Brian Castelli - With His Heart

Jesus Christ is the public speaker I would have loved to hear in person. We are blessed by having many of his words–both public and private–recorded in the Bible. In my reading this morning I was reminded of just how radical his message was to the Jews he ministered to.

In Matthew chapter 8, a Roman Centurion came to Jesus to ask Him to heal his servant. Upon seeing the faith of this man, a non-Jew and a member of the people who were oppressing the Jews, Jesus says these words:

I assure you: I have not found anyone in Israel with so great a faith! I tell you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Let’s remember who Jesus was speaking to. This was a people, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. These were God’s Chosen People. They thought their birthright was a passage to heaven and that Gentiles (non-Jews) were lost. In this passage Jesus says clearly that salvation has come for the whole world–and that birthright will not be enough! This was a radical message to his audience, no doubt one that did not earn him favor with some of His hearers.

In Acts 10, Peter is preaching to a Gentile household. As he witnesses to them, the Holy Spirit fills his listeners. They become believers in Jesus Christ even though they are not Jews. Verse 45 proves what a radical idea this is:

The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astounded, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also.

The “circumcised believers” here refers to Jews who had come to faith in Jesus Christ.

Jesus the Radical. He wasn’t afraid to Speak up!

It happens all the time. The most recent occurrence happened when I was working with some folks to tutor at a local high school. In the midst of the altruistic discussion I thought, “I’m doing a really good thing here! Am I not a good person?” Pride. Paul was right when he wrote:

So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me.

(Romans 7:21)

In the book The Reason for God, pastor and author Tim Keller writes:

The devil, if anything, prefers Pharisees–men and women who try to save themselves.

Keller is known for his talk about self-salvation projects. He says there are two ways to be your own Savior and Lord:

The first is by saying, “I am going to live my life the way I want.” The second is… trusting your own goodness rather than Jesus for your standing with God.

The folks in the first group are easier to identify. They are ignoring Jesus. Folks in the second are more difficult to pick out. They are doing “good works” as if those good works will ultimately save them. It’s as if they are trying to be so good that God has no choice but to open heaven’s gates for them. Both groups are ultimately lost because neither is dependent on Jesus who is salvation. This is a critical difference.

What about me? I am a former card-carrying member of the first group. These days I have a tendency to end up in the second group, as evidenced by the example at the start of this post. I want to do things that come from a heart that is being transformed by Jesus Christ, but I have a tendency to look for ways I can build myself up in the process. Let me try to be clear: I don’t believe we ought to live in guilt or constantly beating ourselves up. But I do believe that, in recognition of our natural state and the incredible sacrifice Jesus made to get us out of that state, our service should come out of gratitude and joy for what has been done for us, not by us.

I spend a lot of time commuting to and from work. For years all I did was complain about the time. With the advent of MP3 players, however, my commute time has been reclaimed! I now sport a cell phone that can hold hundreds of MP3’s that I use to fill my mind with truth and encouragement as I drive. More often than not, you’ll catch me on the road listening to some pastor’s sermon…

Recently, I’ve been listening to MP3’s from Pastor Matt Chandler of The Village Church near Dallas. I have found them to be both helpful and encouraging. Very recently–Thanksgiving time–Pastor Matt was diagnosed with brain cancer. He’s 35, has a wife and three really small kiddos. Here is the location of the 4.5-minute video message he recorded for his congregation prior to surgery:

http://fm.thevillagechurch.net/blog/pastors/?p=363

After watching the video, I went back and re-read Hebrews 11. I believe the words there are an encouragement to us as we face trials of every kind. Some, by faith, were able to shut the mouths of lions and quench fire. Others endured suffering–sometimes to their deaths. In either case, the scripture says that the world was not worthy of them. Pastor Matt’s spin on this is that suffering means that God has counted us worthy. I buy that. I pray that someone will remind me of that when I’m in the middle of some trial that has me on my back. I also buy into the notion that even though we love our families God cares more about us and our families than we do. This translates into us being called to follow God’s revealed will (to not lie, to be honest in business–using proper scales and so on…) regardless of the consequences.

I hope that you find this encouraging. I know that I did. I also hope that I will have the courage to live according to the words I have written when the time comes.

The old man looked up from his coffee, a pained expression on his face. “I don’t understand why you don’t believe!” he exclaimed, emotion welling up in his voice. “I don’t know,” the younger man seated across from him replied. “I guess I just can’t believe that one religion has it all figured out. I mean, how can we know God–if he’s really there?”

