Foundation

As we were looking at the very solid foundation of the Shalom Mission Center in Belize I noted that the foundation and basic structure of the building is concrete reinforced by steel ... the foundation of this building will withstand a lot of stress and the wind of a major hurricane.  But how strong is our foundation regarding our beliefs?

In 2 Peter, our writer reminds his people that a foundation is important if they seek to follow God and keep from drifting away.  Peter says that we should seek, learn and pursue God's Word if we are to avoid being led away by clever stories.  In our world we are inundated with those clever stories.  There is Facebook, the Internet, YouTube and a barrage of junk emails that would tell us what to fear, what to embrace and what to believe.  All of these are Peter's "clever stories" that must be vetted by each believer.  So ... what do we do?

1) We learn, pursue and meditate on God's Word, because it is truth and God's message to us;
2) We sift the things that come our way, being unwilling to be led away by clever stories, manipulated statistics and just plain lies;
3) We compare what we read to what we know about God as presented in His Word, knowing that only God will give us the truth that sets us free from lies and misinformation.

Maybe if we spent as much time in God's Word as we spent on Facebook, YouTube or the Internet, we might have a better foundation.  Randy

Christian Character

In 2 Peter we find the Apostle Peter very interested in conveying the nature of Christian Character.  When I think about that term I am reminded of the churches I have served and the people who have been leaders, servants and participants in the life of those churches.  2 Peter urges me to think about these people and how they reflected that Christian Character.

Here is where those thoughts have led me.  When I think of the people from all of those churches my first thoughts go to the people who engaged and loved others.  These people seemed to always be serving, working and loving, usually behind the scenes.  They desired no credit, no special recognition (though a thank you is always welcome) and mostly no remuneration.  All of this makes me wonder if C.S. Lewis was right.  When he pictured heaven he envisioned gentle, happy people who spent their time with those they had helped in life.  Both the faithful servants and those they served were living in a perpetual state of blessing.  Grace and goodness flowed so strong that the light from it shone with beauty and heavenly perfection.

I like that thought.  And I thank all of you who serve your church, your community and other people.  I will perpetually look forward to the time when I can tell you, in the perfection of heaven, that you have made a difference in my life and the world in general.  Thank you for being conduits of God's grace!  Randy

Hard Work

During my time at Asbury Theological Seminary I was in awe at the depth and breadth of proper Bible study.  My professors taught with passion and fervor because they believed in the truth they were teaching and they knew that hard work would yield better understanding.  So ... they worked us, and one long strand of that hard work was 2 Peter.  Many hours, hundreds of hand-written pages, word studies and other contextual work.  But, here's the kicker ... that hard work was a blast!

When you spend time in God's Word and are willing to let all of your senses interact with the life that bubbles up between the lines, it is wonderful, exciting and beautiful, all at once.  This is why I get excited when I can share this excitement with you.  Because God's Word is alive, open to everyone who seeks, it is a very level place.  By that I mean all people can meet at God's Word and all people can be led by God's Spirit to understand it.  Like the ground at the foot of the cross, God's Word levels life.

Try out some of that work.  Over the next few weeks read and re-read 2 Peter.  If you have questions feel free to ask me via email ( abbevilledude@gmail.com ).  I will be revisiting this old friend and I will learn lots of new things ... because God's Word is alive!  Randy

Onward!

When Pastors finish the Lenten season, which comes to a climax in the Easter Morning service, it is easy to sit back and say ... "Whew. I am glad that work is complete!"  But in reality the Easter message is all about how the work is just starting. 

Part of that work is knowing what to do.  This knowledge starts with knowing the truth and falseness in each day and in the words of advice we get from friends, family and even church.  To examine this I am asking you to join me on a journey (in messages, blogs and in your own study) which will explore the little book of 2 Peter.  This book has three basic themes ... the truth about Christian character ... the condemnation of false teachers ... the assurance of Jesus' return.

Each week we say The Apostles Creed which was created to clarify the foundational beliefs every Christian should have.  The Creeds were to make sure that we did not stray from those foundations in what we believe, what we teach and what we consider important.  It will be fun to look at God's truth from the perspective of study ... I hope you will be here every week!

Pastor Randy

Why?

"Why?" is a great Easter question.  We can ask it about lots of things.

