Jeffrey Smith's Blog

So I Tweet, Yeah

 

That’s right, my title is biting off TLC a little. That’s aight. At least this thing ain't called "Red Light Special".

 

“I have tweeted 4 times and updated my Facebook status twice today”. Ten years ago only a modern day John the Baptist or Nostradamus would have any idea what the heck that statement means. Social networking is simply a game changer when it comes to the way people communicate and relate to one another. “Oh my gosh, I follow you on Twitter” is definitely an awkward way to introduce yourself to someone you’ve never met face to face. Today, you can instantly connect with anyone in the world. I just Skyped on my laptop with my friend in Australia who was on his iPhone in his front yard.  Texting allows us to skip the formalities of hi, how are you, and get right to the point. By the way, Texting surpassed phone calls in 2007 and it will never go back again.

 

Since it is inevitable that technology will keep connecting people on almost unimaginable levels in the coming years, it brings up important issues for Christians regarding proper protocol when using social networking or technology.

 

One in five divorces occur as a result of Facebook. That’s a lot. Although I have read statistics that indicate the total percentage of affairs have not drastically increased in the last 20 years it is still significant that the way they are occurring is so prevalent.

31% of internet affairs turn into physical affairs.

I have counseled many people that have fallen as a result of Internet affairs. It is heartbreaking.

 In a recent totallifecouseling.com article 3 main reasons for affairs using technology or social networking are listed.

• Easy Access
• Lack of Boundaries
• Refusal to take Responsibility

This article is not a Christian article. If the secular community recognizes the danger of social networking I believe the Christian community should be even more aware. The generation that is emerging is doing so never having known any other world without instant connectivity.

 Between 1991 and 2006, the numbers of unfaithful wives under 30 increased by 20% and husbands by a whopping 45%. This was before the social networking explosion that would occur later that year. These numbers come from a study conducted by David Atkins of the University of Washington Center for the Study of Health and Risk Behaviors.

 

Now what can we do?

Romans 14 rules. In a nutshell it is saying what is good for you might not be good for everyone. Be careful that what you do is not just good, but be careful that it appears good.  Check it out…

 

Romans 14:16-17

16            Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil.

 

1 Corinthians 10 keeps going deeper.

 

1 Corinthians 10: 23-24

23            “ I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive.

24            No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.

 

I love this so much because I believe we spend too much of our time trying to fit everything in life into two categories that we think are the only two important things in life:

 

1. Sin

2. Not Sin 

First of all there is an unseen concept that complicates these two…sins of omission. What we fail to do at times makes us equally as guilty as what we do. It is certainly important to know whether we are in sin or not but I believe we leave out two important categories:

3. Is this good for me?

Just because something is not a sin doesn’t mean it pleases God. R.A. Torrey so eloquently describes where this truth can lead us. “If we make it our study to find out and to do the things which are pleasing to God, He will make it His study to do the things which are pleasing to us.”

We wonder why God doesn’t move in our lives when we are occupied with things that are not necessarily a sin, but neither are they pleasing to Him.

 4. Does this look good to others?

 This flies in the face of the “be yourself, who cares what anyone thinks” attitude that is so prevalent in the world today. We actually should care about what people think when it comes to the way we represent Christ. We should also be constantly cognizant of the way our decisions could affect others.

 

In order to keep this blog from exceeding the length of the combined works of Homer I am going to give some principles for married couples to consider and some principles for single people to consider when connecting with others through technology. My commentary on each will be brief, as I will let you investigate and formulate the reasoning behind each.

 

1.    Carefully consider the picture you upload, including your profile pic.

 

• You may have a body that looks like it was carved out of marble (probably not) but your pictures send a clear message to others.
• Some people will stumble because of your picture.

 2.    Private messages (or excessive public messages) to members of the opposite sex should always be minimal.

• The line between teasing and flirting can be nearly indistinguishable. It is easy for people to get the wrong idea.
• Married people should consider drawing clear cut lines as to what is acceptable for their social networking behavior.
• When I receive messages from members of the opposite sex I rarely answer them. I’m not being a prude, I just want to be safe.

 3.    Be careful who you “follow” or become friends with.

• There are many different uses for Facebook and Twitter. Some “friends” are certainly made for business or marketing purposes, but if people post questionable material on their pages or statuses not only could it be compromising for you, it also could reflect poorly on your witness.

