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"Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men." Matthew 4:19

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Hunger and Thirst. John 4:4-42.

August 10, 2019 /
“Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”




She was thirsty. Truth is, she had been thirsty for quite some time. Her thirst was so voracious that not one of her 5 husbands nor her current lover was able to fully sate it. Yet thirst isn’t what sent her out to fill her water jugs on this hot afternoon; shame had caused her to steal away towards Jacobs well in search of much-needed water….

Being thirsty will do that to you…

It caused her to venture out into the high heat of the noonday sun simply to avoid the pain caused by those whose eyes were filled with loathing. To shield herself from the incessant, not-so hushed conversations that were laden thick with toxic contempt. Conversations so loud and pernicious their acrid poison pierced her own thoughts. “Five husbands, the shame! Harlot! Do you see who she is living with now? Don’t even look at her! Wicked creature! Filthy dog.” Each word a confirmation, an echo of what her own heart accused her of during her hours of stark isolation. “Spoiled. I am forever spoiled. So dirty. Filthy. Good for nothing other than shame. No one of value will ever look at me again…”

Each acrid word a fist. And, blow after blow, the assault just kept coming…

She should be used to it by now. The years of feeling shame. Dodging and weaving and avoiding. Of isolating—and telling herself whatever she needed to hear at that moment so as not to lose her mind. And, now, after having endured the exacting heat of the noonday sun that she might avoid the words of those women whose not-so hushed conversations stung like bees, after carrying her pain and shame this long way, this burdensome weight of knowing just how far she had fallen, how barren and parched she truly was; she’d arrived, finally, at Jacob’s well as thirsty as she had ever been. Finally, she was alone—well almost. A man was just there; sitting on the edge of the well. Will I never escape the reach of these insistent, needy men?

I wonder what this one wants?
They all want something…

He had walked into what most Jews of His day considered enemy territory. You see, Jews did not socialize with Samaritans. It just wasn’t done. To give you an idea of the strict division that existed between these two factions, think of the rift that has existed, and exists still, between the Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland. Or, drink in the sheer hatred and rivalry that exists between the Crips and the Bloods, or between any other bitterly opposing faction you can think of. This will give you a glimpse into the climate that existed between the Jews and Samaritans…

The deep chasm that divided them dated back before the separation of the northern and southern Jewish Kingdoms. These Samaritan Jews had become renegades. Mere half breeds in the eyes of any self-respecting Jew! Worshipping Yahweh and all those other strange gods, idols of all sorts. Surely, they were not true Jews!—1 Kings 12; 2 Kings 17.

Hence, why no self-respecting Jew would be caught dead in a filthy Samaritan village! Yet Jesus intentionally walks right into the middle of the years of bitter animosity and rivalry. Cutting through, like a hot knife through butter, all their religious, cultural, and social barriers simply by lovingly affirming their worth. He does this specifically to offer this thirsty woman a drink that would forever change, not only her life but would radically impact all those who knew of her reputation as well.

That’s what the love of God does. It changes you from the inside out. And this same love had caused Jesus to come and sit at Jacobs well, waiting. To restore—wash clean, make new, enliven. To offer new life to, a new way. Turning the world as she had known it, upside down. He came to tear down the division, the isolation, and, all of her false misconceptions. To break down those burdensome laws that men had implemented. He came to fulfill instead, every Word that God has ever spoken. And so much more. During His ministry, Jesus hungered after every Word that His Father spoke. They were His daily Bread. They were who He was. They were Him. What sustained Him. He lived to do the will of the Father—to speak what He heard His Father saying. To bring the love of God to a lost and dying world.

A world that hungered and thirst after anything that would satisfy it, however briefly. Even if it was killing them…

And so He asks this woman standing at Jacobs well, this one who is hiding in plain sight, for a drink of water. Jesus knows that what He has come to offer her far exceeds any thing she might give to Him—even unto her very life. But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. The woman said, “I know the Messiah is coming—the one who is called Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus told her, “I am the Messiah!” –John 4:23-26.

In being afforded the honor of listening to this seemingly unorthodox conversation, we walk away with the privilege of having witnessed the love of God on full display. His heart and intentions freely poured out in the person of Jesus Christ, for Jew and gentile alike. (John 4:7-30)

She thought this Jew who showed up in her Samaritan village wanted something from her. After all, why else would a Jew stop to rest at a Samaritan well unless they wanted something? Why would any self-respecting Jew, say nothing of a Rabbi, talk to a Samaritan woman? It was unheard of! Rabbis didn’t even talk to their wives or daughters in public, never mind a Samaritan woman! To this very day, if an orthodox Jew should marry a gentile, the family will most likely hold that son or daughter’s funeral. Leaving no room for interpretation—they are dead. Both to their family and to their community.

Hence one reason why it had not occurred to her that this Jesus, a Jew—the Messiah, would ever come to a lowly Samaritan village simply to talk with her. To give something to her—not take one more thing from her; as so many had. Yet, even though He had shared with her all He had come to offer, even though she clearly understood this was no ordinary Jewish man, no ordinary Rabbi; still she wasn’t able to see through the gossamer veil of His parable (4:13-15).

Our sins blind us to His Truth…

So Jesus takes a different tack, a more direct approach. He purposely uses His knowledge of her sins to remove the scales from her eyes that she might truly see Him. Grasp at last His true intentions in coming to her. And it works! (John 4:16-19). More, through this one thirsty woman’s stepping from death into life, an entire village that had only moments before slammed their doors in her face, now opened their hearts to her after hearing her repeat all that this Jesus had revealed to her. John’s account informs us that because of what she had told them about this Jesus—about all that He had told her concerning herself, most came willing to listen to all He had to share with them. And, they not only listened to Jesus, but they were also thirsty for more! And, so, they asked Him to stay on with them because their hearts had been opened to hearing more from Him. Just as hers had. (4:39-42).

Friend is it possible that you, much like this woman at the well, are at a place in your life that you believe Jesus would never enter in to? Would never cross whatever barrier needed to be crossed that He might find you? Do you believe your sins are too great? Have you, like our woman at the well, bought into those not-so-hushed conversations concerning your worth?

If any of this rings true for you know this:

Just as surely as Jesus tore down every obstacle that He might save this one woman—He will do the same thing for you. He already has…
You are not too dirty, to hooked on whatever your choice of drug or drink is. There is no number of men or women you have had sex with that prohibits Jesus from loving you. Straight, gay, bi, drunk, drugging, stealing, not even the taking of life will separate you and God.

Jesus did not expect this woman to clean up her act before He was willing to come and talk with her, reveal the Truth of who He is to her. He knew that once they had a real conversation—once her heart was genuinely open to hearing what He had to say to her, He would then begin to lead her into the life He had created her to live. More, she would joyfully follow after Him! Leaving behind all those sinful choices that had once separated them…

He knew she was thirsty. He also knew He was exactly what she needed that she might never thirst again…

How about you? Have you also been thirsty for a long while too? Are you willing to leave what you’ve relied on until now at the well? Drinking deeply instead of what it is Jesus has to offer— a new life in Him? …Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life. —John 10:14-16.

If you hear Him speaking to your heart today please, stop and listen to all He has to tell you about yourself. Ask Him to sit awhile with you. To become your Lord and Savior. After all, He came all this way that you might….

It Will Not Return Void. 2 Chronicles 3:1

June 9, 2019 /
 “Then Solomon began to build the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David. It was on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, the place provided by David.”

