Search

Living Theologically

theology and the Christian life

Open Search
Author

Mike McGarry

Mike is the Founder/Director of Youth Pastor Theologian, where he currently writes and speaks to serve youth pastors. Visit youthpastortheologian.com to learn more about YPT and read his blogs and books, or to learn more about bringing Mike to speak at your church, retreat, or conference.

There’s No Such Thing as a Small Decision

Ok, so maybe that’s overstating it a bit… but the small decisions count. Honestly, I do think the small decisions we make each day count more than the big decisions we might make once a few times throughout our lives. Let me explain.

If I’m making good, wise, and courageously faithful small decisions then what kind of bid decisions do you think I’ll make?

On the other hand, if I’m blowing off small decisions as insignificant then I will be far more likely to be in a bad position to make wise choices about big decisions.

I do think it’s that simple.

Simple… yes. Easy… well, no.

Daily decisions count. That stack up on top of each other and set patterns like a small stream cutting its way through the desert. With time and repetition, decisions become habits, and habits shape and reshape our character.

All this being said: If you find your character lacking, and if you’ve been making consistently poor decisions, there is hope. There is hope through Christ, that our history doesn’t determine our future. There is hope through Christ, that today’s sin has already been atoned for. There is hope through Christ, that tomorrow’s temptation can be overcome through faithfully fighting sin with some close, trusted friends who are pursuing Christ with us. No matter how many bad decisions you’ve made, there is always hope to make the best decision possible… and that decision to repent of your sin and believe on Jesus Christ will impact your future decisions.

May the decisions we make today and every day (yes, even the “little decisions”) be good decisions, because every thing matters.

0

If Grace is Sufficient…

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.
2 Corinthians 12:9

The Christian life is not one of strength, but one of weakness. We are not called to live in a way that is seeking glory, but the the cross. To be broken and poured out, not to be exalted and lifted up. “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.” (Mark 8:35).

If we want to follow Jesus, then we will follow him to the cross. For in God’s economy, glory comes only through the cross. Jesus’ promise was never that he bore the cross in order that we might receive glory without suffering. No, the promise is that there is hope and future glorification for those who endure by faith.

Martin Luther talked a lot about being a “Theologian of the Cross” rather than a “Theology of Glory.” The article linked to above is helpful in fleshing that out in ways I don’t feel the need to repeat here.

If God’s grace is sufficient, then…

  • When I have nothing left to give, God will make my pitiful offering a valuable treasure.
  • I don’t need to “have it all together” in order to be used by God.
  • I don’t need to hide in shame over my sin and failures, because they have been redeemed and used by God to demonstrate his strength.
  • I have peace, because I can trust that God is the one who bears fruit, not me.
  • I am humbled… because God chose me despite my brokenness (not because I was worthy).

In life and in ministry there are times when we simply run out of strength to offer. It is in those seasons when being a Theologian of the Cross is of particular encouragement. My usefulness in ministry (preaching, teaching, counseling, mentoring, etc.) doesn’t come from my strength, but from God’s grace. And my faithfulness in leading my family (loving my wife and kids in a way that reflects God’s perfect love and leading my family in Scripture and prayer) are also an overflow of whether or not I am drawing from the well of grace, if I’m running on reserves, or if I’m totally dry.

I’m thankful for God’s grace. Without it I’d be useless… I’d remain the self-centered, impatient, snarky guy who thinks he’s got all the answers. When I remember God’s grace, the Holy Spirit pulls me out of myself and reminds me of the patience and mercy I’ve received – and He empowers me to give what I have received.

What difference does the sufficiency of grace (not just the “idea” of grace, but the reality that you have received it by God) make in your life?

1

Love Your Children Well

A friend of mine lost his three year old son this week. He went to sleep and simply never woke up. It is a tragedy beyond my understanding, and one I pray that I would never fully comprehend. As I pray for God’s comfort and peace and hope to surround my friend and his family, it’s only natural to feel a new layer of love for my children grow. 

I want my son and daughter not only to know that I love them. I want them to feel loved. While we should not live by our “feelings,” God gave them to us, and feelings are not inherently bad or shallow or trite. 

This is something I struggle with, because I’m not much of a “feeler.” Most people who know me know I’m not a particularly emotional person and that I tend to be fairly matter-of-fact. But with my family, it is one of my greatest prayers that they would not simply know that I love them… I pray that they would feel how much I love them. 

