I’ve been puzzled by how quickly a culture of fear has become the norm in the land of the free and the home of the brave.  We have successfully adjusted to many other dangers far worse that the Covid19 virus over the years.

For instance, the experts tell us that an estimated 606,520 people will die in 2020 of cancer.  559,265 will die of heart disease.  Accidents will claim 167,107 victims.

And Alzheimer’s will take 122,018.  Pneumonia and the flu will kill another 59,118.  And then we kill ourselves (suicide) at the rate of 48,344 per year. And finally, over 600,000 babies were killed in the wombs of their mothers through abortion in the past year.

Now we have a context for the 240,000 deaths so far in 2020 from the Covid19 virus.  For many years people have been dying all around us from a multitude of diseases in far greater numbers that from the Covid19 virus. Nobody was sheltering in place or wearing masks.

Nobody was blaming Presidents Trump, Obama or Bush for the deaths.

Nobody but hypochondriacs have lived in fear over the reality of deadly diseases in the past.  So why this mass hysteria now with this flu pandemic? 

Before I go further, I assure you that I am aware of the contagious nature of Covid19.  Please don’t blow me off as if I was “anti-science”.  I am probably more data driven than most because I love to read and research.  My question is legitimate because a social aberration has risen that I have begun calling pandemic panic.  It has taken on a life of its own and even been weaponized for political purposes.  FEAR has been embraced very much like a new religion.  It has its high priests in medical experts and media pundits.  It has its standards of righteousness in “virtue signaling” and judging and shunning based on mask wearing and social distancing.

If you come down with the virus you are judged for not being careful enough or being around irresponsible and dangerous people.  People who attend churches are judged and disdained by far more rigorous standards than protestors, rioters and looters.  It seems that new religions are just as riddled with hypocrisy as ancient ones. I digress.

My point is I am not a believer in the religions of fear or white supremacy or systemic racism.  If it looks like a religion and acts like a religion; if it has a belief system of absolutes and demands complete loyalty: if it shuts down all dissent and disagreement…it is in competition with true religion.  Followers of Jesus Christ must never bow to lesser gods.  We believe “there is no fear in love.  But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment.  The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” I John 4:18

I am well aware that there must be balance here.  Yes, we are commanded in biblical Christianity to love our neighbors as ourselves.  Can’t that be expressed in mask wearing and social distancing?  Of course, it can.  But not as an expression of fear!  Under President-elect Biden we will be coerced by a national mask mandate.  It will be fear based not love based.  It will feed the pandemic hysteria to the place where the American people could be willing to place “church-going” Christians in detention.  I’m thinking internment camps like the Japanese Americans suffered during another time of fear-based hysteria during World War II.  Fear drives people to do things that they later realize were shameful and terribly unjust.  Let’s not go down that fear driven road again.

I write this because I suspect that the same people who tolerate violence in the streets, riots, destruction of businesses and looting will be irrationally intolerant of the peaceful gatherings of Christians.  I do not think that’s a stretch because its already happening. 

Friends, it’s time to stay true to our religion of love.  “We love because He first loved us.  I John 4:19

“And He has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.” I John 4:21

I’m writing this blog on election day November 3^rd, 2020.  The whole world is literally holding its breath as the remaining votes are being counted amid charges of election irregularities and fraud.  Everyone seems to be agreed that the kind of nation we are and will become is at stake.  We have been subjected for weeks, even months, to the worst kinds of fear mongering on both sides.

The result?  We are more divided by animosity and even hatred then ever before.  I decided that before I know whether Trump or Biden won this race for the presidency, I would take a deep breath and acknowledge my deepest conviction.  I believe with all my heart that God is indeed sovereign over the affairs of men and nations.  He alone understands the complexities of human history and He alone can do anything about the future.

My Bible tells me that Jesus Christ is Lord, whether he is treated as such or not.  He is going to win!  His Kingdom will come and He will accomplish His plans and purposes on earth as He does in heaven.  In the end the forces of darkness, deception and evil will be destroyed and creation will be restored to its original perfection.

My responsibility today is to trust Him. This year, I once again voted my biblical values and convictions and encouraged many others to do the same.  I am not at all sure of which way this nation’s politics will turn.  What I am sure of is that Jesus Christ will eventually put all his enemies under His feet, establishing His Kingdom for all eternity.  First Corinthians 15: 24-28 tells us that in the end, He will hand the Kingdom back to God the Father as an act of loving humility.

