Survival of the Unfittest

 

“I cannot pray, except I sin. I cannot preach, but I sin. I cannot administer, nor receive the holy sacrament, but I sin. My very repentance needs to be repented of and the tears 

I shed need washing in the blood of Christ.”  William Beveridge

 The Christian faith is the antithesis of the faith of social Darwinism and its principles of progression and perfection. Christians know that they aren’t part of the “survival of the fittest.” The Bible teaches we’re the “survival of the worst” or “survival of the weakest.” You can’t be a Christian until you honestly face your own spiritual vileness and impotence.  

  Christians know that they’re not good people. If we’re honest, we’re not  even nice people. We are instead transformed people because of the cross, new life in Christ, and the love, mercy, and grace of God.

  It’s been said that: “There are only two kinds of people in this world – there are those who wake up in the morning and say, “Good morning, Lord,” and those who wake up in the morning and say, “Good Lord, it's morning.” But I think author Tom Robbins had a better understanding about the two kinds of people in this world. He said that there are “those who believe there are two kinds of people in this world and [there are] those who are smart enough to know better.” Christians know that there is only one kind of person in this world – those who apart from the gospel are a huge mess. That’s exactly what the Bible teaches.

  God’s Word clearly states: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:10-12, 23).  

  Philip Yancey, in his book, What’s so amazing about Grace? shares a powerful story told to him by a Christian friend. “A prostitute came to me in wretched straits, homeless, sick, unable to buy food for her two-year-old daughter. Through sobs and tears, she told me she had been renting out her daughter—two years old!—to men interested in kinky sex. She made more renting out her daughter for an hour than she could earn on her own in a night. She had to do it, she said, to support her own drug habit.

  I could hardly bear hearing her sordid story. For one thing, it made me legally liable—I’m required to report cases of child abuse. I had no idea what to say to this woman. At last I asked if she had ever thought of going to a church for help. I will never forget the look of pure, naive shock that crossed her face. ‘Church!’ she cried. ‘Why would I ever go there? I was already feeling terrible about myself. They’d just make me feel worse’.”

  Yet, that broken woman is exactly who should feel at home among Christians and in our church. When Jesus walked this earth, women (and men) just like her prostitute fled to Jesus, not away from Him. The worse a person felt about herself, the more likely he or she saw Jesus as a refuge.

  Over the years I’ve had individuals tell me they’re good people because they obey the Ten Commandments. Not me. I’m a loser. I totally bomb out when it comes to the Big Ten. As I study the Ten Commandments I see what a spiritual failure I am. Just take the last half…

  “Honor your father and your mother…” If that includes rolling my eyes, talking back, or knowledgeably disobeying – I get a goose egg.

  “You shall not murder.” The Bible says that hate is murder (1 John 3:15). If it includes bad drivers, people talking on their cell phones in restaurants, or my siblings when I was growing up. Again, I flunk.

  “You shall not commit adultery.” Jesus said that lust is committing adultery in your heart (Matthew 5:27-28). Only a very naïve person believes this is only a male problem. I know that I’ve failed this one.  

  “You shall not steal.” If that only includes checking social media when I’m supposed to be working, I get another zero. What about “borrowing” office supplies from work, etc.?  

  “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” We may call them a “white lie” but a lie is still a lie. Even an exaggeration is a lie. I’m in the spiritual cellar again.

  “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.” Obviously, this would include another person’s physique. Personally, I wish Planet Fitness would do a better job of marketing to people who have my physique. It seems like the ones who don’t need Planet Fitness are its most loyal members…and I feel a twinge of jealousy…more than I want to admit.

  The Bible is clear – we’re all spiritual losers. None of us measure up. Yet, most of us don’t realize the seriousness of what we consider “little sins.”

  Back in the 1990’s one research firm considered the advertising slogan for a popular soap that was “99.4% pure.” They followed up with an important question: “What if everything in the world operated at 99% efficiency?” What they discovered is shocking! Drinking water would be unsafe one hour out of each month. Two planes would crash land – every day - at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. 500 hundred surgeries would be botched each week. And 20,000 prescriptions would be improperly filled each year.

