pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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Forever and Ever

Reading: Psalm 111

Verse 9: “He provided redemption for his people; he ordained his covenant forever”.

Photo credit: Oscar Ivan Esquivel Artega

In the second half of Psalm 111 the focus shifts from the great works of God to the everlasting nature of God’s love. In verse seven the psalmist declares that God’s precepts or ways are trustworthy and are steadfast “for ever and ever”. Then in verse nine the writer speaks of the redemption that God provided as “he ordained his covenant forever”. Forever is always the nature of God’s covenants. They are not like a contract – that which we prefer. Contracts can be broken, renegotiated, bought out… when we no longer want to live under that arrangement. Not so with a covenant. God’s covenant states that he will be our God, our love, our hope forever. No matter what.

Marriage would be the closest thing we have to a covenant relationship. As one takes their marriage vows, one gets a sense of the forever, no matter what, unconditional love that God offers and gives in his covenant with us. As one says, “for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health…” they are really saying “forever” in terms of this earthly relationship. Marriage is an earthly relationship that models our eternal relationship with God. In fact, husband-wife and groom-bride language describes the relationship between Jesus and church, between follower and redeemer. Jesus chose this language intentionally. It both elevated our human marriages and it placed our covenant relationship with God in terms that we could grasp and understand.

Humans prefer contracts over covenants. They better suit our selfish hearts and our changing wants and desires. God prefers covenants. God is unchanging, steadfast, and true. God has chosen us forever. God created us for that purpose. Even though I may waver, even though I may stumble, even though I may fail, God remains eternally our God. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Loving God, I am so grateful for your “no matter what” love – for the love that is always there for me. Thank you for redeeming me again and again, working in me to shape me and to transform me more and more into your image. Amen.


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Loving God…

Reading: 1st Corinthians 6: 12-20

Verse 15: “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself”?

As followers of Jesus Christ we have a freedom that guides our living. Through Jesus Christ we are freed from the things of this world. Earthly pleasures still entice us, yes, but we find our joy and peace, our very identity, in and with Jesus. Yes, we will sin and one day face death, but in Christ we are freed from the shame and guilt of our sin and we are freed from worry or fear or anxiety over death. We see the things of the world as temporary and we see our life in Christ as eternal. But the freedom that we find in Christ is not permission to do anything and everything, knowing that Jesus forgives our sins. Faith calls us first to holy living and to humble service. Some in Corinth had this backwards. They were confused. Some were sinning openly and knowingly under the claim that “everything is permissible” because of the grace and mercy and forgiveness offered by Jesus.

Today’s passage centers on the sexual immortality present in some of the church members’ lives. Promiscuity and the use of prostitutes were the earthly pleasures that some were indulging in. Others in the church did not think these behaviors were in line with holy living. Instead of simply telling those who were sinning to stop, though, Paul helps them to think through this scenario so that they can think like this for themselves when other issues or questions arise. Paul uses “do you not know…” three times to frame their thinking. He reminds them that their bodies are “members of Christ himself”, that sexual union makes the two people “one flesh”, and that the body is the “temple of the Holy Spirit”. Ultimately Paul is reminding them that they are connected to Christ and that what they do with our bodies should honor him. To enter into sexual unions outside of marriage, to overindulge in food and drink, to lord one’s status or wealth over others, to do other unhealthy things with our bodies – all dishonor our bodies and therefore dishonor God. All of these issues were things that the Corinthian church would wrestle with and through using Paul’s framework. In the end, each issue would come down to loving God, loving neighbor, and loving self. Doing these well, the church brought honor and glory to God. May it be so with each of us as well.

Prayer: Lord God, in so many ways faith is about love. Does this thought or word or action show my love of God? Does it reveal my love of neighbor? Does is reflect a holy and righteous love of self? Guide me in your ways of love. Amen.


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True Light

Reading: John 1: 1-14

Verse 9: “The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world”.

John’s gospel introduces us to Jesus in a way that is very different from Matthew, Mark, and Luke. There is a holiness, a divinity, a wonder to John’s words. “In the beginning was the Word…” rings with an eternal truth. Jesus’ divine nature is revealed in a powerful way. John wants us to understand the significance of the creator of all things stepping into that creation. The most perfect being that there ever was, the most powerful force in all of existence laid all that aside and became one of us.

Jesus did not come to spend a few years or even a long life just to see what life here was like. He came to reveal God’s plan for what life should be like. In verse nine we read, “The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world”. The way, the truth, and the life came to show us the way to love our neighbors, to reveal the depth of God’s love for us, and to demonstrate a life lived in total surrender to God. We read how this is possible in verse twelve: “To those who believe he gave the right to become children of God”. This gift came through his sacrificial death. Through death and resurrection Jesus defeated the power of sin, paying the price to redeem us from our sin. Only through the forgiveness that Christ offers can we be made new again, holy and perfect in his presence. Only then can we stand as a child of God.

