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Month: March 2020

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Green Pastures…Still Waters

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.” (Psalm 23)

Green pastures…still waters – you can just about hear the gentle breeze blowing in the trees and through the grass as the water gently passes by; it just doesn’t get much better than that – this is a picture of the peace of God.  I love that picture don’t you? If such a place as that spoken of in this passage is the only place where we may find peace and rest for our souls you and I are in deep trouble because it’s a rare occasion that we get to a place like that.

Does that mean that we can’t have the peace that David spoke of in these verses?

No, the peace of God is not circumstantial –it isn’t dependent on where you’re at physically; it is dependent on where you are spiritually.  The peace from God is first a mindset that comes from a confidence that all will be well and that confidence comes from trust.  Isaiah said of God, [Isa.26:3] “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”  King David, the ‘under-shepherd’ of God’s people Israel wrote this psalm as a dependent follower of the living God; his mind was stayed on, concentrated on, and focused upon – God. No matter what was happening on the outside, he had peace because it was his God rather than his circumstances that gave him peace.

Think about that for a moment.

The pandemic affecting the world has led to the shut down of nearly everything. Some people haven’t stopped working – truckers, first responders, doctors, nurses and others in the medical profession, retailers and grocers to name a few, but the majority of us have been told to stop and stay home. But what if what most of us have viewed as a negative situation could really be for our good? When He makes us to lie down, when He gives us a moment to rest in green grass – what do you do? You only have two choices: you can choose to lie down OR you can choose to refuse to lie down.

God uses, He turns, He makes “…all things work together FOR GOOD to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28) Even something like what the world is going through right now.

What is the Lord’s purpose in THIS moment that we are all going through?

Consider the fact that some of you, prior to this “storm” were complaining about how tired you were. Some of you, prior to this “season” were so busy that your spiritual life was suffering; some of you were so busy that your family life was suffering and some of you were so busy that your marriages were suffering. Some of you, prior to this moment were longing to get closer to God but because you were so busy could never find the time.

In this moment, He has slowed you down. In this moment, He has caused you to lie down. In this moment, He has given you an opportunity to rest yourself, an opportunity to repair your relationships and an opportunity to search for, listen to and hear Him.

Have you slowed down or are you now complaining about what might happen because you’re not busy at work? He has given you a moment to catch up, check up and listen up – are you?

Like some of you, I’m pretty stubborn – I like to be in control of my life. When I’m told to sit down, I want to stand up. When I’m told to be silent, I want to talk. I’m the guy who thinks to himself after he’s been told to sit down, “I’m sitting on the outside but I’m standing up on the inside!”  All joking aside, the reality is that like it or not, God IS in control – not you and not me. Jesus told us not to worry. Why, because it changes nothing. He said in (Matthew 6:27): “Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?” Worry changes nothing but your attitude and your health – stress kills – worry fixes nothing.

Considering the opening statement in (Psalm 23), can you say that the Lord is YOUR Shepherd?

If He is, let Him lay you down to rest; don’t worry, don’t let your wants consume your thoughts – be content in this moment. If the Lord is YOUR Shepherd, let Him lead you beside still waters and restore your soul (v.2-3) – draw near to Him, seek Him, find your rest in Him; let Him turn even this moment into something good in your life.

Is He your Shepherd? Let His presence in your life comfort you (v.4) – because He IS with you, you need not fear.

Is this moment REAL?  Yes.

Is Almighty God MORE REAL? Yes.

Is our Great God MORE THAN ABLE?  Yes, His word declares that HE is able to deliver us either FROM the fire (see Daniel 3:17) or THROUGH it (see Daniel 3:22-26).

It is not my intention to diminish or dismiss the seriousness of this season into which the whole world finds itself. But neither can I diminish or dismiss that He who is God over both the hills and the valleys of life IS also IN CONTROL!

