Monday, January 25, 2016

Snapshots

Hebrews 12:14-15 NKJV "Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled."


A few years ago, I was preaching a Sunday morning service of a revival emphasis in a church in south central Kentucky. I suggested that mothers-in-law sometimes took emotional photographs of their sons-in-law at poor moments. Sometimes, a daughter will take a photo of her husband’s bad side, and share it with her mother. The mother-in-law will then take this collection of photos of the bad side of her son-in-law and place them in an emotional photo album. Thus, bitterness and resentment are preserved in memorium, and relational defilement is shared between a mother and a daughter, further undermining the foundation of the daughter’s marriage to her husband.


After the service, a lady approached me. She was obviously moved by the truth of the message. She said, "I have to go home and burn some photo albums!"


I knew immediately what she meant. Her daughter’s stories, coupled with her inherent suspicion of the man who had taken her daughter to be his wife, created a sense of mistrust. She found herself gravitating toward the stories that cast the man in a bad light. When God showed His light on the unfairness of bitterness that was stored in her heart, she knew that she must deal with it in prayer. She also knew that her memory bank, the photo album filled with pictures of the man’s bad side, had to be destroyed.


I have learned that I have to qualify snapshots of relationships with colleagues and friends when I relate a story to my wife. If not, I can defile my wife’s thoughts of others with unattractive images of their worst moments. I often tell my wife, "I have just handed you a photo of life with this person; however, remember, life is a motion picture." The static nature of a photo leaves out important details that often change its interpretation.

Sunday, January 24, 2016

I am Your Treasure

Philippians 4:10-20
10 But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at last your care for me has flourished again; though you surely did care, but you lacked opportunity. 11 Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: 12 I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
14 Nevertheless you have done well that you shared in my distress. 15 Now you Philippians know also that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church shared with me concerning giving and receiving but you only. 16 For even in Thessalonica you sent aid once and again for my necessities. 17 Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account. 18 Indeed I have all and abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God. 19 And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. 20 Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Dear Jesus,

Thank You for being generous with me. Thank You for Your generosity in laying aside the glories of heaven to bring salvation to humanity. Thank You for becoming Word made flesh to dwell among us.

In response to Your generosity toward me, I want to be generous with You. My time, my money, my possessions, my family, my strength, and my resources are Yours. I am Your "living sacrifice."

As John Wesley prayed in the Covenant Prayer: "I am no longer my own, but thine.Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt. Put me to doing, put me to suffering.Let me be employed for thee or laid aside for thee,exalted for thee or brought low for thee.Let me be full, let me be empty.Let me have all things, let me have nothing.I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal.And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,thou art mine, and I am thine.So be it.And the covenant which I have made on earth,let it be ratified in heaven. Amen."

In response to all that You have given me, help me to teach others the joy of giving.  Help me to appreciate them as I should.  Paul loved and treasured the Philippians for their generosity to him.  Help me to convey that same sense of love and appreciation to those who stand by me and the work God has called me to do. 

Help me to live with contentment and confidence in Your supply.  When You seem late, I get stressed!  My faith wavers.  My confidence wanes.  I need You! 

I want to live with the attitude of gratitude as the foundation for my faith.

In the name of my All-Sufficient One,
Amen.



Sunday, January 17, 2016

Under Investigation


Luke 14:1-6
Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely. 2 And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy. 3 And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”
4 But they kept silent. And He took him and healed him, and let him go. 5 Then He answered them, saying, “Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?” 6 And they could not answer Him regarding these things.

Dear Jesus,

You lived Your life and ministry under constant scrutiny.  Everybody felt they had the right to have an opinion of You.  The grace and dignity with which You conducted Yourself under that kind of scrutiny is challenging to me.  I don't have that grace, but I know I need it.  Help me to be like You when under investigation.

The Gospels tell of seven incidents when You healed on the Sabbath:  Simon Peter's mother-in-law (Luke 4:38), the man with the withered hand (Luke 6:6), the bent woman (Luke 13:14), the sick man at the Pharisee's Sabbath banquet (Luke 14:1-6), the paralyzed man at the pool of Bethesda (John 5:9), the man born blind (John 9:14), and the demon-possessed man at the Capernaum synagogue (Mark 1:12). 

Who knows how many of these incidents were setups?  Were the needy just plants?  Who knows how many of the genuinely sick people were duped into being present just to entrap You? 

Certainly  You knew!  Yet You healed all comers.

