Sterling Brown

Matthew 7:²⁸When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, ²⁹because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.

How easy is it to look at Jesus and think he was a success.

1. Crowds followed him - Watch any golf tournament where Tiger Woods is entered and you get an idea of what it must have been like for Jesus. Everywhere he went, crowds followed Jesus. Whether you’re an artist, an athlete, or a business owner, often times the object is simply get the biggest crowd. Sell enough records, gain a sizeable market share, have a big fan following; And then you’re a success, right? it’s easy to think “Jesus was successful because he had a huge following.”

2. They were amazed at his teaching - Growing up I used to watch Jeopardy. And I was always amazed at the people who would blow away the competition with their intellectual prowess. That’s kind of how Jesus was with the religious teachers of his day. But does that mean he was a success?

3. He taught as one who had authority - “You’re fired!” Has become a household phrase, not because of a bad economy, but because of Donald Trump. He is a man who knows he has authority. And if you’ve ever watched The Apprentice, you know the swagger and demeanor of a person who has power and is not afraid to wield it. So then it becomes easy to confuse “having authority” with being successful in life.

Thankfully, Jesus doesn’t leave us in the dark to try and figure out how to be successful on our own.

²⁴“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. ²⁶But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. ²⁷The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

Quite simply, success = obedience. Your faith, your life, your finances, your job are all going to undergo stress and difficulty. Obey God. Put God’s Word into practice, and you’ll make it when it hits the fan.

This is not a conference post, but was recently posted here. I thought I’d share it with those of you who don’t read our church blog.

A broken vase won’t hold water. A broken bicycle won’t ride. And a broken foot won’t support weight. And if you’re anything like me, you know what it’s like to feel broken. Sometimes we feel broken because of our mistakes. Other times it is because of loss and pain. But whatever the reason, I believe God has great purposes for us even when we feel broken.

In Judges 7, we find the story of Gideon. Gideon is called by God to lead the army of Israel and to defeat their enemies. However God gives Gideon one of the craziest battle strategies of all time. He “divided the 300 men into 3 groups and gives them each a ram’s horn and a clay jar with a torch in it” (v.16).The story goes, as they approached their enemies what they were to do was break the jars while lifting up the torches and blow the trumpets. I remember reading this thinking ” That’s it??? Clay pots? Horns?! Where are the swords??? Crossbows? Catapults?” Here’s a brief application.

To point people far from God to Life in Christ means we will face opposition. But it’s obvious the Lord doesn’t need our ingenuity, our weapons or great numbers for us to succeed in our mission. May I suggest we pray and consider how to do two simple things:

1. Break the clay pots – The clay pots symbolize our hearts. Paul says “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.” He’s talking about the incredible treasure of the Spirit of God that comes to dwell in the heart of every person who believes in Him. It’s interesting to note that Gideon’s pots each had “a torch in it.” The candle/torch is a classic picture of the Spirit of God among His people.

We know what it’s like to feel broken and sinful. And because of God’s grace, we don’t need to cover up our weaknesses or our brokenness, but first take them to the cross to be healed. And secondly, share with others the areas of brokenness in our own lives. Chances are, if you do that, you’ll find you’re not alone in the things you struggle with and you’ll grow in real relationships (James 5:16, 1 John 1:7-10).

2. Blow the trumpet – The trumpet symbolizes telling your story and sharing the Gospel. Again, the Apostle Paul gives us insight “Again, if the trumpet does not sound a clear call, who will get ready for battle?” In fact, the Apostle John learned this is absolutely key to overcoming evil in the world (Revelation 12:11).

We have the greatest story in history to share with a culture that is already broken. No need for cover ups or hiding out. If you have been forgiven, then you have a story to tell.So break your pot, blow the trumpet and let’s see Jesus glorified in Atlanta!

Recently I’ve had the privilege of attending two incredibly inspiring and challenging conferences. And I thought it might be helpful to some of you not privy to some of this great material out there to share the love a little bit. So I plan on posting some of my random notes from these two events (just be thankful I have to type and you aren’t trying to read my handwriting!). The conferences were Churchplanters.com and Catalyst One Day featuring Craig Groeschel and Andy Stanley.  The Church Planters Conference was the first of the two I attended, so I’ll start with that for the next couple posts.

