Hell

Now here’s a topic for discussion! Hell. Is it a real place? Who goes there? How to NOT go there? What does the Bible actually say about it? What did Jesus say about it?

I remember growing up to believe that “only us Pentecostals were going to avoid the flames of Hell. And everyone else was going to burn forever.” I of course no longer believe that! Thank God! But that is what I was taught and believed for many years.

But what is the truth about Hell? Can we fully know the mystery that surrounds it?

I want to hear from you; what do you say about it? Only if you are brave enough to put your thoughts out there for the world to see and critique! It takes guts to say what you think… and NO Anonymous responses please, only those who are brave enough to put their name to what they say will be approved!

Please answer the following questions so we can discuss:

1) Do you think it’s a real place?
2) Who goes to Hell?

Once you answer those questions I believe we’ll be able to have a great discussion!

A Gay Question

An email we received... thought you'd be interested in reading.

Dear Pastor Timmy,

I've enjoyed your online sermons. I just want to clarify for me though... you do believe homosexuality is sin and needs forgiveness right? And yet we are to love the sinner right?

Just checking.

Thanks for listening and I hope to hear from you a simple response on your view of homosexuality.

Rebecca
Raytown, Missouri


Here is my response:

Dear Rebecca,

Thank you and I am glad you enjoy watching our messages on line! That means a lot to us.

Your question is a tough question with no "simple" answer actually! I believe that the act of homosexuality is sin, or NOT God's ideal. And by God's "ideal" I mean not what he intended. God intended for ONE MAN and ONE WOMEN... hence Adam AND Eve.

But I DO NOT believe that being homosexual (or having homosexual desires) is a sin. Just like I believe being a heterosexual who desires many partners not a sin, but if you are a heterosexual and YOU have any partner other than your spouse - then it is sin. Make sense?

I do not believe that our sexual orientation is a sin, but what we do with our sexual desire can be.

I have a good Christian friend who is homosexual, and has been ever since he can remember... though he is not active. He has prayed and prayed and prayed, gone to counseling, etc, etc to have his "gayness" removed (his wording)... yet he remains attracted to the same sex. But, he remains single, and alone. Very tough! Very sad!

Imagine with me for a second here... imagine that Homosexuality was the norm. And in the beginning God created Adam and Mark... and you Rebecca were different then 96% of society... and you had desires that you could not explain for men... but, you know it's wrong, at least that is what you've been told... "You can't love a man Rebecca, you must love a woman". Wouldn't that be a sad life?

My heart hurts for those who struggle with homosexuality! There are no "simple" responses to tough issues... especially if you know someone struggling with this issue.

Truth: If we are honest, not a one of us is truly living God's ideal! We are all sinners, who desperately need Christ! And as Christ-followers our response to anyone facing this issue or any other issue we may face is LOVE!

I hope this brings some clarity to you.

Thanks!

Sincerely Yours,

Timmy Gibson

Seeing Grey

I just finished a book I highly recommend, Seeing Grey in a World of Black and White by Adam Hamilton.

I liked the book for several reasons:

1) I have the privilege of knowing Adam personally and he is a man who really loves God.
2) He touches the issues facing the church that are in my opinion critical to its survival and if handled correctly will (to use an old Pentecostal word) bring “revival” to the church.
3) He is neither radically Conservative nor radically Liberal… but radically Centered.

Quote:

“Though we cannot think alike, may we not love alike? May we not be of one heart, though we are not of one opinion? Without all doubt, we may. Herein all the children of God may unite, notwithstanding these smaller differences.” - John Wesley

Seeing Grey in a World of Black and White, for me really helps to clarify the passion I have in my heart, which is for there to be unity amongst God’s people. There is room at the table for us all who are followers of Christ. And no-one has the corner market on truth, and if you think you do… you are mistaken! But, I do believe that each of us understands a portion of the truth and when we all come together we are whole.

The book will challenge your thinking, and there will be some things you may not agree with… guess what? That is okay! I encourage you to read books that stretch your thinking, and even challenge your thinking. The worst thing to stunt growth is to only read books that further support what you already know and believe.

