Album Cuts and Lactose Intolerance in the Name of the Faith

I love me some Jimi Hendrix, but Experience Hendrix: The Best of Jimi Hendrix just makes me mad to no end.

Yeah, yeah, it's got "Foxey Lady" and "Purple Haze" as well as all the other Hendrix songs you're gonna hear on any classic rock station across the country in any given day. And if you've somehow managed to go through your whole life to this point never hearing a single Jimi Hendrix song, Experience Hendrix would definitely be a decent start, but if that's the only Hendrix you ever hear... Oh, you just don't know Jimi Hendrix.

Where's "Third Stone from the Sun"? Where's "Wait Until Tomorrow"? Where's "Burning of the Midnight Lamp"?

If you actually want to experience Hendrix, Experience Hendrix is not the place to go. Go pick up Are You Experienced?, Axis: Bold as Love, and Electric Ladyland, give those a listen, and then you can say that you've scratched the surface of knowing what Jimi Hendrix's music really meant. But even that's really just a start. You still haven't heard Band of Gypsys, or the Live at Woodstock recording, or any of the hundreds of hours of material available outside of the confines of those original three studio albums.

And again, it's not like there's anything on Experience Hendrix that isn't good. It's just that it's missing the crazy awesome stuff. The only way to hear the crazy awesome is to really get into the original albums and live recordings and rare bonus material and all of that. That's when you can know Hendrix.

As you may have gathered, I am also kind of a fan of God. But there's a sort of "greatest hits of God" mentality out there that I'm not really comfortable with.

Don't get me wrong, salvation is pretty awesome. Heaven will be better than I can imagine, and I've got a pretty awesome idea or three about how it's gonna be up there. But there is more to the story. There is more to this faith than the simple ideas of sin and redemption, Heaven and Hell, good and evil...

We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And God permitting, we will do so.

- Hebrews 5:11-6:3

Did you catch that? Repentance from sin, faith in God, eternal judgment... child's play. Infantile material. Milk.

I am ready for some meat.

It has become painfully obvious to me that there are a great many people in today's Christianity who are complacent with their faith. They may have a far better grasp than some (including myself) on the idea of approaching strangers with the Gospel of the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Jesus Christ of Nazareth... but that's kinda where it stops for a lot of people.

That's not where it stops for me, and I don't think that's where it stops for God, either.

In a way I quite understand why some people are put off by Theology. I remember once when I had been giving a talk... an old, hard-bitten officer got up and said, "I've no use for all that stuff. But mind you, I'm a religious man too, I know there's a God, I've felt Him: out alone in the desert at night; the tremendous mystery. And that's just why I don't believe all your neat little dogmas and formulas about Him. To anyone who's met the real thing they all seem so petty and pedantic and unreal!"

Now in a sense I quite agree with that man. I think he probably had a real experience of God in the desert. And when he turned from that experience to the Christian creeds, I think he really was turning from something real to something less real. In the same way, if a man has once looked at the Atlantic from the beach, and then goes and looks at a map of the Atlantic, he will also be turning from something real to something less real: turning from real waves to a bit of colored paper.

But here comes the point. The map is admittedly only colored paper, but there are two things you have to remember about it. In the first place, it is based on what hundreds and thousands of people have found out by sailing the real Atlantic. In that way it has behind it masses of experience just as real as the one you could have from the beach; only, while yours would only be a single isolated glimpse, the map fits all those different experiences together. In the second place, if you want to go anywhere, the map is absolutely necessary. As long as you are content with walks on the beach, your own glimpses are far more fun than looking at a map. But the map is going to be more use than walks on the beach if you want to get to America.

Now, Theology is like that map. Merely learning and thinking about Christian doctrines, if you stop there, is less real and exciting than the sort of thing my friend got in the desert. Doctrines are not God: they are only a kind of map. But that map is based on the experiences of hundreds of people who really were in touch with God--experiences compared with which any thrills or pious feelings you and I are likely to get on our own are very elementary and very confused.

And secondly, if you want to get any further, you have to use the map. You see, what happened to that man in the desert may have been real, and was certainly exciting, but nothing comes of it. It leads nowhere. There is nothing to do about it. In fact, that is just why a vague religion--all about feeling God in nature, and so on--is so attractive. It is all thrills and no work; like watching waves from the beach. But you will not get to Newfoundland by studying the Atlantic that way, and you will not get eternal life by simply feeling the presence of God in flowers or music. Neither will you get anywhere by looking at maps without going to sea. Nor will you be very safe if you go to sea without a map.

- C.S. Lewis, from Mere Christianity

As I've been looking for work in a church setting, I've come across an oft-quoted statistic that says that anywhere between one-half to two-thirds to seven-tenths of the kids who grow up in church wind up leaving by the time they're out on their own. Why is that? I think it's largely due to the fact that the church at large is promoting a type of mentally hollow Christianity.

I've been to the big youth rallies and the late night communion services and the sunrise devotionals... And I'm not about to say that those are not good things. They are wonderful. There is absolutely nothing wrong with those... Unless they're simply attempts to emotionally manipulate the audience into feeling a connection with God.

If a youth minister delivers a devotional thought that has all of the kids in his youth group crying their eyes out but doesn't actually engage their minds, what good does it do? As soon as there's something funny to distract from the emotional manipulation, the focus on God is completely gone.

I don't feel a connection between two and two that feels like four. I know it. So, in the same way, I want people - myself very much included - to know God.

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

- II Corinthians 10:3-5

It seems to me that we have come to a point in modern Christendom where we've stopped trying to KNOW more about God. We've become content with the things we already think we understand, confident that we've studied enough to pass the test, and conceited to the point of blindness to any further understanding of what the Bible is actually talking about.

Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.

- Romans 10:1-4

Paul's beef with the Israelites was that they had become complacent in their knowledge of God. Their hearts - their feelings - were all ablaze for God, and that's definitely a commendable thing But their minds had become closed off to true understanding of the deeper truth of who God is and who He wants us to be, and so they wound up condemning themselves.

Let's not do that.

It seems to me that the only way to really get this is to go deeper. Deeper into the Bible, deeper into the understanding of God, deeper into theology... Deeper. Just go deeper.

We're not meant to keep repeating the same things over and over and over.

Yes, Jesus died for our sins.

Yes, adultery is bad. So are murder and car theft.

Yes, faith in God is essential.

Let's get past that.

That's infantile material in the growth of a Christian. Those are elementary steps. We should all be way, way, WAY past that.

I'm not saying we've all got to sit down together and start reading the works of Kierkegaard, although that would definitely put a smile on my face (and an ache in my head). But can't we maybe start looking at the true definition of righteousness? Can't we start working towards a deeper understanding of the nature of God? Can't we start looking at the eschatological framework of the repatriation of post-exilic Israel and how the rebuilding of the temple is meant to show us a glimpse into the forgiving nature of God?

Can't we get past the easy stuff?

We aren't making mountains out of molehills - we're making sermon series out of simple elementary truths that we all should have understood once we actually became Christians. So why do we wind up running over these things again and again and again?

Look, all I'm saying is that the foot-washing devo can only be done so many times before it starts to be repetitive. (So many times = once.)

There is MORE TO THIS than most people are willing to accept. Why? Are they happy with where their faith is? Do they think that it's good enough to just accept Jesus and move on with life?

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

- Romans 12:2

In Deuteronomy 6:5, Moses tells Israel to "Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." However, in Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, and Luke 10:27, Jesus adds one... "Love the Lord your God... with all your mind."

Christianity is not a religion of stupid faith. We are called to a higher understanding, a deeper knowledge. There are some hard things in the Bible. Don't be afraid of them, but embrace them openly that you may become better acquainted with the whole of who God is, and then be able to distinguish - for yourself - the difference between good and evil.

The World - like, the evil thing we're supposed to be in but not of - says that Christianity is a religion that suppresses reason and education and learning and wisdom and free thought. My Bible says fairly differently. I'd like for us to all start proving the World wrong.

May God bless your mind as you seek Him with your whole being. Amen.

