Passion

Posted on by September 17, 2014
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2 Corinthians 5:19-21 — To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Yesterday’s thoughts were based on the experiences of the day. Today it’s different. I read chapter five of Second Corinthians this morning and these verses blazed outcast me.
The text is actually a bit complicated isn’t it?
One thing to know about Paul is that he viewed himself, in a way, as Christ’s successor as the builder and communicator of the church — the next in a logical succession, with the expectation that others would follow him and pick up the mantle.
In that context, as we look at this passage we should see an implication that, as Christ was to Paul God’s ambassador, so Paul was to the Corinthians, and all believers are to be to the world — ambassadors.
God made peace with the world through Christ. In a chain of communication, that peace — and the mission to make peace — has been passed to us. It’s the kind of process, I think, that Paul was describing to Timothy when he wrote:
And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. (2 Timothy 2:2)
The word that blazes out at me is “beseech”. What passion is suggested in the idea that God, not willing that any should perish, should beseech us to be reconciled.
That impression of passion is reinforced by the mechanism of reconciliation. God is made human in Christ and pays the price, in His human self, of man’s sin.
The process almost looks like a mirror image in the text — He became sin, we became righteousness. We, however, do not become righteousness on Christ’s behalf. The benefits are entirely one-sided. He took our sin upon Himself, and laid His righteousness on us.
God sent Jesus to die for us, and He willingly came. Sinless in Himself, Jesus took on our sin.
We are called — beseeched — as disciples, not only to receive the blessing in our own behalf but also to take up the challenge to pass it on.
Have you caught the passion?

Frustration

Posted on by September 16, 2014
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Galatians 5:22-25 — But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

It’s been a frustrating day! I’m not going to go into all the details, but see if you recognize any if these:

— People who are supposed to be selling a service who make it really clear that they have no interest in providing the service, or value for money.
— People who have ridiculous expectations, and no gratitude for any efforts made to meet the demands.
— Machines that just don’t work the way they should.

I’ve had all of these to deal with today. None if them have been caused by me, controlled by me, or fixable by me. (Now don’t mistake me — sometimes I get frustrated and it’s all caused, controlled and fixable by me — but today none of it was me!)

John Broger international missionary and evangelist, and president emeritus of the Biblical Counseling Foundation made an excellent point: “Anger and bitterness are two noticeable signs of being focused on self and not trusting God’s sovereignty in your life. When you believe that God causes all things to work together for good to those who belong to Him and love Him, you can respond to trials with joy instead of anger or bitterness.” I think we can safely replace “Anger and bitterness” in the observation with “Frustration”.
When I get frustrated — actually when I get past the frustration — I find that I have to take a good hard look at myself, and then “I” has to give “Me” a good talking to! The question is simple, but sometimes painful: “How am I doing on love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness and temperance?” Actually, looking at the fruits of the Spirit is interesting. Different fruits seem to be more important in different circumstances. When it comes to frustration it seems that peace and longsuffering should come first. The circumstances I am dealing with are not part of some cosmic plot intended to make me (personally) miserable — even if, sometimes, I’m sure God is teaching me patience!
In trying circumstances, peace and longsuffering seem obvious, but what about the other fruits? Well, there is surely being loving and good to the people I encounter. Then there’s handling interactions with those people — gentleness and meekness, for sure.
I’m feeling better now! Counting the rest of my fruit has restored the last fruit in the basket. Joy is back. And that’s the point, isn’t it. The fruits belong together. Look after them, no matter what the circumstances, and you’ll grow an orchard!

Resistance

Posted on by September 14, 2014
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Ezra 4:4-5 –Then the people of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building, And hired counsellors against them, to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.

