Spiritually Stunted Babies-Part 4

Over the last few weeks I've been looking at how spiritually stunted babies are like real, physical babies. This whole idea came out of observing my two little girls & how our physical & emotional immaturity is so often paralleled in our spiritual maturity. So here's the last parallel that I want us to look at. When we act like spiritual babies or when we're spiritually stunted...

We Still Need Someone To Clean Up Our Mess.

Believe me I could have used much more descriptive terminology because I'm thinking about a particular mess. Parents might not want to admit it, but the truth is that one of the greatest days in parenthood is not the day your child takes his first steps or speaks her first words; it's the day when your child finally learns how to use the potty all by herself! It's a great day when a parent doesn't have to deal with poopy diapers & all that goes with it, but imagine what it would be like if your child never hit that milestone. It wouldn't merely be gross; it would be tragic. They would forever be dependent on someone else to take care of a basic need.

Spiritually stunted babies are just as tragic. They constantly are running to someone else to clean up the mess in their life. Sure, every now & then we all need the help of others, but we all know people who are constantly having crises that they can't deal with on their own, & they need their pastors or some other spiritual leader to "fix" their mess. 

What's really tragic is that too often these spiritually stunted babies never realize what they're doing to themselves & those around them. They're either oblivious to it, or they become defiant & defensive. It's never their fault. It's always what someone else has done to them that's created the continuous drama in their lives. As a result, it becomes harder & harder to really help someone grow. Instead, family, friends, & leaders are pulled into a constant drama of hurt, blame, & unwillingness to really deal with the issues that always rear their ugly head. Until we acknowledge the reality of our immaturity, we can't grow & become stronger, more mature believers.

Spiritually Stunted Babies-Part 3

Sadly, churches are filled with spiritually stunted babies who cling to their routines & who throw fits when someone dares to challenge the statues quo. Why are these people stunted in their growth? Here's a possible answer:

We Still Can't Feed Ourselves.

It's funny to watch a little kid try to feed themselves. They get as much food on them as in them. It's cute when they're learning how to manipulate a fork or spoon to get the food to their mouth, but it's not so cute when all of this happens & a few minutes after the meal, the child is complaining because he or she is hungry. For most kids there is a stage where they should be able to feed themselves, & if they can't, something is wrong.

Spiritual babies are not that different. They either don't know how or refuse to feed themselves spiritually. Often they assume that it's someone else's job to feed them. Their Bibles become props used to decorate their homes or as an accessory each Sunday at church. In some cases, their Bible doesn't even get that much attention. Having served in ministry in one way or another for 20 years, I'm still shocked at how often I see people, especially men, come to worship or Bible study without a Bible. I mean surely you think you're going to need & use your Bible at church, right? 

As a result, they get just enough of God's Word into their lives to make a mess. They often talk about the Bible, but they don't really know Scripture or use it as the filter for their worldview. That's why it's not uncommon for spiritually stunted babies to be self-righteous hypocrites who hold people to standards of "holiness" that aren't even biblical. Each Sunday they climb into their high-chairs, known as a pew, & demand to be fed by the pastor or their small group leader. If you want a picture of a spiritually stunted baby, go check out the Pharisees in the Gospels. They embody the idea of spiritually stunted. 

Believers who can't feed themselves will not be healthy believers, & it will affect the rest of the family (church.)

Book Review: The 4 Wills Of God

I recently received a copy of "The 4 Wills Of God" by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs from B&H Publishing to look over & give my review. Dr. Eggerichs is both a pastor & a conference speaker. He & his wife, Sarah, have developed the Love & Respect Conference focusing on teaching men & women how to pursue God-honoring, loving, healthy biblical relationships. Much of the insight that is shared in this book is built on the 30+ years of pastoring & counseling.

The basic premise of this book is that so often we want to know God's unique will for our lives without examining whether we're being faithful to God's universal will for us. Dr. Eggerichs rightly asserts that as we pursue faithfulness to the 4 universal wills, God's unique will become easier to discern in particular situations.

So what are the "4 Wills Of God" & where does Dr. Eggerichs find them?

1. Believe In Jesus Christ (John 6:40)
2. Give Thanks In Everything (1st Thessalonians 5:18)
3. Submit In Doing Right (1st Peter 2:13-15)
4. Abstain From Sexual Sin (1st Thessalonians 4:3)

These passages literally say something like, "This is God's will..." Therefore, there is some solid biblical foundation here that Eggerichs can build upon. He devotes a couple of chapters for each of the "4 Wills" using one chapter to lay the biblical foundation & another to flesh out practical application & tell stories to illustrate those points. For me, there were a few too many stories, but that's just me. Other readers will likely love the numerous stories that help illustrate the author's point. 

This could be a really good resource for counseling, small groups, or for individual growth as long as those using it don't reduce the "4 Wills" to some legalistic grid for morality & instead realize they are more of a road map to living the life that God desires for us of growth in Him & impact in our relationships.

Spiritually Stunted Babies-Part 2

All of us hit the pause button from time to time in our spiritual growth, but sometimes something happens and our growth gets completely stunted. It's as if we're spiritual 2 year olds, & we definitely know how to show it. Here's the second way to spot the spiritually stunted babies:

We Still Throw Fits.

Last week I talked about the fact that little kids love routine & when that routine gets messed up, the kid usually flips. That of course leads to the fit. We've all seen them. The kid momentarily loses their mind as well as control of their body. They jump up & down or roll around uncontrollably; there's usually crying or screaming involved. It's fun, big fun, but usually if the parent can wait it out, it's over relatively quickly.

The same is true of a spiritual baby. Babies, both spiritual & physical, are still primarily focused on themselves, & both spiritual & physical babies cry & throw fits when they have a need they think is going unmet. Here's the thing: not all fits are the result of purely selfish desires. A lot of times the needs are real, but the way a person goes about expressing the need is what is selfish. That's where it takes real leadership to determine whether you're dealing with a selfish person or someone who has some growing to do & is just ACTING selfish. Those are the fits you can walk with someone through & help them grow. It's when you deal with someone who seems to be a chronic fit-thrower that you need to be really concerned. That's a sign of stunted growth, & there is more going on than the particular issue they're throwing a fit about this time.

So the next time that person throws a fit because you messed with their routine, you have to figure out whether they're being selfish at the time or if they are just plain selfish. A lot of times a little kid needs you to stop & explain things further to calm them down. Then they're good. Remember that simple practice next time somebody throws a fit.

