A Voice Whining In The Wilderness

I guess the word for my feelings would be “amused” or sometimes “amazed.” I’m talking about my reaction to those pastors (it’s always pastors-thank God for the good ones!) who fancy themselves to be doctrinal watchdogs for the whole Christian world. They are the ones who write verbose articles against what other people are teaching, but have very little to say themselves. They project themselves as scholars of the highest pedigree while their logic and biblical acumen reek of amateurish attempts to sound smart. Since they seem to have no thoughts of their own, they spend their lives reacting negatively to what others say. I mean, after all, when you’re a preacher you have to talk about something.

Somebody recently sent me an email calling my attention to another critic of my ministry and message who has gone to great lengths to show how dangerous I am. (I still can’t quite figure out why friends think this will bless me.) This pastor called me an antinomian. He suggested that I don’t understand the complexity and duality of human nature. He even questioned my trust in the Bible. The only thing his article lacked was the insinuation that my last name might be linked with the Oklahoma City bombings a few years back. (That was Timothy McVeigh, not McVey.)

As I browsed around, I was relieved to learn that I’m not the only heretic out there. Apparently, I’m in good company with Billy Graham, who supposedly is in danger of hellfire for thinking somebody other than middle-aged white men might be in heaven. With Joel Osteen, whom allegedly will one day have that smile wiped off his toothy face. With Rick Warren who, although he is going there, doesn’t worry about it because he doesn’t believe in it. I could list others noted as members of the Heretics Hall of Shame. Some of them are even my friends. People like Bill Gillham, author of Lifetime Guarantee, the book God used to open my eyes nearly 20 years ago. How could anybody say such a mean thing about such a sweet guy!

Well, anyway -- I didn’t know I was such a bad guy. Well, at least I’m sincere – you gotta believe me on that one. The guy who wrote me that “hell will be really hot for you” just doesn’t understand me. Like all Christians, I’ve traveled the road I’m on and have come to the place I am because I believe God’s Spirit has brought me here. And the truth is, if this is the wrong place, all I know is that I sure ain’t going back to where I used to live. Been there, done that. For the last time.

I’ve traveled the religion road and found it only led me in circles. Finally, after many years of driving myself faster and faster in an attempt to find my way, I pulled off in a Rest Stop and don’t plan to ever leave here. I like it. In fact, I plan to spend the rest of my life standing on the side of the road and motioning for others to pull in and rest with me.

Yes, there are whiners in the wilderness – those who whine and criticize because they don’t understand God’s grace and think they are light years ahead of those who proclaim it. As I began by saying, most of the time I’m amused or amazed by them. Truthfully, sometimes I am agitated with them – particularly when their criticisms are about things they think I’ve said or believe when they actually have totally misunderstood my viewpoint. I’m thinking of the one guy who accused me of not believing the Bible. Now that’s a cheap shot with not a shred of basis for such an accusation.

Sometimes I feel sorry for these whining voices, but not often. I save that for legitimately weaker brothers, not wacky ones.

Why this particular blog article? So that others who are criticized will know you aren’t alone. One person recently said she was tempted to just shut up about “this whole grace thing” because of the trouble it is causing her. My advice is: “Don’t!” People need this message of grace we share. Let the whiners whine but let us refuse to back down or water down the gospel.

There is much at stake. Time is short. Grace is true. So let’s keep proclaiming it!

God Is For Me

“God is for me.” Can you make that statement with a deep sense of certainty? He is, you know. When things are going the way you want, God is for you. When life seems to be falling apart, God is for you. When the Philistines chased David down in Gath, he wrote, “This I know, that God is for me” (Psalm 56:9). What a time to make a declaration like that!

Many of us have found ourselves in a place similar to David’s situation at times. Life is closing in . . . the enemy seems to have us cornered and there appears to be no way out. Pleasant circumstances disappear before our eyes and the world turns dark.

At times like that, we may be tempted to cry out, “Why is God against me?” Not David. He assured himself with the truth, “God is for me.” He didn’t say, “This I feel, that God is for me.” There are many times in life that we don’t feel like God is for us. No, he said, “This I know, that God is for me.

Will you affirm this truth in your own life? God really is for you. Nothing can ever change His mind or heart toward you. If you are His child, His lovingkindness toward you will last forever. (Read Psalm 136 sometime!)

Circumstances may be suffocating you at times, but God is for you! Negative feelings may seem to be strangling you, but God is for you! Life may not make sense at a given moment, but God is for you! Trust Him. When you feel like you’re drowning in an ocean of problems, cling to your Heavenly Father. He will prove Himself strong in your life by assuring you of His love.

Your circumstances may or may not turn out like you want, but He will hold you in His loving and sovereign arms and gently whisper His love to you again and again. Sit in quietness for a moment and listen to his loving voice assure you of that fact until, like the Psalmist, you may say, “This is know, God is for me!”

