More (from Colossians)

This is written as a bit of a open preparation for preaching this coming Sunday.  Thanks for taking time to let me share what God has put on my heart so far.  Please share what the Lord says to you as you read this by commenting below or by letting me know in another way.

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If you have come to know Jesus even a little, there is already so much to thank God for!

If you have a hint of grace or peace, if you know forgiveness in any part of your life, PRAISE GOD!  And if you have learned that all God's mercy comes through Jesus and His world-changing death and resurrection all these words from Colossians 1 apply to you, just as surely as they applied to the Christians who lived at the time of the Apostle Paul:

  ... ² We are writing to God’s holy people ... , who are faithful brothers and sisters in Christ. May God our Father give you grace and peace.
    ³ We always pray for you, and we give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁴ for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God’s people, ⁵ which come from your confident hope of what God has safe for you in heaven. You have had this expectation ever since you first heard the truth of the Good News.
    ⁶ This same Good News that came to you is going out all over the world. It is bearing fruit everywhere by changing lives, just as it changed your lives from the day you first heard and understood the truth about God’s wonderful grace.

YES! From the FIRST DAY you hear and understand the truth of Jesus, your life is changed!  From the first day you learned that you don't need to carry your past along with you like a ball and chain or roll it uphill like Sisyphus, you are SO blessed!  Millions if not BILLIONS of people throughout the world have NO RELIEF from constant struggle and pain.  Praise God that you have come to know the mercy and grace of Jesus that flow from His Cross!

But there is more.  More--not in the sense of leaving the Cross of Jesus behind--but more in the ways that they, and most Christians, apply specifically Christian and Biblical teachings to every day life.  We see this in what the Lord says to us in the next part of Colossians 1:

⁹ For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, ¹⁰ so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, ¹¹ being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, ¹² and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. ¹³ For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, ¹⁴ in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

God has rescued us through what his Son has done.  He has brought us out of darkness.  By what Jesus did on the cross we have been forgiven.  But, as we read in what is underlined above, there is more.  More RESOURCES for walking alongside others.  More POWER for making a difference. 

I find, time after time, that this isn't the "normal Christian life" among the Christian people I spend time with on a daily or weekly basis.  My experience is that, at least on the surface, that these Christian people seem rely, in most ways, on their own common sense, with an addition of Christian love and forgiveness, instead of explicitly and openly "running to Jesus" and His Cross and the Word of God.

In recent days I've been amazed at the tender loving care that friends and neighbors in our community have given one another in regard to a particular crisis situation.  That tender care is clearly motivated and sustained by faith.  But there is more.  More power in prayer.  More strength in the Word of God.  More "knowledge of God's will," more "wisdom and understanding that the Holy Spirit gives," more "growing in the knowledge of God and more confidence in "the inheritance of God's holy people in the kingdom of light."

Many times Christian caring is about the same as ordinary human TLC.  There's nothing wrong with TLC, but when it comes to confronting truly dark and powerful spiritual forces and even dark and powerful demonic beings that seem to be at work in our world, we need more. 

Christians can grow.  Christians can change.  Not so much from being "fake" to being "real," but like the people that Colossians was originally addressed to, Christian believers today are so much in need of prayer and regular reminders and in depth teaching about the truth of what life in Jesus is about.

Believers in Jesus, having been set free from their own burdens, filled with Jesus' love... they often do their best to bear others' burdens.  That is a good thing but, as the photo at right illustrates, the weight is often too much even for a community.  What is needed is SPIRITUAL power from GOD.  We need to be FILLED with "the knowledge of God's will" THROUGH ALL THE WISDOM AND UNDERSTANDING THAT THE SPIRIT GIVES!

It's all available to us for the asking.  That's why Paul prays as he does for the Colossians.  Let's pray for one another in this way and, according to Paul's example, let one another know what it is we are praying and why.

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That's what I've prepared so far.  Come and spend Sunday morning with us to see what else the Lord desires to share with us then.

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Run to Jesus!

PRAY for the family of AUSTIN CARLEN and all our young people--love them and keep them close.

The following went out as an email from Crossroads church tonight.