Spiritually Stunted Babies

All Christians go through seasons where we aren't growing. It may be due to our laziness or some other sin that drags us off the path of Christ, but no matter what the cause, we've all been there. Those who deny that are lying to themselves! However, I've also noticed that our churches are filled with a lot of people who don't look like it, but they are spiritual babies. They've been Christians for a long time, but somewhere along the way their growth was stunted. They may know the language & the church culture, but in reality they're reliving the same year(s) of their faith over & over again. 

Over the next few weeks I'm going to give you handful of ways you can spot the spiritually stunted babies around you or maybe that stunted baby is the person looking back in the mirror (that's how it is for me sometimes). Here's the first way that we (church people) act like spiritually stunted babies:

We Need Our Routine.

Babies like routines. Babies need routines in order to function at their best. Try messing with a two year old's routine & see what happens (we'll talk more about that tomorrow)! But here's something I've noticed: Little kids get into routines & they expect their parents to keep them up even if the child doesn't really participate. For example, when my younger daughter was little, she learned a little prayer song & insisted that we sing it at meals & at bedtime. At first, she would sing along enthusiastically, but after a little while she didn't participate at all. But guess what? If we tried to skip the song, which was getting kind of old to her mother & me, she freaks. She has to have it done that way.

In the same way, our churches have been built on routine, & there is nothing inherently wrong with that. Routine is important, but why should a routine stay in place when it is no longer useful? But that's exactly what happens in many ministries. The routine & the status quo are guarded, even at the expense of the ministry. Routine becomes a problem when it exists for its own sake. Just as a child eventually grows out of the afternoon nap routine, there will be structures & routines in your church that you will & should outgrow.

Watch out when you start messing with the routine. Those who NEED it will freak.

Feast or Famine?

“The world is perishing for lack of the knowledge of God and the Church is famishing for want of His Presence.” -A.W. Tower

This weekend we continued our series "I Am" as one of our deacons shared a message from John 6 as Jesus says, "I am the bread of life..." As we examined the passage & its implications, I thought of this quote. The world is dying in its sin and too many have never heard the message of the Gospel from the Church. At the same time, too many congregations are dying and closing their doors because they've forgotten the message & ministry of the Gospel.

As Jesus invited people to come and feed on the Bread of Life. He not only promised that this Bread would give them life, real spiritual life, but He also showed Himself to be the sustainer of that life. He is the Source & the Sustainer. The Gospel is what bring us to life in Christ, & it's the Gospel that transforms us to live as Christ. But somehow too many of us have forgotten this. So our salvation becomes an event rather than a way of life. The Gospel becomes something that happened to us at a particular moment rather than the very life blood of our existent. And along the way, in a very slow, subtle, unintentional way, we forget the Gospel. As Jesus said in Revelation 2, we forget our first love. As we forget our first love, we also forget to do what we did at first, namely pursue Jesus & pursue the lost. So in the end we not only neglect the Gospel, we end up neglecting the Great Commission.

As a result, the world begins to starve for the knowledge of God because the vehicle for that message of God's loving, gracious pursuit of sinners has been starving for God's presence. When we stop walking in the Gospel, it won't be long before we stop sharing the Gospel. 

"Consistently & Faithfully Following Jesus Means 

Continually & Faithfully Feasting On Jesus."

How are we supposed to feed on Jesus? Let me share a couple of verses to guide us. John 1:17 says that "the Word became flesh & dwelt among us." The eternal, preexistent Word of God, the very Word of creation, the very Word of revelation, put on flesh & lived among us, & His name was Jesus. So again, how do we feed on Jesus? We feed on Jesus by feeding on the Word because He is the Word. Then what? Well, let's consider what Ezekiel 3:1 says. In this verse God commands His prophet to eat the word & then speak the word. Sound familiar? It should. As believers we consume the Bread of Life, Jesus. He gives us life & salvation. As we experience the work of Christ, we're moved to advance that Good News of life, hope, & salvation in Christ. We consume the Word, then we speak the Word so that Jesus is magnified & lives are saved. If we want the world to have knowledge of God & therefore live, we must feast on Christ & His word so that we're moved by the Gospel to advance the Gospel. 

So let me ask you, are you in a season of feast or famine? If you're feasting, is it leading to action? Are you eating the word & speaking the word? If you're in a season of famine, come back to the table. Jesus has invited you to come & dine so that you will never have to hunger or thirst again.

Who Moved My Pulpit?

I wanted to give you a quick review of Thom Rainer's book, "Who Moved My Pulpit?". Dr. Rainer & B&H Publishing were gracious enough to get me some advance copies to review & distribute to ministry leaders. If you'd like to enter to win one of those copies, you've got three option. First, visit my Twitter page & follow the instruction in my #WhoMovedMyPulpit tweets. Or you can visit my Facebook page & follow the instructions in my "Who Moved My Pulpit?" updates. The last option is the easiest; you can simply leave a comment here on the blog. However, you need to hurry though because tomorrow I'll be selecting the winners & getting these advance copies out. If you miss out on one of the freebies, you'll be able to find it at bookstores on June 1st.

Dr. Rainer's focus in this book is on leading change effectively in the church. Some of the impetus for writing this book comes from the fact that 90% of churches are plateaued or in decline compared to their community. The overwhelming majority of churches need to change in order to survive & continue to be a viable part of the Great Commission.

In the book Dr. Rainer outlines a roadmap for leading change in the church that would serve as a solid baseline for any leader in any ministry context. In fact, I'm passing on copies of this book to our Church Leadership Team as we work through the process of revitalizing the ministry in our congregation. I'm also planning to get some copies to our local denominational leadership who will be working with churches seeking to revitalize.

If you serve on a church staff or as a ministry lay leader, you should invest in this little book. I finished it up in a couple of hours, so it's a quick but loaded read. If you'd like more information on "Who Moved My Pulpit?" visit the official website.

Membership Matters

It's become trendy in recent years to downplay the value of church membership. Some churches have all but done away with official membership while others have contributed to the negative connotation of membership by making it little more than filling out a card & getting your name on a list. Still other churches have tried to dodge some of the negativity by using different terminology that allows them to communicate the value of being meaningfully connected with a congregation & particularly a small group of believers while using a set of terms that don't carry quite so much baggage. There is even a movement in some churches to combat the apathy concerning church membership by raising the bar of expectation by requiring members to renew their membership every year & by actually holding members accountable for the biblical standards of what it means to be a part of a local congregation of Christ followers. The important thing for us to see here is that we shouldn't deal with the negative issues surrounding church membership by throwing the entire concept out, but instead we should lift up the biblical standard & call people to it. Membership matters. 

