“HIS LIFE ENDANGERS” 12/26/10

Matthew 2:13-18

This is the nightmare of Christmas, repeated over and over again down through the years.  People are killed, brutalized, just for someone else’s pleasure, and God lets it happen!

Worse than that, Jesus gets hidden from the suffering.  His father gets the word to run away.  I’ll bet a few families wished they’d had that message too!

There is a cruelty to Christmas.  There is cruelty whenever love comes into life.  Why?  Most people don’t want love, because they must change.  So, folks destroy rather than change.

Here, Jesus’ very existence threatens little boys.  Down through centuries, His risen presence put tens of thousands of lives at risk.  Those people followed Him, and they were threats to people who would not follow.

This story is a nightmare and disgusting.  And yet, And yet…  Every time we choose to bear a grudge against someone, we are closing off Jesus in us.  What remains, but ugly?

Every time we commit a sin, what we do affects other people, and they are wounded.  Swords aren’t the only ways to kill a soul.

Evil around us, evil in us, threatens every day to sweep aside all that is good.  Except.  Except.  Jesus escaped!  Here He escaped the soldiers’ swords.  Later He will escape the grave and death and hell.

He is not swallowed up by our evil.  He triumphs over it.  With Him, we triumph through it.  “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for Thou art with me.”

The nightmare of Christmas has an end, an awakening to life, to Jesus, to hope.  We simply must stop sleeping in the evil.

“JUDGE NOT?” 12/26/10

Matthew 7:1-5

So, we don’t judge.  That means whatever anyone does is OK?  Or, we don’t judge and let ourselves get used and walked on?  Look with me.

Judgment belongs to God.  The word here means, “final sentence/condemnation”.  Such a decision belongs to God, not us.  We are given a new day, a new chance, by God over and over.  Who, then, are we to deny others that same treatment?

We judge, so as not to fall into sin ourselves, or not to help another keep sinning.  But, always, we make those judgments in hope and love for something better from, and for, that person.  Why?  God always wants something better from and for us!

That explains the humorous illustration of the log and the speck.  Rather than focusing on how awful EVERYBODY ELSE is, we are to examine ourselves, with the Lord beside us, and see who we are.  As I’ve said to more than a few people, if “everybody else” is your problem, then the problem is most likely you.

We can make a difference in people’s lives, and can make wise judgments about them.  But, not until we have fixed up our own vision of the world, and perception of ourselves!  Take our federal government.  We are drowning in debt, and both parties blame the other.  Didn’t both of them spend money?

Humans blame others for their situation.  Christians find out where they were at fault in a matter, and, with God’s help, change themselves.  That change, in turn, helps others.

So, yes, you may judge—yourself.  Let Jesus judge others.  Yes, you may make opinions on people, but not hold them so rigidly.  God could change them too.  He changed you and me, right?

WHERE ARE MY ANGELS?” 12/24/10

Luke 2:1-20

OK, centuries ago, some shepherds got to see heaven and hear angels.  I’d believe too, if that happened to me, but it doesn’t.

When do I get to see some miracle of God?  What will it take for God to show up in my life like here in the story?

Where are my angels?   Well…

The shepherds’ angels are yours too.  You did not fight in the U. S. Revolutionary War, but yet you have the blessing of life in our republic.  The War’s reality has shaped yours.  Same with this story.

To read the story, and yearn for such an experience in your life, is  to already to begin having it.  Scoffers and critics rarely see visions!

The shepherds heard the message and moved from where they were to where Jesus was.  Perhaps, you have stood your ground, demanding God come to you.  The story is:  God has come, now move.  Those who won’t go, don’t know.

In every place, all over the world, Jesus can be found.  That is what “Emmanuel” means – God with us.  Rather than determining ahead of time how you want God to show Himself, look expectantly, look as a child sees, with wonder and hope.  Believing often is seeing.

The computer phrase works here, “Garbage in, garbage out.”  Whatever you live for, whatever fills your day, is going to be what you find.  Many people can’t find God because they already have found what matters to them.

The angels are singing; Jesus is here.  Look and see.  Merry Christmas!

“TO YOU IS BORN THIS DAY” 12/24/10

Luke 2:1-20

Christmas is for the lonely person, the only one at home.
Christmas is for that broken heart, torn by grief or rejection.
Christmas is for the one who sees no way to get ahead in life.
Christmas is for that family tearing itself apart.
Christmas is for those who have lost it all.
Christmas is for those who never had much.

Sounds weird doesn’t it?  That is because we have destroyed Christmas, making what is miraculous into something sentimental and materialistic.  People spend more time untangling Christmas lights than they do reconnecting with lives that matter.

Christmas has always been about those in need, a need that goes beyond a simple act of charity or food basket.

The angel said, “To you is born this day in the city of David a Savior…”  Do we need a tree or a Savior?  Will our lives improve with an elaborate holiday meal, or by the love of Christ?  I’ve noticed people will do anything to avoid hearing the angels, going to Bethlehem, letting the Christ child go unvisited.  Most of Christmas is about avoiding Jesus.

