Numbers 22
What about the Heathen who never heard? That used to be a common objection to embracing Jesus as the only way. Yet, the Lord never leaves Himself without some trace of the knowledge of Him. Who is this Balaam? He lives in Pethor, a Hittite city in Northwest Mesopotamia. Roughly it would be located near today’s border of Iraq and Syria. The Hittites were a culture of a thousand gods. It was from this area that Abram came to be a sojourner in the land that the Lord had promised to the Israelites. How did Balaam come to a knowledge of the Lord? We are not told. All we know is that he had some kind of relationship with the Lord, albeit somewhat lacking in truth. The relationship was strong enough that the Lord blessed those whom Balaam blessed and cursed those whom Balaam cursed. Hmmm. . .
What does this tell me about the glory of the Lord? It tells me that His glory is so great that no man is without excuse. Anyone who really desires to know the Lord, may find Him if he will seek Him. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
John 3:22-38
I have been a groomsman in a couple of weddings, my brother's and a friend. The neat thing about being a groomsman is you don't have to do anything. The attention is all on the bride and groom. Indeed, as a groomsman you are not supposed to do anything that detracts attention from the bride and groom. Like John the Baptist, we are groomsmen. Jesus is the groom. All that we do should bring attention to Him. That is why we must focus upon His glory daily and share what we find with others. His fame must increase and ours decrease. What can we know from this passage about Him?
He is from above. We enter into existence upon this earth. We do not have a pre-existence as some would teach. But He is from above. He existed from the beginning. He is from eternity in fellowship with the Father. Because of that, He was able to explain what the Father is like.
He is true. He never speaks or spoke a false word. He never exaggerates or exaggerated except as a figure of speech. His word can be counted upon. What He says, He will accomplish. We can entrust our lives to Him. I have been disappointed by many who have not spoken the truth to me or about me or were unfaithful to me. But Jesus always speaks the truth, and He is always faithful to me.
He gives His Spirit so generously that His gift cannot be measured. I need His Spirit to become what He wants me to be. And He gives generously.
He gives me everlasting life if I just believe in Him. Couldn't be simpler. He is also a God of wrath. Failure to trust in Him-something so simple-produces wrath. There is none like Him. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
May 12, 2010
Numbers 21
“As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness even so must the Son of man be lifted up." Such were the words of Jesus as recorded in John 3:14. Following shortly thereafter are the most memorized words of the Bible, John 3;16. When we had grumbled and complained about the magnificent provision of the Lord, the Lord permitted that old serpent, the devil, to bite us. We were dead and dying in our own trespasses and sins. In the midst of our despair, the Lord sent Jesus to become sin on our behalf. Hanging on the pole (cross), He died in our place. We have only to look (trust in) to Him, and instantly we are healed. Now that is glory on His part! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
John 3:1-21
I remember looking down into the bassinette the first time that I laid him in it. He was my first child. What an amazing thing! Here was a new life. I was responsible for raising him. I was overwhelmed with the responsibility. I was in awe of what God had done--a new life. I would think that almost anyone who has had a child knows of what I speak. Yet there is something even more amazing--new spiritual life.
In this passage Jesus uses that phrase that has become so over used in our culture. He tells this highly religious man that he must be born again. In explaining it, He gives us that most memorized verse of the Scripture, John 3:16. He tells us that He will die so that we can be born again. His light reveals our sin. When we come to His light and present our sin to Him, His deed on the cross and resurrection removes our sin and creates life out of death. That is an even more amazing miracle than the physical birth! It is what He does that produces it! He creates life out of my death. That is better than the amazing thing that He does in creating physical babies! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
“As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness even so must the Son of man be lifted up." Such were the words of Jesus as recorded in John 3:14. Following shortly thereafter are the most memorized words of the Bible, John 3;16. When we had grumbled and complained about the magnificent provision of the Lord, the Lord permitted that old serpent, the devil, to bite us. We were dead and dying in our own trespasses and sins. In the midst of our despair, the Lord sent Jesus to become sin on our behalf. Hanging on the pole (cross), He died in our place. We have only to look (trust in) to Him, and instantly we are healed. Now that is glory on His part! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
John 3:1-21
I remember looking down into the bassinette the first time that I laid him in it. He was my first child. What an amazing thing! Here was a new life. I was responsible for raising him. I was overwhelmed with the responsibility. I was in awe of what God had done--a new life. I would think that almost anyone who has had a child knows of what I speak. Yet there is something even more amazing--new spiritual life.
