October 20

2 KINGS 1
As a Freshman in college I had a Sunday School teacher who was a Sociology professor at my college. Sociology departments across the country are notorious for being anti-Christian. He had a vision for creating an upper division course on the family. Of course that fits right in with Sociology, but he also wanted to do it from a Christian perspective and use some Christian resources as a text. Now that would never fly in a secular mindset. The secular mindset would permit all kinds of perspectives but definitely not Christian. So my prof sought to develop the course and hand pick students whom he thought could benefit for such a course and not complain to the administration about any blatantly Christian discussion in class. I had the extreme privilege of being part of that course. One of the things that my prof would say concerning using Christian materials was, “Should not a people seek their God? Should they seek the dead on behalf of the living? To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Isaiah 8:19b & 20.
Ahaziah would have fit right into our culture in the respect of seeking other sources for truth. Elijah shows up to intercept the messengers, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron?” Why is it that Ahaziah is going to idols to find truth when there is so much to be learned from this God of amazing glory Whom we call Yahweh? Elijah disappears immediately after delivering the message. Obviously this is going to annoy the king, just as it does the secularists of our society. The glory of our God though is that on occasion He chooses to deliver His servant for speaking the truth about His glory.
I find what happens next to be comedic, particularly if you define comedy as something that starts out bad but surprisingly ends up good. The king sends 50 soldiers to arrest one prophet. The soldiers recognize that Elijah is a man of God, and they address him as such. Well if he is a man of God, then why are they arresting him? Elijah again calls fire down from heaven. The fifty and their captain are toast. The king repeats the command. We then have fifty more pieces of toast. A third time Ahaziah sends for fifty more. This captain of fifty is not stupid. He recognizes the awesome power of the glory of the Lord as particularly revealed toward the first two squads of fifty. He begs for mercy. Elijah grants it, for mercy is a specialty of the glory of our Lord. The result is that Elijah is able to safely deliver the message of the Lord directly to the king. The king dies according to the word of the Lord. I wonder, did he perhaps repent before he died?
Whenever I seek answers primarily from any other source, I have become no better than Ahaziah. Does that mean I cannot seek truth from any source other than the Bible, God’s Word? No, but it does mean that any time I come across something that seems to contradict God’s Word; I need to do two things. First I need to be sure that I have properly interpreted the Word of God. A lot of our problems come simply because we have not properly interpreted the Word. Second, once I am sure of the proper interpretation of the Word, I need to re-evaluate the apparent truth that contradicts the Word. Since all real truth is ultimately God’s truth, they will eventually complement each other. I don’t need to run after other God’s to find truth, for He is truth. That is part of His glory. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

PSALM 111
Five times in this Psalm (NKJV) the word ‘work’ or ‘works’ is used. Out of ten verses, that is every other verse. They are described as great, honorable, glorious, wonderful and powerful. The result of His work is verity and justice. It is said that His works are studied by all who have pleasure in them. The converse of that is that if I do not study His works then I do not take pleasure in them. Makes sense. I mean; I don’t study something unless I enjoy it, or I have to study it because I am in school or my job requires it. Do I have pleasure in the works of the Lord? Certainly I enjoy His creative works. They never cease to amaze me. Truly they can be called great, honorable, glorious, wonderful and powerful. The way He works with His people is also of great interest. When I reflect upon the way He has worked with me I understand that He is full of grace and compassion.
But you know, unless I actively call them to mind, I tend to focus on negative things and pain. I guess that is why I need to meditate on His glory. It is necessary for my wellbeing. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

AMOS 3
I have a friend who used to joke with me that one of God’s names was Shirley. “After all,” he said, “the Scripture says, ‘Surely the Lord GOD does nothing, Unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets.’” Okay, I admit it. It is a bad pun. But it does bring an interesting point in today’s passage. Does God still operate that way? Many would say that the prophet was an Old Testament thing and does not belong to the church. O really? I guess then that they have to reinterpret many major passages of the Scripture such as Acts 11:27; 13:1; 15:32; 21:10; Roman 12:6; 1 Cor. 12-14; Eph 2:20; 4:11; 1Jn. 4:1.
The prophets of the Old Testament were often viewed as troublesome people, kind of thorny. As one king of Israel said of a famous prophet, “Can’t you find someone else? He never has anything good to say about me.” (2 Chronicles 18:7 Chaffin paraphrase.) The Old Testament prophets served in several ways. One major function was to correct the nation when they had strayed from the covenant. If the king and/or people would repent, the prophet would also bring comfort and hope as he extended mercy for the future and for the present,. You can imagine then, if you think you’re right and you are not, along comes the prophet who publicly rebukes you, it is a very thorny situation. You really only have three choices of action:

1) repent & submit, which really is quite embarrassing; 2) ignore him and hope he goes away, which could begin to foment problems resulting in civil unrest; 3) stop him from speaking.

Many chose the last option resulting in many prophets being scourged, chained, thrown in prisons, stoned, sawn in half, killed with a sword etc.
How do the prophets serve in the New Testament? Since they are given to the church, would not one of their functions be to correct when the church is going or has gone astray from the New Covenant? As such they might be viewed as troublesome people, kind of thorny, perhaps even abusive. Indeed, if the prophet operates in the flesh, he could become abusive. But if the prophet operates in the Spirit and the church repents, would not the prophet then bring comfort and hope both for the present and the future? But what happens if the message of the prophet is not received? Probably people ignore him and hope he goes away, or they stop him from speaking in some way.
Does the Lord still do nothing, unless He reveals it to His servants the prophets? Why don’t we hear more from the prophets? Maybe it is because we do not listen. Maybe it is because we silence their voices. Maybe it is because we cannot distinguish between the voice of the prophet and false prophet. Maybe they are afraid to speak. I think it is still the glory of the Lord to reveal His will to the church. Since there is a gift of prophecy, one of the routes through which He reveals His will is through His prophets. It is to His glory for us to listen to the prophets. Since there are false prophets, it is to His glory to discern between the true and false prophets. It is a tough task to correct each ‘maybe’ and to discern truth and error. But if it is His glory to provide us the grace, the divine enablement to do each one, is it not worth our trust to seek Him for that enablement? When He provides that grace, will it not bring Him greater glory? Indeed, we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

2 THESSALONIANS 3
The Lord is faithful. Yes, you've heard it a million times before. The Lord is faithful. But, what does that mean? Do you ever feel like your life lacks a sure foundation? Indeed if your foundation is not Jesus, then you do lack a sure foundation. But I am assuming that those who read this do have Jesus as your foundation. What does it mean that He is faithful? For one thing, it means that He will establish you in Himself. He will plant you such that the evil one cannot wipe you away. 2005 had been a year for hurricanes. We saw via TV & internet the devastation that strong hurricanes bring. They literally wipe houses and buildings off of their foundations. The evil one seeks to wipe us off of our foundations. But the Lord is faithful. Sometimes he stops the evil one's advance, while He makes us stronger. Other times He allows the evil one to advance to demonstrate to all how strong He is in us. But when all is said and done, we remain standing. Why? Because we remain faithful? No, it is because He is faithful. In the midst of the enemy's onslaught, He is the God of peace and He calms us in and through the onslaught. When we look to Him, His inner peace is always available in turmoil. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John

