Genesis 48
What is your name? What does it mean? What difference does it make? Jacob blesses Joseph’s sons by giving them the names of his fathers and his own name. Abraham means father of a multitude. Isaac means he laughs. Which of his own names did he pass on to them, Jacob or Israel. Jacob means supplanter. Israel means God prevails or prince of God. God gave Abraham and Israel their names. Is there anything significant in that? Maybe it is this: God wants them to be the father of a multitude of people who laugh and over whom God prevails. There wasn’t much laughter recorded in Israel’s life nor in Isaac’s life. But somehow I think that when the Spirit of God is truly prevailing in one’s life that there will be frequent times of laughter. After all, the joy of the Lord is our strength, and the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy. . . Somehow I think that the Glory of God is increased when we experience joy and laughter because of him. In passing on his names to Joseph’s sons I think that is part of what Israel was trying to impart.
What really ought to excite us as believers is that He has invited us to share in His name. After all, He has adopted us as His children. Do we reflect His name to others? Or do we reflect our old name? Is what radiate to others, supplanter? Or is what we radiate to others, laughter because He has prevailed? Some people whom I have met take their Christianity very seriously, and we ought to. But some are so straight laced that I think if they laughed, their skin would split. Is that the way God wants us to be? Certainly He demands that we take our relationship with Him seriously. I remember being with Fred Hartley as we traveled in Senegal. We took the mission we were on very seriously. But when the work was done, and the trip was done, Fred was full of laughter. God had prevailed, and it filled our hearts with joy. I think that is a great way to reflect His glory. When we are a people over whom He prevails, it is seen in obedience and joy. We laugh. Can you see Him laughing? Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 27:27-50
No illustration can do it justice. How can one describe the glory of our Lord in His crucifixion? He is the King of the universe. Nothing exists that He did not create. Yet here He is permitting the soldiers of a lesser king to strip Him. He could have destroyed them all instantly just by speaking the word. But He allowed them to mock His Kingship. Weaving a crown of thorns they crushed it upon His head. Mocking His anointing as King they anointed Him with their spit. What should have been kisses of loyalty became beatings with reeds and whips. Leading Him off to be crucified, He fell, too weakened by the loss of blood to carry the massive beam of the cross. They drafted a man from the crowd to bear His cross. At the Place of a Skull they offered Him a cheap drug that might deaden some of the pain. But He was born for this. He chose to feel all the pain that would be inflicted by our sin upon Him. Crucifying Him they then gambled for His only earthly possessions, His clothes. Then in continuance of the mocking of this "King," they placed a plaque above His head which read, "This is the King of the Jews." Indeed He is the King of the Jews as well as every other ethnic group that has or ever will live. But this obviously was cast in derision of what He claimed.
Those passing by blasphemed Him. They used His words against Him, "You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself!" Little did they know but as they spoke those words He was in the process of doing just that. He was allowing them to tear down the temple of His body. In three days He was going to build it back up again. Do you suppose that any of those who walked by wagging their heads in derision, after the resurrection repented of their unbelief and recanted their words? Even the robber crucified with Him reviled Him.
But all these were not the greatest pain. The greatest pain for our Lord came from noon until 3 in the afternoon. An eerie darkness fell upon the land. Why? I believe it was because at that time the Father placed all the sin of the world, my sin and your sin, upon Him upon that cross. During that time the Father poured out His holy justice upon Him as He hung between heaven and earth. He, who knew no sin, became sin on our behalf. For the first time the Father was in His face with all His terrible wrath being poured out upon Him. He knew the absolute terror that all of those who choose to go to hell know. He knew the terror of being the recipient of eternal wrath. In agony of the spiritual pain He cried out, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" Crying again, He yielded up His spirit. It was not wrenched from Him. He gave it willingly. This is glory that cannot be illustrated only received. Have you received it? Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Monday, February 15, 2010
Sunday, February 14, 2010
February 14, 2010
Genesis 47
7Then Joseph brought in his father Jacob and set him before Pharaoh; and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 8Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How old are you?” 9And Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years; few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage.” 10So Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from before Pharaoh. What kind of testimony is that? “Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life.” Well, Jacob is at least honest in this statement. Most of his days were evil. He spent them scheming to advance himself or his own agenda until he met the Lord at Peniel. In the next 11 years after wrestling with God Jacob’s Daughter would be raped by Shechem. Jacob’s sons would ruthlessly avenge their sister making him odious in the nostrils of the Canaanites. Jacob would lose his favorite wife in childbirth. Jacob would bury his father Isaac and finally his favorite son would be sold into slavery and reported dead to him. Yes, few and evil were the days of the years of his life. Yet, God was with him. How would he have known it?
Do you feel like Jacob, “Few and evil are the days of the years of my life?” If you truly know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then He is with you. All feelings and circumstances aside, He is with you. What a promise. In the good times and the bad, He is with you. The Eternal God is with you. Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 27:1-26
Every once in a while I do a dramatic monologue as a sermon. I'll take on the character of a person in the Bible and attempt to tell the story from their perspective. Usually I will don a costume with a beard to help the congregation get into the mindset of the story. I remember the first time Liam saw me dressed up as a character. I think He sort of recognized my voice but he certainly didn't recognize the weird clothes or the beard. He wouldn't have anything to do with me until I removed the beard and had "normal" clothes on. He didn't recognize me. But, I was still me. The outward stuff had only changed to enhance communication.
Sometimes the glory of the Lord is obscured because we have this outward picture of what He should be like. When the reality doesn't match up with our thoughts, we reject the reality. Consider these ways that Jesus was not recognized.
He is priceless but His subjects valued Him at only 30 pieces of silver. In Jesus' day that was about 30 days wages for a common laborer. That is definitely not a fortune, maybe $3,000? Thirty pieces of silver was also a common price of a slave in His day. Hey, you could put it on your Master Card. We pay more for our cars than that. Do we ever value Him so cheaply? Is walking with Him worth the price of a car? How can we put any value upon Him? Yet we do. I am afraid that at times we sell Him much cheaper than even $3,000.
