Check it out, critique it, pass it on, and savor it for a little while until the dust settles over French Pressed Fridays until the next edition of WTACGO goes public.

Enjoy.

//

Throughout the years, I’ve realized that even though the alarm clock wakes me up, there have been a number of different things that actually get me out of bed. Certain people, opportunities, tensions, or hunger have a way of getting people to rub their eyes, stretch, and roll out of bed. When I was in fifth grade, I had a crush on a girl named Jessica. I got out of bed to go to school so I could see her. I’m pretty sure she got out of bed for the same reason, but I haven’t validated that yet. In high school, I got out of bed so I could play basketball (I would have slept on the basketball court if it was an option). At one period in my life, I got out of bed to study Greek, theology, and church history so I could earn a master’s degree. And for as long as my wife and I are having children, I will spend an innumerable amount of days getting out of bed to change a diaper or feed a hungry baby.

The things that get me out of bed have a way of influencing how I live. Jessica affected my thoughts and my attention span. Seminary induced stress at times and dominated my schedule. So I’m faced with the question every single day, how will I live when the alarm clock goes off? How will I live when I wake up each day? How will I live when a new day begins? All of us have to face these questions everyday whether we want to or not. And we have to face them whether or not we use an alarm clock. Either we are going to go through the day proactively or reactively. Intentionally or passively. Purposefully or wastefully. The way we live and what we live for is our answer to the question.

How will you live when the alarm clock goes off?

When the alarm clock begins to buzz what is getting you out of bed and what are you living for?

A job?

The weekend?

Acceptance and approval?

A degree?

People and popularity?

Wall Street?

A relationship?

Power or pleasure?

Your family?

Money or more possessions?

The things that get us out of bed have a way of influencing how we live throughout the day from Sunday to Saturday. How are the things that get you out of bed influencing your relationship with God? How are they affecting the way you view yourself and all that you’ve been given? How are they changing the way you view and treat everyone around you?

If the things of the day make such a power over us, is there a way to influence the way we live before the day influences us?

Jesus and The Alarm Clock

There’s no clear evidence of the invention or existence of actual alarm clocks in the Bible, but the sun and neighborhood roosters probably served the same purpose. If Jesus were to write this book, He might have entitled it, “When The Rooster Crows Three Times,” or “When The Galilean Sun Shines Through Thatched Roof.” I’m sure whatever title He settled on, it would be perfect and really memorable. He knows a thing or two about the stickiness factor. We haven’t forgotten the names of the first humans He created, have we?

Days before Jesus was crucified, He used prophecy and parable to tell His followers that there would be certain things that would affect how they lived until they died or until He returned.He gave them instructions for the choices they needed to make that would influence the manner in which they lived amidst all that would occur.

The week leading up to Jesus’ death was filled with dramatic moments and poignant teachings. Jesus made a bold statement of that day riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, essentially announcing the arrival of its king. He defended the Jewish temple as a house of prayer by aggressively toppling tables and scattering the merchants who had turned it into a “Den of Thieves.” He taught on faith and prayer, unexpected kingdom citizens, and the pursuit of God’s redemption in the face of continual rejection. As the intensity of the week continued to mount, He would give a final lesson to His disciples, foretelling the near and distant future as well as describing qualities essential for facing what was to come.

Historically, on the Tuesday before Jesus’ crucifixion, He gave a lengthy sermon known as the Olivet Discourse (which can be found in Matthew 24-25; Mark 13; and Luke 21:5-38). This sermon was given days before Jesus’ death and resurrection and almost 50 days before Jesus would ascend back into heaven. Once He left earth, He would be entrusting His mission and ministry into the hands of His followers to take around the world. The contents of this significant set of teachings contain prophecy of the destruction of the Temple of God in Jerusalem and the reality of the second coming of Jesus. It also included three parables told to help prepare the disciples on how to live once Jesus left earth and until He returned.

Or when the alarm clock went off.

[Written and Posted by Todd Lesher 7.9.11]

There’s a business principle out there that says, “Vision leaks.” Basically, people need to be continually reminded of an organization’s vision to keep them invested, involved, and moving. Once the vision begins to dissipate confusion sets in and personal preferences or values can begin to override and even corrupt the vision. Employees and members need to be continually reminded.

In a similar and more important, manner the Gospel of Jesus Christ leaks. The truth of the Gospel doesn’t change but we’re clueless and forgetful people. This goes for all everyone everywhere. We must be constantly reminded of the Gospel or we will forget the Gospel — God’s love, truth, forgiveness, and freedom revealed and offered by grace to everyone through faith in Jesus Christ. This is crucial for non Christians who don’t know and haven’t accepted the Gospel.

