“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
     ---- Matthew 5:3 


“The Church consists of the spiritually poor.  The only condition of eligibility is destitution.  The rich are sent away empty.  We have to acknowledge our spiritual bankruptcy: that we have no merit to plead, no  strings to pull, no power to save ourselves.  To such, Jesus says, 'Blessed are the poor in spirit; the kingdom of God is theirs'.”   --- John R.W. Stott



I do not remember a time in my life when I was not in church.  From the time I was born in Memphis, Tennessee, my parents enrolled me in what was called then the “Cradle Roll.”  I’ve heard stories of my “pre-memory” days when the ladies in the nursery of my parents’ church would take me from them and I would not cry a tear.  The first 19 years of my life were filled with memories of people who were remarkable across the spectrum.  I’d be less than honest if I did not admit that some of them still influence my life today!

You don’t grow up in the church, though, without noticing the wide variety of personalities --- proud, odd, humble, haughty, twisted, and otherwise --- who made up both clergy and laity.  Perhaps it was because from a relatively early age I had the impression that God wanted me in the vocational Christian ministry, I always noticed the personalities of church leaders.  Growing up as a Baptist, ministers, deacons, teachers, committee chairmen, and other leaders always impressed me.  I noticed their demeanor, the way they dressed and carried themselves, the way they spoke before groups, and the way they communicated with others.  Their language and vocabulary did not go unnoticed, either!

From my earliest years, one thing that stands out to me still was that ministers had a special “language of the kingdom.”  Our particular brand of Protestantism seemed to liberally sprinkle its verbiage with words like “Dear Brother” and “I’ll have to pray about it” and a whole host of phrases involving the name “Jesus” --- “Dear Jesus” or “Trust Jesus” or “Give it to Jesus” or “Let’s just talk to Jesus.”  The way things looked to me, we just seemed to have cornered the market on spirituality and Christian living! 
From my perspective, our church’s leaders were generally well-dressed people who really had few problems in life (because they “trusted Jesus” and “counted it all joy” when challenges occurred).  I don’t remember specifically being told that our beliefs were the best or most Biblical, but I certainly got that impression over the years.  Have any of you present and former Baptists ever heard the question, “If you weren’t a Baptist, what would you be?”  Answer:  “Ashamed!”  Frankly, I don’t remember a wholesale market for being “poor in spirit.”  Seemed to me we were pretty proud of who we were and what we were.

Before you think I’m taking cheap shots at people who aren’t around to defend themselves, I must say that I don’t think many of us then or now aspire to be “poor in spirit.”  We live in a Hollywood world where performers are stars and a persona means more than character.  The world surrounding us genuinely believes that we should “toot our own horn” and “be our own best friend.”  We are trained from childhood to “be somebody” --- if not in actuality, then in appearance.  Even little children learn to “strut their stuff” in front of others in daily life.  Our already fragile egos could hardly stand the additional blow of being “poor” in anything!

YET --- that’s exactly what the Lord Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount!  The Church is to be an “institution of destitution.”  The “poor in spirit” are the ones who know their weaknesses, their fatal sins and shortcomings, their propensities towards evil, their love for certain sins, and their innate powerlessness to make themselves truly Godly.  The “poor in spirit” are the ones who come to God echoing the words of the Prodigal Son, “I have sinned against God and against others, and am not worthy…”  One of the strangest ironies in the Scriptures is that only when people know their own helplessness and unworthiness is there any moral and spiritual help and advancement for them!

The “poor in spirit” are kingdom people --- that is, they live in light of the kingdom’s values and ethics.  They live in the shadow of the King of the Ages whose reign extends to their lives and actions.  They never get beyond the fact that they are not worthy to be citizens of this kingdom, yet they are.  Their citizenship in this kingdom is due to the adoptive action of the King.  Like Moses in the Old Testament, they inherently are common people of the bulrushes, yet they’ve been plucked from their doomed existence by the authority and grace of the King and made members of the royal household.  They live humbly and faithfully in order to please the King, to bring honor to His name, and to insure that their lives are commensurate with what is expected of those in the royal family.

So, what’s the expectation of God for us this week?  It’s that we’ll lose our habits of strutting around like religious peacocks and focus, instead, on living humbly and faithfully.  It’s to refocus our attention from ourselves, our accomplishments, our titles, and our external accoutrements of success to wholeheartedly serving God and His people.  Now that I’ve been in the ministry for over 30 years, I can say honestly that many of the people whose manner used to impress me have proven to be great disappointments.  The cheesy smiles, the greasy religious manners, the flamboyant personalities, and the acquired demeanors leave a distinct ring of egotism and unreality.  What the world is looking for is a real person of faith!

