The God Box

Jeremiah 2:11 "Has a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? But my people have changed their glory for that which does not profit." The above verse speaks of putting God in a man made box. Here are some of the boxes I have observed God being stuffed into. I. The ritual box. God is a distant presence who only wants to be honored by patterned worship. II. The fairy godmother box. Whenever we have a need we can run to him, expecting him to wave his hand and make everything better. III. The Burger King box. God will do it our way. We treat His truth like a smorgasbord. Flannery O'Connor said "The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it." IV. The generic box. Churches today compete for attendance by making Christianity as watered down as possible. Such Churches never face a call to discipleship that befits the Lord of glory and transforms their lives. V. The self help box. Ben Franklin said "God helps those who help themselves." Robert Schuller said "You can be anything you want to be, you can go anywhere if your are willing to dream big and work hard." The idea is you are the master of your own destiny; God only helps out as a silent partner. VI. The formula box. The most evident result of scientific thought on theology. We serve God by obeying principles such as six steps to a more vital prayer life, five steps to deal with anger. We must never miss the Person of the principle. VII The God told me to box. This box allows us to pursue our own ambitions by stamping them with God's endorsement. Its amazing how many people today God has called to be rich and famous, and how few He has called to self-sacrificing ministry. In conclusion: these boxes motivate people to action, and those actions can produce temporal results. Extra effort can make significant temporal change for many people, but they never learn to trust God, to hear His voice, to submit their lives to His ways and find true life in Christ. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

The Lord of the Desert

"Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil" (Matthew 4:1). There is a feeling (almost a doctrine) among conservative evangelicals that goes like this, "If you do right and act right, you will be blessed with a nearly trouble free life." Such teaching is flat out heresy. Should you, for some reason believe this, I would advise you to check in with the Apostle Peter. Reading several chapters from one of his two books will set anyone straight on the matter of troubles, trails and suffering. We know Jesus was led by the Spirit of God into the desert, but why? To be "Tempted by the devil" is the answer. Why would God lead his Son, or you or me into the desert? Answer, there is a whole lot of learning that takes place in the desert. "Though He were Son, He learned obedience by the things He suffered." "Desert Theological Seminary" is where we learn about ourselves. Hey, I can handle life when everything is going my way. Desert living is the place where we choose to commit to living by every Word of God, and not by bread alone. Its where we learn to respond to every temptation by citing what the Word of God says about the temptation. Its where we learn to separate the wheat from the chaff of life. The desert is a place of forging convictions and shaping character. As Christians we have a great need, the Scriptures must be written on our hearts, that we might know how to respond to any given situation. Its typically our reactions, not our actions that kill us. The Word says, "The truth shall set you free." Knowing and doing the will of God allows us to live free even when we are tempted by that which is evil. have you noticed that deserts are very quiet. There is little to no activity in the desert. However it is often the place where the devil speaks the loudest, because the desert is our place of weakness. When I am in the desert I don't have the comforts of the "Normal" to cling to. In the desert I'm not in control, if I was in control I wouldn't choose to be in the desert. I have also noticed when I am in the desert the heavens often seem to be made out of brass. God is frequently silent in the desert, however it can also be a place where God (when He chooses) speaks the loudest. The word desert comes from the Hebrew word "Dahbaar" which means "To speak." He usually speaks to me when I finally shut up and am ready to listen. I have spend a lot of time in the desert, desert living isn't so bad, (in time it kind of grows on you), its a great place to meditate on the Word. Its God's classroom to teach us how to withstand the unique temptations that come to us in the desert place. Desert is where we learn the importance of spiritual warfare. Its a great place to draw on the grace of God, which is operative even when He is silent. And its the place to take our stand with God. He and He alone is Lord of the desert. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

The Christian and Idols

"All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping (the idol) there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family" (Judges 8:27). Gideon was mightily used of God to defeat the Midianites in battle. The Midianites were oppressing Israel and God choose Gideon to lead the army against them. You will most likely remember the 30,000men being too large a number to fight against the 120,000 soldiers of of Midianites. God whittled the number down to 300, then with each man went into battle carrying a jar, a trumpet and a torch. At the given time they broke the jar, blew the horn and held up the lit torch. God used this to bring confusion to the Midianite army, they turned on each other, and Israel won the battle. If the story had ended there, all would have been well. But at the moment of Israel's triumph, Gideon stumbled. We are often most vulnerable at the moment of victory. He told the people, "I do have one request, that each of you give me an earring from your share of the plunder." The Israelites took the gold from the bodies of the enemy dead and Gideon melted it and fashioned it into an idol. The Bible calls this idol an ephod, a word that refers to a ceremonial breastplate? Gideon probably depicted the Lord God as a warrior with an ephod of gold. But God does not allow Himself to be represented by an idol. Aaron made the same mistake when Moses was on the mountain, He melted down the gold brought out of Egypt and made a calf from it. The idea was God could come down and ride on the calf. This act brought the wrath of God down upon His people. They ground up the calf and were made to drink the power made thereby. This idol, made under Gideons direction, was an offense against God and a trap for the people. After Gideon's death, the Israelites again worshiped the pagan god Baal. They forgot the Lord God who rescued them from their enemies. Do you have an idol in your life? An idol can be anything that takes the place of God. Could be a possession, a position, a person, a false god, or yourself. Please ask the Lord to show you anything that takes His place in your life, then get rid of it. If you don't rid yourself of idols they will become a stumbling block to you and your children. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.