May 28

DEUTERONOMY 1
The colored glass filtered in through the stain glassed windows from the morning sunrise. While in college, I frequently came into the sanctuary to pray and seek God’s face. The beauty of the cool morning and colored light was conducive to seeking the glory of the LORD. Occasionally I would sense the presence of the Lord. It would make the hair on the back of my neck stand up, so to speak. I loved to linger there, but there is always a time to go, a time to begin ministering with and to others and a time to invade enemy territory and claim as the Lord’s. I love remembering that powerful presence of the LORD.
Within this chapter there are three main points in Moses’ remembrance of their travel from Egypt to the plains of Moab. The first is the command of the LORD to leave Mt. Sinai. At the mountain they had daily received a miraculous provision of bread and water. They had seen the tremendous manifestations of the glory of the Lord as He consumed everything on the holy mountain. They had seen the fire and smoke. They had heard the mighty thunderings and trumpets. They had heard the majestic voice. They had received the weighty instructions. They had built the tabernacle where the glory of the LORD would abide while in transit. And now, the LORD says, “You have stayed at this mountain long enough.” While the physical accoutrements of Mt. Sinai would lend oneself to desiring to leave, can you imagine having the privilege of experiencing all those manifestations of God’s presence?
“I alone am not able to bear you.” As Moses was recounting the administrative and leadership problems of leading 2 million people, we are reminded of a time when the strain of leadership was more than he could bear. Are there times in your lives when you feel stretched like a rubber band? Do the limits of your abilities feel like they are being squashed by the preponderance of demands weighing upon you? From the testimony of Moses, the LORD provided help for him so that he was able to bear it. His glory includes His provision such that when we are being squashed by our responsibilities or circumstances that He provides a way out.
The final point is the rebellion of the people in their refusal to take the land promised to them. They maligned the glory of the LORD by that refusal! They were essentially saying that the LORD could not or would not keep His promises. Their rebellion resulted in a whole generation dying in the desert. When I have seen His glory, been given grace to bear the tasks He gives me and then refuse to obey, I am walking on very dangerous territory.
His glorious light still floods our lives. There are times when He says, “You’ve stayed at this mountain long enough.” He sends us out to minister with and to other people. He gives us all that we need to bear it. Let us remember His glory when we are tempted to think that He is either unable or unwilling to empower us. His is all we need. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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PSALM 147
My kitchen sink is clogged. It is most annoying. I spent an hour working on it Saturday afternoon. I thought I had it unclogged. A bottle of drain opener and gallons of HOT water and it seemed to be flowing. Sunday afternoon it was clogged again. We tried a bladder controlled high water pressure. It didn’t touch it. I poured boiling water down the drain. It is still clogged. I guess grease is pretty good way of stopping up sink drains. Boiling water normally melts the grease. I am really frustrated. I guess I am going to have to call Rotorooter. I think there is a metaphor in here somewhere.
Like the residue of grease from daily washing of dishes, sometimes the residue of sin builds up in our lives freezing the flow of life-giving water causing the build-up life disabling activity. In our seasonal year, God sends beautiful snow, frost, hail and other curious weather phenomenon. They are beautiful when temporary, but in areas where the seasons do not change (Antarctica etc.), the cold becomes deadly and the environment barren. When sin builds up, we need something to melt it away. He sends forth His word and it melts it all. It makes the water flow washing away the caustic sin of my life. That is what is amazing about Him. He can unclog my life when I am frustrated and unable. He does it through His word. That is His glory. That is why I daily need His word. Lord use you word to melt my heart frozen by the build-up of greasy sin! Unclog my spiritual heart! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

ISAIAH 58

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JOHN 10:22-42
I was in McDonald’s with Liam the other day. A man was also there with his daughter who was about Liam’s age. While they played, the man began to express what was in his mind. As the conversation unfolded he began to talk about his niece who seemed to make one bad choice after another. He talked a lot about how some people’s problems are simply because they make one bad choice after another. I eventually waded in and said, “Have you ever made the choice to trust Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.”
He quickly replied, “Yes, but I am not religious.” Then he went on to explain what he meant by that. As he meandered on in his soliloquy, it became obvious to me, but not to him, that actually he was religious but had never made the choice to trust Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. By being not religious he meant that had a hard time believing the Bible and that Jesus Christ really was who He claimed to be and that He had risen from the dead. My thought is, “How can one trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior if you think He is a mere man and that He is still dead?” I don’t know about you but I wouldn’t trust a dead man to save me. That is the height of spiritual suicide. On the other hand, to be religious is to follow a certain path in the hope of obtaining right standing with God. This man felt that as long as he did what he thought was right that, if there was a God, that God would receive Him. Now that is religion!
Jesus makes some astonishing claims in today’s passage. He says, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” This man did not hear the voice of Jesus. He did not follow him. The glory of Jesus is that He does not leave us as orphans. When we trust Him as Lord and Savior, He gives us His Holy Spirit. Through the Holy Spirit and through the written Word of God, all those who have trusted Him can hear His voice. When we hear His voice, we follow Him. This does not necessarily mean that every step of every day we always follow Him. But rather it means that if we truly are His sheep, over the course of time we can look back and see that He has kept us in some kind of close proximity to Him. As wicked as my heart is, that is truly amazing.
Jesus says, “I and My Father are one.” You cannot get a better claim to Divinity than that. He uses the neuter pronoun for one rather than the masculine pronoun. The classical explanation for this is that Jesus is referring to the essence of the Father and the Son are the same, they are one. His claim is not to be in the person of the Father, otherwise He would have used the masculine pronoun and there would have been no room for the Trinity as we understand it. Had He used the masculine pronoun, Jesus would have been claiming to be the person of the Father. As it is, He is claiming to be God (one in essence) but different in person. This is the glory of Jesus, He is God.
Jesus calls us to believe on Him not only on the basis of His claims but also His works. He says, “Believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.” He is the one who turned water into wine. He demanded purity in worship. He discerned the hearts of men. He called the social pariah to Himself. He healed the Nobleman’s son. He healed the man who was infirm for 38 years. He fed five thousand with five loaves and two fish. He walked on the sea. He forced men to acknowledge their sin in front of the woman caught in adultery. He healed the man born blind. He raised Lazarus from the dead. But His greatest work was done upon the cross and in the resurrection. His resurrection was the sign, the work upon which He calls us to believe in Him. This is the glory of Jesus. He has defeated sin and death. He lives again to evermore intercede for us! Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
P.S. I wish I could say that I was able to introduce the man at McDonald’s to the Lord Jesus. But it was apparent that he was more interested in expressing his own thoughts than gazing upon the glory of Jesus. Let us not be that way.

May 27

NUMBERS 36
My wife is one of 6 daughters plus 2 sons born to her parents. I had/have wonderful in-laws. Unfortunately her parents have passed away. My wife received the appropriate portion of the inheritance of her Father’s estate. The inheritance has made life much more comfortable for us now. While it was a generous amount, we would give it all back just to have them. Nothing would beat the relationship we had with them. More than one hundred and fifty years ago, she might not have received anything from her father’s estate. But laws and understanding of rights change.
“The Bible is so sexist!” I have occasionally heard the accusation, perhaps you have too. Every time I hear it I am forced to ask, “What is your definition of sexist and to what standard are you comparing it?” In my opinion, the Bible has done more to elevate, appreciate and value women than any other book. In the practical distribution of the inheritance of land, it would appear that women were left out. But then if one considered the practical problems of dividing the land among many siblings, it might not be so much sexist as having an identifiable way of fairly distributing land. If one had 12 children, six boys and six girls, who each inherit one twelfth of the land and they each marry, and their spouses each inherit land from their in laws, the new couples will now have two plots of land from different families that will be separated by some distance. It will now be more difficult to manage the land because of the geographic separation. But if the culture had one standard by which the land was passed on to say only the males, then the plots of land would remain larger and more easily managed without buying and selling them. The society as a whole would remain better off. But the problem with making a rule by example is that not everyone fits the example.
Consequently it would appear that the women were getting the wrong end of the deal. Indeed, in the case of the daughters of Zelophehad, it was wrong that they should not receive an inheritance. The case was brought to the LORD. His rule was that they indeed should receive an inheritance, but that the inheritance should stay within the tribe. It would seem that the rule which some could charge as sexist really had more to do with a practical distribution of land from generation to generation in order to retain tribal distinctions, than it had to do with sexism. Certainly it discriminated against females, but that is missing the larger point.
So what does any of this have to do with the glory of the LORD? We receive an inheritance from the Lord. What is it? It is salvation, the forgiveness of sin, a blessing, being named a child of God, a kingdom, a new nature, holiness. The list could go on and on, but it could all be summed up in this—eternal life. What is eternal life? It is to know Him, to enjoy Him forever, beginning now. It passes through family lines. You must be His child to receive it. It is free by virtue of being His child. How about that! The Creator of the Universe desires to bring us into His family! No one is excluded by virtue of sex or ethnicity. He desires that all should come to Him to receive Him, but He insists that we must come. What is better yet is that it is the relationship which we receive, not just the goods. In His economy the goods come with the relationship. And oh, the relationship is so good! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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PSALM 146
Most of the believers in the Lord Jesus Christ (at least the ones I know) were quite dismayed the morning after the election. Obama is antithetical to biblical mores in many areas. He is solidly pro-abortion, even to the extent of legally protecting the laws permitting doctors to kill a child who survives a late term abortion. He supports the enactment of more laws and proclamation promoting the redefinition of marriage and protecting the rights of gender confused people. During his first administration, the national debt has doubled. It appears it will double again soon. Clearly the Scripture states, “The borrower becomes the lender’s slave.” Our grandchildren are being enslaved. He has snubbed his nose at the head of state Benjamin Natanyahu. The word of the Lord clearly states concerning the descendants of Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you.” So, many people, whom I know, were very dismayed by the election returns.
But you know what? We shouldn’t be. Our hope is not in a political leader, as verse 3 says, “Do not put your trust in princes, Nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help.” Ultimately our King is not of this world. Our help is from the Creator of the Universe. He made everything. He is truth. He executes justice and gives food to the hungry. He sets the prisoner free, opens blind eyes, watches over strangers, and relieves the fatherless and widow. Obama will only last 4 more years, but He will one day return, and when He does, it will last forever. Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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ISAIAH 57
What am I to do? I have shown myself wholly falling short of righteousness. The promise of entering into peace upon death is given only to the righteous. To everyone else, He compares them to the idolater who seeks after other gods. He accuses them of being inflamed with gods under every green tree. He compares us to having made love to another god. Yet, if I am honest with myself, He is right. I have sought other gods. I have been spiritually unfaithful. He makes the clear point that for such a person there is no peace, no rest for the wicked.
In the midst of my problem, He makes a provision. He declares, “Peace, peace to him who is far off and to him who is near,” Says the LORD, “And I will heal him.” To which person, who falls short of righteousness, does He make this promise? It is to the contrite and humble.

