Tag: preaching

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Guard Against False Teaching

Heavenly Father,
Sundays are sacred. As believers all over the world gather on this day to hear your Word proclaimed, protect their ears from false teaching. Keep those preaching faithful to the promises they made to speak the truth as your representatives. Keep their preaching pure, free from the seeds of lies and deception sown by the evil one, whether blatant or subtle. Equip leaders and elders in your churches to distinguish between truth and error, so that they may correct or rebuke heresy, and raise up mature Christian members to share in that responsibility. Guard those preaching from the temptation of proclaiming what itching ears want to hear. Guide them in rightly handling the application of law and gospel. Through such faithful preaching sanctify your church and keep her in the one true faith.   

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

You Don’t Stand a Chance

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(1 Samuel 17)

“Dismayed and terrified.” That’s the description of how you are feeling as you are watching this giant of a man, this killing machine named Goliath, invite a challenger to stand up and oppose him. And you aren’t the only one feeling that way! The Israelites – battle-hardened, trained soldiers! – are also “dismayed and terrified.”  Saul, the one who was no physical slouch in his own right, described as being a head taller than the average man, the one who is supposed to be Israel’s fearless leader, the king and general – he also is included among those who are “dismayed and terrified.” 

And understandably so! Nowhere else in Scripture do we have such a lengthy description of a soldier – ally or enemy! According to the measurements provided in these verses, the Philistine champion, the best of their best, Goliath, was in the neighborhood of nine feet tall. His coat of bronze scale armor weighed as much as a small teenager. The iron tip of his spear was as heavy as an olympic men’s shot put. Twice a day for forty days (v.16) Goliath had come out to face a potential challenger, but none showed because every time he appeared, they all fled in fear (v.24). This much was clear to any sensible person who might consider opposing the imposing Goliath: you don’t stand a chance.

I doubt anyone’s opinion changed when the challenger, David, arrived. He was small in stature, comparatively speaking – a shepherd, not a soldier. In place of any weapons of war, he had a staff, a slingshot, and some stones. Any armor was absent. When Saul sent him, saying, “Go, and the Lord be with you,” (v. 37b), while he surely must have admired David’s confidence, it’s hard to imagine that he himself had any real confidence that David would actually be able to pull this off. The rest of the Israelite army watching had to be expecting a blood bath. David’s own brothers likely assumed their arrogant little bother was going to get what he deserved. This much was clear to any sensible person watching David opposing the imposing Goliath: you don’t stand a chance.

Step away from the showdown for a moment and into your own life. There may be no Goliath, but there is no shortage of imposing threats in his place that seem like insurmountable challenges to overcome. Some are seasonal and situational and some are just plain sin. They’re circumstances you find yourself in that don’t ever seem like they’re going to change. The burden of a loved one with zero interest in Jesus or who believed at one time but is now walking away from the faith. You’re tied up in a toxic work environment, but can’t afford to walk away from the paycheck. Frustrated by a friend who can’t seem to get their life on track because it’s littered with awful choices. Quietly suffering abuse with no clear way out. Chronic pain for which nothing seems to offer relief. Not being able to quit doing that thing that I know full well I should not be doing. This much is clear to any sensible person: you don’t stand a chance.

But sensible doesn’t hold a candle to spiritual. Return back to the showdown between the Philistine and fearless shepherd. Why do you think David, at a severe disadvantage when it came to size, training, and weapons, was unafraid? Because sensible doesn’t hold a candle to spiritual. When we consider the significance of what was described in the previous chapter as having taken place, it starts to make sense. David was anointed. “Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David” (1 Sam. 16:13).

There it is – the source of his confidence! David was anointed with the power of the Spirit of the Lord! With that in mind, suddenly it isn’t David who appears to be the underdog, but the godless heathen, Goliath! 

There we have it! A David-like faith, a spiritual swagger that knew God was for him, a trust that refused to be taunted – when these are present, then we have a fighting chance. Then we can slay our own giants and take down the Goliaths getting in the way in our lives! Then the underdog story can play out just like it’s supposed to! The little guy wins; the big oppressor is overcome. It’s a tale for the ages, and arguably one of the most played out stories from the whole Bible. We see it in movies when the underdog team ends up pulling off the upset in the championship game, when the little start-up small business takes down the blue-chip behemoth at its own game. We love the underdog story! 

And as Peter preached in the days of the early church, through baptism, we have been anointed with the same powerful Spirit that came upon David. “Peter replied, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’” (Acts 2:38). We, too, can imitate David and courageously take down whatever stands in our way! Greater faith! Titanium-like trust! With God on our side, we can overcome any adversary in our lives and slay our giants!

But what is to blame then, when cancer is the conqueror and we’re on the losing side? Why is the abuse still continuing? Why hasn’t the chronic pain gone away? Why am I still unable to quit doing what I know I should not be doing? Wait a minute – that’s not how it’s supposed to end.

But it does! And we can spin David’s victory every which way we want to into some spiritual motivational speech to lead us to boldly take down our giants, but then we’re left without an answer when the giant wins and we lose. What then? Not enough trust? Not enough faith? Tough luck – it was “just God’s will,” and there’s nothing we can do about it. Baloney.

There is so much more in this narrative that God wants us to take away, and no matter how many times you’ve heart it, the main takeaway is not that you can slay your giants like David did with the Lord on your side. No, David’s role is not primarily one for you to imitate, but simply to celebrate. 

Put yourself back on the battlefield. You just witnessed a boy with a stone take down a massive man-killer. Now what? You celebrate, not because now you have someone to idolize, but because someone just did what you would not and could not. David stepped up in your place to take down the enemy. You didn’t have to lift a muscle. Your weapon rested on the ground beside you the whole time. Not the slightest bit of perspiration was required of you. Not a drop of blood on you anywhere. David defeated the enemy for you and you get to celebrate the victory.

What David was to Goliath, our Savior is to Satan. David cut off Goliath’s head; our Savior crushed Satan’s. What David accomplished against the Philistine in the valley with two armies watching intently, Jesus carried out on a cross and completed at the tomb with armies of angels and legions of demons watching intently. Jesus stepped up in your place to take down the enemy. You didn’t have to lift a muscle. Your weapon rested on the ground beside you the whole time. Not the slightest bit of perspiration was required of you. Not a drop of blood on you anywhere – it was all on Jesus, who defeated the enemy for you, and you get to celebrate the victory.

And rest assured, the victory was decisive and final. “[Jesus] is able to save completely those who come to God through him” (Hebrews 7:25). The Savior defeated Satan for you and you get to celebrate the victory. Only as those words are spoken by Jesus to Satan have they ever been so true: Satan, you don’t stand a chance.

And that means that you and I do. Now you are back on your own battlefield. No matter what you’re facing, you can face it fearlessly. Because even when you lose, you win. Because Jesus did. You can face any obstacle, any challenge, any hardship, with complete confidence – not with the guarantee that you will overcome it, for you know better – you might not!

