This Labor Day, watch “A Rush of Hope”

It’s hard to believe that this coming weekend will mark the “end” of summer 2020. 

Well, at least officially on the calendar. 

For those of us who live in Texas, the end of summer is usually sometime around Halloween! 

So, with another unusual holiday approaching, I want to suggest a great addition to your Labor Day weekend.

A rush of hope 

Greg Laurie has been involved in ministry for more than forty years. He has brought a message of hope through his teaching, radio program, writing, films, and stadium events. In many ways, I would say he is the national “revival preacher” for these times. 

Each summer, he has hosted huge stadium events where he was able to encourage Christians to live for Christ—and then 2020 happened. 

Everyone has needed to make adjustments this year, and Harvest of Hope, Laurie’s ministry, did as well. I would like to encourage all of us to include his message and ministry into our Labor Day weekend. 

A Rush of Hope is a streamed tent-revival, stadium-type event for 2020. 

You can be part of a large crowd, praying, worshiping, and enjoying the fellowship of others, safely. 

I plan to be part of this unique and inspired experience, and I wanted you all to know about it. 

We need revival and awakening 

I was taping my Bible study lessons last week when I heard myself say something I hadn’t planned to say. As a teacher, that is always a “moment” for me. 

I said something like, “Could this year be a warning shot across the bow?” 

I have no doubt that God is at work during these days, waking up his people to fulfill his purpose. Evangelism has too often been placed toward the bottom of our list of priorities when it is God’s highest purpose for our lives. 

The last earthly message Jesus spoke to his disciples was: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). 

Then Jesus ascended to heaven and later returned, to everyone who received his Holy Spirit. Christians are the continued ministry of Christ in our world. We are his witnesses. 

Has it been a while since you prayed with someone to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior? 

Do your life and ministry need to be “revived” and “awakened” to your chief purpose as a Christian? 

Has 2020 been a “warning shot” from the Lord to remind us that every life has a beginning and an end? 

As Christians, we have the spiritual power to help people know how to spend eternity with their Creator. Are we using the power of God’s Holy Spirit to serve his highest priority?

The purpose of the plague 

I’ve thought a lot about the “plague” that has literally impacted the world. It has been a first in my lifetime, and I’m not that young! 

I’ve taught the Bible for almost thirty years, and the plagues seemed like an Old Testament concept. And then 2020 happened. 

I knew the Old Testament examples but wondered if there were a New Testament precedent for COVID-19. 

I landed on these verses in Hebrews 13. I think they offer a biblical perspective for these unusual days. The theme of the book of Hebrews is the absolute sovereignty of God, through Jesus, to provide the salvation every person needs. The audience was primarily Jewish Christians who had begun to turn back to their old ways, their Jewish beliefs. 

Have Christians been turning back today? 

Are we more like our “old self” or are we living as “born-again” people with eternal priorities? 

Does this plague exist to remind us that every person we see is either alive in Christ or destined for an eternity apart from him? 

A 2020 revival 

The book of Hebrews tells us what to do when we start slipping back into our old ways of thinking. 

Hebrews 13:7–8 says, “Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” 

A friend told me that Billy Graham once told Greg Laurie his ministry was a continuation of the revivals and crusades of the past. 

I need that. Do you? 

As I read the words in Hebrews 13:7–8, I was reminded of all the examples God has given me in my lifetime, people who have called me, by their example, to live closer to God and to “labor” for his higher purposes. I want to reach heaven’s gate having “imitated” their faith and lived their way of life. 

At the end of summer 2020, don’t you feel the need to have your spirit revived and your life restored to powerful, Spirit-driven priorities? 

Join the revival 

A Rush of Hope will be great music, great preaching, and a great way to end our summer of 2020. 

Things are opening up, and we are slowly returning to the way things were. But, things can be better than they would have been if 2020 had not happened. 

This year has reminded all of us that every life has a beginning and an end. And I believe this year has been a “warning shot” to God’s people. We are his children, tasked with the important call to “make disciples” in this world. If that were the only thing God had asked of us, could you face him with confidence when you arrive in heaven? 

It isn’t the only thing, but evangelism is our highest calling. 

Join me and a host of others this weekend for A Rush of Hope. 

Pray that God will use this weekend as a time to revive his people and reach thousands upon thousands who need to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior. 

“I Can Only Imagine” 

Mercy Me has created some of my favorite Christian music, and the band is part of A Rush of Hope. The movie I Can Only Imagine was produced by the same group that produced this revival. 

I can’t help but think of the song that shares the same title as the movie. I am picturing Christians from across the country watching A Rush of Hope. There will be a crowd included in this revival crusade that no earthly stadium could ever hold. 

