The Gift of Poverty

     Counting blessings seldom includes poverty, or any other sort of lack.  But just this week, I realized that poverty was responsible for some of my greatest gains--gains that could never be bought.

     During the Great Recession of the late 2000's and early 2010's, I lost everything, including a beautiful house in my hometown (Riverside, California), right near all the ministries I was involved in.  Everything had been going so well. I had been so happy.  God seemed to be doing so much in my life.  Why take it all away?  I still can't totally answer that, but I see a much bigger picture now.  I was forced to move into a tiny manufactured home in a much smaller town half an hour away (in the unique part of Southern California that was on the cusp of both the mountains (thus getting snow) and the desert (thus getting triple-digit summers).  There were times I only had enough food for one meal a day, or even days without food at all.  Every last cent went to pay the bills.  People who say the Great Recession wasn't as bad as the Great Depression of the 1930's clearly did not have my experiences.  My ministry seemed to be suffering, as I was further away, and I was forced to get another job at the local YMCA.  A local ministry in my new town that I got involved in didn't fulfill me the way my other ministries did.  I was so deeply insecure from having lost everything that I had a hard time connecting with others.  One woman I did ministry with gave me a very hard time, and went out of her way to make me feel excluded.  Mentally, I cursed the Recession, blaming it for all my misery (because we always have to cast blame, right?).  I longed to move back to my hometown.  A lifetime of joy and seeing God work were there.  I just didn't understand this at all.

My hometown, Riverside, California.  All the significant events in my life had happened here prior to the Recession

My "new" small-town, Yucaipa, California.  So many wonderful things happened there, though I wouldn't have guessed it at first.  I now miss it as much as I miss Riverside, but in different ways and for different reasons.

     On the worst of days, I would fantasize about getting a check in the mail for a million dollars.  I would imagine all the things I would do with it.  It became an unhealthy obsession, and I eventually realized I wasn't trusting in God.  I tried really hard to break that habit, but my mind still went there at times.

     It did get better, slowly but surely.  And, in hindsight (which isn't completely 20/20), I can see what a miraculous time that was in my life.  Poverty brought me SO many blessings I would NEVER have had if I'd remained in my hometown, doing the same ministries.  I had this picture in my mind of how God would do things for me, but His plan was totally different. In my life, a million dollars would have been a handicap from the true blessings God wanted to give me.  Losing everything was God's way of saying "I love you."  For example...

     *Yucaipa, my new town, was the furthest I'd ever lived from Los Angeles (at the time).  I was surrounded by amazing scenery.  I would often take scenic walks and drives (when I could afford the gas).  These times of solitude among the pine trees, or in the enchanting desert to the east brought some of the best fellowship with God I ever had in my life.  I wouldn't have really thought to see these places if I were still in the city.

      *I made some of the best friends in my life at my YMCA job!  I'm still very close with them now, and we keep in touch. Many were outstanding Christian people who blessed me beyond measure.  I also really grew professionally at the YMCA, something that I hadn't been able to do in ministry (mainly because, sorry to say, but ministries are seldom run professionally).  Some of my YMCA friends might laugh at me calling the Y professional, but to me, it really was.  I grew in confidence.  I had opportunities to minister (even though the Y really wasn't very Christian by that point).  I grew to love that job.  I was shown a lot more grace in that job than I had been shown in some of the ministry situations I had been in.  One other blessing was that the YMCA provided a "supper" for the children in our care, and this gave me a chance to eat too, which helped with the grocery bill.  I didn't need to buy as much food because I was fed five meals a week there. The YMCA was a means of God's grace in my life.

The Redlands YMCA...my job for 5 amazing years

     *I made some other "best friends of my life" in my new town, over time.  After a difficult Bible study ministry (which did bear fruit, but also had a lot of battles), I joined Celebrate Recovery, which brought me a lot of healing from past wounds (mainly wounds I got in ministry, again, sad to say).  At Celebrate Recovery, I made amazing Christian friends, and for the first time in my adult life, I was mentored by someone, instead of being the one mentoring.  It felt good.  I had true accountability partners (not just friends who called themselves that in order to nag or control each other).  My relationships vastly improved.  I must also add that even in that difficult Bible study ministry, I made lifelong friends, who bless me tremendously!

     *In a round-about way, I met my husband Walter through Celebrate Recovery (he wasn't in it, but, as I said, it's a round-about way).  In fact, I wouldn't have been ready to be the right kind of wife had I not gone through all I had, and then gone through mentoring and discipleship at Celebrate Recovery.  God knew exactly what He was doing when He had me lose everything.  Because I gained so much more than I ever lost!  Sometimes, we have to lose our lives to save them.

Our wedding photo

     God has continued to use finances (or sometimes lack thereof) as a means to guidance.  Even in  our married lives, we have seen that, and it is exciting to know God's always up to something.  And He ALWAYS meets our needs (Philippians 4:19 My God shall supply all your needs, according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus).  I think that's what the Apostle Paul was getting at in the book of Philippians, when he said he know how to be "abased" and "abound".  "Everywhere and in all things, I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need." (Philippians 4:12).

