A Word on the Power of Small Group Accountability

Resentment is a spiritual killer.  The things we do when we are sullen because we did not get what we thought we deserved-- the praise, the money, the status; the things we do when we are angry and fearful because we feel that what we love and value is threatened; these things are truly frightening.  They are the root of so much spiritual downfall and outright sinning.

I caught a real good case of resentment a few weeks ago.  But I was able to confess it plainly to a group of men I meet with.  Not only was there square dealing with the issue at hand, but also encouragement to move past it with God's help. I can say confidently that I have never gotten over a resentment so quickly.  All the negative consequences of resentment-- self-righteousness, anger, fear, hatred, thanklessness, being quick-tempered, self-indulgence, gossip-- these all disappeared under the discipline of the Holy Spirit.

I hope you have a group like I have, a place like I have with these guys.  But I know that almost none of you do.  Would you like this kind of help?  Would you like the power of the Cross of Christ not just for forgiveness, but for power over sin's continuing influence in your life?  We are starting as many of these groups as we can.  Please talk to me and let's start one.

They are so simple.  But that simplicity demands a rigor.  It's not just any group of people getting together and hanging out and talking.  Small group ministries in churches fail because they won't stick to the plan.  And the plan is to ask 4 simple questions:

How are you doing spiritually?

Have you avoided evil?  (More pointedly, how have you sinned?)

Have you done all the good you can do?

Have you used the means of grace? (the usual ways God is present to us: prayer, worship, reading Scripture, etc)

If you go to Church Multiplication Associates at www.cmaresources.org you will see a link to their Life Transformation Groups.  They are the same questions, only more specific.

Every group like this I have ever been a part of has changed my life.  In fact, it's the place where the greatest life change has happened.  When they fail it is because they fail to ask the basic questions; they want to back off and assume we are all basically ok.  If you think you're basically ok, then good luck, you're gonna have a bad time.  But if you know you're a mess and need Jesus, let's talk.

I was visiting a guy in the hospital a few days ago.  I asked him how he was doing spiritually (a usual question I ask when I visit people in hospital or at home).  He confessed some things and in a Holy Spirit moment, I confessed to him, and we were both greatly blessed by the power of Christ.  I think this is how the normal Christian life is supposed to be.

I was walking down the street to visit one of our people.  A pastor I know and respect in this town was driving by.  He stopped and we talked about some stuff and then he said, "I think you and me and some other pastors need to get together and pray and study the Scriptures and break down the strongholds in our lives to break through in ministry."  Man, he has no idea what a divine appointment that was. If pastors can lead the way in confession and transparency and the power of victorious living...

Some work of the Holy Spirit

So, want to know what I have been praying for? An in-filling of the Spirit's love.

This friend of mine who took the body of Jesus off the crucifix from his grandmother's funeral also told me a story about what is bringing him to the verge of professing faith in Christ. He was alone in his apartment one day and he kind of out of nowhere, but thinking about life, he felt like he had been punched in the chest and felt his chest swelling up and he just had a profound sense of love.

I was happy to say I knew what he had experienced, but sad that it has been a while.

The prime gift of the Holy Spirit is love. And when the Holy Spirit shows you that, it's an immense feeling of... love, like you have never known.

The first time I had ever felt that was one cold rainy day in Lexington, maybe in 1999. Howard Willen, my pastor, had taken me to visit a fellow from the church who was in a retirement home. I started visiting him and a few other guys. Well, this particular fellow had told me he did not know if he was saved. He had gone to church all of his adult life, was active, etc. I was able to share with him assurance of salvation, not simply in a mechanical sense, as in a repetition of a prayer or the intellectual assent to some tenet of the faith. Rather, I shared with him what Howard taught me, that the Spirit witnesses with our spirit that we are children of God (Romans 8:16). So while we must believe something specific about Jesus-- that He is Lord, that He died for our sins, that He rose again-- the basic tenets of the faith, we also have a supernatural witness of our acceptance, so we do not doubt or cringe or fear.

So I had just shared that with this fellow, Mr Clay was his name. He was so relieved. You could almost see a change in him. I left the retirement home and stopped to get gas at the Shell station that was brand new in those days, on the corner of Harrodsburg and Virginia Ave. There I was. It was a cold day with a drizzle coming down, the kind where you can hear that faint buzz as the cars cut through the water on the road. And for a moment, it felt like time stopped, like I could see everything in slow motion. That sound of the tires going through the water is something I remember quite a bit from that moment. And in that extended moment, I seemed to see the world the way God does, with great love. I felt I did, indeed, love everyone.

And then as quickly as it had come, it was gone. Wish I could explain more. Wish I knew more. I think it is tied to things like 1 Cor 13, and the appearances in the New testament of the word “telos,” and its cognates, sometimes translated “perfect.” Maybe later I can sermonize a bit there. But for now...

I was praying for that again, and really praying that it would come again and stick around in me!

So in this rain, in the middle of so much pain on the earth, I was praying. Maybe more hoping, not sure what to do or think.

And then, it was. I was sitting in McDonald's-- had a brainstorm, needed some coffee and a space to work. A family came in... a baby and twin girls maybe not quite three. They were, to say the least, rushed off their feet! I was kind of lost in my own world, so I did not pay much attention until they were getting ready to leave-- a long process with such young kids! The father had a crude way of telling the twins to get back to the table, and it put me off. I felt a bit of scorn rise up in me.

And then... directly across from me a sweet old lady sits down, looks just like Jessie's grandmother. She sits down and just smiles at me. And she has this pink ball cap on that says, “Jesus loves me,” and I can tell she knows that for sure. Bam. There it was again, that sense. I was thinking all kinds of things, more like they were thrown into my mind. She knows Jesus loves her. Maybe she was unloved. Maybe she thought she was unlovable. Maybe she just rested in the knowledge of the Savior's love. What does it matter, except that He loves her, and not just her, but everyone?

Can you see how He puts up with this world? Our sense that all the evil mitigates against God, if not disproves His existence or His goodness is a complete failure to love. “It is not His will that anyone should perish, but that all should come to repentance,” Peter says (2 Peter 3:9).

Anyway, there I was. And without thinking, without needing to consider my motives or my change of heart and mind, I went straightaway to share the Gospel with the family and the kids, to talk to them about how lovely the kids are, and how important it is that they know the Lord who has a special place for children.

Tears At The Altar

There were tears at the altar today, and fervent prayer. The sermon was on bringing friends and family to Christ. This is perhaps the greatest pain in the church, the people we love who do not know Jesus. I was overcome at the end of the early service by the prayer requests that we lifted up at the altar. Hearts were breaking, and we turned to the only One who is mighty to save.

In the second service, the same thing. This was one of those sermons that I always feel a little weird about, like they are not going to “work;” they are out of my comfort zone-- I tend to be more “expository.” Topical preaching is hard for me. But again, there were so many tears, so much desire for our friends and family to know the Christ, who has done everything for us.

But I have to tell you the thing that worked me over the hardest was something said to me after the first service. Bob Gould is a man who is testifying to us. He has a difficult cancer. Early on in my ministry here, we sat down and prayed. He asked me what should he do with this last part of his life. I immediately was thinking of the old school Methodists who were known for dying well, who sought entire sanctification. So we have been studying and praying about seeking to have the love of God in our hearts-- the Holy Spirit infused love of God and neighbor.

And man, is Bob seeking and showing it. He came up to me after the service and was talking about some good news in his disease and some worrisome stuff. And he said the most amazing thing. He said these have been some of the best years of his life, knowing that his death is coming sooner than later. He said he and Wanda (his wife) are closer than they have ever been, and that their life in Christ is better than it has ever been.

I can only think this is the power of God, this is one of those things where what is meant to discourage us and challenge our faith is turned to glory. Our friends and loved ones should be in fear, turning away from faith, and yet, all they can see is the love of God working in those who diligently seek it.

I would advise people, when sharing faith, to talk about this power of sanctification. Hopefully, I will add some more posts on what we're talking about, and how it works in our lives. I have found that some people are afraid of “trying” church because they are afraid they might not receive power over the sins in their lives. When we can let them know that Jesus does not just forgive sin, He overcomes it and progressively destroys its influence in our lives, they can be encouraged to know, on firm footing, that God is not just another coping mechanism or counseling strategy.

No one who is born of God continues to sin. We want to delve into what the apostle John meant when he wrote that. Stay tuned.