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Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be satisfied.

Thu, 24 Mar 2016 10:09:04 +0100

There are a lot of things in life that seem to offer gratification, but nevertheless leave us more feeling more empty than before we pursued them.

When I was a freshman in college, I was eager to make a name for myself at my small West Texas university so I ran for president of my class. It was a vigorous campaign with several of us vying for the position. It was obviously more of a popularity contest than a political run because none of us had achieved anything yet in our short stay at college. I remember clearly the nervous tension I entertained the night the votes were counted. Even though there were four or five candidates, I won on the first ballot and there was not need for runoff. A month of glad-handing and recruiting was over. I do not know what I expected to feel as a result, but I know it was more than what I sensed. I remember feeling so empty. I thought to myself, "Is this all there is?" I had pursued this office with vigor and time. I had now achieved it, but was left completely unsatisfied. It was then that I began to learn the lesson of true fulfillment. It is not found in the things of this world. No matter how lofty the position or how good the accomplishment seems to be, we will always be left disappointed in the things of this world.

Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount presents eight states of blessedness that lead to equilibrium with God. It begins with acknowledging one's spiritual poverty as it is the "poor in spirit" who possess the Kingdom of God. Once one admits spiritual bankruptcy it is natural to mourn the helplessness. There is the promise of comfort for those who mourn. When the repentance from sin and the comfort of God has worked in our lives we are being transformed by the Holy Sprit. The humility that results is very Christ-like. It is then that we learn that it is the meek who will inherit the earth.

In these three states of blessedness, our part has been largely passive. We have had to make conscience choice for the things of God, denying ourselves and allow Him to work in us, but for the most part, the work has been divine. We have received the free gift of His grace and it has had a profound effect on us. In this fourth phase of development toward equilibrium with God action is required. We must do something in order to maintain the relationship that is being established by surrender to the Father. The natural response to what God has done in and for is to to desire more. So the commendation is to those who "hunger and thirst after righteousness."

Being hungry and thirsty are natural states common to the human experience. A person can go weeks without food and days without water, but eventually must consume some nourishment to sustain life. Jesus use these natural common drives to describe the desire of the person who has discovered that there is more to life than the things of this world that do not satisfy. It is natural for that person to want more. It is reasonable to think that seeking spiritual food and drink is a practical as needing nourishment for the body. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled. They shall find real satisifaction.

Notice the pursuit is for righteousness. Righteousness is a relational word. It describes how we are related to God. There are two kinds of righteousness. There is righteousness that comes from God and can only be experienced through the surrender of one's self to God. It is initiated by the admission of one's absolute spiritual poverty and the acknowledgement of complete dependence on God for everything in life. This righteousness is real and comes only through reception of the free gift of grace offered through Jesus Christ. He was He who knew no sin, but was made sin for us that we might become the very righteousness of God in Christ (1 Cor 5).

Righteousness describes being right with God. 1 Corinthians 5 describe the mystery, the message, and the ministry of reconciliation that the Father has given to us through His Son. God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting our sins against us. He has not only made us right with Him, but has given us the ministry to lead others into the same relationship as well as the message of being made right with God through the truth of the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is the righteousness of God that we have in Jesus.

The other kind of righteousness, or really unrighteousness, is self-righteousness. This was the disease of the Pharisees. They could crucify our Lord because they felt no need for Him. They had a righteousness of their own based on their works. Their righteousness was anchored in their performance and they had deluded themselves to believe that their effort was enough. They wer blind to the fact that all their labor was futile. Deep down I believe they felt the emptiness that the pursuit of the things of this world produced. Deep down in their innermost self, they felt the disappointment of seeking after thing that do not satisfy. If they could be honest with themselves, they knew they were hapless, helpless, and hopeless, but they could not bring themselves to act on it. Jesus was a threat to their way of life. He exposed the emptiness of their pursuit. Outwardly they showed the signs, but inwardly they were whitewashed tombs.

We can only possess one of these kinds of righteousness. If we have the one, we cannot have the other. They cannot long coexist. This is why the religious leaders of Jesus day were driven to murder him. They refused to pursue real righteousness base on faith in Him.

We stand at the same crossroads. On which will we base our life and to which will we give our energies? Hungering and thirsting after righteousness is an active pursuit. We cannot passive follow Jesus. We must leave our nets and follow Him. Nothing else in this world will satisfy our soul. Nothing else will sustain our spirit. We must seek equilibrium with God with the same vigor we seek to feed ourselves each day. How much more important is it to nourish our soul which is eternal than to feed our face which is temporary? If we would only seek after relationship with the Father through the Son by the Holy Spirit with half as much energy as we did to feed our bodies, we would know a level of satisfaction that would sustain us for eternity.

Jesus spoke of "food that you know not of" when he disciples found him at the well conversing with the woman. They is nourishment and fulfillment that no amount of food can provide to our souls. There is sustenance and satisfaction that comes in the pursuit of the face of God that this world can never supply. If the declaration of the Poor in Spirit is "I Can't," and the admission of the Mourner is "I Hurt," and the statement of the Meek is "I Trust;" the confession of Those Who Hunger and Thirst after Righteousness is "I know there is more and I want it." "I Want More!"

We live in a cruel world that promises the moon and delivers the dump. There is no and never will be any satisfaction found in the things of this world. No matter how passionately you pursue it, this world can only disappoint. There is a fulfillment that can be experienced that does not disappoint. There is a satisfaction that can be received but it is only found in seeking equilibrium with God. It is only found in relationship with Him.

Have you come to the point where you know there is more to life, but are not sure where to find it? Are you ready to give up trying what you are trying that does not satisfy? Are you ready to seek something that will fulfill you? There is more and it is found in Jesus. Seek Him with all your heart and He willb e found. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be filled. Pursue Him and you will be satisfied.

Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.

Mon, 07 Mar 2016 15:58:07 +0100

Equilibrium is the state at which all competing influences are in balance. We might think that means a 50-50 proposition where each side has equal amount of energy exerted toward the other. In the Kingdom, being properly aligned with God requires an inverse proportion. Equilibrium with God demands 0% of us and 100% of Him.

In Matthew 5, equilibrium is described as "blessed." Jesus presents 8 "states of blessedness" in the introduction to His "Sermon on the Mount." Often called the "Beattitudes," these pronouncements of happiness define the progression and sequence for finding equilibrium with God.

We could also use words like balance and harmony because Jesus is showing us how to relate to the Father. The Hebrew concept of "shalom" can be employed to help us understand the equilibrium Jesus is offering. Shalom is more than just the cessation of hostility, but is the condition of being aligned with the universe, the absence of chaos, and peace with the world. Although these states of blessedness are largely experienced in the passive, that is they are something that is done to us, not by us, we still have to put ourselves in position to receive in order for the transformation process to be completed.

