Religion vs. the Gospel

A classic misunderstanding of Christianity is how it's viewed as a religion versus a Gospel-centered movement.  When rules, structure, formalities, performance, judgment, and appearance are highlighted more than love, grace, joy, forgiveness, kindness and just a worshipful response to the goodness of God, people get turned off and can get hostile.  I've had a couple different conversations over the last week with both believers and non-believers, with people from each category expressing their disdain for all things "religion".  One of my believing friends struggles with the corporate-ness that religion can bring which is causing him to suffocate from simply living and influencing under the direction of the Holy Spirit like he feels he should.  One of my non-believing friends is quite hostile toward any "religious" and simply sees a different form of capitalism and buildings full of judgmental hypocrites.  In both cases, formalized religion has failed.

While Jesus did speak of building a church and appointed leaders for his church which the Apostles and then Paul helped further develop as more and more people began to follow Jesus, I don't think that Jesus quite had in mind for "Christianity" to what it has developed into today.  Jesus was a movement leader more than a CEO.  Jesus influenced more than he controlled (which I also believe was the way the Apostles went about things as well).  Jesus loved more than he judged.  Jesus had a clear sense of right & wrong, and when he confronted people on their sin, there was always this deep undercurrent of love that went along with it.  The only people that he just blasted with judgment were the religious people, not the ones who were far from God! That's a great model and method to continue!

A great summation of all of this comes from something that Jesus himself said in John 3:17: "God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."  Love always trumps condemnation.  Gospel always wins over religion.

Being a True Fan

I'm reading this book called "Tribes" by Seth Godin that given to me by my friend Dave.  One thing that he points out in his book deals with the idea of being a "true fan" regarding the leader, mission, or philosophy of the particular tribe that the fan is a part of.  He credited the idea from Kevin Kelly.  Godin (and Kelly) define a "true fan" as someone who buys anything you produce (especially pre-releases & limited editions), will drive 200 miles to hear you sing, buy the t-shirt, the mug, and commemorative pin.  Some fans are really easy to identify like Elvis fans, sports teams fanatics, and given the time of year, Christmas junkies (the ones with the gaudy decorations & bad sweaters and listen to nothing but Bing Crosby for a month).

This got me thinking: what does a "true fan" of Jesus look like?  Is it simply "consuming" all things Jesus from cross necklaces, worship music, bumper stickers, and books?  Or is there more to it than that?

One point that Kelly makes on his blog is that once a person/movement reaches 1000 "true fans" they can make a living because they have a stable base of consistent support.  This got me thinking of my church, Delta.  While I think we have a small number of "fans" and an even smaller number of "true fans", there are lots of people out there that would be a "fan" of what we're seeking to do here in Springfield; which is simply connecting disconnected people by loving God, transforming lives, and changing the world.

Here's what I think a "Fan" of Delta looks like: 1) believe in our vision & mission; 2) they spread the word about us & what we're doing (promotion); 3) they follow our progress (through our website, blog, Facebook, etc.); and 4) they create more fans.

But what about "True Fan"?  True fans: 1) financially support Delta; 2) attend & become a member at Delta; 3) serve at Delta; 4) lead at Delta; 5) bring people to Delta.

I think 2009 will be a great year for Delta.  Part of it I think will be building our "fan base".  What would happen if Delta got 500 fans and 100 true fans this year?  I think we would see the Gospel kick into overdrive here in Springfield.  You see, it's not necessarily about growing a big church, but it's about being a part of a bigger movement - the movement of Jesus Christ invading the hearts of people far from him with his love here in Springfield.  What could be better than that?

Here's what you can do now to advance your "fan-dom":

1. If you're local, come hang out with us on Sunday mornings or midweekCommunity Groups.

2. Follow this blog.

3. Follow me on Twitter.

4. Join our Facebook group.

5. Join our Google Group.

Grace & Peace...have a great Christmas this week! (of which I am a big fan of!)

Fourth Sunday of Advent

Incarnation

“Seeing is believing.” “Don’t judge someone until you’ve walked in their shoes.” Sentiments like these have woven themselves into the very fabric of our culture.  These statements communicate that we are a culture of experience and relationship. Until an idea has “flesh and bone” we typically fail to buy into it.  God knows this about us.  God knows the power of experience and the power of relationship…for He is the One who created us with those desires. And in His great love to fulfill His great plan of being our Rescuer, he meets us where we are at. The Incarnation – God Himself taking on flesh – shows the height, the width, the depth, and the breadth His love.  And more than that…He came humbly…as a baby born in a barn, wrapped in rags to keep Him warm, and placed in a manger.