How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? [Romans 10:14]

And it’s vital for Christians, who even though they have accepted it and given their lives to it forget about it continually. This is one of the main reasons I try to read the Bible routinely. I read regularly to remember what I forget daily. I read to be reminded of the Gospel. For I have to fight my sin nature hour by hour and the realities, disappointments, and tragedies of life cause me to forget the love, truth, forgiveness, and freedom of God over and over. And my life demonstrates my forgetfulness. This is also why attending a Gospel-centered chuch is necessary as well. We need to join with others in community weekly to be reminded of what we forget collectively. Our lives expose something about understanding of and dependency on the Gospel.

What is your life telling us about the Gospel?

What are our churches telling our cities about the Gospel?

We may have a memory problem.

The more I watch the classic sitcom Seinfeld I realize that without the grace of God I am George Costanza. Apart from the Gospel I am just like the shallow, insecure, and disingenuous character from Seinfeld. Wikipedia describes him like this, “George exhibits a number of negative character traits, among them stinginess, selfishness, dishonesty, insecurity, and neurosis.” These characteristic occur regularly but in one episode entitled, “The Voice,” George’s character shines as he enjoys the perks of faking a disability.

His plotting is eventually exposed and he loses all privileges. But to George it’s always worth the shaddy scheming.

The Gospel is all about exposing this and repairing it.

During the 2009 MTV VMA’s Taylor Swift received the award for best female music video. During her acceptance speech Kanye West famously crashes the stage and Taylor’s moment spewing his opinion all over the crowd and the media headlines. A year later, just before the 2010 VMA’s in an attempt to “make up” Kanye used more than 140 characters to tweet an apology to Taylor. And then he opened the awards show with a musical confession of sorts entitled Runaway (beware of explicit content and gaudy jewelry).

Kanye is giving a toast to himself, the George Costanzas of the world, and me. Frankly he’s giving a toast to everyone — the self-righteous and the unrighteous.

Let’s have a toast for the d*******,
Let’s have a toast for the a******,
Let’s have a toast for the scumbags,
Every one of them that I know
Let’s have a toast to the j******
That’ll never take work off
Baby, I got a plan
Run away fast as you can

The song celebrates and warns everyone for being how and who we are.

In one degree the Bible, in Titus 3 shares the sentiment,  At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. And Ephesians 2 reveals, As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. What I hide, what George epitomizes, and what Kanye cheers the Bible uses to describe all of us. And apart from the Gospel we are and will always be these things.

And these things cause us to doubt, deny, and forget God’s love and redemption.

Our sin has turned us away from God, against each other, and toward ourselves for protection and salvation. George uses his friends. I’m better than my friends. And Kanye alerts his friends to run away.

Has God run away too?

The Gospel answers, But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. [Ephesians 2:4-5]

The Gospel tells us that God created us out of love. It confronts us in love with the truth about our sin and separation from God. And then through love offers us forgiveness of these sins and freedom from them. So through faith in Jesus so we can say, “No,” to sin, “Yes,” to God, and follow Jesus forever.

But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. [Titus 3:4-7]

God didn’t run away from us because of our sin, but ran to us by coming to earth and dying on a cross to reveal that our sin hasn’t scared Him off and that we’re worth saving.

Which is worthy of giving our lives to.

Which makes it worth remembering.

And we must remember regularly to replenish what leaks.

So read it.
Share it.
Memorize it.
Live it.
Tag it.
Teach it.
Ponder it.
Record it.
Paint it.
Breathe it.
Tattoo it.
Sing it.
Preach it.
Blog it.

Because many, like you and me, don’t know the message and power of the Gospel.

Or just constantly forget it.

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day. [1 Corinthians 15:3-4]

Our culture wants us to define our understanding of God according to our liking. Religion requires us to know a lot about God before we can turn to Jesus. But the Gospel invites us to turn to Jesus so we can understand God and have a relationship with Him.

Reflect

Our culture convinces us to value personal freedom over following Jesus. Religion offers us freedom but imprisons us with rules to follow. But the Gospel frees us from sin to reflect God’s glory when we turn to Jesus and follow Him.

Glory

Our culture pressures us into promoting our glory to get noticed. Religion expects us to glorify ourselves to impress God. The Gospel reveals the glory of God to the inglorious through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection that we may know and reflect His glory.

Worship

Our culture convinces us to worship everything but Jesus because it’s harmless. Religion keeps worship shallow by defining it as a Sunday morning practice. The Gospel reveals that we will resemble Jesus only as we worship Him as God.

