This post won’t be nearly as long as the previous one, but it’s going to be of more substance than other things I’ve written lately.

I was talking with a close friend about making decisions today, which got me thinking about how we make decisions. After all, we have to deal with decisions every day – how do we know that what we decide to do is right or not?

As it turns out, that’s one of those things I’m hoping to figure out in the next few months/years. I give myself that much time because I think it’s really more of a framework that I need to establish in my life rather than some hard-lined rules about do’s and don’ts. Here’s what I’ve considered so far:

1. I need to make my decisions filtered through the Bible. Since I have already decided to be a disciple of Jesus Christ, I should probably make choices that line up with what He says is right. In order to do that, I need to know what He said. So for any decision, I should check the Bible first to see what it says about the situation.


2. I need to make my decisions filtered through prayer. Most definitions I’ve heard of what prayer is have been inadequate in describing the many nuances and purposes that encompass this simple process. The Bible says to pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17), and various passages refer to prayer as part of asking things of God and giving Him all of my concerns (Philippians 4:6-7). It also seems like a pretty good idea to check in with God regarding whatever decisions I need to make.


3. My decisions are eventually going to be things I desire to do, even if I may not enjoy them. This statement is paradoxical in nature – evolutionary science explains our desires to do things that we don’t enjoy as a result of some higher evolutionary beneficial motive. However, the Christian worldview contrasts that explanation with the call to “carry the cross daily.” For the Christian, there is a greater purpose than personal survival or species survival that comes out of deciding to do things that aren’t pleasant. At the same time, not all of our decisions are going to be choosing between pleasant and unpleasant …sometimes they will be between two pleasant things or two unpleasant things. Still, if I am following God’s will, He will satisfy my desires by either providing what I want, or changing what I think I want to what I really want. More on God’s will in a bit.

Well, there’s more that I want to unpack, but it’s way late and I’m way tired. So until next time, keep dry and warm!

What? A real post? Here goes nothing…

Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God—the gospel He promised beforehand through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures regarding His Son, who as to His human nature was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by His resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. Through Him and for His name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

—Romans 1:1-7 (NIV)

Some friends and I are studying through the book of Romans, and as we zoomed through the first two chapters this week, I felt that I should unpack these first seven verses some more.

The first thing I notice when I read through this passage is Paul’s succinct summation of the gospel. In verses 2-5, he hits pretty much the major points of the “gospel of God” for which he is set apart.

• God promised this gospel in the past through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures. I don’t want to get into an apologetic discussion of this, so I’d refer to the book of Matthew for further reading – it details how Jesus Christ uniquely fulfills the prophecies made by the Old Testament prophets.


• These prophecies were regarding God’s Son. Again, refer to Matthew.


• This Son of God had a human nature. I see this as establishing that the Son of God was in human form – therefore discounting beliefs that might say that the Son of God was at all times spirit and never human. I honestly don’t know Paul’s original intentions in writing that, and I don’t really have time to expound on that either. If I’m way off base on this, please let me know.


• The Son of God was a descendant of David. This is a pretty huge one for those who knew the Old Testament Scriptures. In 2 Samuel 7:11b-16, God promises King David that He would establish a royal lineage through David, and that this kingdom would endure forever. So I see Paul saying here that the Son of God is of royal descent in human terms as well as by divine purpose.


• This man was declared to be the Son of God through the Spirit of holiness by His resurrection from the dead, and His name is Jesus Christ. That’s a mouthful to say. But I can’t think of a better way to say it. Even with the fulfillment of prophecy and the establishment of His lineage isn’t enough to prove this man as the Son of God. The resurrection is what makes it complete. It’s the power of God, the physical parallel to the new life we now have through Jesus Christ. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15 about how vitally important the resurrection of Jesus Christ is to this message. ”...And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith…” (1 Corinthians 15:14). Yes, Jesus came to die and save us from our sins, but it is in the resurrection that we have hope. For while a completely righteous man who dies for another’s sins is noble and strong, the resurrection from the dead is what gives true power to the message. And it is in this hope of a resurrected life, eternity with Almighty God, that people who claim identity with Jesus Christ preach to the world the paradoxical message of the cross.


