Author: Kyle Fuller

I love Jesus. I desire to encourage and equip the body of Christ and preach the gospel to those who don't know Him.

Smyrna: I Became Dead but Live!

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

Of the seven letters written to the churches in the book of Revelation, I think it is the church in Smyrna that we, the American Church, have the least in common with. The irony of it all is that I believe that the letter to Smyrna is precisely the letter we need to hear from most. Soooo, I want to take the letter verse by verse, look at some history that will help us understand how the folks at Smyrna may have received the letter originally, and then hopefully point out some relevant application for us. Let’s do it.

“And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: ‘The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life. I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’”(Revelation 2:8-11 ESV)

Jesus greeted Smyrna with the words “[The One speaking to you is the] first and the last, who died and came to life.” Those words would have immediately gotten the attention of the people because Smyrna was literally a city that had come back from the dead. Smyrna was a piece of prime real-estate, and although it had been the site of many civil wars, its location made it advantageous to rebuild. Around 580 BC Smyrna had been destroyed by Alyattes, the king of neighboring Lydia, and had lain “dead” for centuries. It was ultimately rebuilt around 290 BC by Lysimachus and Antigonus. So when Jesus says, “I am the One who became dead but lives,” the people were reminded of their own history, but more importantly that the One speaking to them knows first hand what it truly means for life to come through death. He is the first and last, the One who like Smyrna had died and lives. And this One would never die again! And with the suffering, persecution and death the church in Smyrna faced, it was important for them to understand that for the believer, death is not the end. In fact, it is through death that life comes.

I think the Church in America has forgotten that although we do have life in Christ, this life does not come as a result of pursuing “life, liberty, and happiness,” but from embracing the cross. Only as we die to ourselves, pick up our own cross and follow him do we know what it means to truly live. In our ease and prosperity we have forgotten that “whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Our ministers sometimes see and promote themselves with such arrogant flamboyance forgetting that a true servant of the church is one who says, “But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you.” – Life coming through death! We have become so consumed with preserving our lives and way of life that we scarcely speak of having been crucified with Christ and living only because of Christ who lives in us. I think we here in the West must remember that even as Jesus became a corpse and lives, so we too must participate in his death that we might live.

In the days that lie ahead, the American church may indeed find out what it means to face the tribulation the church in Smyrna endured. I pray that we will heed the words of Him who became dead but lives.

To be continued…

Soggy Bottom Hearts

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

I don’t know about you, but I have seen the capacity within my own heart for treachery against the Lord, and it is a truly sobering realization. We all know the verse in Jeremiah in which the prophet reminds us that “the human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked,” but when you acknowledge the fact that your heart can be deceitful and wicked, well, it ceases to be just mere words in the pages of a book. I have to confess that the potential for weariness, bitterness, and even rebellion lurks at the soggy bottom of my heart.

I was reading in Ezekiel 20 this morning, and when I read verse 32, I thought to myself of how treachery and turning away from the Lord sometimes begins with the desire we have to simply be like everybody else. Here’s how the verse reads, “[The Lord says,] what is in your mind shall never happen—the thought, ‘Let us be like the nations, like the tribes of the countries, and worship wood and stone.’” God had called Israel to be a people particularly for him. He gave them rules, instructions for worship, Sabbath days, and so on. He did this so that they might know him. (Check out how many times Ezekiel 20 contains the phrase, “…that they might know.”) But they grew weary, and rebelled against the Lord. They began to look upon his ways as being grievous and burdensome. They looked  at the people around them and were seduced by what they saw. Their heart went after the gods of the nations around them, and in spite of the Lord’s affection for them, they dealt treacherously towards him, and said, “We just want to be like everybody else!”

Really, I don’t think much has changed. Even today, we who call upon the name of the Lord often look around at the things we see in the world, and begin to be seduced by what we see. Our culture, movies, and TV present a life without God as being so carefree and wonderful. It’s all so silky smooth and seductive. The Christian sometimes begins to see his walk with Jesus as grievous and burdensome. We begin to be like the Psalmist who complained, “I envied the proud when I saw them prosper despite their wickedness.They seem to live such painless lives; their bodies are so healthy and strong. They don’t have troubles like other people; they’re not plagued with problems like everyone else…Look at these wicked people— enjoying a life of ease while their riches multiply. Did I keep my heart pure for nothing? Did I keep myself innocent for no reason? I get nothing but trouble all day long…” (Ps.73) If we’re not careful, we can come to the place where we say, “You know what, I just want to be like everybodytheprisoner_heart-of-the-swamp else. God’s ways are just too much.” Have you been there? Are you there now?

