Ascent Week 1 (New Year, New Count!)

Psalm 23

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
   He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
   he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Even 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 overflows.

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Love like Him (from 10/24/16)

Here’s the last of our “Best of 2016” posts. I hope you enjoyed the blog this year and hope that you will continue to use it as we prepare for worship each week. I use the tag line “We’ll see you on Sunday!” because I truly hope that I will see each and every one of you here for church on Sunday. It may be that you are too far from Aledo to join us here, but you are not too far from some church that preaches the Word of God…so go! And one of these Sundays perhaps I will see you here in Aledo…or perhaps even in the greatest eternal church service ever…in heaven!

We’ll see you on Sunday!

Yesterday we touched on the fact that God is seeking followers who will love like Jesus loved. We noticed in John chapter 13 that Jesus washed His disciples' feet, a task that was reserved for the lowest servant. Jesus even washed Judas Iscariot's feet...the man who He knew was going to betray Him later that night.

Now I touched on this a bit in my sermon, but I wanted to expound on this just a bit in this blog post. Namely, that Jesus' love didn't stop with just those who loved Him and treated Him with respect and dignity. He loved Judas, even to the point of serving him by washing his feet (John 13:1-28). He loved His captors even to the point of healing one who had been injured (Luke 22:49-51). He loved those who crucified Him even to the point of forgiving their sins (Luke 23:33).

So what does this mean for us? Simply this: showing love to our neighbors, families, even our enemies, doesn't stop...no matter what. We are to love the way Jesus loved. He showed love by laying down His life for His friends, yes, but He also laid down His life for His enemies as well. Jesus' death and His life was for all people. Men and women; Americans, Muslims, Mexicans, Canadians, Brits, and all other people groups of the earth; Black, White, Asian, Hispanic, Middle Eastern and all other skin colors; His life and death and were for ALL of them. So when we live our lives, when we love through our service, sacrifice and smile, we should do so for all people everywhere.

Love like Jesus...there is no greater way to show the world that you are His disciple!

We'll see you on Sunday!

A Meddlesome Post (from 8/30/16)

As we continue to share our “Best of 2016” posts, this one jumped out at me. Thought it was worth a second look. So enjoy (or don’t) and we will see you on Sunday!

Okay. I will admit it. I am about to take this whole "Taming the Tongue" thing and making it way too personal. But I feel I have to say something about this for the sake of all of my friends and family who are a part of the huge conglomerate that we call "The Internet."

The internet provides us a certain level of anonymity when it comes to the things we say. Through its wide reaching influence, people are able to share their opinions with anyone at the touch of a button. In 160 characters or less, people wind up getting themselves into so much trouble. We share information that should be left alone, and we leave things unsaid that should be shouted from the rooftops.

So what am I going to say about the internet, and more specifically about sites like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, blogs, etc., etc., etc.? Only this:

BE CAREFUL!!!!!!

The internet is a place that is able to be used to spread the Gospel to more places than previously thought. We can encourage brothers and sisters all around the globe with words that will uplift their spirits when they are down, point them to Christ when they are feeling vulnerable, and will give them hope when all hope seems lost.

But the internet is also a place where more relationships have been fractured, more damage to the Gospel has been done, and more sharp-tongued words have been spewed than I think we could ever imagine. So please be careful in what you say. To help you out, let me give you three simple tips that will keep you from posting something on the internet that could damage you, your relationships with others, or the Gospel of Jesus.

1) When you are sharing something from another site, read it carefully. Make sure that the title, or the content doesn't have something offensive in it. I can't tell you how many times brothers and sisters in Christ will post something humorous they found in their newsfeed on Facebook, only to see that the place where it came from had a vulgar word in its title. We need to be very careful, because when we post these things, we are agreeing with everything we post. So please, please, PLEASE be careful when you post.

2) Reread your post in many different tones to see if what you say could be taken the wrong way. If so, and you still feel it needs to be said, then make mention of what you intend your tone to be. This is especially important in the area of friendships. I have seen many a friendship die because someone read an email, a tweet, or a Facebook post with the wrong tone or inflection, making it say something else entirely from what the author wanted to get across. So be careful about how your words could be interpreted.

3) Reread your post to make sure a spelling error isn't causing your relationships or the Gospel any harm. For example, I saw a post from a Christian brother of mine that said, "God does want you live your life in fear! So go ahead an live the life God wants you to live." When I read it, I was shocked, and then realized that he forgot a word...the word "not" between "does" and "want." So I sent him a private message pointing out the issue...and he quickly changed it. I have reread my posts at times and have found misspellings that make my posts vulgar...lol. But a simple read through will help avoid this issue 90% of the time.