  Would you want to drink that water? Be on one of those planes? Would you want to have one of those pharmacists or surgeons anywhere near you or your family?

  99% efficiency isn’t acceptable in any of these areas. Missing these things by just “that much” (1%) can be deadly. The same is true spiritually. James 1:10 says, “For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.” It’s 100% or fail! And we’re all guilty of failing all of it. It’s why we need Jesus. It’s why we need a Savior. He died to rescue the worst of the worst…like you and me. Without committing our lives to Jesus as our Savior, we have no hope. We’re part of the “unfittest.”

  Jesus died so that we all could be “fit” for heaven but He has to be your Savior. My friend, is He your Savior?  

Can we help you spiritually? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

 

Is it okay to miss?

 “A church isn't a group of friends you’ve picked, it’s a group of brothers and sisters God has picked for you.” Michael Scott Horton 

Do you have a regular family dinner? Did you have one when you were growing up? Was the family or extended family gathering for Sunday dinner your tradition?  Because of growing up in a home with virtually no Sunday traditions, family traditions, and healthy family relationships get my attention. It’s just not my history. Family gatherings of any kind just didn’t happen. For most of my teenage years I attended church alone…

  It’s one of the reasons that I enjoy the TV series, Blue Bloods. While Tom Selleck has been a favorite actor for me since his Magnum P.I. days, I love the family dinner scenes in Blue Bloods. They may be disagreeing or at odds with each other, yet every Sunday the Reagan family gathers around the family dinner table. On top of that, every family member participates with different ones being responsible for the food.

  Last Sunday Jane and I were on a “staycation.” When we planned it, we didn’t know it was going to be time change Sunday. And then, it’s Wisconsin so it snowed…so we lost an hour of sleep and the drive to whatever church we chose to worship at was going to be more difficult to get to because of road conditions.

  We looked at websites of some churches pastored by friends and those with our DNA of ministry. With the potential of bad roads, we didn’t want to travel too far. One friend was out of town. Another was doing a series on parenting. Add to that, I didn’t sleep well so when I woke up, I was very tempted to attend “Bedside Baptist with Pastor Sheets.” Or, as many have been doing in a post-Covid world, attend “Lazy-boy Church.”

  But I got convicted and knew that I needed to get out of bed and we drove to an area church. I’m so glad we did! What a blessing! It was a great message! The music stirred our hearts! Because we have several friends who are part of this church family, we were able to reconnect with them.

  Unbeknownst to us, that church was having a major congregational vote on leaving their denomination that day because of apostasy. It was a very emotional day for my pastor friend and his church. So Jane and I were blessed and then we were able to be a blessing…and to think that I seriously considered only thinking of myself and skipping.

  It is virtually impossible to be a healthy growing Christian without faithfully attending the worship services of a local church. It’s not enough to be a Christian and love Jesus. If you love Jesus, you love His family. If you love His family, you want to spend time with them. Yet, there has never been a time in history when it’s more difficult to faithfully attend. There are so many other options, opportunities or obligations to our already overflowing schedules.  

  Please understand. I don’t want to guilt-trip anyone. We need to faithfully attend worship services because we want to please the Lord and love Him, not because we feel guilty or pressured. Yet, our struggles with faithfully attending worship services aren’t totally new.

  The early church was largely composed of slaves and those on the socioeconomic fringes of society. As many as one-third of people living in first-century Greco-Roman society were slaves. A large percentage of those slaves were believers. It’s why they either met early in the morning before the work day began or late at night when it was over. Gathering for corporate worship either had to be before or after the long work day.

  Gathering for corporate worship is rarely convenient. There’s always something else going on. Some are required to work. It’s either work on Sunday morning or be terminated.  

