In this year of my life God wanted to show,
That there are some times I just have to let go,
As friends and family have moved from here to everywhere,
Being distanced from them how could I bear,
They have been taken afar and are no longer here,
While I’m wishing I could still have them near,
We take people for granted when they are close,
It’s not until they move away that we miss them most,
But I know for them God opened a new door,
And in it he plans to reveal himself more,
By taking care of them as they follow His will,
As they trust Him and let Jesus take the wheel,
Knowing they are so far away it is hard to be at ease,
I sometimes plead to God “Would you bring them back please,”
Maybe someday he will which would be great,
But for now that is not their fate,
So I must move on and focus on the here and now,
As I embrace what’s in store for me and the gifts God endows.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Turning wounds into trophies!
People in today's world are boggled down with much hurt and brokenness. Our hurt and brokenness is a result of the experiences we have had in our lives- thus leading us to our deepest and inner most of insecurities.
Quite recently in my own faith, God has really been showing me that instead of dwelling on the point of my wounds- I need to take those wounds and turn them into trophies. Ephesians 5:13 says that "All things are made visible when exposed to the light, for that which is made visible becomes light." That is an amazing concept that God can take our wounds and our struggles which are hidden in darkness- expose them by bringing them to the light- and then those some wounds and struggles which were once hidden in darkness can become a light to others.
That is what Christ desires is that we become a light so that we may help others through the wounds and struggles. Often times we allow our wounds and struggles to break us to the point that we feel insufficient to help others. When in reality, God wants us to take the very wounds and struggles that broke us- and use them to motivate us that we may help others who have been and are boggled down by the same.
The best way to make a difference for God's kingdom is to allow those wounds to be translated into your passion. We must realize that God did not bring us out of the darkness simply because he wanted to rescue us. Rather, his calling is far above and beyond that. He wants us to partner with him in being a light to others who are blinded by that same darkness.
For years this has been a struggle of mine. I grew up with the belief that if I ever show myself vulnerable and soft, people will punch a hole right through me. In that selfish mentality, I made a habit of "waxing over" my brokenness hiding my heart away so that no one can see me for who I really am. I would be lying if I said I have fully overcome that mentality. God is still working in me in that regard.
When we live from our hurt, our hurt will mulitply all the more as we will hurt others. When we live from our heart, we begin to embace the fullness and experience the reality of all that God has called us to be. So let us take our wounds and turn them into our passion- and that passion will turn into our trophies as we help lead others out of the darkness in which we ourselves were once blinded and lost.
Quite recently in my own faith, God has really been showing me that instead of dwelling on the point of my wounds- I need to take those wounds and turn them into trophies. Ephesians 5:13 says that "All things are made visible when exposed to the light, for that which is made visible becomes light." That is an amazing concept that God can take our wounds and our struggles which are hidden in darkness- expose them by bringing them to the light- and then those some wounds and struggles which were once hidden in darkness can become a light to others.
That is what Christ desires is that we become a light so that we may help others through the wounds and struggles. Often times we allow our wounds and struggles to break us to the point that we feel insufficient to help others. When in reality, God wants us to take the very wounds and struggles that broke us- and use them to motivate us that we may help others who have been and are boggled down by the same.
The best way to make a difference for God's kingdom is to allow those wounds to be translated into your passion. We must realize that God did not bring us out of the darkness simply because he wanted to rescue us. Rather, his calling is far above and beyond that. He wants us to partner with him in being a light to others who are blinded by that same darkness.
For years this has been a struggle of mine. I grew up with the belief that if I ever show myself vulnerable and soft, people will punch a hole right through me. In that selfish mentality, I made a habit of "waxing over" my brokenness hiding my heart away so that no one can see me for who I really am. I would be lying if I said I have fully overcome that mentality. God is still working in me in that regard.
When we live from our hurt, our hurt will mulitply all the more as we will hurt others. When we live from our heart, we begin to embace the fullness and experience the reality of all that God has called us to be. So let us take our wounds and turn them into our passion- and that passion will turn into our trophies as we help lead others out of the darkness in which we ourselves were once blinded and lost.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Hideaway heart!
