Let's Be Real.

It would seem that all our lives we are taught to be fake by society and even people close to us. To be friendly and nice but to keep it on a surface level. Even at church.
Well, the structure of normal church isn't very conducive to real relationships anyway.  But I believe that we have become so individualistic that we don't even really want open honest community-like relationships. 
You know how it goes---you hang out with people but you have to withhold certain things from them to make sure you don't offend them or cause any discomfort. There are certain Christians that you know that you have to walk on eggshells around them. You have to stay away from certain subjects that you know will get them going. To me that is just bogus. I spent so many years of my life living that way around certain friends and family members and church people. But it doesn't get us anywhere. It's not real. Now I am not advocating running around spouting off every little thing you think others do wrong. Not even close. As a matter of fact if you enjoy telling others their faults you better check yourself cause that ain't right. 
But I'm talking about things that you should be able to talk about with those around you. For example I know Christians that I can't talk the Bible with cause if I disagree with them they get all defensive or even mad! That is just plain wrong. Many of these people have been in the church for umpteen million years yet you have to tread lightly around them! To me a sign of maturity is that you will listen and consider that you may be wrong. [Insert humble or contrite if you will.]

This once again is an individualistic prideful problem--"It's between me and Jesus." "I believe what I feel is right." It's like we claim Jesus as OUR possession rather than us being His possession!!

You don't have to be a biblical genius to see how straight forward Paul and the NT examples were. Just read it with open eyes. That is one of the reasons that Jesus and Paul and the others were often disliked. We are far too politically correct today. Heck, Paul even called certain people out by name in his letters, like the metal worker that he warned people about.  We would never think such things now in our fake society. I have noticed that even in the latest organic church books we are now leaving out the names of the denominations and famous religious leaders that we are using as examples. Come on.

Can't we just be loving and real? Our time here is short.  We don't need to waste it on fake relationships. 

I pray for us to be real loving people, to know what to say and to know when it will be casting our pearls before pigs.

My Background.

I really kinda hesitate to give my background. I have found that even when telling people that I am a former pastor I still get undue respect for the office I used to believe in. The only reason that I do let people know about my various institutional experiences is so that they can know that I have been where they are. I know both sides. I speak of what I know not a theory or a feeling.  I also like people to know that  there is great freedom in being released from the bondage of "normal" church and it's top-down leadership.
I really desire that others can know the freedom that comes from breaking loose!
It doesn't happen overnight and it can take a while to work through the doubts but more of Jesus is waiting on the other side! And that is awesome.

No turning back! "Though none go with me, still I will follow!"

Masters of Complication.

It seems that we humans, often including many Christians, are masters of complication. We love to complicate things and we have become very good at it.  Even in the organic church arena we are often doing our best to complicate and debate things that should just flow naturally. Sometimes I just want to yell---"let's just stop thinking so much! Let's get out of our minds in love with Jesus!"

I figure as long as I have a renewed mind I might as well give it a bit of a rest from all that curricular activity. Extra-curricular sounds more appealing now and less stressful. Yes, it's a struggle to hold back that huge muscle in my head but it rather enjoys resting in Jesus and marveling at the works of His hands. Sometimes when my mind starts racing about the exact and proper details of this scripture or that one--or I have the need for another major word breakdown--I stop myself and just view God's handy work. It is quite beautiful and wonderful.

Take time to enjoy the wonders of God. They're pretty cool. I say we do more resting and simple building others up in Him. It's a lot less stressful on the brain. And to me it seems more like what our brains were originally created to do.
Adam and Eve had it made originally--and I want as much of that as possible.

One Family.

If you are a follower of Jesus then we belong to the same family. We are part of the only church, or Body of Christ.  Someday when this life is over we will then join ALL of our family in eternity. 
This is a very comforting thought for me. I long for all of my relatives and friends to know Jesus but....at the same time I know that when I reach heaven all my relatives will be there. Everyone there will be my family! That is all I will know about it. The family of God.