Grow!

W.W.L.D.

What Would Love Do?

Matthew 22:36-40 "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

If you read my blog you may have noticed I often talk about this subject; LOVE! But I just can't get away from it. I guess it's because if those five verses were the only verses in the Bible... it would be enough! And, if Christians the world over would strive to live them out... it would be enough!

I am sure many of you remember the popularity of the WWJD deal… the What Would Jesus Do? saying. I thought that was okay, but I think a better thought is to ask what would love do… and if we did what love would do, we of course would do what Jesus would do, for He walked in perfect love!

We talk about going “deeper” or getting “spiritual meat”… well let's sink our teeth into LOVING PEOPLE and we'll go as deep as it is possible to go!

But many times we want everything other than that… because it’s hard, and takes a sacrifice on our part.

My Challenge:
With every situation you face, ask yourself; What Would Love Do… and then do that!

Humility/Maturity

Philippians 2:3 "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves."

A truly humble Christian is aware that what he knows may not be right, and definitely not all there is to know about God, the Bible and all things considered.

A mature Christian can hold beliefs/convictions of his/her own, yet will respect the beliefs/convictions of others even though they may be different.

There are approx. 224 million Christians on the planet today; wouldn’t it be cool if we could all work together to solve world hunger, or to rectify social injustices rather then debating on who’s interpretation of particular Bible passages is right.

A truly happy Christian is a person who knows what they believe and is secure in knowing what he/she doesn’t know AND doesn’t need anyone else to believe it in order to feel good about themselves.

On the flip side… as Christians we should want others to know of this Jesus who died so that we might be free… this is the Good News we are to proclaim.

Gnat

Matthew 23:24 “You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.”

I just read recently that there are over 2,000 different Christian Denominations in America alone… not to mention tens of thousands of independent and/or non-denominational churches. All claiming to be followers of Jesus, though most have divided over doctrinal issues or in the ways they express their faith. And what is even more disconcerting is that each feels their way is right and the better way.

Christians claim to be followers of Jesus, a man who reproved the religious leaders for their adeptness of missing the whole point, was frustrated by their religiosity that shut out and judged most in first century Judea, and made it clear that prostitutes and sinners were welcome in the kingdom of God. Yet, these same Christians excel at focusing on the gnats of theological positions.

As many of you know I was raised in a conservative Pentecostal home. And what I believed was right; at least that is what I believed for many years. After graduating from a conservative Bible college I began to expand by reading and study to include those who were more on the “liberal” side of the theological spectrum. And what I discovered was that they love Jesus just as much as I do, and have a heart for the word of God just like I do. And more than anything they want the truth just like I do.

So, now I would consider myself a person of the “center” of the liberal – conservative spectrum. I can appreciate both sides…and actually isn’t it sad that I would say “side”? We are all on the side of Christ… just different views, different interpretations, different tastes… all the same Jesus though. It's sad we squabble.

I hope that in my life-time (over the next 60 years) we’ll see a shift in the Church/Christian culture and see less divisions and more unity amongst those of us who follow Christ. I personally feel this is a mission of mine… to break down the walls that divide us, and let’s unify!

*I am currently reading a great book that addresses these same issues called, Seeing Gray in a World of Black and White by Adam Hamilton.

Easy Rider

I am a firm believer that life is what you make it. And even so, it’s not always easy, enjoyable and/or fair. But still it (life) is what you make it… and it is what it is… and here is why I believe this… it’s not what happens to you that matters, but what you do with what happens to you.

Many times we blame our sourness on not-so-happy circumstances that surround us… not making enough money, spouse doesn’t make me happy, kids are driving me crazy, I hate my job, I drive a piece of junk, don’t like my neighborhood, my friends, etc. Grumble, grumble!

Okay, so now you have a choice…continue to grumble about what isn’t going the way you would like…and do nothing to change it. Or, you can quit grumbling about what isn’t going right, and begin to make the necessary changes to get you where you ultimately want to be… and just accept the things that are out of your control. Now, here is where we must be careful and ask; where does God want me to be? Too many times we run after what WE want, and we lose the most important things.

