Wells, Stones, Jesus, and LGBT

So I suspect that the majority of you in the last few days have has your facebook newsfeeds, twitter walls, and instagram walls flooded with Transgender posts. And I am not ashamed to say I may be joining that list of spamming posts right now.
Here's the thing I am a Christian, I believe in God as the one true God, therefore I believe in His son, who was God in flesh walking on this earth. I also believe in the power of His Spirit, which moves and works through the church and His people, which it has since the moment of existence (Genesis 1:2b). And because of that I believe in the truth of His scripture and word, The Bible.
By this point you might be thinking "Great buddy here is now going to go into a rant about how the Bible says that LGBT people are sinners and deserve to burn in hell..." well hear me out when I say no... and yes... because the fact is, we all are sinners and deserve to burn in hell... every last one of us, including my internship-pastor butt as well!
But don't stop hearing me out, for if you have ears to hear and eyes to see listen and see this!
Many argue that although SOME Christians condemn the world for its sin Jesus came preaching a message of love. I would agree with caution on that statement. Many use examples like Mary Magdalene (who was believed to be a prostitute), the Woman at the well (John 4:1-43), or the case of the adulterous woman (John 8:8-11). Now I am not arguing the truth to these scriptures, that by these we can see that Jesus did in fact bring a ministry of love. However many just quote a summery of the script. And the Intern-Pastor and Theology student I am, I suggest in any case where a summery of scripture is given... LOOK UP THE ORIGINAL TEXT IN THE BIBLE.
Because look in verses 16-18 of John 4 Jesus does however call the woman out on her actions, and in verse 11 of John 8 Jesus tells the woman to "Go and sin no more". So with this knowledge now I would say, Yes Jesus preaches a message of love... but love comes with a price, or rather a sacrifice, time and time again we see this theme, this theme of "Denying yourself and following me (Jesus)" (Matt. 16:24).
Know we must also understand that although the LGBT community does not particularly act in what a Christian might see suitable, they still are humans as well. With that we must tread lightly as well, for like I said before although we two (as in Christians, and anyone and everyone else) are sinners and therefore as sinners deserve to go to hell, we must understand that through Christ's blood and sacrifice are redeemed, and therefore forgiven by our sins (Heb.  9:22, Rom. 5:8) it comes at a price!
Jesus says to the woman "Get up and sin no more" and He says in Matthew 16:24 "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." with this we must understand that these two statements, both said by Jesus are one in the same. This harks back to what I said in my first Sermon Thought post "GO" here is the link if you are interested in seeing a parallel  to these verse in the OT.  http://studentinternpastor.blogspot.ca/2015/05/sermon-thought.html . 
So we must understand that if we call ourselves Christian we must stand up for what is right, however we must also realize and be humbled by the fact that we too are redeemed by the same blood of Christ. 
Do I condone the actions that have filled the news lately with the LGBT community, well no, however do I therefore condone the FEW Christians with very loud mouths who condemn these actions... no. Rather I stand by Jesus and am humbled by the fact that, I am a sinner, therefore "I can do all things through Him (Jesus) who strengthens me" - Philipp. 4:13.... meaning I am nothing without Christ. So in conclusion I therefore must adhere to the same standard that Jesus gave to the adulterous woman and the woman at the well... as well as you.... that we should "Get up and sin no more" and therefore we should Come after Him, deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him, and with that we are then defined by Him. Paul puts it like this in his letter to the Philippians "To live is Christ, to die is gain" (P.1:21). 
So here is my challenge rather then getting mad, writing very long Facebook posts, or congratulating this. Maybe if you call yourself a Christian (Christ one) you should take the challenge Jesus gives to us, and to everyone else "To get up, follow Him, deny ourselves, pick up our cross, follow Him and sin no more, for our life is His, and if we are condemned for this action, if this choice ultimately leads us to our death, then we are welcomed in Heaven." 
Sin no more.... share the love of Jesus, but realize is comes at a cost. 
   

The Small Things

    Have you ever seen anything under a microscope? I remember in high
    As I sit here in my living room with nothing better to do then simply let my mind wonder I am brought to the thought of little things. You see more often then not I find that it is in the little things that God reveals trivial and important theological thoughts and revelations. But He does so in the most simplistic fashions and manners.
    You see it was through a promise that He set the plan for Him to come down to us in flesh and save us from our sin. And it was through simplistic stories that He revealed to us eternal life. These are but two ways God has shown huge things through a little simplistic way, don’t even get me started on little objects he uses… a stone, a stick, a tree, a sheep. Or little people, physically and in status, a Shepard boy, 12 no bodies, a crazy man, a carpenter, a scared girl, a short tax collector.
    God tends to use these little ways, things, and people to reveal to us huge and life changing lessons, thoughts and revelations. When I think about it, it really shows His power! Time and time again He says He will use the lost, the forgotten, the outcast, and the weak to populate His kingdom.
    And so here is my challenge for this Sermon thought: Stop looking for the big things, stop trying to be the big people. Be who God has made you to be, and let Him reveal that to you and reveal Himself to you through the smallest things, the neglected things, the forgotten things. For although we might not see it, He will show us to have faith as large as a mustard seed.
school taking samples of water from a near by creek and running back to the science class to see it under the lenses. I was amazing when I put my eye up to it and saw all these little things floating in a single drop of water.