I admire Your love and persistence when You were scrutinized and under investigation by the legal and religious authorities. You were their number one "Person of Interest."  You were the chief suspect.  You were "Enemy number one."  Yet, You never deterred in Your display of holy love.

William Barclay observed:  "There is nothing more trying than to be under constant and critical scrutiny. When that happens to most people they lose their nerve and, even more often, lose their temper. They become irritable; and while there may be greater sins than irritability there is none that causes more pain and heartbreak. But even in things which would have broken most men's spirit, Jesus remained serene. If we live with him, he can make us like himself" (In The Gospel of Luke, 1953, p. 194).

Perhaps someone I know is feeling this scrutiny from a spouse, a workplace, or a church family.  Grant them courage to radiate Your Presence without being irritable or defensive.

Grant me Your character in those moments when I am scrutinized, criticized, and evaluated.  Strengthen my resolve to do Your will.  Protect me from irritability and defensiveness.  Help me to have my heart, mind, and actions stirred by the need around me, regardless of the opposition I may face.  Help me to act in a spirit of perfect love to the needy, whether they come to me for help or to oppose me. 

In the Name of my Lord Jesus who went to the cross to save me,
Amen.

Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Do You Bear Good Fruit?

Luke 13:6-9 NKJV
6 He also spoke this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. 
7 Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?’ 
8 But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. 9 And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.’”

Proverbs 12:12 "The wicked covet the catch of evil men, but the root of the righteous yields fruit."

Matthew 3:10 "And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

Galatians 6:7 "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap."

Dear Jesus,

Your compelling question is "Do you bear good fruit?"  That's really Your bottom line for my life.  

Thank You for the position of favor that You have granted me.  You have shared the light of Your Gospel with me!  You pricked my heart with conviction.  I felt the pangs of Your marvelous gift of guilt in my conscience which led me to confession and repentance of my sins.  Your Holy Spirit witnessed to me that I was adopted as Your brother, a son of Your Father, a child of God. Forgiveness!  New life!  Called to follow You and to become Your disciple.  Thank You.

But what about that "follow" part?  What about that "disciple" part?  What about Your call to "Christ-likeness"?  Do I bear the fruit of righteousness?

Thank You for the opportunities that You have given me.  I have far more spiritual opportunities than most people.  Just as the fig tree was a sort of national symbol for the Jews and granted appropriate favor, it was held accountable by the owner and the gardener to bear fruit.  In the same way, You require me to bear fruit.  The favor of opportunity demands productivity.  

The simple truth is that "uselessness invites disaster" (William Barclay in The Gospel of Matthew, 1953, p. 180).  Do I bear good fruit?

Productivity is a matter of multiplication.  Just as the fig tree had to multiply itself with bearing fruit, You call Your disciples to bear fruit personally and in the lives of others--multiplication.  

C. T. Studd (1860-1931) the English missionary to China, India, and Africa, wrote:
Some want to live
within the sound
of church or chapel bell;
I want to run
a rescue shop
within a yard of hell.
Studd's passion creates multiplication. His life, testimony, and writings are still bearing fruit.

"The fig-tree was drawing strength and sustenance from the soil; and in return was producing nothing. That was precisely its sin. In the last analysis, there are two kinds of people in this world--those who take out more than they put in, and those who put in more than they take out.  In one sense we are all in debt to life. We came into it at the peril of someone else's life; and we would never have survived without the care of those who loved us. We have inherited a Christian civilization and a freedom which we did not create. There is laid on us the duty of handing things on better than we found them" (Barclay, p. 180).

Lord Jesus, I follow You in the journey of discipleship today.  Help me to bear the fruit of multiplication.  

In the Name of Jesus,
Amen.

Monday, January 11, 2016

Privilege Demands Responsibility

Luke 12:35-48
Matthew 25:21

Dear Jesus,

I want You to find me to be Your faithful servant.  I want to hear You say, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

Your Word describes both the faithful and unfaithful.  The optimism of Your grace is such that You can transform my inner character through grace and discipleship to make me into one of Your faithful servants.  If I am to qualify, the criteria are to be faithful and wise in administrative responsibilities, feed the people under my care, and fulfill the responsibilities entrusted to me by the Master.

The tragedy of experience is such that You will identify many as unfaithful.  You describe the unfaithful servant as deceptive, unsubmissive to authority, abusive to people, gluttonous, drunk, and unsuspecting of the time of the master's return.  His punishment is to be beaten and perhaps even executed, depending upon the severity of his failure.

