Five Smooth Stones

  On my mother’s side, a prioritized relationship with God goes back a long way in my family. This is a common story among our brethren as beliefs and practices are passed from generation to generation. This is a wonderful thing! As the apostle John remarked: “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth!” (3 Jn. 4). However, it is easy to see how religious practices passed down repeatedly from parents to their children can be watered down to mere family tradition. Conversations about what the Bible teaches often become conversations about ‘how I was raised’.  It is a wise proverb that reads “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” (Pr. 22:6). However, while rules, advice and traditions can be drilled into children by repetition and inherited by the next generation and the next… one cannot simply inherit an authentic relationship with Jesus!  We may often use Ezekiel 18 to make the true point that guilt...

  “As Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men’” (Mk. 1:16-17). Like He did Simon and Andrew, Jesus calls each of His disciples today to be fishers of men- to ‘catch souls’ for Christ! Of course, as any proper fisherman should, we must examine what kind of bait we should put on the hook.  Many churches today work very hard to make their services attractive to the world. Their fishing lures are slick and shiny: free coffee and donuts, daycare services for members’ children, beautiful concert-style worship or an exciting party-style service. What people don’t realize is that when it comes to fishing for men, you keep them with what you caught them with! If we were to win someone over with free food and social programs, we would have successfully converted them to our social organization… but their soul would not belong to Chr...

  Today’s housing market is ridiculous. Imagine how great it would feel if you had the ability to own your dream house for free, designed by you down to the smallest detail and regardless of cost! All you have to do is build it yourself… but the only tool you are allowed to use is a hammer. Could you do it?  When we frame the situation in physical terms, it’s easy for us to see the difficulty of creating something beautiful only by beating it. You can’t build a house with only a hammer! Why then, do many believe that a spiritual house can be erected by the same forceful ‘Bible thumping’?  There is a reason why God repeatedly uses the analogy of the Potter and the clay (i.e. Jer. 18, Rom. 9). God does not force us into who He would have us to be, neither should we seek to force others into submission to God. Rather, as God seeks soft hearts to gently mold, we ought to do the same.  There is no cookie cutter approach to addressing sin in others, but we are instructed i...

  “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness” (Mt. 7:21-23).  In this description of judgment day, Jesus teaches that merely calling Him “Lord” and doing good work while invoking His name is not good enough to get into heaven. Jesus even describes these people as “practicing lawlessness”. The point is well taken that while those found displeasing in the passage are doing good works, those works may not constitute a fulfillment of the will of God. However, the standard that is present in these verses is to be known by Jesus. What does this mean? Even if the works accomplished by these lawless people are according to the will of God, it is possible to “...

  It is remarkable how the earthly ministry of Jesus was so often directed at social outsiders. One significant example of this is the calling of Levi (also called Matthew). “Jesus went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, ‘Follow Me.’ So he left all, rose up, and followed Him” (Luke 5:27-28).  Levi was clearly appreciative of this calling. Not only does he immediately leave his station and work, but he invites a great many other tax collectors and social outcasts to join Jesus and His disciples for a great feast in his own home (29). The reaction of the religious leaders is one of shock and disgust. How could these self-proclaiming religious people entertain the company of such lowly sinners? Jesus’ reply must have mystified the Pharisees. “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (31-32).  The great irony of this statement is...

  These days it seems like everyone is working an angle. Like the Pharisees of Jesus’ day, even when charity is accomplished, the motive is often for some outward reward (Mt. 6:2). There is a challenge to our perception however, because much good is accomplished in secret (Mt.6:3), and with no expectation of equal reimbursement.  Malcolm Forbes famously observed that “you can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do absolutely nothing for him.”  The sacrifice of Jesus is the chief example of this sentiment. Romans 5:8 tells us that “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” We were “without strength” (vs 6), utterly helpless and lost in the fog of sin. We had severed our relationship with God by open rebellion against His will, and yet He sent His Son to bear the penalty of our error.  Of course, there is nothing we could possibly do for God that would equal the matchless blessings ...