Photo by Tuce on Unsplash

If you are a parent you know the if/then scenario, the child comes in and says if I clean up my room then I will be able to play Xbox. Maybe it is the other way around, the parent says if you read these books then you will get $50. Let the negotiations begin!

If you are a parent, you no doubt have come across these if/then scenarios, some are ridiculous, some worth considering, but it is inevitable. The human condition wants something in return for something accomplished or desires the motivation to accomplish something.

You know what’s interesting, this is nothing new. As I was reading in Genesis I came  across the time when Isaac & Rebekah sent Jacob away to find a wife from their homeland. They also sent him away because Esau wanted to kill him for stealing his blessing. On his journey  Jacob dreamed about the stairway to heaven, the angels were ascending and descending and the Lord spoke to Jacob saying,

And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, “I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:13–17 ESV)

The Lord gives the patriarchal promise, the promise given to Abraham and Isaac, he now gives to Jacob. God tells them He is with him always, He will protect Jacob and will bring him back to the land of promise.

When Jacob wakes up and he is astounded by the dream and the words the Lord has spoken to him, so awe struck  by the presence of God he names the place Bethel, which means the house of God. The God of heaven invaded the life of Jacob and breathed life, purpose, calling into him.

So what does Jacob do? What would you do?

I have never experienced anything like Jacob, but I have had several holy moments in my life, moments when God has spoken to me through his Word, through a sermon, a conversation, a moment so holy it plants purpose and calling, it begins to transform and define you.

Have you had a moment like this?

What’s interesting in the life of Jacob is he realizes he is in the presence of God, he memorializes the place and even changes the name of it. Yet at the same time Jacob’s response amazes me. Instead falling before the Lord in submission and full surrender, Jacob enters negotiation mode, Jacob gives God an if/then,

Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God, and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house. And of all that you give me I will give a full tenth to you.” (Genesis 28:20–22 ESV)

Did you catch it?

Jacob tells God if you are with me, feed me, clothe me and bring me back to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God. What is interesting is God just told Jacob he was going to do all this and in Jacob’s mind he says if and when you do this then you will be my Lord and God.

To be honest, I feel like Jacob more times than not. God if you give me a better job then…, God if I just received a raise then…, God if you take away my problems then…, what is your if/then to God?

God has made the same promises to us as believers that he has made to Jacob,

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:37–39 ESV)

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6 ESV)

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”  (Hebrews 13:5 ESV)

God has promised us that nothing can separate us from His love, he promises he will complete the good work he has started in us, he promises to never leave us and forsake us. God speaks these promises to us, through His Word, like he has spoken them to Jacob and many times our response is an if/then to God. If you do this, then you will be my God.

I thank God we serve a patient and merciful God, who doesn’t do a Thanos snap when we respond to His greatness with an if/then. He patiently brings us to a place of surrender and places in us a desire to desire Him above all. God help us move beyond the if/then scenarios to a place of wholehearted submission to your purposes and plans, no matter where they take us.

Until Next Time

Soli Deo Gloria

 

 

Here is your daily round up.

Leave and Cleave Like a Strawberry

I looked at the hostas with their many shapes of leaves in varied shades of green. I looked at the ferns towering above them, still lush and healthy before they inevitably fade under the coming heat of the summer sun. I looked at the bright red and yellow begonias, brilliant splashes of color contrasting beautifully with the dark soil beneath. Then my eyes fixed on the irises which opened for the first time today to display their magnificent purple flowers. And I thought, “I someday want my children to leave and cleave like a strawberry.” I’d better explain.

You’re a Theologian. Become a Good One.

In one sense, all it takes to be a theologian is to have an opinion about God. That’s it. The moment you think or say anything about him or her or it or whatever “God” is to you, you’re doing theology.

The real question, therefore, is not whether you are a theologian. It’s whether you are a good one.

3 Daily Wages of Sin in Your Life

What’s remarkable about the Bible, and maybe you know this from first-hand experience, is that every time I approach it with a willingness and eagerness to learn, God’s Word teaches me something new.

Claiming Victory Will Help You in the Fight

While we may recognize that, as Christians, we are in a constant war within ourselves, wrestling with the desires of our sinful flesh, we must also remember that we live with this assurance of victory.

That assurance changes our outlook in the midst of the battle for two reasons.

Where We Find Significance

All of this confirms something that the Bible already makes clear: we all want to be a part of something bigger than our own lives. We are searching for significance, and we find it by rooting our lives within a bigger story. As one writer put it, “I can only answer the question, ‘How should I live?’ when I’ve answered the prior question, ‘Of what story do I find myself a part?’”

Hope you had a blessed weekend!

Does Prayer Change God’s Mind?

