It is no secret that churches have split over some of the silliest things. I heard one story where a church divided into two after a debate over whether or not installing a lightening rod displayed a lack of faith in the providential protection of God.

I’m sure volumes could written on stories similar to that one.

It is apparent when such trivial matters become so-called justified points of division among disciples of Christ that the church has failed to keep the most repeated and reiterated commandment of the Bible which is to love one another as ourselves.

We’re all sinners

But there is nothing more important than truth, right? We must defend the truth, no matter what the cost, right?

There in lies the problem. If we feel authorized to make such judgments of others, we must first assume without hesitation or question that we what we believe in all points is the truth. There is a fine line between boldness and pride.

When controversy struck the Galatian churches after false doctrine was taught among them, Paul said, “If a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted” (Gal. 6:1).

Even with such a weighty matter as a perversion of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Bible instructs us to gently restore those deceived by it. Yet, some are guilty of casting out their brethren over the installation of lightening rods on their houses.

Paul also wrote, “In nothing shall I be ashamed, but that with all boldness, Christ shall be magnified in my body” (Phil. 1:20). Our boldness in Christ is commendable. But if we have no love or compassion, we cannot say that Christ is magnified in us.

I am quite confident in the things I believe and I will often speak them with boldness. But I must also readily confess that I am a sinner with less than perfect understanding. After all, what reason do I have to believe in Christ the Savior if that was not the case?

Finding the balance

The church is the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Tim. 3:15). She is the light of the world and the salt of the earth (Matt. 5:13-14). At the same time, there is none that is righteous (Rom. 3:10). We all see through a glass darkly (1 Cor. 13:12).

In matters of judgment, we must lightly tread. First, we have no place at all to judge the world (1 Cor. 5:13). Second, we are commanded to put on the bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, and longsuffering (Col. 3:12-13).

We are commanded to forbear one another and forgive as Christ forgave us (Col. 3:14). Above all, we need charity (or love) which is the very bond of perfectness (Col. 3:15).

That is not to say we can or should overlook every transgression and disagreement among us in the church. When writing to the Corinthians, Paul was upset with the church for not removing the moral decay from among them by removing the guilty (1 Cor. 5).

Perhaps we have not always made the helpful distinction between someone doing the wrong thing, someone doing the right thing in the wrong way, and someone simply failing to do the right thing.

Circumstances are different

With those formerly faithful disciples who stray into immorality and sin, we have a responsibility to deal with them. We begin by lovingly guiding them. Paul said, “Warn the unruly” (1 Thess. 5:14). Despite the negative connotation, he meant gently caution them.

If they are committing blatant sin and do so unrepentantly over time, there does comes a point when they must be removed (1 Cor. 5:4-8). But even then, we should still perceive that person to be a brother and not our enemy (2 Thess. 3:14-15).

However, other matters are not so clear. Some will violate scripture without committing such an obvious moral offense. Think of Peter who refused to allow Jesus to wash his feet (John 13:8). His heart was in the right place, but he was denying the will of the Lord.

When some of the members of the Roman church insisted on keeping parts of the old law by abstaining from certain meats and observing certain holy days, Paul told the others, “Let us follow after the things which make for peace” (Rom. 14:19).

Sometimes people strive to do the right thing in the wrong ways or they do the wrong things for the right reasons. Maybe they’ve simply missed a detail in biblical instruction. Maybe they’ve not carefully examined the biblical examples.

Regardless, there is little more we should do with these brethren than encourage them and help guide their understanding. There is no reason to destroy the church’s harmony over these things.

Lastly, we have those who are not guilty of following the works of the flesh, but they are not doing what the Bible would have us to do. Some are tempted to label their actions–or inactions–sinful.

For instance, Jesus instructed the church to wash one another’s feet (John 13:14). However, I’ve known a few that refused to participate in foot-washing for a variety of reasons. Is that truly sinful?

It would be a great mistake to categorize these individuals the same way we would unrepentant sinners. If we choose to judge rather than love in this case, we essentially make ourselves lords over God’s heritage (1 Pet. 5:3).

As Peter instructed pastors to do, it would be better to leave it be and lead them by example. In other words, let them miss out on the blessings of good works while they sit back and watch you receive those blessings. Eventually, they may come around.

Slow to judge

There are times when passing judgment is in order. More times than not, it would seem we are called to compassion, from one sinner to another. In any case, we should not be quick to judge.

In an era of gospel liberty, there is no excuse for the behavior of so many of us in the church today. The way we have divided and condemned one another over so many trivial matters is shameful.

I pray we can learn to show the kindness and forgiveness that Christ has certainly shown us (Eph. 4:32).

As the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ drew to a close, the threat by those wanting to take his life became greater and greater. The Lord’s disciples were well aware of that fact.

John 11 contains the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. In the midst of an event which revealed the glory of God and the ability of Christ to give life, a minor subplot is easily missed.

The disciples’ vain fear

Once Jesus learned of Lazarus’ sickly condition, he and his disciples stayed where they were for two days before traveling again to Bethany and the home of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha.

Before they left, the disciples were understandably worried. Just a short time before, they had been near Bethany in Jerusalem when some of the Jews’ attempted to stone Jesus for blasphemy (John 10:31-33). It stands to reason that the Jews might try again.

The disciples questioned Jesus and asked, “Master, the Jews of late sought to stone thee; and goest thou thither again?” (John 11:8)

It is in the response of Jesus that we see the lesson contained within the more obvious lesson of John 11.

The Lord’s reassuring parable

Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbles not, because he sees the light of this world. But if a man walk in the night, he stumbles, because there is no light in him” (John 11:9-10).

This is a brief parable which teaches something greater. With parables, the story itself is easy to understand. It is the meaning or application of the story which can be difficult.

In this parable, the story is simple. It merely describes the relative ease of walking in the daytime as opposed to walking in the dark of night when there is no light to see where you’re going.

As for the parable’s application, we can safely assume it has something to do with the context of the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. In other words, it’s a parable about life and death.

I’ve heard these words of Christ used in relation to spiritual life and death. I suppose that’s possible as the Bible contains many parallel teachings between the natural and the spiritual. However, I’m prone to believe this relates specifically to natural life and death.

The disciples feared that the life of Jesus would be cut short by the Jews as though wicked men had such power over Christ. But as he reminded his disciples before, his time had not yet come (John 7:6-8). He knew he would be led as a lamb to the slaughter, but it would not happen until his foreknown and predetermined time.

Perhaps the same could be said for any person. God knows when we will die and it will not happen a second before or after that time. Some would not agree with that because it seems dangerously close to what is called fatalism. That’s a debate for another day, but the point remains that God knows when we’ll die and we don’t.

Regardless, Christ knew when he would die and that was made obvious by his words just before his capture (Matt. 26:45-46). It stands to reason that Christ knew when he would die.

In John 11, Jesus knew it was not his time to be crucified. He did not fear the Jews in Judea in the way his disciples did. According to his parable, there was still light in the day. 

The disciples’ growing faith

Jesus gave his disciples time to reflect on his words before telling them that Lazarus had died though he would not stay that way for long. He then said, “I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent you may believe” (John 11:15).

What did Jesus mean by that? Wasn’t the belief of his disciples already apparent? Weren’t they already following him?

The faith of the apostles may have been stronger than most in Israel, but it was not without room to grow. Perhaps this concept can be seen most vividly in the life of Peter.

The night before the Lord’s crucifixion, Peter vowed to follow Christ even to death (John 13:37). But only few hours later, Peter found himself denying his relationship with Jesus (Matt. 26:69-75). 

Jesus had told Peter, “I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren” (Luke 22:32). In other words, Peter still had some growing to do before he could fully accomplish what the Lord had called him to do.

In John 11, Jesus waited for Lazarus to die so that his disciples could see his glory and his power when he raised Lazarus from the dead. He wanted their belief to be strengthened.

The love of Thomas

It was then that Thomas said to the other disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him” (John 11:16). In other words, “Let’s go with Jesus to Bethany so that he won’t die alone at the hands of the Jews.” This is the verse you’ve asked me about.

We should immediately recognize how Thomas had missed the point of the Lord’s parable which is not surprising at all. A parable is nothing but a mystery unless its meaning is either explained or revealed to the person who hears it.

Ultimately, we see a lack of faith on the part of Thomas. He failed to believe that Christ had power both to protect them and himself. It further indicates why Jesus wanted them to witness the raising of Lazarus from the grave. They needed to see his power over death.

However, we should not be too quick to judge Thomas for his unbelief. While his lack of faith is apparent, his tremendous love for Christ is also expressed in what he said.

He loved Jesus so much that, even though it seemed foolish to the disciples, he was willing to follow Jesus to their deaths. He even encouraged the others to go with them and die.

Before we knock his faith, perhaps we should consider ourselves and whether we can match his love. Like Peter, his words proved to be somewhat vain in that he scattered with the rest when Jesus was captured, but his intentions were good.

Would we be willing to die for Christ? I’m afraid that too many of us aren’t even willing to live for Christ.

If you have your own Bible question, I’d love to try and answer it. Visit JeremySarber.com/BibleHelp

For the last couple of years, I’ve been subscribed to more than thirty audio sermon feeds or podcasts. At times, I’ve been subscribed to more than fifty. Needless to say, I listen to a lot of sermons from a wide variety of pastors.

Being a pastor myself, I have a tendency to do more than listen to sermons. I usually find myself dissecting them. I try to determine the method of teaching as well as the style used by the pastor.

It’s not always obvious and most of you have probably never given much thought to it. 

4 sermon methods

By the method, I’m talking about the type of teaching employed by the pastor. I have found there are four basic teaching methods.

1) Expository teaching

This is my preferred method. This is where the pastor digs into scripture, line by line, chapter by chapter, through an entire book of the Bible. It’s not accomplished all in one sermon, by the way.

I prefer this method for two reasons. First, it allows the Word of God to dictate the next sermon as opposed to the pastor. Second, it allows the church to see each verse in context of the entire book.

2) Textual teaching

This is my second favorite method. It falls somewhere between expository teaching and the next method which is topical teaching. This is where the pastor builds his sermon on a single verse or passage without studying through the entire book.

This method gives the pastor the freedom to move from place to place in the Bible while still grounding him in that anchor text.

3) Topical teaching

This is probably the most common method. This is where the pastor begins with a thought or subject and builds his case using assorted passages from several places in the Bible.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with this method but it should come with warnings. It is often impossible to provide the needed context for each passage read so it has the potential to mislead. 

4) Narrative teaching

This method can just barely be called teaching. This is where the pastor merely tells a story from the Bible as opposed to reading it.

This method may be helpful at times but I would personally discourage it. Like I often tell young people, if you watch a movie about a Bible story, be sure to read it in the Word of God itself to verify the details. Storytellers may have it wrong.

Pastors are to teach

Regardless of the method used by a pastor, it is absolutely imperative that he is teaching and teaching the whole counsel of God (Acts 20:27). As a matter of fact, a man is not qualified to be a pastor if he is not able to teach the Word of God (1 Tim. 3:2).

Christ told Peter, “Feed my sheep” (John 21:15-17). Paul told the Ephesian elders, “Feed the church of God which he hath purchased with his own blood” (Acts 20:28).

Many people have many ideas about what a pastor’s role is but there is none more important than his responsibility to teach the Bible. I’ve told my own church, if you’re not learning anything from me, there’s a significant problem here.

Perhaps you’ve noticed that I haven’t used the word, preach, at all. It’s a harmless word but it also has the wrong connotations.

Biblically speaking, the word, preach, is used in reference to the gospel being declared primarily to the unconverted. Think of Paul Revere riding through the streets and shouting, “The British are coming.” He was making a declaration to the masses.

John the Baptist preached the coming kingdom of God as did Christ. The apostles, the evangelists, and many other disciples of the early church also preached the gospel as they travelled–often in places where the gospel had never been heard before.

Paul listed four gifts of the ministry in the early church: apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastors and teachers (Eph. 4:11-12). You might notice that pastors and teachers are lumped together as their role is one and the same.

Apostles and prophets were made able to speak the unfiltered Word of God. There are no more apostles and prophets because we have the Word of God in its entirety, that is, the Bible.

Evangelists play an increasingly minor role as the so-called great commission given to the early church has been accomplished in large part. The gospel has been carried to the uttermost part of the earth (Acts 1:8). There is still a place for evangelists or preachers, but most evangelism today happens on a personal level.

That just leaves pastors who are obligated to teach or expound on and explain the Word of God to God’s people. This is slightly different than preaching though there may be some overlap.

Keep in mind, Paul was the only one in the New Testament to refer to himself as a preacher (1 Tim. 2:7).

We typically use preaching and teaching as synonyms. But there is a difference and that difference is more than just a style. 

Maybe we think of preaching as loud, passionate, and emotional while teaching is calm, methodical, and articulate. But these could be styles of either teaching or preaching.

Style does matter

Every pastor has his own style. He may have developed it on his own, adopted it from his father figures in the ministry, or simply began emulating others. A pastor’s teaching style is quite often the cultural standard in his church or his geographical area.

On one hand, style doesn’t matter. If the Word of God is being taught to the church, it hardly makes a difference how it is presented. We may even have our favorite styles, but that should never get in the way of learning. Perhaps the Corinthian church was divided because they deemed style too important (1 Cor. 1:12).

On the other hand, style does matter. I would go as far as to say that pastors should examine their own styles of teaching and tweak it for the sake of the church.

I suspect objections would be raised to that notion. I’ve known of pastors to claim that the presentation doesn’t matter at all because it is the Spirit of God that moves them when they speak. To them I would say, be very careful. You are dangerously close to claiming a gift reserved for only prophets and apostles.

In fact, I’ve known pastors to disregard any study of the Bible for the same reason. In their minds, God will deliver their sermon. No preparation on their part is required. But Paul told the minister, Timothy, to devote himself completely to study (1 Tim. 4:13-16).

Style matters because some styles do not accommodate learning. Some styles make it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for the church to learn from the teacher.

For instance, I’ve heard pastors who teach with aggression and anger. They scream, pound the lectern, and practically foam at the mouth. You’d think they were warning of hellfire and brimstone, but they could be talking about the compassion of Christ.

It’s a style I don’t understand at all. When we are afforded the opportunity to teach the good news of Jesus Christ, I don’t know how it could generate such harsh tones. I have a really hard time believing they are being led by the Spirit to sound that way.

Some pastors go the other way with their style. Some try to sound overly sensitive and emotional. Some try variations of volume and tone. Some even attempt to emulate Spurgeon by waxing poetic.

All too often, the pastor’s style can actually get in the way for the people who are listening and hoping to learn from him.

I once heard a child ask, “Why don’t preachers talk like normal people?” That’s an astute observation. Why don’t pastors talk like normal people? I think sometimes we try too hard to sound like what we think a pastor should sound like rather than focus on our primary objective which is to teach the Word.

Paul apparently adjusted his style depending on his audience (1 Cor. 9:20-23). He never taught anything but truth. However, he always delivered that truth is a way that could be consumed and digested. He did that, as he said, for the gospel’s sake.

If pastors are to feed the flock, then it is imperative that we do as Paul and give it to them in an easily consumable way.

Historically, the church has always considered divorce to be a very serious matter. It is a serious matter in that it breaks the oldest and the most sacred covenant God has given us.

Unfortunately, there has also been a segment of the church that has taken divorce to its legalistic extreme. They leave little to no room for grace and forgiveness. Some have even twisted scripture to develop their own set of oppressive rules concerning divorce and remarriage–much like the Pharisees once did with the law of Moses.

For instance, I have known some who would never allow a divorced person to be a member of the church. I have known even more who would cut off someone who had been divorced and remarried.

There are three prominent places we can turn to in the Bible in order to understand what our position should be on this subject. I can assure you, there is room for forgiveness in divorce and remarriage.

Matthew 5:31-32

In what we call the sermon on the mount, Jesus laid the groundwork for the gospel. Point by point, he taught us how far short we come of following God’s law. Unless we recognize our own sinfulness, we will not desire the good news that our sins have been removed.

For instance, Jesus said that we may have never committed murder, but we have been angry without cause (Matt. 5:21-22). We may have never committed adultery, but we have looked on others with lust (Matt. 5:27-28). In other words, we’re not as good as we think.

Matthew 5:31-32 follows this pattern. In the minds of most of the Jews living during that time, they felt as though they were keeping the law, despite the high divorce rate, because they did it legally. They were divorcing their wives, but they always gave a reason for it and they always gave an official bill of divorcement.

As Jesus said, that’s not good enough. The Jews’ understanding of marriage was perverse and wrong. In fact, they had been so apathetic about marriage that the Old Testament essentially ended with warnings to Israel that they had better stop divorcing their wives to pursue Gentile women (Neh. 13:23-29).

Jesus said that unless your spouse has committed adultery–and sometimes not even then as reconciliation is the better option–you should not divorce. After all, God hates divorce (Mal. 2:16).

From the beginning, it was designed so that one man and one woman would come together in marriage and stay together until death do them part (Gen. 2:24). But there is the ideal and there is reality. In reality, wicked sinners do not live up to the ideal. In reality, men and women get divorced. As a result, God established rules for divorce.

In Deuteronomy 24:1-4, God acknowledged the apathetic view Israel had taken on marriage and divorce. Since the people were getting divorced left and right, God gave them reason to think twice about it as they could never be married to their first wives ever again. Furthermore, they’d be defiling themselves and their wives.

