Danny Kept Me Up All Night!

I started hanging around with Christian kids in 1970 when I was 15 years old; the chief reason was a record breaking cross country runner named Danny Biebel. He was one of those young men who just seemed to do all things well. He was a son of a Baptist preacher who wasn't afraid to bring his faith to school, to races or to wherever he went. Danny was a natural leader and because of his athleticism, aspiring athletes were drawn to him - I sure was. He mentored us on running and the Bible and the discipline required for both of those studies.

In '72 I faced a crisis of faith and of being. My parents were headed toward divorce and a series of events that typically rocks the security and comfort zone of the children of divorce. I thought that being a Christian would make me immune from such messy disturbances. I wanted to be a Christian for the camaraderie, for the running, for the bliss. At 17 I was learning that Christianity doesn't change situations, doesn't stop catastrophes and demands your all not just your interest. The price was too much, my experiment with Christianity was over.

That's when the Lord sent Danny to my door. Every time I got together with Dan, there was an interesting ritual that took place.

Dan would ask, "How are you doing?"
"Fine", I would answer.
Then Dan would stare right into my eyes and there was a pause.
After a bit of discomfort Dan would ask, "How are you doing... really?"
"No really, great, I'm fine."
Then Dan would shift his body and look away for a moment, as if to say "Stop wasting my time with small talk, you're avoiding the truth."
Then he would look back into me and cock his head and say, "No, I mean, how are you doing... really?"

I'm not sure what Dan would have done or said next, THAT was always enough to get me to turn from my denial and admit that things were bad and I was hurting. I told him that I don't want Christ anymore, it's not what I was expecting.

Dan said, "Let's go for a ride."

We drove to the home of a family in the church and Dan asked if we could use their upper room. They said sure. Dan and I went up and sat on the floor for a few hours as he recounted Bible promises and I resisted. He spoke again of Christ's sacrifice but it wasn't enough. He asked me if I wanted to pray - I said "No".

Finally we left and being the middle of the night I was relieved that he would take me home. Instead we drove across the river into New Hampshire and up onto a high hill in Plainfield where the view was amazing. Above us was a vast canopy of stars and below were the lights of houses in the valley. We sat for a long time in silence and then he asked again, "Would you like to pray?"

"No"

Dan said, "You see all those lights down there?

"Yes".

"How many of those people do you think have problems?"

Interesting, with that question I now felt that it was God himself who was staring into me and then looking away to let me know He didn't appreciate me wasting time with small talk and avoidance.

Dan explained that God doesn't take our problems away but he also doesn't let us go through them alone. That suffering is common among the children of men but that God brings purpose to our inflictions. I knew that if I was to turn to Christ again it wouldn't be for running, for family, for friends or for fun, it would be a surrender of everything, it would be a confession that I would be willing to lose it all for the prize of knowing Christ.

Being a distance runner, Danny's favorite Bible verse was Hebrews 12:1,2:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

Dan again turned to me and said, "So... do you want to pray?"
I knew that the Christian walk would never again be easy but I said "Yes."

Danny had inspired me to become a runner and I thought winning the race was the goal, but in the end he was my hero because he showed me that we win when we STOP and know that Jesus is Lord; that we are more than conquerors when we bow low and acknowledge God's sovereign will, and surrender to His love, His mercy, His plan.

Danny kept me up all night. Thank you Dan.

Judge Not, Lest Ye Be Judged. HUH?

I was critical of the attention (every major network) that was poured out on the Michael Jackson Memorial Service. I received the much used warning "Judge not lest ye be judged!"

Matthew 7:1 "Judge not, that you be not judged" is a verse so often torn from context and used by folks to try and shame or humiliate believers for drawing a line between right and wrong behavior or good and bad morals. This sentiment actually attacks our Lords teaching to be discerning.

1 Corinthians 6:2-3 "2 Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you incompetent to try trivial cases? 3 Do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, then, matters pertaining to this life!"

John 7:24 24 "Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”

Philippians 1:9-10 "9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ..."

Proverbs 3:21 "My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight"

Jeremiah 22:3 "This is what the LORD says: Do what is just and right.

We are called on daily and even hourly to make judgments about good and bad, right and wrong, healthy and destructive behavior. We would be lousy parents if we did not judge behavior by what God values and not teach our children to do the same.

Jesus taught us in Matthew 7 that we cannot know who will and who will not have eternal life in Him and he clearly taught us that none of us are without sin. I quickly admit that I am chief of sinners and apart from Christ I am deservedly lost and that God would be perfectly just in sending me to Hell for eternity. I fall on His mercy and trust that Christ took my sins upon himself and 'clothed' me in His own righteousness.