BE that person this week!  Be who you are and do what God Providentially allows you to do.  Do it for Him rather than for career progression, public acclaim, or ego building.  Serve God and His kingdom, and you’ll be amazed what He will accomplish in the lives of others through you! 
-----
2004

“Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, ‘Go south to the road --- the desert road --- that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.  So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. … The Spirit told Philip, ‘Go to that chariot and stay near it.’ …  The eunuch asked Philip, ‘Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?’  Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.’”
    ---- Acts 8:26-27, 29, 34-35


“The same power that brought Christ back from the dead is operative within those who are Christ's.  The Resurrection is an ongoing thing.” ---Leon Morris

“Whether we are prepared or not to accept the occurrence of the Resurrection as a fact of history, we cannot deny the influence that a belief in it has exercised in the world.  We cannot deny that it has brought life and immortality to light as no other belief could conceivably have done; that it has substituted for the fear of death, for a large portion of the human race, that sure and certain knowledge of God which is eternal life; that it has permeated our customs, our literature, and our language with a glory and a hope that could have been derived from no other source.”   --- C.H. Robinson


Easter is a funny thing --- it comes as one of the great religious and national holidays on our calendar, and we celebrate it with great enthusiasm and flourish.  Churches are decorated with Easter colors and so are the people who attend Easter services.  It still is not too unusual to see women and girls in colorful Easter hats and new Easter clothes.  Men and boys look handsome in coats and ties --- which they avoid wearing so much of the time.  Many families attend church together and go to local restaurants afterwards for a great feast.  It’s genuinely a day to remember for many of us!

However, just as soon as Easter has come, it goes.  The gala church musicals have been presented, the dramas are over, and although the Easter decorations are still up in our churches, we’ve settled back into the old routine of life.  Monday came all too quickly with its demands, its work, and its projects!  There are miles between family members once again, so it will be some time before we repeat our get-togethers.  Somehow, the wonderful message and music of Easter seems to get drowned out in the loudness and hectic nature of life!

So, what IS the lingering message of Easter, after all?  What is there in Easter that is life-changing and empowering to God’s people?  Is there ANYTHING we carry away that adds a quality to life that others can see as remarkable?

Of all the things said in Easter and about Easter, one of the most wonderful qualities is how the Gospel --- the good news of Jesus Christ --- has been changed.  The story of Jesus is far more than the story of an inspired religious teacher or gifted public figure.  The story of Jesus for the past 2,000 years of human history has been the story of God’s Messiah, His Promised One, Who would deliver His people from their sins.  The Easter story is a great affirmation that God raised Jesus from the grave in public testimony that His sacrifice was accepted in payment for our sins.  The “good news about Jesus” that was told to the Ethiopian eunuch by Philip included the testimony that God raised Him from the dead.  Jesus is alive and lives for ever more!  Can news like that be any other than “good news?!”

The message of the Resurrection told to the Ethiopian eunuch was repeated 2,000 years later by another Christian messenger to Ethiopians.  In 1927, the Sudan Interior Mission (SIM) sent missionaries to the Wallamo people, a wild Satan-worshipping people, in Ethiopia.  Their work was slow, and when Italian soldiers of Mussolini invaded the country in 1935, there was a small Wallamo church.  The missionaries were ordered to leave, and as they did so, 48 Wallamo believers said their “goodbyes” to their SIM friends.  The missionaries wondered if they would ever be able to return, and if so, what would they find?

They prayed for the Wallamo Christians until they did return in 1943.  What they found was truly amazing!  From a small, seemingly helpless church of 48, God had grown a church of 18,000!  The Wallamo people had suffered terribly under the occupation of Italian forces.  Church leaders regularly received 100 lashes, and one received 400.  Some had died, and others could not lie on their backs for months.  Their Bibles were confiscated by Italian officials.  One Ethiopian leader, Wandaro, was beaten in public and he preached to the gathered crowds between beatings.  Another leader, Toro, was beaten with a hippo-hide whip, and he cried out the Gospel in the marketplace where he was punished.  As conversions grew, tribal villages began sending their own missionaries to other villages.  The isolated Wallamo church literally grew with no outside encouragement or support!

How can you explain this true story?  The remarkable growth and vitality of this isolated and persecuted tribal people is found in their belief in the Risen Christ!  They were devoted to no mere religious teacher or vaunted religious icon.  Their commitment and loyalty was to a living, reigning Lord Who was with them through anything thrown against them.  His “I will never leave you or forsake you” was a daily affirmation necessary to life.  Pain and suffering were their routine.  Thriving in an environment of threat and death is explainable only by an overwhelming hope --- the hope that comes from a living Christ Jesus!  Their very life was their testimony.

SO --- what about US?  Is Easter over for us?  Absolutely not!  BUT --- does your life and mine give a living testimony of the continuing life of Christ?  Leon Morris is absolutely right --- “The Resurrection is an ongoing thing.”  Is it ongoing with you and me?  Do those around us see something that is only explainable by our faith in the Resurrected Christ?  Easter is continuing this week --- I trust it will continue in our lives, in our witness, and in our churches!