October 19

1 Kings 22
A few years ago there was a guest speaker at OSU. I assume that he was brought here by the gay lesbian community. One of his statements, according to the O’Colly was, “Hate the sin but love the sinner just won’t fly.” Other articles have appeared recently in the O’Colly and News Press implying that the high suicide rate among gays and lesbians can be partially attributed to those who contend that the practice of homosexual acts is sin. The implication is that we are condemning those who act in such ways. Since they cannot live with that condemnation, they commit suicide. The implication is that we hate those who practice such acts if we should ever suggest that such acts are sinful acts.
Jehoshaphat went up to visit Ahab. Ahab talked him into going to war with him. But Jehoshaphat wanted to consult the LORD before he went to battle. Ahab was against it because he thought that the prophet of the LORD hated him. What was Jehoshaphat’s response? “Let not the king say such things!” The LORD indeed hated the things that Ahab did. But He had previously shown mercy upon Ahab. He hated the things that Ahab did; does that necessarily mean that He hated Ahab? The truth must be spoken. Ahab heard the truth. Had he taken the advice of the prophet of the LORD, Ahab would not have died in that battle.
Why do we proclaim that the practice of homosexual acts is sin? The true motive ought to be because of love. If we love someone, we don’t want them to be destroyed by their sin. Ahab heard the truth. He had opportunity to repent and escape the end that he received. To hate him would have been to remain silent. Decades ago, my uncle divorced my aunt. I went privately and as gently as I knew how, I rebuked him. He could have said, “You hate me because you rebuke me.” He did not. He was gracious to me. I once had a friend who was hooked on alcohol. The LORD laid on my heart to tell him that if he did not repent, he would be burned. He did not repent. A month later he died. I rebuked him because he was headed toward destruction. Would it have been love to remain silent? No, love always speaks the truth. But rest assured it will be spoken it in a manner that also communicates love. They go together. Our God is a God of both love and righteousness. That is what makes Him so glorious. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

Psalm 110
In this Psalm David says that Yahweh says to his lord, “Sit at my right hand till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” I have many questions about this passage. Some are, “When did Yahweh say this to him? How did David hear it? Was it verbal? Was it through a prophet? Was it a voice in his thoughts? How did he know it was Yahweh? Does Yahweh speak to us in the same way? How do we know it is Him speaking in our thoughts?” While the Pharisees were trying to trap Jesus, Jesus quotes this verse and asks them how David can call his descendant his lord. Clearly Jesus understood the passage as referring to Himself. So in this passage, God the Father is speaking to God the Son. It speaks clearly of His glory.
First it speaks of His authority. God the Father commands the Son to sit at his right hand. In royal etiquette one does not sit at the right hand of a sovereign except at his invitation, and in so doing the sovereign is granting authority to rule with Him. Jesus has all the authority of God the Father to rule over the whole universe! Peter picked up on what Jesus had to say to the Pharisees when he quoted this verse. In His famous sermon on Pentecost Peter preaches to a once hostile crowd and says concerning Jesus:

“For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: ‘The LORD said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.’ Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

Wow! He is a gutsy fellow! But he could be gutsy because of who Jesus is and where He is seated. He has all authority in that seat. One day He will even use that authority to reverse the effects of death. Now that is authority. So what if I die? The One whom I trust has authority even over death! The writer of Hebrews (1:13) makes it absolutely clear that there is no other being that has greater authority than He.
The second thing that the Father speaks to in His Son is the Son’s role a priest. As a priest in the order of Melchizedek (King of Righteousness), He intercedes for those who volunteer to be among His ranks. I would be too afraid to come to the Son, if He did not have this role. My sin was like a fog horn before me sounding out to a Holy God that I had transgressed His holiness. My sin was like a dead skunk on the highway to holiness. The stench would make the holy God seek to eradicate me. My sin was like the putrid rotting flesh of the leper who had never been treated and was in the late stage of the disease. The mess could only be revolting to His holiness. Yet my King of Righteousness has taken on the role of being my priest. Unlike the Levitical priests who had to make continual sacrifices for themselves and for others, and who died and had to be replaced, my Priest is of the order of Melchizedek in that He is righteousness in Himself, and He has always been and always will be! He ever lives to make intercession for me! I do not have to worry about my sin. He has eradicated it. He intercedes for me!!!!!!!!
Authority and Priesthood, now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

AMOS 2
The recent Democratic debate oozed with socialism. As one radio commentator put it, we are going to buy more votes with giving more free stuff. It reminds me that shortly before the fall of the Roman Republic, Cicero is reputed to have said,

The evil was not in bread and circuses, per se, but in the willingness of people to sell their rights as free men for full bellies and the excitement of games which would serve to distract them from the other human hungers which bread and circuses can never appease.

Here is an interesting web article that I recommend reading:
http://theprogressivecynic.com/2013/11/21/bread-circus-and-the-complacency-before-the-collapse/
While I don’t completely agree with the article, it is a very insightful look at the direction American culture is heading, and it relates to the passage in Amos today.
Like a whirling fighter in a martial arts movie, the Lord addresses each of Israel’s neighbors. In chapter one He first hits Syria to the Northeast. Then whirling Southwest He round houses the Philistine cities beginning from the south and working north along the west coast stopping at Tyre. Once again spinning Southeast He flails Ammon to the direct east of Jerusalem and in chapter 2 works south to Moab. Having completed the whirling judgment of the surrounding nations, He addresses His own people. First up is Judah, and what is her fault? She despised the law of the Lord, did not keep His commandments and believed her own lies that led her astray. It sounds like the USA. Then He lambasts Israel. What is her fault?

Because they sell the righteous for silver, And the poor for a pair of sandals. They pant after the dust of the earth which is on the head of the poor, And pervert the way of the humble. A man and his father go in to the same girl, To defile My holy name. They lie down by every altar on clothes taken in pledge, And drink the wine of the condemned in the house of their god.

They have taken advantage of the poor. They have participated in unbridled lasciviousness. They have pursued other gods using the earnest of the poor. All of these crimes were forbidden by the Law. Most of them were accomplished by the rich against the poor. He recounts to them the benefits that He had given the nation since leading them out of Egypt. Israel has rejected the pleas of His prophets to repent. Israel can therefore expect to be destroyed. A Holy God will do nothing else.
God raised up the USA for a purpose-to spread the good news of Jesus Christ to the rest of the world. He blessed us with natural and material wealth in order to finance taking the good news to all ethnic groups, to give to the poor and to set the captive free. We have turned from God and spent our wealth mostly on ourselves and often enslaved more people of the world in the bondage of materialism. The answer doesn’t lie in more socialism as seen in the Democratic debate. To take by force from those who have to give to those who do not have destroys the human motivation to work hard. The answer doesn’t lie in capitalism. People who pull themselves up by their own bootstraps are to be applauded, but most of those who gain this world’s money see it as belonging to themselves and therefore keep the majority of it for themselves. In reality, it all belongs to God. We are instructed in Ephesians 4:28,
Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need.
That is to be understood as to give to one who has true need, not just being lazy. Socialism encourages laziness in the lower economic class because it bypasses the glory of God. They do not see the need to labor for the glory of God. Capitalism encourages greediness when it bypasses the glory of God. Those who have earned more than they need see no need to give the remainder to those in need for the glory of God. The issue really isn’t a political or economic system. The issue is our heart, our desire for the glory of God. He Who had all, gave all that we might have Him. We should do the same. That is His glory. Indeed, we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

