29

Jump Start # 1655

Posted on July 29, 2016 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1655

1 Corinthians 8:13 “Therefore, if food causes my brother to stumble, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause my brother to stumble.”

 

Our verse is the personal conclusion Paul drew concerning the controversy of eating meats on idols. This was a huge problem in the world of those early Christians. It carried major religious concerns. Romans 14, 1 Corinthians 8 and 10 address this topic. This issue became the reason that some Christians were judging and pointing fingers at one another. If a person ate meat that had been sacrificed to a god, then is that person condoning and even promoting idolatry? Some thought yes. Others thought no. It was the cause for some to stumble and their faith was hurt.

 

Our verse, Paul’s conclusion, shows the extent that Paul would go for others. He would do without if it kept others from being harmed. I will never eat meat again, if it causes my brother to stumble. Paul had that “other person” conscience in his heart. He didn’t want to offend anyone. He didn’t want to hurt anyone.

 

That attitude and spirit of Paul is missing today. What we find today is people saying, “I have a right to eat meats. If they don’t like it, they can go to another church.” Or, “Why should I change for someone else. He has the problem with it, not me.” Such a different attitude. This modern way of thinking is about self. It doesn’t take in others. It leads to some being hurt and bothered. It leads to those who are weak in faith becoming weaker even more.

 

I will never eat meat again. That’s bold. That’s easy to say, but that would be hard to do. I’m one who likes meat. I like meat in my salad. I like meat on the grill. I like meat on my pizza. When we go to Cracker Barrel, my wife often gets the veggie plate. Not me. Bring on the meat. To go without meat, not for diet reasons, or health reasons, but by choice, because I love another Christian so much that I do not want to offend them, that’s the point. That’s extreme. That’s fellowship. That’s love of others. Could you do it? Would you do it without being told? Would you go kicking and screaming and make a big deal about it to the extent that even though you gave up meat, it still offended and hurt the other because of the big deal you made out of it?

 

I will never eat meat again comes before “I have a right to.” Yes, you may have a right to, but you do not have a right to hurt another Christian. “It’s his problem,” only justifies you continuing to eat meat. It shows the narrow view you have of your relationship with other Christians and it shows that your feelings and your rights come before them. And, that is the heart of the problem! That has always been the heart of the problem. What I want and what I like comes before others.

 

Historically, would there have been so many divisions across the country if those wanting to use pianos in worship, applied this passage? Would they have thought, I want it, but I don’t want to offend and hurt the faith of others, rather than, if you don’t like it, leave.

 

Think about the touchy subject of social drinking alcohol. Some say it’s ok, some say “no.” I’m in the “no” category. One of the printing companies we use gave me a bottle of wine at the holidays. It sat in a cabinet for a couple of years. I poured it on some weeds. The weeds died. You invite me to your place for a cook out.  You have no problem with social drinking. You think it’s ok. At our cook out, you take out a beer. My internal radar is sending out all kinds of alarms. I’m bothered. I’m debating whether I ought to say something, leave or remain quiet. My demeanor changes. I’m bothered. My problem, you think. I don’t agree with your conclusions, you think. It’s my house, I can do what I want, you think. Get over it, you think. And you continue to drink. Do we fail to see what Paul is saying here? Do we fail to think I shouldn’t do this? Do we fail to apply, “I will never eat meat again.” Paul didn’t say, “I will never eat meat in front of that guy again.” He said I will never eat meat again. Period. It’s over. Done. Why? Why should I change what I want and what I think is right because of someone else? Why am I allowing someone else to dictate my life? Why am I having to give up something for someone else? What’s next? They don’t like my car? Do I have to sell it? There will always be someone who doesn’t like something. This line of thinking, keeps a person eating the meat.

