Is Vegas the Problem?

I recently spent a week in Las Vegas. That was the first time I’d ever spent more than a few hours there, and I came away surprised, though I’m not sure why, at how spiritually oppressed I felt. I’ve been to some spiritually dark places before: India, Nicaragua, New York City. But Vegas wins the prize. Vegas seems to be everything that is wrong with our country. According to Neil Postman it is also a microcosm of where our country is headed. He said, “Today, we must look to the city of Las Vegas, Nevada, as a metaphor for our national spirity and aspiration...”

Maybe it’s because I was reading Radical by David Platt while there, but the thing that hit me the most wasn’t the rampant immorality, but the raging greed and gluttony. Of course, there’s the individual greed – the hope to hit it big for doing nothing but pushing a few buttons or betting on some cards. But what stood out even more than the greed of people looking to strike it rich was the greed of “corporate” America. This is personified in Las Vegas. Here are some examples. The first night there we ate at a nice steak restaurant. Granted, it was one of the best steaks I have eaten, but the 8 oz Filet Mignon was $55. That’s right. Something that costs around $12-$16 a pound in the grocery store was $55. While it was one of the best steaks I have had, it wasn’t three times better than what I can get at Texas Roadhouse.

We stayed at Caesar’s palace. The normal rate for the room I was in was over $300 a night. I received a conference special so only paid $195 a night. Simple room. One king-sized bed, a couple chairs, a desk, and an old tube-based television. In Phoenix, when I go for work, I’ve been staying at a brand new Hyatt in Gilbert for $125 a night. The rooms are ten times nicer than the one I had at Caesar’s Palace. Sectional sofa, nice desk, large screen HD television and free WiFi. Caesar’s Palace charges $15 a day for WiFi! Even the local Comfort Inn has free WiFi. My theory is that hotel management doesn’t want people to stay in their room, they want them in the casino gambling. Most hotels have free exercise rooms. Not Caesar’s palace. $25 a day to use their exercise facility. Again, I think it goes back to hotel management wanting people in the casino, not working out. You might as well drop that $25 on a game or two of 3 card poker instead of getting in shape. After all, you might hit a royal flush and win thousands. Of course, you’ll drop dead at 55 of a coronary.

The outrageous costs didn’t end at the restaurant or the room fees. Caesar’s Palace has a kiosk for printing an airline boarding pass. Most hotels have computers in their lobbies for this purpose. Most hotels charge nothing for them. Caesar’s Palace charges $5.00 to print a piece of paper. The ATM in Caesar’s Palace charges $4.99 for getting cash. This seems counter-intuitive to me. I would think a casino would make it as painless and cheap as possible to get cash.

There are a few free things around. The fountain show at the Bellagio is free. All two minutes of it. So is the pirate show at Treasure Island and the volcano at the Mirage. But most things cost. It’s $18 to tour the aquarium at Mandalay Bay. It was okay, but not worth $18. Bottom line, the casinos in Vegas are raking in money. A local tour guide said that the average casino clears $4 million a day. Take that amount and multiple it by the number of casinos, and the total profit is well over $200 million a day.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for capitalism, free market, and all that. But, stop and think about this. Just one day’s profit from the casinos in Vegas would feed the hungry of the world for a long time. However, I’m not going to hold my breath and wait for all the casinos to decide to give away one day’s profit so that children in Kenya can have a meal. And we shouldn’t wait for that to happen, because it’s not corporate America’s job to feed the poor.

Shortly after I returned, I read this passage from Isaiah: “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke , to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter – when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. ‘If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.” Isaiah 58:6-10.

Vegas doesn’t exist because of corporate America’s greed. It exists because of the individual American’s greed. It is each of us, including Christians, who feed the beast. We are the ones shelling out dollar after dollar gambling, drinking, and eating. We are the ones guilty of gluttony, especially gluttony of pleasure. And it’s not just in Vegas that this happens. At home we gorge ourselves on entertainment. We spend millions, even billions on things like video games, movies, alcohol, tobacco, even drugs. And let’s throw clothes, makeup, and other toiletries in there. We are a vain country. All the while, hundreds of millions of people around the world starve.

