Caution: Do not Reverse!

The first chapter of the New Testament letter of First Peter has a very simple outline. The first twelve verses are all about what God, in his mercy and grace, has done for us. Phrases in this section include words like, “mercy… new birth… living hope… inheritance… heaven… God’s power… rejoice… Jesus… salvation” (verses 1-12). The focus in this section of the letter is entirely on what God has done for us.

The second section focuses on our response to God. It contains phrases like, “Prepare your minds for action… obedient children… be holy… purified… love one another deeply from the heart” (verses 13-25).

It is absolutely essential to get those two sections in the proper order. First, God has given you the gift of salvation, forgiveness and hope through the death of his son Jesus. Then, in response to God’s love, you live a different life.

We make a huge mistake when we turn this teaching around and do not honor the order in which it is presented. Too many times, I have heard people say, “When I get my life sorted out, then I will come to church”. That is futile! You will never get your life together enough on your own to deserve the blessing of God! We live by Christian standards not to make God love us, but in response to the fact that he already does. That order is all important.

It is sort of like hooking up booster cables on your car. Connecting “positive to positive” is absolutely essential if you want the process to work. Turning those cables around will give you a very different result.

The wrong order says, “Be good enough to earn God’s love”. The Biblical order says, “In response to what God has already done for us, we trying to live in a way that honours him”.

Keeping that order straight is essential to hearing the real message of God’s word.

Walking or Hiding?

They say, “Familiarity breeds contempt”. It is also true that, “Familiarity breeds misunderstanding”. That is especially true of the Bible where we often misinterpret and miss the point of the familiar stories.

For example, what is the point of the story of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3)? The common answer is “Disobedience is punished”. They were told not to eat from that tree, they did eat from it and God was not happy.

While those details are technically correct, that is not the point of the story! The bottom line of the story is actually “The seriousness of losing your relationship with God”.

At one point, they walked and talked with God in the garden. After they disobeyed it says, “The man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden… and they hid from the Lord” (Genesis 3:8). Later it says that, “The Lord banished them from the Garden of Eden” (3:23) and placed a guard at the gate to keep them out. The tragedy and the point was not that they disobeyed the rules, but that their disobedience cost them their relationship with God.

The rest of the Bible, then, is about God restoring that relationship. Think about the Ten Commandments. They are rules about relationships with God and with others. The Old Testament sacrifices were about creating a way to be in relationship with God. The tabernacle and the temple were given as places to come and meet with God. Jesus, of course, is the ultimate symbol of how far God will go to restore that lost relationship. “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

We do not inherit Adam’s sin, but we have all broken our relationship with God because of our own sinfulness (Romans 3:23). We have lost a relationship that we vitally need both now and in eternity.

The good news is that God has done all he can to invite you back home and back into relationship with him again.

The ball is now in our court. Will we walk with him or continue hiding from his love?

The Light Shines On

It is not often that one arrives at the cemetery 35 years after the funeral, but this past Thanksgiving Sunday, that is exactly what my wife’s family did.

Sara’s Grandma, Faye, died of Multiple Sclerosis in the early 1970s. In an effort to help other families avoid living through a similar tragedy, the family donated her body to the University of Saskatchewan so that they could do research regarding this disease. A funeral was held and a memorial stone was placed in a cemetery in Kansas.

This past year, however, the family found out that the University had buried Faye in Woodlawn cemetery in Saskatoon and so plans were made to place a stone on her actual grave. To be honest, I did not want to go. I mean, it was 35 years ago! Sure, Saskatoon is the actual spot, but, in reality, what difference does that make? It is just a plot of ground. Why would we bother driving up there just to stand around another stone?

Well, I am glad that I went, because we did more than just “stand around another stone”. In that cemetery, 35 years after her death, Sara and I met her Grandma Faye. Not physically, of course, but, in a very real way, we became acquainted with someone neither one of us had ever met and we were encouraged.

As each of her children told stories about their mom, we learned of her life, her attitude, her joy and, most of all, her faith in God. We laughed. Some cried. All were strengthened by being there. Strangely, more than half of the 30 people at the cemetery were simply friends who wanted to come and honour Faye’s life. Thirty five years later, people still remembered her and wanted to tell their story about who she was and how she had helped them.

The Bible says, “Encourage one another – and all the more as you see the day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25) and that is exactly what Faye did in her life and, somehow, continues to do today. Obviously, our influence lives on long after we depart.

Initially, I only went because I am part of the family. After having been there, I would not have missed it!

Without ever having met her, Faye reminded me that a life lived in the light of Lord is certainly a life worth living.

Football and Faith

Thanks to a friend of mine, I attended the recent “Athletes in Action” supper that was held in town. Saskatchewan Roughriders Kerry Joseph and Wes Cates as well as defensive line coach Ron Estay came to talk about their faith and about how God has blessed them.

One of the things that impressed me was the fact that these guys did not have to be here. In fact, I asked Wes, “How many hours of community service do the Riders require you to do?” His answer, “None! We do not have to do anything if we do not want to. They encourage us to get involved in the community, but we are not required to”.

These three men gave up their day off to drive down here, speak at the supper and drive home again. Why would they bother doing that?

Kerry Joseph answered that question by saying (and I am paraphrasing here), “As football players, we have some influence on others. People look up to us and listen to us, so I have decided to use that for good. If being a football player gives me an opportunity to speak to others, then I am going to use it to speak about God”.

He went on to point out that everyone one of us, regardless of what we do, can influence someone else. Each of us is a role model and an example to someone. The question that Kerry left with us is, “How are you using that influence? Are you using it for God?”

So, what do your co-workers see in you? What priorities are you teaching your children? Do others see the joy of the Lord in you? What legacy are you leaving?

I was impressed that these men would choose to spend their free time to encourage others to think about their relationship with God. It made me think, “I need to be doing the same thing”.

Maybe our example of faithfulness can encourage others too.

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing” (1 Thessalonians 5:11).