When Jesus brought this up in Matthew 5, he was directing his comments to the self-righteous people like the Pharisees who truly believed they were doing the right thing because they were following the law of Moses and giving bills of divorcement.

Jesus was reminding them that they were actually committing adultery all over the place. The law of Moses never commanded or even permitted divorce. Rather, it stressed how those seeking divorce are defiling themselves, their wives, and anyone else they marry.

There is only one proper way out of marriage and that is death. Any other way will inevitably be the result of adultery or lead to some form of adultery.

As James wrote, “Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all” (James 2:10). If you express anger without a cause, you’re a murderer. If you lust, you’re an adulterer. If you are divorced and remarried, you’re an adulterer.

The point of this is not to lay the groundwork for an overbearing, legalist system where we deny forgiveness to those who have been divorced or even remarried. It is to show us the depth of our spiritual depravity and our need for Christ who fulfilled the law for us.

Matthew 19:3-9

The Pharisees wanted to both discredit Jesus with the people and coax him to his death by the secular rulers. In order to do this, they asked him a question concerning divorce, knowing his anti-divorce position would upset both the Jews and Herod Antipas.

The majority of Jews believed there was nothing wrong with divorce for any cause and Herod, ruler of the region, had previously killed John the Baptist when John spoke out against his marriage to his brother’s wife (Matt. 14:2-10).

They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?” That is a somewhat brilliant question. After all, the law did make provision for divorce whenever a man found something he didn’t like about his wife.

Far more brilliant than the question was the Lord’s response. Yes, God did allow divorce in that he permitted people to do it without smiting the guilty. Yes, he even established some rules for divorce. But the ideal never changed. The original principle of marriage remains despite God knowing the reality of this sinful world.

Jesus explained why the law was amended and said it was a response to the hardened hearts of the people. Again, divorce and remarriage was not the Lord’s design nor did he ever condone it except in the case of one partner having an affair.

But as you read what Jesus said, you might get the impression that anyone who gets divorced and remarried will forever live in a state of adultery. According to the perfect law of God, that’s true. Unless death or infidelity ends a marriage, the law of God does not consider it ended (Rom. 7:2-3).

However, the same might be said for a murderer. If a man takes another man’s life, is he not forever a murderer according to the law? If an alcoholic stops drinking, is he not still an alcoholic?

It is for this reason some churches will not permit a divorced or remarried person to join their flock. They perceive that person to be an adulterer.

This raises a good question. How can the divorce or remarried person repent?

Some would say the divorced person cannot repent. Since most know how ridiculous that sounds, others would simply say they are not permitted to remarry.

As for the divorced and remarried person, some would tell them to get divorced. Their logic states that the second marriage is not a marriage at all. Rather, it’s more like an affair. So, divorce in that case would not be a divorce, therefore, God would not hate it.

This is where I believe they’re wrong. Repentance does not require that we undo the sins we’ve done. Instead, we avoid those sins in the future. When an adulterous woman was brought before Christ, he said, “Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more” (John 8:11).

Right or wrong, a marriage is a marriage. To end any marriage with the exception of infidelity is to commit divorce and God does hate it. To better prove this point, let’s examine the teachings on marriage in 1 Corinthians 7.

1 Corinthians 7:1-40

The entire lesson on marriage and divorce in this chapter is summed up rather nicely when Paul wrote, “Art thou bound unto a wife? Seek not to be loosed. Art thou loosed from a wife? Seek not a wife.”

The disciples at Corinth had a lot of questions for Paul about marriage. For many of them, like many of us today, their particular situations were a little messy. Some of them were married, some married to unbelievers, some never married, some widowed, some divorced, and some with spouses seeking divorce.

Paul tells them, regardless of their particular situations, if you are married, you should stay married. If you are divorced or widowed, you should stay unmarried if possible.

This is where someone might interject and remind me that widows are free to marry again. You’d be right. Paul said, “If thou marry, thou hast not sinned.” However, having the liberty or right to do something doesn’t necessarily mean it’s best.

Marriage is a blessing, but it also a distraction. The married person not only has a duty to please the Lord but also his/her spouse. Their attention becomes divided and they can’t serve the Lord as they could if they were still single.

Again we see a glimpse of the Lord’s ideal with provision made for the reality of this world. It is ideal if we get married only once and stay married or simply remain a virgin–someone who has never married. But we do have liberty to get married, remarried, and even divorced if the conditions are right for us to do so.

Paul reiterates the teaching of Jesus by saying those with an adulterous spouse are free to get divorced. He also said those with an unbelieving spouse who wants a divorce are free to get divorced. In neither case is divorce ideal, but it is still permitted.

What about remarriage? The ideal presented in this chapter is that no one get remarried, including the widows. Paul said, “To the unmarried and widows, it is good for them if they abide even as I.” In other words, it would be good for them to remain single.

Even so, Paul then said, “But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn.” It is not ideal that we might have such a consuming desire and lust for the natural satisfaction that a spouse brings, but it is a reality recognized by God.

This statement by Paul prompts an interesting question: Who are the unmarried? They are not the widows and later in the chapter we learn they are not the virgins. That only leaves the divorced persons.

The word, unmarried, is translated from the Greek word, agamos. This chapter is the only place in scripture we find this word used so we must rely on this chapter for context and its definition.

While it could be used in vague reference to anyone not currently married, I believe Paul used it to refer to the divorced. At one point he wrote, “Unto the married…let not the wife depart…but if she depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband.”

In other words, Paul gave permission to the widows, the virgins, and the divorced to get married or remarried. Again, that is not ideal but he said it would be better if they got married than to allow any burning passions within to lead them to commit some other sin.

But how could the Bible allow the divorced–some who are adulterers by the declaration of Christ–to remarry? The answer is quite simple if we factor in the role of grace and forgiveness in this sinful world.

Keep in mind, Paul was writing to a group of Gentiles who had not very long before come to a state of belief in the gospel and repentance. Some of them were obviously divorced. But the past is not relevant. The present and the future is what matters.

The divorced are forgiven just as any other repentant person. It would be best if they could remain unmarried, but they are allowed to marry again. If they do, they had better stay married.

The remarried are forgiven just as any other repentant person. Divorce is not a means of repentance. It is more sin. The remarried had better stay married and take that sacred covenant more seriously than they had during their first marriage.

In conclusion

Let me wrap this up in a very concise way.

If you get married, stay married.

If you get divorced, stay unmarried if at all possible.

If you get remarried, stay married.

If you are divorced and remarried, you may have committed adultery, but God can forgive you and so should the church.

If you are divorced, repentance means you will not jump quickly into another marriage or, if you do, you will stay married.

If you are remarried, repentance means you will stay married.

As for those on the legalist side of things when it comes to divorce and remarriage, I appreciate your desire to protect the church and to stand up for the sanctity of the marriage covenant. However, you have placed upon some a burden which no one can bear.

You have made it easier for people to find forgiveness after committing murder than after making the mistakes of divorce and remarriage. According to your position, it would have been better for them to have murdered their spouse than to get divorced.

I pray your hearts will soften in the matter and you will begin forgiving and accepting divorced and remarried sinners into your current flock of sinners. I pray you will not disregard this as some liberal doctrine, but rather one of the Lord’s compassion and grace.

If you have your own Bible question, I’d love to try and answer it. Visit JeremySarber.com/BibleHelp

The church of Jesus Christ is a unique organization of people in that no one can qualify for membership until they have proven themselves to be unqualified for membership.

Discipleship can only begin when we recognize our depravity (Matt. 5:3-4). Church membership requires that we accept that reality and strive to repent. Furthermore, we must acknowledge our need for the Savior through the act of baptism (Rom. 6:3-4).

In other words, the church is not only made up of imperfect people, but should only include those who readily confess their imperfection and their need to be saved by Christ.

What are you looking for?

Why then do so many struggle to settle down in a local church body? Instead, they jump from church to church, never finding whatever it is they’re looking for in a church.

Granted, some will settle for anything, never giving much thought to doctrine or practice. Even so, some find themselves in the ditch on the other side of the road which is hardly better.

Why does this happen? What exactly are these folks looking for?

I’ve known quite a few people to reject or even leave a church over the most superficial things. For instance, I’ve known people to leave the church because they didn’t have a youth program. Well, did the early church of the New Testament have a youth program? If not, it’s superficial and doesn’t matter.

In the words of Forrest Gump, that’s all I have to say about that.

But there are others who are only considering the things that really matter and, yet, they still can’t settle on a church. While I commend their desire to pursue truth, they are looking for a perfect church among self-professing imperfect people.

The “true church” misconception

Maybe the problem stems from the idea which I’ve commonly heard said which is that there is a “true church” on this Earth. Perhaps we’ve heard that phrase used and misunderstood its meaning to be a perfect church as opposed to a true church.

Let me explain what I mean in case the concept of the “true church” is completely foreign to you.

I grew up in an environment where this phrase was thrown around a lot. In my youth, I understood it to mean a church which upholds sound doctrine according to the Bible to a reasonable degree. Unfortunately, I’ve noticed in my adult life that some use the phrase and imply a bit more than that.

For instance, I have seen lists where pastors have declared that the true church believes in doctrines A, B, and C. Of course, the implication is that any church that doesn’t believe in those doctrines–at least in the same way–is not a true church. If they’re not a true church, what does that make them but a false church?

As a side note, it’s interesting to me how these lists are created. Let’s say the Bible teaches doctrines A through Z. Inevitably, the articles of faith or doctrinal creed of a church will only cover a small handful of those biblical teachings. Yet, those are the doctrines to qualify a true church versus a false one.

But why those in particular?

I’m in favor of a church establishing what she believes, but I’m hesitant to call a body of genuine, professing believers in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ a false church. 

There are practical reasons for the denominational divisions among us. Even so, I don’t have the audacity to label others as false churches while proudly declaring my own to be true.

Rather, I consider other churches to be true churches as well, despite our disagreements in Bible doctrine. However, like the churches of the first century, there are true churches with varying degrees of understanding, maturity, and truth.

There would be nothing wrong with declaring your own church to be a true church except that it gives people the wrong idea. First, it can be offensive to potential converts. Second, it gives people the idea there is such a thing as a perfect church.

Ordinarily, that is not what is meant by the phrase, but that is what is implied by it. It gives the impression that there is little to no room for error. Hence, people come away with the idea that there is a perfect church–or at least one close to it.

To add another side note, I can’t help but notice that there is never a doctrinal creed which includes some of the most fundamental attributes of the Christian church. For instance, love and compassion is the glue that holds the church together (Col. 3:12-15). Yet, never is this mentioned in an articles of faith.

Sound doctrine, not perfection

With that said, I cannot overemphasize the importance of sound doctrine. It should be a vital consideration of anyone looking for a church. The goal, of course, being that you find a church which believes and practices that which is closest to Bible truth.

But to think you will find a perfect church, apart from the assembly of God’s people in heaven, is nothing but a vain notion. It is not only a vain endeavor, it’s an arrogant one.

Some people get so critical of the churches they visit that they overlook the origin of their standard. To think you could find a perfect church is to say you believe yourself to have perfect understanding and insight. If you could identify perfection in a church, you are essentially claiming to be perfect yourself.

This goes back to the point I made before. There is no such thing as a perfect church. We all see through a glass darkly (1 Cor. 13:12). We all have limited understanding.

I don’t mean to offend anyone. I’m just afraid that some of God’s people are missing out on the many blessings that come with being a part of the Lord’s church–as imperfect as it may be.

This has been a popular question to ask. It’s one that continues to confuse many in the church today. Some think we should observe the Sabbath as they did in the Old Testament. Even more think that Sunday has become the new Sabbath to be observed.

In order to answer this question, we have to consider the origin of the Sabbath, the purpose of the Sabbath, and the place of the Sabbath under the new covenant of grace in Jesus Christ.

The origin of the Sabbath

The origin of the Sabbath can be found in Genesis when God, after having spent six days creating the Earth and all that is in it, rested on the seventh day (Gen. 2:2).

Of course, God did not need the rest as though he was tired. It was a day he sanctified as a time to look back over his perfect creation (Gen. 2:3). It was a sort of memorial to his creation.

In those days, the world was perfect and without sin. As a matter of fact, we do not read of God leaving his rest until after Adam sinned and God made for them clothes of skin (Gen. 3:21).

The purpose of the Sabbath

The purpose of the Sabbath, like the purpose of man, was lost after sin entered the world. As a result, when God issued his law to Israel, observance of the Sabbath was restored and defined.

God said, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work…For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth…and rested the seventh day” (Ex. 20:8-11).

When the world was still perfect, this commandment was not necessary. After sin was in the world, man needed the law to observe this day of rest to remember the God of creation.

However, this commandment found within what we call the “ten commandments” is not like the others. Contrary to popular belief, this is not a part of the moral law like the other nine.

The Sabbath was a sign

God later said, “My sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you” (Ex. 31:13).

In the Old Testament, God instituted certain ceremonial practices which were to be signs of the covenant between him and the people of Israel. Circumcision is one example. Circumcision was a physical sign demanded of the men of Israel in order to sanctify or separate them from all other men in the world.

Observance of the Sabbath required violators to be cut off from among the people (Ex. 31:14). The Sabbath was still a day set aside to remember the God of creation but it also served as a sign of the covenant between God and Israel. Failing to keep the Sabbath excluded a person from that covenant relationship.

Like the sign of circumcision, keeping the Sabbath was a ceremonial practice which pointed to greater things to come.

The Sabbath fulfilled

Mankind was able to rest when the world was without sin. After sin, God instructed man to take a day of rest as a sign. 

One of the extraordinary rewards offered by Christ throughout his ministry was rest (Matt. 11:28). He offered rest because he came to restore rest to God’s people. We had rest before sin and we have rest again after Christ purged our sins.

Hebrews, a letter written to Jews, touched on this issue when the writer said, “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it…For unto us was the gospel preached…For we which have believed do enter into rest” (Heb. 4:1-3).

In other words, true rest can only be found where sin does not exist. That was once this Earth. Now, it is heaven which Christ opened up to those saved by his sacrifice on the cross. That is why the New Testament shifts from an observance of the Sabbath day to a focus on the salvation secured by Jesus Christ.

The Sabbath in the New Testament

As you might expect, many Jews struggled with the end of their ceremonial practices–keeping the Sabbath being one of them.

Paul wrote, “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body of Christ” (Col. 2:16-17).

Paul wrote the same things to the Roman church. He told them, “One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike” (Rom. 14:5). In that chapter, Paul addressed both holy days and the dietary laws of the Old Testament. In both cases, he confirmed the observance of those laws is no longer required.

In short, there is no more Sabbath just as there are no more sacrifices, no more circumcision, no more temple, and no more Passover and various other feasts and festivals.

Of the ten commandments mentioned before, nine of them are repeated–often multiple times–in the New Testament. Keeping the Sabbath is not mentioned once nor any other day that is to be treated like the Sabbath. Rather, it is implied that every day is a day to be devoted to the Lord (Rom. 14:8).

The significance of Sunday

As for Sunday, it is not the new Sabbath. It is a special day but not a day of ceremonial observance like the Sabbath before.

Sunday is significant in the New Testament because it is the day that Christ rose from the dead. It is the day he first appeared alive after his death (Luke 24:1-6). He not only appeared to many on that day, he also preached and shared the Lord’s supper with a couple of men as they traveled to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-31).

On the day of Pentecost, the fulfillment of prophecies continued as the disciples experienced the baptism of Christ by the Spirit of God (Acts 2:1-4). That was essentially the birth of the church as we know it and it happened on Sunday.

In roughly 54 AD, Paul preached and broke bread with the Christian disciples in Troas on Sunday (Acts 20:7). A few years later, Paul wrote to the Corinthians and implied that they met together on Sundays (1 Cor. 16:2).

Another forty years later, John had his great revelation on what he called the Lord’s day (Rev. 1:10). He gave it that title because believers no longer thought of Sunday as Sunday. They saw too much significance in it and began calling it the Lord’s day.

It is a special day but not one to be confused with the Sabbath of the Old Testament. The Sabbath day has been fulfilled. 

Even so, the New Testament gives us the Lord’s day–by example, not commandment–as a day to worship and to fellowship. The writer of Hebrews implored us to assemble ourselves together and so much more as we see the day approaching–that is, the day of the Lord’s return (Heb. 10:25).

I cannot say it is against the commandment of God to work or even play on Sunday. Remember, we live in a time of grace and liberty. But I can say there is no better use of our time on the Lord’s day than to meet together with the church to praise the God of creation and salvation.

If you have your own Bible question, I’d love to try and answer it. Visit JeremySarber.com/BibleHelp

Better is an handful with quietness, than both the hands full with travail and vexation of spirit. (Eccl. 4:6)

This passage is not difficult to understand. There are two lives we can live. We can live one of simplicity and quietness with greater spiritual rewards or we can live one of complexity and noise with perhaps more natural rewards. Though Solomon also pointed out that the latter choice brings us trouble as well.

I once heard a comedian remark on the invention of safety helmets. He noticed that mankind had a strange way of responding to the potentially head-cracking activities we found ourselves doing. Rather than quit participating in those head-cracking activities, we developed safety helmets.

