Christmas Greetings- Past and Present

It’s been said many times, many ways, MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU. Although Merry Christmas is the common North American greeting around this time of year, it is not necessarily true around the world, nor has it always been the case.

Merry Christmas is known to date back to 1534 and in 1843 it is mentioned in Dicken’s A Christmas Carol. But at some point over the years, at least in Britain, ‘merry’ implied drunken festivities. For this reason, Queen Elizabeth II prefers “Happy Christmas”. Happy Christmas is still popular in the UK today, but rarely heard in North America.

 

Season’s Greetings and Happy Holidays
The phrase Season’s Greetings is not new, it became popular in the 1920s and was used on Eisenhower’s White House Christmas card in 1955. Happy Holidays has likewise been around for more than 100 years and typically refers to the period between the American Thanksgiving and New Years Day. It is largely used in the US.

Merry X-mas
X-mas denounced in 1957 by Gerald L. K. Smith, who in December 1966 claimed that Xmas was a “blasphemous omission of the name of Christ” and that “‘X’ is referred to as being symbolical of the unknown quantity.” Smith further argued that Jews introduced Santa Claus to suppress the New Testament accounts of Jesus, and that the United Nations, at the behest of “world Jewry”, had “outlawed the name of Christ”.[39] Yeah, so conspiracy theories regarding a hatred or war on Christmas aren’t new.

But then, at some point later on, the general consensus was that ‘X’ WAS an appropriate symbol for Christ!
“There is, however, a well-documented history of use of Χ (actually a chi) as an abbreviation for “Christ” (Χριστός) and possibly also a symbol of the cross.[40][41] The abbreviation appears on many Orthodox Christian religious icons.”

What do Muslims actually think of Christmas?
One of the reasons there was a trend toward a secular greeting was in order to acknowledge the fact that there are many other religions that do not necessarily celebrate Christmas. Many Americans have a perception that Muslims coming into their country will somehow diminish their ability to celebrate Christmas. But in reality, most Muslims don’t really care if you say Merry Christmas to them and are happy to say it in return. Here is a short article about how most Muslims likely think of Christians and Christmas.
https://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/31033/is-it-really-shirk-to-wish-someone-a-merry-christmas-zakir-naik/

Of course not all Muslims agree, as some are more in line with this cleric –
https://archive.org/details/Dr.ZakirNaik-wishingMerryChristmasForbiddenharamInIslam-

The main reason that Muslims do not celebrate is that they believe Jesus was a prophet only, and not the true son of God. Therefore it would be sacrilege to celebrate someone who claimed to be God.
However, there are a few truths in that article:

•  “The date itself is based on a pagan Roman holiday, the actual birthdate of Jesus is unknown.”
• “So as any rational person can see, there is no sound basis for Christmas, nor did Jesus (peace be upon him) or his true followers celebrate Christmas or ask anyone to celebrate Christmas, nor was there any record of anyone calling themselves Christians celebrating Christmas until several hundred years after Jesus.”

It is true that nowhere in the Bible is it suggested that Christians mark or remember Jesus’ birth.

Christmas Controversies over the years
Ironically, in 1647, Puritan Christians BANNED the celebration of Christmas altogether for its paganism.

In Victorian times, certain pagan elements of Christmas were controversial – yule logs, candles, mistletoe, Christmas trees etc. Many Protestants wanted to keep the celebration of Christ’s birth without the pagan elements.

In the 1954, C.S. Lewis wrote a humorous satirical piece highlighting the split between secular and religious aspects of Christmas in his Xmas and Christmas – A Lost Chapter from Herodotus. I had a good chuckle when I read this and recommend the short read.

