How’m I doin’?

March 25th, 2009 Tim Posted in SevenLakes Info |

(Nancy) Is it just me or do you, consciously or subconsciously, ask yourself “how am I doing?” nearly constantly?

About a year ago my home team did a short study on the book of Philippians: Running the Race. In the discussion questions of the first week there was a choice about our primary concern. One of the choices was something like “am I doing OK? Is anything I’m doing making a difference?” That really resonated with me. The corollary of that is the “fear of man”, choosing and acting based on how others would react.

In contrast to that is Jesus’ life. Especially in the book of John, he repeatedly says he does only what the Father tells him to do and says what the Father tells him to say.  In the book of Acts [Acts 4:19], Peter and John respond to the officials who tell them to quit preaching in the name of Jesus with something like “you tell me which is right, to obey God or you?”

I recently finished Keller’s The Reason for God. Many parts of it made an impression on me but the biggest was about the knowledge of God. I think it was chapter 2. Basically his point is that, deep down, everyone knows that there is a God, based on the fact that everyone accepts that there is a moral code that is not based just on what is beneficial for oneself or even one’s country. Everyone knows and behaves as if there are things that are objectively right or wrong. 

I believe in God. I believe in Jesus Christ. I have, in one sense or another, for over 30 years. But still, somewhere in my sub sub consciousness there was something of a belief that “this is really true for me but I’m not sure about all the other 5 billion people in the world.” Keller really broke through that. There is a God, He created the world, He created people in his image, he demands moral perfection, we all messed up and deserve condemnation. God, in unspeakably amazing love sent His own Son to become human, to take responsibility for all our moral failures and to reconcile us to God. That is the gospel, the good news. And it is true for me and you and the other 5 (is it 6 now?) billion people in the world. Jesus is the only way to the Father. No attempt at making ourselves morally, intellectually, or spiritually right works. [That discussion is fleshed out in the first two chapters of Sprituality of the Cross by Gene Veith.] As Keller says, any one who does not believe based on not feeling the need for God is “betting his or her life that no God exists who would hold you accountable for your beliefs and behavior if you didn’t feel the need for him. ”

As the Bible says, “what will become of those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17, 2 Thessalonians 1:8)