Wisdom Hurts

So I realized why God is keeping me single for now, and it isn't exactly thrilling.

I really want to be a husband. I really want to be a father. I want a family. Bad.

But I also want to be a GOOD husband and a GOOD father. I've been convinced for quite some time now that I'm ready for both of those things, yet I have remained single, despite my very best efforts to change that.

And I finally figured out what the hold up is. God is trying to keep me single in order to keep me from cheating on my wife.

I'm not at all comfortable with saying this openly, but I've been trying all day to come up with literally anything else to talk about, and that's not happening, so I guess I gotta lay this out. I'm something of a womanizer. And that's bad.

I'm not at all proud of it. I know it's bad. I've made a lot of mistakes with a good sized handful of different girls over the years. There have been some I've just treated like absolute objects, some others I've idolized as visions of perfection. I'm a very passionate guy. I am deeply romantic, emotionally reckless, physically aggressive...

Yeah, it's not good.

I've managed to maintain some false idea of "behaving myself", sticking to the willfully ignorant position of knowing that I've gone too far, but didn't ever go that far, so it's not really a sin, right?

As I've already said... it's not good.

I've been praying about this whole me-being-single thing for a while now... Like, a few years... It's never far from my mind. I cannot seem to find the strength to distance myself from my own desires, whether they are actually desires of the flesh or desires of the heart doesn't matter, because either way, those desires have been getting in the way of my relationship with God.

But God wants to help me change, and that's actually pretty awesome.

I'm not by any means there yet, but it's really thrilling to know that God wants to help me change my mind in such a way that I can see a physically attractive young woman (and they're everywhere) and treat her the way He wants me to treat her no matter what my relationship to her might or might not be. That is rather difficult for me to see actually being played out, but I know it's coming.

I also know it's going to be rough going for a while. Not so crazy about that, but I know it's necessary. I want to be purified in all things - I guess that means I have to go through the fire.

But what's amazing about this is that I'm actually not all that down on myself. I normally am after I have a realization like this. I just get really angry with my own shortcomings, get really depressed about my sins, and just do not give myself anything close to a break when it comes to accepting and learning from my past mistakes.

But this time, that's not happening. This time I think I'm actually understanding a bit of what Paul talks about with that thorn in the flesh deal...

To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

- 2 Corinthians 12:7-10

Call me crazy, but I'm to the point where I'm not quite as afraid of confronting my weaknesses anymore because I know that when my weaknesses come to light, that's when God is going to shine on through them anyway. For all of my temptations, struggles, lusts, concerns, pains, and everything else, God is still able to make me stand, not on my own two feet, but by finally fully trusting in Him to show me what I need to see in order to be the man He wants me to be.

But at the same time, some of this hurts.

Part of this whole understanding of my own lust-driven nature is accepting that God might actually be calling me to be single. I really, really, really hope that's not the case. And I'll be honest, the idea scares me. I have wanted to be a husband and father for as much of my life as I can remember. Even as a young, young, young boy, I wanted to be a daddy. And I still do. That desire has not gone away, and if it does, it won't be overnight. So much of my life up to this point has shaped and reinforced that desire in me to the point that I can't imagine my life being complete without it.

But then, two years ago, I couldn't imagine myself having the relationship with God that I have now, so it's not like my imagination should be used as any sort of defining standard for the actualities of the real world.

How often are we willing to take the brutal, unflinchingly honest looks at ourselves? How often do we check our own eyes for the logs instead of checking other people for sawdust? I am, quite frankly, embarrassed by all of this. I'm not so embarrassed as to not be able to write it up. Besides, who of you is any closer to or further from God's standard of holiness than I am? We're all in the same boat.

What I'm embarrassed about though is realizing that the root of all of my problems was me. I railed against God, mad as a hornet because things aren't working out my way. It's seriously been throwing me off track just because I've been SO focused on getting SOMETHING to happen that I couldn't just sit still for five minutes and realize that maybe God still had something else to work over in me. And here I'd thought He was all done.

I've already learned so much and come so far and grown at such an exponential rate that it's hard for me to understand why I still mess up, and especially on things that I kinda feel like should already have been taken care of. I'm disappointed in myself when I make the same mistakes that I've been making for years. How have I not overcome this? Is it hopeless? Am I doomed to constant failure?

Well, yes. On my own, at least. I do still get frustrated with myself when I see the apparent lack of progress in my life, but I know that I'm doing a lot better than I used to, and that really is amazing, because I know that's not me. That's God.

I don't know where you are with God. I don't know how actively you see Him working in your life, but He's definitely working on me every day. There's not a day that goes by in which God doesn't show me something else, and it's everywhere I look.

The only snag is that sometimes I don't want to see it, because it hurts. Sometimes I don't want to face it because it's really scary what might be on the other side. I might have to give up something that I've wanted for my whole life. I might have to give up something that I consider to be a very part of who I am.

But if I'm getting rid of it in order to be closer to God, is that bad? Can I really be upset about that?

I don't have any great huge point to make here. I would like your prayers. I know I'm starting down a pretty difficult road - I'm going to be learning how to completely redefine my interaction with half of the human race - and I could use some encouragement. I could also use some patience, but that one's pretty much between me and God, I think.

I would like to encourage you to take a good, long, deep look at yourself. Ask God to show you what you need to see that's getting in your way to getting to Him. Even if it's something that you feel is completely insurmountable, look at it anyway. See where God is trying to take you. It might be a surprise how you wind up on the other end.

God loves you, no matter how often you try to convince Him otherwise.

Just kind of a rant thing...

I don't know if you know this already or not, but I'm looking for a church job of some sort. I don't have a Bible degree, no, but I do have a passion for God's people and an understanding of the Bible that I think can be used to help other people grow closer to Him. I've also got a mountain of student loans ready to come crashing down on my head, so, you know... job. Would be nice.

I've been applying for youth ministry positions as well as the regular pulpit job. I think I'd rather be a youth minister, just because I always get nervous talking to anybody over the age of 30. I still feel like I'm the same dorky kid I was in 9th grade, just obsessed with different comics. Holding respectable conversation with most adults means talking about... you know... stuff.

But as it is, I'm still unemployed, and I'll be honest, it's really starting to discourage me. And I think I'd be able to handle it a little better if the reasons made a bit more sense.

For instance... I know that there have been at least 5 churches I've applied to in the past year and some change that have refused to even look at my résumé just because I'm not married, which I find really interesting, since Paul specifically says in I Corinthians 7:1 that "It is good for a man not to marry."

I don't know why I'm even confused by this in the first place. So many of the churches I've interacted with ignore such huge chunks of scripture in the first place, why would I be surprised that they're ignoring other parts?

"Teacher," said John, "we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us."

"Do not stop him," Jesus said. "No one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us. I tell you the truth, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to Christ will certainly not lose his reward."

- Mark 9:38-41

I realize I don't have the Bible degree, can't read Greek, and am only 26 years old, so there's no way in the world I could possibly be right about this, but it seems to me - and again, I realize I'm just a young buck idiot here - that this passage is pretty clearly stating that Jesus is pretty cool with His followers being in different groups, so long as they're all focused on following Him. I mean, that's what I get out of it... But hey, what do I know?

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another."

- John 13:34-35

So, wait... Love? Love is supposed to be how people know we're Christians?

So... it's not when we were baptized that identifies us as Christians, but that we love each other? It's not what version of the Bible we read that identifies us as Christians, but that we love each other? It's not how often we take communion, how many services we attend each week, how big our building is, or what it says on the sign out front that identifies us as Christians, but that we just love each other?

Interesting.

I just got turned down for a job that I really wanted because I was too honest with my beliefs. The question of one particular woman's salvation came up after one of the services, and the issue at hand was this: this woman was raised in the Baptist church, and believes that when she repented of her sins and claimed Jesus Christ as her Savior, that's when her sins were forgiven. In due keeping of Christ's commands, she was then baptized in to Him, because hey, that's what Jesus and the apostles teach that we're supposed to do. But the issue was this: the church of Christ belief is that baptism itself is the point at which your sins are forgiven, so there's no way that this woman's baptism was accepted by God because she wasn't baptized for forgiveness of her sins, she was only baptized because that's what she believes God asked her to do.

