Opinions or Convictions

I can tell you beyond the shadow of a doubt what causes almost every church split.

In a word — the tongue.

Yes I know there are situations where other factors are involved.  But James had it right when he warned us that the tongue stains the whole body, sets on fire the entire course of life, and is itself set on fire by hell.

James, those are strong words!  And if they weren’t right there in the Bible, most of us would say they were a bit overstated.

The problem we face today is much worse than ever before, because social media has given free access to anyone who wants to shoot their mouth off in public.

Part of the problem is that we have completely lost track of the difference between an opinion and a conviction.   A conviction is something I believe to be a clear expression of Biblical truth, such that anyone who believes in the Bible would understand what I am saying.  I will hold to it regardless of what it costs me.

A conviction is God’s idea of reality.  An opinion is my idea of reality.  The difference is only one of those is backed up by clear Biblical truth.

So what can we do?  The first practical step is to create a verbal filter.  Think before you speak.  Is what you’re about to say merely your opinion, or do you truly believe it is God’s opinion?  And can you back that up?  If not, better to remain silent.

Second, think about this.  Is what you’re going to say really edifying or upbuilding to the other person?  That’s the test Scripture applies to the words that come out of our mouth.  If you are speaking out of Biblical conviction, the words will most likely be helpful, even if they are challenging.  If not, what you say may well be destructive and unhelpful.

Third, remember that speaking brings accountability.  Are you ready to be open to response or correction?  How many of you have observed a conversation where, even while one party is speaking, the other party is devoting all their attention to producing a rebuttal rather than listening?  Don’t be that person.

Finally, I think we need to adopt a rule of thumb that on the whole, fewer words are better than many words.  If you disagree with me, you can find that stated in Scripture also.

If we are prepared to walk with one another in love and humility, and to listen just as much as to talk, and if we guard what we say in the ways I’ve suggested, we can tolerate differences of opinion on all sorts of things.  

Political differences exist — we live in a democracy after all — but political opinions should never divide a church.  Neither should opinions on vaccination or pandemic lockdowns, to pick a couple topics from recent history.  All these are contentious out there in the world, but it is a scandal and a disgrace when they divide the body for which Christ died.  Yes, we can talk about them, but only when edifying to the other person, and being mindful of the fact they are our opinions, nothing more and nothing less.

And just remember this: God’s word counts a lot more than yours or mine does.  Never forget it.

CONSIDER PARTNERING WITH DAVID & ELAINE CAMPBELL IN HELPING TO SUSTAIN THEIR ACTIVE MINISTRY.

The Best Seats at The Table

The problem has always been the same.

Too much of my world revolves around me.  And I venture to say the same is true of you.

I see it in all sorts of obvious ways.  I get impatient with the person driving too slowly in front of me.  I’ve ordered something online and it’s late in coming.

But it comes in more subtle ways.  For instance, what if I wind up singing songs that describe my feelings about God more than about who God actually is?  What if I decide to edit bits out of the Bible I don’t like to allow the Bible to reflect my truth rather than God’s truth?  What if I put far too much value on expanding my ministry rather than serving someone else’s?

A spiritual father once told me the story of how he had gone to great efforts one day to reschedule his whole family’s activities in order to make everything run more efficiently.  Then his wife told him bluntly all he had done was re-craft everyone else’s day around his own.  Ouch!  I am sure I have never been guilty of that, though wait till Elaine reads this and we’ll see.

Jesus told us if we only prayed in line with God’s will, we could see mountains moved.  In context, he was talking about mountains as obstacles to the will of God.  The only mountains we can pray and see successfully moved are those which are truly obstacles to what God wants to do so that his kingdom can advance.  For any of us who have might think the world revolves around us, that can be a rude awakening.  Name it and claim it!  You can have anything you want if you pray and believe hard enough.  But it doesn’t work that way.

James and John sent their mom to Jesus to ask for the best places at the table.  Jesus said it was easy — all they had to do was drink his cup.  “Wow!  That’s an offer we can’t turn down.”  Then he let them in on the fine print.  I think he knew their heart, in spite of their immaturity.  They just had to adjust from a world revolving around them having the best seats at the table, to a world in which they might be the first to die.  James did in the end, but John lived on a very long time.  Long enough to write to us from Patmos that we are partners with him “in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus.”

A world revolving around us is a world which will perish, and we will perish with it.