Worship Some More

Our culture wants us to worship it so it can receive all the glory. Religion is all about showing off our glory to impress God and others. The Gospel is all about Jesus forgiving and freeing us from worshiping ourselves so we can worship Him to reflect and reveal the glory of God.

Kill

Our culture views our sin nature as our identity that shouldn’t be tampered with. Religion prefers cleaning up, instead of killing completely, to modify behavior while neglecting idolatry of the heart. The Gospel reveals a God who is willing to die to kill our godliness so we could become godly.

Clothe

Our culture picks out the outfits – attitudes, behaviors, and language – it accepts and values. Religion corners us into believing God won’t save us until we kill our bad habits and transform ourselves. The Gospel is all about God transforming us when we turn to Jesus and walk with Him.

The Cross

When we turn to Jesus and worship Him for who He is we will recognize who we aren’t. Once we realize who we aren’t this is when we are most ready for God to begin transforming our character to resemble His.

Jesus revealed the glory of God. He revealed God’s compassion, patience, forgiveness, and truth to us by the way He lived, how He spoke, the way He died, and when He rose to life.

Jesus revealed the glory of God’s love when he died on the cross so we could stop worshiping ourselves and start worshiping Him to reflect His glory.

What is your life telling others about God?

About Jesus’ death on the cross?

About being a Christian?

Does your life tell us more about your glory or the glory of Jesus?

Does your life tell us more about Jesus or your idols?

Does your life point others to the cross or away from it?

To reflect and reveal the character of God we must turn to Jesus and allow Him to kill our godless character and clothe us with God’s character.

Our culture mocks the cross and convinces us that we are the primary source of salvation and transformation. Religion requires us to fix our sinful character before we can turn to Jesus for the forgiveness and freedom to be transformed.

But the Gospel is all about Jesus dying on a cross and rising from the dead so we can be forgiven and set free from sin to reflect and reveal the glory of God.

When we turn to Jesus and begin worshiping His as God we will begin to see certain attitudes, characteristics, and qualities die while others begin to form, grow, and thrive.

Part of worshiping God involves killing – ripping, tearing, removing – the character produced from worshiping ourselves and following our sinful nature.

(Turn to Jesus and Hulk Hogan your sin )

Worshiping God doesn’t just involve killing. It also enables, expects, and requires us to clothe ourselves with God’s character as we follow and obey Jesus.

This may be the most surprising and challenging aspect of the Christian life. I have come to believe that a number of people who claim Christianity as their religion of choice only hold to that identity at a surface level. A friend of mine compares this type of person to a Tar Heel fan who boasts about them as their favorite but couldn’t tell you who made up their starting five. I’m not sure who is to blame but many people who decide to become Christians do so with the misconception that the choice only entails and extends them forgiveness of sins in the present and eternal life in heaven in the future. These things are true and offered freely to those who turn to Jesus, but there’s more and much expected.

At the moment someone turns to Jesus confessing that He’s God and they’re not they become sanctified unto God. They become set apart to Him alone. Their heart becomes holy. When God looks at someone who has set their faith and affections on Him He sees Jesus holiness shining through.

After someone is converted God the Holy Spirit will continually sanctify their character and behavior – their thoughts, word, and actions – for the rest of their life. As long as they’re alive God will perform spiritual surgery to remove sinfulness and replace it with godliness.

The holy are becoming holy.

In Hebrews 12 the author describes Jesus as “the author and perfecter” of those who put their faith in Him. Through His death and His choosing He enables us to turn to Him for salvation. And through His resurrection He sets us free to be transformed by Him. Pastor Matt Chandler calls the process of continual transformation “progressive sanctification.” The Christian, who has turned to Jesus, should gradually take on His character and quality.

This is expected of those who follow Jesus according to the Bible, but is it always the case among Christian today?

We want the body but we don’t want the workout.

We want the knowledge but we don’t want the education.

We want the benefits but we don’t want the commitment.

We want to go to heaven but we don’t want to die.

We want transformation but we don’t want the sanctification.

The reason may be as simple as the lyrics to Fall Out Boys America’ Suitehearts, “Let’s hear it for America’s suitehearts. I must confess, I’m in love with my own sins.” This chorus describes our problem but if we look closer it may actually be pointing us in the right direction if we’re keen enough to follow.

