Is Mother Teresa in Hell?

     Recently, wild mindlessly skimming through my Facebook News Feed I came across a link one of my “Friends” had shared entitled “Roman Catholics: Canonizing the Damned” attached to a picture of Mother Teresa. 

     Obviously, this got my attention.  The writer begins by stating that Mother Teresa was “the damned follower of an apostate religion!”  I then began to read about all the things Mother Teresa did wrong.  But according to this article her biggest problem was theological.  The writer then proceeds to lay out all of her false beliefs and contends that because of her false beliefs she was damned to hell!

      Several years ago as I was starting out in ministry, I was given the difficult task of performing a funeral for someone whom I didn’t know while they were alive.  Almost every funeral I had every attended the minister spoke with confidence that the person whose life they were celebrating was in heaven. 

     Because of my lack of knowledge of the deceased person’s faith or lack of faith, I wasn’t sure how to approach the funeral service and so I asked my Pastor for advice.  I will never forget what he said.

“Don’t preach them into Heaven or Hell!” 

“They are where they are, and nothing you can say or do will change that fact.”

“Leave that up to God.”

It some of the best advice I have ever heard. 

     I don’t fully understand anyone (such as the above mentioned writer) who will emphatically state that another human being is in hell!  God is the Judge of the world and I feel completely inadequate to sit in that chair.   

     It also intrigued me that the writer of this article (Who writes for a website who seems to think almost every human being is going to hell!) was so against doing good things to earn a place to heaven.  Even though I agree with the writer on this issue, it seems like they were proposing that our theology must be perfect to earn a place in heaven!  

Whether we think its good works or perfect theology will get you God’s approval, we are dead wrong.

God says there is only one way for a human being to be in right relationship with him. 

“If you declare with your mouth ‘Jesus is Lord” and believe in your heart God raised him from the dead you will be saved.” 

This kind of faith is all about Jesus and what he did for me.  What he is asking of me is that I trust him.

I am relieved to know that God hasn’t called me to be the world’s judge. 

I know I would be quite stingy with Grace and Mercy towards everyone else, except towards myself of course!

The Complicated Gospel

I grew up in Sunday School, and whenever the teacher asked a question it seemed like the answer was always from a short list. . . Jesus, God, Holy Spirit, Pray, Read Your Bible, and Witness.  

As I grew older, it seemed like life got a lot more complicated and so did the church’s instruction on matters of Faith. 

It didn’t matter what the issue was, God’s advice in Scripture was simple.

MARRIAGE

“Husbands love your wives.  Wives respect your husbands.”

MONEY

“The Love of Money is the root of all evil.”

RELATIONSHIPS 

“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

LEADERSHIP

“If you want to become great, become a servant of all.”

MINISTRY

“Go and make disciples of all people.”

Yet Christians have written countless books on all of these subjects!  When preachers preach on these subjects we get a list of 17 action items!

How can we take something so simple and make it so complicated? 

It is this last subject of the ministry in which I have found the greatest frustration within the church.

I graduated from high school and said yes to God’s call to go into the ministry.  So naturally I set off for Bible College.  

I thought the ministry was simple!  

“Preach the Word!”  “Love God, Love People”  “Make Disciples!”

 HAHAHA. What a fool I was!

Once again I discovered that Christians had filled libraries with books on how to correctly go about doing the work of the ministry!  I had entered college confident that with God’s help I could do what he had called me to do.  I left scared that I wasn’t prepared for the ministry!

That was only the beginning.  

Once I actually got into the ministry, I discovered that it was even more complicated than I had been taught in college.  

There were so many expectations put on the performance of pastors.  I heard horror stories of small churches where the pastor and his wife worked tirelessly to do everything while the people in the congregation sat back, did nothing to help and responded with complaints that their needs weren’t being met. 

I read books from the so called “experts” in large churches who laid out their complex systems with charts and graphs on how to disciple people.  

I became so overwhelmed that I cannot tell you the number of times of I have wanted to quit the ministry because I have thought I wasn’t qualified as a leader.

I was told that church services had to be polished, seeker-friendly, organized, micro-managed and planned down to the minute.     

How have we made something so simple become so complex?

When I read the gospel accounts about Jesus’ ministry, it still seems so simple.  

He lived life with people, loved them and showed them truth.

When I read the accounts of the early church it still seems so SIMPLE!

They devoted themselves to doing life together, praying together, eating together, and listening to the apostles teaching. 

