News from the Spiritual Formation Ministry

Thoughts from a devotional...

joshw@cedarcreek.tv — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:20:32 GMT

Hey guys, this is Luke Shortridge. I do a number of things in the Spiritual Formation ministry but my primary job is hanging out with college students while pointing their hearts towards Christ. I’m not exactly sure what I am going to do with this blog in the long run but for now I wanted to share something with you all from my daily devotion.

1 Corinthians 4:11-13 Even now we go hungry and thirsty, and we don’t have enough clothes to keep warm. We are often beaten and have no home. We work wearily with our own hands to earn our living. We bless those who curse us. We are patient with those who abuse us. We appeal gently when evil things are said about us. Yet we are treated like the world’s garbage, like everybody’s trash—right up to the present moment. (NLT)

What does persecution look like for the Christian in America today? I guess asking that question assumes that Christians in America are persecuted… at least to some extent. It certainly seems difficult for us to relate to Paul writing these words.

Being constantly hungry and thirsty, not enough clothing to keep warm, being beaten and homeless… that certainly doesn’t describe me. As I write this I am sitting on my couch with “Law and Order” playing over my shoulder. I just ate a nice bowl of Mac-N-Cheese. My house stays at a steady 71 degrees all year (although slightly warmer if my wife gets a hold of the thermostat!) and my closet is anything but empty.

This certainly wasn’t the case for Paul… and I’m aware that it isn’t the case for most Christians in the world today. More Christians have died in the name of Christ during the last 100 years than in the history of the church combined. Persecution still runs ramped in the Middle East, Africa, Asia… especially China, and many other places I’m probably not even aware of.

So how do I rectify all of this in my mind? Do I live day to day with a “survivors’ guilt,” feeling bad that God has blessed me in so many ways? I should think not.

But at the same time, I need to constantly guard my heart from becoming comfortable. I believe that most Christians in America don’t experience any sort of persecution… even on the most minor levels… because they have allowed themselves to be fully assimilated into the culture. Why stand up for Christ when it is easier to just sit back and watch Hell’s Kitchen (which is my favorite show on TV btw)? Why tell people about Christ when it is easier to talk about Britney Spear’s train wreck VMA performance?

I’m not saying culture is evil… I consider myself a student of the culture… but Christians need to stand up and speak out so that they can transform the culture from within. They need to be bold and not shy away from dirty looks, argumentative voices, or even worse. We need to fully utilize the Spirit in which we’ve been entrusted.

Just my thoughts… thanks for reading!

- Luke

On blogging...

joshw@cedarcreek.tv — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:20:31 GMT

I love reading blogs but I have never posted my own blog. I have commented on others and it always gives me a little thrill to think of the number of people that may read my ideas. So here we go, I can’t wait to hear what you all think and to dialogue as we all do life.

- Mike Knisely

Some days...

joshw@cedarcreek.tv — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:20:31 GMT

Some days are a struggle
Some days are better
Some hours seem like days
Some days seem like hours
Jesus knows time but is not held by it
Today I will live on His time
For I was created for HIM

- Mike Knisely

Thoughts On Blogging...

joshw@cedarcreek.tv — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:20:31 GMT

One of the best features of blogging is the incredible opportunity we, as a spiritual formation staff, have to interact with you. We are excited about the wonderful avenues for spiritual growth available to you this fall. In addition, we are eagerly anticipating the time when we will be able to roll out some of the exciting plans or 2008.

It's not so much the classes or seminars that provide the excitement, rather, it's knowing that you have the numerous opportunities to grow in your faith. That's our challenge, but it's ultimately your choice. Will you grow or won't you? If you are ready to make that choice, we'll do whatever is necessary to help you grow in your faith.

Just so you know - I love my job!