What is God’s purpose in this moment for you? For some, it is a time to rest, for others it may be a time to restore relationships and reflect on Him who saved you and also for others it may be a time to finally repent of your sins and believe in Jesus Christ. Take the time! Use it for the purpose for which it has been given! Whatever the purpose, the opportunity may not come your way again.

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Resting Assured in a Season of Uncertainty

Lately, I’ve been reading posts from people about how uncertain their lives have become due to the onslaught of the Covid19 virus. People are uncertain about their jobs, their future, their health and the health of others; they are uncertain about the things they’ve been hearing from leaders, social media, news outlets and even their neighbors – they are uncertain if they’ll have enough food and supplies to weather this pandemic, unclear as to how long it will last and just as unclear of what to expect once its over.

Prior to the current pandemic most of us had a confidence about tomorrow using a kind of emotional barometer which led us to believe that because we had a job today we’d have it tomorrow or because we or a loved one was alive and well today we or they would be alive tomorrow; but does ANYBODY really KNOW what tomorrow holds?

There is One who does – Almighty God knows the end from the beginning:

“Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,And I will do all My pleasure…” (Isaiah 46:9–10)

The God who knows the number of hairs on your head (Luke 12:7) hold tomorrow in the palm of His hand (Psalm 139:16, James 4:13) and commands the rising and setting of the sun (Job 9:4-8). Our God and His Son Jesus Christ are the SAME yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). In a world of uncertainty, He is a constant that you can turn to and count on! He said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.” (Matthew 24:35) His presence is a constant in our lives during seasons of crisis and during seasons of calm (Psalm 46:1; Hebrews 13:5). The words He spoke and the promises He’s made are all “yes and amen” (2 Corinthians 1:20) – they are guaranteed! (see Romans 15:8-12)

Frankly, before we believed in Jesus Christ, Almighty God was as He has been – He never changes (Malachi 3:6, James 1:17). But, prior to our faith in Jesus Christ we only knew one thing – that one day each of us would cease to be. We didn’t know when or how but we knew that everyone eventually breathes his or her last. When we came to trust in the Lord (assuming you have) we gained access to a whole host of otherwise inaccessible constants or “sure things” – things which can give you peace amid the uncertainty.

I would like to remind those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ of some constants that we CAN cling to in these uncertain days:

  • God is in control:

“But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases.” (Psalm 115:3)

“A man’s heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.” (Proverbs 16:9)

“There are many plans in a man’s heart, Nevertheless the Lord’s counsel—that will stand.” (Proverbs 19:21)

“(His Son), who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,” (Hebrews 1:2-3)

  • God will not and has not forsaken us: “Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you,Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’” (Isaiah 41:10)
  • Jesus who died for our sins and rose from the dead will return again for us before He judges the world:

““Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:1–3)

“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16–17)

“For they themselves declare concerning us what manner of entry we had to you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” (1 Thessalonians 1:9–10)

  • Through faith in Jesus Christ, death – whenever that may be – DOES NOT HAVE THE LAST WORD in our lives: “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.” (John 11:25)
  • God’s promises (as we’ve already said) like His person and character NEVER change or fail.

A time may come in the future, when we might be caught off-guard and taken by surprise (as many were this time) by a crisis of some kind and as a result, lose sight of the constancy of Christ and His promises but that does not and can not change the FACT that He IS an unfailing, eternal God who has made and eternal promise to those who believe in Him!

So sinner and saint alike – believer and unbeliever alike:

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face; and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.“

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Am I My Brother’s Keeper?

Tucked away, in the middle of the narrative about Cain and Abel is a question that most people answer incorrectly – “Am I my brother’s keeper?”  First let me say, how brazen this reply was from a man with blood on his hands to answer the question of an all knowing and all-powerful God concerning Cain’s brother. There is much to learn from the passage in (Genesis 4:1-12) about how sin lies in wait with a desire to rule over us (Gen. 4:7) but that instead we should rule over it, however I’d like to draw down on the impertinent question in (v.9) “am I my brother’s keeper” because in light of the current state of the world both prior to and in the grips of the corona virus “pandemic,” it is a question to be addressed and answered by each of us.