2 Thessalonians 2
Who is the one who restrains? Many interpreters believe that the One who restrains is the Holy Spirit. He is Christ's, as such, He is the glory of Christ. The glory of Christ restrains the lawless one. As humans, we are depraved--we are as bad off as we can be. However, we are not as bad as we can be. The glory of Christ restrains the human race from being as bad as we can be. One day the One who restrains will be removed from the earth. On that day, the lawless one will be revealed. He will do his work upon the earth for a little while. During that time, we will see how wicked man can be. But then, Jesus will return. When He returns, He will consume the lawless one with the breath of His mouth. Now that is some powerful breath! Do you get the picture? Is it literally that Jesus has toxic breath or is it an image designed to get us to see how powerful He is. If He desires, even just His breath will consume the most powerful man to ever live on earth! He will destroy with the brightness of His coming. Jesus is so holy and beautiful that His very presence consumes and destroys evil. Oh that His presence might find its fullness in me, consuming all my sin and evil! One day it will be. In that day, I will obtain His glory. Wow! I will obtain His glory! Let's go out and embrace Him! Lord Jesus show me Your glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John

October 18

1 Kings 21
“What goes around comes around.” It is a saying that we frequently hear. I often have wondered what it really means. In today’s reading, we see an example of it. It has been the trait of human nature throughout the ages for those in power to use their power unjustly to gain advantage over those whom they rule. The oppressed often cry out in their oppression for relief, but have no one to deliver them. We wonder where justice can be found. Ahab & Jezebel use their sovereignty to kill Naboth and obtain his vineyard. This was more than just a garden. In Ahab’s day Israel was a major exporter of the world’s wine. This was Naboth’s livelihood. This was also Naboth’s inheritance passed down from his fathers. Where is justice? The Lord ultimately makes sure that justice is served. And it is forecast in this situation. Ahab & Jezebel will meet a gruesome end because of what they have done. What goes around will come around. Where is the mercy in this? Ahab humbles himself. The result is a postponement of the fulfilling of justice. So, God’s justice and mercy are both seen in this reading.
Am I wondering if justice will ever be served in the way that I was wronged? It will be eventually. Is there a possibility for mercy? Yes, there is a possibility. Can both be accomplished? Yes, they can. You see, that is the glory of the Lord as he guides this world on its wobbly course. Justice and mercy will meet and kiss, and mercy will triumph over justice. When God rolls up the scroll of time and says, “It is over,” that is exactly what we will see. The only question that remains for us to determine is which side of the equation will we land? Will we land under God’s justice or under His mercy? If we are in Jesus, it will be under His mercy. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

Psalm 109
This is what is commonly called an ‘imprecatory’ Psalm. It is one of those Psalms that calls for destruction of the Psalmist’s enemies. Some have real problems with someone under the inspiration of the Spirit calling down curses on their enemy, but there has to be justice if God is good. And if there is true justice, we do not have to worry about desiring it. We simply need to remember that we are the recipients of mercy. We received mercy because we responded to His unmerited favor. The people in imprecatory Psalms are ones who have refused to respond to God’s unmerited favor, particularly in today’s Psalm. The one upon whom David is calling down curses is certainly unrepentant. More than unrepentant, Peter recognized that David was looking beyond his enemy down the corridor of time to Judas. He quotes Psalm 69:25 and Psalm 109:8 in reference to Judas.
Certainly Judas is an example of one who was unrepentant. He was seeking to manipulate Jesus to his own ends. I believe that was his purpose in betraying Jesus. He had left his former lifestyle and hooked his wagon to what he thought was the rising Messiah. Judas saw an opportunity to wealth and power. When Jesus began speaking of suffering and death, he felt cheated and sought to redeem what he could of the situation. He sold Jesus for the price of a slave. There is nothing wrong with desiring true justice. We just need to remember that if it were not for His mercy, we would be obliterated in the distribution of true justice. But that is the glory of our Lord. He is indeed truly just, but He also ministers mercy to the repentant! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

AMOS 1
I had an interesting experience today. I went to an MLK Jr. Celebration Committee meeting. One of the participants there was a woman around 8 years older than I. She looked familiar and her name sounded familiar. The more I thought about it, the more I began to suspect that she was my 9th grade OK history and civics teacher. I went to her after the meeting and asked, did you teach civics in 1969/70. She began laughing.
“Yes, were you one of my students?” she replied. We talked a while. It was her first teaching assignment out of college. She had 5 classes of 44 students each. She laughed and said, “Your class was wild. Not in a mean way, y’all were just wild.” I couldn’t help but agree. I had her the last hour of the day. We were ready to get out of school by the time we reached her class. “I’m amazed you remember me,” she said. “I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you.” I did not expect her to recognize me. It was 45 years ago. I was one of over 200 students. I did nothing to make myself stand out.
By the world’s standard, I am a nobody. My maternal grandpa was an oil field worker. His father was a trolley driver (back in the day when they were drawn by mules). My paternal grandfather was a variety of things, a motorcycle policeman (the first in Kansas), a gas station manager/owner, a hardware store owner. His father was a farmer. I can trace my lineage back into the 17th century here in America. Beyond that it is mostly guess work. My traceable lineage is mostly farmers. I am not aware of any noble and mighty of whom I am a direct descendant. In high school I did little to distinguish myself. I was a wannabe athlete. In Jr. High I tried out for a vocal men’s ensemble. There were 8 positions open; 7 of us tried out. I did not get selected. I kind of gave up on music after that. I never made the honor roll in high school. I was one of the kids who didn’t get in trouble, kept my nose clean and got out of school. I worked my way through college, occasionally made the Dean’s Honor roll, but other than that I did not distinguish myself in anyway. Were it not for my presence on Facebook and LinkeIin, if you Googled my name, the only entry you would find for me would be in the white pages. I’ve lived in the USA for probably its greatest period of prosperity and world leadership, but I have not contributed to it other than by voting and being a common worker. Of the 3.18 million people in the USA, if I were to die today, I doubt that more than a hundred people would show up at my funeral. By the world’s standard, outside of my family, I’m a nobody.
It was a golden age for Judah and Israel. Jeroboam and Uzziah were both rebuilders. They both took a kingdom and built and left it stronger than when they received it. In prior years they had been much abused by their surrounding neighbors, Syria, Philistia, Edom, Tyre, Ammon and Moab. Both Jeroboam and Uzziah strengthened the walls of their cities and increased their armies. It was a time perhaps like ours in the USA. Many had become rich; wealth was flowing for many even though the poor remained. But in their rebuilding they had become arrogant and abused the poor. Committing idolatry they added other gods to their worship. They were in need of correction. What would God do to correct them?
God chose a nobody, as He usually does. Amos was in a sense, a nobody. Amos was a simple sheep breeder, a shepherd. Why Amos? Since Amos is one of the first of the writing prophets, we know he was literate. That seems a bit odd. Because of the nature of their occupation, shepherds didn’t have much opportunity to read or write. How did he find the time to learn to read and write? Can you imagine carrying a big scroll with you out into the field to write something, or to read? Yet, Abraham was a shepherd. Moses was a shepherd, but he was raised in Pharaoh’s court. David was a shepherd. He wrote much of the Psalms. Where did he learn to write? I suspect that Amos chose to learn to read and write because he wanted to know God. He was available. These were Amos’ two virtues. He was a nobody, and he was available. Apart from writing this prophecy, did God use him for anything in this world? The jury is still out on that one.
It is the glory of God to choose nobodies. It is the glory of God to reveal Himself to and through nobodies. At times in the past, I have made myself available to him. To my shame, I have also at times made myself unavailable to him. You see, when one makes oneself available to God, one must listen for His voice, even when He is silent. During long periods of silence, I often find that it is because in the silence, I quit listening and obeying. But it is to His glory that He will always rattle my cage to get me to listen and obey again. You see I’m a nobody in the world’s sight, but I am significant in His sight. He knows that if He does something through me, He will get the glory. I know well enough that if anything of eternal consequence happens through me, it is only because He likes to use nobodies so that He gets all of the glory, and that is as it should be. Indeed, we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

