So Who Exactly Is This Doug Sauder Guy?

I won’t soon forget the conversation I had with him.  Standing outside by the resort pool with my wife attending Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale’s annual Married Couple’s Retreat, we took the opportunity to catch up with some friends from our former church.  Both of us Florida natives, my wife and I had just recently moved to the mountains of North Carolina to start a new chapter in our lives.  Prior to our move, the checklist of “essentials” was pretty slim: Employment, School & Church (in no particular order).  Within no time, we had covered two-thirds of these necessities and were still on the lookout for #3.  However, what we thought would easily be a slam dunk in the heart of the Bible Belt proved to be more difficult than it seemed.  All we had to do was find a new church.  How hard could it be?  It didn’t have to be a clone of Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale.  It didn’t need to be as big or have as many ministries.  Just a new home where my and my family’s walk with Jesus could continue to thrive.  But we were having a difficult time finding it.

So I set out to do what any God-loving leader of his family would do. Pray Fast Recruit a pastor to plant a great church in my area. 

Doug was a perfect choice.  He was a great teacher, had an awesome family and was seemingly primed to take the next step in ministry leadership and plant his own vision somewhere throughout the country.  Why not ask him?  I mean, who doesn’t want to move to the mountains these days? “Hey Doug. Take a look at this.  Everyone’s doing it. Take a hit of that Appalachian Air.  Feels good, huh?” Well, that’s not exactly how it went.  I don’t think I sounded to him like a travel agent/drug dealer but that might as well have been what I said because he didn’t take the bait.

Shot down.

My wife and I spent some time in conversation with him, and in that conversation we mentioned that we were desperate for a good Bible teaching church in Asheville.  “We need a great pastor who gets how to do ministry well…. Someone like you, perhaps?”  While Doug’s response was humble, he was clear that it was not on his radar.

“My wife would like the mountains, but I’m a Florida boy.”

“Sounds great, but I like the chaos of the big city.”

“I’m so happy with the work I’m doing here.”

Blah, blah, blah.

Can you believe this guy?  I could have offered him keys to the Biltmore Estate and Billy Graham’s home phone number and he would have turned me down.  Your loss, Pastor Doug!

So what does he end up doing for the past 10 years or so?  Exactly what he had been doing. Wait, what?  Yep.  The man who was helping build one of South Florida’s most successful foster care ministries kept doing that – his job.  Didn’t he get the memo?  Doesn’t he know that once you earn the title of associate Pastor that you’re supposed to plan your next step?  You’ve got to get the prayer calendar, mark the moving date and pray about where God is leading you to be the main man.  It’s all in the Bible (somewhere).  And I’m certain that the calendar states that you have to move at least 3 states away from where you are (read: North Carolina).  Well, somehow he read that to mean “Go down the street”, “Go next door”, or simply “Go do your job” – which is what he did.  Kept his head down and focused on the mission God had given him, which was to provide a safe, loving home for every foster care child in Broward County.

Well, he at least wrote a book, right? Nope.

He’s got an inspirational blog? Wrong again.

He has a copyrighted website?  You check: www.dougsauder.com

He tweets inspirational sayings? No.

He tweets sarcastic sayings? Not that I’m aware of.

Well how the heck is this guy ever going to make a name for himself?

Which is exactly the point.  I don’t think he ever cared to.  Which makes his taking the lead in one of America’s largest churches all the more amazing and inspirational.  In a day and age when self-promotion is everything, Pastor Doug never sought to be more known than the God he serves.  In a time when I’m certain many young pastors would salivate at such a job opening, I am hard-pressed to imagine him pushing his way to the front of the pack.  Because, while I don’t know much about leading a foster care organization, there is one thing I’m sure of: Each day is a reminder of a problem that you’re working to solve.  Every day is another family whose life you have to work to help make right.  Every day you lay eyes on another child caught up in a system of difficulty and desperation.  It’s not exactly a role that lends itself to a lot of ministerial fist-bumps.

And yet, looking back on the foster care situation in Broward County over the last 10+ years, you see evidence not of a dent, but of an asteroid strike:

Pictured: Pastor Doug Sauder

That is what the scientific community likes to refer to as OhMyGoodnessWhatHappenedHere!

But I’m not sure if any of you would ever know this.  Because until there is no bar on the right side of that graph, I don’t think Pastor Doug would ever feel satisfied.  That’s just the kind of leader he is (my words, not his).

