Transitory Psychosis

Battle. Warfare. Struggle. All those words and many like them are used to describe the Christ-followers day-to-day fight against our all-too-human desire to think and do that which displeases God. In 21 years as a pastor, it is safe to say that the majority of questions I received from fellow believers had to do with achieving daily victory over “the old man”–the person we were before entering new life in Christ.

I won’t take time here to explain all the differences between the “religious” or self-described “spiritual” person and the true follower of Jesus Christ, but trust me, the differences are legion–both on the pages of Scripture and in the crucible of life.

In short, the true Christ-follower has experienced a spiritual rebirth, sealed by the indwelling of the Spirit of God. That event sparks a warfare–a battle between the flesh (the person we were) and the Spirit. This warfare is a day-by-day, minute-by-minute reality. Our world caters to the flesh at every turn, encouraging us to indulge it in a million ways ranging from laziness to lying, from rage to rebellion, from stealing to sexual sin.

Of course, most Christ-followers don’t fall prey to the outward sins everyone can see. We’re quite adept at keeping up the image of I’ve-got-it-all-together goodness. Still, the battle rages in private. So what’s the key to consistently winning this fight and doing what pleases God instead of what does not? In a simple phrase: Feed the spirit, starve the flesh.

When I say feed the spirit, I’m talking about engaging in those things that strengthen your relationship with Christ, bolster your resolve to do His will, fill your mind with His truth, and direct your thoughts to that which pleases Him. (See Philippians 4:8.) Starving the flesh is abstaining from those things that weaken your relationship with Christ, ease your resolve to do His will, fill your mind with the world’s “truth,” and direct your thoughts toward that which does not please Christ.

The next time you consider an entertainment, recreation, or activity ask yourself: Will this feed my spirit or feed my flesh? Then choose that which feeds the spirit.

This simple approach is not the perfect equation, but it is a step in the right direction. “Set your mind on things above,” wrote Paul (Col. 3:2). I’m convinced it is the key to winning against temptation, again and again.

I happened across a brief excerpt from musician John Mayer’s recent interview with Playboy magazine. (No, I didn’t see it in the magazine or get it from Playboy. I followed a link from a Christian ministry to get to it.) If you haven’t noticed, Mayer has dated and bragged about bedding some of the leading ladies of pop culture (actresses, singers, etc.) all of whom are very attractive. Oddly enough, none of these relationships has lasted.

WARNING: I’M GOING TO GET A LITTLE FRANK FROM HERE ON OUT, BUT THIS NEEDS TO BE SAID. I’LL BE AS DISCREET AS POSSIBLE.

In the interview, Mayer confesses to a fondness for porn. He states that with the magic of modern communication, he sometimes sees 300 pictures of naked women before he gets out of bed. He also acknowledges that he may be his own best lover.

Mayer recognizes that easy access to pornography has profoundly impacted his generation. He even admits that when he is with a real live woman, he replays his mental library of pornographic images. His conclusion seems to be that his fantasy world is better than any real world experience.

I couldn’t help but be saddened by it all. What Mayer describes is the inevitable destination to which pornography leads. Young men sometimes see porn as an enhancement to their sex lives. In reality, it is an insatiable leech. A little soon grows into a lot. It distorts the mind’s eye, turning every woman into little more than an object of momentary pleasure or disgust. Real women are measured by how they compare to the fantasy women on the page, screen, or in the mind.

It’s not something that can be easily turned off either; even when a man wants to do what is right. As many young men have discovered, marriage does not cure an addiction to pornography. And as many women can testify, no living breathing woman can measure up to the fantasy world of porn. Even after the addiction is broken, its shards work their way to the surface from time to time, bloodying relationships with fresh wounds.

The truth is, guys, if you walk this road it will take you where you don’t want to be. Porn promises to give you all, it just doesn’t tell you how bitter that all can be.

Beware, my young brothers! Proverbs 5 advises men to stay far away from the immoral woman and go nowhere near her house (verse 8). That advice rings true, even if she lives in a magazine, DVD, or website.

