Month: March 2016

“I don’t listen to that guy. He’s just one of those ‘feel good’ preachers.” Those were the words an acquaintance used in a recent conversation when a certain well-known minister’s name was brought up. I walked away after the conversation scratching my head in bewilderment, not because I didn’t know what she meant by those words, but wondering what she had against feeling good. I was fully aware that her idea of good preaching was good old “hellfire damnation, have them squirming in their seats feeling the flames of Hades licking at their worthless selves.”

Here’s an idea for a church advertisement: “Feeling good about yourself? Optimistic about the future? Hopeful? Then our church is not for you! You should be ashamed! Tired of that “feel good” gospel? Come visit us at Feel Bad Fellowship!”

I realize the satire is a little ridiculous, but not so much when you realize that a good number of Christians still think this way.

I can all too well remember a time in my life when I shared that belief. Don’t misunderstand me. I still believe there’s a place called hell.

I can’t recall any time ever that a sinner has come up to me asking, “Where can I find a church that will make me feel bad? That person living without hope is already feeling bad. Ok, I know I’m making a play on words here, but you get my drift.

Having read the Gospels many times, I’ve never found an instance where someone who had an encounter with Jesus walked away feeling bad. Unless, of course, they were a Pharisee, Sadducee, scribe, or the rich young ruler. They walked away feeling bad because they refused to recognize who He really was. The sick, the blind, the lame, the demon-possessed, the prostitute, all of these encountered the transformational power of the Living Word and walked away feeling pretty good.

And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.

Then His fame went throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics, and He healed them. (Matthew 4:23-24)

I can only speak for myself, but that kind of preaching makes me feel good!

We must change the way we think about the gospel. The word “gospel” means good news. People who are oppressed are looking for good news. They’re looking for hope.

Jesus never used shame or guilt to get anyone to follow Him. In fact, He never talked anyone into following Him. For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power. (1 Cor. 4:20) If you can be talked into following Jesus, you can be talked out of it. But if you’ve had a transformational encounter with the love of God, you can never be the same. In fact, you’ll feel good!

If a person who is lost and without hope were to hear our conversation about “feel good” preaching, what kind of hope would that give them?

Things began to change in my mind when I came into a greater understanding of the goodness of God. It’s the goodness of God that leads us to repentance (see Rom. 2:4). To repent means to change the way that we think. When you begin to see just how good He really is, you can’t help but change the way you see Him, yourself, and others. That, my friends, is the “feel good gospel.”

 

Feeling good,

 

Kevin

How many times have we read the stories in our bibles with obvious themes and yet missed some of the finer nuggets of gold subtly positioned between the lines?

I often refer to the written word of God as a deep treasure chest filled with gold and the rarest of beautiful gems waiting for the diligent seeker who is willing to open it, casting all presumption aside, and find what usually escapes the eye of the casual seeker.

One such treasure is found in the account of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem the week prior to His death, burial, and resurrection. Ok, I know it’s a few days past Palm Sunday, but bear with me. Here’s the story…

Now when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.” All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: “Tell the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, lowly, and sitting on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey,’” So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them. And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying: “Hosanna to the Son of David! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ Hosanna in the highest!” And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, “Who is this?” So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”

– Matthew 21:1-11 (NKJV)

You may have read this story more than once in your lifetime, but have you ever put yourself in the place of the donkey?

Here are a few observations of mine:

1. Get untied! “…you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to me.” What holds you back from stepping into the full potential of all He’s purposed for you? Let Him find you and loose you from whatever ties you down. Sincerely ask Him to show you. He will.
2. Understand that He needs you! “…you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them…’” It’s hard to comprehend that Almighty God would need anyone, much less me, but He does. It has always been His plan to have us partner with Him in carrying His glory to the ends of the earth. He could certainly do it on His own, but He chooses us to be His carriers.
3. Realize that, just like the donkey, you are a carrier of Jesus of Nazareth!

“So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”

Nobody said, “Look! What a magnificent donkey!”

No, all eyes were on the Son of God.

His desire is that we carry Him everywhere. Just as the disciples carried Jesus to the world when they left the Upper Room, so we carry Him.

This Jesus who saves, we carry Him.

This Jesus who heals, we carry Him.

This Jesus who sets the captives free, we carry Him.

Now, be a good donkey, and carry Him!