There are other things that I could encourage you to do before you post, but these are the top three. So take them to heart, and start using your posts, tweets, emails and videos to bring glory to God and strengthen your relationships!

I'm done meddling now. Back to your day!

And we'll see you on Sunday!

Celebration Week 29

This week we celebrate with the last of the Christmas Songs:

Mercy Me with Go Tell it on the Mountain:

  

And good old Mel Torme with The Christmas Song:

Enjoy and we will see you on Sunday!

With Great Knowledge Comes Great Responsibility (from 7/8/16)

The following is a reprint of one of our first blog posts in this blog. This week will be full of reprints from the past year…think of it as our “Best of 2016” year in review. Enjoy them, and share them, and by all means, live them out. And we’ll see you on Sunday!

If you happen to be a nerd, like me, you'll at least recognize that the title of our blog post today comes from a movie released way back in 2002. The movie was titled, Spider-Man, and in this movie, a young Peter Parker is bitten by a radioactive spider. In turn, his body begins to change and he is now able to do “whatever a spider can.” Peter’s change was also enhanced by great power and strength. He was able to jump, run, lift and do things with reflexes not many could. He had enormous power and not many knew about it.

One night, he witnessed a crime being committed, and he did nothing to stop it. As a result, the man he let go was the same man who shot and murdered his Uncle Ben, who was his guardian. When he finds Uncle Ben lying in the street bleeding to death, Ben gives Peter a word of wisdom that would then guide the rest of Peter’s life. He said, “Remember, with great power comes great responsibility.”

The same is true with God’s Word. In His Word there is great power, and knowledge, and wisdom. If we choose to listen, we find that the wisdom and power and knowledge give us strength. However, if we fail to obey, our lives become nothing more than a discordant noise in the symphony of life. Simply put, our outsides will not match what we say we believe on the inside…or what we know.

We are called to be active in our faith…in living out the Christian life. But if we refuse to obey, our lives become labeled as “hypocritical” or “not genuine”. None of us wants that label, so let’s do what needs to be done to make our lives a living replica of what Jesus has called us to be and to do!

Please feel free to leave a comment or question. We will respond to every one. And we hope to see you Sunday!

Living as a Bondservant (from 6/6/16)

The following is a reprint of one of our first blog posts in this blog. This week will be full of reprints from the past year…think of it as our “Best of 2016” year in review. Enjoy them, and share them, and by all means, live them out. And we’ll see you on Sunday!

No one is comfortable with the idea of becoming a slave...especially given the state of our culture. As a society, we have endured the tempestuous horrors of a Civil War over the very concept of slavery. But the fact remains that the Scriptures call us to a life of indentured servitude. As we looked at on Sunday (if you were with us), God allowed in His Law to Moses an opportunity for the servant who loved his master to be his slave for life. In his former life, this servant was forced to work because his master had purchased him at a price. In the law given in Exodus 21, it is clearly spelled out that the servant had the right to "stay on" with his master and serving him not because he had to, but because he wanted to.

Read Exodus 21:1-6 again, and then come back and I want to open your eyes to two words that are especially important to this idea.

The first word is LOVE. This servant decides to stay because of his love for his master, wife and children. He is staying with the idea that he doesn't want to go anywhere else. This servant may have come into the situation he was in because of a debt he owed the master, or perhaps he just needed to have a place to live and survive. But when his six years were up, he had the option to go or stay. When he stayed, it was out of love.

The second word is FREE. This servant is free to go. He owes the master nothing at this point because he served him for six years. He is free to go without owing the master a thing. This freedom coupled with his love then makes his decision to stay all the more compelling. He doesn't have to stay, but because he loves he makes the choice of his free will to stay.

When we see ourselves in this way, we are telling God, "I know that I am free, but I also know that I love you and my family, and I want to serve you for the rest of my life."

As we have made the challenge to see ourselves as servants of the Most High God, let us remember that this decision comes as a result of our own free will born out of a love for God that is deeper than anything else we could hope for.

We will see you on Sunday!!

Ascent Week 29

This week, I thought it would be proper for us to have our ascent passage be taken from the Gospel of Luke, chapter 2, verses 1 through 20.

Luke 2:1-20

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to their own town to register.

So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest heaven,

    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

And, for nostalgia’s sake, let’s hear it one more time from Linus VanPelt:

The Virgin Birth—Part 2

The virgin birth of Jesus was important not only because Jesus needed to be pure to be a sacrifice for our sin, but also so that He would, indeed, have the nature of both of His parents. God the Father would give Him His spiritual nature (that of purity and of God), and Mary would give Him His physical nature (that of His body). So Jesus, more than likely, would have looked a lot like Mary, as God is Spirit and as such does not have a physical body.

