Self-Maintenance Man

I always wanted to be a superhero - and the other night, sitting in church listening to a visiting pastor from India, God revealed to me that I was. I'm Self-Maintenance Man.

Self-Maintenance Man is a little different than most superheros in that instead of looking to rescue others, he spends his entire life getting himself out of danger. He's kind of like a reverse superhero in that sense. The typical hero disguises himself and rescues others. Self-Maintenance Man disguises others and rescues himself. He uses all of his powers and energies on keeping his life in order, all the while telling himself that the others "aren't so bad" that they need his help.

In Deuteronomy 15, God commands that every seventh year the Israelites are to cancel all the debts of their fellow brothers. In verse 9 God says, "Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought: 'The seventh year, the year for canceling debts, is near,' so that you do not show ill will toward your needy brother and give him nothing."

God unmasks Self-Maintenance Man with this verse, as He commands him to stop rationalizing away his unwillingness to help the poor. "The 7th year is just around the corner - he can survive until then." "The 7th year (someone else) will take care of him!" "There are programs to help those in need." "I have to get my life in order and then I'll help."

These simply won't cut it. And the other night, as I sat listening to this small, humble preacher from India, an ordinary man who pulls in the children living off of the streets and feeds them and clothes them and loves them in the name of Jesus, I found myself distressingly humiliated. I was ripped open and embarrassed to the very core of my being as the facade of my "Christian Life" was torn off.

My entire life is centered around self-congratulatory self-maintenance. I take care of my ministry, my family, my church, my school and most importantly - myself. I do this under the disguise of spirituality, but when it's unmasked, I realize it's simply me taking care of my kingdom. Everything I do is really about keeping me in the best possible place, occasionally sticking out my hand from under the blankets with a morsel of bread for someone in need.

I need to be like my Savior. He was a sheep-seeking missile, coming into the dirt and muck of this world and pulling out the lost. He didn't simply stand there and say, "I'm here if you need me." That's what we do as churches. We open the doors and yell out, "We're here if you need us!" No - He put on the clothes of the lost and went in and found them and pulled them out of the fire. He wasn't into self-maintenance, He was into us. He got His feet and His hands dirty, yet kept His heart pure. He didn't try to rationalize it away, saying that the Year of Canceling Debts was right around the corner. He personally took on the Debt and canceled it out at the cross for us.

In Deuteronomy 15 it also says that every seventh year a servant could be set free. But if you read Exodus 21 you realize that if these servants were married, they couldn't take their wives out to freedom with them. However, they did have the option of going back to their masters and staying under them, so that they could remain with their wives and family. To do this, they had to place their ear against a door and have a nail pounded through the lobe. Bonded forever.

This is what Christ did for us - He came back for His bride. He didn't leave us in bondage. He was pierced for our transgressions and became one of us. He could have left us - Satan tried like crazy to get Him to come down from that cross - but He became one of us to save us all. Self-Maintenance Man would have never done that.

It's time to wake up.

Church Selection

Not too long ago, a very nice family visited our church and then asked to meet me with. I sat down with them for an hour, as they told me that they were leaving their present church and were in the process of selecting their new one. They took out a checklist and began going down each item (it was three pages long), checking things off as we spoke. It was a very interesting meeting to say the least.

I don't write this to put down this couple. They were very serious and sincere and were simply doing in a systematic way what most people do in their mind when they visit a church and make their decision on attending. What's the music like. What ministries do they have. Do they have pews or seats. Stained glass or clear. Does it feel like a church to me. What are the people like. Is the pastor a good preacher. (I thought I heard them chuckle to themselves over that one.)

Again - I'm not putting this well-intentioned couple down, although they did choose another church. (Though CBC made their top-three!!) What struck me is that we have this capability in America to even go through this process. Think about that: we can choose a church like it's a couch. No wonder pastors constantly feel like their under the pressure of being salesmen for their church instead of shepherds of a flock.

Imagine being in a place where you were just happy that you could get together. Anyone have a Bible? Anyone have a song? I think this would change our concept of "church" pretty quickly.

