Rejoice!

I have to confess that I have an aversion to what might be called “in your face” optimism. I don’t like it when preachers (like me) tell us at a funeral for our beloved that we shouldn’t be sad. I’m sorry, but, “YES, WE SHOULD!” I hate the line that I’ve heard too often that goes something like this…“Are you happy in the Lord? Well, why don’t you notify your face?!” I’d like to notify that person’s face in another way. Or someone comes up to you and asks, “Why so glum?” And as you begin to explain, they reply, “Oops! Sorry, gotta run!” And I hated the class I once was forced to take where we were supposed to exuberantly shout at the very beginning of each class, “BOY, DO I FEEL GREAT?!” And, of course, it didn’t matter if you had a headache or were facing some real problems in your life at the time. These are good cheer hawkers. It’s shallow, glib stuff that doesn’t give us much, if any, help in the face of real life.
Was this the kind of thing that the Apostle Paul was referring to in Philippians 4:4? Not at all! He was writing about something real…something based on a lot more than feelings. When Paul said, “Rejoice in the Lord.” He wasn’t requiring us to smile in spite of our feelings or hardships. He wasn’t urging us to go whistling in the dark until it all “got better.” It wasn’t about pretending…or faking it until we make it. (Such advice galls me still.) Paul was offering God’s people the right perspective on life. The Christian has two sets of realities…what we can see with our eyes and what we can know by faith. Paul was urging his precious brethren to take life on by faith. Paul knew suffering up close and personal. His life in Jesus Christ was certainly not that of a “pet.” As Paul was about to begin his Christian walk, the Lord told Ananias (who was sent to baptize Paul) that He was going to show Paul how many things he would suffer (willingly) for the sake of His Name (Acts 9:16). At the very time that Paul wrote, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” he was imprisoned in Rome for his faith. When Paul and Silas spent time in the Philippian jail years earlier, they were very uncomfortable to say the least. They had been publicly shamed, severely flogged, cast into prison and had their feet fastened in stocks. They were in pain in a filthy dungeon. Their circumstances precluded sunny optimism and silly smiles. HOWEVER, their circumstances did not preclude faith! And even though they were not able to physically smile or feel comfortable, they could and did sing praises to their Lord Christ Who had also suffered for them. This is not mind over matter…this is FAITH over physical circumstances. No matter our condition (though this can be horrendous), no matter the losses we have sustained (though these can be shattering), we can still rejoice in our Lord Who is keeping what we have committed to Him until we are with Him and Who in the meantime will never leave us or forsake us.
My life has been blessed by suffering saints I have had the privilege to know. I see their faces even yet, though they have already made their escape to Jesus. I remember their smiles…not easy smiles, mind you…but smiles nonetheless that registered on their faces and in my heart. They were smiling…as if they knew a secret that made them winners in spite of all their suffering. I’m thinking now…they did know a secret. And they have been proven right now. And I hope I can imitate their faith and be able to rejoice in my Lord, as they did, even through hardships and tears.

The Resurrection And The LIFE

When Jesus came into our world He brought with Him the answer to Job’s ancient question, “If a man die, shall he live again?” (Job 3:14). Jesus demonstrated the answer to be a resounding “YES!” Our resurrected Lord: defeated the Prince of darkness, made a public spectacle of the evil powers, emptied the grave of its age-long threat, took the stinger out of death and removed the power of sin, exchanged the mortal for immortality and the corruptible for incorruption, validated His Messianic claims…all His mighty miracles…and every word He ever spoke, vindicated Himself of every false charge brought against Him…every insult He ever endured…every slander leveled at Him…every rebuff given…every devious plot conceived concerning Him…every judgmental look cast His way…all the spittle…all the lies…all the beating…all the humiliation…all the thorns…all the scourging…all the mocking…the betrayal of one and the denials of eleven…the spikes…the cross…the thirst…the loud cry of God-forsakenness He felt which emanated from His tortured lungs and parched throat…the dying…the spear…the burial, brought life to a dead world, changed despair to living hope, gave restless wanderers a home and not only a purpose for living but “the” most rich and vital purpose for living that has ever been known among humans, made the old new again with a lasting newness, offered grace where there had only been condemnation, made peace where there had only been war, offered companionship where there had only been estrangement, granted freedom where there had only been slavish fear and saving knowledge where ignorance had before prevailed, called and calls together a people for His own to be a living witness to all the world of the difference He makes in the human heart and life, fellowships His people through His living presence in them, shares the Supper that speaks of His death, rising and coming again with those people every Sunday morning, inspires them with a living hope that enables them to run and not grown weary…to walk without fainting…to mount up with wings like eagles and to never give up on the doing of good, the loving of others, the honoring of the Christ and the fighting against all the darkness that lives in the shadowy places of the world and even yet within their own hearts. In the Springtime greening of the earth, Christians behold a glad reminder of their resurrected Lord. We gather every Sunday to celebrate His eternal aliveness after all He endured for us. And we know every day it’s in Him, our living Lord, that we also live and move and have our very being, along with every spiritual blessing Heaven has to offer. Shall a man live again? What do you think?