Austin is the son of Kevin and Nicole Carlen of Dassel. He has three sisters, Lexi Carlen, Anna Carlen, and Alyssa "Bisser" Carlen all of Dassel, paternal grandparents, Harlund and Mary Carlen of Dassel, maternal grandparents, Tim and Robin Kelly of Dassel, great grandparents, Dennis and Marlys Ortquist of Cokato, and numerous aunts, uncles, cousins and other relatives and friends. His aunt Katie Lund, her husband Joel, and many of the other relatives have been partners and friends here at Crossroads church.

The following is from the Johnson Funeral Home website - for more info go to http://t.co/26R0GYwREU

Austin Robert Carlen, age 20, of Cokato, formerly of Dassel, died Sunday, May 20, 2013, in the Richmond Area. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Saturday, May 25, 2013, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Philips Catholic Church in Litchfield with Father Joe Steinbeisser officiating. The interment will be held at the St. Ignatus Catholic Cemetery in Annandale following the service.

A visitation will be held on Friday evening from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Johnson Funeral Home in Dassel. There will be a one hour visitation prior to the service on Saturday at the church.

At times like this we run to Jesus! The Word of God is full of honest and painful prayers like Psalm 22, quoted by Jesus on the cross, and Psalm 139, which promises God's presence no matter what. We look to the one who confronts and defeats the devil, the robber and thief of life (John chapters 10 and 11). And we know the victory of the resurrection which no one can ever take away (Romans 8, First Corinthians 15).

As we get to know Jesus more and more, we know that He loves those who mourn, and gives us comfort through his Word.  

When I was desperate for a Good Word from God this morning, God gave me these verses:

• "The Lord has sent me to comfort all who mourn" (Isaiah 6:1,2). 
• "God consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God." (2 Corinthians 1:4) 

Also, God provided this prayer:

You are our refuge and strength, O God, our ever-present help in trouble. Embolden us to share the good news of your steadfast love. Make us instruments your consolation, we pray, in Jesus’ name.

God bless you all.

Pastor Steve Thorson

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Big Words for a Small Town

Recent Photo of Landscape Near Ancient Colossae

Map with Ancient Town of Colossae

We started a message series yesterday at Crossroads, a series based on the book of Colossians.  Colossians is a spiritual letter written to Christians living in a small town in what was then part of the Roman Empire.  The town, Colossae, had been a town of some significance, but by the time the Biblical letter of Colossians was written, the town had shrunk, it's position of local influence having been taken over by nearby Laodicea.  All that remains today is a mound of earth.  The ruins of ancient Colossae lie beneath.  No one has ever dug in the mound to discover what might still be there. ^{1 ,2}

But the letter to the Colossians, a letter straight from the heart of God via the Apostle Paul and his apprentice Timothy--that letter is packed with big words.  Big and powerful words, words intended to light the Colossian church on fire.

Here are some of the things Paul writes to the Colossians:

• We have heard of your faith in Christ and the love you have for all of God's holy people.
• The gospel is bearing fruit and growing all over the world just as it has been doing among you!
• We have not stopped praying for you, asking God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.
• We pray this so you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way, bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power.

All of those sentiments are found in just eight verses of this 95 verse letter.  There is so much more.  We could easily go on. 

The simple point that I see in this, the simple point that we'll be highlighting in various ways this summer, is that we always should resist the temptation to think that our lives are of no importance.  We should always remember that what you or I do, in whatever small part of the world we live in, is a lot more important to God than we might imagine at first.  Our words, our actions, our time with the Lord, our study of God's Word--all of it matters--it matters enough for the Lord to inspire a book of the Bible that is described like this:

God gave us in Paul's Letter to the Colossians a proclamation of the Lord Jesus Christ in unparalleled fulness and depth... The apostles of Jesus are witnesses to Him witnesses to Him who has all authority in heaven and on earth... At the time of the church's need the Holy Spirit opened up to Paul dimensions of the glory of Christ which the new people of God had not apprehended so fully before...³

What all of this means we will see as we proceed through the summer.  The reason, however, that our lives are significant is not dependent on our position in life!  Instead, our lives are important because of the one who we are connected with: Jesus--the anointed Lord of heaven and earth.  All that we do, all that we say, all that we are makes a difference because we represent our Lord.

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Identity

Who are you?  How do you identify yourself?  Our son Daniel is traveling to Brasil today.  When he arrives he'll be IDed by his passport.  What IDs you?  Or better said, WHO gives it to you?  Who makes you who you are?

The Christian message has a lot to say about identity.