  Most situations though don’t carry that much weight. Just a few years ago pastors felt pressure to be done by noon so the congregation could be home for the Sunday kick-off. Now it’s not noon. It’s youth sports, drama practices, dance recitals, etc. that all meet on Sunday morning. Or suggest to your family that maybe they could start the birthday party for little Matilda a little later so you attend church and they’ll look at you like you just got in from Mars.

  Our culture has moved from very few options to an overwhelming amount. Sunday is just another day. So we have to choose. We can’t have it all or do it all. Sometimes we need to give a little pushback to the culture and needless pressures.

  For example, if your company is asking you to work, if you’re an employee with a good reputation, most will give some flexibility for attending church. Think of all the other reasons that other employees miss or don’t show up. An honest conversation can go a long way.

  Then, what about other youth activities? First, I’d suggest an honest conversation with the leaders or organizers and try to attend the 9 am service. Second, what will have more long-term life value for your child?

  Over the years I’ve known some very talented young athletes. Because they were so gifted, their parents had them in a traveling team. Yet, none went on to play professionally or even play in college. Perhaps because church was lowered on the priorities, as far as I know, none of those talented athletes attend a church of any kind.

  Will church attendance make a difference? Well, where else are we encouraged to focus on what has eternal benefits? Where else are we encouraged to be a better spouse or a person of character? Where else are we encouraged to be ethical, gracious and care for others? Where else are we encouraged to be have a biblical worldview and an ethic of morality?

  Hopefully, those things are taking place in your marriage and home. One reason Scripture so emphasizes the local church is that it’s in the community of God’s people with the echoing of eternal values and godly behavior that we grow spiritually. It helps cement these things in our hearts and the hearts of our children.

  Yet please don’t just attend. Get involved, serve. Find a place for your children to serve. Because in serving we learn to think of others. It also helps our children develop friendships with other Christian adults that they will have after they become adults themselves. While Couch Church is increasingly convenient, the long term price for own hearts is too high! 

Can we help you spiritually? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

Church Membership Matters

“Once you choose Christ, you must choose His people, too. 

It’s a package deal.  Choose the Father 

and the Son and you have to choose the whole family –

 which you do through a local church.” Jonathan Leeman

 A belief that permeates the pages of the Bible and is essential to a healthy Christian life is commitment. In Matthew 16:24 Jesus told His followers “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.” Yet, ours is a culture that’s afraid of commitment. Many couples rationalize, “Why not just live together to see if it works out?” In a similar way, many Christians think, “Why not just attend a church? What’s the point of joining?” Unfortunately, many believers attend a church for years yet never join.

  This Thursday, March 16^th, is the beginning of our New Members class. Attending this class doesn’t commit you to join Grace or make you a member. It does give us an opportunity to share our understanding of Scripture and how it applies to our church. During the eight lessons of this class, we share who we are, what we believe, our passion, and our mission.

  We believe that to be an obedient Christian, you must go beyond church attendance to being a committed, serving member of a church. We’re looking to have others officially join our church who have our DNA, our passion for Jesus, and our desire to reach our community with the gospel.

  So what does the New Testament have to say about church membership? The metaphors that the New Testament uses to describe the local church imply close relationships and committed connection; building, family, army, flock, etc. Add to that, nearly every letter in the New Testament was written to a local church or to the pastor of a local church.

  If church membership is so important why don’t we find church membership mentioned specifically in the New Testament? In the New Testament, you’ll discover membership is implied throughout it. Churches didn’t need to be formalized in the way we need it today because there was only one church per city. If you were a Christian, you didn’t have options on where to attend. If you lived in Ephesus, you were a member of the church there. Today there are dozens of evangelical churches in an area.

