Am I a Microsoft or Apple Pastor?

From the early days of Apple's president - Steve Jobs - until his recent death in 2011, Apple has always prided itself on being a closed system. Unlike Microsoft and the Bill Gates community, Steve Jobs and his Apple team set out to build an organization which controlled every end of a consumers operating system - from the iMac to the iPhone to the iPad. While Microsoft partnered with numerous different companies in providing software for PC's, Apple focused on creating their primary programs by themselves (E.g. Garageband, iTunes, iPhoto).

Gates always believed that the open system approach would win out in the end while Jobs claimed that Apple's approach would win out because it would produce a much higher quality of product (and in one sense I would agree as I write this from my Macbook Pro).

It is interesting to me that as a pastor, I am faced with the same choice that Bill Gates and Steve Jobs were faced with in life - just of a slightly different variety! I have had to ask myself this question: "Am I an open system pastor or a closed system pastor?" What is the difference between the two?

As I see it, a closed system pastor is someone who always does tasks by themselves because they fear to let others mess things up and reduce the quality of product produced. They are fearful to partner with other churches in the community for fear of what others might think and say. And they will attempt to create their own separate kingdom within God's kingdom.

On the other hand, an open system pastor is someone who is very open to new suggestions. They are quick to want to develop new leaders even if this means suffering some quality of product. They see other churches as allies rather than rivals.

While closed system pastors may be like Apple and create a very good product, they also have a tendency to be like Apple in terms of growth (Currently Apple holds roughly 6% of the global pc market share while Microsoft dominates the rest). They create a church that is suited strictly to a select class of individuals while not open to all.

I am reminded of the vision Bill Gates had when he stated Microsoft and that was to "put a personal computer on the desk of every family in America." In all reality, he has basically succeeded. And while some (like myself) would have problems at times with the quality of product produced by Microsoft and churches who might not quite be "up to snuff," I'll take a mistake filled church that impacts vs. one that is extremely polished but has little impact every day of the week! [Fortunately, at ECC I'm blessed to work with an Apple team that possess a Microsoft mindset!:)]

With God's help, I want to be a Microsoft pastor!....................but not a Microsoft user :)

Isolationist Syndrome

NOTE: Please know that I am not claiming to be an authority on this subject but these are just some observations I would make and any thoughts you would have are welcome :). Writing things on paper just doesn't include the tone in which something is meant to be written! :)

In Proverbs 18:1, it says “He who separates himself seeks his own desire, He quarrels against all sound wisdom.” As I read this verse, I am reminded of the importance of Christians dwelling together in community and harmony with one another and the necessity to combat the isolation syndrome. This problem is something I believe is at the very center of the sin nature which is inside of every individual from birth. Every person is born into sin (Psa. 51:5) and thus has the driving tendency towards isolation. Isolation can happen in a variety of forms.

One of these is the “No One Understands Me Attitude.” Typically, people in this frame of mind are not ill meaning and may actually feel that what they are doing is necessary to fulfilling God’s call in their life. But what tends to happen with individuals in this state is they develop a personality which has little regard for the opinions of others (E.g. My parents, pastor, and friends just don’t understand me so I cannot accept their counsel and advice). As a result, when they reject the counsel of other more mature Christians, they become a “law unto themselves” and soon live their own standard of right and wrong.

Another reason for living in isolation is the “Achievement Excuse.” People argue that in order to do what God has really called them to do, they cannot have the inhibitions of “small minded” people holding them back from what God wants to be accomplished. As a result, their ministry and witness for God is governed by an “ends justifies the means” mentality that does not take into account the authority structure God has put in place over their life in the form of parents, mentors, and the church. While this may work for a short time and they may be able to work more effectively without the inhibitions of others, in the long term this type of mentality will be to their detriment for the simple reason that any system or lifestyle operating contrary to the structure God has put in place will be bound for disaster. A good way to test if you have this symptom is by asking yourself the question, who am I accountable to and do they have any say in the way I govern my life?

A third reason I believe people choose to live in isolation is the “Fear Principle.” They fear that if they work with other people and develop intimate relationships with others that perhaps this will show inconsistencies in their own life and give others an inside picture of who they really are. What they do not understand is that God uses other people to reveal who we really are inside. For if one cannot have an effective relationship with others it is highly improbable they have an effective relationship with God.