Legalism

     I once visited this really legalistic church....before I say another word, you probably have a picture in your mind of what it might have been like.  You know how I know this?  We have all experienced legalism.  Now I'm going to venture something else.  If I were to ask each person to describe that legalistic church they have in their mind, I'm sure I'd get as many different answers as people I asked!  Why?  Because there are so many different ways legalism can creep in.  It doesn't have one particular look.  In fact, depending on a situation, what is legalistic to one person might be godly worship to another.  In this post, I'm going to be defining legalism, listing what legalism is not, stating a few examples of legalism I have come across, talking about why legalism can look attractive, and finally, the hard lesson I am still learning, the way to avoid the trap of legalism.

     Wikipedia defines it as: "(In Christian theology) the act of putting law above gospel by establishing requirements for salvation beyond repentance and faith in Jesus Christ..."  Merriam-Webster defines it as: "strict, literal, or excessive conformity to the law or to a religious or moral code."  I read several similar definitions which mostly amount to the same thing.  If I were going to add my own definition, I would say that legalism is attempting obedience to God is our own strength (which is impossible).  What legalism is trying to accomplish is good.  It just can't do it.  The Apostle Paul had to get after the Galatians for this.  In Galatians 3:3, he asks, "After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?"

     Here are a few things that often get incorrectly classified as legalism:  Legalism is not moral excellence.  With the Holy Spirit in our lives, we are capable of godliness, and that should be our aim, with His help.  Legalism is not holding to what the Bible actually says in the face of a changing culture.  If the Bible calls it sin, we're not legalistic to agree with God.  Legalism is not having conservative or even old-fashioned preferences (such as preferring more traditional church services while someone else might prefer more contemporary).  Legalism is not having a tender conscience about something, or a different standard about something than someone else.  Romans 14:23 says, "...for whatsoever is not of faith is sin."  This whole passage is about how Christians often have different convictions.

     Some people get so concerned about being legalistic that they go the opposite extreme and give in to license.  That is, indulging in things the Bible calls sin, since, obviously, God's grace saves us, so we don't have to be good, right?  Romans 6:1 answers this cavalier attitude: "What shall we say then?  Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?  God forbid!"  When we get saved, we have a new nature!  We have the Holy Spirit in our hearts, making us more like Jesus.  Sin doesn't give us the pleasure it once did.  The Holy Spirit convicts us when we sin.  This is the sanctification process.  God's grace is there for us.  We will sin, and we have the assurance that God is on our side.  But we don't have licence to go out and sin. That doesn't please the Lord.

    Here are a few examples of legalism from my own experiences (you may have had different experiences, and I'd enjoy it if you shared it in the comments).  When I was out of high school, I wanted to find a college/career Bible study at a local church (our church didn't really have that).  I called every church in our phone book (yes it was that long ago!).  I finally found one that looked like it had a good college group.  I showed up, excited to get involved.  I was in for a shock.  The pastor stopped me outside and asked me, "Do you own a King James Bible?"  Stunned, I nodded.   "Good," he said seriously.  "You're probably saved then."  Whoa!  He didn't ask me what I believed about Jesus!  Just wanted to make sure I owned the "right" version of the Bible.  I went into the college group, and was in for more surprises.  The group leader told me in a perfectly normal voice, "We've been doing a study about New Age Bibles like the NIV."  I thought he was joking at first, and I expected everyone to laugh.  I almost did, but then I saw the very serious expression on his face.  I felt like I was kind of stuck, so I stayed for the study, but it was just comparing random verses to show how the King James and New International Version were different.  They didn't even establish that the King James was correct or that the NIV was wrong.  They just took as a given that the King James was right.  Bible versions is a very interesting topic to me, and I did a major college project on it, but it's a subject for another day.  As far as legalism goes, was it wrong for this church to use the King James Version?  Not at all.  It is a good translation that has served Christianity for four hundred years.  I enjoy reading from it.  Using the King James, or preferring it over the NIV, wasn't the legalism.  Elevating it to the level of salvation, and referring to the NIV as "new age" are where this church was legalistic.  Instead of teaching those in the study to love Christ and His word, they taught us to be suspicious of other believers who used the NIV.  I saw this ridiculous little picture that I share in order to make my point of how legalistic this stuff can be.  It's it ridiculous?

      I have known Christians who were very stuck on certain terms, and if I didn't use their "magic words" I wasn't as godly as them.  They preferred the phrase, "Put your faith in Christ alone for salvation," which I have no problem with, but if I slipped and said, "Receive Christ as your Savior," or the ever-dreaded, "Ask Christ into your heart" (both of which are biblical, by the way), these people just about bit my head off and had to lecture me about how ungodly I was. This is legalism.  Many of these people also tended to separate themselves from other believers who held different positions on certain things (having nothing to do with salvation or godliness), such as Christ's return, the 10% tithe, predestination, spiritual gifts--that sort of thing.  It is okay to have beliefs and positions about these things.  In fact, we should.  But it isn't right to divide ourselves from those who love Jesus just as much, but happen to interpret a few of these scriptures differently.  

     Some believers are too stuck on their denomination--or in the case of Southern California Christians--"non-denominational" affiliations that function exactly the same as denominations but are supposedly much more spiritual.  I'm going to say this just a moment before moving on.  Denominations are not wrong.  They are a result in church history, and there is nothing wrong with being affiliated with one.  A church being part of an established denomination is often a good way for others to know where that church stands and what they believe.  It also provides support and accountability from others in the denomination.  On the other hand, there is also nothing wrong with a church being independent and unaffiliated.  Sometimes that frees a church from pressures and gives more opportunity to just do ministry.  Neither is right, neither is wrong.  Elevating denominations (as I often saw in the Midwest) or elevating "non-denominationalism" (as is very prevalent in Southern California) is really legalism. Just go to church and worship Jesus.  