Tucked within Your description of rewards for the faithful and punishments for the unfaithful is a caveat for the ignorant.  The punishment to the servant who was ignorant of the master's performance expectations is to be beaten, however, less severely than the one who clearly knew the responsibilities and flaunted them.

"To whom much is given, from him much will be required."  Privilege demands responsibility.  "Sin is doubly sinful to the man who knew better; failure is doubly blameworthy in the man who had every chance to do well" (William Barclay in The Gospel of Luke, 1953, p. 172).

Your teachings are both haunting and hopeful.  You lay out clear performance expectations of what it means to be a faithful servant.  You describe the rewards.  There is no bait and switch with You. When You detail the characteristics of unfaithfulness--drunkenness, abuse, and failure to forecast Your inevitable return--I see my culture.

I confess that I have had extraordinary privilege.  I am undeserving of Godly parents, a safe atmosphere in which I was reared, religious training, education, and opportunity.  Thank You for the privileges of my life.  But regardless of the privileges one has not experienced, very few of us can honestly declare that we have had no privileges!  Privilege demands  responsibility.

Help me to be faithful to Your great investment in my life.  Help me to model the principles of investing well the resources You have placed at my disposal.  I want to live ready for Your return.  I want You to say, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

In the Name of the soon-returning Master,
Amen.

Sunday, January 10, 2016

Simple-Sized Living

Luke 12:13-30

12:15 MSG “Take care! Protect yourself against the least bit of greed. Life is not defined by what you have, even when you have a lot.”

12:22-23 MSG "Don’t fuss about what’s on the table at mealtimes or if the clothes in your closet are in fashion. There is far more to your inner life than the food you put in your stomach, more to your outer appearance than the clothes you hang on your body."

12:29-32 MSG "What I’m trying to do here is get you to relax, not be so preoccupied with getting so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep yourself in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Don’t be afraid of missing out. You’re my dearest friends! The Father wants to give you the very kingdom itself."

12:33-34 MSG "Be generous. Give to the poor. Get yourselves a bank that can’t go bankrupt, a bank in heaven far from bankrobbers, safe from embezzlers, a bank you can bank on. It’s obvious, isn’t it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being."

Dear Jesus,
Your words exhorting me to keep life simple-sized are resonating in my heart.
  • "Protect yourself against the least bit of greed."
  • "Don't fuss about food and clothes."
  • "Relax! God is taking care of you!"
  • "Give!"
  • "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

A friend was recently in my office.  He had a large sprawling home which he and his wife have just sold.  In turn, they have purchased a much smaller house in an attempt to simple-size their lives.  He is reducing his earthly treasure to tune his heart more clearly toward his heavenly one.

The more I possess, the more I tend to fret about protecting, preserving, and promoting my possessions.  You warned me against that! You understood human nature.  You understand me.

Doug Carter writes that Christians with a positive attitude in ministry are people who "avoid enslavement to things.  They know that a collection of possessions on earth does not produce an abundant life.  They know that gadgets and toys don't lead to peace and joy" (In Big Picture People, 2000, p. 58).

Lord, help me to live a simple-sized life.

You told the parable about the rich fool whose greed and self-centeredness sentenced him to smallness and insignificance in light of eternity.  Someone said: "There is too much ego in his cosmos" (in William Barclay's The Gospel of Luke, 1953, p. 168).

Lord, help me to live a simple-sized and surrendered life.  Greed infects not only the wealthy but also the impoverished.  Is there a greedier person than the impoverished one who possesses a spirit of entitlement?

Your command is to "Bend all your life to obeying God's will and rest content with that" (ibid. p. 169).

I hear Your call.  I bend Your way. Media fills my eyes with daily commercialism and advertising. The message is that my life is inadequate and unfulfilled, and can only be satisfying if I purchase their product!  Expose this shallow sham! May the cacophonous cry of these carnival barkers expose their own bluster, and may my vision be transformed so that the temporal bling loses all luster.  My heart is filled with a longing for You and Your promised treasure of Your Presence and Your eternal kingdom.

In the Name of my Lord Jesus who calls me to simple-sized living on earth, that I may enjoy eternal gain in Your Presence,
Amen.

Thursday, January 7, 2016

Dying to Read It!

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Dear Lord,

Today I find myself pondering the price that was paid to bring us the printed text of Your Word, the Holy Bible.

