Christ Our Rock

The Main Event

2014-01-01T13:00:00.000-05:00

     Have you ever heard the old story about a little boy from the country, whose heart's desire was to, one day, see a circus? Well, it wasn't long before one did come to their little town, and the boy's father gave him some money. Lickety-split, he ran out the next morning to see his first circus. He couldn't have been more excited! But it was only a couple of hours later that he came home, and he still had all his money...
     “What happened,” asked his Dad, “Didn't you go to the circus?” “Sure did,” replied the boy, “The circus came right down Main Street—I saw every bit of it, and it didn't cost me a thing; nobody ever took my money!” The father threw up his hands and exclaimed, “Oh, son, you didn't see the circus at all! That was just the circus parade! You only saw a glimpse of the real thing—you missed the main event!” Oh, how important that is—especially with regards to true Christianity! And the main event is not really a happening, but a person, namely Jesus the Christ. It is absolutely crucial that we don't become satisfied with just a glimpse of the real thing!
     I have said it many times—Jesus was born to die; it was His purpose and His destiny. Praise God—His destiny was to change ours! First, He would begin to change those who were directly involved in the Christmas Story, and then, to change our hearts and lives—even to the same extent, right now and right into the New Year. Take Mary, for example—a young, Jewish girl who was ready, willing, and able to do whatever God asked of her. We read in Luke 1:28-29, “And the angel came in unto her, and said, “Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.” Just six months earlier, her cousin's husband, Zacharias, was also troubled at the same angel's announcement of yet another baby, John, who would become the Baptist. It means they were both extremely agitated and stirred up—they couldn't really figure it out. But Zacharias was rebuked for his unbelief by being struck dumb until his child would be born, and alas, Mary was not. I think the difference is in the matter of the “casting.” Normally, this word would refer to a throwing away of the idea, but here, it means to consider, reckon, or reason it through.
     When Mary responds to the angelic report of her child's greatness—that He would be the Son of the Highest and rule over a heavenly Kingdom forever— she still wonders how it could possibly be, since she is not married yet. No problem today when so many think nothing of premarital relations and casual sex, but back in their day, they took God's Word seriously. You see, I think the difference between Zacharias and Mary is the unbelief—she is not saying God can't do it; she just wonders what method God will use. Praise God—“And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.   And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.” And Mary's response? “...Behold the handmaid of the Lord: be it unto me according to thy word...” (vss. 35-38a)
     This, my friends, is the Main Event—not the actual birth of the baby Jesus, but the miraculous conception. All through the Scriptures we see everybody's absolute need for the indwelling Holy Spirit, and now we are faced with it in the New Testament as well. The Holy Spirit would come upon Mary and overshadow her, which, by definition from the Greek, means that divine power and influence would infiltrate every fiber of her being. Praise God—there is nothing that is impossible for her God! This little baby would be the way, the truth, and the life—leaving no other way to God. (see John 14:6) You will hear today, “How could God only provide one way—all religions are good, so it doesn't really matter what you believe, just believe something!” I think we hear this kind of mentality more and more as we become more and more a melting pot.    With no national religion, we have become the home to so many different cultures. I'm not really saying that this is bad, but it has made tolerance the modern “buzz” word, and in the process, true Christianity has become “intolerable.” In fact, right now, there are 53 countries that are either hostile towards or restrictive of true Christianity.
     The man or woman who purports that Jesus is the only way is quite likely to be called a narrow-minded bigot. Some one recently half-jokingly said that “fundamentalist” is the new four-letter word. “What kind of God would only offer one way—would that be fair?” I believe that question is a serious affront to God, for it implies that He has not done enough to provide a way of redemption for everyone. But just because many today want their own way all the time, doesn't mean the whole mess is God's fault! Rev. E. Young once wrote, “My answer to the 'one-way objection' is that God Himself, as an ultimate act of redemption, became incarnate in the person of His Son. That Son, Jesus, came into the world not to condemn it, for it was already condemned. (see John 3:16-21) He actually came to save it! He was rejected, slandered, mocked, tortured, and murdered. And God accepted that treatment of His Son as punishment for the very people who murdered Him!” You and me! Punishment for Jesus, pardon for us; if we will only believe in that Son, worshiping Him and serving Him alone. How could that possibly be unloving or unfair? How could God have done more?
     Young actually continued with this thought—“The only valid, honest reason to reject Christ's claims is because many do not want to be under His moral authority. When Jesus Christ comes into a life, He claims absolute authority over it.” And, quite frankly, this is the rub! But when the Lordship of Jesus is embraced and the Holy Spirit is allowed to dwell within, that absolute authority will rule, and gladly. Now, the extent to which that may not be taking place in our lives, is the extent to which we need to submit even more, desiring His complete overshadowing—His awesome divine influence to have its sway. Yes, have its “way,” for Jesus is just that—the Way, the Truth, and the Life! And it will not just end with you—it is contagious, in the very best sense of the word. As soon as Mary had experienced the Main Event, she went to visit her cousin, Elisabeth. Luke 1:41 tells us, “And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost.” Now, it's Elisabeth, too! Even before Pentecost, the Holy Spirit is overshadowing all over the place! Praise God—it's the Main Event!
     And, by the way, Mary was no slouch in these things, either! Don't forget her own song of praise and adoration—“And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For He hath regarded the low estate of His handmaiden...” (vss. 46-48a) Praise God—many today may call her sinless, and therefore, perfect, but she didn't—she knew she personally was in need of a Saviour. If she had been without sin, that would not be true. To follow Christ—and this is true for Mary, also—is to deny self, to turn from ego and pride, and to surrender control of our own lives!
     Praise God—Jesus was born to die! The Cross of Jesus Christ frightens some—in fact, many churches today have decided not to preach it, or even come against sin—it might offend someone. But in the Cross we rightly see true commitment. As A.W. Tozer put it, “One time a young man came to an old saint who taught the deeper life, the crucified life, and said to him, 'Father, what does it mean to be crucified?' The old man thought for a moment and said, 'Well, to be crucified is facing only one direction.' I like that—facing in only one direction. If he hears anything behind him, he can't turn around to see what's going on. He has stopped looking back. The crucified man on the Cross is looking in only one direction and that is the direction of God and Christ and the Holy Ghost, the direction of Biblical revelation, world evangelism, the edifying of the Church, sanctification, and the Spirit-filled life.” Tozer goes on to say that there are two other things—the crucified man is not ever going to go back and he has no further plans for the future. What exactly is the extent to which you want that? It's a blessed place, however, very few really want that kind of life today! (Matt. 7:13,14) May the Holy Spirit be conceived in your heart and life in a very powerful way, divinely influencing everything in its overshadowing. Get more than a glimpse—experience the Main Event!

Truth or Fiction: A Matter of Motivation

2013-03-12T21:46:00.000-04:00

Recently, I heard a message by the Rev. Stewart Briscoe, in which he used an event in his early life as an illustration. Years ago, it seems, he and his wife were traveling through South Africa on a preaching tour. The woman leading them asked if they wanted to see the world's largest man-made hole. Not even knowing such an attraction existed in the area, they agreed—just out of curiosity.

Sure enough—when they arrived, they were duly impressed. It was at least a mile in circumference and over a 120 feet deep. They were told that it didn't even start out as a hole—in fact, it was a substantial hill. When the pastor and his wife asked how it ever came to be, their guide told them the story. It all started with a couple of young boys with their shovels. As they dug, one of the youngsters uncovered a rather unusual rock. You see, this rock was rather sparkling on the one end. Yes, diamonds—the diamonds of South Africa! All it took to dig that hole—by hand—was motivation, and they certainly had that!

Now motivation comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes, colors and textures. One great motivation in the world today is greed—and not just for the criminal and his get-rich-quick-schemes and scams. No, throughout the business psyche of our society, greed and getting ahead is often the motivational force. But in the Christian mindset, it is to be an entirely different thing. As the world scrambles after precious jewels and gems, wealth and recognition of all kinds, the true Christian recognizes Jesus as the greatest prize of all. Matthew 13: 45-46 records Jesus saying, "Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it." Jesus, the living Word of God, is that pearl of great price—nothing is more valuable and worthy of possessing. A little later, the disciples were asked, "...But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." (16:15-16) Following this great declaration, we are told—"From that time forth began Jesus to show unto His disciples, how that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day." (vs. 21)

Elsewhere, it says that Jesus had set His face like flint towards the Cross—very purposed, very determined, very motivated. Yes, but motivated by love, not greed, for that is the heart of God! And, Praise God—Jesus was and is God! Oh sure, lots of people would argue with that, but that is because they don't want to come under His authority. Pride and haughtiness get in the way, and people demand their own interpretations. Perhaps I can illustrate this with something that was recently in the national media. A few weeks ago, there was much ado over Dan Brown coming out with a new book. I don't have any idea what it is about, or even its title—I couldn't care less. As far as I'm concerned, it is much ado about nothing!

You see, the world thinks much of him because of his book back in 2003—The DaVinci Code. It sold millions of copies, was translated into dozens of languages, and it made its author a multi-millioniare. The New York Times described it as a, "riddle-filled, code-breaking, exhilarating, brainy thriller." Other reviews were much less flattering— "pretentious, posturing, self-serving, self-congratulatory, condescending, glib, illogical, superficial, and deviant." From what I know, I would tend to agree with the latter. Oh, there might be some truth in some of the subject matter and even the plot, but I couldn't care less about any of that. I take issue with its assertions concerning my Jesus—heavy duty issues, in fact, it's blasphemy. The book suggests that the gospel accounts of Jesus that we have today are not the originals. Supposedly, the stories we have of Jesus, revealing both His humanity and His divinity today, are not what God gave. Hogwash! There is absolutely no evidence for such a ridiculous assertion. There was never an earlier form of Christianity—Jesus Himself made it very clear who He was, but people are just too proud to come under His authority. Specifically, the DaVinci Code manufactures a Jesus who was married to Mary Magdalene, and the two of them had a daughter named Sarah. And if that doesn't rewrite the gospel accounts, supposedly their descendants became the kings of France. Absurd!!!

What a fanciful fairy tale! Not only that, the Holy Grail, usually thought to be the chalice Jesus used in the Upper Room, is now—believe it or not— identified as the womb of Mary. Sick! Oh, many could just write it all off as fiction, but the problem with that is that many people are buying into it. Dan Brown, at his own web site states that it is, "my belief that the theories discussed by these characters (in my book) may have merit." He does not actually state that they are accurate or true, but he disagrees with those who come against them. He describes himself as a Christian, but distinguishes himself from those who "accept the Bible as absolute historical fact." He says, "We're each following our own path of enlightenment. I consider myself a student of many religions." And that is supposed to be Christianity?

Truth or fiction? What is going to motivate you? How precious is the true Jesus to you? Are you going to live by His Holy Word, or by the world's fiction? Your answers will very much depend on what you know to be truth or fiction. T.T. Lynch shares the famous story about the pastor who asked David Garrick why it was that the words of an actor are considered more powerful than the spoken word from the pulpit. The actor replied, "Ah, my dear sir, You of the pulpit often speak truth as if it were fiction, but we of the stage speak fiction as if it were truth." That fear that causes this wimpy stand for the truth actually stems out of pride and haughtiness. The seed, however, that all of this germinates from is a refusal to die to self and live for God. Martin Luther, the eminent reformer was adamant about this—"Pride is really the haughtiness of Satan against the name and word of God. People who claim to be wise in matters of faith pompously exalt themselves, regarding God Himself as nothing, and all others, in comparison to themselves, as mere fools. When this happens, there is no humility and no fear of God. In fact, they are destitute. Such people are enemies of God and must be overthrown, for they have excluded themselves from the Kingdom and grace of God."

I think G. Campbell Morgan, the great preacher, hit the nail right on the head—"I believe one of the reasons for the condition of the Church is the aloofness of Christians from sinning men and women. We still build our sanctuaries the way we want to, set up our standards the way we want to, and make our arrangements the way we want to, and say to the sinning ones: 'If you come to us, we will help you.'" But I ask you, what power will there be in that—we make up what is truth and what is fiction, and then think somehow that is going to present a good direction for others to follow—"If you come to us, we will help you." Jesus already laid out the truth—go to Jerusalem, suffer many indignities from those that call themselves religious, but are far from being truly spiritual, and die to self with the glorious result of being raised to new life—the resurrected life of Jesus!

Antony Flew, a strong 20^th Century advocate of atheism, argued that one should presuppose atheism until empirical evidence of God surfaced. He signed the Humanist Manifesto in 2003, but the next year, he claimed to have changed his mind—now he believed in God! And the world was in a stir—the atheist is now a Christian! No, he was a deist, claiming to now believe in the god of Aristotle—no mention of Jesus whatsoever, and without the true Jesus, there is no salvation! Charles Darwin, tragically influencing untold millions to NOT believe in God through his blasphemous evolution, before his death, admitted he was wrong. Well, that's good, but not enough—without the true Jesus, there is no salvation! Dr. Morgan made another interesting related point—"People today never seem to think that passionate and sacrificial devotion suggests madness in any realm except the spiritual. No one suggests the athlete, who gives himself totally to his sport and sacrifices all for the sake of physical prowess, is beside himself. No one imagines that the businessman, who is devoted to amassing wealth that he even shortens his life through the stress of it, is beside himself. No, that suggestion is retained only for those whose service for the souls of men and women is sacrificial. Let all such servants be comforted. They are in a holy comradeship!" Just watch that you don't end up digging your own hole—your way. Seek the resurrected Lord, for He is truly the Pearl of Great Price—what a motivation!!!

One Thing: The Thread that Holds Us

2013-02-01T13:00:00.000-05:00

A Danish philosopher tells the story of a spider that lowered a single strand from the top rafter of an old barn and began to weave his web. Days, weeks, and months went by, and the web grew and grew. Its elaborate maze provided the spider with everything he needed—flies, mosquitoes, and many other small insects. The web became larger and larger, until it was the envy of all of the other barn spiders.

One day, as this very industrious spider was traveling across his magnificent web, he noticed a single strand going up into the darkness of the rafters. "I wonder why this is here," he thought, "it doesn't really serve to catch me any dinner." And with that, the spider climbed as high as he could and severed the single strand. When he did, the entire web slowly began to tumble to the floor of the barn, taking the spider down with it. Yes, what a short-sighted spider, for he failed to remember how that strand had been the beginning of everything—in a sense, the only thing—the very thread that held him up!

Every man, woman, or child, who has clipped the strand that unites us with God, endeavoring to find meaning, satisfaction, and sense in life, has been tremendously disappointed in the end. Yes, even tragically ruined in the process! Edwin Young once wrote, "There is simply no coherence in a life lived out on our own terms, with no reference to the Divine." The apostle Paul wrote that Jesus Christ was before all things, and that in Him all things held together. In Paul's letter to the Colossian church we find that it was the Christ who was involved in the work of creation, and He is also the Head of the Church. Praise God—He is the first-born from the dead, and it is in Him that all of the fullness of God dwells. When we try to sever our lives from that sustaining thread—that "scarlet cord," which is symbolic of the streaming blood of Jesus Christ—everything falls apart! This "scarlet thread" is first pictured at the fall of Jericho in Joshua 6. Rahab, who helped the spies of Israel, was to place such a cord in her window in the wall, marking the place of salvation for her and her family. It was the "one thing" that would protect her. The theologian, Søren Kierkegaard, once wrote a book entitled, "The Purity of Heart Is to Will One Thing." He contended that a pure heart was a heart with a singular focus, which, by the way, was not a thought original to him.

Paul was a man with a laser-like focus on one thing. In Philippians 3, we read, "Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, and be found in Him...Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." Above all things, he wanted to experientially know Jesus Christ, and that was his entire focus. He was a very one-dimensional man, and as much as this world thinks that that is a bad thing, it is the best thing! But guess what? Even Paul was not the first one to have such a focus.

Look at Jesus! In Mark 10, we find a rich young ruler seeking Jesus, asking what else he needed to do to gain heaven. This was the man's first problem—his focus was on doing, that is, earning his own salvation.

When he called Jesus a "good teacher," the Lord made it clear that none but God was truly good, intimating, of course, that He—Jesus—was God in the flesh! When Jesus listed off several commandments for him to obey, the ruler made it clear that he had—even from his childhood—been there, done that—as they say. That is when it happened—"Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go they way, sell whatsover thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the Cross, and follow me." (vs.21) In His mercy, Jesus just cut to the chase and made it clear that the man was "hung up" on his stuff. If you let anything become more important to you than the resurrected life of Jesus working in you—through the Body of Christ—then there is indeed a problem!

Do you remember the time that Jesus was in Bethany with His good friends Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, and a situation arose? Yes, Mary was spending a good deal of time focused on Jesus, while sitting at His feet, listening to His every word, when her sister, Martha, was getting all stressed out with all of the details of the meal preparation. When the latter tried to get Jesus to reprimand the former, Jesus said, "Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her." (Luke 10:41-42) Many things vs. the one thing! Oh, certainly it is not wrong to prepare a meal for a guest, but when Jesus is no longer THE beloved guest in that house, there is a problem. In John 9, we find the story of Jesus healing the man that had been born blind—he had never seen before! But now he could, and the Pharisees were in an uproar over this Sabbath day healing. When they tried to intimidate the man into declaring that Jesus was a sinner, and, therefore, not a good man, the formerly blind man replied, "Whether He be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see." (vs.25) This Jesus was not only a good man, but God incarnate!

We especially see this need to discern between "many things" and the "one thing" as we make our way deeper and deeper into this New Year of 2013. Every day brings more busyness, and with that, more and more self-imposed responsibility. Our lives get all "stuffed up" with "stuff." So many things that the one thing that is really important, gets shoved aside. More and more, the one thing—Jesus—gets put off to the back burner, so to speak, and the focus becomes all about us and our plans. It is kind of like the spider snipping off that single strand—we forget just how crucial an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ really is—and SNIP—as Pastor Young put it, "...there is simply no coherence in a life lived out on our own terms..." The secular humanists tell us that we are moving toward our ultimate potential, and that it is just a matter of time before we make right all that has been wrong. You have got to be kidding—and that they expect to do without the Cross? The "New Agers" demand that we leave true Christianity behind and replace it with our own understanding, which, they say, will usher in a "new age," where we become our own gods. Kind of handy, isn't it? No authority but our own! Many of the prosperity preachers put forth something very similar, only they use the name of "Jesus" a lot more, which does fool a lot of people!

Well, BALONEY—I say, to all three, as well as to a whole myriad of other faulty belief systems. So many today want to make life be nothing but a dreamland—a series of re-runs played over and over again, and as long as the whole thing goes their way, then all is terrific. Praise God—that is not the way it works! God never meant for us to have a circular existence. From our beginning, recorded in Genesis, man was built for linear living. We were created to go somewhere—with purpose, and for the sake of reality—God's reality! Leon Uris wrote a history of Ireland called, "Trinity." At the conclusion, having looked at over hundreds of years of history, he states, "There is no future for Ireland, only the past happening over and over again." So is there no way out of this "re-run city?" Can we hope for new scenery for the journey? King Solomon, in the Book of Ecclesiastes, said many were living out a pointless existence—sin, confess; sin, confess; sin, confess—never actually ever being set-free from sin. God says life is full of purpose—just read 1 John 1! We were meant for linear living, but sin has lured many into a circular pattern—almost a mindless repetition of what has been before—from day to day, month to month, year to year. We are meant to live in relationship, but our sin has enticed us into hiding, isolation, and self-preservation. Praise God—Solomon's father, King David, saw it God's way, not man's way. In Psalm 27:4, he confidently states, "One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple." Quite simply, he is saying that he is demanding to truly know the real Jesus, abiding in His holy presence, and plowing through each day as it comes, and living—not just existing—but living in the glow of a spiritual breakthrough. Praise God—may your one thing this year be that scarlet thread that can hold you in these days, and throughout all of eternity. That scarlet thread is the sacrificial love of God!

The Wilderness Experience: Wandering or Worshiping?

2012-06-01T13:00:00.001-04:00

The story is told of a couple who invited several people to dinner. After all of the immense amount of work, the wife sat down at the table and turned to her six-year-old daughter and said, “Would you like to say the blessing?” “I wouldn't know what to say,” the little girl replied. Her mother answered, “Just say what you hear Mommy say.” The daughter bowed her head and said, “Lord, why on earth did we invite all of these people to dinner?”

Oh, how sometimes the “truth” slips out! The time comes when our cover-ups don't accomplish what we expect. But when Jesus puts out an invitation, He really means it and never regrets it. All through the gospel accounts, He invites fishermen and tax collectors to follow Him, sinners to come away from their sin and live in His holiness, and for the coming together of a bride to a glorious wedding feast.