Now, as a believer and a father, I have a duty to be discerning; I have the right and authority, based on God's Word,and in order that I might honor God's Word, to judge wrong, bad and destructive behavior.

Seven of America's finest and bravest died in Afganistan the day before Michael Jackson's memorial service yet we had to endure wall to wall coverage of the adoration, glorification and worship of a self professed "Peter Pan" of low moral public character.

A grown man who shares his bed with young children, grabs his crotch for all the world to see, hates himself so much he would mutilate his body and face is NOT a good role model. That is a no brainer. I don't care how well he moon walked or if a hundred little girls sob that he was the greatest dad in the world, he practiced destructive behavior that must be discouraged in our young people. The glorification of this man/boy was way over the top.

The sad question is, in the culture of enabling that he lived in, among all those tearful mourners on stage and in the spotlights, was there not one discerning friend or family member who would say, "Michael, you can't live this way... you are going to kill yourself?"

Lord, give us good judgment and help us to honor You with discerning minds and loving hearts.

Is Chocolate a Sin? Part Four

The Devil
The third hindrance to repentance is the devil. I don’t believe I need to tell you of all the ways the devil tempts us. He is a liar, a deceiver, he wants us defeated, depressed and dead. I want to let you in on what has been a secret to most. It’s Satan’s most powerful and commonly used scheme and yet many of the churched fall easily into it. Entire ministries may be serving this scheme and that’s downright frightening.

This scheme was working perfectly on this rich young ruler. It was revealed in these words - “All these I have kept from my youth.” This was a good man, he was really trying hard to be good. Satan is evil, Satan is cruel and he’s a liar but many miss the most important attribute of Satan. He is an expert in goodness. If he can’t get you to fall morally then he will use moral goodness to set you on the wrong path.

It may very well be that Satan’s scheme for you is to be a good as you possibly can in the flesh. Do you commit adultery? No, that’s good, your a good person. Do you murder or steal? No, that’s great. Surely you will go to heaven. Do you lie? No! Do you honor your father and mother? Yes, very good, what more do you need to do. You’ve got the bases covered. You are winning!

You won’t hear this very often but Satan wants you to be good. In fact he wants you to think you are good enough to have eternal life apart from Christ. He wants you to think that because you prayed a prayer when you were younger that you are going to heaven. It doesn’t matter that you haven’t opened his Word since, or that you live for yourself - you prayed that prayer, that was your ticket.

Examine yourselves, do not measure your self against the world and do not trust in your flesh to be good. Certainly do not trust Satan when he tells you there is a way to heaven that goes around the cross. Measure yourselves against the Word.

What does the Word say? it is clear and don’t let anyone confuse you. Ephesians 2 -
2:1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

That is good news, that is THE good news.

So should we strive to do good. Yes, of course. But never work to do good thinking that you can improve your standing before God. We strive to do good because of what has already been done for us. If someone walked up to you and paid off all your financial debt do you think you might express some form of appreciation. “Thanks for paying off my 750,000 dollar debt, here are some brownies my wife made”. I don’t think that would be your response.

How would you express your appreciation to one who brought you from death to life - from eternal damnation to eternal blessing? It’s not complicated. Jesus said simply, ‘If you love me, obey my commandments’. Don’t tell your Lord and Savior that you love him and continue in your sin. That’s not love, that’s lip service.’

We obey out of love and appreciation for what God has done. Furthermore, the Holy Spirit lives inside us. If that is true than sin no longer has mastery over us and we should see a change in our attitude toward the world, the flesh and the devil and a longing to be like Christ.

Now you may say but I am human, I can’t be perfect. That’s right so listen carefully. The goal of the Christian life is not perfection, the goal of the Christian life is CHANGE! We are being transformed, the Christian walk is transformational. Are you being changed?

Examine yourself. Are you being changed? Change should be what characterizes you life. Yes, you will struggle with sin but will you change? Will you confess your sin, repent of your sin and turn to Jesus in faith? The assurance of your salvation is not that you prayed a prayer, go to church, read your bible or give your money to the poor. The assurance of your salvation is based on what is happening in your life right now. Are you changing? Are you becoming more like the image of Christ. Peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Are these attributes part of your character and are they changing and increasing as you grow older? Do you find yourself more and more dependant on God’s Word and not the world’s philosophy? If not, there’s something wrong. If you are not changing than go to Jesus and ask for mercy on you, a sinner.

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17

All scriptures have been taken from the The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles

Is Chocolate a Sin? Part Three

The Flesh
The next hindrance is the flesh. This rich young man asked Jesus what he must do to be saved. Jesus told him to keep the commandments. The young man answered, “This I have done, from my youth.” Jesus’ answer here has also perplexed scholars for we all know that man is not saved by keeping the commandments. But what Jesus is doing here is not so hard to understand.