So... this woman is apparently condemned to hell because she... did what God asked her to do? What?

Look - I believe that baptism is what forgives you of your sins. I'm not saying it isn't.

But since the woman was baptized anyway... WHO CARES? What does it even matter? She's accepted Christ, hasn't she? She knows He's the only way her sins can be forgiven, doesn't she? She went through the process of baptism, didn't she? She's trying her best to follow Him and do what He asks, isn't she?

There are some folks reading this who may be scandalized by this whole thing, but I'm so far beyond the point of caring about it that I can't even pretend I'll be upset about it, so I'll just lay it out. I don't think the "Church of Christ" - as a denomination (and yeah, we're a denomination, don't even try to play like we're not) - is the only way to get to Heaven. I don't think the c-of-C is the only way to be a good Christian.

Let's consider some more Scripture together, shall we?

At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, "Cornelius!"

Cornelius stared at him in fear. "What is it, Lord?" he asked.

The angel answered, "Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter. He is staying with Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea."

When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier who was one of his attendants. He told them everything that had happened and sent them to Joppa.

About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air. Then a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat."

"Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean."

The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean."

This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.

While Peter was wondering about the meaning of the vision, the men sent by Cornelius found out where Simon's house was and stopped at the gate. They called out, asking if Simon who was known as Peter was staying there.

While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, "Simon, three men are looking for you. So get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them."

Peter went down and said to the men, "I'm the one you're looking for. Why have you come?"

The men replied, "We have come from Cornelius the centurion. He is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people. A holy angel told him to have you come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say." Then Peter invited the men into the house to be his guests.

The next day Peter started out with them, and some of the brothers from Joppa went along. The following day he arrived in Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. But Peter made him get up. "Stand up," he said, "I am only a man myself."

Talking with him, Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. He said to them: "You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with a Gentile or visit him. But God has shown me that I should not call any man impure or unclean. So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection. May I ask why you sent for me?"

Cornelius answered: "Four days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes stood before me and said, 'Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor. Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner, who lives by the sea.' So I sent for you immediately, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us."

Then Peter began to speak: "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear Him and do what is right. You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. You know what has happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached— how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how He went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with Him.

"We are witnesses of everything He did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed Him by hanging him on a tree, but God raised Him from the dead on the third day and caused Him to be seen. He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that He is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about Him that everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through his name."

While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.

Then Peter said, "Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have." So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.

The apostles and the brothers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him and said, "You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them."

Peter began and explained everything to them precisely as it had happened: "I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was. I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles, and birds of the air. Then I heard a voice telling me, 'Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.'

"I replied, 'Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.'

"The voice spoke from heaven a second time, 'Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.' This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again.

"Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the house where I was staying. The Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man's house. He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, 'Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.'

"As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as He had come on us at the beginning. Then I remembered what the Lord had said: 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' So if God gave them the same gift as He gave us, who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could oppose God?"

When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, "So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life."

- Acts 10:1-11:18

Wait, did I just read that right? God accepted Cornelius and his household before they were even baptized?

Interesting.

And then the rest of the Christians back in Jerusalem gave Peter a hard time about associating with and accepting people who were different from them?

Interesting.

Or what about this?

When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

- Acts 8:14-17

So the folks in Samaria had been baptized, but hadn't yet been given the Holy Spirit? So baptism wasn't the only thing they needed?

Interesting.

I am a member of the Church of Christ because I believe it's the closest I've found to what God is asking us to do, but I don't for a second believe that we're so close that we've got an exclusive monopoly on the Truth.

Here's what I believe: Jesus Christ is the only way to get to God, and it is only through Christ that your sins can be forgiven. An important step in following Christ is baptism. Jesus Himself was baptized, so why on earth wouldn't we be?

But after that, it's living a life dedicated to truth, love, compassion, mercy, justice, fairness, patience, kindness, humility, evangelism, and so many other things that are so much bigger than baptism.

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel."

- Matthew 23:23-24

Yeah, baptism matters, don't get me wrong. But it's not about the baptism of the body, it's about the baptism of the heart.

When will people get that? When, Lord, when?

There are folks out there who just can't get past the differences between names on our churches, and I pity those people. I'm not even mad anymore. I can't be. It's too sad.

I fully realize that there may be prospective employers reading this post, and I fully realize that this post may endanger whatever career future I could have had within the churches of Christ, but I can hold my head up and say that I really just don't care.

I'd rather die broke and homeless because I held onto my convictions that Christianity is maybe - just maybe - a bit bigger than one specific group of people than to be wealthy (or at least debt-free) and know that the only reason I ever got one cent was because I sold out my faith.

It's not up to me, it's not up to you, and it's not up to anybody else down here who makes it up there. It's up to God, and God alone. So let's all stop trying to do His job.

Sympathy for an Apostle

John the Baptist had not yet been dead for a full day.

The crowds wouldn't leave Jesus alone, even in His grief for His cousin, but He felt love for them anyway and healed their sick. As the night grew closer, He fed them all - over five thousand people - with five loaves of bread and two fish.

Once it was dark, though, Jesus told the Twelve to get out into the boat and wait for Him. After He sent the crowds home, He retreated up to the side of the mountain to pray.

The wind on the sea was fierce, and the disciples were already uneasy when they saw the impossible: there was a figure walking towards the boat, right in the middle of the water, miles from the shoreline.

"What IS that? Is that... Is that a person?"

"No way, man... There's just no way. Whatever it is, it's not human. There is no way that's a person. It's gotta be a ghost, man... That is just not possible!"

Jesus shouted out, "Hey, guys! Cool it. It's Me, don't worry."

Peter recognized the Lord's voice and leaned over the bow to get a better glimpse through the wind and the rain and the rocking of the boat. "Jesus? Oh, wow... Jesus, if that's you... If it's you, Lord, tell me to get out to you in the water."

"Well..." replied Jesus. "What are you waiting for? Come on!"

Peter's heart was pounding in his ears as he climbed over the side of the boat and touched down in the water. Tears were streaming down his face, tears of exuberant joy, mixed with the spray of the saltwater and the grime of the day's travels. He was getting closer. He was almost standing right next to the Master! The Teacher! The Lord! He was right there!

And that's when Peter noticed the chill of the wind blowing through his clothes. That's when he noticed the fury of the lightning. That's when he realized just how far he was from the boat.

And then he felt the water splash up over his head as he floundered into the sea. Gasping for air and flailing his arms in a struggle to stay afloat in his heavy wool tunic, Peter managed to choke out a simple cry for help; "Jesus! Please, help me! Save me, Lord, please!"

Jesus, standing as tranquil as He had appeared when the disciples first spotted Him walking out across the deep, dark blue expanse, reached out His arm, clasped Peter's hand, and pulled him up. When Peter had caught his breath and wiped all the water out of his eyes, he cast a sheepish glance at Jesus, who smiled softly.

"Peter... What were you afraid of? You knew it was Me! You asked Me to call you out into the water! You wanted to come out to Me! So what in the world were you afraid of? Did you think I couldn't handle it? Haven't you already seen Me raise the dead, heal the sick, let the lame walk, the blind see, the deaf hear, and the mute speak? Haven't you seen demons tremble at my coming? Didn't you just see Me feed over five thousand people? Peter... That was TODAY! What on earth were you afraid of?

"Peter... What did you think was going to happen to you? I was right there! You could see me! You were close enough to touch me! What did you think could possibly happen to you? Where was your faith? You trusted Me enough to leave everything you had and follow Me, what's stopping you from trusting Me now? The wind was already up when you got out of the boat. Nothing changed when you got out and came to Me.

"Peter... Don't you know who I Am yet?"

As Peter looked in His eyes and listened, the boat drew near. Jesus helped Peter climb into the boat and then followed him up. On deck, the disciples were gathered around, gazing in wide-eyed wonder and amazement at Peter and the Rabbi.