I recently read a story on LinkedIn telling about of a couple of Marines who, as pilots were regularly tested on tactics, weapons systems etc. The two “senior pilots” were very knowledgeable and well-studied so as to avoid having their reputations tarnished in those testing situations. In advance of an upcoming weapons test, some younger and less experienced pilots entered into the squadron; the senior pilots did not know and did not care about how or whether the new guys were ready for it. When the “smoke” from the test cleared and they were graded it came as no surprise to the senior guys when they “aced” the test; the new guys however all failed and received a well deserved chewing out but it was when the tactics officer called the senior guys out that the real surprise came – they were chewed out for their irresponsible failure to train their younger “brothers.” This is what the author wrote about it, “We had a responsibility to actively seek out the less experienced pilots, teach them and guide them along the path to success.” It was his understanding from that chewing out by a tactics officer that he WAS his brother’s keeper.

How do you respond when those around you struggle, falter or fail? What’s more, what are you doing to help them succeed?

Are we our brother’ (or sister’s) keeper as Christians?

Perhaps we’re too competitive with each other to care about how our teammate on the field of life – be they a brother in the faith or a fellow human being – is making out, let alone to come alongside them and offer them a word of encouragement or a helping hand. It’s unfortunate, but sometimes it takes a global pandemic to wake people up and even then, many draw down on the one thing that matters most to them – their own survival. But what if more of us adapted the attitude of Jesus “who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.” (Philippians 2:6–8)

Jesus self-sacrificially laid everything down for the sake of others.

When Paul tells husbands to love their wives as Christ loved the church (see Ephesians 5:25) he was pointing to the self-sacrificial mind of Christ towards all mankind and showing us that esteeming others better than ourselves (Philippians 2:3) and looking out for the interests of others (Philippians 2:4) is a Biblical mandate for the follower of Christ.

Consider for a moment that the four men who went to great lengths to get their paralyzed friend in front of Jesus (Luke 5:17-20) were acting as their brother’s keeper. The (HB) word shâmar here translated keeper also means guard, protector and attendant – It conveys the idea that love for one another should drive us to look out for each other; love and concern drove those men to action for their brother’s sake.

Perhaps you don’t think the other guy is YOUR responsibility? Consider these passages:

While arguing for a faith that does, James wrote: “If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?” (James 2:15-16)

In response to people seeking to know what “works worthy of repentance” looked like John the Baptist said: ““He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.”” (Luke 3:11)

“By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.” (1 John 3:16–18)

Laying down our lives doesn’t always mean to physically die but often it means to lay aside our self-interests and selfishness for the sake of those in need (see also Acts 2:44-45, 4:32).

The prophet Isaiah wrote: “Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; when you see the naked, that you cover him, and not hide yourself from your own flesh?” (Isaiah 58:6–7)

Jesus said, ““You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Matthew 22:39)

Concerning whatever spiritual , physical or emotional burden or weight, Paul wrote: “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2)

“Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.” (Galatians 6:1)

Again Paul wrote: “Yes, you yourselves know that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me. I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” (Acts 20:34–35)

Are you your brother’s keeper? Like it or not – YES!

We live in a moment of crisis. People need supplies, people need hope, people need encouragement, people need support and most of all people NEED Jesus. There are people in our community working to meet those needs – first responders, doctors and nurses, truck drivers, people in various aspects of Christian ministry like Christ’s Kitchen in Victoria. In the days, weeks and perhaps even months that this crisis continues, pray and seek the Lord for ways that you can attend to, protect and guard your brother or sister in the faith as well as your fellow man. The difference you make may be eternal…

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Redeem the Time (Part 3)

Can you redeem time lost?  Not always – all opportunities to share God’s love are limited opportunities and available only as long as the Lord allows.  Time marches on, people change, move on, grow old and pass away.  But sometimes God allows us a second chance to share – don’t miss it if you get one; resolve now to be a person who will care enough to help another person come to faith in Christ.