What do you have too little of? Ask that question to people and you’re likely to get answers like money, time, sleep, or love. While I can relate on all counts, I’m convinced I have an even greater need: wisdom. I don’t think I’m alone, either.

The book of Proverbs is all about wisdom–how to get it, how to keep it, and how to use it. Interestingly, wisdom is often personified as a woman (“she”) in Proverbs. (Maybe Solomon was trying to tell us something, guys.) Proverbs is clear about the value of wisdom. I won’t take time to write out the verses, but grab a Bible and look at what gaining true wisdom (the kind God gives) will do for you.

1. Wisdom will make you happy (3:13). It will raise the level of joy and satisfaction in your life.
2. Wisdom is more valuable that riches (3:14-15). Nothing compares with it.
3. Wisdom will give you a long life (3:16a).
4. Wisdom will bring you riches and honor (3:16b). These riches are measured in more than money.
5. Wisdom results in pleasantness and peace (3:17). Sin causes turmoil. Wisdom calms the seas.
6. Wisdom gives you courage (3:21-24). That’s because the wise trust God!
7. Wisdom enables you to be victorious (21:22). To the wise, no obstacle is too great.
8. Wisdom brings deliverance (28:26). It sets us free from bondage.

For these reasons and many more, growing in wisdom should be the goal of every believer. So how do you know if you are wise? More about that later…

A newspaper editor told me once, “Words are little bombs.” He’s right. Words have the ability to set off huge explosions, devastating anyone nearby. They also have the ability to frame a discussion to the advantage of one side or the other.

Another term I see a lot these days is progressive. It’s often used in political discussions, almost always in reference to the liberal side. Lately, I’m seeing it in discussions regarding the work of the church. One side, usually the one advocating change, refers to itself as progressive. The other side is usually termed conservative, but I get the idea that some who consider themselves progressive would really like to call the others regressive.

Of course, by definition, progressive refers to that which is relating to or characterized by making progress. Certainly those who adopt that label want to think their agenda is all about moving forward. I’m finding, however, that some who call themselves progressives are not moving forward but away from. For instance, some who advocate the ordination of homosexuals are quick to call themselves progressive. In reality, they are moving away from the truth. Likewise, some American politicians who call themselves progressives are simply moving away from the bedrock values of the United States.

Personally, I’m in favor of true progress–a move forward–toward that which is truly for the betterment (both temporal and eternal) of all people. When I see such moves, I’ll be glad to stand with the progressives. But when the move is away from the truth, I’ll gladly stand with those who seek to preserve it.

In the meantime, let’s be cautious in the way we choose and use our terminologies. Especially in the church, we must be fair in not only what we say about our brethren but what our terms imply about them as well.

I read with interest an article regarding a Stanford University study on multitasking. (Read it here.) Like most people in my age bracket, I was taught early on to do one thing and complete it before moving on to the next. With the absence of cell phones, the Internet, Facebook, and a lot of other modern information streams that wasn’t too difficult–provided I had the self-discipline to turn off the radio and TV.

Fast forward a few years to the contemporary world. Today we are inundated with non-stop streams of information coming at us from all sides. The old saw about men and television is that men don’t want to know what is on TV, they want to know what else is on TV. In other words, men don’t just sit and watch one thing. They constantly click the remote to other channels (or games) to see if they are missing something that might be better. Of course, I’ve learned that men aren’t the only ones affected by that virus. Women do it too.

The problem is that as information streams multiply, the remote virus seems to spread. We seem to feel an irresistible urge to mentally “change the channel” every so often. We seem to feel a need to know what is going on in the world (Internet), in the lives of our friends (Facebook), and even in the lives of people we haven’t seen in years or wouldn’t pick up the phone to call. In fact, there is even an urge to know what is going on in the lives of people we’ve never even met (Twitter).
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In recent days a unanimous decision by the Iowa Supreme Court has legalized gay marriage in that state. Conservative Iowans are outraged and it is possible the decision will eventually be voided by an amendment to the state constitution. The process for getting such an amendment on the ballot is lengthy, however, requiring any proposed amendment to first pass in the state legislature in two consecutive sessions.

