Category Archives: John

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The Gravitational Pull of Human Celebrity

Jesus Rejected Fame But Changed the World

Getting Closer to Jesus: “Thou shalt become famous” is not one of the Ten Commandments. “Blessed are the spiritual celebrities, for they shall draw much attention” was not one of the Beatitudes Jesus laid down in the Sermon on the Mount. “Feed my sheep…so it can grow into a nationally televised mega-ministry” was not the charge Jesus gave his disciples.

Yet the all-consuming desire for fame and the gravitational pull of celebrity is stronger today among Christian leaders than ever before. Jesus’ brothers would have made a great PR team, but they don’t hold a candle to today’s image-conscious ministries. All you need to do is tune in to Christian television, turn on Christian radio, walk into a Christian bookstore, or surf just about anything Christian and you will be immediately impressed with the swelling ranks of those who have attained Christian rock star status. In this day and age, to make it to the “bigs”, all you’ve got to do is sell a book, gain hundreds of thousands of social media followers, have your own TV show—or get on one, be the spiritual authority all the media quotes when there is breaking news, have your own blog, replete with adoring readers and do whatever you can to get your name—and your mug—out there where the folks can discover just what a gift you are to humankind.

That doesn’t sound too much like Jesus, does it? He resisted any and every attempt to become famous, catapult to power, get rich, and build a crowd of raving fans. In fact, he did just about everything you shouldn’t do to build a successful ministry. He avoided attention—if it was for wrong motives. He said very hard things to would-be followers. He insulted the religious movers and shakers. He hung out with the wrong people. He championed causes no one on their way to the top would touch with a ten-foot pole. He grew his band of followers down to eleven guys who were mostly religious rejects. And he got himself killed—crucified as a common criminal.

Oh—and he changed the world!

Wouldn’t it be refreshing to see a new crop of spiritual leaders who didn’t give a fig about fame and celebrity dominate the Christian scene today? Well, turn off your TV—and the radio. Forget about the cover of the latest edition of “Jesus Weekly” and quit reading all those pastor-blogs (except for one). Get in your car and take a drive out to a small town some Sunday, walk into a little country church and you are likely to find a simple shepherd who isn’t very famous—and won’t ever be—except with God. He, or she, simply loves God, and the flock—and one day, when the dust settles and we all stand before God, that faithful pastor will receive a standing ovation from the Great Cloud of Witnesses.

They never sought fame—they only wanted to make Jesus famous!

Take the Next Step : Memorize this Mark 10:45, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.

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Star Struck Fans or Fully Devoted Disciples

Jesus Wants Nothing Less Than Total Commitment and Full Surrender

Getting Closer to Jesus: The crowds had been pretty impressed with Jesus—and why not? He had healed their sick; he had fed their multitudes—5,000 of them were treated to a full meal when he miraculously multiplied a couple of sardines and five loaves of bread; he had even walked on their water—literally traipsing across the Sea of Galilee, and if that weren’t miraculous enough, it was in the middle of a storm

So you can see why they wanted to hang around Jesus. Who wouldn’t?

But Jesus didn’t want star-struck fans; he wanted fully devoted disciples. That is why, in essence, he said, “Whatever your reason for following me up ‘til now, let me take you to a deeper, more satisfying experience, and you can only do that by taking my life fully into your own.” Oh, he didn’t say it quite that innocuously; he got pretty graphic and told them they had to eat his flesh and drink his blood if they wanted to be his disciples. And when the adoring crowds heard Jesus lay down the demands of discipleship in that way, they were shocked—and turned off. The New English Bible translates John 6:60 this way: “This is more that we can stomach. Why listen to such words.”

Why were they so upset? Was it because they found Jesus’ word so revolting? Was it because they didn’t understand what he was saying? I don’t think so! In fact, they were upset because they knew all too well what he was asking of them. He was calling them to accept him as God’s Son, the true bread of life, the only one who could truly satisfy their spiritual hunger and quench their thirst for God, both now and for all eternity. Jesus was calling them radically to commit their lives totally to him, promising that if they did, then, and only then, would their deepest longings and innermost needs be fully met in him.

