Apr 18 - Luke 10:16

Jesus said,

“Whoever listens to you listens to me,

and whoever rejects you rejects me,

and whoever rejects me

rejects the one who sent me.”

Luke 10:16

Did you ever have training wheels on your bike? Well, Jesus put training wheels on his disciples.

Before his death and resurrection – and while he was still here to coach them – Jesus sent out the twelve disciples (and then he sent out seventy more). It was a practice run. They were learning to witness on their own without Jesus right there beside them. They essentially had training wheels.  

The details about what they did and how they did it are not the most important parts of these stories. The most important part is the consequence of these evangelical missions. If people listen to a faithful missionary – whether in the first century or the twenty-first century – they are listening to Jesus himself. If they reject the missionary, they are ultimately rejecting Jesus. (That’s what this verse specifically says.)

Now … we tend to think of missionaries as those bold people who travel around halfway around the world, live in little villages, and work to overcome a language barrier to proclaim the Good News. Some missionaries do that … heroically.

But here’s a more important truth: You are a missionary too. With your neighbors, to your coworkers, in the bleachers, and at the store, we are called to gently proclaim life in a world of death. Our society is increasingly rejecting church, truth, faith, and messages of life. That means, as Jesus says, they’re rejecting him and they’re rejecting life itself.

That ought to bring tears to our eyes.

And/or a desire to climb on the missionary bicycle. You may not feel fully equipped to balance on the two wheels of evangelism. But that’s no excuse. The world is perishing. Ride with training wheels. Or ride with confidence that falls and scrapes are temporary. Ride boldly. Proclaim his name with love.

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who wants to start

with a bicycle built for two

(and by the way, read Luke 10…

Jesus sent them out two-by-two)

Apr 17 - John 17:3

Jesus said,

“And this is eternal life …”

John 17:3

Fill in the blank. What is eternal life?

•      Is it living forever?
•      Is it being in heaven?
•      Is it a place without death?
•      Is it being with God?

How would you define it? What is eternal life?

Here’s how Jesus filled in the blank. While praying to his Father, Jesus said, “This is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God …”

We could have safely answered yes to all of those questions above. Eternal life is “being in heaven,” “a place without death,” and “living forever.” And it is true that “being in heaven” is “being with God.” But we don’t have to wait for heaven to “be[] with God”!

According to Jesus’ definition, eternal life can start for us today. If “eternal life [is] that [humans] may know … God,” then eternal life begins the moment we know him!

Do you know him?!!

Yes!

If you’re reading this – especially daily – quit agonizing over this question. You don’t have to make hundreds of little commitments and recommitments to the Lord. You’ve met him. You know him. You already have eternal life.

Now … here’s the path to greater blessing: Open your life more fully to him! Give him room! If he’s King, let him be in charge!

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who’s discovered

the fountain of youth

(and it’s knowing God!)

Apr 16 - Isaiah 43:13

Yes, and from ancient days I am he.

No one can deliver out of my hand.

When I act, who can reverse it?

Isaiah 43:13

I am not a Hebrew scholar. (Indeed, very far from it.) And my quick glance at commentaries doesn’t say whether what I’m thinking is right or not. But, with that said, do you know how I hear this verse?

God declares: From ancient times, I AM.

For proper English, we feel the need to answer “I am” with a “what?” For example, “He is mighty,” “He is holy,” “He is wonderful.” And God could genuinely be saying, “I am … He!” (I’m not the Hebrew scholar.)

Nevertheless, if you remember back to Exodus 3 when Moses asked God for his name, God didn’t fill in the blank. He didn’t say, “I am gracious and merciful,” “I am slow to anger,” or even, “I am abounding in steadfast love.” No, God simply said,

“I AM.”

Sometimes our limited minds need to fill in the blank with some details.

Other times we just need to stand back in awe and say, “Whoa! He is! Period!”

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who likes the

King James for this verse:

“before the day was, I am …”

(He pre-dates everything!)

Apr 15 - Matthew 22:21

Render therefore unto Caesar

the things which are Caesar's;

and unto God

the things that are God's.

Matthew 22:21

Sorry to remind you, but it is tax day. Here’s what Jesus had to say about taxes …

First, the context was important. In the midst of the bustling streets of Jerusalem, Jesus was asked by the religious leaders whether we should pay taxes to the Romans or not.

It seemed like the perfect question with which to trap Jesus – which was clearly the Pharisees’ malicious intent.