I think the answer may at least in part lie in the way we think about God. For so many, walking with Jesus is just a religious ritual consisting of a gigantic list of “DO’s” and DONT’s.” Remember how I said that in Ezekiel 20, the Lord repeatedly says, “That they might know.”? Well, knowing God is more than keeping a bunch of rules. While we do live holy lives and seek to please God in all that we do, the holiness and the doing are to flow out of our intimate knowing. God doesn’t simply want us to mechanically serve him, adhering to some dead religious code of ethics, but rather desires that we be captivated by Jesus, and serve him from a heart filled with the love and knowledge of God. Remember Jesus tells us, “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”

Yep, we all have soggy bottom hearts. There’s all kind of stuff down in there. But before you throw in the proverbial towel, and think that it would be so much easier to just be like everybody else, remember that God wants you to know him! His ways are not heavy and burdensome, but designed to bring you into deeper love with him. Delight yourself in the Lord!!

Room of Pictures

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

What do we do in secret, in the dark, in our (with a scary movie announcer voice) ROOM OF PICTURES? God once asked the prophet Ezekiel, ““…have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in his room of pictures?” (Ezekiel 8:12) Perhaps the same question should be asked of us who are disciples of Jesus today. Let me put this scripture in its proper context, and then I’ll try to give some 21st century application.

Israel had repeatedly rebelled against God, killed the prophets, and committed idolatry. It wasn’t just the “average Joe,” but even the priests, elders, and the prophets had forsaken the Lord. Those who should’ve been leading the nation in repentance were instead leading them further away from the Lord. And judgment was on the way. Israel had not survived the earlier Assyrian invasion, and now Judah faced God’s judgment in the form of Babylon. God sent the prophet Ezekiel (already in exile) and showed him how far the people had fallen into idolatry. They had crossed the line; there was no room left for national repentance. And those who should have been the voice of God to the people had instead engraved idolatrous images in their “room of pictures,” and abandoned the true worship of YHWH. So what? I’m glad you asked.

We who are the present day disciples of Jesus are to “be Jesus” to the world. We are the body of Christ, and it is through the church that the world is to see the beauty of God’s holiness as we display the love, grace and mercy of God through our own lives. The only way for us to do this is to abide in Jesus, fixing our eyes upon the author and finisher of our faith. But in our “room of pictures” who is it that is portrayed there? Don’t misunderstand me, none of us are sinless, we all fall short, but the elders of Israel had engraved these idolatrous images on the walls of their hearts. This speaks to me of a habitual lifestyle, practicing sin if you will. Engraving to me denotes permanence, it was what and who they had become. Christian who or what is engraved on the walls in our room of pictures? Do we worship religion? Is it pornography, drugs, TV, sex, food, money, power, video-games, WHATEVER. What is it that we “gaze upon,” that we continually run to for comfort, purpose, and fulfillment? Like I said, we all fall short, that’s not what we’re talking about today. We are talking about things that may have become engraved on the walls of our hearts and are keeping us from Jesus. I know we don’t like to hear it, but we who are the Church bear some responsibility for what’s going on around us. “If the righteous are barely saved then what shall become of the wicked?”

The wonderful thing is that God continually extends love, grace, and mercy to us. The cross of our Lord says it all. If there are idolatrous images engraved on the walls in the room of pictures, in our hearts, the blood of Jesus can cleanse us. We who have experienced forgiveness, grace, mercy, and the love of God can then extend the same to those around us. “Little children, keep yourselves from idols.”

Look Out Man

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel…”

More often than not, when you listen to so-called prophets today, their message is one of blessing, victory, the thrill of being God’s anointed, and instructions as to how you too can receive the awesome mantle that God wants to give you. One thing you don’t hear too much about is sharing in the “suffering of God,” and the suffering of others.

