Celebrating Easter Big -- Lent: Day 9

Read Matthew 7:7-12:

During Lent we remember that the death of Jesus is the foundation for all the promises of God and all the answers to prayer that we ever get. This is why we say “in Jesus’ name” at the end of our prayers. Everything depends on him.

In this scripture we hear with freshness how sincerely Jesus invites us to: ask and receive seek and find knock and find the door opened.

Dependence is not a virtue we ordinarily admire. Today we grow in our sense that we need God's grace very much - even to know what is right - but certainly to fan our desires into a flame.

When we pause to remember that GOD is infinitely strong and can do all that He pleases, and that He is infinitely righteous so He only does what is right, and that He is infinitely good so that everything He does is perfectly good, and that He is infinitely wise so that He always knows perfectly what is right and good, and that He is infinitely loving so that in all His strength and righteousness and goodness and wisdom He brings the greatest joy and peace to those He loves that is possible—when you remember these things about GOD, this incredible invitation of GOD to ask Him for good things, with the promise that He will give them, is absolutely mind boggling!  

Sometimes Our Father gives exactly what we ask and just when we ask it.  He sometimes gives us exactly what we desire.  But at other times Our Father gives us something better, or at a time He knows is better, or in a way He knows is best.

Rest in Him . . . trust Him . . . believe!  Our Father loves you above all things.  He demonstrated this supreme love for you through the sacrifice of JESUS . . . His Only begotten Son!

JESUS is Risen . . . !

Richard Holloman

Celebrating Easter Big -- Lent: Day 8

Read:  Jonah 3:1-10; Psalm 51:3-4, 12-13, 18-19; Luke 11:29-32

Psalm 51 is one of the best examples of the heart GOD desires for us all.  This is a picture of how to be crushed with guilt well.  During this season of Lent may HOLY SPIRIT make it so in our hearts.   

What makes a person a Christian is not that he doesn’t get discouraged, and it’s not that he doesn’t sin and feel miserable about it. What makes a person a Christian is the connection that he has with Jesus Christ that shapes how he thinks and feels about his discouragement and his sin and guilt.

The heading of Psalm 51 goes like this: “To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.” What happened with Bathsheba is well known:

“It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and was walking on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. And David sent and inquired about the woman. And one said, “Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?” So David sent messengers and took her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. . . . Then she returned to her house. And the woman conceived, and she sent and told David, ‘I am pregnant.’”

He tried to cover his sin by bringing her husband Uriah home from battle so Uriah could lie with her and think it was his baby. Uriah was too noble to go in to his wife while his comrades were in battle. So David arranged to have him killed so that he could quickly marry Bathsheba and cover the sin that way.

Here is what Paul said in Romans 3:25–26:  “God put [Christ] forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins [that’s exactly what 2 Samuel 12:13 says God did—he passed over David’s sin]. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

Being a Christian means being broken and contrite. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you get beyond this in this life. It marks the life of God’s happy children till they die. We are broken and contrite all the way home—unless sin gets the proud upper hand. Being broken and contrite is not against joy and praise and witness. It’s the flavor of Christian joy and praise and witness.

“All gracious affections [feelings, emotions] that are a sweet [aroma] to Christ . . . are brokenhearted affections. A truly Christian love, either to God or men, is a humble brokenhearted love. The desires of the saints, however earnest, are humble desires: their hope is a humble hope; and their joy, even when it is unspeakable, and full of glory, is a humble brokenhearted joy. . . .” –Jonathan Edwards

JESUS is Risen . . . !

Richard Holloman

Celebrating Easter Big -- Lent: Day 7

Read Isaiah 58 and Matthew 9: 14-15

A big part of Lent involves fasting.  It is vitally important that our fasting comes from a pure heart.  This is an incredible statement on fasting:  “Fasting is, as much as lies in us, an imitation of the angels, a contemning of things present, a school of prayer, a nourishment of the soul, a bridle of the mouth, an abatement of concupiscence: it mollifies rage, it appeases anger, it calms the tempests of nature, it excites reason, it clears the mind, it disburdens the flesh, it chases away night-pollutions, it frees from head-ache. By fasting, a man gets composed behavior, free utterance of his tongue, right apprehensions of his mind.” --John Chrysostom

So here in Isaiah 58 is a fasting that is not pleasing the Lord. Here is worship that is not pleasing the Lord.  And yet what is wrong with seeking God, and delighting to know his ways, and asking him for just decisions, and delighting in his nearness, and fasting and humbling ourselves before him? This sounds very religious and what we need to do. Are you ever deeply afraid or do you ever tremble that GOD may find you as a poser? Doesn't that make you want to get so authentic and intimate with God, you could never be surprised by the Lord in this way—that your most zealous religious practices and even desires are exposed as empty and hypocritical!

The ethical, practical, and relational accompaniments of fasting—or worship in general—are the real test of the authenticity of the fasting and the worship. Monday is the proof of Sunday. God lists the religious forms of their fasting: humbling or afflicting oneself (no food), bowing the head like a reed, spreading out our sackcloth and ashes (cf. Psalm 35:13). Then he lists the ethical accompaniments of this fasting: you go after your own pleasure (in some other way besides eating), you drive hard all your workers and become irritable or contentious and stir up strife and even go so far as to get into fights. And God asks, "Is this the fast that I choose?" The answer is No.