So the virgin birth is a clue to us that Jesus was different. Yet He was the same as us. As we mentioned yesterday, Hebrews 4:15 tells us that we have a High Priest…

“who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.” –Hebrews 4:15 (NIV)

This Jesus, this God/Man, is the only one who could have done it because He came to this earth, born of a virgin, and possessed the nature of God in the physical form of a human. It staggers the mind to think about it too much, but let me share one more thing with you.

Jesus, in His pre-incarnate form, was visible to select individuals throughout the Old Covenant (Testament). He appeared to Abraham, Joshua, and even the three Hebrew Children in the fiery furnace. We are told in Colossians chapter 1 that was the Person of the Trinity that was most involved in the Creation (Genesis 1). We also know that this same Jesus rose again from the dead (Matthew 28; Mark 16; Luke 24; and John 20), ascended to heaven (Mark 16:19-20; Luke 24:50-53; and Acts 1:9-12), and is going to come again (Revelation 19:11-18).

This speaks to His eternality. He is able to be in every place at every time because He is eternal. When He was on this earth, He set aside some of His abilities and confined Himself to a physical body that could only be in one place at one time. There were times when He was able to heal at a distance (Matthew 8:5-13), know about someone’s life (John 4:15-19), and even command the wind and waves to obey Him (Luke 8:22-25).

But He was also dependent on His Heavenly Father’s leading. In Mark 1:35-39, we see Jesus’ ministry take a shift from just a community to a larger area. In Luke 6:12-16, we see Jesus choosing those who would be His Apostles after an all-night prayer session (side note: do you think Jesus may have been arguing with God about Judas Iscariot? Me either.). So there was a sense in which Jesus needed to be in constant connection with the Father, just like us.

Now don’t miss what I’m trying to say here. Jesus’ humanity is just as important as His deity. If Jesus were not human, He couldn’t possibly relate to our shortcoming and temptations. If He were not God, then He is a fraud (for He claimed to be God in the flesh). So both must be present for Him to be 100% authentic…and that is exactly why the doctrine of the virgin birth matters.

So don’t fear it…embrace it! And we’ll see you on Sunday!

OH! And…MERRY CHRISTMAS!

The Virgin Birth—Part 1

In these last two posts before Christmas, I wanted to explore what I feel is one of the most vital and least understood doctrines of Scripture…the virgin birth.

Some have speculated that Jesus’ birth from the womb of a virgin was not as miraculous as in appears. They say that the term “virgin” in Scripture can just mean a young girl, and that her baby (Jesus) was conceived in the normal manner that any of us were. But I want to say categorically that this is a lie. When the Bible tells us that Mary was a virgin, it is telling us that Mary had never had sexual relations with a man. This is VERY important, and in this post and tomorrow’s, I’m going to try and explain why that is.

First of all, it is important because of the difference in the nature of one having been born naturally to supernaturally. The one born of man and woman has a sin nature. It is passed on to each one of us by our fathers (this we will explain more in a moment), much in the same way our foreheads or eye color or skin tone might be passed down. The sin nature, therefore, is what disqualifies us from having a proper relationship with the Heavenly Father.

Now when I say that the sin nature is passed on to the offspring by the fathers, I say so based on Romans chapter 5. Here is what it says:

“When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.”
—Romans 5:12 (NLT)

So we see here, that God is telling us through Paul that it is through Adam that sin entered the world and through him spread to everyone. Notice that it does not say it is through Eve (who sinned first), but through Adam.

So, if Mary’s son, Jesus, had come into this world just like every other person, then Jesus would have had a sin nature. He would have been a sinner, and therefore, not perfect, and not able to be our sacrifice for sins. In the Old Covenant (Testament) we are told that in order for the atonement of sins to be made the sacrifice had to be a year old, and had to be perfect…no spot or blemish, no disease or dismemberment, but whole and right. Jesus had to be those things if He were to be our Atonement Sacrifice.

So the virgin birth is vitally important because there was no human father…only God. Therefore, in Jesus’ body, there was no sin nature. He was born with the nature that Adam had before his fall. This is also important to realize because it means that Jesus could have sinned if He had chosen to. He was tempted in every way like we are, yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus’ life was lived perfectly, and He never once chose to dishonor God. His life was perfect and He was able to be our atonement sacrifice.