Puritan pastor, John Owen, would say to obtain glorification we must experience mortification. We discussed this in the last post, but for the sake of remembrance, Colossians 3 says Christians must “put to death,” and “rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.” Hebrews 12:1 gives the instructions to “throw of everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.” We read this but resist it. Because as the author of Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis, wrote, “The natural life knows that if the spiritual life gets hold of it, all its self-centredness is going to be killed.” Those who follow Jesus must, as an act of worship, allow God to kill their godlessness.

And they must partake in the killing as well.

But worshiping Jesus as God does not only involve killing our sins of thought, word, and deed. To reiterate, worship is less about singing songs and raising our hands but it’s all about turning to Jesus confessing who we aren’t so we can reflect who He is. Colossians goes on to explain that Christians worship by clothing themselves with God’s character.

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

The Bible is full of material that tells us that God is the one at work in the life of the believer, conforming him or her to the image and likeness of Jesus (Philippians 2:13; Galatians 5:22-23; Hebrews 12:2). So many just sit back and continue to permit sin to dictate their lives and then blame God for not changing them or even worse accuse God of allowing it to remain. But we can’t separate the content of verses like Philippians 2:13, Galatians 5:22-23, and Hebrews 12:2 from their context. Let’s look at each of these briefly (as I am already 738 words into this post).

Philippians 2:12-13 reads like this, “Therefore, my dear friends…continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.”

Galatians 5:17, 22-23 says, “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh…But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”

And Hebrews 12:1-2 tells us, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Jesus’ death on the cross enables us to be transformed by God along with or alongside of God. Christians must proactively join God in His progressive sanctification. The Gospel tells us that God is extremely opposed to earning salvation by trying to transform our lives and hearts ourselves. But the Gospel is in favor of our effort as a response to Jesus’ salvation and in line with God to kill our sin and clothe ourselves with His character.

Bible reading, prayer, confession and repentance, church community, godly marriage, suffering, obedience, solitude, service, and sacrifice won’t do anything to save you, but they do help to transform you as God works in you. These things assist us to grow in godliness.

Our culture picks out the outfits – attitudes, behaviors, and language – it accepts and values. Religion corners us into believing God won’t save us until we kill our bad habits and transform ourselves. The Gospel is all about God transforming us when we turn to Jesus and walk with Him.

We are getting in the way of a relationship with our Savior. It’s only in turning to Jesus and worshiping Him as God will we allow His death on the cross to kill our sin.

And partake in killing it as well.

In 1999 the controversial, now cult classic, film Fight Club (you know, “the first rule of fight club is, you do not talk about fight club) hit theaters and raised concern while sparking underground revolutions.

I was hardly ever invited to parties in high school so I spent a majority of my senior year drinking Pepsi and watching it with a few buddies (a loser I know, but a cool edgy loser). In the movie, a docile Edward Norton and a diesel Brad Pitt play alternative characters who are polar opposites. Yet as the story progresses you discover that they are disassociated personalities. Brad Pitt plays Edward Norton’s whacked out alter ego. Eventually Norton realizes that Pitt’s character is amassing some major damages and destruction and must be stopped.
(I have no problem ruining the ending of movies so…) In a dramatic final scene the main characters face off and Norton, desperate to be freed of his alter ego’s control and mayhem, shoots himself in the head killing Pitt on the spot.

Norton’s character survives.

And this is picture of Christian worship.

When someone surrenders their life to Jesus and worships Him as God they will do a lot more killing than singing. But it won’t be of people or alter egos, it will be of our selfish character produced by our sinful nature. We have to deal with a confusing misconception here before we move on. Some people, Christian and nonChristian, believe that if they can just get themselves together, clean up their act, and moralize their lives they’ll fix themselves and the rift between God. This belief and behavior is the same as trying to cure a cold by wiping your nose. We can wipe our nose a million times but the illness will never go away because the cold remains. You can’t cure a sickness by treating the symptoms.

And you can’t become sinless by sinning less.

All people are born with a sin nature. A natural rebellion against God. We are born at war with our Creator. Our sin nature is revealed by our sinful character expressed in thought, word, and action. This is why Jesus’ death on the cross is so crucial.

His death kills the cold and the symptoms slowly die as well.

When someone turns to Jesus the sin that separated them from God is forgiven.Then they are infused with the Holy Spirit to kill off the symptoms of sin while producing the character of God in their place. Romans 8:13 says it like this, “For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.” This is where and why worship is vital for the life of a Christian.