On the Easter just before he died, Rev. D. William Sangster painfully printed a short note to his daughter.  A deeply spiritual Methodist minister, he had been spearheading a renewal movement in the British Isles after World War II.  Then his ministry, except for prayer, was ended by a disease that progressively paralyzed his body, even his vocal chords.  On the last Resurrection Sunday he spent on earth, still able to move his fingers, he wrote: "How terrible to wake up on Easter and have no voice to shout, 'He is risen!'  ‘Far worse to have a voice and not want to shout!’"
-----
2004

“It was just before the Passover Feast.  Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father.  Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.  The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus.  Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God;  so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.  After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.  He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, ‘Lord, are you going to wash my feet?’  Jesus replied, ‘You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.’  ‘No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.’  Jesus answered, ‘Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.’  ‘Then, Lord,’ Simon Peter replied, ‘not just my feet, but my hands and my head as well!’  Jesus answered, ‘A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean.  And you are clean, though not every one of you.’  For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.  When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place.  ‘Do you understand what I have done for you?’ he asked them.  ‘You call me Teacher and Lord, and rightly so, for that is what I am.  Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.  I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.  I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.’
                                     ---- John 13:1-16 


“Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can...”     ----John Wesley




The summer following my graduation from seminary with my Master of Divinity (M. Div.) degree was over 20 years ago, but I remember it vividly as if it were last year.  I had worked year round for three years to amass the 96 semester hours necessary for the degree, and I had struggled through classes in Greek, Hebrew, Old and New Testament Archeology, Hermeneutics (interpreting the Bible), Homiletics (public preaching), Evangelism, Theology, Old and New Testament Survey, Christian Education, Christian Missions and Church Growth, and the list just goes on and on.  Maneuvering among the personality quirks of the various professors and memorizing endless lists of noun declensions, verb parsing, and outlines of other information, I came by the grace of God to graduation.  And --- graduating cum laude to boot!  I achieved one other goal as well --- I had been accepted in the Doctor of Theology (Th.D.) program for the next Fall.  Yep, I was very, very proud of myself, and I was on top of the world!


BUT --- with graduation came the end of my G.I. Bill financial assistance, at least for the summer.  The tiny rural church where I served as Pastor did not pay me very much, so my wife and I could not live and pay our bills on that income and her small one, too.  So, that summer I worked at two additional jobs, one of which was on the maintenance crew at the seminary.  My particular assignment mostly consisted of cleaning the men’s and women’s restrooms around the school.  Yep, this superbly qualified, immensely self-satisfied, academically adept recent graduate spent most of his time scrubbing the toilets and urinals used by everyone else!  To say the least, I was not happy.

You see, during my last couple of semesters in school, I saw this financial crisis coming, so I had tried to get my name and credentials in the hands of a number of churches in the area who were looking for a Pastor.  After all, I reasoned, I had served faithfully this little country church for a couple of years and had given them my best.  Didn’t it make sense that now armed with my M.Div. degree and my increased skills that I should move on to a new --- read “bigger and better” --- place of service?  Well, the silence from the churches was deafening and I was disheartened.  To make matters MUCH worse, one of my fellow  students I had come to dislike intensely announced that he had been called to a fairly large church with all kinds of benefits and a significantly greater salary than most of us had.  I just couldn’t believe it --- this guy who never had an original thought in his life, who never studied very hard and didn’t care about his grades, who maintained the most supercilious manner, who was never serious about his scholarship and work --- THIS GUY was called to a bigger and better church and I was left high and dry!  I was angry at the situation I was in and angry at God for allowing things to develop like this.

You see, what had happened to me was what happens to so many of us in the Church --- we forget what we’re here to be and what we’re here to do.  Instead of maintaining a ministry as a servant, I was on my way to becoming a religious functionary with a career!  By focusing on my own immediate situation and losing sight of WHY I was in seminary in the first place, I was becoming just another bright young executive hoping to rise in the employment system within which I worked.  The Church was becoming to me a vast connected system in which I could rise and achieve significance, instead of being God’s vineyard of covenant people among whom He placed me to serve.  Words like “success” or “significance” or “achievement” were being measured by the size of my congregation, the money I persuaded them to give, the denominational offices I held, and the acquaintances and friendships I fostered with others like me.  I was well on my way to forgetting that these words more properly denote one’s faithfulness to God’s calling, the ministry to His covenant people, and faithfully preaching and teaching His holy Word.

During this Holy Week, I trust the passage above will invade our thoughts as never before.  Yes, we MUST focus on Christ’s Sacramental Supper on Maundy Thursday, and the atoning death of Christ for our sins on Good Friday.  BUT --- these MUST be held in perspective by Jesus’ humble act of washing the feet of His disciples.  Surely by now you know that this was the dirty act that was done by the most humble and lowliest of slaves and servants in households at the time.  Surely you know, too, that by washing the dirty, pungent feet of others --- feet that bore the dust and grime of the common highways and byways --- the one washing others’ feet became ritually unclean himself.  It was NOT something good Romans and circumspect Jews did themselves for their guests!  And that’s what makes this simple act such a remarkable lesson and example for us!