Another reason the virgin birth is important is that if Jesus had been just like us (that is, had a sin nature), then He could not have been the innocent sacrifice for the guilty human condition. His sacrifice would have been null and void. He took the punishment we all deserved (death) on the cross, and as such, our sin debt can now be “paid in full” if we will accept it and believe it.

So I will ask you today…do you believe in the virgin birth? Or do you think it isn’t all that important? I hope that you will believe, because it is so important that you do!

Think about it, and we’ll see you on Sunday!

Merry Christmas!

Celebration Week 28

This week we celebrate Jesus’ birth with two great old Christmas hymns that you may not be familiar with. The first is In the Bleak Midwinter. Listen to the words of this hymn and take them to heart!

The second song this week comes from the last week and half of blog posts. Can you recall what all twelve represent? It's the Minions version, because...well, just because...hahahaha!

The 12 Days of Christmas—Days 11 and 12

“On the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, eleven pipers piping…”

The eleven pipers represent the eleven faithful disciples. Of the twelve disciples, only Judas, who betrayed Christ, had fallen away. These disciples represent the faithfulness that is expected of us as followers of Christ. God’s desire is for us to follow Him with faithfulness and consistency. As you go about the rest of your holiday season, remember that God’s desire is for us to serve Him faithfully.

“On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, twelve drummers drumming…”

The twelve drummers represent the twelve tenants of the Apostle’s Creed. For those of you not familiar with the Apostle’s Creed, it states:

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, …
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.

These twelve truths are a strong foundation on which many Christians build their faith. They are a good reminder of what we believe, and what is important as we follow after God.

So as you go through the holiday season, remember the 12 Days of Christmas…and remember what they represent! And we’ll see you on Sunday!

The 12 Days of Christmas—Days 9 and 10

“On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, nine ladies dancing…”

The nine ladies mentioned here are representative of the nine fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. These nine are things that are to be natural outcroppings of the life that is lived by the Spirit of God.

These nine things are things that are a part of the life of the Christ Follower. It’s not optional. If you are a Christian, there ought to be a concern in your soul if there is little or no evidence of these things in your life. The 9 ladies ought to remind you that if the fruit of the Spirit is not showing itself in your life, then you need to ask why that is, and take the necessary steps to make sure that this fruit is being born out in your life.

“On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, ten lords a-leaping…”

(I'm pretty sure the song isn't talking about SITH lords, but...)

The ten lords are representative of the Ten Commandments. These foundational laws from the Mosaic Law are the summary laws of the Old Testament, and reiterated for us in two commands given by the Lord Jesus. These ten commands given to us tell us how we should love our God and our neighbors.

The first four commands (No other gods before Him, no idols, don’t take the Lord’s name in vain, and keep the Sabbath day holy) all relate to how we show God we love Him. They have to do with the vertical relationship between us and God and are vital to our relationship with Him.

The last six commands (Honor dad and mom, don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t covet) all have to do with how we treat our neighbors. These have to do with the horizontal relationships we have with each other, and if we want to have healthy relationships, these six things ought to be regular parts of the Christian life.

So watch your life and see if you are living out the fruit of the Spirit and the Ten Commandments…and we’ll see you on Sunday!

Ascent Week 28

Psalm 132

LORD, remember David
   and all that he suffered.
He took an oath before the LORD.
   He vowed to the Mighty One of Israel,
“I will not go home;
   I will not let myself rest.
I will not let my eyes sleep
   nor close my eyelids in slumber
   until I find a place to build a house for the LORD,
   a sanctuary for the Mighty One of Israel.”
We heard that the Ark was in Ephrathah;
   then we found it in the distant countryside of Jaar.
Let us go to the dwelling place of the LORD;
   let us bow low before him.
Arise, O LORD, and enter your sanctuary,
   along with the Ark, the symbol of your power.
Your priests will be agents of salvation;
   may your loyal servants sing for joy.

For the sake of your servant David,
   do not reject the king you chose for your people.
The LORD swore to David
   a promise he will never take back:
“I will place one of your descendants on your throne.
If your descendants obey the terms of my covenant
   and follow the decrees that I teach them,
then your royal line will never end.”

For the LORD has chosen Jerusalem;
   he has desired it as his home.
“This is my home where I will live forever,” he said.
   “I will live here, for this is the place I desired.
I will make this city prosperous
   and satisfy its poor with food.
I will make its priests the agents of salvation;
   its godly people will sing for joy.
Here I will increase the power of David;
   my anointed one will be a light for my people.
I will clothe his enemies with shame,
   but he will be a glorious king.”

