Dying to Live

Easily the most recognizable iconic symbol of the Christian faith is the cross, which is more than a little ironic as the cross is also arguably the most recognizable iconic symbol of death.  Cemeteries are filled with this symbol and national cemeteries like in Arlington are a virtual sea of crosses.  We see these same crosses on the side of roads where a car crash took yet another life.  We even "cross" someone or something off when we are done with them/it.  The cross says death.

And yet, the apostle Paul proclaimed, "May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Gal 6:14).  To him, the central piece to the Christian faith was the cross.  The very symbol of death was the cornerstone of his proclamation of faith.  And for centuries, Christians around the world have been adorning churches, hanging on their walls and wearing on their person crosses of simple wood to elaborate jewel encrusted works of art.

So why does an instrument of death and defeat become the symbol of life and victory?  Why is the cross the symbol of our faith?  Because the cross was the way to the tomb from which the risen Lord arose to defeat death for all time and eternity.  The tomb, the terminus of the cross, was the womb of salvation and eternal life - the termination of death.  The blood-stained cross was the path to the empty tomb - not particularly the symbol but certainly the substance of our faith.

Ironically, life comes out of death.  As Jesus pointed out, "unless a seed falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed.  But if it dies, it produces many seeds" (Jn 12:24).  Likewise, he tells us,"whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it" (Matt 16:25).  Dying to self is the path to living for Christ because the old man of sin and selfishness must give way to the new man of sanctity and selflessness.  Death gives birth to life.

This truth is seen in all of life.  The spender in us must die in order to give life to the saver.  The sloth in us must be laid to rest for the worker to finally be raised.  The lustful self must be pierced through the heart in order for the faithful heart to emerge.  It is the tomb of that which we were that becomes the womb of that which we become.  We must die to the old in order to live in the new.  The cross is our symbol because we are dying to live.  Jus' Say'n.

Name It and Claim It?

I hear some Christian folk encourage others to "Name It and Claim It."  And what I hear people talk about claiming are things like health and wealth and opportunity.  It is as if the promises of the Bible were all about my personal comfort, personal enrichment and personal advancement.  The thought being that we can read the promises of God in the Bible, claim them for ourselves and God is obligated to bring them to life in us.

But I wonder - I wonder if all the promises God makes in the Bible apply to me personally or if all the things you want to acquire are really high on God's "to do" list.  Is God primarily concerned with how well we fare on earth or are his concerns less about our earthly wants and more about our heavenly needs.

I guess I'm questioning the premise that God is all that concerned how healthy, wealthy and important you and I come to be in the here and now; and more concerned about how holy, humble and giving we live in this life, looking forward to the riches of the next.  That would seem to fit Jesus' warning about not storing up treasures on earth but in heaven instead (Matt 6:19-21) and how that it is "easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven" (Matt 19:24).

Jesus' brother, James, amplifies this point in saying, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature..." (Js 1:2-4).

I am not suggesting that God doesn't want us to be healthy or against us being wealthy or that he wants us to pass on promotions.  I am questioning those things being his primary goals for our lives and that he wants us to "name them and claim them" as a primary pursuit in this life.  While these things may be afforded us, they ought not be in the crosshairs of our sights.  Instead, we are to "seek first the kingdom and righteousness and all these things will be added as well" (Matt 6:33).

God will provide for our needs.  He may even allow for our wants.  But he desires us to be kingdom-focused and heaven bound.  He wants us to see this life as it is - that we are "foreigners and strangers on earth" (Heb 11:13).

How about we name the promise of heaven and claim that?  How about naming the attitude and Spirit of Christ and claiming that?  How about naming the good of others and claiming that?  How about naming sacrifice, service and surrender, and claiming those?  Why do we need to name and claim health and wealth and personal advancement when God promises to meet our needs as we strive for his kingdom?  Jus' Ask'n.

Gone Fishing

You won't see it in a mega-store or a franchise window but in a small mom and pop shop, you just might see a sign saying, "Gone Fishing."  While business and the business of taking care of business is important, sometimes business needs to be shelved for a little while as you attend to the business of you, your need for rest and relaxation.  Every now and then, everyone needs a time out.

The God of Creation himself, created the universe in "six days" and rested on the "seventh" (Gen 2:1-2).  He took the opportunity to sit back and appreciate the work of his hands, to enjoy the fruit of his labor.  Then he ordained a Sabbath Rest for mankind, setting apart ("making it holy") a seventh day of rest, a day to relax and take in the glory of God's creation (v. 3).

While I didn't hang a "Gone Fishing" sign on my blog site yesterday, I did indeed go fishing.  After a six-hour drive at the end of a work day and shooting past my bedtime by hours, I got up before dawn to make the trek to a fishing spot my son-in-law, Jason and his friends Eric and Matthew, had picked out earlier.

We drove down some dark country roads for a while and then walked across marshy wet ground in the darkness to reach a spot on a river, where we caught a small mess of fish but enjoyed a big mess of nature.  Ducks rising up and flying right over our heads, turkeys calling out to one another in the quite dawn of the day, a turtle popping up his head just feet away, standing on a river bank as the sun began to peer over the horizon - we were experiencing a Gone Fishing Sabbath!

True rest, a relaxing of the spirit, comes when the spirit is drawn near to God.  While there are many opportunities to find that rest such as a hot cup of coffee on a cool morning while breaking open the Word of God in a quiet time of devotion, or a rousing worship with other saints, or holding a cooing baby - hanging up a gone fishing sign and heading out to nature (whether you actually fish or not) is one that I recommend for everyone from time to time.

Maybe your gone fishing is found in a flea market, searching for nothing in particular bu enjoying everything in general.  Perhaps it is, as often the case for Tandie and me, a countryside ride on our motorcycles.  You might be the one for whom a lawn chair and a shade tree produces more rest and relaxation than a vacation on an island paradise.  Whatever works for you, wherever that may take you, if it allows your spirit to rest in the presence of the Lord's glory - that's a Sabbath Moment, a Gone Fishing Day.  Hang out your sign soon and take a rest.  Jus' Say'n.

Face to Face

I read about a man in England, who though blinded when he was just 10 years old, went on to win honors in university and won the hand of a beautiful woman in marriage.  While engaged, he was being treated by an oculist (ophthalmologist in America) who found a course of treatment that promised to be effective in restoring his sight.

The treatment and the engagement came to a conclusion on the same day and the man went to the altar with bandages on his eyes that the doctor cut off while he was waiting on the bride.  At first there was concern that he was not able to see but soon his eyes saw clearly.  One of the first things his eyes beheld was the love of his life walking toward him. His eyes gazed on the face that he only knew by what his finger tips could reveal.  He saw her in all her beauty and was overwhelmed by the very sight of her.

This, I believe, will be very much what happens when we are taken to glory and finally see Jesus face to face.  As a child of God, we see him working in our lives and feel his presence day by day, but we do not see him in all his glory.  As the apostle Paul wrote, "For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known" (1 Cor 13:12).

A hymn that postulated that day I remember from my childhood is entitled, "Face to Face," which asks "face to face with my Redeemer, face to face what will it be?"  A popular modern song in Christian music, "I Can Only Imagine," muses, "I can only imagine what my eyes will see, when your face is before me."  We only see a reflection or an impression of the glory of Christ by our experiences in this world, we have yet to behold him in his glory.  What indeed will we behold?