Annuit Coeptis

Take a one dollar bill and look at the back of it. Do you see the pyramid on the left, with the eye above it? Look at the Latin words bove that eye – “Annuit Coeptis.” Do you know what those words mean? “Our endeavors are favored.” That’s the meaning – our endeavors are favored! Favored by whom? You know who – God, of course!

The word favor is a synonym for the word “grace.” There, right on the back of every dollar bill you handle every day of your life is a message reminding you that your endeavors are favored by God. What could possibly be a more appropriate symbol for our daily lifestyle than a one dollar bill? A day hardly passes that we don’t handle one. Every time you do, your Father is saying to you, “My grace is upon you.” Every time you touch a dollar bill, why not affirm the truth, “My Father’s favor is on me.”"

It's amazing how many ways our Father will speak to us when we get out of the religious box that most of us have lived in for so long. He really does speak in a multitude of ways, and often not with a churchy dialect.

The enemy wants us to think that the only way we can hear the voice of God is when it comes to us through a religious means. How sad when we fall for that lie. Our Father uses the whole world as His pulpit. He declares His love for us in many ways every day, even through a simple dollar bill.

Do you want to expand your capacity to hear the voice of God? Ask Him to make you aware of the ways He whispers His love to you in the routine circumstances and events of your day. Then don’t be surprised when you hear Him in ways you’ve never even thought of hearing Him before – through music, movies, art, nature, hobbies, sports – you name it.

One person wrote me and asked, “Are you saying that God speaks to us outside the Bible?” My answer is, “yes.” He will never speak to us in a way that contradicts the Bible, but He certainly speaks at times other than we are reading Scripture. How many times have you heard the Lord speak through a sermon, a choir anthem, a book written by a Christian? Many times, of course.

What I’m challenging you to do is realize that our Father’s voice extends beyond the religious and into your regular daily lifestyle. Listen for His voice assuring you, “Your efforts are blessed. Your lifestyle is favored.” That’s what He wants us to know and He is willing to tell us that truth a thousand times a day if need be.

Conviction of Sin

The ministry of the Holy Spirit in bringing conviction into our lives is one of the most misunderstood truths of the New Testament. Many of us have lived for many years with a viewpoint that suggests that one of His main responsibilities is to point out our sins so that we will abandon them. Many are surprised to learn that, while the Holy Spirit does indeed convict us, it isn’t about our sins. He convicts us about something altogether different. Consider John 16:8-11:

8 "And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; 11 and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.

This passage says that the Holy Spirit convicts of three things: 1. Sin 2. Righteousness 3. Judgment. He convicts two groups of people: The world (not you) and you (the Christian).

Who does the Holy Spirit convict of sin? Verse 9 says that the conviction of sin is connected to the world. Why are they convicted? “Because they do not believe in Me,” says Jesus. It is the unbeliever who is convicted of sin. What is that sin? They are convicted of one sin in particular – unbelief in Christ. The Holy Spirit doesn’t convict unbelievers of their sins (plural), but of the singularly greatest sin of all -- their failure to trust Christ as their Savior.

Even if they stopped doing all the wrong things they do in life, the world would still have the fundamental problem of their unbelief. When your house is burning to the ground, you don’t worry that it needs a paint job. There are more pressing matters. So it is with those who don’t know Christ. The Holy Spirit convicts them of their great need to believe in Him. Everything else is incidental.

But what of the Christian? Jesus said the Spirit would convict of righteousness because “I go to My Father and you no longer see Me.” Conviction of sin is directed to a group Jesus called “they” – the world. Conviction of righteousness is associated with “you” – the follower of Jesus. The ministry of the Holy Spirit toward the Christian is to convince us of our righteousness. Jesus has put away our sin by the sacrifice of Himself (see Hebrews 9:26). Now He seeks to convince (convict) us of that reality so that we will act consistently with who we are.

The Spirit of Christ doesn’t put you under guilt and condemnation about something Jesus Christ has already absorbed into Himself at the cross, defeated and put away. Remember that Jesus dealt with sin and then sat down by the right hand of God because there was nothing left to do regarding sin. Your sins have been defeated and put away. So at every moment, “There is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.”

When the Christian sins, the Holy Spirit causes us to realize, “This isn’t who I am. I don’t want to live like this.” That realization is a call to recognize our righteousness and act like who we are. If you sense feelings of worthlessness and shame; if you think you are a horrible person when you sin, that isn’t the Holy Spirit speaking to you. It may be your church or family history rising up to condemn you, but it isn’t God’s Spirit. He doesn’t do that. Ever.

You can be convinced (convicted) that the ruler of this world (Satan) has already been judged and has nothing on you anymore. Your sins have been defeated, so when you find that you have fallen, don’t beat yourself up because God doesn’t. Just get up and act like who you are!

