pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Monthly Archives: May 2015


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Focus on Jesus

And thus endeth the story.  On this Ascension day we believe Jesus rose up to “heaven”.  Christ risen and Christ glorified!!  The gospel story concludes with this grand finale.  But is it really the end of the story?  No!  Jesus left the disciples with two great promises.  First, He promised that the Holy Spirit would come upon them in great power.  This power would lead them to preach the good news to all nations.  Second, He told them, “I will be back.”

From the time of the ascension to now and on into the future, the followers of Jesus are to work on the first promise until the second comes to be.  It could be tomorrow that Jesus returns.  It could be a long time from now.  No one knows except the Father.  When we allow the Holy Spirit to work fully in us, it is easy to share the good news of repentance and forgiveness and the promise of eternal life.Without the Holy Spirit, trying to do it on our own, it is hard to share the message of Jesus Christ.

The Ascension represents Jesus returning to the Father in heaven, wherever that may be.  Conceptually this places Jesus right next to God.  In this thought is the idea that Jesus is supreme.  He is above all.  Above my life, my desires, my priorities.  He is Lord of ALL.

How is that lived out?  My focus must be on sharing my story of Jesus with those who do not know Him.  In my community that is a large task.  This is OK.  I do not labor alone.  The Spirit goes with me and there are many coworkers as well.  May our mighty God provide the opportunities this day!

Scripture references: Luke 24: 44-53 and Acts 1: 6-9


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Thank You Prayer

Thank you for faith.  Thank you Lord for being a part of my life, for allowing me to live in a time and place when and where I can know you.  It is a blessing not only to have the opportunity to know you but to also be able to publicly worship, proclaim, and follow you.

Thank you for your Spirit.  Thank you for giving me your Spirit to dwell within me, for the wisdom and revelation that it brings me.  It allows me to be your disciple.  It allows me the ways to come to know you more.

Thank you for your call.  Continue to open my eyes and soften my heart for the things that break your heart O Lord.  Help me to cling to the hope I find in this love and in the eternal life which you promised to all who believe.

Thank you for your mighty power.  Thank you for your great power which works in the world and in my life. This heart that struggles needs your strength every day.  Fill me with the courage to live each day knowing your power and authority is all that matters.

Thank you for being the head of the church.  In you alone is the example of true servant leadership.  Bind my will to yours.  Place all of my desires behind yours and those around me each day.  Fill me with you in every way Lord Jesus.  Amen.

Scripture reference: Ephesians 1: 15-23


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A Wonderful Presence

Jesus described the Holy Spirit using the Greek word parakletos, which means one who stands beside.  It is a comforting image.  The Bible translates the idea of the Holy Spirit using words such as comforter, friend, advocate, helper.  Also nice images.  In Romans 8 we are told that the Holy Spirit continually prays for us in groans and words beyond our understanding.  Jesus told the disciples that the Holy Spirit would come after Jesus departed and would be the living presence of the risen Christ in each of them.  All of this is wonderful!

Yet there is another aspect of the Holy Spirit, equally wonderful.  Jesus also told the disciples that the Holy Spirit would remind them of His teachings, would bring insights and understandings to their minds, and would convict them.  The Holy Spirit works in the lives of the believers much like a loving parent in the lives of one’s children.  It reminds us of what Jesus would do in a situation and, therefore leads us to do the same.  The Spirit also convicts us of sin when needed, reveals us what righteousness looks like, and walks the fine line of judgment with us, keeping us on the right side.

The Holy Spirit is a wonderful presence in us.  It is unique in that not only does it remind us of the WWJD framework in which we should live but also corrects and realigns us as needed.  In playing both sides of this equation, the Holy Spirit really works to make us the best example of Christ that we can be.  Come Holy Spirit, come.  Dwell in me, teach me, mold me, guide me.  Come Holy Spirit, come!

Scripture reference: John 15: 26-27 and 16: 4b-15


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The Spirit Remains

In the 40 days between the resurrection and ascension Jesus visited the believers and prepared them for ministry without His physical presence.  He knew that they would soon be on their own.  But He left them to wait with a promise.  His last instructions were to wait for the Holy Spirit to come upon them.  The promise was that this would be even better than having Jesus himself because the Holy Spirit would dwell in each of them all of the time.  There would be no more sitting and waiting for Jesus.  The Spirit would be present with the believers at all times.  This is our promise too.

