Venomous
"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires."—James 1:19-20
Sometimes, anger feels really good, doesn’t it? Honestly, I’m not usually an angry guy. But when I do get angry -- after a fight with someone or when I feel I’ve been treated unfairly -- I can hold on to it for a while. It doesn’t feel healthy, exactly, but it can be energizing. It can give you a focus and purpose and a sense that you WILL do what needs doing.
But as we learned from the great teacher Peter Parker recently (in Spider-Man 3), the power available through our anger eventually destroys the things we care most about. At first, Peter’s anger -- represented by the black goo from outer space -- gave him confidence, freedom from worrying all the time what everybody else thought. But when you’re running on anger, it’s a quick trip from confidence to arrogance, from not being a “pleaser” to becoming a “hater.”
Interesting fact: The Bible never describes feeling angry as a sin in itself. It’s an emotion we all get filled up with at times. Jesus did. Paul did. You do. Instead, the Bible teaches over and over that sin follows anger, that anger opens the door to sin. That’s why we’re commanded to learn to control that emotion.
In today's passage, James wrote that we must learn to trust God more so that it takes longer for us to get angry. People who really believe God is in control of all of life can’t easily be thrown into a rage. On the flip side, Paul taught in Ephesians 4 that when we must also learn to dump angry feelings quickly -- before the end of the day, even.
Why such a big deal? James said even when it makes us feel powerful, anger never takes us toward the life God wants for us. And if you’re not moving toward it, you will move away from it. Paul said it’s worse than that: Unresolved anger gives demonic forces a foothold into our lives. It’s a doorway for the enemy to begin to have some influence on our thinking, feelings, and choices. (Venom's wicked look kind of fits with that idea.)
I know. I know. It’s easy to just say, “Don’t get angry.” It’s a tough thing to control. But the first step is to admit that it must be controlled if we’re going to learn to walk like Jesus, to find a life worth living. It starts with confessing to God that sometimes our anger controls us and that we need His help to beat it. Then we go back to square one: “. . . be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow[er] to become angry [than we were the last time] . . .”
I Want to be Rich!
Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.—Proverbs 23:4-5
I’ll come clean. For a lot of my life, every time a pastor started preaching about passages like this one — about making too big of a deal out of getting rich — I always waited for him to say the magic words. “Of course, it’s okay to be rich. There’s nothing wrong with having money.” Woo hoo, I thought. I can serve God and still be loaded. That’s what I really want. And I half expected to get it somehow.
Well, it turns out that attitude is a problem. Of course, the pastor always does say those magic words. And of course, it is okay for Christians to have lots of money (although that comes with the huge price tag of being responsible for using it properly). We all know some rich Christians -- maybe lots of them. The problem comes in the wanting, not the having. And by nature, most of us want to have it all, even believers. For us, “all” might include a solid relationship with God, a life that matters, gobs of cash, true love, and great sex. (We’ll worry about the love and sex another time.)
Here’s where it breaks down: Eventually, we’ve got to start making tough choices. You realize life is hard work, no matter what you do or why. You’re going to “wear yourself out” doing something with your life. Everyone who lives long enough ends up worn out, right? The writer of this proverb warns against wearing yourself out chasing wealth.
Jesus put it this way: You absolutely cannot — no matter how good you are at multitasking — serve God and money at the same time. That’s a paraphrase from Matthew 6:24. He also said there that if you work for two bosses, you’ll end up picking one over the other. We just do. That’s just us.
This is a big deal right now for students, because you’re making choices about what to do with the rest of your lives. And most of you (us) are saying right out loud, “I want the money.” That’s become a central motive for picking a college, picking a major, picking a spouse — choosing a life.
And it’s not just that living for the green stuff leads to wasted decades, it’s what this proverb says. Money flies. Just when you think you’re close to landing the future of your dreams, every last dime gets airborn. Most people never catch it.
So what to do? Well, don’t lie to yourself and pretend you don’t want money. We do. Tell God the truth: “I want money. Lots of it. No strings attached.” Then make a choice. The best (and hardest) one is this, to say to God, “Thanks for all the good things you’ve given me. I’m willing to wear myself out in this life following Jesus, looking for ways to serve you, and I’m willing to trust you to give me as much or as little money as you see fit along the way — and to try to keep serving you and others with whatever money you provide.”
Yes, we still have to work hard to earn a living, but we don't have to live for what we earn. We can live for something far more valuable.
When I Remember You
"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."--Philippians 1:3-6
Sometimes when I think of someone I haven’t seen in a while, my first thought is to feel guilty. “I really should stay in touch better; I hope he/she isn’t mad at me.” Or I might just feel sad. “Why can’t we spend more time together? Why do we have to live so far apart? It doesn’t seem fair. ” Worse, if it’s someone who did something hurtful to me, remembering them might make me feel angry. “I still can’t believe he said . . . yada, yada, yada.”
Notice anything about that collection of responses? They’re all a little selfish, aren’t they? It’s all about me. A less me-me response might be to think of that person and hope she’s okay, be concerned that he’s making good choices, be interested in how they’re lives are going. I might even pray for them.
Paul wrote today's passage to some great friends he hadn't seen in about 10 years, friends he cared deeply about. He did pray for them, but started out by making his memories of them all about God. How? He practiced the discipline of turning memories into thanks for people.
What a positive way to think about the people in our lives -- as God’s gifts. Why doesn't that come more naturally to me?
The other Big Idea he put into practice was to stop worrying so much about whether he should be doing more for them -- and to trust God to be at work in their lives. After thanking God for his Christian friends, Paul wrote this amazing verse:
“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (v. 6)We usually apply that verse to ourselves, to give us comfort that God is still at work in our lives. But it’s also extremely helpful to remember that God is still working in the lives of people I care about. I don’t have to be the one to make sure they’re all okay; He does that job. And He does it a lot better than I do.
