Writing is on the Wall

Now God has not given me any divine understandings of the future but there are clear signs of what may come. I believe the writing is on the wall - the church of God is soon (my use of soon is relative) to become more similar to the early church than we ever wanted.

1. The Early Church was set in a time of pervasive sexual promiscuity. From temple prostitutes to homosexuality - it was all there and in the midst was the church who stood against such things. Can you imagine that they were not too popular. They were persecuted, tempted and often martyred. Today's church is entering a culture that is not altogether dissimilar.

It is becoming increasingly dangerous to commit yourself wholly to Christ. Persecution comes in many forms. Loosing your job because you tell others about Christ, ridicule and defaming because you won't accept the worlds standards and mentality. I have seen it and know people who have gone through it and this is only the tip of what persecution looks like. Beyond persecution, it is becoming increasingly hard to live out biblical values in the face of blatant temptations to gratify the desire of your flesh. For those who seek to live out biblical principles the fight to do so will become hard to the point of agony. Yet God promises that those who persevere to the end will get their reward. 

The Apostle Paul constantly was writing to the early churches warning them to avoid sexual impurity and not to follow the ways and mentalities of the culture around them. Today, homosexuality, pornography and marital unfaithfulness is common place and taught in the schools. My own kids do not blink an eye when their friends talk about their two mommies, or they see a sexually explicit advertisement on youtube, or they see a commercial about housewives who champion adultery. Let's be real - Americans are going to get what they want and what they want is to gratify the desires of their flesh without hindrance or guilt. I didn't mention other issues of morality such as murdering unborn babies and so forth but all of this leads to further degradation of society and a persecuted church (that is if the church upholds biblical doctrine).

2. The Early church faced an incredible battle against false doctrine. Today's church is entering a battlefield where no one even believes in absolute truth. If there is no absolute truth then not even the statement "there is no absolute truth" is absolutely true. This doesn't matter though and increasingly people are distorting the Bible and it's truth to proclaim what everyone really wants to hear. The Christian voice will become the ignored voice and in many cases it already is.  

3. The visible church will be controlled by authorities who have anything but a true commitment to Christ and his agenda in mind. In the early church religious institutions were controlled by governments and men of power and influence, not pastor's who desire to lead their people toward God's agenda. 

The church today will more and more be forced to bend to the laws and culture of the land making it harder and harder to meet together in a building purposed specifically for "church functions." Out of necessity the church of Christ will increasingly become less visible as they give up buildings and begin meeting in homes and other central places. The visible churches that exist will likely be places of religious activity but not places of Christian worship.

So what are the positives about the future of the church?

1. I believe because of the increased unpopularity of Christianity that religious people will decrease leaving those truly committed to Christ to stand. In one sense the church will see a cleansing as is already happening. The statistics tells us that hundreds of churches are closed each day in America. While there will always be wolves in sheep clothing, it will become increasingly unpopular to associate with Christians and thus only those committed to Christ will seek do so. The church will shrink in width but will become much deeper.

2. The center of Christianity will and has already shifted from America to China or Africa. Statistics tell us that America is the third largest missions field in the world. In other words, churches in other nations are sending more and more missionaries to the United States while we are sending less and less missionaries elsewhere. How is this positive - well the church is thriving in areas that have been vastly closed to the gospel. In fact the church in Africa and China is actually growing faster than the church in America is declining. 

Again let me just say that I am not a seer and God has not given me a divine understanding of the future. What I wrote is what I see though none of us knows when Christ will return. In all things, Christians should not be worried or lack peace. God is and always will be in control. Even if we have to suffer this is not a bad thing. The Apostles rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for Christ - if it comes to that may we do the same.  

The Painting of God Upon my Heart

My main goal in ministry at Otterbein and elsewhere can be none other than what God has so clearly painted upon the canvas of my heart. At first it was broad brush strokes that he painted and though I could hardly make out the colors, I knew instinctively this was a picture of God’s people the church. Over time God has filled in details and given me greater clarity so that now the painting upon my heart bursts forth with radiant color and bold lines. So wonderful is the painting that etched in my mind forever is the bold lines and radiant colors of harmony, unity, oneness, mutual discipleship, and intimacy. But this is not just art – it is the mind and will of God according the imperatives that Jesus Christ and his Apostles laid forth in the Bible.

While the Bible hardly uses the word community I have found that such a word is useful in describing God’s painting upon my heart. Biblical community is not a distant dream but is in fact a heavenly reality. It is only that we on earth must ascribe to the reality, cling to it and count it as precious as the very breath of our soul (few do). I am speaking plainly of God’s church – the very people he has called, sanctified and given a great inheritance to. The church indeed is the very sons and daughters of the almighty, princes/princesses in the kingdom of God. But alas so many only see a steeple, some pews, and stained glass. Can someone please mourn for the church with me! How is it that we the offspring of God are not reflecting the image of our Father? Our light ought be so bright that nothing can be seen except that which God has entrusted to us – the gospel of Jesus which is the power of God for the salvation of men (Rom 1:16)

Many think my passion in ministry is small groups but group life is only a tool yet a very dynamic one when utilized well. The painting on my heart is my passion and I call it biblical community. My goals in ministry are laid out according to this passion? I push the plow toward and sow seed to grow true biblical community? Small groups certainly play a huge role in my ministry goals and thus some would suggest setting numeric goals, “how many groups do I wish to see,” or “what percent of the congregation do I want see connected.“ Such goals interest me little though I wish that every person was connected in a group and that our groups were continually increasing in number. So then what is it then? What clear goals do I set and aim for at Otterbein? These goals are the foundation of biblical community – the beautiful picture God has painted upon my heart.

              ________________________________________________

            1. Mutual discipleship (priesthood of believers)

Discipleship is not an option. You will either be engaged in discipleship of others or you should be called on your lack of commitment to God and his sons and daughters. Too few in the church are discipling others, rather, leaving it up to pastors and lay leaders. Christianity devoid of discipleship is Christianity without Christ and Christianity without Christ is hopeless and pathetic.

            2. Authentic Intimacy

Jesus Christ said that it will be by our unity that people will know God has sent Him and that by our love people will know we our his disciples (John 13, 17). Our whole witness and proclamation of God’s truth begins and ends with our commitment to one another. This requires more than just a commitment to come to a religious service or to a group meeting. It requires a commitment to one another that is stronger than blood ties.

3. Experiencing Christ

When we are experiencing Christ in the context of intimate community there is no telling what God will do. We might do Bible study, singing, praying or serving but unless Christ is among us, all our religion is in vain.  How many in the church today practice religion but never experience Christ (the answer is bound to be staggering)?  No one who is experiencing Christ can be content with religiosity and status quo discipleship. (don’t misunderstand me – those who are experiencing Christ can find meaning within religious practices but it will always be Christ which fuels and compels them, not the religious practices themselves).

_______________________________________________ 

These three goals are not just near and dear to my heart but are now part of my heart as much as Christ is a part of me. To not aim at these things would be more tumultuous to my soul than death. Truly I can not deviate from these goals – God has declared it now and surely declared it before I was born. My very breath is caught up in these goals and even when my spirit cries out under the pain of failure, frustration, persecution and rejection I can do no other.

I find many in the church today resist such efforts and decry the vision God has placed on my heart and which he has decreed in his scriptures. As much as I search my soul I do not know whether these people are unsaved wolves or simply wretched saints blinded by comfort and false promises of security. It hurts sometimes and it is often frustrating but I cannot see any other way to live and thus to the very day my body is laid in the grave I will pursue the painting and endeavor to foster the radiant colors and bold lines.

