Loving the Flakes

After many months of service in the Prisons here in Oregon and serving the Men being released I have noticed a re-occuring theme.
I am dealing with flakes!!!!!!!
It is tough!!!
It seems in this Ministry that you are hurt constantly...on the inside it is like a bunch of old ladies who Gossip about every little thing. Lets face it, what else can we as humans do when we are miserable other than try to make others miserable with us.
Complaining of injustices and pointing out the imperfections of others that is what I see.
On the outside the Character flaws are magnified 20 fold.
My experience of late has been difficult because as I have got to know these guys on the inside and was considered friends, It doesnt take long before I am kicked to the curb.
This really does show where we are in need of what true friendship is!!!
With these guys they have never experienced such a thing and as a result they do not know how to do it. {This is probably what everyone in there life has done to them}
Bottom Line is, the minute you make a mistake in there mind, like hold them accountable and they don't like it. Or show a legitimate Flaw of your own!!!That is it!!!! It is over!!!!! You never hear from them again!!!!!!!
Many things could lead to this outcome, those are just a few possibilities.
Is that really friendship? I would suggest not!! All I can say is I am Glad that we have a God who is directly opposite of this Mentality.
However I am the biggest flake of all when it comes to My God!!!!{and everyone else really} I treat Him this way!!!Yet His Hand is always outstretched toward me!!! When I blame Him for all kinds of things he has nothing to do with, He still desires me to hang with Him!!!!
All I can say is I am doing my best to continue to love those flakes God has put in my life and probably not doing as good a job as I would like.
But I praise My God and Father for Loving the biggest flake of all........ME!!!
Thank you Jesus.....
I can always expect to hear from you again....No matter how big of a flake I am.

To Judge? Or Not To Judge?

To Judge? or not to judge?

1 Cor 4:1-6
1 Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful. 3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. 4 For I know of nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord. 5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
6 Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively transferred to myself and Apollos for your sakes, that you may learn in us not to think beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up on behalf of one against the other.

So Many people take this passage the wrong way.....There is a unhealthy mentality in the Church, that says, we cannot Judge!!!!! This passage at first glance may seem to support this Idea. But are we really not to Judge anything?
Actually this passage answers what we can and can't Judge!!! Contextually,this passage speaks in regards to the Church Leaders, but I will say that this does apply to us all.

Look at verse 1
1 Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.
First, Who is us?
Well, I will say that he is referring to the Leaders, using himself as an example.
Verse 6 Supports this.
6 Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively transferred to myself and Apollos for your sakes.

Secondly the "us" in verse 1 further explains that they are:
servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.
Verse 2 says:
2 Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful.

Question:
How are you able to determine whether someone be found faithful?
By Judging of course!!!!! Do you know any other way?

More specifically what are we to Judge according to this Passage?
Whether one be found faithful with the mysteries of God!!!!!!!!

Do you see?....this passage helps us to determine what we can Judge.
We should be judging what comes out of our leaders mouths {and everyone really} to see if they are being faithful with the Mysteries of God!!!!!! Another words, Judging if they are being faithful with Gods Word!!!!!!!!

While this passage helps to understand what we can Judge, it also tells us what we can't Judge in verse 5

5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.
We can't judge peoples hearts whether good or bad!!!!!!!
Whatever you do don't get these 2 judging distinctions confused! Many have and are being lead astray because they think they can't Judge at ALL.
THAT IS JUST PLAIN DANGEROUS!!!!!!!!!!

At a recent gathering of seminary professors, one teacher reported that at his school the most damaging charge one student can lodge against another is that the person is being "judgmental." He found this pattern very upsetting. "You can't get a good argument going in class anymore," he said. "As soon as somebody takes a stand on any important issue, someone else says that the person is being judgmental. And that's it. End of discussion. Everyone is intimidated!" Many of the other professors nodded knowingly. There seemed to be a consensus that the fear of being judgmental has taken on epidemic proportions.

Is the call for civility just another way of spreading this epidemic? If so, then I'm against civility. But I really don't think that this is what being civil is all about. Christian civility does not commit us to a relativistic perspective. Being civil doesn't mean that we cannot criticize what goes on around us. Civility doesn't require us to approve of what other people believe and do. It is one thing to insist that other people have the right to express their basic convictions; it is another thing to say that they are right in doing so. Civility requires us to live by the first of these principles. But it does not commit us to the second formula. To say that all beliefs and values deserve to be treated as if they were on a par is to endorse relativism -- a perspective that is incompatible with Christian faith and practice. Christian civility does not mean refusing to make judgments about what is good and true. For one thing, it really isn't possible to be completely nonjudgmental. Even telling someone else that she is being judgmental is a rather judgmental thing to do! Author Unknown

I fear the Church has fallen into the Clutches of relativistic thinking and have stopped thinking period.

We are to Judge!!!!!!!!!!

Are they faithful with the Mysteries of God!!!!!!!????

The Word of God is the final authority!!!!!!!!!!!PERIOD

1 Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful.

