Calvary McAllen

SLAVES?

The problem with most portrayals of the crucifixion is that they are not bloody enough. I don't like graphic violence in movies ... or pictures. In fact, I tend to get faint at the sight of blood. So I am not saying this out of some sadistic need to see bloody brutality. When it comes to violence in movies I usually get up to get some popcorn. But we are on sacred ground, where God turns sinners into saints, the ugly into the beautiful, the brutal into blessing. This is the place where God takes the most vile and turns it into love. The cross is the place where Christ love reaches to the heavens and we are bent low.

This is the image of love. I don't like it. I didn't want to post it. But what I'm about to say demands it. We are on sacred ground. It is the image of Christ crucified that makes me a slave. Paul said it about himself: "Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus" (Rom.1:1). Paul calls himself a slave of Jesus Christ. Paul sees his journey into slavery in his association with the cross of Christ. "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the felowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead" (Phil.3:10-11).

In the ancient cultures when a wealthy master died, all of his slaves were killed and buried with him. Perhaps this is the image that Paul had in mind. We don't know whether or not Paul actually saw Jesus on the cross ... probably not. Nonetheless, he lived with the crucified Jesus in his heart. He knew what it meant to be a slave. When you say, "I BELIEVE God," that's what you sign up for ... slavery to Christ.

GOD FIRST

If we trust God then we will place Him first in our lives trusting that he will take care of everything else. That's what it means to BELIEVE GOD. Afterall, he has promised us ... "Seek FIRST the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matt.6:33). And the "all these things" that "will be given to you as well," are all the things necessary for life. God knows what you need. We tend to gravitate to the things we WANT ... God knows what we NEED.

We are faced with choices everyday. Do I go to church OR do I go to the beach? Do I commit to that 16 week discipleship study OR do I join the tennis club? Do I give my tithe to God OR do I get that new car I've been dreaming of? Do I help with Children's choir OR do I stay at home to watch my favorite TV show? Do I volunteer with Angel Food Ministries on Saturday morning OR do I log in a few extra over-time hours at work (I could sure use the extra money). Choices, choices, choices ... we make them all the time. And the substance of our choices reveals the treasure of our hearts.

I say that if you truly BELIEVE that God is who he says he is ... you give up all your rights to choose. The Christian has NO choice. We are slaves to Christ. We place God first, and then let the chips fall where they may. Did I say that I said that? Silly me ... it wasn't me that said it ... "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me" (Mark 8:34). My bad ... it was Jesus who said it.

Blessings,

Ellis

THE BIBLE

We believe in a God who is active in our lives because He loves us. There are ramifications to this radical belief. First, WE BELIEVE WHAT GOD SAYS IN HIS WORD. We believe that the Bible was written by men, inspired by God, and is God's perfect revelation of Himself (2 Peter 1:19-21). It was given to us by God for instruction, direction, correction and encouragement (2Tim.3:16). It reveals everything we need to know to experience God's salvation and principles for living. As such it remains the supreme standard by which all human conduct, beliefs, and religious opinions should be tried. All Scripture should be interpreted through the life, work and words of Jesus Christ. In short, we believe that God still speaks to us most directly through His Holy Word, the Bible (Heb.4:12).

With such a high view of the Bible it makes sense that any faith in God demands a trust in what God says in His written Word. We trust the principles that are revealed in the Bible. When those principles come into direct conflict with the cultural mores, societal philosophies, or even my own opinions, it is finally the Bible that wins the debate. There is nothing wrong with wrestling with some of the most difficult issues in life ... in fact, the Bible encourages such struggles. Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Job, David, Jeremiah, Jonah, and Peter all struggled with what God was saying and doing in their lives. However, once we come to terms with His Word and understand what we believe God is saying, we stand on that principle. No matter how unpopular, or politically incorrect that principle may be, if we truly believe it to be a Biblical principle, then we must abide by it.

In other words, we trust the Bible completely. It is our standard for life ... and it will be until the day we die (1Peter 1:25).

Blessings,

pastor ellis

CALVARY VISION, PT. 1

I want to think through some of the ramifications of our Church's vision. The vision is to be a body of fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ who BELIEVE God, BELONG together, and BECOME all that God wants us to be. The three words, BELIEVE, BELONG, and BECOME summarize what it means to be THE CHURCH. Eventually, I will suggest that our work as a church can be whittled down to two things ... two legs that we stand on. But that's for another day ... we'll get there. For now, I want to flesh out the significance of each these words (believe, belong, become).