Blessings,
Barb

Grace

joshw@cedarcreek.tv — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:20:30 GMT

Grace, Gods Grace. Grace has totally changed my life, totally. Author & Pastor Bill Hybles when telling the story of his spiritual journey says that Grace wrecked his life. This expression of Grace wrecking his life caused me to really reflect on how Grace has changed my life. Like the idea of what would I do if I only had 30 Days left to live, how would my life change? Grace has totally altered my eternity and then it touches me every day even on the days that I don’t probably deserve it, but then have I ever really deserved Gods total forgiveness. Ephesians 2:8-9 is clear that salvation, Grace is not a reward for what ever good I do but it is a “special favor” given by God alone. How has Gods Grace changed your life how does Gods favor effect the way you live each day? If this idea of Grace, Gods total forgiveness is new to you let us know, we would love to talk with you.

- Mike Knisely

Questions about the Bible?

joshw@cedarcreek.tv — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:20:30 GMT

Hey guys, I recently collected some questions from the Bible Essential’s class that I wanted to share with everyone. Here are three common questions people have asked me about the Bible and my responses. Enjoy!

Should I read the Bible from start to finish?

This is not recommended if this is the first time you have ever read the Bible because the Bible is not ordered chronologically! Plus, many Old Testament books are confusing… and to be honest a little dry… even though they contain incredible and very useful insights. If you are reading for the first time, I suggest reading two NT books to every one OT book until you become more familiar with the text as a whole.

I do not suggest Bible bingo however! You know what I'm talking about, "Okay God... speak to me... right... here!" (as you flop the book open to a random page) Pick a book and read the entire thing in order to gain context for the verses!

Why is there nothing written about Jesus as a child or teenager?

First of all, there are stories of Jesus as a child being born, being brought before the prophets Simeon and Anna, and teaching at the synagogue at a young age in the book of Luke.

With that said, it is true that the gospels do not focus heavily on the time before Jesus’ ministry began. Why?

The answer lies in the motive of the biblical writers and their original audience. As a whole, they do not set out to write a historical biography about Jesus. They are not writing for purely academic purposes… instead of trying to enlighten their audience about the life of Christ, they seek to transform their readers! They do this by making a case about who Christ is… each hoping to highlight something a little different. I’ll take the four gospel writers one at a time:

Matthew: This disciple of Jesus was writing to a primarily Jewish audience. Matthew is making a case for Jesus as the Messiah – the eternal king of Israel and the whole world!

To do this, Matthew begins with his genealogy of Jesus, beginning with Abraham- the father of the Jewish nation. The Jewish people expected a great king to rise up and restore Israel to the glory days of King David… Matthew was showing the royal lineage of Jesus- a direct descendent of David. Also, Matthew then pays special attention to the prophecies surrounding Jesus’ birth to prove that he is the one the prophets spoke of in their writings. Then, Matthew cuts to the ministry of John the Baptist – who serves as Jesus’ herald. This was the royal position of the man who would announce the coming of a king.

Mark: This was probably the first gospel written and Matthew and Luke quote parts of Mark in their writings. It was written for the Christians in Rome, where this gospel was written. Rome was deeply influenced by Greek culture and the epic Greek stories were not far from the audience’s minds. John Mark (the author who was not a disciple of Christ but a traveling companion with Paul) writes his gospel like a movie blockbuster. He records more miracles than the other gospels do, as he is making a case for Jesus by the things he did and said. He is presenting evidence, one piece at a time so that they audience (familiar with rhetoric and persuasive speech) would be convinced that Jesus was all he was hyped to be, and more!

Luke: This author was not a disciple either but he was a close friend with Paul. He actually spells out his purpose for writing in the first chapter of his book. He wishes to present an accurate account (Luke pays special attention to the historical, scientific, and medical details) to the life of Christ and wishes to present Christ as the perfect human and Savior. He shows the human, compassionate side of Jesus in a way the other gospels do not. He writes about Jesus’ interactions with the poor, some children, and women to show just how much Jesus was concerned with the marginalized of the day. His gospel is also to the gentiles – the non Jewish and he seeks to show that Jesus was fully man and fully God.