So to my church family at Otterbein, will you join with me? If so start by committing yourself to Christ recognizing that this means a mighty commitment to your brothers and sisters in Christ. Surely no man can say they are committed to Christ unless they are committed God’s children – heirs of his kingdom. Let our unity light a fire, let our love consume and by the grace of God we will see the broken find wholeness, the lost find direction and the despairing find hope. But most of all we will see God’s salvation apart from which we all are miserable wretches bound by our sins unto eternal death. Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!

- Daniel Altimus

Shady reasons for wanting people to be saved

Let me share two less than shady motivations you might have for wanting people to come to Christ. 

1. Because I am uncomfortable with people different than me:

This is true of most people on this planet so it is somewhat natural for Christians to desire that others surrender to Christ because they believe the person will become more like them. Let me be the first to say that a person who genuinely repents of sin and turns to Christ will indeed be transformed. This does not mean that a person who becomes a Christian will become the image that you have of a the cookie cutter Christian. God transforms but people change and the transformation God introduces is much deeper than mere appearances. People are not projects to be remodeled or pigeonholed. If you want people to be like you because it makes you less uncomfortable join the club but this is no reason to desire that people become like Christ. Oh by the way, I find that most people will never reflect deep enough to actually realize they are uncomfortable with others - they simply recognize their innate desire that others would change and stop there. 

2. Because their circumstances in life will get better:

Clearly anyone who believes that embracing God's salvation means better circumstances in life must have skipped over about half of their Bible. Remember Job, most of the prophets, John the baptist, the Apostle Paul or any of the apostles for that matter. I guarantee no one wants the life they had. Most of them were tortured, poor, and martyred for their faith. Many of them (especially the prophets) felt alone, abandoned and deeply mourned the judgement of God. The Apostle Paul in 1 Cor. 4:11 and in 2 Cor. 11:27 clearly tells us about his circumstance: "I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28 Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches." I guess someone forgot to tell Paul that his circumstances were supposed to get all better because He trusted in Christ for salvation. 

So what is the correct desire and motivation for wanting people to come to Christ. I think the scriptures are quite clear that it is love. Not emotional love but the kind of love that compelled Christ to obediently give up his life for sinners. You see, that kind of love is only available from God.Christian, the only way we give away this kind of love is by the grace of God and by the power of His spirit in us. Non-Christian, this love is already bestowed upon you but you have to quite rejecting it. Repent and trust in Christ lest you go to the grave having rejecting the only kind of love that can save you. 

1 John 5:12 He who has the son has life, he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. 

1 John 4:8-11 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 

1 John 4:16-17 and so we know and rely on the love God has for us.God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 

A human's capacity to love can be great and I believe this is so only because we were made in the image of God. While the human heart is wicked and our flesh is evil, still love prevails in this world, though not always and with less and less frequency. 

Matt 24:12-14 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. 

 

Two Confessions of a Minister

Confession 1: Too often I judge a person's spiritual maturity by how active they are in the church.

There is real danger in local churches (especially those that have lots of programs and ministries) to make judgments about people's maturity or dare I say it, even their relationship with God, by how connected and active they are in the local churches programs and ministries. Let me first clarify that I believe there is a difference between being connected to God's people (church) and being connected to the programs of the church. 

Hebrews 10:25 is plainly clear that we should not forsake the assembling or ourselves together. Any Christian who lives unconnected with their brothers and sisters in Christ are living in rebellious disobedience. (Hebrews 10:25 is only one of hundreds of verses talking about the unity, oneness, fellowship and togetherness of believers). 

I confess that as a minister in a local church, passing judgement on people's maturity by how active they are in the programs of the church is something I find myself doing. I think that in part this happens because I am highly invested in my local church in a way that some are not. Not only is my day job an investment into the people and life of my church (because I am a paid staff person) but my personal life outside of work is also quite often an investment into the life and people of Otterbein. Because of my investment and I'd like to think, because of my passion for the Lord, I want to see Otterbein as a people and organization thrive. That is my excuse but the fact is, there is no biblical ground for judging a person's maturity by how active they are in the church's programs. It is a hard thing for me to get away from and I recognize that there are some very mature Christians out there who are making disciples but they are not doing so through any of the churches programs. 

Having said all that I know I need to change my mentality and stop making un-biblical judgments. On the other hand, lest any immature Christian think I am giving them an excuse not to be involved in their local church let me say this: If you are not making disciples and being discipled outside of the churches programs and ministries you better be doing so within the churches structure. "Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ" - Dietrich Bonhoeffer. The church is God's people working together to make disciples. It is always God's people working together - there is no other way.  

Confession 2: Too often I find myself doing ministry out of a desire to achieve earthly success.

I know God's call is not for me to seek earthly success but rather, His kingdom. Why is it then that I can't just let all my desires for worldly success go? Why is it that I feel a need for people to think I am a great leader and wonderful man? Why do I feel like my identity is caught up in whether or not I am a part of a growing and vibrant church? Am I any less a child of God if He asks me to serve the lepers in India without so much as a single person noticing. Just the opposite actually. Those who receive earthly success in this life have received thier reward, but there is one whose reward is eternal. I realize no one wants to hear this but is not this God's truth?

Matt 6:1-4

"Watch out! Don't do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. 2 When you give to someone in need, don't do as the hypocrites do—blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get. 3 But when you give to someone in need, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. 4 Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you. 

I am not as spiritually mature as I appear to be when I am before God's people exhorting them from Romans 12 not to conform to the pattern of this world. I have conformed and struggle to quit conforming almost daily. This is a real battle with real results. When I put away my desire for earthly success (it does happen by God's grace) I am always amazed at  how clearly I can see God's glory and truth. It's as though I am blind but suddenly God gives me sight. And  then the evil of my heart begins to long for earthy success and my focus on Christ fails and BAM - I am blind again. 

God is always good and I believe He sees the battle more clearly than I do. I also believe He sees the victory I have in Christ more clearly than I do. I will say that I am growing in this area. I have been able to lay down some specific desires for earthly success by God's grace. However it is entirely possible that I have also picked up some new ones. However, I do see more clearly some of the sacrifices that I must make to live out God's rhythms for my life. I have even made some of those sacrifices (I wouldn't be here if God's hadn't granted me the grace to make some of those). However, let's be clear. Any victory in this area is purely God's grace at work in me. I am a weak person but my God is mighty. 

I think all of us probably struggle with this to some extent. Laying aside our desire for what the world has to offer is tough stuff but it is necessary. This doesn't mean we dont' enjoy the fruits of our labor. It does mean though that our greatest loyalty and passion is for God and His kingdom. It also means that the Christian life will be a life of fruit bearing and change. How many Christians today can say with tears of humility, "I desire Christ more than I did before and desire the things of earth less." All of us should be able to say this but of course not without saying as the Apostle Paul did, "Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!"

Shedding light on the confusion of Joy

Joy is one biblical concept I have had some confusion over:

Joy and happiness while different words in the Greek (the language the NT was written in) they mean close to the same thing. As far as I can tell joy is like happiness on steroids and that seems to be the difference.

We have all heard that joy is not dependent on our circumstances but lets be honest, how many of us are going to feel joy when our house burns down, we loose our job, or a loved one is suffering because of cancer. Yet the Bible says in James 1. Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds.

