Just came across a quote by Herbert Spencer, who first posited the theory of Social Darwinism and coined the term “survival of the fittest.”  Spencer never married, but devoted his life to study and writing.  Much of his later years were consumed with the publishing of the epic Synthetic Philosophy–18 volumes which essentially represented his life’s work.

A few days before his death, “Herbert Spencer had the eighteen volumes of the Synthetic Philosophy piled on his lap, and… ‘as he felt their cold weight wondered if he would not have done better could he have a grandchild in their stead.” (from A Treasury of the World’s Great Letters, p. 360)

Ouch.  May I put into practice what I tell my students–relationship is more important than anything else.  And no other relationship is more important than the one we can have with the Lord.

I’ve been reading through Matthew, about a chapter a day.  I am seeing the larger designs of the book more clearly than I have in the past, and I’ve noticed a bit of a pattern in the life of Jesus and the disciples.  Check this out:

In Jesus’s life in chapters 1-3, you see Jesus’ identity and relationship to God explained and established, then he immediately experiences opposition in the form of testing by Satan in the wilderness (chapter 4).  Once he has passed the test of suffering, he begins to call his disciples and preach, highlighted by the Sermon on the Mount (chapters 5-7).  A pattern is introduced:  identity, trial, greater revelation.

Now the process seems to begin anew, but this time for both Jesus and the disciples.

Identity: Through Jesus’ calling, teaching, and exercise of authority, the identity of the disciples is established—they are identified with Jesus and called to exercise his authority.  In chapter 8, this authority of Jesus is established.  First, he has authority over disease; the natural world and weather; the spiritual world and the demonic; and finally (beginning of chapter 9), he demonstrates God’s authority in the ability to forgive sin and to correct the religious leaders of the day.  Witnessing these events and experiencing the following of the crowds likely firmly cements the identity of the disciples as followers of Jesus.  They probably thought, “Hey, this is awesome, and I have a front row seat!”

Trial: But in chapter 9 things change.  Jesus’ claims to authority bring conflict with the teachers of the law and opposition ensues.  This opposition continues through chapter 12, in which the religious leaders accuse him (for the second time) of using Satan’s authority rather than God’s.  Meanwhile, the disciples are sent out in chapter 10 to exercise their new identity and authority in Christ, and no doubt experienced trial and opposition.  Imagine yourself as a disciple: you step out in faith and follow this Jesus, but then all of the religious authorities you have been under your whole life essentially accuse you of following a demon.  Many of them were likely ostracized from their families and friends.

Greater Revelation:  But after passing this test, three significant events provide greater revelation for the disciples, particularly Peter who seems to have emerged as the spokesman/leader of the bunch.  First, Peter’ walking on water in chapter 14, then Peter’s confession of “Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God” in chapter 16, and finally, the Mount of Transfiguration experience in chapter 17.

I am not suggesting that the point of Matthew’s gospel is to present this pattern, but rather that this pattern is somewhat self-evident in the life of faith and Matthew is simply an example of it.

So what?:  So what does that mean for us?  It means that we can trust the Lord, even in the midst of trial and suffering.  He will lead us to greater revelation, more intimacy and deeper faith if we don’t lose heart and we keep walking with Him.

Father, bring your peace to those who are suffering.  Encourage them with the knowledge that you will lead them to places of deeper fellowship, intimacy, and revelation.  Jesus, you said, “In this world you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world.”  Thank you for not abandoning us in our trials, but rather using them for our good.

My “read the bible in a year” plan on my iPhone, by strange coincidence, had me read both Job chapter 3 and Jonah chapter 4 today.  For those that are familiar, or care to read them, these are two of the most depressing chapters in the Bible.  Job is cursing the day he was born, wishing he had never lived.  And Jonah, upset that God saved the Ninevites, becomes negative and petty, exclaiming that he wants to die because his shade vine withered.

Of course these examples are extreme, but they both are examples of the fact that we will often not be able to draw life from our circumstances.  When I say “life,” I mean the sense that things are good, we are loved, significant, and secure.  These are the basic needs of life that we chase after, and all of them can be met in the Lord if we trust him.

