Category: Jesus (Page 22 of 60)

Where is Jesus?

July 25, 2016 / Allan / 0 Comments

“In Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.” ~Colossians 2:9-10

He is Lord over all the nations. He is Lord over all the schools. He is Lord over all the churches. He is Lord over every economic system and every form of government. He is Lord over all. There is nothing that is above him, there is nothing that is not under his authority. Name anything. Name everything! It’s all subject to our ascended King. All rule, all authority, all power, all dominion. The kingdom of this world is become the Kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall reign forever and ever! Amen! Hallelujah!

And then I turn on the news. Violence. Death. War. Abused women and children. Racism. Hundreds of thousands of refugees being driven from their homes and nobody wants to take them in. Corrupt governments and politicians. Hunger. Disease.

Where is Jesus?

Earthquakes. Hurricanes. Drought. Wildfire. Tornados. Cancer. Divorce. Crime. Riots. Terrorists.

Where is Jesus?

It doesn’t feel like he’s running anything. It doesn’t look like he’s in charge. The grand spectacle of the ascension — Jesus lifted up to heaven right before the disciples’ eyes to become the sovereign ruler of the universe — seems to mean very little in our real lives today. It doesn’t look like Jesus is in control. If he is, he’s making a huge mess of it.

So, where is Jesus? What does it really mean that he is raised up to heaven and seated at the right hand of God?

“He was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.” ~Mark 16:19

Luke says Jesus was taken up into the sky, into the clouds. What does that really mean? Well, when a student moves “up” from tenth grade to eleventh grade, that doesn’t mean the eleventh grade classroom is on the floor above the tenth grade classroom; it might just be down the hall. If a salesman makes the move “up” to manager, he might get a new office on the top floor, but that’s not what that means. When George Jefferson was “movin’ on up,” it was to the East side, not the North. George and Weezy did move into a deluxe apartment in the sky-hi-hi — but that’s not what it means to move “up,” to physically be a few feet farther away from the ground.

When the Bible talks about heaven and earth, it’s not talking about two different locations in the same time and space dimension like Amarillo and Israel or even Houston and Mars. And it’s not talking about a non-physical world versus a physical world. It’s more like two different types of time and space and matter altogether. It’s a parallel world: very, very real and existing in another dimension.

You know, we’ve got a lot of movie makers and writers who are very good at taking us into these parallel worlds and places. But we don’t think that way when we think about Jesus. C. S. Lewis did a great job with the Narnia stories of illustrating how two totally different worlds can relate and interlock. And that’s still the best way, I think, for us to understand it.

Some of the oldest and best church buildings try to illustrate this with the architecture. We’ve kinda got something like that working in our worship center here at Central. We’ve got a soaring ceiling, reaching and stretching far above us. Down on the floor we get a sense of belonging in the room, but we’re not actually physically occupying any of the great space of light and beauty high above us. Our songs and our prayers go up there and occupy this great space above us, but we ourselves cannot physically go there yet.

What that’s supposed to help us understand is that because our Lord is in heaven and seated at the right hand of God, God’s space and ours are not very far away from each other. They’re very different, yes, but they’re close. There’s a relationship, a connection. God’s very real time and space and matter intersects and interlocks with our very real time and space and matter all the time.

The right hand of God is the Bible name for the control center for the universe. Whoever sits there is in charge. It’s like my chair in the living room is the control center for the TV. Sitting down at God’s right hand means Jesus really is totally in charge of everything.

“That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything.” ~Ephesians 1:19-22

I don’t know exactly how it works — nobody does, it’s a mystery. But Jesus right now is totally in charge. He’s the one making all the decisions, turning all the dials: “I will allow this to happen. I will not allow that to happen. I will cause this. I will put a stop to that. I will speak into that. I will be silent about that. I will help Tom Landry, but Jerry Jones is on his own.”

It’s all Jesus. He decides what happens and when. From heaven. “All authority has been given to me,” he says, “in heaven and on earth.”

Peace,

Allan

Resurrection Guarantees Salvation

July 13, 2016 / Allan / 0 Comments

“He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.” ~Romans 4:25

We are saved in, by, and through the resurrection of Christ. We would not be justified or forgiven if it weren’t for Jesus’ resurrection.

“If Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless and you are still in your sins.” ~1 Corinthians 15:17

Your perfection, your righteousness, your holiness is in Christ Jesus. If he’s still dead… well… that puts your salvation in question. The resurrection, though, certifies that the bill’s been paid in full. Our sin is taken care of forever. Your sins are taken care of. All your sins are forgiven.

How many of your sins were future sins when Jesus went to the cross? That’s not a trick question. When Jesus died for you, how many of your sins were future sins? All of them! One hundred percent of them! Jesus knew exactly what he was doing when he went to the cross. You haven’t surprised him. Jesus doesn’t want a do-over. He knew.

So please get off your self-hate.

