by Elder Mike Chon

The church is much more than a group of individuals meeting together on a Sunday to sing songs, hear a sermon and spend some time together. It is more than some religious activity. The church is the family of God made up of those that Christ died for. The church is the family of God that has been adopted and made co-heirs with Christ. The church is the family of God that shares the love of God to each other and to the world. The privilege to be part of the family of God is incomprehensible but along with that privilege comes great responsibility.

The love that we have for one another is not based on whether someone is deserving of that love. The love we have for one another is based on the love of God. That God would love us to send His Son to die for us. We are to love because God loved us first. (1 John 4:10-11) On the contrary, those that do not love actually do not love God because God is love (1 John 4:8). For the believer, to love someone or not, is never the question. There is no decision to make. If you know God, and if you know the love of God, then you will love your brother. Not only will you love your brother because you know God but you will love your brother as a member of your family. Remember we have been adopted into one family. The church is the true family. We are true brothers and sisters. Our identity is with Christ and our family is the church.

The church is the testimony of the love of God. Our love for one another as family is the testimony of the reality of the love of God. Is the love of God divided? Is the church divided? Do we only love those that are easy to love? That are convenient to love? Do we only spend time with those that we consider our “friends”? Christ prayed for the church that we would be one as He is one with the Father (John 17:21-23) so that the world would know who Jesus is. That is some privilege and responsibility. Not only that but the world will know that we are His disciples by our love for one another (John 13:35). The love of the church, the family of God, reflects both the testimony of our salvation and the testimony of Jesus Himself. Do you love the church? Do you love your brother and sister? I pray that our church would not be a church of cliques or a bunch of individual families, but instead it would be a true family that experiences the love of God in every interaction with every member of our church. Who is your family? The church is.

Here is an example of what love looks like in the church. Around AD 260, a devastating plague afflicted the city of Alexandria. People were dying constantly, and the church family as well suffered great loss. But through this tragic time in history, the love the church showed for its members gives us one of the most powerful examples of true familial love that you will ever see. Dionysius, the overseer of the Christian community in the city writes:

The most, at all events, of our brethren in their exceeding love and affection for the brotherhood were unsparing of themselves and clave to one another, visiting the sick without a thought as to the danger, assiduously ministering to them, tending them in Christ, and so most gladly departed this life along with them; being infected with the disease from others, drawing upon themselves the sickness from their neighbors, and willingly taking over their pains…In this manner the best at any rate of our brethren departed this life, certain presbyters and deacons and some laity….So, too, the bodies of the saints they would take up in their open hands to their bosom, closing their eyes and shutting their mouths, carrying them on their shoulders and laying them out; they would cling to them, embrace them, bathe and adorn them with their burial clothes, and after a little while receive the same services themselves, for those that were left behind were ever following those that went before. But the conduct of the heathen was the exact opposite. Even those who were in the first stages of the disease they thrust away, and fled from their dearest. They would even cast them in the roads half-dead, and treat the unburied corpses as vile refuse. (Eusebius, Historia Ecclesiastica 7.22)

The church is where we find our greatest encouragement from our fellow brothers and sisters. Who else except those that have been saved by grace through the work of the cross can and is able to encourage us to love God more and to help us glorify Him in all that we do.

by Elder Peter Lim

Upon seeing the title, you may be thinking ahead that I am writing about something spiritual… as in not letting bad morals into your life that grows into something bigger which starts growing and spreading itself. Hmm, not a bad idea. Maybe in a future article. For now, I am talking about actual weeds that are growing in my back yard. And about the bathroom that needs renovation, and the carpet that needs to get shampooed, and the room that needs to be painted and organized, and the playhouse in the back yard that needs to be completed. These are possibly signs that I’ve been lazy and that I need to get my act together and finish my tasks. Or maybe they are signs that I’ve chosen to use my time doing higher priority tasks. That’s always the struggle for me. I have many hobbies and projects that I’d like to spend more time on, but I can’t get beyond the fact that by spending time doing these things, I would have to give up time serving my family, my church family, or attending church events. Unfortunately, many of us fill our lives with things that don’t have eternal value. And then we spend time and money and effort into maintaining those things that don’t have eternal value.