But, like Job and Jonah, we are in our circumstances.  We often cannot escape our circumstances.  And sometimes that really sucks.  Thankfully, my daily reading plan also included Hebrews 10, which tells what Job and Jonah only looked forward to with hope: That Christ has broken down the barriers between God and man, and we can “draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.  Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful” (Hebrews 10:22-23).

When we draw near, we find that God is the source of life.  In Him, our circumstances become less significant.  His still small voice comforts us, reminding us of His love for us and His calling on our lives to be about something bigger than our immediate circumstances.

Father, I have felt a bit like Jonah and Job these last few months.  Like Jonah, I have allowed somewhat petty issues to distract my attention.  Father, help me to draw near to you and drink deeply of the living water that comes only from you.  Restore my focus to be on your kingdom.  Open my eyes to what you are doing. And give me a thankful heart. I have a truly wonderful family and a great job.  My students are a treasure.  Renew my heart!

Part 5 in a series. Click for Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.

The Foundation: God’s Word

In the Evangelical Christian tradition, the primacy of God’s word (The Bible) is difficult to overstate. Sola Scriptura (scripture alone) was a rallying cry of the Reformation. In order words, “We are going to only trust the Bible for our understanding of God, not the Pope or the Catholic church.” Unfortunately, for some Evangelical Christians, this has gone so far that bible study and doctrine end up supplanting relationship with God. This can result in legalism and hypocrisy, as people “try harder” to be holy and live up to scriptural standards, begin comparing themselves to others in terms of how holy they are, but then can’t maintain it and end up living in shame and defeat.

On the other hand, among Christians that stress relational intimacy with God and the ministry of the Holy Spirit, there is often less emphasis on bible study. After all, they might think, “I know God personally, why do I need to constantly study this book about Him?”  Unfortunately sometimes this can lead to unbiblical ideas, as some believe they hear God leading when it is maybe just their own emotional neediness hearing what they want to hear.

So where is the balance?  It is through reading and studying God’s word that the believer is typically first introduced formally to God’s words and God’s character.  We get to know God through his word.  But what’s awesome about the Bible is that it tells us all these stories of people having relationship with God, not with a book.  If you examine the lives of Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Paul, etc., you find that they walked by faith, with the Lord leading them, often directly and supernaturally, throughout their lives.  They modeled for us the life of faith.

So then, does this mean that the Bible is just merely a primer for us to learn about God, which we leave behind as we learn to have relationship with him directly?  No, far from it. Consider these points:

1. First, the content of the Bible is so rich and deep, that one person cannot master it in their lifetime.  Our blessing and wisdom increase each time we drink deeply from it.  Even when I think I understand a passage, God constantly shows me new things.
2. Second, God’s word is our anchor when our feelings our going crazy.  We go through phases where it is difficult to hear God’s voice and discern his leading.  Experience can be subjective.  God’s word in the Bible is a more objective standard to guide us.
3. Third, God often speaks to us in our current circumstances though the Bible.  Have you ever been reading the bible when a certain verse burns itself into your heart?  I believe this is the Holy Spirit speaking to you directly.  But be careful here: don’t assume that what God gives to you is for everyone else also.  This often results in legalism or other weirdness.  When God speaks to your heart, it is for you.  If it’s for someone else, he will tell you that.
4. Fourth, it is by God’s word that we “test” what we believe to be God’s leading.  If I feel like God is speaking to me about something, an unspoken question going through my mind is, “Is this word I am receiving consistent with what I know about God from the Bible?”  And here is the critical point: the less I know about the Bible, the more likely I am to make mistakes listening for God’s voice, and the more likely I am to be led astray.  Some people see this happening in others’ lives or other churches, and they throw the baby out with the bathwater.  Out of fear, they turn to the belief that God only speaks through the Bible, and end up turning faith into an intellectual exercise of understanding the Bible better than anyone else.

