O Lord, we pray, speak in the calming of our minds and in the longings of our hearts, by the words of my lips and in the thoughts that we form. Speak, O Lord, for your servants listen. Amen.
One clergy family decided to let their three-year old son record the message for their home answering machine. The rehearsals went smoothly: “Mommy and Daddy cannot come to the phone right now. If you will leave your name, phone number, and a brief message, they will get back to you as soon as possible.” Then came the test. The father pressed the record button and their son said sweetly, “Mommy and Daddy cannot come to the phone right now. If you will leave your name, phone number, and a brief message, they will get back to you as soon as Jesus comes.”
The three readings of this morning speak to us today of sin and of forgiveness.
Our first reading shows Joseph’s brothers begging him, in the name of the God of their Father, to forgive them. And Joseph does – saying as he does:
“Do not be afraid. Do I act for God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives…”
You may remember, Joseph, was sold into slavery by his brothers, who were envious of the favoritism shown by their father towards him and resentful of the attitude that Joseph seemed to have towards them. They would have murdered him, but for their reluctance to actually have his blood on their hands, but the fate that they condemned him to was little better than murder, for no slave is able to do as they wish, and the life of a slave could be taken at the whim of his master.
It was only due to Joseph having favour in the eyes of God that Joseph was able to prosper even in his slavery and, after many trials and tribulations, including a spell of over two years in prison for an offence that he did not commit, rise to the position of being at the right hand of the Pharaoh, where he was appointed with the task of keeping Egypt safe from seven years of drought and famine.
Certainly his brothers committed a grave sin against Joseph. And yet, many years later, when hunger brought them into Egypt – he fed them; indeed he provided richly for both them and his father, saying even then, that God had a purpose in allowing them to sell him into slavery, for it made it possible for him to save them and all his people in their greatest time of need.
God gave to Joseph the grace to see beyond the pain to the gain. The grace to see what while evil was done to him – God was able to use that evil for good.
Often that is a most difficult thing for us, at least it is for me.
We cannot see anything good coming out of the harm that others have done to us. We cannot see any reason for giving out mercy, we cannot see any reason for giving to them forgiveness, even if, in other areas of our life we may have prosper.
We carry the wounds of the past with us, we remember the hurt done to us.
We tend to think of what might have been, rather than taking a look at our life as it is now, and seeing in it the hand of God to do good for many, and from that point of view, forgiving other people for the harm that they may have done to us in the past, and often in the very distant past.
If the truth ever be told – even in the story of Joseph, sin remains sin, even though God brought good out of it.
That is a simple fact of truth, and we should never lose track of it.
No matter what God does with the sins that have been committed against us, they remain as sins.
The Psalm reading of this morning speaks to us of what God does with our sins. Let me quote from the first eleven verses:
Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits – who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases…the LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens above the earth, so great is this love of those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us…
God does indeed remove our sins from us. Out of love for us, God forgives us our sins. God cancels them out. God makes the debt that in justice we owe to him – of no account. That is the great message of the cross 0 that God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whosoever believes in him might not perish, but have eternal life.
As we all know from our experience in life sin is serious. Sin is always wrong, it is always bad. It always hurt someone. However, the incredible news is, that while sin always hurt, its power to hurt ends when forgiveness is applied to it.
We have all been forgiven by God. Sin no longer has the power to harm our relationship with God. It has been washed away; it has been nailed to the cross. It has been buried by God, never to rise again. In the place of sin has new life comes forth, a life that we have but to reach out to receive.
That is what God does for each and every one of us. Instead of punishing us for our sins, instead of keeping us away at arm’s length, instead of turning away his face from us as we so very much deserves, God turns to us.
God turns to us, and in pain, and in tears, and finally in death itself, he forgives us and calls us, as well as empowers us, to live as ones who are able, just like Joseph, to save many lives – as ones, just like Jesus, are able to bring the word of life to those who are living in darkness, the word of love those who are perishing on account of their lack of love.
Max Lucado in his thesis “The Grip of Grace” tells us that “God does not condone our sin, nor does he compromise his standard. He does not ignore our rebellion, nor does he relax his demands. Rather than dismiss our sin, he assumes our sin and, incredibly, incredibly sentences himself. God is still holy. Sin is still sin. And we are redeemed.”
We are indeed redeemed. We have been bought out of slavery to sin and death. God is good to us – even though some of our brothers and sisters have not been good to us – even though we ourselves have not been good to God.
And so, we finally arrive at the Gospel lesson of today as well as at the title of our Sermon “as we forgive those who trespass against us.”
After listening to Jesus speak to him and the other disciples about how to treat a brother or a sister who has sinned against them, Peter comes up to Jesus and asks him:
“Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” And then Jesus gave his famous answer - “I tell you not seven times, but seventy times seven times”.
And then Jesus tells them an alarming parable about how the Kingdom of Heaven is like a King who wanted to settle accounts with his servants, and how one of these servants, even he is forgiven a massive debt by his master, fails to be equally forgiving of a fellow servant who owes him but a very small debt.
“You wicked servant” says the master to the one he had forgiven so much. “I cancelled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Should you not have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?” And in anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
This is alarming, is it not? And how much more so when you remember the punch line of Jesus. “This”, says Jesus “is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”
This parable is alarming because a lot of people find it difficult to forgive. And because, in some way or other, from the parable, it seems like that the forgiveness that we will finally receive from God depends on the forgiveness we give….
“This”, says Jesus, “is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.” And again, from earlier in the Gospel according to Matthew, when the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. This, says Jesus, is how you should pray, “forgive our trespasses, as we forgive those who have trespassed against us.”
God loves and forgives us – even before we even ask. His forgiveness is total and unconditional, and he calls on us to open our live to him and to accept that love and forgiveness.
If you are worrying about not being able to forgive someone one time, let alone seventy times seven times, there is something you can do about it. Or if you are worrying that your perhaps your prayer to God might be fulfilled before you are ready for it, and that God will end up in forgiving you in the same way that you forgive others, there is something you can do about it.
That something is this:
Surrender your judgment to God, surrender your judgment to God and keep on praying the prayer that Jesus taught us, and pray this prayer with deep earnestness. From time to time try changing the words. Change them from “And Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” to “And, as You have forgiven us our trespasses, help us to forgive those who trespass against us”, and change the words back again.
Pray the prayer of Christ and taste the grace of God of which our Psalm reading sings of today.
Remember that sin is sin –and that it all hurts – and yet God removes it from us as far as the east is from the west. He forgives us, he has compassion for us, like a father has for his children, like a mother has for her child.
Taste what that means for you. Think of how God has shown love for you, forgiveness to you, even before you even asked for it, even before you thought to ask.
Then you will be, as the Psalm puts it, “Like a tree planted by streams of water”. You will be drawing upon the love of God – the story of God’s wonder and grace – the word of God. You will be able to yield your fruit in season, and your leaves will not wither, your actions, and later even your feelings, will be good.
Yes, sin is sin, and we have every right to be angry about it. We should be angry about it. But work to let go of your anger to those who have sinned against you. Work on it by not only remembering what God has done for you, but also by remembering who is in the end, the only one who has the right to render judgment.
Forgiveness means that we must forever give up the idea that we are the judge.
I, personally, am so happy about that, because I know that I will make a lousy judge. Because I know also how my judgments of other people have in times past proven wrong, and I know how even when they have been “right”, they have done nothing to improve the situation for me. For those I am worried about. For the one that has done wrong.
Think on all these things. Think about how God’s ways are greater than ours, and how God cares for us, and wants us to care for other people.
Then pray again. “Lord, forgive my trespasses as I forgive those who trespass against me” and again, “Lord, as you have forgiven my trespasses, help me to forgive those who have trespass against me.”
God will certainly help you, as he has helped me, as you remember what is near to God’s own heart – and ask his help with it. God will help you even as you continue the prayer as Jesus taught us to pray.
Fear not that you have already lost – or will loose your salvation – your joy or peace. Rather keep trying to forgive – for in trying to forgive, forgiveness comes.
Do not fear your failures to forgive despite your resolve to forgive. The Lord who calls us to forgive seventy times seven times has himself done the same – and indeed even more.
Your salvation is not lost by one act of malice, or even by a series of such acts. It can only be lost if you commit what the Scriptures call the unforgivable sin, the sin against the Holy Spirit, the sin which we understand to be the denial of God and of God’s power; the denial of the Truth of God that seeks to leaven your life.
The truth of God is that God is forgiving.
The power of God is the power to help you to stand firm and to show that truth to others, through the love that we give.
Praise the Lord, O my soul. All my innermost being, praise his holy name. Amen.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Saturday, January 30, 2010
1 Peter 1:13
"Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ" 1 Pet 1:13
Most of us tend to forget that we, as Christians, are in a war zone - fighting a very real battle. For the most part, our lives are pretty easy as believers. We haven't been thrown in prison for our faith. Our church buildings have not been nvaded by armed police. We haven't lost our jobs because we are Christians. The grocery store will still take our cash and our checks. We aren't thrown out of our homes to live in the street. Life is pretty good!
Peter reminds us that we are enlisted in a mighty army. He warns us that we need to be in a state of readiness, prepared for battle. We need a constant "mind awareness" that we could be called into action at any moment. We must keep focused upon Jesus and the duties at hand.
This means that we have an absolute mandate to not let the world and it's affairs distract us from our mission in life - to be good and faithful servants of the Lord, Jesus Christ. It is too easy to come home from a hard day at work and "unwind" in front of the TV. We often don't feel the "need" to attend services every time the door is open. (Services are part of the war training that we must have to be ready to fight spiritual battles.) Prayer is something that we do on a "when the need arises" basis - my need, that is, not yours.
I suspect that Peter would cringe at our state of readiness - or lack thereof. His life literally depended upon and was consumed by his need to serve Jesus as a willing "slave." I doubt that he would understand all of our "needs." Rather he would shake his head in wonder at all of the "things" that so easily distract us - then prepare a special "tactical drill" that would show us our weakness! Amen and Amen.
Most of us tend to forget that we, as Christians, are in a war zone - fighting a very real battle. For the most part, our lives are pretty easy as believers. We haven't been thrown in prison for our faith. Our church buildings have not been nvaded by armed police. We haven't lost our jobs because we are Christians. The grocery store will still take our cash and our checks. We aren't thrown out of our homes to live in the street. Life is pretty good!
Peter reminds us that we are enlisted in a mighty army. He warns us that we need to be in a state of readiness, prepared for battle. We need a constant "mind awareness" that we could be called into action at any moment. We must keep focused upon Jesus and the duties at hand.
This means that we have an absolute mandate to not let the world and it's affairs distract us from our mission in life - to be good and faithful servants of the Lord, Jesus Christ. It is too easy to come home from a hard day at work and "unwind" in front of the TV. We often don't feel the "need" to attend services every time the door is open. (Services are part of the war training that we must have to be ready to fight spiritual battles.) Prayer is something that we do on a "when the need arises" basis - my need, that is, not yours.
I suspect that Peter would cringe at our state of readiness - or lack thereof. His life literally depended upon and was consumed by his need to serve Jesus as a willing "slave." I doubt that he would understand all of our "needs." Rather he would shake his head in wonder at all of the "things" that so easily distract us - then prepare a special "tactical drill" that would show us our weakness! Amen and Amen.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Philippians 3:8-9
"Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith" Philippians 3:8-9
One of the first things that the Holy Spirit will do in us is to wipe out those things that we rely on naturally. Paul argues this out in Philippians 3, in which he catalogs who he is and the things in which he might have confidence; "but," he says, "I deliberately renounce all these thing that I may gain Christ."
One of the biggest differences between Christianity and the occult is to simply examine their sense of power. An occult will claim that you can receive some special power to be used at your beckoning will, at your command, it is a sure sign that God is out of the loop, and you must reject all of it and run. Believe me, if you find that the slightest bit humorous, you are mistaken.
Let us get this understanding right up front, the only way any of us can ever be of service to God is when we are willing to renounce all natural abilities and determine to be weak in Him. Whenever we think we are of use to God, we hinder Him. We must form a habit of letting God carry on His work through us without obstruction or hindrance from our own determination to do good works apart from Him. Amen and Amen.
One of the first things that the Holy Spirit will do in us is to wipe out those things that we rely on naturally. Paul argues this out in Philippians 3, in which he catalogs who he is and the things in which he might have confidence; "but," he says, "I deliberately renounce all these thing that I may gain Christ."
One of the biggest differences between Christianity and the occult is to simply examine their sense of power. An occult will claim that you can receive some special power to be used at your beckoning will, at your command, it is a sure sign that God is out of the loop, and you must reject all of it and run. Believe me, if you find that the slightest bit humorous, you are mistaken.
Let us get this understanding right up front, the only way any of us can ever be of service to God is when we are willing to renounce all natural abilities and determine to be weak in Him. Whenever we think we are of use to God, we hinder Him. We must form a habit of letting God carry on His work through us without obstruction or hindrance from our own determination to do good works apart from Him. Amen and Amen.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Phil 3:20-21
"For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself." Phil 3:20-21
I've said it before and I'll say it again. We cling far too hard to this life. We all claim to want to go to heaven - but not today! We become ill with a possibly terminal disease - and we fight it with all our resources. We want to stay alive. Why?
There is the need of family and responsibilities. We want our children to grow up with mother and father both being present - and that is good. We want to make sure our children and grandchildren are able to go through college if they want to - and that is good.
There is the need of excitement. I don't know what life has to offer tomorrow, but I want to try it. I've not done all the things I want to do yet. I haven't tried sky diving, or bungy jumping. I haven't seen Spain, or Greece, or Israel. I haven't been on an cruise around the world.
There is the need of fulfillment. I don't think my life is finished. There is still a lot of work to do. I have a house mortgage to pay for, a boat to buy, a job to finish. We could even be spiritual - I haven't had time to become a missionary yet. I haven't preached the perfect sermon yet. I haven't . . .and the list could go on and on and on.
The simple fact is this: if we didn't cling so hard to this life and all its needs, and clung instead to God, maybe we would be living life fuller. We have our life mapped out. But don't you think that God could map you a more exciting route? I suspect He could - and would if we let Him. We want so much to get from point A in our lives to point B, that we forget that God may have some special things for us along the way. If we will let Him be our guide, if we will claim our citizenship in Heaven instead of on earth, if we won't cling so hard to this life, then God will make our lives much richer than we could ever dream possible. And all the things that keeps us on earth? It is nothing compared to what God has in store. The BEST is yet to come. Hallelujah, Amen and Amen.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. We cling far too hard to this life. We all claim to want to go to heaven - but not today! We become ill with a possibly terminal disease - and we fight it with all our resources. We want to stay alive. Why?
There is the need of family and responsibilities. We want our children to grow up with mother and father both being present - and that is good. We want to make sure our children and grandchildren are able to go through college if they want to - and that is good.
There is the need of excitement. I don't know what life has to offer tomorrow, but I want to try it. I've not done all the things I want to do yet. I haven't tried sky diving, or bungy jumping. I haven't seen Spain, or Greece, or Israel. I haven't been on an cruise around the world.
There is the need of fulfillment. I don't think my life is finished. There is still a lot of work to do. I have a house mortgage to pay for, a boat to buy, a job to finish. We could even be spiritual - I haven't had time to become a missionary yet. I haven't preached the perfect sermon yet. I haven't . . .and the list could go on and on and on.
The simple fact is this: if we didn't cling so hard to this life and all its needs, and clung instead to God, maybe we would be living life fuller. We have our life mapped out. But don't you think that God could map you a more exciting route? I suspect He could - and would if we let Him. We want so much to get from point A in our lives to point B, that we forget that God may have some special things for us along the way. If we will let Him be our guide, if we will claim our citizenship in Heaven instead of on earth, if we won't cling so hard to this life, then God will make our lives much richer than we could ever dream possible. And all the things that keeps us on earth? It is nothing compared to what God has in store. The BEST is yet to come. Hallelujah, Amen and Amen.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Eph. 2:8-9
"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast." Eph. 2:8-9
Many years ago, a conference was held on world religions. During one of the sessions a discussion ensued about what was unique about Christianity among all the world religious systems. It's moral teachings are echoed by many religions. The incarnation is not unique. Other cultures have had gods becoming men. Resurrection? No, many myths speak of people and gods being raised from the dead. But each conferee had his own views on the subject and were striving to be heard.
C.S. Lewis was at this same conference. When he came into the room he said "What's the rumpus about?" And someone explained that his colleagues were discussing Christianity's unique contribution among world religions. "Oh, that's easy." Lewis replied. "It's grace."