John: When John, maybe the closest disciple of Jesus, is an old man he decides to write a fourth account about Jesus. I can just hear a group of friends bugging him, “Come on John. Write down all the things you know about Jesus before you die and all that knowledge is lost!” By this time, just about all the other disciples had been martyred for their faith and Jerusalem had been destroyed. John was exiled to the island of Patmos and decides to write his account of Jesus. He is not writing to repeat anything in the other three gospels about Jesus… about 90% of his gospel is unique. He is writing to supplement what had already been written about Jesus and wanted to put a final word in about Jesus as the Son of God- the one who alone could bring eternal life.

Are Old Testament stories to be taken literally?

Obviously, there is disagreement here… both inside and outside of Christian faith. Many outside of the faith say that the entire Bible is myth – Modern man needs to remove the superstition of Christianity so that it does not become obsolete… or so it is rid of all obvious errors. (The Jesus Seminar for example) These people see the beauty of the Bible... but would hardly call it a historical account.

They certainly argue that Jesus was not a historical person. I am not offended by this. If you want to read the Bible as a piece of historical fiction, that's fine. But from my research, I have to disagree. What about 1 Corinthians 15:5-6? Why would Paul’s enemies not question these eye witnesses? Many people were trying to discredit Paul and if one of these so called eye-witnesses to the risen Christ spoke against Jesus' resurrection, Paul's message would have been immediately defeated. Also, there are too many extra biblical accounts of Jesus, living and breathing on this earth. (Josephus and other Roman historians)

If you struggle with this, I strongly suggest picking up The Case for Christ by Lee Stobel. It might just change your life... it did mine.

Some say just Old Testament stories are myth… David slaying goliath and Jonah and the whale… but that Christianity in the New Testament is still true. One of my best friends was taught this in Catholic school… although I do not believe all Catholics believe this. Here is my problem with this thinking:

Matthew 12:39-40 – “Jesus said ‘For Jonah was in the belly of a whale for three days and three nights, so shall the son of man…” Jesus seemed to think Jonah was a historical person… in fact he compared his struggle with that of Jonah’s!

Some Christians say first 11 chapters of Genesis are myth, Jewish oral tradition. They look at the poetic nature of the pre-historical account of the text. They look at the pagan stories of creation, the great flood, etc. which were written before the book of Genesis… thinking that these influenced the book of Genesis’ spin on life before Abraham. These are Bible believing, Jesus loving Christians folks... but I have to respectfully disagree with them.

My thinking here, is that if these events were truly historical… doesn't it make sense that these Pagan stories about the flood and creation would circulate if they actually happened? Would it not be more suspect if other cultures never mentioned these events?

Also, Joseph, David, Noah, Adam all mentioned in Jesus’ lineage in Luke 3. People who lived before and after the patriarchs are listed as real, historical people.

Jesus mentions the days of Noah, when the flood came and destroyed them all (Matthew 24). This seems to be describing a historical event. Furthermore, Paul makes mention of death reigning from Adam to Moses (Romans 5:14). This seems to infer that Paul is working from a historical time period which goes before the time of Abraham. And this is coming from a staunchly Jewish writer! If Jesus and Paul believed this stories as actual history... so do I.

I say all of this to say, I take the conservative position that all Biblical events happened as they are described. Yes, I really believe this stuff!

Thanks for reading! If you have any other questions or comments... disagreements, don’t be afraid to comment. Take care and God bless.

Luke Shortridge
College Pastor

Questions about the Bible? Part 2

joshw@cedarcreek.tv — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:20:29 GMT

Hey guys, this is Luke again. I had a couple more questions in my Bible Essentials class that I would like to share with everyone… Enjoy!

Why in the New Testament did Jesus heal the sick but tell them not to tell others?

Good question. To be honest, I can only speculate here. If someone claims to know the mind of Christ completely, along with his motivations… I personally think they are nuts! But, with that said… let’s take a look at the New Testament.

