developing lifestyle worshipers

While attempting to answer the God Question in our day and time is truly difficult, it is not impossible. Religion attempts to address the God Question and provide a belief framework by which a person can live.

Religion may be defined simply as “the center of life that gives meaning.” Religion is a framework for life. Each religion attempts to answer the questions conflicting the soul of mankind and provide a structure for how one should live.

Many people love piecing together complex puzzles. The more pieces there are, the more complex the process. The number of pieces within a puzzle normally signifies what age person should attempt each one. As a child matures, his parents expect him to solve more complex puzzles with more smaller pieces.

Imagine attempting to put together a thousand piece puzzle. The pieces of this puzzle are small enough that each one does not immediately reveal its proper context. Now imagine attempting the puzzle without the aid of the puzzle box top.

Many people would quit at just the thought. The box top is essential to constructing a puzzle. From the box top, one receives clues that a green piece most likely belongs in the patch of grass in the painting or the white on blue is a piece of the cirrus clouds at the top. Without the box top, one is aimlessly guessing his way through one thousand pieces hoping to find something that goes together.

Religions attempt to provide a box top for life. The puzzle is not instantaneously solved, but an observing student knows where to begin. Piece by piece, the whole picture begins to take shape.

All the questions in the hearts of people throughout history could all be considered a piece in the puzzle. Why do bad things happen to good people? Who is considered a good person? How could a loving God allow natural disasters? Where does one go after death? Why does injustice exist for the oppressed and downtrodden people of the world?

These, and many more, are independent questions, but they are each pieces of the puzzle. Addressed independently, a person will go mad, but addressed as a whole, a picture emerges. Religions provide a framework from which to handle such questions. A religion’s theodicy (the problem of God’s and evil’s coexistence) has a lot to do with it’s soteriology (the beliefs concerning salvation).

Apart from the box top, one has difficulty constructing the whole picture, Without religion, one has difficulty making sense of all the elements of life.

Our C-Group had a great conversation about intentionality concerning sharing our faith last night.  Amanda and I continued to talk about it last night.  I thought I would share with you 2 evangelistic extremes that may not be the best models:

In college, I saw two extremes of the outreach.  The first extreme was the Holy Roller.  I went to a Christian college.  I saw plenty of these Holy Rollers.  Someone is a Holy Roller if he shares evangelistic information devoid of any love for the person.  He loves to proclaim pre-packaged spiritual presentations without any attention to the person to whom he is conversing.  He is the kind of person who can make snide, careless comments about the possibility of others’ eternal separation from God and not even blink an eye.  He has an arsenal of intense gospel tracts armed with flames, pitchforks, and demons (oh my!) ready to drop them off to every waiter accompanied with a lame tip.

The second extreme was the Silent Witness.  The Silent Witness seems to be an oxymoron, but those that hold to this evangelistic model do not think so.  This person honestly hopes that by just living a “good” Christian life, people will notice their uniqueness, and they will be questioned concerning “What’s different with you?”  Rarely, does this transaction take place.  But for the sake of not “turning anyone off,” the Silent Witnesses never get intentional about sharing their faith.

Somewhere in between these two dangerous models has to be a healthy medium.  If you really are concerned about another’s relationship with Jesus, then you must care about finding a balanced approach of being both intentional and relational.  In my experience, I believe that more people are Silent Witnesses than Holy Rollers.  In fact, many decided to go the silent route due to a bad experience with a Holy Roller.

Maybe here’s a healthy alternative:

4Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. 5Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. -Colossians 4:4-6

How do you think we can balance being intentional and being relational?

-Excerpt from Freshman 15

In my C-Group last night, we talked a lot about eternity, and we realized that we have misconceptions about heaven and hell.  I thought I would share some of what we talked about last night on heaven and then also talk about hell later this week.  We talked about if St. Peter is really at the gate, is there a waiting room between this life and heaven, are our loved ones omnipresent, and so much more.  Below is some of the characteristics of heaven:

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away” (Rev. 21:3-4).

Heaven’s Description

The pivotal element that makes heaven heaven is none other than the presence of God. Heaven’s identity centers on the presence of God. If that isn’t enough for you, then you really don’t grasp what this means. It’s the return to Eden. It’s the way things were meant to be before mankind sinned and messed up everything good God created. In the Garden of Eden, God walked side by side with Adam and Eve in perfect harmony. God dwelled with His people face to face. They could hear the sounds of His footsteps as majesty approached (Gen. 3:8). When sin entered, God banished them from the garden, and ever since, humanity has only experienced a fraction of the life that God offered us.

Heaven is Eden’s return. It is a chance to live in a place with no more hurt or suffering. You not only hear the sound of God walking towards you, but you are able to dwell with Him. No sin can separate you any longer.

Normally, people think of heaven as a place full of countless pleasures. Heaven is definitely better than anything that we could ever imagine. People also make statements concerning who they can’t wait to meet in heaven. Sometimes we mention questions we are ready to ask. But in our anticipation of the great benefits of heaven, we must never neglect the greatest prize of all – God Himself. The Psalmist stated, “Whom have I in heaven but You?” (Psalm 73:25). His declaration should be ours that our greatest anticipation of heaven is that we get to be near God and live with Him forever!

Due to God’s distinct presence, heaven will be filled with amazing benefits. First, all evil will be gone in heaven. The presence of the spotless Lamb of God means that all sin and evil will not be present. Second, we will obtain heavenly knowledge. All the questions and misunderstandings about God and His work will be clarified when we encounter God Himself (1 Cor. 13:9-12; 1 John 3:2). Third, heaven will be filled with unspeakable glory. As Millard J. Erikson writes, “It is likely that while John’s vision employs as metaphors those items which we think of as being most valuable and beautiful, the actual splendor of heaven far exceeds anything that we have yet experienced. There will be no need of sun or moon to illumine the new Jerusalem, for ‘The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp’ (Rev. 21:23; 22:5)” [Taken from Christian Theology, p. 1236].

Heaven’s Activity

While heaven is the final destination for believers, we will have heavenly activities. First, heaven is described as a place of rest (Heb. 3:11, 18; 4:9-11). Rest is more that pausing from work. Rest is truly experienced once someone has accomplished something of great importance. Heaven is a place where the implications of Christ’s work and our toils on the earth are finally fully realized. No more efforts required against our own flesh, against the influence of the world, and against Satan and his forces. We will not be lazy in heaven, but we will cease from the tiring work that consumed us in this life.

Secondly, heaven is characterized by worship. “After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting: ‘Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for true and just are his judgements’” (Rev. 19:1). When we worship on this side of eternity, we are practicing for a level of worship we cannot even begin to imagine.

Finally, heaven will also be full of community life. Scripture indicates a level of service in heaven. Not tiresome service, but willing hearts serving Jesus and each other. Heaven is a place of “perfected spirituality” as the saints encourage one another forever.

Whatever we imagine about heaven, it isn’t nearly enough.

For more info, check out Randy Alcorn’s Heaven or Millard J. Erickson’s Christian Theology.

Do you have any questions you would like to talk about concerning heaven?  Post them below.