How God Sees My Sin

Tags

beautiful snow, forgiveness, sin

Our snow last night reminded me of this poem I came across while preparing for a sermon series on forgiveness several years ago. I’ll only post a portion, but you can read the complete poem and the story behind it here.

Beautiful Snow

Once I was pure as the snow, but I fell,
Fell like the snow flakes from Heaven to Hell;
Fell to be trampled as filth in the street,
Fell to be scoffed, to be spit on and beat;
Pleading — Cursing — Dreading to die,
Selling my soul to whoever would buy;
Dealing in shame for a morsel of bread,
Hating the living and fearing the dead,
Merciful God! have I fallen so low!
And yet I was once like the beautiful snow.

Once I was fair as the beautiful snow,
With an eye like a crystal, a heart like its glow;
Once I was loved for my innocent grace —
Flattered and sought for the charms of my face!
Fathers — Mothers — Sisters — all,
God and myself I have lost by my fall;
The veriest wretch that goes shivering by,
Will make a wide sweep lest I wander too nigh,
For all that is on or above me I know,
There is nothing so pure as the beautiful snow.

How strange it should be that this beautiful snow
Should fall on a sinner with nowhere to go!
How strange it should be when the night comes again
If the snow and the ice struck my desperate brain!
Fainting — Freezing — Dying — alone,
Too wicked for prayer, too weak for a moan
To be heard in the streets of the crazy town,
Gone mad in the joy of snow coming down;
To be and to die in my terrible woe,
With a bed and a shroud of
of the beautiful snow.

Helpless and foul as the trampled snow,
Sinner, despair not! Christ stoopeth low
To rescue the soul that is lost in sin,
And raise it to life and enjoyment again.
Groaning — Bleeding — Dying — for thee,
The Crucified One hung on the cursed tree!
His accents of mercy fall soft on thine ear,
“Is there mercy for me? Will He heed my weak prayer?”
Oh God! in the stream that for sinners did flow
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

On Holy Days

After a rather strenuous holiday season, I have spent some time over the past couple of days recovering from contemplating the importance of holidays.

I know the word comes from “holy day,” and I also am aware that historically, some have opposed them. I suspect that this opposition was rooted more in the pagan influences related to some (Easter) and the over-indulgence associated with others (Christmas) than in the concept itself.

That being said, I think there is something important about having days to celebrate special events and people. God certainly established “holy days” of festival, remembrance and worship for the people of Israel. There is obviously something beneficial in the act of observance. Properly focused such celebration can be an act of worship.

There are many things that can be found to criticize in the modern observance of Christmas and other special days. Despite this, I hope that the significance of recognizing holy days in general and those related to the life of Christ in particular is not lost.

How about you? What is your favorite holiday, and what significance does it hold for you?

And oh yes, Happy New Year!

Who Do You Belong To?

I hope everyone had a great Christmas. I am enjoying the “break” from regular posting by scheduling some of the most popular posts from this past year. “Regularly scheduled programming” will resume after the new year begins.

We go through life trying to answer that question in one form or another. We spend a great deal of our time, energy, and money trying to fulfill our need to belong, to be accepted, to be loved, to have an identity – a relationship.

Some seek it in their family, their heritage, or their culture. Others look for it in success or accomplishments, and, if they aren’t satisfied with their own, they identify themselves with the achievements of others. You might search for a sense of belonging in a group: gangs, clubs, alumni, even church.

This human search for belonging is not sinful. It is the result of sin, the vacuum created by the absence of God is the source of this innate desire, but the desire itself is not sin.

The sin is that we look for that “belonging” in all the wrong places. Not all the substitutes are bad in themselves, but these things we attach ourselves to become idols (even the good ones) when we find our sense of fulfillment and satisfaction and belonging in them instead of God. Man is searching for God and doesn’t even know it.

The blessed irony is that by relinquishing my claim to self-ownership and finding my satisfaction in belonging wholly to God, I achieve what I never could by any other identification. By renouncing a desire for self-rule and self-deification I realize my highest fulfillment. I belong to God, I am not my own!

Christmas is for Worship: Created to Worship

With Christmas falling on Sunday, this week’s “Weekends are for Worship” is a repost of one of the most popular posts this year. A quote from Andrew Murray: Created to Worship. Enjoy, and Merry Christmas!

To worship is man’s highest glory. He was created for fellowship with God: of that fellowship worship is the sublimest expression. All the exercises of the religious life meditation and prayer, love and faith, surrender and obedience,all culminate in worship. Recognising what God is in His holiness, His glory, and His love, realizing what I am as a sinful creature, and as the Father’s redeemed child, in worship I gather up my whole being and present myself to my God, to offer Him the adoration and the glory which is His due. The truest and fullest and nearest approach to God is worship. Every sentiment and every service of the religious life is included in it: to worship is man’s highest destiny, because in it God is all.

