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Category: Romans (Page 26 of 28)

Why All The Groaning?

October 16, 2008 / / 4 Comments

“We ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.” ~Romans 8:23

“The Spirit helps us in our weakness…the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.” Romans 8:26While we’re waiting for our final adoption and our ultimate redemption and our eternal glory, we don’t groan DESPITE the firstfruits of the Spirit. We groan BECAUSE of those firstfruits. We groan because we’ve had a taste.

We’ve seen glimpses of the eternal glory. We’ve tasted heaven. We’ve experienced bits and pieces of what’s reserved for us, to be fully revealed and realized later.

When we come together in worship we’re given a sense of that other dimension. We join that great throng of heavenly witnesses around the throne of God. We’re together with all the saints past, present, and future. There’s another scene, another city, there’s another reality beyond our own time and space. And we see it. We feel it. If only for a moment. When we come together around the common table and share the communal meal, we are truly one with Christ and with each other. Perfect fellowship. Perfect unity. Perfect acceptance and perfect communion. And it’s not ordinary. It involves something so much bigger and better than us.

Give Away Day. Friends Day. Baptisms. Baby blessings. Missionary sendoffs. We experience up close and personal these first fruits of the Spirit. We see and hear and touch and taste God’s healing and cleansing and joy and forgiveness and power and reconciliation and compassion and love. We see change. We feel impact. We taste victory.

But it’s just a taste. And I want it all. I want it all right now. It makes it worse.

It makes us want to see our Lord even more. It makes us want that new body even more. We’re increasingly frustrated at not meeting God’s standards. We long more and more to be exactly what he wants us to be.

Yes, we are already God’s children. Yes, we’re already forgiven and justified and reconciled and restored. But we’re not God’s children in the way we will be some day: possessing the full inheritance, enjoying perfect holiness in our resurrected bodies, totally glorified.

And so we wait. Patiently. We try not to focus on today’s sufferings; we look forward to tomorrow’s glory. We try not to obsess about where we are; we anticipate where we’re going.

God is unfolding a plan, a plan that provides fully for our eternal future. A plan that leads to ultimate glory for his children. And Paul wants us to come away from Romans 8 with increased confidence and assurance that the God who began a good work in us will indeed bring it to completion in the day of Christ Jesus.

Our groanings are not in vain. They serve an eternal purpose that’s being worked out by the creator of heaven and earth who groans right along with us to make it happen.

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obligatory Cowboys commentMy friend Ted Sorrells tells me this morning: “The Cowboys have clearly cornered the market on underachieving Big 12 alums whose names rhyme with ‘Roy Williams.'”

Peace,

Allan

Coming Home…For a Minute

September 23, 2008 / / 0 Comments

Couple of quick shots here before we head out for day two here at Abilene. Again, if you’re looking for this week’s “KK&C Top 20,” it’ll be up late, late tonight or early, early tomorrow morning.

We had a great first full day yesterday at the ACU lectureships. Ian Fair’s informative and practical information and advice on the relationships between church leadership and church growth. Rick Atchley’s powerful poke at our healthy and wealthy western culture from Amos. Eddie Sharp’s roundtable discussion on the dynamics of elder – preacher relations. David Fleer’s riveting proclamation of the impartiality of our Father. Kevin Murray’s eloquent portrayal of God’s grace for all mankind. To use Brady Bryce’s favorite word, it’s all been “wonderful.”

My favorite part may be in getting to catch up, if so very briefly, with tons of great people from my near and distant past. Especially the kids. Jeremy Moore’s standing outside Moody last night with at least half a dozen girls getting ready to go see a movie. Mackenzie Lewis, running out after the keynote to preside over some social service club project she’s orchestrating. I didn’t even recognize David Griffen. You wouldn’t believe his hair and his beard and his tattoo. The tatoo’s on his wrist, in Hebrew. I can’t read Hebrew. I hope it says, “I’m gonna regret this in 20 years.” I’m hoping to see all the Marble Falls kids at Rosa’s this afternoon.

The Four Horsemen shared an inspiring three hour prayer session late into the night. I love these guys.

I’ll be back in NRH in time have a beautiful dinner with the wonderful ladies in my life and just long enough to pack up for Fresno.

“I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the Gospel, a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last…” ~Romans 1:16-17

Peace,

Allan

Faith In Community

September 5, 2008 / / 5 Comments

“We who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” ~Romans 12:5

Romans 12 deals with the corporate life of the Church. Offering ourselves as a living sacrifice, being transformed, developing the mind of Christ (12:1-2) — all of this takes place in community.

Our Western individualistic traditions can make this a problem. We can very easily, I think, see ourselves as doing what’s necessary to be saved and living together in the community of faith as two different, not necessarily related, things.

But all of Holy Scripture refutes that notion. We are called to be together.