Lest you think I’m aiming this at the heathen population in America, think about this. According to a George Barna study a while back, if all those in America who claimed to be evangelical Christians tithed – that is gave 10% of their GROSS pay – the churches of America would have enough excess money to feed the starving, not of the US, but of the world. That’s right, evangelical Christians in America can solve the poverty problem worldwide. So, why is there still a poverty problem? Because evangelical Christians are not living any differently than non-Christians. Because we too are gluttons when it comes to pleasure. Instead of the $1.00 coffee at Denny’s we need to purchase a $5.00 coffee at Starbucks. Instead of a fuel efficient car, we buy fuel guzzling SUV’s and monster pick-ups. Instead of spending time outside chatting with our neighbors we sit inside playing $59 video games on $1000 televisions. Instead of taking our kids to the park and playing catch with them, we sign them up for sports teams or dance classes that cost us hundreds if not thousands of dollars each year. I recently attended a dance recital and many of the kids were in five or more numbers, with costumes at $80-$100 each for one, maybe two uses.

David Platt in his book, Radical, calls us to do something radical like go off to Africa and help the poor while sharing the Gospel. While Platt may seem to indicate this is the duty of all Christians, I’m a little more practical in that there is a need for some of us to stay where we are. But, here’s a radical idea that we all can try. What if we reduced our pleasure expenditure just enough so that we did actually tithe? According to Barna, that would be enough to feed the world.

Unfortunately, many American Christians continue to live in the now, trusting not in God, but in themselves and the all-mighty dollar. We need to trust in God to supply what we need. Malachi 3:10 says, “Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house. And thereby put Me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.”

There’s a radical thought. Trust God, fill up the storehouses, and wait for His blessings on our life. And His blessings are permanent and good. Whereas the blessings we get from our own pleasures are temporary and often hollow.

As sin-ridden and greed infested as Vegas is, it’s really not the problem with America. The problem with America is Christians that don’t obey God. You may not agree with David Platt and feel you don’t need to sell everything and move to some poverty-infested area of the world to help those people. But, you do need to do your part. Tithing is just the start. What else can we do without so that others can have what they need just to survive?

I’ll end with this scripture. No commentary. I’ll leave interpretation to the reader. “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So, also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” James 2:14-17.

Our Relationship With God

In our youth group, we have been doing a Bible study using the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan. The book is about our relationship with God. In one session, we talked about loving God and being in love with God and what that looks like. The students offered up some good suggestions, like getting up ten minutes early so that we could spend time in prayer and maybe even a devotional. On the surface, this is a great idea. And we certainly encourage our students to form healthy routines like morning prayer and reading of the Bible. It's a starting point and it moves the student beyond just coming to church on Sunday and maybe on Wednesday evening. Getting into a routine like that, even if it's only five or ten minutes, brings us closer to God. But, it's not enough. We have to move beyond the daily routine.

As we were discussing ways to grow more in love with God, and as the students were suggesting morning routines like praying and reading the Bible, God spoke to me and gave me an interesting and convicting analogy. So, I challenged the students and said the ten minutes in the morning with God is good, but let's look at an earthly relationship. I'm married, so I'll use my wife and myself as an example. I decide I want to show my wife how much I love her. So, I decide get up ten minutes earlier each day and spend ten minutes with her. I talk to her. I get to know her. I learn what she likes and doesn't like and I tell her the things I need and want. Then, I go about my day, go to work, come home, eat dinner, watch some television, do whatever I need to do around the house, then go to bed. Next day, same thing. Ten minutes with my wife, then the rest of my day spent doing what I need and want to do. And if you didn't pick up on it, the ten minutes I spend with my wife in the morning, is the only time I spend with her all day. What kind of marriage will I have if that is all I give her? Not much of a marriage. And what kind of relationship will we have with God if all we give Him is ten minutes a day? Even if that becomes habit and we do it everyday, how close can we really get to Him?

The students were a bit shocked at this. I think it hit home, so then I asked what else we can do. And one suggestion was that during the day, we should pray to Him more when we need to. Again, a good suggestion, and one that moves us beyond that routine relationship. But again, is it enough? Continuing my marriage analogy, I decide that the ten minutes a day is just not enough. Now, I'm going to call my wife during the day or talk to her during the evening every time I need something. During the day, I might call her up and say, “Hey, honey. Please stop at the grocery store. I need some more cereal.” That night at dinner, I might say, “Darling, would you please pass me the ketchup?” Later in the evening, I might say to her, “You know, sweety, we really need more money, so would you find a better job?” Is our marriage any better? I'm talking to my wife more. I spend ten minutes every morning with her. I talk to her other times during the day. I can't figure out why she just doesn't seem to appreciate our relationship.