“I can’t be a part of the body of Christ, I’m too bad. I can’t ever really be forgiven, I’ve done too much. Christ could never really accept me, it’s been too long.” Get over it! He already knew! And he went. It’s paid for. You don’t owe anything. The altar is closed. There’s no sacrifice you need to lay down. He is risen. And because you are raised with him and transformed by him, you are vindicated and justified and saved. It is finished! It’s done!

Because he lives.

Because he lives, I can face tomorrow.

And I don’t know your tomorrow. I don’t know what’s on the horizon for you. But because Jesus is alive, your fears about tomorrow should be gone. Why? Because he has us! He’s alive! We have no enemies! Death is dead, sin is vanquished, we’ve already won!

In Revelation 3, the resurrected Jesus is encouraging his Church. Our Lord Jesus, in his physical, resurrected body is talking to his people when he says, “Here I am. I stand at the door and knock.” He continues to extend the invitation. He is risen and he is still calling.

“If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in…”

…not with a long list of things you need to do better; not with a critique of how you’ve lived so far; not with a list of dos and don’ts.

“I will come in and eat with you and you with me.”

I will accept you. I will fellowship you. We’ll eat together.

It doesn’t have to be the way it is. You have not out-sinned his grace or his power. Christ Jesus, our Lord, is risen from the dead and he calls you to be raised with him and to enjoy the salvation of your body and soul.

Peace,

Allan

Resurrection Vindicates the Jesus Way

July 12, 2016 / Allan / 0 Comments

The resurrection of Jesus proves that this difficult way we wrote about yesterday is the right way to live. We believe this, yes? We’re committed to it. We know that the more we talk like Jesus and act like Jesus, the more we behave and respond like Jesus, the more naturally we’ll come to consider the needs of others more important than our own. The more we’ll sacrifice for others and serve others and show others unconditional grace and love. This is definitely the only way to live.

But it doesn’t always feel right. It doesn’t always work. Sometimes living like this will get you killed.

Why was Jesus crucified? Not because he was powerful, not because he was violent, not because he was exclusive and judgmental. Our Lord was rejected, he was mocked and beaten, he suffered and was killed, because he loved so unconditionally. Because he was so liberal with his forgiveness. Because he ate with prostitutes and partied with sinners and hugged the lepers. He was killed because he gave everybody the benefit of the doubt, because he worked so hard to tear down the walls that divided people, because he refused to label people, because he never one time did anything in his own interests. The world was offended by the way he lived. And they killed him.

And for a couple of days it looked like the world was right and the Jesus Way was wrong. The world’s way was the right way to live and this opposite Jesus Way? Ha! He’s dead! He’s not the Son of God, he’s hanging on a tree! He’s cursed by God! He’s not the promised Messiah, he’s no representative of God to tell us how to live! Duh! He’s dead!

“Christ Jesus was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord!” ~Romans 1:3-4

The resurrection vindicates the Jesus Way. God bringing a dead Jesus back to life proves that the Jesus Way is the right way. It validates the Jesus Way as the eternal way, the only way to live.

When Jesus says when someone hits you on the right cheek, turn your other cheek to him, too, he doesn’t say, “Then that person will stop hitting you.” Turning the other cheek may actually get you punched a couple more times; it might put you in the hospital. When Jesus says forgive others unconditionally, he doesn’t say, “Then that person will stop sinning against you.” That person may betray you and hurt you up to 469 more times! When Jesus do not resist an evil person doing you harm, he doesn’t say, “Then that person will become nice.” Not resisting might get you killed.

No, our Lord says turn the other cheek, forgive without limits, walk the extra mile, give up your coat, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you because that’s the way of our Father in heaven. The resurrection proves that it’s the right way to live, that it’s our calling. That’s the reason we exist — to live this very difficult, counter-cultural, other-worldly way and to be raised, to be vindicated in the end by the Creator of Heaven and Earth.

Peace,

Allan

Full Time Work

May 12, 2016 / Allan / 0 Comments

Today I’m speaking downstairs at our weekly Loaves and Fishes gathering, I’m finishing up the sermon for this Sunday, re-reading the passage in Mark I’m teaching in our Bible class, writing questions for the small groups discussions, and visiting a dear church member who was moved into hospice care last night. While you’re slaving away at the office or the construction site or the airport or the school, I’m at the church building doing God’s work. Right?

WRONG!

We are all doing God’s work, together, every day, seven days a week.

Sometimes we speak in ways that make what I do as a preacher “full-time Christian work” and what you do as a member of the Body of Christ “part-time Christian work” or “weekend Christian work.” You must know that you are a full-time Christian banker or plumber or homemaker. You are a full-time Christian truck driver or repair man, administrator or salesperson. When we are at our work, we are at the same time at God’s work. Just like our Lord Jesus.