I have nothing to offer that could begin to answer that question as I am left to only imagine.  Whatever I could come up with would fall infinitely short of an infinite glory of the infinite God.  However, I can tell you that it will be an encounter that you don't want to miss.  Receiving a "Get out of Hell" card is not the point of Christian faith, it is rather the eternal blessing of beholding our Lord, face to face, in all his glory for eternity.  Jus' Say'n.

Prayed Up not Washed Up

If you are familiar with the Gospel, you likely have heard of the incident where the Lord asks Peter three times, "Do you love me?"  But you may not have heard much if any about the very next thing Jesus said to him: "Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go" (Jn 21:18).

It is not one of the more exciting passages to read.  We much prefer the part where he reaffirms Peter's status as a leader, telling him to "feed my sheep" (vv. 15-17) than this part, where the end of his days was revealed to him.  Who wants to hear that later on, we will lose our autonomy and be led where we do not want to go?  Not me!  And I'm pretty sure not you either.

Jesus was prophecying the kind of death Peter would experience, being taken into captivity and led away to, what many scholars believe was crucifixion.  You and I are not likely to be led there, but with radical lunatic Islamicists like ISIS on the march today, it is not entirely out of the questtion.  Nonetheless, it is more likely, here in America, you will grow elderly and then be taken to a nursing home.  While you are there, you will be led by the hands to the cafeteria, led by the hand to your bath, led by the hand to your bed - the picture becomes clear though ashen or gray.

I work with people daily who are at that point of life, whether by the virtue of age alone or advanced by disease, they are no longer able to go and do what they want or by themselves.  Someone is taking them by the hand and leading them to places where they do no necessarily want to go.  And for them, like Peter it seems they have come to the end of their life.

However, as Yogi Berra once quipped, "It ain't over til its over."  Peter would not stop proclaiming Christ just because he was bound over for trial and even crucifixion.  As long as their was breath in him, he continued to serve the Lord, limited by chains and bars as it may be.  As he and John stood before the Sanhedrin Council, he boldly proclaimed, "You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard" (Acts 4:19-20).

The point is that coming to end of our autonomous years of youth does not mean that we are washed up if we are prayed up.  We can go to the Father even when we cannot rise from our bed.  We can we can wield the Sword of the Spirit in prayer when we can no longer raise a fork to our mouths.  Regardless of how old or how sick or how disabled we become, as long as there is breath in our bodies there is power in our lives, power to serve God and minister to others.

Don't allow yourself to become washed up as a soldier of the Cross just because you become unable to ambulate to the battle ground, get prayed up sending "kneemail" to the Father, and attack the enemy from your position, praise God from your lift-chair, minister to the ones who provide care for you.  Whatever state you find yourself in, don't be washed up, pray up instead.  Jus' Say'n.

Desperately Seeking God

In 1985, Madonna starred in a movie entitled, "Desperately Seeking Susan."  I don't remember much of the movie except the plot was that of someone who became fascinated with her by reading messages sent to and from in a New York City tabloid, and one day went to meet her in a park, where Susan was to meet someone else.

The point of the movie that brings it to mind is that "Roberta" (Roseanna Arquette) was desperately seeking Susan but she was not in despair.  While despair and desperate sound like they might be twins or first cousins at the least, they are anything but.

Desperation is the point at which we will move heaven and earth to find, achieve or acquire, while despair is the point where we give up all hope of ever having what we long for, finding who is missing or reaching a goal that we desire.  Desperation is a launching pad, while despair is a prison.  The two, although rooted in the same sense of deep desire or need, are polar opposites in their dynamics.  Desperaton is the dynamic for hope, while despair is the dynamic for hopelessness.

In Psalm 142, David, on the run and living in a cave, is desperate but does not despair.  Instead, he desperately seeks after God: "Listen to my cry, for I am in desperate need; rescue me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me. Set me free from my prison, that I may praise your name. Then the righteous will gather about me because of your goodness to me" (vv. 6-7).

In Matthew 27, Judas, after having betrayed Jesus,  went back to the chief priests who had paid him to hand over Jesus and in despair cried out, "I have sinned for I have betrayed innocent blood...threw the money into the temple...then he went away and hanged himself" (vv. 4-5).   David's desperation drew him to the Lord, while Judas' despair separated him from the Lord forever.  

Your situation in life may be desperate right now.  You have the choice to give in to despair or get on with desperately seeking God, who can lift you up.  You can sink into self-pity or stand up in selfless praise.  You can let despair get the upper hand or you can desperately raise your hands up to God.  What will you choose: Despair of seeing good or desperately seeking God?  Jus' Ask'n.

Balance

After the death of Moses, the Lord came to Joshua and gave him marching orders in preparation to enter the Promised Land: “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go: (Joshua 1:7).

Notice the warning to not turn away from the truth to the right or the left.  The truth always remains polar.  It does not shift.  It is never a matter of choosing the correct deviation, it is always a matter of staying on the path.  Would it matter whether one drove off the right side or the left side of a bridge?  Of course not.  Staying on the bridge must be our aim; going off either side spells doom.

King Solomon put it this way, "It is good to grasp the one and not let go of the other. Whoever fears God will avoid all extreme" (Eccl 7:18).  Balance, is the call for the child of God.  In American politics today, we see one side polarized to the right and the other polarized to the left.  Each side convinced that they have all the answers and the other side must be rejected.  We are asked to choose right or left when the truth so often falls in the middle.

True enough, the path may turn to the right sometimes, as it may turn to the left.  But if it always turns to the right or to the left, it is not a path but a circle going nowhere.  When we are on a path that is actually going somewhere, continual  movement to the right or left will cause us to go off the path, which is why "the man of God will avoid all extremes" (Eccl 7:18).

In life, it is important to not simply pick a side and run with it.  If you do, you will run off the side of the bridge.  Instead, we ought to set our sights on Jesus and follow him on the Path of Life.  And, in following him, we will turn sometimes to the right and sometimes to the left, as well as dead ahead at times.  It is not important which way we turn only that we keep on the path, turning only when it does.  We must never turn off the path either to the right or to the left.

Democrats make bad decisions, so do Republicans.  To follow either without wavering is to guarantee that you will leave the path or fall off the bridge at some point.  This principle holds true for all groups of human origin.  Only God is true, only His way is always the Way.  Keep His Word ever before you, make daily prayer a first priority, make every effort to stay on the Path.  Avoid the extremes and stay balanced in the center of God's will.  Jus' Say'n.

That Sinking Feeling

I was reading this morning about Peter's experience of stepping out of the boat upon the raging waters of the storm.  He stepped out of the rocking boat and, in faith, stood firmly upon the stormy sea.  But fear soon began to replace faith as the enormity of what he was doing began to sink in and he got the sinking feeling that he was in way too deep.  At this point, he began to sink beneath the waves that were suddenly overcoming him (cf. Matt 14:28-30).

It is common to look at this narrative and cluck our tongues at Peter's lack of faith and fear that struck his heart as he took his eyes off the Savior and focused on the sea instead.  Peter failed, not because he was unable to walk on water, none of us has the ability to walk on water, but he failed because he didn't trust the Lord to accomplish in him what he could never do.  He judged what he saw against his ability to navigate it and gave in to the circumstance rather than trust in the Christ.

It is fair, and even important, to consider what gave Peter that sinking feeling that caused him to be swallowed up by the sea.  But just as important is the faith that allowed Peter to step out of the boat in the first place.  Can you imagine his climb over the side, stepping out of a thrashing boat into a raging sea that was suddenly firm under his feet?  Can you imagine how his mind was racing over as the absolutely overwhelming experience began to sink in?  Regardless of what happened next, Peter stepped out of the boat into the stormy sea because he listened to the call of Jesus.