Whether there were 42 generations between the time Abraham took his son, Isaac, to Mount Moriah and the day Jesus, God’s only begotten Son, freely laid down His life for the sins of the whole world there, is a debate I will leave for those theologians far more learned in deciphering biblical genealogy than myself. What I am clear on is this: Before time as we understand it began, God had chosen this plot of the earth as holy ground. He had a plan for Jerusalem and a purpose for this mountain. And, as we know, “God’s will cannot be thwarted”—Job 42:2. Before He stood over the dark void, before Daniel had written a word of what was yet to come—Paul either, God knew—Daniel 9; 2 Thess. 2:1-4.

There is nothing random with God. No—thing. Nothing has, nor ever will, catch Him unawares. No outcome or nanosecond in time happens outside of His purview.

And, just as surely as Jerusalem and this mountain have a place in God’s plan, He too has chosen those He would call to this mountain as part of that plan. This place of reconciliation and restoration, of sacrifice and testing. This exacting rough country where He first led Father Abraham that he might sacrifice his son, Isaac—Genesis 22:1-19. Then after Abraham, Jacob came here and prayed. He sought the Lord for reconciliation with his estranged brother, Esau—Genesis 32:1-21. Then came David. He would be led to this very mountain after receiving a word from Gad, the prophet. An angel had told Gad to instruct David to build an altar on this mountain. To buy a specific plot of ground from the Jebusite Araunah, a gentile, so that he might offer sacrifices and offerings to the Lord there on behalf of himself and his people—2 Samuel 24: 10-25; 1 Chronicles 22:1. And, though it was David who desired to build the Temple for the Lord it would be David’s son, Solomon, whom God would entrust to build His holy Temple on this site—this threshing floor which David had purchased from Araunah, the Jebusite —2 Chronicles 3:1. Solomon’s temple, destroyed by the Roman army led by Titus, was rebuilt by Nehemiah and those Jews who had been delivered from Babylonian captivity—Nehemiah 2:1-20. And, then, God Himself, the Living Temple, would ascend this mountain. His every step a declaration of His love for, and obedience to, the Father. Wrapped in flesh, Jesus, our Messiah, would climb Moriah carrying His Cross towards its peak, Mount Golgatha. Now, in Christ, “it is finished.” The single-greatest demonstration of love and obedience the world will ever know was witnessed on this very mountain. One far surpassing the splendor and majesty of anything built by human hands—Jesus. Far greater than Abraham’s obedience. Jacob’s and David’s too. Gods great love—His Perfect redemptive plan on display for all to see—John 3:16. God’s very character, His attributes, the sheer essence of who God is hung here for all to see. His redemptive sacrifice changing lives for all eternity. Abraham named this place “The LORD Will Provide.” And He did. Even now people say, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided” –Genesis 22:14.

God has chosen Jerusalem as His own. This place, and its people, a template He repeatedly uses to display His great love, His redemptive plan, both for Jerusalem and for the whole world. What God set in motion, “In the beginning” continues to expand and grow and thrive and live and breathe and reproduce, to this very day. His every desire for His creation—His chosen, is being accomplished—still. Soon and very soon, a new Jerusalem will descend from heaven. No longer will there be a need for Solomon to lay one stone nor for any temple made by human hands. Soon and very soon there will be a new heaven and a new earth. “The Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple” –Revelation 21:22.

What was set into motion long before Father Abraham took one step of obedience on Moriah’s rugged terrain, before Solomon’s laborers had laid one stone, lives and thrives and calls to hearts, still. More, those that our Lord has chosen in Himself to live in obedience to His will, are, much like Solomon and Abraham, Jacob, and David before them, seeking after Gods will for their lives too. Lovingly, obediently, they offer their own living sacrifices before Him. Their very lives. Their hopes, and dreams, wants and wills, each laid lovingly, on the altar. Each soul seeking out their Moriah. That place where they too will do the work God has destined for their hands alone to do; for His Kingdom and glory. What was set into motion long ago pulses across time and space still. Words were spoken, His will. They will not return to Him void. And, it will continue this way until that moment when all they were sent out to do has been accomplished in the One who stood over the void and said, “let there be.” Until that glorious final Sabbath day when our mortal tents are taken down and we find our eternal rest in Him; God has placed a pledge in our hungry belly—a promise, a foretaste. His Spirit in us. The sure promise of what is yet to come for those who love the Lord and follow His commands.

The final battle is near—though when no man knows. God has set in stone the smallest of details that must yet come to pass. Each life chosen in Him as well; destined to receive His glorious, free gift of salvation. Every ministry that will flourish and thrive and grow and feed His sheep—His lambs—under His watchful, providential eye. In the meantime brothers and sisters, as surely as God has a purpose for Moriah, for Jerusalem, as certainly as Solomon was chosen to do the work God had equipped him for—created him to do, so too is your Moriah waiting for you…

That place that calls to you like no other, that floods your heart with a God-given longing to go and give and build and serve and love and spend yourself on. That people group or country, those prisoners, or refugees, the elderly or the infirm. Those widows and orphans and homeless men and women—the veteran and those who are mentally or emotionally challenged, the teen or the addict, those single mothers, and the prostitutes. Every child stolen and sold for sex. The everyday man whose heart and soul are hungry for something they can’t yet put a name to. These are the callings sent out by God. Ministry’s each. They’re His will for your life’s work placed deep within your bowels; awaiting that one moment in time when He would call you to serve and build and do with the tools and materials provided you by another. The One who died for you. You are not your own. Neither was Abraham or Solomon or Jacob or David before you. They were, as you are, part of Gods eternal plan. And, as we know, “God’s will cannot be thwarted”—Job 42:2. Build wisely with what has been given to you. One day, soon and very soon, you will have to give an account for it all…

Beloved, God has blessed you with gifts and talents and ministry’s, use them wisely—as good stewards should. Remembering always: You may well reap what another has planted. “I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”—John 4:38.

Friend, if you are here today and have not asked Jesus into your life, know that He has led you here that you might ask Him in now, this day. He is waiting for you to open your heart and life to Him—asking Him to be Lord of all. Won’t you please ask Him to show you the work He has destined solely for your hands to accomplish, for His Kingdom and glory?

“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved” –Romans 10:9.

Deliverance. Exodus 14:21-22.

May 19, 2019 /

“Then Moses raised his hand over the sea, and the Lord opened up a path through the water with a strong east wind. The wind blew all that night, turning the seabed into dry land. So the people of Israel walked through the middle of the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on each side!”. 

Talk about being delivered in a way you never saw coming! Whoever heard of a sea dividing then standing at attention; allowing folks to walk smack through its middle all night long?

What do you do when your deliverance comes wrapped in risk?

When God asks you to take a leap of faith that looks more like cliff diving at Possum Kingdom Lake than puddle jumping in the summer rain? When it’s tied-off with ribbons of uncertainty and challenge? When you come face-to-face with your deepest truths—your fears. When everything you think you believe about God, have known of Him, your faith in Him, the depth of your relationship with Him—is unexpectedly challenged? Shifts beneath you somehow. When the familiar of it all is suddenly slipping through your fingers like so much sand? How do you survive that walk through the unfamiliar? Through the soul-crushing valley-of-the-shadow-of death and then back, yet again, into the bright newness of your next season?

What did it look like when God moved in your life? When He delivered you from an enemy intent on your destruction? When He said “enough” to your bondage, “no more” to your being held captive. Did your freedom come wrapped the way you hoped it might? Or, did it arrive ragged and banged up? Looking like some barely recognizable version of what you’d imagined it would?

The Israelite’s faced what undoubtedly appeared to be certain death.

Pharaohs army closing in on their left—and on their right an outwardly impassable sea. What do you do then when you’re faced with an impossible situation? How does going from a seemingly bad situation to one that’s worse affect your faith? Does it send you chasing after God? Doing all that you’re able to stay tucked-up tight under His Providential care? Or, does the impossible before you remain just that, the impossible that’s before you?

