Monday, April 7, 2014
GodsView : Endangered Species!
GodsView : Endangered Species!: Remember when men were men? Remember when you could tell by looking? Remember when men knew who they were, liked how they were, and didn...
Endangered Species!
Remember when men were men? Remember when you could tell by looking?
Remember when men knew who they were, liked how they were, and didn't
want to be anything but what they were?
Remember when it was the men who boxed and wrestled and bragged about how much they could bench press?
Remember when it was the women who wore the makeup, the earrings, and the bikinis?
Remember when it was the men who initiated the contact and took the lead in a relationship, made lifelong commitments, and modeled a masculinity grounded in security and stability?
I'm talking about men who are discerning, decisive, strong hearted, who know where they are going and are confident enough in themselves (and their God) to get them there. Men who aren't afraid to take the lead, to stand tall, firm in their principles, even when the going gets rough.
Such qualities not only inspire the respect of women, they also engender healthy admiration among younger men and boys who hunger for heroes. We need clear-thinking, hard-working, straight-talking men who, while tender, thoughtful, and loving, don't feel the need to ask permission for taking charge.
Over the last three decades we have seen a major assault on masculinity. The results are well represented in the arts, the media, the world of fashion, and among those who have become the heroes of our young people.
On the heels of a bloody Civil War, Josiah Holland wrote a passionate prayer on behalf of our country. It begins, "God, give us men...." But the truth is, God doesn't give a nation men; He gives us boys. Baby boys, adolescent boys, impressionable boys, who need to know what becoming a man is all about. God's plan is still as He designed it at creation. And it starts in the home.
Men, are you modeling manhood according to God's Word? Moms and dads, are you raising your sons to be authentically masculine? If not, why not? Think it over!
Remember when it was the men who boxed and wrestled and bragged about how much they could bench press?
Remember when it was the women who wore the makeup, the earrings, and the bikinis?
Remember when it was the men who initiated the contact and took the lead in a relationship, made lifelong commitments, and modeled a masculinity grounded in security and stability?
I'm talking about men who are discerning, decisive, strong hearted, who know where they are going and are confident enough in themselves (and their God) to get them there. Men who aren't afraid to take the lead, to stand tall, firm in their principles, even when the going gets rough.
Such qualities not only inspire the respect of women, they also engender healthy admiration among younger men and boys who hunger for heroes. We need clear-thinking, hard-working, straight-talking men who, while tender, thoughtful, and loving, don't feel the need to ask permission for taking charge.
Over the last three decades we have seen a major assault on masculinity. The results are well represented in the arts, the media, the world of fashion, and among those who have become the heroes of our young people.
On the heels of a bloody Civil War, Josiah Holland wrote a passionate prayer on behalf of our country. It begins, "God, give us men...." But the truth is, God doesn't give a nation men; He gives us boys. Baby boys, adolescent boys, impressionable boys, who need to know what becoming a man is all about. God's plan is still as He designed it at creation. And it starts in the home.
Men, are you modeling manhood according to God's Word? Moms and dads, are you raising your sons to be authentically masculine? If not, why not? Think it over!
Monday, March 31, 2014
GodsView : Hideouts and Hideaways - Where We Hide Out from Go...
GodsView : Hideouts and Hideaways - Where We Hide Out from Go...: Quick quiz: Who is the most famous fugitive in the Bible? Jonah is famous for being the prophet who ran from God, but ran into God in the...
Hideouts and Hideaways - Where We Hide Out from God!
Quick quiz: Who is the most famous fugitive in the Bible?
Jonah is famous for being the prophet who ran from God, but ran into God in the depths of the ocean! He discovered there are no hiding places from God.
Think of the hideouts and hideaways Jonah used to hide from God:
• Geography. Jonah thought he could hide from God in a foreign land.
• Religious prejudice. Jonah thought the pagan Assyrians didn’t deserve God’s compassion.
• Self-pity. Jonah thought God was being unreasonable, so he retreated into feeling sorry for himself.
• Stubbornness. Jonah thought he could just say “No” to God.
See how easy it is to try to hide from God? Of course, hiding from Him is impossible, but sometimes building hideouts and hideaways is something we do anyway. Then God comes knocking, just as He did with Jonah, to ask us why we’re hiding from Him.
