Monthly Archives: May 2016

"Blessed are those who have not seen, yet believe." John 20:29

Have you ever taken a leap of faith? The "leap of faith" is a commonly used phrase to describe the final act of a person to believe that a particular direction is in keeping with God's will. It apparently dates back to Kierkegaard, who actually wrote "leap to faith." The phrase was his description of the final act of will to embrace the paradoxes of the Christian faith.

In other words, you take a leap of faith when the commitment seems unlikely, un-provable, or counter-intuitive. We come to the end of a process of analysis and find a cliff. Something does not make sense. At that point, you embrace faith and make the leap.

Now have you ever made a leap of faith? I have to say, I can't think of a time when I have. That may surprise you, but after hearing the phrase a number of times in different contexts, I believe it is overused and misapplied. Let me explain.

To say that we often must make a leap of faith implies that God has left a great chasm between you and the truth or direction you seek. But is that the case? Not at all. Yes, some aspects of the Christian life require tremendous trust and commitment, but I don't find any of the Christian life or faith lacking considerable empirical support.

Even at the beginning of faith, when a person first commits to Christ, even that act is not really a leap against all logic and evidence. When faced squarely, sin has made a mess of our lives, we cannot adequately "forgive ourselves," communion with a holy and perfect God is beyond our ability. Those few bits of rational evidence lead me to believe that we do need a Savior, and if I survey history there was one Man who lived a sinless life, assured us of a good and loving God, and offered forgiveness through His death. Then, of course, we have the empirical evidence of His resurrection. Are we really left at that point with a giant chasm that defies reason? Not at all. So the leap of faith may not really be a leap at all, just a step toward God in which we move away from self and into His embrace.

Now I do not want to quibble with the phrase when used on the grand scale of salvation, but I do want to object to its rather common use to describe many decisions and commitments we make as Christians. Staying faithful to your spouse is not a leap of faith. Neither is attending church, or tithing, or acting with integrity in your business. Forsaking gossip is not a leap of faith. Living graciously and showing kindness does not require a leap of faith.

There are many times when we must take a step of faith that brings us closer to God's will in our lives, but even at that point God has given us tremendous encouragement and proof. For example, remember the power of scripture: "the word of our God will stand forever" (Isa. 40:8), and "the word of God is living and active" (Heb. 12). If a particular direction is in keeping with the principles we find in God's word, then you do not need to make a leap of faith. Or pay attention to the counsel of trusted Christian friends. God often speaks through His servants to His servants (Prov. 15:22). I rely heavily on grace-filled brothers and sisters in Christ to offer wise counsel.

Too often we are like the rich man in Luke 16 who, after his death, begged Abraham to send Lazarus to his family to warn them. Abraham's response is that God already had provided sufficient direction. Signs would not help when faith is required. We may want signs, but God provide signposts. In fact, I find these all around me, showing me the directions I must go.

There is an old story about a man lost in high foggy mountains, slipping over an edge and then clinging for his life to a ledge. He calls desperately for help, and voice come to him: "I live on these mountains, and I know exactly where you are. I am across a chasm and cannot get to you, but you must trust me. There is another ledge directly beneath you that will lead you to safety. Just let go and you will drop about a foot. You will be safe."

Last year I wrestled with a decision about leaving a career I had invested more than 30 years in to start a new direction. Many voices encouraged me to take that step. My sense of God's Spirit within told me that it was right. God had placed many signposts around me. Yet, I clung to the ledge. Finally, I let go. I have found, not a chasm of uncertainty and threat, but a smiling God who has welcomed me on a new path. I just had to let go. I launched Chrysalis Interventions (chrysalisinterventions.com), and am so very grateful that God gave me the courage to take the step. I've found solid footing only when I was willing to take the step.

So I prefer the phrase "a step of faith" to "a leap of faith" because I simply do not think that God often requires us to do something that is utter nonsense. We use the spiritual gifts of discernment, wisdom, knowledge, and, yes, faith to submit one other area of our lives more deeply to God's will and purpose. So do not wait for signs of what you should do. Jesus discouraged this. But look for the signposts. They are clear. Follow them, step by step into the joy for which your Father created you.

Grace,

Dr. Terry Ellis

May 29, 2016

"And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit." Acts 2:4

On this Pentecost Sunday, let's think about the Spirit.

"I believe in the Holy Spirit." Readers from higher liturgical traditions will recognize this phrase as coming from the Apostle's Creed. To be honest, it sounds a little paltry. A single line. A simple affirmation. No further description.

Not so with the "God the Father almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth!" Stand under a starry sky and you'll think of the greatness of God. Nature surrounds us with evidence of the Father. Just take a look around you. God almighty! The Father has left His imprint all around us.

The Creed goes into even more depth with the Son because of the advantage of history. He was conceived, born, suffered, crucified, descended, risen, ascended, and He's coming back. Four books of the Bible detail the life of the Son. God stepped into history, and divided time. We can relate to Jesus. In the incarnation, He was a child of the dust just like we are.

