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Feb 24

The Joy of Pain

Posted on February 24, 2014 by admin

Today is a very special day in the Likens household.  Today, our baby boy, Caleb, has turned five.  Even typing that out I have to shake my head and ask, where has the time gone?  I can remember February 24, 2009 pretty vividly even now.  What was supposed to be a routine day and doctor’s visit turned into an adventurous, long day that ended with another miracle coming into our lives.  Diana had a pretty routine pregnancy up until the end, and it seemed as though things just kept going down hill.  When we talk about the “pain” of childbirth, we don’t mean the actual delivery, what I think of is just getting Diana and Caleb to the point where it could be safe to deliver him and Diana being ok as well.  It was interesting this morning in our house.  I guess Diana and I were both feeling a little nostalgic.  Diana went and got one of Caleb’s newborn outfits.  He was a premie, and so his outfit was so tiny.  It is so crazy to look at that outfit and then look at the young man who wore it, and think, “was he ever that small?”  Time has a way of causing us to forget a lot of things.  The worry of those last couple of months, immediately gave way to joy as I got to hold my beautiful baby boy in my arms for the first time.  To now he is in school, playing sports, and being a rambunctious little boy.

On the final night of Jesus’ life before His crucifixion He was talking to His disciples about His impending death and resurrection.  John 16:21 says this, “A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.”  Jesus was telling His disciples, “you are sad that I am going away, but your sorrow will turn into joy because you will see Me again.”  There are many things in life that initially seem to cause us a lot of pain, but in the end they turn into one of the biggest blessings we have ever had.  We seldom understand how we become the people that we are, but we are in a large way the product of our experiences in life.  The question becomes, do we hold on to the pain of life, or do we hold on to the joy of life?  When a person breaks a bone and they go to the doctor, the doctor tells them “we have to set this bone.”  Most doctors will tell you “this is going to hurt.”  Our natural reaction is not to want to go through any more pain, but if we want the bone to heal and not have more pain down the road, we must go through this temporary pain now.  In a sense it is, I have to hurt you to help you.  Now that seems to run counter to what would make sense.  But for those who have broken bones, after it is healed you don’t think of the pain of setting the bone, you just know that it is all better now.  I want to suggest a few ways to allow your pain, to be turned into joy.

First, remember this moment is temporary.  I know a lot of people are struggling with various things, but your present situation won’t always be like this.  I know it feels like the world is coming down on you, but hold on, it will get better.

Secondly, some of you need to release the pain in your life.  I’m not talking about the physical pain, I’m talking about the emotional pain.  Some of you are carrying around baggage of past hurts that is weighing you down, and sucking the life right out of you.  Maybe it is a grudge against someone who really hurt you, and in the moment you said “I’ll never forget this.”  What good is that grudge doing you?  Truthfully, you are the only one who remembers what happened.  The person who hurt you, probably doesn’t even remember anymore.  Choose to forgive them, release them from any supposed debt they have with you.

Finally, choose to live joyfully.  I’m not naive enough to think that we won’t get down from time to time.  Life has a way kicking you.  It’s kind of like a Sunday afternoon.  It has been great having a few days off and spending time with the family, but you know when you wake up the next day, it is Monday.  But you can choose to allow God to turn difficulties into joy and to make you into the man or woman God has created you to be.  You cannot control what happens in life, but you can control how you react to it.  God is still God, He is still on His throne, and He is still in control.

By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him

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Feb 17

Derek Jeter and Life

Posted on February 17, 2014 by admin

Last week one of the greatest baseball players of my generation announced that this would be his last year.  Although I am not a New York Yankees fan, it is hard as a baseball fan not to really enjoy watching Derek Jeter play baseball.  I believe most baseball people will tell you that Jeter ranks up there as one of the all-time great shortstops to have ever played the game.  One thing that also makes you like Jeter is the fact that although he played in the biggest city in America, is filthy rich and famous, he went about life as an average person.  You didn’t hear him getting into trouble, he stayed grounded from all points of view that we had, and he just seemed to be an all-around nice guy.  So at the end of 2014, not only will the Yankees lose a starting shortstop and team captain, but baseball will lost an ambassador for the game.  So what does this have to do with life you ask?