 4.     Never, under any circumstances, speak negatively about your spouse or                         significant other and do not talk about how lonely you are.

• This is a cattle call for inappropriate “comforting” from the opposite sex

 5.    Never, ever, ever, ever, play Farmville.

• No comment

 

The worst kind of bondage imaginable is adding ridiculous, legalistic rules to our lives that God could care less about. This blog is meant to encourage free people to continue living free by guarding against potential hurt or damaged caused by carelessness.

These are not rules, they are ideas that can help us bring more glory to God and our relationships.

Oh, BTW TLC, the "down low" always takes you lower than you want to go.

Now excuse me, I have to update my status.

 

Word to Your Mother

We think in linear fashion. God does not. The name Alpha and Omega buries that notion. That is why Jesus is seen in the book of Revelation as a slain lamb by John and is later referred to as the Lamb slain from the foundations of the world. How can He die before there was anyone to die for? I think you get the point. That is why Gods Word is to be viewed as a complete work. God did not give Moses instructions to start out the first page of his book with the words "Old Testament". God did not give Matthew instructions to start out the first page of his book with the words "New Testament".

 

John 1:1 tells us that Jesus IS the Word. Not just the New Testament, the whole thing. Some people do not hold a very high view of scripture. If someone holds a very low view of scripture, they are likely to change God’s Word, interpret its meaning so drastically wrong that it becomes invalid, or just write part of it off. God’s written Word is the single most incredible thing we possess as believers. It is a miracle. You can’t fully understand one part of the Bible without the rest of it. It is inseparable. Jesus obviously held scripture in high regard.

 

1) “For truly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass the law until all is accomplished.  Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”  (Matthew 5:18-19 RSV

 

2) "It is easier for Heaven and Earth to pass away than for the smallest part of the letter of the law to become invalid."  (Luke 16:17 NAB)

 

3)"Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.  I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.  Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest part or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place."  (Matthew 5:17 NAB)

 

So did Paul and Peter.

 

4) "All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness..."  (2 Timothy 3:16 NAB)

 

5) "Know this first of all, that there is no prophecy of scripture that is a matter of personal interpretation, for no prophecy ever came through human will; but rather human beings moved by the Holy Spirit spoke under the influence of God." (2 Peter 20-21 NAB)

 

Jesus came to fulfill the law. He did not come to abolish it. To not make a distinction between abolishment and fulfillment is to err.

 

There are 3 main types of Old Testament law.

 1.    Ceremonial Law- This has been fulfilled in Christ and as we participate in communion we look back on what all these laws looked forward to, the victorious Messiah.

2.    Civil Law- The civil codes have lost their context now that salvation is in Christ because we all live in different countries with their own civil laws, in a spiritual kingdom, and not in Israel, a temporal nation.  They are transformed into the practical application of church discipline.

3.    Moral Law- This law reflects God’s changeless character. It remains unaltered, although in Christ we are no longer condemned by our sins against it.

 

I’ve heard it said that “passages like Deuteronomy 28, don't apply to us any more. If they did, we couldn't get the blessings without also getting the curses.”

 

Nothing could be further from the truth.

 

”Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us… “(Galatians 3:13 NKJ)

 

He became the curse. If while redeeming us from the curse He also nullified us from the blessing, we’d all be up the creek. He fulfilled it.

 

The shadows, though dimly lit, of the Old Testament become the white-hot light of Christ that illuminates such blessing that we are literally called “co-heirs” with Him.

 

It is discouraging to see trends that seem to be occurring around Christianity where people insert and remove serious doctrinal issues of the Christian faith at will. This shows a very low regard for scripture and it is dangerous to say the least. God’s Word is a miracle. It is life, it is hope, it is salvation for those that believe and it is to be held in high regard.

 

 

 

 

 

Mistaken Identity

My responsibilities as a pastor give me the opportunity to talk to every type of person you could imagine on a weekly basis. As I do my best to try and help people navigate through life with a great sense of purpose and hope in knowing Jesus, I have found one issue that distracts people more than almost any other.  Farmville. I kid, I kid. The issue that truly confuses people is the issue of identity.