My goal is not to make anyone feel guilty who skipped out on a church activity or spending time with their spouse or kids but the point I’m trying to make is that we often go through life without even considering what really matters in this life. We often go on cruise control and make decisions without thinking about the values that those choices represent. Do you struggle with these sort of choices too? When you decide to forego a church activity, ministry, or spending time with family, do you do so because you’ve thought through what you are giving up? I’m only partly interested in the final decision as to what you and I choose to do. I’m mainly interested in the thought process and the heart behind the decision. Of course in the end, all things are to be done to the glory of God. This is true whether we decide to go to a church picnic or whether we decide to stay home and fix a sprinkler. I find that if it were not for my own laziness and lack of self-discipline, I would have adequate time to do all those things that I feel like I need to choose between. This humbles me and causes me to be more dependent upon Him who gives me the strength to do all things. Ultimately this causes me to want to excel still more and optimize my life as well as my lifestyle. If you struggle with living your life with excellence for the glory of God, that is a good sign that you are truly a believer. If you don’t struggle with this, you need to ask yourself whether you value the things that God values. I hope my sharing here encourages you to walk closer with Christ.

by Elder Mike Chon

In the last article we asked the question, “who is your family?” We saw that as believers we have a new Father and new brothers and sisters. Even though all of us have a natural family, our spiritual family should and ought to be more of a priority than our natural family. So how important is this family?

In the days of antiquity, the family structure was much different than how our families are shaped today. First of all, members of a family never made decisions to satisfy individual needs. They always sought to do what was best for the family or group. In America today, everything is very individualistic in regards to what type of job or career to follow, where to live, who you are going to marry. In the New Testament times, people worked, lived, and married to benefit the family not just the individual. As well, the closest and most intimate relationships that people had were between siblings, not husband and wife. People did not marry so that they would have their emotional and physical needs fulfilled. They viewed their brother and sister as the closest relationships they have and would speak to them in regards to any personal needs or decisions they may need to make. If we are to consider our church as our family, we should live and make decisions in light of our church being our family. I believe too many times as believers we say that our church is our family, but never truly live out those words in our lives.

If the church is your family, then our decisions in regards to our career, where we live, and even who we marry should be considered in light of our church. Can you just leave your family as easily as so many Americans do a church? How many people do you know that jump from one church to another because they are dissatisfied with something or someone? Would you leave your family because someone is hard to get along with? Would you leave your family because you didn’t like what your father had to say during dinner? Do we only consider ourselves when making a decision in regards to work or where to live even though it will take you away from your church? Is a job or a house more important than your family? Is your church truly your family?

Of course there are legitimate reasons to leave a church. But for most of us we have made decisions that are separate from our church being a family. It is not the decision ultimately that shows your view of the church. It is how you made that decision that ultimately will reveal your view of the church. Is it just some institution that is there to benefit my life, to help me grow, to help me know God better, to help me become a better person, to help me meet more friends? If it is, then your decision to leave the church will be based on your personal preferences and goals. Everything will be centered on yourself. Then the church was and never will be truly a family. For those that are married, if you think that you need to do what is best for “your family” by leaving a church so that you can grow, has never seen the church as a true family. Sadly, most believers will affirm that church is a family, but will never live their lives in that way. That is why it is so easy for people to leave for any reason that may meet their individual needs or for someone to never become a member of a church. These believers are the “only child” in God’s family. They have no siblings and have never learned what it means to be part of a family. In the American church culture, there are thousands of these “only children” filling churches throughout the states and it has become the norm for church in America. But if the church is truly a family, with brothers and sisters that have been adopted into one family through the cross of Christ, if we are God’s household, then as members of that household we should live as one family.

