Red Letter Revolution: A Review

You should be familiar with the words written in red in the New Testament of the Holy Bible. They are the words of Jesus Christ. But did Jesus really mean what he said? Best-selling authors Shane Claiborne and Tony Campolo believe so. They make their strong case in a new book, Red Letter Revolution, What If Jesus Really Meant What He Said.

THE RED LETTERS: AN AUTHENTIC LIFESTYLE

This book is about a discussion between its two authors attempting to present an achievable authentic lifestyle that personifies the teachings of Jesus Christ. Shane Claiborne and Tony Campolo share their thoughts concerning a myriad of topics, many quite controversial and hot-bed political issues. They apply the red-letter words of Jesus to issues such as family, abortion, women, racism, immigration, giving, politics, war and violence, even national debt. Hence the title, Red Letter Revolution, What If Jesus Really Meant What He Said.

GETTING YANKED OUT OF THE COMFORT ZONE

The material is presented as a conversation between Shane Claiborne and Tony Campolo. At some points the text appears to be conversational and at others it appears to be rather wordy for a normal face-to-face conversation. It reads more like a series of letters the authors wrote to each other. However the style is easy to read and their thoughts are easy to understand. I must offer a word of warning. If these guys are telling the truth then we may be in a bit trouble. It could also explain why we've lost our status as a Christian nation here in America.

Many areas of discussion in Red Letter Revolution, What If Jesus Really Meant What He Said disturb me. While I may not totally agree with the theology or the politics of the authors, they present a discussion that will move you out of your comfort zone quickly.

This book will aggravate you, poke and prod you, challenge you, make you think, and maybe even inspire you to move beyond what has become stereotyped as normal Christianity. It can humble you, convict you, and maybe send you to your knees seeking forgiveness for not taking the red-letter words of Jesus for what they might really mean.

DID JESUS REALLY MEAN WHAT HE SAID?

"Lay not up for yourself treasure upon the earth (Matthew 6:19)."

"Take no thought for the morrow (Matthew 6:34)."

"If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily (Luke 9:23)"

We have savings accounts,stocks, bonds, retirement accounts, all put away in preparation for tomorrow, next week, next month, next year, and more. Yet there are people in our own church congregations who could use some help from our laid-up treasures by which we make our plans for the future. Jesus really didn't mean we are supposed to deny our own self and our own desires, did he? He really didn't mean we need to take up our cross daily, did he?

First, read the actual words written in red in the Bible. Then I recommend reading Red Letter Revolution, What If Jesus Really Meant What He Said. Finally, go back and read the red-letter words in the Bible again. Then think about making a decision to do them...

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

A Road Walked On - Digging Into the Psalms

Photo courtesy of Stockxchng/bjearwicke

"For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish. (Psalm 1:6 KJV)."


This verse sums up man's life from beginning to end. God knows. God sees how we live out the time he's granted us. Job, a man who suffered profusely during his time of life, says this, "For his (God's) eyes are upon the ways of man, and he (God) seeth all his (man's) goings (Job 34:21 KJV)."


Take note of the word way (Psalm 1:6) and the word ways (Job 34:21). They are the same Hebrew word meaning a road trodden, or in our case, a course of life. The word used here is a derivative of a Hebrew primitive root meaning to tread or walk. The psalmist is telling us God knows the course of life the righteous take, and the course the ungodly follow will lead them to destruction.


Psalm 1 is a chapter which is loaded with positives and negatives. I find it interesting to note the balance between them. This final verse also offers us a positive and a negative in perfect balance.


The positive comes in the use of the word knoweth. The modern definition of know is to recognize, discern, or understand. The Hebrew definition of the word knoweth, or know, isn't much different. Yet it is richer. Yes, God sees the way, or the course of life we all travel.  But God recognizes, he acquaints himself with, he accepts, and he appoints the course of life of the righteous. The Apostle Paul wrote, "The Lord knoweth them that are his (2Timothy 2:19 KJV)."


