Jesus Christ Blog

The Great Commission is all about making friends. Now I know Jesus said, “Therefore, go and make disciples …” (Matthew 28:19 NLT), but Jesus himself showed that you can’t make a disciple until you first make a friend. “I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me.” (John 15:15 NLT)

So what Christians have called “witnessing” for some time really should be more like building relationships. It’s what you do over the long haul of a relationship that counts so much more than door-to-door canvassing of the neighborhood.

In the movie The Big Kahuna starring Danny DeVito and Kevin Spacey, a young salesman fresh out of Baptist college goes on his first business trip to a convention with a couple seasoned veterans from his company. In an attempt to land a CEO (“The Big Kahuna”) of a very large account as a new client, the young Baptist, played surprisingly close to a real Baptist by Peter Tarrantino, ends up the unlikely one of the three who has the best shot at talking with the CEO.

But instead of talking about the company he represents and setting up his partners with a meeting, the Baptist ends up spending the whole conversation witnessing to the man about Jesus. When his co-workers find out about this, Spacey goes ballistic. A hot-headed argument ensues between Spacey and the rookie salesman over the place of religion in business, and Danny DeVito, the oldest and wisest of the three, tries to calm them both down and provides some very sensible advice. What he says to the young Baptist should be heard and considered by all Christians. It goes something like this:

“The minute you lay hold of a conversation in order to steer it in a certain direction, it ceases to be a conversation, it’s a sales pitch; and you aren’t a human being anymore, you’re a marketing rep. If you really care about the man, ask him about his kids … his wife … his dreams …”

It’s the difference between pushing an agenda and truly caring for somebody. If you care about somebody, you want to know what he or she is thinking, what is the person’s hopes and dreams, joys and disappointments – in other words, what are the things that make that person human. Friendship is all about finding common ground, and it is out of this common ground that what is shared will have credibility.

It’s scary not knowing what the future holds–until we remember who holds the future

If you’ve ever wondered how far God would go to show his love, look in the mirror and wonder no more. We need not look any further than ourselves to find the most shocking and amazing displays of God’s grace. If we think otherwise, it is only because we have not seen ourselves as we truly are.

It has been said and sung many times: “There but for the grace of God go I.” At first this sounds grateful, but such sentiment masks a dangerous pride. It is actually not unlike the statement of a religious leader in Jesus’ day as he looked upon a sinner on his knees who was crying out for God’s mercy. “I thank you, God,” said the Pharisee, “that I am not a sinner like everyone else, especially like that tax collector over there.” (Luke 18:11 NLT) It is a view that focuses on someone else’s misfortune. Someone else is worse than I am. It is much better to be thinking and praying, “Here, because of the grace of God and for no other reason, am I.” I am the only person I truly know about when it comes to sin. I am the authority on the subject.

The Pharisee hasn’t a clue about the sinner – who he is or what he has done. He has no point of reference to judge the man’s life but from his own inflated view of himself. If he had even the slightest clue about his own sin, he would realize he doesn’t have any business making the assumption that the sinner is any worse than he is. The only prayer any of us can pray on the subject of sin is: “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.” This is the one prayer that sends heaven scurrying.

It is best to steer completely clear of the comparison game. Any attempt to better ourselves at the mercy of someone else’s failure will always bring a twisted view of us and others.

The immensity of God’s mercy is not displayed in what he did for the world, or for someone else. It is not displayed in someone else’s story about how low they were before Christ picked them up (of course, never as low as we would ever go – heaven forbid). Nor is it discovered through some theological understanding or study of the many nuances of his grace. No, the immensity of God’s mercy is revealed finally – and only – in the incredible realization that, lo and behold, it found out the worst of the lot. God’s mercy looked down from heaven and found out me!

Anxiety is like a warning light: It’s indicating that there is something in my life that I have not yet surrendered to God.

“Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:7

Imagine freeing up the thinking time we can put into self-indulgence, and spending that time instead on someone else.

“If you search for good, you will find favor; but if you search for evil, it will find you!” (Proverbs 11:27 NLT)

Praise is a valuable weapon against the enemy. War cries, frontal assaults, or special words of exorcism can’t drive back the forces of evil. Neither can the brandishing of the sword or the charge of the brigade. What keeps the powers of darkness at bay is the simple and true praise of the Savior from a heart set free.

Christians are engaged in a battle, but going on the warpath won’t win this fight. It can even make matters worse. Christians can easily get caught up searching for evil in the world and trying to root it out, but by focusing on evil so much we bring the evil right to us. The best way to go after the enemy is with Christ on our minds and praise for him in our hearts. We do this unconsciously all the time. We sing a little song of praise as we go about our tasks, and unseen demons rush for cover. There are some things we are better off not knowing about.

Like the complicated etchings of the classical German painter Albrecht Durer that depict hosts of angelic beings and demons warring high in the sky over peaceful, tranquil landscapes, we have little knowledge of what is really going on at any given time in the heavenly realms around us. But we need not be conscious of this. We do not require sentries on the watch every hour, fearing attack. We do not have to check behind every door. It’s better if we don’t. (“If you search for evil, it will find you!”) We need only be in the presence and the praise of Jesus. The enemy flees at the mere sound of his name.

Jesus is our constant protection. He is our most valuable possession. The best protection against evil is a heart bent toward the good – seeking God in all things. Light does not fight with darkness. There is no wrestling match necessary. Light banishes darkness. They cannot occupy the same place at the same time.

What does it tell us about God if He is willing to be persuaded, cajoled, bargained with and wrestled?

How would you like to have friends like this?

“These are the names of David’s mightiest men. The first was Jashobeam the Hacmonite, who was commander of the Three – the three greatest warriors among David’s men. He once used his spear to kill eight hundred enemy warriors in a single battle.

Next in rank among the Three was Eleazar son of Dodai, a descendent of Ahoah. Once Eleazar and David stood together against the Philistines when the entire Israelite army had fled. He killed Philistines until his hand was too tired to lift his sword …

Next in rank was Shammah son of Agee from Harar. One time the Philistines gathered at Lehi and attacked the Israelites in a field full of lentils. The Israelite army fled, but Shammah held his ground in the middle of the field and beat back the Philistines …

Once during harvesttime, when David was at the
cave of Adullam, the Philistine army was camped in the valley of Rephaim. The Three (who were among the Thirty – an elite group among David’s fighting men) went down to meet him there. David was staying in the stronghold at the time, and a Philistine detachment had occupied the town of Bethlehem. David remarked longingly to his men, ‘Oh how I would love some of that good water from the well in Bethlehem, the one by the gate.’ So the Three broke through the Philistine lines, drew some water from the well, and brought it back to David. But he refused to drink it. Instead, he poured it out before the Lord. ‘The Lord forbid that I should drink this!’ he exclaimed. ‘This water is as precious as the blood of these men who risked their lives to bring it to me.’ So David did not drink it. This is an example of the exploits of the Three.” (2 Samuel 23:8-17 NLT)

OK, so it was a kind of stupid thing to do. Still, wouldn’t you like to be in a group like this with three guys who believed they could pretty much do anything? It’s true that war creates its own camaraderie, but then, we’re at war, too – a spiritual war that is being waged over our souls and our spirits. We cannot make it alone. We need others to stand with us. It might be cool to take on these guys as inspiration for a small group of committed believers. You could call yourselves “the Three,” or “the Two,” or “the Four.” Whatever. Then be careful what you long for around your friends. They might just go out and make it come true!