The short answer to that question is a lot.  Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.”  It goes on to say “a time to be born and a time to die.”  Everything has a beginning and it has an ending.  Derek Jeter has had a phenomenal career, but now it is time to ride off into the proverbial sunset.  Five years after his last game, Derek Jeter will most likely be a first ballot hall of famer.  There is no doubt that he will be remembered in the Bronx by Yankee fans and he will be remembered by those who love the game of baseball.  What I don’t know about him, and what I want to ask you is this, will what you have done in this life matter and make a difference beyond your life?  Have you lived this temporary life in a way that will have an eternal legacy and impact?  Another way of asking it is this, what have you done for the glory of Jesus Christ?  Jesus tells us in Matthew 6 not to lay up treasures for ourselves in heaven.  2 Peter 3 tells us that this earth and the things in it will be consumed and pass away in.  Revelation 21 tells us there will be a new earth.  It’s great that you have thousands of Twitter followers, Facebook likes, and are well known.  But at the end of your life, what of eternal value are you going to have to show?

My concern is that too many pastors, churches, and even Christians in general are accomplishing what the world says are great things, but at the end of our life, we will realize that what we did and what we accomplished did very little to make Jesus known or to advance His kingdom.  I love what John the Baptist said in John 3:30, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”  The traps of this world are always there, ready to snatch you up and consume you.  But we as Christians must frequently remind ourselves, this life and this world are not about me, it is about making Him known to the world.  We always want to procrastinate, because we think we have more time.  But friends let me urge you today to realize, we never have as much time as we think we do.  Let’s not waste another minute, but let’s get busy telling the world about our Wonderful Savior, who desires to save them as well.

By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him

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Feb 15

Lessons From The Snow

Posted on February 15, 2014 by admin

It has been several days since I have sat down to write.  Partly because like most of the people in the south and east, my family and I have been trying to dig out of snow.  I can safely say now, there is such a thing as too much snow!  But I want to be careful not to complain, because it has given me an opportunity to spend time with my family which has been wonderful.  But after shoveling for parts of the last three days, I can say God has taught me a valuable lesson.  I remember shoveling on Thursday morning and thinking, this isn’t that bad.  It is going to take a while, but it will get done.  Then after a while, it became more and more difficult to keep shoveling.  Then Friday came, and I began to shovel again in the morning.  I was able to make slow and steady progress.  I went back to it on Friday afternoon, and that is when I realized “Wow, we have a really long driveway.”  I can remember a point in which I put my shovel in the snow and said “Lord, I can’t do this alone, I’m going to need some help.”  It wasn’t too long after that when I went back in feeling frustrated that I still hadn’t managed to finish, that my help arrived.  The answer came in the form of my father-in-law in his big four-wheel drive Dodge Ram.  I was excited to see them for many reasons, but also thinking to myself “show off.”  Not because he had done anything other than just drive his big truck right through the snow like it wasn’t even there, and our minivan still wasn’t making it up the hill.  And so after a short time, we were able to get the van up the hill of the driveway.  Then even today more help arrived as a wonderful, godly man of our church came over and finished off the snow on the driveway with his tractor.  Without both of these men coming and helping, I probably would still be mumbling and wanting to throw a snowball at every truck that passed the house with a plow on the front of it.  I like to think I would have finished the driveway today, but it was such a burden lifted off my shoulders knowing it didn’t depend on me to finish it anymore.  That was the lesson, I can’t do it by myself, and I don’t have to.  Not only in shoveling 19″ of snow off the driveway, but in my walk with Christ either.

So many times we think that being the man or woman of God I’m supposed to be depends on us.  I need to pray harder, read more, serve more, etc.  The truth of that is this, that is not a godly attitude.  In fact it is a self-reliant, prideful, humanistic answer that doesn’t glorify God in anyway.  Jesus taught in John 14:16-26 about the Holy Spirit.  He refers to the Holy Spirit as a “Comforter” in this passage.  It is also translated as “Helper.”  The Greek word for it literally means “one called alongside to help.”  The bottom line is we can’t live a Christian life without the Holy Spirit’s power working in us and through us.  It doesn’t matter what you are trying to do, as long as you try to do it in your own power, you will fail at pleasing God.  God’s help is only a prayer away.  He can save you as you cry out to Him in prayer, He can give you the strength to get through a difficult time in life, and He can even send people to help you when you are at the end of your rope.  God told Paul in 2 Corinthians 12, “if weakness my power is revealed.”  Only when we admit that we are weak, can we see just how strong God truly is.  From the bottom of my heart, thank you Buddy and Eddie.  You reminded me of an important lesson.

By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him

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Feb 12

How Did We Get Here?

