome” 51 times, and never in a flippant, casual manner. “Worship God acceptably with reverence and awe” Hebrews 12:28 instructs; David can only stammer that “I stand in awe of your laws” in Psalm 119:120; the crowds in Matthew 9:8 were filled with awe of Jesus when he healed the paralytic; the early church in Acts 2 was “filled with awe” as miracles and wonders happened around them daily; God’s name, His creation, His acts and His decisions are constantly coupled with the simple description of “awesome”. In fact, only once does the Bible deem anything a person does as awesome – when King Solomon, bestowed with wisdom from God, hands down a judgment in 1 Kings 3:28.

Job testified about God in Job 37:22 when he said, “Out of the north he comes in golden splendor; God comes in awesome majesty!” In Job’s mind, there was no alternative to standing in overwhelmed humility as the mighty, sovereign, awesome majesty of God approached.

Very few things in our life really deserve the term “awesome”, even though we use it and hear it constantly. God, however, does deserve it, and we should give it to Him freely.

Daily Bread

One of the things I always want to make more time for in my life is daily time with God -- in prayer, in reading the scriptures, in writing, and in reading of other articles. Something I vaguely remembered from my childhood is leafing through little devotionals that our church always had laid out on a table called Our Daily Bread. Recently I found another copy and started using that for my early morning devotions -- I put it right on my computer desk and make sure it's the first thing I do in the morning before starting in on a day's work.

Our Daily Bread is basically a little booklet that contains three months' worth of devotionals. Each devotional has a scripture verse, a message for the day, suggested reading and a prayer -- all packed into a tiny page. From start to end, it takes me about 45 seconds to read it, then a few more minutes to think and pray about it. I've been loving it because I haven't really forced myself to do this -- it's something I want to do.

If you're interested, Our Daily Bread is a free ministry, so you can sign up to get these in the mail for no cost whatsoever (of course, they take donations to keep the ministry going for you and others, but that's between you and your conscience and budget). If you want to save a tree, you can go on their website and read it there or get it e-mailed to you: http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb.shtml

For me, having a physical copy helps me to remember to read it, because it isn't competing for my time internet surfing or writing, but exists outside of all that. Anyway, thought I'd pass that along.

Thanks

I can't imagine how frustrating it must be to be my Lord sometime... of course, it probably helps that God is infinitely patient, loving and caring. I'm always forgetting even the most simplest of acts in our relationship: saying "thank you".

I catch myself a lot with this, but usually well after the fact. The other day my wife and I traveled back from Indiana through fog and melting snow, and I prayed at the start of the trip for a safe journey. God was faithful and protected us, but it wasn't until literally the next day that I caught myself, winced, looked up and said, "Thanks!"

We pray so little when things go well, and so much when they do not, and then get frustrated at the perception that God's just not listening and answering fast enough for our liking. In looking at the attitudes of my young niece and nephews this holiday, I can identify with that behavior -- a kind of "what have you done for me LATELY?" response that nullifies everything that came before.

I think when the hard times come, it is so very important to continue to say "thanks" and remember all of the ways God's supported, protected and blessed you over the years, because it reminds you that He's not done and hasn't lifted His hand from you in the least.

God was very good to me this year -- thanks, Lord, for all I have, all I am, and all you are to me.

"Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." - 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Friendship in Proverbs

For my Hermeneutics class, we were tasked with identifying verses in Proverbs that dealt with friendship, and then organize them into an outline for teaching. I thought this was interesting enough to pass along my efforts:

Forming Friendships:

1. Be cautious in friendships you choose (12:26)
2. Do not make friends with people who have short tempers (22:24)

Preserving Friendships:

1. Promote love by covering over offenses (17:9)
2. Love at all times (17:17)
3. You can endure hurts from true friends (27:6)
4. The best sign of a true friend is the advice they give (27:9)
5. Don’t desert your friend when they’re in need (27:10)

Destructive Friendships:

1. Bad friendships can take you away from God (12:26)
2. Gossip and dissension can destroy a friendship (16:28)
3. Repeating offensives can separate close friends (17:9)
4. You cannot trust people who flatter you too much (27:6)

Wealth and Friendships:

1. Rich people find themselves surrounded by many people claiming to be friends (14:20, 19:4)
2. Poor people do not have people running to be their friends (14:20, 19:4, 19:7)
3. People claim to be friends of whoever is giving out gifts (19:6)
4. Poor people are shunned by relatives (19:7)

God’s Friendship:

1. While having lots of friends doesn’t prevent problems in your life, God will stick with you no matter what (18:34)
2. If you love a pure heart and try to say right things, God will be your friend (22:11)

Being Called (Mark 1:14-20)

(You can read Mark 1:14-20 here)

For my New Testament Exposition class, I'm writing a 10-page exegetical paper on Luke 5:1-11 (exegesis is a critical examination and understanding of a particular text), in which Jesus calls his first disciples, Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John. One of the interesting things I've uncovered in my research is that the other two gospel accounts of Jesus calling these men to follow him -- one in Matthew and this one in Mark -- are probably not the same account. Many scholars deduce that the Matthew/Mark accounts happened before the Luke 5 one... so what's going on here?

The answer is pretty simple, once you put it to a timeline. In Mark 1, Jesus calls these four fishermen with the well-known phrase, "Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." The disciples "at once" and "without delay" followed Jesus. Yet, since Jesus ends up calling them again in Luke 5, we can deduce that these four hadn't made a full commitment to Christ. They didn't fully understand what he was asking. They were dipping their toes into the water of discipleship, but still remaining in their home town with their families.

But God is nothing if not persistent. Jesus doesn't sense their half-heartedness and move on; he pursues them and calls them again. In Luke 5, Jesus performs an incredible miracle -- the huge catch of fish -- that demonstrates on many levels his power and authority over nature and our daily needs. It is in this miracle that who Jesus is and what he was asking of these fishermen finally got through to them. Peter falls down at his feet, and in verse 11, they finally "leave everything" to follow Christ.

Anne Lamott, in her book Traveling Mercies, describes her conversion to Christ. She was going through a terrifically horrible period in her life following drug use and an abortion, and had ducked out of several church services before hearing the sermons. But one day, on her way home, she felt as if something was following her, like a cat. She knew it at once to be God, pacing after her, going with her all the way home. It was finally there, in her bedroom, that she knew God would be chasing after her her entire life, and she gave in and accepted Him into her life.

If these are indeed two separate accounts of Jesus calling these four disciples into the ministry, then we have a wonderful picture of how persistent Jesus is in going after those he knows will eventually be receptive to him. I love how God doesn't give up on us, even though we're sinful and frustrating and often downright mean back at him. A quote (I forget the author) I've always liked went like this: "Our God is the only God the world has ever heard of who loves sinners."

Jesus pursues us relentlessly, out of love and an eager desire to save us from our own destruction. He's the Lord of second chances, the Prince of patience, and he's either right behind us if we haven't accepted him or right in front of us, leading, if we have.