Why God!?!

John 14:22-27

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%2014%3A22-27&version=NIV;AMP

 

Have you ever asked this question? I know I have. Twice that sticks in my mind. Once when my fiancé dumped me during my sophomore year of college. After about six months I was able to give an answer to the question. God used her rejection to bring me to the point of turning my life over to Him; to draw me closer to Him.

 

The next time wasn’t as easy to figure out. My wife was pregnant with our first child when something went terribly wrong. We went to the hospital at about eight months, and were told that the baby would be still born. Looking back on it, even now after over forty years, I still can’t answer the question, “Why God”.

 

¹⁸ I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. ¹⁹ Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live.           John 14:18-19 NIV

 

²² Judas (not Iscariot) asked Him, “Lord, what has happened that You are going to reveal Yourself to us and not to the world?”      AMP

 

Even the disciples asked the question, “Why God”. Maybe not in those exact words, but essentially that’s what they were asking. The disciples were expecting Jesus to become the political leader of Israel; to overthrow the Romans and anyone else in power.

 

Sometimes we just don’t get it do we. The Israelites certainly didn’t get it while wandering in the wilderness. The disciples didn’t get it as Jesus was giving them his last minute instructions before being crucified. And we don’t get it when we’re in the middle of struggling with life.

 

But God has a plan and you are a part of it. You may not understand it right now. You may not understand it in forty years. But God has a plan and He is working it. The question to ask is not “Why God”, but “What is your plan God, and how can I be a part of it”. Then trust the Spirit to lead you.

 

²⁶ But the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will help you remember everything that I have told you.  AMP

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Windup World

Philippians 2:12-13

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians%202%3A12-13&version=NIV;NLT

 

Did you ever play with a windup toy when you were a child? They were a lot of fun except they didn’t last very long. You had to keep rewinding them over and over. Eventually, the key would break and the toy forgotten.

 

Some people feel that way about God. They seem to think that he wound up the world and just let it go, never to be seen again. David sure did at times.

 

¹ God, are you avoiding me?
    Where are you when I need you?        Psalm 10 MSG

 

^1-2 Long enough, God—
    you’ve ignored me long enough.
I’ve looked at the back of your head long enough.

    Long enough I’ve carried this ton of trouble,
lived with a stomach full of pain. Psalm 13 MSG

 

If we’re honest, we’ve all felt that way sometimes. God just doesn’t seem to care; He doesn’t seem to have a purpose for us; He doesn’t seem to be at work in our life. Paul wrote to the Philippians about a God who does care; who does have a purpose; who is at work in your life.

 

¹² Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. ¹³ For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.   NLT

 

Even David, who experienced such deep, discouraging moments, recognized that God was ever present in his life.

 

¹³ For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb. Psalm 139 NIV

 

¹⁶ You saw me before I was born.
    Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
    before a single day had passed.            Psalm 139 NLT

 

You don’t live in a windup world where God has randomly placed you, like a toy, to aimlessly wander. Indeed, God has a plan and a purpose for you to fulfill and is constantly at work in your world. Therefore, go and discover what He is doing, and be a part of it.

 

 

 

 

A Masterpiece

Ephesians 2:10

Many masterpieces have been created over the centuries. Michelangelo’s sculpture of David; Shakespeare’s Hamlet; Handel’s Messiah; Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, just to name a few.

 An argument could be made that God has created His own masterpieces in nature. The beauty of a sunset; the wonder of the Grand Canyon; the power of Niagara Falls; the gale force of a hurricane; the serenity of a mountain stream. But have you ever considered that you are one of His masterpieces?

 ¹⁰ For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. NLT

The NLT introduction to Ephesians states: “Every once in a while, God grants his people a glimpse of their place in the grand scheme of history. There is a brief moment when they can assess who they are, where they have come from and where they are going. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians provides the church with such a vision.”

God has a plan to create a masterpiece, and you are an integral part. In addition to the verse above, consider these.

 ⁴ Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. ⁵ God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. Ephesians 1 NLT

 ⁶ And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.    Philippians 1:6 NLT

¹³ For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. ¹⁴ I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.        Psalm 139 NIV

Have you considered whose you are, where you have come from and where you are going? Without even knowing you, I can say with certainty that you have God given gifts that He wants you to use for His work. You are His masterpiece!

But Really, It’s the Beginning

Matthew 24:22-31

One day this past week, just as I was leaving the office, the sirens went off. It was a tornado warning. We’d already had heavy rains accompanied by high winds. Now the sky was dark. The trees were still. It was all very ominous. But I wasn’t going to wait until 6:30 when the warning was supposed to be over.

 During my drive home, I listened to the talk radio station. A local meteorologist was on the air. As the sirens were screaming to “run and hide”, he was warning everyone to “find your safe place”.

He went through the list. “If you have a basement, go there. If you don’t, go to a room without a window. And if you’re in your car”… you’re screwed. He didn’t really say that, but it’s what I thought.