Other Christmas controversies – https://people.howstuffworks.com/culture-traditions/holidays-other/10-holiday-controversies.htm

War on Christmas
You may have heard of the so-called ‘war on Christmas’? Where does this phrase come from and is there actually one or was this just Bill O’Reilly at Fox News getting the Christians all riled up and more recently providing a rallying cry for Trump to gather all the Evangelicals to his camp?
NY Times article – https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/19/us/war-on-christmas-controversy.html

The AFA and their Naughty or Nice List of US Retailers

AFA – the American Family Association  states their mission as follows – “The mission of the American Family Association is to inform, equip, and activate individuals to strengthen the moral foundations of American culture”. For the past 10 years, the AFA has published The Naughty or Nice list; a list of retailers who are judged based on whether they use the word Christmas in their advertising (as opposed to generic ‘holiday’). They claim that “There are secular forces in our country that hate Christmas” and encourage Christians to shop at stores that ‘keep Christ in Christmas.’ My question is this – Why is an organization intent on promoting family values in the business of promoting retail businesses, which is basically promoting buying more stuff, and promoting consumerism, none of which have anything to do with remember the birth of Christ?

Taking the stance ‘if you say Happy Holidays to me, I will be greatly offended‘; or ‘if your business doesn’t explicitly use the word Christmas in your advertising then I refuse to do business with you’ does not sound very Christ-like at all. For a religion based on grace, I think we frequently miss the point.

Shouldn’t family values at Christmas be about remembering Christ’s birth, and giving to others? Have we, like the Pharisees, forgotten justice, mercy and faithfulness? Jesus never asked us to commemorate his birth, but if He were to visit America today, how would He want us to mark a celebration with his name on it? I think He would be wanting us to help our neighbours, feed the hungry, and give to the poor.  Do you think He would be concerned about whether or not the word ‘Christmas’ is being used or would He be more concerned about the state of the heart of each of us?  Jesus’ warning to the Pharisees could easily have been written as a warning to Christians in North American today (From Matthew 23, emphasis mine)

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2 “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. 4 They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
5 “Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries[a] wide and the tassels on their garments long; 6 they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; 7 they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others. …
23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
25 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.

Conclusion

I was not able to find any evidence of an actual plot to kill Christmas, or any organized groups who ‘hate Christmas’.  There certainly does not seem to be any forces in the retail world that ‘hate Christmas’ given that this season will generate the highest sales of season. Politicians will start saying ‘Merry Christmas’ because it is supported by the people, especially those who have a perception that it has been diminished.

It seems to me that C.S. Lewis and even Dr. Seuss’ ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’ teach a more appropriate lesson than the AFA, or Fox News.

Whatever greeting you decide to use during the season , let’s make it sincere and laced with grace, kindness and love.

The Depth and the Breadth of the Wisdom of Elisabeth Elliot

I just learned that Elisabeth Elliot died today.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/gleanings/2015/june/died-elisabeth-elliot-missionary-author-gates-of-splendor.html

http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/justintaylor/2015/06/15/elisabeth-elliot-1926-2015/

I had only recently discovered the depth and breadth of the wisdom of this women and had begun to collect some of my favourite quotes from her.

Elisabeth Elliot Quotes

• “This job has been given to me to do. Therefore, it is a gift. Therefore, it is a privilege. Therefore, it is an offering I may make to God. Therefore, it is to be done gladly, if it is done for Him. Here, not somewhere else, I may learn God’s way. In this job, not in some other, God looks for faithfulness.”― Elisabeth Elliot
• “One reason we are so harried and hurried is that we make yesterday and tomorrow our business, when all that legitimately concerns us is today. If we really have too much to do, there are some items on the agenda which God did not put there. Let us submit the list to Him and ask Him to indicate which items we must delete. There is always time to do the will of God. If we are too busy to do that, we are too busy.”― Elisabeth Elliot, Secure in the Everlasting Arms
• “Work is a blessing. God has so arranged the world that work is necessary, and He gives us hands and strength to do it. The enjoyment of leisure would be nothing if we had only leisure. It is the joy of work well done that enables us to enjoy rest, just as it is the experiences of hunger and thirst that make food and drink such pleasures.”― Elisabeth Elliot, Discipline: The Glad Surrender
• It is a great relief when someone else is in charge. He knows what he is doing and all you have to do is follow directions. You do not reel at his telling you what to do. You are glad to be told. He knows more than you do, knows the best way to accomplish what you want to accomplish and you are sure you are better off with him than without him, happier by obeying than by disobeying.
• God will never disappoint us. He loves us and has only one purpose for us – holiness, which in his kingdom equals Joy.
• “I realized that the deepest spiritual lessons are not learned by His letting us have our way in the end, but by His making us wait, bearing with us in love and patience until we are able to honestly to pray what He taught His disciples to pray: Thy will be done.”― Elisabeth Elliot, Passion and Purity: Learning to Bring Your Love Life Under Christ’s Control
• “God is God. Because he is God, He is worthy of my trust and obedience. I will find rest nowhere but in His holy will that is unspeakably beyond my largest notions of what he is up to.”― Elisabeth Elliot
• “The way you keep your house, the way you organize your time, the care you take in your personal appearance, the things you spend your money on, all speak loudly about what you believe. The beauty of thy peace shines forth in an ordered life. A disordered life speaks loudly of disorder in the soul.”― Elisabeth Elliot, Let Me Be a Woman
• “If my life is surrendered to God, all is well. Let me not grab it back, as though it were in peril in His hand but would be safer in mine!”― Elisabeth Elliot
• “The way we live ought to manifest the truth of what we believe. A messy life speaks of a messy and incoherent faith.”― Elisabeth Elliot, Let Me Be a Woman

