This last Sunday at our church we had an amazing day of worship that was highlighted by a TRULY UNBELIEVABLE testimony from a wonderful woman in our church, Stephanie Palmer. I’m embedding that video below. PLEASE take 30 minutes and watch it. I guarantee you it will be worth it.
Christ is all,
Jason
A couple of weeks ago my wife was out of town and I was watching our boys. We have a 4 year old and an 11month old. They are awesome. They laugh like crazy, check out this video:
Awesome, huh? While I was watching them I looked down for a second and looked back up and Blaise (the youngest) was crying. Just a second earlier he was fine and laughing. Drew was nearby but he didn’t seem like he was doing anything. So I went and picked him up. I checked to see if he hurt himself. I looked around to see if he had fallen on anything (he’s walking), nothing. I checked his temperature,no problem. He had just eaten and had his bottle and bed time was about an hour away. Smelled the diaper, no problem there. What could be the problem?
Then I noticed something. I had missed it earlier. I felt down around his legs and there was some weird bulge there. I unzipped up his pajamas and there was a small toy that Drew had been playing with earlier. Apparently, Drew thought that Blaise wanted the toy and so he decided the best way for Blaise to have it was to put it down his pajamas…This is the story I got from Drew anyway.
The point is there was a source to the upset baby. There is a source for humility. The last two days we’ve talked about humility as the key to unity. Day 1 was about changing your mental attitude to think of others as higher than yourself. Day 2 was about helping others through issues in their lives. Both build unity due to humility. Today I want to reflect briefly on the Source of Unity.
Philippians 2.5 (ESV)
[5] Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,
The Source of Humility
Verse 5 says that humility is great, but that in order to understand what REAL humility is we have to understand Jesus. We have to know Jesus. In order for us to not just do things that look humble, but actually be humble and walk in unity we have to know Jesus. He’s the ultimate example of humility.
Today’s Key: Reflect on the humility of Jesus
Philippians 2.6-8 (ESV)
Read these three verses a few times (seriously, a few times, let them sink in)
[6] who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, [7] but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. [8] And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Think about how each phrase shows another level of humility that Jesus walked into. Unbelievable, huh? Whenever you are:
It changes things.
Christ is all,
Jason
Yesterday we started a little miniseries on the Road to Unity. If you didn’t read it then go check it out. Humility is the key to traveling this road of unity and it begins with a mental attitude to think of others as more significant than yourself. Others matter and the way you treat them matters. If you want to unify a business, organization, family, or church you need to think this way. It may seem like the picture above, like you are doing something brand new, but try it. Check out the next verse in Philippians 2.
[4] Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
(Philippians 2:4 ESV)
JUNK…You’ve got it…
Isn’t it easy to get caught up in the things going on in your life? Of course. You’ve got work or school or both. You’ve got family stuff or you’ve got friend stuff or you wish you had family and/or friend stuff. You’ve got problems paying bills. You’ve got issues with your car or house or apartment. You’ve got junk.
Want to know how I know, that you have junk? Not because I’ve been spying on you or your Google searches. The answer is much simpler…because I have junk. Because EVERY human has junk. We all have lives and in those lives things don’t always go according to plan and then we get caught up in it.
When we get caught up in it who are we thinking about? Ourselves.
Who aren’t we thinking about? Others
Today’s Key: Consider what is happening in OTHER people’s lives
When an organization is only thinking like this or a family or a church or a business then guess what gets accomplished…NOTHING. Unity isn’t built it’s destroyed and selfishness reigns supreme.
But when we start thinking about others and what’s going on with them something happens. They know you care and they don’t feel alone. When they don’t feel alone then they care and you don’t feel alone. You know what happens then? The organization or family or church or business starts to function well. Why? Because it’s an organization that isn’t built on selfishness, but humility.
Try it out, see if I’m right. Here are some ideas:
Or come up with something else…just try it. It will pay dividends.
Christ is all,
Jason
I’ve been watching a lot of basketball lately, my wife loves it (SARCASM). I love March Madness and the NCAA Tournament (even if my bracket is a mess). I love watching great individual performances, but I really love watching teams that work together precisely. Crisp passes, tough defense, unselfish shots are all parts of teams that succeed. In a word they are unified. All organizations strive for unity, all families desire unity, all churches work hard for unity. We all want to walk in unity. It’s the reason Paul wrote Philippians 2.