The greatest of all leaders will not be up for election.  He is God’s Elect!  We become elect along with Him when we choose to install him on the throne of our hearts by faith.  He is the leader we can trust to do what is good, right, loving and just…100% of the time.  I love His leadership and can hardly wait for the day when He takes over permanently.

I Cor. 15: 57-58

“But thank God!  He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. So, dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immoveable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.”

Challenging events and circumstances have impacted God’s people for 2000 years.  In every age there have been difficulties to overcome, heresies to confront and adversities to endure. Our day is no exception.

In 2020 we have been blindsided by a worldwide pandemic that shut down public gatherings including church services.  Sports stadiums, concert venues, movie theatres, weddings, funerals, and school classes have all been shut down.

The difference between other kinds of public gatherings and church gatherings is the fact that we have a constitutional guarantee of non-interference from the state.  Yet, very few Christian pastors have objected or resisted the closure mandates of governors, mayors, or judges.

So, we have gone to the internet streaming our worship and bible teaching services.  We have used Zoom and Skype for personal communication and small group bible studies.  Has it worked?  Have we managed to survive?  At this point we don’t really know what the shutting down of normal church functions has done to us or our children.  We think our people are still with us.  Money is still coming in but, now that is starting to decline.  All we know for sure is that we are in a desperate push to survive the restrictions.  A tremendous amount of work has been demanded of every pastor and church leader.  We have had to learn a whole new way of doing church…often without adequate equipment or training.

The result?  Exhaustion, discouragement and a growing desire to quit trying to do an impossible job.  We are an institution created by Jesus Christ that is designed to operate relationally.  Personal relationships are foundational to us and without the ability to be with each other, see each other, hear each other, hug each other and minister directly to each other we are finding ourselves unable to function as the “Body of Christ” the way we used to.

If you are a pastor, a pastor’s wife, a lay-leader, a church member or a church shopper…discouragement is a very real current issue.  Yet, this is where the apostle Paul’s instruction in I Corinthians 15: 57-58 is so important.  We are called to endure, persevere, and overcome in spite of difficulty.

I am reaching out to you today with encouragement and hope.  It is tough to lead a church this year and Covid19 doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon.  But, for the sake of our Lord and His Kingdom don’t give up.  Keep your eyes on Him.  Draw strength from His Word and grace from His Spirit and stay faithful to His call.  According to Revelations chapters two and three, our eternal rewards will be given on the basis of our faithfulness in “overcoming” whatever degree of difficulty we are facing.

C.S. Lewis says,” Divine love is gift love.  The Father gives all He is and has to the Son.  The Son gives Himself back to the Father, and gives Himself to the world.”  This truth explains the attraction of the original Christian community.  The Holy Spirit overflowed from their joyful hearts.  Gratitude and generosity spilled out into a love thirsty world.

Life in the Kingdom of God is all about love.  Not me centered, need centered love, but giving love that flows outward from a genuinely changed heart.  The result is sparkling, enjoyable community, and many safe selves living together in harmony and unity without destroying legitimate diversity.

One of the most impressive and convincing marks of true Christianity is generosity.  Sharing is an inevitable by-product of Christ’s’ Kingdom being set up in our hearts.  It captivates.  Self-giving love is a gorgeous sample of what the Kingdom of Jesus is about.  The early church didn’t preach this virtue.  They displayed it.

The truth is simple and self-evident.  Self-centered, non-following Christians are unsafe and unappealing.  Christ following Christians are safe, fun to live with and inviting to others. We were designed to reflect God’s very own generosity.  The Trinity is a perpetual cycle of self-giving love.  Each of the personalities of the Godhead escapes the self-centeredness that destroys fallen angles and humankind by focusing outward on each other.  True community has its anchor in the Trinitarian structure of the Creator.  He is enchanting and captivating.  His love is striking and delightful even when imperfectly displayed in us.

I’ve only done it once in my life.  I was minding my own business having a cup of coffee when a woman sat down at the next table in an outdoor café.  Her perfume was outstanding!  After about 30 minutes of sitting downwind I ventured over and asked for the name of the fragrance she was wearing.  Later I went to the store and purchased a bottle for my wife and gave it to her on our anniversary.  She has worn the same perfume ever since, and I never get tired of it.

Some fragrances strike up a symphony in your nose, some play a concert in your soul.  The fragrance of life in God’s Kingdom is that total experience kind of aroma.  It submerges the entire being in the essence of home.

Churches can smell, taste, and feel right, or wrong.  First impressions can attract or repel.  Most people make their decision about whether or not to return to a church based on intangibles.  The way the group impacts their physical and spiritual senses has a lot to do with it.