  Many New Testament texts infer that local churches knew exactly who their members were. For example, in giving instructions about the Lord’s Supper, Paul wrote (1 Corinthians 11:18), “For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you.” That implies that there was a defined group who came together as a church, though there were sinful divisions among them. In Acts 11:26, Paul and Barnabas “met with the church and taught considerable numbers.” In Acts 14:23, Paul and Barnabas “appointed elders for them in every church” which they’d founded on their missionary journey. Elders were responsible to lead these churches., so obviously, they knew who the members were. A pastor in a church is commanded to shepherd the church (Acts 20:28). You can’t faithfully shepherd if you don’t know who is part of the “flock.”

  To fulfill the responsibilities then of both pastors and members requires a well-defined group of committed believers identified as members of each church. They meet regularly for teaching, worship, fellowship, and prayer.

  Why join? John Stott wrote: If the church is central to God’s purpose, as seen in both history and the gospel, it must surely also be central to our lives. How can we take lightly what God takes so seriously? How dare we push to the circumference what God has placed at the center?” That centrality of the local church to God’s purpose should be reason enough for you to be committed to one. Let me share then just three reasons…

  You should join a church because Christ loves the church and gave Himself for her; if you love Christ, you must love His church and commit yourself to her well-being. In Ephesians 5:25, Paul commands, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her.” He talks about how Christ’s aim is to sanctify the church so that He might present her to Himself in all her glory, as beautiful as she possibly can be. Then Paul tells husbands to tenderly nourish and cherish their wives, just as Christ does His church. Throughout this passage, you’d think that Paul was talking about marriage, but then he adds this surprising statement (Eph. 5:32): “This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.” In other words, marriage is designed to be an earthly picture of the relationship between the divine Bridegroom and His bride, the church.

  You should join a local church because the church is where you learn practically to love God and love others (the two greatest commandments). You can’t be a “Christian at large” any more than you can be “married at large.” I love all my sisters in Christ in the church worldwide, but there’s only one to whom I’m committed to as my wife. I’m not suggesting we’re to “marry” a church with the same lifelong commitment we vow in marriage, but we do need a strong commitment to help us work through issues and personal conflicts that arise in the church so we grow in grace and love for one another. Commitment is the glue that holds relationships together, enabling us to grow spiritually when there are inevitable conflicts.

  You should join a local church because it is the means Jesus ordained to fulfill His Great Commission. A local church is God’s ordained way of fulfilling His Great Commission. A church must be committed to reaching the lost and making disciples. Paul told the Philippian church (Phil. 1:27), “Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.” That’s the church’s job!

  God is using our church for His glory! If our mission is your mission, we’d love to have you officially join us! Check out our New Members’ class when it starts this week!

Can we help you spiritually? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address. 

 

Courage!

“Cowardice asks the question: ‘Is it safe?’ Consensus asks the question: ‘Is it popular?’ 

Courage asks the question: ‘Is it right’?”  Rod Rogers

 

There’s a scene that takes place toward the very end of The Lord of the Rings trilogy at the end of The Return of the King. It’s during a great battle and during this great battle, there’s a very unlikely warrior, a girl named Eowyn, who sneaks onto the battlefield. As she is there, she finds her king, the King of Rohan. He’s wounded and dying on the battlefield. So she goes to him and stands over him to protect him. As she’s standing there, a dark, demonic enemy comes at her and says, “Get out of the way! Move aside!” 

  But Eowyn doesn’t move, instead, she draws her sword and says, “Do what you will, but be you living or dark undead, I will smite you if you touch my king! I’ll kill you if you touch him!” What amazing courage!

  Yet as Eowyn is standing there protecting her king, there’s another character that is more like most of us – Merry the Hobbit. In that battle, Merry sees that dark, demonic, gigantic enemy. He becomes sick and blind because of the terror that overwhelms him and Merry hides on the battlefield. But at one point he regains his sight and looks up. And guess what he sees? Eowyn is ready to die for her king. And J.R.R. Tolkien  then writes, that “great wonder filled his heart and suddenly the slow-kindled courage awoke and he clenched his fists and he battled as a warrior.”

  When was the last time that you saw courage? When was the last time you saw a Christian with courage? Do you struggle to be courageous? Courage is essential if you and I are going to stand for King Jesus!

