Faith…such a strange concept. Hebrews 11:1-2 talks about it: 1Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2This is what the ancients were commended for.
Faith just seems so foreign to us. We want to touch. We want to see concretely. We want the mathematical proof. But faith doesn’t work that way. It’s so ironic, that one of my favorite cinema examples of faith…is from an atheist (Carl Sagan). In “Contact”, Ellie (played by Jodie Foster) discovers an alien civilization and gets to explore the universe through plans shared with her from the aliens. She has an amazing experience, yet no “proof” is available. She knows she was gone for hours, traveling millions of light-years…but the video from earth shows her just being “gone” 8 seconds…with no video…just static. It is especially ironic, because she proclaims the entire movie about how she dismisses the concept of faith…and yet, at a hearing to discuss her experience, she has to admit that those around her must take her story “on faith.” We have to just trust her experience…”by faith”. The naysayers are mocking her…but there is evidence of her experience out there…”There were over 12 hrs of static…”
Is that like our faith at times? We know what we believe, maybe we have experienced something supernatural…but others can’t relate. Or sometimes even we so easily forget what we know… But there are glimpses of “something” out there, something other-worldly…just like that tape…
Look at these two explanations of faith: First, Matthew 17:18-20: 18Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed from that moment.
19Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, "Why couldn't we drive it out?"
20He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."[a]
Next, check out Philippians 4:13: 13I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
Faith is hard to come by at times, believe me, I know all too well. Sometimes it seems natural, but sometimes…I have to almost “re-convince” myself of my beliefs. But I have had some experiences where the ONLY thing explaining what “just happened” was a faith-thing…and I realize no one else can truly accept it unless they have faith as well. But sometimes, it’s all too hard, or confusing, or boring, etc. But we need to often ask ourselves, “Why is it I believe?” I know some of you will say, “no idea, Ben!”, and hopefully that bothers you and makes you seek God. I know some say, “Well, I can’t articulate it…but I do believe and I do see little glimpses of God’s truth here-and-there.” That’s good! And some can even give detailed, long, passionate stories of God’s evidence in their life…of how they KNOW Jesus saved them from the pit…
So, do you have faith in the unseen? A CERTAINTY? Is your faith growing from something that may be small at first (or even now)? Do you truly believe that you persevere through anything due to your faith in God?
Things to Ponder
* What is the most miraculous, supernatural thing you’ve ever seen or experienced?
• Has God ever asked you to do something that seemed impossible? What happened?
• What does, “Faith of a mustard seed” mean?
• Is following God sometimes like being blindfolded?
• When has God answered your faith in some special way? Did your faith grow as a result?
• What “impossible” things does God want you to do?
Showing posts with label church words. Show all posts
Showing posts with label church words. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Friday, April 11, 2008
Church Words: Pride
Recently I wrote about “humility”…some good discussions were had on that tough word. We saw how one of the antonyms was “pride”. Now, we aren’t talking about being proud of your kid doing something cool necessarily (although “bad pride” can creep into that, too), but more accurately this: thinking too highly of yourself, especially in relationship to God. Let’s look deeper at this issue…first, however, there's a scene from “Karate Kid" I'd love to visit. You know that part where Daniel-son finally flips out on Miyagi's "training"? And Mr. Miyagi basically exposes Daniel-son's folly? Daniel-son has been seeking martial arts training from Mr. Miyagi. Problem is, his motives are all wrong. He wants revenge against bullies. Wants to go kick their booties. Mr. Miyagi, however, wants to teach him ways to respect himself and use karate only as a defense tool. He also uses some indirect methods to teach…frustrating Daniel-son as he thinks it’s all a waste of time. Mr. Miyagi, thus, exposes this prideful attitude…
Why is pride such a big deal? Romans 12:3-5 shares some wisdom…I’m using “The Message” translation today: 3I'm speaking to you out of deep gratitude for all that God has given me, and especially as I have responsibilities in relation to you. Living then, as every one of you does, in pure grace, it's important that you not misinterpret yourselves as people who are bringing this goodness to God. No, God brings it all to you. The only accurate way to understand ourselves is by what God is and by what he does for us, not by what we are and what we do for him.
