With My Own Eyes

“Gradually, we began to get some clarity on a troubling truth:  attracting people to church based on their consumer demands is in direct and irredeemable conflict with inviting people, in Jesus’ words, to lose their lives in order to find them.  It slowly began to dawn on us that our method of attracting people was forming them in ways contrary to the way of Christ (35).”

“…we slowly began to realize that, to be faithful to the gospel of Jesus, consumerism was not a force to be harnessed but rather an antibiblical value system that had to be prophetically challenged (35).”

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Judges 2:10-3:31;  Luke 22:14-34; Psalm 92:1-93:5; Proverbs 14:1-2.

Judges 2:10 (NIV)
After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel.

Sadly, we are living this.  The solution is the revival of the Church.  May it start with us.

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Judges 1:1-2:9; Luke 21:29-22:13; Psalm 90:1-91:16; Proverbs 13:24-25.

Judges 2:3 (NIV)
Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be thorns in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you.”

The idolatry of the Israelites caused them to be less victorious than they should have been.  They short-circuited the power of God in their lives with their sin.  We do the very same thing.  How many Christians are walking around in defeat due to the sin they have allowed in their lives.

Proverbs 2:7 (NIV)
He holds victory in store for the upright,
he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless,

May God make us upright and victorious.

Check out the match-up at the 2:50 mark.

“A pervasive focus in the religious culture throughout North America is that success lies in attracting people, churched and nonchurched, to their particular church organization.  This attractional model, we believe, is fundamentally flawed and will not be able to produce in any significant way the kind of Christ followers church leaders want to produce (26).”

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Joshua 24:1-33; Luke 21:1-28; Psalm 89:38-52; Proverbs 13:20-23.

Proverbs 13:20 (NIV)
He who walks with the wise grows wise,
but a companion of fools suffers harm.

Do you want to change your life?  Change your friends.  You will become like the people with whom you choose to be.  If your friends are negative…  If your friends are alcoholics…  If your friends are dishonest…  On the other hand, if your friends are pursuing Jesus…  If your friends seeking holiness…  Do your friends draw you closer to Christ or further away?

“We believe the patient is indeed desperately sick and needs to recover from a religious system that places a premium on outward success.  We add our voices to the growing number of those inside and outside the church who are calling for the church to be reformed.  We Christian leaders have created the current religious system, or at least have been complicit in its flourishing, and we ought to feel a responsibility for the rather meager and impotent product that has resulted.  An important and messy dialogue on these issues is required of us.  This book is an attempt to lend our voices to that dialogue (15).”

Here is today’s Bible reading: Joshua 22:21-23:16; Luke 20:27-47; Psalm 89:14-37; Proverbs 13:17-19.

Joshua 23:14 (NIV)
“Now I am about to go the way of all the earth. You know with all your heart and soul that not one of all the good promises the Lord your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled; not one has failed.

The promises of God are full of power.  The promises enable us to overcome the lies of the enemy.  The promises give us hope when everything around us is hopeless.  The promises help us to view life with an eternal perspective.  The promises enable us to trust in the character of God.  But we have to own the promises.  Part of Eve’s failure when confronted by the serpent was her inability to accurately communicate the promises of God.  How about you?  Do you own God’s promises?  Have you hidden them in your heart so that you can unleash their power?

Here is today’s Bible reading:  Joshua 21:1-22:20; Luke 20:1-26; Psalm 89:1-13; Proverbs 13:15-16.

Joshua 22:15-18 (NIV)
When they went to Gilead–to Reuben, Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh–they said to them: [16] “The whole assembly of the Lord says: ‘How could you break faith with the God of Israel like this? How could you turn away from the Lord and build yourselves an altar in rebellion against him now? [17] Was not the sin of Peor enough for us? Up to this very day we have not cleansed ourselves from that sin, even though a plague fell on the community of the Lord! [18] And are you now turning away from the Lord?
” ‘If you rebel against the Lord today, tomorrow he will be angry with the whole community of Israel.

Much to learn from this passage.  The other tribes of Israel made some very wrong assumptions about the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.  They assumed that their brothers were worshiping idols. Based upon this conclusion, they ready to go to war against them.  But they learned that their assumptions were completely wrong.  How quick we can be to jump to wrong conclusions, especially about our brothers and sisters in Christ.  Seek the truth.  Listen carefully.  Don’t make assumptions.  Don’t jump to conclusions.  Give grace.

“How do we present the radical message of Christ in a church that has catered to the religious demands of the nominally committed?  In other words, if we have gathered people into congregations by appeasing their appetites and desires, how can we help them deal with the fact that their problems in life and character–even “in church”–are primarily caused by living to get what they want?  How can the cross and self-denial become the central fact in a prosperous, consumer culture (9).”