BLAME OR BLESSING

"...and through you, all the families on earth will be blessed."

-Gen 12:3

Shame and blame are proof positive of the reality of sin. Read Genesis 3. After eating, they realized they were naked- then they hid. God called them out in an act of mercy in order to demonstrate grace. Adam pointed at her... she pointed at the serpent... it pointed back at God.

If you’re experiencing shame, the knee-jerk response is to blame someone (Mom, Dad, a teacher or coach, a pastor, Adam, Eve) or something (nature, bad breaks, circumstances, finances, romances), all in an effort to avoid recognition. All in an effort to avoid ownership. All in an effort to avoid repentance.

A great failure of Christianity today is that so-called Christians have never recognized their sin. They’ve never owned their sin. They’ve never truly repented (not to feel bad about actions, but to literally and willfully turn from it to God).

They’re stuck in the shame of sin and, like the serpent, with no one left to blame - they point a finger of condemnation back to God. Some cover it with religious activity in an effort to soothe, but, like a goat in a herd of sheep, association doesn’t equate to transformation.

Oh yes, the blamers point, but not with overt conviction, such would require conviction and backbone. Instead, they demonstrate their disapproval by withholding their tithe (insert excuse here), by prioritizing things before corporate worship (insert excuse here), Bible Study (insert excuse here), prayer... and devotion to fellowship. They sit at home and scoff, “Churches are full of hypocrites!” as they drown in a flood of tragic irony.

The true follower of Christ reads Matthew 6:25-33 and 28:18-20 and is lovingly humbled and broken into yieldedness to Christ.

We can engage in lots of activities today, some may even be highly religious, but none are of any value to God apart from our recognition of sin, thankfulness to Christ, and submission to the sovereignty of God.

What’ll it be today? Blame or blessing?

Your call.

Blessings,

-Kevin M. Kelley

aMostUnlikelyDisciple.com

THE GREAT EXCHANGE

They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

-Romans 1:25

A great exchange has already occurred. It is a magnificent, marvelous and gracious transaction initiated by God. The majestic portrait of God’s love is eloquently illustrated in Romans 5:6-8:

“For at just the right time, while we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. It is rare indeed for anyone to die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

The beauty and awe therein escapes all - initially. The scales of rebellion blind us to reality. Like schizophrenics hopelessly lost in the depravity of their illness - humanity enters this world deceived and emphatically deranged in sin, even to the point of denial.

There’s a concept inherently deplorable to humanity- personal accountability, yet we emphatically demand it for others. There’s another even more reprehensible- inability, yet we’re perpetually frustrated by its absence in others.

We bemoan our Creator initially, “Don’t tell me I’m accountable to anyone for anything! Don’t even begin to spew religious rhetoric regarding my accountability and depravity sourced in some degenerate fool who supposedly ate a ‘forbidden apple’ eons before I was ever conceived! His problem. His fault. His business.”

What we’re really saying is, “No problem. No fault. No God.”

We prefer the idea of “Jesus” on our terms - our personal rendering - because the Jesus of the Bible (the book we’ve never really taken the time to actually read or comprehend - the one we trust to be interpreted and summarized for us by others into colloquialisms, Cliff’s Notes and catchphrases rent from original and intent) is far too compassionate to be real, far too intentional to be human, far too caring to be so inflexible… “No one comes to the Father but through me.”

Therefore, amid the ensuing cognitive dissonance, we cultivate on our own cut-and-paste theology of convenience, loopholes, and preference from personal experience. We formulate our own version of the truth because we’re free. We’ve determined we’re free to think, to choose, to explore, to determine, to sin - or not…

Oops. There we go, just as God revealed through Paul, exchanging the truth of God for a lie and serving created things (most notably “self”) rather than the Creator.

Fortunately, Scripture is clear. Sin is not merely corrupt deeds, wrong thoughts, plots or schemes. Sin is neither the violation of popular, transient, fickle, and synthetic laws nor any subjective assessment regarding contemporary morals or ethics. Sin is separation from the reality, person, heart, mind, will, and mission of God- the eternal Father, Son, and Spirit.

See Ephesians 2:1-3

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.

See Colossians 2:13

When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins,

See Psalm 51:5

Indeed, I was guilty when I was born;

I was sinful when my mother conceived me.

See Psalm 14:2-3

The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man,

    to see if there are any who understand,

    who seek after God.

They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt;

    there is none who does good,

    not even one.