In my opinion, his comments were quite insightful and make an apt comparison to what we see all around us.

Natural versus spiritual

We live in a time when our lives should be relatively easy. We have created such marvelous inventions of technology and convenience that make us able to get places faster, do our jobs with greater ease, and should leave us with far more time on our hands.

However, we find ourselves busier than ever. So much so, in fact, we are consumed with stress and we struggle to find time for the things we deem most important like family or church.

One major theme of the Bible is the contrast between the natural and the spiritual. There are earthly kingdoms and there is a heavenly kingdom. There is the flesh and there is the Spirit.

If we are to learn anything from this contrast, it is that we should strive to be spiritually minded (Rom. 8:6). In other words, we need to look past what the eye can see. We need to become far less focused on our jobs, our chores, our appointments, our material possessions, and every other thing that distracts us.

But how can this be accomplished?

Pursuing quietness

I believe we can begin by pursuing, as Solomon said, quietness. Unfortunately, we hardly know what that means anymore. Even when we make for ourselves what we call “quiet time,” often there is a smartphone or iPad to accompany us. 

Jesus often sought seclusion. His public ministry did not begin until he had spent time alone in the wilderness for an entire forty days (Matt. 4:1-11). He once told his apostles, “Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest awhile” (Mark 6:31). Before his crucifixion, he isolated himself to pray (Matt. 26:36).

The type of quietness we need has two components. First, we need to stop what we’re doing. Job was told to stand still (Job 37:14). Second, we need rest. Solomon said, “For all his days are sorrows, and his travail grief; yea, his heart taketh not rest in the night. This is also vanity” (Eccl. 2:23).

It would ideal if we simply had less things in life to distract us. But at the very least we need to set aside those things long enough to experience quietness. God designed the week to have one day of rest. Perhaps we should make time for quietness, at least that often, if not for a little of it each day.

Keep in mind, your time is not going to free itself. Paul commanded that we redeem the time or take it back (Eph. 5:16). If it’s helpful to add quiet time to your schedule, then by all means.

What quietness looks like

But what should do we do during this period of quietness? Well, we could do nothing at all. We could pray as Christ did. We could simply meditate on the things we’ve learned from God’s Word.

Frankly, we just need breaks from the grueling carnality of life. Just as the body needs rest, so does the mind and soul. But some of the same technologies designed to bring us ease and convenience have robbed us of the tranquility we should be experiencing from day to day.

Playing games or browsing Facebook on the computer is not the quietness we need. Watching television or listening to music doesn’t get us there either. We need genuine silence.

Recently, I’ve made more of an effort to take a twenty-minute nap every afternoon. My mind doesn’t always welcome the rest, but my body sure does. On the other hand, I spend as much time or more every evening taking a walk in the dark of night.

Before I go to bed, I like to take a stroll under the stars. There’s no one around and very little noise. It feels like there’s no one in the world but me and God. I think about the day. I think about the things I’ve studied in the Bible. Often, I spend the time praying.

You might want to make time for quietness in the morning or some other time of day. You might spend it inside or out. It really doesn’t matter so long as we do experience the quietness.

What is heaven but an absence of the vanity of this world? If we have any desire to touch heaven in this life or to know Christ better, we have to find a way to free ourselves from the noise and the distractions around us. We have to find quietness.

God hates divorce (Mal. 2:16). Nowhere is God’s position on divorce stated more clearly than by the prophet Malachi.

After Israel’s captivity in Babylon, the men of Israel as well as the Levitical priests had begun marrying Gentile women (Neh. 13:23-29). But that was only a small part of the problem. The greater tragedy was that they were divorcing their Jewish wives to do it.

Though Israel had finally learned through the judgment of God to abstain from idolatry, they were still breaking one of the most sacred covenants to ever exist–the covenant of marriage.

The design of marriage

Before there was organized religion or even a civil government, God gave the world marriage to be the very foundation of society. When Adam was created, God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Gen. 2:18).

From the rib of Adam, God created a woman. It was said, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” (Gen. 2:24).

The design of marriage is quite simply in nature. One man and one woman come together for their mutual benefit, create a new family, and vow to indefinitely love and support one another.

Marriage is a marvelous gift from God to humanity. I’ve only been married a short time so I’m often asked, “Has the transition to married life been difficult?” My answer is, absolutely not. Life has gotten tremendously easier.

Marriage is only difficult when one or both partners involved become carnally minded and self-centered.

A bill of divorcement

When Christ walked this earth, the Jews had been accepting of divorce for more than 400 years. That is what led the Pharisees to ask Jesus, “Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?” (Matt. 19:3)

Jesus was quick to express the original design of marriage. In fact, he included a bold statement by saying, “What God hath joined together, let not man put asunder” (Matt. 19:6). That confirms that marriage is not some man-ordained institution. When a husband and wife are married, it is a covenant sealed by God.

The Pharisees then asked, “Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away?” (Matt. 19:7)

In their minds, Moses requiring an official, legal divorce meant divorce was acceptable. But that wasn’t in the law. The law stated that if a man was to divorce his wife–never was anyone commanded to get a divorce–then he must give reason for it and make it legal (Deut. 24:1-4).

That law was given, not to permit divorce, but to prevent it. It was given to protect women. It was given to encourage men with their hardened hearts to think twice about divorce as they could never be married to their first wives ever again.

Breaking a sacred covenant

The beauty and significance of the marriage covenant is a picture painted all throughout scripture. From the institution of marriage in Genesis to the return of Christ when Jesus takes his bride home in Revelation, we see the importance of marriage.

When the people of Israel committed idolatry, God accused them of committing adultery (Eze. 23:37). In the New Testament, husbands are told to love their wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it (Eph. 5:25).

Marriage between a man and a woman has been designed to mirror the relationship between God and his covenant people. In the Old Testament, divorce meant severe judgment against Israel. A divorce between Christ and his bride would be even worse–not that a divorce in that case is even possible.

It is beyond me how a professing believer in the church today would even consider divorce. Imagine the implications if Christ said to us, “I want a divorce.”

Yet, divorce is a practice not foreign to the church. According to the Barna Group, believers match the statistics of unbelievers at a 33 percent divorce rate among adults who have been married.

Divorce and forgiveness

What does the Bible say about our social acceptance of divorce? The answer is simple: God hates divorce. I believe that’s true even in cases where God has permitted divorce such as cases of adultery (Matt. 19:9). When God “divorced” Israel in the Old Testament, it was justified but far from pleasing to God.

Of course, that’s not to say the divorced person can never find forgiveness. First, when Jesus died for our sins, he died for all of our sins which included divorce (Col. 2:13). Second, admitting we have sinned and repenting from those sins will surely bring us practical forgiveness in this life (1 John 1:9).

Some have suggested it’s not possible to repent in the case of divorce unless the person reconciles with his/her spouse. I disagree with that. Reconciliation is ideal but not always possible. Many sins cannot be undone. In those cases, repentance requires we renew our minds and never commit that sin again (John 8:11).

I don’t expect the world to embrace the sanctity of marriage. But there is no excuse for Christians who accept the same ungodly views promoted by today’s culture. Divorce is an insult to the sacrifice Christ made on the cross for our sakes.

If you have been divorced but feel the same way about it, I pray you have also felt the forgiveness God has surely provided you.

If you have your own Bible question, I’d love to try and answer it. Visit JeremySarber.com/BibleHelp

I doubt that I’ve ever met a Christian person who has never been worried or concerned about their own salvation. We’ve likely all had moments when we’ve questioned, “Am I truly saved?”

But the gospel of Jesus Christ is meant to be liberating and not a burden. Uncertainty is normal, but the greater understanding we have of scripture, the greater assurance we will have concerning our salvation. In fact, God wants us to have assurance.

Depriving us of assurance

It has always been the tactic of heretics and false teachers to make great efforts to limit people’s knowledge of the Word of God. That was once the role the Pharisees and scribes played when Jesus said to them, “Woe unto you, lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge” (Luke 11:52).

In the 1500s, many Christian disciples defected from the Roman Catholic church after the Bible was made available in a language they could actually read. Only after reading God’s Word did they have reason to escape the Catholic church and be equipped to refute its unbiblical doctrines and practices.

Throughout history, each group to deny people access to the Bible and the knowledge it contains have had their own reasons. It would seem self-preservation of an ungodly and manmade system tops the list. Often, they sought to destroy assurance of salvation.

In retaliation of the Protestant Reformation, the Catholic Council of Trent declared, “It is not to be said, that sins are forgiven, or have been forgiven, to any one who boasts of his confidence and certainty of the remission of his sins…seeing that no one can know with a certainty of faith that he has obtained the grace of God.”

But what advantage is there in keeping people in fear that they might not be saved? Well, it discourages them from leaving the church along with their wallets. If people know the Word of God, they learn of assurance. If they learn of assurance, the corrupt, religious institutions of these wicked men collapse.

Guide to obtaining assurance

In his second epistle, Peter wrote to them that have obtained like precious faith with us (2 Pet. 1:1). Faith–not faithfulness–is something given to us only by the grace of God (Rom. 12:3). It is only after we’ve been given that faith can we become faithful and do the good works we’ve been called to do (Eph. 2:8-10).

In other words, Peter was writing to those who were already saved. They already had faith by the Spirit of God. They were already purged from their old sins (2 Pet. 1:9).

In that chapter, Peter gave us a 7-step guide to obtaining, not salvation, but an assurance of salvation as well as a more abundant entrance into God’s kingdom (2 Pet. 1:10-11).

He wrote, “Add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity” (2 Pet. 1:5-8).

If these things be in us, we’ll be able to confirm within ourselves that we have been called and elected by God (2 Pet. 1:10).

Seven steps to assurance

These seven steps are to be done with diligence (2 Pet. 1:8). Diligence has two separate but equally important components: Persistence and carefulness. For instance, Paul applauded the diligence of the Corinthians in removing the sin that was among them (2 Cor. 7:9-11). It was handled quickly but carefully.

Step #1: Virtue

Virtue is holding our thoughts, words, and actions to a high moral standard. We are to identify who we want to become by recognizing Christ and the Word as our standard to live by.

Step #2: Knowledge

Knowledge is our understanding or comprehension. The only way to grow in knowledge is by spending as much time in and attention on the Word of God as possible.

Step #3: Temperance

Temperance is where we apply our knowledge. It means self-control or discipline. We know what we want to become, so now we identify our natural tendencies and avoid those things.

Step #4: Patience

It’s hard enough to maintain self-control in general, but patience requires we have self-control even when our emotions are raging or we’re faced with opposition or trials in life.

Step #5: Godliness

After we have learned what we should become through virtue and knowledge and have learned what to avoid through temperance and patience, we have to put it all into practice through godliness.

Step #6: Brotherly kindness

We can’t do it alone. The first recipients of our love beyond the Lord himself should be our brethren in Christ. Brotherly kindness is love directed toward those with that common bond.

Step #7: Charity

The final step is to foster an even greater, sacrificial love toward our brothers and sisters in Christ as well as everyone else. 

Again, if we add these things to our faith and do them with diligence, we will find assurance of our salvation. It may seem unconventional, but what about the wisdom of God is conventional?

We are living in an era when the news media is consumed by stories of war, terrorism, and bloodshed. If not violence abroad, it’s violence at home. If it’s not violence, it’s stories of scandal, immorality, deception, lewdness, and a variety of evil.

Perhaps some would lead us to believe the world is moving toward a utopian society of peace and harmony. But we can plainly see that’s not true. In fact, the Bible predicted something different.

Living in the last days

Since the time Christ left this earth, the world has gotten worse and worse. While every student of the Bible understands how doom and gloom has been prophesied, most continue to believe these fateful events are coming someday rather than recognizing the reality of these things in present day.

For instant, when do you suppose antichrists will occupy the earth and wreak havoc on the minds of many? If you believe they will not come until later, you have missed what scripture tells us.

Nearly 2,000 years ago, John wrote, “Little children, it is the last time: and ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that is the last time” (1 John 2:18). 

We’re not living in some strange period of history where we wait for the next big thing to happen before the prophesies of the New Testament become relevant to us. They are relevant to us in that they speak of the time between the ascension and the second coming of Jesus Christ. We’re living in the last days.

It gets worse and worse

When Jesus preached his first full discourse during his earthly ministry, he warned of false teachers and prophets. He said, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves” (Matt. 7:15).

Paul told Timothy, “Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived” (2 Tim. 3:13). 

In what is believed to be Paul’s first letter written–at least of those canonized–Paul dealt with the issue of false teachers corrupting the gospel among the churches of Galatia. He said to them, “There be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ” (Gal. 1:7). He went on to say, “Let him be accursed” (Gal. 1:9).

If antichrists, false teachers, and deceivers were a problem during the first century, imagine how much greater the problem is today knowing that seducers shall wax worse and worse.

False Christs and deceivers

During one visit to the temple, Jesus told his disciples, “See ye not all these [buildings]? There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down” (Matt. 24:11). 

That prediction of the temple’s destruction prompted the disciples to ask, “Tell us, when shall these things be? What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” (Matt. 24:3).

Keep in mind, the destruction of the temple took place in 70 AD. What the Lord described in Matthew 24 was the near future and not some obscure time period that we’re still waiting to come.

Jesus told his disciples, “Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many” (Matt. 24:4-5). He then described wars, famine, disease, and natural catastrophes. He told his disciples of the coming persecution against them.

Once again, he warned, “Many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many” (Matt. 24:11). Later he said, “For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect” (Matt. 24:24). 

By the way, the very elect in that passage does not refer to an elite class of God’s people. Rather, it means even the elect.

At the heart of this worldwide deception, we find the devil (Rev. 12:9). That’s not surprising since the devil is the father of lies and has been a liar from the beginning (John 8:44).

Prone to believe deceptions 

Our very nature disposes us to believe the lies of the devil. We are shapen in iniquity and conceived in sin (Ps. 51:5). There is none righteous, no, not one. There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God (Rom. 3:9-10).

Even after we are born of the Spirit and made able to believe the truth, the vast majority of people will not stay grounded in that truth. In the parable of the sower, Jesus said only one out of the four groups described will stay rooted (Matt. 13:3-9). Another time, he said few would walk the path of life (Matt. 7:14).

Jesus told his disciples, “Take heed that no man deceive you” (Matt. 24:4). Paul told Timothy, “Continue thou in the things which thou has learned and has been assured of” (2 Tim. 3:14).

These instructions were given to very faithful men, grounded in the truth, because every one of us is susceptible to deception. 

Even the great apostle Paul said, “I keep my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway” (1 Cor. 9:27).

In short, we’re naturally inclined to believe the deceptions. That’s the first part of how the devil will deceive us.

Our defense against deception

The second part comes through the teachings of men. As you’ve seen in the passages I’ve already given–and there are many more like them–there are wicked people who oppose Christ and strive to subvert our faith by teaching things contrary to God’s Word.

Some false teachings are religious in nature while others come to us in the form of philosophy, ethics, psychology, or science. Some false teachings are taught by heretics and others by ignorant men and women who simply do not see the fallacies they teach.

There is one clear defense against deception and that is the Bible (2 Tim. 3:16-17). We have to study it, understand it, and keep it locked away in our hearts. We have to use it to renew our minds daily (Rom. 12:2).

If you have your own Bible question, I’d love to try and answer it. Visit JeremySarber.com/BibleHelp

Too many people in the church today have all the wrong ideas about what evangelism is and how to do it. Some think pastors alone are responsible for evangelism. Others think it requires knocking on the doors of strangers. 

Evangelism was a known gift in the early church. Paul said, “He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers” (Eph. 4:11).

An evangelist is the bringer of good news. In context of the Bible, an evangelist is one who shares the gospel (or good news) of Jesus Christ. That person may be an evangelist in a more official capacity, but they may be an average disciple sharing what means most to them which happens to be the gospel.

If you are bringing someone the good news that Jesus died for our sins, saved us from the wrath of God, and was resurrected the third day, you are by definition an evangelist.

1) Sanctify God and be ready

We never see the verb, evangelize, in scripture. Instead, we read words and phrases like preach the gospel and bring good tidings. For instance, the persecuted Christians in Jerusalem fled the city and were scattered all over. We’re told wherever they went–both men and women–they were preaching the word (Acts 8:1-4).

When the Bible tells us they were preaching, that doesn’t mean they were all ordained ministers, standing behind podiums, and delivering a formal teaching of scripture. It simply means they were telling people about Christ.

Peter addressed his first epistle to the elect according to the foreknowledge of God (i.e. saved believers). In that epistle, he told them, “Sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you” (1 Pet. 3:15).

In the second part of his instruction, he told believers to talk about the reason for our hope which is Christ. That’s evangelism. In the first part of his instruction, he told people to sanctify the Lord in our hearts. The Lord is to be kept sacred in our hearts.

2) Inevitable evangelism

Jesus said, “A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things” (Matt. 12:35). If Christ is truly treasured in the depths of our hearts, evangelism is inevitable. Whatever we care about the most is bound to come out in our actions and in our conversations.

When someone loves Christ and loves his word, it’s unmistakable. John said, “Whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that are in him” (1 John 2:5).

It’s not as if evangelism requires we carefully choose our targets, write and rehearse a sermon, and go knocking on their doors. As we live in this world, the opportunities to share the gospel will present themselves.

