pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!


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Compassionate Love

Reading: Jonah 3: 1-5 & 10

Verse Ten: “He had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction He had threatened”.

Today we pick up the story of Jonah part way through.  Jonah has already been told to go to Nineveh, fled the other direction, been tossed into the sea during a fierce storm, been swallowed by a fish, prayed to God, and was vomited on to dry land.  This is Jonah 1 and 2 in a nutshell.  Our passage today begins with God speaking a second time to Jonah, instructing him to go to the great city of Nineveh to give a message which calls for their repentance.

Nineveh is a great city with over 120,000 residents.  Our passage tells us that it takes three days to visit the city.  We also learn that it is a city of wickedness.  God calls Jonah to go to save the city from destruction.  This is the first indication of God’s compassionate love.  God desires for the city to turn from its evil ways.  God’s compassionate love is also shown to Jonah as God is willing to tell him a second time to go to Nineveh.  God could have let Jonah drown and found another messenger.

Jonah goes to Nineveh and preached, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be over turned”.  The people believe God and a citywide fast is declared by the king.  The people also put on sackcloth as a sign of their repentance.  The king led the people to do this in hope that God would be compassionate and would relent.  In verse ten we read, “He had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction He had threatened”.  God delivered the second chance that He wanted to give the city.  The story does not end here either.  God still has some work to do with Jonah.  Even though God’s purposes for Nineveh have been completed, God still loves Jonah and goes on to show that.

In the continuing work that God does with Jonah we come to see that God not only gives Jonah a second chance, but also a third…  God does not give up on Jonah.  He continues to bring Jonah along, ever shaping him into who he was created to be.  This is a beautiful thing about our God.  He continues to do the same thing for each and every one of us.  In His great love, God works and works and works to help us along our Christian walk.  He never gives up on us.  It is a beautiful thing.  Thanks be to God for His never-ending compassionate love for you and for me.


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Strong and Loving

Reading: Psalm 62: 9-12

Verses 11 and 12: “O God, you are strong… O Lord, you are loving”.

There is a shift as we move into the second part of our reading from Psalm 62.  Verses five through eight were all about placing our trust in God and today’s passage begins by reminding us of our limits and shortcomings as human beings.  The psalmist reminds us that no matter how rich or poor we think we are, no matter how important or lowly we think we are, it does not matter because we are simply a breath.  Soon we will be no more.  For the psalmist, this means that all of our hope and trust must be in God alone.  The things of this world and our pride will not last and they will not save us.

The Psalm reminds us that we are all equally powerless before God.  Even though we know deep down that we really cannot control much in this life and that when our time comes we cannot delay it in any way, we still turn to things like riches and position to determine our worth.  We also tend to compare ourselves to others to feel value.  And too often when we feel that we do not compare well, we turn to judging others as a means to elevate ourselves.  Things have not changed too much since the Psalm was written.

Our passage today comes near to a close with these words: “O God, you are strong… O Lord, you are loving”.  In the face of our pettiness and frailty, we are reminded of the eternal truths of God.  God remains strong and loving in all ways and at all times.  When we can choose to focus on God’s goodness and strength and love, then we can rest content in who we are as a child of God.  When we know God in this way, the things of this world pale.  Yes, we are but a breath, but we are a breath that has been breathed by God.

As our passage closes, it speaks of rewarding us accordingly.  When we walk this life with a deep and abiding trust in God’s strength and love, then we are assured of our eternity with God.  Our future does not get any better than that!  Each and every day may we trust into the only thing that truly lasts – the Lord our God.


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Trust in Him

Reading: Psalm 62: 5-8

Verse Eight: “Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge”.

The psalmist calls out from a place we find ourselves from time to time.  With all that life can bring, at times we too turn to God for rest from the storms and trials.  We do so precisely for the same reason the psalmist does: our hope comes from God.  We can find true rest in God alone.

The psalmist uses words to describe God that build our confidence in Him as our source of hope.  God is our mighty rock, our refuge, our fortress.  These words bring us images of power and security – in this God we can indeed find a place where we can rest.  The psalmist also adds, “I will not be shaken”.  In this place of rest our God holds us secure.