Jesus’ call to radical discipleship, using those provocative terms, would not have been unfamiliar to them. When a leader in that era called for unreserved commitment, he would demand that his followers “eat his flesh and drink his blood.” The reason the crowd was so upset and abandoned Jesus at hearing this was because they knew exactly what Jesus was asking: Nothing less than total commitment and full surrender.

Interestingly, Jesus used two different words in two different Greek tenses for “eating his flesh.” In John 6:53, the word “eat” meant to eat once and for all—a specific act at a moment in time that produced continuing effects into the future. He was speaking of the act of salvation—a specific moment in time when you give your life over Christ and are born again. Salvation occurs at a moment in time, but it produces effects that continue throughout life and clear into eternity. The second word for “eat” in John 6:54 referred to a continuous act of daily and voraciously taking life-giving, soul-satisfying nourishment into one’s life. Jesus was referring not to salvation but to the daily walk of discipleship.

In both cases, to “eat and drink of him” means to so thoroughly absorb Jesus that every fiber of who you are and every aspect of how you live is fundamentally and profoundly affected. And when he is invited in and allowed to fully and completely take over your life that way, something wonderful will happen. Jesus begins to show through.

That reminds me of the story of a little girl who turned to her mother on their way home from church and said, “Mommy, the pastor’s sermon confused me.” The mother said, “Why was that?” The girl replied, “Well, he said that God is bigger than we are. Is that true?” The mother replied, “Yes, honey!” Then the little girl said, “And he also said that God lives in us. Is that true, mommy?” The mother again said, “Yes, that’s true, too.” Upon hearing that, the girl said, “Well, Mommy, if God is bigger than us and He lives in us, wouldn’t He show through?”

That is what happens when you take Jesus so thoroughly and fundamentally into your life—both at salvation and in your daily walk as his disciple. He begins to show through, and that is a good thing! If he is not showing through, it is likely that you are lacking in good spiritual nutrition, and, in the words of your Lord, you need to go back and “eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man.”

Take the Next Step : Offer this prayer of committed discipleship: “Jesus, I want to absorb your life so fully into mine that you show through. I offer myself to you; Lord, fully take me over.”

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Miracles Are Momentary; Faith Is Forever

The Miraculous is a Pathway to Saving Belief

Getting Closer to Jesus: People are infatuated with miracles! They always have been and always will be. I get that! I would love to see more of them as well. And in fact, even though some would deny the miraculous still occurs, they are abounding around the world—especially where we find Christianity in developing nations. When I return from my church planting mission in Africa, usually with dozens of stories of the miraculous, I am always asked, “How come we don’t see the supernatural like that in America?”

I have opinions about that, which I will save for another time, but the point I want to make is that we are no different than the people in Jesus’ day. They too, wanted Jesus to show them the miraculous. Even after he performed miracles, they would turn around and ask him to do a miracle—not another one, mind you, but “do a miracle” as if he had not done one in the first place—so they could believe in him. (John 6:30)

Well, Jesus wanted them to believe in him, too. So, throughout his ministry, he performed miracles to get their attention and clear the path for them to put saving belief in him as Messiah, God’s Son sent as the only source of their eternal salvation. In this chapter, John 6, Jesus has just performed two of his many outstanding miracles: the feeding of the five thousand with five loaves and two fish and walking on water in the midst of a raging storm on the Sea of Galilee. He points out to the people that these “works of God” were to lead them to the only work of God that the Father wanted from them: “Believe in the one he has sent.” (John 6:29)

Now, while Jesus used the miraculous to draw attention to his Divine mission and to authenticate his Divine nature, he also knew that people would gravitate to his miracles as an end in themselves and not as the pathway to saving belief. That’s why he challenged their shortsighted and selfish request for more miracles:

But you shouldn’t be so concerned about perishable things like food [which had just been provided in the miracle feeding]. No, spend your energy seeking the eternal life that I, the Messiah, can give you. For God the Father has sent me for this very purpose.