Would you like to find out what baffling, mean-spirited resistance feels like? Just start obediently to do God’s work.
The people of God, doing God’s work, have always faced resistance. From Noah, to Ezra, to Paul, down to this very day working against the grain has always been difficult.
Now to be honest, the Bible isn’t explicit about the opposition Noah faced. But look what it does say:

And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. (Genesis 6:12-13)

I don’t think it’s much of a leap — and many have made it before me — to say that in a wicked world, when Noah started building the ark, he faced ridicule, abuse, and all kinds of active opposition!
When it comes to Ezra, the opposition is much more evident.
When Ezra and the people with him arrived from Babylon, started to rebuild the temple, first the enemies of Judah and Benjamin tried to infiltrate the project, then they tried to undermine morale. They hired counselors — influential men — to work against them through all the reign of King Cyrus. Finally, when Cyrus was succeeded by Ahasuerus (Xerxes), they go so far as to send a letter containing outright lies in a desperate attempt finally to close the the temple building down.
The opposition to Paul is easy to document too! Much of the Book of Acts documents his travails, and he himself gives an intimidating summary in a letter to the Corinthians:

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; In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. (2 Corinthians 11:24-27)

It’s easy to see the opposition. We should look at the outcomes, though.
Paul, in the face of all opposition,planted the Church across Asia Minor, Greece, and at the heart of the empire in Rome itself. No worldly opposition could defeat his heavenly project.
Noah, despite any opposition, and despite his own flawed character, “ … prepared an ark to the saving of his house … and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” (Hebrews 11:7)
Ezra triumphed. In fact in a wonderfully ironic justice, not only did Ahasuerus command that the temple be finished — but even instructed Ezra’s opponents to pay for it!
That’s the way of it. Take on God’s work and you will face opposition, sometimes where you least expect it, even from those whose support you might fairly expect. But if you persist, you will win through … Even if you don’t always see the results.

Pilgrimage

Posted on by September 13, 2014
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Hebrews11:13-16 — These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.

Pilgrimage is such a powerful idea.
As I have grown older I have increasingly seen my own life as a pilgrimage. I would like to believe that I am traveling towards a day when I will be able to “walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;” (Colossians 1:10). I know that I’m not there yet … Some days I know I’m very far off, but when I look back I know that I have progressed far from where I was.
Pilgrimage, though, is not just that process of personal sanctification. It is also the journey to a sacred place.
Pilgrimage was a thriving business in the Middle Ages. The practice started when Christians traveled to holy sites, especially in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Nazareth. Because the Holy Land was a 3000 mile journey, people started to make a pilgrimage to places associated with Christian Saints and martyrs and holy relics. The pilgrimages was modeled on the regular pilgrimages ordained by God for the Hebrews: “Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord God.” (Exodus 23:17). Of course, for Christians, of course, the destination is not an earthly geographic location … but we are traveling to the ultimate holy destination.
There is another pilgrimage … the one that all the Church is taking together.
Today I read this wonderful thought from Alan Lewis:

Christians are a pilgrim people, on the way toward but still far distant from a Christ-like future whose final arrival is certain, but assured by the faithful promises of God’s own incontestable grace, not by the community’s own efforts at self-preserving progress or innate indestructibility.

When I read that I thought of the Exodus. The people of Israel, led by God, marching from Egypt to the Promised Land — many mistakes and challenges along the way, but getting there in the end. This is the Church, all together, heading from a broken world to the New Jerusalem.
Pilgrimage — personal sanctification, heading towards Jesus, as part of the Church united. Did I say it was a powerful idea?

The Word Of The Lord

Posted on by September 12, 2014
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Ezra 1:1-2 — Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The Lord God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.