Posted on February 12, 2014 by admin

Have you ever found yourself in a situation and asked the question, how did I get here?  Sometimes marriages take turns and we ask that question or sometimes our children turn from loving little children, to parent hating teenagers, and we ask the question.  I find it interesting that in Genesis 1 we see God blessing everything and saying “it is good.”  However, if we fast forward to the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi, we see it end with a pronounced curse.  How did we get there?  Look no further for the answer than Genesis 3, the fall of man.  That one event led to a history of events that are marked by the words of Judges 17:6 and 21:25, “every man did that which was right in his own eyes.”  In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve chose to believe someone other than God, and the rest as they say is history.  Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”  All truth has as it source God.  That is why Jesus, who is God (John 1:1), said “I am the way, the TRUTH, and the life.”  Outside of God, there is no truth.  Therefore, what God says is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.  If we fast forward into the New Testament we read Paul’s word in Romans 1:22 that mankind “professed themselves to be wise, they became fools.”  Why is that?  Because of what is found in Romans 1:25, we “changed the truth of God into a lie.”  Literally translated is “exchanged the truth of God for a lie.”  We would rather believe what we believe is the truth, than what God says is the truth.  What we do when we take our opinions over God’s word, is we set ourselves higher than God, which is precisely what Lucifer (satan) did (Isa. 14:12-14).  I don’t know about you, but I don’t think that worked out too well for satan.  So the question would become, why would I want to be guilty of the same thing?  There are a lot of reasons, but one of the biggest probably is the fact that if we can write a holy, righteous God off and out of existence, then we are convinced we will not be held accountable for our decisions, there is no absolute truth, and so life then becomes all about us.  The problem is, you can do this if you want, but it doesn’t change the truth that there is a holy, righteous God that we will all stand before one day.  It would be great if you could eat chocolate all day long, big juicy hamburgers covered in cheese and bacon, and Krispy Kreme doughnuts all day without gaining weight.  But do you know what you will get if you eat chocolate and Krispy Kreme’s all day?  Diabetes, that’s what you’ll get!  It is like the old saying, “God says it, I believe it, that settles it.”  What a horrendous lie!  That sets us up as the authority of truth, rather than God.  My dear friend, God said it, that settles it.  You can believe it if you want to, but the truth is the truth.

As bad as society has become, and it is bad.  The problem is, too often the church is becoming a mirror of society.  We who have been called out to stand out, have done our very best to blend in.  The result is staggering and saddening.  The truth is being lost to moral relativity that says “what is right for me is right, and what is right for you is right.”  We live in a time in which we believe there are no absolutes.  We as God’s people must get back to the truth, God’s Word.  I realize it is not popular today, but can I remind you of this, it wasn’t popular in Jesus’ day either.  This lack of popularity of God’s Word is nothing new.  Now a word of caution.  Remember, the message will be offensive, the messenger is not to be. We cannot expect the lost to act like they are saved or to pretend to like the message.  The Gospel is offensive to a lost person.  However, I don’t have to be a jerk while getting the message out.  Sometimes my brothers and sisters, and even myself want to claim persecution for our “righteous stances”, but in actuality we are really just being jerks.  We need to present the truth of the Gospel boldly, yet lovingly.  How can we do that?  Here are a few suggestions.

1-Remember what it was like to be lost.  It seems the further we get from the day Jesus saves us, the less loving, gracious, and forgiving we become.  Again, you can’t expect the lost to act like the saved.

2-Approach them with humility.  The old saying “except for the grace of God go I.”  You know God saved me from a lot of really dumb choices.  I know it is frustrating when you present the truth and it seems like no one listens.  But just remember, you and I were like that before God got a hold of our heart, saved us, and changed us.  We can never condone sinful behavior in a lost person or a saved person, but we don’t have to berate them either.  All sin is sin, worthy of the same punishment, yet the blood of Jesus Christ can cover any and all sins this side of eternity.

There is a lost and dying world out there who doesn’t need our judgment, they need Jesus!  I heard someone say one time, “The church is God’s plan ‘A’ for sharing the Gospel, there is no plan ‘B.'”  We need to take the Gospel to them in a way that God is glorified, the sinner is convicted by the Spirit, and sinners are saved by God’s grace.

By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him

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Feb 10

Reaching the Lost

Posted on February 10, 2014 by admin

Last week I wrote about should we as churches strive to be big or to have a big impact.  The conclusion was the Jesus has called us to have a big impact on the world, not to necessarily have a big church.  The question that came up most often after writing that blog was this, how do we accomplish this?  That is a fair question, and so I hope to answer it in this blog.

