Jesus Is My Friend Not My God

There is a serious issue in the Protestant Christian culture of today. We have an incomplete understanding of who God is on the most basic level. This is not our fault of course; it is a result of a serious condition, one that affects many Christians in many churches all over the world. This condition is called “Sheep Hugger Syndrome” or SHS.

What does SHS look like?

This condition refers to the belief that many Christians have that compels them to take the idea of divinity out of their view of who God is. Usually the end result is the view that Jesus is no more then a cuddly man who hugs sheep and plays with children. Jesus ends up being the creature that lived, died, and rose again all so that we can feel the warm fuzzies. He is only our friend, not our God.

The Three Stages of SHS

Stage One Symptoms:

You selectively choose the attributes of God that suit the relationship you wish to have with him. You read in the Bible that God is the divine king and creator of all things, a being whose wrath wipes out those who chose to sin against him, someone who loves his people, a friend to those who call on him. During the first stage of SHS a person selectively chooses to see God as someone who loves and befriends oneself. However the idea of a powerful, wrathful, supreme being or “god” is ignored.

Stage Two Symptoms:

At this point the understanding of God as the divine being is almost completely discarded. Jesus is only an invisible friend, someone who knows us well and accepts us. Someone we ask for help in times of need. Someone who we call to, but don’t really expect a response from. He is simply a close emotional character, much like the invisible friend that some of us had when we were young.

Stage Three Symptoms:

At this point the condition becomes contagious. As a result of the condition we witness on behalf of a god that isn’t divine, one who means no more to his people then an emotional connection that resembles friendship. This god is proclaimed as an ideal buddy, existing only in the imagination; not real or actual. Thus, the people who are witnessed to and won become worshipers of a false idol.

This stage varies in length and always results in death, unless the patient accepts the cure. If you are exhibiting some of these symptoms, it is strongly recommended that you get to the nearest book store or church and ask for the countertop cure to this syndrome. It is called the Bible. All you have to do is read it and understand that if you are only seeing God as a loving friend, a personal relationship that helps you get through life, then you have an incomplete understanding of who the Bible says God is.

Protestants may be right about the distant, impersonal and legalistic tendencies of the Catholic Church. However Protestant’s are guilty of doing something equally wrong. We have taken lightly the fact that God is our king, ruler, creator and source. Sometimes we don’t even give him the same respect that we give our friends here on earth.


What do you think?

Please comment or mail between.the.trees@hotmail.com .

North Americans Suck at Worship

Psalm 100

A psalm. For giving thanks.

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.

Worship the LORD with gladness;

come before him with joyful songs.

Know that the LORD is God.

It is he who made us, and we are his [a] ;

we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise;

give thanks to him and praise his name.

For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;

his faithfulness continues through all generations.

____________________________________________________

North Americans suck at worshiping God…

…I am not going to address anything regarding worship outside North America because we are North Americans and for the most part should be most concerned about our own short comings. We are Christians, are we not?

We believe in the one true God who created us and everything else in the entire universe. We believe in a God who is the source and very definition of love, whose love is overflowing for his creation…for his chosen people. We believe in a God that despite our disrespect and out right disobedience still calls us his own and desires our hearts. He is a God that moves mountains, one who is omnipresent, and one who is everlasting. He is the beginning and end of everything and anything.

Do we believe these things and more about our God?
The Bible uses the example of a tree and its fruit to tell us that if our hearts are driven by God’s love and if our minds are focused on God’s word and if our souls welcome the Holy Spirit, it will show in the things we do. Take Matthew 7:15-23 -

“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree can not bear bad fruit, and a bad tree can not bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. Not everyone that says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 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 perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me you evildoers!”

What we believe and what we are practicing on the inside will “bear fruit” on the outside. This is a true statement. How does this apply to our worship in North America?

When you are “worshiping” God whether at church or at home…what kind of fruit are you bearing?