In fact, I would be so bold as to say you cannot fulfill New Testament instructions concerning following Christ together without it. When you read passages like Hebrews 10:19-25 or Colossians 3:12-14, you have to ask yourself, "How can I really do this apart from being meaningfully engaged with, devoted to, & invested in a community of believers who are following Christ together?" In other words, "How can I really do this without a church family that I'm responsible for & accountable to." The answer is you can't. The church needs you, & you need the church. Most of the conversations I've had over the years with people whose faith is drying up or who feel distant from God begin by recognizing that they drifted away from the people of God before they drifted away from God. As a result they've robbed themselves of other believers ministering to them, & they've robbed others of the encouragement that they might have to offer their brothers & sisters. Even more tragically, they rob the lost of the opportunity to hear the Gospel & see the Gospel at work. After all, I don't have a whole lot of interaction with people who are disconnected from their church family who are also leading a lot of people to faith in Christ. Being deeply invested in a congregation matters.

"Church Membership & Ministry Are Essential Because 

They Equip Us To Deny Self As We Submit To & Serve One Another."

Think about it. Our human nature is pretty self-centered. In addition to that, our culture reinforces that mentality. Meanwhile, Jesus tells us that to follow Him, we have to deny self. Since that goes against our own nature, it stands to reason that we might just need a training ground to help us grow in our willingness to put others ahead of ourselves. We need other disciples of Jesus who can encourage us & hold us accountable. We also need someone that we're investing in in the same way. We see this selfishness pop up when we listen to ourselves talk about why we leave churches.

"I wasn't being fed."

"I didn't like the music."

"The church didn't meet my needs."

If you'll notice most folks don't leave churches because they don't take the Gospel or the Great Commission seriously enough. They usually hop from one place to another because "their needs" aren't being met. Here's a newsflash: No church can meet your needs. Only Jesus does that. To expect a church to fill that void is to make it a false god. The church is where redeemed, imperfect people imperfectly follow Jesus together. You need it. I need it. Membership matters. Devote yourself to a local congregation. Get engaged with the people & the mission. Declare your devotion to that congregation, & invest your life in it.

You WILL Leave A Legacy

This weekend in the second week of our series "Family Matters" we looked at leaving a legacy in our family. Legacy gets talked about a lot, but sometimes we fail to state what should be obvious: You & I will leave a legacy. The only question is what kind.

Let that sink in for a second. Everything you say & do is forming a legacy for your children, grandchildren, & great grandchildren. That's kind of scary isn't it? It's really scary when you start to realize how oblivious we are to that fact most of the time. After all, most of us leave a random legacy. It just sort of happens, & we hope that it's something good, glorifies God, & points our kids toward Jesus. What if, however, we were intentional about leaving a legacy in our families? What would it look like?

Take a look at Deuteronomy 6. In the first 20 verses or so Moses lays out the responsibility the families of this new nation would have to pass on the knowledge of God to their descendants. The goal of God's word was to make sure that the kids & grandkids would know & serve God. Then Moses lays out the teaching end of leaving a legacy & the living part of leaving a legacy. The word of God should be a priority in our homes. Our lives should be consistent with our words. We shouldn't just talk about God to our kids & grandkids; we should demonstrate to them what trusting God looks like & teach them to trust Him too. Finally, in verse 20 Moses says that one day our kids are going to ask us why we do what we do, why the Bible is such priority in our homes, & why we're different from other people. Our answer, Moses said, should be rooted in God's saving, redemptive work.

"Leaving A Godly Legacy Is Rooted In God's Redemptive Work

And Passed On Through God's Revealed Word."

So what are some practical ways to put this passage & this principle into practice?

1. Impress God's Word On Your Heart First. (Deut. 6:6)
2. Impress God's Word On Your Kid's/Grandkids' Heart. (Deut. 6:7)
3. Teach Them The Word Through The Lens Of The Gospel. (Deut. 6:20)
4. Make Sure Your Training (Actions) Matches Your Teaching (Words). (Deut. 6:6-12)

This may seem overwhelming, but it's really this simple: Do something. You don't have to be a scholar. You don't have to be a gifted teacher. The power is in God's word. Just put it in front of your family. Let Jesus be the star of His word. Then lead the way in putting His word into practice in your life. You don't need an elaborate plan. You just need a plan. Stick to it as best you can, but don't beat yourself up if you drop the ball every now & then. Remember the goal isn't just to teach your kids or grandkids the Bible. Your goal is to introduce them to Jesus.

Why Churches Don't Revitalize

According to Thom Rainer, 90% of churches are either declining or growing at a slower pace than their communities. That means the overwhelming majority of our congregations need to take a good look in the mirror & consider how they might breathe new life into their ministry & revitalize their congregation. Sadly however, while the need is overwhelming, the response in many cases will simply not rise to the level necessary to address the issue. Here are just a few reasons why many of our congregations simply will not revitalize even though they're obviously in decline.

1) They Don't Realize They Need It.

This is a bigger issue than we may realize. Often decline is slow, almost imperceptible. That means we don't always see the decay or what led to the decay. The longer we're in a stagnant environment, the more it becomes normal. We become desensitized to the fact that we're no longer reaching people, that our church has become inwardly focused, or that our congregation is heading down a dangerous path. The only way to remedy this is for someone or a group of someones telling the truth. Yes, that truth will be ugly, & people may not want to hear it. However, if the church is going to turn around & become a vibrant gospel influence in its community again, they must first recognize that they're not. 

2) They Know It Will Mean Change.

Then there's the other group of churches. These churches know something isn't quite right. They recognize that they're not reaching people. They're just not going to do anything about it. Why? Because of change. Sadly, many congregations fear change more than they fear decline & death. The ironic thing is that in death everything changes. The programs: gone. The buildings: gone. The traditions: gone. The things we often fight to preserve at all costs will literally cost us everything, & they'll be pried from our dead hands.

3) They Can't See A Way.

Because congregations resist change, by the time they realize the need for revitalization, the task seems so daunting that they just can't see how it can happen. Usually there are really big issues: finances, declining facilities, & leadership issues are pretty common is church that need revitalizing. While these are big issues that will have to be dealt with, if you only focus on those, you'll be tempted to overlook the spiritual component of ministry. While tackling those issues, we also have to be refocusing on the core of what it means to be the church: The Gospel & The Great Commission. When a congregation gets back on track in those areas, the other issues will seem smaller because God will seem greater. These issues won't go away. In fact, you'll still face them when the church is growing & healthy, but you'll be dealing with them from a strong place spiritually.

4) Leadership Won't Lead.