Secondly, when he did begin to sink as his fear began to overwhelm his faith, he didn't just thrash around, he didn't just continue to sink until he drowned, he did call out to Jesus to save him.  Yes, his faith gave in to fear but his fear led him back to faith.  Knowing that he couldn't walk on water caused him to sink, but knowing he was about to drown caused him to call on the Lord.

You may be holding on to a boat buffeted by the winds and waves of the storm.  Are you willing to step out in faith into the stormy sea?  Perhaps you have stepped out and now you feel overwhelmed and have the sinking feeling that you are about to sink - and you will unless you get back in the boat, back, which may sink as well, or reach out to the Savior to lift you out of the waters.

The sinking feeling comes from Satan, who plays on our fears, trying to get us to retreat to a false place of safety - the tiny boat on the raging sea.  We must choose to retreat in fear or advance in faith.  We can let the fear causing the sinking feeling to overwhelm us or allow our faith to undergird us.  Satan tells us that we can't possibly succeed.  The Lord assures us that "he can do more than we can ask or imagine according to his power at work within us" (Eph 3:20).  Which voice will you listen to when you get that sinking feeling?  Jus' Ask'n.

Choosing Life

Moses, as he prepared Israel to finally go into the Promised Land, gave them a final warning: "I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life" (Deut 30:19-20).

Choose life.  Who wouldn't?  Between the choices of life and death, why would anyone brush past life to choose death?  One would think that no one would ever choose door number two, which is clearly labeled "Death" over door number one, which is clearly labeled "Life."  And yet, Moses felt compelled to encourage them to choose life instead of death.

Aren't you glad we are so much more insightful than the Israelites?  Aren't you glad that you and I make the right choice so easily?  Aren't you glad that we have learned from their mistakes and no longer make such an obvious mistake as passing on life and choosing death?  We do choose life, right?

No one would choose to smoke when the links to cancer and other life-threatening diseases are so clearly linked as to be printed on the individual cigarette packs.  Right?  No one would choose to drink until they are staggering drunk and then get behind the wheel of a car.  Right?  No one would choose to risk his marriage and family by flirting around with another woman.  Right?  We don't just walk headlong onto the path that leads to destruction when the path to life is so brightly lit (cf. Matt 7:13-14) - do we?

Yes we do.  People make those choices all the time.  But that's those people, not we people - we people of faith, people in the church; we people choose life.  Right?  I wish that were true.  But in the church, there are far too many who step through door number two, embracing addiction, adultery, abandonment and abuse.  Too often we pass on choosing life.  But why?  Why not choose life?

The trouble is that we forget what life is.  Conditioned by the "lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life" (1 Jn 2:16), we become confused, thinking that self-gratification is life, that getting what we want in the moment is life, that feeding our passions is life.  We lose sight of the fact that "the Lord is your life" (Deut 30:20).

Paul said,  "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain" (Phil 1:21).  Choosing life means to choose Christ, even if physical death results from the choice.  Choosing life may be the more difficult path than choosing death.  Choosing life may mean giving up what we desire.  Choosing life is to choose the right and doing the right thing is not always the pleasant or prosperous thing - but it is the thing that brings life.

Jesus is "the way, the truth and the life" (Jn 14:6), there is no other path to life than following him.  As Peter replied when Jesus asked if they were going to turn away as things were getting difficult, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" (Jn 6:68).  Jesus is the life.  Choose Him.  Choose life.  Jus' Say'n.

The Do Not Church

Growing up my impression of the church was summed up in the name I gave it as a teenager: The Do Not Church.  Righteousness was taught as a matter of avoiding sinful things.  A mantra I derived from this mindset is "Do not smoke, or drink or chew; and do not date girls that do."  Don't cuss, don't dance, don't gamble, don't whatever and God just might let you into heaven one day.  Although, there was never any promise of that as we could always slip up and God would be sure to nail us.

The problem with this theology is legion but the root is found in rule over relationship.  There existed a fundamental trust in rule following, that the closer you maintained them, the closer you were to gaining your final reward.  The more you could withstand the bad things in the world the more godly you had become.  Righteousness was an activity rather than a state of being.

But God is not interested in how well we can follow rules, he is interested in how much we love him. He doesn't want us to do the "right" thing in order to gain his approval, the Lord wants us to be in a relationship with him that promotes doing the right thing because we want to honor and serve our King.  Notice what Jesus says in Mark 2:27, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath."  In other words, man was not made to follow rules, but rules were made for the benefit of man.

God does not want us to give our allegiance to a set of rules or practices, he desires that we give our hearts to him, that we do much more than perform, that we change from the inside out in the likeness of  His Son.  Micah put it this way, "With what shall I come before the Lord and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of olive oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly a with your God" (6:6-8).

It was never all the sacrifices or the rituals or the rules; it was an active relationship with the Lord that came from a dedicated heart, which longs for justice, loves mercy and daily walks with its Lord.  Jus' Say'n.

How Long?

Yesterday I was at the bedside of a new patient.  Her breathing was very labored and I could hear crackling sounds coming from her lungs.  She was unconscious and unresponsive.  Her death appeared to be very near what we would call imminent.

Her husband and daughter asked me how long did she have.  I told them that there were clear signs she was imminent and that I could say with some confidence it was not weeks but days.  However, I went on to tell them that each patient was different and that no one could say with true authority except the Lord himself.

Having been around thousands of people over the years who were dying, I can recognize the signs and note the progression but I cannot say with certainty precisely when death will occur as some people have more will to live, some people are more ready to go, some people are at peace, some people are struggling.  And, the most important reason I cannot tell is that God makes the final decision, not me or the doctor or the disease.

I am not necessarily saying that I believe God has predetermined the exact day of each person's death.  Although I know that is a popular belief based on statements found in the Bible such as, "Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be" (Ps 129:16).  This could mean that God set the number of his days or it could mean that God had plans for his life, a purpose that would define his entire life, to the last day.

In Psalm 90:10, we read "Our days may come to seventy years, or eighty, if our strength endures."  This passage seems to suggest that there is a range of years rather than an exact number.  Perhaps an individual's DNA would allow him/her to live to be 90 provided he/she takes proper care of the body. But the same individual may only live to be 80 if poor health habits prevail.  While the upper end is set, personal choices can prevent one from reaching it.

The Bible is clear that "a man reaps what he sows" (Gal 6:7) and certainly eating poorly, living with stress, a sedentary lifestyle are all seeds, which can produce a harvest of poor health and a shortened lifespan.  Nonetheless, if your DNA would allow for 100 birthdays, you might still live to be 85 or 90 even with the poorest of health habits.

At the end of the day, I don't know and I can't tell you how long you have, even if you are one of my patients.  My guesses are often very accurate, but I've also been terribly off, so I try to keep my guesswork to myself.  I talk in terms of ranges like "not years but months" or "not months but weeks."  The fact is that we will live until God calls us home, whether that is set to the day already or he has given us some latitude, and only God knows for sure.

What we do know is that we are 100% alive today.  And today is the only time in which we can operate.  Whatever we're going to do, whomever we're going to bless, wherever we're going, it will all happen today.  Yesterday is a cancelled check and tomorrow is a promissory note, today is the only currency we have to spend - spend it wisely.

Jesus put it this way, "Do not worry about tomorrow, tomorrow will worry about itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its own" (Matt 6:34).  Today is enough.  Don't dredge up yesterday's regrets or reel in tomorrow's fears.  You only have today to deal with.  How long do we have?  Just today.  Jus' Say'n.