 

People want to fit in. As a matter of fact, according to psychologists, our desire for acceptance is greater than our need for food, water, or shelter. It is a need that drives us to do nearly anything. We will search for it anywhere imaginable, we will starve ourselves for it, punish our bodies for it, we will work for it, we will finance things we cannot afford to have it, and many times we will compromise our own values to get it.

 

I am so moved when I look at Jesus’ life because He had such a huge sense of who He was. Remember, He was fully God but He was also fully human as well. He was able to relate with all of our fears, shortcomings, our longings to fit in.

 

Hebrews 4:15

15            For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin.

 

As we go through life we tend to label ourselves pretty easily in order to find our own identity. From political views and musical tastes to sexual orientation and cultural behaviors, people latch on to almost anything that makes them feel a sense of purpose. Sadly, some people even define themselves from their weaknesses or failures, or even their strengths and successes. None of these things are a viable foundation for who we are. People fail to recognize the difference between what they do and who they are.

 

After 30 years of a fairly normal life Jesus steps on to the scene ready to embark on the most daring, beautiful three year span in the history of the universe. He encounters John the Baptist and asks to be baptized. As Jesus is coming up out of the water something extraordinary happens.

 

Matthew 3:16-17

16            As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him.

17            And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

Listen to what the Father says to the Son. First He makes a statement of acceptance.

“This is my Son”. You are a child of God. You can look all over the world for a place to fit in but you will never find a more powerful revelation than the moment you realize what it means to be a child…a child of God.

John 1:12

12            But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God; even to those who believe in His Name.

 

God is speaking that same thing over you at this very moment. “You are my child”. That rules.

 

Second He makes a declaration of His love for His Son. “Whom I love”. How far have you gone in pursuit of love? How many dead ends have led to pain and brokenness when the Fathers love was there all along?

 

Romans 5:8

8            But God commendeth His love for us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

 

The amazing part is that His love for us was the greatest at the worst moment of our lives. He knew or jerkiness, yet loved us.

 

Third He makes a statement of affirmation. “In whom I am well pleased”. During ministry times I have put my arms around dozens of sobbing men over the years that have admitted their whole life was lived vainly in pursuit of the acceptance their father never gave them. To simply hear an important person tell us that they are proud of us does something to the soul. My five year old son Jude will look at me sometimes and say, “Daddy you love me and you are proud of me”. I laugh out loud as I doubly reaffirm his statement. “That’s right son. Your Daddy loves you and I’m very proud of you. You’re a great man”. He usually says, “I already know that Daddy”. He has literally heard me say those things hundreds of times. What the Father spoke over the Son at the Jordan River He is still speaking over you today.

 

On our recent record there is a song called “Draw Me Closer.” I wrote this song in a very intimate moment of my life where I felt as if I could ask God anything and He would grant my request. I could never be so personal with Him if I didn’t know who I was in Him.

 

You are His child. He loves you. He is proud of you. Don’t be defined by anything that never had the power to create you. He knows who you are and who you were meant to be. That is enough.

Spiritual Gifts: Part III

Spiritual Gifts: Part III

 

Alright, this has been a fun “mini-series” for my blog. We will close it out today with Part 3. The chapter we have been studying begins by Paul stating his desire that this wild church at Corinth would stop being ignorant about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. I believe there is a lot of ignorance even today about these gifts.

 

Paul masterfully addresses the subject in question in chapter 12, writes chapter 13 about the superiority of love over any gift (one of the major problems still…no love), then addresses the protocol necessary for the functional use of the gifts in public.

1 Corinthians 12:3-6

3            Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit.

4            There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.

5            There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.

6            There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.

 

It is important to realize the context here because clearly Paul is identifying the potential for people to misunderstand the gifts because they do not percieve the use of them the same as someone else. I will say this before I continue. Christians, that is people who follow Jesus Christ, need to come together more than ever in the world we live in. Arguing over doctrine damages the Body of Christ. It also weakens the Body of Christ. If you find a Christian that believes differently than you it is apropriate to discuss it with them once or twice, but Titus Chapter 3 tells us that we waste our time arguing when a persons mind is set.

 

So, the Spirit manifests Himself in various ways. 1 Corinthians 12 goes on to list 9 different “spiritual gifts”. I am going to categorize them according to their function and I will them elaborate on each a little further.

 

First, there are three vocal gifts.