He is the King but His subjects did not recognize Him. Pilate wanted to know, "Are you the King of the Jews?" He answered in the affirmative. Yet this King would not answer the charges of His subjects. He should have been giving them orders. They brought Him to trial. Before we condemn these people, ask the question, "Where is Christ in relation to the throne of my life?" Can we honestly say that we even hear His commands when He speaks them to our hearts? When we hear them, do we obey instantly? Full view of His glory would bring instant obedience to His slightest desire. After all He is our King, our great sovereign.
He is just, but His subjects deemed Him worthy of death. There is not injustice in God. Therefore, there is no injustice in Jesus, for He is God. But how often do we complain to Him that our situation is not fair. Like Sarah in the movie, Labyrinth, we continuously protest, "It's not fair!" I had a philosophy professor in college who stated in class as a response to my direct question, "It is never just that an innocent party, no matter how willing, could take the punishment in the place of a guilty party." It is no wonder that the professor couldn't believe the Gospel. He had a faulty understanding of justice. Is it not ironic that Pilate's wife & Pilate, heathens that they were, recognized the justice of Jesus, when Jesus' own people did not recognize His justice?
The problem with the glory of Jesus is that we often obscure it with our own concepts of what that glory should look like. The result is that we don't recognize Him when He is standing in full view in front of us. That is why we need to speak the glory to one another as the Scriptures declare it. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
7Then Joseph brought in his father Jacob and set him before Pharaoh; and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 8Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How old are you?” 9And Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years; few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage.” 10So Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from before Pharaoh. What kind of testimony is that? “Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life.” Well, Jacob is at least honest in this statement. Most of his days were evil. He spent them scheming to advance himself or his own agenda until he met the Lord at Peniel. In the next 11 years after wrestling with God Jacob’s Daughter would be raped by Shechem. Jacob’s sons would ruthlessly avenge their sister making him odious in the nostrils of the Canaanites. Jacob would lose his favorite wife in childbirth. Jacob would bury his father Isaac and finally his favorite son would be sold into slavery and reported dead to him. Yes, few and evil were the days of the years of his life. Yet, God was with him. How would he have known it?
Do you feel like Jacob, “Few and evil are the days of the years of my life?” If you truly know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then He is with you. All feelings and circumstances aside, He is with you. What a promise. In the good times and the bad, He is with you. The Eternal God is with you. Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 27:1-26
Every once in a while I do a dramatic monologue as a sermon. I'll take on the character of a person in the Bible and attempt to tell the story from their perspective. Usually I will don a costume with a beard to help the congregation get into the mindset of the story. I remember the first time Liam saw me dressed up as a character. I think He sort of recognized my voice but he certainly didn't recognize the weird clothes or the beard. He wouldn't have anything to do with me until I removed the beard and had "normal" clothes on. He didn't recognize me. But, I was still me. The outward stuff had only changed to enhance communication.
Sometimes the glory of the Lord is obscured because we have this outward picture of what He should be like. When the reality doesn't match up with our thoughts, we reject the reality. Consider these ways that Jesus was not recognized.
He is priceless but His subjects valued Him at only 30 pieces of silver. In Jesus' day that was about 30 days wages for a common laborer. That is definitely not a fortune, maybe $3,000? Thirty pieces of silver was also a common price of a slave in His day. Hey, you could put it on your Master Card. We pay more for our cars than that. Do we ever value Him so cheaply? Is walking with Him worth the price of a car? How can we put any value upon Him? Yet we do. I am afraid that at times we sell Him much cheaper than even $3,000.
He is the King but His subjects did not recognize Him. Pilate wanted to know, "Are you the King of the Jews?" He answered in the affirmative. Yet this King would not answer the charges of His subjects. He should have been giving them orders. They brought Him to trial. Before we condemn these people, ask the question, "Where is Christ in relation to the throne of my life?" Can we honestly say that we even hear His commands when He speaks them to our hearts? When we hear them, do we obey instantly? Full view of His glory would bring instant obedience to His slightest desire. After all He is our King, our great sovereign.
He is just, but His subjects deemed Him worthy of death. There is not injustice in God. Therefore, there is no injustice in Jesus, for He is God. But how often do we complain to Him that our situation is not fair. Like Sarah in the movie, Labyrinth, we continuously protest, "It's not fair!" I had a philosophy professor in college who stated in class as a response to my direct question, "It is never just that an innocent party, no matter how willing, could take the punishment in the place of a guilty party." It is no wonder that the professor couldn't believe the Gospel. He had a faulty understanding of justice. Is it not ironic that Pilate's wife & Pilate, heathens that they were, recognized the justice of Jesus, when Jesus' own people did not recognize His justice?
The problem with the glory of Jesus is that we often obscure it with our own concepts of what that glory should look like. The result is that we don't recognize Him when He is standing in full view in front of us. That is why we need to speak the glory to one another as the Scriptures declare it. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Saturday, February 13, 2010
February 13, 2010
Genesis 46
This is now the 5th time that God has spoken directly to Jacob. It is significant to me that the first time God meets Jacob at Bethel, He tells Jacob, “I will be with you.” I believe this is the last time that God appears to Jacob. Again He tells him, “I will be with you.” It is the story of Jacob’s life. His God is with him. He never left. Through all of Jacob’s waywardness, He never left Jacob. If we belong to Him, through all our waywardness, He never leaves us. Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 26:47-75
When I was in sixth grade, it seems that I was perpetually in trouble at school. I think I spent more time at my desk at recess than on the playground. If I wasn’t in a fight with someone, I always seemed to be doing the wrong thing at the wrong time. One of the times the janitor had just removed a ton of boxes from the cafeteria storage. They were in this pile outside. We asked him, “Can we play with these?” His answer was, “If you help me throw them away in a little bit.” Then he went back into the cafeteria.
We tore into those boxes with a vengeance. We had been playing with them for less than two minutes when we turned around and saw our teacher stomping toward us. She was not a happy camper. “What do y’all think you are doing?” was her cry. Don’t you hate it when someone asks you a question when you know she already knows the answer? We had been in enough trouble already that year. We did not even try to explain. We just started walking back to our room.