Think of the many people who own Apple iPhones. Did the iPhone become popular because fans went door to door? No, people who owned and loved the iPhone talked about it in casual conversations. If we love Christ, we’re bound to talk about him.

3) It begins at home

Unfortunately, we often fall short. For whatever reason, it feels awkward to talk about our faith with people. So much so, in fact, Christ isn’t talked about much even in our homes.

If we can’t talk about the gospel at home, there’s little chance we’ll talk about it anywhere else. Evangelism begins at home. If you’re not sure where to begin, start by reading and discussing the Bible within your family. The Bible is always sufficient (Is. 55:10-11).

4) Forget the results

When evangelism moves outside of our homes, it’s important to remember that we’re not responsible for the results. A city watchman is not held responsible if he warns the city and they refuse to listen. You’re not responsible if the gospel has no impact on someone you’ve shared it with.

When Jesus sent his apostles out to preach, he told them, “If the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you” (Matt. 10:13).

5) It’s only by God’s grace

Not only is it important that we not stress over the results, it’s also helpful to know that it is only by God’s grace there will be results. Paul said, “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase” (1 Cor. 3:6). 

First of all, you may only have a small part in the conversion of a person. It may take the labors of many people to convert a person. Ultimately though, conversion only happens by the grace of God. 

6) Look for open doors

On a couple of occasions, Paul wrote about doors that were opened to him by the Lord (1 Cor. 16:8-9, 2 Cor. 2:12). In both cases, he was provided an opportunity to share the gospel.

The Lord often opens those same doors to us if only we are looking for them. Of course, we have to want and be ready to share the gospel before we’ll become aware of the opportunities afforded us to share the gospel.

7) Those who need it most

Once in a while, we meet people who are broken. They are desperate. They are looking for something more even though they’re not sure what exactly they need.

Thankfully, believers in Christ do. We understand that discipleship begins in those who are poor in spirit (Matt. 5:3). The spiritually bankrupt person is seeking Christ even if they aren’t aware of it themselves.

8) Personal testimonies

When it comes to how we might evangelize, a degree in theological studies is not necessary. Some of the greatest witnesses to Christ are those who little of the deeper truths of Bible doctrine.

When the once blind man of John 9 was questioned by the theologians of the day, all he knew was that he was blind and Christ made him see. The demon possessed man in Mark 5 was simply told to tell his friends what the Lord had done for him.

9) Make ‘em wonder

At times, even personal testimonies aren’t required. When Christ first revealed himself to Philip, Philip went to tell Nathanael. As you might expect, Nathanael wanted to know more. But Philip answered and said, “Come and see” (John 1:45-46).

There are blessings in Christ we will never be able to put into words. In some cases, all we can do is offer an invitation.

10) Offer Bible guidance

When Philip the evangelist was directed by the Spirit to find an Ethiopian man in Acts 8, he found that man sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah. But he didn’t understand what he was reading until Philip explained it to him.

After Philip helped to enlighten him, he was immediately persuaded and asked to be baptized. At times, all a person needs is a little guidance from those of us already in the church.

I’m afraid I can only partially answer this question. There seems to be confusion as to when Christians began worshipping in dedicated “church” buildings. But I’ll try my best.

Today, we can hardly imagine a local church not having her own building. In fact, they’re so commonplace that we typically think of the building as the church (which it’s not). The church is a gathering or community of Christian disciples. In other words, the people are the church–not the building where we meet.

The temple conflict

Some go as far as to say the church should never have an established place of worship. They refer to the conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman in John 4.

The Samaritans and the Jews had a complicated relationship. To make a long story short, the Samaritans were Jews who had been led away by idolatry years before. They eventually developed their own Torah and constructed their own temple on Mount Gerizim.

When the Samaritan woman in John 4 realized there was more to Jesus than meets the eye, she approached him with the prevailing conflict between the Samaritans and the Jews. She said, “Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship” (John 4:20).

Jesus responded, “The hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father” (John 4:21).

As Christ ushered in the New Testament era, he determined that having a so-called proper place of worship for the church was irrelevant. But does that mean it’s wrong for the church to have a central meeting spot? I don’t think so.

First century worship

First, let’s talk about what I do know concerning church history and buildings. Throughout most of the first century, Christians–many of them former Jews–continued to meet with the Jews in synagogues and in the temple. Like Jesus, we read of the apostles going from synagogue to synagogue throughout the book of Acts.

The church also met from house to house (Acts 20:20). Paul often referred to the church that is in their house (Rom. 16:5, 1 Cor. 16:19). Frankly, no instructions were ever given as to where exactly the church had to worship. It would seem that’s not important.

As for the introduction of dedicated church buildings, your guess is as good as mine. Some have suggested even Thomas the apostle built special sanctuaries. Some claim the first church building was built in about the third century. I really don’t know. I suspect it began for the sake of convenience.

While a solid case cannot be made against church buildings, it is important to remember that the church is not the building. Paul said, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Cor. 3:16)

Church building pitfalls

Having a set place of worship is a great convenience, but there are reasons to be careful about our view and use of them. For instance, have you ever caught yourself saying things like, “I’m going to church.” Do we say that because we’ve forgotten the church is actually our brothers and sisters in Christ?

Another potential pitfall of church buildings is the financial cost. Often, our deacons’ primary responsibilities seem to involve keeping up the building and collecting money for its maintenance. However, the position of deacon was established so poor widows would not be neglected (Acts 6:1-3).

There are certainly greater uses of our resources than multi-million dollar campuses with all of the amenities of a 5-star hotel and shopping mall combined. But that’s not to say there isn’t room for the church spending money on her building.

In the Old Testament, roughly 43 percent of all tithes went toward temple expenses. Another 43 percent went to the priests which left about 14 percent for the poor. That might be a starting guideline for us, but we also need to factor in the contrast between Old Testament worship and New Testament worship.

As Jesus told the Samaritan woman, the temple–as well as the tabernacle before it–was significant (John 4:22). The glory of God and the gospel was woven into its very design. But the same is not true for a modern church building. 

In 70 AD, the temple was destroyed. The emphasis in the New Testament is on believers as opposed to any structure we might use for worship. Furthermore, the early church got busy worshipping–wherever they could–and giving their material things to those in need rather than pooling their resources for elaborate meeting houses (Acts 2:44-47).

It might be safe to conclude that our material giving should have a slightly different distribution ratio than it had throughout the Old Testament with a deemphasis on temple expenses.

The Pharisees were harshly rebuked by Christ for their extravagant garments and their elevated seats in the synagogues (Matt. 23:5-6). The Jews found themselves on the losing end of the Lord’s fury when they made the temple a house of merchandise (John 2:13-16). We would be wise to avoid similar mistakes.

To answer your question, we worship in church buildings for convenience and purely practical reasons. Despite those who oppose the use of buildings, I believe their use is well within our God-given liberty.  When did the practice start? All I can say is it happened a long time ago. 

If you have your own Bible question, I would love to try and answer it. Visit JeremySarber.com/BibleHelp

I follow quite a few social media, online marketing, search engine optimization, and technology blogs to keep up with what’s going on in this always changing digital world.

It seems like every week there is a new service or platform bloggers must be on or else. Having a blog is only the beginning. Then, there is Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube, Pinterest, iTunes, and the list goes on and on. The experts say, “Be everywhere.”

But do we really need to be everywhere?

Be where it matters

I don’t know about you, but I’m the pastor of a small church. I’m the associate pastor, youth pastor, family pastor, teaching pastor, small group leader, communications director, audio engineer, web developer, part-time cleaning crew, and the church’s the IT guy.

On top of everything, I do some extracurricular Bible study and blogging. I may pastor a small church, but sometimes I feel like I’m actually serving thousands online.

Long story short, I don’t have time to be everywhere. I have a love for all things digital, so I give almost anything that comes along a try. But I cannot make full use of every platform available.

If you visit some blogs, you’ll see social icons which link to the blogger’s profiles on nearly every network out there. In most cases, that blogger is not really using those networks to their full potential.

How could they?

My recommendation is to stop trying to be everywhere. Instead, be where it matters most and give it all you’ve got. At the very least, you need a smarter way to be everywhere.

Be everywhere smarter

The first step is to determine which platforms to use. It would be helpful if you have a concise definition of your target audience. Then, you can research the demographics of each social network.

For example, a photography blog or a blog that targets women will likely gain more ground on Pinterest than on Twitter.

Choosing the right network will largely depend on what you’re hoping to accomplish as well. In my experience, people on Twitter are much more likely to click a link I’ve shared than people on Facebook. But people on Facebook will spend more time on my site and are more likely to sign up for my email list.

If I had to do it all over again, I believe I would pick one network and use only that one network. I would study it. I would research it. I would try to learn all I can about it. I would try and master the art of having a presence on that one network.

What seems to frustrate many bloggers is how every social network is different. Wouldn’t it be great if we could take the same photo, link, or text and share it to all of the networks at the same time and get traction from all of them? Well, it rarely works that way. Each platform has its own dynamic.

With that said, it is possible to repurpose the same content if you choose to be on multiple networks. I’ll use myself as an example.

Same content, many channels

It all starts with a blog post. I write the post and I publish it. Then, I record an audio version of the post. While that’s not the most traditional form of podcasting, it’s working for me. It gets me into iTunes which is the number one search engine for audio.

Next, I take the podcast audio and create a video for YouTube–the second largest search engine behind Google itself. It’s the trifecta–one piece of content in written, audio, and video form.

As for the social networks, Facebook has become my first priority. Often, I will copy and paste a paragraph or two from the blog post and share it on Facebook. Occasionally, I am able to draw multiple  Facebook updates out of a single blog post.

Sometimes I share a link to the post with the update. Sometimes I attach a photo. It varies from day to day. It’s all a part of learning and understanding the network you’re using.

I also maintain a Twitter account. Obviously, I can’t just share my Facebook updates on Twitter because of the character limit. Plus, I share a lot of photos on Facebook which are virtually useless on Twitter. So, again, I repurpose the content.

I take the shorter, quotable quotes from my blog post or Facebook updates and share them on Twitter. I can usually break a single Facebook update into multiple tweets which is perfect since it’s “socially acceptable” to tweet more times per day than what you share on Facebook–especially on a Facebook fan page.

I’m not necessarily recommending you be on as many platforms as me. I suggest you take them one at a time and figure out which of them works for you. Master it and move on to the next.

However, if you are going to be on several networks, you can repurpose your content and use social networking tools like Buffer or Hootsuite for greater ease and more convenience.

Have a tech or Internet question? I’d love to try and answer it. Visit JeremySarber.com/TechHelp

Liberal Americans are on a quest to help the poor. Conservatives are resisting the immorality being condoned by the government. Libertarians are fighting for freedom anywhere they can get it.

Christians? Well, they are within all of these political camps.

Perhaps our confusion stems from our attempts to use the principles of an apolitical book (i.e. the Bible) to lay a foundation for our unquestionably political platforms.

An unhealthy obsession

Allow me to confess something. Only two years ago, I was a politics junkie. I worked from home so I was able to have Fox News on all day long. If I wasn’t watching the news, I was listening to talk radio. If not the radio, I was reading a political book or blog. I still have Ronald Reagan t-shirts in my closet.

Maybe you’ve gathered by now that I was a conservative. I was raised in a conservative, Republican environment so it was nearly inevitable. But I wasn’t one who merely voted come election day. I ate, slept, talked, and breathed politics.

Frankly, it was an unhealthy obsession.

Eventually, I began devoting more of my time in study of the Bible. The more time I spent in the Word of God, the more my focus changed. As my focus changed, my perspective changed.

I had always believed my (conservative) political views were well grounded in scripture. But I began to question a few things. Some of the common conservative positions seemed to contradict one another as well as what I was reading in the Bible.

I remember asking myself at one point, What does the Bible actually say about government, law, politics, and all of that stuff? I wasn’t thinking about the general values and principles we typically apply in the political realm. I meant, what does the Bible specifically say about government?

Old Testament politics

I could think of no better place to go than the Old Testament where God himself established the only nation he ever built from the ground up–that is, Israel.

What I discovered truly fascinated me. Israel–at least in the beginning–knew freedom like Americans have never known. They had no executive or legislative branches of government, no official law enforcement, no standing army, very few laws beyond the protection of life, liberty, and property, and no taxation.

Wow, right? Of course, my study went a bit deeper than what I’ve described, but I suspect you understand my point.

What was I to do with this new understanding of mine? Well, it led me to libertarianism–the only platform which came anywhere close to the system of liberty which it seemed God intended.

Christian libertarians are certainly a minority in this country, but they do exist. While most liberals and conservatives fail to take them seriously, libertarians don’t miss the mark by as much as you may think. Stop and actually listen to them sometime.

However, I didn’t stay a libertarian for long. The next phase of my study moved me into the New Testament where things were drastically different then they were in the days of ancient Israel.

New Testament politics

The Roman empire maintained control over Palestine in the first century. During the time of Christ, Rome has transitioned from a republic into an empire. Yet, Rome allowed the Jews of Israel to maintain a relative amount of freedom.

As the early church was being established, Jewish persecution against Christians rose, but Rome left it alone. It wasn’t until Nero’s reign in the Sixties did Rome become a legitimate enemy to Christians. Even then, Rome’s persecution of the church was isolated to the city of Rome and the surrounding areas.

During the tyrannical rule of Nero, Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome, “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers” (Rom. 13:1). That’s not what they expected or even wanted to hear.

The Christians had remained a passive group of people. But they also watched many of the Jewish sects rise up in rebellion against Rome. It probably seemed entirely appropriate and justified. But the Jewish rebellions also motivated Rome to destroy Jerusalem.

The church–especially in Rome–was left scratching their heads, wondering what they should do as the oppression got worse and worse. Paul’s answer was simple: Leave it alone.

There were no instructions to fight back, to protest, to rant on Facebook, or anything like it. He simply told them to submit to the authorities over them–render unto Caesar (Mark 12:17).

Surely, we are permitted–even expected–to do something as we see our government falling short. Surely, we can’t sit idly by and watch abortions be committed and gay marriage be legalized.

It’s not difficult to understand the Bible’s position on some of these particular issues. But what exactly does the Bible tell us to do about it? That is the real crux of the matter.

Unfortunately, many of us have not bothered to ask or seek an answer to that question.

The wrong kingdom

We all agree there are limits to what we should do. For instance, no reasonable Christian is suggesting we blow up abortion clinics or start the next revolution. At the same time, I’m not sure we’re willing to accept the restrictions the Bible places on us.

Throughout the earthly ministry of Christ, the Jews were obsessed with the restoration of the kingdom of Israel. However, Jesus continually diverted their attention away from that earthly kingdom to his kingdom–a spiritual and heavenly kingdom.

He taught them (and us) to lay up treasures in heaven and not on this earth (Matt. 6:19-20). We’re told our time here is short (1 Cor. 7:29). The things that matter most are those things which are spiritual and eternal as opposed to earthly and temporary.

Remember, this place isn’t our home. We’re just passing through.

In large part, what once belonged to the nation of Israel was handed over to the Lord’s church. At one time, Israel was to remain separate and sanctified from the world. Today, the church is to be sanctified or set apart (Rom. 12:2).

God’s believing people have a unique relationship with the secular world. We live in it, we have needs in it, we are called to spread the gospel in it, and yet we remain separate from it. So much so, in fact, we are told it’s not our place to judge it (1 Cor. 5:12-13).

It’s almost as if the church is its own world within the world. It’s not as though we live in a bubble, but there is a clear distinction made in the Bible between the church and the world.

Taking all of these things into account, why would the affairs of a secular government be our concern at all? First, this isn’t our home. Second, the king’s heart is in the sovereign hand of God (Prov. 21:1). God is able to change that heart at any time.

So, why hasn’t he?

Is it because Christians haven’t been vocal enough? Is it because there aren’t enough of us standing up for truth? Have we failed to elect the right leaders? Why does it seem the harder we try, the more ground we lose in this battle for America’s soul?

Perhaps we’re fighting the wrong fight. At the very least, maybe we’re fighting the good fight in all the wrong ways.

The real good fight

Paul told the Roman Christians to submit to the higher powers. He told them to give tribute to whom tribute is due and then he took a sharp turn into what seems to be another lesson altogether (Rom. 13:7-8). He reminded them of our moral obligations to God.

He said, “Owe no man any thing, but to love one another” (Rom. 13:8). He followed that up with a short list of commandments on how to behave in this world (Rom. 13:9-10).

He told them it’s now time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed (Rom. 13:11). He instructed them to cast off the works of darkness (Rom. 13:12).

He said, “Let us walk honestly, not in rioting..not in wantonness, not in strife and envying” (Rom. 13:13). He said to put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof (Rom. 13:14).

But what does all of that have to do with our relationship to government? I believe this was Paul’s answer to the question, What do we do about the higher powers?

Conventional wisdom says if we want political changes, we should become political. But God’s wisdom has always been anything but conventional. For instance, the last shall be first and the first last (Matt. 20:16)? How is that conventional?

No, the Lord’s plan is far from conventional. According to Romans 13, there is something Christians can do. However, it’s not necessarily what we expect or even want to do.

To get caught up in opposition to the higher powers is to fulfill the lusts of the flesh and go against what Paul told the Roman church. Maybe we’re losing this battle in our nation because the harder we fight, the harder the secular world fights back.