           There are a lot of other examples I could give, but you get the idea.  When I am around the types of legalism I mentioned above, I always feel like I'm walking on eggshells, and I know I'm going to offend them.  It's a lot of pressure.  God doesn't want that for us.  He frees us from that bondage.

     Why would any Christian want to be legalistic?  There are actually several reasons legalism can be attractive and appealing.  If you're like me, you're a rule-follower.  You like to know where the line is, so you don't cross it.  You like to know your parameters.  Legalism gives us that line.  That assurance that we're not overstepping our bounds.  Unfortunately, Romans 8:3 tells us that the law (legalism) is weak because of our sinfulness.  We are not capable of keeping all the laws, which is the whole reason Jesus had to die.  The Holy Spirit empowers us to honor God.  But it can be very easy to fall into legalistic patterns.  Other reasons people tend toward legalism is because it feeds the ego.  To live at a higher standard than someone else feeds one's pride.  To say, "Wow, so-and-so does this, and I don't."  It is reminiscent of the pharisee and the tax collector (Luke 18:9-14).  The Pharisee bragged about all the good stuff he was doing in his public prayers, while the tax-collector humbly repented of his sins.  I think some of the most legalistic Christians I have ever come across were Bible college students...but most of them balanced out after they graduated and interacted with others more.

     How do we avoid the trap of legalism.  First, remember that all have sinned.  Your sin is not better or worse than anyone else's.  Second, remember that those of us who are saved are all equally saved, regardless of what Bible version we use, whether our church sings hymns or modern worship, whether we're part of a denomination or not, where we stand on different theological issues, or how long we've been saved.  Third, thank Jesus for your salvation and for working in your life.  Four (and this is the hard part) ask God to reveal to you ways that you need to rely more on His grace, instead of legalism (we all struggle with it!).

     With God's help, we can grow in grace (Second Peter 3:18)!

Mini Miracles

     I was sick, barely holding in the bronchial cough.  I was at work anyway, partly because I didn't want to leave an already skeleton crew in the lurch, and partly because I hadn't yet accrued sick leave.  I love my job at the Christian preschool, although it is a challenge.  I alternate between two pre-Kindergarten classes every day, teaching one in the morning, and then supervising the other in the afternoon.  The morning class is a joy and a delight.  The kids are fun and well-behaved.  The afternoon class is the challenge.  The class is double the size of the other one, first of all.  Secondly, about half this class contains every rowdy little boy in the school.  It requires a lot of quick thinking and action to keep everyone under control and to maintain order.  Today, amidst not feeling well, I felt incredibly stressed.  Several of these little boys were out of control, and I was alone with them (as I said, it's a skeleton crew this week).  I felt like losing my mind!  In full candor, I admit that I even had some very uncharitable thoughts toward these little boys.  Immediately, I felt convicted for this, and confessed it to God in my heart.  I also asked God for His love for them.  I have never seen that prayer go unanswered.  God loves to give us love for others.  His agape love never fails.  My attitude toward these rambunctious boys immediately made an about-face.  I had never seen such a quick change in myself before, and that is the first miracle.  In my own strength, I rued their existence!  In God's, I loved them fiercely!  God changed me.  But then, He did more miracles!

      I was able to talk to one of them very gently and asked him why he was making bad choices.  This boy had thrown his lunchbox at another teacher earlier, spit on several classmates, mocked me, and defied every way he possible could.  But when I asked him (after my prayer), he looked very sad and said, "I hate being at school all day.  I want to be at home.  I want my mom and dad to play a game with me, and watch a movie and eat dinner."  My heart went out to him, and this was the first time this little boy had been open with me.  I hugged him and sympathized, telling him that I sometimes want to be at home too (not to mention I really wanted to be at home then, in a hot tub, sipping something hot for my cold).  I was able to pray with this little boy, and he asked God to help him make better choices.  And he did!  He started playing kindly with other kids in a way I had never seen!  More miracles

.

     The best part of all was that another little boy, who is also incredibly difficult, was really at his worst.  Long story, but he crossed a line quite seriously.  I was going to take him to the office, but he started crying, begging me not to.  This wasn't just the cry of a kid trying to get out of trouble.  There was grief.  God made me aware of it (on my own, I would have missed it).  I sat down with him and asked him why he was making these choices.  He started crying and said, "I can't be good!  I want to, but I can't!"  I sensed this five-year-old was being convicted of his sin, and recognizing his own depravity and need of Christ.  The teacher who is with them in the morning constantly tells them about asking Jesus into their hearts.  I seized on this, and had a conversation with this little boy about Jesus.  He demonstrated a true understanding of who Jesus is and what Jesus has done for us.  He wanted to ask Jesus into his heart.  He prayed, "Jesus, I'm sorry for my sins.  Please come in and forgive me!  I know You died for me!  Amen."  When he opened his eyes, there was a light that hadn't been there before.  He smiled and told me, "I'm going to Heaven!"  

     I was at my weakest, physically, mentally, and even spiritually (being sick will do that to you), but that's when God shines the brightest.  His strength is made perfect in weakness!  I'm so thankful!