For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, With him who has a contrite and humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones. For I will not contend forever, Nor will I always be angry.

This is His glory! Though I have repeatedly committed spiritual adultery, when true repentance comes and I humble myself before Him, He forgives; He revives; He restores. He does it through the death, burial and resurrection of His Son, Jesus. How can I not come to Him, when He has so freely forgiven and healed me? Lord Jesus, thank you for Your forgiveness, Your healing, Your restoration. You are so wonderful! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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JOHN 10:1-21
Man, talk about switching gears in the middle of a conversation and using mixed metaphors! One moment Jesus is talking about light and sight, and the next moment He is talking about sheep and shepherds. That is just like the Lord. There is so much about Him that it spins the mind to keep up with Him. Those who step into His light and permit their sin to be burned away, He calls His sheep. He is the doorkeeper into the sheepfold. He is the shepherd. We are His property. He seeks to bring us abundant life. He knows us intimately. He lays down His life for us. He picks His life up again. Now that is power!
Everything that humans desire can be found in Him. We desire wealth. As the shepherd, He owns it all. We desire health. As the shepherd, He knows how to heal us. We desire life. As the Eternal shepherd, He both lays down His life and picks it up again and does the same for us. We desire intimacy with others. As the shepherd, He knows us and gives us the ability to come to know Him. We desire food. As the shepherd, He leads us through the dry land to green pastures. We desire security. As the shepherd, when we stay next to Him He protects us from our enemies. We desire power. As the shepherd, He has the power to raise us from the dead. Our last enemy that He will defeat is death. I cannot think of any greater power than to be able to raise a sinner from the dead--pure and undefiled.
I am fifty-four years old now. I can truly say that He is faithful in providing what I need. He is indeed the Good Shepherd. That is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John

May 26

NUMBERS 35
Life is precious to our Lord. Since it is precious, when a life is taken, it is a very serious thing. Something must happen, but what if it is inadvertent? The Lord makes provision for that. But what about willful shedding of blood?
So you shall not pollute the land where you are; for blood defiles the land, and no atonement can be made for the land, for the blood that is shed on it, except by the blood of him who shed it. 34‘Therefore do not defile the land which you inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell; for I the LORD dwell among the children of Israel
That is scary when we consider the words of Jesus that if we hate our brother, it is equivalent to murder. But He made provision for it. He took our murder upon Himself and His innocent blood was shed in our place. Thus the land no longer cries out concerning our guilt. His blood satisfies the wrath of God. That is indeed amazing. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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PSALM 145
“If a tree falls in the forest, and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?” It is that stupid question which people, who play with definitions, enjoy asking. But it does have some merits to it. Growing up, we would visit my grandfather’s farm located on the Cimarron River at the dead end of a county road about midway between Yale and Cushing, Oklahoma. He only had 58 acres but he also leased some more acreage from the Indian tribe next door to him. I have spent hours scouring his acres and exploring his land. Even though the land is no longer in the family, I still enjoy exploring it from google earth. If a tree fell on his land, would it make a noise? Well, if you define noise as vibration of molecules in the atmosphere or ground, then of course it made a noise. The laws of physics would indicate that the same vibrations would be there whether or not a receptor was there. But, if you define noise as the reception of those vibrations, and no one was there, then of course there was no noise. There was no one there to receive it or observe it. In my exploration of Grandpa’s farm, I found many a broken dead limb and fallen tree lying upon the ground. Did they make a noise when they fell?
As I searched the land, I found all sorts of life forms, vegetation, insects, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds. The variety of life was awesome! The things out of which life sprang were also varied. A good portion of grandpa’s land was good arable soil. About a third of the land was rocky, hilly and covered with blackjack oaks. It led up to the edge of his land, which was a beautiful bluff overlooking the Cimarron River. He had a couple of small ponds kept his cattle watered. A shallow well provided water for his garden, laundry, washing dishes, bathing etc., but for drinking he preferred distilled water brought in from town. Yes, there was much to receive and observe upon the farm. I could spend paragraph upon paragraph describing in much more detail the wonders of things I found on his farm as a grade school kid. If I had never had opportunity to explore, would they have still been there? But, then I would have been oblivious to its existence.
If God exists in eternity, and there is no creation to observe Him, does He still exist? Of course He does, but He would be the only One who would care that He exists. But there is a creation. But what if some of that creation does not have opportunity to explore the wonders of their Creator? Then they would be oblivious to His existence. There are only two ways that we can know His majesty: He can somehow communicate what He is like to us, or we can study what He does and guess what He is like.
Psalm 145:5 I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty, And on Your wondrous works. Two things give us much material upon which we may meditate: 1) the splendor of His majesty and 2) His wondrous works. What is the difference? The splendor of His majesty is what would be true of Him even if we had never experienced any of His wondrous works. His wondrous works are what we experience because of what He is like, revealed in what He has done. Certainly, that is a fine difference, but nonetheless, it is a difference.
What is He like? He has a name that should be blessed and praised forever. His greatness is unsearchable. He is good all the time. He is compassionate, slow to anger and merciful. He is powerful. He is righteous, gracious and near. All of these things would be true of Him whether or not I ever experienced an act of His that would reveal this as true of Him. I can only learn these things of Him as He reveals them in His word.
But what if I have opportunity to experience His works? Ahh! Then I should make it a point to explore, examine and meditate on His works! I can examine what He has done for others and what He has done for me. One of the most important sources of learning is from the previous generation. It is such a privilege to pass on my stories of God’s works to my children! I love to hear stories from other generations about God’s provision for them, especially stories demonstrating His compassion, goodness and mercy. For me to be able to pass on those stories it is important that I learn the art of meditating on His works so that I will know the significance of the acts when they happen. Sometimes when I sit down and begin exploring the acts of the Lord in my life, it becomes a little overwhelming. I see that it is true that when my eyes are on Him, He opens His hand and I am fed. Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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ISAIAH 56
I have known a few couples who have known the pain of infertility. That which they have long desired, they cannot have. They have expressed the frustration of not being able to conceive children. With not all, but not a few, they have found themselves pregnant after giving up and adopting. It is strange how the Lord works that way. What appears to be impossible in the natural suddenly springs forth into life. It is the Lord’s desire to demonstrate Himself as the Lord of the impossible. He desires to bring into His presence, His holy mountain, those who will ask Him to do the impossible in their lives. That is why His house is to be called a house of prayer for all peoples.
On the few occasions which the Lord expresses anger in His earthly life, one of the foremost was when the religious leaders had taken the court of the Gentiles, and instead of leading all nations into prayer, they made the place a place of business. He wants all peoples to come to know Him. He want all peoples to come to Him to trust and ask Him for the impossible. Instead we make coming to Him a business, a ritual, at lifeless thing designed to line our own pockets with what we expect life to be. That is so far short of His glory. He is bursting with life! He desires that we experience it with Him! He desires that we see that He is the source of LIFE! Lord, let me see, taste and experience only the type of life that you can bring. Let it burst forth from my innermost being. Let your glory shine like a brilliant light! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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JOHN 9:24-41
We continue today with this theme of the blind who see spiritually and the physically sighted being blind. There is a famous quote of C.S. Lewis that runs something like this:
Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon; or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about him being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.

