2020. If we tried to sum up this year with a single word, TRIAL seems most fitting. From a global pandemic and subsequent economic challenges to the loss of loved ones, riots, racial tensions boiling over and an election year marked by unprecedented vitriol and uncertainty, we have been bombarded with ample opportunities for discouragement.

But as sure as these trials have come, we have this precious light, God’s word that has and will always illuminate our path. Read this exhortation in the first chapter of James:

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (James 1:2-4)

I keep hearing this phrase rattle around in my spirit.

“DON’T WASTE A GOOD TRIAL.”

The year of 2020 has tried us. It has tried our nation. It has tried the church. It has tried our families and our businesses. It has tried our own hearts and resolve to keep the faith. And yet, in spite of what we may see or feel about 2020, I believe with conviction that within this trial is an invitation to do some heavenly mathematics!

“COUNT it all joy…”

LOOKING FORWARD

As I look to 2021, my heart is filled with expectancy and excitement for all that God is going to do. We received more testimonies this year from our simple resources of people getting unstuck in their relationship with God and starting to enjoy the freedom and power of the New Covenant. But I believe the best is yet to come!

In 2019 God gave us a vision of planting Braveheart groups all over the world to see the fruit of this gospel multiplied in the hearts of his people. To train and equip ordinary people to be loved by an extraordinary God. And the result? Burning hearts that live to see others experience the same joy and freedom that they have found in Christ.

What has started as a vision, has become a reality. In November of this year we held our first ever Cultivate Training. Around 100 people came together from around the nation to be equipped to cultivate the faith of the gospel where they live. From pastors, mothers and fathers, businessmen, teachers and everyone in between, we gathered to encounter Jesus and to receive his love for his people.

We now have more than 30 active Braveheart Cultivate groups (some of these groups are local churches where pastors have adopted our simple resources!) across the country and in a few other nations. Our heart is to continue to pour into these Cultivate Leaders, empowering them to raise up even more leaders!

As you look forward to 2021 with us, imagine the impact these groups will have on the Church as this humble, grassroots discipleship movement continues to grow. Imagine believers coming alive to God, falling in love with Jesus and being empowered to make his Name known. This is the cry of my heart. To wake the sleeping giant that is the Church and to see her take her rightful place in the world as a beacon of hope, a messenger of reconciliation and an expression of unconditional love to a dying world.

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A friend of mine recently sent me an article by John Piper called, “Did Jesus say we are gods?” that I found interesting. Though I honor John Piper and his amazing teaching and pastoral ministry, I wrestled with the conclusion he makes in the article from the Scripture in John 10 that is being referenced. This podcast is not a rebuttal, it is merely another perspective from the same text.

As with any topic that can be debated, I try to approach it with humility, knowing that we all see in part. My desire (as I know is the case with Piper and other Bible teachers) is that people come to know God intimately through his Word and by His Spirit and that that knowledge of God converts into a life of holiness and fruitful kingdom work.

The problem I have seen with accepting dual nature teaching (we are simultaneously both sinners and saints) is that it creates double-mindedness within the believer. When we are feeling sinful thoughts or desires we just assume it is because our sinful nature is at work. When we have a moment of inspiration and see some fruit of the spirit in our lives we assume that God was able to break through. So for many believers we have become comfortable identifying with the first Adam, but uncomfortable identifying with the last Adam.

And why does Jesus pray that we are included in this divine union? So that the world may BELIEVE! Our union with God is necessary in order for the world to know and to believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that his work of reconciling humanity back to the Father is more than just belonging to some religious organization. Becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ is to become a partaker of the divine nature (2 Peter 1), to be born of God (John 1:12-13), to no longer be stuck in sin (1 John 3:9), to be one flesh with Jesus (Ephesians 5:29-32) and to be one spirit with him (1 Corinthians 6:17). It is to possess the righteousness, holiness and beauty of his character.

And should we take this precious union with Jesus Christ and use it for our own gain? Should we use our freedom as a cover up for evil? Should we serve our carnal nature with this gift of God?! NEVER!

On the contrary, as Paul says in Philippians 2, we should have this mind in ourselves, which belongs to us in Christ.

Can you see it? God has given us the RIGHT to become children of God (John 1:12-13). He has given us permission to no longer identify with our fallen nature but to identify with our Elder Brother, Jesus Christ. To become little gods, little image bearers of the One true God of all the earth. And in doing so, we would follow in his steps by not thinking that this divine nature means that we are equal with God...NO! We are to follow Jesus by taking on the form of servants, by humbling ourselves in love and using this surpassing power entrusted to us in jars of clay to serve and bless a dying world.

