You gotta turn from this, and from this, and from this, and from this…if you really want to be a Christian!

That’s what I hear too many Christian leaders saying today. “If you’re really serious about God, you’re going to turn from your sin and start living right!”

The problem with that is that it’s the same message the Pharisees were spouting to people when Jesus showed up. It’s called “reformation“–reforming yourself by stopping to do some of the bad things and starting to do some good things.”

The other problem is that it doesn’t work. You can reform all you want, but the more you reform the outside behavior to please religious people, the more crap you have to hide.

Christianity isn’t about reforming people so that they measure up to the human deciders of who gets into God’s heaven.

Christianity is about the transformation that occurs by turning to the only God who can rescue you and me from our sin and believing what He says about getting into His heaven: Trust in my Son; receive my life, eternal life by believing in Him, and I will transform you. I’ll make you a new person.

Christianity isn’t turning from sin and getting a new start in life. Christianity is turning to God and receiving a new life to start with–a transformed life. It’s called eternal, and it comes with the desire to grow out of your sin and the power to do it.

So, are you trying to reform yourselves to please some bigoted religious types?

Stop it, please God by believing in His Son and receiving His life.

“For without faith it is impossible to please Him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Almost every time I talk about grace some religious person asks me accusingly, “Isn’t this just letting people off easy?”

My answer to that is, “YES!”

“But it’s worse than you ever imagined,” I continue:

“It’s not letting them off easy; it’s letting them off for free!”

And then comes the probing question, “What if He didn’t let you off easy? What if you had to pay for your sins, every stinkin’ one of them?”

You see, if we’re honest we know that every one of us needs a rescue from our sin. And, we must admit that if the rescue wasn’t free, we’d have no hope.

But if we lie to ourselves and others, we’ll decide that our sins are the ones that don’t need payment, that our shortcomings and pathologies are the ones God must have decided were okay. And then, the grace He gives to others upsets us.

We can’t believe that God actually gives grace to really bad sinners like those other people.

We don’t need that kind of grace, cheap grace. Because we earn our grace, costly grace.

But the Bible says that those who say this aren’t holier than the rest of us. They’re liars:

“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8).

Bryan Duncan of Sweet Comfort fame, is one of the freshest, rawest, and most honest voices in the Christian recovery movement today.

Recently he was sharing his heart and talent with our Steppin’ Out recovery group here at COD. One of his remarks took me back to the Jesus Movement and the way it felt for those of us who weren’t raised in church and didn’t know the lingo.

He asked who this “Father Wejus” was. He’s noticed that a lot of Christians pray to this padre or monk. In fact most of their prayers begin with, “Father Wejus gather together here today to ask you…” or “Father Wejus want to thank you for your many blessings.”

Father Wejus!

Just one moremindless way we talk to God without actually engaging with the Sovereign of the universe.

Just one more way we speak a code that outsiders find confusing, even silly.

I remember my “Father Wejus” moments when I first trusted Christ in the Jesus Movement.

I didn’t put the Wejus character in the place of God, but I always wondered what was so spiritual about “just” asking God for something.

Like it wouldn’t be right to “just” go ahead and tell Him what we want.

I mean, if He really loves us as much as we say He does.

Question: Why do you think many Christians feel a need to “spiritualize” their conversations with their loving Father?

From Radical Christians to a Voting Bloc!

A strange thing happened to so-called evangelical Christianity in the 1970s, a rarity in church history. We became a voting bloc with a lot of political power and an exceptional opportunity to influence our society for the Lord Jesus Christ.

Unfortunately, in my opinion, what too many leaders were telling Christians to do with this power and what way too many of us were excited to hear is that we should become the “Christian right” and use this power to demand our rights and impose standards of biblical righteousness on society.

I would argue against that message, that we should use our influence to defend our rights and impose standards of biblical righteousness on society.

I would argue that the New Testament teaches that we should indeed use our political power to influence society, but that we should use it to defend the rights of others and to demonstrate biblical righteousness, justice, and mercy in the name of Christ.

I write about this in my book, Reborn to Be Wild. I think our Jesus Movement revival may have stayed more on track if we would have thought more about Christ and others and less about us and our rights.

I’m Through With God!

A young Bible School graduate marched into my office and announced, “I’m through with God. This isn’t at all what I expected my life to look like. So I just wanted you to know that I won’t be doing anything at church anymore!”

Before I had a chance to respond, he explained his decision, careful to emphatically count off each of his supporting points on the fingers of his left hand. “I’ve been out of school for two years. I prayed for a wife, and I don’t have one yet. I prayed for a full-time position in a church, and I don’t have one yet. If I would have known that God wasn’t going to let me do these things, I could have gone to a regular college and studied engineering. I’d be making a lot of money right now.”

Nobody Gets That

After he calmed down, I jolted him with my answer: “Nobody gets that.”

He shot back. “Nobody gets what?”

“What they expected.” He seemed bewildered.

I knew I could prove my point from Scripture, but I decided to tell him stories instead.

