Who Is On the Throne?

Below are some things I have read this week that caught my eye, my ear, or my heart. Give a click and maybe they will yours also.

1. Kevin Weatherby, my cowboy pastor friend, takes a look at what would happen if the entire church institution became cowboys on a ranch to see how they would handle the day to day operations. “Don’t be fooled into thinking that this was written for someone else. It was written for you–and me.” Read more…
2. Larry Westfall wrote a post called Help Your Pastor Before It’s Too Late. “Being a pastor is one of the most demanding roles on the face of the planet.  I want to encourage you today to support your pastor in any way that you can.  Here are a few suggestions that will tremendously help.” Read the 8 suggestions and the comments
3. C Michael Patton from Parchment and Pen wrote an insightful post on the issue of legalism versus libertanianism. He says, “We need to be sensitive, but not to the point where we are simply fueling others’ faulty understanding and legalism. People will control you to the degree that you let them. If you allow this to go on without discernment, not only will you be immobile, but you will have lost your liberty. Lose liberty, lose the Gospel.” Read Beware of “Professional Weaker Brethren”.
4. JUSTAPEN, Seiji Yamashita, at The Ignition Point gives us a shot in the arm and a kick in the pants with his post, Set Up for Success. “How can we even imagine that we might somehow fall and lose the day when we have been so thoroughly set up for victory?” The post is good. The comments are even better.
5. Anne Jackson‘s second book, Permission to Speak Freely – Essays and Art on Fear, Confession and Grace released this week. Anne decided to share seven essays on seven different blogs. They are candid snap shots of her life as a preacher’s kid. They will touch your heart and bring tears to your eyes. I encourage you to read them all and if they impact you like they did me, you will want to buy the book and read all 22 essays. To read the essays, you can follow the links below:   

Donald Miller (Essay #1 – The First Brick)
Jon Acuff (Essay #2 – The Final Brick)
Carlos Whittaker (Essay #3 – Losing Faith)
Pete Wilson (Essay #4 – Finding Love in All the Wrong Places)
XXXChurch.com (Essay #5 – Shattered Pixels)
Catalyst Conference (Essay #6 – Ghosts of Churches Past)
FlowerDust.net (Essay #7 – Listening)

I hope you enjoy these as much as I did.

There are at least five different levels of spiritual commitment. Take a look and see where you might fit.

Are you:

1. Uninterested?  This would be a person who is not a Christian, someone who has no desire to know God. They are so controlled by Self and sin they don’t really want to follow Jesus. Some may be hostile to Christianity, others my just be indifferent. This person sees no need for Jesus and doesn’t care to.

2. Seeker?  This would be a person who is not yet a Christian but is really interested in knowing God. This person is interested in spiritual things; is open to the truth of the Bible; and may know some believers who have shown a winsome testimony. These people are on the right path to meet Jesus and be saved.

3. Believer?  You are at this level if you have repented of your sins and received Christ. You believe the truth of the Gospel that Jesus died for you and was raised to give you life. You have a desire to love God and follow Jesus. However, you may still at times be controlled by Self.

4. Disciple?  A disciple is one who is denying Self, taking up his cross daily and following Jesus. His main desire is to please and follow his Master, Jesus Christ. You have found that loving Jesus and serving Him by loving others is the great joy of your life. You feed upon God’s word. You commune with God in prayer. You fellowship with God’s people.

5. Disciple-maker? There is at least one level beyond a simple disciple. Jesus didn’t call us just to be disciples but to be disciple-makers. In other words, a real disciple is someone who has led someone to Christ and has nurtured and mentored him or her to become a real disciple as well.

Jesus said, "Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And you are witnesses of these things.” (Luke 24:46-48).

George had attended church since he was a boy and now he was 60 years old. Everyone knew who George was, there wasn’t a Sunday that went by that George wasn’t in church. The truth however is no one really knew George at all. George had difficulty loving his wife. His children could not speak freely with him and felt no affection for him. George was not concerned about the poor and had little tolerance for those outside the church. George also tended to judge those in the church rather harshly. Those kids shouldn’t be running around in the church. Look at what he is wearing to church. Why, I always liked the green carpeting, why change it? If it isn’t broke don’t try to fix it.

On day someone in the church asked George, “Are you happy, George?

Never changing his unpleasant frown, George replied, “Yes, Why?”

The church member then responded, “Well then George, you need to tell your face?”

You see George’s exterior mirrored his interior. The problem was George was not changing. He was stuck in his well practiced ways. But the most remarkable part of it all was, that if you brought this to the congregations attention, they would have simply said, “So? That’s George, it’s just the way he is.”

No one seemed to care that George remained unchanged. No one called a special church meeting to consider this strange occurrence of a person who was not changing. No one really expected George to change, and therefore they were not surprised when that change did not happen.

