Author: Fred Shope

Posted on

Following Jesus: Part 1

When Jesus called people to follow him, they understood that he was calling them to spend time with him, to listen to him, and to learn to relate to God as he did. For Jesus, this meant seeing God as Father and following God’s commands. Jesus did something a bit different than the other rabbis though. He went to the spirit of the Law rather than just the letter. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught that the Law went beyond actions all the way to the heart. Jesus then took the entire Law and boiled it down to two commands; love God with every fiber of your being, and love others as you love yourself. And then, Jesus gave us the new command to love our brothers and sisters as he loved us.

I believe that these two things sum up what it means to follow Jesus. We love God with all our hearts, with all our souls, with all our minds, and with all our strength. We spend time with our Father, we learn what is important to him and those things become important to us. We seek his Kingdom above everything else. This involves far more than just reading and even studying the Bible, although that is an important part of it. It involves far more than just hearing sermons and Bible lessons, although that too is important.

We live in a world that asks us to love other things in place of God. There are a number of things that clamor for our affections and allegiance. These things all present a vision of the good life, a vision of a kingdom. Like the Sirens, these things try to draw us into the treacherous rocks where ships run aground and are destroyed. I want to look at that in a future post.

May God help us to love him and follow his Son as our King.

Posted on

Weekend Wanderings

We’ll, we have a new President. No matter who you voted for, it is good to see the peaceful transfer of power continue as it has for over two hundred years. It’s wet here this weekend. Hopefully it won’t get too cold anytime soon.

Without further ado, here are the links:

Why we don’t like hypocrites.
Interesting article.
This could be a problem.
Evidently this is  a big problem.
Making peace with stories.

Predictions that missed.
Is the gospel of success a good thing?
Human touch is important.
So, is globalism really the problem?
Food as medicine.

This is pretty cool.
Top questions about heaven.
Good post from Brad Gray.
Beauty in continuity.
Money in the heart.

All about the experience?
Is your gospel tiny?
A classic post from Michael Spencer.
Four things to watch for.
Idolizing power.

Have a blessed week!

Posted on

Weekend Wanderings

This week is the last week of President Obama’s terms in office. Some are sad he is leaving, while others are glad. At times like this, when the office changes hands, should remind us that no matter who is in the White House, Jesus is on the throne. We have a King that will never give up the rule.

On to the good stuff:

Where it’s hardest to be a Christian.
Julie Roys reviews Silence.
Another review of Silence.
Empathy.
Remaining faith.

Lauren R.E. Larkin on a free gift.
This is a bit odd.
Now we know what the Pope thinks of “fake news.”
Feel like God is silent?
3D gospel.

Scott Davis on the Lord’s Supper.
Good words from Philip Yancey.
Jared C. Wilson on love and hate.
Chaplain Mike is dreaming.
David Fitch reviews You Are What You Love.

The end of Christmas.
Unexpected inheritance.
Bob Edwards on half truths.
Keith Giles on revival.
How to get along with others?

Have a blessed week!

Posted on

Blast From the Past: Light

This was first posted on August 25, 2009.

Sunday morning we were talking about 1 John 1:5 , where John declares that God is light. That verse is one of the few times where Scripture says God is something. It’s hard for me to imagine pure light with no darkness at all. God is light, and that light is so pure that it is impossible for one of us to see God and live. Maybe taking the idea of staring at the sun and multiplying it by infinity might approach the idea of God being light, but probably not.

Now think of Adam and Eve in the Garden before the Fall, spending their time in God’s presence. They walked and talked with their Creator. Were they pure enough to be able to see the glory of God and still live? I think that they were, even though I can’t wrap my tiny brain around that. Unfortunately, that purity and close relationship was broken by sin, and people could no longer stand to see God. Moses only saw the afterglow of God’s presence and had to put a veil on because the people couldn’t even stand to look on that reflection of God’s glory.

Then along comes Jesus, the One called the Light of the world. He revealed the Father to us and abolished the barrier between us and God by his death, burial, and resurrection. Now we are the light of the world. Think about what that means. If people are to see the glory of God, they will see it in those of us who follow Jesus. Jesus said that people don’t take a light and hide it, but rather allow it’s light to shine. In the same way, we are not to hide the light of God that is in us, but we are to live our lives in such a way that people see God in us.