It’s a snapshot of that day when heaven will hold the crowd of people that Jesus has brought home to his Father. 

I can only imagine. 

Use this link—https://harvest.org/a-rush-of-hope—to join the crowd this weekend. 

And pray today that it will be a time of great revival among God’s people. 

Are today’s Christians self-censoring?

I had a wonderful “blog break” and I’m glad to be back. 

It is a healthy choice to turn off the world for a while and think about other things. One of my favorite things about this COVID season is the chance to step away from the busy and enjoy the boredom. A quiet mind is a good thing. 

But, a quiet mouth might not be good, especially now. 

That is what prompted this week’s thoughts. 

Christians are self-censoring

The Cato Institute had a fascinating article that pointed out that 62 percent of Americans have political views they are “afraid to share.” More than 60 percent of conservative people are afraid to share their religious views, and that number increases to 77 percent if the person is over the age of sixty-five. Thirty-one percent of Democrats and 34 percent of Republicans are afraid they might lose their jobs if they voice their political opinion. 

The article stated, “Taking these results together indicates that a significant majority of Americans with diverse political views and backgrounds self-censor their political opinions.”  

I don’t write a “political” blog post to sway votes. So, why should that article matter? 

The line in the article that gave me pause and inspired this blog post said, “If people feel they cannot discuss these important policy matters, such views will not have an opportunity to be scrutinized, understood, or reformed.” 

If more than 60 percent of “conservatives” self-censor their political beliefs, doesn’t it stand to reason they are likely doing the same with their religious beliefs? 

When was the last time you heard a Christian speak about their faith at a dinner party? A PTA meeting? A staff meeting? A neighborhood party? 

Have we allowed our culture to define what is appropriate, or have Christians allowed God’s Spirit to do that? 

What does the Bible say about self-censoring our Christian witness? 

When is self-censoring a good idea? 

No one who knows me well wonders who I am going to vote for. 

In fact, most of you who read this blog can probably guess. 

But, you won’t read a blog post from me telling you to vote for a certain person. We are a ministry, and it is against the law for a 501(c)(3) to do that (a message a few preachers probably need to hear).  

Is that “self-censoring”? 

Absolutely. 

And it is the right thing to do for our ministry and for our readers. I will vote my values and you will too. That is your right as a citizen of the United States. 

But, what is the right thing to do as a citizen of heaven? 

God’s word about a self-censored witness 

There is a passage to ponder on the subject of self-censoring our Christian witness that I think is going to become increasingly important in the years ahead. 

Paul lived, worked, and composed his letters during a period of history when speaking up for his Christian faith could be costly. Eventually, speaking up cost Paul his life. But he wrote a passage in Romans that is an important word for Christians to memorize, believe, and act upon. 

In Romans 1, Paul said: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith’” (vv. 15–17).  

I would sum up Paul’s words by saying, “When the faithful self-censor our gospel witness, we give up the power to lead others to faith.” 

Are you ashamed of the gospel? 

The world wants us to feel ashamed if we say there is: 

  • only one way to enter heaven
  • only one true God
  • only one permissible and blessed sexual relationship
  • only one choice for an unborn life
  • only one gospel
  • only one holy Bible

Paul said, “I am not ashamed of the gospel.” 

Can we repeat his words of faith, with his conviction?  

The gospel is the “power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” 

I’m ashamed for those times I “self-censored” in order to feel appropriate to the culture. I’ve prayed for God’s forgiveness and asked him to give me another chance—or, more likely, give another witness that blessing. If we withhold the gospel, we withhold God’s power for salvation from those who need to believe. 

We have all self-censored our faith when we were made to feel uncomfortable. We have all avoided situations when we knew our faith would be challenged. We are often made to feel “ashamed of the gospel.” 

It’s safe to say it isn’t God’s Spirit causing us to feel that way. 

When should Christians self-censor? 

There is a verse for guidance that is too often used as a verse for avoidance. But, there are times when a Christian should self-censor. Peter wrote, “In your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15).  

We are called to defend the gospel, not offend by using the gospel. 

We should never share God’s truth unless we have first taken the time to honor Christ as the Lord of our lives, our attitudes, and, most especially, our words. 

We are to live faithfully prepared to share the gospel through the power of God’s Holy Spirit. If we use it like a weapon, with any motivation other than gentleness and respect, we are usurping God’s power and using our own.  

The gospel, shared by a Spirit-led Christian, is the power of God for salvation. 

We share our faith because we care what others think, not because we don’t. 

What should we self-censor? 

Should we “self-censor” our politics? Sometimes.  

Should we “self-censor” our faith? Rarely.  