At first this verse only seems to add confusion in understanding joy ( and it also makes you want to wag your finger in James face and say, "really James, come on, really?) but recently I learned something by rereading this verse carefully.

James doesn’t say you should feel joy when you face trials. Most of us can’t help but feeling the way we do. We can't really stop emotions from occurring. However, we can respond to our emotions properly.  You see we want to sense joy and feel its value but it doesn’t always work that way. James says count it pure joy. Joy is first for God to see. (As Galatians in the Bible says, joy is a fruit of the Spirit).We then have to accept God’s valuation of it. In doing so we can count any trial as joy. However, if we try to come to a valuation of trials by our feelings we will get nothing and we remain in darkness. True joy is often a matter of faith.  Listen to the rest of the verse in James. because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

God knows that every trial is in his control and even if the trial is horrible he can use it to bring about good – your perfection and maturity among other things. If you are a disciple of Christ there is great joy in resembling Christ more and that is what God produces through our trials. We may not feel joy in the midst of trials but the end result of trials in our life glorifies God as we come out better reflecting His image. Our joy is tied to our hope in Christ and as our hope in Christ is more fully recognized so to is our joy expressed and felt. This is the reason the mature person in Christ is able to outwardly be joyous in hard circumstances, because they know the results already without even knowing how the circumstance will turn out. 

BLASPHEMING AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT

A good friend asked me about a scripture passage that states, "And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven." Having piqued my curiosity I did a quick study and here are the results. The first 8 scriptures below are just for the benefit of context and a broader understanding of blasphemy in scripture. I have italicized a few points that are crucial to note. 

Ex 22:28 Do not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.

Lev 24:10-16 Now the son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke out in the camp between him and an Israelite. 11 The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name with a curse; so they brought him to Moses. (His mother's name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri the Danite.) 12 They put him in custody until the will of the Lord should be made clear to them.  13 Then the Lord said to Moses: 14 "Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly is to stone him. 15 Say to the Israelites: 'If anyone curses his God, he will be held responsible; 16 anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord must be put to death. The entire assembly must stone him. Whether an alien or native-born, when he blasphemes the Name, he must be put to death.

Num 15:30-31 But anyone who sins defiantly, whether native-born or alien, blasphemes the Lord, and that person must be cut off from his people. 31 Because he has despised the Lord's word and broken his commands, that person must surely be cut off; his guilt remains on him.'"

Ezek 20:27-28 "Therefore, son of man, speak to the people of Israel and say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: In this also your fathers blasphemed me by forsaking me:

Matt 12:30-37

"He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. 31 And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. 33 "Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. 36 But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. 37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."

Mark 3:28-30

I tell you the truth, all the sins and blasphemies of men will be forgiven them. 29 But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of an eternal sin." 30 He said this because they were saying, "He has an evil spirit."

Luke 12:8-10

"I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God. 9 But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God. 10 And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.

1 Tim 1:13 Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief.

 Conlcusion: blaspheming the Holy Spirit is

·         Blatant defiance of God in light of the knowledge of His truth (Paul blasphemed God out of ignorance & unbelief but was shown mercy. His blaspheming was against God but in his mind his blasphemy was against heresy. Paul was misdirected and ignorant).

Ø  Blaspheming includes but may not be limited to

o   Forsaking God (turning to idols and false Gods)

o   Denying the power and presence of God (see Romans 1:16-22 below)

o   Maliciously ascribing evil to God (just as the Pharisees did to Christ in Mark 3)

It appears that blaspheming occurs out the pride, arrogance and evil of men’s hearts. Blaspheming does not appear to occur when we speak out of ignorance. It does not appear to occur when we speak or do something (however foolish) without trying to be malicious or blatantly defiant. Peter denied God but his intention was not simply to deny God’s power or person, nor was he being malicious or blatantly defiant. Peters reason for denial was almost certainly fear – he was protecting himself. He did sin by denying Christ but was later shown mercy by Christ.

Those who are most in danger of blasphemy are those who blatantly oppose or deny God. Blasphemy in the Bible was a serious offense. Today blasphemy is taken lightly but in the Bible days blasphemy even against another person was an offense of the worst order. Many out of fear and reverence for God would not even dare to blaspheme their worst enemy. How much more is it a dreadful sin to blaspheme against God - or the work of God through his Holy Spirit. 

Rom 1:16-22

 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."

 18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 

A Moment with My Son

Driving home from work the other day I was reflecting on some frustration my wife and I have had over our oldest son. I quickly realized that our frustration centered around that fact that he is still very selfish. At almost nine years old he has not learned to love or be relational as Christ has called us to. In part, this is because I am selfish and have only just begun to understand that faith is as much about our relationships as it is about our believing. I am so sad that Luke has caught on to my relational ineptness and selfish attitudes. I pray it is not too late to show him another way - God way of relating and loving. 

As I continued to drive I began to wonder what I would say to Luke, my oldest son if I had only one chance to capture his heart and understanding for a moment. Perhaps you can relate to the kind of moment I am talking about. Perhaps you can still visualize a moment you had as a kid when your parent or another adult said or did something that will always stick with you. For example, my dad was always very complimenting of my mom and her cooking and yet one time my dad looked at my mom across the table and with all the sincerity that is possible he thanked her for making us the meal were eating. I am not sure why this particular moment was forever embedded in my mind but talk about life change for me. After that I was very conscious of thanking those who provided meals for me. I also swore that I would not be picky about what I would eat but would be grateful just to have food set before me. To this day I will eat nearly anything set before me and if I don't like it I am still able to very grateful for it. (so why on earth are both of my kids so darn picky?)

Back to my son. If I could have one moment that I was promised would be etched into his mind for life what would I say. Honestly, I did not have to give this much thought because I would say to him what is very much on my heart. 

Luke - you must learn how to love people and how to do relationships well! Relationships will be the hardest thing in life you will ever have to strive with and for but do it and do it well. 

Now, If I were to continue my thoughts in a brief letter to him here is what I would say. In fact I do believe I will share this very letter with him when he gets old enough to understand more. For now I will stick with just sharing the more condensed version above.

Luke,

God has not simply called you to have private set of beliefs. He has called you to a kingdom, His own kingdom, a relational kingdom. This kingdom is distinctive of God's own character and is marked by love. It is not love as the world understands. Love as God demonstrates is the ability to lay aside self - so much so that you would die even for your enemy. Love as God demonstrates is speaking the truth even when it holds the possibility of bringing relational or emotional hurt and pain to your own life. Love as God demonstrates is not the absence of caring about self but is the state of heart whereby you think of self less and others more. God has called us to share in fellowship with Him through the Holy Spirit. He has called us to be one with other believers and share life with them as He shares His life with us as one people called by His name. He has called us to invite others to share in this kingdom.

In this world there is little love and few are willing to identify and stop conforming to the pattern of this world so that they can enter into God's rhythms and pattern of life. You too will be tempted and even more so than I for America is only becoming more selfish and less loving. You will be tempted to put "living a comfortable lifestyle" over and above your family. Satan will lie to you and tell you that you are working so hard and accumulating things for the sake of your family. My son do not listen to the evil one for if you wish the best for your family then choose time with them; choose to lead them in Biblical rhythms. You will be tempted to put those things your flesh desires (entertainment, lusts and isolation) over relationships. Satan will lie to you and say “but if I only give in a little here and there I will still have time for relationships.” Do not listen to the father of lies for he will rob you of true relationships and will leave you only with surface relationships. 

