A BLOG FRIEND'S WORDS THAT NEED TO BE HEARD

I'm posting a portion of a much longer post by a blog friend I only know as Lin. He is astute in his seldom posted thoughts about all things theological and Kingdom and what he has said here deserves a wide audience. So I will invite the few that read this blog to hear what he has to say on this subject. May we hear and beware of being found guilty.

[All emphasis is mine.]

What I find interesting is how many Christians will excuse the evil done by other Christians (often the [Christian] celebrities) but won't excuse the same evil done by unbelievers. It is as if the professing Christian gets a "get out of jail free" card the unbeliever does not deserve for some reason. Is it really as simple as buying a plastic fish for your car and attending church?

In fact, these days ministry is a magnet for sociopaths and narcissists. Check this out . Or, this. Where else can you get instant credibility, a respectable title and an audience sitting in pews in rapt attention. All because of a title. Often the pew sitters don't even know the guy personally. That is cult of personality.

 Many Christians actually have lower ethical and moral standards for those who profess Christ (often those who make a nice living off His Name) than they do for unbelievers. I once had a local judge point this out to me. He was an old friend from undergrad days, an agnostic, who asked me why Christians will pack out a court room on a zoning hearing concerning a porn shop but then come back and pack the court room to give character witness for a pedophile (while the victim looks on helpless with no such support from the "church') and beg for leniency in sentencing. The only difference is the pedophile professed Christ so, for some reason, he deserves a break. Why? It makes no sense.  I would imagine many pedophiles would profess Christ to receive a lighter sentence. Often the victim is accused of being unforgiving in those situations, too. See SGM/CJ Mahaney as an example.

The agnostic judge asks a good question and we should think hard about our answer so we don't cheapen that priceless Blood [of Christ]. Here is a rule of thumb as a believer: Remember the Cross. LIVE OUT the resurrection. We are supposed to be the light of the world.  People are supposed to be able to trust us. We are supposed to overcome evil. Not look for excuses to do evil to others.

Yet, what happens in Christendom is often the exact opposite of what 1 Corinthians 5 teaches us concerning the Body of Christ. We are to judge those IN the Body. We are not to judge the world. But that does not make for a good culture war that evangelicals have engaged in since the 70's...and lost, BTW.

Now our problem is that the world is often looking more virtuous than we do. Our scandals are coming out faster than we can say, "sinners sin" or "cheap grace". At least the world is honest about sin as they don't do it in the Name of Christ or making a living off His Name while doing the evil. No, in many ways evangelicals are worse than them. Hebrews 10: 26-31 anyone?

If you wonder why the world hates us, it might not be because of Christ or because we are "the light of the world". It might be because we deserve it. It might be because we spend too much time excusing "walking in darkness". (1 John 1)

Thank you Lin.

Paul B.

SEX AND KINGDOM MARRIAGE

A ton of “Christian” books are being written today and many present day younger pastors are part of a popular camp of people teaching about sexuality in marriage, in a sometimes explicit manner, maybe even too explicit for some of us old-timers, that I'm a bit concerned about. Of course, there is a second Christian camp that says sex is as unmentionable as bathroom stuff and maybe even in the same category or content. They express the nefarious "No, no," and the haunted "hush, hush," that we've come to associate with this second camp that may have, in fact, given birth to the first camp. I say a plague on both camps.  

One of the claims of the first camp mentioned above appears to be that great sex makes for a successful and satisfying marriage and without great sex [usually defined by the number of times a week it is experienced by a couple or by the variety of creative methods it is enjoyed]  a great marriage can't be successfully built by any couple. If this were true, of course, then people with debilitating physical conditions might should beware of ever getting married at all, or at least be willing to accept a mediocre marriage at best. 

I'm wondering the legitimacy of such a conclusion. Especially since Jesus never addressed the necessity of or intensity and frequency of sex in a marriage. There is nothing in the four Gospels that would indicate that Jesus ever addressed the issue of sex in marriage at all, except to decry adultery which is the wrong use of sex as a married person.

While I don't believe in trying to make a good argument for or against any issue using the silence of scripture as grounds, it does bear stating that if Jesus didn’t believe it was necessary to address the sexual needs of marriages among believers AT ALL, it might be wise for Christian teachers and pastors to NOT make it of absolute primary significance in a Christian marriage today.

I'm thinking since Jesus wisely spent His time dealing with the root cause of all relational problems and issues in life, and that was the love of God and our experiencing it or failing to experience it and loving others in return, we might should do the same.  