So the third declaration of Jesus is the blessed condition of being meek. It is the gentle and humble who will inherit the earth. Notice the spiritual and the natural are being mixed. The temporal and the eternal are being joined in those who have recognized their spiritual bankruptcy (the poor in spirit), have grieved their depraved condition and repented of it (those who mourn), and those who have not come to a place of complete and absolute trust in God. Meekness is not weakness. It is the state of being at peace within yourself because of a lack of confidence in self and total dependence on the Father. It is real humility that recognizes where one's strength and support come from.

Meekness is power under proper restraint. When tempted by the devil in the wilderness, Jesus had the power to turn the stones into bread, but He refrained because it was not the will of God. He restrained Himself from calling 10,000 angels to catch him if he jumped off the Temple roof. He had the power, but his meekness, His total dependence and trust in His Father would not allow Him to exercise it. It was not the will of God to reveal Himself this way so He restrained Himself. This kind of gentleness that has complete trust in God is what makes one meek.

Having the power and knowing what to do with it are two different things. Jesus is telling us His secret. God opposes the proud, but He gives grace to the humble. If we humble ourselves and obey Him, He will raise us up at the proper time. There is no room for pride in the Kingdom of God. This is the fault that sacked Lucifer. His downfall was simple pride. He thought more highly of himself than he should. Blessed are the meek is the affirmation of humility as the key character trait of Kingdom citizenship.

Again, meekness is not something to strive for. It is the result of recognizing our spiritual destitution. We are hapless, helpless, and hopelessness without God. When we repent and mourn our depraved state, God can move in to transform us. The outcome is our complete dependence on Him and His complete care for us. We can walk in humility when we know we are strengthened by an omnipotent God.

Meekness is not weakness. It is the lack of confidence in the flesh and self, and complete trust in God who strengthens us. It is humility personified and lived out daily in a lifestyle of obedience to the will of the Father. This could be considered the point where one is born from above. We relinquish all rights to ourselves, give our lives to Him, and allow Him to make us a new creation in Christ.

Moses was said to be one of the meekest men who ever lived, yet he delivered his people from the bondage of Egypt, sending 10 plagues to nearly destroy the nation. He parted the Red Sea and made water come from the rock. He received the Ten Commandments and judged the people. His face shone brilliant from having been in the very presence of God. Yet, it was his humility that distinguished him.

If the confession of being poor in spirit is "I Can't," and the cry of the mourner is "I Hurt," then the words of the meek are "I Trust!" Notice the progression and the sequence of these states of blessedness. First, we must recognize our fallen state. He do not have the capacity to change ourselves and boy do we need changing! Second, we must repent and grieve for our depravity. We need to emote the pain that sin has caused us and the suffering it has inflicted on others because of us. This is not a difficult task if left to the Holy Spirit. Like a skilled physician, He will remove the disease and begin the healing simultaneously. He is The Comforter after all. Once we have acknowledged our sin and repented of it, then God can transform us, forgiving us of our sins and initiating the process that will lead us to maturity in Him. The result, if the act of God has been successful in our lives, is a humility that is authentically based on our total dependence on Him. He has so shaken our world that He is the only one we will put our trust in.

Have you declared, "I Can't?" Have you admitted you hurt? Can you announce "I Trust?" If you can then you are well on you way to discovering for yourself equilibrium with God. It demands 100% of God and 0% of you. Allow God to pour you out and empty you of yourself so that He can fill you up with Him.

One last thought: "The Meek shall inherit the earth." God is not finished with you or His creation. This may be a promise of destiny in this life, but it surely is a promise of responsibility when Jesus returns and He brings with Him a new heaven and a new earth. Either way, the humble will control the real estate and the wealth of the wicked with finance the Kingdom of heaven on earth. In Whom is your trust? Blessed are the meek.

Tim

Blessed are Those who Mourn for They shall be Comforted.

Mon, 29 Feb 2016 15:37:10 +0100

In what universe is it blessed to mourn? Isn't mourning a sad state filled with sorrow and grief? Yet, our Lord clearly states that those who mourn must be considered to have entered a state of blessedness. The contradiction does not seem to disturb our Lord. In Matthew 5, blessed can be rendered “happy.” If we read it with this replacement it sounds even more conflicting. “Happy are those who mourn?”

The contrast is a paradox. You know, a seemingly contradictory statement that is necessarily true—like it is more tiring to stand than to walk. Or more fitting for the day this article is published (Feb. 29), a man born in 1960 on February 29 would have only had 14 birthdays, but still be 56 years old. Your head spinning? Back to the subject at hand. Jesus makes this strange statement for a reason and in a certain context. Context is important because it helps explain the statement. For example, did you know that the Bible states at least three time that there is no God? What? No way! Yes, way! But look at the context. Each time is like Psalm 14:1, “The fool says in his heart, 'There is no god.'” Context matters.

So, let's examine the context. The declaration that those who mourn are blessed follows the declaration that the poor in spirit are blessed. Remember, this passage is Jesus' Kingdom Manifesto. It is His Sermon on the Mount not only because He is preaching to people on the side of a hill, but He rises to heights in teaching unseen before. We are using the word equilibrium to describe what Jesus is calling us to. He is showing us how the Kingdom works and how to align with the King. The balance and harmony we so long for is at the end of this road that He is now giving us the map to. This journey to righteousness begins at an odd place. It begins in recognition and admission of complete and utter spiritual destitution. The poor in spirit admit “I Can't” because they have discovered they are incapable of anything without God. They are hapless, helpless, and hopeless, requiring the supernatural intervention of the divine to rescue them from their depraved state. It is those who admit their total spiritual bankruptcy who are citizens of the Kingdom of heaven.

Now, see Jesus's next statement is not out of line. It is the perfect progression in the sequence of His revelation. When we finally recognize our total depravity (poor in spirit) and we embrace and admit it, then it is natural to grieve over out utterly helpless condition. Mourning is the natural response to death. Paul tells us in Ephesians 2, that we were once dead in our trespasses and sins. Poor in spirit is Jesus' wonderfully poetic way of stating this obvious fact. Before Jesus, we were dead—hopeless and without God. Does it now sound logical that we would mourn our condition? Experts tell us that grief is a process that needs to be worked through to the end. It involves stages like shock and disbelief. It can include depression and anger. But once we come to grips with the loss, in time we can accept it and be comforted, and move on. Jesus is giving us permission to express sorrow over our total spiritual destitution. F.B. Meyer, the late editor of Christianity Today, said, “There can be no comfort without mourning.” Until we grieve we will not experience His grace.

