I was thinking recently about an article I wrote about Buddhism and morality nearly two years ago. In that article, Void or Victory: The Higher Nature of Christianity Over Buddhism, I quoted the Encyclopedia of Cults and New Religions as saying,

“In Christianity absolute morality is the central theme, in Buddhism absolute morality is nonexistent.”

Today I ran across a quote from theologian John M. Frame that provided me with insight into why philosophies like Buddhism cannot offer anything concrete like moral standards that reflect things which are always right or always wrong. In an article for Free Inquiry magazine, Frame wrote,

“An absolute standard, one without exception, one that binds everybody, must be based on loyalty to a person great enough to deserve such respect. Only God meets that description” (Emphasis mine).[1]

How true this is. Moral values can only find their expression in terms of relationship to others, and specifically, relationship to God. Buddhism cannot offer concrete absolutes because it is a system which denies the existence of God, the Lawgiver. Thus its system of morals, if it can be called that, cannot be absolute. Buddhism’s system of morals can be notoriously flexible. Remove any sense of offense and the sin does not exist. This is especially true about Buddhism since it is a system that also encourages detachment.

Think about the moral imperatives you learned through life. What moral imperative is there that isn’t predicated upon relationships? Use the Ten Commandments as an example. Stealing, adultery, lying, even coveting are all expressed through relationship. Someone else is always hurt by these actions. The first four commandments are expressions of sin in relationship to God. Even the commandment, “You shall remember the Sabbath, to keep it holy,” is an expression of relationship to God. When we violate a moral imperative we offend God even if we do not offend our peers.

God himself is the final expression of all that is right and true. Imagine for a moment that we commit a sin against someone but they are not offended or do not feel hurt. Say you stole something from someone but it was something they really didn’t care that much about. They let it go. Or you hide covetousness in your heart against your neighbor, but they don’t know about it so they receive no hurt. Do these things nullify the idea that a break in moral standards has been committed? Not at all! Ultimately the person we always offend with every sin is God, the Lawgiver.

One of the great treasures of biblical truth that is being lost in our postmodern culture is the idea of absolute truth—or absolute morality. In postmodernism, as in Buddhism, morality is a function of perception (or as the Buddhist might say, illusion). But in the scriptures morality is a function of God’s eternal nature. As Christians we look to God’s character for what is right. He, in his person as expressed to us through his word, is the final standard for all that is true and right.

We have a sure and certain guide in God’s character and in his word so that we may know, absolutely, what is right and what is wrong. Without a relationship with Christ, we cannot know anything about character and truth with certainty. We can only speculate. And speculation is not the way to find assurance about our nature or eternal destiny.

1. John M. Frame, “Do We Need God To Be Moral?” Free Inquiry, Spring 1996, page 4-7.

My recent devotional reading has been from the book, The Supremacy of Christ in a Postmodern World. Admittably this is not a devotional book in terms of its style. But its text sparks greater devotion the more it is consumed. (Consumed. I like that word when it comes to Bible study and reading.)

Today’s chapter is by Mark Driscoll, reflecting on the divisions between emergent and reformed theologies. It’s a great read, and it got greater when I read the following, which I’ll leave with you today.

Perhaps my favorite picture of the glorious exaltation of our great God Jesus Christ is what we like to refer to as Ultimate Fighter Jesus. In revelation 19:11-16, Jesus rides into town on a white horse, with his steely eyes blazing red like fire and a tatoo down his leg that says, “King of kings and Lord of lords.” He is wearing white like a gunslinger from an old western and carrying a sword, looking for some bad guys as the blood of already-fallen enemies drips to the ground below. Simply, Jesus was, is, and forever will be fully God; he is not someone anyone would want to mess with.

How much does God love you?

I was reading a passage from John 17 this morning that caused me to stop and wonder about the incredible love of God. In verse 22 and 23 Jesus is praying for our unity, saying “…that they may be one, just as We are one; I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.”

In case you missed it Jesus said that God loves you and I to the same degree that he loves his own son. He loves you just as much as he loves Jesus.

This is a staggering thought. You and I are filled with sin—the thing that God hates the most. In our natural selves we rebel against God. Yet Jesus says that God loves us to no greater or less degree than he loves his own perfect, holy, sinless, eternal son. Yet here’s the kicker…

God’s love for his son did not prevent him from sending Jesus to the cross.

How much does God love us? He loves us in the same degree he loves Jesus. How was his love expressed? Through the violence and suffering of the cross.

In our modern world we wonder if God loves us if we must suffer to any degree, or if our bellies aren’t full. When we face real tragedy like the death of a loved one, loss of a child, or persecution, we doubt God’s love. But just like Jesus’ death on the cross, it may be that the suffering endured is actually an expression of God’s love.