Do we really have a clue about who we are? Do we live our lives with the wrong perception of ourselves? If we have the wrong perception of ourselves, then do we not also have the wrong perception of others?
As Samuel went to find a king among the sons of Jesse, he was told by God "Do not judge him by his appearance or height, God does not look at what man looks at. Man looks at the appearance, God looks at the heart." This theme was reflected throughout David's life. If without naming David, I wrote down all the evil deeds that he performed in his life and asked you what kind of person you thought he was- you would more than likely say that he was a wicked evil man. Yet scripture says repeatedly that he was a man after God's own heart. Indeed David did fall into much sin in his life. From looking at the appearance of King Daid's actions, we would not thing of him as a reighteous king. So what are we to say of David's actions, why did he repeatedly fall into sin if he was indeed a man after God's own heart. I believe firmly that it is because David repetaedly made the error of defining himself by the external and insignificant- and that this kept pulling him a way from the internal fiber of being a man after God's own heart- (though as we know from scripture he always submitted to God's rebuke and repented when needed). More adequately stated, David was caught in his insecurity- the belief that what God had designed him was not sufficient enough to sustain him.
Is the error of David any different than our own lives? In our society there is much evidence of how we define ourselves by the external and insignificant. People say something that hurts our feelings and we dwell on it for a long time, we are told we are weird or that we are a bad person and so we begin to portray our personality in such a way as to fulfill the role which others have ascribed to our lives, we allow our career paths- to be the very things that define who we are and neglect to get in touch with the substance of whom God has called us to be. We turn to many things to build our definition and in so doing often hide away our hearts- because we fear that if we truly live from the heart it will not be sufficient enough to sustain us. Then when we burn out on our lives, we often become bitter and point the finger at God.
As long as we are judging ourselves with the wrong perception, we are also judging others with the wrong perception. Our judgment of others is based on our desire to knock them off "the pedestal" so that we ourselves can take center stage. In so doing we fail to discover the innermost being God has designed us for, and hide away our hearts all the more. When we hide away our heart, not only do we neglect the fiber of our being but we also neglect the hearts of those who need us to demonstrate God's love in a very real and extraordinary way.
In what ways have you hidden your heart away? Allow God to be a part of helping you find it so that you can truly discover the fiber of your innermost being which he designed the very moment you were created (Psalms 139:13).
As Samuel went to find a king among the sons of Jesse, he was told by God "Do not judge him by his appearance or height, God does not look at what man looks at. Man looks at the appearance, God looks at the heart." This theme was reflected throughout David's life. If without naming David, I wrote down all the evil deeds that he performed in his life and asked you what kind of person you thought he was- you would more than likely say that he was a wicked evil man. Yet scripture says repeatedly that he was a man after God's own heart. Indeed David did fall into much sin in his life. From looking at the appearance of King Daid's actions, we would not thing of him as a reighteous king. So what are we to say of David's actions, why did he repeatedly fall into sin if he was indeed a man after God's own heart. I believe firmly that it is because David repetaedly made the error of defining himself by the external and insignificant- and that this kept pulling him a way from the internal fiber of being a man after God's own heart- (though as we know from scripture he always submitted to God's rebuke and repented when needed). More adequately stated, David was caught in his insecurity- the belief that what God had designed him was not sufficient enough to sustain him.
Is the error of David any different than our own lives? In our society there is much evidence of how we define ourselves by the external and insignificant. People say something that hurts our feelings and we dwell on it for a long time, we are told we are weird or that we are a bad person and so we begin to portray our personality in such a way as to fulfill the role which others have ascribed to our lives, we allow our career paths- to be the very things that define who we are and neglect to get in touch with the substance of whom God has called us to be. We turn to many things to build our definition and in so doing often hide away our hearts- because we fear that if we truly live from the heart it will not be sufficient enough to sustain us. Then when we burn out on our lives, we often become bitter and point the finger at God.
