Ridgell's Originals

 I get asaked this question often:  what about people that never even got to hear about Jesus?  Are they really not getting into heaven because of ignorance?So let me share a few thoughts about those who do not know about Jesus.

They are still lost.  Scripture is clear about the fact that everyone everywhere has some sense of right and wrong.  There is a sense of God in everyone.  Even nature points to the existance of God.  

And everyone has sinned against the holy God.  Doing the things you should not.  Not doing the things you should.  Living life for yourself.  Hurting people.  No one is holy.  No one.

Jeuss is the answer for that situation.  He died for our sins.  We Christians believe that and so we are going to live with God forever in spite of our sin.  Saved by faith.

Jesus himself said no one will come to the Father except thru him.  Jesus is the only way back to God.

In Acts 3 a group of people are listening to Peter talk about Jesus.  He acknowledges they killed the Son of God thru ignorance.  But he still calls on them to repent.

And if a person can be saved because they never knew Jesus, then wouldn't it be better to not tell everyone the good news.  Because when they know, some may refuse to believe.  So would that make them now lost?  But the early Christians were so intent on sharing the news of Jesus that they put their on lives in danger to tell the world.

Do I hope God saves everyone in the whole world that never heard of Jesus?  Of course.

But I am not God and He did not say that.  So I wouldn't place too much stock on my wishes.

But I would put a whole lot of attention on what God said.

Everyone in this world is lost because they have lived in opposition to God.

Jesus died to save everyone on them who believe.

So what if they do not know about Jesus?

Well...

we believers better get busy.

# posted by Steve @ 5:00 AM 0 comments

 I have more and more convinced that there are four types of people church leaders ought to focus on working with.

People who do not know Jesus or have not yet committed to him.  Non-believers.  Non-Christians.  We grow the kingdom by new births.  People are saved.  Their eternal destiny is changed.

People who have left Jesus.  Not just left the church, or our particular church, but have left Jesus.  Living in a far country.  They may not want help.  They may like where their life is.  But we have to try and find the lost sheep that has left the flock.  And left the Shepherd.

People struggling to stay in the light.  They may not have left the faith, but they are barely hanging on.  We have to walk alongside of them, pray over them, speak words of truth from Scripture into their lives.  Help them get into the light and out of the shadows.  And stay there.

Those in crisis.  The sudden death.  The unwanted diagnosis.  The natural disaster.  The sin that was "out of character" but now has devastating consequences.  Those shattered by someone else's sin.  

These are the people I want to spend my time working with.

Now think about where most church leaders spend their time.  And who we expect our ministers to work with.

Children of members.  Robust children's ministry. Active youth ministry.  These may -- or may not -- be appropriate ministries.  But most of the time is spent with kids of active members.  Helping them parent even better.  Assisting with the training of their children in righteousness.

Time spent keeping the saved happy.  Not necessarily keeping them saved, but keeping them happy.  Getting the budget developed and approved.  Attracting Christians looking to change churches.  Keeping our members from looking around.

We spend a lot of time preaching to the choir.  Helping them feel good.  Keep them coming.  And giving.  And being sure all the leaders are on point with message.  Preserve the church.

I actually understand the temptation to spend our time with the wrong people (you know, the people who are right with God).  Because that is what is expected.  For ministers, that is how you keep you job.

But there are only so many hours in the day.  For all of us.  

I want my time to count.  So I think I will just keep working with those people at the top of this blog.  The ones who need Jesus and don't know him.  Or have lost their faith.  Or fighting for their faith.

Because that makes a difference.

# posted by Steve @ 5:00 AM 0 comments

 It was right there is the Abilene, TX newspaper.  Three obituaries side by side.  And my first thought was how much good had been done for the Kingdom during the lives of these three.

They probably knew each other maybe.  Or at least knew of each other.  They went to different congregations in Abilene.  But they had so much in common in terms of impact in this world for the Kingdom. 

Lots of spiritual shepherding in that trio.  Two elder's wives and an elder.

So much mentoring of younger men and women.  Lots of teenagers and lots of college kids.  Even lots of babies fostered.

