A Pound of Cure

Seriously though, today as we celebrate the Protestant Reformation, as powerful and influential, praise God, as it was, it was never meant to be a once and for all-time event. The Church as a whole and as individual parts of the Body should always be reforming. History teaches us that it is dangerous if we are not. 

As I study church history, I am continually blown away by just how wide-spread the Reformation actually was, over many countries and many years, through many saints of God from all walks of life. 

Officially beginning this day 506 years ago after Martin Luther pounded his 95 thesis into the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, Germany. ( Although some historians report he actually used glue; however, when I glue anything, I always still give the thing glued a firm pounding for good measure. ) 

The points listed in the thesis are the heartbeat of the Reformation; however, the arteries spread thickly around the entire world pumping lifeblood back into not only the Church, but all of humanity, giving the glorious Gospel back into the hands of the "common folk." 

Before this time people relied on church leaders to read and expound the Scriptures to them. Without a copy of the Bible, bishops and other church leaders could paraphrase the Scriptures and move them in any direction they chose, inflicting ungodly fear into hearts instead of the true gospel. 

"I defy the pope and his laws!" proclaimed William Tyndale to a church bishop who had informed him that it would be better for the people to have the pope's law than God's, "If God spares my life," Tyndale continued, "In a few years a plow boy shall know more of the Scriptures than you do." 

Praise God those word would ring true. 

Some think that what happened during the Reformation was a breaking away from the true church to start another religion - Protestantism. This could not be further from the truth. 

The church leaders had become caught up in immoral as well as financial scandals selling indulgences to people under the false teaching that their money would spring their loved ones out of a life of suffering in purgatory, that their money could buy forgiveness. 

"May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money."  ( Spoken by Peter in Acts 8:20 ) "Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them." ( Romans 1:32 ) 

As Luther wrestled with his sin and guilt and the church's teachings on salvation, God broke through to him by the power of the Holy Spirit as he read the Gospel in the Book of Romans revealing to him the truth: Salvation is not grace plus the works you must add to it, your self-righteousness, your filthy rags, but salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone. To add to Christ's salvation would be to take it away. 

The rest is history. The most important discovery that emerged from the Protestant Reformation was the rediscovery of the Bible - the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Luther reminds us when we have the integrity to wrestle with God and his Word, asking him our questions, refusing to give up, repenting of our sins, crying out to him, wonderful things are revealed. 

The Church leaders were not dividing the Holy Word of God rightly. They were obscuring the Gospel from the people, adding to it, not handling it with fear and trembling or reverence. They were not tending the Flock entrusted to them with truth and love. 

What else could the Church do but protest? 

The Bible and justification by faith alone are worth fighting for. 

Jesus said that he would build his Church and the gates of hell would not prevail against it. We can look back through history and trace his handiwork. It was not a coincidence that the rediscovery of the Gospel coincided with the invention of the printing press. And those printers burned the midnight oil ( and ink in this case ) to keep up with all of Luther's tracks explaining and teaching the Gospel, justification by faith alone, and the Five Solas, Scripture alone, Christ alone, faith alone, grace alone, and glory to God alone. 

The printers produced thousands of copies of God's Holy Word. ( Now written in the people's language, and not Latin. ) Imagine the freedom the people felt as they read the Good News for themselves, or the many illiterate having family or friends read it to them as they sat and listened to the beautiful Story of God, his redemption through the sacrifice of his Son alone, walking out of spiritual darkness and into the Light as hearts were opened to the Truth. 

And yes, Protestants have also done and continue to do ungodly things in the name of God, and this is sinful and not what Jesus taught. Violence should never be a means of spreading the Gospel. And this is exactly why we can't allow ourselves to drift for a second, but always be about our spiritual disciplines, practicing the discerning of spirits, ever vigilant to see that we are dividing the Word rightly and proclaiming the Gospel to the ends of the earth. 

We don't need to pound the Gospel over people's heads - but we must never stop pounding it on every church door. 

"For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes; to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith." ( Romans 1:16 & 17 ) 

Happy Reformation Day! 💜

The Truth about Fairytales

"Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends." ( John 15:13 ) 

Many years ago now, I went with the Farmer to this party way out in the country at a dilapidated, old farmhouse. I didn't know any of the people there. By the time we arrived, things were already out of hand. Everyone was drinking and cursing and smoking weed and probably other illegal substances, some were laughing hysterically, others were falling down, one group was fighting, but I was in love, so whatever.  

