grace Posts

THE CORE- Rediscovering What Matters Most

22 Oct , 2010 2 Comments

Years ago there was a study on comparative religions at Oxford University.  A group of theologians and professors were discussing the various contributions of different religions to the world.  When they came to Christianity one said, “It has to be the Incarnation.”  Another said, “That may not be completely unique when you consider the ancient Roman belief of Greek gods coming among us.”  Another added, “No, it must be the self-less nature of it’s followers, Jesus said to deny yourself and live for others.”  Still another said, “No, there are aspects of self-denial in other religions.”  C.S. Lewis walked in the room and asked, “What are you all discussing?”  When they told him they were debating the unique contributions of Christianity to the world, he immediately responded, “Oh, that’s easy; it’s GRACE.”

No other religion in the world offers what Christianity does through Christ’s death on the cross; it’s grace.  Of course, in the end, what Christianity offers is not a religion at all but a relationship with God through Christ.  Religion is man trying to get to God through good deeds or some philosophical or theological framework.  Bill Hybels has said, “Religion is spelled D-O and Christianity is spelled D-O-N-E.”

As a pastor I’ve learned that there becomes a developing pattern in a church where GRACE becomes the central Message and the central value of engagement and ministry.  In the end, for the Christ follower, grace is at the center of everything in life.  We worship a God of grace. We have but ONE message- the Gospel of grace, there is one way in which we serve together: it is grace.  We offer the world the Gospel of grace.

The Pattern of a Gospel-Centered Church:

Grace-> Inclusion-> Diversity -> Celebration

A healthy, grace-centered church will extend grace to all and this will result in an inclusive community of people who welcome everyone.  Jesus, “the friend of sinners” leads us to a lifestyle of love and inclusion.  Inclusion results in diversity and a grace-centered people will then rejoice in that diversity and celebrate it.  When this happens we recognize it as “normal Christianity”- it’s just “normal church”- the rich, the poor, the black, the white, the brown, the young and the old all gather around the grace of Jesus Christ.  Grace becomes the great Message of the Church, the great unifier, and the great motivation of mission.  It’s why it is critical for any church to live by this creedo:

In all things core, unity, in all things non-core, freedom, in all things, grace.

What is core?  The Gospel of grace is core.  It’s all we have to offer.  “We preach Christ and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 1:23).  We’ve been called to give our lives for the Gospel of Jesus Christ (and nothing else).  Now, your view of Revelation up against mine, or your style of worship up against mine, your preference of programs or practices of any given church- those things aren’t core.  So in a church (though very important) we decide not to allow those things to divide us.  In fact, the way you define what has become core to you is this: Are you willing to allow it to change for the sake of the Gospel (that which is the core)?  Are you willing to give that thing up (your preference, your style, your favorite form, how you like church) in order that others might know Christ and His love for them?  If you’re unwilling to change it- whatever it is- you have made it core.  This is so important in our churches because too many people focus on non-core issues.  I don’t want to give my life to trivial stuff of preferences.  I want to see people experience the grace of God in Christ.  Let’s stick to the core and press on in grace!

“God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21

The Preeminence of Christ

13 Aug , 2010 4 Comments

“But what about you?” He asked, “Who do you say I am?” Matthew 16:15

The first followers of Jesus encountered Him in a profound and life-changing way.  But with successive generations, it’s possible for this encounter to fade like a photocopy of a photocopy of a photocopy.  What begins as a revolutionary, life-altering encounter with Jesus, eventually subsides into a codified religion and is then incorporated into normal social life.  The “YOU say” is contextual. Each new generation, every culture is given a “you say”.  And if we get our “you say” wrong, we get everything wrong.  It was W. A. Tozer who said, “What comes into our minds when we think of God is the most important thing about us.”  I would say that what comes into your mind when you think of Christ is the most important thing about you.

Jesus did not come to be the Founder of a religion.  Rightly understood, Christianity is decidedly anti-religion. Through His life, death, and resurrection Jesus ushered in a whole new way to experience the God of Israel- which later became known as Christianity.  Christianity is not a religion but a relationship.  In fact, Jesus eliminated the need for religion. But for most Christians, Jesus is simply part of the American life and not the guiding, defining center.  A vibrant, ongoing, and exciting relationship with Christ is reduced to just going to church.  We receive Christ as Savior of our sins but not Lord of our lives.  And this is what I want us to talk about today.  After all is said and done, and after all the opinions of Jesus are offered…He remains the Risen Lord!

What is Christianity?  It is Christ.  Nothing more, nothing less.  In his book, “Jesus Manifesto”, Leonard Sweet has noted, “Christianity is not a religion, it is not an ideology, or a philosophy.  Neither is it a new type of morality, social ethic, or worldview. “  Christianity is the “Good News” that life, beauty, redemption, and all that is good and right, and made right is found in a Person, whose name is Jesus.  And true humanity and community are founded in and experienced by connection to that Person.  I’ve heard people say they want go deeper and move on to other things.  Deeper? What “other things”?  Other things beyond Christ?  Is there anything deeper than Christ?  If you think you can move on beyond Christ, you’ve never really encounter Him.