Essential to this statement of blessedness and inherent in the transformation to equilibrium is the promise of comfort. Mourning is a blessed state in the progression to proper alignment with God because in it we find comfort. In the the dark night of the soul we discover the light of the world. In the pit with Joseph we learn that the only place to look is up. We would not know healing if not for the pain. We would not know we have a King who can deliver unless He delivers us. We would not completely understand our spiritual destitution without experiencing the shame and guilt it produces.

This declaration of blessedness is a message of hope that such things are temporary and fleeting in the Kingdom of heaven. They serve a purpose for our experience, establishing a foundation on which to build and give glory to God. “I once was lost, but now I am found! I was blind, but now I see!” If we grieve the pain caused by our depravity, we will be comforted toward wholeness. Mourning is a key step in the progressive sequence to equilibrium with the Father.

So, grieve! Mourn! Feel sorrow for your sins and vile acts that kept you from knowing God and entering His Kingdom. If you do, if you really let go and weep and wail for your sins, the very God of heaven with His Son and accompanied by His Holy Spirit will comfort you in your darkest hour. You can consider yourself blessed and happy when you grieve for your condition without God. Confession is good for the soul and does wonders for the conscience. Mourning removes guilt and shame and replaces it with grace and mercy. When the enemy wants to remind you of past failings, remind him that they are under the blood—forgiven!

Equilibrium is the blessed state of being properly aligned with God. Recall that it is an inverse proportion. More of you means less of Him. Mourning has the ability to lower us to a very good place. It puts us in a location where God is all we have and the only One we can look to for help. All other things in this life, including people, will fail us. If the poor in spirit declare, “I Can't,” those who mourn admit, “I Hurt!” When we confess we hurt, we give the Father permission to move in and comfort us. There is no comfort like the mercy of God. There is not fix like grace.

Embrace your sad, depressed position for a moment. Let the pain of guilt and shame overwhelm you for just a second. Feel it, grieve it. Sorrow only lasts for the night, joy comes in the morning! Your morning is here. Your mourning is over! Receive the comfort of the Spirit who is The Comforter. Your pain, and the healing that follows, is proof you are on the road to righteousness. You are moving toward equilibrium with the Father. Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted.

Equilibirum

Tue, 23 Feb 2016 23:55:14 +0100

Jesus presents us with His Kingdom Manifesto beginning in Matthew Five. He introduces His famous Sermon on the Mount with the announcement of 8 states of blessedness. Each declaration begins with "Blessed." These eight conditions are often called the "Beattitudes."

Blessed in this context can be translated "happy" but happiness in modern English usually describe sentiment based on the circumstances. The phases presented by Jesus are far from solely emotional and have foundation even farther beyond changing circumstances. These pronouncements represent spiritual conditions that transcend this temporal world. They are Kingdom concepts presented to call all who hear them to come up higher to the plain where heaven invades earth.

The term I choose to employ to describe these eight states of blessedness is "equilibrium." Equilibrium is the state when all influences are in balance with one another. It can be viewed as harmony. The Hebrew concept of "shalom" can be evoked to explain it. The theological term of "righteousness" also helps us understand the equilibrium Jesus is proclaiming in these verses of scripture.

Equilibrium in this passage describes an inverse ratio. The balance struck in this equilibrium is not 50-50. It is 100% and 0%. These conditions of a person imply that it requires 100% of God and 0% of me for the blessed state of equilibrium to be found. Thus, Jesus makes the most remarkable statement concerning those who are citizens of the Kingdom. He unequivocally declares that it is the "Poor in Spirit" who possess the Kingdom of heaven. What a conflicting statement! What a contrasting declaration! Who would have ever called poverty and destitution blessed? When has bankruptcy ever been considered a happy condition to be in? Why does Jesus begin His sermon on the Kingdom of heaven with such a strange pronouncement? The answer is that the Kingdom of heaven is not of this world and does not conform to the standards of the earth.

To be poor in spirit is to be totally depraved which is the true condition of man. As children of father Adam, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Spiritual poverty is our condition without God. We are hapless, unable to find our way. We are helpless, unable to change our lot. We are hopeless, desperately lost without divine intervention. Francis Capone says that the Kingdom of God is for the littlest, the least, the last, the lowest, the lost, and the loser. Jesus says unless you become like a little child, you cannot enter the Kingdom of heaven. He further declares that if you do not care for the least of these, He does not know you. It is the first that will be last and the last first in the Kingdom of God. When Christ stooped to wash His disciples feet He was declaring the value of service and forever turned the world upside down, making the lowest the greatest in His Kingdom. It is the one lost lamb that the shepherd pursues in Luke 15. In essence, the Kingdom of God is for losers!

The Kingdom is for those who have come to recognize their hopelessness without God. Being poor in spirit is blessed because it represents the recognition of one's true state and looks solely to the Father for life. Being poor in spirit is the admission of helplessness and the declaration of "I CAN'T! When we finally arrive at the inevitable conclusion that we cannot make it on our own, the Father replies that we were never intended to. We can't because we can't. We are unable. We do not possess the capacity to save ourselves from our sins. We cannot enter the Kingdom of heaven without a tremendous amount of assistance from God.

We are extremely poor in spirit. In fact, we are dead. We owe a debt that can never be repaid until Christ steps up and offers Himself as the ransom for many. He is the firstborn Son who came to earth to bring many sons to glory. The Kingdom of God is possessed by the former losers in this life who the world considered the lowest, the least, the last, the lost, and the littlest. Those whom the world would reject have become the citizens of the Kingdom of God.

Don't be offended by the words of Jesus. Embrace them. Accept your absolute spiritual bankruptcy and enter the Kingdom. When we recognize our real condition and receive God's remedy in Christ, then we begin to understand what He means when he says, "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven." The journey to finding our identity in Jesus begins with admitting our total and complete spiritual poverty and our total helplessness to alter our situation. When we recognize our true spiritual destitution, then the Father can step in and make us His own. It begins with accepting reality and allowing the sufficiency of Jesus to make us brand new.

Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Welcome to a journey of a lifetime that begins with us at our lowest and finishes with us at the heights of experiencing and demonstrating our family likeness to the Father and the Son by the Holy Spirit.

Signficance

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 03:45:43 +0100

Do you ever wonder if you make a difference? Do you ever wonder what value you have or if you have any worth at all? We are so prone to measure our self-worth by what we do or what we produce. Is there an intrinsic value in just being? Do only those in charge and on the platform matter? What about those who sit in the background and simply show up? Do they make a difference? What about those with little to give. Is a child the same value as a rich businessman?

My questions center on significance and how it is measured. According to the dictionary, significance means the quality of being important. Important is something marked by or indicative of significant worth or consequence. Importance means that someone or something is valuable in content or relationship. So how do we measure significance? What is really important?