Do you see the theological inequity here? It's understandable really. The Spirit is hard to wrap our minds around and hard to pin down. Milder traditions have always been a little suspect of the Spirit, not wanting the Spirit to break loose and make us talk funny, jump pews, or faint.

Even the Greek language adds to the uncertainty. Greek nouns have gender: masculine (like father and son), feminine (church is a good example), and neuter. Guess what gender the word spirit is? That's right. Neuter. Grammatically you would be correct to refer to the Spirit as "It," but being grammatically correct and theologically correct are not always the same. The Spirit is personal, and our personal pronouns are he and she. Refer to the Spirit as either, but not "it."

The word for spirit can also be translated as breath or wind, both invisible, which doesn't help our search for precision. Even Jesus acknowledged the difficulty of pinning down the Spirit. He said the Spirit is like the wind. You can't see where it's coming from or going to. No wonder our ancient author kind of limps in with a simply stated, "I believe in the Holy Spirit."

The Spirit, much more than the other two parts of the Trinity, highlights the immeasurable mystery of God. While Jesus, in J. B. Phillip's words, brought God into focus, the Spirit is a constant reminder of how radically different God is, how beyond our vision and focus He will always remain.

Jesus, Himself, did flesh out the Spirit much more for us when, in the Gospel of John, He referred to the Spirit as the paraklete, a word often translated as Comforter. Comfort is a good word. I like it because I so often need comfort.

However, I hate to disappoint you, it's really not a good description of the Holy Spirit. (WARNING: More word study ahead) It was a good translation back in the 14^th century when Wycliffe coined it. But the word back then meant something different than it connotes today. ComFORT is built on the Latin word for courage or bravery, which is a little different from modern usage.

Wycliffe had it right, for a paraklete in ancient Greek culture meant an advocate for someone facing a serious charge, or to offer an expert opinion in a difficult situation, or to inspire dispirited troops facing a threatening enemy. In other words, the paraklete is a powerful character who appears in a time of trouble to offer assistance and hope.

And that's why I need the Holy Spirit! We know the Father and Son mainly for what they've done in history. We know the Spirit because of what He does right now.

Life can beat us up in a thousand different ways. In talking to people in all kinds of situations, this theme is the most common. People are hurting, and they're often full of fear and doubt. The Holy Spirit is not just Someone to pat us on the head and say "there, there." He tries to infuse us with courage and energy to keep moving.

That's why the New Testament portrays the Holy Spirit as wind, breath, and fire. The Holy Spirit quickens our prayers. He reminds us of Jesus' teachings and promises. He accompanies us. Our bodies, in fact, are His temple. In short, the Spirit is energy. Where the Spirit is, life flourishes, change occurs, our own spirits revive.

In fact, change is the best indicator of the presence of the Spirit. Wind is silent and invisible until it comes into contact with an object. It bends a tree, or even topples it. It can add or take away an hour of flight time in a plane. It cools and refreshes us. Wind drives the weather around the globe.

In matters of our spirit, the Holy Spirit produces even more powerful change. Paul called these the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are the resources we bring to fearful times through the energy of the Spirit. Rather than inventorying the presence or absence of this fruit in others, we do best by taking a look inside to see if the fruit is present and if we need to give more access to the Spirit to challenge and change us.

The great secret in life is not to constantly search for some new insight or method for coping. The answers to the most important questions are always clear. Our greatest need is to be reminded of who we are and what God has made available to us. We can open our hearts and minds, stop intellectualizing, and simply grasp what we already have.

Thus "I believe in the Holy Spirit" is completely sufficient because of the Spirit's very nature. Come Holy Spirit!

Grace,

Dr. Terry Ellis

May 15, 2016

 

 

 

"He brought me forth into a broad place; He delivered me because He delighted in me." Psalm 18:19

I was blessed to grow up with parents who were positive, supportive, and encouraging. The words "I am proud of you" are one of their greatest legacies to me. I knew they loved me, and they showed it in a variety of very important ways. I knew they were very glad I was their son.

If you did not grow up with that kind of advantage then the concepts of grace and unconditional love will be harder for you to accept. One purpose of GraceWaves is to help you hear God's words to you and help you trust in His boundless, joyful love. You can then draw closer to Him. Psalm 18:19 is one such verse.

David wrote this psalm after escaping repeated attacks from Saul and his armies. A man who could have been for David a mentor and encourager became an implacable enemy. Other psalms reflect David's anguish during this very rough period in his life. David responded by seeking God even more and looking to Him for the support. God delivered Him.

The key phrase I want you to focus on this week concerns the reason God delivered David: "because He delighted in me." This phrase is joyful and exuberant! God delighted in David!

And God delights in you. Let that sink in. He delights in you! Even though you may not have been programmed from your childhood to hear and accept such truth, or perhaps because you have suffered rejection in adulthood at the hands of people who were once very close to you, you must trust and believe that God delights in you. He knows you deeply and individually as if you were the only person to know. He is capable of that kind of sustained regard and focus on you. His verdict: "I take delight in you." And for that reason He will deliver you.

