None of the Above: Answering Objections to Third-Party Voting

I remember the first time I said it out loud.

I’d watched as a global pandemic upended life at best and destroyed it completely at worst. I watched racism and police brutality have an ugly impact on black people. I heard callous, cruel words from men who claimed to follow Jesus but used language that He would have condemned.

But it took a Fall 2020 sermon on spotting the bad fruit of false teachers to give word and action to the stirring in my heart and conscience. After tearful reflecting and wondering what my then-girlfriend (now wife), my family, my friends, and my church would think, I let these words take flight in my empty vehicle:

“I can’t vote Republican this time.”

I’d been a conservative for most of my voting life. My theological convictions removed the Democratic Party as an option, but I could no longer support what the Republican party had become. Thus, I cast my first vote for a third-party candidate in the 2020 Presidential Election.

I’d like to respond to some of the objections I got from loved ones when I told them my decision. To be clear, I’m not saying that all Christians have to vote like me; salvation is based on what you do with Jesus, not what you do in the ballot box. There are issues on which Christians can disagree. But I hope to clarify why I stand where I do here.

“You wasted your vote!”

By far the most common refrain when I told people I wasn’t voting for Biden or Trump in 2020 was that I was “throwing my vote in the garbage” because no one else had a significant chance to win. On the front of victory chances, I can’t prove them wrong; per these statistics from Statista, the most successful third-party Presidential candidate in my lifetime (Ross Perot) got 18.9% of the popular vote in 1992. No third-party Presidential candidate has gotten over ten percent since then.

I won’t try to dispute that, in the current political system, only a Democrat or Republican has a shot at taking office; so, a third-party vote is unlikely to yield a new President. Despite that, I’d still say that a third-party/centrist vote is no waste.

As Christians, we’re never told to win elections at all costs. Daniel was never told to go into Babylon and uproot the kingdom there. Jesus wasn’t the political Messiah that many at the time wanted Him to be. Paul told Christians to submit to governing authorities that were actively persecuting and killing them in Romans 13. If the only aim of a Christian’s political witness is holding power at all costs, then these men were all failures. This tells me that being salt and light is more important than pursuing political agendas.

That’s not to say Christians should be apathetic politically or refuse to fight against unjust laws and practices; it just means that there’s more to voting than getting someone in office no matter what. Plus, I’d rather “throw away” my vote than sin against my conscience by endorsing beliefs and character that I can’t reconcile with the Word of God. I’d rather lose knowing I stood by the fruit of the Spirit than win by rewarding hatred, cruelty, lying, and greed.

“You’re just a sissy who refuses to take a stand! Quit trying to make everyone happy!”

Humans like things simple now more than ever. We want heroes and villains; good and evil; black and white; right and wrong. What don’t we like? Someone coming along and saying that the “other side” might have a good point.

Nowhere is this on more open display than social media during any major election cycle. Echo chambers where my side can be full of angels and your side can be aligned with demons abound. We don’t have to listen to anyone who might contradict our view of the world; we can just ride along with our confirmation bias and straw men while condemning anyone who doesn’t share our view of politics or the Bible.

Against that backdrop, moderates don’t have a chance. Trying to say that issues are more complicated than political extremes want to make them out to be is a good way to have both sides attack you. There was a season where I got called a “liberal idiot who believes what CNN told me to that day” because I advocated for the COVID vaccine; then, a few months later, someone told me that I was “harmful to women” because I couldn’t endorse 100% unabated, unconditional abortion access.

I believe the Bible when it says every human life is sacred and made in the image of God; however, I believe doctors should be able to treat miscarriages and that there must be compassion shown to women who have been the victims of horrific sexual abuse. There shouldn’t be a world where a woman faces more legal punishment for being raped than a man does for assaulting her.

I believe systemic racism still exists and that Christians should be committed to ending it. Rather than embracing “Where Woke Goes To Die” as a rallying cry (as newly re-elected Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has), I believe Christians should live Micah 6:8 in seeking justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly with God.

I don’t believe either party fully aligns with an open Bible. My stands didn’t come from trying to make anyone happy; I’ve strained some friendships and lost others completely since speaking out more. My stands come from recognizing that God cares about babies, immigrants, children, the poor, victims of violence, and everyone else equally. Reducing the entire ballot down to one or two issues is a surefire way to misrepresent Jesus and turn allies into enemies; brothers and sisters into strangers; family into foes. Abortion, racial injustice, biblical marriage, the economy, immigration, helping the poor, and ending gun violence are all important; but we can’t ignore everything else a candidate stands for because they get one thing right.

If you disagree with how someone votes, seek clarity. Ask questions. Seek to build a bridge of understanding rather than throwing a stone of condemnation. But don’t assume their heart or salvation.

Three Tips For Better Disagreement

Thanksgiving week. A time when there’s so much to be gracious for.

America 2021. A time when there’s so much to fight about.