Seek the Kingdom of God first; seek for the fellowship of Spirit. Satan will tell you that the Holy Spirit is nothing. He will teach you a theology of the flesh leading you to believe that the Spirit of God no longer operates with power, creative order and sharing. Ask of God to shut the wolf’s mouth for indeed God Spirit as given to his children marks you as part of His kingdom. While many may not experience the power of the Spirit, should we then call God a liar and consider His Spirit ineffective and inactive? Seek God's kingdom, God's rhythms. Ask God to teach you and help you how to love as He loves. People will hurt you; perhaps people will kill your body as they did Jesus Christ's. That did not stop Him from loving - may it not stop you from loving. 

It saddens my heart that I have been such a wretched example of God’s love and relational way. But I am not done yet - not until God says so. Thus, for as long as I have I will strive with you to love others and do relationships well. I will cry with you when Biblical love hurts and the imperfect nature of man scorns you. I will rejoice with you when we sip upon the glory of God and experience the fellowship of sharing, order and power that He has promised. I will exalt God with you when we participate in Christ's love through our relationships with others. I will cry out in anger with you every time God's love is taking in vain. Luke - you must learn how to love people and how to do relationships well! Relationships will be the hardest thing in life you will ever have to strive with and for but do it and do it well. 

Dad

An experience with others and God that makes a difference in this world

I have been thinking a lot about the church lately. These thoughts come upon the heels of a vision God has been crafting in my heart/mind. There are two distinct categories in which my thoughts have been circulating.

1. There is great cultural pressure among church leaders to grow the church.
Let's face it - church leaders are as susceptible to the subtle influences of culture and even peer pressure as much as anyone else. As a teenager I can remember thinking about ministry in a local church with a sense of fear and awe. I thought to myself, "I must focus on Jesus Christ and lead out of my relationship with Him." Now ten years later I find that while I have tried to keep that simple focus, I have succumbed to influences, many which were so subtle I didn't recognize them. So what are these influence I am talking about?
Influence of the world to be successful in the terms it provides (possessions, wealth, notoriety and prestige)
Influence of the leadership culture to be a strong, confident leader (this influence has revved up considerably within the Christian culture but continues to remain strong in secular culture).
Influence to be more than a man (shouldn't ministers have halos and walk around with a slight glow from being in the presence of God? After all they are God's chosen; Oh wait so is every follower of Christ).

Some of the pressure I face in ministry to grow the church comes from myself, however, such pressure was birthed out of the aforementioned influences. Anyhow, I am at the point of just wanting to reclaim my once simple focus while relinquishing the weight of trying to grow the church. I know most will make the argument that if you are focused on discipleship and mission your church will grow. Perhaps, but maybe I disciple people one at a time and learn to love them rather than just trying to win them over. Perhaps I stop worrying completely about the growth of the local church as an institution and start worrying more about being obedient. Perhaps I begin asking hard question among those I live out my faith with such as, "What would it look like for us to become less busy and more purposeful in our obedience and love?"

I guess what I am saying is that I'm having a hard time anymore trying to do programs where I have to motivate people to join for the purpose of making the largest impact I can. I just want to be with people who want to know God more and are willing to make sacrifices to do so. I don't want to convince people they should join  a class or group and I don't want to pretend that someday I am going to be the next great leader. I just want to be obedient and quite honestly there are some areas in my life where I am struggling to be.

2. What would a local church look like where the only important things were discipleship and mission (and not growing the church). 
What would it look like for a handful of Christians to gather together, not to study the Bible, not to do a service project, not even to share prayer requests, but rather to be real with each other and start loving each other to the point of sacrifice? Would that make a statement to our neighbors and relatives? I am not against Bible study but I am against the idea of Bible Study as the main purpose for Christian community. Don't get me wrong here, I believe Christian community must sit on the foundation of Biblical truth. However, Bible Studies often make us feel spiritual but produce no fruit whatsoever. Prayer is also important but lets pray because we actually are spending time with God and depend on him. I don't want to pray for John's uncle who lost his job when John hasn't even felt a real commitment to lift his uncle before God. However, I want to pray for John's uncle when I see the burden he has for his uncle. And I dont' just want to pray, "God help John's uncle?" I want to pray, "God how can we help John's uncles." Think how few prayer requests might actually be shared in Christian circles if we expected that God would use us as the answer to those prayers.  If you are burdened enough to pray then you should be burdened enough to take action. If you are not burdened enough to take action then maybe you shouldn't bother praying. No more prayers that are simply niceties - let's pray when we get burdened, when we begin to feel God's heart!

Lest your are covering your mouth in astonishment right now and can't wait to go and tell the closest religious leader what I said please hear me. I am not knocking the local church. God is at work within the people and leaders of local churches all across the world. Some of these churches are thousands and thousands large, while others are comprised of five people who meet in living rooms and backyards. Both are called to make an impact on the world, but neither are called to grow the church. Jesus said he would build the church - we just have to be obedient. Does obedience really mean that we "have an experience with others and God that makes a difference in this world? (Scott Boren, Misseorelate)".

Christian,  if you and those you live out your faith with are not impacting your world then your faith is dead and you are living exactly how Satan wants you to live. Faith is not passive! Figure out how you can get less busy and more purposeful and obedient.

Learning About Myself

At first I embraced grad school. I wanted - no, I needed the challenge. The thought of learning and expanding my understanding was thrilling to me. I was like a bull attacking a matador's red cape.  Now as I am half way through grad school, I'm starting to feel the drain of the routine and work. This last half will definitely be more challenging than the first because of the perseverance it will take. However, I should mention that despite the routine and work, I am still excited about what I am learning, particularly, what I am learning about myself. To me, what I learn about myself is worth the education. Most other learning is like a guideline because culture changes, technology changes, systems change and customs change. What I learn today while it will help guide me, it certainly is no map. The map has to be created by each individual. If a leader can't create a map (be a trial blazer), then he/she is not a leader. But what you learn about yourself will be useful the rest of your life - even as you change.

1. I am not my job, I am my work. 
I am not defined by my job as an an associate pastor.  I am not defined by the job description or by what others expect I should be like as an associate pastor. Rather I am defined by the work I do; not only the work I do as an associate pastor but the work I invest in as a person. If I merely minister as an associate pastor then I am not investing myself in what I do. I do the work of ministry as Dan Altimus. That means my work is an emotional labor, unscripted, and uncharted and it involves personality, transparency, creativity,  generosity and boldness. If I am only willing to invest minimally into my work, then people will know me by my work and will rightly judge that I am either greedy, selfish or lazy. But if I create, invest and paint boldly with passion then people will know me by my work and judge that I am committed and am a person who is even possibly worth listening to.

2. I need to teach people to solve problems and quite trying to solve the problems myself
This is a hard one for me because I always want to look like the person who knows what they are doing (really this is pride). My perception of leadership is a person who can meet every problem head on and whip it. However, leadership is not simply about solving problems it is about teaching others how to solve problems and encouraging them to take risks and try new things. All I can say here is that this is going to be a tough thing to change in my own life. Just a short while ago I was preparing an agenda for a leadership meeting I have coming up and I was writing on the paper broad solutions that this leadership team needed to take. I caught myself! I then went back and rephrased things so that I was asking questions about the problem to help us find solutions together and to teach them that in all reality they don't need me to do ministry.  

