Inside Out Living

I was reading in Luke 7 this morning and was impressed by the response of the immoral woman to the experience of being forgiven by Jesus. I have to ask myself if I am more like the pharisee or more like the immoral woman. Do I rejoice when someone who has lived in sin receives forgiveness? Do I judge instead of extend forgiveness? Am I happy to see people in my church that don't fit the social norms or "church goers?" Tough questions that we all have to answer for ourselves.

The bottom line is that without forgiveness none of us would have a life worth living. No one has the right to claim access to God without first being forgiven by the shed blood of Jesus. And since I am only made acceptable to God through faith in Jesus and his death and resurrection then I have no right to exclude someone else from experiencing the same forgiveness and justification before the father.

Here is a powerful story about forgiveness that I shared on Sunday.

Another Mother's Son
When my beloved 18-year-old son was murdered in 1996, I thought my life was over. When it finally sunk in that this vivacious child of mine was dead, I felt as if I were having a heart attack from head to toe. I was numb. In order to survive this twisted nightmare, I moved to a different level of consciousness.

During the trial, I wasn't allowed to speak to Robbie's murderer. On the day of the hearing, I got my first glimpse of Shawn. He stared at the floor as they led him into the dimly lit courtroom. Shadows masked his face, distorting his features, giving him a grotesque fiendish appearance. Although it was my decision not to take the stand, I made it clear to the judge that I wanted to speak with this evil perpetrator after his sentencing.

At the conclusion of the arduous proceedings, the judge summoned me to his chambers. Filled with rage and hatred, I followed the bailiff into a small, paneled office. My heart beat faster with each step as I prepared to meet the young man who took my son's life. Shawn stood in the corner, head down, crying like a baby. His hands and feet shackled; this trembling, pitiful 20-year-old wore little more than baggy orange prison garb. As I watched this boy, so forlorn - no parents, no friends and no support - all I saw was another mother's son.

Suddenly I found myself asking, "Can I give you a hug, Shawn?" He looked up, revealing a childlike face stained with tears and nodded his consent. The bailiff motioned me toward the prisoner. I walked over and put my arms around him. "I forgive you for this horrible thing you've done. I will pray for you every day that you're in prison. I would rather my Robbie be where he is than where you're going." Our eyes connected for a few moments, and then the bailiff escorted me from the room.

Shawn received a 20-to-40-year sentence. How do you compare that to the life of my son? No sentence could bring Robbie back. I still wonder what made Shawn commit this crime. He has given me several explanations, but I still don't have an answer. He has been in prison for five years now, and, so far, I'm his only visitor. Shawn's sentencing has given me no satisfaction, but I believe the compassion I felt in the judge's chamber that day was a gift from God.

Because of the abrupt changes in my life, I'm now part of a prison ministry. I know I could not heal the deep, dark places of hatred and revenge, imbedded within my heart and soul, had I not forgiven my son's murderer. Forgiveness has set me free.

Hatred and revenge won't bring back my beloved son, Robbie, but Shawn is someone's son too. The hatred has to stop somewhere. What better place to begin than with me?

About the Authors: Mary G. Lodge is a mother to five children, eleven grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. She is a Stephan Minister in her church and enjoys speaking on the subject of forgiveness. Contact her at LodgeDoor@aol.com . Together, Laura Lagana and Tom Lagana are co-authors of "Serving Time, Serving Others" and "Chicken Soup for the Volunteer's Soul." They travel the country as professional speakers and authors, incorporating motivational and inspirational programs behind prison walls on their journey. Laura is author/editor of "Touched by Angels of Mercy" and Tom Lagana is co-author of "Chicken Soup for the Prisoner's Soul."

Reprinted by permission of Laura Lagana www.LauraLagana.com , Tom Lagana www.TomLagana.com and Mary Lodge, Copyright 2003, from "Serving Time, Serving Others, Acts of Kindness by Inmates, Prison Staff, Victims, and Volunteers." In order to protect the rights of the copyright holder, no portion of this publication may be reproduced without prior written consent. All rights reserved.

I was reading in Luke 5 this morning about when Jesus called Peter and James and John to be his disciples. I was quite interested in Jesus' response to Peter, after Peter realized that he was in the presence of the Lord.

