Big Red Welcome to Freshmen

The Sunday before school starts is always a night full of energy, excitement, fun, and, of course, food.

Today is the Big Red Welcome street fair on campus. Almost 5,000 freshmen are going to start the first day of their college careers tomorrow. Tonight, Campus Crusade, along with hundreds of other student organizations are vying for their attention, allegiance, and phone numbers.

What’s our goal in getting information from students? Simply, we want to connect with them on a deeply personal level. We want them to know they are loved and cared for. We want them to know they are somebody–that they matter to us.

And to God.

Freshmen can be so funny. Parents follow them everywhere. They are embarrassed, yet at the same time they don’t want the parents to leave at the end of the weekend. A familiar passage comes to mind when I think of freshmen coming to town.

In Matthew 19:14 Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” Now, what in the world does that have to do with 18 year-old students? It might seem strange that this verse came to mind. But, it has so much to do with them! They are so young, impressionable, and ignorant to the world around them. Most of these students have lived a sheltered, suburban or farm-town lifestyle. They haven’t experience true independence, just like a little child. Furthermore, freshmen can be considered less-thans or non-importants. Not to us and not to God, either.

Jesus says, “Bring to me the ones who are the less-thans, the young ones who no one else will care for and I’ll take care of them.” We want these freshmen to experience true, life-changing community. We want these freshmen to see, meet, experience, and delight in Christ more than anything.

Let them come to us tonight and Lord willing, may we lead them to the fountain where they can drink and never thirst again.

Boy Burned By Masked Men: Is Hell Too Good for Them?

I just read a story on CNN.com about an Iraqi boy who was doused with gasoline and burned by masked men in Baghdad.

The story just crushes my heart. If you look at the article, the boy was smiling–very cute and joyful. Now, he has a crushed face, no lips, no friends, and no hope of ever overcoming this trial unless he comes to know Jesus. All I could do when I stared at his picture was say, “Oh no, oh no, oh no.” It sickens me that human beings can do something like this to other human beings. The harsh reality of life is that some people love sin more than doing good (John 3:19), so things like this happen all over the world, every minute of the day.

On WordPress, a blogging site, there was a post yesterday about this news story entitled, “Hell is Too Good for People Like This.” The post read:

“A happy intelligent 5-year old boy in Iraq is playing in the park, then is randomly seized by fellow Iraqis, doused in gasoline, and set ablaze while his attackers flee. He survives, but what kind of life can he lead? What kind of twisted, evil people do this to a child?”

Though I understand the point the author tried to make (mainly by the blog title), I realize that this man is not a follower of Christ who can look at the sin of the world from a biblical lens. If I had a conversation with this blogger and he said to me, “Hell is too good for people like this.” I would respond:

“We all deserve to go to hell. Hell is perfectly fit for people like this. People like you and me are perfectly fit for hell.”

That is a hard statement to swallow, isn’t it? “People like you and me are perfectly fit for hell.” Most people, even Christians, wouldn’t like to hear that. Hell wasn’t mean for us, but we are fit for hell. We think that at our core, we are essentially good. Romans 3:10 says, “None is righteous, no not one.” J.I. Packer said it best, “Modern men and women are convinced that, despite all their little peccadilloes–drinking, gambling, reckless driving, sexual laxity, black and white lies, sharp practice in trading, dirty reading, and what have you–they are at heart thoroughly good folks” (Knowing God, 130). You see, people think that what they do in their gross, infected, sinful lives is generally okay as long as they are fine with it. God doesn’t see it that way, however.

I hate when people compartmentalize their sin. They say that burning a child is worse than sleeping with your girlfriend. One has greater earthly consequences than the other, yes. But to God, who is infinitely and completely perfect and holy, all sin looks disgusting. His standard is perfection and we have all fallen short (Rom. 3:23). I’ve never met a person who has said they have never sinned. But, almost everyone I have ever met thinks their sins are not bad enough to send them to hell. If you aren’t perfect, then you are defiled. We all aren’t perfect, so we are all defiled.