Finally, there is the “Ignorance Problem.” Some people simply do not know that they are isolating themselves and are not doing it out of a selfish motivation but merely because they do not know to do anything different. It is for these people that other Christians have the responsibility to enlighten. This enlightenment can be done in a very gentle and Christlike way and should be done with in an attitude of humility with the recognition that perhaps you possess some of these “isolation symptoms” yourself.

These four isolations are not just personal but can happen in corporate settings, church/denominational settings, and community settings. It is hard to say when one has crossed the line of isolation but I humbly submit four signs that may be indicators you, your church, or your business may be living in isolation:

1. Same people all the time: Every person surrounding you is pretty much identical to yourself. If all of your friends or all of the people in your business or church are nearly exactly what you are like, there is likely an isolation crisis taking place.

2. Change never happens: Ask yourself, when was the last time I did something that was completely out of the ordinary and outside of my comfort zone? When was the last time my church or business put their neck on the line and took a little risk to bring about greater expansion for God’s kingdom?

3. Outsiders never stay around long: The proof is in the pudding. Someone can say they are not living in isolation but if the aroma they give off is one that repulses people and causes them to be turned off by who they are they might as well be living in a hermit’s cottage. [NOTE: This is taking into account that there are those in the world who will always think the things of the Gospel are foolishness]

4. Advice is never used: A person, church, or business in isolation mode does not need the advice of their superior. Instead, they may act like they listen to the advice of others but again the proof is in the pudding. If advice and counsel are never really taken to heart and implemented into daily life, what good is it to ask others? Question to ponder: When was the last time I took someone else’s advice in a matter over top of my own?

The problem with all four of these symptoms is that they usually happen with little warning or thought. Generally, no one will stop you, your church, or business from adapting this lifestyle. It just happens through personal neglect and a failure to realize that isolation is the default position of every human being. The devil’s primary goal for a believer is to get them isolated from God Himself. However, if that does not happen, Satan’s goal then turns to causing believers to isolate themselves from others. With God’s help, I do not want to be an isolationists but rather a person who works in harmony with other Christians regardless of their denomination and with sinners regardless of their evil!

Six Checks in Making Sure Your Entertainment is Acceptable to God

Movie Filter

Check #1 – Appearance of Evil

“Abstain from every form of evil.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:22

· Most PG 13, R-Rated, and NC-17

· Sinful Cover

· Bad Reviews

· Ungodly Title

· Actors with evil lifestyles

Check #2 – Three Human Temptations

“For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.” – 1 John 2:16

· Lust of the flesh

o Drunkenness, gluttony, laziness, crime

· Lust of the eyes

o Immodesty, suggestive behavior, porn

· Pride of Life

o Greed, selfishness, materialism

Check #3 – That which is Good

“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” – Philippians 4:8

· True – Is lying and deception promoted as acceptable behavior?

· Honorable – Are people treated respectfully? Is there foul language?

· Right – Does right prevail over evil?

· Pure – Is there excessive violence?

· Lovely – Is true love or fleshly love displayed?

· Good Repute – Does this movie have a negative reputation? Would you recommend it to a friend? Do you come away feeling better after watching it? Is the movie useless and unprofitable to Christian growth?

Check #4 – Profitable

“All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.”

– 1 Corinthians 6:12

· How will this benefit me spiritually?

· Is this the best use of my time?

· Does it make me more like Jesus?

Check #5 – Loving God; Loving Others

And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ³⁸ This is the great and first commandment. ³⁹ And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. – Matthew 22:37-39

· Could you watch this with Jesus beside you?

· Would you watch this with a non-Christian whom you were trying to lead to Christ?

· Does your watching this cause someone else to stumble or have wrong temptations?

· Does it Christian promote family growth?

Check #6 – Personal Convictions

“But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and whatever is not from faith is sin.” – Romans 14:23

· Does this violate my conscience?

· Does this allow the devil an opportunity to exploit any of my weak areas?

· Does this violate my personal convictions?

Definitions of Ratings:

§ G - General Audiences - All Ages Admitted. There is no content that would be objectionable to most parents. These films may contain beyond polite language but no swearing. As with violence it must be mild, if any, without any blood or gore. Nudity must be natural and non-sexual. This is one of only two ratings dating back to 1968 that still exists today. Examples includes Rio, Horton Hears a Who!, Winnie the Pooh and most of Pixar Studios' movies, including the Toy Story trilogy, Cars, Ratatouille and WALL-E.