The psalmist closes this section of Psalm 62 with these words: “Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge”.  It is a clear call to always trust in the Lord.  In the good and the bad we are to pour out all that is within us to God – our joys and our sorrows.  It is an intimate relationship that God seeks.  We are to hold nothing back from God.  In all times, God is our refuge.  May we make time each day to connect deeply to our rock, our refuge, our fortress, our salvation.


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Courage

Reading: John 1: 43-51

Verse 49: “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel”.

Jesus finds Philip and simply says, “Follow me” and Philip does.  He hears these simple words and is all in.  Philip invites his friend to do the same, but Nathanael is a little more reluctant.  It is not until he begins to interact with Jesus that he comes to follow Jesus.  After Jesus offers a little proof of who He is, Nathanael declares, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel”.  Philip and Nathanael are two good disciple prototypes.

Some believers are like Philip.  There is a sense of the call to follow Jesus.  For many like Philip, the call comes through our upbringing.  We were raised in the church and initially had the faith of our parents or grandparents.  But then one day we sensed a call to a personal faith as Jesus said to us, “Follow me”.  Like Philip, at that point we responded to a call to go deeper, to make our faith a personal and intimate faith.

Other believers come to faith like Nathanael.  Jesus does something in their life that has a sudden impact or jars them a bit.  In a moment they realize just who Jesus is and they feel compelled to give their lives to Jesus.  In this, the decision point is much the same for both prototypes.  It is a realization that Jesus knows us and is calling us into a personal relationship with Him.

The decision to enter into a saving relationship with Jesus is just the beginning.  From there on out it takes commitment and obedience to walk daily with Christ.  We invest our time and energy to get to know Jesus more and more.  As we do so, we grow to be more and more like Jesus.  Eventually others begin to see Jesus in us.  When they do, often they begin to seek Him out too.  When they do, may we have the courage to say to them, “Come and see” as they begin their own journey of faith.  O Lord, grant us the courage today and every day to be a witness to Jesus Christ.  Amen.


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Come and See

Reading: John 1:43-51

Verse 46: “Nazareth!  Can anything good come from there”?

Our key verse today is full of emotion and opinion.  Nathanael dismisses any chance of Jesus being the Messiah because of his preconceived notions about Nazareth.  He looks right past Philip’s excitement and belief in finding the One.  Nathanael cannot see past all his world has ever been or known.  I wonder if he has even ever been to Nazareth.

Sometimes though, we are all guilty of doing just what Nathanael did.  We make a decision or pass a judgment on what we think we know.  Often this comes from our parents or friends, sometimes from society or culture.  We have all been guilty of drawing conclusions or making assumptions based on things like ethnicity, socio-economic status, appearance, gender, family of origin, …

To illustrate, a quick youth group story.  After cooking and sharing a meal with a group of people on the street outside the church, one of the young men in the group shared something with me.  He had spent some time eating and talking with one of our guests.  Afterward, he came up to me and said, “They’re just like me”.  Yes, they are just like us.  When we are willing to spend time with someone, getting to know them, we come to the same conclusion.  Our lot in life at the moment may be different, but we are all the same on some levels.  One for sure is our place as a beloved child of God.

Philip could have thrown his hands up in the air or he could have walked away, but he did not.  He simply said, “Come and see”.  Come and see the One who will save the world.  Come and see.  It is our invitation too.  Come and see what Jesus will do in our lives.  Come and see how He will forever change you and your life.  Come and see how Jesus changes our hearts and minds, making it easier to love the other.  Come and see how He changes our eyes, helping us to see the world as He sees the world.  Come and see!


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Body, Mind, Heart

Reading: 1st Corinthians 6: 12-20

Verse Fifteen: “Do you know know that your bodies are members of Christ Himself”?