John Wycliffe, an English priest, was acknowledged as a subversive within Catholicism in the 14th century.  His 1382 English Bible put the holy scriptures into the common language of the people. Wycliffe emphasized the centrality of the Holy Bible to guide believers in walking with God.  For Him, the Bible was more important than church rites and traditions.  Wycliffe opposed wealth and opulence in the priesthood, monasteries, the marriage ban for priests, the absolute authority of the Roman Catholic Church, and the papacy. He had read Your Word, and his eyes had been opened. Having read the Word, he insisted that others read it too.  Thank You, Lord, for John Wycliffe.

William Tyndale provided the first mass printed Bibles for the English-speaking world.  This 16th century reformer's life and witness continues to resonate even in our 21st century world. Faced with a sentence of death if he published an English Bible, Tyndale persisted fearlessly.  His Bibles were confiscated and burned.  Eventually, he was strangled to death and his body was burned at the stake--a martyr for his faith. Seventy-five years after his death, King James commissioned the Authorized Version (1611) of the Bible which drew heavily on Tyndale's translation.  Because of this man's sacrifice of his own life for the sake of Your Word, his influence endures upon us even today.  Thank You, Lord, for William Tyndale.

So, as I sit down to read the Holy Bible yet again, I ponder Your reality as You speak Truth into my life.  I ponder the sacrifice of prosperity, ease, comfort and life itself that has been embraced by countless men and women in a quest to read but one page of holy writ.  I blush with embarrassment over the glut of Bibles in my home.  I grieve the prayerless, Bible-absent lifestyle of much of the church today.  

"We have the privilege of possessing the Bible, and that privilege is  a responsibility for which we shall answer" (William Barclay in The Gospel of Luke, 1953, p. 155).  So, again this day, I read Your Word.  I pray that it will be "a lamp to my feet And a light to my path" (Psalm 119:105).  And I heed Your call to be an ambassador of the Truth of Your Word, even when it costs me greatly to do so.

In the Name of the Word made flesh,
Amen.

HAS CHRIST’S COMING CHANGED ME?

Luke 6:13-16, Ac 4:13

Precious Father, Lord Jesus, Holy Spirit,

The Christmas season has faded from the calendar. The stores have marked all of their holiday items down to 50% and even 70% off the "before" Christmas retail price. The radio station in town that has played Christmas music for two months returned to its secular format on December 26. We are taking down the tree and putting the decorations in storage for another year.

Christmas Day has come and gone. I have thought much of Your coming to earth as God made flesh to live among us. But as I consider the first coming of the Lord, I must ask myself, "So what?" How am I different? How has Your coming changed me?

In order to answer that question I must ask it about others. "What change did Jesus make in the lives of the people who knew Him best?" You certainly turned things upside down for Mary and Joseph! The people of Bethlehem were never the same again. Their adoration and loyalty to You cost many families the lives of their infant sons. Perhaps some of the very shepherds who had adored You upon Your birth, now had empty cradles and shattered lives.  Anna and Simeon could die in peace because they had seen the Lord. The Wise Men were convinced they had met the Son of God, the King of the Jews. Each who encountered You in the Christmas narrative was forever changed.

What about those who knew You best in life and ministry? How did Your coming change them? Church tradition recites many of their deaths. James was the first martyr, thrown off the pinnacle of the temple in Jerusalem. Matthew was martyred in Ethiopia. Mark was dragged through the streets of Alexandria, Egypt until dead. Hanging on a Grecian hillside was Doctor Luke’s end. Peter was crucified upside down in Rome. Bartholomew, Andrew, Thomas, Jude, Matthais, Barnabas, and Paul–all died martyr’s deaths. Only John lived out his full years, dying in his nineties. But it was not for a lack of trying. John’s would be assassin had attempted to fry the preacher alive in a caldron of boiling oil, but John had escaped.

Why were they willing, even eager to die for You? Because Your coming had changed them. They had met Messiah and were compelled to follow You to their own cross of sacrifice. Tertullian said it well, "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church."

So, I come back to my question. I have traded an old calendar for a new. Christmas is a fading memory, and the question is still nagging at my mind. "How has Christ’s coming changed me?"

So, I follow. I follow You. I serve You. I obey You. I refuse to return to status quo.

In the Name of the God who never leaves me the same,

Amen.

Wednesday, January 6, 2016

Don't be so negative!

