January 5, 2003
At the beginning of a new year, a high school principal decided to post his teachers' new year's resolutions on the bulletin board. As the teachers gathered around the bulletin board, a great commotion started. One of the teachers was complaining. "Why weren't my resolutions posted?" She was throwing such a temper tantrum that the principal hurried to his office to see if he had overlooked her resolutions. Sure enough, he had mislaid them on his desk. As he read her resolutions he was astounded. This teacher's first resolution was not to let little things upset her in the new year!
A new year does not necessarily mean a new future, but you are never going to stop living. There is nothing you can do about that fact. All you can do is prepare for the kind of future you want. You have a future and it will last longer than the year 2003. One of the issues you have to consider is: how much of your past are you going to drag with you into 2003 and the future?
Some of us, as we look at our past, see repeated cycles of defeat. Our fear is that these habits of failure will take up the majority of our future. We have this fear because we have learned that human effort is not enough to break out of deep patterns of spiritual breakdown.
How often have you resolved to get out of debt and before another month has passed, you have used a credit card to soothe an emotional disturbance? How many times have you decided to diet...after the next holiday? Ever determined to avoid degrading entertainment, only to find it has more power than you do? Then if you add booze or drugs or porn or gambling addictions to the mix, you really know what repeated cycles of defeat feel like. Some this morning may have reason to believe your future looks like your past and that thought is frustrating you.
The people of Israel had their own history of cyclical defeat and revival...repentance followed by backsliding. They started with Joshua in the Promised Land, determined to obey God. Then the allure of the sensual and impious and corrupting would lead to backsliding. God, in mercy, would bring them back - then the next cycle of temptation and sin would start in.
Ultimately the warning for unfaithfulness to God spelled out in Deuteronomy came to pass. Israel was defeated and scattered to the four winds. Even then God had mercy. In the closing chapters of Isaiah a small remnant of Israel is celebrating a kind of second exodus out of captivity in Babylon. No Moses, no miracles, but they were coming home! They were to be brought back to the land of promise. This would be a great chance for a new beginning. They could celebrate the miracle of a new future.
But as chapter 65 opens, God reminds those who are coming back of their history of failure. It is kind of like being reminded that you have a history of defeat with pornography, drugs, or your temper. It is a reminder that human resolve is no match for sin. It is a reminder that every time I've started over I've fallen again.
God is bringing Israel and us to a place where we can admit we are powerless over sin. Because of sin our lives are unmanageable. This is bad news. But once it is acknowledged a new door into the future is available. We can now begin to look for a power greater than human resolve. When we realize we can not help ourselves we can start looking for outside help. At this point the lavish love of God can be allowed to have an influence.
Read Isaiah 65: 17-25
God provides the possibilities of a new beginning- without the burden of lurking cycles of defeat. Memories of those failures will be healed. It is a miracle of a new future. Three blessings are a part of your future, if you chose to put your confidence in God's Messiah: joy, abundance, and peace.
First, let me say the beginning of the new future (new heavens and new earth) was established when Jesus the Messiah defeated death. It will be fully achieved at His Second Coming. In the mean time, we live between the day after D-Day and V-Day. Because of the resurrection, Satan and sin and evil are doomed. Followers of Jesus share in the confidence of ultimate victory while we continue the battle.
The consummation of the promised blessings is still coming- but living in the mean time (between the beginning of the end and the end itself) - those blessings can touch us in ways that provide significant nourishment. Isaiah 65 talks about the new heavens and the new earth being a place of (1) joy and delight; (2) a place of abundance and long life; and (3) a place of peace. It is a kind of living that starts with faith in Jesus. The Bible says, "If anyone is in Christ, he is a New Creation; the old is gone, the new has come." (2 Corinthians 5:17)
In this life we can begin to experience joy, abundance, and peace. Jesus reiterated each of these promises for His followers. In John 17:13 He prayed that His followers would "have the full measure of my joy within them."
Peter spoke to people like us when he said, "though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy." (1 Peter 1:8)
If you know Jesus you can know the flavor of the joy of Heaven. On that day when you see Him face to face, that familiar joy will engulf and saturate you.
Isaiah also promised abundance. Jesus said, "I have come that you may have life and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). When you become a follower of Jesus, you immediately become a student of the undying life. In John 8:51 Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my word (like a good student would), he will never see death." He told Martha, "whoever lives and believes in me will never die" (John 11:26).
Isaiah also promised peace. Jesus said, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."
If you and I are going to live effectively in the joy, abundance, and peace of God, our distant future must make sense to us. Is your ultimate future a time beyond your physical demise- something real enough that you can make decisions today based on those plans?
For the follower of Jesus, abundant life is always growing on our horizon. This present universe is just one component in our long life in the Kingdom of God. The resurrected Son of God Himself said, in my Father's home are many rooms...I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you may be where I am" (14:2-3).
Isaiah and Peter and John in Revelation describe this place as a new heaven and a new earth- the miracle of a new future! You are never going to stop existing. There is nothing you can do about that fact. You can do something about what kind of future you will have, however.
Those who do not enter the joy, peace, and abundance of God, through confidence in Jesus will still experience eternal existence. Because we've been created in the image of God we are everlasting. But the Bible describes that everlasting existence as isolated and a place without hope.
This is possible because these people have chosen to be their own ultimate source of authority (god) and disregarded the one legitimate authority (God). Obviously that posture can only be sustained at a distance from God- a place isolated from real hope.
The invitation to you in the mean time is to enter the new heavens and the new earth. To experience this prophetic promise it takes more than a kinda-sorta faith in a vague higher power. It requires a focused confidence in the person of Jesus - the one who died for you! Don't diminish the sacrifices of the Son of God. You have a future. Will it be a repeat of past defeats stretching into eternal hopelessness, or a life of joy and abundance and peace provided by the eternal and intimate presence of Jesus?
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Heaven on the Brain
December 27, 1998
During the installation of new lighting inside an old English cathedral, an electrician working on the top floor, accidentally left the elevator door open. This prevented the elevator from returning to the ground floor. Visitors were stunned to see the Clerk of Works standing in the middle of the cathedral, yelling heavenward, "Peter! Close the gates!"
Most of us would wait until we ourselves were in before closing the gates of heaven. How often in a day or week do you think about heaven? Is eternity an important part of your plans for the future? I'm convinced that if you and I are to live with any kind of gusto under Jesus' leadership, we need to have a basic grasp of what our future life will be like. That future must make sense to us. It must be something you can plan on and make decisions in terms of.
Who talks about heaven any more? What difference can a lesson on heaven make in my life today? I heard about an English professor who assigned his class to make their own funeral arrangements: pick out a casket, write the order of service, and even write out how they would like their life to be eulogized. Many of the students discovered their lives had no meaning. They realized they had wasted their lives- up to that point- and that their plans for the future were as pointless as their past.
When you ask someone for advice about a crossroads decision you have to make and they point to one option and say, "I can tell you that choice has no future," they're saying it has no meaning, no significance. A human life holds together around its prospects for meaning- its view of the future. A meaningful life is not a nice extra. Having a purpose in life is like having enough to eat and drink, enough air to breath. If something has no meaning we say it has no future. Meaninglessness stifles our souls.
Jesus teaches that ultimate meaning is found in life under His leadership. We are nourished in this life by understanding how our future with Jesus relates to our life with Him today.
In Luke 10 Jesus was hearing the reports of 72 apprentices. They were rejoicing that their short term mission had produced some dramatic victories over Satan and the demons. Jesus agreed with their assessment but said, "Do no rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in Heaven (v. 20)."
In Jesus' mind our heavenly destination should be a key landmark determining how we navigate our lives. Sailors use the stars to determine their course. You and I use heaven. Heaven is more important than any earthly landmark.
According to Jesus our destination is a custom-made home. The night before His crucifixion He told His followers, "I am going there to prepare a place for you." At His first advent Jesus prepared us for the Place. He has returned now to prepare a place for us. His second advent will be for the purpose of bringing the prepared people into the prepared place. He said in John 14:3, "If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am."
What is that future life going to be life? If I could know that, chances are good I wouldn't be able to find the words to describe it. The Bible uses symbols and comparisons to help. Everything points to an enhanced life without limits- an intense aliveness with all the necessary energy needed to live it vigorously.
The new age influences have caused us to think of heaven as a place for disembodied spirits. The primary activity is thought to be choir music or reminiscing about the good old days. However, the Bible says when we pass through death, we do not lose the good things of this world. Indeed we see this world and everyone in it, for the first time as it really is. In this regard Paul wrote 1 Corinthians 13:12, "Now we see but a poor reflection; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known."
He had just reminded the Corinthians that in this life we are like little children who have only a vague idea of what is going on around them. But on the other side of death or the second advent, we shall know fully, "even as I am fully known."
Paul does not tell us who fully knows us now, but we might guess that beyond God/Jesus/Holy Spirit we are fully known by the angels and the righteous followers of Jesus. They see and know things as they are. Beyond that concerning our future, we know we will have bodies like Jesus' resurrection body. Jesus' resurrection was the very first of its kind. The Bible calls it "the first fruits" and refers to Jesus' new life as "the Pioneer of life." Without the first advent, without the incarnation, there would be no resurrection and no resurrection bodies.
Jesus forced open a door that had been locked since the death of the first man. Jesus defeated the ruler of death. Because of that the Bible speaks about, "the redemption of our bodies (Romans 8:25)." Sometimes we think of Jesus' resurrection as the undoing of the incarnation. NOT SO! It is the final stage of the incarnation. Jesus' life and death, and your confidence in His leadership prepares you, too, for that stage of "body life."
When Jesus said He was going to prepare a place for us, we can take it to mean He is preparing a renovated space and earth. A new place that will provide the perfect conditions for our glorified bodies.
Just as our brain obeys our mind, other parts of nature may obey us. Remember Jesus was not confined by walls or locked doors. He could walk on water, yet He insisted He was not a spirit and sat down and ate dinner to prove it. That is a model of your future body!
Romans 8:11 says, "If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies." Suppose you are going to live forever and there is nothing you can do about it, except to do the things that would make your future existence as desirable as possible? You can not choose eternal sleep or nonexistence.
As far as your future life is concerned the question you need to answer is: what kind of character have you and Jesus together been developing? Have you allowed Jesus to shape your values and beliefs? Have you found Jesus to be the most fascination person in the universe?
Socrates did not know Jesus, but he knew character development was "priority one" for eternity. Plato's account of the last hours of Socrates has him saying:
Read Matthew 25:14-46
Jesus talks about the Kingdom of Heaven: how we enter it in this life and how this life impacts the next stage of life. God has placed in our life various gifts and skills and potentials that will prepare us for "real life" if used and developed properly. This parable leads us to ask why should God entrust us with eternal riches if we cannot be trusted with temporary wealth. How can I be trusted with a supernatural body if I cannot control even an earthly body?
C.S. Lewis writes in Miracles:
During the installation of new lighting inside an old English cathedral, an electrician working on the top floor, accidentally left the elevator door open. This prevented the elevator from returning to the ground floor. Visitors were stunned to see the Clerk of Works standing in the middle of the cathedral, yelling heavenward, "Peter! Close the gates!"
Most of us would wait until we ourselves were in before closing the gates of heaven. How often in a day or week do you think about heaven? Is eternity an important part of your plans for the future? I'm convinced that if you and I are to live with any kind of gusto under Jesus' leadership, we need to have a basic grasp of what our future life will be like. That future must make sense to us. It must be something you can plan on and make decisions in terms of.
Who talks about heaven any more? What difference can a lesson on heaven make in my life today? I heard about an English professor who assigned his class to make their own funeral arrangements: pick out a casket, write the order of service, and even write out how they would like their life to be eulogized. Many of the students discovered their lives had no meaning. They realized they had wasted their lives- up to that point- and that their plans for the future were as pointless as their past.
When you ask someone for advice about a crossroads decision you have to make and they point to one option and say, "I can tell you that choice has no future," they're saying it has no meaning, no significance. A human life holds together around its prospects for meaning- its view of the future. A meaningful life is not a nice extra. Having a purpose in life is like having enough to eat and drink, enough air to breath. If something has no meaning we say it has no future. Meaninglessness stifles our souls.
Jesus teaches that ultimate meaning is found in life under His leadership. We are nourished in this life by understanding how our future with Jesus relates to our life with Him today.
In Luke 10 Jesus was hearing the reports of 72 apprentices. They were rejoicing that their short term mission had produced some dramatic victories over Satan and the demons. Jesus agreed with their assessment but said, "Do no rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in Heaven (v. 20)."
In Jesus' mind our heavenly destination should be a key landmark determining how we navigate our lives. Sailors use the stars to determine their course. You and I use heaven. Heaven is more important than any earthly landmark.
According to Jesus our destination is a custom-made home. The night before His crucifixion He told His followers, "I am going there to prepare a place for you." At His first advent Jesus prepared us for the Place. He has returned now to prepare a place for us. His second advent will be for the purpose of bringing the prepared people into the prepared place. He said in John 14:3, "If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am."
What is that future life going to be life? If I could know that, chances are good I wouldn't be able to find the words to describe it. The Bible uses symbols and comparisons to help. Everything points to an enhanced life without limits- an intense aliveness with all the necessary energy needed to live it vigorously.
The new age influences have caused us to think of heaven as a place for disembodied spirits. The primary activity is thought to be choir music or reminiscing about the good old days. However, the Bible says when we pass through death, we do not lose the good things of this world. Indeed we see this world and everyone in it, for the first time as it really is. In this regard Paul wrote 1 Corinthians 13:12, "Now we see but a poor reflection; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known."
He had just reminded the Corinthians that in this life we are like little children who have only a vague idea of what is going on around them. But on the other side of death or the second advent, we shall know fully, "even as I am fully known."
Paul does not tell us who fully knows us now, but we might guess that beyond God/Jesus/Holy Spirit we are fully known by the angels and the righteous followers of Jesus. They see and know things as they are. Beyond that concerning our future, we know we will have bodies like Jesus' resurrection body. Jesus' resurrection was the very first of its kind. The Bible calls it "the first fruits" and refers to Jesus' new life as "the Pioneer of life." Without the first advent, without the incarnation, there would be no resurrection and no resurrection bodies.
Jesus forced open a door that had been locked since the death of the first man. Jesus defeated the ruler of death. Because of that the Bible speaks about, "the redemption of our bodies (Romans 8:25)." Sometimes we think of Jesus' resurrection as the undoing of the incarnation. NOT SO! It is the final stage of the incarnation. Jesus' life and death, and your confidence in His leadership prepares you, too, for that stage of "body life."
When Jesus said He was going to prepare a place for us, we can take it to mean He is preparing a renovated space and earth. A new place that will provide the perfect conditions for our glorified bodies.
Just as our brain obeys our mind, other parts of nature may obey us. Remember Jesus was not confined by walls or locked doors. He could walk on water, yet He insisted He was not a spirit and sat down and ate dinner to prove it. That is a model of your future body!
Romans 8:11 says, "If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies." Suppose you are going to live forever and there is nothing you can do about it, except to do the things that would make your future existence as desirable as possible? You can not choose eternal sleep or nonexistence.
As far as your future life is concerned the question you need to answer is: what kind of character have you and Jesus together been developing? Have you allowed Jesus to shape your values and beliefs? Have you found Jesus to be the most fascination person in the universe?
Socrates did not know Jesus, but he knew character development was "priority one" for eternity. Plato's account of the last hours of Socrates has him saying:
If the soul is immortal, it demands our care not only for that part of time which we call life, but for all time...If death were a release from everything, it would be a blessing for the wicked, but since the soul is clearly immortal, there is no escape for evil people except by the development of a good and wise character. This is of supreme importance for beginning the journey there." ParaphrasedSocrates had no opportunity to know Jesus and Jesus' profound impact on character development. He did the best he could with what he had. You and I have Jesus.
Read Matthew 25:14-46
Jesus talks about the Kingdom of Heaven: how we enter it in this life and how this life impacts the next stage of life. God has placed in our life various gifts and skills and potentials that will prepare us for "real life" if used and developed properly. This parable leads us to ask why should God entrust us with eternal riches if we cannot be trusted with temporary wealth. How can I be trusted with a supernatural body if I cannot control even an earthly body?
C.S. Lewis writes in Miracles:
These small and perishable bodies we now have were given to us as ponies are given to school boys. We must learn to control them: not that we may some day be free of horses altogether, but that someday we may ride bare-back, confident and rejoicing, those greater mounts, those winged, shining, and world-shaking horses- which perhaps even now expect us with impatience, pawing and snorting the king's stables.God's plan is for you to develop as an apprentice to Jesus today- so that in another day you can take your place in the ongoing work of the universe. As a follower of Jesus you will encounter struggles and tests. Some will be in the form of adversity, some will be in the form of prosperity. You're asked to use Jesus' resources and do what He would do. If you do this consistently you will be victorious. Jesus said in Revelations 3:21, "To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on His throne." Does that kind of future make sense to you? do you "see a future" in the kind of life Jesus calls you to live today? Is Heaven on your compass?
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Hometown Boy Makes Good
3rd Sunday of Advent, 1998
A crabby lady had been suffering with a bitter heart for years. God decided to send an angel to cheer her up and teach her how to love. When the angel appeared she was very pleased to learn that she had been selected for a special blessing. She could ask for any good thing she wanted - as much money or wisdom or influence as she could think of. She would receive exactly what she asked for and her enemy would receive a double portion. In this way she was supposed to learn about love.
When she heard this, the smile left her face and she returned to a sullen darkness. But a moment later she brightened up. "Whatever you give me, you'll give double to my enemy?" The angel confirmed her question. "Good. Poke out one of my eyes."
For some people it is difficult to be happy when their enemies or competitors are happy too!
Do you have an enemy? A less than friendly competitor? An ex-friend or spouse? What is your Christmas wish for them? Can you pray that they come to know Jesus and all of His blessings?
Read: Luke 4:14-42
Luke has placed this episode in a logical order rather than a chronological order near the beginning of Jesus' public ministry. Luke has just reported on Jesus' private battle with Satan and temptation. When Jesus leaves the wilderness setting, it is to begin His ministry.