What was Jesus saying? Miracles are temporary. Think about it: The five thousand people who had just received the bread and fish in the miraculous multiplication would be hungry again the next day. The disciples who were deathly afraid while in the boat that stormy night would face the temptation to fear again, even though Jesus had just demonstrated once and for all his sovereignty over the elements. The people that Jesus raised from the dead in this life would die again someday. So too would the people he miraculously healed.

Yes, miracles are temporary fixes to human frailties, and occasionally our gracious and merciful God breaks into our humanity to provide them, but the miraculous is simply a pathway to saving belief (the faith required for our eternal salvation) and trusting belief (the faith required to obediently walk in daily dependence on God). Miracles are for the moment; belief is boundless, going beyond the moment and lasting throughout eternity.

So, if a miracle is provided in the moment, and it leads to faith, which is forever, then more power to the miraculous!

Take the Next Step : Let me suggest you offer this prayer: “Father, help me to practice your presence in the daily ordinariness of my life. Teach me to make righteous judgments so that I might see you in every person I meet, every event I take in, every plan I execute, and in every detail of my world.”

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Praying Before Meals

Saying Grace

Getting Closer to Jesus: These easy-to-overlook verses are sandwiched between two of Jesus’ outstanding miracles—the feeding of the five thousand with five loaves of bread and two small fish, and the miracle of Jesus walking on the water. Not only that, at the end of this lengthy chapter is some of the heaviest theology that Jesus would ever lay on his would-be followers. It was so demanding and confrontational, in fact, that his followers called it a “hard saying”, and most of them quit following him from that point on.

With so much important stuff going on in this chapter, it would be easy to miss the fact that Jesus stopped to give thanks before a meal. Think about that for a moment: Why would Jesus do that? In a sense, wasn’t he really saying grace to himself? What purpose did this serve?

To begin with, I think Jesus was truly grateful to his Father for this provision of resources by which the miraculous feeding could occur. I think Jesus was authentically thankful that his Father had authorized the use of Divine power and was about to yet again authenticate the Messianic ministry and mission of the Son. I think the Second Person of the eternal Trinity was a fundamentally grateful being. It was just who Jesus was; the organic overflow of his Divine nature was love, joy, confidence and, in this case, gratitude.

“Jesus—the eternal, self-existence One—said grace before his meal. And if Jesus, who didn’t have to do it, did it, then we, who don’t have to do it, most definitely should!

Not only that, but Jesus was also modeling for us the appropriateness and the power of gratitude. He was reminding us by his actions that it doesn’t hurt to stop and express thanksgiving to God, and one of the simplest and recurring ways to enter into gratitude is to say a simple “thank you” before each meal.

We don’t know exactly what Jesus said in his prayer, but it was likely short and sweet. John simply says he “gave thanks.” He acknowledged God in that moment, drawing attention to the Heavenly Provider and reminding both himself and those who were within earshot of his dependence on and gratitude to Father God.

That is something you and I can do too, each time we sit down (or drive through) for a meal. We can give thanks. As redundant and useless and perfunctory as it may seem, there is power in this simple act. And if Jesus, who didn’t have to do it, did it, then we, who don’t have to do it, most definitely should!

Take the Next Step : Before every meal this week, say grace. Pause, think about it; then offer up to your gracious Heavenly Father the gratitude that is in your heart for all the good things he has provided.

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Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff (It’s All Small Stuff)

Nothing Is Above God’s Paygrade

Getting Closer to Jesus: I’m not sure who first said it (it’s origin has been attributed to several different authors), but I think it offer some sage advice for people who follow Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior; rules for living, we could rightly call it. It simply goes like this:

Rule # 1: Don’t sweat the small stuff.
Rule #2: It’s all small stuff.

That is true! You see, with God, nothing is impossible; it’s all small stuff to him. That is not just my theology, that comes from God’s own mouth. God told a perplexed Abraham and a cynical Sarah when he announced to them that they would have a son well into their 90’s (and beyond, actually, for Abraham):

Why did Sarah laugh? Why did she say, ‘Can an old woman like me have a baby?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son. (Genesis 18:13-14)

Is anything too hard for the Lord? No—it’s all small stuff! Even giving barren, centenarian couples their first child.