He was on the air for over thirty minutes dispensing a message of fear; of impending disaster. Afterwards, the announcer on the following program shared how when he was a little boy he was so afraid of thunder that when he heard a loud clap, five seconds later he would throw up. It was like clockwork.

You’d think it was the end of the world. Maybe it was.

²⁹ “Immediately after the anguish of those days, the sun will be darkened, the moon will give no light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.          NLT

I’ve never been that interested in the “end times”. The guys who carry a sandwich board declaring the end of the world, are an oddity to me. It’s not that I don’t believe; it just seems irrelevant to right now. Following Jesus is difficult enough without worrying about something that’s been predicted since Jesus was on earth.

 I think that the question to ask is, “Who is in control”? The answer is Jesus. Knowing that he is in control, makes life bearable; makes life meaningful; makes life hopeful. And when he does return, it will be apparent to all.

 ²⁷ For the Son of Man will come like the lightning which flashes across the whole sky from the east to the west... ³¹ The great trumpet will sound, and he will send out his angels to the four corners of the earth, and they will gather his chosen people from one end of the world to the other.   GNT

 THE END…

But really, it’s the beginning.

Lilies of the Field

Matthew 6:25-34

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus was speaking to the masses. If you can imagine that during his sermon, he looks around at the crowd. He sees people from all walks of life.

Some are farmers; some are religious leaders; some are common laborers; some are sinners like tax collectors; some are beggars; and some are business men. All are struggling to survive.

 And what does Jesus tell them?

³¹ “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ ³² These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs.   NLT

If we look at our own life, we’re not all that different from the people in the crowd to whom Jesus was speaking. We are trying to survive; to get ahead in the world; to provide for our family; to live a comfortable lifestyle. We desperately try to control our world to accomplish our goals.

 Jesus isn’t speaking some pleasant sounding platitude like, “Don’t worry, be happy”. What he’s telling the people, and us, is that God is in control. He knows our needs. He loves us. He is always with us. He is always at work in our lives. So trust Him to provide for you, to meet your needs. Just how is this accomplished?

In 1963 there was a movie titled “Lilies of the Field” starring Sidney Poitier. The title

comes from today’s passage. It was about an itinerant handyman who stumbled upon some German nuns who were barely surviving in the Arizona desert.

They had faith in God that He would provide a church building for them. To Sidney Poitier’s chagrin, HE was the answer to their prayers. It’s a humorous, but touching story about how God provides.

³³ Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.         NLT

That’s what the nuns were doing; that’s what we are to do. It’s not a formula. It’s how you live. Seek God. Then look to see how God is providing for you; how God is at work in your life. And like the lilies of the field, God will provide.

The Hope of the 60’s

 (Heaven is our future)

Revelation 22

 

 

The 60’s generation thought we were the hope of the future. We thought we were going to correct all the mistakes that our parents had made; that politicians had made; that the establishment had made.

 

Then came the assassinations of John F Kennedy, Martin Luther King and Robert F Kennedy. It was a tumultuous time with the Viet Nam war, demonstrations and Woodstock.  Yet, we thought we were the hope of the future.

 

What keeps you going when you fail to meet your own expectations; your own hopes; your own dreams? What keeps getting you up in the morning after life knocks you down? What keeps you trying when circumstances seem hopeless?

 

When John wrote the book of Revelation, circumstances did seem hopeless. Emperor worship was being enforced. Christians were facing greater and greater hostility, even to the point of martyrdom. John himself had been exiled to Patmos, which was a penal colony, probably for his missionary activities.

 

God’s Covenant of Hope always seems to include fruitfulness. He started in the Garden of Eden; continued with the promise of a land filled with milk and honey; and concludes with the promise of the restoration of Eden. See if you can visualize this idyllic garden that John describes.

 

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ² down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. ³ No longer will there be any curse. NIV

 

“No longer will there be a curse”… In the 60’s, we thought we would put an end to the

curse. We were wrong. Only the Living God can do that. Through the promises of Revelation 22, He gives us hope. Not only is it hope for us as believers, but also for us to share with others in a world without hope... Come.

 

 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%2022&version=NIV;TLB

https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Rev.22

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Silver Lining

 (Philip spends time with an Ethiopian)

Acts 8:26-31

 

Have you ever heard the saying “Every cloud has a silver lining”? According to Wikipedia, it is a metaphor for optimism. In other words, no matter how bad life gets, you can always find something good in it. You know, make lemonade out of lemons.

 

It’s nice to be positive about life; to be one of those people who sees the glass as half full rather than half empty. But why should you? Why not see life’s struggles as half empty? After all, what silver lining can there be in a broken relationship, a still born baby or a fatal car accident caused by a drunk driver?

 

The stoning death of Stephen, precipitated in a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem. “Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them into prison”.

