A Pastor friend of mine recently said that He didn’t really see it as very exciting to go through the Bible chapter by chapter. That’s quite a statement for a Pastor. Of course, it probably is the opinion of most people. After all it’s really long and there aren’t any pictures.
When you come to chapters like Exodus 21 it seems like that opinion could hold weight. On the surface, what could be more boring than going through the laws that were written 3500 years ago addressing cultures and traditions that have long since passed away.
I don’t own an ox. I don’t know anybody who owns an ox. To my knowledge I don’t know anybody who knows anybody who owns an ox. And yet God included pertinent information for owners of oxen in this passage.
It also forces me to ask hard questions. Did God endorse slavery? It’s easy to shoot from the hip and say of course not but then you see a law addressing treatment of slaves in Exodus 21. How does that reconcile? It definitely seems more appealing to get to the parts about being blessed and healed.
If you agree with Paul that all scripture is “God breathed” then that means every thing in this book is important on one level or another. That means that every page is important. Every page contains pictures of Christ, instructions for living, promises of God, all important enough in Gods mind to include in His book.
The writer of Hebrews differentiated some of the Word of God as milk and other as meat. (Heb 5:12) It's not so much that any of the Word is harder to swallow, it's more a question of whether you and I are mature enough. (Heb 5 again)
It’s fair to say that the next few chapters of Exodus might fall under the “meat of the word” category. They’re not the elementary teachings of Christ that Hebrews 6:1 speaks of. They're not the milk, the baby food. Have you tried baby food lately? It might be nutritious, but it is anything but delicious. It might be food, but it is absolutely not enjoyable. Who wants a jar of Gerber's when Morton's is available?
We’ve always strove to be a bible study that actually studies the bible. These next few chapters are definitely strong meat chapters. In real life I’m very pro meat. I love steak. I think we can cut it up into bite size pieces so that it’s more palatable. We might even break out some A1 and flavor it up, but it’s still meat. It's still good stuff.
What’s the practical use of diving into the meat of the word? Hebrews 5:14 tells us that “by constant use of the Word that the mature train themselves to distinguish between good and evil.”
We live in a society right now where the lines of good and evil are blurred. The Word is what helps us to distinguish between the two in the world around us and in the hearts inside of us.
I encourage you to bring your notebooks, bibles and pens this week. For some of you that means bring your iPhone or laptop and I’m good with that.
Pull up a chair, it’s dinner time.
Monday, 730pm at Journey Church in Building 8 in the Factory. Also webcasting at www.mogulus.com/conduit
See you then.
Darren
If you had 3 meals today and some snacks in between, congratulations. You just ate more in one day than most kids in Haiti will eat all week. If you went to school in your youth you have accomplished what the vast majority of Haitians will never obtain, an education. In Haiti the government doesn’t provide these things. It’s the church, it’s you and I that can make a difference in both this life and the life to come of the kids in Jacmel, Haiti. You can donate any sum large or small. $15 will feed a child for a month. You can also commit to sponsoring an individual child for $32 a month. You can do all this at www.conduitmission.org
check out the blog at www.darrentyler.com
the podcast available at www.darrentyler.podomatic.com
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Conduit July 27- The Whole Truth
Exodus 20:16 Don’t bear false witness against your neighbor.
It’s been said that liar’s don’t go to hell when they die. They go to congress.
This week the Democrats blocked the Republicans from sending out a mailing to their constituents regarding the health care bill being worked on. The reason for blocking it was because the Democrats say it’s untruthful. Republicans, for their part, are calling for a flag on the play because they believe it’s very truthful. Each side is accusing the other of lying.
It’s fascinating to me how both sides can say that the other side is lying. Somebody has to be telling the truth right? It’s especially confusing on an issue like health care that is a monumental problem with a lot of moving parts.
As best I can tell it’s not so much that either side is lying in the traditional sense of the word. Rather it’s that they both take a simple piece of accurate information from a very complex situation and declaring it the whole truth.
Of course convoluted problems require convoluted solutions; solutions that can’t be communicated in a 30 second sound byte. Instead we get a piece of the truth, told it’s the whole truth, and are expected to believe it.
It’s my position that taking a piece of truth and declaring it as the whole truth is in and of itself a lie.
More specifically I think it’s an example of bearing false witness.
The only example in scripture where the phrase “false witness” is used as an example is in Matthew 26. . As Jesus stood accused the chief priests and Sanhedrin sought out false witnesses to testify against Him. The ones that they finally found some one who testified that Jesus said He would tear down the temple and rebuild it in 3 days.
That is what He said. It was a piece of the truth but not the entire truth. Another way to put it is that it was the right information but the wrong implication.
He was talking about his body and the resurrection from the dead in 3 days. In fact the disciples would look back to that statement as a foundation of their belief in Him. (John 2:19-22) It was an early example of “gotcha” politics.
Bearing false witness is definitely lying but it’s deeper, it’s more dangerous, it’s being tricky with the truth.
It’s not just politics of course. It’s a part of our every day lives.
Every time you or I say the words, “ you know (INSERT NAME), they’re really good people BUT”. This is always followed by something that completely negates that fact that they’re a “really good person. The justification for this is usually that it’s true. We somehow feel justified in sharing bad information about each other as long as it’s true.
It’s a part of the truth, but not the whole truth. It’s the right information, but the wrong implication. The whole truth is that person who is a brother or sister in Christ that I am “speaking the truth about” is a blood bought, robed in righteousness, positionally pure (I know positionally isn’t a word but it sounds good) and engaged to be the Bride of Christ. They are someone that Jesus loves very much; that He is very passionate about.
When we do this we’re aligning ourselves with the one that Jesus himself said is a liar. Revelation 12:10 records that Satan accuses us before God himself. The stuff that he says about me, well it’s a piece of the truth. “God you know Darren lied about” or “Darren stole” and that part is true. But it’s a piece of the truth, and if it’s declared as the whole truth it’s a lie. The whole truth is that Jesus paid the price of that lie and that theft.
Here’s the great news.
1 John 2 says if any man sins, know this, we have an advocate or a defense lawyer with the father. John goes on to call Jesus the “good and faithful witness.” Jesus tells the whole story. Yes they have sinned but my blood has cleanses them, and the father says case dismissed, lack of evidence.
So the question for me is am I a false witness like Satan or am I a true and faithful witness like Jesus? Acts 1 records that some of Jesus last words was calling you and I to be His witnesses. A true and faithful witness is called to tell the truth, the whole truth, not just a piece of it, or just being tricky with it, but the whole entire truth.