You've heard it over & over again: everything rises & falls on leadership. When the leadership is either oblivious to the need or to afraid to address it, the whole ministry & congregation suffers. Too often the pastoral staff &/or the lay leadership is too afraid to lead in the direction of revitalization. Their fear of "What people will think?" or "What if this doesn't work?" is greater than their faith that God can use their leadership to revive the Gospel work of their congregation. If you're afraid to lead change, you can't lead. It's that simple. Leaders, you will have to give an account for your stewardship of leadership. I don't know about you, but I don't want to be like the servant in Jesus' parable who did nothing with what was entrusted to him. Yes, leadership is risky. Yes, leading a church toward revitalization will probably upset some people as it upsets the status quo, but isn't pursuing the Great Commission & advancing the Gospel among the lost worth agitating some stagnant church members?

5) They're Already Dead.

This is the sad one that nobody wants to talk about. Believe it or not, you can kill a congregation. Just because Jesus promised to build His church doesn't mean He will build your congregation. He will be faithful to His people, but He will not preserve a congregation that no longer magnifies His glory or advances it's mission. These are a relatively few congregations, but the longer a declining congregation does nothing, the closer they come to their time of death. If you're in one of these churches & you've fought the good fight & sounded the alarm only to be ignored or marginalized by leadership or the congregation in general, prayerfully consider moving on because what is coming is going to be even more heartbreaking, & you don't have to stick around to bury the dead. As Jesus said, "Let the dead bury the dead."

These are just a few reasons I've encountered & heard about in ministry. What are some other reasons why church who are in decline just will not pursue revitalization? Would love to have you leave some examples in the comments below.

If you're in the middle of a revitalization effort & feel overwhelmed, visit namb.net, thomrainer.com, & replanters.com for resources & encouragement in leading a congregation through revitalization.

Where Do You Draw The Line?

People are funny, & by funny, I mean strange. We all would say that we would like detailed information or instructions when making a big life decision. In fact, those of us who are Christ followers are perhaps more likely to say that. We want God to give us clear guidance, maybe even step by step instructions to follow in order to not only make a good decision but a decision that is in God's will. This is where the funny/strange part kicks in. My life & my work with other people tell me that as badly as we want detailed instructions from God, we are still prone to end up doing what we want in the end.

1st Samuel 15 gives us a painful insight into this truth about humanity. Though we would read this passage & point our fingers at King Saul, if we're honest, Saul is an empathetic character. We know what it feels like to be Saul. We've been there; we've done it. We've decided to pick & choose which part of God's word we'll follow & which parts we'll ignore or reject. We, like Saul, give reasons/excuses as to why we don't do what God has shown us in His word, but the result is the same: When we reject doing God's word, God rejects using us. We need to understand a powerful spiritual truth at play when it comes to our faith, love, & obedience to God.

"The Line Where Our Obedience To Christ Ends 

Is The Same Line Where Our Love For Christ Ends."

Jesus makes it very clear when He said, "If you love me, you'll keep my commands." What's Jesus mean here? It's pretty simple. If you love Jesus, you'll trust Jesus. If you trust Jesus, you'll obey Jesus. Simply put, your obedience to Christ & His word is a reflection of your faith in & love for Christ. This is an uncomfortable truth. We don't like to acknowledge that our love for Jesus has its limits. We somehow think we love Jesus the way He loves us: eternally & unconditionally. Well, I hate to break it to us all, but we don't love Jesus like He loves us. Wherever we choose to disobey is a place where we're choosing not to love Jesus. You see, Scripture doesn't present an emotional view of love. Instead, love is presented as an act of someone's will. Therefore, you can choose to love even when you don't feel it, which also means you can choose not to love even if you claim to "feel" it. 

Where is that line in your life? Where is the line where your love for Christ ends? We all have that place, & we owe it to ourselves to identify where that place really is. After all, we need to be aware of just how far we have left to grow, & we also need to recognize that place where we don't yet trust or love Jesus because that's exactly the place where God is going to press into us, stretch us, & challenge us to greater depths of faith & love. So where do you draw the line?

What Do You Expect?

Expectations are sort of odd. We all have them, even if we don't communicate them. Most of us have fallen victim to unspoken expectations because uncommunicated expectations almost always result in unmet expectations. There's another component to this as well. 

How many times have we seen someone, a kid perhaps, who was told over & over how stupid they were or how they didn't measure up, & lo & behold they lived a life of mediocrity: their grades were sub-par, they were in & out of trouble. Well, what did you expect would happen? If someone constantly gets the message that they're not smart enough, competent enough, or just plain good enough, they'll embrace that message & fulfill it through their life. You don't always have to come right out & say those things to someone for them to get the message. When you either explicitly or implicitly set low expectations for someone, don't be surprised when they live down to them.

The opposite is true as well. How many of us had a teacher, coach, parent, or leader in our life who called more out of us than we thought was actually in there? I've seen guys on the football field who accomplished more than what they should have because a coach set high expectations & convinced that player that they could actually rise to meet them. I've seen students who were bored or lazy excel because a teacher refused to let them stay bored or lazy. Instead he or she spoke to the potential in that student, & somewhere along the way the student bought into the idea that maybe, just maybe, they could achieve more than they thought possible. I've seen countless lives changed through the local church not just through the Gospel but through the Gospel centered leadership of men & women who refused to allow their brothers & sisters in Christ to simply fill a seat once a week or go through the motions of some ministry every once in a while. Instead they called their brothers & sisters to a greater sense of purpose, responsibility, & calling than anyone had before. The results are always the same: people rise to meet the expectations.

"Whatever You Expect Is Usually What You Get."

In the realm of leadership I've found this little principle to be true over & over again. If you set low expectations, you can expect low results. If you set expectations of mediocrity, don't be surprised when that's exactly what you get. If you expect high school students to act like fools, guess how they'll act. However, if you raise the bar, if cast a vision of excellence, most people respond by raising their output as well. They'll work harder, do more, & achieve more than they ever had before, not because they suddenly became smarter or more competent but because somebody called them to raise the bar.

As a church leader I believe there is no group in the universe whose bar should be higher than ours. In Christ, we've been called from death to life. We serve the King of all creation. We have been called to the greatest mission in history. Yet so often we set a low bar hoping to shield ourselves from risk or the possibility of disappointment. Ironically, there is nothing more disappointing than a low expectation follower of Jesus. It's time for us to expect more from ourselves as we follow Jesus. It's time for us to expect more from one another as we grow together & serve together. Considering our mission & calling has eternal ramifications, I would say it's time for us to set the bar high. After all, those we serve, lead, & reach out to deserve it, & our Savior, who we seek to honor, definitely deserves it.

How can you raise the bar for yourself? How can you raise the expectations for those you lead & serve beside? How can you speak to them & lead them in a way that calls out the greatness in them & calls them to do more & go farther than they ever have before. Whatever you expect is usually what you get, so what do you expect?