•      If Jesus said, “No,” he risk being charged as a traitor by the Romans, for inciting an insurrection.
•      If, on the other hand, Jesus said, “Yes,” it would show that he was opposed to God – favoring an earthly king rather than heaven’s King. (Saying “yes” would also alienate the average Jew who was looking for a Jewish Messiah to save them from Roman tyranny.)

Jesus didn’t play their game. He famously responded, “render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s.”

The question is, “What rightfully belongs to God?” The answer is everything.

So … “what rightly belongs to the government?” Ah, that’s a tougher answer.

In the days of Solomon, this king wanted to do something magnificent for the Lord. He was going to build the Temple in Jerusalem. It was grand and glorious. God was honored in this place! But the tax burden eventually wound up dividing the kingdom. As it says in 1 Kings 12 …

2 When Jeroboam … heard [that Rehoboam was made king, following the death of his father Solomon] 3 … Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came and said to Rehoboam, 4 "Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke that he placed on us, and we will serve you."

6 King Rehoboam took counsel with the older men who had attended his father Solomon while he was still alive … 7 They answered him, "If you will be a servant to this people today … then they will be your servants forever."

8 But he disregarded the advice that the older men gave him, and consulted with the young men .... 10 The young men … said ..., "Thus you should say to this people … 11 “I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.' "

Ouch.

When government is a servant to the people (see verse 7), then it is god-honoring. When taxes become a heavy yoke, governments flirt with their own destruction – maybe not in their own time (Solomon didn’t live to see the consequences of his taxation), but certainly in the coming generations.

What does Caesar have a right to? In America – in a Republic or Democracy – the government has the right to extract whatever we as citizens choose (whether at any moment you vote for the ruling side or not).

But that’s not the big question. The real question is how much are rendering to God. It’s really a matter of the heart. It’s all his anyway.

In Christ’s Love,

A dwarf

(therefore, I sing,

“I owe. I owe. So …

off to work I go!”)

Apr 13,14 - Job 12:10

In God's hand is the life

of every living thing.

Job 12:10

I love the image at the beginning of Genesis. To create, God took a handful of dust, and life comes from his breath. He takes a handful of lifelessness, and animates it with his Spirit.

Even in the midst of a book full of discouragement, Job trumpets this foundational truth: “in God’s hand is the life of every living thing.”

We live in a world that scoffs at the creator and his role in creation. But we do so at our own peril. As Paul says in Romans 1 …

20 Ever since the creation of the world [God’s] eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has made. So [we] are without excuse …

Scripture says that there is no excuse to not recognize God.

As science itself proves – think of the Law of Entropy – randomness never gets more ordered and more sophisticated. It gets less! Therefore, it must be the living that produces the living.

Yes, we can scoff, mock, and devise alternative theories, and the inevitable result is that we’ll disintegrate into the inert chemicals that make up dust. That’s our default position. Or we can bow our hearts and say, “In God’s hand is the life of every living thing.”

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who’s bowed in awe

Apr 12 - Ephesians 5:31-32

Paul wrote:

“A man will leave

his father and mother

and be joined to his wife,

and the two will become one flesh.”

This is a great mystery,

and I am applying it to Christ

and the church.

Ephesians 5:31-32

Two becoming one is my favorite Biblical image for marriage.

It’s no longer, “Me first, then you.” It’s us. We’re a team … or at least we’re supposed to be. Sin and trials and stress constantly get in the way of unity and partnership. But this is God’s ideal. Unity is God’s plan.

Paul takes this picture of marriage – that ideal relationship of partnership, love, and support – and applies it to the church. He’s saying, we should be one with Christ, like the ideal wife is with her honorable husband.

That image worked well in the first century. The Roman citizens in Asia Minor, Greece, and Turkey didn’t know the church was supposed to be. So Paul said, think of it as a good marriage! It’s … relationship … partnership … love … and support.

I’m convinced that too many Americans don’t know what the church is supposed to be. Some flock to entertainment. Some gather where there’s a lot of convenience and little commitment. Some go out of habit. Others go through the motions. Others change churches every few years like some people trade spouses.

Furthermore, marriage as a picture of health has utterly broken down in a culture of divorce, abuse, pornography, busyness, and stress. It’s hard to point at many marriages and say, “Look, that’s what the church should be!”

We’re confused.

And so the church limps.

But think of a marriage that really does work. Then say, what would make our church more like that. Chances are, some of the secret involves commitment. Ask yourself what you can do to make our good church more and more like the ideal God designs.