I love my wife very much. If someone says, “well you know Shannon, I really like her but you know (INSERT SNARKY COMMENT)” that is going to infuriate me. It’s going to cause me to come to her defense. To put it simply, it’s not going to go over well.
How should I expect that Jesus would respond with me trash talking His bride?
Are we being good and faithful witnesses for our colleagues, the people we work with, our friends and family? Am I telling the truth? Maybe instead of the “you know Darren, he’s a really nice guy BUT”. Maybe we can just stop with the “but”. Don’t go any further than that.
And if you’re thinking, well it’s not true! Be a good and faithful witness on behalf of Jesus, He’s the one that makes it true about you, and He’s the one that makes it true about the person we’re so tempted to speak badly about.
We’ll dig more deeply into this tomorrow night at Conduit. I hope you can join us.
Darren
www.darrentyler.com
Feeding a child in Haiti is only $15. Amazing. Basically the cost of 3 trips to Starbucks. Pray about sponsoring someone full time. We have a waiting list of kids that we can be feeding, sending to school, clothing and mentoring to Jesus in Jacmel, Haiti.
If you’re giving a regular offering or sponsoring a kid or feeing a kid know that we don’t hold your money. We’ll put it to work immediately. You can donate or sponsor a child at
www.conduitmission.org
It’s been said that liar’s don’t go to hell when they die. They go to congress.
This week the Democrats blocked the Republicans from sending out a mailing to their constituents regarding the health care bill being worked on. The reason for blocking it was because the Democrats say it’s untruthful. Republicans, for their part, are calling for a flag on the play because they believe it’s very truthful. Each side is accusing the other of lying.
It’s fascinating to me how both sides can say that the other side is lying. Somebody has to be telling the truth right? It’s especially confusing on an issue like health care that is a monumental problem with a lot of moving parts.
As best I can tell it’s not so much that either side is lying in the traditional sense of the word. Rather it’s that they both take a simple piece of accurate information from a very complex situation and declaring it the whole truth.
Of course convoluted problems require convoluted solutions; solutions that can’t be communicated in a 30 second sound byte. Instead we get a piece of the truth, told it’s the whole truth, and are expected to believe it.
It’s my position that taking a piece of truth and declaring it as the whole truth is in and of itself a lie.
More specifically I think it’s an example of bearing false witness.
The only example in scripture where the phrase “false witness” is used as an example is in Matthew 26. . As Jesus stood accused the chief priests and Sanhedrin sought out false witnesses to testify against Him. The ones that they finally found some one who testified that Jesus said He would tear down the temple and rebuild it in 3 days.
That is what He said. It was a piece of the truth but not the entire truth. Another way to put it is that it was the right information but the wrong implication.
He was talking about his body and the resurrection from the dead in 3 days. In fact the disciples would look back to that statement as a foundation of their belief in Him. (John 2:19-22) It was an early example of “gotcha” politics.
Bearing false witness is definitely lying but it’s deeper, it’s more dangerous, it’s being tricky with the truth.
It’s not just politics of course. It’s a part of our every day lives.
Every time you or I say the words, “ you know (INSERT NAME), they’re really good people BUT”. This is always followed by something that completely negates that fact that they’re a “really good person. The justification for this is usually that it’s true. We somehow feel justified in sharing bad information about each other as long as it’s true.
It’s a part of the truth, but not the whole truth. It’s the right information, but the wrong implication. The whole truth is that person who is a brother or sister in Christ that I am “speaking the truth about” is a blood bought, robed in righteousness, positionally pure (I know positionally isn’t a word but it sounds good) and engaged to be the Bride of Christ. They are someone that Jesus loves very much; that He is very passionate about.
When we do this we’re aligning ourselves with the one that Jesus himself said is a liar. Revelation 12:10 records that Satan accuses us before God himself. The stuff that he says about me, well it’s a piece of the truth. “God you know Darren lied about” or “Darren stole” and that part is true. But it’s a piece of the truth, and if it’s declared as the whole truth it’s a lie. The whole truth is that Jesus paid the price of that lie and that theft.
Here’s the great news.
1 John 2 says if any man sins, know this, we have an advocate or a defense lawyer with the father. John goes on to call Jesus the “good and faithful witness.” Jesus tells the whole story. Yes they have sinned but my blood has cleanses them, and the father says case dismissed, lack of evidence.
So the question for me is am I a false witness like Satan or am I a true and faithful witness like Jesus? Acts 1 records that some of Jesus last words was calling you and I to be His witnesses. A true and faithful witness is called to tell the truth, the whole truth, not just a piece of it, or just being tricky with it, but the whole entire truth.
I love my wife very much. If someone says, “well you know Shannon, I really like her but you know (INSERT SNARKY COMMENT)” that is going to infuriate me. It’s going to cause me to come to her defense. To put it simply, it’s not going to go over well.
How should I expect that Jesus would respond with me trash talking His bride?
Are we being good and faithful witnesses for our colleagues, the people we work with, our friends and family? Am I telling the truth? Maybe instead of the “you know Darren, he’s a really nice guy BUT”. Maybe we can just stop with the “but”. Don’t go any further than that.
And if you’re thinking, well it’s not true! Be a good and faithful witness on behalf of Jesus, He’s the one that makes it true about you, and He’s the one that makes it true about the person we’re so tempted to speak badly about.
We’ll dig more deeply into this tomorrow night at Conduit. I hope you can join us.
Darren
www.darrentyler.com
Feeding a child in Haiti is only $15. Amazing. Basically the cost of 3 trips to Starbucks. Pray about sponsoring someone full time. We have a waiting list of kids that we can be feeding, sending to school, clothing and mentoring to Jesus in Jacmel, Haiti.
If you’re giving a regular offering or sponsoring a kid or feeing a kid know that we don’t hold your money. We’ll put it to work immediately. You can donate or sponsor a child at
www.conduitmission.org
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Conduit July 20- Stealing Time
Jesus Himself said that unfaithfulness is the only thing that makes it lawful for a marriage to break up. The church is called the Bride of Christ. I don't think it's accidental then that Jesus would in another place say He'll never leave me nor forsake me. In my own unfaithfulness He'll never leave me. He gives Himself the out, and then doesn't take it. What an awesome God we serve.
That was last week.
This week we hit Exodus 20:15. Thou shalt not steal.
When you dig deep into the Hebrew. When you exegete the original Hebrew language you see that this phrase really says, "don't steal". It's pretty simple. Straight forward. If you're like me, you probably would be inclined to check this one off your list and get on with the "no false witness command." Hang with me though.
Would you consider spending time at your work on Facebook or other personal internet adventures as stealing? If your employer is paying you for your time there and your taking that time and using it for something else, doesn't that count?