The Battle

     You wake up at midnight in a cold sweat, narrowly dodging the nightmares.  You are misunderstood everywhere you go.  Every aspect of your life is filled with pressure.  No one gives you a break.  Those who love you the most make comments that they mean nothing by, but the enemy of your soul turns them into fiery darts and plunges them into your heart, infecting your spirit with pain and wrath.  Those who don't love you intentionally push your buttons.  You are at your lowest, and you can't escape the feeling that you are failing some sort of test you never asked to take.  This is spiritual warfare.  This was my week.

     This past week, I have been teaching at Vacation Bible School at my church.  In so many ways, it was a wonderful, wonderful week.  Below, I am pictured with my helpers and some of our students.  I'm standing in the middle.  I had the privilege of teaching first and second graders.

     As I implied above, I experienced a lot of spiritual warfare.  A lot of people talk about spiritual warfare...but what is it, and why do we have to deal with it?  

     As humans, we can't see into the spiritual world, unless God gives us a glimpse into it.  I'm kind of glad.  I have the feeling it would be terrifying!  But maybe it would be encouraging.  I love the story in Second Kings 6, where Elisha and his servant are surrounded by enemies.  His servant is afraid, but Elisha tells him, "Don't be afraid.  Those who are with us are more than those who are with them."  Humanly speaking, this wasn't true.  Elisha then prays for God to open his servant's eyes.  Verse 17 tells us that God did open the servant's eyes, and he saw that the hills were covered with horses and chariots of fire.  This bolstered their courage.  Although we don't often get that kind of a glimpse into the supernatural, this story serves as a reminder that, as Christians, we have that guarantee that there are more on our side than with the enemy.

     Now, before I go on, who is our enemy?  Are people our enemies?  According to the Bible, no.  Ephesians 6:12 says, "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."  People might seem like the enemy.  But they aren't our real enemy.  There is a spiritual battle going on around us all the time.  Satan has his demons working for him.  This verse leads many to conclude that there is a spiritual hierarchy.  But Satan is the center of it.  First Peter 5:8 refers to the devil as our adversary, and says that he walks around as a roaring lion, seeking to devour people.  Satan is our enemy.  He may appear to be using people, but we have to remember that the people aren't the real enemy.  It's easy to lose sight of that, because we can't see Satan, but we can see people.  

     In over two decades of ministry and mission work, I have only dealt with one person who was demon possessed (demon-indwelt might be a more correct phrase).  It was very similar to what we see in the Bible in those situations.  Most of the time, though, the warfare isn't that obvious.  It's trying to go about our business in serving the Lord, but facing difficulties that have no real explanation.  More often than not, it involves interpersonal relationships.  Satan loves to pit Christians against each other to ruin our effectiveness for the Lord.  He wants to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10).  What does he come to steal?  Our joy.  What does he come to kill?  Our effectiveness for Christ.  What does he come to destroy?  Whatever he can in our lives.  

     To illustrate this, I'm going to tell you what my week involved, in a nutshell.  As I said, I have been involved in teaching the first-and-second-graders at our church's Vacation Bible School.  Six children in our class received Christ as Savior.  Several in the other classes did too (I don't have a precise number right now).  Did Satan like this?  Not at all!  He was losing people from his kingdom of darkness!  God already won, and Satan knows this, but he won't go down without a fight.  So he attacks those in God's service.  Makes sense.  Here are just a few things that followed me through this week.  Feelings of despair and discouragement.  Misunderstandings in all areas of my life (including a very manipulative coworker at my job).  I placed my hand on a window to open it (not even applying pressure) and the whole window exploded outwardly, splintering into a thousand pieces and cutting me in the process.  A very entitled man thought I was cutting in front of him in line when I went to donate plasma (something I do twice weekly) and he shoved me and roughed me up, yelling and humiliating me (not to mention scaring me to death).  Even some very loving people in my life said some things that Satan used to hit me at my deepest level of insecurity (which wasn't their intention at all).  I had nightmares throughout the week, so even sleep wasn't an escape. I felt like I couldn't get a break.  Wherever I went, this madness followed me.  These are the types of things that can be attributed to spiritual warfare.  Just one of these things might not necessarily be it, but all together in this level of intensity, just happening to fall on the week of Bible School...well, I don't believe in coincidences.  In the middle of all this, kids were getting saved.  I'm encouraged by Romans 8:18: "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory which shall be revealed in us."  Being shoved around, breaking windows by barely touching them, being hit at my weakest points, having stress and pressure...none of that is worth comparing to the kids who got saved and will now be able to live in Heaven for all eternity.  What I went through this week is literally less than NOTHING in comparison!

     As believers, what are we supposed to do in the midst of these battles?  First of all, we need to remember that our enemy is Satan, not people. I already said this, but it is so important it bears repeating.  Secondly, we need to realize that Satan is defeated.  Jesus defeated Satan and all his demons.  Colossians 2:15 says: "When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him" That is the New American Standard versions.  The NIV says that Jesus, "made a public spectacle" of the powers of evil.  I like that description.  The third thing to remember is that, in Christ, we have the victory!  First Corinthians 15:57 says, "But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."  Romans 8:31 says, "If God is for us, who can be against us?"  These are things we need to remember when faced with spiritual battles.  

