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I Haven’t Tasted Your Apple

At the University of Chicago Divinity School each year, they have what is called Baptist Day. On this day each one is to bring a lunch to be eaten outdoors in a grassy picnic area. Every Baptist Day the school would invite one of the greatest minds to lecture in the theological education center.

The story is that one year they invited Dr. Paul Tillich. Dr. Tillich spoke for two and one-half hours proving that the resurrection of Jesus was false. He quoted scholar after scholar and book after book.

He concluded that since there was no such thing as the historical resurrection the religious tradition of the church was groundless, emotional mumbo-jumbo, because it was based on a relationship with a risen Jesus, who, in fact, never rose from the dead in any literal sense. He then asked if there were any questions.

After about 30 seconds, an old, dark skinned preacher with a head of short-cropped, woolly white hair stood up in the back of the auditorium. ”Doct’a Tillich, I got one question,” he said as all eyes turned toward him. He reached into his sack lunch and pulled out an apple and began eating it. ”Doct’a Tillich… CRUNCH, MUNCH… My question is a simple question, CRUNCH, MUNCH; Now, I ain’t never read them books you read…CRUNCH, MUNCH…and I can’t recite the Scriptures in the original Greek…CRUNCH, MUNCH.. I don’t know nothin’ about Niebuhr and Heidegger…” CRUNCH, MUNCH…He finished the apple. “All I wanna know is was that apple I ate bitter or sweet?”

Dr. Tillich paused for a moment and answered in exemplary scholarly fashion: “I cannot possibly answer that question, for I haven’t tasted your apple.”

The white-haired preacher dropped the core of his apple into his crumpled paper bag, looked up at Dr. Tillich and said calmly, “Neither have you tasted my Jesus.”

The 1,000 plus in attendance could not contain themselves. The auditorium erupted with applause and cheers. Dr. Tillich thanked his audience and promptly left the platform.

Psalm 34:8 – Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man that trusteth in Him!

We profess with our mouth’s that Christ is the King of Kings, Lord of Lords and Prince of Peace. What we don’t or refuse to recognize is how truly important those names are. He is sovereign over all things, people, relationships, and situations. God knows everything, but how often do we reject his true council and sovereignty in our lives?

I went to my parents’ church here in Knoxville today and Pastor Riley was speaking of a childhood game he used to play: King of the Hill. I think that he was right that we all still unconsciously play king of the hill in our families, jobs and relationships. The question is, who is the king of your hill? Are you vying for a better position at work, trying to dominate in you home, or simply trying to keep ahead of the Joneses?

We get so caught up in the “American Dream,” which insists on our upward mobility, that we forget the true source of success in our lives: Christ. When will we recognize Christ’s awe inspiring Lordship in our lives and give him complete control of our hill? I don’t see a better candidate than an omniscient and merciful God to guide us in the right path and be our King of the hill.

Children are also our roll models whether we want to believe it or not. We are supposed to pay attention to them and emulate their eagerness to please and their faith that their parents will provide.

Matthew 18: 1-6

“At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, ‘Who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: ‘I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.’”

God wants more from us that an acknowledgement of his Godship. Even the demons proclaim his as God and tremble in fear for their existence. A truly repentent heart proclaims God as God, recognizes that we can only attain salvation through God’s son, and listens to the indwelling Holy Spirit for guidance through life. Our lives change when we accept the grace and mercy of Christ’s salvation. We can put aside our old lives and sorrows that are attached to it because we become new creations in Christ.

Epicureans believe that “personal happiness is the only sensible goal in human existence. Individuals are powerless to change the world and are not obligated to try, just seek to be happy.”

People have a longing in their lives that they cannot explain. They try to satisfy this longing with worldly love, possessions and relationships. Many people try to fill this void in many ways: love and human relationships, social causes, work and personal achievement, and religion. Becoming busy in life in order to achieve “happiness” does not fill the emptiness that people feel. John Choron said that “if you work hard enough, long enough, work (love, relationships, social causes, achievement, religion, etc.) becomes your ultimate goal and you’ll probably be too tired and too involved to be disturbed by the possibility that your existence is meaningless.” Satan has been very successful in blinding people from the more important things in life by means of fear, worry and making people “too busy” to think.

I’m not saying that you can’t be happy in life. Life is a test of faith, and there are things that are more important than those things that the world can give to us and puts so much emphasis on. Without a personal connection with the source of life, how can we claim to have found meaning and feel happy?

“A man’s steps are directed by the Lord. How then can anyone understand his own way?” Proverbs 20:24

God wants people who are willing to do his will, but sometimes we’re too willing to do what we think God wants us to do instead of waiting for God to guide us to the place that we should be. If God is not in control of our lives, then all of our enthusiasm and vigor are wasted on things that he might not necessarily want us to be doing at a certain time. Trust in the Lord, and he will guide your path.

“It is finished” was not a cry of defeat but a cry of victory. Christ was sent to the earth to bridge the gap between God and man and he did just that. Because of his precious sacrifice, we can directly ask God for forgiveness of our wrongs and mistakes. What man had broken, God decided to mend because of his all encompassing love for us. What a wonderful gift to be able to approach God as clean, forgiven people. Thank you father for your loving mercy that touches all that ask in faith for it.

I found out the other day that another of my friends/study partners/people I come in contact with rather frequently is homosexual. She asked me if I hated her because I had recently told her of my faith and that I was Southern Baptist. I told her that I didn’t hate her.

I couldn’t help being reminded later that we are called to “hate the sin and love the sinner.” I couldn’t think of a truer command. What is the point of having a belief based on love, when you can’t see the person behind the sin? And yet, I still hesitate in loving sometimes. It’s very hard to be slapped in the face by reality sometimes and find out that what you think isn’t necessarily what is real. My nature says, “hate and distrust” things and people who are not like me, but the Jesus in me says, love anyway like your father loves you. I never realized how difficult that could be until high school and now another layer has been added to what happened then. I know what I’m supposed to do, it’s just complicated sometimes.

Lord, help me to be your missionary of love by breaking my heart and showing me how to pour my love into the lives of others

There were two cries from crouds of people between the times of Palm Sunday and Easter: “Hosanna and Crucify Him.” Many of the same people were probably in both crouds going along with whatever everybody else was doing. We are sheep who need a shepherd but we are also people who have been given the chance to choose. What will we choose to do about Jesus? Sing praises to a merciful saviour or call for the crucification of someone don’t want to exist?

If you go ask some people you know, “In your personal opinion, what do you understand it takes for a person to go to heaven?” I’m sure you will receive a lot of different responses. No matter what people say, we aren’t going to get to heaven by “being a good person.” God judges the heart not the exterior, and if the heart has not been cleansed and has not accepted that by faith in Christ’s death and resurrection everyone has the opportunity to have had their sins forgiven, then they aren’t going to get into heaven. No “ands, ifs, or tushes