Is our apparent excitement and overwhelming joy in the Lord showing?

I think it is, because we do not give God the glory and worship that he atleast expects from us, and it shows. It shows at church when we are standing with our arms at our side and our for the most part effortless singing. It shows when we go to church expecting to get something from the service. If we leave a service feeling like we have not ourselves been served then we toss it aside as an alright, or boring, or lame, almost wasted experience.

“I didn’t really get into worship because the songs weren’t that good.”

“I didn’t like the way they did communion.”

“I almost fell asleep because the message was so dry.”

Any of those sound familiar?

I’m sure that if you really think about it you could come up with a few more classic “I didn’t enjoy the service” comments.

Revelation 5:11-14 (New International Version)

11Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. 12In a loud voice they sang: "Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!" 13Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!" 14The four living creatures said, "Amen," and the elders fell down and worshiped.

In these verses do you hear any of the angels complaining that they didn’t like how they were in a circle instead of a square around the throne?

Or the elders feeling like worship didn’t do anything for them because they would rather sit and worship then fall down to the ground?

NO! In the above verses, worship was about God…giving God glory…extolling his name. Worship in North America has become mostly about fulfilling our own selfish needs. Sure we can expect to feel blessed or filled up as a result of worshiping God, because he promises us amazing things when we are obedient and faithful. However our worship has become focused on us receiving these gifts, not the act of worshiping God. I would go as far as to say that our worship is unbiblical. Church is here to make Christians feel good. If we don’t leave with the warm fuzzes then the service didn’t fulfill its purpose.

So what does this selfish act of worship look like?

Well mostly it lacks passion. Yes, passion! If we believe the amazing things that the Bible tells about who God is then why are we not overflowing with excitement and praise when we are worshiping Him?

Is God not exiting enough for you?

Is he not enough truth for you?

Is his plan for your life not good enough?

Is the fact that he calls us to whole heartedly worship him not taken seriously?

By now you may be thinking that the above statements are way off. They are unfair and untrue. After all, you do really believe in God. Just because we don’t appear to be passionate and excited about God while we praise him doesn’t mean that you aren’t, right?

What kind of fruit are you bearing?

If you are overflowing with the joy of Christ, if he is the beginning and end in your life, then why are you not spilling all over the place?

The truth is that actions speak louder then words. For the most part our actions convey our feelings and intent. If we are not acting it, then more then likely you do not truly believe it.I have heard, and even made many excuses before about my ill worship. I believe that we use our culture as an excuse to be emotionally lame in our worship.

“I don’t have the personality to sing loud and yell, or directly talk about my faith to most people…I am shy and this is how God has made me.”

“I am actually very passionate in my faith, I just don’t show it because that is not the tradition I was brought up in.”

“Worshiping passionately makes me feel awkward and uncomfortable.”

We use our culture and our tradition as an excuse to suck it up while worshiping God. Also, where in the Bible does it say that worship is supposed to feel comfortable?

Since when has being a Christian meant living a comfortable lifestyle?

2 Samuel 24:24 (New International Version)

24 But the king replied to Araunah, "No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels [a] of silver for them.

David’s response here is timeless.

He sees that true worship can not cost nothing. God has made all people different, so we can expect that different people are created to worship in certain ways that others are not. However are we actually worshiping passionately in alternative ways, or are we just taking that excuse and running with it?

Some may say that, ‘Just because passion is displayed in a more obvious or different way during worship in other cultures, doesn’t mean that we are not passionate in our worship.’ Well this may be true. However I don’t even think that even within our own cultural definition of passion we even meet that standard in worship. Many become more exited and emotional about a new car, or during a concert of their favorite band, or after their team has won in the finals.

Enough talk about what how we have been worshiping inadequately. Let’s address what true worship looks like.

Do we know what true worship is?

Do we know how to be true worshippers?

Incase we need a reminder, we can always look to the Psalms in the Bible. The whole book of Psalms contains example after example of the passion, truth, and emotion that God deserves.

