pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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Opportunities

Reading: John 12:1-8

Verse 3: “Mary took… expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped His feet with her hair”.

Mary offered an extraordinary gift to Jesus in our passage today. Mary, being open to the lead and guide of the Holy Spirit, offers Jesus a gift. We read, “Mary took… expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped His feet with her hair”. We know from Judas’ objections that this perfume was costly – worth 300 denarii or a year’s wages. While the value of the offering is significant, the personal nature of the gift is much greater. It is a beautiful scene of one follower giving her all for Jesus her Lord. To kneel and wipe Jesus’ feet with her hair is an act of humble and loving servanthood.

As we also read, Mary is helping to prepare Jesus for burial. Mary senses that Jesus is making His final stop at their house as He heads to Jerusalem for the last time. In her offering, Mary is joining Jesus on His journey.

We too will find ourselves in places and in moments where we have the opportunity to give generously to another. Our gift need not be worth a year’s wages although it could be if led and guided by the Holy Spirit. For some, such a gift is possible. Ultimately, though, the gift does not have to be valuable by worldly standards. What really matters is what is behind the gift. Mary’s gift came out of her love for Jesus as Lord and Savior. The gift would have been just as significant if it were inexpensive perfume. When we see a need or are led by the Holy Spirit to give generously and graciously and sacrificially and from the heart, our gift can be extraordinary too. A relatively small financial gift or the gift of our presence or the time we help out physically in a time of need – these offerings or gifts can make “all the difference in the world” to the person or persons impacted.

When we find ourselves in those opportunities, when led and guided by the Holy Spirit, may we too give all we can for the building of the kingdom here and in the future.

Prayer: Generous Lord, may your Spirit ever guide me to be loving and kind and giving to all I meet. Whether by my physical hands and feet or by my presence or by my monetary giving, make me responsive to the needs I encounter. May it be so. Amen.


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The Resurrection

Reading: 1st Corinthians 15: 1-11

Verse 1: “I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you… on which you have taken your stand”.

In today’s passage, Paul is reminding the church in Corinth of the core beliefs of their faith. His opening line is spoken to us as well. In verse 1 Paul writes, “I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you… on which you have taken your stand”. Paul is calling them and us to remember our foundation, the rock upon which we stand in faith: Jesus Christ. Paul goes on to share just what these facts are: Christ died for our sins, was buried, rose on the third day, and appeared to many people, including Paul himself. These facts form the core of our Christian faith.

The resurrection of Jesus is something that we as the church remember often. In the creeds of the church we recite words that remind us of these facts. In the sacrament of Holy Communion we remember that Jesus died for us. We remember this by using the words “the body that was broken” and “the blood that was shed”. In the sacrament of baptism we remember God’s mighty acts and include Jesus as one of these. As a community of faith, the resurrection is a fact that we celebrate and remember often.

To accept that Jesus came and lived, that He died and rose again, that Jesus is once again eternal in the heavens, is also a confession that we make personally. When we confess Jesus as Lord and Savior, we are processing that Jesus is not only the Lord of our life, but is also the Lord over sin and death. As Savior, Jesus is the One who washes away our sins, freeing us from our guilt and shame. As Savior, Jesus is our salvation, making us new creations with an eternal home in heaven.

When we profess Jesus as Lord and Savior, we are made one in the body of Christ. Faith is not meant to be lived out alone. Yes, we do fight battles within once in a while and, yes, there is a time when we read this our Bibles, pray… on our own. But our faith is lived out together, giving and receiving support and encouragement and accountability to and from our brothers and sisters in Christ.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is also hope for the lost and the broken. It is a message that Jesus Himself commissioned all of His followers to share with all nations and with all people. Today, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart and the actions of my hands and feet proclaim to all that Jesus is Lord!

Prayer: God of all eternity, thank you for coming and dwelling among us, for living as one of us. In this we find our example of how to love you and of how to love one another. Thank you even more for the gift you gave on the cross and the power over sin and death that you demonstrated there. In this you gave us hope and a way to live free of these chains. Thank you God! Amen.


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Surrender

Reading: Psalm 29

Verses 1 and 2: “Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength… worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness”.

In the Psalm we get a sense of God’s wildness in nature. God’s voice is the thunder that rolls over the waters and earth, that shatters the cedars. God’s voice is the lightning that shakes the desert and strips the forest bare. There is power in God’s voice and it feels a bit wild because we cannot control it.

Even though we cannot control the forces of nature and even though it feels a bit wild, there is also a power and glory that draws us in. I love to listen to the rolling thunder and to marvel at the flashes of lightning during a thunderstorm. In truth, I even like to sit outside to better feel the power. The thunder and lightning scream God to me. I cannot control it, but I know the One who does. In those moments that become sacred I join the psalmist as I too “ascribe to the Lord glory and strength… worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness”. In the storm I see God’s glory and strength and am led to worship.