This is an extraordinary passage in scripture. It makes two points that are a foundation of hope for every Christian every day.
First, “That that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled” … Seventy years before the first year of Cyrus’s reign, the prophet Jeremiah said:

And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the Lord, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations. (Jeremiah 25:11-12)

Jeremiah spoke the word of The Lord. From prophesy to fulfillment was exactly the period that the prophesy said it would be.
Even in the worst of times, the people of Israel could be certain that the word of God, spoken by His prophets and written in scripture, would be fulfilled exactly as written.
Second, “the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia”. It would be so easy to miss this. The proclamation was issued at the instance of Cyrus king of Persia.?? Cyrus was no Jewish hero, no Jewish King. He was the gentile ruler of one of the greatest empires the world had ever seen. External evidence suggests that Cyrus was, if anything, a polytheist — perhaps with Marduk as “chief God”, but recognizing many others. However that might be, he knew that “The Lord God of heaven … hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.”
The Jewish people could be certain that God’s word would always have its effect, and that God always has an instrument to hand even in the worst of times — even when the instrument is a pagan emperor!
I said that this passage of scripture was a foundation of hope for Christians today. With the gathering storm clouds in the Middle East we certainly need it. But look at what we have said. Even in the worst of times, God’s word will be fulfilled exactly as it has been delivered, and God always has an instrument to execute His will.
No matter how bad things seem, the word of The Lord never fails.

Breaking Points

Posted on by September 11, 2014
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Matthew 27:46, 50 — And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?…Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.

Today marks the anniversary of a historic breaking point. On September 11, 2001, the United States was brutally awakened to the knowledge that foreign terrorists could reach into the very heart of the nation. It was not the first such historic breaking point. On December 7, 1941 there was another such awakening, when Japanese aircraft struck an unsuspecting Pearl Harbor. On August 16, 1945 the world as a whole became aware that massive destruction could sweep whole cities away, and that tit for tat nuclear devastation could bring the end of the world.
Each of these breaking points fractures our understanding of reality. What was true one day – the comfortable assumptions underpinning life – suddenly becomes not true, and a new insecurity becomes part of daily reality.
How are we to react to these fractures of reality? There is a terrible tendency to seek to brush them under the carpet, to “forget”, and to revert to an old reality protected by a comforting amnesia. It is a cruel decision. Today we will remember many of the almost three thousand people killed by the four coordinated terrorist attacks of “9/11”. But there are the individuals too who cannot be remembered individually:

There be of them, that have left a name behind them, that their praises might be reported. And some there be, which have no memorial; who are perished, as though they had never been; and are become as though they had never been born; and their children after them. (Ecclesiasticus 44:8-9)

For Christians, of course, the ultimate fracture of reality happened on that day 2000 years ago, when God died, and the Father excruciatingly turned His eyes away from His Son. It would be so easy to look away from that day and its consequences – to retreat to a comfortable non-sacrificial Christianity. It would be that same cruel decision – to refuse to seek for and know the real Jesus.
Breaking points are terrible. They must demand grief, mourning, sadness and remembrance. At the same time they must elicit a positive response – a response that says “why did this happen, how can we make sure that we learn foundational lessons on which to build a better future”.
As I wrote painfully yesterday, Christians cannot choose hate and fear in the face of historic breaking points. We must remember … and turn to love.

The Arc Of Terror

Posted on by September 10, 2014
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1 Peter 3:13-17 — And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good? But and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled; But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.