They did have other expectations of George. Everyone expected that each Sunday morning George would be at church. He would sit there, right were he always sat. They trusted that George would take communion like he always did. They knew that George would read the scriptures, and give his offering faithfully. Whenever called upon George would help with moving the tables and chairs or volunteer on church work days. George was a faithful member of his church.

But people did not expect that day by day, month by month, decade by decade, George would be more transformed into the likeness of Jesus. People did not expect that he would become progressively more loving, more joyful, and more holy. So they were not shocked when it did not happen.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Cor. 5:17).

“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2 Cor. 3:18)

“that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.” (Eph. 4:22-24).

What is the expectation in your church?

(I adapted this story from a sermon I heard by Chip Ingram).

“Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, Who seek Him with the whole heart! … I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands." (Psalm 119:2,10). Seek the Lord with my whole heart. Now what exactly does that mean? Does it mean going to church every Sunday? Does it mean putting some money in the offering plate? Is that what being a Christian is all about?

Some people would say, "Yes! That’s good enough for me! I come to church. I give money. What else is there?"

What if I came home to see my wife only once a week on Sunday? What if I said, "Hi honey! I’m home! For a whole hour! And guess what? This time, I brought you some money! I was going to spend it at McDonald’s. But I wanted you to have it so you would know how much I really love you and what a good husband I am! I have to go now so I won’t be late for the game. But I’m sure I’ll be back next week. Bye sweetheart!"

I’m sure you’re thinking, "What kind of a loser is that? What kind of a creep spends only an hour a week with his wife?"

But this is how some people treat God. They give him an hour a week on Sunday; a couple of bucks in the plate. And they think that everything’s Ok. Well, guess what? It’s not ok. Jeremiah 29:13 says "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with ALL OF YOUR HEART!"

It’s like God is saying, “I’m not looking for a 1 hour a week relationship! I don’t want a casual courtship! I want something more than that! I want all your heart! I want a commitment. I want to hear your voice in prayer every day. I want you to read my Bible. I want you to share the good news about my Son with others. I want you to visit the elderly. I want you to be compassionate on those who are less fortunate. I want you to represent Jesus Christ in all that you do."

The true evidence of seeking the Lord with my whole heart is I “keep His testimonies” and do not “stray from your commands.” (Psalm 119:2,10). Jesus said it this way, “If you love Me, keep My commandments,” "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me,” and "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word.” (John 14:15,21,23).

Am I whole hearted for God?

Many of you recall the movie Chariots of Fire. It was about Scotsman Eric Liddell running in the 1924 Olympics in Paris. Liddell was a committed Christian and refused to run on Sunday (which he felt was the Christian Sabbath). The consequence was that he was forced to withdraw from the 100 meters race, his best event. Instead he entered the 400 meter race. The day of the race as Liddell went to the starting blocks, an American masseur slipped a piece of paper into Liddell's hand with a quotation from 1 Samuel 2:30, "Those who honor me I will honor." He not only won the race, but broke the existing world record  with a time of 47.6 seconds.

Liddell gave up his chance to race for the gold in the 100 meters. But he held true to his Lord and his convictions.

Jesus said, "For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.” (Luke 9:24). I don’t think this just means to lose your life in the way that a soldier might lose his life in battle. It means to become so immersed in something that you “lose yourself” in the task. What is the glorious obsession of a disciple? Jesus Christ and His Kingdom. All you need in order to have a kingdom is a king: That’s Jesus. He said, “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” (Matthew 6:33).

There are two aspects to the Kingdom of God. There is the present kingdom of God: Jesus said, “the kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21); “The kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 14:17).  There is also a future Kingdom. In Luke 9:26 Jesus speaks about coming in the glory of the Father and the angels—that’s what we call the Second Coming. Jesus is coming again and will one day set up a literal Kingdom. Don’t you want to be a part of that kingdom? I do, but you must lose your life in the Kingdom of God now in order to find your life in the Kingdom of God to come.

Is Jesus Christ and His Kingdom my obsession? Do I live to be a disciple and a disciple-maker?

The best part of Eric Liddell’s life occurred after his Olympic medal. He didn’t return to Scotland to have his picture on a box of Wheaties and to live off his endorsements. In 1925 Liddell accepted God’s call to serve as a missionary in China as his parents had earlier done. During the Japanese invasion, Liddell was arrested along with many Chinese Christians and placed in a prison camp. Even in the camp, he led many Chinese to Christ and discipled them.

In 2008 it was revealed by the Chinese authorities that Liddell had given up an opportunity to leave the camp and instead gave his place to a pregnant woman. Apparently, the Japanese made a deal with the British, with Churchill's approval, for prisoner exchange. This information was released near the time of the 2008 Beijing Olympics by the Chinese government and apparently news of this great act of sacrifice came as a surprise even to his family members.