Luke places Jesus' visit to Nazareth first - not because it is the first thing he did - but because Jesus gave such a clear statement of His purpose. This sermon is Jesus' mission statement. Why did God take on flesh and blood? Jesus gives a detailed answer in his first sermon back in Nazareth.
According to Mark 6 we know that Jesus had been in town at least a couple of days. He had already established his headquarters in Capernaum (20 miles northeast) so this was a visit. In Capernaum he had accomplished some very dramatic healings, but in his home town the skepticism made significant miracles impossible. Faith is an eternal principle. The writer to the Hebrews wrote, "without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him."
These Nazarenes had a kind of anti-faith, and so "He could not do any miracles there, except lay His hands on a few sick people and heal them" (Mark 6:5). Their open mindedness went far enough to withhold final judgement until they heard him preach on the Sabbath.
They got an ear full! Jesus identified himself as the long awaited Messiah. The passage Jesus read from in the prophecy of Isaiah had been considered one of the more clear Messianic passages.
Jesus says He is the anointed one referred to in the passage. Anointing with oil was an inaugurating ritual for both kings and priests. Oil was a symbol of the Holy Spirit. The ceremony was an acted prayer that God would give the king or priest a portion of his power and wisdom.
Isaiah prophecies that one would come who was especially anointed. It is also significant that the Hebrew word for anoint is the word we get Messiah from and the Greek word we get Christ from. The prophecy refers to the anointed - the Messiah and His ministry.
What specifically is the Messiah's mission? First, it is to evangelize the poor - put another way - it means to declare victory for the impotent or helpless. Evangel means good news. The verb means declare the good news of victory. The powerless and helpless dream about victory, but can never pull it off unless someone gives them the resources. Jesus brings victory to the defeated.
Second, His mission is to proclaim release to those entangled in sin. "Proclaim" is the work of a herald, the person who informs us of current events. Put it on the evening news: Those trapped in death-inviting addictive behaviors have someone who will set them free.
The NIV's use of "freedom" (for the prisoner), is the same word Jesus uses in Matthew 26:28, "This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the release of sins." The trap of sin is disabled by the blood of Jesus: Forgiveness, release.
Third, His mission is to bring insight to the unaware and misinformed. In the spring of 1996 a seventeen year old high school senior from Fremont made national news when she did something remarkable. She achieved a perfect score on both sections of the SAT, and a perfect score on the tough University of California acceptance index. Never in history has any one student accomplished this intellectual feat. At her high school, she was known as "Wonder Woman" because of her brains. But what was interesting in the news story about this young woman was a little exchange between her and a reporter. He asked her, "What is the meaning of life?" She replied, "I have no idea."
This very bright young lady's intelligence can't compare to the One who does know the meaning of life. The One who knew how to turn water into wine, change the atmosphere from hurricane to utter calm, and give sight to a man born blind. He brings His insight.
Fourth, Jesus' mission is "to release the oppressed." The word "oppressed" comes from a word describing a piece of pottery that has been broken because someone stepped on it. The oppressed are the down trodden and Jesus has come to restore their broken places. All the king's men couldn't put Humpty together again, but Jesus can put you together again.
Jesus offers the best news the disadvantaged could ever hope to hear - and they promptly go out and try to throw him over a cliff. "Good News Brings Violent Rejection" might be Nazareth's Sunday morning headline.
Jesus troubled the Nazarenes for two reasons. First, He stopped reading the prophecy too soon. If He had finished, it would have gone " . . . to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God." The Nazarenes were sure their day of favor would correspond with God's wrath on their enemies.
For centuries the Jews had been persecuted in their own land. Horrible things had been done to them. Sometimes the thing that kept them going was the thought that God would crush these cruel overlords.
Not only did Jesus not mention this sweet revenge - He suggested some of these enemies would receive the same favor and blessing promised to Israel. Jesus was asking them to give up their prejudices and juicy thoughts of vengeance.
This is a very important part of Jesus' agenda. He invites us into the rule of God (Kingdom of God), but among the things we have to give up to step in are vengeance, bitterness and prejudice.
For this the Nazarenes promptly rejected Jesus. As far as we know Jesus never returned to Nazareth. Rejection of Jesus can be final. It is bad enough to be rejected. Sometimes it is even worse to know you are the one rejecting, because we find out too late who it is we've rejected.
Gary Inrig tells the story of parents on the east coast who got a telephone call from their son during the Korean War. They were thrilled because they hadn't heard from him for many months. He said he was in San Francisco on his way home.
"Mom, I just wanted to let you know I'm bringing a buddy home with me," he said. "He got hurt pretty bad, and he only has one eye, one arm, and one leg. I'd sure like him to live with us."
"Sure, Son," his mom said. "He sounds like a brave man. We can find room for him for a while."
"Mom, you don't understand. I want him to come live with us."
"Well, OK," she finally said. "We could try it for six months or so."
"No, Mom, I want him to stay permanently. He needs us. He's only got one eye, one arm, and one leg. He's really in bad shape."
By now his mother had lost her patience. "Son, you're being unrealistic about this. You're emotional because you've been in a war. That boy will be a drag on you and be a constant problem for all of us. Be reasonable."
"OK, Mom, I'll try."
A couple of days later the parents got a telegram: Their son had committed suicide. A week later the parents received the body. They looked down with unspeakable sorrow on the corpse of their son -- who had one eye, one arm and one leg. They had rejected the one they loved and the one who had loved them. Their rejection had been final.
The Nazarenes thought Jesus would be too big a problem, and in rejecting Him, they rejected the loving heart of God. The God who would've given them victory in place of impotence, given them release from a sin tangled life, given them insight for ignorance and given them healing for brokenness.
This is why Jesus has come. His birth was the beginning of this all-important mission. For that reason it is well worth celebrating. But we must do more than celebrate the beginning. You and I are invited to participate in the whole process by opening our hearts to the Lordship of Jesus. If the baby born in a barn is the Lord of your life, you can celebrate victory, release, insight and healing of spiritual brokenness. It is a choice between acceptance and rejection.
A crabby lady had been suffering with a bitter heart for years. God decided to send an angel to cheer her up and teach her how to love. When the angel appeared she was very pleased to learn that she had been selected for a special blessing. She could ask for any good thing she wanted - as much money or wisdom or influence as she could think of. She would receive exactly what she asked for and her enemy would receive a double portion. In this way she was supposed to learn about love.
When she heard this, the smile left her face and she returned to a sullen darkness. But a moment later she brightened up. "Whatever you give me, you'll give double to my enemy?" The angel confirmed her question. "Good. Poke out one of my eyes."
For some people it is difficult to be happy when their enemies or competitors are happy too!
Do you have an enemy? A less than friendly competitor? An ex-friend or spouse? What is your Christmas wish for them? Can you pray that they come to know Jesus and all of His blessings?
Read: Luke 4:14-42
Luke has placed this episode in a logical order rather than a chronological order near the beginning of Jesus' public ministry. Luke has just reported on Jesus' private battle with Satan and temptation. When Jesus leaves the wilderness setting, it is to begin His ministry.
Luke places Jesus' visit to Nazareth first - not because it is the first thing he did - but because Jesus gave such a clear statement of His purpose. This sermon is Jesus' mission statement. Why did God take on flesh and blood? Jesus gives a detailed answer in his first sermon back in Nazareth.
According to Mark 6 we know that Jesus had been in town at least a couple of days. He had already established his headquarters in Capernaum (20 miles northeast) so this was a visit. In Capernaum he had accomplished some very dramatic healings, but in his home town the skepticism made significant miracles impossible. Faith is an eternal principle. The writer to the Hebrews wrote, "without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him."
These Nazarenes had a kind of anti-faith, and so "He could not do any miracles there, except lay His hands on a few sick people and heal them" (Mark 6:5). Their open mindedness went far enough to withhold final judgement until they heard him preach on the Sabbath.
They got an ear full! Jesus identified himself as the long awaited Messiah. The passage Jesus read from in the prophecy of Isaiah had been considered one of the more clear Messianic passages.
Jesus says He is the anointed one referred to in the passage. Anointing with oil was an inaugurating ritual for both kings and priests. Oil was a symbol of the Holy Spirit. The ceremony was an acted prayer that God would give the king or priest a portion of his power and wisdom.
Isaiah prophecies that one would come who was especially anointed. It is also significant that the Hebrew word for anoint is the word we get Messiah from and the Greek word we get Christ from. The prophecy refers to the anointed - the Messiah and His ministry.
What specifically is the Messiah's mission? First, it is to evangelize the poor - put another way - it means to declare victory for the impotent or helpless. Evangel means good news. The verb means declare the good news of victory. The powerless and helpless dream about victory, but can never pull it off unless someone gives them the resources. Jesus brings victory to the defeated.
Second, His mission is to proclaim release to those entangled in sin. "Proclaim" is the work of a herald, the person who informs us of current events. Put it on the evening news: Those trapped in death-inviting addictive behaviors have someone who will set them free.
The NIV's use of "freedom" (for the prisoner), is the same word Jesus uses in Matthew 26:28, "This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the release of sins." The trap of sin is disabled by the blood of Jesus: Forgiveness, release.
Third, His mission is to bring insight to the unaware and misinformed. In the spring of 1996 a seventeen year old high school senior from Fremont made national news when she did something remarkable. She achieved a perfect score on both sections of the SAT, and a perfect score on the tough University of California acceptance index. Never in history has any one student accomplished this intellectual feat. At her high school, she was known as "Wonder Woman" because of her brains. But what was interesting in the news story about this young woman was a little exchange between her and a reporter. He asked her, "What is the meaning of life?" She replied, "I have no idea."
This very bright young lady's intelligence can't compare to the One who does know the meaning of life. The One who knew how to turn water into wine, change the atmosphere from hurricane to utter calm, and give sight to a man born blind. He brings His insight.
Fourth, Jesus' mission is "to release the oppressed." The word "oppressed" comes from a word describing a piece of pottery that has been broken because someone stepped on it. The oppressed are the down trodden and Jesus has come to restore their broken places. All the king's men couldn't put Humpty together again, but Jesus can put you together again.
Jesus offers the best news the disadvantaged could ever hope to hear - and they promptly go out and try to throw him over a cliff. "Good News Brings Violent Rejection" might be Nazareth's Sunday morning headline.
Jesus troubled the Nazarenes for two reasons. First, He stopped reading the prophecy too soon. If He had finished, it would have gone " . . . to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God." The Nazarenes were sure their day of favor would correspond with God's wrath on their enemies.
For centuries the Jews had been persecuted in their own land. Horrible things had been done to them. Sometimes the thing that kept them going was the thought that God would crush these cruel overlords.
Not only did Jesus not mention this sweet revenge - He suggested some of these enemies would receive the same favor and blessing promised to Israel. Jesus was asking them to give up their prejudices and juicy thoughts of vengeance.
This is a very important part of Jesus' agenda. He invites us into the rule of God (Kingdom of God), but among the things we have to give up to step in are vengeance, bitterness and prejudice.
For this the Nazarenes promptly rejected Jesus. As far as we know Jesus never returned to Nazareth. Rejection of Jesus can be final. It is bad enough to be rejected. Sometimes it is even worse to know you are the one rejecting, because we find out too late who it is we've rejected.
Gary Inrig tells the story of parents on the east coast who got a telephone call from their son during the Korean War. They were thrilled because they hadn't heard from him for many months. He said he was in San Francisco on his way home.
"Mom, I just wanted to let you know I'm bringing a buddy home with me," he said. "He got hurt pretty bad, and he only has one eye, one arm, and one leg. I'd sure like him to live with us."
"Sure, Son," his mom said. "He sounds like a brave man. We can find room for him for a while."
"Mom, you don't understand. I want him to come live with us."
"Well, OK," she finally said. "We could try it for six months or so."
"No, Mom, I want him to stay permanently. He needs us. He's only got one eye, one arm, and one leg. He's really in bad shape."
By now his mother had lost her patience. "Son, you're being unrealistic about this. You're emotional because you've been in a war. That boy will be a drag on you and be a constant problem for all of us. Be reasonable."
"OK, Mom, I'll try."
A couple of days later the parents got a telegram: Their son had committed suicide. A week later the parents received the body. They looked down with unspeakable sorrow on the corpse of their son -- who had one eye, one arm and one leg. They had rejected the one they loved and the one who had loved them. Their rejection had been final.
The Nazarenes thought Jesus would be too big a problem, and in rejecting Him, they rejected the loving heart of God. The God who would've given them victory in place of impotence, given them release from a sin tangled life, given them insight for ignorance and given them healing for brokenness.
This is why Jesus has come. His birth was the beginning of this all-important mission. For that reason it is well worth celebrating. But we must do more than celebrate the beginning. You and I are invited to participate in the whole process by opening our hearts to the Lordship of Jesus. If the baby born in a barn is the Lord of your life, you can celebrate victory, release, insight and healing of spiritual brokenness. It is a choice between acceptance and rejection.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Man, that's living!
December 12, 1998
Lloyd Ogilvie, chaplain of the US senate retells an old joke with fresh humor. It is a story about two gravediggers who were responsible for digging the largest grave they had ever been told to dig. The dimensions of the grave were six feet wide and 15 feet long.
As they grumbled and complained about digging such a large grave, they questioned as to what kind of casket would go into it. Just as they finished shoveling, a hearse drove up carrying the casket, funeral director, and the attendants. No one else attended: no family, no friends.
The gravediggers were bewildered why they had been told to dig such a large grave for such an ordinary casket. Suddenly a trailer for transporting cars pulled up beside the grave. Fastened securely to the transporter was a magnificent gold plated Rolls Royce.
The gravediggers' surprise turned to downright astonishment as the funeral attendants placed the casket next to the Rolls Royce, opened the lid, and slid the fully embalmed, neatly dressed corpse out and put him behind the wheel on the driver's side of the car. The funeral director came over to the corpse and wrapped his cold, dead fingers around the steering wheel, and then molded his lifeless, expressionless mouth into a big smile. His finishing touch was to open the dead man's eyes, which looked out onto the world with a blank stare.
As the door was shut, the crane swung into position and hooked its metal cable to the top of the car. It carried the dead man and his gold Rolls Royce to the grave and lowered it all to the bottom with a gentle thud!
One of the gravediggers glanced at the other, looked at the Rolls Royce, and blurted out, "Man, that's living!"
The story becomes a parable of those without a spiritual life. The spiritually dead seldom slow down long enough to recognize their own deadness. Think how often we say, "That's really living," about lifeless kinds of popularity or prosperity or power.
Does your life have a vitality, a positive intensity mixed with rich solitude? Is it cheerfulness mixed with a spark - a little passion and some pizazz? When you stop to rest, do you become restless with your wooden existence and lackluster survival? Or is there contentment in your calm times?
Jesus said, "I have come that (you) may have life and have it to the full." Advent is the time to remember Jesus' coming and ask, "Why did He come?" Advent means "coming." Some apply the word exclusively to His second coming - the Seventh Day Adventist, for example - but it is appropriate to celebrate His first advent as we wait for His second advent/coming.
In John 10:10 Jesus gives one very clear reason for His first advent: to offer abundant life. In the gospel of John the life that Jesus offers is unique. Usually it is called eternal life. However, the reference to eternal, has less to do with quantity than it does with quality. The Bible gives us reason to believe that God has already given everyone immortality; originally the gift of endless life would not have involved a disruptive moment we call death. Unfortunately, our rebellion brought that about. Jesus did not come to extend our lives into eternity. That is already going to happen, either in heaven or hell. Jesus came to change our quality of life, both now and the quality of our eternity.
In some ways this quality is a by-product of a restored relationship with God through Jesus. Think of the best friendship you've ever had, perhaps with your spouse. Then suppose in one of your stubborn or greedy or lustful moments you did something to damage that friendship. Perhaps you still live together or work together, but there is friction and relational pain where there used to be harmony.
Then suppose that your friend, in a lavish demonstration of love, let you know that you were totally forgiven. You knew it was not a trick or illusion- you really were forgiven and loved. What has that forgiveness done for your quality of life? Doesn't it make all the difference in the world? Jesus has come to bring that quality of acceptance and love into your life, along with His power to live a joy filled life.
Today we will be reading from John 10. The immediate context is all of chapter nine. That chapter opens with Jesus and His disciples on a Sabbath stroll through the streets of Jerusalem. They see a man that is so well known that everyone knows he was born blind. The disciples ask whose sin caused this blindness. Jesus said sin had nothing to do with this tragedy, directly.
Furthermore, Jesus made a mixture of saliva and dirt, rubbed the mud on the man's eyes and sent him to a specific pool to wash. The man did, and was healed. The healing was so remarkable that those who knew him best couldn't believe it was really him. They asked the obvious questions: how did this happen? He told them about the mud and the trip to the pool and Jesus.
Such a remarkable miracle deserved to be investigated, so the friends took the formerly blind man to the religious leaders. The Pharisees were immediately suspect - not because the miracle itself seemed fraudulent, but because Jesus had made the mud on the Sabbath. The Pharisees had a bad case of something we all battle with: we prefer to limit God to act in ways that we can approve of!
Because Jesus did not heal with the approved sort of methods, he was branded an evil person. To shorten the story, the healed man endorsed Jesus methods, he did not understand how they violated any of God's laws. Consequently he was excommunicated. He was healed of blindness and then kicked out of his congregation by those born with good eyes!
When Jesus heard that this had happened, he found the formerly blind man and some of his accusers. Chapter 10 is Jesus' verbal whipping administered to the Pharisees, and words of encouragement to the outcast.
Read John 10.
Jesus explains who it is who has the real authority to "let in" and to "cast out." To the outcast this must've been music to his ears. To the religious leaders and wanna-be authorities it was another reason to do away with Jesus.
Wanna-be leaders are in for themselves. They use their followers for selfish reasons. Jesus came in order to lay down His life for anyone who would follow Him. He came to lay down His life and to give life.
When we get ready for Christmas we make our homes as fancy as they will be all year. We dress up the outside and inside and sometimes we even get dressed up - decked out. When God got ready for Christmas, He laid aside His scepter, took off His crown and came as a naked baby. There wasn't much gloriousness about His first advent. A baby was born - that is very impressive, but it also meant other stuff: meconium, squalling, a desperate need for mother's milk. God was naked and vulnerable.