The first session I attended was Tony Morgan talking from his new book, Killing Cockroaches (check out the video to understand where he’s coming from). Great stuff on leadership and keeping your focus. Of course, I had to get over the title due to my aversion to cockroaches. But I knew I would get a lot out of his talk, and I did. Great premise: you get to decide where your time goes.

He tells a story about how when he was a city manager (in essence the CEO for the city), a woman came shrieking into his office expecting him to kill the cockroach in her office. And he did. Now years later, he’s come to the realization that spent too much time filling his days with “killing cockroaches.” Or, solving someone else’s crisis that he is not primarily responsible for. Ouch. I think that’s me…too often too. Thanks Tony for telling everyone about me!

So he gives 5 Reasons you’ll be stuck killing cockroaches: I’ll give you a few of these over the next few days.

1. You settle for something that is not God’s plan. Tony shared a story from Genesis 11. In the account of Terah (Abraham’s father), we learn that he had set out with his family to go to Canaan, but when they arrived at Haran, “they settled there.” Tony provides two peices of advice: 1) listen to God. 2) do what he says. Almost sounds too simple, eh?

(my thoughts:) How often we do this as individuals, and worse, as church leaders??? For the sake of doing something for God, we can easily lose sight of going after God. All of us start out with great intentions and expectations. And along the way, we eventually come up against either some difficulty,  juicy opportunity, or we may simply be too tired to go forward, and we settle. But whatever happened to listening to God? Doing what he says? Even it hurts or doesn’t seem to make sense.

Unfortunately, stories like the one found in Judges 7 are not that common place. That’s where Gideon hears from God, and does what God says. He goes out against his enemies with only about 10% of the army he thought he needed, and that armed with clay pots and trumpets.  CLAY POTS AND TRUMPETS!!! Where the heck does that come from??? I’ll tell you where: from the God who loves to confound “the wisdom of the wise.” From the God who alone is our deliverer. From the God who said “I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.” Turns out listening to God and doing what he said worked out well for Gideon, and a whole host of other men and women throughout history that chose the unconventional  over the rational. Sometimes we need to remind ourselves of the simple things. And at all times we’re better off listening to God and doing what he says. Great stuff Tony!

Oh yeah, and if you want Tony’s notes from his outline for the entire talk, he’s graciously posted it here for you under “Outline For Church Planters Conference Breakout.”

Ever feel in over your head? Ill-equipped and unprepared for the task at hand? Unqualified? Whoever said “God will never give you more than you can handle” was flat lying. In fact, I think that whole notion was just made up to keep our faith weak and our thoughts small. After all, why should I try to tackle something out of my comfort zone, beyond my skill set and above my pay grade? Recently, I’ve been writing a series of posts inspired by the movie Kung Fu Panda. He is singled out to be the “dragon warrior” and singlehandedly face the impending wrath of the bad guy. Needless to say, he too, feels rather unqualified.

Well, if you feel that way, don’t worry, you’re in really good company…

When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. (Acts 4:13)

There’s something about being with Jesus that brings out courage and taps the unseen reservoirs we didn’t know existed. And if there’s one thing I love about God is that he loves using people who aren’t “qualified” for the job. That’s because it’s neither about our being qualified or unqualified, but about Christ who freely qualifies us on the basis of his grace (Col.1:11-13).

But then, if you’ve read any of the bible this should come as no surprise. Remember:

Moses… Moses said to the LORD, “O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.” (Exodus 4:10) He wound up accomplishing some pretty big things.

Gideon… “But Lord , ” Gideon asked, “how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” (Judges 6:15) This guy delivered a nation with a 300 person army; after about 30,000 people ran in fear or were disqualified.

Jeremiah… “Ah, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am only a child.” (Jeremiah 1:6) This man stood alone for the better part of a generation speaking the words of God when no one else liked him.

Esther… a young, uncertain virgin girl conscripted into the harem of the presiding King who eventually delivered her people.

David – he was no professional soldier, but a young shepherd/musician willing to face a man-slayer of a giant with nothing more than the Name of his God, and the skills he had acquired while living in quiet obedience.

Chances are, if you are walking with Jesus he’s going to (or already has) put you in a place where you feel unqualified for the job. That’s good. He’d rather you be desperate for him and dependent on his grace than your own ability anyway, so get over it. And as you look to him, stand in faith and do what he’s called you to do, what A.W.Tozer said will be said of you: “God is preparing His heroes and one day they will appear and the world will wonder where they came from.”