That is why the fruit of the Spirit is so important.  It is the sweet savor of eternal life and love.  It is unmistakable.  Once experienced in a group it is never forgotten.  It can be tasted on an individual basis but it is much more impressive when a whole church is producing such a harvest of relational righteousness.  It fits.  It settles well.  It is what we were created to enjoy.

We often measure church health by doctrine, size, and compatibility of our needs with the ministry programs.  Also important is the worship style, and the personality of the leader.  It would be far better to check out the fruit of the Spirit.  If love and its attendant virtues aren’t there, nothing else matters.  Without the beauty of the fruit of the Spirit a church is merely an organization.  With it, God’s Kingdom comes and the community of heaven visits earth.

Toxic churches that abuse.  Dysfunctional churches.  We have a new language for discussing our corporate weaknesses today.

Some of this is helpful.  We need new tools for measuring our health and quantifying the actual results of our life together.  Without question there are many unsafe Christian communities.  The natural kingdoms of self-in-control may have never given way to the supernatural Kingdom of Christ-in-Control.  Ego-driven ministries can be well camouflaged and initially attractive.  The further out from the center you are, the better everything looks.  The closer you get to the core and the dominant personalities, the worse it looks and feels.  Egoism always demands one-way loyalty; you are expected to be loyal to the leaders.  If your allegiance breaks down you are expendable.  Severe disillusionment, like a kind of spiritual arthritis, settles into the connecting tissues that hold the members of such communities together.

Some of this spiritual abuse analysis is not helpful.  If you haven’t noticed, abuse language is very easy to misuse.  I have had people flare in alarm at their first brush with Kingdom authority teaching.  What they hear and react to is the opposite of what we are teaching and practicing.  It seems impossible to calm their fears.

“Pastor, you are setting us up with this emphasis on humility and submission so you can take advantage of us,” is the kind of statement I sometimes hear.  Such authority-sensitive believers are almost always casualties of conflicted church communities.  In their previous church experience they developed a hyper-sensitivity to anything that even suggests authoritarianism to them.  When I explain that our focus is on surrender to Jesus and submission to His Holy Spirit, not church leaders, they remain extremely skeptical.  Since I do not have permission to change the language of the New Testament and select only their preferred grace-based portions of the Christian message, some of these toxic church alarmists move on with mistaken assumptions.

Spiritual abuse is real.  Leaders can and do abuse their positions of influence.  But let’s be honest and fair.  Everyone is a potential abuser.  In my experience those who have been abused often become the worst abusers.  We must be very careful that we look inside at ourselves first before we point the accusation of spiritual abuse at others.

Love floats on obedience to Christ.  Love thrives in the soil of life-style repentance.  Love cannot be separated from surrender to the leadership of Jesus.  If Jesus is not Lord and Master we are not capable of genuine love.

The ‘fear of the Lord’ references in the Bible never made much sense to me.  As a New Testament follower of Christ who had experienced salvation by grace, this fear factor didn’t seem relevant.  And then I discovered the kingdom motherboard.  In the same way the motherboard of a computer connects the functional components of the entire machine so the Kingdom concepts of Jesus connect the components of theology.

My personal belief system had seemingly unrelated pieces in it.  There were insights and good ideas from various systems of Bible interpretation.  I had gleaned concepts from dispensationalism, Calvinism, Armenianism, systematic and covenant theologies, as well as a smorgasbord of unconnected good ideas.  Like most evangelical Christians my mental construct of truth did not have a harmonizing or unifying central theme.  Then came the Kingdom.  A marvelous melding process began that integrated and connected my categories of truth.

It was the centrality of the Kingdom reign of God that made sense of the ‘fear of the Lord’.  In light of His awesome majesty and His role of universal leadership, proper respect made sense.  The fact that He sits in judgment over the whole of human history and that every human is accountable to Him set up the logic of a healthy fear motivation.

So, I love the ‘fear of the Lord’!  It has set up a sane perspective out of which most of my choices are governed most of the time.

David’s discovery of the therapeutic effect of godly fear on his speech has become a major life lesson for me.  I sin far less with my tongue than I used to and believe me, that’s a big victory.  I am so deeply grateful for this powerful principle and so are those within the inner circle of my life.

Hannah W. Smith wrote with penetrating accuracy about the dangers of inflated egos…and how to neutralize them.

