"For God has not given you a spirit of fear, but of power love and a sound mind" 2 Timothy 1:7NIV
The whole point of this scripture is moving God from his traditional view as judge to becoming a Father. Now, this gets very complicated I know. See because part of God's very nature is justice, God has the right to judgement at any given moment. Think of it in the same way your mom, or dad gets the "Because I said so rule." He is all wise, and all knowing, and therefore must surely be able to see farther out than we can. That can be a terrifying thought because that means God can judge sin. God is allowed to be angry with us when we fall short, when we fail, when we hurt others, or when we point blank stand against Him. None of us can be mad at that thought if in fact you believe that God is in deed the maker and creator of the world. As a matter of fact there is a principle in scripture floating around called "The fear of the Lord."
Which bring me to the point how can scripture both say God has not given us fear, yet we should fear He himself? If we have no Messiah this whole thing is a wash right? But, Jesus Christ took the Father's judgement on Himself. In essence the Holy mystery is this, God punished God's self in place of our judgment. I am not going to dig deep into this one because mystery means something we do not understand, or know. Let's just settle with God has forgone His own judgment on Himself through the person of Jesus of that you and I could be imputed into the fold of God. In other words we are allowed to walk into Heaven as equals with no interaction on our part. God's plan for salvation begins and ends with Jesus Christ, our role and responsibly is to accept that "Yes" God can love his creation that much to save it racially. What this verse is trying to peak out show us is that God's grace is radical. Its more than a gift, more than a favor, the heart of the divine is so passionate toward each and everyone of us that God being rightful judge slammed the gavel of guilt onto Jesus (The perfect Son) in order to set us free from the crimes we have committed against us (sin). Timothy is making a moving point here with us that if we understand the doctrine of Grace, if we know that Jesus has come in our place we are a part of the Heavenly family. God then becomes a Father figure to us. With that thought in mind we can play the "our dad is bigger than you dad" card. Christians were called, and still are called to have spiritual power, love, and a sound mind. Because God is on your side, because He moves in front of you, because your Heavenly Father clears the road for you and I we are able to look at life with a sense of recklessness for the mission of Christ. After all, how can you be afraid to fail the God who is on your side? How can you not feel the power given to you by God in the form of the Holy Spirit (God inside of us)?
Are you living today as if God is going to punish you, hurt you, judge you? Maybe you need to reconsider that if you believe in the sacrifice of the Cross of Christ, God is not your judge any longer, He alone is your Heavenly Father, and will make a way for you to fulfill the mission of Jesus Christ everywhere you walk. His grace goes before you! Live as if Heaven is today, love wildly, give grace to everyone. EVERYONE! Hate nothing, and no one. Most of all share this great news that Jesus is your savior, and Heaven is your home. God is not evil judge but the radically loving God who wants all creation to accept His gift to them.
Strive on my Friends, Strive On.
Richard Hiltibran-Lead Pastor
focusonthecross.org
Monday, August 19, 2013
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Supreme
Colossians 1:17-18 NIV
"He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy."
Now we look at the word supreme with very little pose. Think about what we relate supreme with? Surfer lingo, and a pizza filled with toppings. When was the last time you let your mind wander on this word? Or, how about the word King? Even Lord? Being a Lead Pastor most people often associate you as the head of the Church. Not many of these people do this in negative fashion or disrespect to Christ. The reality is though that no Lead or Senior pastor is the head of the church, no Bishop, and not even the Pope gets that title. It belongs to only one that is Jesus. Supreme is a word that means "incomparable" nothing can stack up against it, and nothing can overcome it. That is Jesus Christ and His role in the church. Often times we look at Jesus though the eyes of Savior, or friend. Both are good references to Christ and both are found in the Bible. However, we can quickly loose sight of His Lordship, and Kingly position if we only focus on our friendship to Him. Think about all of the churches you pass on your way to work, school, anywhere for that matter. Think about your own church, or a church you grew up in. Jesus is in change of all if them even if the people in the building don't think so! That is so crazy to understand Jesus is the lead pastor of every church. As a matter of fact the churches sole purpose in existence is to teach about Him, and further His mission. Now, to make it personal. When was the last time you looked out your window and said King Jesus I will go wherever you want me to. I will obey your teachings and I will be a loyal servant in your Kingdom. I often times wonder what the church could do if every single one of us (myself included) would stand and say "King Jesus lead us on your mission!" It would be a sight to see when an army of grace and hope flooded the streets. Nothing could stand against it, nothing could overwhelm it. Nothing could overcome it. Until that day when Christ returns to teach us this truth face to face we have to move forward day by day. It may not be a wave a people, but you and I we can serve our King one loving gesture at a time.