At some point in life you have to accept reality, and nothing is more real than God's love for you and His offer of grace. We all have something or someone that we allow to drag us down. You may have grown up with a parental hangover. Or you may be suffering the anguish of a broken marriage or ruptured relationships with your children. Don't make the mistake of transferring those fears and frustrations to your view of God. He is not part of your problem. He is your solution. He is your deliverer.

God is for you right now as you read these words. Right now. The sacred present. You're not going to get a better present by wishing for a different past. That past is unalterable. But your response to it can be transformed by accepting God's grace. Today God delights in you.

So whatever you face, or whatever handicap you have in life, accept God's rich love for you. Trust in it. Rely on it.

Grace,

Dr. Terry Ellis
May 8, 2016

"Do you see this woman?" Luke 7:44

"Up Close and Personal" was originated by ABC sports icon Roone Arledge in the 1960's as way of making sporting events more intimate for the viewer. One of the keys was providing the background of not only the event, but the participants.

I grew up watching "Wide World of Sports" and the Olympics when ABC broadcast them. They could run an "Up Close and Personal" segment on some obscure Eastern Bloc athlete and soon I was pulling for the Bulgarian shot putter who was raised on a dairy farm with 11 siblings and a pet Alpaca. Roone was right. If you know the person's story you end up liking the person.

This insight explains how God can love each one of us. The backstory of the parable of the two debtors is a perfect illustration. Jesus was at the home of Simon the Pharisee when "a woman of the city, who was a sinner" entered the home and began to weep and anoint Jesus' feet. Simon was stunned, and thought to himself that Jesus could not really be a prophet, for if He was then He would know what sort of woman she was and certainly would not allow her to touch Him.

Jesus knew what was going on and told a parable of two debtors, one owing a great deal and the other a relative pittance. Neither could repay and both were forgiven. It's a great parable of grace, and I've written and spoken on it's meaning many times. If you're spiritually broke then it doesn't matter how much you owe. You've got to rely on grace. Thus, we are all equal in both need and solution.

I want to focus this week, however, on the line Jesus spoke right after the parable, "Simon, do you see this woman?" Of course he did. She was right there in his dining area. He had noticed her the moment she set her dirty little foot inside his home. He saw her as clearly as his graceless eyes could focus. He saw her wretchedness, and it repulsed him.

But Simon didn't really see her. Jesus did, and He not only saw the sin, He saw the brokenness that lay behind it. He knew her story, all of it, and because of that He loved her.

Isn't it interesting that the one Person, God, who knows us best loves us the most? Isn't it ironic that we are so often afraid of God? That we want to hide from God?

When considering ourselves we tend to operate on the basis of "if you really knew me you wouldn't like me." So we hide our wounds, never talk about our scars, and generally try to keep everyone at arm's length.

When it comes to considering other people, we tend to be like Simon. We see only the failure or irritation and fit them into a little box of condemnation. Thus, the woman was a sinner, or the ex-husband is a jerk, or the former friend is a gossip, or the driver behind me is an idiot, etc. With the verdict pronounced, the sentence can be passed, and we can simply dismiss all the irritating, immoral, wicked people, selfish people around us.

And we end up either mighty lonely or insufferably self-righteous, or both.

The story of Jesus, Simon, and the woman teaches that the line of good and evil runs right through each one of us. I can look at the picture of the criminal on the front page of today's paper and be disgusted, rightly so, by what he did. The facts, just the facts, of the crime are clear.

What I can't know is what that criminal's life has been like. What abuse did he endure as a child? What unfair shame does he carry that no one has taken time to lift away? At one point in his life could a loving man or woman really made a difference in the path he took? I can also look at that picture and forget my own evil.

Every "Simon" reading this so far will likely object that I'm providing excuses. No. I'm providing a likely explanation. Evil doesn't breed in a vacuum. It's socially contagious and fed by the evil within each of us.

I'm not suggesting that a crime should not be punished or that evil shouldn't be condemned. All of our actions have consequences, but the way of grace is both puzzling and amazing precisely because it looks beyond the surface.

Jesus did see the woman in a way that Simon, in his strict legalistic categories, could not. He knew her story, or at least understood that there was a whole lot more to the story than the plain fact that she was a prostitute. Perhaps she had lost her father early in life, or been abused by him. Maybe she was married at one point, then her husband died or betrayed or divorced her. Maybe she had a child and this was her means of providing food for their table.

The fact of the matter is, there's not a single person you wouldn't love if you knew their story, up close and personal. Trauma, big T and little t, twists lives in a lot of different ways. Grace has a way of helping straighten out the twists, healing the wounds, and bringing hope to the hopeless.

That's what Jesus is for, and that's what He wants us to be part of. What a different world we would have if we took time to learn each others' stories, and got to know each other up close and personal. Knowing everyone's story is plainly impossible, but the next time I want to react to another person with condemnation, irritation, or just plain meanness I hope I can remember there's more to their story. If I knew the story of the people we hate… God does, and He responds with grace.

Grace,

Dr. Terry Ellis

May 1, 2016