2 Thessalonians 1
Where can I see the glory of Christ? I can see it in the people whom He changes! Did you know that there is greater persecution in the world today against Christians than there has ever been in church history? We are to a degree safe here in the USA. But world wide there are places where our brothers and sisters are enduring great atrocities because they love Jesus. Jesus places it in their hearts to love their enemies and to walk worthy of the kingdom in spite of the atrocities performed against them. Now that is glory! It is one thing to stand yourself against those who hate you. However, it is a totally different thing to be able to give others the ability to love their enemies. Yet Jesus does this on a daily basis in our world today! He did it in the Thessalonians and He does it today.
There is another aspect of His glory. He will one day return and bring an overwhelming end to those who hate him and persecute those who love Him. When He does, He will punish them with everlasting destruction from His presence and from the glory of His power. In that day we will give Him great glory. I cannot even imagine the horror of being eternally shut off from His presence or from the glory of His power. Yet He will be just in doing just that. They will deserve all that comes upon them.
Where can I see the glory of Christ? I can see it in the people whom He changes! I will see it in the people whom He judges! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

October 17

October 17
1 KINGS 20
It was my job to block him, and I couldn’t do it. He was first string and I was second string. The second string quarterback was understandably getting perturbed with me. The quarterback was occasionally getting creamed by him. In my defense he was at least 40 lbs. bigger than I, and it was all muscle, not fat. We came in from football practice, and in the shower he scowled, “I beat your . . .” What could I say? He had! But that did not stop the anger. I’m a slow burner. I don’t explode unless I’ve been burning a long time. I burned all night long. I was going to have to do the same thing the next day. The more I thought, the angrier I became. He had some other comment the next day before practice. “Let not him who puts his pads on boast like him who takes it off.” I was boiling now. When it came time, coach was chewing on me again, “Chaffin you’ve got to get under him.” But the lower I got, the lower he went. The physics of that extra 40 lbs. was still working against me. I despaired. If I couldn’t get under him, I’d at least make him hurt. I have always had a hard head. I quit trying to get under him. He was low enough; I went straight for his helmet. Play after play it was my helmet on his helmet as hard as I could hit him. I don’t think I ever properly blocked him, but I did notice that he was no longer penetrating like before. He wasn’t quite on edge like he had been. In the locker room someone asked him a question. He couldn’t remember the answer. They started asking other simple questions. He couldn’t answer them. He had a slight concussion. “Let not the one who puts on his armor boast like the one who takes it off.” To my shame now, I felt only a tiny bit of shame then.
Ahab was a dirty rotten sinner, so was Ben Hadad. Ben Hadad’s country was bigger and stronger than Israel. Is God obligated to protect us when we are in rebellion? Was God under any obligation to protect Ahab? Absolutely not! Ben Hadad was not simply controlling Ahab, he was humiliating him. The Lord treated this as an opportunity to show His rebellious king that He is indeed the Lord and there is no other. He intervened on Israel’s behalf and Israel defeated Syria. It was also time for Syria to learn that Yahweh is the only wise God, and there is no other. But Ben Hadad was insolent, and rather than seeing that his loss was due to the intervention of the Almighty, he attributed it to, “Their gods are gods of the hills. Therefore they were stronger than we; but if we fight against them in the plain, surely we will be stronger than they.” He was impugning the glory of God. God would not permit that. Did Ahab deserve to be protected? Absolutely not! But for defense of His own glory God destroyed Ben Hadad. Ben Hadad should not have boasted like he was taking his armor off.
Is God obligated to protect me? Absolutely not! But he will defend his own glory. Let no one who has not finished the course boast like one who has finished the course. Like Yogi Berra says, “It ain’t over till it’s over.” We might despair now, but it’s not over yet. When it is over, we will look back and see that God will have glorified Himself. No, I may not understand right now, but I will then. Therefore, I should choose a course of action which will please Him. Getting angry and beating people on the helmet won’t satisfy. But letting God be the judge will because it is all about His glory, not mine. If I make it about my glory, I will make it more than a tiny bit of shame. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

PSALM 108
There were only 6 teams in the league. We played 10 games each season. We had a spring season and a fall season. In this soccer club, I was my son’s coach. That was kind of a laugh. At the beginning of the first game, I had never observed a soccer game in its entirety. The club had sent me to a coaching clinic to teach me how to coach youth soccer. It was a good clinic. It emphasized making soccer fun for the kids while teaching them the basic techniques for developing good soccer skills. There was a marked difference between what I was taught in the clinic and what I had experienced as youth baseball player. Yet there is still that competitive spirit in me that desires to win. While the years progressed, I progressed as a coach. I certainly wanted to make the experience fun for the kids and to help them increase their skills in soccer, but part of the game being fun is that you win on occasion. It’s no fun to be constantly beaten. In terms of win loss, the first season was a disaster. But I think we did win the recognition of the most improved team.
As the years progressed, the core kids on the team progressed along as a team. The kids improved in their soccer skills, and we began to win a little more. Most of the teams remained intact as we aged. There was one coach whose team I never could beat. I remember after the 4th or 5th time that his team beat us, it had been a very close game, instead of what had been a rout the first time we played them. I went to him after the game to congratulate him on another victory. I could not resist saying, “One of these days we are going to win.” He just smiled and walked on. A good coach wants his players to develop to their fullest potentials, and he wants them to win. He rejoices when they are having fun and are victorious over their opponent.
God rejoices in our victories.

I will rejoice (God speaking). . . over Philistia I will triumph. . . Through God (David speaking) we shall do valiantly.” When we are victorious, it is really His doing. Verse one says, “O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise, even with my glory.