     Once we remember and consider these truths, the next step is found in James 4:7-8.  "Submit yourselves to God.  Resist the devil and he will flee from you.  Draw near to God and He will draw near to you..."  We need to be in prayer, reading our Bibles, in constant fellowship with the Lord.  If we're doing this, we can resist Satan.  Resisting Satan is simply not giving in.  Choosing to see the truth of the situation, not through the lens of our feelings.  Not sinning in a situation.  Choosing to do it God's way, even when you're at the end of what you can handle.  This is only possible as we draw near to God.  

     God has given us tools.  Ephesians 6:10-17 is a favorite passage of mine.  We are told to be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power, and to put on the full armor of God in order to resist the devil's schemes.  Yes, all Satan has is schemes.  God has the real power.  But those schemes can work on us if we don't put on that armor that God makes available to us.  The pieces are the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the the shoes of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit.  These each represent different ways God protects us from Satan.  The belt of truth is the truth, that we must remember in spiritual battles.  It is not a coincidence that this belt holds the breastplate of righteousness in place.  The breastplate represents Christ's righteousness, which is ours at salvation.  This is the very thing that keeps us from being defeated by Satan, since our Master defeated him.  The shoes of the gospel of peace are a reminder to be ready with the gospel in the midst of battle.  Don't let the warfare distract us from sharing the gospel.  That's the whole point.  The shield of faith protects us from those fiery darts Satan throws at us (often through other people, many of whom have no idea their words are being used that way).  The helmet of salvation protects us from Satan's lies.  He likes to make us doubt our salvation, or doubt God in some other way.  And the sword of the spirit is the Bible.  The word of God.  Note that the other weapons in the armor are all for our protection, but the sword is our only offensive weapon.  God's word is it.  It is the way we can win.  Memorizing and meditating on scripture is so important.  

     It is also important to know that the battles don't last forever.  Luke 4 tells an account of Satan tempting Jesus before His earthly ministry began.  At the end of it, Luke 4:13 tells us, "When the devil finished all his tempting, he left until an opportune time."  In the book of Job, Satan was only allowed to go so far.  God had the ultimate control.  And in a deeper sense, our battles will one day end for all time.  Revelation 20:10 says that Satan will be thrown into the lake of fire forever.  If you are a Christian, you are the victor, because Jesus is our Victor!  To quote a favorite hymn, because He lives, we can face tomorrow!  And to quote another, Onward Christian soldiers (that's us!).  Moving forward, we can focus on spreading the word, fighting the good fight, keeping the faith, and finishing the race.  One day, we will wear crowns of glory, preserved for us from the foundation of the world.

     

Eternally Secure???

     There is something that has always confused me.  It's when someone shares (usually in a Bible study type setting) about a sick relative who needs prayer.  I ask, "Is this person a Christian?"  The reason I ask is because that makes all the difference in the world.  If this person isn't saved, we need to be praying for their salvation.  Anyway, though, I'll ask about this person's salvation, and I'll often get an answer that really confuses me. "They used to be."  Have you ever gotten that?  What is actually meant by that?  Does that mean the person once professed to be a Christian and now denies Christ?  Did this person used to be active in church and suddenly stopped attending?  Is the person now living an immoral life in some way?  The deeper question is, can a person actually stop being a Christian?  If so, what lines are crossed in order for that to happen?

     Like my last post, The Chosen Ones, this post is about a subject that has been pretty heavily debated.  I do not claim to be smarter than the great theologians who originated these debates, although I do have the same resources.

     First, let's look at what it actually means to be a Christian.  If being a Christian is simply going to church, and a person stops going, then it makes sense to say they "used to be" a Christian.  If being a Christian is simply saying you are one, and then you decided not to say it anymore, it would also make sense to say you "used to be".  Or if being a Christian is living a moral life, and then a person left morality and engaged in what most would consider gross sins, then again, it would make sense to say they "used to be" a Christian.  But the truth is, Christianity is none of these things.  A Christian is a person who has been brought to a right relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ.  It isn't just verbally saying you are a Christian.  It is coming to a point of conviction over sin (Romans 3:10, 23).  It is recognizing that Jesus Christ offers the only solution for your sin problem (Second Corinthians 5:21).  It is believing that His substitutionary death and resurrection paid the penalty for your sinfulness (First Peter 3:18).  It is repenting of your sins and placing your faith in the finished work of Christ (Acts 16:31).  It is instantaneous.  It has to be.  That's why the thief on the cross could be saved (Luke 23:40-43).  The moment this happens in your heart, you are saved.  You are a Christian.  Second Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has gone, the new has come."  At that moment, you are forgiven of all sin, past, present and future (Hebrews 10:14).  You are sealed with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13).  Your sins are gone (First John 1:7).  You have changed ownership going from Satan's kingdom of darkness to God's kingdom of Light (Colossians 1:13).  All that and more happens the moment you are saved.

     If all these changes take place instantaneously, is it that simple to just stop being a Christian?  Is it even possible?

     There are several phrases used.  Some call the position of being unable to lose your salvation, "Once Saved Always Saved," or "Eternal Security."  The more theological term is "Perseverance of the saints."  Is it true?  Are we eternally secure?  Does everyone who comes to the Lord "persevere?"