Should we live as “God-censored” believers? Always. 

God told Hosea, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). 

Paul wrote, “The gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” 

Never be ashamed that you know the truth and want to share it with others. We speak up because we care.  

Our culture needs to know God, and Christians have the power to help. 

Will you pray for the opportunity?

Christian-ish

A friend called me this week with a few questions about a Bible study app that she and her child were doing together. It is popular and very well done. But, there were a few flags in terms of what was taught, or rather, what was not taught. She just had a bit of a catch about some points of theology that were omitted rather than addressed.

There are some popular television shows called Black-ish and Mixed-ish. Truthfully, I’ve not seen either one, but I understand the premise has to do with children who are not fully one race or another and the cultural issues they have with their identity. 

I think Christians have some issues in our culture as well. It is less common to take firm positions on theology today because we feel the need to blend well with our culture. 

Christian-ish seems to describe a lot of God’s people today. 

Confident or Christian-ish?  

It’s difficult for people to navigate their faith in a world where the “correct” position is often an “ishy” position. In other words, it’s not fully the truth, but it’s not untruthful either.  

Is it a good idea to position ourselves as people who are confidently Christian, or is Christian-ish a better way? Do we catch more flies with honey than vinegar? 

Yes, if you want to catch insects. 

But what if the game is baseball? 

An outfielder is supposed to catch flies as well, but honey and vinegar have nothing to do with his job. So, the right answer involves understanding which game we are playing. We need to figure out if we ought to be catching bugs or baseballs. 

The flies-and-honey saying is about popularity. We will catch more insects if we put together a mixture that sweetens the truth just a bit. So, we edit the Bible stories with a happier ending and leave out some of the tougher parts. We teach that God loves everyone, which is true, but we might choose to omit the Bible verses that point out the fact that God will judge everyone as well. 

The problem is, bugs are pretty easy to squish. Faith based on partial truth might not hold up well under pressure. 

The “flies” in baseball are really a better analogy for evangelism. 

An outfielder knows that, if he drops the ball, it might cost a bunch of people the win. There isn’t a very large margin for error. An outfielder needs to know the entire field to do his job. There are other players, walls, wind, and the glare of the sun that have to be factored in. The whole truth of Scripture isn’t as easy to present or accept—but understanding the game and learning to play it well makes all the difference. 

Catching baseballs requires a lot more effort than catching bugs, but baseballs are almost impossible to squish.  

Christian-ish is a blended faith 

The word Christian-ish describes a person who wants to blend the rules of their faith with other things. 

It is easy to want to be Christian-ish because that kind of faith doesn’t usually offend, and we are less likely to be called narrow-minded. 

But, Christian-ish isn’t a pure faith. 

Most importantly, Christian-ish is not an option the Bible can support. 

Truth-ish isn’t an option. 

Psalm 119:160 says, “The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.” 

Rewriting the rules of Scripture to try to make them “sweeter sounding” is not effective evangelism. God’s rules are “righteous,” and it is the sum total of Scripture that is the whole truth. 

Paul told the early Christians in Ephesus “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ” (Ephesians 4:15). 

Christian-ish might suggest we blend biblical truth with what the culture believes is true. Paul taught the early church not to alter the truth because our faith needs to “grow up in every way.” We can’t soften the truth so Paul said we needed to soften our delivery of the truth. 

We need to speak God’s word motivated by his love.  

The Mixed-ish Samaritans 

Jesus traveled through Samaria one day and stopped to get water at Jacob’s well. 

The Samaritans were considered “mixed-ish” in Jesus’ day. Many were both Jew and Gentile, genetically and spiritually. 

The woman was surprised when Jesus spoke to her. John 4:9 says, “For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.” But, Jesus wasn’t interested in the woman’s “genetics.” He was interested in her soul. 

So he led her to understand the truth about her identity with God, which had nothing to do with cultural perceptions. He told her that he wanted to give her and her family the water that would “become in [them] a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14). 

Jesus then told the Samaritan woman, “The hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him” (John 4:23). 

I think Jesus would tell our Christian-ish culture the exact same thing. 

Pure truth in worship 

God is looking for true worshippers who will worship in spirit and truth. 

Are we worshipping the God of the universe or a version of God that seems more acceptable to people? 

Do we worship as we are directed by others or as we are led by the Holy Spirit within? 

Are we learning truth or a “sweetened” version of the truth? 

Going forward, we will all need to listen to what is said, and especially to what is not said, to determine if we are receiving a message that is Christian or Christian-ish. We might need to take every message back to God’s word to decide if it was true or “kinda” true.  

