Greg’s Blog

Absolute Truth: This Sunday at Harvest

In 2009, a Barna poll revealed that Americans are more interested in faith and spirituality than they are in Christianity.

Barna said that Americans increasingly want to shape their own faith experience, in his words, “concoct[ing] a uniquely personal brand of faith.”

“What they’ve done is they have put together a whole series of beliefs and a series of religious practices and a series of relationships and connections–all of that that makes sense to them and helps them to feel good about themselves,” Barna said.

The result of a faith of our own making and and a God made in our very own image

My question is, will this faith we have created at whim and this god we have imagined be able to save us in the final days?

The answer, of course, is no. God is who He says He is, not who simply want Him to be.

Thinking and living biblically

This Sunday at Harvest, we are beginning a new teaching series.

We have just completed our 35-message series that I called Essentials: What Every Christian Needs to Know. We have looked at God, His attributes, and His character. We have looked at Jesus Christ, His deity, and His humanity. We examined the unseen world of angels, demons, and the devil.

We have looked at heaven, hell, and end times events. We have looked at topics like salvation, faith, the Bible, and much more.

This is the foundation that we build our lives on as Christians.

Now, we come to the follow-up series to Essentials, which I am calling Worldview: Thinking and Living Biblically.

Do you have a Christian worldview?

Not every believer necessarily has a true biblical worldview. Do you?

Find out what a Christian worldview is, and how to have one this Sunday morning at Harvest.

Our services are at 7:45 A.M., 9:45 A.M., and 11:45 A.M. This message will also be webcast live at harvest.org.

This and that

You can check out my weekend colemn at WorldNetDaily here.

Here is a link to my weekend devotional.

Giving Ourselves to God

The Bible tells us that, in light of all that God has done for us, we should then present ourselves to Him. If we will do this, then we will know His will for our lives.

The apostle Paul writes in Romans 12:1-2:

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

What does that mean, to present our bodies? It means that you give your whole self to Christ, and Christ alone.

1. We need to present our minds.

Fill your mind with the Word of God, not the junk and twisted worldview of our culture.

A recent survey revealed that America’s children and teenagers are now spending an average of more than 7 1/2 hours a day involved in electronic media (TV, video games, listening to music, surfing the Web, texting, and e-mailing).

We all need to think more about godly things! As Paul wrote to the Philippian church, “Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise” (Philippians 4:8).

2. We need to present our tongues.

This refers to how we use our words, what we say to others.

We do great harm and great good with our words. One world can elevate, or devastate. The Bible tells us, “So also, the tongue is a small thing, but what enormous damage it can do. A tiny spark can set a great forest on fire” (James 3:5).

We need to T.H.I.N.K. before we speak (for more on this, check out my post here).

3. We need to present our hands and feet too!

Among the seven things listed in Proverbs 16 that the Lord hates are “hands that kill the innocent . . . feet that race to do wrong.” (Proverbs 16:7-8).

How much more glorious is it to have our hands and feet take the gospel to a lost and dying world! Romans 10:15 says, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

I urge you to present your body to Him today and every day!

T.H.I.N.K.

Tonight in Orange County, I will speak on knowing the will of God. One of the things I will mention is the importance of thinking about what we say before we say it.

A helpful acronym that you can use when wondering if you should spread a certain piece of information is T.H.I.N.K. Ask yourself the following questions:

T – Is it true? In other words, this thing that you have heard about someone else, is this accurate information? Or is it just gossip or something someone heard about someone else.

Have you ever had anyone tell a lie about you? How did that make you feel?

How about someone gossiping about you? The very word “gossip” just hisses. Gosssssssip! Remember, Satan is the Father of lies.

We are far too ready to pass on information before verifying if it is true or not.

H-Is it Helpful? Will sharing this information be helpful to the other person?

I- Is it Inspiring? That is clear enough.

N- Is it Necessary? Do we really need to spread this information?

K– Is it Kind? Pretty clear there.

You might say, “Greg, if I applied that T.H.I.N.K. acronym to what I said about others, I would hardly speak at all!” Ah! Perhaps that’s not such a bad idea?

The Jesus Tablet?

You probably have heard that Apple is supposedly going to announce a new tablet computer this week. I am interested to see what the specs are, and what it can do.

I really am a fan of technology, and without question Apple builds fantastic, groundbreaking products. In fact, this post was typed on an Apple laptop.

However . . .

The Messiah machine?

This new tablet has been hailed by some as “The Jesus Tablet,” and others are calling it “The Messiah Machine.” One article asked breathlessly, “Can Apple’s Jesus Tablet deliver a miracle?”

Whaaa . . . ? Did I miss something here? Is this new device from Apple going to somehow deliver eternal life or the forgiveness of sins?

I am being a bit facetious here, but I think some of these techheads need to seriously get a life, preferably an eternal one.

This reminds me of the the depression some were experiencing after viewing the new film Avatar, because they could not personally experience the imaginary CGI world of Pandora. I wrote a blog about that.

Taking the Lord’s name in vain

The Bible reminds us to not take the Lord’s name in vain (Exodus 20:7) This doesn’t just mean using profanity with God’s name, but also using His Holy name in a frivolous, insincere way.

Sometimes people will sell certain things to the Christian market with a token mention of Jesus or the Bible, in hopes that we will eat it up, be it movies, products, or whatever. That is using God’s name in vain, and He does not take kindly to it.

So, Jesus tablets and Messiah machines just will not do.

There is another commandment that warns against having other gods before Him (Exodus 20:3). That is Commandment No. 1 in God’s Top 10.

Don’t get me wrong. I am not suggesting that people who are excited about a new laptop, tablet computer, or phone are necessarily idolaters (though they could be). I am simply saying that we need to keep our priorities clear here.

Having another god speaks of anything or anyone that takes the place of the true God in their life.

In 1948, General Omar Bradley observed, “We are technological giants and moral midgets. We have discovered the mystery of the atom, but we have forgotten the Sermon on the Mount.”

Let’s love the Lord and use technology, not love technology and use the Lord.

How to Know the Will of God

I will be back at Harvest on Sunday morning to speak on a topic that we all wonder about: the will of God.

Does God indeed have a master plan for our lives? If so, how do I discover it? How do I hear His voice? How do I know the will of God?

These are important questions, and they are not easily answered, but we will take a shot at this weekend.

You are invited to join us for our services in person, or online at harvest.org. We will have a time of Communion after the message.

Our service times are 7:45 A.M., 9:45 A.M. and 11:45 A.M., Pacific Time.

By the way, this will bring to a close our series of more than 30 messages that I have called Essentials: What Every Christian Needs to Know. Next Sunday, I will launch a follow-up to the Essentials series, which I am calling Worldview. I’ll have more details on it later.

Weekend musings

To read my weekend column at WorldNetDaily, click here.

To read my weekend devotional, click here.