So while the body of Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale moves into a new chapter, I have nothing but confidence in who has taken the reins.  If Pastor Bob was the celebrity pastor, then Pastor Doug is the anti-celebrity pastor.  I’d make a better witty cultural reference to him but that would be doing him a grave disservice.  Because while many a pastor would love to be seen and heard more, Doug is the guy you’ll want to follow.  In all honesty, I can’t think of a better or more humble leader to stand behind.

But if you’re not thoroughly blessed by Doug’s leadership, teaching & humility, my offer to the mountains still stands.

What Are You Going To Do About Bob?

A few days ago, a community of people was shocked and left uncertain about their leader’s fate.  It was a difficult Sunday and it will take months for thousands of people to understand the full ramifications.

That’s right.  For a brief moment, the watching world paused their Netflix, turned off their Xboxes and silenced their smart phones to watch the public shame of a man whose transgressions had come to light.  Christians cried.  Bloggers blogged.  Heathens… well, they kept doing what heathens do.  Keep in mind, the revelation of this scandal was happening mere hours before the season premiere of Game of Thrones so scandal mongers had very little time to brush up on their biblical understanding of church discipline.  But, nonetheless, many were able to properly decipher Paul’s 2,000 year-old letters to Timothy and Titus in the most accurate way that applies to the megachurch culture of the 21^st century before weighing in.  The world has debated for decades over whether Batman can beat Superman (Answer: No!) or which Enterprise Captain was best (Answer: Picard!).  But understanding God’s perfect view on the sins of man?  Piece of cake.   Welcome to America, 2014!

America loves scandal.  We love to watch with fistfuls of popcorn the implosion of notable personalities.  We love to see paparazzi photos and mug shots depicting those who have graced the limelight in their true nature.  We did it with Tiger.  We did it with Mel.  And now we get to do it with Bob.  A man who spent 30 years putting his life on display, declaring true & false and black & white, now is shown to have lived in the grey.  While the hi-def spiritual train wreck goes on in front of us, we all just sit there and observe.  Some shake their heads in disgust, some point their fingers in disdain, some open their arms in love, and others just clinch their hands and pray.  But EVERYONE has an opinion.  You can count on it.  And the reason that we have opinions is because Pastor Bob had opinions – very strong opinions.  Pastor Bob (I’ll still call him Pastor Bob – deal with it!) has spent the majority of his adult life standing before the crowds and making declarations.  They were unwavering, they were bold and they were inspired.  He spoke an unchanging message to a changing world and never blinked.  He never moved with the tide.  He never budged.  The reason that many people now have a problem with Bob Coy’s standards is not because he defied them, but because he dared to have them in the first place.

Ultimately, that’s the problem – standards.  Standards get us in trouble because when we declare them, we’re accountable to them.  Bob’s “moral failing” is only a “moral failing” because he pastored a church that taught what a “moral failing” was.  Had he simply been a nobody without a pulpit, we’d never care.  In fact, we wouldn’t bat an eye.  He’d just be one more guy who’s cheated on his wife.  The more salacious, the more likely he’d have a reality TV show on MTV (Oh wait, wrong demographic) TLC.  As long as he never said it was wrong, the world wouldn’t be calling him wrong.  But since he did, 30 years of impeccable service gets wrapped up into one word: Hypocrite.

There you have it.  That one word is the issue for so many.  Pastor Bob did what he said was wrong to do.  Thus, by doing it, he must have been lying about it being wrong.  So he should have never said it was wrong to do because his actions would soon speak louder than his words?  That’s the issue with being a Christian.  We proclaim the ways of Jesus, which happen to be righteous and godly and holy.  We point to a better way.  But we are all flawed humans who regularly screw up and often fail to live the better way we proclaim.  Thus the world labels us hypocrites.  So many of us conclude that we should just stop declaring right and wrong in order to avoid being thrown into the den of hypocrites.  Isn’t that just what Satan wants us to do?  Just shut up.  Stop talking about sin because we can’t measure up to our own standards.