In Revelation 19:7-9, we read, “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to Him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. And He saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb...” What a blessed invitation! And yet, all through the Scriptures, from Genesis to Revelation, we find the essence of this blessedness—the call to true freedom in Jesus Christ. In recent weeks, our church has been focusing on two parallel pathways to freedom, one from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament. First, the people of Israel were freed from bondage in Egypt, and set on a path through the wilderness. In fact, repeatedly Pharaoh was told why God wanted His people set free—to serve Him in the wilderness after a three day journey. Specifically, it would be a time of sacrifice and worship—they were to be worshipers in the wilderness. But so far, every time the people hit a bump in the road, worship was the last thing they felt like doing—they complained and became obstinate!

That, of course, was not God's intention for His people—not then, not now! In Numbers 11, the people had just complained about the food supply. To help Moses and Aaron deal with this troublesome lot, seventy men were appointed as elders. Verse 25 tells us, “And the Lord came down in a cloud, and spake unto him (Moses), and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it unto the seventy elders: and it came to pass, that, when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied, and did not cease.” The word for prophesying doesn't just suggest a telling of the future, but a speaking forth of the Word of God, which the people would need right then. It was a word spoken for the benefit of another. But then this happened—”But there remained two of the men in the camp, the name of the one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad: and the spirit rested upon them; and they were of them that were written, but went not out unto the tabernacle: and they prophesied in the camp.” (vs.26)

Wycliffe's Bible Commentary suggests, “Rather than assuming that these two are disobedient members of the seventy, who had not gone out with the rest, these were two of the many registered princes-over-the-thousands, responsible for leader-ship and transcription. This gift upon them was entirely unexpected.” You see, the context of the situation suggests that besides the seventy blessed with the Spirit, now two more were found to be so blessed. And then it happened—when Moses was told about it, Joshua, his trusted assistant, declared, “My lord Moses, forbid them. And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? Would God that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put His spirit upon them!” (vss. 28,29) Praise God—Moses was not a demagogue or an elitist—he knew the blessing of spirit-filled worship was calling all out of the grasp of a wandering mentality.

Matthew Henry reports that Eldad, whose name means “God has loved,” and Medad—referring to a sense of loving and affection, were, “found then in the camp, and there they exercised their gift of praying, preaching and praising God; they spake as moved by the Holy Ghost. The Spirit of God is not confined to the tabernacle, but, like the wind, blows where it listeth. And they that humble themselves shall be exalted; and those that are most fit for government, are least ambitious for it.” Yes, Joshua thought it was best to nip this in the bud—not because he wanted to see the two new prophets punished, but to avoid a schism. His zeal was for unity, but Moses understood that God was calling for worshipers, not wanderers. Almost immediately, the wind brings in the quail—millions of them. They spent days gathering them, but without any repentance for their complaining or gluttony. And then came a plague as their punishment for ignoring the invitation to a precious intimacy with the Holy One! They had been endowed—by virtue of the seventy men, not to mention the other two—with the power of the Holy Spirit for worship, but preferred a wandering spirit.

A little later, at Mt. Sinai, God laid out the future and its blessing, “I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in His mouth; and He shall speak unto them all that I shall command Him.” (Deut. 18:18) Praise God—this Prophet—capital “P”—is clearly Jesus Christ! (John 6:14;7:40) During His ministry, when the disciples were asking which of them would be considered the greatest, John spoke up and said, “Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbad him, because he followeth not with us. And Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us.” (Luke 9:49-50) Now, of course, this doesn't suggest that there should be unity at any cost, just to get along with everybody. No, true unity must be in the Holy Spirit, and the purity and holiness He alone can bring.

Praise God—wandering stops and worship starts as we allow for the fullness of the Spirit in our hearts and in our lives. Chris Tiegreen raises the issue in one of his devotional books—”The question we must all consider is how much intensity we will accept in our relationship with God. He sent Jesus to us, and Jesus sent His Spirit into us. What are you asking of the Lord? God will draw you as close as you want to get. If you ask Him to back off, sadly He will—for a time. If you ask for a deeper, closer relationship, you'll find that He wants it even more than you do.” Jim Elliot, one of the five martyred missionaries in South America back in the 1950's, knew this blessing—”Oh, the fullness, pleasure, sheer excitement of knowing God on earth!” Praise God—and now he knows an even greater blessing in Heaven! Missionary to China, Hudson Taylor, once said, “All God's giants have been weak men who did great things for God because they reckoned on His being with them.” The indwelling Holy Spirit will bring an end to the wandering in the wilderness with the joy of worship! Henry Blackaby once wrote, “Jesus prayed that you would have the same joy that the Father had given Him: a divine joy, a joy that comes from a deep and unwavering relationship with the Father...that no change in circumstance could ever shake it.” When Father's Day rolls around, don't forget this truth!

Three days in the wilderness; the tomb was empty! Luke 24:36-37 tells us, “...Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit.” In a sense, they had, for they had met the One who would send them the Holy Spirit, even in the midst of their fearful times of wandering. In John, we are specifically told, “And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” (20:22) The late David Wilkerson once declared, “It touches my heart deeply that Jesus' last words before He left His disciples were words of blessing. Luke says, 'Then opened He their understanding, that they might understand the Scriptures'..and then, '...He blessed them.'”(24:45,51) As with the seventy elders, Medad, and Eldad, the disciples are now touched by the Spirit—now born-again and invited to Pentecost; an immersion into that Spirit for holy worship in this life. Andrew Murray once wrote, “Let us ask Him to show us what Holiness is, His Holiness first, and then our Holiness; to show us how He has set His heart upon it as the one thing He wants to see in us, as being His own image and likeness; to show us, too, the unutterable blessedness and glory of sharing with Christ in His Holiness. Oh! That God by His Spirit would teach us what it means that we are called to be holy as He is holy. We can easily conceive what mighty influence that would exert!” Can we? What an invitation!!! He, and we, will never regret it—both Moses and Jesus didn't want to be the only ones filled with the Spirit—it is for all! Oh, what freedom!!!

What Goes Around, Comes Around! (Apr12)

2012-04-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

The story is told of the Roman emperor Charlemagne, and the rather unusual request he had made concerning the details of his own burial. He asked to be buried sitting upright on his throne. His crown was to be on his head, his scepter in his hand, and his royal cape draped around his shoulders. He would also have an open book placed on his lap!

That was in 814 A.D. Almost 200 years later, Emperor Othello was curious if those very explicit directions were followed. So he ordered the tomb to be opened, and, lo and behold, they found it all just as the ruler had requested. Only now, the scene had become quite gruesome, and even disgusting. The crown was tilted on the skeletal head, and the scepter was quite tarnished. And not only that, his mantle was moth-eaten, and his body was totally disfigured!

But there, open on his lap, was the very book that Charlemagne had requested—the Holy Bible! One bony finger pointed to a very specific passage—"What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Mt. 16:26) In one of the nursing homes we minister to, this was the very text with which we began our Lenten preaching series, "The Call to the Cross." You see, immediately prior to this verse, Jesus began telling His followers about His upcoming death, burial, and resurrection. Quite frankly, the call to the Cross will draw us away from a focus on our own lives and what we can gain in this world. Instead, if we truly answer God's call, we will soon have an eternal perspective that sees far beyond death and the grave. Paul wrote, "It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with Him, we shall also live with Him." (2 Tim.2:11) You see, what goes around, comes around! All through Lent, we have been delving into the plagues that God sent to Egypt in order to get His own people set free—a freedom that can ultimately be found at the Cross and the empty tomb. One plague that truly struck me was the one concerning the boils. We read in Exodus 9:8-9, "The Lord said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh. And it shall become small dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt."

The ashes, in the Hebrew, "piyach," refers to a powder that is easily puffed away. Virtually, a dust that was produced in the furnace—the furnace of affliction. For over 400 years, the people of Israel "slaved" away making and baking bricks for the Egyptian building projects. Now the tables would be turned—the by-product of their captivity would now be used to produce their freedom. Following God's specific direction, Moses tossed the ashes to the wind, and it blew over all of Egypt—settling on man and beast alike in the form of boils. Before long, those sores were seeping and painful. Disgusting, huh? It was meant to be, and so were all of the plagues.

They were all difficult times—on purpose—to draw Pharaoh, in particular, and all of the Egyptians, in general, away from a focus on themselves, and onto eternity. What goes around, comes around! This plague was a direct attack on their god, Isis, the goddess of medicine and peace. You see, cleanliness was paramount in Egyptian society, and this plague pronounced all of the people to be ceremonially unclean. The same would have been true for the people of God, if they had been afflicted—but they were not; only the Egyptians. Verse 11 tells us, "And the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boil was upon the magicians, and upon all of the Egyptians." These sorcerers and healers, being unclean themselves, could not help anyone else. If only they had seen the plague for what it was—a call to the Cross of the Great Physician, the pure and holy One. As it was, the magicians are never heard from again!

Remember Job? One day, God came to Satan and asked him if he had considered His servant Job. To prove Job's loyalty to God, He allowed him to be tested with great losses in his life. Job's response? "...the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly." (1:21-22) When this attack failed, Satan was allowed by God to go after him physically—"So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown. And he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal; and he sat down among the ashes." (2:7-8) And this wasn't even for punishment or to bring him to repentance, like with Pharaoh, for God, at the very beginning, had declared Job to be perfect, upright, and one who truly feared God. So, what was it all about? The whole thing would take this godly man even deeper in his faith and trust. What goes around, comes around! Later, he would declare, "For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God." (19:25-26) And even at the end of it—"I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now my eye seeth thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes." (42:5-6)

Dust, ashes, and boils—it is the call to the Cross of repentance, surrender, and submission to the Lordship of Jesus Christ—not just in words, but in every aspect of life. So many today have chosen a different cross, and therefore, a different church. As A.W. Tozer once put it, "...the old cross slew men; the new cross entertains them. The old cross condemned; the new cross amuses. The old cross destroyed confidence in the flesh; the new cross encourages it." The late David Wilkerson, the founder of World Challenge, had called it "the Church of Forgiveness Only." He referred to the illustration in Isaiah 4:1—"And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach." Pastor Wilkerson suggested that, "The seven would-be brides...are clearly a type of many in the last-days church. They are seeking to lay hold of one man, whom I take to be Christ. Yet these brides are not interested in loving Him. They do not want intimacy with Him, but rather, to only get relief from the guilt and condemnation of their sin. They want nothing more than forgiveness, to have the reproach of sin removed. These self-centered, would-be brides have no desire to submit to the authority of a husband. They do not want to know His heart, nor do they desire to obey." I agree!

You see, the church has made up some new definitions—forgiveness is just claiming to be O.K. without any real heart change. In fact, newer versions of the Bible have even cut out "remission of sins," and replaced it with a wimpy "forgiveness." Remission, in the original Greek, speaks of hating sin, standing against it, and turning from it. This, my friends, is at the core of true forgiveness, and without it, there is no forgiveness at all! So many today are only wanting to feel peace, but without a true experiencing of it—as God Himself defines it. They want to feel free from guilt, without actually dying to self and being free from it. Henry Blackaby once wrote, "Don't discount the power of God as described in Scripture simply because you have not experienced it. Bring your experience up to the standard of Scripture; never reduce Scripture to the level of your experience."

Oh, and there is also something else—"And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh..." (vs. 12a) Previously, the king had hardened his own heart; now God does it for him! All along, he had wanted to have his own way—to save his own soul, so to speak. God wasn't about to let him do the right thing, but for the wrong reasons, and thereby, think he was O.K.—born again. Without a true repentance and a turning from sin, there can be no true freedom. What goes around, comes around! Being buried sitting on a throne, with a crown, a scepter, and even a Bible, doesn't make one a Christian. Years of pointing to a Scripture doesn't do it either. Its a matter of the whole life—changed because of the blood of Jesus! Three days after the cross, Jesus was not found with a tilting crown, a tarnished scepter, or rotting flesh. No, on Easter Sunday, the Lord of all was found very much alive—He had been very dead, but now, He is alive forevermore. Yes, alive to live the resurrected life in you and me, through the power of the Holy Spirit! Indeed—what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? I, for one, know that my Redeemer lives, and that even after death and the grave have done their worst to me, I will see my Lord—in the flesh! Praise God—what does go around, comes around!!!

Tomorrow, Tomorrow: The Call to the Cross? (Mar12)

2012-03-01T13:00:00.000-05:00

A very telling story comes out of the 2^nd World War about some marines who were ship-wrecked in the South Pacific. After days of floating in a life raft, without food or water, finally—they see land! "Land ahoy!" someone shouts. Their fear and anxiety begins to fade, and they make their way to the shore. They all kiss the ground and say prayers of gratitude to God for saving them. But their adventure was not over yet!

Very quickly, they see signs of life on that island—it's inhabited, but by whom? Are we safe here? We're weak and hungry, and have no weapons for self-defense. Will the people welcome us or kill us on sight? And their fears return! Will they even live to see tomorrow? One of the marines climbs up a tall palm tree to try to get a clue as to what to expect. Suddenly, the man calls down, "It's O.K., fellas! It's more than O.K.! We're saved! I see a steeple with a cross on it! Praise God—a cross!"

To him, it was a sure sign of safety and rescue. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians, "For the preaching of the Cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God." (1:18) You see, only those who are truly born again will understand just how precious the Cross is, while those who choose their own strength can do nothing but consider the Cross and its purposes as foolishness. It's a matter of a calling—a calling to the Cross! Paul went on to write, "For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many nobles are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty." (vss. 26,27)
In other words, people, who are full of themselves, thinking they are too smart and sophisticated for these things, will not even be able to answer the call to the Cross, until they repent and forsake their sin. Jesus not only pointed His followers to His Cross, but also to their own—and ultimately, us to ours! "He that loveth father and mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. He that taketh not his own cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it." (Mt. 10:37-39)

We must hear the call to the Cross—hear it and follow it; not tomorrow, but right now! Isn't that just the response of so many in these days of self-will and procrastination? Tomorrow! In a sense, we are in a similar situation as those shipwrecked marines—at first, we think we are fine; yes, even saved! But it is not until we truly embrace the Cross and its significance, that we have a sure sign of safety and rescue! During this Season of Lent, we are going back to when Israel first found deliverance from bondage in Egypt. When the enemy—Pharaoh himself—refused to let God's people go and live in true freedom, the Lord proceeded to make clear Who was really in control. The first plague He sent their way was a matter of turning the water of Egypt into blood, but, even then, the king's heart was hardened, due to pride, and he refused to turn them loose.

Right now, I'm going to focus on the next miracle—the plague of the frogs. Frogs? Why frogs? Well, like the first miracle, honing in on one of the Egyptian gods, Hapi, the god of the Nile, this second plague is revealing the sovereignty of the One True God over yet another of Egypt's gods—Heket, the goddess of fertility, water, and renewal. In pictures found of her, we see a human form, but with the head of a frog. This is how it happened—..."the Lord spake unto Moses, Say to Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to come up upon the land of Egypt. And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt." (Exodus 8:5,6) In fact, they were everywhere—all through their houses, all through their bedrooms, and even in their beds—thousands of them! Can you imagine! They would go to knead their bread, and frogs; go to cook their meals, and open the oven doors—frogs! Like with the first plague, Egypt's magicians copied the feat through demonic powers, and there were even more frogs!

What an unbelievable mess! It is a rather graphic picture of disgusting reliance upon the self-life to get us through. This goddess of fertility, water, and renewal, represents a world view of reproducing its own version of prosperity; a life that can only be lived in the murkiness of stagnant water; and, last, but not least, a renewal based on worldly success. It points to a total ignoring of the Spirit-led life, and complete dependence on living by the dictates of the flesh—what we want, and not what God wants! It is the uncrucified and unsanctified existence. A.W. Tozer, the great 20^th Century preacher, put it this way—"Our uncrucified flesh will rob us of purity of heart, Christ-likeness of character, spiritual insight, fruitfulness; and more than all, it will hide from us the vision of God's face...Why do we build our churches upon human flesh, for we teach men not to die with Christ, but to live in the strength of their dying manhood."

Indeed, why? It is simply because we often want to be the one in control, following our own dreams and plans instead of His. Or, at the very least, to put Him off until tomorrow. Many do not want to take the chance of true fertility—having reproduced in us and through us the transforming life of Christ; or true regeneration by the spiritual waters of regeneration; or true renewal by the resurrection power of Jesus. Years ago, our children's ministry involved puppet shows, one of which focused on Barry McGuire's song, "Bullfrogs and Butterflies." You see, frogs are not just for judgment, but a promise. In part, it declared, "There's old tad pole in a fishin' hole. He couldn't croak or jump to save his soul, but then one day—the funniest thing—you know he started growin' and turnin' green. He jumped up on a lily pad, croakin' out a song—he gave it all he had—yes, he did! He's singin' 'Bullfrogs and butterflies, they've both been born again!'" Even nature is a picture of the true believer's transformation. Acts 2 gives us a clear depiction of that fruitfulness—"...they continued steadfastly in the apostle's doctrine and fellowship..." (vs. 42) So if this "fruit" of salvation is not evident, one would have to question being born-again! Inspect the fruit—not tomorrow, right now!

You see, a very strange thing happened when Pharaoh wanted the plague of frogs to be gone. When Moses asked him when he wanted the disgusting things to go away, you would think that the obvious answer would have been, "Immediately!" or, perhaps, even more appropriately, "Yesterday!" But that is not what Pharaoh said—he said, "Tomorrow!" I always assumed it was nothing more than strange, but a little deeper look at it reveals something more—"And he (Pharaoh) said, Tomorrow. And he (Moses) said, Be it according to thy word: that thou mayest know that there is none like unto the Lord our God." (vs. 10) In other words, it was God who led Pharaoh to request such a thing, and then, when it actually happened, He, and He alone—God—would be known to be in total control, even over the hard things of life! Not only would the frogs be hard, but not having them would be hard, too—"...the Lord did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died...and they gathered them together upon heaps: and the land stank." (vss. 13,14) Pharaoh refused to learn from the stench of his own ways, but what about the people of Israel? We are not told about them being exempt from this affliction, as with some of the other plagues. Perhaps the people of God would learn—the Psalmist writes, "It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes." (119:71) Yes, they test us, but, more than that, we learn to walk rightly before Him—"Many are the afflictions of the righteous." (Ps. 34:19)

The late David Wilkerson, of "The Cross and the Switchblade," fame, once told the story about one of Times Square's missionary couples who learned this lesson the hard way. Traveling towards the borders of a desperately poor and needy 3^rd world country with a truck load of supplies, about five miles out, their engine started to act up. When they reached the border guards, it gave up altogether. As they watched the car in front of them go on ahead, they were greatly disappointed. Suddenly, the guards started to run around frantically, shouting, "Big explosion not far from here—one of the warring factions blew up the last car through here!" If the missionaries' truck had been working properly, it could have been them! The next morning, it started right up—God's purposes had been accomplished through this affliction. Always remember—God is calling every heart and life to the Cross. Yours and mine—not tomorrow; right now!

My Father’s House (Sep11)

2011-09-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

I'm sure you are familiar with the story about King Solomon's wise judgment concerning the dispute of two women over a baby. To cut the baby in half—that was the decision, knowing very well that the real mother would not let that happen. That is a true story! Another story has surfaced that is not Biblical, but, I suppose, can be illustrative. The Queen of Sheba sent two vases of roses to King Solomon. One vase had real roses in it, while the other had hand-made ones. The latter were so perfect—so real looking—she challenged the great king to tell the difference—without smelling them or handling them in any way!

This was no problem for the wisdom of Solomon. He just opened a window, and it wasn't long at all before some bees made their way into the room and went straight for the real roses—the fake ones didn't fool them at all! Likewise, many people today may look real from the outside, by the way they speak, or act or dress or look or...or...or...or! It takes the heart of God to truly know the spirit—to know the inside!

In recent weeks, our church has been looking at the kings of Judah, and whether or not they were willing to go the whole way in serving both God and their people. The vast majority were not! Whether the hindrance be worry, or fear, or pride, or lack of perseverance, or...or...or...or—no matter what the problem, we must take warning in our own relationships with the Lord. We must learn from their example, whether good or bad. Remember—it is God alone who knows the heart—the very center of emotion and intellect. Who will be willing to, not only enter into, but reside forever in the Father's house—His heart—and who will not be? The next king before us is King Uzziah's son, Jotham. 2 Chronicles 27:1a tells us, "Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem." First, let me mention that "Jotham", in the original Hebrew, means, "Jehovah is perfect." He was the 11^th king of Judah, and he reigned from about 750-732 B.C. Now there is a little confusion here in that he served as a regent, or co-king, for the first eight years, with and for his father Uzziah. You see, Uzziah, was punished for his pride that manifested itself in that he thought he could be his own spiritual leader and offer up his own incense. God showed him in a hurry that such rebellion would not be tolerated—suddenly, he had leprosy!