Faith or flesh? How do you respond? Moses and the Israelite’s had to decide. So will you and I…

As we’ll see, the Israelite’s opted for the flesh. Moses, in contrast—held tight to his faith. On one side you had thousands of people grumbling and faith-less; carping about how they would have been better off to have died in Egypt—remained in bondage—rather than to die in an unknown wilderness. All they saw was the impossible, the unmovable, the outwardly insurmountable that was hemming them in. These same descendants of Father Abraham, hand-picked by God to be saved—had lost that faith. These same souls who had witnessed God bring water from a rock, deliver fresh food to the desert floor each morning, these whose clothes and sandals never got old though they wore them for some 40 years; responded to Gods delivering them from Pharaoh’s savage grip with grumbling and fear. Resentful of His method—they were angry with Moses for the loss of the familiar chains that had bound them. Truth be told—don’t we each have a bit of this same tendency within us? This leaning towards fleshly “living in the moment.” This grumbling and high-mindedness? An initial knee-jerk resentment towards God for pulling us out of the familiar muck that we’d become accustomed to?  Our pride-filled thinking that often says, “if I were the one able to deliver someone, I would do it so much differently—painlessly and swift.

On the other hand, if you’ve been walking with God for any length of time surely, you’ve witnessed His mercy and grace? I can only assume that He has delivered you from one or more, if not perilous situations, then perhaps that near-miss situation. That, how am I going to make it this week—this month—today situation? That, “how did I walk away from that in one-piece” moment? Maybe He’s kept you from losing it when your spouse walked out—or worse, died suddenly. When a parent took ill—or your child. When you went through that season when God went silent and His silence shook you to your core! Or, maybe, God has asked you to take your hands off of something—someone or someplace? And, although what you experienced while immersed in it was painful, it was nonetheless familiar—had become dangerously safe. That’s what it may have felt like to be an Israelite wondering around in the desert. Suddenly set free from years of bondage. Their faith being stretched and tested to its breaking point; they cursed Moses and questioned God rather than seeking after Him.

Though their miracle stood literally before them, expectation blinded them for seeing it. And yet, despite their lack of faith and their grumbling, contrary to their blindness and hard-heartedness, God never left them. To the contrary, He was always one step in front of them, leading them ever closer to Himself. Oh, how He longed for them to just trust Him…

And then there’s Moses. A man whose faith allowed him to look out over this same seemingly impossible situation, with great faith. A man familiar with the unconventional. An Israelite raised by Pharaoh’s daughter in Pharaoh’s palace. A man accustomed to the wilderness. Familiar with Gods placing him in the midst of impossible situations. A bush ablaze that is never consumed. Facing a half-brother who resented him as pitilessly. Moses, a murderer returning to the very scene of his crime. This man with a stammer was told by God that he’d become His mouthpiece; a vessel used to help free His people. A man who, in spite of his own fears determined he’d be faithful to God; regardless of what stood before him. Moses was a leader forged over 40 years of being crushed and reshaped during his Midian exile. He was a shepherd. A man who knew first-hand that God never fails.

As both sides stared down that same seemingly impossible situation; Moses believed not only could God deliver them all—more, He surely would. The Israelites on the other hand wavered. Their faith devoured by their fickle feelings. And yet each of these, be they faith-filled or fickle, had a purpose in Gods redemptive plan. Each is our example. As believers, we must choose however whose example we will follow when faced with our own impossible wilderness. Will we hold tight to our faith? Or will we follow after our feelings?

Because here’s the thing—when you belong to God as the Israelites do and He decides some-thing, some situation, relationship, or habit when even the topography of your life must be changed; it’s going to change. It is simply impossible for Gods will to be thwarted. As surely as His Body was broken for you,  He will split a sea wide open to make a way for you. Not only is God Sovereign, He loves you too much to leave you trapped in bondage. Somehow, if you are His, He is certain to bring your deliverance to pass. The unknown of it—to you and me at least, is His timing.

Moses’ hands are lifted beloved. Your sea is about to open before you…

Be expectant my brothers and sisters. God has heard your cry—deliverance is at hand. Allow me to encourage you to remain pliant, stay wide open to whatever—however, God has chosen for you. Trust Him. Period.  Be ready to move wherever God may be leading you in this season of your deliverance. When you pass through deep waters, I will be with you; your troubles will not overwhelm you. When you pass through fire, you will not be burned; the hard trials that come will not hurt you. For I am the Lord your God the holy God of Israel, who saves you. I will give up Egypt to set you free. I will give up Ethiopia[a] and Seba. I will give up whole nations to save your life, because you are precious to me and because I love you and give you honor” –Isaiah 43:2-4.

And friend, if you’ve found yourself here for the first time, or, if you’re a returning friend know this: There is no such thing as a coincidence. God has led you here today because He wants to deliver you—lead you, into all that He has waiting for you. Won’t you follow Him today? Please ask Him into your heart as Lord and Savior this day. No man is promised tomorrow. If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” –Romans 10:9

Your Coming Out! Luke 24: 5-6.

April 28, 2019 /

“As the women bowed their faces to the ground in terror, the two men asked them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen! Remember how He told you while He was still in Galilee…”

We’ve each done it. Those of us with the strongest of faith have failed, on one occasion or another, to take Jesus at His Word. Regretfully, I know I certainly have. We allow our fleshly expectations to overshadow—sometimes, completely shade, our pure spiritual beliefs. And then we wonder why we miss out on what it is God is doing right before our eyes! Is it any wonder then, when we show up with so low an expectation, failing to believe to our core that every promise He has made is sure and True, is absolute; we will, like our sisters and brothers before us, end up expecting to find death rather than the new life Jesus promised us?

I know, I know! They were at His grave and, it is reasonable to expect that what has been buried is, in fact, dead. It’s quite reasonable to our carnal mind that is. Conversely, if we are to truly rise above what we have allowed ourselves to believe truth to be—we must allow for our minds to be transformed, renewed. We should be willing to die to our preconceived, carnal truths and, instead, allow ourselves to be opened to The Truth—to God’s Truth—as He enables. Enables us to move past our feelings, which are ever in flux, and, instead, to fix our minds and hearts on Him. To exchange our every lie for His Truth…

So then, if we who believe know this, that His Word is Truth—why do we continue to doubt? Why do we forget this unfailing Truth? Forget His unwavering character and promises—His power to accomplish within us what He has already accomplished around us—above and below us? Why do we forget He truly is the All-Powerful God? That His Resurrection isn’t a one-day celebration.

At least it shouldn’t be. Easter Sunday may have passed, but Jesus remained on the earth for 40 days after His resurrection. He could have just as easily ascended to the Father in an instant. After-all, His earthy work, His birth, death, and resurrection were finished. Sin has been defeated on His Cross. And death lost its sting the moment breath entered the chest it thought it had stilled.

So why did He stay with us?

I share the belief that our Lord knows our frail weakness. He knows we, being the sheep that we are, would need to see certain on-going proofs before we’ll allow our hearts and minds to hope again. To rise up once more and soar. Jesus knows us better than we know ourselves—just ask Peter. We are like sheep. And, like sheep, we forget far too quickly. We will no sooner turn our face from our Bibles, walk out of a service, more, come away from a life-changing revelation given us by God and, then, in the next instant, get angry, or pick up that cigarette or drink or drug again, or lose patients with our spouse or child—for as long as we walk in this body. Yet even in our sin and shortcomings, our hope lies in the grace of God and the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. Hope that  we are being ever transformed into His likeness. Leaving our dead ways behind us. Demonstrating more of Him and His love, more of what God can do in a heart surrendered to Him—and less of us and our weaknesses.

