The following was written in response to a reader who asked about my take on end time events:
I believe in progressive revelation based upon John 16:12-13. This provides evidence that revelation would occur through the work of the Holy Spirit who would “show you things to come”. This leaves us with the ability to gain insight and leaves the listener to discern between what is an educated guess and what is the prophetic word to the church. Since God does nothing without revealing it to his prophets (Amos 3:7) there will be some measure of forewarning. Whether or not the church pays attention or not may depend on the condition of their stock portfolio or whether or not it’s in the middle of football season. We’re just that fickle.
Having said that let me tell you where I’m at. I went through a period of intense interest in end time events and at the close of that dramatic season I asked myself, why? What purpose did it serve to know when the return of Jesus would occur? Consider the story of Enoch, who walked with God so closely that he was simply translated into His presence. Consider Elijah, who had much the same experience. I realized that no place in the Scripture did Jesus tell us to figure out the time, but in fact we’re told to be watchful, sober, vigilant (1 Pet 5:8), and work while it’s light (Jn 9:41). The work is to do the works of the Father (Jn 5:36), destroy the works of the enemy (1 Jn 3:8), and proclaim the good news of the Kingdom (Luke 9:2). That Kingdom is the demonstration of the power of God that began with Christ and continues today (Mark 9:1). Eschatology is secondary because whether you’re a premillennialist, postmillennialist, amillennialist, Pre-Wrath, or Partial Rapture adherent, it doesn’t change the call and commission of Christ to His church.
Consider a house full of children in which the father leaves and on his way out, leaves some instructions saying, “These things must be done before I return.” Rather than being consumed with when he will return, it would behoove me to a greater extent to do be consumed with what must be done. Even if I found out when he’s coming back, what would it change? In fact it may have a negative affect on my attitude toward his instructions. I may wait until the last minute to get His work done in order to make room for my desires.
All of eschatology can be summed up (not simplified but summed up) in a single verse, Matt 24:14. In the Latin Vulgate, “et praedicabitur hoc evangelium regni in universo orbe in testimonium omnibus gentibus et tunc veniet consummatio.” And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations and then shall the end come. Consider the weight of those words. What if by completing the commission we determine the end? Both our faith and faithfulness to His mandate would then produce the power that moves the hands of prophetic history forward. Faith is the one thing that affected Jesus world and caught His attention. The preaching will not happen without His body. If we do not do the work, this verse will not be fulfilled and thus the end will not come. I believe this is why prophecy is so open ended. If we do as we’re destined to do, the rise of hatred for the follower of Christ will abound and compound into the cataclysmic spiritual showdown that is foretold (Matt 24:9). We will be hated by men, yet we wish to be accepted by men. We will be mistreated, yet we wish for blessing. We will be unjustly judged, yet we claim entitlement to earthly rights. Nobody is anxious to make the kind of impact that will stir the kingdom of darkness to the boiling point against the church. But it is to be, and the generation that could usher in such a move of God could be this one. However, if Jesus were to come back today, we would have to mark out Matthew 24:14 for today, more people will die without having heard the Gospel than at any time in history. Today’s record will be broken tomorrow. We may say we’re tired of waiting on Him. Consider that He may be waiting on us. We wait for a move of God when God waits for a move of His people. In Him we live and move and have our being and as the Body of Christ, when we move, He moves. When Jesus said in Luke 9:1 and Matt 10:1 “Behold, I give you power and authority over all the works of the enemy, I believe Jesus meant for us to walk in that, even if the enemy doesn’t like it. The hatred that will be poured out during the tribulation won’t be toward a lazy church but to a church that is making a global impact for God. An impact that’s not an ear tickling, sin tolerant, selfish desire fulfilling impact, but rather an impact of the power of God that so infuriates the enemy that all who are called believers in Jesus Christ will be targeted for destruction by demonically driven zealots who would rather die killing us than to see us live to proclaim the good news another day. While we cry for the rapture, I believe God loves this world too much to take the hope away from it but would rather allow us yet another opportunity to see people saved. When our heart burns with a passion for the lost, then and only then will we have the courage to truly give our all to fulfill the great commission, and in that day, we would rather miss the rapture to reach one more person than be rescued from this fallen world.
Friday, September 29, 2006
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
The Future Belongs to the Storyteller.