Unforgiven

Can you imagine standing before the throne of God on the Day of Judgment as your sins are laid out before you, hearing the word, "Unforgiven."  Rather than receiving the mercy and grace you so desperately need, having judgment passed according to what you have earned and deserve?  Who would want to stand before an unforgiving God?

I wouldn't think anyone would want that but there are many who are choosing it.  I'm not really talking about unbelievers or people who are blind to the fact of God's existence or have no awareness of his judgment.  I'm talking about believers, church goers, people who embrace God's Word as truth.

Surely not.  No one who understands the depth of our sins, the cost of our redemption and the peril of ignoring both as he/she stands before God would ever make such a choice.  But they do.  That choice is made every day by people who lay claim to the Christian faith, embrace the biblical truths and are convinced of a day of judgment.

The choice to be unforgiven is made in the choice to be unforgiving.  Jesus warned very clearly in Matthew 6;14-15, "… if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."  Have you ever really considered that part of the Lord's Prayer, which pleads, "forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors"?

If God is to forgive us as we have forgiven others and we do not forgive others, what else can he do but leave us unforgiven?  If I do not believe in forgiveness enough to forgive others, like myself, who do not deserve it, I do not believe in forgiveness enough to receive it.  Forgiveness or unforgiveness is the harvest we get from the seeds that we sow and you can be sure "a man reaps what he sows" (Gal 6:7).

I know that forgiving someone who has wronged you deeply is difficult.  It couldn't have been easy for Jesus, from the cross, to plead, "Father, forgive them" (Luke 23:34).  But Jesus did forgive them, setting us an example of forgiveness, regardless of the offense.  Even the fact that your offender's action is inexcusable does not change our need to forgive as all forgiveness is based on actions that are inexcusable, otherwise they would have an excuse.

Don't become unforgiven by being unforgiving.  Forgive and open your heart to receive God's forgiveness.  His way is right and his way is to forgive.  Jus' Say'n.

Wisdom Blockers

In Deuteronomy 17:14-17, Moses warned the Israelites that when they entered the Promised Land and decide to have a king over them that the king they chose should refrain from three things in particular: 1) acquiring great numbers of horses, 2) taking many wives and 3) accumulating large amounts of gold and silver.  To indulge in these three areas would serve to turn the king away from the Lord.

And yet, Solomon, the king who was given a divine measure of wisdom and discernment (cf. 1 Kgs 3:12) so that there was no one like him before or since, wound up with stables full of horses (1 Kgs 4:26) more gold and silver that silver was considered of little value (1 Kgs 10:14-20) and a combined total of 1,000 wives and concubines (see 1 Kgs 11:3).  And sadly, Solomon was "led astray" (1 Kgs 11:3).

Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, was not smart enough to listen to the clear warnings from the Lord through the prophet and lawgiver, Moses.  Even though Solomon sought after and received wisdom as a first priority, he was sidelined by foolishness.  He gathered to himself the very things that would turn his heart away from the Lord who raised him up.  What was he thinking?  He wasn't.

Solomon was captivated by the trifecta of carnal desires.  His wisdom was blocked and his heart turned away by "the lust of the flesh [sexuality], the lust of the eyes [wealth] and the pride of life [power]---[which] comes not from the Father but from the world" (1 Jn 2:16).  I remember a message delivered by Neil Prior entitled, "Pennies, Power and Petticoats" from 1980 or 81 that warned us preaching students of these very wisdom blockers, attractions that pull one away from common sense toward colossal strife.

Jesus very clearly warned us, "do not store up treasures on earth...but...in heaven....For where you treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matt 6:19-21).  Treasuring the things of this world turns our hearts away from God, blocking true wisdom that knows all these things are temporary and of no eternal value.  Wealth and power and human sexuality are not bad things in and of themselves but they can distract us from the true riches only God can give us.

Do not make the mistake of setting your sights on acquiring worldly attractions that block godly wisdom.   Instead, seek after "Christ Jesus, who has become fro s wisdom from God---that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption" (1 Cor 1:30).  Jus' Say'n.

The Reign of Death

Today I will be officiating the funeral for the daughter of a man whose wife's funeral I officiated just a couple of weeks ago.  That woman had attended the funeral of a daughter and grandson.  This woman had attended the funeral of her own son.  The husband, my friend and fellow minister of the Gospel, has attended the funerals of each of them.

Wife, daughte, grandchild - how does one continue to face such loss?  How does a preacher reconcile the loss he has as a child of God?  He has a wonderful spirit about him, he accepts the loses with quiet grace and dignity, but how?

I believe there are two basic principles upon which he stands that have allowed him to deal with losses of this magnitude.  First, there is the principle of the reign of death itself.  We live in a fallen world in which by the trespass of one man [Adam], death reigned through that one man" (Rom 5:17).    "Sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people" (Rom 5:12).  Death is not a peculiar occurrence that visits a particular few, death visits us all, "For it is appointed man once to die and then the judgment" (Heb 9:27).  Death is the one common denominator of us all.  It is to be expected and prepared for, not feared and decried.

The second principle is found in the same passages of Scripture as the first: Life wins out over death in Christ.  "Just as sin reigned in death, so also grace reigns through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom 5:21).  And, in the Hebrew passage that says we are appointed to die (9:27), it says also that "we are appointed once to die."  We will die or be separated from this physical world but we do not have to die a second death and be separated from God for "the one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death" (Rev 2:11).

My friend is saddened by the great losses he has suffered but he is not defeated because he knows that he will one day soon be rejoined with his loved ones who have passed on and be delivered from this world of death into the Kingdom of Life.  The reign of death ends at the grave but the reign of the Giver of Life transcends the grave and all time into eternity.  The reign of death is short lived while the reign of life is never ending.

My friend endures the reign of this world's death because he knows that his Lord has checked this reign, encouraging us all by revealing, "In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have over come the world" (Jn 16:33).  The reign of death dies when we accept life in the Son.  Jus' Say'n.

My Way?

In a webinar the other day, which was using Elvis songs to illustrate various points, there was one tune that struck a sour note in my spirit: "My Way."  While I understand the point of individualizing our approaches in health care, and understand how the song fit, I just fundametally reject the overall message of the song, which suggests the successful life is lived by doing what you want, how you want and when you want.

The notion of doing everything my way suggests that I know what is best for me and that is what I'm going to do, regardless of how it might be accepted by or impact others.  "It's my life and I can do what I want with it."  True, but does that make it best?  This is similar to the argument for abortion, which says, "It's my body and I can choose what I want with it."  True, but does that mean it's best?  It is best for a baby who will never get the opportunity to experience life and reach his/her potential in serving God and man?  Is it best for the dad, the grandma, society as a whole?

Does experience really support the notion that doing everything in the manner and time that you want is a good thing?  Have you not ever wished someone had taken you aside before a particular choice you made and talked some sense into your head?  Have you not ever wondered, "What was I thinking?"  Have you not ever wanted to retrace your steps or stuff words back into your mouth?  Do we really have no need of guides, mentors and teachers?

The wisest man to ever live, Solomon, wrote, "Plans fail for a lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed" (Prov 15:22).  Why do you think kings have always employed counselors?  Because they didn't have the right to make their own decisions?  Not!  Kings who employ counselors do so because they want to make the right decisions.  Wise kings and individuals of all stripes seek wise counsel.

The wisest of all seek counsel from the Lord.  The foolish, thinking they are wise, do not turn to God, believing they are sufficient in and of themselves, they fail to receive what is truly good and valuable: "You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing .’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see" (Rev 3:17-18).