But even if you don’t, and the struggle and the difficulty and the suffering and the pain continue, you can endure it, because the battle that matters for eternity has already been won for you by your champion, your Savior, your Jesus. And whatever we face for the short time here on earth can’t begin to compare with the celebration in eternity that will never ever end. 

Earlier, in describing Goliath, I mentioned that nowhere else in Scripture do we have such a detailed description of a soldier’s weaponry and armor. That’s not entirely true. There is such a description. It’s found in the sixth chapter of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, a section describing the “armor of God” that the Christian is encouraged to wear.

How fitting a reminder! Even as Scripture encourages us to take a stand, it does so not with any worldly weapons or shoddy, short-lived solutions that we might devise or resort to, but the armor of God. How beautifully that fits with David’s bold statement as he faced the soon-to-be headless, threatless heathen, Goliath. “All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands” (v.47). The battle wasn’t David’s! The battle isn’t ours! The battle is the Lord’s! Why would you dress with anything other than the armor of God, who alone is able to overcome and conquer?

There is a noteworthy epilogue in the Bible after David’s victory. “When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines…” (v.51-52). David’s victory spurred on Israel! Those who were formerly “dismayed and terrified” suddenly surged forward to fight with a newfound bravery! 

Should it be any different for us, for Christ’s church, for the people of God, to go forth with valor, fighting with the weapon of his Word, to demolish strongholds and let his kingdom come? Where are the enemies of the cross? Who opposes Christ, the crucified conqueror? We can face them fearlessly, bolding alerting them to this reality: “You don’t stand a chance! I fight for the Savior who already fought for me – and won! Victory is ours!”

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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For Worship as Evangelism

Heavenly Father,
Sundays are sacred. They are a staple for the spiritual health of believers, but they also serve as one of the best evangelism tools. When visitors join us for worship, they see, hear, and sing the good news of the gospel, which is able to make them wise for salvation. Lead congregations to warmly welcome visitors for worship, and to thoughtfully consider how to make their worship experience a pleasant one. Help churches see the importance of taking care of their facilities so that visitors are left with a favorable impression. When churches do have visitors, facilitate faithful follow-up so that connections can be made that lead to more of Jesus in the future. 

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

Giving God Glory by Getting God’s Glory

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(2 Corinthians 3:7-18)

The world’s glory is like a disappearing act. The darling company that is behind the skyrocketing stock symbol today will have investors and shareholders scrambling for months after its shares suddenly plunge. Once the A-list celebrity everyone was talking about is in a movie that bombs or generates some negative publicity, we move on to the next big name. The championship team was all anyone talked about, until they barely mustered a winning record the following year. The world’s notion of glory is pursued by so many with such drive and determination, only to find out it’s nothing but a mirage.

But there is glory. Real glory. And that glory is God’s glory. 

You want to know something astonishing about God’s glory? He wants to share it with you! The same author of these words from Corinthians wrote elsewhere that God desires “that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thessalonians 2:14). How amazing is that?! A glory unlike the world’s disappointing version of glory, but a real glory, and God wants you to share in it!

So how do we come by this glory? How do we take our share in it? There are two channels by which God reveals his glory in Scripture: law and gospel. 

In the Old Testament, God’s glory was visible to the Israelites while in the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land. When God first gave his Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai, his glory was enough to terrify the Israelites through loud crackling thunder and lightning, trumpet sounds, and smoke around the mountain. Then, as the Israelites wandered, there was a special place outside of their encampment called the tent of meeting where Moses went to meet with the Lord face to face. Whenever Moses was inside the tent, God’s glory was visible via a cloud column standing at the entrance. Then, after God gave Moses his commandments for the second time, his glory was manifest through Moses’ radiant face. “When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord” (Ex. 34:29). God’s glory was visibly associated with the law God gave to his people. 

When we think of God’s glory in connection with the law, we may not be drawn to that type of glory, and understandably so – it’s terrifying! But make no mistake, God’s law is glorious.

To appreciate the reality of how glorious God’s law is as it stands on its own, imagine how different a typical day would like for the rest of your life if you and everyone else kept the law perfectly. You’d wake up in the morning to fill up with the Word, then see headlines in the news that were only positive. Any exchanges with family members result in smiles. The drive to work sees commuters politely waving each other ahead of them. Work is filled with happy employees encouraging one another and offering any help wherever it may be needed. A scroll through social media leaves you feeling uplifted and blessed by how good God is to so many people. A few errands after work leave you delighted by such pleasant customer service, which you of course expressed your appreciation for. You are excited to arrive home, knock out a couple of chores – which hardly seems like an appropriate label for something you enjoy doing so much – and then prepare dinner. Afterward, a little down time with a book or show, then some more with the Good Book, some prayers, and off to bed.

If we were able to experience how amazing that life would be, we’d understand how glorious God’s law is! If we could all live perfectly, our minds would be blown. Take it a step further and consider why we long for heaven so much: no sin! Only perfection!

Well, what are we really describing? Perfect obedience to the law. So the law itself is glorious because it is in perfect harmony with how a perfect God longs for everything to be.

But, as Paul describes in our verses this morning, we have a better understanding of why it isn’t natural for us to perceive of God’s law as glorious. “Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, transitory though it was, 8will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? 9If the ministry that brought condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! 10For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. 11And if what was transitory came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!” (2 Corinthians 3:7-11). That covenant, that ministry of the law results in only one thing: death! Why? Not because there’s anything wrong with it, but because it so clearly exposes what’s wrong with us and what we deserve because of it. 

So the law itself is glorious and reveals God’s glory, but it will never be the avenue to our pursuit of glory, because it can only kill those who sin against it. Think about what this means when it comes to Christian living and obedience. Our obedience isn’t carried out under the misunderstanding that glory is somehow attached to the law. In other words, rules and keeping the law are not the bottom line. We don’t strive to live that way or teach our kids to live that way just because it’s “the right thing to do.” That is moralizing. There is no glory attached to that. Instead, the law assures us that there is no such thing as a “good” Christian, regardless of how much we might throw that term around. There are only perfect Christians, and that label will never be attached to us on the basis of the law, but only through the other channel by which God reveals his glory: the gospel.

That is what Paul was referring to as a greater ministry than the one that “brought death” and “brought condemnation,” the one that was “transitory.” Paul’s point was that since the glorious law when applied to us can only kill and condemn, it cannot compare to the gospel, which has an entirely different purpose. “Will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? How much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. And if what was transitory came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!” (v.8, 9b-11). 

This glory is a glory that the world cannot find and that no made-up religion can ever offer, for as Paul wrote, when it comes to the veil of the law, “only in Christ is it taken away” (v.14b). The gospel news is that “whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. (v.16). Jesus kept the law perfectly, so righteousness comes only through him. “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (v.17). The gospel offers freedom in place of the law’s condemnation, and only through Jesus, because he alone kept the law perfectly in our place. The gospel offers freedom in place of the law’s condemnation, and only through Jesus, because he alone paid the price for our sinful law-breaking. What could be more glorious than that?!