 

The issue was beyond dislike. It involved the hurting of one’s influence and the hurting of another’s faith. I may not like the way you comb your hair, but it’s not going to dent my faith. The way you park your car may annoy me, but that won’t affect my worship and our walk together in Christ. I may not like where you sit in the church building. I may not like the fact that you rarely shave. I may not like your choice of socks. None of those things are going to crash my faith. Eating meats did. Drinking socially can. Other things do.

 

Am I willing to be big enough to give up something so that another will be secure in their faith and make it to Heaven? That is what this is all about. Paul had the right to eat meats. But if he continued, and someone in their skewed thinking believed that Paul was connected to idols, may even start practicing idolatry and lose their soul, what good is that. What good is it that I do something that causes another to lose their soul?

 

The first step of discipleship is to deny self. That means it is no longer about me any more. That means I will put others first. That means the kingdom always comes before what I feel like doing or what I want to do. That means I will surrender my right to do something for the sake of the kingdom.

 

Never eat meats again…better to do that and enjoy Heaven with your fellow Christian than to know you ate all the hotdogs you wanted, but in the process he gave up his walk and lost his soul. Are you willing to let another lose their soul over a hotdog? How about a glass of wine? How about some other practice?

 

Never eat meats again…Could you do it? Can you do it?

 

Roger

 

28

Jump Start # 1654

Posted on July 28, 2016 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1654

Acts 10:29 “That is why I came without even raising any objection when I was sent for. So I ask for what reason you have sent for me.”

  Our verse today is part of the opening conversation Peter had with Cornelius. God called Peter to go to Cornelius’s house and preach to him. Cornelius was a good man. He was a Roman soldier. He was generous. He was god-fearing. He was a man of prayer. Yet, he was not a Christian. At the end of this chapter, Cornelius is baptized into Christ. He becomes the first Gentile Christian. Powerful and important story in our Bibles.

 

It is that last expression of Peter’s that I want to consider, “for what reason you have sent for me.” It seems that things go in seasons or cycles. Now seems to be one of those cycles when both preachers and congregations are making changes in the pulpit. I know several congregations that are looking for a preacher. I know several preachers that are looking for a new place to preach. All of this makes us consider “for what reason you have sent for me.”

 

Why do preachers move? That’s a good question. Sometimes it’s something on the preacher’s end of things. Other times, it’s on the congregations end of things. It’s stressful when a church changes preachers. Finding the right fit is hard and generally not everyone is pleased with the choice. Some folks get so upset over these things that they leave.

 

Sometimes it’s time to change preachers just to get a fresh voice and some new ideas in the place. Preachers can grow tired and stale and a change motivates both them and the congregation. There was a time a generation ago, when about every four or five years, congregations changed preachers. That was hard on everyone, especially the preacher’s family. This may be one of the reasons so many congregations also owned “the preacher’s house.” They moved preachers in and out so often that it just made since to own his residence. Times have changed. Preachers are staying decades and decades with the same congregation. Preachers now buy their own homes. But even with that, there comes that time now and then to make a change. This is hard because some have fallen in love with the preacher and his family and they don’t want to see that change.

 

The process of letting people know and how it’s handled can be good or it can be a disaster. More harm can be done because of the way some have dealt with the changing of the preacher. Short notices, leaving with a chip on the shoulder, feeling cheated can ruin feelings and hurt reputations for both the preacher and a congregation.

 

Back to Peter’s words, “for what reason have you sent for me?” Fair question.

 

  • Is it to solve all the problems a congregation has?
  • Is it to make more money or save more money?
  • Is it to do what the members ought to be doing themselves?
  • Is it about image?
  • Is it to run the place?
  • Is it to teach and preach the Gospel of Christ?
  • Is it an opportunity to do more?

 

It is important that both the preacher and the congregation do some investigating and homework into each other. It’s like a date. One doesn’t pop the question on the first date. That would be a disaster. The process of dating is to know each other and to see if there is a future together. Too often, a decision is made too hastily and an ugly parting comes later on.