Jesus knew that Peter would forget—Matthew and Mary and Andrew too. Forget all that He’d told them about how the Son of Man must endure all that the scriptures speak of concerning Him—and that He would rise again on the third day—even though it would appear that death had won…

Jesus loved these women who came to His tomb heads downcast, spices in hand, ready to prepare Him for the time, they believed, He’d spend entombed. He knew that they would come to His grave one way yet leave another! That hope restored would wipe out all traces of their despair. That joy would throw its coat over their mourning shoulders enlivening them once again. He knew weakness would be replaced by a strength not their own. A strength that would carry them all the way to the finish line! Now imagine too, their disbelief. The shock and confusion and excitement and the joy they felt when they found His tomb empty! How do you imagine yourself feeling when you realize that the hopes you thought were dead, the ministry you though had passed you by, the child or husband or wife you’d long given up on—finally happens?

Death and despair has a plan for our lives. An empty tomb put a certain end to that plan…

So let me ask you: In light of what you believe has passed you by, what loss has hit you so hard it’s robbed you of life and time—of hope? Of allowing yourself to believe, as you once did, that your life can be joy-filled, hope-full. What are you mourning the loss of? What has caused you to let go of that vision God gave you? That dream that made you get out of bed every morning ready to engage with the world. What happened to that spark of the Divine deep down in your belly? Might it be possible that God has been preparing you? That all is not lost? Rather, it’s just getting started! Is it possible God has allowed you to experience this tomb, the seeming end of a thing so that you to be an eye-witness to His resurrection power? Your dead hopes and dreams, those promises you held dear, infused now with new life! Resurrected. Remember brothers and sisters, Jesus drew only those that loved Him, followed after Him, yearned for Him, had yielded their hearts to Him—to His empty tomb. Then, He spent the next 40 days demonstrating to these friends—and all those whose hope was lost at His crucifixion that He truly was alive. That He alone has the power to not only forgive our sins, to heal our bodies, to bring us from death to Life in His Son, but now to teach us too, that God has the final Word over death!

That God alone has the power to resurrect our long dead hope and dreams as surely as Jesus was resurrected. You have not lost what God has promised you. God is not a man that He can lie. He said death could not hold Him—and it didn’t. If He has spoken a Word into you, given you a plan for some ministry, a vision to build, a desire to serve and grow and bear fruit for Him—then He will bring it to pass—in His time not yours. His friends thought they’d lost their reason to hope too. Thought all that they had loved and yearned for was sealed—dead, inside a tomb. It took a herald to remind them not to go looking for life among places that serve only dead things. You’ll never see your hopes come to pass if you continue to show up ready to bury them…

My brother, Jesus said He would restore. Said He would provide. Said you’d go and do and plant and water and reap. Be open to see the vision God has given you through today’s eyes. You didn’t get it wrong back then—you just needed to go through 3 more days of preparation…

Dear friend, if you have yet to meet this Jesus who breathes new life into us. The One who resurrects dead hopes and dreams, who uses what others see as useless, then I encourage you today, right now, to ask Him to come into your heart. Ask Him to forgive your sins. To restore within what life has taken out of you. He will. He wants to. He’s just waiting for you…

A Living Hope! 2 Corinthians 1:3-4.

April 21, 2019 /

“Blessed [gratefully praised and adored] be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, who comforts and encourages us in every trouble so that we will be able to comfort and encourage those who are in any kind of trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”

Despondency and hopelessness have been their constant companions—shame too, since their Master was unjustly dragged away in chains; since they’d abandoned Him in fear of losing their own lives. While Jesus stood before a mock jury of viper’s intent on seeing Him dead, as He was ushered off in the wee hours, brought before Pilot, a ruthless man, whose bloody rule was marked by merciless brutality. Then, flogged to near death and rendered unrecognizable, crowned with thorns, and spat upon. Condemned and left standing before those He had been born to save. All the while “crucify Him, crucify Him” rang out in place of the, “Hosanna in the Highest” that had filled His ears mere days before. His Cross let fall on His bloodied shoulder—as heavy as the weight of the sins of the world. Those He carried now, within. He holds His Cross tightly to Himself, as one holds a precious lover, Gods mercy towards us demonstrated in this embrace. Determined to save us, Jesus starts off for Golgotha, and all that awaits Him there…

How can we give what we do not possess? Demonstrate what we do not know ourselves? Is it any wonder than that Paul wants us to know these life-sustaining attributes of The Father who sent His only Son, this same Jesus, to die in our place? That He wants us to fully take in as our own that, not only does He show us mercy—He is the Father of mercies—that means every mercy. That means every type of mercy you and I have ever, or will ever be shown—forever!

Every time we might have died, and didn’t. Every time we should have felt the sting of our poor choices but instead, mercy showed up. When our child came home safely. When the test results came back clean. When our hearts were breaking, and that one word we so needed to hear was spoken. And, more, in our every moment of pain, of suffering, heart-break, and disappointment. In that life-shattering diagnosis, the death of that child, in the heart-break of witnessing a loved one in the throes of addiction—or rebellion; He is the God of all comfort. The One who comes along side us, just as He walked along-side Jesus on His exacting journey towards Golgotha, comforting and encouraging us, too. Whispering to the very marrow of our bones that there is a purpose in our pain. Some marvelous life that will be birthed from this death that is trying to ravage us. And only then, only armed with His strength, His comfort and mercy, with His assurance, can we walk toward what looks like certain death fixed in our faith. Resolute. Knowing  there is a purpose in it all…

Love does not guarantee we will escape trials and pain and losses, in fact, in love, Jesus told us to expect these things for as long as we live in this fallen world. “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” –John 16:33. Our hope, our comfort and strength, our ability to move forward after these things take our very legs out from under us, rob us of our breath, is found in the Truth of Sunday morning. Just as it was for our brothers before us.

Life—new life, will come out of all this pain. We will live. We will love—again!

So, then, imagine their great joy when this same Jesus appears to them alive once more! Imagine for a moment the great comfort, the renewed reassurance they experienced! Peter, and all those that ran when they had pledged to follow Him always; that shame-filled, terror filled day. The death of their every hope and dream restored now! All of the hope that had died in them, in His dying, resurrected now, as He is resurrected! How can this be! Their hope restored once more! Their very lives restored!

This is the heart of our resurrection story: A heart once dead in its sin and shame, pain, brought to life once again by the sacrifice of One who was born to die that they, and you, and I, might live! To forgive our sins. To wash us clean in the very Blood He’d just shed. This blessed hope is what every believer has then been commanded to go, and share with a lost, hurting, and broken world. A world in need of the love, mercy, and compassion of God. In need of being re-minded that hope truly is alive! Now. This day! And, to help with instructing the world around us as to just who this great hope is, Jesus Christ, the One and only God. The Hope of Glory!

This is a message of mercy is the essence of the comfort Paul is speaking to us about. The mercy and comfort that restores life and hope and strength where only moments ago the heavy weight of loss or betrayal or despondency rested, where the weight of our sins had all but done us in. This comfort is the Lightness of His Mercy replacing, with great Love, the heavy garment of our sin and shame. If, we’ll but accept it, wearing it as our own. This is what happens in the human heart—in the very soul of the one who experiences the dawn of Sunday morning—the hope of His Resurrection! Those who experience the mercy and comfort and encouragement that our brother Paul is speaking of. We are comforted by God that we might intimately know His great Love and mercy within; then go and share that same comfort and mercy and encouragement given us, with another. Just as Jesus did, as all those in the faith that have gone before us have. “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the LORD’s hand double for all her sins” –Isaiah 40:1-2.

