Month: July 2022

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Bible Insights

What God Desires

God desires

Consider How We Honor and Worship God

The first five books of the Bible talk a lot about God’s expectations of his people, about what God desires. He gives Moses his laws to guide them in right behavior, both what they’re supposed to do and what they’re to avoid.

The Bible also discusses—sometimes in excruciating detail—the complex array of sacrifices and burnt offerings God expects his people to regularly give him. Many of these occur according to the calendar, while others relate to life events.

It seems the people are never far away from an occasion to worship God through offering a sacrifice.

Because of the repeated emphasis on sacrifices in the Old Testament, it’s easy to conclude they’re the focal point of worshiping God. Or are they?

Hosea casts into doubt this assumption regarding the importance of animal sacrifices. He does this when he shares God’s perspective on this involved practice—which, incidentally, seems both wasteful and barbaric to most people today.

What God desires, according to the prophet Hosea, is that his people offer mercy and not sacrifices. He wants them to acknowledge him rather than present him with slaughtered animals.

Though it may be an overstretch to say that God wants them to stop offering animal sacrifices, he certainly is calling for a change in perspective. Could it be that the people’s hearts are not in the right place when they offer their sacrifices?

They might be going through the motions of a ritualistic religious practice while having lost all connection to the reason behind the rite—and the God who instituted it.

So it is when we blindly follow traditions that evolved over time without a thought or care to the original goal of the practice.

If God doesn’t want dead animals anymore, consider what he wants instead. He asks that his people be merciful to others. Giving mercy—and not insisting on judgment—emerges as a form of worship, one which God desires.

Think about it. We honor God by how we treat others and not some religious ritual that has ceased to hold meaning for us.

Next, God says that he wants his followers to acknowledge him. The original intent of the burnt offerings was to point to him, acknowledging him as Lord.

But if the burnt offerings now fail to do that, it makes sense to eliminate them and encourage the people to focus directly on him.

When we offer mercy to others, we honor God by reaching out to other people. When we acknowledge God as Lord, we honor him by reaching up to him.

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is Hosea 5-7 and today’s post is on Hosea 6:6.]

Learn more about all twelve of the Bible’s Minor Prophets in Peter’s book, Return to Me: 40 Prophetic Teachings about Unfaithfulness, Punishment, and Hope from the Minor Prophets

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Visiting Churches

Church Format and Size Matters

In general, we found smaller churches offered more opportunity to make connections. We also discovered that most liturgical churches weren’t very friendly.

The 52 Churches Workbook, by Peter DeHaan

Consider these two discussion questions about church format and size: 

1. Churches have characteristics that often relate to their size. 

How can you tap the strengths of your church’s size and counter its weaknesses to better connect with others?

2. Regarding church format, the format of a church’s service and the practices of members also impact the likelihood of embracing visitors. 

Given your church’s characteristics in these areas, what changes should you embrace to better welcome guests?

[See the prior set of questions, the next set, or start at the beginning.]

Get your copy of 52 Churches and The 52 Churches Workbook today, available in e-book, paperback, and hardcover.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

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Christian Living

In Jesus We Are the Same

It’s Time We Start Embracing One Another

Paul writes that when we follow Jesus there’s no real difference between being Jewish or Greek, slave or free, male or female, circumcised, uncircumcised, barbarian, or uncivilized (Colossians 3:11). He’s advocating Christian unity.

Stop to think about this, to really contemplate the ramifications. He tells us to break down all divisions over ethnicity, social status, gender, and religious practices.

Paul wants us to function as one and live in unity. In the same way Jesus wants us to live as one, just as he and his Father exist as one (John 17:21).

Today we need to apply this vision for unity to the church Jesus started. We need to add that when we follow Jesus there’s no real difference between being Orthodox, Catholic, or Protestant; Mainline, Evangelical, or Charismatic.

Division

But to our shame we divide Jesus’s church. We live in disharmony. We fight with each other over our traditions and our practices and how we comprehend God.

We spar over worship style, song selection, and a myriad of other things that relate to church practices and right living. Or to avoid these errors we simply ignore one another, and that’s almost as bad.

But the world is watching, and they judge Jesus through our actions. They test what we say by the things we do. And we fail their test.

With our words we talk about how Jesus loves everyone and with our deeds we diminish our brothers and sisters in Jesus with a holier-than-thou discord. If we can’t love those in the church, how can we love those outside the church?