Torn, Chiseled and Healed

I sat there and realized... wow this verse... it's so true.
Have you ever just read something either from a book or the Bible and been taken aback with how true, how honest and how relevant it is? About two months ago I was working my way through the book of Hosea, first of if you have never read it, DO SO! Second off if you have, go back to it and READ IT!
And so I was working my way through this book and I came to this verse in chapter 6; "Come let us return to the Lord, for He has torn us, so that He might heal us" (H.6:1a)... I sat there and realized... wow this verse... it's so true!
To be completely honest with you my life has been insane that past 3 months, some stuff went down that caused me to go under a lot of pressure and stress. However after reading this verse I have begun to stop myself when I begin to over think and say "You know what, God has to tare me down, so that He can heal me in His image."
You see I came to the point where I started to realize that almost all things I had used as support systems in the past... were being "torn" away. And in their place God stood read to begin His health care system.
One of my favorite videos of all time is a short done by Skit Guys, I believe it is called "Chiseled" or something a long that lines. It shows a man who begins to talk about God and how he works, another man enters the frame who is "God" and he begins to chisel away this guys definition of himself, what he believes to be good and bad. Leaving him to realize that what is left... is what God defines, what God originally made.
You see right now might seem like a crappy time, like everyone and everything has abandoned you, you might be feeling alone, stressed, frustrated, nervous, anxious. You head is probably filled with a billion million things that cause you to lie there not being about to sleep at night.
But here's the catch.. and its a big one! God knows everything you are going through this moment... Sure it is hard to understand that, half the time I don't really get it myself. But I challenge you to stop, take a breath, maybe go for a walk, I tend to take my car for a ride and blast music for an hour. But by then end if you look back and think of Hosea 6:1a I bet you will feel a bit more at peace. Sure everything might still be falling apart around you, but you know that even though He tears... He does so to heal. Muscle needs to tear first before it can be strong.
 And so I say proudly, I am torn to be healed.

Faithful Failures in our own Following

I sat down last night at my desk, like I do almost every night, opened my Bible and read this;
"This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover it is required of stewards that they be found faithful." 1 Corinthians 4:1-2

As my eyes continued to read the rest of the verses my mind however was still stuck on those two verses. I began to ask myself, do others see me as a steward or God, or to a more understandable ear, a mail man in a sense? Do others see me that way? and in that am I faithful to how I am seen, or how I should be seen.

I would argue that many, including myself, do not do so well in this category of following Christ. We may say we follow Christ, we may seem like we follow Christ, however we know deep down that there is something between us and Christ. Whatever that may be. Whether something that is very black and white, or something that has become very gray to our inward eyes. But nonetheless we know that it is a hindrance to our full relationship with Christ, and thus in turn with those we come in contact too.

But here's the thing, many of us, once again including myself, do not do anything to get rid of this hindrance between us and Christ. This is where verse two comes in act. You see verse one states that we are followers, and thus "mail men" of faith, that is we deliver the package of Christ, we represent the package of Christ and we help others find the package of Christ. However, verse two states that even though you claim to be a follower of Christ, even though others view you as a follower of Christ, when it comes down to it... are you faithful to Christ?

You see for many of us we where the "Church clothes". We try our best to read the Bible, and to be honest it slips every now and then, we put on our shirts and shoes on Sunday and sing the songs, lift our hands and take nice little neat notes from the sermon (mine occasionally have doodles in the margins). But the thing is, do we actually understand what we are doing? Do we actually understand the songs we are singing, the notes we are taking... the commitment we have made a covenant with?

I would argue, and take note I am in this as well, that we do not understand... that we simply dawn the church clothes because it is convenient at a certain time in a certain place. But here in 1 Corinthians Paul kind of slaps us in the face. He states that if we are to call ourselves followers of Christ we need to do so by being faithful to the commitment we have made.

So I ask you this... have you ever actually stopped and asked yourself... "What does it mean to follow Christ?" and not all that dumb surface junk you have known since day one. Rather have you searched, dug, have you gotten yourself messy in the true meaning of being not only a Christian but rather a Christ one?

Ask yourself, who am I?
 

Rain out the window...

Have you ever just stopped? just stopped to listen... not really to anything either. Rather just pressed pause on your "busy" life, closed your eyes, and just let the silence cover you like a big thick blanket.