When Jeremiah the prophet was crying out to God over the devastation of Israel and the insurmountable problems the nation was facing, the Holy Spirit inspired him to prayerfully pour out this affirmation in his appeal to the Almighty for help:

O Sovereign Lord! You made the heavens and earth by your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for you! (Jeremiah 32:17)

Later in that same chapter, God himself sent this word to the prophet:

I am the Lord, the God of all the peoples of the world. Is anything too hard for me? (Jeremiah 32:26-27)

Is anything too hard for the Lord? No—it’s all small stuff! Even taking a shattered, scattered nation and reconstituting it for his glory and purpose.

Do you get the point? Nothing is above God’s pay grade. That’s because the created order in its entirety was conceived and perfectly engineered in the mind of God before it came into being. God created everything that exists by the breath of his mouth. God hung the stars by flicking them into space with his finger. He holds everything that we see and don’t see perfectly into place by his powerful and caring hand. There is nothing—absolutely nothing—that escapes his watchful eye.

And therefore, there is nothing—absolutely nothing—that is too big or too hard for him. Nothing is impossible to God, and therefore, all things are possible for his people.

That’s why Jesus, who is God the Son, the agent of creation, said to Phillip, “What shall we do with this gigantic crowd of seekers? They’re hungry, and we’ve got to feed them. Where can we get that much food?” Of course, we know how the massive crowd would get miraculously fed because John clearly states that Jesus already knew what he was going to do. His question was just to test Phillip for the purpose of stretching his faith.

And Jesus will do that with us, too. Even though he already knows what he’s going to do, he doesn’t automatically do it without first stretching, tempering, testing, and strengthening our faith, which is of greater value than any miraculous intervention we could hope for.

But don’t miss the whole point of this: Jesus already knows what he needs to do. And if that is true, then Rule #1 for you as his follower would be, “Don’t sweat the small stuff!” Why? It is a wasted use of energy, and it’s dishonoring to the One who already knows what to do. Therefore, as his follower, Rule #2 is certainly true too, “It’s all small stuff!”

Since that is true, why not relax a little bit today and let God be God? Exercise your trust and let God take care of your big stuff, since it’s all small stuff to him.

Take the Next Step : What are you sweating today? Visualize holding it in the palms of your hands. Walk outside and lift your hands heavenward and release it to the Lord with these words, “Father, this is too big for me, but not for you. Here, you take it and do with it according to your purpose.” Then thank God that he has just given you the greatest gift: He has stretched your faith!

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Loving Scripture but Missing God

The Danger Lurking in Daily Quit Time

Getting Closer to Jesus: I can think of no simpler yet more powerful practice for greater spiritual growth and intimacy with God than daily Bible study. The truth is, if you don’t have a regular quiet time with God—which would include not just reading, but meditation as well as incorporating the Scripture in prayer— your spiritual vitality will be stunted. It is as simple as that.

Yet Bible reading, journaling, scripture memory, and all the other wonderful disciplines that involve the Word of God are not enough. In fact, there is a very real danger lurking in the practice of daily quiet time that will lead to even greater distance from God than not reading at all: Love of the Word of God more than the love of God, which is rightfully described in the following:

Bibliolatry occurs when we acquire biblical knowledge without spiritual discernment; when our study of the Word is not commensurate to our obedience of the Word; when our love for Scripture exceeds our love for God, and correspondingly, love for our fellow man; when pride in our practice of Bible reading leads to a false sense of righteousness; and when the spiritual discipline of quiet time becomes a work of law rather than an experience of grace. When that occurs, in effect, we are worshiping the Bible rather than the God of the Bible.

There are far too many “Christians” who read the Bible too little, if at all. That is an unfortunate blight on the modern church. Yet there is another segment of believers, much smaller, but in deeper spiritual danger, who have been lulled into a sort of spiritual smugness because they fancy themselves as “people of the Word” or because, as they happily proclaim, the church they attend really “teaches” the Word.