Christmas is God becoming unavoidable, in our home, our town.
Christmas is a Child who needs our attention, indeed deserves it!
Christmas is heaven breaking in on our regular festivities and activities.
Christmas is the Spirit giving birth to eternal life in us, as we open our hearts and lives to Jesus.
Christmas is where God begins to wipe tears, heal souls, make relationships new.
Christmas is the only message that matters:

“To you is born this day in the city of David a Savior…”

 

“WHAT TO DO WITH JESUS?” 12/5/10

Matthew 1:18-25

The relationship Joseph has with Jesus here looks very much like the one many people have, and can have, with Him.

Jesus starts out as a problem.  His existence messes up Joseph’s relationship with Mary.  He messes up many relationships when He gets in them!  Jesus’ very life forces Joseph to question himself, and make decisions he never thought he would.  Just like many people!

Joseph resolves to put Jesus away quietly.  Not treat Him or His mother harshly, just move them out of his life.  How many people, even in churches, are doing just that with their Lord!  Putting Him on some honored shelf, but keeping Him far from who they are and what they are doing?

Then, God intervenes.  An angel here, the Holy Spirit in our day, grabs a hold of Joseph and shakes him out of his ideas and his choices.  Then, he gets told of God’s plan and God’s power.  He is welcomed to be part of it!  What grace is here, what encouraging compassion!  God sees what Joseph is doing, and shows him what really could be done.

And, Joseph accepts the Lord!  He lets go of his pride.  He sets aside his plans.  He loves who hurt him, and lives by the love, not by the memory of the hurt.  He takes Jesus into his heart, and into his home.

The reward?  Joseph, the father who wanted to abandon his son, gives his little boy his name.  Just as Jesus, the Savior of His father, gives Joseph his life back.

So, where in this story are you with Jesus?

Where do you want to be?

“LOOK AGAIN, PLEASE” 12/5/10

Luke 2:6-7

Some more bombshells to drop on the Christmas story this week!  We tell it like this, “Poor Joseph and Mary, with little to their name, wrapped their newborn in cloths, lowly rags, while they shivered in a barn that night, there because no one would take them in.”  Sounds sad and romantic all at the same time.

And, it wasn’t that way at all.

Luke picks up a theme in his gospel here.  That theme is this:  the lowly, the cast out, are the ones beloved by God.  You read this most especially in the story of the Good Samaritan and the story of Lazarus and the poor man.

Jesus is cared for perfectly well here.  Swaddling wraps were what all mothers did back then.  More than that, the act of wrapping His helpless body will show up again later after His crucifixion.  Jesus was not wrapped in cloths because the family was poor, but because He was loved.

And, there was, indeed, no room in the inn.  So, the innkeeper put the couple in the manger.  Now, where was that?  Archaeologists know where a manger would be in a town:  in the house of the owner!  The innkeeper took Joseph, Mary and Jesus into his home, put them by the house heating unit, “the animals”, and kept them as comfortable as possible.

The action here makes perfect sense, since hospitality is a cardinal virtue in the Middle East, and in Judaism.  The couple wasn’t turned away, but was taken in!

Luke’s Christmas message, it seems to me, is this:  Will we love Jesus, enough to care for Him in our hearts, take Him into our homes, and then do the same for others?

“HISTORY?” 11/28/10

Luke 2:1-5

Two problems here.  One:  there is no record of this census, save here.  Romans kept good records.  Two:  this time does not agree with Luke Chapter 1, in that the birth announcements happen several years before Quirinius shows up in the Middle East.

So, why did Luke write this?  Here’s my thought.

Folks back then often wrote “compressed history,” where a person put events close together for a point that may not have been close together in time.  This happened whenever Scripture mentioned the Patriarchs, then right away talked about deliverance from Egypt.

Luke puts Caesar Augustus and Quirinius together as sort of book ends.  Augustus was hailed as “Savior of the world” when he took over the Empire, for he brought peace and stability to Rome.  Quirinius set in motion the events that led to the rebellion of the Jews against Rome in 70 AD, and Jerusalem’s subsequent destruction.

So here, I believe, is Luke’s message.  When the Caesar savior brought peace by his sword, the real Savior of the world came to earth.  When the Jews were ruled by lousy kings, the true King of the Jews lived among them and was, mostly, ignored.

So, why the census?  There was a local census that Quirinius imposed.  Cue the ominous music!  People were recorded for service to Rome, to be taxed, to be drafted.  That census, which marked the beginnings of great troubles, found Joseph and Mary.

In fulfillment of Scripture (Micah 5:2), in obedience to the government, God arranged Joseph and Mary to be where they needed to be, so that God could do what needed to be done

Just as God arranged to find us!

“FAMILY MATTERS” 11/28/10

Matthew 1:1-17

This isn’t a literal list.  Matthew writes it out this way to prove something.  Namely this:

Jesus is the fulfillment of the Patriarchs’ dreams.  He is the one descendant of Abraham through whom many nations would be blessed.  He is the king from Judah Jacob saw when he blessed his sons in Egypt.  He is the King who sits on the throne of David forever.

Jesus is the King of Kings.  That is the next section on the list.  All those kings, none of whom measure up to king Jesus!  Their rule led Israel out of the Promised Land into exile.  Jesus’ rule leads whosoever go will out of exile into the Kingdom of God.