What is his glory? He would have no glory if the Lord had not worked through him. David is recognizing the source of his glory; it is the Lord. He trains us for life. He trains us for victory over sin. He trains us to triumph. If we respond to Him, He develops us to our fullest potential. He causes us to win for His glory, and He rejoices in it. That is His glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

JOEL 3
One cannot but help wonder at times if God really is a great Judge as He says that He is. After all when we see ISIS beheading Christian children, or Nazis exterminating 6 million Jews plus 12 million non-Jews, or even the anti-Semitism that is arising again on our college campuses (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAyFlByb64M ), one wonders if God is really a just judge. If He is, then He seems to be rather lax. The making of videos concerning discrimination against so many different people groups is seemingly endless. Just type “anti-discrimination” into your YouTube search engine and you will see what I mean. It seems that every one is discriminated against in some way. Who can sort it all out? Who can really judge?
Joel reminds us that indeed God does and will judge. One day He will bring judgment to the earth. Apocalyptically He pictures Himself to us as setting up His judgment seat in the Valley of Jehoshaphat. This valley is considered to be that part of the Kidron Valley between the Temple and the Mount of Olives. I really like the imagery here. At the foot of the temple, He judges. The temple, where the sacrifices for sin are atoned, is where judgment takes place. West of the Temple just outside the city gate Jesus was crucified. There sin was judged. There atonement was made. There redemption is offered. There at the foot of sacrifice, He will judge. Jehoshaphat means, “Yahweh is Judge.”
The thrust of Joel is that judgment has come upon the nation of Israel, God’s people. But here in the last chapter He calls the nations into the valley of decision. Here He will judge. He is depicted as roaring against the nations, but His people will find safety in Him. He will acquit His people of bloodshed. They will find their safety in Him. What a picture of the Lord Jesus. We find our safety in being crucified with Him. In Him we have peace with God. In Him our sins are atoned. In Him we are acquitted. Apart from Him there remains nothing but a fiery expectation of judgment. That leaves us in the valley of decision. Will we decide to be in Him or apart from Him? What would we trade for His glory? Indeed, we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

This picture is taken from toward the southern end of the Mount of Olives looking west-northwest toward the Temple Mount. In between is the Kidron Valley, or as Joel calls it, the Valley of Jehoshaphat. Can you image multitudes in this valley awaiting judgment by our Lord?
This passage played a significant part in the ministry of Billy Graham. Go to http://www.ccel.us/billy.ch11.html to read about it.

1 THESSALONIANS 5
The doctrine of the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ has at least one major purpose. It is to give us comfort in the midst of darkness. He is our Prince of peace and King of kings. We live in a world that keeps giving us promises of peace. The politics of the world gives us a never ending parade of people who promise that, if we follow them, they will lead us into peace and prosperity. Yet Scripture is clear; there is only One who gives lasting peace, only One who gives eternal prosperity. And the Scripture is clear that, as we progress toward His coming, we will progress into ever greater darkness and trouble in the world. But when He appears, there will be such contrast! Jewelers usually display their diamonds on a background of black. The contrast does much to show off the beauty of the diamond. So also, the beauty of our Lord Jesus will be so amazing in contrast as our husband comes in His glory for His bride. We want to be prepared for the wedding ceremony; that is what sanctification is all about. He calls us to cooperate with Him in being adorned for Him. Yet even as we cooperate, it is He that sanctifies us completely. He will preserve us blameless at His coming! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

October 16

1 KINGS 19
I think it was February 14, 1981. I was in my house in Portland, Oregon studying for a Greek exam. A low rumble like a giant truck going down the street began. As it increased, the bookshelves on the wall in front of me began to bounce. It finally dawned upon me, “This is not a truck.” I turned on the radio, and sure enough, I had experienced my first felt earthquake. It was November 5, 2011; OSU was playing Kansas State University. OSU defeated KSU in a dramatic finish in the closing minute of the game. Seconds later, as the fans left the stadium, the ground literally rumbled under a slight earthquake. The next day, November 6, 2011, Oklahoma trembled under a 5.6 magnitude earthquake. Later that night flash floods and hail storms swept through the state, and on Nov. 7 the largest November tornado on record swept through the state. I am not sure, but I would guess that during that time our fire department responded to a fire somewhere in our community. Earthquakes, tornados and fires, they are all dramatic events which are pegged in our memories and fill the headlines or our newspapers. They are full of power to change and alter lives.
Elijah had been used by God to stop the rain from falling for 3 years, been fed by ravens, caused flour and oil to miraculously multiply, raised a boy from the dead, called fire down from heaven, killed 450 false prophets and caused the rain to fall again. He could do this because he knew and trusted the glory of God. But when Jezebel threatens to kill him, he ran like a scared rabbit. What’s up with that? After he ran south to Horeb, Sinai, the Lord asks him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” Note that Elijah’s answer is focused upon himself not the glory of God, “I have been very zealous. . . I am the only one left. . . they seek to take my life.”
So what does God do? He sends him out of his cave to stand on the mountain and experience wind, earthquake and fire. I have experienced tornadic weather. It is exhilarating to say the least! I’ve been in earthquakes. It is indeed a fearful happening. My house has burned down. I was powerless to stop it. They were all dramatic events, I did not meet God in the tornados or the earthquakes or in the fire, but in those events God did speak to me. It was not an audible voice. It was in the stillness of my spirit. It was an impression in my mind, heart and spirit. God simply said, “I love you, and I am with you.” The drama did not cease, but I knew that He was with me. It was not in the dramatic events that Elijah met God, it was in the still small voice. I tend to think of the glory of God as being the dramatic big events, winning the victory, shaking the earth, blowing buildings away, burning up things, but really His glory is found every bit as much, if not more, in His still small voice in the midst of life’s drama, heartaches, victories, defeats, amazements, he speaks softly. It is the relationship of the Infinite One stooping down to me as the finite one and whispering, “I love you and I am with you. Be still and know that I am God.” Yes, I am replaceable, but He will stoop down in my despair and lift me up. In the still small voice He asks me in my despair, “What are you doing here?” The dramatic deliverance wasn’t enough. I need to hear His still small voice. It calms my soul and restores me. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

The traditional site of Mt. Sinai. Whether or not it is actually here is debatable, but Elijah fled to Horeb or Sinai and hid in a cave. Traditionally the cave was the cleft in the rock in which Moses was placed to see the backside of the glory of the Lord.


PSALM 107
REDEEMED. Redeemed is word Christians throw around quite frequently, but how often do we stop to think of the import of the word? A few who read this have had the personal privilege of never having known the bondage of debt. Most who read this are from the middle class. Your debt has extended at least to the mortgage on your house. You know the tension of what might happen if you lost your job. Your house is just 6 months away from foreclosure. Perhaps a few of you know all too well the sinking feeling of having more debt than you could ever pay. Health problems combined with a low paying job and no insurance have financially sunk you. Even if you worked every day of your life and properly budgeted your money and lived to be 100, you would still never pay back what you owe.
In the Psalmist’s day, most everyone reading this would understand the danger of such debt. In his day you would be sold as a slave in order to pay your debt. The United States no longer permits people to be bought and sold on the market as slaves; although, we still illegally have slaves through human trafficking. The closest thing that we have to a debtor’s prison are the laws we have for not paying child support. When I was involved in jail ministry in Brunswick County, about 1/3 of the people in jails on misdemeanors were there for not paying child support. For many of them, it was willful. For many it was a matter of economics. They did not make enough money to support themselves and the children they sired, who lived in a different household. What do you do when your debt owed is greater than your ability to pay?
In the Psalmist’s day, someone who needed to be redeemed was someone who owed more than he had ability to pay. In such a case, first his lands would be sold off. If there were still money owed, that person’s family and even himself could be sold as a slave. But God had made a provision for such circumstance and instructed the nearest of kin to come in and buy back the person in debt. That act of buying back is redemption. The nearest of kin was a redeemer.
The Psalmist calls the redeemed to declare the goodness of the Lord. Why? Because He has bought us back out of the slave market of sin and given us our life and land back. Many, either living in or having come through the degradation of living as a slave, focus upon the horror of slave life:

—hunger—either physically, spiritually or emotionally,
—darkness—physically, spiritually or emotionally,
—bondage—to sin or in some cases physical jail,
—death—separated from the life of God to know only the misery of this life.