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who joyfully knows

the picture of marriage

I’m striving for for our church!

Apr 11 - Psalm 37:4

Take delight in the Lord,

and he will give you

the desires of your heart.

Psalm 37:4

A week ago today, I wrote a devotion on this very same passage. I got a great response back! One person interpreted the passage entirely different from me. And now I’m not sure which I believe!!!

Here’s how I first read it:

In my heart are desires.

While I may want a few worldly things – yes – what I really want are: light instead of darkness … hope instead of despair … peace instead of conflict … and joy instead of sorrow.

In other words, what I ultimately desire is heaven!

Therefore, how this passage reads is … 1) When you take delight in the Lord (i.e. have faith) … 2) God will ultimately give the desires of your heart (those who live by faith will go to heaven and our deepest longings will be satisfied).

That is true! But this friend pointed out a new truth …

Here’s how my friend read it:

God is wants to “give you” something.

In fact, when you come to faith in him and when you delight in his ways, he will give you a new gift. He will place new and godly desires in your heart!

Wow! That’s true, too, isn’t it?!

On our own, we live by the flesh. While we do have some spiritual desires (we are after all made in God’s image), we also have our feet in the quicksand of fleshly desires too. On my own, as Paul used to describe, I have a weak and broken body of death.

But when I come to faith – and when my faith yields and gives God more and more room – he will put more and more godly desires into my heart!

In this broken world, we’ll sadly and always have a mixture of both – the spiritual and fleshly. But I want a God who is more active (the second definition) instead of passive (my first wait-til-heaven definition)!

In Christ’s Love,

a pastor who is not God

… and loves to be taught

by you all!

Apr 10 - Isaiah 51:5

My righteousness is near,

my salvation has gone forth, and

my arms will bring justice to the nations.

Isaiah 51:5

What, is this passage’s saying to us? I hear three things …

“My righteousness is near.”

First, God is saying that he himself is near.

And it’s not just a vague righteousness that is near when he is near. It’s not an undefined holiness that he wants to bring. Rather, God’s desire here is to set all things right!

Thus, God is saying, “Look up! His new, holy, and right way of doing things is coming to us.”

“My salvation has gone forth.”

First, let’s simplify “salvation” into: “my way of saving you.”

Second, let’s focus on the verb tense. God is saying that the thing that is to take place “has already happened.”

In other words, “Take heart, dear friends. Even if you can’t see the victory yet, my way of saving you has already happened.”

Our response to God’s action is to stand back, trust, and watch as his salvation draws near.

“My arms will bring justice to the nations.”

Finally, God is saying, “My way of saving you is to set things right.” But that’s what we’ve already heard.

Now he adds to it! He says that his goal is to restore not just you, individually, but to bring justice to all the world.

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who wants

individual blessings, to be sure,

but looks forward, even more so,

to the reconciliation of all things

Apr 9 - Psalm 27:8

When you said, "Seek My face,"

my heart said to you,

"Your face, O Lord, I shall seek."

Psalm 27:8

God commands us to do some things.

It’s not because he’s legalistic. It’s not because we’re saved by doing what’s right and avoiding what’s wrong. It’s not because his love is tied to our performance.

It’s because God knows that there is life and hope and joy and peace in 1) obeying his commands, 2) following his paths, and 3) submitting to his wisdom.

If we follow, obey, and submit, we usually wind up in green pastures and beside still waters – as Psalm 23 suggests. Whereas if we go our own way, we’re likely to fall in a crevice, be surrounded by evil doers, and/or find ourselves on rocky soil with only brambles to eat.

God said, “Seek my face.” It wasn’t a legalistic command. It was an invitation to relationship. It was opportunity for life and light.

David said, “Yes!” The lowly shepherd (turned king) said, “Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.” This hunger, willingness, and submission earned David perhaps the holiest nickname in history, “a man after God’s own heart” (see Acts 13:22).

Do you want a similar nickname too?

It’s simple … and very hard. The simple part is that God passionately desires to give it to you! The hard part is that it takes discipline.

•      It requires daily, daily, daily time in a very busy world.
•      It requires silence, in a world of noise.
•      It requires seeking to understand his word, in a world that likes easy answers and doesn’t like depth.
•      It requires submission in a prideful world that teaches us to bow for no one.
•      It requires following, even when the road is hard.
•      And it requires repentance, which requires another swallowing of pride.