In the letter to the Colossians the apostle Paul paints this amazing picture of who Jesus is and what He’s done and then he describes the necessary response of those who follow Him.
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. [Colossians 3:1-5]

First Paul talks about the position of those who have put their faith in and given their lives to Jesus. He says they are, “raised with Christ.” Christians have spiritually come back from dead just as Jesus did physically. And this resurrection condition should alter our worship and behavior. Next Paul tells those who have been resurrected, born again, saved, to set their hearts and minds on Jesus — on heavenly things instead of worldly things. Here Paul is opposing the worship of the earthly idols they formerly held as god. This is a call to worship Jesus, and in doing so it’s a call to kill.

The Old Testament of the Bible is filled with historical accounts of the rebellion of people and the rescue of God. The Israelite monarchy was very similar to an episode of Jersey Shore. Most of the Israelite kings did evil in the eyes of the Lord but there were a few who did right. One of those kings was Josiah. Josiah became king when he was eight years old (I was picking my nose and shooting cap guns when I was eight). In the 18th year of his reign he rediscovers God’s laws, reads it, and is overwhelmed by it. He notices that the kingdom he rules is living in opposition to God’s way, full of idols and idolatry. So Josiah gets busy.

The king ordered Hilkiah the high priest, the priests next in rank and the doorkeepers to remove from the temple of the LORD all the articles made for Baal and Asherah and all the starry hosts. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron Valley and took the ashes to Bethel. He did away with the idolatrous priests appointed by the kings of Judah to burn incense on the high places of the towns of Judah and on those around Jerusalem—those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun and moon, to the constellations and to all the starry hosts. He took the Asherah pole from the temple of the LORD to the Kidron Valley outside Jerusalem and burned it there. He ground it to powder and scattered the dust over the graves of the common people. He also tore down the quarters of the male shrine prostitutes that were in the temple of the LORD, the quarters where women did weaving for Asherah. [2 Kings 23:4-7]

And this is what Paul has in mind when he instructs those who worship Jesus to “put to death whatever belongs to your earthly nature.”

Worshiping Jesus kills idols.

Killing idols discontinues the expressions and behaviors associated with idol worship.

Colossians 3 explains that worshiping Jesus will progressively kill our self-worship — the remnants of our forgiven sinful nature.

What are we worshiping instead of Jesus that must be killed?

Potential.

Power.

Possessions.

Popularity.

Pleasure.

People.

As an act of worship, then, kill, resist, and destroy all the character produced from worshiping anything but Jesus.

Our culture views our sin nature as our identity that shouldn’t be tampered with. Religion prefers cleaning up, instead of killing completely, to modify behavior while neglecting idolatry of the heart. The Gospel reveals a God who is willing to die to kill our godliness so we could become godly.

Our reason we protect and hide our idols and fear killing them is because we believe we won’t survive. In killing our idolatry we will not only survive we will thrive. When we turn to Jesus and worship Him as God we will kill our selfish character and allow Him to clothe us with His character.

I am realizing that I have a worship problem.

I have considered myself a worshiper of Jesus for a number of years but as of recently I have discovered that I worship people as well. I am willing to sacrifice obedience to the teachings of Jesus and the conviction of the Holy Spirit to please people. I will place sharing Jesus’ love, truth, forgiveness, and freedom on the alter to avoid offending and ostracizing others. I fear people instead of fearing God and I am making sacrifices to accommodate my worship.

Worship takes place more on Monday through Saturday than it does on Sunday mornings in churches around the globe. And true worship is more evident in our football stadiums on Saturdays and Sundays than it is in our church services. Watch College Game Day and you will see people resemble and make sacrifices for what they worship. Droves are decked out in alliance gear and they lay their money, gas milage, voices, civility, and weekends down on the alter of college football.

When we look at worship through this lens hopefully we can see that worship is more than music styles, song lyrics, and organs or rock bands. Worship is more posture than type. It is much more like treasuring or obsessing than singing and clapping. Singing may be taking place in our church services but our lives reveal our worship once we leave the building. Isaiah 29:13 paints the scene like this, “The Lord says: ‘These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught.’”

I come near God on Sundays but go off to worship people once the service is over. And my relationship with God and my character is affected by the sacrifice.

When someone turns to Jesus for salvation through faith they will begin to understand God clearly and reflect His glory progressively as they worship Him continually. The Bible assures us that we will resemble God’s character as we worship Him.

Who or what are you worshiping?

What or who are you becoming because of what or who you worship?

Are you becoming more or less compassionate?

Gracious?

Patient?

Loving?

Faithful?

Forgiving?

Truthful?

More or less like God’s character?

Christians like to make themselves know for not drinking, smoking, cussing, or having sex before marriage. Are these the things God is known for? Did God reveal His glory to Moses by pronouncing, “Moses! I am God because I don’t smoke, or drink, or cuss, or chew, or hang with those who do! Bow down!”?