Jesus is the One who meets the exiles’ longings.  Down through the generations, from priests building up ruins, to common folk just trying to survive, they yearned for deliverance.  And, through them, their Deliverer was coming!

Notice here too, that Jesus was descended from priests (Shealtiel & Zerubbabel).  He was descended from kings.  He was descended from friends of God (the Patriarchs).  He was descended from “the little people”.

Jesus was born from all types of people because He is the Savior of each and every one!

This holiday, let him be the dream you have.

Let Him be the Ruler over your house.

Let Him meet all your longings.

“I AM THE WAY, Pt. 1” 11/21/10

John 14:1-7

Certainty…  Wouldn’t that be nice?  Not assurance of bad things, we have enough of that; but assurance of good.  Certainty.

We have that already.  Jesus supplies it.  He guarantees it by His resurrection.  He seals it in us by the Holy Spirit.  What certainty do we have?

WE KNOW WHERE WE ARE GOING:  Jesus prepares a place, and guides us to that destination.  He brings us along many trails, but each trail leads only to one end – Himself.  Your future is already secure and set.  Jesus is your future, and retirement, and end of life, and beginning of new life.  “I am the Way.”

WE HAVE ENOUGH SMARTS TO LIVE WELL:  Knowing God and what God wants really makes a day’s chores clearer and simpler!  We, through Jesus, know the Father God.  The Creator is our Savior, who is our Guide.  No one is a fool who follows the Lord.  No one is smart who ignores the Maker of all.  “I am the Truth.”

WE WILL LIVE, AND LIVE, AND LIVE:  Thomas wonders about all this.  How can he know for sure?  Jesus answers him in three ways:
– the promise of a destination and final home
– the reality of life with God now as a foretaste of heaven
– the act of following Jesus shows them what life is.

No one comes to the Father, but by Me, said Jesus.  He means it.  There are ways to live, but only one life.  And Jesus has it, and shares it with whomever will follow Him.  “I am the Life.”

This holiday, be thankful for certainty.  It’s ALL good!

“I AM THE WAY, Pt. 2” 11/21/10

John 14:1-7

Suppose you lived in AD 90, in or around Jerusalem.  Here’s what Jesus’ words in John might have done to you:

AMAZED:  God, that wondrous concept everyone has an opinion on, but most have little if any proof, is forever changed.  God is known!  Known as a Father, shown by the Son.  There is an intimacy with the divine here most people would call rapturous, but Jesus insists is the normal way to live.

ASSURED:  There are many religions competing for followers in AD 90, much like today.  How can one know which is right?  Jesus simply says here that the depth of a person’s relationship to Him creates a certainty and steadfast commitment to God.  Yes, everyone has their ideas on God.  God in Jesus speaks His own mind.

BEHELD:  The Way, the Truth, and the Life are not some rules and guides a person must adhere to in order to get close to God.  No!  The Way, the Truth, the Life is God Himself, who gets close to us and upholds us each and every day!  Like children in a mother’s arms, or a calf in the farmer’s care, we are embraced by God.  No longer must one reach for God alone.  In Jesus, God stretches out to us.

BEATIFIED:  A day by day walk with Jesus shapes a soul in ways other paths cannot.  As He is God, He has a presence and a promise only He can dispense.  Folks in AD 90, or AD 2010, who expose themselves to that Giver of all Good Gifts, find that, indeed, life is radically different than it had been in the past.  A mansion, a room, is prepared.  That mansion is one’s own soul, given an extreme makeover, so that God can fill and fulfill it, until, soul and Savior are united forever.

What worked in AD 90 still works now!

“MARRIED TO GOD” 11/14/10

Isaiah 62:1-5

It stinks to be lonely, unloved!  The people of Israel were sure God abandoned them.  Isaiah shows them God’s truth.

God improves them, taking the sin out, and letting His light shine in.  Yes, that work hurts.  But, so does the sin.  It is better to have the surgery, than die with the disease!

God’s work is not only for the sake of Israel, but also for those who encounter the “Chosen People.”  They were chosen to show how this God, Yahweh, makes a fundamental improvement in human life.  As they let God do His work, others will notice the difference.

Those who felt alone will be hailed as Hephzibah:  “ones in whom God delights.”  Those who felt unloved, not connected, will find themselves Beulah:  “married”.  Married to God forever!  In love with infinite love.

God will take delight in the work He has done, removing the sin, showing the salvation, being in close fellowship with those God loves.  The people who feel deserted will have the next generations sing their praise, and their God enjoy their good, godly times.

Well, so what?  Here’s how this section of God’s Word might fit you.

Where you are lost – God is at work making you better, driving out what is killing you, and putting in what lets you live without dying.

As you allow this work, people will ask about you.  Then, you can declare what the Lord has done – not some good old days story, but a new, fresh one that makes you new as well.

Joy will be yours again.  Joy over being made new.  Joy over letting the old go.  Joy over God’s rejoicing over you.

“LIFE UNTIL HE COMES” 11/14/10

1 Thessalonians 4

Jesus is coming again!  Soon, I hope.  So, we live how?

GROW:  Never rest content with the level of understanding, the depth of love, the current state of your soul.  We are meant to go from glory to glory.  With Christ, there is always more, and we can always be more.  For the Judge of the Universe is coming for us.  May He smile when He sees us.

