Clay in the Hands

Have you ever noticed that people don’t like taking responsibility for things?

“Don’t look at me!”

“Wasn’t me!”

“Don’t blame me!”

“I have no idea what you are talking about!”

All common responses to questioning.

We all have a tendency to want to transfer blame.  We would like to be the hero in every story and so we don’t want people to see us in any other light.  But the truth is, many times we aren’t blameless.  Saying we are not to blame does not make it so.

If we truly want to be blameless, we need to start taking responsibility for our actions.  There is only one truly blameless person that has ever walked the earth and because of his sacrifice,  our shortcomings can be covered.  But we must own those shortcomings – confess those faults – and ask for forgiveness.

Transferring blame or denying responsibility does not make us blameless.  Only taking responsibility and asking forgiveness can make us whole.

Jesus makes a way for us to be blameless and that is something to be thankful for this week!

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I have the distinct privilege of teaching an undergraduate class this semester.  The class is geared for individuals who are either in ministry in the local church or considering the path of ministry.  We have spent the semester discussing calling and discerning God’s leading or “messing” with our lives.  We have also talked about very practical, hands on nuts and bolts of the daily life of a minister.  It has been a great experience for me and I hope the students have gleaned something from our time together as well.

The last third of the semester will deal with Baptist life – polity and doctrines.  Today, we will be discussing several important concepts inherent to Baptists but I am particularly excited to cover one topic in particular – the belief in soul competency.  

Baptists have been accused of being too individualistic.  I would be naive to ignore the point to be revered in this accusation.  The world does not revolve around me – nor does it turn on its axis for you.  But before we dismiss the idea of individual faith we need to understand one of the most critical and foundational elements of the gospel message – choice.

In Matthew 16 verses 15 and 16, Jesus asked a crucial, turning-point question of the disciples.  He had asked about the chatter.  “Who do people say that I am?”  But then he turned to heart of the matter and asked the only question that matters – for them and for us.  “Who do you say I am?”  Peter voluntarily, without coaching from his pastor or his parent or from the testimony of the church answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

That turning-point question is still the question today.  When it comes to faith – to the entrusting of our eternal soul – we have to answer that question for ourselves.  Attending a particular community of faith regularly or even joining that body does not answer the question.  Living by an honorable moral code does not face the question.  Each of us has to reach a point in our walk that we come face to face with Jesus and answer that question for ourselves.

Who do you say Jesus is?

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We are two weeks away from knowing the identity of the next president of the United States.  Division in our country continues to grow and I fear it will only get worse after the election.  Regardless of where people stand politically, I continue to hear fear and anxiety in the voices of those with whom I visit about the fate of our nation.

Yesterday, a small band of folks gathered in the garden in front of our church to pray.  We prayed for school children and teachers, for our city and for our nation.  As we stood to lift our hearts in unison to the Father, one participant voiced a very insightful prayer.  She prayed that all would feel compelled to vote and to vote their conscience.  She then prayed for both front running candidates and asked God to work in their hearts – and then once the new president is announced for God to work within the heart of the person to bend their will to His.

Ultimately, we need to remember that it does not really matter, in the eternal scheme, who is elected in two weeks.  God is on His throne today just as He will be three weeks from now – and 6 months from now.  The only hope for us as a people does not rest on the shoulders of the next president but in the sovereign hand of the Almighty.

The path to lasting peace comes to an end in the very presence of God.  Rest in His presence today and the security His presence brings.

Be blessed!

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I have challenged our deacon body to read through some selected Psalms over the next month.  Today we began with the first Psalm.  It begins like this:

¹ Blessed is the one
    who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
    or sit in the company of mockers,
² but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and who meditates on his law day and night.
³ That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
    whatever they do prospers.

As I read these verses this morning, I was reminded how important it is to remain planted in God’s truth.  It is really hard for a tree to bear fruit if it is not receiving the needed sustenance to survive.

We are no different.  We need God’s truth flowing into us so that we can bear fruit.

We all go through dry spells in our walk.  But always remember, we are dry most likely because we have ceased to be planted by the stream.

Stay planted today!

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Is God at work in your life?  Have you asked yourself that question lately?

God leaves nothing unfinished.  Philippians 1:6 says, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

God has begun something amazing in you.  The work really started with your conception.  God knew your potential even then.  God knew your quirks.  God knew your strengths.  God knew what would bring you passion.  God knew.

Your entire life – all of it – leading right up to this sacred moment right now, God has been working in your life.  God takes everything you experience and uses it to shape you.  You are a masterpiece of His creation.  God’s fingerprints are all over you.

God is still at work.  So no matter what you encounter today, remember . . . God IS NOT finished.  And God is faithful and trustworthy to carry out what He has started.

Rest in this truth today!

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This Sunday we will wrap up our current sermon series entitled, Walking With God.  The topic for this Sunday is walking with joy.  So I have been giving a lot of thought and prayer to the subject of joy this week.

What brings us joy?  Do we even know how to describe it?  Most might describe joy as happiness.  We might think of things we obtain or positions we attain as bringing us joy.  We might think of the experience of holding a new born for the first time or meeting that special someone.

As we think of ways to define joy, different experiences begin to come to mind, but putting a clear definition into words is a bit difficult.

The classic definition of joy is “emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune.”  But when we look at how joy is used in the sacred text, we find a deeper nuance to the word.  As we study scripture, we begin to see joy as a compilation of the experience of security that comes by being known and loved by the creator coupled with the experience of confidence in God’s provision.

1 Peter 1:8-9 tells us that when we believe Jesus is who he says he is – really believe to the point of staking our lives on him – then we will receive joy that far surpasses descriptive definition.   This joy is a direct result of the realization that Jesus provides us with something we can never attain on our own – salvation.

So today, as you think about the things in life that bring you happiness, think also on the deeper experience of joy that can be yours in believing.

Be blessed today!

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