We've moved from an obligatory relationship where we feel obligated to spend the first ten minutes of our day with God to treating God like a vending machine. Hey, I need this, so I'll drop in a prayer and out pops what I need.

Jesus said that the first and greatest commandment is to love the Lord God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. We need to be in love with God. What does this look like? Does it mean that if we are really in love with God that we must surrender to the ministry or become a missionary? Maybe for some it does. But not everyone is called to be a preacher or a missionary. The body of Christ is made up of many parts and each of us needs to find where we belong (Romans 12:4-6, 1 Corinthians 12).

Being in love with God really should be similar to being in love with another person, only more so. Like when we first fall in love with that person. All we think about is him or her. We want to spend our every moment with that person. We call, send gifts, text. We can't get enough. This is what God desires from us all the time. He thinks about us all the time. We should think about Him all the time.

Again, the students offered up some great ideas. For example, talk about Christ to others. When we fall in love with someone, we want to talk about that special person to everyone. Shouldn't we do the same with God? What about telling our friends what God has done in our life or what He means to us? Shouldn't we want to introduce other people to God? We do that with our close human relationships, and we should do the same with God.

Finally, there is the matter of obedience. Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” Back to the husband and wife analogy. If I truly love my wife, I will do the things that she asks me to do. I'll do the things that she wants me to do. Shouldn't the same be true of our relationship with God? We should do the things He wants us to do and asks us to do.

God wants the best we can offer Him. But often, the best we have to give, we give to others. We should give ourselves to others, but we have to remember what Jesus said when a lawyer asked Him what was the greatest commandment. Jesus answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37-39). Notice, the greatest commandment is to love God first, then others. Are we giving our best to God? That is true love.

True Freedom

On Sunday, 9/11/2011, the tenth anniversary of the terrorist acts against the US, all across our nation, church services held some type of memorial to remember the events of that tragic morning. No doubt many of the pastors in those churches spoke about the freedoms we enjoy in our country. For example the freedom to worship God in public without threat of violence or imprisonment. Congregating in a church building at a set time is a freedom many Christians around the world do not have. Owning a Bible is a crime in many other countries. In our country the average household has several. Telling others about Jesus Christ can be punishable by death in many countries, yet we can stand on a street corner and preach or walk up to total strangers, hand out a tract and tell them about Christ. We can invite our neighbors over for a Bible study without fear of them turning us into the authorities and then being arrested, tortured or even executed. Yes, in the United States of America, we enjoy the freedom of religion.


The week prior, my wife and I were in Texas with our son Kyle, who was there speaking to various churches trying to raise support for his church back in Maple Ridge, Canada. He was scheduled to speak at a couple of churches on Sunday, 9/11. My wife mentioned he should say something about the freedoms that we have in our country. My son's reply struck a chord in me. He said what he'd like to preach about, but would only do in a church he wasn't seeking support from, was that we have the freedom in our country to ignore God, to turn our back on God, to deny the existence of God. And he's absolutely right. In our country we don't have to worship a god, whether the true God of the universe or some false god. We don't have to pray five times a day facing a certain way, making sure our bowing is in synchrony with everyone else around us. In our country it's okay to use the name of God in vain. It's okay to violate religious rules. Oh, and it's okay to not do any of the things mentioned above, like owning a Bible, meeting in a church building at a certain time, talking to others about Christ, or inviting our neighbors over for a Bible study, even if we ARE Christians.

In many countries, a person must profess a certain religion or risk being ostracized, tortured, beaten, even killed. And if the person does profess that religion, if they don't carry out the rituals perfectly, or obey all the rules, they can also be punished, even imprisoned. But not in our country. We can live our lives totally oblivious to the Truth, even blaspheme the God of the universe and not suffer any consequences. At least not from our fellow countrymen.

And yet, there are many people in our country who would take away the Christian's right to worship our God the way we feel led to. There are organizations that think any public expression of faith is “unconstitutional,” and would deny our rights to assemble in public or express our faith in public. These same organizations tend to align themselves with political ideology that would take away many other freedoms, ideology that says our government should tell us what to do, how to do it, and regulate every aspect of our lives. What these anti-religion organizations don't seem to take into consideration is that if they are not careful, the pendulum may swing too far their way and they many find themselves forced to behave in certain ways. Like many other countries, one predominant worldview could prevail and even be mandated. Then, we'll become just like those other countries.