With very little time remaining for Him on this earth, our Lord Jesus by word and deed showed the essential attitude foundational to every relationship between covenant brothers and sisters in Christ, as well as the true nature of Christian ministry in His Church --- servanthood.  We don’t have careers in the Church --- we have God’s calling!  The greatest in the Church is the servant, and every covenant child of God is a servant!  Service is our greatest achievement.  Join me in praying that God will Sovereignly grant a revival of true servanthood among us as we proceed in thought and worship to this coming Sunday morning when we repeat with all the saints of all the ages the words of praise and triumph, “He is not here; He is risen!”  May all of us aspire to hear “Well done!” because we’ve been “good and faithful servants.”
------
2004

"'Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.  This is the bread that came down from heaven.  Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever.'  He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.  On hearing it, many of his disciples said, 'This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?'  Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, 'Does this offend you?  What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before!  The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing.  The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.  Yet there are some of you who do not believe.'  For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him.  He went on to say, 'This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him.'  From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.  'You do not want to leave too, do you?' Jesus asked the Twelve.  Simon Peter answered him, 'Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.'"
------John 6:57-69



"Pliny, Roman governor of Bithynia, wrote Trajan, the Roman Emperor, regarding how he flushed out Christians in his area:  ‘I gave these men chance to invoke the gods of Rome, offer sacrifice to the image of the Emperor, and finally to curse the name of Christ.  Pliny added, ‘None of these acts, those who are really Christians, can be forced to do.’”
----Peter Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of Illustrations



Throughout the Christian world, today is known as Palm Sunday, the day commemorated by Christians of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem on a donkey and with the cheering accolades of crowds gathered to celebrate the Passover Feast.  "Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!  Hosanna in the highest!" (Matthew 21:9)  To the people  surrounding Jesus, it must have appeared that the very Kingdom of God itself was about to break out on the earth.  It must have seemed that the hated Romans would soon abandon their cruel military presence, or at least that the iron bands of occupation would be soon thrown off by the triumphant forces of God.  Of course, now from the distance of 2,000 years, we know the real story.

The challenge this week for all of us is to see the events of Holy Week culminating in next Sunday’s celebration of Easter through the lens of a steely faith and iron commitment.  Today's palm branches and shouts of praise are evidences of our ever-present human propensity to confuse loyalty with popularity.  In the passage cited above from John 6, Jesus conveyed in graphic language the central essence of Christian discipleship and deep commitment.  The consequences are that "from this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him."  Jesus made it indelibly clear to us that the costs of following Him are high and the stakes are great.  The difference in following Jesus with loyalty as opposed to mere popularity is the military difference between marching in parades in handsome dress uniforms and marching off to war!  The participants in one are soldiers; in the other they are well-dressed dilettantes.

So, after this experience of "group reduction," we might well assume that the issue for Jesus’ disciples had been put to rest.  THEN --- along came Jesus' Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem.  The process of scrutiny was resumed!  In this case, though, religious fervor, spiritual euphoria, and intense religious experiences reveal the duplicity of the human heart and the frailties of inadequate commitment to the Lord Jesus.  Simply put --- many among us today who give accolades, compliments, and who sing our praises will tomorrow become our tormentors and crucifiers!

You see, a crucial issue in Palm Sunday for Christians is why they follow the Lord Jesus.  What is the nature of their attachment to Him?  If their essential link to Christ is due to popularity, then their "commitment" will remain in force as long as conditions are right, feelings are good, and the demands are low.  They will enjoy a veritable "hullabaloo" of energetic singing, emphatic pronouncements, and impulsive actions!  AND --- what a show they CAN make!

BUT, if their "commitment" is due to true loyalty, then they will continue in spite of fluctuating conditions, cyclic feelings, and the ever-present high demands of faith and service!  Even when knocked off kilter in their lives, they will return always, in their ultimate direction of life, to "True North."  The foundational quality of their lives is not mere expediency or self-preservation.  They serve One Who is greater --- in fact, they serve a King!

John records that the crowds spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread branches from the trees in His path.  Their actions were temporarily commendable, but their hearts were still evil.  In just a few hours, when the moment has ended and the negative emotions of the crowds have been manipulated to a fever pitch, many of these same people will be shouting, "Away with him!  Crucify Him!"  We could have no clearer illustration of the difference between loyalty and popularity as sources of commitment!

So, what about you and me?  Are we just members of the crowd singing little Christian ditties,  participating in the latest Christian fads and marketing ploys?  Is our commitment to Jesus Christ any greater in quality or content than the impulsive crowds of the Triumphal Entry?  I trust it is so!

This week while we participate in Holy Week activities --- Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday's Lord's Supper, and Good Friday --- let us renew our commitment to Christ Jesus and His life of faith.  Remember --- we're in this for the long run.  As we will celebrate next Sunday, we have a risen Lord and ruling King.  Isn't it time we lived like that?!  May God give us clear vision as we scrutinize the nature of our own commitment to Him, and may He give us His strength to continue serving Him loyally!