The Psalms capture the innermost thoughts and prayers of the people who wrote them. For ever emotion or mood you can find a psalm to match. The psalms wrestle with the deepest sorrow and ask God the hardest questions about suffering and injustice. They do not communicate flowery compliments towards God; they cry out to him, or shout for joy before him.

God is not distant or impersonal. In almost every psalm you find the presence of God, not as a philosophical principle, but as an active, strong, and loving ruler…a God who makes a difference in life. True, passionate, praise worthy worship does not have to always be fairy tales and farts…children and candy. It can also be a cry for God to respond!

The point that I am trying to make about our worship is that we lack passion, one of the most important elements of worship. I encourage anyone to discover what true worship is by reading the psalms. I leave Psalm 68 with you as an example of what true passionate worship looks like.

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm. A song.

1 May God arise, may his enemies be scattered; may his foes flee before him. 2 As smoke is blown away by the wind, may you blow them away; as wax melts before the fire, may the wicked perish before God. 3 But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful. 4 Sing to God, sing praise to his name, extol him who rides on the clouds [a]— his name is the LORD— and rejoice before him. 5 A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. 6 God sets the lonely in families, [b] he leads forth the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land. 7 When you went out before your people, O God, when you marched through the wasteland, Selah 8 the earth shook,
the heavens poured down rain, before God, the One of Sinai, before God, the God of Israel. 9 You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance. 10 Your people settled in it, and from your bounty, O God, you provided for the poor. 11 The Lord announced the word, and great was the company of those who proclaimed it: 12 "Kings and armies flee in haste; in the camps men divide the plunder. 13 Even while you sleep among the campfires, [c]
the wings of my dove are sheathed with silver, its feathers with shining gold." 14 When the Almighty [d] scattered the kings in the land, it was like snow fallen on Zalmon. 15 The mountains of Bashan are majestic mountains; rugged are the mountains of Bashan. 16 Why gaze in envy, O rugged mountains, at the mountain where God chooses to reign,
where the LORD himself will dwell forever? 17 The chariots of God are tens of thousands
and thousands of thousands; the Lord has come from Sinai into his sanctuary. 18 When you ascended on high, you led captives in your train; you received gifts from men,
even from [e] the rebellious— that you, [f] O LORD God, might dwell there. 19 Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. Selah 20 Our God is a God who saves;
from the Sovereign LORD comes escape from death. 21 Surely God will crush the heads of his enemies, the hairy crowns of those who go on in their sins. 22 The Lord says, "I will bring them from Bashan; I will bring them from the depths of the sea, 23 that you may plunge your feet in the blood of your foes, while the tongues of your dogs have their share." 24 Your procession has come into view, O God, the procession of my God and King into the sanctuary. 25 In front are the singers, after them the musicians; with them are the maidens playing tambourines. 26 Praise God in the great congregation; praise the LORD in the assembly of Israel. 27 There is the little tribe of Benjamin, leading them, there the great throng of Judah's princes, and there the princes of Zebulun and of Naphtali. 28 Summon your power, O God [g] ; show us your strength, O God, as you have done before. 29 Because of your temple at Jerusalem kings will bring you gifts. 30 Rebuke the beast among the reeds, the herd of bulls among the calves of the nations.
Humbled, may it bring bars of silver. Scatter the nations who delight in war. 31 Envoys will come from Egypt; Cush [h] will submit herself to God. 32 Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth,
sing praise to the Lord, Selah 33 to him who rides the ancient skies above,
who thunders with mighty voice. 34 Proclaim the power of God, whose majesty is over Israel,
whose power is in the skies. 35 You are awesome, O God, in your sanctuary; the God of Israel gives power and strength to his people.

Praise be to God!

And hey, if you are quite comfortable with your wishy washy, lukewarm worshiping practices…maybe consider the bellow verse.