Without Faith, It’s Impossible…

Lavish efforts to please whatever god was conceived have been undertaken through the ages of the history of mankind. It gives us no pleasure to mark the costly sacrifices associated with the folly of idolatry. Certainly we are not willing to make excuses for the willful ignorance that has always led down the road to idolatry. But in the course of such developments there are always well-meaning people who end up being drawn astray. These adherents give money they don’t have in order to enrich the coffers of the false teachers. In their gross error they have abused their own bodies or sacrificed their lives or the lives of loved ones. And none of this pleases the True God.
There are also those who, having been exposed to Biblical truth, reject it in favor of their own ideas of what religion should consist. God calls this vain worship and it does not please Him.
Then there are those who, having learned the truth, and having every opportunity to continue to study the Bible decide to turn it all into a legalistic system in which one must strictly follow a certain code of deeds and observances in order to earn God’s favor and be able to view themselves as one of “the truly faithful.” But this doesn’t please God either. And the legalist can never know peace because, in the final analysis, he can never really be satisfied that he has done “enough” to earn God’s favor.
Listen, what God is looking for is faith! Jesus (Luke 18:8) asked the haunting question, Nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth? And the Lord indicated that one’s faith need not be gigantic or legendary…only sincere…for even a faith that is small as a mustard seed moves mountains. That’s because it is invested in the God Who made the mountains. It’s not us. It’s not our ability to believe. It’s God with Whom our faith connects us. In Hebrews 11:6 we learn that without faith it’s impossible to please God. This isn’t because God gets something out of our faith; it’s because we get something out of our faith. Without faith we wouldn’t come to God and we wouldn’t have any connection with Him. Without faith it would be impossible to have the abundant life. Without faith it would be impossible to be forgiven of our sins. Without faith there would be no growth. Without faith we’d be in the dark. Without faith we would be drifting without direction…without purpose. We’d be friendless, godless, hopeless, peaceless, helpless, and homeless. If we were without faith we’d be without assurance that there is a God in heaven Who loves us with a committed love. Without faith it would be impossible to see this world as moving toward the fulfillment of God’s eternal plan. Without faith the injustices of the world go unhindered. Without faith, every time we lose a loved one to death, we really do lose them. Our tears would be bitter indeed. Our future would be dismal. Without faith it is impossible to please God. But with faith…in faith…every good thing in and from God is brought into play. The world is vibrant with hope. Believe and you will see!

