Foundational Characteristics

WNBS Recap
April 18, 2007

See if you can guess who is represented by these characteristics. The answers will be at the bottom of the blog:

1. Knows how to handle leather. Carries a big stick. Play in the grass and dirt all summer. Hopes they have a job in October. Favorite snack is a mouthful of sunflower seeds.

2. Goes to every house in town on a weekly basis. Would be happy to have a poor sense of smell. Sometimes finds an unexpected treasure. Most people prepare for his arrival the night before he comes.

3. Lives life a mile high. Prefers his peanuts in a small bag. All his work clothes have stripes. Whe he speaks, everyone listens.

4. Knows not ot put all of his eggs in one basket. A typical morning involves a "squeeze & pull". Is a plant manager. Favorite color is "John Deere Green".

5. Is always setting a trap. Lives an up, down, and side to side existence. Everyone answers to him. Hates small numbers. Heads out for at least a 300 hour cruise.

Characteristics are what define people. If you want to be recognized as a part of a particular group, you need to have the characteristics of that group. It is not different with Christianity. There are certain characteristics that should be associated with Christians, and certain characteristics that should not. The problem we run in to is that many times, the characteristics the world sees in Christian lives are no different from the characteristics in their own lives. Christian relationships often look just like worldly relationships. A Christian's attitudes are no different from worldly attitudes. A Christian's actions reflect worldly attitudes. And a Christian's speech often has nothing of Christ in it.

How do you want to be defined as a Christian? Do you want to be defined as someone who is religious but no different from the rest of us? Do you want to be defined as someone who is all talk and no action? Do you want to be defined as hypocritical, ignorant, or deceived? How can we change our world's perspective of the characteristics of Christianity?

The change starts with our relationships. We most often do our imitating of God (or anti-imitating of God) within our relationships. The world will see our characteristics in our husband/wife, parent/child, employer/employee relationships and in our friendships. Jesus reminds us in John 13:34-35 that people will know we are his disciples by our love for each other and the characteristics of our relationships. For the world to correctly define Christianity, our relationships must look different from the world.

The change continues in our attitudes and actions. Proverbs 4:23 tells us that our attitudes (heart) define our actions (flowing forth of life). If we have attitudes of pride, greed, anger, revenge and lust, then our actions are going to follow. True characteristics of Chrstianity, however, are counter-cultural. For the world to correctly define Christianity, our attitudes and actions must be counter-cultural.

Finally, there must be change through our speech. When Peter denied Christ (Matthew 26:69-75) he was confronted and exposed as a follower of Christ by the way that he talked. Are we to take this to mean that his accent gave him away, or something deeper than that. I believe it was more than his accent that gave him away, but his actual speech...what he said. Why? Because look how he responds to the accusation. He changes his speech to cursing. Our speech, if it is full of salt and light, will be obviously different to the world. For the world to correctly define Christianity, they must hear it in our speech.

What would people think if I told them you were a Jesus Freak? Would they say, "no way! He acts just like us!" Would they think, "whatever, he leaves us alone. We don't care what he is as long as it doesn't change who he is." Or, would they say, "Of course. There's obviously something different about them. So that's what it is!"

Our characteristics define who we are and who we belong to. Are you defining Christianity properly by your relationships, attitudes, actions, and speech?

Here are the answers!
1. Baseball player
2. Garbage man
3. Pilot
4. Farmer
5. Crab Boat Captain

Remember Spring Retreat

Well, the Grow Up! Spring Retreat has come and gone, but hopefully what God taught you during the weekend has not been discarded from your life. I know God taught us all something as we studied through the whole book of Ephesians during the weekend.

I would love to know what your favorite part of the weekend was, what God specifically taught you, what made the biggest impact on your life from the weekend, what your biggest "Ah-Ha" moment was, or just why you are glad that you went. Please comment to this post to let everyone know what God did during the weekend!

Here are some pictures from the trip.

Man Party I

Anchors Away!

WNBS Recap

March 21, 2007

2 Corinthians 13:7-14

Well, this is it, the last of our studies through 2 Corinthians! It's taken us about 9 months, but it has been well worth it. Next week we will have our 2 Corinthians Party (and say happy b-day to Courtney at the same time). Bring something to drink or eat, we'll hang out, and review some of the MAJOR LIFE CHANGING TRUTHS that we learned in 2 Corinthians.

But for now, let's head on into the WNBS Recap!

You know, an anchor is an extremely important thing on a relay team. Whether running, swimming, or biking, a solid anchor can hold a lead or make up ground when behind. Having the anchor in the wrong place can spell defeat for a team that otherwise would have won.