My way?  Elvis sang the song and lived a life that seemed to be the envy of the world.  But exactly how did his way end up? Bloated, overdosed and dead.  I would suggest that we rewrite that song so that it reflects a life giving message.  I suggest our song ought to be "I Did It Thy Way."  Jus' Say'n.

Transformers

It's hard to believe that the "Transformers" movies are still in production.  My son, Will, played with toy Autobots after watching the original movie when he was 7.  That was nearly 30 years ago in 1986.  But as far back as the Autobots go, they are far from the original.

It was Jesus who transformed water into wine (Jn 2:1ff), wishy-washy Simon into a rock (Jn 1:41 "Peter" means rock) and Christian-hunter Saul into the great apostle Paul (Acts 9:1-19).  And, since "without [Jesus] nothing was made that has been made" (Jn 1:3), our Lord transformed nothing into everything in the existing universe.

Jesus is the original and true Transformer, who is responsible for untold true and real transformations, some we will not even be aware of this side of Glory.  But the greatest transformation, the transformation, which was the reason the universe was brought into being is the redemption of mankind: "He chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.  In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ..." (Eph 1:4-5).

This same Jesus is still in the transformation business.  He calls each of us to resist the downward pull of worldliness saying, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our mind" (Rom 12:2).  And it is by the power of his Spirit that we "are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord" (2 Cor 3:18).

The transformation He has in mind for us, by the way, does not end here.  As much as we are changed into his likeness in the here and now, there is a greater transformation coming in the there and then: when the Lord "will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body" (Phil 3:21).

Even the imaginary Autobots will have nothing on those of us who accept Jesus Christ as Lord as we "will all be changed in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet...will be raised imperishable, and will be transformed...imperishable and...with immortality" (1 Cor 15:52-53).  Jus' Say'n.

Fearing God

When the Lord spoke to Moses on Mt Sinai, speaking of the children of Israel and by extension, you and me, he said, "Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me..." (Deut 5:29a).  As I read that verse just a little bit ago, my mind immediately went to 1 Jn 4:18, which reads, "There is no fear in love.  But perfect love drives out fear..."

The contrast is nothing if not stark.  This would be one of those "inconsistencies" that some Bible critics would raise.  And, I can see why it would raise an eyebrow or two.  How is it that God, who is love (cf. 1 Jn 4:8) would call us to fear him when love "drives out fear?"  On the surface, this doesn't seem to make much sense.

Although it doesn't seem to make sense, it is recorded in the pages of the Bible and therefore needs to be understood so that we can embrace the teaching or debunked so that we can reject it as either unbiblical (added) or the Bible as untenable.  We can't simply ignore the difficulty the passages present.

I think the problem comes from making judgments on the surface, much like the problem of proof-texting, where someone takes a single passage, lifts it from its context and espouses a doctrine based on that small amount of text.  Here, by not reading further and deeper, we come out with contrast instead of cohesion.  But let's take it a little deeper and see if that contrast will stand.

Going back to Deuteronomy 5:29, let's read the rest of the verse: "...fear me and keep my commandments always, so that it might go well with them and their children forever."  Do you see the foundation for this "fear?"  God wants our best and desires that we fear or respect his word so that we will have the best.  This is the desire of all loving parents, not to have their children recoil in fear but to have them fortified with wisdom, which they offer as a gift.

Fear that recoils has to do with the potential to harm; the rest of 1 John 4:18 clearly says, "...love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment."   The fear that God calls us to has to do with establishing our greater good (the premise of love), while the fear he warns us against has to do with the consequences of choosing the wrong path.  When we embrace the way of God (love) we have nothing to fear.  When we embrace the way of the world (selfishness) we have everything to fear.

Do you recall the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:13-14?  “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.?  One path leads to life an love where there is no fear.  The other leads to death and destruction where fear abounds.  Which one we chose will be determined by whether we "fear" (respect, honor, believe) God or not.  Jus' Say'n.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

If you're as old as this writer, you no doubt remember the 1967 number one song by Aretha Franklin, "RESPECT."  In this song, Aretha soulfully croons, "All I want is a little respect...sock it to me, sock it to me, sock it to me..."  I said it was number one and that it was memorable, I didn't say the lyrics were altogether inspirational.

It was a song that struck a chord in the human heart that seeks to be recognized and appreciated.  It is unfortunately, however, a chord that too often plays a sour note of narcissistic pride.  One that was struck in the Garden of Eden within the hearts of Adam and Eve, and it will continue being a favorite note until the Lord comes again.

While showing respect is an honorable act and desiring respect is a natural desire, demanding respect displays a weakness of character.  Young street hoods and punk gang members angerly warn others, "Don't dis me!"  And yet, they have never made a productive move in their lives or acted in a way that even begins to suggest they should be respected.  They demand what must be earned.

The truth is that respect comes to those who are not seeking the spotlight, who are not in the game for themselves but instead are concerned about the welfare of others.  Consider the amount of respect given to Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King and Mother Teresa.  And then consider how their lives were spent in pursuit of something bigger than themselves, something that served the greater good of others.

Moses was arguably the greatest leader Israel has ever know, one of the great leaders of all time.  But he did not seek acclaim or even think he deserved it.  He always felt his brother, Aaron, was better suited for the job.  He also continually placed the need of the people above his own, he sought their greater good over his own.  While a giant among men and a leader of epic proportion, he was proclaimed by God to be "...a very humble man, more humble than anyone on the face of the earth" (Num 12:3).  Respected - yes.  Prideful - no.

True respect, like happiness, is a side product of another pursuit.  People who make happiness their aim seldom become happy people, they are more likely to be cynical not having achieved the level of happiness they desired or expected.  People who seek after respect are also not likely to feel the degree of respect they imagined or deemed warranted.  It is rather those who seek the good of others, allow others to shine and even defer credit to another - those people we respect big time.

It is as Jesus revealed in Matthew 23:12, "...those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."  Did you know that when taking a curve on a motorcycle you actually apply pressure on the handlebars to the left in order to go right?  It is counter-intuitive but nonetheless true.  With regard to respect, the way up is actually down.  We are raised up in stature when we bend down to serve the needs of others.  Jus' Say'n.

Teamwork

Moses was a powerful leader, filled with the Spirit of God.  The people of Israel were brought to the Promised Land by the hand of God himself.  Yet the Israel that left Egypt never took possession of the land.  40 years after leaving Egypt, after all their parents died along the way, the next generation took possession of the land.  Why?

The reason was simple, they did not speak with one voice - they were not all on board together.  They sent 12 men to spy out the land, to see the route they would take and to take note of the cities they would have to overpower.  One group was sent out but two groups came back.  2 of the men, Joshua and Caleb, said that the land was good and that God would deliver it into their hands.  10 of the men said that the land was good but the inhabitants were unbeatable giants before whom they looked like grasshoppers (Num 13:33).  They lacked the united will to follow God's lead into the Promised Land.

Centuries before, the whole world came together as one people and said, "let us build  ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens" (Gen 11:4).  God, in  observing what the people were doing said, "If as one people speaking eh same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them" (v. 6).  Without God's help, they would accomplish the incredible because they spoke as one.

The people of God failed because they did not come together as one.  The godless people would have succeeded had God not confused their language and scattered them (Gen 11:7-8).  The simple principle here is that "Teamwork makes the Dream work." That is not an original quote from me, by the way, I got that from an online publication called "Wisdom Hunters."

