We are God's kids!

DAILY BIBLE READING:

Judges 11:1–12:15 
John 1:1-28 
Psalm 101:1-8 
Proverbs 14:13-14

BIBLE VERSE(S) FOR TODAY:

John 1:12-13 "But to all who did receive him, he gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in his name, who were born, not of natural descent, or of the will of the flesh, or of the will of man, but of God."

REFLECTIONS ON TODAY'S BIBLE VERSE(S):

If you watch television, you may periodically see advertisements for a service that allows you to explore your genealogy. In some of those commercials, an individual will speak of their amazement that an ancestor of theirs was a war hero or royalty. It's almost as if the person talking got an added injection of self-worth because of their new-found knowledge of who they came from.

Well, Christian, let me ask you a question. Who is your Father? Of course, you have a biological dad and mom. But, when you were saved from the penalty of your sins by trusting in Jesus, you were born again. At that moment, you gained a new relationship with God where you are encouraged to call Him "Father" (see Matthew 6:9, Romans 8:15, & Galatians 4:6).

Our Verse for Today doesn't simply say that when we believe and receive Jesus that we can start calling God our Father. It says that we have "the right" (lit. "authority") to call Him that. It isn't a trivial thing. It's legally binding. If we are saved, the God of all Creation is legally our Father and we are His child.

Just reflect on that last sentence and the Verses for Today for awhile. If it doesn't put a pep in your step, you haven't properly understood it.

My encounter with Mormons in my neighborhood

I was mowing my lawn today when I glanced to my right and saw two young men walking down the street in my direction. They were wearing the standard white shirts and pocket ID's so I knew they were Mormons. I thought that if I ignored them they would pass by. 

So, I made another swipe across the length of my lawn and when I came back, I noticed that they weren't on the street. I looked for them and couldn't see where they had disappeared ... until I saw movement at the side door to my house. They were ringing my doorbell!

I shut off the lawnmower and walked toward them as I introduced myself. Sure enough, they were Mormons (although they introduced themselves as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints).

Ordinarily, I may have simply told them I wasn't interested and sent them on their way. But today, I wanted to engage them in conversation. I wanted to brush up on my understanding of Mormonism. So, I was completely upfront at the beginning of our conversation and told them I was the pastor of Westside Baptist Church (they noticed my shirt with Westside's logo). I let them know I'd love to talk with them about their beliefs and my own if they had time. They graciously agreed.

Without making this a longer post than it already is, I want to simply point out one major point that I was reminded of during our conversation - how two people can use the same word(s) and mean two totally different things!

In "The Princess Bride" (one of my favorite movies), one of the main characters named Inigo Montoya had a perplexed look on his face as he looked at his boss, Vizzini, who had just said "Inconceivable!" for the umpteenth time. Inigo says, "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

That's exactly what I felt like telling those Mormons today. For instance, I asked them how they believed they would get to Heaven. One of them said, "Have faith in Jesus, repent of my sins and then get baptized and obey the Lord's commandments."

Well, I thought that didn't sound so bad on it's face. But those words don't mean what you think they mean. As I probed, they acknowledged that they didn't believe that Jesus is God. They believed that he was created by God (further reading here). They soundly disagreed that Jesus is God in the flesh.

Regarding baptism, they don't believe that it is simply the first step of obedience after being saved (as the Bible teaches). They believe that it is absolutely essential to salvation (further reading here). If you don't get baptized, you aren't going to Heaven. 

Regarding obeying God's commands, they don't believe (like the Bible teaches) that we will obey God's Word after being saved because of our love for God. No, they believe that if they don't do a lot of good things for the Lord, they aren't going to Heaven (further reading here). They really do believe that having faith in Jesus and repentance isn't enough. You MUST get baptized and work or you won't get to Heaven.

Upon further discussion, they acknowledged that the Bible isn't their only source for knowing what God requires. One of them pointed out that since much of the Bible is up for interpretation (in their estimation), then there needed to be a further source to clarify what God actually meant. [Enter, the Book of Mormon.] They believe that The Book of Mormon is the Word of God and definitively explains what the Bible says (further reading here).

And what do they believe about Heaven? Well, it's not one earth and new heavens like the last two chapters of Revelation tell us. Instead, each person (male) who has made it will get his own planet and will essentially be the "god" or ruler over that planet (begin studying on this here). There is much more that Mormons believe about this but you can do your own research.

All of this to say that when you talk to someone about their faith and they use words that you use, don't automatically assume that they MEAN the same thing.

It very well could be that those words don't mean what you think they mean.

Movie Review: "Do You Believe?"

I love what the producers of "God's Not Dead" and now "Do You Believe?" are doing! They are creating incredible movies that give Christians the tools to defend and live out their faith. Already, I cannot wait for their next movie!

I watched "Do You Believe?" last night with my family and some friends. I want to put in print, while its still fresh on my mind, what I loved about the movie! So, here are some of the reasons why I would highly recommend others to view this movie...