It is truly amazing when you look at the life and ministry of the prophet Ezekiel. Here is a man that did not escape the difficulties resulting from  the judgment of God upon his rebellious people. Ezekiel endured exile and ministered to his people as a fellow captive. This was not a man who sat in his house receiving lofty messages from God, and then pontificating the word of the Lord to his audience by some ostentatious means. No, this was a man who lived among his people as one of the people. His prophetic calling did not afford him the reputation of being some super-spiritual mega saint, no; God required him to offer his very life as an example of what was about to befall the nation. Read the first four chapters of Ezekiel, and you’ll see just how God demanded of his messenger wild and even humiliating behavior. Are we willing to allow God to use our lives in what ever way he sees fit in order to reach those around us?

God shared with Ezekiel the brokenness that he (God) experienced over the people’s “whoring heart that has departed from me and over their eyes that go whoring after their idols.” (Ezek. 6:9)  How many of us today move close enough to the heart of God that we weep and mourn over the condition of his people? We desire God’s blessing and anointing, but reject the fellowship of his sufferings. Today, we are more concerned with our rights, how things are affecting our lives, but spend little time at Jesus’ feet so that we might see and share in God’s heart. We put more effort into making sure we can keep our guns and have a right to privacy, than we do in endeavoring to “understand” how God’s Spirit is being grieved. Let us repent of our preoccupation with ourselves, and turn our hearts towards God that we might become preoccupied with him and his desires.

True servants of God rarely resemble the flamboyant superstars prevalent in our churches today, but like Ezekiel, are those who share in the suffering of the people, being burdened by that which touches the heart of God, and offer their very lives as a living gospel.

The Bridge: An Introduction

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

“Excuse me
Oh will you excuse me
I’m just trying to find the bridge… Has anybody seen the bridge?
(Have you seen the bridge?)
I ain’t seen the bridge!
(Where’s that confounded bridge?)”

I recently had a conversation with a friend of mine (one who is about 13 years younger than me) about how “church” is done here in America. We talked about many things, but mainly about what I hear so many ministers  ask: “How do we effectively reach the Gen Xers and Millennials?” Today I received a letter from this individual, and wanted to share it with you.

To my fathers and mothers- shepherds,

I heard that you were looking for me.

And while I have looked forward to this introduction for a long time now, I must admit that the idea of coming out of the corners and shadows of American Christendom really doesn’t sound like something that I am looking forward to.  Now I know that there is a lot to say.  There are words I have reserved for this very moment and I know them all too well.  Those sharp and jagged words have played and replayed in my thoughts time and time again, dripping from my dreams to my soul and back again, in a rhythmic flow of anger, joy, hurt, and peace.  But in my maturity I have realized that those are words that are not ready to be shared, at least not yet.  We have a lot more introducing to do and we have a lot more trust to establish before we are ready to deal with the consequences of those words. 

 Getting back to the point,

 I must admit I am curious about a couple of things.  Why are you looking for me?  It is odd you see, that you would be looking for me now.  It’s odd that after all this time you have found it important to come looking for me at this moment and at this time.  Please forgive me, but I am curious about your motives and your intent.

But let me back up a moment, perhaps I should introduce myself a bit.You see while you may believe you know me, I think that you may have to rethink things a bit.   Perhaps, just perhaps, if you would be willing to pause a moment you may realize a few things.So if you are willing to hear what I have to say…..

 You may believe that you could pick me out in a crowd, like a dislocated tourist clothed in full rain gear in the center of Times Square during a sunny-sky heat-wave, but shepherd you may want to think again.  I am not sure if you have considered it, but could it be that a reason you have been unsuccessful in finding me is that you don’t actually know what I look like or who I even am?  Could it be that when we have wondered into your places of worship your lack of knowledge of me, my life, my dreams, or worldview have left me shaking my head disappointed with your ignorance?  And instead of pursuing your company we simply walked out of your carefully manicured institution crying with tears of sadness and loneliness. 

 Could it be that we have been in your presence for a long time now, many since birth and yet you have walked right past as if I possessed the attributes of the Invisible Man?  Could it be that you now seek something that God deposited into your life years ago, and yet you have neglected, rejected, and overlooked?