This beginning is an interesting comparison to the end of His life where he hung on the cross, naked and vulnerable. God chose to live in the same flesh you and I live in, the same flesh we die in. His pain does not erase our pain, but it can redeem it and transform it.
Years ago a missionary was serving the Lord in Korea. A young Korean woman was expecting a baby, and on Christmas Eve she went into labor. There was a major storm in progress, but the woman knew if she could just get to the home of the missionary she would have the help she needed. She put on her winter wraps and started out alone, on foot. She was several miles from home when her labor pains grew in frequency and intensity, and she knew she could not make it to her destination.
She got beneath an old bridge that provided some shelter. There alone, in the middle of the night, she gave birth to a baby boy. She immediately removed her coat and then, piece by piece, the rest of her clothing. Carefully, she wound every item around her baby until he looked like a cumbersome little cocoon. Then she fell asleep, too exhausted to do anything else.
The next morning dawned, the missionary awoke with a song in her heart. It was Christmas day, and there were so many people she wanted to see. She packed the car and started on her way. A few miles down the road the engine sputtered and the car finally stopped on top of an old bridge. As the missionary opened the door to go for help, she thought she heard a baby crying. Following the sound, she went under the bridge where she found a tiny baby boy- very hungry, but very much alive. Next to the infant, lay his mother - frozen.
The missionary picked up the baby and took him to her home. In time, she was permitted to adopt the boy. As the years passed she told him how his biological mother had given her life that he might live. The son never tired of hearing the story and he asked her to repeat it often.
On his twelfth birthday he asked the missionary to take him to the burial place of his mother. When they arrived, there was snow on the ground, and he asked his missionary mother to wait while he went to the grave alone. She watched her son as he trudged through the snow, tears streaming down his cheeks. In amazement, she saw him slowly unbutton his coat, remove it, and gently lay it on the snowy grave. Next he removed his shirt, pants, shoes, and socks and carefully placed each item on the grave of the mother who had given her all for him.
The missionary could take it no longer and went to her son, placing her coat around his bare, shivering shoulders. Through his tears, she heard him as he asked, "Were you colder than this for me, mother? Were you colder than this?" And he knew that she was.
When people doubt or even mock Jesus' promise of abundant life, by pointing to the evidence of pain and suffering still with us, they fail to see Jesus Himself, coming into that same suffering voluntarily. They also have not tried living with Jesus to discover the abundance of that life. Jesus said, "I have come that you might have life, abundant life."
If you have felt touched by The Spirit or His Word I invite you to come forward for prayer. (Editor's note: If you are a blogger we invite you contact us thru the comment section or Facebook and we will talk to you about the life change that is available to you thru Jesus.)
Lloyd Ogilvie, chaplain of the US senate retells an old joke with fresh humor. It is a story about two gravediggers who were responsible for digging the largest grave they had ever been told to dig. The dimensions of the grave were six feet wide and 15 feet long.
As they grumbled and complained about digging such a large grave, they questioned as to what kind of casket would go into it. Just as they finished shoveling, a hearse drove up carrying the casket, funeral director, and the attendants. No one else attended: no family, no friends.
The gravediggers were bewildered why they had been told to dig such a large grave for such an ordinary casket. Suddenly a trailer for transporting cars pulled up beside the grave. Fastened securely to the transporter was a magnificent gold plated Rolls Royce.
The gravediggers' surprise turned to downright astonishment as the funeral attendants placed the casket next to the Rolls Royce, opened the lid, and slid the fully embalmed, neatly dressed corpse out and put him behind the wheel on the driver's side of the car. The funeral director came over to the corpse and wrapped his cold, dead fingers around the steering wheel, and then molded his lifeless, expressionless mouth into a big smile. His finishing touch was to open the dead man's eyes, which looked out onto the world with a blank stare.
As the door was shut, the crane swung into position and hooked its metal cable to the top of the car. It carried the dead man and his gold Rolls Royce to the grave and lowered it all to the bottom with a gentle thud!
One of the gravediggers glanced at the other, looked at the Rolls Royce, and blurted out, "Man, that's living!"
The story becomes a parable of those without a spiritual life. The spiritually dead seldom slow down long enough to recognize their own deadness. Think how often we say, "That's really living," about lifeless kinds of popularity or prosperity or power.
Does your life have a vitality, a positive intensity mixed with rich solitude? Is it cheerfulness mixed with a spark - a little passion and some pizazz? When you stop to rest, do you become restless with your wooden existence and lackluster survival? Or is there contentment in your calm times?
Jesus said, "I have come that (you) may have life and have it to the full." Advent is the time to remember Jesus' coming and ask, "Why did He come?" Advent means "coming." Some apply the word exclusively to His second coming - the Seventh Day Adventist, for example - but it is appropriate to celebrate His first advent as we wait for His second advent/coming.
In John 10:10 Jesus gives one very clear reason for His first advent: to offer abundant life. In the gospel of John the life that Jesus offers is unique. Usually it is called eternal life. However, the reference to eternal, has less to do with quantity than it does with quality. The Bible gives us reason to believe that God has already given everyone immortality; originally the gift of endless life would not have involved a disruptive moment we call death. Unfortunately, our rebellion brought that about. Jesus did not come to extend our lives into eternity. That is already going to happen, either in heaven or hell. Jesus came to change our quality of life, both now and the quality of our eternity.
In some ways this quality is a by-product of a restored relationship with God through Jesus. Think of the best friendship you've ever had, perhaps with your spouse. Then suppose in one of your stubborn or greedy or lustful moments you did something to damage that friendship. Perhaps you still live together or work together, but there is friction and relational pain where there used to be harmony.
Then suppose that your friend, in a lavish demonstration of love, let you know that you were totally forgiven. You knew it was not a trick or illusion- you really were forgiven and loved. What has that forgiveness done for your quality of life? Doesn't it make all the difference in the world? Jesus has come to bring that quality of acceptance and love into your life, along with His power to live a joy filled life.
Today we will be reading from John 10. The immediate context is all of chapter nine. That chapter opens with Jesus and His disciples on a Sabbath stroll through the streets of Jerusalem. They see a man that is so well known that everyone knows he was born blind. The disciples ask whose sin caused this blindness. Jesus said sin had nothing to do with this tragedy, directly.
Furthermore, Jesus made a mixture of saliva and dirt, rubbed the mud on the man's eyes and sent him to a specific pool to wash. The man did, and was healed. The healing was so remarkable that those who knew him best couldn't believe it was really him. They asked the obvious questions: how did this happen? He told them about the mud and the trip to the pool and Jesus.
Such a remarkable miracle deserved to be investigated, so the friends took the formerly blind man to the religious leaders. The Pharisees were immediately suspect - not because the miracle itself seemed fraudulent, but because Jesus had made the mud on the Sabbath. The Pharisees had a bad case of something we all battle with: we prefer to limit God to act in ways that we can approve of!
Because Jesus did not heal with the approved sort of methods, he was branded an evil person. To shorten the story, the healed man endorsed Jesus methods, he did not understand how they violated any of God's laws. Consequently he was excommunicated. He was healed of blindness and then kicked out of his congregation by those born with good eyes!
When Jesus heard that this had happened, he found the formerly blind man and some of his accusers. Chapter 10 is Jesus' verbal whipping administered to the Pharisees, and words of encouragement to the outcast.
Read John 10.
Jesus explains who it is who has the real authority to "let in" and to "cast out." To the outcast this must've been music to his ears. To the religious leaders and wanna-be authorities it was another reason to do away with Jesus.
Wanna-be leaders are in for themselves. They use their followers for selfish reasons. Jesus came in order to lay down His life for anyone who would follow Him. He came to lay down His life and to give life.
When we get ready for Christmas we make our homes as fancy as they will be all year. We dress up the outside and inside and sometimes we even get dressed up - decked out. When God got ready for Christmas, He laid aside His scepter, took off His crown and came as a naked baby. There wasn't much gloriousness about His first advent. A baby was born - that is very impressive, but it also meant other stuff: meconium, squalling, a desperate need for mother's milk. God was naked and vulnerable.
This beginning is an interesting comparison to the end of His life where he hung on the cross, naked and vulnerable. God chose to live in the same flesh you and I live in, the same flesh we die in. His pain does not erase our pain, but it can redeem it and transform it.
Years ago a missionary was serving the Lord in Korea. A young Korean woman was expecting a baby, and on Christmas Eve she went into labor. There was a major storm in progress, but the woman knew if she could just get to the home of the missionary she would have the help she needed. She put on her winter wraps and started out alone, on foot. She was several miles from home when her labor pains grew in frequency and intensity, and she knew she could not make it to her destination.
She got beneath an old bridge that provided some shelter. There alone, in the middle of the night, she gave birth to a baby boy. She immediately removed her coat and then, piece by piece, the rest of her clothing. Carefully, she wound every item around her baby until he looked like a cumbersome little cocoon. Then she fell asleep, too exhausted to do anything else.
The next morning dawned, the missionary awoke with a song in her heart. It was Christmas day, and there were so many people she wanted to see. She packed the car and started on her way. A few miles down the road the engine sputtered and the car finally stopped on top of an old bridge. As the missionary opened the door to go for help, she thought she heard a baby crying. Following the sound, she went under the bridge where she found a tiny baby boy- very hungry, but very much alive. Next to the infant, lay his mother - frozen.
The missionary picked up the baby and took him to her home. In time, she was permitted to adopt the boy. As the years passed she told him how his biological mother had given her life that he might live. The son never tired of hearing the story and he asked her to repeat it often.
On his twelfth birthday he asked the missionary to take him to the burial place of his mother. When they arrived, there was snow on the ground, and he asked his missionary mother to wait while he went to the grave alone. She watched her son as he trudged through the snow, tears streaming down his cheeks. In amazement, she saw him slowly unbutton his coat, remove it, and gently lay it on the snowy grave. Next he removed his shirt, pants, shoes, and socks and carefully placed each item on the grave of the mother who had given her all for him.
The missionary could take it no longer and went to her son, placing her coat around his bare, shivering shoulders. Through his tears, she heard him as he asked, "Were you colder than this for me, mother? Were you colder than this?" And he knew that she was.
When people doubt or even mock Jesus' promise of abundant life, by pointing to the evidence of pain and suffering still with us, they fail to see Jesus Himself, coming into that same suffering voluntarily. They also have not tried living with Jesus to discover the abundance of that life. Jesus said, "I have come that you might have life, abundant life."
If you have felt touched by The Spirit or His Word I invite you to come forward for prayer. (Editor's note: If you are a blogger we invite you contact us thru the comment section or Facebook and we will talk to you about the life change that is available to you thru Jesus.)
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Baby on a Mission
1st Sunday of Advent, 1998
A Christening was planned several years ago by a very wealthy European family. Many guests were invited to their home for the occasion. They came in their finest and most fashionable dress. Each guest was met at the door by a servant. After the usual socializing they were ready for the ceremony and the Priest called the parents, family, and friends together to get started. The nurse was sent upstairs to bring the baby. A moment later she returned in a panic. The baby was nowhere to be found! Several minutes later, someone remembered that the child had last been seen lying on one of the beds. After a frantic search the little baby was found smothered under the coats of the guests. Their primary reason for coming had been overlooked and destroyed.
Read: Matthew 1:18-23
The Christmas story is the story of a baby. That is a part of it's delightful pull on the mind and the heart. But it is also a liability, for a great many people become so focused with the beautiful story of a baby in a manger, that they miss the chief point of the story. They miss the challenge of Jesus the Man. We can become so enchanted with the story of a baby that we grow sentimental about it; the baby does not ask that we do anything except take care of Him. A baby does not demand any vital change in our way of thinking and living - unless you are his parents.
On the other hand the story can be lost altogether in the celebration of "The Season". But the story is beautiful and the drama is overpowering:
It takes the sizzle out of Miracle on 34th Street for me. It makes you wonder how a show about Rudolph or Frosty could hold interest, when the real story is so compelling. It's amazing that people would tune in to those stories when the Christmas story has so much to offer.
Christmas is the story of God breaking through to the visible world in the person of Jesus to rescue us from our sins and moral failures.
American Demographics says, the average US county resident will spend $365 per child on toys, games, hobbies, tricycles, etc.. However in Provo, Utah, where median income is very close to the national average, those county residents will spend $153 less per child. The magazine says it is because this is a Mormon county and Christmas is more about religion and less about toys. Interesting.
But the main point of the Christmas story is that the baby grew up! He grew up to become a challenge to a world of hard-headed power. Jesus was no sentimentalist; He was a terrible realist! Everything opposed to love and unity in our world, He declared flatly, is damned - reasoning that the center of the universe is a God of holy love.
The important question for you and me is this: Is Christmas still only a story about a baby, or a time to celebrate greed -- or is it the story of a baby who grew into the person who would redeem the world from it's sins, the story of the person who calls you into apprenticeship and partnership with His great and mighty purposes?
You and I must respond to Jesus both as our rescuer and our Master. He is not a helpless infant but the ruler of all creation. You must decide if you are on His side or against Him.
Don't let the baby be smothered by the allure of a romantic story or by the orgy of consumption that takes over our world this time of year. See the baby's full mission.
If you have felt touched by The Spirit or His Word I invite you to come forward for prayer. (Editor's note: If you are a blogger we invite you contact us thru the comment section or Facebook and we will talk to you about the life change that is available to you thru Jesus.)
A Christening was planned several years ago by a very wealthy European family. Many guests were invited to their home for the occasion. They came in their finest and most fashionable dress. Each guest was met at the door by a servant. After the usual socializing they were ready for the ceremony and the Priest called the parents, family, and friends together to get started. The nurse was sent upstairs to bring the baby. A moment later she returned in a panic. The baby was nowhere to be found! Several minutes later, someone remembered that the child had last been seen lying on one of the beds. After a frantic search the little baby was found smothered under the coats of the guests. Their primary reason for coming had been overlooked and destroyed.
Read: Matthew 1:18-23
The Christmas story is the story of a baby. That is a part of it's delightful pull on the mind and the heart. But it is also a liability, for a great many people become so focused with the beautiful story of a baby in a manger, that they miss the chief point of the story. They miss the challenge of Jesus the Man. We can become so enchanted with the story of a baby that we grow sentimental about it; the baby does not ask that we do anything except take care of Him. A baby does not demand any vital change in our way of thinking and living - unless you are his parents.
On the other hand the story can be lost altogether in the celebration of "The Season". But the story is beautiful and the drama is overpowering:
- a young, unmarried girl is about to give birth to a child who is prophesied to rule His people
- a man so in love with his betrothed and so confident in God's faithfulness that he defies
- social customs and marries her anyway
- a band of mystics spend years following a star that they believe will lead them to a new king
- a greedy, insecure ruler commits murderous atrocities in a village in order to protect his throne
- a gang of teenage boys working the night shift witness an extra terrestrial worship service
- and a little baby, born in a stable, changes the course of history.
It takes the sizzle out of Miracle on 34th Street for me. It makes you wonder how a show about Rudolph or Frosty could hold interest, when the real story is so compelling. It's amazing that people would tune in to those stories when the Christmas story has so much to offer.
Christmas is the story of God breaking through to the visible world in the person of Jesus to rescue us from our sins and moral failures.
American Demographics says, the average US county resident will spend $365 per child on toys, games, hobbies, tricycles, etc.. However in Provo, Utah, where median income is very close to the national average, those county residents will spend $153 less per child. The magazine says it is because this is a Mormon county and Christmas is more about religion and less about toys. Interesting.
But the main point of the Christmas story is that the baby grew up! He grew up to become a challenge to a world of hard-headed power. Jesus was no sentimentalist; He was a terrible realist! Everything opposed to love and unity in our world, He declared flatly, is damned - reasoning that the center of the universe is a God of holy love.
The important question for you and me is this: Is Christmas still only a story about a baby, or a time to celebrate greed -- or is it the story of a baby who grew into the person who would redeem the world from it's sins, the story of the person who calls you into apprenticeship and partnership with His great and mighty purposes?
You and I must respond to Jesus both as our rescuer and our Master. He is not a helpless infant but the ruler of all creation. You must decide if you are on His side or against Him.
Don't let the baby be smothered by the allure of a romantic story or by the orgy of consumption that takes over our world this time of year. See the baby's full mission.
If you have felt touched by The Spirit or His Word I invite you to come forward for prayer. (Editor's note: If you are a blogger we invite you contact us thru the comment section or Facebook and we will talk to you about the life change that is available to you thru Jesus.)
Thursday, November 25, 2010
True Love is Extravagant
(Editor's note: This sermon was first preached in Sheridan, OR in 1988, and reworked to be presented in Ceres, CA on November 25, 2001. The interesting thing is that the opening illustration is about a young couple in Patterson, CA just 25 miles from Ceres. Nobody stepped forward to say they knew this couple, but different ones did remember the newspaper coverage of the story.)
Young people know more about real love that most of us old timers will give them credit for. What we know that they sometimes don't is that even strong affections can be fickle. And when the worst happens, most of the time we stand a good chance for recovery.
This pattern of young love began as Felipe Garza started dating Donna Ashlock. Felipe was 15; Donna was 14. They dated steadily until Donna cooled the romance and began dating other boys. Even though Donna had ended the relationship -- for six months Felipe could not let his feelings fade.
While at work one day Donna doubled over in pain. Doctors soon discovered that she was dying of degenerative heart disease and desperately needed a heart transplant. Felipe heard about Donna's condition and told his mother, "I'm going to die, and I'm going to give my heart to Donna." Now, young people have been known to say "irrational" things from time to time, especially when they're in love. At any rate Felipe appeared to his mom to be in perfect health.
Three weeks later, however, Felipe woke up and complained of pain on the left side of his head. He began losing his breath and couldn't walk. He was taken to a hospital where it was discovered that a blood vessel in his brain had burst, soon leaving him brain dead!
Felipe's sudden death mystified his doctors. While he remained on a respirator, his family decided to let surgeons remove his heart for Donna and his kidneys and eyes for others.