In our day and age, there are a lot of people who want to talk about how good Jesus was but will refuse to call Him Lord. Here is one of those Gospel stories where His claim to Deity is extremely obvious. Jesus makes it obvious as to who He is. The blind man is called to question by the council. He asks a question that I believe is half-honest and half-filled with sarcasm, "Do you also want to become His disciples?"
The council replies, "We do not know where this man is from."
The formerly blind man is incredulous. One thing is clear; Jesus is from God. Otherwise, He could do nothing. The council couldn't deal with the simple logic. So, they had the formerly blind man excommunicated. When Jesus heard what they had done, He immediately went and found the man. (There always seems to be that special place in Jesus' heart for those who are persecuted for His sake. As Stephen was being stoned to death, he saw Jesus standing in heaven. Usually visions of the throne room of God describe Jesus sitting on His throne; for Stephen, He stood.) For the blind man, Jesus revealed Himself to him. The Son of God came into the world to make the blind sighted and the sighted blind. The spiritually sighted see their sin in the light of Jesus. They present it to Him and He burns it away with His light, His glory burns it away. The spiritually blind never see their sin. They never present it to Him. Their sin remains. Do you see your sin burn away in the light of His glory? Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John

May 25

NUMBERS 34
One of the books that I have been gradually reading the last few years is Angie Debo’s A History of the Indians of the United States. It is indeed a fascinating book. It is amazing the number of atrocities that we have committed against each other. One thing is consistent in the relationship between those of European descent and Native American descent. It is that the white man has consistently taken away the land of the Native American. Often it was with compensation, albeit usually inadequate and forced. This chapter gives Israel permanent ownership of the land to Israel. Unlike the US government, the Lord does not go back on His treaties. The Lord has promised Israel the land for ever. There is one stipulation though. The right to dwell in the land is linked to obedience. His gifts are never recalled. The right to enjoy them are linked to obedience. Isn’t He something? Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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PSALM 144
Why does evil exist? That is a good question for which the Scripture has only one clear answer, “It is allowed to reveal His glory.” But how does allowing evil to exist show His glory? I mean, wouldn’t it be better if He just never allowed it to exist? That way, when anyone thought about evil and asked, “Why doesn’t evil exist?” the answer would clearly be, “Oh evil does not exist because we have such a glorious God. He would never allow such a thing.” Hmmm. . . But if everything but God is finite (Is evil finite? Can evil exist outside of time and space?), then how would we even begin to think in terms of something which we had not experienced? My mind becomes severely twisted when I start trying to think these things through. Physicists talk about the fabric of space. I don’t quite get that. I think of space as nothing. How can nothing have fabric? I guess space is something, but if nothing is something then it is not nothing so it can’t be something. If evil did not exist, how could finite beings think of it? I think I am going into an existential spiral and getting intellectual motion sickness. Before Adam and Eve partook of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, I do not think that they really understood what evil was. They only knew that God said, “Don’t go there.” Eve took the fruit because she did not understand what it was. When Adam saw her with the fruit, he immediately ‘knew’ what evil was because he saw her doing it. He knowingly chose to take the fruit from her because he desired her more than God. In an instant evil became experienced and entrenched. It was no longer a question of, “What is it?” but, “What do we do about it?”
Enter death. Apparently death is the infinite God’s only solution for evil. How would He apply the solution? I don’t think I can adequately explain why evil exists, but even my opponents in explaining the answer would agree with me in this, “Evil exists.” No one can deny that evil exists! To deny that is to deny existence! To deny that is to deny all reason!
So if this infinite God hates evil, then does He not hate evil infinitely? If He hates it infinitely, then He will always be about eradicating it. If He is about eradicating it, and He is infinite, then surely He is able to eradicate it instantly. Then why does/did He not do it instantly? When God first warned Adam and Eve, He said, “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” I am told by the Hebrew experts that the language could be literally translated, “Dying you shall die.” It became a process, not instantaneous. Certainly that matches with reality. Why did He choose a process for the finite world? I am beginning to sound like a child, “Why? Why? Why?” I am not sure that I can give adequate answers for the discerning mind, but this I know, “The eradication of evil is a process. It does not happen instantly.” This matches Scripture and reality.
This infinite God, who has permitted evil, who is bent on eradicating it, who has chosen to use a process rather than doing it instantly, this God has also chosen to have us participate with Him in its eradication. Therefore, He trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle. He has chosen to have us partner with Him in the eradication of evil. Now it is obvious from Scripture that this is going to mean different application for different people at different times, but the metaphor of the training for battle remains constant through time. It is in the training for battle and war that we learn His hatred of evil. But it is also in the training and war that we learn His lovingkindness and protection. Apart from the contrast of war and loving kindness we would never experience the depths of either.
Wiki Answers says the average life expectancy of the “D-day” soldier was 1-2 seconds. I cannot begin to get my mind around such carnage. That is evil. But those who survived should have a greater appreciation for experiencing lovingkindness and protection. The life of the average soldier on that day was literally like the passing of a shadow. But what is the length of my life in comparison to Eternity? It is like the passing of a shadow. I am 57 years old. In some respects I still feel like I am only beginning life. The average life expectancy of a male in the world is 64.52 years, in the USA it is 75.6 years. I have 7 to 18 years left according to the averages, just a shadow. In my 57 years I have enjoyed much of His lovingkindness and protection. I have experienced a little of the ravages of His war on evil, but mostly His lovingkindness and protection. I am experiencing the blessings of His lovingkindness and protection. I am privileged to see my sons and daughter to grow up and produce fruit and become ‘pillars’ in society! But there is yet much evil to be eradicated, and I have only a shadow left!
O God of glory will you come down out of heaven in Your awesome glory and eradicate evil! Continue to use my hands and fingers in the battle for the eradication of evil! Do it in a way that brings You the most possible glory! Keep me from falsehood! Give me new songs to sing to you! Glorify Yourself in delivering Your servant from evil! Lord, I have family, friends and neighbors whose lives are entrenched in evil. Use my hands and fingers to set them free from the bonds of evil! In so doing, glorify Yourself! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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ISAIAH 55
Yesterday a friend of ours threw a party for everyone they knew. They had just moved into a new house situated on a beautiful 15 acres outside of town. The land and house was simply gorgeous. The food was outstanding. It tasted wonderful, and there was more than enough for everyone. I could not have gone to any restaurant and found better tasting food. Of course the food and drink was free. The party spoke well of their generosity to all of their friends.
The Lord does something similar. He bids us come to Him to buy wine, milk and bread. He even castigates us for spending money on that which does not satisfy. Of course the cost for the Lord’s food is not money, it is just to simply come to Him. Of course He is not talking about physical food but about that which truly will satisfy our souls. He reprimands us for seeking the satisfaction of our souls in anything but Him. We were created to know Him. We were created to enjoy Him forever. As Augustine said, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” Lord, incline me to quit wasting my life on what will never satisfy. May seek only after You! For only You satisfy. Your satisfaction is part of Your glory! Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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John 9:1-23
"If you do not believe this story, ask the blind man, he saw it all." There are many folk poems of which we cannot completely trace their origin, and they have many versions. You probably recognize the line I opened with from such a poem. Throughout literature and even in the Bible, the figure of the blind man often stands for one who sees spiritually while the physically sighted are ones who are blind spiritually. It is a similar case in this true story of Jesus healing the blind man.
The man was blind from birth. He had never seen the face of his mother or father. He had never seen colors. He had no clue concerning the color of the dirt throughout the streets of Jerusalem. He had no clue of the beautiful buildings of the temple of Jerusalem. He had no idea of the beauty of the Mount of Olives when it was green from recent rains. His was a life of learning how to navigate through the streets by paces, sounds and scents. After having been healed by Jesus by this unusual healing technique, do you suppose he recognized his parents before they spoke? I wonder, what was that first meeting like. Suppose he walked in the house, looked straight at his mother and said, "Look mom! No cane!" Can you imagine the thrill that his parents experienced? They had the double whammy of their son's disability and the cultural mindset that his disability was their punishment for some sin, which they had committed. Now both were gone. Jesus had healed them.
The man was spiritually sighted enough to know that Jesus was from God; therefore, he would take his stand with Jesus. His parents were dumbfounded. For years they had to deal with gossip concerning what sin they had possibly committed in order for their son to have received this punishment. Now, that social stigma was no longer visible. They were not willing to go on the line risking being put out of the synagogue for something in which they had no part. They simply referred people back to their son. After all he was of legal age. Jesus had lit the world of this one man who was born blind. And his parents were cautiously entering the light.
Jesus always lights our world, if we will enter it. That is the glory of His nature. Now, that light doesn't always reveal what we expect. Do you suppose the blind man was surprised at what he saw or how his parents reacted? I tend to think that he was amazed by some of it, and some of it he already knew instinctively. But afterward he saw reality. It was no longer an imagined thing. When we enter the light of Jesus, some of what we see is truly amazing. Some of it we already knew instinctively. When we step into the light of Jesus, we see the ugliness of our sin. We already knew instinctively its ugliness. What amazes us are two things 1) how horribly ugly it is and 2) how beautiful and amazing His grace is. We are amazed that He would bear such ugliness upon the cross in our place. We are stamped with the amazement of His love for us. It is like His light burns away the sin replacing it with the beauty of His love. The result from Him is a desire to be pure in all things. That is why Paul tells us to examine ourselves lest we be reprobate. If there is no desire to be pure as He is pure, I have news for you; you are not standing in the light. Come on in! Bask in it! It’s great! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor

May 24

NUMBERS 33
Every once-in-a-while it is good to stop and remember where you came from and to where God has brought you. In 2006 God told me to return to the land of my fathers. The journey of being able to accomplish that was at times tense and full of questions. On the road to returning, I have seen His enabling presence at many crises in my life. My son deployed to Iraq for 15 months. My father-in-law passed away. My house burned down. My second son and his wife conceived our first grandchild. She was born premature and passed away a few days after being born. I had the opportunity to complete a missions trip to Senegal and then a family vacation in Germany. I finally accomplished returning in 2008. Since returning to the land of my fathers, God has provided three different jobs. I’ve had the wonderful privilege of meeting and ministering to and with a bunch of new people and renew old relationships. I have had four more grand children born. My father passed away. I’m being audited by the IRS (Its strange; the audit was initiated after I wrote a rather terse but respectful e-mail to Mr. Obama explaining what I thought about him requiring companies to violate their conscience by providing health plans that make provision for abortion.) In each and every situation, God has demonstrated His presence. He has communicated His great love by being with me at every step of the path. It is good to stop and reminisce. I’ve seen His glory there.
Beginning with the mighty judgments and Passover in Egypt, Moses recites for the new generation each of the places in which they camped along the way. The names elicit memories of what happened each of the places named. We have seen some of the details of those happenings as we have read Exodus through Numbers. We have seen His mighty presence, sometimes for Israel’s good, sometimes in judgment, but always for their good and His glory. Sometimes it’s good to stop and remember. If you look carefully, you will see a thread of His mercy and grace being weaved into your life even in the midst of your rebellion. That is what I have seen both in the Scripture and in my life. Will you stop and look for that thread? It is there. It is there for His glory! Let’s glorify Him! Indeed, we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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PSALM 143
I am sure that by now most everyone who reads this has heard the news of Tom White’s (leader of Voice of the Martyrs) death. Tom had been accused of inappropriately touching a young girl. Whether or not he was guilty, Tom apparently could not live with what was about to happen, so he took his own life. Hmmm. . . what does this tell me about the glory of the Lord and our own lives?
Apart from the Lord, I am faithless (v1), unrighteous (v1), powerless (v5) and unmerciful (v11). David makes it very clear that this is true of himself, and sadly I see myself there too (and you). Yet the Lord is the opposite of each of these negative attributes. David makes it abundantly clear in this Psalm that he is distressed over his lack of power to deliver himself from these sins. Any student of David’s life is aware of the coarse cruelty and sexual promiscuity of which David was capable. We are acutely aware of David’s unfaithfulness, unrighteousness, at times powerlessness to do the right thing and at times unmercifulness. Yet the Lord at one time called him, “A man after His own heart.” (1 Samuel 13:14)
Why would the Lord call this flawed man this? Because this flawed man recognized his flaws. Whenever the flaws flared up, he pressed back into the Lord to remember His glory, to receive of Him the life change he needed. What does David see as he presses in? He sees faithfulness in the Lord in contrast to his own unfaithfulness. If any of us had been God, when David exhibited his unfaithfulness, we would have left David hanging by his own rope. Yet God remained faithful. Because of His faithfulness, David returned to the Lord. David sees righteousness in God. If any of us had been God, when David exhibited his unrighteousness, we would have instantly judged him and given him what he deserved, death. Because David sees righteousness in God, he returns to him. David muses on the works of God’s hands. One cannot do that and not be overwhelmed by the vast power of the living God! David would see his own powerlessness in his own sin. So he would return to the living God to beg His power to walk as he ought. David rejoices in the lovingkindness and mercy that he finds at the throne of God. Consequently, he returns to receive, to drink long from that well! His own failure teaches him how dried up and thirsty he is. Only at that well can we be restored! It is the well of His Holy Spirit. That is why he is called a man after God’s own heart.
There is hope for me and you if we press into drinking of the glory of the Lord. Only by drinking of the faithfulness, righteousness, power, lovingkindness and mercy of the Lord can we be restored. That is His glory! That is His desire! I don’t know why Tom White took his own life, but I suspect that it was somewhat related to not being able to drink of the well of the glory of Christ. Somehow Tom’s own glory gained preeminence over the Glory of Christ. All the more reason for me to press in to the heart of the Lord to see His Glory, for I am sure that Tom White was a better man than I! After all, it is all about the glory of Christ, not mine or Tom’s. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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ISAIAH 54
I’ve heard it said and/or prayed over me many times, “No weapon formed against you shall prosper.” It is a nice sentiment, but is the promise one which I can claim individually? If as those who say, “All the promises in the Book are mine,” is true, then certainly I can claim it. But this promise’s primary meaning is actually given to the nation of Israel as God redeems her out of the nations and makes waste places to blossom through the work of His Servant. Is it true for me? Well the context of the promise would say no. However, in a spiritual sense the answer is, “Yes.” As we know, the New Testament writers, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, saw Isaiah 53 as the work of the Messiah, Jesus, upon the cross to purchase our redemption. By extension then, anything needed for our redemption, which the cross purchased, is a promise to us for the complete fulfillment of our redemption. It is a similar promise that Jesus gave when He promised that if we have faith the size of a mustard seed then we may say to this mountain, “Be cast into the sea,” it shall be done. No weapon formed against us for the fulfillment of our redemption will prosper. He did the work necessary described in 52:13-53:12 to purchase and fulfill our redemption. Therefore nothing can prosper against its work accept our refusal to believe Him.
For that reason(chapter 53), in 54 he can command us, “Sing O barren one!” For out of the redemption which He provides He will bless and multiply us in our redemption. He will remove the wickedness of my life and wash it away as He washed away the wickedness of Noah’s generation with the great flood. For that reason (53), He is pleased with us. For that reason (53), He is at peace with us. For that reason (53),His kindness will not depart from us. For that reason (53), He has mercy upon us. For that reason (53), He comforts us. For that reason (53), the terror of possibly losing our redemption will not come upon us. No weapon, which is designed to prevent the application of work of the Servant described in chapter 53 can ever prosper against us. I have an eternal redemption which is promised to me, and it will be accomplished for His glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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JOHN 8:31-59
Bet ya can't eat just one. If there ever was a good example of sin's power over us, it was that old Lays Potato Chips commercial. Ever had a craving for something that you just could not resist? Of course you have had such a craving. Everyone has them. Has it ever been related to doing something wrong or sinful? Of course you have. Everyone has. The glorious thing about Jesus is that He came to set us free from those cravings. The very first time that you gave in to that sinful craving it was like someone slapped hand cuffs on your wrists and a ball and chain on your ankle. Got ya! Now you can't get loose. Oh you don't give in every time the craving comes, but over time it reels you in. After a while you cease even struggling.
Do you want to be free? Of course you do! Everybody does! Actually, not everybody wants to be free. Some people kind of like the familiarity of their sin. It is like the time Jesus asked the lame man, "Do you want to be made well?" Of course he did! But then, why did Jesus ask? Laying paralyzed by the pool was all the man ever knew. If He were healed, then he would have to start working. Life would be different. Being set free from the bondage of sin is something Jesus can do for anyone. But it will cost you your life. He wants your life.
Actually, when you come to understand the truth about your life and His life, the exchange of your life for His freedom is really quite a bargain for us. The problem is that most of us don't really know truth. We don't understand the depth of the depravity of the sin that besets us, NOR do we understand the great limits of the holiness, justice, mercy and grace of Jesus. (They are infinite.) When those all come into focus and balance, and we embrace them, the shackles fall off. Then, as the song says, "I can never go back to the old way ever again." That's the glory of Jesus.
How do we learn that truth? Jesus is the truth, and He speaks the words of God to us. We learn it from Him. We learn it by gazing into His face, the face of God. We learn it by submitting to His name rather than exalting our own name. That is when the shackles fall off. Isn't He beautiful? May His name ever be exalted. May my name be only His.
The day Abraham died, the truth was revealed to him, and for the first time he really lived. How so? When he died, he came face to face with the Son. When the Son left heaven to become flesh, to become Jesus, Abraham rejoiced. Abraham knew that He (God the Son) left Eternity (actually He didn't leave Eternity, He just entered time and space by adding flesh to His person) to enter time to break the shackles of sin. Oh there was joy with Abraham because the Son from Eternity entered time and space to reign over sin and death. That is our Jesus! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John