Here is the One who created the universe. He could destroy the whole lot with a single word for He created it by speaking. They are coming to arrest Him. One of the twelve is leading Him. He knows that Judas is coming to betray Him. He has already forecast the problem (26:1, 21-25). Yet, He greets Judas, “Friend, why have you come?” Don’t you hate it when someone asks you a question when you know he already knows the answer? No answer was given. Do you suppose Judas hated the question? He knew Jesus knew the answer.
Peter swings into action slicing off the ear of the servant of the High Priest. “Do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels?” Peter ran away, confused. Don’t you hate it when someone asks you a question when you know he already knows the answer?
Now to the multitude Jesus asks the question, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me?” Don’t you hate it when someone asks you a question when you know he already knows the answer? They ignored the question and took Him anyway.
The Sanhedrin now thought it was there turn to ask the questions. Jesus kept silent until they charged Him by the living God to give an answer. He gave the answer that was true and that they wanted. He made Himself equal with God. Judas would not recognize it. Peter didn’t get it. The multitude rejected it. The Sanhedrin would not permit it. But it was true. Funny how a question drives the point harder than a straight up answer, and yet people still reject it.
With the exception of the Sanhedrin, I believe that in each case Jesus was still extending love to those who were betraying Him, denying Him and arresting Him. He wanted the best for them. What marvelous love and patience does our Lord have! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
This is now the 5th time that God has spoken directly to Jacob. It is significant to me that the first time God meets Jacob at Bethel, He tells Jacob, “I will be with you.” I believe this is the last time that God appears to Jacob. Again He tells him, “I will be with you.” It is the story of Jacob’s life. His God is with him. He never left. Through all of Jacob’s waywardness, He never left Jacob. If we belong to Him, through all our waywardness, He never leaves us. Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 26:47-75
When I was in sixth grade, it seems that I was perpetually in trouble at school. I think I spent more time at my desk at recess than on the playground. If I wasn’t in a fight with someone, I always seemed to be doing the wrong thing at the wrong time. One of the times the janitor had just removed a ton of boxes from the cafeteria storage. They were in this pile outside. We asked him, “Can we play with these?” His answer was, “If you help me throw them away in a little bit.” Then he went back into the cafeteria.
We tore into those boxes with a vengeance. We had been playing with them for less than two minutes when we turned around and saw our teacher stomping toward us. She was not a happy camper. “What do y’all think you are doing?” was her cry. Don’t you hate it when someone asks you a question when you know she already knows the answer? We had been in enough trouble already that year. We did not even try to explain. We just started walking back to our room.
Here is the One who created the universe. He could destroy the whole lot with a single word for He created it by speaking. They are coming to arrest Him. One of the twelve is leading Him. He knows that Judas is coming to betray Him. He has already forecast the problem (26:1, 21-25). Yet, He greets Judas, “Friend, why have you come?” Don’t you hate it when someone asks you a question when you know he already knows the answer? No answer was given. Do you suppose Judas hated the question? He knew Jesus knew the answer.
Peter swings into action slicing off the ear of the servant of the High Priest. “Do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels?” Peter ran away, confused. Don’t you hate it when someone asks you a question when you know he already knows the answer?
Now to the multitude Jesus asks the question, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me?” Don’t you hate it when someone asks you a question when you know he already knows the answer? They ignored the question and took Him anyway.
The Sanhedrin now thought it was there turn to ask the questions. Jesus kept silent until they charged Him by the living God to give an answer. He gave the answer that was true and that they wanted. He made Himself equal with God. Judas would not recognize it. Peter didn’t get it. The multitude rejected it. The Sanhedrin would not permit it. But it was true. Funny how a question drives the point harder than a straight up answer, and yet people still reject it.
With the exception of the Sanhedrin, I believe that in each case Jesus was still extending love to those who were betraying Him, denying Him and arresting Him. He wanted the best for them. What marvelous love and patience does our Lord have! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Friday, February 12, 2010
February 12, 2010
Genesis 45
God makes even the sin of man to praise Him! We’ve reached the climax of the Joseph chronicle. I love these sentences by Joseph:
5“But now, do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life. .. . .7And God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. 8So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. . . .13So you shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that you have seen; and you shall hurry and bring my father down here.
This is the value of focusing upon the glory of the Lord. So often when we are wronged by others, especially fellow believers, our brothers and sisters, we focus upon the wrong. The wrong is painful. It is discouraging. It hurts. But God has ways of taking that sin and turning it into something good. He makes even the sin to praise Him. That does not make the sin good; it just makes His glory greater. He can take vile sin and turn it to His praise. Witness Joseph and his brothers!
How could Joseph possibly not have wanted to take revenge? I submit to you that it is only because he focused on the glory of God and not the sin of his brothers. Even when he did not know how God was going to work in the depths of prison, he focused upon the glory of God. When we look upon His glory, bitterness cannot stick to us. It eventually slides off.
“Tell my father of all my glory in Egypt.” That is a human perspective. All the Egyptians would have discussed the success story of Joseph. He had risen from the depths of prison to the second most powerful man in the world at that time. Had it been today, the paparazzi would have been all over him like flies on honey. On a human level, that is glory! But look at Joseph’s perspective. Twice he says, “God sent me.” Once he says, “It was not you who sent me here, but God.” He also says of God, “He has made me a father to Pharaoh.” It was not just Joseph’s glory that was increased by the sin of man; it was God’s. On a human level, that was made possible because Joseph focused on the glory of God. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 26:26-46
Our hardest moments are often not our most public moments. So it was also with Jesus at this time. The crucifixion was very public. The Garden turmoil was very private. Jesus’ sharing of the Passover meal with the disciples is key to understanding the turmoil in the Garden. The text says, “He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them saying, “Drink from it, all of you, for this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” Later in the Garden, twice He prays, ”Let this cup pass from me.”
What is the cup of His blood of the New Covenant? Jeremiah is the one who pronounced it first in 31:31-34. It is a Covenant that Yahweh (Jesus) makes with Israel, which Israel will be able to keep. These are the results of the Covenant:
He will put His law in their minds.