 

The typical way a preacher is “hired” is somewhat a flawed pattern. Generally, a preacher is called in to “try out.” He and his family show up on a Saturday afternoon and stay with one of the members. On Sunday, he teaches the class, and preaches one of his best sermons in the morning. A pot-luck is held for lunch so people can get to know him. Most don’t. He preaches that evening, his second best sermon, and meets with either the elders or the men in a business meeting. Certain questions are asked to verify that he has the right answers to the common doctrinal controversies of the day. He is asked “How much money do you need.” That is kicked around for a while and the meeting ends with handshakes, smiles and “we’ll be getting back to you.” By the end of the week, he is either given a formal offer from the church or told that things weren’t a good fit. If he is given the offer and the preacher likes it, then he accepts and is hired. I have journey through this process several times.

 

If neither side asks the right questions, both could walk right into a mess. The preacher may be blind as to what the church wants and why the last preacher left. The church may be blind to the preacher’s work ethics. One Sunday…a few questions…his best sermons and a preacher is hired.

 

Maybe it would be more helpful if the preacher and the elders met a few times before he ever came and preached. Maybe it would eliminate some future problems if they talked and understood what each were looking for and how each worked through some situations. This takes more time. This requires more effort. But relationships are built and both the preacher and the leadership can determine if they are eye to eye on things. In this meetings it could be understood “why have you sent for me.” Goals, plans and expectations can be sketched out and it is then that both parties can see if this will work or not. It’s like that dating process. The “marriage” came about after a period of getting to know each other.

 

Some churches don’t want to put that time into it. They will not wait that long. They will bring a preacher in on a Sunday, if he has a good sermon, he is hired. That’s it. That’s all. Months down the road, both realize what a mistake it was. The marriage becomes a nightmare and the talk of ending the marriage becomes a reality.

 

As hard as it is to hire a preacher, having to let one go is even messier. This too often is done with little thought and is too cold and calculated like the business world.

 

The preacher needs to ask questions. He needs to look around the place and see how the people take care of it. That is often an indication of how they take care of other things. Ask about discipline. Ask about finances, of the church. Ask about what life would be like on a day to day basis. I know a place that required the preacher to fill out a time card for his hours in the office. They required him to list all his studies and all of his visits. That reflected a major trust issue. I wouldn’t do well there. I’d be asking for the member’s time cards. It is a two-way street. Can you imagine a young lady listening to her date envision their marriage. He talks about her cleaning the place. He talks about the food she’ll cook. He talks about her doing the laundry, taking care of the kids. Before long, she’ll run believing that he is looking for hired staff and not a wife. Some preachers ought to run and some churches ought to run for the same reasons.

 

Some churches want an office boy, not a preacher. They want someone to answer the phone, make copies for others and do secretarial work. That is their vision of a preacher. Paul told Timothy to “preach the word.” That requires spending time in the word and then getting the word out of Timothy and into others. It means pulpit work. It means private studies. It means writing and making videos. It means meeting with people. It means answering questions. A man who doesn’t like to read won’t make a good preacher. A man who doesn’t like people or doesn’t connect well with people won’t make a good preacher. A church that won’t let a preacher do his work is not a healthy place.

 

Someone called me recently and said that their preacher was moving. He said, “We’re looking for a preacher.” I ask him why? He didn’t know how to answer that.

 

For what reason have you called for me…a good question to ask. A question that ought to be able to be answered.

 

Roger

 

27

Jump Start # 1653

Posted on July 27, 2016 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1653

Ephesians 4:20-24 “But you did not learn Christ in this way, if indeed you have heard Him, just as truth is in Jesus, that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which is the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.”

 

Our verses today, one long sentence that makes up five verses, details the transformation of a disciple of Jesus. Conversion is much more than adding “church” to one’s schedule. It’s a change from the inside out. We might say, a person has re-wired his thinking. He has “laid aside” the old self. The old self is what got him in trouble. The old self was sinful and rebellious. The old self did what the old self wanted to do. The next verse, verse 25, repeats this principle, “therefore, laying aside falsehood…”

 

In these verses Paul states, “you lay aside the old self.” This is not something that happens magically nor miraculously. This is not something that God does. YOU lay aside the old self. This comes down to the choices we make. The Ephesians were being reminded, just as we must be, that they had made a commitment to Christ. Gone are the old ways, the old thinking and the old self. They must purposely choose Christ.