Jesus seeks to set us free from them. It is our privilege and duty to declare His goodness for setting us free from the slave market of sin. We can participate in His glory. What a joy to declare His goodness in doing so! I was hopelessly lost in the consequences of my sin, and He died in my place. He paid the price for my redemption. I love the words of the old song written by the blind composer Fanny Crosby:

1 Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed thro’ His infinite mercy,
His child and forever I am.
2 Redeemed, and so happy in Jesus,
No language my rapture can tell;
I know that the light of His presence
With me doth continually dwell.
3 I think of my blessed Redeemer,
I think of Him all the day long:
I sing, for I cannot be silent;
His love is the theme of my song.
Chorus Redeemed, redeemed,
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it!
His child and forever I am.

When that song is on our lips, we are obedient to the command of this Psalm, and we have seen His glory! OH Lord, how great is Your goodness toward me for buying me back out of the slave market of sin! I was there of my own doing, yet You bought me back anyway! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

JOEL 2
Eight nights ago (Oct 7-8, 2014) we had the second blood moon of the 2014-2015 blood moon tetrad. A blood moon is when the moon appears to turn a reddish hue because it passes through the shadow of the earth. John Hagee and others are making a big deal out of this particular tetrad as it relates to Biblical Prophecy. I think there is some significance associated with the fact that there was a blood moon on the Passovers of 30 & 33 A.D. (both leading candidates for the date of the crucifixion of Jesus). Peter in his sermon at Pentecost refers to Joel and to recent events of the Jesus’ crucifixion as fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy. (Acts 2:15-36) Earthsky.org had this to say about blood moon:
Depending upon the century in which you live, a lunar tetrad (four consecutive total lunar eclipses, spaced at six lunar months apart from one another) may happen fairly frequently – or not at all. For instance, in our 21st century (2001-2100), there are a total 8 tetrads, but in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, there were none at all. If we include all the centuries from the 1st century (AD 1-100) through the 21st century (2001-2100), inclusive, there are a total of 62 tetrads. The last one occurred in 2003-2004, and the next one after the 2014-2015 tetrad will happen in 2032-2033.
However, if we want to know which tetrads specifically fell on the Jewish feasts of Passover and Tabernacles, there appear to be a total of 8 in these 21 centuries:

1. 162-163 C.E. (Common Era)
2. 795-796 C.E.
3. 842-843 C.E.
4. 860-861 C.E.
5. 1493-1494 C.E.
6. 1949-1950 C.E.
7. 1967-1968 C.E.
8. 2014-2015 C.E. *

Passover prefigures the sacrifice of the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. So it would indeed be significant that Joel’s prophecy of the moon turning to blood should happen on the Passover in which Jesus was crucified. Listen to Joel’s promise of salvation found in Joel 2:12–14:

12“Now, therefore,” says the LORD, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. 13So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm. 14Who knows if He will turn and relent?”
And
31The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. 32And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the LORD Shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance, As the LORD has said, Among the remnant whom the LORD calls.

Perhaps that was exactly part of what Peter was referring to as he quoted Joel. The Feast of Tabernacles prefigures the coming of the Messiah. Zechariah even prophesied that when the Messiah would come that anyone who would not celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles should be cut off from the people. So it is possible that the blood moon would be a precursor to both His first and second comings. We are in a great pause in between the first and second coming during which He will pour out His Spirit upon people. Who knows maybe He will return soon and the blood moons are a warning. Then again, maybe this tetrad is just another in a series of tetrads. After all there was no tetrad at His crucifixion, just a blood moon.
So what about the glory of the Lord in this passage? It is His glory to call us to return to Him after we have so heartlessly turned away from Him. It is His glory to call us back to Himself, and it is His glory to even put signs in the heavens to demonstrate His call to us to return. Indeed, we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
* http://earthsky.org/space/what-is-a-blood-moon-lunar-eclipses-2014-2015#tetrad referenced Oct 16, 2014
1 THESSALONIANS 4
The Lord is the avenger of all who have been defrauded or taken advantage of, especially in the church. How does this increase His glory? He doesn't just remove our sins from us, declaring us justified. He also desires to change us so that we no longer sin. I was talking with a friend yesterday concerning disciplining children. He told me how he told his children, "Some one has to play the bad guy, and that is me." Why do we as parents sometimes have to play the bad guy and discipline our children? Because if we don't discipline them, our children's nature is such that they will never learn proper behavior. The Lord works with us in a similar way. He disciplines us so that we might change in behavior to reflect what He has judicially declared to be true of us. In short, He calls us to holiness. He disciplines us so that we will trust Him to make us holy in our experience. He calls us to love. He disciplines us so that we will trust Him to make us loving in our experience. His glory is on the line in our experience. That's why He is an avenger. It is to make our lives reflect His glory. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John

October 15

1 KINGS 18
In 2011 and 2012 we had less rainfall in Oklahoma than any consecutive two year period during the dust bowl. Ponds and lakes dried up and vanished. We were getting desperate. Many ranchers were forced to sell off much of their herds in order to protect themselves, the land and the future of the herds. Early in 2013 the Governor called upon the churches to begin praying for rain. We prayed in our church. Soon after the churches began praying, the drought broke, but we are still behind in rain. Some ponds and lakes still have not fully recovered. What was God trying to say to us about our spiritual state through the drought? Do you suppose that He was speaking to us about how we had twisted His glory?
So it had been three years since there had been significant rain in Israel. Like a mad-man, Elijah had appeared before king Ahab and pronounced the drought and then he promptly disappeared. Ahab has had time to think about it. They had to kill much of the livestock because of the drought. The land was now desperate. They were scouring the land for hidden springs to find water for what little livestock they had left. Elijah reappears to challenge the cultural and political mindset as to who Yahweh really is. Elijah challenged 50 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah to a dual. Whoever could call down fire from heaven would reveal himself as Lord. Archaeologists have found rock carvings of Baal holding a club in his right hand and a lightning flash and spear in his left hand. Elijah is going to challenge Baal to his own game-bringing lightning/fire from heaven. Additionally, he challenges the 400 prophets of Asherah. Asherah was the goddess who was the escort of Baal. She controlled fertility.
It wasn’t just Jezebel that had wrong thoughts of Yahweh. Hershel Shanks wrote that in 1975 the archaeologist digging at Kuntillet ’Ajrud found pottery shards which might depict Yahweh as having the consort Asherah. The shards were from the late 9th century B.C. Elijah was from the middle 9th century B.C. Kuntillet would perhaps have been a location that Elijah went past on his way south when he ran from Jezebel (chapter 19). If that is indeed the proper interpretation of the shards, it presents an interesting insight into the conflicted cultural and religious mindset of Elijah’s day. Their concept was indeed warped and shaped by the other religions around them. That Yahweh should have a consort indeed warps His glory. It makes Him in our image, instead of we being a marred image of Him. The religious milieu of the day needed to be opposed.
Elijah was just the man that God chose to challenge that milieu! Elijah walks into the strength of the false prophets because he knew that His God was the Creator of the Universe and there was no other. It was no contest at all. He could boast and mock the false prophets because he knew His God. The false gods were no match for the glory of Yahweh. Their idols have ears, but they do not hear. Their idols have eyes, but they do not see. Their idols have hands, but they do not deliver. Our God has no physical ears, but He hears our cries. He has no physical eyes, but He sees our distresses. He has no physical hands, but He delivers us from sin. How do you think we have twisted His glory? Do we redefine holiness to excuse our sin? Do we redefine blessing to excuse wasting wealth on ourselves? Do we have a passion for seeing our world through God’s eyes, or through our own desires? How we view His glory makes all the difference in how we answer those questions. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