A world revolving around Jesus will last for ever, and us with him.  

With pretty good seats at that table.

CONSIDER PARTNERING WITH DAVID & ELAINE CAMPBELL IN HELPING TO SUSTAIN THEIR ACTIVE MINISTRY.

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Faith That Works

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A short but very significant phrase occurs at the beginning and the end of Romans.  That phrase is “the obedience of faith.”  The meaning of the phrase is this: obedience is faith and faith is obedience.  You can’t have faith unless you are walking out your faith in obedience, and you can’t have obedience unless you’ve first been given the gift of faith in salvation.

Pretty well all of the important doctrines of the New Testament appear in Romans, so for this phrase to book-end the letter means we need to pay attention to it.

We’ve suffered in the body of Christ from various misinterpretations and misunderstandings of faith.  I try to cover this in a chapter of my book “No Diving.”  But suffice to say, one of the most lethal misunderstandings is that merely by summoning up a quantity of mental belief we can speak things into being and cause things to happen.  Or that our mental belief somehow obligates God to do what we want.

When that doesn’t happen, because none of us can manipulate God — and who would want to worship a God who could be manipulated? — people get disillusioned and walk away from faith and from God.  The problem, of course is that they got disillusioned by believing an illusion to begin with.

Yes, Jesus did say whatever you believed in faith you would receive.  But the context in Mark 11 shows he was talking about what you believe that’s already in alignment with the will of God.

But let’s go back to the obedience of faith.  You won’t get far by just sitting back in your armchair and summoning God to give you what you want.  Maybe you need to take some steps of kingdom obedience.  Ask at church what needs doing.  Look around at your place of employment, college or neighborhood, and ask what God would have you do.  Look for people who need help and reach out to them.  And then go back to your prayer room and see what God does.

I don’t have any formula to offer for how to get your prayers answered other than do everything you can to line your life up with his Word and then spend regular time with the Lord.  And when you do, make sure not just to talk but also to listen.  You might be surprised by what he says and then what he does.

The bottom line is always this.  God will never fail those who truly call on him.

CONSIDER PARTNERING WITH DAVID & ELAINE CAMPBELL IN HELPING TO SUSTAIN THEIR ACTIVE MINISTRY.

Changing Your Perspective May Change Your Life

Have you ever tried helping someone who is never happy with the situation they’re in?  They’re always looking for something different, something which beyond the shadow of a doubt is going to be a big improvement and the solution to all their problems.  Except when they find that different situation, it turns out they’re no more happy than they were before.

And it’s always someone else’s fault.  The blame may go on everyone from someone’s spouse to their employer to their pastor or — here’s a safe place to place blame — the government. 

Of course, neither you nor I have ever been like that.  Unless maybe you ask someone close to us.  

Paul had a similar situation to deal with in that most problem-free of all churches, the pastor’s paradise of Corinth.  

Nobody was happy with where they were at.  The unmarried wanted to be married.  The married wanted to be unmarried.  The Jews wanted to be Gentiles.  The Gentiles wanted to be Jews.  The slaves wanted to be free.  And if you can believe it, some of the free wanted to be slaves, because in those days it was an all-expenses paid gig that could set you up for a quite a nice lifestyle.

Paul had a one-size-fits-all answer for the lot of them.  Be happy with where you’re at because God has put you there.  I bet that made him popular.

Back in the day when we used to pick strawberries in the summer, it was always a temptation to go from row to row in search of what looked like a more promising patch.  Those who stayed in the same place inevitably filled their containers quicker.

There are lots of reasons why we are discontent.  Sometimes we’re in a legitimately tough situation, one from which we need to pray deliverance.  But often we don’t need deliverance, we need perspective.  God’s perspective.

There are reasons he has placed you and I in the situations we are in.  He is sovereign, after all.  How much better to cooperate with him while he does what he wants through the place or season we are in. 

That requires trust in his goodness and faithfulness, but he shouldn’t have to earn that from us.  He’s already given us everything.

In the end, it comes down to a search for freedom.  We never find freedom because we don’t realize the freedom we already have.  And we forget that the freedom we have is worth more than anything any change in our circumstances could give us.

Try looking at your situation with that perspective.  It may not change your situation, but it may change your life.

CONSIDER PARTNERING WITH DAVID & ELAINE CAMPBELL IN HELPING TO SUSTAIN THEIR ACTIVE MINISTRY.