 

In all of this, we find that interesting expression, “But you did not learn Christ this way.” If they had learned anything about Christ, it is that we are to be holy like He is holy. We are to put on Christ. We are to be conformed to His image. You did not learn Christ this way. That very expression illustrates part of the problem today. Folks simply have not learned Christ and those that have, have not learned the truth about Christ. Partying hard on Friday nights and then sitting in a church pew on Sunday isn’t something that we have learned from Christ, at least, not from the N.T. pages. Being selfish and demanding at home and then singing about the love of Christ is not the way we learn Christ, at least, not from the N.T. Cutting dishonest business deals, shading the truth, distorting the story about others is not the way we learned Christ, at least not from the N.T.

 

In the following verses Paul addresses the topics of honesty, anger, our language, bitterness, slander, wrath, and clamor. Learning about Christ, the correct way, the Biblical way, affects our behavior. There is a bridge to what we know about Jesus and how we behave. Our choices, our attitudes all reflect what we know and what we believe about Jesus. In Christ, we learn compassion, kindness, forgiveness, love and grace. Those qualities change our home life. Those principles affect our relationships with others. They mold our manner of life in business.

 

The problems that many have in failing to let their light shine and in being godly examples is directly connected to what they have learned about Jesus. The Bible isn’t a book of facts that we learn to pass a test. Learning Jesus, changes us. It reshapes our thinking and our hearts. It opens our eyes. To know Jesus is to repel prejudice. To know Jesus is to be like Jesus. One doesn’t really know Jesus, when they are walking the opposite way of Christ. This is the point Paul is making to the Ephesians.

 

So, what this brings us back to is that instead of so often thumping about these problem areas, such as, unforgiving hearts and language issues, we ought to know Christ better. To know Christ is to know how we ought to walk and behave. Instead of just showing the facts about where and what Jesus did, we need to raise the hood and look inside and see the compassion of Jesus. We need to see how Jesus saw things. We need to see what impressed Jesus. We need to see Jesus.

 

To know Christ is to know what He is like. It is to know what He wants. It is to know what pleases Him. Uncontrolled anger, abusive language, dishonesty, lying, sour attitudes, unforgiving hearts illustrates that a person doesn’t really know Christ. Jesus never did those things. Jesus wasn’t like that. Jesus would have no part in that. Yet, to call myself a Christian, and to live that way, shows that I do not know Jesus. To know Jesus, Paul shows, will be reflected in our choices and behavior.

 

You did not learn Christ this way sums up the situation. If you learned anything about Christ, you would lay aside the old man, because the old man is lost and not pleasing to God. If you learned anything about Christ, you will change. You will put on the new man.

 

This all begins with Christ. What do you know about Jesus? The more Jesus, the better I become. The more Jesus, the more I put aside the old ways. The more Jesus, the more I look like Him.

 

More, more, more about Jesus—great song. Great principle.

 

Roger

 

 

 

26

Jump Start # 1652

Posted on July 26, 2016 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1652

Genesis 6:11 “Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence.”

  Our verse today is very old. It describes the conditions before the flood. It gives reasons for God’s disappointment with mankind. Before this we find, “The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (v. 5). These sobering statements makes a person wonder what God thinks about our times.

 

  • Shootings in a French church
  • Shootings in a Florida night club
  • Stabbings in Japan
  • Shootings in Germany

 

All this was in the past few days. It is to the point that nearly every day there is violence. It would be nice to go one whole week without a newsbreak about a mass killing somewhere.