I am sitting here at my desk, my window is open... and I sit in silence... nothing but the outside as my soundtrack. I here a drip drip of light rain for a couple minutes, then suddenly a down pour. Its interesting that in these moments, the moments where I cannot sleep, the moments where I am left alone with just me and my thoughts, these are the moments where He tends to speak the loudest. In the moments that I am not really looking or asking for Him to.

Isn't that how it is though? He never really shows up when we go in search of Him, rather we show up when He goes in search of us. We tend to be like Elijah on the mountain top, searching for God in everything and anything (1 Kings 19:9-18)... but instead God comes when we least expect it, when we are like Samuel, when we lie there, not really knowing (1 Samuel 3:1-21).

It is these times, when God comes in search of us really, that He reveals so much. I was just reading 1 Corinthians 2, and in it is says that those who follow the Lord are given the Spirit of the Lord, and through that He reveals all things. When God shows us, He reveals some of the deepest, most forgotten things. Sometimes it can be the simplest thing too. I find that it is in these times that I find myself not on a mountain top in my life... but rather in a long valley, a place of lost guidance. Interesting enough 90% of the time I don't even realize that is where I am. But when I stop... when I press pause and listen, not for anything, not too anything... just listen... things begin to click.

so stop...

Nevertheless

My love cannot compare to that of His
but he call’s me to His throne
so that I can show others the mystery of the unrolled stone
so that others can receive His spirits promised kiss

I confess
sometimes I screw up
sometimes I interrupt
only to cause an unnecessary mess

But He calls me anyway
He calls me in my time of need
so that even with my confusion, my sin, through him others are freed
even though I am stretched and begin to fray

Into the dessert I go
into the valley I will prophesy
even when I seem lost and cry
I can trust in Him, for like the Sunday school song says “The Bible, tells me so”

From Genesis 12 with Abram
He commands us to walk in trust
from the three that stood firm, even though to flames they were thrust
their faith did not waver
but rather they would seek His favor

And now we come to the end of this story
to the peek of it all
to the point where Adam was redeemed from his fall
this is what He has shown to you and me

4 stories, 4 authors, 4 perspectives yet one truth
one who came
who was slain
who knew the pain that was about to come
but still he lifted up himself to His fathers will, he did not run

we are left with this, I will go no further then this
can you hear the call?
will that phone inside you ring,
will you come to it even though the news might sting?
will you have the trust
to completely be thrust
into what you do not know
but the question starts here for all….
WILL YOU GO OR WILL YOU STALL?

Bad Bill of Health

I find it interesting that every time I go to the Doctors, they look at what is wrong and try their best to see what they can do to help me heal. Why do I say I find that interesting? Because as Christians we are kind of like spiritual doctors really... in Mark 2:17 Jesus says this, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." He calls himself a doctor, and if we are to follow in His foot steps then we become doctors in a way to.
However am I the only one who has realized that as doctor's of the soul we do a crappy job? Keeping in the doctor tone we do this;
Imagine you went into the doctor's, lets say you have a really nasty cut that is possible infected. You sit down with the Doctor, they look at it for a couple minutes. They look at you and with frustration on their face begin to tell you everything you did to get this cut infected, they tell you that you have dirt in it, that bacteria is building up, all that stuff. But they never tell you one thing... how to fix it, how to change your habits to make the cut properly heal. After what seems like hours of this doctor lecturing you, he send you on your way.
Well couple days pass, but nothing seems to change, your cut is still there... it still hurts, and still has all the symptoms of an infection, so you schedule another appointment.
You go in, you sit down, this time the doctor bursts in, his face is red and he frowns at you. He begins to yell at you, saying "How could you do this to yourself! Because of this infection you might die from blood poisoning or something!" He slams the door, leaving you in the room alone and by yourself and your gross, probably pussy and stinging cut. But one things remains, you still don't know how to get your cut to properly heal. You do however know everything you did wrong, or could have done wrong, oh and that you probably will die know from some sort of blood poisoning or something.
You see as Christians we approach those who we label "sinners" and we on average start to yell at them, telling them every little "sin" they have committed to get them to the point they are at now. But most of the time I have noticed that we never show them, or tell them how they can change.
John 3:16 is a favorite among all Christians, but many just stop at that. They don't continue to read, the next verse is so crucial to completely understand the verse before;   
"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him." 
Jesus came to heal the sick, to show them that they not only need to change, but how to change. Sometimes we need to stop, and look at ourselves, admit that these people who we call "sinners" well that's us too before God... before Jesus. So next time instead of yelling at someone or evening thinking that their as sinner, in your church, at your workplace, in your class, on your bus, walking on the street. Stop and say, to yourself, hey I am not so great either, but I do know that Jesus is a pretty good Doctor. 
So let me say, Here's my doctor's number, He comes highly recommended....