The 12 Days of Christmas—Days 6, 7, and 8

“On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, six geese a-laying…”

The six geese represent the six days of creation. On these literal days, God spoke the very earth, universe and everything in them into existence. This also speaks to the fact that God created you and I. He loves us because we belong to Him. He will never leave those who have placed their faith in Him, and if you will, this same Jesus can and will be with you always.

“On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, seven swans a-swimming…”

These seven swans represent the gifts of the Holy Spirit, or the Spiritual Gifts as they are presented in the Scriptures. These seven gifts (Prophecy, Service, Teaching, Preaching, Giving, Leadership, and Mercy) are born out in different ways, but each gift will fall in one of these seven categories. What is your gift? Are you using it for the glory of God? Think about the answers these questions this year when you hear The 12 Days of Christmas sung this Christmas season.

“On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, eight maids a-milking…”

The eight maids were supposed to represent the eight beatitudes found in Matthew chapter 5. These eight “attitude adjustments” (as I like to call them) help us to remember who we are and how we ought to live. The priorities of our life ought to be reflected in these 8 godly attitudes. We are to have a dependence on God, spiritual sensitivity, gentleness, righteousness, mercy, purity, peacefulness, and a life that is so focused on God that those who hate Him also hate us. When you hear this song this year, think about these things, because they are important to how you shine the light of Jesus throughout the rest of the year.

Keep on shining and we will see you on Sunday!

The 12 Days of Christmas—Days 4 and 5

“On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, four calling birds…”

The four calling birds are the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. These four were important to remember because it was within these four books of Scripture that we find out about Who Jesus was and is, how He lived His life, and what difference that makes to us today. Even now, here in the 21^st century, we still have these four books of Scripture to help us live life in such a way that reflects the passion and purpose of Jesus in our world.

It is my hope that all of us will not only read the four “calling birds” but also live by them. That these will call to our hearts each and every day to be better than we were the day before. Because, as my father always used to say, “There is always room for improvement!”

“On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, five gold rings…”

The five gold rings represented the first five books of the Old Testament, or the Pentateuch, as it is called. These first five books of the Bible are important in that they teach us the Mosaic Law, the history of the world and the Israelite nation, and the origin of nations, peoples and how God worked within them. It teaches us of God’s special choosing of Abraham and how He began to have a special relationship with him. These first five books were (and still are) what Hebrew children were taught in Synagogue, so that every person knew their history, their Laws and how they should live by them.

The five “gold rings” are important for us today because they remind us of Who God is and how He works within the framework of His people, which we have become by virtue of Christ’s sacrifice and work on the cross. We now have the right to become His children as well, and we live by the grace that He offers!

So live in grace today, and we’ll see you on Sunday!

Celebration—Week 27

Today, let’s celebrate the child who is the light! We will hear today two songs from Michael Card. Enjoy!

The 12 Days of Christmas—Days 2 and 3

“On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, two turtledoves…”

The two turtledoves that the song references are the two Testaments, or Covenants that we find the in Bible…the Old Covenant (Testament) and the New Covenant (Testament). These are distinct in some ways and similar in some ways. Let’s look at the similarities:

The Old and New Covenants are similar in that they both have their origins from the Lord Almighty. In the Old Covenant, God the Father initiated contact with Abraham, He initiated life itself when He created the world, and He initiated the Covenant with Israel through the Law of Moses and throughout the history of the nation of Israel. In the New Covenant, God the Father initiates contact with the waiting world by the sending of His Son, Jesus through the virgin birth.

God’s initiation of the Covenants means much to us. It means that He is not separated from His creation. It means that He cares about that which He has created, and He loves each of us. His love for us burdened Him to send His Son so that we might have relationship with Him. If anything, these two Covenants tell us that God is not finished with either Israel, or the rest of mankind…not yet. And so, we must remember Him for Who He is!

“On the third day of Christmas, my true love sent to me, three French hens…”

These three represent the final three things that remain following the coming of the Holy Spirit. In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul states that prophecies, tongues, and special knowledge will all pass away. But the three things that will remain are faith, hope and love. These are what are represented by the three French hens.

Faith, the belief in and placing trust in another person or thing, is what brings us to God. We place our faith in Him and He is the one who brings about the changes in us.

Hope, in Biblical terms, is not a wish that something will happen, but rather a guaranteed future blessing that we are confident in and waiting for. Therefore, when we hope in the Lord, we know that He is coming for us, and that we do not need to fear like the rest of those who do not have this same hope.

And love is that which will never fail. It is, as 1 Corinthians 13 states, never failing and the greatest of the three. When there is love, there is purpose, there is commitment, there is perseverance, there is decency, there is protection, and many other things. We know that the love of Jesus caused Him to give up His rights as God and become like one of us so that we might have the opportunity to live with Him forever. What a blessing.