The final negative statement of Psalm 1 is, "the way of the ungodly shall perish." An ungodly person is anyone who does what is morally wrong. The ungodly person is one who willfully chooses to reject God and to disobey God's commandments. So how is it the course of life taken by the ungodly will come to destruction?


Let's look at the word perish. It's a Hebrew primitive root meaning to wander away or to lose oneself. The psalmist is saying the course of life taken by the ungodly will cause them to wander away losing oneself to certain destruction. God doesn't want anyone to perish.


Man's destruction was never God's intent. God patiently endures the course of life humanity chooses to take. God does this because he desires that nobody perish, but all come to repentance in changing their hearts and lives. Doing so will place one on the course of life which God not only approves of but will appoint one to.


Your feedback and comments are welcome. We'll start digging into Psalm 2 next time. Till then, God bless...

Book Review: Outlive Your Life

Fourteen words from the back cover of the book immediately caught my attention. I quote them, "These are devastating times: 1.75 billion people are desperately poor; one billion are hungry." The book is Outlive Your Life: you were made to make a difference, ISBN 978-0-8499-4668-4 (IE). The author is Max Lucado.


Outlive Your Life is a call to Christianity to write the conclusion of the book of Acts. Max Lucado weaves the call to Christ-like service into the actions and activities of the apostles and the first Christians. There were no needy people among them. They gave and shared what they possessed. Jesus was moved with compassion for those in need and responded with action. I quote for us from the closing chapter, "Salvation is the work of Christ. Compassion is the consequence of salvation." The message of the book can be summed up with this quote from chapter 7, See the Need; Touch the Hurt, "Works done in God's name long outlive our earthly lives."


The numbers given on the back cover of the book of the poor and hungry are overwhelming. Feeding the hungry and helping those in need is a passion of mine. It's seeing those who are suffering through the eyes of Jesus Christ. The author laces Outlive Your Life with Scripture. Christ came with a mission statement straight from Scripture (Isaiah 61:1-2).  Jesus read it and I quote from chapter 10 of Outlive Your Life, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed (Luke 4:18)." I come away from reading this book with the thought that if Jesus did it, shouldn't we?


Max Lucado has a style of writing which I describe as "seamless". The words flow from one sentence to the next, from one chapter to the next. The message of the book is given in a clear, easy to read and easy to understand manner. The call to Christian action the author puts forward in this book is highly appropriate for our current time. Oil prices are rising increasing the cost to produce food. It's inevitable, food prices will also rise. The body of Christ is positioned perfectly to put it's faith into action. I highly recommend this book to any who have a desire, an unction to do something for Christ. However, in the words of James, "be doers of the word, and not hearers only (James 1:22)."


I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Rivers of Water

"Rivers of waters run down mine eyes, because they keep not thy law (Ps. 119:136 KJV).

This world is a wicked place. We're surrounded by wickedness. We're bombarded daily with wickedness. How many in today's culture know what the Holy Bible really says? How can an evil world keep laws it doesn't know?

This world is full of Christians, yet not one will deny this world is an evil place. It's easy to speak of the evil. It's easy to point out the evil. Yet why is doing something about it so hard?

The psalmist David was grieved to his core because humanity of his day disobeyed the law of God. The man who left the world some of the finest poetry ever penned poured his heart out to God because of the wickedness of humanity.

Jeremiah grieved deeply over the iniquity of his people. He prophesied it then watched his prophesies fulfilled as his people were carried away captive. This is what he said...

"Mine eye runneth down with rivers of water for the destruction of the daughter of my people. Mine eye trickleth down, and ceaseth not, without any intermission, Till the LORD look down, and behold from heaven (Lam. 3:48-50 KJV)."

When's the last time you shed a tear for the wickedness of humanity, Christian? When's the last time the grief and the sorrow of the wickedness drove you to your knees in intercession for the lost, Christian? Who among us is willing to shed rivers of water for the lost until God in Heaven beholds our tears?