• There is a call to obedience that is made to all people. There is no one in the world who is disqualified from hearing this call, the message of salvation. Later on in Romans Paul points out that God does not show favoritism. So this statement attacks exclusivism and other cliqueish behavior that have crept into the Christian church as of late. All people are worthy and deserve to hear this message of hope, death and resurrection. The responsibility of calling these people is on us. So when I’m too lazy or fearful to preach this gospel and to call others to this obedience, I am shirking my own call. Ouch.


• The obedience we are called to comes through faith. This is the last point I want to examine. I’ve always found this phrase to be rather odd, since most of the time I equate obedience with respect and submission, not faith. But this puts a new spin on the “drudgery” of self-discipline, following God’s commands, etc. Faith could probably be summarized as an act of the will, based on confidence established through the knowledge of one’s character in relationship. I realize that’s a somewhat incomplete definition, but I think it brings out most of the major aspects of faith. Obedience out of faith is much different than simple “blind obedience” in that there is a trust placed in a person’s character. I suppose it could be argued that there is some trust and assumptions being made in blind obedience as well, but I think it’s a bit different. Blind obedience, by definition, suspends one’s reasoning and thinking to carry out someone else’s will – there’s certainly the trust that the person issuing the orders is not evil, but there’s no room for questioning. I see the obedience that comes from faith as a reasonable choice – I choose to obey because I’ve considered the request and know that the person who gives the orders has been proven trustworthy and is asking me to obey for my benefit as well as theirs. There is a relationship between me and that person that is much deeper, much more intimate than a relationship I might have with someone I’m blindly obeying. I know I butchered that explanation, but hopefully that makes sense to the few people that still read this blog.

Well, that’s taken much of my morning to type up, and I’d better be getting back to the studying, so hopefully you all enjoyed reading this as much as I did typing it up. Later!

Here’s a little morsel of what I learned while I was in Peru.

Experiencing grace is nothing like just knowing about grace. As a high achiever (some would say an over-achiever), I beat myself up pretty badly whenever I mess up. It doesn’t really matter what it is – missing too many questions on a test, speaking harshly to someone or to a group of people, realizing that I’m a completely worthless jerk most of the time – I can get a sense of hopelessness, that there is no escape from my lowly state.

And it’s somewhat true. While I still live, I will never measure up to the high standards I have placed on myself. And if my standards are so high, God’s standards are infinitely higher. There is nothing I can do to attain the perfection I seek.

And that is where grace meets me. Grace comes from an outside source. It is freely given out of a heart of love and forgiveness. Grace says that someone else has paid the price for my failures. Grace means that perfection has been given to me through no merit of my own.

This is mind-blowing to me. All week long I saw so many ugly parts of my life surface – my selfishness, my greed, my pride and arrogance, my anger – and my heart despaired, because I knew that I was wholly unable to merit favor with God or men on my own. I have heard of grace for most of my life. My Chinese name means “abundant grace.” But truly experiencing grace for my own faults? I doubt I dwell on those feelings for very long.

I began last week’s trip with a fresh awareness of my own faults and the Mr. Hyde that lurks within my heart. As I became more keenly aware of how far I fall from my standards and God’s standards, my heart despaired, because I want to do good, I want to be a good person. But despite all of my efforts, I’m still condemned to be a horrible person. I still get angry at people. I still lie, cheat, and manipulate to get my way. I still feel like I’m better than others, even though I am not.

But I’m so thankful that it’s not the end of the story. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:9-10). My failures have sentenced me for death. But Someone Else has paid the price for my failures. My justification has given me a new heart, one that seeks to do good and right things. Mr. Hyde will haunt my thoughts and actions from time to time, but the grace that has been extended to me by Jesus Christ frees me to do good. And, I hope, that this wonderful grace that has been given to me will motivate me to show grace and mercy to those around me.