David modeled all of this, including the repentance. You probably remember his notorious fall from grace. Read the beginning of 2 Samuel 11. Why did it happen? In spite of a lifetime of seeking God, the king now had it too easy. He’d become lazy and undisciplined. Instead being where he was supposed to be – out leading the people – he was home satisfying his physical desires.

I don’t know about you, but my discipline rises and falls.

•      If you’re up, right now, thank God!!! But then immediately and also start praying for armor and protection – that God may deliver you from pride and temptation.
•      If you’re down, repent like David did. Psalm 51 is his “create in me a clean heart, O Lord” prayer. He prayed, “restore to me the joy of your salvation.” Your “up,” light, hope, and joy can be renewed.
•      If you’ve never fully been up, this is your moment!!! Just start somewhere – a little quietness … a little scripture reading. Start small and manageable – don’t expect to immediately pray for hours. Make sure you add a good dose of discipline – and add that discipline daily, daily, daily. It also helps find someone who will keep you accountable.

Remember, you’re goal is not to accomplish something for yourself. All you’re doing is seeking his face. And once you begin to see it, you’ll understand his reward.

In Christ’s Love,

a tired guy, who wants

to renew his discipline

  

Apr 8 - Acts 10:36

You know the message

God sent to the people of Israel,

announcing the good news of peace

through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.

Acts 10:36

In one of Peter’s sermons, he proclaimed, “You know the message [of] God.”

It was a statement of fact.

I immediately thought, “This must be one of Peter’s sermons to the Jews.” Good Jews should know, indeed, “the message God sent to the people of Israel,” right? (And then he was going to link it to a new revelation: “[a ‘new’] peace through Jesus Christ.”

That’s what I thought. But that wasn’t who Peter was addressing. Paul is the most noted apostle to the Gentiles. But Peter – in a budding friendship with Cornelius, the centurion – addressed the Gentiles a few times too. But he starts with a strange statement: “You know the message God send to the people of Israel.” Do they really know?

Those first Gentile converts probably knew as much about God’s message to the Jews as the average person in our world today really knows about the Gospel. A group of Roman soldiers probably knew that God supposedly had spoken to and delivered Israel in the past. Most Americans are really semi-Christian. They know the basic story. They know that God supposedly spoke to and delivered the world.

Peter does not rest his sermon on what an unbelieving world “knows” or think they “know.” He’s using it as a starting point. He’s saying, “You’ve heard about this, right? Now let me show you how and why it’s true.”

His starting point was,

“38 [You have heard about] how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth [and] how he went about … healing [people]”? (It’s common ground. “Yes, we’ve heard about such things.)

Well then, Peter lays down the hammer:

“39 We are witnesses to all that he did … They put him to death on a tree. [That’s common Roman knowledge; isn’t it, Centurions? You probably know fellow soldiers who were there. 40 But God raised him from the dead!!! … 41 [And we are] witnesses … [We] ate and drank with him after he rose.”

As you tell your story to an unbelieving world, have you eaten with Jesus? No … and yes. As you tell your story, all you have to do is say, “You know the stories about Jesus, right? Well, let me tell you why I know he’s real.”

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who prays that you

know that Jesus is really real

… now you have a story to tell

Apr 6,7 - Psalm 13:6

I will sing to the Lord,

because he has dealt

bountifully with me.

Psalm 13:6

“I will sing to the Lord, because …”

Why do you sing to the Lord?

•      Because he’s helped you?
•      Because he’s saved you?
•      Because he’s brought you joy?
•      Or do you even sing simply because he’s God?!

Maybe an even more important question is, Why don’t you sing more often?

•      Because you’re not musical?
•      Because you don’t think you have a good voice?

Or is it something deeper?

•      Is it because the defeats seem to loom larger than the victories? If so, try singing about courage in the midst of the battles in a currently broken world.
•      Is it because you’re angry? Sing songs of forgiveness.
•      Is it because you’re worried? Sing songs of hope.
•      Is it because you didn’t get something you wanted? Try singing songs of thanksgiving for what you do have; rather than discordant tunes of ingratitude.
•      Is it because grief and loss and depression seem more real than hope? If so, remind yourself of the promises of resurrection, through songs of hope and praise.

The songs we sing – the melodies that float through our head all day – absolutely color our days. What are you singing?

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who’s writing this

a few days after Easter,

and dancing through my head

hymns of triumph ring!

