What Is Faith?

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What is Faith?

What is faith? One dictionary definition describes it as a belief in something not proven. Hebrews 11:1 tells us that faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Faith in some ways reminds me of gravity. We know it exists, we know it keeps us anchored to the earth, yet we can’t see it or feel it. We know much about it, much has been written on the subject, and yet we don’t fully comprehend it. Faith and trust are what hold our relationship with God together in much the same way that gravity holds matter together. As gravity is to the physical world, so faith is to the spiritual world.

It would be a very foolish thing indeed, if we tried to live our lives as if gravity did not exist. Along the same lines, it is equally foolish to live our lives without faith. As we have learned to experience gravity in the physical world by seeing things fall, experiencing weight and weightlessness, we can learn to navigate in the world of the spirit by faith. But how do we learn about the way faith operates in our lives? First of all we can examine scripture and see the many wonderful examples of faith and how it impacted God’s people. We can examine our own lives for times when we acted upon faith and God acted in response. Conversely, we can see examples of times in which we lacked faith and the results of this. Like gravity, faith needs to be so deeply ingrained into our sprits that we operate in the world without even giving it much conscious thought. It is just always there. Unseen, but ever present, impacting all that we do in our daily lives. Amen

Transplanted in Christ

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Transplanted in Christ

Most of us are familiar with the concept of a bone marrow transplant. We understand that when the bone marrow is diseased it must be irradiated and destroyed. Once this happens, a transfusion of healthy bone marrow is initiated and after a period of time this healthy marrow takes root and begins to produce healthy blood cells instead of diseased ones. This is how certain types of cancers can be cured.

It is a similar process within us when Christ comes to dwell in us. Our old, diseased marrow must be exchanged for the healthy marrow of this new Life. Our old sinful nature must be killed off. We must die to ourselves. It is only then that the healthy life giving force within us is free to flourish.

Those who experience this “transplanted nature” of Christ, like one recovering from a bone marrow transplant, need a carefully protected environment in which to begin their new life. Without such an environment, they can easily perish from the “infection” brought on by our culture and other forms of worldliness. Without proper support, these transplanted new Christians may fare even worse than their counterparts. In some ways they are even less able to fight off the ravages of disease than before their “transplant”. They need a protected environment in which they are nurtured, loved, supported, instructed, until they are strong enough to step out into the world with their new transplanted nature and face the inevitable conflicts that will arise as they face a world which no longer understands them or shares their values. Without a functional, stable, supportive, church environment these newly transplanted Christians may grow sick quickly and die. It is perhaps worse for them than if they had never been “transplanted” in the first place. For having endured one failed transplant, they are much less likely to be willing to undergo the process again at a later time. This is why Christ was so careful not to speak any message to a group or individual before they were ready to receive it. In perfect understanding of each heart He encountered, He never spoke more than people were ready or able to hear. Lest they have “eyes to see and ears to hear” before their hearts were ready to receive.

Some wonder today why there are not many new converts to Christianity. This may be a merciful act of God, one designed to save people from a much worse end. While coming to Christ is indeed important, coming at the right time, and having a healthy support system within a functional church to nurture the new Christian carries the same importance, if not more so. There is no higher calling for the Church of Jesus Christ in our world today than the care of newly transplanted souls.

The Self Created God

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The Self Created God

Sometimes Christians appear strange to the rest of the world. We are from a different world, in a way. We think outside the cultural box, typically. We are called to be this way. God calls us “a peculiar people for His own possession”. This means that He shapes us in a way that makes us suitable and pleasing to Him. However, this may preclude us from being pleasing to others to some extent. Thus we may find ourselves a bit rejected at times.

In seeking to truly follow Christ, we may have the effect of making those around us uncomfortable. This is because we challenge beliefs that others perhaps hold dear. The problem often occurs when those who follow the true Gospel and the God of this Gospel, encounter others who are following a “self created god”. Believe it or not, you can even find this in churches among those who consider themselves believers! A “self created god” may look a lot like the real thing. But if you look or listen carefully you will note several significant differences. Self created gods are often one dimensional. They may be all about love, but absent of justice. They accept everyone and everything and condemn nothing. There is much talk of heaven but no acknowledgement of hell. In short, self created gods look and sound a lot look the culture we live in! When confronted with the true version of a biblical God those who cling to a self created god often become angry and reject the real thing. And in so doing, they crucify Christ once more.

The True God of the Gospel is not a benign entity. He is a God of power, might, judgement, justice, mercy and yes, of course, love. He is a God who longs for a relationship with us, but desires that we allow ourselves to be conformed to His will. He has expectations of us. There is both a call, and a response required. He is Abba Father. As such he both loves and disciplines his children as any good father would. A self created god is typically absent of one or more of these features. To acknowledge and follow the True God we encounter in the Gospel may put us into conflict with those around us, even within our own church. But to deny Him is far worse. So when you find yourself feeling rejected in seeking to truly follow Christ remember this: Jesus said that as the world treated Him, so they would treat His followers. Should we expect anything different?

A House Without Foundation

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Shifting from foundation, Whittier

Shifting from foundation, Whittier (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A House without Foundation

Everyone knows that a house with a faulty foundation is a house in serious trouble. In the midst of a storm or a trembling of the ground there is great danger to the house. It may shake violently. What was once a small crack may dramatically increase in size. The house may shift in one direction or another. Any of these occurrences means danger for the residents. The house is no longer safe.

Is it the fault of the wind or the tremor that the house is in peril? Or is it the fault of whatever made the foundation faulty to begin with? This is a question worth considering when we look at conflict within our lives and that within the church. Our human tendency is to shake our fist and curse the wind when the house falters. But the real issue at hand is what lead to the faulty foundation in the first place?

When we as individuals or we corporately as part of the church, turn away from Christ our foundation becomes weak and cracks. The tragedy is that most often this is insidious and we don’t even realize that it has happened. Those who can see the cracks in the foundation raise appeals for it to be fixed. Sadly, these are often ignored. No one wants to address the problems and issues which lead to the cracks forming in the first place. Fixing a foundation of a house is very difficult, expensive, and time consuming. It is easier to ignore the problem, hope that the weather will hold, or just deny that the cracks are serious enough to warrant fixing. This “head in the sand” approach does nothing to address the problems with the house and ignores the dangers to the residents. The risk, of course, is that the house will one day collapse and destroy the relationship or the institution. May we be humble enough and wise enough to acknowledge when our house has cracks in it’s foundation. May we earnestly seek the One who can repair all things and make them new again. Amen.