And if Christians are not careful, we many find ourselves in the above situation because we take too much advantage of our own “freedom” to live our lives as WE want to live them. The Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 10:23, “All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful.” We can legally live our lives as if Christ doesn't really make a difference. We can gather on Sundays, sing worship songs while thinking about what we'll have for lunch, listen to a message while texting our friends, shake some hands, act all “Christianny” and then live the rest of the week just like everyone else. This we can do in our country. This we have the freedom to do. At least so far, the government will not imprison, torture, or execute us for this. We have this freedom. But is this a freedom we really want to take advantage of? Is it a freedom that we should take advantage of? It may be lawful, but is it helpful when we Christians live life the way we want to live, rather than how God wants us to live?

What is Your Worldview?

Let's start with a short quiz. Of the situations listed below, which one or ones has to do with spiritual concerns?

a) An abortion doctor is imprisoned for murder because he delivered at least seven babies live and then killed them with scissors.
b) Certain organizations within our country are planning and plotting the destabilization of our country in order that they may insert their political and social agenda.
c) Hundreds of people see Jesus weeping in a rock under a highway overpass and a shrine is built where many come to see the phenomena.
d) The governor of Wisconsin is sent death threats because he supports legislation to reign in public union activity in the educational system of his state.
e) A mother systematically drowns her five children, one after another and the authorities call it postpartum depression.
f) At a conference on health, one speaker said that “schizophrenia is a healthy, valid, desirable condition-- not a disorder.”

Most people, I believe, would answer C. And those people would only be partially right. All of the above have to do with spiritual concerns. All are cases of spiritual warfare. All are cases of the enemy of God sowing confusion, chaos, and deceit. The way we view these events is called our “worldview”.

A worldview is how we view the world. Makes sense, right? When we see events unfolding around us, what do we believe to be the cause? Do we believe the world is a random happenstance, or was the world created by an all-powerful being? Do we believe that we all are here for a purpose or are we an evolutionary accident? Do we believe that people are innately good or are they born sinners and are innately self-centered? Do we believe that things happen for a reason or do they happen by chance? Do we believe that humans are the top of the food chain and all that happens is by our doing, or do we believe that there are forces much greater than us?

Think about your answer to all the above questions. Then, regardless of your worldview, try reexamining the scenarios above while considering these ways of looking at our world. Try to think of everything in this world as being involved in spiritual warfare. We have an enemy. His name is Satan. “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:10-12).

And Satan was the most powerful angel who decided he wanted to become like God and was cast out of heaven down to earth, where, for a season, he has been given the right to rule (see Revelation 12). Paul calls the devil “the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2). Who are the sons of disobedience? They are those on earth that have not accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. No, I'm not saying those without Christ are devil worshippers. But, unwittingly, those without Christ do the bidding of Satan by being susceptible to his manipulations. And Satan does everything in his power to confuse people, to breed chaos, and to deceive people. We see this in Genesis, where the serpent comes and deceives Eve, leading her and Adam to sin, thus introducing death into the world. John, in Revelation 12, calls the devil “the deceiver of the whole world.”

Try thinking of everyone as being innately evil, born with the propensity to do wrong. Psalm 51:5 says, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.” Thinking this way removes the confusion over seeing people who do something totally evil and unexplainable, like the woman who drowned her kids. Because we are all born with a sin nature, if we don't have Christ, the devil can prey on that nature and cause us to do things we “rationally” would not do. There is no good in us apart from what God gives us - “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by His grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:23-24). Therefore, without Christ, we can be manipulated to do evil, even if we are generally a “good” person.

Try thinking that we are here purposefully, that God created the universe and each and every one of us and that He loves us and wants none of us to die without Him thus spending eternity in hell. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave his only son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” Now throw the enemy into the mix and you can see why the devil tries to confuse and deceive, as he wants as many souls as possible not to go to heaven. Try thinking this way, then re-examine the above scenarios.

I don't know about you, but often when I watch the news, talk to people, or hear of things going on in our world, I can only shake my head and wonder how people can be that way, how they can think the way they do and do the things they do. For example, one certain political philosophy has begun to align itself with Islam. This is the same political philosophy that heavily supports homosexuality and radical feminism. And they are embracing Islam, which teaches that women have no rights and that homosexuality is a grave abomination against their god. Does this make sense? Not on the surface. But from a spiritual sense it does as our enemy continues to try and confuse us and to reign chaos upon this world.

