Making the Cut

No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. 1 Cor 9:27

The Masters is this weekend and the unofficial start to golf season.  The Masters is such a unique event in so many ways.  Not only is it the most highly coveted prize in golf, but it kind of sets the tone.  It is played on a pristine course that sets itself above anything else out there.  Of course there is St. Andrews and there is Pebble Beach, but even the non-golfer knows Augusta and the Masters.  From a timing standpoint, the Masters gets us out of our doldrums and into a springtime form of mind.  As I write this, a young man by the name of McIlroy is winning by four strokes going into the last round.

I spent four years in the golf industry and learning some of the nuances of golf even though I am not a regular player.  it is I believe the only sport that is for the most part self-policing.  Disqualification for the most part occurs when a golfer admits to something.  Those of us that play for recreation don’t really care if we move a ball from its lie or give ourselves a stroke or two benefit on our score.  After all, we are then only cheating ourselves.  This golfer disqualified himself by using the wrong ball, a seemingly inconsequential mistake, but the rules are the rules.

J.P. Hayes admission of using the wrong ball not only cost him a successful round, but knocked him out of contention for qualifying for his tour card.  A seemingly minor infraction had a major cost.  Thankfully his honesty kept him in the game.

So it is with the Christian life.  Seemingly major infractions can be used by God for his glory.  Consider David who committed adultery and murder yet was called a “man after God’s own heart”.  On the other hand consider a guy like Achan (Joshua 7) who hid treasure which would seemingly would not have hurt anyone.  But it violated a command and God called him our on it and it resulted in the loss of his life.  Annanias and Sapphira were removed from the race not because they sold their property and kept a portion of the proceeds, but because they “lied to the Holy Spirit” (Acts 5:1-16). 

So the issue is the heart, not the infraction.  When God calls us out, it is based on our heart attitude.  It does not mean that we can go commit a crime and expect not to pay.  David paid big time for his sin.  But he was not disqualified from the race.  Peter paid for his sin of denial of Christ and paid for his alienation of Gentile believers (Gal 2:11), but was not disqualified.  In fact, we can bumble our way through life and if we are committed to the cause of Christ, we can be used. 

What is Paul saying in 1Corinthians 9?  Can we will or work our way into God’s service?  No the key is the motivation of 9:23 - “I do all things for the sake of the gospel, that I may become a fellow partaker of it”.    I want to be used, I need to be used.  My prayer is somehow, someway God can use me in spite of my constant awareness of my sin.  In fact, the more I desire to be used, the more aware I am of my sin.  God can use rough, raw material in any of us.  But those of us who trust in our raw material will find ourselves disqualified. 

Let Anger Go

“For the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God”
James 1:20

Paul Allen announced the release of a book this past week that focuses in part on his time at Microsoft.  Reportedly, the book states that Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and President Steve Ballmer schemed to dilute Allen’s shares at Microsoft over 18 years ago.  Allen says in the book, "I helped start the company and was still an active member of management, though limited by my illness, and now my partner and my colleague were scheming to rip me off," Allen writes in his memoir. "It was mercenary opportunism, plain and simple."

Whether the statement is true or not, the point is that there has to be some long lasting bitterness there, maybe appropriately so.  After over 18 years, the wounds are still very fresh to Allen.  We have all been there, but as Christians we are supernaturally charged to think and act differently.  All of us have been wronged from time to time to where we can harbor intense bitterness and hatred towards another person.  It is especially bitter when it is a fellow believer who in Christ we think has wronged us.  I can remember three people especially in my life whom I felt incredible rage towards, a feeling that I had been completely wronged.  It robbed me of my joy, my effectiveness, making me useless for the kingdom.  It masked deep seated wounds and sin on my own part causing me to focus my rage not internally on my own sin, but externally towards the person who had wronged me.  

The saying, “time heals all wounds” does not work towards bitterness.  In many cases, it seethes over time particularly when things subsequently don’t work out the way we think they should have worked out.  Forgiveness is supernatural.  We could never forgive without the power of Christ’s love in us.  Because He who has forgiven much gives us the ability to forgive others who have wronged us a little by comparison.  I have found that God uses the warts in others to reveal the warts in ourselves.  In every case where I felt wronged, there was a self-revelation of a stinging sin in my own life.  I needed to see “logs in my own eye, while seeing past the specs in my brothers eye” (Matt 7:5). 

Without true forgiveness, we cannot experience true joy.  That is not my opinion; that is what Scripture says.  Satan loves to use the root of bitterness to rob us of our joy.  Col 3:6 says to “put anger aside”.  Col 3:12 says to “put on a heart of forgiveness”.  Note that this attitude occurs regardless of whether the individual who has wronged us asks for forgiveness.  In my case, none of the people asked for forgiveness.  I don’t even think they think they wronged me.  The heart problem is mine and the response is also mine. 