And when something like this happens, we all take our own doctrinal backgrounds, traditions, and opinions and make conclusive statements about everything from false sheep to restoration to proper biblical punishment – all from the comfort of our living room (or parent’s basement as the case may be).  We question his salvation, his repentance, and the authenticity of everything he ever said.  You know who else is likely questioning his salvation, his repentance, and his authenticity?  Pastor Bob!  What? You thought he was merely mad that he got caught?  You think he’s drinking espresso and getting a tan in Southern California while the rubble of his sin is sifted through in South Florida?  You need to have your head examined.  If he belongs to Christ and has the Holy Spirit dwelling in him, right now, his spirit is wrestling with everything from his children’s opinion of him, the sincerity of his faith, his relationship with God, to even if he is really saved (Answer: He is – deal with it!).  I’m not even going to mention how he feels about what he did to his wife – that’s a whole other issue.  And you know how I know that?  Because so did I.  I’ve fallen, been disgraced, and shamed my family.  I’ve pressed the red button on my life and let the bomb go off. It sucks.  It’s agonizing.  I don’t wish it on anyone, and I certainly don’t wish it on him.  So while the rest of you continue to contemplate, ridicule, chastise, or even celebrate, I will leave you with some parting thoughts, categorized for your convenience:

To the Heathen:

Congratulations! Another notch in your belt.  One more prominent man of faith undone by his own actions.  It wasn’t a set up, he wasn’t framed and there’s no smoking gun.  And you know what that wins you? Absolutely nothing! His undoing doesn’t make you one inch closer to God.  Ironically, Pastor Bob’s sin doesn’t move him one inch further away from God (deal with it!).  You may not think it’s fair, and you’re right.  For all of us, fair is hell.  Literally.  We’re all sinners.  We’re all unworthy.  We’re all damned.  Except that One Guy.  You see, you know what the beauty is in Pastor Bob’s undoing?  Not only does it declare how imperfect every man is, but it all the more declares how perfect Jesus is.  You want to keep bringing the spiritual elite down to your level?  Go ahead.  But the more you drive a wedge between man and Jesus, the more you establish His perfection and our need for a Savior.  The more you make equal the playing field of man, the more you see Jesus in a whole different league.  The more you display man’s unholiness, the more Jesus reveals His perfection.  So keep at it.  You’re only hurting yourself.

Ultimately, you simply show your true nature as being your own god – and man does he have lax standards!  That’s okay.  A god without many standards doesn’t have much to offer.

To the Blogger:

Oh the blogger!  How I long to be one of you.  How I’d love to have nothing but time to sit down and spew random thoughts out in 1’s and 0’s.  But alas, I have a life.  And a wife and 3 kids.  And they don’t eat on retweets and Facebook shares.  Nope, we actually have to go out in this world and do something and make a difference.  What’s that you type?  You ARE making a difference?  Well I stand corrected then.  I didn’t know an online Dungeons & Dragons strategy guide could ease the pain of third-world starvation.

Of course, who I am actually speaking to is the religious blogger.  We in the church culture know them well.  A lot of opinions but not a lot of disciples.  A lot of ways to make the church better but not any churches.  A lot of commentary on the Bible but a lack of any spiritual authority.  Yes, that blogger.  That blogger has figured out everything that is wrong with 21^st century Christianity and knows how to fix it.  They live in a revisionist history mindset and they always know better.  Much like the way any couch potato says 10 years later that they knew Ryan Leaf would be an NFL draft bust, they get to write things after the fact and simply say “I told you so.”  But just like the way no NFL team is calling to ask you to be their GM, no Christians are calling you to ask for counsel.  And much like how they always know better ways to be the hands and feet of Jesus (those hands do a lot of typing), they knew exactly what was wrong with Pastor Bob and what led to his downfall.  The most prominent answer I’ve heard in the blogosphere? Celebrity.

Yes, Pastor Bob’s sin really stems from an ego fueled by his need for mega-stardom.  The modern-day celebrity pastor.  You know who else craves celebrity? BLOGGERS!  What, you think I was fooled into thinking you write your stuff for you?  It’s ironic how we can live in a world where we are judged based on our Twitter followers or Facebook likes and then call a man who began his church during the Reagan administration a celebrity junkie.  We can create viral memes in less time than it took Pastor Bob to decide where he’d have his first church service in Fort Lauderdale.  Blog posts go global in minutes with hashtags.  Pastor Bob had to go door-to-door and invite strangers to church – in a funeral home! Bloggers achieve notoriety with Google Analytics.  Pastor Bob did it with a mullet.  The only reason that Bob Coy is famous is because he was content never to be.  Having celebrity doesn’t mean you crave celebrity.  You know why you’re always quoting old-school Christians like C.S. Lewis, Oswald Chambers and Matthew Henry?  Because they are famous.  Billy Graham? Famous.  If any of you met him you’d take a selfie with him and share it on Twitter #IMetBillyGraham.  These Christians are famous.  But I don’t know that any of them surrendered their lives to serving Christ for the sake of fame.