As Christians trying to navigate a world where there’s a new controversy or tragedy every three days, how can we apply the principles of God’s Word to the times we don’t see eye to eye on something?

1. Don’t run away from inconvenient truth.

As humans, we’re prone to a little something called confirmation bias. MindTools defines confirmation bias as what happens “…when you look for information that supports your existing beliefs, and reject data that go against what you believe. ”

When we do encounter information that challenges what we want to believe, we either try to deny it or discredit it. One way we try to discredit it is through straw man arguments. A straw man argument has occured when, to quote YourLogicalFallacyIs,

“You misrepresented someone’s argument to make it easier to attack.
By exaggerating, misrepresenting, or just completely fabricating someone’s argument, it’s much easier to present your own position as being reasonable, but this kind of dishonesty serves to undermine honest rational debate.”

-YourLogicalFallacyIs

It’s important that we actually engage with dissenting views with an open mind, rather than living in what we’ve already assumed someone believes. We can do this by asking questions and seeking clarity before we speak our opinions.

We also have to make sure that we have correct information on facts, events, and beliefs before we comment on them. As Daniel Darling puts it, “Knowing all the facts before expressing an opinion on a news story is one way Christians obey James 1:19.” And what does James 1:19 say?

“My dear brothers and sisters, understand this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger…”

James 1:19 (CSB)

You don’t need a political science degree to discuss Critical Race Theory. You don’t have to go to seminary to discuss Calvinism. But you must do enough research to avoid addressing these things without positing caricatures as real opinions.

• 2. Don’t water down complicated issues.

“Sin is the problem. Jesus is the solution.”

That’s a truth that I rejoice in daily. That sounds great in sermons and on bumper stickers. But when the time comes to apply that sentiment to real, daily life, what does it look like?

One recent issue that cast a light on the polarization of issues in American politics was the Texas abortion law. It seemed like there were only two groups for people to fall into: woman-hating destroyers of reproductive rights or Satan-worshiping baby killers.

Tim Keller does a good job explaining this point. Here’s a quote from a September 2020 Facebook post regarding helping the poor:

The Bible binds my conscience to care for the poor, but it does not tell me the best practical way to do it. Any particular strategy (high taxes and government services vs low taxes and private charity) may be good and wise—and may even be somewhat inferred from other things the Bible teaches– but they are not directly commanded and therefore we cannot insist that all Christians, as a matter of conscience, follow one or the other.

Tim Keller

Sin has made things incredibly tough to navigate in our world. Reducing every issue to a black-and-white, us vs. them, good vs. evil dichotomy stifles progress and unnecessarily excludes people. Which leads to my last point:

• 3. Don’t be the Christian who cried wolf.

Joash Thomas offered this wisdom when responding to an article written about him:

Instead of labeling every believer who has a different view on secondary & tertiary doctrines as ‘liberal’, ‘wolf-adjacent’ & ‘deconstructionist leaders’, what if we came alongside them on the basics where we agree, learn from their pain + hurt and grow from the grace in them?

@JoashPThomas on Twitter

I’ve witnessed Bible-believing, doctrinally sound Christians get labeled as “liberals” or “wolves” for some combination of the following things:

• Calling out President Trump for harsh, cruel words.
• Refuting the conspiracy theory that President Biden stole the 2020 Presidential election.
• Encouraging mask-wearing and vaccines during the Covid-19 pandemic.
• Believing systemic racism exists and that Christians should stand against it.

We need discernment as Christians. There comes a time to boldly call out false teaching as Jesus and Paul did. But when we elevate secondary doctrines to the point that someone must agree with us on all of them or be slammed as “woke”, “liberal”, or a “wolf,” we do harm to the body of Christ and slander fellow believers. We cannot assume that someone’s heart is set against Christ simply because they disagree with us on some political/cultural issue.

I’ll let Paul’s words be a guide as I close this post:

Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you should answer each person.

Colossians 4:6 (CSB)

Don’t Fight Foolishly

Whether it’s Covid response, systemic racism, or worship music, there’s no shortage of topics for God’s people to disagree on these days. Sometimes, iron sharpens iron and growth takes place (even if no one’s mind is changed). But far too often, disagreement divides and leaves a bitter taste in everyone’s mouth.

So, how are Christians to navigate disagreements in a God-honoring way? How can we navigate tough issues and not tarnish the name of Jesus? Avoiding these pitfalls is a good start:

1. Fools attack the wrong people.

The first step in handling disagreement well is to recognize that the person across the table (or inside the screen) is not your enemy. I don’t care what their political views are; as Martin Lloyd-Jones once stated when confronting T.T. Shields (a pastor who became known for ridicule of non-conservatives): “You can make mincemeat of the liberals and still be in trouble in your own soul.” I don’t care if they have different theological views than you. I don’t even care if they’re saved; Paul spends 1 Timothy 2:22-26 telling us:

Flee from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. But reject foolish and ignorant disputes, because you know that they breed quarrels. The Lord’s servant must not quarrel, but must be gentle to everyone, able to teach, and patient, instructing his opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance leading them to the knowledge of the truth. Then they may come to their senses and escape the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.