He will write it on their hearts.
He will be their God.
They shall be His people.
Everyone shall know the Lord.
He will forgive their iniquity.
He will remember their iniquity no more.
How will the Lord accomplish this? Jesus says that it is in His blood. The cup represents the blood of the covenant. A covenant was always inaugurated with the shedding of blood. As Jesus was praying this night in the Garden, the Father was showing Him what was going to happen to Him the next day. He was looking in to that cup. He was seeing the reason for which His blood was going to be shed in His beating and in His crucifixion. That blood was for the remission of sins so that God would no longer remember our sins.
As Jesus looked into that cup, He saw all the sins of all the people of all the ages. He saw the wrath that the Father felt for that sin. Most importantly for me, He looked into that cup and saw the sin of John Chaffin. He saw all my insolence against Him. He saw the pain that it would cost Him to bear my insolence as the Father punished that insolence so that He would remember it no more. But it wasn’t just my insolence. He saw every sin that I have ever committed and ever will commit. He saw every time I placed a god before Him, and He thought, “Isn’t there some other way?” He saw every time that I made an idol and the justice that God would pour out upon it, and He thought, “Do I have to go through this?” He saw every time I spoke His name in vain and was repulsed by my vulgarity, and He thought, “Isn’t there some other way?” He saw all the times when I was so caught up in my own work and pleasure that I could not honor Him even one day out of the week by ceasing my activities to seek His face, and He thought, “Must I die for this?” He saw every time that I failed to honor my parents with the great honor that they deserve. Perhaps He thought, “Why should I honor a boy who cannot honor his own parents, by dying for that boy?” He saw every time that I hated someone else or denigrated someone else’s value. He said, “Must I die for a murderer?” He saw all my lusts, my thefts, my lies, my covetousness. He thought, “Must I go through this for Him? Isn’t there some other way? Cannot this cup pass?” As He looked, it was not just the sin of John Chaffin that repulsed Him. It was that sin multiplied by billions of others. The sin wasn’t all that was there, but He also saw the wrath of a Holy God being poured out upon that sin. “Isn’t there some other way?” The answer was a simple, “No.” His reply, “Your will be done.” The struggle was over. It was now just a day of agony. And He did it for me, and He did it for you. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
God makes even the sin of man to praise Him! We’ve reached the climax of the Joseph chronicle. I love these sentences by Joseph:
5“But now, do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life. .. . .7And God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. 8So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. . . .13So you shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that you have seen; and you shall hurry and bring my father down here.
This is the value of focusing upon the glory of the Lord. So often when we are wronged by others, especially fellow believers, our brothers and sisters, we focus upon the wrong. The wrong is painful. It is discouraging. It hurts. But God has ways of taking that sin and turning it into something good. He makes even the sin to praise Him. That does not make the sin good; it just makes His glory greater. He can take vile sin and turn it to His praise. Witness Joseph and his brothers!
How could Joseph possibly not have wanted to take revenge? I submit to you that it is only because he focused on the glory of God and not the sin of his brothers. Even when he did not know how God was going to work in the depths of prison, he focused upon the glory of God. When we look upon His glory, bitterness cannot stick to us. It eventually slides off.
“Tell my father of all my glory in Egypt.” That is a human perspective. All the Egyptians would have discussed the success story of Joseph. He had risen from the depths of prison to the second most powerful man in the world at that time. Had it been today, the paparazzi would have been all over him like flies on honey. On a human level, that is glory! But look at Joseph’s perspective. Twice he says, “God sent me.” Once he says, “It was not you who sent me here, but God.” He also says of God, “He has made me a father to Pharaoh.” It was not just Joseph’s glory that was increased by the sin of man; it was God’s. On a human level, that was made possible because Joseph focused on the glory of God. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 26:26-46
Our hardest moments are often not our most public moments. So it was also with Jesus at this time. The crucifixion was very public. The Garden turmoil was very private. Jesus’ sharing of the Passover meal with the disciples is key to understanding the turmoil in the Garden. The text says, “He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them saying, “Drink from it, all of you, for this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” Later in the Garden, twice He prays, ”Let this cup pass from me.”
What is the cup of His blood of the New Covenant? Jeremiah is the one who pronounced it first in 31:31-34. It is a Covenant that Yahweh (Jesus) makes with Israel, which Israel will be able to keep. These are the results of the Covenant:
He will put His law in their minds.
He will write it on their hearts.
He will be their God.
They shall be His people.
Everyone shall know the Lord.
He will forgive their iniquity.
He will remember their iniquity no more.
How will the Lord accomplish this? Jesus says that it is in His blood. The cup represents the blood of the covenant. A covenant was always inaugurated with the shedding of blood. As Jesus was praying this night in the Garden, the Father was showing Him what was going to happen to Him the next day. He was looking in to that cup. He was seeing the reason for which His blood was going to be shed in His beating and in His crucifixion. That blood was for the remission of sins so that God would no longer remember our sins.