No worship—no preaching, no singing, no playing of instruments, no praying, no fasting, however intense or beautiful—that leaves us harsh with our workers on Monday, or contentious with our spouses at home, or self-indulgent in other areas of our lives, or angry enough to hit somebody—no worship or fasting that leaves us like that is true, God-pleasing worship.

May this season of Lent be a time for us to submit all our religious exercises to HOLY SPIRIT’s discerning wisdom and cleansing power.

JESUS is Risen . . . !

Richard Holloman

Celebrating Easter Big: Lent: Day 6

Read Matthew 25:31-46:  

A big part of the season of Lent is that we take focus off self and come back to GOD.  One of the most important and most impactful scriptures in my life has been Matthew 22:36-40 which is often called the Great Commandment.  Basically, it can be summed up . . . to love GOD with all your heart and to love your neighbor as yourself.

There is real tension in our faith experience about our love for GOD and expressing that love in tangible ways.  The same can be said about loving our neighbor.  It seems there is much talk but not so much tangible love expressed.  I see that scripture has a problem with that.

This is another of many scriptures that speak of the call of GOD on our lives to love Him and to love our neighbors with more than our talk but with real tangible expressions in our world.

 
The Matthew 25 passage is a scene of the last judgment that JESUS paints for us. We will be judged on whether we: fed the hungry, welcomed the stranger, clothed the naked, comforted the sick, and visited the imprisoned. It is powerful to re-learn this wisdom - 
Jesus identifies with each of these “least” cared for.

My pastor, Aarron Schwartz, once spoke of how loudly generosity speaks to a lost and dying world.  Paul stated a truth describing the power and authority of the kindness of the LORD:  “Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of GOD leads you to repentance” (Romans 2:4)?  It seems many in the Church believe speaking judgment and expression condemnation leads people to repentance.  I think I want to side with Paul . . . and with GOD’s . . . word on this one!

It seems the message of Easter and the message of this season we call Lent is that through the death, burial, and resurrection of JESUS people everywhere experience Good News!  Let’s celebrate it wildly!

JESUS is Risen . . . !

Richard Holloman

Celebrating Easter Big -- Lent: Day 2

Luke 9:20-25: [20] "But who do you say that I Am?"  And Peter answered and said, "The Christ of GOD."  [21]But He warned them & instructed them not to tell this to anyone, [22] saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things & be rejected by the elders & chief priests & scribes, & be killed & be raised up on the third day.” [23]And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, & take up his cross daily & follow Me. [24]For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. [25]For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world & loses or forfeits himself?

Preparing for JESUS death, burial, & resurrection will involve a public declaration that JESUS is the Christ . . . the Messiah.  This is true not merely during the Lent season but every moment of every day.

In this fallen & broken world in which we live, to make such a public declaration will result in persecution & suffering.  Followers of JESUS around the world are experiencing imprisonment & even death because of their love for JESUS.  If we are not experiencing some level of persecution perhaps we should look within our hearts & souls & question the depths of our love for JESUS.  JESUS is clear, to truly follow Him requires denial of self even to the point of death.

This season of Lent may be an opportunity for such heart & soul searching.  How could we possibly ever understand the significance of the Cross and how could we possibly ever wildly celebrate His glorious resurrection!

JESUS is Risen . . . !

Richard Holloman

Celebrating Easter 2014 Large - Ash Wednesday: The Beginning of Lent

As followers of JESUS let us enter into the season of Lent with an earnest desire to call ourselves and other believers to prepare for an incredible celebration of the death, burial, and resurrection of Messiah JESUS.  From this day forward, through Holy Saturday, let us prepare.  And after spending these days of preparation my we celebrate the Resurrection of JESUS like we've never celebrated before.  Each day we will build our expectation.  We will suffer together, sacrifice together, walk through sadness together until that Day of ultimate victory . . . Resurrection Sunday . . . Easter 2014 (April 20)!  And we will celebrate with the angels announcing JESUS' victory over sin and death . . . HE IS NOT HERE . . . HE IS RISEN!

Sports and Religion

This the a key paragraph in the article below:  "Beneke and Remillard conclude by asserting that 'when it comes to the passionate attachments that sustain interest and devotion, it's time to acknowledge that sports have gained the edge. And they show no sign of relinquishing the lead.'"

 In my opinion the issue really isn't about sports.  The real issue is the failure of most churches in area of focusing on what true religion is . . . an intimate personal love relationship with GOD that results in the believer finding ultimate satisfaction & complete fulfillment of desire in GOD which is the fulfillment of the Great Commandment (Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Matthew 22:36-40).

This is the root issue behind anything that replaces GOD as our first love.  I truly enjoy sports and particularly college football and even more specifically the University of Tennessee football. But I assure you my heart's desire, above ALL things, is to know GOD . . . not merely with my mind . . . but in my heart, mind, & soul.