Orange 2015 Reflections

Last week I was able to take a couple of our key volunteer ministry leaders with me to attend The Orange Conference in Atlanta. If you're unfamiliar with Orange, you need to check them out at thinkorange.com. I wanted to share with you just a little from 3 days of incredible content presented by Reggie Joiner & the incredible team of leaders he assembled for this event. Here are a few quotes & some of my takeaways from the event.

-This year's theme was "It's Just A Phase...So Don't Miss It." Too often we're focused on what is to come that we miss out on what's right now, especially when it comes to kids. Slow down recognize & appreciate the opportunities that you have right now to impact a young man or woman's life.

-"You can fast forward childhood but you can't rewind it." Jon Acuff

-Remembering that every child is made in the image of God changes everything. It reminds us of the potential that's locked up in every kid & that we get to play a part in helping them discover who they could be in Christ so that in Christ all that potential is unleashed.

-"Kids are receiving mixed messages about sexuality." Jim Burns

-If we as parents & leaders don't engage kids on the issue of sex & sexuality (in a constructive, age appropriate way), culture will & by the time we think they're "ready" to talk about it, they've already formed their worldview on the topic.

-"When Nehemiah's heart was broken, he paid attention to his broken heart...So what breaks your heart?" Andy Stanley

-"Years from now what do you want people to line up to thank you for?" Andy Stanley

-"We're having to have answer questions previous generation haven't had to answer." Joshua Gagnon

-"Senior Pastors, elevate your leaders, & when they succeed, elevate them more." Brad Lomenick

-Jenni Catron is one of the smartest people I've ever heard speak. She never fails to make you think. Incredible role model for young ladies going into ministry to look to.

-"God hasn't blessed your church with success. He's blessed your church with potential." Jeff Henderson

-"Say 'yes' to your community." Jeff Henderson

-"Pastors, you need to be the voice of the people who don't come to your church but who should." Jeff Henderson

-"All 100 sheep are valuable, but there's a priority on the 1 sheep that is lost." Jud Wilhite

-"My music+my preferences+my style of service=Our church's funeral" Perry Noble

This is just the tip of the iceberg. I loaded Evernote down with notes from main sessions & breakouts. If you & your ministry team are looking for a conference that has something for everyone, Orange may be the right fit for you. For too long our ministries have been disjointed islands. Embracing an Orange strategy will help bring your ministries into alignment with one another so that they build on one another & better disciple our children so that they are prepared to face the world as an adult & as the future leaders of God's church.

Time To Share The Spotlight

Statistically the vast majority of pastors will lead "small" congregations. Not only will those congregations be small, most of them will also be very unhealthy. They will be in desperate need of revival & revitalization. Most studies put that number around 75% to 80% of churches that are stagnant or in decline. 

So it's pretty clear most ministry leaders will be serving & leading in small, potentially unhealthy, church environments, yet if you were to visit many universities & seminaries for chapel or to take a peek at ministry training, or if you were to pick up a book on church leadership, do you know who you would find as the model of church leadership & what ministry should look like? You guessed it, the mega-church pastor. The names Chandler, Stanley, Groeschel, Noble, Platt, & many others seem to be omnipresent, but is this really helpful for young ministry leaders who are preparing & training for their calling to the local church?

Now let's get one thing straight right off the bat: I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH MEGA-CHURCHES. Did you hear that? So don't assume I'm one of these guys who thinks the megas are bad. They're not. Sure, you can find some that are off base, but you can also find lots of mini-churches who are way out in left field too. So it's not the mega-church I have an issue with. It's the way that our American consumer, bigger is better, mindset has permeated not just ministry culture but also ministry training culture. If the only leaders who are given a platform to speak to other ministry leaders are the ones with the biggest churches, then don't be surprised if other ministry leaders either feel like failures when they don't have 5000 people in their church or if they turn their backs on opportunities to serve those "small" churches. After all, it's easier to give birth than it is to raise the dead right? The only problem with that is that the Savior we serve specializes in raising the dead.

What we need to begin to do is shine the spotlight on great ministry leaders, no matter the size of their church. If most of our future ministry leaders are going to serve churches in need of revitalization, shouldn't they be hearing from revitalization leaders at least as much as they're hearing from the mega-pastors? After all, there is a chance that the skill sets that make a leader great in a mega-church may work against the same leader in an environment in need of revitalization. What if a ministry leader as influential & as proven as Andy Stanley wouldn't be able to do the work of revitalizing a congregation that some guy you & I have never heard of has somewhere in Nebraska or in small town Tennessee? Tackling the work of revitalization or replanting a church comes with a set of challenges that are unique, & those who have faced it, navigated it, & survived can speak to it most effectively. 

"If The Majority Of Church Are In Need Of Revitalization, 

Shouldn't We Be Hearing More From Leaders 

Who Have Done The Work Of Revitalization?"

Don't get me wrong, I want to hear the insights of leaders like Andy Stanley, David Platt, & Craig Groeschel. They have incredible leadership principles to share, but I also want the world of Christian education, publishing, & conferences to open the doors to a group of leaders who may not have a massive platform but who have massive insights to share with other leaders doing the work of church revitalization & with those who are preparing for ministry in churches who need revitalization. We need to hear those voices on campus at our universities & seminaries. We need their stories to be published, & we need platforms like Catalyst, The Gospel Coalition, Orange, 9 Marks, & The North American Mission Board's Send North America Conference to give the stage to ministry leaders who are quietly doing the work of renewing & revitalizing local congregations but making a lot of noise in God's Kingdom as churches on the brink of death discover a renewed sense of mission to advance the Gospel & make disciples. It's time to share the spotlight so that we can learn from one another & have an even greater Gospel impact, regardless of a church's size.

The Gospel & Your Family

Family is a hot topic issue right now. What is a family? What constitutes a family? Who has the right to get married & start a family? All these questions are currently being debated, & many people are sounding the alarm that the "family is under attack." To me the alarm is a little late. Families have always been under pressure. Take a look at Genesis 3 & the account of how sin entered into the world. The enemy's very first tactic for leading humanity into temptation & sin involved a family. It was the classic divide & conquer approach, & once sin had entered the world, God reveals that a primary consequence was going to be strife & conflict in the family, between husband & wife. So the pressures on family aren't new. The current issues may be new, but the tactic is literally as old as dirt. 