I was 19-years-old when I received Christ. About four months prior I was sitting on my motorcycle in front of a nightclub. Two men came up to me from behind and smashed me in the head with clubs. My jaw was broken. My head swollen. If the impact had been just a little different, say right on the temple instead of my eyebrow, I might not be here today. I suffered in the hospital after the surgeon put my jaw back together. I suffered for another six weeks at home, unable to eat with my jaw wired shut. Yet as I experienced these things God was beginning to grab hold of my life until just four months after the incident I bowed my knees in submission to Christ. Had I not had that time of suffering I would not have explored my spiritual condition. Through suffering and violence God revealed his love to me.

As Jesus endured the cross God was expressing his love for us. As you and I suffer from time to time, perhaps God’s plan is to use our suffering as an expression of his love for someone else.

Right now, how much does God love you? Do you want to be unified with Christ as Jesus prayed in John 17? To what degree do you want to experience God’s love? Your answers will reveal whether or not you are growing in the fullness of God’s love.

It was after dropping off my car at the repair shop that I looked around the neighborhood I was in and wondered out loud in which nearby restaurant I would park my fanny so I could spend time reading and reflecting on God’s truth. After locating an appropriate place for a breakfast burrito and hot chocolate I anticipated a nice morning.

My book for the day was ready: The Supremacy of Christ in a Postmodern World. As I walked toward my restaurant of choice I was looking forward to my time of study and reflection, that is, until something hit me square in the middle of my devotion.

I was treating God like filler.

You know what I mean by filler, don’t you? That’s when we give God attention in between the other things we do. In my case, between drop off and pick up. “Lord, I’ve got nuthin’ to do between such and such time, so I’ll take a good book about you and read it over a cup of hot chocolate.”

Now there’s nothing wrong with using our in between times to give God attention. But when we orchestrate time with God in between things, instead of orchestrating our lives around our devotion to Christ, our priorities are a bit off. How ironic this realization was before opening D.A. Carson’s chapter on “Love and the Supremacy of Christ.” Where was my love for Christ first that I scheduled him between drop off and pick up?

Where is Christ in your daily schedule? Do you give him a block of time? Do you fit him in between? Or do you give him preeminence in and through all things as your day happens around you?

Is God filler or the fullness of your day?

Diane emailed me this picture of the kitchen window.

Yup, that’s ice on the inside of the window. When I returned to Mongolia a few weeks ago I snapped this one with my iPhone.

What makes these so remarkable to me is that we have those new-fangled windows that are supposed to be sealed so that what’s outside stays outside. But since the kitchen is where you boil water and cook, the moisture in the air traps at the windows, and apparently, the seals and thus the ice starts building up.

Click on the images for the Flickr versions.

Meanwhile, I’m sitting in Tucson, Arizona where there’s no ice save what’s in the freezer.

What happens to you when you read the scriptures or go through a Bible study? Many people take their time with the word in stride like it was any other function of their day. I do that sometimes. Some people avoid time in the word, not wanting to be confronted with some transformational truth they know they will be accountable to. I’ve done that more times than I want to admit.

I think one of the difficulties for many Christians when it comes to spending time in the scriptures is not that they don’t understand what they are reading, or don’t want to learn, it’s that the scriptures do more than unfold principles about Christian living. The scriptures unavoidably and unmistakably point us, in all things, to the person of Jesus Christ.

In my own spiritual journey I’m beginning a recognize a new development. As I go into the word or go through a study or book that emphasizes scripture strongly, I feel a compelling, absolute need to share it with others, write about it, teach it—specifically how it relates to the person of Jesus. I’ve felt such strong feelings before, but not approaching this level. Has that ever happened to you?

Recently I took some friends from the States on a church visit. We settled in for the service as the auditorium began filling up. We noticed how people entered the church with joy, even expectation. The worship was exuberant and thankful. When the pastor arose to speak I noticed he had his notes prepared and laid out before him. He spoke passionately and with conviction. He told Bible stories. I’d say that at least half of his message was stories from the Bible. It was impressive. I can’t think of a sermon I’ve ever heard in the States that had so many stories. But there was one thing missing.

The Bible.

The pastor, obviously familiar with the scriptures, did not bring the Bible to the pulpit. He told stories from the Bible, but only abbreviated or summarized in his own words. There was no reading from the scripture, almost no referencing to the scripture itself, and no leading the congregants through the text of the living word of God. It was heartbreaking for me to watch because nearly half of the people I observed in the congregation were furiously scribbling notes of everything the pastor said. The hunger for spiritual truth in the room was prolific! I’ve never before seen so many people hanging so tightly onto every word out of a preacher’s mouth. Imagine the level of transformation that could come if the Bible wasn’t missing.

In thinking about this recent experience I was reminded of a passage from the book, God is the Gospel, by John Piper. In it Piper asks:

“The critical question for our generation—and for every generation is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ were not there?”

He then provides what should be the answer for us:

“Christ did not die to forgive sinners who go on treasuring anything above seeing and savoring God. And people who would be happy in heaven if Christ were not there, will not be there. The gospel is not a way to get people to heaven; it is a way to get people to God. If we don’t want God above all things we have not been converted by the gospel.”