In this passage Jesus uses that phrase that has become so over used in our culture. He tells this highly religious man that he must be born again. In explaining it, He gives us that most memorized verse of the Scripture, John 3:16. He tells us that He will die so that we can be born again. His light reveals our sin. When we come to His light and present our sin to Him, His deed on the cross and resurrection removes our sin and creates life out of death. That is an even more amazing miracle than the physical birth! It is what He does that produces it! He creates life out of my death. That is better than the amazing thing that He does in creating physical babies! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
May 11, 2010
Numbers 20
Referring in part to Numbers 20, the apostle Paul tells us in 1 Cor 10:4 “And all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.” Of course, we have already seen this kind of miracle in Ex. 17. In referring to our meditation on March 6, we read:
The children of Israel, 2,000,000+ strong, were in a geographical area that receives no more than 6 inches of annual rainfall. Not nearly enough to support that many people. However, any Bedouin shepherd today knows that those six inches of rainfall filter down through the sand to the limestone base and moves laterally till it reaches a point of release in the valleys and canyons in the area. Over the years the limestone leaches in to the water and covers the canyon walls sealing the water in the ground. The Bedouin shepherd can then come along and strike the rock walls in the canyon in a thin spot and break the limestone covering. The result? A spring in the desert.
The problem in the Numbers passage is that Moses had been commanded to speak to the rock, not strike it. Why speak to the rock? There were two reasons. 1) The rock is a type of Christ. The first time that Jesus literally provided spiritual water for us was when He was crucified. He was stricken for our sin. Jesus died only once for sin. He was stricken only once. Any need for water from Him after that must come from respect for the One who died for us. After the first time we speak to Him in respect. 2) Moses had been a shepherd in the area for 40 years. He knew how to find water. He knew the secrets of the Bedouins. By striking the Rock Moses was drawing attention to himself. He was receiving glory for his abilities as a shepherd of the people. He had been frustrated with the complaints against him and Aaron concerning their leadership abilities. An angry display of his ability of his ability to bring water from the rock was just what he needed to restore the reputation of his abilities in their eyes. Moses thought it was about him. No it wasn’t. It was and always is about the glory of God. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
John 2
In order to accomplish something two things must be present on my part. First, I must have the ability to accomplish it. Second I must have the desire to accomplish it. Suppose there were a Hummer dealership down the road from me. Could I accomplish buying a Hummer? Well first, I would have to have the ability. I probably don't. But with today's lenders, I might be able find someone crazy enough to lend me the money. However, from a Biblical standpoint of not borrowing unless you definitely have the ability to repay, I couldn't do it. A Hummer is out of my price range-what I consider to be my ability. Second, I would have to have the desire. Even if I had the cash to buy a Hummer, I wouldn't. My son might, but I wouldn't. There are very few vehicles on the road that are uglier than a Hummer. Sure it is a sign of strength and power, but I don't care about signs of strength and power. My Lord has enough of that for me. For me transportation is transportation. I don't need signs. I simply need to get from one place to another. A Hummer is a waste of money for me. For me it would be poor stewardship of the Lord's money.
John is presenting the beginning of our Lord's ministry. He wants to present aspects of His ministry that demonstrate that Jesus is someone in whom we should believe in order to obtain Eternal Life from Him. Does He have the ability? His first miracle is that of turning water into wine. Now people at the time of Christ probably could not tell you about the molecular make up of wine. But they knew how to make it. And they knew that water, no matter how long it sat, never turns to wine, particularly aged wine. I once heard of the complaint of a skeptic who said, "The atoms present in water would have to have been changed in order to make atoms found in wine. Such a change would have released nuclear power that would have annihilated everyone around." That is part of the point. Only one who could call the world into existence by saying, "Let there be. . ." could rearrange the atoms and molecules without harming those standing by. If He can speak the worlds into existence, then He can rearrange atoms without causing a nuclear explosion. He has the ability to give me Eternal Life.
