Archive for the ‘Sin’ Category

Good People Go To Hell

Sunday, April 18th, 2010

If you could score it, I’d say many sensitive, socially concerned unbelievers do a lot more good on this earth than some Christians.

Unfortunately, good people go to hell.

Like me, do you wonder how nice people manage to care for the world without knowing Jesus and living in the power of the Holy Spirit?

I lose sight of the answer at times.

God isn’t going to zap an unbeliever who is about to lend a hand or start a great cause.

I’m learning to remember that goodness or righteousness should reflect a love of God, acknowledge that He’s at work in us and that He should be getting the glory.

When a caring person helps someone in need (i.e. pays for their groceries at a store), how can the giver’s heart align with the Lord’s if there isn’t a connection in the first place? How can he or she be grateful that God provided the opportunity to be His hands and His feet?

For my part, I’m just grateful that God allows me to be good. And sometimes I remember to reflect on what He’s allowed me to do.

If I’m good, God gets the credit. Positive things he accomplishes in me constantly clash with my sins.

John Piper, a noted Christian leader and author, goes a little deeper with this. He acknowledges that nice deeds by unbelievers reflect what God teaches us in Scripture. But the relationship with God is the missing part.

In one of his teachings, “Total Depravity,” Piper explains it this way:

“It is not done out of reliance on him or for his glory. He is not trusted for the resources, though he gives them all. Nor is his honor exalted, even though that’s his will in all things (1 Corinthians 10:31). Therefore even these ‘good’ acts are part of our rebellion and are not ‘good’ in the sense that really counts in the end—in relation to God.”

I think about a lot of verses – and put my life in perspective. In John 15, Jesus says we can’t really do anything without Him (I figure He’s talking about anything of His will that has merit or is rooted in love).

In Luke 18:19, Jesus tells the rich young ruler: “No one is good – except God alone.”

Travis Carden, a Christian, compiled the “Total Depravity Verse List.”

It’s not easy reading, but it’s the truth. Look at the references to sinners, disobedience, schemers, evil, wickedness, envy, deceit, pride, foolishness and many more.

Humanity benefits from unbelievers and Christians alike. I just need to remember more often that God should be the one who gets the credit.

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Do You Turn a Blind Eye to Sin Like Me?

Monday, April 5th, 2010

It’s kind of disturbing to think about how much I sin each day - what I think about, say, do, don’t do, etc.

I wish sin just meant things like stealing, killing, using the Lord’s name in vain. How often do we think of sin as the times we don’t pray, read the Bible, or serve?

For years I’ve been encouraged by a Steve Green song called “I Repent.”

The lyrics cover sin in a sweeping way: “… I regret the hours I have wasted and the pleasures I have tasted that you were never in.”

How often do you sin and think about your sins? Confess them? Turn away from them?

Before his song, Green offers a personal reflection on Sparrow Records’ “Listen to Our Hearts Volume 2″ CD. He discusses how he came to terms with the huge gap between a perfect Lord and the wretchedness of his sin.  Green shares that he realized his attention shouldn’t be on all of the sins he needs to avoid. Instead, he decided to focus on Jesus to deal with those sins. “What I really need is a renewed love of Christ. The effect of that renewed love is the driving away of false affections and wrong desires.”

I grow weary of trying to conquer my sins. I’m glad the Holy Spirit helps me be mindful of them. But I want to find myself adopting Green’s attitude – to love Jesus more fully, to lean on Him and to learn from Him.

How do you regard sin? How are you coping?

Like me, do you fail to own up to your sins? Do you also struggle with them in your own strength rather than fall deeper in love with Jesus?

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God’s Creations Deserve Dignity Even When They Can’t Sing Like Susan Boyle

Thursday, April 23rd, 2009

“God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”
- Genesis 1:27

Shame on me for doing a double take when I saw the extraordinary Susan Boyle who performed on Britain’s Got Talent TV show.

By now, you’ve seen the video.

Her instant fame gave me pause about my initial reaction and how we regard or write off some people.

For a second, I thought she might be a man because of her appearance – the face, hairstyle and the bushy eyebrows. And then I thought she might just be another self-deceived, undiscovered “talent” who would simply elicit laughter. Instead, the judges and the audience stopped giggling and offered applause (most honored her with a standing ovation).

I wonder how we feel about unusual or unsightly people. Do we turn away and just ignore them? Do we figure they will merely stay home or hold jobs out of public view?

Society is full of rejects, crippled people and human beings of all ages with deformities we wouldn’t wish on anyone.

The Susan Boyles of the world remind me of the Hermey the Misfit Elf in “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” He simply aspired to be a dentist rather than a toymaker.

Unemployed and not married at 47, Susan Boyle just wanted a chance to sing. I can’t imagine the ridicule she has faced over her lifetime. TV’s Larry King asked Susan if she was going to do anything about her appearance. Since he’s a media personality, I couldn’t blame him. People do wonder. Susan told him she has no plans to change.

Sometimes people do alter their looks, just like Elliott Yamin of American Idol fame did with his teeth.

When we see someone with a defect, we’d like to think we don’t jeer. But if we’re honest, we did judge Susan Boyle.

Hopefully most of the time we’re busy helping the blind, mentally retarded, deaf, etc.

What if the cashier has an ugly growth – maybe even a tumor hanging off their face? Will we wait longer in a different checkout aisle? You may have heard of neurofibromatosis, better known as Elephant Man disease.

