LEGACY- Hearing and responding to the Gospel of Grace

"If you hear the Gospel and it does not bless you, hear it again. If you read the Word of God and it has not saved you, read it again. It has the power to save your soul! [...] Oh if men would search for salvation as though it was hidden treasure!" (Charles Spurgeon)

This morning, like most mornings, I sat looking at my face in the mirror. About every two-three days I notice that it is time to take the razor and give myself a good, clean shave. Since I care about my appearance, and my comfort, I chose to take the razor and pare down the growing hairs on my cheek and neck. However, this day was different than most. As I looked in the mirror, I stopped and examined myself. I don't know if you have ever done this before, but if you have did you ever look into your own eyes? Have you ever stared into your own eyes and asked the question... what am I building with my life?

I remember this was one of my favorite things to do when I was in high school. I would stand in front of the bathroom mirror and look myself in the eye. Most times this was because I was practicing for a part I had in a play but other times I asked myself the above mentioned question. James uses this illustration in the first chapter of his epistle. He exhorts believers to look into the mirror and examine themselves, essentially to see if their life is matching up with the faith they proclaim.

As I think about my own life, I often wonder if my life is matching the faith I proclaim. While at the youthful age of 27, I concede I am not old at all, I also realize that I am not as young as I once was. I have completed two degrees in higher education, I have made many friendships and built relationships with people around the country, I have traveled all over the world, and yet I still am asking myself the question- what am I building with my life? Is my life matching up with my faith? What will be my legacy?

My father was a great man. So was my grandfather. I have a picture of them next to my bed. In fact it is a picture of all the men who bear my namesake. The Robert Philip Erbig's... of which I am the fourth and only remaining. As I look at myself in the mirror that question continues to infect my heart. I want to live a life that makes a difference. I want my life to be characterized by a humble dependence on my Savior where he gets the Glory for everything that I do. I want my legacy to be one where Jesus is seen through my actions and life. I think that's what James was talking about in the first chapter of his letter to the church.

Has anyone else asked themselves this question? If you are reading this I hope that it challenges you to strive towards a life that builds a legacy for Jesus. He is the only thing that matters. His grace is something that should drive us to our knees and cause us to respond in humble obedience. We should seek him with our very lives! When we do that- his legacy is secured in us.

A Fall Favorite Returns...

I love the fall. Leaves change. Colors abound. And the Pumpkin Spice Latte has returned to Starbucks. Go get one!

PS- Forgot to make this note in the last post!

HUMILITY (Part One)- A grace filled return to the blogosphere

As my friends have been quick to point out... I have not posted a blog since January 22... or this year. The previous blog on my site was posted by a gentlemen who shall remain nameless, but brilliant. And so, after a long hiatus from the blogging world (let's just say I was running a life-marathon and then resting from it), in the words of the great poet Michael Scott, "I'll be baaaaaaacccckkkkk..... AND I am baaaaaaccccckkkkkk."

With this return, I can think of no better subject to write on than humility. Let me begin by saying that I am NOT a humble man. I am proud. I think I am the greatest thing on the face of the earth. The world does indeed revolve around me. Unfortunately, like most people I was not totally aware of this area of sin. But then I was blind sidedly convicted as I read the opening chapter of CJ Mahaney's book "Humility." Here is his definition of humility: Humility is honestly assessing ourselves in light of God's holiness and our sinfulness. Now that is quote to meditate on. As I sat there enjoying my pepperoni pizza from Il Vicino my eating started to slow as I gazed off in the distance. The question on my heart was "Am I humble?" And when I was honest with myself I had to answer: No, I am not. I am sinful and I should fall to my knees as I consider the holiness of my God.

Some of us rarely think about the topic of humility. Why would we? In a world of Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Blogs, and Unlimited Cell Phone plans we have all created our own worlds where we play God. There is even an application for the iPhone called "Pocket God" where you can create your own civilization and rule over it. When you are God why do you need to be humble? But the truth is we are not God. And we must assess ourselves in view of the holiness of God. Each and every one of us is sinful and depraved before God. Only by his grace have we been saved through faith. For that we should be eternally grateful. As I look at the holiness of God in comparison with how sinful I am... I have no course of action other than to be eternally grateful.

This has huge implications for our homes, work, our family, our church, and our career. If we are not humble then relational discord will no doubt break out in the previous arenas. My hope is that, as each of us lives our lives, we would be humble. After all, Christ gave us the perfect example of humility as Paul wrote in Philippians chapter two. Humility shows other people that Christ has made a difference in our lives because we were given a gift we did not deserve. We must throw off pride and focus on the grace we have been given through the cross of Christ!