See Jeremiah 17:9

The heart is deceitful above all things

    and beyond cure.

    Who can understand it?

See Romans 5:12

Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people because all sinned--

A bleak and tragic exchange occurred in Eden. In “one man,” Adam, we exchanged the truth of God for a lie- for death.

A great exchange occurred at the Cross of Calvary. Immanuel, the incarnate eternal Son and holy, perfect, spotless Lamb of God, took our place. The sin of the world (past, present, and future) was placed on Him. Humanity’s sin debt forever paid in full.

Sin is our reality when we enter this world. We are accountable to our Creator. We have no ability to reverse the curse. We need Christ. That’s why He came. That’s why He died.

The only freedom we have is continuing to exchange the truth of God for a lie. Christ is the exit from the prison and hopeless depravity to sin. In Him, we can exchange the lie of death for the truth of the Good News of eternal life in Jesus Christ.

That’s the great exchange He died for.

How will you respond?

Blessings!

-Kevin M. Kelley

aMostUnlikelyDisciple.com

DEVOTED?

Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

-Matthew 20:25-28

In 1986 Janet Jackson came out with the song, “What Have You Done For Me Lately.” Some of the lyrics follow:

Used to be a time when you would pamper me

Usta brag about it all the time

What have you done for me lately?

Used to go to dinner almost every night

Good thing I cook or else we'd starve to death

Ain't that a shame?

What have you done for me lately

I never ask for more than I deserve

You know it's the truth

You seem to think you're God's gift to this earth

I'm tellin' you no way

little things are all you seem to give

This is wild, I swear

That could easily be the anthem song for many cultural Christians today.

Malcontent: “What have you done for me lately pastor?”

Pastor: “I got down on my knees and prayed for you this morning - like every morning. I prepared and preached a sermon with you in mind. I’ve submitted my life and ministry to Christ for the advance of the Gospel to the ends of the earth.”

M: “What has the church done for me lately?”

P: “We welcome you with excitement and love. We’ve served you and your family.”

M: “People are malicious. They say, ‘I’ve missed you! Good to see you again!’ What they REALLY mean is “Nice of you to join us when it suits you.”

P: “Maybe they simply mean they missed you.”

M: “Nobody asked…”

P: “Who have you checked in on lately?”

M: “Nobody called…”

P: “Who have you called?”

M: “Nobody bothered to ask about what we’re going through…”

P: “Who have you ask how you can pray for them?”

M: “I know you recognized me, but it’s just not enough…”

P: “Time in service? Fellowship? Flowers? Applause? Love? Prayers? That’s not enough?”

M: “More people should have said something.”

The problem with those kinds of statements, which flow from a very specific mentality, is that they’re all egocentric. If we go back to the start and reread Matthew 20:25-28, we see that the pattern of the lost, depraved, and sinful is to set self above others, thereby setting self above God. That mentality is opposed to the will, likeness, and mission of God. It really is that simple.

Yet every day, in every moment and every thought of our practical “real world” lives, we think of self under the guise of service. We cut people off in traffic on the way to a church meeting. We zoom past the homeless without thought or concern on the way to something obviously more important than what Jesus commanded us to be and do. Then we have the audacity to criticize people heavy laden with burdens we know nothing about because we assume our situation is the only one. Besides, they haven’t recognized ours to our level of satisfaction.

“What Have You Done For ME Lately?”

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

-Philippians 2:3-4

What do your prayers sound like? What’s the content?

“Dear Lord, help me…”

“Dear Lord, bless me…”

“Fix me, heal me, make me, give me…”

In Acts 2, after receiving the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Peter gave a powerful sermon to a large group of egotistical religious sycophants, not unlike the droves who populate and disparage our churches today. In his sermon, Peter pled with the crowd to recognize their sin. He pled with them to consider the reality of Jesus Christ in light of redemption history, the Cross, and His resurrection. Their response is recorded in Acts 2:37:

When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

Peter didn’t tell them to pray the Believer’s Prayer or to engage in new superficial religious ceremonies or rituals. Peter said, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

The same “formula” has always been and will always be - until Jesus inaugurates the eternal glorified state. To repent doesn’t mean to feel bad about your sin(s). It doesn’t mean an emotional response. It means a literal turning from the egotistical and depraved way of living that consumed us from the time of our conception (see Psalm 51:5). Me, mine, my. The foundation of repentance is the recognition that everything before Christ - EVERYTHING you’ve ever done, ever thought, ever been is selfish and detestable to God.