For a long time now, I've advocated that we should remember the fact that attending church services seems to be REALLY downplayed in the New Testament. It is mentioned only the one time in Hebrews 10:25. That's where it is stated that we are not to forsake the "ASSEMBLING" of ourselves together. But notice that word is not the word ECCLESIA which refers to the people or Church of God, but is a word that is derived from the Greek word SUNAGWGH, which is where we get the word Synagogue, and it is referring to the place where the Ecclesia [people] gathers and not the people. [ECCLESIA] This is the ONLY time in scripture where the place of gathering is even mentioned. 

I find, in the same fashion, that the Word of God tends to downplay any connection between the physical pleasures of sexuality in a Christian marriage and having a Godly love towards a spouse.

Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians is really the only place in the NT where sex in a marriage is even considered. His advice in chapter 7 is, as one I read said, "Down to earth, basic, and fundamentally about mitigating the strong sexual urges that can build up in our fallen human bodies, including born again Christians, and the way to do that is to willingly help the other relieve and even enjoy the sexual desires of the body."

I say amen to that. Sex isn't sinful and Hugh Hefner didn't invent it, although too many Christians may think otherwise too much of the time.

I also like what one says about it when he said, "When Paul proclaims the expressions of God’s love in chapter 13, [of 1st Corinthians] sexuality is nowhere to be found. But he does write (13:5) “Love (God’s love in us) does not insist on its own rights or its own way.” And THEN we must remember that Paul had already written in chapter 7, “The husband should fulfill his wife’s sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband’s needs. The wife gives authority over her body to her husband, and the husband gives authority over his body to his wife.” So being willing to give sexual pleasure to and not withholding it from your spouse by relinquishing the right of one’s body to each other is, in and of itself, an expression of God’s “agape” love, but notice it is NOT the pleasure of an orgasm ITSELF that is the over-riding significant issue at all." 

I couldn't agree more.

I'm convinced that great sex in marriage has been so emphasized and exalted by the Christian community in our day that it may very well have put an undue and even unnecessary burden on couples trying to find a level of sexual satisfaction in their marriage relationship. Of course the second camp folks have missed it as well. As I said earlier, it may be the first group I mentioned started as a counter-balance to the relational ignorance of the second group and BOTH GROUPS may be doing a disservice to the Kingdom of God. 

My wife, Mary, and I have been married for 55 years on May 28th 20014. Sex was intense and frequent in the early years of our marriage, once we discovered it wasn't a sin at all and the marriage bed is undefiled according to the writer of the book of Hebrews, and I would say it has become a very valuable, pleasurable, and often even funny, part of our marriage relationship.  [We tend to laugh about everything a little.]  

But along came children, ministry, later career changes for both of us, growing extended families, grandchildren, now even great grandchildren, and the issues of age, all of which have contributed to a natural and normal decline in the intensity and frequency [don't read "infrequent" into this] of sexual pleasure. In our seventies we STILL find much pleasure in sex, yet we both understand that it is never going to be like it was at the beginning of our marriage. But to EVER think that this could mean we can no longer enhance and grow our marriage relationship is absolute nonsense to us and we believe contrary to the true love of God. In some ways our present day marriage, with sex less frequent, less intense, still even funny sometimes, is BETTER now than it has ever been before.

My suggestion to all believers is to not EVER make ANY aspect of a marriage relationship PRIMARY except knowing the love of God and expressing that kind of love to the person to whom you're married. With that settled, do whatever is desired and pleasurable to both in the sexuality arena of your journey together, ALWAYS knowing it is love that produces sex and not vice-versa.

Paul B.

CONFESSION IS GOOD FOR THE SOUL

I have a confession to make. 

I don't like mean-spirited religious fanatics of any brand, who are really, I believe, self-deceived people and do great harm in this world. You can spot these types of people because of their emphasis on how much God hates something or someone. I'll give two examples.

God hates the infidels. This group then declares that everyone and anyone who isn't of this religion or a citizen of a nation that embraces this religion, is an infidel and this group then assumes the right to attempt to destroy infidels like this with actions. 

God hates homosexuals. The Phelps family has made this group famous, but this group is larger than just the Phelps brand and has thrived through the years messaging how God hates something or someone from their particular list of sins or sinners and this group then assumes the right to attempt to destroy sinners like this with words, if not actions. 

Kingdom kids are of a different breed entirely. While knowing the destructive nature of sin and at the same time the nature of the holiness of God which declares the necessity and right of having to deal with sin eventually, we have a message of how much God's love has been demonstrated in His plan and purpose in the Person and the Work of Christ and His Cross, which He then fully accepted for our justification. [Making us just as if we'd never sinned in His eyes.]