Religion defines our lives by what we don’t do.

The Bible tells us that God is made known and made famous when Christians are compassionate, gracious, loving, patient, faithful, forgiving, and truthful.

The Gospel defines our lives by who God is and what He has done to rescue and transform us.

Our lives will reveal who or what we worship.

Ultimately, when I put people in the place of glory I worship myself. When we worship anyone or anything other than Jesus as God we are worshiping ourselves. Simply put, we will either worship God or we will worship ourselves – what we want, what we like, what we want to be true, what we will do, what we prefer. And we are what we worship.

“Self is the opaque veil,” writes A.W. Tozer, “that hides the face of God from us. It can be removed only in spiritual experience, never by mere instruction. There must be work of God in destruction before we are free. We must invite the cross to do its deadly work within us. We must bring our self-sins to the cross for judgment.”

According to Tozer something is inhibiting us from reflecting the glory of God and we need to allow the cross of Jesus to destroy our sin so we can reflect His glory. The band 30 Seconds to Mars sings in Closer to the Edge, “We all fall short of glory lost in our fate.” Romans 6:23 reveals that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Our self-worship is the sin that is separating us from God and prohibiting life change. C.S. Lewis reminds us that, “idols always break the hearts of their worshipers.” Self-worship is idolatry and our hearts are shriveling as we exalt it to a place of glory.

A broken heart produces a broken life which produces broken worship.

Our culture wants us to worship it so it can receive all the glory. Religion is all about showing off our glory to impress God and others. The Gospel is all about Jesus forgiving and freeing us from worshiping ourselves so we can worship Him to reflect and reveal the glory of God.

But it’s only by turning to Jesus and worshiping Him as God will we allow the deadly work of His death on the cross to take place in our lives.

Over the past couple posts we’ve seen that the Bible tells us that when someone turns to Jesus (by putting their faith in Him as King and Savior – in who He is and what He’s done over their lives) they will begin to truthfully understand who God is and they also become reflectors of His glory – His character – revealed through love, compassion, grace, forgiveness, truth, patience, faithfulness, and justice.

After God revealed His glory to Moses in Exodus 34:5-7 something very significant occurs that cannot be overlooked or thrown away because of the mammoth implications for our lives. When Moses encountered God Exodus 34:8 describes Moses’ response, “Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped.”

How do we respond when we encounter the truth and character of God? What is our reaction when God reveals Himself in Scripture or an interaction or through a podcast or in the stars or a sunrise?

I fold my arms. I slouch back in my seat. I fall asleep praying.

Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped.

When Moses makes his way back down from Mount Sinai with the Ten Commandments in his holsters Exodus 34:29-35 tells us that “his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord.” Moses radiated from being with, talking with, and worshiping God. In 2 Corinthians 3:7-18 Paul compares Moses – who reflected God’s glory on his face – with those who have turned to Jesus – and now reflect God’s glory in their character. 2 Corinthians 3:7 and 11 says that Moses’ radiance would fade after meeting with God but in verses 16-18 he announces that when we turn to Jesus the quality of God’s character grows up continually inside of and out through us.

The connection between Moses then and us now is worship.

Moses physically reflected God’s glory as he worshiped Him. Once we turn to Jesus we will only increase in His character as we continually worship Him. The mash up of Exodus 34 and 2 Corinthians 3 uncovers the reality that people should begin to resemble God’s character as they worship Him. @RyanBCarson gave it a slick slant when he tweeted, “We resemble what we revere.”Pastor Mark Driscoll elaborated on this a little further writing, “What people revere, they resemble, either for ruin or restoration.” This ruin Driscoll mentions is illustrated in an episode involving Israelites, cows, and gold.

As Moses was communing with God up, up, and away on Mount Sinai the Israelites were getting restless and confused. They had just made their dramatic exit from Egypt – an empire filled with gods and goddesses, tributes and alters, and visible expressions of deity – to follow their God who lead them through the wilderness by cloud and fire and fed them with bread from heaven and water from rocks without any physical manifestation of His being. They grab Moses’ brother Aaron (essentially the next in command) pleading with him to “make us gods who will go before us” (Exodus 32:1). Aaron complies and forges a golden calf (I would have sculpted a buffalo, Stalin and Marx preferred sculpted images of themselves) out of gold supplied by the people. And they began worshiping the heifer as the Lord, the one who brought them out of Egypt.

They are making God in their image according to their understanding, design, preferences, and benefit (it’s a good thing America doesn’t deal with this problem yet). And their image and worship of God is ruining them. “Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt” (v. 7). Then God says something perplexing, “I have seen these people…and they are stiff-necked people” (v. 9). These verses expose the impact that misdirected worship leads to corruption and resemblance (see Romans 1 as well). The Israelites were becoming debase stiff-necked bovines.

Who are we becoming because of who or what we worship?

Everyone is a worshiper whether they claim religious affiliation or not. And everyone is becoming something for ruin or restoration because of it. Again Mark Driscoll has opened my eyes to this truth. “Worship is holding a person or thing in a position of glory and living our lives dedicated to it above all else, as revealed by the sacrifices we make.” If your career is your god (in the position of glory) you will make sacrifices to worship it. You will sacrifice your time, family, and friends for the sake of your career. If grades are your god again you will sacrifice time, friendship, church, and extra-curricular activities to please your god and make the grade. If pleasure is in the place of glory you will sacrifice commitment, authority, health, money, and boyfriends and girlfriends on the alter of satisfaction.

Not only will we sacrifice for what we worship we will begin to resemble it as well. If you worship money you will be sure people know about the car you drive, clothes you wear, your paycheck, and the restaurants you frequent. If you worship sex your life will be marked by perverse jokes, pornography, and multiply partners. If you worship cows you will become corrupt and stiff-necked.

But if you worship Jesus as God your life will reveal and reflect His glory. If you worship Jesus as God your life will be marked by His character – His compassion, grace, patience, faithfulness, forgiveness, and truth. “Worship is a way,” writes John Piper in Desiring God, ”of gladly reflecting back to God the radiance of His worth.” And through worship we will progressively embody in our character the quality of His glory.

Sanctification comes through right worship which comes through proper understanding which comes by turning to Jesus.

Our culture convinces us to worship everything but Jesus because it’s harmless. Religion keeps worship shallow by defining it as a Sunday morning practice. The Gospel reveals that we will resemble Jesus only as we worship Him as God.

When someone turns to Jesus for forgiveness and freedom through faith they will begin to understand who God is and reflect His glory.

To make sense of God’s glory we have to go back in time, in a tent, and up a mountain to have a quick conversation with Moses.

Around 1,300 years before the Apostle Paul wrote 1 Corinthians, Moses, the leader of the Israelites, made a gutsy request of God. The first half of the book of Exodus narrates God’s rescue of the people of Israel from the slavery of Pharaoh and the Egyptians. God worked powerfully to set them free. The second half of Exodus includes the wildly popular 10 Commandments (you know we’ve all seen those, “The 10 Commandments Are My Homeboy,” t-shirts) as well as instructions for the construction of the tabernacle — God’s dwelling place among His people. In the midst of all the laws and blueprints — God’s rules and plans — Moses asks God to reveal His glory.

Moses said to the Lord, “You have been telling me, ‘Lead these people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. You have said, ‘I know you by name and you have found favor with me.’ If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.” The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?” And the Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.” Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” [Exodus 33:12-18]

Moses wants verification and validation. He wants to know who will lead him as the leader and the type of leader they’ll be. Now, if I were Moses I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have made the same requests. I would overlooked pressing matters to ask God for something more along the lines of a book deal, nun-chuck skills, or complete musical talent that crippled everyone who listened with awe. If I wasn’t obsessed with self-improvement I would have asked God to show me the future or my neighbors iTunes library. Clearly I would have viewed my interaction with God as a moment with a genie in a tent.

What are you asking God for?

Prosperity for yourself? Punishment for your enemies? Or a proper posture before God.

But Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”

And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. [Exodus 33:19]

After this dialogue Moses packs up his gear, laces up his boots, and grabs his walking staff to make his way up Mount Sinai to meet with God. While on the mountain God reveals His glory to Moses.

Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.”

God’s character is one of the defining marks of His glory. They set Him apart from humans, false gods, and the figureheads of all the other world’s religions.

If Zeus, the mythological Greek god, were to show us his glory he would flauntingly thunder out some lightning bolts and impregnate a mortal.

If Brahma, Vishnu, and Lakshmi, three primary Hindu gods, were to show their glory they would create, destroy, or show off their wealth respectively.

If  Buddhist gods were to show their glory they may be hard to distinguish because of their human-like limitations.

If Kami, Shinto gods, were to show their glory we might behold a wide range of attributes from ancestors, natural powers, and the souls of deceased rulers.

If I were to show the world my glory I would likely dust off a couple diplomas, describe my life experiences, flex, give you a tour of my house, and have you write down the address to this blog. Pretty darn glorious.

What would you show us?

It could have been real easy for God to reveal His glory by blowing up mountains, making planets collide, or turning Moses into Lady Gaga. Instead God revealed His glory to Moses by describing His character — God is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love, faithful, patient, forgiving, and just.

In Exodus 33 and 34 God promised to reveal His glory to Moses but with the understanding that he would not be able to look upon God’s face lest he perish at the sight. When Jesus died on the cross He invited the whole world to look upon God to see His love, compassion, grace, forgiveness, and justice poured out so we could understand who He is and reflect His glory.

Our culture pressures us into promoting our glory to get noticed. Religion expects us to glorify ourselves to impress God. The Gospel reveals the glory of God to the inglorious through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection that we may know and reflect His glory.

When someone turns to Jesus they are forgiven of all their sin that separated them from knowing God rightly and having a relationship with Him. 2 Corinthians 3:17-18 then goes on to explain that those who receive God’s forgiveness are set free from sin so that they can reflect God’s glory.

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

The New Testament tells us that when someone turns to Jesus and surrenders their life to Him they are filled with the Spirit of God (see Romans 8).  The Holy Spirit does a number or things in the life of a follower of Jesus (see John 14:26; 16:8-11; Galatians 5:22-23). The teaching in 2 Corinthians reveals that the Spirit also brings freedom to those He’s filled. This is one of the greatest points of tension among Christians. A lot of people what a shallow version of God’s forgiveness and freedom. People want to be forgiven of their sin but when it comes to freedom they prefer to be freed from the guilt associated with their sin instead of the thoughts, habits, and behaviors caused by their sin. A number of people who claim to be Christians want forgiveness and the freedom to keep on sinning.

Does your life expose God’s freedom or only His forgiveness?

Jesus didn’t suffer and die on a cross so we could go on sinning. Jesus died so we could be forgiven and He rose from the dead so we could be set free from the sin He forgave. And this freedom brings about a certain reflection. 2 Corinthians 3:18 tells us that those who turn to Jesus will become reflectors of God’s glory. They won’t become sinless but God’s freedom will enable them to sin less so they can reflect His glory more and more. When we turn to Jesus the Holy Spirit turns us into His reflectors with “ever-increasing glory,” by ever-decreasing our sin. We are forgiven and set free to reflect God’s glory.

I ran into a dog one night while riding my bike. I was cruising down the sidewalk (which is apparently illegal in the state of North Carolina) and ahead of me I began to see the silhouette of someone. I veered off the sidewalk to avoid making contact with this individual in the dark. As I passed I think I rode over and cracked a stick which startled a peeing dog the silhouette was walking. Acting on instinct (no one likes getting interrupted while taking a leak) the dog lunged after my bike and my bike, being the vicious animal it is, attacked the dog. I mean I rammed into that sucker. I was jarred from my bike, gashed my knee, sent the owner and dog in to a cussing frenzy, bent my handlebar, and rode off apologizing for colliding with the dog as well as every other terrible thing I had done to man or animal.

(Please don’t hit us.)

Even though my bike is covered with reflectors they serve no purpose if light isn’t shining on them. If the dog had a coat of reflectors I still would have crushed it because there wasn’t any light around to reflect. Reflectors can’t reflect light unless there’s light and they’re facing it.

People can’t reflect the glory of God unless they turn to Jesus.

Who are you reflecting?

Speaker, author, and songwriter Louie Giglio gave a speech in which he described the moon as just a dark ball of dirt and dust. The glowing orb we see in the night sky is a cold and dirty rock facing the sun reflecting its radiance. Recording artist Sara Groves sings of this reality in her song You Are the Sun.

You are the sun shining down on everyone

Light of the world giving light to everything I see

Beauty so brilliant I can hardly take it in

And everywhere you are is warmth and light.

And I am the moon with no light of my own

Still you have made me to shine

And as I glow in this cold dark night

I know I can’t be a light unless I turn my face to you.

Shine on me with your light

Without you I’m a cold dark stone

Shine on me I have no light of my own

You are the sun

And I am the moon.

Are we just dust ourselves unable to reflect God unless we turn to Jesus?

Are you reflecting anything?

Who have you turned to?

When we turn to Jesus the veil of sin is removed through forgiveness and the Holy Spirit fills our lives to set us free from sin so we can reflect God’s glory.

Our culture convinces us to value personal freedom over following Jesus. Religion offers us freedom but imprisons us with rules to follow. But the Gospel frees us from sin to reflect God’s glory when we turn to Jesus and follow Him.