Confession (still more class notes)

1 John 1:8-10
8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

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Are we to be perfect? How can we be “in the light” not walking “in darkness” unless we are perfect? If light and dark cannot exist together, how can God and I fellowship when I sin? Aren’t we told we are never going to be perfect?

We can start with the first one: NO, we are not asked to be perfect. But we are very much asked to strive to imitate God (Eph 5:1 “Therefore be imitators of God...”). But what about when we fail?

Verse 9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us...” But what is confession? Think about when you were a kid---we faced consequences for breaking the rules as kids. When confronted, or if you were bold enough to admit it without coercion, did you really seek forgiveness for dishonoring your parents, or did you “confess” to merely avoid or diminish the effects (the punishment) of the wrong?

The difference is huge! Sure, God knows we sin...but He allows us to come to Him, admit the error, and then offers His strength to help us change! This type of confession makes us vulnerable in the world---people have to choose to forgive us and don’t always let us off the hook---BUT GOD ALWAYS DOES. When we come to Him and say, “Lord, I have fallen...I have committed a sin against your perfect will...I do not want to do this again, but I must have your help to change...”---then He is “faithful and just to forgive us."

This kind of confession brings repentance...it brings change...and above all, brings PEACE.

Walking in the Light (more class notes)

1 John 1:5-7
5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

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Remember, light and dark are two opposing forces. One cannot co-exist with the other (flipping on a light switch removes all the “dark” from the room...). God is here and in many other places illustrated as light---guiding our path (Prov 3:5-6), turning our darkness into light (2 Sam 22:29), in His face (Psalm 4:6), and tons of others (see Psalm 119:130, Isaiah 2:5, Matt 5:14, for more).

When we live in darkness, we are living in ignorance of God and all that He would have for us. What is the result of our darkness? SIN... whether intentional or unintentional, separating us from Him (“...what fellowship has light with darkness? 1 Cor 6:14) and leaving us unsatisfied.

But notice here the root of the problem is not the actions of “sin,” but the INACTION of not living in the light--walking with God every day in the path he illuminates in effort to know Him and learn His will for our lives. To use John’s words, we must “practice the truth.”He deserves our time. He deserves the reward of His suffering—the life that he bought by the death of his Son for us, “even while we were yet sinners.”

Circles (class notes from Sunday)

We discussed “circles” this past week. A circle, according to Webster’s is “a closed plane curve every point of which is equidistant from a fixed point within the curve.” (Quite a mouthful...) There are three special features of a circle that we can look at: the central, fixed point; the enclosure of space; and the boundary.

First is the “fixed point” in the center of the circle. We discussed in class the use of a “compass” that allows you to accurately draw a circle by placing a sharp point on the paper and rotating the pencil around it. Without the fixed center, the circle could never come out just right.

Second, a circle is really not much more than a definition (or enclosure) of a particular space on a paper. When you use the compass, you adjust the radius arm to place the pencil at your desired distance before drawing the circle. By this, you are defining a certain portion of space that you wish to enclose within your circle.

Finally, a circle has a boundary. After you’ve determined the diameter of space you wish to define on the paper, you place your pencil on the paper and rotate around the fixed point, leaving a circular line on the paper. This boundary defines the limits and breadth of your circle. Think of a playground: placing a fence around a kids’ playground defines the playing area, dividing this special place from the rest of the world (the parking lot, the street, and so on...), giving them a safe place to play and be kids.

Questions to consider:
(1) What should our center be as Christians? What are some other “centers?” Now, honestly answer for yourself, “What is my center, really?” Can we even begin to draw our lives without this focus?

(2) After thinking about #1, how do we define our lives as Christians? How do we know how far to adjust the radius arm in our lives (that is, how do we know what we are supposed to be? To do? How to act?)

(3) Once we know our radius (our measuring stick), can you think of how we can place boundaries in our lives?

(4) The boundary of the circle is also what we notice when we look at a circle on a piece of paper, not the empty white space inside. What do people see when they look at you?

a new foundation...

Okay everybody...I found it!

I have been meaning to scratch out something coherent that would summarize my passion, or more accurately, the "stuff" that God has been speaking into my life in the past 2 months that fuels this passion. Well, today I was digging around in the website of a church in Texas, finding some really cool resources and ideas for founding and growing a discipleship vision in my home church, when I ran into this church pastor's "Pastoral Prayers." I was stopped dead in my tracks when I read these. Have you ever had a time when you met someone with whom you shared the same ideas, background, history, and interests? Someone who you feel you can connect with on a deeply satisfying level? Well, a lot like that love at first sight moment when you meet the person of your dreams, here I found all of the things I have been thinking and studying and searching out in the Scriptures. So rather than me re-write what is already a comprehensive list of what kindles my fire, I will simply allow this pastor to relate them to you for me.

Read on...

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What the Pastoral Staff Emphasizes in Their Teaching

OUR NINE PASTORAL PRAYERS

While traveling the country as a speaker, experiencing the challenges of itinerate ministry, Matt Chandler asked himself: If I ever get the chance to invest in one group of people, what would I want them to learn in life? In November 2002, Matt was called by God to become lead pastor of The Village. In his sermons, Matt expands upon the nine answers he wrote in his journal. His prayers for us, as a congregation, are:

• That we would see that the greatest problem in the universe is not mere moral failure, but a failure to honor God (Romans 1:21)

• That we would understand that discipline will never bring about love, but love always brings about discipline (Galatians 3:5)

• That we would realize that children of God are not under wrath, but mercy (Romans 9:23)

• That we would find that the fullness of all things, including life and joy is in Christ (John 10:10)

• That we would experience a holy discontentment with where our lives are, and espouse the hope of what our lives can be (Romans 8:20)

• That we would recognize that God has purposefully placed us here at this time, in this place, for His glory (Acts 17:26)

• That we would develop a taste for truth, even difficult ones (Psalm 119:11)

• That we would embrace Biblical Christianity, not American evangelicalism (2 Timothy 3:5)

• That we would believe in the miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit and desire them earnestly (1 Corinthians 14:39)

(copied from http://www.thevillagechurch.net/firstTime/emphasis.html)

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Holy smokes, I just read them again and I'm excited. This is the direction that God is taking me in my personal ministry--because of things like these, I have a purpose, direction, and motivation for my life in God, through Christ. Through the verses provided above and many others, my life has been fundamentally and forever changed!!

One last thought for the moment for you to consider:

--We should love, serve, preach, teach, and seek to save the lost not because they deserve a chance in Heaven--no, but only because He deserves the reward of his suffering.

Chew on that one for a while...if we can embrace that truth, we can "do all things through Christ who strengthens" us.

...there's so much more to tell you, but I'll "save some more for later" (a quote from Willy Wonka--remember Agustus Glute's mother? the chubby, German kid?)

I love you guys!--Jeremy