pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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Word

Reading: 1st Thessalonians 2: 9-13

Verse 12: You accepted it not as the word of man, but as it actually is, as the word of God.

As children we would often use the phrase, “Stick and stone may break my bones, but names will never hurt me”.  It was a way to try and deflect and minimalize the teasing and bullying that were part of childhood, but but in reality the words were powerful and often hurtful.  As a people who communicate primarily with words, words are the foundation of knowledge and understanding and even of faith.

On the surface level, the Bible contains just words.  As Paul wrote and spoke to the many churches he founded, he used just words.  In more recent times people like Martin Luther King, Junior, just spoke words.  Words are powerful.  Words can change how we see the world, how we understand things, and how we believe and think.  Paul came to the Thessalonians and preached the gospel.  As Paul and his companions were among them, they were “holy, righteous, and blameless”.  To be heard, one must first walk the walk.  Paul and friends went on to encourage and comfort the Thessalonians and also urged them to live lives “worthy of God”.  Yet as Paul preached, it wasn’t just words.  He writes, “You accepted it not as the word of man, but as it actually is, as the word of God”.  The words Paul spoke took on life and were heard as the Word of God.  The scriptures continue to be the living Word of God and will always be alive.

The Word continues to be alive as it works in and through each of us.  As we read the Bible and hear the Word proclaimed, it creeps into our hearts and minds and takes root.  It shapes and forms and refines us.  It challenges and convicts us.  It becomes who we are as we grow in our faith and deepen our relationship with Jesus.  And when we share our faith with others, it becomes a word planted in their lives, waiting for the living God to take that seed and to make it grow.  As we go forth and live holy and righteous lives we are encouragement and love and hope to the world around us.  As such we too will have the opportunity to share our faith and the story of the good news of Jesus Christ.  This day, may the living word flow in and through us, bringing Christ to the world.


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Positive Results

Reading: Luke 18: 1-8

When we learn to stick to something, we find we get better at it.  A player who shoots free throw after free throw improves their percentage.  An aspiring writer who writes and rewrites and edits and rewrites again becomes a better writer.  A chef who nuances a dish over and over and over eventually comes to the exact balance of flavors desired for the dish.  If we are willing to invest our time and energy in a concentrated and focused manner, we will see positive results.

The widow in our story is willing to stick up for herself.  She is willing to go against social norms.  Above all else is a sense of being wronged and her driving need for justice.  As the widow went to the unjust judge day after day, I imagine she tried a variety of approaches.  I cannot imagine her showing up day after day issuing the same request.  She worked a variety of angles and applied a variety of reasons to show that she deserved justice from the judge.

Our prayer life is something like these two scenarios.  We latch onto something we desire from God and we begin to pray for it.  Early on we are like the player or writer or chef, seeking to craft just the prayer that will draw the response we desire.  As our prayer is offered up day after day we refine and shape it.  Eventually we fall into the widow’s pattern as we apply various reasons why God should answer our prayer.  Sometimes we even get to the “if, then” praying.  If you will ___ God, then I will ___.  

Through our begging, our pleading, our bartering, God is at work.  If we remain persistent in our prayers, we will often find that it is us or our faith that changes.  For example, in praying for “that” person or situation, our approach or view or understanding is often changed so we become more loving, more compassionate, more accepting.  If we are willing to invest time and energy in our prayers, we will experience God at work in our lives.  The results will be positive.  We may not always receive the answer we began praying for, but God will always be present, always working, always shaping us through our prayers to be the Christian we need to be.


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Mentors

Reading: John 14: 25-29

As we go through life, especially when we are younger, we find people that mentor and shape us.  They are people who  see something in us worth investing some of themselves in.  They usually are older and have been through a little bit more of life so they carry wisdom and expertise with them.  They are kind and loving and sacrificial people.  Mentors help us navigate our careers, our families and relationships, our faith.  If we have been mentored we are likely to become a mentor ourselves.

Jesus himself was a mentor.  For the disciples and undoubtedly others who followed Him, Jesus mentored many in their faith and how to live it out.  Indirectly Jesus continues to mentor each of us as we read His Word and apply it to our lives.  But Jesus also knew that the disciples and eventually we would need more than memories or the written recording of them.  He knew we would need an active and alive presence to continue to mold, shape, and guide us.  So Jesus gave mankind the gift of the Holy Spirit.  To all who call on Jesus as Lord and Savior, the Spirit comes and dwells within them.  Once there the Spirit is the constant presence of Jesus, reminding us and teaching us about Jesus and the example He set.

As we think about the people who have poured into our lives, at some point we must also begin to become aware of those around us who could use someone to mentor and shape them.  Other people have poured into us so that one day we too could pour into others.  As we seek this our may we be open to how the Spirit guides and leads us in this as well, always remaining a willing and humble servant.


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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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Master Craftsman

“He sent forth His word and healed them.” – Psalm 107:20

Reading today’s scripture through Old Testament eyes, God chose to step in and act.  The people realized their sins and were feeling the consequences of them.  They cried out to God.  In His mercy He healed their hearts and returned them to the path that they were intended to walk as His people.  God strengthened them for the journey so they could be just in how they lived.

Read through New Testament eyes, the ‘word’ is Jesus.  Through His life and example we can see how we are called to live.  And just like the Israelites, we will falter.  This could be outright sin or it could be a failure to meet an opportunity that God places before us.

Thankfully God is a God of second chances.  And thirds, fourths…  The Israelites wandered frequently and so do we.  But no matter how many times we falter, God’s love for each of us is steadfast, eternal, and freely given.  For this generous gift we offer our thanks.

God is also a master craftsman, a skilled artisan.  As His love is poured into us, we in turn are led by the Holy Spirit to pour into others.  Again, at times we fail.  But here is what is so amazing about His love: He is seeking perfection in us so He keeps on working us and reshaping us.  In realizing we missed an opportunity, the seeds of how to not miss it next time are planted.  We can rest assured that God will give us more opportunities to share His love because as we do, we grow closer to being the believer He created us to be.  And for this gift, we offer our thanks.

Scripture reference: Psalm 107:20