So the bottom line is that understanding of the Bible is critical for our faith.  It is our major source of knowledge about God and can be trusted (2 Tim. 3:16-17).  Study of it is essential for our spiritual growth, partly to help us identify God’s work in our own lives.  But let’s be careful that pride doesn’t come in and lead us to put our trust in our knowledge of the Bible (1 Cor. 8:1-3).  Faith is not intellectual mastery of a book, it is the passionate pursuit of its source (1 Cor. 2).

I was reading this morning in Charles Kraft, Defeating Dark Angels.  He made the point that to heal, we must treat the whole person because everything is interconnected.  Physically, emotionally, spiritually, etc., we are all connected.  Things happening in one part affect other parts.  A person goes to a medical doctor, but he only treats the physical part.  Or someone goes to a counselor, but they only address the emotional part, etc.  So people do get help, but they rarely get full healing.

What if the church became a center for healing?  What if Christian doctors and counselors partnering with Christians trained in pastoral care,  inner healing and deliverance could work as teams to bring at least the opportunity for pervasive healing to someone?  It would be difficult, with all the professional egos and those who feel that their discipline is most important, but if the whole team had a heart for the Lord and the commitment and skill to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit (the source of all healing), it could be revolutionary.

Father, I pray that you would raise up churches who would become centers of healing.  Father, you love this sick and dying world.  It is your desire to bring healing and help.  So father, bring together like-minded followers with these skills and put them together to bring blessing and healing to the nations.

I took my wife up to “Top of the World” in Hacienda Heights to watch the sunset the other night.  I had been there before, but had never hiked up the hill.  Now I understand why it’s called that!  It was very romantic–highly recommended.

Next time I will take some pictures and post them.

I’ve been led by the Holy Spirit to read some Charles Kraft this summer.  In “Behind Enemy Lines,” Kraft addresses whether Christians can be demonized.  (Many use the term “demon possession,” but this language is not biblical. Demons that dwell in or around people can exercise varying levels of influence on them depending upon their history and actions.)  Kraft has helped deliver hundreds of people from the influence of demons, including many Christians.  He writes:

The way the Holy Spirit enters [a Christian] is, I believe, by uniting with the spirit, the “heart” or innermost being of a person who gives him or herself to God.  I have tested this scores of times by commanding the demons (under the power of the Holy Spirit, who forces them to tell the truth) to tell me if they live in the person’s spirit.  They consistently reply something like, “No, I can’t get in there.  Jesus lives there.”  Then, when they are commanded to tell when they had to leave the Christian’s spirit, they give the date of the person’s conversion.

I conclude, therefore, that demons cannot live in that innermost part of a Christian, the spirit, since it is filled with the Holy Spirit (see Romans 8:16).  That part of us becomes alive with the life of Christ and in inviolable by the representatives of the enemy.  Demons can, however, live in a Christian’s mind, emotions, body, and will.  We regularly have to evict them from those parts of Christians.  I suspect that one reason a demon can gave greater control of an unbeliever is because it can invade even the person’s spirit (p. 91)

He later points out that most Christians he counsels are not demonized, and that those demons who are in Christians are usually weak.  If they are present, it is usually due to the person’s pre-conversion involvement in the occult or a few other scenarios.  Here’s an account of a very weak demonization of a Christian from Defeating Dark Angels:

I was discussing demonization with a couple of pastors during a seminar lunch break.  The topic was quite unfamiliar to them.  One of them I’ll call George, began to share with us a lifelong problem he had had with fear.  Though George had been in counseling for some time, his fear had not been overcome.  Indeed, he said, he was highly anxious at that very moment.  After a silent prayer, I looked straight at George saying, “If there’s a spirit of fear here, I command you to leave, in the name of the Jesus.”

Shock was on George’s face as I looked directly at him but talked “past him” to the demon inside.  For a pastor who wasn’t sure he believed in such things, the approach seemed awfully direct, and I seemed overly confident in my diagnosis of what lay behind his problem.  Then amazement filled George’s face as he said over and over, “The fear is gone!  The fear is gone!”