Deuteronomy 6:12-15 (New International Version)

12 be careful that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 13 Fear the LORD your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name. 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you; 15 for the LORD your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land.

For those who are honestly, passionately, and whole heartedly pursuing worshiping God I leave you with this:

John 4:23-24 (New International Version)

23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."

If you disagree with or just have a comment about anything that was said in this article, please leave a comment or email between.the.trees@hotmail.com and have an article of your own posted.

RE: Marriage is for Moderately Serious Christians

The main problem with the graphs presented on marriage is that they are extremely compartmentalized. I don’t think that is the kind of lives that God wants us to lead. God doesn’t just want 2/3 of my time to be spent with Him while I’m single and then the other 1/3 to be spent with my other relationships. He wants me to live my life and He desperately wants to be involved in every aspect of it- including the relationships I have. And when I go on to get married, it’s not about carving out more time for a significant other, and less time for God. It’s about inviting God to join in the union, and to be involved in that aspect of my life. I don’t want God to just have one piece of the pie. He doesn’t just get the slot allotted “time spent with God”- He gets the “time spent with friends”, and the “time spent with significant other” and the “time working” and the “time going to school” and so on. He gets all of it.


"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' (Mark 12: 29-31). Our relationship with God is central and primary. From that relationship all other relationships are formed and established.

In the Old Testament, God’s people viewed all of life as worship- from eating, to working to the emotions they felt. Nothing was separate from each other or compartmentalized. I think that the chart needs to be reworked with Jesus at the center, and having all other relationships stemming from it. Otherwise your marriage will fail, and you will be a “moderately serious Christian”.

Posted by: Steve Veasey

Original Article: "Marriage is for Moderately Serious Christians"

RE: Marriage is for Moderately Serious Christians

I agree with what Jordan said to some extend, but do you think this is accurately representative of all of our society?Some people may be encouraged to spend more time with God by their spouse, or may even spend time with God AND their spouse.

I think it is quite likely that being married could possibly even stregthen your relationship with God. However, if marriage is brought upon for the wrong reasons, like a pregnancy, or because your 'bored' of single life, rather than because you love the person and want to spend time and grow with them, you may not be as devoted to that person as if you HAD married for love and affection, and there wouldnt be that 'one-ness'.

As Jenny said (although this stat may be inaccurate) "99 percent of couples that pray together will never divorce." Even if it is not an exact stat, i think that praying together, and committing your marriage to God can increase your own personal relationship with God extaordinarily. When you work through hardships together, and pray together, and grow deeper together (as I think that a marriage should do) I believe that you and your spouse will grow deeper with God as well.

If someone is single, and is 'upset with God' he/she may feel like giving up, however, with the encouragement and support of a spouse (like I said, a marriage for the right reasons, as opposed to obligation or boredom of singularity, which would lead to 'one-ness') would definately be a crutch for your relationsship with God, which you would miss out on if you are single.

My personal conclusion: being single could mean being closer to God, for sure, but i think that growing together with God AND a spouse would be more effective, seeing as you have someone to lean on, rather than having the possibility of being discouraged and 'giving up' while working though difficulties on your own.

Written By: Dustin Willms

Original Article: "Marriage is for Moderately Serious Christians"

RE: Marriage is for Moderately Serious Christians

This is what I think:

I'm going to start off by saying marriage is not designed just for people who can't control their sexual desires. God didn't create people then say "ohh whoops, they're horny and want to have sex with eachother... didn't see that one coming! I better invent marriage so it's at least moral." God knew very well what he was doing when he made men and women. Don't you think if God knew that men and women would form their own little exclusive relationships and exclude God from them (marriage- apparently), he would have just stopped at Adam? Left him to hang out with all the zebras and sheep and elephants?