Paul’s teaching in Romans 12 is that we cannot fully renew our minds without the active help of other believers. We can’t fully understand what Scripture teaches apart from dialogue with others who are reading the same Scripture. We cannot live our lives as disciples of Christ outside the nurturing context of a community of believers who encourage us, pray for us, and set examples for us. We can’t always discern the blind spots in our obedience to God without fellow believers to point them out.

Sometimes we think of ourselves “more highly than we ought” (12:3) and conclude we don’t really need anybody’s help.

More directly, we participate in the life of the Church to help others grow. “We have different gifts according to the grace given us” (12:6). Whatever gift you’ve been given, you are under obligation to your Lord to use it to serve his people. Other Christians need what each of us has to offer. As the human body is at a disadvantage without a foot, or an eye, or a kidney, so the Church is harmed when the full array of gifts are not being exercised within it.

So if you’re not involved, GET INVOLVED! If you’re not serving someone, SERVE SOMEONE! If you’re not participating, PARTICIPATE! Not only are you missing out, you’re depriving me of Christian growth if you’re not an active member of the Lord’s Church.

Peace,

Allan

Divinely-Ordained Diversity

August 22, 2008 / / 0 Comments

“…live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” ~Ephesians 4:1-3

Assemble in a way worthy of the calling…The Gospel of salvation from God in Christ Jesus unites us. It seeks to save all people and it brings together all people. People from different backgrounds and different cultures, with different mindsets and different gifts and different views and different styles are all called together in Christ. A quick glance at Romans 12 tells us clearly that God creates our differences. In fact, it’s our differences that make the Body of Christ, his Church, what it is. It wouldn’t be very functional as a body if we were all the same.

And this diversity among us should not only be tolerated, it should be embraced and appreciated—even celebrated. Make every effort…

This divinely-ordained diversity is expressed in many ways by our different styles and preferences in corporate worship. Whether we kneel, stand, or protrate ourselves on the floor to pray (or whether we prefer the ONLY prayer posture not mentioned in Scripture: sitting on our rear-ends in padded pews); whether we go to the front to eat the bread and drink the cup or stay in our seats; whether we sing new songs or old ones; whether we dress formally or informally; these are all matters of cultural and traditional diversity. And if our assemblies are truly regulated by the Gospel, that diversity will be valued by God’s people.

The Gospel calls us to, by imitating Jesus, put the interests of others above our own. Even in our assemblies. Maybe especially in our assemblies. That takes maturity. Spiritual maturity. But if we’re living a life worthy of the calling….

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David and Olivia Nelson are our missionaries to the Ukraine. They’ll be leaving October 13 for a six-year commitment to taking the Gospel of Jesus to Eastern Europe. Here’s a link to their blog: http://www.daveandliv.blogspot.com/

Cory and Emily Mullins are our missionaries to Australia. They’re leaving in November for a similar six-year commitment to spreading the Kingdom of our Father to the ends of the earth. You can read their blog here: http://www.mullinsmission.blogspot.com/

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It’s the last weekend before school starts for everybody Monday. We’re going to pray for all our school kids during our assembly here at Legacy Sunday morning. Then our Small Group is going to join our Legacy teens and parents in going to all the different school campuses here locally and praying on those sites Sunday afternoon. There’s a big back-to-school bash in the church gym later Sunday. And then I guess we go home and start bagging up and labeling school supplies.

For the first time this fall, we’ll have three girls at three different campuses (campi?). Whitney starts high school at Richland. Valerie’s beginning middle school at North Ridge. And Carley’s still at Green Valley Elementary. I’m sorry, make that FOUR girls at four different locations. Carrie-Anne’s going back to school, too. When we got married she lacked a semester and a half in getting her degree. We just assumed we’d get that done pretty quickly. Here, almost 19 years later, she’s going to do it. A semester at Tarrant County College. And then another semester at Texas Women’s University in Denton. She’s up there right now today meeting with her counselor. She’s very excited. And I’m very proud of her. So Monday it’s four backpacks and four sets of school supplies and four sack lunches. And I get to sing “School Bells” Monday morning to four of my girls, not just three.

Peace,

Allan

We Have Sinned Against The Lord

August 21, 2008 / / 1 Comment

“Our sins are higher than our heads and our guilt has reached to the heavens.” ~Ezra 9:6

“We have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws.” ~Daniel 9:5

“On that day they fasted and there they confessed, ‘We have sinned against the Lord.'” ~1 Samuel 7:6

This past Sunday, in our brand new sparkling beautiful immaculate impressive worship center, seven people put on their Lord Jesus in baptism. They were born again. They were created all over again to walk in newness of life with our God. Five families, 14 people total, placed their membership with the Legacy Church of Christ. They, too, were beginning again. Rededication. Recommitment. Re-focus. There were many of us in this new building who are feeling a strong sense of re-birth. Starting over. Like New Year’s Day, we sit around and eat black-eyed peas and promise to do things differently from this point forward. Like buying a new car and lecturing the kids about food and drinks and Taco Bueno cinnamon chips. Starting over.

Ebenezer. 1 Samuel 7.