At the start of this account, Peter, a fisherman didn't fully understand who Jesus was, even though in the previous chapter Jesus had healed his mother-in-law (Luke 4:38-41). On a side note, it could be that Peter wasn't all that thrilled that Jesus healed his mother-in-law, I don't know I am just sayin'. But now in chapter 5 Jesus does something that really gets Peter's attention. He demonstrates his power over the sea as he orchestrates the largest catch of fish that Peter has probably ever witnessed. Is there any surprise that when they are back at the Sea of Galilee after the resurrection that Peter immediately recognizes Jesus to be the stranger who told them to cast their nets on the otherside providing them with a big catch. I do find it curious that Peter appears to be more impacted by the tremendous catch of fish than by Jesus healing his mother-in-law from a bad fever. It just goes to show that catching a fish is far harder than recovering from a bad illness, not that I think that is the point of the story.

Ok, back to the point. When Peter realizes what Jesus has done, he quickly realizes who Jesus is. This presents Peter with a problem because he knows that he is a sinful human who is not fit to be in the presence of a holy God. He is probably envisioning Isaiah 6 in his mind as he realizes that he is face to face with God in the flesh. While Peter's reaction is appropriate (that is his understanding of his own sinfulness), Jesus' next statement to him reveals that Peter's sin will not prevent fellowship with Jesus.

Why does Jesus tell Peter not to be afraid? The reason he tells this to Peter is because it is not Peter's sin that will prevent him from having fellowship with God through Jesus. Now don't get me wrong here and think that I am presenting a concept of universal salvation, because I am not. Peter is fully lost in his sin and is eternally separated from God at the point that he encounters Jesus, but the point of Jesus statement is that he doesn't have to fear because his sin does not disqualify him from being able to receive salvation as a free gift.

This is because it isn't our sin that prevents us from receiving salvation, but rather it is our refusal to place our faith in Jesus that prevents us from receiving the free gift of salvation. Yes God does take sin seriously and there are eternal consequences for our sin, but the glorious message of the Bible is that Jesus has taken the consequences for our sin upon himself and that through faith we can receive the gift of eternal life.

I was reading in Luke 3 this morning and I noticed that three times John the Baptist was asked the question "What should we do?"

These people who were asking the question had come to John to confess sins and be baptized in order to give evidence of their turning to God for salvation. So the question that they asked is not one of what should they do to gain salvation, but rather how should they live in light of putting their faith in God.

The answers that John the Baptist gives them are quite revealing for us as we consider how are we to now live as members of God's family. Here is a basic summary of John's instructions:

Give what you have to those who need it.
Practice honesty and integrity in all you do.
Be content with your material possessions.

If we lived this way every day, how great would be the opportunities for the gospel be?

In Luke chapter two is the account of Mary and Joseph taking Jesus to the temple to dedicate him on the eighth day according to the law of Moses. The priest at the time was named Simeon and the Lord had already revealed to Simeon that he would not die until he saw the Messiah. When Mary and Joseph arrived, Simeon was there having been led by the spirit to go to the temple. Immediately, I would presume with divine prompting, he recognizes Jesus as the son of God, the Messiah the Savior, and he gives the child a prophetic blessing"

Lord, now I can die in peace!
As you promised me,
I have seen the Savior you have given to all people.
He is a light to reveal God to the nations, and he is the glory of your people Israel.

It is the middle line that contains "given to all people that I want to focus on today. Many evangelical Christians do not realize that there are many theologians and scholars in the church who do not believe that statement to really be true. They deny that Jesus was really sent for all people and that he died and rose again to say everyone.

This thinking was born with the five points of Calvinism and the Synod of Dort (1618-19) that formalized those five points. I am not going to provide here a full treatment of Calvinism nor explain all five of its points. The focus today is on the extent of the Atonement of Jesus. In essence Calvinism teaches that the atoning sacrifice of Jesus on the cross only pays for the sins of the elect (Those that God chose to regenerate and grant the ability to believe to). The logical conclusion of this teaching then is that if you are unelect, Jesus didn't die for you and the penalty for your sins (death see Rom. 6:23) has not been paid.

The problem with this teaching in Calvinism is that it doesn't fit with the Bible. There are numerous verses in Scripture, including the passage above, that point to the fact that Jesus came to die for the entire world, not just for the elect. And if Calvinism is right then the message of the Bible is a cruel joke, because Scripture is very clear that Jesus came to die on the cross for everyone.

Our church preaches a message of Free Grace, meaning saving grace (forgiveness of sins and restoration of relationship with God) is available to all who believe in Jesus Christ for their eternal salvation. You don't have to prove anything or change anything in your life, God's offer of free salvation through faith in Jesus is available to all persons everywhere.