“Now if we would be Christ’s disciples, we must take care that our hearts are filled with such reverence and obedience to God as He is able to tame and yoke all affections contrary to His will.  Hence, it will come about that in whatever trial we may be, in the greatest distress of heart we can possible experience, we will not slacken our firm grip on patience.  For adversities will always have their bitterness to gnaw us.  For this reason, afflicted by disease, we will groan, complain, long for health; pressed by poverty, we will feel some pricks of perplexity and care.  Equally, disgrace and contempt, and every injustice will rend our hearts.  When one of our relatives dies, we shall pay to nature the tears we owe.  But always we shall come back to this conclusion:  ‘Yet the Lord has willed it; let us follow His will.’”
 -----John Calvin

---------
2005

"Then Jesus told them, 'This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written:  I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.  But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.'  Peter replied, 'Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.'  'I tell you the truth,' Jesus answered, 'this very night before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.'  But Peter declared, 'Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.'  And all the other disciples said the same."
                                          ---- Matthew 26:31-35

For those of us in the Christian community, this week will take us to the high points and low points of our faith.  As the verses above remind us, our spiritual ancestors, the original disciples, all echoed the sentiments of Simon Peter......"We will NEVER falter or fail in our allegiance to you, Lord!"  How filled with bravado and confidence they were!  They were so sure of themselves!

Meanwhile, the dark shadows of the enemies of Jesus were gathering as plots unfolded and the accursed blood money was exchanged.  One of those closest to the Master would become the traitor, and another would become the Prince of Denial.  All would become cowards lacking the slightest shred of courage or faith.

How did it come to this?  How did those who so loudly and publicly proclaimed, "Hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!" become those who hid themselves out of sniveling, self-serving fear?  In short, that is always the potential, for the seeds of denial and failure are sown in all our hearts because of our fallen humanity.  We are sinners who in their very best moments cannot win for themselves the very salvation and right standing with God they so desperately need.  The story of humanity from Genesis onward is the story of great hopes and dreams, abject rejection of the Heavenly Father and His covenant love, and His redemptive acts lovingly performed for His people.

And THAT is the real story of this week!  From Palm Sunday onward, the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper and the Atoning death of our Lord Jesus on Calvary's cross are stark reminders that while we fail to live up to our big promises, God NEVER fails to perform His divine will!  We may have supreme confidence in Him to honor His promises and provide all that is needed for our lives and salvation.

Remember as you celebrate the events of this week:  the evident dichotomy presented in the Scriptures between the disciples and their Lord.  They promised big things and failed.  Jesus promised deliberate obedience to the Father and fulfilled all the Law's demands.  Let every event of this week and the overwhelming reality of Easter Sunday drive you to your knees with expressions of gratitude for His loving performance on our behalf.  As the old hymn says, "Streams of mercy never ceasing call for songs of loudest praise!"  Live that praise this week!
------
2001

"Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of the world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules?"  --- Colossians 2:20

Great Curiosities --- Only In America!

Only in America --- can a pizza get to your house faster than an ambulance!

Only in America --- are there handicap parking places in front of a skating rink!

Only in America --- do drugstores make sick people walk all the way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions!

Only in America --- do people order double-cheese burgers, a large order of fries, and a Diet Coke!

Only in America --- do banks leave their vault doors open during business hours, but they chain the pens to the counters!

Only in America --- do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and leave useless junk in the garage!

Only in America --- do we use answering machines to screen our telephone calls and then use call waiting so we won't miss a call from someone we didn't want to talk to in the first place!

Only in America --- do we buy hot dogs in packages of ten and buns in packages of eight!

Only in America --- do we use the word "politics" to describe the process so well: "Poli" in Latin meaning"many" and "tics" meaning "bloodsucking creatures!"

Only in America --- do we have drive-up ATM machines with Braille lettering!

These humorous and thought-provoking curiosities above point out that there truly IS a very odd and eccentric side of life for us Americans.  We just don't seem to be consistent, and these inconsistencies serve to make us interesting.  Someone once said that the only consistent thing you can say about Americans is that we are inconsistent!  We ARE a curious people.

For those of us who are Christians, we find that God has also given us what appear to be curious instructions for life.  These point out the difference between the values of Almighty God and those of the world.  They show clearly the difference between living His way and living the world's way!

Take a look at the following verses.  Are God's values and views  prominent  in YOUR life?  To what degree are YOUR values, ethics, and lifestyle different from the world's?  

1. Matthew 19:30 - "But many that are first shall be last, and the last shall be first."

2. Matthew 23:11-12 - "But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant, and whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted."

3. Matthew 11:28-30 - "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me: for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

God bless you as you experience these this week!
------
2002

"But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.  So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God."   ---Genesis 45:7-8



This week begins in the shadow of the world-wide celebration of St. Patrick's Day.  This ancient character is revered as the Apostle to Ireland for his great Christian work there, as well as his faithful endurance of hardships and imprisonment for his faith.  Born in Britain around 385, he largely ignored the Christian faith of his father.  At about 15 years of age, he was captured on a raid and sold as a slave.  He worked as a shepherd for a Druid, a Irish priest in the nature worshiping cult.  During his period of slavery, the Christian faith he previously ignored became deepened and personal.  At 21, Patrick escaped his predicament and traveled 200 miles to the Irish coast where he persuaded a ship's captain to take him home to Britain.