§ PG - Parental Guidance Suggested - Some Material May Not Be Suitable For Children. These films are generally appropriate for children age 10 and older and may contain milder swear words, brief smoking, crude/suggestive humor, natural non-sexual nudity, short and infrequent horror moments and/or mild violence. Usually no drug use is acceptable in this category. Topless men may be present but topless woman are not usually acceptable unless in an educational or scientific context. A few racial insults may also be heard. Before the creation of PG-13, many "PG" films (e.g. Jaws and Watership Down) included explicit violence. Content such as this helped lead to the creation of the "PG-13" rating. Examples includes Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Powerpuff Girls Movie, and The Incredibles.

§ PG-13 - Parents Strongly Cautioned - Some Material May Be Inappropriate For Children Under 13. These films may contain sex references, up to four uses of explicit language, drug innuendo, strong crude/suggestive humor, mature/political themes, moderately long horror moments and/or moderate action violence. There are usually no restrictions on non-sexual nudity. However, extreme bloodshed is rarely present. This is the minimum rating at which drug content is present; with the exception of Austin Powers and Click. Marijuana smoking is the only illegal drug use that can be depicted in a PG-13 film, with the exception of Forrest Gump, in which a brief scene depicts an actress snorting cocaine. While PG-13 films usually have more profanity than PG films, this is not necessarily the case. A film that is given a PG-13 rating due to profane language and/or racial insults is given this rating because it contains more of these elements than a PG rating would permit, or the film contains uses of stronger profanities than a PG would permit. A film rated PG-13 for "intense violence" is given this rating if blood is present in a violent way. The films Gremlins and Indiana Jones: Temple of Doom are well known as the movies that PG-13 was created for. In recent years, this rating has been used for the majority of American films released. Some films that have received a PG-13 rating have a director's cut with an R rating. Daredevil is just an example of this practice.^[18] Examples include The Simpsons Movie, Eat Pray Love and Casino Royale.

§ R - Restricted - Under 17 Requires Accompanying Parent Or Adult Guardian. These films may contain mild or implied sex scenes, prolonged nudity, strong violence often with blood and gore, strong horror scenes and explicit/illegal/prolonged drug use. A movie rated R for profanity often has more severe or frequent swearing than the PG-13 rating would permit. An R-rated movie may have more blood, gore, drug use, nudity, or graphic sexuality than a PG-13 movie would permit. Some R-rated films have an "unrated" DVD release with scenes of violence, sexual material, or profanity that have been edited from the original cut. At its inception, the R certificate permitted patrons aged 16 and older to attend unaccompanied, but this was raised to 17 in the 1970s. Examples include Scarface, Scream, South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut, and The Godfather.

§ NC-17 - No One 17 And Under Admitted. These films may contain strong graphic violence with loads of blood and gore, sex scenes, depraved, abhorrent behavior, sexual nudity, or any other elements which, at present, most parents would consider too strong and therefore off-limits for viewing by their children and teenagers. It is rare for a movie to get rated NC-17 due to swearing or drug use. NC-17 does not necessarily mean obscene or pornographic in the oft-accepted or legal meaning of those words. For example, the movie Robocop had to delete a few exceptionally violent scenes to avoid receiving a then-X rating. The Board does not and cannot mark films with those words. These terms are legally ambiguous, and their interpretation varies from case to case. The NC-17 designation implies that the Ratings Board has determined that due to the content of the film, it should be intended for adults only. NC-17 replaced the X rating in 1990. Many films which received X-ratings prior to the 1990 change received a re-rating of NC-17. Many theater companies and local operators will not play NC-17 titles and some newspapers and magazines will not run ads for these films. Most NC-17 titles have limited theatrical release, usually in smaller theaters, or are released directly to video or DVD. Most NC-17 titles also have an edited versions released on video and/or DVD that are either unrated or R-rated. Examples include Showgirls andThe Evil Dead.

How did errors get into the original manuscripts?

Errors can get into the text of a manuscript in a number of ways. These errors are fittingly divided up into two main categories which are as follows.