I told him about some of the ladies in Judy’s His Alone class who did everything “right” but have to move on without a husband because he decided he would be much “happier” with a new wife and family.

I told him about a friend who teaches at a seminary who lives with a disease that randomly confines him to a wheel chair and sometimes even threatens his life.

I told him about the dedicated Christian couple whose only daughter was born with such a severe birth defect that in the precious few months they had with her this side of heaven she never smiled…never acknowledged their presence in the ways most mommies and daddies long for.

I told him stories for ten minutes.

And then I told him how the Lord used each of these disappointments and tragedies to transform not only the ones suffering through the pain, but also those who were watching.

We talked. He cried. By the end of our time together, he was able to hear what I wanted to tell him when he first walked in. “It’s not what you’re expecting God to do that matters, it’s what He wants to do. Once you get that straight, you are ready to receive His very best for your life–both the expected and the unexpected.”

“For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing”(James 1:3-4, New Living Translation).

Disciples!

What if we actually made disciples?

Jesus’ Command

In Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus tells every Christian exactly what He wants us to do, “Make disciples of all the nations.”

It would seem that any theory of church growth, any mobilization of God’s people, any desire for revival would begin with making disciples.

Is your heart longing for revival?

Do you want to change your world, your nation, your community, your neighborhood, your church, your family?

What if we just did what Jesus said? What if we just started making disciples–maturing followers of the Lord Jesus?

What If?

You make disciples—the church must take responsibility for its role in revival to make disciples of all nations.

• What if you told some people you told about Jesus that you would love to meet with them for breakfast once a week, or they came over for dinner, or two or three of them agreed to come over to your house or meet in a conference or break room at work or school weekly?
• What if you asked them to tell their own story about Jesus so that they could get to know one another better?
• What if you asked them how you could pray for them, and if they knew anyone who needed Jesus?
• What if they said yes, and you showed them how to tell their friends about Jesus?
• What if their friends believed in Jesus and suddenly you were hosting a “minichurch” in your home or at your workplace or school?

And What If?

This was duplicated many times over in your neighborhood, your city, and your area?

And these small Bible studies sprung up all over and more and more people were talking about Jesus?

Why it would be…

Revival.

Just because someone actually did what Jesus told us to do: Make disciples!

Question: Would you like to see this happen?

Then find someone, tell them about Jesus, and start teaching that same person how to walk with Him.

Clyde Cook: Larger Than Life

A few years ago I wrote these words from one of my favorite places on earth—Cannon Beach, Oregon.

Judy and I walked the beach on a Monday morning with heavy hearts. One of the most important men in our lives—Dr. Clyde Cook, President Emeritus of Biola University—had died suddenly Friday evening.

The breathtaking beauty of Cannon Beach and its spectacular Haystack Rock seemed a fitting backdrop to our prayers for Clyde’s beloved Anna Belle and their children. Clyde Cook was one of those Christians whose dedication to the Lord Jesus made him larger than life.

As we neared the majestic 235-foot tall monolith filled with nesting seabirds, I thought about the moment of Clyde’s transition from his life here on earth to his forever life in heaven. Dr. Cook was 73 years old when God called him to his home in heaven where he will now spend eternity.

73 years here, forever there.

73 years of faithful service here, forever years of rewarded service there.

Standing in the shadow of that great rock, I picked up a pebble from the sand and compared the two. The pebble is small; it fit in my hand. Haystack Rock is enormous, its dimensions almost beyond my comprehension.

For my friend and mentor, Clyde Cook, the pebble represents his whole life here on earth—73 years.

The great rock corresponds to the life he passed into last Friday evening—His eternity with the Lord Jesus.

And though my heart is sad and I will miss this great man of God, I smile when I think of his coming reward. The Lord Jesus Christ promises to reward His faithful followers, and few have been more faithful to their Savior than Clyde Cook.

Dr. Cook was more preoccupied with the world to come than he was with this world. He knew that His few years here on earth were his opportunity to invest in his heavenly reward.

He lived for the rock, not the pebble.

I’m asking God to use this dear saint’s tremendous example to move me to live for the world to come. Will you join me? I promise you we will never regret it.

“Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward will be great in heaven!” Jesus Christ, Luke 6:23

Question: Are you living for the rock of the pebble?

God, I’m Confused Here!

Have you ever moved forward in faith, sure that you knew what God wanted you to do, only to encounter trial after trial, roadblock after roadblock?

In January of 2005 we celebrated our 90^th Anniversary by raising over $600,000 to begin transforming our campus. We knew God wanted us to build on this beautiful piece of property. A new worship center seemed like the logical choice. So we initiated a capital campaign, and started planning our construction.

Every month we poured ourselves into the project. We estimated the scope and cost, and announced it to the congregation. And then, something would happen and we would have to rethink and re-plan, and re-report the revised plans and figures to our people.