And if this gospel glory is only through Jesus, then what does that say about proximity to him? If freedom is ours through the glorious gospel, which is inseparable from Christ and only comes through Christ, then where else do we want to be than where he is? 

Consider the visual aid God provides to illustrate this. What happened when Moses met with the Lord in the tent of meeting? His face was radiant… for a time. Eventually, though, after he was done meeting with the Lord, the radiance faded.

What happened when the disciples accompanied Jesus on top of the mountain? They saw his radiance… for a time. Eventually, though, after they departed down the mountain, the radiance faded.

What happens when God’s people gather where God is wherever his Word is proclaimed and his sacraments administered, just as they are today? By faith we see his radiant glory, though it is hidden in the water attached to his promise and the bread and wine set apart for his purpose. Where the Word is, there Jesus is, and where Jesus is, there is God’s glory. 

But what happens as we distance ourselves from Jesus? The glory fades. Or, to state it more correctly, the glory appears to us to be fading, when in reality it still remains; it just looks like it’s fading because we can’t see it as clearly the farther away we are from it. 

Then, the further away we are from it, or the longer we stay away from it, the more we become accustomed to a glory-less life. We forget how glorious it is to be in the presence of his glory. So we chase the world’s ideas of glory here and there, thinking we catch little glimpses of it.

But as stated earlier, such perceived glory comes to nothing. It is but a mirage. And we live such glory-less lives only because we have distanced ourselves from the Lord of glory himself.

Paul described one way it happened in his first letter to the Corinthians: “None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory” (1 Cor. 2:8). They didn’t get it either. They thought glory could be achieved through the law, but since Jesus and his message stood in the way of that, they killed him. If they would have understood and believed the relationship between God’s glorious law and his glorious gospel, and how they work together to lead us to Christ, then they could have known true and lasting glory.

But we don’t have to suffer the same fate, for we know where God’s glory is and where to find it. We join the psalmist in gushing about it: “Lord, I love the house where you live, the place where your glory dwells” (Ps. 26:8). God’s house is where his glory is! That is the place where his glory dwells because that is the place where the gospel is dwells. Unlike Moses, however, the glory doesn’t have to fade when we depart from there, because if that glory is wherever the gospel dwells, then I take that glory with me and let it dwell richly in my home and daily life. 

That glory is for us, and it changes us. “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (v.18). Jesus was transfigured on the mountain; his people are transfigured – changed – to be more and more like him, through the gospel.

There is no greater way to give God glory than by getting God’s glory. Let the gospel saturate your soul. Hunger and thirst for it more than whatever else it is you’re chasing after in life right now, which is glory-less. We know where to find real glory. It’s where God is. And where is God? Wherever his Word is.

Doormat Christianity

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(Luke 6:27-38)

What’s easier for you: avoiding the bad things you’re not supposed to do, or doing the good thing that you’re supposed to do? We refer to the first category as sins of commission – committing something bad that we were directed not to do. We refer to the second category as sins of omission – omitting or not doing something good that we were directed to do.

It’s good to review those terms, because Jesus’ words to us from Luke 6 deal much more with the one type of sin than the other. He doesn’t convict his listeners with a list of things they shouldn’t be doing, like losing our cool, hating, getting drunk, lying, sleeping around, etc. Instead, he hits on the good things God’s people should be doing – even when circumstances make it very difficult to do them. 

But maybe we don’t feel like we miss the mark all that much on what Jesus says in his sermon here. That might be because we tend to generalize what he’s saying and kinda sorta oversimplify it to mean that we shouldn’t get even or get too worked up when others abuse or mistreat us. So long as we don’t retaliate, so long as we don’t plot the demise of our enemy, then we’re more or less keeping the gist of what Jesus says here.

Only Jesus doesn’t just say, “make sure you don’t get even”; he says quite clearly, “love and bless the people who give you all the reason in the world to not want to love and bless them.”

You know who Jesus is talking about, don’t you? When a celebrity threatens to move out of the United States because of how embarrassed or ashamed they are of it, do you pray for God to bless that person? When images or videos of people in other countries burning the American flag circulate online, do you ask how we as a nation or you as an individual can do good to those people? When you’re engaged in a conversation with someone who expresses the opinion that your ugly Christian faith or political views are responsible for destroying this country, do you lovingly pray for that person afterward? Is the hard-working day laborer who is here illegally your sworn enemy who is plundering your hard-earned tax dollars, or someone to whom you look to offer your coat and shirt and whatever other needs they might have? Do you love the friend or family member who was guilty of abusing you or another family member?

What Jesus is saying here doesn’t sit well with us. We don’t want to hear it. It’s not how things should work. It’s not how the world works. The weak lose. The strong who flex their might win and get things done. Those who make sure the opposition doesn’t get away with it are the ones who come out ahead. 

And that might work for this world. But Jesus has his sights set on a different kingdom – the one not of this world. Jesus is more concerned about heaven and hell than all the other ambitions or drama the world gets caught up in.

That being the case, he is not concerned that his followers look and behave like the rest of the world. In fact, he wants us to stand out. Why? So that he stands out. So that our radical actions and behavior are so uncommon and unordinary to the eyes of the world that others take note, and when they do, then they seek out why, ultimately to arrive at the source, Jesus.

Are you skeptical that Jesus’ approach here toward our enemies is the right one? Are you convinced that the best way for the church to get things done is through the mighty arm of the government or some other worldly method that has shown itself to be effective? Then you’ve forgotten how effective Jesus’ approach is. You’ve lost track of how well it works.

But you cannot doubt that Jesus’ approach works, because you are the proof!

Jesus took the lead in loving his enemies and winning them over! After all, what did you think you were before he brought you to faith?!? Everything that Jesus describes here about enemies is describing exactly what we naturally were to him. Our hearts by nature could only hate him, curse him, slap him on the cheek, and take from him whatever we could. That was us! That was what we were to him! 

But Jesus didn’t come to punish us, his enemies by nature, into submission. He didn’t come to establish policies and enact strict laws by which he would force everyone to fall in line and make the world a better place. He didn’t come to get even with his enemies, exact revenge and either win them over or remove them. 

No, it was the unconditional love that won you over and made you who you are. To forget that is to turn the Savior’s work into an afterthought. So we know how powerfully this no-strings-attached, mercy-extending love is, because we are the proof. It worked on us; it will work on others. So let’s put it to the test!

One of the struggles believers have with these verses, though, is that it sounds as if Jesus is essentially calling us to be doormats. It sounds like we are just supposed to allow everyone else to trample all over us no matter what. That we should let people take advantage of us. We should be fine with being ridiculed, bullied, or mistreated. We cannot ever speak up for ourselves or defend ourselves, but must always be willing to be a punching bag and absorb a lifetime of punches as followers of Jesus. If that is how we understand what it means to be a doormat, then we’ve got it wrong.