Go to: http://genesistochroniclespictures.blogspot.com/ “Jezreel Plain”

PSALM 106
God is full of lovingkindness and mercy, but He is also full of justice. It is His glory to reveal both. His lovingkindness and mercy postpones the day of judgment that we might have time to repent and receive a greater measure of mercy. The history of the nation of Israel, recited in this psalm, is an example of God’s mercy extended over centuries of waiting for the corporate repentance of the nation, but finally the day of judgment had to come. That day was foreshadowed in the wilderness:
They soon forgot His works; They did not wait for His counsel, But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, And tested God in the desert. And He gave them their request, But sent leanness into their soul.
I often marvel at how quickly they forgot His works. They were less than a week into the desert, after the miraculous Passover, when they forgot those works. They lusted exceedingly for water (Exodus 15:22-26), meat and bread (Exodus 16:1-16). Those are things that every one of us would call the basic necessities of life. Each of us would have lusted for the same. Rather than wait for His counsel, they murmured against Moses. Why would they not wait for His counsel? They forgot His glory. The focus on their desires instead of His glory spiraled into murmuring, testing God. When His glory appeared, it was not enough for them. He gave them the manna and quail. Greedily they gathered and ate the quail (Numbers 11:31-34). They received the meat they wanted, but their souls were dry.
Hmmmm. . . God’s glory is constantly available for me to gaze at in His word. His Spirit is ever present to illuminate it. Are my requests of Him for the increase of His glory, or are they for the fulfilling of my desires? Maybe that is why my/our prayer life exhibits a leanness of soul. O sure, He does grant requests in prayer. They are indeed ‘blessings,’ but do they bring a fatness or leanness of soul? Do the requests of my/our prayer life bring an increase to His glory or my/our desires? O Lord, let my gaze and desire be upon You and Your glory! Satisfy me only with Your glory and not my desires! “Save us, O LORD our God, . . . To give thanks to Your holy name, To triumph in Your praise.” Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

JOEL 1
The road ahead looked like a thin cloud. As we approached it, we realized it was a cloud of grasshoppers. It was a 100+ degree August day in 1978. We were traveling east on the plains of eastern Colorado. Our ’72 Pinto had no air conditioning, and we had to roll up the windows to keep the grasshoppers from dive bombing through open windows. It lasted for miles and miles. Man it got hot inside! When the grasshopper plague finally eased up, the thought occurred to me that my radiator might be covered with smashed grasshoppers which would impede the cooling process for the engine. I pulled over. Sure enough, the radiator was covered in smashed grasshoppers. I did my best to brush the majority of them off without burning my hands. That was almost like a plague of “Biblical Proportions.”
The Locust in the Middle East have a 17 year cycle. My OT professor in seminary brought back a specimen that he had purchased in Israel. It was at least 4 inches long. They can be quite destructive at the peak of their cycle. Apparently, the peak that Joel speaks of was worse than the normal peaks. It killed everything. In an agrarian society a locust plague would be devastating. If it were nationwide, it would be crippling to the nation. The prophet calls upon the people to “Declare a holy fast; call a sacred assembly. Summon the elders and all who live in the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD.” Sometimes plagues, famines, droughts, economic difficulty, relational difficulty, natural disasters are just the result of living in a fallen world. Sometimes God orchestrates them to get our attention. Always God wants us to turn to Him in the midst of them. Why? So that we will learn our need of holiness before a Holy God and that we will seek Him for it.
In the midst of those times we can call upon the Lord, and if there is repentance in our hearts, He will hear us. Is it time to call a sacred assembly? Do our lives individually and corporately seem to be covered with a cloud of locust. Do the grasshoppers seem to be dive bombing through the open windows of our lives. If we roll up the windows, do we feel like we are in an oven? Maybe the Lord is shouting at us, “Repent!”

“To you, O Lord, I call, for fire has devoured the open pastures and flames have burned up all the trees of the field. Even the wild animals pant for you; the streams of water have dried up and fire has devoured the open pastures.”

Sounds like Oklahoma this past summer. The glory of the Lord in this is that we can call upon Him. He invites us to call upon Him. He is most amazing in his mercy! Indeed, we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

1 THESSALONIANS 3
This is the glory of Christ that we are not shaken when we or our loved ones are afflicted. It brings great honor to Him that we remain steadfast in the midst of affliction. It demonstrates His great power in all things and situations. He is able to make it well with our souls. In the midst of affliction He is able to pour out abundantly upon us His love, because He is abundant love. That love is able to flow fully, if we allow it, even to those who afflict us. His power is able to establish our hearts. His love and power are a bedrock upon which we can build our lives. When we let Him establish our foundation in His bedrock, no flood of affliction is able to undermine our lives. The result is a holy conduct in our lives in the midst of adversity that honors Him. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

