State of the Union

Tonight, our president will address our nation on the state of the union.  Some will watch confused, unsure what the answers are to our problems, some will watch in support of their party, unconcerned about actual issues,  and some will watch nervous for our nation, knowing there are real issues that need to be solved.

Here is the truth behind the State of the Union: we live in a world plagued with sin, and not matter what happens in Washington, we will have major problems in our society.  It doesn't matter who is President and what party is in the majority, sin will continue to fracture society.  With this in mind, here are some Bibilical ways you can view the government and political issues:

1. God establishes all authority, therefore we are called to submit to government (Romans 13:1).  This does not mean that we must agree, but through our disagreements we are to submit to the ruling authority.  (sidenote: if the government ever does ask for us to do what Scripture forbids, this is when we obey Scripture and disobey government.)      

2. Support issues, not parties.  There are issues on both sides of the isle that the Bible would support, and issues on both sides of the isle that the Bible wouldn't support.  Be someone who cares about Biblical issues, not political parties.

3. Fight for what is Biblical, do not just vote for what is Biblical.  Too many Christians use their vote as their only voice.  (Don't get me wrong, we should be responsible citizens and care about who is elected and what is passed.  We should vote...but that is not our primary task.)  God does not call us to just hope things change through the government...he calls us to action.  He calls us to fight for injustices and make a difference.  No matter what the government does, there will still be world hunger, diseases, abortion, unemployment, pollution, sex trafficking, drugs, education issues, fraud, health care issues, war, corruption, crime, and so much more.  What issues do you care about?  If you care about them and they are Biblical...figure out how you can help!    

4. Know what true change is.  Too many people think that if we can just legislate certain policies, than things will be better.  As Christians we don't believe that things will change through policy changes, but heart changes (which is why laws are broken daily...because the heart is still bent towards sin).  Things will begin to change as hearts are transformed, as the gospel begins to invade hearts.  Change will happen as your fiends, neighbors, and family begin to grasp who God is and what he has called us to.  Change will happen as hearts of stone are changed to hearts of flesh (Ez 36:26).  

Pray tonight as our nation is addressed.  Pray for our leaders, that their decisions would truly impact lives for the better.  Pray for yourself, and how you can make a difference.  And pray that hearts are changed as the gospel is spread...for this is the true hope for the world!

Not in this World (Resolutions 4 of 4)

"Resolved, to endeavor to obtain for myself as much happiness in the other world as I possibly can, with all the power, might, vigor, and vehemence, yea violence, I am capable or, or can bring myself to exert, in any way that can be thought of."
We spend so much time seeking happiness in this world, yet this world will soon pass away.  It is temporary.  Let us seek our happiness in the world that will not pass away, it the world that will bring us true joy!  Let us spend our time on things that are not temporary, but that will last forever.

"Resolved, never henceforward till I die, to act as if I were any way my own, but to act entirely and altogether as God's"

Our culture uses the words "mine" so much that we believe we own things, we believe we are our own...that we can do what we want.  Yet scripture tell us differently.  It tells us that you are not your own, "you were bought with a price, therefore honor God with your body (1Cor 6:20)."  We are God's, and he has a purpose for us.  Let this constantly be on your mind...you are His!

Fighting Sin (Resolutions 3 of 4)

Sin is around us and in us so often that we become desensitized to it.  Let us fight to do away with the sin within us, and care deeply about the sins we see within ourselves.    

"Resolved, whenever I do any conspicuously evil action, to trace it back till I come to the original cause; and then both carefully endeavor to do so no more, and to fight and pray with all my might against the original of it."

There is a root cause to every sin, and Edwards wanted to find that root!  Can you trace your sins back to the original cause?   

"Resolved, to examine carefully and constantly what that one thing in me is that causes me in the least to doubt the love of God; and so direct all my forces against it."

If we are not waging war against our doubts than they will fester and grow until our doubts are so great that we wonder if it is even worth being a Christian.  Doubts are not bad, unless they go untouched.  Doubts are there so we can wrestle them and grow from them, not so they can isolate us from our faith.  