• “Do you often feel like parched ground, unable to produce anything worthwhile? I do. When I am in need of refreshment, it isn’t easy to think of the needs of others. But I have found that if, instead of praying for my own comfort and satisfaction, I ask the Lord to enable me to give to others, an amazing thing often happens – I find my own needs wonderfully met. Refreshment comes in ways I would never have thought of, both for others, and then, incidentally, for myself.”― Elisabeth Elliot
• “The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances.”― Elisabeth Elliot, Keep a Quiet Heart

• “The devil has made it his business to monopolize on three elements: noise, hurry, crowds. He will not allow quietness.”― Elisabeth Elliot, Shadow of the Almighty: The Life and Testament of Jim Elliot

The Bible Translation War – 2 Years Later – NIV vs ESV

Bible Translation discussion – NIV1984 to NIV2011 and the ESV

Why was an updated NIV translation released? 3 reasons were given for the need for an update

1. Update in English general language usage,
2. Provide scholarly updates and
3. To provide clarity in phrasing.

The full translator’s notes can be read here: NIV Translator’s Notes. Another change made in NIV2011 was to include more gender-inclusive language – such as ‘brothers and sisters’ in place of ‘brothers’. Some commentary on gender neutrality and the history of NIV2011 see: Bible Version Wars – NIV vs ESV.

The use of the plural forms, such as they and them, in place of singular masculine forms was another change in direction. For example Hebrews 2:6 looks like this in the 3 versions:

• NIV1984 – “What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?
• NIV2011 – “What is manmankind that you are mindful of himthem, thea son of man that you care for him?
• ESV – “What is man, that you are mindful of him, or the son of man, that you care for him?

Modern English and Clarity Phrasing changes look like this example in Romans 1:4:

• NIV1984 – and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.
• NIV2011 – and who through the Spirit of holiness was declaredappointed with power to be the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.
• ESV – and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,

More information on these examples including additional details can be found in these two links:

• NIV2011 Romans Comparison
• NIV2011 Hebrews Comparison

How much has changed in the new version? NIV2011 Publishers say that 95% of the text remains the same as NIV1984, however, others have reviewed the changes made in comparison to the NIV1984 and found that 19030 verses (61.1%) are the same, and 12056 verses (38.8%) have changes made to them. It depends on if you are counting words or verses.

 

The ‘More Literal’ and ‘Less Literal’ Scale for Bible Translations

2 Years after the NIV update

I found something very odd when I went to look back to the research that I had done in 2012 when the International Committee was looking at ESV vs NIV2011. At the time of the change, there was information to be found in a lot of places, including institutions such as Focus on the Family, Bible Gateway, Southern Baptist Convention etc. There was also, of course, much talk in the blogosphere. At the time of my research, I had links to a few of these organizations’ sites only to find that 2 years later, these pages no longer exist. Focus on the Family no longer information specifically pointing to the NIV. It does however, have a page that lists translations that they recommend and the NIV is not included in their list of recommended translations.   The only place to find information from the time of the change is to try to find reputable writings in blogs. Here are a few examples:

• The Two Different NIVs (Patheos)
• The NIV2011 Forces a Choice (The Gospel Coalition)
• Farewell, NIV (Cripplegate)
• The SBC Resolution on the NIV (Denny Burke)
• Words Matter _ Why We Can’t Recommend the NIV

Concerns

Why did Zondervan demand that all NIV1984 copies be removed? – I have not found an answer to this question yet. Local Christian book store were ordered by NIV’s publisher, Zondervan, to turn in all NIV1984 versions in exchange for 2011 equivalents. I can understand an edition going out of print, but why go to the extent of having all printed copies PHYSICALLY removed? It is the same story with all online publishers, such as Bible Gateway, Blue Letter Bible etc. They were not permitted to offer the NIV1984 online.  If you go to the Biblica website, you won’t find a single reference to the 1984 version. If you go into a Christian bookstore, you will only see NIV Bibles. There is no indication that this is an updated version, or that it is not the same as the NIV you might have at home. One Pastor says he will not be recommending the NIV to his congregation because – The worldly marketing scheme that Zondervan seems to be following is one I don’t want to support with my congregation’s dollars.

Copyright differences – If Zondervan can remove all rights from printing NIV1984 in order to push the NIV2011, what is to stop them from doing it again 5 or 10 years down the road with an even newer version of the NIV and forcing organizations to make impacting and costly changes all over again? ESV’s publisher, Crossway has attempted to make the ESV translation easily and readily available to all. Here is the ESV Copyright information.

Publisher differences – ESV is published by Crossway, a multi-denominational non-profit organization. NIV is published by Zondervan which is owned by Harper Collins, a division of NewsCorp (owned by Rupert Murdoch).

Choosing ESV

Many well-known evangelical leaders have made bold statements declaring their support for the ESV. John Piper of Desing God.org is one of them. He states the following : We are building all our future ministry around the ESV…. The ESV satisfies the preaching, memorizing, studying, and reading needs of our church, from children to adults.” John Piper, Pastor for Preaching and Vision, Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Additional commentary on the ESV choice:

• NIV vs ESV and Why Piper Switched
• Why we should change from the NIV to the ESV
• What Bible Translations does Focus on the Family recommend?

 

If you go to the Biblica website (for NIV information) and the ESV website, you will see that they both have their share of supporters:

NIV Endorsements

ESV Endorsements

But I wondered if there was a connection between these well-renown speakers, the books they have published and their publisher and it turns out there is a definite correlation. For example, Andy Stanley recommends the NIV Bible. All have Andy Stanley’s books have been published by Zondervan. This is what I was able to find out:

ESV is recommended by:	Publisher of Author’s books	NIV is recommended by:	Publisher of Author’s books
Focus on the Family	Focus on the Family	Andy Stanley	Zondervan
Desiring God (John Piper)	Crossway	Craig Groeschel	Zondervan
JI Packer	Crossway	Jim Cymbala	Zondervan
R. Albert Mohler Jr.	Crossway & SBTS	Scot McKnight	Zondervan
Francis Chan	David C. Cook	Charles Stanley	Thomas Nelson (also owned by Harper-Collins/ Newscorp)
Kevin DeYoung	Crossway
Ravi Zaccharias	formerly Zondervan, now FaithWords

What do Other Quizzing and Bible Memorization Organizations use?

• AWANA – ESV
• Nazarene Bible Quizzing – Same Quiz Material Cycle, NIV2011
• Free Methodist Bible Quizzing – Different Quiz Material Cycle, NIV2011
• World Bible Quiz – ESV

Summary

In summary, based on my research, I would not choose the NIV2011 for my own personal Bible study. This is mostly due to the liberties that have been taken in the translation to provide ‘clarity’, as well as updating the use of English language. And having spent the last 2 years getting into the ESV translation to teach quizzers, I have come to appreciate it more and more and it has become my defacto translation.

However, I think the NIV translation committee had good intentions and I think it is a translation that God can use. It has some possible readability advantages that MAY make it easier to memorize. My biggest concern about using the translation for quizzing is that I no longer have faith in the publisher to stand by this translation, to not pull it whenever they see fit, or want to make additional profits etc. My recommendation would be to work with a non-profit organization like Crossway and continue with the well-respected ESV version.