The greatest thing a parent can do for his/her children is to love them well.  
If my kids are well-behaved but don’t feel loved by me, then I have failed them. If my kids are ridiculously smart but they believe my love for them is conditional, depending on how well they are “performing,” then I have failed them. I could almost picture the Apostle Paul including this type of scenario into 1 Corinthians 13:1-3.

In the midst of discipline, does love reign?
As a Christian dad I do not have the “luxury” of neglecting to discipline my kids because it’s easier (in the short-term). Loving your kids doesn’t mean there is no “law” or that rules are absent. But it does mean that love is freely given despite my kids’ worthiness or unworthiness. Instead, I love my children unconditionally because I know I am loved by my Heavenly Father. Personally, I think I learn more about love when I’m in the throes of discipline than when I’m laughing with my kids – because that’s when I need to remember how uniquely God loves me. 

Questions I’ve been wrestling with over the past few days:

  • Do I discipline out of love and desire to see my children desire faithfulness to God, or out of a heavy-handed authority that demands law-abiding, rule-keeping children?
  • What if God treated me the way I sometimes treat my children? 
    That thought should terrify me…
  • What if I loved my children the way God loves me? 
    That thought should bring joy to my children… 

 

6

Costly Grace

I don’t want to comment on this other than to say this paragraph is perhaps the most life-shaping paragraph that isn’t Scripture I’ve ever read. Read it slowly, and often…

“Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock. Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: ‘Ye were bought at a price’, and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship

0

When Faith is Necessary

Faith isn’t necessary when you live in comfort, only doing things you can do “without” God. When you’re securely in your sweet-spot, you can live as if God doesn’t matter.

Yes, God is still necessary because He is the sustainer of life and yada, yada, yada. But, outside of common-grace, “Faith” is not necessary when God isn’t needed.

This is why Atheists and Christians can live so similarly most of the time. Because most Christians live so comfortably in their own bubble that faith in Christ is only saved for death or for seasons of suffering and difficulty, but not for daily life.

I don’t want to live like that. I want to live by faith, because I know that God is real, that he loves me, that the Gospel is true and that faith has meaning both for eternity and today. Will you join me in walking by faith?

We walk by faith, not by sight.
2 Corithians 5:7

I’m not thinking about the “BIG” things in life… I’m thinking about the little things throughout the day/week.

  • This could lead us to be more generous when generosity doesn’t make sense, because God doesn’t hold back in providing for us.
  • Or we could attempt simple things that are difficult for us (even if they’re easy for others!), because we are trusting God to give us the strength we need to accomplish them.
  • Speaking up in that conversation because you’re trusting God to give you the right words and the right (humble and gracious) way to say them.
  • Taking the initiative in restoring a strained relationship, because you’re thankful God took the initiative to restore your relationship with Him.

I’d love to hear from you in the comments below: What are some other ways that walking by faith can make a real difference in how you/we live.

Note: I haven’t read “The Christian Atheist” by Craig Groeschel yet, but it looks good… if you’ve read it, please let me know what you thought. Many of these ideas were spurred years ago when I first studied Bonhoeffer’s “Letters and Papers from Prison” where he writes about the “World Come of Age.” 

0

Questions to Ask on Halloween

pumpkinToday is Halloween. I’m not interested in debating how Christians should think about Halloween’s origins and how it is observed today.

Here’s the great value I see to Halloween: your neighbors!

Do you know your neighbors? If yes, how well do you know them? How often do you interact? Do you pray for them and look for opportunities to point them to Jesus? If so, here are a few questions to ask:

  • How can I welcome my neighbors in a way that would reflect Christ’s gracious and welcoming heart?
  • What does it say to my neighbors when they hear Christians bashing Halloween as “the devil’s day” and then they see me (they know I’m a Christian) walking with my family or happily passing out candy to families at the door?
  • If Jesus came to seek and save the lost, why would I turn down an opportunity to interact with my neighbors?
  • Why don’t I pray for my neighbors more often?

Take a long-term approach towards your neighbors.  Sure, many of those who come may not be able to distinguish your house from any non-Christian house… but your neighbors know, and hopefully you’re cultivating Gospel-bearing relationships with them. Regardless of whether or not you choose to trick-or-treat, you have the strong potential to show hospitality to your neighbors and to strangers tonight.