Jesus told them to wait with hope.  Often it is hard to wait.  It is even harder to wait when it becomes a period of time.  But when we wait with hope it is a different kind of waiting.  It is a holy waiting.  When we are waiting with hope we are waiting with the expectation that God will show up, that His presence and power will be made known.  We wait with this hope because we know that God loves us as His children and always has good for those that love Him.

When we live by faith it is essential at times to wait as well.  In this we also wait with trust.  Here we wait, also with God, as we trust in His wisdom and in His plan for our life.  This too is hard because we often do not see the big picture when we are in the middle of it.  But our hopeful waiting is grounded in our belief that He has plans to prosper us and to help us grow in our relationship with Him.

Through all of our waiting the Holy Spirit remains with us.  In ways we cannot understand and with words we cannot comprehend, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us continually before God.  The Holy Spirit seeks for us things we do not even know we need.  I am grateful for the Holy Spirit.  This day and every day, the Spirit not only walks with me and guides me, it prays for me.

Scripture references: Acts 1: 1-5 and Romans 8: 22-27


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Witness, Testify, Pray

The Apostle John is known for presenting God as “love” and for using love as the foundation of our faith.  For John, Jesus is God’s love lived out here on earth.  Christ is the example, the reference point, the proof of how great this divine love really is.

Belief in Jesus’ teachings, works, death, and resurrection lead us to desire a relationship and to be open to knowing Christ.  Specific experiences with His presence and continued work in the world draw us into relationship with Jesus.  Once we personally accept Him as Lord and Savior, His Spirit comes to dwell in us and we become increasingly filled with His love.  As we become more and more filled with His love, it begins to overflow into the live of those around us.  We become a living testimony to Jesus’ love and a are a witness for others.

Our witness and testimony alone are  not what allows others to have a relationship with Jesus.  We are not capable of this; only the work of the Holy Spirit and the presence of Jesus will draw one into a relationship with Him.  We can point others toward Christ and we can plant seeds that build the desire for a personal relationship but it in only through divine action that a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is formed.

As we live out our life of faith and love the world and those around us, God will place people upon our hearts.  We must be a witness and a testimony to them.  But do not stop there.  Pray for the Holy Spirit to work in their lives and for the living Christ to make His presence known in their lives.  Trust in God to do a mighty work in them.

Scripture reference: 1 John 5: 9-13


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Decisions, Decisions

Each day a person makes many decisions.  Depending on how you define ‘decision’ it could be thousands.  In the decisions like ‘what to wear today’, most of the time these decisions do not have lifelong implications.  But for some, each day decisions are made that are on this level.  Certainly we all make major decisions at times in life.

Each of us must apply due diligence in making the big decisions – Do I marry?  What college?  Do I pursue that job?  Do I blur the lines?  We must each weigh the positives and negatives and think through our decision in light of who we are.  Sometimes we seek the counsel of trusted friends, mentors, or family members.

When the disciples came to the point of replacing Judas, they thought through what this person must offer and what the requirements for the job ‘apostle’ were.  After this and after searching for a candidate they came down to two qualified men.  They did not then flip a coin or vote on who to select – they went to God in prayer for the final decision.

This pattern of doing what we can and then taking time to seek God’s will and direction should be our standard course of action when we face the big decisions in life.  Sometimes we may even need to involve God when we cannot sort our options out on our own.  God desires good for all who love Him.  Invest in time with God when making life’s big decisions.  Listen for His voice, feel the nudges, trust in Him.

Scripture reference: Acts 1: 21-26


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Time for the Word

The disciples were sanctified by Jesus.  Through His words and actions the disciples came to know the truth.  They understood the ways of God.  Through sanctification they were marked as holy, set apart from the world.  God seeks to sanctify us as well.  As we grow in closeness to God, we become increasingly separated from the things of this world.  Just as Jesus told the disciples that they do not belong to the world, He tells us the same thing as He lays claim to our lives.

Since we belong to Jesus as His disciples, we know the path we are called to walk in this world. We are called to offer the world radical love, unexpected forgiveness, absolute justice, complete compassion, and sacrificial service.  In short, we are to live out the life that Jesus patterned for us so that all may come to know Him.

There is much beauty and good in the world. God loves the world and all that He created is good.  We can love these aspects of the world too.  But sin did enter the world and Satan continues to operate in the world.  As Jesus claims us and as we continue to grow closer to God, we are called away from greed and wealth, away from violence and corruption, and away from status and power.