It was Peter who first fell to his knees and said, "You are, without a doubt, the Son of God."

- Matthew 14:22-33 (AJRV)

I get Peter.

I can really relate to his whole story here. I get where he's coming from, because I've been in the same place.

I've caught that first glimpse of Jesus, way off in the distance, way out where things stop making sense, and I said, "Hey! If you want me, I'll come out there, You just gotta let me know!"

And so He let me know.

So I jumped out of the boat and started running where I did not think I could even stand. I ran with all my heart, focused solely on the One who called me out to Him, and He helped me do the impossible. He brought me out to Him, carried me to where He is, showed me what He sees... And it was wonderful.

But then... but then...

But then I started noticing everything. I started noticing how far out I really was. I started noticing how hard it can be living a life wholly focused on God - hard because the World is dedicated to dragging me down to its level, completely committed to getting me dirty again so I fit in.

And that's when I fell. That's when I lost my footing and went under. That's when my faith was shaken - when I stopped focusing on Him.

And that's when He pulled me up, dusted me off, and said...

"Hey. What were you worried about? What did you possibly think was going to happen to you? Haven't I already brought you through more stuff than you thought you could ever survive in the first place? Haven't I shown you more of Myself in ways you never thought you could ever understand? Haven't I been here with you for every step?

"What were you worried about? You could see Me! You could hear Me! You could touch Me! You were so close to Me, and then you got worried... About what? About money? About time? About the future? About the past? What was it? What was it that could possibly have taken your focus off of Me? What is there worth worrying about?

"Don't you know that I love you? Don't you know that I'm never going to give up on you? Don't you know who I AM?"

I want to trust God, because I sure know that I can't trust myself all that much.

I'm forgetful. He's not.

I'm easily distracted. He's not.

I'm weak and powerless. He, most certainly, is not.

And so I find myself once again standing out in the water, and I'll admit, it's up over my ankles and occasionally splashing up to my knees. I'm scared, I don't know what I'm being called to do, and I'm really not too thrilled about a lot of the challenges that are coming my way no matter what I do.

But I am standing. Not on my own strength, but on His. My faith is completely in Him, as completely as He holds my life.

Come on out here with me. The water's nice.

Is Crazy Really That Bad?

So... I really think it's at least a decent possibility that I might actually have gone completely crazy...

Because... uhh... God talks to me.

Yeah, I know. It's nuts.

But seriously, it's also incredibly awesome.

I don't really know where to go from there. It's not like you can just tell most folks "Oh, hey, my name is Aaron, and God talks to me," and then expect the conversation to really get much more interesting than that.

I know it sounds crazy. Believe it or not, it feels crazy. But really, there's no other way I can possibly describe what's going on other than that God is talking to me.

I don't really know what this is. I think, believe and feel that it's the Holy Spirit working in me in a way that a lot of us aren't really predisposed to believe happens anymore. I've been reading my Bible, I've been sharing what I'm going through with close friends, I've been praying non-stop... I'm really trying to make sure I'm hearing what I'm hearing, because if I'm just making it all up and calling it God on my own, then... well... I guess I'm crazy.

But really, is this kind of crazy so bad?

Everybody thought Noah was crazy.

I'm sure the same can be said of Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Samuel, David, Elijah, Elisha, Daniel... Or what about John the Baptist, Peter, Paul, John the Revelator, Philip, Stephen... or even Jesus Himself?

I don't want to sound like I think I'm on par with any of those guys.

But I do know that we all worship the same God.

So why can't my God work the same miracles today that He worked back then?

More to the point, I guess... Instead of why can't He... Why wouldn't He?

Let me make this super clear here: yes, I am really saying that I really think that God is delivering personal messages directly to me. I don't hear a voice from the clouds, I just know that He's talking to me.

Part of why I know He's talking to me is that I'm not the only person He's talking to, nor am I part of some exclusive group.

I have friends who are on this wavelength - we're seeing the same stuff and it's kinda scary all around. We all want the same thing - to know God as deeply as we can - but there is just so much of today's world that has told us that God retired. There are so many in the world - in Christianity - who feel that God, for some vaguely defined reason, stopped working the same miracles as He once did in the Bible, and as I understand it, that's got something to do with the Bible itself existing. Since we have the Bible, God doesn't pull out the fireworks anymore.

Well... I have a counter-theory.

What if God didn't stop working the miracles at all? What if the only reason we ever stopped seeing God doing awesome stuff - like no-possible-explanation-for-this-except-God stuff - is because we stopped looking?

What if we don't see miracles because we don't think they're out there?

The Bible is pretty consistent in getting out the point that if you are genuinely looking for God, He'll show Himself to you.

So... score another one for the Bible being awesome...

Another part of what lets me know that this - whatever this is - is from God is that it doesn't contradict the Bible. In fact, everything I'm reading in the Bible makes me think that this is exactly what the Bible is talking about.

Is the fruit of the Spirit in your life because you chose to be loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle and self-controlled?

Or has the Holy Spirit borne that fruit in your life, changing you to be loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle and self-controlled?

I don't know about you, but I know that - for myself - it's the latter. I am a better person because God came into my life in such an unbelievably huge way. And I think "unbelievably" might be a pretty big word there.

Just how unbelievable is it for you that God talks to me? Just how unbelievable is it for you that God changed me? Just how unbelievable is it for you that He wants to do the same with you?

Just how alive is God for you?

Do you believe that He did all that crazy miracle stuff?

Or do you believe that He does all that crazy miracle stuff?

I don't want to claim anything special or unique here - it's not. The salvation of Jesus Christ is not unique to me. The Bible is not my own little special secret book. This is open for everyone. Every single person on this planet can get here if they choose to do so.

I really hope you will choose to do so, because trust me, it's awesome out here. Yeah, it's... it's weird at times. It's scary sometimes. Above all, it's enough to make a guy really question himself as well as his faith, but so far, the answer to all of the questions has consistently been GOD, in gigantic impossible-to-miss ways.

If God isn't talking to me, whatever it is that is talking to me - my own crazy mind or some other force unknown - is certainly telling me a whole lot about some really awesome stuff going down.

If God isn't talking to me, I have sent those letters and made those phone calls and seen those people and had those conversations that have ultimately ended up in somebody seeing God in a huge, huge, huge way - whether it's me or the people I'm talking to or even all of us... And it doesn't make a lot of sense for anything except God to be doing that.

If God isn't talking to me, then I have somehow found the exact right mental instability, because it has made me nicer, kinder, more patient, more joyous, more loving... It's made me a better man, being this crazy.

If this is crazy, it is an awesome crazy, and I really hope you get it.

I don't know - you might already be here. Maybe we just haven't talked about it. But one thing that I've found is that when you meet somebody else who is here, you know. Pretty much right away. As soon as God comes up - which is very quickly - you just know that you're talking to someone else who is seeing the same thing as you, and it's earth-shattering. It's SO big.

So very big.

And it's everywhere.

And it's all the time.

And it's real.

It's unmistakable. It's unavoidable. It's undeniable.

It's God.

But what if I'm just seeing what I want to see?

Well, since what I want to see is God in the first place... How is that bad?

And didn't Jesus in fact tell us that if we want to see God, that we would?

Isn't that the whole point of the ask-seek-knock deal? Ask and you'll receive, seek and you'll find, knock and the door will be opened to you? Isn't that a promise from Jesus Himself?

But it sounds so crazy. God talks to me? Really? That's what the homeless guy on the sidewalk in front of the Walgreens said, too.

Well... Yeah... But like I said... People thought Noah was crazy. People thought Peter and the other apostles were drunk on Pentecost. In I Corinthians 14, Paul tells the Corinthians that when they're actually displaying their spiritual gifts, non-believers are just going to be confused and think that they're all crazy people.

So again... Is crazy really that bad?

Call me crazy if you must. I'll take it.

But I think God and I are going to some pretty amazing places with the crazy. So I'm definitely along for the ride.

Get on board with me. See where it goes. I promise you'll like it.