Does He have the desire? Jesus apparently cleansed the temple at two points in His ministry, the beginning and the end. He entered the temple and found the court of the Gentiles given over to the selling of sacrificial animals and the exchanging of money so that one may use the 'correct currency' to purchase the sacrificial animals. It was supposed to be a place where people of all nations could come and pray. Instead they had made it a place to raise money for the ministry. (Some have suggested that the priests were crooked and were gaining personally from the exchange.) Does not the Lord of Creation have money to provide for His people to do what He requires? He had a zeal for them to seek His name. They had a zeal to establish their own name. This is one of the few times that we see Jesus really angry and violent. Hmmm. Zeal for Your house has eaten me up. He has a desire. His desire is for His people to want only one thing, Him.
They asked for a sign. Pardon me but He had turned water into wine and done many others at this point that John has not recorded. What more signs do they want? He gave one answer, "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up." It is the sign that stands through all the centuries. Like a huge monolithic obelisk, it points to Him. Most have denied it. Some have tried to refute it. But none have brought it down. It stands as the greatest testament to His ability and desire of all history. He is risen from the dead!
Does He have the ability to give us Eternal Life? Certainly He does! Does He have the desire to give us Eternal Life? Certainly He does--but, His desire is also that His name be first. To whom does Jesus commit Himself? To those who let His name be pre-eminent in their life, He commits Himself. To those who are willing to let go of all else and be satisfied with just Him, He commits Himself. It is all about His glory, not ours. And why not? He is worth far more than we are! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Referring in part to Numbers 20, the apostle Paul tells us in 1 Cor 10:4 “And all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.” Of course, we have already seen this kind of miracle in Ex. 17. In referring to our meditation on March 6, we read:
The children of Israel, 2,000,000+ strong, were in a geographical area that receives no more than 6 inches of annual rainfall. Not nearly enough to support that many people. However, any Bedouin shepherd today knows that those six inches of rainfall filter down through the sand to the limestone base and moves laterally till it reaches a point of release in the valleys and canyons in the area. Over the years the limestone leaches in to the water and covers the canyon walls sealing the water in the ground. The Bedouin shepherd can then come along and strike the rock walls in the canyon in a thin spot and break the limestone covering. The result? A spring in the desert.
The problem in the Numbers passage is that Moses had been commanded to speak to the rock, not strike it. Why speak to the rock? There were two reasons. 1) The rock is a type of Christ. The first time that Jesus literally provided spiritual water for us was when He was crucified. He was stricken for our sin. Jesus died only once for sin. He was stricken only once. Any need for water from Him after that must come from respect for the One who died for us. After the first time we speak to Him in respect. 2) Moses had been a shepherd in the area for 40 years. He knew how to find water. He knew the secrets of the Bedouins. By striking the Rock Moses was drawing attention to himself. He was receiving glory for his abilities as a shepherd of the people. He had been frustrated with the complaints against him and Aaron concerning their leadership abilities. An angry display of his ability of his ability to bring water from the rock was just what he needed to restore the reputation of his abilities in their eyes. Moses thought it was about him. No it wasn’t. It was and always is about the glory of God. Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
John 2
In order to accomplish something two things must be present on my part. First, I must have the ability to accomplish it. Second I must have the desire to accomplish it. Suppose there were a Hummer dealership down the road from me. Could I accomplish buying a Hummer? Well first, I would have to have the ability. I probably don't. But with today's lenders, I might be able find someone crazy enough to lend me the money. However, from a Biblical standpoint of not borrowing unless you definitely have the ability to repay, I couldn't do it. A Hummer is out of my price range-what I consider to be my ability. Second, I would have to have the desire. Even if I had the cash to buy a Hummer, I wouldn't. My son might, but I wouldn't. There are very few vehicles on the road that are uglier than a Hummer. Sure it is a sign of strength and power, but I don't care about signs of strength and power. My Lord has enough of that for me. For me transportation is transportation. I don't need signs. I simply need to get from one place to another. A Hummer is a waste of money for me. For me it would be poor stewardship of the Lord's money.
John is presenting the beginning of our Lord's ministry. He wants to present aspects of His ministry that demonstrate that Jesus is someone in whom we should believe in order to obtain Eternal Life from Him. Does He have the ability? His first miracle is that of turning water into wine. Now people at the time of Christ probably could not tell you about the molecular make up of wine. But they knew how to make it. And they knew that water, no matter how long it sat, never turns to wine, particularly aged wine. I once heard of the complaint of a skeptic who said, "The atoms present in water would have to have been changed in order to make atoms found in wine. Such a change would have released nuclear power that would have annihilated everyone around." That is part of the point. Only one who could call the world into existence by saying, "Let there be. . ." could rearrange the atoms and molecules without harming those standing by. If He can speak the worlds into existence, then He can rearrange atoms without causing a nuclear explosion. He has the ability to give me Eternal Life.