The first thing we need to do is to reject a certain mentality that seems to prevalent in many churches.  That mentality is “it’s the leaders job to grow the church.”  This mentality is dangerous for two reasons.  It sets up a man to do God’s job.  Paul was very careful to point out in 1 Corinthians 3 that he planted, Apollos watered, but it was God who gave the increase.  My dear church leaders, we could not save ourselves, what makes us think we can save anyone else?  Salvation is of God and by God and we need to remember that.  The other thing this mentality does is it disengages church members.  When we focus on growth being a leaders job, that means that I as a member can perform my weekly duty of showing up at church, singing a few songs, listening to a sermon while not being touched by it, sing an invitation hymn, and then go home.  My fear is, this is exactly what we have created in many of our churches today.  We have created a church system in which church leaders are hands-on, while many church members are hands-off.  This is leading to a decline in evangelism which is allowing many people to slip into eternity unprepared and awakening to the reality of a literal hell.  Thom Rainer of Lifeway said that the statistics are showing that for every 40 to 60 church members, one person is getting saved at that church.  You don’t have to be a math wiz to know that is not a good ratio.  While leaders are to lead by example in evangelism and reaching out to people, they are only a part of the body, they are not the whole body.  The Great Commission in Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 24, and Acts 1 was not given to a bunch of professional ministers.  It was given to men who were sold out to Jesus Christ.  Therefore, it is important that we all see our role in being a part of God building His church.

Secondly, we don’t need a new program to reach the lost.  Let’s be honest, we are program poor.  There is the FAITH, Evangelism Explosion, Way of the Master, and more.  Godly men and women have sat down and written out these programs, and churches have run them and taught their people how to share the Gospel.  That is great, the problem is not the program, the problem unfortunately in this case is the people.  As the saying goes, you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink.  You can lead a Christian to a program, train him, but you can’t make him or her do it.  There has to be a burden in their heart for the lost.

I have given you two things that we don’t need, so let’s look at what we do need.  Finally, what we need are passionate people with a burden for the lost.  Do you feel a little let down by that answer?  You got all excited, you have been agreeing with me so far, and then you read that answer and the first thing you may have thought of was, “is that it?  Is that the best you’ve got?”  In short “yes.”  Paul was writing to the church at Thessalonica, and he marked three things about the Thessalonians that I think sum up how we are to reach the lost.  They are found in 1 Thessalonians 1:3, “Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father.”  The three keys are “work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope.”  If we are going to reach the lost it is going to take a “work of faith.”  Nothing worthwhile ever comes easy!  Becoming an world class athlete, becoming a CEO of a company, or even shedding those extra few pounds is hard work.  So why do we expect taking the truth of God to a world that doesn’t understand the things of God (1 Cor. 2:14) and have them understand it and accept it is going to be easy?  It is a work of faith, because all we can do and all we are called to do is to present the Gospel to them.  The results are up to God.  The second thing that is important to reaching the lost is it must be a “labor of love.”  We are commanded by God to love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength and to love others as ourself (Mt. 22:37-39).  Paul in 1 Corinthians 13 said that even if he was the best preacher in the world and did the most incredible things, if he didn’t have love, he was nothing.  To reach the lost we are going to have to do more than just go through the motions.  We are going to have to get past the cheesy cliches, and we are going to have to genuinely love God and love others.  Finally there is the “patience of hope.”  We can see two applications here.  The first application is that we must be patient with people as we share the Gospel, believing that God can save anyone.  The vast majority of people do not accept the Gospel the first time they hear it.  In fact it takes many times before most people accept Christ.  So when we present the Gospel, but the person doesn’t turn their heart and life over to Christ, we can’t get discouraged and give up hope.  We need to eagerly pray for them and when the time is right, present the Gospel again, and maybe again, and maybe again, and maybe even  a few more times after that. The key is that as long as there is breath in the body, there is hope for the soul.  Keep the faith, keep sharing, and keep praying.  The other application is that we should share the Gospel until we see our “hope” face to face which is as Paul says is in our “Lord Jesus Christ.”  I encouraged our church in the sermon yesterday to pray for the lost by name each day, and to pray for opportunities to share the Gospel each day.  How are we going to reach the lost?  The same way you eat an elephant, one bite (one person) at a time.