3. The very things that can make me better at my work are available to me
It is easy to form a mindset that what you need to really be successful is just out of reach. This mindset of course gives you an excuse for not being dynamic. Perhaps I have held to this excuse because of my fear of failure. So what are those things that can help me become better – even dynamic in my work? For each person they are different but for me they begin with, letting go of the fear of failure, embracing the creative side of my personality, being more honest and transparent with people, and talking openly about my insecurities. 

4. Use the system and defend the people.

Generally people do the opposite of this. They use people and defend the system. I see this all the time with people in the church who resist change in the system even to the point of sacrificing effective ministry to others. I like challenging the system some, however, after a while I find that systems have a way of making you feel secure (this is generally why people don't want systems to change). As soon as a system makes you feel secure, there is a danger of putting it before the people (perhaps someone from our government should read this). My desire is to defend people and use the system to aid the people but sometimes out of fear, convenience or comfort I do the opposite. I am renewing my efforts to do it the right way, to defend people and use the system. The system is only good if it aids people in accomplishing the goal. systems are made for people; people are not made for systems. 

5. I am terrified of failure

How many times have I not taken the initiative because I was afraid I would fail? How many times have I played it safe instead of really making a difference because I was afraid to fail? I am sorry to say that the number is more than I care to admit. However, the good news is that I recognize this and am seeking to overcome that fear. Fear can be good sometimes because it warns you of danger but other times fear keeps you from doing something great or important. Most recently my fear has centered around developing leaders. I wanted to run away but alas I see the fear and am committing myself to developing leaders even if I have to figure out how (and I do, and I will). I of course need God's wisdom, and  power - his power to bear fruit in the unqualified, scarred and otherwise un-brilliant (I couldn't bring myself to say stupid) person I am. from now on I will not let my fears be in the drivers seat. 

There are other things I could mention but that is a good start. I think those things were worth the school work - though sometimes I wonder if they are worth a lifetime of school debt I continue to acquire. 

God is moving!

Wow! The energy in the local church I belong to has been really incredible lately. People are coming to Christ, new guests are streaming into the church and many are actively seeking God and connection with the church family. I have heard several stories of how lives have been changed by the gospel and am overwhelmed. Also -never in my ministry have I had so many people ask me out of the blue how they can get connected or how they can serve, how they can become a follower of Jesus Christ. I am awe struck!

The senior pastor and I commented today that God is surely at work. It is nothing we have done- but praise God He is at work. This work of God encourages me to continue praying and persevering in ministry. I also am asking myself if others see what I am seeing and if not how do I help them see the work God is doing. Those who have come to Christ are lives that have been changed and their stories need to be shared.  When I say changed I am talking about radical sized changes - not just the kind that are blips in our lives. A couple of Sundays ago I prayed with a man at the altar who had recently given his life to Christ. He is going through a rough time and tears were streaming down his face but he was at the altar seeking God! Who am I God that you would allow me to have any part of the ministry you are doing?

Lord willing I am beginning a new class at our church called Connected for Discovery. The class is designed for those who are newer to Otterbein or are unconnected. The curriculum is designed to help people understand what the Christian life is all about. It asks some key questions such as: Who is Jesus? Why did Jesus have to die? How can I have faith? I am really excited about the class. Already a small handful of people have decided to be a part of the class.

Can anyone tell that I am excited about what God is doing in the lives of people? I will continue to pray that God increase fruitfulness and allows me to be a part of the work He is doing. Will you pray with me that the gospel goes forth with power, changing lives and setting people free. May God's people catch a fire under their buts to see their neighbors, co-workers and loved ones come to Christ. Heaven knows, many of God's people are way to complacent and have chosen security, stability and comfort over the mission of Christ.

An 8yr olds Questions about God.

So, the other day my son Luke came up to his mom (my wife, a.k.a Angie) and said he had a bunch of questions about God. Since Angie was busy making dinner, she told Luke to go and write down all his questions and we would talk about them during or after dinner (this is when we typically do our family devotions if we are able to do them). So Luke went off to his room and when supper time came he brought out a sheet of paper with 10 questions he had written down. As we talked about the questions he wrote down three others that came to his mind. I wanted to share these questions with you because, well, I think we all  have had similar questions. Below is a picture of his actual questions. I also listed each question out below and put my basic response next to some of them. As often as I could, I used simple illustrations to help Luke understand.

Questions:

#1. If you ask him (God) for something or somebody to believe in Jesus, why does it seem like he doesn't answer it?

Response: We talked about perseverance in prayer and faith. We also talked about how God uses all kinds of means to answer us: can give us thoughts, can speak to us verbally, can use other people to answer us, can use the Bible to answer us, and can use circumstances in our life to answer us. God isn't limited to how we expect that he should or will answer. 

#2. If it is an important question will He answer it?

#3. Does he even answer?

#4. Why doesn't he make people do stuff?

Response: We talked about how God wants people to be obedient out of love and thankfulness to him rather than God making people do what he wants. I told Luke that sometimes God might make people do stuff but typically he gives man the freedom to choose His way or their own way. I asked Luke if he would want someone to hug him because he made them or if he would rather have someone hug him just because they loved him. God wants people to "hug" him just because they love Him and desire to honor Him. 

#5. Why doesn't He love anything more than us?

Response: God freely chose to lavish his love on people even though we don't deserve it. Because God created us and we are like sons and daughters to him, he loves us more than anything else in creation. In fact the Bible tells us that everything He created was for mankind to enjoy and take care of. 

#6. Why doesn't he always say yes?

Response: God knows best. For instance when you were young and wanted to play in the road mommy wouldn't' let you because she knew what was best for you. At that point you may not have understood the danger but mommy did. God knows what is best for us. Also, God is not just concerned about our happiness, he is also concerned about our holiness and often times our prayers are selfish and come from the wrong motives.

#7 Why didn't he make up his own songs that worshiped himself?

Response: see number #4. I also, explained to Luke that God did tell us how He wants to be worshipped. We are the worshippers and he is the worshipped. Worship is not a task it is us enjoying God out of a thankful heart. 

#8 Why did He make Jesus die instead of doing something else instead of letting the people kill him?

Response: I don't know. We simply explained that God is Just (meaning that he distributes punishment for sin, just like a judge does). We wouldn't like a judge who just let every criminal go free. God is also love and does not want to see anyone punished for sin. How does God reconcile his justice and love. He sends Jesus to take upon himself the punishment of our sin. Those who believe in Jesus are free from the punishment of sin and death. God still disciplines us out of love but those who believe in Jesus will not have to be punishment for their sin because Jesus already was for them.

#9 Why did God make Jesus?

Response: To establish his kingdom on earth and to redeem men and women from (satan) sin and death. (yes we talked in depth about what  a kingdom was and no I did not use the word redeem when talking to Luke). I also explained that Jesus like God, always existed. Only his flesh was created but before he was a man he lived with God in heaven. 

#10 Why did God make everything?

Response: To enjoy and to be enjoyed. He wants to enjoy his creation and he wants his creation to enjoy Him.

#11 Does he love the devil?

Response. God tells us to love our enemies so I am guessing that He loves the devil. However, he hates everything the devil does. 

#12 What does he do when a person does enough sin in their life?

Response: No sin or amount of sin is too great for God to forgive. Jesus death on the cross for us was great enough to cover every sin a person does. There have been times when God didn't tolerate sin (the great flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, Ananias and Sapphira). God gives people a chance to turn to him and believe; those who don't trust Him for salvation from sin have no other choice but to bear the punishment of sin themselves. God tells us that, Jesus alone can save us. 