KEEP YOUR PANTS UP:  The issue then was sex.  The issue nowadays is passion.  We get enthused about what doesn’t reveal Jesus.  Saints before us risked their lives, not for a good buy, but for a great Savior.  Let us not expose ourselves to what pleases, but doesn’t satisfy.  Keep the pants on, ready to work, and…

LOVE:  A good lover is not the same as a good person.  Love so that others are bettered.  Love so that people see Jesus in you.  Love as if Christ were right beside you.  For one day, He will raise the dead, and you will have a world full of new people to love.  Practice now.

EXPECT/ENCOURAGE:  We had a dog, “Ding Dong”.  Every day he would make sure he was home waiting for us when we returned.  No matter what his day was like, he wanted to be there for us.  God wants us to act like a dog.

When he saw us, he would wag his tail, bounce a bit, run over to see us.  How many people would be different if we treated them with that enthusiasm for who they are?  How much different would we be, if we had that zeal for our Lord?

When will Jesus return?  I don’t know.  My task, your task, in life is not to know when He comes, but to live as if He is coming.  Then, when He shows up, we already are ready!

“MERCIFUL ONE” 10/24/10

1 Samuel 24

If you were a middle school boy, then this story would be great!  It has everything such a person would want in it.  It still is a great story for those of us who, hopefully, have grown out of toilet jokes.

David treats his enemy with mercy, as well as honesty.  David takes a piece of Saul’s cloak, not Saul’s life.  This way, Saul knows he could have been killed, but was not.  The reason?  Saul is anointed; God chose him.  It is for God to un-choose.  It is for David to honor God’s choices.

David leads even when things are bad.  They are trapped in a cave, but killing Saul would give them a way out!  David does not take that way.  In so doing, he not only prevents his allies from taking a king’s life, but also shows them the value of all lives,  and David’s own way of treating people at his mercy.  Good to know in one’s leaders!

David lets God handle the situation.  Here David entrusts his life to his God.  He could have acted for his own sake, but chose to let God act in his defense.  How many times do we jump to our own defense before God gets a chance to do His good work?

David defeats his enemy without destroying him.  Saul is, here at least, sorry for the trouble he was causing.  The king even admits that David deserves to take his place!  But, David goes further still.  He vows not to destroy Saul’s family, a common practice back then when one king takes another’s place.  Saul, who is hunting David to destroy him, receives a blessing of the same not happening to those he loves.  Isn’t this what Jesus meant when He commanded, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you?”

So, tell this story to some boy-man.  In here is quite a bit he could learn about how a real man really lives in the world.

“CHOSEN ONE” 10/24/10

1 Samuel 16:1-13

People asked for Bible stories.  Here, in a condensed form, is David’s story.  It starts with his call from God.

The current king, Saul, has shown himself mighty in battle, fairly able in administration, and completely unwilling to follow his God.  The prophet Samuel is all upset about this situation, as God’s people are now being led by someone who challenges God.

God’s solution?  Get a new king.  From a prosperous family of Judah.  The youngest son of the family.  Why him?

The older brothers much more look the part of leadership.  We learn later on that, in battle, they are as cowardly as one would expect folks outnumbered and outmuscled to be.  And, they are a bit petty and sharp with people who challenge them.  That is why they get mad at David when he goes to fight Goliath.

“Man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart.”  In Hebrew, that word “heart” is “lev.”  It means “life at the most true point of who one is.”  God looked at the other brothers and saw what Samuel could not: character.  God looked at David and saw what Samuel could not: character.

Right along, God had been preparing the world for David.  See the book of Ruth for proof.  From David would come the Messiah, the King of Israel who would display the fullness of God.  From David’s youth, he had been quietly shepherded to a love of God, even while the boy served his family as a shepherd!

None of this means we can make God choose us.  It does mean we can make ourselves more open to be chosen!  Were God to look on our lev, what would He see?  What character, what passion, truly drives us?  For we, too, have been prepared for, so that others may know Jesus!

“STEWARDSHP OF LIVES” 10/17/10

Genesis 4:1-12, Luke 10:25-37

Familiar question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”  Familiar story, the Good Samaritan.  Familiar experience, we don’t want to live this way.  We don’t want to answer the question, “Yes, yes I am!”

Stewardship is not about stuff.  It is about lives.  Can I give someone stuff and make them worse off than before?  Yes.  Can I give someone the life of Christ in me and make them worse?  No.

Cain killed his brother because he was mad at God.  How often does a person’s poor relationship with God lead to awful choices in life!  God put that brother before Cain.  God put that person before us.  God brought that person from Erie here to us.  God sent that neighbor who just moved in.  God now asks us, “are you your brother’s keeper?”  We will either kill or bless when we answer.

The folks who passed by the wounded man had good reasons for not helping.  So do we.  They might be faking it.  We could be at legal or financial risk.  Someone else will come by soon, and we have a schedule to keep.  I don’t know that person; they could do me harm.

What was Jesus’ advice at the story’s end again?  Wasn’t it, “Go and do likewise?”  Does that allow for any excuse at all?

