Victor Scott - Jeremiah's Vow

Reflections on a Funeral | “I Will Not See The End”

I just attended the funeral of a member of our church. He was ninety-seven years old. Funerals are such interesting events. We gather together to mourn, remember and make sense of our own lives. But, today I was struck by something. I will not see the end!

I will not be there to hear the words that are said about me to my family and friends. I will not know how many people attended my funeral or why they decided to come. I will not have a chance to thank them or wonder why someone I expected to come did not.

I know that these are odd thoughts. It feels strange writing them, but I feel compelled to. I do not want to let these feelings go away. They are helping me to shape the life I will lead. I no longer want to assume that life will go on as usual because it will not. I want to be able to come back and remember that life is so much more than what I settle for so often.

I don’t know when my end will come. I think this might be the reason I struggle with attending funerals. I don’t know if the convictions and passions that I hold today will be the ones that I am remembered for when my life comes to an end. As a pastor I know the difficulties that can occur in life. I have seen how tragedy, sorrow, pain and guilt can alter the trajectory of a person’s plan for life. And to this point in my life I have been spared of much of these.

I know that the man I am today may not be the man who will be remembered. To be honest I don’t even know if the man I am right now is worthy of being remembered. I am not trying to sound humble or self-deprecating. I am not trying to elicit anything. I just know who I am. I know how flawed I am. How often my motives are not those of Christ. I know the wickedness that still finds its way out of my mouth. I know… even if others never see it.

Being confronted with your own mortality has a way of putting your whole life into perspective. I will celebrate my thirty-first birthday next week. I am no longer a kid or a young adult striving to find my place in this world. I am married to a wonderful woman, the father of two beautiful daughters, and a member of the greatest family I know. I am doing what I love to do: serving God and the youth of this generation. I have seen things this year that I would never have imagined possible, both in my own life and in those around me.

I guess the thought that lingers in my mind and causes my breath to catch in my chest is this: Has my life counted for much of anything?

If I will not see the end, what am I doing to prepare those I love and who have offered their love to me to live better lives when I am gone? I do not want to over-state my importance in their lives. But, what am I doing to make their lives better? More fulfilling?

I guess that what my desire is, right now, is that I will live a life worth remembering. Not because of what I did. Nor because of who I was. If God were to answer just one prayer for the rest of my life it would be this:

Lord, help me to live a life that brings your name honor and glory, so that when my life on earth is spent, those whom I have had the privilege to love will see you, find comfort in you and give thanks to you for having used me to help them fall more deeply in love with you. Father, help me to count all things as loss so that I might cherish your name, your fame and your beauty above all else. Father, grant me strength to live this way so that when my life is over the man Jesus died to redeem might be the man I am when I die.

“Faith Is…”: Investigating What It Means To Believe

Over the next several weeks we will look at what faith is. But before we can get there we have to make sure that we understand what faith is not. There are three specific and important truths we have to understand about faith. We will talk about them in this introduction.

Faith is NOT blind Trust

One of the most common definitions of faith is that it is trusting or believing something that you cannot know for sure. It is often described as a blind leap, or just a leap of faith. But, there is one fundamental problem with this approach. It is not based on anything found in scripture. Faith, the faith that the bible describes, is grounded in something very real and more certain than our very lives. Biblical faith is undeniably tied to the character and nature of God.

The writer of Hebrews makes this statement when describing what God did to give Abraham confidence in what He was going to do.

¹³ For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself… (Hebrews 6:13, ESV)

When oaths were made during Abraham’s time the object you swore by was an object that was greater than you. So, If I wanted prove my commitment I would say something like, “I swear by Mt. Everest that I will fulfill my part of the deal.” But, what does God swear by? Well, there is nothing greater than Him so he swore by Himself. His character would serve as the basis for Abraham’s confidence. Abraham’s faith in God was not a blind trust in something unknown. Abraham’s trust and our trust is based on someone who is sure and that we can have confidence in.

Faith is NOT an occasional practice

My faith, your faith, is not something I DO. My faith is someone I AM. The difference between these two positions cannot be exaggerated or over-stated. Until we make this switch in the way that we think about what it means to have faith we will fail to understand why our faith “doesn’t work.”

Paul made this incredible claim about what it means to live a totally committed life for God in Christ. He says it in his letter to the Galatian church.

²⁰ I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20, ESV)

Who’s life was Paul living? When was he living that life? Only on Sundays? I don’t think so. Life is lived EVERY day. The life I now live… is not an occasional life. If my faith is going to be what the bible describes I have to see that my life has been replaced with His. And, Jesus is not interested in only living through us once a week.

Faith is NOT produced from within

What I mean by this is that faith is not something that exists independent of an object of faith. I can’t just walk around having faith. Faith is always aimed at something outside of me. When we talk about faith we are talking about having faith “in” something.