As long as we are judging ourselves with the wrong perception, we are also judging others with the wrong perception. Our judgment of others is based on our desire to knock them off "the pedestal" so that we ourselves can take center stage. In so doing we fail to discover the innermost being God has designed us for, and hide away our hearts all the more. When we hide away our heart, not only do we neglect the fiber of our being but we also neglect the hearts of those who need us to demonstrate God's love in a very real and extraordinary way.
In what ways have you hidden your heart away? Allow God to be a part of helping you find it so that you can truly discover the fiber of your innermost being which he designed the very moment you were created (Psalms 139:13).
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
True
Beneath the surface of everyone is a story to tell,
as much is often hidden underneath our veil,
stories of pain and hurt which upon us have been thrust,
hardening our hearts and teaching us not to trust,
which causes us to build walls to hide away our being,
so that into our hearts no one can truly be seeing,
for we've learned that if we show ourselves a hole will be punched through,
and that is why we fear that we can not be true,
But if we listen to the story that Christ wants to tell,
We will learn to trust Him as our masks we unveil,
Then the hurt and pain that upon us has been thrust,
will be taken care of as Him we learn to trust,
and then we will no longer be compelled to hide away our being,
as the love of God living in us is what others will begin seeing,
for if we make ourselves vulnerable to Him He will help us through,
and as we abide in his presence we will bodly be true.
as much is often hidden underneath our veil,
stories of pain and hurt which upon us have been thrust,
hardening our hearts and teaching us not to trust,
which causes us to build walls to hide away our being,
so that into our hearts no one can truly be seeing,
for we've learned that if we show ourselves a hole will be punched through,
and that is why we fear that we can not be true,
But if we listen to the story that Christ wants to tell,
We will learn to trust Him as our masks we unveil,
Then the hurt and pain that upon us has been thrust,
will be taken care of as Him we learn to trust,
and then we will no longer be compelled to hide away our being,
as the love of God living in us is what others will begin seeing,
for if we make ourselves vulnerable to Him He will help us through,
and as we abide in his presence we will bodly be true.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
The Spirit of Religion reigns in Cabarrus Arena
My last blog was about the ministry of Todd Bentley and my thoughts on the so-called Florida Healing Outpouring which seems to be gaining widespread acceptance among many Pentecostals and Charismatics. This will be my last post for now on this topic. Last week, I had the opportunity to go and hear Todd Bentley live as he had an impartation service at Cabarrus Arena here in Concord. He was only in town for one night but his associates did stay and preach the other three. From what I heard in the two nights at Cabarrus Arena, I am very moved to be more in tune with scripture than ever before and to be more aware of Christian doctrine because these guys are clearly showing the uncanny ability to twist the Word of God to their advantage.
The first night was full of reasons that validated my concerns. The speaker, Jerame Nelson said God had shown him how to take the treasures he's stored up in heaven and get them transferred to his earthly bank account (I wish God would show me that.) As Nelson continued preaching- it was obvious that what he was speaking was the very same doctrines of the Latter Rain heresy of the 1940's. Of particular danger is the Manifest Sons of God- the belief that there are is a remannt of people on earth who will bring about the return of Christ by growing into and becoming an incarnation of Christ prior to his return.
The second night Todd Bentley came and spoke. He wasn't as extreme as I expected though in the little bit of time that he did talk he did say a few things that brought cause for concern. His testimony indeed was powerful and compelling. At the same time even in the midst of giving his testimony, he could not resist talking about miracles, signs, and wonders and particularly how when he first converted he thought all Christians walked in that power and also had angelic encounters. He brushed over the topic of angelic encounters. I think much of that has to do with the fact that the pastor at Lakeland has asked him to tone down his references to angelic encounters. Karl Strader, pastor of Ignited Church in Lakeland has also asked him to tone down his reference to third heaven experiences.
Todd Bentley does indeed appear to have toned down his references to such. However, there are still references of the angel and his third heaven encounters in the teachings on his website. Based on the examination of those teachings, there is still much cause for concern. We must be discerning and test these spirits- and not simply just drink the kool-aid that he and his associates are serving up to us.