I also understand that all believers everywhere are my family regardless of what "church" or denomination they belong to. Do I desire for them to know true organic Body life? Yes. Do I believe that many people are being led astray by mainstream Christianity? Yes. But I also know God has people everywhere that He longs to draw closer to Him. 

It is just a bummer that people are so divided by "churches" and denominations. It is very hard for many to see that these very institutions divide us. It is as Paul said--"some say, I'm of Paul--I'm of Apollos" and so on. People have divided themselves.

But I love the true church or the Body of Christ. And I desire to see it unified under His headship, not man's.

A family after all should not be so formal. What kind of families would we have if we patterned them after the institutional church? Think about it.

The Toughest Man Ever.

Being tough, [sorry "tuff" is more manly] is something men generally love to be. Or at least we think it's cool. You know-- Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, MMA fighters and all that sort of stuff. Remember the old kid talk like--"My dad can beat up your dad cause' my dad is an auto mechanic but your dad just works in an office!"  There is something inside us men that makes us want to be "real" men. I mean who doesn't want to own a tractor and go tear up some ground or run over stuff with a monster truck?

But years ago I came to realize something--Jesus is the tuffest man that ever lived! Jesus has what I call eternal tuffness or perfect strength. We fallen humans like to believe that our physical dominance over someone else makes us tuff. But it just ain't true. It actually makes us delusional wimps!!

Think about all the pain and suffering that Jesus endured. It is beyond comprehension! Beaten, punched, spit on, pierced, thorned, and the list goes on and on. Yet He never even lashed out in action or word.  How could He endure such pain first of all? And then without lashing back?? The answer is that Jesus was a real man.  Eternal tuffness and perfect strength. [Love]


Let's think of the differences between Jesus' tuffness and ours---

Ours brings us earthly glory. It feeds our manly pride. But His points people to God!
Ours fades out as we grow older and more frail. His never fades!
Ours ends when we die. His is eternal--it lasts forever!
Ours makes us seem cool now. His brings eternal treasure!
Ours degrades others. His builds others up!
The list could go on and on but the fact is that we have been blinded by our own abilities. We have limited ourselves to what we can accomplish. Meanwhile this eternal tuffness that Jesus displayed is available.

Here's some most awesome truth--We can see that same tuffness and strength displayed in Paul and other believers in the New Testament and beyond!  So we see that this perfect power is available to us! You can be the skinniest wimpiest person ever but through the power of the Holy Spirit you can have this same eternal tuffness!  How awesome is that?
Think of how Paul was beaten and stoned and all sorts of things but by the power of Jesus he pushed on!!

Someday everyone will stand in front of God for judgment and at that time everyones earthly minds will be gone. The delusions of sin will blind us no more. We will see clearly. Then every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord. Then we will all know that our tuffness was nothing. How sad it would be to see Jesus in all His glory but then be sent away. To realize that you wasted your eternity on a few moments of worthless pleasure and pride.

Not me. I know that I am a weak human in need of God's strength and forgiveness. And I know that I don't want to be a spiritual sissy. And I know that by the power of Jesus I am eternally tuff. As Paul said--"His power is made perfect in weakness."

Joy

True Joy only comes through Christ. Everything else is mere happiness. If you think about  'hap' the root word of happiness it explains it quite well. Think of other words that start with it like haphazard, or happenchance. It involves coincidence and is based on what happens around you.  
Here's a good example-- let's say you found thousands of dollars and you were told it was yours to keep. Most people would be very happy about that. But then let's say that someone stole it all from you--well most people would not be happy after that!  Happiness is based on surroundings and situations and chance.

Many people are in love with happiness. It is an addiction just like drugs. People can find happiness in all sorts of people and things. But just like drugs you continually need more to keep high.  Money is one of the top addictions--and the things it can buy.  When people have money they feel secure and happy. But it is an illusion. 