How have we made something so simple become so complex?

We see complexity trying to creep into the church very early on.  In Acts, the apostles start to get roped into a conflict about serving food to the poor.  They realize what is taking place and designate other people to take care of the problem so they can “devote themselves to the teaching of the word and to prayer.”

I wish I could tell you that we have been faithful to the apostles example and that 2,000 years later the job description of a pastor is to “devote themselves to the teaching of the word and to prayer.”  But that is far from the truth!

How have we made something so simple become so complex?

Why do we as believers rush to purchase the latest Christian book on life issues instead of studying and applying the simple truths of scripture?

I believe this happens for a couple of reasons.  

For some reason, human beings love making simple things complex.  I don’t think we have evil intentions, but I don’t think that we are aware of what we are doing either.

If by God’s grace we just simply followed the simple teachings of Scripture, God would get all of the credit, and that doesn’t sell books.  

But if to truly get breakthrough in an area of our lives requires following some experts complicated advice, then we as human beings get the credit.  

A verse that constantly rings in my ears is this from psalms “Unless the Lord builds the house, the laborers labor in vain!”

Let us as believers and as the church leave this complicated gospel that rests all upon our efforts to figure everything out and return to the simple GOOD NEWS!

Jesus calls to us simply, “COME FOLLOW ME!”  

What do you do when your dreams get crushed?

“His Olympics are over!”  This is the phrase I heard the announcer shout as I watched yet another athlete crash to the track after tripping over a hurdle.  My stomach is in knots for this complete stranger.  The dream he has worked towards for a lifetime has just been crushed in the dust. 

This experience of watching someone’s dreams get crushed while seeing other’s dreams come true has been a recurring theme over the past two weeks of my marathon Olympic TV binge!  It has left me pondering the question, “What do you do when your dreams are crushed?”

I just recently connected with a couple of old friends and after ordering our steaks and some small talk, we found ourselves deep in intimate conversation.  I know that the words intimate conversation sound scary and unusual for men, but somehow it happened! 

Are stories were all strangely similar.  Crushed Dreams!  Even though we were all in unique life circumstances, we expressed familiar emotions: Bitterness, Confusion, Disappointment, Impatience and Frustration.  Another thing we had in common was that we found ourselves mad at God. 

We thought that we were pursuing dreams that He had put in our hearts, why had He seemingly let us down? 

“What do you do when your dreams are crushed?”  When this happens, I think the biggest temptation is to stop dreaming.  But the danger is that I believe when we stop dreaming we start dying!  Maybe when one dream is crushed, it’s simply time to find a new dream.  I know that sounds easier said then done!

We talked about the biblical stories of David and Joseph who had experienced dreams getting crushed on a much more dramatic level than what we were experiencing.  Their stories helped us somewhat but seemed distant and unconnected from our lives.

I think what was the most therapeutic for all of us was to sit at a table and share our stories over a “Mountain O’ Nachos.”  What better way to deal with disappointment than Food, Faith, and Family?

A scripture that has deeply encouraged me but at moments frustrated me is “He who trusts in Jesus will never be disappointed.” (Romans 10:11 NASB)  These words sound good until we feel the bitterness of disappointment.   “Wait, what is happening?”  “How could this happen?”  “I thought I was doing the right thing.”  “I thought I was doing what God wanted.” 

It all depends on our definition of disappointment.  If disappointment is when circumstances don’t work out the way we had hoped and dreamed, then we will continually experience this whether we are a Christian or not. 

In Romans 10:11 Paul is quoting Isaiah 28:16 which states 

“The one who maintains his faith will not panic.”       

I believe that faith in God will keep us in the purposes of God.

I wish that being in the purposes of God always meant smooth sailing, but sadly it doesn’t.   

God shows us how to deal with disappointment.  Don’t Panic. Hold tightly to Faith.

If all else fails share your stories of disappointment with close friends over a Mountain O’ Nachos!  

Did Jesus Fart?

I was driving my kids to school this morning, when my three children got on to the subject of farting.  My youngest daughter then asked me, “Did Jesus fart?”  

These are the deep theological discussions you have with pre-teen children!  

I responded, “Yes, honey Jesus farted.” 

She says, “But I thought Jesus was perfect?”

I then made a statement that I think a lot of Christians don’t understand: 

“Jesus was sinless, not perfect!”  

How do I back up this statement?