 

Why is there so much violence? Some say guns, but that’s not the right answer. The killer in Nice, France drove a truck that killed 84 people. The Boston Marathon killers used home made bombs. The 9-11 assassins used airplanes. Some say that the killings are fueled by an extremist religion. The cops killed in Dallas were not killed by a Muslim.

 

There seems to be another thread that runs through all of this violence.

 

First, there is a hatred for other people. Most of the people killed were innocent. Most never knew or met their killer. So it isn’t personal. It’s a hatred for a race, a religion, a nationality, a lifestyle, a freedom. People don’t know what to do with their hatred. This is the first step in the downward spiral of violence. They hate others. It may be that they never have gotten the opportunities of others. It may be that they are jealous. It may be that they have been neglected. Hatred is a poison. It changes a person. It distorts things and like a drug, they can’t think straight.

 

Don’t hate others—that’s easy to say. What about your child who gets bullied at school? What about everyone around you getting scholarships to college and your family has to foot the entire bill? Hatred builds out of frustration and anger. Dealing with this begins at home. Kids hearing their parents rant and rave about things only gives them permission to do the same in their own world. Hatred must be turned.

 

Second, there is a loss for the reverence of life. Life is not seen to be precious. Hatred builds until it explodes. Not knowing what to do, not having any moral compass in their lives, the decision is made to take the lives of others. Why hurt people you don’t know? There is no decency nor respect for life. Fingers may be pointed to viewing hours of violence in video games and movies, but the thousands that do that have not gone out and killed others. There is more to it than just being fed a steady diet of violence. Behind all of this is the loss of what life is. It is precious. Once it’s gone, it’s gone. It doesn’t come back in this world. Uncaring and unloving, hatred can take a person down the road to murder.

 

Third, there is no God in their lives. This is the greatest factor of all. We are not talking about just going to church at Easter, but rather, someone who walks daily with the Lord. A person who considers things and measures things by God’s word before they become actions. Words that are filtered by God. Thoughts and attitudes that are shaped by God. Hearts that have experienced grace and forgiveness and now extend those to others. The lack of Christ in our world is what is truly missing. I was watching a highlight of a recent Indy car race. The driver spun and hit the wall. Moments before he hit, he took his hands off the steering wheel and crossed his arms over his chest to protect himself. Those final few seconds, the car was completely out of control. The car was not being steered. The driver was along for the ride. This illustrates where so many hearts are today. Without Christ, no one is at the steering wheel. The person is going along for a ride. His emotions, his moods, his reactions are all over the place. He is not in control. He might explode in anger. He might walk out mad. He might say things that are not appropriate. God has a way of governing us. We need that. We see what the world looks like without God at the helm. Anger. Hatred. Violence. Those are the common components of a life without Christ.

 

The prophet Habakkuk cried to God about the violence in his days. He wanted to know what God wasn’t doing anything. The Lord replied. He said, “You wouldn’t believe it if you were told.” God was doing things. He was bringing the powerful and mean Babylonians up to punish the wickedness among His own people. It’s easy for us to declare, “Why won’t God do something.” He probably is. We just can’t see it yet. We may not like what He is doing, but He is in control.

 

A week without violence would be lovely. That is something we can only wish for and pray about. What we can do is have a week without anger, hatred and out of control thoughts and words in our own hearts. Walking with Jesus is the answer.

 

O’ to be like Thee, blessed Redeemer…

 

Roger

 

25

Jump Start # 1651

Posted on July 25, 2016 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1651

James 1:20 “for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.” 

  Anger—it’s the poison of our attitude and the destroyer of our soul. Our verse tells us that anger doesn’t accomplish goodness with God. The previous verse in James reminds us to be slow to anger. Far too often, we know just the opposite of slow to anger. We use expressions like, “short fuse” to describe the person that blows up easily. The Ephesians were told to not let the sun go down on their anger. They were also told to put away anger, along with wrath, clamor and slander—the words and the behaviors that seem to follow anger.