Just because you live in a church culture that Pastor Bob was a part of building doesn’t mean he’s responsible for everything right or wrong with it.  Much in the same way that Steve Jobs developed one of the most revolutionary products ever, and you use it to download music and play Candy Crush.  You don’t get the right to retroactively label a man simply because he is more known than someone else.  He had the same call as every other pastor who went into ministry.  And he excelled at it.  His mantra was “Until The Whole World Hears” and he’s done everything he can to fulfill that mission.  Your mantra is what exactly?  At the end of the day, I will align myself with his 30-year ministry history long before I align myself with you and one week of your internet history.

To the Church:

Where do I begin?  Over the past days, I have seen so much of what is right and beautiful and also what is so wrong and disheartening.  But the fact of the matter is that everything wrapped up in Bob’s sin should lead you to ask yourself one question: ‘What am I going to do about it?’

You see, in case you forgot, that instruction book you carry with you on Sundays is meant to accomplish something within you.  And yet, for a book whose central character is a holy God who wrapped himself in flesh and came to us to die for our sins, it sure does have a supporting cast of very screwed up characters.  And that’s the point.  The people who God used to challenge and shape us are both wise and weird, holy and heathens, barbaric and believers, courageous and cowardly (anyone notice my Pastor Bob alliteration?).  God wasn’t just interested in telling us what to do, He was also interested in showing us what NOT to do.  We read it all the time and yet I’m convinced it hasn’t sunken in.  Follow David in his courage against Goliath, but don’t follow him when he does the whole Bathsheba thing.  Take a vow of purity like Samson, but don’t wake up with your hair in a loom.  Make a bold declaration that Jesus is Lord like Peter, but don’t make a cowardly denial of Him later on.  Do's and don’ts.  So I ask you again, what are you going to do about it?

Probably the biblical poster child for disobedience has to be Jonah.  God gives him explicit instructions of what to do and then he goes and does the opposite.  Pretty straightforward, right?  And yet, throughout all of Jonah’s disobedience, God’s will is still accomplished.  Fishermen get saved.  Nineveh gets saved.  Heck, even the cattle get saved!  There’s so much awesomeness accomplished out of Jonah’s disobedience you might begin to think that God knew that all along.  So what’s the moral to Jonah’s story?  Simple.  Obey.  Obey when God tells you to do something.  If you disobey, it doesn’t mean the instructions change.  Repent and obey.  God’s heart for us is to obey Him and only Him.  Ultimately, the line between disobedience and obedience is usually about punishment and consequences – two words we the Church often get mixed up.  So I want to take a moment to examine the difference between punishment and consequence.

