Burn The Quran? What are they Thinking?

You have certainly read or head the news reports of this 50 member church in Flordia who plans on marking September 11 with a publicity stunt by burning copies of the Quran. It is supposed to be a symbolic gesture of something.

The Pastor and his plans have been condemned by the armed forces, the heads of state and leaders around the world. I guess this Pastor has gotten publicity.

I am concerned about the backlash that may be leveled against Americans overseas. I am concerned about pouring gasoline on terrorist fires. What I am most concered about however is the way such actions distort the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I cannot in my wildest dreams imagine Jesus, the disciples or the Apostle Paul treating people in such a way. The tactic of Jesus seemed to be to speak the truth but to do so in a loving and embracing way. Christians are seeing Muslim friends come to faith because these Muslim friends witness the love of Christ in the believers themselves.

Like I said, I don't know what this Pastor and his congregation is trying to symbolize in their publicity stunt. What I do know is that it is not the message of Christ.

Faulty Statements

I think it is fun to listen to what people say. For example, there are those who say, "I don't believe there is a standard of right and wrong". If you ask them, "Do you think it is wrong for someone to impose their standard on you?" They will undoubtedly say, "Yes, that is wrong!" You've won the argument. That person obviously DOES believe there is a standard of right and wrong . . .they just don't want to do what is right!

Here are some statements you hear Christians say a good deal but if you think about them they are foolish.

1. The Statement: Family must come first (when it is given as a reason for not being involved in the church). The problem: if your family is first then you are an idolater. We are to put God first in all things. Second, if your family really was that important to you you would be concerned about their spiritual and eternal well-being you would be working diligently to teach their family to give God priority over all.
2. The Statement: the church is full of hypocrites. The problem: it is true that the church is filled with people who are not very consistent. But . . . isn't that the vere place we all need, since we are hypocrites too.
3. The statement: you don't have to go to church to be a Christian. Problem: God commands us to "forsake not the assembling together". We are told that we are to be a healthy and contributing member of the body of Christ. So, even though no one can earn salvation by going to church . . . a true follower of Christ will worship with the faithful. I suppose the statement should say, "you don't have to go to church to call yourself a Christian."
4. The statement: I don't want to impose my faith on my kids. I want them to decide for themselves. The Problem: the world has no trouble imposing their values on your kids through friends, television, movies, music, magazines, the Internet. If you really want your children to make an "informed decision" you had better get to work balancing the message they are getting from the world.
5. The statement: I preach with my life rather than my words. The problem: The Bible tells us that "faith comes from hearing and hearing from the Word of God." We need to both proclaim AND demonstrate our faith.
6. The statement: God will forgive me. The Problem: God will forgive us if we will entrust ourselves to Christ and repent of our sin. We are told, "If we confess our sin (agree with God about the hateful nature of that sin) He will be faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness". God hates the sin in our lives. If we hate that sin also and want to move in a new direction He will indeed forgive us. That's a grace we don't deserve.
7. The statement: I received Christ at an evangelistic meeting so I know I'm going to Heaven. The problem: This is a great statement if you actually became a follower of Christ at that meeting. Unfortunately, many people merely respond to a stimulus, have an emotional moment but don't really follow Jesus. If you are making this statement to excuse the lack of fruit in your life....it's possible that you are going to be one of those who say, "Lord, Lord" only to have the Lord say, "Depart from me for I have not known you."

If you have other statements send them to me at bruce@unionchurch.com

Losing the Battle with Culture

I was listening to a conference discussion and one of the speakers made an acute observation. He was asked why there was so little concern for holiness in the church and in our culture. He pointed out that the one led to the other.

The job of the church is to have a sanctifying effect on the community. We are supposed to rub off on those around us. Unfortunately, said the speaker, it is working the other way around.

He gave one example: our observance of the Sabbath (one of God's big Ten). 30 years ago businesses were closed on the Sabbath. It was understood that this was the day God's people went to church to sit under the teaching of the Scriptures. Even some major sports didn't play on Sunday (some golf tournaments ended on Saturday instead of Sunday). That of course is no longer the case.

As I thought about what the speaker said I knew he was right. When any group of Pastors gets together there is a common complaint . . . the worship and service of God is too low on the priority list of most parishoners. We are to have no other God's before Him yet we put: sleep, sports, yard work, shopping, day trips, family reunions all before the Lord when it comes to Sunday.

Understand the clear message that is being sent to the world: "Christians don't take God's Word seriously . . . . so there is no reason for us to do so either."