We don’t usually hear of people quitting their jobs and moving to a foreign country to hide from God as Jonah tried to do. But that doesn’t mean we don’t try to build modern kinds of hideouts and hideaways. Think about the following examples—have you built any of these in your life?
• Work/Career/Advancement. Sometimes we know God wants us to do something for Him but we hide out in our jobs or careers. And when He comes looking for us we say, “But Lord, I’m working to be able to provide for my family . . . oh, yes, and to be able to give more to Your work.” Or, “But, Lord, you gave me talents. Don’t You want me to use them?” Or, “But, Lord, I just need the next five to ten years to get established in my career. Then I can start cutting back on work.” Working hard is commendable. But since all our work is for the Lord (Colossians 3:23), He may have a different assignment for us in His kingdom. Just like Jonah, we have to be prepared to do what He wants, not what we want.
• Family. This is a subtle one because everybody knows that family is important to God. We don’t know if Jonah had a wife and children, but what if he had said to God, “Sorry, Lord. I can’t go preach to the Assyrians because I have to be at my son’s soccer game, go to my daughter’s recital, help my wife with her community project, and take the family on our annual summer vacation.” Can you imagine? Yes, you probably can. Who hasn’t allowed family to become the top priority in life and used the Bible to justify it? We are in complete control of our family’s schedules, and if family leaves little time for God . . . whose fault is that? It’s a sad day when we’re so consumed with family that we can’t hear the Lord knocking on our own door (Revelation 3:20).
• Leisure. Here’s another hideout that’s easy to build; another one that’s easy to justify “in the name of the Lord.” “The Lord doesn’t want us to be so stressed out,” we say. “It’s important to carve out time for recreation and entertainment.” Well, yes it is. The problem is, we live in a society for which entertainment is a way of life—the end itself instead of a means to an end. Jesus and His disciples drew away from the crowds on occasion, but that was so they could be refreshed for further ministry. Hiding from God in leisure is a sign we have let the world distract us from the work of the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:58).
• Ministry. This is the most camouflaged hideout of them all. What better way to avoid doing something the Lord has called us to do than by doing something He hasn’t called us to do! “But, Lord, can’t You see that I’m up to my neck in six-year-old boys in my Sunday school class? I couldn’t possibly take the Gospel to the homeless in the inner city.” When we hide from the Lord in ministry, we are missing our most important ministry: to the Lord (Luke 10:41).
Are you running from the Lord and hiding out in any of these places—or other places only you (and the Lord) know about? Don’t forget: There are no hideouts or hideaways God does not know about. You will eventually come face-to-face with Him at a time and in a place you least expect.
Be a follower, not a fugitive. Run to the Lord, not away from the Lord. Hide in the Lord, not from the Lord. When the Lord sees you next, may He see your face, not your back.
Jonah is famous for being the prophet who ran from God, but ran into God in the depths of the ocean! He discovered there are no hiding places from God.
Think of the hideouts and hideaways Jonah used to hide from God:
• Geography. Jonah thought he could hide from God in a foreign land.
• Religious prejudice. Jonah thought the pagan Assyrians didn’t deserve God’s compassion.
• Self-pity. Jonah thought God was being unreasonable, so he retreated into feeling sorry for himself.
• Stubbornness. Jonah thought he could just say “No” to God.
See how easy it is to try to hide from God? Of course, hiding from Him is impossible, but sometimes building hideouts and hideaways is something we do anyway. Then God comes knocking, just as He did with Jonah, to ask us why we’re hiding from Him.
We don’t usually hear of people quitting their jobs and moving to a foreign country to hide from God as Jonah tried to do. But that doesn’t mean we don’t try to build modern kinds of hideouts and hideaways. Think about the following examples—have you built any of these in your life?
• Work/Career/Advancement. Sometimes we know God wants us to do something for Him but we hide out in our jobs or careers. And when He comes looking for us we say, “But Lord, I’m working to be able to provide for my family . . . oh, yes, and to be able to give more to Your work.” Or, “But, Lord, you gave me talents. Don’t You want me to use them?” Or, “But, Lord, I just need the next five to ten years to get established in my career. Then I can start cutting back on work.” Working hard is commendable. But since all our work is for the Lord (Colossians 3:23), He may have a different assignment for us in His kingdom. Just like Jonah, we have to be prepared to do what He wants, not what we want.