The believers in Corinth were not quite living a 24/7 faith.  They were living a faith that at times was disconnected from daily life.  Paul begins today with a statement that sums up this attitude: “Everything is permissible for me”.  The Corinthian believers were living however they wanted to, falsely thinking that they body and soul could be separate.  They were involved with prostitutes and were trying to say that this just involves the body – the soul is disconnected from this immoral act and therefore remains faithful to God. But Paul reminds them that when one unites with another they become “one flesh”.  He reminds them that they are part of the body of Christ and then asks if we should unite Christ with a prostitute.  “Never!” is Paul’s answer.

Prostitution is the apparent issue in the church in Corinth, but it is not the only struggle we wrestle with today.  The battle to keep our bodies and minds pure includes pornography, alcohol and drug addictions, verbal and physical abuse, gluttony, gossip, judging, and many, many more.  Just as Paul asked the church in Corinth, “Do you know know that your bodies are members of Christ Himself?”, so too must we ask ourselves this question today.  We cannot allow these sins to enter our bodies or minds without facing negative consequences both to our physical as well as spiritual being.  What we do with our bodies and minds is connected to our hearts and therefore to our relationship with God.

Paul goes on to write, “Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit”.  As such, we should be careful how we treat our bodies and minds.  Paul reminds us, “You are not your own, you were bought with a price”.  Christ gave all for us.  This is another way of reminding us that since Christ dwells in us, we need to guard against sin entering our bodies and minds and hearts.  Just as Christ is pure and holy, so too are we called to live pure and holy lives.  As we seek to do this daily, we will bring all of the glory and honor to God in all we do, say, and think.  May it be so.


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Love

Reading: Psalm 139: 13-18

Verse 13: “You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb”.

God is a vast God.  God created the world and all living creatures.  God continues to be active and present each day.  God’s love is unending, God’s mercy always overflows, and God’s forgiveness pours forth from the throne unceasingly.  As vast as God is, though, God is also intimately connected to each of us as well.  Verse thirteen speaks of how God has been connected to each of us since our beginning: “You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb”.  God personally formed each of us.  Personally.  God really loves and values each and every one of us as!

In the beginning of time God spoke a word and created.  God set stars among the sky that are so numerous that we cannot count them.  Yet God knows each one by name.  This is amazing power and might.  But is was all done at once.  God spoke and it was.  That’s power.  For you and me and for each of the billions and billions of people who have lived and who are now alive, God knit us together.  We are each formed by hand, so to speak.  We are “fearfully and wonderfully made”, true, but we are also individually made.  Each of us is a unique creation of God’s mighty hand.  I think that is more amazing than any part of the creation story.

Even though we are formed by God’s hands, at times we separate ourselves from God.  We choose to sin or we may even deny our relationship with God.  We are imperfect and human.  God is not.  Into our sin, God sends grace and mercy and forgiveness.  God says, “I love you still”.  In those times of separation or denial, God continues to seek us out, to call out to us, to love us.  God could just create another person and hope for better results, but does not.  We are each the most important creation there is.  That’s how big God’s love is.

While I am thankful for this love, I know that it cannot stop there.  It is a love that must be shared with others.  This day, O Lord, may I be your love to another.  May it be so for all of us.  Amen.


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Fully Known

Reading: Psalm 139: 1-6

Verses One and Three: “O Lord, you have searched me and you know me… You are familiar with all of my ways”.

Our Psalm today speaks of a deep intimacy with God.  It reminds me of a best-friend relationship where you finish each other’s sentences and you seem to have this connection so you know what the other person is thinking.  But when I think of God, to have such a relationship could only be one-sided.  I could never know God so completely.  Yes, we can know God well and our knowledge of and intimacy with God can grow as our faith develops, but there will always be so much more to God that we cannot even begin to fathom.

Our psalmist opens with this line:  “O Lord, you have searched me and you know me”.  The Psalm goes on to say that God knows our every coming and going.  God knows all of our thoughts and all of our actions.  Verse three finishes with, “You are familiar with all of my ways”.  God knows everything there is to know about us.  God could finish our sentences even if we only gave God the first word.  It is both a beautiful and a scary thought to realize that we are this well known by God.

It is beautiful because it means that God is constantly aware of us.  That means God rejoices when we love or serve or care for anther.  It means God knows when we extend mercy or grace or forgiveness.  It is beautiful because it means that God knows all of the desires of our heart and knows our prayers before we ever put them to words or even think them.