This has been true throughout all of history. The Jews lost Israel because they took up arms against Rome. On the other side of the coin, Christianity spread and became a greater influence when faithful believers were persecuted. Jesus went as far as to say, “Blessed are they which are persecuted” (Matt. 5:10).

The apolitical Bible

The answer is not more political engagement. The answer is less.

Of course, that’s not the easy answer. We want to feel like we’re in control. Our impulse is to fight flesh and blood even though our true fight isn’t against flesh and blood (Eph. 6:12). We can see the physical kingdoms of this Earth with our natural eyes so that’s where we are prone to put our focus.

To leave the secular world to its own devices means we have to have significant faith in God. It means we have to trust that the gates of hell shall not prevail against us (Matt. 16:18).

If only we could remove our worries and concerns about this temporary kingdom that is America. If only we could redirect our passions away from political battles and invest them in the Lord’s church and his gospel. If only we could see those we argue with now as our brothers and sisters in Christ as they may be.

If only we could cease from using the apolitical Bible as our ammunition in vain political wars which serve only to distract, promote fear, and bring comfort to our flesh.

Honestly, the answer to this question is so very simple. If you already know why you’re looking for a church–and assuming your reasons are truly spiritual–then the answer is Christ.

Let me explain what I mean. But first, let me tell you what not to look for when seeking out a new church.

Look past the superficial things

How many times did Jesus rebuke the Pharisees? Dozens? Hundreds? I don’t have an exact figure but it was a lot.

What did he rebuke them for? They looked good, they sounded good, and, by some standards, they acted good. But something extremely important was missing in them.

His strongest rebukes can be found throughout Matthew 23. At one point, he said to them, “Behold, your house is left unto you desolate” (Matt. 23:38). The temple–the very place to go and be in the presence of God–was empty. People were there. The Spirit was not.

I cannot count the number of times I’ve heard someone leave a church because they didn’t like the style of music or they didn’t have the nice coffee bar like another church down the road.

These are vain and superficial things.

Try making a list of what’s important to you. Then, take that list and see how many of those things you can find in the church of the first century–the church according to the New Testament. If something on your list cannot be found, then it’s not important.

Some would go as far as to say if you can’t find it in the Bible, then it shouldn’t be in the church today. Obviously, that’s not entirely true. You won’t find church buildings mentioned in scripture. They either met in the Jewish synagogues or in their own homes.

It’s not wrong for a church to have a building. But since the Bible doesn’t require them or give us examples of their use, then they are not that important. In other words, the building of a church is not something that should be used to qualify a church in your search.

Look for Christ in the teachings

Like I said, any spiritual person, seeking a local church to make their home and family while here on this Earth, should ultimately be seeking Christ Jesus. If you’re just looking for a social club, there are many out there and some of them even have foosball tables.

But how do we know when we’ve found Christ in a church?

The first step is to become like the noble Bereans who received the word with all readiness of mind and searched the scriptures daily to prove what they heard was true (Acts 17:11).

Listen to what the church’s pastor is teaching and take it back to the Word of God to verify it. This is especially critical if the pastor preaches a lot of topical sermons or feel-good life lessons.

If the pastor preaches expository sermons–that’s line by line, chapter by chapter studies of the Bible–that’s a good sign. The deeper he is willing to go into scripture, and the more he allows the Bible to dictate his messages, the better off the church will be.

It probably goes without saying, but you also want to listen for sound doctrine in his sermons. Maybe the church has an articles of faith or some kind of doctrinal creed you could study.

In short, you’re looking for Christ in what is taught and believed by the church. Is Jesus talked about often? If so, in what context? Is he exalted in the church’s worship services? Or is it the activities, announcements, music, the people, and so on that are the focus?

Look for Christ in the people

Some would stop right there in telling you what to look for in a new church. They’d tell you to look for the truth. But Jesus said, “True worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23). Apparently, truth is only half of the equation.

Spirit, in this case, has an interesting meaning. It doesn’t refer to the Spirit of God. Rather, it refers to the spirit of the people–which is not the same as being spirited.  It refers to the disposition of a person. In other words, it’s the affection and desire of a person.

What good is truth without spirit? For instance, what help is it to know about God’s grace if we don’t live by that grace or extend it to others? Why teach the love of Christ if we have no love ourselves?

Christianity shouldn’t be reduced to fun water cooler talk. If we think it’s solely about what we know, we’ve missed half of what the Bible teaches. It’s also about what we do.

In John 8, Jesus was kicked out of the temple by the theologians of the day. In John 9, Jesus caused a blind man to see. When the blind man was questioned by the theologians, he didn’t know much. He couldn’t explain which powers of the universe can perform miracles, but he did know he was blind and Christ made him see (John 9:25).

When you look at the people in the church, do you see Christ? Paul wrote, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1). If you can’t see Jesus in the words and actions of the people in the church, that may not be the church to follow or join.

If you have your own Bible question, I’d love to try and answer it. Visit JeremySarber.com/BibleHelp

Love it or hate it, Facebook is an incredible platform. Think about it. The one account most people have beyond email is Facebook. Facebook rises above email in that it brings us all into one place.

Sixty-seven percent of all adults online are using Facebook and that number is still growing.

Let’s not forget that Facebook has a lot of personal information about the people using their service. While some find that creepy, there’s no denying the potential advertising possibilities.

Should a church run ads?

When it comes to your church, you’ve probably considered running advertisements. Maybe you already promote the church through signs, billboards, or direct mailers within your community.

But should you?

Paul wrote, “I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some” (1 Cor. 9:22). There are certainly ethical limits to what the church should do, but it’s difficult to have moral objections to the church reaching out to God’s people in the area.

If your church has a sign out front, you’ve already broken any Thou shalt not advertise commandment. If you’ve ever invited someone to church, you have essentially advertised the church.

While there is no replacement for one-on-one relationships with people, online marketing certainly doesn’t hurt.

Running effective ads

If you are going to run ads and spend the money to do so, you might as well do it in the most cost efficient and effective way possible. Facebook Ads might be a good way to go.

First, they are less expensive than traditional advertising methods like billboards, television, or direct mail. Second, you can see important metrics which tell you if your ads are working. Third, you can target only the people you want to target.

For instance, you could run a Facebook ad for your church and set exactly what you want to pay each day and in total. You can see how many people saw your ad and if they clicked. You can even define who will see the ad based on all of that personal information Facebook already has in their database.

Setting up a Facebook ad

Setting up a Facebook ad is incredibly easy but does require some planning. Will you promote your church’s Facebook page or your website? Who is your target audience? What will the ad say?

To start a Facebook ad, visit Facebook.com/Ad

Here’s a rundown of the options you’ll have:

1. Choose a Facebook page or enter the URL of your website.
   1. If you choose your Facebook page, you can either advertise the page itself or something you’ve posted.
   2. If you choose your website, you might consider building a special landing page just for Facebook traffic.
2. Choose the headline, text, and image for your ad.
   1. The headline is limited to 25 characters so craft wisely.
   2. There is a 90-character limit on your text which means you have limited to space to give people a reason to click.
   3. Your image should be eye-catching since most people on Facebook ignore the ads in the sidebar.
3. Choose your audience by location, age, gender, and interests.
   1. Location is a given if you’re promoting your church. Select your city and a 10, 25, or 50 mile radius.
   2. When selecting age, you may want to target younger adults who haven’t put roots down in another church.
   3. Under interests, you might already have specific ideas about who to target. Regardless, you can search and choose almost any topic you can imagine.
   4. As you fine tune your audience, Facebook will display precisely how many people fit your description.
4. Choose how much you are willing to pay.
   1. You can select any amount you’re willing to pay per day or for the entire lifespan of the campaign.
   2. Under pricing, it’s recommend you allow Facebook to determine the cost per click but you can tweak it.

That’s all there is to it. You can even run simultaneous ads to figure out what kind of ad performs best.

Analyzing your ads

Once your ad has been running for a few days, it’s important to keep an eye on your campaign reports. In simple terms, this is how you will learn if your ad is meeting your expectations.

Just a word of warning, you shouldn’t expect miracles. If you see a five percent click-through rate, you have successfully created a premium advertisement. Most ads will see two percent or less.

Only you can determine if your Facebook ad is worth it. It might be helpful to decide beforehand how much each click is worth.

Have a tech or Internet question? I’d love to try and answer it. Visit JeremySarber.com/TechHelp 

There was plenty of confusion surrounding the coming kingdom of God (or the kingdom of heaven) even among the Lord’s closest disciples. Most of the Jews failed to understand the prophecies concerning the kingdom as well as the Messiah.

Unfortunately, many Christians today also have misconceptions about God’s kingdom which are very similar to those of the Jews.

5 points of the old covenant

The old covenant was first made with Abraham (Gen. 12:1-3). God promised Abraham that he would be the father of a great nation that God himself would divinely protect from any and all enemies.

God established himself as king over Israel which the Jews later discarded when they appointed Saul as their king (1 Sam. 8:7).

It was a covenant exclusive to the people of Israel, but not without certain conditions. They were required to remain faithful to God and to continue in his commandments. For instance, they were to always make the sacrifices and offerings expected of them.

In short, the old covenant included an earthly kingdom, a heavenly king, divine security, Jewish exclusiveness, and religious sacrifices.

5 misguided expectations

Things dramatically changed for Israel after the judgment. God allowed their enemies to conquer as a result of their sin.

A large part of the Old Testament of the Bible are the words of the prophets who were sent to warn Israel of the impending judgment. At the same time, the prophets also provided a light at the end of the tunnel with prophecies concerning the new covenant.

However, the Jews’ common interpretation of the new covenant prophecies might have simply been titled, The Old Covenant 2.0. Their views were rather shortsighted.

They thought the Messiah would come and reign over Israel in a David-like fashion. They also believed he would restore the sovereignty of Israel and defeat all of their enemies in the world.

In short, they thought the new covenant included a greater earthly kingdom, a greater earthly king, the destruction of Israel’s earthly enemies, Jewish exclusiveness, and a continuation of religious sacrifices like they had always done before.

5 truths of the new covenant

It’s not too hard to see how those views developed throughout the years. Zechariah described a triumphant king riding into Jerusalem (Zech. 9:9). Jeremiah and Isaiah said he would execute judgment in the earth and lay waste all the nations (Jer. 25:5-6, Is. 37:18-20). Micah described a war to end all wars (Micah 4:1-3).

It would have seemed consistent to think of the new covenant like they did. But, of course, they failed to see the coming kingdom of God as a spiritual and eternal kingdom. They also failed to understand what exactly the king was going to accomplish.

Christ came to this Earth to suffer. He came to die. Though the prophets spoke of it, the Jews never knew what to do with those passages. In their minds, the Messiah should be a noble king leading a revolution against Rome and restoring the sovereignty of Israel–not a man who dies a shameful death on a cross.

In short, the new covenant included an eternal kingdom, a heavenly king, the destruction of spiritual enemies, an exclusiveness to God’s children–both Jew and Gentile–and a final, perfect sacrifice to end all sacrifices.

Misunderstandings to mistakes

Today, Christians often merge and mesh the truths of the new covenant with the Jewish misconceptions of the past. These misunderstandings lead to subtle mistakes.

Many in the church are still waiting for the full restoration of the nation of Israel and the destruction of Israel’s enemies. Even after the death and resurrection of Christ, the disciples were still curious as to when Israel would be restored (Acts 1:6).

However, God had other plans for his people and for his kingdom.

As for Israel, he allowed it to be conquered just a few years later. It never was his intention to restore Israel. Rather, he established a new and greater (and spiritual) kingdom. That’s why he went on to tell his disciples to start spreading the gospel (Acts 1:8).

If you’re waiting to see glorious things happen to the nation of Israel, you will likely be disappointed in the end. That is, unless you rightfully see the entire elect family of God as Israel (Gal. 3:26-29).

A misunderstanding of God’s kingdom in the new covenant can be seen through two basic mistakes. First, the church becomes political. Second, the church becomes aggressive.

We, as Christians, are called into battle against spiritual wickedness in high places (Eph. 6:12). It’s not a physical battle. There is little room for political movements in God’s kingdom. Furthermore, there is no need for violent aggression.

We are called to submit to the higher powers of government (Rom. 13:1). We are called to be peacemakers (Matt. 5:9). The secular, political affairs of the world are not our concern. Our primary allegiance is to the eternal and heavenly kingdom of God.

In the end, Christ will execute judgment on his enemies (Matt. 13:41-42). Until then, we should be a light to the world, not a fire that attempts to burn the tares (Matt. 5:16, Matt. 13:30).

Today, some Christians are fighting for the nation of Israel. Some are fighting for the United States as though we’re the new Israel. Some are simply fighting on behalf of the church. We should stop fighting if our fighting is against flesh and blood.

This is a somewhat difficult question to answer. It’s a deeply personal question disguised as a theological one. Chances are, you’re either looking for comfort or you need guidance because suicide has actually touched your life in some way.

The Bible never really confronts the issue of suicide head on. But there are at least six cases of men taking their own lives. There are also many other governing principles which we can apply.

Stories of suicide in the Bible

Abimilech was the first to take his own life (Judges 9:54). He was a proud man who would stop at nothing to make himself king over Israel. When he was struck in the skull by a woman during a city raid, he told his armor-bearer to kill him before the wound could have a chance. He refused to be killed by a woman.

Similarly, King Saul asked his armor-bearer to take his life when he was pierced by Philistine arrows during battle (1 Sam. 31:4). The armor-bearer hesitated so Saul fell on his own sword. Consequently, his armor-bearer then took his own life.

Ahithophel was King David’s trusted advisor who joined in a plot against him. When the insurrection failed and Ahithophel knew his reputation was destroyed, he hung himself (2 Sam. 17:23).

Zimri murdered the king of Israel in order to take the throne, but it only lasted seven days. The people of Israel stormed the city to remove him. Aware of his defeat, Zimri set fire to his own palace and burned alive (1 Kings 16:18).

The last case of suicide in the Bible is Judas Iscariot–the man who betrayed Christ (Matt. 27:5). Once he saw a real glimpse of what he had done, he returned the money he was paid and hung himself.

Sin’s connection to death

To be carnally minded is death (Rom. 8:6). With the exception of perhaps Saul’s armor-bearer, every tale of suicide in the Bible involves wicked men. Some took their lives because of pride and others were focused solely on material circumstances.

However, that’s not to say every person who has committed suicide was a blatantly evil person. But there is a close relationship between sin and death. In the grand scheme, there would be no death if not for sin. In the more relevant sense, a person doesn’t choose to end their life apart from sin or its effects.

Sinful living leads to misery which often leads to self-destructive behavior–even suicide. Furthermore, all forms of sorrow and physical pain or sickness in this life are also byproducts of sin.

In short, the only way to combat those feelings which might lead a person to commit suicide is through a spiritual mindset. To be spiritually minded is life and peace (Rom. 8:6).

If you know someone who is struggling or if you are struggling yourself, the answer is Jesus. The first step is to remove any sin in your life. The second step is to follow Christ.

The good news of liberty

Nearly one million people attempt suicide every year in the United States alone. Maybe you’ve asked this question because you know someone who has done it. Perhaps you’ve also been told that suicide is an unforgivable sin. That is simply not true.

Yes, suicide is a sin. It is a sin similar to murder. It’s the taking of a life which was not ours to take. However, the gospel is the good news of Christ removing the eternal consequences of our sin.

Sometimes suicide is considered an unforgivable sin because the person who commits it cannot repent. But eternal life is not obtained by him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy (Rom. 9:16).  The saving benefits of repentance are significant but also limited.

It is Christ and Christ alone who saved us from our sins. Repentance is rightly defined as a work of man which only happens if that man is already born of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23). If he is born of the Spirit, then he already has eternal life (Rom. 8:8-11).

It is an insult to the finished work of Christ to claim there is a sin the blood of the Lamb could not cover. We can take comfort in knowing that salvation is and has always been in the secure hand of God the Father to which none can be plucked out (John 10:28).

If you have your own Bible question, I’d love to try and answer it. Visit JeremySarber.com/BibleHelp

Most bloggers and content-producers on the Web seem to merely copy one another without truly determining exactly what works.

But if you have data on your website’s visitors–where they come from, what they do on the site, and so on–you easily learn where to best spend your time and even how best to design your site.

How effective are the links you share?

You probably have at least one social networking account. Most bloggers have two, three, or more. Regardless, you are likely using any platform you can to promote the content on your website.

The Pretty Links plugin for WordPress allows you track how many people click the links you personally share. You can then evaluate those clicks next to the total number of visitors from that source.

It may be a waste of your time to be on certain social networks.

What’s going on with your visitors?

For all other website data, Google Analytics is a free service which can provide all of the information you would ever need to know.

Once you sign up, drop the code they give into your website’s code (WordPress users will place it just before the closing “body” tag in the theme’s footer file.) Within 24 hours, you’ll see data.

You’ll be able to monitor:

• Visitors/unique visits
• Pageviews/pages per visit/bounce rate
• Average visit duration
• Visitor location/language
• Traffic sources/search terms
• Website speed
• Content performance
• …and much, much more

This information will not only direct you in where time is most efficiently spent, but it will even reveal potential flaws in your website’s design or in the content you produce.

Are you meeting your goals?

If you can define what you want your visitors to do when they reach your website–that is, your call-to-action–then you can use Google Analytics to track the success of that goal.