Scripture: John 1:1-5, 14

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Christmas Hymn “What Child Is This?”

Sing or listen to "What Child Is This?", with our hearts gazing at the Christ Child, singing of the wonder of the Incarnation.

Third Week of Advent

Peace

Confusion…pain…angst…fear…corruption…chaos…not having enough room to breath…always on the move and trying to keep up…these are words and phrases that illustrate both our lives and the world we live in.  We inwardly groan for something – for Someone – to bring order and peace to our lives and to still our restless hearts.  The quiet birth of the Christ Child amid the hustle and bustle of a town bursting at its seams due to a major national event reminds us that God can and does inject His peace into the busyness that defines our lives.

Scripture: Isaiah 9:6-7

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

Reflection: The Christmas Hymn “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear”

Sing or listen to "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear", reflecting on the peace that is afforded us and that was proclaimed by the angels at the birth of the Prince of Peace.

Second Week of Advent

Joy

The source of our joy is in God Himself.  God is good.  God is trustworthy.  God is love.  He sees us in our great need, marred by sin, unable to save ourselves, destined for an eternity without Him.  And so, driven by love, grace, and mercy, God plans on sending us a Rescuer; One who will save us from our sin and create peace between us and the Father.  This plan for salvation, birthed in eternity past, began to come to fruition in the birth of the Christ Child.

Scripture: Isaiah 52:7-10

How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of him who brings good news,
who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,
who publishes salvation,
who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”
The voice of your watchmen—they lift up their voice;
together they sing for joy;
for eye to eye they see
the return of the Lord to Zion.
Break forth together into singing,
you waste places of Jerusalem,
for the Lord has comforted his people;
he has redeemed Jerusalem.
The Lord has bared his holy arm
before the eyes of all the nations,
and all the ends of the earth shall see
the salvation of our God

Song: Sing or listen to the Christmas hymn "Joy to the Word" and celebrate the great joy of the Gospel that is promised us through the birth of the Christ Child.

Practice: Share some 'Christmas joy' with your neighbors or co-workers this week.  Personally deliver a Christmas card, some homemade cookies, or a handmade gift.

First Week of Advent

We are officially in the Advent season, which begins four Sundays before Christmas.  At Delta, we have customized our Advent themes this year, and are encouraging tangible practices of each theme.  This week, our theme is "glory."

Glory

Our God is a glorious God who had made a promise to rescue us from our sin.  The birth of Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of that glorious promise.  And as 1 Peter says how even angels longingly look at the wonder of the Gospel, we see the angels present at the birth of the Christ Child announcing the miracle and proclaiming the glory of God to the shepherds; who in turn gave glory to God for the fulfillment of sending our rescuer.

Scripture: Luke 2:8-15, 20

And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear.  And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”  And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

 When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”

 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Christmas Hymn to sing: “Angels we have heard on high”

Practice: Spend this week in meditation on God’s Glory, God’s Word, and repenting of any selfish desires that the holiday season can bring.

Living with True Joy

Yesterday at Delta we looked at John 16:16-33 and unpacked what Jesus taught about true, Gospel-centered joy.  Joy is intrinsicly different from happiness, as joy is not dependent on things that will ultimately fail or disappoint like people, things, or circumstances.  Too often people put too much stock into these things but just end up frustrated, easily agitated & angered, confused, depressed, and have no direction for their lives.  So the question is, how do you find true joy?  Here is the process I am working through:

-First, you have to jump deep into your sin.  You have to begin to see just how depraved and far from God you are.  This is not easy, and it's not fun by any means.  But it's a necessary first step.

-Second, as you jump deep into your sin, you must jump high into God's love and holiness that he has available to you through Jesus. The principle at work here is Luke 7:47 "...her sins, which are many, are forgiven - for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little." Jumping deep into your sin and high into God's love allows the cross to be really big in your life, which serves as an anchor for your joy.