#13 How was God created

Response: The Bible always assumes God and thus does not talk about the origin of God. However the word eternal in the Bible as it refers to God means that God always has (from eternity past) and always will (eternity future) exist. We can't understand this just like there are lots of things humans still can't explain. We of course in our pride tend to think we know nearly everything and can explain everything.

Angie and I will certainly cherish Luke's questions because it means he is seeking for God and thinking about truth. May God guide my sons heart to his own. May Luke experience the power and presence of God, not just academically but in all ways. God is majestic in holiness and awesome in glory!

A Limited Gospel

Scott Boren states: "A limited gospel has enough good news to forgive our sins, but not enough to set us free to actually love and sacrifice for those around us. A limited gospel opens the door for a personal relationship with Jesus but lacks the power to challenge us to be disciples. A limited gospel calls us to go to church or go to a small group but does not call us on mission with others."

A Matter of Perspective and/or a Confident Hope

Recently I read somewhere that happiness is about perspective. Two people in the exact same situation can have different perspectives. One could feel extremely blessed while the other one might grumble and complain about how unfair God is. Many of us have often heard that joy isn't based on circumstances like happiness is. So is it possible to be unhappy but full of joy?

I often think of Jesus when he was in the Garden of Gethsemane just before he was arrested. The Gospel of Luke tells us that Jesus being in anguish was sweating so much that his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. The Gospel of Mark states that Jesus was deeply distressed and troubled so much that His soul was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. In these circumstances Jesus definitely does not appear to be happy or joyful. In fact I would say with confidence that He definitely wasn't happy. 

Most of the time when the New Testament uses the word joy it is referring to cheerfulness and even delight. This is how it is used in James 1:2 "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds." Jesus wasn't cheerful or delighted about his circumstance as he prayed in the garden - at least not according the description we are given. So can we conclude that Jesus didn't have joy?

Now I have thus far asked two questions and haven't answered either. First of all I do believe we can be unhappy but full of joy. Secondly, I do believe Jesus was full of joy even in the Garden of Gethsemane - but  not the kind of joy that we often equate with emotional happiness. The joy we have in Christ, the same joy that is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22), isn't always expressed with emotion. The Joy we have in Christ is an expression of our Faith. Even those who do not confess Christ can have good attitudes and a positive perspective during hard times. However, only those in Christ can have the kind of hope which gives us an altogether different perspective - an eternal one that is rooted in Christ's Glory. So while we may go through hardships in this life just like Jesus in the garden, we still have a hope and confidence in Christ. Such a hope does not disappoint in even the worst of circumstances. With this kind of hope and confidence can joy honestly be absent from the Christ followers life - I don't think so.  

My wife and I are going through a rather trying time in our lives right now. There are a set of circumstances which have all come together at once to put an extreme amount of pressure on us. These circumstances are jerking our emotions all over the place and are filling our lives with daily disappointment and frustration. Now we have tried to maintain a positive attitude and have strived to give God glory and thanks during this time but I can definitely tell you we are not giddy with happiness. However, we have taken comfort in the fact that all these circumstances are in God's control and when it comes down to an eternal perspective - what is happening is small potatoes. We still have a Savior who rescued us from sin, we still have a Lord who is in control, and we still have a God who cares and gives us purpose. 

Happiness is a matter of perspective and I think Christians should strive to have a Biblical perspective and exude happiness. However, I don't think God expects us to be emotionally happy all the time (Jesus wasn't in the garden). God does expect us to exude joy at all times. This means that we don't loose sight of our hope and we don't loose confidence in Him. In America, where there is a sense of entitlement about pursuing the American dream, we often forget that God should be our vision, not the pursuit of what we believe will make us happy.

Sons of Korah - Psalm 117

This a a great group called "Sons of Korah." They only sing Psalms. I was just turned on to their music and have really enjoyed them. I believe they have sung 66 of the Psalms thus far and have out 6 cds.

A Psalm

After a study on King David, and learning how worship was part of his humble character I challenged my small group to write a psalm of their own. Here is the unedited psalm I wrote.

I rest in your unfailing love

There are days that seem so long and the flesh so weak

Praise God for the depth of his faithfulness which surrounds us like a consuming fire!

There are days when heaven seems like an eternity away and all our striving is in vain

Praise God for his richness for he is reward enough for us- still he has promised us good gifts!

There are times of sorrow where the heart longs for something more than the world can give

Praise God for his eternal truth, a treasure that that belongs to the immortal God of heaven!

When God will you return?

When shall Christ ride upon the clouds like a chariot? When shall we meet you in the clouds?

You have said it will be soon but days turn to night and soon seem so far away

Praise you God for your word is true and never fails!

Scoffers mock and the hard of heart seek death for their desires shall be filled by the thing of men

Blasphemers ridicule and the ignorant don’t care

The religious dine on traditions and comforts to soothe their soul but in the end they are sons of hell

The luke warm hold to a form of godliness but they only want you if they can have the world too

Praise you God for the tongue of man has no power over you and your glory will shine!

Praise you God that all things will be exposed for you are a Father of lights!

Praise you God that for those who overcome, the second death will not harm us at all!

Praise you God that your grace is more beautiful than crystal seas and ocean sunsets!

Praise you God that you understand all things and that our fragile estate does not escape you!

I will praise you in the midst of scoffers

I will not deny you before those who blaspheme

I will seek you among the religious knowing that what soothes the soul is not of men

I will endure the ignorant and not stumble over the hard hearted

I will challenge the lukewarm and press on to hotter degrees

And how can it be except that I fall upon your grace and rest in your unfailing love!

God's Call And Gentle Rebuke In My Life

God's call on my life to ministry and the subsequent journey has been one of joy, searching and many personal battles. I don't recall ever resisting God's call in my life to go into ministry. I remember feelings of fear, lack of confidence and a general sense of apprehension but in my best perception of things I didn't resist. I might have moved cautiously but I placed my future in God's hands.

I can remember sitting at my desk in my childhood room up in Erie, Pa. I was somewhere around nineteen or twenty (give or take a year). I think I had already quite my job as a drafter and a machinist for Pendelton Tool Co. I was at that point considering what I would go to college for. It hadn't really crossed my mind before but out of no where the Lord spoke to me (no burning bush, just a small whisper that was as clear as glass to my mind). He basically told me that I should move in the direction of my passion. Immediately my thoughts swung to the Bible which I believe was sitting in front of me on the desk. My greatest passion in life was God's Word. I am so confident in this that if you were to ask any of my family and friends what my passion was back then they would answer you, God or God's Word.

So I entertained the thought for a bit. What would that entail, what would my next steps be, did I have what it takes to be in ministry and on the questions poured out. My initial feelings on the whole matter were fear. I can't be a pastor or a youth minister I thought. I don't have the people skills and so on and so on. The only thing God really said in answer to these questions was that I needed to trust him. I remember saying to God (I may have even said it out loud though I can't remember for sure), "If this is what I should do I will leave it up to you to make straight my path and to make me adequate to the task."

I knew at that point if ministry was what God wanted I probably should seek out some training and development. Thus I began my search for a college. In the mean time I began to bounce my new direction off of godly people who I trusted. Most people encouraged me but some said that I couldn't be a pastor because I was way too much of an introvert. It was true - I was debilitating shy back then but God would eventually lead me out of that. God also moved me into ministry in such a way that I hardly noticed what was happening and before I knew it I was an associate pastor. God is good.