Purge the Sweets

but they did not drive them out completely.  Joshua 17:13

I have a real problem with my sweet tooth.  If you leave sweet stuff laying around, I will eat it.  Last year at this time, I found myself at 223 pounds and set a goal of getting down to 200 by the time of Meghan’s wedding.  I really focused on the task at hand by exercising diligently, but more importantly I tracked what I ate and we eliminated the sweets laying around the house.  Not cut down, but eliminated  because once you have some sweets laying around, it starts a slippery slope.  It took a while, but slowly my cravings for sweets went away because they simply weren’t an option for me.  There weren’t any laying around.  Plus I practiced replacement therapy by substituting fruits and vegetables for the high calorie, high fat sweets.  I did not quite make 200, but I got down to just under 210.  It appears I am going to have to go down that path again. 

As Israel comes into the Promised Land, they are reminded over and over again by the Lord that they must purge the Canaanites from the land.  Not partially, but completely.  We know this was fully within their capability because in Joshua 17:17, Joshua reminds them that they have “great power”.   It was not too great of an obstacle that they could not pull it off.  Yet we know from Scripture and history that they did not clear out the Canaanites.  The Canaanites ultimately became a snare to them.  The Israelites never fulfilled the Mosaic covenant and never fully inherited the Promised Land and ultimately were driven out into slavery by the Assyrians and the Babylonians. 

There are many components of sin that have a definite allure.  I am sure that the reason they did not drive the Canaanites out was because of two reasons.  One was there was a certain attraction to the Canaanite forms of god worship.  We know from history that much of it certainly on the surface looked like it was attractive.  Drunken, sexual orgies probably looked pretty fun.  It took them all of 40 days while Moses was on Mount Sinai to “rise up to play” (Exodus 32:6).  The second reason is a false sense of self-confidence.  They believed they could co-exist with this temptation.  The answer is they could not and you cannot.

Temptations like pornography lurk 24/7.  You don’t have to go anywhere, you can get it anytime from the comfort of your own home.  The principle here is you cannot “dabble” in this sin or any sin.  You must eradicate it completely.  If you are dabbling, it is only a matter of time before you are indulging.  The progression is from allure to sin in a heartbeat away (James 1:14).  Dabbling in sin will rob you.  It must be purged completely.

Fortunately, God gives the ability to eradicate sin.  He does not leave you hanging on your own.  He gives you the power.  That is another post for another day.

No Neglect Allowed

“You shall not be allowed to neglect them”  Deut. 22:3

People are hurting out there.  Can I as a Christian ignore hurting people or people in need?  No, I can’t. Especially when it comes to my brothers and sisters in Christ.  Yet, I do, frequently.  Driving up on an exit ramp, my eyes meet a man with a sign asking for help.  My eyes turn away.  Oh, it is probably a fraud, I rationalize.  Or maybe it is thoughts like “Why can’t that guy go to a church and get help?” Or, I’m late and I don’t have time to stop.  Where do those thoughts come from?

If I am growing closer to the Lord, the neglect becomes harder and harder.  The presence of the Holy Spirit is so overwhelming.  It is not a guilt trip – it is true sorrow.  I know the difference.  Guilt comes from within me, sorrow comes from the kind of compassion Jesus felt.  I am saddened by the revelation of my sin.  I am saddened by observing a friend in need that I have chosen to ignore.      

The priest passed by the other side of the road. The Levite passed by the other side of the road.  Two religious guys.  Two stellar religious guys.  But the Samaritan mongrel stopped and helped.  He even went the extra mile as if to really show us what compassion truly means.  A Samaritan, the most despicable human being to the orthodox Jew of Jesus day.  

You see someone in trouble – help them.  A neighbor has responsibility.  Ignorance is not an option.  Deuteronomy 22 says it emphatically in reference to straying and fallen animals.  But the principle is larger – help them.  Deut 22:4 – you shall certainly help them follows the prohibition of neglect.  Not neglecting means helping.  Helping means stepping out of my comfort zone.

A God Appointed Leader

“These are the names of the men who shall apportion the land to you for inheritance”

When I played Little League baseball, I was pretty good so I was always selected in the top few draft picks in the league (thanks to Dad, one of the coaches).  However, in football, I was small until I got to high school so when I played junior high football, I was the booby prize.  I have remembered drafts of pickup games where other names are called and you get down to just you and one other guy.  That is embarrassing.  When I got to high school, I tried out for basketball (before I got into wrestling) and there was no greater discouragement at the time than not seeing your name on the roster when the list as posted.