2 Timothy 2:22-26 (CSB)

Who is our enemy? Satan. And he loves convincing us that everyone who disagrees with us must be the problem.

2. Fools only want to be right.

How can you tell if you’ve fallen into this trap?

• You don’t care about understanding the other person (Proverbs 27:18, 15:28, 18:13).

Even if you think you know what a person believes and why they believe it, there’s immense value in listening to understand their perspective instead of listening merely to respond to what you’ve already determined their views to be. Don’t find value only in saying what you want to say.

• You don’t care about truth. (Proverbs 16:28, 25:18)

Slander is the act of attempting to undercut someone’s reputation with false claims. While few who claim Jesus would say it’s cool to slander your neighbor intentionally, we’re still guilty of this sin when we spread claims we haven’t verified; when we want to shame someone so badly that we’ll believe the first negative report we read. If you’re ready to call someone “false teacher”, “heretic”, “woke”, or “wolf”, you’d better be right.

• You’ll hurt anyone you have to. (Proverbs 18:21, 12:18)

Whether it’s a sinful politician or a crude pastor, I’ve watched countless Christians defend poor speech by speaking some form of this line: “You can’t pay attention to words! You just have to look at their actions!”

While that sounds nice, it’s incredibly unbiblical. Scripture repeats over and over that words (whether spoken, written, or tweeted) are powerful, and that destructive speech cannot be waved away flippantly. Here are just a few examples:

“A good person produces good out of the good stored up in his heart. An evil person produces evil out of the evil stored up in his heart, for his mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart.”

Luke 6:45 (CSB)

“And the tongue is a fire. The tongue, a world of unrighteousness, is placed among our members. It stains the whole body, sets the course of life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. Every kind of animal, bird, reptile, and fish is tamed and has been tamed by humankind, but no one can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With the tongue we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in God’s likeness. Blessing and cursing come out of the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, these things should not be this way.”

James 3:6-10 (CSB)

We cannot claim to be followers of Jesus and be reckless with our words. Speech matters, because it reveals where our heart is. As Paul David Tripp puts it:

“Have you ever said to someone, ‘Oh, I didn’t mean to say that’? It would be more biblical to say, ‘Please, forgive me for saying what I meant,’ because if it hadn’t first been in your heart, it wouldn’t have come out of your mouth.”

Paul David Tripp, The Power of Words and the Wonder of God

While we’re on the topic of words: While the truth of the Gospel will sting someone who isn’t willing to admit to a sinful life and repent, there’s a world of difference between the Gospel being offensive and you being offensive. We’re called to give people truth; we’re not called to be jerks for Jesus. We don’t need to measure success by how many people are offended by our words.

3. Fools fight for far too long.

One of my former pastors brought these verses to my attention during a sermon once, and I’ll admit I was confused:

Don’t answer a fool according to his foolishness
or you’ll be like him yourself.
Answer a fool according to his foolishness
or he’ll become wise in his own eyes.

Proverbs 26:4-5 (CSB)

Uh, what? Is this a contradiction? Did Solomon hit “submit” too soon? No.

There’s a time and place for rebuke, but if we’re resorting to the tactics that fools use, it’s time to walk away. Moreover, there’s little point discussing things with someone who refuses to acknowledge anything you’re saying; once you know their mind is made up, there’s little to do but bid farewell (or log off).

We’re also told in Ephesians to not let the sun go down on anger. Few disagreements are worth staying angry at for days on end. Squash anger, or it will squash you.

I’ll conclude with this exchange between T.T. Shields and Martin Lloyd-Jones:

“Well, what about this: you remember Paul in Galatians 2? He had to withstand Peter to the face. He did not want to do it. Peter was an older apostle, a leader and so on. Paul did it very reluctantly, but he had to do it for the sake of the truth. I am in exactly that position. What do you say to that?”- T.T. Shields

“I would say this, that the effect of what Paul did was to win Peter round to his position and make him call him ‘our beloved brother Paul.’ Can you say the same about the people whom you attack?”- Martin Lloyd-Jones

May we be more concerned with winning people to/growing people in Jesus Christ than we are in making mincemeat of those with whom we disagree.

Is Speaking Up Slander?