As Jesus looked into that cup, He saw all the sins of all the people of all the ages. He saw the wrath that the Father felt for that sin. Most importantly for me, He looked into that cup and saw the sin of John Chaffin. He saw all my insolence against Him. He saw the pain that it would cost Him to bear my insolence as the Father punished that insolence so that He would remember it no more. But it wasn’t just my insolence. He saw every sin that I have ever committed and ever will commit. He saw every time I placed a god before Him, and He thought, “Isn’t there some other way?” He saw every time that I made an idol and the justice that God would pour out upon it, and He thought, “Do I have to go through this?” He saw every time I spoke His name in vain and was repulsed by my vulgarity, and He thought, “Isn’t there some other way?” He saw all the times when I was so caught up in my own work and pleasure that I could not honor Him even one day out of the week by ceasing my activities to seek His face, and He thought, “Must I die for this?” He saw every time that I failed to honor my parents with the great honor that they deserve. Perhaps He thought, “Why should I honor a boy who cannot honor his own parents, by dying for that boy?” He saw every time that I hated someone else or denigrated someone else’s value. He said, “Must I die for a murderer?” He saw all my lusts, my thefts, my lies, my covetousness. He thought, “Must I go through this for Him? Isn’t there some other way? Cannot this cup pass?” As He looked, it was not just the sin of John Chaffin that repulsed Him. It was that sin multiplied by billions of others. The sin wasn’t all that was there, but He also saw the wrath of a Holy God being poured out upon that sin. “Isn’t there some other way?” The answer was a simple, “No.” His reply, “Your will be done.” The struggle was over. It was now just a day of agony. And He did it for me, and He did it for you. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Thursday, February 11, 2010
February 11, 2010
Genesis 44
“His life is bound up in the lad’s.” What symbolism is found in those words! Judah, speaking of the relationship between Israel and Benjamin, sums it up that way. Could this not sum up the closeness of the relationship between God the Father and God the Son? Their life is bound up in each other. And yet we don’t want to push the symbolism too far for Jesus clearly said, “For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself.” The mystery of the Trinity is indeed too complex for me to handle. Yet, I see a small relationship between Israel & Benjamin and the Father and the Son. There is an intense love relationship between the two.
Here is another piece of symbolism. Judah in this instance becomes a type of Christ. Benjamin is declared guilty for possessing the stolen divination cup. For the love of the father, Judah volunteers to take the place of Benjamin. For the love of the Father, Jesus volunteered to take our place in death and resurrection. Granted Benjamin wasn’t really guilty. But we were really guilty. The death of the Son satisfied the righteous wrath of the Father against our sin and led us into a position to be restored in relationship to the Father. What awesome love. Let it sink down into your soul. The Father loves the Son. The Son loves the Father. The Father loves us. The Son loves us. All that remains is for us to love them and find our delight in them alone! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 26:1-25
Sometimes I think that meditating on the glory of God is like riding on a pendulum that swings not in arcs, not in circles, not even in spheres, not even in spheres plus the dimension of time but in spheres plus the dimension of time plus other dimensions which we cannot even conceive. I have a hard time just keeping the arcs in balance. Anyway, a few days after giving the parable that when you have done it for the least of these, you have done it for Jesus, this woman shows up. She wishes to worship the Lord in an extraordinary way. She takes fragrant oil that was probably worth about a year’s wages and poured it upon Jesus’ head. Now, a year’s worth of wages could go a long way in ministering to the “least of these.” Many were indignant at the waste, after all, so many of the “least of these” could have been cared for with the sale of the oil. Jesus rebuked those who were indignant. All of a sudden I feel like I am on the other end of the arc of the pendulum, or maybe even some other dimension.
Some how she caught the teaching of Jesus that in two days He would be crucified and the disciples did not catch the teaching. She understood. The anointing was for His burial. She somehow understood it was for her that Jesus was dying. She glimpsed His glory. She wanted to worship Him extravagantly. Some have been indignant with the church at building elaborate cathedrals while the needs of the poor go unmet. Jesus is sent away as one of the “least of these”. Often times I think their critiques are on target. It seems we are often more interested in building “Christian playgrounds” than taking the Gospel to those who have never heard or ministering to the needs of “the least of these.”
But here is what I think is the balance: No worship expense is a waste if the motivation is 100% to worship and adore Jesus and to minister to Him. Why? Because His glory is so great that He can take that so-called “waste”, which is poured out upon Him, and He can multiply what was poured out so that those who do the pouring can turn around and because of the supply of His glory minister to others. I don’t know. The Scriptures don’t say. But I’d be willing to bet that after the resurrection this woman was a power house in ministering to the “least of these.” What appeared to be a waste became an unbelievable increase because it was completely motivated for the glory of God and not self.
On the other hand, Judas, seeing this, couldn’t take the pendulum ride any longer. He left and sold Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. How do you value the glory of Jesus? Judas thought he had a bargain at 30 pieces of silver. The woman thought she had a bargain at a year’s worth of wages. Our abandoning ourselves in the worship of Jesus is never a waste. His glory is just too great! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
“His life is bound up in the lad’s.” What symbolism is found in those words! Judah, speaking of the relationship between Israel and Benjamin, sums it up that way. Could this not sum up the closeness of the relationship between God the Father and God the Son? Their life is bound up in each other. And yet we don’t want to push the symbolism too far for Jesus clearly said, “For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself.” The mystery of the Trinity is indeed too complex for me to handle. Yet, I see a small relationship between Israel & Benjamin and the Father and the Son. There is an intense love relationship between the two.
Here is another piece of symbolism. Judah in this instance becomes a type of Christ. Benjamin is declared guilty for possessing the stolen divination cup. For the love of the father, Judah volunteers to take the place of Benjamin. For the love of the Father, Jesus volunteered to take our place in death and resurrection. Granted Benjamin wasn’t really guilty. But we were really guilty. The death of the Son satisfied the righteous wrath of the Father against our sin and led us into a position to be restored in relationship to the Father. What awesome love. Let it sink down into your soul. The Father loves the Son. The Son loves the Father. The Father loves us. The Son loves us. All that remains is for us to love them and find our delight in them alone! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 26:1-25
Sometimes I think that meditating on the glory of God is like riding on a pendulum that swings not in arcs, not in circles, not even in spheres, not even in spheres plus the dimension of time but in spheres plus the dimension of time plus other dimensions which we cannot even conceive. I have a hard time just keeping the arcs in balance. Anyway, a few days after giving the parable that when you have done it for the least of these, you have done it for Jesus, this woman shows up. She wishes to worship the Lord in an extraordinary way. She takes fragrant oil that was probably worth about a year’s wages and poured it upon Jesus’ head. Now, a year’s worth of wages could go a long way in ministering to the “least of these.” Many were indignant at the waste, after all, so many of the “least of these” could have been cared for with the sale of the oil. Jesus rebuked those who were indignant. All of a sudden I feel like I am on the other end of the arc of the pendulum, or maybe even some other dimension.
