Grace

Nothing too exciting going on lately. Just been thinking alot lately about Grace. I've never been one to extend myself a lot of grace, or to too many people for that matter. It's just something that I've never been good at I guess. It's the hardest on myself though, I just don't extend myself grace I assume because I just expect better out of myself.

I heard this like micro-message on the radio about being able to lie int he sufficiency of God's grace and it hit me. If God can forgive me, than why can't I?? I mean it's like they said last night, David was the man after God's own heart and he committed murder and adultery, yet when Christ entered the gates of Jerusalem on Palm Sunday he was called the Son of David. God's grace was enough for David to still be remembered as someone that was important in the salvation history of the world. If it was enough for him, than why can't I seem to get that it's MORE than enough for me??

Just a weird concept to me I guess. I'm hard on myself, but i need to forgive myself too.

So moral of the Story. His grace is far more than I need, and I need to accept it.

Politically Correct

I was thinking the other day about the fact that we're required to be "Politically Correct" almost all the time. In stores you have to say Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas now, because that person might not celebrate Christmas. There's other things too, especially within the church that we have to be politically correct about otherwise we bet blow back.

For example, we often hear in our world today that it's soon going to be illegal to speak against Gay marriage and that it'll be a hate crime. That's a bunch of Crap. Or how in churches some of the taboo or difficult topics don't get talked about because it's just not politically correct. It's big in the emergent church to not make a finalized Decision on something that affects someone's life. Church leaders like Rob Bell won't speak out against living together before you're married all too often and instead can almost be in support of it. (There's a part in his book Sex God that actually makes it seem like he's making excuses for those living and sleeping together within the church, from my perspective at least.) Or other emergent leaders, like Brian McLaren certainly won't speak against the Homosexual lifestyle.

It's just beginning to bother me that we're so worried about being politically correct, and it seems we're not worried enough about being Biblically correct on the same topics. The Bible is clear, Homosexuality is a sin, being drunk is a sin, pre-marital sex is a sin, the bible is clear it's either a sin or it's not, there's no ifs ands or buts about it. It's cut and dry no half way, no part sin, it's sin or it's not. Paul wasn't politically correct at all in his beleifs or his teachings, so much so that he was stoned once and another time had an entire town out for his head. Jesus wasn't all that politically correct either, he washed his disciples feet, he brought children into his arms over adults, he had a bunch of young untrained guys as his Apostles. He spoke against the pharisees and priests of that day, he said that He was God, he turned over the seller's tables in the temple, and he hung out with crooks, prostitutes, and liars. What about that is Politically correct for a rabbai exactly?

He was biblically correct however, Granted his teachers fill the second half so it's easier for him cause they're his ideas but w/e. He HATED sin but LOVED the sinner, he put service first and self-service last. He aided the outcast of the world, spoke true words, and was not intentionally offensive, unless of course the message he preached was. He was Biblically correct all the time, and Politically correct rarely. We say we want to be like Jesus but don't want to offend anyone, I'm all for that. I'm not going to go up and offend somone directly or intentionally, but if the Gospel is Offensive to them, then o well. It's a fine line between being mean and committing a sin and being truthful. It's going to hurt somone, I mean being told clearly that Homosexual lifestyle is a sin is going to offend someone but so be it, it's the truth. Speaking against drug and alchohol abuse isn't popular but it needs to be done. Speaking out and speaking UP against pre-marital sex isn't popular but it's what Christ did, it's what Paul did, it's what the Bible Does!

We're so worried about offending people because they might leave our churches or our schools, if I preach the Bible with a sencerity in my heart, and Love in my heart, and they feel offended that I know it was the Bible that offended them not me, and I'm okay with that. Love is the key word. I can't be biblically correct if I don't preach and teach with Love. But there's just things we can't be both biblically correct and politically correct on.

I don't know about you, but 100% of the time I hope I choose Biblically correct over Politically correct, after all that's what I believe our Saviour did even up to the point where He died so that we may live.

Thoughts?

On Fire

I saw this quote last night as I was walking through one of the buildings and I instantly thought about putting it up here so here goes

"On Fire: One can live at a lower flame. Mose Do. For some, life is an exercise in moderation but given something like death, what does it matter if one looks foolish, tries too hard, or cares to deeply."-- Diane Ackerman, The Sun

Just something to Chew on for a while.