Thank you, true light, for coming into the world. Thank you, holy Word, for being a part of my life.

Prayer: Dear God, a simple “thank you” today. Amen.


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Freed

Reading: Galatians 4: 4-7

Verses 4-5: “When the time had fully come, God sent his son… to redeem those under the law”.

What a passage we have today! In just four verses, Paul packs some great theological truths. In summary: at just the right time God sent Jesus to redeem us from the law and then sent the Spirit to lead us to live as children of God, destinying us for eternal life. It is quite the summary of the good news.

As we draw nearer to Christmas Eve it is a good reminder that Jesus came at just the right time. When God’s time to send the son arrived, Jesus was born in Bethlehem. While the example that Jesus set concerning how to live out God’s love is important, the main purpose of Jesus’ time on earth was to redeem us, to make heaven our destiny. This is both a present and a future realityy. Let me say that again: heaven is both a present and a future reality. While we await eternity in the Lord’s presence we live to build his kingdom here on earth.

Paul’s emphasis in the letter to the Galatians is the freeing power of Jesus Christ in this life. In Christ we are made into new creations, freed from “the law”. The church in Galatia was struggling with the application of the Jewish law, the Torah. The Christians who had been Jews believed the new Christians should first follow the laws of Judaism. For example, they wanted Gentile believers to be circumcised and to follow the dietary and purification laws. The new believers just wanted to follow Jesus. This was causing division and strife in the church. Paul wants to end this reliance on the old laws of the Jewish faith. For Paul, being created new in Christ Jesus and being filled with the Holy Spirit, believers no longer fall under the old laws.

Even though we do not live under the Jewish law and even though we are Spirit-filled new creations in Christ, we still live with division and strife. We still need redeemed. Although Christ died to free us from the laws of sin and death, we all still wrestle with sin in our lives and many of us are anxious and fear death.

Our journey of faith is one of redemption after redemption. Even though I believe in Jesus as my Lord and Savior and even though I am led by the Spirit, my old self is alive and well within me. My pride and ego, my judgmental attitude, my driven personality all can rise up and lead me to sin. My old self can ignore the Holy Spirit quite easily at times. Yet, thanks be to God, I am “no longer a slave”. Redemption, forgiveness, grace, and mercy are always ready to make me new again. I am a child of God. I am loved. I am an heir to eternal life in Christ. You are too. Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord of life, thank you for your love that is always greater than any and all of my sin. Continue to lead and guide me and to better atune me to the voice and the way of the Holy Spirit. Amen.


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Eternal

Reading: 2nd Samuel 7: 1-11 and 16

Verse 16: “Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me”.

When I think about today’s passage, in my mind I see an old weathered home, just a skeleton of what once was. Scattered across the country side are farmstead homes and buildings long ago abandoned. They usually lean to one side. There are no shingles, paint, or window panes. These homes remind me of the things of this earth. They are temporary. David desires to build God a home. God does not need or want a home build of wood or stone. Yet God desires to build a home too.

The home that God builds does not consist of wood or stone or any other material found on the earth. All that is here will one day be no more. God builds a home that will outlast all the things of the earth. In verse eleven God says, “The Lord himself will establish a house for you”. Through Nathan, God said these words to David. Through faith, these words remain true for you and for me and for all who call on Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Through the lineage of David, God will build a home whose doors are open to all. In verse sixteen God explains: “Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me”. Forever. David’s house will include Joseph of Nazareth, the earthly father of Jesus, the Son of God. Through Jesus the family will grow. Faith in the Lord will move out beyond Israel and into all the world. Through the good news that is Jesus Christ, faith will go out to the ends of the earth. All are invited to become a part of God’s family, a part of his eternal home.

As I think more about that old tattered farmhouse, I think about that elderly man or woman, perhaps eighty or ninety years old. They too have been weathered by time; maybe they lean a bit to one side. Yet the faithful live day by day with an abiding trust in their Lord. When asked, they do not want to be remembered by the fancy car they drove or by the wealth or power that they accumulated. They want their family, friends, acquaintances to remember how much they loved, how they gave much more than they took, how others were blessed simply by being in their presence. They, above all else, want others to see what a life lived for Jesus Christ looks like. May it be so for you and for me.

Prayer: Lord, as I become more and more mature, seasoned – weathered – I desire more and more to be more and more like your Son. Guide me each of my days to be loving, kind, humble, generous, gracious. Use me day by day to reflect your Son out into the world. Amen.