Even today—especially today, in these last of days—such ignoring of God-given spiritual direction in the true church of Jesus Christ, will not be tolerated. What the Lord says through His true pastors is not just advice—you know, 'take it or leave it"—no, it is His command. Jesus said at the close of the prophetic Book of Revelation, "Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city." (22:14) Since Jotham's father could not really physically rule in the last ten years of his life due to the dishonor of the leprosy, his son helped him in that time, and hence, it is hard to know whether those 8 years are included in the 16 mentioned, or whether they are above and beyond.

So, what was his reign like? Well, 2 Chron. 27:2 tells some of the story—"And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Uzziah did: howbeit he entered not into the temple of the Lord. And the people did yet corruptly." I should mention that the "right things" is a reference to all that Uzziah did that was good, but it is not speaking of his rebellion. We are told Jotham did the right things, too, but it also says that he did not go into the temple, the corporate place of worship. I thought at first that maybe it refers to his decision to not follow in his father's sin by going into the temple to offer his own incense. And that may be very true—and if it is, that would be very good, but, it also says, "howbeit." And "howbeit" means "but." In other words, it is the opposite of doing what is right. So, it might be that that he just flatly didn't bother to go into the temple. And please don't think that that was normal for royalty. Notice that when Uzziah rebelled, the leprosy was only part of his punishment—"...he was cut off from the house of the Lord." (26:21b) Evidently, Uzziah had at one time been in his Father's house. King David, I suppose, is the prime example. He ends his "Shepherd's Psalm" with these words—"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." (Ps. 23:6) Yes, kings, too!

So, if it really is a flat-out refusal to enter the temple, it is directly related to the people refusing to let all corruption and idolatry go. In 2 Kings, we are told it was the king's responsibility to tear down the high places of false worship, but Jotham didn't do it. (15:35) Oh, if only he had had the perfect heart of King David on this matter. In Psalm 69, David explains what caused the closest people to him—including some of his own family—to reject and persecute him. Verse 9 reads, "For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me." Centuries later, Jesus Himself cleansed and purified the temple at the beginning of His ministry—"And when He had made a scourge of small cords, He drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; and make not my Father's house an house of merchandise. And His disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up." (John 2:15-17)

"Zeal," by the way, is a very strong word—heat, ardor, fervent mind, and indignation, are only part of the definition. Jesus was white hot in His fervency for the honor of His Father's house. It was Jesus' custom to be found on the Sabbath day, either in the temple or in a local synagogue. Clearly, He was not one to forsake the house of the Lord. And He was not just any king; He was—and is—the King of kings and the Lord of lords! Jesus was so zealous for His Father's house, He cleansed it at the conclusion of His ministry, as well—when He saw that the people ignored His first warning (Matt. 21, Mark 11, and Luke 19) They had turned the Father's house into a place of merchandise—a proverbial mart or mall—an "emporium"—a place to get what you want! It is also called a den of thieves—stealing the honor away from God by being about the Lord, but not according to His order. The temple was no longer a house of prayer—running from it like its a house on fire. And that it is—a gathered people on fire for God, and those that don't want that, try to turn it into something else.

Perhaps Jotham had no zeal for it. Praise God, though—whatever the reason for not entering the temple—something BIG must have happened, a real life-changer! We are told this—"So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the Lord his God." (vs.6) Prepared—in the Hebrew, it refers to standing erect, and therefore, perpendicular—established, fixed, appointed, sure, proper, and prosperous. Elsewhere, it is translated as faithful, fashioned, fastened, firm, fitted, and framed. Boy, that is a far cry from his days outside the temple. I think what happened is that he really entered the temple—the heart of God. Verses 3 & 4 tell us, "He built the high gate of the house of the Lord, and on the wall of Ophel he built much. Moreover he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and in the forests he built castles and towers." From the main entrance into his Father's house, to the furthest regions of the kingdom, Jotham—by the power of the Holy Spirit—"fixed" everything! He had prepared his ways before the Lord his God! Personal! Jesus put it this way: "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go prepare a place for you, and if I go...I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." (John 14:1,2) Very personal!

At Ezion-geber, modern archaeologists have found a signet ring with a seal bearing the letters, "ITYM." These are Hebrew characters that can be translated, "Belonging to Jotham." Praise God—now Jotham belongs to the Lord and resides in his Father's house. A.W. Tozer once wrote, "We who live in this nervous and neurotic age of self-consumption would be wise to meditate on our lives long and often before the face of God and on the edge of eternity. For we are made for eternity as certainly as we are made for time. To be made for eternity, and choose to dwell exclusively in time, is, for mankind, a tragedy of huge proportions." Oswald Chambers asks, "Is the Eternal in you living in the Father's house? Are the graces of His ministering life working out through you in your home, your business, in your domestic circle? Let Him have His way; keep in perfect union with Him." Finally..finally...finally—a king was willing to go all the way, God's way—showing His perfection! And that is a matter of letting what's on the outside line up with what is on the inside. Don't judge everything by the outside—the rose could be fake!

The Rest of the Summer (Aug11)

2011-08-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

Oh, summer! A busy time, and at the same time, it can be quite restful. Charlotte Lankard says she remembers the summer her granddaughter, Jessica, was six and she herself was 60—my exact age as well. The little girl proclaimed, "Grammy, next year I'll be seven, and you will be seventy!" Oh, kid's math! Hey, wait a minute—she might be on to something there. My Granddaughter, Lilia, will be three next summer; that would make me thirty. If only, huh?

Another summer found the two taking an Amtrak vacation to Fort Worth, and while there, they took a ballroom dancing lesson. When Charlotte came off the dance floor, little Jessica declared, "You don't look like a grandma!" When the little girl reached her 15^th birthday, the two sat in the airport waiting for the girl's flight home. She thanked her grandmother for the visit, the presents, and the time spent together and said, "Grammy, someday, I'll do these things for you!" Summer! Yes, it can be such a busy time, and yet, the memories stack up like a skyscraper.

We just bought a big, yellow garden wagon for little Lilie, in which to cruise the neighborhood. Boy, does she love it! By next summer, Lord willing, we will see how her younger twin brothers like it, too—all at the same time! Oh, and the water table on the deck—all she has to do is spot it through the kitchen door, and BAM—"Fun in the water, fun in the water???" And away we go! Oh, summer—busy, but memorable. We have all been blessed with summer memories. I wonder what we'll do with the rest of this Summer—both the "R and R" of it, as well as the rest—the time that remains? Recently, I was reading in 2^nd Chronicles about the restful reign of good King Asa, and wondered—why and how? It begins—"So Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Asa his son reigned in his stead. In his days the land was quiet ten years. And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God." (14:1,2)

We're told, that in obedience to the Word of the Lord in Deuteronomy 12:2-3, Asa took away the altars of the false gods and destroyed the images. These "images" were Canaanite-like pillars of stone, believed to be inhabited by the local fertility gods, the Baalim. Right beside these, were wooden poles—sometimes called "the groves"—erected to the worship of Asherah, Baal's goddess-consort. William F. Albright, the famous archaeologist, suggests that these pillars and poles served as incense stands for their pagan worship. Though the king ordered their complete abolition and abandonment, we read in the next chapter that, "... the high places were not taken away out of Israel; nevertheless the heart of Asa was perfect all his days." (15:17) A perfect heart, but what about the rest of the life? During the years of peace and quiet, he, "built fenced cities in Judah: for the land had rest, and he had no war in those years; because the Lord had given him rest." (vs. 6) Resting, but ready! In the next verse, we find it was because he and the people had sought the Lord, they were given "rest on every side." This "rest," in the Hebrew, means, "to settle down and dwell in peace." And then it happened—the test. We are told that Asa had an army of just over 500,000—"mighty men of valour..." (vs. 8b) And up comes Zerah, the Ethiopian, with over 1,000,000 battle-hardened warriors. Whoa! Time to worry! But, "...Asa cried unto the Lord his God, and said, Lord, it is nothing with thee to help, whether with many, or with them that have no power: help us, O Lord our God; for we rest on thee, and in thy name we go against this multitude. O Lord, thou art our God; let not man prevail against thee." (vs. 11) Yes, Asa decided to rest in the Lord. This "rest," in the Hebrew, is more practical than even before—he leaned on his Lord, finding all the support he needed. Such is the Cross!

Psalm 37:7 tells us, "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him: fret not thyself..." Oswald Chambers writes, "Fretting means getting ourselves 'out of joint,' mentally or spiritually. It is one thing to say, 'Do not fret,' but something very different to have such a nature that you find yourself unable to fret. Is it possible to 'rest in the Lord,' when our own little world is turned upside down and we seem to be forced to live in confusion and agony like so many other people? If this 'Do not,' doesn't work there, then it will not work anywhere. This 'Do not,' must work in our days of difficulty, or it will never work. And if it will not work in your particular case, it will not work for anyone else. Resting in the Lord is not dependent on your external circumstances at all, but on your relationship with God Himself." Oswald Chambers goes on to make clear that worrying always results in sin. Why? Because it rises from our determination to have our own way. A good case in point is Jesus Himself—He never worried, and, in fact, commanded all of us not to worry. His purpose was never to accomplish His own plans, but to fulfill God's plan. Chambers concluded with this statement—"All our fretting and worrying is caused by planning without God." Oh, we can put God's name on our plan, but are we being totally honest about it? I mean, really?

Not much space is given to the victory, but the Ethiopians,"...were destroyed before the Lord, and before His host." (vs.13)—a powerful spiritual picture of what happens to our Enemy when the Lord and His true Church stand together. As long as King Asa rested in the Lord and not on his own plans, there was victory. And then it was confirmed—"...the spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded: and he went out to meet Asa, and said unto him, Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; the Lord is with you, while ye be with Him; and if ye seek Him, He will be found of you; but if ye forsake Him, He will forsake you." (15: 1,2) You see, this is the "how" and the "why!"—and, boy, does it ever fly in the face of so much modern theology.

Today, so many people believe that since God is a God of love, it doesn't matter what
we do. Yes, it does matter—we are promised He will never leave nor forsake us, but that is as long as we want Him! You see, it's a promise to the true Church, and not to individuals who refuse that vital connection. So, "...they (the people of God; yes, the Church—notice the plurality) entered into a covenant to seek the Lord God of their Fathers with all their heart and with all their soul...and all Judah rejoiced at the oath...and the Lord gave them rest round about." (vss.12,15) Did you see it? It all boils down to the Cross—Redemption, Response, and Reconciliation. Chambers wrote, "When God gives us a vision of truth, there is never a question of what He will do, but only of what we will do." Praise God—Asa and his people were not about to let anything slip through the cracks in this time of revival and reform. Even the queen—Asa's own grandmother (1 Kings 15:2,10)—was removed from her throne due to her own unrepentant idol worship—"Asa cut down her idol, and stamped it, and burned it at the brook Kidron." (vs.16b) Even his own family was not going to stand in the way of his commitment to God. But then it happened—the years had passed, and another test—by the way, life is full of them—"Baasha king of Israel came up against Judah..." (16:1a) And Asa was scared stiff—worry and fretting filled every fiber of his being now. So, he ransacked the temple of its gold and silver and used it all to bribe Benhadad, the pagan king of Syria, to come to his aid. Where is the rest in that? His plan worked, but at what cost? The prophet told Asa that the Lord, "...shows Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him, Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars." (vs.9) No more rest! Asa threw the prophet in prison and spent the "rest" of his years oppressing his own people and died a diseased and broken man. Ironic—for a man whose name means "healing," in the end, he didn't even seek the Lord for that! (vs.14)

He had begun so well, but ended so poorly—he refused to go God's way all the way to the end! If you don't want Him, He is not going to force you. So, do what is good and right, like Asa did, but
be that every day until the last day. Don't quit a day too soon! Remember—Jessica said, "Someday, I'll do these things for you." Let's say it to Jesus, but not "someday,"—what about right now and forever? Paul warned the Galatians, and us—"Are ye so foolish: having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect in the flesh?" (3:3)
It didn't have to be that way if they—and we—would just be filled with Jesus and His Holy Spirit—remember, it is God who gives the rest. Speaking of this, Hebrews 4:9-10 tells us, "There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into His rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from His." So what about the "rest" of this summer?

A Father’s Form of Freedom (Jul11)

2011-07-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

On election night, a thrilled Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky), laid out the modern-day tea party's platform, and did so in the words of a man who was alive for the original Boston Tea Party. He said that, "Thomas Jefferson wrote that government is best that governs least." Good quote, but there might be a problem here—modern archivists and historians say that the founding father never said that! Or did he?

Last year, on the House floor, Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Tex.), angry about the federal overhaul of health care, quoted George Washington—"Government is not reason. It is not eloquence. It is force—like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." An impressive quote, but did that founding father really say it? Once again, historians say, "No!" Recently, Sarah Palin was ridiculed for saying that Paul Revere's midnight ride was intended to warn the British about the resolve of the colonists. Warn the colonists or warn the British?—in reality, it would do both, but what did she really mean? And who cares?

What is true and what isn't? Senators, congress-men, and even President Obama have misquoted the founding fathers in recent times—altering quotes or just plain making them up. Is it just nervousness or blatant disregard for the truth? Or is it possibly that they got their information from an unreliable Internet blog? Could be! People used to say that if you read something in the newspaper, it must be true. Now the same is said of computer screens. Oh, by the way, all of this—who said what and when, or even how—is all up for speculation, for it is all from the same Internet. Call it literary license, if you will, but, in reality, it can produce a perverted sense of freedom. I suppose if you could just go back in time and speak with some of these founding fathers, you might find out the truth of these things, but I've got an even better idea—one that doesn't rely on time travel or the Internet. We have recently celebrated Father's Day, but I would like to return to a particular father—yes, even a founding father, but my source will be the Holy Bible!

The Apostle Paul, who traveled all over the then-known world, establishing and encouraging churches, was not always a proponent of Christ, but, in fact, a great opponent. Truth be known, that is how they met, and it is how any of us meet Him. You see, Saul—later called Paul—was a Pharisee who saw Jesus and His followers as a cult. It was possibly four years after the death and resurrection of Jesus—"And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest..." (Acts 9:1) and sought the authority to capture, imprison, and even execute Christians from Damascus. Praise God—that's right, Praise God, for when he was near to the place, "...suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: and he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" (vss. 3,4) He knew exactly who it was—it was God, straight out of heaven—"Who art thou, Lord?"
(vs. 5a) Immediately, it became even clearer—"I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." (vs. 5b) Jesus is God!

How about that! Ever since Easter, our church has been looking at the resurrection appearances of Jesus. You would have thought that with the Ascension and Pentecost, that would be the end of it—Praise God, Jesus appears again! The Father had been working on Saul's heart to see the errors of his way—trying and trying to serve God, but, evidently, not in God's way. We can't just make up our own versions of truth and actually expect it to be truth, just because it fits what we want to do. There may be our own kind of freedom in that, but that is not true freedom. Saul got saved and delivered from all of that, was baptized in Holy Spirit and fire, and then on into his God-given ministry. Jesus had said, "...he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: for I will show him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake." (vss.15,16) Wait a minute! The prosperity preachers are always saying that the Christian life is supposed to be a walk in the park; what is this about hard times and suffering? Well, Praise God—that was not Paul's reaction at all to his appearance of Jesus!.

Oswald Chambers, in his devotional, "My Utmost for His Highest," puts it this way—"Where our individual desire dies, our sanctified surrender lives. One of our greatest hindrances to coming to Jesus is the excuse of our own individual temperament. We have the idea that we can dedicate our gifts and abilities to God. However, you can not dedicate what is not yours. There is actually only one thing you can dedicate to God, and that is your right to yourself. If you will do so, He makes a holy experiment out of you—and His experiments always succeed. A true Christian realizes that it is God who engineers his circumstances; consequently, there are no complaints, only unrestrained surrender to Jesus." For the Church in Corinth—and for us—he recounts some of the things to which he was called to endure—"Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep..." (2 Cor. 11:24,25)

And the list went on, finally concluding with his greatest challenge—"...the care of all the churches." (vs. 28b) And not a word of complaint or bitterness—it was all for the glory of God. When he committed his life, he was totally committed! Chris Tiegreen, in his book, "Worship the King," writes, "We're a society of victims. That's what happens when a culture emphasizes human rights over human responsibilities. Focusing on rights to the exclusion of responsibility results in...well, the society we have. Everything is always someone else's fault. It's a matter of perspective—when we focus on the problems of the day and the people who seem to oppress us, we get intimidated. As we worship Him, the threats and burdens that weigh us down grow smaller, and He grows bigger—at least in our own eyes." Actually, He is always huge, but we need to see and experience Him that way. This is freedom!

Once, when Paul and his companion Silas, were arrested, beaten, and thrown into a dungeon—"...at midnight (they) prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was an earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken..." (Acts 16:25,26a)
Oh, man—what else could go wrong—complain, complain, complain. But we don't hear that
at all! Why? Because Paul knew God had a plan—"...immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bands were loosed." (Vss.25,26) Everything was in God's hands. That's right—everything! Even this—"...the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here." (vss.27,28) It was that loud cry that God used to stop the impending death and bring the seemingly unlikely life instead. The jailer and his family were born again.

Maybe that is part of the key—in these last of days; in this perverted culture we live in, we must cry out the truth loudly—it is only the indwelling Spirit of Christ that can really set us free! Praise God—we have such fathers to look to for such spiritual direction. Paul told the Church in Corinth—as well as us—"I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you. For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me." (1 Cor. 4:14-16) Elsewhere, Paul would intimate that as far as he follows Christ, his spiritual children should follow him. In other words, he is not setting himself up on a pedestal, but, there is a certain respect and loyalty that is to be awarded to spiritual "fatherhood." He had planted them, laid the foundation, and given his life. Honor that commitment; emulate that commitment! Paul was able to remain faithful until the end because he didn't just see Jesus once—he saw Him throughout. But even at the end, after his trial before the Sanhedrin, "The Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness at Rome." (Acts 23:11)
Praise God—this is the Father's form of freedom—gospel truth living within, by the power of the Holy Spirit. And so it will be with us—after we meet the resurrected Lord in repentance and salvation, we meet Him again and again as we live the Christian life. Praise God—this is not just some unreliable Internet blog or a twisted quote—this Founding Father knew what He was talking about...and still does!

Good to Go: Up, Up, and Away! (Jun11)

2011-06-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

The telltale, "Whooosshhh!" from the sky creates a scramble on the ground. People rushing out onto their decks and stopping their cars to crane their necks skyward for a glimpse of a brightly-colored balloon, drifting effortlessly over head. What an awesome sight! "Who is up in that thing?" they wonder, but secretly, they think, "Someday, I would like..." And the thought trails off........................................!

I know the feeling—about 30 years ago, I was sitting in my office at my first church, and I heard the thrusting of its burners. I ran out, and sure enough, a hot air balloon passed right over the church's roof. In 1987, my second church hosted the town's bicentennial, which included hot air balloon rides. I thought about it, but, instead, a friend took me up in a plane to take pictures. Yes, that was quite awesome, but I still wonder about the balloon's vantage point!

Today, the Endeavor Balloon Company at Smith Mountain Lake, Va., takes people up all the time. The entire experience takes about three hours, though the ride itself is only one hour, with the rest of the time spent in watching the balloon being filled over head. And then, the pilot yells, "OK, we are good to go—Up, up, and away!" One passenger relates the thrill—"While the pilot has little control over float direction, Colin showed us the precision with which he can manage the altitude by skimming along the surface of a nearby cove. A quarter of an inch of water moistened the wicker basket's floor as we made a wake in the glassy water." Just imagine the view over the next hour of green mountains and sparkling waters! I'm sure you are aware of the proverbial decision many families are making right about now as summer is upon us. With this economy, the decision has to be made very carefully in order to make the most of their time off—mountains or shore? Praise God—the disciples didn't have to make the choice—they would do both, and theirs would not be a vacation, but a powerful learning experience. Throughout the day of Jesus' resurrection, He told His disciples that they would go back up into their home turf of Galilee in order to meet with Him. We see it take place in the very end of the Gospel according to Matthew. And, Oh, what a thrill!

