Goodness

Negotiating With God

July 12, 2017 by Dudley Hall

Since our forebears ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, humanity has been trying to negotiate with God by using goodness as currency. The lie perpetrated by the Serpent is that the human individual can determine what is good and bad, and that he or she can achieve that moral standard by their own determination. What an illusion!

In a recent blog, Wade Trimmer refers to a survey revealing that 74% of Americans believe they are going to heaven based on their moral record. About the same percentage don't think their neighbors will make it. Wow! We are willing to give ourselves a break, but not our neighbors.

We somehow believe we can negotiate with God based on our concept of goodness. "Sure, we have done some sinful things, but we have also done some good. We have turned our lives around lately. Surely God will give us a break based on our intentions. We aren't in the category of Hitler or the Boston Strangler."

It’s Not About Mere Moralism

God doesn't negotiate based on our goodness or badness. The Father made a covenant with his Son who represents us. He fulfilled every aspect of righteousness, and the Father declared his sacrifice for our sins: Sufficient! The currency of the kingdom of God is not goodness, but faith. We believe in Jesus accepting his work as our own, and embracing his mission as our calling. The prophet Isaiah spoke of this hundreds of years before Jesus was born.

Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?

Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. -- Isaiah 55:1-2

Christianity is About Trusting in Jesus

It is difficult for us to get away from the belief that God is primarily wanting us to be good. Of course, he is not trying to make us bad, but our concept of good is flawed. We tend to define it totally in terms of not practicing bad behavior. Sadly, much of the religion that is identified as Christian is mere moralism, rather than life with Christ.

Put your moral currency away. It is not legal tender in God's kingdom.

Some people were reared to be polite, gentle and mannerly, but their hearts are filled with selfish intent. Others were not given such privilege in training and are rough around the edges, yet they have been captured by the unconditional love of God through Jesus. The issue is trusting Jesus as our goodness.

All of us try to manage transactions with God until we are struck with a true vision of who he is and what he has already done. Even after initial conversion, we tend toward a transactional relationship with God. We look for levers to pull, formulas to follow, and principles to practice in hopes of unlocking his treasure of blessings. The great transaction is done! God has acted in our behalf by forgiving our sins and granting us the blessings due to Jesus. When that truth becomes more than a meme, or a stanza in a song, we will begin living as the sons and daughters we are by virtue of his grace.

Put your moral currency away. It is not legal tender in God's kingdom.

God Wants Us to Know and Love Him, Not Try to Save Ourselves

February 19, 2017 by Dudley Hall

Evidently there is a vast number of people who have occupied this earth who believe that their purpose is to be good. They suspect that whatever god there might be has determined that he likes good people and detests bad people, and that he is planning a final test where the bad guys will be enthusiastically thrown into the fire and the good will get rewarded because of how good they proved to be.

I say that because so many still feel so badly because they do bad things and don't do enough good things. There have been so many religions created because bad people are trying to be good.

Even in our predominantly secular culture, people are always trying to be better. The best-selling books tell us how to be better at something. Even if it's not for God's judgment, we want to do better because we will feel better about ourselves. It's secularism's version of heaven.

What if Goodness Isn’t the Goal?

It is a scary question, but what if that isn't what God wants? What if badness and goodness were not the issue? What if being good were not the goal? It sure would take a lot of pressure off. But, someone will argue that we tried that in the 60's when we trashed responsibility and thumbed our noses at rules, and boundaries. That didn't pan out so good. Someone is probably about to mention that much of our society is already rejecting any morality and that we are amid a culture war because of it.

Before we get too far, let me point out that being bad is not the only other choice.

The truth is that God is all about humans knowing him and being loved by him. He created Adam and Eve to know him and partner with him in a great project. Their role on earth was to be the image-bearer of their creator.

We can get back to being his image-bearers on earth as we partner with him in getting the truth of his real purpose delivered to the whole world.

It was after they believed a lie about him and his intentions that they started trying to get back in his good graces by being good the way they assumed he wanted. Since that time, humans have speculated as to what it would take to appease the gods, or they have taken God's own instructions and turned them into ladders they could climb toward goodness.

Christ’s Goodness

In time, God sent the Son to be the perfect human who lived in love and righteousness. He died as our substitute so that his goodness could be transferred to us. We can't be better than he, and he has paid for our badness. We are free to know God without guilt, shame or fear.

We can get back to being his image-bearers on earth as we partner with him in getting the truth of his real purpose delivered to the whole world. We can lay aside our dead works that never impressed him anyway. He loves to show off his mercy when we sin. His glory is made manifest when in our weakness he is strong.

Our failures don't put him off. They are opportunities for him to show any who are watching how much he loves to restore the broken and pick up the fallen.

Oh, we don't try to be bad, or just do bad things because we can. We are constrained by the love that he has shown. It changes us. We long to honor his name, and we find that we love the same people he does. Some might look at us and say we are good people, but that is not our goal. It is just an observation. We are known and loved by him.