A survey in 2005 by www.salary.com found that the average employee confessed to spending 2.09 hours per day on the internet for personal reasons. And that was BEFORE FACEBOOK! The survey tallied up that personal time wasted is costing employers $759 Billion Dollars. That's the entire amount of the stimulus package.
If you've ever taken longer on your lunch break than you're allowed, or fudged your numbers on your tips when reporting for payroll, or just straight up taken something that isn't yours it's all stealing.
Of course, Malachi 3 says that a man robs God himself by with holding his tithes. Yikes.
Paul says in Romans 7 that part of the reason for the law is that it shows me where I'm wrong. It's not that the law is wrong. It's me that's wrong and the law just points it out.
Paul says in Ephesians 4:28 that he who has been stealing should steal no more. He doesn't leave us hanging. He gives us a game plan.
Paul goes to tell us the way to overcome this by working hard, but also, by giving to those around us who are in need. It makes sense why Zacheus who had given his life to the Lord would respond by giving half of all his possessions away to the poor. He was living out what Paul would later write about.
Conversely, it's interesting to me that the rich young ruler told Jesus that he had kept the commandments, and specifically named stealing. And yet when Jesus told him to give away his possessions "to the poor" and follow Him that the young man couldn't do it. He walked away. Perhaps stealing was more a part of his life than he was willing to admit.
Stealing is a way of me saying to God that He is not taking care of me in the way that I think He ought to. It's taking matters into my own hands. Out of a fear of not having enough I take more.
Living generously is saying to God that I trust that you're taking care of me and that when I give this away that you'll provide me with more.
Of course that's what we're doing at Conduit. We're living generously. It's a great vehicle for you to participate in giving to those that are in need. If you've sponsored a child in Haiti already thank you so very much. Some of you have sponsored more than one.
If not, I would ask you to prayerfully consider it. $32 a month will take one of the kids off the waiting list in Jacmel Haiti. It'll put them in school, clothe them, feed them, and most importantly put them in a constant position of being mentored by Pastor Rodrigue and the brothers and sisters at Restoration Ministries in Jacmel, Haiti.
If the Lord is leading you, go to www.conduitmission.org and you'll find a link there for sponsoring a child.
If you don't have the resources, remember that just $15 will feed a child for a month.
Make up for that facebook time at the office. Feed a kid in Haiti. (ok technically that was a guilt trip and Paul in 2 Cor 8,9 says you don't have to give if you're doing it out of guilt)
Hope to see you tomorrow night at 730pm. Journey Chuch in Building 8 in the Factory in Franklin, TN.
Darren Tyler
www.darrentyler.com
www.darrentyler.podomatic.com for the podcasts
ANNOUNCEMENT- Tomorrow night Ben Holeton has asked if he could share a little bit of how his own personal life intersected with what we learned last week. He has felt the Lord leading him to speak openly about his experiences. Due to the sensitive nature of the conversation we won't be webcasting or recording that portion. Hope you can make it.
That was last week.
This week we hit Exodus 20:15. Thou shalt not steal.
When you dig deep into the Hebrew. When you exegete the original Hebrew language you see that this phrase really says, "don't steal". It's pretty simple. Straight forward. If you're like me, you probably would be inclined to check this one off your list and get on with the "no false witness command." Hang with me though.
Would you consider spending time at your work on Facebook or other personal internet adventures as stealing? If your employer is paying you for your time there and your taking that time and using it for something else, doesn't that count?
A survey in 2005 by www.salary.com found that the average employee confessed to spending 2.09 hours per day on the internet for personal reasons. And that was BEFORE FACEBOOK! The survey tallied up that personal time wasted is costing employers $759 Billion Dollars. That's the entire amount of the stimulus package.
If you've ever taken longer on your lunch break than you're allowed, or fudged your numbers on your tips when reporting for payroll, or just straight up taken something that isn't yours it's all stealing.
Of course, Malachi 3 says that a man robs God himself by with holding his tithes. Yikes.
Paul says in Romans 7 that part of the reason for the law is that it shows me where I'm wrong. It's not that the law is wrong. It's me that's wrong and the law just points it out.
Paul says in Ephesians 4:28 that he who has been stealing should steal no more. He doesn't leave us hanging. He gives us a game plan.
Paul goes to tell us the way to overcome this by working hard, but also, by giving to those around us who are in need. It makes sense why Zacheus who had given his life to the Lord would respond by giving half of all his possessions away to the poor. He was living out what Paul would later write about.
Conversely, it's interesting to me that the rich young ruler told Jesus that he had kept the commandments, and specifically named stealing. And yet when Jesus told him to give away his possessions "to the poor" and follow Him that the young man couldn't do it. He walked away. Perhaps stealing was more a part of his life than he was willing to admit.
Stealing is a way of me saying to God that He is not taking care of me in the way that I think He ought to. It's taking matters into my own hands. Out of a fear of not having enough I take more.
Living generously is saying to God that I trust that you're taking care of me and that when I give this away that you'll provide me with more.
Of course that's what we're doing at Conduit. We're living generously. It's a great vehicle for you to participate in giving to those that are in need. If you've sponsored a child in Haiti already thank you so very much. Some of you have sponsored more than one.
If not, I would ask you to prayerfully consider it. $32 a month will take one of the kids off the waiting list in Jacmel Haiti. It'll put them in school, clothe them, feed them, and most importantly put them in a constant position of being mentored by Pastor Rodrigue and the brothers and sisters at Restoration Ministries in Jacmel, Haiti.
If the Lord is leading you, go to www.conduitmission.org and you'll find a link there for sponsoring a child.
If you don't have the resources, remember that just $15 will feed a child for a month.
Make up for that facebook time at the office. Feed a kid in Haiti. (ok technically that was a guilt trip and Paul in 2 Cor 8,9 says you don't have to give if you're doing it out of guilt)
Hope to see you tomorrow night at 730pm. Journey Chuch in Building 8 in the Factory in Franklin, TN.
Darren Tyler
www.darrentyler.com
www.darrentyler.podomatic.com for the podcasts
ANNOUNCEMENT- Tomorrow night Ben Holeton has asked if he could share a little bit of how his own personal life intersected with what we learned last week. He has felt the Lord leading him to speak openly about his experiences. Due to the sensitive nature of the conversation we won't be webcasting or recording that portion. Hope you can make it.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Conduit July 13- Naked And Unashamed
When Jesus started talking about marriage he said these words that are recorded in Mark 10:5"It was because your hearts were hard that Moses wrote you this law," Jesus replied. 6"But at the beginning of creation God 'made them male and female.'[a] 7'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife,[b] 8and the two will become one flesh.'[c] So they are no longer two, but one. 9Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."