There is no grave, no stone weighty enough to hold back the love, the mercy, the unfathomable compassion that has burst forth from them both! “God so loved” us, that He sacrificed, poured every ounce of His Mercy and Compassion out for us, in the Person of His only Son so that He might have us in Himself—restored, cleansed, made new. This same God whom Paul informs is the Father of these same mercies, the God of all comfort, who displayed the depth of His love, His heart towards us, in Christ Jesus. Freely His love was lavished upon us, poured out for us, spent on our behalf, freely then, we must lavish, pour out, spend our lives loving others…

This Resurrection morning exists, this hope we have is surely alive solely because of this God who is the Father of mercies, the God of all comfort. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. … For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” John 3:16.

Be encouraged this hour, my brother. Be refreshed! Your strength renewed by the same power that raised Jesus from His grave!

And dear friend, the Father has allowed me to share His message of Love once again. You are loved by God—whether you believe that, or not. In fact, His love for you is so great that if you were the only soul to be found on this planet—Jesus would have died solely for you. The Truth is—He did. Won’t you ask Him into your heart and life now, today? There’s no guarantee we’ll meet again next year…

No-thing. Romans 8:38-39.

April 14, 2019 /

“And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Paul is assuring us that contrary to how we may be feeling—whatever we may be experiencing at any given moment, God loves us. More, there is absolutely nothing that will ever change that…

No amount of self-doubt, no failure or deep short-coming, not even our sin can separate us, cause His love to fail us; if we are His.  He knows that in a moment of doubt the strongest of us can be reduced to feelings of insecurity, of weakness. On this journey of death to self one may feel as though God has abandoned them, turned His face away from them. The reassuring warmth of His nearness suddenly cooled in that moment He asks us to lay a thing down. To choose His way over our own. To trust Him when we think we know better—can do better than He can. To give up what we want in exchange for what He has for us. Some part of ourselves, some habit or choice, some possession that does not reflect who He is to the world around us. Instead, it reeks of the flesh—of self-indulgence, greed, entitlement, or lust. It reeks of us.  At one moment or another in our lives, on our walk, we will each be guilty of this…

And, yet, even in this—even in our deep flawed-ness, in the midst of our most sinful, shameful, selfishness, even here—He does not withdraw His love from His children. He does not remove His loving-kindness from us. Verse 3 of Romans Chapter 8 helps, in part, to explain why. “For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering.” In this one great sacrificial choice, God proved His great love for us by sending Jesus to the Cross in our place. If His love for us is so great that He would not withhold His only Son from us, and it is, is it any wonder than that He would not allow any-thing to ever separate us from Himself? Those He’s chosen in Himself before the foundation of the world? “The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father”—Romans 8:15.

Not even death with its apparent finite-ness can separate us from God…

We see the Truth of this early one Sunday morning. Friday has passed. Jesus has borne the shame and torture of the Cross. His Body, broken and bloodied now lays in its borrowed tomb. The night will pass. The following day with its night too. God uses the passing of time to teach us so many lessons; one of those being things are not always as they appear. Sunday morning comes, and what the world though had happened, what evil had intended to happen, did not prevail. People though they had put an end to Jesus. Instead, God used their sin-fullness for His glory, and our good. To bless us and save us. To give us the greatest of Gifts. The only One whose Blood alone is worthy to atone for our sins…

So then, if Gods giving us His most precious possession—His only Son to die in our place that we might be restored to right relationship with Him, how can we allow ourselves to buy into the lie that any-thing could ever separate us from the One who has chosen us in Himself?  How can we allow any-thing, ourselves include,  to condemn us? More, believe that God will not provide for us? He has, after all, already given us His absolute best, all we will ever need, in Jesus! “What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies” Romans 8:31-33.

Why then do we struggle still? Why are we so reluctant to believe Him? To simply hand Him whatever it is He may be asking us to give or give up?

Sunday morning sealed every Word God has ever spoken. Paul is assuring us that, contrary to how we may be feeling—whatever we may be experiencing at any given moment, God loves us. More, there is absolutely nothing that will ever change that. So beloved, if you are struggling with doubt today, wrestling with His will for your life, troubled about handing over to Him that thing He may be asking you to let go of—fear not! He alone is faithful to exchange your weakness for His strength. And, once armed with that strength He will re-minded you that He’ll not allow anything, no-thing “neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Take heart friends, soon and very soon Sunday morning will dawn in your hearts and the stone of doubt, fear, rebellion, hesitation, will be rolled away eternally!  Then, all that we thought we knew of ourselves, our faith, about our God, will be rightly revealed to us by the Truth of His Presence among us. Soon and very soon my friend!

But in the meantime remember this: Just as Jesus struggled with accepting the Fathers will, however briefly, in the garden, you too will struggle. Nonetheless, once you have struggled a little while, you too must come to the place where you say with an obedient heart—seeking His will above your own, His glory above all else; “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine” –Luke 22:42.

Take heart my brother, the battle is not yours it’s the Lord. Stand firm, even so, do all that must, are called to do, in Him and then stand back and watch your Daddy do what only He can! Watch, as He brings His will about in your heart and life…

Dear friend, don’t miss yet another opportunity to allow this Jesus to draw in your heart. As we prepare ourselves for Easter morning, for His dawning in our lives afresh, won’t you ask Him to come into yours, too? He’s been waiting for three days for you to ask…

 

 

Settle the Matter! Ephesians 1:4-5.

April 7, 2019 /

“For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence. In love. He predestined us for adoption as His sons through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of His will…”

Today, I’m speaking to the one who wrestles with doubting their salvation—then uses the guilt that wrestling produces as a reason to flog yourself. The Truth is you really do know Him in that deepest part of yourself—you know you are truly His. That He came to you and chose you. So why all this questioning? Why the doubts and the fears that follow after them?

The answer beloved is that your focus is out of focus. Your looking to yourself and not to Christ for the Truth of who you are. Is it any wonder then that you’re struggling? “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” Galatians 2:20. As we begin to fully take in just what it is that God has done for us, in Christ Jesus, the weight of that revelation will send us to our knees! We’ll then begin to know true humility on a first named basis. Not only did God specifically choose Christ to fulfill His redemptive plan—He equally chose you as a part of it as well!

First Christ, then you in Him. Humbling, isn’t it? The thought of you and Christ found in the same sentence…

The thought that you are so loved by God. Predestined to be His now, and for all eternity. He doesn’t want you to miss one second of time spent in His presence! The Sovereign God of the universe, Creator of heaven and earth, and all that fill them, has chosen you! And all of this before one single blade of grass had ever broken free of the soil. More specifically—before there ever was soil; or stars, snails, clouds, rain, sun, deer, or Adam. Long before it all—God had chosen you for Himself—in His Son. You were already His as they stood—the Trinity, over the dark void. You are saved in Christ Jesus because God chose you to be! Yet, though chosen, you are nevertheless responsible to guard this precious salvation as one guards his home and his most prized possessions from robbers, with greatest vigilance and care…

Our salvation is from God alone; we cannot boast in our being able to bring it about, somehow offering it to ourselves. Willing it, by hook or by crook, into existence; as a child wills their imaginary friend to come and help fill their empty hours with play. Yet, we must care for it, guarding it. Our being chosen in Christ and our responsibility in His choosing of us that is. These are inseparable.

“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption” –1 Corinthians 1:27-30.