What should be our response? Do we condemn people when they do stupid, contradictory things? That would not be the response that Christ would have. We have to remember that people without Christ are under deception. They are slaves to their sin. Paul addressed the Galatian believers and said, “Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods” (Galatians 4:8). In Romans 6 and 7 Paul talks about those without Christ being slaves to sin apart from God. And in Titus chapter 3, Paul says those without Christ are “slaves to various passions and pleasures.” A slave is compelled to do the will of his or her master. Thus those without Christ do the bidding of the devil. For us that know Christ, the only appropriate response is to pray for those under the yoke of the enemy, and, if God gives us the opportunity, to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them. For their only hope is the grace of God.

Try viewing everything around you in spiritual terms. Try viewing everything as either bringing glory to God or fighting against God. By adjusting your worldview, you will begin to better understand the chaos and confusion around you. Try seeing everything through the eyes of Christ.

Self-Centeredness

I've become convinced that the single greatest problem in our world is self-centeredness. Back in the day of Christ, a man asked Jesus what was the greatest command. And Jesus answered, “You shall love the Lord God with all your heart, and will all your soul, and with all your mind.” Then Jesus followed up with “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37-39). Jesus put this second command in an interesting way. He didn't just say, “You shall love your neighbor.” He said to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, knowing that we are full of self-love, that we are self-centered by nature.

The other day, I experienced an incredible act of self-centeredness. I was leaving our parking garage at work. It happened that this was the time that many people were leaving that same garage. There were two booths with attendants taking tickets and payments. I selected one that only had one car in it. And I sat. And I sat. And I waited. And I waited some more. In the car ahead of me, the lady driving decided it was a good time to strike up a lengthy conversation with the woman in the ticket booth. She talked, and talked, never once looking back to see the line of cars stacking up behind her. She was totally self-absorbed with no concern of anyone else's time. Even the ticket booth attendant glanced several times at the line of cars. The lady in the car kept on talking.

For some reason, driving a vehicle brings out the worst self-centered behavior. Think about it. Texting while driving is a extremely self-centered act. Actually, doing anything distracting while driving is self-centered. It's dangerous, and doing anything that endangers others while driving, is self-centered. An accident generally involves more than one vehicle. Even if it only involves one vehicle, it still causes delays for everyone else on the road who comes upon that accident. And thus, if we purposely do something that puts us at a greater risk of an accident, we are being self-centered. I won't even go into speeding, cutting in front of others, and failure to use turn signals.

The Bible says, “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others” (Philippians 2:3-4). Even things like excessive drinking, excessive gambling, smoking, and over-eating are self-centered acts. Alcoholics, drug addicts, smokers who contract smoking related illnesses impact more than just themselves. They impact others around them such as their family. These things also affect insurance rates and medical costs, thus they impact all of us. The addict is the ultimate self-centered person. They have nothing in mind other than satisfying their craving. There is rarely any thought of how their behavior affects others.

Are people capable of self-sacrifice? Sure we are. Thousands of people respond to natural disasters, such as the tornado in Joplin, MO, either by going and helping or by contributing money and things. For example, a local restaurant this past weekend did a fund raiser for those people. People lined up outside the door before the restaurant even opened. People can be others-centered. But, is that the way we live our life? For Christians, Jesus is our model of how to live. And He lived everyday for others. Do we even live an hour a day for others? I know, some of you are saying, hey, I'm a parent, I live everyday for my kids. Yes, and I've witnessed some of the most incredible acts of self-centeredness by parents on behalf of their kids. There are examples in the Bible, such as in Matthew 20:20-23, where a mother asks Jesus that her sons be allowed to sit on either side of Christ in heaven. What do you think her true motivation was? Was is really for her sons or for herself? And even if her motivation was directed at her sons, it's still a self-centered act as this woman gives no thoughts to others outside her immediate family. Self-centeredness is not always directed only at self, but can be directed at our immediate circle.

Even when we perform acts of kindness or acts of self-sacrifice, we have to check our motives. Why are we doing it? Are we trying to assuage a guilty conscience? Have we reached a point where we've been so self-involved that we do something for someone else just so we can relieve that guilt? Are we doing what we're doing because it's trendy? Are we doing what we're doing in order to look good? In Matthew 6:1, Jesus said, “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.” I've seen this in the form of bragging, telling all about how someone helped out someone else. Maybe the motivation started out pure, but ended up being all about the person who was doing the helping out.

