For the Glory of God

For the Glory of God

The short excerpt is by Tim Keller of New York City, and the scripture is 1 Corinthians 10:31  So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
 
In 1981 the movie Chariots of Fire came out, and it was a true story about two British men, Harold Abrams and Eric Little who won gold medals for Britain in the 1924 Paris Olympics.  Harold Abrams and Eric Little were both setting their minds on the same thing.  They wanted to run and win, but it was for totally different reasons. 
 
When Harold Abrams was asked why he was running he described the 100 yard dash this way.  "When that gun goes off I have 10 seconds to justify my existence." He is saying that if I can only win this race, then I know that I matter and that I can face the world.  Eric Little, on the other hand, was actually praising God when he ran.  In the movie he says, "God made me fast, and when I run, I feel His pleasure."
 
One guy is running to praise His Savior, and here is the other guy who is running to become his own Savior.  One guy is running for the sheer joy of it.  It is icing on the cake and if he wins.  His life is already justified because of what Jesus has done for him on the cross.  But here is the other guy who is running in grinding anxiety and fear because he is seeking to be justified.  Even after Abrams wins, by the way, he finds it unsatisfying.  Idols never satisfy.

 

Champions, have a great week!-David Vining

 

It's All Grace

It's All Grace

Dear Champions,

 

The short excerpt is by Tim Keller, and the Scripture is Ephesians 2:8-9  For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.

 

As you read the Bible you see the included and the excluded and the insiders and the outsiders.   The women and sick are seen as outsiders, and the Bible shows them as being embraced by Jesus.  Jesus comes for the excluded and rejects the included, right?  No, we see Joseph who is an insider and a rich man, and he gets it (Luke 23:50-56).  Even the rich, respectable, and moral insider gets it.  What is it?  It isn't your standing or performance or your goodness that merits salvation, but it is all grace.

 

In the history of the world women generally get it before men, the commoner before the elite, the poor before the rich; and the lay before the clergy.  WHY?  We see that success and accomplishment in general brings spiritual blindness.  All other religious leaders overcome enemies and call us to follow them with our strength. Jesus is the only one who is killed by His enemies and wins by defeat and invites those who know they are weak to follow Him.  Christian salvation was accomplished by weakness and repentance. This is totally different from all other religions, and it doesn't make sense to us that the failed and excluded get it faster.  Jesus doesn't favor the excluded because they are excluded, but because of how salvation is accomplished the excluded tend to get it faster or easier.

 

Champions, have a great week!-David Vining