You, my struggling brother, my sister, wresting still with the surety of your salvation, are those foolish, weak, lowly, and despised “things” God chose when, looking at us, no one would ever have believed we’d one day belong to Him. We the broken and filthy, the lowly and guilty, all those who know that we know, had it not been for His election of us; for that merciful reaching-out of His most precious hand across time and eternity—at precisely the right time, salvation would not be ours. Certainly we said yes. But which came first, His calling us, or our answering Him? As for me, I lean into His calling of us. I was too broken—too incapable, to sin-stained to even think about my name and Christ’s in the same sentence. Of His wanting me—never mind choosing me; of His having a plan for my life or of being useful or used by God.

If redemption were our choice (if we could choose to be saved, to somehow ask Jesus to come into our lives, truly—minus His first tugging on our hearts, offering Him the place of honor at the table of our lives, surely) our salvation would have passed us by—busy as we were wallowing in our sins, chasing after them; as blindly and as fully as our prodigal brother did. That goes for you too—son or daughter of the pastor. Raised in the church yet full of resentment and doubt and rebellion—longing to be free from it all. To live your own life. Or you, the one who strived to do it all right. You who genuinely wanted Christ. Who believed what the priest said—what your parents said—you, whose heart never chose to wander off chasing after what others did—or wanted to do. Nonetheless, sin separated you too from ever having a right relationship with God.

And now though, now that it is yours, you must do all that you can, by the grace of God, to safe-guard your heart and mind against everything that will try to steal that Truth out from under you. Leaving you foundation-less. A builder who cannot build. The Truth is this. If you, any of you, have truly been chosen in Christ, by God, then you are saved. Period. How do I know this for certain? Because God Himself said it. And, as He also said, “God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?” –Numbers 23:19.

If you have faith in Jesus Christ beloved it is solely because it was given you by God, our Father. It is a free gift. As is your salvation and the Holy Spirit who indwells you…

We all get momentarily lost, my brother and sisters, when our focus shifts between Christ’s finished work and our ever-changing situations, circumstances, and trials. More specifically, on to how we feel about the Truth of our salvation. How  we view its certainty, its guarantee. But we must fight through those false and shifting feelings using the armor Christ has provided us. As John says: “I write this letter to you who believe in the Son of God. I write so that you will know that you have eternal life now” –1 John 5:13. What John is saying, in other words, is that our sure fidelity to Christ does not guarantee that we will always have so firm a confidence in Christ. John Piper says it this way: “Faith can be real when the feelings of assurance are weak.” Our flesh is weak and will always fails us. Hence, why we must, we must, always trust God. Trust only what He says about us. After all, it is His finished work in Christ Jesus that will forever have the final Word. Now, with that in mind beloved, let us settle this matter of our being saved in Christ—chosen by God—once and for all. God is as faithful to bring the whole Truth of this revelation about, this certainty you possess, as surely as He was true in His choosing of you. Therefore, concerning being settled on this blessed assurance which we possess—have been entrusted with, let no man, no circumstance, trial or test, no battle or temptation, neither any competing voice of the enemy of our soul, nor your own words, negate Gods Truth “Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one–for God himself has given us right standing with himself” –Romans 8:33.

My Brothers and sisters remember that there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. Therefore, I pray your strength today. May God do a quick work of re-minding you of His Truth.

Dear friend, if you’re here today for the first time, or if you’ve returned, feeling somehow drawn back, I pray this Word has spoken to your heart. Know that it is this same God who you’ve just read about that is calling you to Himself. Won’t you please invite Him into your life as both Lord and Savior now?

If you were of the world, it would love you as its own. Instead, the world hates you, because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world –John 15:16.

 

I Want You, but You Must Decide…

March 31, 2019 /

“Teacher,” the man replied, “I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was young.”  Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one thing you haven’t done,” he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

What do we do then when Jesus shows up—the Light of His presence exposing us? Our sins laid bare before us both. Indisputable. Catching us, not Him, unawares…

Reading through the account of “The Rich Young Ruler” I caught a glimpse of my heart. Well, at least I saw one idol that was sitting quite smugly upon it —one that I had allowed to reign where only God alone belongs. Must always remain. Money is its name, this idol of mine. More specifically, the discomfits and sacrifices its lack may cause me. And as of this moment it is only a “may”. Some possible future thing yet to have happened; nothing has changed. Financially speaking that is. Nonetheless, it was in this “just catching a glimpse that something may change moment” that my idol was exposed. In a nano-second I lost the sure footing I’d felt just that one second before. I was suddenly off-balance, falling, unexpectedly tugged, the solid ground beneath me failing me now….

Because isn’t that the point of this young man’s story? The ground beneath him, and I, had been unexpectedly shaken in Jesus’ pointing out of the idols that have clutched our hearts? The death grip of these things that have been allowed to exalt themselves above God? Isn’t that what a loving God comes and does for us; unsteadies our ground, forcing us to reevaluate our footing? Doesn’t He show up, at just the right time, in love, to show us a better way? The way of life, not of stuff. The prosperity preachers seem to pass that over most times. But that’s for a different day…

In that instant we feel as naked before Him as the day we were born. With nowhere to hide He exposes our sin and reveals that—for as long as we continue to live in this body, in this world, we will repeatedly be exposed to experiencing these pebbles of painful revelation found in our proverbial shoes that we might grow. These uncomfortable choices that will force us to stop and remove them least our journey be somehow permanently hindered, or worse. These sins in our camp that must be exposed, dealt with, and, removed. There will always be these moments when we will be made to feel off-balance. These “suddenly” moments when the Light of His Love will shine into the darkness of some tucked away sin, some stronghold or idol that must, for our betterment, must be destroyed. God is far more interested in our characters than in our comfort. Thus, as with the young man in Marks Gospel, we too will be faced with making the choice Jesus has offered Him. It, your idol, or Me?

The choice afforded him, us too, is to follow Jesus. To willingly leave behind our idols, our false sense of security, our creature comforts, perhaps—those “things” we feel we must have in order for our world to run smoothly. In order for us to feel sure-footed, of having everything in order, under control. Not because God does not want us to have things mind you, that’s not it. More to the point, God doesn’t want things to have us. To rule and reign over us—in our hearts, above Him; becoming the god that keeps our world running smoothly and, our things the proof of our accomplishments and abilities. All the while pushing the One True God off of His rightful place—the very center of our lives and hearts. Dismissing Him as being our All-in All. Our more than enough. The One who is so much more than we deserve. The Giver of life. The only true Source of every good thing. The One that valued our lives so dearly He laid down His own to ransom them.

Rather, whether intentionally—as with this rich young ruler, or in continued conscious rebellion, as with most of us ( we are often far too aware of those sins we chose to continue to push back under the table of deniability each time they threaten to pop their heads out from beneath like the a dog lacking discipline groveling.) we must choose, over and over and over again, for as long a we live, just who it is that truly reigns Sovereign in our lives? Us, with our willful wants and needs and have-to-haves, or Jesus?

At the end of the day do we really mean what we say: Thy will be done in my life Lord?

And I do believe, that if we love Jesus, truly, if we’ve surrendered our lives to Him—rather, been chosen by Him, in Him, then yes, we do want His perfect will to be the standard for our lives. Because it is His will, alive and burning and leading and guiding us within that causes this desire to surrender into His loving hands any-thing He might ask of us. Unto our very lives. We hunger for Him to be our True North. The One we follow—come what may; no matter the terrain, contrary to anything that may be required of us to give up—or over to, to be surrendered, knocked down, destroyed, or abandoned altogether.

In closing, our idol never sits alone. Typically, it is always accompanied by its cohort, its devotee, its banker and backer, pride. Pride always wants the best seat. The front row. It will always attempt to set our paltry idols up on a Kings throne. Anemic. It was pride coupled with a false sense of security and identity that caused our rich young friend to turn away from Jesus’ humble offer to follow Him rather than chasing after the short-term pleasures of this world.