Let me ask you, when Jesus said that if your right hand causes you to sin to cut it off, did He mean it?  Seriously, was it some sort of spiritual hyperbole or was he serious as a heart attack?  Of course he was serious.  But he was also serious about His love for us.  Serious enough to die for us.  And that love for us meant that we would avoid the punishment for our sin (meaning we get to go to heaven - with 2 hands intact).  But it was never meant to imply that we would avoid the consequences of our sin.  The Bible says that there is no condemnation for those who are in Jesus Christ, but it doesn’t say there is no consequence.  And if there is one thing Christians hate, it’s consequences.  Consequences mean that we have to endure some sort of negative response attached to the sins we’ve committed.  It could be a label (divorce’, ex-con, abuser, etc.) or it could be a blemish (physical scars, poverty, disease, etc.).  When David tried to have Uriah sleep with Bathsheba and ultimately had him killed, you think he was avoiding punishment?  Who is going to punish the king? You? Me?  No, David didn’t want to have to deal with the consequences of his behavior.  And yet, we all do it.  How many of us freely confess our indiscretions immediately upon doing them?  Exactly.  Because if we did that all the time we’d look like an idiot, pervert, or an idiot-pervert.  Instead we cast our sins upon Jesus and pray no one ever knows about our private potential for depravity.  Is this meant to excuse Pastor Bob for his action? Absolutely not.  The fact is that once he committed the first action that disqualified him from pastoral leadership he was stuck.  Unlike you and me, he can’t simply confess to Jesus and move forward.  Biblically, he will endure a consequence that Mr. John P. Churchgoer will not because of the position he holds.  If he doesn’t step down immediately, he’s destined to try to cover it up and move on.  This (and the covering up of all sin) wears away at a man.  It eats him alive.  Somehow he tries to find balance between the God that he loves and the lie that he lives.  It’s tortuous.  It’s impossible.  But enough about me.  Eventually, we end up right where we are now.  And yet this is not just Bob’s problem – it’s every Christian’s problem.  Because now, we are all presented with a choice.  We can choose to honestly look upon the consequences of our sin and use it as a lesson to steer clear of it, or we can continue in our foolishness and just deal with the consequence when it comes.  And believe me, it will come.  Is it possible that Pastor Bob’s current situation could actually teach you more than one of his sermons did?  Could it cause you to confess, come clean, and find freedom before you end up in the same predicament? I hope so.  Because I know first-hand the kind of freedom that comes from dealing with your bondage head-on.  And I also know that sometimes the consequences are the biggest blessings.

   

So I’ll ask again, what are you going to do about it?

Unfortunately, many ‘trendy’ Christians will simply use this experience as a means to belittle the corporate church.  So many of them are concerned about being relevant that they neglect to be reverent.  Being hip is more important than being holy.  “We gotta be cultural” – because that’s what Jesus would do.  And therein lies the problem.  We’ve programmed ourselves to constantly bring Jesus down to our level.  In an effort to extend love to the world, the world gets what they want.  Rarely do I hear people consider what they should do and say, “Let’s see what God’s Word says about it.”  We bring emotion into times that require strength and steadiness.  I’ve heard a lot of Christians tell CCFL to bring back Bob.  After all, he’s confessed.  He’s repentant.  You know what CCFL should do?  Exactly what they did.  Not because it was easy, but because it was right.  Not because man cried out for it, but because God calls for it.  That’s the beauty of biblical leadership – you can always justify your actions according to God’s word.  Of course I hear a lot of cultural Christians try to use the Bible to justify their entry into the local beer pong tournament, but I’ll leave them alone in their stupidity.

The fact is that the beauty of Christianity is also its curse – Jesus takes everybody! Rich or poor, man or woman, spotless or blemished – everyone is open to accept Christ.  Jesus’ initial invitation to the disciples to follow him was not exclusionary, yet only a handful accepted the opportunity to be exclusive.  But the call to follow was also a call to arms.  In order to truly follow Jesus one would have to deny himself, battle his flesh and choose the riches of eternity over the riches of the present.  No small task, and Jesus was well aware of it.  And still, for every dropout and doubter who came along his path, the message of Jesus stayed the same – ‘Follow Me.’  So even though every disciple faltered along their 3-year endeavor, Jesus stayed close to them and spurred them on towards greatness.  The more the followers of Jesus failed, the more the public was reminded who was the One to be followed.  The more promises that the disciples couldn’t keep, the more Jesus showed that He wouldn’t break His promises to us.

Our failures don’t define us.  They refine us.  They should push us to fight harder, pray more fervently, hate sin deeper and love Jesus greater.  But only if we choose to learn from them.  Will you look like a hypocrite when you declare something is sin, even when you’ve committed it?  Absolutely.  Does that mean you shouldn’t declare it?  Absolutely not.  Remember Peter, the guy who walked on water?  He’s also the guy who defied the governing authority when he cut off that dude’s ear who was arresting Jesus.  Not his finest moment.  And yet, he’s also the guy who later tells us to obey the government.  Yep, another godly hypocrite.  Somehow I don’t think Peter gives a rip.  You know why?  Because when he blew it he went back into the fishing business.  No more ministry for him.  One and done.  Jesus would be an idiot to ask the guy who denied him hours before his death to go back into ministry.  And yet, that’s exactly what he did.  You think Peter ever wants to feel that way again?  Neither do I.  All he cares about is following his Lord – all the way to an upside-down cross.