You can redeem the time you have left or that someone else in your life has left remembering what Jesus said in [John 9:24]: “I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.” We have the strange notion that God has given us life for our own pleasure and purposes and while the time IS coming when we will be at rest (in heaven, with Jesus ) for now we must work while it is still day – while we still have breath we must redeem the time for the sake of the spiritual need of others.

Redeem the time you have because it is most likely that you will never have the given opportunity or set of circumstances to impact the lives of those you meet for Jesus again. Each experience in time is unique with so many variables that duplicating the experience is next to impossible.

As in my visit with the young man on the plane trip to Buffalo; outside that one moment in time, I will never have the same opportunity to reach out to him again. Redeeming the time is making the most, in Christ’s name, out of every opportunity to share the love of God with others.

Redeem the time because you may never see the person you are visiting with again. We’ve already said that life is a fragile thing. It is important that we stop taking for granted that we’ll have another chance to tell someone about Jesus. Will the bed ridden, sick and indigent be around tomorrow?  Will the fittest man, a picture of health, in the prime of his youth be around tomorrow?  Will we, the bearers of the message be around tomorrow?  Life is a vapor (James 4:14). No one knows their own length of days let alone someone else’s .We must come to understand that when the Lord puts someone into our lives, even temporarily, it is our only opportunity to reach them in Jesus name. We must make the most out of every moment in which we live as followers of Christ to reach people. We must come to see those we meet in life as people for whom Christ died but who don’t know it or believe it yet.

Finally, we must remember as one commentator said, not only to redeem time lost, and time left but time loaned; we must remember that we do not manufacture time, if we did, none of us would ever run out of it.  The fact is that like everything else pertaining to life, God has given us time; let us make the most of it in light of His purpose and the worlds need. Buying up opportunities, which is another way of saying redeem the time will cost you something in terms of your own wants and desires – lay your life down for the gospel, for the cause of Christ and the purpose of God – the price you pay to tell is not as high as the price Christ paid to provide but it may lead to the priceless redemption of another soul – that IS what redeeming time is all about.

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Redeem the Time (Part 2)

Redeem the Time because Life is Short…

Somebody once said, “Don’t put off until tomorrow what should be done today because procrastination is the thief of time.”  What he meant by that I think is that we usually procrastinate when we have the time to do what’s needed but we’d rather not, thus we put off to another time which may never come what we had the time to do today and in this way procrastination robs us of time.

In the Ephesian letter Paul calls the days that they were living in evil; he said, “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”  What’s Paul saying?  Well, without denying God’s sovereignty over all of His creation I think that Paul is drawing our attention to the fact that we live in a delicate world.

Men still choose to do evil instead of good. Sometimes their choices just affect themselves, and sometimes they affect others, sometimes many others. On 9/11 several men boarded planes which crashed into the Trade towers, the Pentagon, and a Pennsylvania field, killing thousands out of hate. And on any given night someone carelessly chooses to drink and drive, wrecks and kills someone; or another gets angry and takes another man’s life, etc.; wars and rumors of war, famines, pestilence’s, earthquakes in various places (Matthew 24:6-8), hurricanes, typhoons, tornado’s, blistering heat, freezing cold, ‘global warming’, hate, greed, injustice, etc. – we live in a delicate world.

We are obviously not in full control of our time here on earth. You could avoid people, traffic, cities and still be a victim of someone else’s careless or violent act. You may live a morally pure life and still contract AIDS from a blood transfusion during surgery (all though that is less likely today than in recent years). You could drive carefully and cautiously and still be a party in a fatality wreck because of ‘the other guy’ – and so on.

It should alarm us that life isn’t nearly as predictable as we would like it to be. Likewise, it should be just as alarming to understand that the threads that moor each of our lives in time can be easily broken by any one of a number of things. It should alarm us that life can end at any moment, ours or someone else’s, and that their eternal destiny hangs in the hope that someone tells them about Jesus, and that they believe.  These alarms should move us to act, to listen, to care, and to get involved in the lives of others; they should stir us to urgency regarding the sharing of the gospel.