Does prayer make any difference? Does it really change anything? Someone once asked me that question, only in a slightly different manner: “Does prayer change God’s mind?” My answer brought storms of protest. I said simply, “No.” Now, if the person had asked me, “Does prayer change things?” I would have answered, “Of course!”

Five Bad Reasons to Go to Church

When a church splits over the color of the ceiling, one must wonder: Why do we even go to church at all? To worship God? To be entertained? To have all of our preferences met?

3 Ways Your Faith Should Shape Your Work

If a person went to church every Sunday from the age of 25 to age 65, they would spend around 3,000 hours gathered with the body of Christ. If the same person worked full-time during that span, they would put in around 80,000 work hours. My point? It is the workplace, not the sanctuary, where most Christians live out their faith. If God’s reign shapes all of life, then it must shape one’s view of work.

What I Miss Most (and Least) About Being a Pastor

Jared C. hits the nail on the head.

Why Smaller Churches Are Making a Comeback

Two-thirds of churches have an attendance under 125. The smaller church is the norm, not the exception. And though the news has not been that promising for smaller churches in recent years, I do see some very promising signs for the years ahead. Why do I make such an apparently contrarian statement? Here are five reasons:

10 Things You Should Know about Communion with Christ

Helpful, insightful and short.

Christians and the Old Testament Dietary Laws

How should New Testament believers view the Old Testament dietary laws outlined in Leviticus 11?

Refresh the Hearts of Those You Love

What if we could see everything that happens in our child’s mind and heart when we love our wife with strength, tenderness, and conviction? What if we could see our neighbors’ thoughts when they see us loving our children with patience, sacrifice, and loving discipline? What if we knew the ripple effects in our church of the creative and intentional ways we’re caring for lost neighbors? We simply cannot see even a fraction of what God does when we love one another well.

Seek the Giver, Not the Gift?

Many believers have overspiritualized church, preaching, and prayer, and in doing so they have distanced God from creation, pleasure, and happiness. “Seek the giver, not the gift” can be an apt warning against idolatry in certain contexts, but as a general rule, it’s misguided.

Three Glimpses of God’s Love Seen in Hagar’s Life

Who cared about this woman? Her whole life seemed to be a story of what other people want. She was pushed from pillar to post, according to what was most convenient for others.  

 

Happy 4th of July!

Do We Have to Study Every Religion to Know Which One Is True?

Do You Love Your Country?

What this means regarding our question is that, for the Christian, any love for our country that does not flow from an ultimate love for the triune God, and express itself to our various and diverse “neighbors” in real, concrete ways that our neighbors actually experience, is defective, deficient, secondary love at best. And it might not be love at all.

9 Ways Christian Ego Prevents You From Experiencing God

Can I be honest? The past year has largely sucked. And I’m beginning to understand why. My ego was dying. And when the ego begins to die, it feels like death. My identity, my purpose, everything I used to convince myself I was somebody, that I was special, was losing out in favor of a different voice.

Are You Pointing Your Suffering Friend to Earthly Things?

Instead of reminding a sufferer that “this too shall pass” or claiming the Lord will give them something they haven’t been promised, let us tell them of His faithfulness. His steadfast love remains, even if they don’t receive the thing they desire and their suffering continues. Let’s help them look to Jesus, where their true hope lies.

Amazon bans books on “conversion therapy”

Let me stipulate up front that I am no fan of Nicolosi or of conversion therapy. It’s a secular theory that has nothing to do with Christianity. I have written and spoken in opposition to it for years (if you want to understand why, read here). Having said that, the reason that Amazon is banning Nicolosi’s books is not because he taught Christianity (he didn’t) but because he taught that it is possible to change someone’s sexual orientation.

Here is your daily round up.

Monomaniacs for God

I have been following the Galli Report as he has been releasing several articles concerning an evangelical crisis. They have been very interesting and causes you to pause and think about your current state as a member of the body of Christ.

The Bible’s Impact on Human Rights

We are all made in the image of God. This is what makes our worth and our dignity inherent and inseparable from who we are, whether governments recognize human rights or not. We do not have rights because we deserve them; we do not have rights because we have earned them; we do not have rights because we are white or black, male or female, American or Chinese. We have rights because each of us is made in the image of God and therefore has inherent worth and dignity.

What Is True Liberty?

Today many of us assume that freedom means getting to do whatever we want. Any restrictions on our behavior — whether from the state, the church, or some other person — violate our freedom. And, for many of us, freedom above all means the liberty to sin.

Having Fruitful Conversations When You are in Majority Culture

As a majority-culture person, the first point of discussion is allowing people to define the conversation differently than you. That may be difficult for men like me—some people have been members of the cultural majority their entire lives and know nothing else. They might be completely blind to their privilege or the many advantages that their status has brought them.

How Many Protestant Churchgoers Actually Read the Bible Regularly?

I always find theses stats fascinating.