Some how she caught the teaching of Jesus that in two days He would be crucified and the disciples did not catch the teaching. She understood. The anointing was for His burial. She somehow understood it was for her that Jesus was dying. She glimpsed His glory. She wanted to worship Him extravagantly. Some have been indignant with the church at building elaborate cathedrals while the needs of the poor go unmet. Jesus is sent away as one of the “least of these”. Often times I think their critiques are on target. It seems we are often more interested in building “Christian playgrounds” than taking the Gospel to those who have never heard or ministering to the needs of “the least of these.”
But here is what I think is the balance: No worship expense is a waste if the motivation is 100% to worship and adore Jesus and to minister to Him. Why? Because His glory is so great that He can take that so-called “waste”, which is poured out upon Him, and He can multiply what was poured out so that those who do the pouring can turn around and because of the supply of His glory minister to others. I don’t know. The Scriptures don’t say. But I’d be willing to bet that after the resurrection this woman was a power house in ministering to the “least of these.” What appeared to be a waste became an unbelievable increase because it was completely motivated for the glory of God and not self.
On the other hand, Judas, seeing this, couldn’t take the pendulum ride any longer. He left and sold Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. How do you value the glory of Jesus? Judas thought he had a bargain at 30 pieces of silver. The woman thought she had a bargain at a year’s worth of wages. Our abandoning ourselves in the worship of Jesus is never a waste. His glory is just too great! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
February 10, 2010
Genesis 43
Up until February of 2008, I never had a pair of prescription glasses. I never needed them. When my reading vision started decreasing after I hit 40, I began purchasing magnifying glasses. For over ten years I only needed them to read. Then at 50, I occasionally noticed that I couldn’t read distant signs any better that Laura could read them with her glasses on. Her long distance sight has never been all that great. So I went to the optometrist. Indeed, my distance sight was not as good as it used to be. Buying my first pair of prescription glasses and wearing them constantly, I found how annoying it is to have cloudy lenses. At first it was just a problem with finger prints. But after 2 years, now I have a problem with lots of tiny scratches. I can still see what is there. It is just annoying because it is often cloudy and I do not see as clearly as I would like. Often we view the glory of the Lord through the cloudy lenses of our past. We have been looking at the glory of the Lord from Joseph’s perspective. He had sharp clean lenses to view the glory of the Lord
Look at Jacob’s perspective. His wives have died. He thinks Joseph, the eldest son of his favorite wife, is dead. He has only one other child by his favorite wife, Benjamin. Should we mention the other sins of his past that surely cloud his vision of the glory of the Lord? And now they are in a regional famine of great intensity. His grain supply is mostly depleted. He cannot clearly see the glory of the Lord in this dire situation. His lenses need to be cleaned or reground. He sounds like Eeyore, the depressed donkey of Winnie the Pooh fame.
Reuben’s perspective as the first born is interesting. In Chapter 42 he was willing to put his children’s lives on the line in order to obtain food for the clan (typical first born reaction). He then stops just short of literally telling his brothers, “I told you so.” Do you suppose that he was having issues with guilt from not having done enough to intervene for Joseph before he was sold into slavery? Perhaps he was having guilt issues for having slept with Bilhah, Dan and Naphatali’s mother, Joseph’s mother’s handmaid. But now in chapter 43, he steps out of the picture. The field of vision has become just too dim.
What is Judah’s perspective like in the midst of this? It was Judah who put forth the idea to sell Joseph to the Ishmaelite slavers. It was Judah who had the problem with his daughter-in-law-eventually-wife. Judah had said nothing when Reuben offered his sons. Now it was Judah who volunteered not his own sons to be held as ransom for their safe return but his own life. He does so not because he sees the glory of the Lord and trusts in the Lord’s provision, but he does so because he sees no other way for life. His own guilt clouds his ability to see the Lord’s glory.
What is the ten’s perspective as they enter into Joseph’s house? They feared death. I submit it was because their own spiritual vision was clouded by their past sin, particularly against Joseph. The cloud was so thick that they could not see who Joseph was even when they were seated according to birth order and when Benjamin was given a portion 5 times greater than theirs. God was working in their midst, and they could not see Him.
Some times the glory of the Lord is working all around us, and we cannot see it. Our spiritual glasses are to greatly smudged and scratched for us to see what is clear. Does that change His glory? Not one bit. He is still working and doing amazing things. We just don’t see it. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 25:31-46
Remember the years before and after the death of Howard Hughes? There were a lot of reports of people claiming to have seen the recluse. (Yeah I know, there are people even now who claim Elvis sightings.) Usually they were reports of a man disguised as a homeless person who turned out to be the eccentric billionaire. In a way, that is kind of like the glory of our Lord Jesus. His glory is all around us in a veiled form. We are all created in the image of God. That image is marred and ruined by our sin. But, it is non-the-less still there. It reflects a little of the glory of Jesus. Granted it is greatly veiled by our sinful flesh, but it is still there.
So, anyone, no matter how sinful or impoverished, has something, somewhere deep inside that reflects a little bit of God's image and therefore the glory of the Lord Jesus. This extends from the homeless person to the Queen of England, from the mass murderer on death row to the Pope, from George Bush or Barak Obama to Sadaam Hussein. How I treat them is how I am treating the Lord Jesus. What I do to them is what I am doing to the Lord Jesus.
How can His glory be there? It is simply amazing that He could share a little bit of His glory with each of us, even after we had sinned against Him. I think it is often easier for us to believe that Howard Hughes could show up as a homeless person than to believe that Jesus shows up in some of the people we know and live with. But He does, and that increases His glory!