• Family. This is a subtle one because everybody knows that family is important to God. We don’t know if Jonah had a wife and children, but what if he had said to God, “Sorry, Lord. I can’t go preach to the Assyrians because I have to be at my son’s soccer game, go to my daughter’s recital, help my wife with her community project, and take the family on our annual summer vacation.” Can you imagine? Yes, you probably can. Who hasn’t allowed family to become the top priority in life and used the Bible to justify it? We are in complete control of our family’s schedules, and if family leaves little time for God . . . whose fault is that? It’s a sad day when we’re so consumed with family that we can’t hear the Lord knocking on our own door (Revelation 3:20).
• Leisure. Here’s another hideout that’s easy to build; another one that’s easy to justify “in the name of the Lord.” “The Lord doesn’t want us to be so stressed out,” we say. “It’s important to carve out time for recreation and entertainment.” Well, yes it is. The problem is, we live in a society for which entertainment is a way of life—the end itself instead of a means to an end. Jesus and His disciples drew away from the crowds on occasion, but that was so they could be refreshed for further ministry. Hiding from God in leisure is a sign we have let the world distract us from the work of the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:58).
• Ministry. This is the most camouflaged hideout of them all. What better way to avoid doing something the Lord has called us to do than by doing something He hasn’t called us to do! “But, Lord, can’t You see that I’m up to my neck in six-year-old boys in my Sunday school class? I couldn’t possibly take the Gospel to the homeless in the inner city.” When we hide from the Lord in ministry, we are missing our most important ministry: to the Lord (Luke 10:41).
Are you running from the Lord and hiding out in any of these places—or other places only you (and the Lord) know about? Don’t forget: There are no hideouts or hideaways God does not know about. You will eventually come face-to-face with Him at a time and in a place you least expect.
Be a follower, not a fugitive. Run to the Lord, not away from the Lord. Hide in the Lord, not from the Lord. When the Lord sees you next, may He see your face, not your back.
Sunday, March 23, 2014
GodsView : Against Compromise!
GodsView : Against Compromise!: It was Martin Luther who said: "The world at the present time is sagaciously discussing how to quell the controversy and strife ove...
Against Compromise!
It was Martin Luther who said:
When he nailed his 95 Theses to the door, the last thing he wanted to do was split the church.
Yet sometimes division is fitting, even healthy, for the church. Especially in times like Luther's--and like ours--when the visible church seems full of counterfeit Christians, it is right for the true people of God to declare themselves. Compromise is sometimes a worse evil than division. Second Corinthians 6:14-17 isn't speaking only of marriage when it says,
"The world at the present time is sagaciously discussing how to quell the controversy and strife over doctrine and faith, and how to effect a compromise between the Church and the Papacy. Let the learned, the wise, it is said, bishops, emperor and princes, arbitrate. Each side can easily yield something, and it is better to concede some things which can be construed according to individual interpretation, than that so much persecution, bloodshed, war, and terrible, endless dissension and destruction be permitted.It is interesting to speculate what the church would be like today if Martin Luther had been prone to compromise. The pressure was heavy on him to tone down his teaching, soften his message, stop poking his finger in the eye of the papacy. Even many of his friends and supporters urged Luther to come to terms with Rome for the sake of harmony in the church. Luther himself prayed earnestly that the effect of his teaching would not be divisive.
"Here is lack of understanding, for understanding proves by the Word that such patchwork is not according to God's will, but that doctrine, faith and worship must be preserved pure and unadulterated; there must be no mingling with human nonsense, human opinions or wisdom.
"The Scriptures give us this rule: 'We must obey God rather than men' (Acts 5:29)."
When he nailed his 95 Theses to the door, the last thing he wanted to do was split the church.
Yet sometimes division is fitting, even healthy, for the church. Especially in times like Luther's--and like ours--when the visible church seems full of counterfeit Christians, it is right for the true people of God to declare themselves. Compromise is sometimes a worse evil than division. Second Corinthians 6:14-17 isn't speaking only of marriage when it says,
Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, "I will dwell in them and walk among them; And I will be their God, and they shall be My people.Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate," says the Lord.
Sunday, March 16, 2014
GodsView : Why Trials?
GodsView : Why Trials?: Why trials, you might ask? In the New Testament, the Greek word has the idea of proving through testing. An event that demonstrates the ...
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