Do you truly consider the church your family? Do you consider the church when you are making decisions in your life or the life of your natural family? Do you seek counsel in regards to your decision-making from an older brother or sister in your church? The church is your family. If you love God as your Father, then you would love the church as your family. You cannot separate those two things. In the next article, we will look at the impact our church can make in this world by the love we have for one another as a family.

by Elder Peter Lim

When I wrote Part 1 a few months ago, I had in mind the road that leads to Heaven in general as the best place to be. Of course I still stand by that truth. However, I wanted to write a little more specifically of why that place is San Diego for me in particular. Actually, there are many places in the world that I would like to be at. It’s not because it would be fun, or beautiful, or better food, or low cost of living, or job/business would be better, or people are friendlier, or people in San Diego have made it difficult for me to stay, or just need a change, or just want to see the world, or any number of other reasons. No, the only reason I would like to be anywhere else is because of the opportunities for ministry there. As of a few days ago, my missionary friends have had to leave their homes within a moment’s notice because of civil unrest in the Islamic country in which they are serving in and bands of men are walking around with guns and other weapons, killing hundreds of people. I wish I was there with my friends. There is a church half way around the world where it’s freezing cold and much blood has been shed historically for the cause of Christ. I wish I was there with fellow believers who have become dear to my heart. There is a little church plant about 8 hours North of San Diego who can use some more help to reach the lost and strengthen the members there. I wish I was there with fellow church planters. There are small churches all over the world where they are praying for someone with any knowledge of scripture to come and help them to grow. I wish I was there with strangers who are fellow brothers.

So what in the world am I doing here in the comforts of San Diego? Good question. Why are you where you are? I am here in San Diego with a definite purpose: to minister in the church here. We have a need for faithful people to serve sacrificially in a difficult situation. The difficulties here include: a culture that is indifferent or even hostile to Christianity, pseudo-intellectuals who ignorantly follow the influences of the world, a church-culture which produces either baby Christians or self-deceived “Churchians” who think that they are saved when they are not (Matt. 7:21-23). We San Diegans need a beacon that shines brightly in this dark world in order to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ in a clear light. This gospel needs to be clearly preached and demonstrated to the many young people who come through our fine city. The mission field is right here in our own church as many people are finding out that they’ve been walking through life with a worldly world-view that can barely be considered Biblical. We have seen people testify that they had been deceiving themselves into thinking that they were Christians when they couldn’t even give a basic outline of a gospel presentation, let alone understand the extent of their own sinfulness before a Holy God with a brokenness in spirit. Many are thinking that it’s okay and normal for a “Christian” to go through life arguing about the technicalities of where to draw the line between liberty and legalism rather than living under the power of the Spirit and contriteness of heart. There is much work to do right here in San Diego.

In the movie “Star Trek: Insurrection”, there is a scene in which Captain Picard discusses with one of the planet’s residents regarding life. Picard asks her why she and her people never took advantage of their superior technical knowledge by building starships to explore the universe. Her answer is, “Anywhere I could go, would only take me away from here” meaning that she is already in the most wonderful and best place to be. Why would she ever want to leave? In the same way, I can only think of one reason why I would ever want to leave San Diego and the work we are doing here… in obedience to the call from God to evangelize to the lost elsewhere, which reminds me of our frequently quoted phrase, “the definition of missions is just church over there.” That’s why I believe God has sent me here to San Diego, to minister to His bride, Lighthouse Bible Church, as she reaches out to the lost here in America’s Finest City. If you share my desire to reach San Diego and you plan on being here long term, please let me know and I’ll add you to my personal list of coworkers that I expect to minister with for the next 40+ years.

by Elder Mike Chon

Who is your family? This question for most people should be easy to answer. Most of us will answer this question by saying who our parents are, who our siblings are, if married, our spouse would be considered family and if you have children they would be your family as well. What may surprise you is that as believers, who we consider family and who actually is our family may be different. Again, we need to start with the Bible as our source of truth to find out who our family truly is. Next time, we will look at the significance of this in how we live our lives.