“My brothers and sisters, if any among you strays from the truth, and someone turns him back, let that person know that whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.”-James 5:19‭-‬20 (CSB)

Christians everywhere need to relearn the difference between slander and rebuke. Our goal should always be unity and peace, but there are times that silence is not an option. Here are a few differences I can see:

~The goal of slander is to destroy a person’s reputation out of spite or wrath. The goal of rebuke is to turn a person away from sin by lovingly helping them see where they’ve turned away from Christ. (Proverbs 27:6)

~Slander doesn’t wait for all the facts before making an accusation. Rebuke waits patiently, gathers information, searches the Scriptures, and THEN goes to the person. (James 1:19, Proverbs 18:2)

~Slander is willing to lie to tarnish a person’s work, reputation, or witness. Rebuke only speaks the truth in love. (Exodus 20:16, Ephesians 4:13-27)

~Slander looks outward and sees problems with everyone besides themself. Rebuke looks inward and asks God to remove any sin or wickedness from their heart before addressing anyone else’s sin. (Psalm 139:23-24, Matthew 7:3-5)

~Slander is fueled by hatred. Rebuke is fueled by love.

If you know what you’re saying is true, your goal is to see people repent, and your motivation is expressing the love of Jesus, you’re not slandering someone. Jesus used a whip to drive false teachers out of His temple; but He wept over the city of people led astray by false teaching first.

May we lovingly speak truth and expose the lies of Satan.

Christian. Extroverted. Depressed?

My name is Chris. I’ve been saved by Jesus Christ and seek to follow Him and love others with a strength that only He can provide.

And I wrestle with moderate clinical depression.

At first, I tried to make this go away on my own. I convinced myself that my feelings of hopelessness and lack of desire to get out of bed in the morning were just fluky parts of a bad day. I convinced myself that, with enough caffeine and willpower, I could overcome being exhausted for no apparent reason. I convinced myself that I needed to man up, pull up my bootstraps, and get over feeling worthless; grown men don’t cry after all. I convinced myself that I couldn’t tell anyone at church what I was going through because Christians should always “look on the bright side” and never feel this way.

Until, in March of 2018, I realized I couldn’t fight it anymore. One tearful, prayer-filled conversation with my two closest friends in a Chevy later, I’d finally uttered six words that I never wanted to speak but knew I had to:

“I have depression. I need help.”

“But you’re outgoing and extroverted! You don’t look depressed.”

Sometimes a song gets released in a season of your life that fits so well it becomes your personal theme song. So it was with Fake Happy by Paramore in this season. Some of the lyrics read:

“I been doing a good job of makin’ ’em think
I’m quite alright
But I hope I don’t blink
You see its easy when I’m stomping on a beat
But no one sees me when I crawl back underneath

If I smile with my teeth
Bet you believe me
If I smile with my teeth
I think I believe me.”

Depression doesn’t always look like a quiet person in a corner crying. Sometimes, depression looks like making a room full of people laugh while simultaneously thinking none of them would care if you weren’t there. Depression looks like having a thousand Facebook “friends” yet thinking you can’t confide your struggle in any of them. Depression looks like being so focused on bringing people happiness that you ignore your own pain.

A smiling face can be a mask that hides tears, pain, and despair beneath.

“You have Jesus, a girlfriend, and a job. What do you have to be depressed about?”

Here we have the philosophy that kept me quiet for years.

To be clear, there is a kind of depression that can set in when bad things happen (loss of a job, a breakup, a death in the family, etc.). That’s called circumstantial depression, and we’ll all walk through that at some point in our lives.

But clinical depression is different. You don’t get to pick when that sets in. It clouds your mind constantly, even when things are going great. It makes seeing the good in anything (including yourself) almost impossible. It makes the promises of God that you believe wholeheartedly foggier and more difficult to cling to.

Many well-meaning Christians have created a problem by treating depression as an issue of not trusting Jesus enough or just needing to read the Bible more. But, as Sammy Rhodes writes in This Is Awkward, we cannot do that:

“Whenever we start talking about depression, we are typically talking about three different aspects: the spiritual, the emotional, and the physical. To deal with only one of these elements is to reduce depression to something that can be easily managed. But taking all three aspects seriously means there can be no simplistic answers. My depression may be mainly rooted in one of them, but rarely is it solely rooted in one of them.”

Only the most strict, rigid Christian denominations oppose a believer going to the doctor for bronchitis, cancer screenings, and other physical health matters. Yet many churches judge those who seek medical help for mental health as “not trusting Jesus” or “needing more faith.” I’ve even heard one teacher go as far as to call taking antidepressants a sin. That philosophy has caused so many people with depression, anxiety, and other mental troubles to stay silent and be deprived of help that they need.

I’m not saying that everyone reading this needs to take an antidepressant or see a counselor. You can try exercise, meeting with a pastor, or other things first. But you’re not less of a Christian if you do choose medicine or therapy. You don’t have less faith than anyone else. These things shouldn’t take the place of Jesus (don’t run to the physical and emotional and neglect the spiritual), but they can help you see Him more clearly.

“Grown men don’t cry…”

Now, a word to the depressed man reading this:

Hiding your depression doesn’t make you more masculine. Fighting this battle on your own doesn’t make you stronger. The only things that come from hiding your hurt are damaging your walk with God, your friends and family, your job, and ultimately, yourself. Admitting you need help is one of the hardest things a man can do; but it’s also one of the strongest.