“What kind of evil, twisted people do this to a child?” The answer is potentially anyone who is not born of the Spirit of God.

So, pray for Youssif, the young boy, in Iraq, that the Holy Spirit would draw him to God and his anger and irritability caused by these men would be exchanged for delight of the Lord. But also pray for Nitsav, the WordPress blogger, that he would be convicted of his own wretchedness and depravity and be turned to Jesus for forgiveness, redemption, salvation, and freedom. Pray that Nitsav would know that hell wasn’t meant for you and me, but we all deserve to go there. And we all will, unless we trust in the Lord Jesus by faith and confess to him our sinfulness.

Teaching in Africa?

A big part of this year is figuring out what God has in store for my future. He already knows what will happen. It’s my job to figure it out as it comes! I’ve already told a lot of you, but God has given me the desire to go to seminary full time to pursue a masters’ in divinity in order to be a pastor. I’m excited to continue learning and pursue knowledge for the glory of God. I love to learn and this would be a great opportunity.

Next summer, I am required to go on a summer project as a staff person and from the outset my heart has been on Africa. There is a small possibility of being able to go to East Africa to teach theology to African pastors. How amazing would that be! A staff member with Crusade, John Matthews, told me about this opportunity, and my face lit up when he mentioned it. John told me that I probably know more theology than most African pastors and I would be able to shadow professors and teach classes there. This would be an experience of a lifetime! Pray that God would open doors to do this if it pleases him. There is also a possibility of working with Crusade next year, doing this exact thing, in Africa in lieu of seminary. Seminary would be pushed back a year, but the chance to live overseas and teach for a year would be awesome. There would be no experience that could match teaching in Africa. I think that experience would be more valuable than getting to seminary right away after working on campus here in Lincoln. Pray that God would lead me where to go after this year.

Thanks for your support! I covet your prayers.

Grace and Peace,
james

Courage and the Gospel

Acts 23:11 says,

The following night the Lord stood by him [Paul] and said, “Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome.”

As I was reflecting on this passage in prayer and even now, I notice a few things about this statement that God spoke to Paul after he appeared before the Jerusalem Council.

1) Take courage. God told Paul not to be afraid. That’s fairly explicit in the verse. The reason Paul can write, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of salvation to everyone who believes” (Rom. 1:16) is because the Lord Jesus himself appeared to him and said, “Take courage”. Also, Paul could say to Timothy, “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Tim. 1:7) because Jesus said to him, “Take courage”.

2) You have testified to the facts about me. Paul did not believe in some random set of mystical opinions about Jesus. These were cold, hard facts. The reason Paul could write, “For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins…If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied” (1 Cor. 15:16-17, 19). Paul was so confident in the resurrection of Jesus that he risked being wrong and pitied by men. Because of the facts, however, Paul can say, “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead” (1 Cor. 15:21).

3) You must testify also in Rome. Paul wasn’t just commanded to go to Jerusalem, he was called to Rome–the New Yorks, the Tokyos, the L.A.s, the Londons of the world. Rome was the center of religion, government, trade, and social interaction. Because the Lord said, “Take courage” and because Paul knew facts about Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, Paul could go to Rome.

As I begin to apply this to my own life, I think of times I lack courage. I think of situations when I don’t know the facts about Jesus. I think of chances I’ve had to “go to Rome” for Jesus and didn’t do it. May we be encouraged that Jesus gives us courage, shows us the facts, and leads us to where he wants us to be.

“How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things” (Rom. 10:15). Is there any greater duty to be done for the kingdom? How beautiful it is. We must share the gospel. Without it, there is no forgiveness, no redemption, no salvation, no everlasting life. If God is truly for us, how can the world be against us? He gives us comfort in the face of affliction. His yoke is easy and burden is light when sufferings bear us down.

Take courage. Go share the gospel with the world.