The bottom line is this: We must be more humble! When that happens lives will be changed and legacies will be built.

death by breath (or why the world needs christian rap)(or i've been reading stuff by david crowder, can you tell?)

i love Christian rap. unfortunately, there are those who do not share my sentiments that i feel are misguided. its curious that even when the themes in a genre differ from their mainstream secular counterparts, those that claim they simply oppose a genre because of said themes continue to dislike many rap artists and songs with Christian themes. see, i'm in the fortunate position of enjoying Christian rap for its subject matter and secular rap for its common non-sequiter ridiculousness (i hear you screamin dad). however, let me just explain my first statement. from the initial moment when i heard "Jesus is Still Alright" by DC Talk sometime within the first eight years of my life, i decided i preferred rap with a Christian flavor when it came to music. granted i am a fan of many other genres and Christian rap has come a long way since the birth (and subsequent dissolution; still waiting on the reunion) of DC Talk, rap has a way of delivering the Gospel that is unique to itself. in any other genre, the subject of God becomes somewhat narrowed by the repetition of a mere few themes (namely greatness of God meekness of man, stupid stuff we do, all great stuff). however, the rapid rhyme- based format of rap creates a necessity to get creative with the subjects within a song. now, when one has this mandate in addition the the constraints of being Bible- based (not a bad thing!) and sensible (somewhat), the result is usually a very thoughtful and theologically- based number. in a way, the call to be a Christian rapper is the call to be a well- studied theologian.

having said so, let me explain what's going on with the graphic (this is somewhat related). while listening to Breathin' to Death by my man LeCrae the other day, it struck me how profound and unsettlingly true the song is. if our death to ourselves should bring about Life, then our own life will bring about death. i can't tell you how much it bugs me when i hear the cliche "you're not really living unless you're _________." is that so? does my heart start only when i'm plummeting from a plane at 30,000 feet? is a lack of hallucinogens in my system equivalent to a multi systems failure? before someone goes off, let me just say that i do know the concept of a metaphor or whoever, but when such a blatant and ridiculous comparison like absence of life is so commonplace, it reminds me of the cavernous pitfall which is the lie of "life" that so many people buy into. they define their lives by these horrible, damaging (often times; if not, less than God- centered) activities that they think are bringing them meaning and purpose. but they're really just breathing to death. being this caught up in one's own life and own interests brings about the only real death there is: that which comes from rejection of the Source Jesus Christ.

favorite righteous rap lines:

"Satan's taking lives like Ethan Hawke..."

-Azriel

"swagga that's hotta than summertime in Nevada..."

-Group 1 Crew

"even if you don't know systematic theology, yo eschatology, you know Jesus is who ya otta see..."

-LeCrae

"when we spit, get a grip like boots in gravel..."

-Flame

Marriage.

No. That is my first comment on this blog. Because I know that some of you have already made assumptions based on what I titled this entry. I say no, not because I don't have a desire to get married, simply that at this juncture I am not. However, I have thought about it lately because of some devotional passages and conversations with friends. What I have concluded is that, sadly, we have a very low view of marriage in our current culture. Over the past few years I have witnessed a number of marriages end, people who were close to me and some who were not. And it breaks my heart each time I hear another story of a couple breaking up.

I believe that statistics are starting to tell us the we are leveling out in the divorce rate. Children are reacting somewhat to growing up in an era where divorce was rampant. The election of Barack Obama, and his outspoken stance that we need good fathers in our homes, I believe will have an impact on the family in certain sectors. But at the same, I work with students, and I know that so many of us are buying the lie that a marriage commitment is simply based on feelings. In a book I read recently, the author noted a survey of students who were asked when it was okay to have sex. The majority response was "If I love someone enough." The problem with that, she commented and I agree, was that our children have bought into the lie that feelings are more important that God's design and standard for marriage. For the many divorces I have seen, I think too many have let feelings be the barometer of success.

If we take this example to our relationship with Christ, we run into a problem. How many of us who call ourselves Christians would say that following Christ is always easy and feels good? Certainly not. And the Bible even paints a beautiful picture of a marriage between the Bride (The Church) and the Bridegroom (Christ). Charles Spurgeon comments that on earth Christ "exercises towards her (us, his bride) all the offices of a husband. He makse rich provision for her wants, pays all her debts, allows her to assume his name, and share in all his wealth. Nor will He ever act otherwise to her. The word 'divorce' He will never mention, for 'He hates divorce' (Malachi 2:16)." Women, how many want a husband like that? Men, how many want to love our wife like that? How wonderful, comforting and glorious is it to know that now matter how often we sin against God. No matter how many times we turn our back on him. No matter how often we run to "other lovers," he takes us back. He will never leave us. He will walk with us through the greatest pain of life. Make no mistake, when we turn our back on him and walk away, it pains him SO deeply. And there lies the reality that we have a God who can "sympathize with us in our weaknesses."

If you are reading this, my challenge to you and me, is that we would get a godly perspective on marriage. Commitment trumps feelings. Sacrifice trumps selfishness. Forgiveness trumps anger and bitterness. And humility is needed on the part of both, as we lay the one who knows us so deeply at the foot of the cross of Jesus Christ, our great God and Savior.

Marriage is not easy... or so I hear. But I have high hopes when I finally find the love of my life. For now, I am learning to constantly surrender her to Jesus and become more like him.