Does He have the desire? Jesus apparently cleansed the temple at two points in His ministry, the beginning and the end. He entered the temple and found the court of the Gentiles given over to the selling of sacrificial animals and the exchanging of money so that one may use the 'correct currency' to purchase the sacrificial animals. It was supposed to be a place where people of all nations could come and pray. Instead they had made it a place to raise money for the ministry. (Some have suggested that the priests were crooked and were gaining personally from the exchange.) Does not the Lord of Creation have money to provide for His people to do what He requires? He had a zeal for them to seek His name. They had a zeal to establish their own name. This is one of the few times that we see Jesus really angry and violent. Hmmm. Zeal for Your house has eaten me up. He has a desire. His desire is for His people to want only one thing, Him.
They asked for a sign. Pardon me but He had turned water into wine and done many others at this point that John has not recorded. What more signs do they want? He gave one answer, "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up." It is the sign that stands through all the centuries. Like a huge monolithic obelisk, it points to Him. Most have denied it. Some have tried to refute it. But none have brought it down. It stands as the greatest testament to His ability and desire of all history. He is risen from the dead!
Does He have the ability to give us Eternal Life? Certainly He does! Does He have the desire to give us Eternal Life? Certainly He does--but, His desire is also that His name be first. To whom does Jesus commit Himself? To those who let His name be pre-eminent in their life, He commits Himself. To those who are willing to let go of all else and be satisfied with just Him, He commits Himself. It is all about His glory, not ours. And why not? He is worth far more than we are! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
May 10, 2010
John 1:29-51
About a year and a half after Laura and I married, we needed to get a different car. I eventually bought a Toyota Corolla from a pastor (from a church of a different denomination than ours). The car seemed okay. It ran decent. The interior was alright. The price range was perfect (at that time I operated on a cash only basis). The pastor also assured me that he had just rebuilt the engine and in his opinion the engine should be good for another 80,000 miles. He said he was selling it for financial reasons and no longer needed the car. I do not have the ability to look into the interior of an engine and determine how sound it is. But I trusted the word of the pastor. It sounded like a great deal. After all, if he had just rebuilt the engine, we should be good to go. So we bought it.
Not many months later we began having problems. I had to rebuild the carburetor. A mechanic informed me that I needed a valve job. And there were a host of other things that happened. At one point I was pulling the back seat out of the car and found an old receipt. It was for having the cylinder heads machined (a process one usually does when you have a valve job done-usually in the process of rebuilding the engine). The receipt recorded mileage and date of when the procedure was done. It was about 60,000 miles earlier than what the pastor had told me. I guess his definition of having "just rebuilt" the engine was a lot looser than my definition. I wished I had the ability to look into an engine to see what it was really like before I bought the car. I would have walked away from it.
Part of the glory of Jesus is that He sees right into our hearts and pursues us anyway. He came along side us in the auction market of sin. We were up for sale. He looked down into our hearts, our engine so to speak and He saw what was defiled and broken. He purchased us to take away our sin and rebuild the broken engine inside. He is just in removing our sin because He shed His own blood in our place. Once our sin is removed and our engine repaired, He fills us with the oil of His Holy Spirit who is able to lubricate all our parts to keep us working. He also fills us with the gasoline of His Holy Spirit who provides the fire to run our engine in a way that delights Him. He is the master mechanic who sees right to the depths of our being. He repairs us and empowers us to please Him. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
About a year and a half after Laura and I married, we needed to get a different car. I eventually bought a Toyota Corolla from a pastor (from a church of a different denomination than ours). The car seemed okay. It ran decent. The interior was alright. The price range was perfect (at that time I operated on a cash only basis). The pastor also assured me that he had just rebuilt the engine and in his opinion the engine should be good for another 80,000 miles. He said he was selling it for financial reasons and no longer needed the car. I do not have the ability to look into the interior of an engine and determine how sound it is. But I trusted the word of the pastor. It sounded like a great deal. After all, if he had just rebuilt the engine, we should be good to go. So we bought it.