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At church this weekend I was gripped with a word for pastors and ministry leaders that I wanted to humbly submit in this week's podcast. It came to me during worship as I was reading a passage about the birth of Jesus in Luke 2:8-14:

8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. 10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”

I saw a picture of many of God’s shepherds who have been pastoring their flock in this dark night. The year of 2020 has caught many of us by surprise and at times it can feel hard to know what God is doing. This uncertainty has not stopped you from continuing your call to keep watch over your flock and I felt the Lord’s pleasure and delight over you for your faithfulness to continue this call.

As I read this text I felt that it was a prophetic word for pastors and ministry leaders in this hour. That God wants to encounter many of you, from now until the end of the year, with a fresh revelation of the “good news of great joy”! The gospel is good news of great joy for all people! And what is this news? The news is that a Savior has been born, and his name is Jesus Christ. I saw that God wanted to encounter you, just like he encountered these shepherds, with his glory and his light. In this place of encounter there is a fresh deposit of the fear of the Lord along with a resurrected understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Many of our congregations are filled with people who are suffering with discouragement, despair and fear about what the future holds. And our privilege, as ministers of the gospel, is to proclaim to them the Savior of all the world, Jesus Christ the Lord! When we proclaim Christ as Savior, not just of our past sins, but of our present troubles, we will see the darkness dispelled. We will see the lost saved! The sick healed! The oppressed set free! The numb and apathetic revived! Marriages restored! Spiritual fruit multiplied! I believe that out of these divine appointments for God’s shepherds, that 2021 will be marked by a clear, loud and powerful proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

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If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations -- “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)--according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.” (Colossians 2:20-23)

Let me paraphrase this text. If what you are doing is not working in stopping the indulgence of the flesh, then it is man-made wisdom and it is not the power of the gospel. The gospel includes us in the death of Jesus Christ. The good news here is that we no longer have to rely upon asceticism or self-made religion to overcome the flesh. It is not a matter of how disciplined or faithful we are. The assumption, through the gospel, is that we died with Christ to the elemental spirits of the world! This means the rules that govern other people such as “do not handle, do not taste”...no longer apply to the redeemed of God! We’ve died to that old system and been born again into a higher law! The law of love! We are now hard-wired for righteousness which means we don’t need an external system of do’s and don’ts to control us. We have the Holy Spirit of God leading and guiding us into all truth, freedom and holiness!

“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” (Colossians 3:1-4)

Notice that the death, resurrection and return of Christ is the anchor point for all instructions in the gospel. God gives us instructions on the wake of us seeing Jesus and being joined to him at each step of his work and life.

Many Christians are still struggling with their flesh because they have not seen the power of the cross. The assumption made in Colossians 2:20 is that Christ’s death has become our own. Our sinful, lustful flesh has been co-crucified with Christ. This is something that took place 2000 years ago that we are NOW invited to partake of by faith. When we finally accept this fact that the death of Jesus Christ was also OUR DEATH, we will finally begin to experience the freedom promised to us in the New Covenant. In addition to this wonderful truth, the Bible also teaches us that Jesus’ ascension to heaven is also an invitation to us to partake of this resurrection. We have been raised and seated with Christ in heavenly places. Partaking of this union gives us permission to seek the things that are above. To set our minds on things that are above.

I believe the remedy for a lot of the anxiety, stress and fear that many believers are currently experiencing is found in these few verses.

We have the power to set our minds on heavenly things or on earthly things. Which will you choose?

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This Psalm is about the leadership of the Lord. The Lord’s name as our shepherd comes with his leadership.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

The Lord is not just a shepherd, or even the shepherd. He is my shepherd. This confession of belonging is intended to produce contentment in our hearts. Examine your heart for contentment. Are you content? If not, make this confession your own. The Lord Jesus Christ is YOUR shepherd.

He makes me lie down in green pastures.

After producing contentment in our hearts, he makes us lie down. Notice here that he doesn’t request that we lie down. He makes me lie down because we don’t want to. Rest is anathema to our flesh. Our flesh feels the need to constantly be working for God instead of resting in God. These first two verses are paramount for us to experience the Lord’s leadership highlighted in the rest of this Psalm.

He wants us content and at rest and then he begins to LEAD us.

He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.