By the time we had our big Groundbreaking Ceremony under a tent over three years later, we were sure the construction was just a few days off. But it all fell apart again. Finally, we told the church that we needed to move forward with a new construction team and timeline, we would “get back to them” as soon as we had a clearer picture.

I Can’t Build a Doghouse

Since I can’t build a doghouse, I have no idea if we could have planned this better. I do know that we were on our knees every step of the way and always told the church exactly what we knew and all that we knew.

Though the Bible says nothing about how to transform a campus or build a worship center, it has a lot to say about how to lead a church—by building loving, mature trust on the leadership team and between the leaders and the people. And that is what we have dedicated ourselves to with all our heart.

At our Thursday elder meeting before the event we knew the business meeting could get dicey. The building was going to cost a lot more than we originally thought and we weren’t absolutely sure where all of the money was going to come from. But we were confident that this was where God wanted us to go.

We did know that God had blessed us with deep unity. The years of building a strong, loving bond of trust between the elders and the flock had led us to an amazingly healthy place. And so, we just decided to risk it before God—to risk God’s glory to this community under the Headship of the Lord Jesus.

And the Count Is…

When the ballots were counted it was unanimous: 159 for moving forward, 0 against.

If you’ve been around churches for more than a few months, you know that this degree of unity is more than remarkable—it’s supernatural. Our joy over the Spirit’s deep work in our lives was so strong, the chairman of the elder board forgot to vote!

We’ll have to amend the minutes at our next congregational business meeting from 159 for and 0 against to 160 for and 0 against!

It was a mighty work of God—He did His part. He always does. And though our part was small by comparison, it was critical. As shepherds, we did what He told us—we made disciples as we built a loving community.

You may be in the middle of a lengthy trial right now, or feel like the Lord is delaying your dream. You might even wonder if He has forgotten all about you.

Could it be that you’re worrying about God’s part while neglecting your part? I’m sure that if you spent some time in prayer and asked a few mature Christians for some guidance, God would clearly point out your part in all of this. And once you’ve discovered that, you’re in the good place of trusting Him for the rest!

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledged Him, and He shall direct your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

It Really Happened!

I love watching new Christians on their first real Easter. Everything is new to them and they just can’t get over it. “Jesus died for me, was buried, and rose again. It really happened, and it was all because He loved me.”

They arrive on Easter morning having thought about eternal life daily since their new birth. They remind me of my first year in Christ when I heard about Christ on the streets during the Jesus Movement of the 60s and 70s. It was all we talked about-Jesus, His love, His death, His resurrection, our new life, hope, meaning, and destiny.

And then we figured it out that Easter was now about something more than egg hunts and spring break. It was the church’s official celebration of the resurrection event.

“Wow, what a concept,” I remember thinking. “We should go to church too,” referring to my Jesus Movement friends.

Let’s Go to Church!

So we did.

But we weren’t too impressed.

It was obvious that they didn’t want a bunch of ragamuffins like us in their pews. We didn’t dress right, didn’t know the songs, didn’t know when to stand up or sit down, and took some of their every-Sunday seats.

It was also pretty obvious that they weren’t as excited about Easter as we were. Oh they seemed to enjoy singing the songs we later found out they traditionally sang every Easter. They surely loved getting all dressed up in their Easter-Sunday finest. And they talked a lot to each other about their ham dinner and other family traditions as they ignored us.

But the wonder of it all and the magnitude of the privilege of belonging to the One who died and rose again, seemed secondary to all the religious trappings.

Desperate for the Resurrection!

I don’t know all the reasons for the contrast between our appreciation of Easter and theirs, but some of it had to be the desperation factor. For them, it was just another Easter; for us, it was a celebration of the Event that rescued us from our desperate lives. It wasn’t that we were any more desperate than they were, we were just more aware of it.

In his classic on the life of Christ, The Training of the Twelve, A. B. Bruce writes of the two disciples who met the resurrected Jesus on the road to Emmaus, “Their hearts were set a-burning when they had become very dry and withered: hopeless, sick, and life-weary through sorrow and disappointment. It is always so; the fuel must be dry that the spark may take hold. The truth is, the heart needs to be dried by trial before it can be made to burn.”

Easter is for those who get it that every experience of life apart from Christ is dried and withered. Easter is for those who admit that we would be hopeless, sick, and life weary apart from His mercy. Easter is for those desperate for resurrection power.

Are you?

“And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.” -Paul, 1 Corinthians 15:17

Judah Tried It

A few years ago I was calling through a list of people we hadn’t seen at church for awhile. A young mother answered the phone and told me, “We’re just taking a break from God right now. Our life is really busy with the kids in sports and our careers. My parents have been sick and then there’s the remodel. I like to think of it as putting Him on the shelf.”

She’s not the first to try “putting God on the shelf,” an entire nation tried to take a break from God—Judah, during the days of Josiah (2 Chronicles 34-35).

The Lord sent His indifferent people a message through His prophet, Zephaniah. The message was simple, and it had two parts: Judah, you belong to Me and no, you’re not taking a break from Me!

God Says, “No”

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