I Love Jesus

I love Him for every minute that turned into hours that turned into days that turned into years that He resisted the old Satan and every single variety and color of alluring temptation brought against Him, for failing there, He would have failed everywhere. It must have been exhausting for Him to have never, ever, not for a single second, let down His guard or His fight against all evil as well as against all temptation to evil. I live in awe of Him for this and many other reasons. And I know He understands and helps me even though I never came close to succeeding in the Herculean struggle like He did. He taught me not to quit…not ever…not even in the face of failure! I love Him for that!
I love Him for coming here and not living a life of privilege. Rather, He lived as the majority of us have lived on the earth…a life of hard work which sometimes found that there was too much month left for the money. I love Him because out of His poverty, I was made rich in the ways that count most!
I love Him for listening. He listened to God…to His parents…to His immature disciples…to the heart-wrenching requests of desperate people…to every question asked of Him by friend or foe…to the little children who blabbered into His ear as He took them up in His arms to bless them. And I love Him for still listening to me!
I love Him for every weary mile He travelled to be the truth for others. Think of how much time He spent walking from place to place. I love Him for every blister and every callous that formed upon His hands and feet as He worked and walked looking for lost sheep like me. I love Him for every drop of sweat that poured out of Him as He bore the heat of the day without complaining. I love Him for every shiver that shook His body on those nights of His journeying during which He had no place to lay His weary head. I love Him because I know He still goes the extra mile for me regularly. (I want to be better and do better for Him, don’t you?)
I love Him for giving Judas many opportunities to do better…to rise above his evil leanings. I love Him because when Judas insisted on choosing wrong, it didn’t make Jesus glad. I love Him for His patience with all His disciples who so often didn’t understand Who He was and who they were. I love Him for trying to reach even the hardened hypocrites among the Jewish leaders. I love Him for giving even the crowd-pleasing Pilate a chance to know the truth. And I love Him that even during His excruciating death, He sought, watched, listened for one more soul and took a dying thief to Paradise. And I love Him for not giving up on me for all these years when I would have given up on myself long ago.
I love Him because He first loved me…He so loved me…He still loves me…and He will always love me with a purifying and ennobling love. I love Jesus because how else can I respond to the wonder of Him?!

How Did They Do It?

On Sunday mornings, our little church is working on Paul’s letter to the Corinthian church of God (the one called First Corinthians in the New Testament). We are in chapter six…and I found myself wondering how the church in Corinth would market itself to its community. If they took out an add in the Corinthian Column Newspaper what would it say? Would they say, “Come and visit us. Surely you would find one of our small groups to your liking. We have one group that follows Paul…another that follows Peter…one that follows Apollos…and even one that follows Jesus Christ. So come and support your favorite preacher!” Do you think that would get it done? Or maybe they would say, “Welcome to a church that not only accepts sinners but also accepts the kind of sin that even pagans won’t commit!” How would that go over? Perhaps they could print a flyer that would appeal to lawyers…something like this: “Are you an attorney? Come to our church and find plenty of work. Our members are looking for good legal representation as we take one another to court.”
As you read through this letter, you see that the problem-laden church at Corinth, who, Paul said, did not lack any spiritual gift, made it pretty difficult, by their poor behavior, to market themselves in any way to their fellow Corinthians.
Paul puts forward the answer to all their deficiencies Jesus Christ and Him crucified! Corinth would be hard-pressed to put themselves forward. But they were the perfect ones to put forward Jesus Christ and Him crucified. “See!” they could have said, “If Jesus Christ can save us, He can save anyone!” Now, of course, their sincere putting of the crucified Lord forward would have to arise out of sincere hearts that refused to accept the sin in their church. Their vision and their commitment to Jesus Christ and Him crucified would necessitate their swearing themselves to unending conflict with the sins in their own hearts as well as the sins in their church family.
Now…how do you think our churches today should market themselves?

I Hold and Am Held

Frank W. Boreham wrote: “I am the son of a college that has, for its crest, a cross grasped by a hand. The motto beneath it reads: Et teneo et teneor—I hold and am held.”
There are many things we learn in life as we grow that change us forever. There came a day when we learned that even though we were taught to play fair, life is not always fair. On another day we learned right from wrong…I mean we really learned it because we chose wrong and went against our parents and discovered for ourselves things like guilt, shame, sorrow and how, try as you might, you can never take it back. Another such insight came when we figured out that if you’re going to do a thing, you really ought to take the trouble to do it right.
But the most blessed day in any life is the day when one’s life is mastered by the glory of Jesus Christ! Saul met Him on the road to Damascus in a vision. It was a vision he could not disobey…did not want to disobey. It was a vision that changed him completely and forever. After seeing the real Jesus, he could not return to his previous life. He was no longer interested in padding his résumé and pursuing his fast track to success. He was mastered by Jesus Christ. He not only couldn’t go back, he didn’t want to go back. Ever afterward Paul grasped the Cross of Christ and was held by it. “I determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified,” he said (1 Corinthians 2:2). For Paul every issue related to Jesus Christ. Every decision was made in Christ’s interests. Every circumstance was viewed as given or allowed by his Master. Every act was regulated by Jesus…every word weighed by its effect on Him…every thought was taken captive for Jesus. The driving passion of Paul’s life was fired up in him by the real Jesus Christ. He wanted to know Christ. He wished to fill up in his flesh that which was lacking of the sufferings of Christ. He had seen something…found something in Jesus…that, thankfully, would never let him go. The only things worth holding in this life are the things we cannot let go. And these are all God things…Christ things. We hold to Him. But—alas, our grip is not reliable. Never fear! For we are held, as we hold to the old rugged cross of Christ. Let Him hold you. too.