I can't imagine anyone concluding that we are better off now than we were 30 years ago. We are more profane, more selfish, and more self-absorbed. We are running more fervently after the material things of the world than ever. We are more distant from God even though mega-churches continue to flourish.

When you look around and wonder: "What happened?" Remind yourself that these things come as a result of Christians feeling they can negotiate with Scripture. God's standards haven't changed. Our response to those standards has changed. It is time for "Christians" to once again actually follow Christ.

The Erosion of Freedom

Chuck Colson in one of his "Two Minute Warnings" warns that there is a movement going on to change the meaning of "Freedom of Religion" to "Freedom of Worship". Colson (who used to do this kind of re-defining in the Nixon White House) points out that these redefinitions (in this case by the Secretary of State) are designed to limit the church in its ability to point out behavior the Bible calls sin (in this case homosexuality). The idea is: you are free to worship wherever and however you want... but you cannot impose that religious belief on your children (by telling them that there is right and wrong) not can you express your convictions publicly if it means someone else's actions are considered wrong.

This re-definition aims at any belief that the Bible is the timeless Word of God. When we recognize the Bible as the inspired revelation from God then there are some things that are indeed black and white (the value of life, marriage is between a man and a woman, stealing from others is wrong, Jesus is the only way to Heaven, lying is wrong, the Bible is the inspired Word of God and much more).

We have redefined marriage, we have redefined parental discipline, we have redefined authority (especially in the schools), we have redefined truth (what works for you); we have redefined life (a baby in the womb is now a "blob of tissue" we evaluate the elderly by their "quality of life"), redefined the family, and we have redefined morality. Obedience to the law now means don't get caught. Telling the truth is now a matter of telling whatever truth you have to tell to get what you want.

Every Christian has a choice: do we negotiate truth or do we stand on it. The Bible tells us that those who stand on the truth are the ones who will be standing in the end. I believe Scripture; I hope you do too.

Let the madness stop already!

Enough already! The hype surrounding the the decision of Lebron James shows the empty-headedness of our society.

All this hoopla about a guy who can play a game well . . . even very well. Here we see a guy who has no sense of loyalty to his home town and to those who supported him. James is the picture of what is wrong with sports today. It is all about who has the most money to buy the best players that will hopefully translate into a championship. What happened to athletes that were hungry, that loved the game, that believed they were privleged to be able to actually make money by playing a game?

I'm sick of the whole thing. The Miani Heat will probably be a good team next year. But I must say, I hope they never win a championship with this trio of overpaid stars.

I'd much rather see someone like Albert Pujols (who still makes an obscene amount of money) but who is loyal to his hometown fans. One of the things that made Michael Jordan great was that he was a Chicago Bull. He was there when the team was bad and he was there leading that same team when they were great. Too bad Lebron James did not learn the real lessons of Michael Jordan's greatness.

Time to say something

I was told that Pastor's should have a blog. It is a good way to teach and keep people informed. The arguments were persuasive enough to lead me to set up this blog.

I've found that after I have written a weekly sermon, a "thought" for our electronic weekly newsletter, an article for the monthly newsletter, and have responded to scores of emails . . . I often don' t have a great deal more to say.

I am often reminded (I think by the Holy Spirit) of the words of Ecclesiastes 5: "Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your mouth to utter anything before God." There is also the Proverb that says, "when words are many sin is not absent."

When news shows went to 24 hour coverage we saw that stories had to be sensationalized in order to fill up the time. Little things became big things; nothing became something. The quality of news coverage and reporting has gone down because we are oversaturated with news.

I wonder if the same thing is happening with our "networking". We blog, tweet, make posts on walls, get on discussion boards, send instant messages, and endless texts. Do we really have that much to say? Why do we think that every thought in our head is worth publishing? Where do we get the idea that the daily events of our lives are of great interest to those around us? Why should I care what Farm Animals you need in our farm simulation game? We are talking more but saying less.

This post is a case in point.

Do Clothes Matter?

I have been reading in the early chapters of the Old Testament. I've noticed that God was very specific as to the attire of priests. They were to were special clothes and even bath in certain ways.

I started to think about why God gave such directives. Why was He so specific about the surroundings of worship? I think the answer is that these things pointed to God's holiness and splendor.

When we have a meeting with someone we respect or who is in a position over us we tend to dress in our best. Why? We understand that it is a sign of respect. If we had a job interview we would look our best (if we wanted to get the job). If we had a meeting with the President of the United States we would not head to the White House in blue jeans. People who work in the White House or Congress don't wear blue jeans to work. In our heart we do understand why God told the priests to represent Him well.