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Redeem the Time (Part 1)

When panic is prevailing in the hearts of people all around us, what should the followers of Christ do? In Paul’s letter to the churches of Colossae and Ephesus twice he uses the expression – “redeem the time;” in fact these are the only two instances of the phrase in the entire New Testament.  One man suggested that in redeeming the time you and I are to take ownership of it and if we take ownership of it, if we treat it as the precious gift that it is – we will also make the most of it.  We all know what that means in simple human terms: life is short; cherish the moments; spend time with those you love – make the most out of today because tomorrow doesn’t always come; we know what it means in general terms – what does it mean for the follower of Jesus Christ?

Redeem the Time for the Lord’s Purposes…

 In his letter to the Ephesians Paul adds something to the expression “redeeming the time” in [v.17] taking it all together, [v.15-17] read like this:

“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”

If we are to understand how we as believers are to make the most of our time on earth we must first understand what God wants us to do with the time He has given us – what is His will? The simplest answer to the question of God’s will pertains to His primary purpose in sending His Son among us – His Son came to redeem us. Therefore we make the best use of our time as believers – we redeem time best when we use it to share the message of God’s redeeming love with those who have yet to trust in Jesus themselves.  It is in this context that we might best understand the Great Commission given by Jesus Christ as read in [Matt. 28:18-20]:

“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”

God’s will is also clearly expressed in [2 Peter 3:9]:

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”

And in [1 Corinthians 5:9-10]:

“I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world.”

Clearly God’s will according to these verses alone is that as we live our lives we are to strive to lead as many people (regardless of their background as unbelievers) as each of us can to a relationship with Jesus Christ.

In light of the fact that the will of the Lord is redemptive in nature and that as the redeemed the use of our time must be redemptive as well, there are two other points that we should consider:

  1. The world is on a collision course with God’s wrath. (2 Peter 3:10-18)
  2. Life is short.

Redeem the Time for the Lost’s Sake…

Paul not only instructed believers to consider and understand what the will of the Lord was and is but also to “walk circumspectly.” That expression means to live in such a way as to consider the consequences before hand of what you might do or say. The writer of Proverbs wrote in [Prov. 12:18];

“There is one who speaks like the piercings of a sword, but the tongue of the wise promotes health.”

That’s a hard one; most of us are not that measured in our speech. For most of us, we say what comes to mind as soon as it does and we are nearly as spontaneous in our actions as well. If we’re wronged, for example, often our first response is to pay it back.  But Paul’s instruction leads us to understand that there are consequences to consider in terms of accomplishing God’s will which are dependent on what we say and do before the lost.  Will your actions and or deeds bring the unbeliever closer or push him or her further away from faith in Jesus Christ?

Paul instructed the Colossians (Col. 4:5) to “walk in wisdom toward those who are outside” (outside the faith). In other words, believers should be careful how they live before unbelievers, choosing to live holy lives on a daily basis (to practice what we preach), pursuing the will of God, and striving to do good at every opportunity rather than pursuing the evil that lurks in every day. Paul’s words in (Ephesians 5: 8–13), especially, (vs. 8) shed additional light on his instruction in (vs. 15) to conduct our lives wisely and carefully before a watching world – in (vs. 8) he said, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.”   If we are followers of God, who is described metaphorically in the Bible as “light” (light being synonymous with God’s pure and holy character, and His integrity) we should ourselves conduct our lives as children of light – every moment of the day should be lived with God and His will as the driving force behind every choice we make and every word we say.

Listen, the gravest consequence of all is that unbelievers will face the full wrath of God in hell and I think that it is in light of this truth that we must double our efforts to make the most of our time with the people that we meet as we live our lives.  

How are you redeeming the time for the lost’s sake?

The call of the Christian is to rescue the perishing; the consequence of not heeding the call, the consequence of not casting the “gospel” net or reaching out to the lost is the unbelievers eternal doom.

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