4-6In this way we are like the various parts of a human body. Each part gets its meaning from the body as a whole, not the other way around. The body we're talking about is Christ's body of chosen people. Each of us finds our meaning and function as a part of his body. But as a chopped-off finger or cut-off toe we wouldn't amount to much, would we? So since we find ourselves fashioned into all these excellently formed and marvelously functioning parts in Christ's body, let's just go ahead and be what we were made to be, without enviously or pridefully comparing ourselves with each other, or trying to be something we aren't.
“…pridefully and enviously comparing ourselves…” This is but one area where pride is a big problem. We compare ourselves with others way too easily, often deciding we are “Better” than others in some way. God tells us this is not his way. But that leads into the ultimate deal about pride: it’s almost like we are playing “god”. Think about it. How often do you read or hear something about God, or a command, etc., and you go, “Yeah, whatever,” or, “Not for me”. Or maybe you do realize the purpose of these things, but decide you are stronger than you truly are…and thus don’t protect yourself against certain temptations. Watch out: before you know it, your pride will be your downfall…
Luke 6:46-49 (NIV): 46"Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say? 47I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. 48He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete."
Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV): 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.
Are you crying out “Lord, Lord!” and yet still being too prideful to pay attention? Are you leaning on your own understanding because you think too highly of yourself?
Things to Ponder...• Why was Daniel-son so upset with Mr. Miyagi?
• How do you think Daniel-son felt at the end of the session? What changed his attitude?
• Why is it so important to learn the fundamentals of something before attempting it?
• What are some characteristics that made Mr. Miyagi a good teacher? What made Jesus a great teacher?
• Do you personally trust God with your life even if you may not understand (or like) everything he asks? When has this frustrated you? When did lessening your pride and trusting God have benefits?
Why is pride such a big deal? Romans 12:3-5 shares some wisdom…I’m using “The Message” translation today: 3I'm speaking to you out of deep gratitude for all that God has given me, and especially as I have responsibilities in relation to you. Living then, as every one of you does, in pure grace, it's important that you not misinterpret yourselves as people who are bringing this goodness to God. No, God brings it all to you. The only accurate way to understand ourselves is by what God is and by what he does for us, not by what we are and what we do for him.
4-6In this way we are like the various parts of a human body. Each part gets its meaning from the body as a whole, not the other way around. The body we're talking about is Christ's body of chosen people. Each of us finds our meaning and function as a part of his body. But as a chopped-off finger or cut-off toe we wouldn't amount to much, would we? So since we find ourselves fashioned into all these excellently formed and marvelously functioning parts in Christ's body, let's just go ahead and be what we were made to be, without enviously or pridefully comparing ourselves with each other, or trying to be something we aren't.
“…pridefully and enviously comparing ourselves…” This is but one area where pride is a big problem. We compare ourselves with others way too easily, often deciding we are “Better” than others in some way. God tells us this is not his way. But that leads into the ultimate deal about pride: it’s almost like we are playing “god”. Think about it. How often do you read or hear something about God, or a command, etc., and you go, “Yeah, whatever,” or, “Not for me”. Or maybe you do realize the purpose of these things, but decide you are stronger than you truly are…and thus don’t protect yourself against certain temptations. Watch out: before you know it, your pride will be your downfall…
Luke 6:46-49 (NIV): 46"Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say? 47I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. 48He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete."
Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV): 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.
Are you crying out “Lord, Lord!” and yet still being too prideful to pay attention? Are you leaning on your own understanding because you think too highly of yourself?
Things to Ponder...• Why was Daniel-son so upset with Mr. Miyagi?
• How do you think Daniel-son felt at the end of the session? What changed his attitude?
• Why is it so important to learn the fundamentals of something before attempting it?
• What are some characteristics that made Mr. Miyagi a good teacher? What made Jesus a great teacher?
• Do you personally trust God with your life even if you may not understand (or like) everything he asks? When has this frustrated you? When did lessening your pride and trusting God have benefits?
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Church Words: humility
hu•mil•i•ty
–noun
the quality or condition of being humble; modest opinion or estimate of one's own importance, rank, etc.
________________________________________
[Origin: 1275–1325; ME humilite < L humilitās. See HUMBLE, -TY2 ]
—Synonyms lowliness, meekness, submissiveness.