This is so true. Because throughout world religious systems the message is always that you have to EARN your salvation. Do enough good deeds, make the proper sacrifices, perform the proper rituals, be buried with the right spells and you can be saved. But Christianity says that all the good deeds you do, all the sacrifices you make, all the gifts you give, all the rituals you perform will not bring you one millimeter closer to heaven. Instead of asking for you to climb the stairway to heaven, God himself comes down in the form of Jesus Christ, takes you in his arms and carries you.
Jesus' death on the cross was not a political statement nor was it an empty martyrdom for a cause. His death gives us life and his blood spilled over the writing of the charges against us so that they could not be read.
And his grace is abundant not only for salvation, but also to cover our failings after salvation. When I sin, I can bow before him, confess my sin and ask his forgiveness and that blood pours forth from Calvary cleansing my heart. And in the words of an old Southern Gospel song, "He gives me grace one more time."
Lord, I thank you today for your grace and for the terrible price you paid to give it to me. Amen and Amen.
Many years ago, a conference was held on world religions. During one of the sessions a discussion ensued about what was unique about Christianity among all the world religious systems. It's moral teachings are echoed by many religions. The incarnation is not unique. Other cultures have had gods becoming men. Resurrection? No, many myths speak of people and gods being raised from the dead. But each conferee had his own views on the subject and were striving to be heard.
C.S. Lewis was at this same conference. When he came into the room he said "What's the rumpus about?" And someone explained that his colleagues were discussing Christianity's unique contribution among world religions. "Oh, that's easy." Lewis replied. "It's grace."
This is so true. Because throughout world religious systems the message is always that you have to EARN your salvation. Do enough good deeds, make the proper sacrifices, perform the proper rituals, be buried with the right spells and you can be saved. But Christianity says that all the good deeds you do, all the sacrifices you make, all the gifts you give, all the rituals you perform will not bring you one millimeter closer to heaven. Instead of asking for you to climb the stairway to heaven, God himself comes down in the form of Jesus Christ, takes you in his arms and carries you.
Jesus' death on the cross was not a political statement nor was it an empty martyrdom for a cause. His death gives us life and his blood spilled over the writing of the charges against us so that they could not be read.
And his grace is abundant not only for salvation, but also to cover our failings after salvation. When I sin, I can bow before him, confess my sin and ask his forgiveness and that blood pours forth from Calvary cleansing my heart. And in the words of an old Southern Gospel song, "He gives me grace one more time."
Lord, I thank you today for your grace and for the terrible price you paid to give it to me. Amen and Amen.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Romans 6:6
"Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin." Romans 6:6
So you are saved. You've attended church for weeks, months, or years. You've confessed that you are a sinner. Now you're saved by grace. The only problem is that you seem to continually fall into the same sins you used to do before you became a Christian. Now what?
Let me draw a word picture. You've been outside working hard cleaning out the yard. You're dirty, smelly, sweaty - you're a mess. So you head to the house. At the door you take off as many of your dirty clothes as possible - especially the shoes! You head to the bathroom where you remove what is left and take a hot steamy shower. A-a-a-h! That feels good. You use a really nice shower gel with a wonderful fresh scent. You scrub real hard getting off all the dirt and grime. You wash your hair and use a real special conditioner. Finally you get out and dry off. At last you're clean! You pick up your dirty clothes and put them back on. You go to the door and put on the garments you left out there - including the shoes - and head for Church. Arriving just in time for the evening service, you can't help but wonder why people keep looking at you in a weird way. Then you see that they begin to move to other seats in the building. Some even leave the service gagging! Why? You took a shower. You're clean. What's the problem?
I guess you figured it out by now - it's the dirty clothes. No matter how clean you are, dirty clothes will spoil the effect. They return you to a dirty condition. So it is with our spiritual makeup. We have been cleansed by the Blood of Jesus. Our hearts are made right. But many of us put on the old filthy rags we took off when we accepted Jesus. Is it any wonder that people look at us as though we are filthy? Is it any wonder we find ourselves doing the same evil things over and over?
"What can I do?" you ask. Paul has the answer in the context of today's verse. You must be baptized. (For sake of commonality we will accept the Greek definition of "baptize" - to be immersed. That's what it meant to Paul so we will accept that.) What happens in baptism? The old man is stripped away like the removal of an old filthy garment. We can get rid of the old man - the old nature of sin - and we can replace it with a new man - the nature of Christ. If you are suffering from the old sins, I ask you "Have you been baptized since you accepted Jesus?" If your answer is "no," head to the nearest Church and ask to be baptized. If your answer is "yes," have you taken up the old garments again? If the answer is again "yes," strip them off, give them to Jesus, ask Him to destroy them, and ask Him to clothe you in new garments of righteousness.
Oh, one more thing. When you are tempted to play with the things that made you dirty to start with, turn immediately and run in the opposite direction -- IMMEDIATELY! AMEN and Amen.
So you are saved. You've attended church for weeks, months, or years. You've confessed that you are a sinner. Now you're saved by grace. The only problem is that you seem to continually fall into the same sins you used to do before you became a Christian. Now what?
Let me draw a word picture. You've been outside working hard cleaning out the yard. You're dirty, smelly, sweaty - you're a mess. So you head to the house. At the door you take off as many of your dirty clothes as possible - especially the shoes! You head to the bathroom where you remove what is left and take a hot steamy shower. A-a-a-h! That feels good. You use a really nice shower gel with a wonderful fresh scent. You scrub real hard getting off all the dirt and grime. You wash your hair and use a real special conditioner. Finally you get out and dry off. At last you're clean! You pick up your dirty clothes and put them back on. You go to the door and put on the garments you left out there - including the shoes - and head for Church. Arriving just in time for the evening service, you can't help but wonder why people keep looking at you in a weird way. Then you see that they begin to move to other seats in the building. Some even leave the service gagging! Why? You took a shower. You're clean. What's the problem?
I guess you figured it out by now - it's the dirty clothes. No matter how clean you are, dirty clothes will spoil the effect. They return you to a dirty condition. So it is with our spiritual makeup. We have been cleansed by the Blood of Jesus. Our hearts are made right. But many of us put on the old filthy rags we took off when we accepted Jesus. Is it any wonder that people look at us as though we are filthy? Is it any wonder we find ourselves doing the same evil things over and over?
"What can I do?" you ask. Paul has the answer in the context of today's verse. You must be baptized. (For sake of commonality we will accept the Greek definition of "baptize" - to be immersed. That's what it meant to Paul so we will accept that.) What happens in baptism? The old man is stripped away like the removal of an old filthy garment. We can get rid of the old man - the old nature of sin - and we can replace it with a new man - the nature of Christ. If you are suffering from the old sins, I ask you "Have you been baptized since you accepted Jesus?" If your answer is "no," head to the nearest Church and ask to be baptized. If your answer is "yes," have you taken up the old garments again? If the answer is again "yes," strip them off, give them to Jesus, ask Him to destroy them, and ask Him to clothe you in new garments of righteousness.
Oh, one more thing. When you are tempted to play with the things that made you dirty to start with, turn immediately and run in the opposite direction -- IMMEDIATELY! AMEN and Amen.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Luke 8:53
"And they ridiculed Him, knowing that she was dead" Luke 8:53
Has anyone ever ridiculed or laughed at you? No, not the giggle "you did something silly" laugh. I mean the really big "You are an absolute fool" kind of laugh? Hurts doesn't it? Sure, and you know why? Because you probably did something that they thought was foolish, and you probably thought so yourself.
Jesus said something the people thought was stupid. This girl was dead. If He were the Son of God as He claimed, He would know that. But He said "She sleeps." Some prophet He is.
Does this seem to bother Jesus? If it did, He certainly did not show it. He calmly walks up to the girl and tells her to awake. Chuckle, chuckle, chuckle. "The fool doesn't have a clue...Wait a minute . . . what's that? Did her eyes blink? Was her hand twitching? Who said she was dead? Joanna? Are you the one who called us to mourn for her? How stupid can you be, Joanna? See, she is not dead. She WAS sleeping."
God sometimes asks us to do something the world would call foolish. He might ask us to quit a high paying job and take a job as a missionary. He might call us from a position of power and direct us to work as a minister to homeless people. He might tell us to sell all that we have and give it to the poor. How foolish in the sight of the world. How dumb. What a poor career move. "And you wanted to climb the ladder to success? You can't do it by throwing it all away."
They laugh. It hurts. But you know that it is the right thing to do, so you do it. While the world may never understand "at least on this side of the Heavenly Gates" the last laugh will be on them when they hear the Father say, "Well done. You are a good and faithful servant. Enter into My graces. Sit on the throne with Me." And a few moments later, as they confidently walk up to the Judgment Seat, expecting praise and adulation, the Father says, "I knew you not. I called and you did not answer. I directed and you would not turn. Depart from me, you have worked iniquity."
I doubt that we will laugh. Jesus didn't. But we will rejoice. Doing the will of the Father always has that effect on His servants. Hallelujah, Amen and Amen.
Has anyone ever ridiculed or laughed at you? No, not the giggle "you did something silly" laugh. I mean the really big "You are an absolute fool" kind of laugh? Hurts doesn't it? Sure, and you know why? Because you probably did something that they thought was foolish, and you probably thought so yourself.
Jesus said something the people thought was stupid. This girl was dead. If He were the Son of God as He claimed, He would know that. But He said "She sleeps." Some prophet He is.
Does this seem to bother Jesus? If it did, He certainly did not show it. He calmly walks up to the girl and tells her to awake. Chuckle, chuckle, chuckle. "The fool doesn't have a clue...Wait a minute . . . what's that? Did her eyes blink? Was her hand twitching? Who said she was dead? Joanna? Are you the one who called us to mourn for her? How stupid can you be, Joanna? See, she is not dead. She WAS sleeping."
God sometimes asks us to do something the world would call foolish. He might ask us to quit a high paying job and take a job as a missionary. He might call us from a position of power and direct us to work as a minister to homeless people. He might tell us to sell all that we have and give it to the poor. How foolish in the sight of the world. How dumb. What a poor career move. "And you wanted to climb the ladder to success? You can't do it by throwing it all away."
They laugh. It hurts. But you know that it is the right thing to do, so you do it. While the world may never understand "at least on this side of the Heavenly Gates" the last laugh will be on them when they hear the Father say, "Well done. You are a good and faithful servant. Enter into My graces. Sit on the throne with Me." And a few moments later, as they confidently walk up to the Judgment Seat, expecting praise and adulation, the Father says, "I knew you not. I called and you did not answer. I directed and you would not turn. Depart from me, you have worked iniquity."
I doubt that we will laugh. Jesus didn't. But we will rejoice. Doing the will of the Father always has that effect on His servants. Hallelujah, Amen and Amen.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Luke 17:5-10
"A little of faith"
A nun who works for a local home health care agency was out making her rounds when she ran out of gas. As luck would have it there was a station just down the street. She walked to the station to borrow a can with enough gas to start the car and drive to the station for a fill up.
The attendant regretfully told her that the only can he owned had just been loaned out, but if she would care to wait he was sure it would be back shortly. Since the nun was on the way to see a patient she decided not to wait and walked back to her car.
After looking through her car for something to carry to the station to fill with gas, she spotted a potty she was taking to the patient. Always resourceful, she carried it to the station and filled it with gasoline. As she was pouring the gas into the tank of her car two men walked by. One was heard to exclaim, "Now that is what I call faith!"
Back to the sermon:
I am going to tell you a story, this story about a business traveller who was on his way from his home town to a large city in the Middle East by road. One night he met two other travellers travelling on the same road as he was. Their name was Fear and Plague. Plague told the traveller that once they arrived at the city, they were expected to kill 100,000 people in that city. The traveller asked Plague if Plague was to do all the killing by himself. Plague said, “Oh, no. I shall only be killing a few hundred people; it is my friend ‘Fear’ who will do the killing of all the others.
Fear, whether it is real or imagined, can discourage us, overwhelm us, beaten us and even strangle us. Dreadful things happen everywhere. There are people around the world paralyzed by fear. Fear is such a terrible thing!
Fear is widespread in this society of ours; in fact it is widespread throughout the world. We have personal fear – fear of failure, fear of embarrassment, fear of not being loved, a fear of having no work, a fear of not being up to the measurements of our peers, a fear of not being able to help our families, a fear of being looked down by others. We also have social fear, fear that war and disasters will go on forever, a fear that society will collapse, a fear that the pollution in the air will kill us, and so on and so on. Even inside the church too there are fear, personal fears, social fears and spiritual fears. Do you have any fears?
There are many people who feel:
- That they are not able to do anything of real importance
- That they cannot and do not make a difference to society
- That they cannot and do not make a difference to anyone
- That they are unable to do even a part of what it is that God asks them to do
- That they will let God down or that God will let them down.
There are so many Christians in this world who are in a mess. They have forgotten what their faith is all about. They have forgotten that as long as it is the will of God, God will give to you the strength and the means to have it accomplished. Do these feelings describe your life – fear, despair, a sense of failure, a sense of not being competent, and a sense of hopelessness? Do you feel unexcited by your worship of the Lord? Do you feel unsure of just what the good news of the Gospel is? Do you feel burdened by life and by the tasks set to you by God? And yet wanting to believe, wanting to do the right thing, wanting to have the life that God has promised us even in the here and now?
Wanting, and yet……
How can I feed the hungry?
How can I clothe the naked?
How can I help the sick?
How can I bring peace to those around me?
How can I help my family?
How can I help others?
How can I spread the gospel of Jesus Christ?
How can I forgive the people who have hurt me so badly?
How can I even experience the joy that is supposed to be part of life with God, let alone help bring it to others?
The disciples had exactly the same feelings. From our Gospel reading of today, we hear of them crying out to Jesus. A cry similar to one that you may have made to God at one time or another.
They were feeling that what they were facing in life, not to mention what they were facing or will be facing as the ones following Jesus was too much for them to bear, too much for their small faith to handle and so they cry out to the Lord, “Jesus please increase our faith”. “Lord, help us believe enough so that we can do what it is that you have commanded us to do – help us trust enough so that we can live as you say we should be living. Lord, take away our fear.”
Jesus please increases our faith.
And what did Jesus do – how did he answer their prayers? Did he laid his hands upon them and pray and give them more faith as they asked? Did he just snap his fingers and grant them a double dose of his Spirit and his Faith?
No, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ – he did not – instead he told them that “if you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, be uprooted and planted it in the sea and it would obey you.”
If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, be uprooted and plated it in the sea and it would obey you!
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, do you not find that answer of Jesus to be a strange answer? But really it is the best answer that could be given, for you see, the real issue for everyone of us is not “how much faith do we have?” but rather the question of “do we have any faith at all?”
I would like to share a story with you: Many years ago a shoe company in England sent one of its sales people to Africa to start a business. After a few months this salesperson sent a message back to his head office telling them that he is coming home as nobody in Africa wear shoes and therefore it is a waste of time and money being there. This shoe company did not give up, so they sent another salesperson to Africa to replace the returning one. After a few months this second salesperson sent an urgent message to head office asking them to send more order forms as nobody in Africa is wearing shoes and there are plenty of opportunities making sales. The second salesperson saw the opportunity in his situation – not the difficulties that he is facing, and more to the point, he had in himself and in his products, and because of that he succeeded where the first salesperson failed.
I would like to suggest to you that faith is a bit like being pregnant. You see, you cannot make a valid distinction between having a little faith and a lot of faith, anymore than claiming someone is a little pregnant but not really a lot pregnant. I think you will be completely confused or started laughing if one day I tell you that my wife, Jenny is a little bit pregnant. You would think that Edwin must have either gone crazy or he is too happy and said the wrong thing for there is no such thing as being a little bit pregnant. It is a matter of either she is pregnant or she is not. Same with faith, it is either you have faith or you do not. You cannot just have a little bit of faith. It is something that does not make sense to the one who is listening. If we do believe in the promises of Jesus, the promises of God our Father in Heaven, even a little bit, then my brothers and sisters, we are already on the right path. I do sincerely believe that all of you who are here today are on the right track. All of you, who, if you are like the disciples were asking for an increase of our faith, are already, going on the right way.
Having said all that, and having understood the distinction between having faith and not having any faith, the question for us to answer is not how much faith we have, but what do we really have faith in.