"Resolved, to inquire every night, as I am going to bed, wherein I have been negligent, what sin I have committed, and wherein I have denied myself; also to inquire so at the end of every week, month, and year"

Care deeply about your sin, for sin separates us from God.  Find a specific time where you will examine your life and how you have fallen short of God's commands.  If it isn't' scheduled, it probably won't happen often.  

"Resolved, constantly and diligently, to be looking into the state of my soul, that I may know whether I have truly an interest in Christ or not."

Discipline of the Mind (Resolutions 2 of 4)

"Resolved, when I think of any theorem in divinity to be solved, immediately to do what I can toward solving it"

What would it be like for us if every time we had questions related to divine things, that we did everything we could to figure it out?  Not because there is an answer to everything, but because we want to deeply understand the things of God.  What questions about God, scripture, or other divine things do you have?  How will you solve it?  

"Resolved, to maintain the strictest temperance in eating and drinking" 

Jonathan Edwards is known to have a very strict diet, not because he was concerned about his looks or his weight, but because he cared about his mind.  He knew that what he fed his body affected his whole being, and he wanted his mind to be clear so he can think upon God with a clear mind.  Are there things you could change in your diet so that you feel better, you mind is clearer, and you have more energy for pursuing God?  

"Resolved, to study the Scriptures so steadily, constantly, and frequently that I may find, and plainly perceive myself to grow in the knowledge of them." 

This is a lot of study!  To study them so much that you can see yourself growing in understanding!  There are many times I have trouble recounting what I studied the night before.  Edwards did not want this to happen to him...his study was for growth in God, and he would study so fervently to make this happen.  How can you study the Bible in a way that you remember what you have read, and understand it better?  Are there better times in the day for you to study that would increase its effectiveness?        

Edwards was very intentional so his mind could be actively engaged in the pursuit of God.  Let us follow suit in discipling our own lives and minds for God's glory and our good.  

Don't waste your Life (Resolutions 1 of 4)

"Resolved, never to lose one moment of time; but improve it the most profitable way I possibly can"

"Resolved, never to do anything that I should be afraid to do if it were the last hour of my life"

Edwards understood how short life was, and that it could end at any moment.  This drove him to desire and strive to live every moment to the fullest.  He did not want his life to end while he was wasting it.  Life was a gift and he was going to live it for Christ!  

What about you?  How much time did you waste today, this week, this past year?  What is the reason behind this?  

I think it is far to easy for us say to ourselves: "I'll get to that tomorrow" or "Next week I'll do better at loving Jesus" or "I am tired, I'll serve my spouse another day."  The urgency to live for Christ now and always, without wasting time has not hit us as hard as it hit Jonathan Edwards.  Spend some time thinking about this, and how your life could be lived ALL for Him...not just some or most.  

Resolutions...from the 18th Century

Gyms get crowded, nicotine patch sales increase, memberships for weight loss programs grows, and church attendance tends to rise.  Why?  New years resolutions.  This is a natural season of life where we really think about life and how we want to change things for this upcoming year.

What if we could think a little deeper than the typical resolution?  What if we could really dig into our lives this January?  Well, this is the hope.  The next blog series will be going through Jonathan's Edward's "Resolutions" to help propel us to greater commit our lives to Christ. 

Jonathan Edwards preaching and writings were a catalyst to what we know as the first great awakening.  During his ministry he began to make resolutions to help guide, monitor and gauge his spiritual condition.  In them, we find a man who is "determined to bring every area of his life under subjection of the Lordship of Christ and to rest in the sovereignty of God."  In these resolutions he gives himself a note that says "remember to read these once a week,"  which shows us these are not merely ideas he wrote down, but truths he passionaly tried to live by. 

Over the next few weeks we will read and examine some of these resolutions, and my hope and prayer is that we would really take to heart these topics.  Here we go...