A Tale of Two Passovers: Passion and the Word

Note: I'm just working through some things with the Revival of Josiah (one of my favorite stories in the OT as it is so applicable to my life) and have some thoughts on his re-institution of the Passover celebration- so bear with this one. It's a work in progress.

In II Kings 23:21 – 23 we read that as part of his reformation, Josiah reestablished the celebration of the Passover. “Celebrate the Passover to the Lord your God, as it is written in this Book of the Covenant.”

“Not since the days of the judges who led Israel, nor throughout the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah, had any such Passover been observed. But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah, this Passover was celebrated to the Lord in Jerusalem.”

This Passover celebration took place in 622 B.C. and it appears that the situation in the Temple was so bad that the priest had to hide the Ark to protect it from being profaned along with all of the other apostasies taking place prior to Josiah's great reform. (II Chronicles 35:3) Josiah had them bring it out as there could be no true Passover without it.

(We need to understand the importance of the Passover – it is the one celebration that clearly foreshadows Jesus Christ. )

Key Thought: The revival of Josiah took worship to a higher level by taking the passion of Hezekiah’s Passover (II Chronicles 30) and celebrating it by aligning it in accordance to the Word of God. Passion in obedience to the Word is ultimately the highest form of worship.

Hezekiah’s Passover was an awesome first step. It had not been celebrated at all, apparently, since the division of the kingdom after Solomon’s death. They were so excited to be doing this that they unanimously added another week to the celebration. What a time that must have been – worship pouring out to such a degree that they didn’t want to leave! “Let’s play two!” I wish that we would have such a fervor for worship that after church was done we'd all say, "Let's do that again!"

But it’s also important to note that in their zeal, they sidestepped a couple of the ‘regulations.’ First of all, they held the celebration a month after they were supposed to because they didn’t have time to get their act together. (II Chronicles 30: 2) Then they allowed men who had not purified themselves to partake of the feast (II Chronicles 30:18). Yet through Hezekiah’s intercession (II Chronicles 30:18, 19) they were given a ‘pass’ so-to-speak from God.

The intent of their heart was to seek Him, which is always more important than the rules and regulations when you are first returning to Him. This is a very important point when we are bringing in the lost to hear about the salvation of Christ. But it is also important to note that it required an special, intercessory prayer by Hezekiah and a ‘healing’ by God to make up for these oversights. You can't simply side-step the "rules of the game" without some divine dispensation. And we certainly can't determine when and where the rules can be set aside. God allowed this for this specific occasion.

However- when Josiah, two generations later, found the Book of the Law and made the decree to celebrate the Passover, he combined the passion of Hezekiah’s feast with total obedience to the Word of God. Note the key phrase: "As it is written." That is the ultimate sign of maturity. Passion checked by complete adherence to God’s expressed will.

Christ brings a freedom borne out of passion, which rises above the rules and regulations, but ultimately leads you back to the perfect ways of God – not just total, unrestricted freedom. It is freedom, but it is a different kind than the world defines. It is freedom to love and serve God – but His way. It’s not legalism, because legalism drains out the heart and passion of a relationship with Christ.

This true celebration of the Passover was done because Josiah had found the Book of the Law. Once you know, you have no excuse anymore. A seeker or a new Christian is given some grace because he doesn’t know. He is coming to Christ as he is, not as he should be. We try to force people to be Christ-like before they even know Him! But the relationship must be established first. The excitement that tumbles over and around the ‘rules’ of Christianity must be allowed for - for a season. Just as the people in Hezekiah’s day were desperate for reestablishing a relationship with God by celebrating the Passover without being in accordance with the exact rules, there are people who need to come to Jesus just as they are.

But, as you mature as a child, as you get to know the Law – then you must become more like Him. The rules ARE adhered to, because they are His rules, and His rules are designed to bring you into greater fellowship and worship with Him, not more restrictive.

If you've been a Christian for awhile, you can't be hiding under the 'experiencing God' excuse for not bringing your life under His direction. We have to be growing, and this means coming more and more into line with His ways. "I just want to love God and be with Him" is a great thought, but it can become a lazy excuse for disobedience - and then you miss what you claim to be desiring, for only through obedience are we drawn deeper into Him. And let's face it: Many of us know better - we just want to hide under the guise of freedom.