In Colossians 1:15-23, Paul sets forth one of the greatest revelations of Christ in all of Scripture.  He says Christ is supreme in creation, He is supreme in authority, and He is supreme in redemption.  All things were created by Him and for Him, including you. You’ll finally discover ultimate freedom and joy if you’ll allow Him to be supreme in every area of your life.

Lighten Up

16 Jul , 2010 1 Comment

I never grow tired of this sequence from “The Mission”- a powerful reminder that we have been set free in Christ.  If you have received Christ’s forgiveness you are now completely loved, fully pleasing, totally accepted by God.  You don’t have to pay the price for your failures.

Think about your own life for a moment. What burdens are you carrying around?  What failures from your past continue to beat you down?  John Mark McMillan’s lyrics from, “How He Loves”: “I don’t have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way He loves us.”  Life is too short to be burdened by sin that Christ has taken to the cross.

“There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1

http://vimeo.com/12127228

“Go and Be” the Church

07 May , 2010 No Comments

This past weekend our church family (FBC McKinney) decided not to come to worship services but to worship through service.  We had 1,600 volunteers serve the Lord by serving our community through our “Go and Be” initiatives.

Why such an effort? Because we’ve decided to take Jesus’ words, “love your neighbor as yourself” seriously (Matthew 22:39).  He said we love God when we love others.  He said, “If you love me you will obey my commands” (John 14:21).  He said that others will know we love Him by our love for them (John 13:35).

A large church of spectator Christians tends to produce more of the same.  We have enough of those churches.  It’s important to “come and see” what God is doing “at church”.  But the Church for which Jesus died is actually on the move out in the world as His followers “go and be” the Church 24/7.  Taking one Sunday away from our gathering continues to hold high the value or serving our community as Jesus has called us to.  We have been blessed to be a blessing.

Watch this video: Go and Be video/results

Core vs. Non-core (Part 3)

29 Mar , 2010 2 Comments

In Parts 1 and 2 we noted that a church focused on the Gospel will be a place of grace.  Grace will lead to inclusion, which will lead to diversity, and diversity to varied opinions regarding preferences and ultimately, conflict.  Critical to the leadership of any great church is a radical commitment to the core- the Gospel.  As the Gospel is defined, examined, scrutinized, lived out, and shared, the Church finds herself on mission with Jesus.  By definition then, the non-core is exposed as such because it is not at the core of the Church’s message and activity.

The challenge comes when there are differences of opinion regarding what’s really core.  How do you determine what is core?  It’s actually much easier than most Christians realize.  There was a little-known reformer (born in 1854), Rupertus (Peter) Meldenius who is famous for one quote (that has been wrongly attributed to others like Martin Luther):

“In Essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. In all things, charity.”

A not-so-well-known pastor would say it like this: “In core issues, unity; non-core, freedom.  In all things, grace.”  These words have, for a long time, formed somewhat of an Evangelical credo.  Evangelicals (like Baptists) have traditionally believed that there are certain doctrines that form the core of the Christian faith.  They are called “cardinal (essential, core) doctrines.”  They are what we might call the sine quo non- the “without which, not”-of the Christian faith.  In other words there are certain doctrines that when denied, by definition, give evidence that a person does not have the basic core beliefs that must be present in the truly regenerate person.  Included in this credo is the belief that there are certain doctrines that are “non-essential” or “non-cardinal”.  What I’ve always called, “non-core”.

3 tests that reformers, evangelicals, and Baptists have used through the ages:

1. Historicity: Does the doctrine have universal historical representation?

2. Clarity (Perspicuity): Is the doctrine represented clearly in Scripture?  One of the principles that the reformers sought to communicate is what they called “perspicuity”- the (clarity) of Scripture.

3. Explicity: Does the passage of Scripture explicitly teach that a certain doctrine is essential?  The Scriptures speak about a great many things but the Bible is often explicit with regards to that which is of essential importance.  For example, Paul says to the Corinthians, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:3-4; emphasis mine).  The “of first importance” tells us that Christ’s death and resurrection “for our sins,” from Paul’s perspective, is an essential component of Christianity.  Without such, according to Paul, there is no Christianity (1 Cor. 15:12ff).  The Gospel of John also speaks about the importance of faith. “Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son” (John 3:18).

All three of these three criteria must be present.  If one or more is lacking concerning a particular doctrine, it is not possible for us to legitimately argue for its core essentiality.  As well, all three feed off each other and are somewhat self-regulating.  In other words, if someone doubts whether something is clear in Scripture, all he or she has to do is look to history.  If something is not clear in the Scripture, it will not find that it passes the test of history.  This is why it is of vital importance that Christians not only be good exegetes, but also good historians.

Christians have always argued over what’s core and what’s not.  In fact, it has been the ruin of many great Christian movements.  There will always be those who want to bring focus, energy, and time to non-core preferences, forms, and issues- believing them to be something worth such time and effort.  It is critical for any church, ministry, or denomination to stay focused on the Great Truth of the Gospel, the Great Commandment, and the Great Commission.  In the end, the center of all focus, attention, and energy is brought to the Great Person of the Gospel, Christ Jesus our Lord.  As we bring our full devotion to Him the Core becomes very narrow and self-evident.  Let us unite around Him (Matthew 6:33) and all else will follow.