Interesting choice of words; “for this reason”. What reason? Maybe it was because of their hard hearts. In Matthew 5 Jesus says that if I look upon a woman and lust that I have already committed adultery in MY HEART. (emphasis mine) It's a heart issue. Adultery is just a symptom of a sickness in my heart. Just because I haven't shown symptoms doesn't mean I'm not a carrier.
He goes on to say that in the beginning this was how it was meant to be; one man one woman. And when I look back at the Genesis account I see that they were “naked and unashamed”. (Gen 2:25) They were together. After Adam and Eve had been together for the first time, it says that God called their name “Adam”. (Gen 5:2)
From Song of Solomon to Hosea to Revelation, God would over and again use the picture of husband and wife as the picture for His relationship to us. (It stands to reason why there will be no more marriage in Heaven since the picture will no longer be needed.)
When all is right in a marriage, those moments of intimacy is as close we can come to on this side of heaven to understanding the picture of our relationship with God. With that in mind we see why it is that God would ask so much of us in marriage and why the enemy would attack it so fiercely. It’s the very picture of God and us. Tearing it apart damages the picture.
As an aside; It’s easy for us to sit and throw rocks at those we think have it all wrong, specifically in terms of sex. We go to Romans 1 and can dish out some serious theological rocks and declare them as “fools”. (Matt 5:22 If you missed last weeks teaching feel free to download it and see why Jesus equated that with murder)
What we skip is that Romans 2 Paul goes on to say that we shouldn’t be passing judgment. It’s not that what we’re seeing is or isn’t sin, but he says that in passing judgment we’re doing God’s job. I guess in short, He doesn’t need Holy Ghost Junior. If you want a good look at what Romans 2 is talking about, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_hSyYfY9kc&feature=channel_page
In John 8 it’s recounted that there was a woman caught in the act of adultery that had been brought to Jesus. They didn’t bring the man along so we know that they weren’t really interested in the law as much as they were trapping Jesus in his own words. (Deut 22 and Ex 22 both say that BOTH should be killed)
If He said let her go, it would’ve been fodder for their fire as Jesus being a law breaker. By the same token saying to stone her would undo the message of grace He was bringing. Of course Jesus did neither. He said, let “he who is without sin, cast the first stone.”
You know the story. He bent down and wrote on the ground. The very finger of God that wrote the 10 commandments, bent down to write again. It’s not recorded what exactly He wrote, but what we know is this. One by one, from oldest to youngest, they all left. Of course we don’t know, but I kind of wonder if he was writing down the names of each individual there and right alongside of the name, the sin they were guilty of.
He looked to the woman and said, “woman where are your accusers?” She said that they had all gone. Every last one of them. And here was this woman, who was no doubt naked since she was caught in the very act of adultery standing there.
It’s not lost on me that she was standing there as it was in the beginning. She stood there naked, and maybe for the first time in her life: Unashamed.
There is much more to discuss. There isn’t one of us whose lives have not been affected or indirectly affected by adultery. There is so much hurt, destruction, and grief. There is also restoration. We’ll talk about all of that.
Monday night at 730pm. Hope to see you there.
Blessings,
Darren
LUKE CALDWELL FROM ESTERLYN WILL BE LEADING WORSHIP TOMORROW NIGHT. IF YOU WANT TO KNOW LUKE A LITTLE BETTER YOU CAN GO TO WWW.ESTERLYN.COM YOU CAN DOWNLOAD BOTH OF THEIR ALBUMS FOR FREE. NO GIMMICK. DIGITAL COPIES OF BOTH RECORDS. FREE.
1. Don't forget you can feed a child for a month in Haiti for $15. so easy. just click on www.conduitmission.org and you can donate online. Just skip Star Bucks for a couple weeks and you've got a kid covered for the month.
2. Pray about sponsoring one of our kids in Haiti full time. It's $32 a month to feed, clothe, educate and shower a child with the Love of Jesus. You can do this at www.conduitmission.org as well.
3. We had another lemonAID stand in Dallas, TX this week. special thanks to our friend Michael Slaughter and the people at Nations Church. If you're planning on doing the lemonAID stand this summer let me know so we can report back.
Interesting choice of words; “for this reason”. What reason? Maybe it was because of their hard hearts. In Matthew 5 Jesus says that if I look upon a woman and lust that I have already committed adultery in MY HEART. (emphasis mine) It's a heart issue. Adultery is just a symptom of a sickness in my heart. Just because I haven't shown symptoms doesn't mean I'm not a carrier.
He goes on to say that in the beginning this was how it was meant to be; one man one woman. And when I look back at the Genesis account I see that they were “naked and unashamed”. (Gen 2:25) They were together. After Adam and Eve had been together for the first time, it says that God called their name “Adam”. (Gen 5:2)
From Song of Solomon to Hosea to Revelation, God would over and again use the picture of husband and wife as the picture for His relationship to us. (It stands to reason why there will be no more marriage in Heaven since the picture will no longer be needed.)
When all is right in a marriage, those moments of intimacy is as close we can come to on this side of heaven to understanding the picture of our relationship with God. With that in mind we see why it is that God would ask so much of us in marriage and why the enemy would attack it so fiercely. It’s the very picture of God and us. Tearing it apart damages the picture.
As an aside; It’s easy for us to sit and throw rocks at those we think have it all wrong, specifically in terms of sex. We go to Romans 1 and can dish out some serious theological rocks and declare them as “fools”. (Matt 5:22 If you missed last weeks teaching feel free to download it and see why Jesus equated that with murder)
What we skip is that Romans 2 Paul goes on to say that we shouldn’t be passing judgment. It’s not that what we’re seeing is or isn’t sin, but he says that in passing judgment we’re doing God’s job. I guess in short, He doesn’t need Holy Ghost Junior. If you want a good look at what Romans 2 is talking about, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_hSyYfY9kc&feature=channel_page
In John 8 it’s recounted that there was a woman caught in the act of adultery that had been brought to Jesus. They didn’t bring the man along so we know that they weren’t really interested in the law as much as they were trapping Jesus in his own words. (Deut 22 and Ex 22 both say that BOTH should be killed)
If He said let her go, it would’ve been fodder for their fire as Jesus being a law breaker. By the same token saying to stone her would undo the message of grace He was bringing. Of course Jesus did neither. He said, let “he who is without sin, cast the first stone.”
You know the story. He bent down and wrote on the ground. The very finger of God that wrote the 10 commandments, bent down to write again. It’s not recorded what exactly He wrote, but what we know is this. One by one, from oldest to youngest, they all left. Of course we don’t know, but I kind of wonder if he was writing down the names of each individual there and right alongside of the name, the sin they were guilty of.