And, when we want to share God’s word with others, we will need to share the pure truth, with pure love. We want to bring people to heaven who have matured into strong, “unsquishable” believers.  

Playing the right game matters 

Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). 

The game is not about catching insects with sweeter words; it’s about catching baseballs with truth and talent. 

And playing the right game matters eternally. 

Christian-ish seems like a sweeter, more popular way to evangelize, but it’s a game played on the wrong field. And “no one comes to the Father” through partial truth. His word is “the truth” that leads to “the life.”  

Let’s all make sure we are trying to catch the right “flies” today using the right methods. 

The game is clear—and the final score matters forever.

God’s Grading System

I just finished a great book by Larry Osborne titled Mission Creep: The Five Subtle Shifts That Sabotage Evangelism & Discipleship.

I marked that book up! It is underlined, starred, and, in several spots, I just wrote “WOW” or “Yes.” (I’m lending my copy to a friend, so I didn’t write “oops” and “uh-oh” by the truths I fall short of.)

That book said so many things I have believed, taught, written about, or debated—and often not lived up to myself. It’s good to read a book that resonates with your spirit and important to read books that insist Christians aim at the right target.

Here’s one startling truth I learned: God gives every Christian an A but wants us to work for an F.

Yes, you read that correctly.

What kind of student were you?

Did you look forward to report card day, or did you dread it?

If you’re like me, you probably did a little of both.

Grades matter, but only if they help us know how to improve. As a schoolteacher, I sometimes had to give a lower grade than I wanted to. I always worried that a child would think This is who I am instead of This is who I should work to be. Sometimes I wanted to wrap my arms around a child and tell them how much that C in math didn’t matter.

The world’s standards of success

We got used to grades early in our lives, and most of us have carried the concept of a grading system since then. Our resumes were put into stacks. The A stack received interviews. The B stack might be considered for other jobs. The C stack got a nice form letter thanking them for applying. Everyone else’s resume went into the shredder.

The football team has an A team, a B team, and a bunch of benchwarmers who get a jersey but little playing time. There are corner offices and cubicles at the office. There are preferred accounts at the bank and those that get charged a monthly fee. There are neighborhoods with bars on the windows and others with guards at the gate.

And, if we aren’t careful, Christians grade other Christians with the world’s standards of success instead of God’s.

What does God’s grading system look like?

The great joy of our faith is also the great weakness.

All of us know that we earned an A grade the minute we professed our faith. But, a lot of Christians settle for the A when they should have been trying to earn a D. We have been aiming for the wrong grade. As a result, the numbers and commitment levels in our churches are declining.

  • A = acceptance. The minute you became a Christian, God gave you that A. Jesus said, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). But God has a different grading system than the world does. The next step is to earn the B.
  • B = biblical. Jesus said to obey “everything that I have commanded” (Matthew 28:20). Jesus used the word everything for a reason. Unless you believe every command of Scripture, you can’t earn the higher grade. All of us should want to get that C.
  • C = cooperative. God gave us his Holy Spirit so we could communicate, commiserate, and cooperate with God’s holy presence in our lives. The Holy Spirit will never contradict God’s biblical teaching. Jesus said we are baptized “in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). The Christian who earns a C is the Christian who walks with the power of God’s word, guided by his Spirit. That kind of spiritual journey earns us the next grade.
  • D = disciple. Jesus said to his disciples, “Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19). It isn’t difficult to know if you are earning that coveted D from God. Disciples make disciples. Who is going to heaven, closer to God, stronger in the Lord, or more committed to their calling because you are a disciple of Christ who makes disciples of others?
  • F = Finished. Of course, the highest grade any of us will ever earn is that F. All of us should wish for the moment we are able to bow our heads and echo Jesus saying, “It is finished,” meaning, “God, I did what you commissioned and gifted my life to accomplish. I have been your disciple.”

The problem with Christianity in America is that most people just want the A.

As a result, that is the grade most of us have settled for in our lives and in the lives of those around us. We interpret the Great Commission backward. We’ve become content with an A and acceptance is only the beginning.

Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:18–20).

The hope of failure

Jesus told us to work for the D because, one day, we will get handed an F. In God’s grading system, an F means we have passed with flying colors.

I wonder if that is what Jesus meant when he said, “So the last will be first, and the first will be last” (Matthew 20:16). I think it’s what God meant when he told Isaiah, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways” (Isaiah 55:8). We don’t think like God; therefore, we are content with that A.

But God is looking forward to handing us that F. Let’s make sure we have earned the D first. Make sure you are clawing your way to the bottom. That’s where you will find the other disciples at work: with Jesus.

“Well done, good and faithful servant” can be translated: “You earned the F!”