Never-ending

Non-eternal things end!  I wonder if one of our major issues in the Church, in our lives and in our country relates to placing our trust and faith in things that aren't eternal?  Most of us took the supply chain for granted ... something we see now as a concern.  At Thanksgiving, Walmart had only a few turkey breasts ... we were fortunate to find one of the last ones.  There is a shortage of artificial Christmas trees ... again, we were lucky and found a display model.  I heard this morning that there is even a shortage of Santa Clauses!!!  I guess somewhere in the Pacific there is a boat circling a port, all filled-up with fake Santa Clauses, looking to dock and unload them!  Yep, faith and trust in the wrong things!  But (to quote Dr. Seuss) "He hadn't stopped Christmas from coming, it came!  Somehow or other, it came just the same!"  Christmas is coming and will come, bringing (to all who want something eternal) "peace on earth, and good will to all people!"

Here's my question.  How can we (the people of God) grasp, hold and offer God's goodness, grace and peace ... some of the eternal things of God?  Isaiah 9:7 reminds us that God offers something that isn't conditioned on our situation.  It says, "His government and its peace will never end!"  In spite of all the things trying to derail God's plan (and there are many) and in spite of economic, social, governmental and media reports, Isaiah says "His government and its peace will never end!"  Is God looking at the same world we are looking at?  The answer is, yes!

Two things about this passage.  The first thing is a condition of the second thing.  The word is "governance," but in the Hebrew it is related to the entirety of "judging."  It generally means to rule over all aspects of life.  A judge would make governmental policy (how things are done).  When God governs our lives, God decides how we operate.  I see too many moms and dads who are willing to let others set the policy in their households.  I remember accidently picking up a book from a Belk store in Charlotte when I had picked up the items we had bought.  We got home and I found I had a book on stamp collecting that we hadn't paid for.  We didn't wait for when it was easy or convenient.  We got in the car, drove the 30 minutes back to downtown and took that book back to the store.  My mom made me apologize, even though it wasn't my intention to take the book.  She said, "That's not how we do things!"  It was a good lesson on the 'policy' in the Greene household.  If you want peace that is never-ending and everlasting, you gotta let God set the policy.  His governance needs to be the standard!

The result of God's governance is that you can have a never-ending peace.  Martin Luther King's peace in a Birmingham jail.  Eric Liddell's peace as he would not run an Olympic event on God's day.  Mary's peace (Luke 2) as, in the midst of shepherd visits, conflict with local/national government, a child born in a stable and that marital issue with Joseph, "Mary treasured-up all these things and pondered them in her heart!"  I believe she had peace!

Jesus says, in John 14, "Do not let your hearts be troubled!"  He expresses a sense of peace in the midst of terrible turmoil and strife.  How can He do this and command us to do the same thing?  His life is governed by God the Father.  His policy brings peace that is never-ending.  He is the Prince of Peace, and His reign will be forever for those who are willing to let Him rule the roost and run the show.  So, for this chaotic time where we seem to be running out of a lot, we will never run out of God's peace!  AMEN!  Randy

God Does This a Lot!

One little story from Tony Campolo has a child Jesus creating a flower, admiring the beautiful little flower and saying, "again!"  Another flower appears, as beautiful as the first!  When we would read to our children, and it was a book they liked, they would say, "again!"  Sometimes, because we are led to see the darkness in this world, we forget that little thing about God ... that God is into doing great things again.

This Sunday we will begin Advent remembering the prophetic word of Isaiah, "The people who walk in darkness will see a great light, those who live in a land of deep darkness will see a light will shine (Isaiah 9:2)."  I wonder if God is saying ... "remember what I have done before ... remember the creation story where I spoke light into being 'ex nihilo (from nothing)' ... remember I have power over the darkness."  God does it again and again!

Human history has experienced various periods of darkness, and to be truthful, somewhere in the world there is a pall of darkness hiding good and light.  You see and hear of those places as you listen to the news.  You wonder if we are that land as you see terrible events like the Parade Killings in Wisconsin.  And you/we have a propensity to think things are a bit hopeless.  But then God reminds us ... "you will see a great light!"  God gives hope!

What can we learn from Isaiah's familiar words?  First, stop walking in darkness.  1 Thessalonians 5:5 reminds us ... "you are all children of the light and of the day; we don't belong to the darkness and the night!"  Let's follow God and walk where we belong, walking in light and leading others to that light!  We bring hope!