Andrew Murray, The Spirit of Christ

Nephos Nine

1. On its 70th birthday, Russell Moore shares the memories of his home church.

2. Grace and Forgiveness in the White House from the interview Reconsidering Bush’s Compassionate Conservatism.

3. An amazing story of transformation: Reformed skinhead endures agony to remove tattoos.

4. Satirically (and sadly) hilarious piece by the Onion: All Seven Deadly Sins Committed At Church Bake Sale. Fiction, yes, but unfortunately there is probably a large degree of truth to it.

5. Amy is finding strength after A Month in a Whirlwind.

6. 5 reasons you’ll leave my church plant by Joe Holland.

7. Michael Hyatt learned some lessons about leadership from a root canal.

8. Thought provoking question from The Wardrobe Door: How do you want your chapter to end?

9. After reading of the acquisition of Thomas Nelson Publishers by HarperCollins, I found this post by a bookstore owner quite helpful.

A Biblical Perspective on Martyrdom: By Life or By Death

What about the others? What about those who are not delivered but die for their faith? Paul could face martyrdom with joy because his great desire was that Christ be Magnified.

There is a second truth that helped Paul face his martyrdom. The ultimate demand of the cross. The cross demands a “living sacrifice”.

“I beseech you therefore brethren by the mercies of God that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”
Romans 12:1

Too often we confuse our actions as our ultimate service for God. When we do, we slip into the legalistic mindset that says, “The more I do, the more spiritual I am.” This leads to frustration in our Christian life. We will “burn out” trying to “do enough” to please God.

I can never “do” enough to please God. My service for God is not pastoring, teaching, singing, or anything else. My “reasonable” service is presenting a living sacrifice. My service is not my sacrifice, my sacrifice is my service. That is what God asks of all of us. This is the demand of the cross.

Now, before you think I’m suggesting we are not expected to serve, let me say this. The result of my living sacrifice is that I serve. But too often, we focus on the doing without the being. You can do without being, but you cannot be without doing. If I am a living sacrifice, I will act in service. But it will be a service that is honoring to God, rather than pleasing to myself.

Paul reminds us that this “service” is reasonable. This implies thoughtful meditation. Reflecting on what I am doing as opposed to mindless ritual or routine. For those whose service is their sacrifice, the danger of religious habit is always present. The believer whose sacrifice is their service will find a spirit of newness and joy in their work for God.

When we have made this living sacrifice, we can say with Paul,

“Now, as always, Christ shall be magnified in my body. Whether it be by life or by death.”

Living for God’s glory is just as blessed as dying for it.

Lovers of Violence?

Tags

Adam Groza, Bible, Contemporary Christianity, early Christianity, gladiators, MMA, UFC, violence

Are American Christians contributing to the devaluation of life?

The early Christians lived in a society saturated with a disregard for life. From infanticide to public executions to the brutality of the “games,” Rome knew little of the sanctity of life.  Believers were decidedly counter-cultural on this matter. They refused to attend the games, and even renounced them at baptism. It was ultimately through Christian influence that these practices were outlawed.

In his recent article, What does the Bible say about mixed martial arts? , Adam Groza argues persuasively that a Christian should not enjoy the violence of such contemporary “games”:

Psalm 11:5 says, “The LORD examines the righteous and the wicked. He hates the lover of violence.” This is a hard verse for at least two reasons. First, it does not say that God simply hates violence, but rather, that God hates those who love violence. Second, it confronts our culture’s lust for violence, a lust which many Christians indulge rather than reject.

He goes on:

Baptists believe the Bible should inform every aspect of life. The Bible teaches that sin brought death, suffering, and violence to creation. Violence is something we may justly tolerate but never celebrate.

As noted in this article, the already-prevalent infatuation for MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) and UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) among Christians appears to be increasing.  Groza describes a church which even uses UFC as a church event. They charge $10 and watch the fights on the big screen. When asked if MMA conflicts with scripture, the pastor replies, “If it was still no-holds barred, if it was underground or illegal, then yes. But this is legal and sanctioned. It’s got rules. You’re talking about stellar athletes, so I don’t believe it does at all.”

I find it interesting that he could just as well be describing the bouts between gladiators in the ancient arenas of Rome. Stellar athletes? Check! Legal? Check! Sanctioned? Check! No conflict with Scripture here.

Is it coincidental that as our society’s value for life has decreased, our craving for violence has increased?  Has our determination to not appear “wimpy” overcome our desire to be Godly?  Are we more concerned with being a free-willed American than a submitted Christian? Will we now be participants in the cultural shift we so decry? Will we ignore the clear declaration of Christ, “Blessed are the peacemakers?”

So far . . . not so good.