The Divine Dispossession

Deuteronomy 11:22 "If you carefully observe all these commands I am giving you to follow - to love the "Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to hold fast to Him - then the Lord will drive out all these nations before you , and you will dispossess nations larger and stronger than you."

"Dispossess" - I love that word. It's my new favorite Biblical term. I love everything about it - how God calls the nation of Israel to enter into the Land that He has already given them, knowing that the nations are stronger than them, but still telling them to trust Him - He will dispossess these nations from their authority over them.

Make no mistake - the things that bind you ARE stronger than you, or they would not bind you! They can't simply be 'ruled' out of your life. By that I mean, you can't simply get up in the morning and lay out all of these rules that will keep your mind and heart in check, with the hopes of bringing you victory. These strongholds are too powerful for that. (read Colossians 2:23 - a life-changing verse for me.)

The only thing that can bring you victory is when you bring in a greater authority who can dispossess these strongholds of their . . . . . well . . . strong hold on your life.

Let's face it - many of us are losing battles because we are facing a stronger enemy. Think of lust for example - men are dying under it. I've read where over 50% of the pastors in the US are under some kind of pornographic addiction. This is crazy - until you think about it. These men spend hours alone with their computer and Satan is hacking away at them. The power of lust that he uses is stronger than their self-constructed defense system. Rules won't work, so these precious ministers of the Lord are losing the battle of the mind and falling away! Think: for every dollar that we spend developing 'lust-control' filters, the porn sites spend at least ten on counteracting our defense systems. They are too strong and have too many resources for us to defeat on our own. Our strength is not sufficient!!!

God understands that. In Deuteronomy 11 He acknowledges that these nations are larger stronger than the Israelites. So they will need a greater authority, a stronger force, on their side. And that's where God comes in. He will dispossess these enemies of their authority and place in the lives of the Israelites.

It's the same for us - we need a Divine Dispossession of anything that has a foothold in our life. Depression. Covetousness. Anxiety. Lust. Despair. Discontent. Worldliness. Lack of Forgiveness. Lack of self-control. These are stronger than you - so you need an Authority in your life that can dispossess them. Get under His covering and let Him go to work. Raise your hands - right now - in submission to Him and let Him begin the process of unwrapping the tentacles of sin that are wrapped around you, choking the life out of you.

I JOHN 4:4 ( I call this: May the "Fours" be with you.) Repeat this to yourself, over and over.

GREATER IS HE THAT IS IN ME THAN HE THAT IS IN THE WORLD!!

Me and US: A Love-less Relationship

Luke 14:26 "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple.

Listen - I love America. I really do. I deeply appreciate the fact that I live in this country, and having been to many other countries in the world (Canada, Mexico, Israel, England, France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Belgium, Greece, Italy, Yugoslavia -yes, I'm bragging) - I have come to realize that this really is a great place to live. However - it is imperative that this is a love-less relationship that I have with the US. Christ made it very clear that we are to "hate," or love-less, every person, every institution, every nation in comparison to our all-encompassing love for Him.

In Luke 14:26, Jesus is saying that we must be so into Him, that all other relationships must be placed beneath it. "Hate" in this sense means to "love-less" - not despise.

One of my favorite bands from the 80's was the Australian band Midnight Oil. Their song "Dead Heart," about the Aborigines right to the land, can also be aptly applied to the Christian and their relationship to the United States:

We don't serve your country
Don't serve your king
Know your custom don't speak your tongue
White man came took everyone

We don't serve your country
Don't serve your king
White man listen to the songs we sing
White man came took everything

We carry in our hearts the true country
And that cannot be stolen
We follow in the steps of our ancestry
And that cannot be broken

We don't need protection
Don't need your land
Keep your promise on where we stand
We will listen well understand

We carry in our hearts the true country, our citizenship is forever planted in heaven, and our freedom in the US should be used as a means to advance that kingdom. Too many US Christians see that freedom as the end - God's blessing upon them - so that they can live happily ever after. The riches He has given us should be seen as resources, not as rewards.

The American tongue is not the same as the Christian tongue. The American way is not the same as the Christian way. American goals are not the same as the goals of Jesus Christ. And no - the American Kingdom is not the same as the Kingdom of Christ.