But, wait a minute—How do we get there? Some time must be given to inflating the balloon and getting all things ready. In order for us to be "good to go" for the ride we are about to take, let's go back to the Old Testament and let something there point the way. Up, up, and away! Right after King David brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem and established it as the capital city of Israel and the center for its worship, he makes known his vision for a permanent House of God. He told Nathan, the prophet, "See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains." (2 Samuel 7:2)
Nathan told him to go ahead, for it was fine with God—but he evidently spoke too soon. God appeared to the prophet that night and said that it was not David who was going to build it, but his son, Solomon. The king had soared with the thrill of the idea, but now his balloon crashed just as he got it off the ground. The Lord said, "Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them anymore, as beforetime...he will make thee a house."
(vss. 10, 11b) "I will appoint," God had said—He alone would be the pilot on this trip!

God's vision was not just of a house for His people, but His people would be His house. David's kingdom would be established forever—for both Jew and Gentile—through Jesus Christ. A relationship with Him, through an indwelling Holy Spirit, would be far more thrilling than any physical building! A resurrected life would move over the tempestuous waters, and soar over the looming mountains of life, as on eagle's wings. Jesus would call His people to the mountains first—"Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them." (Matt. 28:16) There is that word "appointed" again. In the Greek, the original language of the New Testament, it means to be assigned a location or place, and to have every detail pre-arranged. You see, the travel agent was really on the ball—our Jesus had thought of everything! And it's a good thing, too—"And when they saw Him, they worshipped Him: but some doubted." (vs. 17) Even by this time, not all of the eleven were on board emotionally and devotionally. Physically, yes—they were in the basket, but clutching the edge with white-knuckles as the balloon barely clears the mountain's tree line. "Some doubted"—it means that some were wavering in their opinion, having a tendency to think twice about the whole experience. Elijah, when he confronted the false Baal worship in Israel, declared to the people, "How long halt ye between two opinions? If the Lord be God, follow Him..." (1 Kings 18:21) A choice must be made!

Yes, this trip will cost everything, but Jesus will make the whole thing worthwhile—"All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." (vss. 18-20) Yes, He has much for us to do, but not in our own abilities—only in His! It is His capacity, His competency, His mastery—for He is the only potentate! He alone can get us over the mountains, and the whole thing is under His command, a reference to a setting out for a definite point or goal—and getting there with no crash landings! Matthew adds at the end of the story—Amen! Yes, so be it!

I should possibly also note that many times this meeting with Jesus is confused with His ascension—you know, "Up. Up, and away!" Many of the movies about Jesus end with Him giving this "Great Commission" and then lifting up off this planet. Not so! Notice, this encounter takes place in Galilee, while He would later ascend from the Mount of Olives, just outside of Jerusalem in Judea. (Luke 24:44-55; Acts 1:3-9; and I Cor.15:7) Yes, both were mountains, but different mountains—and Jesus soars over them both superbly! But don't forget that the balloon that Jesus pilots also sails over lakes. As I mentioned, I think that Jesus took them to the mountains first, but that is not explicitly stated in Scripture. I just have a hard time picturing "some doubting" after what was about to happen at the lake.

In John 21, seven of the disciples—not all of them—but some—perhaps the same some that doubted, decide to do something differently than just waiting around. Peter said, "I go a-fishing." (vs. 3a) Immediately, they hop into a boat on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, and they were "good to go," or so they thought. All night long, they caught nothing—not a blessed thing! They had gone back to their own abilities, their own understanding, their old lives—and Praise God—it didn't pan out! They got nothing for all their self-effort. When morning came, there was a man standing on the shore. He yelled out to the boatload, "Children, have ye any meat?" (vs. 5)
He wasn't asking the proverbial question, "Catch anything?" No, it was much more serious than that! In calling them "children," he was labeling them as babies! In the Greek, he was making clear how they were behaving—half grown, immature, weak, and childish. "What are you doing out there? You were supposed to wait for my further instructions—don't you have any "meat?" You see, the "meat" refers to a fish relish that is spread on the bread to make a fully, nourishing "sandwich." Since Jesus is the Bread of Life, the Holy Spirit is this meat. "Don't you have the Holy Spirit?" No, not much—but they knew that, and they also knew they needed more! In fact, all of these resurrection appearances would reveal their need for more. "Throw your nets where I tell you to"—and BAM—a whole boatload! SPLASH—in goes Peter; now he can't wait to be with His Jesus!

It was then, and only then, that he—and the others—would truly lose their doubt, and truly hear what He had to say about love—what it really is to be emotionally and devotionally ready to follow Him all of the way. No matter the circumstances; no matter the difficulties; no matter the hindrances—to follow Him all of the way! Then, and only then, can we glide over the waters and soar over the mountain tops to get to the ascended life and the utter fullness of an indwelling Spirit—good to go, all of the way to Pentecost! Up, up, and away! Whooossshh, what a vantage point! No more childishness; on to maturity! We, too, have been appointed to take such a trip, and reach such a destination. Please don't try to choose between the mountains and the lake—we
need
both, and Jesus has already arranged for all of it!

The Finger of God (May11)

2011-05-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

As soon as I mention, "The Finger of God," your first thought might take you to the new Christian DVD by that title. Filmmaker Darren Wilson took a two year-long personal journey through 40 hours of footage to attempt to reveal the supernatural power of God. He writes in the promotion of it, "Hundreds raised from the dead. Manna appearing in the Pentagon. Gemstones falling from the sky. Teenagers healing perfect strangers on the street. This isn't old time religion. This is a new beginning. A spiritual revelation. This is the Finger of God!"

Really? It continues—"Prepare to go on a dizzying journey around the world—from the streets of California to the mud huts of Africa; from the underground church in China to the Gypsies in Eastern Europe—you will be challenged and encouraged by the extraordinary things God is doing in our world today. The Finger of God reveals a world you never knew existed. A world where God's fingerprints are found in the most unlikely places."

A couple of the reviews of the DVD express some doubt, saying,"Interesting, but some of the strange stories are not Biblical, and don't honor God." Most of the reviews, on the other hand, throw caution to the wind, and believe everything they see—"Real, true stories." Now, I do not doubt that some of the depictions could be true, but I also don't doubt that some could very well be "signs and lying wonders," ( 2 Thess. 2:9) Think about it—manna in the Pentagon? Could be the demonic signs we are warned about in these last days of apostasy, or just simply fabricated hoaxes! The gospel-writer John warns us in his first letter, "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world." (4:1) Now, my intent with all of this is not to give a movie review, but to issue a warning—in these days of lack of discernment, many will be duped. Jesus said that the only sign we really need is the sign of Jonah—the death and resurrection of the Christ. (Luke 11:30) The true and real Finger of God is much, much more than intriguing and strange signs.

Let's begin our look at this through the eyes of King David. He once wrote, inspired by the Holy Spirit, "When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that thou visitest him?" (Psalms 8:3-4) Amazing—Hebrews 2 quotes these verses from the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, and applies them directly to Jesus. The Spirit has a very watchful eye on the Son of Man, caring for Him and His mission every step of the way. And yet, as Jesus is before Pilate, the Roman Governor, He looks about as forsaken, helpless, and dejected as could possibly be. When Jesus doesn't say a word in self-defense, Pilate declares, "Hearest thou not how many things they witness against thee?" (Mt.27:13) John's gospel adds, "...knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?" (19:10)
It looks absolutely hopeless; where is the Finger of God in that! But now Jesus answers—"Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above..." (vs.11)
This is the real Finger of God!

Secondly, beyond the power of God, the finger of God is seen in the Law of God. And how did that come to be? Well, Exodus 31:18 tells us, "And He gave unto Moses, when He had made an end of communing with Him upon Mt. Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God." This is not only true of the original Ten Commandments, but of the Bible, too. While human hands actually penned the Scriptures, they were under the direct control of the Divine Finger. The 40 or so writers responsible for the scrolls were inspired by the Spirit to set forth "the certainty of the words of truth." (Prov. 22:21) Peter declares that "...holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." (2 Peter 1:21) And the same was true at the Cross—"And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS." (John 19:19) When the religious leaders wanted him to change it to read that Jesus only said that He was the king, "Pilate answered, What I have written, I have written." (vs. 22) Remember? Jesus had said it—the only power that Pilate had was given to him by God!

Thirdly, we see the Finger of God in and through the Judgment of God. We find two references here—first of all, when the magicians in Egypt could no longer mimic the plagues that God was sending just before the exodus, they confessed, "This is the finger of God: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had said." (Ex. 8:19) Did you catch that?—as the Lord had said! Praise God—this whole thing was in God's hands, and all for a purpose—to show the glory of God! The other reference to the divine fingers stretching out in judgment is found in the sacrilegious feast of Belshazzar in the Book of Daniel. While the king and his cronies were desecrating the vessels that had been stolen from the temple, a large hand began to write on the wall—"the fingers of a man's hand." (5:5) "MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN." (5:25)
Essentially, it meant that the king and his corrupt kingdom had been numbered and tested by God's holy order, and was found to be greatly wanting and defective. In fact, that night...he died! We see a similar thing when Jesus was on trial. Actually, from God's perspective, Pilate was on trial. He became so frustrated, "...he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it. Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be upon us, and on our children." (Mt.27:24,25) Did you ever see such scrambling in the wake of sin and judgment, unless, of course, it was in you? Our sin is a personal affront to God, and the judgment will be just as personal. What a tragedy to ignore the handwriting on the wall, absolutely insisting on our own innocence and shifting the blame to another!

The fourth way this awesome Finger is seen and known is in the moving of the Spirit of God, for the Finger of God is the Spirit of God. When Jesus was accused of having demonic powers, He clearly stated, "...if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the Kingdom of God is come upon you." (Luke 11:20) As everything was moving towards the Cross, did Satan actually think that he was winning? As Jesus was nailed securely to that Cross, was Satan doing Christ in, OR was Christ doing Satan in? We all know the answer to that question now, but did Satan know it then? Jesus, out of divine love, was taking our personal judgment upon Himself, but did Satan know that? As Jesus hung there, with both arms fully out-stretched in love, both thieves on the crosses next to Him had the Finger of God pointing right at them, even as they railed against Jesus. Others followed suit—"...they that passed by reviled Him, wagging their heads..." (Mt. 27:39) In the original Greek, it means they blasphemed Him. Some yelled, "...If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross." (vs. 40) Still others screamed—"He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He be the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him. He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now, if He will have Him, for He said, I am the Son of God."(vss. 42,43) Was Satan mocking God right to the very end, or was he possibly really trying to get Jesus down for fear of what the Cross would mean? I don't really know, but two things I do know—at least one thief got saved by the Finger of God, AND that was not Satan's idea!

Lastly, the Finger of God played a vital role in the very death and resurrection of Jesus, greatly affecting you and me. With hands still spread out to reach the world He loved, "...when He had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost." (Mt. 27:50) He did not just "give up" in total exhaustion; He gave His life—on purpose! And that dramatic gift was manifested everywhere—the veil in the temple that separated the people from their God, was ripped from top to bottom by the very Fingers of God. The earth shook and the rocks were split in half. And that's not all—"...the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after His resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many." (vss. 52,53) You see, the dead were raised, but they didn't show themselves until after Jesus did—He was first, then the saints! In these days following Easter, let the resurrected life live in you. Paul tells us that we are the epistle, or letter, of Christ..."written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God." (2 Cor.3:3) Do we see the Finger of God and what He is writing on our hearts? He is writing, you know! Will we be living epistles, proving that the Holy Spirit is the Penman writing the story of our lives?

The Emperor’s New Clothes: Not Just a Fairy Tale (Apr11)

2011-04-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

Do you remember the fairy tale, "The Emperor's New Clothes?" It was published in April of 1837 by Hans Christian Andersen. It described an emperor who cared for nothing but his own appearance. He hired two tailors who promised him the finest suit of clothes, which would be made from a stupendous fabric—invisible to anyone who was unfit for his position in society, or "just hopelessly stupid."

It turns out that the emperor himself could not see the fabric, but he pretended he did out of pride. When the clothes we're finished, the tailors "acted" like they were dressing the emperor, but in reality, he just stood there in his underwear. A gallant procession was held, and he and his government officials all acted like they could see the new clothes; none of them let on that they couldn't, for fear that they all would appear unfit for their positions or just plain stupid! As the parade marched on, finally a young boy shouted out, "But he isn't wearing anything at all!"

Truth be known, the story was not just a children's fairy tale. While still at the printers, it is said that Andersen changed the original ending, which just involved the parade, by adding the part about the child blowing the whistle. Most literary scholars agree that his reason was to satirize the hypocrisy of the society and show that even a child could see through the lies. In fact, it is said that a similar thing took place when he was but a child. While standing in a crowd with his mother, waiting to see King Frederick VI, he shouted, upon seeing him, "Oh, he's nothing more than a human being!" His mother tried to stifle him by crying, "Have you gone mad, child?" But it was too late; the truth had already been blurted out—this world is full of hypocrisy and snobbery; full of claims to be something that it is not! Our society claims to be just fine, and anybody who says differently is considered a crackpot. The fact is, this society, as it spirals out of control, is proving it has no answers—absolutely clueless. Headlines declare the chaos—murderous Somali pirates have massacred four Americans as they traveled the world by boat and delivered Bibles. Civil unrest is erupting in country after country against their ruthless dictators. Gasoline prices skyrocket as the fighting in Libya continues days without end. Gigantic earthquakes and tsunamis have led to nuclear nightmares. Quick fixes and band-aid approaches are all the world can muster; only God as the real answers that last!

The Bible predicted such lawlessness, self-focus, and cataclysmic events in the last of times. People all over this world—and even in the Church—are insisting that they clothe themselves with their own desires and ways of thinking. Praise God— throughout the Scriptures, we find the call to be clothed with God—His way! For example, what was Adam and Eve's answer to their clothing dilemma? Genesis 3:7 tells us, that due to their sin, "...the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons." Fig leaves would only be a quick fix—they would not last. But God had a different solution—"Unto Adam also and unto his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them." (vs. 21) Out of love and mercy, God killed some of His own creation and made clothes that would last—an awesome picture of His plan for salvation through the Cross and the blood of Jesus.

All of the way through the Scriptures, clothes and coverings point to the ultimate covering of the Holy Spirit. When the priesthood was established, it was absolutely essential, and repeated often, that these special men of God were to wear, "fine twined linen," (Exodus 28: 5,6,8, etc.) It is also explicitly mentioned that there was to be no wool used, as wool would be too warm and cause the men to sweat. And that sweat would be evidence of self-effort and work done in the flesh—not in the Spirit. When young David desired to fight the Philistine giant Goliath, King Saul wanted him to be clothed in the king's own battle armor. 1 Samuel 17:39 tells us, "...And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him." In other words, they wouldn't work—they would show a dependence upon the machinery of war, and not on the Spirit of God. Moments later, David said to the giant, "...Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied." (vs. 45) A child, clothed in the Holy Spirit, would tell it like it is!

One of the most powerful examples of this is found in the story of Elijah and Elisha. As Elijah was about to be carried away in a fiery chariot, he asked his companion, Elisha, what would be his greatest desire? Elisha said, "I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me." (2 Kings 2:9b) As the chariot took Elijah away into the heavens, his mantle—or cloak—fell upon Elisha, and he was indeed wrapped in a double portion. Sir Robert Grant, in his hymn, "O Worship the King," writes, "Established it fast, by a changeless decree. And 'round it hath cast, like a mantle, the sea." We are told the Spirit came mightily upon Samson, Saul, and David, with only the latter taking it seriously, and the other two casting the mantle aside to their destruction. Jesus Himself is actually the epitome of taking this clothing seriously.

At His birth, the shepherds were told, "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger." (Luke 2:11-12) A naked, newborn baby, protected from the elements with strips of cloth, swathing His body and keeping Him warm and safe.
Yes, it would start with a baby—a young child would tell it like it is! Later in His ministry, He was transfigured before three of His disciples—"...His face
did shine as the sun, and His raiment was white as the light." (Matthew 17:2b) Moments later, God would declare His opinion—"This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye Him." (vs. 5b) But that was God's opinion; man had another idea. Throughout Jesus' ministry, the religious leaders formed the intent of murder—kill Jesus before His truth exposed their lies. With intense abuse and torture, "They stripped Him, and put on Him a scarlet robe," (Mt. 27:28) but ending the mockery by giving Him His old clothes.

Once at Calvary, "...they crucified Him, and parted His garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots." (vs. 35; Psalm 22:18) There he hung—totally nude; the Romans did not even allow for the "dignity" of a loin cloth to "swaddle" His body. After Jesus' cataclysmic death—in that very moment—no one at the foot of the Cross would see things as they really were, except a few soldiers. Yes, "Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God." (vs. 54) Just before dusk, "...when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre..." (vss. 57-60)

Clean linen cloth! Yes, an obvious reference to the priesthood I mentioned earlier—no sweat! Being the great High Priest in the Book of Hebrews, Jesus would do absolutely nothing out of self-effort or pride. It doesn't matter how man sees it, fooling himself with his own ideas about what is really important in life. What really matters is how God sees it all—His creation, His call, His majesty, His Son—"Hear ye Him!" In the end, it will all go His way! And that it did, and that it will—three days after the Cross, the angel of the Lord rolled back the hindrance to seeing things as they really are—the stone—and revealed that Jesus had been gloriously raised from the dead. To prove it, the angel's, "...countenance was like lightening, and his raiment white as snow." (28:3) Now all the world could see the truth of it—no more could anyone live in a fairy tale world, doing their best to keep God out of it—not honestly, that is! Many try, but it won't cut it in the end—it is just plain stupid! Lawlessness and self-focus will be vanquished in the end, and all who hold to such are unfit. How will He be seen then?—"...clothed with a garment down to the foot...His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes were as a flame of fire; And His feet like unto fine brass, as if they were burned in a furnace...and His countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength." (Revelation 1:13-16) Listen, my friends, it's not a fairy tale—the Emperor really does have new clothes, and He wants to share them with you!

The Two Wings of Truth (Mar11)

2011-03-01T13:00:00.000-05:00

The story is told of George and his wife cleaning out the attic, where they discovered an 11year-old claim ticket for the local shoe repair shop. They both laughed and wondered which one of them had forgotten to pick up the pair of shoes more than a decade before. "Do you think the shoes would still be in the shop?" George asked, "Not very likely," his wife responded. But George thought it was worth a try, so he hopped in the car and drove on down.

With a straight face, he handed the clerk the ticket, expecting him to say, "You have got to be kidding!" With a face that was just as composed as George's, the clerk said, "Just a minute," and went to the back room to look. Two minutes later, the man called out, "Here they are!" "No kidding?" George called back. "WOW, that's amazing! Who would have ever thought they'd still be here after all this time?" The clerk came back to the counter—empty handed—and calmly said, "They'll be ready this Thursday."

Boy, isn't that the way it goes? So many in this society make all kinds of claims, rushing this way and that to fill up their lives with what they think is important. And in the process, everything is under a deadline—projects at work, rushed leisure time, "drive thrus" for everything, and promises made and forgotten. All of life has become computerized, and when that all began decades ago, it was under the pretense of carving out more time for the things we really want
to do—jobs done faster so that we have more time. But what has it all become? A mad race, filled to the brim with emails, voice mails, and ear buds for everything. Haven't you noticed it? We are actually busier than ever, with no time for anything! And when something happens to fall through the cracks—like shoes that need to be repaired—the promise is left broken, and we still have to wait. Truth be known—we don't even bother to repair shoes much anymore; we just buy more! I wonder if this fast-paced modern life has effected our attitudes toward the spiritual, as well. Actually, I don't wonder at all—I know it has! Will anyone take time for God?

Our church has been in a preaching series for over four years! That's right—four whole years! We started out looking at the Biblical names for the Father, and then, we moved on to those concerning the Son. Recently, the Lord has brought us through several names, titles, and spiritual pictures for the Holy Spirit. We are now focusing on some that take their meaning from the things of the created nature that is all around us. Today, I want to bring two such things together into focus. Dr. G. Campbell Morgan once wrote, "The whole truth does not lie in, 'It is written,' but in, 'It is written,' and, 'Again it is written.' The second text must be placed over against the first to balance it and give it symmetry, just as the right wing must work with the left to balance the bird and enable it to fly. Many of the doctrinal divisions among churches today are the result of a blind and stubborn insistence that truth has but one wing. No, truth has two wings." Do you see what he is saying? You can't just rush around, extracting bits and pieces of Scripture to make your point. We need to take the time to see the whole picture—to see it accurately!

You see, Dr. Morgan is not trying to suggest that the two wings are working against each other, trying to counter-balance each other in order to produce the truth. No, God's Word is not like that—both wings are totally true, but they must be seen in the same context—working together to tell the whole story. For example, some like to just focus on God being loving, but, at the same time, ignoring His commandments and judgment against sin. That is lopsided—His judging of sin now is the most loving thing He can do. Look at Luke 10—a particular religious leader tried to trip Jesus up by asking, "Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" (vs. 25b) Jesus knew that it was not an honest question, so He turned it around on him—He asked him how he sees the Scriptures. The man answered..."Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself." (vs.27) And that was the kicker! Neighbor! "OK, Jesus, who then IS my neighbor?" hoping to justify himself—probably hoping his neighbor was only the one living right next door, and no one else. He wouldn't want this love thing to involve too many people!