This is one tough issue!  But, we have one tough God, who died and went through hell, so that He could plant heaven in us to share with those around us.  God is stronger.  He is our Shield and Defender.  Christ is our Brother and Warrior.  The Spirit is our Guide and Life.

Christ loves those awful people; He once loved us the same way too.  The way we treat others shows how we believe God treats us.  Take care of your brothers and sisters, in ways that show them Jesus.

“STEWARDSHIP OF SELF” 10/17/10

Matthew 22:34-40, 2 Corinthians 9:6-15

Biblical psychology 101: God defines us according to relationships, and makes us new creations from godly relationships.  Were you to ask a religious person what made a person a person, you might hear, “body, mind, soul.”  Ask a therapist you might hear, “id, ego, super ego.”  Ask the Maker of humanity and you will hear, “one’s relationship to Me and the world I made.”

2 Corinthians talks about giving as blessing.  The giver blesses and enjoys doing it.  “God loves a cheerful giver.”  I’ve never made that.  I’ll give, but usually don’t like it.  Were I to pay more attention to this passage, I would learn that:

*my actions toward others inspire the praise of the God I love
*as I give, my God supplies, so that I learn to trust and relax in life
*gratitude will come to me, and shape who and how I am

For a Christian to have self-esteem, said believer must give.

Matthew connects one’s love of God with love of neighbors.  As one loves God, one loves others, as a natural extension of that love for an infinite God.  The two great commandments do NOT mean, “until I love myself, I cannot love others.”  They clearly say that as I love God, love for others grows and flows in and from me.

For a Christian to be content with oneself, God must be loved, and the world must see that love also.

So, where does that leave us with regards to what our culture now calls “wellness?”  Here’s where:

*I am strongest, wisest, healthiest, most confident when God is the best and highest relationship I have
*From that relationship comes a new way of living in the world: one full of surprise, hope, love, suffering, and sacrifice, all of which make me more like Jesus to others.

“WHERE ARE WE AT THE END TIMES?” 10/10/10

Revelation 20:7-10

Last sermon on end times, unless you want more.  Suppose the Lord’s return is within our life times.  If we get raptured, then we are not on earth when He comes, a third time, since He came for us counts as the second time.

In that case, this battle of Armageddon here is a battle between Satan and his servants, and the new believers who came to faith after the Christians all left earth.

Say, however, the saints are us.  Say we have chosen to band together in an increasingly beast run, 666 world, and, as this passage shows, are surrounded by evil.  Then God comes in and rescues us!  By the way, here is where Hollywood westerns got the idea for the hero coming just in time on white horse.

Which is right?  They both can’t be.  Not to show no spine here, but the view of either side, the rapture side, or the stay-here side, is, to me, missing the point.

The point is that believers will find it harder and harder to live the faith and keep the faith strong.  NOW IS OUR TIME TO GET READY.

* If we get raptured, then those we love need to hear our faith with all the passion and love we can share.
* If we don’t get raptured, then our love for Jesus must grow so that we are able to withstand the evil one.  Telling people about Jesus is the best faith exercise!

Where are we at the end times?  If we belong to Jesus, we are on His side, at His side, for His sake.  And, does anything else really matter?

“STEWARDSHIP OF $” 10/10/10

Malachi 3:6-12, Matthew 22:15-22, 1Timothy 6:17-19

OK, here is the once a decade sermon on money, the start of what stewardship means.  Why?  Money is like the mercury in a thermometer; it moves based on the spiritual fire within a person.

Those who skimp on what God requires find themselves scraping by in other areas of life.  Unlike government, God actually can produce wealth and blessing out of nothing!  What He asks for is what we have: 10%, off the top, of time, talent, treasure.  Then He will be real to us.  Then our trust in Him is returned through His care for us.  That is Malachi.

Matthew is harder.  We are to give to Caesar, even if Caesar has no idea how to use money correctly.  And, we are to give to God.  Give to Caesar the taxes; give to God what belongs to God.  And what belongs to God?  Everything.  Not 10%, everything.  Even if the taxes aren’t paid.  Even if the bill is due.  God is owed everything, even debt.  Truth be told, I’d rather let the IRS suck my life blood, then have Jesus take hold of my life.  And that is the problem, isn’t it?  The question here isn’t answered, but my allegiance is challenged.

To God, money doesn’t matter, save that it shows us where our commitments lie.

And that brings us to Timothy.  Wealth is not bad, unless it is used badly.  Poorer people think wealth should be given to them.  Bureaucrats think wealth should be used by them.  God expects those with wealth to use it to do His will.  Why did we lose so much money as a nation recently?  What were we doing with it?

It all boils down to this:  God’s people are to use their treasure as if it were from the Lord.  How would our checkbooks look then?

“SERVE TO SURVIVE, II” 10/3/10

Lamentations 1:1-16, Luke 17:5-10

An “unworthy servant” sounds awful!  No, it isn’t.

Compared to the God who keeps us striving, strengthens us for one more try, each day, we have done little, but have been wise enough to let Jesus work in and through us.

All those hurts and griefs we carry threaten to sweep our joy and very life away.  It is Jesus who holds us, and our pain.  In His arms we are mighty enough to hold the hurt of others.