I have no doubt that the majority of the people listening to Todd Bentley are doing so with a hunger for the things of God. Satan as well is aware of that hunger- and that's why he doesn't come in his naked deformity but rather masquerades around as an angel of light. The greatest and most dangerous shift in the body of Christ is the belief that we needs miracles, signs, and wonders to operate in normalcy among us today in order to confirm the gospel of Christ. While I do believe in miracles, signs, and wonders the Word of God must take precedence over everything so that all is in accordance with sound doctrine. Looking at the teachings and beliefs of this movement- it is clear that there are many errors and many contradictions which might as well be spitting on the Bible. In Luke 11, the religious crowd asked Jesus to perform a sign for them. Jesus replied, "A wicked and adulterous geeration looks for a sign- no sign shall be given you except the sign of Jonah." As Jonah was in the belly of a whale, so the Son of Man would be in the belly of the earth and would conquer death, hell, and the grave.
It is the Spirit of religion that tells us to jump into the river embracing the experience without worrying about the doctrine. It is the Spirit of religion to believe and or to teach that there is any more of a sign needed what Christ did in His death and resurrection. It is the Spirit of religion that reigned last week in Cabarrus Arena. It is the Spirit of religion that is driving this so-called revival. It is the Spirit of God that tells us to test these spirits, to discern what is of God and not to turn to this man and his ministry for an impartation when we can go directly to the throne of Christ himself and receive that.
The first night was full of reasons that validated my concerns. The speaker, Jerame Nelson said God had shown him how to take the treasures he's stored up in heaven and get them transferred to his earthly bank account (I wish God would show me that.) As Nelson continued preaching- it was obvious that what he was speaking was the very same doctrines of the Latter Rain heresy of the 1940's. Of particular danger is the Manifest Sons of God- the belief that there are is a remannt of people on earth who will bring about the return of Christ by growing into and becoming an incarnation of Christ prior to his return.
The second night Todd Bentley came and spoke. He wasn't as extreme as I expected though in the little bit of time that he did talk he did say a few things that brought cause for concern. His testimony indeed was powerful and compelling. At the same time even in the midst of giving his testimony, he could not resist talking about miracles, signs, and wonders and particularly how when he first converted he thought all Christians walked in that power and also had angelic encounters. He brushed over the topic of angelic encounters. I think much of that has to do with the fact that the pastor at Lakeland has asked him to tone down his references to angelic encounters. Karl Strader, pastor of Ignited Church in Lakeland has also asked him to tone down his reference to third heaven experiences.
Todd Bentley does indeed appear to have toned down his references to such. However, there are still references of the angel and his third heaven encounters in the teachings on his website. Based on the examination of those teachings, there is still much cause for concern. We must be discerning and test these spirits- and not simply just drink the kool-aid that he and his associates are serving up to us.
I have no doubt that the majority of the people listening to Todd Bentley are doing so with a hunger for the things of God. Satan as well is aware of that hunger- and that's why he doesn't come in his naked deformity but rather masquerades around as an angel of light. The greatest and most dangerous shift in the body of Christ is the belief that we needs miracles, signs, and wonders to operate in normalcy among us today in order to confirm the gospel of Christ. While I do believe in miracles, signs, and wonders the Word of God must take precedence over everything so that all is in accordance with sound doctrine. Looking at the teachings and beliefs of this movement- it is clear that there are many errors and many contradictions which might as well be spitting on the Bible. In Luke 11, the religious crowd asked Jesus to perform a sign for them. Jesus replied, "A wicked and adulterous geeration looks for a sign- no sign shall be given you except the sign of Jonah." As Jonah was in the belly of a whale, so the Son of Man would be in the belly of the earth and would conquer death, hell, and the grave.