Apr 5 - Psalm 91:4

His faithfulness is

a shield and buckler.

Psalm 91:4

My verses come to me almost randomly … nevertheless, today’s verse is a perfect companion to yesterday’s passage.

Yesterday we said …

“Delighting in the Lord” is a powerful definition of faith. But it’s not the only definition. Clinging to God, the rock, in the midst of life’s storms is also a powerful definition of faith.

Today’s verse is “clinging to the rock in the midst of the storms” kind of verse.

King David wrote scores and scores of Psalms. As King, his themes were often joyful and victorious. But for much of his writing career, young David was a fugitive. A jealous King Saul was chasing the young warrior across the desert. Therefore, rather than songs of victory, David also penned Psalms of worry and lament.

Worry wants to lead us down snake holes. Despair nibbles at the fabric of our faith.

David was honest. He reveals the worries, pains, nibbles, and despair. But transcending these was always the reassurance of hope.

Try reading some of these dark Psalms. They may begin with despair. But they always end with hope and confidence: “God is faithful. He is my rock. In spite of overwhelming circumstances, I know that he is my shield.” A buckler, by the way, was another form of shield, a further form of defense. “And God is that too!”

When you are encountering life’s storms, try praying these darker Psalms. Begin by pouring out your worries and fears. But turn, with David, to the hope and confidence. God is faithful. He is always a shield.

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who finds the old images

much more poetic than

if they’d been written today.

“The Lord is my up-armored humvee.”

Apr 4 - Psalm 37:4

Take delight in the Lord,

and he will give you

the desires of your heart.

Psalm 37:4

This passage is absolutely true.

But it can very easily be misused.

There are several ways in which such passages are misused …

Is this a guarantee? Yes and no. If those who take delight in the Lord expect that God will give them the desires of their heart TODAY, then they may get frustrated and lose faith. God does promise to give you the desires of your heart … but for the no more mourning or crying or pain, you may have to wait until heaven to get it.

So timing is the issue. It is a guarantee, but our deep desires may or may not be here and now.

There’s also a deceptive “name it and claim it” belief. There’s some psychological truth in the benefits of a positive outlook. If you delight in God and delight in your surroundings, you’re going to be happier and you’re more likely to perceive that the desires of your heart are being fulfilled. Psychologically, delight and desires go hand-in-hand.

But “name it and claim it” sometimes implies that God is genie. That faith almost obligates God to give you blessings.

So what should we conclude?

•      God wants to bless you! And he wants to do it here and now … and into eternity!
•      God, however, is not a genie, obligated to grant your wishes and desires. Nevertheless, faith can still have a powerful transformative effect.
•      With faith, you can find tremendous blessings – hope, comfort, courage, etc. – even when your outward situations are depressing.
•      “Delighting in the Lord” is a powerful definition of faith. (But … it’s not the only definition. Clinging to God, the rock, in the midst of life’s storms is also a powerful definition of faith. Either way …) Faith guarantees eternal blessings. Faith also transforms our daily too. How?
•      Faith and delight transform the way we look at this world in wonderful and positive ways. We don’t always need to be dour Christians to be pious. Putting on faith, hope, light, and joy can like putting on 3D glasses. With God, the world has new richness, texture, and delight.

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who’s going to strive

to take even more delight

in today

     

Apr 3 - Jeremiah 20:11

The Lord is with me as

a mighty, awesome one.

Jeremiah 20:11

One of the most important themes in scripture is, “God is with us.”

Matthew’s Gospel reinforces this theme repeatedly – beginning, middle, and end.

•      22 All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 "Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel," which means, "God is with us."
•      18:20 Jesus said, “Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them." 
•      28:19 Jesus said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations … 20 … And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

In today’s lesson, Jeremiah makes this point as well, and then he adds something: “The Lord is with [us].” The question is … how? “As a mighty, awesome one.”

In other places in scripture, God is pictured as a law-giver, a comforter, a guide, and a friend. Today, however, Jeremiah presents our Lord in powerful way --  he is mighty, he is awesome, he is one – indeed, “the one”!

In my life with my wife, I need different things at different times. Sometimes I need someone to help me. Other times I need someone to comfort me. Still other times I need someone to kick me in the seat of my pants and pick up my slack. She’s always the same person, but at different times in our life, we need different aspects.

In the 20^th chapter of Jeremiah, comfort was needed. It was a time of persecution. And one of the greatest comforts to those who are embattled is to know that the one who is with [us] is mighty and awesome. He cannot be defeated!