We will begin by looking at who Jesus considers to be His family. In Matthew 12:48-50, the question of who are His mother and brothers was answered by Jesus Himself. He considers those that do the will of His Father to be His brother and sister and mother. His family are those that are true believers, not just those that are His natural family members. As my last article questioned who your friend is, we must now question who our family is.

So who is your family? Who do you consider your brother and sister? Even though we all grew up with different natural families we were all born under one spiritual father according to the Scriptures. None of us were born as righteous, and Jesus tells us who our father truly was in John 8:44. There are only two spiritual fathers: God and Satan as it written in 1 John 3:10. Before being a believer we were all sons of Satan, because we followed his ways and were disobedient to God (Ephesians 2:1-2). So our family before being a believer included Satan as our father, and all the other unbelievers as our brother and sister.

So who is your family? As a believer our father has changed from being Satan to now being God. You may have heard in the past how a parents’ love for their baby is an example of God’s love for us. Since the baby can’t do anything for the parents but yet the parents love the child unconditionally. But this picture of God’s love falls short of how great His love truly is. A better picture of God’s love, is actually found in a parent-child relationship, but it occurs when a parent adopts a child that is not their own. For the child being adopted are given new parents who they don’t choose but instead the parents choose them. Not only does the child receive new parents they may also receive new brothers and sisters that are part of this new family. As believers we are all adopted into the family of God, when before we were all in the family of Satan. Not only is our sins forgiven, not only are we justified, not only do we receive the gift of salvation, but our relationship with God has completely changed and he becomes our Father (Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:5-6). So who is your family? As a believer we would consider God as our father. Along with God being our father, we also are given brothers and sisters in general who are all the other believers in the world, but specifically your brothers and sisters are those that are fellow members of your church.

So who is your family? If God is your Father, then your fellow members of your church are your brothers and sisters. Hopefully you have seen a theme in the past few articles that I have written in regards to encouragement. The main theme is that the spiritual aspect of our lives should out weigh the physical aspect of our lives. Even though children may bring physical difficulties they are an encouragement in our spiritual lives. Even through trials are difficult physically, they are an encouragement to our spiritual life. Even though “others” may make life difficult, they are an encouragement to our spiritual lives. And in the last article our friends are those that encourage us spiritually to love God more. So if we continue with this thought, if we consider our natural family and our spiritual family, our spiritual family should and ought to be the priority of our life because through our spiritual family we grow closer to our love for God and for Christ. Our adoption into God’s family and our identity with God as our Father will change the way you live your life and the way you view the church. But you will have to wait for the next article as we consider who our friends and family truly are and how we should live in light of this truth.

by Elder Peter Lim

I’ve always been a fan of old epic movies such as “Ben-Hur” and “Gone With the Wind.” One of my favorites is “Spartacus” starring Kirk Douglas. It’s the story of a Roman slave who is mistreated and trained to die in a gladiatorial battle. He escapes to form a band of men who try to fight and escape from the tyranny of Roman slavery. Near the end of the movie, the men are captured and the Romans try to find out which one of them is Spartacus and offers to suspend their death sentence in exchange for revealing which one of them is Spartacus since he’s the one who led the revolt. They intend to make an example of him by executing him. Just as Spartacus is about to stand up and announce that he is Spartacus, one of his buddies stands first saying, “I am Spartacus.” Then another of his men stands up to claim that he is Spartacus. Before long, all his men are standing up claiming to be Spartacus. The movie ends with Spartacus and all of his men being crucified on crosses and publicly displayed along the Appian Way. The reason this movie hits me in a particular way is because these men were formerly slaves who would’ve done anything to escape, without caring for anyone else except for themselves. Near the end of the movie, they are willing to die to protect Spartacus because of the kindness and self-sacrificing example he showed. This isn’t a Christian movie and these men are not seeking to glorify Christ in any sense. Even the line “I am Spartacus” is really a lie unless it is Spartacus speaking. But the reason I am moved by this scene particularly is that these men are willing to step up and die because of the inspiration they received from Spartacus.