Scripture is filled with bold men of God that had no problem expressing their pain to Him. If people prayed this way in church today, we’d try to correct their theology or avoid them in the hallway:

“I have had enough! Lord, take my life, for I’m no better than my fathers.”- Elijah upon learning of the plot against him, 1 Kings 19:4 (CSB)

“My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
Why are you so far from my deliverance
and from my words of groaning?
My God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,
by night, yet I have no rest.

But I am a worm and not a man,
scorned by mankind and despised by people.
Everyone who sees me mocks me;
they sneer and shake their heads…”- David, Psalm 22:1-2, 6-7 (CSB)

(The entire book of Job, since there are countless pleas from him for God to take his life.)

Even Jesus shed tears upon seeing Lazarus dead, despite knowing that He’d cause his friend to rise in mere moments (John 11). Emotions, even painful ones, weren’t meant to be hidden or stifled. If you want deliverance, you need to admit your flaws, pain, and scars instead of letting a warped sense of masculinity allow you to believe you don’t have any.

“Great is Thy faithfulness…”

I can think of no better way to end this post than by discussing Lamentations 3. The chapter starts off with a brutal, gut-wrenching depiction of a depressed prophet (most scholars believe him to be Jeremiah):

“I am the man who has seen affliction
under the rod of God’s wrath.
He has driven me away and forced me to walk
in darkness instead of light.
Yes, he repeatedly turns his hand
against me all day long.

He has walled me in so I cannot get out;
he has weighed me down with chains.
Even when I cry out and plead for help,
he blocks out my prayer.
He has walled in my ways with blocks of stone;
he has made my paths crooked.

He is a bear waiting in ambush,
a lion in hiding.
He forced me off my way and tore me to pieces;
he left me desolate.
He strung his bow
and set me as the target for his arrow.”- Lamentations 3: 1-3, 7-12 (CSB)

Keep in mind, the prophet isn’t talking about an enemy here; he’s talking about God! How does a prophet describing God as a vicious predator or skilled hunter after him make it into the Bible? Because God doesn’t want you to pretend like everything is fine when your soul is in turmoil; He wants the truth. He knows your pain, but He wants you to cry to Him like a child cries to their father!

But, even in your darkest place, you must find hope in the same place the prophet did:

“Remember my affliction and my homelessness,
the wormwood and the poison.
I continually remember them
and have become depressed.
Yet I call this to mind,
and therefore I have hope:

Because of the Lord’s faithful love
we do not perish,
for his mercies never end.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness!
I say, “The Lord is my portion,
therefore I will put my hope in him.”- Lamentations 3:19-24 (CSB)

If you’re struggling with depression right now, don’t hide your hurt. Don’t believe the lie that you can fight this on your own. Tell someone. Get counselling. Talk to a doctor about an antidepressant.

But, of most importance: Cling to the faithfulness of Jesus. Even if depression means you can barely grip His hand through the fog, trust that His grip on you is eternally strong. He loved you enough to die for you, even in moments when you can’t love yourself. He calls you His child no matter what you call yourself. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life when your road feels pointless, lies pierce every thought, and life doesn’t seem worth living.

Depression hurts. But Jesus heals.

For Christian resources on mental health and help with counseling, visit http://anthemofhope.org.

More Than Carols: “Born That Man No More May Die.”

I’d suspected this call was coming for some time now once her health began to decline. I’d tried to prepare myself for the inevitable reality. But, try though I did, I couldn’t get myself ready for the wave of emotion that hit on that October 2010 day when my family called me through tears and uttered these words:

“Grandma is gone.”

The woman who’d been the biggest spiritual influence in my life would no longer be there to encourage me in Jesus and tell me how proud of me she was. She wouldn’t be among the happy family members watching my college graduation. She wouldn’t get to watch my wedding or hear the story of my proposal. She was gone.

I knew she loved Jesus, and yet I started crying the second I hung up the phone. Even with the intellectual knowledge that our friends, family, and loved ones have trusted Jesus and are now with Him, death stings. It leaves an emptiness that can feel insurmountable at times. We wonder how we can possibly survive this earthly life without the one that meant so much to us.

Why does it have to be this way? Why does death have to be so prevalent? What hope can we cling to in the moments when we get news that we won’t see someone we love walk this earth again, or when memories of their departure flood our minds?

Sin: Bringer Of Death

We can trace the sting of death back to one moment in time; namely, Adam and Eve’s rebellion in Eden. As Romans 5 makes clear, the second they chose to sin, death came into the world. As we’ve discussed earlier, when God’s holiness meets our sin, something has to die. In Eden, it was the animals God slew to cover the nakedness of Adam and Eve. It could have just as easily been them if not for His mercy.

But, God wasn’t caught off guard by their sin (or ours). In fact, He had a plan to defeat sin long before it ever occurred.