I am doing my systematic reading through the Old Testament.  It can be real dry at times and sometimes my prayer is that God somehow reveals to me truth so I don’t just gloss over the copious detail in books like Leviticus and Numbers.  So in Numbers 34, something caught my eye.  God appoints leaders by name, one by one.  There it is – God actually names them in talking to Moses.  Interestingly, none of the leaders named in Numbers 34 come from the same family lines as those in Numbers Chapter 1.  These family lines failed in leadership as that generation died in the wilderness.  God appointed new leaders to go into the promised land.  What is it about Bukki and Elidad that made them right for the task?  Bukki didn’t audition for the role.  God knew his capability to lead so well he just named him.  We have a role, a place.  Have you ever considered that God is so in charge of the details of life that he has appointed us for a specific job?  How could anyone read of the details in the Pentateuch and not come away with a belief that God is not into details. 

I want to be on that team.  I don’t want to be cut out of the team.  I really want to be on the leader list somewhere.  Oh it may not be documented forever as in Scripture, but God has in mind something specific for me to do.  He has my name specifically in mind for some task.  If Bukki can make the team, so can you and I.

Is God Willing AND Able?

“I am willing, be cleansed” – Matt 8:3

As a parent, there is few greater thrills than being able and willing to help your children.  You don’t do everything they ask you to do, but when their request is in line with their best interests, if gives you great pleasure to help them.  That is why Jesus uses this illustration as an appropriate one when thinking of coming to God in prayer.  What good parent does not want to do the right thing for their children?  In fulfilling the requests of our children, they have to know that we are both willing and able to accomplish their requests.  Sometimes we are able, but not willing.  Our willingness is usually centered around whether it is in their best interests.  Uh, playing on the freeway is not in their best interests.  Sometimes we are willing, but not able.  Many times it simply does not fit our ability to deliver or it is a practical nightmare like “Can I have a pony?”. 

It was very freeing to see that Jesus is both willing and able to help us.  In the story of the boy with that is demon possessed in Mark Chapter 9, we find that the disciples were unable to exorcise the demons from the boy.  The boy’s father, no doubt frustrated by their inability to handle the problem cases (they healed others), turns to Jesus and asks Him “If you can do anything, take pity on us and help us”.  The word translated “can” there is a word that suggests he believed that Jesus lacked the power to be able to heal the boy.  Jesus clearly had the power, but the boy’s father did not ask directly, i.e. he lacked faith. 

Then something even greater happens.  The father cries out to help him in his lack of faith.  In essence, show compassion to me because my faith is simply too small.  Enlarge my faith.  Jesus is willing, he is certainly able, and he even elevates our faith through His compassion.  Do we cry out?  Do we reach our wits end?  Paul writes when we are faithless, God remains faithful.  Do we know how to pray effectively? God prays for us (Rom 8:26).   

My faith is much smaller than the mustard seed because the mustard seed would get the tree tossed in the ocean (Luke 17:6).  While faith is a trait that we must possess, it is a gift that God amply supplies.  And he is willing and able to help that as well.  

Progress One Tooth at a Time

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.  John 15:5

A number of years ago, I finally made the decision to get my teeth fixed.  They looked this.

My dentist had told me that if I did not get them fixed, it was only a matter of time before I would be on dentures because they would all fall out.  My bite was off.  So I went to the orthodontist and he set me on a treatment plan that would take more than two years.  It was a pain in the you know what.  You see teeth move quite slowly and they have to be slowly moved into place.  There is no option to yank them into place.  Our quick fix mentality as Americans just doesn’t fit well into the slow methodical movement of orthodontics.  However if I followed the treatment plan, my teeth would be fitted into place and all would be aligned.

So it is with growth in Christ.  It simply cannot right all of the wrongs overnight.  There is not quick fix.  Oh yes, we can confess our sins and God says He will forgive us but that cannot restore our relationship overnight.  Why does David say “restore to us the joy of your salvation” after he says to “create in us a clean heart”?  God is not a genie whom we can manipulate.  A relationship starts with the right treatment plan.  A steady intake of God’s word and investing in the relationship.  I used to view a steady intake of God’s word as a form of legalism, but that has changed.  Even when I don’t feel like it, I force my time into God’s word.  You see if I don’t, I might compromise my treatment plan.  I want steady growth, steady maturity.  God in return has made these times in the word incredibly joyful and revealed truths that I could never see through human eyes.  Spiritual orthodontics follows the right treatment plan.  I want my spiritual teeth in alignment so they look like below.