Finding Our Identity in Christ

The first time that the reader is introduced to Peter and his brother Andrew in the Gospel of Mark Jesus is walking by the Sea of Galilee (Mark 1:16). And the two brothers were there casting their nets into the water because, as Mark adds, “they were fishermen.” Now fishermen had a bad reputation in those days: they were known to be hard workers, rough in their speech, crude in their mannerisms, and coarse in their treatment of others. In other words, they were a pretty rough and tumble bunch of guys who were known to be really rough around the edges.
But Peter and Andrew “were fishermen.” They were defined by what they did for a living. When people would have seen them they would have thought, “There are Peter and Andrew the fishermen.” Being defined by what a person did as their profession was commonplace in the first century. Jesus’ step-father was Joseph the carpenter. One of Jesus’ disciples, Matthew, was known as Matthew the tax-collector. Later in Mark chapter 6 when people are wondering about the identity of Jesus they will ask, “Isn’t this the carpenter?” identifying even Jesus by His former profession.
The same thing is true today: one of the first questions that a person usually asks when they meet someone new is, “Now what do you do for a living?” These same things define us and serve as our identitiy: we are engineers, and managers, and pastors, and business men, and stay-at-home moms, and teachers. For Peter and Andrew, as well as for us today, part of who they were was drawn from what they did.
But it is not only our career that defines us and gives us a sense of identity, but many other things as well. Some of you may be defined by your successes: wealthy, successful, powerful. Some of you may be defined by your failures: unwed mother, addict, loser. Some of you may be defined by your past: sin, disappointment, abused, tragedy, victim. That is your identity that you feel that you are living with that defines you and who you are. And there are times where you feel that you cannot shake it and that you will always be “that.”
But the thing that Jesus offered to these fishermen and that He offers to us as well is not a change of identity, but the opportunity to find our identity in Him. That we could be defined by Jesus and our relationship with Him and that we could find our identity in Jesus Himself.
Do you remember the ridiculous years of high school where everybody was just trying to fit in with one group or another? If you were a jock you dressed one way and did one group of things and if you were a preppy you dressed another way and had another group of friends and did other activities. Each group had their defining characteristics as everybody was searching for their identity and what was going to define them. There was franticness about fitting in and being accepted and being noticed and being somebody. Unfortunately the ridiculousness of high school did not end there: many people today are still searching for what will define their lives as they look to find their identity and who they are in what they do and what they have.
So the freeing alternative that Jesus offers is to find our identity in who we are in Jesus. No matter what else I may or may not be, or whatever I may or may not have, I must first and foremost be defined by my relationship with Jesus Christ. Before anything else, before I am a pastor or a husband or a father or a friend or a whatever, I must be defined as a follower of Jesus Christ.
Do not let your past or this world dictate to you who you are. Find your identity in Jesus Christ and let that define you. Because all of those other things may change, but who I am in Jesus will never change. If I can find my identity in Jesus and be satisfied in Jesus then I do not need the latest and greatest things to define who I am. I do not need a huge bank account to make me feel like a real somebody. I will not crave more stuff to impress others. Because I am secure knowing who I am in Jesus Christ.
When that happens I am free to find worth in who I am in Jesus and in nothing else. Peter the fisherman and Andrew the fisherman were about to become Simon Peter and Andrew the followers of Jesus as Jesus said to them, “Follow Me” (Mark 1:17). How sweet and freeing to lose ourselves in Jesus Christ!

The Love Inspired Grace of God

I have recently been thinking much about the love of God and the grace of God. And it seems to me that God wants to prove His love for us by demonstrating His grace toward us. Throughout Scripture it is as if He is saying, "You know that I love you when you see that I have shown you grace."
That truth is seen in Romans 5:8 where the Apsotle Paul writes, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." There are many ways that God could have inspired Paul to write that verse. He could have simply said, "God demonstrates His love for us in that Christ died for us." If that would have been how Romans 5:8 was written then it would have still been amazingly true and would have been infinitely worthy of our praising God for all eternity.
But Paul adds a phrase that magnifies God’s grace. He says that God shows His love toward us in that "while we were still sinners" Jesus died for us. That phrase magnifies God's grace toward us in that it shows us love inspired grace. Jesus did not just die, He died while we were rebels, while we did not love God, while we had nothing good in us, while we were deserving of nothing but hell and punishment, while we were going our own way, while we could care less about God, while we were committing sin after sin against the God of the universe, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Jesus did the dying and the saving while we still did not deserve it.
That is grace. And that is how you know that God loves you: you know that God loves you when He shows you grace like that. It is one thing to see love; it is a more amazing thing to see grace-filled love!