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
-Romans 5:8

It’s always been about being served as the king/queen of your own world. It’s always been about what you want when and how you want it. Turning is impossible apart from the hearing of the Gospel and the working of the Holy Spirit. Only then can we respond by grace through faith.

The second part of Peter’s command, which came directly from Christ (see Matthew 28:18-20). Baptizing doesn’t simply mean getting wet. There’s no magical water ceremony initiated or instituted by Christ. Is immersion baptism important? Yes. It’s a public proclamation of our repentance and justification in Christ by grace through faith. But that’s not the fullness of baptism. To understand baptism we can go to Acts 2:42 and see how that crowd responded to Peter’s sermon.

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

-Acts 2:42

(click for sermon on Acts 2:42-47)

They DEVOTED themselves to 1) the apostles’ teaching, 2) to fellowship, 3) to the breaking of bread, and 4) to prayer.

Dear Malcontents, are you DEVOTED to those things? Are you DEVOTED and growing in the Word through participation in group study (Sunday School, Small Group, Men’s or Women’s Group)? Are you DEVOTED to fellowship - to being physically present at general assemblies, church ministries, and service opportunities? Are you DEVOTED to the breaking of bread - like church meals, small group meals, and community events? Are you DEVOTED to PRAYER of the corporate variety for the needs, vision, mission, and ministries of your church family? Or are you simply asking, “What Have You Done For ME Lately?”

Apostolic teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayer in GOSPEL COMMUNITY is what it means to be baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Spirit. Only then does Jesus proclaim that Immanuel will be present to the very end.

When we abandon Gospel Community, Christ doesn’t abandon us, we abandon Him. There's nothing wrong with leaving a local fellowship when God leads you elsewhere through prayer and circumstance. The problem is that malcontents don't leave well. They leave amid controversy and dissension. They stir it up and then move on to a new assembly to start the cycle of works of the flesh all over again. Theirs is not the kingdom of God.

Active participation in Gospel Community is what it means to be baptized. That’s what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. It says nothing about devoting themselves to complaining, to being malcontents, to working overtime to find flaws, to holding titles but abandoning responsibilities, or to spreading dissension. In fact, in his epistle to the church in Galatia, Paul specifically address it…

The acts of the flesh are obvious: ...hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions... and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

-Galatians 5:19-21

Ouch! Did you read that last part? Those who abandon Gospel Community, who demonstrate “acts of the flesh… will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Disruption of church fellowship is sin, plain and simple. When we’re seeking, pursuing, and serving the Old Serpent and His original temptation to love, serve, and promote self - our lives are incompatible with authentic Gospel Community. We disobey Christ’s commission. We abandon Immanuel.

Serving isn’t a nostalgic rear-view-mirror picture of what “you” did in the good ol’ days. It’s about what the Spirit is now accomplishing in and through you today for the promotion and proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth.

Before you go off on the people at your church for being inconsiderate, malicious, hypocritical fools… stop. Stop and read Matthew 28:18-20. The malcontents, the bellyachers, the complainers, the disgruntled, discontented, crabby, grouchy, melancholy whiners won’t bother to read it again. In fact, they checked out long ago.

Unlike the 3,000 who responded to Peter’s sermon, they’ll just cover their ears and spew hate. They are the siblings to those who stoned Stephen:

At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him.

-Acts 7:57-58a

“What Have You Done For ME Lately” isn’t the mindset or mentality of followers of Christ. Jesus made that crystal clear. Since the Creator of the universe came to serve and not to be served… since He gave an explicit command:

Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

-John 13:14-17

Being blessed in doing them is life. Obedience precedes blessing. The alternative is to choose to be cursed and lost to sin.

Jesus said, “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” Dear Malcontents, it’s your choice. Repent and be baptized in Gospel Community or remain in sin, continue to scatter, and rage against Christ, His will, and Mission.

Ever notice how Jesus loves using Bride imagery for His church? Repent and be baptized through DEVOTION to His Bride (Gospel Community), or keep asking, “What Have You Done for ME lately?” Serve or continue looking to be served.

The choice is yours.