May 23

NUMBERS 32
I was the last of five children. During my second through sixth grade years of school we lived in a little town NE of Stillwater called Glencoe. My mother faithfully made us all participate in most all of the activities of First Baptist Church of Glencoe. Realizing that it was too expensive to send five children to OSU, we moved to Stillwater where we could all live at home while attending the university. We had somewhat of a dilemma. The little church of which we were a part in Glencoe only averaged about 21 on Sunday morning. If our family withdrew, it would possibly really discourage those who remained. The church might wither away. My mother understood the meaning of commitment to a body. She told us, “We will remain active here until the church can survive our leaving.” Within two years the church had a new pastor who was able to bring in a few more young families. The future was looking bright for the church. Then Mom said it was time to move our church membership.
What does any of this chapter of Numbers have to do with the glory of the Lord? Consider Ephesians 3:20–21: “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” The glory of the LORD is to be seen in the church as Jesus works through her. What glory do we see? At times she shines brightly, at other times she appears to be a slut flirting with the world. What causes that flirtation? It is a desire to settle for anything less than His glory. We need a body of believers who will settle for nothing less than His glory. This chapter is an illustration of the need of the body to pursue His glory at all costs.
Reuben, Gad and half of Manasseh wanted to live in the land east of the Jordan. They had already conquered it. They wanted to remain there. They approached Moses about making it their home. Now, view it from Moses’ perspective as their leader for the last 39 years. They had grumbled and complained and rebelled. At one point they were getting ready to stone Moses and Aaron. What kind of glory does the LORD get out of that? From Moses’ perspective this was just another in a long train of selfish thoughts and acts. He was convinced that they were so enamored with the land that they could not see beyond their own desires. The nation as a whole needed each other. If they stayed behind, how would that effect the rest of the nation emotionally and how would that effect the nation in their military ability? The glory of the LORD is revealed in His people. How would their staying behind effect the nation in revealing the glory of the LORD?
Moses, understandably, rebukes them for what he saw brewing in their hearts, but Moses did not see their heart completely. They did not get mad and separate themselves, rather they explained themselves and gave a good alternative. They agreed to fight with the rest of the nation until the promised land was conquered and then they would return to their land. Now that, was acceptable! It revealed a humble commitment toward the good of the body. That is what the LORD desires in our church bodies.
I learned from my mother the meaning of commitment to a body. It would have been a whole lot easier to forget about that little church in Glencoe and join a larger church in Stillwater that had all of the youth and choir programs that people desired. But Mom saw a need for us to serve there until the church was bigger and could better afford our leaving. That reflects a commitment to brothers and sisters in Christ. That reflects love. When people in a church fervently love each other by staying committed to each other, it glorifies Jesus. We are in a spiritual war, even as Israel was in physical war. Our faithfulness to each other to our own sacrifice, glorifies Him. O by the way, that church still exists today, and a grade school classmate of mine is its pastor! Let’s glorify Him! Indeed, we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

This was taken traveling north out of Amman, Jordan, Gilead. In Moses' day it would probably have been more heavily forested like the hills on the right.

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PSALM 142
The title says it was David’s prayer in the cave. At least a couple of times, David hid in caves from Saul’s army. Here was a young man who had tasted great military success. He had singlehandedly defeated the Philistine champion. Over the years he went on to lead portions of Israel’s army in successful fight after fight against the Philistine. During the time, he learned vital military skills in leading men into battle. He had become Israel’s champion. The people sang his praise, “Saul has killed his thousands, but David his ten-thousands.” He had accomplished all that King Saul had asked him to do, including marrying Saul’s daughter with its attendant bride price of 200 Philistine foreskins. He had even been secretly anointed as King by the prophet Samuel. Saul’s son Jonathan had recognized that David would be king in his place, and he was fine with it. But David’s meteoric rise to power and the promises that came with it were nowhere on the scope of fulfillment without some sort of mutiny. Mutiny against the Lord’s anointed did not exist in David’s theology.
So here he sits in a cave with his men. He is hunted as a criminal. Instead of leading Israel’s finest, He is leading Israel’s disenchanted. Instead of receiving recognition and adulation of the people, He is receiving scorn and rejection. From a strictly human perspective, this is a hopeless situation. He felt as if no one cared for his soul. The walls of the cave began to close in and shut like the bars of a prison. His physical problems were not the major problem. He was in a prison of the soul. How does one break out of such an impenetrable prison?
David cries out to the Lord. He declares his trouble before him. He complains to the Lord. Wait a minute! He complains to the Lord? Did not the Lord kill thousands of people in the wilderness for the sin of complaining? Yes He did, but their complaint was of a different order. Their complaint was against the Lord and His leadership. It arose out of an unbelief that the Lord loved them and would bring a good resolution to their complaint. David’s complaint is of an altogether different sort. David’s complaint is on the one hand recognizing the realities of his awful situation, and on the other hand, recognizing the realities of who God is and then submitting to His leadership.
Look at how he holds this tension before him. When his spirit was overwhelmed he says, “Then You knew my path. In the way in which I walk, they have secretly set a snare for me.” He does not discount the problem at all, but he declares what he knows to be true of God in this situation. God is omniscient and this difficulty did not in any way catch God by surprise. God knows beforehand the traps that our enemy sets for us. Declaring such truth enables David to begin the process of relaxing in the face of death. The only physical refuge that David had was the cave with all of it amenities, snakes, spiders, bugs, scorpions etc. David brings back to mind that God made the cave, “You are my refuge.” He brings back to mind that God provides his needs, “You are my portion.” A complaint given to the Lord in belief also looks beyond the complaint to a time of greater fulfillment. David says, “You shall deal bountifully with me.” I once was told that a component of maturity is being able to endure a current deprivation in order to obtain a future reward. That doesn’t mean that I have to like the current deprivation.
So the glory of the Lord can be seen even in the worst of circumstances. It is His glory to welcome our complaint of the present as long as we are focused upon Him. Focusing on Him enables us to see His omniscience, His protection, His provision and His reward. We can see that even in the midst of great problems! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

This is one of the caves of Ein Gedi, one of David's hiding places. The valley walls are riddled with caves. This one is behind the waterfall. Perhaps it is where he wrote this Psalm.

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ISAIAH 53
This is the 142nd day of the year. So far in Stillwater we have received about 2.76 inches of rain. That is .0194 inches per day. If this average remains for the rest of the year, we will have received 7.0943 total rainfall. The grass on my lawn is dead. The countryside is turning brown. Much of the wheat crop is lost. It is desert. We have seen the last few days how the Lord promised to restore the waste land to Israel. By extension we have considered that the Lord wants to restore the waste places of our hearts. Do I, do you believe that He wants to restore the deserts of our hearts?
“Who has believed our report?” It is amazing that we can have the greatest news that anyone could ever receive and yet so many will not believe? It is the old saying, “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn’t true.” The Old Testament prophets, the Apostles and the witness of the church could stand and sing in chorus with Isaiah and say, “Who has believed our report?” Isaiah then looks 700 years down the prophetic hallway and describes the beauty of our Lord in His crucifixion and His accomplishment. He did not take the worldly form of leadership that we desired. He took our grief, our infirmities, our sorrows. He paid our sin debt in our place. In doing so, He suffered unimaginable spiritual, emotional, mental and physical pain. The Father asked Him to do this to pay for our sin. He did it because He loved the Father and because He loved us. The result? The Father exalted Him and then gave us to Him. Unbelievable?
Yes, He wants to restore the waste of our life. He did it through His cross. He invites us to come and die with Him on His cross. When we do, He raises us up and restores our waste places. No cross, No resurrection. He brings life out of death. He will rain abundantly upon our desert places if we will die with Him. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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JOHN 8:1-30
At around 40 years of age I was forced to admit that my eyesight was getting worse--presbyopia--old eyes. My watch battery died. I needed a new one. Going into the drugstore to purchase a battery I popped the back off of my watch, pulled the battery out and examined it for a number so that I could purchase a replacement. "There is no number on this!" I exclaimed. My oldest grabbed it from me and then read it out very quickly. I took it back and replied, "You're making that up. There is no number on this."
"You can't read that?" He queried.
"There is nothing to read." I replied.
"It's as plain as day!" He rebuffed.
He went over to the battery isle and got a replacement. I shuffled off to the reading glasses display, taking the old battery with me. Looking over the reading glass display I selected the magnification that seemed appropriate from the instructions on the display. I looked at the old battery again. Sure enough there was a number there and it was the number my oldest had read out. I soon found out that the amount of light had a great deal of effect upon how well I could see smaller things.
In the last ten years my vision has become so bad that I can no longer read my Bible without glasses. I even have the so-called "large print edition." However, without glasses, if I go outside at noon on a cloudless day, I can usually read my Bible--if it is a familiar passage, so that I have a sense of what words to expect. Light makes a huge difference in being able to see what is really there. Spiritual light makes a huge difference in being able to see what is really there.
Jesus is the light of the world. The Pharisees were trying to catch Jesus in a falsehood in order to accuse Him publicly. They knew that He was a friend of sinners. They also knew the requirements of the Law. For all that they knew, they still had horrible spiritual sight. You know the story. They brought a woman caught a woman caught in the very act of adultery. (Hmm. . . how did they know when and where to catch her?) There was some light to be shed here. At first it seemed that none was emanating upon the men. But then slowly it began to dawn, and they all left. The woman was forgiven and instructed to cease sinning.
The interesting thing about the glory of Jesus is that as we focus upon Him, we begin to see our own sin. When we have seen it, confess it before Him, and repent of them, they dissolve away. As we continue to gaze upon His beauty, we begin to realize that we are also seeing the Father. All that Jesus does is done to reveal the Father. But we cannot see Him in our sinful state. His light is there to expose our sin and take it away. What a glorious thing! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John