“For we do not have a high priest incapable of sympathizing with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way just as we are, yet without sin.” Hebrews 4:15

This one verse gives us an accurate snapshot of who Jesus is. 
100% human and 100% divine. 

I think it is so easy for us to diminish one of these two aspects.

On the one hand we diminish his humanity.  If just the title to this blog offended you then you probably diminish his humanity.  This view is reflected in the songs we sing.  Such as this popular Christmas Carol “Away in a Manger.”   The cattle are lowing, The baby awakes, But little Lord Jesus, No crying he makes!  

What? Jesus took on all of our weaknesses, even crying!  As I heard a preacher once say, “Jesus was like all babies, demand at one end and a problem at the other! 

Can you wrap your brain around that one?  The Creator of the universe takes on our weakness to the point that he must have someone else change his dirty diapers! 

That is the beauty of the Incarnation “God with us!”

The flip side of this coin is to deny Jesus divinity. 

“Come on, there is no way Jesus lived for 33 years and never once sinned!”

Statistics tell us that 1 out of 3 Christians believe that Jesus sinned. 

The huge problem with believing that Jesus sinned is that his death was for his own sins and not yours and mine.

It seems difficult to believe in someone who was 100% human and 100% divine. 
The math just doesn’t make sense!

But a savior who took on 100% of our weaknesses and yet was 100% sinless is exactly what we need.

It is also what the gospel writers portray for us. 

John says: “We proclaim to you the One who existed from the beginning.  We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands.”

Very early in Christianity people began to teach false ideas diminishing either Jesus’ humanity or divinity.  John wrote this letter to bring people back to the truth.  He says, “I was there. I experienced his humanity and his divinity.  Don’t deny either aspect!”

Why does this matter to you and I in 2015? 

Because no matter how deep of a pit of weakness you find yourself in, 

Jesus is there wrapping his arms around your weaknesses!  

He took on ALL of our humanity.

The beauty is that because he is God, he can also pull you out of that pit!  

I'm Falling Apart!

Last night I was reading a bed time story to my daughter about a village of puzzle people called the Fuddles.  “Whenever a stranger comes near them they have a habit of falling apart and scattering themselves around.”  

Have you ever felt like this, that whenever life gets difficult you fall to pieces?

     When I was in college I was definitely a Fuddle.  On the outside, I seemed like I had it all together.  I got straight A’s.  I studied all the time.  I didn’t skip class.  I even kept my dorm room clean! 

     But on the inside, I was plagued by the fear of failure.  About every other day, I would get completely overwhelmed with the pressure of school work and would privately fall apart.  I was dating my wife-to-be at the time and she counseled me through many of these “falling apart” times.    

     Now back to our fairy tale, once they fell apart the Fuddles were helpless and completely dependent on other people to put them back together again.  God uses other people to help put us back together again, but their help can only take us so far.  For the ultimate restoration we have to allow our Creator to put us back together again. 

     Listen to how the Apostle Paul describes the process in a letter to one of his students in Titus 3: “It wasn’t so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, dupes of sin, ordered every which way by our glands, going around with a chip on our shoulder, hated and hating back.  But when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, he saved us from all that.  It was all his doing; we had nothing to do with it.  He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside an out by the Holy Spirit.  Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously.  God’s gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives.  And there’s more life to come—an eternity of life! You can count on this.” (The Message)

     If you have never experienced what was just described in this passage, I implore you to have a conversation with God immediately about allowing him to put your life back together again. 

     Maybe you once experienced this new life, but have since walked away from relationship with God.  Maybe you are like I was in college.  The stress of life constantly makes you fall apart. 

     I have come a long way in my relationship with God since then.  I am able to trust Him more than I ever have before.  With that trust comes a peace and confidence that holds me together in stressful times. 

     You don’t have to live life like a Fuddle, consumed with a habit of falling apart.  God can and will restore your broken pieces if you surrender to him.  

Foot Note: The story I am referring to is called “The Emerald City of Oz.”  It is written by Frank Baum (the writer of The Wizard of Oz.)    

Being a Parent Is Such a Pain!

I thought I was watching my wife die! I had never seen any human being in such pain!  It had gone on for hours, but then we heard the words that somehow made the pain seem worth it, “It’s a boy!”

That was over 13 years ago, and for some crazy reason we decided to endure that same pain again and again by having two more children.  

I wish I could tell you that after leaving the hospital that the pain goes away, but it doesn’t.  The pain just changes to sleepless nights, diaper changes, and late-night feedings.  When they can walk, the pain changes to constantly chasing a toddler around.  You have to make sure they don’t stick something in an electrical socket, run into sharp furniture or drink out of the toilet!