Strive on my Friends, Strive on,
Richard Hiltibran
focusonthecross.org
"He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy."
Now we look at the word supreme with very little pose. Think about what we relate supreme with? Surfer lingo, and a pizza filled with toppings. When was the last time you let your mind wander on this word? Or, how about the word King? Even Lord? Being a Lead Pastor most people often associate you as the head of the Church. Not many of these people do this in negative fashion or disrespect to Christ. The reality is though that no Lead or Senior pastor is the head of the church, no Bishop, and not even the Pope gets that title. It belongs to only one that is Jesus. Supreme is a word that means "incomparable" nothing can stack up against it, and nothing can overcome it. That is Jesus Christ and His role in the church. Often times we look at Jesus though the eyes of Savior, or friend. Both are good references to Christ and both are found in the Bible. However, we can quickly loose sight of His Lordship, and Kingly position if we only focus on our friendship to Him. Think about all of the churches you pass on your way to work, school, anywhere for that matter. Think about your own church, or a church you grew up in. Jesus is in change of all if them even if the people in the building don't think so! That is so crazy to understand Jesus is the lead pastor of every church. As a matter of fact the churches sole purpose in existence is to teach about Him, and further His mission. Now, to make it personal. When was the last time you looked out your window and said King Jesus I will go wherever you want me to. I will obey your teachings and I will be a loyal servant in your Kingdom. I often times wonder what the church could do if every single one of us (myself included) would stand and say "King Jesus lead us on your mission!" It would be a sight to see when an army of grace and hope flooded the streets. Nothing could stand against it, nothing could overwhelm it. Nothing could overcome it. Until that day when Christ returns to teach us this truth face to face we have to move forward day by day. It may not be a wave a people, but you and I we can serve our King one loving gesture at a time.
Strive on my Friends, Strive on,
Richard Hiltibran
focusonthecross.org
Saturday, July 6, 2013
The beginning
"Watch your life and your doctrine closely. Preserve in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers." 1 Timothy 4:16 NIV
In an age where we are being feed constant information it is hard to know what to believe, what to think, but most of all what are we to do! This post marks a change for me, not a small change but quite a large one. I have stepped out of a secular career to stand in the trenches with my brothers and sisters in full time ministry. In preparation for this weeks message I found this powerful verse in 1 Timothy. What it implies is that no matter what you hear You and I are responsible to uphold our faith regardless of the information overload of the world.
Do you and I approach our relationship with Christ with this sense of urgency and importance? As if what we say, do, and even think will have not only the power to transform our lives, but also the lives of those around us. Sometimes in an age of self absorption its easy to forget this faith in Christ does not just belong to us. I myself fall into the trap of "it must not be important to anyone else." This is a fear mechanism. I do not share because I am afraid my beliefs are outdated. But, the reality is that the grace of God cannot be outdated. People need to know that there is someone who gives a crap about them, that being is God Almighty.
The charge for us all is to treat our faith in Christ as if it matters. Can you imagine what the world would look like if all the Christians in the world stood on this verse's foundation. If every morning we awoke with a true sense of urgent evangelism? The call to be a Christian is not an easy one, but one that will change the world.
Strive on my friends, Strive on,
Richard Hiltibran
focusonthecross.org
In an age where we are being feed constant information it is hard to know what to believe, what to think, but most of all what are we to do! This post marks a change for me, not a small change but quite a large one. I have stepped out of a secular career to stand in the trenches with my brothers and sisters in full time ministry. In preparation for this weeks message I found this powerful verse in 1 Timothy. What it implies is that no matter what you hear You and I are responsible to uphold our faith regardless of the information overload of the world.
Do you and I approach our relationship with Christ with this sense of urgency and importance? As if what we say, do, and even think will have not only the power to transform our lives, but also the lives of those around us. Sometimes in an age of self absorption its easy to forget this faith in Christ does not just belong to us. I myself fall into the trap of "it must not be important to anyone else." This is a fear mechanism. I do not share because I am afraid my beliefs are outdated. But, the reality is that the grace of God cannot be outdated. People need to know that there is someone who gives a crap about them, that being is God Almighty.
The charge for us all is to treat our faith in Christ as if it matters. Can you imagine what the world would look like if all the Christians in the world stood on this verse's foundation. If every morning we awoke with a true sense of urgent evangelism? The call to be a Christian is not an easy one, but one that will change the world.
Strive on my friends, Strive on,
Richard Hiltibran
focusonthecross.org
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