False identity that will one day rot and be eaten up by moth and flame—leaving its reward in its wake…

Once again, this day, so many years after He first came and called me to Himself, asked if I would leave it all behind for His name sake; the Light of God’s saving love has shone brightly, yet again, exposing some thing I have allowed to sit, however briefly, upon a Throne reserved for Christ alone. And, though it is my true desire to upend this imposter from Gods rightful place in my heart, I acknowledge that without Him, willing it alone, I have no permanent power to topple them. My willpower is insufficient. Had it been enough, they’d never gained access  into me in the first place. Therefore, I take the greatest comfort that even in this, even though I allowed the imposter in, He has assured me, promised even “Everything is possible with God.” It is defeated in Jesus name! I am thankful that with God and, in His strength, pride and every idol it dares to back will be defeated—because of who He is and what He alone has done…

So then, what do we do then when Jesus shows up—the Light of His presence exposing us? Our sin laid bare before us both, indisputable. Catching us, not Him, unawares? Firstly, we thank Him for such a gift. Then, we must make the only real and lasting choice there is. Trust God. Irrespective of our fears, contrary to whatever may come—we must, we must always and in all of our ways choose God, first.

My brothers and sisters be encouraged today remembering this, our Father only chastens those He loves. And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not take lightly the discipline of the Lord, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you. For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises everyone He receives as a son.” Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?” –Hebrews 12:5-7

Dearest friend, if you are questioning “is there a God who truly loves me” the answer in an unequivocal and eternal, yes! He is the reason you’re here right now, reading this. He wants to help answer the questions of your heart. To demonstrate that though you may be faced with difficult decisions, He fully understands. He met you here today specifically to ask, “won’t you follow me?” So then, won’t you please say yes to Him today? But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Therefore, since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from wrath through Him! For if, when we were enemies of God, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life! –Romans 5:8-10

Examples. Ephesians 2:7.

March 24, 2019 /

“So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.”

The starry heavens are best seen by reflecting telescopes, which, in their field, mirror the brightness above. –MacLaren Commentaries.

Though Paul directs all glory and honor towards Jesus Christ, towards Gods kindness, mercy, and grace being lavished on all those whom He has chosen in Christ as His own; here, in our scripture, in some small way too, he makes known to us how God uses His creations, those He has chosen for Himself, as examples for all who will follow their example of perpetual faithfulness in the face of adversity—and even death. If not for Gods unplumbed love, of His desiring to be in relationship with His creation, His chosen ones, how else might we explain our ability to interact—more, share intimacy with, the Sovereign God of the universe? God’s kindness is all ‘in Christ Jesus’; in Him is the great channel through which His love comes to men, the river of God which is full of water. And that kindness is realised by us when we are ‘in Christ.’ Separated from Him we do not possess it; joined to Him as we may be by true faith in Him, it is ours, and with it all the blessings which it brings into our else empty and thirsting hearts.

Neither Paul, knocked from this world, quite literally into the next, on a dusty Damascus road, nor Peter, called to leave behind nets and boats, family and livelihood, nor Simon, torn between one form of revolution and another, and then Matthew—transformed from a collector of coins and animals and all sorts of goods, to one used instead, to amass souls for the Kingdom. Examples each. Confirmations each of God’s Word. Truly He uses the weak things of this world—the rough, broken, and downtrodden, the outsider and the defeated, the liar and thief, haughty and bigot, the self-righteous and pauper to confound those that see themselves as wise and superior.

Who better to reach the average man than the average man transformed by the power of Jesus Christ?

Yet, not each of His chosen 12 were true prodigals. Even so, all were born sinners. Perhaps you and I cannot relate to a Paul. To an outwardly haughty—self-aggrandizing man full of a pride born from his station and position. Maybe he, his thinking and privilege, is too far removed from us, our way of life, to take in, even scarcely, his thinking or actions.  So full of his own “rightness” he was willing to kill and destroy lives that it may be satisfied. And yet God saw fit to use him mightily. And, his opposite, Peter. A man who reeked of fish and sweat—of resignation perhaps? A simple man—not eloquent, but plain-spoken. Mouthy even. Some might say brash. And Simon the Zealot, though eventually obscure, was a man who had hungered for change. For a better life—a more level playing field for his people. For fairness, safety, and peace; by any means necessary. A man who so wanted fairness and freedom he was willing to die for it. A man who, after encountering his Lord, eventually laid down the plowshares beaten into sword and, instead, used the Sword of the Spirit—the Word of God, with which to fight his battles. And our brother Matthew—a tax collecting thief. Pilfering from his own people. Benefiting from their suffering—and loss. Swindling and conniving that his purse might grow fat while theirs—his fellow Jew, was filled only with dust. Emptied of opportunities—and food, by the Roman demand for unjust taxes, and his greed for more…

Yet Gods unfathomable mercy is demonstrated to us through the example of each of these quite ordinary men…

In this text, when read in context, we witness, in part, Paul shifting gears. We see, through the eyes of his understanding, that the dawn of Christs return may be much further off than what he first believed—what they each first believed. We witness his looking towards the dawning of the future church. Towards us. And, in his viewing of us, recognizing all the more the weight of his own example to the world at large and, specifically for Gods elect. Hence, encouraging us via his informing us of the unending plethora of God’s grace. Paul is detailing his responsibility—our responsibility too, and great privilege as Christians, to demonstrate Gods unplumbed love to the world. This grace of God which fills his epistles—his heart and life, forever changing each. This amazing grace of Gods; so lavished upon him and so obviously over-flowing that the world cannot help but witness how God touches ordinary, sin-filled men, and, as a result, they are forever changed by Him. Not made instantly perfect in the natural mind you, yet, are everlastingly changed, made perfect. in time, by Christ. Used then as examples of His great mercy and love. Of His longing to have restored relationship with His creations. The characters of Christian people are in every age the clearest and most effectual witnesses of the power of the Gospel. Their transformed lives, our lives, a living testament to a loving and merciful God. That we, mere men, be used—chosen to partner with this God whose mercy and grace is as far from our full understanding as the east is from the west…

And, though Paul—and these dear brothers each, are guideposts used still, pointing us towards the God of mercy and grace and patients and unfathomable love, this mantle of demonstrating, of being living examples of the transformative touch of Christ is now ours to wear—if, we know Him as Savior and Lord. If we too have taken off the old man and put on Christ. Our witness is as valid and vital this day as it was the day it issued from Paul’s heart and onto the pages of God’s Word…

In closing, do we daily demonstrate, via our Christian character, that transforming touch of God we’ve been chosen and privileged to have received? That magnificent mercy we hold in our bellies, in these clay vessels, which Paul speaks of. Do we share the privilege of Gods saving grace as we ought—have been commanded to? As a blazing love for him, to serve Him only would drive us to? If not, why not? Should we be stricken suddenly mute—would the world recognize Christ in us at all?

What does your example look like?

Will God use it to touch some future soul looking towards the horizon of faith and wondering…?

Saints, in Christ Jesus Father God has taken us and all future generations into account. He has showered us each in His redemptive love. Washing us clean, He has pardoned, adopted, and fully restored us to Himself. We have been both blessed by Him and chosen in Him to demonstrate a living example of God’s amazing grace, as well the miraculous power of encouragement one receives having witnessed the true conversation of a soul. The restored hope and eternal optimism, the joy God offers a hopeless and exasperated world. “So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation” 2 Corinthians 5:16-19.