Now I have entered my seventh year of ministry and God is continuing to develop me. Recently God showed me a few things about myself that broke my heart.

1. My disobedience along the way has seemed a small thing in my eyes

2. I have used my relationship with God as a lucky charm. I have seen my relationship with God as a way to increase my own prestige and honor. The greater my relationship with Him, the greater my ministry and leadership will be I thought. Now I am realizing the depravity of my own heart in this area.

3. My own fleshly ambitions and desires have stood in the way of me receiving what God is willing to give.

God really is good because only His truth (and all truth is God's truth) could reveal such wickedness in me. May I be wrapped in a cloak of purity and humility in the next stage of my life and obedience to his call. The Love of the Lord endures forever!

Speaking up for the Younger Generation? – Please hear me older generation!

This is an article I wrote in September's edition or our church's Newsletter.

Is Otterbein reaching our culture? Are we relevant to the younger generation who has less chance today of hearing the gospel than any of the previous generation in America? This problem of reaching the younger generations tends to be a crisis in many churches. In fact the majority of churches in the United States are in decline because they simply are irrelevant to their culture.

“From 1972 to 1993, the General Social Survey of the National Opinion Research Center found that Protestants constituted about 63% of the population. This declined to 52% in 2002. Protestants are believed to have slipped to a minority position sometime between 2004 and 2006 for the first time since the year 1776.”

There are two big hurdles that stand in the way of churches becoming relevant to the culture and reaching the younger generation for Christ. 1. Churches simply don’t know how. The culture and technology changes so fast anymore that many churches simply have trouble knowing how to be relevant. The Apostle Paul understood the necessity of being relevant (1 Cor 9:21-23). 2. The older generation resists changes that make a church relevant. In my short six years of ministry I have been keenly aware of the feelings and attitudes of the older generation in the church. In fact in Bible college they prepared us for leading through change and talked about the generational differences. I have heard it often – “yes BUT, don’t forget the older generation.” The truth of the matter is that I don’t’ want to forget the older generation but rather I want the older generation to take up the servants towel and be willing to make some sacrifices to reach a different generation. I have seen some of the older generation rise up and become teachers and great role models for the next generation. I watched some of them build relationships with young men and women and accept change for the sake of the gospel. However, these people in most churches are the exception not the majority.

Every change in ministry that I make I consider the older generation. If I don’t I know I could not survive in any traditional church. But besides that I really do want the older generation to be a part of ministering to another generation. This doesn’t mean we stop ministering to the older generation – though the way me minister to them will likely change some. The Bible makes it clear that new wine doesn’t last in old wineskins. In other words – new ways and methods don’t typically work well within old structures and ways of doing things. So you see – the church has to change and it desperately needs the older generations help rather than its resistance. I have seen the awesome effects of the older generation reaching out to the next generation but I have also seen churches where the older generation has dug it heals in and allowed the church to exist as irrelevant to the world.

Recently I was at a meeting where I was discouraged because a handful of little things I have done to reach a younger generation were attacked. I know it was not a personal attack but it made a big impact on me. For the first time at Otterbein, I felt like I didn’t belong. I wondered if other young people feel that same way when they encounter Otterbein. I am 33 yrs right now but what about the twenty some crowd (they are considered to be in a different generation than myself) - will they feel as I did in that meeting when they encounter the gospel here?

So – back to the question. Is Otterbein reaching our culture? Look around. How many young people have we reached with the gospel? Is the younger generation made to feel at home here? What will it really take to reach our culture right now and are we willing to make the changes to do it? Is the older generation excited about reaching our culture or just upset that about the changes we are making to reach it? So as younger person serving in ministry at Otterbein will you help to reach the previous generations?

How to grow in zeal for God

Anyone out there struggle with desire and passion? Have you felt like someone just hooked a hose up to you and drained all the passion and zeal right out of you. I am talking about passion, desire and zeal for the Lord of course. Romans 12:11 tells us to never be lacking in zeal but keep your spiritual fervor. How do we do this? Well the previous verses in Romans 12 gives us a clue.


Romans 12:1 Surrender completely to God (few really even want to surrender completely to God but telling god that would at least be a start - especially if you are willing that He makes some changes in you)

Romans 12:2 Renew your minds constantly and stop conforming to the world. Renewing your mind
means bathing yourself in God's Truths so that your thinking is not stinkin (like the worlds). Conforming to
the world means you value what they do more than you value God's best for you. So what do you value most - a big house, a nice car, fun times. These are all great and I wouldn't mind having all of them but if that is where your heart is, it is not with God.
Romans 12: 3-8 Base your identity, security and significance in God and your position as part of His family.

Romans 12:9 Be devoted to other believers. Get into community; live out the Christian life together.

So there you have it all in a nice package. Question is - what are you going to do with it?
What things have you not surrendered to God?
Are you immersing yourself in God's Word? If not then you are not constantly renewing your mind and thus you are bound to be whistle to the Worlds tune and not God's.
What is your identity, security and significance based on? If it is not God your heart will never truly be at rest. Are you living in community with other believers - authentic, intimate community? If not then get connected!

"Repent ye, and believe the gospel."— Mark 1:15

Below are snipets from a sermon that Charles Spurgeon preached on July 13th, 1862. The headings are mine as are anything in italics. Click on the title to see the full sermon by spurgeon.

JESUS PREACHED IT WITHOUT APOLOGY
Jesus preacheth with all the earnestness of a new zeal, combined with all the wisdom of a long preparation; in the beauty of holiness from the womb of morning he glittereth with the dew of his youth. Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, for Messias speaketh in the greatness of his strength. He crieth unto the sons of men, "Repent ye, and believe the gospel." Let us give our ears to these words which, like their author, are full of grace and truth. Before us we have the sum and substance of Jesus Christ's whole teaching.

"Repent ye" is as much a command of God as "Thou shalt not steal." "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ" has as fully a divine authority as "Thou shalt not murder." Why has the Lord made it a command to us to believe in Christ? There is a blessed reason. Many souls would never venture to believe at all if it were not made penal to refuse to do so. For this is the difficulty with many awakened sinners: may I believe? Have I a right to believe? Am I permitted to trust Christ? Now this question is put aside, once for all, and should never irritate a broken heart again. You are commanded by God to do it, therefore you may do it.

"Repentance is to leave

The sins we loved before,

And show that we in earnest grieve,

By doing so no more."

To repent does mean a change of mind; but then it is a thorough change of the understanding and all that is in the mind, so that it includes an illumination, an illumination of the Holy Spirit; and I think it includes a discovery of iniquity and a hatred of it, without which there can hardly be a genuine repentance.
 
FASLE REPENTANCE
Repentance is perfectly consistent with faith; and therefore we get the explanation of what repentance must be, from its being connected with the next command, "Believe the gospel." Any repentance that keeps thee from believing in Christ is a repentance that needs to be repented of; any repentance that makes thee think Christ will not save thee, goes beyond the truth and against the truth, and the sooner thou are rid of it the better. God deliver thee from it, for the repentance that will save thee is quite consistent with faith in Christ.
 
