Rewards

Ever been told or thought of Heaven as a bunch of mansions? Ever thought of doing 'good deeds' in order to earn Heavenly rewards? Ever said jokingly that you just lost or earned a jewel on your crown or have this fantasy idea of what Heaven looks like?

As I've been challenged lately on my views of Heaven, I've come to find out that you will never find the plural phrase of the word 'reward' in the New Testament. Paul spoke of a reward or prize in running the race and reaching the end but what is the prize? In Matthew, you read of Jesus saying to store up treasures in Heaven but as I've studied that, treasures aren't rewards. In fact, you don't earn treasures...you find them. And once you find them, you can either invest it or leave it as if you never found it. That's an interesting thought.

Pastor Andrew Farley says, "As humans, we always seem to be looking for a punishment or reward-based motivation to keep our behavior on track." And as I've talked to believers, this seems to be a common factor. Farley goes on to say, "God doesn't want us to think and act in certain ways because we're seeking to accumulate heavenly merchandise. Just as Paul was willing to lose all things for the sake of knowing Christ, we too should make it our agenda to know Him! For more wealth in Heaven? No, we want to know Christ simply because it's the greatest thing going on planet Earth."

Wow. Is Jesus enough? Frankly, the reward is Jesus. A life filled with unconditional love, sufficient grace, and a reality that in Christ you are perfect, worthy, righteous, and forgiven...a saint, saved by grace. The reward is allowing Jesus to live your life in the here and now. Will you store up treasures or should I say an attitude, a love (action) that endures forever or will you pursue the unfulfilling success and dead works that don't earn you 'jewels'? The choice is yours, the reward is now!

Making A Difference vs. Making A Point

If you're like me, you like to prove people wrong when they make ridiculous claims. I'll never forget when Brent Boschman claimed he could eat 3 boxes of Mac & Cheese in one sitting. Joe Smith quickly called him out. To our surprise, not only did the man eat 3 boxes of Mac & Cheese but he did it in under 30 minutes. What initially was us trying to make a point that his claim was absurd, Brent threw it back in the face of all his doubters and proved us all wrong. Brent made his point!

There is nothing wrong with proving your point. I do it all the time. But the question I want to ask is, are you more concerned with proving a point than making a difference? I want to focus on Christians who feel like they need to make a point, proving their faith in Christ at whatever the cost rather than caring and loving people in an effort to make a difference. We shove evangelism in their face or through a track without genuinely loving someone. We talk over others in an effort to 'win' the discussion. We rarely listen, not knowing you can learn a lot about a person by simply listening to them. We think we are making an impact for Christ when we argue with other religious people or agnostics. We think our stupid "Christ-like" bumper stickers or Christianese cliches will attract people to the Gospel. We win 'battles' but in reality we lose the war. Have you ever had a conversation with someone that was overly passionate or unattractively pressuring you into believing what they believed, whether that is Christianity, products, sports, or any other kind of knowledge? Even if you agree with them, more often than not you take the other side just to possibly prove them wrong. I'm afraid our techniques in evangelism is actually causing more harm than good.

Philadelphia Flyer coach Peter Lavoilette says, "Don't just play the game to let it go by, play the game to make a difference." We play sports in hopes of making a difference in the outcome of the game. We've all been there. Thinking about making the last minute shot or goal and becoming the town hero for the evening. Just like in sports, we should be more concerned with making a difference than making a point. Are people attracted to you because you show them the love of Christ? Do people know you actually care about them? Do people feel comfortable telling you what they think or believe, knowing you won't pass judgment? People will never listen to what you have to say about Christianity until they know you genuinely care for them.

Experience

During staff meeting a couple months ago, we were sharing stories of people we talked with after the service. One woman was talking about how great her experience was with our church when a lady on staff responded with a simple question. The question she asked the guest was, "Did you experience God?" The woman went on to explain the things she felt God laid on her heart. That's awesome! But that question started a trail of thoughts for me as we continued our meeting.

As I've experienced great services in other churches and the different ways that people present the Gospel, we can be sure that if people don't experience God we completely miss the point of meeting. Church is not about a spectacular event, it's about a sincere and faithful heart towards God. You impact a community when they know you care, when you present the Gospel in an authentic and raw way, and when you live with an overflowing love that expresses grace to all people. We can do amazing things to attract people but the main question remains: Do they experience God?

The catch is, the word church does not mean 'a building'. You are the church, everywhere you go. When you talk and interact with people, do you draw them closer to Christ or push them further from Him? Do people experience love through their relationship with you? Do you offer the same grace that you have received from Christ?

We can throw facts at people all day long but what they need is to experience Jesus for themselves and see His goodness. Psalm 34:8 says, "Taste and see that the Lord is good." Well in order to taste something, you need to experience it. And once you experience the incredible grace, unconditional love, and constant pursuit from Him, you'll never be the same!