⁶ In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, ⁷ so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. ⁸ Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, ⁹ obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. (1 Peter 1:6-9, ESV)

Peter helps us to understand that faith, if it’s going to be properly called faith, must have an object. What is the “outcome of your faith”? It is salvation. But, the question that we have to answer is what is that faith holding onto? Peter tells us in verse 8. The faith that results in our salvation comes because we trust the one we “have not seen” and yet love. Jesus is the object of our faith.

Everything that Jesus did, said and continues to do through His disciples become the reason that we are compelled to consider Jesus. We are acted upon by God’s grace, God’s people and God’s word. And, as these and other expressions of God’s goodness in my life are seen and felt I am drawn to God.

If we are going to know what faith is we have to know what it is not. As we journey together over the next several weeks remember that faith is more than you ever imagined, not less.

Word to the Wise | “Words Reveal Our Beliefs”

Have you ever noticed how careless we are with our words? Sometimes, I think that we do not even know what we are saying. But, do you know what is the biggest problem with our words? We do not realize that our words should be an expression of what we really believe. Too often they are spoken without considering the impact they will have in our souls.

Allow me an example. Most people in the United States have, at one time or another, said these words: “Our Father who art in heaven, hollowed be your name, your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Let me ask you a question. Do you know what you’ve just said? You have said that you want for God to rule in your life in the same way He rules in heaven. We say it, but we don’t really mean it, because if we meant it we could not wait to hear from God and follow Him. The next time you recite the Lord’s Prayer, ask yourself, “How willing am I to actually act upon the words I am about to declare?”

Pastor Luis Scott
Ambassadors of Christ Fellowship
(03/04/09)

Book Review | Dinner with a Perfect Stranger: An Invitation Worth Considering

I was not even sure if I was going to enjoy Dinner with a Perfect Stranger, but it turned into a very good read. The storyline was easy to follow and I felt drawn into the conversation. The issues that are addressed are general enough to attract a wide range of readers. The book is short at 128 pages, but it reads a lot faster.

I have often wondered what a conversation with Jesus would look like. I think that the one characteristic of the book that stands out is the way the Jesus is portrayed. Jesus is always calm, always collected and in control of himself. Nothing flusters him. Nothing seems to distract him from his task of talking with and helping Nick Cominsky, the protagonist of the story. Continue reading “Book Review | Dinner with a Perfect Stranger: An Invitation Worth Considering”

A Wesleyan Moment | What is Sanctifying Grace?

The third movement of God’s grace in our lives is called Sanctifying Grace. God has been at work in our lives with Prevenient Grace. When we heard the Gospel and believed we were born again as God applied Justifying Grace. Now the question becomes what will God do next? God has an amazing plan and desire for our lives.

Peter answers a question that many of us have asked: What is God’s will for my life? Now, the response that we make to the answer Peter gives should not be, “Is that all?” That would not be correct. The fact that God, in his wisdom and purpose, has decided to tell us what He will do should create in us joy and peace; patience and passion. So what is God’s will? Listen to what Peter says is 1 Peter 4:3:

For this is the will of God, your sanctification (ESV)

The New International Version says it this way: “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified.” Do you see that. The implication here is not that this is an option we can opt into or out of. God’s will, what he has determined will happen is that you become like Jesus. That is what it means to be sanctified. To look so much like Jesus that the world sees Jesus and not us.

Could that be why we don’t want to be sanctified? We don’t want to have our identity replaced with Christ’s? I cannot think of anything I want more than to have my weaknesses replaced by his strengths; my sorrows by his joy; my pain by his healing; my sin by his grace. That is what God has offered. That is what Jesus has purchased through his death and resurrection. That is what the Holy Spirit has applied to our lives. Be sanctified. God desires that for you.

Excited about I don’t know what…

Have you ever had one of those experiences where you don’t know what is about to happen, and you can’t shake the feeling that it is going to be something, not just good, but indescribable? Right now, right where I am, I know–in that way of knowing that can’t be explained, but you’re confident in–that God is up to something that only he can do. I am not trying to explain it. I am not even trying to describe it. I am just waiting. Waiting for a faithful and good God to do whatever he wants to do. Waiting to see a return to an unshakable, unquenchable faith in a God that can and will do things that simply don’t make sense. I am waiting. Waiting. Waiting for a promise to be fulfilled; a hope to be renewed; a joy to be restored; a faith to be made sight in spite of the dark night of a self-centered heart.

O God, your life is what infuses every other life with meaning. Even that life that has failed to comply to your sovereign grace is brought into proper submission to your purposes. There is nothing that escapes your sight. Nothing that is beyond your insight. Nothing that can be undone due to your foresight. You are majestic, not merely because of some attribution of the human tongue. No, your very being is majesty. It is worthy of all that can be ascribed to it. And when we frail image bearers have reached the end of our ingenuity, it is in your uniqueness that our plain-ness is seen against the relief of your unchanging beauty.

