God Is Great!




Today is the day we find out what the Dollar Tree bonus will be for fiscal year 2010. With the recession, Dollar Tree Stores have done very well. We even bought out a Canadian store chain and relocated a distribution center from UT to southern CA. God has blessed DTS in 2010. I was looking forward to seeing how good our bonus would be this year. I had an amount in my head but when my supervisor showed me the amount, I was stocked; I was almost speechless and that’s saying a lot for a preacher. I’m looking forward to writing the tithe check this Sunday. DTS has been very good to me and my family over the 12 years I’ve been here. God always provides for our every need; even the needs we are unaware of.

When Teresa was part of the group downsized from QVC in 2008, I knew God would provide for us. And when Teresa wanted to stay home after Ripley was born in 2009, I knew God would continue to take care of us and He has in so many ways. DTS pays our billings with a little leftover. God has enabled us to have Teresa stay home with Ripley during the day; Teresa is our part-time Administration Assistant at Common Ground which she does at the house and she works Monday and Wednesday evenings at TCC as a business professor which allows me to have some “Daddy Time” with Ripley. We are not lacking in anything; our cars may not be new (my truck is 10years old and Teresa’s car is 5 years old), we might buy Ripley’s clothes through yard sales and thrift stores, and we clip coupons, but God is taking care of us. We are so blessed and our God is so awesome.

Missed it by That Much


My dad’s youngest brother has been in the ministry as long as I can remember; at least 35 – 40 years. When I was teenage preacher boy, he and I would talk about colleges and what type of degree I should earn. He shared with me that before he entered college, he lead music for the church the family was attending so he had experience and a love for music but he was missing something. Uncle Ricky shared that during his first year in college, he heard Matthew 7:22-23 preached in a chapel service. The passage says, “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” The Holy Spirit showed my uncle that he was doing what he thought he should but he never had accepted Jesus as his Savior. He got saved during his first year of Bible College. I’ve known several people during my 4 years of Bible College who entered lost thinking they were saved but realized they were lost. I’ve heard it said that some people will miss heaven by 18 inches; they have a head knowledge of Jesus but never accepted Him into their hearts.

In the old T.V. show “Get Smart,” the titled character Maxwell Smart would say “I missed it by that much.” whenever he failed to do or reach something. It’s sad but true; some people (even church members) will say in the Day of Judgment, “I missed it by that much.” The Bible is clear that anything but accepting what Jesus Christ on the cross to save us will be too short to enter heaven. Some people are trusting in church membership, good works, philosophy, or anything else but Jesus to get to heaven. These man made bridges to God all fall short. The graphic to the right shows a good illustration of man trying to get to God on their own and falling short.

I want to make it clear that there is a way to God, but it is through the person of Jesus Christ. Mankind can achieve happiness and fulfillment through Jesus Christ and by nothing else. If you are reading this post and wonder what you can do to find true joy and know for sure you are heading to heaven after death, take a look at the Bible passages below.

Everyone has displeased God; we are all sinners; Romans 3:23, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."

There are consequences for our sin; Romans 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." That last half of this verse shows there is hope in Jesus Christ.

Jesus’ death on the cross provides a way out of sin; Romans 5:8, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

Salvation is asking and accepting God’s forgiveness through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross; Romans 10:9, "that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."

Ripley Anne; AKA Sunshine

Being a first time father, I never get tired of talking about my little girl. She is just amazing. Tomorrow, she will be 16 months old and she is a blessing from God. I’ve never shared why I call Ripley, Sunshine. I wanted to have a nickname for her ever since I knew she was coming. I didn’t want to use princess or pumpkin. When she arrived at 4:03pm on November 23, 2009 I knew her nickname right off; Sunshine. She lights up the room (any room) when she is in it. I enjoy singing all the songs with sunshine in them to her. I found out a few months after her birth that Teresa’s late father used to call Teresa Sunshine. That is according to Teresa’s mother. Teresa never really knew her father; he was killed in a coalmining accident when she was just 4 years old. I think me calling Ripley Sunshine make’s my mother-in-law happy.