The overall theme this week is baptism. Baptism can also reveal God’s glory and strength. It can draw us into God’s holiness and to a place of worship. But it can also be a bit wild. The Holy Spirit is a part of our baptism. Baptism is an incorporation into the family of God and into the indwelling presence of the Spirit. If we are open to and if we allow the Holy Spirit to lead and guide our lives, then it can get a bit wild. We can find ourselves in places and with people that are unknown and uncomfortable to us. Yet if we trust in the fact that God is in control, then we become an instrument of God as we serve the stranger and the other. It is through and in these experiences that we can meet and worship the Lord.

When we trust God, when we release our lives to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, then we really experience verse 11: “The Lord gives strength to His people; the Lord blesses His people with peace”. May we each surrender to God today, living out the faith that we have, empowered by the Holy Spirit, seeking to be His hands and feet for a world in need. May it be so.

Prayer: Lord, you are my all in all. Help me to trust and serve you with all that I am. Amen.


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Why Am I So Blessed?

Reading: Luke 1: 39-45

Verse 43: “Why am I so blessed, that the mother of my Lord should come to me”?

Luke begins his Gospel with the angelic visits to Zechariah and to Mary, each time proclaiming a special and holy birth. Zechariah is told that his boy will go before the Lord, preparing the people for His coming. Mary is told that she will bear the Son of the Most High. She is also told that Elizabeth will give birth too, even though she is old and barren. Gabriel closes his visit with Mary by reminding her, “For nothing is impossible with God”.

This quick recap gets us to today’s passage. Mary gets ready and heads off to see her relative Elizabeth. When Elizabeth hears Mary’s voice, her baby leaps within her womb. Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit and she identifies Mary as “blessed among women” and declares the child to be blessed as well. Elizabeth, through the power of the Spirit, knows she is in the presence of the Lord. She then asks, “Why am I so blessed, that the mother of my Lord should come to me”? She wonders honestly why she is so blessed.

Every day we cross paths with many people. Often they are familiar to us and sometimes we meet someone new or someone we only occasionally see. This last one was the case with Mary and Elizabeth. Some of our encounters each day are opportunities to be people of faith. Maybe it is by simply rejoicing in someone’s presence in our lives, thanking them for the positive ways in which they bless us. Maybe it is ministering to their need in that time and place – offering food or clothing or gifts for their children, praying with them, or just being present during a time of loss. Maybe it is sharing the good news with someone who does not know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

We do not know if it is a familiar face or a stranger that God will place in our path today or tomorrow. We do not know what task God will set us to. But we do know that the Holy Spirit will lead and guide us to accomplish God’s purposes if we are as willing and receptive as Elizabeth was. If we are, we too will be blessed. Like her, we may walk away wondering why we were so blessed to be in Jesus’ company. If we are faithful, we will be truly blessed.

Prayer: Lord, may the Holy Spirit be active and present today. May my words and actions bring your light and love into people’s lives. In doing so, I will be blessed to be in your presence as well. Thank you for the opportunities you bring my way. May I be faithful to be your hands and feet and voice. Amen.


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We Are Messengers

Reading: Malachi 3: 1-4

Verse 1: “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me”.

Malachi closes out the Old Testament with a reminder and a warning and a call. These three are interconnected. As followers of Jesus Christ, we are reminded that Jesus will suddenly come; therefore, we must be ready to stand when He appears. We are warned – Jesus will refine and cleanse, purifying us. Will we make the grade? We also find a call. As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are to spread the good news to prepare all people for the coming of the Lord.

The first two are inward. When Jesus comes “like a thief in the night”, will we be ready or will our faith be asleep? Jesus calls for us to be ready. He expects to find it well with our souls. If so, we will survive the refining process. It will only purify us. It will not destroy us. It will be the final cleansing before we enter eternity. If, day by day, we seek to be in a right relationship with Jesus, repenting as need be, then we have no worries.

The last message we hear in our passage is outward. We cannot practice the first two just to live in our own ivory tower, in “holy solitary” as John Wesley put it. That is not God’s purpose for us. Verse 1 again reminds us: “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me”. In Malachi we can read this as John the Baptist. Yes, it does speak of John. But it also speaks of you and me. We too are messengers of the good news. We are phase 2, so to speak. We await the return of Christ. As we wait, we use our voice to prepare the way for the Lord bless in the lives of those who do not know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. This should lead us to the question: who are they?