So, what are you going to do about Bob?  What are you, the reader, going to do about what Bob did?  Let me ask it another way.  What do you do about what David did?  What do you do about what Samson did?  What do you do about Paul, Adam, Moses, etc.?  Does reading about David’s sin with Bathsheba cause you to simply feel bad for him or does it cause you be faithful to your wife? Install an internet filter? Does reading about Samson’s compromise cause you worry about losing your hair, or does it cause you to keep a vow?  Do you want to enter the Promised Land, or will you strike the rock?  What do you want to do?  Because if you keep reading the Bible as if it’s only inspiration and not also words of caution, then we’re destined to repeat Bob’s fall.  But if we’re serious about our faith, we’ll stop just praying for Bob and get our own act together.  Because it’s possible that the greatest, most life-changing sermon Pastor Bob ever preaches contains no words, covers no scripture and isn’t followed by an altar call.

So, what are you going to do about Bob?

To Drink or Not to Drink: The Great Alcohol Debate

I’ve never heard the testimony of the newly sober man whose life was positively transformed through the consumption of alcohol. I’ve never heard the story of the family of 5 whose lives were saved because of the quick-thinking actions of another driver who just had a little alcohol before getting behind the wheel. And I’ve never heard of the mother whose child was born healthier because of the nightly glass of wine she drank while pregnant.

Why do I make these obvious statements? Because the subject of alcohol seems to be a hot topic for debate in my social circles recently – particularly among Christians. Some say alcohol consumption is fine and is no different than anything else used for recreational enjoyment as long as it is not abused. Others say alcohol is evil and there is no place for its consumption in the life of a Christ-follower. I personally don’t think either position is right. One seems irresponsible at best, while the other seems legalistic and biblically inaccurate. It’s one of those “gray areas” that the Bible doesn’t cheer or condemn. I think if we’re going to come to a reasonable conclusion about alcohol – as with any gray issue - we need to look deeper at the spiritual implications and what God’s word is conclusive about. Making a personal determination about alcohol for ourselves is based more on wisdom, maturity, and our understanding of God’s desires for His people than on a general blanket statement or position.

Before I go any further, let me preface with this: I do not believe that absolute abstinence from alcohol is a must for all Christians. The Bible doesn’t make that claim, and any time humans make up a rule that God doesn’t, it’s legalism – and I’m strongly opposed to legalism in any form. I have enjoyed a beer on occasion, and my wife enjoys an occasional glass of wine with our dinner. I am not one who believes that every sip of alcohol is sinful, and judging someone who exercises their liberty to consume alcohol is wrong. However, with freedom comes great responsibility, and there are some serious things to consider.

While I can think of many negative effects of alcohol, I cannot say that I know of any beneficial effects. I’ve personally known alcohol consumption to lead to physical and sexual abuse, unwanted pregnancies, abortion, child neglect, car accidents, disease, injury, and death. But I can’t think of anyone I know whose life was enhanced by alcohol. It’s a multi-billion dollar industry that uses sex to sell, targets young people, and contributes to a vast array of social, medical, and fiscal problems within society. While Christians do have the liberty to consume it, I’m not sure why we would want to pour our God-given money into that industry.

I’m also not sure that our ability to represent Christ and bring others to a saving knowledge of Him is not compromised by alcohol consumption. When we put ourselves out there for public display with a sign reading Christian hanging around our neck, we are literally saying, like Paul: “Follow me as I follow Christ.” In other words, watch me as I raise my kids, watch me as I love my wife, watch me as I work my job – Watch me as I live a life differently than the world lives. The Bible is clear that we shouldn’t use our freedoms in a way that causes someone else to stumble. What if the friend, neighbor, or co-worker who is “following me as I follow Christ” was the childhood victim of an abusive alcoholic father and a broken home, and every time she sees a beer in my hand she’s reminded of that pain. Am I likely to be the one to lead her into the healing arms of my Savior? What if the newly saved guy at church used to struggle with alcoholism before he came to Christ and my enjoyment of a beer in his presence is just the temptation he needs to justify his own consumption?

The Bible says that while all things are permissible for me, not all of those things are beneficial (1 Corinthians 10:23). In other words, just because it’s allowed doesn’t mean it does any good. The Message translation says it this way: Looking at it one way you could say, “Anything goes.” Because of God’s immense generosity and grace we don’t have to scrutinize every action to see if it will pass muster. But the point is not to just get by. We want to live well, but our foremost efforts should be to help others live well. As Christians, the question is not can we do it, but should we do it. Sometimes true freedom comes in knowing that although we have liberty to partake, we choose not to, because we have all we’ll ever need in the intoxicating love of Christ, so we’re going to put others’ needs ahead of our own.