Then came Jesus' illustration—"A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves..." (vs.30a) Yes, literally down! You see, Jerusalem is 2,600 feet above sea level, and Jericho is half that. The road is crooked, narrow, and winding down through the rocky crags—the perfect place for robbers to hide. The man was robbed, beaten, and left half dead. Before long, a Jewish priest came by, but when he saw the wounded man, he passed by on the other side. In the Greek, it means that he purposely turned out of his way—not to help the man, but to ignore him! Shortly thereafter, a Levite—also a religious leader—came by, saw the man, and also passed by on the other side. Scripture had made it clear—if either of these two men had come into contact with a dead body, they would be considered ceremonially unclean! In this case, they would not be able to do their "jobs" for a season, and neither of them had time for that! Busy, busy, busy!!!

But then came a Samaritan—Yes, a Samaritan! They were scorned by the Jews because they were descended from Gentile ancestry, and because their kind of worship was different from that of orthodox Judaism, maintaining a priesthood of their own. This man, however, had compassion on the bleeding man—deep, deep feelings for him. He stopped what he was doing, and at great risk to himself, since the attackers could still be in the area..."went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him." (vs.34) He even promised to reimburse the innkeeper for the care the man would need over time. Praise God—he poured in oil and wine! Throughout the Scriptures, oil is a very powerful symbol for the Holy Spirit, accomplishing much in the Christian life. First of all, oil was used for various anointings, including healing for the sick. In James 5:14 the church is asked, "Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord." Likewise, the Holy Spirit marks out those he intends to move upon. Oil was also used for illumination. Rene' Pache spoke of it—"Holy oil alone continually lighted the temple, where God was worshiped and where the person and work of Christ were wholly symbolized." And, thereby, we are enabled to worship in Spirit and Truth.

Yet another feature of oil is that it was poured over the blood to cleanse lepers, and even the priests. (Lev. 8:30; 14:17) Blood and oil! Do not these two put together typify how we, as sinners, were saved and called to serve the living God? We are delivered from our spiritual leprosy by the blood of Jesus Christ shed on the Cross of Calvary, and then, as a priesthood of believers, we are sanctified by the oil—the power of the Holy Spirit. Praise God—it is the blood that is symbolized by the Scriptures' references to wine. That's right, wine! Oil and wine—two wings for the same truth! Before Jesus went to the Cross, He used the juice of the vine to represent His blood, but after the Cross—at Pentecost—when the Holy Spirit came down, the mockers attributed the disciples' Spirit-led words and actions to their drunkenness—"These men are full of new wine." (Acts 2:13) How ridiculous!

This "new wine," in the Greek, is "gluckos," specifically referring to fresh, sweet grape juice. Those that mocked the disciples couldn't possibly have really thought they were drunk; they didn't know what else to do, but be sarcastic. The disciples' spiritual exhilaration and joy just had to be mocked by those who were refusing to deny themselves and experience it with them. This striking symbol of wine represents the refreshing, stimulating, gladdening influence of the Spirit in the life of the believer. Paul tells us, "And be not drunk with (intoxicating) wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit." (Eph.5:18) The more deeply and repeatedly we drink of Him, the more we desire to be indwelt by Him. In a sense, you are holding the claim ticket right now—this sheet of paper contains the truth of God's Word. Don't procrastinate—go get your spiritual "shoes," and I can assure you, the Lord will not tell you to come back later. He wants your joy to be immediate and everlasting. In our church, we often sing this song—"He poured in the oil and the wine, the kind that restoreth my soul. He found me bleeding and dying on the Jericho Road, and He poured in the oil and the wine." Don't be too busy for the oil and the wine—the two wings of truth, without which, we won't be able to fly at all!

The Farm and the Fawn: A Matter of True Love (Feb11)

2011-02-01T13:00:00.000-05:00

I know that in the midst of snow and cold temperatures, it may seem kind of odd to focus on what would turn out to be the hottest day of the year. The farmers had not seen rain in almost a month, the crops were dying, and the cows had stopped giving milk. Everyday the men struggled to get what little water they had into the fields. And then it happened!

The farmer's wife was standing at the kitchen window when she spotted her 6 year old Billy, slowly making his way to the edge of the woods, and then run back to the house. Several times she saw this odd behavior play out, so she decided to investigate. Following him back to the woods, she noticed that he had his hands very carefully cupped, intensely focused on not spilling a drop of the precious water. Thorns and branches slapped his face, but he didn't even try to avoid them—on he went to his intended destination!

To his mother's amazement, deer were standing around the clearing—including a huge buck—as the little boy knelt down so a tiny fawn could lap up the water. It was severely dehydrated and suffering from heat exhaustion. As the boy turned to go back to the house for more, his Mom hid behind a tree to let him fulfill his mission—his way! Back at the house, he turned on the outdoor spigot all the way, but only an occasional drop would land in his tightly clasped hands—it took 20 minutes. Just then, the boy turned towards the woods—and there was his Mom. The week before, he had been lectured on not wasting water, so now, with eyes filled with tears, he said, "I'm not wasting it, Mom!" As he made his slow and tedious way back to the fawn, his mother ran into the house for a full pitcher—and followed him. Her heart almost burst with joy as she watched the most beautiful heart she had ever seen work so hard to save a life. Tears rolled down her cheeks to the ground, when suddenly, they were joined with tears from heaven—yes, it started to rain! It was as if God was weeping for joy, too. She knew others would explain it all away—just a coincidence—but not her. It was a miracle—the rain that came that day saved their farm, and the actions of one little boy saved a fawn.

With Valentine's Day coming up this month, it is going to take a true heart—even a mother's heart—to see the beauty in a heart that will sacrifice everything to save the life of another. The Seasons of Lent and Easter are also coming up, and then we will see that Jesus was willing to do that very thing—sacrifice everything to save the life of another. For right now, I would like us to see how the Holy Spirit is absolutely bent on accomplishing the same thing. Believe it or not, we can see this in the simple analogy of water. Herbert Lockyer once wrote, "Water is one of the most common of symbols used to describe, not only the varied ministry of the Holy Spirit, but also the Holy Scriptures. We could not live without water or rain. We need water to allay thirst, to give beauty to the flowers, and fertility to crops and harvests."

Yes, water! Without water, we die! I suppose it all began very early on—Genesis 1:1-2 tells us, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."

Praise God—all of life and creation can be eternally meaningful and purposeful, if it will allow itself to come into His order. As the people of God embarked upon the wilderness, Moses was told by God, "...thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people might drink." (Exodus 17:6) At the Cross, the Rock of Ages was smitten, and water, as well as blood, flowed from His eternal heart. Paul would later verify this incredible fact, referring to the people of God in the wilderness, "...for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ." (1 Cor.10:4) When Jesus met with the woman at the well, He told her, "...whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst..." (John 4:14a) He was seeking to show her—and us—that the Holy Spirit, as an indwelling Well of Water, was the only source of spiritual life and refreshment. He alone will satisfy our soul's deepest thirst—the waters of this life have failed in that, trying to fool us with substitutions, for only He can bring true cleansing, life, fruitfulness, beauty, and joy.

This life-giving water is manifested in Scripture in several different forms. First, consider rivers. In John 7, we read what happened at the end of the Feast of the Tabernacles—"In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." (vss.37-38) Not stagnant, but moving water—fresh and clean. Did you know that it is reported that the Amazon River in South America has such a huge flow out into the Atlantic Ocean, that 100 miles out to sea, you can dip into it and still find fresh water? Whoa! And notice, this "living water" is plural—"rivers." Remember—In Genesis 2, when God put his brand new civilization in the cradle, so to speak, it was encompassed by four rivers, not just one or even two. This massive size and plurality indicate the variety, abundance, and many facets of the Holy Spirit's activities. What diversity in His dealings with us—chastising and rebuking are reserved for those He loves and disciplines. Such is true love, my friends!

A flood is another way for water to manifest itself. In Noah's day, the deluge was straight from God's heart—judging the sin of the world, and at the same time, giving it a second chance. A deluge of the Spirit is just as able to flood the earth with blessing. Isaiah 44:3 tells us, "For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour out my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring." We must be truly baptized—immersed—in Holy Spirit and His fire. The trouble with far too many of us is that we often only want to drink just enough to keep us alive; not enough to truly thrive! Yet another mode for water is rain. The Psalmist tells us, "He shall come down like rain..." (Ps. 72:6) Joel, in his call to the people to repent, writes, "Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God: for He hath given you the former rain moderately, and He will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month." (2:23) Praise God—it is the "latter rain," at the end of the growing season, that brings the harvest all the way to fruition!

The absence of rain undoubtedly means famine, scarcity, and ruin, as many people around the world have found out. The Church is certainly suffering from spiritual famine, and is in sad need of hearing the sound of the abundance of rain. This famine, however, is of many people's own choosing—instead of a true Word, many flock around entertainment and prosperity. It is not a famine of the Word itself; no, it is a "...famine...of hearing the words of the Lord." (Amos 8:11)
You see, its a control issue, isn't it? People didn't want it, so God sends a famine. And don't forget natural springs—they are still another way in which we experience water! When Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman at the well, He also told her, "...the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." (John 4:14b) Springs are not only reservoirs of pure, fresh water, but the source of great rivers. The Psalmist said, "...all my springs are in thee." (87:7), and this is true of the Spirit, who is our secret source of every precious thing. In Him is a perennial source of supply—a Spring that never ceases to flow. All we have to do is recognize our need for such provision, and surrender to His ways of giving it. But once again—the issue is control, isn't it? If only we truly knew the blessings of such denial of self. If only...

The last form of water that I want to look at is dew. Even the word itself sounds insignificant, doesn't it? Early in the evening, its not there; a little later, it is. What's with that? Just as God had said He would be His people's rain, Hosea reveals that He, "...will be as the dew," (14:5) gently and softly moistening the ground and the roots they hold. As Moses concluded his ministry, he told the people, "My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distill as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: Because I will publish the name of the Lord: ascribe ye greatness unto our God." (Deut. 32:2,3) Yes, let's publish the name of the Lord, as every drop falls into the cupped hand and onto the parched land. Praise God—as the farm and the fawn have indeed ascribed greatness unto Him, may we, too, know in our hearts that without the water of the Holy Spirit, we die! His true love, through the Spirit, waters everything and up comes life eternal!

The Wasted Gift (Jan11)

2011-01-01T13:11:00.000-05:00

With Christmas just behind us, would you even begin to suggest that there were any wasted gifts, either of those you gave or of those you were given? I'm not suggesting that there should be, only that it is an interesting thought. William Sydney Potter, who wrote under the pen name, O. Henry, generally told his stories with a twist at the end. One tells of Della and Jim, a poor, young couple trying to make a go of it on $20.00 a week at the beginning of the 20^th Century—and it was Christmas time!

Della so wanted to get something nice for her Jim, but she only had $1.87 saved up. One day, while looking in the mirror, she had a very reluctant thought—she could sell her long, beautiful hair to Madame Sofronie, who ran a little shop just around the corner called, "Hair Goods of All Kinds." As far as Della was concerned, they owned only two precious things—she had her hair and Jim had his gold watch, which had been both his father's and his grand-father's. With the $20.00 she made by selling her beautiful hair, she bought a beautiful gold chain to replace the tattered leather strap on Jim's beautiful gold watch.

It would be a beautiful Christmas Eve. It was 7:48 pm., the pork chops were ready to fry in the pan, and Jim wasn't home yet. As he walked in, Della was worried that he wouldn't like her short hair. He hesitated, reached into his pocket and brought out a wrapped package. When he tossed it onto the table, he said, "Make no mistake about it, Dell, nothing could make me love you less than I do. But if you will just open that package, you will see why you had me going at first." As she opened it, there was an ecstatic scream of joy, but soon that gave way to tears. It was the set of tortoise shell hair combs with the jeweled rims. She had had her eye on them, so she knew they were expensive. Jim had not seen his gift yet—she hadn't wrapped it; she just held the glistening chain in her hand. "Jim," Della said, "Let me have your watch, and I'll put it on. I want to see how it looks on your beautiful gold watch." Instead, he tumbled onto the couch, and simply smiled. "Dell," he said, "Let's put our Christmas presents away and keep 'em for awhile. Honey, I sold my watch to buy your combs. Suppose we can have those chops now?"

Some would say, "Boy, what wasted gifts!" But is that really true? You see, O. Henry originally entitled this story, "The Gift of the Magi." At the very close of the story, he wrote, "Here I have lamely related to you the uneventful chronicle of two foolish children who most unwisely sacrificed for each other the greatest treasures of their house. But in a last word to the wise of these days, let it be said that, of all who give gifts, these two were the wisest. Of all who give and receive gifts, such as they are wisest. Everywhere they are wisest. They are the magi." You know who the magi were, don't you? Today, we often call them the wise men, though to many, they look the most foolish. From their long and seemingly pointless journey to their odd and senseless gifts that they brought with them, everything about it appears to be foolishness. But let's remember what Jim Elliot, one of the five missionaries, who were martyred in the jungles of Ecuador, for the sake of the gospel, once said, "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." What a senseless loss—or was it? Jim Elliot's wife, Elizabeth, would see his murderer born again! How foolish is that?

Wise men have always been called fools. Matthew 2:1-2 tells us, "Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is He that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east, and are come to worship Him." "Foolishness," their contemporaries must have thought! You see, they were astrologers and soothsayers from Persia, and, somehow, God must have revealed to them His Son's birth in Judea. So, they set out on a 1,500 mile journey across the wastelands to find the little child. Why? To worship Him! It sounds crazy, but it was their heart's desire. They hadn't even been raised in Judaism, but God can feed any hungry heart. The special star they had seen in the east sent them west, to the capital of Judea—Jerusalem. It was a logical location—certainly the young King of the Jews would be born in the capital. But when they arrived, they found the current king, Herod, and all the people of his court in a stir—they hadn't heard a thing about it.

It was then the king gathered his own so-called "wise men," and asked them about the exact location. They remembered that the Scriptures had said, "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall He come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." (Micah 5:2; Matt. 2:5,6) Yes, Bethlehem, not Jerusalem! And when the wise men stepped out of the palace, the special star they had seen in their homeland appeared again, and led them to the very house where the young family lived. You see, it was now after Christmas—perhaps months later—and Matthew tells us, "And when they (the wise men) were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary His mother, and fell down, and worshipped Him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto Him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh." (vs. 11) Imagine—how crazy can you get? What fools! What is a baby going to do with those things—why not stuffed animals, or a binky? I mean, where is the wisdom in that?

Paul put it this way—"For the preaching of the Cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God...Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men." (1 Cor.1:18,25) The gifts the wise men brought were not silly or foolish—they were not wasted at all! The gold would be a gift fit for a King, and so He was—precious and priceless. The frankincense is an incense and its smoke and aroma ascends into the heavens—it was their worship. And the oddest gift of all—the myrrh, used to embalm dead bodies. This little baby would not stay one—he would grow, and go to a Cross; He would rise again and reign forever. Praise God! Billy Graham once wrote, "From His very birth, Christ was recognized as King. Something about Him inspired allegiance, loyalty, and homage. Shepherds fell and worshiped Him. Wise men brought Him gifts. Herod, realizing that there is never room for two thrones in one kingdom, sought His life. As Jesus began His ministry, His claims upon people's lives were total and absolute. He expected and received complete adoration and devotion from His Church. Mature men and women left their businesses and gave themselves in complete obedience to Him. He was more than a poet, more than a statesman or a physician. He was the King of kings, Lord of lords." One King, one Kingdom!

Praise God for the wisdom of the wise men—when God warned them in a dream of Herod's murderous intentions, they didn't argue or debate—they went home another way! Perhaps it was on their long journey home—which by the way, was part of their gift to the Christ Child—that a powerful flashback jolted through their brains like a lightening bolt. Several centuries before, some young Jewish men were taken in the Captivity, and placed in their own land—Daniel, Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego. They were some of the Jewish captives that were, "Children in whom was no blemish, but wellfavoured, and skillful in all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the king's palace..." (Daniel 1:4) Wait till you see this...

At the outset, King Nebuchadnezzar expected these chosen captives to eat his rich foods, but these four young people said, "No!" In fact, we read, "...Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself." (vs. 8) And the result? "As for these four children, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom: and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams...And in all matters of wisdom and understanding, that the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm." (vss. 17, 20) Such wisdom would be needed for fiery furnaces and lion's dens, not to mention, powerful prophecies concerning the coming Messiah. And when the Messiah did come, He was worshiped by wise men in the same line, from the same country, with the same heart—Oh, for sure, the gift was not wasted, and neither will your life be, if it is given sacrificially and out of pure love. No, not wasted at all—not at all!!!

Daydreaming of Bethlehem: Little Did They Know (Dec10)

2010-12-01T13:00:00.000-05:00

The African boy listened very attentively as the missionary explained why it is that Christians give presents to each other at Christmas time. "The gift is our expression of our joy over the birth of Jesus, and also our friendship with each other," she said. When Christmas day came, the young boy brought her a beautiful seashell. "Where did you ever find such an amazing shell?" she asked, as she stroked the gift.

The boy told her that the only place where they could be found was several miles away. "Why...why, it's just absolutely gorgeous—it is wonderful—but you shouldn't have traveled all that way to just get a gift for me." The boy's eyes brightened, and he answered, "Long walk part of the gift!" It is true! As with any gift, it is much more special when some thought has gone into it. Whether it is a homemade gift, or just something that truly shows we care about people, the long walk is part of the gift!

With Thanksgiving Day just behind us, and with Christmas coming up quickly—and all of the travel that is sometimes involved in celebrating these times with families and friends—we are reminded again that the trips themselves are important, too. Remember—in the Christian life, the real focus is not entirely upon the ultimate destination, namely Heaven, but also upon how we get there. Yes, each obedient step in holiness and purity before God is part of the gift! I wonder what it was like for Joseph and Mary, as they traveled just prior to that very first Christmas. It seemed to be all laid out for them. Luke 2: 1-3 tells us, "And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, everyone into his own city." On the surface, it appears that the emperor planned this census and taxation, but, no, it was all engineered by God—He had a greater plan in mind!

So what did Joseph, and his very pregnant wife, do about it? The next verse tells us—"And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)" Hey, look at that! I typed that exactly as I found it in the KJV Bible, and it ends with one of those sideways "smiley face" things that people use in texting and emailing to express joy! Imagine that—Joy! I don't know that we would have guessed that—after all, the 90 mile trip would be a very difficult time for both of them, even if Mary did ride on a donkey. No donkey is mentioned, but Jesus did conclude His ministry by riding a donkey on His way into Jerusalem—so, why not begin it that way, too. Regardless, the long journey would give plenty of time to ponder and even daydream about what this whole thing would mean for everyone. The upcoming event in Bethlehem, would be the greatest gift ever, and their long walk would be a very big part of it!

The days were hot and the nights were cold, but they kept going. About 30 miles into it, they passed by Jacob's well, quite near the Samaritan village of Sychar, which, in the Hebrew means to "imbibe or drink." Oh, how the memories of their own history must of flooded in. Jacob had been one of the patriarchs, along with their own forefather, Judah. Genesis reveals that when Jacob, also known as Israel, was about to die, he blessed his children. When speaking to his young son Joseph, he went on to say, "Moreover I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow." (48:22) That plot of land contained the well. Little did they know, that their own son, Jesus, would meet a woman there, changing her life with His "living water," and saving her whole village. (John 4) A day or two later, off to the left, they would see yet another historical landmark—Jericho. Though it had been rebuilt, it was still enough to let the memories wash over them. Joshua—or Yeshua, the Hebrew word for "Jesus"—was called by God to cross the Jordan River and take the city of Jericho, but not in the traditional manner. No, these walls would come down by obedience—marching in silence, and then shouting and trumpet's blowing—"So the people shouted when the priests blew with the trumpets: and it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat...and they took the city." (Joshua 6:20)

Now, a lot of smart and sophisticated people today don't believe that it happened like that, but Joseph and Mary did. Little did even they know, that much later, in the 1950's, famed archaeologist, John Garstang, would discover that the city was indeed burned with fire around 1400 BC. In more recent years, Lorenzo Nigro and Nico Marchetti would find the stone revetment wall at the base of the excavated site. Part of the mud-brick wall built on top of it was still visible and intact; amazing evidence of collapsed walls, just like the Bible said. Hebrews 11:30 tells us, "By faith the walls of Jericho fell down...", and by faith Joseph, Mary, and all of us can—and must—believe it! Little did those two travelers know it, but their own son, Jesus, would pass right through there on the way to the Cross, changing the lives of little Zacchaeus, blind Bartimaeus, and a host of others.