I was tasked with bringing the hospice I work for to Level Four (the highest level) of the national We Honor Vets program.  It had been a goal for years that had not been realized.  There was not a hospice in the state of Arkansas that had achieved this honor.  We have become the first to do so.  The reason was the team I brought together, along with the united support of leadership and personnel.  I did not achieve this honor for Arkansas Hospice, "Teamwork made the Dream work."

This principle is true for business, for government, for churches, for families and for couples.  It works because it is God's design.  Jesus said that from the beginning the Creator made them male and female, and for this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two shall become one" (Matt 19:4-5).  The Lord's prayer for all his disciples is that "all of them may be one" (Jn 17:21).

If you want your business or church or family or whatever to succeed you cannot afford to divide and conquer for "Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every  city or household divided against itself will not stand" (Matt 12:25).  You must work to build consensus, bringing everyone together, something our national leader have forgotten - something far too many families and churches fail to do today.  We need to return to the biblical principle of allowing teamwork to make the dream work.  Jus' Say'n.

Refuge

I was reading from Numbers 35 this morning about the cities of refuge ordained by the Lord as a place where people who killed someone could be protected from the kinsmen of the departed.  If it was determined that the killing was not murder, he could stay in the city, protected from any retribution until the death of the high priest and then he could go back to his tribe and family.  If, however, he was found outside the city gate by the kinman redeemer before the death of the high priest, the relative could kill him without penalty.

It seems very odd looking at it from the vantage point of western civilization where we do not allow revenge killings, but in a time when brutality was the norm, as we see in countries where Muslim fundamentalists are in power, such a place of refuge with its peculiar regulations was much needed.

What I find important for you and I in our day and time is the concept of a place of refuge, a place where one can safely lay out their case, a place where one can be open and honest and not feel threatened.  We all need a place of refuge, where we can make mistakes and still be accepted, a place where we can be transparent and not be reviled.

Our churches ought to be such places.  Our families ought to be such places.  And, even if there is no other place on earth, our relationship with our spouse needs to be such a place.  When the whole world goes out, we need someone to take us in, wrap their arms around us in loving embrace.  We need that someone with whom we can be fully transparent, with whom we can be ourselves.

If telling the truth to your spouse is not safe, if you suspect or know that he/she will punish you for being open and honest, you are not likely to be fully transparent.  For instance, "Honey, I love this dress.  What do you think of it?"  Do you feel free to say precisely what you think?  Will she accept your words or turn away in a huff?  If your husband asks, "You do agree with me, don't you?"  Do you feel free to say exactly what you think or will that be the start of a battle?

I'm not saying its easy to be totally honest or fully transparent.  I'm not even saying that it is possible to be 100% anything.  I am saying that safety to express or be yourself leads to more transparency and that knowing a place of refuge exists with your spouse promotes openness and honesty.  This is true of larger family groups and churches as well.  It would even be good policy for a business to allow employees to say what they think without fear of retribution.

Regardless of whether you have such a place in your home, office or church; there is such a place you can go to be fully transparent - a place where you can open your soul and pour out whatever may reside there.  That place is the throne room of the Living God: "Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (Heb 4;16).  Jus' Say'n.

Temporary Insanity

I followed the trial of Eddie Ray Routh, the man who murdered "American Sniper" Chris Kyle and his friend, Chad Littlefield.  His defense was that at the time of the murder, he did not know that what he was doing was wrong, that at the moment, he did not know real from fantasy, that he was temporarily insane.

At the time, he was also in Texas, where they don't cotton to murderers and the insanity defense has about a 2% success rate.  He was almost certainly mentally ill, but not legally insane.  He demonstrated his knowledge of right and wrong by fleeing from the scene of the murder and by telling an officer that he knew what he did was wrong.  He may receive forgiveness but not from the state of Texas.

I am fully aware that legal insanity is a very specific thing and very difficult to prove.  However, temporarily not knowing the difference between right and wrong is a factual state of being that most husbands will cop to and most wives have to agree was so.  How often have you asked your husband, "Have you lost your mind?"  And, in fairness, a good number of wives have crossed over that line and done something that completely mystifies their husbands, who also are wondering if common sense took a holiday.

The simple truth is that we all do things that are indefensible and irrational.  We wonder of ourselves, "What was I thinking?"  We truly do things sometimes that we think are OK at the time but in more rational  moments know were completely "ding-dong" (clinical term meaning "nuts").  This being true means that in order to maintain a long-term relationship with anyone, we will have to overlook or forgive temporary moments of insanity.

Our spouse or friend or family member may not be legally or clinically insane, but there will be times when they do something absolutely crazy that they thought at the moment made perfect sense.  We may never understand it (who understands crazy?) but we must learn to forgive it for two reasons: 1) God calls us to forgive, "Bear with one another...and forgive as the Lord forgave you" (Col 3:13), and 2) loving someone demands it, "love keeps no record of wrongs" (1 Cor 13:5b).

I'm not saying that we shouldn't let anything our loved ones do upset us or that we should never get angry or hurt by what they do. Emotional responses are not something we can decide to have or not, they just are.  Also, it is fair to challenge crazy and demand change.  However, it is necessary to the life of the relationship to forgive those moments of temporary insanity.  A long and happy life together depends on your ability to get past crazy. Jus' Say'n.

Hide and Seek

From the age of 8 to 10, my family lived in Germany as military dependants.  At that time, we had a German Shepherd named Hero, who was an amazing dog in so many ways.  One of those was his ability to find hidden things and devour them.  One evening while we were out, he found the Halloween candy put away in a drawer, which he opened and helped himself to the hoard of sweets (he also helped himself to a night of being "sick as a dog").

Another time, he scoped out the contents of our fridge, using that super-hero nose, detecting its contents, which he managed to make his own by pulling down the old style handle.  On yet another occasion, he got into a drawer in the bathroom, finding several bars of soap, which seemed to meet the demands of his palate.  Apparently his palate was not as refined as his nose.

In truth, you couldn't hide anything from that dog's nose.  He could find anything or anyone in very short order.  Playing hide and seek with was a losing proposition for you could be assured he would find whatever you hid, wherever you hid it.

When the Israelites finally came to cross over the Jordan to take possession of the Promised Land, the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manassah wanted to stay in the Trans Jordan land of Gilead rather than go up with the rest of the tribes across the Jordan.  Moses told them that God would not allow them to enjoy the fruits of this land while their brothers were fighting on the other side of the river, to which they replied that they would go up with Israel and fight until each tribe had its own possession.

Moses agreed to their request with a strong warning against them changing their minds and withdrawing before the Lord released them from their responsibility: "If you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the Lord; and you may be sure that our sin will find you out" (Num 32:23).

Sin, like our dog Hero, is unbeatable in "Hide and Seek."  Whatever hidden sin you think you have, is not really hidden.  You may not have noticed your calling out yet, but it is coming.  There is no place to hide from your lies, your indiscretions, your taking what is not yours, your...  There is no place to hide because, as Moses said, "you will be sinning against the Lord."  Where, exactly will you hide from him?  How will your secret be safe from the One who "judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart" (Heb 4:12).  How will you keep it hidden from "God [who] will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or bad" (Eccl 12:14)?

The answer, of course, is that we cannot hide anything from the Lord.  Our sins will find us out unless we out our sins.  If we try to hide them, we will be exposed but if we choose to expose them, we will be healed: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 Jn 1:9).  Jus' Say'n.

Doubt

When I consider the evidence of design in the universe, I am convinced that there must be a Designer.  Chance leads to chaos whereas direction leads to the determined.  We are not left to chaos in the universe, there are very determined laws upon which we can relay, upon which science can operate.