But there is something to that picture of a doormat that we want to apply positively. We are doormats – when we consider the location and role a doormat plays. Think about it. A doormat is placed in front of a door for those preparing to walk through it. It’s a natural entryway through the door. Anyone utilizing a doormat is preparing to walk through the door. The doormat prepares someone on the outside to enter into a building or home.

Is that not what Jesus is calling us to in these verses? Jesus describes himself as the gate or the narrow door. But how are others to arrive at that door? How are they to ever know it’s there and it’s for them? Through us. We are the doormats who by our radical loving actions lead others to the door, ultimately hoping and praying that the Holy Spirit will then walk them through that door into eternal life and salvation. 

That’s not such a stretch when we remember whose we are and who we are: we are Christs because we are Christ’s – both with and without the apostrophe. It has been said that in the days of the early Christian church, believers were called “little Christs,” intended to be a derogatory title. But there is nothing really derogatory at all about that title – little Christs is what we are, and we only bear that title because we belong to him! We are his because he purchased and won us. And because we are his, we represent him to the world. A world filled with Christians is intended to be a world filled with little Christs who are reflections of Christ and draw others to him. 

When we do this, our lifestyles serves a two-fold purpose. First, we show how well we really know our gracious God – that he really is kind. He really is merciful. He really has forgiven us. He really does give over flowingly to us. He really doesn’t condemn us.

Secondly, living this way shows our gracious God to others. There is a significant contrast Jesus set up between believers and nonbelievers. The radical love Jesus calls us to is radical because it is uncommon and unknown in the world.

The world sees love returned where love has been given. The world sees good extended by those who received it in the first place. The world sees people lend to others expecting full payment – and maybe even some interest – in return. Such behavior doesn’t stand out in the world. It’s common.

But Jesus is highlighting what will stand out in the world. Love returned to those from whom hate was received. Blessings and prayers extended to those from whom curses and mistreatment were received. Pacifism in response to physical harm done against me. These things are not common, natural, or normal in the world. They are not witnessed regularly or routinely. So when they happen, people take note. When they occur, others are paying attention. 

That’s what we’re after. We want an audience. But not for ourselves. We want an audience for others with the true God. And our words, our actions, our radical love toward others, may be just the introduction necessary for others to gain an audience with the true God.

Isn’t that more valuable than my insistence that I right every wrong, that injustices against me are rectified, that others get what they deserve? God will surely take care of those things. What is more important to us, however, is that others potentially gain an audience with God – that’s when we’re showing others how important God is to us.

As a bit of a side note, it’s important to clarify what it doesn’t mean to turn the other cheek. It doesn’t mean that as a believer you must take abuse from everyone else. Jesus is not saying that you are required to be and remain a victim of someone else taking advantage of you. It does not mean that you are required to allow anyone else to abuse you physically, emotionally, or in any way whatsoever. 

Jesus’ words are not intended to condone the wrongdoer in his sin, but rather to shape how we respond when wronged. There is a big difference between giving permission to the wrong someone else is committing and focusing on how I respond. Too often these verses get twisted by the abuser, who contorts them into some scriptural support for his atrocious sinful behavior, or by critics of Christianity who conclude that Jesus doesn’t allow Christians to stand up for themselves.

The truth is, when I have been wronged, I can stand up for myself and love my enemy and do good to him at the same time. Remember, after all, that the victory we have in Jesus Christ through the Resurrection is our victory. We are not victims, but victors. In him we are not the weak and oppressed, but the strong and courageous, which is exactly what it takes to love others when they wrong us, whether the hurt they leave us with is a slight scrape or a deep wound. 

When we love others radically, we are allowing God to be “kind to the ungrateful and wicked. (v.35). He does this through us! God’s desire is that through your radical treatment of others in the world, they would come to know what we do. So Jesus concludes this section by encouraging us, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you” (v.36-38).

Through our mercy, others know God’s mercy. When we don’t condemn, others can know a God who doesn’t condemn. When we forgive, others know God’s forgiveness. When we are good to others, they can know God’s goodness.

Believer, be a doormat, be OK with being the step that others take on their way through the narrow door, Jesus, who ushers them into eternal life. 

Have Faith in Your Feet

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(Romans 10:12-17)

It’s required to navigate icy walkways in the midwest after a snowstorm. The hiker on a precipitous trail needs it. So does the baby learning to walk. The older we get the more we struggle with it. Having faith in one’s feet. When our steps are uncertain or unsure, we’re more likely to misstep or stumble. When we step forward sure-footed and with confidence, however, we’re usually alright. It makes a difference to have faith in our feet. Each step depends on it.

Paul says it’s important, too, albeit for a much more important reason. When we have faith in our feet as we carry out the mission Jesus has invited each one of us to join him on, we have what amounts to the difference between life and death for others. When our feet bring the good news to others, we have what the Holy Spirit uses to create faith. So let’s make sure we have faith in our feet for the reason that matters most. 

First, Paul reminds us why faith is so important: “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (v.13). To state it as simply as possible, believers of Jesus Christ go to heaven. So, then, how does one become a believer? Paul lays out how that happens by essentially reverse-engineering the process. “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent?” (v.14-15a). 

In order to believe in Jesus Christ, a person first has to hear about him to know who he is. And, if anyone is going to hear about him to know who he is, that means someone has to communicate that to them. And, to know who is responsible for communicating that to them, one has to know who’s responsible for it. 

It’s often said that one something is everyone’s responsibility, then it ends up being no one’s responsibility. In other words, unless a responsibility is delegated to a certain specific person or group, then everyone tends to assume someone else is taking care of it. Ultimately, because everyone assumes someone else is taking care of it, no one does it. The thing is left undone.

But when it comes to the process Paul is describing here, it really is everyone’s responsibility. Every Christian was called to communicate Christ when they were called to Christ. To be a follower of Christ is to a disciple-maker of others. It isn’t complicated. You don’t need me to dissect these words and walk you through the process of disciple-making, because what is asked of us couldn’t be easier: people who know Jesus talk Jesus to people who don’t know Jesus. Pretty simple, right? Not complicated at all. 

So rather than focusing on how we do that or why we don’t, or how to overcome whatever hangups we have, or addressing any fears we might have, or dismantling the excuses we shield ourselves with, we’re going to give more of our attention to the important outcome. It’s the person on the other side who makes this process so important. Here’s the why that drives all of it: “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ” (v.17). 

This verse, coupled with verse thirteen, is essentially everything we’re about. If someone asks you why your church exists, why it’s here, don’t get so caught up in everything else that you forget that we’re here to lead people to be saved by calling on the name of the Lord, and that happens only when faith receives and believes everything Jesus has done for them. That is why we are here. We want everyone to be saved. 

Do we speak enough about that these days? Are we more concerned about offending someone or making someone angry? Maybe it’s a lack of knowledge. Maybe it’s indifference. Whatever is behind it, we cannot stick our heads in the sand and pretend to ignore the reality for everyone who does not call on the name of the Lord: they will be cut off from him forever. 