Like the old man, I’ve encountered several people who believe that no religion has God figured out, that there are any paths to God. Some of them have used the “elephant and the blind men” analogy to explain their position. The analogy goes something like this:

Four blind men were asked to describe an elephant. The one who grabbed the trunk said, “An elephant is like a snake.” The one who touched a side said, “An elephant is like a wall.” The one who grabbed a leg said, “An elephant is like a tree.” And the one who grabbed the tail said, “An elephant is like a whip.” None of them had it right because none of them could touch the whole elephant.

This analogy doesn’t hold up when talking about God. The only way we *know* that the blind men have it wrong is that we are observers in a position to see and understand the whole elephant. We can only declare that the blind men have partial knowledge because we have complete knowledge. To make the same claim about God–that no one religion has it right–is to presuppose that we have knowledge of the whole of God. We can only judge that any one religion’s understanding is partial if we have a greater understanding. This is absurd. None of us is in such a position. The argument fails to hold up.

What does hold up is that God revealed the truth to us. One way to God *can* be supported when it was God himself who showed us the way. That is one of the reasons I follow Jesus.

Merry Christmas!

Our small group Bible study has been working our way through Genesis. What we’re seeing is how important God considers his promises. Last night we jumped ahead and looked at a promise kept as testified to by Simeon and Anna in Luke chapter 2. When Simeon saw the savior, he proclaimed:

“Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
you now dismiss your servant in peace.
For my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you have prepared in the sight of all people,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles
and for glory to your people Israel.”

Simeon was more than satisfied. Simeon rested in God’s promise of bringing a Redeemer.

This account made me inspect my own life. Am I relying on God’s promises? Does my hope lie in him or in what things I can do for myself? I don’t know about you, but I’m finding that I can’t do it all. I’m in the middle of a storm or busyness. I’ve realized that the main problem is me–and all the things I think I can do.

Lord, help me to trust! Lord, help me to rest!

“Aren’t you offended when someone says, ‘I am so blessed?!!?’”

The speaker was upset because, in her mind, the latter statement demonstrated arrogance and superiority. “I mean, God lets some children starve. Does that mean he loves the rich more?!!? I should hope not!”

The answer depends on your world view.

If you believe in luck–a.k.a. blind chance–to say, “I am blessed,” because you were born into relative affluence is an acknowledgment that you had nothing to do with it. It wasn’t by your own power or initiative that you were born then and there. The only way one could find this offensive, in my opinion, is if one was really upset that credit for the situation could be given to God.

If your world view includes a belief in God, then “luck” can’t be part of the equation. If there is a creator, is it really plausible that he’s playing dice with the universe? Does it really make sense that he’d just let things happen by random chance? I don’t think so. Therefore, “I am blessed,” is a very humble acknowledgment that, “I didn’t earn this.”

It seems to me, then, that the only way to consider such a statement offensive is to have a firmly held anti-God stance–so firm that you don’t want him getting any credit.

No one knows why God gives material or health blessings to some and not to others. If someone claims that they understand that, they are either wrong or lying. What’s clear in the Bible is that God does not favor the rich over the poor. In fact, in most cases where God rails against nations it’s because the nations have failed to care for the poor and the needy, the widow and the orphan, in their midst. God cares very much about the plight of the poor, and he seems to expect those of us who aren’t to lend a hand.

The truth is, it was kind of meaningless. I feel I wasted something.

The October 2, 2009 edition of The Week magazine reports that this is actor Woody Harrelson’s assessment of years of “hedonism” brought on by quick success in a business known for its excesses. Harrelson continues:

…you take those hours–not to mention the money–I spent and apply it toward something meaningful… I could have learned 12 languages! I could’ve learned several martial arts. I mean mastered. I could’ve become a successful engineer and still had time to study acupuncture and the guitar, the flute, and the ukelele. I did have a… ball! Loved it! But did it help me or anyone around me?

The last question shows that Harrelson is finally starting to get it. Our value, our worth, is not measured by how well we entertained, how much money we made, or how many partners we slept with. Our success is measured by the kind of difference we make in the lives of those around us.

We are Christians. We had to forgive them because they asked for forgiveness.

These are the words of an unidentified Rwandan woman referring to those guilty of genocide in her country–even against her own relatives. She had just heard the confession of one of the killers. Some of his words:

Every Tutsi, you would go to their house and loot everything and then kill them. After killing them, you stripped them naked.

How is such forgiveness possible?

As I wrestled with that question, I read 1 Peter 2:4-5:

As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

“We are Christians,” she said. She and others like her are the “living stones” that make up the church, God’s spiritual house. By coming to him (Jesus Christ), Christians are being built up (strengthened) to offer spiritual sacrifices (such as forgiveness) through Jesus Christ. Repeat: Through Jesus Christ.

Jesus is how such forgiveness is possible. Of our own strength, we desire revenge. Empowered by Jesus, we offer forgiveness.

(http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/1667689.html)