First of all, Jesus does not always tell the people who he performed miracles on to keep quiet. In Mark 5, Jesus heals a man possessed by many demons. After the exorcism, Jesus says,

"Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you." So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.” (Verses 19-20, NIV)

If Jesus always wanted everyone to keep quiet, wouldn’t he have said the same here instead of telling this man to go back home? In other places however, it is true that Jesus asks the people he performed miracles on to keep quiet… keeping in Mark.

Mark 7:36 “Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it.” Mark 8:30 “Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him.” And then the author gives us a little more insight into Jesus’ instruction, “As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.” (Mark 9:9, underlining my own)

This last instruction came after the transfiguration where Jesus shows his true form in his entire splendor. This is an amazing event that you can read about in Mark 9. The question is however, why wouldn’t Jesus want everyone to know about this amazing event? Why not just tell everyone flat out, “I am God and also man.”? Why wait until after the resurrection?

Here is my best guess (and I’m sure others would disagree): The Israelites were a highly monolithic people. The Hebrew people to this day recite the Schema daily which is Deuteronomy 6:4 “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one!” (NASV)

In order to contrast the pagan cultures that surrounded Israel and their many Gods, the Bible repeatedly shows that the Lord is the one and only God in the universe. If anyone, thing, or being claimed to be a god besides the Lord, the Israelites would know this was an imposter.

So, what would happen if the Israelites saw this man walking around healing people, changing form, and claiming to be God? They would either assume he was a fake or demonic… and in either case kill him for blasphemy. How could a mere man claim to be God?

And this IS what eventually happened, was it not? The key here is that Jesus knew his message would lead to his death. Jesus did not go to the cross unwillingly or by surprise, he knew that he would be crucified for claiming to be God (and he did claim to be God, despite what the DaVinci Code might lead people to believe!), but this all had to happen in its proper time.

After the resurrection, Jesus wanted everything he did and said to be known throughout the world… but he could not accomplish his entire mission if he was killed in 3 months from the start of his work. Jesus needed the three years of ministry to build into the disciples so they could carry his message of one God, three distinct parts to the entire world. This radical shift in theology was not going to happen overnight. Jesus did want the word to get out… but all in its proper time!

How do we talk to non-believers and prove what the Bible states is true?

This is an interesting question because it assumes that Christians are called to prove their faith to the people around them. Before you pick up that stone and get ready to hurl it at me, let me explain!

Christians are called to be able to intelligently and gently explain their faith. Peter makes this quite clear when he writes, “And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it.” (1 Peter 3:15, NLT)

But I don’t feel that I have to defend the Gospel to my non Christian friends. All I have to do is unleash the Gospel and it will defend itself. There is a plethora of evidence and research done by many faithful scholars and apologists (someone who defends the faith by trade). I would strongly suggest books by Josh McDowel and Lee Strobel in this area. Both have put together very intelligent and compelling defenses for the Christian faith.

But know this, at the end of the day there is still a faith element to believing in Jesus. Some people find are opposed to believing in anything by faith… but I would propose that they use faith all the time without even realizing it.

Every time you take a bite out of a Jr. Bacon Cheese burger, you are using faith that the patty is beef and not… say pig… or chicken. We don’t usually thoroughly inspect our burgers before we get them because we’ve ordered the same thing 100 times before and each time it’s been the same result.

Every time you sit in a chair, you have faith that the chair will hold you. You don’t inspect the legs to make sure they haven’t been sawed through. Every time you step out of your house, you have faith that gravity is going to place your foot squarely on the ground.

We use faith each day in any number of ways… so why do we find it so hard to have faith in a God whose very presence is made known all throughout the world? After all, how can something… anything… come from nothing? The world is here… it is intricate and beautiful and incredibly ordered… how could this happen by chance?

If you are walking through a forest and you find a watch keeping perfect time, you don’t think “Wow, the forest created this watch and it works great!” Instead you think, “Someone lost this… this was created by a watchmaker and sold to some unfortunate soul who dropped it right here.”