Luke 11:24-28
24 “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ 25 And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order. 26 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first.”
27 And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!”
28 But He said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”

Dear God,

Your Word is teaching me that I cannot be empty.  

You have revealed areas of my life which You have cleansed.  You have revealed other areas that You are cleansing even now.  But I dare not suppose that cleansing is enough.  Once cleansed, something must rush in and fill the clean and empty space.  William Barclay lays out Your fundamental rule: "You cannot leave a man's soul empty" (In The Gospel of Luke, 1953, p. 152).

My friend Tom taught me the value of practicing the principle of replacement.  Once God cleanses us from some sin or evil, I must be diligent to fill that void.  I must practice the Biblical principle of replacement.  "It is not enough to drive out the evil; the good must come in" (Barclay, p. 152).  So I study and memorize Your word.  I quote it back to myself.  I fill my heart and mind with Your truth. I read good books.  I listen to uplifting music. I am replacing the clutter, the noise, the profane vulgarity, the cruelty, rudeness and un-civility of a broken, sin-cursed and pervasive prevailing culture with truth, love, faith, and hope.

Many people attempt to control their dark drives and sinful desires with rules condemning wrong. We develop elaborate personal rules, entire church disciplines, and Christian conferences devoted to the negative "Thou shalt nots" of religion.  "It is always the peril of religion that it should present itself in a series of negatives.  True, the cleansing is necessary; but after the rooting out of the evil there must come the filling with the good" (Barclay, p. 153).

So much of my life is filled with doing.  It is easy to perform good actions, even working for You, until my soul becomes empty.  Through business and neglect, I can work myself into a place of spiritual dryness devoid of a dynamic awareness of Your Presence. At that point, I expose myself to the spiritual danger of emptiness. It is said that nature abhors a vacuum.  Something must rush in and fill emptiness.

So I hear Your Word reminding me, "Be filled with the Spirit" (Ephesians 5:18).  You remind me that my doing must come from a full heart, filled with Your Holy Spirit by saturating myself in Your Word, in prayer, in Your sanctifying Presence.  So I am here again today.  Longing. Lingering. Loving You.

Fill my emptiness so full with Your fullness, that when life jostles me today, I will splash out perfect love on everyone who bumps me.

Amen.


Tuesday, January 5, 2016

Praying the Lord's Prayer

Luke 11:2-4 The Message

Father,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.”

Matthew 6:9-13 NKJV

Our Father in heaven,  Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.  Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

"Someone has said that the Lord's Prayer has two great uses in our private prayers. If we use it at the beginning of our devotions it awakens all kinds of holy desires which lead us on into the right pathways of prayer. If we use it at the end of our devotions it sums up all we ought to pray for in the presence of God."  (William Barclay in The Gospel of Luke, 1953, p. 147).

Monday, January 4, 2016

I've Just Seen Jesus!

Luke 10:23-24 23 Then He turned to His disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see; 24 for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it.”

Dear Jesus,

I long to see You, to encounter You, to know You.  Through Your Holy Spirit I can.  I do.  But I anticipate that face to face encounter in heaven, when I see You.  Throughout the centuries my longing has been felt by others.  It was especially acute in the centuries spanning the garden to the manger. 

That is what the Advent season is all about.  It is a season in the church calendar to evoke longing within us--a longing for Jesus.  Throughout the Advent season we have just concluded, I seek You in a quest to rediscover the longing of the ages.  As I ponder the brokenness of my world, I find myself longing for your soon return.  In those moments, I begin to rediscover the longing of humanity from the garden to the manger. 

WB Godbey wrote: "Jehovah preached the first gospel sermon to Adam and Eve in the garden, before their expulsion out of paradise, whose salient truth, 'The Seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent’s head,' assured them that a Deliverer should be born in their family, whose mighty arm would defeat Satan and regain paradise for them, which they should enjoy forever. Consequently they retreated out of Eden, their broken hearts cheered with the joyous anticipation of the coming deliverance and restoration. Such was their glowing enthusiasm that Mother Eve actually hailed her own first-born Son as the promised Messiah, exclaiming 'I have brought forth the man- Jehovah.' Now, when we remember that Jehovah is the Old Testament name of Christ, we see how they actually hailed Cain as the Redeemer promised in Eden. How crushing the disappointment when he turned out to be a murderer! 