Dear friend, if you are with us today for the first time, or, if God has wooed you back once more, perhaps it is to confirm His calling you to Himself? Perhaps He wants you to receive His free gift of this great mercy and grace Paul speaks of? Perhaps He wants to use all that you’ve lived through as an example of hope and encouragement for another? Won’t you say yes to Him today? Won’t you ask Him into your life as King of your heart? He loves you my friend. “But for this very reason I was shown mercy, so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display His perfect patience as an example to those who would believe in Him for eternal life” –1 Timothy 1:16.

 

Intentionality. Philippians 1:28

March 10, 2019 /

“Don’t be intimidated in any way by your enemies. This will be a sign to them that they are going to be destroyed, but that you are going to be saved, even by God himself.”

We see this model of intentionality Paul is laying out before the Philippians best exemplified in Jesus, our Rabbi…

Throughout Scripture, Jesus models this type of laser focus. This model of steadfastness; of being intentional. Where, and to whom, He would be born. His very survival as a child—least we forget the genocide that followed His birth. Every event, each life, that had to have been touched in order that each precise detail of His birth be fulfilled. From who His earthly parents would be, to the town in which He’d be born. Each Shepherd that would be tending his flock in the surrounding fields. Right down to the single place that would be available for Mary to lay down and birth Him. And, then, eventually, onto the choosing of His 12 disciples. Nothing, not one thing modeled by Jesus is without a purpose. Every-thing is intentional. Whether in His healing of the sick, delivering men of their demons, or the fierce protectiveness of His time alone in prayer with the Father. Every Word—each action and reaction, a road-map for us to follow. A guide. His exact purpose for stepping into this world is demonstrated for us through His actions. Let this be our model saints…

Jesus is intentional in saving us. “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

He came to make us His own. To restore us to right relationship with the Father. He came to shed His Blood. To exchange His sinless life for our sin-filled lives. He came to defend and protect us. To provide for us—and to shelter us. The reason He came—endured, demonstrated, suffered, died, and rose again in final defeat of His enemy—and ours, is intentional. And not one demon in hell can do anything to thwart God’s plan—try as they might. And they will try. They must. It’s in their very nature to do so—so fierce is their hatred of God.

Nevertheless we witness Gods fierce intentionality, His final authority over His enemies, and their plans, when Jesus commands His disciples to cross the lake and head for the eastern region of the Gerasa…

He had just finished an afternoon of teaching those that had gathered at the shore to see Him. Now, entering a fishing boat, Jesus instructs His disciples to pull out and head towards the eastern side of the lake. Then He lays down in the stern of the boat and naps on a cushion. Scripture tells us that a storm so fierce these experienced fisherman—these men learned in the moods and tantrums of the sea—freaked! That they scrambled over each other in a panic to wake Jesus. Can’t you just see it! I know I’ve been there once or twice in my walk. “Help us! Don’t you care if we drowned!” –Mark 4:38. Calmly however, Jesus got up and, without rebuking His friends, commands both the strong wind and the tumultuous waves to quite down! To stop acting up—to once again “Be still” that they might safely reach His intended destination—reach the one in need of Him.

God had a plan…

We forget, at least I do, just how fierce Jesus is. How brave and unafraid He is. How He’d walk, unflinchingly, into the enemy’s camp to snatch back those that belong to Him! So unlike most of us; most of the time. I forget just how unbending Jesus is because it’s too easy for me to make Jesus as wavering and human as I can be. A frightened bird set aflutter at the first signs of trouble! I forget at times that I too am fierce and can command the powers that surround me to be still, in His authority. I forget that as it is with Jesus, so too it is with me. The enemy has us both lined up in his sights. At the ready to take us out. In my case, Jesus walked in suddenly and said, “Not today. This little lamb is my own! Look, she’s covered in proof; My Blood. Now back off!”  In Jesus, we see the will of heaven played out in the dialogue that takes place in a garden called Gethsemane. “If it be Your will, take this cup from me…”

“Yet, not my will but Thine be done…” And it was. Thus, Jesus rose in victory over sin and death. And on His Cross, He made that clear for all to see. Yet, just in case anyone missed it, in case there was any shadow of a doubt—early that Sunday morning the ground shook and the rock His enemies’ thought had sealed His fate—sealed Him in no more. Little did they know, it never had. But that’s for another day…

Scripture tells us that no sooner Jesus’ feet hit dry land a man with an unclean Spirit came from the grave yard to meet Him. So filled with demons was he that not even the thickest of shackles could keep him bound to one place. He was possessed by a legion of demons—roughly 5000 various evil spirits had possessed this man—lending their strength and power to his own. He was cut up and bloody from the time he had spent cutting himself with sharp stones. Scripture tells us that this tortured soul did this to himself night and day! Allow me to pause here for just a moment to encourage the one reading this and looking over at the scars on their own arms or legs. On their wrists perhaps? Beloved, know this, God sees you and He loves you just as much as He did this one lost and filled with a legion of demons…

They locked eyes from a distance. Jesus knowing just who and what had possession of this man and, this man knowing just who it was that stood before him. When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me” Mark 5:6-7! Jesus never budged. Never took a step backward. Rather, He stood in what had been the enemy’s camp and commanded the demons to come out of this man. And the demons trembled in the presence of Jesus. Knowing that His power and authority were so much greater than their own they begged Him not to destroy them. Rather they begged to be sent into a herd of pigs that were nearby. And, once in them, the pigs too went mad, and jumped into the lake to their death. The demons begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” He gave them permission, and the impure spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned. —Mark 5:12-13.

There was no great fight. No shouting match. Certainly, there was no fear in Jesus as He stood facing 5000 plus adversaries. You can almost see the steely determination to destroy the defiant darkness in Jesus’ eyes! His feet firmly planted. His jaw set. As determined in that moment as He was the moment, He set His face towards Jerusalem to head toward His cross. He knew who He was and the power He commanded. Let those that have ears hear…

And, in the presence of this possessed man and all the others who had gathered there—Jesus simply walked, intentionally, in His authority. He will not be defeated. Ever! And the demons fled in fear of this Truth…

Let us be refreshed in our Lords victory, and with Paul’s words. Let us remember that Jesus has already won the battle for us—it is not ours to win. Though we will, and do, have battles we must fight, this one, this finally victory, is yet another free gift from our Father. “It is finished”.  Rather, let us do instead what Jesus commanded us to do. To face every enemy with the authority we have in Him—and, let us share our testimony with a lost and dying world. Let us take His Truth—the Light of Gods Word, and shine it boldly—unflinchingly, into this present darkness. In our faithfulness to do what we have been commanded by our Lord, our Love, our Father, Teacher, and Guide, to do, we will be modeling this intentionality first modeled by Jesus and, also, fulfilling the Word Paul spoke to encourage those Philippians gathered around him that day as they too were enduring trying times. Lastly, may we be used to convict, in love, those who recognized they have intentionally rebelled against God. Who is to say that God, in His infinite mercy, will not instruct some brother or sister, some other Paul or Esther or Susan, John or Lisa, to head towards the opposite shore and, in His mercy deliver that one from their legion?

Be reminded, dear brother and sisters, to be purposeful in your prayers. Intentional when God places you in front of the one, He has wooed. You have been afforded the high honor of being the hands and feet, the mouth and eyes and expressions, the touch and first impression of our dear Lord…

Dear friend, if you are here today it is because God has led you here. He is affording you this opportunity to ask Him into your heart and life, now, today. Please don’t dismiss this as coincidence—there is no such thing! God is intentional. You are meant to be here. Won’t you ask Him into your heart today? Simply confess your need for Him alone—the Savior of the world. He loves you so. As has just been said: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion” Hebrews 3:15.

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