Buying things is a major addiction in our culture. We often feel happy about going out and buying things but then the newness wears off and we have to go out and buy more. Once again, it is an addiction like drugs and calls for a constant fix.
This constant search for happiness is but a poor attempt at filling the void in our lives that is supposed to be filled with Christ's joy. Let me ask a question---what will make heaven heaven?    The answer is God. God is what makes heaven heaven. There will be no money or stuff to buy or houses to improve upon. True full joy will be found in God alone.  So it stands to reason that the more we rest in God here and now, the more joy we will know now!  Joy can be found here and now despite our surroundings.    Think of Paul and Silas in the book of Acts--they had been beaten and put in prison and yet were singing to God at midnight in the prison!  Think also of how it says that the believers back then "counted it joy" that their possessions were confiscated.   
This joy is not based on chance or surroundings. It is based on God. And no one can take that away. And nothing can compare.   So it is time for believers to stop trying to find fulfillment in other things and take hold of "life that is truly life"!!!

Question Everything.

Biblical Christianity is quite unique in the fact that it teaches us to question everything. [Such as in 1 Thess. where it says to test EVERYTHING.]  The direct context of these verses points at questioning things WITHIN the confines of Christianity.

Yet we live in a time and a place where we seldom question anything done under the banner of Jesus.  "If it gets just one person saved!" is the end all for most everything. Or we can always justify things by saying that "God has led us to do this"--then no one is supposed to question our personal transactions with God. Yet I know from experience that it is very easy to mistakenly believe that the things you are interested in doing are the things God has called you to do. Feelings can be very misleading.

Not to mention that questioning things in the local church is most often frowned upon--patronized--rebuked--gets you labeled a weirdo--or told that another church might be better for you! [Truth is the system itself even discourages questioning.]

My experience is that the leaders are most often the least approachable to questions of this sort. I understand this firsthand from both sides. But in actuality  anyone who is truly mature in Christ should be very open to being questioned. So then many people who hold "positions" of leadership in churches are not actual leaders.

So where have we gone wrong? And does it make a difference?

Well to point to where we went wrong would have to start in the garden with Adam and Eve. Now of course they screwed up and sinned--but it goes a bit deeper than that.  To put it simply--they ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil and they got just that....then they understood good and evil.
To me they took a step back right here. They wanted to be knowledgeable in this way but they didn't grasp what they ALREADY had.


Before this sin they were in a working relationship with God. Just chillin' in the garden. They were able to rest in God with God.

But then they were tricked into wanting to be "like" God because of this knowledge offered by this tree. This wonderful relationship of resting in God was not enough!! Amazing. "Knowledge puffs up." By becoming "like" God they took a monumental step back!
This is what people often overlook--now that they know evil and good both are a severe hindrance to their resting in God. Now instead of resting in a relationship with God they are constantly weighing things out as evil or good. A law-like mind set had begun. Instead of just following God's lead they are now trying to figure things out for themselves in their own knowledge. Not good.


Everyone pretty much realizes that once sin entered the world it just kept going and going until we live in a "sin sick" world. But I believe there are much less noticed consequences of sin. Such as--
Part of these consequences was that we now had to work. To work and do things properly you have to follow a system. There needs to be some sort of regiment to how things will be done and when they will be done. Also is there are many people working on the same job there needs to be managers and such to help keep things running well.

So for most Christians they have to work many hours a week in such a system of work. Plus they have to use the same type of regiments in school or even in the care of their own house.

So then all of these hours per week are spent following some sort of man-made system. BUT.....our relationship with God is supposed to be like what we see in the garden originally!  Our church [body] experience is supposed to be free from man-made systems as well. That is HOW GOD DESIGNED IT.

Welp, I'm gonna tell ya right now, it's ain't easy to have to do all this stuff in the work world and school etc. and not drag those systems and mindsets into Christianity.

Which brings me back to my original questions--

Why don't we question everything?[Even within Christianity?] We don't question  because we don't like to admit that we have been doing it wrong. [Pride]
We don't question because the religious professionals of mainstream Christianity must know best. [Pride]
We don't question because it's easy not to. [Laziness]
We don't question because it will cause us trouble and people might think we are weird. [Wimpy]
The bottom line though is that we don't question because we are disobedient.

And finally--Does it make a difference?
Yes! It makes all the difference for us in the world! Or should I say the world makes all the difference in us?