The new wrinkle that many of us have to struggle with is that some people evidently have ideal, perfect families. After all, look at their Facebook or Instagram feed. They're always smiling. Their children are so talented, smart, & well behaved. It's as if everything in their world is just right. Here's the problem though: they're only showing you what they're OK with you seeing. The perfect family is a mirage, & social media has helped perpetuate it. So we go to the local book store or jump on Amazon & comb through the bottomless pile of self-help & how to books, both spiritual & secular, to help us figure out how to make our families stronger, yet we end up feeling frustrated. The problem isn't so much that we're looking for a solution, but that we're looking for a solution from the wrong source. You can't build a stronger marriage or family by mastering 12 steps or becoming a better you. You become a better spouse, parent, child, or sibling by going back to the transforming power of the Gospel.

"You Don't Build A Stronger Family By Being A Better Spouse Or Parent.

You Do It By Becoming More Like Jesus."

If you're working hard to become a better you, there's a pretty good chance you'll only make things worse because you're still about you. Thankfully, Jesus came to redeem you & transform you to become more like Him. The Gospel isn't just the means by which you & I are saved. The Gospel is the means by which are lives are transformed so that we experience life to the fullest, the way God desires us to. What do I mean by all this? It's simple: Husbands, you don't become a better husband by just unloading the dishwasher, doing laundry, not yelling so much, or bringing home a bigger paycheck. You become a better husband by becoming more like Christ as you sacrificially love your wife & children the way Christ sacrificially loved us. Wives, you don't become a better wife by always agreeing with your husband, doing all the housework, or any other stereotype that you can think of. You become a better wife by becoming more like Christ who was submitted to the will of His Father & to the desperate need of humanity for a Savior. Parents, you don't become better parents just by being super strict, & it definitely doesn't happen by being your child's BFF. You become better parents by becoming more like Christ who loves us, even in our sin, but who also comes alongside us & teaches us what obedience & faithfulness looks like. 

Ephesians 5 & 6 are loaded with incredible pictures of how the Gospel shapes & transforms us as families. Men, you can't love your wives as Christ loved the church in your own strength. Ladies, you cannot submit to your husbands as you do to the Lord in your own strength. Kids cannot obey their parents in their own strength. Parents in their own strength will not train their children up in the ways of the Lord. None of this happens in our own strength because our strength is tainted & twisted by sin. However, when we find new life in Christ that's not just about eternity. It's about right now too. When we keep our hearts & minds focused on & rooted in the Gospel, we'll be constantly reminded of the lavish grace & love poured out on us, & that can't help but move us toward real life transformation.

Stop trying to be a better you, & start pursuing Jesus. Root yourself in the Gospel. Live from the power of the Gospel, & as you become more like Christ, you'll see your family become healthier, stronger, & more glorifying to God.

The Only Change That Changes Anything

Leading always involves change. It's unavoidable. It's almost always uncomfortable. It's always necessary. Leadership by definition involves taking people or an organization where it's never been before, so change is inevitable. When leading a congregation, change is especially difficult & sometimes deceptive. It's difficult because in many settings there hasn't been meaningful change at the structural or organization level for years, decades, or maybe ever! Ironically that lack of change makes change even more necessary in order to move forward. 

Here's where the deceptive part of change comes in. It's tempting & dangerously easy for both leaders & those in the congregation to believe the lie that simply changing programs, schedules, strategies, & structures will affect lasting, meaningful change for the congregation & that all of issues the group may have endured will magically disappear. I'm sure as you're reading that you're realizing how silly it is to think that way, but deep down we've all been fooled into thinking those external changes will some how lead to drastic internal changes. I wish it were that simple, but it's far more messy & complicated than that.

"Changing Programs & Structures Doesn't Change A Church. 

Only Changed People Change A Church."

Changing programs & structures is actually a lot easier than changing people. However, changed people are far more powerful than changed programs & structures. The hope is that changing structures & programs may create a more suitable environment for people to experience the life changing power of the Gospel & the community of the Church, but that doesn't guarantee that we will actually experience it. We are incredibly skilled at resisting Jesus & His desire to transform us. Our structures & programs are important, but don't be fooled; they're no magic bullet. If they were, 75%-80% of evangelical churches wouldn't be plateaued or in decline. If changing your groups structure or worship service or meeting space did the trick, we would have stumbled onto the right trick by now. 

Instead, we need a renewed commitment to creating the right environments & structures for growth to happen while also praying desperately that God would do what only He can do in our lives & in the lives of those we serve with & lead. So if you're a leader, don't think you can program or structure life change & heart change in your congregation. You can't. You're not Jesus. That doesn't mean you shouldn't boldly lead & implement the changes that are necessary. It just means that you need to remind yourself that those changes aren't really the change we're hoping for & praying for. If you're the member of a congregation that's in the middle of some kind of transition, change, or revitalization ministry, embrace the change that comes, but don't assume that those changes are just going to "fix" everything. Instead, immerse yourself in a fresh pursuit of Christ & what it would look like to embody His life through your life. Don't just attend a Bible study; pursue meeting with Christ through that Bible study & let Him begin to change you. Don't just serve in that ministry; seek to make Christ known through your ministry to & love for those you serve. After all,  the only thing that will really change your congregation, is when you & I are changed. Changing programs & structures can't affect meaningful change, only changed people.

Filling The Room Isn't Enough

All of us in ministry want a full room. I don't know anybody who says, "I want to spend the next 5, 10, or 20 years leading an empty church." We want our churches to grow, period. However, to both Christians & Christian leaders the definition of growth is far to narrow. Even though it feels really shallow to admit it, we believe that a growing church is simply a church that fills the room.

What if we used just one new metric? What if we celebrated the fact that the crowd gathering in the room is getting bigger but also asked about another number? What if we not only looked at how many people we're able to gather but also how many people we're able to send? There are a lot of things we could measure, but I think this one thing could revolutionize our ministries & congregations. You see in Luke 15, Jesus tells three parables about lost things: a sheep, a coin, a son. In all three stories the lost thing is recovered. However, in the last story, the one about a lost son, no one actually went looking for him. Someone tracked down the lost sheep. The lady tore her house apart to find a lost coin, but nobody went looking for the lost son. Why did Jesus leave that out of the story?

You see, godliness isn't just about being well behaved & moral. If it were, the older son in that final parable wouldn't look so bad at the end. If he were really as good & righteous as he claimed to be, wouldn't he have gone looking for his lost brother to invite him to come back to the father? The father was waiting. The father was hoping, but no one went out looking for that young, rebellious boy. As Jesus looked at the spiritual landscape He saw older brothers who were moral & who thought they were pretty righteous. He also saw the ones who were far from God. They were the "sinners & tax collectors." They were "those people." However, the supposedly godly religious elite didn't reach out to those who were rebelling against God in hopes that they might repent & come back to the Father. Instead, they condemned them, marginalized them, & encouraged everybody else to as well.