We have a unique language of true freedom of the heart. We are not seeking our own or trying to protect our own. We are laying down our lives, but for others to live free in a spiritual way, not on earth.

Too many American Christians have adopted the language of this country instead of the language of God. It's a terrible mistake, fatal in fact. It is an immersion into a culture of the world - for like it or not, America is not a separate nation, it is a nation of the world, lumped together with all of others.

When we fail to recognize this fact, our true faith can be taken from us, as we begin to lean on the things of the world. But as Peter Garrett sings: "We carry in our heart the true country - and that cannot be stolen." From a non-Christian group, that's a pretty good Christian message for the American church.

Like I said, I have a love-less relationship with America. I really do love "her" - just not nearly as much as I love Christ.

Your Best Ewe Now (or The Offal Truth)

Malachi

1:8 "When you bring blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice crippled or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?"

1:10 "Oh that one of you would shut the temple doors, so that you would not light useless fires on My altar! I am not please with you," says the Lord Almighty, and I will accept no offering from your hands."

Your Best Life Now by Joel Osteen is an easy target. I go back and forth on him - sometimes I think it's not too bad, that many people are in such dire straits that the first thing they need to hear is that God loves them and had wonderful plans for them, and then they can start the process of getting it all back together. Other times, his message goes down like sour milk. It's lukewarm, tepid and without any lasting impact or value. The Christian life is not about our best life now, it's about surrendering everything we are and everything we value to the Lord and let Him use us or burn us out. When we make the message about how to enhance our life, then we lose the true message of Christ. He is not a life-enhancer, He obliterates the old life.

In the days of Malachi, the people were suffering from the same problem. They had come back from Babylon with dreams of Their Best Life Now, but it wasn't quite working out that way. So they decided to take matters into their own hands and withhold the best of the flocks, bringing in the sick and the old for the offerings to the Lord. They deserved the best, so they would supply themselves with the best. God got the leftovers and the lame - they withheld their best ewe. These offerings rose as a stench to the Lord and He told them to "shut the Temple doors."

But don't we do the same thing now? We offer up our best time, energy and money to our own personal pursuits, and whatever is left over, we offer to the Lord. The last minutes of the day. The time when we're least alert or effective. The remnants of our salaries after we've made sure the bills (and entertainment essentials) are taken care of.

We do it in our families as well. We give the outside world our best face, our kindest personality. We treat them with respect, and then we enter our own homes and offer up the "offal" parts ourselves. The leftover entrails of the sacrificial offerings that we've already given to ourselves and the world around us. Brothers - this should not be! Like the people in Malachi, we've got it upside-down. You know those tired devotions you're having? You are, in a sense, lighting "useless fires" before Him.

I am making a more concerted effort to give my best ewe now. I've sat down with my wife and reworked the budget so that God is first. I've tried to make sure that He gets my best time, not my I'm-about-to-fall-asleep time. I also want to make sure that my wife and family get the better part of me, not a cranky, short-tempered father sitting on the couch because he's had a tough day. The people of my church need a better me as well. You see, once you give God your best and start to actually trust Him, the dominoes start falling. You become better for those around you, working from the inside-out.

You want your best life now? Offer up your best you now.

Practicing The Presence

I've been rereading "The Practice of The Presence of God" by Brother Lawrence, and I can remember my first response to this little devotional book, many years ago. When I first read it, I was bothered by the notion of practicing my relationship with God. At first I had tried to rationalize that walking with God should require no work on our part. I thought Brother Lawrence was wrong - why should a pure walk take work? It should just be a filling!

But I was wrong. It's both. The filling is there, and many times God will come upon us in outpourings of His Spirit, as we see with the apostles in Acts. But the daily walk requires work, practice, discipline. It's not going to happen otherwise.

And it's not simply a quick, take five minutes out of your day activity. It takes a deep, concentrated, isolated time with Him. It may be like a desert time, but the moments will come out of these times.

I believe we try to take the path of least persistence when it comes to our walk with God. We want it all now, but will not wait upon Him and sink ourselves deeply into Him.