May 22

NUMBERS 31
A war is raging in the spiritual realm for control of the church. Outright physical assaults on the church usually result in tremendous growth of the church. Witness China, which now has more raw numbers of believers than does the church in the USA. Or witness Iran where the secret church is growing by leaps and bounds. It is the subtle spiritual attacks on the church that usually lead to its death. Witness the church in western Europe. The attack upon the foundations of the faith in 19th century led to wholesale pursuit for meaning and fulfillment elsewhere. The USA is not far behind. Abandoning clear Scriptural principles of the word, churches have sought to attract people through more fleshly appeal. About 10-15 years ago a pastor friend of mine went to visit one of those churches to see what it was like. He said, “I can see why that church is popular. . . It was better than a topless bar.”
Should Israel have gone to war? Clearly the text states that the LORD commanded them to attack the Midianites and kill them. Is this vicious, if so, why? What does it tell us of His glory? First, let us always remember that the LORD is the Creator. As Creator, He has the supreme right over life and death. He can decide who lives and dies, and it is just, for He has that right as Creator. Second, let us remember His reasoning for commanding the death of the Midianites. It is found in Moses’ response to the captains when they returned from battle leading a host of captive women and children:
15–16 And Moses said to them: “Have you kept all the women alive? Look, these women caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to trespass against the LORD in the incident of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD.”
“The Midianites were among those who practiced sexual immorality as part of the ritual of their idolatrous religion.” The incident of Peor was leading young men away from the glory of the Lord. Can you imagine how popular a church would become in a college town if part of the worship included sex? I could see it right now—a wave of churches vying for the highest number of attendees through adding a ministry of sexual adoration.
When there is a high probability that the whole congregation can be led astray, the Lord occasionally acts in what we would call severe forms of discipline in order to prevent the falling away of the larger group and to preserve His people. By commanding Israel to begin this war, the LORD demonstrates how serious He takes our not trading His glory for anything!
This does not mean that there is no forgiveness for those who have fallen into that trap. Forgiveness, mercy and grace is always foremost in the plan of God, but if there is a recalcitrant group that will prevent that forgiveness from being received by the larger group, such as those whom Balaam counseled, then the LORD sometimes moves viciously to prevent it. I wonder if some of our congregations had been around in Balaam’s day, if the Lord would have lumped them in with the Midianites?
Note that they only dispatch 12,000 warriors to deal with the Midianites, and afterward not a single warrior was missing! That is astounding in ancient warfare! Our warfare as the church is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers in heavenly places. Our weapons are not human, but are spiritual and have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments. Should we not be at war upon our knees? If we would war on our knees, I think we would have far fewer warriors missing in action, and love would reign supreme. He is zealous in His love for us, and desires us to be zealous in love for each other. Indeed, that love is glorious! Indeed, we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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PSALM 141
How does being a person who is ‘safe to correct’ relate to the glory of the Lord? When I was a sophomore in college, I was involved in the central action group (CAG) of Campus Crusade for Christ at OSU. One of the things that the staff asked of us was that we each fill out a weekly ministry report and turn it in. On the report were various questions like, “The number of people with whom you shared the 4-Laws? . . . the Holy Spirit booklet? How many people came to your Bible Study/Action Group? What are you studying in that group? There were a few other questions but the one that always made me most uncomfortable was, “What are you reading in the Word in your Quiet Time?” One week during CAG, our campus director brought to our attention that many of us were not filling in the question as to what we were reading in the Word. He wanted to know why. My immediate response was, “Well that is a very personal thing between God and me.” Immediately one of the other staff members guffawed and said, “O come on! If we can’t share with one another on that level, then we really don’t have a discipling relationship at all!”
I was immediately angry and embarrassed, but I held my tongue. He went on to explain the importance of being open with each other about our relationship with the Lord. Later I began to think on it. He was right. If I cannot open up and share with those who are ‘righteous’, then it isn’t much of a relationship. If the truth were known, it wasn’t so much about my privacy as it was that I was really inconsistent in reading the word and did not want to admit it. Also, when I did read the Word, its words often seemed silent, and it became a check on my checklist of things to get done. I did not want to admit that to anyone else, especially those discipling me, lest I be seen as less spiritual. You know, for a while I really thought staff member who guffawed was arrogant. But eventually I came to see that it was a wound of love. The next year, he became the who was discipling me. The year after that, I met Laura. It was to him that I went for advice when I was seeking the Lord’s will about asking Laura to marry me. You know, he gave me a number of good questions to ask about our relationship that really helped me understand what the Lord wanted. He was trustable because he was righteous. A large part of my recognition that he was righteous was that I learned that he loved me. By that I mean that he genuinely wanted the best for me. For him to have held his tongue would not have been love. His correction was followed up with genuine interest in my life, in helping me grow in my relationship with him.
I have learned through this experience and a multitude of other experiences, how to determine whether a correction is from a person who is righteous and a person who is not. The unrighteous seek only to wound. The righteous seek to wound for the purpose of bringing healing. The righteous will continue to remain in the life of the one they wound in order to help them heal. The unrighteous wound and run, or wound and drive away the victim, or wound and kill the victim. As a possible victim, the Psalmist pleads with the Lord to protect him from the wounds of the unrighteous. He also pleads for the grace to receive the wounds of the righteous, “Let the righteous strike me; It shall be a kindness. And let him rebuke me; it shall be as excellent oil; let my head not refuse it.”
But how does that relate to the glory of the Lord? I do not think that I could possibly have the humility to allow someone else to correct me unless I knew that ultimately my life was in the hands of a great God who was shaping and directing my life through the wounds of others. I need the assurance that He is the sovereign God who is in control. When I have entered His courts to view His glory and allow my prayer to rise up before Him as incense, and when I have lifted up my hands before him in the evening sacrifice of praise, I am reminded of the greatness of His glory. I am reminded that I can trust Him in His sovereign directing of my life. You see, even in my being corrected, it is still all about His glory. The same is true for you. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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ISAIAH 52
Last night a friend of mine and I spoke of the lack of passion for the Lord in our hearts, not others but our own. We have become as though we really don’t care anymore. This morning I began reading Isaiah 52 and I was reminded of yesterday’s reading in 51. I looked at yesterday’s meditation as it dealt with the desert for righteousness in my heart. Yesterday the prophet called upon the Lord to,

“9Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD!” The calling for the Lord yesterday was for Him to break the power of sin over our lives, to make the desert of righteousness in our hearts to bloom once again.

Today the prophet calls for us to:
Awake, awake! Put on your strength, O Zion; Put on your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city! For the uncircumcised and the unclean Shall no longer come to you. 2Shake yourself from the dust, arise; Sit down, O Jerusalem! Loose yourself from the bonds of your neck, O captive daughter of Zion!
Calling upon God to awake and save us, there is still a responsibility upon our part to awake, to get out of the dust, to loose ourselves. But honestly, I feel like I have been awakened in the middle of the night and the monster in the bed has wrapped his arms around me holding, preventing me from awaking. I know I should arise and put on the garments of joy to greet my Lord, but I am just too tired!
In the midst of my struggle against the monster of spiritual sleep, the prophet cries out,

How beautiful upon the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who proclaims peace, Who brings glad tidings of good things, Who proclaims salvation, Who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” 8Your watchmen shall lift up their voices, With their voices they shall sing together; For they shall see eye to eye When the LORD brings back Zion.9Break forth into joy, sing together, You waste places of Jerusalem! For the LORD has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem. 10The LORD has made bare His holy arm In the eyes of all the nations; And all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.

There is good news! He who has the power to restore the waste place of the desert of my heart has come and is coming. He has made bare His holy arm. He is ready to go to work. His glory is about to be revealed. It is His servant, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will restore the desert places. That is His glory! He asks one thing of us,
11Depart! Depart! Go out from there, Touch no unclean thing; Go out from the midst of her, Be clean, You who bear the vessels of the LORD. 12For you shall not go out with haste, Nor go by flight; For the LORD will go before you, And the God of Israel will be your rear guard.
Get out of my eyes sleep! I will purify myself in the blood of the One who died for me! That is His glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Let it blossom forth:


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JOHN 7:25-52
Where are you from? I sometimes do not know how to answer that. Do I tell them where I have reside now? Do I tell them where I was born? Do I tell them the town in which I have resided the longest? Let’s see, I have lived in Ft. Wayne 6.5 years, in Glencoe 5 years, in Stillwater 13 years in Portland 5 years, in Oklahoma City 9.3 years, in Southport 13.3 years and now in Stillwater again 1 year. Those don’t include a few months here and there. Maybe I should answer the state in which I lived the longest. Maybe I should say, “I’m from Indiana, Oklahoma, Oregon, North Carolina.” Perhaps I should just stick with where I live now. Of course the sarcastic answer would be, “From my Father and Mother.”
Jesus knew where He came from and where He was going. To the earthlings at the time, He was just the carpenter from Nazareth. The people didn’t quite understand how He fit into the Messianic prophecies. The Old Testament prophecies were a bit confusing. After all there were:
• Out of Egypt did I call my Son.
• But you Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you shall come a Ruler Who will Shepherd My people Israel.
• He shall be called a Nazarene.
• And behold, One like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, And they brought Him near before Him. Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, Which shall not pass away, And His kingdom the one Which shall not be destroyed.
So where does Messiah come from—Bethlehem, Egypt, Nazareth or the clouds of heaven? Any one of them is correct. He was from His Father in heaven. He was going to return there. He has been glorified upon returning. Upon returning He sent His Holy Spirit to live within us. Because of Him those who walk by His Spirit experience His living water. Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John