By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him

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Feb 06

Big or Big Impact

Posted on February 6, 2014 by admin

Every now and then someone says something that is so profound it sticks with you.  A couple of nights ago in a meeting I had that happen.  Another pastor made the comment about the church he pastors at, “it has never been our goal to be big, it is our goal to make a big impact.”  That is a very simplistic statement, but it is a powerful statement.  When pastors or church leaders get together one of the first things asked or talked about is church growth.  Some pastors are upbeat about the growth their churches are seeing, and other pastors are saddened by the fact that they feel every other church is growing except the one they pastor.  There are more conferences than you can imagine dealing with the subject of how to get more people to your church, and please don’t even get me started on the number of books written on church growth.  The statement from Pastor Troy has sent my mind to spinning and really examining a few things (that is always a good thing).  What if churches focused more on making a big impact in the world?  Is that even a biblical thing?  I believe the answer to that last question is a resounding yes, it is biblical.  One thing that sticks out to me as I read the Great Commission and the book of Acts is this, it was never about the disciples or the early church, it was always first and foremost about the Gospel.  There is a tremendous push in society for the church to be concerned and combat social injustices.  Social injustices, poverty, mental illness, chronic illness such as AIDS are certainly something the church should be concerned with.  However, the church must be careful not to lose sight of the commission it was given, and that it to go and make disciples of all the nations (Mt. 28:19-20).  As I have written here before, the church can and should care about the former, but only as they are doing the latter.  Yes we need to care about human trafficking, drug and alcohol addiction, homelessness, hunger, etc.  But we need to deal with these issues as we are sharing the Gospel.  Social ministry without sharing the Gospel is community service, which is good but it has very little eternal value.  Since Tuesday night in that meeting, my prayer life has been a little different.  I believe now is the time for churches to evaluate or re-evaluate their strategies and purposes.  As Troy mentioned, are we only focusing on bringing people in?  Please understand, bringing people into the church is a good thing.  But do we have a strategy to send them back out to serve in the community and to make disciples?  It has been my experience that we have plenty of strategies on bringing people in.  We have plenty of programs that will do that.  However, I believe the church is lacking in a formalized strategy to equip the saints for the work of ministry (Eph. 4:11-13).  The result is tragic.  The result is we have big churches, but in many cases we have very little impact in our community and in the world we have been sent to.  I am not against mega churches by any stretch of the imagination.  But I feel we should all as Christians be against any size church that focuses only on bringing people in.  We should be against it because it goes against our calling and our commission from our Lord.  So how can we have a big impact in our community and beyond?

First, we need to humble ourselves and come to the Almighty God in prayer.  We need to confess that we have been more concerned with bringing people into the church, rather than sending people out to impact the world around them.  The numbers aren’t lying and our church attendance is confirming the numbers, there aren’t as many people going to church today as there use to be.  The church’s influence in the world is waning.  We need to follow the Jesus’ advice in Revelation 2 and return to our first love.  We need to pray for the community that God has placed us in.  As I shared with our church this past Sunday, there are approximately 10,000 people living within 5 miles of the church I am blessed to pastor at.  I feel that God is calling us to reach those 10,000 people.  Yes I know that sounds crazy and yes I realize that some of them are already saved and have a church home.  But I believe there are more that aren’t saved and going to church than there are that are saved and going to church.  My heart and our church’s heart needs to be broken for them, and we need to plead with the Almighty God to give them more time and to use us to share the Gospel.  Secondly, define a strategy that not only brings people into the church, but also a strategy that pushes them out of the church into the mission field they are planted in.  Whether you realize it or not, every Christian is a missionary and is planted in a mission field.  Church leaders need to ask the question, how can we have a big impact in the mission field we are planted in?  What is God calling us to do?  How has He gifted us to reach the people?  Next, preachers and teachers need to preach and teach on the necessity of making a big impact in their community.  Leaders, cast the vision for your people and keep it in front of them.  One thing that is coming out of many of the church studies is this, the younger generation is interested in being a part of an organization that is reaching people around them in a tangible way.  Leaders, show your people how having a big impact in the community will benefit the community for the Gospel’s sake, and even show how it will impact them.  This creates the all important buy-in from people.  This is where it goes from a perceived need by the leadership to a felt need within the congregation.  Once they see the need, leadership needs to train the people. Again, my primary responsibility as a pastor within the church is to equip the saints for the work of ministry.  Teach the people the strategy God has given you as the leadership team on how to impact their community.  It is my belief that this is where most churches fail.  People see the need, the want to help, but they don’t know how.  So leaders, take the time to make sure you invest and train your people, it will pay off big time in the long run.  Finally, once the praying, planning, and preparing are done, it is time to do it.  Put feet to your faith, go, make disciples, and have a big impact in the community you are planted in!