So let’s try to copycat Paul. Next time you remember a distant friend or a nearby one that you’ve drifted from or even your parents in the next room, try to thank God for them. And if the people you're remembering are believers, thank God that He’s not going to stop working for them even though you can’t do it very well right now.
Shine On
"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."--Matthew 5:14-16
As I type this, it’s kind of a gloomy day outside. Cloudy. A little dark. As always, I have three lights on in the room -- two lamps and an overhead light. It’s really bright, actually -- just as bright as it was last night at 10:30 p.m. If I wanted to, I could even walk for miles in any direction at night without using a flashlight because of all of the lights of the city and stores and neighborhoods. I totally take this for granted, but it wasn’t always this way. In a great, secular history book released last year called At Day’s Close: Night in Times Past, Professor A. Roger Ekirch detailed what a huge deal nighttime was before the widespread use of electric light sources.
When night fell, the darkness took over in a way we just can’t imagine. Without a torch or lantern, someone alone in the dark would be utterly lost and directionless. Dusk served as a warning to get where you were going and stay there. Lots of people died during the Middle Ages, even, just walking home in the absolute total darkness that we almost never experience these days. A simple stumble into a ditch or a pond could be the end of you. Of course, with that kind of perfect cover, crime also escalated. Much easier for a criminal to sneak into your house if you can’t see him coming. It’s no wonder people got spooked and made up wild stories about all the scary stuff that came out at night.
The same would have held true much earlier in Jesus’ day. When he said to the crowd during his Sermon on the Mount, “You are the light of the world,” they would have imagined the enormous contrast between a nighttime house with no lamps -- and one with all the lamps lit so you could see what was going on. A brightly lit house draws people toward it, out of the darkness. Jesus urged those who heard him to answer the call to be God’s light in a dark, dark nighttime world by doing good, drawing people out of the evil darkness and into the light of God’s glory. Why would anyone hide the light in the middle of absolute darkness?
Well, some people like it dark. In fact, we all like it dark sometimes -- and not just for sleeping. Ekrich’s book describes some of the immorality that commonly took place in the “blindness” of nighttime. In another passage, Jesus called Himself the light that had come into the dark world. But men doing wrong things don’t want someone to turn on the lights. They hate the light.
In Ephesians 5, Paul built on the metaphor, describing Christians as “once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light.” (v. 8)
Yes, we live in a time when visible light is cheap and easy to come by. We don’t fear the darkness as much as we once did. But our world is still a spiritually dark place. People in the dark can’t help but be drawn to the light -- even if they want to hide sometimes. Are you living like a light? Are you lighting up your part of your neighborhood by living like Jesus? Does your light draw people out of the darkness in search of good? It can.
Check out the rest of Ephesians 5 to find out more about how to make your light shine it’s brightest in the darkest places.
Saved From Hell?
Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. (Romans 5:9-11)What are the benefits of trusting in Jesus for salvation? Over the last few weeks, we’ve dug through Romans 5 to uncover several huge, new realities for those who place all their eggs in the basket of faith in Jesus. Here’s a recap:
Because of Jesus:
* I have peace with God right now.
* I stand in His grace right now.
* I will experience God’s glory in heaven.
* My suffering on this painful planet matters.
* I have God’s love right now.
* I have the Holy Spirit with me right now.
* I have a zero balance with God; Jesus paid the whole thing. I cannot earn any more of God’s love, acceptance, or heaven by doing good, and I cannot lose any of it by doing bad.
That’s quite a list. Remember, though, that it only applies to those who have truly trusted in Jesus -- and nothing else -- for the forgiveness of sin and the hope of heaven. For those who have rejected Jesus -- or who are believing a lie that they are “Christian” because they go to church or have Christian parents or do more good than bad -- all the positive things on that list turn into negatives:
* I do NOT have peace with God.
* I do not stand in His grace.
* I will not be with Him in heaven.
* My suffering accomplishes nothing of lasting value.
* I don’t have God’s love in my heart.
* I do NOT have God’s Spirit with me.
* I owe the total balance for my sin -- death, eternal death in hell forever.
That brings us to today’s passage. It’s the reason most of us walk an aisle or pray a prayer to become a Christian in the first place. Believers in Jesus will are “saved from God’s wrath.” That means God will not "punish" us for sin on earth or in the afterlife. Jesus has already suffered all of our punishment. We can add this to our list:
* I will not go to hell.
Note: God will discipline us in this life. According to Hebrews 12, He loves us like a good dad and will use painful circumstances to get us headed in the best direction in life. He cares about how we live. But God’s loving discipline is vastly different from His “wrath” or “judgement” against sin.
Wait! (I can hear some of you thinking it.) Does this mean I can just go out and sin my head off without worrying about it? Paul’s readers asked the same question. He answers it in Romans 6. Fewer of you are thinking, why would the God of the universe love me like this? He owed me nothing. How can I possibly respond to this gift? Paul answers that question in Romans 11:33 - 12:2.
A very few of you might be realizing that you have never, ever trusted in Jesus for your salvation -- that you do not have peace with God. You don’t need to keep living in the worry and fear that you will not make it to heaven. All it takes is to admit to God (and to yourself) that you have sinned and have no hope of earning your way into heaven. Tell God that you not only believe in your mind that Jesus lived a perfect life on earth and died for all of your sins and walked alive out of His own tomb -- but that you’re ready to say yes to His invitation to accept the free gift of forgiveness and a place in His family. Then talk to someone about it -- a pastor, youth pastor, or Christian friend. Find some people who will help you figure out what it means to live with Jesus every day. Your life will never be the same.