THE LAND OF BEGINNING AGAIN

Louise F. Tarkington authored the poem entitled as above. The first stanza goes like this: “I wish that there were some wonderful place in the Land of Beginning Again, where all our mistakes and all our heartaches and all of our poor selfish grief could be dropped like a shabby old coat at the door and never put on again.” How grateful Christians are that there really is such a place. Think again with me of Lamentations 3:22-23 where we are wonderfully informed that Father God’s love and mercies never fail…in fact, they are new every morning. Did you mess up today? Words of love and praise unspoken…promises broken…duties neglected that might have made such a difference to some lonely, struggling soul. Do not despair, there is a way…a place…a grace…to begin fresh. We’ll be there by morning…because every morning His mercies are brand new. This will be true for every morning of the year 2013 as God may choose to give those mornings to us! So…who’s with me? How about a brand new start!

Christmas…This Year

I love this time of year. I grew up in the fifties in small town America. (Yes…yes…I did see the occasional Tyrannosaurus rex stomping through the woods.) That means I grew up in the era about which they made the movie “A Christmas Story.” I could have been Ralphie, right down to the glasses he wore. And that Red Ryder, carbine action, BB gun with a compass in the stock, was a coveted item. Anyway, I still carry a lot of nostalgia with me from those days. I loved the family time, the exchanging of gifts and the playing together. Growing up I didn’t really think of Christmas as a religious holiday. I was taught that no one really knows the actual date of Jesus’ birth…and, anyway…we were grateful every single day for Jesus’ coming and for all His sacrifices for us, especially His willing death on the Roman cross. That made sense to me and so Christmas came to be more about family time than anything else. And family time, like every other good gift in life, came from our Father God.
I, for one, am glad that our nation has chosen to honor Christ at this time of year by remembering His birth and the purpose of His life on earth. I’m glad that many of us get to spend time with loved ones making more precious memories to sustain us in days ahead. But to be honest, I would have to say that I am both glad and sad about Christmas in America, as I think many are. The commercialization of this time is disappointing…the equating of happiness and gratitude with expensive gifts…and the stress of over-much preparations and hectic schedules can steal the real joy from us. And while I’m glad that folks turn their thoughts toward Him Who brought peace on earth and good will towards all, I am sad that for many of those same folks their religious thirst is too quickly quenched. But that’s all the more reason for Christians to keep living and telling the Greatest Story ever.
This year, in America, things are not the same. The slaughter of the innocents on Friday morning, December 14th, is the reason. The mind-numbing horror of what happened to twenty precious six and seven year-old children, along with the six adults, has changed us all. All is not well in our world. All was not well in the world to which Jesus came either. His birth resulted in a murderous fury in Herod, the so-called Great, who slaughtered all the males, two years old and under, in Bethlehem and its vicinity. “A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel, weeping (again) for her children and refusing to be comforted because they are no more” (Matthew 2:18). This year, at Christmas, we will be weeping too. But we will do more than that. We will focus on how to better protect our children and the children of the whole wide world. We will love them with all our hearts. We will work, along with God, to restrain evil and uphold good, especially for the children.
As another black day goes down on the calendar of the history of our nation, in the faith and hope that evil cannot destroy, we will still say, “Merry Christmas” to one another though it be with tears in our eyes and a trembling in our souls. May we so live that God will continue to bless America!