Not many months later we began having problems. I had to rebuild the carburetor. A mechanic informed me that I needed a valve job. And there were a host of other things that happened. At one point I was pulling the back seat out of the car and found an old receipt. It was for having the cylinder heads machined (a process one usually does when you have a valve job done-usually in the process of rebuilding the engine). The receipt recorded mileage and date of when the procedure was done. It was about 60,000 miles earlier than what the pastor had told me. I guess his definition of having "just rebuilt" the engine was a lot looser than my definition. I wished I had the ability to look into an engine to see what it was really like before I bought the car. I would have walked away from it.
Part of the glory of Jesus is that He sees right into our hearts and pursues us anyway. He came along side us in the auction market of sin. We were up for sale. He looked down into our hearts, our engine so to speak and He saw what was defiled and broken. He purchased us to take away our sin and rebuild the broken engine inside. He is just in removing our sin because He shed His own blood in our place. Once our sin is removed and our engine repaired, He fills us with the oil of His Holy Spirit who is able to lubricate all our parts to keep us working. He also fills us with the gasoline of His Holy Spirit who provides the fire to run our engine in a way that delights Him. He is the master mechanic who sees right to the depths of our being. He repairs us and empowers us to please Him. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
May 9, 2010
John 1:1-28
I have a lot of negative memories of football, mostly because I was so lousy at it. One particularly lousy memory is of a day in football practice when I was sophomore or junior. It was a 90+ degree day, and the coach was really hammering away at me for my inability to play the position properly. I don't know whether it was because he thought that I wasn't trying to play up to my potential, or he was trying to make me mad hoping anger would make me a better player, or whether he was hoping that I would quit, so that he wouldn't have to mess with me anymore (I was on the last level of the depth chart). I've never been a quitter. As he raved more and more, I became more and more embarrassed. As I became madder and more embarrassed, I tried to hit harder and harder. It seemed futile. I couldn't do the job. The coach continued to press the issue in progressively less flattering terms. Finally, near physical exhaustion and emotionally worked to the limit, my throat began to shut down. I couldn't breathe without making a loud rasping sound, and I couldn't bring in enough oxygen. I learned how dependent I am upon oxygen. The coach, hearing me rasp for air, told me to leave the line up until I could breathe again. There have been few times in my life when I have been more humiliated. If you have ever had to struggle for air you know what it means to realize your dependency upon something else to live.
It is not so with Jesus. In Jesus is life, and the life is the light of men. All things were made through Him, and apart from Him nothing was made that was made. He is dependent upon nothing to live. He is life. You and I are dependent upon the environment, which He holds together, He is not dependent upon it. If we want to travel far very quickly, we need trains, planes or automobiles. He does not need them. We are dependent upon the air. He made the air. We are dependent upon water. He made the water. We are dependent upon clothing. He can clothe Himself in Light. We are dependent upon light. He is Light. He could exert Himself and not become oxygen deficient. Not that is glorious! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
I have a lot of negative memories of football, mostly because I was so lousy at it. One particularly lousy memory is of a day in football practice when I was sophomore or junior. It was a 90+ degree day, and the coach was really hammering away at me for my inability to play the position properly. I don't know whether it was because he thought that I wasn't trying to play up to my potential, or he was trying to make me mad hoping anger would make me a better player, or whether he was hoping that I would quit, so that he wouldn't have to mess with me anymore (I was on the last level of the depth chart). I've never been a quitter. As he raved more and more, I became more and more embarrassed. As I became madder and more embarrassed, I tried to hit harder and harder. It seemed futile. I couldn't do the job. The coach continued to press the issue in progressively less flattering terms. Finally, near physical exhaustion and emotionally worked to the limit, my throat began to shut down. I couldn't breathe without making a loud rasping sound, and I couldn't bring in enough oxygen. I learned how dependent I am upon oxygen. The coach, hearing me rasp for air, told me to leave the line up until I could breathe again. There have been few times in my life when I have been more humiliated. If you have ever had to struggle for air you know what it means to realize your dependency upon something else to live.