He looked to the woman and said, “woman where are your accusers?” She said that they had all gone. Every last one of them. And here was this woman, who was no doubt naked since she was caught in the very act of adultery standing there.
It’s not lost on me that she was standing there as it was in the beginning. She stood there naked, and maybe for the first time in her life: Unashamed.
There is much more to discuss. There isn’t one of us whose lives have not been affected or indirectly affected by adultery. There is so much hurt, destruction, and grief. There is also restoration. We’ll talk about all of that.
Monday night at 730pm. Hope to see you there.
Blessings,
Darren
LUKE CALDWELL FROM ESTERLYN WILL BE LEADING WORSHIP TOMORROW NIGHT. IF YOU WANT TO KNOW LUKE A LITTLE BETTER YOU CAN GO TO WWW.ESTERLYN.COM YOU CAN DOWNLOAD BOTH OF THEIR ALBUMS FOR FREE. NO GIMMICK. DIGITAL COPIES OF BOTH RECORDS. FREE.
1. Don't forget you can feed a child for a month in Haiti for $15. so easy. just click on www.conduitmission.org and you can donate online. Just skip Star Bucks for a couple weeks and you've got a kid covered for the month.
2. Pray about sponsoring one of our kids in Haiti full time. It's $32 a month to feed, clothe, educate and shower a child with the Love of Jesus. You can do this at www.conduitmission.org as well.
3. We had another lemonAID stand in Dallas, TX this week. special thanks to our friend Michael Slaughter and the people at Nations Church. If you're planning on doing the lemonAID stand this summer let me know so we can report back.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Conduit June 22- Place of Hope Part 2
It had been several weeks since I had seen my dad. It was circa 1983 and he had been sick for some time. It had become apparent that he wasn’t going to be coming home anytime soon so we made a three hour road trip to Omaha where he was at the VA Hospital. It was my mom, all 4 brothers and my grandparents.
I don’t remember much about the visit other than he had to come down to see us because hospital rules did not allow children in the patient’s room. I remember that he looked really different than the last time I had seen him. I was too young to articulate it but losing 40 pounds can really change the look of someone.
What I specifically remember is after they wheeled him back upstairs we waited there with my grandma for what seemed like hours. It seemed like it because it was. Years later I would learn that the reason she was gone so long was that my dad had gone into cardiac arrest and had actually died before being resuscitated. All the while we were blissfully unaware and stir crazy in the waiting room. When my Mom and Grandfather came downstairs they never said a word.
I don’t mean this to be a commentary on government controlled health care but what started as a simple appendicitis had grown to my dad being hooked on prescription meds and dying. This all happened in the squalid conditions of a VA hospital. It was after this moment that my mom decided to take matters into her own hands.
Alongside of our pastor Patsy Busey, she went back to Omaha with our dear family friends Duane and Diana Covey. They were told he was too sick to leave and that they wouldn’t allow him to go. Knowing that staying was just as much of a death sentence Duane informed them that he would kick down “every damn door in the hospital” (as it was later quoted to me) to find him. He was a marine corp. vet and they believed him.
My dad was soon on the way to a faith based nonprofit hospital in Oklahoma that took in people whether or not they could pay. We fell into the “could not pay” category. Within moments of being seen he was diagnosed. He was addicted to prescription painkillers, a fact that was overlooked for months in the government operated hospital. The VA had locked him up in a psych ward and medicated him out of his mind.
With the Christ centered nature of the treatment he received in Oklahoma he was out and on his own in just a couple months. He’s been clean for 30 some years.
This Fathers Day I’m reminded that addiction tried to steal my father. It wasn’t a government hospital that pulled him through it was Jesus and those that were listening to His call to serve the poor.
This wasn’t consciously one of the reasons we decided to support Mike Coupe and Place of Hope. Rather it’s just one of those Godincidence type things. It’s just like God to place this ministry right in front of us at the exact moment we were praying about who we should send our financial resources to.
There are moms and dads in Place of Hope at this very moment who will be restored to their families. Conduit plays a role in this through our financial commitment to Place of Hope. We are an active and vital part of the ministry of restoration. We are rescuing hostages from the hands of the enemy. We are setting free the captives.
I had some testimonials forwarded to me from our brothers and sisters who are in treatment at Place of Hope that joined us last week at Conduit. I’m putting a few of them below. Notice the phrase “saved my life.” Take it from someone whose own father almost lost his life to this disease. That is not hyperbole.
It’s fitting that we’re at the 5th commandment to honor our father and mother on Fathers Day weekend. If you haven’t noticed in our previous studies, these commandments are super meaningful to our lives and this one is no difference. With most of us not living at home anymore it might not seem like this commandment is a throw away. Believe me when I say it’s not. Hopefully you can join us tomorrow night.
Blessings,
Darren
Below are the testimonies from our brothers and sisters who are being rescued from the evil that is addiction through the ministry that is happening at Place of Hope.
“I would like to thank the Conduit group for supporting the Place of Hope. The Place of Hope has saved me from sure death by showing me a new and wonderful way of life. I have given my will and life completely to God and He has given me peace and strength like I have never had before. I believe my life has purpose now and I know what my purpose is. I want to share this gift with as many other people as I can. God has taken away my desire to drink and use drugs and given me a desire to know more of His will for me.”
- Matthew T.
The contributions that you make as such a small group are simply amazing. Through your donations to the Place of Hope you have saved my life from the drugs and alcohol that consumed me. You have given me so much hope and faith. May God always bless you with all of His blessings.”
- Todd H.
“I wanted to thank you for coming to ya’lls place. It helped me a lot. It’s good to see people help other people they didn’t know.”
- Lonnie C.
“My experience at Conduit on Monday night was amazing! I felt very blessed to have met many of the young men and women that help so unselfishly and generously to the Place of Hope. It was very inspiring. Thanks from the bottom of my heart. It’s believers like you who believe for people like me until I can believe for myself. God bless you all!”
- Rhonda H.
“I was touched and impressed to listen to what the Conduit Ministry has done so selflessly for all of us at the Place of Hope and other ministries.”
- Jeffrey D.
“I was so confused when I walked into these doors at the Place of Hope! Through day after day of hearing the Word, now I have a purpose in life. The Place of Hope saved my life!! Brother Mike Coupe is kind, going out of his way to help somebody. I wished I be more like Brother Mike Coupe. I cannot say enough about the Place of Hope!!”
- Chris B.
“I would like to thank Darren and the Conduit Group for all you have done for me. You have saved my life. You are an inspiration to us all.”
- John L.