Belong To One Another

Belong To One Another

1 Cor 3:18-23
18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, "He catches the wise in their own craftiness";^[a] 20 and again, "The LORD knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile."^[b] 21 Therefore let no one boast in men. For all things are yours: 22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, or the world or life or death, or things present or things to come-all are yours. 23 And you are Christ's, and Christ is God's.

Let no one deceive himself?
Isn't that an interesting statement?
We can decieve ourselves!
When Paul say's Let no one deceive himself and If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.......He gives us a clue of what the heart of the issue is!!!!{no pun intended} Our Hearts can decieve us into believing we are really something and that we have all the answers.
Pride will tell us that we have something that NO ONE else has......hence we get puffed up.
Pride will tell you that you have the inside track to God!!!
One of the more deceptive ways that I have seen this is, under the umbrella of people's so called "close relationship with God."
More and more I am seeing the Bible taking a back seat to peoples feelings or emotions in what "THE SPIRIT" is telling them.
How many times have you heard someone say "I just want this group to be open to the Spirit's leading?
Now I always want to be open to the Spirits leading.......if it is in fact the Spirits leading.
But it always concerns me when we start replacing the teaching of God's word with our feelings of what the Spirit is leading us to do.
It comes like this:
Well I don't want to have a Bible teaching time, because I don't want to be locked in to a concrete format!!!!!!
OF TEACHING GOD'S WORD?
So rather than lock ourselves into something that will change our lives GAR-O-NTEED!
I want to depend on MY Keen insight into what the Spirit is telling ME for the people who are attending the Study.

Hence the Word of God is no longer the center of our get together........Peoples special "feelings" or "relationships" replace it with a "Support Group" where the supposed Spirit can move!
Apart from His Word!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Suttle and deceptive isn't it?
This is just one example of how we can decieve ourselves into believing that our relationship with God is "special" and those who would want to keep the focus on Gods Word aren't following the leading of the Spirit.
Yet 1 Tim 4:16 says:
16 Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.
Where do the Scriptures say continue in a "Spirit filled"or "Christ centered" Support Group so that God can change Peoples lives?

Paul Reminds us in this passage that pride can lead us to follow man's wisdom!!!{if not someone elses.....our own....yikes}
Paul reminds us that we all have a common relationship with Christ and while we are all different parts of His body, no one is more special than the others!!! Including ourselves!
We are all part of one body and we should not exalt ourselves or others at the expence of Christ and the rest of His Body!!!!!
After all:
21 Therefore let no one boast in men. For all things are yours: 22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, or the world or life or death, or things present or things to come-all are yours. 23 And you are Christ's, and Christ is God's.

We all belong to one another............The things that are so magnificent about you.....IS MY PROPERTY and I AM YOURS.

But anything that is worth anything in me was given to me by Him.

To Him Be the glory

Protection of a Father

Protection of a Father

The early American Indians had a unique practice of training young braves. On the night of a boy's thirteenth birthday, after learning hunting, scouting, and fishing skills, he was put to one final test. He was placed in a dense forest to spend the entire night alone. Until then, he had never been away from the security of the family and the tribe. But on this night, he was blindfolded and taken several miles away. When he took off the blindfold, he was in the middle of a thick woods and he was terrified! Every time a twig snapped, he visualized a wild animal ready to pounce. After what seemed like an eternity, dawn broke and the first rays of sunlight entered the interior of the forest. Looking around, the boy saw flowers, trees, and the outline of the path. Then, to his utter astonishment, he beheld the figure of a man standing just a few feet away, armed with a bow and arrow. It was his father. He had been there all night long.

Did you know that, this is the kind of concern our Father in heaven has for you?

Below in 1 Cor 3:5-17 I want you to notice something very Important!!!!

Pay special attention to the underlined Parts

5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. 8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.
9 For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, you are God's building. 10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. 11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work,of what sort it is. 14 If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.
16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.
As you know the Corinthians were putting to much emphasis on Individual leaders in the Church. We also have a tendency to do the same thing, so God in this text gives a stern warning to the Leaders about what He cares about. His People!!!!!! Look at this:

9 you are God's field, you are God's building.
10 let each one take heed how he builds on it.
And
17 If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him.

Do you get the brevity of what God is saying here?
The foundation is laid...Jesus Christ... The warning is for the leaders {and all of us really, but especially the leaders} to be careful with the words that come out of our mouth that is building on that foundation.
Why? Because His people...His Building is precious to Him!!!! He wants us to be built up in Christ, not men!!!!!!!
How important it is to be careful with God's Word!!!!! How Important is it that you are trained to study God's word? How important is it that you don't put words into Gods mouth that he never intended? Do you have rules of interpretation in place to protect yourself from leading people astray? Do you use those Rules?
God's word is very clear...He cares for his people!!!!!!!
Like the father watching over his son...God is keeping watch over His Building and is very protective of it!!!!! Why? Because He Loves us!!!!!!!
Do you have that kind of Love for His Building?
11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is.