Blessings,

-Kevin M. Kelley

aMosUnlikelyDisciple.com

INSUFFICIENT FUNDS

Which of you, wishing to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost to see if he has the resources to complete it? -Luke 14:28

This past Sunday, at Poetry Baptist Church, I preached on Acts 2:42-47, which paints a vivid portrait of authentic Gospel community. Following His resurrection, Jesus appeared and commanded His small band of disciples (followers), referred to as apostles (sent ones) in Luke/Acts, to remain in Jerusalem and wait. Jesus told them He would be sending the Father’s Promise, i.e. the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4).

The apostles complied. They complied because three years of walking with Jesus finally made sense. They complied because they were first-hand witnesses of His scourging, His crucifixion, His death, His burial, and for a period of 40 days they experienced “convincing proofs” of His resurrection. Therefore, when Jesus said, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about,” they waited.

Unlike our superficial, consumer-minded, convenient, discipline free, entertainment and production focused, doctrineless, lukewarm, fickle, and idle churches of today… they waited. They waited in obedience, prayer, fellowship, encouragement, and hope. Then, shortly after Christ’s ascension, God blessed their fidelity.

The apostles were gathered together when it happened. The Holy Spirit descended with a sound something akin to a tornado and tongues of flame descended upon each of the apostles. The reality of their faithfulness and fellowship was the seedbed of divine activity. Jesus’ prophecy, “you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth,” was coming to fruition.

Thousands of Jews, converts to Judaism, and God-fearers were gathered in Jerusalem for the Feast of Firstfruits. The thunderous commotion compelled them to investigate. They encountered the apostles ecstatically and emphatically “declaring the wonders of God” (2:11). This encounter caused some to scoff and ridicule, but, more importantly, it led Peter to testify (2:14-40) about Scripture pointing to Jesus, His rejection by the Jews, His necessary and atoning death at the Cross, and the absolute necessity for everyone to repent and be baptized by the Spirit for the forgiveness of sin in order to be reconciled by, and redeemed in, Christ.

The response was overwhelming. Acts 2:41 tells us, “Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.” But unlike our superficial, consumer-minded, convenient, lukewarm, fickle, and idle churches of today… they (v.42) “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Counting the cost of discipleship is essential. Jesus was emphatic about this fact. Unlike many multi-campus megachurch models of today, numerical growth wasn’t on Jesus’ radar. Jesus wasn’t “seeker-friendly” (whatever that means), yet that’s the predominant strategy of the impotent American Evangelical church. Truth and power were, and will continue to be, Jesus’ strategy. The truth of the Gospel, and the power of the Holy Spirit. That truth and power produce obedience, repentance, redemption, reconciliation, transformation and eternal life.

Jesus warns people to “count the cost” of authentic discipleship. The crux is the cost is infinitely greater than we are willing or able to pay. Preachers, pastors, and churches often fail to mention that tidbit of essential truth. Rather than producing disciples who are empowered and commissioned to produce disciples, churches and ministries around the globe produce entitled consumers and spin their wheels with productions and feel-good ministries.

We’re quick to herald “Sola Fide!” from the mountain tops, but fail to live out faith in any tangible or practical way on a daily basis. Submission and ongoing yieldedness to the Holy Spirit are essential prerequisites. Recognition of sin is an essential prerequisite. Death to self, picking up our cross daily, and following Jesus is the cost. It’s more than we can handle, and that’s by design. It’s more than we can pay, and that’s by design. If the breakers of life aren’t crashing down upon you relentlessly you’re either not following or you’re in the eye of the storm.

The truth is wisdom, the God-given desire and skill to be a follower of Christ, can only come from God. As Proverbs 4:7 implores us, “...Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.”

We all tend to wake up daily consumed. Subsequently, our efforts default to building our own towers to our own heavens based on our own private agendas, plans, and subjective criteria. Our world is a tragic landscape of incomplete, broken, and desolate towers.

Jesus poses a profound question: “Which of you, wishing to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost to see if he has the resources to complete it?” Jesus asked the question to expose the truth of our proclivity toward the superficial and subjective rather than steadfast and willful DEVOTION to authentic Gospel community: 1) apostolic teaching, 2) fellowship, 3) breaking of bread, and 4) unselfish corporate intercessory prayer.

Is your relationship with Christ costing you EVERYTHING? Does it drive you deeper and deeper into desperate dependence upon Him within the context of authentic Gospel community? Is your church challenging you to grow daily in Christ? Have you counted the cost of your pointless endeavour? Are you ready to get in on His?

Blessings,

Pastor Kevin M. Kelley

aMostUnlikelyDisciple.com