pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: Jesus


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Good News

Reading: 2 Corinthians 5: 6-17

Verse 17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come”!

To have faith and to live a Christian Life in our modern, post-Christian world can be challenging. Paul reminds us in our passage today that because of the Holy Spirit’s indwelling presence we have a confidence about our relationship with God. In our day to day life we “live by faith” and we “make it our goal to please God”. Paul explains in verse fourteen that it is Christ’s love that compels us to share that “He died for all”. This understanding leads the believer to “no longer live for themselves but for Him”. When we choose to no longer live for self we choose to surrender our will, our desires, our selfishness, to God. This act of surrender leads a follower of Christ to truly follow Him, wanting to take the love we know and make it known to all.

This surrender also changes our perspective. We see ourselves and those in the world differently. As Paul puts it, “we regard no one from an earthly point of view”. Ourselves and others are not condemned but are saved by Jesus, who died for all. It is in and through this act of Jesus that God reconciled us to Him. In this way our sin is not counted against us, redeeming us to be righteous and holy in His sight. This allows us to have fellowship with our Lord and to look longingly to the day when we are “home with the Lord”. This is the love and the message of hope that we share with the world.

We want all to experience what we have experienced. We want all to experience the transforming love of God. In Christ, we are made new. Paul writes, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come”! In Christ we are made into new creations! We are not of this world any longer; we are simply living in it, trying to help others to come to know Jesus. This is news worth sharing. This is life-changing news. This is the gospel of Jesus Christ. May the Lord compel each of us to share the good news of the love of God in Jesus Christ with all we meet this day and every day. Amen.


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Pleasing

Reading: 2 Corinthians 5: 6-10

Verses Nine and Ten: “We make it our goal to please Him… for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ”.

Paul would definitely choose to be “away from the body” and to be with Christ. His life has been one of both fruitful ministry and of trials and sufferings for his faith. He has not quite written the “fought the good fight” passage, but his longing to be with the Lord is growing. Paul looks to the time when he will stand before Jesus and will enter His rest. Yet Paul also knows that he has a purpose to fulfill now.

In our passage today, Paul refers to the idea of living by faith and not by sight. God is not something or someone we can physically touch or see, yet we live within God’s presence. It is something we can feel. God touches and moves within our hearts and minds, assuring us of our faith. While faith cannot be proven or seen or otherwise quantified, our experiences with Jesus and the Holy Spirit are very real in the life of a believer. It is by faith that we live our daily lives. Paul writes, “We make it our goal to please Him”. While in this body, this too is our goal – to live a life worthy of the gospel, one that is holy and pleasing to the Lord.

Paul closes this thought with: “for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ”. This is a reality for all people, believers and non-believers alike. One day we will all appear before the Lord. How we have lived while in the body does matter. Each day may we do what is pleasing to God, like Paul, looking forward to the day when we go to be with the Lord. Amen.


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Small Seeds

Reading: Mark 4: 30-34

Verse 32: “Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants”.

Jesus begins today’s passage by setting the stage, asking, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like”? Before we start thinking of angels dancing around the throne, we need to realize that Jesus is speaking of the kingdom here on earth. He is speaking of the activity and reign of God in the here and now.

A mustard seed is the object lesson in today’s teaching by Jesus. It is a tiny little seed that grows into a huge plant, providing safe harbor for many birds. The idea of planting seeds connects back to what He just said in verses 26-29. There Jesus spoke of how we plant but it is God who makes them grow. Both of these teachings are, of course, not about real seeds. The parables are about planting seeds of faith.

Jesus was a great seed planter. He took twelve men and a small group of followers and He planted seeds of faith in them. He took time to plant seeds of faith in about everyone He met. It was just Jesus’ DNA. In turn, the disciples and followers of Jesus used the faith that grew from the seeds that Jesus planted and planted seeds in others. We are the continuation of this process. Someone took the time to plant seeds of faith in us and now that these seeds have grown into faith, we take our faith and go forth to be planters.

