One of my father's favorite past times was fishing. In fact, if he had it his way I believe he would have made it his past time, present time, and future time. Besides his grandkids and wife, I think fishing was exceptionally high on his list of passions.
Fishing was far too slow to grab my attention. When I first got in to kayaking, it took me a hot minute to understand who in their right mind would intentionally get out into the open waters with anything that wasn't motorized. I have to admit, kayaking has now become a place to escape to, and place of solitude often times providing dividends of recentering and deep connection with God.
Fishing was this place for my father. For those of you anglers who may read this, let me just say I understand how the feeling of locking on to a 5lb bass or a 20lb king salmon, the energy that stirs from within that water through the line into the rod and reel can create a sensation to continue to chase after such a high. It really is an apex of peace and excitement wrapped into an experience that can happen on a muti-million dollar yacht in the Maldives or at the end of a twig furnished with string and pieces of corn along the banks of the muckiest of rivers.
Often times, as an angler you begin to be able to "read" your catch. The nibble, the tug, the movement that happens seconds before you thrust back on the rod sets the stage that a seasoned fisherman with know how well how to read. The fish is either locked on the the hook or it isn't. When everything falls in to place the way it should, we may even hear "that fish took the bait hook, line, and sinker"! It was a done deal the moment the hook was set. Simply stated, this phrase signifies a done deal, a guarantee.
Many theologies have come out of the Bible. If you know Jesus, if you would consider yourself a follower of Jesus, allegiant to God and his kingdom, maybe you've gotten lost in different theologies over the years. In all fairness, maybe you were taught something that seemed off, but you decided to believe it because you wanted to be faithful to your church, your pastor, or priest. You wanted to be humble and admit that some of those around you certainly seemed to know more about the Bible and you submitted to their teachings.
Humble submission is honorable position to take, but at the end of the day, there is one God, one cannon of Scripture, and one author of life. I'm sorry to break the news, but unbeknownst to many, we are not him. God is willing to wrestle though dynamics, but his bylaws cannot be changed. Not by us and certainly not by him. They simply cannot. He would himself be made out to be a liar, his character would change, and the entire whole of creation would implode. He is our rock and his word will never change.
Matthew 24:35. Heaven and Earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
When it comes to the "Roman Road" I have recently experience a "hook, line, and sinker" moment. If you are an evangelical christian, you know exactly what I'm talking about. I had a dear friend come and say "I have nothing left, I've tried to do life on my own, I've made selfish decisions, I need saving, I want to follow Jesus". In the modern day, evangelical world, this is as good as it gets. This is the pinacle. This is what we all pray for. We are not the harvester, but we get to witness the harvest of a soul, the rapture out of what inevitably would have been a forever torture in the lake of fire, burning in hell for all of eternity.
I have experienced many of these moments, but not one quite as "easy". This was a slam dunk of what I had been taught. This dear friend lived out Romans 10:9-10 on his own. If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved." Boom!!
hook, line, and sinker, hell lost, heaven won, and another name got written in the Book of Life. Maybe...
As I was listening, I knew what to say, I knew how to help him pray, but I was reluctant.
Something was stirring in me to not downplay the beauty of this moment only to get legalistic. It felt as though I was making sure all the right things were said so that the spiritual ticket could be punched. I look back over the years and lement on how I have fostured salvation moments for people only to brag about salvation stories. It became almost a game. It feels gross to even write it.
I believe entirely in the whole of the Bible, but I have also learned to not believe everything that is said about scripture without putting in the work to understand and to use proper hermeneutics and exegesis as a way to honor God and the power of his living word. He deserves that, and humility tells me I need that.
I fully believe what Paul wrote in the Roman letter about salvation is true, but I also believe it's a lot more than that. God wants to form a tap root in us, not simply a root system. Roots are good, but horizontal roots grab on to many different elements to sustain it's structure. A tap root is first established vertically, before ever reaching out horizontally.
"We unknowingly forfeit so much life by making our own root systems."
Adam and Eve tried the horizontal root system, but Jesus showed us how to sustain life eternally by being connected to a tap root.
The call placed on humanity was to be life givers and live as life bearers, to help complete the whole of creation that began in Eden. To bring forth life in all we do. Admittedly, we live lives that often look far from being full of life and love. Should we expect less results than that if we live subject to doing things they way of our selfish culture or seeking to satisfy our own lusts and desires?
https://youtu.be/YbipxLDtY8c?si=fdJ-UPyKUwsDAFLM
Sin does a number on us. It changes who we are from the inside out. It distorts our vision, is severs our hearts, and it damages all those around us. It is simply awful, and God knows your fragile frame cannot bear the weight of it. We were never designed to carry to result of sin. The profound good news is that we are not subject to it anymore if we so choose. What Jesus did on the cross, and arguably even more importantly what was accomplished when he was risen from the dead provided dividends that are beyond our comprehension. However, we still find ourselves in a "what's in it for me" culture.
"By making eternity the end goal, we have created our own gospel"
I knew that God was after the heart of this man. I'm after the heart of my children constantly regardless of what they've done, but I knew it was much more than checking boxes. Believe me, no one needed to remind this man of his sin. He came because he knew there was no life that was being produced within him and he admitted he was missing something.
God wants your heart, ALL of it. We simply cannot be connected to God without a taproot. He is committed to us and our source of life is only found in a loving commitment to him. It's the coming in to his presence that changes everything. It's a coming back, a coming home, but could eternity be the bonus, the icing on the cake, but only a small portion of gospel? The gospel, the good news, declares the restoration from our brokenness back in to our original design of bringing forth live through love coming from the source of life, Jesus Christ. Through his blood, we have been spiritually cleansed, placing us back in the sacred space of his presence. It's crazy good news, but sadly much of our motives, mine included, have been to preach a fire insurance message, and not a restorative message.
"Say yes to Jesus or spend eternity burning in hell"
Friend, you are designed to be fruitful and multiply God's goodness and love in and through this world. Your far more than a number or a salvation story. You can be directly connected to a God who still today is expanding our cosmos. He is still bringing forth life in everything he does. Maybe you've experienced a hook, line, and sinker type salvation. Maybe you're still motivated to simply make heaven crowded. I'm not saying that's not necessary. Lord knows we need saving. I would simply say, don't sell God short.
Don't simply believe the first thing you hear.
God is worth more than that.
Give God the credibility that seeking after more of him and an understanding of His word has the potential and power to change the entire way to you see the purpose of your existence both here and now.
The opportunity to be covenantly committed to God still stands for you today as it did for Adam and Eve, but let us also look at the results of Adams life and Jesus life.
He wants our life, hook, line, and sinker. All of us, for all of him. You are far more than a busted up, pile of sinning flesh. You were created in the image of the one who breathes forth life with just one word. I pray today you simply as God what you may be missing.
He knows your lostness, he knows your brokenness and laments over the destruction of sin in our lives, but we also have witnessed a tomb that no longer houses a dead body. Even death is powerless to the love of God. Saying yes to Jesus is a profound moment that can change our lives for eternity, but it's also just the beginning of the lighting of a lamp. It's time to fill it up with oil, and begin to live lives that can truly have an impact of this world that God so loves.
I still believe big for what can happen if each of those committed to following Jesus woke up each morning seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit, sought out opportunities to bring forth life in everything that we set our hands to. We may once again see God's design for the church experiencing harvests so abundant, we wouldn't have spaces left in our worship circles.
"The harvest is plenty, but the workers are few"-Jesus of Nazareth
