My Testimony

I am in Christ.  Because my mind is set on the things of the Spirit, I can know that I am in Christ.  There is no condemnation for me; I will never pay for so much as one part of one of my sins.  If I were to do so, Hell would be my dwelling place forever.  Christ however was wrapped in this sinful flesh just as I am, but He, altogether unlike me, was tempted but never succumbed to the things of the flesh.   Had He done so, He too would have been hostile towards God and treated as an enemy.  He however was perfect and perfectly fulfilled all of the righteous requirements of the law.  That which should have been death for me was rather conformed to be the fulfilment of the law within me.  I did not fulfill the law, but the righteous requirements of the law were fulfilled within me by my Savior through whom sin was condemned for my sake, rather than me being condemned for the sake of sin.  I have transgressed every commandment of God's law, but the creator of the universe is altogether pleased with me.

In Christ,

Every Christian

The Humanization of Discipline

Turn your eyes upon Jesus

Look full in His wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim

In the light of His glory and grace

Most people would agree that the modern western Christian Church is extremely carnal.  So books are written, blogs are updated (there's a little bit of irony here I guess) and twitter accounts buzz with enthusiasm about each day's new self-help guide to holiness.  The only problem is that just like almost everything else that is done in the United States, the very foundation of these things is Humanism.  

We qualify Jesus with man-made using justifications like "some people just don't work that way," or "all those things are true, but you have to be practical."  The practical and simple truth is that the moment you try to make people holy through any means separate from the Bible, it's Humanism.  According to statistics, the world and the Church have the same exact morals.  The reason for this is that the world and the Church are using the same tactics.  We use small-groups, self-help books, and the 'power of positive thinking' in order to keep people from sin.  

What we no longer stress however is that in becoming a Christian, every person has the power through Jesus Christ to not sin, and more importantly, that is the expectation.  Every Christian will inevitably sin, that is shown in Scripture, but that is meant to be the exception, not the norm.  A Christian is different from a person in the world.  They have the power of God inside of them.  This is what saved a believer from sin, and it is the only thing which has power to keep a person from sinning again.

So a believer must every morning crucify themselves to the world and choose to follow Christ.  They must 'look full in His wonderful face.'  Nothing has the power to save besides Jesus Christ alone.

Remember Your Leaders

Dear leader, bear your burdens well.

Dear follower, understand the burdens your leader bears.

Due to the nature of things, the vast majority of people in the world are followers.  Due to that fact, a follower is naturally spoken to throughout the course of their life on what they should do.  How should this sort of person spend their time?  How should this sort of person spend their money?  All the things which we view as so terribly important in this present age are taught according to the majority.  Unfortunately, this leaves a precious minority is a state of incredible difficulty.

To a man who grows up knowing full well that the Lord desires him to do something which other people deem 'great,' he must pave his own way and learn from a great deal of mistakes.  I suppose that in many ways this is simply how life works, and it is through these difficulties that a leader is formed.  But due to the incredibly distinct life the leader lives, he requires a great deal from those around him.

Dear leader, not everyone shares your responsibilities

Dear follower, your leader bears an incredible weight

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account.

-Hebrew 13:17-

This is the burden which the leader bears; to watch over your soul.  This is the sort of responsibility which keeps men awake at night.  The desperate urge for men and women to grow closer to Christ drives them.  So dear follower, obey your leaders and submit to them.  Do not aggravate them in the midst of their responsibility but rather do whatever you are able to lighten their yoke.  Dear leader, imitate Christ and joyfully serve the Church.

Dear leader, look ahead

Dear follower, imitate your leader's faith