Could it be shepherd? Now I know there are many things to be said at this point, and there are a great many things that we will have to work out.  There is much forgiveness to be sought, much forgiveness to be granted, and plenty of repentance for us both to entertain.  But we aren’t there yet shepherd, not even close. 

 You see man and woman of God, before we can even speak we have a language to bridge.  You see this isn’t an issue of marketing slogans, Christian survey strategies, hipster haircuts, or intense worship experiences.  This is not an issue of supporting the most relevant social justice projects, building the newest beautiful building, or voting Jesus into office. 

 You see my friend it’s not an issue of dialect, no not even close.While you may believe the response you seek will occur if you can find the magic generational hip-spoken relevant message coming from a David Crowder masked sermon.  Shepherd this issue goes way deeper than that, and I have to tell you something that may just break your heart and disappoint your religious authorities- It won’t work….

 There is a fundamental error in your perception of me shepherd.  For a long time now I have heard voices emanating from somewhere behind your pulpit proclaim with Ecclesiastics 1:9 flair that I am just as all others that have come before, that I am just as my fathers and my father’s fathers and my father’s- father’s- fathers.  But your hermeneutical error shepherd is where you have missed the hello of our conversation.  Despite the great Evangelical desire to lift the reality of yesterday onto today, the effort has failed. 

 So shepherd could it be that perhaps the answer you seek and the hearts you desire have evaded you not due to failed strategy or poorly executed seeker sensitive programming, but because you have no idea who I am?Could it be, that there are consequences to cultural decisions and those consequences have unraveled to produce a schism in the reality you believe you understand shepherd? So let me explain a bit:

 We are the generation of latch key kids, abandoned at birth, flavored by microwave dinners.  We are the resulting generation of fallout from the sexual revolution, HIV, deregulation, and the fall of communism.  We are the generation that found itself standing face to face with a little man proclaiming his wisdom and authority from behind a rotten wizard’s curtain.  We are the generation who realized that the Santa Clause of the American Dream was an imaginary sugary placebo pill as intangible as the “truth” we learned of from the worn sweat stained floors of our local church.  We are the rejected generation of single-mother families who clung to televisions like daytime-night-lights dreaming of a day when we would feel whole for the first time in our lives.   We are the generation of technological social media prosthesis.  We are the generation that will, for the first time in American history do worse financially then our parents.  We are the generation that not only lost our childhood innocence but our ignorance of the world and its monsters way too soon.  We are a generation without heroes, for our heroes exist in death, Celebrity Rehab, or prison cells.  We are a generation of ADD, ADHD, Ritalin infused lifestyles, and anxiety flavored depression.  We are the generation of immediate gratification, lopsided debt to credit ratios, and Science.  We are the generation of designer babies, cloning, abortive mass genocide, and chaotic financial instability.  We are the generation that watched screeching planes destroy our buildings, Columbine mass murder, Al Jazeera, worldwide political protest, celebrity confessions of homosexuality, and Congressional investigations play out live in real-time from the un-comfort of our Best-Buy television showroom floors.  We are a generation who does not trust the politician, the doctor, the teacher, the parent, the neighbor, the employer, or the pastor to not rape, molest, lie, manipulate, and steal our dreams and heart.

 And yet shepherd

 I am a generation that despite myself, my experience, and my cynical reservations desires to believe. I want to believe in you shepherd. But shepherd you will not win my trust in the ways you have been trying.  You will not find my heart or my body anywhere near the places you have been looking to find me.  It is a wasted attempt and it will not work.

 So here we are shepherd.  Perhaps you have been lost in my introduction.  Perhaps you don’t understand what I have tried to explain.  But that’s okay shepherd.  Even if you don’t know where to find me, even if you have no idea who I am or what it is I live for, it’s okay.God has moved me beyond the hurt, the rejection, the neglect, and the pain.Where in times past I wanted nothing less to strike a match and watch your man made traditions burn, I am coming back to start a new conversation, to start the restoration.  But understand shepherd I am not looking to be involved in the restoration of your religion, your institution, or your previously designed programs intended to manipulate our hearts into a tradition that can not contain the dream of Jesus Christ for our lives.  I am seeking the restoration of a relationship of our hearts.So let’s start with an introduction.  I would love to get to know you.