Yet another thing is that we must own up to the circumstances we find ourselves in because of the choices we’ve made to put us there. My parents used to tell me, “You made your bed, now you must lay in it”.

What I am saying is that when you do “lay in the bed you’ve made” you can enjoy it… and be happy!

There is a grid to run all decisions through:

1) Is this good for my relationship with God?
2) Is this good for my relationship with my spouse?
3) Is this good for my relationship with my kids?
4) Is this good for my carreer?

Unity NOT Conformity

When I reflect on many of Paul’s letters to the Christian church I am astounded that the challenges he faced are many of the same challenges we (the entire church… all Christians) face today, some 2,000 years later.

Philippians 2:1-5 "Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had."

Here Paul address a group of Christians in Philippi, who like us no doubt had differences of opinion of various topics… YET, Paul says, “…work together with one mind and purpose.”

I have worked side by side on various projects with people who had different political views then me, different theological views then me, different fashion tastes then me… but we worked with one mind and one purpose on the task at hand. Paul is saying the same thing to us here today… “Hey gang, forget about your little petty differences and let’s focus on the one thing we do agree on and that is Jesus… the one who is, and is to come… let’s spread His message of hope”.

The goal for a church (in my opinion) is not to get everyone to agree on “these” 5 things so we can check off the boxes… but that we are all in UNITY with the message of hope that is found in Christ.

"At the foot of the cross the ground is level" - unknown

After thinking about my statement, “Secondly, “how can Christ’s life be formed in us? This is accomplished by studying Christ’s life. It would be hard to have something formed in us, if we didn’t get familiar with it” in Friday’s blog… I realize “studying” is only the beginning… because again simply “knowing” about something and not living it is actually dangerous. In my opinion the difference between “knowing” and “doing” is where true Christ-likeness lies!

To have Christ’s life formed in us we must put it into practice; we must LIVE IT! DO IT! This is where Christians have done the greatest damage to the name of Christ… when we “talk it, but don’t walk it”.

Paul later in the book of Galatians tells us exactly what “Christ’s life being formed in us looks like”… Galatians 5:22 – 24 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.”

Our life (if it’s being formed in the image of Christ) will exude LOVE, JOY, PEACE, PATIENCE, KINDNESS, GOODNESS, FAITHFULNESS, GENTLENESS and SELF-CONTROL!

Of course, just like with any imperfect person, there will be flaws, failures, set backs, mistakes, sins, and short comings for which we are all guilty of… BUT… I truly feel (again, my opinion) if there was a way to measure our "good vs. bad out-flow" we should register heavier on the GOOD things coming from our life.

For example; 70% of the time our life should be proclaiming (in how we actually live… not just words) the list mentioned above and 30% of the time we’ll cut you some slack. Make sense?

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Christ-like – pt 1

Galatians 4:19 "My little children, again I feel the pain of childbirth for you until you truly become like Christ." – NCV

So what did the apostle Paul mean “become like Christ” when he wrote this letter (Galatians) to the churches he founded in southern Galatia while on his first missionary journey?

Another translation says, “May Christ be formed in you”… what does it mean to be “Christ like” or rather how can I be “Christ like”?

First, to be Christ like simple means our lives should be a reflection of Christ’s life, and we get a pretty clear picture of His life in the Gospels. The bible says in Acts 10:38 “…God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.” There is where we start; wherever you go, whoever you meet – be good, and do good.

Secondly, “how can Christ’s life be formed in us?” This is accomplished by studying Christ’s life. It would be hard to have something formed in us, if we didn’t get familiar with it.

Let’s be honest here… we have all come across people who have been “in Church” or a “Christian” for many years… yet they are very UN-like Christ. How is that?

That’s a heck of a question that baffles me honestly! Because when you ask these people if they should be nice to people, they would say “yes”, yet they aren’t nice to people. I am even shaking my head now as I reflect on this mystery.

I will give this more thought and blog on it the next few times to help us all truly allow Christ’s life to be formed in us.

To be continued…