This is not to say that anyone who does not have Christ as his or her supreme affection, at this moment, will not go to heaven. Rather, the transformation wrought by the Gospel through our spiritual growth should have the affect of making Christ our supreme affection. And can we be on such a path if the scriptures do not become to us as breath and blood?

Too often, way too often, the scripture has been missing from my life. I remember it, remind myself of its commands and stories and attempt to live by its precepts. But that’s not the same as giving myself over to the living word of God. Because when I open the pages and consume what is before me it is incredibly different than the occasional mental reminder. It is much deeper than that. It becomes absolutely compelling and the desire to let it transform me and come out of me becomes overwhelming.

It’s like the admonition of James 1:22, “Prove yourselves to be doers of the word.” That little Greek word for “doers,” is powerful. In virtually all other Greek literature of the period it was used to mean, “maker” or “producer,” as in someone who produces a stage play, or someone who creates something with inborn talent. Let that sink in. “Prove yourselves to be makers and producers of the word.” That only happens when the word of God populates our being so fully we cannot help but naturally and normally live lives with the intention of being the living, walking embodiment of what that word says.

For Christ to become our supreme affection we must have “Christ formed in [us]” (Galatians 4:19). That happens when we give God’s word primacy in our lives, because, “The word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edge sword, piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).

When you are a missionary working in a foreign country the amount of materials and training resources you sometimes have can be a bit limited (minus the annual trip the States to pillage the local bookstore). So those in the missionary community rely upon one another to share their experiences, wisdom, and philosophy to help further their work.

Such was the case for me last week during a lunch meeting with a friend. We were discussing the importance of team building and team leadership—failures and successes—when he passed this by my ears.

“A real team is a small number of people working for a specific period of time, who are equally committed to a common goal and a common approach, for which they have specific performance objectives, to which they hold themselves mutually accountable.”

When I heard this description of a real ministry team I was immediately struck with thoughts of our senior management on the TV side of our operations. I would say with reasonable confidence that our team meets most of these requirements. But on the ministry side of things, it can be a bit more difficult.

Our ministry operations are performing very well. Two days ago I received a wonderful letter from field workers performing ministry in the ger districts. They noted that Eagle TV is having a transformative effect with many people there in terms of their perceptions of what Christianity is. I also watched a slate of new video testimonies of Eagle TV viewers and pastors expressing their appreciation for the influence our discipleship programming has with Mongolian believers (see above). While this progress is wonderful, there is always the temptation to change what we do mid-stream. To do things for the sake of making ourselves popular or acceptable to a larger group of people even if it means addressing the Gospel less than we do. These temptations come all the time. The week before I was reviewing our successes I was also listening to a proposal to “reduce” our presentation of the Gospel for nothing more than the sake of getting higher audience numbers.

May such a thing never be!

The temptations of culture and status are always in front of us. We’re always asking questions about when we should try to contextualize the Gospel and when we should put limits on cultural adaptations. These are never easy issues to address. But one thing is clear, keeping our focus on the person of Christ and the primacy of the Scriptures is always foundational to everything we do. If we’ve been successful in anything it is because of that. Once a young gentlemen said to me that if we wanted to reach more people in Mongolia for Christ we would have to talk about Jesus less, and sometimes not at all, and instead talk about “good things,” and then attract people to those good things.

Immediately my mind turned to John 12:32 when Jesus said, “I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.”

As a point of application, how is Christ being lift up in your life? How is the life that Christ lives through you drawing men to himself?

When we give our focus, attention, and devotion to the person and work of Christ and his word, then and only then can we expect the Lord to grant success in ministry and Christian living so that his life, lived through us, will have a transformative effect on others.

Today is my most loved one’s [CENSORED] birthday. You’d never tell it by her beautiful face though. She looks way younger than her [CENSORED] years.

Darn it. This happened last time I sent her birthday greetings online. She must have hacked my blog again.

Today we’re heading out to dinner with family and friends to celebrate Diane’s [CENSORED] wonderful years. Then its back home where I have to finish packing for my trip to the States tomorrow. I’m going for board meetings and time with my doctor. Isn’t that special?

Major bummer is that while I’m gone I’ll miss Valentine’s Day, and Whitney’s 16th birthday. But it can’t be helped. Stinks really. But at least I get to be here for Diane’s [CENSORED] birthday.

Darn it woman, I wish you’d stop doing that.

Well, happy birthday to my bride. May you have [CENSORED] more wonderful years.

Superbowl starts at 7:00am in Mongolia, carried by ESPN and Mongolia’s first Superbowl party is at Irish Pub this morning. I’m sitting here with Albuquuerque visitors Servey and Neil, taking in the big screen.

The party was put together by Eagle TV’s Baika, a former Denver resident and football fan.

There’s a lot more people here than I thought would be. American football is a virtual unknown in Mongolia, but not to this group of Steelers fans. Of course, I’m geographically committed to cheer for Arizona since I’m from there…but also ‘cuz my wife told me too. I know what’s good for me.

UPDATE: As reported on CNN.