It all starts with a dream. The film Kung Fu Panda starts out with a young panda working a thankless job in his dad’s restaurant. But secretly, he wishes he was part of the elite fighting force assigned the task of protecting the city. When he goes home at night, to his daydreaming, it’s obvious the dream is still alive. He imagines himself an unstoppable force of kung fu mastery. But too often reality splashes him/us in the face and come to find out, there’s not a whole lot of confidence that what is a dream is actually possible.

But God is the originator of the whole “dream” thing.  Remember Joel 2:28 -

And afterward,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your old men will dream dreams,
your young men will see visions.

He’s into us being filled with his Spirit and dreaming big dreams.

Couple thoughts about a dream…

• If it’s from God, it won’t be easily forgotten even as time goes by.
• If it’s from God, it won’t be distinguished even in the face of difficulty.
• If it’s from God, it will require more people, take longer, and be more costly than you could possibly imagine, but in the end, will ultimately, be enormously more rewarding.

Have you ever had a dream? Are you living it right now or have circumstances all but crushed your hopes of that dream becoming a reality? I’d love to hear what kinds of things you dream of God doing in your life.

Kung Fu Panda just came out on DVD.  And with four awesome kids, of course it was a must see. To be honest (after all, the blog title is “Walking In The Light”), I was actually looking forward to watching it. Don’t know why except, what can I say, I like cartoon movies.

I’m serious when I say this was one of the greatest gospel themed movies I’ve seen in years (definitely since Gladiator). Call me crazy, but I plan on explaining a little bit of this over the next couple of posts. So, if you hadn’t watched it, please do (shameless plug with no kickbacks!) and then sit back and enjoy some of my musings about the “Gospel according to Po.”

I don’t want to leave you hanging entirely this time, so I will say this: This movie is straight David and Goliath. And not one of those “this is a classic ‘David and Goliath’ matchup” kind of sports announcements. No, I mean, THE David and Goliath story told in a compelling, funny and masterful way. So, if you haven’t seen it, hurry and check it out first before I ruin anything for you. You may decide never to visit my blog again afterwards…or you may be changed forever.

I’m just watching the celebration of the new President elect, Barack Obama. I’m glad the ugly campaigning is over. I’m glad we as a country can begin to look forward. I don’t know what this election will bring. One thing I do know is that God is still sovereign. I know that Jesus arrived on the scene of history and actually didn’t spend much time at all talking about the prevailing government of the day. In fact, his primary message of change wasn’t “Revolution! Pick up your swords” or even “go to the polls!” But it was simply this: “Repent. The kingdom of God is at hand.” (Mark 1:15) The main issue is the heart and it’s relation to the Gospel.

I also can’t help but think about the short, tumultuous history of this great nation. I’m thankful that within the last month I took two trips to two historic U.S. sites. One to the MLK Center in Atlanta, Ga. Another trip was to Washington D.C. and to the Lincoln Memorial. Two giants of American history. Two men who gave their lives to preserve the highest ideals of the American experiment. Two men driven by an inner fire to see “love the Lord your God” and “love your neighbor as yourself” walked out on the city streets and in the hill country all throughout this nation, calling people to action and bringing justice to millions. Dr.King dreamed of a country where a person’s race would not be the determining factor in his success or failure. He spoke of a time when children would eat, laugh, play and celebrate together enjoying the satisfying bread of brotherly kindness and sweet fellowship. I think about the fulfillment of that prophecy tonight.

Abraham Lincoln knew well that “a house divided cannot stand.” While we are not as violently divided as we were when these two men took upon themselves the burden of leadership by sacrifice and service, we are still very much divided. My hope tonight is that every one of us, namely in the Church first, will be able to stand and say “he is my President,” and, under God, come together (Romans 13). The fact is that government isn’t the answer. Job creation, the economy, higher or lower taxes, healthcare…these are not the answers for America. They can definitely help or hinder, but they are not the answer. The only answer throughout history, has been the Gospel.

While I cannot know or presume to understand the weight of responsibility that Barack Obama feels right now,  I do know he understands his unique and incredible place in history; that place that Abraham Lincoln preserved the Union to see. That place that Martin Luther King, Jr. lifted his voice like a trumpet to see. And for that I say thanks be to God for allowing me to live in the greatest nation on the Earth and experience history in the making. I only hope to make some history of my own with all those God allows me to walk with.