Skylar's Blog & Podcast

Verse: For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.”

You read the title of this blog right. There are spiritual lessons even in the most unlikely places. Especially on a kick butt ship run by half dead pirates!!! Just a side note, my dad is partially addicted to the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland. It's funny watching the little kid in him come out. Back to the ship! For those of you familiar with the story of the Black Pearl the members of its crew are under a heavy curse because of some gold they stole. Do you remember the curse? Spoiler alert if any of you haven't seen this movie yet (but then again, if you haven't seen this movie yet how likely are you too now?), but the curse has made it so these men are the walking dead. They seem alive, but they have been cursed with an insatiable desire. They eat and it doesn't satisfy them, they drink and they are still thirsty (this is a blog all in its own). This curse separates them from a normal life, and until they fulfill the requirements to lift the curse they continued leading this frustrating existence.

This Sunday we talked about the curse mankind has brought on itself. Because of our decision (see Gen 3:1-7) we are born rebellious and evil. We are born opposed to God. Not because He is unworthy of our love, but because we have "bigger fish to fry." Just as the crew on the Black Pearl is separated from fulfilling life, we, too, are separated from God and the fulfilling life which accompanies a relationship with Him. So, what requirements must we fulfill to end this curse? Here's the bad news, there's nothing we can do about it. Remember the pirates we've been talking about. How would their outlook on life change if someone were to reveal to them that there was nothing they could do to end their curse, that they would live just as they are for forever? On the back of your notes I gave you some questions to think about after reading Galatians 3:10-11. One of those was, "What does it mean we are cursed?" To understand our predicament you have to understand this first. We came into this world destined for hell. We were birthed with a one way ticket to an eternity away from God, into complete suffering. And the catch is, we couldn't do anything to get out of it. There is not enough wriggling, serving, worshipping, and loving we could do to get this ticket changed, and God would be just in keeping it this way. However, God isn't defined by justice alone. In fact, He is ultimately characterized by love (1 John 4:8). Galatians 3:13 reveals to us exactly how God took away this curse: "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree...'” We were born cursed, and we deserved to die cursed, but we worship, serve, and live for a God who refused to let that happen. Think through those questions I gave you this week with your parents, and thank Jesus for becoming what we deserved to offer us what we could never earn.

Philippians 1:7-8

I don't know how many of you remember how absolutely delicious cough syrup is...ok not at all. As I read through the verses I gave you on Sunday (Philippians 1:6-8, but of course you remember that...) cough syrup came to mind. You look confused. I can remember dreading that awful, thick, red liquid, but I always looked forward to feeling better, mostly because it meant I wouldn't have to drink anymore cough syrup. Cough syrup is very tough to swallow, but it is necessary for us to be healthy again. Agreed? Here's where we transition: there's a word in Philippians 1:8 that might taste like cough syrup to some of us. The word is (drum roll please)... "humbled." You might be thinking, "That's not such a horribly difficult idea." You're thinking this because you have never sought out true humility and what being a humble Christian means. So try and drink this down:

Jesus gave us the perfect picture of humility, and Paul gives us the Spark Notes version of this extensive picture. I'll sum it up and then explain how this applies: Paul first paints the picture of where Jesus started, "...though he was in the form of God." Jesus was equal with God, He is God. He was in heaven, the place even those who don't believe in God yearn for. Then, the unthinkable happens: "...(he) did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men." So, the Creator of the Heavens and the Earth took on the form of what He created. He entered into a world full of suffering, pain, and grief. He rejected His place in what all of us yearn for, to enter into what many of us can't wait to leave. The next time you try to wrap your mind around humility I want you to look back at this verse, because Jesus is the perfect picture of this quality.

But maybe it still isn't hitting home. Have you ever thought you deserved something? Maybe you did a great job on a test, or you were really respectful to your parents, or maybe you bought a friend a nice present or threw them a great party. Was there any part of you after this nice act which was expecting something in return? That is pride in a nutshell. Pride believes we deserve something. It believes we are special. Now, Jesus shows us humility is centered around the most incredible thing: love, and that's just it: pride opposes love. I would bet we rarely think about love when we think about humility and pride. However, it is very clear that Jesus' humility is birthed straight out of His love. So what is humility? Humility is thinking of others as better than yourselves (Philippians 2:3), looking to other's interests (thinking about their desires and their needs - Philippians 2:4), and actually acting on these two. And let's not forget this should all be drenched in love (1 Corinthians 13:1-3). Now try and drink all of that down. But remember, if we want to return to health, if we want to live the way we were created to (just like with cough syrup) we need this.