Disunity

It’s no wonder the world no longer respects the church of Jesus and is quick to dismiss his followers. We bring it upon ourselves with our church splits and 42,000 Protestant denominations, with our petty arguments over practices and theology and everything in between.

But with a couple billion Christians, mostly living life contrary to God’s will by not getting along with each other, what can you and I do to truly make a difference?

Be the Change

We can change this one person at a time. Find another Christian who goes to a church radically different than yours (or who has dropped out of church) and embrace them as one in Christ.

If you are a mainline Christian, find a charismatic follower of Jesus and get to know him or her. If all your friends are evangelicals, go to Mass and make some new friends.

If all the Christians you know look just like you, find some who look differently. Diversify your Christian relationships to expand your understanding of what following Jesus truly looks like.

Unity in Jesus

It’s time we embrace one another. The whole world is watching.

How can we live out Paul’s command to break down our divisions? What is the biggest obstacle to us living in the unity Jesus prayed for?

Read more in Peter’s book, Love is Patient (book 7 in the Dear Theophilus series).

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

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Bible Insights

A Light to the World

Light to the World

Jesus Comes for Everyone: All Nations, All People

The phrases God’s people, the chosen ones, the chosen, and other similar references appear in multiple places throughout the Old Testament.

This designation certainly makes the Jewish people feel special. After all, God chose them to be his people.

This must mean he likes them better than everyone else. Or to extend this thought a bit further, it must mean he doesn’t like any of the other nations as much.

It’s easy for God’s people to assume that he loves them and hates everyone else. Therefore, when God’s prophets tell of rescue, salvation, and favor, the Hebrew people (the Jews) surely assume he directs his words to them, his chosen ones.

They are in, and everyone else is out.

A quick reading of the Old Testament supports this exclusive perspective. But if we slow down and read carefully, we see that God has a different point of view.

Yes, he wants a relationship with his chosen people, the Jews. But he also wants a relationship with everyone else, all nations and all people, regardless of their ethnicity or country of origin.

He wants to be a light to the world. God is inclusive. Never forget this.

We first get a glimpse of this in Genesis. God says he will bless Abraham and through him God will, in turn, bless all nations. What will this blessing through Abraham look like?

We could interpret this as material blessing—and there is some argument for that—but a more enlightened understanding is that God wants to spiritually bless everyone through Abraham.

Jesus, a direct descendant of Abraham, fulfills this by dying to make all people right with Father God.

We find this salvation for all nations repeated throughout the Old Testament. The Psalms mention it, along with several of the prophets: Jeremiah, Daniel, Joel, Obadiah, and Haggai.

But Isaiah leads them all in reminding God’s chosen people that he wants to save everyone, not just the Jews.

This means Gentiles too. The Jews—through Jesus—will be a light to the Gentiles, a light to the world. I’m so glad to hear this because I’m a Gentile. I suspect you are too.

Jesus comes for everyone: all nations, all people—the Gentiles. He is s light to the world. And to make sure we don’t miss this, John’s epic revelation about the end times confirms that all nations will come to God and worship him.

[Read through the Bible with us this year. Today’s reading is Isaiah 49-51 and today’s post is on Isaiah 49:6.]

Read more about the book of Isaiah in For Unto Us: 40 Prophetic Insights About Jesus, Justice, and Gentiles from the Prophet Isaiah available in e-book, paperback, and hardcover.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Categories
Christian Living

Three Main Leadership Styles

leadership styles

Be Open to How God Wants to Lead Us

A minister once told me there are three ways to lead people. Some lead from above, others lead from the front, and still more lead from within. God can lead us in the same way. Consider these three leadership styles.

Lead From Above

Leaders who lead from above are a distance from those they lead. They give direction and expect people to follow through and do as they say. They lead through their words. Some do this positively and with encouragement. Others make demands and issue threats.

Rulers of kingdoms and CEOs of companies use this leadership style. For kings and queens, their position allows it. For corporate presidents, the scope of their company requires it. In churches, the sermon during the Sunday morning service is an example of a pastor leading from above.

Father God also leads from above. A prime example is Exodus 19:9 when God wanted to speak directly to the people. Though it’s not his fault, this didn’t work out.

The thought of God speaking to them so terrified them that they begged Moses to act as their intermediary (Exodus 20:19). Even so, God did lead from above, albeit through a liaison—as he did throughout the Old Testament timeline.