We have given ourselves to the Maker of the universe, the One who holds all lives and all things secure in His hand; we are precious to His purpose.  Our lives are about Him, and so we are free.  And so we are fine, despite any circumstance.  Why?  He is fine with us!

The faith we have received is able to do all that Jesus needs done in our lives, in our families, in this congregation, in our world.  We don’t have to do it all, but we all have something to do.  As servants of the King, what else would we do?

Like those people in Lamentations, we may feel we have lost a lot, if not everything!  What did they do?  They honestly examined themselves in the light of God’s word, saw where and how they were avoiding the life of their Lord, and began to amend their ways, so that God was glorified in who they were and what they did.

And history of humanity would never be the same again.

At this table today, you and I are welcomed by God to be who He needs us to be: His servants.   We are invited to put His heart into ours, His desires ahead of ours, His passion and ability before ours, so that, as the prayer goes, “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  If that is your prayer, then God will answer, wonderfully well!

“SERVE TO SURVIVE, I” 10/03/10

Lamentations 1:1-16, Luke 17:5-10

Judah’s known life is gone.  Decimated.  Left in the dust and violated.  The things that made them feel in control were gone.

Can we relate?  Health and the power from that: fading.
Wealth and the security from that: pretty shaky now.
Family support: depends on whom one turns to.
The power to feel young and vibrant: mostly a memory.

In Judah’s case, they lost their power because they left their God.  In our case, we lost our power to find our God.

When health fails, Christ is our Healing.
When earthly security is threatened, Christ is our Refuge.
When family is frayed or far away, Christ is our Present Help.
When our vim and vigor leaves, Christ is our Strength.

And, we in turn remain His servants.  Our lives, right now, still count to Him.  Our purpose on earth, even as we are, is vital to His desires.  We matter, no matter our circumstances.

Our Christian sisters and brothers across the globe prove this.  They are persecuted, mocked, kept out of the economic mainstream, cast out of their homes and home towns.  Yet the church everywhere but around us is growing.  Why?

The church serves Jesus more than it yearns for worldly peace.
The church lives off of Jesus’ promise and life more than goods and services.
The church loves in powerful ways, even though the church people are weakened and weary, for Jesus loves through each one.

At this table, we are fed Christ.  That nourishment, if lived by, will let us not only survive, but thrive!

Taste and see.

“ANTICHRIST” 9/26/10

Revelation 12:17-13:4, 3:11-18

Rather than play the game of “Guess the antichrist,” I want to have us look at ways we can tell antichrist.  That way, we won’t be among those seduced and marked.

Antichrist attacks the church.  Not just morality, not just beliefs, but church people who love Jesus fall under the anger of Antichrist.

The Antichrist mimics the true God.  The dragon = the Father.  The beast = the Son.  The beast of miracles = the Holy Spirit.  In other words, the devil gets close to the truth, but just a shade off.

Antichrist has political, religious and economic power.  Here is why so many will fall away from faith.  Antichrist will threaten their lives and livelihoods, so they will deny Jesus for their own survival in the world.

The Antichrist puts a mark on people.  Our Lord puts His Spirit within believers.  See the difference?  What is on us can be taken from us.  What is within us can never be removed.

So, antichrist invites us to live for what we can lose, rather than the One who promises never to lose or forsake us.  Here comes the “so what” part.

We could look for signs of who the Antichrist might be, identify indications of the end times coming.  We could follow Jesus’ command and attend to our relationship with Him and our calling from Him.

Focusing on Jesus here and now strengthens us for dealing with a rough world coming sooner or later.  Don’t look for trouble.  Look for the One who calms the storm.

“CHURCH DISCIPLINE” 9/26/10

Matthew 18:15-20

If the church has one purpose – it is to live for and love the Lord.  If each Christian in the church has that purpose front and center in their lives, then we should have no problems, right?

But we do.  We, by ourselves, do not keep to a single purpose, at least, not to the Lord’s!  We, as a congregation, often head for what we like rather than what matters.  Hence, the need for discipline.

We are U.S. citizens, so we hate discipline.  Like the young adolescent, which our nation technically is, we cry almost daily, “You can’t tell me what to do.”  How often, after we’ve said that, have we regretted the immediate future?  Discipline is what keeps us as people, and as His people, on the Way, the Truth, the Life.

It works simply.

ONE ON ONE:  Face to face is always better than behind the back.  To deal with one another this way requires an agreement to pray together, and a great effort to speak the truth in love.  Or else…

ELDER HELP:  Having a referee often helps when a quarrel is more fun than the solution to it.  The “ref” is to bring the two to prayer, hear both sides, give an impartial opinion.  Or it becomes…

ALL OUR PROBLEM NOW:  If a cell in your body is mutating, all of who you are has cancer.  Same with a church.  If people are “out of bounds,” then the whole congregation is sick.  Set pride aside, let go of “it is nobody’s business” and get well together.  Meet, embrace both sides, pray.

SEPARATION:  Sometimes people need a “time out”.  This is where the Amish get shunning from.  It is a most stark method of bringing people back to the former three means of resolution.  Why do this?

We have one purpose, only one.  Keeping to it leads to life.

“CALL TO MISSION WORK” 9/19/10

Acts 13:1-3

Note a few things here:

* These men all knew the rules of God.  Still, they were seeking His guidance and direction.