 

Kevin

As a child growing up in the sixties and seventies, many nights I would fall asleep with the transistor radio next to my ear tuned to the local top 40 station. (For those of you younger than forty, just ask your parents what a transistor radio is.) To an impressionable youngster growing up in a dysfunctional home, the melody and words to so many of those songs proved somewhat comforting and shaped a good portion of my belief system back in those days.

“Que sera, sera.

Whatever will be, will be.

The future’s not ours to see.

Que sera, sera.”

I can still hear the smooth, silky voice of Doris Day singing that hit song from the sixties. The words of that song shaped my outlook on life for many years.

As with most human philosophy, there is always a little truth thrown in the mix to make it palatable.

As I got older, I began to search for the whole truth of the matter. I had heard the world’s outlook on the future and heard well-meaning preachers and teachers give theirs’ also. I wanted to know what God Himself had to say about the future. My future. The world’s future. In the religious circles I grew up in, were we told in no uncertain terms that God was ticked-off, the world was going to end, everything was going up in flames and He was going to snatch us off the planet just in the nick of time. “Well, there’s your future, young man, keep your head up and have a nice day!”

Now I don’t want to be too hard on Doris Day. She was partly right. We don’t know everything that will happen in our future. However, I do know Who is in it. I know that His plans for me are good (Jer. 29:11).

Things started to change in my mind when I began to understand that His dominion is an everlasting dominion, His kingdom is from generation to generation (Daniel 4:34). This earth is the Lord’s. It doesn’t belong to satan and never will!

I know now what my future holds – it’s found in Isaiah 9:6-7 (you know, the scripture you mostly hear around Christmas).

 

“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will perform this.”

 

God’s kingdom is not some far off distant place in the future. It’s here. It’s now. He is establishing His kingdom and we get to be part of that mission. That’s good news! Regardless of what you may hear from the news media, Christ’s government and peace are increasing. When I replaced my old toxic doom and gloom “the world is going to hell in a handbasket” thinking with what God really says about me, peace, like I had never experienced, flooded my being. He is called Prince of Peace, right?

Kevin, you’re being just a bit too optimistic, aren’t you? Yes! Yes I am, and I love it! I’ve tried the cynical, pessimistic view and I must tell you I like my current state of mind much better.

I have a future and a hope. His name is Jesus and He rules and reigns right now. You can change your mind and join me and millions of others on this adventurous, joy-filled journey.

Any takers?

Now, please excuse me while I listen to another hit song from the past –

 

“I see trees of green, red roses too. I see them bloom for me and you.

And I think to myself, what a wonderful world.

I see skies of blue and clouds of white.

The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night.

And I think to myself, what a wonderful world.

The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky

Are also on the faces of people going by.

I see friends shaking hands saying how do you do.

They’re really saying I love you.

I hear babies crying, I watch them grow.

They’ll learn much more than I’ll ever know.

And I think to myself, what a wonderful world.”

 – Louis Armstrong

 

Kevin

Have you ever started to do something risky? Was it something that came from a heart desire? When you proceeded to do it, did you hear these words – “Who do think you are?”

I’ve heard those words in my head more times than I can count. Numerous times in my life I would dream of doing something great for the sake of God’s kingdom, or just merely something adventurous. Inevitably I would talk myself out of it. In fact, I heard those words when I first proceeded to start writing a weekly blog. I rejected them. Why? Because it really is about who I think I am.

In the previous blog I talked about what we think about God. Have you ever thought about what He thinks about you?

“How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me!”  (Psalm 139:17-18 NLT)

Isn’t that beautiful? What makes it even more beautiful is that this was written before Jesus came to earth! In fact, this is why He came to earth. Remember John 3:16? If you’ve been born again, you’re a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17-18). If you refer to yourself as “a sinner saved by grace,” stop! You’re not a sinner anymore. That fellow died. That is no longer your nature.

Here is just a short list of who you are now –

1. You’re a son/daughter of God
2. A saint
3. An heir of God
4. A joint-heir with Christ
5. His beloved

Why is it so crucial that we know who we are? I believe the answer can be found at Jesus’ baptism.

“And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him Like a dove.

Then a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’”

For a long time, I questioned why God the Father would say those words to Jesus. Did He not know that he was God’s Son? Did He not know His Father was pleased with Him?