Why You Can’t Set Your Value

June 22, 2016 by Michael Wilson

The value of an item is determined by two people – the buyer and the seller. The buyer actually has more weight in this equation because they are the ones that are handing over money for the item. If the buyer feels that the item is worth the asking price, then they will pay for it. The seller, on the other hand, sets the price and has to determine the lowest value he will take on that item.

The point of this is that the item never sets its value. Because it’s inanimate, it cannot get offended over the seller’s asking price or the buyer’s paying price. It cannot demand that more money be paid, nor can it argue that the buyer paid too much.

I use this example to show us that God is the one that gets to determine our value, not us. Yet, we so often times devalue ourselves and feel as if we are nothing. We look at the mistakes in our lives, what others say about us, how we compare to others and a whole host of other things to determine the value we place on ourselves.

As our Creator, God is the only one that gets to determine the value of a person, His creation. The highlight of this is that God places unmeasurable worth and value on human beings.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…..(John 3:16)

In Psalm 8, the Psalmist declares that God crowned man with glory and honor. (Psalm 8:5)

Jesus died for humanity in order to show them the incredible lengths God would go to in order reconcile them to Himself as their Father.

Before a baby is born parents place great value on their child. While I realize that this is not true in every single case, it is the way things are supposed to be. That baby has never accomplished anything great, has never done anything of value for its parents. That baby will actually cost his parents more than he can give back. That baby may even grow up and disappoint his parents because of wrong choices and actions.

Yet, the parents would die for that child. They would do anything for him. If that child was in trouble, those parents would do anything in their power to help save their child . . . no matter the cost.

Why? Because the child doesn’t set its value, the parents do.

That child could come to his parents and tell them how bad he is, how rotten, how much he has messed up and how he doesn’t deserve to be called their child. The parents would tell him to stop talking like that. They would encourage him, build him up and tell him all the good things that he is and has to offer. They wouldn’t hold his mistakes over his head. They would tell him what he can be, what they see in him.

Why? Because the child doesn’t set its value, the parents do.

Why, then, do we do the same with God?

We come to God in prayer and tell Him how awful we are, what a rotten sinner we are, and how much we have messed up. We feel as if we have to beg Him for forgiveness. We tell him how unworthy we are of his love. We go to great lengths to remind God of how messed up we are.

Some of it is because we believe that’s how he sees us. We believe that God sees us in that pitiful state and that as we beg for his mercy and forgiveness he takes pity on us and extends mercy. I know this is how I saw him for a large part of my life.

Sometimes, we listen to the lies of condemnation from the devil, the accuser of the brethren. We end up believing what he says more than we believe what God says.

In the parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15) we see how God is because the parable is really about the father. In this parable the youngest son asks for his inheritance and then proceeds to go off and blow it. He ends up losing everything — money, home, friends, and his dignity. He winds up feeding pigs which would have been the lowest point a good Jewish boy could have ended up at.

When he finally came to his senses he decided to return home. He didn’t feel like he could be his father’s son anymore but he believed that he could at least be one of his father’s servants. He had set his value and it was very, very low.

However, the story has a different outcome than he thought it would. As he is approaching home his father sees him, runs to him and begins to joyfully kiss and hug him. The boy tries to explain what he has come home for but the Father won’t listen. The father reestablishes the value of the son by putting on him the best robe, a ring, and sandals on his feet. For time’s sake, I cannot explain the deepness and richness of this parable. What we need to understand is that the father set the value of the child and it was high.

The son’s mistakes and rebelliousness did not change his value. Neither does yours.

Please, I beg of you, if you tell God how awful you are . . . stop! Just begin to thank Him that you have great value to him. Thank him that you are loved and worth everything to him. Thank him for his grace and mercy. As you do this, you will begin to see yourself as he sees you . . . valued and loved!

Stop devaluing yourself. Stop listening to the devaluing voices of others.

You don’t get to set your value. Your Father in Heaven does and he sees you as immensely valuable, worthy of dying for! He would have rather died for you than to be without you.

That, my friends, is what amazing grace is all about.

Don’t Despise the Package!

December 24, 2015 by Michael Wilson

Gifts come in all shapes and sizes. My family Christmas tree is full of gifts in different colored wrapping paper, bows and ribbon. Some are big and some are small. Each of my children hopes that the biggest one goes to them. For some reason, we often get excited thinking that the bigger the gift the better it will be.

Do you remember the greatest gift you ever received at Christmas time?

Christmas is celebrated by Christians as the birthdate of Jesus. We consider Him to be the greatest gift of all. We believe that He is the Son of God that miraculously became a human, born of a virgin. We believe that He died on a cross for the sins of mankind that we could be restored to a rightful relationship with our Father in Heaven.

Truly, He is a great gift.

You would think such greatness would come in a great package. When we want to give someone we love and cherish a special gift we will go to great lengths to pick out the right wrapping paper and the perfect bow. We might even set up the surroundings to make everything perfect for when they open that gift.

But, He didn’t come wrapped up in a great package.

He was born around smelly animals. Truly not a place for a king, let alone the God of the Universe.

He didn’t look like royalty. He was born to commoner parents. No regal robes, no silver or gold plated rattles. He was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger.