Second, darkness might be a place to enter so we can rescue others, but it is no place to live.  Ephesians 5:8 says, "for you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Live as children of light."  The Lord has come to all who call His name, so we live in the light of the Lord!  We live out hope!

Finally, we (as people of Jesus), are people who see things.  We perceive and see both the darkness and the light.  We look for God's leading which always brings us to the hope of light.  We see hope!

All of this is why we, as the Church, must relearn the virtues of hope and light.  We should be the people who are known for positives ... not negatives ... hope, not hopelessness ... light, not darkness.  God has told us this in His word again and again!  God has spoken light, even from the nothingness of the primordial void!  God can (and will) do it again!  AMEN

Grateful

We just celebrated Veteran's Day, reflecting on the wonderful gift of people who serve, live and (some) die for the freedom we enjoy.  Sometimes we get a little jaded as we think about the stresses on our freedom and the challenges we face.  There are certainly many examples of these challenges, and if we enter into the Thanksgiving/Christmas season with this baggage, it can be a long, relentless journey.  But today, I would like to take a different approach.  It is inspired by our Savior, Jesus and a little song by Mary Chapin Carpenter called, Thanksgiving Song.

First, the foundation of our Thanksgiving Freedom.  Paul writes, "Though He was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.  Instead He gave up His divine privileges and took the humble position of a slave, and was born a human being (Phil. 2:6-7)."  Wesley writes (in And Can It Be That I Should Gain) "emptied Himself of all but love, and bled for Adam's helpless race." 

I could tell you the history of our American Thanksgiving.  I could share presidential proclamations and legislative actions that 'create' our holiday.  But Christ created our reason for Thanksgiving.  He gave up divine rights, His own security, safety, authority and royalty to become a slave ... all for people like you and me!  He is the 'giving' in Thanksgiving.  You say, "Preacher, we know all that ... what does this have to do with freedom?"

My take is this.  Some of us enter Thanksgiving fearful of the family situations we will encounter.  Our politics, our 'rights,' our personal and factional agendas, our losses, our fears and our stubbornness all work together to divide us as people, families and Americans.  This is not a good context for giving thanks.  So, I want to recommend the little prayer in Mary Chapin Carpenter's Thanksgiving Song.

The song begins with a word we should begin with ... grateful.  The Latin root word is gratus, meaning pleasing or agreeable.  Will you commit to being pleasing and agreeable this season?  Will you be "grateful for each hand you hold, gathered round the table?"  Can you give up 'self' to give thanks for those you should love?

Will you express gratitude for the shelter you enjoy, however lavish or plain it is?  Never forget that our veterans have served and fought for that shelter we call America, however broken we might be at the present time.  And never forget the shelter of a God who said, "He will cover you with His feathers, He will cover you with His wings, His faithful promises are your armor and protection (Psalm 91:4)."  Are you grateful?

Are you "grateful for what's understood, all that is forgiven?"  Jesus did this ("humbled Himself in obedience to God [Phil. 2:8]") so that you could, and would, be forgiven.  Do you, in gratitude to God, pass this forgiveness along, modeling and teaching others about the God you believe in!?

Are you/we people who, because of the freedom we have in Christ, come into this holiday season, so full of Christ that we can enjoy the light and life Christ wants us to experience?  He offers this to us by His example by (as the Philippians passage says) "emptying Himself."  Carpenter writes, "welcome, welcome, share this feast, come in away from sorrow!"  Will you share the 'feast' of the season?  The meals, events, fellowship, family and other opportunities, all present those times we can truly show others the nature of the Savior we call Jesus.  The word is "Grateful" ... pleasing, agreeable.  Paul calls us to the fruit of the Spirit (joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control).  Philippians says give up self.  The little song says, "Grateful for each hand we hold, gathered round the table."  Thank you, Jesus, for the freedom and every hand to hold, gathered round to table!  Randy

The Way They Should Go

Proverbs 22:6 is ageless wisdom for all of us ... "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."  The Message says it like this ... "Point your kind in the right direction - when they are old they won't be lost."  Whichever way you say it, both of these passages remind us of the Biblical call to plant truth, direction, values, and goodness into the hearts of our kids.  We have been (1st Service) singing a song called "We Bear Witness."  The chorus of the song says, "Pass the promise to your sons and daughters, God Most High, God our Father, we bear witness."  The passages and the song say the same thing ... we, are responsible for teaching and leading our children.