Here’s something interesting to consider: Jesus had not performed any miracles, signs, or wonders up to this point, yet The Father calls Jesus His Son and says He is well pleased with Him. Wasn’t there anything His Father could point to in Jesus’ life where He had proved that he was God’s Son?  He was about to be led into the wilderness for 40 days to fast. These very words that His Father spoke to Him were about to be tested.

“If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

 “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down.”

 Why would satan come after Jesus’ identity? Didn’t Jesus know who He was? Of course He did. I believe the devil was trying to get Jesus to step outside of His identity and do something apart from His relationship with the Father.

Jesus had nothing to prove. His identity came from who He was, not what He did. It’s the same with us. Jesus is our pattern.

When I began to realize this truth, I experienced freedom like I had never known before. Look at this:

“…having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.” (Ephesians 1:5-6)

Wow! So get this, from the moment you received Him as your Lord, the Father says the same thing about you that He said about Jesus! Oops! Let me correct that. He has always had those thoughts toward you. He just waits patiently for us to acknowledge it. You are completely loved and accepted as a son/daughter of God. There is nothing you or I could ever do to make Him love and accept us more than He does right now.

Because of that, I no longer live for love and acceptance, but from love and acceptance. That’s an amazing place to live. I’m a son. If I really know I’m a son, I’ll act like a son.

His beloved son,

Kevin

 

 

When I was a young boy, perhaps 9 or 10 years old, if someone had asked me to draw a picture of what I thought God looked like, I probably would have drawn something completely different than I would now. The picture I had in my mind as a child was that of a stern, menacing looking old man waiting for me to disobey. Punishment was surely awaiting me. God was the Great Punisher. That was my concept of what He was like.

That idea would shape my thinking and consequently my behavior for many years after that. When God is The Punisher, you live your life in fear of punishment. So why am I giving you this personal glimpse into my past? It’s an example of how satan will deceive us concerning the nature of God.

How different our world would be if we were all taught from birth the true nature of God and saw it demonstrated before us. It would be impossible to completely cover the topic of God’s nature in this one blog article, so I won’t attempt it. However, what I will do is share with you how God enabled me to tear down the “punisher” concept and replace it with the correct one.

As a direct result of this false concept of God, I had developed a toxic thought. That thought became an established way of thinking for me. To sum it up in one sentence, that thought was: I and others who fail should be punished. The Apostle Paul tells us as believers that we are to be casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. (2 Cor. 10:5)

There were two character traits of God that I was missing revelation on –  God is Love, and God is Good. I’ll cover these two more in depth in future blog posts. I knew I couldn’t go on allowing this toxic thinking to have its way any longer. It influenced so many decisions I had made, not to mention the impact it had on relationships.

When a toxic thought is destroyed, it must be replaced with a healthy thought. For me, the new healthy thought was – “I see myself and others as the objects of His love.”

            1 John 4:10-11 (The Message) says “This is the kind of love we are talking about – not that we once upon a time loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God.

            My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other.”

We’re talking about unconditional love here. Love that is not earned or deserved. You can’t adequately love others if you don’t know that you’re unconditionally loved.

So, through the direction of the Holy Spirit, I was able to identify this toxic thought and replace it with “I see myself and others as the objects of His love.”

I did this for 21 days (said it to myself multiple times each day). I was blown away at the change that started happening in my mind. I began to see myself and others in a different light. There were regular (and still are) times alone in His presence when I would feel like I was literally being immersed in the love of God. A baptism of love, if you will!

1 John 4:18 (NKJV) says “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear has torment (punishment). But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.”

In my journey I’ve been discovering what this perfect love looks like. Jesus! I’ve found myself more and more being drawn back to the gospels and studying the life of Jesus when he lived as a man on this earth. All of the libraries in the world couldn’t hold everything that could be said about this man and I sure won’t attempt to in this blog. Do you want to know what love looks like? Look at Jesus. Do you want to know what good looks like? Look at Jesus. Do you want to know what God looks like? Look at Jesus.

I’ll end with a quote taken from C. S. Lewis’ “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia, #1):

“Aslan is a lion – the Lion, the great Lion.” “Ooh” said Susan. “I’d thought he was a man. Is he quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion”…”Safe?” said Mr. Beaver…”Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”

 

He’s good.

 

Kevin