There are many Christians in this world who look at themselves instead of God. Often we look at ourselves and say – I cannot do that. I am not strong enough, loving enough, giving enough, wise enough; I do not have the income or the money, the power or the faith to be successful in what I am doing. And those doubts, my brothers and sisters are completely true – we by our own powers are not able to accomplish what God wants us to achieve. We do not have what it is needed what it comes to dealing with what is truly important matters. We will not even last a day in this world without God looking after us. But my brothers and sisters in Christ, God has the power; God is able to do anything that he wishes to do. All we need to do is pray to him and believe in him. Ask God for help and his power will be able to flow through us, and he will work through us to complete what he wants us to complete.
Some of us, at one time or another has met people who have been through very difficult and trying times, and our thoughts were that they must be people of great faith to come out of their trial and tribulations as well as they have. If we ever say to them with respect and admiration that we do not think that we could have faced what they have faced. Your faith must be very strong indeed. Do you know what their answer would be? Their answer would almost always be with words like these: “My faith is no greater than anyone else’s. I just did not know what I had until I have need for it. God helped me through it. If it was not for him I would never have been able to make it.”
Have you not heard of this kind of thing yourselves? Is it not one of those times when we may have said to ourselves: “I wish I had a faith like theirs”?
I wish I had a faith like theirs!
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, you know that those people of faith that we admire are correct in what they tell us. We very often do not realise just what we have in ourselves. We let our faith in God lie sleeping inside of us, and we go out looking for it. While all the time, God is there, and our faith in God is there, but our faith is doing nothing because we allow it to go to sleep.
The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ covers all areas of human life:
- It tells us of forgiveness and peace
- It tells us of eternal life
- It addresses the problems of poverty and of war
- It gives solutions to despair and answers to human distress.
But most of all, my brothers and sisters in Christ, it tells us:
- That alone by ourselves we can do nothing
- That we are, as many of us think, inadequate, incapable, sinners lost in a dark world.
- It tells us that are not alone, and that God cares for everyone of us
- That God works in the lives of all those who believes in him
- That God’s good purposes cannot be stopped by anyone or anything
- That his word does not return to him empty
- That he desires to transform not just the human heart but he wants to transform the world in which we are all living in
- And that all we need to do is to reach down to that little seed within us and begin to do what we have been called by God to do and God will do the rest
God will do the rest, which is his promise, however, we must do our part, just like Moses having to stretch out his rod, , just like Moses striking the rock with his staff in order to get water for the people, or the people who need healing must come to Jesus first. God will work in us and through us and bring his word to pass. He will pluck up the mountains and fill in the valleys. He will bring about the kingdom of God here on earth as we pray for. We are after all his partners in his work in this world.
What I am trying to say this morning is not ‘have more faith’ – but rather work with the faith that you already have inside you. My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, when we started acting in faith the very first thing we will notice is that a little is a lot.
There is a Chinese proverb that tells us that the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. I should know as I am Chinese by race, and I am suggesting to you to take the step; follow he commands of God – hear his advice found throughout the scriptures and believe – believe in what God has promised us will come about. He is not one who speaks empty words.
Remember that no matter how small the step you may be taking, each step will bring you closer to your destination when it is taken. But you have to take the step, you have to start claiming God’s word as your own if you are to receive what God has promised and do what God has called you to do.
When you practice your faith, when you pray, when you believe and when you do, then in the language of the story that I began this talk with, you will overcome – God will overcome – plague and his far more dangerous companion – fear, and the blessings of life will be completely yours, yours and your family and the world. Praise be to God, day by day – Amen.
A nun who works for a local home health care agency was out making her rounds when she ran out of gas. As luck would have it there was a station just down the street. She walked to the station to borrow a can with enough gas to start the car and drive to the station for a fill up.
The attendant regretfully told her that the only can he owned had just been loaned out, but if she would care to wait he was sure it would be back shortly. Since the nun was on the way to see a patient she decided not to wait and walked back to her car.
After looking through her car for something to carry to the station to fill with gas, she spotted a potty she was taking to the patient. Always resourceful, she carried it to the station and filled it with gasoline. As she was pouring the gas into the tank of her car two men walked by. One was heard to exclaim, "Now that is what I call faith!"
Back to the sermon:
I am going to tell you a story, this story about a business traveller who was on his way from his home town to a large city in the Middle East by road. One night he met two other travellers travelling on the same road as he was. Their name was Fear and Plague. Plague told the traveller that once they arrived at the city, they were expected to kill 100,000 people in that city. The traveller asked Plague if Plague was to do all the killing by himself. Plague said, “Oh, no. I shall only be killing a few hundred people; it is my friend ‘Fear’ who will do the killing of all the others.
Fear, whether it is real or imagined, can discourage us, overwhelm us, beaten us and even strangle us. Dreadful things happen everywhere. There are people around the world paralyzed by fear. Fear is such a terrible thing!
Fear is widespread in this society of ours; in fact it is widespread throughout the world. We have personal fear – fear of failure, fear of embarrassment, fear of not being loved, a fear of having no work, a fear of not being up to the measurements of our peers, a fear of not being able to help our families, a fear of being looked down by others. We also have social fear, fear that war and disasters will go on forever, a fear that society will collapse, a fear that the pollution in the air will kill us, and so on and so on. Even inside the church too there are fear, personal fears, social fears and spiritual fears. Do you have any fears?
There are many people who feel:
- That they are not able to do anything of real importance
- That they cannot and do not make a difference to society
- That they cannot and do not make a difference to anyone
- That they are unable to do even a part of what it is that God asks them to do
- That they will let God down or that God will let them down.
There are so many Christians in this world who are in a mess. They have forgotten what their faith is all about. They have forgotten that as long as it is the will of God, God will give to you the strength and the means to have it accomplished. Do these feelings describe your life – fear, despair, a sense of failure, a sense of not being competent, and a sense of hopelessness? Do you feel unexcited by your worship of the Lord? Do you feel unsure of just what the good news of the Gospel is? Do you feel burdened by life and by the tasks set to you by God? And yet wanting to believe, wanting to do the right thing, wanting to have the life that God has promised us even in the here and now?
Wanting, and yet……
How can I feed the hungry?
How can I clothe the naked?
How can I help the sick?
How can I bring peace to those around me?
How can I help my family?
How can I help others?
How can I spread the gospel of Jesus Christ?
How can I forgive the people who have hurt me so badly?
How can I even experience the joy that is supposed to be part of life with God, let alone help bring it to others?
The disciples had exactly the same feelings. From our Gospel reading of today, we hear of them crying out to Jesus. A cry similar to one that you may have made to God at one time or another.
They were feeling that what they were facing in life, not to mention what they were facing or will be facing as the ones following Jesus was too much for them to bear, too much for their small faith to handle and so they cry out to the Lord, “Jesus please increase our faith”. “Lord, help us believe enough so that we can do what it is that you have commanded us to do – help us trust enough so that we can live as you say we should be living. Lord, take away our fear.”
Jesus please increases our faith.
And what did Jesus do – how did he answer their prayers? Did he laid his hands upon them and pray and give them more faith as they asked? Did he just snap his fingers and grant them a double dose of his Spirit and his Faith?
No, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ – he did not – instead he told them that “if you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, be uprooted and planted it in the sea and it would obey you.”
If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, be uprooted and plated it in the sea and it would obey you!
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, do you not find that answer of Jesus to be a strange answer? But really it is the best answer that could be given, for you see, the real issue for everyone of us is not “how much faith do we have?” but rather the question of “do we have any faith at all?”
I would like to share a story with you: Many years ago a shoe company in England sent one of its sales people to Africa to start a business. After a few months this salesperson sent a message back to his head office telling them that he is coming home as nobody in Africa wear shoes and therefore it is a waste of time and money being there. This shoe company did not give up, so they sent another salesperson to Africa to replace the returning one. After a few months this second salesperson sent an urgent message to head office asking them to send more order forms as nobody in Africa is wearing shoes and there are plenty of opportunities making sales. The second salesperson saw the opportunity in his situation – not the difficulties that he is facing, and more to the point, he had in himself and in his products, and because of that he succeeded where the first salesperson failed.
I would like to suggest to you that faith is a bit like being pregnant. You see, you cannot make a valid distinction between having a little faith and a lot of faith, anymore than claiming someone is a little pregnant but not really a lot pregnant. I think you will be completely confused or started laughing if one day I tell you that my wife, Jenny is a little bit pregnant. You would think that Edwin must have either gone crazy or he is too happy and said the wrong thing for there is no such thing as being a little bit pregnant. It is a matter of either she is pregnant or she is not. Same with faith, it is either you have faith or you do not. You cannot just have a little bit of faith. It is something that does not make sense to the one who is listening. If we do believe in the promises of Jesus, the promises of God our Father in Heaven, even a little bit, then my brothers and sisters, we are already on the right path. I do sincerely believe that all of you who are here today are on the right track. All of you, who, if you are like the disciples were asking for an increase of our faith, are already, going on the right way.
Having said all that, and having understood the distinction between having faith and not having any faith, the question for us to answer is not how much faith we have, but what do we really have faith in.
There are many Christians in this world who look at themselves instead of God. Often we look at ourselves and say – I cannot do that. I am not strong enough, loving enough, giving enough, wise enough; I do not have the income or the money, the power or the faith to be successful in what I am doing. And those doubts, my brothers and sisters are completely true – we by our own powers are not able to accomplish what God wants us to achieve. We do not have what it is needed what it comes to dealing with what is truly important matters. We will not even last a day in this world without God looking after us. But my brothers and sisters in Christ, God has the power; God is able to do anything that he wishes to do. All we need to do is pray to him and believe in him. Ask God for help and his power will be able to flow through us, and he will work through us to complete what he wants us to complete.
Some of us, at one time or another has met people who have been through very difficult and trying times, and our thoughts were that they must be people of great faith to come out of their trial and tribulations as well as they have. If we ever say to them with respect and admiration that we do not think that we could have faced what they have faced. Your faith must be very strong indeed. Do you know what their answer would be? Their answer would almost always be with words like these: “My faith is no greater than anyone else’s. I just did not know what I had until I have need for it. God helped me through it. If it was not for him I would never have been able to make it.”
Have you not heard of this kind of thing yourselves? Is it not one of those times when we may have said to ourselves: “I wish I had a faith like theirs”?
I wish I had a faith like theirs!
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, you know that those people of faith that we admire are correct in what they tell us. We very often do not realise just what we have in ourselves. We let our faith in God lie sleeping inside of us, and we go out looking for it. While all the time, God is there, and our faith in God is there, but our faith is doing nothing because we allow it to go to sleep.
The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ covers all areas of human life:
- It tells us of forgiveness and peace
- It tells us of eternal life
- It addresses the problems of poverty and of war
- It gives solutions to despair and answers to human distress.
But most of all, my brothers and sisters in Christ, it tells us:
- That alone by ourselves we can do nothing
- That we are, as many of us think, inadequate, incapable, sinners lost in a dark world.
- It tells us that are not alone, and that God cares for everyone of us
- That God works in the lives of all those who believes in him
- That God’s good purposes cannot be stopped by anyone or anything
- That his word does not return to him empty
- That he desires to transform not just the human heart but he wants to transform the world in which we are all living in
- And that all we need to do is to reach down to that little seed within us and begin to do what we have been called by God to do and God will do the rest
God will do the rest, which is his promise, however, we must do our part, just like Moses having to stretch out his rod, , just like Moses striking the rock with his staff in order to get water for the people, or the people who need healing must come to Jesus first. God will work in us and through us and bring his word to pass. He will pluck up the mountains and fill in the valleys. He will bring about the kingdom of God here on earth as we pray for. We are after all his partners in his work in this world.
What I am trying to say this morning is not ‘have more faith’ – but rather work with the faith that you already have inside you. My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, when we started acting in faith the very first thing we will notice is that a little is a lot.
There is a Chinese proverb that tells us that the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. I should know as I am Chinese by race, and I am suggesting to you to take the step; follow he commands of God – hear his advice found throughout the scriptures and believe – believe in what God has promised us will come about. He is not one who speaks empty words.
Remember that no matter how small the step you may be taking, each step will bring you closer to your destination when it is taken. But you have to take the step, you have to start claiming God’s word as your own if you are to receive what God has promised and do what God has called you to do.
When you practice your faith, when you pray, when you believe and when you do, then in the language of the story that I began this talk with, you will overcome – God will overcome – plague and his far more dangerous companion – fear, and the blessings of life will be completely yours, yours and your family and the world. Praise be to God, day by day – Amen.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Jeremiah 18:6
"O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?" says the LORD. "Look, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel!" Jeremiah 18:6
Do things seem a bit crazy in your life from time to time? Does the world seem to be spinning around you? Do you have trouble with your orientation in this life? Well, consider the clay on the potter's wheel. It's being spun around, fingers are digging into it, it's beingshaped and formed and reformed. When an air bubble pops up the potter has to cut through it again, maybe even break the vessel, add water and reshape it once again.
Does any of this sound familiar? I know it does in my life. I remember some years ago, a friend of mine said something that made a lot of sense. He said, "The problem with people on the potters wheel is that they look around them and see the room swirling about so they get dizzy. What they should be doing is looking up toward the still point of heaven and let the potter do his work." Not a bad idea. When the world seems to be spinning out of control and we are feeling overwhelmed by things around us, we need to stop looking at them.
We need to look at that which is not moving and cannot be moved. We also need to know that the potter knows his business. He knows what He's doing in our lives. The clay doesn't know. The clay doesn't know whether it is being shaped into a vase, a cup, a water vessel or a flower pot. But never worry, the potter knows what He is making of you. Our job is not to figure out the potter's plans or even to help with the design. Our job is to sit still on the potter's wheel and let the potter mold us into what He wants us to be.
Several years ago, John Fisher wrote a song called Master Potter which went:
~~ Master Potter ~~
Turner of the Wheel
Lay your hand upon me
Show me what it real
It's hard to trust you
Yet you know the way
To make a useful vessel
From this piece of clay
Lord, help me to remember that you are the one who is shaping what I am becoming. Give me the endurance to stay on the wheel until you have finished your work. Amen and Amen.
Do things seem a bit crazy in your life from time to time? Does the world seem to be spinning around you? Do you have trouble with your orientation in this life? Well, consider the clay on the potter's wheel. It's being spun around, fingers are digging into it, it's beingshaped and formed and reformed. When an air bubble pops up the potter has to cut through it again, maybe even break the vessel, add water and reshape it once again.
Does any of this sound familiar? I know it does in my life. I remember some years ago, a friend of mine said something that made a lot of sense. He said, "The problem with people on the potters wheel is that they look around them and see the room swirling about so they get dizzy. What they should be doing is looking up toward the still point of heaven and let the potter do his work." Not a bad idea. When the world seems to be spinning out of control and we are feeling overwhelmed by things around us, we need to stop looking at them.
We need to look at that which is not moving and cannot be moved. We also need to know that the potter knows his business. He knows what He's doing in our lives. The clay doesn't know. The clay doesn't know whether it is being shaped into a vase, a cup, a water vessel or a flower pot. But never worry, the potter knows what He is making of you. Our job is not to figure out the potter's plans or even to help with the design. Our job is to sit still on the potter's wheel and let the potter mold us into what He wants us to be.
Several years ago, John Fisher wrote a song called Master Potter which went:
~~ Master Potter ~~
Turner of the Wheel
Lay your hand upon me
Show me what it real
It's hard to trust you
Yet you know the way
To make a useful vessel
From this piece of clay
Lord, help me to remember that you are the one who is shaping what I am becoming. Give me the endurance to stay on the wheel until you have finished your work. Amen and Amen.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Numbers 13:33
"And there we saw giants..." Numbers 13:33
Someone has said, "If you want to enter Caanan, you have to first fight a few giants." That is so true, but so rarely do we realize the truth of that statement. As Christians, too often, we want to have victory without a battle, we want to attain the heights of Zion, without a climb, we want resurrection power without a crucifixion.
No blessing of God comes without a struggle. And, in our heart of hearts, would we want it any other way? It is also said "things easily gained are lightly held." Think about your most prized accomplishments. Were they the ones you achieved easily. Or were they accomplishments which came through great struggle? Probably the latter. The larger the giant, the greater the victory when he fell.
So, then what are some of these giants we have to fight to enter the promised land. Well, we have to fight the giant of frustration. We have to fight the giant of doubt. We have to fight the giant of opposition. We have to fight the giant of hopelessness. And often, after fighting all these other giants the largest one of all looms on the horizon and that is the giant of weariness.