How much more so when we have a Savior who died the death that we rightfully deserved. This silly movie example hardly compares with the calling from our glorious risen Lord. When Isaiah received his calling as a prophet (Isaiah 6:8) in a vision, God asked the question, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?”, Isaiah replied, “Here am I. Send me.” This enthusiastic answer to His calling came just a few verses after Isaiah cowered in fear because of his sinfulness, upon entering the presence of God. What happened? What transformed him from one who cowers with fear to one who is enthusiastically willing to do God’s work? His unclean lips were touched by the burning coal which symbolizes the purification of God, the atoning work of Christ. He had been cleansed and was now qualified to do God’s work.

He calls us now to evangelize the world. He calls us to that by being members of his body, the church (Eph. 5:30). When our church is in need, it is our role to fulfill whatever needs she has. With our church plant happening just a few weeks from now, the reality of many faithful servants leaving San Diego has definitely begun to show. Many of us are probably getting a little nervous about all the new people who need to step up into roles being vacated by these faithful servants. Fortunately, God has sovereignly given to our church all that we need in order to move forward. People have begun to expand beyond what they were comfortable with and have challenged themselves to serve more and at a greater involvement. But still more opportunities remain. Will you be the one to sacrificially make yourself available to do the Lord’s work? Are you willing to say, “Here am I. Send me?” Or would you rather stay in your comfort zone without being challenged and stretched in order to serve in an area that will definitely cause you to fall on your knees in prayer because you feel so inadequate?

by Elder Mike Chon

Who is your friend? Some people consider everyone that they know as their friend. Some only consider those closest to them as friends and the others as acquaintances. But how do we define someone as friend or not? As a believer we must go to the one source that defines and gives us the meaning to so many things in our everyday life. That source, of course, is the Word of God. Jesus defined his friends in John 15:12-17 and it may be surprising to hear what He has to say.

John 15:12-17
12“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends. 14You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. 16You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. 17These things I command you, so that you will love one another.

Jesus calls those that do what He commands to be His friends. Not only that but those that are His friends know Him and know His Father. What is even more amazing is that Jesus chose us to be His friend. If Jesus only considers those that are true believers to be His friends, then who do we consider to be our friends?

Who is your friend?

I written in the last several articles that encouragement is not just making you feel good, but it is ultimately for the purpose to help us love God and love Christ more. So whether it is through your children, through trials, or through other people we can be encouraged even though the circumstances may not appear “good” to those watching. Why? Because it causes us to examine ourselves and to consider the spiritual aspect of these circumstances, not just the physical circumstances itself. Therefore these circumstances are truly “good” because they encourage us to love God and Christ more. How about our friends who we enjoy being with? Aren’t they encouraging me since I enjoy being with them?

Who is your friend?

If true encouragement points us to love God and Christ more, then can an unbeliever truly do that? They will never intentionally encourage you to love God more in your life. They will never challenge you to live differently for God’s glory, or keep you accountable in the areas of your life that you are struggling with. They will never use God’s Word empowered by the Spirit to bring comfort in times of need. They will never remind you of the cross and the great sacrifice of Christ when we are selfish or unforgiving. They will never be an example of how to apply God’s Word into your life. They will never pray for you or with you. They will never understand why you enjoy speaking about the gospel all the time. The only thing they may encourage you to do is to pray more for their salvation. Can you truly call an unbeliever your friend?

Who is your friend?

Before we take this thought too far, I want to make sure that you are clear that I am not supporting “defriending” all unbelievers. Yes, I did make up a word. What I am saying however, is that those closest to you should and ought to be fellow believers that truly can encourage you to love God and Christ more in your life.

Who is your friend? Someone that is a friend of Christ and is able to encourage you to love God more. That person is your “true” friend. That person is the one that truly cares and loves you because they care enough to encourage you to love God more. They are not just there to make you feel good, but at times they may need to correct you, challenge you, exhort you, rebuke you so that you will love God more. They are also there to comfort you, to provide for you, to listen to you, to pray with you so that you will love God more.