A Friend of Sinners

What kind of difference are you making in your workplace and in your neighborhood and in those places that God has providentially placed you in order for you to be salt and light (Matthew 5:13-16)? What kind of relationships are you building so that you can love those around you that do not know Jesus as Lord and Savior? How are you involved in people’s lives for the sake of the Kingdom and for the sake of their eternity?
Jesus was called a “friend of sinners” by the religious establishment of His day. They saw that He spent time in the company of those of questionable backgrounds and practices and believed that to be scandalous. But I pray that we would be bold enough to live in such a way that the same might be said of us.
While Christians are to clearly look different from the world (John 17:16; 1 John 2:15) we must live in a way that demonstrates to the people of the world that we love them. This is what Jesus did as He interacted with those around Him. The religious people of Jesus’ day looked down upon sinners; Jesus looked for sinners because He came to seek and to save that which was lost (Luke 19:10).
When Jesus hung out with sinners He did not condone what they were doing and their sinful lifestyles, He simply affirmed that these people and their lifestyles can be transformed. And He was able to hang out with sinners without becoming a sinner Himself.
So as we seek to live in the world but not look like the world we need to avoid two extremes. One extreme is to retreat. This is where the only people that we know and hang out with are those like us: they believe like us, live like us, think like us, have the same morals that we do, and have the same worldview that we do. This is retreat and this is defeat.
The other extreme is to relax. This is where we begin to look more like our unbelieving friends then we do like Jesus. We relax our morals and relax our values and the sinners and the culture begin to affect us more than we affect them. This is just as dangerous as retreat for while retreat causes there to never be a Christian witness, relaxing causes the Christian witness to tainted and therefore ineffective.
Thankfully Jesus did neither of these. He did not retreat and He surely did not relax. Jesus redeemed. And that is what He has called us to do as well. Jesus has called us to be salt and to be light, but in order to do that I must get out of the salt shaker and into a world that needs some salt and that needs the light of the Gospel.
So I ask again: What kind of difference are you making in your workplace and in your neighborhood and in those places that God has providentially placed you in order for you to be salt and light? What kind of relationships are you building so that you can love those around you that do not know Jesus as Lord and Savior? How are you involved in people’s lives for the sake of the Kingdom and for the sake of their eternity? Let us go and be known as friends of sinners so that Jesus might use us to bring redemption to those around us!

Marriage for the Glory of God

Marriage, just like all of life, is meant to glorify God. It is meant to picture the loving relationship between Jesus and His church (Ephesians 5:32). God created marriage upon the pattern of Jesus and His relationship to His bride the church, so the goal is to live and love in such a way that God is glorified and the relationship between Jesus and the church are portrayed.
We all know that a strong, God-glorifying, Christ-centered marriage takes a lot of hard work and a lot of determination. It takes following the instructions of God, the One who created marriage in the first place. This kind of marriage does not come about by looking at the pattern of the world, but by looking at the pattern of the Word; the Word of God.
The building of a strong and lasting marriage is much like building a strong and lasting house. When you build a house you want to use materials that will make it last a lifetime. You want to work hard so that it will be built into something that will stand up to the test of time. And building a strong, God-glorifying marriage is no different. Psalm 127:1 says, “Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” Likewise we can say that unless the Lord builds the marriage, those who try to build it labor in vain.
The building of a marriage, just like the building of a house, must start with a strong foundation. And the foundation that is needed in marriage is Jesus Christ. There is simply no other foundation with which to build a marriage upon. Jesus said, "Anyone who listens to my teaching and obeys Me is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won't collapse, because it is built on rock.” (Matthew 7:24-25). The only foundation that will stand when the storms of life blow hard is the foundation of the Lord Jesus Christ. A commitment to Him as individuals and a commitment to Him as a couple is the only lasting, solid foundation that can support a marriage. He alone must be the rock.
But a house also needs walls: something that builds upon the foundation and adds structure and support. And in a marriage what adds that support is love. The Bible says, “Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged. It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. Love will last forever” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8). And the love that a husband and a wife should show one another should reflect the love that God has shown them in His Son, Jesus Christ. A sacrificial love that seeks the other’s good above one’s own. It must be a love that is predominantly centered not in each other, but in Jesus Christ where you love one another out of the overflow of your love for Him.
Not only does a house need a foundation and walls, but a house also needs a roof; something to protect the house from rain and acts as a shelter in the storm. And in the building of a marriage grace and forgiveness serve as that roof. The Bible says, “Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you” (Ephesians 4:32). The grace and forgiveness that the husband and wife show to one another should reflect the grace and forgiveness that God has made available through His Son, Jesus Christ. That is free grace that is not deserved or earned, but is freely and lavishly given. Grace that is not dependant upon each other’s performance or worth, but grace that reflects the blessings that we have been shown in Christ. Free and unearned grace must permeate your marriage so that it protects and shelters from struggles within and problems without.
When these things are done, a marriage will be made that will be strong and that will last a lifetime. But above all else, it will be a marriage that will bring glory to God.

