Working Out, Philippians 2:12-13

“Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed–not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence–continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.”

It’s no secret that I’m an avid cyclist.  I like it for a variety of reasons:  being outdoors, clearing my mind, eliminating stress, getting physically fit.  But these are simply the results of making the decision to get on my cycling clothes (yes, I wear the little spandex shorts and colorful jerseys), getting on one of my bicycles (yes, I have more than one), and going for a ride.

Think about getting physically fit:  if I go for a ride, move my body pedaling the bike, start breathing more heavily, and raise my heart rate then I’m “working out.”  But I’m not yet physically fit!  Only when I stop exercising and my body is recovering through rest does getting fit take place.  God has designed our bodies in such a way that after we “workout” God makes our bodies fit through the miracle of strengthening our muscles, increasing our lung capacity, and slowing our heart rate.  I do the “working out” and God does the getting me fit.

The same is true for our spiritual fitness.  We can do the “working out” of the practices (e.g. Bible study, prayer, giving away our money and time, etc.) but that’s not what gets us spiritually fit!  No!  We can’t make ourselves spiritually fit.  That’s something that only God can do.  For you see, in the “practices” we make ourselves available to God who through his grace accomplishes his purpose of molding our personalities—mind, emotions, and will—to be like Jesus Christ.

It is God who renews our mind and changes our thinking to conform to the truth of Scripture.  It is God who indwells us through the Holy Spirit to transform our character to the produce of the Holy Spirit.  It is God who alters our attitudes and shifts our desires and emotions to correspond to his heart.  We “continue to work out” our salvation through the practices but it is “God who works” in us to bring about his will.

So, get on your “workout” clothes and gather your equipment.  I suggest taking a Bible, a prayer guide, a devotional book and get started with the basics of a regular time alone with the Lord.  I recommend letting go a few things in your busy schedule and laying aside those “time-wasters” that get in the way of being alone with God.  I advise making these practices and others* a consistent part of your everyday schedule.  Do so, and watch yourself get spiritually fit.

I feel like “working out”…and riding my bicycle, too!

Scott Corwin, Pastor

*Here are the ten practices we’ve identified as “core practices”:  Worship, Prayer, Bible Study, Single-mindedness, Spiritual Gifts, Biblical Community, Giving away my…Time, Money, Faith, and Life.  To learn more about these “practices” attend the Christian Life Profile Workshop.

Sunday’s Sermon Slides:  The Meek are Blessed

The Danger of Self-Righteousness

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean.” Matthew 23:27 (NIV)

If the “Beatitudes” of Matthew 5 are the “8 Blessings” then Jesus’ comments in Matthew 23 are the “7 Curses.”

The “blessings” of the Beatitudes begins with a promise to those who are “poor in spirit”…those who recognize their spiritual bankruptcy before God.  The converse of this blessing is the curse or “woe” that comes upon those who are self-righteous.  If you are not “poor in spirit” than you are in danger of being self-righteous.

Self-righteousness is a confidence in one’s own righteousness.  It usually looks at self and says, “Hey, I’m alright!  I’ve got all that I need.  I’m good enough, strong enough, and I like what I see.”  (Notice how much emphasis is on “I”!)  Self-righteousness usually looks down at others and says, “I’m better than you!  You don’t measure up to the standard that is ME!”  There’s always a gap between the “outside” and the “inside” among the self-righteous.  Appearances may look good from the outside but they certainly are deceiving because a good look on the inside exposes how UN-righteous is the heart.  What’s more, self-righteousness overlooks weaknesses!  Inconsistency plagues the self-righteous but they are oblivious to their shortcomings.

Fances de Sales, a classic (1500’s) devotional writer says this:  “Many persons clothe themselves with certain outward actions connected with holy devotion, and the world believes that they are truly devout and spiritual whereas they are in fact nothing but copies and phantoms of devotion.”

Here are some examples about which he writes:

“Everyone paints devotion according to his own passions and fantasies.  Someone given to fasting thinks himself very devout if he fasts although his heart is filled with hatred.  Much concerned with sobriety, he doesn’t care to wet his tongue with wine or even water but won’t hesitate to drink deep of his neighbor’s blood by detraction and gossip.”