May 21

NUMBERS 30
I am sitting here at the donut shop. A group of 3 men are sitting at a table next to me talking about the split they had in their church about a year ago. They are speaking loudly, so it is not like I am eavesdropping. Obviously, it was a very emotional parting. When Jesus prayed in John 17:21, “That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me,” what did He mean? What is He asking for? When Jesus said in John 13:34–35, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another,” what did He mean? What about the lines of authority that He has established? What is our responsibility in the midst of these relationships? When do we part company? Divorce among couples in the church in the USA is running around 50%. Is it surprising then that splits within the church are so rampant? What does God expect for us to maintain unity?
This chapter in Numbers deals with unity in the family. I can hear the feminists crying, “Foul! A man should not be able to rule over a woman like that! It makes women the chattel of men!” They are missing the point. As human beings, we are created, male and female, in the image of God. We are to reflect what God is like in our union as male and female and become one flesh. God is one in essence, yet He eternally exists in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Our unity is not the same thing, but it is to reflect the same thing. Within the Trinity the Father is the head decision maker, and yet the Son and the Holy Spirit have the ability to make decisions. They choose to submit to each other. Yet we could not describe either the Son or the Holy Spirit as the chattel of the Father.
What we have here in Numbers 30 is a clear-practical-case outworking of lines of authority when a couple or family or church lives in unity in a way that reflects the unity of the Trinity. What does God expect for us to maintain unity? He expects love and purity. He expects death. Jesus died for His bride. He expects a husband to die to his selfishness in relation to his wife. He expects him to love his wife perfectly. While He still expects the wife to use her brain and contribute to the relationship, when the decision making time comes, He expects her to submit even as Jesus and the Holy Spirit submit to the Father. He expects mutual submission within the body. He expects the body and family to respect the lines of authority. You see we are to reflect the glory of the Trinity! And what glory that is! Jesus, who knew no sin, became sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. He died, so we can die too. He submitted to the Father, so we too can submit to each other. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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PSALM 140
Early teen-aged-years are a very volatile time in life. In my experience it was a time filled with pride filled remarks, both giving and receiving. The insecurity of growing up and not really knowing who one is leads to some very proud comments on one’s own part and against others. Most early teens mask their insecurities with proud statements or statements of sarcasm toward others. I had one or two acquaintances who never grew out of that. I saw one at our 20th year high school reunion. His first comment at the reunion toward me was very negative. I hadn’t even had a chance to greet or offend him, before it was out of his mouth. He had become a pretty successful surgeon. I guess what Matthew Henry says about this Psalm aptly described him, “Proud men, when they prosper, are made prouder, grow more impudent against God and insolent against his people . . . ” Although I noted the sarcasm, I just ignored it. I figured that he just hadn’t grown up. My best friend from high school was standing there, heard the comment, and came to my rescue with a retort that made our acquaintance know that his comment was out of line.
So how does the glory of God fit into this? The wicked advance themselves by tearing others down. For one who knows who he is in relation to the glory of God, the evaluation of others, no matter how successful they are, is of little importance. Even if that evaluation is able to bring harm to one’s life, it matters little because what really matters is the evaluation of the Almighty God. The Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 4:3–4:
3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. 4 For I know of nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord.
He is the Almighty God and will safely bring us into His presence. Not so with the wicked. They will have many challenges to face in the presence of the Holy God. I am confident that the Lord will handle it justly and well. So when others slander me out of their own insecurities, it is best for me to do as the Psalmist has done, and let the Lord take care of it. After all, He is the judge, and that is His glory. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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ISAIAH 51
The mere fact that you are reading this indicates that you have somewhat of a desire to follow after righteousness. Some of you have a stronger or purer desire than others, but I don’t think that you would even bother reading this if there were not some desire present in your heart. As I was meditating earlier on Psalm 140, I was reminded of a time when in the wickedness of my own heart I inflicted harm on an emotional enemy. Now it was all legal, I did it in the context of football practice. I was doing what I was supposed to do, but in my heart I wanted him to hurt. I eventually gave him a slight concussion. Now concussions are a part of the game, and I did nothing illegal. But in my heart I wanted him to hurt. Had we had a fight in the locker room and had I given him a concussion, there could have been some serious sanctions against me, but not on the football field. What I desired in my heart would have been no different. There was a desert in my heart for righteousness. That is not an isolated event in my life where there was a desert for righteousness.
Jerusalem sits on the edge of the Judean wilderness, a desert. Once you cross from Jerusalem over the Mount of Olives headed toward the Jordan/Dead Sea, the landscape quickly becomes desert. Here is what it looks like:

This is the wilderness. This is a waste place of Zion. This is a Judean desert. The Lord promises to one day make this desert a garden. Right now, I would not want to live here. But He will one day make it blossom. Can the Lord make this desert blossom? Of course He can.
Can the Lord make the desert of righteousness in my heart blossom? Of course He can. Look at what he says,

9Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD! Awake as in the ancient days, In the generations of old. Are You not the arm that cut Rahab apart, And wounded the serpent? 10Are You not the One who dried up the sea, The waters of the great deep; That made the depths of the sea a road For the redeemed to cross over?

Rahab of course is the name of the harlot that hid the spies at Jericho. She became famous in Israel, but her name also became a nickname for Egypt because of her profession before she met the Lord. The serpent of course is not just the hated reptile, but also synonymous with Satan, and here in this context it is also used of Egypt. The Lord delivered them out of Egypt by drying up the Sea. He is able to redeem Israel at this time. He will bring them back with great singing and joy. Can He make the desert of righteousness bloom in my heart? He stretched out the heavens. He planted the foundations of the earth. He pleads the cause of His people. Of course He can make a garden of righteousness bloom in my heart. That is His glory. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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JOHN 7:1-24
Jesus knew His time, and He sought the Father's glory. Do I know my time, and do I seek the Father's Glory? The average age at which my four grandparents died is about 88 years of age. Assuming no accidents or disease, similar genetic livelihood, better lifelong living conditions, improved medical practices and that I take care of my body properly (all of which are pretty big assumptions), I could very well live to be 95+. Hmmm… If that is true I have 41+ years left to live. Well, I am past the half-way mark. Okay kids, you are going to be senior citizens before you get any inheritance from me. Of course that assumes that I have anything worth giving you and that I live that long. But I really don't have that guarantee that I will live that long. My time is always ready. Even if I do live that long or longer, my grandmother, who lived to be 104, spent the last 10 years of her life suffering from Alzheimer’s. I could very well have a similar fate.
But Jesus knew when He was going to die. Wow, that would be interesting. I wonder, “Why did He pack all His ministry in those last 3+ years of His life?” If I knew the day I was going to die, I'd probably procrastinate a lot of things. But I don't believe Jesus procrastinated anything. He always did things in the fullness of time. I think those first 30 years of His life were spent in three major areas:
1. Preparing for the last 3+ years
2. Fulfilling commitment to His family
3. Working and enjoying life
He told His brothers that His time wasn't ready, but theirs was always ready. That is a picture of a masterfully planned life. I am really amazed.
All of His work was done to glorify the Father. There was no unrighteous work in Him. What do we live for as Americans? We live to retire so that we can spend our time and money on ourselves. What a waste! Some years ago I heard John Piper give a sermon on missions. I don't remember exactly what he said, but I do remember that the gist of it was that we should retire so that we can become missionaries. Retire to go to the field to give our lives to the glory of God and the service of others! Hmmm. . . Interesting idea. I have some questions about the practicality of it. But it sure would beat other ways of dying. I did have the privilege of meeting Armin Guesswein late in his life. He died at around 90. He was ministering to others right up until the end. Like Jesus His whole life was to glorify God. Sure he began to slow down later in life; that is expected. But he still had a passion for sharing Jesus. Why? Because he had a glimpse of the glory of Jesus--it was the glory of the Father, full of grace and truth. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John

May 20

NUMBERS 29
A study of the feasts and holidays of the law are both fascinating and confusing to me. I get lost in all the dates and sacrifices that are prescribed. But these things I know:
1. The four spring celebrations speak of and are fulfilled in the first coming of the Lord Jesus.
2. Passover speaks of the Jesus’ death to pay the penalty of sin in my place.
3. Unleavened bread speaks of Jesus’ burial to carry or remove my sin from me.
4. First Fruits speaks of His resurrection to secure my victory over death.
5. Pentecost speaks of His sending the Holy Spirit to live in us individually and corporately so that we would have the power to live the law and walk in newness of life.
If the Spring feasts fulfill, what Jesus did in His first coming, then does it stand to reason that the fall feasts speak to what He will do in His second coming? Consider these possibilities for what is seen in Numbers 29:
1. Feasts of Trumpets—7th month, 1st day 29:1-6—perhaps speaks of the rapture of the church as declared in these verses:
• 1 Corinthians 15:52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
• 1 Thessalonians 4:16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
2. Day of Atonement—7th month, 10th day 29:7-11—perhaps speaks of the second coming of Lord Jesus when He will, “make an end of sins,” at the end of Daniel’s 70th week. (His first coming came at the end of the first 69 weeks {Messiah shall be cut off}. His second coming will be at the end of the 70th week. We are currently in an interlude between the 69th & 70th week.)
3. Feast of Tabernacles—7th month, 15th day through 22nd day 29:12-38—perhaps speaks of His Millennial reign. Zechariah 14:16-17 indicates that this is what Peter, James and John had in mind on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 16:28-17:8; 2 Peter 1:16-21).