When Last Seen…

   I like weddings, inaugurations, graduations, New Year’s Days, births and baptisms. What do these all have in common? They speak of beginnings, don’t they? They are filled with hope, excitement, dreams, good intentions, promises and the like. Our spirits are renewed and lifted by such beginnings. The optimism that often accompanies these kind of events fills us with a breath of fresh air. They cause us to think well and responsibly about the future. They invigorate us. They help those of us who made our own pledges years ago to redouble our efforts.

   But as much as I am blessed by a new beginning, I’m finding that I am even more encouraged by a good finish. I love starters, but I stand in admiration of those who finish well.  Starters mean well, but finishers have lived well. Starters intend to live by their vows and pay the costs of any honorable commitment, but finishers have lived by their vows over the long haul and have paid the costs involved, even the  unseen and unexpected and very costly costs. And this not only honors the people for whom they have such committed love, it also honors the God they serve.

   In a beginning, even the most thoughtful among us are unable to fully comprehend the responsibilities attached to the commitment we are making. But in a good finish all those responsibilities have been embraced and carried out, if not without flaw, at least without quitting. I still love the honor that was paid to  mountain climbers who lost their lives in an attempt to climb Mt. Everest years ago. It was said of them that when they were last seen they were climbing higher. To me there is something heroic in a marriage that remains strong after years of facing challenges together…challenges from which the uncommitted run away. I am inspired by the woman who stays at her post of duty in spite of weariness or fear or, even, illness. And I just love the old-timer who with a twinkle in his eye lets you know that even through the struggles of older age, life is worth taking on with a sense of wonder and optimism that won’t let go.  But of all the illustrations of this, the one that inspires me most is the elderly Christian whose love for Jesus is stronger than ever, whose hope shines brighter than before and whose determination to honor Christ is undeterred by the ravages of time. When Moses was last seen, he was climber higher into the very presence and joys of his God. When the Apostle Paul was last seen, as recorded in the last letter we have of his, listen to what he had to say, “For I am already being offered, and the time of my departure is come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give to me at that day; and not to me only, but also to all them that have loved His appearing (2 Timothy 4:6-8).” This confidence is not only for the faithful aged, but for the faithful of all ages. When the repentant, dying thief, who hung on a cross next to Jesus, was last seen, guess what? He was climbing higher, even unto Paradise with his Lord. When faithful Stephen was last seen under a barrage of stones because of his faithful testimony to Christ, he was  climbing higher. This is the kind of climbing we never get too old to do.  What will be our condition when our beloved behold us for the last time on earth? Will we still be headed home?

 

 

 

 

 

I Will Praise You As Long As I live (Psalm 64:4a)

The title above is an assertion from King David when he was in the desert of Judah. For him it was not simply a nice religious thing to say. It did not spring forth from the exuberance of youth for he had already lived long and seen much of the good and bad in life. He had known both great victory as well as terrible failure. It was not spoken in the comfort of his palace with everything his heart could desire in this life at his beck and call. He did not speak it to impress anyone. The occasion of these words of David was neither the well-being of his family nor some new, delightful blessing God had brought into his life.

In fact, when David spoke these words his life was in shambles. He had been forced to flee the royal city because his own son, Absalom,  had seized the throne and intended to take his father’s life. Into the Judean desert he goes, for he had always sought, by faith, to protect the life of the Lord’s anointed king, whether that king was Saul or himself. While there did he reflect on the days of his youth when he served as a shepherd of his father’s sheep? In the midst of all the turmoil did he feel his heart drawn to the great God Who had protected him as he protected those sheep? Did the night sky inspire him again as it had in his youth so that he must compose and sing songs of praise to the Almighty?

One thing is for sure, David’s determination to praise God as long as he had breath, was no glib remark arising from naiveté. It is a heroic stance taken in the midst of broken-heartedness, confusion, fear and trouble. David who once ran to meet and slay Goliath, was now, in his older age, just as quick to turn his heart towards God and offer Him praises no matter what were the circumstances of his life. It is only faith in God that enables David to say, mean and live by these words…I will praise You as long as I live.

Sisters and brothers, it is only faith that will help us live the same truth, in season and out, in our youth and in our old age, with or without life’s comforts or companionship. Let’s just praise the Lord!