…My theory is that a fairly weak demon was living within him, whose assignment was to use fear to hamper his effectiveness as a servant of Christ.  My analysis is that the demon did not cause the fear.  Talking with the pastor, I discovered that he had experiences in early childhood that predisposed him to fearfulness.  This weakness allowed the demon in during his early life, providing the “food” on which the demon fed to keep him off balance.  I think the demon had been very greatly weakened as the pastor dealt with the problem through counseling.  All that remained, then, was for the demon to be banished once and for all.  And that seemed to happen that day at lunch (p. 31-32)

This story does not seem to be typical for Kraft, as he normally spends 90% of his time with people in either pre-deliverance or post-deliverance counseling.  Obviously he had discernment from the Holy Spirit in this particular case to do what he did.  He compares demons to rats who feed on garbage.  If we want to be rid of the rats, we clean up the garbage.  We repent of our actions, renounce past choices, seek God’s healing for deep wounds that cause bitterness in our hearts, etc.  When we clean up the garbage within, the demons have no legal rights (turns out demons are very legalistic…interesting) to remain and then can be removed.

If I want to do the ministry of Jesus, I need to learn how to war against the enemy in order to help set people free.  Lord, please give me the discernment to know the enemy’s work and the wisdom to do battle against it.  And may I keep love at the center, avoiding the errors of seeing demons around every corner or not seeing them at all.

¹⁴Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. ¹⁵He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. ¹⁶He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. ¹⁷The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

¹⁸“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
¹⁹to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:14-19)

The Lord has given me two directives for this summer.  One is more about studying and equipping, and the other is about loving and shepherding.  The studying directive is to read the works of Charles Kraft and become more knowledgeable in the area of spiritual warfare.  So I ordered a bunch of Kraft books from Amazon, and they arrived a couple days ago.  I grabbed the shortest one (hey, I want to start out successful!), called The Rules of Engagement.

One of the first points he makes is one I have learned in recent years that has been revolutionary for me.  I used to not get as much out of reading the gospel accounts of Jesus’ life because of what I thought about Jesus.  Jesus healed a blind guy. Jesus turned a small lunch into food for 5,000.  Jesus walked on water, yada yada yada. Well, of course he could do these things, he is divine.  (side note, I’ve been enjoying this video.)  It is not surprising that the second person of the Trinity, God himself, would do these things. But how do they relate to me?  I can’t do those things.

But more study has revealed something else.  Something that changes everything.  It starts with a question.  Could God be tired?  Could God be hungry?  Could God not know certain things?  No, of course not, as he is all-powerful, all-knowing, fully self-sufficient, etc.  And yet Jesus experienced these things during his time among us.  He didn’t know certain things.  Jesus was tired.  Jesus was hungry.  Jesus clearly experienced many of the same limitations that are common to man.  And to be our redeemer, our sacrifice, our high priest, he had to.  He had to be fully man to pay the price for our sins and to experience our sufferings.

So how does God do this?  Scholars call this the “kenosis” or “emptying” of Christ, based on Philippians 2:1-11.  The idea is that Jesus voluntarily set aside (but did not lose them) the use of his divine attributes so that he could experience full humanity during the time of his incarnation on earth.

And there is lot of evidence for this view.  Consider, there are no recorded miracles of Jesus prior to one of the key events in his life: his baptism. During his baptism, the Holy Spirit came down upon Jesus.  Why would the son of God, the second person of the Trinity, need the Holy Spirit?  Because he had “emptied” himself.  After his baptism, he not only does miracles, but is described by Luke shortly afterwards as being “full of the Holy Spirit,” and in the “power of the [Holy] Spirit.” And Jesus often went away from others to pray.  Why would he need to pray if he was using his divine attributes?

So what does this all mean?  It means everything!  It means that we can do the works of Jesus because we can be full of the same Holy Spirit!  “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12).  When Jesus turned to the woman at the well, and said, “You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband” (John 4:17), how did he know that?  I believe he had what the apostle Paul calls a “word of knowledge” from the Holy Spirit.  And we can have them to!  We can see people healed by the Holy Spirit’s power.  We can cast out demons by the Holy Spirit’s power.