As we go out into the world today, may we be intentional about planting seeds of faith. Even though we plant seeds of faith as small as a mustard seed, God can grow that faith into something that one day may change the world. May we be faithful in our small role, trusting God with the rest. Amen.


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Seeds

Reading: Mark 4: 26-29

Verse 27: “Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how”.

The gospel today speaks of the ‘miracle’ of life. Each year I experience this in my garden. I saw rows of carrots and lettuce and peas and so on. Then I wait. Some time passes and I begin to see little green shoots coming up. Although I know scientifically why it happens, it still amazes me that these tiny hard seeds that I bury in the earth become live plants that will produce a harvest. The time in between planting and sprouting is not easy. Verse 27 reads, “Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how”. While I know this is true, each morning I got up and looked upon my garden to see if life had yet sprung forth.

Waiting is hard to do. Our society is a “now” culture. We expect our browser to pop up answers for what we typed into the search box before we’re even done typing. And watch out if the little wheel spins too long! We want quick results in our personal and business endeavors. We want a million sales by Tuesday for the add that just started airing Monday. We want that non-believer that we talked with on Friday to show up to church on Sunday and to leave that day asking to be baptized and to join the church on the following Sunday. But Jesus is telling us to be patient, to wait upon God’s timing.

In the passage, the soil is like the Holy Spirit. As evangelists of the good news of Jesus Christ, we are planting seeds all the time. Always with our actions, sometimes with our words, we are sharing our faith with others. We do not know if our actions or words will lead someone to faith in Christ. It may happen ten people later or it may be that the 243rd person after we sowed is the one who finally leads that person to belief. It may happen and we never know about it. But we are assured that the seeds of faith that we plant in others will be nurtured by the Spirit and will one day, in God’s timing, bear fruit. We do not know how or why or when the seeds will sprout into faith. But we do know that we are called to plant seeds.

Just as each of our journeys has been long and is not yet complete, so too is it with those who have not yet found Jesus. May we be ever faithful in our role in God’s big plan, doing all we can to plant seeds in the lives of all we meet.


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Saving Relationship

Reading: Psalm 20

Verses Six and Seven: “Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed… we trust in the name of the Lord our God”.

Relationship is the key to our faith. In today’s Psalm, David speaks of the relationship we have with God. One of the keys to any good relationship is communication. David opens with one of our key communication tools: prayer. He asks God, “May the Lord answer you… protect you”. As the faithful we are to bring all things to God, trusting in God’s response. David then prays for blessings of help and support from God.

Another way we communicate with God is through our acts of worship. Often this occurs on Sunday mornings as we gather for corporate worship. How we choose to live our day to day lives is also an act of worship if it brings glory to God. When we offer some of ourselves or some of our time, talents, and resources, it is an act of worship. When we give to God or to others because of the love of God overflowing from our hearts, it is worship. When we sacrifice self and place God and neighbor ahead of our own interests and desires, we are also modeling for others the witness given by Jesus Christ.

David goes on to ask that God may give us the desires of our heart and for our plans to succeed. He is petitioning God to grant us a good life. David is not hoping that the king or any of us are billionaires, but that we find contentment and that God provides for all our needs.

As he closes, David turns to the salvation we find through our relationship with God. In verse six he writes, “Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed”. When we confess Jesus as Lord, we are saved. We are anointed with the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives, with the “saving power of God’s right hand”. David goes on to acknowledge that some people “trust in chariots and horses” – the things of man, the things of this world. “But…”, David writes. “But we trust in the name of the Lord our God”. David observed that those who trust in the things of this world are “brought to their knees”, but the faithful “rise up and stand firm”. We do so because we stand on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ our Lord. Thanks be to God for the great love that calls us into this saving relationship. Praise be to the Lord! Amen.


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Day by Day

Reading: 2 Corinthians 4:13 to 5:1

Verse Fourteen: “We know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us”.

Our passage today begins with Paul quoting from Psalm 116 – a great Psalm that praises God’s presence with and care for us. This Psalm is just one of many, many examples of God’s faithfulness to humanity. It is with confidence that Paul writes, “We know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us”. We too trust and live into God’s presence in our lives and into the love and compassion that find witness to in the scriptures and that we experience with our own lives.

