Jesus is the Message

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Recently I saw a video interview by Rob Bell (interviewing Shane Hipps on his new book Flickering Pixels) at a Pastor’s convention in 2009 that became very unsettling and quite disturbing to me.

I couldn’t leave the subject matter alone.

The subject matter of the interview was this statement, downplayed by the interviewer as a mere cliche:

The methods may change, but the message doesn’t.

This is quite true.  Why does the message never change?

John 1:1

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

The beginning of John is one of the most crucial verses for our theology’s basis.  In the beginning, meaning before time, establishes the “when.”  The answer to “what” was in the beginning is the the Word.

The Greek word for “word” is Logos (Strongs #3056); one of the meanings is “message.”

So, you could translate John 1:1 as:

In the beginning was the Message and the Message was with God and The Message was God.

In John 1:14, we are given further evidence that the message, the word, is Jesus:

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Vashti Virus

Palm Desert, CA

But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king’s command brought by his eunuchs; therefore the king was furious, and his anger burned within him.  “What shall we do to Queen Vashti, according to law, because she did not obey the command of King Ahasuerus brought to her by the eunuchs?”   And Memucan answered before the king and the princes: “Queen Vashti has not only wronged the king, but also all the princes, and all the people who are in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus.   For the queen’s behavior will become known to all women, so that they will despise their husbands in their eyes, when they report, ‘King Ahasuerus commanded Queen Vashti to be brought in before him, but she did not come.’
Esther 1:12-17

I wonder if Vashti lived in 2004 and we were her girlfriends what the dialog might have been amongst them.  I wonder if Queen Vashti and her handmaidens and all of those at the feast she was throwing exclusively for women immediately raved on about how absurd it was for the King to demand her to come and show off for him.  “What does he think I am, anyway, a sex object?” she may have asked her girlfriends.  They might have said he didn’t have the right to ask her to come at all, especially having had too much to drink.  “He’s an alcoholic, you don’t have to do what he says.”  Maybe the Queen was just upset at the gall of him to interrupt her feast.  Maybe some of the ladies thought his request was emotionally abusive.  Today she would have maybe gotten a spot on Oprah, Jerry Springer, or if she wanted help on Dr. Phil, to talk of her emotional plight.

Perhaps I am being too jaded, cynical—maybe the opposite happened.  When I read this first chapter of Esther, however, my mind thinks that perhaps they might have all burned their Persian version of corsets or bras.  Thinking the king is a sexist pig, a typical scenario of what would have happened in the 1960’s in the United States.  Beauty and adornment, what the King wanted to show off because he was proud of his wife, was seen in this nation as an outrageous bondage.  Maybe her friends were shocked at her outrageous behavior and extremely overt rebellion.  Well, in a Persian nation back in that day, they would have been—perhaps even afraid for her life, but not in 2004.

Drive Through God

Psalm 46:10
Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.

Have you ever found yourself late, pressing hard to get home from a long day at work only to become frustrated about the dinner situation, too tired to cook—or simply just a lack of time? After some intense discussion, perhaps, you may decide as a family to drive though one of the many fast-food restaurants offered to us, so that you can eat in the car, in order to be on time to a soccer game, to a film, or even to a church meeting.“I’d like a number three, go big, with a diet coke,” you may say as you rush in your purse or wallet to get the proper amount of change. Confused, you may have misunderstood the voice from the grumbled speaker–if you even waited before driving your car to the first window. In this day and age we have drive through meals, lattés, photos, doughnuts, ATMs, and even weddings. As I ponder this modern phenomena of drive through living I wonder if we apply this same now-now-now mentality to our religion. Has our religion now been put on the same time table that our fast-paced, over worked, over stressed, over burdened lives have? Do we drive through God’s window and say, “Good morning, Lord. I’d like a blessing please, today, in large proportions.” Do we understand what we are asking or even wait in stillness, to hear the response?

Clichés like “if you’re too busy for God, you’re too busy,” and acronyms like B.U.S.Y. (Being Under Satan’s Yoke) have lost their original impact and meaning in the reality of our daily lives. We may consider for a moment the truth in the statement: that we are too busy for God, yet make little or not attempts to reconcile the two. What’s more, I fear that this same time-constrained mentality has crept into the practical functioning of the modern church. Do believe that it is now necessary to schedule church around busy people’s lives? Or are we, as ministry leaders, too busy with ministry to be effective when we serve? Too often I’ve experienced worship services timed to a clock. Okay, a church may decide: 18 minutes of worship, 2 minutes of announcements, 40 minutes of speaking, and, if we have time, we might schedule in prayer, but we’ll dismiss the congregation at that time anyway. Jesus said that His house shall be called a house of prayer (Matthew 21:13).

Has the body of Christ become too busy for Christ? Jesus said that the hypocrites honor Him with their lips but their hearts are far away (Matthew 15:7-9), and that the Father is seeking those who worship in spirit and in truth (John 4:23). Is there any meaning to the songs we sing? Are these lyrics our reality? I quote “I Will Wake in the Morning” by Chris Falson, a song I use often in my worship sets, because lately it has personally convicted me. Do I really seek Him? Do I really wait for Him to fill my temple with His glory? Do I lay prostrate at His feet? Do I take the time out of my schedule to worship Him, not just at church, but in my personal, devotional life?