*Intermission note:The above "jumping" illustration is borrowed from my friend Darrin Patrick who will be soon releasing this material

-Also, you need to get away.  You need to remove yourself from your regular context in order to gain a more objective outlook on yourself and your life.  Practicing the spiritual disciplines of solitude and silence are key in the process.

-Then, you need to get in God's Word.  I strongly suggest living in Romans chapters 5-8.  Read them.  Journal them.  Personalize them.  Journey with Paul as he dove deep into his sin through chapters 5-7 and then rose high into God's amazing love in Chapter 8.

-You also need to be honest with yourself and others.  Be specific when identifying areas of sin in your life and how you're feeling and living; you have to get it all out.  Part of this is also bring people who are mature and who love you on your journey with you.  These people will be those who are good spiritual peers (people in your community group, church, etc.) and people who are spiritual directors who can give you insight and direction (people who are in leadership or are mentors to you).

-Lastly, take advantage of godly, theologically sound, gospel-centered preachers, teachers, and authors. Soak up Gospel-centered resources.  I highly recommend the books "The Cross Centered Life" and then it's sequel "Living the Cross Centered Life" by CJ Mahaney.

Living a life of true, gospel-centered joy is a process that is difficult because our world doesn't have any idea of what true joy is.  Living in joy involves a transformation of your heart by first surrendering your life to Jesus as your Savior and Leader, and then changing the way that you think and view your life, because of the the great mercy that God has shown us.  

Blessings on your path to joy!

The Great Nation of Texas

I'm currently in Dallas at the Depth Conference - http://acts29network.org/event/2008-11-19-dallas-boot-camp/ - with all of the Acts 29 "superstars": Matt Chandler, Mark Driscoll, and Darrin Patrick.  It's been great so far.  Be sure to grab the audio when it gets posted on the Acts 29 website.

Best quote of the day so far has come from Matt Chandler (I'm actually paraphrasing): "I'm a Baptist, and a non-apologetic one.  I'm just a weird Baptist. We give to the Cooperative Program, we're Elder-led, I occaisionally enjoy a beer.  But I'm a Baptist, just a different one."  That was refreshing to hear, seeing as how I fit that profile.  I guess he gets to be more vocal about it because his church has grown from around 130 to 5000 in 6 years, is a tredmendously gifted teacher, and a movement leader.  And I'm nowhere near that...yet :-).

Internalizing the Gospel

You cannot begin to understand and appreciate the Gospel until you begin to really deal with the depth of your own sin. Until you realize how depraved you are apart from Jesus, he will remain a God of convenience and your Christianity will be more like being a part of a social club than a transforming movement that will change the world.

This is the journey I've been travelling on for at least the last 3 months.  Now I've thought that I've dealt with things and have understood my sin.  I've had many dark times in my life where I was face to face with my depravity. But I had no idea how deep it went.  And man, is it deep.

This is what Paul consistently reminded himself of, specifically in Romans 5-7.  He says that "nothing good dwells within him" and that he's a "wretched man" and in other places, the "chief of sinners."  Now Paul isn't wallowing in self-pity, but rather he is reminding himself of how great God's mercy is, shown to us through Jesus Christ.  Paul is practicing the principle that Jesus taught us in Luke 7:47 "Therefore, I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven - for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little."  Paul loved much because he was forgiven much - and he reminded himself of that.

The Gospel then is this: I am worse than I could ever imagine; yet I am loved more than I could ever comprehend.

It is a dangerous prayer to ask God to show you the depth of your sin, but it is a necessary one.  Walking that journey will bring out the worst in you, but it has to be brought out to the light so it can die as Christ shines on you.  Not dealing with your sin will only lead to  arrogance, pride, selfishness, and consumerism - the very things we see rampant in the modern church today.  The more we realize how much we've been forgiven, we become radically more loving, forgiving, compassionate, and gracious to others.  We serve and give all that we can because we have been served and given so much.