But this is not automatic.  The Holy Spirit cannot be manipulated or controlled.  Just by wanting to see the Holy Spirit do these things doesn’t mean we will see them.  As Paul says, the gifts must be earnestly desired.  They take practice, and proficiency in the use of the gifts emerge over time, and even with much experience, the Holy Spirit is still in control.

I am an infant in terms of understanding the practice of these gifts.  But I am in community with those who know much more and am trying to learn all I can.  If the church is going to “preach good news to the poor…proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind [and] release the oppressed” (Luke 4:18), we must rely on the Holy Spirit, just like Jesus did.

But it’s ultimately not about power, but love.  After all, God could scare us all into heaven by a demonstration of his power.  But he is after something greater.  The use of power is governed by the constraints of love.  Sounds like a future post!  =)

I have been learning in recent years the difference between a “good idea” and the Holy Spirit’s leading.  Sometimes we come up with something to do for ministry or otherwise that just sounds really good, or involves a perceived benefit that is consistent with scriptural principles.  But when we seek the Lord intently, His still small voice suggests a different direction.  The experience is often so surprising, that we need to pray again, and ask others with spiritual discernment to confirm it.  I have had two such experiences lately.

First, I was asked during this last school year to consider being a candidate for a spot on the board of directors of a national organization I belong to.  I was certainly honored by the invitation.  It would involve being flown to a couple meetings during the year, put up in a hotel, etc.  Moderate commitment, high honor.  Sounded like a great idea.  But as I went to the Lord in prayer, the Holy Spirit said that this opportunity would be a distraction for me, a fork in the road away from my calling.  So I politely declined, but that was hard.  I really wanted the honor and influence.

Second, this summer I had this great idea about leading a small group of former students and others in our circle of relationships.  In conjunction with the group, I was going to create a resource (small book) that would help those seeking God to understand what true relationship with God looks like.  The group was going to be awesome, with times of intimate worship, praying for each other, and sharing our hearts.  But when I went to the Lord more purposefully, He redirected me.  He gave me two specific things to be about this summer.  Neither one was to run this group.  Or write that book.

What if I had done either or both of these things?  Would the Lord have blessed them?  I don’t know.  God is constantly taking our Plan B’s and turning them back into Plan A’s, so he is gracious and merciful.  He works with us where we actually are, not where we should be in an ideal world.  So I personally believe he would have blessed both of these ventures, but to a limited extent.  In other words, I believe there would have been some fruit (good results) that would have come from both of these things.  But in the end, I believe they would have been a bit empty, leaving me wondering why God didn’t do more.  I think this is where many in ministry are at (including me): ‘why doesn’t God do more?’  I’m sure there are lots of answers to that question, but one answer may be that we are pursuing ‘good ideas’ rather than the H0ly Spirit’s leading.

In 2 Samuel chapter 7, David has a period of peace and rest, and wonders why he lives in a nice palace while the Ark of the Covenant and God’s presence among the people resides in a tent (the Tabernacle).  He wants to build a beautiful temple for the Lord.  Even the Lord’s prophet Nathan thought this to be a good idea, saying “Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the LORD is with you.”  But that night, the Lord spoke to Nathan, and told him that it was to be David’s son, Solomon, who would build a temple for the Lord.  Interesting.  It sounded like such a good idea—so good that the “man after God’s own heart” and the Lord’s anointed prophet were about to go for it.  But for God’s own purposes, He had other ideas.  And this I know, God’s purposes always work out better than our own.  And I believe we would almost always choose them if we could see with His eyes.  But since we can’t, we must seek and trust.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”  Proverbs 3:5-6

“As a man prays, so is he.” -A.W. Tozer.

Came across this quote from Tozer.  Powerful.  I need to pray.   (HT: Campus Crusade for Christ, Jesus Film project.)