Life is filled with mystery and Donna received Felipe's heart! After the transplant, Donna's father told her about Felipe's sudden death. In the following moments of silence, Donna, unsure until just then said, "And I have his heart." Her father said, "Yes, that is what he and his parents wanted."
Several days later, a funeral procession seemed to roll on forever through the orchards and fields of Patterson. The procession was so long it might have been for a senator or a prince, but instead it was for the young man who gave away his heart.
In John 12 we read of a young lover with a similar spirit (12:1-9).
As a young lover did you ever experience the impulse of "climb the highest mountain or swim the wildest river" or do something totally out of character like write poetry or a song? I hope you have felt those urges -- they are the spice and romance of life. But more to the point are you occasionally struck by an impulse to lavishly express your love for Jesus? Or is your spiritual life more of a business arrangement? Are you one of those who believes that religion should be "reasonable"? You are aware of the drawbacks and benefits, and it only makes sense to avoid the negatives as far as possible.
In this passage you and I discover that true love, whether it is romantic or spiritual, is smothered in a coldly calculating world of weights and measures, accountants and record keepers. By following the example of Mary, we can discover the joy of wasteful love.
From the accountant's perspective, Mary qualifies for the title of "The Prodigal Daughter" -- prodigal meaning "squanderer" or "one who is extravagantly wasteful." Judas saw a years wages spilled on the ground. Mary was the type who wouldn't even balance her checkbook until after the holidays. It might hamper her giving!
For well over a year Jesus had been predicting His own death. On His previous journey to Bethany for the purpose of raising Lazarus from the grave, Jesus said, "The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many." Jesus had told them in detail that He would "be betrayed into the hands of the chief priests . . . they would mock him . . . flog Him and kill Him" (Mark 10:33).
For whatever reason (we may never know) the majority of disciples did not get it. However, John gives clues that Mary was one disciple who did get it! In verse seven Jesus hints that Mary has believed Jesus' prediction of His death and had been saving this ointment for His burial. As the last week of Jesus' life was about to begin, He was, again, preparing His followers for the days of crisis. Unfortunately His teaching was not sinking in any better than it had before. But Mary could see that the time had come. In her heart now, she began to search for an expression of her loyalty and love.
Remembering the ointment for His burial, she acted on her desire to glorify Jesus before He died. For those without her insight, and from a human view, she was extravagant, overly generous, reckless and perhaps a little foolish. Yet when she looked at the person who was going to lay down His life for everyone, she knew that calculating how much devotion to show was not possible.
It was an outlandish display. But it was all love -- without an ounce of self interest. The Pharisees knew how to worship so that men were impressed. They gave their alms, and said their prayers and did their fasting with extravagant public appeal. But Mary's act of worship lacked any interest in her public image. It was all, it was only for Jesus.
In Palestine no respectable woman appeared in public with her hair unbound -- it would be comparable to an Afghan lady being without her burka. Mary was not thinking about herself. She was not concerned with what they might think of her love for Jesus. Why she used her hair, I don't know, but I'm sure this powerful aroma would cling to Jesus for several days, and now to Mary as well. She would for some time bear a reminder of her Master's sacrifice.
Regardless of "why", the principle she models is that true love is heedless of the crowd. Michal despised David's elaborate display of love for God. Job's friends came to detest his stubborn love for God. And Judas hated Mary. But Mary never gave their opinion a thought. Her focus was on Jesus, not the crowd or a set of regulations. True love does not diminish because of opposing opinions.
A second principle she models is that true love is sacrificial. By nature it is extravagant, generous and occasionally reckless. You might just dive into that wild river! Yet how many enter into the Christian faith like they would another business deal? They calculate the negatives: It might require some time, extra energy and perhaps some money. On the positive side, most of the people are friendly and there just might be a heaven and what if there really is a hell?
These kinds of Christians are not necessarily easy to spot. Remember that Judas kept his cover very well. But in their heart, they complain about how much money it takes to keep missionaries on the field. They get upset at the cost of adequate facilities for worship and training. Some even ask, "Why does a worship service have to interrupt the beginning of the football game?" For that matter, "Why does Sunday come once a week? Why not once a month?" After a while it does -- for them. These folks don't get real excited about letting their neighbors know they are Christians.
These are Christians who have entered into a nicely calculated business arrangement. They identify with Christ, just enough to "make it" - they hope. But, of course, they never know with certainty, so they are not really happy with the arrangement.
I believe the Marys of the faith are easier to pick out. Have you ever noticed how lovers seem to look for ways of sacrificing? They seem to go out of their way to enhance their relationship. They hold hands in public regardless of what other people think. They never feel like they have enough time or money to spend on the other person. Football games don't interfere. Sacrifice is actually fun! Where true love is present, sacrifice is the norm.
O. Henry illustrates this in one of my favorite short stories ever. It is pretty simple, that's why it appeals to me. It is titled "The Gift of the Magi". A young couple, Della and Jim, were very poor but very much in love. Each had one unique possession. Della's was her dazzling long, thick hair. When she let it down it could almost serve as a robe. Jim had a priceless gold watch, which had been his father's and before that his grandfather's. It was the day before Christmas, and Della had exactly $1.87 to buy Jim a present.
Her only option for getting more money was to sell her hair to a wig maker. With the money she bought Jim a platinum fob for his watch. When Jim came home that night and saw Della's cut hair, he stopped and stared in shock. It wasn't that she was less attractive. Part of his surprise was how beautiful she was without her hair.
Della, however, was on the verge of panic, not being able to interpret his stunned look. In her effort to explain, she made Jim open his gift early. Jim now was even more speechless, and to explain his pent up weakness gave Della his gift to her.
It was a set of expensive tortoiseshell combs with jeweled edges for her long hair - a set of combs that Della had been admiring for several months. The irony was . . .. Jim had sold his watch to afford them.
He sold his watch to buy combs for her hair; she sold her hair to buy a fob for his watch. It appears that each of them had sacrificed in vain. But did they? In the process of losing some "things", did they not gain more of each other? Isn't that what matters most with lovers?
Mary's heart recognized Jesus' impending death as an extravagant, lavish display of God's love. She knew what all lovers know by instinct: Heaven is not a place for the stingy economy of a nicely calculated business arrangement.
Nothing is less wasteful or more wonderful than offering Jesus a sacrificial token of loyalty and devotion, however costly that offering may be. Young lovers of Jesus know this; their impulse is to waste their lives for Him. However, it was to a group of old timers that Jesus said, "I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first" (Revelation 2:4,5).
These up coming holy days can be a time to fall in love with Jesus all over again.l Life may not be able to sustain itself in the frenzy of fresh love (except perhaps in Heaven), but there is never room for cold calculations of assets and debits in any kind of real love. How warm is your love for Jesus?
Young people know more about real love that most of us old timers will give them credit for. What we know that they sometimes don't is that even strong affections can be fickle. And when the worst happens, most of the time we stand a good chance for recovery.
This pattern of young love began as Felipe Garza started dating Donna Ashlock. Felipe was 15; Donna was 14. They dated steadily until Donna cooled the romance and began dating other boys. Even though Donna had ended the relationship -- for six months Felipe could not let his feelings fade.
While at work one day Donna doubled over in pain. Doctors soon discovered that she was dying of degenerative heart disease and desperately needed a heart transplant. Felipe heard about Donna's condition and told his mother, "I'm going to die, and I'm going to give my heart to Donna." Now, young people have been known to say "irrational" things from time to time, especially when they're in love. At any rate Felipe appeared to his mom to be in perfect health.
Three weeks later, however, Felipe woke up and complained of pain on the left side of his head. He began losing his breath and couldn't walk. He was taken to a hospital where it was discovered that a blood vessel in his brain had burst, soon leaving him brain dead!
Felipe's sudden death mystified his doctors. While he remained on a respirator, his family decided to let surgeons remove his heart for Donna and his kidneys and eyes for others.
Life is filled with mystery and Donna received Felipe's heart! After the transplant, Donna's father told her about Felipe's sudden death. In the following moments of silence, Donna, unsure until just then said, "And I have his heart." Her father said, "Yes, that is what he and his parents wanted."
Several days later, a funeral procession seemed to roll on forever through the orchards and fields of Patterson. The procession was so long it might have been for a senator or a prince, but instead it was for the young man who gave away his heart.
In John 12 we read of a young lover with a similar spirit (12:1-9).
As a young lover did you ever experience the impulse of "climb the highest mountain or swim the wildest river" or do something totally out of character like write poetry or a song? I hope you have felt those urges -- they are the spice and romance of life. But more to the point are you occasionally struck by an impulse to lavishly express your love for Jesus? Or is your spiritual life more of a business arrangement? Are you one of those who believes that religion should be "reasonable"? You are aware of the drawbacks and benefits, and it only makes sense to avoid the negatives as far as possible.
In this passage you and I discover that true love, whether it is romantic or spiritual, is smothered in a coldly calculating world of weights and measures, accountants and record keepers. By following the example of Mary, we can discover the joy of wasteful love.
From the accountant's perspective, Mary qualifies for the title of "The Prodigal Daughter" -- prodigal meaning "squanderer" or "one who is extravagantly wasteful." Judas saw a years wages spilled on the ground. Mary was the type who wouldn't even balance her checkbook until after the holidays. It might hamper her giving!
For well over a year Jesus had been predicting His own death. On His previous journey to Bethany for the purpose of raising Lazarus from the grave, Jesus said, "The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many." Jesus had told them in detail that He would "be betrayed into the hands of the chief priests . . . they would mock him . . . flog Him and kill Him" (Mark 10:33).
For whatever reason (we may never know) the majority of disciples did not get it. However, John gives clues that Mary was one disciple who did get it! In verse seven Jesus hints that Mary has believed Jesus' prediction of His death and had been saving this ointment for His burial. As the last week of Jesus' life was about to begin, He was, again, preparing His followers for the days of crisis. Unfortunately His teaching was not sinking in any better than it had before. But Mary could see that the time had come. In her heart now, she began to search for an expression of her loyalty and love.
Remembering the ointment for His burial, she acted on her desire to glorify Jesus before He died. For those without her insight, and from a human view, she was extravagant, overly generous, reckless and perhaps a little foolish. Yet when she looked at the person who was going to lay down His life for everyone, she knew that calculating how much devotion to show was not possible.
It was an outlandish display. But it was all love -- without an ounce of self interest. The Pharisees knew how to worship so that men were impressed. They gave their alms, and said their prayers and did their fasting with extravagant public appeal. But Mary's act of worship lacked any interest in her public image. It was all, it was only for Jesus.
In Palestine no respectable woman appeared in public with her hair unbound -- it would be comparable to an Afghan lady being without her burka. Mary was not thinking about herself. She was not concerned with what they might think of her love for Jesus. Why she used her hair, I don't know, but I'm sure this powerful aroma would cling to Jesus for several days, and now to Mary as well. She would for some time bear a reminder of her Master's sacrifice.
Regardless of "why", the principle she models is that true love is heedless of the crowd. Michal despised David's elaborate display of love for God. Job's friends came to detest his stubborn love for God. And Judas hated Mary. But Mary never gave their opinion a thought. Her focus was on Jesus, not the crowd or a set of regulations. True love does not diminish because of opposing opinions.
A second principle she models is that true love is sacrificial. By nature it is extravagant, generous and occasionally reckless. You might just dive into that wild river! Yet how many enter into the Christian faith like they would another business deal? They calculate the negatives: It might require some time, extra energy and perhaps some money. On the positive side, most of the people are friendly and there just might be a heaven and what if there really is a hell?
These kinds of Christians are not necessarily easy to spot. Remember that Judas kept his cover very well. But in their heart, they complain about how much money it takes to keep missionaries on the field. They get upset at the cost of adequate facilities for worship and training. Some even ask, "Why does a worship service have to interrupt the beginning of the football game?" For that matter, "Why does Sunday come once a week? Why not once a month?" After a while it does -- for them. These folks don't get real excited about letting their neighbors know they are Christians.
These are Christians who have entered into a nicely calculated business arrangement. They identify with Christ, just enough to "make it" - they hope. But, of course, they never know with certainty, so they are not really happy with the arrangement.
I believe the Marys of the faith are easier to pick out. Have you ever noticed how lovers seem to look for ways of sacrificing? They seem to go out of their way to enhance their relationship. They hold hands in public regardless of what other people think. They never feel like they have enough time or money to spend on the other person. Football games don't interfere. Sacrifice is actually fun! Where true love is present, sacrifice is the norm.
O. Henry illustrates this in one of my favorite short stories ever. It is pretty simple, that's why it appeals to me. It is titled "The Gift of the Magi". A young couple, Della and Jim, were very poor but very much in love. Each had one unique possession. Della's was her dazzling long, thick hair. When she let it down it could almost serve as a robe. Jim had a priceless gold watch, which had been his father's and before that his grandfather's. It was the day before Christmas, and Della had exactly $1.87 to buy Jim a present.
Her only option for getting more money was to sell her hair to a wig maker. With the money she bought Jim a platinum fob for his watch. When Jim came home that night and saw Della's cut hair, he stopped and stared in shock. It wasn't that she was less attractive. Part of his surprise was how beautiful she was without her hair.
Della, however, was on the verge of panic, not being able to interpret his stunned look. In her effort to explain, she made Jim open his gift early. Jim now was even more speechless, and to explain his pent up weakness gave Della his gift to her.
It was a set of expensive tortoiseshell combs with jeweled edges for her long hair - a set of combs that Della had been admiring for several months. The irony was . . .. Jim had sold his watch to afford them.
He sold his watch to buy combs for her hair; she sold her hair to buy a fob for his watch. It appears that each of them had sacrificed in vain. But did they? In the process of losing some "things", did they not gain more of each other? Isn't that what matters most with lovers?
Mary's heart recognized Jesus' impending death as an extravagant, lavish display of God's love. She knew what all lovers know by instinct: Heaven is not a place for the stingy economy of a nicely calculated business arrangement.
Nothing is less wasteful or more wonderful than offering Jesus a sacrificial token of loyalty and devotion, however costly that offering may be. Young lovers of Jesus know this; their impulse is to waste their lives for Him. However, it was to a group of old timers that Jesus said, "I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first" (Revelation 2:4,5).
These up coming holy days can be a time to fall in love with Jesus all over again.l Life may not be able to sustain itself in the frenzy of fresh love (except perhaps in Heaven), but there is never room for cold calculations of assets and debits in any kind of real love. How warm is your love for Jesus?
Thursday, November 18, 2010
What is Your Family Character?
October 16, 1994
What were the most important values or convictions in the home that you grew up in? Sometimes these values are communicated through favorite family slogans: stupid is as stupid does; waste not want not; a penny saved is a penny earned... Sometimes these values were emphasized through repeated lectures and modeling.
Some theme will surface after 20 years in the same family. What were prominent principles that came out of your family?
Looking back on my growing up years I recall some lessons that were taught in a graphic fashion. For one, my dad hated the thought of wasting food. I remember more than once my dad cleaning out the
refrigerator by pulling out the leftover dishes that had begun to mold- scraping it off and eating the remainder so that it wouldn't be "thrown out."
I also was taught that the least hint of boasting was horrible. It was more appropriate to talk about failures than successes. Dad had a very high regard for honesty. Being truthful ,even when it hurt, was the first sign of real manhood. My parents also modeled the concept that, ultimately, the only thing that made real sense in life was serving God.
The point of all this is to remind ourselves that the home and family is the first place where values are communicated and taught. It happens whether you plan for it to happen or not. It is not unusual for the unplanned moments to have a bigger impact than the infamous family lectures.
The question for each of us is this: What are the dominant values you are communicating? Or, what are the dominant values you will want your life to communicate? Some of us are at a transition point. Maybe you feel your parents have blown it. Unfortunately, most of us have, but what are your plans to make your family experience better? How will you teach your children better values?
The challenge for today's family and future families is the same: Let's be intentional in the choice of values we pass on. I have four values for you to think about. Perhaps after you have thought about them, they would at least be contenders for your own list of family values.
My number one is desire for everyone in my family to come to know, love, and serve Jesus in a personal, sold-out way. I do no mean that I want my family to be "religious". Some religious rituals are very important and are a way of encouraging a relationship with Jesus, but if the relationship has not come first, the religious activities are sterile and lifeless. Going to church every week to impress God or a person is stupid; going to experience the spirit of Jesus and express your love to God makes all the sense in the world.
Religion is not my first value- knowing Jesus is. Until the members of my family love Jesus, they will be living without His strength, without His wisdom, without His peace. They will be living without dozens of privileges that come with knowing Jesus.
Then there's the question: If Jesus is not their supreme value, who or what is? Whoever or whatever that value is will diminish them, set them up for a horrible crash. To avoid this, the Bible says, "Bring (your children) up in the training and instruction of the Lord." Help them discover that following Jesus should be their number one value.
A second principle I want my family to discover is the value of building and rebuilding significant relationships. Life is one long series of relationships, starting with the family, school, work/career,
neighborhood, church. Relationship skills require significant nurture.
I want my family to know that relationships are not disposable. Certainly they can and do breakdown. Part of the answer is good communication and following God's direction. For example, Matthew 5:23 gives direction for the occasion when you realize you've hurt a brother or sister, and Matthew 18:15 gives direction for those occasions when they've hurt you.
If we use the two greatest commandments as a guide, then teaching your family to value first their relationship with God, and then their relationships with others should be priorities one and two.
Along this line I feel it is important, wherever we can, to choose relationships carefully. II Corinthians 6:14 says, "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For...what fellowship can light have with darkness?" Almost every single person I know hates this verse. It cuts thousands from the field of marriageable candidates down to only a handful. Why would God be so spiteful? (Could it be He understands marriage?)
In a marriage where one spouse is Christian and the other is not, you have a situation that would be like two foremen on the same construction site working with completely different blue prints. They would never get past arguing over how to build the foundation.
So let's say the Christian gets weary and gives up his or her spiritual convictions in order to be compatible. That is comparable to a couple thinking they're in love, but one has AIDS. So in a romantic notion of self sacrifice, the healthy one convinces the other to go ahead with the marriage and take no precautions against the disease, knowing he or she too will get AIDS. The romance of that decision wears off when the symptoms begin to wreak their havoc!