There are (at least) 3 truths evident in the Proverbs 22:6 instruction.  The first is TRAIN.  If you are a parent, grandparent or educational person, you have the call and the responsibility to train those children that come your way.  In a world where it is too easy to place kids on 'automatic' and hope they turn out ok, the Bible says TRAIN.  If you have been involved in athletics, decided to earn a degree, or even strived for a good grade in a class, all of these things involve the work of training.  The amount of effective work you are willing to do is directly related to the results you will get from that work.  In education you study.  In athletics you target your exercise and workouts to the activity you are preparing for.  In life (if you are Christian) you study and seek God's way/direction.  It is one of the reasons early Christians were called "People of the Way."  Training is important.

The second truth is DIRECTION.  We work, study and train ... but we do this in a direction that is proper and right.  Nick Saban (football coach at Alabama) would sum up his coaching philosophy in some very small steps.  The first (after proper exercise, conditioning, muscle-prep) might be "Know your job."  We know what to do by learning the job.  In football this means becoming a clean slate so that good teaching and techniques can take hold.  In life, we must be willing to learn what actually works.  Peers, social media, political groups and ranting people will always have their 'sage' advice to bring you to their side.  But God does have a plan and an opinion.  Proverbs calls this "the way they should go."  It is to be taught, modeled and led by parents, teachers and leaders who want to teach children "their job" as Christians and good citizens.  Know your job/DIRECTION.

The third truth is APPLICATION.  We teach and train and give direction so that our children will 1) remember and 2) not be lost.  In educational and medical circles this is called "good outcomes."  In education it is called achievement.  In life it is called (by Jesus) "abundant life."  Jesus professes the importance of education when he says (Matthew 11:29), "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me."  TRAIN, RECEIVE DIRECTION ... so that (John 10:10), "you might have life, and have it to the fullest."

We TRAIN to learn.  We follow DIRECTION so that our training leads us to know our task.  We APPLY what we have learned because it is good for us and our children.  We 'pass the promise to our sons and daughters' so that when they are old, they won't be lost.  This is God's plan ... What is yours?  Randy

Sharers

One of my Seminary professors said, "You've been told you are what you eat.  Physiologically, that might be right, but your heart and your soul are driven by what you believe.  You ARE what you believe about God!"

In that light, what do we believe about God that is paramount on this day when we think about and remember those who have gone on to be with the Lord?  Do we believe Jesus lived and that God's only Son walked the earth with people?  Do we believe Jesus was crucified and took the sins of the world to the cross?  Do we believe in the resurrection, and that Christ rose, conquering death and claiming victory over Satan?  If you believe these things, then you should believe what Paul said ... "I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience His resurrection power, be a partner in His suffering, and go all the way with Him to death itself.  If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it! (Philippians 3:10 MSG)"

Paul, in his precise, Spirit-led way, sums up why this day of somber remembrance is also a day of claimed victory and beautiful celebration.  "We have heard the joyful sound, Jesus saves, Jesus saves."  Roman 10:17 says, "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing the word of God!" Let's take Paul's words and see/hear how God speaks to us through this hopeful message!

Paul's wonderful news here is that as we share some temporary, but necessary, things, we also share in things that are eternal:

1. We share with Paul in giving up the inferior stuff.  I wonder if this is where we often get 'stuck.'  We are reluctant to give up inferior things, even when those things hold us back from God.  Paul says, see them as they are ... inferior, temporary, barriers to faith.

2. We share personal knowledge of Jesus and the experience of His resurrection power.  We are not powerless over this world, because the power and person of Jesus lives in us.

3. We share the suffering and death of Jesus, as our earthly tent passes away ... "For we know that if the earthly tent (our earthly body) which is our house is torn down (through death), we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands (2 Corinthians 5:1)."

4. That passage from 2 Corinthians also reminds us that we share in the 'trading-in' of this earthly tent (perishable) so that we can receive the imperishable and permanent dwelling built by God.  In The Message (Philippians 3:10) Paul says ... "If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it!"

All of the names we will read have "heard the joyful sound, Jesus saves!"  They have shared in the life of Christ as they lived out their faith.  They have shared in the suffering of Jesus, just like He said they would in John 15:20.  They have shared in death, as they gave their faith, hope and earthly tent up, so that they could share in the eternal dwelling God had made for them (Jesus said, "that where I am, there you may be also!" John 14:3). So, as we will sing in Jeremy Camp's song, "Jesus Saves," we will join with heaven's song, to let all the world know that Jesus saves!  

These are the things I believe about God.  So, I hope and pray I become exactly what I believe ... like the Saints that have gone before me!  AMEN!  Randy