1. This movie masterfully interweaves many different stories into one beautiful masterpiece.

• At the beginning of the movie, the viewer is made aware that there are about 12 or so lives with stories to be told. It would seem at the outset that this is an almost impossible task. How can a 2 hour movie possibly allow you to develop any sort of relationship with the characters much less tell their stories and have it come to a compelling conclusion?
• The movie delivers! By the end of the movie, you have wept with the characters. You have celebrated with them. You may even feel like you have lost a friend as their characters exit the story or as the story comes to an end.
• But, it's not simply that the producers of "Do You Believe?" were able to connect the audience to the characters. They also made good on what they did so masterfully in "God's Not Dead" ... they interwove the stories so well that it was fascinating and yet not too complicated to keep up with.

2. This movie recognizes that life is hard and many things don't end well.

• Many Christian movies do the same thing that many movies of years gone by strived to do. They try to end the story with everything nice and neat. Everything works out perfectly as the hero "rides off into the sunset."
• Yet, stories like that are not true to life. We periodically enjoy them because they allow us to escape the difficulties and disappointments of life. But as those stories came to an end, we were brought back into the "real" world and realized there was very little to be gained from the story other than its entertainment value.
• "Do You Believe?" is true to life. It shows life as it really is (at least what it's like in a rough, inner city environment). But, the viewer sees that while those of us who live in rural America don't have to worry about crime as much, we are reminded that loneliness, despair, fear, anxiety, anger, bitterness and other such emotions are shared by us all. So, as the characters battle those emotions and the life circumstances that brought them on, the viewer is able to watch and learn. We get to see a true to life story in which various life scenarios live out their faith and see what happens to them.
• The viewers come to the end of the movie and are reminded that some who faithfully follow Jesus will experience joy and victory. Things work out! Yet, it is also possible that others who faithfully follow Jesus will lose their jobs or someone they dearly love will die. (Read Hebrews 11:1-35a - things work out for some people of faith; then read Hebrews 11:35b-38 - sometimes people of faith get nothing but difficulty.) Faith does not inoculate us from difficulties and disappointments. It does allow us to be strong and courageous in whatever comes our way. The movie makes this point wonderfully.

3. This movie calls upon viewers to put their faith to work.

• This movie speaks into a 21st century American Christian culture that is largely asleep. When we compare ourselves with others, we may look pretty good. But, when we compare ourselves to what God's Word says about Followers of Jesus, most of us fall far short of the mark. There is a reason why so few are getting saved in our churches these days.
• This movie resets the bar high where it should have been all along. In fact, at the beginning of the movie, a gentleman who is carrying a cross down a dark street approaches a pastor in his car. He asks the pastor if he is a believer. The pastor responds affirmatively and the question that is asked by the man with the cross hits the pastor (and those in the audience) like a gunshot ... "Well, what are you going to do about it?"
• So many of us love Ephesians 2:8-9 where it says we're save by grace alone apart from anything we do. Yet, the very next verse (Ephesians 2:10) tells us WHY we were saved ... "for good works." This movie calls followers of Jesus to live in light of verse 10.

4. The movie shows that one life lived for Christ can profoundly influence others.

• When we look at our ever darkening world, we cannot help but throw our hands up in defeat. We look around and see so much sin (including in ourselves) and we wonder what one person could possibly do about it. This movie shows how one act of kindness done in Jesus' name jars people to attention and causes them to reflect.
• In fact, this movie shows how counter-culture Christianity really is. Whether it is how a Christian responds when threatened with a loaded gun, an angry lawyer or an awareness of their imminent demise, this movie shows us that Christians who are informed by the Word will inevitably act in ways that are so different from the culture around us. And when we act in those unpredictable ways, it will almost always grab people's attention. Our message gains credibly when we behave this way. God is able to move powerfully in the lives of others when His children imitate the actions, words and attitudes of Christ.

5. The movie does not settle for a social Gospel but for a Gospel that changes lives for the present AND eternity.

• So much of the "good works" in Christianity today is simply doing the things that lost people can do. I mean, it's good to put shoes on people's feet, give them a warm meal and provide them shelter. But, lost people do this. Which begs the question ... If we are doing the same thing that lost people do, how can what we are doing be considered "Christian?" Don't get me wrong. It's GOOD to meet the temporal needs of those around us. But, if that is the extent of our actions, it's not a "Christian" work. It's just a good work.
• This movie shows that we must reach out to help others. But, in doing so, we must look for opportunities to share the Gospel. We must also make it clear that the reason we are doing what we are doing is because of Jesus. We have been captivated by His love and provision for us and we want to share it with others. Only what's done for Christ, in the name of Jesus, counts.

I could keep going but you get the idea. This movie was about real life stuff and real life Christianity. It is not only extremely entertaining, it is an incredible tool to help Christians grow in their faith.


If you haven't seen the movie, go watch it. If you have, tell others about it. We need to support movies like this and encourage the producers to keep pumping out more movies like this.


#pureflix #doyoubelieve