Christians Need Jesus, Too

One of the greatest challenges for those of us that call ourselves followers of the Nazarene carpenter is that we often forget that we, too, still need Jesus. We can easily fall into the trap that after we place our faith in Christ for the forgiveness of our sins that it's up to us to live out the Christian life. But since we are still sinners, we all need Jesus each day to live the kind of lives He would want for us.

A favorite writer of mine, John Fischer, touched on this topic today in his column, Catch of the Day. You can read the whole article here, but here's a highlight:

"A Christian without Jesus is a person who believes in Christian morals, who grew up in a Christian home, who goes to church and serves on committees or sings in the choir, who believes certain doctrines that are required by his particular brand of Christianity, who desires a Christian environment so her children will be safe, who listens to Christian music and Christian teaching, or who passionately votes "Christian" as identified by the prevailing Christian spokespeople. All these things can be possible without Jesus.
Knowing you need Jesus is a whole other thing. You know you need Jesus because you have seen yourself and you are appalled at the awfulness of your sin. You know you need Jesus because you can't take another step without hurting someone. You know you need Jesus because you very clearly realize that in yourself, that is in your flesh, dwells no good thing. You know you need Jesus because you are such a good liar that you can fool yourself half the time and not even know it. A Christian who is inclined to think that other people need Jesus is one who may need Him the most."

Although it is often used in evangelistic conversations, Revelation 3:20 was actually written to those that were already believers in Christ. But they had grown so lukewarm in their faith that they didn't feel like they needed anything, including Jesus. So when he says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me," I think it applies to all of us. Whether we are initially establishing that relationship with Him or have known Him for decades, we all still need Jesus.

The Missionary as a Servant

I just finished reading an excellent book by Duane Elmer called Cross-Cultural Servanthood: Serving the World in Christlike Humility. For all those that are cross-cultural missionaries, I highly recommend you read this. And thanks to my good friend, Greg, for introducing me to it.

In the book Elmer tells the following story:

"One young missionary, Chuck, found the first couple years on the mission field challenging but adventurous and delightful. As he got more and more into the culture he found himself spending increasing time with the local people. The enjoyment seemed mutual, and the local people began to share deeply from their hearts, just as he did. Chuck shared what he was learning with his missionary colleagues. The colleagues wondered why they had not had a similar response since they had been there much longer.

After a couple years Chuck and his wife began inviting the local people into their home. They invited the older pastors first, knowing this was how to show respect. Eventually the younger people were included. He knew that many missionaries didn't invite the local people into their homes, but he wasn't sure why. So he kept on. Furthermore, in this culture, the local people usually came in the back door of the missionary's house - the door that servants used. They would wait there or sometimes be invited in to sit for a few moments until business could be transacted. Chuck failed to understand why the back door should be required for the pastors and other local people. So he brought his local guests in through his front door, seating them in his living room. At the appropriate time they would gather around and all would eat together.

Relationships broadened and grew stronger. However, the young missionary didn't realize he was violating an unwritten rule among his missionary colleagues - "It's best not to get too familiar with them." Missionaries were to evangelize, disciple, and build the church. If someone got too close to the local people, they surmised, he or she could not be objective in accomplishing the task. Their reasoning seemed feeble.

Chuck believed he was there to serve the people, which certainly included getting to know them, understanding their culture and fitting in. That required time together, not just in business or strategy meetings but in the flow of life and leisure. While the relationships with local people prospered, the opposite was true with his missionary colleagues. He was increasingly left out of events, overlooked in various ways and effectively marginalized. He increasingly thought about quitting before completing the term. Clouds of discouragement settled in, and life held little joy. The fog was dense - the mystery nearly crushing. At the end of his term of service Chuck returned to the U.S., pursued some additional education and became involved in ministry. While the days were bright and exciting, the fog still hung over that earlier period of his life.

Ten years later Chuck returned to the country and began looking up old acquaintances. One pastor, part of the circle of relationships the missionary had enjoyed, asked him to preach at his church. Visitors are often extended this honor. Early in the service the pastor made some reference to a special person in the congregation who "changed the history of missions in this country." Chuck scanned the 350 or so people but saw no one from his previous years that he recognized who might have earned such recognition.

Later, the local pastor repeated the statement as he was introducing Chuck to speak. Puzzlement came over the missionary, thinking he was being confused with someone else. His legacy had been a few relationships and a lot of fog. The pastor continued,

"This man invited many of us into his home. Not only that, he brought us through the front door. Then we sat in his living room and ate at his table. No other missionaries did that in those days. Now nearly all the missionaries invite us into their homes through the front door and treat us as honored guests - as equals. In this way, he changed the history of missions in our country."

After ten years of fog, it all lifted in less than one minute. The mystery was explained."

Pop, Soda or Coke?

I'm close to finishing the third book in a trilogy by one of my favorite authors, Randy Alcorn and I can't wait to read the last few chapters. The book is called Deception and continues the story told in Alcorn's previous books, Deadline and Dominion.

Deception follows the story of Ollie Chandler, a homicide detective fighting his own demons while seeking to solve a murder that leads him to unexpected places. I won't tell you much more about the book in case you want to read it, but I was introduced to a fun website while reading this fictional story.

In his quest to pinpoint a suspect in an unsolved murder, Ollie discovers the unique geographical trends that Americans possess when it comes to how we refer to soft drinks. Some of us call it pop, some call it soda and others refer to all soft drinks as "coke." Ollie visits the Pop vs. Soda website and learns something intriguing about the suspect he's investigating.

As a kid growing up in the Detroit-area, I learned that these tasty carbonated beverages were called "Pop." But while spending a summer in southern California while in college (my first extended exposure to those outside the midwest) I learned that some others thought it odd that I called it pop. Over the years I've traveled extensively throughout the U.S. and have lived in several different states and have learned firsthand that regional dialects do exist in the U.S.

This map shows the differences across the United States in reference to soft drinks. Since I've lived in different parts of the country where residents have referred to it as pop, soda or coke, I've gained the ability to adjust to my surroundings. Now that I've lived in central Florida for four years, I've begun to call it soda since some people make fun of me when I call it pop. Sometimes I even find myself asking for a "fountain drink."

You can view a breakdown by state here. Another interesting link on the Pop vs. Soda site is to CommonCensus.org where you can view a breakdown on where the fans of various professional and college teams live. Check it out here. Interesting to see how it all plays out.