There is a real hell, and everyone without faith in Jesus will end up there. And I think part of the reason we as Christians may not be as comfortable speaking about it is because we are so concerned about giving the impression to outsiders that we somehow derive a sick, twisted joy from getting to declare that. We feel as if nonbelievers have pegged us as getting a kick out of telling all the sinners out there in the world that they’re going to hell, so they better shape up. They see it as an “us vs. them” thing rather than the reality that we’re all on the same sinking ship of sin, it’s just that in Jesus, we’ve found the only life boat that can rescue us. 

While on this hard topic of hell and how we handle it with nonbelievers, it also affords us the chance to ask ourselves how/if we have contributed to the negative perception others have of us in this area. Do they notice us more naturally talking to them about going to hell than about Jesus taking them to heaven? Are we more comfortable announcing warnings than we are the good news? Is it possible that nonbelievers know we’re believers, but are surprised that we don’t talk more about it or care enough about them to share what’s important? Do they interpret our silence as indifference or a lack of concern about them? 

In a video over fifteen years old, a man expressed his admiration for Christians sharing their faith. He talked about a time someone handed him a Gideon’s Bible, and the impact it had on him. He said, “If you believe there is a heaven and hell, and you think it’s not worth telling someone about it, how much do you have to hate him to not proselytize? To believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell people? This man cared enough about me to proselytize.” While the man in the video was sure to point out that this kind effort didn’t change his mind about being an atheist, we can appreciate the point he is making. You may recognize the man in the video: self-proclaimed atheist, Penn Fraser Jillette, half of the comedic magician duo known as Penn and Teller. 

Whatever the reason for our lack of evangelism efforts, we need to go back and apply these verses to ourselves. We need to repent and rejoice that all of our sins have been forgiven, including our dismissal of our calling as Christians to evangelize. Make no mistake – that sin is as deadly and damnable as any other, and even more damaging than many other sins, because not only does that sin accuse and condemn you and me, but it also by default leaves our neighbor who never heard the gospel lost in unbelief! So when Christians clam up, we sin against our holy God, but we also leave our neighbor condemned in his ignorance. Lord, have mercy on us for forgetting and neglecting our own spiritual health and that of our neighbor when we refuse to be the beautiful feet bringing good news to others! 

And he has! Remember, the good news we fail to share is also the good news we need to hear: we are fully forgiven in Christ. Let the Lord’s words to Isaiah resonate in our hearts: “your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for” (6:7). Let Jesus’ words to Simon Peter ease our fears and sharpen our focus: “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people” (Luke 5:10). Without fear, and filled with faith, we embrace Christ’s calling to fish for people.

Let’s be clear. The only way anyone can be saved is through faith in Jesus. How does the Holy Spirit create faith in a person’s heart? Through the good news of the gospel, that in Jesus, sinners have the Savior they need. 

Let’s also be clear. That means that the family living two houses down from you will not come to faith because you are a good neighbor. Your boss and co-workers will not  come to faith because you are the understanding and patient employee. Your friend will not come to faith because you are a good listener when she is struggling. The panhandler will not come to faith in Jesus because you gave him lunch or a couple bucks. Your family member will not come to faith because you were trying to be sensitive and not “push your religion” on him. Now, are all of these things good things? Yes! Do we want to be and do these things? Yes, absolutely!

But they can’t be the only thing. No one will come to faith unless we take that next step and share the good news, for “faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ” (Romans 10:17). Don’t leave the job of letting your light shine undone by avoiding the crucial step of sharing the only message that creates faith. 

What difference can you really make? It depends on whether or not you believe that what Paul wrote about God is true. Is he the “Lord of all [who] richly blesses all who call on him…?” (v.12). If he is, then believe he’ll richly bless your efforts, and let’s get to work in leading others to call on him so that he can also richly bless them. Let’s get to work in leading others to call on him because ““Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (v.13). Let’s go out and earn the reputation of having beautiful feet. Let’s get our beautiful feet to work bringing the good news to wherever we live, and marvel at God doing his thing through our efforts.

Popularity Is Not Proof of Success

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(2 Timothy 3:14-4:5)

438. That’s how many followers I have on Instagram. 22 is the number of subscribers I have on this blog. 12 is how many average plays each episode of my podcast gets. With those kind of numbers, it’s probably no shock to you that at the beginning of this year I considered donating 100% of my salary to charity and simply living off the income I generate online. 

The reason you’re laughing right now is because you know how unimpressive those numbers are, so it’s quite laughable to think those numbers represent anything remotely resembling popularity. But it illustrates what we tend to accept as general truth today, which is, if something or someone is popular, that makes them a success. We live at a time when something going viral can lead to celebrity success or product or branding success seemingly overnight. What does that reinforce? Popularity proves that something is successful. If a lot of people like it and everyone has to have it, well, isn’t that success? If it leads to more exposure for the celebrity or generates skyrocketing revenue for shareholders, isn’t that success? 

In my previous sermon post, I mentioned that these two messages would serve as compliments to each other. They are both warnings against determining the success of the Word on the basis of its results. Previously, when we saw Jesus just about corralled off a cliff as a result of how unpopular his message was, the point was made that Rejection is Not Proof of Failure. That is, rejection – the deplorable behavior in response to Jesus’ preaching – did not and does not indicate that the Word is a failure or ineffective. The Word always works. The warning this time, though, may be an even more challenging truth for us to accept in our culture: we may have to be even more on guard against the other extreme of allowing popularity to serve as proof of the Word’s success.

If we’re going to focus on success this, it seems a worthwhile exercise for us to step back a moment and check our definition of success. Are you personally successful? What standard of measurement would you use to answer that question? Is it a matter of income – how much you make? What about how impressive sounding your job is? Does a trophy spouse or a large house equal success? Kids that excel academically or athletically? Is it who you know, rubbing elbows with the heavy hitters and name-dropping left and right? What standard or expectation needs to be met for you to consider yourself personally successful?

How would we answer the same question if we asked it of our churches? What standard of measurement would you use to answer that question? Sunday morning attendance? If so, by total number each Sunday or by percentage of members who worship weekly? Compared to other churches our size across the country or just in CA? Compared to ten years, twenty-five, or forty-five years ago? What did we average last year? 99. If popularity is gauged by numbers and numbers equal success, then we’re failing – quite miserably at that! In forty-five years the best we can do is 8 fewer people in church on average each week (the worship average forty-five years ago was 107)??? 

But if we only go back to COVID, our attendance since then has actually increased steadily each year… Or if we look at this or that or the other thing, well, eventually we’ll find something we can count as successful. Offering totals? Building projects? Awareness in the community? What standard or expectation needs to be met for you to consider our church successful? 

Realize something about our measurements of success: it’s natural for us to find them where we want to look when we’re the ones defining success. But that isn’t terribly helpful, is it? There must be some objective metric for success. Hmmm… I wonder where we could ever hope to find such an indicator of success. Call me crazy, but let’s try the Bible. 