Who is your friend? Someone that is fun to be with, or someone that is a friend of Christ? Someone that lets you complain and gossip, or someone that corrects and exhorts you? Someone that just has similar interests, or someone that seeks godliness? Someone that is your buddy, or someone that is your fellow soldier ready to fight the spiritual battles with you?

Who is your friend?

There is still something else that needs to be mentioned in understanding the depth of this thought. But it’ll have to wait until next time. Now some of you may not have a a true friend. Well, don’t be alarmed. Wait for my next article. Some of you may think you have a true friend. Well, get ready to be surprised.

Editor’s Note: Mike, I love you, and I love your articles. But you didn’t make up that word.

by Elder Peter Lim

When I wrote part 1 last month, I wasn’t able to get everything I wanted to say in it. Please refer to it before reading this article to get a better idea of what I’m talking about, especially about what Star Trek has to do with anything.

How the leadership structure of a church ought to be organized has been the topic of debates for a long time, probably since the Apostles were still around. I am generalizing here but Congregationalists tend to vote on everything, Baptists tend to have a head pastor who controls everything, and the Presbyterians tend to treat pastors as employees while the non-pastoral elders control everything. Please do not misunderstand my intentions here. I am not necessarily against denominations. There are many advantages to being in a denomination. There are various reasons for all this diversity of course and there are Biblical merits to each of these denominational polities. But therein lies a subtle problem: it is easy for the structure of the polity to dictate how issues get resolved, rather than Biblical principles. It is very easy to sidestep the priority of a plurality of elders, self-humility, and prayer for the tempting alternative of efficient decision-making, clarity of authority, and pragmatic solutions.

Some people hear of elders Retreats and our long meetings and think to themselves that the elders must be such close friends since we spend a lot of time together. It is true that we are friends, but perhaps not in the way many might think. Being partners in ministry at an elder level is a much higher level of friendship than mere friends in a worldly sense. (More on this in a future article) In some ways I think that the elders of LBC would be even closer friends if we didn’t have to deal with difficult issues that must be resolved. Battle scars result from having to discuss through difficult issues, especially when elders have differing views. Most people have the luxury of not having to deal with resolving differences of preference with their friends. To illustrate, let’s use the example of choosing a carpet color for the church. Most people don’t have to make decisions like these. They have the luxury of just living with whatever decision that has been made, and then criticizing whether they like it or not. The elders have the responsibility to make a decision on this, whether that entails making the decision themselves or appointing some committee to decide for them. If more than one elder has a strong preference on the choice, things get complicated very quickly. There is no written rule how to come to a decision when it’s a non-doctrinal issue. If the elders take a vote, there will always be losers. That can create bitterness. You may have heard that we only operate on elder unanimity here at LBC. That unanimity is not always accomplished very easily. There is much discussion and giving preference to one another. At the end of the day, there will be decisions made in elders meetings which don’t satisfy all the elders, guaranteed. It can often get to a point where an elder actually disagrees strongly with his fellow elders. How can that elder now support his fellow elders, especially in the eyes of the rest of the church? Only by humility and by the love of Christ. That disagreeing elder can show support for his fellow elders and even defend them because he loves them. Steve Preslar talks about his friend who says “Don’t confuse my meekness for weakness.” Similarly I’d like to say, “Don’t confuse the elders’ harmony with being mindless yes-men.” Mine doesn’t rhyme as well. Okay, mine doesn’t rhyme at all.

It would be foolish for a church member to lump all the elders together in one pot as if we all think the same way in every decision. We are not Borg. (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, I feel sorry for you…go watch Star Trek: First Contact) Unfortunately, some in the congregation actually hurt the church by trying to dig up dirt between elders. They may even gossip that elder A disagrees with elder B and that elder C isn’t happy about a decision that has been made. All of these things may even be true, but that is never the point. One should never say things like, “I agree with YOU, but that other elder is messed up.” It’s like when a kid asks his mom if he can play his Game Boy and upon hearing “no” he goes and asks his dad instead. Because of a selfish desire to get the answer he wants, he risks ill feelings between his parents. In the same way, no church member should tolerate that sort of comment from another fellow church member regarding anyone in the church, especially the leaders. Instead they ought to obey their leaders and submit to them and let the leaders lead with joy. (Heb. 13:17) Note that this is a Biblical command. How are you doing in it?