Now live this out today, and we’ll see you on Sunday!

The 12 Days of Christmas—Day 1

“On the First day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, a partridge in a pear tree!”

No, not that Partridge!

Have you ever wondered the meaning behind this song? I’ve been told, and I’m not exactly sure if it is true, that this song, The 12 Days of Christmas, was actually written to be a pneumonic device to help children learn about the Bible. Again, I have no idea if it is true, but I’d like to delve into the symbolic pictures of this famous Christmas song.

The partridge in the pear tree was a symbol for Christ on the cross. The partridge is a bird that will protect her young by feigning injury in order to draw a predator away from her young. This symbol for Jesus is appropriate because of the fact that Jesus, while not “feigning” anything, but truly suffering on the cross, still gave His life in exchange for ours. His sacrifice is what guarantees our salvation. He paid the price. He rose again. He is the one who loves us.

In fact, Jesus’ sacrifice, not only at the cross, but at His birth (remember, He gave up all of His rights as God to empty Himself and be found in human likeness—Philippians 2:1-8) demonstrated just how much God loved and cared for His people.

With that in mind, as you celebrate this Christmas season, remember to rejoice in the gifts that Jesus has given you. And as we celebrate, let’s remember that God’s gift of Jesus was the greatest gift of all!

Merry Christmas, and we’ll see you on Sunday!

Ascent Week 27

Psalm 131

My heart is not proud, O LORD,
   my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters
   or things too wonderful for me.
But I have stilled and quieted my soul;
   like a weaned child with its mother,
   like a weaned child is my soul within me.

O Israel, put your hope in the LORD
   both now and forevermore.

Something Completely Different—Part 4

Yesterday, I was talking about my favorite C.S. Lewis book, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and today I’d like to talk about something else I love about this book…its symbolism.

In this book, the Lion, Aslan, is the figure of Jesus Christ. We find from other of the Narnia novels that Aslan created Narnia from the breath of his mouth, and that he established rules that would hold for all eternity in the Narnian realm. As the White Witch had plunged Narnia into a curse where it was always winter, but never Christmas, there was only one thing that could break the curse…Aslan’s coming.

As the four children arrived in Narnia, the curse began to break and spring was coming to the land. The snow was melting and the trees were waking up. But Edmund, the brother who had issues with his honesty, had betrayed his sisters and brother to the White Witch, and as such, he was now her property, by the laws of Narnia. So Aslan, in an act of true love for the betrayer, Edmund, offers himself in his place.

As a result of that transaction, Aslan is killed by the witch at the stone table. He’s is killed and the girls, Susan and Lucy watch it happen. After all the evil horde leaves the site and Aslan lays dead on the stone table, the girls go up and weep over him. Mice come and, at first, the girls are horrified and try to keep them away from Aslan. But then they find that they are simply gnawing away at his restraints. Once the ropes had been removed, a great earthquake shakes the ground where the girls sit.

They spring up at once and the stone table cracks in two. When they get their wits about them, Susan and Lucy see that Aslan is gone. Terrified, they look about and a beam of sunlight pierces the darkness and they see him, Aslan, alive again and whole! He rejoices with them, but the quickly sets to work making Narnia as it was supposed to be. He seats Peter, Edmund, Susan and Lucy as Kings and Queens of Narnia and they rule there for years with love and goodness.

The reason I love this book so, is that it so clearly portrays who we are in Christ. We were Edmund; bitter, cold and calculating. We were the ones who had betrayed the family, who had given in to our selfishness and sin. We deserved to be handed over to enemy. But Jesus stepped in and took our places. He paid the punishment for sin that we could not, but He didn’t stay dead. Oh no! He rose! He is alive and He has seated us as His co-heirs in both this life and next. He has given us the Holy Spirit to lead us. He has given us our spiritual gifts to help us accomplish the tasks that He has for us.

I guess that’s why I love this book so much. Because I see myself in it, and hope that you can, too. If you’ve never read the book, I would encourage you to do so, either to yourself, or to your kids or grandkids. You won’t be sorry you did, nor will they!

God bless you all and we’ll see you on Sunday!

Something Completely Different—Part 3

Earlier this week, I was thinking about C.S. Lewis and some of his works that have influenced my life in profound ways. Not the least of these works is his 7 volume children’s book series, entitled The Chronicles of Narnia in which children discover an alternate realm that mirrors Biblical truths. The first of these books (and my favorite, I might add) is called The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

In this book, a young girl named Lucy stumbles upon Narnia from a magical wardrobe in the home of a professor they have gone to stay with during the Blitz in London in 1940. While there, she meets a fawn (half human, half goat) and befriends him. Going back to the professor’s house, she then tells her two brothers and one sister about the world she found. Not being able to find it themselves, they believe her to be lying.