Paul has spent a lot of time encouraging and reprimanding the church of Corinth. he has pointed out their righteous acts and their sin, their admirable qualities and their shortcomings. he has shown them godly and fatherly love. He has defended the truth and exposed lies. he has examined the church and asked the church to examine themselves. He has done all this while keeping an eternal perspective. Now, he is ending his letter with a prayer, a prayer that will expose where the anchor of their lives is placed.

Where is the anchor of your life? In relationships, family, money, fame, education, stuff, a pastor or Christian friend, yourself? What can happen when an anchor is not secured properly? You can be set afloat and shipwrecked, and none of us want that, especially in our lives.

The writer of Hebrews reminds us in chapter 2 to "pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it." Our anchor should be in the Truth of Jesus Christ. If we are not anchored there, then we will drift away from the Truth! So, we need to be anchored properly.

Read 2 Corinthians 13:7-14 and look at these 5 ways you can know if you are anchored properly:

1. You know you are anchored properly when... your right actions are not based on someone else's right actions. (verse 7)

2. You know you are anchored properly when...You live with regard for Truth. (verse 8)

3. You know you are anchored properly when...Your faith does not depend on people, but on the promises of God. (verse 9)

4. You know you are anchored properly when...You are encouraged by correction. (verse 10)

5. You know you are anchored properly when...You daily experience God's presence in your personal life and in relationships with others. (verse 11-14)

We need to stop anchoring ourselves to moving foundations. We need to get away from the idea that "my pastor changed my life" or "that camp changed my life" or "my best friend changed my life" or "that movie changed my life" and return to the solid foundation of "The Word of God changed my life!" That is worth anchoring to because it is eternally certain.

This week, examine your attitudes and actions and the motivation behind those attitudes and actions. Regard the Truth as Truth. Receive correction as encouragement, and trust in the promises of God.

Exam Week

WNBS Recap
March 14, 2007

What is your least favorite part of the school year: a specific day of the week, a season, homework, competitions, lunch? For me, my least favorite part was always exam week. Why? Because it became very clear very quickly whether I had done my work throughout the year. The less I did leading up to exam week, the harder exam week was. But, when exam week was over, it always seemed to be one of the most rewarding times of the year. When those final grades came out and I saw how the studying paid off, I felt relieved and excited about the next semester. If, however, I did poorly on exams, there was little to be excited about.

Well, this week, Paul is going to encourage us to an even more regular exam week: examine yourself week.

Remember that Paul has just spent time showing how he relates to the churches God has placed him in leadership over, and how that relationship between Paul and the churches gives us a picture of God's relationship to the universal Church. Paul finishes up this explanation by expressing a few fears at the end of 2 Corinthians 12.

2 Corinthians 12:20-21
For I am afraid that perhaps when I come I may find you to be not what I wish and may be found by you to be not what you wish; that perhaps there may be strife, jealousy, angry tempers, disputes, slanders, gossip, arrogance, disturbances; I am afraid that when I come again my God may humiliate me before you, and I may mourn over many of those who have sinned in the past and not repented of the impurity, immorality and sensuality which they have practiced.

This "fear" that, despite his efforts in relating to and ministering to the church as a servant from God, the church is still walking down a path more like the surrounding culture than the path toward holiness leads to a warning and a challenge from Paul in the next 5 verses.

In verses 1-4 Paul says that by the "testimony of two or three witnesses" (quoting Dueteronomy 17:6) Paul will not spare anyone in the church that is still living in the sin he has exposed in his previous two visits to Corinth. He also warns that he will not spare anyone else either, possibly counting them as accomplises to their sin after the clear instructions he has given the church in dealing with sin in the church. Why is he being so harsh? He knows that at this visit he will see the true heart of the church. Have they listened to the words of God and repented, or are they continuing to live like the culture around them. Also, they claim to want the truth, but if they are not allowing the truth to work a powerful work IN them, then they are still living in weakness, wanting, like the pharisees, God to work toward them, only cleaning the outside of the cup while the inside remains dirty. So, this is Paul's warning: I'm coming to see you again, and, just so you know, I'm not going to go easy on you. I expect to see certain changes in you, just like a father expects to see certain behavior in his sons, and, just like a father, there will be consequences for everyone if sin still remains.

Paul follows this warning with a challenge in verse 5; one of the most difficult exhortations for anyone to adhere to: EXAMINE YOURSELF! Not just in a surface way either. Go right down to the heart of the matter: are you even a believer to begin with? If so, then why not live with the power of Christ that is IN you? And if you fail the test, look to us because we have the truth and the power of Christ to work in you and not just toward you, cleaning you from the inside out.

This challenge to examine yourself has come through 1900 years of world history to you and to me. This week is exam week. Examine yourself, first to see if you are in the faith, and second to allow the cleansing power of the Holy Spirit to wash you from the inside out, not giving sin a home anymore.

Examine yourself. Please! It won't be easy, but it will be rewarding!