If you're already on board... Can't wait to see where we wind up together.

But either way... Let's talk about it.

Rules of Engagement #4 - Eating Meat (and the Eternal Consequences Thereof)

So this "Rules of Engagement" thing... I've been trying to focus on things that I at least know that I personally need to put into better practice when it comes to trying to reach out to the lost and bring them closer to God's vision for their lives.

In the first part, I talked about how it's important to actually stick to the discussion at hand. If someone asks me about my belief in God and the first answer I give them is just that God doesn't like them, then I'm probably not going to be the most effective champion for the cause of Christ.

In the second part, I talked about how it's important that we all understand that my sins, your sins, his sins, her sins, their sins... it's all the same. Once we understand that all of us have committed the exact same infractions against God and are definitely all worthy of the exact same punishment, it's a lot easier to think about everybody getting into the exact same grace and the exact same Love.

In the third part, I talked about how it's important that we all really grasp the idea that it's OK if somebody's Christianity is a little different from ours. For starters, it's not my responsibility to make sure someone else's faith is perfect - that decision is ultimately their own, as is mine when it comes to my own faith. Beyond that, Jesus says in Luke 9:50 that "...whoever is not against you is for you," and I think it'd be a good idea to remember that.

So here in this 4th (and final) part, I want to actually lay down what I've been building towards, built on all three of those things before it. So get your head ready, because I'm actually very scared of what I'm about to say, and I realize that it's a fearful topic for a lot of other people, too.

Let's start off with a story.

Just a hair over 9 years ago now, I threw a shindig at a family friend's house with some friends to celebrate the end of the school year. I was grilling hamburgers and we were all going to watch a movie. The movie we wound up watching was Tombstone. If you've never seen Tombstone... oh, you poor soul. It's a fantastic movie. It's a fairly historically accurate account of the events that led up to and came after the infamous shootout at the OK Corral, with Kurt Russel as Wyatt Earp, Val Kilmer as Doc Holliday, Sam Elliott as Virgil Earp, and Sam Elliott's Mustache as Executive Producer.

Oh, and it's rated R. That's important here.

It's not porn or anything - it's a cowboy movie. People shoot each other. The bad guys are REALLY bad. Cuss words a'plenty.

And yeah, it's totally one of my favorite movies.

So we're watching Tombstone for this thing, and I told everybody who was coming well in advance that we were watching Tombstone. I hold the friends from my freshman year in college very dear to my heart, but some of them just were not the kinds of folks who'd dig on a cowboy movie, so I wanted to give them all a chance to bow out gracefully if that was going to be a problem for them.

One friend of mine took me up on that offer, except for the gracefully bowing out part. She informed me that she wouldn't watch any movie that's rated R. I told her that Tombstone is, in fact, rated R, so it looked like she wouldn't be watching the movie, then, didn't it?

The night of the cookout rolled around and we'd all enjoyed my - quite frankly - awesome burger skills and sat down to watch the movie. The girl who'd objected to an R-rated movie was still with us at this point, but another friend was not staying for the movie and offered to give her a ride home. She declined, said she'd stay, and we started watching the movie.

Tombstone does not start off gently. Less than 10 minutes into the movie, there's already been a shootout where something like 10 Mexican police officers are killed at a wedding, a priest is killed, and the bride - kicking and screaming - is dragged off-camera by the bad guys. There's not really any question that these are the bad guys for the movie.

But as soon as the shootout started, Monica (not her real name, I just got tired of vague pronoun usage) let out this loud gasp of shocked protest and said, "Are they killing those people?!?"

Wait, what? Yes! Of course they're killing them. They're the bad guys.

"Well, I just can't believe we're watching this."

At this point, Monica's roommate realized she needed to leave and offered Monica a ride back to campus. Monica refused, decided to stay.

A little later in the movie, when we're introduced to Doc, Monica let out her indignant gasp of moral outrage once again and blurted out "SHE'S NAKED!"

Alright, look... The first time I saw Tombstone, I was maybe 13 or 14 years old. I'd already seen it a thousand times by the time I got to college. Believe me, if there was a naked "she" anywhere in that movie, I'd have picked up on it. But right now, I was looking at Val Kilmer, who is most definitely neither a she nor naked. So I asked what on earth Monica was talking about.

"The painting! Behind him! On the wall! She's naked! I can't believe we're watching this movie!"

Wait... WHAT? The painting? You're upset about the painting? It's not like it's erotic in any way whatsoever... It's just a kind of Renaissance-y painting with a naked lady draped out under a fruit tree and chubby little baby angels floating around... whatever. And for all the times I'd seen the movie, I'd actually never noticed it until Monica pointed it out.

So my buddy Matt offered to leave the movie (which was pretty chivalrous of him, considering he loves Tombstone as much as I do) just to give Monica a ride back to her dorm. We were barely 30 minutes into the movie and it only gets more violent from that point. Monica, once again, refused the ride and chose to stay.

We finished the movie in relative silence. Monica didn't say anything else, but she did gasp indignantly and glare at me every time somebody used profanity or got shot. So there was a lot of gasping and glaring, but she didn't say anything else...

But the next day... Oh, goodness. I still look back on the event with a whole lot of incredulity, but in the middle of it, I was just flat out FLOORED with confusion. See, what happened was after we got through with the movie and went on back to campus, apparently, I was painted up to be the villain of the century because I showed Monica this movie.

Now... I'm not looking for absolution, I'm not looking for anybody to take my side, I'm not looking to be proven right... Largely because I already know that wasn't my fault. At all. I did nothing wrong in that... with the possible exception of even inviting Monica in the first place.

One of the other guys that had come to the cookout actually told me, "I can't believe you showed her that movie. She's the weaker Christian, Aaron, and you caused her to stumble."

What? Seriously?

She knew before we even got there that the movie was rated R. She was given a chance to leave before the movie started and two other chances to leave during the movie, yet she stayed parked right there on that couch, shooting daggers at me from her eyes and voicing her disapproval every time somebody pulled a trigger.

And it's my fault?

"Why should my freedom be judged by another's conscience?" - from I Corinthians 10:29

Lest you think this whole post is just to defend my actions at a cookout 9 years ago, here's where I'm going with all this and why it applies to me and you today.

In issues of conscience where the "weaker" Christian is unsettled, offended, whatever'ed by the actions of the "stronger" Christian, it is the responsibility of the "stronger" Christian to be sure that his or her influence does not cause the "weaker" Christian to stumble.

BUT.

It is also the responsibility of the "weaker" Christian to realize that his or her own personal moral code is not applicable to anyone else, Christian or not.

"Everything is permissible"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"—but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God — even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

- I Corinthians 10:23-24, 31-33

Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. One man's faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God's judgment seat. It is written:

" 'As surely as I live,' says the Lord,

'every knee will bow before me;

every tongue will confess to God.' " So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.

Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way. As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food [footnote: nothing] is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean. If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died. Do not allow what you consider good to be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.

Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall.

So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.

- Romans 14, emphases added

There are some things in life that I quite frankly just really enjoy. Man, they're nice. Dig 'em. Some folks, however, are not quite so big on those things. In fact, for some folks, some of the things I enjoy doing might be a sin.

I understand - fully - that it is my responsibility as a Christian who has the maturity and clarity of mind to enjoy those things responsibly (in regards to my responsibility towards God as well as to my brothers and sisters in Christ, strong or weak) to make sure that my influence is not spread in such a way that, through exercising my freedoms to do these things, I cause another to stumble.

But where I think a lot of people kinda glaze over and stop paying attention is the part where it's the responsibility of the "weaker" Christian to realize that he or she is "weak" when it comes to a particular issue and just know to not do it.

Just to get rid of the vague "thing" issue while at the same time keeping the integrity of my example to other Christians intact, let's put an example on this that could not possibly cause anyone to stumble one direction or the other. Let us assume, then, that driving a 1992 red and gray Ford F-150 is a questionable moral issue for some people. (Hey, guess what! That's my truck!)