I believe that we let our light shine by taking it where the darkness is. If you light a candle outside on a sunny day, there is not much light seen from that candle. In the same way, if the only time we shine is when we are with other followers of Jesus, our light is not going to be as bright. We also can’t sit behind walls and lob “truth grenades” at those outside and expect any light to be seen. We need to shine where those living in darkness can see God’s light in us.

Posted on

Weekend Wanderings

It’s chilly here in the sunny South. A snowstorm dropped a decent amount of snow not too far from us, but we only ended up with a dusting. The NFL playoffs begin this weekend, so I imagine a lot of folks are going to be spending a bit of time in front of their televisions. My favorite teams are out so I’ll be watching just to see some hopefully good football.

Enough small talk. On to the good stuff:

Stop worrying!
Love, or a lack thereof.
Op ed by Jonathan Edwards, of all people.
Good post from Chad West.
The hyper-examined life.

This shows some promise.
The monks of Mount Athos.
The birth of brunch.  
Leaders or lemmings?
A terrible loyalty.

Cool new electronics.
Classic post from Michael Spencer.
Guessing wrong.
Keith Giles on cultural blind spots.
Conversational bodies.

2016 in pictures.
Jonathan Storment on seeing the cross.
Wagging tongues.
Good post from Adam Morton.
This may not have been such a good idea.

Have a blessed week!

Posted on

Church Signs: “A Church Alive…

…Is Worth the Drive.”

This was on the sign in front of a church just down the road from our house. Now, I have no firsthand knowledge of how “alive” this church is, so I won’t address that. My issue is more with the idea of making a (possibly long) drive to a church.

When Jan and I were in the process of trying to find a church a few years ago, we visited a few churches within the metro area of which our city is a part. Most of them had good things going for them, and probably could be considered “alive” by most folks. None of them had any doctrinal issues that would have been a deal breaker.

There was one thing that steered us away from all of these churches. They were all at least a twenty to thirty minute drive from our house. While that would have been fine if all we were looking for was a Sunday morning worship service, we were looking for something quite different. We were looking for community, a place where we could serve, love, and be loved. We were looking for a group that we could join with in living as brothers and sisters who saw life together as the church as far more than just a once or twice a week meeting. We wanted a spiritual family that spent time fellowshipping and discipling as a part of day-to-day life.

We wanted to serve with the folks we worshipped with and worship with the folks we served with. We desired to be fully part of a community of faith. Fortunately, we have found that and I can’t imagine traveling one day a week to worship with people who I only see on that day.

There are a lot of folks who do prefer the drive in order to find a church which is “alive.” I know that there are churches like that who do kingdom work and truly make disciples. However, I believe that the model of smaller, parish type churches who live in community and are a part of the neighborhood where they are located are what is going to do the most work for the kingdom in the days to come. I believe that a time may come in this country when followers of Jesus will have to live in community in order to continue. It might do us good if we started now.

Posted on

Weekend Wanderings

This is the weekend we say goodbye (farewell, good riddance) to 2016 and hello to 2017. A lot of individuals departed from this life during the past year but, contrary to what seems to be public opinion, the year didn’t kill anyone. There are any number of theories as to the number of people who have died. You are welcome to pick whichever one suits you. We’ll see what comes to pass in 2017.

On to the good stuff:

See if you agree with this list of top ten films of 2016.
Be careful with those Christmas cards.
Dominick Santore on the new year.
Evidently, this almost didn’t happen.
Christmas shipwreck.

In case you go to a lot of meetings.
The myth of self control.
Another 2016 list.
Finding freedom.
Getting better?

Here is something I never noticed.
Yet another 2016 list.
Good post from Chaplain Mike.
About time!
Karl Vaters asks a good question.

Witness to the powers.
The long goodbye.
The Babylon Bee gives us their list.
Zack Hunt on 2016.

Have a blessed week!

Posted on

Just Jesus and Me?

 When I was growing up, we used to sing a song about how it was “Jesus and me” traveling the road of life together. This went right along with the idea that salvation was an individual thing and that Jesus was “my personal Savior.” While there is a sense in which God redeems us as individuals, I believe that there is much more to the work of Christ than just Jesus and me.

I no longer believe that following Jesus is just about making him your personal Savior or that the Christian life is lived individually. As I have studied Scripture I have come to believe that when God calls us and makes us his children, he is making us members of a family, a body. The word for church means a called out assembly, not a collection of separate individuals.