1. We are all created, male and female, in the image of God--and God saw that it was very good!  
2. We have all sinned and fall short of the glory God first gave to us.  So we are sinners--until something miraculous happens and...
3. We "die to sin" and are now "alive to God" in Christ Jesus.

Those truths are known to us from the Word of God. 

Will you accept what God says about you?  Will you receive His I.D.?

This will be the theme of upcoming messages at Crossroads Community Church.

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Today's Debate

This post is prompted by a debate and, most likely, a vote being held today in the Minnesota Legislature to change the marriage law.  Here is a part of what is being voted on... the original was found at this link -> HF1054 at 11:40 this morning. Of course, it may be changed before the vote occurs.  NOTE - here is a link to what the House of Representatives actually passed on Thursday - Version 2 ("2nd Engrossment").*

The Minnesota House Bill that is being voted on today tries to get around objections in many ways.  I've heard that the word "civil" is being proposed to be prefixed to "marriage" every time "marriage" is referred to in Minnesota law.  There are also many provisions that try to make exceptions for religious groups, trying to make sure that there will be no penalties for pastors who refuse to marry people of the same sex.  

But it's interesting that (1) the law would prohibit marriage between siblings (as it always has between brothers & sisters) and (2) the law states that it is a contract between two people.  Why?  Well, the reason is that marriage has always been about the potential children that a male-female sexual union produces.*

Children always come from the union of one man and one woman.  Even "artificial insemination" and "in vitro" fertilization involve the sperm and egg of one man and one woman.  There is something unique and irreplaceable about this sacred union: children.  And it is to protect those children that marriage exists.

The following was written last fall by Autumn Leva - you can find the original by clicking here.

... Marriage is a special relationship defined as the union of one man and one woman because it provides a stable environment in which men and women commit not only to each other, but also to any potential children born from their union. Marriage is the only institution we have that connects children to the people who brought them into the world. For anyone who may have missed "the talk" growing up, the male-female bodily union is the only type of union that can create new life for the propagation of our species.

Thus, the relationship between a man and a woman is unique. When men and women agree to commit to themselves and any children they bear, this provides a stable family unit in our society that ensures the care and upbringing of the kids involved. ...

Autumn Leva wrote that in regard to the "Marriage Amendment" debate last fall. Click here for what I wrote at that time.

There is nothing as important, when it comes to marriage, as the well being of the children and the generations to come.  Can you imagine anything that would change this?

Please pray today for our legislators.  The debate in the Minnesota House is scheduled to begin now.

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* Notes added Saturday morning May 11 - 

(1) The MN House of Representatives did pass HR 1054 (click here for the bill in its final form). 

(2) I have yet to read or hear anything written from the "pro-GLBT" perspective that is willing to admit and deal with the aspects of this issue that I address above.  I welcome a conversation about this, especially with any Christians who are in favor of gay marriage.

(3) Related to the above, can someone explain why the law should give special status to permanent or monogamous unions of any kind when the begetting/bearing of children isn't central to the law? I really want to know!  See this link "Why Get Married When You Can Be Happy?" and the recording of that event from last year's Sydney Writer's Festival (mp3 here) for what Jeanette Winterson, Dennis Altman, Benjamin Law and Masha Gesse had to say.

(4) Yesterday I happened to have a school bus trip to the Minnesota History Center. Bus parking for the History Center is right in front of the Minnesota State Capitol building.  So, yesterday, I went up to the capitol and wrote a brief letter to Governor Dayton--they provide paper, pens and a place in the governor's outer office for writing--and put my letter in the "in box" on the receptionist's desk. I also left a note at the office of our state senator.  The state senate will take up this bill on Monday and when Governor Dayton signs it non-heterosexual marriages will be recognized in Minnesota beginning August 1.

(5) The following is from something I wrote in November of last year entitled "When the Road Is Long." :

Those of us who do not suffer same-sex attractions cannot understand or appreciate the depths of what those brothers and sisters go through. Even so, every Christian can, to some extent, understand what it means to wrestle with faithfulness to God and the Word of God, while at the same time suffering unfulfilled desires or dreams and frustrations. Sometimes this wrestling is accompanied by loneliness--an inability to explain fully to others what it is you are going through. So, as Wesley Hill's book makes us a bit more compassionate toward those with homosexual desires, others benefit too...   (See the end of this blog post for a quote from his book's introduction.)