By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him

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Feb 05

Do you know what or why?

Posted on February 5, 2014 by admin

I am blessed that within my job I get to teach three classes on Monday night to people who want to study and learn the Bible.  The classes go beyond the normal Sunday school class, small group study, or even sermons that we have here at Westlake Baptist.  We are able to dive into the deeper, finer points of Scripture, and engage in some interesting, and sometimes off the wall, debates and discussions.  I will be the first to admit (before a member of the class rats on me) that sometimes the discussions get away from us.  But overall, it feeds my passion for the Word of God and the study of it, when we are able to have classes like we have.  For three hours on Monday nights we pull out, interpret, and learn to apply the Old Testament, New Testament, and Theology.  The goal of the classes since I began teaching them has always been to challenge the students God sends me to examine their theology.  I must admit sometimes I throw out statements that I myself do not agree with just to see if someone will engage me in a biblical debate.  I am pleased to say that the overwhelming majority of the time, I get just what I was looking for.  I begin each semester with two fundamental questions.  They are the title of this blog, do you know what you believe and do you know why you believe it?  I also begin every semester with the statement, “if you ever tell me you believe something because someone told you it, and you have never studied it for yourself, I will fail you right here, right now.”  I remember one of my Liberty University professors saying, “what someone gives you, someone else can take away from you, but what God shows you belongs to you.”  I often think about that statement in sermon or teaching preparations.  It would be easy to go to a commentary and see what they said about a particular passage.  Commentaries are helpful from time to time, but they shouldn’t be relied upon as the main source of your interpretation work.

May I ask you, what do you believe and why do you believe it?  Last night there was a debate between Ken Ham from Answers in Genesis and Bill Nye the Science Guy on the origins of all things.  By the way, please don’t tell me how it went, I hope to watch it sometime later this week.  2 Timothy 2:15 tells us to “study to shew thyself approved.”  Regardless of what you believe, can you back it up with sound reasoning and logic or is it something you hope for, want to believe in, or maybe something someone you really trust told you?  I often remind those at WBC, takes notes of teachings and sermons here and then go back and study them.  If there is one thing I have learned over the 30+ years of my life it is this, I can and will make mistakes.  One of the hardest parts of a pastor or teachers job is the work of interpretation of Scripture.  Most Christians readily agree that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant, infalliable word of God.  2 Timothy 3:16 tells us, “All Scripture is given by the inspiration of God and it is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness.”  Because it is God’s Word (not man’s) and it is good for those things we must understand that all Scripture has only one correct interpretation.  Each verse can only mean one thing.  Now how it is applied can vary from person to person.  So how can I know if when I am studying it, I am interpreting it properly?

First, we must all come to the word of God with humility.  Isaiah 55:8-9 tells us that God’s ways are not our ways.  God is so infinitely more wise than we are, we cannot understand everything that God does.  So we need to come with a humility that says “this is your word, I need you to teach it to me.”  Secondly, we must come prayerfully.  Without the Spirit of God teaching us the Word of God, we won’t understand, properly interpret, or apply it.  Remember, this is God’s Word, not ours.  And yes based on Isaiah 40:8 I believe that God has kept His promise to preserve His word for all generations.  Finally, the best way to properly interpret the Bible is to let it interpret itself.  In other words, leave your thought, feelings, and opinions on the shelf, and allow the Word to speak for itself.  The great news is that God said exactly what He meant.  If He needed our help, He would have asked for it.  But He didn’t, because He doesn’t, and so that is that.  Compare the Scripture you are reading with other Bible passages that talk about the same thing.  Because the Bible is perfect in all things, there are no contradictions and so if you read a passage and think it is saying one thing, but then you read another passage and it is saying something different, then you are not properly interpreting one of those two passages.  That is not a knock, because the work of interpretation isn’t easy.  Lastly, the Bible will not mean something today that it didn’t mean back then when it was written.  The attempts to hijack the Bible and twist it in order to say what we want it to must be rejected.  My challenge to you is this, know what you believe, why you believe, and even where to find it in the Bible.  In the words of the great reformer, Martin Luther, sola scriptura, Scripture alone.  The Bible is our sole authority on creation, God, man, eternity, and all other things in between.  The Bible said it and that settles it!