Since Teresa teaches business courses at a local community college on Monday and Wednesday evenings, I get to have some daddy time (what I call it when it’s just me and Ripley). On Mondays, Teresa teaches two classes so she is out until 10pm so it’s just me and Ripley from 4:30pm to 10pm. Normally on Mondays, we have dinner, watch “So My Baby Can Read,” and either listen to music so Ripley can dance around the living room or we just watch a little TV. Yesterday was a little different; Ripley was content to just play with her books. Ripley enjoys looking at books more than playing with her toys. Since she was happy playing by herself, I cleaned the kitchen. While cleaning the kitchen, Mr. Mom popped out so I decided to put together Tuesday’s dinner and bake some cookies.

Before Ripley, Teresa was a manager at a local distribution center for a major company so I would get home first and cook dinner. Since Teresa was laid-off and then the arrival of Ripley, Teresa does the majority of the cooking. I cook on Saturdays and Sundays, but I thought it would be nice for Teresa not to have to think about what to cook for tonight. While I was putting together the Mexican layered dish (we have no name for it) we like and baking the sugar cookies (my favorite cookie by the way), Ripley noticed I wasn’t in the living room. Our kitchen is right beside the living room divided only by a counter so I could see her but she couldn’t see me. I was just about done when I heard a little voice laughing behind me. I turned and saw Ripley looking in the open pastry and refrigerator. That little girl had worked on the fencing we have to keep her in the living room enough to make a big enough gap to get out of the living room and walked around through our dinning room into the kitchen. I had to laugh. I picked her up before she made it to the oven where the cookies were baking. The door was too hot for little hands to touch.

While I held her, I kissed her little face and neck which makes her squeal because of my beard. I told her that daddy was almost one and that I would be over shortly. Of course that didn’t work. She kept trying escape; the girl has no fear. I finished putting together dinner and took the cookies out and relaxed with Ripley on my lap as I fed her the snack she loves the most; yogurt. After her snack, we watched the news. She was so tired by 7pm, it didn’t take long at all for her to fall asleep.

I love my little ray of Sunshine so much. I pray daily that God will draw her to Himself at an early age so she can serve Him all her days. As I said before, I am so blessed to have Ripley in my life.

Self-Righteousness


I go to the local YMCA everyday at lunch to either swim, lift weights, or run on the treadmill. The treadmills are located in front of 4 TVs. Nine times out of ten; these TVs are set on ESPN, TNT channel, Fox News, or ABC channel. If I remember my ear phones, I watch Fox News while I run. Beside that TV is the one with ABC and on that channel during my lunch hour is “The View.” I cannot stand that show. One time I was waiting for my truck to be inspected and the waiting room had that on. I was stuck for an hour with this on and I thought I was going to go insane. The name says it all; they have one view and they will scram it down your throat and if you don’t see things their way, you’re stupid.

I read an article last month that for a week, “The View” had people who were famous for the wrong reasons on. One of the people that was on was Jessica Hahn. If you are unaware of who Jessica Hahn is, she was the secretary for Jim Bakker and he had an affair with her in the 1980’s. She came out and said she was a 21-year-old church secretary; she was drugged and raped by Bakker and another preacher, John Wesley Fletcher. Later in the 1980’s she became a sex symbol and did rock videos. Barbara Walters tore into her asking if she felt ashamed of what she did. According to the article I read, Ms. Hahn actually pushed back on Ms. Walters asking if she felt shame for the affair she had with a married man in the 1970’s. You see according to Barbara Walters’ auto-biography, she admits to having a long-time affair with a then married Congressman. After Ms. Hahn’s question, Ms. Walters did not ask another question; the other hens asked the questions.

