Video Blog

 

 

my first video blog attempt...

 

 

I know not what I do

Most of us can remember when we where children doing something we knew better than to do, and then being questioned by our parents:  why did you do that?  answer:  I don't know.

Why did you break the window, I don't know
Why did you not do your homework, I don't know
Why did you hit your sister, I don't know
Why did you break curfew, I don't know

The list could go on and on... my father used to say he should have named one of his children "I don't know" that we he could have known who did it.

We knew the rules, we broke the rules; however the real answer as to why we did is simple, I don't know why.  Maybe curiosity.  I've never really thought myself as a rebellious child.  I don't think I ever intentionally broke rules just to tick my parents off.  I really don't know why I did the things I did.

Things don't change much in adulthood.  I find myself Identifying with Paul when he wrote:

 ^15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. (Ro 7:15., NIV)

I find everything within me wanting to do the things Christ wants me to do.  I want to be His representative, I want to be His role model.  I want to be a great pastor, leader, husband, father, friend, and brother.  But yet, I'm constantly not understanding myself.  I want to do the right things, I want to be that Godly leader, and yet I keep finding myself doing the things I get mad at others for.

Sounds like hypocrisy doesn't it.  I guess in a way it is.  The difference is, I feel bad about it.  Knowing the things I should do and not, and doing the things I shouldn't doesn't make us hypocrites, it makes us human.

What makes us hypocrites, is knowing the difference and NOT doing anything about it.

We know what we are supposed to do, we strive to do what we are supposed to do, but yet we still fail.  We know what the law says, we know what Christ says, but yet we still find ourselves doing what we know better than.  We are a work in progress, we are on a journey and on this journey we find our selves admitting this:

Hello, my name is Chris and I know not what I do...

attached to strings

^19 I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. ^20 When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. ^21 What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! ^22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. ^23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Ro 6:19-23., NIV)

Trapped

Controlled

tied up

forced

Confined

Enclosed

What our sin does to us.

Masters us, controls us, traps us.

^14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. (Ro 6:14., NIV)

God's answer.  Grace.

I don't like the feeling of being trapped.  I don't like feeling controlled by sin.  Sometimes I don't like who I am.  I don't like feeling numb.  

When I'm in control it's not good; when God is in control I make progress.

Either attached to sin or attached to God, that's what we are.

Attached to sin leads to death, attached to God leads to life.

This is a daily process.  None of us are going to get it right daily.  We are all attached to strings.  Sometimes we have strings that are attached to sin that are pulling us in one direction, and God has the strings pulling us in the other direction.  We are in this battle every single day of our lives.  Somedays Sin wins and somedays God wins.  In this journey of life that we are on the idea is that each day we should be getting closer to God and each day we should find ourselves with God willing the battle more.  His strings lead to freedom.  Sounds strange doesn't it.  Our image of Him controlling us makes it seem like maybe He is our puppet master.  Not so, He cuts the strings that are attached to sin, and gives us freedom.  Freedom to follow Him.  You choose, you decide.

Every day that sin wins we die a little inside.  Every day that God wins we learn to live better, to live life to the fullest.

So who wins today?

Is it real or is it...........?

I read one writer recently who said, “Today in so many Christian circles I fear if the Holy Spirit left, most of what we do would continue.” 

I have wondered this often in 10 years of ministry.  The church has more finances, people, and meeting places than the church in the New Testament, but yet we have less power, much less power.  Now I realize that I am making a hugely unfair blanket statement, and that there are Protestant Bible believing churches that God’s Spirit is moving in a mighty way.  However, for the most part our churches are lacking in that power. 

So then the question is why?  We know God is the same God that He has always been, because He is eternal.  We know Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  We know that He promised us that He had to leave so that His Spirit could come along side us.  Obviously then the problem doesn’t lie with God, therefore it must lie with us.

¹⁶ And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever; (John 14:16)

 Of course we know who the “Comforter” is, the Holy Spirit (παράκλητος [parakletos /par·ak·lay·tos/]), and then in verse 17 of John referred to as “Spirit” of truth (πνεῦμα [pneuma /pnyoo·mah/]).  The first reference refers to the Spirit as someone who “comes along side of”, and the second refers to “a movement of air” or to put it simply “a movement”.  I get that, I understand that.  When you think of the Spirit working we understand Him as “moving” or a spiritual “movement”.

Finally getting to my point, this is that the church of today has tried to replicate the movement of God through emotions.   Think about it this way; when you are in a service and the Spirit is moving you feel Him, you just know it is Him.  The Spirit moving is like a breath of fresh air rushing through your body and the congregation.  Churches today have tried to replicate that through toying with our emotions.  They sing a song to try to pull on our heart strings, some may use a sad story or illustration, or do whatever it takes to force a movement.

Don’t misunderstand me.  I firmly believe God’s Spirit can use a song, an illustration, and a good sermon, but it has to come naturally through Him and not us forcing the movement.

 

Chris