[2:1] So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, [2] complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. [3] Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
(Philippians 2:1-3 ESV)
Philippi was a GREAT church. It’s the only church in the New Testament that doesn’t get a specific rebuke from the Apostle Paul. He loves this church and if you doubt it go check out Philippians 1. He adores them and knows them, but they struggle with something all churches struggle with. They struggle with something all organizations struggle with, they struggle with something all families struggle with.
The fight in Philippi is for unity. They don’t always have the same focus. They don’t always work towards the same goal and they don’t always like being around each other. I don’t know if that happens in your church, business, organization, or family. BUT I KNOW It happens in mine (I’m sure I’m the ONLY one). Look at those first two verses again:
[2:1] So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, [2] complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.
Paul is begging them to be unified and to get focused. Then in verse three he unveils the most important way that unity is created and maintained:
[3] Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
Did you see that? Don’t do anything selfishly or for your own personal gain, but in HUMILITY consider others greater than yourself. One word, eight letters, one INCREDIBLY important concept to create and maintain unity – HUMILITY. Over the next few days we’ll work through Philippians 2 looking at the keys to humility. The really important stuff that makes this thing possible, but today I want you to focus on one thing.
Today’s Key: Count others greater than yourself.
Think about the people in your family, church, business, or organization. How can you live this key out today? How can you serve someone else? How can you demonstrate this principle today? What can you do that would help others know that you see them as significant (more significant than yourself)? Think about it and then DO IT!
Christ is all,
Jason
This is a GREAT post on relational evangelism and using your yard and home to share Christ. Check it out here.
A Thought Provoking Post on Kony 2012 and Christian Reaction to this movement.
I LOVE the Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament (here’s this year’s bracket). The Michigan State Spartans are my team. This year MSU got a #1 seed. This is HUGE because they started off the year unranked. (I realize that I’ve lost most of my female readers already at this point, hang in there it gets better). Michigan State plays LIU Brooklyn on Friday in the First Round (sports fans, I know it’s called the second round, but I think that’s dumb). Who is LIU Brooklyn? I don’t know. I don’t care. I know this: On Friday during that game LIU Brooklyn is my enemy. I HATE them (not the kids, just the team) Why? Because my allegiance is to Michigan State. I would never wear an LIU Brooklyn hat, t-shirt, or wave their flag. No way!
Now it gets better…
God’s Team
[4] You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. [5] Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”?
(James 4:4-5 ESV)
God doesn’t want His people walking after anything else. He doesn’t want His people pursuing the world’s stuff. To be friends and to walk hand-in-hand with the world is to make God your enemy. This doesn’t mean don’t love people in the world (they are His creation). Rather it means don’t love the stuff of this world. Don’t love the things in this world. Don’t get overwhelmed with the bigger house, more money, the newest car, or the best jewelry. Don’t get eaten up with this world’s system.
Why?
Well there are many reasons (it doesn’t last, it destroys, it doesn’t satisfy), but the biggest one is GOD LOVES YOU. Look at verse 5 again.
[5] Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”?
God is jealous over you.
Nobody else gets my wife. I get my wife and if anyone tries to take my wife away they will have some SERIOUS issues. She is awesome and she is mine. God is jealous over His people. Nobody else gets them. He created, He formed, and He fashioned them just the way He wants them. They should cheer for anybody else. They shouldn’t be wearing anybody else’s t-shirts (I am not saying you should only wear Christian t-shirts). They shouldn’t love anybody else. They are HIS!
The Challenge
Don’t go after the world. Don’t go after the things that it says are important. Don’t be overtaken with that stuff. It vanishes, it fades, it dies and what then? Choose friendship with God. Choose to walk with Him (as you were intended to). Love Him first and foremost. He loved you that way…
Christ is all,
Jason
P.S. I’m doing a blog readers tournament bracket. If you’d like to join go here.