Unintentional Errors

The first of these is what Dr. Cockerill calls “Unintentional Errors.” These errors are just what they sound like and can be made in a variety of ways. One of the ways this happens is by a scribe Confusing the Letters of a Text. An example of this is found in 1 Tim. 3:16 where scribes made an error of neglecting to add a line through the theta and thus made an omicron. This in turn changed the meaning of the verse to “God was manifest in the flesh” to “Who was manifest in the flesh.” The second way a scribe can make an error of the eye is by committing the unpardonable sin of haplography and the results of this are seen in the repetition of the words in a verse (E.g. Jn. 17:15).

Sometimes there were Errors of the Ear. These errors were generally very minor and would happen when a scribe mistakenly heard the pronunciation of one word when the real word was something slightly different. As a result, an erroneous word such as “our” versus “your” might occur in the text (1 John. 1:4), causing a minor change in future manuscript readings.

Another example of an unintentional error is titled An Error of the Mind. For instance, in Mark 10:18 we have the quote from Jesus, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is God.” Over time, Scribes became familiar with this translation and when they went to translate a similar verse in other gospels (Mat. 19:17), they translated that which they had already committed to memory instead of that which was truly in the text.

Next, there was just plain Errors of Judgment. Because scribes were extremely zealous about writing down all that was in the Word of God, when it came to deciding whether or not to include a writing or exclude something, they generally always wrote down all that was there. Sometimes, this meant they would include side notes past scribes had left for them in the past. An example of this can be found in John 5:3-5 where some scribes added extra material which was not intended to be placed in the main text itself.

Intentional Errors

Harmonization was another error likely to happen when a scribe would try to blend that which he was writing down to match that which was written in other gospels. Again, it was not that the scribes were intentionally trying to be deceptive but it was that they wanted the most harmonious writing they could offer. What some of them failed to take into consideration was that differences in word or style were not a negative. Rather, it was a positive because it showed the authors were indeed different but still gave a divine message that corresponded with who Christ was and is.

Similar to harmonization, the error of Conflated Readings came about when scribes had differing manuscripts and decided to mix both of them together (Ac. 20:28) to ensure nothing was lost from the original.

Another intentional error was the issue of Awkward Nuances. Some thought that certain words did not fit the culture around and thus they would change the words to reflect what they thought was a more accurate translation of the person or mood of the time. In Col. 1:23, where it says Paul was a “minister” of the gospel, some scribes felt that minister was too weak and not strong enough to portray the apostle and so they took it out and replaced it with preacher.

Finally, the most serious out of all the errors was that of Doctrinal Alteration. This was when a scribe would attempt to make a certain verse or passage more Trinitarian or doctrinally sound (Mat. 24:26). But even in the few instances where this occurs, the changes added to the text are so minute that they in no way change the message of the text or create a conflict in theological discussion.

In conclusion, it is amazing to me how accurate the text of the NT is today. When I realize that there are close to 5,700 manuscripts of the Greek NT and just under 25,000 ancient manuscripts altogether of the NT in comparison to Homer’s Iliad with just 643 copies, this helps me remember that the Bible is overwhelmingly a historically accurate book which can be trusted and serve as our life manual today!

Helpful link which shows how much more reliable the NT is as opposed to any other ancient book. http://www.allaboutthejourney.org/bible-manuscripts.htm

Character Vs. Characteristics

"We often say that we long to be like Christ. We study the traits of His character, mark His footsteps, and pray for grace to be like Him, and yet, somehow, we succeed but very little. And why? Because we are wanting to pluck the fruit while the root is absent. If we want really to understand what the imitation of Christ means, we must go to that which constituted the very root of His life before God. It was a life of absolute dependence, absolute trust, absolute surrender, and until we are one with Him in what is the principle of His life, it is in vain to seek here or there to copy the graces of that life." - Andrew Murray

Wow, this quote really convicts me because it flies in the face of the world's mentality that tells its audience to accept the teachings of Jesus so that one can "improve their life" or "make themselves a better person." The power of this statement is that it really calls into question ones motives for learning more about Christ. Is it for the purpose of "tweaking personal character?" or is it for the purpose of "transformational life change?" As Murray points out, the only way that one can truly be like Christ is not in developing certain attributes that he possessed but by taking on the very character that underlined these attributes - a character of absolute dependence, absolute trust, and absolute surrender to the perfect will of God.

Delivering blocks of ice...

