Monday, November 26, 2007

Walking on thin ice

I recently read a chapter by Michael Lawrence in the book Why I am a Baptist, edited by Tom Nettles and Russell Moore. In it, Lawrence gives an account of how he came to Jesus. He says "I walked down the aisle one Sunday night during the invitation, shook the preacher's hand, and asked to join the church on profession of faith. A few weeks later I was baptized. And that was that. I had made a decision for Jesus that took are of my eternal future." But Lawrence says that Christianity was little more than fire insurance to him, and as he gained more independence, he got into the wrong crowd. It was not until college that he met some friends at InterVarsity that really seemed to live out what they believed. This led him to fully dedicate his life to Christ.

A friend of mine who also read the article asked a very interesting question: "At what point was Michael Lawrence saved? Was he saved as a child responding to the invitation to come to Christ for salvation from sin, and the hope of eternal life, or was he saved when he finally understood his need to surrender to the sovereignty and Lordship of Jesus Christ, and live for Christ in that context." This is an important question, because many church members today have made a "profession of faith" but do not seem to live any different than the world.

Some people would probably say that Lawrence was saved as a child. For example, Charles Ryrie in his book A Survey of Bible Doctrine says "Faith is the only condition [to salvation]. Anything added becomes a work attached to the grace of God. Faith is the condition, and it is faith in Him who alone can save. This is the grace of God." In Ryrie's opinion, salvation comes with "no strings attached," and a person can have faith in Jesus as Savior, without surrendering to Christ as Lord until months or years later - if ever. This may sound good at first, until you think about the nature of saving faith. James says that faith without works is "dead" (James 2:14-26). It is empty, artificial, useless, and not really faith at all.

I believe that faith in Jesus and repentance (turning away) from sin are inextricably linked. In other words, saving faith is repenting faith. And only those who submit to Jesus as Lord have truly embraced Him as Savior. You can't be a disciple of Jesus and live just like the world. Jesus has a high demand for becoming a child of God: "If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple" (Lk 14:26-27). This call to "die to self" and live for Christ is not subsequent to faith, but is part of faith itself.

So, what about Michael Lawrence? Was he saved as a child? In his testimony, Michael draws a distinction between himself and his InterVarstity friends "whose Christianity wasn't simply defined by a decision they had made a as child to walk the aisle and shake the preacher's hand. Instead, I saw in them a faith that was genuine and incredibly attractive." If Michael's Christianity was merely defined by a "decision," a handshake, and an artificial faith, then he probably was not saved. However, it is possible that Lawrence was saved as a child but simply did not have proper teaching and discipleship in his church. Perhaps he would've responded much earlier to the call to obedience and Christ's Lordship if he had been taught these things as a child, rather than a list of do's and don'ts. Only God knows for sure when Michael Lawrence was saved.

If I don't show evidence of faith, then I really have no assurance of salvation. I am walking on thin ice. Responding to an invitation, signing a decision card, or being baptized do not ensure my salvation. It is only by obedience that my faith proves genuine. "My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples" (Jn. 15:8). There should be an obvious difference in the way I live from the world. I should be diligent to "test myself to see if I am in the faith" (2 Cor. 13:5), and graciously "stimulate others to love and good deeds" (Heb. 10:24).

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Take a hike

Last week, I drove up to Sacramento for a three-day pastors conference and state meeting. On a couple occasions during the trip, I turned off the radio and just enjoyed the silence. I spent some time praying to God and memorizing Scripture. It was a refreshing time of silence and solitude.

Silence is a rare commodity these days. We get up in the morning and flip on the TV to catch the news and sports scores. We listen to the radio on our morning commute. We sit in front of a computer all day. We stay connected with friends by cell phone and I-M. We exercise with our iPods close at hand. We surf the internet or play video games to unwind. And then we crash at the end of the day, without a moment of silence.

Apparently, Jesus knew the importance of silence and solitude. Luke 5:16 says that when His schedule got busy and the crowds pressed in on Him, "Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray."

I don't need to become a monk or a hermit to enjoy a little solitude. It could be as simple as taking a hike or riding my bike or sitting on the back patio or driving quietly in the car. But it will never happen if I don't deliberately carve out some time for it. During this week of Thanksgiving, I'm going to make sure to enjoy a little solitude with my Savior.

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Violent times

Last Wednesday night at prayer meeting, we were reading Romans 1:29-30. It speaks of those who suppress the truth and dishonor God, and perfectly describes the week our teenageres have experienced in Yucca Valley. The Apostle Paul says many are "filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents..." Two unfortunate events in the last week illustrate these verses.

Last Sunday night, several teenagers broke into a local residence, causing the home owner to defend himself and his property by shooting and killing one of the teens. Now, the surviving teens are being charged with murder because the death occured while they were trespassing. In a separate incident, on Tuesday at our high school, a teacher spotted a threatening note, which led many faculty, students, and parents into a panic. The writer of the note was arrested in his home later in the week, with evidence that supported some of the threats he made in the note. Thankfully, no one was hurt.

These are violent times. But what is the cause of such violence? And how do we prevent this from happening again? Was it lack of self-esteem, inadequate education, violent music and video games, or poor parenting that caused these teenagers to committ such crimes? Jesus gets to the root of violence in Matthew 15:19-20 when He says, "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders. These are the things which defile the man..." In other words, it's not what goes into these teens, but what comes out of their hearts that really causes the violence.

Parenting is critical. Education is important. Music and video game guidelines are appropriate. Self-respect has its place. But the greatest need of our teenagers is Jesus Christ. He is the only One capable of transforming us from the inside out. He begins His work by cleansing our hearts, washing away our sins, and giving us new life through His death on the cross. This will lead to good, wholesome, loving, constructive deeds rather than evil, violent, destructive deeds. This is the power of the Gospel, and this is what the teenagers of Yucca Valley so desperately need.

Saturday, November 3, 2007

Back at home


We can hardly believe it. Dylan's open heart surgery was yesterday, and he is already back at home. He seems to be doing very well. He was released from the hospital about 5:00 this evening. Praise the Lord!

This has really been an example of answered prayer. We know of people in countries all over the world who were praying on our behalf - India, England, Chile, Costa Rica, South Korea, to name a few.

This has been a very difficult time for our family, but we thank God for stretching our faith and surrounding us with His immeasurable love. Although there is still potential for injury or infection, we celebrate the goodness of our God, and acknowledge this tremendous answer to prayer. "My soul will make its boast in the Lord; The humble will hear it and rejoice. O magnify the Lord with me, And let us exalt His name together" (Psalm 34:2-3)

New Blog

Today I'm closing up shop and launching a new blog called Pinch of Clay. You can visit it by clicking here . Please stop by and...