     I have met several people who don't like this position of eternal security.  Often, their reasoning is that if we teach people that they are eternally secure in Christ, they'll think it's okay to sin.  Well, maybe they will, maybe they won't, but possible abuse of a doctrine is no reason to withhold truth from people.  If someone is looking for an excuse to sin, they probably aren't a Christian.  Remember everything we just read that happens at the moment of faith in Christ.  Someone who is now indwelt by the Holy Spirit and been forgiven of their sins isn't likely to be looking for excuses to sin.  The Holy Spirit does a work in us, taking away the desire for sin, and giving us the desire for righteousness.  We aren't going to be perfect, but as we grow in the Lord, He will continue working in us.  If a person thinks they have a biblical basis to teach a person that they are NOT eternally secure (we'll examine that a little later), they can go ahead, but I have seldom seen people operating from a biblical basis on this position.  Usually, those who believe it is possible to lose their salvation tell me that they take this position because they worry that people will think they are free to sin.  This is not a way to choose our doctrinal positions.  We should choose to believe the truth.

     Another thing I notice from people who believe it is possible to lose their salvation is that they often believe a certain sin is what does it.  I find logical issue with this.  If we aren't saved by good deeds, how can we lose our salvation by bad deeds?  Theoretically, I can see how a person would say we could lose it if we ceased to believe in Christ.  This is a more logical position, because we are saved when we place our faith in the Lord, so it would make sense to say someone isn't saved anymore when he ceases to do so.  I seldom hear people take this more logical approach, though.  It is usually all about a certain sin they believe is crossing an invisible line.  One pastor even told me once that murder is the sin that makes you lose your salvation.  This doesn't gel with the Bible.  Moses killed an Egyptian (Exodus 2:11-12), but was used mightily of God, and is named as a hero of faith in Hebrews 11.  I think we humans get hung up on sins...our own and other people's.  We lose sight of the very grace that saved us to begin with--grace that didn't originate with us.  And that is why I don't believe it is possible to lose our salvation.

     Let's look at what the Bible says about our salvation.  A verse I used in the last post is also applicable here.  Ephesians 1:4 says that God chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.  To read more about what that means, I recommend reading my last post, about election.  For the moment, I'll say this about it.  If God chose us, and it is in God's hands, does it make sense that we could lose it?  Philippians 1:6 says, "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Christ Jesus."  God continues what He began when He saved us.  Hebrews 13:5b says, "...for He [Jesus] has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.'"  Second Timothy 2:13 says, "If we are faithless, he remains faithful--for He cannot deny Himself."  That makes it sound like our salvation is dependent on Him, not on us.  He's the one who saves us and keeps us, regardless of what we do.  Hebrews 7:25 tells us that the Lord is able to "save completely those who come to God through Him."  If we are saved "completely" does that leave room for us to lose it?  I don't think so.  All these verses point to God being the One who saves and keeps us.  This is very closely related to the concept of election.  As I stated in my last post, there are two positions regarding the doctrine of election.  Some Christians believe that God chose to save some fallen sinners, and He chose those people by His Sovereign choice.  Others believe that God chose us based on His foreknowledge of who would say yes to Him and receive Him.  In either event, the evidence that someone is one of the elect is that they do make a decisions for Christ.  I covered that topic more in-depth previously.  Either way, God having chosen us puts the responsibility and security on God, not us.  We humans lose everything!  I used to lose my library card constantly!  In fact, I once lost my car in the parking lot at Disneyland, and it took three hours to find it!  God never loses anything, including His people.  John 10:27-28 is a precious passage that paints a beautiful picture of our relationship with God as believers.  "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand."  Sounds pretty secure to me.

     The Bible is our ultimate source of truth.  I believe I have built my case scripturally.  I'm now going to use some logic with scripture.  John 3:16 promises that anyone who believes in Him "should not perish, but have everlasting life."  If we are given "everlasting life" when we believe on the Lord, does it make sense that we could lose it?  If we could, was it everlasting?  No, it was temporary!  Romans 6:23 says that "the gift of God is eternal life."  Then a few chapters later, in Romans 11:29, it says, "the gift and the calling of God are irrevocable."  That would include the gift of eternal life, the biggest gift of all!

     Are there any believers in the Bible who lost their salvation?  Peter did something that many churches today would deem worthy of losing his salvation.  He denied Jesus.  But he was still saved.  He was like us.  Maybe we're not denying Jesus verbally, but we often do things that aren't in keeping with our faith.  But we don't lose our salvation for it.  Peter was weak, but Jesus helped him become strong again, and he eventually became a great apostle and martyr!  What about Judas?  He was a disciple of Jesus.  Didn't he lose his salvation?  My research would lead me to believe that he was never saved to begin with.  His priorities were shown to be wrong in the first place (John 12:4-6).  There isn't a lot of evidence of his faith in the Lord.  Jesus even gave Judas a chance to avoid sinning by allowing him to partake in the last supper (Matthew 26), but he went ahead with his plans to betray Jesus.