Walking By Faith

We know from Scripture and from personal experience that God leads and directs His people. The main way that He does so is by His Spirit working through His Word the Bible. God’s will is mainly revealed in His Word as we embrace it, know it, internalize it, and come to know more about the mind and the heart of God through it as we conform our lives to what it says. Any means of seeking the will of God that does not involve the rigorous, regular, and systematic study of the Word of God is flawed and is a potential recipe for disaster.
God also leads His people through the godly counsel of others who are studying and loving and embracing and living God’s Word. There is wisdom in a multitude of counselors provided that the multitude know the Word of God.
It is also true that God sometimes leads through circumstances that we seek to interpret through the lens of the Word of God. God sometimes does close doors and open doors and these are indeed factors (not sole factors, but factors) in determining His leadership for our lives.
God uses these and other means to lead and guide His people; the list could certainly go on. To think that God does not lead His people would be unbiblical and contrary to the experience of most Christians. But as God leads His people He rarely (if ever) leads them in a way that does not call for faith. And while the way that God leads His people is important, it is not nearly as important as how God’s people trust their God.
Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” This faith does not find its anchor in what is known and understood and what can be checked out and mapped or planned. The anchor for this faith and this trust is the person and the promises of God: Who He is and what He has said He will accomplish. This kind of faith enables the Christian to press on steadfastly even when he does not know what the future holds for him. And he presses on not because he understands or trusts the future, but because he understands and trusts God who firmly holds the future. Faith knows that God can be relied upon and trusted.
Faith clings to God when you do not know how things are going to shake out and where exactly you are going. Let’s be honest: most of life from our perspective is absolutely uncertain. That is our perspective, but that is not God’s perspective. Our uncertainty concerning the future is only an apparent uncertainty; everything is certain to the God that we are called to trust.
But all of this is a matter of perspective. It all derives from how one sees things: do you see by merely sight or do you see by faith? Fear sees only the uncertainty and the unanswered questions and the range of options. Faith sees only God. The Apostle Paul called this “walking by faith and not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). Walking by sight does not require a lot of faith. When you walk by sight you have things seemingly figured out and there is a fail-proof plan that you have come up with and there are safety nets galore around you to catch you if you have made a miscalculation somewhere. When we walk by sight we have a tendency to trust ourselves and others and not to lean heavily and desperately upon God.
When you walk by faith you do not walk by sight. You cannot do both: to walk by faith is not to walk by sight. Most things that we do in life we structure to ensure that we do not have to walk by faith. But God expects His people to walk and live and think and make decisions that is a living out of their trust in Him and not a denial of it. And walking by faith is what is pleasing to the Lord because it is a demonstration of a person’s trust in the Lord. Two verses later in 2 Corinthians Paul writes, “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him” (2 Corinthians 5:9). Trusting God pleases God.
As a matter of fact, it is the only way to please God. Hebrews 11:6 says, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” If I am not walking by faith I am either trusting in myself or I am walking in unbelief and neither is pleasing to God. Walking by faith realizes that the goal of the Christian life is not to know the plan of God, but to know God Himself and to be one who “diligently seeks Him.”
So what do you do when you come to a crossroads and are not sure where to go? You trust God and you walk by faith. And you realize that the plan of God is not about a plan, it is about a Person and knowing Him (2 Peter 3:18).