Once your goal is defined, you need a page on your website that visitors will land on once they’ve completed that goal. For instance, a confirmation page when visitors subscribe to your email list.

Define a URL Destination goal in Google Analytics:

1. Open Analytics and click the Admin button (top-right).
2. Click the Goals tab.
3. Add a new goal:
1. Choose URL destination
2. Insert the Goal URL (this is your confirmation page)
3. Select Head match
4. Save

Create a custom dashboard to monitor your goal:

1. Click Add New Dashboard (menu on the left)
2. Select Blank Canvas
3. Add a Table widget:
1. Select Source/Medium as the column
2. Select Goal 1 Completions as metric
3. Select Goal 1 Conversion Rate as second metric
4. Add a second Table widget:
1. Select Page as the column
2. Select Goal 1 Completions as metric
3. Select Goal 1 Conversion Rate as second metric
5. Add a Metric widget:
1. Select Goal 1 Completions
6. Add a Timeline widget
1. Select Goal 1 Completions

Now, when someone completes your call-to-action, you can see where they came from, what page of the site they were on at the time, and what days they did it.

What is your conversion rate?

Once tracking is set up, you may be discouraged by low conversion numbers. To give you some perspective, it’s fairly common to see only two percent of visitors complete your call-to-action.

Last month, I had a link to my website shared on a Facebook page with over 300,000 fans. That link received only 500 clicks–less than one percent of those fans actually clicked the link.

The purpose of analytics is to guide you in ways you might improve your strategies and even your website design. Regardless of your numbers, strive to improve them.

Website showcase: Grace to You

The Grace to You website has one particular feature I love. It has the ability to search by scripture or Bible passages.

With WordPress, adding this same functionality would not be difficult. Simply utilize tags and/or categories. For instance, you could have tags like Matthew 12 or John 3.

The parable of the prodigal son is a familiar story to many parents in the church today. What are parents to do when faced with this ordeal?

In Luke 15, Jesus told the parable of a young man who left his father and his home to waste his substance on riotous living. It’s a familiar story to many parents in the church today.

Teenagers and young adults who go the way of the prodigal son hold a special place in my heart. I was the prodigal son. I lived in sin and rebellion though I was raised in a loving, Christian home.

Parents have competition

In the 1950s, a child’s home life was the primary influence on his/her life. By the 1990s, a child’s peers climbed to the number one spot. Social media is now the predominant influence on young people.

Young people are looking beyond their parents during the most impressionable time in their lives. That means parents have to make even greater efforts to train their children in the way they might go (Prov. 22:6). Being a silent example is not enough. Parents have to talk and they have to teach.

Churches may be lacking

Over the last several decades, churches have been so focused on appealing to young people that they’ve stopped training young people. How is a person to grow in spiritual maturity when they’re planted in a nursery only to graduate to summer camps, pizza parties, and music concerts?

We cannot replace sound Bible teaching with cheap knock-offs of secular entertainment. Churches have used strategies like casual dress, contemporary music, and coffee houses to keep the young people but the numbers prove it isn’t working. It isn’t working because they are not growing in the Word.

The prodigal son’s perspective

It doesn’t take bad parents or negligent churches to produce rebellious youth. Even the most faithful disciples can be drawn away by sin. But what’s a parent to do when it is his/her child who goes astray?

Prodigal children may seem like their hearts have been completely hardened. They may seem like they simply don’t care. However, appearances can be deceiving. Often, they are tortured by their poor decisions but pride will not allow them to show it. It’d be like admitting they were wrong.

Even a child who sinks deeper and deeper into rebellion is a not a reason to lose hope. Pride is a strong motivator. Like Israel of the Old Testament turned to Egypt in time of crisis, a young person may turn to the world when the misery of sin sets in–instead of turning back to God (Is. 30:1).

Parents need to remember…

Don’t give up. The foundation you’ve laid will not be undone (Prov. 22:6).

Despite your frustration and possible anger, give your child nothing but love (Rom. 12:19-21).

Endure this trial with patience (2 Tim. 4:2).

You cannot enable which means tough love may have to be used (Heb. 12:6).

Discipline and tough love is never pleasant or desirable but it bears precious fruit (Heb. 12:11).

You don’t have the power to change your child’s heart but God most certainly does.

Are you subscribed to the podcast? If not, the show can be found in iTunes at JeremySarber.com/DiscoveringGraceiniTunes

In this episode:

1. An update to the WordPress “must-have” plugin list (one addition and one change)
2. Nextdoor (a social network designed to meet people in your local community)*
3. A handful of tools, apps, and services the church pastor can use for efficiency and simplicity
4. NEW segment on the show: Website showcase (where I review good web designs)

* A small glitch caused approximately 30 seconds of audio to go missing during the segment on Nextdoor. You won’t miss it.

Add a plugin and change another

Last time on the show, I gave a list of WordPress plugins I recommend every website have installed. I realized after the fact that I missed possibly the most important one: WordPress SEO by Yoast.

This plugin will…

• Add meta titles and descriptions (for the search engines and social networks)
• Add Facebook’s OpenGraph meta tags (for any Facebook element on your site)
• Add Twitter Card meta tags (for previews in Twitter)
• Create your sitemap for search engines
• Allow you add content above or below a post for RSS subscribers only

I also suggested you use the BJ Lazy Load plugin. Scratch that. It was designed to load images only after a visitor scrolls to them on the page, but sometimes images wouldn’t load at all. However, I found a replacement that has yet to fail me: Lazy Load.

A social network tailor-made for churches?

Nextdoor is a growing social network created to help people within a local community connect with one another. Once you verify your home address, you are able to build a network within the network of up to 2,000 people living in your area. This might be perfect for churches and pastors wanting to reach out.

Unfortunately, it’s a bit of a ghost town in my part of the country. Not to mention, I’m required to get ten people from the community to sign up before I can really use the service to the fullest.

How I’ve simplified by day-to-day workflow

I moved from a 175 square-foot office to one the size of some closets. My office practically fits into my backpack. But the changes are not solely about minimalism. It’s about simplicity and efficiency.

My desk is now an adjustable laptop stand/podium on wheels. Outside of a single journal, I use no paper. I’ve gone digital with everything from my Bible study to preaching to publishing content on the Web. Let me share with you the tools, apps, and services I’m using to accomplish this.

• Hardware: Apple MacBook Pro laptop, Apple iPhone, Amazon Kindle Touch, Audio Technica ATR2100 USB microphone, Bose QuietComfort 15 headphones
• Software: Olive Tree’s Bible Reader* (E-Sword for Windows), Evernote, self-hosted WordPress, Audacity, Wunderlist**
• Services: Blubrry media hosting, MailChimp, BufferApp, RescueTime, Dropbox

Listen to the show to learn how I’m using every thing on this list make myself more productive and with far greater ease than ever before. If you know of something worth adding to the list, I’d love to hear about it. Leave a comment below with your recommendation.

* Despite what I said in the episode, Bible Reader is available for Windows.
** I failed to mention that Wunderlist is only available for Macs and Apple devices.

Website showcase: MarsHill.com

With each episode, I plan to showcase a well-designed Christian/church website or review one that has been submitted to me. If you want your site reviewed, leave a comment below or send me a message.

I love the Mars Hill Church website for at least eight reasons…

• It has a very clean design (great use of whitespace)
• The Mars Hill logo is simple yet unique and memorable
• The main menu is minimal with only five menu items
• Images and graphics have a professional quality
• Text within a blog post uses a large font
• Contrast between headlines and paragraphs (one serif and the other sans-serif)
• Convenient layout with sermons offering video, audio, transcripts, etc. in one place
• Social media icons are available but not emphasized

Listen to the show to hear why I believe these to be positive attributes of the Mars Hill website.

I reduced my website’s load time by 23 seconds (now loading in less than two seconds) by installing just four plugins and utilizing a CDN.

Full podcast transcript

Welcome back to Tech Help for Churches. In today’s episode, I want to share with you how I took my website’s load time for first-time visitors from nearly 25 seconds down to less than two seconds. It’s not as hard as you may think. I want to tell you how I did it and why website load times are so important.

Since the process of speeding up my website required me to uninstall some plugins and install a few new ones, I also want to give you an updated list of recommended plugins for your WordPress website. I shared my list on a previous episode, but I want to tell why I removed some of them and why I added a few more.

Finally, and I’ll start with this, I’m going to be offering some Web services once again for those of you who would rather hire someone than do this website stuff yourself. It’s a little funny to me. Some time ago, I quit doing freelance web design to focus entirely on my ministry. But I also had the reputation in some circles as that “Web guy” you to go to whenever you have questions or need help with a website. So, that motivated me to start this podcast. I thought I could answer all of your questions and walk you through some of the steps without needing to take the time to do it with each individual person. That way I could save myself some time and still be able to help folks out.

As it turns out, I get more questions and have more people asking if they can hire me now than I did before. For those of you in business, it just goes to prove the power of podcasting. I give all of this information away for free and it actually generates more business if I want it. But I’ve been sitting on the fence about this. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to sacrifice the time in order to offer my services like before.

Well, I finally decided I will but on a limited basis. My time is limited so I will have to limit my services. Here’s what I’m planning to do at this point. I am offering to set up new websites on the WordPress platform for a flat fee. I will install WordPress, some core plugins–many of which I will talk about in this episode–and I will install and customize a theme for you. I will even design a logo for your site, podcast album art (if you need it), and tweak all of the settings within WordPress, your theme, and the plugins to accommodate your site. I’ll even set up Google Analytics for you.

As I said, I will do that for a flat fee. I haven’t decided what that will be just yet, but I’m thinking somewhere around $250. If that sounds like a lot to you, well, if you were to shop around, you’d see how much lower that is compared to most people offering the same service. Plus, I would be buying a premium theme for your site which will cost somewhere around $50. Now, what I would love to hear from you about is whether or not you think that’s a fair. Would you be willing to spend $250 on a new website? If you have feedback, leave a comment at JeremySarber.com/TechHelp14.

I also want to offer a continual maintenance service from month to month. That is where I will make sure to keep all of your plugins updated and do some of the typical maintenance on the website over time. I probably would only charge something like $5 a month for that. Of course, that would be entirely optional. It would be up to you.

Like I said, my services are going to be somewhat limited. With the continual maintenance plan, I’m not offering to do little tweaks and customizations along the way. We’d have to discuss that when something like that is needed. I’m strictly doing maintenance. Also, I’m not offering my services at this time to businesses. I will only take on projects exclusively for churches, pastors, and various Christian bloggers and podcasters.

One more thing I might as well mention. I will have to be paid up front. I hate to do that, but I’m still owed thousands of dollars from when I did web design full time. Honestly, businesses were the primary culprit. I discovered the bigger the business is, the less likely they were to pay me for my work. I don’t know why, but that’s what happened. Since I’m going to be squeezing extra hours out of my week to do this work, I’ll have to be sure I’m compensated for it.

So, if you have some feedback or you’re already interested in hiring me, leave a comment at JeremySarber.com/TechHelp14 or shoot me an email from the website. I’m also available on Twitter at Twitter.com/jeremysarber.

Alright, ladies and gentlemen, let’s move on to talk about website load times. How important is it that your website loads quickly? Well, last year, Amazon discovered that every second of load time costs them $1.6 billion in sales over the course of a full year. $1.6 billion is a lot of money. But what exactly does that mean?

Every website you visit on your computer or phone takes so many seconds to fully load. The longer it takes, the more likely a person will hit the back button on their browser. Obviously, the faster you can serve the page to a visitor, the better. In the case of Amazon, they have millions of people visiting their site, ready to buy something, but each person is only going to wait so long. So, every second it takes for Amazon to serve their site translates into lost dollars.

But what does that mean for someone who isn’t selling something? Well, the same rule applies. I’m assuming you have a website for a reason. The longer it takes that site to load, the less you are going to accomplish with that site–no matter what you’re trying to accomplish. I’ve talked before about the many studies that have been conducted which show you have less than ten seconds to capture the attention of your visitors. If your site takes all of those ten seconds (or more) just to load, you’ve got a problem.

Recently, I turned to a Christian blogger community on Google+ and asked them to critique my own website. The first thing they pointed out was how long it took my site to load. Keep in mind, I have a fairly minimalist website. I don’t have a lot of sidebar widgets and various things that need to be loaded each time. But I discovered it was taking up to 25 seconds to load my website for new, first-time visitors. That’s well over the 10-second mark.

There’s a free service available online to see exactly how long it takes a first-time visitor to load your site versus a returning visitor. Because of browser caching and things, your returning visitor load time will be a lower number. If a person is coming back for a second time, they should be able to load your site much quicker. You can find this service at WebPageTest.org. Visit their site and simply type in your web address. Give it a minute or two and they’ll give you the results.

The things you’ll want to pay attention to are the load times for first and second views as well as the ratings they’ll give you at the top of the page. Those ratings will give you a better idea of what is slowing down your website. For a more detailed look at what is taking your website the longest to load, they also give what they call a “Waterfall View” which displays the load times for each individual element of your site. In that, you can pinpoint if your site is loading slow because of images or maybe a particular plugin.

When I ran the test for the first time on my site, I found that images were my biggest issue. I have a rather large logo, background graphics, and a few other images that were taking the longest to load. I also discovered a few plugins that were slowing down the site. So, your first step is to run the test and figure out how long your load time is and what is causing it to load slowly–if it is loading slowly. By the way, I also ran the test on a number of different blogs I read and found the average load time was about 20-25 seconds. That’s too slow.

In my case, I knew I had to do something about the images on my site and I had to delete or find faster alternatives to a couple of the plugins I was using. The first plugin I had to delete was Lightbox Plus. That was fine with me because that plugin is used to enlarge images when people click on them, but I don’t really have any pictures on the site that need to be enlarged. So, I just deleted it. Digg Digg was another plugin I had to do something about. It added the social share buttons on the left hand side of the site. I found a faster replacement for it.

So, step number is to run the speed test and determine where some of your problem areas might be on the site. If I were you, I would go ahead and delete any plugin on the site you do not absolutely need. If you have one that is slow-loading but you need to keep it, try some alternative plugins and see if you can get a faster load time.

Keep in mind, if your site is on a shared hosting account–which many of you probably are–your site’s load time is going to fluctuate to some degree. A shared hosting account means your website is saved on the same server as a number of other websites. If, let’s say, one or more them is getting a lot of traffic or serving up large files, it will slow down every website on the server. As a matter of fact, you can see the other sites on your server by going to My-IP-Neighbors.com. That’ll give you a list of every website on the server where your website is hosted.

You could get on a dedicated server, but you are going to pay quite a bit more per month for hosting. Typically, a shared hosting account isn’t going to be a problem and it shouldn’t slow down your site that much. I’m on a shared hosting account and, as of this morning, my site was loading for first-time visitors in less than two seconds. I just wanted to give you a heads-up. If you see some minor fluctuation in load times, that’s probably why.

Once you clean up your plugins and get rid of the ones you don’t need, I would go ahead and run WP-Optimize. It’s a WordPress plugin that will clean up your database and remove old post revisions you don’t need anymore. I would do that before you get into the additional steps I’m now going to tell you about. Also, you might even run the speed test after each step just to see what’s happening with your load time as you go along. That’s not necessary but it might be interesting to see.

Next, I did my research. I learned what those grades meant on the webpage speed test. I figured out which plugins might help in those areas. I installed them and, like I said, dramatically reduced my site’s load time. So, I have four plugins to share with you as well as an additional service which could be used on any website–WordPress or not.

The first plugin is called Use Google Libraries. I’ll try to explain what this does in simple terms. A lot of the script and code on your website is identical to other websites. That makes it redundant when people are using your website’s resources to load any of that script. Installing this plugin makes it so your site doesn’t have to load that content. In short, it speeds up your site. That’s the overly simplified explanation anyway. There’s no set up involved. Simply install and activate it.

The second plugin is called WP Smush.it. This takes every image in your media library and every image you will upload in the future and compresses them. It won’t make a noticeable difference in the quality of your images, but it will make them smaller in terms of file size and force them to load faster. Once you activate this plugin, you’ll have to compress (or “smush”) the images already in your media library. To do that, click the “Smush.it” link under “Media” within your WordPress Dashboard. It’ll take a few minutes to run, but that’s it. New images from that point forward will be automatically compressed.

The third plugin is called Hyper Cache. You may already have a caching plugin like WP Super Cache or maybe W3 Total Cache. Hyper Cache works the same way but I think it’s an easier-to-use plugin than the other two. If you have one of the others already installed and you know how to set them up, you can ignore this suggestion. This is for people who don’t have a caching plugin or don’t have the technical know-how to set one up.

Once you install Hyper Cache, there are a few settings you may want to adjust. I would enable browser caching. I would select all three compression settings. You’ll see what I’m talking about when you have the plugin installed. I would also enable redirect caching and page not found caching. I believe that’s it.

Now, I have one last plugin you might consider using especially if you have a lot of images within the posts on your website. It’s called BJ Lazy Load. What this plugin does is it prohibits images and iframes from loading until the person scrolls to it. So, when someone pulls up your website, it will load what is above the fold–what they can immediately see in their browser–right away. Then, as they scroll down the page, this plugin loads some of the other slower-loading content like images as they come to it. In other words, not everything on the page has to load at the same time so it will load faster.