The vocal gifts are those expressions of the Holy Spirit that say something.  The vocal gifts are: prophecy, different kinds of heavenly languages, and the interpretation of those languages.

 

1.     Prophecy-  Prophecy is the ability to hear and speak a word directly from God that, edifies, exhorts, and comforts others. (I Corinthians 14:3) It is spiritual, not intellectual, such as the natural ability we also have to discover the truth and the skill to figure out how and when to share it.

2.     Different kinds of languages- Acts Chapter 2 tells an incredible story of Jesus disciples receiving the promise of the Holy Spirit that He had been referring to. (John 7:38-39) In this instance the Spirit came upon them and they began to speak in other earthly languages. Those that heard them each understood in their own native tongue. Paul also refers to other types of spiritual languages in 1 Corinthians 14:13-18. Here there is a personal prayer language that he is talking about where his understanding is unfruitful but his spirit is edified, then there is a corporate spiritual language that he is giving directions to Corinth about. This is an unknown language that needs interpretation. Let’s look at point #3…

3.     Interpretation of languages- If someone spoke out publically in a service in an unknown language it would be confusing to everyone there if there was no explanation for the babbling. In my previous reference to 1 Corinthians 14 Paul even says let he that prays in an unknown tongue pray that he may interpret. So, there is the personal level of interpreting your own prayers in a heavenly language and there is the corporate interpretation of a heavenly language spoken in front of others.

 

* It is best to never speak in an unknown tongue publically unless you are absolutely certain you are able to interpret it yourself. Knowing this, prophecy is superior in that it eliminates the possibility of ruining a service by some strange utterance that is not interpreted. This disclaimer includes praying in your prayer language publically. If unbelievers hear you (or Christians with different beliefs) it can destroy the ability to move forward in that service.

 

Second, there are three revelatory gifts.

The revelatory gifts are those insights of the Holy Spirit that enable people to know something.  The revelatory gifts are: the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, and discerning of spirits.

 

1.     Word of wisdom- Let’s not make this more complicated than it is. This is supernatural wisdom on how to deal with any situation. If God has ever moved in your life and you walk away saying, “Wow, I just said that?”, you probably just had a word of wisdom.

2.     Word of knowledge- The Holy Spirit will give His people supernatural information at times, things people could not have otherwise known. It can be regarding anything. When Jesus told the woman at the well that she had 5 husbands plus the one she was living with, that was a word of knowledge.

3.     Discerning of spirits- Being able to spiritually recognize the motives in peoples hearts is a direct gift from the Lord. Romans 8:27 refers to the Lord as “He who searches the hearts”. When God shares that information sometimes it is to warn or protect us, other times it is to give us peace about a person. This is one of my favorite gifts. What a tool for living life!

 

Third, there are three power gifts.

The power gifts are those manifestations of the Holy Spirit that do something.  The power gifts are: the gift of faith, the working of miracles, and the gifts of healing.

 

1.     The gift of faith- Ephesians 2:8 tells us that we are saved by grace through faith. All believers have some measure of faith. The gift of faith is a supernatural measure of faith to believe for things that we would otherwise be unable to believe for. There are times when we feel hopeless but God instills such great faith in us that He is going to do something amazing. This is not some great trait of our own, it in fact a gift of the Holy Spirit.

2.     The working of miracles- I’ve heard it said, “If you don’t believe in miracles don’t worry, you won’t get one.” The dictionary defines a miracle as “an effect or extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers and is ascribed to a supernatural cause.” Each believer has access to the gift of miracles. John 14:12 challenges me as much as any verse in the Bible. I need the gift of faith to embrace it fully. It says, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” Jesus did some amazing things. He also gave us His own authority to do those things and greater things.

3.     The gifts of healing- Jesus not only healed people, but his followers did the same. Isaiah 53:5 tells us that His suffering purchased our healing. This gift is two-fold I believe. One aspect is the ability to receive healing from the Holy Spirit for any sickness at any time. The other is the spiritual gift to encourage others in receiving their healing.

 

 

I believe that the greatest use of all the gifts is in the personal day to day life of the believer. If every believer exercised these gifts in their own personal life with regularity, not only would the corporate use of the gifts be more effective and reliable, but believers would be much more mature and full of faith.