For now, at least, Iowa joins Vermont and Massachusetts as states where gay marriage is legal. (California’s Supreme Court ruled in a similar fashion, but an amendment to the state constitution was passed in November effectively outlawing gay marriage. That amendment is being challenged in court.)

The reaction to the gay marriage issue seems to be rather ho-hum among many Christians. What difference does it make? Does it really matter if we place gay marriage on-par with heterosexual marriage? After all, to oppose gay marriage often results in being portrayed in the press as hateful and bigoted, so why not ignore it and focus on things that are more important? However, Christians (and non-Christians alike) need to understand that this IS a big deal . . . perhaps bigger than you ever imagined.
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This week I’ve posted about my definition of success: Success is doing God’s will, God’s way, in God’s timing. That definition, of course, raises the question: How do we know the will of God? That’s what the previous post began to address. (If you’ve missed those posts, you may want to go back and read them.)

We’ve looked at two means by which Christians can determine God’s will: His Word (the Bible), and His Spirit (the Holy Spirit). Let’s look at two more.

3. God sometimes reveals His will through His people. There are times when God has spoken through His people to reveal His will. In a sense, this is really the Holy Spirit speaking through people to reveal God’s will. Acts 21 provides one example when Agabus delivered to Paul the news of the imprisonment that awaited him at Jerusalem (verses 10-12). Because of human frailty and fallibility, I list this third among the means God uses to reveal His will. Human beings, even Christians, can be influenced by other factors and give us a bum steer at times. In Acts 21, if Paul had listened to his friends, he would’ve avoided imprisonment by not going to Jerusalem (verses 12-14). Had he done so, he would’ve missed the opportunity to take the gospel to the high-ranking officials in Rome and we would’ve been deprived of the rich epistles he wrote in prison. When seeking the will of God, we should listen to the counsel of good and godly brethren, but we must evaluate it based on the revelation found in the Word of God. (more…)

In my previous two posts I’ve stated a definition of success: Success is doing God’s will, God’s way, in God’s timing. That definition has helped me over the years. If that definition of success is correct, it is obviously of utmost importance that we know the will of God so we can do it. So how do we know the will of God?

From Scripture, it would appear God reveals His will to us by four different means: His Word (the Bible), His Spirit (the Holy Spirit), His people (our Christian brothers and sisters), and our circumstances. For practical purposes, I see a degree of hierarchy in these four means. Let’s look at each one briefly.
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I said yesterday that success is doing God’s will, in God’s way, in God’s timing. So how do we determine God’s will? The answer to that question seems to vary with who is doing the talking. But before I give you my answer, let me mention how God’s will is NOT to be determined.

1. A sense of peace. You’ve probably heard it said that you can know God’s will by the fact that you will have peace about the decision(s) you have made. While that’s a popular assertion, it is not an effective way to determine God’s will because it depends upon ourselves and our feelings. Our feelings, perceptions, and emotions are notoriously unreliable. Have you ever made a wrong turn with full confidence you were going the right way? A sense of “peace” can come from a variety of circumstances having nothing to do with the will of God. Making a decision (even a wrong) one can bring “peace” because the inner conflict has been resolved. Giving in to a persistent temptation can bring “peace” for the same reason. Want a temporary sense of “peace,” go ahead and say what you think, run off with the person you’re attracted to even if he or she is someone else’s spouse, or return to your former lifestyle of sin. All will provide a temporary, albeit quite false, sense of “peace.”
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Everybody I know wants to be successful. Nobody I know seriously desires to fail. The problem is that we aren’t always very good at defining our terms–especially among the followers of Christ.

To the secular mind, success is pretty easy to measure: sell more, buy more, achieve more, make more, etc. The trappings of success are pretty simple too–the corner office, the important title, the right house in the right part of town, the luxury automobile, the ability to influence the right people, etc.

Even in the church world, the measure of success seems pretty simple to some: nickels and noses. The “successful” church has larger offerings and larger attendance than “average.” The more churches that rank beneath yours, the more successful you are.
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