If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, only in you will all eyes agree!

Father, may my soul and faith; joy and life; passion and prayer; sorrows and pains reach the peaceful shores of your kingdom.

Word to the Wise | “The Need for Single Mindedness”

In the movie The Last Samurai we find a scene in which Tom Cruise is fighting an expert samurai with a wood sword. He is getting beaten by the expert even though he had demonstrated progress. The son of the hero in the movies tells Tom Cruise: “You have too many minds.” He meant to say that Cruise was not focused. He was thinking about the opponent, the crowd, himself, etc., but that he was not focusing on the task at hand—to win.

The Bible says that a “double minded man is inconsistent in ALL his way” (James 1:8). In this passage James is specifically making reference to the person who prays with doubt. That is, they are not sure that their prayers will be answered. He is double minded.

We can have double-mindedness in many areas of our lives. A person, for example, may believe that he should attend church on Sunday, but they also enjoy sleeping until noon on Sundays, or they prefer to watch a movie, or just relax looking at the lake. Regardless of their purpose, as long as we prefer more than one thing at a time, we will have the tendency to choose the least beneficial.

The solution to double mindedness is singleness of purpose. To finish the previous example: In our house there is no debate whatsoever regarding Sunday morning. On Sunday morning we will go to church because that is what the Scott family does. It is the most beneficial and connects us with God.

Pastor Luis Scott
Ambassadors of Christ Fellowship
(03/02/09)

A Wesleyan Moment | What is Justifying Grace?

The second “movement” of Grace as John Wesley understood it is Justifying Grace. Once Prevenient Grace has worked in and on our lives we come to that moment of decision. We are called by the Gospel and the work of Jesus to trust in Him for salvation and a restored relationship with God. At the moment that this conviction fills our hearts, God is applying grace to our souls. What makes this movement special and unique is this, at the moment that we exercise faith we are justified before God. We have not been made totally righteous, not yet. That comes next as we “work out [our] own salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12, ESV).

What we experience at the moment of salvation is the declaration by God that what has begun at salvation is as-good-as-done in the eyes of God! Can you believe that? We are not as we ought to be, but God has declared the work finished! That is what Justification means, we are no longer held guilty of our sins AND we are now set on the path of eternal life.

There are two places in scripture that help us here. Philippians 1:6 reveals God’s promise to finish what HE has started. Meditate on that and rejoice. The second passage reveals something that is just as wonderful. Peter tells us where our salvation is kept for safe keeping in 1 Peter 1:3-5. This is important for us because it provides our confidence in the Father’s love for us, Christ’s work in us and the Spirit’s power through us to accomplish God’s will in the world. Peter tells us that “we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay” (NLT). The key here is the word “for.” The burden of my salvation is on God, in Christ. That is the majesty and wonder of God’s love and grace. He protects, sustains, maintains and finishes His work of justification. Thank God for justifying grace!

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter | Address at Mt. Carmel Baptist Church

Mayor Michael Nutter shared some of his thoughts as he thought about the violence that erupted in his city. It was a candid, measured address about what is causing some of the discord within and among the younger generation, those under 25 years of age.

What I appreciated the most about the mayor’s comments is that he said what many have thought. While it is a generalization of current trends in youth culture, there is an honesty to his words that resonates with what many may be thinking. Mayor Nutter said that “sense and non-sense can exist at the same time.”

While I don’t agree with everything he said, I appreciate his desire to address these issues in a straight forward way.

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Word to the Wise | “God’s Goodness”

How would you feel if God responded to us according to the measurement of our faithfulness? How could He do this? Well, let’s assume that God has a “Human Motives Meter” that was able to measure our faithfulness. For every sincere and heartfelt prayer, you get a half-day’s supply of oxygen. For every two prayers, you will get a day of oxygen. If attended church on Sunday, that’s a week’s supply of oxygen. If you miss Sunday worship, you will get only three days of oxygen and if you wanted to finish the week, you had to pray twice a day for the rest of the week.

Imagine God actually having this “Human Motives Meter” and on Wednesday morning you received an e-mail that says: “You only have 24 hours of oxygen. Unless you make two sincere and heartfelt prayers today, you will be out of luck tomorrow morning at this hour.” This is kind of scary.

We have no idea how good God is. He provides the oxygen regardless of our faithfulness. He is faithful even when we are unfaithful. You see, God’s goodness is not something God does. It is what He is. He is good. I pray that each one of us would learn to recognize, and appreciate, God’s goodness in our lives. We should consider living as if God actually had the “Human Motives Meter” because even though God does use it, He really knows how to measure our faithfulness.

Pastor Luis Scott
Ambassadors of Christ Fellowship
(02/26/09)