As soon as the sun began to set, they rounded the bend and closed in on Bethlehem. Off to their right, they passed the farm fields that had once belonged to their ancestor Boaz. With every clomp of the donkey's hoof, their daydream of those days unfolded. A great famine had come, and Elimelech took his wife, Naomi, and their two sons off to Moab. The men of the family died while there, but Naomi and her daughter-in-law, Ruth, returned to Bethlehem. To make a long story short, Boaz allows Ruth to glean in his fields, and in the end, he becomes her "kinsman-redeemer," purchasing back the family lands and name. They get married, have a child, "And the women...gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi (the boy's grandmother); and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David." (Ruth 4:17) In other words, Ruth and Boaz would be the great-grandparents of King David—the very lineage of Joseph and Mary. Little did they know, their little boy would become the kinsman-redeemer for all of us, purchasing our salvation!

Just a few hundred yards down the road, they came to the historic battlefield where the giant champion of the Philistines was defeated—utterly defeated by the teenager David. The story was vivid, as it took shape in yet another daydream. David, in explaining his willingness to fight the giant Goliath, told King Saul, "The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, He will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the Lord be with you." (1 Sam. 17:37) Shunning the use of the king's armor, David gathered five smooth stones for his sling shot, and went out to meet the giant, saying to him, "Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied...that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel." (vss. 45-46b) One stone, and down came that Philistine—"the battle is the Lord's." (vs. 47b) Little did Joseph and Mary know—their son, Jesus, would one day conquer death by rolling away one, single, solitary stone!

The little hamlet of Bethlehem was right up ahead, but before the two travelers entered through the gate, they spotted the town well. Their daydreaming of Bethlehem began with a well, and now it would end with one—the well of Bethlehem! Many years before, when the garrison of the Philistines was located in Bethlehem, David and his "mighty men" were hiding nearby. 2 Samuel 23:15-16 records it—"And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate! And the three mighty men brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the Lord." Now the casual observer would have been appalled—what total disregard for the men's feelings and service! But, actually, it is just the opposite—out of utter respect for his courageous men, he poured out the water as a "drink offering," so to speak, unto the Lord. Yes, unto the Lord! What was about to happen in a stable was unto the Lord! Every step of that very long walk was unto the Lord—from Jacob's well and Jesus' living water to walls and giants falling flat on the ground to the ultimate in kinsman-redeemers—all of it, unto the Lord! Little did they know that many of the events in their son's life would later remind them of the prophetic markers they saw as they walked to Bethlehem. Yes, the long walk is part of the gift!

Through the Cracks: Church in Chains or Praise in Prison? (Nov10)

2010-11-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

In 2002, the communist authorities seized a rural church in Laos and converted it into a jail. In order to instill fear and anxiety in the local Christians, six church leaders, including the pastor and his wife, were imprisoned there in stocks for several days. When Pastor Boonmy, from a nearby town, heard about this "church in chains," he decided to go there to encourage the captives, even though he knew that the police had already executed several pastors.

On Sunday morning, the pastor drove up with twenty of his congregation standing in the back of the truck. As the group approached the "jail" on foot, about half of them became frightened and turned back, while the rest drew closer to the armed guards. Knowing their brothers and sisters in Christ were suffering in stocks, they walked past the guards, stooped to get under the pole building, and began to sing. Yes, they were afraid, but they kept on singing through the large cracks in the rough wooden floor, and the imprisoned Christians were greatly encouraged and uplifted in their faith.

One of the policemen sent an elder under the building to stop the singing, but Pastor Boonmy said, "No, I can't stop that—praising and worshiping the Lord—I can't stop that!" About 15 minutes later, the police walked over, brandishing AK-47s, and ordered the church group to come out from under the building. Having done so, Pastor Boonmy yelled up to the others, "Don't worry, don't be afraid—the Lord knows all things, and He will help all of us." Praise God—that wasn't even the end of the story! You see, about a week later, the imprisoned Christians were set free. And due to international pressure, the church building was even returned to the Christians in 2006. Amazing! Our God is a great God, and greatly to be praised! Recently, I saw a church sign that said it all—"We can't praise Jesus too much!"

When Paul called the Colossian church to put off sin and put on love, peace, and truth, in part, he told them this—"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him." (3:16-17) We find a similar thought, stressing the Spirit-given joy, as Paul speaks to the Ephesians. I really like the way Arthur Way puts it in his translation—"Speak out your thoughts to each other in psalms, in hymns, in chants inspired by the Holy Spirit. Let the sound of your singing, let the music of your hearts go up to the Lord in unceasing thanksgiving for all that He sends you, thanksgiving offered in the name of our Lord, of Jesus the Messiah, to God the Father." (5:19-20) Yes, unceasing! We must understand in this that no matter what happens, the indwelling Spirit of God—if truly indwelling—will fill us with a praising and thankful heart. When Paul wrote his first letter to the church in Thessalonica, he said, "Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Quench not the Spirit..." (5:16-19) Notice the "in everything"—if we don't, we will be quenching the Holy Spirit within us.

Perhaps I can cap this thought off with what the church in Corinth heard, and once again, I truly like Way's translation—"I will by all means pray in the Spirit's rapture...I will sing in the Spirit's rapture...Praising God in the Spirit's rapture." (1 Cor. 14:15,16) Now, don't misunderstand—Arthur Way is not referring to the event of rapture, the glorious catching up of the true, overcoming Church coming soon in these last of days, and described so aptly in First Thessalonians 4. No, he is speaking of such a glorious exposure to the Spirit and His ways, that our hearts and lives are filled with indescribable joy and praise—no matter what goes on around us. Herbert Lockyer once put it this way—"The history of the Church proves that whenever there was a mighty demonstration of the Spirit's power in revival, there was always a glorious outburst of praise. An evident sign that we are living in harmony with the mind and will of the Holy Spirit, is the way in which He can make us joyful—even when it seems there is nothing to sing about." Praise God for the Spirit of Praise!

Just read the Book of Psalms; so many of them were written in the wake of extreme hardship and catastrophic disappointment, and yet, most praise God right in the middle of it all. One of those Psalms, namely the 18^th , is also found within the context of the circumstances in which King David found himself. In 2 Samuel 22:2-4, we read this—"...The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer. The God of my rock; in Him will I trust: He is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence. I will call on the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies." In the next chapter, just prior to his dying words, this embattled king is described as, "the sweet psalmist of Israel." Centuries later, his own descendant—the King of kings and the Lord of lords, also went to his dying moments on the Cross of Calvary with the sweet words of the Psalms on His lips, inspired by the Holy Spirit—the Spirit of Praise! (Mark 14:26)

I suppose if anybody in the Bible could understand this praise like David and Jesus Himself, it would be Paul and Silas. Acts 16 lays it all out for us—"And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them. And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailer to keep them safely: who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks." (vss. 22-24)
So, how would Paul and Silas react to such horrendous circumstances? Would they be a "church in chains," or would they "praise in prison?" The story continues—"And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God,"(vs. 25a)—"prayer and singing in the Spirit's rapture." And, Praise God—"the prisoners heard them," perhaps right through the cracks—only this time, the praying and singing was coming from the ones in the stocks. And as soon as they released that glorious praise, "...there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bands were loosed." (vs. 26)

All glory be to God Almighty! The guard, being awakened by the whole thing, proceeded to try to kill himself, thinking the prisoners had escaped. But Paul called out to him and assured him that all were still there. The guard, "called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, and said...Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." (vss. 29-31) Belief! Once captive to sin, but now free to believe! True, saving belief—this is the amazing result of surrendering to the Spirit of Praise. The guard and his family were miraculously saved—with Jesus, no one just falls through the cracks. No matter your problem; no matter your circumstance—praise the Lord—for you can not praise Jesus too much!

Helen Berhane, in her book, "Song of the Nightingale," recounts her two year long captivity, under horrendous conditions, in her native Eritrea. Her crime? Loving Jesus and sharing her faith in Him. For this, she was horribly tortured, but even then, she would not deny Him. She says, "I want to give a message to those of you who are Christians and live in the free world: You must not take your freedom for granted...If I can sing in prison, imagine what you can do for God's glory in your freedom." Certainly, we, in the United States, have many more religious freedoms than many other countries, but don't be blind to the fact that those freedoms are diminishing quickly. More and more, the pressure will be on to give praise and glory to many other things than Jesus, and simply call it "tolerance." The late Richard Wurmbrand, having spent years in communist jails for his faith, once wrote, "Other prisoners and even the guards very often wondered at how happy Christians could be under the most terrible circumstances. We could not be prevented from singing, although we were beaten for this. I imagine that nightingales, too would sing, even if they knew that after finishing, they would be killed for it." Yes, it is indeed time for the true church of Jesus Christ to sing—to sing right through the cracks. All praise and thanksgiving are certainly due to the Spirit of Praise, the Holy Spirit. Let captivity be in the past—be free to believe! So which is it going to be? A church shackled by the chains of conformity to the world, OR, glorious praise right in the midst of the prison? Good question!

A Short Story About Self-Explanatory Things (Oct10)

2010-10-01T13:10:00.000-04:00

Recently, I was thinking of things that are self-explanatory. By definition, that shouldn't take too long, right? Surely you have heard of "one liners," haven't you? By definition, they are pretty self-explanatory, as well. For example, what do you call a boomerang that doesn't work? A stick! Or how about this—why are there so many Smiths in the phone book? They all have phones! Or this—how do crazy people go through the forest? They take the psycho path. Or this one—what do you call cheese that isn't yours? Nacho Cheese. Well, that one may take a little explanation! "Not-chor" cheese—get it?

Oh, I can't let this one go by—what has four legs, is big, green, fuzzy, and if it fell out of a tree, it would kill you? A pool table! OK, maybe I should have let it go, but I think they tell a story—a very short story—one that is self-explanatory. I have often thought of writing a book or two, but much of my time is consumed in writing these messages—short stories, of sorts—almost 200 of them. Recently, I ran across a book entitled, "The Art of Story Writing," with a chapter devoted to the short story. The author, Nathaniel C. Fowler, Jr., writes, "It has been said that it is more difficult to write a short story than it is to compose a novel. The short story, to be successful, must cover its ground, not only by the words it contains, but by inference. It must pass quickly from one scene to another; the dialogue must be bright and snappy; and, as in a play, the author must make his characters self-explanatory to a large extent."

Praise God—in the short story that follows, we will see how it works. First, the subject—the Holy Spirit, and the Scripture's reference to His "eternalness." Hebrews 9, in discussing the inadequacies of the old sacrifices to pay the price for sin, declares, "How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" Rotherham, the theologian, translates this phrase, "Who through an age-abiding Spirit." Concerning this, Herbert Lockyer, once wrote, "In this arresting title, the eternalness of the Spirit's being is emphasized, who never was any other than He is, and cannot be any other than He is, nor who can ever be any other than He was. It was through, or by, the grace and strength of the Eternal Spirit that Christ, the Eternal Son, offered Himself up to the Eternal God as a ransom for sin." Yes, the Holy Spirit is surely the active Agent and Witness at Calvary, taking away your sin and mine!

This thought quickly led me to the next—the "omniness" of God. In the dictionary, there are over 60 compound words that begin with "omni," referring to "all." Many of them are pretty self-explanatory—omniactive, omniproductive, and omnipatient, just to name a few. There are three, however, that describe the Holy Spirit very well. Mr. Fowler gives a warning with regards to this issue—"Many short story writers make a great mistake in attempting to handle too many characters and situations. It is better to have not more than two or three prominent characters..." And that is what we have here, namely three. The first being the description "Omnipresent,"—the ability to be present everywhere at the same time. One way in which this is true is in how He dwells within His people. If He is actually residing in His born-again Christians—and He is—then, He is everywhere they are, and that is all over the world—at the same time!

Praise God—it is even grander than that! David, in Psalm 139, declares, "Whither shall I go from thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me." (vss.7-10) The child of God can never move beyond His care, guidance, and supporting strength. Glory to God—He is with us in all situations—in whatever the present and the future brings. As we face troublesome times, this is often a huge comfort, but there is a flip-side to every coin. Sometimes we think we can get by with sin if we just do it in secret. But remember—God sees all; He is omnipresent. Mr Fowler also said, "The characters should show diverse characteristics. There should be no two of them alike—each one should appear to be sort of a specialist of his kind." And that we see as we move to our second focus—the Holy Spirit is also omniscient. Omni is "all," and science is "knowledge." Therefore, omniscience is all-knowing, all-wise, and implies a knowledge of things past, present, and future.

Yes, everything that pertains to God, Christ, Satan, man, heaven, earth, and even Hell, is known to the Spirit, for He has searched all things. Paul tells us, "...as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him. But God hath revealed them unto us by His Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God." (1 Cor.2:9,10) Paul goes on to say that only God can know the things of God. In our own strength, we can't really understand the things of eternity—many think they can, but not really! Since it is the Spirit that alone can, do you see why the Church today is in such need to be filled and baptized with the Holy Spirit? In many places, He has been replaced by entertainment, hype, and worldly ways, and the people don't even seem to care!

Part and parcel with omniscience is the fore-knowledge of God—the ability to know the end from the beginning, and the knowledge of things before they come to pass. I must admit that I got pretty hung up on this aspect of omniscience and fore-knowledge back when I was in seminary. I couldn't, in my own mind, reconcile the free-will we obviously have, and the sovereignty of God. I bought into a very popular line of thought at the time—Process Theology. It took away the problem by bringing down God to the level of my Spirit-less professors and myself. It basically said that God, too, was in process, only able to know the past as past and the future as future. That is, it is not until the future becomes present that God can know it as such—prior to that, He only knows the possibilities, not what is actually going to happen. Baloney! If that were true, then King David, inspired by the Holy Spirit, couldn't have prophesied some 1,000 years before Judas lived that the latter would be the one to betray Jesus. (Acts1:16). And don't forget how Agabus, "signified by the Spirit that there should be a great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar." (Acts 11:28) Praise God—His Spirit is NOT in process; He is the all-knowing, ever-knowing God of the Universe—yes, truly omniscient!

Now, having before us these two "very diverse char-acteristics," as Mr. Fowler suggests, we turn briefly to the third. The Holy Spirit is also omnipotent! From the first reference to Him in the Bible, to the very last—He is pictured as the embodiment of power and the personification of omnipotence—indeed, totally powerful. Remember? In Genesis 1:2, "The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters," totally changing chaos into order. And at the end of the Bible, Revelation 22:17 tells us, "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." All-powerful, from one end to the other! The unlimited power that God has is pretty self-explanatory, making itself obvious in virtually every story in the Bible. When Mary was informed about her upcoming pregnancy, she was told that the Holy Spirit was the "power of the Highest," and that He was going to overshadow her, influencing her with unlimited divine favor. The result of which was Jesus, the Messiah. Later, during the ministry of Jesus, He was ridiculed and defamed by the religious leaders of the day. The source of His miracles was pretty self-explanatory, but they still accused Him of doing everything by the power of Satan, a.k.a. Beelzebub.

While they were accusing Him of the epitome of blasphemy, it was actually just the opposite—they were the blasphemers. Jesus explained, even though it was pretty self-explanatory—"...if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore shall they be your judges. But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the Kingdom of God is come upon you." (Luke 11:19-20) Yes, the finger of God! In the Greek, the word, "finger," is "daktulos," referring to a literal finger. It comes from the number ten, obviously insinuating the fullness of both hands—all ten fingers reaching out to accomplish the will of the Spirit in a very powerful way. Always present, fully knowing, and totally powerful—why do we so often let other people and other things take control? What should we do about it? Well, that's pretty self-explanatory, isn't it???

The Most Dangerous Book in the World (Sep10)

2010-09-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

It is currently banned or restricted in 52 countries all over this globe. Countless numbers of them have been destroyed, and many school districts in this so-called Christian nation have discouraged or forbidden it to be brought into the classroom. Teachers have even been fired for doing so. So what horrible document are we talking about here? Is it child pornography, or song lyrics that promote suicide, or something that is obviously just as dangerous?

No, it's the Holy Bible! Yes, the Bible has been called the most dangerous book in the world because it makes the human race face up to their failings and depravity. It confronts sin, and a lot of people don't like that today. Back in the 18^th Century, well-known atheist and French author, Voltaire, once held up a copy of the Bible, and boldly shouted, "In 100 years, this book will be forgotten and eliminated." Quite ironically, shortly after his passing, the Geneva Bible Society bought Voltaire's house, and used it for a print shop. To print what? You guessed it, Bibles!

You might think that a book that millions have died for, would have a more provocative title, like, "The Ultimate Q and A Book," or, perhaps, "How Not to Go To Hell," or even, "Jesus is Definitely Coming Back, and He is Not Very Thrilled." But, the fact is, it's the Holy Bible! You see, that is why it is so dangerous—if the Bible is what it claims to be, namely the very Word of God, then it claims authority over everyone in the universe. Perhaps I can liken it to a police officer who pulls up behind you with flashing lights—he is claiming authority over you. If you pull over, you have agreed to that rule, but if you don't, you have rejected the power of the officer's claims—and you will eventually get caught anyway, and even arrested! Many people will—in the end—have their self-satisfying view of life "pulled over" by the truth of their Maker. Maybe the Holy Bible should come with a warning label—"Danger...This Book contains the explicit and infallible words of God, and the way you respond to them will determine your eternal destiny!" Remember Voltaire? He said that those words would be forgotten and eliminated—maybe he was right! Literally, no, but I think there are many ways to forget and to eliminate something.

Yes, many ways! Through the years, I have run in to many people who say they believe every word of the Bible, but when asked about it, they don't have any idea what it says! Others say it's boring, and that becomes their "ironclad" excuse. Still others assert they hang on every word, when, in fact, they twist its meaning to suit them. They say they are being obedient to God's Word, but they often take it out of context to meet their own self-satisfying view of life. Yes, and still others say they can't understand it. I think the problem is not so much what they don't understand, but what they do understand only too well—God is the ultimate authority and will judge all of these responses Even when we respond rightly, and surrender to the Lordship of Jesus, that is still judgment as we die to self. I heard of one church's Sunday School that writes in the flyleaf of all the Bibles presented to its students, "Either this Book will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this Book." I think the fear of the Lord is really the key—is God God or not? Actually, there will be no real understanding without the power of the Highest—the Holy Spirit, who actually inspired the Word of God.

I would like to take a look at this from the vantage point of the relationship between the 2^nd and 3^rd Persons of the Trinity—the Son and the Holy Spirit. Rene' Pache, one of Europe's outstanding evangelical scholars, in his work, "The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit," says of the fellowship between Jesus Christ and the Spirit, "The unity between the Son and the Spirit is marked by the fact that the attitude adopted by men toward one determines that which they maintain toward the other. He who rejects Christ, resists the Holy Spirit; he who yields entirely to Jesus, is used
by the Holy Spirit." In order to get the drift of this, we must first delve into a title that is given to the Holy Spirit—the Spirit of Jesus. You see, the name, "Jesus," used almost 600 times in the gospels alone, is referring specifically to the human being born of Mary. She had been told, "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God." (Luke 1:35) The Holy Spirit will produce something holy within all who let Him overshadow and dwell within. So, from conception, Jesus had the Spirit, and that was the Spirit of Jesus!

Secondly, the Spirit is called the Spirit of Christ. In Paul's discussion of how the Spirit delivers us from the power of sin, he says—by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit—"So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is not of His." (Romans 8:8,9) This "Christ" is the preexistent 2^nd Person of the Trinity, who came down to this earth to fill the man Jesus, hence, the Spirit of Christ. And, thirdly, the Spirit is called the Spirit of Jesus Christ, putting the human and the divine together. This double title is only used 6 times in the gospels, while it was a favorite of Paul's, being used 66 times. Peter and John employed it 21 times. In other words, the Holy Spirit is inextricable connected to Jesus, so, be very careful what you do with either!