 

Anger, upset, mad, fuming, ready to explode  – it happens at home. It happens while we drive, road rage. It happens at work. It even happens sometimes at church. We get mad for dozens of reasons. Some seem justifiable. But even then, anger stirs our insides and it leaves us in a mess. We can’t eat because we are mad. We can’t get it off our mind, so we toss and turn all night long. We feel compelled to tell everyone we know about how unfair we’ve been treated. Sometimes, it seems, a person is upset with a product, a corporation, an insurance company or the government. They feel like David facing the giant. They are just one little peon facing a major corporation that will never change. Anger.

 

It seems that some like to be angry. I’m not sure why, but they always seem to be upset. It sure appears that they stay that way most times. Much of the movies and music today are angry. Anger feeds into violence and we see the extreme of that almost every week now. Someone shoots another person because they are mad and upset.

 

Being calm is hard to do when your world seems to be collapsing around you. I used a verse in one of my sermons yesterday. Psalms 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.” Other translations use the expression, “cease striving.” The expression, Be still, comes from the Latin word for vacate. It seems that God is giving us permission to take a vacation from being God. Let God be God. Let God run the world. Be still. Cease striving. Calm down. Take a breath.

 

It might help to remember:

 

1. This life is not fair. It’s not. That won’t help  your situation. That won’t put you in a better mood. But what we often want is for the order of things to be turned so things are right. Some things will never be right, not on this side of life. God will iron out all the wrinkles at the judgment. He will make things right. But between now and then, unfairness, favoritism, double standards, dishonesty and cheating may prevail. Donald Trump has says that the system is “rigged.” It may be. We may want to right those wrongs, but in this world that may not happen. So, you may not get the job that you are qualified for. You may not get the scholarship. You may not get what you have worked hard for. Life is not fair. You have worked hard, paid your dues and expect to be rewarded for that. You may not be. Heaven is on the other side of life, not this side.

 

2. Not everyone cares about what is fair or right. Things may be fixed because that is the way those in charge want it to be. That upsets us. Corporate heads may make life harder for employees near the bottom of the rung. It is not uncommon for some to declare, “they don’t care about us.” That may be true. Under cover Boss is a great TV show, but in many places the boss doesn’t care about you. That’s enough to make you mad and worse, turn you into the same way.

 

3. God knows. That’s the redeeming value in all of this. God knows. He knows about sparrows. He knows about the hairs on your head. He knows when someone gives a cup of cold water to another. He knows what you go through in a day. We wish and we want vast armies of angels to sweep down and right all of these wrongs. That probably won’t happen. God is more concerned about how these wrongs are affecting you. They can build character. They can bring the good out of you. They can lead you to help others. Since God knows, then pray. Since God knows, seek His counsel. Since God knows, turn to His word. You are not forgotten, nor alone. You, with prayer, can accomplish more than a whole corporation.

 

4. Staying within the boundaries of what is right, influence change. Do what you can to make things better. Instead of waiting for someone to change this or looking for a knight on a white horse to come in and save the day, you begin where you can and do what you can. Understand, this is risky. You put your self out there and those that resist change may take pot shots at you. But if it’s good and right, take that chance. Do it not just for your sake, but for those around you. They may lack courage. They may not stand with you when the chips are down. But you, move forward, do what you can.

 

Staying angry and telling others who cannot do anything about what upsets you, doesn’t accomplish much. Anger, we started off with, doesn’t accomplish the righteousness of God. Anger isn’t the way that God wants you to go. A moment of anger can destroy years of good. People will remember your angry moments for a long time. The angry person says things that he shouldn’t. It’s hard to take those words back. The angry person often does things without thinking. Those things are hard to fix. The pulpit isn’t the place for someone to stand when they are angry. It usually gets messy when that happens.

 

Anger, like most emotions, must be kept under control. Like a mighty horse, when bridled and trained, it can win the Kentucky Derby. But, like that horse, when out of control, it takes the rider for a scary ride. Under control. Be angry, yet do not sin. That’s the key.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Roger