I believe that all of creation cries out to the very existence of God (Paul talks about this in Romans 1:20). That God’s invisible qualities can been seen all throughout a visible universe. And that most of all, God revealed who He is through the sending of His Son, Jesus Christ.

One more thought to wrap this whole discussion up. The biggest evidence for the Gospel that your friends will probably ever see will be your life. No one was every argued into the faith… but millions have experienced the love of Christ through the love of a Christian, and been compelled to respond in a personal way. No one… or very few people are out looking for God, but they are looking for true, authentic friends. I know I was before I became serious about my faith.

If you want to prove the Bible to be correct, live like Jesus lived and don’t be shy about what God is doing in your life!

-Luke Shortridge, is the college pastor at CedarCreek. He enjoys talking about nerdy subjects like this, hanging out with college kids, and Frisbee of all forms. Feel free to comment or shoot him an email through the website! Thanks!

Q & A part 3

joshw@cedarcreek.tv — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:20:29 GMT

Are there Contradictions in the Bible?

Many people love to write off the Bible as being irrelevant and stocked full of contradictions. The following may seem like a bold statement on my part… and even some fellow Christians would disagree completely with what I am about to say…

There are no contradictions in the Bible.

Okay, now that I’ve thrown that monster out there… let’s back track and explain a bit.

Reason why you probably think I’m full of it #1: Different copies of the Bible are not identical.

We don’t have the originals (they have disintegrated) but we do have copies of the originals. The differences between these copies are not major… For the most part there is a letter or two of difference per page. I’m not talking paragraphs of differences here, but inaccuracies do exist between the manuscripts. Where differences in the copies occur, most modern translations will put an asterisk (*) with a note at the bottom explaining them.

But, with that said… within the original manuscripts, I hold to inerrancy- Which means a lack of errors of any kind. These words are the product of God, not mere men.

Reason why you probably think I’m full of it #2: Different parts of the Bible seem to be saying different things.

I have heard many non Christians use seemingly contradictory statements from scripture to show that God is essentially talking out of both sides of his mouth. Think of the “Two creation accounts in Genesis,” “Cain’s nameless wife in Genesis 4,” and “The different accounts of the thieves crucified next to Jesus.” You’ve probably heard about these and more.

Many great authors have studied these individual “contradictions,” Josh McDowell probably being the best… his book New Evidence that Demands a Verdict is a must read for all Christians looking to defend their faith… or for people who are struggling with these realities. I did for a while… and nothing short of honest study and reflection will settle your conscious.

Reason why you probably think I’m full of it #3: Christians read the same Bible and come to radically different interpretations.

Is there predestination or do we choose our own fate? Is Christ coming back tomorrow or thousands of years from now? Did God create the world in 6 literal days or was this much longer? Christians disagree on a multitude of issues…

This is why I think context is so important… Some of these issues can be resolved by faithfully looking at scripture as a whole but admittedly, many can’t. Some concepts will never be fully understood or agreed upon on this side of heaven. We just have to trust that God has revealed to us exactly what he wanted… and nothing more.

The problem here is not with the Bible… but with the inadequate, mere mortals who are trying to figure out the things of God! Some things are beyond our understanding and other things are not for us to know quite yet. We just have to trust in faith that all truth will be revealed at the appointed time by our heavenly father who loves us more than we will ever know!

Luke

LifeGroup Leader's Roundtable

joshw@cedarcreek.tv — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:20:29 GMT

Hi Leaders! We are very excited to introduce this blog as a tool for you. We have received positive feedback from our question and answer time during the leaders rally and hope to extend that time by using this blog. Communicating with other leaders can offer us encouragement, ideas and even solutions to some of the difficulties we encounter. We would love for you to post questions you may have about leading your group, and we hope that you leaders will be the ones to offer up suggestions and answers. How cool is it that we can learn from each others experience. Let's get started!!!