—Antonyms pride.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
• Humility is a tough concept to strive for. I mean, who wants to seek “meekness” as a goal? But, since our faith is often so “upside down” (to quote musician Derek Webb), it is exactly what God tells us to strive for. Matthew 5:5.
• If you search “humble” in the NIV, you get 71 hits… “humility” gets you 15 more. I know that some things may be “lost in translation”, but it is pretty clear that humility is a theme in scripture, but one we tend to not value. Why? Because we seek power. Notice the “antonym” to humility in that definition above? PRIDE.
• Some scriptures to read and ponder: Proverbs 3:34; Matt. 18:3-5; Eph. 4:2; James 4:6, 10
• Two tough example of Jesus’ call to humble attitudes are found in Matt. 5. First, Matt. 5:38-40. You know, “turn the other cheek”. Problem is, our “gut instinct” is to get revenge. I see it all the time, even in this group. You know, “he/she did/said it to me first!”. We feel entitled. I think there is a difference in defending oneself…and revenge. But even this seems to indicate we should seek to “kill with kindness.” Think about it: if you just totally slammed someone, and in stead of fighting back, they did/said something nice, how would you respond? Second, look at Matt. 5:43-45. “Love your enemies…pray for those who persecute you…” Ouch. “Gee God, can I get out of that one?”
• Bottom line is that we just don’t do well with this…being humble is almost just seen as a “nice trait” if that adjective is used to describe you…but it almost seems equated with “pushover” or “weak”. So, what is up God’s sleeve in wanting us to be humble?
Things to Ponder:
• If you were a great, skilled general or leader, how would you act toward “underlings”?
• What are reasons to not be humble?
• Do any of you have a personal example of a time you didn’t fight back…and it actually made the situation better for you?
• Why do you think Jesus wants us to be humble…turning the other cheek…loving enemies?
• How would things be different if we loved and prayed for our enemies…really? Instead of hating them, wanting/getting revenge, etc.?
–noun
the quality or condition of being humble; modest opinion or estimate of one's own importance, rank, etc.
________________________________________
[Origin: 1275–1325; ME humilite < L humilitās. See HUMBLE, -TY2 ]
—Synonyms lowliness, meekness, submissiveness.
—Antonyms pride.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
• Humility is a tough concept to strive for. I mean, who wants to seek “meekness” as a goal? But, since our faith is often so “upside down” (to quote musician Derek Webb), it is exactly what God tells us to strive for. Matthew 5:5.
• If you search “humble” in the NIV, you get 71 hits… “humility” gets you 15 more. I know that some things may be “lost in translation”, but it is pretty clear that humility is a theme in scripture, but one we tend to not value. Why? Because we seek power. Notice the “antonym” to humility in that definition above? PRIDE.
• Some scriptures to read and ponder: Proverbs 3:34; Matt. 18:3-5; Eph. 4:2; James 4:6, 10
• Two tough example of Jesus’ call to humble attitudes are found in Matt. 5. First, Matt. 5:38-40. You know, “turn the other cheek”. Problem is, our “gut instinct” is to get revenge. I see it all the time, even in this group. You know, “he/she did/said it to me first!”. We feel entitled. I think there is a difference in defending oneself…and revenge. But even this seems to indicate we should seek to “kill with kindness.” Think about it: if you just totally slammed someone, and in stead of fighting back, they did/said something nice, how would you respond? Second, look at Matt. 5:43-45. “Love your enemies…pray for those who persecute you…” Ouch. “Gee God, can I get out of that one?”
• Bottom line is that we just don’t do well with this…being humble is almost just seen as a “nice trait” if that adjective is used to describe you…but it almost seems equated with “pushover” or “weak”. So, what is up God’s sleeve in wanting us to be humble?
Things to Ponder:
• If you were a great, skilled general or leader, how would you act toward “underlings”?
• What are reasons to not be humble?
• Do any of you have a personal example of a time you didn’t fight back…and it actually made the situation better for you?
• Why do you think Jesus wants us to be humble…turning the other cheek…loving enemies?
• How would things be different if we loved and prayed for our enemies…really? Instead of hating them, wanting/getting revenge, etc.?
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