There has, naturally, been outrage at the beheading of two Western journalists by ISIS in Iraq. I fear, though, that the news media has a short attention span. Attention has largely shifted from the terrible attacks on Christians in Nigeria, by Boko Haram. The news media give barely a passing nod to attacks on Christians in India by Sangh Parivar, an umbrella Hindu nationalist group, said to be looking to cleanse the minority Christian population in India, much like ISIS is doing in Iraq and Syria.
In a prescient observation in early August, Newt Gingrich said “Now, in an arc of terror from Boko Haram in Nigeria through Hamas in Gaza to ISIS in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, there is a clear wave of vicious religious warfare being waged against civilization by fanatics who openly promise and engage in genocidal killing.”
A recent frightening development is that ISIS is reportedly strengthening its ties with Boko Haram in Nigeria, offering the militants advice on how to build an African caliphate. “Unless swift action is taken, Nigeria could be facing a rapid takeover of a large area of its territory reminiscent of ISIS’s lightning advances in Iraq,” The Nigeria Security Network warned. Christian leaders have said that tens of thousands of Christians and Muslims are fleeing the northern parts of Nigeria where Boko Haram have captured several towns, including Michika earlier this week.
When we take all of these developments into consideration, what should we conclude, and how should we react.
It would be reasonable, I think to conclude that the external threat to Christianity is as fierce as the internal threat. It would not be surprising, in the next few years, to hear an all out declaration of war on the church.
How then, should we react? Peter gives a really interesting answer: “But and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;” We are not to be afraid of the terror that ISIS is seeking to bring. We are to be ready to respond with God’s truth when our faith is attacked. But there’s more.
We are to be joyful. 1 Thessalonians 5:16 says “Rejoice evermore.” It doesn’t say “Rejoice evermore except when Sangh Parivar, Boko Haram and ISIS attack.”
We are to love our enemies. “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;” (Matthew 5:44)
As I was thinking about this, I was reminded of how difficult and contrary the Christian life can be. Knowing that tomorrow I will be in church remembering the attacks of September 11, 2001, it would be comfortable to condemn the forces of Islam. It would seem reasonable to hate, and fear … It would be comfortable, reasonable, and wrong. We need to turn the arc of terror into an arc of love.

Guilty!

Posted on by September 9, 2014
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2 Samuel 3:6-8 — And it came to pass, while there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, that Abner made himself strong for the house of Saul. And Saul had a concubine, whose name was Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah: and Ishbosheth said to Abner, Wherefore hast thou gone in unto my father’s concubine? Then was Abner very wroth for the words of Ishbosheth, and said, Am I a dog’s head, which against Judah do shew kindness this day unto the house of Saul thy father, to his brethren, and to his friends, and have not delivered thee into the hand of David, that thou chargest me to day with a fault concerning this woman?

The house of Saul is in decline. The Star of David is rising. Saul’s fourth son, Ishbosheth (an interesting name — it translates as “man of shame”) was king of Judah. He had his place because Abner, Saul’s strongest general backed him.
In 2 Samuel 3, we read of this surprising development. Ishbosheth accuses Abner of having sex with one of Saul’s concubines. What’s that all about?
A concubine was a wife of lower status than a primary — often she would be a slave. She was her husband’s property by right of conquest or purchase, but she was entitled to legal protection.
The concubines and wives of kings were symbols of their power. They would be the property of his successor. Having sex with the concubine of the ruler was an act of rebellion. Even to float the idea was a political act — which is why Solomon saw Adonijah’s request to have Abishag the Shunamite as an act of rebellion, and so had him killed.
The scripture does not tell us whether Abner was guilty or not, but he reacts explosively. He changes sides from Ishbosheth to David (interestingly, David demands the return of his alienated wife, Michal, before he will accept Abner). With the loss of Abner’s support, the writing is on the wall for Ishbosheth, and not long after, both he and Abner are dead by treachery.
It’s the undercurrents that are so fascinating in this story. Why did Ishbosheth form this suspicion of his key lieutenant? Why did Abner react so violently? I think they shared the same motive — guilt.
Ishbosheth knew he was not meant to be king. The same man who had anointed Saul to be king had anointed David to be his replacement. In claiming to be king, Ishbosheth was defying God’s will.
Abner may or may not have been having illicit relations with one of Saul’s concubines — but it seems clear that he had ambitions. When Ishbosheth called him out, his extreme reaction made his guilt clear.
There’s a simple truth in this story. When we’re guilty events or people’s questions lead us to extreme reactions. So if you find criticism or questioning angering you and suggesting defensive responses, it’s time to check your conscience. The chances are that there’s a hidden sin lurking!

Keep It Clean!

Posted on by September 8, 2014
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Psalm 109:17-19 — As he loved cursing, so let it come unto him: as he delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him. As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, so let it come into his bowels like water, and like oil into his bones. Let it be unto him as the garment which covereth him, and for a girdle wherewith he is girded continually.