Compassion

I was listening to a podcast this week and the preacher said something along the lines that every time Jesus was moved with compassion, it forced His involvement. Forced His involvement? I didn't really understand that statement so I looked it up and found that this was actually true. In fact, it happens 5 times (Matthew 14:14, Matthew 15:32, Matthew 20:34, Mark 1:41, and Luke 7:13-15). I started with Matthew 14:14 which says, "When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick." He goes on to feed about 20,000 people but the startling reality lies in that word compassion. That word used in the Greek (splagchnon) actually means "inward parts or bowels" a gut-level compassion. 

It's interesting when you think about compassion as bowels. When you get food poisoning what happens? I don't know about you, but the 2 times I've had food poisoning I've been violently sick. Throwing up constantly. When my bowels were messed up it forced an action! That is exactly what happened to Jesus when He felt compassion on people. It's almost as if He got sick to His stomach to the point where He was forced into action to meet their needs. 

This should really challenge us in the way we do life. When we see the needs of others, we should have such compassion on them that it forces our actions to meet their needs. God calls us to love! 1 John 3:17 says, "If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?" Compassion cannot leave a person in the same condition they were found. Mother Teresa says it best, "I have found the paradox that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love!"

Be Extreme

When you think about worship, most people think of singing. Singing is a form of worship but the reality is, Christians aren't the only ones who worship. Worship is a lifestyle! All of us worship something or someone whether you are aware of it or not. We worship God, but we also might worship money, friendships, relationships, sports, famous people, etc... The question to ask yourself is, do you worship created things over the Creator?

Worship is what you do, what you value, and where you spend your time. It's a heart issue. It is public action. It is how you do life. True worship is a life that honors God, doing everything to the best of your ability (Colossians 3:17). We worship when we obey. If you are going to be extreme about something, err on the side of obedience to God!

The New Testament explains 2 commands that wrap up how we should live. They are found in Matthew 22:37-39. Love God, Love People. I've heard people call the Bible a 'book of rules' but frankly that couldn't be more wrong. The Bible is not a rulebook. It's the anointed words of God about His amazing sacrifice through Jesus on our behalf. If we stopped focusing on the 'rules' and focused more on God, loving Him and loving people; your life would drastically change.

Herod

I heard a preacher once say that you will never run out of material if you speak from your weaknesses. One of the things I struggle with the most is discouragement. I've figured out how to defeat it but sometimes I'm not always quick to respond in the appropriate way. You can defeat discouragement through several approaches but two ways that have helped me the most is through encouraging others or praising God. When I encourage others randomly or when I praise God and start thinking of all the blessings He's given me, it's hard to stay in a state of discouragement. I'm soon reminded of how much He loves me.

Discouragement is one of the devil's greatest tools. If he can get you frustrated, upset, or feeling sorry for yourself, he can distract you from what God wants to do in and through you. There is nothing more satisfying for Satan than when we are not making an impact for the Kingdom of God.

Do you remember who was king and what he wanted to do after the birth of Jesus? Herod kept hearing from people that the 'King' was born. It infuriated him because he was king. Status and power was everything to him. In fact, Herod sent out a creed to kill all babies under two years of age in the hope of having Jesus killed. That's odd. At that point, no one really knew who Jesus was going to be. He had yet to do anything great or miraculous. But Satan knew... Again, our war is not a war of flesh and blood. It's a spiritual war (Ephesians 6). Always has been, always will be. Just like Herod wanted to kill Jesus at His birth, before He did anything great; so the devil wants to kill you and your dreams before you make any kind of impact for Christ. Before you even get started in your walk with God the devil is flooding your mind with lies that you will never make a difference. Lies that God can't do anything through you. Be encouraged. Don't defeat yourself. Don't listen to the lies. God wants to use you. God wants to build His Kingdom through you. Keep trusting, keep believing. Don't let the discouragement of the devil keep you from doing what God wants you to do today! You have victory in Christ!

2013

Three days into 2013 and I'm excited, expectant, and grateful for where God has led me and for where He is going to lead me. For many of you, the last year was a time of joy or pain. We all have different experiences, different memories, and different emotions that went along with 2012. They have shaped or molded us into the person we are right now. Pastor Channock Banet said it perfectly this past weekend at Cornerstone Church. As he was recapping 2012, with the joys and pains that went along with it, he said, "Let's not let the memorial of 2012 become a monument that we camp under." That's a pretty awesome statement, yet a serious warning! Regardless of what you experienced this past year, it can keep you from growing and enjoying what God has for you right now. Whether it was a great year or the worst year of your life, you have a choice. You can either set up shop in the joyful or painful memories of 2012, living captive to moments; or you can take whatever circumstances you experienced and use them as motivation or momentum to carry out what God wants to do in and through you this year!

With God's amazing grace and love, we are capable of making a huge impact for the Gospel. God's grace covers you but it then produces faith. Faith requires responsibility and your responsibility is to live like Jesus lived (1 John 2:6). Not under shame or the feeling that you have to earn God's grace through obedience. But under the realization that God is in fact proud of you, loves you, and can do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us (Ephesians 3:20). When your focus is Jesus, sin is diminished. As a pastor once said, "I want to be known as someone who walks out of the Bible, not out of the Bible belt." 2013 is going to be a year of breakthrough and Jesus is going to get all the glory.