It is the Spirit of religion that tells us to jump into the river embracing the experience without worrying about the doctrine. It is the Spirit of religion to believe and or to teach that there is any more of a sign needed what Christ did in His death and resurrection. It is the Spirit of religion that reigned last week in Cabarrus Arena. It is the Spirit of religion that is driving this so-called revival. It is the Spirit of God that tells us to test these spirits, to discern what is of God and not to turn to this man and his ministry for an impartation when we can go directly to the throne of Christ himself and receive that.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
"The Florida Healing Revival" examined
This blog comes in a very timely manner, as this week Todd Bentley of Fresh Fire Ministries who is the guest evangelist at the Florida Healing Revival which started on April 2, will be right here in Concord. I feel in light of that, that I must go ahead and make my stance known in terms of the Florida Healing Revival.
Before I proceed let me state clearly that I do believe in miracles, I do believe God sometimes works in strange ways that are beyond our explanation. I believe firmly in the gifts of the Spirit being operative among us today though I feel we (including myself) have gone astray from realizing their Corinthians 12.
In the case of the Florida Healing Revival, there have been reports of many miracles taking place in Lakeland. There are reports of legs growing back on, people jumping out of their wheelchairs, and others having been raised from the dead. It is not my intent to question or examine the validity of such reports. Whether or not miracles, signs, and wonders are genuinely taking place is completely irrelevant. What is relevant are the doctrines and lifestyles being promoted within the context of this "revival movement."
We must remember that even if miracles, signs, and wonders are taking place- that does not necessarily mean they are of God. Take note of the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:22-23 "There will be many who will say to me on that day 'Lord, Lord did we not drive out demons in your name and in your name perform many miracles' and I will say to them 'Away from me you evildoers, I never knew you." The question we must ask in examining the fruit of this revival is whether or not this revival represents true historic Christianity, or are there dangerous abhorrent teachings which represent a clear departure from the faith. A closer look at the teachings of Todd Bentley will shed light on this question.
Todd Bentley brings cause for concern for several reasons. First of all, he claims his ministry is guided by the angel 'Emma' who is the same angel that also guided the ministry of William Branham in the 1940's and who birthed the prophetic ministries of Bob Jones and the Kansas City Prophets in the 1980's. To claim to be guided by the same angel as William Branham brings serious cause for concern. In 1949 denounced the ministry of William Branham based on his teaching that "the concept of the Trinity was a doctrine of the Devil" and his other teaching of the serpent's seed doctrine that Eve partaking of the fruit is symbolic terminology for her actually having sex with Satan and from that Union Cain was conceived.
Not only does Bentley claim to be guided by this angel, he brings her with him to the meetings and encourages the audience to seek their own encounters with this angel. While Hebrews does tell us that angels are ministering spirits sent to us from the heavenly realm, it is dangerous to encourage people to seek experiences with angels. Such is no different than walking into a New Age Church and trying to get in touch with your spirit-guide.
Bentley further claims to be in contact with the dead. He claims to have been to the third heaven where he conversed with both Abraham and the apostle Paul. He also claims to have seen Jesus resurrected in the flesh. When any man makes claims such as these you have one of two choices, "You accept what he says at face value and receive him as God's chosen instrument," or "you recognize him as either deluded or deceiving and seek to expose him as such." Not only does Bentley claim to have had contact with dead believers but also dead cult leaders, such as Sudhu Sundhar Singh- an Indian Hindu Christian mystic who taught the idea of universalism that all will be saved and will dwell in Paradise in the end.
Finally, Bentley very rarely preaches from the Word of God and when he does it is always in order to set up the manifestations that are about to take place in the service. I have watched countless videos and most of the times he's not preaching, he's manifesting on stage and talking about how God's power is getting ready to pay a visit to the people. It makes me question of the people that do get "saved" in these meetings- "Which Jesus are they really getting saved to" I have no doubt that some are getting genuinely saved as God can and does work in spite of man's folly- but I firmly believe that more people are confused by another clanging symbol than are touched by God's power in this so-called "revival.