LESSON HERE:  Just knowing the path is not enough to help us follow the Lord.

* These men sought the Lord through fasting (giving up regular activity to make time for God) and worship (offering oneself to Christ: heart, mind, body, soul).

LESSON HERE:  God’s counsel usually does not come to those who show little interest in Him.

* This was a diverse group:   Levite, Simeon – an African, Lucius – a Jew who knew the Greek culture, Saul – a former persecutor of the church.

LESSON HERE:  The Lord’s church is not people who are alike, but people who love Him.  The diversity forces the people to trust and be conformed to Christ.  “One man sharpens another, as iron sharpens iron.”

* God’s call to mission work is for all, but specific calls are for specific people.

LESSON HERE:  Everyone has a role to play in bringing the gospel to people.  Not everyone has the same job.

* It is the Holy Spirit who gives the direct guidance here.

LESSON:  Knowing how the Spirit interacts with you is VITAL!

* God’s call to mission work is exact, yet undefined.  “Set apart Barnabus & Saul for the work to which I have called them.”

LESSON HERE:  We are not given step by step instructions ahead of time.  If we won’t take the first step, then God won’t reveal the next!

Conclusion: Mission work is for all.  The life blood of that work is an attentive, loving relationship with Jesus.  When we have that, we have just about everything!

“RAPTURE!” 9/19/10

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Obviously, this is what many call the rapture – the time when God comes for His own and leaves the sinners to their deserved end.  Is it that obvious?

The passage clearly states its reason:  “…that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.  We…shall not precede those who have fallen asleep.  Therefore, comfort one another with these words.”  We’ll get to the rapture soon, but let’s address the text.

The Thessalonians were worried.  People they loved died.  Would they be: in the earth forgotten, in some ½ way place hoping God would come for them, separated from the final resurrection?  Paul’s answer addresses their fears more than the end of time.

The answer boils down to this:  God has His life and heart with those who have already died.  They will rise; we too will rise, all by the loving power of Jesus.  Together with Him, as we are now together in Him, a new life begins.  Take heart.  God’s children are not dead to Him.

So, what about the rapture?  As this picture is of a time of final reunion, it logically is a view of days yet to be. If you care to, then you can link other verses that have different agendas for their writing, to this one, and come up with a neat picture of how it all ends.

The point, believer, is that with Jesus, we never end.  When the world ends, He and we carry on.  When we breathe our last, His life in us carries us to a new way.  As our loved ones die, in Christ, they rest in His arms, not in their grave.  As will we.  So, yes, this is for a time to come, and a reassurance for today.

Alleluia!

“J.C. SETS US FREE, I” 9/12/10

John 8:28-30, 34-38

What holds your heart?  What sets you aquiver with excitement?  Why couldn’t it be God?

Jesus’ life demonstrates a life devoted to God’s heart and excited to do God’s will.  Jesus’ life in ours raises us to that similar life.

We are raised through sin.  Jesus crucified all sin; we pull it back down off the cross.  So, therefore, that sin constantly affects us, until we desire Him over the sin.  Then, we get a sliver of a taste of the Resurrection, for death at work in us dies, and we can live by the power of Jesus!

But He goes further.  Not only does Jesus raise our sin up in us, not only does He (with our permission), raise that sin out of us, but He also raises us into a way of being alive those imprisoned in sin do not know.  We are raised to eternal life.

– That life transforms how we look at people.  Souls going to hell hurt us, rather than give us pleasure.

– That life drives us to set up a barricade before hell’s gates.  We live and live to tell the gospel, so that we can catch some before they forever fall.  Sort of like “Red Rover” only WAY more important!

– That life heals our past and our minds, so our hearts are freed to live and love without fear and shame, as we follow the Spirit.

How does such a life come to us?  By accepting Jesus as Savior and Lord.  As Savior, He then fills our lives with His love and forgiveness – gifts we then share with those around us.  As Lord, He guides our decisions, our actions, our hearts toward holiness and peace.  You believe; I believe.  Have we accepted yet?  Maybe today?

“J.C. SETS US FREE, II” 9/12/10

John 8:28-30, 34-38

Only in John does Jesus say, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He…”  What does He mean?

He has lifted up all human sin above all humans, and took it all within Himself.  Think of that.  You would give anything for your shame, your pain, your ways to change.  Jesus, and He alone, makes that change possible.

He draws all people to Himself.  Not only the sin, but also the sinners are drawn to the cross.  You were.  I was.  Jesus’ great life poured out onto the earth, onto all who would believe, is a magnet for a wise soul.  He takes people from the mess they’re in, puts them on His crucified self, and lifts them away from the mess, or at least lifts them through it!

He draws the Church back to its only purpose:  loving and living for Him.  All the arguments people have are hushed up when we look at His life suffering for ours.   All those activities we think are so important stand in the shadow of that cross, and look different in that light.

How does any of this set us free?  What would YOUR life be like, if sin were not such a big part of it?

How would you treat others, even yourselves, if you saw people as Jesus on a cross saw them?

Where could this congregation go if the Lord’s passion and Spirit were all that mattered to us?

Folks, here is freedom.  Freedom indeed!