 Your brothers and sisters in Christ,

The Nameless Faceless Generation

 

Looking, Loving and Speaking

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

“And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him…” (Mark 10:21)

How often do we really look at people? In our “I have 5,450 friends on Face Book” culture, it is so easy to not look at each other. Oh, we’re quick (especially us preachers) to tell people how they should live, what they should and should not do, where they should and should not go, etc…; but do we take the time to truly look at the folks we’re talking to? In reading Mark 10, I was struck by the way Mark described Jesus’ reaction to the “rich young ruler.

The young man had come to Jesus, curious as to how one goes about gaining eternal life. The conversation was not too intense at first. Jesus tells him, “You know the commandments.” The young man replies, “I’ve kept those all of my life.” And then, instead of immediately launching into “You need to do this” or “You need to do that,” Mark tells us that Jesus looked at him. So often, we spout off spiritual prescriptions to people without taking the time to ask God to help us see them as He does. We have become a society of people who prefer surface level relationships, and very rarely take the time to go deeper. We spend hours looking into the computer screen, but have a hard time looking into each other’s eyes. Check out the progression in the verse above: Jesus looked, and then he loved.

How can we love people we don’t look at? I believe if we would slow down, pray for wisdom and discernment, and ask God to help us see people by his Spirit; we would be able to truly love them. Jesus looked at the young man in our verse, and he loved him! True spiritual insight will move us to respond from a heart of genuine love and concern, instead of a desire to hear the sound of our own voices. Like Jesus, if we would but look, and let God fill our hearts with love for those to whom we would minister, we would then be ready to meet the real need in their lives. Only those who look and love can discern what it is that a person needs to hear. Remember, Jesus looked, loved, and then spoke.

Sadly, I must confess that there have been times when I loved the sound of my own voice more than the person to whom I was speaking. I just couldn’t wait to offer my “two cents worth,” and probably what I said did more harm than good. Jesus, motivated by love for the young man in our verse, clearly saw the area of need in his life, and addressed it with laser precision. People don’t need flippant, trite, prepackaged responses; they need our attention and love. Jesus was able to be brutally honest with our young man because he loved him. He saw the man’s heart, which revealed the man’s need, and then, with love and clarity, provided the answer to his initial question.

If we really want to connect with people and truly minister to them, I think perhaps we should remember: look, love, and then speak.

The Realio

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

Quite often, when my daughters and I phone each other and leave a voice mail, the message we leave is only three words, “You don’t see.” For us, this has come to be an inside joke whereby we are telling each other, “You don’t see what’s really going on.” or “You don’t understand how cool I am.” Basically though, it simply means that you are failing to comprehend the “realio.” You just aint gettin’ it! I think that’s what Jesus was saying to the disciples in Mark 8 when he said, “Don’t you know or understand even yet? Are your hearts too hard to take it in? You have eyes—can’t you see? You have ears—can’t you hear…Don’t you understand yet?” (Mark 8:17-21)

It’s sobering to realize that Jesus was speaking to a group that earlier he had referred to as insiders who had been given the secret of the Kingdom of God. Now, these insiders are acting like outsiders that don’t yet truly understand who Jesus is at all. They had seen miracles. They had seen him calm the storm. They had seen him cast out demons, but still did not grasp the fact that the guy they were dealing with was the promised Messiah, the Son of God. These guys had intimate, regular interaction with Jesus, and yet were slow to comprehend who he is. Are we any different? We go to church, sing the songs, hear the sermons, and even (God forbid) have emotional outbursts. But who do we say that he is? Do we love and worship Jesus because he is God or simply for what he can do for us, or because he makes us feel good about ourselves? If Jesus is God, then how can I respond to him as if he is simply a hobby? Do we who call ourselves Christians, who are to be the light of the world really know who Jesus is?