Jesus: Defeater Of Death

It’s easy to think that God’s plan to save humanity started in Bethlehem. After all, the Trinity is a doctrine that can make your head explode, and it’s not always easy to comprehend Jesus existing before the manger.

However, when we look at Scripture, we see God at work before the manger. Or His parting of the Red Sea. Or the Garden of Eden. In fact, before anything was even created:

 ^“And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”- Revelation 13:8 (KJV)

“Slain from the foundation of the world.” This means that the One who would save His people from death was marked for it before the beginning of His life. Jesus knew that every second He lived brought Him closer to a cruel cross. And yet He chose to die in our place anyway!

But He didn’t stay dead. And that makes all the difference. Paul goes into this at length in 1 Corinthians 15, but without Jesus rising, Christians live a pointless, vain existence:

“For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.”- 1 Corinthians 15:16-22 (ESV)

Because Jesus is alive, there’s hope! Those who trust in Him can rest assured that the curse of Adam has been broken for them (and, if they are in Christ, the ones they love).

Jesus: Present in Pain

Even knowing our loved ones are with Jesus doesn’t stop the pain of their departure. But, in moments of missing those nearest to us, we can cling to a Savior who felt our pain.

The shortest verse in the Bible comes in the midst of the death of Lazarus. John 11:35 simply reads: “Jesus wept.” Although the verse isn’t large in character count, it contains abundant relevance for us. Even with the knowledge that He was about to revive Lazarus, Jesus isn’t immune from the deep emotion of missing his dear friend. In full humanity, Jesus felt the impact of the death of someone close to him. Jesus truly is a High Priest able to sympathize with our weakness.

The Bible never tells us to never feel pain or try to subdue it. But, Scripture is clear that our grief is different from the lost world in one critical way:

“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.”- 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 (ESV)

If your loved one died in Jesus, you will see them again some day. And, although they may be far away, your Savior is near. And one day you will see them both face-to-face and never feel the sting of death again. All because Jesus defeated it.

 

 

More Than Carols: “Mild He Lays His Glory By.”

It was a sunny day in Gainesville, Florida. It was y junior year of high school. My dad had taken me to see the University of Florida campus for the first time in order to satisfy the desire of my Florida Gator fan heart. Along the way, he’d joked about running into Tim Tebow to wish him good luck in his upcoming game.

And then he appeared.

You don’t get many chances to stand face-to-face (or, more accurately given our contrasting heights, face-to-chest) with a Heisman-winning quarterback that would go on to be a first-round NFL Draft pick and remain famous after his playing career ended. Today, I’d probably get even fewer chances; I’d probably have to go through Tim’s agent, ESPN, and more just to get an hour with him. Nothing about Tebow’s personality or character has changed since that day in 2008, but my level of access to him sure has.

Christmas provides us with a change in access as well. To see how astounding this change was, we go to the book of Exodus to see what Old Testament prophets had to do to come before God.

The Glory Of God To Moses and Aaron: Rituals, Fear, And Restriction

As he pleads with God to stay with the people of Israel, Moses asks God for a glimpse of His glory. This is the response:

Moses said, “Please show me your glory.” And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.” And the Lord said, “Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen.”- Exodus 33:18-23 (ESV)

God has to restrict Moses’ request, because seeing Him in His full glory would have killed him. Think about that. The holiness, righteousness, and sheer power of God would have ended Moses’ life if not for restraint on the part of the Almighty.

We get another glimpse of the power of God’s glory when Moses comes down from the mountain to address his people:

“When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him.”-Exodus 34:29-30 (ESV)

Aaron had good reason to be afraid. Among the pages and pages of rituals one had to go through before entering the temple was a clear instruction for the High Priest to wear bells on his garments in case unconfessed sin led to his death (Exodus 28:35). Imagine having to wear dogtags to church in case your sin caused you to die during the hymns. The glory of God didn’t just lead to higher respect or admiration, as some well-meaning Bible teachers claim; it led to a real, lasting fear caused by the knowledge that one ounce of sin could lead to your death.

Old Testament prophets would have known God as loving and seen His protection, but they would not have called Him easily accessible. That all changed in Bethlehem.

The Glory Of God To The Shepherds: Fear Not

Thousands of years after Moses, we see another appearance of the glory of God. But notice how different this one is:

“And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”- Luke 2:8-11 (ESV)

 

For Israel, the glory of God led to fear; for the shepherds, it meant joy. For Israel, the presence of God was to be entered into by one person after extensive ritual; for the shepherds, the presence of God was one manger (and no rituals) away. Seeing God’s face would have led to death on Mount Sinai; but in the manger, the shepherds got to behold the One who would give them everlasting life.