Such examples of faithful living.  Strong marriages.

Lots of Bible taught by these three.

Strong families.  I know many of their kids.  Faithful.

So many people introduced and inspired to follow Jesus.

So many people who were losing their way and were brought back into the light.

So many inspired to do ministry.

All over the world.

Legacy.

Now home with Jesus but they made a difference in the life lived in this world.

I hope they are hanging out in heaven together and comparing notes.

And I pray that God raises up more like them.

Because they changed lives.

Forever.

# posted by Steve @ 5:00 AM 0 comments

 I did the funeral for Hymonda Merkel yesterday.  Just like I did a couple of months ago for her husband Bill.  And yes, every funeral is personal to some extent, even the ones where I didn't know the deceased or any of the family.  But some I do are family.  Or just like family.

Hymonda Merkel.  

She and Bill were the volunteer youth ministers for years at the church where my wife Marsha grew up.  She was in Hymonda's teenage girl's class.  The could talke about anything.  And did.  All from the perspective of Scripture.

She and Bill spent over 50 years loving us and being role models for healthy marriage (healthy not perfect), faithful parenting, and how to shepherd as an elder and wife.

We are close and really good friends with her girls and their families. 

So here are a few Hymonda snapshots I will always remember.

Hymonda calling me over during the Garden of Prayer time and pointing out people I needed to go pray with.  Some she noticed that were clearly emotional.  Some she knew about because she had talked to them.  Some she knew about because I guess the Holy Spirit let her know.  She had a heart for the hurting.

So many baptisms.  Bill baptized a lot of people.  I did too.  Marsha and Hymonda were always there.  Encouraging.  Hugging.  

Seeing her at her daughter Trina's marriage to Tony.  So  happy for her daughter to have found another chance at love.

So many prayers together over the years.  Them praying over us.  Then over time it shifted to us praying with and over them.  In their living room.  In the hospital.

Singing at the graveside for her husband Bill.  Amazing grace.  Seeing her eyes light up and hearing her start singing loudly (and well) at the 10,000 years verse.

Even in her last weeks, she was giving me names to talk to about Jesus.

And this one from the week she died.  My wife reading Scripture to Hymonda.  Hymonda was getting fuzzy and weak but when Marsha asked her if she wanted her to read the Bible to her she said yes and asked her to read Psalm 31.  I listened while they talked about Bill and about me.  As they shared memories going back 50 years.  It was a holy moment.

So thanks Hymonda for helping raise my wife.

Thanks to you and Bill for being role models for us.

Tell Bill hi and see you soon.

# posted by Steve @ 5:00 AM 0 comments

 Easter.  The good news that Jesus died and that God raised him from the dead.  We are invited into the Easter life by dying with Jesus and being raised to a new life in baptism.

But I want to think about living the Easter life.  Living the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Communion.  The Lord's Supper.  Eating the body of Jesus.  Drinking the blood of Jesus.  Remembering what he has done us.  Living up to that reality.  Being in community.  Taking care of each other.  Declaring in our world that Jesus died for our sins.  Looking for his return.  Celebrating his death.  Celebrating his resurrection.  

Living the Easter life.  I Corinthians 11 ties all the above concepts together.  

We will take communion together Easter Sunday.  And we will next Sunday.  And we did it the Sunday before.  And we will do it until he returns.  Because we believe he was raised and will return to raise us from the dead.  

But life together is more than communion.  There is the sense of taking care of each other.  We wait for all to eat together.  We share.  

We live the Easter life.  Thinking about Jesus and our spiritual family.  Living, serving, sharing as Jesus did.  Reminded by his body and blood that we are called to a higher life.  

And that time of communion together makes a statement to our world.  We believe.  We announce the Easter message that Jesus died for our sins and was raised from the dead, and will come back to take us to God.

That is really the great sermon you will hear/see this Sunday.  Not the Easter sermon preached.  But the Easter sermon preached by we sinners who together share the body and blood of Jesus.

Living the Easter life.

# posted by Steve @ 5:00 AM 0 comments

 It's Easter week.  Lots of talk about Jesus dying on the cross and then his resurrection. 