But the giants were only one half of the report. Joshua and Caleb had another report. "Sure there are giants," they said, "But God can deliver the giants into our hands. And then we will find a land flowing with milk and honey where the grape clusters grow so large that it takes two strong men to carry each cluster. The Giants may be big, but our God is much, much bigger." Amen and Amen.
Someone has said, "If you want to enter Caanan, you have to first fight a few giants." That is so true, but so rarely do we realize the truth of that statement. As Christians, too often, we want to have victory without a battle, we want to attain the heights of Zion, without a climb, we want resurrection power without a crucifixion.
No blessing of God comes without a struggle. And, in our heart of hearts, would we want it any other way? It is also said "things easily gained are lightly held." Think about your most prized accomplishments. Were they the ones you achieved easily. Or were they accomplishments which came through great struggle? Probably the latter. The larger the giant, the greater the victory when he fell.
So, then what are some of these giants we have to fight to enter the promised land. Well, we have to fight the giant of frustration. We have to fight the giant of doubt. We have to fight the giant of opposition. We have to fight the giant of hopelessness. And often, after fighting all these other giants the largest one of all looms on the horizon and that is the giant of weariness.
But the giants were only one half of the report. Joshua and Caleb had another report. "Sure there are giants," they said, "But God can deliver the giants into our hands. And then we will find a land flowing with milk and honey where the grape clusters grow so large that it takes two strong men to carry each cluster. The Giants may be big, but our God is much, much bigger." Amen and Amen.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Matthew 7:1
"Judge not, that you be not judged." Matthew 7:1
When you enter a courtroom, there is one thing and one thing only that counts in judging a defendant - evidence. You have to have all the relevant facts to make a decision about the case. If you don't have all the facts then under our system of juris prudence you have to acquit because you cannot be sure the person is guilty.
It's too bad people didn't apply the same logic to their judgements outside the courtroom. We jump right in judging other Christians behavior. Yet, do we really have all the evidence? No we don't. We simply don't know enough to judge someone else.
For instance, we don't know where people came from. We don't know what they've gone through. We don't know what they are stuggling with. I remember one young Christian saying to me once, "You know people criticize me because I still smoke. But less than a year ago, I was mainlining heroin. God delivered me from that. He'll deliver me from nicotine too. It just takes time."
To judge someone's walk we have to know from where they started. If they haven't caught up with you yet, it could be they started further down the road. Perhaps most importantly, we don't know the heart of the person. We only see how they dress, what they say, how they act. We can tell much from that but not all. God though doesn't judge based on outward appearance, but rather he "looks on the heart" (I Samuel 16:7) Until I can look at a person's heart, understand his motives, know why he is the way he is, I cannot judge his actions. Besides, I don't have time to judge anyone else's faults. I have a full time job dealing with m own.
Lord, help me remember who is best at judging the hearts of men and keep me focused on my own walk and not on the walks of others except to be a good companion on the journey. Amen and Amen.
When you enter a courtroom, there is one thing and one thing only that counts in judging a defendant - evidence. You have to have all the relevant facts to make a decision about the case. If you don't have all the facts then under our system of juris prudence you have to acquit because you cannot be sure the person is guilty.
It's too bad people didn't apply the same logic to their judgements outside the courtroom. We jump right in judging other Christians behavior. Yet, do we really have all the evidence? No we don't. We simply don't know enough to judge someone else.
For instance, we don't know where people came from. We don't know what they've gone through. We don't know what they are stuggling with. I remember one young Christian saying to me once, "You know people criticize me because I still smoke. But less than a year ago, I was mainlining heroin. God delivered me from that. He'll deliver me from nicotine too. It just takes time."
To judge someone's walk we have to know from where they started. If they haven't caught up with you yet, it could be they started further down the road. Perhaps most importantly, we don't know the heart of the person. We only see how they dress, what they say, how they act. We can tell much from that but not all. God though doesn't judge based on outward appearance, but rather he "looks on the heart" (I Samuel 16:7) Until I can look at a person's heart, understand his motives, know why he is the way he is, I cannot judge his actions. Besides, I don't have time to judge anyone else's faults. I have a full time job dealing with m own.
Lord, help me remember who is best at judging the hearts of men and keep me focused on my own walk and not on the walks of others except to be a good companion on the journey. Amen and Amen.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Galatians 6.2
"Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ." Galatians 6.2
In a traditional wedding ceremony, the couple vows to love each other "in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, for better or worse." According to I Corinthians 13, this quality of endurance is characteristic of Agape love whether that love be for a spouse, a friend, a co-worker, family member, fellow Christian or someone to whom you are ministering. We are called to "bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ" (Galatians 6.2)
Within any type of relationship, difficulties will arise. Sometimes they will arise within the relationship. One or both persons will say or do things which hurt the other. For the most part such hurts are unintentional, but that doesn't always assuage the pain. More often the difficulties arise from outside the relationship itself. Sickness, persecution, financial distress, emotional pain, attacks of Satan which affect one of the people will by extension affect both.
Remember the context in which I Corinthians 13 appears. In Chapter 12 is a discussion of the body of Christ and how what affects one member affects all. True Agape love feels the pain of others, and in so doing, helps carry that burden. Their prayer needs become our prayer needs. Their distress becomes our distress. Their need for salvation, deliverance or healing becomes ours as well.
But, you say, that's hard. How can I carry another person's need as though it were my own? That isn't natural. Absolutely correct. It isn't natural. But neither is Agape love, it is supernatural. When you have loved as much as you can in your own strength and that strength begins to lag, step out of the way and let God love that person through you.
To bear another's burdens doesn't require that we need to be strong, it simply requires that we be willing. There will always be another pair of hands helping with that burden. And if you look closely, you will find that they have the imprints of nails in them from a time, when he carried a burden that wasn't his. Hallelujah, Amen and Amen.
In a traditional wedding ceremony, the couple vows to love each other "in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, for better or worse." According to I Corinthians 13, this quality of endurance is characteristic of Agape love whether that love be for a spouse, a friend, a co-worker, family member, fellow Christian or someone to whom you are ministering. We are called to "bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ" (Galatians 6.2)
Within any type of relationship, difficulties will arise. Sometimes they will arise within the relationship. One or both persons will say or do things which hurt the other. For the most part such hurts are unintentional, but that doesn't always assuage the pain. More often the difficulties arise from outside the relationship itself. Sickness, persecution, financial distress, emotional pain, attacks of Satan which affect one of the people will by extension affect both.
Remember the context in which I Corinthians 13 appears. In Chapter 12 is a discussion of the body of Christ and how what affects one member affects all. True Agape love feels the pain of others, and in so doing, helps carry that burden. Their prayer needs become our prayer needs. Their distress becomes our distress. Their need for salvation, deliverance or healing becomes ours as well.
But, you say, that's hard. How can I carry another person's need as though it were my own? That isn't natural. Absolutely correct. It isn't natural. But neither is Agape love, it is supernatural. When you have loved as much as you can in your own strength and that strength begins to lag, step out of the way and let God love that person through you.
To bear another's burdens doesn't require that we need to be strong, it simply requires that we be willing. There will always be another pair of hands helping with that burden. And if you look closely, you will find that they have the imprints of nails in them from a time, when he carried a burden that wasn't his. Hallelujah, Amen and Amen.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Matt 6:28
"So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin" Matt 6:28
Some years ago I was reading a magazine and saw this beautiful picture of an orchid. It was bright and colorful. Red with yellow markings. Under it was a short note about the markings. According to the article, biologists discovered that the markings are more than just beautiful, they are practical as well. Bees and other insects which need the nectar of the flower for food, use the colors as a type of road map to the nectar inside. The more hidden the nectar by the design of the flower the more colorful the blossom.
Think about that for a moment, God was so concerned about the very insects of the field that he put markings on flowers like the advertisement in the street showing the way to the nearest Burger King restaurant. To me this is mind boggling. How much care went into the design of a flower just so tiny insects could have a good meal.
Now, if God has taken that much care to provide guidance and provision for the very least of his creation, how much more will he provide the same for His children? Of course, like the insect sometimes we have to look for the colors and follow them to their source. God doesn't always drop the provision into our laps, but he always gives us directions to find what we need.
So, today, if you are wondering if God really cares about your needs you can stop wondering. He cares about the tiniest insects, why shouldn't he care for you? Amen and Amen.
Some years ago I was reading a magazine and saw this beautiful picture of an orchid. It was bright and colorful. Red with yellow markings. Under it was a short note about the markings. According to the article, biologists discovered that the markings are more than just beautiful, they are practical as well. Bees and other insects which need the nectar of the flower for food, use the colors as a type of road map to the nectar inside. The more hidden the nectar by the design of the flower the more colorful the blossom.
Think about that for a moment, God was so concerned about the very insects of the field that he put markings on flowers like the advertisement in the street showing the way to the nearest Burger King restaurant. To me this is mind boggling. How much care went into the design of a flower just so tiny insects could have a good meal.
Now, if God has taken that much care to provide guidance and provision for the very least of his creation, how much more will he provide the same for His children? Of course, like the insect sometimes we have to look for the colors and follow them to their source. God doesn't always drop the provision into our laps, but he always gives us directions to find what we need.
So, today, if you are wondering if God really cares about your needs you can stop wondering. He cares about the tiniest insects, why shouldn't he care for you? Amen and Amen.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
1 Samuel 3:1-10 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 John 1:43-51
When my wife calls me, sometimes I cannot hear her calling, even though she might even be shouting for me. At such occasions, she gets rather angry about it, and my one and only excuse is that I am getting old, and I am getting a bit hard of hearing.
The stories from the Gospels as to how Jesus called his disciples are all very known to some of us present here today, and over the years, some of us have heard it many times. The story of how God called Samuel to be his prophet should also be rather familiar to some of us present here today.
However, I am very much aware as I am standing here speaking to you, that there are many people who are failing to hear the call of God. Although the church often talks about how we are all called to be followers of Jesus, and despite all the sermons we hear every year that tells us that we are all called to be like the prophets of old and to hear and speak of God’s word to one another.
Why do you think that may be the case?
Why do you think that so many people, many of them are very fine people, many of them are people who already believe in God, who already believe in Jesus, and accepted Jesus as their Saviour, believe that God is not and has not been speaking to them personally? That God is not trying to, in some way or other, guide them in the path that they should be taking? That God is not, and has not been reaching out to them?
I think that the answer to that is that some people failed to hear the call of God, that they failed to notice how God is summoning them. They did not hear it not because the call has not been issued, but it is because either they have no idea as to how God calls us, or maybe because they allow themselves to pass over that call. Maybe they are used to putting aside the call of God as it were, as it might be something that they do want to do, or do not think that they can do it, and so grow used to ignoring the Word when it comes.
Let us think about the boy Samuel for a moment…
He was a special boy – like some of you are – he was a special gift from God to his mother Hannah. He was dedicated to the Lord by his mother upon his birth and sent, when still at a very young age, to live with the Priest Eli at a place call Shiloh.
The scriptures told us that he was living in a time when the Word of the Lord was rare, a time when visions of the future were not widespread at all.
Nevertheless, Samuel was living in a holy place in the holy presence. He witnessed the sacrifices made at the alter in Shiloh, and even as a young boy, he was wearing the line ephod and ministered in the house of God.
Just like his teacher, Eli, Samuel prayed to God.
Just like his master – he served God faithfully.
Like other people, he had heard the teachings proclaimed, he heard the story of the love of God.
Samuel was living in a very special place. In fact, the scriptures told us that Samuel grew up in the presence of God.
Samuel in that case, of all people, should have been able to recognize the call of God when it came to him. But as the story in chapter three of the Book of Samuel told us, when the time came, he did not. He did not recognize the call of God, until Eli recognized that call for him.
We are told by the Scriptures that three times the Lord called out to Samuel when he was lying in bed, and three times he answered by saying “Here I am” and ran all the way out to see Eli who was in the room next to him.
The third time that this happened, Eli understood that it was God’s voice calling Samuel and he instructed Samuel to “Go, lie down, and if the Lord calls you, you shall say, speak, Lord for your servant is listening.”
And so, it only after that did Samuel finally heard what it was that God wanted to say to him. So it was only then that Samuel learned of the fate that was to befall Eli. So it was only at that time did Samuel learned that he was to speak the Word of God to others.
How very much like Samuel are a great many of us. Living in a special place. Listening to the stories of His love for us. Serving Him in his house and in this world where we are living in. Just like Samuel we are dedicated to the Lord. Just like Samuel, a lot of us are thinking that the voices we hear in the middle of the night comes from another room, thinking that those are just dreams which came to us as a result of eating that midnight snack before bedtime. Quite often many of us feel that the inner nudges that we feel is only coming from our own intuition, or from maybe from the fact that our unconscious mind is just playing tricks on us.
God calls all of us in many ways. God speaks to us all in many different forms. And almost of His calls are gentle. Almost all of them are subtle ones; almost all of them can be mistaken as for something else. That is until we really hear those calls, then we discover the power of God is in them and behind those calls.
That is what happens in today's gospel lesson. The power behind the call of God is discovered by the one who finally decided to listen to it. The Gospel reading tells us that shortly after his baptism Jesus decided to go up to Galilee. At that time he already had Andrew and Simon Peter as his disciples.
As he was getting ready to leave Bethany to go on to Galilee Jesus goes out and finds Philip – he seeks him out, just as he seeks out Samuel, and just as he seeks us out – and he says to Philip, “follow me”.
Philip responded to the call of Jesus and as he was preparing to join Jesus he goes out and locates a man by the name of Nathaniel, telling him “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote. Jesus, son of Joseph from Nazareth”. It is obvious from the Gospel reading that both Philip and Nathaniel were men who were seekers, men who were looking for the promised one of God. However, we can see that Nathaniel was not prepared to accept that it was the call of God that he has heard through Philip. He doubted what Philip told him replied to him: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”
Still, Nathaniel went along with Philip. He went with Philip to check out what he has just been told by Philip. And in doing so discovered that Jesus is a prophet, that Jesus has special powers. For Jesus knew without being told where he was at the moment when Philip called him.
Jesus said to him: “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these. Very truly I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”
Do we listen to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ – Do we check out the calls they issued out to us on behalf of God. Do we check out the call to meet the Lord in a particular place and time? Do we check out the call to discover what we have been looking for?
Do we check out the call?
If I praise all of you all too much now – let me know, because when I look out here on Sunday morning, I see faithful people. I see people here who have decided to follow Jesus, people who are struggling real heard to do what is right. I see people who worship and who pray. I see people who listen to the holy stories, and seek to obey the will of the Lord.
I see amongst you all people who are like Samuel, and Philip and Nathaniel. I see here people who work for God.
But still, I cannot help but wonder, when I see you, how many of you here today believe that God has spoken to you? How many of you do believe that God has called you in person and not sent an angel to do it. He has personally called you to do what you are doing here in the church? Here in this place call Hong Kong?
And of those of us who do believe this. How many of you here believe that God is still with you – guiding you, or tying to guide you, each and every day?
God is calling all of us – He is calling ALL OF US! He is calling us not to just Him. He is also calling us to do and say certain things at certain times. He is calling for us to walk a particular path with Him, a path that is very similar to, but not the same as the path of all the disciples, apostles and saints of all the ages before our time and of this day and age.
God has a personal plan for you.
God seeks to guide you in your daily life.
And that call of God to you is a personal call.
God is seeking you out, just as Jesus called out Philip.
God is calling you by your name – just as He called Samuel by name.
God calls us in our dreams. He calls in the voice of those people who are tying to help us find our way. He calls us through our spouses and the people at work. He calls us when we take the time to calm down and to read His Word, or to meditate. He calls us when we are trying to decide as to what to do next in our life. He calls us when we gaze upon the heavens. He calls out to us when we are praying.
God is calling us.
A great many people speak to God, they pray to him daily, whether it be five minutes a day or half an hour a day, or even an hour a day. They do that without even really thinking of how it is that God might answer them, without seriously thinking as how they are meant to listen to Him.
It is like picking up the telephone to speak into it, and instead of HOLDING IT LIKE TH IS, they are trying to HOLD IT LIKE THIS.
I remember a cartoon I looked at in a newspaper some time ago. In the cartoon the yard was filled with children playing in the way that only children can. They were yelling and screaming, blowing horns, and crying. The dog was barking, a plane flies overhead, and there were two boys beating drums. Inside the house, the mother of one of the children says to her husband, “Listen. That is PJ crying!”