-Ben Bockert

What happens when we die? Final Q&A

joshw@cedarcreek.tv — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:20:29 GMT

So what happens after we die? Sometimes we wish that God would have just given us a timeline as to how things will exactly unfold concerning the afterlife. But, scripture can be frustratingly ambiguous when it comes to things of the next world. God is not always crystal clear on the question of “How?” and because of this Christians have historically disagreed on this one.

So right now you have a choice. Option 1: You are interested in all of this stuff and want to read my best explanation of the competing theories. Good! Read “Oh boy, here we go!”

Option 2: Skip all of this confusing mess and just jump down to the section labeled “I don’t care! I just trust God!” (In honor of my incredible wife. Love you Sara!)

Oh boy, here we go!

Here are a few Christian theories on what will happen once we die based on scripture that I’m borrowing from Theology for the Community of God by Stan Grenz.

It might be helpful to narrow down what we are discussing here… the true speculation on this topic has to do with something called the “intermediate state.” That is, the time after death and before judgment (which precedes either heaven or hell). Here is a small diagram that will help…

Death -----> intermediate state -----> judgment ------> resurrection (heaven or hell)

Theory #1 – Intermediate state: None – Here death occurs and the person immediately experiences elevation into eternal life, where they are immediately judged by God as sinful or righteous… either way they gain the final state right after death.

Critics of this theory point out the highly individualistic nature of this theory. When the Bible speaks of the Day of Judgment or Day of the Lord, this seems to be a communal event… so does that mean there are two judgments? One for the individual and one for all of mankind together?

These people would (probably… I can’t speak for all of them) argue that there is one judgment regarding if someone is righteous or sinful… basically “in” or “out” of heaven which occurs right after they die. Then there is this final judgment (Revelation 20) which concerns how we lived our lives, handled gifts, opportunities, and responsibilities. For those who receive God’s gracious gift of salvation (those who go to heaven) still have an obligation towards faithful obedience and service.

Theory #2 – Intermediate state: Unconscious – Some theologians have called this “soul sleep.” Here the person “wakes up,” on the Day of Judgment (Rev 20) as if they had just gone through a long nap. The material part of the body disintegrates in the grave while the immaterial part either rests with God. Others do not believe in a soul… but believe that the immaterial part of a person remains in God’s memory until the final resurrection.

Problems with this theory are passages like the parable of the Rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16), in which the rich man and Lazarus die… and then are immediately judged as sinful or holy. But if this is a parable, how literal can it be taken? Was Jesus hammering out a blueprint of how things work or was he trying to make a point about the finality of God’s judgment? If this is literal, why can the damned man still talk to Abraham? Theory #2 people certainly see value in this story of Jesus, but they do not think he was making definitive statements about how the final judgment will actually occur.

Theory #3 - Intermediate state: Conscious – This is a disembodied, personal, conscious existence of the soul between death and the return of Christ. Roman Catholics have called this purgatory but Protestants are quick to point out the problems with such an idea. Purgatory is found no where in scripture. Also Hebrews 9:27 says:

“And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment,”

To me, this really rules out theory #3. Why would the author fail to mention an extended period of consciousness, if it really existed? It is because of this verse that I also don’t believe in ghosts or reincarnation. We all die once and are judged thereafter. Is there a lapse in time here that the person is not aware of? Well, that’s the difference between theory #1 and theory #2.

Just being honest here… I probably lean towards theory #2. It could all change tomorrow but as of this moment in time, this seems to make the most sense to me.

I know there are instances in this discussion where I have over simplified and not done justice to all competing theories…feel free to correct me or research this on your own to prove me wrong! My hope in this is that I have helped shed some light on a truly confusing subject.

“I don’t care! I just trust God!”

Good for you! You are going to sleep a whole lot easier at night. If you already trust God… you know that he is going to take care of you. If you have placed your faith in Christ and live your life in devotion to him… making the most of the gifts he has given you, then you should be encouraged because you will spend the rest of eternity with God! Who cares “how” it happens? You will receive a new, resurrected body after you die just like Jesus! Be glad that God is in full control! Amen!

-Luke