It is not so with Jesus. In Jesus is life, and the life is the light of men. All things were made through Him, and apart from Him nothing was made that was made. He is dependent upon nothing to live. He is life. You and I are dependent upon the environment, which He holds together, He is not dependent upon it. If we want to travel far very quickly, we need trains, planes or automobiles. He does not need them. We are dependent upon the air. He made the air. We are dependent upon water. He made the water. We are dependent upon clothing. He can clothe Himself in Light. We are dependent upon light. He is Light. He could exert Himself and not become oxygen deficient. Not that is glorious! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
May 8, 2010
Luke 24:36-53
The young people in my former church made several movies for inclusion in their youth service. They call them, The Meaning of It All. They are a parody of super hero themes. The plot is group of super-heroes cleverly disguised as musicians (punk rock or concert) who save the world. I really enjoy their creativity and comedy. Why do we enjoy super-hero themes? We enjoy them because we know there is evil in the world. We instinctively long for a hero who will set us free from the death and destruction in our souls. In reality Jesus is the hero we all long for.
Today’s passage is the stuff of which super-hero movies are made; except, this is reality. Jesus can appear anywhere, even in locked rooms. Yet he is not just a spiritual apparition. He eats food like a normal man. He is one of us. He is the one of whom the law and the prophets spoke. The earliest prophecy was given 4000 years before His birth and types of Him can be found in almost every book of the Old Testament. The statistical probabilities of the likelihood of the prophecies which he fulfilled are staggering. His death, burial and resurrection were foretold in Psalm 22, Isaiah 53 and Psalm 16.
His message of liberation was to be preached to all nations. You and I have that privilege. We can tell the nations about His glory. That is one of the reasons why meditating on His Glory is so important. Without that consistent meditation, we quit focusing on what is important and find our selves falling once again under the spell of the evil ruler of this world. Also, He has given us the promise of special empowerment to be witnesses of His glory. We were born again for this. What a thrill it is to be witnesses of His glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
The young people in my former church made several movies for inclusion in their youth service. They call them, The Meaning of It All. They are a parody of super hero themes. The plot is group of super-heroes cleverly disguised as musicians (punk rock or concert) who save the world. I really enjoy their creativity and comedy. Why do we enjoy super-hero themes? We enjoy them because we know there is evil in the world. We instinctively long for a hero who will set us free from the death and destruction in our souls. In reality Jesus is the hero we all long for.
Today’s passage is the stuff of which super-hero movies are made; except, this is reality. Jesus can appear anywhere, even in locked rooms. Yet he is not just a spiritual apparition. He eats food like a normal man. He is one of us. He is the one of whom the law and the prophets spoke. The earliest prophecy was given 4000 years before His birth and types of Him can be found in almost every book of the Old Testament. The statistical probabilities of the likelihood of the prophecies which he fulfilled are staggering. His death, burial and resurrection were foretold in Psalm 22, Isaiah 53 and Psalm 16.
His message of liberation was to be preached to all nations. You and I have that privilege. We can tell the nations about His glory. That is one of the reasons why meditating on His Glory is so important. Without that consistent meditation, we quit focusing on what is important and find our selves falling once again under the spell of the evil ruler of this world. Also, He has given us the promise of special empowerment to be witnesses of His glory. We were born again for this. What a thrill it is to be witnesses of His glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
Friday, May 7, 2010
May 7, 2010
Numbers 15
“Make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. 39“And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them, and that you may not follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined, 40“and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy for your God. 41“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God. (emphasize mine)
The blue chord is the color of the heavens. The blue chord was to remind them of the glory of the Lord. The Lord desires for us to remember His commands and be holy. Why? Because He is the Lord our God. His glory upon the earth is intricately entwined with our obedience. Wow, that means there is more at stake than my own welfare in my obedience or disobedience. In a sense the very glory of God is at stake. On the one hand, when someone uses the excuse of not following the Lord because of the hypocrites in the church, it is no excuse. They are allowing the hypocrite to keep them from coming to the glorious God of the universe. On the other hand, the glory of God is dimmed to those around us when we are disobedient. If we truly love the Lord our God, that is unacceptable. How can we, who have been purchased by the blood of His own sacrifice, ever allow His glory to be diminished because of our disobedience. If we stop and think about it, it is absolutely unacceptable. His glory is too precious. His glory is too awesome. His glory is too wonderful. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Luke 24:1-35
It is interesting how people change but don't change over the years. When I was 51 years old, I returned to my home town to attend my son's college graduation. After church a woman walked up to me that looked vaguely familiar. "Paula?" I asked. Indeed it was Paula. We went to grade school together. It had been almost 40 years since I had last seen her and yet she was still recognizable. Now to be honest, my mother had told me that she had started attending the church. So, I had a little bit of context to recognize her. Had I just passed her on the street out of context, I might not have recognized her. Sometimes we need a context to recognize even those with whom we are familiar.