You realize that most of what Jesus did he did in a secular workplace: in a farmer’s field, in a fishing boat, at a wedding feast, in a cemetery, at a public well, on a country hillside, in a court room, at dinner with friends and family, while walking along a road, in the marketplace. Sometimes in the Gospels Jesus shows up in a synagogue or the temple. But he mostly spends his time in the workplace.

The Fourth Gospel identifies Jesus as a “worker” 27-times. It quotes our Lord as saying, “My Father is still working, and I also am working.”

Your work does not take you away from God, it continues the work of God. Our God is always in his workplace, your workplace, working. And once we recognize that, we can more easily see ourselves — all of us — working in our workplaces in the name and manner of Jesus to his eternal glory and praise.

Peace,

Allan

Jesus Proves That God Cares

April 25, 2016 / Allan / 0 Comments

One of the big differences between the Old Testament and the New Testament is seen in the issue of doubt. You can find all kinds of expressions of doubt and disbelief in the Hebrew Scriptures. Entire books like Habakkuk and Job and Jeremiah center on doubting God. Well over a third of the Psalms express at least a couple of lines of doubt not only in the existence of God but also on whether God gives a rip about what’s going on down here and, if he does, if he’s willing or even capable of doing anything about it.

Compare that to the New Testament which has almost none of those questions and doubt. We know the problem of pain hasn’t gone away. Many of the New Testament letters deal specifically with the issues of persecution, suffering, injustice, and death. That hasn’t changed a lick. But you just don’t find the question about whether God cares. You don’t see anything like Psalm 77 which asks, “Has God forgotten to be merciful?”

Could it be that Jesus is the reason for the change?

The ones who wrote the Gospels and penned the Christian letters were all witnesses to the Christ. Anyone who wonders how God feels about suffering on this broken earth only needs to look at Jesus. The New Testament writers saw him. Up close. They saw this “exact representation” of God care for a sick woman, console a Roman soldier, raise a widow’s dead son, heal an epileptic boy, and feed thousands of hungry men and women. Jesus says, “If you’ve seen me, you’ve seen the Father.” And those disciples saw him grieving over lost people and crying over dead people and reaching out to the marginalized and powerless of society with humility and love and care. Great concern and care.

Of course, Jesus didn’t fix the whole problem of pain and suffering; he only healed a few people in a small corner of the Middle Eastern world. But he did answer the question, “Does God care?”

Peace,

Allan

Light of Life

March 28, 2016 / Allan / 0 Comments

“In him was life, and that life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not conquered it.. The true light that gives life to every person was coming into the world.” ~John 1:4-9

Throughout the Gospel of John, Jesus over and over refers to himself as the light, the true light of life.

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” ~John 8:12

“I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.” ~John 12:46

When Jesus was betrayed by his friends and then crucified on the cross, the gospel says it was dark. When Mary went to the tomb early on that first Easter Sunday morning, the Scripture is clear that it was dark. It’s also certain that Mary was not looking for a resurrected Jesus that morning; she was looking for a dead body. Maybe that’s why she didn’t recognize Jesus when she saw him — she wasn’t expecting it. But when he said her name, when she heard his familiar and powerful and loving voice, she knew it was Jesus her Lord, she knew he was alive, and she knew it wasn’t dark anymore.

2 Timothy says Christ Jesus has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light. 1 Peter tells us Jesus has brought all of us out of darkness and into his wonderful light.

I don’t know what kind of darkness maybe you’re living in. Maybe you feel trapped by sin or by some really bad decisions that you’re still paying for years later. Maybe there’s strife in your marriage or in your family. Maybe you’ve been diagnosed with something and your future’s unclear. Maybe you’ve just got this dark cloud hanging over you that follows you everywhere you go and you can’t really describe it or explain it, but it’s just there. It’s just dark.

“You were once in darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light… Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you!” ~ Ephesians 5:8, 14

Listen, that darkness is real. I don’t want any of us to pretend that it’s not. You and I are broken. We are fallen. We are sinners. And this world we live in is broken and sinful. There is starvation and disease and violence and injustice all around us. Every day. We can’t get away from it. And we are not called to deny it or ignore it. The darkness is real. The darkness in your life is real. Your sin is real. Your desperation is real. Your sickness, your depression, your lack of faith is real.

It’s OK to feel it. It’s OK to be sad. It’s OK to feel hurt and disappointed. It’s OK to get angry. As a Christian, though, it is not OK to live without hope. It’s not OK to live without courage and confidence. It’s not OK to live like the darkness has any power. Jesus is risen, he is alive, and the darkness, whatever it is, is no match for the light of life.

“The truth is seen in Christ Jesus and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.” ~1 John 2:8

Peace,

Allan

Category: Jesus (Page 22 of 60)

Where is Jesus?

Resurrection Guarantees Salvation

Resurrection Vindicates the Jesus Way

Full Time Work

Jesus Proves That God Cares

Light of Life

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