Today God continues to lead from above through the Bible.

Lead From the Front

Other leaders do so in front of their people. They want to be closer to their charges. They lead by example, and their people follow them.

This leadership style works well in smaller organizations (though some leaders will still choose to lead from above, keeping a distance between them and their employees or volunteers).

Aside from companies, teachers on a class trip lead in front of their pupils. It’s also a common way of training employees or instructing students, letting them learn by the example of their instructor.

Jesus led his disciples and admirers from the front. They followed him and watched what he did. He often urged listeners and those who sought his direction to “follow me” (Luke 9:23, as well as many other places). This was his call to action.

Though Jesus isn’t physically with us today to lead in front of us, we can still follow him as his disciples and learn about him and what he did through the Bible in the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The Holy Spirit helps us in this (John 14:26), which brings us to the final leadership style.

Lead From Within

The third leadership style is to lead from within. These leaders don’t position themselves over the group, keeping a distance from them. They also don’t lead from the front, expecting people to follow. Instead, they immerse themselves into the group and lead from within the midst of it.

Though the distinction between leading from the front and leading from within often blurs, with leaders migrating between the two techniques, usually one predominates.

Leading from within often occurs in business startups and service organizations. In these cases, leaders work side-by-side with their employees or volunteers. They teach and encourage as they work.

The Holy Spirit leads from within. We see this exemplified in a literal sense when the church works to settle the controversy about the need for circumcision. Their conclusion was a group consensus in which the Holy Spirit played a key role (Acts 15:28).

The Holy Spirit also leads from within in a figurative sense, from within us. We see this later in the book of Acts when the Holy Spirit keeps Paul from preaching in Asia (Acts 16:6).

God’s Leadership Styles

Just as people can have three leadership styles: leading from above, leading from the front, and leading from within, so does God. Though these overlap, we see God the Father leading from above, God the Son leading from the front, and God the Spirit leading from within.

May we embrace all three of God’s leadership styles and learn from the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.

Bogged Down Reading the Bible?

10 Essential Bible Reading Tips, from Peter DeHaan

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Peter DeHaan News

New Book: I Hope in Him

I Hope in Him: 40 Insights about Moving from Despair to Deliverance through the Life of Job

40 Insights about Moving from Despair to Deliverance through the Life of Job

Discover how to have encouraging confidence, persevering faith, and unshakable trust, even when you’re in the depths of unimaginable turmoil.

Job’s story is a hard one to understand. He faces numerous tragedies. He endures gut-wrenching losses. How does a godly man survive such awful circumstances?

I Hope in Him: 40 Insights about Moving from Despair to Deliverance through the Life of Job

This 40-day book of Job devotional will help you discover how Job’s story offers redemption and hope for even the most discouraged. When Job loses everything, including his family, possessions, and health, he refuses to reject God. Job’s story reveals to us who God is and how we can place our trust in His promises.

In I Hope in Him, you’ll be inspired to embrace a lasting hope and triumphant confidence in God, regardless of your situation. This impactful resource will remind you that whatever evil our enemy can concoct, God can overcome it. No matter what you’re going through, He is always enough.

In I Hope in Him, you’ll learn how to:

  • Trust God more, even when you don’t understand life’s circumstances
  • Worship God in the middle of your personal storm
  • Cling to hope in suffering
  • Listen to God’s voice through all circumstances
  • Heal from your grief and grow in your faith, no matter what you’ve been through

I Hope in Him offers 40 succinct readings that will guide you through Job’s story of victorious perseverance. It will help you focus on God’s enduring power over your circumstances.

As you study Job’s faithfulness in the middle of tragedy, you’ll learn how to embrace the unending peace, comfort, and hope of the Almighty during life’s trials. In addition, each devotional is accompanied by a thoughtful application question and additional reading selections from God’s Word. A perfect devotional for women, men, or small groups.

Written by seasoned Bible teacher and author, Peter DeHaan, each day’s message will challenge you to see Job’s story from a fresh perspective, learning to find purpose in your pain and victorious hope to endure the suffering of life.

If you’re willing to trust in God when life isn’t fair, then read I Hope in Him and discover the comfort of God’s promises today.

Discover more about Job in Peter’s book I Hope in Him: 40 Insights about Moving from Despair to Deliverance through the Life of Job. In it, we compare the text of Job to a modern screenplay.

Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.

Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.