I want my family to know the value of building significant relationships- how to choose correctly and how to reconcile wisely.
A third conviction I want my family to understand and experience is the value of character development. Today success and performance for profit value is seen as all-important. The unspoken value that is being spoken more often is "whatever it takes, succeed." I want to know who's saying, "It matters how you play the game." Who is beating the character drum? Are employers, or coaches, or fans, or even parents?
It turns out that character development is a family function. Proverbs 13:24 says, "He who spares the rod hates his child, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him." An accurate paraphrase would go like this, "He who neglects the job of developing character does not love his children."
Do you want your children to be people of honor, to live with self-discipline and self-control, to have respect for proper authorities? Then these traits must be taught. Heredity does not equip a child with proper attitudes. Instructive discipline is not something you do to a child, it is something you do for them. Children are not born with character (Christians aren't even reborn with mature character). It must be taught.
Do parents who are concerned about character development for their children write notes to school for excusing absences, cover for late assignments, or get them off traffic violations? Do these parents pay their children's fines for them so they never experience the consequences of wrong actions? This always comes back to haunt parents. Loyalty, honesty, and self-discipline are virtues worth developing. However, if families don't make these values priorities, they won't happen.
The fourth principle I would like you to ponder is the value of peak performance in a worthwhile endeavor. Colossians 3:23 says, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for man." Can we bring the value of peak performance to our family?
Commitment and dedication are being ridiculed unless they are related to monetary or worldly success. Why is it, all our best ideas and efforts are reserved for the market place or worldly success. The world says you've got to be some kind of fanatic if your best efforts are offered to family and Jesus.
Certainly any endeavor that is wroth doing is worth your best effort. God made you a multi-dimensional being with unique talents and gifts. The only way to enjoy these talents completely is through a maximum effort.
These four values: Jesus, relationships, character development, and peak performance- are only representative of a possible list for your family. Once challenge for you is to come up with your own list of values, and then the bigger challenge would be to instill them. It might be worth having a family meeting to discuss what your dominant values are and what you would like them to be for your family.
What were the most important values or convictions in the home that you grew up in? Sometimes these values are communicated through favorite family slogans: stupid is as stupid does; waste not want not; a penny saved is a penny earned... Sometimes these values were emphasized through repeated lectures and modeling.
Some theme will surface after 20 years in the same family. What were prominent principles that came out of your family?
Looking back on my growing up years I recall some lessons that were taught in a graphic fashion. For one, my dad hated the thought of wasting food. I remember more than once my dad cleaning out the
refrigerator by pulling out the leftover dishes that had begun to mold- scraping it off and eating the remainder so that it wouldn't be "thrown out."
I also was taught that the least hint of boasting was horrible. It was more appropriate to talk about failures than successes. Dad had a very high regard for honesty. Being truthful ,even when it hurt, was the first sign of real manhood. My parents also modeled the concept that, ultimately, the only thing that made real sense in life was serving God.
The point of all this is to remind ourselves that the home and family is the first place where values are communicated and taught. It happens whether you plan for it to happen or not. It is not unusual for the unplanned moments to have a bigger impact than the infamous family lectures.
The question for each of us is this: What are the dominant values you are communicating? Or, what are the dominant values you will want your life to communicate? Some of us are at a transition point. Maybe you feel your parents have blown it. Unfortunately, most of us have, but what are your plans to make your family experience better? How will you teach your children better values?
The challenge for today's family and future families is the same: Let's be intentional in the choice of values we pass on. I have four values for you to think about. Perhaps after you have thought about them, they would at least be contenders for your own list of family values.
My number one is desire for everyone in my family to come to know, love, and serve Jesus in a personal, sold-out way. I do no mean that I want my family to be "religious". Some religious rituals are very important and are a way of encouraging a relationship with Jesus, but if the relationship has not come first, the religious activities are sterile and lifeless. Going to church every week to impress God or a person is stupid; going to experience the spirit of Jesus and express your love to God makes all the sense in the world.
Religion is not my first value- knowing Jesus is. Until the members of my family love Jesus, they will be living without His strength, without His wisdom, without His peace. They will be living without dozens of privileges that come with knowing Jesus.
Then there's the question: If Jesus is not their supreme value, who or what is? Whoever or whatever that value is will diminish them, set them up for a horrible crash. To avoid this, the Bible says, "Bring (your children) up in the training and instruction of the Lord." Help them discover that following Jesus should be their number one value.
A second principle I want my family to discover is the value of building and rebuilding significant relationships. Life is one long series of relationships, starting with the family, school, work/career,
neighborhood, church. Relationship skills require significant nurture.
I want my family to know that relationships are not disposable. Certainly they can and do breakdown. Part of the answer is good communication and following God's direction. For example, Matthew 5:23 gives direction for the occasion when you realize you've hurt a brother or sister, and Matthew 18:15 gives direction for those occasions when they've hurt you.
If we use the two greatest commandments as a guide, then teaching your family to value first their relationship with God, and then their relationships with others should be priorities one and two.
Along this line I feel it is important, wherever we can, to choose relationships carefully. II Corinthians 6:14 says, "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For...what fellowship can light have with darkness?" Almost every single person I know hates this verse. It cuts thousands from the field of marriageable candidates down to only a handful. Why would God be so spiteful? (Could it be He understands marriage?)
In a marriage where one spouse is Christian and the other is not, you have a situation that would be like two foremen on the same construction site working with completely different blue prints. They would never get past arguing over how to build the foundation.
So let's say the Christian gets weary and gives up his or her spiritual convictions in order to be compatible. That is comparable to a couple thinking they're in love, but one has AIDS. So in a romantic notion of self sacrifice, the healthy one convinces the other to go ahead with the marriage and take no precautions against the disease, knowing he or she too will get AIDS. The romance of that decision wears off when the symptoms begin to wreak their havoc!
I want my family to know the value of building significant relationships- how to choose correctly and how to reconcile wisely.
A third conviction I want my family to understand and experience is the value of character development. Today success and performance for profit value is seen as all-important. The unspoken value that is being spoken more often is "whatever it takes, succeed." I want to know who's saying, "It matters how you play the game." Who is beating the character drum? Are employers, or coaches, or fans, or even parents?
It turns out that character development is a family function. Proverbs 13:24 says, "He who spares the rod hates his child, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him." An accurate paraphrase would go like this, "He who neglects the job of developing character does not love his children."
Do you want your children to be people of honor, to live with self-discipline and self-control, to have respect for proper authorities? Then these traits must be taught. Heredity does not equip a child with proper attitudes. Instructive discipline is not something you do to a child, it is something you do for them. Children are not born with character (Christians aren't even reborn with mature character). It must be taught.
Do parents who are concerned about character development for their children write notes to school for excusing absences, cover for late assignments, or get them off traffic violations? Do these parents pay their children's fines for them so they never experience the consequences of wrong actions? This always comes back to haunt parents. Loyalty, honesty, and self-discipline are virtues worth developing. However, if families don't make these values priorities, they won't happen.
The fourth principle I would like you to ponder is the value of peak performance in a worthwhile endeavor. Colossians 3:23 says, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for man." Can we bring the value of peak performance to our family?
Commitment and dedication are being ridiculed unless they are related to monetary or worldly success. Why is it, all our best ideas and efforts are reserved for the market place or worldly success. The world says you've got to be some kind of fanatic if your best efforts are offered to family and Jesus.
Certainly any endeavor that is wroth doing is worth your best effort. God made you a multi-dimensional being with unique talents and gifts. The only way to enjoy these talents completely is through a maximum effort.
These four values: Jesus, relationships, character development, and peak performance- are only representative of a possible list for your family. Once challenge for you is to come up with your own list of values, and then the bigger challenge would be to instill them. It might be worth having a family meeting to discuss what your dominant values are and what you would like them to be for your family.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Refuge and Healing
October 1994
St Michael's Monastery in San Christo, Portugal is perched high on a three hundred foot cliff. You can only reach the monastery by a terrifying ride on a swaying basket that is pulled up by a single rope as several of the sturdy Brothers strain and pull together. One American tourist got nervous about half way up the cliff. He looked down and noticed something he had not seen when he had stepped into the basket. He thought that the rope looked old and a little frayed. So he asked, "How often do you change the rope?" The monk who was in charge said, "Whenever it breaks."
The American home seems to be in that same kind of precarious situation! The basket is swaying, the rope is frayed and pulling apart. Down below we see a lot of wreckage from previous falls. According to a study completed at the University of Rhode Island, the home is a dangerous place to be -- the most dangerous place to be outside of riots and wars. This study indicates that no less than thirty percent of all American couples experience some form of domestic violence in their lifetime. This helps explain why twenty percent of all police officers killed in the line of duty are killed while answering calls involving family fights. Up to fifteen million women are battered every year in our nation. No one knows how many children are battered and abused. We just know the figures are on the increase (editors note: and this was written in 1994!).
The crippling psychological damage is beyond comprehension. The tragedy is that we tend to pass on to our children the very hurt and pain that we have received. The abused child grows to be a child abuser; the child whose self esteem has been devastated tends to be the kind of parent who devastates and destroys the self esteem of his or her children. It is clear there is a bondage to the negative that enslaves and embitters millions of children, youth and adults. Many homes resemble a battlefield.
This morning I want to talk about some issues close to the heart of every parent. The Bible tells us that God intended for the home to be a place of health and healing. It should be a safe haven in the dangerous world. It should never be a place of fear or the source of hurting. Some of God's most explicit directives are intended to safeguard the institution of the home. For example: The command to honor your parents, and the command against adultery (Exodus 20). Or the warning to parents about embittering their children in Colossians 3:21. Or the warnings about failing to teach and failing to discipline our children - these and many more instructions represent God's intention to guard the home.
This morning we will look at God's intention for the home from two angles: First, the home as a place of health, and second, the home as a place of healing. If it is to be a healthy place someone must be in charge of healthy living. If it is to be a place of healing, again, someone must have a strategy for healing the traumas we encounter. In both instances, parents are given primary responsibility.
If physical health is a major concern, a strategy of prevention is the key. Statistically the three most effective things you can do to live long and enjoy life are : 1) never smoke; 2) never mix drinking and driving; and 3) always wear a seat belt. If you add to these three ingredients a good diet, exercise, personal hygiene and up dated vaccinations, you've done just about everything you can do. You might want to throw in avoiding illegal activities such as drug running and drive by shootings.
If spiritual health in the home is a major concern, the three most effective things that should be done are for parents to once again become responsible for: 1) the moral education of their children, 2) using the Bible as their curriculum, and 3) seeing the world as their classroom.
Moses instructed parents concerning God's commandments, "Impress them on your children" (Deuteronomy 6:7). Solomon told parents, "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6). Paul exhorted Ephesian fathers to "Bring your children up in the training and instruction of the Lord" (Ephesians 6:4).
The hard part is that the Bible does not allow believing parents the privilege of delegating the moral instruction of their children -- not to Sunday School teachers, not to Christian schools, not even to youth pastors! You are responsible to be involved first hand! The good news is if you get involved you will learn a great deal.
If Christian parents are the teachers, then the curriculum is the Bible. You may have noticed, the Bible is a big book -- you will never master it, certainly you can't expect your family to do so either. So what specific ideas are you going to etch into their minds? You may need to concentrate on some main ideas. Admittedly what I am going to share with you is subjective. You may have your own list but these are three Biblical issues I feel are important. I want my family to master these concepts: 1) Christianity is a relationship; 2) serving Jesus is the most satisfying thing a person can do; and 3) obeying Jesus leads to a blessed life. Just as a note, "blessed" does not always equal prosperous.
Too many people are confused into thinking that Christianity is a moral code with good habits such as church attendance. No way! It is a relationship with Jesus, filled with conversation and companionship. Don't blow it here! Christianity is a relationship with Jesus. It is not a set of rituals and rules. This kind of thinking leads to chronic anger and feeling that "I can never be good enough." The second thing I would like to do is spare my family from wasting their lives searching for the one satisfying thing -- it is only Jesus, not awards, toys and thrills! Finally, I want them to know that obeying God pays rich rewards. I want them to know that the restrictions we find in God's Word have very good explanations. If we hear God out, we discover that His commands come from His wisdom and His love for us. They're not a way for God to throw His weight around. Our children need to know God's commands are evidence of His love.
If parents are the teacher and the Bible is the curriculum - then the classroom is the world. Moses said in regard to teaching God's Word to our children, "Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up" (Deuteronomy 6:7).
This is the same method Jesus used. When He began His ministry, He called twelve men to follow Him. He called them to "hang out with Me, ask questions, interact, challenge." After three years of companionship He left them powerfully marked.
Jesus' method has never been improved upon. If you have children hang out with you beyond the TV, they will see how you relate to God, use your talents and gifts, obey God and find satisfaction in serving Him -- or something else.
If you take responsibility for the moral instuction of your children, if you use the Bible for your curriculum, and the world for your classroom, you will have gone a long way toward insuring the spiritual health of your home.
But what happens if someone gets hurt anyway? Even wearing a seat belt doesn't always prevent serious injury. The best of homes experience close calls in parenting. Perhaps exhausted and frustrated, a parent attacks a child's self esteem -- now what do we do? What if the children just rebel?
Certainly, we must learn to ask forgiveness and bear each others burdens. But beyond that the home needs three elements to bring healing: 1) attentive healers, 2) a co-operative patient, and 3) a helpful atmosphere for healing.
Attentive healers have first been healed by Jesus, then they have been trained in what to do. Typically, in a crisis, parents feel unqualified. But today there is an abundance of training material for parents to become qualified. Dr Dobson's books Dare to Discipline, Preparing for Adolescence, etc are a good place to start.
Besides being a lifetime learner, a good healer will be accessible. Ephesians 6:4 warns ". . . do not exasperate or embitter your children." What is it that embitters? We might be surprised at what research is showing. It would appear that right now absentee parents embitter more than anything else.
A very surprising statistic is being studied by economists. The fastest growing family unit in the USA is the single income home -- not the single parent home. Statistics from the US Bureau of Labor indicate that women of child bearing age have been leaving their jobs and returning home in significant numbers. The biggest change is among young, married women ages 20 to 24. (Barrows, Wall Street Journal, "Working Woman".)
The explanation for this is more complicated than we have time to go into, however, one commentator writes, "Boomer women (1946-64) saw their 50's moms trapped at home; Busters (1965-77) see themselves or their friends as victims of parental neglect; a whopping forty percent were raised by divorced or separated parents."
It would seem we have raised a generation of exasperated and embittered children, made so by absentee parents pursuing career and wealth. An encouraging trend with the newer generation is that they value relationships higher than careers and material things!
That is good because if parents are going to have a part in healing trauma they must be accessible! Certainly, there must also be a co-operative patient. Why is it that some wounded family members refuse to step up for treatment? Perhaps because of their immaturity they have a hard time putting feelings into words, or knowing that principles are more important than feelings. Perhaps the issue is embarrassment: Maybe they've tried and felt neglected.
Without becoming the Gestapo, parents need to find out what causes wounded children to stay away from help. Eventually we may have to let go and learn to pray.
Finally, we must examine our home for regular opportunities for healing. If your home were a trauma center, what are the office hours? When can a family member comfortably step up and say, "I have a problem"?
In that regard: It is important to have meals where conversation is unhurried. Obviously not every meal, maybe not even every evening meal, but several meals a week should not be unusual to have the TV and phone off. With younger children bed time should be guarded. Take regular walks, bike rides, dates, (and my personal favorite) vacations -- long vacations!
We also need to be committed to the long haul. Even a year or two of rejection does not have to be the last chapter: Be patient, commit to the principles.
Families following Jesus will provide healthy homes, and even when trauma does happen, they will be places of healing, places where burdens are shared and bonds are built, not broken.
Homes can be healing places when:
1) Parents learn Christian principles about the home
2) They encourage openness, and
3) They have regular office hours.
St Michael's Monastery in San Christo, Portugal is perched high on a three hundred foot cliff. You can only reach the monastery by a terrifying ride on a swaying basket that is pulled up by a single rope as several of the sturdy Brothers strain and pull together. One American tourist got nervous about half way up the cliff. He looked down and noticed something he had not seen when he had stepped into the basket. He thought that the rope looked old and a little frayed. So he asked, "How often do you change the rope?" The monk who was in charge said, "Whenever it breaks."
The American home seems to be in that same kind of precarious situation! The basket is swaying, the rope is frayed and pulling apart. Down below we see a lot of wreckage from previous falls. According to a study completed at the University of Rhode Island, the home is a dangerous place to be -- the most dangerous place to be outside of riots and wars. This study indicates that no less than thirty percent of all American couples experience some form of domestic violence in their lifetime. This helps explain why twenty percent of all police officers killed in the line of duty are killed while answering calls involving family fights. Up to fifteen million women are battered every year in our nation. No one knows how many children are battered and abused. We just know the figures are on the increase (editors note: and this was written in 1994!).
The crippling psychological damage is beyond comprehension. The tragedy is that we tend to pass on to our children the very hurt and pain that we have received. The abused child grows to be a child abuser; the child whose self esteem has been devastated tends to be the kind of parent who devastates and destroys the self esteem of his or her children. It is clear there is a bondage to the negative that enslaves and embitters millions of children, youth and adults. Many homes resemble a battlefield.
This morning I want to talk about some issues close to the heart of every parent. The Bible tells us that God intended for the home to be a place of health and healing. It should be a safe haven in the dangerous world. It should never be a place of fear or the source of hurting. Some of God's most explicit directives are intended to safeguard the institution of the home. For example: The command to honor your parents, and the command against adultery (Exodus 20). Or the warning to parents about embittering their children in Colossians 3:21. Or the warnings about failing to teach and failing to discipline our children - these and many more instructions represent God's intention to guard the home.
This morning we will look at God's intention for the home from two angles: First, the home as a place of health, and second, the home as a place of healing. If it is to be a healthy place someone must be in charge of healthy living. If it is to be a place of healing, again, someone must have a strategy for healing the traumas we encounter. In both instances, parents are given primary responsibility.