AP Gordon made an interesting analogy when he gave the story of how water used to be delivered to farmers in the frozen regions of Siberia nearly a hundred years ago. He told of how drivers on sleds would carry buckets of water on their slay and as they drove it would freeze due to the extreme temperature and by the time they got to the farmers door they would be offering them merely buckets of ice. As Gordon points out, too often our churches present the message of the gospel in a similar fashion. We offer real H2O but the people are unable to drink because it is delivered to them as a block of ice.

With God’s help, I want to offer people water rather than ice!

When God Shows Up...

Today (5-29-11) marked the opening of the first of hopefully a long line of off campus churches started under the direction of Eastlake Community Church in Moneta, Va! It was truly an amazing sight to see numerous individuals show up who had not stepped foot in an organized church setting for an extended period of time and sit under the fantastic spirit of God evidenced in the music and preaching that took place. It was amazing to see the group of 30+ team members gather together for prayer at the beginning of service. And it was also amazing to see how God used each member of the Cinema Church team to speak to people in a tangible and loving way.

However, more incredible than all of that was the sense of God that was felt upon the place. Truly a Cinema does not always resemble the epitome of Christ-centered worship and emphasis but for a couple hours this morning, all of us that were gathered together got to witness something truly amazing as Jesus Christ definitely came into that place!

This came in response to a prayer that was offered by Pastor Troy just a day previous when he prayed for Jesus to simply show up. As he pointed out, when Jesus shows up waves are silenced, lame people are healed, and dead are made to live again. My mentor President Avery has said repeatedly that God comes where He is welcome and truly He was welcomed in Westlake Cinema this morning!

My prayer for our team and myself personally is that we will never get to the place where we do not need God to show up anymore. As Pastor Troy stated numerous times this week, “dependency upon God creates great expectancy” for it is in those moments of dependency upon Him that we are able to understand how inadequate we as human beings are in our own strength. It is in those moments we realize that if God does not show up, all of our human labor is in vain.

May we always live our lives so dependent upon God that we do not merely depend on Him for unknown “moments” in our life but that we live in a continuous state of absolute dependency upon Him for all that we say and do!

Just a mite?

I was listening to an interesting talk by Pastor Rob Bell the other day and while I have serious problems with some of his beliefs, he made an interesting point when he said that Christians so often have the tendency to believe one thing and live another. He gave the illustration of a widow’s mite and how we as Christians “believe” that it is truly the way in which you give your gift that matters and not on the overall quantity. However, he pointed out that our subconscious self-centered minds have the tendency to always push us back towards a reality that we do not say we believe – namely the more someone gives or does the better that person is.

If you have 7,000 people in a church as opposed to 400 you must be doing something better. If you give $1,000 to missions as opposed to $15 you must be more Spiritual. Our minds have the tendency to say more is always better when this may not be the case at all.

I was really challenged by his talk to stop and think about my own life and ask, “Do I really have the Bible’s perspective when it comes to this area of less vs. more?”

But has God really "called" me?

In Mat. 25:14-30, Jesus gives the illustration of the three men who were given five, two, and one talents. As I was thinking about this parable, it suddenly became very clear to me that this is the way in which God chooses to operate with all of His creation. In this story, we hear nothing of the master calling daily to check up with his servants via Facebook, Twitter, or texting. On the contrary, He did not even tell them what to do with their talents! Jesus was trying to show his followers from this passage that he expected them to go above and beyond and to gain more than they had.

How many of you have ever heard someone talk about their relationship with God as though it were something they could treat very lightly? They walk around from day to day never talking to people about God and never doing a thing to increase the kingdom of God. In verse 30 Jesus says these types of people are worthless. God is not looking for worthless people and He wants no worthless people in His churches and no worthless people in heaven!

From this parable, Jesus gives us a tiny glimpse of what heaven will really be like. Verse 23 says that the person who is faithful with the few things he has been given on earth will in turn be entrusted with many things in heaven. Heaven is not a place where people can just coast in on autopilot. It is not a place or eternal relaxation with nothing to do. Heaven is a place where we will have certain distinct roles and responsibilities! Heaven is reserved for those who have actually done something with what they have been handed – whether that be by growing a church, building a family, influencing those in the community or any other number of things to build the kingdom of God.

Perhaps it is time to stop asking "What is God Calling me to do?" and start asking "What are the doors He has opened?"