“I have been at the Place of Hope for six weeks and I enjoyed our visit to the Conduit meeting. The Place of Hope has saved my life. I now walk with the Lord and we appreciate your contributions and support. We are the lepers of the 21st century and the Conduit judges no one. I give ya’ll my deepest thanks. Ya’ll are part of the Place of Hope.”
- Michael R.
I don’t remember much about the visit other than he had to come down to see us because hospital rules did not allow children in the patient’s room. I remember that he looked really different than the last time I had seen him. I was too young to articulate it but losing 40 pounds can really change the look of someone.
What I specifically remember is after they wheeled him back upstairs we waited there with my grandma for what seemed like hours. It seemed like it because it was. Years later I would learn that the reason she was gone so long was that my dad had gone into cardiac arrest and had actually died before being resuscitated. All the while we were blissfully unaware and stir crazy in the waiting room. When my Mom and Grandfather came downstairs they never said a word.
I don’t mean this to be a commentary on government controlled health care but what started as a simple appendicitis had grown to my dad being hooked on prescription meds and dying. This all happened in the squalid conditions of a VA hospital. It was after this moment that my mom decided to take matters into her own hands.
Alongside of our pastor Patsy Busey, she went back to Omaha with our dear family friends Duane and Diana Covey. They were told he was too sick to leave and that they wouldn’t allow him to go. Knowing that staying was just as much of a death sentence Duane informed them that he would kick down “every damn door in the hospital” (as it was later quoted to me) to find him. He was a marine corp. vet and they believed him.
My dad was soon on the way to a faith based nonprofit hospital in Oklahoma that took in people whether or not they could pay. We fell into the “could not pay” category. Within moments of being seen he was diagnosed. He was addicted to prescription painkillers, a fact that was overlooked for months in the government operated hospital. The VA had locked him up in a psych ward and medicated him out of his mind.
With the Christ centered nature of the treatment he received in Oklahoma he was out and on his own in just a couple months. He’s been clean for 30 some years.
This Fathers Day I’m reminded that addiction tried to steal my father. It wasn’t a government hospital that pulled him through it was Jesus and those that were listening to His call to serve the poor.
This wasn’t consciously one of the reasons we decided to support Mike Coupe and Place of Hope. Rather it’s just one of those Godincidence type things. It’s just like God to place this ministry right in front of us at the exact moment we were praying about who we should send our financial resources to.
There are moms and dads in Place of Hope at this very moment who will be restored to their families. Conduit plays a role in this through our financial commitment to Place of Hope. We are an active and vital part of the ministry of restoration. We are rescuing hostages from the hands of the enemy. We are setting free the captives.
I had some testimonials forwarded to me from our brothers and sisters who are in treatment at Place of Hope that joined us last week at Conduit. I’m putting a few of them below. Notice the phrase “saved my life.” Take it from someone whose own father almost lost his life to this disease. That is not hyperbole.
It’s fitting that we’re at the 5th commandment to honor our father and mother on Fathers Day weekend. If you haven’t noticed in our previous studies, these commandments are super meaningful to our lives and this one is no difference. With most of us not living at home anymore it might not seem like this commandment is a throw away. Believe me when I say it’s not. Hopefully you can join us tomorrow night.
Blessings,
Darren
Below are the testimonies from our brothers and sisters who are being rescued from the evil that is addiction through the ministry that is happening at Place of Hope.
“I would like to thank the Conduit group for supporting the Place of Hope. The Place of Hope has saved me from sure death by showing me a new and wonderful way of life. I have given my will and life completely to God and He has given me peace and strength like I have never had before. I believe my life has purpose now and I know what my purpose is. I want to share this gift with as many other people as I can. God has taken away my desire to drink and use drugs and given me a desire to know more of His will for me.”
- Matthew T.
The contributions that you make as such a small group are simply amazing. Through your donations to the Place of Hope you have saved my life from the drugs and alcohol that consumed me. You have given me so much hope and faith. May God always bless you with all of His blessings.”
- Todd H.
“I wanted to thank you for coming to ya’lls place. It helped me a lot. It’s good to see people help other people they didn’t know.”
- Lonnie C.
“My experience at Conduit on Monday night was amazing! I felt very blessed to have met many of the young men and women that help so unselfishly and generously to the Place of Hope. It was very inspiring. Thanks from the bottom of my heart. It’s believers like you who believe for people like me until I can believe for myself. God bless you all!”
- Rhonda H.
“I was touched and impressed to listen to what the Conduit Ministry has done so selflessly for all of us at the Place of Hope and other ministries.”
- Jeffrey D.
“I was so confused when I walked into these doors at the Place of Hope! Through day after day of hearing the Word, now I have a purpose in life. The Place of Hope saved my life!! Brother Mike Coupe is kind, going out of his way to help somebody. I wished I be more like Brother Mike Coupe. I cannot say enough about the Place of Hope!!”
- Chris B.
“I would like to thank Darren and the Conduit Group for all you have done for me. You have saved my life. You are an inspiration to us all.”
- John L.
“I have been at the Place of Hope for six weeks and I enjoyed our visit to the Conduit meeting. The Place of Hope has saved my life. I now walk with the Lord and we appreciate your contributions and support. We are the lepers of the 21st century and the Conduit judges no one. I give ya’ll my deepest thanks. Ya’ll are part of the Place of Hope.”
- Michael R.
Conduit June 15- Place of Hope
If you’re Lindsay or Brittany and you find yourself hooked on drugs and/ or alcohol after you call your publicist , you head out to a resort style detox center and begin plotting your comeback. The biggest decisions are should you call Oprah or Barbara first.
If you’re poor and in the same situation your monumentally screwed. You can walk into an emergency room and say the magic words “I’m feeling suicidal” and they have to take you in. But it’s just a band aid solution. The church isn’t very well suited for the combination of a spiritual and medical battle that is addiction.
If you’ve ever witnessed or personally battled with addiction you are familiar with the sense of hopelessness that comes alongside it. The starts and stops, the failures and successes, the lost and found moments are all part of the slide. You’ve seen how it can seem like you’ve finally beaten it, only to see it start over again.
It’s easy to sit and throw rocks of blame. It’s seems so simple that they did this to themselves. Of course if you’re a child and it’s your single parent that “did it to themselves” as best you can tell you just want your mommy back. It can all seem quite hopeless. But it’s not.
God chose an alcoholic named Mike Coupe as a messenger of hope. Mike had his own battle with alcoholism and through Christ he defeated it. 2 Corinthians 2:4 says that God comforts us in our troubles SO THAT we can comfort those in any troubles with the same comfort we ourselves have received. The very thing the enemy meant for harm in Mike and his families lives God has used for good. If Satan had only known, I’m assuming he would have left Mike alone.