Unfortunately, the body of Christ has become so desperate for a touch that it is desensitized to the importance of doctrine and the need for discerning and testing the spirits (I John 4:1). We are further deceived into thinking that a revival must be in accord with miracles, signs, and wonders. Thus we think that miracles signs and wonders truly make or break a revival. In sixty years of ministry the only miracles we have seen in Billy Graham's evangelistic crusades are the salvations that took place as people responded to the call of Christ. That is the true meaning of revival. It does not require miracles, signs, and wonders though they may follow. Yet when they do I believe they will be more rare than normative.
So if you go see Todd Bentley this week go with a discerning spirit. I plan to be there myself so that they can no longer that I haven't been in his presence to experience firsthand. Of course, then they will say I was so closed to what God was doing that I wouldn't jump into the river and experience the refreshing. To which I say I have no interest in jumping into a river full of refreshing water when spiritual piranhas are nipping away at my feet.
Before I proceed let me state clearly that I do believe in miracles, I do believe God sometimes works in strange ways that are beyond our explanation. I believe firmly in the gifts of the Spirit being operative among us today though I feel we (including myself) have gone astray from realizing their Corinthians 12.
In the case of the Florida Healing Revival, there have been reports of many miracles taking place in Lakeland. There are reports of legs growing back on, people jumping out of their wheelchairs, and others having been raised from the dead. It is not my intent to question or examine the validity of such reports. Whether or not miracles, signs, and wonders are genuinely taking place is completely irrelevant. What is relevant are the doctrines and lifestyles being promoted within the context of this "revival movement."
We must remember that even if miracles, signs, and wonders are taking place- that does not necessarily mean they are of God. Take note of the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:22-23 "There will be many who will say to me on that day 'Lord, Lord did we not drive out demons in your name and in your name perform many miracles' and I will say to them 'Away from me you evildoers, I never knew you." The question we must ask in examining the fruit of this revival is whether or not this revival represents true historic Christianity, or are there dangerous abhorrent teachings which represent a clear departure from the faith. A closer look at the teachings of Todd Bentley will shed light on this question.
Todd Bentley brings cause for concern for several reasons. First of all, he claims his ministry is guided by the angel 'Emma' who is the same angel that also guided the ministry of William Branham in the 1940's and who birthed the prophetic ministries of Bob Jones and the Kansas City Prophets in the 1980's. To claim to be guided by the same angel as William Branham brings serious cause for concern. In 1949 denounced the ministry of William Branham based on his teaching that "the concept of the Trinity was a doctrine of the Devil" and his other teaching of the serpent's seed doctrine that Eve partaking of the fruit is symbolic terminology for her actually having sex with Satan and from that Union Cain was conceived.
Not only does Bentley claim to be guided by this angel, he brings her with him to the meetings and encourages the audience to seek their own encounters with this angel. While Hebrews does tell us that angels are ministering spirits sent to us from the heavenly realm, it is dangerous to encourage people to seek experiences with angels. Such is no different than walking into a New Age Church and trying to get in touch with your spirit-guide.
Bentley further claims to be in contact with the dead. He claims to have been to the third heaven where he conversed with both Abraham and the apostle Paul. He also claims to have seen Jesus resurrected in the flesh. When any man makes claims such as these you have one of two choices, "You accept what he says at face value and receive him as God's chosen instrument," or "you recognize him as either deluded or deceiving and seek to expose him as such." Not only does Bentley claim to have had contact with dead believers but also dead cult leaders, such as Sudhu Sundhar Singh- an Indian Hindu Christian mystic who taught the idea of universalism that all will be saved and will dwell in Paradise in the end.
Finally, Bentley very rarely preaches from the Word of God and when he does it is always in order to set up the manifestations that are about to take place in the service. I have watched countless videos and most of the times he's not preaching, he's manifesting on stage and talking about how God's power is getting ready to pay a visit to the people. It makes me question of the people that do get "saved" in these meetings- "Which Jesus are they really getting saved to" I have no doubt that some are getting genuinely saved as God can and does work in spite of man's folly- but I firmly believe that more people are confused by another clanging symbol than are touched by God's power in this so-called "revival.