And the story doesn’t end there! The shepherds aren’t the only ones who gained greater access to God at Christmas. Because Jesus went on to die for our sins and rise again, we now have complete, unhindered access to God. The author of Hebrews describes it like this:

“Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”- Hebrews 4:14-16 (ESV)

This Christmas, rejoice in the fact that God is no longer far away. You don’t have to fear or go through extensive ritual to get to Jesus; He is there the second you call on His name. Although we cannot yet see Him face-to-face, rejoice that He’s every bit as close to you this Holiday season as he was to the shepherds in Bethlehem.

More Than Carols: “God And Sinners Reconciled”

If you’re caught up on celebrity gossip, you know that a certain Marvel movie actor filed for divorce two days ago. News of this breakup shattered the heart of social media (insofar as social media has a heart), as countless people wondered why Chris Pratt and Anna Faris couldn’t make it work.

So what ended such a seemingly unbreakable union? The same thing that ends many marriages; irreconcilable differences.

That’s a blanket reason given in many divorces, and it can cover anything from political philosophy to raising children to infidelity to belief that Moe’s is better than Chipotle. But, while the reasons for a rift in a Hollywood split might not be clear, there is a set of irreconcilable differences that is; and it has nothing to do with any human marriage.

Your Irreconcilable Differences With God

I’m sorry if telling you this ruins your Christmas, but it has to be said:

You’re a sinner.  I’m a sinner. That shopping mall Santa you’re gonna take a selfie with is a sinner.

The truth is, no matter how good you think you are, you have a bigger problem than your heart being three sizes too small. You have a heart that is bent on wickedness from the moment you’re born; and a God who is perfectly holy and won’t tolerate the slightest bit of sin. And, while you can debate the merits (from a fallen human perspective) of a divorce with your partner or a lawyer, you’re not winning a fight against the most righteous Judge of all.

Moreover, our sin doesn’t just leave us in need of a small fix. It leaves us deserving of death. The moment Adam and Eve fell, it became clear that when our sin meets God’s holiness, something has to die.

That sounds pretty hopeless, right? Thankfully, Christmas means we’re not left there.

How Jesus Reconciles Us

I once heard a religion professor tell her class, “There is no peaceful religion. Christianity is about God being so mad He had to kill somebody.” In that moment, I understood what Paul meant when he told the Corinthians that the Gospel is “foolishness to those that are perishing.”

The lost world has NO idea why the virgin birth, the manger, the cross, or the empty tomb were necessary. To them, it’s a weird fairy tale at best and cruelty at worst. And I fear that to many Christians, these life-altering truths have become stale and repetitious. So let’s examine a passage that answers the question: Why did it have to be Jesus that reconciled us?

“For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned…”- Romans 5:6-12 (ESV)

Jesus didn’t come from Adam, so He wasn’t born into sin. Jesus lived a perfect life, so we can trust in His righteousness before God instead of ours. Jesus bore the wrath of God on the cross so that we wouldn’t have to face that wrath in Hell. And, Jesus sealed all of this when He rose from the dead and proved His power over the grave.

This Christmas, rejoice in the fact that, instead of being separated from God forever, you can draw near to Him. You cannot reconcile your sin with God’s holiness; but, thanks to the manger, the cross, and the empty tomb, you don’t have to. Jesus has already reconciled your debt for you.

 

 

 

To The Twenty-Something, Single, and Sick of It

If you’re over twenty and single, you probably have more in common with Gollum than you think.

No, I’m not saying you live in a cave. And with body wash freely available in any grocery store, I hope you don’t smell like fish. But, there is probably a part of you that winces any time you see a ring.

Seeing friends and family get engaged and married is awesome, but isn’t there part of us that screams “WE HATES IT?” every time we scroll through Facebook and see couples realize the ultimate goal of romantic bliss while we’re awaiting our turn? Isn’t there a little bit of bitterness behind our “So happy for you!” and heart emojis? Don’t we wonder why some people’s prayers for romantic happiness get answered while it seems like our calls to God go straight to voicemail?

If those things are true for you, here are three things to consider as you walk through the single struggle:

Don’t idolize relationships.

There’s nothing wrong with wanting a relationship. God wired us with a desire for intimacy, and He instituted marriage to be a pretty awesome symbol of His love for the church.

But, here’s the thing. Relationships are hard, and marriage is even harder. If you want a “fairy tale romance,” here are a few that are closer to reality: Cinderella and Charming not talking for six hours because of one stupid thing he said. Aladdin caring for Jasmine while she’s puking her guts out at 3:00 AM. Ariel and Prince TooLazyToGoogle struggling to find any time alone with two children running around destroying their house.  Relationships and marriage rock; but, when two sinners are joined together, the difficulty level magnifies intensely. If you’re not trusting in Jesus now, good luck when showing patience, grace, and mercy becomes ten times more difficult.

Another important reminder: As a Christian, your identity is found in being saved by Jesus Christ, not in your relationship status. If you’re trusting in any other human to make you whole, relieve your insecurities, or fill some void in your life, you will place an unbearable burden on that person and be ultimately disappointed yourself.