So Kingdom kids take seriously His orders for the Kingdom family to owe no man anything except to love them enough, this even includes our enemies, to show grace and mercy to the worst offender and be diligent about sharing that message of His redemptive work accomplished on that Cross on their behalf.

All this is premised on the fact that, since it was the goodness of God that works or brings about a change of mind [repentance] in people, it will only be that same kind of goodness in Kingdom kids, shown to even our enemies, that is our only hope of seeing anyone's mind changed [repentance] about their need of Christ.

Like I said, I have a confession to make. 

I don't like mean-spirited religious fanatics of any brand, who are really, I believe, self-deceived people and do great harm in this world.

Paul B.

RACE AND GENDER BIAS AND KINGDOM LIVING

Galatians 3:28 clearly declares..."There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." [NIV]

Matthew 6:10 adds..."Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven."

I think it is perfectly clear that for Christians the race issue is settled. Racism is wrong. We are a new kind of Kingdom people and racial bias is simply not permitted to add to OR detract from our value as a Kingdom member OR our Kingdom relationships with each other. Racial prejudice is not allowed in the New Covenant and any idea that racial or ethnic groups should not, for example, inter-relate or even inter-marry are false concepts to Kingdom people. There is NO superior race. There is no inferior race.

Anyone who names Jesus as Lord is equally my brother or sister in the Kingdom of God [aka the Body of Christ] and anyone who denies that fact, because of race, is being something worse than racist, they are being unchristian and unbiblical in thought.

It goes without saying that the same is to be understood in the area of gender as well. There is an equality in Kingdom living that society may or may not understand, depending on the culture with which one is familiar, but that equality is ever present in God's Kingdom. Paul's Jewish culture of the New Testament era did NOT understand that and consequently did NOT view slaves or women or other races an having an equality with the Jewish people.

But the gospel Paul preached did recognize an equality then, and does so now. And while Paul DID NOT necessarily fight the social biases that existed in his day by storming City hall, he DID lay down the Kingdom principles of grace and life that WOULD eventually militate against slavery and racial or gender biases in the minds and the lifestyle of believers. That gospel message has the same effect and outcome in the Kingdom of God today. 

Paul's single-minded focus was the message of the doing and dying of Jesus, we call that message "the gospel,"  which radically resulted in the kind of grace that places every redeemed human being in His Kingdom where all the biases of which we've spoken are no longer practiced. That is a settled reality.

Present day true New Testament Christians are to learn to live totally different than their society as well. Making full application of the gospel, that difference will always be seen in the freedom experienced by men, slaves, females, husbands and wives, and every other relationship one might have with another person.

Christians ARE different that's for sure. All this does NOT dispute that difference. Whether it be race, gender, age, abilities, strengths, giftedness, and a host of things left unmentioned, people ARE NOT the same. But the Body of Christ and her relationships are SIMPLY NOT structured on any hierarchy of those differences.

We do use our differences, including our spiritual-giftedness, under His anointing and authority, for the good of all the Body. But we ARE ONE with each other in value AND relationships when the gospel does it's work. "You shall know the Truth [Jesus] and the Truth shall set you free," 

So I believe, when properly understood, the scriptures will not allow for the value of OR the basis of relationships to be those differences. There is, simply spoken, no such thing as a racial or gender hierarchy in the Kingdom of God NOW or in the Kingdom that is YET TO COME. It is the grace of God alone that is the basis of our relationships with all other believers.

As already said, this is not to say that the color of skin does not remain white or black or yellow or that one does not remain male or female or young or old obviously. But that is only a biological reality that does NOT alter the biblical reality.

I have to honestly say that I'm looking forward to the day when gender or racial bigots are no longer esteemed among the people in Kingdom living in the present day. Then we ALL could serve our Lord by loving and serving each other as the highest privilege we have as believers.

We would then be living out the gospel as well as sharing that gospel with our world. I think the prayer "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven" would be something impressive to see in the here and now. How about you?

You can tell I believe there is only ONE head of the Body, the Church, or the Kingdom and only ONE Lord and ONE King and any issue, such as race or marriage or church relationships in Kingdom living, is NOT one of authority.

Men don't rule and women submit__whites are NOT superior and blacks slaves__pastors DO NOT rule and people submit. But Kingdom living is one of serving "one another" out of our giftedness and uniqueness under His authority.

He's superior and rules__we all submit__ and we all serve" one another."

Paul B.