Being Real

Are you strong enough to be weak?

Nov 15 2013

Are you strong enough to be weak?

Jesus washed feet (John 13:1-17)

When the King of kings bent down to wash feet he hadn’t forgotten who he was; on the contrary, it was his belief in who he was that enabled him to serve those who held on to their prideful positions. In this simple act of humility Jesus questions the character of every leader. Are we strong enough to be weak? Are we willing to become nothing so others can have the hope of being something? This is what it means to take up our cross daily and to follow Jesus (Lk 9:23). More

You will be called Peter

May 9 2013

You will be called Peter

When Jesus first met Peter he said “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Peter” (John 1:42). Why does Jesus rename a full grown man? Was this a nickname? No. In ancient times someone in a position of authority would name those under them to empower them (Gen 41:45). This is why parents put so much emphasis on the names they gave to their children. It is also why God told Abram (meaning exalted father) that he would now be called Abraham (father of many). He was empowering Abram to be a father of many nations. It is also why he changed Jacob (he grasps the heel or ‘deceives’) to Israel (he struggles with God). After Jacob wrestled with God he had become a new man.
Jesus was empowering Simon to become a new man. He was to become Peter which means ‘rock.’ But as we look at scripture we can see that this was going to be a process. Simon was anything but a rock, he was impulsive and unstable; the kind of guy that spoke and acted without thinking; regretting it later. More

Honesty with Scripture

May 2 2013

Honesty with Scripture

Matthew 15:1-13, 16:5-12

Jesus often got angry with the religious leaders of his day. One of the things that angered him most was their traditions. Their traditions were their rules and practices that they imposed on everyone based on their interpretation of scripture. On one occasion Jesus said to them, “You nullify the word of God for the sake of your traditions.” This was when the Pharisees accused him and his disciples of not washing their hands before eating. There is no command in scripture telling ordinary Jews to do this. The priests were to wash their hands before starting work in the temple each day and some of this work involved handling food, but the Pharisees had transferred this command to everyone. It was a typical example of the law being taken beyond what was intended by those who were zealous to uphold it.
We don’t think of the modern church as having traditions, especially one’s that nullify the word of God, but we do! We have our own extra-biblical ideas of what we consider clean and unclean, and like the Pharisees we place unnecessary burdens on the people we are trying to reach. I would like to discuss two traditions found in most of our Evangelical churches that really bother me.
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