The promise of eternal life that we read of in verse seventeen is a wonderful promise. At times, it brings us comfort and strength. At times, this promise brings great hope. While all of this is true and the promise remains for a who have a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, we live now in the present. Paul goes on to write of the grace that is causing joy to overflow. This is what we experience from the promise in our day to day lives. We receive strength in the trial, comfort in the pain, course for the journey, redemption after the stumbles, forgiveness to share with others. All of these and more are the ways we experience God’s living presence with us in the daily walk of life. Paul speaks of this, writing, “Therefore we do not lose heart”. God is always with us. We do not lose heart.

The last section in today’s passage does remind us of our mortality. Paul concedes that “outwardly we are wasting away” and we are. But we also know the second half of the sentence to be true: “yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day”. Each and every day God is with us, renewing us. Therefore we fix our eyes on the unseen, on Jesus. He is the eternal. He is our hope. He is our salvation. His living Spirit is with us all the time. Jesus is our all in all. Thanks be to God for His love revealed to us in and through the life of Jesus, the model of faith that we follow. Each day may He renew our body, mind, and spirit so that we can faithfully walk in God’s abiding presence. Amen.


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Love First

Reading: Psalm 138

Verse Eight: “The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever”.

Each day and each encounter provides us with an opportunity to draw close to God, to worship God. Psalm 138 is a Psalm of praise from King David. It praises God for His love and faithfulness. It encourages us to “sing of the ways of the Lord”. It speaks of God preserving our lives when we walk in the midst of trouble. The Psalm is a powerful reminder of God’s love for us, His dear children.

These few days at Annual Conference have been filled with worship. Sometimes the songs and worship have been slow and reflective. Sometimes the songs have been upbeat and energetic. Sometimes the music has been loud and passionate. Our worship has also included much besides music. We have shared scripture and been blessed by the proclamation of the Word by several gifted pastors. Through each of the messages and the conference itself, the idea of “love first” has been the focus. To me, this is what our worship should do. In all of our styles and in all if the components of worship, our worship should first express our love of God.

Verse eight today reads, “The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever”. When we offer our lives as a living sacrifice to God’s love, then we experience a love that lasts forever. When we surrender our lives to God, we begin to live into and to live out an everlasting love. In doing so, we discover the first half of our verse: our purpose. We are all created to love as Jesus first loved us: fully and completely. There is no greater love than the love we see modeled by Jesus. May our lives today be living acts of worship, overflowing with the grace and mercy of God, as we seek to love first. May it be so for me and for you. Amen.


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We Want a King

Reading: 1 Samuel 8: 19-20

Verse Nineteen: “But the people refused to listen to Samuel. ‘No!’ they said. ‘We want a king over us'”.

Can you remember times as a kid or young adult when you were really concerned with fitting in? Maybe you had to have the right brand of sneakers – those cheap store-brand shoes would just not do. Or maybe it was a brand of jeans or a certain hoodie or… Today, for many kids, it is having that cell phone or about using it to keep streaks going. As we grow older we continue to practice this comparing skill. We watch our friends to see when we should think about marrying and when we should start having a child. The Israelites look around and see kings ruling over the other nations and think, ‘where is our king’?

God must’ve thought, I’m right here. Remember how I just broke Pharaoh’s hard heart to spring you from Egypt? Remember how I parted the sea to provide you an escape route and then used it to wipe out the pursuing army? Remember how I brought you food and water in the desert? Remember, remember, remember…

As adults, we do this too. We mentally check to see if we fit in and to see if we are keeping up. We see the new car or boat in our neighbor’s driveway, envisioning one in our driveway. We hear a co-worker got a raise and we begin thinking about how we can drop hints when around the boss. And sometimes we even look around for good things. We notice how nicely our neighbor’s children play together and we ask for secret. Or we find a great mentor to help us grow in our faith or in our vocation.