By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him

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Feb 01

Over Analyzed

Posted on February 1, 2014 by admin

Have you ever met someone (or been that person) who analyzes everything in every possible way?  Tomorrow as most of you know is Super Bowl Sunday.  For the past couple of years there has been a two week break between the Conference Championship games and the Super Bowl.  This certainly allows the NFL to hype the game.  But it also gives analysts too much time on their hands.  Tomorrow’s game has been broken down and analyzed in every way imaginable and then some.  I am actually waiting on the report to come out about what the teams ate for breakfast on the very first day of training camp, and how that prepared them to play in the Super Bowl.  Ok maybe that is a little bit exaggerated, but hopefully you get the point.  The thing I have learned from playing, coaching, and even watching sports is this, all the talk in the world will not replace preparation, and all the talk will have very little if any impact on the actual game.  Tomorrow at 6:30 ET, the ball will be placed on a tee, both teams will be lined up, the referee will blow his whistle, the ball will be kicked, and we will be underway.  What will be done in the next four hours will determine who is the best team in the NFL this year.  You might be asking, if that is really the case, then why all of the analyzing, breaking down, and prognostication?  The only answer I can come up with is this, they have nothing better to do, and it makes many people feel like they are a part of the game.

The truth is, when we over analyze and over examine things we are a lot like those analysts before the big game.  We feel more prepared, we feel like we are doing something useful, but honestly it is going to impact our life very little if any.  Please understand, I am not against planning.  I believe a wise and prudent person spends time in planning and preparation.  But there comes a time in which you must kick the ball so to speak.  You have to realize that much of life is out of your control.  Proverbs 16:9 says, “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.”  Solomon is very clear here, men plan and plan, but it is really God who is in control.  Again it must be stated, God is not against planning.  Rather God is against planning that doesn’t include seeking Him.  We see this in James 4:13-16, “Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.”  We must realize that the future is not known to us nor is it in our control.  However, just because the future isn’t known to us, doesn’t mean it is unknown.  God knows the present and the future because He orders it (He is in control of it).  Therefore, any planning or preparation without prayer is futile.  If we pray as we plan then our preparation will be focused on what is going to happen versus what we believe will happen.

By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him

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Jan 30

That Moment When. . .

Posted on January 30, 2014 by admin

How would you finish this sentence, that moment when. . .?  Would you talk about some Little League moment of glory?  Or the moment when you first laid your eyes on your future spouse?  That moment when you got the big promotion, graduated from high school or college?  What about your most embarrassing moment?  There are a lot of ways to finish that sentence.  One I’m thinking of, mainly because it is fresh in my mind, is that moment when I closed a door behind me only to discover I had locked myself out.  For those of you who have ever done it you know the feeling, that sinking feeling in your stomach, that moment of panic.  What am I going to do now?  Fortunately we have people who get paid pretty well by people like me, because of the unintelligent things I do.  You call them up, they come out, and they fix the problem in a way that looks effortless.  So effortless in fact you think, I could have done that, but we both know we couldn’t do that if we tried.  Have you ever noticed those types of moments happen at less than ideal times or under less than ideal conditions?  I wouldn’t mind if I locked myself out of the house, office, or car if it was sunny in the low 70’s, it was my day off, and my golf clubs were readily accessible.  To me, that would not be a problem, I would take that as a sign from God that I should go enjoy a little round of golf (completely kidding by the way).  But that never happens!  It is always very cold, raining or snowing, and I need to be somewhere. Although I can say it has happened one time that wasn’t that bad.  Diana and I were getting ready to go out somewhere, and I locked my keys in the car, but fortunately it was in the garage.  I took that has God giving me a break probably while thinking, “really, again?”  But one to a more serious topic.