I am sure that those of you who are mothers sitting here today will be in agreement with me if I said that mothers’ ears are conditioned to h ear the sound of her child’s voice, no matter how much noise there might be in the background.
God calls each and every one of us for a purpose – a very good purpose. He calls us to come to him so that He may be able to transform our lives. He calls on us to listen to Him and to do what he tells us to do, so that he might change us, and the world we are living in, making it holy and good, full of love and joy, whole and at peace…
If we really want to hear what God is trying to tell us, it will certainly help to hold the telephone in the correct way. It will certainly help if we have learned as to how and where He will speak to us. It will certainly help if we, by continual practice, conditioned our ears and hearts and minds to hear His voice.
Listen for God’s voice where-ever you may be – in whatever you see or hear. Whether it is a dream you have just had. Whether it is the message of a preacher you have just heard. Whether it is in the still small voice y9ou have heard inside you at the seashore, or in the words of a friend who is telling you how God has dealt his or her situation, and what it is that he or she thinks that God is trying to tell you.
That happens when you belong to a church you know. That happens when you are gathered with your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. Sometimes they speak to you about God. Sometimes they have a message from God that is meant especially for you.
Listen to the “Good Book” and judge the things you hear by the Book and by the Spirit that is within you. Examine what is happening around you and pray about what you just heard or read. Look and listen – and I promise you that you will hear the voice of God, you will hear his call.
LISTEN.
Listen and then do as you feel or believe that you have been called to do, and if it is truly the Word of God, you will find and experience the power that lies behind that very Word, that very call.
You will see things happening as promised. You will see changes that are good. You will see God glorified and people who only seek after their own desires humbled. You will see mercy and grace, judgment and vindication. You will see new life arise out of sinners and new hope comes out of despair.
Listen, and it will be as Jesus promised to Nathaniel, you will see heaven opened up and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.
Listen and you will find what you have been looking for all the time.
Let us pray. Dear Lord, we know that you do call each and every one of us. Help us to listen for you call. Help us to be able to recognize it and to accept it. Help us discover your personal Word for us. Help us discover your personal demands upon each and every one of us. Let us discover your personal will for each and every one of us. We ask of it in Jesus’ name. Amen.
The stories from the Gospels as to how Jesus called his disciples are all very known to some of us present here today, and over the years, some of us have heard it many times. The story of how God called Samuel to be his prophet should also be rather familiar to some of us present here today.
However, I am very much aware as I am standing here speaking to you, that there are many people who are failing to hear the call of God. Although the church often talks about how we are all called to be followers of Jesus, and despite all the sermons we hear every year that tells us that we are all called to be like the prophets of old and to hear and speak of God’s word to one another.
Why do you think that may be the case?
Why do you think that so many people, many of them are very fine people, many of them are people who already believe in God, who already believe in Jesus, and accepted Jesus as their Saviour, believe that God is not and has not been speaking to them personally? That God is not trying to, in some way or other, guide them in the path that they should be taking? That God is not, and has not been reaching out to them?
I think that the answer to that is that some people failed to hear the call of God, that they failed to notice how God is summoning them. They did not hear it not because the call has not been issued, but it is because either they have no idea as to how God calls us, or maybe because they allow themselves to pass over that call. Maybe they are used to putting aside the call of God as it were, as it might be something that they do want to do, or do not think that they can do it, and so grow used to ignoring the Word when it comes.
Let us think about the boy Samuel for a moment…
He was a special boy – like some of you are – he was a special gift from God to his mother Hannah. He was dedicated to the Lord by his mother upon his birth and sent, when still at a very young age, to live with the Priest Eli at a place call Shiloh.
The scriptures told us that he was living in a time when the Word of the Lord was rare, a time when visions of the future were not widespread at all.
Nevertheless, Samuel was living in a holy place in the holy presence. He witnessed the sacrifices made at the alter in Shiloh, and even as a young boy, he was wearing the line ephod and ministered in the house of God.
Just like his teacher, Eli, Samuel prayed to God.
Just like his master – he served God faithfully.
Like other people, he had heard the teachings proclaimed, he heard the story of the love of God.
Samuel was living in a very special place. In fact, the scriptures told us that Samuel grew up in the presence of God.
Samuel in that case, of all people, should have been able to recognize the call of God when it came to him. But as the story in chapter three of the Book of Samuel told us, when the time came, he did not. He did not recognize the call of God, until Eli recognized that call for him.
We are told by the Scriptures that three times the Lord called out to Samuel when he was lying in bed, and three times he answered by saying “Here I am” and ran all the way out to see Eli who was in the room next to him.
The third time that this happened, Eli understood that it was God’s voice calling Samuel and he instructed Samuel to “Go, lie down, and if the Lord calls you, you shall say, speak, Lord for your servant is listening.”
And so, it only after that did Samuel finally heard what it was that God wanted to say to him. So it was only then that Samuel learned of the fate that was to befall Eli. So it was only at that time did Samuel learned that he was to speak the Word of God to others.
How very much like Samuel are a great many of us. Living in a special place. Listening to the stories of His love for us. Serving Him in his house and in this world where we are living in. Just like Samuel we are dedicated to the Lord. Just like Samuel, a lot of us are thinking that the voices we hear in the middle of the night comes from another room, thinking that those are just dreams which came to us as a result of eating that midnight snack before bedtime. Quite often many of us feel that the inner nudges that we feel is only coming from our own intuition, or from maybe from the fact that our unconscious mind is just playing tricks on us.
God calls all of us in many ways. God speaks to us all in many different forms. And almost of His calls are gentle. Almost all of them are subtle ones; almost all of them can be mistaken as for something else. That is until we really hear those calls, then we discover the power of God is in them and behind those calls.
That is what happens in today's gospel lesson. The power behind the call of God is discovered by the one who finally decided to listen to it. The Gospel reading tells us that shortly after his baptism Jesus decided to go up to Galilee. At that time he already had Andrew and Simon Peter as his disciples.
As he was getting ready to leave Bethany to go on to Galilee Jesus goes out and finds Philip – he seeks him out, just as he seeks out Samuel, and just as he seeks us out – and he says to Philip, “follow me”.
Philip responded to the call of Jesus and as he was preparing to join Jesus he goes out and locates a man by the name of Nathaniel, telling him “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote. Jesus, son of Joseph from Nazareth”. It is obvious from the Gospel reading that both Philip and Nathaniel were men who were seekers, men who were looking for the promised one of God. However, we can see that Nathaniel was not prepared to accept that it was the call of God that he has heard through Philip. He doubted what Philip told him replied to him: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”
Still, Nathaniel went along with Philip. He went with Philip to check out what he has just been told by Philip. And in doing so discovered that Jesus is a prophet, that Jesus has special powers. For Jesus knew without being told where he was at the moment when Philip called him.
Jesus said to him: “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these. Very truly I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”
Do we listen to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ – Do we check out the calls they issued out to us on behalf of God. Do we check out the call to meet the Lord in a particular place and time? Do we check out the call to discover what we have been looking for?
Do we check out the call?
If I praise all of you all too much now – let me know, because when I look out here on Sunday morning, I see faithful people. I see people here who have decided to follow Jesus, people who are struggling real heard to do what is right. I see people who worship and who pray. I see people who listen to the holy stories, and seek to obey the will of the Lord.
I see amongst you all people who are like Samuel, and Philip and Nathaniel. I see here people who work for God.
But still, I cannot help but wonder, when I see you, how many of you here today believe that God has spoken to you? How many of you do believe that God has called you in person and not sent an angel to do it. He has personally called you to do what you are doing here in the church? Here in this place call Hong Kong?
And of those of us who do believe this. How many of you here believe that God is still with you – guiding you, or tying to guide you, each and every day?
God is calling all of us – He is calling ALL OF US! He is calling us not to just Him. He is also calling us to do and say certain things at certain times. He is calling for us to walk a particular path with Him, a path that is very similar to, but not the same as the path of all the disciples, apostles and saints of all the ages before our time and of this day and age.
God has a personal plan for you.
God seeks to guide you in your daily life.
And that call of God to you is a personal call.
God is seeking you out, just as Jesus called out Philip.
God is calling you by your name – just as He called Samuel by name.
God calls us in our dreams. He calls in the voice of those people who are tying to help us find our way. He calls us through our spouses and the people at work. He calls us when we take the time to calm down and to read His Word, or to meditate. He calls us when we are trying to decide as to what to do next in our life. He calls us when we gaze upon the heavens. He calls out to us when we are praying.
God is calling us.
A great many people speak to God, they pray to him daily, whether it be five minutes a day or half an hour a day, or even an hour a day. They do that without even really thinking of how it is that God might answer them, without seriously thinking as how they are meant to listen to Him.
It is like picking up the telephone to speak into it, and instead of HOLDING IT LIKE TH IS, they are trying to HOLD IT LIKE THIS.
I remember a cartoon I looked at in a newspaper some time ago. In the cartoon the yard was filled with children playing in the way that only children can. They were yelling and screaming, blowing horns, and crying. The dog was barking, a plane flies overhead, and there were two boys beating drums. Inside the house, the mother of one of the children says to her husband, “Listen. That is PJ crying!”
I am sure that those of you who are mothers sitting here today will be in agreement with me if I said that mothers’ ears are conditioned to h ear the sound of her child’s voice, no matter how much noise there might be in the background.
God calls each and every one of us for a purpose – a very good purpose. He calls us to come to him so that He may be able to transform our lives. He calls on us to listen to Him and to do what he tells us to do, so that he might change us, and the world we are living in, making it holy and good, full of love and joy, whole and at peace…
If we really want to hear what God is trying to tell us, it will certainly help to hold the telephone in the correct way. It will certainly help if we have learned as to how and where He will speak to us. It will certainly help if we, by continual practice, conditioned our ears and hearts and minds to hear His voice.
Listen for God’s voice where-ever you may be – in whatever you see or hear. Whether it is a dream you have just had. Whether it is the message of a preacher you have just heard. Whether it is in the still small voice y9ou have heard inside you at the seashore, or in the words of a friend who is telling you how God has dealt his or her situation, and what it is that he or she thinks that God is trying to tell you.
That happens when you belong to a church you know. That happens when you are gathered with your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. Sometimes they speak to you about God. Sometimes they have a message from God that is meant especially for you.
Listen to the “Good Book” and judge the things you hear by the Book and by the Spirit that is within you. Examine what is happening around you and pray about what you just heard or read. Look and listen – and I promise you that you will hear the voice of God, you will hear his call.
LISTEN.
Listen and then do as you feel or believe that you have been called to do, and if it is truly the Word of God, you will find and experience the power that lies behind that very Word, that very call.
You will see things happening as promised. You will see changes that are good. You will see God glorified and people who only seek after their own desires humbled. You will see mercy and grace, judgment and vindication. You will see new life arise out of sinners and new hope comes out of despair.
Listen, and it will be as Jesus promised to Nathaniel, you will see heaven opened up and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.
Listen and you will find what you have been looking for all the time.
Let us pray. Dear Lord, we know that you do call each and every one of us. Help us to listen for you call. Help us to be able to recognize it and to accept it. Help us discover your personal Word for us. Help us discover your personal demands upon each and every one of us. Let us discover your personal will for each and every one of us. We ask of it in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Phil 4:12
"I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need" Phil 4:12
Ah, sweet contentment! What would it take to make you contented? A new house? A new car? A fully equipped yacht? A new dress? In size "S"? Happy children? The perfect job? The perfect Church? The perfect wife? The perfect husband? If we stop to think about it, we could probably come up with a lot of things. A winning Mark Six ticket might be at the top for some of us. Will these really make you contented? I can guarantee if you had one or all of the above, you wouldn't be contented very long. Why? Because contentment can not be found in physical things. All of these things will become less alluring with time. The house will age. The car will rust. The dress will "be out of fashion." The children will be children. The job will grow old. The Church - well if you join it, you will ruin its perfection. The wife, she will get fat after three kids. The husband won't do anything but sit in front of the TV watching soccer. The million dollars will soon be spent. These things only offer temporary contentment.
Paul has learned a bit about contentment. He has found it in poverty and riches; in what ever situation in which he has found himself. He has found contentment in hunger and plenty; in ease and suffering. What is his secret? Paul has learned that contentment is found in Jesus. Paul had such a hunger for God that nothing else would do. He was so sold out to Jesus that whatever He wanted was fine with Paul. Would you sing if you were beaten, bleeding, and cast into a stinking, wet, rat infested prison cell? Paul did. Would you return to the city that beat you, stoned you and cast you out of the city gates thinking you were dead? Paul did. Would you witness to the men who held you captive, awaiting a trial that would likely deliver you to the executioner? Paul did - and won the majority of Caesar's personal guard over to Jesus!
See the difference? Paul's contentment never changed, never rusted, never died, never argued, never faded away. His contentment was based upon the Jesus who is the same yesterday, today, and forever! We could learn a lot from Paul. The next time we look at our "want list" let's ask the question, "Will it bring real contentment? Or will it only provide temporary happiness?" Then decide if you really want or need it. Amen and Amen.
Ah, sweet contentment! What would it take to make you contented? A new house? A new car? A fully equipped yacht? A new dress? In size "S"? Happy children? The perfect job? The perfect Church? The perfect wife? The perfect husband? If we stop to think about it, we could probably come up with a lot of things. A winning Mark Six ticket might be at the top for some of us. Will these really make you contented? I can guarantee if you had one or all of the above, you wouldn't be contented very long. Why? Because contentment can not be found in physical things. All of these things will become less alluring with time. The house will age. The car will rust. The dress will "be out of fashion." The children will be children. The job will grow old. The Church - well if you join it, you will ruin its perfection. The wife, she will get fat after three kids. The husband won't do anything but sit in front of the TV watching soccer. The million dollars will soon be spent. These things only offer temporary contentment.
Paul has learned a bit about contentment. He has found it in poverty and riches; in what ever situation in which he has found himself. He has found contentment in hunger and plenty; in ease and suffering. What is his secret? Paul has learned that contentment is found in Jesus. Paul had such a hunger for God that nothing else would do. He was so sold out to Jesus that whatever He wanted was fine with Paul. Would you sing if you were beaten, bleeding, and cast into a stinking, wet, rat infested prison cell? Paul did. Would you return to the city that beat you, stoned you and cast you out of the city gates thinking you were dead? Paul did. Would you witness to the men who held you captive, awaiting a trial that would likely deliver you to the executioner? Paul did - and won the majority of Caesar's personal guard over to Jesus!
See the difference? Paul's contentment never changed, never rusted, never died, never argued, never faded away. His contentment was based upon the Jesus who is the same yesterday, today, and forever! We could learn a lot from Paul. The next time we look at our "want list" let's ask the question, "Will it bring real contentment? Or will it only provide temporary happiness?" Then decide if you really want or need it. Amen and Amen.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Beloved let us love one another." I John 4:7
"Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." 1 Corinth. 13:4-7
A favorite Bible study method of mine is to take a passage of scripture and personalize it by putting it in the first person. It was a humbling experience when I tried to do this with I Corinthians 13. I am patient and kind? Hardly. I envy not. No. I am not proud. Yeah right! I don't seek my own way. Ask people who know me. I think no evil, bear all things, believe all things, endure all things. I don't think so.
Yet, as I read this, I begin to realize that this is not simply a nice idea or a goal to work toward, but a commandment of God. It's very clear. He says "Love one another as I have loved you." Ouch. He obviously believes I am capable of such love. Maybe the problem is that I don't see that in myself. God has a lot more faith in my ability to love than I do. I know the affronts I've suffered. I know the hurts I've endured. I know my weaknesses. And what I forget is that God knows all this too, and He still says, "Beloved, love one another."
So, then a lack of love results from a lack of faith. I really don't believe God's word which says I can love in this manner. I don't believe that God can plant that type of love inside of me. It's one thing to believe that God can move a mountain, but to allow me to love the person who insulted me, that's something else entirely.
But then perhaps I'm getting this all wrong. I'm expecting to be able to love others in my own power. Maybe I'm rewriting this the wrong way. Let's try it again: Jesus is patient and kind. He envies not is not puffed up. He beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things and endureth all things. Well, now that makes sense. And He is living in me and through me right? Does that mean that one day, that scripture might just be describing me. Well...maybe... Amen and Amen.
"Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." 1 Corinth. 13:4-7
A favorite Bible study method of mine is to take a passage of scripture and personalize it by putting it in the first person. It was a humbling experience when I tried to do this with I Corinthians 13. I am patient and kind? Hardly. I envy not. No. I am not proud. Yeah right! I don't seek my own way. Ask people who know me. I think no evil, bear all things, believe all things, endure all things. I don't think so.
