Tag Archives: Doing Justice

Pajama Christians

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Those two words caught my attention and changed the trajectory of my life.

Shortly after graduating from high school, a message about Christ’s return became a turning in my life as a rebellious youth. A team of students from BIOLA visited Grace Baptist Church in Sidney, Nebraska. One of the student’s preached a sermon titled, “Pajama Christians.” His text was Romans 13:11-14:

Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.” (Emphasis mine)

Paul referred to the return of Christ as the “blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and savior Jesus Christ.” (Titus 2:13) John wrote that “everyone who hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.” (1 John.3:3) So, anticipating Christ’s return ought to influence everything we do.

Paul was writing to the Church members in Rome. Apparently, some of their lifestyles must have reflected the culture around them rather than what they professed to believe. Like the proverbial “frog in the kettle,” they had become acclimated and failed to realize danger. They were spiritually asleep. Imagine hearing Paul’s startling warning, like a fire alarm: “The day of Christ’s return is at hand!”

It was time to wake up. Time to shed their pajamas and prepare for a very special guest—the king. It was time to put on the armor of light.

That evening, as the BIOLA student was preaching, it felt like the sermon was directed at me. I was a pastor’s son. I knew the correct answers. I could quote Scripture. I had my eschatology down pat, but I was living another life—a lie.

If Jesus had returned prior to that sermon’s conclusion, I would have been ashamed. Or, worse, I may have discovered that I really wasn’t a follower of Jesus after all.

I have asked in four previous posts, “Do we really believe Christ may return any moment?” Has this blessed hope purified our lifestyles? Do our actions affirm our words? Are we sleeping like the foolish virgins in the parable?

My original title for this post was “Just Keep Doing the Right Thing.” So, in the event Jesus would return today, live like we truly expect Him. What might “doing the right thing” involve?

I am concerned for my neighbors and friends who have not experienced God’s grace, so I pray for them and seek to build relationships with them.

Discretionary money would not simply be mine to enjoy, but to also invest in God’s Kingdom work. My checking and credit card accounts would reflect my anticipation of Jesus’ return. Jesus said it this way, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will also be.” (Matthew 5:21)

If Christ was to return today, I wouldn’t want to be “under the influence” of any substance or poring over pornography.

Finally, because I anticipate Chris’s return, I want to be doing justice.

As I wrote those last two words, I felt mild hesitation because I have friends who may push back because of the faulty view of “social justice” today. Faulty because of its wrong diagnosis and wrong prognosis as well as its prescriptions.

Unjust actions have been part of human history since our declaration of independence from God in the Garden. Prejudice and violence have been parr for the course. The strong abuse the weaker. Men have oppressed women. Children are exploited and discarded. Racial prejudice flows both directions. Even the natural environment has been exploited for selfish gain. There’s injustice wherever we look. Every nation has a history of injustice, sometimes against their own citizens. Segregation was wrong! Evil. Especially when justified by professing Christians with a Bible in their home.

Doing justice is not philosophical or political. It’s as practical as supporting a faith-based ministry responding to famine conditions or natural disasters or providing safe drinking water and basic medical treatment such as anti-malarial drugs or mosquito nets.

Biblical justice will include praying for our brothers and sisters facing persecution and death. It’s supporting widows and children of pastors in Africa who have been beheaded by Islamic terrorists. Practicing justice may include financially supporting or volunteering at a local Pregnancy Resource center or a free medical clinic or a homeless shelter or faith-based recovery ministry.

None of the above will ever earn a place in heaven, but they do reflect God’s love and grace in our lives. I believe they also reflect authentic confidence that Jesus will return.

Perhaps today.

If I Only Had Seven More Days

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The previous three posts probed the question: “Do I truly believe that Christ may return soon?” An affirmative response should be reflected in my actions and my priorities.

If I knew for certain that I only had one more week of life on earth—one more post here on Standing on The Promise—what should I say? Is there an urgent message for those of us who say that we believe Christ may return at any moment?

I believe there is, and that’s why I am revisiting my previous post, “Anticipating Christ’s Return- A Thorny Issue.”

Several issues threaten the health of the American Church. Lack of unity and theological drift are obvious threats, but is there something more pervasive? Less obvious?

So, what is this present danger? Money. Affluence.

Jesus, in his Sermon on The Mount, boldly warned against the danger of wealth. He also shared stories about farmers planting and harvesting grain to illustrate the danger of affluence.

In Jesus’ story about a farmer planting seed, the focus was not on the farmer or the seed. Instead, it was the condition of the soil. Soil packed hard like a pathway or shallow and rocky produced no harvest. The third kind of soil was potentially fertile except for one fact: weeds competed with the grain for nutrients and water. At harvest there was only weeds; there was no grain. No fruit. Weeds unchecked affected the harvest.

When Jesus’ disciples asked for more details, Jesus identified the weeds as the “deceitfulness of riches and the cares of this world.” The problem was not money or wealth per se, but the negligent use of and misplaced confidence in money.

Money can be deceitful. Promising security but not delivering. The story of the “foolish” farmer was an example. After abundant harvests and granaries filled to the brim, the farmer felt he finally had enough to retire and to enjoy life. He had earned it! The problem was that his time had run out. There would be no tomorrow to enjoy what he had saved. God wrote his eulogy: “Fool! This night your soul is required of you…” The farmer had considered himself a success, and his friends affirmed him. However, he never got to spend a dime of his portfolio.

Jesus told another story about a man that had been deceived by riches. His problem was a matter of perspective and priorities. God had given him life and the ability to earn money. He had enjoyed the best clothes and gourmet food that money could buy. After all, it was “his” money.

Lying outside his gated yard lay a homeless man in dirty rags. Not just one morning but day after day and week after week there he lay. The man had a name, Lazarus, but he might as well have been invisible for all the wealthy homeowner cared. (Remember, I am not creating this story; Jesus told it first.) Like every poor man and every wealthy man, both men had an appointment with death. Both left everything behind. Lazarus’ dirty rags and the rich man’s purple linen were left for someone else to enjoy or to dispose of.

In each of those stories lies a clear and present danger that is relevant today. Our affluence, like weeds threaten to choke out potential fruit from our lives. Money cannot satisfy our deepest hunger. God has promised His children the bare necessities of shelter and nourishment. Anything more is a gift to enjoy and to invest in God’s kingdom. It’s a balancing act requiring discretion and wisdom.

Speaking of wisdom, I am reminded of an even greater fool than the wealthy men in Jesus’ stories. The greatest fool in the Bible was also the wisest man who ever lived. Solomon inherited amazing wealth and a position of power that had been earned through his father’s sweat and blood. God offered Solomon, the young king, anything he asked. Solomon humbly asked for wisdom to rule well. God granted Solomon’s request and so much more including lavish wealth.

Solomon’s wisdom was featured in his first recorded legal decision. The challenge before him was to determine which of two women, each claiming to be the mother of an infant son, was the real mother. Solomon’s perception was as precise as the blade of the sword he had raised to dissect the baby.

However, Solomon’s thirst for more wealth, more pleasure, more prestige and more of everything his heart desired was a dead-end street. He was deceived by his fortune and fame. The potential fruit from his life withered and died. He, like the rich farmer, left everything behind for others to squander. After his death, the kingdom was severed with ten tribes heading north to follow Jeroboam.

So, back to the subject at hand: Do I truly believe Jesus could return momentarily? Do my actions and priorities support my claim? Or am I squandering good things that God has given me to enjoy. Am I investing in things eternal? Am I pursuing justice for the invisible people in my world?