If physical health is a major concern, a strategy of prevention is the key. Statistically the three most effective things you can do to live long and enjoy life are : 1) never smoke; 2) never mix drinking and driving; and 3) always wear a seat belt. If you add to these three ingredients a good diet, exercise, personal hygiene and up dated vaccinations, you've done just about everything you can do. You might want to throw in avoiding illegal activities such as drug running and drive by shootings.
If spiritual health in the home is a major concern, the three most effective things that should be done are for parents to once again become responsible for: 1) the moral education of their children, 2) using the Bible as their curriculum, and 3) seeing the world as their classroom.
Moses instructed parents concerning God's commandments, "Impress them on your children" (Deuteronomy 6:7). Solomon told parents, "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6). Paul exhorted Ephesian fathers to "Bring your children up in the training and instruction of the Lord" (Ephesians 6:4).
The hard part is that the Bible does not allow believing parents the privilege of delegating the moral instruction of their children -- not to Sunday School teachers, not to Christian schools, not even to youth pastors! You are responsible to be involved first hand! The good news is if you get involved you will learn a great deal.
If Christian parents are the teachers, then the curriculum is the Bible. You may have noticed, the Bible is a big book -- you will never master it, certainly you can't expect your family to do so either. So what specific ideas are you going to etch into their minds? You may need to concentrate on some main ideas. Admittedly what I am going to share with you is subjective. You may have your own list but these are three Biblical issues I feel are important. I want my family to master these concepts: 1) Christianity is a relationship; 2) serving Jesus is the most satisfying thing a person can do; and 3) obeying Jesus leads to a blessed life. Just as a note, "blessed" does not always equal prosperous.
Too many people are confused into thinking that Christianity is a moral code with good habits such as church attendance. No way! It is a relationship with Jesus, filled with conversation and companionship. Don't blow it here! Christianity is a relationship with Jesus. It is not a set of rituals and rules. This kind of thinking leads to chronic anger and feeling that "I can never be good enough." The second thing I would like to do is spare my family from wasting their lives searching for the one satisfying thing -- it is only Jesus, not awards, toys and thrills! Finally, I want them to know that obeying God pays rich rewards. I want them to know that the restrictions we find in God's Word have very good explanations. If we hear God out, we discover that His commands come from His wisdom and His love for us. They're not a way for God to throw His weight around. Our children need to know God's commands are evidence of His love.
If parents are the teacher and the Bible is the curriculum - then the classroom is the world. Moses said in regard to teaching God's Word to our children, "Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up" (Deuteronomy 6:7).
This is the same method Jesus used. When He began His ministry, He called twelve men to follow Him. He called them to "hang out with Me, ask questions, interact, challenge." After three years of companionship He left them powerfully marked.
Jesus' method has never been improved upon. If you have children hang out with you beyond the TV, they will see how you relate to God, use your talents and gifts, obey God and find satisfaction in serving Him -- or something else.
If you take responsibility for the moral instuction of your children, if you use the Bible for your curriculum, and the world for your classroom, you will have gone a long way toward insuring the spiritual health of your home.
But what happens if someone gets hurt anyway? Even wearing a seat belt doesn't always prevent serious injury. The best of homes experience close calls in parenting. Perhaps exhausted and frustrated, a parent attacks a child's self esteem -- now what do we do? What if the children just rebel?
Certainly, we must learn to ask forgiveness and bear each others burdens. But beyond that the home needs three elements to bring healing: 1) attentive healers, 2) a co-operative patient, and 3) a helpful atmosphere for healing.
Attentive healers have first been healed by Jesus, then they have been trained in what to do. Typically, in a crisis, parents feel unqualified. But today there is an abundance of training material for parents to become qualified. Dr Dobson's books Dare to Discipline, Preparing for Adolescence, etc are a good place to start.
Besides being a lifetime learner, a good healer will be accessible. Ephesians 6:4 warns ". . . do not exasperate or embitter your children." What is it that embitters? We might be surprised at what research is showing. It would appear that right now absentee parents embitter more than anything else.
A very surprising statistic is being studied by economists. The fastest growing family unit in the USA is the single income home -- not the single parent home. Statistics from the US Bureau of Labor indicate that women of child bearing age have been leaving their jobs and returning home in significant numbers. The biggest change is among young, married women ages 20 to 24. (Barrows, Wall Street Journal, "Working Woman".)
The explanation for this is more complicated than we have time to go into, however, one commentator writes, "Boomer women (1946-64) saw their 50's moms trapped at home; Busters (1965-77) see themselves or their friends as victims of parental neglect; a whopping forty percent were raised by divorced or separated parents."
It would seem we have raised a generation of exasperated and embittered children, made so by absentee parents pursuing career and wealth. An encouraging trend with the newer generation is that they value relationships higher than careers and material things!
That is good because if parents are going to have a part in healing trauma they must be accessible! Certainly, there must also be a co-operative patient. Why is it that some wounded family members refuse to step up for treatment? Perhaps because of their immaturity they have a hard time putting feelings into words, or knowing that principles are more important than feelings. Perhaps the issue is embarrassment: Maybe they've tried and felt neglected.
Without becoming the Gestapo, parents need to find out what causes wounded children to stay away from help. Eventually we may have to let go and learn to pray.
Finally, we must examine our home for regular opportunities for healing. If your home were a trauma center, what are the office hours? When can a family member comfortably step up and say, "I have a problem"?
In that regard: It is important to have meals where conversation is unhurried. Obviously not every meal, maybe not even every evening meal, but several meals a week should not be unusual to have the TV and phone off. With younger children bed time should be guarded. Take regular walks, bike rides, dates, (and my personal favorite) vacations -- long vacations!
We also need to be committed to the long haul. Even a year or two of rejection does not have to be the last chapter: Be patient, commit to the principles.
Families following Jesus will provide healthy homes, and even when trauma does happen, they will be places of healing, places where burdens are shared and bonds are built, not broken.
Homes can be healing places when:
1) Parents learn Christian principles about the home
2) They encourage openness, and
3) They have regular office hours.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
A Heart of Gratitude
Thanksgiving 2003
If I were Paul writing my memoirs I would've included Acts 13:8-12 (sorcerer - down!); or Acts 16:18 (fortune teller - exorcised!); or Acts 16:26 (jail break!). We only know these stories because of Luke.
When Paul looked back on his missionary career he listed some of the significant events, such as his stays in prison, the times he was flogged (five times by lash and three times by rod), when he was stoned, shipwrecked (three times) and betrayed by a false brother on several occasions.
I'm thinking if anyone has the credentials to write a statement like I Thessalonians, it is Paul. He said, "Give thanks in all circumstances (not for them), for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." Paul was not a masochist. And he wasn't writing a Thanksgiving sermon. He did not thank God FOR the flogging - but he allowed gratitude to bubble back to the surface of his heart when the pain gave his mind room to think.
This passage challenges each of us to understand that even serious griefs and aggravations are temporary in the context of God's over all plan for our spiritual well being. No matter how bad circumstances become, we can be grateful and confident that Satan has not blind-sided God. For the follower of Jesus there is always one issue more significant than life or death. Your relationship with Jesus tomorrow is more important than whether you live or die today.
Unless life makes a radical change, or you move to Utopia, circumstances will eventually become grim. I trust you are living in the glow of a recent success and I hope that glow lasts a long time. But the light will eventually dim and the shadows of the enemy will start dancing on the walls of your safest room, your sanctuary. At that point, the way back to fresh victory is by re-establishing a heart of gratitude to God for what He has done.
King Jehoshaphat had been energetically doing God's will. And enjoying some success. He had diligently been re-establishing a proper respect for God and justice in Judah. He might've expected some help from God. At the beginning of 2 Chronicles 20 it appears that the king is not going to get that help. It appears circumstances are pointing to disaster.
Read 2 Chronicles 20:1-30
If you had an enemy closing in on you, what song would you sing? I don't know all the words but "Raindrops Keep Fall'n on My Head" sounds appropriate. When a vast army is coming to pillage my home and dance on my grave, the doxology does not immediately spring to mind.
Jehoshaphat is naturally alarmed. But he calls a congregational meeting and they go to prayer. They remember God's faithfulness in Joshua's day. They confess their weakness and they ask for help.
The enemy of your soul wants to use adversity to drive you away from God. Truth be told, he wants to crush you up into his own version of a protein drink and devour you as calories for his ravenous ego. Satan doesn't feed his stomach, he feeds his ego and you're his favorite meal. But before he can do that he has to put a wedge between you and God. So with every crisis he whispers that God has mistreated you: "If God were good this horrible thing would never have happened."
The facts of the matter are never fully put forward. In some cases we may be completely to blame, but we still blame God for not "catching us" after we got drunk and drove the car into the canal.
At times we are relatively innocent but the drunk in the other car runs us into the canal, and instead of holding them responsible we blame God. "If God were so wise, why did He give that idiot freewill?" Forgetting how often that idiot is us. . . well, probably not you.
The point is, adversity presents a temptation to slander God. At that moment a heart of gratitude to Jesus defeats Satan just when he thinks he is strongest. In Jehoshaphat's day the people of God overcame the enemy by committing themselves - even in the storm - to being a worshipping community.
Their fight song (battle cry) became "Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever," through sickness, loss, good health, success. "Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever." Notre Dame will probably keep theirs -- but that is their problem.
Where is your biggest battle right now? Can you picture the enemy puffing himself up at your weakness? Getting excited about your adversity? Try the fight song once more: "Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever." The enemy thinks that you are ready to give up! Just say it again with a little more conviction.
We like to think that when we sign up to be on God's side our dreams and plans take "ten giant steps forward" and we're almost across the finish line in the game of "Mother May I."
Faith is a forward journey, for sure, but rarely do we see more than one step at a time. And faith always includes risk. "Harmless risk" is an oxymoron. If there is no potential harm, there is no real risk, and no heroes of the faith.
We can be certain that when we are on God's side the final chapter will be victorious. The last chapter in God's book tells us about a new city, and the river of life and the reversal of sin's curse and the bright presence of Jesus. And every committed follower gets to share in that victory. But we should never presume that because the last chapter is such a wonderful success that each chapter between now and then will be equally delicious.
If you need a miracle on this side of heaven, it is because you are in a bad way. We all want miracles, but we try as hard as we can to avoid needing one. Only sick people need healing.
Only the person with puss infected sores and body parts so eaten away with leprosy that the next time he picks up a piece of wood for the fire he'll lose a finger is the person who needs the healing touch of Jesus. It would've been awesome to have been the person who experienced the power of Jesus restoring two dead legs. The downside is that your legs had to die first: No walking, running, climbing, playing, dancing!
In the mean time, the time before the miracle, the time when the path is dark and your steps are motivated only by faith -- in that time know this: God did not send the dark, but He will use it to shape your character in profound ways.
The information in God's Word is given for the purpose of transforming your heart. Faith is informed by the Word of God and when information has done its transforming work, you are ready to walk into the dark places.
Every leader of warriors has learned that victory is on the other side of (in Churchill's words) "blood, toil, tears and sweat." Or in Garibaldi's words, "Hunger, thirst, forced marches, battles, and death." Victory is through the dark.
Jesus knew that victory was on the other side of the cross. "And for the joy set before Him He endured the cross" (Hebrews 12:12). Jesus has been to the darkest places a man can go. He has faced the most ferocious enemy a person can battle. He has experienced the deepest humiliations. And He has won.
And by faith in Him He will share the victory with you. The steps may be dark, the threats may be loud, but His presence will be your guide and counselor. So when you hear reports of an approaching enemy with a vast army you can remember where Jesus has been and how He has been victorious. You can join a worshipping community that precedes Jehoshaphat, and that community will continue on after you have found your rest. Today you can sing, "Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever."
A day is coming when you will join a throng of people starting at Adam and including your distant grandchildren, and angels that so impressed John the Revelator that he recorded the impact of that victory song this way:
"Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude,
like the roar of rushing waters
and like peals of thunder, shouting:
Hallelujah!
For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him glory!"
(Revelation 19:6,7)
"Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever!"
If I were Paul writing my memoirs I would've included Acts 13:8-12 (sorcerer - down!); or Acts 16:18 (fortune teller - exorcised!); or Acts 16:26 (jail break!). We only know these stories because of Luke.
When Paul looked back on his missionary career he listed some of the significant events, such as his stays in prison, the times he was flogged (five times by lash and three times by rod), when he was stoned, shipwrecked (three times) and betrayed by a false brother on several occasions.
I'm thinking if anyone has the credentials to write a statement like I Thessalonians, it is Paul. He said, "Give thanks in all circumstances (not for them), for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." Paul was not a masochist. And he wasn't writing a Thanksgiving sermon. He did not thank God FOR the flogging - but he allowed gratitude to bubble back to the surface of his heart when the pain gave his mind room to think.
This passage challenges each of us to understand that even serious griefs and aggravations are temporary in the context of God's over all plan for our spiritual well being. No matter how bad circumstances become, we can be grateful and confident that Satan has not blind-sided God. For the follower of Jesus there is always one issue more significant than life or death. Your relationship with Jesus tomorrow is more important than whether you live or die today.
Unless life makes a radical change, or you move to Utopia, circumstances will eventually become grim. I trust you are living in the glow of a recent success and I hope that glow lasts a long time. But the light will eventually dim and the shadows of the enemy will start dancing on the walls of your safest room, your sanctuary. At that point, the way back to fresh victory is by re-establishing a heart of gratitude to God for what He has done.
King Jehoshaphat had been energetically doing God's will. And enjoying some success. He had diligently been re-establishing a proper respect for God and justice in Judah. He might've expected some help from God. At the beginning of 2 Chronicles 20 it appears that the king is not going to get that help. It appears circumstances are pointing to disaster.
Read 2 Chronicles 20:1-30
If you had an enemy closing in on you, what song would you sing? I don't know all the words but "Raindrops Keep Fall'n on My Head" sounds appropriate. When a vast army is coming to pillage my home and dance on my grave, the doxology does not immediately spring to mind.
Jehoshaphat is naturally alarmed. But he calls a congregational meeting and they go to prayer. They remember God's faithfulness in Joshua's day. They confess their weakness and they ask for help.
The enemy of your soul wants to use adversity to drive you away from God. Truth be told, he wants to crush you up into his own version of a protein drink and devour you as calories for his ravenous ego. Satan doesn't feed his stomach, he feeds his ego and you're his favorite meal. But before he can do that he has to put a wedge between you and God. So with every crisis he whispers that God has mistreated you: "If God were good this horrible thing would never have happened."
The facts of the matter are never fully put forward. In some cases we may be completely to blame, but we still blame God for not "catching us" after we got drunk and drove the car into the canal.
At times we are relatively innocent but the drunk in the other car runs us into the canal, and instead of holding them responsible we blame God. "If God were so wise, why did He give that idiot freewill?" Forgetting how often that idiot is us. . . well, probably not you.
The point is, adversity presents a temptation to slander God. At that moment a heart of gratitude to Jesus defeats Satan just when he thinks he is strongest. In Jehoshaphat's day the people of God overcame the enemy by committing themselves - even in the storm - to being a worshipping community.
Their fight song (battle cry) became "Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever," through sickness, loss, good health, success. "Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever." Notre Dame will probably keep theirs -- but that is their problem.
Where is your biggest battle right now? Can you picture the enemy puffing himself up at your weakness? Getting excited about your adversity? Try the fight song once more: "Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever." The enemy thinks that you are ready to give up! Just say it again with a little more conviction.
We like to think that when we sign up to be on God's side our dreams and plans take "ten giant steps forward" and we're almost across the finish line in the game of "Mother May I."
Faith is a forward journey, for sure, but rarely do we see more than one step at a time. And faith always includes risk. "Harmless risk" is an oxymoron. If there is no potential harm, there is no real risk, and no heroes of the faith.
We can be certain that when we are on God's side the final chapter will be victorious. The last chapter in God's book tells us about a new city, and the river of life and the reversal of sin's curse and the bright presence of Jesus. And every committed follower gets to share in that victory. But we should never presume that because the last chapter is such a wonderful success that each chapter between now and then will be equally delicious.
If you need a miracle on this side of heaven, it is because you are in a bad way. We all want miracles, but we try as hard as we can to avoid needing one. Only sick people need healing.
Only the person with puss infected sores and body parts so eaten away with leprosy that the next time he picks up a piece of wood for the fire he'll lose a finger is the person who needs the healing touch of Jesus. It would've been awesome to have been the person who experienced the power of Jesus restoring two dead legs. The downside is that your legs had to die first: No walking, running, climbing, playing, dancing!
In the mean time, the time before the miracle, the time when the path is dark and your steps are motivated only by faith -- in that time know this: God did not send the dark, but He will use it to shape your character in profound ways.
The information in God's Word is given for the purpose of transforming your heart. Faith is informed by the Word of God and when information has done its transforming work, you are ready to walk into the dark places.
Every leader of warriors has learned that victory is on the other side of (in Churchill's words) "blood, toil, tears and sweat." Or in Garibaldi's words, "Hunger, thirst, forced marches, battles, and death." Victory is through the dark.
Jesus knew that victory was on the other side of the cross. "And for the joy set before Him He endured the cross" (Hebrews 12:12). Jesus has been to the darkest places a man can go. He has faced the most ferocious enemy a person can battle. He has experienced the deepest humiliations. And He has won.
And by faith in Him He will share the victory with you. The steps may be dark, the threats may be loud, but His presence will be your guide and counselor. So when you hear reports of an approaching enemy with a vast army you can remember where Jesus has been and how He has been victorious. You can join a worshipping community that precedes Jehoshaphat, and that community will continue on after you have found your rest. Today you can sing, "Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever."
A day is coming when you will join a throng of people starting at Adam and including your distant grandchildren, and angels that so impressed John the Revelator that he recorded the impact of that victory song this way:
"Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude,
like the roar of rushing waters
and like peals of thunder, shouting:
Hallelujah!
For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him glory!"
(Revelation 19:6,7)
"Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever!"