Why did Jesus need to do this?  The obvious answer is that we aren't worthy to purchase our own redemption ... we are not blameless, we are not sinless, we are not pure.  The Psalmist (Ps. 24) says "Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart ..."  I used to think that I could be this person in my own righteousness and with my own good deeds.  But I have realized that I don't have clean hands and a pure heart except through Jesus.  Only He (as reflected in The Revelation of John) is worthy.  Jesus does this to provide His sacrifice for our sins.  Easter is about God doing for us what we cannot do for ourselves.

"Why look for the living among the dead?" The angel in Luke 24 conveys a thought from Isaiah 8:19 ... "Should the living seek guidance from the dead?"  We will explore this further Sunday but it is one of the better questions in Scripture.  God says we should seek the bread of life, living water, and the one who said "I am the way, the truth and life itself!"

Here's my favorite Easter "Why?"  Why live like nothing has happened?  I think we answer this one with a myriad of excuses.  "I am too tired to get up on Sunday morning" ... "I am a good person so what's the big deal?" ... "I am perfectly happy in my life ... " ... "I need my recreational time."  You might notice there are a lot of "I's" and "my's" in those statements.  Here's my take (and I am sorry if this might step on our collective toes) ... we might live like nothing is happened because it is still all about us, so, in fact, nothing HAS happened!

The message of Easter is to wake up, don't be afraid, come and see and go quickly and tell.  Our obedience is demanded by our so-called belief.  Our actions are imbedded in what we say we hold on to.  Nothing should ever be the same again!  Randy

Holy Week

The term Holy Week is a bit of a misstatement.  It has been used by the Church for a long time but I think God might view things differently.  It is called Holy Week because it begins with Jesus' Triumphal Entry to Jerusalem on Palm Sunday (we will have 2 services, 9am and 11am).  Then on to Maundy (meaning mandatory) Thursday which is the celebration of the Eucharist and one of Jesus' last acts before His arrest (our service is 7pm).  The Tenebrae Service of Shadows (we will worship at 7pm) reminds us of Jesus' betrayal, arrest, trial, torture, crucifixion and His  death on the cross.  Then, on Sunday morning (9am and 11am) , we do have the holiest day of the year ... for we, through Jesus, are forgiven, we are victors over hell and death and He is risen!

Here is what I mean by the misstatement.  While we ARE Easter people and (as Paul said) we preach Christ and Christ crucified how do you think god would view this week as we participate, celebrate and travel the road of emotions this week describes?  Would God want us to consider this week so holy that we believe if we attend worship this week we are good for the year till Christmas?  Would God think our fixation on Easter bunnies has made the meaning of the season (pardon the pun) a little fuzzy?  Or, would God tell us every day, every opportunity for worship and Christian fellowship, every Thursday at Celebrate Recovery where there is repentance/restoration/new life, every hospital visit, every prison ministry trip, every Sunday School class, every lesson at the Boys and Girls Club, every bit of time spent in the mission God has given us, every prayer prayed with/for a friend is holy?  Carolyn Arends writes "people, not God, separates secular and holy."  She is right ... maybe every week needs to be Holy Week where life, death and resurrection happen in people because of us, the Church!  Randy

Casting Crowns

In Revelation 4:10 twenty-four elders are wearing golden crowns of glory.  They have obviously earned God's favor and a place in heaven with God.  They appear, however, doing something that teaches all of us what to do with accolades, awards and "glory."  They bow down before God (the lamb seated on the throne) and they cast those golden crowns at the feet of Jesus.  Their earned and just rewards are placed at the feet of the one who deserves ALL of the glory.

Friday night the community of Abbeville, Alabama gathered at the Family Life Center at Abbeville UMC and made a decision to do something worthwhile.  In a world where most of what we see and do each day is mundane and sometimes of little eternal value, Abbeville decided to let God have the glory and the fruits of the blessings He had given us.  It was amazing and beautiful.  As the Missions Auction progressed each item expressed some blessing or giftedness of the person who donated it.  God had provided resources or talents or a business through which a donation was generated.  A hunting trip, a week in a house or condo, a service ... you name it ... was cast down at the feet of Jesus so God could use these resources for missions in foreign places, in America or right here in Abbeville, Alabama.  It was a little taste of heaven.

I think we could have said the two phrases that appear in Revelation 4 that night.  "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty - the one who always was, who is, and who is to come."  "You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive honor and power.  For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased."  I think God might have been pleased Friday night and I thank each person who had any part in what happened.  I love it when God's people live out what is wonderfully expressed in Scripture.  Keep casting those crowns down before Jesus ... He is the one worthy of our praise. AMEN