"Thus the Old Testament saints lived in constant anticipation of the Messianic advent. The trend of things growing worse instead of better, evil predominating and constraining the Divine mercy to bring on the flood, in order to give grace a great victory over sin and perpetuate the hope of the world, then the post-diluvians continued to look for the promised Deliverer down through the patriarchal age. Through all the centuries of Judaism, the Scriptures, both the law and the prophets, unanimously holding up the Incarnate God, in type, symbol, and prophecy, the saints through the intervening centuries, from Moses down to John the Baptist, and especially the prophets, lived in longing anticipation to feast their eyes on the Shiloh of prophecy, and be permitted to behold with mortal vision the Redeemer of Israel, the Christ of God, and the Savior of the world. All these had lived and died in loving and longing anticipation to behold the Lord’s Christ, and ready, like old Simeon, to take the infant Redeemer in their arms and die of joy. 

"How beautifully here Jesus adverts to those thrilling facts characteristic of the saints of the last four thousand years! The same has been true ever since He ascended into glory, having filled and thrilled the hearts of His disciples with the positive assurance of His return. One of the most cheering omens in all the world today, is the wonderfully rapid development of this universal expectancy of our coming King, illustrating the consolatory assurance that He is even now bending from the skies, and whispering to His saints, 'Wash and dress My beloved, for I am coming.'" (WB Godbey on Luke 20:23-24).

So I long for Your return!  I want to see You.  Bill Gaither's song, I've Just Seen Jesus, expressed His disciple's joy upon discovering the reality of the resurrected Christ.

I've just seen Jesus, I tell you He's alive
I've just seen Jesus, our precious Lord alive
And I knew He really saw me too
As if till now I'd never lived
All that I'd done before won't matter anymore
I've just seen Jesus, I've just seen Jesus
I've just seen Jesus
(William Gaither)

The longing of the ages is to see Jesus! To see You face to face!  The same longing of humanity from the garden to the manger, is the same longing from Your ascension to the Father until Your return. Even so, Lord Jesus, come quickly!

In the Name of my Savior and soon-coming King, Jesus,
Amen.

Sunday, January 3, 2016

Not Now!

Luke 9:59-60 Then He said to another, “Follow Me.”
But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”
Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.”

Dear Jesus,

You impress direction on my life and demand decisive action.  

"Follow me!"

Often, I want to procrastinate.  I come up with excuses to delay obedience, but as someone said, "Delayed obedience is disobedience."  

The man had a living father.  The father was well.  Death was by no means immanent, not even close. It might be years, perhaps even decades before the father would die.  Your invitation is recorded as having been given once, with no apparent repetition.  Once extended, the invitation was met with delay and excuse-making.

"Follow me!"

Earlier, You called a man to preach the Kingdom.  He resisted, too. Perhaps he felt inadequate, unprepared.  Perhaps the calling seemed to high, the expectations too great.  Barclay wrote, "No one can ever say that he was induced to follow Jesus under false pretenses.  Jesus paid men the compliment of pitching His demands so high that they cannot be higher" (William Barclay in The Gospel of Luke, 1953, p. 133).

"Follow me!"

Why are You insistent upon immediate action?  Immediate obedience?  

"Follow me!"

Often, Your call to action in my life is in a context of a growing impression or revelation from Your Word.  I sense directive impulses in prayer, a phrase of scripture, a word of encouragement, a nudge. These directives typically snowball to the point that Your "Follow me!" becomes clear.  "... There is a crucial moment; if that moment is missed the thing most likely will never be done at all... Unless we do it on the moment, if we put it off until tomorrow, it will in all likelihood never be done at all. It is Jesus' insistence that we must act at once when our hearts are stirred within us." (ibid, p. 133-134). 

"Follow me!"

So, I follow.  I can trust You if it is You whom I follow.

"Follow me!"

Thank You for calling, leading, and directing my life.  Help me to obey.
Amen.

Saturday, January 2, 2016

A GIFT FOR A KING

“In the early days eastern tradition said that there were twelve of them. But now the tradition that there were three of them is almost universal. The New Testament does not say that there were three, but the idea that there were three of them no doubt arose from the threefold gift which they brought. Later legend made them kings. And still later legend gave them names, Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar. Still later legend assigned to each a personal description, and distinguished the gift which each of them gave to Jesus. Melchior was an old man, grey haired, and with a long beard, and it was he who brought the gift of gold. Caspar was young and beardless, and ruddy in countenance, and it was he who brought the gift of frankincense. Balthasar was swarthy, with the beard newly grown upon him, and it was he who brought the gift of myrrh.” William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, vol. 1, p. 22.