Unfortunately, the body of Christ has become so desperate for a touch that it is desensitized to the importance of doctrine and the need for discerning and testing the spirits (I John 4:1). We are further deceived into thinking that a revival must be in accord with miracles, signs, and wonders. Thus we think that miracles signs and wonders truly make or break a revival. In sixty years of ministry the only miracles we have seen in Billy Graham's evangelistic crusades are the salvations that took place as people responded to the call of Christ. That is the true meaning of revival. It does not require miracles, signs, and wonders though they may follow. Yet when they do I believe they will be more rare than normative.
So if you go see Todd Bentley this week go with a discerning spirit. I plan to be there myself so that they can no longer that I haven't been in his presence to experience firsthand. Of course, then they will say I was so closed to what God was doing that I wouldn't jump into the river and experience the refreshing. To which I say I have no interest in jumping into a river full of refreshing water when spiritual piranhas are nipping away at my feet.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Matters of the Heart!
Over the years, I have had plenty of people come to me and say, "Chad one thing I value about you is that you have a lot of knowledge when it comes to the Bible and defending the faith." For a few years of my life, I let that image of me define my identity- and I used my knowledge as a means to puff myself up. As Paul told the church in Corinth in I Corinthians 8:1, "Knowledge puffs up but love builds up." These days, when I an told that I am a person with a lot of knowledge, I immediately draw back and think to myself "Does my knowledge shine more than my heart." More than a person with a lot of knowledge, I would rather be seen as a person that has a lot of heart- and if you don't see that I have a lot of heart then I need to make some serious adjustments.
While my bookshelf has quite a few commentaries, books on church history, as well as apolegetics resources that provide knowledge of my faith and the means by which to defend it and the basic tenets of the faith such as the resurrection, the historicity of the Biblical account, the Trinity, etc- I have realized that God calls us first not to be defenders of our faith, but rather to be offenders of the darkness of sin that entangles and imprisons our hearts from drawing closer to Him.
More than ever, that's what people need to see in us as Christians- is that we are people with a lot of heart. While knowledge does have some value- if it interferes with us getting real with ourselves and truly seeking to know who we are in Christ- then we have a serious error on our hands. It is important for us to understand that our hearts will impact the world for Christ more than our minds ever will.
We live in a world where people are constantly going here and there in order to increase their knowledge. I think knowledge is just one of the many things people try to acquire in order that they can portray a feeling of importance and thus wax over the broken pieces of themselves so that they don't have to get real with the things that really entangle and imprison them. Sadly, this is one of the many ways in which we as "Christians" have started to conform to the ways of the world, to the degree that we even have trouble loving amongst ourselves. No wonder that much of the world no longer wants anything to do with Christianity- all they see in Christians is that we are a lot of talk with little action- a clanging symbol making a lot of noise- but with very little heart.
While my bookshelf has quite a few commentaries, books on church history, as well as apolegetics resources that provide knowledge of my faith and the means by which to defend it and the basic tenets of the faith such as the resurrection, the historicity of the Biblical account, the Trinity, etc- I have realized that God calls us first not to be defenders of our faith, but rather to be offenders of the darkness of sin that entangles and imprisons our hearts from drawing closer to Him.
More than ever, that's what people need to see in us as Christians- is that we are people with a lot of heart. While knowledge does have some value- if it interferes with us getting real with ourselves and truly seeking to know who we are in Christ- then we have a serious error on our hands. It is important for us to understand that our hearts will impact the world for Christ more than our minds ever will.
We live in a world where people are constantly going here and there in order to increase their knowledge. I think knowledge is just one of the many things people try to acquire in order that they can portray a feeling of importance and thus wax over the broken pieces of themselves so that they don't have to get real with the things that really entangle and imprison them. Sadly, this is one of the many ways in which we as "Christians" have started to conform to the ways of the world, to the degree that we even have trouble loving amongst ourselves. No wonder that much of the world no longer wants anything to do with Christianity- all they see in Christians is that we are a lot of talk with little action- a clanging symbol making a lot of noise- but with very little heart.
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