In the midst of the world and this culture, how can we be sanctified, set apart for God?  It is God’s Word that sanctifies us.  Time in the Word draws us closer to Him.  Time in the Word builds up our armor and makes us strong so we can resist temptation.  Time in the Word lays out how we are to be in the world but not of it.  We must spend time in the Word of God, for there we too find truth.

Scripture reference: John 17: 17-19


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Unity and Protection

Jesus makes it clear that as His disciples we are no longer of this world but belong to Him and the heavenly realms.  In this human form we are in the world not but our true and eternal home is not here on this earth.  Yet in our time here we are called to be in ministry to one another and to stand strong for our faith when Satan comes to drag us down.

The prayer that Jesus prays for His disciples is a prayer for each of us as well.  Jesus knew that this struggle to spread the gospel to the ends of the earth would go on for generations and generations so He was and is praying for us and future disciples as well.

Jesus first asked God for unity amongst His disciples.  In the time of the prayer the disciples faced strong opposition both from the Jews and the Romans.  The first church was a small band that really needed to stick together.  Today we continue to face many challenges from the culture and world around us.  True disciples are a minority even within some churches.  We too need to be united as the body of Christ; together we are strong.

Jesus also prayed for protection for His disciples.  It is so easy to give in to the things of this world, to give in to the pressure, to believe the evil one’s lies.  Jesus knew firsthand the evil one’s temptations and He prays for us because He knows that Satan does not go away.  In the trials, lean into Jesus.  Know that He too never goes away.  Jesus is always by our side, right until the end of the age.  Amen.

Scripture reference: John 17: 6-16


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Faithful to Our Call

After the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus the disciples were told to wait.  The Holy Spirit had been promised to them by Jesus, but it does not come right away.  Fresh from seeing and learning from the resurrected Jesus, they must now wait.

As a few moments turn into an hour and the hours stretch into days, the waiting must have gotten harder and harder.  plus they must have been filled with excitement over what was to come.  Can you remember waiting and waiting for something promised that just never seemed to come?  For myself I best relate this waiting for a child to come home from a night out.  Eleven becomes twelve and twelve becomes one.  The cell phone is not answered.

In those instances of waiting, God calls us to be faithful.  As I wait for a child, I pray for them.  I place my trust and them in God’s hands.  In these moments we pray, but we may also read scripture, sing a hymn or song, and pray some more.  God does not expect or want us to be idle as we wait for Him to act in our world.

As the disciples waited on the Holy Spirit’s arrival they did not wait either.  One of the twelve, Judas, was no longer with them.  Peter urges them to appoint a new disciple.  Peter encourages them to choose one who has been with them from the beginning right through the present time.  Being present from John the Baptist through the miracles, teachings, death, resurrection, and ascension are the requirements of the job.

Of course we were not there for all of these events, but we can read of them.  We can come to know Jesus and His example.  We can put these things into practice in how we live our life.  We can live as Jesus did, pray as He did, honor God as He did.  May we be faithful to our calling.

Scripture reference: Acts 1: 15-17 and 21-22


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Grains of Faith

At times in my faith journey I am like the chaff.  My faith becomes dry, seemingly purposeless.  In those times I too can be blow this way or that.  I feel adrift in these times.  It is easier to be drawn to the things of this world as well.  Yet God always draws me back in.

I want to be like the grain.  We all do.  It is the grain that sheds the chaff so that new life is made possible.  The grain is happy to be and do what God created it for.  Joy is found in fulfilling its purpose.

Some grain is used to nourish others.  It can be used in many ways to accomplish this purpose.  Each of us has a gift or talent to use in some way to nourish our fellow believers.  We are called to use these gifts and talents not for ourselves but to build up the body of Christ.

Other grain is used to yield more grain.  As we plant the Word of God in others, we are sowing seeds of faith.  Each of us has a faith unique story and a voice to use to tell that story.  Each of us has the ability to cast seeds far and wide both with our story and with the witness of how we live our lives.  Our hope is that some takes root and new lives of faith are formed.

God promises to watch over the ways of the righteous.  His promise is to those that love Him and seek to walk in His ways.  It takes sacrifice to give of oneself to help others grow in faith.  It requires the same to sow seeds of faith in others.  God’s love will lead us to do both.  Allow His hand to guide you today.

Scripture reference: Psalm 1: 4-6