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Tradition.
Jesus once said, “You ignore God’s law and substitute your own tradition.” He said this to a group of people who were known for being extremely “religious”.
They said the “right” things.
They did the “right” things.
They had the “right” doctrine.
Yet, for Jesus, these were some of the most misled and dangerous people around.
They were the ones who hassled him the most.
They were the ones who hated him the most.
They were the ones who had him pinned to a cross in a garbage dump.
They were the ones who hated him the most.
They were the ones who had him pinned to a cross in a garbage dump.
In most cases, it seemed as though Jesus and the “religious people” were following a different God, so much so, that Jesus once called the religious leaders “children of hell” and that their “true father” was none other than Satan himself! As I’ve said before in other posts, Jesus reserved his harshest words not for the raunchiest sinner, but for the disillusioned religious elite!
The religious leaders (a.k.a. “children of hell”) were so dangerous because they were perceived as being God’s ambassadors – as reflecting the character and nature of who God was and what he was like. They were the ones who people looked to in order to tell them what God thought about them and how they were to think of him.
Jesus would get so angry with them (and still does, in my opinion) because they misrepresented God the Father and what he was like. Jesus is the true reflection of God because he is God. What we see in Jesus and what we see in the religious leaders could not be more diametrically opposite:
Religious leaders said “do” in order to be acceptable to God.
Jesus said “be” the child of God, the image bearer, that you already are.
Religious leaders heaped oppressive demands onto their followers.
Jesus said, “my yoke is easy, my burden (weight, load to carry) is light.”
Religious leaders kept mental records of their own sin as well as the sins of others.
Jesus said, through his Spirit, “I will remove your sin from you as far as the east is from the west and remember it no more.”
As you can see, when we choose to follow tradition – human religious tradition that has the appearance of godliness but denies the power of the Gospel – we’re in, as they say, “deep doo-doo”. Jesus desires nothing by wrote, but a deep and living interaction with him through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Have you considered this for your own religious walk? Does your walk with God resemble an empty, lifeless, religious tradition or is it a vibrant and alive interaction between you and Jesus Christ? Consider the implications of each…
Striking.
Something struck me as I was preparing for my message this week: Jesus thinks very highly of us.
Jesus thinks highly of us because he’s God. If Jesus is God and God is Jesus and Jesus not only loves us but actually likes us, then that would mean that God feels the same way about you and about me.
God honors you (Isaiah 43:4).
God calls you “very good†(Genesis 1:31).
God, in fact, loves you (1 John 4:9-11).
I think this struck me so hard because I wonder how many people really believe this? Christians included! Most of us – if only subconsciously – believe that God is mostly mad at us and is really disappointed with our lives. He’s standing in heaven with a long, flowing beard, checklist and clipboard and a sharpened #2 pencil in hand, constantly checking our behavior, scribbling on his checklist and clucking his tongue whenever we goof up.
My question is simply, “who would want to follow a God like that?â€Â
Not me.
Luckily enough, that’s not the God of Scripture and it’s not God the Father of Jesus Christ. Even as I write these words, I can feel a weight being lifted off of my shoulders… God is not mad at me!
Would you take a moment during your day and ask yourself the question, “how do I think God sees me?†Then ask yourself a second question, “how do I see God?†Those two questions, G.K. Chesterton says, are “the most important beliefs†someone has.
God is good. Good is God. God says we’re “very good†(Genesis 1:31). Any questions?
Punchy.
This is great, courtesy of my brother:
There’s something humorous about this, and I haven’t quite figured out exactly what it is. ÂÂ
Is it the actual leaping out of the garbage can? ÂÂ
Or is it watching the masked-man crumble back into the garbage can after being punched in the mouth? No doubt with his dignity very much not intact?
Here’s to you, college kids.  You make the world go ’round.
Thrifty.
Does anyone know anything about thrift stores? I got the idea to start one up a few years ago and have just been kind of sitting on it for sometime. ÂÂ
Partly because I’m an idealist.
Partly because I haven’t the first clue about how to run a thrift store (or any store, for that matter).