One way to measure importance is to observe the impact that a thing or individual has on a certain situation or event. I was wondering about my significance the other day and the story of the young boy with a sack lunch came to mind. It is found in John 6. Although every Gospel writer mentions the story for its impact, only John gives the intimate details of the event. Matthew, Mark and Luke all relate that over 5000 people were fed by Jesus with only five loaves of bread and a couple of fish. John tells us who found the boy with the fish and bread and why Jesus chose to defy natural physics to feed the people. All the writers in their separate accounts recall the compassion that Jesus felt for the crowd at so late an hour and so far from home. The hospitality of His heart moved Him to act supernaturally, but He did not do it without human assistance.

The first thing we need to see from this story is the purpose of miracles. John clearly relates that Jesus called upon Philip to “prove” him. This does not mean it was a test in the sense of receiving a pass or fail grade. It was a trial to demonstrate what Philip and the other disciples did not know that had in them. The purpose of miracles is to increase our faith!

Philip walked with Jesus but Jesus wanted him to go further and not only be with Jesus, but be like Jesus. He wanted Philip and the other disciples to do what He did and say what He said. Just as the Father had sent Him, He was preparing the disciples to be sent, too. This is the Great Commission in its most graceful essence; as the Father has sent me, so send I you. Philip had not yet apprehended this truth, but he would. We see him in the book of Acts traveling at light-speed, impacting nations. He followed his Lord and this miracle increased his faith. The purpose of miracles is to increase our faith.

As Philip was left pondering the expense of feeding all these people (the equivalent of 200 days wages; tens of thousands of dollars in today’s currency). Andrew appears with a small boy in tow. We might think that Andrew exercised faith in bringing the boy, but his words betray him. As he presents the boy with his small sack lunch, apparently the only food for miles, Andrew’s lack of faith is revealed when he comments, “but what is this among so many?” Even he thought the task impossible. It was, until Jesus did what Jesus did best. The second thing we need to learn from this story is the pattern of miracles. Miracles always begin with human need and are accomplished through human agency. Jesus had presented a problem to the disciples. How are we going to feed all these people? He made them responsible for the task. They were immediately overwhelmed. The need in this situation was for immediate sustenance, but the larger lesson was for increased faith.

Feeding a bunch of people with a little food is really no big deal. I write that tongue-in-cheek. Of course, feeding 20 people with only two fish and five small loaves of bread is impossible. These loves were more like small rolls than the Mrs. Baird’s bread we know today. But I have seen it happen! Several years ago, I led a group of volunteers to Guatemala. We planned to minister to two communities in a beautiful mountain valley in the highlands of Huehuetanago. One village was across a river and some distance from civilization. We learned that people had walked for over a day to come to our events. We preached the Word and played with the children and taught the adults all morning and took a break for lunch. Our hosts had packed a lunch of chicken salad for the dozen of so volunteers in our group. We began to serve one another and some became uneasy because all the local people were standing around and many had not made provision for lunch. It was a natural conclusion to share our little fare of a medium bowl of chicken salad and about a dozen hotdog buns. We began to share and share and share. No one noticed at the time, but soon everyone who wanted something to eat had received something to eat. After stopping the count at well over 150 people, there were still some chicken salad and a couple of buns left. God had repeated the miracle of the loaves and fish, this time with chicken salad and hotdog buns. It was by no means on scale with the 5000+ that Jesus fed, but it was amazing. It did wonders to increase our faith. Feeding a multitude of people with a small sack lunch is no big thing for Jesus.

It all begins with a need. This is the mystery of God, the Father. He calls us to pray, knowing what we have need of before we ask. He even seems to create the need that prompts the prayer. The need here was caused by the reception of Jesus’ message. When He preached, He drew a crowd. Every miracle wrought by God begins with a human need. In this case it was for food.

Every miracle then moves from need to provision by the means of human agency. Jesus saw the need. He pointed it out to the disciples. In the other Gospel accounts, the disciples brought the need to the attention of Jesus. The need was known and Jesus looked to His disciple to be responsible. He was not looking for them to fix it because He knew they were not equipped. He was looking to them to see if they knew what to do and where to look for an answer. As Father, God is responsible for provision. Everything on earth is His. We are to be good stewards of what He gives us. So Jesus was prompting the disciples to look to the Father for the solution and the Father was waiting for their prayer to move.

Andrew brought the young boy with the sack lunch, but he revealed his lack of faith because of the large crowd. He was thinking in human terms. God does not need our thinking or our reasoning or even our best efforts. Collectively, they amount to nothing and less than nothing. What the Father is looking for is our willingness to serve and our availability to be used. Andrew did show up. The little boy showed up. Showing up is what Jesus was looking for.

In the movie Hardball with Keanu Reeves, there is a powerful scene that I can only hope to convey to you. The story is about a self-absorbed gambling addict that has hit rock bottom. He is forced to coach a Little League team in the Cabrini Green Projects of Chicago’s south side. Known as the worst housing project in America, Cabrini Green was a cesspool of gangs, drugs, alcoholics and absentee parents. Over time the young man was changed by his relationship with the team members. At the final game of the season, the team is ruled ineligible to play for the championship and Keanu’s character makes the most pitiful peptalk of all time. It was not the manner, but the words that make it memorable. He admitted his love and appreciation for each member of the team and commended them with this one phrase, “You blow me away with your ability to show up!” They were winners in life simply because they showed up. No championship could validate the significance they had earned simply by showing up.

Is that not all God ask of us? He does no demand excellence or even our best because He knows we are powerless and useless alone. Only our ability to show up coupled with His ability to do the impossible transform things. Feeding 5000+ people was a human impossibility. Jesus could have called caterers from heaven to feed these people, but His intent was to use His disciples. Every miracle begins with human needs and progresses through human agency.

So, the disciples and this little boy showed up. Jesus used them to perform a miracle. He had them gather the people in groups, had them sit down and then proceeded to pass out the provisions. The purpose of a miracle is to increase faith. The pattern of a miracle is to begin with a need and to use human agency. The process of a miracle is obedience. Simply obeying the commands of Jesus precipitated this feeding of over 5000 people. The disciples did what they were told. The key to the occurrence of a miracle is obedience. They sat the people down in groups of 50 and served them. The provision was not theirs. They could not afford it or have arranged it. All they had was enough food for one small boy, but Jesus multiplied it and they stewarded the provision by obediently giving it away. They gave and they gave and they gave until every person had enough and there was still some left over. The process of a miracle is obedience.