So I admit that I am troubled with the idea of dressing down for worship. Few Pastors wear suits and ties anymore. The idea is that they will relate better to the congregation if they are more casual.

I think the dress codes in the church should be more relaxed. People should be able to come into God's house and not feel they have to go out and buy a new wardrobe before they can enter. I think it is a good thing that people can come in from chores and be welcomed into the fellowship of the faithful. We can dress comfortable and casual and still show respect in the way we dress.

I'm more concerned about those on the platform. When I see a Pastor in a Hawaiian shirt and blue jeans I tend to think that the message is also casual. It's not. I'm concerned that our attire still sends a message . . . the wrong one. It says worship is consumer driven rather than God-driven. It says worship is about the people rather than about the Lord. It says we can approach God casually rather than reverently. I don't think any of those messages are good messages.

I'm OK with Pastors dressing like everyone else during the week (whether that is jeans or suits). It is good for people to see and know that we are fellow pilgrims. I think it does open doors of communication.

However, when we stand on the platform our role is different. At that time we approach the King. At that time we represent the Lord. In worship God is to be the focus, not man. We should be desiring to connect with Him more than we are each other. We should show respect for the Creator. It seems to me that one of the ways of doing this is in the way we dress. [bruce]

"Green" Religion

I recently read a blog post by Albert Mohler, the president of a seminary in Louisville, KY. In it, he made the case that the phenomenon of "thinking green" is really a religious movement. As I read his post, I think he's right.

I'll be honest, something about the whole "green" movement has rubbed me the wrong way from the start. I am certainly in support of being environmentally conscious (after all, we were created as stewards of Creation), but I've been annoyed by the relative importance that this idea has achieved. Mohler makes the point that the reason the green movement has become so popular is that it serves as a religion for many people.

Think about it. Many people in our country claim that there is no standard of right and wrong. Each person can do whatever it is that they feel is right. This is an attractive position to hold, because it frees people up from having to deal with their own sin. When we deceive ourselves into thinking the Bible isn't true or that God doesn't care how we live, we can then claim that it doesn't matter if we are sexually promiscuous, if we cheat others, or if we are rude. It frees us up to think about ourselves to the exclusion of everything else. The problem is that such a system of belief doesn't work in practical application. We have to have a basis for what is right and wrong--and we also recognize that the universe doesn't revolve around us.

"Green" thought provides a way for people to have a basis for right and wrong without having to worry about what God thinks about it. It allows us to still have a religious element to our lives (which we desire) without God. Mohler quoted a man named Stephen Asma, author of Green Guilt. Asma makes the point clearly,

Instead of religious sins plaguing our conscience, we now have the transgressions of leaving the water running, leaving the lights on, failing to recycle, and using plastic grocery bags instead of paper. In addition, the righteous pleasures of being more orthodox than your neighbor (in this case being more green) can still be had—the new heresies include failure to compost, or refusal to go organic. Vitriol that used to be reserved for Satan can now be discharged against evil corporate chief executives and drivers of gas-guzzling vehicles. Apocalyptic fear-mongering previously took the shape of repent or burn in hell, but now it is recycle or burn in the ozone hole. In fact, it is interesting the way environmentalism takes on the apocalyptic aspects of the traditional religious narrative. The idea that the end is nigh is quite central to traditional Christianity—it is a jolting wake-up call to get on the righteous path. And we find many environmentalists in a similarly earnest panic about climate change and global warming.

This sounds like a religious movement to me. The followers of this religion can point to certain behaviors as evil (or sinful), and can point to the fact that there will be consequences for these sins. But the fact is that they have exchanged the truth of God for a lie.

Now, don't get me wrong. I think it's good for us to be prudent in the way that we care for the environment. But I think there are far more pressing issues that we probably ought to focus on. Our society is dealing with sins that are far more serious than failure to compost. The world is indeed on a path that will lead to self-destruction, but it has very little to do with our failure to recycle...it has everything to do with our failure to glorify God in our lives. We have chosen to rebel against God, and He says that there is a punishment for that arrogance. That punishment is eternal separation from Him. There is only One who can save us--the Lord Jesus Christ. Unless we will yield to God and His will for our lives, there will be an eternal price to pay.

It seems that any time I watch TV I see public service announcements with celebrities serving as evangelists for the religion of "thinking green." As Christians, let me challenge you to buck the trend. Don't allow yourselves to be distracted by this current fad. We, of all people, must understand what is really at stake. Future generations might be destroyed by ozone depletion or global warming, but they will certainly be destroyed by our failure to point people to the Savior. Don't get distracted by the celebrities and news media. Go out and be an evangelist for the one thing that really matters.