I would offer a word of warning though. I have discovered that, on occasion, the images don’t load at all. It’s like they try to load but they never do. In my case, I don’t use a lot of images within posts so it’s doesn’t matter all that much. That’s what makes this plugin a bit ironic. The websites who need this the most of websites with a lot of images. But if the images don’t load, what good does it do? Of course, the issues I’m having could be something else altogether. It could happening because I’m using a CDN and there’s some compatibility issues.

Speaking of CDNs, or content delivery networks, they are another possible way to speed up your website. This is an option for anyone whether you’re using WordPress or not. Let me try explain what a CDN does. Your website is hosted on a physical computer or server somewhere. For instance, mine is in Arizona. That means anyone trying to pull up my website is loading it directly from the server in Arizona. The farther they are from Arizona, the longer it’ll take for them to load my website.

A CDN has servers all over the country. They save a cached version of the website–or copies, if you will–on each of their servers. Then, when someone visits the site, the CDN will deliver to them the cached version of the site from the closest server possible. This can shave several seconds off of your website’s load time.

I’m using a CDN called CloudFlare. They’re not the only option out there but that’s who I went with. Just to give you some idea of the difference it’s made, I have two websites which use the exact same theme and plugins. They are virtually identically. I’m using CloudFlare on one but not the other. My site using CloudFlare loads, as I said, in under two seconds for first-time visitors. It is eight seconds for the other. That’s four times slower with a CDN.

However, there is one disadvantage with using something like CloudFlare. You will basically have one more potential fail point. I experienced this first hand the other night. I released an episode of my other podcast, Discovering Grace,  the other morning and it had gained quite a bit of traction within the first few minutes of its release. Later that night, a fairly popular person on Twitter sent out a link to his followers. Right away it was getting retweeted by others.

So, I expected there to be a small rush to my website. I was fooling around on my laptop anyway so I went to that page of my site just to make sure everything was loading properly and that the audio file would play. Low and behold, I couldn’t load the page. I kept getting a 500 Internal Server Error. Of course, that means something is wrong on the server. Now, a flood of traffic can cause those errors, I didn’t really think that was it. Long story short, it was the CloudFlare servers that failed. I got in touch with one of their reps on Twitter and he assured me that kind of thing doesn’t happen very happen. Other than that one night, I’ve not had any problems.

In addition to faster load times, CloudFlare also adds some additional security to your site by not allowing known threats to even access your site. To set up CloudFare, first, you’ll have to sign up on their website. Second, you’ll have to change your domain name servers to the name servers CloudFlare gives you. For that, you’ll have to go to your domain management through your web host like GoDaddy or Bluehost.

As for your CloudFlare settings, I set my security profile to low. I also learned the hard way that hotlink protection should be turned off. Hotlink protection keeps other websites from using your images, but you don’t necessarily want that in all cases. For instance, I have images saved on my website that I use on other sites. As for performance settings, I went with CDN plus full optimizations. You’ll see what I’m talking once you sign up with CloudFlare.

Before I move on, let me give you a heads up. If you pay any attention to your stats–I use Google Analytics for Web stats–you’ll probably notice a drop in visitors to your site if you use CloudFlare. This is because they filter out many of the bots that would normal visit your site. So those numbers may go down, but the numbers you’ll see will more accurately reflect human visitors. I’ve also seen the number of pages per visit go up as well as the time spend on my site.

That’s it. Those are all of the steps I took to reduce my load time from 25 seconds down to under two seconds. It now takes less than half a second for returning visitors to load my website. I’d say that’s a vast improvement. Of course, I’m always thinking about mobile users as well. With just the traffic that comes to my website from Facebook, more people are using a mobile version of Facebook than the Web version. Since websites load slower on phones, it’s a great idea to make our websites as fast as possible. And let’s not forget, Google factors load time into their search equation.

Moving on, let me now give you an updated list of plugins I would recommend you install right out of the gate. I’ve already given you four of them: Smush.it, Use Google Libraries, Hyper Cache, and BJ Lazy Load. I am also using Akismet (which prevents spam comments), BackWPup (which regularly backs up your site), Blubrry PowerPress (which is for audio sermons and podcasts), Twitter Facebook Social Share (which adds those social share buttons on each post), upPrev (which adds the “You might also like…” pop-out box when a person finishes reading a post), User Avatar (which allows each user to have a picture of themselves), WP-Optimize (which cleans up your database), and WP Missed Schedule (which makes sure your scheduled posts actually get published).

For the record, I’m using more plugins than that on my site, but those are the basics. The other plugins I use are for very specific purposes that you may or may not need. Every website is going to be a little different. But that’s the beauty of WordPress. If you can dream it, chances are you can do it. Most of the time, all you need is the right plugin. If you ever get stumped, just ask me and most likely I can find the plugin you need.

One more thing before I wrap up this episode, I had someone ask me about recording Skype calls. You might want to do this on a podcast where you want to co-host or interview someone remotely. For Windows, there’s a free app called Call Graph. For Mac, I’m using an app called Call Recorder for Skype. Unfortunately, it’s about $20 but it’s a great app. I’ll have links to both as well as everything else I’ve talked about today at JeremySarber.com/TechHelp14.

Until next time, I’d love to hear from you. What do you think of the suggested $250 price tag for a website set up? Let me know. Goodbye for now.

Links from this episode

WebPagetest – Website Performance and Optimization Test
http://www.webpagetest.org

MyIPNeighbors Reserve IP Lookup
http://www.my-ip-neighbors.com

Use Google Libraries: A Plugin to Improve Script Loading Performance in WordPress
http://jasonpenney.net/wordpress-plugins/use-google-libraries/

WP Smush.it WordPress plugin
http://dialect.ca/code/wp-smushit/

Hyper Cache
http://www.satollo.net/plugins/hyper-cache

BJ Lazy Load
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/bj-lazy-load/

CloudFlare | The web performance & security company
https://www.cloudflare.com

Akismet | Comment span prevention for your blog
https://akismet.com

BackWPup
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/backwpup/

Blubrry PowerPress Podcasting Plugin
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/powerpress/

Add Twitter, Facebook Like, Google plus one Social share
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/twitter-facebook-google-plusone-share/

upPrev
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/upprev/

User Avatar
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/user-avatar/

WP-Optimize
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-optimize/

WP Missed Schedule Fix Failed Future Posts
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-missed-schedule/

Free Skype Recorder (Windows)
http://scribie.com/free-skype-recorder

Call Recorder for Skype (Mac)
http://www.ecamm.com/mac/callrecorder/

Support the podcast

Ladies and gentlemen, I do this podcast for you. I have no advertisers or sponsors. I don’t make a dime from this show. I just want to share what I know to help you or your church utilize this great technology that’s available to us. If you’d like to help me out, all I ask is that you leave a review in iTunes–even if you don’t use iTunes yourself. Visit JeremySarber.com/TechHelpiniTunes. Thanks for your support.

Virtually every element of minimalism is found in sound Bible doctrine, yet, surprisingly, the trend doesn’t have its roots among Christians.

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Full podcast transcript

“Simplicity, clarity, singleness: These are the attributes that give our lives power and vividness and joy as they are also the marks of great art.” That was said by Richard Holloway, a Scottish writer.

There’s an emerging trend I am seeing more and more of, mostly on, but not limited to, the Internet. It’s an idea, a philosophy, a lifestyle known as minimalism. I don’t know what you think of when you hear that term, minimalism, but most people probably think of having less stuff.  Well, that’s certainly part of it. But there’s more to it than that.

In today’s episode, I not only want to talk about minimalism, I also want to weigh it next to what the Bible teaches. When I first discovered this concept of minimalism, I was immediately drawn to it. But I was also surprised by it. I was surprised because virtually every element of it is found in sound Bible doctrine, yet the trend doesn’t seem to have its roots in the church or among Christians. As a matter of fact, none of the mainstream minimalists I’ve found offer any profession of faith or belief in Jesus Christ. In other words, these very Christian ideas are not coming from Christians.

First of all, I suppose I should try and define minimalism for you. Well, I’ve discovered that everyone seems to have a slightly unique definition with some common themes running through each of them. According to Joshua Becker, of BecomingMinimalist.com, minimalism is “intentionally trying to live with only the things I really need.” I like that definition. But he doesn’t stop there. He goes to better define it using seven points. But I’ll come back to that.

I want to share with you the story of Joshua Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus of theMinimalists.com. Let me add a quick disclaimer though. I first read about Josh and Ryan more than a year ago. So, I’m recalling most of this from memory. I did revisit their website to confirm some of these details, but there’s a chance I might get things a little out of order or simply mess up some of the facts. Regardless, you’ll get the gist of their story.

Josh and Ryan were in their late twenties and they were very successful. While we all might define success in a different way, I don’t think anyone would argue with me saying these guys were successful. At least when it comes to occupational or financial success. They were making $130,000 a year. That’s a lot of money. If you don’t think so, the average American family has a household income of something like $50,000 a year. Keep in mind, that includes families with more than one income. $130,000 is a significant income.

Most of us would think we have it made if we ever got to that point. We think about all of our current expenses and we imagine how much easier it would be each month to meet those expenses if we were making a lot more money. But that line of thinking is flawed. Yes, it would be easier to meet our current expenses if we made more money. But we should also factor in the impulse each of us would have to grow those expenses. If we make a little more money, we can afford a few more things, right?

We all have dreams. Unfortunately, we live in a consumeristic culture where most of our dreams include possessing more or, at the very least, different things. I always joke with my wife that she doesn’t dream big enough. She dreams of one day having a dishwasher. We don’t have one right now. Currently, she’s been dreaming about this living room chair she really wants that we don’t have room for. Her biggest dream is probably having a fireplace. I wouldn’t say she’s dreaming big, but all of these goals involve material things. Of course, my wife is the furtherest thing from materialistic, so I don’t mean to imply that if that’s how it sounds.

My point is that we like stuff. We also think of more money as the equivalent to more convenience–maybe even greater happiness. But that’s not true at all. Perhaps there is no greater example of this than King Solomon of the Bible. He was the richest man in the history of Israel up to that point in time. He had everything a man could want.

Here is what he said about his life in Ecclesiastes 2:4-11…

“I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards: I made me gardens and orchards, and I planted trees in them of all kind of fruits: I made me pools of water, to water therewith the wood that bringeth forth trees: I got me servants and maidens, and had servants born in my house; also I had great possessions of great and small cattle above all that were in Jerusalem before me: I gathered me also silver and gold, and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces: I gat me men singers and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men, as musical instruments, and that of all sorts. So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem: also my wisdom remained with me. And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labour: and this was my portion of all my labour.”

While Solomon did not have the same luxuries as we do today, he had the best of the best in his time. He had power, gold, riches, servants, and even entertainment at the snap of his finger. When you consider quality of life, I’d go as far as to say most of us have it even better than Solomon. He didn’t have a car. He didn’t have electricity. He didn’t didn’t have refrigeration. He didn’t have central heat and air. He didn’t have television, the Internet, or smartphones. Even so, he had it made. He was the guy–much like celebrities today–everyone else wanted to be.

Yet, this is the conclusion Solomon came to concerning his life…

“Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labour that I had laboured to do: and, behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun.”

That’s a little depressing. But it’s also a reality. We will never find satisfaction in material or earthly things. We convince ourselves we can, but it will never happen. Think of a child at Christmas time who finally gets that toy he/she has been wanting. That child is filled with excitement when he unwraps the package to see what he got. But jump ahead a few months in time. There’s a good chance that toy is now collecting dust in the bottom of a closet or a toy box. Maybe the child still plays with it, but not with the same enthusiasm as before. The most telling thing is how that child will be longing for something else altogether next Christmas. We will always want more because there’s no satisfaction to be found in material things.

We have to learn to be content. In Philippians 4:11, Paul wrote, “I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.” Let me put it another way. We should be content no matter how little we have. At the same, we should never be content because of how much we have. In Revelation 3:17, Jesus told the Laodicean church, “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich…”

We should always be content no matter how little we have. But we should never be content because we have so much. Not only will we never find satisfaction in our souls through material things, we have to cautious because material things are actually more prone to be spiritually destructive.

Getting back to the story of Josh and Ryan, they were making a six-figure income at a fairly young age. $130,000 a year is a lot of money. But even that amount of money can be insufficient. It all depends on how much a person spends. Think of it this way. Let’s say Bob earns $50,000 a year and he spends $30,000 a year. Then we have Bill who earns $100,000 a year but spends $100,000 a year. Which man is richer? After the first year, a quick glance at their bank accounts would reveal that Bob, making $50,000 less than Bill, is actually richer.

It’s not just how much money a person makes. We also have to consider how much that person spends. This is especially important if the person spends so much that he/she is actually racking up debt. That is exactly what leads rich celebrities like MC Hammer, Michael Jackson, and Elton John to bankruptcy. You would think they have more money than they could ever spend and it’s continually pouring in by the millions, but they are still spending more than they have.

Josh and Ryan were making $130,000 a year but they were spending $150,000 a year. You don’t have to be good at math to know they were running a deficit which is not sustainable. Not to mention, it’s foolish. Romans 13:8 says, “Owe no man any thing…” That doesn’t mean borrowing money or buying something on credit is altogether forbidden, but racking up debt is not being a good steward of what the Lord has blessed us to have. It should be avoided.

So, they made all of this money but they were spending more than they had. They were caught up in the lifestyle of wealthy corporate types. They had nice homes, fancy cars, and expensive clothes. However, it came at a price. They were driving themselves into debt and they were forced to spend most of their time working. They didn’t fall into this money. They earned it. They worked hard, put in a lot of hours, and dealt with enormous amounts of stress.

Fortunately for them, they quickly wised up. They realized they could not live that way for long nor did they want to. Now, at that time, they weren’t on a quest to become minimalists. They weren’t necessarily seeking some kind of spiritual fulfillment. They were simply looking at their unsustainable lifestyles in a very practical way.

Their top priority was to get out of debt. The only way to get out of debt, of course, is to stop spending money. So, they did. The interesting part of their story is how they went about spending less money. First, they disconnected TV service, Internet, and virtually every other luxury service they were paying for each month. Second, they stopped buying stuff. They made a vow to not spend one dime more than what they absolutely had to for a full year. I mean, they didn’t buy a pack of gum if they did not need it. They didn’t go out to eat. They didn’t buy the new iPhone.

One year later, they were completely out of debt. But it gets even better. They also learned how happy they could be without stuff. Like I said, they didn’t have Internet or cable TV or a number of other common staples in the American household. They were living with even less than most of us, yet they found much more happiness.

After that year, it dawned on them, why not continue that path of minimalism rather than go back to living the way they had been living? To prove their resolve and just how firmly they believed in this new lifestyle, the next step for them was to reduce the headaches and stress of their corporate jobs. In other words, they were so happen with less, they didn’t need to make a six-figure income. In one post on their blog where Josh–I believe it was Josh–wrote about leaving his job, he said, “I changed my spending habits over two years, sold my house, paid off my car, sold stuff I didn’t need, got rid of nearly all my bills (TV, Internet, etc.), moved into a small apartment, and then focused on leaving my job and living a more meaningful life.”

They continued to scale back. They eventually quit their jobs. I believe their entire income now is based on the sales of their books which they’ve admitted is dramatically less than what they made before. But again, they are much happier. They are able to focus on what’s most important to them. They have less pressures and stress. They have more time.

I don’t know how you feel about this, but I find their story to be very inspirational and very attractive. I really wish Brad was with me on this episode because I’d probably hear a resounding amen right about now. By the way, there will likely be several episodes where I’m flying solo because of scheduling conflicts between us. I can record during the day and he can only record in the evenings. But we’ll still work out times when we can to produce the show together.

Anyway, there are so many aspects to minimalism that go beyond just material things or money. I want to go back to what Joshua Becker wrote on BecomingMinimalist.com. He describes minimalism in seven parts though I only want to focus on five of them. First, he says, “[Minimalism] is marked by clarity, purpose, and intentionality. At its core, minimalism is the intentional promotion of the things we most value and the removal of everything that distracts us from it. It is a life that forces intentionality. And as a result, it forces improvements in almost all aspects of your life.”

As I said before, this developing trend of minimalism seems to be happening apart from the church and in the secular realm. It’s surprising because so much of what minimalism seems to be has roots in scripture. But, of course, that kind of thing does happen. Romans 2:14 tells us, “For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts…” Believe it or not, the written Word of God is not required for someone born of the Spirit to practice the things contained in the Word of God. That is because God places the truth in the hearts of his people.

Becker here is really talking about focus. What is our lives focused on? For the believer, the answer to that question should be Christ. However, we all have a great number of distractions. As a matter of fact, some of the greatest things we’ve been blessed with in our lives serve as distractions. For example, our families are distractions. Our families are a blessing from God, but they also distract us from what is most important.

Let me show you what I mean in 1 Corinthians 7. Paul began the chapter by writing, “Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me…” In this chapter, Paul addressed a number of questions that had apparently been asked of him by believers in the Corinthian church. Most of these questions related to marriage. I’m a believer but my spouse is not so should I stay married this person? I’m an unmarried believer so should I get married or should I abstain?
 