The most quiet waters in all of God’s word are the ones before his throne. The sea of glass is completely still. It is from this place, in the throne room, that God leads us. He leads us to drink of His Spirit and it is in this place that we find the restoration of our soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Now that we are at rest, content and with a restored soul, he begins to take us down the paths of righteousness. Notice the reason he leads us down this path...it is for his name’s sake. Many of us get discouraged and confused about why certain things happen in our lives because we have made our Christian walk all about us! But oftentimes God leadership in our lives is not about us! It is for his name’s sake! He will take us down a path to accomplish something for HIS NAME.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Notice that right after David speaks of the paths of righteousness, he ends up walking through the valley of the shadow of death. Sometimes the right paths don’t feel like the right path. Many of us are led by God through the valley of the shadow of death and we feel as though we are on the wrong path. But any path where God is with you is the right path. He also does not say that there is no evil. He says that he will fear no evil. There is a big difference!

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

And just when we thought we would get out of this valley, God’s leadership often offends our sensibilities. In this valley of the shadow of death, the Lord stops and begins to prepare a table! This is the table of the Lord, we now know to be the table of communion, where covenant is made and anointing is given. If God has led you into a dark place, look for the table! There is a place of nourishment and life to be found even in the darkest of valleys. In the presence of our enemies we feast with our God, knowing that victory belongs to the Lord.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

In the New Covenant, we become God’s house through our confidence in the finished work of Christ and the hope of his return!

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Our fruitfulness (what we do, how we act and our Christ-like character) hinges directly on our BELONGING to Christ Jesus. Notice that the fruit of the Spirit is connected to those of us who belong to Jesus Christ. But this belonging hinges upon our understanding, our faith or our union with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.

If the work of the cross is simply a passport into heaven and you are still trying to overcome your flesh and you are still trying to relate to God based on a system of do’s and dont’s...then you will find it hard to experience the belonging promised to us in the New Covenant. We must accept the fact that Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection has become our own. And this is great news for us! This means that our flesh, along with its lusts and passions have once and for all been crucified! This means that we no longer have to relate to God based on our own performance...we can belong to him even in the midst of a struggle! Why? Because our nearness and our connection with him rests solely upon the work of Christ. In this place of belonging we find God’s love, his correction, his wisdom and his grace to continue to grow up into the character and likeness of Christ.

But if we do not accept this as our highest calling...to BELONG to Christ Jesus, we will seek connection with God through all the things we DO for him. And this is a dead end road and one that leaves many Christians burned out, frustrated and tired. The answer is simple. Consider yourself dead to sin, dead to the lusts of the flesh and draw near to God. Allow him to love, even in weakness, and get used to being close to him even when you’re still trying to overcome weakness and brokenness. You are called to belong. You are called to be a saint. The result of this calling? A fruitful life lived to the glory of God!

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You are what you eat.

The same is true in your spiritual life. In John 6, Jesus reveals the secret to a healthy spiritual diet. There is a spiritual food that will satisfy our hunger and a spiritual drink that will quench our thirst.

There was a group of people that were seeking Jesus after he performed the miracle of the fish and loaves of bread. They start off questioning Jesus about his life and the works he is going to perform only to be confronted by their own unbelief. Jesus finally gets them where he wants them when he reveals that there is a meal that is above all other meals. They finally ask him for this meal. Jesus then reveals himself to be the bread of life and tells them that this flesh and his blood is the spiritual meal that will cause them to live forever and to possess true life.

This obviously confuses them, because at this point he had not given his flesh for the life of the world. The chapter ends with many of his followers abandoning him because they do not understand what he is talking about. His own friends though acknowledge that he has the words of life and they reaffirm their commitment to him.

But what was once a hard saying is now a source of life and simple understanding to true spiritual satisfaction. Neglecting the spiritual truths revealed in John 6 will leave our lives void of true spiritual life, power and energy. For those of you who have fasted (from food) you know that when you stop eating your body slows down and becomes lethargic. If you fast long enough, your body will eventually shut down. It is the same with your spiritual life. According to John 6, the bread of Christ and the wine of his blood is the only meal that possesses true spiritual nourishment. We must understand how to eat this meal.

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“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. 9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

If we are honest with ourselves, the thought of abiding in God seems too good to be true. Why does something as simple as remaining with Jesus (abiding) under the watchful and loving eye of our Father become so hard? Let’s start with the end of this passage to understand Jesus’ purpose for this teaching.