When I consider the evidence of my own life, how that I have been changed from the inside out, how God has answered prayer after prayer, how my life has been given direction, how that I have been brought back from the pit - I have no doubt that God is alive and that his Spirit lives in me.

I have a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.  I have felt his presence, heard him speak deep in my spirit, experienced the cleansing of his blood.  I have no doubt that he exists and that his Spirit lives in me.

And yet, I have experienced and feel certain I will again experience doubt.  My faith has wavered at times and I have wondered if God is near, if his Word is true, if I am anything more than a collection of atoms somehow just here and thrown together as the evolutionists theorize.

The evidence has not changed, my past experiences have not changed and the Spirit of God has not left me.  What happens that I doubt?  Where does my faith flee?  My faith doesn't flee.  My faith is the "confidence in what I hope for and assurance about what I do not see" (Heb 11:1).  That confidence and assurance do not actually leave, my faith does not evaporate.

What happens is that my imagination and my emotions are given fuel by circumstances that sweep me up and slam me to the ground.  I am rattled by the force of the experience and my imagination takes flight, lifted by the wind of my imagination given rise by the tumult of the storm.  I set aside the evidence of my faith and react emotionally to the situation and let my imagination soar as it squints trying to see what awful things tomorrow has in store.

Jesus warns us not to "worry about tomorrow for...each day has enough trouble of its own" (Matt 6:34).  While we are worrying about tomorrow, we should be dealing with today, which he empowers us to handle.  Each day has enough trouble, not too much.  He doesn't give us more than we can handle each day.  It is we that dredge up the regrets of the past and lasso the worries of the future, which causes our overload under which we tend to buckle.

When I am thinking right, I know God is with me, I know that he has always provided and I know that he will see me through.  When I put my emotions in check and let the air out of my imagination, I know that my Redeemer lives and that he is ever near.  No doubt about it.  Jus' Say'n.

Holy Jealousy

The second of the Ten Commandments reveals something that, at first blush, seems quite shocking: “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God" (Ex 20:4-5) - God is jealous.

What makes this revelation shocking is the nature of jealousy, the self-focused insecurity of the "Green-eyed Monster."   By definition, jealousy is a suspicious distrust based on possessiveness, doubt, spite and resentment.  These qualities hardly fit the God who "so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son so that whoever believed in him would not perish" (Jn 3:16).  

It seems impossible that the God who "created the heavens and the earth" (Gen 1:1), would feel threatened or insecure being compared to idols or idol worship.  How is it possible that the God of the universe would be so easily put on the defensive?  Answer: It is not.  God is not threatened by idols or the possibility of being marginalized.  

So, how is it that he is jealous?  He is jealous in a "for" sense, not an "of" sense?  Meaning?  One is in error to think that jealousy can only be understood in a selfish sense.  Another dictionary meaning of the word is, "zealous vigilance," an alert watchfulness that would be indicative of a loving parent.  God is not jealous of rivals, he is jealous for his children. 

Our Father in heaven is concerned about his children placing their trust in worthless idols that cannot save or help in any way.  To put our future in the hands of helpless idols is to put our future and our lives in jeopardy - in particular, our eternal destiny.  What loving parent would not be aggressively passionate about the life and death of his children?   God's jealousy is not small or self-serving.  God's jealousy is a holy jealousy.   Jus' Say'n.

Course Correction

Dumb and Dumber went deer hunting one day.  Tripping over a branch, Dumb dropped his gun and it discharged hitting a deer by accident.  It was a large buck with a big rack that had sensed these two were no real threat - bad luck for him.  Nonetheless, they had their deer and started dragging it by its antlers out of the woods.

They had pulled for hours and were having a terrible time as the antlers kept getting caught on the underbrush.  An experienced hunter came by and told them they were dragging the deer the wrong way.  He told them to drag it the other direction so the antlers would not catch on the underbrush, instead the brush would part around them.

They accepted the hunter's correction and began pulling it the other way and sure enough, by dragging it by the back legs instead of the antlers, they found they had smooth sailing.  Dumb said, "This is so much easier than the other way."  Dumber said, "It sure is but we're getting further and further away from our pickup truck going this way."

Dumb jokes aside, we all need course corrections at times.  We need someone to point out the error of our way and help us correct our trajectory.  In those times when we are heading in a wrong or dangerous direction, to continue unchallenged would bring loss or even death.  A course correction is needed but not always welcomed.

We tend to get entrenched in our choices and insistent on our paths so that we resist attempts to correct our course of action or path of life.  We have an investment in our choices, our pride is challenged as our course is questioned, we assume we know best or we simply want to keep going and doing what we've chosen.

Despite our resistance, a loving parent, a good friend or a faithful spouse will go to great lengths to provide a course correction.  Out of love, others will act against our cries of foul or rejection of their intent to help.  Being a loving Father and our ultimate BFF, God will point out and apply pressure to bring about a course correction in our lives: "God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness" (Heb 12:10).

Discipline, meant to bring about a course correction, is rarely welcome.  It is uninvited and generally pain producing as it applies pressure to cause us to yield.  But discipline from the Lord is a blessing if we embrace it: "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it" (Heb 12:11).

The simple fact is that, from time to time, we all need course corrections.  And, God, who loves us as no other, will allow the pressure of pain to get our attention.  In those times, instead of losing heart or digging in our heels, let us "seek first the kingdom of God [so that] all [that is good for us] will be [given by the Lord]" (Matt 6:33).  Jus' Say'n.

Talking Donkeys and Crying Stones

I was reading from the Book of Numbers this morning and came to chapter 22, where the story of a talking donkey is recorded.  At first I wasn't too impressed as we have hundreds of them in Washington who do nothing but talk all the time.  But then I realized that this donkey actually told the truth.  I knew then and there it had to be the hand of God at work.  Of course I'm joking.  There aren't any real donkeys in Washington - real donkeys are very useful animals able to carry the burdens placed on them, politicians are fairly useless critters that put burdens on others.

Sorry, I couldn't help myself.  The story of Balaam and his donkey is, of course, a story of the miraculous working of God.  In this story, God actually works two miracles: 1) he opens the mouth of the donkey (v. 28) and 2) he opens the eyes of Balaam (v. 31).  God opened the donkey's mouth so it could warn Balaam of what it saw, "the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a sword in his hand" (vv. 23-25) and he opened Balaam's eyes so he could confirm the donkey's warning of his "reckless path" (v. 32).

The miracle of the talking donkey is amazing but so is the ability of the donkey to see what was unseen by Balaam.  The donkey was able to see and respond to the angel of the Lord but Balaam was clueless.  Don't you find it amazing that a "dumb" animal is more attuned to the spiritual world around us than we "smart" humans?

In Luke 19, Jesus' disciples, who were common people that the Pharisees considered to be ignorant and unlearned, praised Jesus as he entered Jerusalem saying, "Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord" (v. 38).  Their words angered the Pharisees who insisted that Jesus rebuke them  (v. 39) to which Jesus replied, "If they keep quiet, the stones will cry out" (v. 40).  His words seem to suggest that a box of rocks has more spiritual insight than many religious leaders.

It would seem that human wisdom gets in the way of spiritual truth, that the smarter we think ourselves, the less we actually perceive.  Human wisdom, therefore, is not very wise: "Where is the wise person?  Where is the teacher of the law?  Where is the philosopher of this age?  Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?" (1 Cor 1:20).  Human wisdom is foolish because "...the world through its wisdom did not know him" (1 Cor 1:21).