This is a perfect example of self-righteousness. People will compare themselves to other people to try and make it seem they are alright in their sin. If a person is guilty of spreading gossip, they might compare themselves to a drug addict. In their eyes, doing drugs is far worse than spreading gossip. That is a lie out of hell. There is no degree of sin. You see sin is sin is sin. A “little white lie” is the same as murder in God’s eyes. If you need to make yourself feel better about your sin, you can always compare yourself with someone whose sin is worse but you are still a sinner. You see when we stand before God at the Judgment Seat, God will not compare us to others; He will compare us to His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the standard (or measuring rod) in which we will be compared. When we compare ourselves to Jesus Christ, we all fall short (Romans 3:23 - for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God).

No one can ever be righteous on their own (Romans 3:10 & 11– “As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one; There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God.). It is only by God’s grace that He offers us an opportunity to trust in Him and accept the gift that Jesus Christ did on the cross. Once we are His children, we have His righteousness and He no longer sees our sins. It’s not anything we have done to earn it; it is a free gift.

An Observation

I like to observe people and wonder who they are by seeing how they treat others around them. My parents are what I call people watchers. They enjoy sitting and watching people. I guess that’s where I get it from. I’ve noticed something at work that goes against what used to be the norm for our area. I live in Virginia and here people used to look each other in the eye and say hello or at least acknowledge you are near them. That’s the assumption that is made about the south; it’s the culture. It’s not the case anymore.

The last few weeks I’ve been going through a communication workshop. When all is said and done, I will have sat for 12 hours (4 3 hour sessions) learning the skill of communication and listening; I’m actually enjoying the workshop. The first 3 hour session we went over basic communication including the process of communicating. We discussed one component to the process; the filter. Our filters are not the same; they impact how we communicate. Filters are as unique as a figure print. Filters are preconceived notions or beliefs we have based on our heredity, culture, religion, gender, and the list can go on and on. As a group, we discussed the types of filters and the filter of culture was brought up. An assumption was made that the culture of New York City is that no one makes eye contact because of the business of the city (a transplanted New Yorker in the group agreed with that assumption) and that in the South, it was different; people are a bit more approachable. I think that concept has changed; at least in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia.

As an observer, I’ve noticed over the last year that almost no one makes eye contact in the hallways at work. People either look at the floor as they walk by you or at the opposite wall. I’ve caught myself doing the same thing. I have no idea why so I’ve been making myself look at people as I walk by them. I make sure I have a smile on my face so if they look up and make eye contact I say “good morning” or “hello.” It’s amazing to me how little people make eye contact. It blows my mind. What happened to what used to be the norm? I have no answer. What used to be the norm is now the exception. Go figure.

A Random Thought

Two weeks ago, Teresa and I took Ripley to the Norfolk Zoo to see the new tiger exhibit. On the way, we talked about an old show we both watched as kids; “New Zoo Review.” We discussed what the animals on the show were. I only remembered there were a human man and woman along with 3 animals and one was a frog. Teresa remembered the other two animals. The topic popped in my head today so I did a little search on the web and saw a write up on the show on Wikipedia; I love Wikipedia. I knew the show was in the 1970’s but I couldn’t remember how long it lasted. The information I found is below.

New Zoo Revue is an American half-hour children's television show that originally aired in syndication from 1972 until 1977. The 196-episode musical comedy format show conveyed the concepts of cooperation and guidance for living in contemporary society. Each episode dealt with a topic like moving away, courtesy, bragging or patience.

Though hosted by humans Doug (Doug Momary) and Emmy Jo (Emily Peden), who in real life were married, the show featured its costumed adult-sized puppet characters, primarily Freddie the Frog (always ready for a good time but was a bit naive), Henrietta Hippo (a tutu-wearing, genteel Southern Belle type, who was a bit shy), and Charlie the Owl (a serious, know-it-all scientist/inventor owl who lived in a tall tree equipped with an elevator).

Other characters included Frieda the Frog, Mr. Dingle, an elderly postman, store-keeper and Jack-of-All-Trades, and Mrs. Goodbody, a nosy neighbor who serves as an advice columnist for "The All New Zoo Gazette."