Knowing the Bible isn’t enough. Satan knows the Bible as well as anyone. He can quote it at will. Daily reading and Scripture memory aren’t enough. Nicodemus (see John 3) had that down pat. Going to a church that teaches the Word through the Bible isn’t enough. The Pharisees had that down pat, yet they were far from God. Hearing, reading, and believing the Bible aren’t enough. Believing in Jesus is. Jesus said,

Whoever believes the Son has eternal life. (John 3:36)

The ultimate goal of Bible study should not be to gain greater knowledge of Scripture, or to grow spiritually, or to simply be able to check off that item on your daily list of things to do. The best goal—the only goal, in fact—should be to know God and his Son, Jesus Christ. By “knowing”, I am not referring to an intellectual event, but the intimate exchange of one’s life with the Almighty whereby love is deepened, obedience is practiced, and faith is expanded.

That is when searching the Scripture leads to eternal life.

Take the Next Step : Honestly evaluate if your Bible disciplines—reading, memorizing, studying, and meditating—are leading you to a closer walk with Jesus and to taking on his character—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

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No Judgment

A God Who is Just … and Loving

Getting Closer to Jesus: We live in a culture that despises the notion of judgment on any level. In particular, we aren’t comfortable with an angry God. People prefer a tame God to a dangerous one. As Dorothy Sayers aptly put it, “We have declawed the lion of Judah and made him a housecat for pale priests and pious old ladies.”

I don’t blame people for that. But if we are to be faithful to the authority of the Scripture, then we will have to acknowledge that God hates sin, which is morally offensive to his nature. Therefore, it is only right and just that he judges the unrepentant sinner who persists in breaking his moral law.

The sobering reality is that God’s righteous wrath will be poured out on sinful humanity someday in the future. When people die in their sinful state, there is a literal hell that awaits them, a physical place where they will suffer the eternal wrath of God. Likewise, scripture is very clear that one day, at the end of the age, the Great White Throne judgment of God (Revelation 20, Romans 2:5-6) will mark the final end of sin, when Satan, evil systems, and all the wicked will be cast into the lake of fire forever.

Obviously, that is a boatload of bad news! Yet amazingly, because of the immutable character of our gracious and merciful God, even within the bad news there is good news—Good News that should cause our hearts to explode in grateful praise. We can escape judgment!

You see, God’s righteous wrath for mankind’s sin was satisfied at Calvary when Jesus suffered and died as the final sacrifice for our sins. God fully focused his judgment against sinful man on his sinless Son, Jesus, as his hung on the cross. In the greatest act of grace and mercy ever, Jesus bore the wrath of God for the sins of the world when he was crucified”

“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” (1 Peter 2:24)

Jesus is very clear that when a person puts believing or saving faith in who he is (God in the flesh) and in what he was sent to do (die as the redeeming sacrifice for the sins of the world) and personally trusts that he rose from the dead as Lord of life, then that believing person gets a pass on the worst, most dreadful, persistent fear—in this case, a reality-based fear: The fear of dying and facing the judgment of God.

For sure, it can be quite discouraging to hear about a God who actually punishes sin. And yes, we can understand why our culture wants to deny the reality of any kind of judgment. Yet anyone—yes, anyone—can take heart, despite that reality, there stands at the center of Divine wrath the grace and mercy of a God so loving that he willingly sacrificed his only Son so that the guilt of sin could be erased from our account.

And that includes you, me, and anyone else who will surrender to Jesus in believing faith. As Jesus said two chapters previously, “God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him would not die but have eternal life.”

Obviously, there is a reason that John 3:16 is the most well-loved verse in the entire Bible.

Take the Next Step: When you are in conversations with people who don’t believe in Jesus—and even with some who claim faith in Christ—it is likely that at some of those you  encounter will be of  the “no judgment” mindset. Try to represent this Truth when that happens: Yes, there is a judgment coming, but there is also an escape clause that God has built into his righteous obligation to judge sin—saving faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. That really is Good News!