Have you had that moment when you received Jesus as your Savior?  Or is it that moment when you almost received Jesus as Savior?  You see there is a world of difference in those two statements.  If the first statement is true for you then by the grace of God you have been saved and have a spot secured for you in heaven by the blood of Christ.  However, if the second statement is true you are playing a game of chicken or a game of roulette with your eternity.  The problem is, one day you will lose the game and you will lose much more.  Paul wrote in Romans 13:11, “And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.”  Regardless of whether or not Jesus comes back in your lifetime, the truth is from the moment you are born you begin to die.  Death is inevitable according to Hebrews 9:27 and James 4:14.  Unlike being able to call a locksmith to fix the problem of locking yourself out, when time on this earth expires, you are either ready or you’re not.  As I stated earlier, there is only one way into heaven, and that is faith in what Jesus did on the cross.  The Bible says that to receive salvation, you must confess that you are a sinner (Rom. 3:23), believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins (1 cor. 15:3-4), and confess Jesus as your Savior and Lord (Rom. 10:9-10).  To confess means to agree with God.  So you are agreeing that you are a sinner, and you are agreeing that Jesus is the only One who can save you.  The Bible promises that anyone who confesses that from their heart will be saved (Rom. 10:13).  I want to encourage you if you have never made this decision to make it today.  If you would like more information or if we as a church can help you in any way, please contact us at 540-721-8784 or you can e-mail us at westlakebc@gmail.com.  Don’t get locked out of heaven, because you forget the key (accepting Christ).

By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him

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Jan 29

Thoughts About Snow And Life

Posted on January 29, 2014 by admin

As I sit here in my office at our house, looking out the window, cars are going by slower than normal.  They appear to be using an abundance of caution.  That is something that is unfortunately unusual where we live.  But the change in driving habits is certainly warranted and even a wise decision.  That is because for the last several hours it has been snowing here.  I love watching the snow fall, see the trees, and the grass covered.  There is just something special about snow.  However, I must admit that my attitude towards the consequences of snow have changed somewhat over the years.  At the risk of sounding like my parents as I was growing up, I like snow, I just don’t like the consequences of it.  As a child and even a teenager I was downright giddy when I heard the forecast was calling for some snow.  I hoped it would be enough to cancel school the next day (mainly because I didn’t want to do my homework, but rather go out and play in it).  However, as a parent of three boys who all go to school, I must say the thought of another snow day is not always that exciting to me.  It’s not that I don’t enjoy spending time with the boys, but I know inevitably they are going to be fighting and plucking each others nerves, which means my nerves are going to get plucked as I have to say once again “for the last time, stop fighting.”  I love my boys, they are sweet kids with kind hearts, but something about being around each other for more than 5 minutes seems to bring out the worst in them, and many times in me as well.  Isn’t it funny how our thinking about things changes over time?  Take for instance something bad happens in life.  At first it seems as though it is going to crush you.  Yet after a while you don’t remember it as being that bad, and in some cases you actually see it as a good thing.  I can think of one such instance in my life, the passing of my grandfather.  Because I grew up next to my grandparents, I had a special relationship with them.  When God called my grandfather home, I remember becoming very angry at God.  It took a very long time to deal with his passing.  But as I sit here, in a house across a softball field from the church I am blessed to pastor, I can’t help but think that his passing was good for both of us.  He was released from the earthly pain that held him in bondage for many years.  But it was also a time in which God finally got what He wanted and rightfully deserved, all of me.  Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 are appropriate in this case, “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed” (2 Cor. 4:8-9).

If there was anyone in the Bible who could agree with those verses it was Joseph in the Old Testament.  He was his father’s favorite, he was smart, but he also experienced a lot of trouble in his life.  He was sold into slavery by his brothers, accused of rape by a crazy woman, and thrown into prison.  All of that before being elevated to number two in the nation of Egypt.  When God arranged for Joseph to meet his brothers again, Joseph recognized them but they didn’t recognize him.  It was so emotional for Joseph that he left the room in tears.  After playing a pretty mean trick on his brothers, he would again get a face to face meeting.  However, this time he also got to see his father for the first time in many years.  After some time his father, Jacob, died.  Neither Joseph nor his brothers had forgotten what they did to him, and they were scared after their father died.  It’s interesting, in the beginning of the story Joseph’s brothers were happy and Joseph was sad, but by the end things had changed.  Would Joseph now exact his revenge on his brothers?  In a word, no.  In fact we read a famous verse in Genesis 50:20, “But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.”  What changed?  Did the facts of the story change?  Did Joseph’s brothers say “sorry?”  Again the answer is no to both questions.  All that changed was how Joseph viewed the situation.

That is the challenge that we all face.  We cannot change the circumstances and situations we find ourselves in from day to day, but with God’s help we can see them in a different light.  We go through bad days in order to help us appreciate the good ones.  We experience loss in order to appreciate our many blessings.  I understand that circumstances aren’t always the most pleasant to endure, but in the end if we trust God, we will be better off because of them.

By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him

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