Once home, he studied for the priesthood and, eventually, became a bishop.  Armed with his strong faith, he returned to Ireland with the determination to bring the Irish people to Christ.  Legend has it that he consecrated over 350 bishops and established about 300 churches.  Following his fruitful ministry of 30-40 years in Ireland, he died on March 17, 461.  He left many legends of his life there, including that he drove the snakes out of Ireland as well as used the native 3-leafed shamrock to teach the Irish about the three persons of the Godhead:  Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Shamrocks have become synonymous with the Trinity and Ireland.

What can we learn from this historical character and Roman Catholic saint?  Are there things in his life and ministry that can be helpful to us in our daily lives this week?  The answer, I think, is "Yes!"

The first thing involves the issue of the ultimate source of life's events.  For those of faith, this is God!  It is far too easy to become blind to the work of God in our lives or to become satisfied with a superficial view of life.  People of faith MUST recognize that whether seen or unseen, the hand of God is involved in the daily events of life.  It is God Who is to receive glory from our lives, and it is God's purposes that are to be served by our words and actions.  St. Patrick's capture and slavery were transformed by God into the Gospel's extension to an entire people.  As Joseph recounts above, it was God Who sent him into Egypt for His divine  mission.

The second thing we can learn is the genuine nature of life's events.  What we often relegate to being "bad luck" or "coincidences" are often the divine design of God!  Simply put, the "ordinary" events of life can be transformed into the "extraordinary" because God is involved!  The unfortunate and horrific enslavement of St. Patrick was, in the long run, a blessed intervention due to the ultimate purpose that was served in his life.  Joseph saw God's divine design in the salvation and preservation of his people through his slavery and rise in the government of the Egyptian Pharaoh.  Both men saw beyond the appearance of the moment to see God's purpose to be served in their lives.

What purposes will you serve this week?  In the people and events you experience this week, be faithful to the opportunities of service and witness as they present themselves.  Whether you see it or not, the hand of God is at work in your life.......cooperate!  Let your voice be His voice in someone's life.  Your acts of kindness and love can become the tangible evidence of His grace as He touches lives through you!  Make sure someone says of you before this time next week, "It was not a coincidence you were here, but God!"

May God be active and you cooperative......to His glory!
----
2001

"The elder, to my dear friend Gaius, whom I love in the truth.  Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.  It gave me great joy to have some brothers come and tell about your faithfulness to the truth and how you continue to walk in the truth.  I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.  Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers, even though they are strangers to you.  They have told the church about your love. You will do well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God.  It was for  the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans.  We ought therefore to show hospitality to such men so that we may work together for the truth.  I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will have nothing to do with us.  So if I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, gossiping maliciously about us.  Not satisfied with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers. He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.  Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God.  Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God.  Demetrius is well spoken of by everyone - and even by the truth itself.  We also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true.  I have much to write you, but I do not want to do so with pen and ink.  I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face.  Peace to you.  The friends here send their greetings.  Greet the friends there by name."
                                                                    3 John 


Someone said recently that if we did not have so many problems in our human relationships, half the publishing companies would go out of business, most talk-shows would be off the air, and Country Music would be seriously devoid of songs!  Can you imagine situation comedies without human conflict or the biting verbal exchanges between primary characters?  Would Archie Bunker's chair be in the Smithsonian without the animosity he shared with his son-in-law, Michael Stivik --- or as most of us remember him, "the Meathead?"

This week continues the 2003 season of LENT and the Church's emphasis upon introspection and repentance.  For Christians who take this season to heart, it becomes a time of repenting of self-centered acts, disobedience, and outright sin.  While that IS appropriate, I think an additional perspective is in order, also.  Rather than limiting our repentance to what we do, I think we might consider repenting of who we are --- particularly who we are to others!  And, as we're doing so, we might consider the godly characteristics we want in our lives after repenting of the undesirable ones.

The tiny book of 3 John above furnishes us with an opportunity to do both this week.  In this personal letter from the Apostle John to his friend, Gaius, we have displayed for us examples of helpful and harmful behaviors on the part of Christians in the Church.  This is not some esoteric, philosophical discussion for John.  It is a real, living situation in which the realities of life are played out in the lives of 3 men.  Frankly, all of them are still with us today in virtually every one of our congregations!

Perhaps it is best to consider the negative example first.  John speaks of Diotrephes and his distinct behaviors:  "I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will have nothing to do with us.  So if I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, gossiping maliciously about us.  Not satisfied with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers. He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church."  Get the picture?  Diotrephes is an absolute JERK!  His kind surrounds us today and the effects are still the same.  Amazing, isn't it, that some people never seem to learn!  The sins of Diotrephes are at least 3.  

First, he rejects the fellowship and authority of godly spiritual leadership.  He is a "lone ranger" Christian who seems to need no one else --- particularly no one who might threaten his self-appointed position in the congregation.  Perhaps he is an Elder of a congregation himself; we aren't given all the details.  One thing we DO know is that he rejects John and anyone else outside his local body.  His type is still around today --- we hear them say idiotic things like, "I don't answer to anyone other than the Lord Jesus Himself!"  or "No one can tell ME what to do!"  In his heart, he has enthroned himself as the primary authority.  He brooks no rivals and is in submission to no one.

John speaks of Diotrephes as "loves to be first," yet Jesus Himself said that the one who wanted to be first "should be the servant of all."  We MUST reject the Diotrephes method of leadership and churchmanship!

Second, John says that Diotrephes "gossips maliciously about us."  What a coward!  People who gossip are cowards or worse.  The Scriptures tell us that if we have a problem with another brother we are to "go and show him his fault, just between the two of you."  It does take some degree of moral courage and risk.  After all, when you confront a brother or sister in Christ, it might be YOU who is wrong and needs to repent!  However, gossip is NEVER permitted in our Christian relationships!

Third, Diotrephes is not satisfied with his self-centered, hateful behavior --- he excommunicates other Christians who cross him --- he "puts them out of the church."  He misuses his spiritual authority to serve his own ends.  Now, excommunication IS a legitimate and commanded tool for the Elders in congregations to use when a brother or sister in Christ is guilty of egregious theological or immoral behavior and refuses to repent in spite of repeated injunctions by the authorities.  It is NOT a tool for one's own vindictive retribution or persecution of those with whom one shares a personality conflict!

If we're not to be like Diotrephes, then whose behavior is a good example for us?  Again, John furnishes us with two men whose behavior shines like the stars in the night as opposed to Diotrephes.

First, Gaius himself gives us a living picture of good, Christian characteristics.  His name meant "rejoiced," and he is depicted in this letter as bringing great joy to John by "walking in the truth."  There is no greater commendation of the Gospel to the lost world than the living example of those whose lives are permeated with the Gospel!  The most pronounced affect of Gaius was that he lifted the spirits of brothers and sisters in Christ --- John included.  It leads us to ask --- "Do we lift the spirits of others or do we depress them?"  Notice, too, that Gaius' habit of lifting the spirits of others is linked with his being "faithful."  There is no substitute for dependable Christians!  In the deepest recesses of the heart, those who are faithful to God are blessed and happy, and those who are not faithful are sad!

Second, Demetrius is mentioned as being "well spoken of by everyone - and even by the truth itself.  We also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true."  You know, we can often fool ourselves for awhile, and we can fool others for a little while, too.  However, sooner or later, what is in our hearts and what is real to us comes out!  You just cannot hide your genuine, baseline commitments.  Demetrius, by his behavior and faithfulness, had acquired a good reputation.  Perhaps he was the bearer of this letter from John to Gaius; we don't know.  What we DO know is that people liked and trusted him.  He was a substantial person who earned the respect and Christian love he shared with brothers and sisters in Christ.  AND --- notice that this was not limited to one congregation or location.  Wherever he was, his conduct won over the hearts of those who knew him.

SO --- this week WHO WILL YOU BE?  Repent of and avoid every vestige of Diotrephes.  His attitude was bad and his behavior was sinful.  Ask God to reproduce qualities we see in Gaius and Demetrius.  Isn't it about time some of us started on a new road in our churches and lives?  May God give us the insight to see ourselves as we really are and the strength to repent of all that is harmful to the covenant body of Christ and the Gospel!
-----
2003

"The eleven disciples went to Galilee to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them, and as soon as they saw Him, they fell down and worshipped Him, though some were in doubt about it.  Then Jesus came up to them, and said, 'Full authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Go then and make disciples of all the nations, baptize them into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to practice all the commands that I have given you.  And I myself will surely be with you all the days, down to the very close of an age.'"  ---- Matthew 28:16-20 

The passage above is, perhaps, one of the most familiar to Evangelical Christians throughout the world.  It has been called "The Great Commission"  by preachers, missionaries, and scholars alike.  This bit of Scripture contains some of Christ's last words on earth prior to His Ascension into heaven.  Its brevity belies its significant teachings and commands for the Christian Church as it goes about daily doing its spiritual business in the world.

One of the interesting parts to me has always been the word that is translated "Go..."  Most translations render the word as though it is a command --- hence, the nickname for the passage, "The Great Commission."  Of course, the root word in Biblical Greek does have to do with moving or conducting one's life.  However, it is not a command --- it's a participle!  Students of English will remember that participles most frequently end with "ing;" therefore, the word is really an introductory participle phrase that is best rendered, "Going..." or "As you go..."

"Going" describes the nature of life.  EVERYONE is going --- we go to work, go to visit family and friends, and go traveling to areas further and further from home.  Actually, we have no choice in the matter.  The circumstances of each person's life will dictate that he/she "goes" each day.  The only difference between people is the distance or places we go.

The real command to the infant Church here is to "make disciples of all the nations" or "disciplize all the peoples of the world."  The Church and all who make it up, during the process of normal life and activities, are to be occupied with the process of assisting all kinds of people to repent of sin and become connected by faith with the Lord Jesus Christ.  This activity is to permeate all the other activities in which we are involved.  That's why Christians are described in the Scriptures as "salt" and "light."  We flavor and influence all the people around us, and we point the way to the Eternal Light as we reflect it.

What are we asking people to do?  What does it mean to "disciplize all the peoples?"  Regrettably, some people think they can be a "saved person" without being a "disciple!"  The relative spiritual impotence of many of our churches is a sad testimony to this unbiblical idea.

So, if the command to make disciples is not a command to solicit devotees for some higher, optional level of Christian faith, then what is it?  When we share a Christian witness or fulfill our evangelistic responsibility, what kind of Christian faith are we challenging others to commit to?  When Jesus Himself challenges people to "take up their cross and follow Me," what is He talking about?

"The Christian way is different: harder, and easier.  Christ says, 'Give me All.  I don't want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want you.  I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it.  No half-measures are any good.  I don't want to cut off a branch here and a branch there.  I want to have the whole tree down.  I don't want to drill the tooth, or crown it, or stop it, but to have it out.  Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked --- the whole outfit.  I will give you a new self instead.  In fact, I will give you Myself: my own will shall become yours.'"  --- C.S. Lewis.

Let us be clear, then, as to our Christian business --- we are commissioned by our Christian faith, openly displayed by our baptism, to call people of every nation, kindred, tribe, and language to repentance and faith and a new life bound up in Jesus Christ.  This next week all of us will be going; now, that's a fact of life.  BUT --- will we be disciplizing people around us?  Will our lives be "lights set on a hill" beaconing people to our Sovereign God through the Lord Jesus Christ?  Will our words and lives be road-signs and road-maps directing the swift traffic of life towards the One Who loved us and gave Himself for us?

As we work, play, move, commute, relate, and talk during this week, may God use each of us as "disciplers" for His glory and the expansion of His kingdom.  Ask Him to use you --- I guarantee He will!  God bless you and use you all week long!

-----
2003

"The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul.  The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple."   ---Psalm 19:7

“Be very strong: be careful to obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or to the left.”  ---Joshua 23:6



"Americans have the right and advantage of being armed, unlike citizens of other countries whose governments are afraid to trust the people with arms."
---James Madison



One of the greatest debates raging today concerns privately held weapons in the United States.  Americans in every quarter are wrestling with the Constitutional right to "bear arms."  This right was enacted very purposefully in our Constitution as a societal protection against despots and tyrannical governments.  As Founding Father, James Madison, pointed out above, bearing arms is an issue of trust --- the people trust themselves with weapons as a guard rather than a government mistrusting them!  Another of Madison's generation, George Mason, said, "To disarm the people is the best and most effectual way to enslave them."  When people lack the ability to defend themselves, they are prey to anyone --- government, gang, robber, or tyrant --- who would rob them of what they have or exercise effective control over them.

This is doubly true in the spiritual realm, also!  Living our faith is described in Ephesians as "spiritual warfare."  From Israel's prophets in the Old Testament to our Lord Jesus in the New Testament, the Word of God is described consistently in the language of weaponry.  The Word of God is "a fire" in Jeremiah 23:29.  It is "the power (dynamite) of God" in Romans 1:16.  It is the "sword of the Spirit" in Ephesians 6:17, and Hebrews 4:12 says it is "sharper than any double-edged sword."  All of these passages and more illustrate graphically its power and use.

For God's people of faith, the Word of God is an absolutely essential offensive and defensive weapon.  We defend ourselves against attack by reading it, by meditating on and internalizing it, and by quoting it as Jesus did in His great temptations in the desert (Matthew 4:1-11).  We use it offensively by sharing it in personal conversations, lessons, and in preaching.  Hebrews 4:12 even says that it "judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."  What a blessing it is that God has entrusted this Word to us!

Therefore, if we neglect God’s Word, or fail to read it, or do not study it, or we disbelieve it, then we've become thoroughly spiritually disarmed!  Disarmament in this sense only leads to eventual defeat!  Just as nations and kingdoms have learned in the difficult crucible of experience, the world is a dangerous place, indeed!  To be disarmed is to be placed at the mercy of those who would rule you, rob you, or mistreat you.

So, in the week ahead as you fight the good fight, do not neglect your most valuable weapon, God's Word.  Like the finest swords of another era, it will not fail us!  Feed yourself on the Word and make it an inseparable part of your daily life.  Make its precepts your foundation and its commandments your rules for living.  Let its life invigorate you, and let its words be your comfort.  It will steer you straight and take you to the destination that is eternal and blessed.  May the light of God’s Word give you light for each day’s path this week and for ever.

“Almighty God, Thou hast deigned to show Thyself so intimately to us and also daily deignest to confirm us in Thy truth.  Grant we may turn aside neither to the right nor to the left, but depend wholly on Thy Word and so cleave to Thee that no errors of the world may lead us astray.  May we stand firm in that faith which we have learned from Thy law, from the prophets and the Gospel (wherein Thou has more clearly shown Thyself through Christ), that we may finally enjoy Thy full and perfect glory, being transfigured into it, at last attaining that inheritance acquired for us by the blood of Thine only begotten Son.  Amen."   ---John Calvin
-------
2005