I've been greatly identifying and appreciating these words of the song 'Thy Mercy My God', and I hope they minister to you:

Without Thy sweet mercy I could not live here

Sin would reduce me to utter despair

But through Thy free goodness, my spirits revive

And He that first made me still keeps me alive

Vote for Jesus

Yesterday at Delta we took a long look at Romans 13:1-7 to discover what exactly God has to say about the Christian's responsibility in and to the government.  The audio should be up soon at www.deltachurch.net for those you who weren't there.  I just want to highlight the takeaway points in how we as Christians exactly "vote for Jesus":

• Submit yourself to Jesus.  Following Jesus as King of Kings and Lord of Lords begins with you and in your heart.
• Work for conversions.  We can’t expect those in public office (or who want to be in public office) who don’t love Jesus to lead according to God’s standards…so we need to do the work of making disciples.  Faith can’t be forced by physical means like voting; that’s not how we influence our city, state, & nation with the Gospel – the influence of the Gospel is proclaimed and lived out by Christ-followers to those who are disconnected and far from God.
• Stay informed.  Christians are already caricatured as unintelligent, archaic, backwoods, NASCAR fans…don’t fuel that fire…love God and your country with your mind and don’t make simply emotional and single-issue decisions.
• Don’t look to the government for a moral compass.  We’re dealing with fallen, sinful people…add on top of that politicians!  Jesus is our only true and reliable standard for righteousness…everyone else falls terribly short.
• Trust in God’s sovereignty.  If your guy doesn’t win, that’s OK – the person that God wanted there to achieve His purpose for His glory is sitting in the seat of authority.

My challenge to everyone is this: if you indeed want our unChristian nation to become a Christian nation, it begins with you and you bringing the Gospel to those who are lost and disconnected from Jesus, including those in government.  So, how can you do that?  Where can you volunteer?  If your line of work can get you a government job, can you work there?  What boards or committees can you be a part of?

So I encourage everyone to do your duty as a citizen and vote tomorrow!  And if you are a Christ-follower, remember your citizenship that is in heaven and honor Jesus with your vote, however He leads you to do that.

You can check out a short video piece about Delta and our "Vote for Jesus" day yesterday on our local FoxNews affiliate here in Springfield: http://www.myfoxspringfiel

d.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=7778662&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=3.2.1

Happy Missional Halloween!

Here we are yet another Halloween.  All of the horror/monster movies are moved to the front of the video stores, ungodly amounts of candy are being bought, and parents are freaking out about their kid's costumes (my kids choice in costumes this year: Wednesday Addams (Hannah), an Angel (Ellie), Obi-Wan Kenobi (Aiden, or as we call him 'Obi-Wan KeMobley'), a Zebra (Rachel), and a Chili Pepper (Lydia).

Some parents and churches don't like this holiday.  They believe that it's "of the devil" so they either don't do anything with it (no candy, no costumes) or they come up with some silly "Christian alternative" like a Fall Festival where they basically do Halloween, but only with other Christians and they outlaw costumes that have to do with witches, monsters, or people beheaded by guillotine.

Here's my take on Halloween.

I would venture to say (by experience) that the vast majority of people who celebrate Halloween don't know and don't care about it's origin - it's simply the "dress up and get candy day".  Is the origin of Halloween important enough to abstain from it?  I don't think so.  You can argue that the time of year and traditions that surround Christmas and Easter have pagan roots.

Think about the major holidays in our country: Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, 4th of July.  Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving are very family-focused events, and rightly so.  On the 4th of July, we see friends gathering together for BBQ's and communities gathering for parades and carnivals.  I guess you can even throw in St. Patrick's Day, where communities gather for parades and public drunkeness.  But there's something unique about Halloween: it's the only holiday where people in your neighborhood open up their homes to each other!  Families en mass are walking the streets of your neighborhood, kids are running and laughing, and people are greeting each other.  The opportunities for showing hospitality are incredible!

My suggestion on celebrating Halloween is this: just get over the "evilness" of it and use it as an opportunity to get to know your neighbors.  Have some fun, dress up, and hit the streets!  If your kids are older or you don't have any kids, turn on the porch light, make some hot chocolate for cold parents, stock up on the chocolate (if you want to be really popular, give out full-size candy bars!), and meet people.  Strike up conversations.  Talk with parents and tell them how cute their kids are (because they really are!).  Make Halloween a missional event in your neighborhood.  Once you're introduced to people, look for them as they're out and say "hi".  Send them a Christmas card.  Maybe host a block party or community BBQ when the weather warms up. Don't miss this opportunity to show some hospitality, love on your neighborhood, and build some bridges with people who need Jesus.