Christians end up doing two things in this life in regard to the pain and frustrations we face. First, we do not give up praying and seeking for healing and complete release from whatever we (or others) are suffering.  Second, and at the same time, we expect God to be at work in and through us (and others) while we (and they) are still suffering -- while we all, to some extent, are "washed and waiting."

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Healing Prayer

I'm hoping to find time this week to read more of a book loaned to me by my son Daniel.  I have it until Sunday only, but I've been particularly interested in the section called a "Five-Step Prayer Model."

The five steps that Randy Clark suggests are: • Interview, • Diagnosis & Prayer Selection, • Prayer Ministry: Praying for Effect, • Stop and Re-interview, • Post Prayer Suggestions.

Two pieces caught my attention right away:

1) A section beginning on page 222 that says:

Jesus did not say pray for the sick, He said to heal the sick. When you read the gospel's stories about healings, notice that Jesus and His disciples never prayed petitionary (begging or pleading) prayers for healing.  Instead, they commanded in prayer every time.  

2) And then from page 227:

...In order for long-term healing to take place, the root cause of illness must be dealt with. The most common roots are these:
• Psychosomatic Issues--the main root of many illnesses
• Natural causes--accidental injuries or carcinogens causing cancer
• Genetic causes--generational curses
• Afflicting spirits
• Lifestyle Issues--neglecting scriptural teaching regarding rest, diet, exercise, stress

What do you think? (More at another time on this...)

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Rich

evening view from my home office window

So nice to have spring finally here. I went out for a bike ride this afternoon (most of the way to Dassel), stopped for a workout at Snap Fitness, and when I got home, sat out for a short while on the front porch. As I look out my office window now at 8:45 it's still light.

I'm finally getting to a little project that's due tomorrow, scanning photos so I can send them to our special Mother's Day speaker.  She'll use them to put together a little presentation.  I'm thankful for creative people.  I was also so thankful this morning for three families that organized a fundraising "Cinco de Mayo" lunch after church (for a summer youth leadership camp).  Praise God for the work he is doing in our midst at Crossroads.

Tomorrow it's back on the bus but I'm not dreading it in the least.  It's getting light now even before I get up at 5:20 and the sun is actually up before I leave the house at 6 or a little after.

Today I chatted a bit with a fellow pastor about gardening.  He has a source for well-rotted horse manure and I have a used roto-tiller that I recently purchased. In a week or so we can get going on our gardens.

So much to be thankful for.  I am so rich.

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Zealous Love

At the Crossroads Partnership Dinner on Sunday, Pastor Per Nilsen brought a word from the Lord about what I'm calling "Zealous Love."  He used a verse from Galatians as the basis of his message: "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me." (Galatians 2:20)

In his ministry on earth, Jesus demonstrated all-in "zealous" love.  To be "zealous" mean to be on fire, to be passionate, to be fully committed and in energetic pursuit of a goal.  The goal is that all of the people of the earth would be fully wrapped in the Love of God, and that that love would be reflected in the three key relationships of our lives--our relationship with God, our relationship with one another in the real connections we have in the "body of Christ," and in our passionate love for those who have not yet experienced a personal relationship with God.  Pastor Per used shorthand for these three relationships "Up," "In," and "Out."

We are made for passionate, close, committed relationships in all three of these areas.  And it all begins with the Father's Love for us, a love demonstrated and made secure in what Jesus our Lord has done for all the people of the world, so that their relationships may be restored.

I'm sure some of this will come up in the message for this coming Sunday, as we conclude our series on the difference between religion and discipleship, the difference between being dedicated to the "forms" and "outward appearances" of religion and the zealous love of "Christians," the common name for those of us who are sold out all-in disciples of Jesus Christ.

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Correct Me!

About three weeks ago someone loaned me a DVD teaching that speaks of three different kinds of sin.  I'm not going to take time to look at the notes I have as I write this now, but my memory is that the three kinds are (1) "missing the mark," that is, going against God's commands without a rebellious attitude, (2) "transgression," knowingly and intentionally turning against God's ways, and (3) "iniquity," the consequences of habitually turning a blind eye, a deaf ear toward God's ways--something that comes near to what the scriptures call a "hard heart."

My understanding before studying these matters in depth is that each of these types of sin is still sin, and each of these kinds of sin brings the proverbial "wages of sin," that is, death.  And one might remember this from Galatians 6:7-8 -  "Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption..."