Yet, as I read this, I begin to realize that this is not simply a nice idea or a goal to work toward, but a commandment of God. It's very clear. He says "Love one another as I have loved you." Ouch. He obviously believes I am capable of such love. Maybe the problem is that I don't see that in myself. God has a lot more faith in my ability to love than I do. I know the affronts I've suffered. I know the hurts I've endured. I know my weaknesses. And what I forget is that God knows all this too, and He still says, "Beloved, love one another."
So, then a lack of love results from a lack of faith. I really don't believe God's word which says I can love in this manner. I don't believe that God can plant that type of love inside of me. It's one thing to believe that God can move a mountain, but to allow me to love the person who insulted me, that's something else entirely.
But then perhaps I'm getting this all wrong. I'm expecting to be able to love others in my own power. Maybe I'm rewriting this the wrong way. Let's try it again: Jesus is patient and kind. He envies not is not puffed up. He beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things and endureth all things. Well, now that makes sense. And He is living in me and through me right? Does that mean that one day, that scripture might just be describing me. Well...maybe... Amen and Amen.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Philippians 3:8-9
"Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith" Philippians 3:8-9
One of the first things that the Holy Spirit will do in us is to wipe out those things that we rely on naturally. Paul argues this out in Philippians 3, in which he catalogs who he is and the things in which he might have confidence; "but," he says, "I deliberately renounce all these thing that I may gain Christ."
One of the biggest differences between Christianity and the occult is to simply examine their sense of power. An occult will claim that you can receive some special power to be used at your beckoning will, at your command, it is a sure sign that God is out of the loop, and you must reject all of it and run. Believe me, if you find that the slightest bit humorous, you are mistaken.
Let us get this understanding right up front, the only way any of us can ever be of service to God is when we are willing to renounce all natural abilities and determine to be weak in Him. Whenever we think we are of use to God, we hinder Him. We must form a habit of letting God carry on His work through us without obstruction or hindrance from our own determination to do good works apart from Him. Amen and Amen.
One of the first things that the Holy Spirit will do in us is to wipe out those things that we rely on naturally. Paul argues this out in Philippians 3, in which he catalogs who he is and the things in which he might have confidence; "but," he says, "I deliberately renounce all these thing that I may gain Christ."
One of the biggest differences between Christianity and the occult is to simply examine their sense of power. An occult will claim that you can receive some special power to be used at your beckoning will, at your command, it is a sure sign that God is out of the loop, and you must reject all of it and run. Believe me, if you find that the slightest bit humorous, you are mistaken.
Let us get this understanding right up front, the only way any of us can ever be of service to God is when we are willing to renounce all natural abilities and determine to be weak in Him. Whenever we think we are of use to God, we hinder Him. We must form a habit of letting God carry on His work through us without obstruction or hindrance from our own determination to do good works apart from Him. Amen and Amen.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Romans 7:19,24
"For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice...O wretched man that I am! Romans 7:19,24
One of the things I love about the Bible is it's honesty. Paul was an apostle. Among the gentiles, possibly, the chief apostle. Yet, here he is being very honest with us about his own struggles. I don't know about you but this sounds very familiar to me. I am stuck with this problem. I can perceive perfection, but, this side of heaven, I cannot achieve perfection. So, knowing my weakness, I feel worthless when I fail.
I remember hearing a song before which expresses this doubt well. The chorus goes: "What if I stumble? What if I fall/ Where will the love be when my walk becomes a crawl?" This fear paralyzes many Christians. I am afraid that if (or should that be when) I stumble, then God will desert me. If he stays with me, then, my fellow Christians will desert me.
Certainly, God will not leave me. When I have fallen is exactly the time he wants to help. His hand is reaching down for me to grab hold of to be lifted up even higher than before I fell. More likely than God deserting me during my time of failure is my deserting God. Very often, when I have failed, I feel so guilty that I turn away from the very one who died for my failures. As a child, when I ran too fast for my little legs and I fell down, I ran to my Mom or Dad for sympathy and a band-aid. Should I be any less trusting of my Heavenly father than I was of my earthly parents?
Unfortunately, sometimes it is true that the people I go to church with may turn away when I fail. This is not so much a judgment of me as it is of themselves. When we see another person fail, it reminds us of our own failures, so if we distance ourselves from those who have failed, we don't have to deal with our own shortcomings. However, many times this too is an unfounded fear. These are my brothers and sisters. For the most part they care for me want to see me back on my feet again. If they look down on me for the moment it is only because they are reaching down a hand to help me back up.
Yes, living the Christian life can be a risky business. I might stumble, I could fall. But all that proves is that I really need God. And those failures then become the pathway to my total dependence on him. Only when I realize t hat my legs are not up to this race, does he come on the scene and give me new legs and a new strength. Amen and Amen.
One of the things I love about the Bible is it's honesty. Paul was an apostle. Among the gentiles, possibly, the chief apostle. Yet, here he is being very honest with us about his own struggles. I don't know about you but this sounds very familiar to me. I am stuck with this problem. I can perceive perfection, but, this side of heaven, I cannot achieve perfection. So, knowing my weakness, I feel worthless when I fail.
I remember hearing a song before which expresses this doubt well. The chorus goes: "What if I stumble? What if I fall/ Where will the love be when my walk becomes a crawl?" This fear paralyzes many Christians. I am afraid that if (or should that be when) I stumble, then God will desert me. If he stays with me, then, my fellow Christians will desert me.
Certainly, God will not leave me. When I have fallen is exactly the time he wants to help. His hand is reaching down for me to grab hold of to be lifted up even higher than before I fell. More likely than God deserting me during my time of failure is my deserting God. Very often, when I have failed, I feel so guilty that I turn away from the very one who died for my failures. As a child, when I ran too fast for my little legs and I fell down, I ran to my Mom or Dad for sympathy and a band-aid. Should I be any less trusting of my Heavenly father than I was of my earthly parents?
Unfortunately, sometimes it is true that the people I go to church with may turn away when I fail. This is not so much a judgment of me as it is of themselves. When we see another person fail, it reminds us of our own failures, so if we distance ourselves from those who have failed, we don't have to deal with our own shortcomings. However, many times this too is an unfounded fear. These are my brothers and sisters. For the most part they care for me want to see me back on my feet again. If they look down on me for the moment it is only because they are reaching down a hand to help me back up.
Yes, living the Christian life can be a risky business. I might stumble, I could fall. But all that proves is that I really need God. And those failures then become the pathway to my total dependence on him. Only when I realize t hat my legs are not up to this race, does he come on the scene and give me new legs and a new strength. Amen and Amen.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Matt 7:1
"Judge not, that you be not judged." Matt 7:1
Someone had this in their email signature and I loved it: "Bless 'em all and let God sort 'em out!"
Of course, this is a take off on the ugly T-Shirt many of us have seen which says, "Kill them all and let God sort them out." Of course, my friend's email signature is more true to scripture.
Jesus tells a story that relates to this idea. He tells about a man who planted a field of wheat. But an enemy came along and sowed Tares (or weeds) in with the wheat. The field hands wanted to go out and rip out all of the weeds, but the owner of the field was wiser than his workers. He said, "No, if you pull out the tares, you might also hurt some of the wheat in the process. Let's just wait for the harvest and then separate the wheat from the tares.
Sometimes Satan comes along and sows discord within Christian communities. Having taken part in a few Christian email discussion lists, I am amazed that often times my secular email list participants are more civil to each other than some of the so-called "Christians" who are downright vicious at times. Certainly, there are a lot of tares in the Christian wheat field.
And, we, as workers in the field, want to immediately rush out and rip them up by the roots. We gossip about the gossipers and hate the haters, and in so doing we simply sow more tares and hurt the innocents around us.
But I wonder what would happen if we did do as my friend advises in his email signature file. What if we did bless them, pray for them, do good for them? Maybe we would could eventually do a little spiritual genetic re-sequencing and turn some tares into wheat. But even if we can't. It's not our job to judge them, it's Gods. So, let's just "bless them all and let God sort them out." Hallelujah, Amen and Amen.
Someone had this in their email signature and I loved it: "Bless 'em all and let God sort 'em out!"
Of course, this is a take off on the ugly T-Shirt many of us have seen which says, "Kill them all and let God sort them out." Of course, my friend's email signature is more true to scripture.
Jesus tells a story that relates to this idea. He tells about a man who planted a field of wheat. But an enemy came along and sowed Tares (or weeds) in with the wheat. The field hands wanted to go out and rip out all of the weeds, but the owner of the field was wiser than his workers. He said, "No, if you pull out the tares, you might also hurt some of the wheat in the process. Let's just wait for the harvest and then separate the wheat from the tares.
Sometimes Satan comes along and sows discord within Christian communities. Having taken part in a few Christian email discussion lists, I am amazed that often times my secular email list participants are more civil to each other than some of the so-called "Christians" who are downright vicious at times. Certainly, there are a lot of tares in the Christian wheat field.
And, we, as workers in the field, want to immediately rush out and rip them up by the roots. We gossip about the gossipers and hate the haters, and in so doing we simply sow more tares and hurt the innocents around us.
But I wonder what would happen if we did do as my friend advises in his email signature file. What if we did bless them, pray for them, do good for them? Maybe we would could eventually do a little spiritual genetic re-sequencing and turn some tares into wheat. But even if we can't. It's not our job to judge them, it's Gods. So, let's just "bless them all and let God sort them out." Hallelujah, Amen and Amen.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Prov. 22:20 - 21
"Have I not written to you excellent things Of counsels and knowledge, That I may make you know the certainty of the words of truth, That you may answer words of truth To those who send to you?" Prov. 22:20 - 21
There are some things I am certain of:
- The sun will come up tomorrow, even if I don't and unless the Lord returns.
- The government will continue to collect taxes.
- My wife loves me.
- Jesus loves me more.
- The Father loves me so much He sent His Son to die for me.
- When I do die, I will see Jesus face to face, and I will not be afraid.
I like certainties. They are things "a man can hang his hat on." I like knowing that I have a job to go to. I like knowing that my wife loves me, bad points and all. I like knowing that there is something beyond this life, and it is far better than what I have now.
I don't like uncertainties. I don't like being made to wait for the outcome of something I have no control over. I don't like owning a car that may or may not start in the morning. I don't like the feeling I get when I know I have done something wrong and anticipate the possibility of discipline.
Uncertainties are like quicksand. It looks like solid ground, but it will not support his weight. Solomon has spent the past twenty-one chapters of his book of wisdom telling us things of certainty. His words are like solid stones quarried from bedrock. We can use them to lay a solid foundation. We can use them to build beautiful walls. We can use them to provide a solid roof to protect us from the elements. His words of wisdom direct us in the paths of righteousness. They guide us through the legal morass of the Law.
They provide a laugh from time to time and always direct our paths in God's ways. There is another certainty that I am aware of: Unless the Lord returns, I will eventually die. It may not happen tomorrow or next week or next year or ten years from now, but my body will eventually give up and I will cease to exist on this earth. What's more, it is a certainty that if we study the words of Solomon and know Jesus as our Lord and Savior that we will be able to stand before the Father without fearing death but with certainty that we are able to enter into the reward He has for us.
That's what Solomon means by the last line of today's verses, "that you may be able to correctly answer him who sent you." On that day, the Father will ask us one question: "What have you done with my Son?" We will answer honestly, for that is the only way to respond when we stand face-to-face with the God who holds our future in His hands. Most of us who read this will be able to say, "I have made Jesus my Savior and serve Him as my Lord." God will proudly say "well done" and we will enter into the place God has for us. A few may bow their heads in shame and say, "I denied Him, many times." God will utter a "depart from me" and cast those into the eternal reward for evildoers.
Perhaps you are one of the few who will stand in shame before God, if you were to die today. You don't have to. Yes, you have denied Jesus in the past, but you don't have to live in that denial. There is still time to change that decision. Accept Jesus as your Savior right now. Tell Him that you are a sinner and are sorry for your sins. Ask Him to forgive you, He longs to do that. If you accept Him, He will not deny you on the Day of Judgment. Don't delay. Respond right now... before it is too late. Amen and Amen.
There are some things I am certain of:
- The sun will come up tomorrow, even if I don't and unless the Lord returns.
- The government will continue to collect taxes.
- My wife loves me.
- Jesus loves me more.
- The Father loves me so much He sent His Son to die for me.
- When I do die, I will see Jesus face to face, and I will not be afraid.
I like certainties. They are things "a man can hang his hat on." I like knowing that I have a job to go to. I like knowing that my wife loves me, bad points and all. I like knowing that there is something beyond this life, and it is far better than what I have now.
I don't like uncertainties. I don't like being made to wait for the outcome of something I have no control over. I don't like owning a car that may or may not start in the morning. I don't like the feeling I get when I know I have done something wrong and anticipate the possibility of discipline.
Uncertainties are like quicksand. It looks like solid ground, but it will not support his weight. Solomon has spent the past twenty-one chapters of his book of wisdom telling us things of certainty. His words are like solid stones quarried from bedrock. We can use them to lay a solid foundation. We can use them to build beautiful walls. We can use them to provide a solid roof to protect us from the elements. His words of wisdom direct us in the paths of righteousness. They guide us through the legal morass of the Law.
They provide a laugh from time to time and always direct our paths in God's ways. There is another certainty that I am aware of: Unless the Lord returns, I will eventually die. It may not happen tomorrow or next week or next year or ten years from now, but my body will eventually give up and I will cease to exist on this earth. What's more, it is a certainty that if we study the words of Solomon and know Jesus as our Lord and Savior that we will be able to stand before the Father without fearing death but with certainty that we are able to enter into the reward He has for us.
That's what Solomon means by the last line of today's verses, "that you may be able to correctly answer him who sent you." On that day, the Father will ask us one question: "What have you done with my Son?" We will answer honestly, for that is the only way to respond when we stand face-to-face with the God who holds our future in His hands. Most of us who read this will be able to say, "I have made Jesus my Savior and serve Him as my Lord." God will proudly say "well done" and we will enter into the place God has for us. A few may bow their heads in shame and say, "I denied Him, many times." God will utter a "depart from me" and cast those into the eternal reward for evildoers.
Perhaps you are one of the few who will stand in shame before God, if you were to die today. You don't have to. Yes, you have denied Jesus in the past, but you don't have to live in that denial. There is still time to change that decision. Accept Jesus as your Savior right now. Tell Him that you are a sinner and are sorry for your sins. Ask Him to forgive you, He longs to do that. If you accept Him, He will not deny you on the Day of Judgment. Don't delay. Respond right now... before it is too late. Amen and Amen.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Ezekiel 37:1-14 and John 11:1-45
"My thoughts are not your thoughts and my ways are not your ways"
O Lord, we pray, speak in this place, in the calming of our minds and in the longing of our hearts, by the words of my lips and in the thoughts that we form. Speak, O Lord, for your servants listen. Amen.
It would be interesting to poll this congregation and ask -- what do you
think is the hardest problem to handle in the Christian life???
Your answer might be different than mine.
For me, the hardest problem I have to handle as a Christian is what to do
when God does not do what I have been taught to expect him to do; when God gets out of line and does not act the way I think he ought.
We have an occasion like that in the story of the raising of Lazarus from
the dead.
John introduces this last of the great miracles of Jesus in chapter 11 in
these words:
Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent to him, saying "Lord, he whom you love is ill."
When the message reached Jesus, this was his remarkable response:
"This illness is not unto death, but it is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by means of it."
The remarkable thing about that is, if you carefully check out the schedule of timing of this event, Lazarus was already dead when the message reached Jesus. It took two days for the messenger to get to the Jordan, so when Jesus returned to Bethany, Lazarus had been dead four days.
It is difficult for us to believe that Jesus did not know that because of
the insight that the Spirit of God had given him on numerous occasions.
But he sees this as a signal from the Father that something tremendous is
going to happen in connection with it, thus he sent back this remarkable
word: "This illness is not unto death."
In verses 5 and 6 we get the real shocker here, however when we read:
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that Lazarus was ill... he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.
That is incredible to us. That is the part of the story which is hard to handle.
Martha loved Jesus; Mary loved Jesus; Lazarus loved Jesus; and Jesus loved them. From the record of scripture we know that their home was filled with love and that it was one of the most welcome havens for our Lord during his three years of ministry.
But when Jesus hears that Lazarus is sick - what does he do?? He waits.