The idea that salvation and the Christian life is an individual thing has done damage to the body of Christ. If you look around at the Church in the United States you see the results of an individualistic faith. In many places there is a lack of commitment to the larger body. People move from church to church for various reasons. Many times folks leave because of problems in relationships. Someone has done something against them and it’s easier to simply find another church than do the hard work of repenting, forgiving, and reconciling. It seems as if many look for a place where they can be served and “fed” (whatever that means) by a weekly concert and inspirational talk. They aren’t looking for community, or they don’t understand what community entails.

We are redeemed to be part of one another. We are a body and each part of the body needs each other part. I believe the day may come when those who claim Christ will have to come together and live as one body. We will no longer have the luxury of dividing over things that are not worth dividing over. We will be forced to live in harmony, forgiving each other no matter how many times they sin against us and loving each other with a selfless love, just as Jesus loved us. Maybe we ought to start doing that now so it won’t be such a shock.

May God help us to live together as fellow children of the Father who are members of one body.

Posted on

Challenges and Opportunities

As this year draws to a close, and we enter a new year that promises to be very different, Christians in America will be faced with many challenges. Along with the challenges, there will be plenty of opportunities.

This year has been hard on the church as a whole. Deep divisions have been revealed. Along with that, there is a growing distrust of Christianity. While some of these problems are a part of the way the world naturally views followers of Jesus, others are of our own making. One challenge is to be agents of healing where there is division. For too long, we have worried more about the things that make us different rather than the things we share. I know that there are issues that are important that must be dealt with and may be cause for separation. That is not what I am talking about. Much of the time, the things we divide over have more to do with preference and style than substance.

Another challenge we face is the way we are perceived. Jesus said that we would be hated and persecuted. That is true, and I think it could very well be worse than it is now. We need to make sure that we are really being persecuted, and then if we are, that it is because we belong to Jesus and not because we are arrogant jerks. We should be known more by our love and grace than by the size of our protests or the condemnation we speak. We should be known for our allegiance to the King of Kings, and not who we voted for.

I believe that our faith itself is going to be challenged. The days of Christendom are gone. I really don’t think the incoming president will keep his promises to make Christians influential again. If he does, I think it will end up hurting the church. We can no longer expect to have government enforce our beliefs. We can probably expect to be looking more and more at a society that is indifferent to us at best, or hostile at worst. The time may be coming when we will be forced to consider whether our faith is worth all of the stuff that will be happening.

The future may be quite challenging, but it will also present the church with opportunities. As we face more hostility, we will have the opportunity to examine ourselves for the reason behind it. If it is truly because of Christ, then we can rejoice that we have been counted worthy to suffer for the gospel. If the hostility comes as a reaction to our own hostility, then we will have the opportunity to repent and become the disciples we can be. We will have the opportunity to show the truth, goodness, and beauty of Jesus. As the face of the church changes and those who are not committed to following Jesus fall away, we will have have the opportunity to show who we belong to, not by our stands on issues, or our style of worship, our our doctrinal statement, but by our love to our brothers and sisters in Christ and to our neighbors. As our influence wanes, we will have the opportunity to affect culture by speaking and living the gospel.

May God give us the grace to be people who love, who are willing to live as a spiritual family which puts others first, and who show the world that the gospel is indeed Good News.

Posted on

Advent

I’m thankful for the season of the church calendar called Advent. To me, it is a good antidote to the sometimes crazy Christmas season. This year the message of longing, hope, and anticipation resonates with me more than it has in previous years.
This has been a tough year. Ten people that I know have died this year, including my father-in-law, a dear friend, and some of my bus passengers, among others. Add to that the craziness of the political scene and other things, and I pray, “Even so, come Lord Jesus,” with more longing. As the people of Israel longed for their Messiah to come and deliver them, so I long for the King to return and set all things to right. I long for the day when all will be restored, when everything sad will become untrue.

Fortunately, along with the longing there is hope. Simeon and Anna lived with hope that the Messiah would come and their hope was rewarded. We can have hope that our Savior will return as he promised and that all our longing will be fulfilled. Because we know our Father loves us, we can live in expectancy that he will do as he has promised.

Embrace the longing, the unmet desires of the heart. Trust that all of the promises of a new creation will be kept. Celebrate the season as one who waits and hopes for the fulfillment of what our Christmas celebrations are but a dream.