The good news:  Jesus died for your sins and God raised him from the dead. 

Do you believe this?

If you do, it is time to enter the Easter life.  You are to die with Jesus/be crucified with him.  Then you are raised into a new life with the assurance that because you shared in his death you will be raised from the dead just as he was.

That process is baptism.

You may have viewed baptism as some sort of "entry into church" action.  Or a step in some kind of salvation ladder.  But neither of those is how the Bible describes baptism.

Paul in Romans 6 is very explicit.  Baptism is where you are crucified with Jesus.  You are baptized into his death.  You are buried with him by baptism into death.  And then you have a new life.  And the promise that since you share in that death you will be raised from the dead.

Easter is very much a time of dying, of burying the old, and being raised to the new life.  It is a time of promise that we will share in a resurrection ourselves.

So if you believe the Easter message that Jesus died for our sins and God raised him from the dead, it is time to live that belief by dying and being buried by baptism into the death of Jesus.  And then being raised out of baptism into a new life with the promise of your resurrection from the dead to live forever in heaven with God and Jesus.

This would be a great week for you to make the Jesus decision.

Be baptized and enter the Easter life. 

# posted by Steve @ 5:00 AM 0 comments

 I spend my life trying to get/help/bring back people to follow Jesus.  I talk a lot to churches and individual Christians about reaching the lost.  

So when we talk about reaching lost people I think there are three "breeds" of lost sheep we are tasking with reaching for Jesus.

Never knew Jesus.  Maybe they never heard the good news.  Maybe they never believed it.  But either way, they never obeyed Jesus.  So we need to be telling the good news of Jesus to people like this.  Sowing Jesus seed in hearts.  Watering that seed.  Asking God to give the increase.

Left Jesus.  There are Christians who leave their faith.  Some renounce it.  Others renounce it in practical terms.  They live as if they never knew Jesus.  Some of these have crossed a line where they are not going to come back.  They are without Jesus.  Lost again if you will.  But maybe as we have conversations with people we will get a chance to invite some of these to come home.  To leave the far country and come back to Jesus.  Lost, saved, lost again, saved again.

Struggling to stay in the light.  Christians who believe in Jesus but are struggling to stay in the light.  Maybe it is an addiction that they cannot overcome.  Or consequences from past sins that are making it hard for them to maintain focus on Jesus.  If not careful, they may slide off the edge of the road and into the darkness.  Lost, saved, not yet lost again.  We must communicate grace.  We have to walk alongside of them.  Speak truth into their life.  Help them to stay in the light.

Reaching the lost takes different forms.  They are all important.  

Help all to come into the light of Jesus.  And stay there.

# posted by Steve @ 5:00 AM 0 comments

 So my wife Marsha turns 69 tomorrow and we have been celebrating all week (and probably next week too).  Here are a few of the reasons I love her and am proud she is my wife.

She loves big.  Loves God.  Loves her family.  Loves her extended family.  Loves people.

She prays.  Prays for me, her kids, her grands, her friends, and everybody that asks.

Opens up our home.  And, make no mistake, she is the one who makes our house into a hospitality center.  She feeds people.  She prays with people.  She listens to people.  She hugs people.  She cries with people.  She laughs with people.  She talks Jesus with people.  She is why a lot of people want to hang out at our house.

The way she cared for her folks in their last days was a holy ministry.

She helps my Mom just like she did her Mom.  

She treats our kid's mates just like she does our kids. 

She has been a surrogate Mom/Mimi to more younger woman than I can count.

She takes care of me.  Keeps me centered and calm.  Reminds me everything will still be OK.

I still look for her when I speak.  

She has heard some of my stuff dozens (and dozens) of times.  Still makes me think it is her first time to hear it and that she is glad she did.

Still holds my hand.

And she still makes my heart jump when she comes in the room.

Thanks God for the amazing gift of Mimi/Marsha.  She has helped grow the Kingdom and been a living witness to what it means to follow your son.  Keep using her.  And I am thankful because she has made all the difference in my life.  

# posted by Steve @ 5:00 AM 0 comments