Do you ever need that comfort?

In Christ’s Love,

A guy who likes the phrase

“Me + God = an Overwhelming Majority”

Apr 2 - Matthew 7:15

"Watch out for false prophets.

They come to you in sheep's clothing,

but inwardly they are ferocious wolves."

Matthew 7:15

It appears that Jesus invented the story of Little Red Riding Hood. Wolves in sheep's (or grandmother's) clothing are seeking to devour us.

Who are the wolves? False prophets. False teachers. And false philosophies.

To turn us away from God, false ideas don't have to force us do a complete about-face -- 180 degrees. If you're walking through the thick woods, imagine what happens is you're turned just a degree or two away from true north.

After a few hours of wandering off-course, you're completely in the wrong place ... and without a compass -- the Word of Truth -- it will be nearly impossible to trace your way back home. (And by the way, this is the scenario that wolves enjoy most. Food that's lost and helpless and wandering aimlessly.)

On Easter I cited a troubling statisitic. In America, for every one person who believes they're going to hell, one-hundred-and-twenty believe they're going to heaven! Shouldn't that mean that there are 120-times as many believers as unbelievers (since belief is the key to "shall not perish" -- see John 3:16)?

If just about everybody in America believes that they deserve to go to heaven, regardless of what they believe, haven't we been massively deceived? And shouldn't we be worried about those who are wandering, lost and aimless, as wolf-food.

It should be noted that this deceit is often perpetuated innocently. A true-Truth is proclaimed first -- "God loves you." And that leads to a sweet-sounding HALF-truth -- "Therefore, you're going to heaven." It sounds so "nice" -- because God is nice. But what is the half-truth that our society keeps leaving out is our response -- faith. People live lives mocking God, faith, virtue, and church, and yet claim that God owes them something.

Do you see how these kinds of deceit seem to start innocently? Key word -- "seem" to start innocently. That's the sheep's clothing. The wolf -- and false teacher -- wants us to be believe something nice and easy, rather than true.

That's why we must keep reading scripture. Reading the Word is not a legalistic discipline; rather, it's our compass in our world that wants us to keep missing  the mark by a degree or two ... and stumble into dens of wolves that seem as cuddly as sheep.

In Christ's Love,

a guy who's favorite

college team is called,

"The Wolfpack"

(and it's irritating that our

chief rival has a ram-sheep

as their mascot)

[Do you think I need

to confess something?]

   

Apr 1 - 1 Corinthians 4:10

We are fools for

the sake of Christ …

1 Corinthians 4:10

First, some serious news: I’ve really enjoyed doing these days and weeks of writing, this is my last-ever daily devotion …

Just kidding.

April Fools!

Some people love this joking day. Some people hate it. But one thing we all have in common … whether on April 1 or on some other days of the years, we’ve all had our turn playing the fool!

Some people laugh at their foibles. Some turn several shades of red. Some want to crawl under a rock and die. Others bristle angrily – wanting so badly to seem in control, they fight against even small slights and perceived humiliations.

The truth is, however, that we are not in control. Indeed, any glimpses of power and perfection that we have is just an illusion. We’re a mess. And part of what Paul is saying today is, “Quit taking yourself so seriously!”

When calling us to become “fools for Christ,” Paul is encouraging us to willingly face anything -- even occasional humiliation in the eyes of the world -- in order to proclaim God’s truth and life. In fact, he’s warning us that sometimes the world views the Gospel as rather foolish. (And if our message sounds foolish, then sometimes the world might just view us as foolish too.)

Debating with a young and budding atheist recently, I comprehended the meaning of today’s verse in a new way. I’d state these powerful “proofs” of God’s existence, and he’d essentially laugh at me. By without allowing for even the possibility of a God, I suddenly realized that nothing I said was making any sense at all!

I kept wanting to cry, “If you allowed for even the possibility of a God, what I’m saying might make sense … might transform your life … But you’re so closed minded to even the possibility of a God that …”

That?

Well … suddenly, Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 1:18 made even more sense: “For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

I wanted to cry when talking to this young man. Paul probably often wanted to cry too when proclaiming the Gospel to a hard-hearted world. But instead, he also laughed. He joyfully counted himself as a fool in a broken world. And this perspective gave him the courage to keep proclaiming, even when the world laughed at him (and worse, persecuted him).

In Christ’s Love,

a guy who wants to

love the world enough

that I am always

an adventurous fool