You can have confidence that you will spend eternity in relationship with God in heaven by simply believing in Jesus Christ for you salvation.

If you are uncertain if your pastor or church really believes that anyone can be saved, then ask your elders and pastor? And if they don't believe that anyone can be saved, then ask them why not, because the Bible clearly teaches that anyone can be saved.

While it is indeed true that it only takes one commonality to generate community, it is also true that community without relationship will die.

Like many couples who get married young, my wife and I lived in a number of apartment complexes during our first couple of years of marriage. Because of our proximity to the other residents, we were a community, but one that lacked relationship. Because of the lack of relationship, the community was of no benefit to us. We now own a home in a quiet neighborhood where we know all of our neighbors by first names. This neighborhood is a far more fulfilling community because of the relationships we enjoy.

In the early days of the church, the believers met together often (Acts 1:14; 2:44). This practice developed the relationships that led to mutual sharing and more satisfying and fulfilling relationships with the Lord. Developing community requires relationship and relationship requires communication.

May you experience genuine Christian community that flows out of authentic relationships.

The last two years I’ve had the privilege of leading students from our church on a mission trip to Mexico. Both times I have been able to participate in a baptismal service with our sister church. What a blessing it has been to baptize some of our Spanish- speaking brothers and sisters. This experience has impressed upon me the common unity we have with Christians who speak a different language. Last year, after a couple of times of hearing our translator, Paul, translate my declaration of their baptism, I began to, with some difficulty, baptize them in Spanish.

I realized that it did not matter what language I was speaking in performing the baptism. I was baptizing a child of God and recognizing their membership into the universal Church. For no matter where or when Christian baptism takes place, “we are all one body, we have the same Spirit, and we have all been called to the same glorious future. There is only one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and there is only one God and Father, who is over us all and in us all and living through us all” (Eph. 4:4-6).

The theme for this week is community. As we transition from reading about the life of Jesus and his ministry to the formation of the early church, we will explore some elements of the community that was so crucial to the spreading of the gospel. I hope that each of you is connected right now to a nurturing Christian community that encourages your faith and strengthens your relationship with Jesus. God designed us to work and function as a part of community and not as lone rangers.

Today's Devotional:

What do two rich politicians, two uneducated fishermen, and a woman who had been demon-possessed have in common? They were all followers of Jesus. The community of faith brings together a wide variety of people. The very word community can be thought of in two different concepts: common and unity. What creates community is having something in common in spite of differences. Community can be based on zip code, workplace, political affiliation or, in this case, religious affiliation.

The beautiful thing about community is that there is so much variety within community. Two people can be opposites in every aspect except for one thing, and that can be enough to create community. The community of believers in the first century came from different geographical, political and religious backgrounds. The Church today is really no different in this respect; from the Chinese pastor sitting in jail, to the African believer struggling in poverty, to the American Christian who takes God’s blessings for granted, we all have a faith in Christ that unites us.

“Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

In illustrating the Kingdom of Heaven, Jesus told a story about three servants. This story teaches us about the appropriate response to God’s grace. To receive God’s grace and never change your life, actions, or behaviors is to be like the third servant, to not receive God’s grace at all. This is what the great German theologian Bonhoeffer called cheap grace.

The Apostle Paul was accused of promoting cheap grace by the Jewish believers who wanted the Gentile believers to follow the law. In Romans 6:1-2, Paul sets the story straight, “Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more kindness and forgiveness? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? The invitation to receive God’s grace includes an expectation to take up your cross and follow Jesus (Matt. 10:38)

“’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home.” – Amazing Grace by John Newton

In Jesus’ description of the time of tribulation, He mentions that there will be attempts “to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones” (Matthew 24:24; Mark 13:22). This statement by Jesus gets me thinking about the role that God’s grace plays in bringing about our salvation. As the words to Amazing Grace declare, “grace will lead me home.” How true.

God’s grace is efficacious in our lives, meaning that it will produce its desired effect in our lives once it has been given by God himself. Simply put, when someone is saved by God’s grace through faith (Eph. 2:8-9), that grace will absolutely guarantee their salvation. “And this is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those He has given me, but that I should raise them to eternal life at the last day” (John 6:39).

May you stand confident in God’s grace, knowing that it will indeed lead you home.

“He who gives what he would as readily throw away, gives without generosity; for the essence of generosity is in self-sacrifice.”
– Sir Henry Taylor

As Jesus and His disciples sat and observed the giving practices of those who came to the temple to worship, Jesus seized a teachable moment when the widow dropped in two small coins (Mark 12:42). In that moment, we see the principle of proportionate giving at work.