The religious leaders of the day thought they knew how Messiah would be, how he would act and what he would do. King Herod thought Jesus was John the Baptist, back from the dead to haunt him. Some said Jesus was Elijah or some Old Testament prophet. Even those closest to him had trouble fitting Jesus into their preconceived concept of Messiah. And we who make up the church today are guilty of trying to make Jesus fit into our boxes as well. We are very much like the blind man at Bethsaida who, after coming in contact with Jesus, said, “I see people, but I can’t see them very clearly. They look like trees walking around.”(Mark 8:22-26)  He needed Jesus to touch him again in order for his sight to be fully restored. Perhaps we too need a “fresh touch” so that we can see more clearly. The problem is that we think we know everything. We think that our little group is the only one that really sees.

At the end of Mark 8 we see (no pun intended) Peter finally comprehending and confessing that Jesus is the Christ, but he still suffers from blurred vision. Jesus tells the disciples that he must go to Jerusalem where he will be rejected, killed and after three days rise again. “As he talked about this openly with his disciples, Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him for saying such things.” Peter still didn’t quite get it. He had his ideas about how it should all play out, but Jesus would have none of it. Further clarity was needed. There was no easy path for the Lord to take; he must lay down his life. And what’s more, so must we. Jesus wanted the disciples (and us) to first see who he really is, and then they must be made to understand that to follow him, they too would be required to lay down their lives. “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.”(Mark 8:34, 35)

The realio is that Jesus is God, and as God deserves my all. I don’t know everything, and need continued fellowship with Jesus as well as the body of Christ to ensure that I am seeing properly. One of the ways I can be sure that my vision is okay is when what I’m seeing moves me to deny myself and give all I am to the One who denied himself and gave all he is for me. Do you see?

Trees, Roots and Barred Owls

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

There’s a park in Davidson, NC called Fisher Farms that’s very close to my house. I go there quite often to run and walk the trails. It’s pretty cool, I’m even friends with a Barred Owl that lives there in the woods. Mind you, I’m his friend. I don’t think he’s mine yet, but I’m working on it. Anyway, I haven’t got to that point that I’ve heard runners allude to as to how running is a “spiritual thing” for them, but I did have some thoughts out there in the woods, and figured I’d pass them along.

One of the first things I noticed as I began to frequent the trails was all of the exposed roots from the various trees that literally carpet the ground. There are so many trees and so many roots that you can’t tell which roots belong to which trees. Obviously, the trees are distinct, but the roots twist and turn and overlap in such a way that makes it impossible (at least for me) to assign a tree to the roots. I started thinking that that is kind of how it is (or should be) for us Christians.

We are each ” planted” in Christ, our “roots” are all drinking from the same source. And as we spread out, growing in Jesus, there should be a “blending,” a unity in the Spirit  as our common thirst, the need we each have to drink of Him  produces an “overlapping root system.”  As we grow in Christ together, our roots mingle, and we began to look alike- conformed to the image of Jesus.

One last thought about trees and roots and Barred Owls. Occasionally, while running through the woods, I’ll trip over one of the roots. In fact, my right “ring-finger” has never been the same because of one of those falls. But it got me thinking how we Christians can stumble over one another, and even hurt each other. Now don’t get me wrong, I do know that there are such things as “stumbling blocks,” but I think more often than not we trip over each other simply because we’ve taken our eyes off the trail, and have gotten distracted by other things. Something I’ve learned is that while I am quick to blame others for my missteps, usually the problem originates with me. I take my eyes off of Jesus and boom!! A Barred Owl goes flying by and a root “reaches up and grabs me.”

It takes more than one tree to make a forest and more than one Christian to make up the body of Christ. May our roots go deep into him, each of us taking on his likeness, reflecting his glory in congruent diversity. And oh yeah, don’t let the Barred Owl distract you!!

 “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.” (Jeremiah 17:7, 8 ESV)

Acoustics

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

Test. Test one, two. Test, test one. Test, one, two. Can you hear me? How ‘bout now?  How’s your hearing, your spiritual hearing that is? It’s not just a matter of if you can hear or not, but it’s how you hear as well. Check this out:  “And he said to them, ‘Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.’” (Mark 4:24, 25 ESV)  So often when we hear Mark 4 preached or taught, it centers on the four types of soil and the preacher asks, “Now what kind of soil are you?” I do believe that’s a valid teaching, but I think there’s a little more to it than that. I think part of what Jesus is saying to his disciples is an exhortation to effective hearing. How’s this for a cool catch phrase? Jesus is teaching us to: “Develop Kingdom Ears.”