TRUE REPENTANCE
repentance that ejects sin as an evil tenant, and the faith which admits Christ to be the sole master of the heart; the repentance which purges the soul from dead works, and the faith that fills the soul with living works; the repentance which pulls down, and the faith which builds up; the repentance that scatters stones, and the faith which puts stones together; the repentance which ordains a time to weep, and the faith that gives a time to dance— these two things together make up the work of grace within, whereby men's souls are saved. The repentance which is here commanded is the result of faith; it is born at the same time with faith—they are twins. Now, a repentance which makes me weep and abhor my past life because of the love of Christ which has pardoned it, is the right repentance. Again, the repentance which makes us avoid present sin because of the love of God who died for us, this also is saving repentance.
 
REPENT AND BELIEVE IS A REASONABLE COMMAND
Is it an unreasonable thing to demand of a man that he should repent? You have a person who has offended you; you are ready to forgive him; do you think it is at all exacting or overbearing if you ask of him an apology; if you merely ask him, as the very least thing he can do, to acknowledge that he has done wrong? "No," say you, "I should think I showed my kindness in accepting rather than any harshness in demanding an apology from him." So God, against whom we have rebelled, who is our liege sovereign and monarch, seeth it to be inconsistent with the dignity of his kingship to absolve an offender who expresseth no contrition.
 
And then, again, believing; is that an unreasonable thing to ask of you? For a creature to believe its Creator is but a duty; altogether apart from the promise of salvation, I say, God has a right to demand of the creature that he has made, that he should believe what he tells him. And what is it he asks you to believe? Anything hideous, contradictory, irrational? It may be above reason, but it is not contrary to reason. He asks you to believe that through the blood of Jesus Christ, he can still be just, and yet the justifier of the ungodly. He asks you to trust in Christ to save you. Can you expect that he will save you if you will not trust him?
 
URGENCY
Last night there was a review on Wimbledon Common, and living not very far away from it, I could hear in one perpetual roll the cracks of the rifles and the thunder of cannon. One remarked to me, "Supposing there really were war there, we should not sit quite so comfortably in our room with our window open, listening to all this noise." No; and so when people come to chapel, they hear a sermon about repentance and faith; they listen to it. "What do you think of it?" "Oh—very well." But suppose it were real; suppose they believed it to be real, would they sit quite so comfortably? Would they be quite so easy? Ah, no! But you do not think it is real. You do not think that the God who made you actually asks of you this day that you should repent and believe.

Grace and Wrath

Was it God’s grace or His wrath that brought you to Him? The likely answer for most people is that it was God’s grace. However, God’s wrath also provokes people to surrender to Him.


There was a time when God raised up many prophets to warn Israel and the surrounding nations of His wrath and the justice to come if people did not repent and turn to Him. It was God’s grace that He even sent a warning. In fact God went to great extremes to warn people and was exceedingly patient with the nations. However, the book of the prophet Jeremiah details the time when God put his foot down and declared his patience to have run its course. Listen to this passage in Jeremiah 25:30-31.

Now prophesy all these words against them and say to them: "'The Lord will roar from on high; he will thunder from his holy dwelling and roar mightily against his land. He will shout like those who tread the grapes, shout against all who live on the earth. The tumult will resound to the ends of the earth, for the Lord will bring charges against the nations; he will bring judgment on all mankind and put the wicked to the sword,” declares the Lord. This is what the Lord Almighty says: "Look! Disaster is spreading from nation to nation; a mighty storm is rising from the ends of the earth."

God’s grace is an incredible and awesome attribute of His person. But so is His wrath. While no one likes to think about God’s wrath, it is an attribute that it talked a lot about in the Bible. Those who have not surrendered to Christ and repented of their sin will face this wrath. Those who are in Christ – for them there is not condemnation, However God’s wrath should provoke a healthy fear in us of the Lord God Almighty.

I used to be a wrath junkie. I really stressed that aspect of God because no else was. While I still will preach God’s wrath and warn people of it, I have found a balance because God is both full of grace and full of wrath. I pray that God’s glory will be manifest – whether by His grace or through His wrath. May many fall upon His grace and may there be few who fall to His wrath.

We do have to note here that those who fall to God’s wrath will be the wicked, that is those who - rejected God’s warning and did not cling to Jesus Christ as their righteousness. Likewise be warned all who are self righteous, who believe that by being obedient you have earned status with God or a place in heaven. Only the righteousness of Christ is adequate to give us any status with God.

L U S T

It is every man's battle and many a woman's - especially in this culture. Commercial's on TV can provoke it, Billboard signs entice it, the internet reaks of it, and the celebrity/entertainment culture invites it, and video games are testing its limits. Most are so desensitized to imagery and words that entice the lusts of our flesh that we take little notice of how we are affected by the half naked person that is seductively showing off how smooth the advertized soap makes thier skin feel. We hardly flinch at the provacatively sexual way that people interact in movies and TV and yet our lusts do not miss it. We have become a people that accepts lust, in fact we have become a people that do not even recognize it until its turned into a monster - like the pastor that has an affair or our neighbor who was arrested for child pornography.

Lust isn't even a sin anymore - at least by our standards. Dont' worry, God hasn't changed His stance on it.

Prov 6:25 Do not lust in your heart after her beauty or let her captivate you with her eyes,

1 Thess 4:4 each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable,  not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God;

Col 3:5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust , evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.


Matt 5:28  But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

But lust for us is so common place that it is looked upon as less harmful and no more wrong than littering. With pornography ruling the day, at least ruling the entertainment we allow ourselves, we dare not call lust for what it really is - sin. After all what is sin anyway. Sin is just a religious word, only religious nuts or Jesus people call our moral mistakes sin.

Men return to pornography like a dog returns to his vomit. Women  cling to emotional affairs like a security blanket and its all okay - we just are struggling a little. Okay - I hope you get my sarcasm here. It is not okay and we are not simply struggling. We are under the control of LUST. It is has taken control of our free time, it has invited itself into our homes and once its there it is nearly impossible to make leave.

Whether its an addiciton to online pornography that only surfaces once every month, entertainment indulgences which satifsy our lusts and flares up every other week, emotional attachments that are stroked here and there or an all out sexual affair - it is sin and it is a sexual sin. It is blasphemous to God, it greives the Holy Spirit and we better call it for what it is. We cannot pretend that we have a little problem that can simply be swept under the rug, we must admit that we have a sin problem. Lust is like a cancer but few are willing to admit they have it.

I honestly wish I had easy anwers for how to shut it down and overcome addictions that lust produces in us. I do know that the first step is to admit to God that there is a sin issue. We must begin to see lust as a sin no matter how little or harmless it appears. We must be willing to understand God's hatred of sin and thus deal with our sin drastically. Secondly, it nearly always takes the help of other people to overcome it. Thirdly, it will almost always involve some sacrifice that you didn't really want to make. Jesus said it this way - "If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell."

Are you willing to repent and deal with sin or will you just keep slipping up, allowing lust to reign. Listen, God knows our mortal weaknesses and faults. Unlike us He doesn't justify them or find convenient excuses for them, rather He sent Jesus Christ to deal with sin. He radically dealt with sin! If you haven't repented and believed then you are still in your sins. If you have, then you will understand that it is only by God's grace that any of us will make any progress in living consistent with what God has called us to - holiness. Christians sin even while trying to walk obediently and we are far from perfect but we are forgiven. However, let us not forget that repentance means a change or turn of heart from that which we were to that which God has called us.

L U S T. See it for what is, call it by name and persevere against it. In Christ there is found freedom but freedom always has a cost - Just ask the Son of God who paid a cost higher than most of us ever will.

Below are two websites that may help those with sexual addictions.
http://www.faithfulandtrueministries.com/
http://www.pureintimacy.org/