 

	PROs	CONs
NIV2011	Readability, and therefore (maybe) easier to memorize	Risk of publisher not being trustworthy
	Common translation, found in homes, preached with	Some feel that the translation is less true and/or makes compromises; not recommended by some Christian organizations. A number of churches would withdraw from C&MA quizzing if the NIV is used.
ESV	Continuity, we have been using it for 2 years; not to introduce a 3rd version	Some have found it more difficult to memorize than NIV1984
	Trustworthy literal translation, well respected

 

 

Seeking Allah Finding Jesus – A book review

I have never done a book review on my blog before but its been a long time since a book has impacted me so deeply.

I have no affiliation with RZIM or Zondervan or anyone related to this book, I simply wanted to read this book since I heard it had been released through RZIM (because I follow them on Twitter ha ha!)

This book gave me insight to the mulsim culture that is completely intertwined with Islam religion.  It is a lovely heart-warming and yet heart-wrenching story of a young man who grew up in a very close-knit loving family and who was taught to love God and to love scripture (the Quran) who searches for the truth.  But his search for the truth is out of love for God and his own Islamic faith.

I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but in the end, it was a true friendship that led him on the path to finding Jesus.

I have so much love and compassion for Muslims now because of this book and Nabeel’s insight into his culture has also helped me see more clearly into the culture of my own inter-racial marriage.

I think if I met Nabeel in person, I would want to just give him a big hug, for the good sweet son that he is and for the courage it took to step out in faith.

I will be recommending this book to everyone I know.

Seeking Allah Finding Jesus, by Nabeel Qureshi

GoodReads Review

I bought it from Chapters/ Indigo in Canada, but it can also be purchased from Amazon and other online sources.

As of July 2014, I was able to access bonus content from RZIM here.

 

from someone who is a fiction lover, and not really into biographies, or true stories, this was one of the best books I have ever read – HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!

 

 

Thoughts on NOT Being a Stay at Home Mom

The Christian culture is a bit bizarre, especially among women. I think we put all kinds of pressure on ourselves to be some kind of model Christian wife.

It used to be that women stayed home and looked after the house and the children while the husband went to work and provided. And if the wife did work, it was either as a teacher or a nurse. Because those are good career choices for christian women, that allowed you to be at home with your kids more.

I remember thinking in my 30s – I was raised in a Christian home, why didn’t my parents tell me I was supposed to be a teacher or a nurse? I felt like all the women in my circle of friends and the other moms at church were all stay at home moms and if they did work, they were either teachers or nurses.  Did my parents forget to teach us this? because they taught their three daughters that they could be anything they wanted to be? (I have a business/computer degree and my sister is a civil engineer).

But I always knew I could never be either a teacher or a nurse. I literally pass out at the sight or even thought of blood. And I certainly couldn’t be in a classroom with noisy children all day!!

But it seems the stakes have been raised in recent years, and the pressure is even higher. The trends of homeschooling,  having large families, adopting, fostering are all beautiful ideas – if this is what God has called and equipped you to do. We are called to look after the orphans in James. So the fact that adoption and fostering have become such a common thing in our churches is really beautiful.

And my daughters are currently addicted to watching ’19 Kids and Counting’.  And while I love the Duggars and all that they stand for, and the life style and values that they promote, I was starting to feel a bit weighed down by it all.

How come I only have 3 children? And why don’t we make our own laundry soap?  and did I ruin my children by abandoning them to go into the workplace? And how come every word that comes out of Michelle Duggar’s mouth is so darn kind and sweet!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While there are many times in my life that I wished I could have been a stay at home mom, being a working mom meant that my husband and I both went out of our way to intentionally stay connected with our kids and to remain a very close family.  We both worked and we both wanted to spend time with our kids.  So guess what?  Our house was/is messy.  But now we BOTH have very strong attached relationships with each of our kids.

While the years when they were young seemed so hard and so exhausting, I see how they have turned out, and I feel so blessed and priviledged to be the parents of these three kids.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I believe they greatly benefited from having strong relationships with both their father and mother.  When we are all finally together at the dinner table, we enjoy each other’s company and can laugh and have fun together.