In verse 5, Malachi identifies a few and Jesus certainly does as well throughout His ministry. We are called to the widows and the fatherless, to the aliens, to the lost, to the broken, to the poor. If we just look around a bit, we will find them. They are in all communities and in most neighborhoods. We will not likely find them in our ivory towers or at our Sunday morning country clubs. They are across the street or alley; they are on the other side of town.

Messengers are sent to proclaim the news. You and I, we are sent to those who do not know the good news of Jesus Christ. May we engage those who do not know Jesus. May we be the gospel and may we share the gospel with those on the margins, with those on the fringes. In doing so, we prepare the way before Jesus, so that He may enter in.

Prayer: Lord, make me a messenger, as hands and feet of Christ, as well as love lived out loud, drawing all to the Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.


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To Know Jesus

Reading: Hebrews 2: 5-12

Verse 8: “In putting everything under Him, God left nothing that is not subject to Him”.

The passage for today is about establishing authority. The writer of Hebrews quotes Psalm 8 to remind the Jews of God’s action with Jesus, “You crowned Him with glory and honor and put everything under His feet”. The writer is drawing upon a sacred and ancient text to connect to Jesus, the one with this authority. He then goes on to the practical application of this reference to Psalm 8, writing, “In putting everything under Him, God left nothing that is not subject to Him”. All of creation is subject to Jesus’ authority. The implication for the Hebrews is that they are under this authority that has been established by God. The same implication applies to us.

In the remainder of verse 8, we get reality. Yes, all are under Jesus’ authority, “yet at present we do not see everything subject to Him”. I’d guess the writer is thinking of folks who know of Jesus but refuse to know Jesus. To know of Jesus and to know Jesus are worlds apart. Some of these folks are Jews who know of Jesus but will not accept that Jesus Christ is the Messiah. Some are followers of Jesus Christ, yet in name only or on a very limited basis. This last group appears to be Christians – they come to church on Sunday but live a worldly lifestyle otherwise.

I can recall a time when this was me. Perhaps you can too. As I reflect on this passage, I can remember folks who came alongside me and helped me to really know Jesus as the one that “God put everything under His feet” – including me. With the support and encouragement and presence of some godly men and women, Jesus went from 1/168 to 24/7. He went from Sunday morning Jesus to Lord of my life Jesus. Today, as I consider my journey, I am grateful. I also wonder who I know that is where I was at. I wonder who I can begin to walking alongside, nurturing and mentoring in faith, helping them to know Jesus as Lord and Savior too. My challenge to you is to do the same.

Lord Jesus, to be known by you and to know you brings great joy. To know you as my all in all brings peace and contentment. To walk always in your love brings deep assurance. This day, help me to identify others that I can walk alongside and pour into. May your Spirit lead and guide me in this desire of my heart. Amen.


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The Maker

Reading: Psalm 124: 6-8

Verse 8: “Our help is in the name of the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth”.

Our Psalm continues the thanksgiving for God’s presence and rescue from those who sought to capture Israel. The Psalm ends with a familiar line: “Our help is in the name of the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth”. God, the maker of all, is surely our help too. The bigger question to me is: what do we do with this experience and knowledge? Do we hunker down within the walls where it is safe and comfortable? Or… do we venture outside the walls where it is unknown and is where those who attacked us, those whose anger flared against us, those who tried to sweep over us live? Do we peer out through our stained glass windows or do we engage the world, inviting them too to know the maker of heaven and earth?

The stories and promises of faith – that God will rescue us, that God will be present in the trials, that Jesus is the way, truth, and life, that Jesus is the hope for more than this earthly life – are all parts of our faith that we treasure. They are what sustains us in our day to day life. Together this is the good news that Jesus commissioned the disciples and all who would later take up their cross to follow to share with the lost, the broken, the least, the arrogant, the marginalized, the self-assured, the lonely…

Today each of us will have opportunity – maybe just one or two, maybe many – to introduce those who do not know Jesus to the Son of our maker. We will have a chance to hear their story, to connect that thing inside them to the answer. Whether they need rescue or presence or truth or hope or whatever else, the answer is found in Christ. Modeling Jesus and His love, may we offer whatever ministry we can then and in those moments. In doing so, may we begin to connect them to their maker, to the One who loves them as His dear child.

Today, God, may I recognize and seize the opportunity you give me. May I be your hands and feet, your eyes and ears, when I can. May I always be your voice, whether by word, action, or deed. This is my prayer for today and for every day. Amen.


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Too Good

Reading: Luke 24: 36b-40

Verse 38: “He said to them, ‘Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds'”?

I can remember when I first re-met my wife. I had a big crush on her in high school and then we went off to college and to begin adult life thereafter. Then one night her and a friend happened into the place I and a friend were. Without going into much detail, I found myself on a late night stroll at the camp she was working at that summer. I could not believe what was happening. My head reeled as I drove home.