Today I came across this thought provoking website: http://waitingforjesus.com/jewishfeastsprophecy.html
Is it not incredible that He outlines his plan for us before He does it? It is all found there in His word. We just don’t look hard enough. Is it not wonderful that He does what He plans? Now what He does is glorious! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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PSALM 139
She looked kind of frumpy. At forty-seven-years-old, she certainly was not the kind of woman that you would expect to see on the cover of any beauty magazine. She was 50-75 pounds overweight. She wore no visible make-up and did not shape her eyebrows; they were rather thick. Her hair was kind of Medusa looking. Her dress was plain. Britain’s Got Talent host asked her what she hoped to accomplish by coming on the program. She replied, “I have hopes of becoming a professional singer.” Immediately, snickers appeared on the face of each panelist. Her name was Susan Boyles, and she sang I Dreamed a Dream from Les Miserables. After the first line, the camera angle switched to the panelists. The astonishment was clear upon their faces. Boyles gave a flawless performance, turned and began to march off the stage. The crowd and two of the panelists rose to their feet in a standing ovation. Clearly they had misjudged Ms. Boyles.
We all long to have someone of significance know everything there is to know about us and still desire us and think that we are wonderful. Our great God and Savior is that person. He knows all there is about us. He has studied us completely. Nothing is hidden from His sight. He is knows our thoughts and our words before we know them. His Spirit is ever with us, and like Jonah we cannot get away from Him. He knows even the agony of the inhabitants of those in hell. He knows where dark things sleep in the depths of the sea and in the sordid depths of our minds and souls. He knit us together in our mother’s womb. In light of all this knowledge, David asks the Lord to search him and reveal any wicked way. Indeed God does have this kind of knowledge about our lives. For those of us who are born again, not only does He know everything that there is to know about us, but He also is delighted with us. Like the panelists with Susan Boyles He jumps to his feet in feeling His pleasure in us. There is a difference with us though. Ms. Boyles walked away from the stage still looking frumpy, nothing had changed about who she was before or after her encounter with Britain’s Got Talent. We step back from our encounter with the Creator forever changed for the better. We become new creatures when we meet Him. He purifies us of the things He doesn’t like and gives us the things He does like. He gives a flawless performance in changing us and then stands back and applauds us, His work. Such knowledge for us is difficult to attain, but it should motivate us to step back and return the applause to the One who changed us. That is His glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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ISAIAH 50
A couple of decades ago, I had made some stupid financial decisions. Consequently I had a financial shortfall in paying my creditors. Bills were due and I didn’t have the money. I was only about $40 dollars away. I still had my High school class ring. My finger was too fat to wear it anymore anyway. I took it to the Pawn shop. The gold was enough to get what I needed to pay my rent. I sold my ring to pay for my stupid decisions. You know we all make sinful decisions, stupid decisions. We’ve danced with the Devil and then it comes time to “pay the piper”. Sometimes we realize our sinfulness and cry out for mercy. Sometimes we are intent on paying the bill ourselves. Unfortunately the only way for paying the bill ourselves is with ourselves. For our iniquities we sell ourselves.
All the while the Lord is waiting for us to call out to Him that He might come rescue us from ourselves. We don’t call out. What is it? Do we not really believe that His hand is able to deliver us? Isaiah then moves into a description of the Lord Jesus, the Servant, which describes His trial and approach to the crucifixion. He came to deliver us when we could had sold ourselves for our iniquity. As a man the Lord Jesus listened morning by morning to what the Father was doing to buy us back, and He joined Him in doing it. When it was time to die, He set His face like a flint to go to Jerusalem to present Himself as the sacrificial Lamb. He who created the world, presented His back to be beaten. They plucked out His beard. They publicly shamed Him. They spit upon Him and reviled Him. He presented His own life as a substitute payment for my sin. In dying He paid.
Some are intent on paying the bill themselves as if they could light a fire that would burn away their own iniquities. The heat of such a flame must surely be intense. But all they can produce are sparks. A spark here, a spark there, in the midst of deep darkness it might seem bright for a moment, but in the long run, it is still darkness. Seeking to walk in the light of their own darkness they never see the enormity of the debt they owe. Only someone greater can afford to pay it for them. This is what the Lord has done for us. As the light of the world, He stepped down into our darkness. His blazing glory is there. It can be blinding at times. Depending on the condition of our will, we may not even be aware of His presence. When that happens, we just keep making sparks in the darkness. All the while His blazing light is available. Oh by the way, the Lord was gracious and I was able to buy back my class ring. I think I’ll go bask in His light. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

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JOHN 6:45-71
I love fresh bread. When Laura bakes rolls or fresh bread, the aroma begins to float through the house. I begin to salivate. It makes me soooooo hungry. Hot out of the oven with some butter placed in it, the butter melts almost instantly, and as soon as it is cool enough to put in my mouth, it is gone. One problem, as I have grown older, is that I seem to have developed a little intolerance of bread. If I eat more than one or two rolls or slices, I get terrible heartburn. But it tastes so good! I don't know how many evenings through which I have suffered because I just couldn't eat just one roll.
Our Lord says, "I am the Bread of Life." No He does not mean He is a loaf of bread. We take the Word literally, unless there is clear reason in the context to understand it as a figure of speech. This is a figure of speech called a metaphor. He is comparing Himself to something physical. Bread was the common staple in their diet. Meat for the common person was not necessarily an everyday part of the meal. Fresh fruit could only be eaten in season. Dried fruit, such as figs and raisins, would be available to some. But bread was something that most everybody could afford anytime of the year. It was necessary to the preservation of life. It was like rice in oriental culture or beans or corn in other cultures. Without it, life was unsustainable.
Without Him, life is unsustainable. Is He suggesting cannibalism here? That is certainly how the crowd took it. Now that is disgusting! Talk about heartburn! Their hearts burned so badly that they all got up and left. Is that what He meant? Almost! Without Him our lives are unsustainable. Our need for Him in order to live is so great that it is as if we have to ingest Him in order to survive. It is a metaphor folks but a very strong one. He came from heaven as the bread of life, so that He could die our death. If we ingest Him, our death is taken care of because He already died it. He came from heaven as the bread of life so that He could be raised to newness of life! If we ingest Him, our resurrection is taken care of because He is already risen! He came from heaven as the bread of life so that He could ascend into glory! If we ingest Him, our glory is taken care of because He is ascended into glory!
Now, I appreciate metaphors but making the jump from the metaphors to literal life is hard to do. While in college, I once was sharing the Gospel with a man. I asked him if he had ever received Jesus as his personal Lord and Savior. He said, "Oh certainly." To which I replied, "Tell me about it. I'd like to hear." His quick honest response, which was consistent with his Catholic theology, was, "Oh, I receive Jesus every time I go to Mass and receive communion."
Now that was a new wrinkle in my protestant mindset. It was the first time I was ever forced to think through the implications of the doctrine of transubstantiation. For those of you who are not Catholic, transubstantiation teaches that when the priest pronounces the blessing upon the communion elements, they in substance become the body and blood of Jesus, though not in appearance. This doctrine came to its present form at the Council of Trent (1545-1563), which was held in response to Luther and other protestant groups. Certainly, if that doctrine is true, then every time one receives communion, one is receiving Christ and literally eating the body and blood of our Lord.
Obviously, since I am not a Catholic, I reject the doctrine of transubstantiation. But I also recognize that there is something more than just metaphor going on here. What is it that Jesus is communicating? Clearly that Jesus calls us to share in Him. He calls us to share in His life, death, burial, resurrection and ascension. We do it by submitting ourselves to Him, recognizing our utter poverty without Him, flinging open the door to our lives for His Lordship and His power rather than depending upon our own sovereignty and power.
Such an encounter begins when we are born again, but it renewed moment by moment. Once He first enters our lives, He never leaves us nor forsakes us, but we still need His life flow moment by moment. The fresh bread I ate when I was 8 years old is no longer fresh today. The fresh bread I enjoyed last week is no longer fresh today. I received Jesus when I was 8 years old, but that experience on that day will not suffice for today. I spoke with Jesus a week ago, but that conversation will not suffice for today. I need Him now. Let's eat some Bread!
Why would I yield my sovereignty and power to Him? Because without Him, I will die. I might linger for 40-80 days without food. But know full well; I will die. Most Christians are content to snack on Jesus, maybe once a week at church or every once in a while in the Bible. They don't even realize they are spiritually malnourished. They are close to death. Yet all the while they could be feasting on His magnificent glory. Sometimes when we do, we get spiritual heartburn. It might be a warm glow such as the disciples on the road to Emmaus experienced. Or, it might be discomfort because the presence of His glory reveals some sin with which we need to deal, but that is part of it. Enjoying His glory demands that we yield. Let's eat some Bread! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John