Jesus however was the true older brother. He did what the older brother in the story should have done. He left the Father & at His own expense set out to find those who were lost & do whatever it might take to bring them back home. For Jesus no price was to high to rescue the lost. As followers of Jesus do we have that same mindset? Do we see that part of our growth as a Christ follower is that we would set out to seek that which was lost so that we might invite them to come home to the Father? Shouldn't that reality be a huge part of how we measure growth? Shouldn't we be looking at how we're going out into the world seeking the lost? Shouldn't we value boots on the ground as much or more than butts in the seats?

"We Should Be Just As Concerned With Filling The Field

As We Are With Filling The Room."

Jesus told His disciples that the field was ready for harvest. That wasn't the problem. The problem is that there weren't enough people willing to go into the field. Things haven't changed. The Gospel is still powerful, still life changing. People are still lost in sin & held captive by the things of this world, & the Gospel is the only thing that will set them free. The issue isn't our message. The issue is that not enough of us are in the field. There aren't enough of us filling the field of our community, our school, our workplace, or the field that extends to the ends of the earth. Filling the room is actually kind of easy, at least easier than filling the field, but it's filling the field that changes lives & give us even more to celebrate the next time we gather to fill up the room. Filling the field actually makes filling the room more meaningful. Are you out in the field or are you content with just being in the room once a week? Does your congregation value filling the field the way they value filling the room?

The Gospel Isn't An Appetizer

Most of us have a terrible problem with our faith. It's something that we all tend to drift toward if we're not really careful. In fact, Martin Luther called it our "default mode". Even 500 years ago, Luther understood that it's as if our hearts come with a factory setting that we will constantly be tempted to go back to in our relationship with God. That default mode is religion, the pursuit of a right standing with God based on our own hard work & goodness (which is just a toned down, less offensive word for self-righteousness).

So how does this work? Typically it goes something like this. Somehow we recognize our sin. We may be like the younger son in Jesus' Parable of the Lost Son, & we've rebelled & chased after all the stuff this world promises only find a bunch of broken promises. Through the Gospel, we're humbled, & we return to God repentant & looking for restoration in Jesus. Or maybe we're the older, morally upright brother. We've been working really hard to do the right thing & be a good person, but at some point the Gospel reveals the futility & emptiness that lurks at the end of that road as well. So we stop trying to slave away for God hoping to earn a place in His family, & instead we embrace that through faith in Christ we are His child. In an instant our sins are washed away, & we're justified before God through Jesus.

Then it begins to happen. And it usually doesn't take very long. We begin to drift toward the default mode of hard work, self motivated moral goodness, & religious goodness. We begin to measure our growth by how hard we try or by pointing out "those things" that others do that we don't. Starts sounding strangely like the religious, yet lost condition that some of us were rescued out of, doesn't it? In fact, for many of us it becomes so extreme that we begin to act as if our relationship with God is reliant on how good we are. Somewhere along the way we think we outgrow the Gospel. Sure, the Gospel is what saves us, but it's our hard work that keep us saved.

"It's Time For Us To Stop Viewing Our Justification As An Extension 

Of Our Sanctification & Start Viewing Our Sanctification 

As An Extension Of Our Justification."

What do I mean by that? Well answer this question? What saved you? Your hard work or the power of the Gospel? Well if the Gospel is the only thing that saved you & brought you into the family of God, why would you think that all of a sudden you can grow & become more like Christ in your own strength & goodness. Instead of outgrowing the Gospel, we need to be camp out in the Gospel. If you're trying to become more generous, it doesn't happen by just trying hard or by beating yourself up for being greedy. You & I become more generous by constantly meditating on the Gospel that reminds us of the generosity of God revealed in Jesus. When we walk with a constant awareness of how sacrificially generous Jesus was on our behalf, becoming more generous with something as trivial as our stuff will start to become second nature. The same is true in our marriages. We don't become better husbands or wives by working harder. We grow by constantly reflecting on the incredible love of Christ toward us & His submission to the Father's will. As we see the lengths Jesus was willing to go to for us, we'll become more loving toward one another & sensitive to each other's needs.

The Gospel isn't the appetizer to your relationship with God. It's not something that gets you started. It's the appetizer, soup, main course, & dessert! Tim Keller says it this way, "The Gospel then isn't the ABCs of the Christian faith. It's the A to Z of the faith." If you think you've grown to the point of moving on from the crucified & resurrected Jesus, then you might want to think about what exactly it is that you are growing. So stop snacking on the Gospel, & feast on the glorious depth & riches that it holds for us as we not only come into the family of God but as we grow as His children.

5 Things That Make Anyone A Better Communicator

If you have some responsibility of communicating to a group of people on a regular basis you know the pressure that comes to have something to say. You want it to be fresh, inspiring, challenging, maybe even life changing for someone. However, if you teach every week, preach every week, or give presentations every week, you know it can be difficult to muster both the energy & the content to bring compelling, helpful messages that your audience walk away from knowing something new & knowing what to do with it.

With that in mind, I want to offer five very simply, very practical things that anybody can do to stay on top of their speaking/teaching/preaching schedule. These are simple things that I do all the time that have helped me grow as a communicator. By no means am I some kind of preaching & teaching guru, but I do want to pass along things I've learned over the years so that other teachers, preachers, & communicators can grow as well. Putting these things into practice won't insure that every message or every presentation is a home run, but it will insure that you have fewer swings & misses. 

1) Spend At Least A Little Time In It Every Day

This is one place where the seeds for future ideas come from. Whether this happens in your personal study or in your study time specifically for future message prep, let your daily time in God's Word be a springboard for what God might want to say to others. Looking at your upcoming messages or their texts some everyday also helps you let go of your notes so that you're more connected to your audience.

2) Listen, Listen, Listen

Let's face it, podcasts are the new commentaries, especially when looking for help applying. Listen to super practical preachers & super doctrinal communicators. If you tend to lean toward the doctrinal, textual side, you need help making it practical. Listen to pastors who ask the questions that lead us to wrestle with the text. It will help you not only teach your audience but teach them what to do with it. On the other hand, if you're the person who always wants to wrestle with "what does this mean for real life", you may need to listen to the communicators who help you connect on a deeper level to the timelessness of God's Word.

Listen to great communicators outside your field. A great resource that's out there are the endless supply of Ted Talks. While the presenters may have very little in common with you, they're a resource for you. After all, if someone can give an 18 minute talk about economics & make it somewhat interesting & compelling, you need to figure out what they did as a communicator to make you feel that way about their topic because there are probably people in your meetings, classes, or congregations each week who walk into the room with the same attitude toward whatever you're talking about.