It may sound to some people that my last two articles here on the Beacon is a result of many frustrating disagreements that I have personally experienced with the elders of LBC. Let me put that gossip fodder to rest and emphasize that we have had many more agreements than disagreements. I’m happy to say that I have seen our elder board step up in many encouraging ways, far above I even expected. We have had more than our share of difficult circumstances to navigate through and many occasions where it would’ve been simpler to just quit. Much larger churches have told us that we are dealing with difficult and unusual problems that they’ve never had to go through. But God has blessed our church to this point where instead of a church split, we are purposefully planting a new church. What a blessed church we are, to be able to be used by God in multiple places. He has brought our church to the strongest we’ve ever been in the 11 year history of our church. More people have come to trust Him as Lord and Savior in the last few years than all the previous years combined. Friends, we are living in the “good old days” we’re going to be talking about in 10-20-30+ years. Praise Him!

p.s. For the record, it took LBC elders all of 10 seconds to agree on our carpet color choice out of the choices given to us by our landlord…and yes, there was more than one choice.

Elders: Totally Not Borg

by Elder Mike Chon

One not so wise man said “Life would be a lot easier if you didn’t have to work with people.” Yes, at times people can make life more difficult and inconvenient. From disputes and conflicts, to broken families, to even wars, people have caused enough damage to others that we would rather be alone than have to work with others. Now with the advances in technology you actually can live in a virtual world where people only know each other by username and never have to talk or see who you are actually working with. Instead of asking how you are doing, you can just look at their social network site and find out what is going on in someone’s life. For the unbeliever, this type of life may actually be preferred. They don’t see a reason for having to interact with others especially if the “others” interfere with their life, with their desires, with their rights, with their opinions, with their feelings, with their kingdom. In a consumer-centered, self-idolizing, pleasure-driven world, nothing would be more offensive than for someone to disrupt their “world.” But for the one that is born again, and is a true follower of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, we live in this life in a completely different way. We actually can find encouragement from others, even those that make life difficult.

Remember as believers we encourage others not just for encouragement sake, but for a purpose. It isn’t just to make someone feel good about themselves, but ultimately it is to encourage someone to love God and Christ more. When we look at life we must remember that we can be encouraged in situations that my not appear “good” but ultimately it is helping us to love Christ more. That is why in Matthew 5:10-11 Christ calls us “blessed” when we are persecuted and reviled against. Not only that, but Christ calls us in Matthew 5:44 to love our enemies and pray for them. We are not to look at others who may discourage us or even persecute us as a curse, but instead we are to see them as Christ sees them, as instruments that cause us to love Christ more. What a great blessing we have to be able to experience hardship from others so that it would cause us to love God more! How gracious God is to bring people into our lives that show us that we cannot love others unless we love God first? How loving of God to bring people into our lives that make life so difficult which helps us to love God more and love ourselves less? That is why the “others” in your life are a blessing.

I will have to use my children as an example again. My oldest son, who is three and a half years old, has the great blessing of learning patience and loving “others” everyday. Our 2 year old son is the “other” in his life who constantly takes away the toys that he is playing with, destroys the train tracks that he helped put together and destroys the blocks that he built. Not only that but he now has an 11 month old sister who follows the steps of the younger brother in taking toys away and destroying train tracks. What a blessing it is to have a younger brother and sister who helps you to daily practice patience and love toward others! Even though I know my oldest will disagree that he is blessed, where else would he learn these things if he didn’t have a younger brother and sister? Where would you learn what it means to love your enemies, to consider those that persecute you as a blessing, if those people are not placed in your lives? God is truly wise beyond our understanding to graciously bring people into our lives so that they will help us to love others as Christ loved us. May you not react toward “others” with frustrations or anger, but instead use every opportunity to learn and grow in your love for God and Christ. Only because Christ loved us first can we love Him and also love “others.”