I have been struck several times recently by passionate comments by people I love on topics that really matter. They each made great points — and diluted their messages by the language they used.
Kurt Vonnegut was perhaps neither a Christian nor a particularly pleasant man but he was capable of wisdom and in his 1990 novel Hocus Pocus he made the point elegantly when he said “Perhaps the only precept taught me by Grandfather Wills that I have honored all my adult life is that profanity and obscenity entitle people who don’t want unpleasant information to close their eyes and ears to you.”
Profanity doesn’t just dilute the message, however. It offends God. And God is even-handed. “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” (Galatians 6:7-8). The passage from Psalms makes the application — the man who loves to curse will find his curses rebounding on him.
It is remarkable how many times the Bible insists on purity of language — the prophets, the apostles, the gospel writers — Jesus Himself all make it clear. Jesus said “Hear, and understand: Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.” (Matthew 15:10-11)
There is a simple reason for the condemnation of profane language and cursing — to use foul language is to smear filth on God’s creation. Remember what God said about His creation, again and again? “And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.” (Genesis 1:31). It was very good! Not only is foul language demeaning to creation, it denies the truth of the Creator!
Before I became a Christian my language wasn’t always pretty! Since then I have worked on it, and I make so bold as to say the Holy Spirit worked on it more. It is rare now that I use a word I am ashamed of. I don’t find it restricts my ability to get a point across … I’m going to keep asking my friends to “keep it clean”. Will you do the same?

Know Your Enemy

Posted on by September 7, 2014
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Genesis 17:18-20 — And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee! And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.

I do not seek, in any way, to be controversial in these devotional pieces. I was not happy today to find I was burdened by the convergence of recent events in the Middle East and Muslim Bible day,today, and the anniversary on the “9/11” attacks on the USA. The convergence makes me feel a need to write about the mission to Islam.
Formally, Islam had its foundation some six hundred years after the time of Christ, with the birth of Muhammad. In its doctrine it looks back to Adam, Abraham, Abraham’s son Ishmael who was the patriarch of the Islamic tribes, Moses, David and even Jesus — and Muslims believe that the greatest of all the prophets, greater than all of these, is Muhammad.
There are more than a billion followers of Islam in the world today. The best available evidence suggests that at most a few thousand are actively involved in attacking Christian communities (though they have the tacit support of millions).
It’s important to understand that the vast majority of Muslims are not “the enemy”. In fact most Muslims are seeking to live decent peaceful lives focused around the “Five pillars of Islam”:
–Shahadah: declaring there is no god except God, and Muhammad is God’s Messenger,
— Salat: ritual prayer five times a day,
— Zakat: giving 2.5% of one’s savings to the poor and needy,
— Sawm: fasting and self-control during the holy month of Ramadan,
— Hajj: pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a lifetime if one is able.
The majority of Muslims are trying to live good lives … so who is the enemy?
Let me divert for a moment. Ishmael was Abraham’s first son, and he longed for him to “live before God” — that is to be redeemed, to be saved. But what did God promise? He promised that Ishmael would be blessed indeed — fruitful, and the father of twelve nations just like Isaac. But there is a crucial difference — Isaac’s blessing was spiritual …Ishmael’s material.
Herein lies the problem. Just like many Christians — and many believers — Muslims seek to ensure their future by their own efforts in the world. … So who is the enemy?
We share a common enemy. The enemy is the one who seeks to convince us all that salvation lies in our own hands. That’s the point of Muslim Bible Day. We have to share the truth of where salvation lies, and of who it is can defeat the real enemy. If you can, please help.

(I know that for many people this is a difficult, emotional issue – especially in the context of 9/11 and the horrific recent activities of ISIS. You will know that I approached this prayerfully. For more background, here’s a great resource —
Muslim Bible Day Bible Study