Yesterday I posted a brief blog regarding the War Criminal Kony. The idea was to give short comment and bring to my readers the atrocities that he has perpetrated throughout Africa. I wanted to make known that there is an issue and many times Americans (and those in comfortable and safe situations) forget what the rest of the world is like. There are horrible situations throughout the globe and the existence of these warlords, dictators, and unjust rulers should point us to something…
Others just like Kony
There have been abusers and abuses throughout time. There have been evil leaders and dictators from Nero to Ayatollah Khomeini from Josef Stalin to Pol Pot from Vlad the Impaler to Adolf Hitler. These were evil men who brought reigns of terror to their country and the world. Kony certainly falls in this category, but what he is doing is no more evil than the persecution of Christians in Egypt or Iran. What Kony is doing is publicized. There are many other leaders like this throughout the globe. Here are some other bad guys who don’t have a viral YouTube video about them. The existence of these rulers and leaders should point us to something…
What is that something?
The existence of evil rulers throughout the world should show us that we are thirsty for something. Despots are everywhere, isn’t there a righteous judge, a righteous leader, a good king somewhere? The answer is an unashamed YES! There is a hope for the world. He isn’t in the White House now or is he running in the Republican Primary either. He isn’t in the congress. He isn’t in a foreign country.
People throughout the world thirst for a leader who is good, just, fair, and righteous. That perfect leader, that perfect king is Jesus Christ. He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and He lives and He reigns and He is returning. He will come again and all Christians long for that day when the Righteous Judge will return and set everything right, making ALL things new.
Jesus is what we long for. We want genocide to end. We want evil to be abolished. We want justice to reign. If we want those things then what we long for is not another person. What we long for is Jesus.
So Pray
Yesterday I didn’t ask people to give money to a cause. I asked them to pray for the end of a terrorist’s reign. Let me be a little more clear: Pray for justice to flow. Pray for God to be glorified. Pray for Jesus to return. Pray for the Gospel to penetrate these areas and change these people. Pray that the Gates of Hell won’t prevail (they won’t). Pray that God would be made much of. Pray that men and women would go and plant churches in these areas and reach the Invisible Children. PRAY!
Christ is all (and all we really thirst for),
Jason
P.S. What do you do with a thirst?
When I get thirsty I like some cold, crisp water. It’s refreshing. It cools, it soothes, it hydrates and strengthens. As we’ve reflected on evil leaders and then looked at what that points us towards (Jesus) I thought the best thing to do would be to reflect a little on Jesus and His future reign. Links to some of those verses are below.
We have a lot going on in our country. The 2012 Presidential election is big, dealing with our economy and job losses, not to mention family issues that everyone deals with and the little stuff of life.
I’d challenge you to take 30 minutes and watch something that will break your heart and make you think about atrocities on the other side of the Earth. I’ve embedded the video below.
I don’t think that there is any question that this man needs to be stopped. He is certainly NOT part of any army of my Lord. Pray that this man is stopped. As a believer in Jesus we need to pray for justice and that people who prey on the weak and the orphan would be stopped. This man doesn’t just prey on orphans but creates orphans and then puts them into slavery for his own purposes. It is unbelievable.
[16] Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean;
remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes;
cease to do evil,
[17] learn to do good;
seek justice,
correct oppression;
bring justice to the fatherless,
plead the widow’s cause.
(Isaiah 1:16; Isaiah 1:17 ESV)
Join me in praying for justice to be done on behalf of these people.
Christ is all,
Jason
I’m excited to announce that Dove Award winners Shane and Shane will be live in concert at First Baptist Church, Pearland, TX on April 27th. Tickets purchased before the event are only $10 ($15 at the door). You don’t want to miss this fantastic concert at FBC Pearland. Doors open at 6:30pm. The concert begins at 7:30pm. Tickets can be purchased at fbcpearland.org.
Shane and Shane have been performing together for over 13 years and have sold more than 500,000 albums. They started out at Texas A&M and have toured with David Crowder Band and many others on the way to winning 3 Dove Awards. FBC Pearland is proud to welcome Shane and Shane on Friday, April 27th 2012.
Christ is all,
Jason
First Baptist Church Pearland is located at:
3005 Pearland Pkwy
Pearland, TX 77581
281.997.9000
www.fbcpearland.org