“Another person thinks himself devout because he daily recites a vast number of prayers, but after saying them he utters the most disagreeable, arrogant, and harmful words at home and among the neighbors.  Another gladly takes a coin out of his purse and gives it to the poor, but he cannot extract kindness from his heart to forgive his enemies….All these individuals are usually considered to be devout, but they are by no means such.”

Self-righteousness puts confidence in our own abilities, is full of pride, ignores weaknesses, and lives inconsistently.  The answer to self-righteousness is the humility that comes from recognizing our spiritual bankruptcy, our powerlessness apart from God, our desperate need for God’s mercy and strength.  Cry out to God:  “Lord, have mercy on me a sinner!” and watch self-righteousness get blown away by the wind of God’s Spirit rushing to your aid.

Lord, have mercy!  Fill us with your Spirit,

Scott Corwin, Pastor

God is blessed…and so are we!

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6 (NIV)

This past Saturday night a few IBCBers got together to watch some of our children while their parents went out on a date night.  The children—big and little—enjoyed a variety of activities including playing with toys, batting around balloons, driving toy cars, and coloring pictures.  After finishing her coloring, one little girl brought me the picture to show me the results of her play.  She looked up at me with anticipation in her eyes longing for approval.  That sweet face touched my heart and I responded to her expectation by kneeling down, looking her in the eye, and saying, “Thank you for sharing your picture with me!  You chose some beautiful colors.  Well done!”  A smile broke out on her face as she ran away to play with the balloons.

Stop and think about it…in a similar way:  God takes pleasure in you!  When you earnestly seek God in faith—trusting him with your life, looking to him in belief, God is pleased.  Joy springs up in our heavenly Father’s heart when we come to him as his children longing for him, his nearness, his approval, his smile!  To put in words we used on Sunday:  God is happy!  God is blessed!

And so are we!  When we earnestly seek God, God rewards us with his presence, his fills us with his power, and he gives us a purpose.  God is pleased to reward us…to approve of us…to give us his joy.  God blesses us, and we are filled with happiness.  Everyone longs for happiness.  That’s a God-given need.  However, our pursuit of happiness often leads us astray to seeking it from money, power, selfish desires, etc.  The Bible reminds us that those who long for happiness can find it in the one who is happy…or blessed:  God himself!

Join us in our journey of seeking God’s blessed-ness…God’s happiness…as we study the “Beatitudes”—Matthew 5:3-10.  Consider memorizing these verses, meditating on them regularly, and praying that God would build these character qualities in your life.  Make yourself available to God through these practices, and let his happiness be yours as God rewards you with these virtues of Christlikeness.

Blessed to be a blessing to others,

Scott Corwin, Pastor

Recreation as Re-Creation

What do you do for fun?  For me, it’s mountain biking!

I love to get on my bicycle and get out into nature to enjoy the exercise and the elements.  I love to hear my breathing and to feel my muscles as I’m riding over rocks and roots while climbing a mountain pass from Argentina into Chile.  I love to see God’s handiwork in the Monkey Puzzle trees, the glaciers, the lakes, the volcanoes, the lava flows, and the birds as I pedal through the Patagonian forest.  Oops, I slipped on a wet root and fell into a puddle of water and scraped my knee.  It doesn’t matter!  A little mud and a little blood make it even more fun!

Okay, so mountain biking isn’t your idea of fun; that’s okay!  But what do you do for fun?  What do you do for pleasure?  How do you get away from your work?  What’s your form of recreation?  No time for play?  You are too busy!  Don’t just take it from me.  Listen to what the Bible says about the rest of not working:  “God rested from all his work” (Gen. 2:3), “…do no work…” (Exodus 20:10), “God rested and was refreshed” (Exodus 31:17), “…the people rested…” (Exodus 16:30).

I think it’s fair to say:  God made us for work, and God made us for play!  Though all of us could benefit from a lesson on the merits of hard work, our Protestant work-ethic often leads us toward ALL WORK and NO PLAY.  Without the rest of play we become un-balanced believers often lifeless and downright boring.  What’s more, we miss out on all that God has in store for us through play.

Rest from our work gives us the opportunity of being refreshed through recreation.  For me, mountain biking gets my thoughts off of work, eliminates stress, provides some exercise for my body, and gets me in touch with the outdoors.  Through the recreation of mountain biking I’m re-created!  My mind is clear, my emotions are soothed, my body is relaxed, and my spirit is open.  As a result, I am re-energized to work, a much better husband—that’s what Laurie says, and closer to God.