This, I think is amazingly seen in yet another title that shows the relationship between the 2^nd and 3^rd Persons of the Godhead—that of Witness. When challenged by the Jewish authorities, Peter and the other apostles declared, "We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with His right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are His witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey Him." (Acts 5:29b-32) They were testifying to seeing Jesus crucified and killed, and then they made the outstanding claim that the Holy Spirit was also an eye-witness. Since all the apostles are gone, the Spirit remains the only living Witness in the world to all that Jesus Christ suffered for our redemption. In His darkest hour, even though He felt forsaken, he was comforted by the fact that the Spirit of God was right there—with Him and in Him! Dr. Elder Cumming, in his volume, "Through the Eternal Spirit," states this clearly, "There were human witnesses of the outward tragedy, but the Spirit, who had been the lifelong companion of Jesus Christ's deepest and most secret thoughts, was the One Solitary Witness of the infinite and eternal value which enforced and informed the sacrifice." Quite simply, because He was there, the Spirit can illuminate all that the Cross means—a totally changed heart and life, stemming from a complete willingness to come into the order of God.

Speaking of "comfort," Jesus spoke of it, too—"If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." (John 14:15-17) This "Comforter," in the Greek, is "parakaletos," specifically referring to one who invites us to holiness, exhorts us away from sin, and even consoles and helps us, interceding all of the way—no matter the situation. Obviously, this comforting does not condone sin, and, Praise God—it never will!

It is significant to remember that Jesus said the Spirit would be another comforter, intimating that He Himself was the first. The word, in the Greek, is "allon," meaning "another of the same kind," rather than, "heteros," referring to "another of a different kind." In other words, the Holy Spirit continues what Jesus Christ began to do while He was on this earth. The Spirit will NOT use other techniques. He will teach and strengthen us, just as Jesus did—with the power of the Highest, and not by entertainment or warm, fuzzy sermons. He will comfort and console in the midst of very difficult situations, just as Jesus did—with no soft-soaping or ignoring the sin. He will intercede in prayer, like Jesus did—without encouraging the satisfying of the self-life. He will also be a friend forever, just like Jesus—in total honesty, inviting us into the glorious life of obedience to the true Word of God. Remember—how you see Jesus, and respond to Him, determines what role the Holy Spirit will play in your life. Reject Jesus, and you resist the Holy Spirit; submit to the Son, and the Spirit will use you mightily! Yes, it's quite dangerous—you might actually end up living to the glory of God, and not to yourself! Imagine!

Beggars Can Be Choosers (Feb 10)

2010-02-01T13:00:00.002-05:00

Recently, my family and I went out to a restaurant for my birthday. The mother, father, and teenage daughter across the aisle received their meals, but the latter complained that hers was cold—no, this is not the updated version of Goldilocks! When the waitress returned, she was told that none of their meals were satisfactory, and all the plates were taken back to the kitchen. We heard them scheming about it, but little did we know how far they would go with it!

When their meals were returned to them, they sat there poking at them and mumbling. The waitress was called back to remove all of the meals again! She stacked the plates on top of each other and carted them off. The manager was called in—he apologized profusely, insisting they all order new meals—on the house! Were they just a very hard family to please with a complaining spirit, or was the whole thing a scam? I think it was both! In any case, their lack of love and honesty were evidenced in all the lying and cheating. Afterward, I thought I should probably have told the manager, but the way our sinful society is to day, I think he already knew—I'm sure it was not the first time, and certainly won't be the last. Oh, by the way, before we left the restaurant, I overheard the mother whisper to the dad, “Don't leave a tip!” Ironically, at the very same time, 2 million were homeless in Haiti, and 200,000 was the updated projected death toll. In Matthew 24, Jesus warned that when earthquakes became more frequent and severe, His return would be right around the corner. It was once reported that 7.2 and greater quakes occurred only once per decade before 1900. From 1900 to 1949, there were 3 every decade; 9 in the 1950's; 13 in the 1960's; 56 in the 70's; and 74 in the 80's. I never heard the results of the 1990's, but at the same rate, it would have been about 125. I'm sure this recent one will not be the last. Looting and anger abounded in Haiti, but there were exceptions. Several Christians, having lost their homes, as well as their loved ones, were out in the street—not griping and complaining—but waving their Bibles and praising God. Why? Because they knew that God was in control. They knew that it was sin that brought selfishness and death into this world—not God! They knew that God did send His own Son to suffer and die on the Cross of Calvary to take away our sin! Their only focus was Jesus! It is now reported that a Christian man, working in Haiti for Compassion, Intl., was rescued after 65 hours under 6 floors of his hotel. Thinking he might die, he scrawled a blood-stained note to his two young sons, encouraging them not to hate God.

You see, we all have choices. I can't imagine living like that family in the restaurant—complaining about everything; bugged at everybody; angry with every circumstance, and totally self-consumed. I pray that being faced with the hardship of a Haiti or worse, the grace of God would direct my choices of feelings and reactions. Towards the end of Moses' dealings with the rebellious house of Israel, he said, “I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.” (Deut. 30:19) Years later, Joshua would tell them a similar thing--”Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve Him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord. And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve...but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:14,15) We can learn much of these things from Jesus Himself. In His Sermon on the Mount, near the beginning of His ministry, Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Matt. 5:3) That is, those who are not all full of themselves, prideful, and self-consumed, have already inherited the rule of God in their lives. This, “poor,” in the original Greek, refers to a beggar crouching in obvious need. We, too, are in obvious need of God's rule in our hearts and lives. There is a saying today, “Beggars can't be choosers.” But I totally disagree—beggars can be choosers, and, in fact, must be. We saw this evidenced in Haiti. We have choices in this life, and we must begin early on to make the right ones—just as Jesus did. In the first twelve years of His boyhood, we are told, “...the Child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon Him.” (Luke 2:40) When He turned twelve—the official age of manhood and responsibility in Judaism—He was called, “a son of the law.” He made very clear the direction He had chosen when He said He would be about His “Father's business,” (Luke 2:49)—not His “step-father” Joseph, but His Heavenly Father, God Almighty. It is interesting to note that the word “business” is not even in the Greek, so it could be translated that He would be about His Father—not just focused on His service to God, but on God Himself—a deep, personal, and intimate relationship.

It is actually during the next 18 years, when He is a teenager and a young adult, that we come into an even clearer picture of the choices before Him. Following His trip to the temple at age 12, we are told—”And He went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but His mother kept all these sayings in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.” (Luke 2:51,52) What a remarkable statement—He was SUBJECT to His parents. In the Greek, it refers to an habitual, continuous obedience to a God-given authority. Bengal, the renowned commentator once wrote about this—”Even before, He had been subject unto them; but this is mentioned now, when it might seem that He could, by this time, have exempted Himself. Instead, Jesus leaves all young people a shining example to follow.” Obviously, many today have chosen a different path. Herbert Lockyer put it this way—”In these modern permissive times, when it is felt that children should be given free, unrestricted expression, many of them cease to be subject to their parents, feeling that their parents should be subject unto their self-chosen ways of freedom.” Praise God—Jesus chose the far better path, and we can, too! That subjection made possible many increases in His life. First, we are told He increased in wisdom. In the earliest part of His childhood, Scripture said He was filled with wisdom. But now, we can picture an ever-expanding mind, engrossed with the Hebrew Scriptures and steeped in all of the prophecies that concerned Him. He pondered the psalms and the prophets, becoming evermore convinced of His purpose—the salvation of the world. His was an undying thirst for the wisdom and the ways of God, which He would come to personify. Subjection to the Lord will do that! Secondly, we are told that He increased in stature. Many think that this refers to His age or His size, and that it does. If He was like all the other Jewish boys of that day, Jesus attended the synagogue school until He was 15 years old. At this time, He joined His earthly father in the carpenter shop, and I'm sure that nothing shoddy ever left His hands. I'm sure His fine oxen yokes and plows sparked His teachings about taking His yoke upon us, and not looking back in the field of life while plowing. But its not just about age or height; it's about an ever-increasing maturity. What a call to us to not stay back in a baby, toddler, or even teenage Christianity, when God promises so much more through His sanctification. Yes, the toil of divinity truly revealed the divinity of toil. The choice is ours, as well!

Thirdly, He increased in favor with God and man. This is not to suggest He ever lacked such favor or grace, for even in His earlier years we find that the grace of God was upon Him. The gentleness and grace of His character endeared Him to all who knew Him. His honesty and goodness must have attracted many to the doors of His carpenter shop. Surely people liked to be near Him, to see His smile, to hear His voice, and to watch His ways. Hebrews 13:9 says, “...it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace.” Increasing in grace and graciousness became His because of His humility. The same choices are before us, due to the grace of God, which is the power of God to live for God. But wait a minute—if He was so well liked, what happened to bring people to the point where they wanted Him dead—even in His own hometown? Could it have been the gospel? When He began His ministry, it was with these words—”The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” (Mark 1:15) Yes, the call is to repent, hate sin, and turn to God! And won't the indwelling Christ be about the same call in us? Paul once wrote, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 2:5) It's a choice—a crucial one—see your need to leave the complaining spirit behind and let Jesus be in total control! Beggars CAN be choosers—choose to deny self and submit to Jesus!

An Unlikely Angel: Good Luck or Glory? (Jan 10)

2010-01-01T13:00:00.001-05:00

Rev. James A. McClung tells the story—his own story. It was in November 1975 when his father-in-law had his first heart attack. During his recuperation, the pastor had their five-year-old twins to take care of by himself. And that is when it happened—little Walt developed a medical condition, that, through the weeks ahead, turned out to be quite serious. It was a mass in his right side, and within a day, he was in surgery for kidney problems.

As it turned out, Walt's little sister, Tondra, had the same congenital kidney defect, and was in need of the same surgery. On Christmas Eve night, both were hospitalized with tubes going every which way, awaiting even more surgery. Both parents tried to get to sleep in chairs next to their children, but they were just too exhausted. The pastor felt he should have enough faith to spare, but in the midst of the pain, he felt lost. “Oh, God,” he prayed, “I really need to know that you are with us in this. You gave us such a special child in your Son, Jesus, and we need to feel your presence somehow! Somehow, Lord. Amen!”

About 6:00 in the morning, there was a knock on the hospital room door. Believe it or not, it was Santa Claus! No stuffed tummy or fake beard—this one looked real, all right. He called out the kid's names, and they shot straight up in their beds. Their faces were lit up with joy. He gave them their gifts, and claimed he needed to get back to the North Pole. The pastor went out into the hall to thank him, but Santa was nowhere to be found. When he asked the nurses, they said there had been no one there. Was it a dream? It couldn't have been—the whole family had seen him. The pastor stopped by the hospital chapel and breathed a prayer of gratitude—God had answered his prayer. Somehow, God had sent someone! Hebrews 13:1-2 tells us, “Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” Could that Santa have been an angel? Unlikely to us, but if God wanted it to be so, could it not have been? Is not God in control? Can He not do all things, as He sees fit? Of course!

As we move into the New Year of 2010, it is important to remember that angels are not just a “Christmas” thing—angels have become big business year round. Books, figurines, jewelry—you name it—many have taken the opportunity to capitalize on them, and often for the wrong reason. Books, even in “Christian” Book Stores, suggest that people find out the name of their “guardian angel” and communicate with it. The Bible, however, calls this occult, with these “angels” being “familiar spirits”, and therefore, demonic—yes, angels alright, but “fallen angels.” (Isaiah 8:19-20) The ungodly New Age movement not only uses the Biblical term “familiar spirits,” but others such as “spirit guides” and “ascended masters.” In so doing, they are listening to demonic spirits and not the one true God. Some take angels simply as good luck charms, thinking they are safe as long as they have one pinned on. Praise God if the pin or necklace reminds you of God's glory, but don't think the jewelry has any power of its own. It does not!

Others have taken the concept of angels, expanding on the theme far beyond the Scriptures. For example, the Apocryphal Books of Enoch and Tobias began to develop a hierarchal order of angels—Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Principalities, Powers, Virtues, Archangels, and just “regular” angels. This list of nine was further elaborated on in the fifth century, by Middle Eastern scholar Dionysius, as well as by Pope Gregory. At the end of the 15^th Century, a stained glass window depicting all nine could be found in St. Peter's Church Hungate, in Norwich. John Milton, in his classic “Paradise Lost,” focusing on the state of things before the rebellion of Satan, mentions it as well. Sounds very authoritative, doesn't it? But it's not! While the Bible does mention each of these nine names, nowhere does it suggest that they all refer to different levels of angels. That has all been made up, and people assume it's true. Listen—we do not have to believe everything the world says about angels, or anything else for that matter. Why don't we just believe what the Word of God tells us, for that is the only reliable source. Angels were created by God as ministering spirits, and God is the only one who has the authority to speak about them.

Let me give you an example of how listening to any other voice can lead us astray. In Luke 1, the priest Zacharias has an encounter with an angel as he was performing his duties in the temple— “...there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.” (vss. 11-13) Later in the conversation, the angel identifies himself as Gabriel. While non-biblical sources say he was a archangel, the Bible does not. In fact, the only two places where the Holy Scriptures mention Archangels are in 1^stThessalonians, blowing the trumpet at the Rapture—and the angel isn't even named—and in Jude 1, where an Archangel by the name of Michael is described. Quite simply, Gabriel is never called an Archangel, and yet you hear that all the time. Maybe he was one, but we can't call him that unless the Bible says so. We do not have to believe what we hear about angels unless it comes from God and His holy Word.

Another thing we can see in this is the true purpose of angels as ministering spirits—they are not good luck charms or a magical way to get something out of God. They proclaim the purposes of God in order to prepare us in the spirit of repentance for what God has for us next. Right after Gabriel prepares the way for Zacharias, he does the same for Mary—”And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.” (vss. 26-28) Do you see it? Gabriel goes on to elaborate just how great Jesus would be, just like he did concerning Zachariah's and Elisabeth's boy, who would be the one to prepare the way for the Lord. All of the way through the Christmas Story, it is the same way—preparation for hearts to perceive and receive the glory of God. Praise God—this “glory” is His splendorous weightiness—His unfailing opinion of Himself!

An angel also appeared to Joseph in a dream, preparing his heart to stay in God's plan and marry his beloved Mary. Once they arrived in Bethlehem, and the baby was born, “...there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.” (2:8-11) Moments later, the entire sky was filled with the angelic host, giving glory to God. This all went very far to prepare them to seek Jesus, find Him, and worship Him. But that's not all—to proclaim Him to all who would listen. Unlikely? No, it's what happens when God's splendor is seen!

Once Jesus began His ministry, we read of two other appearances by angels. After Jesus was baptized by His forerunner, John the Baptist—Zachariah's and Elisabeth's son—He was led up into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit. And the purpose? To be tempted of Satan, and thereby, making plain that He would follow what God said, and not the word's of another. Matthew 4:11 says, “Then the devil leaveth Him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto Him.” The second time was at the close of His ministry, in the Garden of Gethsemane—”And there appeared an angel unto Him from Heaven, strengthening Him.” (Luke 22:43) On His way to the Cross, Jesus refused to be rescued by thousands of angels, so that God's glory would be seen and embraced. Yes, these angels are ministering spirits, and every one of them is a messenger sent from God with a very purposeful message—the life-transforming Gospel of Jesus Christ—not just at Christmas, but all through the year. Just like this past Christmas Season was a preparation for the truth of Christmas, as we enter this New Year of 2010, let us seek Jesus and become even more prepared for the fullness of His glory to live within us. Steve Merkel, the Christian song writer, wrote, “He made a way in a manger, to make a way to the Cross.” Praise God—the way has been prepared. Will you walk in it?

Spelunking All the Way to Christmas (Dec 09)

2009-12-01T13:00:00.000-05:00

Bill Watterson draws a comic strip about a 6 year old boy, named Calvin, and his stuffed tiger, Hobbes. Only Hobbes is very much alive to Calvin—they do everything together! One day, the two are trying to decide what to do, when Calvin suggests spelunking—exploring caves. When Hobbes admits he didn't know of any local caves, the last scene finds them at a local pond having fun by throwing in huge rocks and watching them make a splash—spelunk!

I suppose that is one way to go spelunking when there is no cave available, but there are plenty of caves to be found in the Scriptures. Speleology is the scientific study of caves in their physical, geological, and biological aspects, but right now, let's go ahead and apply that study towards the caves that we can find in the Word of God, discovering some fascinating lessons from each. In these coming weeks, we can go “spelunking” all of the way to Christmas.

We begin in Genesis 19, with the very first mention of a cave—"And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters." (vs. 30) What's happening here? Well, it's really quite simple—God had just destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for it's sin of homosexuality. Lot, Abraham's nephew, had chosen to live there, and in God's mercy, He led them out. But still the rebellion continued—Lot's wife turned around, as if to actually go back, and she became a pillar of salt. The rebellion was in Lot, too. God wanted him to get out of the area altogether, but Lot insisted on just going a little ways—to a “little city” called Zoar. “Oh sure, the big cities are destroyed, but I'll be OK in a little city—I can do what I want!” In the end, out of fear, they wind up on a mountain in a cave—by definition, a place of darkness; and in the Hebrew, it comes from a word that refers to bareness and nakedness. Oh, that it was! Lot's daughters, possibly fearful that the world had ended, and that they would never replace their husbands who stayed behind in Sodom, got their father drunk and had sex with him. Moab and Ben-Ammi, their illegitimate and incestuous children, would produce two nations that would be enemies of Israel for a long time to come. Rebellion and sin must be judged!

Yes, I know that doesn't sound very “Christmasy,” but isn't Christmas all about a Savior coming to set people free from sin? Oh, a cave can be a very dark place. You see, the second place we find the word “cave” concerns Lot's uncle, Abraham. In Genesis 23, we find that his beloved life-long wife, Sarah, had just passed away. In the midst of his dark grief, he still had to make the arrangements. God had promised him all of the land around him, but as yet, he did not actually possess any of it. So, he entered into a deal with the inhabitants—"...give me the cave of Machpelah...for a possession of a burying place amongst you." (vs. 9) In fact, it would be the only piece of real estate that Abraham would ever own in his lifetime—Praise God, it would be a life-time lived by faith, and not by sight or selfish feelings!

The next cave to explore is found in Joshua 10. The days of the Patriarchs are over, and Joshua—succeeding for Moses—is responsible for conquering the Promised Land. As they tackle the southern end of Canaan first, five local kings make a run for it—"...these five kings fled, and hid themselves in a cave at Makkedah." (vs. 16) When Joshua was aware of this, he ordered huge stones to be rolled in front of the only opening. In the mean time, he and his armies routed all their towns for their rebellion against God. Upon his return, Joshua order the five kings to be brought out, and that the captains would stand over them and symbolize the victory by placing their feet on the necks of the captive kings. It was then Joshua said to his men—“Fear not, nor be dismayed, be strong and of good courage: for thus shall the Lord do to all your enemies...” (vs. 25) At which point the five captives we hanged, their bodies thrown into the very same cave, and the great stones were put back. Did you see what happened here? Those kings had chosen that cave in the first place, and that is where they ended up. If we constantly choose to be distant from God and His mercy, that is where we will end up. (Rev. 19: 17-21) On the other hand, if we receive His call and act on it, we will be with Him forever. The choice is ours—He alone is the victor, and He alone will have the victory!

In the days of the kings, we see another cave. Saul, Israel's first king, had demanded that he knew better than God and was now consumed in trying to kill David, the newly anointed king. 1 Samuel 24:3 tells us, “And he came to the sheepcotes by the way, where was a cave; and Saul went in to cover his feet: and David and his men remained in the sides of the cave.” David's men told him its a good time to kill the old king—it would be self-defense. David almost took the opportunity, but instead just cut off a little piece of Saul's robe to prove he could have killed him. Praise God—even then, David was convicted for even contemplating to hurt the Lord's anointed. He had good reason; he could easily rationalize it, but it wasn't right—he would not be trusting in God, relying on God's own timing. The “Sauls” in our lives need to be trusted to God, too—God does know best!

Another cave I wanted to touch on is found in 1 Kings 19. Elijah was tired. He had just stood for God and against sin on Mt. Carmel, and killed 400 false prophets. Jezebel, the wicked queen, was furious. Frustrated and scared, Elijah ran away—first, under a juniper tree, where God sent an angel to feed and sustain him; and secondly—“And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and He said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?” (vs.9) With that, Elijah went into a pity party—“I've done this and that for you, God, so where are the crowds and the honor? I don't deserve to be treated this way!” God's response? “Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah.” (vss. 11-13)

You see, Elijah's ministry was in transition—not all shaking and fire, but now a still, small voice. Centuries later, that still, small voice could be heard in a little town called Bethlehem. In the days of Caesar Augustus, Joseph and his expectant wife, Mary, made their way to the town of their ancestry in response to a recent edict. Luke 2 tells the story—"And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her first born Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn." (vss. 6-7) Since there were so many hillside caves in the area, many commentators suggest that it is likely that that stable was in a cave. Whether that is literally true or not, all of the previously mentioned caves are pointing to this very special and crucial event. Even from the beginning, mankind has insisted on being rebellious, like Lot and his family, by not going God's way, God's way. It only brings death, grief, heartache, and loss—and in the end, we find ourselves in the very place we had chosen in the beginning—just like the five rebellious kings. Frantically trying to defend ourselves, as David did with knife and cloth in hand, the conviction gets even stronger. Through surrender and repentance, we must vow to never sin against the Lord's anointed again.