Why should we do things for others? Again, we should be modeling our life after Jesus. For a Christian, it should be a way of life. We should be others-centered because Christ commands us to be, and we should be following His commands because we love Him (John 14:15).

Chuck Swindol once said about obeying Christ, that we should just do it, and eventually, the joy will come. That's great advice as far as serving others as well. Let's start with serving others because we know we don't do it enough. Eventually, we'll find the true joy that God gives us in putting Him and others first and it will become natural for us.

Oh, and don't think I have this thing licked myself. As Romans 2:1 says, “Therefore you have no excuse, everyone of you who passes judgment, for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.” This is one of the areas in my life that God continually works on. I admit, I have a long ways to go.

Religion Versus Faith

The other day, I participated in an interview and the interviewee said something that struck me and got me thinking. That's usually the way these things start for me, I hear something, read something, see something that gets me thinking about Christianity and voila, a blog pops out. Fiction writing is kind of the same way for me, but I digress.

Anyway, this person said that for him his religion comes first, his family second, others third, and himself last. A very noble, Christian thing to say. And by no means am I doubting his sincerity or judging him. I'm sure he meant what he said. What struck me, though, was the thing he put first, his “religion”. I would have expected either God or faith. That's what set me thinking, why did I expect something different?

We'll leave this interviewee out of the rest of this and concentrate on Christians in general. What is religion and what is faith? Colossians 2:20-23 says, “If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations – 'Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch' (referring to things that all perish as they are used) – according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.”

There are some key things being stated in this passage from Paul. Ritual, made up of rules, regulations, and laws that are “self-made religion” is the issue Paul is addressing. Religion is man-made. Faith is a gift from God (1Corinthians 12:9). Religion is something we can hide in to satisfy our conscience. A ritual we can perform to say, “See God, I'm following your rules.” Religion is something we wear on Sundays and then discard Monday through Saturday. And like Paul says, these things, “have indeed an appearance of wisdom”, but in reality they are not what God desires. Attending church is a good thing. But, when we attend church out of obligation, out of ritual it becomes “religion” in the sense Paul is talking about. When we say a rote prayer in church or at the dinner table or before going to bed without any true feeling behind it, we're engaging in ritual and it's meaningless.

Religion is what we do. Faith is what we are. We practice religion. We are a person of faith. If we have faith and we're not just practicing a religion, God should permeate everything we do. Paul goes on to show in Colossians 3 what true faith should look like. “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” (Colossians 3:2). “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.” (Colossians 3:5). “But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.” (Colossians 3:8-10).

Religion is something that is of the world. It is the set of rules and regulations that man has made in order to appear to follow God or a god. There are many religions in the world. All of them do the same thing. They try to achieve a holiness by following a set of precepts. God did not give us the law because he expected us to follow it. He gave us the law to show us that we could not follow it and that we need a savior, who is Jesus Christ. There is only one true faith (Ephesians 4:5).

James reinforces what Paul says about religion. In James 1:26-27, he writes, “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.”

Don't take James' words wrong and make a religion out of them by thinking that the way to God is to visit orphans and widows. That was an example. It's that last part that brings home James' point. To “keep oneself unstained from the world”. And regarding visiting orphans and widows, and doing any good work, for that matter, if we do these things out of obligation, they are part of our religion. If we do them out of love for Christ and because we feel compelled to do them, they are part of our faith, they are who we are. Religion says, “I believe in God” and we go on to do things, like bow to the east five times a day, to prove how religious we are. Faith says, “I am God's” and we do things from the love that is inside us. We do things because we love Jesus and we want to please our Father who is in heaven.

Do you practice religion or do you have faith in Jesus Christ?

Tattoos and God

I am amazed at the number of people who have tattoos these days. People I would never have suspected have one on their ankle or foot or on their shoulder, or other places. And with youth, it’s a big thing now, even Christian youth. Getting a tattoo has never been high on my bucket list. And I wonder how those who get a tattoo when they’re young will feel about it when they’re in their fifties, sixties, or seventies.

Regardless of personal taste, is getting a tattoo a sin?

Some would say that the Bible is pretty clear on the subject. Leviticus 19:28 says, “Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.” This seems pretty straightforward. God says don’t do it. Therefore, if we do something God says not to do then we’ve committed a sin. But this raises several questions for me.