His birth was made known by angels to shepherds and not to anyone else. He was born in a little, out of way town that didn’t have much significance.

His birth was low-key and was not something that you expect of a great King.

In other words, a gift came wrapped up in an unassuming package.

Throughout Jesus’ life, He was not received by many of His own. He didn’t come wrapped in the package they were expecting. They were expecting a mighty warrior King that would free them from Roman oppression. He came as the Suffering Servant. He did not look or act like they thought he should look or act.

They missed the gift because of the packaging.

Have you ever missed the gift of God because it didn’t come the way you thought it should? I have. I looked at the package (the person) and didn’t like what I saw so I was unable to receive the gift.

God wraps His gifts in the packaging of humanity.

He wants us to be able to see beyond the packaging. He wants us to see the gift inside.

The gifts under the tree are not really about the wrapping paper. It’s not even about the box that the gift comes packaged in. It’s the gift itself. It’s what is wrapped up in the paper and the box.

It’s the same with people. It’s not about what’s on the outside. It’s about the inside. Learn to look beyond the exterior to see the heart. This Christmas season, and throughout the coming year, learn to see beyond the exterior of every human being and see the gift that is on the inside.

Why Won’t God Feel Sorry For Me?

November 9, 2015 by Michael Wilson

Have you ever had a bad time in your life where you prayed for things to change, but they didn’t? This is especially hard when someone has caused you great pain and done something to cause you loss. I’ve been in this season for a while now. It started about five years ago. I am in a much better place now, but I still feel the sting of pain and loss from the actions of someone else.

Throughout this ordeal, there have been many times where I have wanted God to feel sorry for me. I have wanted him to deal with others in the way that David prayed in the Psalms. “Lord, smash them, vindicate me, get them good, let them hurt as I hurt.” That’s not an actual translation….that’s the Michael Wilson version.

I am sure that you are a much stronger person than I am and have never felt this way.

But this is not the Jesus way!

So, why won’t God just feel sorry for me and get me out of this mess? Why won’t he just snap his fingers and cause my circumstances, which were not my fault, mind you, to just change for the better. How long until things are fully restored as I desire them to be?

Because with God nothing is ever wasted! No problem, no scar, no miscarriage of justice. No pain, no hurt, no wound. Nothing is ever wasted with God. He has the ability to make ALL things work together for our good.

He has a way of turning every test we go through into a testimony we can share with someone else. He has the ability to turn every mess we are in into a message of hope and deliverance for someone else. He can turn every trial and tribulation into a triumph for those that will just trust him.

It would be easier for God to feel sorry for us and turn things around but what would we learn from that? Many times our children go through things that are not comfortable for them. As much as we want to, we don’t always get them out of their situation because we use it for a learning experience. It’s a teachable moment about how to overcome adversity. It’s a way to teach them that life is tough, but they are tougher.

Yes, at times, I want God to feel sorry for me. I want him to just supernaturally move me from the trials I am in to a place of comfort, a place of green pastures and still waters.

But I won’t grow like I should if all I have is comfort. I won’t grow if it’s always easy. I won’t learn obedience unless I go through some suffering. That’s how it worked for Jesus. Even though he was the Son of God and sinless, he still had to learn obedience through things that he suffered (Heb. 5:7).

With God nothing is ever wasted! He has the ability to make ALL things work together for our good.
Click To Tweet

It’s easy to obey God when things are going our way when we feel we are on top of life and all things are good. It’s not so easy when we are suffering because of someone else’s mistakes and sins. It’s not as easy to trust God when our name is being dragged through the mud and people believe lies about us. We want vindication and justice. Many times, if not all, God simply whispers to us, “Let it go and trust me.”

Many times, we have a conversation like this with God:

“Can’t you just feel sorry for me and right all the wrongs done to me? That would make me feel better.”

“Let it go and just trust me.”

“Yea, but people believe stuff that’s not true and I am paying the price for their sins.”

“I paid the price for your sins and their sins, now let it go and just trust me.”

“But I am afraid you won’t come through for me. I mean look at them, they are prospering and happy. They are able to move on and I am stuck. I don’t like it here and it’s their fault. What are you going to do?”

“I am working all things out for you, and for them. Remember I love you both. I died for their sins as well as yours. My plans and purposes are greater than you will know, but you have to let this go and just trust me.”

“So you won’t feel sorry for me? You won’t make this easier on me?”

“No and no. My grace is sufficient for you, for in your weakness I am made strong. Trust me.”

I have had many conversations with God like this. While I will not say that this is one of those actual conversations, I can safely tell you that over the course of the last five years, this would be the summation of those conversations.

God will not feel sorry for us because he uses everything that happens to us to mold us, shape us, and form us into the human beings he created us to be . . . his sons and daughters reflecting his image and likeness.

God will not feel sorry for us, but he will lead us, guide us, work all things out for us and be strong in us as we simply trust and obey him. Even in the midst of deep hurt and pain, he is always there for us.

He won’t feel sorry for you but he will love the mess out of you!