The story of Job is a great one. He suffered tremendously. He endured, maintained his character and integrity with God, and God poured out a double-portion blessing on him in the end. But the blessing came only after Job interceded for the sin of his friends.

Christian, will you do as the label you bear implies? You see, even Christ grieved and shed rivers of water for the sin of his people (Lu. 19:41-42). Let's intercede for the sin of the land. Let's reach out to those trapped in the sin of the land. Let's win a soul for Christ. God bless...

The Potter and the Vessel

"Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it (Jer. 18:3-4 KJV)."

I've read this passage of Scripture many times. I've heard multiple sermons preached about the Great Potter and the vessel. What a wondrous concept to comprehend the Potter will mold us into a vessel as He sees fit to make!

A choice is placed before us. We can watch the Potter remake a marred vessel into one which will bring glory to the Potter. We can choose to become the marred vessel in the hands of the Potter.

Those who choose to watch possess a front row seat in the scrap pile of damaged, marred, and imperfect vessels. Those who choose to watch can see the pain and suffering of the vessel on the wheel as it's being remade. Those who choose to watch feel they're safe in the scrap pile. However, the vessels in the scrap pile are useless. The only value they possess is to be crushed back into the clay they were formed from.

Those who choose to get on the wheel, placing themselves in hands of the master Potter, have the guarantee they will become vessels of honor and glory to the Potter. Yet the remaking process is painful. Severely damaged areas must be removed and replaced. Marred areas must be softened, scraped, and resurfaced.

When the vessel is in the shape desired, the Potter places it in the fire of the kiln to harden it withstand the rigor of daily use. The Potter doesn't create these vessels to sit in a display case. These vessels are made for intensive, daily use. They're designed and made to bring glory and honor to the Potter.
 
You're presented with a decision today. You can become a vessel in the hands of the master Potter to endure the pain of being born again to a vessel of value. You can remain in the pile of scrap, broken, damaged, marred, useless vessels awaiting eternal destruction. The decision is yours. Life is wrought with many choices. Eternity offers two. God bless...

Servants of God

Chapter 2 of 2Peter goes into explicit detail concerning the false prophets who arise to speak in the last days. Peter is scathing in his description of them. He prophesies in the second verse saying many will follow their imoral and lascivious ways. He prophesies the true Way will be maligned and defamed (Amplified Bible).

However, as I was reading this chapter in 2Peter this morning, the latter portion of verse 19 hit me like a brick.

"For of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage."

Many today are claiming to be prophets. One says God told them this thing, while another claims God told them exactly the opposite. Many of them use the combination of fear and faith to get and tighten their grip on those who choose to believe and follow them.

Allow me to introduce the latter portion of 2Peter 2:19 from the Amplified Bible.

"For by whatever anyone is made inferior or worse or is overcome, to that [person or thing] he is enslaved."

This statement applies itself to more than just following false prophets. "By whatever" means anything. Whatever we willingly yield ourselves to will enslave us. The thing which overcomes us will become our master.

Jesus tells us we'll have troubles and trials. He tells us to rejoice because he overcame the world (Jn. 16:33). The Apostle John carries these world of Christ one step further.

"For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world (1Jn. 5:4 KJV)."

We who are born of God, by the water and the Spirit (Jn. 3:5), have the power and the authority to overcome anything we face in our flesh. We can overcome because Christ overcame. Here is the key...

The person, or thing, which overcomes us enslaves us. We Christians should be overcome by the power of the Holy Spirit, enslaving us to God. We are granted freedom when we choose to become servants of God.

What is it that Jesus said? "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord (Lu. 4:18-19 KJV)?"

Jesus answered this question... "This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears (Lu. 4:21 KJV)."

Let's allow ourselves to be overcome by the Spirit of God. Let's allow ourselves to become servants of God, thereby attaining true freedom in Christ. Let's allow ourselves to accomplish the duty of being a servant of God by sharing the Gospel with someone today. God bless...