October 14

1 KINGS 17
Wow! There are at least 4 miracles in this chapter. 1) Elijah by the word of the Lord stops the heavens from raining for three years. 2) God provided for Elijah by means of a Raven (a scavenger bird—yuck!). 3) God provided for Elijah and a widow by means of the widow’s flour and oil pots that would not empty. 4) God provided for the widow by Elijah raising the son from the dead. Each one of them would be amazing by itself, but all 4 of them happened by Elijah’s word. All four of them prefigure the miracles of Jesus.
Jesus on the great day of the feast stood up in the temple and proclaimed, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.” Can you imagine the thirst the people of Israel had after 3 years of drought? Jesus rescues us from drought.
When Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness, do you suppose He visited the brook Cherith? His need was met by fasting. Elijah’s need was met by a scavenger bird. I am not to sure that I would want to eat what a scavenger bird brought me. I mean, how long had the meat been dead? What did it die of? But then if God instilled in it the sense to bring the food to Elijah, I suppose He instilled the sense to bring clean food.
God makes the widow’s flour and oil supernaturally multiply, just like Jesus multiplying the loaves and fishes. Did you every wonder what that looked like? I mean, when he broke the loaves could one see each piece of bread grow back to its original size? When the widow poured out the flour or the oil, did she pour out just enough for the meal, and then when she set it down, did it multiply in the jar? Or did it multiply as she poured it out? Hmmm. . . that must have been pretty cool!
Jesus raised the son of the widow at Nain. His body was being carried in the container to the tomb. Jesus touched him, and he sprang back to life! Wow! One moment she was torn with grief that her only family and support was dead, and suddenly he was alive! How long did it take for mourning to turn to dancing? .1 second, 5 seconds, 10 seconds? How long did it take for the significance of the act to sink in to the mothers and the sons?
So, we see the glory of Jesus prefigured in the four miracles of Elijah. He controls the weather. He provides a place to hide-protection. He provides food. He raises the dead. How does each one apply to me? If I am pursing the will and glory of God, will He do each one for me? Absolutely! The only variable is me. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

The Brook Cherith is a wadi (a seasonally dry riverbed) of Gilead, east of the Jordan River. It is probably the Wadi Yabis, near Beth Shan. I snapped this photo from the taxi traveling from Amman to Beth Shan. Up in the right hand corner, one can see in the haze the Jordan valley as we are approaching the Jordan near Beth Shan from the east. Taken during the dry time of the year, you can imagine how the brook would regularly dry up during the dry time of the year. You can also imagine how in the rainy season these mountains would be a good place to hide.

PSALM 105
“Keep me searchin’ for a heart of gold, and I’m growing old. . .” If you’re old like me, you probably remember that song from the early 70’s. I’m old enough to have watched a number of entertainers go through cycles of trying to find truth and meaning in life. Probably the classic is Bob Dylan. Often celebrated as one of the greatest song writers of the 60’-80’s, he ran the gambit of religions and philosophies. Of course during his “Christian” period, he wrote Gotta Serve Somebody and Man Gave Names to All the Animals. To the best of my knowledge, he currently does not claim Christianity. There is Kris Kristofferson who made a lot of noise about Jesus, especially with his song Why Me Lord? I am not sure where his public stand is right now. There was B.J.Thomas, Rain Drops Keep Fallin on My Head. He professed Christ for a while, then backed off. I think I heard that he is back with Jesus now. Of course there was Jane Fonda. What a radical! She made a few ripples a decade ago about possibly being a follower of Jesus, not sure where she stands now. People keep blindly searching for the truth. Why is it that when they find it, they back away?
Oh there are several answers to that question. The motivations are varied within the same individual and often unknown to the seeker. But I think this Psalm reveals one of the reasons people fall away. Verse 3 commands, “Glory in His holy name; Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the LORD!” I think the reason the seeker often falls away is a failure to make this his/her motivation. Often we, as seekers, are seeking in order to advance our own glory or our own pleasure. If our own glory or pleasure is not advanced, then we fall away. What does it mean to glory in His name as opposed to my name? Why should I have to be commanded to rejoice when I seek Him? Should it not come naturally as I pursue the One who created all things?
The Psalm is replete with the history of God’s redemptive plan in Israel. Many of those acts go beyond His work with Israel. They are types of what God was going to do in Jesus the Messiah in order to deliver us out of the kingdom of darkness into His Kingdom of Light. The Psalmist recounts the many acts that God did before He made them into a great nation. They include the humbling and raising of Joseph, the plaguing of the land of Egypt before their departure, the destruction of the firstborn, the plundering of the Egyptians on the night of their deliverance, the protecting pillar and cloud of the Lord for the nation, the miraculous providing of bread and quail for the sustenance of the people. It is as though the Psalmist is saying, “Connect the dots! These times of suffering and deliverance show the glory of the Lord, not our own glory. Therefore, when suffering and deliverance occur again, connect the dots! God is about to once again reveal His glory! Therefore, led your heart be glad! Rejoice!”
Maybe a reason we have so many people fall away is because we have won them with a promise of glory, but have not helped them to connect the dots of God using the redemptive acts in their lives of suffering and struggle to bring Himself glory in our lives, by our redemption. Therefore, when we continue to suffer or struggle, rather than rejoicing in another opportunity to show His wondrous works, we give up. We thought it was solely about our comfort and redemption. Connect the dots! God used the suffering and discomfort to bring us to Himself. Because of the hardness of our hearts, He must continue to use suffering and discomfort to keep us glorifying Him. Hmmmm. . . Have I connected the dots of suffering and pain that lead me to a knowledge of him? Let my heart rejoice as I seek Him; for when those times of pain and suffering come, it is another opportunity for Him to display His wondrous works and how glorious He is! He alone can keep me searching for a heart of gold. He is that gold. He alone is our reward. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

HOSEA 14
It was a PTA meeting where all the kids came and we played outside while the adults did whatever it is that adults do in PTA meetings. I was having a blast with my friends. But all good things come to an end. My mother, who was also a teacher, was very tired, so she went on home. (We only lived a block from the school.) There were still a few families at the school who had friends my age. I wanted to stay. So I did. After a while my mother sent my older brother to tell me that it was time to come home. I was having too much fun, so I refused. As older brothers are sometimes prone to do, he tried to force me to come home. I wiggled and squirmed and managed to escape. He gave up the chase and went on home. I played for only a couple of minutes and then all of my friends were gone. The school yard isn’t so much fun alone. Now I had to deal with disobeying my mom and return home. Funny how long one block can be when you know you’ve been disobedient and you are not sure what the reception will be at the other end.
He calls us to return to Him. By the end of Hosea we find how repugnant our adulterous heart toward God is to Him. Yet even at this, He calls us to return to Him. He encourages us to say to Him, “Take away our iniquity, and receive us graciously.” If He encourages us to seek that of Him, then it must be that He is willing to do that. He encourages us to say that we will no longer say to the works of our hands, “You are our gods.” How insulting it must be to Him that we worship our own creation! Yet is it not what do so readily? Are not our jobs, our lands, our cars, yes even our families often more important than Him? Yet He calls us to return to Him. In Him we will find mercy. He will heal our backsliding. He will love us freely.
The one block was a long walk home. I wasn’t sure how I would be received. Yes, I received a strong rebuke when I arrived home, but I did find mercy. That is what we find with our Lord when we truly repent. He will love us freely. Why do we wait so long to repent? Indeed, we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john

1 THESSALONIANS 2
I am reminded again from this passage that part of the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ is that He calls us into His own kingdom and glory (v.12) and that, when He returns, part of His glory will be the change that He has produced in us. We are His glory, as our lives are changed by Him (v.19,20). We are called to walk worthy of Him (v. 12). If we are truly justified, the change has already been declared in the heavenly realms. We are called to work out visibly on earth what is true in the heavenlies. That is why focusing on His glory is so important. How can we walk worthy of such glory if we forget what it is? My Jesus not only performed works of power, He always presented attitudes that were beautiful and pleasing to God the Father. He demands holiness, yet extends mercy. He seeks purity, yet pours out grace. He is strong in every situation, yet condescends to me in my weakness. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John