Later on, however, youngest brother, Edmund stumbles into Narnia as well. While there he meets the White Witch who enchants him with sweets and gets him to promise her that he will bring his brother and two sisters to her when they get back. He then finds Lucy and they return to the professor’s house and Edmund plays as if he’s never been there, but only playing along with Lucy.

To figure this whole thing out, the oldest two children, Peter and Susan, decide to talk to the old professor, who asks them this question: “And your sister, she has a habit of lying?” to which they both reply, “No sir. In fact, quite the opposite. I would think that Ed would be the one to lie more that Lucy.”

The professor then replies, “If you believe your sister to be the more honest of the two, then why are you not believing her?”

“Because it can’t be true,” Susan answers. “I mean, magic, other worlds in the back of a wardrobe? It can’t be true!”

“If your sister is the one who is the most honest, that it must follow that she is the one telling the truth.” The professor’s reply here has much to say to us today. Allow me to reflect on two of them.

The first issue that I want to talk about is integrity. Integrity is the very thing that Edmund had lost and Lucy had gained. How? Simply by being honest in little things. The little things matter greatly in the minds of people when it comes to trust, integrity and believably. Even when the tale is, to our ears, “preposterous,” those with integrity will be believed.

The second is the issue trust. Those who are habitual liars are not to be trusted, but to be shunned. Those who cannot tell the truth are to be cast off, and not listened to. But those who are always faithful, honest, loyal and truthful ought to be followed, listened to and, yes, even obeyed.

There is one who speaks often to our hearts, souls and minds Who has never once lied to us. He is always telling the truth, because He is the Author of Truth. There is one who will never lead us in the wrong direction because He’s been there and knows the way we should be going. That Person is, of course, God Almighty.

So when God tells you something, or asks you to do something, don’t hem and haw…obey…now! He can be trusted, because He has never once lied to you or let you down…AND HE NEVER WILL!

We’ll see you on Sunday!

Celebration Week 26

This week, we will celebrate with two more Christmas songs. If you haven’t noticed the pattern yet, we will be celebrating Christmas for the rest of the month.

Our first selection is from Mannheim Steamroller, and it is their version of God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen.

Our second selection is from Michael W. Smith, and it is called Gloria (Angels We Have Heard on High).

Enjoy! And we’ll see you on Sunday!

Something Completely Different—Part 2

I was watching the snow fall this past Sunday morning, and it got me to thinking about the passage of Scripture that tells us “though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18—NLT)

Yesterday we talked about praying for people who pop into your mind. Today I want to tell you about a practice that I try and do at least once a day, and most of the time at the end of the day or even throughout the day. It is the practice of repentance.

What I try and do is find a moment or two where there is nothing pressing on my time. No phones to answer, no kids to watch, no sermon to write, no letter to mail, no book to read, no TV to watch, no nothing. I just get alone and I pray this very simple prayer. It goes like this:

“Lord, please reveal to me anything in my life
that is offensive to You. Bring it to my mind that
I may confess it and repent.”

Then I wait. I allow my mind to think back through my day, afternoon, morning, whatever, and think about those things that I have done, said, thought or even considered that might have been offensive to God. If there is nothing, I say “Praise God!” and go about my day. But when there is something (and more often than not there is), I move on with my confession.

Confession of sin is simply agreeing with God that what I have done is offensive to Him. It is stating that I have sinned, and I need to be forgiven. I confess my sins to God because that is what I am commanded to do (1 John 1:9—“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us…”).

Once I have confessed and received God’s forgiveness, I then need to continue on toward repentance. Repentance is turning from those things I have done that offend God and moving toward Him. Obviously, this assumes I know His Word and His will for my life, so that I can move in the right direction. But I must fill the void of sin with holiness.

Jesus put it this way in Matthew 12:43-45:

“When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, seeking rest but finding none. Then it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ So it returns and finds its former home empty, swept, and in order. Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before.” (Emphasis added)

Notice that this “evil spirit” left the person for a time, but when it came back, there was nothing there to replace it. I think that Jesus is telling us that when we seek forgiveness through confession of sin, we are truly cleansed. That’s the promise of God in 1 John 1:9. But the problem is that we don’t replace that sin with something holy. So repentance is replacing the sin in our lives with something else that is holy and righteous.