When they start school the pain changes to HOMEWORK!  I really believe that parents are the most tragic victim of this teacher inflicted torture device!  My third grade daughter is crying because she doesn’t understand how to do her math.  I, her 39 year old father, am also crying because I can’t figure out how to do basic addition and subtraction is this new-fangled 23 step method known as “Common Core!”

Without a doubt, the most painful part of any day, is getting them ready for school!  I feel like getting three kids ready for school as about as easy as achieving a peace agreement in the Middle East!  Parents deserve a Medal of Honor each day that they succeed in this arduous task!

As I shared at the beginning, there was something miraculous about holding each one of our newborn babies.  The pain didn’t matter anymore!  Every time my wife held one of our babies she would always say, “Can’t we have just one more?”

Whenever I would come home from work and my son would run into my arms screaming “Daddy’s home,” the pain of raising toddlers didn’t matter anymore. Whenever one of my daughters would look up at me with those gorgeous brown eyes and say “I love you Daddy,” the pain didn’t matter anymore!        

I remember being a teenager and having arguments with my dad.  He would often make the statement “Son, when you have kids of your own, you will understand.”  As a teenager I thought that was such a dumb statement, but he was totally right.  I now understand what a struggle it is to be a parent!  

I encourage every parent reading this that THE PAIN IS WORTH IT!

Your children are worth every sacrifice that you have ever made or will make for them!

Psalm 127:3 says “Children are a gift from the LORD; they are a reward from him.”

Sometimes in the midst of the pain it is easy to forget this! 

I am a Hypocrite!

     In my house I constantly hear one child say to the other, “Who are you to tell me that I shouldn’t do this, when you do that same thing all the time?”

     I hear the same childish rhetoric regarding Kentucky clerk Kim Davis for not issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples.  “She obviously doesn’t care about marriage since she has been married four times!”  “She should just shut her mouth and quit her job!”  Didn’t Jesus say “He who is without sin, cast the first stone?”  Didn’t he also say “Take the log out of your own eye before removing the speck out of someone else’s eye?” 

     How many times Kim Davis has been married is irrelevant to whether or not she should be forced to endorse same-sex marriages.  Ironically, her divorces happened before she became a Christian which make the “hypocrite” attack irrelevant as well. 

The deeper issue is “Where does moral authority come from?”

How do we ever have the moral authority to say anything is wrong, 

if we have to be sinless first?  

I have lied before.  Does that make me a hypocrite for saying that lying is wrong?  

I have stolen before.  Does that disqualify me from saying that stealing is wrong?

Christians are giving into moral relativism if we think that our own 

spotless moral performance is what qualifies us to communicate moral standards! 

Moral standards exist independently of anyone's failure or ability to meet them.

If sinless perfection is the standard to be able to declare a behavior right or wrong than Jesus is the only human being who has ever lived who is able to speak authoritatively. 

I think we just discovered the answer to our question.  

Moral authority comes from God’s perfect moral character.  

Morality must be based upon something independent of humanity 

or it is just my opinion against yours. 

Unfortunately, that is what our society has been reduced to.  

We think that one opinion about morality is just as valid as any other. 

What did Jesus mean when he said, “He who is without sin, cast the first stone?”  You may be familiar with the story.  Religious leaders catch a woman in adultery and ask Jesus if she should be stoned.  There is no debate here about whether adultery is right or wrong, but what her punishment should be. 

When Jesus said “Take the log out of your own eye, before removing the speck out of your brother’s eye” he was talking about being judgmental of other believers.

I have no idea what Kim Davis’ motivation is for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples.  The religious right thinks she is a hero and the liberal left think that she is the devil.  I don’t think that she is either.  I think that she simply didn’t want her name on marriage licenses issued to same sex couples, and had the courage to stand up for what she knew was right. 

So if moral authority really does come from God, 

my moral opinion or even my failure to uphold His moral laws doesn’t change anything!  

We are quickly becoming a society where we want to make up our own morality.  We are sick of Christians reminding us of pesky things like God’s moral law.  We wish they would just shut up and stop “imposing their beliefs on everyone else.” 

The problem is that if we are to really take the words of Jesus seriously, he also stated that God intended marriage to be between a man and a woman.  But I guess he was a “hypocrite” for saying so since he never got married!