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I’m a failure today
I think I have all the signs
I can’t believe I’m here again
Oh, why can’t I succeed?

So I turn to You and I pray
How could You love me anyway?
Nothing good comes from man
But You say, “Come and follow Me”

Oh, You take all my worries
You take my fears
You take all my failures
You, You set me free, I’m free
I’m free

Today’s a new day
Walking in Your loving grace
You bring promises
Removing my weighing chains

And I turn to You and I pray
How could You love me anyway?
Nothing good comes from man
But You say, “Come and follow Me”

Oh, You take all my worries
You take my fears
You take all my failures
You, You set me free, I’m free
I’m free

Oh, my Jesus, You set me free

Free
Kristen Davison
© 2005 Kristen Davison

“So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment? Or do you show contempt for the riches of His kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance?

But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when His righteous judgment will be revealed.”

- Romans 2:3-5 (NIV)

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One of my favorite worship songs of all time is a song written by Chris Tomlin, Kindness. I remember when I first heard this song. My sister had just gotten Tomlin’s album The Noise We Make and we were listening to it on our way to Six Flags. I remember listening to the song and thinking it was pretty great – but what impacted me was his reflections on this verse, published in the cover jacket.

I wonder why most people who repent come to change their ways. Is it out of guilt? Is it motivated by a desire to do good and right? Fundamentally, I think it boils down to realizing God’s mercy. It’s the essence of the Gospel – realizing our innate destitution according to the Law and accepting the grace of God through Jesus Christ, who paid the full price for our sins. You can’t have one without the other and still call it the Good News. You can’t preach about the condemnation of sin and refrain from rejoicing about the free gift of God by grace through faith. It would be a hopeless message. You can’t offer to others a message of hope and redemption if they don’t know why they would want such a “salvation.” It would be a worthless message.

Every day I’m confronted with the weaknesses and failures I have in the flesh. But it’s because of God’s unfailing kindness that gives me freedom to turn from my daily sins to walk in holiness. What joy that is! That kindness toward me is so undeserved, but it’s part of God’s very nature.

Consequently, I believe that the way others are led to repentance is by the undeserved kindness God shows them through Christians. The passage even alludes to this idea – because while exposing sin is necessary (darkness flees in truth’s light), the reason why we are found innocent in God’s judgment is because the kindness He showed us in Jesus Christ.

I’m out of thoughts. Back into the fray!

Jim White, long-time Christian and Navigator, spoke at church this morning. Instead of explaining a passage to us, or presenting a nice exegesis of a book, he preached the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5-7. From memory. Straight through.

He did this at the Navigators’ Key Man’s conference last year. He explained to us that while Scripture memory is very important, it’s the meditation on Scripture that makes the Word alive in our lives. It’s a compelling sermon, the longest continuous piece of text that we have that came directly from Jesus Christ’s mouth (as recounted by witnesses, of course). It deals with some of the deepest heart issues and the practice of holiness that arises from a foundation built upon the Rock of Salvation. Jesus promises rewards for those who suffer, who are maligned, who are humble, and He indicts us with His emphasis of being holy in attitude as well as in action. He challenged us to “store up treasures in heaven,” and to be fully obedient to His Word.

“Delayed obedience is disobedience.” As I examine the heart attitudes that reign in my life, I know that there are so many areas of unrepentance and disobedience that just hearing the words of God make me fidget. But that’s the beauty of the Word – it’s living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates, even dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow – it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart (Hebrews 4:12).

I don’t really know what else to say. For those who know Christ, do what He says. For those who don’t know Christ, it’d probably be good to get to know Him – He’s “everything we’ve ever imagined,” to quote the movie adaptation of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

Anyways, back to studying Neuroscience and Physiology.