As Jesus noted, even though the rich individuals gave more money, the gift of the widow was considered far greater in the eyes of God because of her sacrifice.
Aren’t you glad that, in God’s greatest gift to us, He did not limit Himself to a small portion of His grace, but rather made the ultimate sacrifice in sending Jesus to die on the cross. God is truly generous with His grace, giving it to all who might come to Him. There are no restrictions, no qualifications, no prerequisites. There is only free grace that is offered generously.

Matthew 22:1-14 is the parable of the Great Feast. The parable illustrates how, because of the rejection of the Messiah by the Jews, God’s grace is then made available to the Gentiles. As I read this story, I find it remarkable that one of the guests would show up for the feast without the customary apparel. I would think that the gratitude of even being invited to take part in the festivities would result in the appropriate response by this particular guest.

The parallels in this story to the human predicament we face are clearly seen. All around us are people who are rejecting God’s invitation to enter into relationship with him. Hearing the call of grace, they reject the notion of their need for salvation assuming that their own righteousness is sufficient. Like the out-of-place wedding guest, they refuse to clothe themselves with the righteousness of Christ that comes by faith. Instead, they reject God’s grace, trusting in their own righteousness which, in the eyes of God, is like filthy rags.

The construction of the Golden Gate Bridge had fallen behind schedule because of a number of workers who had fallen to their deaths. Engineers and administrators could find no solution to the costly delays. Eventually, in spite of the enormous cost, a giant net was installed to catch those who might accidentally fall. After it was installed, progress on the project was hardly interrupted. A worker or two fell into the net, but were saved. Ultimately, all the time lost to fear was regained by replacing fear with faith in the net.

Knowing that we need not be perfect in order to avoid judgment removes a great fear for the one who understands grace. Grace is what allowed the tax collectors and prostitutes (Matthew 21:31) of Jesus’ day to be saved. The Pharisees, on the other hand, lived in constant fear of the law.

Like the workers on the bridge who no longer feared death resulting from a misstep, the Christian no longer fears the eternal judgment of God for a misstep.

Jesus never hid the truth of His purpose here on earth. Time and time again He predicted His death to His disciples, and yet they continually struggled to understand. In comparing His death to a kernel of wheat (John 12:24), Jesus makes it clear that His death will bring about new life for many. This is what the Apostle Paul meant when he said, “For God made Christ who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus was able to serve as the perfect sacrifice making full atonement once and for all for the sins of mankind (Hebrews 10:12).

This sacrifice is what allows God the Father to extend saving grace to all who come to Him in faith for the forgiveness of their sins. As John said in 1 John 2:2, “He is the sacrifice for our sins. He takes away not only our sins, but the sins of all the world.”

It is an irony that should cause us all to be humbled, that the horrific death that Jesus endured on the cross was the very event that allows for the beauty of saving grace in our lives.

The theme this week is grace. And as you may be able to tell, I had the lyrics to the wonderful hymn, Amazing Grace, running through my head as I wrote these devotional thoughts for you this week. Grace is a multi-faceted concept in Scripture and I hope that you thoroughly enjoy considering how God’s grace impacts our lives, both as human beings in children and redeemed members of God’s family.

Today's Devotional:

“I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see” – Amazing Grace

The beggar Bartimaeus received the gift of sight in today’s reading. While Mark is the only gospel that names the beggar, all three of them consistently show that the original request was for mercy. Why the connection between mercy and the receiving of sight? I think it is because the healing not only involved a physical need, but a spiritual one as well.

Without God’s intervention in our lives, we are spiritually blind and lack an awareness of our sin and we do not see our need for God. Until the Holy Spirit opens ones’ eyes to his or her spiritual need, they will not come to God for forgiveness and grace.

In His ministry, Jesus restored physical sight, but more importantly, He also restored spiritual sight. The Spirit continues on in this ministry, and our role is to direct those in whom the Spirit is working to the light of Christ that they might follow him as did Bartimaeus.

F.B. Meyer has been credited with saying that “when we see a brother or sister in sin, there are two things we do not know. First, we do not know how hard he or she tried not to sin. And second, we do not know the power of the force that assailed him or her. We also do not know what we would have done in the same circumstance.”

Judging someone in haste, and without full knowledge or consideration of the facts, generates tremendous hurt and damage. Jesus knew this full well when He extended grace to the woman caught in adultery in John 8.