Even when things were still perfect and blissful in the Garden of Eden, God knew this wouldn't do. So he created women. Then he looked at all he created and said it was good. God invented marriage so that man would have a companion, and also said "be fruitful and increase in number" (have lots of babies... which... also... means have lots of sex :S). And why does the time a man devotes to his wife necessarily have to be separated from the time he spends with God? Yes, he needs his own quiet time and devotions, but he can also do that with his wife. I heard a stat. that 99 percent of couples that pray together will never divorce. There is no coincidence there; and that is clearly marriage blessed by God. Also, a man loves God by loving his wife, and a woman loves God by loving her husband. I think that marriage is something God created to show his love to us in a whole new way. I guess I can't offer much wisdom here because I'm not married, but God wants to bless people; he wants to show his love to people in a very real way through the spouse he gives to them.

"But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world—how she can please her husband." - Paul puts a negative spin on this, but there are other parts of the Bible where it tells women just how they are supposed to treat their husbands. Why would their be instruction on this if it was a bad thing? God wouldn't tell people the right way to conduct their marriage if he didn't agree with marriage.

Ok, so I'm pretty sure that you weren't trying to convey that marriage is a bad thing (am I right?) and I may have made it seem that way, but at the same time, you can't assume that people who choose to stay single -or who are called to stay single, because God doesn't plan for everyone to marry (though a heck of a lot of people get married)- are more spiritual than married people. (Holy run-on sentence, Batman!)

I personally hope that God blesses me with a husband one day, and I would like to think that there aren't going to be any smug single people out there thinking that I am a mediocre Christian because I got married. But if they do, then they do. I can't assume what other peoples' relationships with God are like, and I certainly cannot base it on their marital status.

Written by: Jenny Toews

Original Article: "Marriage is for Moderately Serious Christians"

Marriage is for Moderately Serious Christians

I once thought that marriage was very biblical. I guess it is to a certain degree, however if you are really serious about God, then the single life is for you. Those who marry are distracted from their relationship with God. It's simple math really...take a look at the below graphs:

(Graphs not based on actual statistics, for visual reference only.)

We only have so much time and energy to devote to relating with others. So those married have more time and energy taken up by their wife/husband which leaves less time and energy for God. Whereas those who remain single have more "potential" time and energy to spend on a relationship with God. However, it is up to the single person to take that potential and work on his relationship with God.

Guys, I hate to spoil your plans to find that special girl that you have been waiting for. Not to mention the honeymoon. Girls, you may be thinking something similar, but I am sorry...if you want to be the most serious about your relationship with God, then forget marriage.

Still don't believe me??? Do you think that I am way off? Fair enough, but I didn't pull this out of my...well you know. A guy by the name of Paul agrees with me.

1 Corinthians 7:1 (NIV)

"It is good for a man not to marry."

and for those who noticed the alternative translation...

"It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman."

(but, lets be serious guys...like we would be able to avoid sex for most of our lives while living (married) with a woman we find attractive)

Paul goes on to say...

1 Corinthians 7:8-9 (NIV)

"Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good to stay unmarried, as I am. But if they cannot control themselves they should marry, for it is better to marry then to burn with passion."

So guys, if you can't stay unmarried your whole lives, then it is a matter of lacking the self control to love and focus on God fully. It seems to me that marriage is only second best. A man gets married only if he can not control his urges. Marriage is for those who do not want to make God the prime focus in their lives.

1 Corinthians 7:32-35 (NIV)

"32 I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord's affairs—how he can please the Lord. 33 But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world—how he can please his wife— 34 and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord's affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world—how she can please her husband. 35 I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord."

If there are any guys or gals reading this that are already married...no worries, Paul has something to say to you too:

1 Corinthians 7:29 (NIV)

"What I mean brothers, is that time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as they had none"

Paul does say that getting married is not a sin, however it does distract us from Jesus. So if you are a very serious Christian, strongly consider to do the right thing and stay single and devoted to Jesus Christ.

-If you disagree with anything that was said in this article, add a comment or send an email voicing your opinion to between.the.trees@hotmail.com . You message will be posted shortly after.