Here’s an interesting bit of trivia, Mr. Dingle was played by a costumed Chuck Woolery who is the founding host of Wheel of Fortune.

Our Calling



I tell people that I am a bi-vocational minister; meaning I work a secular job while fulfilling the duties of an executive pastor of a small church. This is somewhat misleading because for me being an executive pastor is my calling and not a vocation. You see the definition of vocation is a particular occupation, business, or profession. I’m called to be a minister (or servant) and under-shepherd to God’s people. Part of this to me is making sure the body of Christ is equipped, according to Ephesians 4:11-12 (And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ), to walk with God (reading their Bible and praying to God) and being able to share God’s love with the world. My vocation or paying job is with Dollar Tree Stores, Inc. where I shine my light (sharing God’s love) with my co-workers. Working a secular job while leading a church allows me to let the money that is paid in (through titles) be used for more important things; i.e. lights, water, outreach events, supporting local and foreign missions, etc.

The benefit of working a secular job for me is being able to be on the frontlines of evangelism. I’ve worked at churches where I had to be in the office and let me tell you that 90% of the time, I was climbing the walls. I need to be out and about. I get that from my dad; he is a hunter and fisherman and loves the outdoors. I love be outdoors as well but I enjoy (get energy from it) talking with people. Teresa has told me that I’ve never met a stranger. Meeting new people is fun for me.

Everyone who confesses to be a Christian are all called to share the love of God. Not all of us are assigned to be church leaders, but all are called to love their neighbors. Not all will be directed to move from our homes to go to a foreign land or to another part of the U.S. but all are called to walk across the street to our neighbors or to the desk (or cubical) beside ours and love on people. The assignment given to each Christian to share Jesus Christ to the lost world is found in Matthew 28:19-20 (Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."); Mark 16:15 (And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.); and Acts 1:8 (“. . . but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."). We aren’t called to make Christians for only God can draw people to Himself. We are called to make disciples; a disciple is a student. Our calling is to be like John the Baptist (John 1:7-8; 15); to point people to Jesus Christ. Once people accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, we are to walk beside them and help them grow in their new life. As they grow in their new life, they will point other people to Jesus and the process continues.

Our paying jobs are just one way God supports us; we are to use that money to give it back to Him and do His calling. We are to be good servants of the money He gives us by giving it all away. Not only should we give all our money away but we should give all ourselves away to others. That is our calling after all as a child of the living God.

The questions rally makes you think about how we see our forgiveness. Do we take being God's children for granted?

Bag of Lies

On Sunday mornings, I enjoy watching “Biographies” on A and E channel. They are on at 7am and 8am. I normally am able to see the whole 7am episode and half of the 8am one. This morning, the biography was on Dana Plato who played Kimberly Drummond on Different Stokes. Her story was a sad one; she died in 1999 at the age of 34 of a drug overdose. Hearing from friends and eyewitnesses of her last years was heart breaking. The hardest to hear from was her son. He ended up killing himself last year at the age of 25. That too is very sad. At the end of the episode, I kept thinking of James 1:15 (Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.).

Dana was adopted and her adopted father left her when he and her mother divorced. Her adopted mom died after a long time illness so she was pretty much abandoned at an early age. This sense of abandonment caused her to search for love and fulfillment. This searched caused her to experiment with sex, drugs, and alcohol. She was fired from Different Strokes because she got pregnant. Everything she tried to fill the void still left her longing for something else; not even the son she loved dearly could fill the void. The substance she used the most to fill the emptiness ended up killing her at an early age; drugs. James was right when he wrote when sin is accomplished (or complete) it brings about death.

We have sin in our lives because of Adam and Eve. Satan sold them a bag of lies. They bought this bag thinking they would be like God, and in a sense they were. They became aware of sin and since they broke the only rule God had given them they were cut off from Him. Since they were cut off from God, so are we. It is only because of God’s love for us, He created a way we can be complete again.

The only way we can fill the void we have is to accept what Christ did on the cross and accept Him as our Lord and Savior. If you want to learn more about what this means, please read further down and there are some posts that high light God’s love.