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Herod
February 29, 2004
Seattle's famed Kingdome- home of the Seahawks, Mariners, and even at times the SuperSonics, was destroyed on March 26, 2000.
Maryland based Controlled Demolition Inc (CDI) was hired to do the job of imploding the 25,000 ton structure (second in fame only to the Space Needle) that had marked Seattle's skyline for almost 25 years.
One of the most noteworthy things about this event was the unusual measures taken to ensure no one was hurt. CDI had experience with over 7,000 demolitions and knew how to protect people. Engineers checked and rechecked the structure. Several blocks around the Kingdome were evacuated. Safety measures were in place to allow the countdown to stop at any time if there was concern about safety. All workers were individually accounted for by radio before the explosives were detonated. A large public address system was used to announce the final countdown.
In short, CDI took every reasonable measure and more to warn people of the impending danger. And the good news is it worked.
The Bible teaches of a final judgement and destruction for this sinful world. Like the engineers who blew up the Kingdome, our Heavenly Father has spared no expense to make sure everybody can "get out" safely. He warns us through our consciences, through the prophets, through the Word of God, through the Holy Spirit, through the Church, and through His Son. And to show us how serious He is, God will occasionally do something in a public and awful way to wake us up.
Acts 12:18-ff
There were several Herods mentioned in the New Testament. This one is Herod Agrippa I. He is the grandson of Herod the Great (who killed the babies of Bethlehem and killed this Herod's father). Agrippa was the nephew of Herod Antipas who killed John the Baptist and tortured Jesus. Agrippa grew up in Rome in the lap of luxury, living a playboy lifestyle, until debtors chased him back to a hideout in the Middle East.
While he lived in Rome he became close friends with Caligula and Claudius, future Emperors. When they came into power they brought their old friend out of hiding and established him on a throne and expanded his territory.
Herod Agrippa was the best loved of all the Herods. His grandfather the Great was an Edomite with a hint of a Jewish uncle. Edom helped Nebucanezer defeat Judea. Clearly he was not Jewish enough to be a Jewish king. However, Herod the Great married, among others, a princess of the Macabee family. From this princess came Agrippa's father. So, Agrippa had a Jewish pedigree, and when in Israel, he acted Kosher.
This made him popular and he tried to refine his popularity by attacking the followers of Jesus. His execution of James was so effective that he arrested Peter intending to kill him after the eight day holy day festival.
It is here that he meets his ugly death, worms and all. A Jewish historian, Josephus, has an account of Herod's death very similar to Luke's. He tells how Herod came into the stadium wearing a robe woven of pure silver. The crowds called out, "We used to fear and respect you as a great man. But now we revere you as immortal." Josephus, without knowledge of Luke and vice versa, tells how he immediately was struck with abdominal pains and carried out of the theater. Soon thereafter he died in terrible agony.
Luke makes it clear that God had a hand in Herod's death. It was a judgement for his ego-mania or pride that left no room for reverence for anyone but himself.
The New Testament records two important confessions. The first is found in Matthew 16:16 where Peter told Jesus, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." With Peter we must all stand before Jesus and acknowledge or confess that He is Lord. This is part of our Christianizing experience.
The second confession is found in Acts 14. Paul and Barnabus had just prayed for a miracle and God had healed a man who had been crippled from birth. The crowds went crazy dancing and singing and worshiping Paul and Barnabus as Greek gods. But when Paul realized what they were doing he tore his cloths in an act of extreme grief and ran into the crowd yelling, "Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men, human like you (Acts 14:15)."
The very first lesson of faith is simple- but it gets to the core of everything: God is God and I am not. If you want proof- think of it this way- you had nothing to do with your birth; you could not take care of yourself in the smallest way for several years, and even now you can not make your own groceries or refine your own petroleum or manufacture your own medicine or build your own car from raw materials out of the Earth.
You are pretty much dependent on a whole lot of people just to stay alive. Say it with me: God is God and I am not.
Herod like many men in powerful positions had reached a place where his ego was king. He bowed to no one. His pride-filled state of mind was driving his destiny. Who knows what horrifying wickedness was just around the corner. God put a stop to Herod's self worship in a dramatic way.
Today a high degree of self regard is not thought to be a problem. Usually, it's valued. Korean high school students may average 200 points higher on a standardized math test, but American students are far superior in self-esteem. Today, that's what matters.
God wants to greatly enrich our lives by filling us with His Spirit, but when we are full of ourselves, there is no room for His Spirit. The danger is that we can reach a point of being permanently full of ourselves. All that is left is to guide that imperial ego through life, until we set it down before the judgement throne.
Do you believe in a Judgement day? Many do not. They believe God has one task: to help, console, encourage, and be friendly. Suggest He is going to weigh justice and punish short coming- that will cause deep frowns and shaking heads. The general mood of our culture lives for pleasure and amusement, ridiculing the Christian idea that after death comes judgement.
However, the Bible lays fairly heavy emphasis on judgement. Remember the times God acted as Judge. It started when He expelled Adam and Eve from Paradise. Then Genesis records God's judgement on the corrupt world in the flood. Genesis 18-19 relate the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. In Genesis 18: 25 Abraham said, "Shall not the judge of all the Earth do right." And of course He did.
Exodus 32 reports the account of the slaying of all the Israelites who got involved in the Golden Calf incident. In the New Testament the deceitfulness of Ananaias and Sapphira lead to their deaths in public condemnation by God. Paul reminded the church of Corinth that many in their church had died because of the irreverent way they were receiving the Lord's Supper. And here, we have this incident with Herod Agrippa.
Each of these incidents involving death serves to illustrate a taste of Judgement Day. In regard to that day Paul told the philosophers at Athens, "God has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead (Acts 17:31)."
The Father has appointed Jesus, the Son to weigh the issues of right and wrong and hand out justice on That Day. Does this make God harsh, mean, abusive? Most of the gods of pagans cared nothing for justice. They were concerned only about their own appetites and whims. Think about Zeus or Baal. A Holy God is a unique concept! What does it mean to have a God who is very concerned about balancing the scale between right and wrong?
One thing it means is that God is good and worth respecting. Parents who know their children have committed acts of purposeful harm- and remain indifferent have tarnished their own souls. A parental duty is to instill a sense of right and wrong. To prioritize family loyalty above all else corrupts a culture. Moral indifference is a flaw and a character weakness. To not judge a world engulfed in wickedness, to be morally indifferent to crime, sin, evil, and viciousness would be a sign of malignancy.
Jesus as judge stands at the end of life's road for every individual. Paul told the Corinthians, "For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad (II Corinthians 5:10)."
If we know ourselves at all, we know that we are not fit to meet Jesus as Judge. The goodness of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection is what we desperately need and what he freely offers! We can fall on the mercy of the Judge today, and with full surrender, find healing and hope and life...
Or we can avoid him, we can run from Jesus (and what we think are His uncomfortable demands), but we will meet Him later as Judge. Today is another opportunity to find life in Jesus. The Bible says, "there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1)."
Seattle's famed Kingdome- home of the Seahawks, Mariners, and even at times the SuperSonics, was destroyed on March 26, 2000.
Maryland based Controlled Demolition Inc (CDI) was hired to do the job of imploding the 25,000 ton structure (second in fame only to the Space Needle) that had marked Seattle's skyline for almost 25 years.
One of the most noteworthy things about this event was the unusual measures taken to ensure no one was hurt. CDI had experience with over 7,000 demolitions and knew how to protect people. Engineers checked and rechecked the structure. Several blocks around the Kingdome were evacuated. Safety measures were in place to allow the countdown to stop at any time if there was concern about safety. All workers were individually accounted for by radio before the explosives were detonated. A large public address system was used to announce the final countdown.
In short, CDI took every reasonable measure and more to warn people of the impending danger. And the good news is it worked.
The Bible teaches of a final judgement and destruction for this sinful world. Like the engineers who blew up the Kingdome, our Heavenly Father has spared no expense to make sure everybody can "get out" safely. He warns us through our consciences, through the prophets, through the Word of God, through the Holy Spirit, through the Church, and through His Son. And to show us how serious He is, God will occasionally do something in a public and awful way to wake us up.
Acts 12:18-ff
There were several Herods mentioned in the New Testament. This one is Herod Agrippa I. He is the grandson of Herod the Great (who killed the babies of Bethlehem and killed this Herod's father). Agrippa was the nephew of Herod Antipas who killed John the Baptist and tortured Jesus. Agrippa grew up in Rome in the lap of luxury, living a playboy lifestyle, until debtors chased him back to a hideout in the Middle East.
While he lived in Rome he became close friends with Caligula and Claudius, future Emperors. When they came into power they brought their old friend out of hiding and established him on a throne and expanded his territory.
Herod Agrippa was the best loved of all the Herods. His grandfather the Great was an Edomite with a hint of a Jewish uncle. Edom helped Nebucanezer defeat Judea. Clearly he was not Jewish enough to be a Jewish king. However, Herod the Great married, among others, a princess of the Macabee family. From this princess came Agrippa's father. So, Agrippa had a Jewish pedigree, and when in Israel, he acted Kosher.
This made him popular and he tried to refine his popularity by attacking the followers of Jesus. His execution of James was so effective that he arrested Peter intending to kill him after the eight day holy day festival.
It is here that he meets his ugly death, worms and all. A Jewish historian, Josephus, has an account of Herod's death very similar to Luke's. He tells how Herod came into the stadium wearing a robe woven of pure silver. The crowds called out, "We used to fear and respect you as a great man. But now we revere you as immortal." Josephus, without knowledge of Luke and vice versa, tells how he immediately was struck with abdominal pains and carried out of the theater. Soon thereafter he died in terrible agony.
Luke makes it clear that God had a hand in Herod's death. It was a judgement for his ego-mania or pride that left no room for reverence for anyone but himself.
The New Testament records two important confessions. The first is found in Matthew 16:16 where Peter told Jesus, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." With Peter we must all stand before Jesus and acknowledge or confess that He is Lord. This is part of our Christianizing experience.
The second confession is found in Acts 14. Paul and Barnabus had just prayed for a miracle and God had healed a man who had been crippled from birth. The crowds went crazy dancing and singing and worshiping Paul and Barnabus as Greek gods. But when Paul realized what they were doing he tore his cloths in an act of extreme grief and ran into the crowd yelling, "Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men, human like you (Acts 14:15)."
The very first lesson of faith is simple- but it gets to the core of everything: God is God and I am not. If you want proof- think of it this way- you had nothing to do with your birth; you could not take care of yourself in the smallest way for several years, and even now you can not make your own groceries or refine your own petroleum or manufacture your own medicine or build your own car from raw materials out of the Earth.
You are pretty much dependent on a whole lot of people just to stay alive. Say it with me: God is God and I am not.
Herod like many men in powerful positions had reached a place where his ego was king. He bowed to no one. His pride-filled state of mind was driving his destiny. Who knows what horrifying wickedness was just around the corner. God put a stop to Herod's self worship in a dramatic way.
Today a high degree of self regard is not thought to be a problem. Usually, it's valued. Korean high school students may average 200 points higher on a standardized math test, but American students are far superior in self-esteem. Today, that's what matters.
God wants to greatly enrich our lives by filling us with His Spirit, but when we are full of ourselves, there is no room for His Spirit. The danger is that we can reach a point of being permanently full of ourselves. All that is left is to guide that imperial ego through life, until we set it down before the judgement throne.
Do you believe in a Judgement day? Many do not. They believe God has one task: to help, console, encourage, and be friendly. Suggest He is going to weigh justice and punish short coming- that will cause deep frowns and shaking heads. The general mood of our culture lives for pleasure and amusement, ridiculing the Christian idea that after death comes judgement.
However, the Bible lays fairly heavy emphasis on judgement. Remember the times God acted as Judge. It started when He expelled Adam and Eve from Paradise. Then Genesis records God's judgement on the corrupt world in the flood. Genesis 18-19 relate the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. In Genesis 18: 25 Abraham said, "Shall not the judge of all the Earth do right." And of course He did.
Exodus 32 reports the account of the slaying of all the Israelites who got involved in the Golden Calf incident. In the New Testament the deceitfulness of Ananaias and Sapphira lead to their deaths in public condemnation by God. Paul reminded the church of Corinth that many in their church had died because of the irreverent way they were receiving the Lord's Supper. And here, we have this incident with Herod Agrippa.
Each of these incidents involving death serves to illustrate a taste of Judgement Day. In regard to that day Paul told the philosophers at Athens, "God has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead (Acts 17:31)."
The Father has appointed Jesus, the Son to weigh the issues of right and wrong and hand out justice on That Day. Does this make God harsh, mean, abusive? Most of the gods of pagans cared nothing for justice. They were concerned only about their own appetites and whims. Think about Zeus or Baal. A Holy God is a unique concept! What does it mean to have a God who is very concerned about balancing the scale between right and wrong?
One thing it means is that God is good and worth respecting. Parents who know their children have committed acts of purposeful harm- and remain indifferent have tarnished their own souls. A parental duty is to instill a sense of right and wrong. To prioritize family loyalty above all else corrupts a culture. Moral indifference is a flaw and a character weakness. To not judge a world engulfed in wickedness, to be morally indifferent to crime, sin, evil, and viciousness would be a sign of malignancy.
Jesus as judge stands at the end of life's road for every individual. Paul told the Corinthians, "For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad (II Corinthians 5:10)."
If we know ourselves at all, we know that we are not fit to meet Jesus as Judge. The goodness of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection is what we desperately need and what he freely offers! We can fall on the mercy of the Judge today, and with full surrender, find healing and hope and life...
Or we can avoid him, we can run from Jesus (and what we think are His uncomfortable demands), but we will meet Him later as Judge. Today is another opportunity to find life in Jesus. The Bible says, "there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1)."
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Lazarus
Editor's Note: I decided to run this sermon out of context in honor of my dad this week. Sunday will mark five years since we've been without him. From the time we first heard his diagnosis until the night before he died we prayed for healing and knew our God was big enough. Unfortunately for us, God's plan was different than ours and even though I don't understand why things happen the way they do, I know I serve a God with resurrection power. To quote my dad, " the ultimate issue of the sickness was not the death of the friend, but the glory of God." John was his favorite book and he wrote the body of this Lazarus sermon during seminary (it seems the opening illustration was added later). The professor, who was the district superintendent at the time, was so impressed that he asked permission to use it for an Easter weekend series he was guest speaking at.
circa early 1980s
Franklin and Beatrice Forest spent the first two weeks of December, 1987 getting ready for their daughter, Page, to come home from college. Page was a freshman and their only child. Shawnee, Oklahoma seemed like a very long way from Pomona, California. They prayed for her daily, and they spoke often with her by phone. She wrote to them just about every week, but the thought of having her home for the holidays made every moment special with anticipation. Their little house sparkled as they prepared for her visit.
Frank and Bet, as they were called, tended to some last minute details, and then headed for the Ontario airport. They couldn’t help but laugh when they entered the terminal and realized they were a full hour early. They were so excited they could hardly keep from giggling as they waited for her plane.
About thirty minutes before her plane was due to arrive, a voice announced, “Will persons waiting to meet flight...” the rest of the announcement was a blur. They made their way to a special conference room fearing the worst. A visibly shaken representative from the airline began, “We are sorry to have to tell you, but there has been an accident...” Their daughter’s plane had crashed on takeoff from the Denver airport.
For almost an hour they listened to sketchy details, and then official statements. Then finally, they received the news that all passengers were believed killed in the crash. News cameras and noisy crowds were everywhere. Frank said to Bet, “Let’s go home.” They made their way out to their car and drove away. They said little all the way home. Standing in their living room, they didn’t know what to do next, so they just stood there hugging and crying. They had been in the house only a few minutes when the phone rang. Franklin slowly picked it up. “Hello,” he said.
“Mr. Forest,” the voice said, “this is Mrs. Hastings with the airline. Your daughter missed the plane. She’s all right.”
This is a true story. One family could celebrate life because of a missed connecting flight. But there is another true story that is even better. It is too long to tell you all of it this morning. In fact, it is still going on and you have an opportunity to be one of the characters in its very happy ending. Of course you also could end up as one of the other characters. Perhaps one of the people who were proud of themselves for pushing their way onto that crowded connecting flight out of Denver. Their part in the story is true, too.
It is because of them that the story- remember it is a true story- that I am about to tell you could be the most important story you’ve ever heard.
Jesus, the rabbi, was teaching in the middle of a crowded Jerusalem street. The main point of the lesson was that His miracles were evidence of His divine relationship to God. He told them, “Actions speak louder than words.”
The Jewish leaders were standing around the man waving their arms, throwing dust in the air and shouting, “Blasphemer! Blasphemer!” The teacher quietly went on proving His direct relationship with God. His calm, self-confident manner only added fuel to the fiery temper of the Pharisees. Something He said about them “not recognizing His voice coming from God” caused their anger to reach the boiling point, which they demonstrated by picking up rocks and challenging the crowd to join them in stoning this heretic.
Before they could organize a proper lynch mob, Jesus and His disciples slipped through the swarm of rioters and made their way outside the city. The Master, with His followers, then crossed the Jordan River and walked a single day’s journey north to the wilderness where John the Baptist started his baptizing ministry.
A few days later, as the sun was settling in for the night, a couple of dusty and exhausted travelers arrived from Bethany, a small village just two miles northeast of Jerusalem. The group was preparing the evening meal as the travelers arrived with a message for Jesus. The distress on their faces was enough to send a couple of disciples off to interrupt the Rabbi’s meditation and inform Him of an urgent message from the Jerusalem area!
When He and His disciples returned to the camp, one of the travelers ran up to the Teacher and cried, “Lord, the one you love so very much is sick.” He could say no more, not wanting to be responsible for bringing the Rabbi back into the extreme danger of Judea and yet, believing this man could bring his friend back to health.
The messenger had no way of knowing his friend had died just a few short hours after he left on this journey.
The Master knew this, but He gave a comforting reply just the same. He told the travelers, “This sickness is not fatal. However, it will be an occasion to show God’s glory.” Only later would they discover the deeper meaning of what He said. He was really saying the ultimate issue of the sickness was not the death of the friend, but the glory of God. But for the time, they were satisfied with His comforting remarks. After a shared meal around the campfire, and with the anxiety for their friend relieved, they all slept peacefully under the stars.
