Back to the Basics

The March 2009 issue of a Christian newsletter that always has stimulating content included a human interest story of a man who was making a significant impact by discipling followers of Christ. The account includes an episode at a wedding reception where he saw four generations of spiritual descendants. This is the result of his commitment to challenge those he disciples to, in turn, disciple others.

In the middle of the article were two sentences that arrested my attention. They stopped me dead in my tracks. I read and reread those sentences again and again. My reaction: How true and how sad! Here they are: "In 1995, Ron left his role as pastor and joined the staff of Campus Crusade for Christ. He wanted to simplify his life and get back to what he calls the basics of the Christian faith: evangelism and discipleship."

Ron is right about the basics. The Bible is clear that the church is here for two major purposes:

• To present the Gospel of Jesus Christ to spiritually dead people who are currently destined for an eternity in hell, so that they might receive Christ, be made spiritually alive and have their destination changed to heaven.
  

• To use every means of grace to cause those who have received Christ to grow into spiritual maturity as disciplined followers of their Lord.
  

The sad part is the he was compelled to leave the pastorate so that he could major on these two Biblical essentials.

The church is not...

• ...a religious social club for making friends.
• ...a self-help group center for every 'felt need' that people have.
• ...a worship service filled with music and messages that make us feel good.
• ...a baby-sitting or child-care service where other adults are expected to build our kids self-esteem.
• ...an entertainment center for the latest fad.
  
• ...about me...my preferences...my opinions...my soap boxes.
  
• ...the place to leave to go to another church the minute something happens that I don't like.

The church is the Christ-centered, Bible-centered called out people of God who have been gloriously saved and are becoming more and more serious about Christ and the Bible.

Paul succinctly summarizes these two basics in 2 Timothy 3.

• Verse 15 - ...knowing the Scriptures which are able to make us wise for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Evangelism is not friendship, silently living a life of good works in front of others or attending some type of religious activity. Evangelism is a Biblically comprehensive and Spiritually saturated presentation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
• Verses 16,17 - All Scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that followers of Christ become thoroughly equipped for every good work. Discipleship is the renewing of our minds, the changing of our hearts, the conforming of our wills consistent with the Lordship of Christ as presented to us in the Bible.
  

The basics! Christ and the Bible make the church unique. Knowing Christ as Savior and growing with Christ as Lord. Is it possible that, regarding these basics, the Lord who has saved us now needs to rebuke and correct us?

Subtracting in Order to Add

The followers of Christ at Immanuel Baptist Church are seeking to expand our participation in prayer. Most of us know more about prayer then we actually pray. The 33 Days of Fervent Prayer emphasis is seeking to increase our fervency and frequency in praying. Each day there is a Bible prayer read and a brief spiritual insight to consider. The Bible prayer for a recent entry was Psalm 51. Get your Bible and read it aloud now...before you read any further.

The spiritual insight to consider for this entry was the following excerpt from Jim Cymbala's book, Fresh Faith...

"If silver is contaminated with dross, it does no good just to add more ore to the pile. The silversmith will not be able to make something beautiful out of it, no matter how large the pile or how much effort is given. Something has to be removed. As long as impurities remain, the silver will not be shiny and smooth. We readily accept this truth in many areas, but spiritually we resist it.

"Many of us are quick to shout “Hallelujah” and celebrate God’s blessings. Others of us have a sound intellectual grasp of Bible doctrine. This is all good - but we can easily avoid the fact that all the noise and knowledge in the world will take us nowhere if there is unremoved dross in our lives. All the talking in the world won’t produce a godly life without the Lord’s intimate, ongoing
refining process in our hearts.

"Some of us are overextended financially. Others of us have a calendar that is way too busy. The only way to get healthy is to remove the indebtedness, to cut back the busyness. Whatever clutters our walk with God becomes the target of His purging process.

"So many of us think that the more we do and the more we acquire, the happier we will be. Wrong! This is why so many Christians do not see God’s purposes worked out in their lives. They can quote the Bible verse about the peace of God that passes all understanding, but don’t have life experience of what it means.

"Because God loves you, He will always be direct with you. He tells you the truth. He is absolutely ruthless in going after the things that spoil the flow of His grace and blessing into our lives. His process is to subtract in order to add. He will never make a treaty with our secret pockets of sin. 'That has to go,' He will insist. 'You cannot go on with that in your life. I cannot make a beautiful silver vessel with that dross still present.' We have to face the fact that, in order to be what God wants us to be, He will have to take away the things in our lives that don’t belong."

Ponder this truth and how it applies to your life. Then, have a session of prayer during which you ask the Lord to subtract the dross so that your purity increases.

(If you are interested in pursuing 33 Days of Fervent Prayer in your life, visit www.ibcwausau.org)

The Sufficiency of Christ

The sufficiency of Christ. These four words are coming to mind with increased frequency in my pastoral role and my personal life. I find myself voicing them again and again, be it in quiet dialogue with my Lord, or during times of pastoral interaction with people facing a wide variety of life's struggles or setbacks.

The sufficiency of Christ. These four words are far more than a spiritual sound bite or a religious placebo. They capture the essence of Christ's integrity and the foundation of our utter dependence upon Him. They cause us to rely on Christ's inexhaustible resources when our personal supply of strength all-too-quickly dissipates.

The sufficiency of Christ. These four words became the rallying cry of the apostle Paul as he battled a messenger of Satan, the thorn in the flesh sent to torment him. In response to Paul's thrice repeated request for the removal of the thorn, the Lord responded, "My grace is sufficient for you..." (2 Corinthians 12:9).

The sufficiency of Christ. I commend these four words to all of us as the foundation for our very spiritual survival. We can do all things through Christ who gives us strength (Philippians 4:13). Jesus will never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). Nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:39). Jesus, Who began a good work in us, will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ (Philippians 1:6).

• To those battling cancer of fighting the ceaseless ravages of ongoing physical deterioration...Jesus is sufficient!
• To those striving to raise godly children in this increasingly godless, secularized and immoral age...Jesus is sufficient!
• To those suffering the loss of an unborn child or grieving the death of a spouse...Jesus is sufficient!
• To those being buffeted by the growing economic crisis and facing unemployment...Jesus is sufficient!
• To those who lovingly care for a person with special needs in your family...Jesus is sufficient!
• To those seeking to live a life of purpose and meaning in the midst of unending routine...Jesus is sufficient!
• To those who agonize over a loved one who neglects Christ and seems bent of personal destruction...Jesus is sufficient!
• To those facing a major life challenge and uncertain about what to do next...Jesus is sufficient!
• To all who desire to live a pure and holy life in following our Lord...Jesus is sufficient!

"Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God..." (2 Corinthians 3:4-6, ESV).

I trust that the main point has been sufficiently established.