25 Damaging Effects of Pornography

If you are reading this it means that you have access to the internet. And if you have access to the internet then you also have access to pornography. The statistics on porn viewing are astounding and shocking to say the least. The internet allows for porn viewing through accessibility, affordability, and anonymity. A deadly mix that lures many men (and women).
Let me list for you some of the damaging effects of pornography. (These are just 25 that I came up with and shared with a group  of men at our church a few months ago; I am sure that we could list more.)
1) Pornography breaks the seventh commandment concerning adultery
2) Porn is unnatural in the sense that it is sexual pleasure that is solo
3) Porn is usually a deceptive secret sin that allows one to continue under a pretense of sanctified and holy living
4) The pornographic images that are viewed will stay with a man in their mind long after the computer is shut off
5) When a man views porn they are viewing someone’s daughter
6) When a man views porn they are viewing someone’s current or future wife
7) When a man views porn they are adding to the shame that the people in the pornographic images feel currently or will feel in the future
8) Viewing pornography gives no thought to the image of God within the people in the porn images, no matter how marred that image may be
9) Porn gives a false view of true sexual relations within marriage
10) The law of diminishing returns is in effect with porn
11) Women are made an exclusive object of sexual desire which diminishes their personhood and the reality of the image of God
12) Porn sets up unrealistic expectations concerning what one’s wife will do and will look like
13) It is difficult, if not impossible, not to mentally recall pornographic images when in a real sexual situation with one’s spouse
14) Pornography disgusts God
15) Much of pornography depicts lesbianism
16) Much of pornography depicts abuse
17) Viewing porn supports the porn industry which is ruining millions of people’s lives
18) Pornography ruins marriages
19) You would not view porn with Jesus sitting in the room with you
20) For the Christian porn leads to overwhelming guilt and shame
21) Viewing porn breaks a Christian’s fellowship with God
22) It is hypocritical to tell your children to abstain from porn if you are viewing it
23) Viewing porn wastes time that is meant to be used for the glory of God
24) It turns your attention to sexual things in an inordinate fashion that may spill over into non porn viewing times
25) You would not want others to view porn if it was your loved one on the screen
Job 31:1- "I have made a covenant with my eyes; Why then should I look upon a young woman?"
1 Thessalonians 4:3- "For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality"

True Fellowship

What do you think about when you hear the word “fellowship” at church? Maybe it is hanging out in the foyer for a bit after the service getting caught up on the events of the week. Possibly your thoughts turn to sharing a meal together at someone’s house and getting to know them and their family a little bit better. Or maybe you are thinking “pot-luck” dinners and fried chicken after the service. While all of things are good and I readily admit that I enjoy all of them (especially the fried chicken part!), they are just a small part of what true, biblical fellowship is all about.
Over forty years ago Bruce Larson wrote, “The neighborhood bar is possibly the best counterfeit there is to the fellowship Christ wants to give to His Church. It’s an imitation, dispensing liquor instead of grace, escape rather than reality. But it is a permissive, accepting, and inclusive fellowship. The bar flourishes not because most people are alcoholics, but because God has put into the human heart the desire to know and be known, to love, and be loved, and so many seek a counterfeit at the price of a few beers.” People are longing for true biblical fellowship, but unfortunately they are content to settle for inadequate imitations. Whether we know it or not, or even admit it or not, we long to live life in relationships with others.
The word “fellowship” in the New Testament comes from the Greek word group koinonia. While this word can be translated in a few different ways and it carries various nuances to it, it generally means “a relationship characterized by sharing in a close partnership” or “an association involving close mutual relations and involvement.” I like to think of it simply as sharing life together.
But our fellowship with one another is rooted and grounded in our fellowship with God in Jesus. In Galatians 3:26 the Apostle Paul writes, “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.” We “receive the adoption as sons” into the family of God through trusting in Jesus Christ to save us from our sins (Galatians 4:5). Because Jesus has saved us from our sins we are now brought into a new relationship with God where we can now relate to Him as Father (Galatians 4:6-7). And this new relationship with God also brings us into a new relationship with other followers of Jesus Christ.
The new relationship we have with each other springs from and flows out of our new relationship we have with God through Christ. That is why John wrote in 1 John 1:3, “We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.” Our fellowship with one another is derived from our fellowship with God through Christ; that is the common bond that we have that unites us.
John MacArthur comments on this fact and writes, “Anybody in fellowship with Jesus Christ is also in fellowship with anybody else in fellowship with Jesus Christ. This is our common ground. It is not social, economic, intellectual, cosmetic, or anything else superficial. Our common ground is that we posses a common eternal life and are children in the same family.” No other human relationship compares to the relationship that we have with fellow believers in Christ because our bond is Jesus Himself. So biblical fellowship occurs when I am living out my relationship with Jesus in relationships with other of Jesus’ followers.
But authentic New Testament fellowship does not happen automatically. Rather, it comes when we actively seek relationships within the Body of Christ where we can love one another (John 13:34), bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2), pray for and confess sins to one another (James 5:16), encourage and build up one another (1 Thessalonians 5:11), be kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving to one another (Ephesians 4:32), be devoted to one another (Romans 12:10), rejoice and weep with one another (Romans 12:15), and through love serve one another (Galatians 5:13).
But here is the catch with all of these “one anothers” of the New Testament: they cause us to be focused on others at the expense of self. Fellowship within the church flourishes when we have a heart to love and serve others and when we actively seek ways to live life together with them for their benefit.
If it were possible for us to live the Christian life in isolation from other believers then the Lord Jesus would not have established the church and the Spirit of God would have never inspired the writers of the New Testament to include so many things we need to do in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Christ. But they did, because we need the church and we need one another. And when the church ministers to one another as it is called to do then we experience true biblical fellowship, true koinonia, and God is glorified and we are blessed.