The Bible also says, “Whatever you do – whether you eat or drink – do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). If we’re to do all we do for God’s glory – meaning to make Him known and recognizable, to illustrate who He is and magnify His character – don’t we at least have to ask ourselves if consuming alcohol can be for His glory in any circumstance? Can we have a beer for His glory? At the risk of sounding sarcastic I have to ask, is there any instance where drinking a beer can assist in making God known, illustrating who He is, and magnifying His character? And if it isn’t really done for His glory, I at least think we have to consider when and how we consume it if we choose to. Having a beer in my home alone with my wife at our dinner table is not as likely to cause anyone to stumble as having one at a bar in front of strangers. Notice I said “not as likely.” It could still be stumbling block if my wife was the victim of an alcohol-induced broken home. And if my kids are watching, it just may be the reason they decide it’s not so bad to have a drink as a teenager. After all, if Daddy does it, how bad could it be? Do I really want a child I teach in children’s ministry to run over to my table at a restaurant yelling, “Hi Mr. Luke!” while I lift my beer mug to my lips? I would be ignorant if I didn’t recognize that my ability to exercise my freedom could impact others in a negative way. And even if it doesn’t impact them negatively, can I honestly say it may impact them positively? Does it bring glory to God? Again the Message translation says it so poignantly: Do everything freely and heartily for God’s glory. At the same time, don’t be callous in your freedom, thoughtlessly stepping on the toes of those who aren’t as free as you are.

It’s true that the Bible does not condemn drinking – it only condemns drunkenness. Having a drink with dinner is not a sin, but being drunk (inhibiting self-control, losing inhibitions, and coming out from under the control of the Holy Spirit) is. But it seems to me like there is a fine line between the two. How much is too much? How do you really know how far you can go without stepping over the line? Wouldn’t it just be easier if you’re trying not to fall off a cliff to just not go near the cliff at all? There is one sure way to make sure you are never drunk. After all, you can’t be drunk if you don’t consume alcohol. Sure, you can have a drink – or two – and not cross the line of drunkenness, but you guarantee not to cross that line if you have none at all. Can you guarantee that your one drink won’t lessen your inhibitions? Can you guarantee that you won’t be more susceptible to temptation should it come your way after having a drink or two? If the answer is no, wouldn’t it just be easier to not go there at all? Why get close to the cliff?

So I conclude with this thought: Can a Christian drink alcohol as long as they don’t get drunk? Sure. Is there a place for judgment in the church of those who choose to exercise their freedom by consuming alcohol – NO. But having said that, I also believe the position of abstinence is a respectable and wise one. The more I grow and mature in my faith, and the more I head into a leadership role in the church, the more I consider my own freedom to consume alcohol, and the less I decide to drink (which wasn’t that much to begin with). Why am I even talking about this? I think I am just tired of the debate. I’m tired of people standing up with their self-righteous criticism and others standing up to defend their freedom in a foolish counter-attack. The Bible doesn’t condemn cigarette smoking either, but would we be as bold to stand up in Biblical defense of smoking? Probably not. Because it would just sound silly. Let’s stop debating the issue and just start trying to live in a way that brings glory to God, puts others first, and passionately pursues wisdom. To drink or not to drink is NOT really the question.

Bulletproof Pancake

I'm a bit of an information junkie. I simply can't cram enough information into that head of mine. In fact, I pride myself on knowing trivial pieces of information for just the right time - although I can never say when that time will be. Whether it be music, movies, sports, politics or just general world information, I like to know it. However, what I really love is commentary on world happenings. I like to see political pundits talk about world events. I like to read movie reviews and "best of" lists, and I love to read the writings of sports columnists who take sporting events and elevate them to the heights of poetry. Simply put, I love to hear what people have to say about the world around us.



But...



What if a sporting event, film or song was just too magnificent for words? What if a global event could not be summarized into the alloted copy size of our newspaper? Or what if a person, upon their death, would not have justice or honor placed on them by just writing up a standard obituary?