Snow shoeing.

I have lived in Colorado for nearly four years. The national stereotype of the Colorado population is that everyone who lives here skiis or takes part in some form or winter outdoor extreme sport. I had some aspirations when I moved here that I would become a skiier or a snowboarder or whatever else was available. However, after one skiing experience in my first year where I was taken down the mountain on a snowmobile because I thought I was going to DIE, I gave up hopes of becoming an olympic champion. Not to mention the fact that skiing requires A LOT of money!

I have taken much more to the summer activities of the mountains: whitewater rafting and hiking. This past weekend at a good friend's bachelor party near Copper Mountain, I realized that there was an equivalent to hiking... snow shoeing. If you are not familiar with what this entails let me just paint a picture. Imagine you have all the gear necessary for skiing on your body, minus the helmet, but instead of putting on skiis you wear what could loosely be described as "clown shoes." Yes, the snow shoes makes your feet at least four times the size that you are accustomed to working with. This is to ensure that you will not fall through the deep snow. In addition, there are metal "spikes/claws" on the bottom of the shoe to keep you from slipping, or to fight off a bear if so needed.

We began our hike up a four mile trail in these snow shoes and I quickly realized that I inappropriately attached them to my feet. I had to stop about four times before the shoes were attached adequately and would not fall off. Meanwhile, the largeness of the shoes was causing me to walk in a leaping fashion forcing me to use muscles that would usually lay dormant during such an endeavor. About halfway through the hike, a sharp pain developed in my lower regions because of the good, albeit strenuous exercise. As I climbed and climbed I felt more and more like I was dragging one leg to the finish line and I hadn't even been injured! By the grace of God I got to see the beauty of creation at the end and during the hike, and I made it back to the bottom.

What I realized in this experience, being the theologian/pastor that I am, is my ultimate depravity. In the midst of pain and hard work, the only thing I could think about was my pain. As the beauty of creation swirled around me and declared the glory of the Living God, all I could think about was myself and when the hike would end. We all have to confront our sinfulness every day, and perhaps God was teaching me a faith lesson through snow shoeing. In our daily lives, it is so easy to be caught up in the worries and stresses of life that we forget God is sovereign. God is bigger than any pain or strain or problem that comes our way. And living a life that is Christ centered requires us to be dependent on our Savior. I once heard a great definition of stress and worry from Francis Chan: When we get stressed out and worried we think we are more important than we actually are, and that God is not big enough to handle our problems.

So... I recommend the activity of snowshoeing to you. If may be painful but it will show us some great truths about life: our own depravity and the greatness of God. May you cling to the hand of your Savior today!

Knowing God.

Yesterday I shared some thoughts on the sufficiency of Christ and his work on the cross. My mind has been running extra fast on theological thoughts because I am in the process of preparing my doctrinal statement for heavy scrutiny by the Denver Seminary faculty. While I think this process is good and extremely beneficial, it has also helped to uncover some spiritual things in my own life, particularly in the area of knowing God. Those of us that have attended seminary will inevitably at some point, go through a complex of thinking we know God better than those around us. I certainly have. Being able to parse Greek verbs and make long theological explanations to simple questions gives off an attitude of superiority. However, I would submit that wherever we are in our relationship with God… humility needs to be first and foremost. An so, God smackd me in the face as I meditated on a chapter of J.I. Packer’s “Knowing God” this morning. He asserts that despite all our knowledge about God, we may not actually know him as well as we think. Here are four tidbits from the chapter that show the evidence of knowing God…

1. Those who know God have great energy for God.

If you are a follower of the Lord Jesus, do you have great energy to do his work? I’ll admit, there have been times in my life that I have felt like I had seemingly unending energy for the work of the Gospel. And there have been times when quite the opposite were true. But if we do not have energy to serve our Lord, how are others to see that we know him? Truly knowing God is seen when we expend every ounce of our energy serving him.

2. Those who know God have great thoughts of God.

Last week in the high school small group that I lead we took some time to pray and declare God’s greatness. This is a great way to start our prayers as we meditate on who our God is… but do those thoughts dominate our minds throughout the week? If we want to know God we need to allow all our thoughts to drift to our Great God.

3. Those who know God show great boldness for God.

This includes but is not limited to sharing our faith with those around us, even if it means rejection. Those who know God are not afraid to speak on his behalf and let that boldness be evident in their life. Maybe that happens at school, work, or in a family that doesn’t know the Lord. Maybe that boldness happens in how we handle our finances or our future. While the boldness can be manifested in many ways… it remains that if we know the Lord, we will not be afraid to admit it.

4. Those who know God have great contentment in God.

Hmmm… perhaps this is the most difficult one. I know in my own life I show little contentment. I am always looking to buy the next sleek technological device, or take a cool trip, or complain to God that I don’t have some of the things that I want. God’s answer most often to me is… MY GRACE IS SUFFICIENT. We often want more, but if we know God it will be seen in our contentment of him.

I would encourage your to meditate on Philippians 3:7-11.