We also have this promise from Him. One day He will return in His full glory, no more veil. He will sit on the throne of His glory. What is the throne of His glory? Is it just some brilliantly lighted chair? Think about this possibility. If we are created in His image, if we have marred that glorious image with our sin, if He is in the process of restoring that fallen image in us, if the least of these is Him in disguise, maybe the throne of His glory is us in our fully redeemed state. Who gets the glory for our forgiveness? He does! Who gets the glory for our changed lives? He does! Who gets the glory for the reverse of the curse? He does! When He gives us crowns as a reward for our deeds in the flesh, what will we do with them? We will throw them back down at His feet and say, "We are undeserving servants; we have only done what we should have done in the first place!" Truly grasping this will change how I treat other people. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Up until February of 2008, I never had a pair of prescription glasses. I never needed them. When my reading vision started decreasing after I hit 40, I began purchasing magnifying glasses. For over ten years I only needed them to read. Then at 50, I occasionally noticed that I couldn’t read distant signs any better that Laura could read them with her glasses on. Her long distance sight has never been all that great. So I went to the optometrist. Indeed, my distance sight was not as good as it used to be. Buying my first pair of prescription glasses and wearing them constantly, I found how annoying it is to have cloudy lenses. At first it was just a problem with finger prints. But after 2 years, now I have a problem with lots of tiny scratches. I can still see what is there. It is just annoying because it is often cloudy and I do not see as clearly as I would like. Often we view the glory of the Lord through the cloudy lenses of our past. We have been looking at the glory of the Lord from Joseph’s perspective. He had sharp clean lenses to view the glory of the Lord
Look at Jacob’s perspective. His wives have died. He thinks Joseph, the eldest son of his favorite wife, is dead. He has only one other child by his favorite wife, Benjamin. Should we mention the other sins of his past that surely cloud his vision of the glory of the Lord? And now they are in a regional famine of great intensity. His grain supply is mostly depleted. He cannot clearly see the glory of the Lord in this dire situation. His lenses need to be cleaned or reground. He sounds like Eeyore, the depressed donkey of Winnie the Pooh fame.
Reuben’s perspective as the first born is interesting. In Chapter 42 he was willing to put his children’s lives on the line in order to obtain food for the clan (typical first born reaction). He then stops just short of literally telling his brothers, “I told you so.” Do you suppose that he was having issues with guilt from not having done enough to intervene for Joseph before he was sold into slavery? Perhaps he was having guilt issues for having slept with Bilhah, Dan and Naphatali’s mother, Joseph’s mother’s handmaid. But now in chapter 43, he steps out of the picture. The field of vision has become just too dim.
What is Judah’s perspective like in the midst of this? It was Judah who put forth the idea to sell Joseph to the Ishmaelite slavers. It was Judah who had the problem with his daughter-in-law-eventually-wife. Judah had said nothing when Reuben offered his sons. Now it was Judah who volunteered not his own sons to be held as ransom for their safe return but his own life. He does so not because he sees the glory of the Lord and trusts in the Lord’s provision, but he does so because he sees no other way for life. His own guilt clouds his ability to see the Lord’s glory.
What is the ten’s perspective as they enter into Joseph’s house? They feared death. I submit it was because their own spiritual vision was clouded by their past sin, particularly against Joseph. The cloud was so thick that they could not see who Joseph was even when they were seated according to birth order and when Benjamin was given a portion 5 times greater than theirs. God was working in their midst, and they could not see Him.
Some times the glory of the Lord is working all around us, and we cannot see it. Our spiritual glasses are to greatly smudged and scratched for us to see what is clear. Does that change His glory? Not one bit. He is still working and doing amazing things. We just don’t see it. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 25:31-46
Remember the years before and after the death of Howard Hughes? There were a lot of reports of people claiming to have seen the recluse. (Yeah I know, there are people even now who claim Elvis sightings.) Usually they were reports of a man disguised as a homeless person who turned out to be the eccentric billionaire. In a way, that is kind of like the glory of our Lord Jesus. His glory is all around us in a veiled form. We are all created in the image of God. That image is marred and ruined by our sin. But, it is non-the-less still there. It reflects a little of the glory of Jesus. Granted it is greatly veiled by our sinful flesh, but it is still there.
So, anyone, no matter how sinful or impoverished, has something, somewhere deep inside that reflects a little bit of God's image and therefore the glory of the Lord Jesus. This extends from the homeless person to the Queen of England, from the mass murderer on death row to the Pope, from George Bush or Barak Obama to Sadaam Hussein. How I treat them is how I am treating the Lord Jesus. What I do to them is what I am doing to the Lord Jesus.
How can His glory be there? It is simply amazing that He could share a little bit of His glory with each of us, even after we had sinned against Him. I think it is often easier for us to believe that Howard Hughes could show up as a homeless person than to believe that Jesus shows up in some of the people we know and live with. But He does, and that increases His glory!
We also have this promise from Him. One day He will return in His full glory, no more veil. He will sit on the throne of His glory. What is the throne of His glory? Is it just some brilliantly lighted chair? Think about this possibility. If we are created in His image, if we have marred that glorious image with our sin, if He is in the process of restoring that fallen image in us, if the least of these is Him in disguise, maybe the throne of His glory is us in our fully redeemed state. Who gets the glory for our forgiveness? He does! Who gets the glory for our changed lives? He does! Who gets the glory for the reverse of the curse? He does! When He gives us crowns as a reward for our deeds in the flesh, what will we do with them? We will throw them back down at His feet and say, "We are undeserving servants; we have only done what we should have done in the first place!" Truly grasping this will change how I treat other people. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
February 9, 2010
Genesis 42
Dysfunctional families, as a pastor of 25 years, I have seen quite a few of them. It is the glory of the Lord to heal dysfunctional families. I find it fascinating that in this case, not only does He heal a dysfunctional family, but he uses it to guide the course of human history to produce the nation that would produce the Savior who would be for all peoples.
Joseph has risen to the top. He is now 38 or 39 years old. The last time they saw each other, Joseph was 17, and Reuben was 23 or 24. Looks change a lot in 21, 22 years, especially from 17. Joseph recognized them, but they did not recognize him. Granted, Joseph had changed the most. He was the youngest (except Benjamin). He changed cultures and probably clothing and grooming styles. The last his brothers had seen of him, he was bound as a slave in a slaving caravan. That he could have risen from a slave to 2nd in command in the most powerful country of the world was just inconceivable. They would not have been looking for Joseph in this position. But he was looking for them. Why else would the 2nd in command be interviewing individual foreigners. He probably had his underlings looking for their profile. Anyone matching the profile, he personally interviewed them.