I am grateful for the opportunity I had to get away this past week for a bit of restful play.  It did me good!  I’m refreshed and re-created.  Anybody else feeling the need for some fun?  How about a games night?  Square dancing?  Mountain biking?

May God continue to accomplish his work in my life and yours as we discover all that he has in store for us through play.

Back to work,

Scott Corwin, Pastor

This Week @ IBCB:  2_7_2010

Practice, Practice, Practice

We were sitting around the table at this past Saturday’s Christian Life Profile Workshop wrestling with answers to two questions:

1. What does it look like to become like Jesus?
2. How do we become like Jesus?

After struggling with what it looks like to become like Jesus—how would you answer that question?*—we turned our attention to the second question.  There was a silence at the table while people thoughtfully considered their responses.  Following a pause and in his own imitable way Rolf Schwippert broke the silence with his answer:  “Practice, practice, practice!”

We had a good chuckle recognizing the truth of his response in light of the overwhelming task of actually becoming like Jesus Christ, but the longer we thought about it and the more we heard in the workshop we came to the realization that Rolf is exactly right.  Think about it.  How does one become a skilled footballer?  Practice, practice, practice!  How does one become a proficient violinist?  Practice, practice, practice!  The same is true of our becoming more like Jesus!  The key to becoming like Jesus is “PRACTICE”…and by that I mean developing the “classic spiritual disciplines” or the “holy habits” that characterized the life of Jesus.

We’ve identified ten (10) core “practices” drawn from the life of Jesus that are essential to becoming like Jesus including worship, scripture, prayer, and biblical community.  As we by faith in God and through dependence upon the Holy Spirit, take the time and trouble to quiet ourselves before God with a “heart of first” God visits us in presence and power.  (“Draw near to God and he will draw near to you (James 4:8).)  Through the “inward practices,” we get to know God, his truth, his will, and his way—“beliefs”—so that our minds and our hearts are changed.  In the faith of obedience we take the time and trouble to give ourselves to the “outward practices”—such as giving away our time, money, faith, etc.—and God does his work in and through us.  All the while, God is growing us in the fruit of the Spirit or, shall we say the character of Christ—“virtues.”

One word of caution…I’m not talking about a robotic mimicking of Jesus’ earthly life as if through superficial imitation we can be changed to appear like Christ.  Heaven forbid!  I’m not talking about parroting the activities of Jesus as if through them we might earn God’s favor or do penance for our shortcomings.  Nothing but the heresy of dead works!  No, I’m talking about “the heart of first”…the heart that makes Jesus Christ pre-imminent…that puts him above all things out of love…presenting its body through a sacrifice of time, focus, and energy to activities that bring the whole being—spirit, soul, and body—into the presence of God Almighty so that he might accomplish his will in our lives…to make us more like Jesus.

So, practice, practice, practice…spirit, soul, and body!  It’s the act of first!  In what ways will you commit to presenting your body as a living sacrifice?  (Rom. 12:1-2)  See the “spiritual formation” section of the blog for materials to support your pursuit of these “holy habits”—Bible reading/study, meditation, prayer, “Daily Office”, etc.—including a new “Daily Office” on the 10 Core Practices.

Time for some practice…by reading the following scriptures and quotes “with your heart” in the “spirit of the practices.”  Take some time to be in God’s presence and to let him work his presence and power in you to make you more like Jesus Christ.

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8 (NIV)

If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother. 1 John 4:20-21 (NIV)

Francis de Sales:  “Someone given to fasting thinks himself very devout if he fasts although his heart is filled with hatred.  Much concerned with sobriety, he doesn’t care to wet his tongue with wine or even water but won’t hesitate to drink deep of his neighbor’s blood by detraction and gossip.  Another person thinks himself devout because he daily recites a vast number of prayers, but after saying them he utters the most disagreeable, arrogant, and harmful words at home and among the neighbors.  Another gladly takes a coin out of his purse and gives it to the poor, but he cannot extract kindness from his heart to forgive his enemies.”

Frances de Sales:  “Anyone who does not observe all God’s commandments cannot be held to be either good or devout.  To be good a person must have charity, and to be devout, in addition to charity, he must have great zeal and readiness in performing charitable actions.”

May God grow us in love for him and one another,

Scott Corwin, Pastor

Sermon Slides:  First Things First, The Act of First

eNotes:  This Week @ IBCB 24_1_2010