The apostle Paul understood the common sense of true humility…he bids goodbye to his own gigantic “I” when he cries out, ‘I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me’ (Gal. 2:20).

This declaration ‘Yet not I’ is one of those swords of the spirit about which Paul speaks when he describes the Christian armor (Eph. 6:10-17).  I know of none that is more effective in our conflict with the unruly giant I.  Not even a giant can resist the disintegrating process that will occur when we absolutely, persistently ignore its existence.

Lowliness of mind is the only road to spiritual honor.  Only he who humbles himself will be exalted (I Peter 5:6).  Our own divine master set this example for us.

Everyday Religion, chapter 6

Leadership by example, that’s what these difficult times demand.  In an age where selfishness is the religion of choice, Christians must be radically changed people.  The heart-level transformation process will be most miraculous in the realm of our egos.  The biggest changes, the strongest evidence of supernatural activity within, come when the self-life is surrendered to the control of the Holy Spirit.  Under His control we can become normal selves with egos operating as they were originally designed.

When “my kingdom comes” I am dangerous.  When “God’s Kingdom comes” within me I am made trustworthy and safe to all other selves.  This marvelous outcome, a truly loving-giving-serving self is the unmistakable badge of all genuine Christ followers.

Some day an absolutely correct verdict will be passed on who each of us has become.

It will be infallible judgment.  If it is favorable we shall have no fear, if unfavorable, no hope that it is wrong.  We shall not only believe, we shall know, know beyond a doubt in every fiber of our appalled or delighted being, that as the judge said, so we are: neither more nor less, nor other.
C.S. Lewis

“The World’s Last Night”

Judgment is not an attractive subject.  It is unnerving when it is focused on us.  Yet, nothing is more unavoidable.

This post is an attempt to take seriously the Biblical advice; “But if we judged ourselves, we would; not come under judgment…” (I Cor. 11:31).  As Christ followers we will not have to face final judgment for our sins.  Jesus bore our penalty in His own body on the tree.  But, we will all face “the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done in the body” (II Corinthians 5:10).  This is regarded by Biblical scholars as a judgment of our works of service…or lack there of.

My caution is based on the instruction of Jesus, “Do not judge, or you to will be judged” (Matthew 7:1).  Yet, I feel compelled to raise the questions that appear here because of the kingdom building that is going on within the Kingdom of God.  I do not want to be judgmental but neither do I want to be indifferent to danger.  That balance is always tricky.

On November 5, 1999 I suffered a subarachnoid brain hemorrhage.  At the time it happened I was eulogizing my father’s life at his memorial service.  A genetic flaw in one of the branch arteries on the top of my brain tore and pumped blood into the space between my skull and my brain.  This formed a clot that became life-threatening.  For seventeen days I was in the ICU center as a battle went on to save my life.  I have since recovered in answer to the prayers of many around the world.

The reason I mention my near death experience is to illustrate what strongholds or blind spots are like.  I was not aware that I had a life-threatening weakness.  My neurosurgeons believe that it was a genetic weakness.  In other words, I had lived with this unknown danger for 54 years!  Suddenly, it intruded and nearly ended my life.

Spiritual blind spots operate within our lives in much the same way.  We are unaware of them.  We call them blind spots because we can’t see them.  They usually become visible through the detrimental effects they produce in our lives.

A Biblical category for this hidden weakness phenomenon is called “strongholds.”  These are hard to get hold of in our own lives although they are quite visible in the lives of others.

“Exceptionism” is the biggest category of strongholds I’ve dealt with as a pastor over the years.  It has always amazed me to see how many followers of Jesus know what they should be doing but do not do it.  They inevitably have an elaborate grid of excuses in place that makes their case an exception to the general rule.  “You are absolutely right, Pastor,” they say.  “That is what the Bible teaches.  But you need to understand my situation.  You see, if you could grasp what I’ve been through or how I’ve been damaged by what’s happened to me you would appreciate why I can’t function normally.  I know the Christian life works for you in this area but it doesn’t work for me.  My case is special.”

This is the kind of “pretension” or deceptive self-talk that hides the pocket of rebellion from our eyes.  Strongholds flourish in the shadow of our egos.  They take something we think we have to believe about ourselves and erect defensive walls that can be very difficult to tear down.

But they must be demolished.  Whatever it takes, Jesus must reign until ALL enemy outposts are put under His feet.  One of the most helpful things about working through the Christian life with others is the practice of mutual accountability.  Those who know and love us can often assist us in locating and dismantling those elusive strongholds that are shrouded in the mists of our self-life.