     I once had someone make the case that we can lose our salvation because Lucifer (Satan) did.  He was in Heaven with God, and his sin got him alienated from God.  That is an interesting observation, and I had never thought of it before.  My only problem with it is that Lucifer was not a redeemed human being.  He was an angel who had not previously sinned.  What's more, he didn't repent of his sin.  He didn't have all the promises that are available to believers.  Others have used Hebrews 6:4-6.  This text is often used to defend the belief that we can fall from grace and lose our salvation.  It says, "It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tested the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance.  To their loss, they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting Him to public disgrace."  Whew!  That's a mouthful.  On the surface, it would appear to be talking about people who have been saved, experiencing the Lord in their lives, and then turning back.  If, indeed, that is who it is talking about, then that passage would be teaching that it is impossible for them to be saved again at that point.  However, we must always interpret scripture in light of scripture.  Those who interpret this passage to mean losing our salvation are isolating it, not comparing it to the entirety of scripture.  In light of all the passages about our security as believers and God keeping us, I would conclude this passage is talking about a very specific type of hardened person.  Someone who has come very close to God's people, seen God doing amazing things, maybe even seen God work in his life, but then hardened his heart without receiving Christ for himself.  This is much like Pharaoh in the book of Exodus.  He had seen God unleash His power on Egypt through the ten plagues.  He had every opportunity to repent  and embrace the true God for himself.  After the first five plagues, the Bible tells us that Pharaoh hardened his heart.  It was pharaoh's choice.  He saw all God was doing, and was free to choose the true God for himself, but he didn't.  After the sixth plague, in Exodus nine, we see something different.  Exodus 9:12 says, "But the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart..."  God did it, but only after Pharaoh had made his choice.  I believe that's what Hebrews 6 is talking about.  Resisting the Holy Spirit is costly.  It cost Pharaoh his life and eternity.  He never embraced the truth.  In light of all that God has done to save us, and in light of the lack of conclusive scriptural evidence to support the contrary, I would say that once we are saved, we are eternally secure.  God keeps us.

     I know that what I'm about to close with isn't as authoritative as the Bible, but these are some quotes about our security as Christians from believers I greatly respect.

     "God buries our sins in the depths of the sea and then puts up a sign that reads 'No fishing.'" 
--Corrie ten Boom

     "If anybody said that he had eternal life and lost it, he would be flatly contradicting himself.  It could not be eternal, or else he would still have it.  If it is eternal, it is eternal, and there is no end to it; and thus there is an end of further argument about it." --Charles Haddon Spurgeon

     "Sometimes, people will make a profession of faith, and then seemingly fall away.  We ask ourselves, 'Did this person lose their salvation?'  My question, in turn, would be, 'Were they really saved to begin with?'  If somebody commits their life to Christ--and then walks away and never comes back, I suggest to you that they were never a Christian at all.  If, on the other hand, someone commits their life to the Lord, walks away, and then comes back to Christ, I suggest to you that they were simply a prodigal." --Greg Laurie

     "Once a king or queen of Narnia, always a king or queen of Narnia." --CS Lewis (a thinly-veiled reference to eternal security in his allegorical novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe)

The Chosen Ones

     I was mad!  Why?  I don't rightly recall.  I was fifteen.  I probably got mad at my sister...or received a poor grade on a math assignment...or something else that might offend a fifteen-year-old.  At any rate, I was in a foul mood.  Who knew I was about to do something I would henceforth deem as unforgivable?

     My mom had sent me outside to do some chore.  As I went out the door and down the walkway in front of the house, I was startled by a cat dashing out of the hedges, almost tripping me in the process.  Already in a horrible mood, I snapped, "Some idiot let their cat out!"

     Immediately, I heard the familiar voice of our next door neighbor (a bitter old woman) yelling "Maggie!"  The can went running to its house.  The neighbor opened her door long enough for Maggie to get in, and then slammed it shut again.

     I was struck with immediate regret about my angry comment.  Our neighbor had so many pets I couldn't keep track of them all.  I didn't know it was her cat.  I hadn't said what I did in any passive-aggressive way.  Plus, she seldom came outside, and when she did, she wasn't very sociable.  Sometimes she didn't answer when spoken to.  It depended on her mood.  My parents had been trying to witness to her for many years.  She knew we were Christians (as did our whole neighborhood).  Sometimes, I felt overly pressured to make my walk match my talk...because otherwise, people would reject Jesus because of me.  If they burned in hell, it was my fault (so I thought back then.)  I stood there in my front yard that day, the shame consuming me.  I had undone all the evangelism efforts of many years by my careless comment.  Why had I said that?  I needed to make it right.

     I went and knocked on her front door, but she refused to answer.  I wasn't offended by this.  I thought it was her right to hate me so much that she wouldn't answer.  I had said that rude comment (even though it wasn't directed at her or in any way intentional).

     This neighbor passed away a short time later.  I felt sick inside.  I had sinned against her, and never been able to make it right.  If she was burning in hell, it was all my fault.  I didn't feel like I could ever forgive myself.

     I struggled in my life for many years, until I was in my early 20's at Bible college.  I was introduced to a doctrine I had never heard of.  A doctrine taught all through scripture.  I was very well-versed in scripture.  I had read through the Bible in its entirety, more than once.  I read my Bible daily.  Being a good Baptist, I knew all about the Rapture and the tribulation, and could defend the position of "once saved always saved" to my dying breath (still can😉).  In spite of all of that, I don't know why I hadn't come across this particular doctrine.

     Before I actually state this doctrine, I'm going to tell a story I was told at Bible college, and have heard many times since.  I tried to find out where it originated, but was unable.  Here's the story.  The gospel was likened to a room, and people were being invited in.  A sign over the door said, "Whosoever will come."  The invitation was open to all.  However, once people got inside, they looked back at the door through which they had come, and saw a different sign on this side of the door.  This sign said, "Chosen from the Foundation of the World."