 

All these gifts function in the realm of faith.  They are received by faith, and they are exercised in faith.  They are not signs of "spirituality," but they are a sign of faith and believers should strive for spiritual maturity as they incorporate them into their lives. The use of the gifts should NEVER replace personal prayer time and time spent growing in God’s Word.

 

If any of these gifts confuse you please do not be discouraged. God gave them to you because He loves you and wants to bless you. Pray about them. Ask God to give you greater understanding. Receive them and exercise them in faith and the desire to be a great blessing to those around you and to the church.

 

Be encouraged in your faith! Wow, that took a long time =) 

Spiritual Gifts: Part II

Better to Receive?

If God gave you a gift would you receive it? That is the question I ended Part 1 of this blog with. I think when the question is asked with no context, almost anyone would enthusiastically say, “Yes!” God has, in fact, given us many gifts. Salvation is the greatest gift of all.

Rom 6:23



23            For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

I am happy that I received God’s gift of salvation. When it comes to the gifts He has given us there is such an awesome degree of intentionality on His part. It makes me want to treasure the gift all the more. As a shepherd, or a pastor, I appreciate the gift God has given me to help lead people closer to Him, to watch over them and to build them up. We see in this scripture that the Lord gave these gifts, which are many times are vocational, specifically so Christians could be built up.

Ephesians 4:8, 11&12

8            When he ascended on high he led a host of captives,
and he gave gifts to men.

11             And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 

12             to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,

What is really cool about God’s gifts is that He never regrets giving them. (Think of gifts you’ve given ex’s…Grrrr)

Romans 11:29

29            For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

I am trying to stress how special we should feel when offered a gift by God. The true value of a gift is when it is received with joy.  

In the final installment of this blog on spiritual gifts I will address the gifts themselves and I will try to outline their functionality for the individual believer and for the church as a whole.

Until then get in a receiving kind of mood ;)

Spiritual Gifts: Part I

A Wild Church

<sub>1 Corinthians chapters 12, 13, and 14 have always been so awesome to me. Let me explain why. The church Paul was addressing the church at Corinth, one of the most immature, enthusiastic, sinful, yet hopeful churches imaginable. They were messing everything up. They didn’t know how to do communion. They were going wild using spiritual gifts without order. They were having orgies and yet still showing up to worship passionately. They were trying to one-up all the other leaders in the church with their deep spirituality while still practicing extreme paganism. These people were wild, but they loved Jesus. They were new in their faith but they didn’t quit just because they were doing it wrong. They kept pushing forward (with the help of one extremely wise apostle).

In these chapters you find an amazing story of Paul explaining the “gifts” of the Spirit to these energetic people. The context of these chapters is one of rationale and gentle correction. He is not chewing them out. He is lovingly explaining why they are doing things wrong and how to get a proper perspective.


Go!

"Spiritual gifts” is really a beautiful term. I love gifts. Most people do. I also love giving gifts. At Christmastime, my favorite part of our tradition is handing everyone their gifts from me and saying, “go”. (Ok.OK. receiving an autographed Bobby Bowden helmet doesn’t exactly stink). It is generally rather insulting to the one giving a gift if the other person will not accept or receive that gift. In Nigeria I had a precious, hard working man that came up to me with a huge smile on his face after my teaching that night. He explained that he had been liberated by the message and he would never be the same. He took off his watch and put it in my hand. It was a gift. My first thought was to graciously decline but I looked into this mans eyes and saw through his adorable toothless smile that this gift represented much more than a watch,  and to receive it would mean the world to him. I put this cheap watch on my arm and watched the tears stream down his face in gratitude. I received it gladly.

I am going to write a part 2 for this topic and I will explain some of the functions of the gifts for our lives. I felt it was best to start the concept with the framework so you can meditate on what a gift is.</sub>

_{If God gave you a gift would you receive it?}

_{Part 2 is coming soon…}

The Becoming

God has never let me down

He has sustained me through failure, shame, victory, regret, and joy

Why have I ever questioned His faithfulness?

He cannot fail

When I was so lost, I couldn’t find myself

He showed me the benefit of what an heir is.

I deserved nothing and He gave me everything

I was surely headed toward heartbreak but He showed me what rejoicing truly was

I will tell nations of this love

I will persuade men to sing songs of my Father’s majesty

But most of all I am marked by this moment

Stretched so that I no longer am the same man

This becoming is beautiful and I don’t want to miss any of it.