Joseph remembered the dream. Why the dream? Most people would have remembered the betrayal. I believe that Joseph had long ago forgiven his brothers. The healing of dysfunctional families does not happen without forgiveness. Forgiveness is choosing not to hold another person accountable for a wrong committed against you. Joseph remembered the dream because he had chosen to not hold them accountable for the wrong they had performed against him. But forgiveness did not invalidate his dream, nor did it mean that he had to once again place himself in a position where they could harm him.
He needed to find out if there had been any remorse for what they had done to him. Working on the fly, he unfolds an interesting plot to reveal their hearts to himself and to each other. Dysfunctional families can be healed. However, it requires forgiveness extended by the wounded party and a recognition of guilt by the guilty party(s). It is the glory of the Lord to bring that healing. Only He can orchestrate it, but both parties must choose to enter into it. But He puts broken lives back together. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 25:1-30
The Lord Jesus has gone to receive and prepare a kingdom. He has given each of us talents to invest in building His kingdom. (I understand that a talent in the parable is money, but I will use it here as abilities.) That is part of His glory. The investment of our gifts increases His glory. Some of those talents are natural gifts. Some of those talents are spiritual gifts. Some of those talents are financial gifts. Some are gifts of time. Some are gifts of personality. Some are gifts of family. Some are gifts of friends. Some have abundance. Some have few. All have at least one. Some develop their talents in order to increase His kingdom. Some develop their talents to increase themselves. Some just squander them.
I've noticed in my lifetime that many people like to look at mine and let me know how I match up to what they think my talents should be or compare them to other people's talents. Some are good at expressing their disappointment in how they think I am wasting my talents. A few have also expressed their joy at how I am developing them. I always try to evaluate what they say, just in case they are right. That causes a lot of pain. My Lord deserves all the glory that He can get. I should hate to think that I purposely gave Him any less than He deserves. To be honest, I also hate letting other people down. But if I did the sum of what everyone else expects of me, I would be working with out any sleep or leisure time. I don't think He wants that.
But when He returns and I have to give account for the investment of the talents that He has given me, the people who are evaluating me now will not be the One evaluating me then. He alone will evaluate me on the standard of what He had given me in order to increase His glory. My evaluation will not be used. The evaluation of other people will not be used. So until that day, what do I do? I keep my eyes on His glory. I keep myself in His Word and listen for His voice concerning what He wants me to do. I don't try to judge other people as to how well they are using the talents that He gave them. He is glorified most when I focus on Him, listen to Him and do what He says. That is why meditating on His glory is so important. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Dysfunctional families, as a pastor of 25 years, I have seen quite a few of them. It is the glory of the Lord to heal dysfunctional families. I find it fascinating that in this case, not only does He heal a dysfunctional family, but he uses it to guide the course of human history to produce the nation that would produce the Savior who would be for all peoples.
Joseph has risen to the top. He is now 38 or 39 years old. The last time they saw each other, Joseph was 17, and Reuben was 23 or 24. Looks change a lot in 21, 22 years, especially from 17. Joseph recognized them, but they did not recognize him. Granted, Joseph had changed the most. He was the youngest (except Benjamin). He changed cultures and probably clothing and grooming styles. The last his brothers had seen of him, he was bound as a slave in a slaving caravan. That he could have risen from a slave to 2nd in command in the most powerful country of the world was just inconceivable. They would not have been looking for Joseph in this position. But he was looking for them. Why else would the 2nd in command be interviewing individual foreigners. He probably had his underlings looking for their profile. Anyone matching the profile, he personally interviewed them.
Joseph remembered the dream. Why the dream? Most people would have remembered the betrayal. I believe that Joseph had long ago forgiven his brothers. The healing of dysfunctional families does not happen without forgiveness. Forgiveness is choosing not to hold another person accountable for a wrong committed against you. Joseph remembered the dream because he had chosen to not hold them accountable for the wrong they had performed against him. But forgiveness did not invalidate his dream, nor did it mean that he had to once again place himself in a position where they could harm him.
He needed to find out if there had been any remorse for what they had done to him. Working on the fly, he unfolds an interesting plot to reveal their hearts to himself and to each other. Dysfunctional families can be healed. However, it requires forgiveness extended by the wounded party and a recognition of guilt by the guilty party(s). It is the glory of the Lord to bring that healing. Only He can orchestrate it, but both parties must choose to enter into it. But He puts broken lives back together. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Matthew 25:1-30
The Lord Jesus has gone to receive and prepare a kingdom. He has given each of us talents to invest in building His kingdom. (I understand that a talent in the parable is money, but I will use it here as abilities.) That is part of His glory. The investment of our gifts increases His glory. Some of those talents are natural gifts. Some of those talents are spiritual gifts. Some of those talents are financial gifts. Some are gifts of time. Some are gifts of personality. Some are gifts of family. Some are gifts of friends. Some have abundance. Some have few. All have at least one. Some develop their talents in order to increase His kingdom. Some develop their talents to increase themselves. Some just squander them.
I've noticed in my lifetime that many people like to look at mine and let me know how I match up to what they think my talents should be or compare them to other people's talents. Some are good at expressing their disappointment in how they think I am wasting my talents. A few have also expressed their joy at how I am developing them. I always try to evaluate what they say, just in case they are right. That causes a lot of pain. My Lord deserves all the glory that He can get. I should hate to think that I purposely gave Him any less than He deserves. To be honest, I also hate letting other people down. But if I did the sum of what everyone else expects of me, I would be working with out any sleep or leisure time. I don't think He wants that.
But when He returns and I have to give account for the investment of the talents that He has given me, the people who are evaluating me now will not be the One evaluating me then. He alone will evaluate me on the standard of what He had given me in order to increase His glory. My evaluation will not be used. The evaluation of other people will not be used. So until that day, what do I do? I keep my eyes on His glory. I keep myself in His Word and listen for His voice concerning what He wants me to do. I don't try to judge other people as to how well they are using the talents that He gave them. He is glorified most when I focus on Him, listen to Him and do what He says. That is why meditating on His glory is so important. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
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