The hum of the sliding doors and the cool air said 'welcome' as I wandered into the most incredible grocery store in Austin, Whole Foods Market downtown. It's a few minutes from work so I enjoy going there for lunch. A stroll past the deli, pasta bar, seafood counter, and back to the chocolate fountain is a feast for the senses. It's a place for hippies with money and while I'm not a hippie nor do I have money, I still feel welcome. I had a sandwich made and on the way to pay stopped by the brighly lit section filled with bottled drinks with names like Odwalla, Naked, Vitamin Water, Bolthouse Farms, and Pom Wonderful. I picked one up trying to figure out why in the world anyone would pay so much for so little. On the back of the bottle I picked up, was a story of the family that runs the company that makes the super healthy concoction. I was hooked and read the whole thing. I didn't buy it but I stood there like a fool and read the back of a bottle. The next bottle I picked up didn't have a story about family values, but rather a funny schtick about why in the world you would want to drink this stuff. It poked at the FDA and even itself but, again, I was grinning. It seems like someone's breaking the rules when a product for purchase foregoes dry facts to put a bit of fun in its packaging. It got me to thinking about facts and fiction. God bless the internet but it's made facts free. Facts are everywhere and as long as you have that computer, any question can be answered and any statement of fact can be found. Formerly priceless information is now free. It's truly a wonderful world we live in. But with all those facts, do you think people are interested? For awhile maybe and then we all begin to sound like Cliff from Cheers. We know a little about everything and a lot about nothing. This opens up the world to the storyteller. It is the right brained person who will eventually rule the world, for as the market for facts is saturated, the appetite for creativity is growing. Growing to the point that those who have the ability to tell a story may find that the world opens up to them in new ways. On this note, Jesus would do well here today. "A certain man had two sons" or "A sower went forth to sow" or "Who of you having a servant" or "There once was a rich man" or even "The Kingdom of Heaven is likened unto..." Ahh the master storyteller. Stories give us a clearer perspective for they walk us through events that we would have never encountered and introduce us to characters we would have never known. Though the stories themselves may not be true, stories often convey 'truth' to the heart whereas facts only affect the mind. The most powerful stories, however, are those that are both true and convey truth at the same time. The message of the Gospel is that kind of story. I was told recently that many of the 7000 islands of the south pacific have people on them who have never heard the Gospel. "Never heard the Gospel???" I said. How in the world is that possible today? He said, "The last time some of them had a missionary was 30 years ago and since that time there have been children born so in some places in the world there are 30 year old people who have never heard the name of Jesus. It's like being back at the turn of the century all over again. RC Sproul said that more people will die today having never heard the Gospel than at any time in history and tomorrow will set a new record. The church is at its most prosperous yet we have not kept up with the growth. I've just told you a story. It's both true and it conveys truth. I just figure that if a story can get us Americans to spend 3.50 on a bottle of juice, perhaps it will also prompt us to do more to spread the Gospel too.
The hum of the sliding doors and the cool air said 'welcome' as I wandered into the most incredible grocery store in Austin, Whole Foods Market downtown. It's a few minutes from work so I enjoy going there for lunch. A stroll past the deli, pasta bar, seafood counter, and back to the chocolate fountain is a feast for the senses. It's a place for hippies with money and while I'm not a hippie nor do I have money, I still feel welcome. I had a sandwich made and on the way to pay stopped by the brighly lit section filled with bottled drinks with names like Odwalla, Naked, Vitamin Water, Bolthouse Farms, and Pom Wonderful. I picked one up trying to figure out why in the world anyone would pay so much for so little. On the back of the bottle I picked up, was a story of the family that runs the company that makes the super healthy concoction. I was hooked and read the whole thing. I didn't buy it but I stood there like a fool and read the back of a bottle. The next bottle I picked up didn't have a story about family values, but rather a funny schtick about why in the world you would want to drink this stuff. It poked at the FDA and even itself but, again, I was grinning. It seems like someone's breaking the rules when a product for purchase foregoes dry facts to put a bit of fun in its packaging. It got me to thinking about facts and fiction. God bless the internet but it's made facts free. Facts are everywhere and as long as you have that computer, any question can be answered and any statement of fact can be found. Formerly priceless information is now free. It's truly a wonderful world we live in. But with all those facts, do you think people