As Paul wrote to Timothy, do you suppose he was providing guidance for Timothy on how to kill his church? Was Paul trying to sabotage Timothy’s ministry so that it would fail miserably? Of course not! Paul was giving advice and encouragement to help him succeed in ministry and life. 

Oh, and if you wish to analyze the numbers Paul highlights in his recipe for success, you’ll only come across one mention of numbers – and it isn’t positive. The only time Paul references numbers is the negative impact that large numbers of false teachers will have in fleecing people by telling them “what their itching ears want to hear” (4:3). 

So if Paul doesn’t point to numbers to encourage Timothy toward a successful ministry, what gets his attention? It may be best summarized in verse two: “Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.” 

This encouragement is the essence of everything that Timothy should be busy with in his life and ministry, given the gravity of what preceded. Paul set a very serious tone by calling God as his witness! “In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge” (4:1). This verse builds up and crescendos in such a way that we’re hanging on Paul’s words. What is it? What is the charge? What is such a big deal to God? 

That we preach his Word.

Because that is what God uses to do his work. He has given us no other charge as his church and his people, and no other assurance that he works through any other means than his Word. There is no, “the Word and…” – just the Word! Paul was communicating to Timothy that preaching the Word was not just the most important thing on a list of many other responsibilities, but rather that it’s the only thing; there really is nothing else at all than preaching the Word! 

So if we want success, if we want to be and do what God is interested in us being and doing, then he must be the one accomplishing that in and through us. And he does it in only one way: through his Word. 

Earlier I wrote about defining success in your personal life and defining success as a church. But I fear such a distinction may be unhelpful, because it leads us to think of them as separate things: there is my church life over here and there is my personal life over there. 

But that’s a false distinction, because there isn’t one or the other, but simply the believer’s life. When we read the words of Paul to Timothy, Paul doesn’t make some artificial distinction between what happens on Sundays versus the rest of the week, or what happens at church versus everywhere else. 

No, everything Paul is writing to Timothy has to do with his whole life, and more specifically, the role of the Bible in it. He doesn’t refer to what Timothy does during his office hours in his study at church and then what he does later on when he’s at home. He simply points out how the Word is to work in his whole life, including his personal life. 

When we take a good hard look at the Word’s popularity in our own lives, an honest look will lead us to appreciate how off the mark this idea is that popularity is proof of success. If popularity is the criteria for success, how popular is the Word when compared to the time we give to other interests in our life? Does the Word look as popular as, say, sports, whether watching, playing, or shuttling kids around? How about your favorite streaming service? Reading? Hobbies? And that’s all outside of your job, which of course nobody brings home with them these days. How successful does the Word look if based on its popularity in our own homes? Thank goodness popularity is not proof of success, even in our own homes!

Nevertheless, just as Paul’s encouragement to Timothy with the Word was not just a church thing, but a whole life thing, that same encouragement holds for us, too. Do you realize that the work of the Word in the church is synonymous with the work of the Word in your whole life? In other words, the success of the church depends on the success of the Word in each of our lives. The church that is successful is the one made up of people letting the Word dwell in them richly all the time. 

The work of the church is your light shining in the workplace. The work of the church is Bible stories at bedtime with kids. The work of the church is husband and wife focusing together on Jesus in their marriage. The work of the church is the neighbor you point to Jesus when she’s struggling. The work of the church is you promoting the blessings of our elementary school to other families with little ones.

It’s helpful that Paul points out the ways we apply the Word and put it to work in our lives. We spend the time reading and studying it so that we can be prepared, so that we can correct, rebuke, and encourage one another. So that we can be trained in righteousness. So that we – and many others along with us! – can be wise for salvation, the most important thing of all! And flowing from that certainty of salvation, we apply the Word so that we can be equipped for every good work.

But these blessings aren’t only for your benefit; God intends the way he shapes you with his Word to be a blessing to others, too. After all, when Paul brings about the conclusion of the Word’s work, what is it? “So that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (v.17). And who do you suppose is blessed and served by good works? My neighbor. 

As we look around in the world today, do we see any need for our good works to make a difference? Absolutely! How can we rely on the world to carry out good works when the world has redefined what “good” is? Isaiah issued a warning regarding those who don’t know what good is. “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter” (Is. 5:20). 

The world doesn’t know what good is. We do. But if we aren’t allowing the Word to work in us to accomplish that good, then what right do we really have to sit back and whine about how bad everything in the world is? Change it! Do good! Let the Word work good in you for the good of the world! 

The same author of these verses to Timothy is the one who wrote to the believers in Rome, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21). The Word will equip every servant of God thoroughly for every good work. Will you let it? 

When it comes to God’s work, popularity doesn’t indicate success. Neither do numbers. 

What determines success is the Word, when we put it to work. If you do – when you do – then you will know what success is. 

Rejection Is Not Proof of Failure

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(Luke 4:16-30)

There were 1.46 billion iPhone users as of last year. TikTok has over one billion users. Netflix has 300 million subscribers. An estimated 203 million will watch the Super Bowl. 

Those are not small numbers. Yet, if we take those same number as a percentage of the total population of people in the world, the numbers take on a different look. Only 18% of the world owns an iPhone. Just 13% of the world has a Tik Tok account. Netflix has a a mere 3.75% subscribers, and only 2.5% of the people in the world will tune into the Super Bow. Suddenly those numbers don’t seem as large.

Nevertheless, we still wouldn’t claim that such numbers are an indicator of failure. Not at all! Those are very successful companies and services we’re talking about. 

So is it really fair for us to have an expectation for witnessing, or the Word in general, of a 100% success rate when it comes to conversions? Might we be a little too quick to conclude that the Word must have failed when it isn’t embraced every single time, but is instead rejected? 

That rejection doesn’t mean it failed. When we sow the seeds of the Word then, whether that work takes place among believers as we serve the found, or in witnessing to unbelievers as we seek the lost, rejection is not proof of failure. Heads up: we’ll look at the flip side of this in the next sermon post, which is that popularity is not proof of success. In this post, though, we give our attention to the matter of rejection when it comes to people’s reception of the Word of God. 

Rather than just seeing this post as an evangelism encourager or confidence booster, I want you to make it more personal. I want you to think instead of just becoming more comfortable talking about your Savior and your faith. 

Do you know why some in the world think Christians are weird? Because we are. We make it about as awkward as one could when talking about this stuff. We use weird words and terms that others have never heard. We struggle and waffle when someone asks us simple questions, like why we believe what we do. But since this whole subject is the most important thing, shouldn’t it also be the most natural thing for us to talk about?

I mean, let’s be honest, some of us are far more comfortable talking about far weirder things than Jesus and our faith. So let’s focus our attention on working to get comfortable with talking about this stuff so that it becomes second nature to us. We want to be able to speak about our Savior and our faith in him as effortlessly as we share a recipe or bring up last night’s big game, or as naturally as we gush about the latest new series that everyone’s streaming.