There is more to this word BELIEVE than first meets the eye. When we say that we want to be a body of fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ who BELIEVE God, we are NOT saying that we simply believe IN God. We do. But our confession is that we do much more than that. James says that even the demons believe IN God (James 2:19). The diference is that we believe in a God who is active in our world and in our lives because he loves us. This is our great HOPE. If that's true, then we must TRUST God. We trust him, not just to get us into heaven, but also to get us through today. That's where belief begins to impact our lives: at the point where hope intersects with trust.

To summarize: We BELIEVE in a God who is active in our lives because he loves us. The consequence of this belief is that we TRUST God and place all our HOPE in Him. Now, there are certain ramifications to this hoping and trusting. They are the following:

1. We believe what God says in His Word.

2. We place God first knowing that he will take care of everything else.

3. We serve God the way a slave would serve his master.

4. We dare to risk everything for God.

I told you ... there's much more to BELIEVE than first meets the eye! More on these ramifications in the days to come ...

Blessings,

pastor ellis

LETTING GO

Oswald Chambers in his classic devotional, My Utmost for His Highest, says, "If you are going through a solitary way, read John 17, it will explain exactly why you are where you are ..."

Jesus' prayer in John 17 ruined my life. It ruined my career. It ruined all the great plans I had for my life. I knew exactly where I wanted to be ... what kind of family I wanted ... what kind of church I wanted ... what kinds of accomplishments I wanted on my resume ... But now I hear Jesus praying for me, and it ruins everything.

He's praying two things for me -- that I will be one with other Christians and that I will be one with THE FATHER.  That's it. Nothing else. That's his entire prayer for me.

I can't believe it.

I want so much more than that. But that's all Jesus wants for me.

When my life is over ... the older I get the harder it is to say those words. They used to be unreal, they are slowly becoming real, and soon they will be surreal ... I'll say them again ... when my life is over, nothing else will matter. I've sat by more than my share of deathbeds and I've never heard anyone mention their resume. They say things like, "Is Bob here?" "Did Jean make it?" "Give my fishing rod to Roy" "Tell my son that I love him."

When my life is over (I have to keep saying it, but it's not getting easier), it will be about me and you ... are we good? Is everything O.K. between us? Do you know how I feel about you? AND it will be about God, THE FATHER ... (I'm looking up) Are we good? Is everything O.K. between us? Do you know how I feel about you?

That explains Jesus' prayer in John 17. It takes most of us a lifetime to learn that prayer. I'm 44 and I haven't learned it yet ... I'm getting closer ... inch by inch. But I'm still in denial. I want so much more for my life than what Jesus wants. I can't believe it. I have so much to offer ... and all Jesus wants is for me to let go. I'm not there yet.

I still have the "G.I. Joe, Kung Fu Grip" on my resume ... It's hard to let go. I've gripped it so hard and so long now that it's all smudged and wrinkled and not very impressive. Maybe soon I'll let go of it ... maybe tomorrow.

KNOWING JESUS

Frederica Mathewes-Green, in the book The Church in Emerging Culture, answers the question,

"Why do people continually want to revise the prevailing view of Jesus?"

She says,

"To relieve the pain of this dilemma by changing Jesus into something we can understand."

The next question is,

"What is Jesus' alternative plan?"

To which she answers,

"To change us into something that can understand him."

The dilemma she speaks of is the weariness and vanity of life. The malaise that most people find themselves in because of the emptiness of life. It is a chasing after the wind, with little hope of catching anything. This, according to her, is because although God knows us intimately, we don't know him very well. Either because we don't want to know him, or because we don't know how. To "relieve the pain" of hungering to know something we can't seem to know we turn him into something culturally relevant that can easily be known or understood. We fashion God in our own image. We build our own golden calf because Moses has been gone too long and we can't see God anymore. But is that really God? Is that really the Jesus that walked on water, raised the dead, and picked up his cross?

Fredericka would say, "No." And I agree with her. God is not an enigma that needs to be solved. God isn't waiting for us to find and understand him, like some great prize at the end of a treasure hunt. Jesus said, "I came to seek and save the lost." He does the seeking. He does the finding. He asks us to be available to him ... to be sensitive to his moving and working ... so that in his timing and purpose he can change us into something that CAN understand him.

That's not to say that we just sit around waiting. There is a work involved in being available to God. The work is called LIFE. It's waking up every morning and finding the joy in the midst of the pain. It's finding a single flower blooming in the middle of the garbage dump, and focusing on the beauty of the flower juxtaposed with the gargage. Is it a flower invading a garbage dump? OR is it garbage invading a flower garden?  It could be either. It depends on how hard you work at it. It depends on how much God has changed you into the kind of person that CAN see and understand him.

WELCOME!

Welcome to the official BLOG of Dr. Ellis Orozco, Lead Pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in McAllen, Texas. This is the place where Pastor Ellis will share his thoughts, ideas, vision, and anything else that comes to his mind. Enjoy reading and feel free to leave your comments.