Legendary college basketball coach John Wooden recently passed away. While I cannot say that I have much knowledge of the man and the life he lived, I did have the chance to learn about him via many daily devotionals sent to me a few years back from the Athletic Director and Chaplain of the school I used to work at. It seemed that just about any devotional relating to anything from integrity to fairness - honor to courage somehow had a mention of Coach Wooden in it. John Wooden had not only one of the greatest records in college basketball, but all of sports. Ten national championships (7 in a row), 4 perfect seasons (30-0), an 88 game winning streak, 7 Coach of the Year awards and many more accolades I can't begin to name. However, when I listened to sports writers and TV hosts recollect their memories, I didn't really hear much of those things. I heard words like 'integrity', 'faith', 'character', and most of all 'humility.' I heard stories about a devoted husband, father and grandfather. One sports writer said this about him: "The awful thing about knowing John Wooden was when you left him, you realized how weak you were as a man. Every time I left his little 700 square-foot condo in Encino, California, full of books and learning and morals, it would hit me how far short of him I fell. He made me want to be more principled." But what struck me most of all was when these prolific writers were at a loss for words. There came moments when they simply didn't know what to say. It wasn't that, if given enough time, they couldn't compose the right words. It's just that for that one moment their lives were so effected by this person that they simply couldn't speak. And yet, what was so beautiful about that one moment was how they were saying everything by saying nothing. Thousands of words were encapsulated in their lost composure. They spoke volumes with their silence.



Sometimes in the world of 24-hour news, twitter, facebook, the internet and everything else, we all feel like we have something to say. We think our thoughts are so monumental that people's lives will be deeply enriched by hearing them. We use words with more than 4 syllables, and we make sure never to repeat the same word twice in an effort to show just how much of a sesquipedalian we can be (I learned that word on wikipedia). We talk longer and more than we ever imagined and yet, for the most part, we don't really say much.



A recent trend I've noticed that has become common in the church community is people trying to envoke emotion by using their big, eloquent, poetic words to describe God. We use high and lofty literary phrases and metaphores that are sometimes so "deep" they are senseless to try to paint a picture of our Creator. We work so hard at using our limited language in new, inovative ways to portray God that we forget He is the one who gave us speech. We don't want to sing the songs that have been sung for hundreds of years because we want to say something "new" to God - even though nothing is new to God. We don't want to quote pastors from centuries ago because we want to look more educated, more philosophical, and capable of producing newer and deeper thoughts. All this goes to suppose that we think we are more than we really are when in truth, we're not much at all compared to the Almighty.



Jesus often calls Himself our shepherd. In John 10:11, Jesus says that He is the good shepherd. Now if Jesus is the shepherd, what does that make us? The answer of course is sheep. And what are sheep? That's right, sheep are stupid. Sheep by their nature do not think much for themselves and despertely need a master to maintain their survival (hence the shepherd reference) . The moment a sheep thinks it is smarter than its shepherd is probably the moment that that sheep has had its last thought.

Trying to describe an infinite God using our finite human minds is akin to climbing Everest without oxygen - we simply cannot do it. We know nothing about Him apart from what He Himself has already told us. There are simply no metaphors or analogies capable of capturing his majesty no matter how or metaphoric we try to make them. Some pastors and Christian writers put together words that don't make sense on the surface to try to imply that they have a different meaning when it comes to referring to God or Christian principles. It would be like me trying to tell you that God is like a 'bulletproof pancake.' You wouldn't get it at first glance but I would attempt to explain its meaning with deep philosophical thought, somehow relating it to God's character. In doing so, I would sound deeply in tune with God in a way that showcases my higher thought process. And you would be in enlightened.

I just think this kind of expression is unnecessary. And God must find it somewhat comical as He watches us attempt to relate Him in a way that we think is so high and lofty but must be nonsense to Him. This is the same God that according to His word we can't even look upon without dropping dead. Sometimes I don't think we grasp just how higher than us He really is.

Sometimes there is more power in our silence than in our words. Sometimes it is better to let our words be few. Ecclesiastes 5:2 says:

"Do not be quick with your mouth,
Do not be hasty in your heart
to utter anything before God.
God is in heaven and you are on earth,
so let your words be few."

Most people get a better picture of who God is through our actions than our words anyway. We need to stick to using God's own words to describe Him and letting God's character be displayed through our actions... and sometimes our silence.

That's all I have to say.