Praise God—but even then, like Elijah, knowing full well the powerful hand of Almighty God in our lives, we can come into times where we get down and feel all alone—and even forsaken. In those times, get quiet before the Lord, and listen very carefully for His still, small voice. Such was the purpose of Christmas—to interject into this hectic and self-consumed world, a still, small voice of God's love and forgiveness. But it didn't end on a Bethlehem hillside—only a few miles away, just outside the walls of Jerusalem, stands a Cross—an empty Cross. And only a short distance from there, a tomb—an empty tomb. Yes, a cave, of sorts! Praise God—the stone is rolled away; let us not waste our time “spelunking” stones at the entrance of the cave, endeavoring to keep a dead king inside. Imagine—a bunch of holes in the ground being used by God to speak forth the gospel truth! “Spelunk” the real way—exploring the journey from your own personal rebellion, all of the way to your own personal resurrection life!

Can You See the Wide-Open Window of Witness? (Nov 09)

2009-11-01T13:00:00.000-05:00

How thankful Mariam Muhina Hussein, a Christian woman in Islamic Somali, must have been when a woman came to the door to ask about the Bible and discuss Christianity. In reality, the woman was the wife of Sheikh Arbow, and was sent to discover just how many Bibles she did have, and to find “Christians who have defiled the Islamic religion.” The next day, Mariam answered the door once again...

Only this time, it was the Sheikh Arbow himself. He casually and politely asked if he could check out something in the Bible. Mariam innocently complied with his request, and went into a back room to get a Bible for him to see. It was then he made clear his true mission—he demanded that she retrieve all six of her Bibles. He then fired three shots, and she was dead—instantly! As gruesome and senseless as it all may sound, let me ask you a question. In that very moment, Mariam stood at the very throne of Jesus in Heaven—do you think she was any less thankful than compared to the day before when she had the opportunity to witness for Jesus? I don't think so!

Coming up on November 8^th, the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church, churches all over the world will pray for all to stand firm in their faith for Jesus Christ. Later in the month, as a nation, we celebrate Thanksgiving Day—will we only be thankful for prosperity and easy times, or will we also thank the Lord for the times of witness. Amy Carmichael, a missionary to India, saw every moment as a “chance to die.” Oh, I'm not talking about being foolhardy and sadistic in wanting to physically die; I'm talking about dying to self and pride, and thereby being a witness to the life of Jesus living within us. Even if it does come to martyrdom, it will be for the glory of God. You see, the Greek word used in the Bible for “witness” is “marturia”, the word that spawns our word, “martyr.” By definition, it is evidence that is given—a report, a record, and yes, a testimony. Yes, a living testimony—it is not just a book known as the Bible that upsets the other world religions and gets people shot and killed; it is the living Jesus, whose word it is, and the changed lives that are so convicting to those who don't have Him.

It was the Apostle John that made clear this reality in the opening lines of his gospel—”In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (1:1) A few verses later, he shifts his focus to the forerunner of Christ—”There was a man sent from God, whose name was John (the Baptist). The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through Him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.” (vss. 6-8) As you probably know, John the Baptist would later be beheaded for standing on the Word of God—not just a book, but a living presence of Light within. How is that a witness to us? Remember—contrary to popular opinion, there aren't two groups of people—the persecuted church and those who pray for them. The Bible tells us clearly--”Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” (2 Timothy 3:12) It is not just for some out there, and the rest of us can take it easy. If you truly bear witness to Jesus Christ, some will not like it!

Think about this—this “witness” is a favorite term for Jesus and His true, overcoming Church. John uses it 65 times in his gospel account and letters, and he uses it 19 times in the Book of Revelation. It was prophesied by Isaiah some 700 years before Jesus—”Behold, I have given Him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.” (55:4) And when He appeared among the people, Jesus confessed that He came into the world to “...bear witness unto the truth.” (John 18:37) In His final message to the churches, He would say of Himself that He was, “the Amen, the faithful and true witness.” (Rev. 3:14) He said this as a rebuke to the church of Laodicea, which had miserably failed to be a good witness for the Savior they had excluded from their lives and worship. In fact, He specifically told them, “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth.” (vss. 15-16) He says the same to much of the so-called church today—those that span the globe for foolish and false signs and wonders; those that try to lure the crowds with entertainment, activity, and prosperity; those that refuse to tell the truth about sin and sinners because it might offend somebody, and even meet with persecution. They don't realize it, but it's a very hard brick wall at the end of a very dead-end road.

Shortly after Saul, who was soon to become Paul, was saved and baptized in Holy Spirit and fire, he hit, what would seem to most to be, a dead-end. He was trapped in the city of Damascus, and the Jews were trying to kill him. So his friends put him in big basket and lowered him out a window to freedom outside the city wall. Dead-end walls or wide-open windows of witness? Tom White, the USA director of The Voice of the Martyrs, a ministry that reaches out to the persecuted, was once captured in Cuba for witnessing. While in prison, he would declare “God bless you” to the guard who delivered his breakfast—just before the door slammed shut. After several weeks of this, the door shut just before Tom could get out the blessing. The guard swung open the door and asked, “Hey, Americano, where is my 'God bless you?'” Closed door or window of opportunity—which is it?

Richard Wurmbrand, a Romanian pastor and the founder of The Voice of the Martyrs, was witnessing to the invading Russian soldiers at their barracks—all under the pretense of selling watches. Raised on decades of godless communism, they were hungry for the Word of God. One soldier even offered to be the lookout for officers as Richard witnessed to the men. When one was spotted, he would signal him to switch to the topic of watches. As new soldiers arrived to the barracks on trains, Wurmbrand and others would throw small Bibles—the Bread of Life—through the passing open windows to the starving atheists. Arrested for his Christian beliefs and activities, Richard Wurmbrand spent 14 years of torture and very harsh conditions in a communist prison. His favorite story from that time was about how kind the soldiers were—to him, the iron shackles and chains provided them with musical instruments to play as they sang praises to Jesus—this was kindness! In the end, hundreds were saved by the Christian witness! How do you choose to see it? He told another story about a sugar cube. He and the other prisoners lived on small rations of potato peel soup and stale bread. One day, one of them got his hands on a sparkling white sugar cube. No, he didn't gobble it down—he passed it on to someone more frail than he. Through the ensuing weeks, the sugar cube went from prisoner to prisoner—from cell to cell—never to be consumed. Rev. Wurmbrand said he believed the cube was passed along for decades! What do you believe?

It's a wide-open window of witness! In India, in the last five years, more Christians have been beaten or killed, and more houses and churches burned, than in all other countries of the world combined. Why the persecution? The Hindus are frantically trying to stop the spread of revival in their land—thousands of Dalits, the so-called “untouchable” poor class, are getting saved, and they are telling others about Jesus. Journalist Li Ying is 8 years into a 15 year sentence for her role in publishing a Christian magazine in China. She is not allowed to have a Bible, and is forced to work 15 hours a day—and that is in-between the severe beatings. Shafia, a young Christian woman in Pakistan, was kidnapped and locked in a small room. Her assailant raped and beat her every night, trying to force her to accept Islam. Her only peace came in the midst of it as she repeated the Psalms she had memorized. With all of this, and much more—including the murder of her own brother, Rafi—she declares, “I have forgiven those who persecuted me.” It's all in the way you choose to see life, isn't it?

Picture Colombia, South America. One day, the bus Alex and other Christians were on was stopped by FARC terrorists, and all aboard were ordered off and tied up—men, women, and children. The bus was then set on fire, and everyone was machine-gunned to death. To really show his hatred, the leader sliced a machete across the face of Alex, trying to take off his head. Leaving all for dead, the terrorists didn't know that one man had lived—Alex! Much later, the blind survivor went to a local prison to witness to the Cross, and guess who got saved? That's right—a man named Ishmael, the terrorist leader. In fact, the two men now witness together of God's forgiveness and life-changing Word. It is incredible what God can do if we will just have His vision of things, and see ALL things through the wide-open window of His Witness!

The Divine Vine: Saving the Best Until Last? (Oct 09)

2009-10-01T13:00:00.001-04:00

The story is told of an elderly woman who walked into a local country church. The friendly usher greeted her at the door and helped her up the flight of steps. “Where would you like to sit?” he asked politely. “The front row, please,” she answered. “Oh, you don't really want to sit there,” the usher said, “The pastor is really boring, and he might see you dozing.”

With that, the woman inquired, “Do you happen to know who I am?” “No,” he said. “Well, I'm the pastor's mother,” she replied indignantly. “Do you know who I am?” the usher asked. “No,” she said. “Good,” he answered, and with that he slipped down the aisle and melted into the crowd. Do you see how important it is that we know one another? Now, no one could doubt that Jesus knows who we are and what we are all about, but do we truly know Him? To illustrate the depths of this, let's take this time to turn to the powerful picture of Jesus as the True Vine.

Herbert Lockyer, in considering this truth, suggests, “Solemnity is attached to this most descriptive title taken from the fruit-bearing world, because it is intimately connected with the last symbol Jesus applied to Himself while He was on this earth. How gifted He was in the use of a natural object for the purpose of illustrating truth! The way in which the figure of speech is worked out, and the wealth of spiritual meaning that is associated with it, show how calm and trustful Jesus must have been as He entered the dark cloud of desolation to secure our redemption from sin.” Yes, it might very well be true—did He save the best until last? When He performed His first miracle of changing water into wine in Cana, the people were amazed—He had saved the best until last! Near the close of His ministry, I wonder if there was something He saw that night that sparked this thought of the True Vine. Perhaps earlier in that day He had seen the engraved vine over the porch of the temple. Maybe He was inspired as He sat with His disciples in the upper room, and He took the cup that was filled with the fruit of the vine. Or it could have been as they made their way to the Garden of Gethsemane—and even to its very entrance—a place of solitude and solemnity, filled with olive trees and even grapevines. Yes, any of these may have played their role, but the essence of it goes way back into the Old Testament.

You see, the word, “true,” in the Greek, signifies something to be genuine, sincere, real, and even veracious. In John 15:1, we are told—”I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.” Just by saying He is the true one, indirectly points to one that has been false. He was the Divine Vine in contrast to Israel, the fruitless vine. Isaiah explains just how much effort the Lord put into this vine, as well as the result of it—”My well-beloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill. And He fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and He looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.” (Isaiah 5:1-2) In the Hebrew, this “wild” refers to being filled with stench, and even poison. The implication is that of total rebellion and unruliness towards God—it is their fault, not God's!

It is so grievous to the Lord, He asks, “What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it?” (vs. 4a) Love, mercy, and grace abounded, and still they demanded their own ways. But Israel is not the only vine in the vineyard—what about so much of the church today? So many think that entertainment, glitzy promotional campaigns, and psychology are the new ways to get the gospel across to people. But how can the ways of the world accomplish the work of the Lord? They can't—they just become a slick and alluring replacement for the Holy Spirit. Oh, we can still claim to want—and even need—the Holy Spirit, but then we often go about it in our own way, depending on our own natural abilities. There is no doubt—we are in great need of a baptism of Holy Spirit and fire—a consuming fire that burns away our ideas, plans, and agendas, leaving nothing but His. (Mt. 3:11) After all, He never expects us to actually produce the fruit—we are called to bear it. Hosea 14:8 tells us, “From me is thy fruit found.” It is interesting—if not puzzling—that both the true and the false vines have the same Father as their Husbandman, and yet their fruit are exact opposites.

So why is that? The Jews have a tradition that the vine was first planted by God's own hands on the fertile slopes of Hebron. So why didn't it all work out? Hosea 10:1-2 explains—”Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself...Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty...” Yes, they were empty in that they did not have singleness of purpose—the Lord Himself. James, Jesus' own brother, once wrote, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all of his ways.” (1:5-8) Do you see the need to be about the Lord and His ways His way? We have got to stop acting on our own plans, giving them the stamp of God's approval when it is really a matter of our own selfish desires. Singleness of purpose—God's purpose—is just as stable and reliable as you can get.

And what is the key? Do you remember what Hosea said? He said the vine was empty. I don't think that is just referring to the lack of big, luscious bunches of grapes; I think it speaks of the inside of the vine as well. Yes, the place where the life giving sap flows. Jesus said, “Every branch in me that beareth not fruit He taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, He purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.” (John 15:2) Did you catch the part about “in me?” If we will be branches in Him—allowing for the same life-giving sap to flow through us as flows through Him—there will be an abundance of good, ripe fruit, and not just an “empty” vine. How do we get to that point? Notice, there is a “purging”; in other words, a cleansing or pruning. It is not just a matter of cutting out the dead wood; it goes far beyond that. Pruning takes out living branches in order that the remaining branches can flourish even more. Christianity is not just a matter of cutting out the blatant sins and vices, but rather, as I mentioned earlier, a burning away of even “good” things, so that we are only left with God's best. True Christianity is not empty religion, depending on lifeless ritual and a legalistic, perfunctory doing of things. Genuine Christianity is not a matter of people trying to work their way to God, but a matter God coming to us in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ to save us. This is what I mean when I say that Christianity is not a “religion”; it is a relationship with the Lord of Glory.

Praise God, Jesus went on—”Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” (15:3-5) Yes, that's the promise, but here is the warning—”If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.” (vs. 6) And now, back to the quintessential promise—”If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.” (vss. 7-9) Do you see it? This abiding is a very strong concept, referring to a deep sense of indwelling and ongoing expectancy and anticipation. It is the indwelling Spirit of Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. Without it, we will whither away spiritually. Remember this—every withered branch used to thrive on the indwelling sap of the life of God that filled it, but now it doesn't. Do you see the need for the continual abiding of which Jesus speaks? Verses 10 and 11 conclude the story—”If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love...These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” Yes, Jesus already knows us, but do we really know Him? No, it's not boring; this relationship can only become more and more exciting. Yes, there will be dark days ahead—there were for Jesus; there will be for His people—but we can come through them calm and trustful with Him living within us. Perhaps He did save the best for last—He is the Divine Vine!

Stones of Promise and the Stone of Reward (Sep 09)

2009-09-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

Have you ever allowed a memory to become a powerful illustration of an eternal truth? I have. Take, for example, a couple of memories I have of the the old show, “Leave it to Beaver.” On it's web site, I found the following statement: “...The show was created by Joe Connelly and Bob Mosher, who found inspiration for the show's characters, plots, and dialogue in the lives, experiences, and conversations of their own children.” In fact, they once admitted that they followed their own kids around, with pad and pencil in hand, taking notes!

Now that may not mean much to you, but that really brings back memories for me. You see, I remember that my Dad got the biggest kick out of that show, and quite often, he would say, “Boy, the writers of this show must have kids!” Ha—I guess it's true then—”Father Knows Best!” I remember one particular episode where the Beaver and his buddy bought a sliding coin trick that made the coin disappear—just like the one I had—and were amazed at how everybody they pulled it on knew all about it. So, they ramped it up a bit—with a little neighbor boy as their audience, they made Beaver disappear, leaving a stone in his place. That's right—a stone!

For the whole rest of the show, the little boy was absolutely convinced that Beaver was now a stone—he talked to it, he slept with it, he hauled it around in his wagon, and he even tried to feed it—but he couldn't find the Beaver's mouth. It got to be such a problem for the little boy's mother, Beaver had to cut a visit to his aunt short in order to prove to the little boy that he was not a stone. What eternal truth could this possibly illustrate? Well, for me, it reminds me of a man who did become a stone—not magically or by trickery, but miraculously—and that man, believe it or not, was Jesus. But first, let me be very clear, the Bible is filled with the imagery of stones—Jacob made a stone his pillow; many buildings had a stone foundation that began with a cornerstone; stone dressing and masonry were recognized trades throughout Bible-times; stones were used in fighting, as Goliath found out; stone pillars, monuments, and landmarks were quite common; and being stoned to death was a frequent means of execution. With so many uses for stones in such a rocky place as Israel, is it so hard to see how it could be applied to the Lord Jesus Christ? Chris Tiegreen, in his devotional book, “Walk with God,” writes, “Jesus was no stranger to Old Testament imagery. His Spirit had inspired it, and His humanity had been educated in it.”

Back in the Old Testament, the prophet Daniel interpreted a dream. The Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar had a vision of a giant statue, each part of which represented a coming kingdom of the world—following the current kingdom would come the Medo-Persians, the Greeks, the Romans, and finally—that's right, finally—that is, the final one, a Revived Roman Empire! That's right—the times in which we live right now! Each kingdom is represented by a different type of metal, in descending order of value—gold, silver, brass, and iron. The last one, however, is pictured as feet made with both iron and clay. In the last days, when the Messiah ushers in His universal reign, He is coming as a stone. A stone? Yes, in the dream, a huge, huge rock breaks off of the mountain and rolls down towards this great statue. Striking it in it's iron and clay feet, the statue is utterly destroyed, and the rock is seen for what it really is—a rock as big as a mountain. Yes, the “Stone” will, in the end, destroy this entire world system, and He Himself will become a very great mountain that even fills the earth. That, my friends, is a promise—a promise of God's rule and reign, carved in stone!

Did not Christ refer to Himself as a Stone? Following His quintessential parable of the tenants, Jesus said, “Did ye never read in the Scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes? Therefore say I unto you, The Kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.” (Matthew 21:42-44) This is not a trick—it is reality! Those that stumble and fall over His call to die to self and be humble before God—as many do today—will find themselves laid out flat on the ground. If they will humble themselves and repent, they can—and will be—recovered by His resurrected life. BUT, if they trip over Him and stay stubborn, not allowing themselves to be picked up by the miracle of new life, the stone will fall upon them, pulverizing them into dust with no way to be reconstituted. Yes, another promise!

Now remember—when Christ described Himself as the stone rejected by the builders, the builders, of course, were the Jews, who totally discounted His claims to be the Messiah. But—Praise God—the despised Stone actually became the Headstone of the Corner—the most important part of the building, for it keeps everything straight and true. One commentator suggests, “Christ is called the Cornerstone because, as the cornerstone unites in itself the first two walls, so also Christ unites in Himself two peoples—the Jews and the Gentiles, and by faith, makes them one.” All through the Old Testament, Israel is called to be a light to the Gentiles. With pagans all around—Amorite, Hittite, Jebusite, and Amalakite—there was but one “light” to shine on all the “ites.” But through the years, Israel came to see itself as the only people God even cared about. So the call went out to the Gentiles—by way of the Church—to shine the light of Jesus Christ throughout this sin-darkened world; to call one and all—Gentile and Jew—to the Cross of Calvary. To all who harden their hearts like stone and refuse His loving overtures of mercy, He will be the crushing Stone of Judgment (Mt. 21:44). Promise? Warning? Are they not really the same thing?

We have seen some Stones of Promise, now let's turn our attention in the end of the Bible—the Book of Revelation—to see the Stone of Reward. For those who overcome in the fight of faith, Christ promises, “...a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth save he that receiveth it.” (2:17) Sir William Ramsey, in his book, “The Seven Churches,” suggests this white stone to be a “tessera.” It is a little cube made of stone, ivory, or some other substance, on which words or symbols could be engraved. Walter Scott, in his “Exposition of Revelation,” writes, “A white stone was largely employed in the social life and judicial custom of the ancients. Days of festivity were noted by a white stone; days of calamity by a black stone. A white stone meant acquittal; a black stone, condemnation in the courts of justice. A host's appreciation of a special guest was indicated by a white stone with a name or message written on it.” I believe it is this last illustration that speaks to the current context, and therefore, is the most memorable.

You see, since this stone is white, it speaks of something positive, something pure, and something precious. Revelation 3:12 gives us a clue—”Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is New Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.” Remember—both this Scripture, as well as the previous one, were written to the Churches. Yes, the overcoming Christian is promised a white stone with something quite precious written upon it, but that only comes by virtue of Christ's intimate relationship with the overcoming Body of Christ. You cannot separate the two! You cannot say you love Jesus, and withhold your whole heart from His people. This stone of reward is a very powerful expression of the Lord's personal delight in His true Church first, and secondly, in each and every one that goes the whole way with Him. This new name signifies Christ, who is known in a very special, a very peculiar, and a very deep way, and that, most certainly, is a very precious reward that is far beyond all price. Yes, the author of this gospel story does have a “kid,” and He loves us so much he wants us to be conformed to His image. It's not a trick; it's a miracle—surrender and submit! Don't leave it to Beaver; leave it to the Lord Jesus!