It is a tough thing to believe that Jesus deliberately waited. We are so
used to critical illness being a signal for immediate action –ambulance rushing with sirens on, flashing red lights, frantic phone calls - get right down to the hospital, that it seems incredible that Jesus, knowing that his friend was ill, or in this case dead, nevertheless stayed right where he was for two more days.
Somebody may well say,
"If he knew Lazarus was dead why would he hurry? There was nothing he could do."
But remember Mary and Martha's hearts were breaking. This was a dearly loved brother, and his death would be a grievous loss to them. Jesus' presence with them would have been a tremendous comfort even though he may never did a thing about raising Lazarus from the dead.
Yet, knowing that they needed him there to comfort them, knowing that they longed to have him there to the point that they sent a messenger to let him know the situation, he deliberately remained two days longer at the place where he was.
Why?
That is the question we all ask.
Why?
When you have gone to God for help which you feel you desperately need and nothing happens, when your heart is breaking over something and you need God to intervene, but the heavens are silent, it is not at all easy to understand, it is very difficult to accept, and it is tough to get any kind of grip on why there is complete silence from God.
But what this passage is telling us is that a delay in answer like that is
not a sign of God's indifference or his failure to hear. It is a sign of
his love. The delay will help us. It is for our sake. And it is so that
Christ may be glorified through it.
Jesus deliberately delayed going to Mary and Martha because he loved them and knew this would strengthen their faith as they learned the ultimate outcome which God would work through Him.
That is a very hard and difficult lesson to accept. I myself have struggled over this many times. But it works - something we expect and long for does not occur and then - bingo - sometime after we think that everything is lost and that there is no hope, God does something remarkable that totally reverses our view.
Think of the reaction in Bethany as the messenger returned with the news
that when he told Jesus that Lazarus was ill, Jesus had said, "This illness
is not unto death." Yet when the messenger got back with that message
Lazarus had already been dead for two days.
What do you think the reaction of his sisters was?
How do you think they felt?
According to the account, two days later Jesus acts. He says to his
disciples
"Let us go back Judea... Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to wake him up."
The disciples, who had every reason to believe that if they returned to Judea that Jesus would be stoned to death, protest, saying:
"Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover."
To which Jesus replies
"Lazarus is dead; and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe"
Notice that Jesus says he was glad he was not there when Lazarus died,
"for the sake of the disciples."
Just as Jesus delayed his going for Mary and Martha's sake in order that their faith might be strengthened by that delay, so that they might see His glory in it what will happen because of it. So he delayed as well for the sake of his disciples that they might believe.
I want to tell you there have been times when I have cried out to God for
help and said, "Things are so bad it can't get any worse. Lord, do
something. Help me!" But no answer came. That is hard. It is hard to
believe. It is hard and difficult to wait.
But I am gradually learning that this is never the end of the story, gradually learning what God said so clearly through the prophet Isaiah, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways."
That is what is so difficult. God is sovereign. God is not a mortal that
he should act like we act. There are dimensions of the problems which he sees that we do not remotely imagine. There are possibilities and
opportunities in every situation that we cannot conceive of.
So we must wait and quietly trust, knowing that he is working out
something.
"Lazarus is dead; and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe"
As we go in the story, as Jesus arrives at the outskirts of Bethany - we
see that Martha greets Jesus with a phrase that must have been frequently
on all of their lips when Lazarus was sick.
How many times must they have said, "Oh, if Jesus were only here." They had said it so many times that it comes automatically to Martha's lips when she meets him: "Lord, if you had been here my brother would not have died."
I do not believe this is a word of reproach.
Martha is not saying, "Lord, why didn't you come sooner? We sent for you. If you had responded we wouldn't be in this pickle." It is clear from the account, that she realizes that the message did not reach him until Lazarus was dead. Martha's word rather is one of regret: "Lord, I wish you could have been here, because if you had, my brother would not have died."
Then she goes on to say, "But even now, even now, whatever you ask of God, he will give it to you."
Many ask at this point, "What does she expect? What is it that she wants
from him?" Some commentators say that she really did expect Jesus to raise Lazarus from the dead, pointing to her words, "Even now."
These commentators miss the point because, of course, the very next word of Jesus is, "Your brother will rise again."
If Martha had any idea that would happen then, she would have said, "How wonderful, Lord! That is exactly what I expected you to do now that you have come."
But she does not say that. What she says is, "Yes, I know. He will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."
Clearly Martha is not looking for the immediate resurrection of her
brother. What, then, is she looking for from Jesus? What does she mean by the words, "Even now, whatever you ask of God, God will give it to you?"
We have to conclude that she is looking for his comfort, for the release
that God can give to a heart that is burdened and saddened, torn with
grief, anticipating the loneliness and emptiness of the days ahead. God
can give marvellous inward peace. Many have testified to that. This is
what Martha is asking for, "Even now, Lord, even though he is gone..."
There is so much God can give us at a time like this. As we listen to the
story we can see that Martha's faith is like the faith we so often have.
She believes in what she thinks will happen now and then later, rather than in what God might make happen whenever God decides to make it happen.
How many times have you said to yourself, "I know God has worked in the past, and I know that he will work again in the future, but today, well,
this is not the day of miracles..."
This is Martha's faith: in the future, at the resurrection of the last day, yes, the program of God is certain. But for today - well - that is a different matter.
The same thing can be said of Mary -- who greets Jesus with the same words that Martha used: "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.".
Neither Martha, nor Mary, nor any of those who accompany her to the grave side - nor the disciples expect what happens next. They do not even hope for it.
How often are we in the same position with regard to the Lord's work in our lives?
In our brokenness - in our experience of grief - in our despair- we weep,
as Mary wept - we weep and we expect nothing - nothing but heartache for today and for as long as we live and breathe..
Jesus wept too - It says that Jesus asked where they had laid Lazarus, and
as he started out to the tomb, that "he wept".
He weeps not because he loves Lazarus - not because Lazarus has died – for he knows what he is about to do -- he weeps because Mary weeps. He weeps because he is sharing the heartache of the sisters - because he sympathizes with them in their pain..
I read once of a little girl who hurt her finger, and she ran to her daddy, who was busy studying for an exam in his study. She showed him her finger, but he was so caught up in what he was doing he just looked at it and said, "Oh, that will be all right," and sent her on out. She ran to her mother, weeping and crying, and her mother said, "Oh, dear, does it hurt so much?" The little girl said, "No, mommy, it's just that daddy didn't even say, 'Oh.'" That is what she wanted, somebody to say "Oh" with her.
In Romans 12, Paul tells us to "weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice." Here our Lord himself sets the example of this.
Knowing that he is going to turn it all around, he yet feels the sorrow of
their hearts and weeps.
Now we come to the actual miracle.
Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb; It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, "Lord, by this time there will be an odour, for he has been dead four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone."
Notice how he answers. He does not rebuke her, he encourages her in the words, "Remember what I said." "Did I not say to you that 'if you would believe you would see the glory of God?"
Then Jesus turns to do the great deed. He begins with a simple prayer.
And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me."
Notice the many times in this account that what Jesus did he did for the
sake of the ones involved.
Earlier he said to the disciples, "I am glad I was not there for your sake.
He stayed two days where he was when the message reached him "because he loved Mary and Martha." Now he prays out loud for the sake of the people there.
When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out." The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with bandages, and his face wrapped with a cloth. And Jesus said to them, "Unbind him, and let him go."
What does this miracle say to us this morning?
One answer to that is given by the apostle Paul in his Second Letter to
Timothy. Timothy was a young man who was left in the pagan city of Ephesus. He had to struggle to live as a Christian in that polluted, pagan
environment, just as we have to today in our society. He was sometimes
discouraged, sometimes defeated, facing many problems. He was a little afraid. He was frail of health.
What were Paul's words to him?
"Remember Jesus Christ risen from the dead. Remember Jesus right where you are. Remember he is with you."
This is his word. He is with you.
He knows how to handle the situation you are in.
He knows how to lead you through it,
he can - and in fact will even raise the dead.
He can do anything.
Focus your faith on him, not on the solution to the problem or the eventual working out of it.
Trust in him, despite the delays
- turn to him, knowing that he is able
- and knowing that whatever illness may strike, with him it is never an
illness unto death - rather it may well be the pathway to new life.
Blessed be God, day by day. Amen.
O Lord, we pray, speak in this place, in the calming of our minds and in the longing of our hearts, by the words of my lips and in the thoughts that we form. Speak, O Lord, for your servants listen. Amen.
It would be interesting to poll this congregation and ask -- what do you
think is the hardest problem to handle in the Christian life???
Your answer might be different than mine.
For me, the hardest problem I have to handle as a Christian is what to do
when God does not do what I have been taught to expect him to do; when God gets out of line and does not act the way I think he ought.
We have an occasion like that in the story of the raising of Lazarus from
the dead.
John introduces this last of the great miracles of Jesus in chapter 11 in
these words:
Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent to him, saying "Lord, he whom you love is ill."
When the message reached Jesus, this was his remarkable response:
"This illness is not unto death, but it is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by means of it."
The remarkable thing about that is, if you carefully check out the schedule of timing of this event, Lazarus was already dead when the message reached Jesus. It took two days for the messenger to get to the Jordan, so when Jesus returned to Bethany, Lazarus had been dead four days.
It is difficult for us to believe that Jesus did not know that because of
the insight that the Spirit of God had given him on numerous occasions.
But he sees this as a signal from the Father that something tremendous is
going to happen in connection with it, thus he sent back this remarkable
word: "This illness is not unto death."
In verses 5 and 6 we get the real shocker here, however when we read:
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that Lazarus was ill... he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.
That is incredible to us. That is the part of the story which is hard to handle.
Martha loved Jesus; Mary loved Jesus; Lazarus loved Jesus; and Jesus loved them. From the record of scripture we know that their home was filled with love and that it was one of the most welcome havens for our Lord during his three years of ministry.
But when Jesus hears that Lazarus is sick - what does he do?? He waits.
It is a tough thing to believe that Jesus deliberately waited. We are so
used to critical illness being a signal for immediate action –ambulance rushing with sirens on, flashing red lights, frantic phone calls - get right down to the hospital, that it seems incredible that Jesus, knowing that his friend was ill, or in this case dead, nevertheless stayed right where he was for two more days.
Somebody may well say,
"If he knew Lazarus was dead why would he hurry? There was nothing he could do."
But remember Mary and Martha's hearts were breaking. This was a dearly loved brother, and his death would be a grievous loss to them. Jesus' presence with them would have been a tremendous comfort even though he may never did a thing about raising Lazarus from the dead.
Yet, knowing that they needed him there to comfort them, knowing that they longed to have him there to the point that they sent a messenger to let him know the situation, he deliberately remained two days longer at the place where he was.
Why?
That is the question we all ask.
Why?
When you have gone to God for help which you feel you desperately need and nothing happens, when your heart is breaking over something and you need God to intervene, but the heavens are silent, it is not at all easy to understand, it is very difficult to accept, and it is tough to get any kind of grip on why there is complete silence from God.
But what this passage is telling us is that a delay in answer like that is
not a sign of God's indifference or his failure to hear. It is a sign of
his love. The delay will help us. It is for our sake. And it is so that
Christ may be glorified through it.
Jesus deliberately delayed going to Mary and Martha because he loved them and knew this would strengthen their faith as they learned the ultimate outcome which God would work through Him.
That is a very hard and difficult lesson to accept. I myself have struggled over this many times. But it works - something we expect and long for does not occur and then - bingo - sometime after we think that everything is lost and that there is no hope, God does something remarkable that totally reverses our view.
Think of the reaction in Bethany as the messenger returned with the news
that when he told Jesus that Lazarus was ill, Jesus had said, "This illness
is not unto death." Yet when the messenger got back with that message
Lazarus had already been dead for two days.
What do you think the reaction of his sisters was?
How do you think they felt?
According to the account, two days later Jesus acts. He says to his
disciples
"Let us go back Judea... Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to wake him up."
The disciples, who had every reason to believe that if they returned to Judea that Jesus would be stoned to death, protest, saying:
"Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover."
To which Jesus replies
"Lazarus is dead; and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe"
Notice that Jesus says he was glad he was not there when Lazarus died,
"for the sake of the disciples."
Just as Jesus delayed his going for Mary and Martha's sake in order that their faith might be strengthened by that delay, so that they might see His glory in it what will happen because of it. So he delayed as well for the sake of his disciples that they might believe.
I want to tell you there have been times when I have cried out to God for
help and said, "Things are so bad it can't get any worse. Lord, do
something. Help me!" But no answer came. That is hard. It is hard to
believe. It is hard and difficult to wait.
But I am gradually learning that this is never the end of the story, gradually learning what God said so clearly through the prophet Isaiah, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways."
That is what is so difficult. God is sovereign. God is not a mortal that
he should act like we act. There are dimensions of the problems which he sees that we do not remotely imagine. There are possibilities and
opportunities in every situation that we cannot conceive of.
So we must wait and quietly trust, knowing that he is working out
something.
"Lazarus is dead; and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe"
As we go in the story, as Jesus arrives at the outskirts of Bethany - we
see that Martha greets Jesus with a phrase that must have been frequently
on all of their lips when Lazarus was sick.
How many times must they have said, "Oh, if Jesus were only here." They had said it so many times that it comes automatically to Martha's lips when she meets him: "Lord, if you had been here my brother would not have died."
I do not believe this is a word of reproach.
Martha is not saying, "Lord, why didn't you come sooner? We sent for you. If you had responded we wouldn't be in this pickle." It is clear from the account, that she realizes that the message did not reach him until Lazarus was dead. Martha's word rather is one of regret: "Lord, I wish you could have been here, because if you had, my brother would not have died."
Then she goes on to say, "But even now, even now, whatever you ask of God, he will give it to you."
Many ask at this point, "What does she expect? What is it that she wants
from him?" Some commentators say that she really did expect Jesus to raise Lazarus from the dead, pointing to her words, "Even now."
These commentators miss the point because, of course, the very next word of Jesus is, "Your brother will rise again."
If Martha had any idea that would happen then, she would have said, "How wonderful, Lord! That is exactly what I expected you to do now that you have come."
But she does not say that. What she says is, "Yes, I know. He will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."
Clearly Martha is not looking for the immediate resurrection of her
brother. What, then, is she looking for from Jesus? What does she mean by the words, "Even now, whatever you ask of God, God will give it to you?"
We have to conclude that she is looking for his comfort, for the release
that God can give to a heart that is burdened and saddened, torn with
grief, anticipating the loneliness and emptiness of the days ahead. God
can give marvellous inward peace. Many have testified to that. This is
what Martha is asking for, "Even now, Lord, even though he is gone..."
There is so much God can give us at a time like this. As we listen to the
story we can see that Martha's faith is like the faith we so often have.
She believes in what she thinks will happen now and then later, rather than in what God might make happen whenever God decides to make it happen.
How many times have you said to yourself, "I know God has worked in the past, and I know that he will work again in the future, but today, well,
this is not the day of miracles..."
This is Martha's faith: in the future, at the resurrection of the last day, yes, the program of God is certain. But for today - well - that is a different matter.
The same thing can be said of Mary -- who greets Jesus with the same words that Martha used: "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.".
Neither Martha, nor Mary, nor any of those who accompany her to the grave side - nor the disciples expect what happens next. They do not even hope for it.
How often are we in the same position with regard to the Lord's work in our lives?
In our brokenness - in our experience of grief - in our despair- we weep,
as Mary wept - we weep and we expect nothing - nothing but heartache for today and for as long as we live and breathe..
Jesus wept too - It says that Jesus asked where they had laid Lazarus, and
as he started out to the tomb, that "he wept".
He weeps not because he loves Lazarus - not because Lazarus has died – for he knows what he is about to do -- he weeps because Mary weeps. He weeps because he is sharing the heartache of the sisters - because he sympathizes with them in their pain..
I read once of a little girl who hurt her finger, and she ran to her daddy, who was busy studying for an exam in his study. She showed him her finger, but he was so caught up in what he was doing he just looked at it and said, "Oh, that will be all right," and sent her on out. She ran to her mother, weeping and crying, and her mother said, "Oh, dear, does it hurt so much?" The little girl said, "No, mommy, it's just that daddy didn't even say, 'Oh.'" That is what she wanted, somebody to say "Oh" with her.
In Romans 12, Paul tells us to "weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice." Here our Lord himself sets the example of this.
Knowing that he is going to turn it all around, he yet feels the sorrow of
their hearts and weeps.