They’ve grown up with their father being there for them after school and cooking dinner (he leaves very early in the morning in order to be able to do this.)

My oldest daughter wants to go to school to be an optometrist.

And she wants to get married and have 7 children someday.

And possibly be a missionary.

and we say – great!  You CAN do all these things!  If this is what God is calling you to do – go for it!

But I am finally realizing that I can give myself a bit of grace.  There is no specific direction in the Bible that states that a women must not work outside the home.  In fact, the Proverbs 31 woman was pretty busy and profitable.  Rachel was a shepherdess, Lydia sold cloth etc.  There are lots of examples.

I am trying my best to live the life God called me to live. I am right where He wants me to be.  And if I can continue to ‘abide’ in Him, He will be able to use me for His kingdom, right where I am.

My encouragement for other mothers who for whatever reason work outside the home would be to keep intentionally doing things to strengthen your relationship with your children.  One of the good things about being a mom working outside the home, is that if both parents work outside the home, then both parents do the work at home – the cooking, the cleaning, the laundry is all shared.  But make your kids your priority.  While you may look back on the time when they are little and be proud you keep a clean house, you will never look back and regret the time spent being WITH your children!

 

The Importance of Teaching Your Children Obedience

It is one of the 10 commandments – that is how important it is!!

In fact disobedience to parents is listed among sins such as sexual immorality, thieving, etc.

But children need to be taught to be obedient.

This was a crucial point my husband and I agreed on when we started our parenting journey. And we probably had different reasons for our strong feelings on this.

1. Safety – it is very difficult to keep your babies, toddlers, children and teens safe unless you have confidence that they will obey you without question. We needed to know that if I shouted a command, their automatic reaction is to obey. They might still question it, but their instinct is to obey.

2. Deliberate disobedience is disrespectful and should not be tolerated.

3. I shouldn’t have to ask for something more than once.

4. Order from chaos – this is especially true once you decide to have more than two kids. Kids learn quickly that life is not fair. Everyone does their part, and everyone has to obey.

HOW do you teach you kids obedience?

1. Start very early.
2. Be consistent.
3. Never go back on your word. Always stick to your guns.

Extra work being consistent when they are young will make things much easier as they get older.

GRACE

Teaching obedience can be tempered with grace. This does not mean giving in. This means that outside of the basic ground rules, when my kids ask for permission to do something, or eat something, my default answer is going to be yes, unless there is a compelling reason to say No.

When the default answer is No, kids learn quickly that it’s better to ask for forgiveness than to ask permission.

When I say No, I usually give a good reason. But I don’t have to. When it’s not appropriate to provide details, no means no.

Sometimes kids need to learn impulse control. Yes kids will be kids, but they can be taught to stop and think – is this a good idea? Model this and use situations In daily life to reinforce the concept of impulse control.

In the end, it’s all about the love and discipline shown to us by our Heavenly Father.

Hebrews 12:10-11 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

Jesus, the Bible, Prayer, the Spirit, the Gospel, God – Which is Most Important?

I struggle sometimes when I hear or read from pastors or teachers who focus on just one of these things – Jesus, the Bible, Prayer, the Spirit, the Gospel, God without seeming to want to reveal the importance or relevance of the other pieces.

To me, they are all intrinsically tied together.

There is no gospel without Jesus.

There is no Bible without God.

The Bible is the story of the Gospel, to which Jesus is the central character.

The truth of the gospel comes from hearing the Word, having our hearts opened by the Spirit, because we asked for help in our prayers.
Romans 10:17 – So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

God loves us and all these things are His precious gifts to us.
James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

He GAVE us His Son, allowed Him to be tortured and put to death and to do battle with Satan so that death could be defeated for us. 2 Timothy 1:10 – but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

Then He sent His Spirit, to comfort us, to give us power, to intercede for us.
Romans 8:26 – Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words

He gave us prayer as our communication tool.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 – Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

He gave us His written word.
Preserved over 1000s of years, revealing His ultimate plan and covenant with us. The whole of the Bible reveals His truth and his covenant with people.
Hebrews 4:12 – For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

They are ALL intrinsically connected.