But these thoughts are also scary.  God knows the impure or unkind thought before it is ever fully formed in my heart and mind.  God knows all the things that I have done and said that I told myself were just my little secrets – no matter how big or how small.  Not only does God know my sins, but God knows all of my fears, all of my doubts, all of my questioning, all of the times I was less than God created me to be.

It is a deep, deep intimacy that God has with us.  God knew us before we were ever formed in the womb and God knows us inside out all the time.  We are fully known.  In that thought, I realize how little I know of God and God’s love.  In spite of knowing all about us, God loves us anyway – the good and the bad fully included.  It is a glimpse into the depth of God’s love for you and me.  All we can say is thanks be to God.


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Trust

Reading: 1 Samuel 3: 1-20

Verse 17: “What was it He said to you?  Do not hide it from me”.

No one likes bad news.  No one likes to hear bad news.  No one likes to be the bearer of bad news.  We can all relate to what unfolds in today’s scripture.  For Samuel, he is young and inexperienced with hearing from God.  The bad news pertains to his mentor, who is old and in failing health.  For Eli, the first news is unspoken: the torch has been passed.  God will now speak through another.  Eli mush have known that God spoke something to Samuel and because Samuel did not come right away to share the news, that the news must not have been good news.

Both Samuel and Eli could have sat on the bad news.  Both could have waited it out – maybe God could bring a new word.  Eli is old and failing, but he remains faithful to God, in spite of his failure to deal with his sons.  Eli calls Samuel and begins with, “Samuel, my son”.  I can envision Eli putting his arm lovingly around Samuel and looking deeply into his eyes as he says these words.  Eli then encourages Samuel to share, saying, “What was it He said to you?  Do not hide it from me”.  Samuel tells Eli all that God had said.  As a witness to his faith, Eli acknowledges that this will be done according to God’s good will.

What can we learn from this passage?  The first lesson comes from Eli – help the bearer of bad news to know that it is OK to share the news that they have been entrusted with.  Also from Eli we can see the example of receiving bad news knowing that God is and will be present in and through it.  The third lesson we learn comes from Samuel – trust in God for the strength and courage to share what He has given us to share.  In all of this we are called to learn from Romans 8:14: “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God”.  He loves us and will care for us.

Our God is just and loving and true.  We can trust into all that God has for us and for our lives.  May it be so.  Amen.


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Speak

Reading: 1 Samuel 3: 1-20

Verse One: “In those days, the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions”.

As Eli aged the word of the Lord was not often heard.  Eli had chosen to ignore the immoral actions of his sons in the temple, thereby allowing them to continue to sin against God.  Ultimately God will not forget – there will be a consequence to pay for their actions.  I wonder if this is how God looks at us and at our world from time to time.  As a whole, Christianity is not the voice that rises up against obvious wrongs or injustices.  Does God think we too often sit silent when we should speak?

It can be difficult to speak out, especially when it seems to go against the norm or the popular or accepted thought of the day.  Even within our communities of faith, it can be difficult to hold one another accountable without seeming like we are being judgmental.  But if we are open to it and seek to hear what God is saying to us, like Samuel, we too can receive guidance and instruction from the Lord.

All it takes for God to speak is one receptive ear.  Our passage today tells us, “In those days, the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions”.  Eli had turned a deaf ear to the messages about his sons.  So God turned to Samuel.  But Samuel was young and Eli was still seen as the prophet of God.  It took a few times, but Eli did realize that God was calling out to Samuel.  Eli must have realized that this signaled a changing of the guard as well.  Perhaps this is why Eli pushes Samuel to tell him what God revealed to him.  Eli appears to know that the bad news pertains to him and his household.

How receptive are we to the voice of God in our lives?  Do we create time and space for His voice to be heard?  Do we try and discern if God is speaking into our life or into a situation in our life or in our world?  God desires to be active and involved in our lives.  May we be receptive to our God and His word.  Like Samuel, may we too say, “Speak, for your servant is listening”.