The questions that need to be seriously addressed are:  Where has the Church failed?, What is the solution?" I'm afraid the answers would simply produce more programs & events & more condemnation directed at sports & those who are sports fans.  That isn't going to resolve anything because that is not the root of the issue at all.  We need less religion and less religious activity & we need more authentic relationship with our Father.  We are created in the image of GOD, therefore, we are primarily spiritual beings.  We were created by GOD & for GOD.  There is nothing in this world that can bring fulfillment of desire and passion more than GOD Himself.   "GO BIG ORANGE!


LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP) -- Super Bowl XLVIII may have been a bust as a football game, but it was a blockbuster as a cultural event. The telecast attracted a record 111.5 million viewers, making it the most-watched television event of all time.

That record will most likely be eclipsed by the next Super Bowl, and the trajectory shows no signs of dissipating. America takes its sports seriously, and Americans take football with the most seriousness of them all.

In a real sense, big-time sports represent America's new civic religion, and football is its central sacrament.

The relationship between sports and religion in America has always been close, and it has often been awkward. The "muscular Christianity" of a century ago has given way to a more recent phenomenon: the massive growth of involvement in sports at the expense of church activities and involvements.

About 15 years ago, the late John Cardinal O'Connor, then the Roman Catholic Archbishop of New York, lamented the fact that Little League baseball was taking his altar boys away on Sundays.

"Why is it religion that must always accommodate?" the archbishop asked. "Why must Little League and soccer league games be scheduled on Sunday mornings? Why create that conflict for kids or for their parents? Sports are generally considered good for kids. Church is good for kids."

The archbishop blamed secularization for this invasion of Sunday: "This is the constant erosion, the constant secularization of our culture, that I strongly believe to be a serious mistake."

So the cardinal took on Little League and the youth soccer league in New York City. And he lost. Nevertheless, he was right about the problem. The massive rise of sports within the culture is a sign and symptom of the secularization of the larger society.

New evidence for this pattern comes from academics Chris Beneke and Arthur Remillard in an essay recently published in The Washington Post. Writing with Super Bowl XLVIII in view, Beneke and Remillard noted: "American sports fans have forged imperishable bonds with the people, places and moments that define their teams. You might even call this attachment religious. But that would be unfair -- to sports."

In other words, the attachment many Americans now have to sports teams exceeds attachment to religious faith -- any religious faith.

The two academics then make their central case: "While teams and fans are building powerful, cohesive communities -- think Red Sox Nation or the legions of University of Alabama faithful who greet one another with 'Roll Tide' -- churches are losing followers. According to a 2012 survey by researchers at the University of California at Berkeley and Duke University, 20 percent of Americans 'claimed they had no religious preference,' compared with an unaffiliated population of 8 percent in 1990. Roughly two out of three Americans, a 2012 Pew report noted, are under the impression that religion is losing influence in the country."

That impression is growing because it is true to the facts. Religion is losing ground and losing influence in American society. The fastest-growing segment of the American public in terms of religious identification is the "nones," those who identify with no religious tradition at all. At the same time, a religious dedication to sports has been growing. While correlation does not prove causation, the links between these two developments are haunting.

Interestingly, Beneke, who teaches history at Bentley University, and Remillard, who teaches religious studies at St. Francis University, document the dramatic increase in the percentage of Americans who consider themselves to be sports fans. Just a half-century ago, only three in 10 Americans identified themselves as sports fans. Fast forward to 2012 and the percentage is greater than 60 percent. At the same time, church attendance and other marks of religious activity (especially the number of hours each week devoted to church activities) have fallen sharply.

Beneke and Remillard describe the current picture in vivid terms: "Modern sports stadiums function much like great cathedrals once did, bringing communities together and focusing their collective energy. This summer, the Archdiocese of New York is expected to outline plans to close or merge some of its 368 parishes; 26 Catholic schools in the archdiocese have ceased operation. By contrast, the city and the state of New Jersey spent hundreds of millions to build new baseball and football stadiums."

Cardinal O'Connor would no doubt see the pattern and lament it, but a good many evangelical Christians seem both unmoved and unconcerned. The problem is quite ecumenical in this respect; the youth minister or pastor at your local evangelical church is almost sure to tell you the same story.

Team sports activities or other forms of organized athletics have taken many evangelical families away from church activities. Many children and adolescents know very little of church involvements, but they and their parents (and often their grandparents as well) would not miss a scheduled practice, much less a game or competitive event. The same is increasingly true of spectator sports.

Beneke and Remillard conclude by asserting that "when it comes to the passionate attachments that sustain interest and devotion, it's time to acknowledge that sports have gained the edge. And they show no sign of relinquishing the lead."

This dramatic shift could only come to pass if the larger culture has been largely secularized. In this case, secularization does not necessarily mean the disappearance of religious faith but merely the demotion of religious involvement and identification to a level lower than those granted to sports.

Americans may not know who their god is, but you can be sure most know who their team is.
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R. Albert Mohler Jr. is president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. This column first appeared at his website, www.AlbertMohler.com. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp)
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