This is where the cycle of the supernatural too often breaks down. Everyone can see the need. Some even have the provision, but like Andrew do not believe it will be enough. They key to seeing the miraculous is obedience. We must do what the Father commands. It normally involves some kind of sacrifice on our part. We often have to give what God has given us. The sacrifice of obedience is the spark that lights the flame of the supernatural that can blaze into a wildfire of spiritual transformation. In many cases the lack of the miraculous is a sign of disobedience or the neglect of doing what we know the Father wants us to do. It may not be rebellion; it is most likely passive disregard for others. Do you need a miracle? Give! The Law of the Harvest dictates that fruit comes from like seed. Most often we need to give what we need the most. Give what you have! Be the human agent that meets the need by being obedient. The result is an abundance where there once was want.

There was enough left over from this supernatural event for every disciple to take some home with them. Everyone was satisfied and the disciples left the field with more faith and plenty of food for tomorrow. The product of a miracle is abundance. The need is met with some left over.

So what does this story have to do with significance? Look at it from the point of view of the little boy. He came to see the "Jesus show" and mom packed him a lunch. Who was he? He was just a little boy with a sack lunch. He was not even an adult. He had no wisdom, no experience; he had nothing but a lunch. I dare say that this event could not have happened the way it did without him. This insignificant little boy with no name and only a lunch became the lynchpin to the success of this miracle. His few loaves and a couple of fish were all Jesus needed to work the supernatural. How do you measure significance? Do you look at a man's bank account? Do you review a resume for successes? Does name recognition matter? How about how big the business is? What really determines importance? Could it be that simply showing up and giving defines real eternal significance?

This encouragement is for all of the “little boys” out there who feel that don’t make a difference. To you who feel that you have nothing to add and may never make an impact in people’s lives, I commend this little boy. Continue to show up! Give when you see a need. Let the Father do the rest. This is the secret to genuine and lasting importance. Let Jesus prove you and increase your faith. There is something in you of which you are not even aware. Let the present need expose it and show up. Give and obey. Watch God use you and be ready to reap more than you have ever had before. The abundance is the provision for the next miracle. Jesus wants to elevate your faith account. Look at the need before you. What do you have that you can give? Give it and watch the Father transform things.

Significance is not about wealth or talent. Importance has to do with usefulness and productivity. Eternal significance involves making yourself available to God. He can use anything. He does use humans and need to accomplish His will. Next time you are tempted to question your self-worth, remember significance is a matter of being in the right place at the right time. It means showing up and giving. The rest is up to God. Do you think the little boy with the lunch felt significant before the meal. You know he did afterward!

tpt

A Man with Nothing

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 17:14:50 +0100

About the time I was starting to believe that the gatherings of fathers and sons at Firecreek Mountain in North Carolina could get no better, the Father shows up and elevates everything and everyone to a higher level. He is amazing! This past week we gathered with about 25 men from all over the country. A large portion of the group was from Long Island, New York (pronounced: "Lawn-Gyland, Nu Yawk"). I fell in love with this guys! They were so refreshing and open and honest and hungry for the Lord to do something in their lives and in their churches. And God did do something! I hope to have testimonies and even a couple of books coming from these guys soon!

I was impacted by this group and by the several fathers that attended. The release of the Father through spiritual fathers is powerful and transforming. Doug White, longtime friend and experienced pastor, had a profound influence on everyone present. Businessman from Tennessee, Charlie Greene, will be impacting me for a long time to come. I thank God for them and pray that God will open doors for their wisdom and ministry to expand. Dad was well behaved this week complying with our commands not to leave the mainhouse because of the steep stairs and the rough terrain. He was indeed like Paul in Acts 28, under house arrest. He rested and his strength is increasing and his impact on men is advancing even beyond what we have experienced before. You will want to be with him as soon as you can and we will be announcing additional opportunities for you to do just that in the very near future. If you want to see him real soon, he will be at the Encourager Church in Houston, Texas for Sunday, September 18. More relationally focused opportunities are in the works.

Dad has had to cancel most of his upcoming schedule as we reassess his ministry lifestyle. We apologize for this, but it is necessary as we create a new model for ministry that looks more like "come and see" than "go and tell." We will all be blessed because of the changes with longevity and empowered legacy.

What I am returning home with from this particular gathering is a better understanding of a man with nothing. A man with nothing has nothing to lose, nothing to promote and nothing to fear. Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:3 that the Kingdom of heaven is populated with those who are "poor in spirit." Kingdom inhabitants are men and women with nothing of their own. They have either lost it, wasted it, had it stolen, run out of it or given it away. The "poor in spirit" are the last in this world. They are the least and the lost and the littlest. They are the lowest and are willing to admit it. That is their salvation. They are spiritually destitute and they know it. They are morally bankrupt and they embrace it. They are nothing and they have nothing so they have nothing that can be taken from them because it already has been taken.

The "poor in spirit" arrive at this conclusion at their own expense. They blame no one else but themselves. They are not victims, but self-convicted criminals. They are more aware than anyone how much they do not have and how insignificant they are outside the Kingdom. Jesus once said that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a "rich man" to enter the Kingdom of heaven. You cannot enter the Kingdom with anything. You cannot buy it or earn it or gain it in any way by yourself. It is a gift that requires everything and leaves you with nothing but the Kingdom, but when you have the Kingdom you have everything. You can have everything and not have the Kingdom and you have nothing. You can have the Kingdom and have nothing and discover that you have everything. It is a paradox of divine proportions.

A man with nothing is the freest man on earth. Jesus said in another time that Satan had nothing in Him. This was proven during the 40 days of temptation that preceded his ministry. Yet, another time Jesus declared to Peter that the devil wished to "sift him like wheat" because there was much in him that the enemy could influence. A man with nothing has nothing to protect and nothing to defend. A man with nothing has nothing bargain with and nothing to with which to admire himself to other people. He has nothing to fear because all he has is the love of the Father.

I am in the school of the Father's discipline learning to become a man with nothing. It is the most liberating thing I have ever done, once you get past the initial shock and pain of losing everything. Then you realize that it was never really yours to begin with. Nothing was who you have always been and nothing is what you have always had no matter how much you possess or how important you thought you were. God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. The past weeks walking through the crisis with Dad has opened my eyes to how much I really have in family and friends and the Kingdom and how much I really do not have, or now even care that I ever had. He is enough. He is my Shepherd, my Father, my Source and I shall not want because He is all I need and now all I want. It is absolutely true. If I will seek the Kingdom, first and foremost, and righteousness with Him, everything will take care of itself. Everything else will fall into place. God, the Father, delights in providing for me and protecting me and preparing me and giving me purpose. I derive my identity from Him. I can imitate Him and be blessed. I have an inheritance from Him and His interest are becoming mine, as I too, learn how to be about my Father's business.

I have developed a fresh appreciation for the only commandment (of the Ten) with a promise:

"Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee."