Not One Word

A Cloudy Day in Laguna Beach

Blessed be the Lord, Who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised.

Not one word has failed of all His good promise which He promised through Moses His servant.

1 Kings 8:56 Amplified

We all remember when then presidential candidate George H. W. Bush said in his 1988 RNC speach: “Read my lips, no new taxes.” That’s become such fodder for unrelenting mockery and disappointment.

There was a time when a handshake was your bond.  There was no need for contracts. Think about how our society has changed and broken promises are commonplace.  With 50% of all marriages ending in divorce, that adds up to 50% breaking a promise.  Contracts are broken.  Promises are broken.  Words are broken.

Broken promises result in broken relationships because trust is destroyed.  All other words are now questioned based upon the one time you knew there was a lie.

But the original liar is Satan.  John 8:44 tells us that when He speaks, he speaks out of his own resources or, as another translation puts it, his own language.  If he’s not lying, he’s creating doubt as he did with Eve in Genesis 3.

But God.

Barnabas Broadcast: Episode 1

I love to brag on my husband Mercier.
The men used to call him Barnabas which means “son of encouragement” because his gifting is evident.

So when I had the idea for him to do a 2-3 minute word of encouragement, I thought of Barnabas Broadcast.

Check out the video below for his encouragement from Colossians 3:17.
Follow him on Twitter (@pastormercier).

Answer to @HydroChic

A Video response to this question via @Twitter.

@HydroChic asks:

@gidgey I like that live video twitter cast thing you did/are doing lol on Bible Discussion. What do you think about modest dress?

more about “Answer to @HydroChic“, posted with vodpod

Check out the site.

1 Timothy 2:8-10 (New King James Version)

Men and Women in the Church

⁸ I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting; ⁹ in like manner also, that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, ¹⁰ but, which is proper for women professing godliness, with good works.

A TwitCam Devo: Philippians 1:1-14

Here is a ten minute talk on Philippians 1:1-14.What are your thoughts?

more about “twitcam \ Recorded Livestream by gidgey“, posted with vodpod

What Are You Thankful For? A Discussion.

Sycamore Creek Park

Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God.
Philippians 1:4 NLT

Paul was thankful for the church at Philippi.  They were the only church that financially supported him (Phil 4:15) and he felt very close, personal relationships with them (Phil 4:10).

Amid horrid circumstances, intense persecution, unbearable isolation, Paul writes of how he is thankful to God every time he thinks of this church.  And when he thinks of them, he prays.  The outpouring of praise and thanksgiving drives him to pray for those people.

This week I am immensely thankful for my two doggies, Chloe and Sully, and for my husband Mercier.

After spending five days straight in bed, missing out on three church services during the week, a lunch appointment, and anything distinctly social, I awoke on Sunday and decided I would take the doggies for a walk.  When the evening arrived, we took them to our city park (pictured above), spent time with them (trading dogs back and forth), sat and talked and joked with each other on the bench, and had a great day.

And that’s just the start.  What about you?

Application:

Make a list of what you are thankful for. I bet it changes your mood, temperament, and demeanor.

It may even change your perspective.

Comment below:

Irrevocable Calling

Romans 11:29 NLT

For God’s gifts and his call can never be withdrawn.

Have you ever questioned your calling?  Have you thought that God has withdrawn from you and taken away the gifts?

Have you ever been through church splits, leadership changes, differences in church philosophy (how to run things), or varying seasons in your walk?

Then this is the verse for you.

I can’t tell you how many times I thought I should quit, and the Lord reminded me that I am called or how many times I have also ministered to others from this passage.

The calling “with which you were called” is the one that we are to “walk worthy of” (Ephesians 4:1). Part of walking worthy is being faithful–not quitting.

That being said, there are seasons in our lives–times where we serve in a certain capacity.

In my life, I have taught children, teenagers, women.  I have lead worship in small groups, with children’s church, for women’s ministry, and in “big church.”  I have organized and lead and taught retreats.  But this is over the years since 1996–not simultaneously.  There have been seasons of sitting and seasons of serving.  But the calling hasn’t been “revoked.”  God doesn’t change His mind.

The gifts I have are not for me–they’re for the church.  So God uses our gifts to minister to each group of people (church).

It’s so important to remember your gifts and callings and that He is the one who “works in you to will and to do” (Philppians 2:13).  He who began a good work “will be faithful to complete it” (Philippians 1:6).

What are your gifts?  How are you using them?

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Other Versions:

Romans 11:29 (New American Standard Bible)

²⁹for the gifts and the ^(A)calling of God ^(B)are irrevocable.

Romans 11:29 (Amplified Bible)

²⁹For God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable. [He never withdraws them when once they are given, and He does not change His mind about those to whom He gives His grace or to whom He sends His call.]

Philippians: An Eight Week Study Guide

This is an adaptation of a 15 day devotional through Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon that I assembled for my grandson.

Check it out, use it in groups, whatever.

Here is the PDF for Philippians.

Love,

bridget