All the shenanigans got to be too much even for the Farmer to deal with so he took my hand and led me out the front door and over to the porch swing. I think we would have left, but our ride was drunk as a skunk and so we were sort of stuck. I definitely was no angel; I was drinking a bottle of cheap, sweet wine the Farmer had picked up for me at a local convenience store on the way. 

As we began to swing together, we heard a loud voice above all the others yell, "Out Devil - Get Out! I mean it, Devil, get out!" I said, "Oh great, now they're casting out demons." I'm not making this up. Then all of a sudden this huge, black lab came running out of the door. The Farmer and I both burst out laughing. To this day, we still tell the story of the dog named Devil. 

After Devil came out, I began to pet him and this music starts playing. We peep through the grimy window beside the swing and some of the partiers now had banjos and guitars and were singing gospel songs. Through slurred speech and missed notes they started with "Just a Closer Walk with Thee" and then proceeded to desecrate a whole host of gospel music's greatest hits. 

I wasn't sure what to do with that. I know it may sound judgmental, but back then, I didn't feel worthy to sing a hymn in the middle of my mess. I knew I wasn't living the way I should be, and I felt like a hypocrite. 

And I want to be clear that I'm not saying alcohol in and of itself is a sin, but the abuse of it carries with it a dread that is heavy, deceiving, and dark. The abuse of any good or bad thing, especially people, is a sin. I don't drink alcohol, not mainly because of my history of addiction, but because of God's mercy in delivering me. I can't pay him back, but I can honor him with my whole, sober life for all he has done for me. It's my personal conviction concerning alcohol that I do not place on anyone else. 

Anyway, back then I might not have sang gospel songs in the midst of my broken life, but I would read a few Bible verses in the morning and attend church to make myself feel half-way like a Christian. But isn't that how we are before we come to Jesus? We want to come on our own terms. We want to decide which parts of our lives we give to Jesus and which ones we keep to ourselves.

Sometimes when we see someone engaging in sinful behavior, we might hear someone say that that person needs to get "a little bit of Jesus." 

But as C.S. Lewis so bluntly put it: "He ( Jesus ) has not left that open to us." 

With Jesus it's all or nothing. He's either Lord or lunatic. There's no middle ground. 

Cold or hot. "Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth." ( Revelation 3:15 -16 ) Those are Jesus's words to the church in Laodicea. Yeah, he's speaking to the church. 

Jesus lived a perfect life and died a criminal's death for us. In our place. When we just grab a little bit of Jesus to make us feel good in our sin, I imagine it saddens him greatly. Like when he lamented over Jerusalem longing to tuck the people under him like a hen gathers in her chicks. ( Matthew 23:37 ) 

We've seen in TV shows, movies, and books these scenarios where someone saves someone else's life, and then the one who was rescued gives their very own life over to the hero. They say that they owe them their lives now that they saved them. 

I believe we see this depicted so much in film and all genre of literature, especially fairy stories and fantasy tales, because it's a longing deep inside the human soul. We want someone to love us so much that they are willing to search the world over to find us, then give their lives to save ours so that we then can become theirs forever. 

And we have that! That is exactly what we have in Jesus! 

When the truth of this gracious and merciful knowledge makes its way to the bottom of our broken hearts, the response is always: "I'm yours forever, Jesus! You own every part of my life!" 

This gratitude springs up and out into praise to God and a willingness to go where ever he sends us, to love all those he places before us, to serve him with gladness, and to surrender to him every square inch of our sinful lives so he can begin our metamorphosis into his glorious image that pleases our heavenly Father. Not to try and save ourselves, but because he has saved us! 

A few weekends ago I thought about this long ago memory as I sat swinging on the front porch at Josh's house with my grandchildren. I was overcome with emotion because in our rebellion, God had grace and mercy on me and the Farmer. We didn't deserve it. No one does. If we deserved it, it wouldn't be grace. And if we weren't guilty, it wouldn't be mercy. If we thanked God for eternity, it wouldn't be enough.

But I'm prepared to try. 

I look forward to it. 

Thank God for his indescribable gift, be broken over your sin and believe in Christ for your forgiveness. The King has come for you. 💜

It was a treat to share a movie experience with my oldest man child near his home in Atlanta. ( Wow, the seats were recliners! ) I really need to get out more.