     This was my introduction to the doctrine of election.  That is, God choosing believers.  There is debate about how this works exactly.  Some Christians would say God unconditionally chose to save some fallen humans, by His Sovereign choice.  He chose these individuals, and the proof is that they do become Christians.  Another position on this is that God chose to save us based on who He knew would respond favorably to the gospel.  For never having heard of any of this prior to Bible college, I was caught up in the discussions once I was introduced to it.  This was the most debated subject at Bible college.  Regardless of which side a Christian finds himself (whether he believes God chose us based on His Sovereignty, or whether one believes God chose us based on knowing we would say yes to Him), no one can biblically deny the doctrine of election--God's choosing.  And regardless of how it worked, it changed EVERYTHING for me...and my guilt complex.  It meant that I hadn't sent our neighbor to hell.  God was the powerful one who had it sorted out.  That wasn't on me.  I had sinned in my grumpiness that day when I snapped about the cat...but that was my sin in it.  I had confessed it (actually, I had confessed it to the Lord dozens of time in hopes of finding relief from the guilt).  It was over as far as I was concerned.

     Let's take a second to look at what the Bible teaches about this concept.  A verse that has become a favorite of mine is Ephesians 1:4, "Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before him in love."  We are chosen.  Before God made the stars and heavens, he knew you and chose you!  Think of that.  I wish someone had shared that verse with me in junior high, when it seemed like no one chose me for anything!  Another passage that speaks of this teaching is Acts 2:47, "...and the Lord was adding to their numbers daily those who were being saved."   There was a revival going on after the Holy Spirit was given in Acts 2.  But God was the one doing the adding of believers to the body.  The King James version even goes a little further.  It says, "...the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved."  From my research, though, I lean toward the New American Standard's translation on that one (the first one I quoted).  Either way, God is the one making it happen.  Jesus Himself said in John 6:44, "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them..."  Any person's salvation takes a Sovereign work of God.  Likewise, in John 15:16, Jesus said, "You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you..."  Ephesians 2:8 says, "For by grace you have been saved, through faith, and this is not your own doing.  It is the gift of God."  I used to think the last part, the gift of God, was referring back to salvation itself (which would be a true statement), but it is actually referring to the faith to believe, mentioned in the previous sentence.  We don't conjure it up in ourselves.  Faith to receive the gospel is a gift.  As I said, God has it sorted out.  No human has power over someone else's salvation or eternity.  A missionary once told me, "If you don't take the credit for people you lead to Christ, you don't have to take the blame for those who reject Him."  And he's right.  We can't take credit or blame.  When I share the gospel with another person, I am being obedient, and a tool God is using to bring another person to Himself...but it isn't me.  I can't save them.  Whether they receive the message or not, I'm obedient either way.  Or disobedient if I don't share when God calls me to.

     On the subject of the Sovereignty of God, I was given this scenario.  A man is on his way to the airport to catch a flight.  On the way, his car gets a flat tire, and he has to change it.  This takes a good twenty minutes, and by the time he's on the road again, he's missed his flight and has to get a later flight.  He then finds out the flight he was supposed to be on crashed and there were no survivors.  That flat tire preventing his being on that flight was God's Sovereignty.  However, let's flip the scenario.  The man gets a flat tire on his way to the airport, and misses his flight, having to get on a later flight.  The original flight arrives safely, but the later flight, which he ended up on, crashes, and there are no survivors.  That is also God's Sovereignty.  We tend to only think of God as being Sovereign over things that make us comfortable.  But if He's God, He is Sovereign over all.  We don't choose to believe things simply because they make us happy.  We choose to believe the truth.  We have to believe that God is good in His Sovereignty, and also that we can't fully comprehend it.  One day, we will see the face of God, and it will make sense.  First Corinthians 13:12 says, "...now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known."  There is a lot more about election and the Sovereignty of God in scripture, but I'm going to take a quick look at the flip side, man's responsibility.

     Second Peter 3:9 says that the Lord is "not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance."  Throughout the New Testament, we are constantly admonished to urgently share the gospel with all.  John 3:16, an extremely well-known verse, tells us that God so loved the world.  All through the gospels and epistles, an invitation is given for all to believe on Him.  There are never any exclusions.  In fact, after Gentiles start believing in the book of Acts, Peter marvels that "God is no respecter of persons." (Acts 10:34).  People have a responsibility to respond to the gospel message, and there is no excuse for rejecting it.  The only reason anybody will be in hell is because they rejected Jesus Christ.  As a human being, my responsibility in my salvation was to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31).  My responsibility in daily Christian living is to be obedient in my witnessing, but humble in knowing only God can save someone.  When I fail, I confess it and move on.

     I cannot reconcile these things completely--God's Sovereignty and man's responsibility.  But I can't explain the Trinity either.  Some things about God and His workings are beyond our human understanding.  I have a good friend named Nancy.  She is just about my favorite person to discuss Theology with.  She would have done more justice to this subject than I have here.  In any event, we as humans are not capable of sending someone else to hell, nor are we capable of getting them into Heaven.  This doctrine of election...also called the doctrine of grace...has changed my life and relationship with the Lord for the better.  I no longer beat myself up.  I no longer think I'm so powerful.  I no longer think I have anything to do with my salvation, or anyone else's.  I'll close with a verse I love from Philippians 2:13, "for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose."