The Unknown Rebel....

Ponderings from a worship encounter this past weekend. (Philippians 4.1 = launching pad)

So a few thoughts about being an 'unknown rebel' actually served to accomplish more than I could have imagined. I was pretty confident that God was inviting us into a deeply impassioned lifestyle of standing firm.... I was pretty confident that all of us have this heart longing to stand firm..... I was pretty confident that every person in the room this weekend would identify with the picture on the screen and agree that we genuinely want to risk everything in order to be a difference maker...... I mean, eternity rests in our hearts (Eccl 3.11), and because eternity rests in our hearts, we all are pretty bent toward vesting our lives in something that lasts far beyond ourselves. I really do think every person wants to stand firm and be a difference maker. Christ follower or not, we all want to leave some sort of mark. So, I really expected that the whole 'unknown rebel' image and challenge would leave us with some pretty provocative thoughts. But, leave it to our biker (CMA) gang to step way outside anything I expected. Our CMA gang grabbed the title 'unknown' rebels and they are running with it as a theme name. We'll see where that leads.....

You know, I have really thought about the man in this image (see pic above). We have no idea his name.... what he is about.... what happened after this moment.... We just know that he believed in something so deeply that his belief sparked a revolution in the hearts of many. I really want my life to be marked by that level of passion. I could care less if anyone knows who I am.... if anyone remembers my name... or if any accomplishment leads to my own accolade. If I can be marked by one thing, it would be that this unknown guy left such an intense impression of passion for Jesus Christ that we really don't remember Him, but we are crystal in Who he believed in. Mark my life with that level of passion!

The closing thought this weekend really left me with much to ponder. My capacity to live that sort of life... to stand firm... to live a relentless life for the glory of God alone.... is directly related to a discipline of my heart and life. All of us long to play the song in our souls, and more of us would do so if it didn't require endless hours of discipline. I want to give my life for the glory of God.... thus, I must invest my life in discovering who He is and who I am in light of Him. I want to play the song... to hear the song... to live the song. The question remains, will I spend my life attuning to His song?

The capacity to stand firm hangs in the balance of my answer to that question.

Feel free to add to the commentary by clicking comments below.

Mark... the one longing to be an unknown rebel!

A Passion to Illuminate....

There is far more to life for us -- Philippians 3.20 (msg)


It's a pretty amazing feeling to close out a series of thoughts about who we illuminate! This weekend was sweet... the songs... the passion... the release of our joy in God. Yeah, it was good. It's also profound when we share life together with the emmanuel family. There is hurt (a loss of a dad in the past few weeks).... gain (family members embracing the truth of Christ)... there is challenge ('this series of thoughts have really compelled toward Christ').... status quo (some of us will remain as we are.... ).... and there is this longing to be consumed for that which is ultimate (many will never be the same!)

I think the most challenging part of this weekend was watching the cross and the towers video. You know, Paul really wanted Timothy to be 'spot on' at all times. Paul said to Timothy, be very clear about your hope and your passion because you will not know when season hits and God gives you an opportunity to shed light upon His majesty. Watching the 'cross and towers' video, it really struck me that it matters who I illuminate. It really is a joy to guide others toward the cross and it leaves me under compulsion to fall in love with God and to be prepped to share of that deeply impassioned love relationship. I don't think I was prepared for 9/11 five years ago. I am not sure any of us were. What I do want to be prepared for and to be crystal clear in my life about is who I illuminate. Then, I am stepping into a moment of highest high or lowest low with the path of my life leading directly toward Christ!

Maybe that's it.....I want to make clear the path of my life. When you follow me, you will find Christ. A sentence I spoke at the last two services this weekend really struck me. I don't want anyone to be searching for Christ and to stumble over me trying to find Him. What a horrifying thought! God, let my life cut a straight trail toward You!

So, we are about something radical... illuminating someone because at the center of everything we have talked about SOMEBODY DIED AND SOMEBODY WAS RAISED FROM THE DEAD. It is not a cakewalk what we are about… not a nice moral addition to life… not a few principles on the table and we will be okay…. We are in a movement that was started when someone died and someone was raised from the dead… We are a generation who live our lives in around or about that very reality…. What will that look like… Will we be a radical people of hope? Will we will illuminate someone who died and someone who was raised from the dead? This world is desperate for us to cast great light on Jesus Christ!

Illuminate.... add to the commentary by clicking on comments below. Enjoy an amazing week.

For the Glory,
Mark

Heart
Guard your heart. It's the wellspring of life. -- ancient proverb

Most people assume the cross is the total work of Christ. The two go hand in hand – Jesus Christ and the cross; the cross and Christ. The resurrection is impressive, but an afterthought for many Christ-followers. I mean, we really do like the resurrection. After all, we get a new outfit AND we score in the candy department. We might even hunt an easter egg and shout he’s alive. The resurrection is important to us... maybe like an extra point after a touchdown or the medal ceremony after the Olympic event… not the big kahuna.

This thought might cause a bit of introspection. The cross was never meant to be the sole central symbol of the faith. I mean, art historians say that early art was focused on miracles, healings, life transformation and the resurrection. Give or take a few years, it was not until around 430 that the first artistic focus on the cross occurs….400 years…. are you kidding me!? This is challenging to us…. Not that we diminish the cross… it is just that there is more….

Paul says, If Christ is not raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith…..

Listen to multiple accounts of the early church chronicled in the book of Acts…. Peter stood and said, we are witnesses of the resurrection…. Peter and John were speaking to people and making proclamation of the resurrection… With great power the followers of Christ continued to testify to the resurrection of Jesus Christ…. Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection….

A dead person is not a lot of help to us. A dead God is even worse! But life, real life, the power of God to restore life.. the power of God to resurrect from the dead. The power of God to restore you… to bring our dead heart fully alive, now that’s a whole new matter. Christ died for you – right on… Christ was raised for us! Whoo hooo!

I came that you might have life.. have a new heart.. live with passion… We are saved by His death and we are saved unto His life…. I am a citizen of heaven! We are free to be what he meant for us to become. You have a new life – that life of Christ.. You have a new heart. Do you know what this means. Your heart is good. You are transformed. That’s what Paul means when He says, live to the level you have attained… Live to a person who is forgiven, freed, and filled with the very resurrected life of Christ… Live with a person who has been given life… Live with heart!

You are a citizen of heaven…Your heart is circumcised toward God…. I was in a conversation awhile back… wrestling with this and a friend said, If I believed that, I could do anything! We would follow Him anywhere! Exactly – it would change our lives…. It would change the trajectory of our lives… It would change priorites… our passion would be released…. We would be resurrected to new life…. It would change the face of Christianity – We would be fully alive! It would make for a proclamation of freedom…. It would mean LIFE!

Yes, we boast gladly and loudly in the cross of Christ for in the cross is the remission of sin… but, we also hold boldly to the resurrection of Christ for in that explosion of life is the light to all men… it is the stamp of authenticity….. it is the hope of glory… it is the explosion of life into our hearts…. It is the catalytic force that will compel us anywhere, anytime, in all ways for His glory… It is actually the good news that will allow us to be a room full of 17’s…. It is actually the good news for this world…… It is the news of freedom…

So, I am percolating this week on a bit of art history. Could it be that God wants the Emmanuel family to be a canvas through which He will render one of the most amazing, God glorifying pieces of art ever recorded? Could it be?! Could it be that God is searching for a group of people who are radically, passionately devoted to Him and He will live and 'image' a masterpiece through us. I think that He longs to bring LIFE through our lives and that He will demonstrate this remarkable resurrection power through the canvas of a people who are turned on to Him. May the artwork of our lives - - together -- be an amazing tapestry of God's goodness, grace, and life.

Enjoy this week. We are forgiven, freed, and made alive. Live!

Feel free to add to the commentary by hitting 'comments' below.

Mark