are interested? For awhile maybe and then we all begin to sound like Cliff from Cheers. We know a little about everything and a lot about nothing. This opens up the world to the storyteller. It is the right brained person who will eventually rule the world, for as the market for facts is saturated, the appetite for creativity is growing. Growing to the point that those who have the ability to tell a story may find that the world opens up to them in new ways. On this note, Jesus would do well here today. "A certain man had two sons" or "A sower went forth to sow" or "Who of you having a servant" or "There once was a rich man" or even "The Kingdom of Heaven is likened unto..." Ahh the master storyteller. Stories give us a clearer perspective for they walk us through events that we would have never encountered and introduce us to characters we would have never known. Though the stories themselves may not be true, stories often convey 'truth' to the heart whereas facts only affect the mind. The most powerful stories, however, are those that are both true and convey truth at the same time. The message of the Gospel is that kind of story. I was told recently that many of the 7000 islands of the south pacific have people on them who have never heard the Gospel. "Never heard the Gospel???" I said. How in the world is that possible today? He said, "The last time some of them had a missionary was 30 years ago and since that time there have been children born so in some places in the world there are 30 year old people who have never heard the name of Jesus. It's like being back at the turn of the century all over again. RC Sproul said that more people will die today having never heard the Gospel than at any time in history and tomorrow will set a new record. The church is at its most prosperous yet we have not kept up with the growth. I've just told you a story. It's both true and it conveys truth. I just figure that if a story can get us Americans to spend 3.50 on a bottle of juice, perhaps it will also prompt us to do more to spread the Gospel too.
Monday, September 25, 2006
This video is of my good friend, Paul, leading one of my favorite songs at Golden Triangle Church on the Rock this past Sunday. Paul lost his voice the night before this yet still managed to raise the roof in two services on Sunday morning. I'm just encouraged to see him doing what he's called to do. There's no better experience in this world or the world to come than to know that you're doing what God has gifted you to do and to know that He's pleased with your exercise of that gift. God and man often seem stuck in this stalemate in which one is waiting for the other to move. In the Old Testament God's people followed the cloud and fire. In the New Testament the signs and wonders follow you. In Him we live and move, says the Scripture. Since His Spirit resides within believers, when we move, He moves. He both calls and chooses yet we still need to respond to that call. A calling is an invitation to come and be prepared for service whereas a choosing is the process of selection once the process of preparation has had its season. Many are called, but for lack of submission to the process of preparation, few are chosen to move on to that lifestyle of service. Do you have a call on your life? My prayer today is that every believer who reads this post will find themselves filled with hope and that the calling of the Holy Spirit would find pure soil in you to take root in and that fruit would be manifest in your countenance, attitude, and action. I finally pray that in all of your 'doing' that you would do the will of God and in all of your seeking that you would seek first the Kingdom of God. Amen.
Sunday, September 17, 2006
The Parable of the Cook Part 2
One thing that the cook could never seem to understand is why, after so many meals and so many restaurants built, that the patrons seem obese, the cooks seem discouraged, and the owner is not pleased. The owner, in His Manual, has promised that those who hunger would be filled, blessed, protected, led, and strengthened. The patrons long for that, but they find themselves separated from the very thing they cry for. Why? Is it the sovereign will fo the owner for some to be blessed and others to struggle? Is there any place for miracles in this age?
The owner set physical boundaries in place and then treats them like suggestions. He creates gravity and then walks on water. When a storm interrupts His nap, He commands it to stop and it does. The laws of nature bend and not just for Him. There are those who cry out, press in, simply believe, and it stops His world as He acknowledges their faith and miracles happen. In Luke 17:5 the disciples, awed by what they saw Jesus do and realizing that there was this one thing that impressed Him, saw the key and they make a request. "INCREASE OUR FAITH." Jesus let’s them know that it’s not the size but the quality. If you have faith the size of a seed you can alter the laws of nature. A seed that never takes root, or has to compete with weeds won’t do much good, but as long as the soil of your heart is fertile, amazing things will happen. Then Jesus tells an unusual story that addresses the patrons even today. He says, “Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and recline at the table’? Will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink’?