Exodus 20:12

I believe this is the key to our future. God is calling is to be people with nothing so that we can honor the Father and our fathers with all we have. As we learn to do this we will all be blessed.

tim

Crossroads

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 14:36:20 +0100

Everywhere you look today you can see crisis. An unnerving number of these crisis are divisions among groups. The NFL finds itself at a crossroads with owners pitted against players. The same is true of the NBA. Our nation stands at a fork in the road with Congress steering one direction and the President another concerning the debt ceiling. Choices are going to be made that will effect all of us. First of all, we need to pray. We need to pray to the Father for His Kingdom to come and His Will to be done. We need real help and men and women who will make the right choices. I am confident in our Father. I am not so sure of our elected leaders.

Today, we stand at a crossroads in time. We are less than seven years from the 500th anniversary of the day Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenberg Chapel launching the Reformation. Luther steered the ship of the Church at the crossroads of his day, restoring the teaching of the Priesthood of the Believer and ushering in the radical changes that we now call Protestantism. Five hundred years later, we face choices as we approach the latest crossroad in Church history.

One thing we know about the Kingdom of God is that it is relational. This is the same truth that moved Luther. God, the Father desires a personal relationship with His sons, through His Son by the Holy Spirit. The God-head is the first and primary community. Creation is an expression of Him. God is our Father and He intends mankind to be His family. Every man, woman and child on earth has or will stand at their own crossroad to decide which path to take. Will you follow Jesus or will you choose the way of Adam? We all know the results of Adam's choice. Your's will end no different if that is the way you choose.

The Church of Jesus Christ faces no less a decision. Like in Luther's day, the Church has become big business. I have been amazed as I traveled in Latin America to see the massive and magnificent edifices erected in the name of God among some of the worst poverty on earth. I have also been disappointed to know that such enormous structures were built on the backs of the poor. Such buildings have become monuments to man and not houses of God.

I can drive through the metroplex where I live and see some of the most attractive gathering places, most built in the name of God. I know we need places to meet, but how much is too much? I think I know how Luther must have felt. I don't believe he had any intention of changing his world. He just saw some things that disturb him and he made them known. He loved the Roman Church and only separated from her to save his life. The theology sprang out of the abuses he observed. He saw where they could lead. I am seeing where some things we do today can lead and I am disturb. I do not know that I can tell you exactly why, but I am disturbed. I am not mad at anybody nor do I have all the solutions, but in the words of Bob Mumford, "There may be nothing wrong, but it is just not right!"

On July 12th in My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers says, "The Church ceases to be a spiritual society when it is on the look-out for the development of its own organization." This is what I fear most, that we are no longer doing the Will of the Father by invoking the Kingdom, but we are building our own little fiefdoms. Just because you can draw a big crowd does not mean it is a church. The Church is the family of God, the Body of Christ, where every member plays a vital role in sustaining Herself and fulfilling Her mission. My complaint is that if the Church in the US was being the Body of Christ, we would be facing our other crisis with confidence. I am not trying to equate the US with the Church, but where is Her influence? Today's economic and political scene are vivid proof of the failures of man. Man cannot rescue us from the pit we have dug for ourselves. The President and Congress, whether you agree with them or not, will not solve our problems. They cannot because they are not able!

So, do I have the answer? All I know is that we stand at a crossroads as a nation and the Church stands at a similar fork in the road. Who we will be and what we can do will be determined by which path we take. The Way of the cross is sacrifice. The model of Paul is death to self and personal abandonment. The call of Christ is to seek first the Kingdom, and His righteousness, and everything else will fall in place. We desperately need statesmen, naturally and spiritually, who will call us to self-sacrifice and lead us to invoke the Kingdom of heaven. The challenge is will you and me be one of those statesmen.

A Father’s Day Tribute: 2011

Thu, 16 Jun 2011 14:40:39 +0100

As I contemplate how to honor my dad this Father’s Day, I am reminded of the song about a mother written by Ray Wiley Hubbard. It has nothing to do with Father’s Day and I am not quite sure why I am mentioning it, but the mention of it may bring an irreverent smirk to your lips. If you do not know what I am talking about, then all the better.

I am also reminded of who a father is as we approach another Father’s Day. Fathers are vitally important to our lives whether we recognize it or not. Whether you had a good experience with your father, or had an unfortunately hard time growing up in a home where your father was absent or abusive, your experience with your father colors your view of God. You cannot help it. This is just the way things are. God is the ideal father and earthly fathers influence our image of God. So, the things I write next may bother and even offend you, but in order to regain a proper view of God, you will need to release your earthly father. Forgiving your earthly father is the first step to restoring a relationship with the heavenly Father.

The ideal Father does at least three things. He provides. He protects and He gives purpose. Obviously, if your earthly father failed to do any one of these things you will lack a proper understanding of the heavenly Father and will need Him to demonstrate the lacking activity directly in your life. God desires to Father all of His creation. His passion for you is boundless. Paul says that the height, width, length and depth of His love cannot be measured. He may use earthly agents to provide for you, but it is He who ultimately cares for your every need.

Fathers provide for their children because they love them. Provision is the first sign of love. Compassion is revealed in demonstration. Think of the Good Samaritan. Three men past by the beaten wretch before the stranger stopped to render aid. The first three may have thought they loved their fellow man, but only the Samaritan demonstrated it. Love is something you do not something you say. God proves His love for us by providing for our every need. If you have a problem with this because your earthly father did not provide for you or you think your heavenly Father is not providing for you properly right now, then you need to take a closer look. No matter how independent you think you are, no man is an island. God may use human agency, but He is the ultimate provider. Our heavenly Father provides for us because He loves us. If you will recognize His provision for you, then you will see His love.

Fathers also protect. Again, you may feel like God has abandoned you because of an abusive father. Where was God when your father beat you? Even in the pain your heavenly Father was present, even more so because of the pain. It is by His stripes that we are healed. Our heavenly Father never promised to save us from pain, but He does promise to not let that pain harm us. He did not withhold suffering from His own Son because it served His purposes. We do not know why and may never know why, but God does protect us and will secure our souls for eternity. Because you suffer pain in this life does not mean God has abandoned you. On the contrary, the reverse is true. Discipline is a sign of sonship according to Hebrews 12. If God allows us to suffer it is because He has a greater purpose and that purpose is to make us obedient sons. His protection of you is a demonstration of His love. His allowing you to suffer is proof you are a son.