Caregiver Tom


When you think of a man who is a Pastor, an Elder, and/or Bishop (different names for the same office), what comes to mind? Some of you might envision a man who wears a suit or a man wearing a backward shirt (you know wearing a white collar). I only wear a suit when I do funerals and weddings. You might envision a man who sits in an office with rows of books behind his desk. I’d rather be outside of the office; in fact, I’m currently bi-vocational so I work at Dollar Tree so I’m on the frontlines. Different people think of different images of men who go by the title Pastor, Elder, or Bishop. Some of these men go by the title Reverend or Pastor/Bishop. I personal do not like titles and I choose not to be called Pastor or Reverend Thomasson. My name is Tom so call me Tom.

I think my philosophy is taken from my childhood mentor who instilled in me the idea of not liking the title Reverend; his philosophy is that only God should be reverenced. I have to agree with him. I was reminded of this fact today when I read Matthew 23 in my personal Bible reading. Reading verses 1 through 12 where Jesus was condemning the Pharisees for wanting to be called Rabbi and wanting to be put in places of honor. Verse 10 says, “Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ.” This might be where my mentor developed his philosophy. Pastors of churches are not really leaders of the church. The best way to say it is that Jesus Christ is the Leader (Head of the church) and the pastor is the senior follower of our Leader and the church members follow the senior follower as he follows the Leader (Jesus Christ). Jesus is the One who does and the pastor is called to follow His lead.

In Virginia, you have to be registered when you are licensed to marry people. On the form, there is a blink for title. I wrote down “Minister” because the Greek word where we get the word minister is servant. I am the servant of God and I serve His people. Jesus came to be a servant and He is far greater than I so please do not call me Leader, Pastor/Bishop, or Reverend. I’m just Tom.

I did a funeral a few months back and it took me almost 20 times to get the Funeral Director to stop calling me Rev. Thomasson. He called me that out of respect and I told him I understood but to call me Tom. At the end of the funeral, he finally called me Tom.

I see my main job as bring glory and honor to God and I do that by pointing people to Jesus Christ and if the Holy Spirit is dealing with them, they will become followers of Christ. After they become followers of Christ, I encourage them to grow in Christ by equipping them to grow in their walk with Him (Discipleship). I’m not more spiritual than any other Christ-follower but I am called to care for His people. If a title must be given, call me Caregiver Tom.

A Strange Encounter


A few years back I was introduced by a pastor friend to a gentleman named Randy Fields who was an interim pastor of a local SBC church. Randy is a SBC missionary and was in the U.S. on furlough. He was looking to meet a person who could take over when he returned to the mission field. We met over coffee, and hit it off. I preached at the church but they called someone else to pastor them. Randy and I have kept in contact via e-mail since then. He sent the below e-mail to me today. Please join me in praying for the situation and for him and his family as they serve the Lord overseas. Thanks.

Friends,
Leah, Randall and I had a strange encounter last month. It all started 5 years ago in Columbia, South Carolina. Before Leah and I began dating/courting I was helping with this ministry that fed 200 international students from the University of South Carolina every Wednesday and Thursday. During this year there just happened to be a group of 12 Kazak girls who were studying at USC. "Alice" and "Jane" and some others... They were standing in the lunch line and I walked up to them and in the Kazak language said, "Hello, how are you? My name is Randy and what are your names?" They stood there shocked with mouths gapping wide and then began to squeal and clap there hands! Wow. All I did was say hello. :) We became friends. They met Leah. We would have each other over for dinner, do things in the city together and had a great time. After 6 months or so we all started going our separate ways. Well, last month Leah, Randall and I were visiting Almaty on business and had to get some medical testing done in a local Kazakhstan hospital. I entered the hospital not knowing where to go or how to begin this medical testing. As I began walking the halls looking for a place to start this girl walks up to me and says in Kazak, "Randy, is that you?!" This girl was none other than "Alice" from Columbia. She just happened to be visiting that hospital that day, at that moment. She helped us, we visited, met her husband ("Matt"), and exchanged cell phone numbers. 30 minutes later we go to the second floor and this Kazak girl walks out of one of the rooms looks at me and says, "Randy, is that you?!" This time it was "Jane" from Columbia that bumped into us. T'was a crazy afternoon. Since then, we have had "Alice" and her husband "Matt" over for lunch. "Matt" and I have played tennis together twice and he is a really neat guy. I was able to share briefly how Jesus changed my life with him and some other truth as well. After hearing some of the Gospel he continues to want to be friends. I share this with you because I do not believe our meeting after 5 years is a coincidence. I also believe we need to BE INTENTIONAL in praying for our friends that God work in their hearts and help them embrace Jesus. So, could you please pray for "Alice" and "Matt" that:

-the Holy Spirit would work in their hearts and lives drawing them to Christ, that He would take the scales off of their eyes so that they could see the Light of Christ & be saved?
-Father would give us more time with them and that HE WOULD OPEN DOORS for us to share Good News?

Leah, Randall and I are doing well. We love and appreciate you all very much. Thank you much for remembering our friends Alice and Matt. Take care!

Love in Christ,
Randy

The Holiness of God


My last post dealt with how God sees sin and that it’s not just a pet peeve of His that we sin. Humanity is separated from God because of sin; He cannot have sin in His presence. It’s after we accept the responsibility for our actions, acknowledging our sin and guilt, we receive God’s forgiveness, enter into the joy of His salvation, and become more completely human and healthy that we can be reconciled with God.

We have seen sin as rebellion against God. The essential background to the cross is not only the sin, responsibility, and guilt of man but the just reaction of God to these things-in other words, His holiness. The idea that God is holy is the foundation of the Bible. So is the knowledge that sin is incompatible with God’s holiness (Habakkuk 1:13 – “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil And You cannot look on wickedness with favor”).

Our sins separate us from God, so that His face is hidden from us and He refuses to hear our prayers. The biblical authors were aware that no human being could set their eyes on God and survive the experience. All those who were granted a glimpse of His glory were unable to endure the sight. Moses hid his face because he was afraid to look at God. When Isaiah had his vision of Yahweh enthroned and exalted, he was overwhelmed by the sense of his uncleanness. Job’s reaction when God revealed Himself to him was to despise himself and to repeat in dust and ashes. The list of people who saw just a glimpse of God, all reacted in similar ways. Even the angels around His thrown have a pair of wings to hide their eyes from Him and a pair to hide their feet since His presence is holy.

The biblical concept of the holiness of God is that He cannot coexist with sin. Sin cannot approach God, and God cannot tolerate sin. There are several metaphors used in the scriptures to illustrate this fact.

The first metaphor is Height (Psalm 97:9 - For You are the LORD Most High over all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods.). His lofty exaltation expresses both His sovereignty over the nations and His inaccessibility to sinners. The high exaltation of God is not literal and was never meant to be taken literally. The biblical writers used height as a symbol of transcendence.

The second metaphor is Distance. We dare not approach too close. When God appeared to Moses in the burning bush, God told Moses not to come any closer (Exodus 3:5- Then He [God] said, "Do not come near here; remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.). When God gave instruction for the building of the tabernacle and later the temple, He promised to live among the people but they were not allowed to come into the Holy of Holies except the High Priest and that was only once a year and he had to have the blood of the sacrifice with him. Sinners cannot approach the all-holy God with impurity-Jesus’ blood allows Christians to approach God but that’s because He no longer sees our sins; we are covered by the blood of the Lamb.

The third and fourth metaphors go hand and hand; they are Light (1 john 1:5 – “. . . God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.”) and Fire (Hebrews 12:29 – “for our God is a consuming fire.”). Both discourage too close approach to God by man; because of our sinful state.

All these metaphors illustrate the utter incompatibility of divine holiness and human sin. HEIGHT, DISTANCE, LIGHT, and FIRE all say that God cannot be in the presence of sin and that if it approaches Him too closely it will be consumed.