Now please don’t misunderstand. I am not saying that the things that we replace our sin with must necessarily be spiritual things. They could be things like hobbies, crafts, etc. that are wholesome and bring us a connection to God. If you noticed in the discourse that Jesus was giving to His disciples in Matthew 12, the life of the person was empty, leaving room for the evil spirit (or what I might call “besetting sin” or “habitual sin”) to come back.

So when you do this, ask God to show you your failures, confess them, then repent of them and fill that void with something that will honor God in your life.

If you do that every day (or even multiple times a day), you’ll find that your “sin accounts” with God will be kept very short…and joy will fill your life!

Have a great Tuesday, and we’ll see you on Sunday!

Something Completely Different

This week, I thought I’d take a break from the normal routine of how we do things here and just write about a few random thoughts that have been bouncing around in my noggin. I know that most of you are thinking right now, “There must be a lot of room in there for those thoughts to be bouncing around,” and you’d be right. But the truth of the matter is that there is nothing like having an opportunity to share some concerns, encouragements, challenges and (hopefully) blessings with all of you.

So now for something completely different!

Have you ever woken up in the morning (or evening, depending on your sleeping habits) and had someone totally random come to your mind? Perhaps you dreamed about that person and now you’re thinking about them and their face, name or whatever just will not leave your mind. I have had that happen often (again, it may be the consequence of having such an empty mind J).

What do you do when that happens? Do you laugh and just write it off as a weird coincidence? Or do you (like me) believe that there is no such thing as coincidence? Perhaps there is a reason that this person whom you haven’t thought about for ages, seemingly randomly pops into your mind. Let me share a story, and then a challenge:

There was a missionary in Africa who worked inland with a tribe of natives who were constantly at war with another tribe. When the missionary was low on supplies, he decided to go to the nearest town (a two day journey) and stock up. Those in the tribe urged him not go out because there had been threats on the tribe from their rivals and they feared that the missionary would be killed on his return trip and the supplies stolen.

The supplies were needed and so the missionary decided to put his trust in God and make the journey anyway. He made it to town without incident and bought the needed supplies. On the return trip, he made camp where he had on the way in, and proceeded to go to sleep. The next morning, we was still alive and headed back to the village.

When he arrived, the tribespeople were excited to see him, for they thought that he would certainly be killed. But later that day, a group of men from the rival tribe came into the village unarmed (a rarity) and sought out the missionary. They then asked him, “Who were the men who were protecting you last night?” The missionary was confused. “I was all alone last night as I was on the way into the town. There was no one with me.”

“No!” answered the men. “There were eight men with torches standing around you, and they would not allow us to get near you. We intended to kill you and take your supplies, but they would not allow it.”

The missionary rejoiced in the protection of God and used that incident to reach to the enemy tribe of the tribe he was working with and as a result, peace between the two tribes ensued and there was much work done for the Gospel.

Later, when that missionary went home on furlough, he was sharing the story in one of his supporting churches. After he told that story, a man came up to him and said, “What was the date that this incident occurred?”

The missionary thought it a strange question, and after some thought he shared the date on which it happened. The man who had asked the question began to smile broadly and he said, “That very night, I was awakened and your name was on my mind. I tried to go back to sleep, but I could not. I just kept thinking about you. So I got out of bed, and said a prayer for you and went back to sleep. The next day, your name was still on my mind. I tried to work, but I couldn’t. You were all I could think about. So I called the men in my prayer group at about 3 PM and said to them, ‘I have no idea why, but we need to be praying for this missionary.’ So we got together at 4 at my house and we prayed through the night until about midnight, when we finally felt that all was well.”

Flabbergasted, the missionary inquired how many men were in his prayer group. “There are 10 of us,” he replied. The missionary thought that maybe the number of men praying might have been the same as the number of men seen by those who had meant him harm that night, but that was not the case…until the other man said, “but only 8 of us were able to make it that night.”

When God places seemingly random people on your heart, pray for them. Pray hard and make sure you keep praying until the Spirit says it is time to stop. You may never know the power of your prayers!

So keep on praying, and we’ll see you on Sunday!

Ascent Week 26

Psalm 130

Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD;

   O Lord, hear my voice.

Let your ears be attentive

   to my cry for mercy.

If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins,

   O Lord, who could stand?

But with you there is forgiveness;

   therefore you are feared.

I wait for the LORD, my soul waits;

   and in his word I put my hope.

My soul waits for the Lord

   more than watchmen wait for the morning,

   more than watchmen wait for the morning.

O Israel, put your hope in the LORD,

   for with the LORD is unfailing love

   and with him is full redemption.

He himself will redeem Israel

   from all their sins.