  Courage, in the biblical sense, is not some personality trait. A soft-spoken, introverted, calm person can be courageous at a time when a driven, outspoken, brash person shrinks back. Courage is instead acting, by the power of the Spirit, on an urgent conviction in the face of some threat or opposition. Without sufficient courage, we don’t have enough fiber in our conviction to stand for Jesus or face opposition.

  No doubt you’ve heard of those individuals who can be sitting next to a complete stranger on an airplane and boldly share their faith. I’m not one of them. I struggle to be bold. I can feel the pit in my stomach as I share the gospel or make a stand for Christ.

  Many of us as Christians have a tendency to look at past leaders in the Church through rose-colored glasses. We are apt to place them on pedestals and forget that they too had feet of clay and knocking knees.

  It’s why the Apostle Paul so encourages me. Many passages in the New Testament suggest that Paul wasn’t a naturally bold person. For example, in 1 Corinthians 2:3, Paul admits that when he was with the church there, he was with them in “weakness and in fear and much trembling.” Then in  2 Corinthians 10:10, Paul acknowledges that his reputation among the churches was that his “letters are weighty and strong, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech of no account.” There’s at least one record where Paul directly asks the church to pray for him that he “might “declare [the gospel] boldly.” (Ephesians 6:18-20). On another two occasions, the Lord encourages Paul not to be afraid in the midst of conflict and opposition. This all suggests that Paul may have been a naturally timid personality or at least was not as naturally bold as we tend to think he was.

  That’s just like God. Frequently, He takes those who lack natural gifts and empowers them or gives them the gifts they need to accomplish His will.

  We must pray for courage and pray for other Christians to have courage. There is great pressure today to conform or be silent. None of us want to be attacked, maligned, or caricatured. It’s why, like Paul, we must pray for courage and pray that our brothers and sisters have courage, too. Evidencing courage is usually personal. It’s not primarily manifested with a keyboard as in social media but in personal contact and relationships.

  We must be courageous about that which has true significance. In recent years, Christians have become very outspoken about political positions, yet I can’t personally think of one of those positions that will make an eternal difference. Instead, they’re frequently distractions from the mission Jesus gave us.

  The Bible teaches that there are only two eternal destinations. Jesus commissioned us to share the gospel so that we can bring as many to heaven with us as possible. Most of the other “stuff” is a bit like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

  As we are courageous, it influences others. Like Merry, watching the courage of Eowyn, as others see us acting in courage, it encourages them to act with courage. It’s why it’s vital for us to share what God is doing in our lives, how He is working, and how He is using us.

  Godly courage means being willing to pay the price for what is right. There is great pressure today in the workplace and the classroom to be shamed into silence. Please understand. God didn’t call us to be obnoxious. Some Christians believe that they’re being persecuted because of their biblical positions when they’re really being persecuted because they’re acting like a jerk.

  As much as possible, Christians must have irreproachable behavior. We must be a bit Teflon so accusations can’t stick. The fruit of the Spirit should be so much a part of our life that like Daniel of old (Daniel 6), the only thing that can be found to criticize is that we love Jesus too much. We must consistently act with Christlikeness but must not give our approval to sinful behavior. Sometimes taking a stand for Christ is going to cost us.

  Godly courage means standing for what is right in your home. Every parent feels the pressure to cave to “everybody else is doing it.” It’s why we need a local church family. Our children need to see in our church family that the values in our home are the same as those of other believers in our church. It will help embolden them to have the courage they will need as adults in our darkening world to stand alone for the Savior.

  The same Holy Spirit who emboldened those early believers to stand courageously for Christ, even sometimes at the cost of their lives, has taken up residence within us and gives us courage, too. Courage isn’t the absence of fear. It’s living by faith in the midst of fear, trusting that the Spirit will give us what we need at the right moment to live boldly for King Jesus!

Can we help you spiritually? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.