Fathers provide and fathers protect. Fathers also give purpose. This is the main reason a father is so important in a child’s life. Sons learn to become men and fathers by watching their father. As with most practical education, more is caught than taught. Sons naturally want to be like their father, talking and even walking like them. Imitation is the primary form of learning. We can watch our heavenly Father and learn how to be what He made us to be. Fathers produce sons. Sons become fathers. A person’s specific calling is defined by the Father, but the ultimate goal is reproduction and generational transfer. Jesus knew this fact of life at age twelve when He said that He must be about His Father’s business. Fathers provide, protect and give purpose. Your heavenly Father desires to demonstrate His love to you in these ways. Look and you will most certainly see how He has and is doing this very thing

As these are the primary functions of the Father, there are three things that a son receives from the father. First, a son receives his identity from his father. Next, he receives an inheritance from his father; and third, a son receives His Father’s interests in order to become a mature son and eventually a father himself.

Sons are given their father’s surname. This forever identifies them with him. This is true of almost every culture on earth and very prominent in some. The term “bar” in the time Jesus walked the earth means “son of.” Many men of that day were introduced like Peter, “Simon Barjonah.” He was Peter, also called Simon, son of Jonah. Ben is the Arabic equivalent. Osama Ben Laden is the son of Laden. For better or worse we gain our identity from our father. As we identify with the Father, we become more like Him. His character becomes our’s. We imitate Him and adopt His ways as we do His will. As His word pervades our lives we became more like Him. Believers were first called “Christians” in Antioch because they so resembled the Christ. We will be called the sons of God as we become identified with Him and His Son. This means identifying with Him in His life, death and resurrection! Fathers make us who we are as they mold us into their likeness. The key is cooperating with the Father to allow Him to make us like Him.

Sons also receive an inheritance. As heirs, we are eligible to receive all that the Father possesses. Our heavenly Father owns everything. As His sons, so do we. Please do not fall in the trap of thinking in material terms. Earthly wealth is the least valuable part of the inheritance we receive in Christ. Our inheritance is eternal and worth far more than houses and lands. As sons we stand to inherit all that God has. As His sons, we will be motivated to give it all away. You have everything you need. Let the Father show it to you and allow Him to shift your thinking from the material to the eternal. Let the Father give you the mind of Christ who was willing to sacrifice even His place in heaven to accomplish the Father’s will. He is now seated in the heavenlies with everything in this world under His feet. One day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that He is Lord of all! This is our inheritance if we will humble ourselves as He did and live a life of absolute obedient dependence on the Father.

This is why many have difficulty with accepting the Father/Son paradigm. It demands too much. It requires complete trust in others and total abandonment of the things of this world. The third thing a son receives from his father is his interest. Jesus knew at age twelve that He had to be about the things that interested His Father. As sons we are called to the family business which is saving souls and receiving a Kingdom. The Kingdom is our inheritance. Many sons are God’s inheritance. We involve ourselves in the things of God by faith demonstrated by obedience. God demonstrates His love for us by providing and protecting us, as well as giving us His purpose for life. We demonstrate our faith in Him by obedience. Even if you feel empty and that you received nothing of value from your earthly father, your heavenly Father can change all that and transform you into His son. He will provide for you. He will protect you. He will give you purpose for living. This is what at Father does. Sons know this and cooperate with the Father by obeying Him and becoming His representatives on earth.

A Kingdom has come and the King is at hand. He is within reach. It is among us. On this Father’s Day, as you pause to remember your dad, good or bad, receive the Father. He is demonstrating His love for you every day by His provision, protection and purpose for your life. I thank God that I have a great earthly father and he has faithfully portrayed the Father to me all of my life. I know this is not true for all of us, but that can be changed and relationship with the Father restored. There is no greater task on earth than to be a son and to know the Father. It is a privilege and an honor to know Him. He deserves all of our respect and devotion. As we approach the one day each year set aside to honor fathers, let us worship our Father in heaven, praying for His Kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven. I bless my heavenly Father. I bless my earthly father. I bless you as you discover sonship in a fresh way this Father’s Day.

tim

The "I's" Have It

Sun, 12 Jun 2011 20:54:22 +0100

I embark on a perilous mission with this blog. I have been prompted to put down in words a basic statement of faith in layman's terms. It will follow no established order or even look like any statements of faith from the past or present. It will involve words beginning with I. So, the "I's" have it...

The first I stands for infallible. Regardless of one's place on the spectrum of liberal to conservative, there are certain non-negotiables that cannot be compromised. Their absolute nature is what defines you position and forms the foundation upon which all other understanding is erected. For me, the Word of God is infallible. It is the standard for belief and conduct. It is truth. It is transcendent and it is trustworthy.

The Word of God is an expression of the Will of God, thus it is infallible. It has yet to be proven wrong and as history continues will be proven correct. This does not imply a literal hermeneutic because like all great literature, the author often takes poetic license. The infallible Word of God does imply source truth. The Word of God is the antecedent of all wisdom because God is its author. The Word of God is truth and the Spirit of God is the Spirit of truth. Where there is contradiction, the Word of God is the arbiter. It is the final word. As God is infallible and cannot be wrong, mistaken or fail. So His Word takes on the nature of His character. He is true so His Word is truth.

The Word of God is infallible because it is transcendent. Notice I have not used the word Bible or scripture. This is because the Word of God is no limited to the written record. The Bible is a miracle of infallibility. It is miraculous in its preservation. God has not only used men to record His Word for us in Holy Scripture, but He has employed men to maintain it's veracity in content and spirit. The Bible is this most investigated piece of ancient literature and still has yet to be proven in error. It is also miraculous in inspiration. It is the Word of God, breathed from His own mouth and recorded by been as the Spirit gave direction. The Bible is no ordinary book because it contains the written record of the Will of God. Scripture is also miraculous in its illumination. No only did the Spirit author it, but the same Spirit of God "quickens" it. The Holy Spirit makes it come alive and gives words written thousands of years ago fresh personal relevance. The Bible is infallible written record of the Will of God, but God still speaks. His words can still be heard as the Spirit shines His divine light on the written word to speak to us today.

The Greek gives us two primary words for the word "word." One is the general and more inclusive word for the Word of God. We call it logos. John relates that Jesus is the logos of God. He is the Word that was with God in the beginning and is has been incarnated to perform the Will of God. He is infallible and totally inseparable, but unique to the written word. Jesus came to restore relationship with the Father not establish a new religion. The Bible points us to that relationship, but we cannot have fellowship with a book. Spirit makes the logos real and relevant to us. He illumines scripture so that the logos becomes rhema. This is the word used in the Greek language that defines an illumined word from God. Rhema is the logos made fresh and real to us by the Holy Spirit as we employ our faith to read and listen to the Word of God. It is equally infallible and effective for salvation. The infallible Word of God is truth and it is transcendent, making it real across the centuries. The inspired and illumined Word of God transcends time and space and is as relevant today as it was the day it was first penned.

