Author: Craig

The Love That Messes With Us

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41Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him. 42Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; 43for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God. John 12:41-43

Glory. Praise. Adulation. Affirmation. Acceptance. Applause. Being in.

We usually discover our love for the glory of people when we find ourselves on the outside or when we find our status threatened. This is a love that will mess us up. The insecurity will create a whirlwind of self-destruction. It kept the Pharisees who believed in Jesus from identifying with Him. It will keep us from saying to Jesus Christ, “I am affectionately yours.”

This love for the applause of people will mess us up. We crave their delight. In fact when they cheered we thought we were becoming somebody; but then we learned their praise is conditional. They could never bear the weight of our soul and our soul could never bear the weight of their demands.

Looking to Jesus, we hear his invitation to life and the glory of God. We can see how He lived in the Belovedness of the Heavenly Father’s glory, praise, affirmation, acceptance, and applause. When Jesus experienced the unbelief, rejection, condemnation, dishonour, and contempt of people He framed it in a larger problem and He abided in His relationship with the Father.

44And Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me.45And whoever sees me sees him who sent me.46I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.47If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world.48The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.49For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak.50And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.” John 12:44-50

The world and even our friends will not see us through the lens of our affection for Jesus Christ when our obedience to Jesus runs counter to what they want. They cannot. Paul insisting on the Gospel of grace in Christ, would write of this challenge of understanding motives when he says, “For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” Galatians 1:10

Did you see it? The love for the glory of people will enslave us. The love for the glory of God through the grace of Jesus Christ will usher us into His freedom.

 

Natural Spirituality

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12Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. 13And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.

14The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. 15The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. 16“For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:12-16

The Gospel frames “spiritual” as a condition brought about by the Spirit of God through Jesus Christ. So for the Christian living in my setting of people claiming “spiritual but not religious” some sophistication is required to maintain the beautiful simplicity of the Gospel.

The same Jesus who was present at Creation with the Father, and Holy Spirit is with us. The same Jesus who lived among Israel and died on the Cross is present with us. The same Jesus who was raised from the dead and ascended to Heaven is with us. The same Jesus who will return again some day is with us.

For the “natural” “Spirituality” is the common language that retains the common grace of intrinsic worth emerging from the image of God. Even the “natural” may recognize their need for love, for respect, for righteousness, for power and yet deny Jesus Christ.

Now, In Christ, we have Him and He has us, by the Spirit of God. The Spirit of God is working so that we may understand the things freely given us by God.

We have been given the mind of Christ. Now we are no longer “natural.” Now we are made to be “spiritual” in the truest sense by means of the Gospel. Yet we affirm the “natural” in their quest and desires that correspond with the glory of God and His Kingdom.

Jesus is with us. Our spirit is alive to God through the work of Jesus Christ. Now we are truly spiritual as the Gospel frames “spiritual.”

 

Your Church

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4I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge— 6even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you— 7so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 1 Corinthians 1:4-9

Are you thanking God for your church today? The Communion of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is seen there. You are in this life together with them. How have you seen God working among them? Are you waiting on Jesus with them? Are you celebrating Jesus with them?

God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 1 Corinthians 1:9

Getting over our cults of personality.

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1But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. 2I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, 3for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? 4For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human? 5What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. 9For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building.  1 Corinthians 3:1-9

 

We’ve all got “personality.” Great leaders have personality too. Their confidence makes them seem larger than life. Servants of Jesus who are also great leaders point people to Jesus and not to themselves. The Apostle Paul is battling the cult of personality built into the fabric of Corinthian society. He lays out a new perspective for them.

 

  1. These leaders are servants of Jesus.
  2. Each leader has an assignment from Jesus.
  3. Each leader has relationships with the church given by Jesus.
  4. As each leader does their part, God gives the growth.
  5. Each leader answers to God.
  6. The servants of Jesus are fellow workers in God’s Field, In God’s Building working with God. So the church is not “their’s;” its God’s.

 

 

You have come to Jesus.

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22But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.  Hebrews 12:22-24

The writer of Hebrews is contrasting the people of Israel with the people of Jesus. Israel came with Moses to God at Mt. Sinai. There they were terrified at the display of God’s holiness. They shut their eyes in fear of the glory of God. And they would not dare to come close. They sent Moses alone. (Exodus 19-20)

But you have come to Jesus. Jesus has brought us into the Kingdom of God. Together. He has enrolled us in heaven. We have come to the judge. We have come as those declared righteous and made complete by Jesus. We come to Jesus, whose blood speaks better and longer than Abel, the one who suffered the first murder. The blood of Jesus who suffered at the cross, completes God’s promise for us in the new covenant established by Jesus.

You have come to Jesus with eyes wide open, with a heart wide open, and a desire to go with Him into the Presence and glory of God.