We all matter to God:

“You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”
- Psalm 139:13-14

Every person deserves their dignity – even the ones who can’t sing but somehow believe they’re destined for stardom. I’m glad Susan got her moment; I’d buy a ticket in a heartbeat. Her moxie and confidence stand out as well (I loved it when she wiggled her hips).

We’re all imperfect in one sense of another – spiritually and physically. I’m sometimes ill-tempered and I have a deformed right ankle that works fine even though it’s considerably larger than the norm.

On the spiritual side, my sins have been forgiven by Jesus who hung on a cross for me 2,000 years ago. And while I too often neglect Him and His power, I know Him and turn to Him.

As for this body of mine, it’s just temporary. Someday I’ll be in heaven – maybe even with Susan. Together, we can sing in perfect harmony.

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Oops – New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer May Love Being With Hookers

Tuesday, March 11th, 2008

The news media is having a field day with New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer who may have been involved in a prostitution ring. It’s a pertinent news story given how he has come down hard on prostitition in the past. In fact, Spitzer is known for crusading against all sorts of crime.

But there he was yesterday – with his wife at his side – talking about a personal indiscretion. Hmmm. Wonder what that might be?

I felt bad for his wife, Silda. I respect her choice to stand by her man. Any temptation to be critical of her should be supressed.

A man, especially a married man, should keep his private parts to himself. Sometimes, I guess men sleep with hookers because they’re tired or lonely. They don’t necessarily walk away with incurable diseases.

But some people – I guess it’s too soon to say Spitzer – think they’re above the law. Or, they deal with stress in unusual ways. But when we sin, we need to own up to it.

I guess he hasn’t resigned (not because he didn’t do anything bad) because he’s waiting to cut a deal. I can’t blame him. But give it a few days. Why drag it on and continue to embarrass his wife? It’s like knocking a kid against a wall and showing up to chair a PTA meeting the same night even if everyone learns about the abuse.

If he did it – hired a prostitute and made arrangments to get her to cross state lines – he needs to go public with his admission, resign and move on to something better. I hope he’ll go on TV shows and maybe even write a book about his horrific lapse or lapses. Talk to young people about sexual responsibility, commitment, vows, crime, forgiveness.

Be human.

When someone that public goes that wrong, the public can benefit from the way he presents himself in the aftermath.

Sin can be forgiven through a relationship with Jesus, but sin has consequences.

I’m eager to see how he deals with his mess and confronts the public. We deserve to see him do something good with something so foolish – if he did anything at all. In his next news conference maybe he could be more honest. And maybe he’ll be a man and stand alone while his wife holds hands and welcomes hugs from friends – away from the cameras.

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Alcohol and Christianity

Saturday, December 1st, 2007

It’s OK to drink alcohol if you’re Christian and if you aren’t a believer in Christ.

I know many Christians disagree with this – that Jesus doesn’t want people getting drunk. And others say it’s better to avoid booze just because – kind of like you avoid the sin of being drunk just by not drinking in the first place. The same thinking comes from people who don’t think boys and girls should dance together because someone may get romantic. Or, they don’t want boys and girls to swim in the same lake because those bathing suits (or skin) may arouse someone.

Anyway, I drink now and then because I have a few drinks that I like. I don’t get drunk and drive home or kill people. In fact, plenty of references in the Bible (Old and New Testaments) talk about parties and drinking. In other words, it’s not necessarily a bad thing. But God clearly teaches against excess.

Here’s a twist: As Christians, we may want to consider not drinking if our behavior causes someone else to stumble. In other words, if your drinking makes someone else think drinking is OK for them (when it may not be for any number of reasons), maybe you shouldn’t drink either. Or, maybe you shouldn’t drink simply because someone else watching your Christian witness may be turned off because they see you with some hard liquor.

Stuff to think about, stuff that has little to do with whether you’re a friend of Jesus. Pride is a more serious issue.

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Racism and Heaven

Thursday, November 22nd, 2007

“She rides pretty good for a black girl,” the teen-ager told me one day.

I was glad in a sense that my son heard the comment in 2007 about a young girl’s skateboarding ability. It demonstrated how he should never act and revealed a bad streak in his otherwise jovial friend.

Whether that was racisim or just an ignorant remark by a teen who hangs out with black friends, the truth is that pure-bred racism can lead to heaven.

The chapter explains that you need to live through your evil and essentially make a record of it before you can come to grips with it and have a fighting chance of reaching out to Jesus for His forgiveness.

Are you a racist? What about your friends?

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A New Day Away From Hell

Tuesday, November 20th, 2007

As much as I fail to live up to what I know, the truth is, this is all about Him.

The Him is Jesus. He’s the ultimate path to heaven. You may go through a lot of things. You may meet a lot of people. In the end, it’s just you and Jesus or you without Jesus.

I made 52 Paths To Heaven to reflect my personal journey and touch on issues that may be foreign to me but not you (like abortion).

We like to think of prayers and preachers and the Bible as our guiding light. The truth is, the Holy Spirit is our light and He’s authorized to do whatever God wants to reach us – no matter how high we go with our pride or how low we go with our depravity.

You’ll be able to order to book soon. In the meantime, drop me a line if you’re interested in the book or the topic of what we do to get to heaven. I’m eager to know how you feel.

The book should be out December 10th or sooner.

–Mike

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