And not just any thrift store, but a thrift store that sells quality goods. And not only that, but we find the unemployed and underemployed workers and pay them a real stellar wage.  Something that gets their home fiscally stimulated as well as impacting the local economy.ÂÂ
If you have knowledge that you would like to “drop” on me, hit me up at justin(at)bedeviant.com.ÂÂ
Also, I’m looking for good places on the web that have HTML templates to download and make your own. I want to revamp our mother site, bedeviant.com, into a showcase for the design side of Deviant Media Group. We’re moving more into a design firm than a clothing company and I would like the site to reflect that.
We’ve designed pieces for schools, churches, ministries, businesses, weddings (invites, programs, etc.), and just really love doing it.  Interested?  Hit us up at design(at)bedeviant.com.
That’s all for now, folks.  Let me know about the thrift stores and HTML templates.  Peace to you and yours!
Justin
Blogging Bethel (v.1)
Okay, so the picture you’re looking at is of an unhappy me with a band playing in the background, over my left shoulder. There’s three dudes here and they’re all wearing trendy hats and shoes and playing their guitars very loudly. Right in front of me.
I am in a coffee shop. When I am in a coffee shop, it’s usually to plug my earphones in, sip an Americano, and crank out some work. When I’m in a coffee shop, I usually like to be left alone. Not to be entertained.
This band is trying to entertain me. That is why I am unhappy.
I’m all for artistic creativity – really, I am. But please, trendy-hat friends, can’t you just be creative somewhere else?! Not here. Anywhere else but here.
Oh well. Guess it’s back to turning up “Band of Horses” even louder and making it obvious that I’m not listening to them. I’d be nicer in different circumstances, but a brotha’s got a lot of reading to do.
Peace to you….
One(More)
Two things have me on the brink of bursting as of late:
Item 1: Pro-Life groups
Item 2: Pro-Environment groups
Now, before I get into too much hot water, let me assert that I am, in fact, both pro-life and pro-environment. God likes life, I like life. God likes his creation, I do too. That’s not what I’m talking about…
If I hear one more celebrity tell me how I should ride my bicycle to work, or how I should change the lightbulbs in my house, or how I should care because polar bears are drowning in thawing frozen ice caps, I’m going to lose it! As I said to my wife, “I… can’t…. HANDLE IT!“
Similarly, if I hear one more person tell me that because I follow Jesus, the most important thing in my life should be getting Roe v. Wade overturned, I’m going to shoot blood out of my eyeballs! I do not want to hear it! I don’t care what presidential candidate is against abortion – if he/she is a poor candidate, I will not vote for them. Do not use my faith as a recruiting tool to get people to sign up for your causes.
I came to understand that although these groups typically stand in opposite camps, their approach to their issues are exactly the same: “issue X is the most important issue and I’m going to take every chance I can to cram issue X down your resistant throat. What’s more, if you don’t agree with issue X you are a horrible person and should have your membership from the club of humanity revoked.”
Seriously.
Shield(Me)
I really love this guy. I mean, I really do. I’ve been listening to a lot of Matisyahu lately. I don’t want to go into a long back story on the guy, suffice to say he’s the only Hassidic Jewish Reggae artist that I know. The man is centered on Yahweh – he’s a lover of God. Any guy who loves God like this is alright by me. Heck, half of his lyrics are from the pages of the Old Testament. Nice.
My wife and I had a chance to see Matisyahu with 311 a few weeks ago here in West Des Moines. Kerry bought me tickets to the show for our first anniversary (!!!), plus she graciously attended the show with me which, we found out, is not Kerry’s “cup of tea.” Of course, after sweating off 15 lbs. in water weight, breathing in a, shall we say, “smokey” environment for three hours, having copious amounts of stale beer spilled on her, and being elbowed in the eye by a well-intentioned, yet severely inebriated, “hippie chick,” I can’t say that I blame her 
I had fun though, and she had fun because I had fun. That works for me. Here’s some pics:
And I’ll leave you with a video I took of 311 and Matisyahu performing together on one of my favorite songs by 311, “Love Song”. (I love this song so much, it was the song my wife and I chose to walk down the aisle to after we got married!) Take a look (P.S. – the squealing you hear in the background is me):ÂÂ
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