I think God gave me a passion for His word and I’m so thankful. It’s part of my personal gifting in my love of words and books. My love language is words. But that doesn’t mean that I should value God’s Word over prayer, or over the message of the gospel, or the help I receive from the Spirit, or God’s faithfulness.

In the same way, someone may have the gift of evangelism and is passionate about spreading the gospel.
Another has the gift of intercessory prayer.
Someone else has a heart for the poor.

While we need to follow our God-given passions and gifts, I believe we need to be wise and prudent showing respect for others gifting. We need to always bear in mind the big picture of all His tools and gifts.

When Interpreting His Word isn’t a Simple Matter

I LOVE God’s word dearly, I want to know it better, I want to have more of it memorized, I want to know what God is trying to say to us.

But – confession – I don’t know it nearly as well as someone who has been a Christian as long as I have should know it. I wasted my 20s not bothering much. I have the Sunday school stories down pat, but it’s taken the last decade or so to get a an adult handle on some pretty basic concepts.

I have a business/computer degree, no theological training whatsoever. I just have this love for His word. I want to dig deeper, I want to search and google and find out what other more biblical scholars have to say about a particular passage or on a certain subject.

This is a glorious age for us to discover and be taught by great orators and pastors of mega churches through podcasts and YouTube etc.

But we also must be diligent to choose wisely who we ‘follow’ as my own pastor likes to warn us.

But in the end, only God’s Word is living and active. My own interpretation may be something I feel God has laid on my heart but what if it doesn’t line up with a ‘more spiritual person’s’ interpretation, someone who I trusted and followed?

I just read a portion of 1 Cor 13 over on Chris Martin’s blog in the Message translation and found it appropriate here:

1 Corinthians 13:8-10 Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives, our incompletes will be canceled.

This verse helped me see that each of us humans can only ever know a portion of the truth. So while I believe that God’s Word is the absolute truth, I neither can trust that what I believe to be what God is saying is the whole truth, nor is what another person is saying.

HOWEVER, We need to treat our fellow christians with grace.

Can Christians stop being hypocrites?

Why is the word ‘hypocrisy’ almost perceived to be synonymous with Christianity?

Why does it seem like Christians are some of the most judgmental people on the planet?

And what can we do to change this?

How can Christians hold each other accountable in a way that is mutually up-building rather than judging?

Paul says in Romans –
So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding. Romans 14:19

We must pursue what makes peace.
We must pursue things that are mutually up building.

It can be really difficult within the Christian culture, within our small groups, and Christian circle of friends to really refrain from being critical and judgmental to each other.

I have been struggling with this for some time, and I really needed to ask God to search my own heart. And be warned when you ask this of God!

Although well aware of my own imperfection, He showed me an or area of our life which has the potential to be a stumbling block for others.

Romans 14:13
Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.

Paul is saying this like – let US stop judging people FROM NOW ON.

It’s like he’s saying we all do it, but can we JUST DECIDE TO PUT AN END TO IT?!

Does it matter if someone believes it’s ok to have a beer in the weekend, and another doesn’t, or another friend practices yoga, and another allows their teen to wear short skirts to church, or picks up groceries on Sunday or downloads music or tells a little white lie here and there?

I think this verse sums it up nicely.

The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. Romans 14: 22

These are the kinds of things to keep between yourself and God, and your friends’ faith is between them and God.

Polar Vortex? Or God’s hint to forget global warming

as we move into the 2nd half of April, I am looking out the window at snow!! Like haven’t we had enough?

And yet it seems like the global warming doomsayers haven’t even slowed down.

I realize that there is scientific evidence that the temperatures of the oceans are rising.

And I whole-heartedly agree that we need to respect and honour this magnificent planet that was created for us.

What I have trouble with is the amount of effort, money and resources being poured into fighting global warming while millions around the world are starving, or fighting in wars, or have been driven from their homes.

I think our directive is to show Jesus’ love to the people all across the globe. If we were to focus our attention on first finding food and shelter for all the people, and then educate them, then the whole planet could collectively work towards protecting our earth.

I am pretty sure our big God can take care of the planet, he has asked us to take care of his people.

The Great Commandment

28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

There is no other commandment greater than these.”

John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.