The special difficulty that comes from being rebellious and hard-hearted is that it's so difficult to come to repentance.  The DVD resource claims that it is the rebellion and hard-hearted-ness that ends up impacting generations.  Rebellion and hard-hearted-ness leads us to hate the one who loves us--God himself.  (See Exodus 20:5)

I need to spend some time studying this in more depth, to see if there is indeed a reason for saying there are different "kinds of sin."  It make sense spiritually as I sit here writing this, but I do need to check this against the Word of God.

It's that time in the Word that will correct me and each of us.  Let's allow God to continually correct us and change us--and let's give God permission to correct us, harshly if necessary, so we will not wander far from His love.  And when we see that we are wandering, let us return to the Lord!

A prayer:

Father God, keep us close to your Word so we are regularly corrected and thereby stay soft to your hand.  Protect us by your Word all from rebellion and hardness of heart!  When you see that we are rebelling or hardening, use all means necessary to turn us back to the right path, for your love desires nothing more than our hearts, open and willing to receive You and Your Word.  Jesus, you have done all that is necessary to defeat every kind of sin.  Make that victory evident in our lives today.  Come Holy Spirit, fill us and give us new hearts!  In Jesus' name.

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Counseling the Sick

I found this tonight as a comment on "Learning God's Purpose of Affliction." 

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FROM “The Order for the Visitation of the Sick” {1928 Book of Common Prayer} ~

¶ Here shall be said,

O SAVIOUR of the world, who by thy Cross and precious Blood hast redeemed us; Save us, and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.

¶ As occasion demands, the Minister shall address the sick person on the meaning and use of the time of sickness, and the opportunity it affords for spiritual profit.

¶ Here may the Minister inquire of the sick person as to his acceptance of the Christian Faith, and as to whether he repent him truly of his sins, and be in charity with all the world; exhorting him to forgive, from the bottom of his heart, all persons that have offended him; and if he hath offended any other, to ask them forgiveness; and where he hath done injury or wrong to any man, that he make amends to the uttermost of his power.

¶ Then shall the sick person be moved to make a special confession of his sins, if he feel his conscience troubled with any matter; after which confession, on evidence of his repentance, the Minister shall assure him of God’s mercy and forgiveness.

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Challenging? or Confusing?

I'll be posting my message from last Sunday (Apr. 21) on this blog later.  I loaned my final copy to someone yesterday afternoon.  I've had two people comment on how challenging, or confusing, this particular message was for them.  I brought up the possibility that "religion" (that is, the outward appearance or "form" of godliness, 2 Timothy 3:5) can serve Christ.  The other messages in the series, including the one to come this Sunday, point out the dangers of religious traditions, but in this one I wanted to point out the fact that God himself seems to endorse and even command some of these things.

This coming Sunday we'll be looking at First Corinthians 10.  In that particular chapter (and, actually in chapter 11) the Lord speaks to us about the dangers of putting too much trust in the most widely accepted Christian practices.  Baptism is mentioned there, and communion is too, though both in connection with their Old Testament "types."

This is a challenging area to be looking at.  I will do my best to keep it as clear as possible.  Still, some confusion may be unavoidable.  Please ask any questions you may have.  I'll do my best to answer whatever is on your mind.

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God is in Charge

Whitney McKendree Moore shared this today.  Thank you Whitney!  It's a good word.  For more go to wmckmoore.blogspot.com.

GOD on high, I see that my "default" is set at forgetting that everything is happening just the way it needs to happen and that everything that happens is allowed by You. In this awareness, I stand firm in the peace that passes all understanding. It is wisdom from on high to know that You are Sovereign and to stand firm, knowing that You are in charge and we are not. I am blessed among women (and men!) to know this.

Thank You for teaching me to say, "I can't but God can, God, and I need to let Him." Whatever You allow, You allow. It is what it is. And so, I pray:

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom the know the difference.
- R. Neibuhr

Thank You for the grace to discern Your Will and differentiate Your Voice from that of "other" higher powers, of which there are many. Thank You for teaching me to know the difference. Be Lord of all; be the center of everything; be first and foremost in my life, LORD Christ. In You, I stand firm, both and forever, safe and joyous and free. Thank You, Savior and Lord Most High. Amen.

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