“GOD IS WHOM?” 9/5/10

John 1:1-5

God is a Singular Relationship: Father, Son, Spirit, each One, each His own.  That means what?

As we are in God’s image, we are not ourselves until our individuality connects with others and glorifies the Lord.  We are the sum of relationships, not just cells and chemistry.  That means what?

Each moment God uses:  to shape us to be more like Jesus, to teach us to embrace and live by the Spirit in dealing with others, to act in the heart of the Father.  That means, “Find God and do what He wants.  We’ll become like Christ that way.”

God is Creative:  the Word is active in the speech of the Father; the Spirit moves with the Word to touch earth with heaven.  That means what?

Humans are meant to improve themselves by the work of the Word on them and through them.  Humans are meant to improve the world by touching lives in such a way that God’s presence, love, and power are noticed and received.  That means what?

“Put your talents to God’s use:  same with your time, and treasure, and heart.”

God as Three in One overcomes the darkness.  God ultimately loves harder than the world hates.  God’s passion overcomes human indifference.  God’s being shines like a lighthouse to whoever would live.  That means what?

“Love like Jesus.  Care like the Spirit.  Shine the Father’s light”

As we live this way, we know the true God.

“TO WHOM IS HE SPEAKING?” 9/5/10

Matthew 24, Daniel 12

Every generation, including the Bible ones, were SURE the Lord would return soon.  Every generation, so far, has been wrong.  So, to whom is God speaking in our Scriptures?

God speaks to those in earshot.  Daniel encourages exiles to keep the faith.  Jesus braces His disciples for the struggles to come.  Do you hear the Lord speaking to you in these words?

God speaks about their future, our past. Those days in Daniel fit really nicely with the years when Anitochus Epiphanes and the Maccabee family wrestled for control of Judah, and when Jesus was crucified.  Jesus speaks of Jerusalem’s destruction.  What word does God have about your tomorrow that makes all your yesterdays different in your soul than they have been?

God speaks about days yet to be.  There is a judgment day.  There is end coming.  We are not to worry or wonder so much about either timing or occurring.  We are to live as if that End were soon!

* Tell people the gospel; let them know life can be different!
* Live the gospel before people; let them see the different life!
* Love the gospel; let people see the glory of God in you.
* Encourage believers towards the gospel:  let people who believe know that, with you, there is an understanding ear, a shoulder to cry on, a hand that will help them over the rough patches.

To whom is God speaking in Daniel and in Matthew?  He is speaking to you and I, Christian.  He is speaking words of warning.  Let us take heed.  He is speaking words of power.  Let us pass that power along to others.  He is speaking words of life.  Let us live so that judgment day is a celebration for us, not a time of shame.

“ABRAHAM’S HORROR” 8/29/10

Genesis 22:1-14

The child of promise has come!  Then, when Isaac is a teenager, God says to Abraham, “Kill your only son.”  Abraham gets ready to do so.

He lies to his wife and servants about what is to happen.  He gets his son to get some of the things needed for his own death!

Can there be a worse place than here?  Who could face doing such horrible things?  Who would even carry them out?  And, what sort of a god would even ask that it be done?

God, who did not spare His only Son, but gave Him up as a sacrifice for all the world, that God would ask.  A God who sees Abraham making a god out of his child, rather than raising him back to God.  A God who says to us, “Pick up your cross and daily follow me.”

Our faith, despite what you hear in the popular churches, is not about happiness, fulfillment, and never-ending blessing.  It is about the cost of getting to those things.  And God pays the cost.  And we are told to do so also.

Abraham pays; oh how he pays!  He grieves all the way up the mountain.  He looks at his boy’s eyes as he raises a carving knife.  He and his son come back down off the mountain, and the two are never the same again.  Isaac is never the same with God again.

And between them, a ram is provided, a substitute, if you will.  The God who asks that horrible be done, does it Himself, so that life beyond it all is not only possible, but available.

Here is the horror of faith:  this mountain, that cross.  Here is where many leave faith.  But those who stay will meet the Lamb.

“PSALM 91″ 8/29/10

Psalm 91

This psalm is poetic nonsense!  God doesn’t act like this in real life!

He will save you from the fowler’s snare: Missionaries in New Guinea were surrounded by villagers one night.  They came to kill.  They left shedding no blood.  Why?  The locals said that all night long large soldiers stood guard around the missionaries’ camp, and they could not get to them!

A 1,000 may fall at your side: When Rwanda tried to kill itself, a village was almost slaughtered, save for one boy who hid under his mother’s corpse.  That boy is now a bishop in Rwanda, working to bring justice to the nation, and reconciliation between people.

No harm will befall you: A house church pastor in China has been imprisoned 20 out of the last 22 years.  His two years of freedom let him bring 700 people to Christ.  Without him, the people have grown the congregation to 2000 people.  They also have nursed his wounds and stood up for him in his mistreatment.  His purpose was to live for Christ.  No harm has befallen that purpose!

For whom does God act like this?

One who says, “God is my refuge and fortress, my God in whom I trust.”

One who makes their home in Christ.

One who loves God and receives His salvation.

This psalm shows the power of God in lives that are really living, not just using oxygen for a while.  Where are you with Psalm 91?