If you read Mark 4 in its entirety, you find that Jesus refers to his disciples as “insiders” who have been given the mystery of the kingdom of God. Jesus had just spent the day teaching the crowd with parables, but now, alone with his followers; he is speaking plainly. Because of our proximity to Jesus, we are able to hear him speak regularly. By his Word, by the Spirit, through our brothers and sisters, we are hearing God (or should be) speak to us. But the question is how we are hearing. What “measure” are we using? The context of Mark 4 gives us a couple of indicators we can use to help figure out if our hearing is okay.

First, someone that’s hearing properly will be a light to those around him. “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light.” (Mark 4:21, 22 ESV) A person with Kingdom Ears (I kind of like that) isn’t just sitting at home thinking deep spiritual thoughts, but is regularly sharing with others what he has heard from the Lord. You are the light of the world, and if you are really hearing from God, you will be shining, bringing revelation into those around you.

Second, the effective listener lives the lifestyle of a “seed planter.” It just comes natural. “And he said, ‘The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.’”(Mark 4:26-29 ESV) Like Jesus who sat in a boat that day and threw “seed” out on all kind of soil, the disciple with Kingdom Ears will be one who, as a natural way of life, scatters seed all over the place, leaving the outcome to God.

Jesus promises that if we will pay close attention to what we hear, if we will shine and scatter seed as a way of life, we will receive more. More understanding, closer intimacy, more seed, and more light! However, if we are only casually listening, we may actually not be hearing at all, and are at risk of losing what we thought we had to begin with. In light of what we’ve talked about today, I’ll ask you again, “How’s your hearing?”

Immanent Love: When God Assumed

Posted on by Kyle Fuller

One of the things that had the greatest impact on me during my time in seminary is not some great theological truth gleaned from one of the countless books we had to read, but rather part of a prayer one of my professors (Dr.G!!) prayed at the beginning of class one evening. He was praying along and then he said, “And Father, I thank you that you decided that you didn’t want to be God without us.” BOMBSHELL!! I had never heard someone say anything like that before. Honestly, I was a little taken back. There was a part of me that thought that perhaps he shouldn’t have said that. For some reason that part of his prayer kind of offended me a little.  It seemed wrong somehow. Now, looking back, I can see that it was merely my Western religious paradigm that had been shaken to its core by a simple prayer.

 We good, Protestant Christians of the West speak of God’s love, but many of us (if we are honest) see God as some kind of egotistical tyrant  who can barely stand the thought of us and puts up with us only because we forced him to send Jesus to pay for our sins. Our understanding of God centers on the wrath of God and sin. Our God is a God far removed from his creation (transcendence), and the thought of his actually wanting to be near us (immanence) offends us somehow. We are taught that even after we come to Christ, we are still filthy, rotten to the core. And really if you get right down to it, the part about God being your Father is just theological mumbo jumbo – you best just be concerned with being good!! If the truth were told, it is fear and not love that binds many of us to God.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not minimizing our sin problem. We’ve all got one, and it brings about death, separation from God. But that’s precisely the point. Because God loves us so much, the Father sent the Son to redeem us and make it possible for us to partake in the eternal life that is in God. We brought sin and death into the world, our loving God provided the way back to Life and fellowship through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. God does not hate you, but loves you and desires to reveal himself to you. You were created for him. The Triune God who is eternally holy, existing as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, perfect and in need of nothing, because of love desired to have a people who would be indwelt by his Spirit and conformed into the image of the Son. He may have not needed us, but hallelujah; he wanted us!! He wanted  you!!

Our theology has evolved into an extremely lopsided thing. We’ve stressed the transcendence of God and our own sinfulness at the expense of the immanence of God and his love. We emphasize the judiciary aspects of salvation and have lost sight of the fact that the One we fear as judge is the same One who created and desires us. My friend, the cross is not the image of a horrible God that demands blood in order to satisfy his insatiable wrath, but rather a demonstration of a God who assumed the brokenness of his creation in order to satisfy his  insatiable love.