Let’s first take the angle that getting a tattoo at all, for any reason, is a sin. I go to the tattoo parlor and allow the artist to burn into my skin a picture. I’ve committed a sin. If I come to my senses and confess and repent of that sin, is that it? The tattoo still exists. Do I sin every time I display the tattoo? Or is the sin done and over with since I did it, confessed and repented? Do I have to remove the tattoo in order to atone for the sin? Ah, but we can no longer atone for sin, since Jesus was the ultimate atonement. Or is the consequence just a constant reminder of my momentary rebellion toward God? Will the guilt I’ll feel at violating God’s command be my penalty? Sin has consequences so I guess if getting a tattoo is a sin, the consequence (besides the exorbitant price I paid for someone to mutilate my body) is that reminder of my sin.

Others would argue that the list of rules found in Leviticus 19 is part of the sacrificial law and that Christ came and fulfilled the sacrificial law. Since we now live under grace and not under law, those rules do not apply to us. Maybe. We certainly do not live under the sacrificial law. We don’t have to take a lamb to the priest and have its throat cut to atone for our sin. Is the list in Leviticus 19 part of the sacrificial law? I don’t know. As the title of my blog says, I’m not a theologian. That’s just too heavy of a subject to dive into.

I’d like to look at tattoos in a different light. The same light I look at a lot of things that I could or could not do.

First, how about a couple other scriptures from the New Testament. Oh, but before that, one more from Leviticus 19. In verses 1 and 2, “The LORD said to Moses, ‘Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: “Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy.”’”

I bring in this scripture because in Matthew 5:48, Jesus says, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

No matter what you think about the list in Leviticus 19, one thing is clear, verse 2 is still a valid command. However, that’s actually not why I bring that verse in. Here are a couple more verses to get our mind in the right place before I give my take on the whole tattoo thing.

1Corinthians 10:23-24 says, “’Everything is permissible’—but not everything is beneficial. ‘Everything is permissible’—but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.”

And, later in that same chapter, Paul says, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God—even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.” (1Corinthians 10:31-33).

Take a look again at the three sets of scriptures above. Be holy or perfect. Everything is allowed, but not everything is beneficial. Whatever you do, do for the glory of God. And for kickers, don’t do something that could be a stumbling block for someone else to come to Christ.

Let’s put this all together and relate tattoos to it. Here’s my question to you if you’re contemplating a tattoo. Why do you want this tattoo? God said, everything is permissible. Therefore, according to the New Testament, you can get that tattoo if you want to. But why are you getting it? Is it to bring glory to God? Or is it to show off yourself? Is it to honor God? Or is it to be cool? If it’s to honor yourself or to be cool, then it’s not getting the tattoo that’s the possible sin. It’s your attitude, your pride, your arrogance. That is the sin. This violates a direct command from God – a New Testament command - whatever you do, do for the glory of God. Willfully doing something that you know is not for the glory of God is a sin.

Can you get a tattoo for the glory of God? Steven Curtis Chapman and his family - both sons and his wife - all got tattoos to memorialize his five year old daughter who was killed in an accident. Is this honoring God? I really can’t answer that. God knows the hearts of the Chapman family, I don’t. On the surface, it certainly appears to be an honorable reason. Another example. Could you get a tattoo of, say, a cross, as a way to open doors to witness?

How about another set of scriptures from 1Corinthians, this time verses 9:19-9:23: “Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.”

I could envision a situation where a Christian, who hangs out with a certain type of crowd where tattoos are the norm, getting a tattoo himself or herself in order to fit in enough to make an impact on that crowd for Christ.

But what if another person hangs out with a crowd who thinks tattoos are evil? If this person gets a tattoo, they are possibly causing their friends to stumble and may be preventing them from coming to Christ or may be preventing them from growing in their Christian walk.

Are tattoos forbidden by the Bible? I’m not sure I’ve answered that question. I’m not sure I can answer that question. I hope the scriptures I’ve provided, along with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, will allow you to answer that question for yourself. As for me, I’ll keep my skin free of tattoos and try to live my life for the glory of God. And, really, that’s the bottom line. Whenever we set out to do something, we should ask ourselves why we’re doing it. Is it to honor God or ourselves? If the former, go for it. That’s between you and God. If it’s the latter, beware. God doesn’t take kindly to idolatry. I’ll leave as a homework assignment for the reader to review Acts chapter 5 and the story of Ananias and Sapphira. They did something good, at least what most of us would think is good. They gave money to the common cause, but with the wrong motive. And what happened to them? Read the chapter and find out.

Until next time, do all for the glory of God.