3) Read, Read, Read

Read stuff that makes you think. One way to do that is to read stuff that you might not normally read. Perhaps the author comes from a different background, tribe, or denomination than you. That doesn't mean you can't learn something from them. Don't simply consume material that you know will agree with before you read page 1. Also, read old stuff. If you don't have dead folks in your library, you're missing out on centuries of wisdom. At the same time, read the latest & greatest. There are some incredible men & women producing great work. However, don't assume that what's new is what's better. There's a reason some things are called "classics." To ignore the classics is silly. So go buy some C.S. Lewis, Charles Spurgeon, or Martin Luther while also checking the latest from Matt Chandler or Steven Furtick.

4) Stay Ahead Of The Calendar

Working only on this week's message this week almost insures that it won't be your best. If you're a preacher or teacher or utilizes series based approach, this is almost a necessity. After all, doesn't a series build on itself? That means part 1 & part 4 of a series are connected. You have to know where you're going & how you're getting there. Each message is a whole while also being a part of a bigger message. So if you're only tackling things a week at a time, you're not maximizing your potential impact with your messages. One thing I try to do is to be finishing my next series while I'm preaching my current series. I may have already put outlines together for a series or two down the road but both my current series & my next series are done & ready to go.

If you're not already doing this, you need to map out your year. There are some things that you need to communicate regularly. In my context as a pastor, I know that every year I'm going to tackle issues like biblical stewardship, mission, family issues, not to mention Christmas & Easter. I also like to do a summer series that's usually through an entire book of Scripture. By getting some of those on the calendar as early as possible, I have some idea of where I'm headed. Staying that far ahead also frees you up to handle other responsibilities you might have or to be able to adjust on the fly. People I've talked to who are only going week to week feel such immense pressure that they can't adjust what they're doing. My experience has been greater preparation tends to make me more able to adjust to God's leading should He change my topic for the week.

5) Be You

Everyone is influenced by what they hear, but don't try to be Andy Stanley, Tim Keller, John Piper, or anyone else. God wouldn't have called you if He just wanted a copy of those guys. Plus they're better at being them than you ever will be. Whatever your voice is embrace it. Don't be a parrot of someone else, & don't be a puppet for others. There will always be someone who thinks you should be more "fill in the blank". However, if you're not a screamer, don't try to force it, but if that is who you are, embrace it. God called you & equipped you so that through you, He could be magnified. He doesn't need another version of your favorite communicator. He needs a faithful you. Learn from your influences. Incorporate things you see in them, but don't try to be them. 

These five simple practices are something any of us can do, & as you put them into practice, you'll begin to see the benefits & fruit from it. Don't get caught up in the seemingly endless treadmill of being a regular communicator. Get ahead of the pressure by working harder & smarter. When you do, not only will you benefit & grow from it. Those you lead & teach will as well.

Good Kid, Bad Kid

We just started a new message series at Zebulon Baptist Church called Prodigal. The thing about Jesus' "Parable of the Prodigal Son" is that most of us have heard it (or some version of it) so many times that it's kind of gotten stale. Let's face it, if you were reading through the Gospel of Luke, when you got to chapter 15, you'd at least be tempted to think, "I know this story inside & out, so I'll just skim through to get to chapter 16." It's totally natural. It's why movies that we've seen over & over begin to lose their punch & books that we've read over & over begin to lose their appeal. Familiarity may not always breed contempt, but it does lead us to a "been there, done that" attitude, even about the Bible.

The problem with that mindset is that we end up missing out on the depth that is present in so much of God's word, but especially in this parable. After all, most of us think that the parable is about a punk bratty kid who demands his inheritance, blows it on a wild lifestyle, humbly returns home, & is greeted by a forgiving father who restores him to the family. That's almost always the way this parable is portrayed both in the church & in pop culture. However, when you dig beneath the surface, you'll start to realize that his part of the story isn't even the point. The part of the story we've romanticized is basically a vehicle Jesus uses to get to the real point. The real point Jesus is trying to make is centered around the older brother who stayed home, not the younger brother who ran away.

Take some time this week to go back & read this parable in Luke 15. When you really read it, you discover that these brothers aren't that different. Neither of them were interested in their father. They wanted their inheritance, but they didn't want their father. The younger son simply was open & honest about it. The older brother, on the other hand, was much more subtle & manipulative. He didn't dare ask for his inheritance early. Instead he would simply hang around, do what he was supposed to do, so that he could eventually get the pay off. In the end all either of the brothers wanted was the payoff. You see it in the older brother when he scolds his father for welcoming his brother home. After all, the younger son is the bad kid; he doesn't deserve all the fuss, but he, the older brother, was the good kid. He did everything he was supposed to do. He "slaved away". Therefore he deserved good things. 

At the end of the story, the son who is "lost" isn't the bad kid who came back home. It's the older son who never left, but who assumed that his good, obedient behavior put the father in his debt. Jesus had a powerful spiritual truth He desperately wanted His audience of "sinners, tax collectors, & Pharisees" to understand.

"You Can Be Just As Lost In Your Goodness

As You Can In Your Badness."

Look at this way: Both of these brothers were trying to make their own way in the world. The younger son was going to make his way by rebelling against his father, wishing him dead, & taking his portion of the inheritance so that he could make his own way. The older son, although he stayed home & did everything he was supposed to do, was still trying to make his own way. He viewed his relationship with the father as a slave/master relationship. "I do A, B, & C for you, therefore, you need to do X, Y, & Z for me." In the end the older son was trying to secure his own way in the world. 

Spiritually, most everyone does the same thing. Many of us run away from God, tell Him we don't want to have anything to do with Him (unless an emergency pops up), & set out to live our own life by our own standards. Then there's the rest of us. We're religious. We embrace traditional, Judeo-Christian morals & try to be "good people." And somehow we think that the pursuit of being good people puts God in a position of debt toward us. We've been good. Therefore, God has to bless us, & ultimately God has to forgive us for those few times we weren't good people. All that is is another attempt to make our own way in life. We've just chosen a moralistic path, but we've never submitted ourselves to our Heavenly Father. In the end, both paths are dead ends. Whether you're a wild child or the good child, if you reject the Father, He has no choice but to reject you as well. That's why self-righteousness is so dangerous. It subtly leads us to believe we're in a right relationship with our Father, but the truth is that we're trying to manipulate Him. When we think that practicing our religion or good morals somehow puts God in debt to us, it only blinds us to our own debt to Him.

Who are you in the story of two lost sons? Are you the good kid or the bad kid? How have you tried to make your own way or manipulate God? Here's the good news: our Heavenly Father is the same loving, gracious, pursuing father we see in the parable. He graciously welcomed the rebel back home while also pursuing the self-righteous son to finally embrace their relationship as father & son rather than thinking he somehow had to work for the father's love & blessings.