On To Maturity

Recently a friend of mine who is an Elder of a Church shared with me one of the most heart wrenching E-mails I had ever seen.

There was an individual in their Church that held to a different view than the Church's position and removed him from a leadership role within the Church because he believed differently about Eschatology.

Here is the E-mail!!!

{all the names of people and names of Churches have been changed}

This is a real letter!!!!!

By the way Dave I hope I didn't leave you with the impression that I still had a grudge against pastor John and Magnolia Church. Were actually on good terms. I just ran into him and talked to him last week and things are very cordial between us. We've had a couple of private discussions, where we talked these things over and we simply disagree on the appropriate place to draw the line on debatable theological issues. As you know Magnolia Church is vehemently dispensational and I'm not. Pastor John has also expressed to me that he is very passionate and certain about the issue and feels that it is worth parting company over. I felt that since it is legally his Church. I'm the one that needed to leave if I was going to provoke suspicion among the leadership. That's not healthy for us, or the Church.
The only sad part for us was the depth of relationships that had to be left behind because almost our whole Christian community was tied up in that Church. It's really taught me a lesson in diversifying and expanding our community base. Now we have relationships with folks at Lilly of the valley and many other outlets and wouldn't have it any other way.
My question for all who read this is, which of these individuals is displaying Christian Maturity?

Sadly it was the Pastor who said:

Pastor John has also expressed to me that he is very passionate about and certain about the issue and feels that it is worth parting company over.

And:

We've had a couple of private discussions, where we talked these things over and we simply disagree on the appropriate place to draw the line on debatable theological issues.

This issue they were discussing was a secondary issue....Not an essential of the Christian Faith!!

You would think our Pastors would Know where the Dividing line is!!!!!!????

Please read

1 Cor 3: 1-4
1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; 3 for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men? 4 For when one says, "I am of Paul," and another, "I am of Apollos," are you not carnal?
In this text Paul gives one of the earmarks of immaturity.
3 for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men.
Isn't that E-mail sad? What are the implications that I am bringing home to you today?
The Person that was displaying immature characteristics was the Pastor of the Church!!!!! The one man in the whole Church that is supposed to be Mature!!!
What does that say about the condition of the rest of the Church?
Sadly I believe 95% of our brothers and sisters in Christ are running around on a diet of milk rather than meat.....another words the majority of the Christian Church are babies including our Pastors.
It is no wonder that we have divisions among us.

Press on to maturity!!!!!!! ! Dig in to His word!!!! Learn how to study to show thy self approved!

1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able

Spiritually Appraised

Spiritually Appraised?

13 These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy^[d] Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. 15 But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. 16 For "who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?"^[e] But we have the mind of Christ.
The first question we have to ask is, what are "these things" at the beginning of verse 13?

Well we have to go back to verses 6-8 of this same chapter.

6 However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. 7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, 8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

"These things" are the "wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory.

One of the things that is easily missed is the connection between verses7-8
But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, 8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
And verse 14
14 But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

Do you see it?

See this whole unit belongs together! Those who crucified Christ were spiritually discerned and actually killed the Lord of Glory.
The natural man cannot understand the things of God. I will also add that those of us who are immature and leaning on our own wisdom can also do damage to what God is doing with His Spirit in the Church.
Were not the Corinthians acting like mere men? Leaning on their own understanding?
We usually apply this text only to nonbelievers since that really is what it is talking about. But could we be making the same kind of mistakes as the spiritually discerned of the world who crucified Christ?

I think the answer is obvious. This is really what Paul is driving home.

See the Corinthian's were acting like "natural men" those who had not received the Spirit!! So Paul reminds them {us} that we have the "mind of Christ."
The Corinthian Church had become so divided that they were slicing and dicing the body of Christ. {Each other}
Lets not do the same!!!
With out the Spirit of God we cannot know the "wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory."

16 For "who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?"^[e] But we have the mind of Christ.

Gods Innermost

1 Cor 2:6-12

6 � Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:
7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

In veses 7-9 we see God was thinking of us Before the Foundation of the world!!!

God was thinking of us!!!!!!!
Kinda like a husband who is thinking of his wife and plans out after work, that he is going to pick up some flowers!!!!
He prepared something.....he was thinking before hand and executed his plan......But first he was thinking of her.....God thinks of us and thought of us!!! He prepared for us to be given His wisdom......and that is better than flowers!!!

In verses 10-12
We see how and where His wisdom comes from.

I will use my wife to illistrate this.
No one really knows my wife except my wife......{and God of course}Those inner things of my wife....the dark secrets.....the longings and desires of her heart......the Joys.....the dreams etc.....are only really known by her.
Paul uses a human illustration to make a point.
11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.

Just as no one knows the inner deep thoughts of my wife........so is the same with God except the Spirit of God........This is where it gets cool!!!!!!
God Has given us His innermost part.......Huh?......Yep!!!!!......God has given us His Spirit!
He has given us His widom through His spirit!!!!!

12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God

How cool is that!!!!!