We rightly encourage each other when we remind one another that when others reject our message, it isn’t really us they’re rejecting, but Jesus. This account clearly displays that truth. Notice the rather abrupt change in how the people initially received Jesus compared to how it ended up. 

First, “the eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him” (v.20) and they “spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips” (v.22). Imagine having Jesus as  your guest preacher! Imagine how glued to him you’d be! He would have been unlike all the other teachers and rabbis. The Gospels tell us that people heard Jesus and were amazed because he didn’t teach like other rabbis, but taught with authority. He stood out. His teaching was riveting, and they were soaking it all up.

But, as Jesus continued preaching, their mood and reception of him changed. “All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff” (v.28-29). Quite a drastic change! If Jesus was a Netflix special, he went from being the number one streamed show to “leaving this month” – and all of this over the length of time it took him to preach one sermon! How does one go from such a meteoric rise to almost literally getting thrown off a cliff that quickly?1? 

There seem to be two significant matters that Jesus’ fellow Jewish listeners tend to take issue with. One, his family roots. “‘Isn’t this Joseph’s son’ they asked” (v.22b). They remembered he was just a local. One of them. Nothing special about his background, upbringing, or family name. 

Secondly, what appears to turn their effusive praise into furious rage is when Jesus communicates that God’s favor stretches beyond the reaches of his chosen Jewish people, often even skipping over them. Jesus illustrated that when he brought up the widow in Zaraphath and Naaman the Syrian. In those cases, God’s favor passed over his people onto Gentiles, those non-Israelite people from outside nations. 

So it will likely go with your efforts – if you haven’t already experienced it. When others find out your family roots – that you are a Christian, a member of God’s family, they may sour on you just as they did Jesus on that day. Then, after pointing out that the good news is for all people (yes, even the Hitlers of the world!), when you point out to those who scoff or write you off that this foolishness is for others who won’t reject it, that message may not sit well with them. While you likely won’t have to worry about being thrown off a cliff, you might get unfriended or unfollowed. You might get ghosted as your texts go unanswered. Those you used to get together and hang out with may not end up including you in their social plans much more. 

But just as it wasn’t in Jesus’ day, so neither is rejection today proof of failure. Otherwise, we’d expect to see Jesus go back to the drawing board and drum up a different game plan after this incident. But what do we see him doing in the rest of Luke and the other Gospels? 

The exact same thing. Luke tells us it was his custom to go to the synagogue, just as he had been brought up to do, and he would continue to do that. When he would no longer be invited to speak in the synagogue, he would preach anywhere. But he didn’t do anything differently. He continued to point listeners to the Lord. 

Let us do the same. Even when it’s hard. Which is always. It’s never easy, really, is it? One of the reasons it’s so difficult? 

Us. 

We make it more difficult. Consider an experience just about every one of us has had. You were having a conversation with someone you suspect might to be a nonbeliever. You aren’t absolutely certain, but from what little of her you know, that’s what you’d guess. In your conversation, she tosses you a softball, an opening that was custom fit to bring Jesus into the conversation, an opportunity so easy even a caveman could do it. 

But you don’t. 

Why? Because even though you saw the opportunity and you had a pretty good idea of how you’d go about it in your head, you fast-forwarded and anticipated her negative response. You pre-determined the outcome in your own mind because you were sure you knew how she would respond. So you ended up saying nothing. 

Sound familiar? When we drum up an imaginary negative response someone “will probably have,” we’ve just shut the door on that person’s opportunity to hear the absolute best news they could ever possibly hear in the gospel. Let’s admit that in a number of cases, we make this harder than it needs to be.

Because on the other hand, it couldn’t be any easier. We don’t have to figure out some formula; we just have to proclaim his promises. There isn’t a single believer who is not qualified to share the gospel message: Jesus died for sinners like us. It’s that simple. Jesus came to save sinners, which he did by living perfectly in our place and dying to pay for our sins. Because of that, we have peace right now and the joy of eternal life. It really is that simple.

But, there are a lot of things that are easy – that doesn’t necessarily mean we do them. Just because it’s easy doesn’t mean we’ll do it. 

So what motivates us to do it? The same thing that motivated Jesus: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (v.18-19). The spiritually poor need to hear the good news. Those imprisoned by the impossible demands of the law need to hear they’re free. Those without Jesus who can’t see the right religious path need sight. The exact same work that Jesus began on that day with one of his first sermons needs to be carried out by his people today. 

And what happened to Jesus himself will also happen to us: the message will be rejected. But unlike those wildly popular products and services I mentioned earlier, which aren’t very successful at all in terms of the percentage of the overall population, the Word that you share has a 100% success rate. It will not always result in conversions, but it will work 100% of the time. God promises it. His Word doesn’t return to him empty (cf. Is. 55). It always works. So let’s always work it, and let God be the one to decide what kind of results he’ll get from it. 

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Be Attentive to the Preaching of Your Word

Heavenly Father,
Sundays are sacred. They provide me with the opportunity to hear the preaching of your Word when I gather with believers in worship. And, when the under shepherds of the Good Shepherd know the sheep of their congregation, the sermon often speaks specifically to the flock in that congregation. Open my ears to listen for your law, that it might uncover or expose any sin in me of which I am unaware. And in any areas where I have become too nonchalant or even comfortable with sin, let that same law accuse and convict me, for that is its work.

But that is not its greatest work of your Word by any stretch. That work belongs to the sweet and soothing certainty of your gospel, which points me to Jesus and his complete pardon from my sin. Let my ears perk up when the preacher pours out your gracious forgiveness to wash over me. May the good news be proclaimed with color and variety, so that the gospel doesn’t become washed out by the grays of monotonous and mundane preaching. Let your preachers and their sermons be a breath of fresh air and new life as they direct our eyes and our hearts to our Savior.  

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

Prayer Priorities

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(Ephesians 3:14-21)

There are just certain types of stories that are always going to make the headlines in the news. We can always expect to hear about any sort of catastrophic disaster that happens anywhere in the world. Prominent people falling from grace or passing away unexpectedly will make the news. Shocking crimes and courtroom drama won’t be overlooked. Radical changes in laws or policies, sports milestones, and weather extremes will be included. And of course, perhaps near the top of the list of the most newsworthy items: who’s dating who? 

While we may brush that last one off, since many of us claim not to care about who’s dating among the rich and famous, apparently such stories generate enough buzz that the news outlets are sure to keep us posted on the latest relationship details. When you think about it, though, it’s kind of silly thing for that to be such a big deal when you consider the point of dating. It’s just two people interested enough in each other that they want to get to know each other better. That’s why we commit to either dating one person exclusively, or dating a variety of people – in order to get to know someone better. 