by Elder Peter Lim

Growing up in the mid 1970s, The original Star Trek series quickly became one of my favorite TV shows to watch. It was quite an amazing show since it portrayed interstellar travel in a way that was more than just a collection of shallow, outer-space, visual effects. The story lines involved many of the elements that modern science fiction movies include as well as social issues. Who can forget the episode where a man with a half-black face felt racially superior to another man with a half-black face simply because the other guy was black on the left side instead of on the right side? It also gave an optimistic vision of the future world which was largely ordered and moral instead of being full of chaos. Starfleet Command gave the overall leadership to the Starship captains. The captains were followed by the first officer, and then other commander-rank officers. Rare were occasions where there was confusion as to who was in charge. There was a proper chain of command. Any lower ranking member of the crew must obey any higher ranking member. When the captain was on an away mission, he designated exactly who would be in charge while he was gone. How you feel about a decision is irrelevant. This is leadership at its highest efficiency. No time to waste arguing about what to do next. The leader in charge makes all the decisions. Every military force in the world operates on similar principles of proper succession of command in order to maximize efficiency.

So what does Star Trek have in common with the local church? Very little of course. However, many people try to implement a Star Trek-like efficiency into the polity of the local church. They imagine that having a leadership structure that is similar to the ones used in Star Trek or the military or corporate business is the best way to run a church. I can understand how such a system can be beneficial if the primary goal is to maximize efficiency of an organization. However, the goal of a church is not to achieve maximum efficiency. The primary goal of a church is to maximize God’s glory. This is why God has chosen fallible men to shepherd His flock as elders. It is when elders give preference to one another in a humble way that God’s glory is maximized, not when the captain makes unilateral decisions. This is difficult because everybody thinks that their own way is the best way. It’s difficult to consider the possibility that someone else might have a better idea.

Being an elder can be a frustrating task. No wonder God considered character qualities to be of utmost importance when choosing elders. In 1 Tim. 3, there is no qualification for an elder to be a college graduate with an MBA degree. There is no qualification to have been proven in business skills by running a profitable business. There are only character qualities which demonstrate his proper standing before God and with relating to other people. Imagine a scenario where an elder goes home after a frustrating meeting and says to his wife, “Guess what, they didn’t listen to me AGAIN.” He and his wife would then start to harbor bitterness against the other elders or possibly start planting seeds of division within the church as they talk to other people about the bad decision made by the other elders. A Godly man would never make such a remark. He would understand that even if he believes the wrong decision has been made, that he might be wrong. If his opinion is later proven to have been the best way to go, he wouldn’t gloat about that nor be smug. A Godly man would seek to encourage the rest of the board and move on. Although the optimal decision wasn’t made, God is glorified because His character was demonstrated by a Godly elder.

This also means that the goal of elders meetings is not simply to make quick and efficient decisions in order to have short meetings and go home early. Elders meetings are fellowship times to keep each other accountable, sharpen one another, and shepherd the flock of God by caring for the people. This is not to minimize the importance of the efficient running of a church and its activities but merely to put people ahead of the programs. An excellent elder board will seek to do both tasks well. When work can be delegated to deacons, staff, and other church members, the elders can then be freed up to devote more time for prayer and shepherding issues, especially for each other. This is especially important because all elders are mutually responsible before God to present His bride the church spotless and blameless. But because elders are fellow sinners, there will be disagreement and conflict, guaranteed. When disagreements arise, it’s important to remember that these differing opinions come from fellow brothers whom we love dearly and more importantly, loved by God.

Please pray for humility and wisdom for the elders of our church. We are all too familiar with our own weaknesses and faults. It is a great honor and privilege to serve you members of Lighthouse!