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Ought To

Reading: 2nd Peter 3: 8-15a

Verse 11: “What kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives”.

As the years pass, some of the second generation believers begin to question if Jesus is really returning. This generation did not see and hear Jesus himself teach and heal. They worry that eternal life and salvation may not be a part of their lives. They begin to wander from the faith. The fear of an imminent return had kept the more “mature” believers on the narrow path that Jesus had taught them personally. We also have this tendency. When we first believed we were “on fire” and now many are but slightly smouldering. In life, we too often procrastinate and then try and pull it off as the deadline looms. Unless it has to do with others. We want them to have things done yesterday, we want that item we ordered to get here before we order it. And if that little circle on our computer or phone spins just a titch too long…

In today’s passage Peter calls us to the fine line of our faith – be patient always but it could happen at any moment. We are called to endure and persevere on our journey of faith, knowing that it could all end this hour. So Peter asks the tough question: “What kind of people ought you to be”? This reminds me of the question about what I hope people say at my funeral. Well, I hope they say I loved the Lord and my family, that I gave time to serving others, that I was a generous soul, that I was selfless. Both questions get at the same end. As Peter writes, “You ought to live holy and godly lives”. The big question for us is this: are we? Are we living holy and godly lives? Am I? Are you?

Taking time to reflect on our lives and to refocus on the goal is important, especially in this season of Advent. For many of us, this Sunday is a day when we celebrate Holy Communion, a time that calls us to consider the state of our souls, to confess and repent of our sins, to be made new again. For all of us, as we move closer to December 24, we prepare to meet the holy and godly one who came as a baby, who grew up to set the ultimate example for who and what we ought to be as we live out our lives and our faith. As we do so, may we heed this plea that we find today in verse fourteen: “make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with him”. May it be so for us all.

Prayer: Lord God, you call me to a difficult thing: holy and godly. In my humanity I cannot be these things. Alone, I am lost and without hope. But with you, with the presence of your Holy Spirit, I can live day by day seeking to become more and more like Jesus, the perfector of the faith. So fill me with your Holy Spirit. Guide me to how I ought to live, bringing you all of the glory and the honor. Amen.


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Ought To

Reading: 2nd Peter 3: 8-15a

Verse 11: “What kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives”.

As the years pass, some of the second generation believers begin to question if Jesus is really returning. This generation did not see and hear Jesus himself teach and heal. They worry that eternal life and salvation may not be a part of their lives. They begin to wander from the faith. The fear of an imminent return had kept the more “mature” believers on the narrow path that Jesus had taught them personally. We also have this tendency. When we first believed we were “on fire” and now many are but slightly smouldering. In life, we too often procrastinate and then try and pull it off as the deadline looms. Unless it has to do with others. We want them to have things done yesterday, we want that item we ordered to get here before we order it. And if that little circle on our computer or phone spins just a titch too long…

In today’s passage Peter calls us to the fine line of our faith – be patient always but it could happen at any moment. We are called to endure and persevere on our journey of faith, knowing that it could all end this hour. So Peter asks the tough question: “What kind of people ought you to be”? This reminds me of the question about what I hope people say at my funeral. Well, I hope they say I loved the Lord and my family, that I gave time to serving others, that I was a generous soul, that I was selfless. Both questions get at the same end. As Peter writes, “You ought to live holy and godly lives”. The big question for us is this: are we? Are we living holy and godly lives? Am I? Are you?

Taking time to reflect on our lives and to refocus on the goal is important, especially in this season of Advent. For many of us, this Sunday is a day when we celebrate Holy Communion, a time that calls us to consider the state of our souls, to confess and repent of our sins, to be made new again. For all of us, as we move closer to December 24, we prepare to meet the holy and godly one who came as a baby, who grew up to set the ultimate example for who and what we ought to be as we live out our lives and our faith. As we do so, may we heed this plea that we find today in verse fourteen: “make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with him”. May it be so for us all.

Prayer: Lord God, you call me to a difficult thing: holy and godly. In my humanity I cannot be these things. Alone, I am lost and without hope. But with you, with the presence of your Holy Spirit, I can live day by day seeking to become more and more like Jesus, the perfector of the faith. So fill me with your Holy Spirit. Guide me to how I ought to live, bringing you all of the glory and the honor. Amen.


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Ought To

Reading: 2nd Peter 3: 8-15a

Verse 11: “What kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives”.