Do you remember in the book of Genesis, after man had sinned he went and hid, thinking that he could hide from God. When God came to them he asked a strange question. “Adam, where are you?” Why would God ask such a question. God knew where Adam was, there is no place we can go and be away from the presence of God. God knew exactly where Adam was, not just his location but the workings of his mind and the thinking process that drove Adam to think he could hide. God was really asking Adam “What do you think you are doing? Who do you think I am? What has happened to your love for me and your dependence on me?”

Jesus knows where this rich young man is at. He knows exactly what is going on in this man’s life and in his mind and he will bring this man right to the core of his problem in a very few words. Jesus even lists some of the commandments, all commandments from what’s called the ‘second table’, those that have to do with how we treat others.

This is a very decent young man, he really has been trying hard. Everyone knows him to be morally good and if you don’t believe it, just ask HIM. He’ll tell you. But Jesus can clearly see in this man’s heart that he has avoided the first table, the commandments regarding how we treat God. “You shall the love the Lord your God with all your heart, your soul, your mind, your strength.”

“One thing you still lack, go and sell all that you have, distribute your money to the poor and come and follow me.” Ouch, nobody knew that he loved possessions more than God - but Jesus knew it. I don’t even think the young man knew that he didn’t love the Father more than his goods but Jesus just demonstrated it to him. Don’t think you can hide from God.

This man’s heart deceived him. The heart is deceitfully wicked above all things. If this young man hadn’t struggled with the flesh before, he was about to start. The flesh is our fallen sinful nature. The believer has two natures, a sinful nature and a new nature empowered by the Spirit of God. It is part of our transforming process to struggle against that old nature and subdue it. We will not escape the struggle until we stand before our Lord’s throne. This is God’s plan, but as believers we need not be ruled by sin. It need not control us.

Examine yourselves and see if you are being controlled by sin. The truth is we want to be free from the consequences of sin but we don’t want to stop loving our sin. Repent of your sins and turn to Christ.

Is Chocolate a Sin? Part Two

The World
Let’s see how the world has affected this wealthy young fellow. First off, we know that he is wealthy and wealth was and still is considered by many to be evidence of God’s approval. This young man was accustomed to be treated as one who has been abundantly blessed by God, he has made it in this life and is a shoo in for the life to come.

He is greatly respected. Luke tells us he was a ruler. Now that term could mean he was a member of the Sanhedrin or a civic leader but it most likely means he was a member of the upper class. He would be treated accordingly. In the musical, Fiddler On A Roof, Reb Tevye explains this treatment perfectly in the song “If I Were A Rich Man”.

The most important men in town would come to fawn on me!
They would ask me to advise them,
Like a Solomon the Wise.
“If you please, Reb Tevye...”
“Pardon me, Reb Tevye...”
Posing problems that would cross a rabbi’s eyes!
And it won’t make one bit of difference if I answer right or wrong.
When you’re rich, they think you really know!

This young man had the respect and honor and the approval of the world. He knew well how the system of the world worked. He loved the world and the world loved him. He ran up to Jesus and Luke tells us he got down on his knees and he said ‘good teacher’.

“Good teacher” was not a common greeting to a rabbi. This young man was going over the top in addressing Jesus. He was trying to flatter Jesus. He knew how it worked. People flattered this young man all the time. Jesus was drawing a crowd and this young man new the economy of popularity. “Good teacher!”

“Why do you call me good? Only God is good” This response has bewildered bible scholars for centuries because as a matter of fact the bible does speak of good men. So I believe the best explanation for our Lord’s response was to knock down the obvious empty flattery of this fellow. Jesus is letting him know that he does not march to the drummings of this fallen, pride-filled world.

There was another young man watching this scene play out who had given up everything for Jesus. He watched this rich young man, who the world had made great, putting on airs before the Christ and many years later the apostle John would write-

Do not love the world or the things in the world. “If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world - the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions - is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

At the time this was happening however, John’s response was bewilderment thinking ‘if it’s difficult for the wealthy to be saved then who can be saved.”

Now remember, when we speak of the ‘world’ we are speaking of that whole value-system which dominates society and it is contrary to the ways of God. The world puts very different price tags on things and thoughts than God’s Word does. Popularity, wealth, selfish ambition - these are the values of the world. If you want it, take it. If it feels good, do it. I’ve gotta be me. I don’t need to parade out examples of worldliness. We have TV and billboards that do that. Some of us will react in sadness and resoluteness against such worldliness but most of us won’t even notice, because we have been desensitized by the constant glut to our senses. Examine yourselves to see if you have been polluted by the world’s value system and repent of your love for this world.