Now we come to the actual miracle.
Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb; It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, "Lord, by this time there will be an odour, for he has been dead four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone."
Notice how he answers. He does not rebuke her, he encourages her in the words, "Remember what I said." "Did I not say to you that 'if you would believe you would see the glory of God?"
Then Jesus turns to do the great deed. He begins with a simple prayer.
And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me."
Notice the many times in this account that what Jesus did he did for the
sake of the ones involved.
Earlier he said to the disciples, "I am glad I was not there for your sake.
He stayed two days where he was when the message reached him "because he loved Mary and Martha." Now he prays out loud for the sake of the people there.
When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out." The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with bandages, and his face wrapped with a cloth. And Jesus said to them, "Unbind him, and let him go."
What does this miracle say to us this morning?
One answer to that is given by the apostle Paul in his Second Letter to
Timothy. Timothy was a young man who was left in the pagan city of Ephesus. He had to struggle to live as a Christian in that polluted, pagan
environment, just as we have to today in our society. He was sometimes
discouraged, sometimes defeated, facing many problems. He was a little afraid. He was frail of health.
What were Paul's words to him?
"Remember Jesus Christ risen from the dead. Remember Jesus right where you are. Remember he is with you."
This is his word. He is with you.
He knows how to handle the situation you are in.
He knows how to lead you through it,
he can - and in fact will even raise the dead.
He can do anything.
Focus your faith on him, not on the solution to the problem or the eventual working out of it.
Trust in him, despite the delays
- turn to him, knowing that he is able
- and knowing that whatever illness may strike, with him it is never an
illness unto death - rather it may well be the pathway to new life.
Blessed be God, day by day. Amen.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Prov. 22:13
"The lazy man says, "There is a lion outside! I shall be slain in the streets!" Prov. 22:13
Excuses, excuses, everybody has excuses. Way back in the dark ages, when I was a boy, excuses for not having homework done ranged from "my sister destroyed it" to "I finished my work but it dropped out of my notebook into a mud puddle on the way to school."
Solomon tells us that the sluggard or lazy man always has an excuse. Solomon's example is that there is a lion outside and it might eat the sluggard. Indeed there were lions roaming Israel at the time of Solomon, but not in the streets of Jerusalem! Note that the sluggard is afraid he will be killed in the streets, not in the forest! It seems that lazy people have no lack of imagination when they need an excuse, and the more outrageous the better!
The real question is "why does a sluggard need an excuse?" Why doesn't he just say, "I didn't do my homework?" Or "I just don't feel like coming in to work today." The answer is rather simple. The sluggard doesn't want to look lazy! He is, but he wants to appear better than he is. The result is that the lazy man with excuses appears to reasonable folk as more of a fool that he may truly be.
So what's the point? There are several. One, don't make excuses. If you don't get something done, admit that you didn't and promise to keep working until it is finished. Two, if you don't want to do something, say no when first asked. This won' t work when the boss, or teacher, gives you an assignment, of course, but it will work about any other time. We all must learn to say "no." It is hard. I have a tough time doing it. But all of us have a limited amount of time and if that time is already allotted to other tasks, we must learn to refuse to allow others to burden us more. Three, when you are assigned a task that you can't refuse, assess how best to accomplish the job, plan a step-by-step procedure to accomplish the assignment, plan to finish the task early, and keep at it until it is finished. Always allow extra time in the schedule for unforeseen obstacles that steal time.
"So what is the spiritual application, Brother Edwin?" The planning stage fits God's assignments to you as well as those from a boss. Seek God's direction, and He will help you formulate the plan and accomplish it to perfection! Come to think of it, He desires to help with every task we might undertake. He desires to be our partner in our everyday lives. All we have to do is ask for His guidance, and He helps us say "NO," too! Amen and Amen.
Excuses, excuses, everybody has excuses. Way back in the dark ages, when I was a boy, excuses for not having homework done ranged from "my sister destroyed it" to "I finished my work but it dropped out of my notebook into a mud puddle on the way to school."
Solomon tells us that the sluggard or lazy man always has an excuse. Solomon's example is that there is a lion outside and it might eat the sluggard. Indeed there were lions roaming Israel at the time of Solomon, but not in the streets of Jerusalem! Note that the sluggard is afraid he will be killed in the streets, not in the forest! It seems that lazy people have no lack of imagination when they need an excuse, and the more outrageous the better!
The real question is "why does a sluggard need an excuse?" Why doesn't he just say, "I didn't do my homework?" Or "I just don't feel like coming in to work today." The answer is rather simple. The sluggard doesn't want to look lazy! He is, but he wants to appear better than he is. The result is that the lazy man with excuses appears to reasonable folk as more of a fool that he may truly be.
So what's the point? There are several. One, don't make excuses. If you don't get something done, admit that you didn't and promise to keep working until it is finished. Two, if you don't want to do something, say no when first asked. This won' t work when the boss, or teacher, gives you an assignment, of course, but it will work about any other time. We all must learn to say "no." It is hard. I have a tough time doing it. But all of us have a limited amount of time and if that time is already allotted to other tasks, we must learn to refuse to allow others to burden us more. Three, when you are assigned a task that you can't refuse, assess how best to accomplish the job, plan a step-by-step procedure to accomplish the assignment, plan to finish the task early, and keep at it until it is finished. Always allow extra time in the schedule for unforeseen obstacles that steal time.
"So what is the spiritual application, Brother Edwin?" The planning stage fits God's assignments to you as well as those from a boss. Seek God's direction, and He will help you formulate the plan and accomplish it to perfection! Come to think of it, He desires to help with every task we might undertake. He desires to be our partner in our everyday lives. All we have to do is ask for His guidance, and He helps us say "NO," too! Amen and Amen.
Friday, January 8, 2010
II Kings 7:3
"Now there were four leprous men at the of the gate; and they said to one another, “Why are we sitting here until we die?" II Kings 7:3
Have you ever been watching a television show or movie when half way through the show you discovered you really didn't like it, but you kept watching anyway? Many people treat their lives that way. They start out on a path. It may have looked good at the start, but it was the wrong path to take. It wasn't long before they realize this, but now they are alking down that path simply because it's there rather than because it is right.
But like the men in our scripture verse, we sometimes need to take account of where we are at in our spiritual and secular walks with the Lord. Are we sitting in a place which will eventually destroy us spiritually, emotionally, physically, occupationally? Change can be hard. No doubt about that. It can be frightening. It can even be painful. Those four lepers would have found it difficult to go anywhere considering their physical conditions. But the alternative was more unpleasant.
Very often, change does not occur in our lives until we reach a point of desperation, until we reach that point at which the pain of change is seen as being less than the pain of staying the same. Chemical dependency counselors call this hitting bottom. Sometimes God will allow trouble to come into our lives to force us out of our comfort zone so that we can remain vital in him. Like the eagle who "stirs up the nest" slowly removing the feather lining until the eaglets are left sitting on hard jagged stones so they have an incentive to get out of the nest and learn to fly. The eaglets undoubtedly feel the mother is cruel, but the mother simply wants the eaglets to be come the mighty eagles she knows they can be.
So it is with the Lord, he wants us to soar as eagles, but he knows we will never do that as long as we sit in our nest. So, if the nest you are sitting in is becoming uncomfortable or unbearable, maybe it's time to do some praying. God may be trying to get your attention. He may be telling you it's time to move on and make some changes in your life. In order to soar with the eagles, you have to get out of your comfortable nest. But the view is much better up there.
Lord, stir up my nest today so that I won't become comfortable in places I no longer belong. Give me the courage and strength to make those changes you would have me make in my life today. Amen and Amen.
Have you ever been watching a television show or movie when half way through the show you discovered you really didn't like it, but you kept watching anyway? Many people treat their lives that way. They start out on a path. It may have looked good at the start, but it was the wrong path to take. It wasn't long before they realize this, but now they are alking down that path simply because it's there rather than because it is right.
But like the men in our scripture verse, we sometimes need to take account of where we are at in our spiritual and secular walks with the Lord. Are we sitting in a place which will eventually destroy us spiritually, emotionally, physically, occupationally? Change can be hard. No doubt about that. It can be frightening. It can even be painful. Those four lepers would have found it difficult to go anywhere considering their physical conditions. But the alternative was more unpleasant.
Very often, change does not occur in our lives until we reach a point of desperation, until we reach that point at which the pain of change is seen as being less than the pain of staying the same. Chemical dependency counselors call this hitting bottom. Sometimes God will allow trouble to come into our lives to force us out of our comfort zone so that we can remain vital in him. Like the eagle who "stirs up the nest" slowly removing the feather lining until the eaglets are left sitting on hard jagged stones so they have an incentive to get out of the nest and learn to fly. The eaglets undoubtedly feel the mother is cruel, but the mother simply wants the eaglets to be come the mighty eagles she knows they can be.
So it is with the Lord, he wants us to soar as eagles, but he knows we will never do that as long as we sit in our nest. So, if the nest you are sitting in is becoming uncomfortable or unbearable, maybe it's time to do some praying. God may be trying to get your attention. He may be telling you it's time to move on and make some changes in your life. In order to soar with the eagles, you have to get out of your comfortable nest. But the view is much better up there.
Lord, stir up my nest today so that I won't become comfortable in places I no longer belong. Give me the courage and strength to make those changes you would have me make in my life today. Amen and Amen.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Matthew 5.4
"Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted." Matthew 5.4
What a paradox! We think of grief and happiness as being mutually exclusive. In fact, even in Christian circles, we are often taught that the Christian always has a smile on his face and a song in his heart. We are told that to be sad is sinful, that grief represents a lack of faith, and that pain comes from sinful living. Yet, this teaching is directly contrary to what Jesus is saying here.
Let's look for a moment at the word "mourn." In the Greek it means to grieve a loss. This may be the loss of a loved one, but it may be other losses as well: loss of health, loss of security, loss of a relationship, loss of a dream, loss of a job, etc. Too often when a Child of God mentions a loss to another Christian she is met with rebuke for her lack of faith or told she is "having a pity party." It's doubtful she was having a pity party. To have a party you need guests and, usually, there is no one around to show pity on the Christian in sorrow.
Sometimes the person is alone in their sorrow, not because of lack of concern among the Christian community, but because no one knows about the pain. Many people get up in the morning under a burden of circumstances, filled with pain, but they put on their smile along with their Sunday clothes and go to church. They never let anyone know what they are going through. Sometimes this is because they don't want to appear weak. Sometimes it's because what is causing the pain might seem trivial to others. Sometimes it's because the pain is caused by something no one else would understand. So, even the person sitting next to them, even their spouse, child or best friend doesn't know that something is wrong.
But, Praise God, Jesus is telling us that he knows our heart. He knows when we mourn in silence. He knows that what is trivial to others may be overwhelming to us. And he says, "Child, I know what you are going through. I felt your pain in my body on the cross. And I will heal that pain."
So, when we mourn, when we face hard times, when we are sad, when our hearts break and the pain mounts up inside so badly that we feel we can't stand it any longer, we are Blessed. We are Happy. Why? Because at those times we really know how much we need him. We become "poor in spirit." We feel his presence. And when he does the work (He will do the work), then we will come out on the other side of the loss with a stronger testimony and a greater endurance for what is yet to come.
It is only against the darkness of night that the brightness of the stars be seen. The jeweler displays his most precious diamonds on his darkest cloth. God shows his glory against the backdrop of grief. So, blessed are those who mourn, for we shall be comforted.
Lord, wrap your arms around me in my grief and give me the strength only you have. And let me pass that strength along to others. Amen and Amen.
What a paradox! We think of grief and happiness as being mutually exclusive. In fact, even in Christian circles, we are often taught that the Christian always has a smile on his face and a song in his heart. We are told that to be sad is sinful, that grief represents a lack of faith, and that pain comes from sinful living. Yet, this teaching is directly contrary to what Jesus is saying here.
Let's look for a moment at the word "mourn." In the Greek it means to grieve a loss. This may be the loss of a loved one, but it may be other losses as well: loss of health, loss of security, loss of a relationship, loss of a dream, loss of a job, etc. Too often when a Child of God mentions a loss to another Christian she is met with rebuke for her lack of faith or told she is "having a pity party." It's doubtful she was having a pity party. To have a party you need guests and, usually, there is no one around to show pity on the Christian in sorrow.
Sometimes the person is alone in their sorrow, not because of lack of concern among the Christian community, but because no one knows about the pain. Many people get up in the morning under a burden of circumstances, filled with pain, but they put on their smile along with their Sunday clothes and go to church. They never let anyone know what they are going through. Sometimes this is because they don't want to appear weak. Sometimes it's because what is causing the pain might seem trivial to others. Sometimes it's because the pain is caused by something no one else would understand. So, even the person sitting next to them, even their spouse, child or best friend doesn't know that something is wrong.
But, Praise God, Jesus is telling us that he knows our heart. He knows when we mourn in silence. He knows that what is trivial to others may be overwhelming to us. And he says, "Child, I know what you are going through. I felt your pain in my body on the cross. And I will heal that pain."
So, when we mourn, when we face hard times, when we are sad, when our hearts break and the pain mounts up inside so badly that we feel we can't stand it any longer, we are Blessed. We are Happy. Why? Because at those times we really know how much we need him. We become "poor in spirit." We feel his presence. And when he does the work (He will do the work), then we will come out on the other side of the loss with a stronger testimony and a greater endurance for what is yet to come.
It is only against the darkness of night that the brightness of the stars be seen. The jeweler displays his most precious diamonds on his darkest cloth. God shows his glory against the backdrop of grief. So, blessed are those who mourn, for we shall be comforted.
Lord, wrap your arms around me in my grief and give me the strength only you have. And let me pass that strength along to others. Amen and Amen.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Luke 9:1-2
"Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick" Luke 9:1-2
Notice how Jesus equipped His disciples for ministry. He knew that when they began preaching the kingdom of God and healing the sick, demonic powers would bring opposition. So He specifically gave them power and authority over demons.
Later Jesus sent out 70 of His followers on a similar mission, and they "returned with joy, saying 'Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name'" (Luke 10:17.) These missionaries were spiritually in tune enough to know that demons existed and that they were a force to be reckoned with in their ministry. Jesus' followers had been eyewitnesses as the evil spirits opposed the Master, and they probably anticipated the same treatment. Perhaps they even started out on their mission with pangs of fear and doubt about encountering demonic resistance. But they came back astonished at the victory they experienced over evil spirits.
But Jesus quickly brought the issue of spiritual conflicts into perspective: "Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven" (Luke 10:20). Jesus sent out the 70 to preach the gospel and to heal, but all they could talk about when they came back was how they sent the demons running. "Don't be demon-centered," Jesus replied. "Be kingdom-centered, be ministry-centered, be God-centered."
That's a good warning. As you learn to exercise authority over the kingdom of darkness in your life and in the lives of others, you may be tempted to see yourself as some kind of spiritual freedom fighter, looking for demons behind every door. But it's truth which sets you free, not the knowledge of error. You are not called to dispel the darkness; you are called to turn on the light. You would have no authority at all if it weren't for your identity as a child of God and your position in Christ. Amen and Amen.
Notice how Jesus equipped His disciples for ministry. He knew that when they began preaching the kingdom of God and healing the sick, demonic powers would bring opposition. So He specifically gave them power and authority over demons.
Later Jesus sent out 70 of His followers on a similar mission, and they "returned with joy, saying 'Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name'" (Luke 10:17.) These missionaries were spiritually in tune enough to know that demons existed and that they were a force to be reckoned with in their ministry. Jesus' followers had been eyewitnesses as the evil spirits opposed the Master, and they probably anticipated the same treatment. Perhaps they even started out on their mission with pangs of fear and doubt about encountering demonic resistance. But they came back astonished at the victory they experienced over evil spirits.
But Jesus quickly brought the issue of spiritual conflicts into perspective: "Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven" (Luke 10:20). Jesus sent out the 70 to preach the gospel and to heal, but all they could talk about when they came back was how they sent the demons running. "Don't be demon-centered," Jesus replied. "Be kingdom-centered, be ministry-centered, be God-centered."
That's a good warning. As you learn to exercise authority over the kingdom of darkness in your life and in the lives of others, you may be tempted to see yourself as some kind of spiritual freedom fighter, looking for demons behind every door. But it's truth which sets you free, not the knowledge of error. You are not called to dispel the darkness; you are called to turn on the light. You would have no authority at all if it weren't for your identity as a child of God and your position in Christ. Amen and Amen.
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