Matthew 2:9-12 9 When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. 11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

My Loving Lord,
I want to give You a suitable gift this Christmas.  The practice of giving gifts to the Christ child began at the manger with the gift of worship.  Shepherds bowed in humble adoration before the infant King.  Perhaps they gave modest gifts of their pastoral lives to Your mother, Your father, and to You: sheep, blankets, clothing, milk, or cheese.

Then came the Magi from the East.  They came bearing elegant gifts for the Christ child: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  These Magi were seekers.  They were seeking truth.  They were seeking You. They were seeking Your revelation.  Apparently, the Magi were a tribal group of Medes within the kingdom of Persia.  They served as advisors, priests, and counselors to the king, studying science, medicine, natural science, astrology, and religion.

Seeing His star rising, the Magi sought the infant king who was born.  Expectation propelled them forward.  The trek from Babylon to Bethlehem ranged anywhere from 500 to 900 miles.  All the while, the Magi followed the star they had seen rising–perhaps Halley’s comet (11 B.C.), a conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter (7 B.C.), or some other astronomical display.

Finding you in the house in Bethlehem, they presented their three-fold gift.  Gold is the premier metal fit for a king.  You are King of kings and Lord of lords!  Frankincense is a gift for a priest to use in temple incense and worship.  You are the priest who bridges the vast gap between God and man.  As incense ascends above, Your intercession ascends to the Father for all of humanity.  You make it possible for me to come to the Father.  Thank You.  Myrrh is a gift to anoint a dead body for burial. The gift of myrrh reminds me that You were born to die.  A cross shadowed Your life from birth. You came to give Your life as an atoning sacrifice, the Lamb of God, for the sins of the whole world.

The common gifts of the shepherds call me to give the ordinary, day to day, part of my life to You. The Magi’s gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh call me to surrender, worship, and sacrifice.  Lord Jesus, make my heart Your royal throne from which You rule my life with love.  I  surrender to Your Kingship--Your Lordship.  I worship You with praise and thanksgiving.  Make my life a pleasing and perpetual aroma of sacrifice to You.  From Your cradle, You call me to a cross.  You call me to lose myself in You, take up my cross, and follow You.  The looming specter of the cross overshadowed Your life, and overshadows mine.  I choose to identify with You in dying to my sin and myself, so that I may be enveloped in Your love and purpose for my life.  Thank You for the privilege of giving You a gift this Christmas season.  Thank You for accepting my simple gift of myself as inspired by gold, frankincense and myrrh.

In the Name of my loving Lord,
Amen.

Friday, January 1, 2016

A Time Line

Matthew 3

In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea,2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
Make His paths straight.’”
4 Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him 6 and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 9 and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”
15 But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.
16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

Dear Jesus,

Thank You for a New Year. Thank You for the privilege of life lived another day. Thank you for a dividing line that marks time--another year.

"... John marked a dividing line in history. Since John's proclamation had been made, Jesus had come; eternity had invaded time; heaven had invaded earth; God had arrived in Jesus; life could never be the same again. We date all time as before Christ and after Christ--B.C. and A.D. Jesus is the dividing line. Therefore, all who come after him and who receive him are of necessity granted a greater blessing than all who went before. The entry of Jesus into the world divided all time into two; and it divided all life in two. 'If any man be in Christ he is a new creation' (2 Corinthians 5:17). He is created all over again." (William Barclay in The Gospel of Luke, 1953, p. 89).

So as one calendar is removed from the wall and another replaces it, I participate in Your incredible creative gift to humanity, time.  You transcend time.  Time does not confine or limit You. You are Supra-time.  Yet You create time for us to enjoy.  You create us with a need for daylight and dark, work and sleep, labor and rest.  You mark those divisions, and call it time.

Then You came to the world You created.  Transcendent Deity crossed the boundaries between timelessness and time, eternity and creation, heaven and earth... The Creator of time voluntarily took upon Himself the limitation of the time-bound. You invaded space in a manger, and nothing has been the same.  

So as dachshunds come down from the wall calendar, and mountains rise, I mark time.  I mark the end of one year and the beginning of another.  I am told that this year is worthy of a number. Not just any number.  This number is a memorial to the time when Ultimate Reality invaded the human experience.  The Holy Spirit conceived in the womb of woman.  God became man.  That changed everything!  Even my calendar.

Thank You.

In the Name of Jesus,
Amen.