Our new building can certainly serve—no, it WILL serve—as an Ebenezer for the Legacy church family. By God’s help we have come this far. We are where we are because of our God’s power, because of his grace. He’s brought us to this point. Just like Kent and the McDowells and the Holts always point back to the Cox’s garage in 1959, from here on out we’re going to point back to August 2008 and say, “That’s where things started again. That’s where the transition really kicked in. Remember that?”

(Jim McDoniel said Sunday the reason we can’t write “Ebenezer” real big on the outside of the new building is that Russ or Cordelia would have a stroke. The real reason is that the City of North Richland Hills would require 19 permits and a special election.)

In our Holy Scriptures we see that everytime God’s people are at a real turning point, everytime they start over, everytime they seek God anew, everytime they’re asking God for a deepening of the covenant relationship, it begins with a time of corporate confession. An intentional time of corporate, congregational confession and repentance before God. A public acknowledgement of sins committed, not by individuals, by the entire body of God’s people. 1 Samuel 7. Ezra 9. Daniel 9. Corporate sin. Corporate confession.

We did this last night in Oasis. In the brand new worship center, we listed together, out loud, the sins of the Legacy Church of Christ. I just asked the group in there to start naming them. And they did.

Pride.
Apathy to God’s mission to save the lost.
Prejudice.
Racism.
Materialism.
The desire to be a big church.
Tolerance of sin in the body.
Apathy toward social justice.
Self-reliance.
Selfishness. A Me-Church attitude.
Trying to be like everybody else.

There were still a dozen hands raised when I cut it off.

And we prayed. One of our elders, David Watson, lifted everyone of those Legacy church sins to our Father in prayer. All of them. He confessed them—our past and present sins—on behalf of the whole church. Then we sang together “Just As I Am” and “I Am Mine No More.” and then another of our elders, Gordon Lowry, prayed a prayer of repentance for the church. Turning wholly away from the sins and turning fully toward God as the only source of our forgiveness and strength and renewal. And then we closed with another of our elders, Bill Baker, thanking God for his forgiveness and for his love and for redeeming us, even in our sins.

Wow.

What a night. Paul says it’s God’s kindness that leads us to repentance. Not confessing, not repenting, shows contempt for God’s kindness and tolerance and patience. Those are the very things that lead us to confess and repent.

We’re promised by our God over and over again in Scripture that if we confess and repent, if we admit our sins, if we turn from our former ways and destroy completely the things in our lives that contribute to our sins, if we have a complete change in attitude and determine with all our hearts to turn fully to our Lord, he promises to restore us and forgive us and cleanse us and reconcile us to a perfect relationship with him. And he promises a renewed sense of unity and peace among us.

May we from this point forward turn away from our sins and turn fully to God. And may our Father bring to us his boundless mercies and limitless grace.

Peace,

Allan

It Is Good

June 23, 2008 / / 1 Comment

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” ~Romans 8:28

Our God ordains not only the ends, but the means. He uses all of it, everything that happens to us, for his purposes.

Nothing touches our lives that is not under the control and direction of our loving heavenly Father. Everything we do and say, everything people do to us or say about us, every experience we will ever have—all of it is providentially used by our God for our good.

Our problem is that we generally see what’s good for us differently from the way God sees what’s good for us.

As he works in our lives, and in the circumstances of our lives, God’s intent is to build Christian character, to conform us into the image of his Son, and to prepare us for final glory. So what he promises in Romans 8:28, then, is not that every difficult experience will lead to something good in this life. The “good” God has in mind may involve the next life entirely.

Regardless, we enter every day, we welcome every situation, we endure every circumstance with great anticipation, knowing that our God is intimately involved and working in our best interests.

We wait eagerly, Paul says, for “our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.” That’s the “good” God’s working in you and me.

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We went to a rock and roll wedding Saturday night. I don’t know what else to call it. When the bridesmaids walk down the aisle to Grand Funk Railroad’s “Some Kind of Wonderful” and the bride enters to the Beatles’ “All You Need Is Love,” that’s a rock and roll wedding.

Ashley(Moore)GrayAshley, you were beautiful. Warren, love that girl just like Christ loves his Church. And may our Father bless you both richly with long lives of faithful service to him and his people.

Chris and Liz, the wedding was fantastic. We had a blast. We miss so much praying with y’all in parking lots, watching Cowboys and Stars games at your house, worshipping our God with you in Mesquite and Tulsa, and laughing together about everything. Jeremy, your song blew us away. It was a perfect evening. We love y’all.

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RabbitBunnyInSkimmerWe have a little baby cottontail living in our yard. At least one. Maybe there’s a mom and dad and a bunch of little bunnies, I don’t know. But Thursday afternoon one of them decided to cool off by jumping in our pool and hanging out in the shade of the skimmer. He sat there in the skimmer from before noon until I dragged him out with a net at almost 6:00. Carley wants to cage him and keep him. She’s already named him Chestnut or something.

Peace,

Allan

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