Eric Liddell died at the camp on 21 February 1945, five months before China was liberated. At the young age of 43 He met his Master. He had run another kind of race, for another kind of prize and he received another kind of medal—more priceless than gold. Liddell is quoted as saying, “We are all missionaries. Wherever we go, we either bring people nearer to Christ, or we repel them from Christ.”

Are you a missionary, a disciple? Are you running the right race? Jesus isn’t after attenders or spectators. He doesn’t just want 10,000 well-dressed carnal believers to gather in church every Sunday. He is still calling people to be disciples and to be disciple-makers.

Over the last few posts I have written about being a disciple as we focused on Jesus’ challenge to His disciples in Luke 9. After telling His disciples what it meant for Him to be the Messiah, He told them what it meant for them to be His disciples. Jesus has said that if we would come after him (be His disciple), we must deny self, take up our cross daily, and follow Him.

Jesus said, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” (Luke 9:23).

FOLLOW ME. That means to walk the way Jesus walked. I remember a few years ago when my son was just about five, we went to Florida for a few days of vacation. One day when we were walking on the beach I looked back and Ricky was intentionally stepping in the footprints I left in the sand. So, I started taking giant steps and going around in circles. He laughed as He tried to copy my crazy movements.

Following Jesus means to walk in His footsteps. Now this doesn’t mean you have to live a perfect life to be a disciple—that’s impossible. But you must make a conscious decision to follow Jesus. It means you choose to obey God in every area.

Sometimes following Jesus involves leaving some things. When Jesus called Peter, Andrew, James and John they were fishermen. He challenged them, "Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men." (Mark 1:17). They immediately left their nets and followed Him.

In I Kings 19 there is a great illustration of discipleship. Elijah, the national prophet, was coming to the end of his ministry. God told him to choose Elisha to be his disciple and his replacement. Elijah found Elisha hard at work on the family farm, plowing with twelve yoke of oxen. Elisha probably came from a wealthy family with a large farm because we see him supervising eleven other men as he plowed with the last pair (for you farmers, it’s like having a tractor that will pull a 12 bottom plow—that’s no small tractor!).

The prophet Elijah walked up to this farmer and threw his prophet’s mantle over him.  Elisha ran after Elijah to follow him. But before he agreed to be Elijah’s disciple he first did something very important. He had a barbeque for his family. He slaughtered his oxen and used the wooden yoke and plow as fuel to cook the beef. Do you see what Elisha was doing? When you burn your plow and eat your ox you don’t ever intend to go back to farming. He was cutting ties with his past so he wouldn’t be tempted to go back to that life. It was his way of showing he was totally committed to following his new master. That’s discipleship.

I can’t follow Jesus and blaze my own trail at the same time.

You have probably heard of Florence Nightingale. Although she was raised in great wealth and privilege in England, at age 17 she experienced the call of God to help suffering people. She became known as the founder of modern nursing. While serving during the bloody Crimean War, she treated the wounded even after she contracted a deadly illness herself. She was the first female to be awarded the British Order of Merit. What made her life so exceptional?

She was a serious disciple of Jesus Christ. She wrote in her diary, “I am 30 years of age, the age at which Christ began His mission. Now no more childish things, no more vain things.” Late in her life she was asked to explain how she had accomplished so much, she said, “I can give only one explanation and that is this: I have kept nothing back from God.”

Are you holding back anything from God?

Luke 9:23 is one of the most important verses in the New Testament because it contains the essence of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Jesus said you can never be a disciple unless you “deny yourself.” That doesn’t simply mean you have to deny yourself something like sweets, sleep or food. It means you deny your Self. Think of your “self” as your “ego” or the “Big I.” Because we are sinners, our human nature makes us self-centered. We put the “Big I” at the center of our own little universe and everything revolves around “me”.

I can’t help but remember the final lines to the poem “Invictus” by William Ernest Henley. It reflects the attitude of a life separated from God. The day Timothy McVeigh was executed he left this poem to be read as his final statement. Although they would never consider killing 168 people, many people share McVeigh’s attitude. The poem ends, “I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul.”

Contrast that with the unselfish life Jesus taught.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a pastor in Germany during the horror of Hitler. Because of his opposition to Nazi tactics, he was put into prison and later hanged as a traitor. He understood something about the cost of following Jesus. In his book, The Cost of Discipleship, he wrote, "When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.” And to explain that further he wrote, “Self-denial is never just a series of isolated acts of mortification or asceticism. It is not suicide for there is an element of self-will even in that. To deny oneself is to be aware only of Christ and no more of self, to see only who goes before us and no more the road which is too hard for us.”