Although this won’t always feel true, it’s far better to be single than to be in a bad relationship. Don’t lower the Bible’s standards. Don’t compromise your worth. Know that His grace is sufficient in your singleness.

Don’t treat your friends as consolation prizes.

 “God has given you enough food to survive the desert and not die!”

“Yeah, but this food sucks! And it’s the same thing every day!”

So went the conversation as Israel ate manna while wandering. And so goes the conversation today.

We’re really good at downplaying God’s blessings in our lives. Instead of rejoicing in being employed, we grumble about how many hours we have or an annoying coworker. Instead of rejoicing in having a car, we complain when it starts making funny noises that we have to ignore (I mean, fix). And, instead of being glad that God has given us friends, we get bitter that we can’t date any of them.

If there are people in your life who love you, laugh with you, cry with you, and push you closer to Jesus, don’t view them as mere placeholders until you find romance. Cherish them. Value them. Let them know how much they mean to you. Don’t take the blessing of their friendship for granted. Because they won’t be there forever.

Don’t feel bad for feeling lonely.

I don’t know who wrote the rule that Christians aren’t allowed to struggle with feeling loneliness or abandonment, but it’s obvious to me that person never read Psalms. If King David said any of this in the pulpit today, we’d be sending him concerned tweets and signing his sympathy card:

 

“Turn to me and be gracious to me,
for I am lonely and afflicted.
The troubles of my heart are enlarged;
bring me out of my distresses.”- Psalm 25:16-17 (ESV)

 

 

“Look to the right and see:
there is none who takes notice of me;
no refuge remains to me;
no one cares for my soul.”- Psalm 142:4 (ESV)

 

“How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
How long must I take counsel in my soul
and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?”- Psalm 13:1-2 (ESV)

 

Sure, David was going through a little bit more than wanting a girlfriend. But the point is, people of God aren’t immune from feeling alone.

There are moments when being single absolutely sucks. There are times when you’ll long for the physical and emotional intimacy of a relationship. You may even wonder what’s so wrong with you that no one seems willing to even give you a date.

But Christian, know this: You have a High Priest who can sympathize with your weakness, and He felt loneliness to the highest imaginable degree as He died for your sins. As the Father turned away because He couldn’t look upon the weight of sin that His Son now bore, Jesus cried out “My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?”

In moments of loneliness and despair, cry out to Jesus. He is there. He hears you. He knows what you need before you ask.

You are not defined by your singleness. You are not alone. You are not forgotten.

Love Does Not Envy: The War of Wanting More

“You’ll probably be fine without our product. Sure, the guys in this ad have it, but their lives are just as plain as yours. You keep living life without us, kiddo. Love ya.”

Remember that commercial from this year’s Super Bowl? No? Well, that’s because advertisers know that we love comparing ourselves with others. Even without realizing it, we’ll look at what everyone around us has and wonder how we can possibly keep breathing oxygen without new stuff.

Most times, when we’re envious of someone, we decide that they don’t deserve the good thing that they’ve gotten (and that we deserve better). Right after Eden, we see this play out with Cain and Abel. Both men offer sacrifices to God, but only Abel’s is accepted. God gives Abel this warning:

“And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. The Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.’”- Genesis 4:4-7 (ESV)

Sadly, what follows isn’t a lesson in Cain learning humility. Instead, we see Scripture’s first murder unfold, as Cain slays Abel out of jealousy.

There’s nothing wrong with wanting a relationship, a promotion, a house, etc. But when the longing for new things causes you to become bitter toward anyone who already possesses them, your desire has become a deity. And the god of lustful desire is not easily pleased. Why? Because there will always be someone who has a better job, a more romantic relationship, or a bigger house.

Ultimately, the root of envy is that we look to something other than Christ to give us identity and satisfaction. We think “Jesus is nice, but that other person has Jesus and a six-figure salary. That guy has Jesus and a pretty girlfriend. That guy’s so rich, he’s got a swimming pool in his swimming pool (sorry, had to get one SpongeBob reference in). “

But consider how much it means to have the approval of God through Jesus. The same Creator of the Universe who would have been fully justified in sending you to Hell doesn’t just tolerate you; He doesn’t just forgive you; He doesn’t just ignore your sin. No, He goes above and beyond by giving you the righteousness of Jesus. If you’ve trusted Christ, when God looks at you, He sees His Son’s perfection. If you grasp that, how could you possibly be bitter at anyone for having an earthly possession that you lack?

We’ve all read Philippians 4:13 (Heck, I wear it on a wristband almost daily), but the context behind that famous verse gives us great insight into staving off envy:

“I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”- Philippians 4:10-13 (ESV)

Whether you run a Fortune 500 company or bag groceries; whether you’re single, married or somewhere in between; whether you drive a Cadillac or take the bus; if you’re in Christ, you have everything you need to be content and fulfilled. Don’t let envy stop you from rejoicing with those who rejoice.