Now... In knowing that driving my truck causes some people to stumble, I will take precautions to avoid that happening. For instance, if my truck drove people to sin, I wouldn't drive my truck to church. I'd take a different car, I'd hitch a ride, I'd walk... But I wouldn't take my truck.

The thing is, though... It's still my truck. I still really like driving my truck. I know that I can drive my truck and still live my life completely focused on a pursuit of the Kingdom of Heaven. Me driving my truck does not get in the way of my walk with God. (In fact, it lets me go further faster.)

So let's say I'm in my truck, just tearing around the back roads by the house. I'm not out where people are going to see me unless they come looking. (Seriously - it's some pretty country out here, and you can go for miles and miles and miles without ever seeing another car, if you go to the right places. I go to these places regularly.)

That's all between me, God, and the gas pump. As far as God is concerned, yeah, driving my truck is A-OK, so long as I do my part to keep someone from stumbling.

But if you come to my house and see my truck sitting in the driveway, it looks kinda bad if you just immediately start smashing up the windows, busting the headlights, cutting my brake lines, pouring sugar in the gas tank...

It's my truck. I'm the one driving it. I'm the one with the keys.

My truck has nothing to do with your spirituality.

If you think that your driving of my truck is a sin, don't ask me for the keys.

Man, I really hope this is still making sense.

The responsibility of the "stronger" Christian is to remove any possible stumbling block in the path of the "weaker" Christian. But it is the responsibility of the "weaker" Christian to grow stronger and understand that there are some things out there that might not actually be sins for everyone, even if it is a sin for me or you.

Jesus turned water into wine. The host of the feast said, "THIS IS REALLY AWESOME WINE!" Grape juice is not really awesome wine. Really awesome wine has alcohol in it. Really awesome wine has the potential to get you drunk if you misuse it. Therefore I have absolutely no qualms about saying that yes, I believe it is possible for a perfectly strong Christian to drink alcohol and still be close to God. Jesus Himself drank enough that the Pharisees used His party-guy demeanor as an accusation against Him and the Apostles more than once (Luke 5, Luke 7, lots of other spots).

If you don't think it's OK for you to drink, hey, that's cool. Don't.

If you don't think it's OK for you to watch R-rated movies, right on. Don't.

If you don't think it's OK for you to drive a 1992 red and gray Ford F-150, that's your thing. Don't.

But even as much as it is the responsibility of the guy who can drink, watch an R-rated movie, and drive a 1992 red and gray Ford F-150 (not all at the same time, of course...) to not put the stumbling block in the path of the one who cannot do those things in clear conscience, every bit of the same burden is laid on the one who cannot do those things to not judge those who can.

When we are trying to bring people in from The World to The Father, we're encountering them as people with a set code of morality that may not actually have anything to do with Biblical foundations whatsoever. And that's OK. God can use that. God can reach those people. God can get into their hearts and their minds and their souls and show them that He really is the point of everything. He can rewire them to be absolutely charged up with the energy of the Holy Spirit and set them on a path that brings them closer to Him, and pulling other people along as they go.

But when He does that, He might not do it the same way He did it with you.

There are going to be things that other Christians, both young and old in their faith, do that you can't, because it would be a violation of your conscience.

That's OK.

Don't do those things, and don't judge them for doing them.

We don't have to try to get to the point where we're strong enough to do those things. It's OK for me to believe that I should not do certain things that cause me to stumble. But there's nothing at all in Scripture that says it is my responsibility to get other people to stop doing things that they can handle with perfect maturity and clarity of mind... just because I am the one who can't handle it.

So go ahead. Do what you want. If you're living a life focused on God, what you want to do will change anyway.

But remember - and this part is actually really scary for a lot of people... It is ultimately your own choice what you do. If you choose to look to me as the "stronger" example, you just may see me doing some things that you don't like, some things that you can't handle. My influence over you is not totalitarian. You still have your own free will independent of my actions, good or bad. Know your conscience. Know the Spirit. Know the Bible. Don't violate any of those and you're good... no matter what you're doing.

Rules of Engagement #3 - It Doesn't Matter

For the three of you reading this who might not yet have figured this out about me, I'm a comic book nerd. That's just a thing that straight up is about me. I love me some comics. I read some Captain America a few days ago that made me weep. My senior English paper at Harding was over the first 103 issues of the Fantastic Four - the Stan Lee and Jack Kirby run. Frank Miller and David Mazzuchelli's "Born Again" arc from Daredevil vol. 1 #227-233 is seriously on par with Hamlet in my book.

Now, while I may not understand it, there are a lot of people - like, a disturbingly large number of people - out there in the comic book reading world who think that Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen is the greatest comic ever written.

Personally, I don't even think Watchmen qualifies for "not bad."

But when I was standing in line at HeroesCon a few years back, waiting to meet Gene "The Dean" Colan, it really didn't matter what my opinion was on Watchmen and it didn't matter what the opinion of the guy behind me was on "Born Again" - we had something bigger to focus on. We were both excited about what we had in common: a tremendous respect for a legendary artist of the classic Marvel Bullpen. When we both realized we were in the presence of a man who, even at 80-something years old, can still draw an Eisner award-winning Captain America story, we stopped caring about the little stuff that divided us, like preferences for certain titles, certain artists, certain authors... and we really came together on the big thing we shared. We were both just nuts about comics. American comics, European comics, Japanese comics, comics from the 30's, comics from last week, superhero comics, cowboy comics, regular-ordinary-guy comics... We liked comics.

Unfortunately, it's not like that very often. If you've never been around a whole bunch of us comic book guys in one place at one time, it can be hectic. There's this deep well of vicious bile stored up for anyone who disagrees with the majority of comic book readers. You don't like The Dark Knight Returns? Get behind me, Satan!

Can't we just not agree on stuff?

If you're reading comics, I'm thrilled. Absolutely thrilled. I don't care what it is, it's awesome that you're reading it. That's how much I love comics. It makes no difference to me if your favorite character is Batman or Jeffy from The Family Circus. It's comics. I love the art form itself enough that I can be OK with you not loving the exact same things the exact same way I do.

I think it's important to be a lot like that with my Christianity.

There are things that we obsess over and fight over and divide over that really... well, they're just not worth getting upset about in the first place.

Especially not when we're all supposed to be focused on something bigger than any and all of us anyway.

My goal is not for you to fall in love with "Born Again" the way that I am. I would love it if that happened, because yeah, it's an awesome book, but it's not so awesome that I think that everybody on the planet will dig it exactly the same way I do. You gotta know some stuff about Daredevil to really get that book. It helps to have read the original Frank Miller run, as well as a lot of things that came before it. It's not for everybody.

But my goal definitely is for you to fall in love with comics. There's something out there for you, I promise. It does not matter who you are, I promise you that there is a comic book out there with your name on it. I believe that with all of my heart. Young or less young, male or female, "Jesus Is Just Alright" by DC Talk kind of Christian or "Jesus Is Just Alright" by The Doobie Brothers kind of Christian, it doesn't matter*, I know there's one out there for you.

So let's corral this back down to reality for a minute.

My goal in reaching the lost is not that they become a Christian the exact same way that I am a Christian. I'm a somewhat-conservative libertarian Southern boy raised in the church of Christ from 1983-onward, absorbing years of niche pop culture with a steady soundtrack of Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and Jimi Hendrix. There aren't going to be a whole lot of people who fit that mold. So there's no need for me to try to shove them into that mold.

But my goal in reaching the lost definitely is to show them Christ. I want them to see Jesus. I want them to know God. I want them to understand the same things that I understand that have led me to change my life for the far, far, far better. I want them to know that there is a way to escape their past. I want them to know that there is an answer for a better life that really just makes too much sense to be ignored. I want them to know that Christianity works. It is the power of God in the world today, transforming men and women, young and old, rich and poor, across all divides of race and power and prestige and nationality, seeking to bridge the gap between the creation and its Creator.

I want people to see The Big Thing. I want them to know Absolute Truth. I want them to know God.

And God is big enough that I can be OK with them disagreeing with me on a few things.