So, what does all this mean?  What should we take away from talking donkeys and crying stones?  The meaning, the takeaway, is that you and I ought to spend less time chasing human intelligence and more time pursuing spiritual insight.  Let us be wise, but let us have truth.  Jus' Say'n.

Striking The Rock

In Numbers chapter 20, the people of Israel arrive at the Desert of Zin, where there was no water.  The community accused Moses saying, "Why did you bring the Lord's community into this wilderness, that we and our livestock should die here?...It has no grain or figs, grapevines or pomegranates.  And there is no water to drink" (vv. 4-5).

Moses and Aaron went to the entrance of the tent of meeting, where the Lord appeared to them saying, "Take the staff...gather the assembly together.  Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water" (v. 8).  Moses gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and said to them, "Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?" (v. 10).  And then he "struck the rock twice with his staff.  Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank" (v. 11).

Problem solved.  Yes and no.  The water problem was solved but Moses found himself facing a greater problem - judgment from the Lord: "Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them" (v. 12).  The "rebels" were in, their leader Moses was out.

Wow!  Just because he struck the rock with his staff instead of speaking to it, he was shut out from the Lord's presence?  No.  To begin with, he was not shut out from the Lord's presence.  Moses, along with Elijah would centuries later appear with Christ on the Mt of Transfiguration (cf. Matt 17:3).  Additionally, I don't think striking the rock itself was the problem.

I  believed striking the rock displayed his frustration with the people not his lack of trust in God.  The thing that displayed his lack of trust in God and denied the Lord glory in this matter was his statement, referring to him and Aaron, "must we bring you water out of this rock?" (v. 10).  Instead of speaking to the rock and telling Israel the Lord was providing, out of exasperation, he struck the rock and put himself in the place of God.  Moses took it personally and responded as if he was the  Person the people were rebelling against.  It was not him but the Lord.  Moses forgot his place.

Did you know that it is not all about you?  Did you know that you are not the one who will rein things in or change circumstances?  Do you sometimes think it's all up to you?  Do you act as if you were the captain of your ship and responsible for everyone on it?  Do you find yourself worried or exasperated over people or events, thinking that you have to take matters into your own hands?

The truth is that God is in control and  that we need to lay our lives and the lives of those for whom we bear responsibility before him, asking for his help and giving him glory.  Don't strike the rock out of fear or exasperation, speak words of faith to it, bringing everything before the Lord to his glory and your blessing.  Jus' Say'n.

Unconditional Surrender

On August 10, 1945, just one day after the bombing of Nagasaki, at the beheast of Emperor Hirohito, Japan acquiesces to the US demand of unconditional surrnender as President Harry S. Truman orders an end to atomic bombing.  Although many on the war council wanted to demand concessions, the emperor knew they had no bargaining chips left.

Sadly, many who surrender to Christ don't have the clarity of Emperor Hirohito.  So often we are willing to surrender to the Lord as long as we can get some concessions.  We'll do the whole church thing on Sundays but want to live our Monday through Saturday on our own terms.  We will sit through a Bible class on Sunday but don't want to bother reading it the rest of the week.  We will put our "Amen!" on the need for evangelism, just don't expect us to participate in outreach or missions.

I have heard quite a few, over the years, say, "I'll forgive, but I won't forget," meaning that they will only conditionally forgive to a degree.  Some go further insisting, "I will never forgive...," which is to suggest that they want the Lord's forgiveness with the concession that they don't have to personally forgive others, despite the Lord's clear warning, "if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins" (Matt 6:15).

For others, their surrender to the Lord does not include a particular vice such as impurity or dishonesty or greed.  Many want to surrender everything to the Lord except their bank account.  For some, money is not an issue but time is their concession.  They want to maintain full control of their calendars.  The goes on to include over-eating, excessive drinking, self-indulgences, addictions, and more.

Whatever it is in particular, in general it is something you don't want to surrender to the Lord, something you want to maintain control of or continue to participate in regardless of His call on your life.  But Jesus doesn't ask for some of your life or most of your things, he calls us to surrender all: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me" (Matt 18:24; Mk 4:34; Lk 9:23).

The Lord calls us to unconditional surrender of our entire lives.  Everything we have and all that we do are to be for his glory and the kingdom good: "Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus" (Col 3:17).  Selfishness runs counter to kingdom rule.  Full surrender is the only path to kingdom reign and eternal gain.  Jus' Say'n.

Faith or Fear

We live in a fallen world where sin and death abound.  Whether a faithful follower of Christ or degenerate disbeliever, tragedy and turmoil await us as we make the journey of life.  No one gets a free pass over or around the pain and sorrow of this world.  All of us must journey through it, be touched by it and ultimately be taken out of this world due to the power of sin and death.

The very best among us may suffer the very worst.  The most offensive may face the least offences.  But all of us will suffer the slings and arrows hurled in the battle "against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms" (Eph 6:12).

While there are some purely natural causes of suffering like tornadoes and earthquakes.  Most of what we suffer comes about by the poor or sinful use of someone's freedom of choice.  It is primarily sin that causes suffering.  Think of the suffering war causes to innocents.  Ever wonder why there seems to be so much more cancer in our society?  Have you looked at the chemicals on the labels of our foods or noticed the amount of pesticides used?  People are starving all over the world at a time when we can't control our weight.  There is plenty of food to feed everyone but too much greed to allow that to happen.

Nonetheless, regardless of how it comes about, you can count on sin and death causing suffering.  You can look forward to it in your personal life.  And whether a devout Christian or not, the journey of life takes us through a fallen world.  So what?  What do we do about it?  How does being a follower of Jesus make any difference?

The difference in the faithful and the faithless is how we face the difficulties.  There are two basic options: Faith or Fear.  Not knowing what the outcome will be produces the fear of the unknown.  Knowing that God is in control and "will work all things to the good of those who love him" (Rom 8:28) allows us to relax in His presence.  For as Peter tells us "even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed.  Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened" (1 Pet 3:14).  Regardless of the circumstances, God's children are blessed in Him.  Faith overrules fear.  Jus' Say'n.

Guilty Giving

What do you do with a Bible verse like "freely you have received, freely give"?  Do you set out to share everything you have with everyone you meet?  Do you open you wallet and pour out its contents to anyone who asks?  Do you run to the side of everyone who demands your time?  Is your energy, resources and time to be sacrificed on the altar of the wants of others?  Are you simply to give to whomever, whenever, whatever?  Or, are there some guidelines?

The reason I bring up this line of questioning is that I personally know how guilt-producing it can be to hold back anything for yourself.  I have gone door to door with the Gospel in past years only to feel guilty that I didn't go to more.  I have served people in need and still felt those same pangs of guilt for not having served others.  I have shared resources only to feel bad because I didn't pony up at the next opportunity to put money in the hat.  Am I singing your song too?  Likely.

So, what do we do in order to freely give without giving away the farm or giving ourselves a load of guilt?  I think we begin by looking at the context of the passage: "As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, a drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give" (Matt 10:7-8).

To me, the context of the above passage is, as you are going about, doing what God has called you to do, making use of what he has given you to use, do so with a spirit of freedom.  Give all he has given you to give in the time he has given you to give it.

Think about this: How much grace can you afford to offer?  How many times can you forgive?  How often can you ask God to bless others?  You can afford to give any of the above without limit because God has given them without limit.  Now, how much money can you give other?  Can you really give every single penny you have?  Can you spend every waking hour serving others?

The point is that we can afford to use what God gives us to use in the measure with which he gives it for the time he gives it.  We cannot give more time or money or energy than is ours to give at the time we are called upon to give it.  However, we can give as freely as we have received.  Jus' Say'n.