Paul’s words to the Ephesians may not mention the word “date” anywhere, and his words aren’t likely to make major headlines in our world today, but his prayer is that we would get to know our Savior better. And even though getting to know the Savior better isn’t going to generate a buzz or make for click-worthy headlines, he does want it to be a major story in our own personal life. While that may not serve as any revelation or epiphany to you (most believers are well aware that part of Christianity is getting to know God better), perhaps our epiphany moment is the realization that our prayer life can go a long way in helping us get to know Jesus better. In a previous post I said baptism may be one of the most underutilized and under appreciated blessings of the Christian faith. Prayer probably deserves to be in that discussion, too. 

We want to see how a significant shift in our prayer lives can aid us in knowing Jesus better. You’ve probably heard more sermons on prayer than you can recall. But even if you can’t remember how many of them you’ve heard, I am guessing you can summarize your takeaway from just about every one of them: “I should pray more.” Sound about right? Well, today I don’t want you to walk away with that same conclusion. Today I want to challenge you to focus not just on praying more, but praying differently.

When you reflect on your personal prayer life, prayer requests from others, or prayer-related comments on someone’s social media post about a tragedy or health issue, what is the primary focus of those prayers, by and large? Aren’t they overwhelmingly related to physical and temporal requests?

It’s natural for us to pray for – and request prayers for – everyone affected by the wildfires. We don’t think twice about it. We’re comfortable divulging the diagnosis or disease a family member just discovered and asking for prayers for them. We aren’t shy about sharing news about our recently unemployed neighbor, a friend’s child who is struggling with this or that, or someone going through a divorce – we gladly request prayers on their behalf. And that’s good! We certainly don’t want to stop doing these things!

But let’s consider how we might approach these prayers differently. After all, there is no physical concern that doesn’t also have a spiritual element connected to it. Everything is spiritual, because that is who we are in Christ: spiritually made new. So there will never really be a prayer request that is limited to just the tangible and temporal; everything is spiritual. 

Think of how this relates to some of the examples just listed. The physical loss experienced as a result of the wildfires will test the faith of many, strengthening the faith of some and perhaps stripping the faith of others, because questions about God’s love and providence will naturally arise. These are spiritual matters. Diagnoses and diseases lead to thoughts of healing and possibly even life and death. These are spiritual matters. Things like unemployment, struggling kids, and divorce most often involve spiritual breakdowns somewhere along the line, or at least open the door for it. These are spiritual matters. So what portion of our prayers in regard to such things is spiritual? See how it isn’t just a matter of praying more, but also praying differently. 

A question for consideration: is a prayer life that focuses primarily on physical blessings reflective of a life that is lacking spiritual focus? On the one hand, any sort of prayer life, even one made up primarily of the physical and temporal, is still a reflection of some measure of spiritual maturity, since prayer is an expression of faith. Let’s acknowledge that and celebrate it. Anytime prayer is regularly incorporated as a spiritual discipline it is a good thing. But the next step in growth is to give greater consideration to the content of our prayer life.

As you skim through these words from Paul to the Ephesians, do you notice anything? Now that I’ve already been highlighting it, the content of his prayer stands out even more, doesn’t it? Notice how many physical or temporal requests he includes? By my count, it’s zero. 

Let’s break down Paul’s prayer. First he writes, “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith” (v.16-17a). When we face a tough task, feel under qualified, or are just too exhausted to accomplish something we had planned on getting done, we explain it by saying, “I don’t have it in me.” We know what someone means when they speak those words.

It is true that we don’t have it in ourselves, but Paul doesn’t pray for that; instead, his prayer is that we see that what is inside us that is even more powerful: Christ. His prayer is that through the Spirit, we may be strengthened with power so that more of Christ resides and rules in our hearts. When Christ rules prominently in our hearts, that leaves less room for all the other stuff in the world and in our lives that is constantly seeking residence there, all of which would harm us spiritually. When is that last time you prayer for Christ to dwell in your heart more?

Paul goes on, “And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ…” (v.17a-18). As a child you may have learned the beautifully simple song, “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” It’s true! He does, and even a child can grasp what it means that God loves us. But Paul takes it to another level.

His prayer is that our understanding of God’s love for us in Christ would expand, that as we deepen the roots of our faith and build on the established foundation, we would begin to see how much bigger God’s love for us in Christ really is. Do we have a limited vision of God’s love, as if it’s a small cabinet space or cardboard box that a small child tries to squeeze into? How wrong that is!

God’s love is so expansive that there is more than enough room for all of us, no matter who we are or what we’ve done. And no matter how much we think we know God’s love right now, there’s room to grow in knowing it even more. When is the last time you prayed to better know the depth of God’s love for you?

And Paul wants to make sure we don’t just know God’s love, but that we know God’s love, “and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God” (v.19). Paul isn’t just interested in God’s people sitting in a classroom and taking notes on his spiritual lectures so that we know all the right answers for some final test. He wants for us to know a love that surpasses knowledge. Stop and think about how illogical that is, humanly speaking. How can someone know something that surpasses knowledge? 

By knowing it not just intellectually, but also experientially. Paul’s prayer is that head Christians would grow into heart Christians. When that happens – when what we know about God’s love from our knowledge of the Bible and its promises – becomes what we know because we’ve experienced it, that is when we are filled to the measure of all fullness.

Christianity isn’t just facts to memorize and spit out at others, but truths that shape our entire lives and experiences. How do we, who know from experience what it is to be loved deeply by God, ever explain that to an unbeliever? We can’t. The Spirit does it, as he takes the knowledge and truth of God’s love for us in Christ, and through faith injects it into our spiritual DNA so that it becomes who we are and shapes how we live. Who doesn’t want to be filled to that measure of the fullness of God? So when is the last time you prayed to know God’s love more experientially?

Finally, as intimidating as all of this may sound, remember this about the One hearing your prayers: he is “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (v.20). When we look at ourselves, we may shake our heads at all of what Paul is praying for and conclude it’ll never be us. It just won’t. It may be for some people, but I’m just too much of a mess or not spiritual enough or too bad a person or whatever else we may tell ourselves. So Paul reminds us that none of what he’s prayed for is contingent upon the Ephesians – or us, for that matter; rather, it’s all dependent on God, the God who is able to do “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine.” You think too little of God if you do not ask him to carry out all of these prayers of Paul on your own behalf, too. 

Yes, he can do more than you ask of him, and, that power by which he does it is already at work in you. Right now! Today! This very moment! We aren’t talking about starting from scratch. We aren’t talking about the daunting task of trying to figure out where to start. We aren’t wasting our time wondering if this will all work, because it’s already at work in us!

You have faith. You are a believer. You are already his – the heaviest lifting has already been done by God’s grace in bringing you to faith. Don’t you imagine he’s interested in finishing in you what he started by helping you know him better?

Then let’s pray for more of that in our lives, and less of the stuff that is short-lived and ultimately unsatisfying. Let’s pray for the spiritual goods, and do so with the confidence that the one able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine is more than capable of delivering.

Married? Single? Dating? Off the market? No matter your dating status, pray to know Jesus better.