Interestingly enough, Paul told the unmarried to stay unmarried if at all possible. Doesn’t that contradict everything else we know about marriage going all the way back to Genesis? In Genesis 2:18, God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.” God said man shouldn’t be without the companionship of a wife, yet Paul said it’d be better if we abstain from marriage.

For the record, there’s no contradiction here. After all, Paul did write, “If [the unmarried] cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn.” Marriage is still an option. We’re not forbidden from ever getting married. In fact, Paul described the ability to abstain from marriage as a gift. He wrote, “For I would that all men were even as I myself [that is, unmarried]. But every man hath his proper gift of God…” Not everyone has that gift. Most of us desire companionship which is perfectly natural.

So, why would Paul tell the unmarried, the widows, and the virgins–those have never been married–to avoid marriage if possible? The answer to that is found in 1 Corinthians 7:32 where Paul said, “He that is unmarried careth for the things that belong to the Lord, how he may please the Lord: But he that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife.” Husbands, it’s okay to please your wives. However, our first priority is always going to be pleasing the Lord–at least it should be.

Virtually anything in this life–no matter how good it is–can potentially be a distraction for us. I believe that’s the point Paul was making in his letter. As this relates to minimalism, minimalism is not solely about getting rid of stuff. It’s about getting rid of distractions which can often include stuff. The goal is to determine what is most important in your life and get rid of or, at the very least, minimize anything and everything that distracts you from what is most important.

Briefly, I want to point out something else Paul wrote in that chapter. He said, “Brethren, the time is short: it remaineth, that both they that have wives be as though they had none; And they that weep, as though they wept not; and they that rejoice, as though they rejoiced not; and they that buy, as though they possessed not; And they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world passeth away.”

How much difference does it make whether you’re married or single in the grand scheme of eternity? It matters very little, it would seem. This is interesting. On one hand, the time is short so what happens in our lives here on this Earth is insignificant. On the other hand, having a limited amount of something typically makes it more valuable. To reconcile this apparent paradox, the time we have on Earth is made significant when we spend that time wisely. That is why Jesus said, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven…”

By addressing our focus–which should be Christ–and intentionally shaping our lives to reflect that focus, we effectively turn the insignificance of time into significance.  It is the shaping of our lives where this minimalist philosophy comes in. It’s all about removing distractions, one at a time.

To give you an example from my own life–by the way, I’m nowhere near what I would call a minimalist at this point–I’ve been trying to simplify my daily workflow. As the pastor of a church, I am constantly studying the Bible. That is where most of my time is spent. Several months ago, I started to notice how much better my concentration is when my office is clean and without clutter. But as the days progress, my office would get messier and messier. I’d have books all over the desk, papers, notes, and all kinds of things. Then I decided enough’s enough and I went almost entirely digital. I do everything on a computer now. That’s where I keep my notes and that’s where I do my reading.

The result has been phenomenal. I focus better. I get more done. In fact, I continue to minimize things more and more. I moved from a rather large office to a smaller one–both outside of the church. Now, I’m considering moving my entire operation to a place in the church where I’ll have virtually no space at all. At least, not a personal space like my office now.

With each step, I’m actually freeing myself from stuff. I’ve been giving away books left and right. I’ve been throwing out or selling my furniture. Beyond the material things, I’ve become more and more comfortable with turning off notifications on my laptop and phone. Turning off new email and other notifications can be tough. But it also means fewer distractions. Do I really need to see every email as soon as it gets to my inbox? Probably not.

Liberating is the word I would use. It’s liberating. Another word that comes to mind is refreshing. But another interesting thing about this is how it is shaping my perspective. For instance, I’ve always been prone to have the TV on when I’m at home. I might not be paying attention to it, but I’ll have it on anyway. This past summer, my wife and I cancelled our satellite service. I don’t miss it at all. In the past few weeks, I’ve even found myself watching it–usually something on Netflix–but not enjoying it. I’ve always known most of TV-watching was a waste of time, but it’s starting to feel like a waste of time, if you know what I mean.

I might be getting ahead of myself. To quote Joshua Becker again, he wrote, “Modern culture has bought into the lie that the good life is found in accumulating things–in possessing as much as possible. They believe that more is better and have inadvertently subscribed to the idea that happiness can be purchased at a department store. But they are wrong. Minimalism brings freedom from the all-consuming passion to possess. It steps off the treadmill of consumerism and dares to seek happiness elsewhere.”

In that he obviously addresses materialism. That’s the stuff that “moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal.” While having less stuff is the very basics of minimalism, let’s not underestimate how difficult it is to give up stuff and consume less. We read a story in Luke 18 of rich guy who had a really tough time with this. He asked Jesus how he might inherit eternal life. Something that is commonly missed in this passage because it’s not explicitly addressed is that eternal life cannot be inherited through human works.

When the man asked about getting eternal life, Jesus answered, “Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.” That’s the law of God. Of course, we are told elsewhere that keeping the law is not how we are saved from our sins. Jesus knew whether this man had eternal life or not. Jesus was simply instructing him on how to live like one who does have eternal life.

Well, what does that look like? First, you avoid doing those things God has told us not to do. For instance, don’t covet. Don’t steal. Second, we have to do what God has told us we should be doing. For instance, Jesus told the man, “Sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.” The Bible narrative then says the man walked away very sorrowful. It’s one thing to avoid sin and another to do good works.

It’s hard to let go of material possessions because so many of these things bring us pleasure–as temporary as that pleasure may be. Plus, it requires we combat our nature. It’s not as simple as making a choice. We’re essentially at war with our own flesh. It’s hard which explains the imagery in Luke 9:23 when Jesus said, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily…” Shifting our focus and our lives from earthly things to spiritual things is the equivalent of carrying a cross to your own crucifixion. Discipleship isn’t easy but it is eternally rewarding.

I won’t spend a lot of time on this point, but let me read some more of Becker’s description of minimalism:

“Although nobody intentionally chooses it, most people live in duplicity. They live one life around their family, one life around their co-workers, and another life around their neighbors. The lifestyle they have chosen requires them to portray a certain external image dependant upon their circumstances. They are tossed and turned by the most recent advertising campaign or the demands of their employer. On the other hand, a simple life is united and consistent. It has learned a lifestyle that is completely transferable no matter the situation. It is the same life on Friday evening as it is on Sunday morning as it is on Monday morning. It is reliable, dependable and unfluctuating. It works in all circumstances.”

The only thing I want to say about this is that it very much describes the type of genuine person every Christian disciple should be. If we want to simply our lives, we should be genuine. Imagine a person who is constantly lying. They have to lie more and more just to cover up their former lies. It quickly makes things very complicated. The same is true for someone who changes their personality in different environments or for the sake of different people.

There’s a reason I don’t use the term Christian nearly as often as I do disciple. When most people think of a Christian, they think of someone who goes to church–maybe not even that. Disciple has a different connotation in most people’s minds. When I hear the word disciple I think genuine follower of Christ. When I hear the word Christian I think generically of someone who lays claim to Christ but doesn’t necessary reflect it. They may be at church on Sunday morning, but there’s very little evidence of their faith anywhere else in their lives.

Moving on, I love this line from Becker. He wrote, “While most people are chasing after success, glamour, and fame, minimalism calls out to us with a smaller, quieter, calmer voice. It invites us to slow down, consume less, but enjoy more.” Honestly, you could replace the word minimalism in that statement with God and it would perfectly harmonize with the Bible. As God’s children, we are called out of the typical lifestyle lived by the world.

Romans 12:2 says, “Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” As believers and discipleships of Christ, we’re not supposed to be like everyone else. Peter described us as a “peculiar people.” We should be a counter-culture. That doesn’t mean we have to be so strange that everyone avoids. It just means our focus is different so our lives are going to be different. Jesus said, “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good” and vice versa. If our hearts are in heaven, our lives will reflect that.

As a matter of fact, that’s the last point Joshua Becker made in defining minimalism on his website. He said “I have learned that minimalism is always a matter of the heart.” He said that to express how minimalism is more than bodily exercise, to use biblical terminology. Ultimately, it’s a shift in priorities and focus.

While minimalism might be nothing more than a fad to some people, I’m actually encouraged to see this increasingly popular trend. Perhaps more of us in the church need to jump on the bandwagon. We have been living lives of excess. We’ve been in line with everyone else on Black Friday to get great deals on more stuff we probably don’t need. We likely spend as much time in front of the television or on our smartphones as anyone. We consume ourselves with work and worry in order to maintain a standard of living above and beyond what we need to truly be happy. We even rob our families of our time because we feel like we’ve got to get a few more items on the to-do list done before the day’s over.

We’re not here for very long. This place isn’t our home. We’re just passing through. There will be no iPads in heaven. There will be no expensive SUVs or sports cars. There will be no Starbucks. There will be no Facebook. There will be no political elections, no football games, no shopping, no meals to prepare or eat, no houses to clean or cars to wash, or any other thing which might currently consume our lives. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with any of these things so long as they are kept in the right place on our priority lists.

What will be in heaven is our family in Christ and Christ himself.

Ladies and gentlemen, that’s it for today’s episode. If you want to learn how you can support Discovering Grace and this ministry, stay tuned. I’ll explain how in just a moment. Links to some of the things I’ve read today can be found at JeremySarber.com/DiscoveringGrace14. Until next time, may God continue bless.

Links from this episode

What is Minimalism? | Becoming Minimalist
http://www.becomingminimalist.com/what-is-minimalism/

About Josh & Ryan | The Minimalists
http://www.theminimalists.com/about/

Making Money as a Writer Is a Curious Thing | The Minimalists
http://www.theminimalists.com/writing-money/

Support the podcast

The Internet is a remarkable tool that allows us to communicate with virtually anyone anywhere at anytime. It allows a nobody like myself to share the gospel and biblical teaching with thousands of people around the world. While I wish it were millions, I’ll take what I can get. Actually, that’s where you can help.

If you have a desire to support Discovering Grace, I have a motto: Give through sharing. Give through feedback. Give through giving. 

Give through sharing is easy. All you have to do is share the podcast or the website with your friends and neighbors. Maybe you’ve heard or read something in particular you believe would be edifying to someone you know. Send them a link. There are social share buttons for sites like Facebook and Twitter on each page of the website at JeremySarber.com. You could click one of them and share that way. Or, simply email a link to whoever you want.

Give through feedback is how I learn from you. I’m always encouraged to hear from readers and listens. I’ve developed many great friendships that way. Send me an email with your comments and questions. You can also leave a comment beneath any essay or podcast episode you find on the site. Last but not least, you can let me know you what you think by leaving a review of Discovering Grace in iTunes. Visit JeremySarber.com/DiscoveringGraceiniTunes.

Give through giving is always very much appreciated. Thanks to your generous contributions, my expenses were cut nearly in half last year. I spent approximately $2,500 and you gave more than $1,000. So, thank you. If you’d like to support this ministry through giving, visit JeremySarber.com/Donate.

In this episode, the last WordPress theme you’ll need, easy management of multiple websites, a blogging app, and one useful writing tip.

In this episode of Tech Help for Churches:

1. A clean and responsive WordPress theme with plenty of options (but looks good out of the box).
2. A WordPress “plugin” to manage multiple websites with convenience.
3. Blogging applications to write and publish posts while never losing your work to browser crashes.
4. A simple tip when writing for the Web (or anywhere else).

The last WordPress theme you’ll ever need

I have tried tens–nay–hundreds of WordPress themes. They have ranged from free themes to premium themes costing up to $100. Never before have I found a theme I enjoyed so much.

My criteria for a good theme:

1. Works (and looks good) right out of the box.
2. Clean and relatively minimal design.
3. Simple options for customization on the back-end:
   1. Logo upload.
   2. Favorites’ icon upload.
   3. Sidebar adjustment.
   4. Choose colors (if the theme is not neutral).
4. Responsive layout.
5. Removes the need for additional plugins.

Standard Theme has all of this and more. It looks great from the start but does allow for some customization on the back-end. The options include:

1. Feedburner URL
2. Google Analytics code
3. Maintenance (offline) mode
4. Custom logo
5. Favorites’ icon
6. Left, right, or no sidebar
7. Breadcrumbs on/off
8. Featured images on/off
9. Social icons and links
10. Author box on/off

For those looking for even more customization options (assuming you know CSS), a child theme is available for free. It includes a custom functions file as well as a custom stylesheet.

See customized versions in action at Dustn.tv, 8bit.io, MichaelHyatt.com, and AngierChurch.com.

Give the demo a test run and purchase Standard Theme at http://jeremysarber.com/standardtheme

An easy way to manage multiple WordPress sites

I manage two different websites: my church’s website and my own. Plus, I often help other churches, pastors, and individuals update plugins and do various tasks on their websites. It’s a bit tedious at times, especially when I go from one site to the next to update the same plugins on each of them.

InfiniteWP is the answer. It’s not a WordPress plugin, but it’s something like that. Once you manually upload it via FTP to one of your websites, you then have access to all of your sites from one place.

Here’s how to set it up:

1. Visit InfiniteWP.com
2. Enter your email address on the homepage and click, Send my download link.
3. When the email arrives, download it.
4. Upload the file to one of your websites through an FTP client like Filezilla.
5. Change the name of the folder you uploaded to something simple (ex. yoursite.com/dashboard).
6. Visit that directory (ex. yoursite.com/dashboard) in your browser.
7. Follow the installation process and fill out your database credentials.
8. Log into your new InfiniteWP administration screen.
9. Install the InfiniteWP Client plugin on every site you want to manage.
10. Once activated, copy and paste the Activation Key into the InfiniteWP administration screen.

Blogging apps to write even when offline

Last week, I lost my last blog post due to a browser crash. At least, that was the vow I made to myself. Even though WordPress has a built-in autosave feature, it does not save often enough and is far from perfect. My first thought was to find a plugin that would autosave more often. I came up short.

I have known about blogging applications for a while, but never wanted to spend the money to purchase one. However, I finally gave in and bought myself MarsEdit 3 for Mac (also available in the Mac store).

I’ve only been using the app for about a week, but I love it. First, it saves what I’m typing to my personal computer. Even if my laptop crashes, it automatically recovers every word I wrote. Second, I am able to format the “post edit” screen to mirror the font and style of my website’s front-end. As I’m typing a new post, I know exactly what it will look like when published.

There are only two downsides I’ve found so far. First, the app does not support featured images. Second, I cannot include extra options like podcast episode details from the app.

Of course, the price tag might be a big deterrent for many. It was for me. It’ll cost you $40.

I have never used a blogging application for Windows, but Windows Live Writer supports WordPress.

Who exactly are you writing for?

For those writing articles, essays, or blog posts for the Web, who are you writing for? Most of us want to reach as many people as possible. Unfortunately, writing for everyone translates to writing for no one.

Instead, pick a person–I mean, one very specific person–and write whatever you’re writing for just that person. Believe it or not, what you write will be more compelling and enjoyed by even more people.

But don’t take my word for it. Try it for yourself and let me know the results.

Is there room in our theological boxes for genuine discipleship? Has the contemporary church become more about “church” than Jesus Christ?

Pecan-free pecan pie?

Imagine a scenario where so-called experts appear on television to warn the world that the harvesting of pecans is destroying the environment. Perhaps others claim that pecans are especially fattening and their consumption shortens our lifespans. They begin touting a new and better pecan-free pecan pie.

After a few celebrity endorsements, pecan-free pecan pie becomes all the rage. But what if your great-grandmother returned from the wonderful kitchen beyond and saw this new fad. She would likely take one look at it and plainly state, “That is not pecan pie.”

This is an apt analogy made by Michael Spencer, author of Mere Churchianity (not to be confused with Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis), to describe what has happened in the contemporary church. The single most important ingredient in the church–Christ–has been systematically removed.

It’s happened before

While standing in the temple, the Pharisees confronted Jesus with accusations. Namely, they believed him to be liar (John 8:13). His response was masterfully crafted and spoken with eloquence (John 8:14-29). It even produced a few new believers (John 8:30). But the Pharisees were not ready to concede.

Even though Jesus turned his attention to the new believers, the Pharisees remained within earshot, ready to argue some more (John 8:31-33). The point Jesus tried to make was simple: He was the Son of God (John 8:35-36). It was a claim utterly rejected by the Pharisees which they found insulting (John 8:41).

Things turned ugly when Jesus rightfully called the Pharisees children of the devil (John 8:44). They immediately retorted with essentially the same allegation to him (John 8:48). They were not about to admit their faults. Rather, they drove Jesus out of the temple, threatening to stone him (John 8:59).

God (in the flesh) was literally removed from a building designated for the worship of God.

Are we doing the same thing?

The Pharisees believed they were upholding the truth. They believed they were defending God. But they were wrong. They were blind to their errors and failed to see how their customs and doctrinal creeds were contrary to the true will of God. Most importantly, they had no room in their theological box for Christ.

Today, Christian pastors preach sermons dedicated to living a more successful and abundant life. A Sunday morning discourse may make brief mention of Jesus, but the congregation gets only a sprinkle of pecans. A religion built entirely on Christ has shifted to become a religion built on “church”.

The typical Christian person follows a limited checklist to prove their “holiness” (go to church on Sunday, pray before meals, etc.) with little regard to the kind of discipleship shown by Jesus. Grace and love towards those wayward sheep outside of our cliques is virtually non-existant.

To hear the full discussion, click the “Play” button above. Michael Spencer’s book is available through Amazon. New paperback copies are listed for less than $2.00.