V11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

Do you see it?! JOY! This is Jesus’ desired outcome for this teaching. I love that he explains this to us. He helps us filter our responses to this teaching. If you hear this teaching and get discouraged because you feel like you are bad at abiding, then you missed the lesson! If you hear this teaching and feel like you can never attain that level of spirituality, then you missed the point! Jesus tells us that the reason for this lesson on abiding is so that HIS JOY may be in us and that OUR JOY may be full! So as you listen to this podcast and you meditate on this Scripture...expect the joy of Jesus to fill your heart!!

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The priests in the Old Covenant were required to keep the fire burning on the altar, it was never meant to go out. This is a picture of the flame of the Holy Spirit that is placed on our hearts when we are born again by a living faith in Jesus Christ. Just like the Old Covenant priests had to tend to the flame so that it remained burning on the altar, so too, must we tend to the flame of God. In this message we look at two things that hinder the flame. We also examine two practical ways for us to steward God’s flame in our hearts. Our God is a consuming fire! What a joy it is to have God living on the inside of us!

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The fact that God loves us unconditionally and has guaranteed to give us His Holy Spirit on account of the work of Christ is offensive! It flies in the face of everything we grow up believing. We are conditioned to work for what we get. There is no such thing as a free lunch, remember? But the cross confronts this type of thinking. The passion and intensity in which God loves us is offensive. One of the devastating effects of sin in our lives is that we unknowingly paint ourselves in a negative light. We compare ourselves to people who are holier and more loving. We criticize ourselves for not being more faithful. We shame ourselves for being stuck in the same old sins that we’ve always struggled with. We embrace condemnation as punishment for missing the mark. Over time, these mindsets become cemented so deeply that we begin to identify ourselves as failures. As rejects who have missed the mark. In the best case, we tolerate a mild consciousness of God by assuaging our conscience that his mercy and forgiveness will prevail over punishment. In the worst cases, we assume that every challenge, trial and consequence in our lives is a direct result of God’s punishment.

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If faith has footsteps, it also has a voice. Last week we discovered that within God’s voice is the grace (or provision) to walk out what he says. But in this text, Jesus models a different aspect of faith. The voice of faith! Abraham had to climb his mountain, but we can speak to it! We do not negate the importance of taking real action in obeying God, but Jesus is revealing another aspect of faith that we must pay closer to attention to.

Jesus is teaching his disciples (us) how to exercise the voice of faith. He speaks to the fig tree and it withered in a day. There is power in the voice of faith to tear down or to build up. The Proverbs say that life and death are in the power of the tongue (18:21). We can speak life or we can speak death.

One of the mountains in my life was my own sinfulness. More specifically an addiction to pornography that I struggled with as a teenager and into my early twenties. It was my understanding that I had to learn to conquer this mountain by climbing it. If I read my Bible, prayed and had enough accountability I would be able to overcome it. I was trying to walk in the footsteps of faith but I was actually walking in the footsteps of my flesh. It wasn’t until I learned to SPEAK to this mountain of sin, based on what I heard God say, that I was truly set free.

“So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 6:11)

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Faith walks a certain way. It has a certain swagger. Abraham is the father of our faith. When you want to know more about your family or the way of life of your ancestors you sit with your mother or father and listen to stories about how they prevailed over trials and the way in which they navigated life. Fortunately, much of the life of this father of faith has been recorded for us to study. We are people of faith. We were made to walk in the footsteps of faith. Faith takes action! Faith moves! Faith climbs mountains and receives the promises of God. Let's look at one of the most amazing acts of faith taken by this father of faith!

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Obedience to God can only happen “of faith”. If we are not in “the faith” we will not be able to obey God. But how do we know whether or not we are in “the faith”?

“...through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.” (Romans 1:5-6)

Let’s look at one of the most powerful explanations of the gospel and how it impacts those who receive it!

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:16-17)

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Podcast: God is Fire

God is fire. He is not like fire...He is fire. The Word of God tells us in Hebrews 12:29 that “our God is a consuming fire.” To walk with God is to walk with One who is holy, good, passionate, pure, majestic and merciful in such intensity that He can only be described as fire.

The beauty of being in covenant with God is that the intensity and brightness of his nature can and will consume everything in us that is earthly, unspiritual or demonic. We only have to draw near enough to allow him to consume us!

You were made to burn. You were never made to burn out!

But in order to burn we must understand how to steward this flame that God has given us. Let’s look at Paul’s letter to Timothy to further understand our role in ensuring that our faith, that living flame of God on our hearts, does not burn out!

2 Timothy 1:5-7

5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. 6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, 7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

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