In modern times, we are accustomed to coming to church to receive from God. We think the restaurant is for us. We come for what we get instead of coming to minister to Him first. In the Old Testament one would have never thought to go to the temple without the intention of offering a sacrifice. I may be drawn to gathering with others for what it does for me. I ought better to be drawn to gather to worship for what it does for Him. There’s nothing wrong with coming to a place for ministry but as a way of life it builds in you an expectation to be served and builds in leadership and expectation to make people happy and neither are Kingdom values.
To increase faith, bring an offering of sacrifice to Him first of all. God’s not interested in dead animals but the yieldedness of the heart. Isaiah 60:18 is the context for a key in Isaiah 62:8-10. The sacrifice of praise and worship creates a highway that draws others into the very presence of God. The instrument of your body as a living sacrifice reflects the yieldedness of the heart. To come to a worship service and do nothing is a tragedy. Lift your head, lift your voice, lift your hands, do the pious sway. “But the enemy is hindering my worship,” many people say. The man of the Gadarenes had a legion of demons who couldn’t keep him from worshipping Jesus. We worship both to BE set free and because we ARE set free. This is why you can’t tell the level of spirituality by someone’s expression of worship. You CAN however tell a lot about a persons yieldedness in their expression of sacrifice for in true worship there must be an offering.
Servants, you’ve worked hard in the fields. Now let’s set a meal for Him. And if we eat, great, but if all we do is to prepare a meal for Him, it’s reason enough to gather. The promise, though, is true. Prepare and serve Him first, and afterward, you will be filled.
One thing that the cook could never seem to understand is why, after so many meals and so many restaurants built, that the patrons seem obese, the cooks seem discouraged, and the owner is not pleased. The owner, in His Manual, has promised that those who hunger would be filled, blessed, protected, led, and strengthened. The patrons long for that, but they find themselves separated from the very thing they cry for. Why? Is it the sovereign will fo the owner for some to be blessed and others to struggle? Is there any place for miracles in this age?
The owner set physical boundaries in place and then treats them like suggestions. He creates gravity and then walks on water. When a storm interrupts His nap, He commands it to stop and it does. The laws of nature bend and not just for Him. There are those who cry out, press in, simply believe, and it stops His world as He acknowledges their faith and miracles happen. In Luke 17:5 the disciples, awed by what they saw Jesus do and realizing that there was this one thing that impressed Him, saw the key and they make a request. "INCREASE OUR FAITH." Jesus let’s them know that it’s not the size but the quality. If you have faith the size of a seed you can alter the laws of nature. A seed that never takes root, or has to compete with weeds won’t do much good, but as long as the soil of your heart is fertile, amazing things will happen. Then Jesus tells an unusual story that addresses the patrons even today. He says, “Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and recline at the table’? Will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink’?
In modern times, we are accustomed to coming to church to receive from God. We think the restaurant is for us. We come for what we get instead of coming to minister to Him first. In the Old Testament one would have never thought to go to the temple without the intention of offering a sacrifice. I may be drawn to gathering with others for what it does for me. I ought better to be drawn to gather to worship for what it does for Him. There’s nothing wrong with coming to a place for ministry but as a way of life it builds in you an expectation to be served and builds in leadership and expectation to make people happy and neither are Kingdom values.
To increase faith, bring an offering of sacrifice to Him first of all. God’s not interested in dead animals but the yieldedness of the heart. Isaiah 60:18 is the context for a key in Isaiah 62:8-10. The sacrifice of praise and worship creates a highway that draws others into the very presence of God. The instrument of your body as a living sacrifice reflects the yieldedness of the heart. To come to a worship service and do nothing is a tragedy. Lift your head, lift your voice, lift your hands, do the pious sway. “But the enemy is hindering my worship,” many people say. The man of the Gadarenes had a legion of demons who couldn’t keep him from worshipping Jesus. We worship both to BE set free and because we ARE set free. This is why you can’t tell the level of spirituality by someone’s expression of worship. You CAN however tell a lot about a persons yieldedness in their expression of sacrifice for in true worship there must be an offering.
Servants, you’ve worked hard in the fields. Now let’s set a meal for Him. And if we eat, great, but if all we do is to prepare a meal for Him, it’s reason enough to gather. The promise, though, is true. Prepare and serve Him first, and afterward, you will be filled.
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