Authentic Christian living requires an awareness of sin in our life. I believe that the more aware we are of our sin and our propensity to repeatedly sin that we are less likely to judge others who are caught in sin. It is those among us who assume that their struggle with sin is done that are often the ones who are so quick to judge. We all must remember that we are all sinners who are equally in need of grace and mercy from a holy and just God.

“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.” – James 4:10

In 1973, Senator John C. Stennis was mugged and shot outside his home. When Senator Mark Hatfield received word of the incident he drove straight to the hospital. Upon arriving, he observed that the hospital staff was overwhelmed with the high volume of incoming calls. Spying an empty switchboard, Hatfield sat down and helped field calls through the night and into the next morning.

It was genuine humility that led Senator Hatfield to assist the hospital staff that night. He was unwilling to view himself as too important to do the mundane task of answering the phone.

Authenticity leads to humility, because when we are willing to see ourselves as we truly are, we learn that we have no greater intrinsic value than the next person. Understanding this lesson allows us to fulfill the command to consider others as more important than ourselves (Phil. 2:3).

Jesus modeled transparency to us in how He lived His life. Jesus opened himself up to His disciples and allowed them to know certain things about Him and His purpose. I do think that it is important to note that He was more transparent with some of his disciples (Peter, James, and John) than He was with the rest.

Part of living an authentic Christian life is the practice of transparency with a trusted brother or sister in Christ. Like Jesus, we need not be as transparent with all as we are with some. Transparency involves giving someone else a window into our soul where our deepest thoughts and emotions lie. Transparency leads to authenticity because, when we allow others to know us fully, we can no longer fool them with our external behavior. They know when we’re faking it because they know the real us.

Like an overhead transparency that is revealed when the light is switched on, may your life become transparent when you encounter the light of Christ.

The court of public opinion is a powerful force, especially for those who live and work in the political arena. When you read about Herod’s dealings with John the Baptist, you quickly realize that this court of public opinion, or more commonly known as peer pressure, has been influential for 2,000 years.

Peer pressure can make authentic living very challenging. Authentic living can be understood as remaining true to one’s own character when faced with external pressures. When faced with the external pressures, Herod gave up John’s life in spite of his genuine respect for him. Jesus too was confronted with a variety of pressures from both his followers and adversaries. However, unlike Herod, Jesus’ actions were always consistent with His character. In John 6:15 we read that He turned down the opportunity to lead a political coup, choosing instead to remain true to His commitment to do the will of His Father who sent Him (John 8:28-29).

May you, like Jesus, be able to live authentically in the face of peer pressure.

The theme for this week is authenticity. As you read about the life that Jesus lived, I hope you are able to see how authentic He was in His dealings with the people around Him. Whether they were friend or foe, He did not deceive or mislead anyone and always acted authentic.

Today's Devotional:

If you love only those who love you, what good is that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. – Matthew 5:46

In the gospel of Matthew, right before Jesus sends out the 12 disciples, He told His disciples to ask the Lord to send more workers to gather the harvest. In that passage (Matthew 9:35-38), Jesus reveals to the disciples His heart for the lost. As He taught and healed among the people, His heart was genuinely burdened for those people whom He described as a sheep without a shepherd.

A heart for the lost is not easily feigned. This is because the lost are not going to be receptive to the message of Jesus, or the messenger for that matter, most of the time. It is so easy to love those with whom we are comfortable. What about those who have hurt you or persecute you? A heart for the lost means that we must respond with grace and mercy to those who don’t deserve it, but desperately need it.

May you, like Jesus, have an authentic heart for the lost.

“The tongue is mightier than the blade” – Euripides, Greek poet ca. 5th century B.C.

The power of the spoken word is often underappreciated. The tongue, or our speech, can do much damage, oftentimes without our planning it or even our awareness of it at the time. James compares the potential for damage by the tongue to a small spark in a forest (James 3:5). We are all familiar with cases where someone’s reputation is damaged or their career is ruined because they said the wrong thing. There is a tremendous power in the spoken word. This is also true of God, who spoke creation into existence (Psalm 104:7). We also see this in Jesus, who was able to speak healing directly into people’s lives (Luke 7:1-10).

So why do we struggle so mightily with taming our tongues? Why do we so often hurt people with our words? It is because speech is permanent and conversation is often spontaneous. Unlike the written word which can be edited, the spoken word is raw and cannot be taken back.

May your speech be filled with grace (Colossians 4:6)