God interrupted Mike’s life with an idea that He could be used by the Lord to make a difference in someone’s life, to change someone’s personal history. Alongside Dr. John Brown, Mike started Place of Hope in Columbia, TN over 10 years ago. That idea has since become a sixty-four bed facility that according to their website “provides quality care for adult men and women and their families, throughout the Middle Tennessee region.”
Place of Hope also includes a temporary shelter for the homeless and a daily hot meal for the hungry and elderly. In addition, they collect, recycle, and give away clothing, furniture, and household goods to the poor. In His first public declaration of ministry, Jesus stood up and read from Isaiah. It was like Jesus "mission statement". Included in that statement was a promise to bring liberty to the captives and to preach the gospel to the poor. Mike lives this out every day.
Conduit financially supports 3 different ministries. Place of Hope is one of them. We are blessed to be one of their largest donors. We are an active part of the supply line to the troops on the front lines right here in our own back yard.
Mike will be joining us tomorrow night at Conduit to share the story of Place of Hope. It’s a fascinating journey filled with testimonies of God providing time and time again. I’m always inspired after spending time around Mike. He’s a perfect example of what can happen when someone like you or I just simply surrender to the call of God on our lives.
He takes ordinary people and does extraordinary things.
We’ll be starting at 7:30pm in the Theater at Journey Church in Franklin.
I hope you can join us.
Darren
You can see more about Place of Hope at www.placeofhope.us
www.darrentyler.com
If you’re poor and in the same situation your monumentally screwed. You can walk into an emergency room and say the magic words “I’m feeling suicidal” and they have to take you in. But it’s just a band aid solution. The church isn’t very well suited for the combination of a spiritual and medical battle that is addiction.
If you’ve ever witnessed or personally battled with addiction you are familiar with the sense of hopelessness that comes alongside it. The starts and stops, the failures and successes, the lost and found moments are all part of the slide. You’ve seen how it can seem like you’ve finally beaten it, only to see it start over again.
It’s easy to sit and throw rocks of blame. It’s seems so simple that they did this to themselves. Of course if you’re a child and it’s your single parent that “did it to themselves” as best you can tell you just want your mommy back. It can all seem quite hopeless. But it’s not.
God chose an alcoholic named Mike Coupe as a messenger of hope. Mike had his own battle with alcoholism and through Christ he defeated it. 2 Corinthians 2:4 says that God comforts us in our troubles SO THAT we can comfort those in any troubles with the same comfort we ourselves have received. The very thing the enemy meant for harm in Mike and his families lives God has used for good. If Satan had only known, I’m assuming he would have left Mike alone.
God interrupted Mike’s life with an idea that He could be used by the Lord to make a difference in someone’s life, to change someone’s personal history. Alongside Dr. John Brown, Mike started Place of Hope in Columbia, TN over 10 years ago. That idea has since become a sixty-four bed facility that according to their website “provides quality care for adult men and women and their families, throughout the Middle Tennessee region.”
Place of Hope also includes a temporary shelter for the homeless and a daily hot meal for the hungry and elderly. In addition, they collect, recycle, and give away clothing, furniture, and household goods to the poor. In His first public declaration of ministry, Jesus stood up and read from Isaiah. It was like Jesus "mission statement". Included in that statement was a promise to bring liberty to the captives and to preach the gospel to the poor. Mike lives this out every day.
Conduit financially supports 3 different ministries. Place of Hope is one of them. We are blessed to be one of their largest donors. We are an active part of the supply line to the troops on the front lines right here in our own back yard.
Mike will be joining us tomorrow night at Conduit to share the story of Place of Hope. It’s a fascinating journey filled with testimonies of God providing time and time again. I’m always inspired after spending time around Mike. He’s a perfect example of what can happen when someone like you or I just simply surrender to the call of God on our lives.
He takes ordinary people and does extraordinary things.
We’ll be starting at 7:30pm in the Theater at Journey Church in Franklin.
I hope you can join us.
Darren
You can see more about Place of Hope at www.placeofhope.us
www.darrentyler.com
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Conduit June 1- God Branding
One of the things that I learned early on being a manager was that artists like free stuff. Of course, this is not unique to artists, it’s somewhat of a human condition lived out at the sample tables at Costco every day. (I get borderline giddy when they break out the chicken wing samples.)
Almost without exception one of the earliest questions I get from a new client has to do with endorsements. It’s a great lesson to teach a young artist that there really isn’t any such thing as a free lunch or more specifically free guitar. A corporation isn’t in the business of giving out free stuff to artists because they think it’s cool. There is very much a business transaction going on. The transaction is simple, they pay you with free stuff and in exchange they get to tell people that you’re playing, wearing, driving, or slathering their stuff on.
They’re playing to lowest common 8th grade denominator that if the cool kids are doing it everyone will want to. And of course, it works. When Suzuki sponsored the Kutless tour it was their expectation that they would sell motorcycles and cars as a result of their investment. The good news is they did.
If you’re a baby band nobody has heard of you are not a potential endorser, you are a potential customer. Thus little to no free stuff for you. As the name of the artist grows, so does the desire of a company to align them selves with the name (In modern circles we like to call it “the brand”) of the artist or band.
As is always the case when lawyers and handlers are involved the deals can get way more complex and sophisticated but at its base that’s what an endorsement is all about. Your name side by side with a product or service acts as an endorsement or verification of the legitimacy of the product or service.
As an artist it’s important to not put your name next to things you don’t support, stand for, or even for stuff that has bad quality to it. The reason is simple, your name, no matter how popular, does not bring legitimacy or quality to a bad product or service. It might boost initial sales or whatever, but ultimately if the product or service is inferior or offensive it brings the name of the artist down, not the quality of the product up. It can actually bring damage to the name or “brand” of an artist.
When God was writing up the 10 commandments with His own hand He puts this commandment in the top 3.
Exodus 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain;
It’s pretty easy to have total buy in with the no murdering or stealing ones, but why would this one be so important? I do agree that someone ought not to evoke God and damn if you bang your shin but If it were just referring to cussing, could that have made the top ten?
The KJ version doesn’t say to not speak His name in vain but rather not to “take” it. The NIV uses the words “do not misuse”. It’s oversimplifying to suggest that it’s just referring to speaking His name wrongly. That is part of it, just not all of it.
In Matthew 7 Jesus said that there will be some who come to Him on that day (referring to judgment day) and say Lord, we cast out demons in your name, prophecy in your name, do miracles in Your name? Jesus said something that is at best provocative and at worst scary; He said He will say on that day “I never even knew you”.