Denying your Self is not thinking harshly of your “self” or hating your “self.” It is just not thinking of your Self at all. Look at these three graphics. They are from a Campus Crusade for Christ booklet entitled “Have you made the wonderful discovery of the Spirit-filled life?”

         Natural Man                       Carnal Man                     Spiritual Man

The first circle represents a Natural Man or a person without Christ. Self, represented by a big S on the throne. The cross, or Christ, is outside the person’s life. The smaller black circles represent different interests like family, work and hobbies. See how unbalanced they are? That’s a self-centered life.

The second circle represents a Christian but he is a Carnal Man. The cross (Christ) is in his life but “self” is still trying to be on the throne. He is still self-directed because he hasn’t “denied” himself as Jesus instructed. He is basically miserable. See how the interests are still unbalanced?

The third circle represents a Spiritual Man or a Spirit-filled person. Self has been dethroned and Jesus is on the throne. This person has made Jesus Lord by denying Self. See how balanced his life is? Think of it this way: As long as Self is on the cross, Jesus is on the throne. Whenever Self climbs back up on the throne, we put Jesus back on the cross. You see, the throne of your life is a single-seater; there’s only room for one at a time.

Many people want Jesus in their lives so they won’t burn in hell, but they still want to call the shots. They want to maintain control. But Jesus insists that we deny and dethrone self.

Twice a month after Sunday morning worship our church shares a fellowship meal together. Many of us bring food and we lay it all out on the table buffet style. Don’t you just love buffets? You can pick and choose between many scrumptious dishes. Some restaurants like the Golden Corral or Ryan’s have that kind of set up. If you go with a group of people everyone can get what they want. They can go down the line and pick and choose … Mexican food, Seafood, Chinese, Italian, good old American. You can try something new, and if you don’t like it … set it aside and go back for something else…

That’s great when you’re eating out (except that you may over-eat trying to get your money’s worth). It doesn’t work so well when you take the buffet approach to your faith. A lot of people think of “religion” as a kind of smorgasbord. They take a little of what Buddha said over here and try out some of what Moses said over there with a little Jesus sprinkled over it and some Scientology sauce on the side. And for dessert they try some Dr. Phil and Dr. Laura with a big dollop of Oprah on top. If it all tastes good, they keep it … and they’ve put together their own buffet of life. If they lose their taste for any part of it, they can set it aside and try something else.

The only problem is: although the Bible is nourishing to our souls, it doesn’t offer a buffet. God isn’t a buffet kind of God. The Bible presents ONE God and ONE way to be saved. Some people accept that as truth. Others don’t like it. They want to set it aside and find something else on the buffet table that looks better to them.

Ravi Zacharias in his book, JESUS AMONG OTHER GODS, says, “We are living in a time when sensitivities are at the surface, often vented with cutting words. Philosophically, you can believe anything, so long as you do not claim it to be true. Morally, you can practice anything, as long as you do not claim that it is a ‘better’ way. Religiously, you can hold to anything, as long as you do not bring Jesus Christ into it.”

Once when Jesus was alone with His disciples He asked them, "Who do the crowds say that I am?" (Luke 9:18). They all began to suggest answers that they had heard. You see, everyone was talking about Jesus. It seems that everyone had an opinion about Jesus. Even King Herod heard about all that was going on and what people were saying about Jesus. The disciples gave the very same report that Herod heard, "John the Baptist, but some say Elijah; and others say that one of the old prophets has risen again." (9:19).

If we were to go around today and ask people who Jesus is we would probably get even more answers than the disciples had heard. Muslims will say that He was a prophet, but that He did not die on the cross nor was He raised from the dead. Buddhists will gladly call Jesus a “guru” and one of the incarnations of Buddha. Mormons say that Jesus is “a son of God” along with many others. Philosophers may acknowledge Jesus as one of the great minds of the ages. Historians point to him as one of the most influential people that has ever lived. Jesus has been called a first rate teacher, a political activist, and a worker of miracles.

Then Jesus asks the more important question, "But who do you say that I am?" (Luke 9:20).

That is the most important question any man or woman will ever answer. The difference between salvation and condemnation, between heaven and hell is bound up in the answer to the question, “Who is Jesus?”

This question is an individual matter, to be answered by every person. Frankly, the view of the masses will never be the right view of Jesus. We must stand apart from the crowds who may think of Jesus fondly but reject Jesus as the Christ of God. The world may want to just add Jesus to everything else on the buffet, but He will not have it. He calls people to make a choice, “who do you say that I am?”

Peter answered for the group, "The Christ of God." (Luke 9:20).

At this point Jesus “strictly warned and commanded them to tell this to no one.” (Luke 9:21). Jesus is the Christ of God. But before they start spreading the word, the disciples need to know what it means for Jesus to be the Christ, the Messiah.  

Tomorrow we will examine from His own words what it meant for Jesus to be the Christ.