Pet Peeves



The last few weeks, the idea of pet peeves has been bouncing around in mind. An event happened this morning that caused it to enter again. I was driving to work at 5:50ish am on the expressway when I went around a car in the right lane when I saw another car coming up behind me really close. I had every intention of getting back in the right lane but I guess the guy wanted to tell me he was going to run me over if I stayed in the left lane. I thought it weird but I can’t fault the person too much because I hate it when slower people drive in the left lane of the road; that’s for passing the slower cars.

We all have pet peeves; the word means a minor annoyance that an individual identifies more particularly annoying to him or her, to a greater degree than others may find it. My personal pet peeves are (but not limited to) slower drivers staying in the left lane when they can move over to the right (as mentioned above), drivers not using their turning signal to show they are changing lanes or actually turning, people not saying thank you for holding the door open for them, men or women who think more is better when putting on the perfume/cologne (especially when it causes my eyes to water), and when people at the gym leaving weights on the bars when they are finished which causes you to ask if they are done or makes you put them away. My pet peeves’ list could go on and on depending on what mood I’m in.

My mind works a little differently than most people so when I think about pet peeves I start to wonder what God’s pet peeves are. The only one that I can think of off hand would be “SIN” but saying sin is a pet peeve of God’s would not give the right idea of sin and how God sees it.

The New Testament uses 5 main Greek words for sin, which together portray its various aspects, both passive and active. The most common is Hamartia (the missing of a target, the failure to attain a goal). Followed by Adikia (unrighteousness or iniquity), Poneria (evil of a degenerate kind), Parabasis (a transgression or stepping over a know boundary), and Anomia (a violation of a known law). In each case either a standard is failed to be reached or a line deliberately crossed.

It is assumed throughout scripture that the law was established by God. It is, in fact, His moral law, which expresses His righteous character. Sin is in itself self-centeredness. Sin is not a regrettable lapse from conventional standards; its essence is hostility to God. Sin is a breaking away from God and from the rest of humanity – an act of rebellion.

Sin is not a pet peeve of God’s. Because of His holiness, He cannot look at it or even be around it. The topic of pet peeves has generated into a discussion on God’s holiness which I will post more on next time.

Why Do We Need To Be Forgiven?

Looking below the surface of the cross to see the central importance of the cross and the deliberate character of the cross, we see that the cross enforces three truths about ourselves, about God, and about Jesus Christ; our sin must be extremely horrible, God’s love must be wonderful beyond comprehension, and Christ’s salvation must be a free gift. God could have abandoned us to our fate. He could have left us alone to reap the fruit of our wrongdoing and die in our sins; that’s what we deserve. But He did not. Because of He loved us. He came after us in Christ. He pursued us even to the painful anguish of the cross, where He bore our sin, guilt, judgment, and death.

It’s on this point that some people have a hard time with; “Why did Jesus have to die at all for us to be forgiven of our sins?” Why doesn’t God simply forgive us without the necessity of the cross? The debate over why Christ had to die for our sins and why God couldn’t just forgive us with out the blood of Christ has gone on for centuries.

People who wonder why God can’t just forgive sin without Jesus needing to die on the cross have not considered the seriousness of sin and haven’t considered the majesty of God. The problem of forgiveness is the collision between divine perfection and human rebellion; between God as He is and us as we are.

The obstacle to forgiveness is neither our sin alone nor our guilt alone, but the divine reaction in love and wrath toward guilty sinners. At the cross in holy love God through Jesus Christ paid the full penalty of our disobedience Himself. He bore the judgment we deserve in order to bring us the forgiveness we do not deserve. On the cross divine mercy and justice were equally expressed and eternally reconciled. God’s holy love was satisfied.

The reason so many people have issue with the idea of us needing to be forgiven by God and that Jesus had to die on the cross and we need to accept this fact is that they don’t consider the seriousness of sin nor do they consider the majesty of God.