The Word is infallible also because it is trustworthy. Because faith in Jesus Christ is not another religion, but an invitation to relationship, it requires trust. Trust is the currency of fellowship. There can be no relationship without trust. Trust is faith added to obedience that results in real hope. Because the Word of God is unerring truth, it can be trusted. One can build their life on it and with it. My emphasis is upon the infallible Word of God because one cannot fellowship with a book. Trust is for people. It is the bond that unites them. The Word of God can be trusted and it reveals to our mind who God is and to our spirit that He is who He says He is. It is still impossible to please God without faith. (Hebrews 11:6) This is where obedience creates trust. Because the Word of God is infallible, it can be trusted. We can believe it, obey it and experience the author of it. The Word of God can be trusted and it is infallible because of this fact of faith.

Infallibility is a large assertion. In a world of lies and ambiguity, absolutes are hard to find. Like the physical laws of the creation, spiritual laws govern the universe. They can be denied but braking them has consequences. Jesus closes the Sermon on the Mount with an almost childish illustrates that overwhelms with its simplicity. He describes two men who built house. One erected his on a foundation of sand. The other constructed his on a bedrock of stone. When the storms came and rain fell, the house built on sand was washed away because it lack a firm foundation. The house built on the rock remained. The Word of God is the bedrock. All other foundation is sinking sand. The Word of God is truth. It is truth for us today because it is transcendent. By the Holy Spirit words on a page can come to life and transform. The Word is also trustworthy. Lives can be built upon it. It is the only foundation that aligns us with God. As an expression of God it is the only infallible reality in our world. There is no more stable a foundation upon which to build one's experience.

In the past several months, everything in which most people have trusted has been shaken if not destroyed. Who could have predicted the failure of the largest Wall Street firms and the bankruptcy of GM. Men look to education as their source of power in life and in the past 40 years we have spent billions of dollars to improve our educational system and we are still falling behind the rest of the world. Even nature seems to be against as hurricanes and wildfires and floods ravage the land. Church and government leaders seem to fall like dead flies every week. No one trust Washington. Used to be if it was said on television or written in a newspaper you could take it as truth. No any more as personal agendas override integrity and plagiarism becomes common. The bottom line is that everything that we thought we could trust is proving to be unreliable. More reason to turn to the infallible Word of God as our mooring for life. Dig deep and plunge your peers deep in the Word and watch everything fall apart around you. The Word of God is infallible because it is the truth, it is transcendent and it can be trusted!

tim

Forgotten How to Win

Mon, 30 May 2011 10:55:23 +0100

I attended a very small private High School. There were only eleven in my graduating class. This was in the days prior to the plethora of private schools that offer full athletic programs that rival public schools. We competed with the public schools because that was all there was to play, but our school population was dwarfed by the size of most of the schools we played. We contended, but rarely won. I remember how easy it was to get used to losing because it seemed no matter how hard we played, we could not beat the schools with the larger student bodies. I am reminded of this phenomenon as I contemplate the spiritual life of the follower of Christ. A number of factors weigh heavy on us to inflict this losing syndrome. If we are not careful, we can get used to losing in our spiritual lives as well.

One such factor is our insistence on relegating all the blessings of our relationship with the Father through the Son to the future. The prevailing escatalogical approach tends to see this life as a nuisance to be avoided and that we will some day escape for the “sweet by-and-by.” Witness the varied reactions of the “believers” in the latest guess at the date of the rapture. Some sold all they had or gave it away thinking they would not need it because they were out of here. I was puzzled by the almost complete lack of compassion for those to be left behind, who would then suffer at the hand of unrestrained evil. If this world is only a temporary stopover before some future rapture, then why fight it. There is no need to win because the cavalry will ride over the hill and save us just before we are destroyed. It is easy to develop a losing mentality when your only hope is escaping this place as it inevitably spirals down the toilet of history.

Another factor is that same inevitable resistance that we encounter whenever we try to be creative or do good. We can be selfish and waste time and experience not conflict, but attempt to better yourself or be productive and you meet resistance head on. You can call it evil or simply the result of the Fall. It is always confronting you, putting you in conflict with yourself and others. Resistance comes in the form of sickness, persecution and suffering, just to name a few. It wears you down and no matter how much faith you have, you can still be seduced into thinking that this is just the way it is. You begin to believe that there is nothing you can do about it. Pain and suffering are part of life, but they do not have to rule us. Yet again, we can easily fall prey to the predator of forgetting how to win.

Our world gives us no hope. I marvel at the prevalence of the popular notion of some kind of apocalypse that will destroy the world and only a few people will be left to survive against a very hostile planet. Militant environmentalist seem to promote an ecosystem that will some day reek revenge on self-serving human beings for the ravages we have inflicted on the earth. There are wars and rumors of wars. The economy seems unfixable and it takes all of our energy just to keep our head above water. It is easy to feel like a loser when you are told that is all you will amount to in the news everyday. The hopelessness of society can play a part in making us feel like losers.

The reality is we are losers, which explains why we feel like one. Left to ourselves we are utter failures no matter how hard we work. We can never measure up. Jesus in His Sermon on the Mount, puts this in Kingdom perspective and leads us to understand who we are under His rule.

Matthew 5:3 says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.” Robert Capon describes the citizens of the Kingdom of God as the littlest (Mat 19:14), the last (Mat 19:30), the lost (Luke 15), the lowest (John 13:12-16), and the least (Mat 25:40). The Kingdom of God is for losers because that is all we are without Christ. We are made winners in Him. Without the work of the Son and the continued ministry of the Holy Spirit, we are helpless, hapless and hopeless. We are losers, but He makes us winners!

Romans 8:35-39 - ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? ³⁶As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. ³⁷ Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. ³⁸For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, ³⁹Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Is there a bigger loser than a sheep meant for slaughter? The enemy means to bring trials and tribulations and distresses and hardships and persecution and famine and poverty and threat of life and even war into our lives to make us feel like losers. Jesus beat him to it. He proclaims us spiritually bankrupt and morally destitute and then offers us amnesty from our alien status apart from the Father. The Kingdom is for losers because He is the biggest winner of all and the way of the Kingdom is to win by losing! It was Jesus’ sacrifice that defeated sin, the devil and death. His loss is our gain. The Kingdom works opposite from this world. If you lose your life, you gain it, but if you try to hold on to it, you lose it. In Him, that is Jesus Christ, the Son, we are super-winners! We are champions of the world!

It may seem like we are losing and that is the most common reason for forgetting how to win. But because the Kingdom is invisible, we must maintain our faith to see it. Because the Kingdom is eternal, we must trust the Father to deliver us into it. Losing is easy. Anyone can do it. It can become a habit and we can forget how to win. Remind yourself everyday that you are a winner in Him! Stand on the immovable, your faith. Add to your faith obedience and trust in God. Forgotten how to win? Join the club and let’s overcome together!

1 John 5:4-5: ⁴For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. ⁵Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?