Ultimately, as Christians, we should look at Christ and ask how we can be more like Him. How do I live my life in ways that best align with what I know of Jesus? That question leads us to delve deeper in our faith to really get to know Jesus more. When we focus in on Jesus and on following Him closely, we are saying to God, “I want a king over me. Please, Lord God, help me to make Jesus my King”. May it be so today and each day, Jesus my King.


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Belong

Reading: Mark 3: 31-35

Verse 35: “Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother”.

Who do you belong to? Where do you get your sense of belonging? These are interesting questions. As I think back over the years of my life, I can think of many times when I felt a sense of belonging, a sense that there was genuine community. During summers, for about twenty years, I worked with a group of guys on a certain staining project. We shared a deep sense of comraderie that would return in an instant if we reunited after six years off. For many years a group of guys gathered on Sunday afternoon to play pick-up basketball. Many men came and went from that group, but there was a core group that was really close. And then was our church. Who do you belong to? Where do you belong?

As human beings we have a great need to belong. We are social creatures. That is how God designed us. In early childhood we begin to feel the need to fit in, to find a group of friends. This feeling stays with us our whole lives. Being alone and feeling alone are two of the greatest challenges facing many people today.

One of our natural places of belonging is our families. There we find a love and acceptance that is unconditional. It is the type of love that led Jesus’ mother and brothers to try and intervene to make sure that He was eating and taking care of Himself.

When they arrive to express this love, Jesus responds in a way that seems odd to us. He looks at the crowd gathered around Him and says, “Here are my mother and my brothers”! Jesus goes on to explain, “Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother”. We do hope that He goes out to see them. And to give His mom a kiss. But we don’t know. We do understand Jesus’ point here. We have all experienced it in our lives. When we move to a new community, it is one of our biggest concerns – will I find a new church home? Often our strongest connections are within our community of faith. When I think about where I feel the greatest sense of belonging, it is my family and my church. In the church, all walks of life gather together as one body, united in Christ. It is here that we form loving relationships with one another and with our Lord. We belong in God’s family. Thanks be to God. Amen.


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The “Why”

Reading: Mark 3: 20-30

Verse 20: “When His family heard about this, they went to take charge of Him”.

The big crowd gathered to hear Jesus teach. Our passage tells us that it is, well, so crowded that Jesus cannot eat. There is no room! Mark writes, “When His family heard about this, they went to take charge of Him”. They think that Jesus is not taking care of Himself and they go to have a family intervention. This has gone on long enough! Truth be told, at one time or another, we have found ourselves in this situation. That big project is due tomorrow and we forego sleep and maybe even food. Our mom or spouse or roommate warns us about how we are living. Or maybe we just sneak into the office on a day off to “catch up” – and we get the look we deserve. But sometimes, like Jesus did, we too get a look because of our faith.

Sometimes our choices of faith get us that look. I think that Jesus did not eat because it meant less teaching time. Look at all the people who are here to hear the Word. In a similar way, we encounter people without faith who do not understand us sacrificing something for our faith. They have questions like, “Why would you help pay her electric bill when you know the lights will get shut off next month too”? They wonder why we would spend a week of vacation going on a mission trip instead of going to some resort in the Caribbean. Some even wonder why in the world we would get up early on a Sunday to go sit on some hard pews when we could sleep in on the one day we could. Lots of people wonder why we do this or that for some guy named Jesus who lived two thousand years ago.

When the looks come, how do we react? How do we respond – whether it is family coming to ‘save’ us or whether it is a friend trying to talk some ‘sense’ into us or whether it is an acquaintance questioning the ‘crazy’ choices we are making? I think we begin with the story of how Jesus makes a difference in our life. When we share from the heart what Jesus has and is doing in our life, people begin to get a glimpse of faith and to sense what Jesus offers them as well. Yes, how we live our life tells our faith story. But our words are important too. They fill in the “how” with the “why”. Our words build understanding. So today, may we introduce people to Jesus with our actions and decisions and may we begin to welcome them into a personal relationship with our words. May it be so today.