There are good Christian folks out there who believe that the Leviathan and Behemoth mentioned in Job are dinosaurs. That's cool. I don't believe that, but I don't think it matters, because no matter what Leviathan and Behemoth were, the point is that God is bigger.

There are good Christian folks out there who believe that Ezekiel the prophet may have been an epileptic. That's cool. I don't know whether he was or not, but even if he was, the point is that God still used Ezekiel to accomplish His Will. God's bigger than epilepsy.

There are good Christian folks out there who believe that it's a sin to ever drink any alcohol in any form. That's cool. I completely disagree. God's bigger than alcohol.

Here's the thing... When you are completely zeroed in on nothing but following Christ, you start to notice just how much you've got in common with the Christians around you. You see that we are all going after One Purpose. We are all going after One Truth. We are all going to One Place.

But when you lose that focus on Christ and start to look around at other people, it's easy to notice how different everybody is. And sometimes in those differences, it's easy to think that if somebody's not looking up to Jesus from the same vantage point as me, then he can't possibly be seeing the same Jesus I'm seeing. He can't be worshiping God right. But in reality, he's seeing the exact same Jesus Christ, the exact same Son of God... he's just standing on a different hill, so his point of view isn't the same as mine.

But since it's still the same Jesus...

Isn't that OK?

If we don't go to the same kind of church but we still love the same Jesus, isn't that OK?

If we don't listen to the same music but we still show unending love to those around us because we still love the same Jesus, isn't that OK?

If we don't read the same version of the Bible, but we both still apply what the Bible teaches into our lives and let God transform us into the people we were meant to be because we still came to love and worship the same Jesus, isn't that OK?

These questions are rhetorical, but I really do need to make sure that you all understand that the answer is "yes."

When C.S. Lewis was writing the radio lectures that would eventually become Mere Christianity, he sought out the help of four clergymen: one each Catholic, Anglican, Presbyterian and Methodist. He wanted to make sure that he was speaking to the great truth that united them all - a love for God through Jesus Christ. And you know what happened? He did just that! He talked about Christianity, not Catholicism or Anglicanism or Presbyterianism or Methodism. He talked about what unites us - because there's a whole lot more that unites us than separates us. He talked about what we have in common, because what we have in common should be what identifies us, not what separates us from each other.

And if we can't do that amongst ourselves, then we're never going to be able to really bring people in to Christ the way we were meant to.

When you're talking to someone who doesn't even believe in God, it really doesn't matter what you believe about how and when the Lord's Supper is observed. That's not the important part. That's not what we've got to show people. We've got to show people God.

Jesus, God's One and Only Son, died to forgive the sins of humanity.

After that, it's pretty much all details.

The important part - the part that matters - is how people react to Jesus. That's what matters.

So next week we'll talk about just exactly what falls into that "doesn't matter" category. Some of you might be surprised. I know I was.

* - I'm personally a "Jesus Is Just Alright" by Robert Randolph and the Family Band featuring Eric Clapton kind of Christian, but hey, it still doesn't matter!

Rules of Engagement #2 - We're All Wrong

What is sin?

I'm not asking what some sins are - we all know that. We all know that murder and rape and greed and blasphemy are sins. But what is it that those have in common? What does all sin have in common? What is the one thing that makes a sin - any and all sin - a sin?

Well, personally, I think that anything that we do that violates the will of God (love Him and love others) is sin. That pretty much encompasses everything. Obviously murder is not very loving towards others, specifically the other that one would need to make dead in order to qualify for the act of murder. Blasphemy shows a lack of respect for God, which kinda messes up the whole thing about loving Him.

All sin comes from one thing: us. We can blame our upbringings, we can blame the other people around us, and we can blame Satan, but it all still comes down to one thing, and that's simply us. Whatever the sin was, it happened at the point where I decided that my will and my desires were more important than God's will and His desires. I was gonna do what I wanted to do, no matter what God wanted me to do.

So... That's what I think sin really is: a defiance of God the creator on the part of Man the creation.

And I really think that's the best way to think about it. Not to say that I'm the definitive source for understanding on the nature of our relationship to God or anything like that, but I think it helps to understand sin at its most basic level. By understanding sin at its most basic level, we can understand a whole lot of other stuff, too.

For instance... If all sin is understood to simply be defying God, then all sin takes on the exact same weight. It doesn't matter what the sin is - if it's something sexual, if it's something violent, if it's something dishonest, if it's something arrogant... it really just kinda stops mattering. It's still sin. It's all still trying to put yourself above God, and that just ain't gonna work.

He is, after all, God.

It really doesn't matter how much we sin - it's not gonna mess up God's plans.

It also doesn't matter how righteous we are - we're not doing God some huge favor.

He's God. He's got it under control and we don't.

Our faith doesn't change God's world, it changes ours. God is going to be God whether we act like it or not, whether we even believe in Him or not.

Look up at the heavens and see;

gaze at the clouds so high above you.

If you sin, how does that affect Him?

If your sins are many, what does that do to Him?

If you are righteous, what do you give to Him,

or what does He receive from your hand?

Your wickedness affects only a man like yourself,

and your righteousness only the sons of men.

- Job 35:5-8

God is Perfect. God is Holy. God is Love.

We aren't.

We're aiming for that, sure... But we fall short. So very short. All of us.

And here's the thing about that... It really doesn't matter how close we think we're getting, we're still an impossibly huge distance from that Holy Loving Perfection.

My righteousness is not defined by anything I am or say or do except that I have chosen to allow God to redefine my life and steer me towards His Righteousness. I am a sinful creature, no doubt, but my sins have been forgiven, which is a pretty amazing thing... right up until I start taking that forgiveness for granted and turn that into a sin on its own.

Think of the worst person you know - just the absolutely most depraved creature of sin you've ever encountered. Think of all the horrible things you know that person has done, and all the horrible things you've heard he or she might have done, and all the horrible things you've imagined that person could have done.

And now remember that you're really not any better.

The nearest star to the earth after the sun is Alpha Centauri, some 4.37 light-years, or 25.8 trillion miles, away. The earth itself has a diameter of just under 8,000 miles. So let's say there's a guy standing on the exact opposite side of the earth from me, and I'm looking straight up at Alpha Centauri. Yeah, that other guy (who is standing in the Indian Ocean, about 1,000 miles off of the coast of Western Australia, just FYI) is a whole 8,000 miles further from Alpha Centauri than I am, but considering that even if we were standing in the same place, we'd still be 25,800,000,000,000 miles away from what we're looking at, and on that scale, another 8,000 miles in either direction just really isn't that big of a deal.

And that's how it is with us and God and everyone else around us. I really don't have any special view on righteousness. Even if I am closer to God than another person, I'm still so very far from God that I'm not exactly out on my own. My righteousness is not defined by me, it's defined by God. When I try to get the righteousness thing going on my own, I mess it up, because I am not - by definition - capable of attaining righteousness on my own. I can only become righteous by being made righteous by the love of God through the sacrifice of Jesus.

So I've had that running around in my head for a while now, and it's led me to some interesting places as far as how it can be applied to spreading the Gospel.

I know I'm still pretty bad at it sometimes - maybe even a lot of times - but I've noticed that God has helped me stop judging people quite so very much, and for that, I'm thankful.

There are people in the world who have committed murder and have yet to accept Christ and His teachings as the way to a better life. It doesn't do me or them any good to think of myself as better than them just because I've never actually killed a guy. I've certainly thought about it enough. I've wished just as much harm on people, maybe even more. And who knows, if I'd been in the same circumstances, maybe I'd have stumbled the same way they stumbled. It doesn't matter - I need God's forgiveness just as much as they do.

I may not have ever robbed a bank, but I've definitely taken things that weren't mine.

I may not have ever been a prostitute, but I've definitely taken liberties with my libido that I shouldn't have.

I may not have ever sacrificed children to Molech, but I've definitely taken God out of His proper place in my worldview and replaced Him with something worldly and empty.

Sinning just a little is still sinning a whole lot. Even 99.99% pure is still impure.

