July 8

JOSHUA 10
Every once in a while I get an old e-mail hoax forwarded to me. It usually has something to do with how NASA scientists have mathematically proven that there is a day missing in time. The e-mail usually associates the day with Joshua’s battle where the Sun stood still and with Isaiah”s miracle of the sun going backward. Without being a scientist, I know that NASA scientists could not have mathematically proven this. But I won’t bore you with the details. Although, it is interesting to consider how this miracle could possibly have taken place. After all, the laws of motion seem to indicate that if the Lord all-of-a-sudden stopped the earth, then everything not attached to the surface would have kept traveling and, relatively speaking, have been hurled eastward and perhaps off of the planet. There have been a few suggestions as to how the Lord may have arranged this mechanically without devastating the earth with massive tidal waves. Personally, while I find this interesting, I ultimately don’t care. After all, if my God is big enough to speak the universe into existence with all of its galactic and planetary motions, then He is able to stop the rotation of one little planet for one day and start it again and control all the laws of motion without doing harm to it. I mean, that is the point, isn’t it? He is after all, God. Do I have to be able to analyze it to believe it? I don’t think so. Sometimes we just need to let God be God, rather than trying to analyze everything.
In his book Life on the Mississippi, Mark Twain compares and contrasts two views of the river. One view is when he was a boy, and the river just awed him on a daily basis. The other view is after he had become a river boat pilot. He had so analyzed the river and knew it so well that it no longer held any wonder for him but spoke only of danger. Do I sometimes I approach the glory of my Lord in the same way? Do I have to use my western analytical mind so much that I cease to be truly awed by His glory? Can I not just sit back and be awed by the God of the Universe, who will enter time and space and reorder it, if need be, just to provide for my need and glorify Himself? Granted, making the sun stand still is probably a once-in-a-creation event, but still it causes me to reflect that our Lord is able to reorder all the daily events combining His sovereign design with the billions of free will decisions of His creatures in order to reveal His glory. From time to time He enters time and space and does something to order those events so that I know He did it. Wow! Now there is something that I just have to let awe me! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

PSALM 7
There have been times in my life when I have been attacked by those whom I considered to be my brothers. While I make no claim to being sinless, in many of those instances there was no sin of my own of which I needed to repent, but rather, they were looking for fault in me because they did not like the direction we were going. It is painful indeed. What is the appropriate response?
The title to this Psalm indicates that it is a response to the words of Cush the Benjamite. Saul was a Benjamite. We can only assume that this near or distant kinsman of Saul had been slandering David. Most likely this occurred during the time before David became the king of the united kingdom. How did David respond? He first spent some time in self-evaluation. He sought to see if any of the accusations were true. How else could he say, “If I have . . . , Let the enemy pursue me and overtake me; Yes, let him trample my life to the earth, and lay my honor in the dust.” Then he appeals to the Lord to rise up and judge. He asks for a judgment of the wicked. Finally, he rests in the fact that God is a just judge. He is angry with the wicked every day. He lets it go there.
Hmm. . . if God is angry with those who have inappropriately judged me, why should I be angry with them. If I really believe that God is a just judge, it is only right that I should rejoice in justice, but why should I take their punishment into my own hands? I would not want to be a sinner in the hands of an angry God. He is much more capable of punishing sin than I am. He is also much more capable of extending mercy than I am. It is His glory to extend both as needed. The appropriate response to being attacked is to spend time in letting God judge me and reveal to me my heart. Then it is appropriate to call upon Him to judge. Then it is appropriate to revel in the fact that He is a just and merciful judge. When I do that, it allows for others to see the operation of His justice and His mercy. It also allows for greater healing in my life. Lord, search me and try me and show me any hurtful way. Judge me and those around me. You are a just judge! Be merciful in judgment! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

JEREMIAH 33
Yesterday, Jeremiah 32, could be summed up by saying, “When you are in the pits, it is time to look at the long term work of God, not your momentary distress. What is God seeking to accomplish?” Today, Jeremiah 33, we continue in sort of the same vein. Jeremiah is still in the court prison for speaking in the name of the Lord. If the choice were left to me, I wouldn’t want to be a prison Inmate anywhere. Yet it is in this prison that the Lord challenges Jeremiah, “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” The KJV Commentary describes Mighty as: “Mighty. Inaccessible, hidden. The mysteries of eternity are available to the believer only through a call unto the Lord. “ Inaccessible—how many times have felt like the situation was hopeless only to find later that the Lord was working through the situation to produce a result which was far better than I thought the situation would lead? How could Jeremiah ever be delivered out prison? He was in the court prison because he was preaching a message that was tantamount to sedition and treason. If the Chaldeans were not effective in their siege, then Jeremiah would remain in prison. If they were effective, the nation would surely perish and become nothing on the face of the earth. It is literally the old saying of, “Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.”
So what is this inaccessible, hidden thing that the Lord shows Jeremiah? It is simply the goodness and the mercy of the Lord. He will raise up out of the rubble a nation that will properly respond to the Lord. How will He do it? It will be a man, a God-man, the descendant of David. He will be called a righteous branch. While Israel was destroyed because of its unrighteousness, He will provide One who will make them righteous. While Israel was destroyed because of its unrighteous kings, He will provide a righteous King who will rule over them. You see, He had made two covenants one with the Levites and one with David. The Levites, which technically included the priests, were the family that was supposed to bring the people to the temple, and cover their sin. The line of David was supposed to rule in such a way that it led the people in righteous living. Both families had failed. Could God no longer keep His covenant? He would keep His covenant because He is good and full of mercy. He kept it in the God-man, Jesus Christ. Jesus, through the sacrifice of Himself, makes us righteous when we yield to Him. Jesus, through His eternal Spirit, empowers us, rules in us, when we yield to Him. When He returns, He will also establish a nation where He will be the true King. He would like to see that happen in His church right now. The availability of the New Covenant makes it possible. Will we yield? Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

ACTS 15:22-41
It feels like dissension could never bring glory to Jesus. And it is probably true that Jesus prefers that His glory be increased through routes other than dissension. But, even people who are normally Spirit-filled sometimes miss the mark and sin. The dissension at Antioch brought the landmark decision from the "home" church in Jerusalem. James writing for the majority (actually among the apostles it was probably unanimous) phrased it as, "It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us." Dissension led to a unanimous decision, which led to a blessing upon the Gentile church.
The dissension now healed, Paul and Barnabas return their attention on planting churches among the Gentiles. Woops, dissension arises again. Barnabas wants to take his nephew John Mark with them again. Paul is dead set against it. After all John Mark had revealed that he didn't have what it takes in Perga of Pamphylia--he deserted them and went home. Barnabas ever the 'Son of Encouragement' insists John Mark has repented and is ready for the task. The dissension is too strong. Barnabas departs to go a different direction with John Mark and Paul chooses Silas who accompanied them from the Jerusalem Council. How can this dissension glorify Jesus? In the long run, there are now two missionary teams instead of one and John Mark is restored. At the end of Paul's life he requests the ministry of John Mark.
Did the dissension bring glory to the Lord? What came out of the dissension brought glory to the Lord. That is just like our Lord. He takes what we make bad and if we trust Him, He will bring glory to Himself. Indeed, we serve a glorious king! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John