Your neighbors may not give your hospitality tons of weight tonight, but they will take note if you DON’T show hospitality.

Please note: I am not encourage you to only show hospitality in order to evangelize. We are not salesmen, we are men and women who love God. Because we love God we must also love our neighbors.  And when we love our neighbors well, we will reflect the love of God and He will provide opportunities for us to share the Gospel and invite them to find life and hope in Christ. 

0

Self-Righteousness

Self Righteousness… does anyone like it?  You know the type… those who walk around like they’re holier than thou, judging everyone else for not being as godly as they are.  That’s basically the stereotype that every Christian needs to fight against (see the above image!).

But here’s the thing… you can’t be a Christian and be self-righteous.

Self-Righteousness says:

  • “I am better than you are.”
  • “I am good enough to be acceptable to God.”
  • “You can’t judge me, only what I believe matters.”
  • “You need to do and believe what I do and believe, because I’m the one who’s right.”

Those are things no Christian can say.  If you are a Christian and you say those things, then you have not understood the Gospel.  (Yes, I realize the irony here. Before you accuse me of being self-righteous, please finish reading this post.)

As Christians, we completely rely on Jesus’ righteousness, not our own.  The only thing my righteousness earns for me is judgment (Romans 3:23-24, 6:23).  The Gospel shouts, “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly…. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-8).

The ironic thing about accusations of “Self-Righteousness” is that every religion other than Christian actually teaches self-righteousness.  I know that’s a huge claim to make, and I’m willing to be proven wrong in the comment section below, but I do think it’s true.  Only Christianity teaches that we are acceptable to God because of someone else’s righteousness; other religions and philosophies teach that you are required to improve yourself before God in order to “attain righteousness.”

When we build our understanding of “truth” on our own interpretations or opinions then aren’t we defending our own self-righteousness by saying that we are the ultimate knower and determiner or what is real?  Instead, when we rely on what God has revealed through the Holy Scriptures and we seek to understand what God has spoken and how the Scriptures still speak today (2 Timothy 3:16-17), then we are again relying on the righteousness of the God who speaks rather than on ourselves.

Ultimately, Christians, we must remember that we are not self-righteous… we fully rely on the righteousness of Jesus.  Let us live in such humble and faith-full way that the righteousness of Jesus would shine through us, and give glory to our Father who is in heaven (Matthew 5:14-16).

I don’t want anyone else to be more like me!  I want them to be more like Jesus… because I want to be more like him too.

(note: this post originally was published on my ministry’s blog here as “Thinking About Self-Righteousness”)

0

The Most Important Thing I Know

Three of the hardest words for me to say are these: “I don’t know.”

I hate saying it, and yet I know how much I don’t know… I just don’t want YOU to know how much I don’t know!

One of my professors in seminary (Dr. Garth Rossell) once said, “The larger the island of knowledge, the longer the shoreline of ignorance.” I’ve always remembered that, because it’s so true. The more you learn, the more you discover you have no idea. I think that’s why I like education and reading so much, because there’s always another question to ask and another perspective to discover.

But, ultimately, we weren’t created to know everything. We were made to know it all. That’s why it’s so humbling to confess “I don’t know” – it’s a recognition that I’m not God, I’m not omniscient, and I have very limited knowledge. Ever since Eden we’ve wanted God’s place, and we’ve been tempted to think we know more than we really do.

Tomorrow is my defense for my doctoral thesis, and tonight I’m reminded that the most important thing I know is this…

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.(John 3:16-17)

2

Tell Yourself the Truth (About Yourself)

Lies are dangerous.  But the most dangerous of all are the ones you tell yourself.

It takes courage to tell yourself the truth about yourself.  It takes greater courage to tell the truth about yourself to a trusted friend in order to seek help to change those things that need changing.  Sometimes, we also need someone else to watch our back to make sure we keep the good and healthy parts what makes you “you” going and growing.

When you read Scripture and seek God through prayer and when you experience the kind of biblical fellowship that involves a brother or sister speaking the truth to you in love… will you listen, or will you defend yourself even if it means believing a lie about yourself.

Godliness and humility lead us to being honest about who we really are.  When we talk about “Speaking the truth in love” we usually think about speaking the truth to someone else in love.  But make sure you’re speaking the truth to yourself in love too.

0

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