When we realize that our sin is just as heinous and wretched and damnable as the sin of everyone else on the planet, we can relate to them a little better.

When we realize that it's our sin as well as their sin that put Jesus on the cross, we understand a bit more of the commonality between us all, and that's when we can show them how we've escaped the unending doom of our own lives of constant failure.

You know that you're not supposed to judge people, I know that I'm not supposed to judge people. I'm not saying anything new here, and I'm not saying anything extra-Biblical. I'm just saying that we've got to make it real to us, because the one thing that I hear more than anything else about Christians is that we've apparently got a bit of a reputation for judging people. That ain't cool. That's not how Jesus operated, and I think it's a pretty safe bet to say that He's a good example to follow.

Of course, that's just what I personally believe... And that's what we'll be talking about next week.

Rules of Engagement #1 - Stick To It

If you ask me who my favorite band in the world is... Well, I think most of you can finish this sentence by now. It will do you no good - avail you absolutely nothing in the slightest - if, during our discussion, you insist that Screeching Weasel (this is a real band) is better than Led Zeppelin, especially if your evidence is the Screeching Weasel song "I Hate Led Zeppelin" (which is also real, not that any of you should go listen to it, because it's also real bad).

When discussing whether Rick Deckard is a replicant or not (spoiler: he is), it serves absolutely no purpose whatsoever to ask whether Han or Greedo shot first. (Han, and I don't care what your fancy-pants special edition DVD says.)

I wish I could come up with examples for this that aren't completely nerdy, but hey, I'm a nerd. It's what I know.

But the point - nerdy or not - is entirely the same across all of everything: if you're talking about oranges, apples do not bear much relevance to the topic at hand.

Guess what?

Strangely enough, that is still true for discussions about God.

Storytime!

When I was up in Kansas a few weeks ago for my friend Sarah's wedding, she was THE only person I knew there. Like, in the entire state. I knew ONE person, and that was the bride. I didn't have a car, and I'd missed my opportunity to be out for the night, so I was definitely in... watching Sarah and her bridesmaids sew dresses and enjoying the BBC Pride and Prejudice. The one with Colin Firth.

Let me clarify this: Sarah and her bridesmaids were enjoying it. I was not. I do not like Mr. Darcy, I do not like Elizabeth Bennett, and I do not like being the only guy in a room full of women swooning for a guy who isn't me. That he is fictional only adds insult to the injury.

It so happened that one of Sarah's bridesmaids, Kimi, brought along her fiancé, Kevin, who was also one of the groomsmen. This guy SAVED MY LIFE. Finally, in the midst of this rampant chick-flickery, I get to hang out with a dude. And what a dude he was.

There was little time lost between our introduction and a deep conversation being struck between myself and Kevin. We talked about a great deal many of the things that two men talk about when the women are off being "the women," but our conversation eventually wound up circling around a discussion of morality, religion, and the social progression of humanity.

My goodness, it was a fascinating conversation.

We talked for what seemed like hours! We covered so many different ideas and understandings and points of view, and the entire time, we just built off of each other and leapt to new ideas and new ways of seeing exactly what the other was talking about... It was wonderful!

And the fun part of it was that Kevin is an atheist.

I've got atheist friends. Having a discussion on these topics with someone who does not believe the same things I believe is not a foreign idea. And it's not even that this conversation went so well that is particularly what matters, because I've had that happen before, too.

What really tickles me about it is actually what happened the day after the wedding. I was talking to Jimbo, Sarah's ridiculously cool husband, for what was really the first good chat the two of us had been able to share. I'd met him for about ten seconds on Thursday, the wedding was on Friday, and Saturday's the first time he's actually had a minute to breathe, let alone talk to some dude his wife went to college with.

As Jimbo and I were talking, I was surprised when the conversation Kevin and I had shared came up. Specifically, it came up when Jimbo said, with a strong note of astonishment in his voice, "So I heard you talked religion with Kevin the other night! I am impressed."

"Wait, what? Why impressed?"

"Dude. NOBODY talks religion with Kevin. It is just IMPOSSIBLE to do."

"What, are you serious? That guy was so chill! He wasn't a jerk about it, he didn't try to shove his beliefs down my throat, and he respected that we can talk about what we agree on and what we disagree on without having to demonize the other guy."

"Hey, he said the same thing about you, man."

"Really?"

"Well, kinda. When we were getting ready for the ceremony, I asked him, 'So, what about that Aaron guy?', and the first thing he said was, 'Man, that Aaron guy is one Christian I can talk to.'"

True story!

How about that? I managed to talk to a guy I'd never met, never even seen before in my life, for a solid three hours about a topic that we completely disagreed on. And all the while, both of us have a reputation in some circles for being difficult people to discuss that topic with! I know for sure that not all of my conversations with atheists have gone as well as that one did, and I know Kevin's had some difficult conversations with Christians, as well.

It's hard sometimes to talk to someone whose fundamental definition of reality is different from yours. But I think that if you have a certain attitude in mind, it just gets a lot easier.

I think Kevin and I were both really rockin' on that attitude that night. I hope this doesn't sound like I'm bragging about my insane skills at talking to atheists or anything... #1, it's not like that field is gonna be getting its own merit badge or anything anytime soon, and #2, "bragging" implies that I did this on purpose, like I had some kind of clue what was going on. No, no... That was not me. I did not have my hands on the wheel at that point. The Spirit was definitely working in me.

And who knows? Maybe it was working in Kevin, too. I have a feeling he'd doubt that, though...

(For the six of you who will get the joke, I'm gonna pull a Jonathan Storment here.)

I tell you that... to tell you this...

I think the reason Kevin and I were able to have such a great discussion (through the working of the Spirit or through whatever else might have happened) was that we both managed to actually stick to the discussion we were having.

When Kevin asked me a specific question about my beliefs, I was able to give him an answer that didn't include a sermon, and I didn't go outside of the question by trying to bring up other beliefs he didn't ask about. He asked me about oranges, I talked about oranges. And I wasn't a jerk. (Woo! Go me!)

When I asked Kevin a specific question about his view of the God he doesn't believe in but I do, he was able to give me an answer that wasn't disparaging of my belief, and he didn't bring out his (dis)beliefs with an aim towards heating up the conversation. I asked him about apples, he talked about apples. And he wasn't a jerk. (Woo! Go Kevin!)

Man... I really ought to try to be like that every single time I talk to people. That would probably be pretty cool.

I think that's the first rule about talking religion with somebody. Whatever the question was, your answer has to stick to it. Be specific, be honest, and don't bring up the things that don't matter for that question.

If you ask me who my favorite band is, I will talk your ear off about Led Zeppelin, not The Firm. Yes, there's a fairly decent connection between the two, but it's not at all the answer to the question you asked.

This may seem like a pretty obvious thing to say, but I really think we (I) could use somebody writing some of this stuff down, because we're kinda bad at this. And not just on the Christian to atheist front. We're bad at this with fellow Christians.

If someone asks you about your beliefs on the nature of God, an answer about the evils of adultery is not going to be a whole lot of help. We get lost in the distractions instead of sticking to the point.

And the worst part about that is that the point is really simple.

BE GOOD.

That's the point.

The point is not that we all agree 100% on the interpretation of every single passage of scripture. The point is not that we all go to the same building every Sunday morning. The point is not that we all clap-or-don't-clap during the singing.

The point is that you behave yourself. That's the point. God set up everything in the world to show us who He is, and once you know who He is, you behave yourself.

So stick to that.

Don't worry about what other people are wearing, or saying, or doing, or thinking, or believing if it doesn't take away from the glory of God.

If they're not Christians, you're not going to convince them that we're the team to join if you're frothing at the mouth because they don't believe the same things you believe. And if they are Christians, you're not going to score any points with anybody by insisting that we all read the same version of the Bible as you and burn the rest.

Again, this may sound basic, and even pedantic, but I think it's worth laying out, because it lays the foundations for a couple of other things I really want to talk about.

But uhh... I guess I'm done for now. Next week, we'll talk about the nature of sin. That's gonna be fun.