The next morning the messengers returned to Bethany. The Teacher and His disciples continued to teach in that historic spot where the Baptist was first used by God as a herald for the coming Messiah. Many of the people in Jerusalem who had witnessed the Master’s miracles followed Him here and joined the country people in giving their allegiance to this Rabbi. The followers of the Rabbi were finally beginning to relax after what they considered a very close call in Jerusalem.
It was on the second morning after the messengers had returned to Bethany that the Teacher stunned His followers with an announcement. He told them the time had come to return to Judea. His followers all began to talk and shout at the same time. “Rabbi,” one said, “It was only late last week the Pharisee's tried to stone You. Their anger hasn’t lost any of it’s fire.” Another asked, “Do you think it wise to give up what we’ve worked so hard to achieve for almost certain death?”
To see the contrast between the panic and pandemonium of the disciples with the confidence of their Teacher was an extraordinary thing. He began to ease their fear by explaining there were opportunities that had to be taken advantage of while they were available or they would be lost. For the Master, danger never prevented Him from seizing the moment.
He went on to explain, the friend in Bethany had died and He was glad He hadn’t been there to prevent the death, because it was a part of the opportunity that awaited them. This kind of talk, far from calming the followers, created an atmosphere of anxiety and fear. Some still wanted to argue against the trip. Others felt at a loss, but since their normal spokesman was away on a a short assignment, they didn’t know what to say. At that point the follower named Thomas stood among them and with a kind of quiet despair said, “Let’s all go. We might as well die with Him.”
And so they came to the outskirts of Bethany. By the time they had traveled this far, the friend had been in the grave four days. For the Jews, the fourth day was the climax of their period of mourning. Most believed that for the first three days the soul of the dead person remained close to the body, hoping to find a way to return. They believed it was early on the fourth day when the soul saw decay setting in, and as a result gave up any prospect of returning.
The dead man’s older sister heard that the Rabbi was near town and so went out to meet Him. Her first words to Him had the effect of a drink of warm salt water on a 120 degree day. She said, “If You had been here my brother would not have died.” Seeing the effect of her harsh words on the Teacher caused her to soften her tone and confess she still believed God listened and responded to whatever the Teacher said.
At this point, the Rabbi looked right at the woman and said, “Your brother will be raised up.” She acknowledged her hope of the future resurrection but the Jews and the disciples standing nearby could see that her present grief was totally blocking out the light of any future happiness. however, the Rabbi continued by saying to this sorrow filled woman, “ I AM the One who raises the dead and grants life. The man or woman who gives their will to my authority- even though he dies- he will live again. And everyone who lives, giving allegiance to Me will ultimately not die at all.”
For one brief but powerful moment a beacon of hope lit up the heart of this woman as she said, “Yes, Master, all along I have believed You are the Messiah, the Son of God.” Some of the Jews who had come to mourn with the woman could hardly believe their ears. This man was again claiming equality with God and leading lonely women astray. Their hatred for this man was at that very moment turning their hearts to stone.
Before their hardened hearts could turn to malicious action, the one the Rabbi was talking to, went to tell her sister that the Teacher was asking for her. In part, the contempt these Jews held toward this man was for His treatment of women. Women were allowed to learn from Him on the same basis as men. No respectable rabbi ever taught women, but this Man had a whole following of women.
The younger sister, one of these female followers, rushed to her Teacher and fell at His feet as a loyal disciple. Full of despair and sadness, she said, “Master, if only You had been here my brother would not have died.”
The Jews who had followed this woman to the Teacher began mingling with those who had been there already. Now in hushed voices they shared the previous conversation between the Rabbi and the older sister. A kind of sinister, throbbing malice filled the atmosphere, covered only by the loud wailing of the sisters and their many friends as they recklessly abandoned all forms of dignity in the eastern style of mourning.
The Rabbi could fee the evil contents of the atmosphere beneath the mourning wails. If one would have looked closely, he would have seen the Rabbi’s nostrils flare slightly, His eyes dilate, His facial skin tighten and His breath become a bit more rapid. Suddenly He said in a loud voice, “Where did you put him?”
As they walked to the tomb, The Teacher carried Himself much like a soldier going into combat, with on tiny exception- His eyes were spilling over with tears. To the Jews this confirmed the man’s incompetence and unfitness to be called a rabbi.
Meanwhile, the procession of howling men and women arrived at the grave. The tomb was a cave with a flat round stone rolled across the opening. As the crowd came near the tomb, the wailing and the loud groaning increased. The Teacher still carried Himself with the dignity of a veteran solider, now knowing the enemy was standing within striking distance.
When the Rabbi reached the tomb, He commanded the stone to be rolled away. People instinctively put their hands over their faces and groaned- no! NO! The dead man’s sister began to plead with the Teacher, reminding Him her brother had been in the tomb four days and by now the stench would be unbearable.
A spasm of anger gripped the Rabbi and He said, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” There had been a few in the group who were eye witnesses of the Rabbi’s anger in the Temple courtyard. The red hot wrath of the man was still etched deeply on their minds. They jumped immediately to action, believing the stench of the grave could not be as bad as this man’s angry passion.
When this was done the Teacher turned His face upward and said, “Father, I am grateful that You have listened to Me. I know that You always listen to Me, but I have said this for the benefit of the people standing here, so that they may believe that You sent Me.”
When He had finished praying, He paused for a moment and in a loud voice that echoes across the valley, loud enough so that even His enemies in Jerusalem could hear, He said, “Lazarus, come out!”
For just a second the wailing and groaning of the mourners was replaced by silence- then whispered mocking, and just as the whispering was growing into laughter, the air turned into ice. Lazarus, the cadaver, stood in the opening of the tomb!
Jesus said, “Take off his grave clothes and set him free!” Now that is real power!
If you know the rest of the story you know the enemies of Christ went on to do their worst to Him. But His death was the main part of God’s plan to rescue you and me from our sin. Jesus died as a sacrifice acceptable to God and beneficial to everyone who would make Jesus their master. The Bible calls Jesus death an atonement for sin.
But even that is not the rest of the story! If Jesus was who He said He was, He would have to be resurrected. The Bible account tells us Jesus Himself entered into the realm of the dead, removed the poison of death, and returned to life, validating both His prophecy and His power! His sacrifice will never lose its power to set you free of your grave clothes.
What Jesus accomplished with Lazarus is a minor example of His great power. What Satan tried to do to Jesus on the cross, really exposed the whole world to God’s love and His resurrection power. The cross reveals the love of God and Sunday morning reveals His power. God knows that every one of us had managed to get tangled up in grave clothes and death as we’ve tried to be masters of our own lives.
But that first real Sunday unleashed on the world the greatest power in the universe- resurrection power!
Some of you may still be wearing your grave clothes (decaying relationships, imprisoning killer addictions, self destructive attitudes). Jesus has the power to “take them off so you can be free!”
Paul prayed for the Ephesians, “I keep asking that God may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better... and His incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of His mighty strength, which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead.”
If we had eyes to see the truth about Jesus and integrity enough to agree with the truth, we’d all admit resurrection power is our only hope!!! Jesus is the only one with that power. What have you done with Jesus?
Franklin and Beatrice Forest spent the first two weeks of December, 1987 getting ready for their daughter, Page, to come home from college. Page was a freshman and their only child. Shawnee, Oklahoma seemed like a very long way from Pomona, California. They prayed for her daily, and they spoke often with her by phone. She wrote to them just about every week, but the thought of having her home for the holidays made every moment special with anticipation. Their little house sparkled as they prepared for her visit.
Frank and Bet, as they were called, tended to some last minute details, and then headed for the Ontario airport. They couldn’t help but laugh when they entered the terminal and realized they were a full hour early. They were so excited they could hardly keep from giggling as they waited for her plane.
About thirty minutes before her plane was due to arrive, a voice announced, “Will persons waiting to meet flight...” the rest of the announcement was a blur. They made their way to a special conference room fearing the worst. A visibly shaken representative from the airline began, “We are sorry to have to tell you, but there has been an accident...” Their daughter’s plane had crashed on takeoff from the Denver airport.
For almost an hour they listened to sketchy details, and then official statements. Then finally, they received the news that all passengers were believed killed in the crash. News cameras and noisy crowds were everywhere. Frank said to Bet, “Let’s go home.” They made their way out to their car and drove away. They said little all the way home. Standing in their living room, they didn’t know what to do next, so they just stood there hugging and crying. They had been in the house only a few minutes when the phone rang. Franklin slowly picked it up. “Hello,” he said.
“Mr. Forest,” the voice said, “this is Mrs. Hastings with the airline. Your daughter missed the plane. She’s all right.”
This is a true story. One family could celebrate life because of a missed connecting flight. But there is another true story that is even better. It is too long to tell you all of it this morning. In fact, it is still going on and you have an opportunity to be one of the characters in its very happy ending. Of course you also could end up as one of the other characters. Perhaps one of the people who were proud of themselves for pushing their way onto that crowded connecting flight out of Denver. Their part in the story is true, too.
It is because of them that the story- remember it is a true story- that I am about to tell you could be the most important story you’ve ever heard.
Jesus, the rabbi, was teaching in the middle of a crowded Jerusalem street. The main point of the lesson was that His miracles were evidence of His divine relationship to God. He told them, “Actions speak louder than words.”
The Jewish leaders were standing around the man waving their arms, throwing dust in the air and shouting, “Blasphemer! Blasphemer!” The teacher quietly went on proving His direct relationship with God. His calm, self-confident manner only added fuel to the fiery temper of the Pharisees. Something He said about them “not recognizing His voice coming from God” caused their anger to reach the boiling point, which they demonstrated by picking up rocks and challenging the crowd to join them in stoning this heretic.
Before they could organize a proper lynch mob, Jesus and His disciples slipped through the swarm of rioters and made their way outside the city. The Master, with His followers, then crossed the Jordan River and walked a single day’s journey north to the wilderness where John the Baptist started his baptizing ministry.
A few days later, as the sun was settling in for the night, a couple of dusty and exhausted travelers arrived from Bethany, a small village just two miles northeast of Jerusalem. The group was preparing the evening meal as the travelers arrived with a message for Jesus. The distress on their faces was enough to send a couple of disciples off to interrupt the Rabbi’s meditation and inform Him of an urgent message from the Jerusalem area!
When He and His disciples returned to the camp, one of the travelers ran up to the Teacher and cried, “Lord, the one you love so very much is sick.” He could say no more, not wanting to be responsible for bringing the Rabbi back into the extreme danger of Judea and yet, believing this man could bring his friend back to health.
The messenger had no way of knowing his friend had died just a few short hours after he left on this journey.
The Master knew this, but He gave a comforting reply just the same. He told the travelers, “This sickness is not fatal. However, it will be an occasion to show God’s glory.” Only later would they discover the deeper meaning of what He said. He was really saying the ultimate issue of the sickness was not the death of the friend, but the glory of God. But for the time, they were satisfied with His comforting remarks. After a shared meal around the campfire, and with the anxiety for their friend relieved, they all slept peacefully under the stars.
The next morning the messengers returned to Bethany. The Teacher and His disciples continued to teach in that historic spot where the Baptist was first used by God as a herald for the coming Messiah. Many of the people in Jerusalem who had witnessed the Master’s miracles followed Him here and joined the country people in giving their allegiance to this Rabbi. The followers of the Rabbi were finally beginning to relax after what they considered a very close call in Jerusalem.
It was on the second morning after the messengers had returned to Bethany that the Teacher stunned His followers with an announcement. He told them the time had come to return to Judea. His followers all began to talk and shout at the same time. “Rabbi,” one said, “It was only late last week the Pharisee's tried to stone You. Their anger hasn’t lost any of it’s fire.” Another asked, “Do you think it wise to give up what we’ve worked so hard to achieve for almost certain death?”
To see the contrast between the panic and pandemonium of the disciples with the confidence of their Teacher was an extraordinary thing. He began to ease their fear by explaining there were opportunities that had to be taken advantage of while they were available or they would be lost. For the Master, danger never prevented Him from seizing the moment.
He went on to explain, the friend in Bethany had died and He was glad He hadn’t been there to prevent the death, because it was a part of the opportunity that awaited them. This kind of talk, far from calming the followers, created an atmosphere of anxiety and fear. Some still wanted to argue against the trip. Others felt at a loss, but since their normal spokesman was away on a a short assignment, they didn’t know what to say. At that point the follower named Thomas stood among them and with a kind of quiet despair said, “Let’s all go. We might as well die with Him.”
And so they came to the outskirts of Bethany. By the time they had traveled this far, the friend had been in the grave four days. For the Jews, the fourth day was the climax of their period of mourning. Most believed that for the first three days the soul of the dead person remained close to the body, hoping to find a way to return. They believed it was early on the fourth day when the soul saw decay setting in, and as a result gave up any prospect of returning.
The dead man’s older sister heard that the Rabbi was near town and so went out to meet Him. Her first words to Him had the effect of a drink of warm salt water on a 120 degree day. She said, “If You had been here my brother would not have died.” Seeing the effect of her harsh words on the Teacher caused her to soften her tone and confess she still believed God listened and responded to whatever the Teacher said.
At this point, the Rabbi looked right at the woman and said, “Your brother will be raised up.” She acknowledged her hope of the future resurrection but the Jews and the disciples standing nearby could see that her present grief was totally blocking out the light of any future happiness. however, the Rabbi continued by saying to this sorrow filled woman, “ I AM the One who raises the dead and grants life. The man or woman who gives their will to my authority- even though he dies- he will live again. And everyone who lives, giving allegiance to Me will ultimately not die at all.”
For one brief but powerful moment a beacon of hope lit up the heart of this woman as she said, “Yes, Master, all along I have believed You are the Messiah, the Son of God.” Some of the Jews who had come to mourn with the woman could hardly believe their ears. This man was again claiming equality with God and leading lonely women astray. Their hatred for this man was at that very moment turning their hearts to stone.
Before their hardened hearts could turn to malicious action, the one the Rabbi was talking to, went to tell her sister that the Teacher was asking for her. In part, the contempt these Jews held toward this man was for His treatment of women. Women were allowed to learn from Him on the same basis as men. No respectable rabbi ever taught women, but this Man had a whole following of women.
The younger sister, one of these female followers, rushed to her Teacher and fell at His feet as a loyal disciple. Full of despair and sadness, she said, “Master, if only You had been here my brother would not have died.”
The Jews who had followed this woman to the Teacher began mingling with those who had been there already. Now in hushed voices they shared the previous conversation between the Rabbi and the older sister. A kind of sinister, throbbing malice filled the atmosphere, covered only by the loud wailing of the sisters and their many friends as they recklessly abandoned all forms of dignity in the eastern style of mourning.
The Rabbi could fee the evil contents of the atmosphere beneath the mourning wails. If one would have looked closely, he would have seen the Rabbi’s nostrils flare slightly, His eyes dilate, His facial skin tighten and His breath become a bit more rapid. Suddenly He said in a loud voice, “Where did you put him?”
As they walked to the tomb, The Teacher carried Himself much like a soldier going into combat, with on tiny exception- His eyes were spilling over with tears. To the Jews this confirmed the man’s incompetence and unfitness to be called a rabbi.
Meanwhile, the procession of howling men and women arrived at the grave. The tomb was a cave with a flat round stone rolled across the opening. As the crowd came near the tomb, the wailing and the loud groaning increased. The Teacher still carried Himself with the dignity of a veteran solider, now knowing the enemy was standing within striking distance.
When the Rabbi reached the tomb, He commanded the stone to be rolled away. People instinctively put their hands over their faces and groaned- no! NO! The dead man’s sister began to plead with the Teacher, reminding Him her brother had been in the tomb four days and by now the stench would be unbearable.
A spasm of anger gripped the Rabbi and He said, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” There had been a few in the group who were eye witnesses of the Rabbi’s anger in the Temple courtyard. The red hot wrath of the man was still etched deeply on their minds. They jumped immediately to action, believing the stench of the grave could not be as bad as this man’s angry passion.
When this was done the Teacher turned His face upward and said, “Father, I am grateful that You have listened to Me. I know that You always listen to Me, but I have said this for the benefit of the people standing here, so that they may believe that You sent Me.”
When He had finished praying, He paused for a moment and in a loud voice that echoes across the valley, loud enough so that even His enemies in Jerusalem could hear, He said, “Lazarus, come out!”
For just a second the wailing and groaning of the mourners was replaced by silence- then whispered mocking, and just as the whispering was growing into laughter, the air turned into ice. Lazarus, the cadaver, stood in the opening of the tomb!
Jesus said, “Take off his grave clothes and set him free!” Now that is real power!
If you know the rest of the story you know the enemies of Christ went on to do their worst to Him. But His death was the main part of God’s plan to rescue you and me from our sin. Jesus died as a sacrifice acceptable to God and beneficial to everyone who would make Jesus their master. The Bible calls Jesus death an atonement for sin.
But even that is not the rest of the story! If Jesus was who He said He was, He would have to be resurrected. The Bible account tells us Jesus Himself entered into the realm of the dead, removed the poison of death, and returned to life, validating both His prophecy and His power! His sacrifice will never lose its power to set you free of your grave clothes.
What Jesus accomplished with Lazarus is a minor example of His great power. What Satan tried to do to Jesus on the cross, really exposed the whole world to God’s love and His resurrection power. The cross reveals the love of God and Sunday morning reveals His power. God knows that every one of us had managed to get tangled up in grave clothes and death as we’ve tried to be masters of our own lives.
But that first real Sunday unleashed on the world the greatest power in the universe- resurrection power!
Some of you may still be wearing your grave clothes (decaying relationships, imprisoning killer addictions, self destructive attitudes). Jesus has the power to “take them off so you can be free!”
Paul prayed for the Ephesians, “I keep asking that God may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better... and His incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of His mighty strength, which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead.”
If we had eyes to see the truth about Jesus and integrity enough to agree with the truth, we’d all admit resurrection power is our only hope!!! Jesus is the only one with that power. What have you done with Jesus?
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