This is the view of Jesus many Christians have....

The video was made by and for a church youth group. It's intention isn't to criticize or make fun of Christianity, but to show the silliness of faulty beliefs about Jesus.

(If you're looking for the blog on Being Out Of Fellowship With God, scroll down this page :) Some have emailed to say they can't find it)

Being Out of Fellowship With God - Not Possible

It is impossible for a Christian to ever be out of fellowship with God. Do you believe that? I begin this article with such a bold statement because I want to shake you into serious thought. As we grow in our grace walk we sometimes find ourselves having to rethink some of the things we’ve heard all our lives. This whole concept of being “out of fellowship” is one of those things we’ve all heard, but it just isn’t true. It isn’t true for one simple reason: the fellowship you have with God isn’t up to you. Your Father has embraced you with an eternal grip that makes it impossible for you to wiggle out of His love and acceptance.

If it is possible to be out of fellowship with God, what would cause that? Sin, of course. That’s the silver bullet against the Christian, right? Don’t be so quick to agree. The truth of the matter is that Christ has dealt a death blow against sin that will eternally keep it from ever interfering with how God sees you. Sin has been defeated. When Jesus said, “If is finished!” that’s exactly what He meant.

John wrote in 1 John 1:7, that “if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” Know this: You do walk in the Light. Even when you sin, you are in the Light because He is the Light of the world and you are constantly in Him. Our perception of the light may be obscured, but that doesn’t change the fact that we are in the light. If I go outside into the bright sunlight and put on a sleep mask so that I see nothing but complete darkness, am I in the light? Yes, I am still in the light. My only problem is that my perception of the light has been blocked.

That’s what sin does in our lives. It blinds us to the fact that we are standing in the Light of His love and grace at every moment and to the reality that nothing can change that. John said that “the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” The word “cleanses” in the verse is the Greek word kathariz, a word which has powerful implications. The word is present, active, indicative – meaning that the blood of Christ at this moment and at every moment is keeping us cleansed of all sin. If we are being constantly kept cleansed of sin, what would cause God to be out of fellowship with us?

When the prodigal son was in the pig pen, his perception of fellowship with his father was totally changed. He would have said that he was out of fellowship but, in reality, his Dad’s attitude toward him hadn’t changed at all. His Dad still loved, adored and accepted him the way he always had done. The problem was in the son’s mind, not in the Dad’s attitude.

The same is true of us. Our Father adores us and nothing ever changes that fact. Our perception may be that we are “out of fellowship” at times, but God never sees it that way. He embraces and loves us even when we feel like we have broken fellowship with Him. You are cleansed of your sins and your Father accepts you. So put aside the notion that fellowship with Him can be broken by your behavior. It isn’t about you. It never has been. It’s all about His unconditional acceptance. He is in fellowship with us and we aren’t big enough to ever change that!

God's Grace Is Bigger Than Your Sin

One of the most amazing aspects of God’s grace is the way it blows sin right off the map of our lives. Make no mistake about it – sin lost the battle with God and is now a non-entity as far as its ability to stop His purposes for the life of the Christian. Are there consequences for our sins? We have all seen that often to be the case. Do our sins disqualify us from being used by God? Not at all.

David committed a horrible sin when he slept with Bathsheba, but after they were married and God wanted the temple to be rebuilt it was her son, Solomon, that He used to accomplish that project.

Peter flatly denied that he even knew Jesus, but when it came time for the sermon to be preached on the day of Pentecost, he was the man who God used that day.

Abraham had his wife Sarah tell a king that she was his sister so that the king wouldn’t kill him to have a chance to take her. Despite his horrible and cowardly sin, God reaffirmed His intention to make him the father of a great nation many times afterwards.

The list could go on and on. It’s a strange thing to hear debate in the church today about who God can and can’t use. The fact is that God can use anybody He wants to use. I learned this truth even before I understood the grace walk. Years ago someone asked me about a certain, flamboyant TV evangelist. “What do you think of him?” I was asked. “He’s an idiot,” I responded in my “I-haven’t-learned-a-thing-about-grace” way that was all too common back then. The woman then went on to tell me how God had used that man’s ministry to transform her life. “What do you think now?” she asked. Without hesitation, I answered, “I guess God uses idiots!”

While my response was far from graceful, it’s true. God uses idiots. I should know. He used me despite my years of legalistic idiocy. God can use you too. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that you might have done something that is so terrible that your Father can’t redeem your past and use your life for His glory. He can use you and He will use you.

Jesus came to put away your sin and He fully succeeded at that. (See Hebrews 9:26) We need to stop worshipping our sins by focusing on them and glory in the finished work of the cross. God’s grace is bigger than our sins and He will use our lives for His glory. Let’s just trust Him to do it!