It’s almost as if Jesus is painting the picture of what we would call a “name dropper.” You know the type, dropping the names of famous or powerful people as if they’re friends even when they likely only met them in passing. It’s evoking a name to make them feel or appear more than they are.
When I’m dropping the name of Jesus as if I know Him and meanwhile keep up my own agenda, lifestyle, systems that’s very much taking His name in vain. It’s utilizing His name for my own agenda. Offering up my opinions, systems, programs, judgments, in the name of God doesn’t make my agenda look any better, rather it brings defamation to Gods name. After reading what Jesus said it ought to make me afraid.
It’s easy to point the finger at a televangelist wringing people out of their money to support a lavish lifestyle or shooting and killing an abortion doctor. I also think this could apply in our institutional churches where we’re building programs, systems, regulations, judgments in the name of God that look nothing like God.
Jesus gave this as a warning for us to be able to recognize them as false prophets. (matt 7) The good news is He said it would be super easy to spot them. He said we would know them by their fruit. What does the Bible call fruit? In Galatians Paul says that the fruit of the spirit is Love. Not how many people are being “reached” or how many “souls” are saved, that’s not the fruit. (those are more branches being attached to the vine)
I guess maybe it’s better to think of it the other way around. Instead of me trying to sign up God as my endorser, I should be signing up as an endorser for God. Philippians 2 says that His name is above all other names. There isn’t anyone with a bigger name for him to score as an endorser, so he picks you and me.
And what is God selling? Not to be cheeky but He’s not selling anything, He’s giving it away. He’s offering life, salvation, service to the poor and vulnerable. To put it simply, Love. When I’m spending my time offering Gods stuff. When I’m spending my time preaching the gospel, serving the poor and vulnerable, loving my family well, I’m an endorser for God.
In doing this it’s not just good branding, it’s God branding.
Tomorrow night we're back at Conduit and will be unpacking this commandment. I have more to unpack on this topic and I'm sure you will too. Come prepared for a fun conversation.
Blessings,
Darren
www.conduitmission.org
remember that $15 will feed a child in Haiti for a month. pray about it and see if God might lead you to partner with us.
www.darrentyler.podomatic.com the teachings from Conduit all posted here.
Almost without exception one of the earliest questions I get from a new client has to do with endorsements. It’s a great lesson to teach a young artist that there really isn’t any such thing as a free lunch or more specifically free guitar. A corporation isn’t in the business of giving out free stuff to artists because they think it’s cool. There is very much a business transaction going on. The transaction is simple, they pay you with free stuff and in exchange they get to tell people that you’re playing, wearing, driving, or slathering their stuff on.
They’re playing to lowest common 8th grade denominator that if the cool kids are doing it everyone will want to. And of course, it works. When Suzuki sponsored the Kutless tour it was their expectation that they would sell motorcycles and cars as a result of their investment. The good news is they did.
If you’re a baby band nobody has heard of you are not a potential endorser, you are a potential customer. Thus little to no free stuff for you. As the name of the artist grows, so does the desire of a company to align them selves with the name (In modern circles we like to call it “the brand”) of the artist or band.
As is always the case when lawyers and handlers are involved the deals can get way more complex and sophisticated but at its base that’s what an endorsement is all about. Your name side by side with a product or service acts as an endorsement or verification of the legitimacy of the product or service.
As an artist it’s important to not put your name next to things you don’t support, stand for, or even for stuff that has bad quality to it. The reason is simple, your name, no matter how popular, does not bring legitimacy or quality to a bad product or service. It might boost initial sales or whatever, but ultimately if the product or service is inferior or offensive it brings the name of the artist down, not the quality of the product up. It can actually bring damage to the name or “brand” of an artist.
When God was writing up the 10 commandments with His own hand He puts this commandment in the top 3.
Exodus 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain;
It’s pretty easy to have total buy in with the no murdering or stealing ones, but why would this one be so important? I do agree that someone ought not to evoke God and damn if you bang your shin but If it were just referring to cussing, could that have made the top ten?
The KJ version doesn’t say to not speak His name in vain but rather not to “take” it. The NIV uses the words “do not misuse”. It’s oversimplifying to suggest that it’s just referring to speaking His name wrongly. That is part of it, just not all of it.
In Matthew 7 Jesus said that there will be some who come to Him on that day (referring to judgment day) and say Lord, we cast out demons in your name, prophecy in your name, do miracles in Your name? Jesus said something that is at best provocative and at worst scary; He said He will say on that day “I never even knew you”.
It’s almost as if Jesus is painting the picture of what we would call a “name dropper.” You know the type, dropping the names of famous or powerful people as if they’re friends even when they likely only met them in passing. It’s evoking a name to make them feel or appear more than they are.
When I’m dropping the name of Jesus as if I know Him and meanwhile keep up my own agenda, lifestyle, systems that’s very much taking His name in vain. It’s utilizing His name for my own agenda. Offering up my opinions, systems, programs, judgments, in the name of God doesn’t make my agenda look any better, rather it brings defamation to Gods name. After reading what Jesus said it ought to make me afraid.
It’s easy to point the finger at a televangelist wringing people out of their money to support a lavish lifestyle or shooting and killing an abortion doctor. I also think this could apply in our institutional churches where we’re building programs, systems, regulations, judgments in the name of God that look nothing like God.
Jesus gave this as a warning for us to be able to recognize them as false prophets. (matt 7) The good news is He said it would be super easy to spot them. He said we would know them by their fruit. What does the Bible call fruit? In Galatians Paul says that the fruit of the spirit is Love. Not how many people are being “reached” or how many “souls” are saved, that’s not the fruit. (those are more branches being attached to the vine)
I guess maybe it’s better to think of it the other way around. Instead of me trying to sign up God as my endorser, I should be signing up as an endorser for God. Philippians 2 says that His name is above all other names. There isn’t anyone with a bigger name for him to score as an endorser, so he picks you and me.
And what is God selling? Not to be cheeky but He’s not selling anything, He’s giving it away. He’s offering life, salvation, service to the poor and vulnerable. To put it simply, Love. When I’m spending my time offering Gods stuff. When I’m spending my time preaching the gospel, serving the poor and vulnerable, loving my family well, I’m an endorser for God.
In doing this it’s not just good branding, it’s God branding.
Tomorrow night we're back at Conduit and will be unpacking this commandment. I have more to unpack on this topic and I'm sure you will too. Come prepared for a fun conversation.
Blessings,
Darren
www.conduitmission.org
remember that $15 will feed a child in Haiti for a month. pray about it and see if God might lead you to partner with us.
www.darrentyler.podomatic.com the teachings from Conduit all posted here.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