It had been three great years with Jesus. The things He taught and did would stay with them forever. But then there was the trial and the crucifixion and placing the definitely dead body in the tomb. And oh the hurt that was felt and the tears that were cried these last three days. What they could not believe could ever happen now felt so real and permanent. Then there were some saying Jesus was risen and two others said they met and walked and talked with Him. But the last three days are so real.

Jesus steps into the disciples’ presence and says, “Peace be with you”. The disciples were startled and frightened. The last three days felt so real. They had begun to have those ‘what now?’ conversations and to consider the possibility of what they would do or return to. Jesus entering their lives again was not one of the things they considered.

As I drove home that night, I thought it all too good to be true. I was sure she would not even take my phone call asking for a date. And I was more sure she would not say yes.

“He said to them, ‘Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds'”? The better question is why wouldn’t they be troubled and doubting. We too would have been in the same place mentally and emotionally. So Jesus offers them some proofs, saying, “Look at my hands and feet” – don’t you remember where they put the nails? And then Jesus invites them closer: “Touch and see”! He is among them, flesh and bones and all. It is not a ghost. Touch and feel and see Jesus right then and there.

The men and women in the room that day will take what they see and touch and feel and they will go out into the world to witness to what they know. They will go forth to share the good news that Jesus defeated sin and death and will help all who believe to do the same. It is good news still today – yes, almost too good to be true. We too are called to help all to hear this good news, to know the risen Christ. May we go forth to bear witness this day and every day.


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Love One Another

Reading: John 13: 1-17 and 31-35

Verse 34: “A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another”.

Today is a special day in Holy Week and in the life of the church. Today Jesus sets two examples for us that we continue to implement to this day. It is the last time that Jesus will be with His disciples in this life. Tonight many will gather in places of worship to celebrate Maundy Thursday, also known as Holy Thursday.

Rather than rushing through the Passover meal to get on to the inevitable arrest, trial, and crucifixion, Jesus slows down the pace and spends one last intimate night with His disciples. As verse one states, “He showed them the full extent of His love”. To do so, Jesus begins by washing the disciple’s feet. This is lesson one for the evening. The Master, the Teacher, kneels at each disciple’s feet as the servant and lovingly washes and dries their feet. After Jesus rejoins them at the table, He says, “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you”. Lesson one is to serve one another in love.

This night, while still gathered around the table, Jesus will share the first Holy Communion. He will share the bread as His body that will be broken on the cross and He will share the wine as His blood that will pour out on the cross. This act of love is recorded in the other gospels. In Mark, Jesus calls it the new covenant through which all mankind will be forgiven our sins. Through the body and blood we are restored and made holy once again. Jesus’ great sacrifice – in giving His life as an atonement for our sins – it screams love.

After telling the disciples that the time has come, saying, “I will be with you only a little longer”, Jesus issues a new command. In washing their feet and in the sharing of communion Jesus has added two more examples of what this new command means. Jesus says to them, “A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another”. Today’s passage finishes with the bug ‘why’ – “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another”. This day, by our love, may all we meet know that we too are His disciples.


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Teach

Reading: Psalm 78: 1-7

Verse Four: “We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord.”

Today’s Psalm is all about the story of God and His children.  The whole Psalm speaks of God’s love and compassion for the people regardless of their wanderings and stumbles.  It is a reminder that it is God who remains constant in our covenant relationship.  God is faithful even as we rebel.  As we read the opening of Psalm 78, we are reminded why we need to stay in touch with our history with God.  The psalmist begins with this proclamation: “O my people, hear my teaching”.  We do this many ways.

We remember through personal and corporate study and worship.  We remember as we take time to reflect on God’s provision and blessing as we lift our prayers of thanks and praise.  As we do these things, God’s love and compassion seep a little deeper still into who we are and how we live out our lives.  We remember, we connect, we are shaped.

Verse four begins our role as story tellers of the faith.  It begins with, “We will not hide them from our children”.  We will instead live out the love and compassion of God in our daily lives.  The verse continues, “We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord”.  To many this speaks of Sunday school.  Yes and no.  What we teach our children about God must begin at home.  If we model God as the central focus of our personal lives, so too will our children.  If we joyously head off to church each Sunday, so too will our children.  We model God’s love and compassion by how we live it out in our lives.  We model faith by how visible it is in our lives.  We model Christ’s love to the world by being His hands and feet each day.

The psalmist goes on to write, “then they would put their trust in God”.  It is my hope and prayer for all children.  May it be yours as well.  As we live out this day, may our love of God pour forth in all we think, say, and do.  May God’s compassion for all if His children be evident in our compassion for all of His children.  May it be so this day and every day.  Amen.