As the years pass, some of the second generation believers begin to question if Jesus is really returning. This generation did not see and hear Jesus himself teach and heal. They worry that eternal life and salvation may not be a part of their lives. They begin to wander from the faith. The fear of an imminent return had kept the more “mature” believers on the narrow path that Jesus had taught them personally. We also have this tendency. When we first believed we were “on fire” and now many are but slightly smouldering. In life, we too often procrastinate and then try and pull it off as the deadline looms. Unless it has to do with others. We want them to have things done yesterday, we want that item we ordered to get here before we order it. And if that little circle on our computer or phone spins just a titch too long…

In today’s passage Peter calls us to the fine line of our faith – be patient always but it could happen at any moment. We are called to endure and persevere on our journey of faith, knowing that it could all end this hour. So Peter asks the tough question: “What kind of people ought you to be”? This reminds me of the question about what I hope people say at my funeral. Well, I hope they say I loved the Lord and my family, that I gave time to serving others, that I was a generous soul, that I was selfless. Both questions get at the same end. As Peter writes, “You ought to live holy and godly lives”. The big question for us is this: are we? Are we living holy and godly lives? Am I? Are you?

Taking time to reflect on our lives and to refocus on the goal is important, especially in this season of Advent. For many of us, this Sunday is a day when we celebrate Holy Communion, a time that calls us to consider the state of our souls, to confess and repent of our sins, to be made new again. For all of us, as we move closer to December 24, we prepare to meet the holy and godly one who came as a baby, who grew up to set the ultimate example for who and what we ought to be as we live out our lives and our faith. As we do so, may we heed this plea that we find today in verse fourteen: “make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with him”. May it be so for us all.

Prayer: Lord God, you call me to a difficult thing: holy and godly. In my humanity I cannot be these things. Alone, I am lost and without hope. But with you, with the presence of your Holy Spirit, I can live day by day seeking to become more and more like Jesus, the perfector of the faith. So fill me with your Holy Spirit. Guide me to how I ought to live, bringing you all of the glory and the honor. Amen.


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Obedient

Reading: Romans 6: 12-23

Verse 22: “Now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life”.

Paul calls on the Romans and on us to walk the path that leads to life. This path begins with offering our very life to God in witness and in service. In doing so we become the “instruments of righteousness” that Paul refers to in verse thirteen. In offering ourselves to God we are becoming obedient to God and to his will. Paul uses the term “slave” – indicating that all of our life is obedient to God. It is a total and full commitment, not just a few hours here and there.

The path of life is the opposite of the path of sin and death. Obedience to God and to the way of Jesus Christ leads not to death but to grace and hope and love. In verse 22 Paul writes, “Now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life”. Becoming slaves to God, using Paul’s terminology, frees us from sin and its trappings. Becoming obedient to God makes us more and more holy. In Wesleyan terminology, this is “moving on towards perfection”. In everyday terms, it is becoming more and more like Jesus Christ every day. The end game, the result for us, is not just the grace and hope and love and peace… that we experience in this life – all true – but is life eternal.

As we turn from self today, the part of us that leads to sin and away from God, may we be filled more and more with his light and love. In being so filled, may we bring his light and love out into the world. May it be so!

Prayer: Eternal God, today may I choose the path of light and love. Guide me to seek to love you and others far more than self. Lead and guide me to bear witness to your will and your way today. Amen.


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Losing One’s Life

Reading: Matthew 10: 24-39

Verses 38-39: “Anyone who does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me… whoever loses his life for my sake will find it”.

Jesus’ words today are really about the cost of discipleship. Over the years, the cost has been varying degrees of suffering and sacrifice, depending on the era and location. In Jesus’ day, he and his disciples were oppressed by both the Jews and the Romans. Both saw Jesus and his small group of followers as a potential threat and as a people who were not worshiping the “correct” way. Beatings and imprisonment and death would become the norms for some time. Similar costs exist in places around the world today. But here in our nation and in most of the western world the cost of following Jesus is maybe a little rejection and perhaps some scorn or ridicule. At times our faith may cost us a job or some friends.

After explaining the costs to his disciples and followers, Jesus closes with these words: “Anyone who does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me… whoever loses his life for my sake will find it”. The cross is standing out from the world and giving instead of taking. It is to live in the world as Jesus lived in the world, offering all of himself before considering what he could get out of another. It was standing up for the ones without voice or power. This is the idea of dying to self, of losing one’s life for Christ’s sake. It is placing self after faith and family and others. It is being selfless.

In our modern culture, this is not an easy place to be. We are told that the way is narrow that leads to life abundant and eternal. The losing of self leads to community and connection, to deeper relationships with God and with one another. It is living for the building of the kingdom of God here and now. It is love itself lived out in all we do and say and think. May this be the sacrifice we each make day by day.

Prayer: Lord God, the opportunities are there. If I will but get outside of my comfort zone, outside of my walls. It is engaged with the world, giving freely of self, that life is really blessed and full of joy. May I humbly serve you this day. Amen.