The glory of Jesus is somewhat like that at this point. The women at the tomb could not recognize His glory because they had a mindset that was a context of death, not resurrection, not the Lord of Glory. The angels had to tell them the significance of the empty tomb. From another Gospel we learn that even Mary did not recognize Him when she first saw Him. The disciples on the road to Emmaus did not recognize Him, although they walked with Him a few miles. It was only after He had expounded the Scriptures did they finally see His glory. Then He vanished. It was a context that sparked their recognition. It was the context of the Scriptures that enabled them to move them from their mindset of death to gain a glimpse of His resurrection life. It was the context of His giving thanks and breaking of bread that finally turned the light on. They saw the glory, albeit momentarily, but they saw the glory! That moment changed them forever.
We too can see His glory. Maybe we can't see it physically with our eyes. But in the context of the Scriptures, He comes to us through His Holy Spirit, and as we mull upon and meditate up the Scriptures and His glory, we finally get it! Albeit momentarily, but we get it! Yes He is risen, and He does take our death mindset and turns it back into life! Today, we must see Him in the Scriptures. It is they that testify of Him. Only in Him can we find life. That is why daily we must see His glory and share it with others. Yesterday's manna will not suffice. Yesterday's offering is a death mindset. But He is risen today. We can meet Him in His Scripture for He has entered into His glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
“Make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. 39“And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them, and that you may not follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined, 40“and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy for your God. 41“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord your God. (emphasize mine)
The blue chord is the color of the heavens. The blue chord was to remind them of the glory of the Lord. The Lord desires for us to remember His commands and be holy. Why? Because He is the Lord our God. His glory upon the earth is intricately entwined with our obedience. Wow, that means there is more at stake than my own welfare in my obedience or disobedience. In a sense the very glory of God is at stake. On the one hand, when someone uses the excuse of not following the Lord because of the hypocrites in the church, it is no excuse. They are allowing the hypocrite to keep them from coming to the glorious God of the universe. On the other hand, the glory of God is dimmed to those around us when we are disobedient. If we truly love the Lord our God, that is unacceptable. How can we, who have been purchased by the blood of His own sacrifice, ever allow His glory to be diminished because of our disobedience. If we stop and think about it, it is absolutely unacceptable. His glory is too precious. His glory is too awesome. His glory is too wonderful. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Luke 24:1-35
It is interesting how people change but don't change over the years. When I was 51 years old, I returned to my home town to attend my son's college graduation. After church a woman walked up to me that looked vaguely familiar. "Paula?" I asked. Indeed it was Paula. We went to grade school together. It had been almost 40 years since I had last seen her and yet she was still recognizable. Now to be honest, my mother had told me that she had started attending the church. So, I had a little bit of context to recognize her. Had I just passed her on the street out of context, I might not have recognized her. Sometimes we need a context to recognize even those with whom we are familiar.
The glory of Jesus is somewhat like that at this point. The women at the tomb could not recognize His glory because they had a mindset that was a context of death, not resurrection, not the Lord of Glory. The angels had to tell them the significance of the empty tomb. From another Gospel we learn that even Mary did not recognize Him when she first saw Him. The disciples on the road to Emmaus did not recognize Him, although they walked with Him a few miles. It was only after He had expounded the Scriptures did they finally see His glory. Then He vanished. It was a context that sparked their recognition. It was the context of the Scriptures that enabled them to move them from their mindset of death to gain a glimpse of His resurrection life. It was the context of His giving thanks and breaking of bread that finally turned the light on. They saw the glory, albeit momentarily, but they saw the glory! That moment changed them forever.
We too can see His glory. Maybe we can't see it physically with our eyes. But in the context of the Scriptures, He comes to us through His Holy Spirit, and as we mull upon and meditate up the Scriptures and His glory, we finally get it! Albeit momentarily, but we get it! Yes He is risen, and He does take our death mindset and turns it back into life! Today, we must see Him in the Scriptures. It is they that testify of Him. Only in Him can we find life. That is why daily we must see His glory and share it with others. Yesterday's manna will not suffice. Yesterday's offering is a death mindset. But He is risen today. We can meet Him in His Scripture for He has entered into His glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
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