 

As a result of this persecution, rather than wallowing in self-pity, depression and fear, Philip went to Samaria, which incidentally was not a friendly place for Jews. He preached the Good News and performed signs and wonders. As a result, many Samaritans came to faith and followed Jesus. You could call that a silver lining.

 

From there an angel directed him to go south of Jerusalem. He had no idea why or what was waiting for him. In fact, it was probably somewhat dangerous since he had to go through Jerusalem, the epicenter of persecution, to get there. He went by faith; faith in a God that was in control even in the midst of injustice and chaos.

 

Again following the lead of the Spirit, we read: ³⁰ Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked. ³¹ “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

 

The result of this “chance meeting” was that the Ethiopian official was baptized and received the Holy Spirit. I think that qualifies as a silver lining too.

 

However, the good news is that we believe in and serve a god who isn’t a god of silver linings, but the Living God who is sovereign over this world. And although we don’t always understand why things happen, we can be confident in His love, faithfulness and constant presence in our lives no matter what.

 

 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%208%3A26-31&version=NIV;NLT

https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Acts.8.26-Acts.8.31

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lincoln Logs and Little Men

 (“The fruit of righteousness”)

Hebrews 12:3-17

 

Growing up in the 50’s, my favorite past time was playing cowboys and Indians. I used to take all my “little men” and create a story around them including the Lincoln Log homes that I would build. The problem was, I would get so involved in my playing that I would rather play than obey.

 

On one occasion, my Mom called me to the dinner table several times, and although I heard her, I didn’t come. I was too busy playing with my “little men”. Finally, my Dad came out, and with one swift kick, completely wiped out my toys. I was crushed.

 

¹¹ All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.          NASB

 

The “peaceful fruit of righteousness” sounds like such a pleasant, desirable thing, but apparently the process of acquiring such fruit can be painful at times.

 

For instance, Moses wandered in the desert as a fugitive for forty years. Jesus wandered in the wilderness for forty days while being severely tempted by Satan. Paul struggled with his “thorn in the flesh”, but God said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness”.

 

God uses difficult experiences in our lives to mold and shape us; to make us into the men and women that we are meant to be. In a word, he disciplines us.

 

My dear child, don’t shrug off God’s discipline, but don’t be crushed by it either. It’s the child he loves that he disciplines; the child he embraces, he also corrects.            MSG

 

When my Father disciplined me by destroying my Lincoln Log game, I was crushed. It felt more like he didn’t love me than he was trying to teach me a life lesson.

 

However, our Heavenly Father is always at work in our life with our best interests in mind. Because of that, it’s important to identify how God is working and to not get in His way. By doing this, God will be the potter and you will be the clay.

 

Here are some questions that might help you to identify His discipline in your life.

• What experiences have you had that have shaped you to be more like Jesus?
• Who has God brought into your life to help you to be more godly?
• What gifts and opportunities has God given you to use?
• How is God disciplining you through your weakness?

 

Answering these questions will help you to answer the most important question: Are you ready to grow the “peaceful fruit of righteousness”?

 

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hebrews%2012%3A3-17&version=NIV;MSG
https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Heb.12.3-Heb.12.17

 

When I Grow Up I Want To Be

 (“Strike the Shepherd…”)

Mark 14:27-42

  

In 2006 Monster.com ran a commercial called, “When I grow up”. It featured a series of children who gave antithetical answers to the same question. See if you can relate to some of their answers.

“When I grow up I want to: file all day; climb my way up to middle management; be replaced on a whim; be underappreciated; be forced into early retirement”.

I don’t imagine that the disciples dreamed of denying Jesus during his most trying time; or to fall asleep when he needed them most; or that Peter hoped one day to deny Jesus not once, but three times just before he was crucified.

Before all of this happened, Jesus quoted a verse from Zechariah which was a prophecy of how the disciples, his closest friends and followers, were going to respond to the series of events that would occur over the following 24 hours.

 ^“Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn my hand against the little ones.”    Zechariah 13:7 NIV

 Zechariah was a prophet during the time when the Israelites were rebuilding the Temple. The verse Jesus quoted was followed by these verses.

 ^“Two-thirds of all the nation of Israel will be cut off and die, but a third will be left in the land.  I will bring the third that remain through the fire and make them pure, as gold and silver are refined and purified by fire. They will call upon my name and I will hear them; I will say, ‘These are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’” Zechariah 13:8-9 TLB

Isn’t this what happened to the disciples. Jesus used these difficult circumstances to refine them; to make them as pure as silver or gold. And doesn’t he do the same thing in our lives? Doesn’t he use those painful experiences, hurtful relationships or catastrophic losses to mold and shape us into the man or woman that He created us to be?

The children in the commercial had only unfulfilled dreams. They didn’t represent faith in the Living God who had a plan for their life. The commercial was selling Monster.com as a means for being a dream maker-come-true; but we know better. There’s only One capable of this, and that is The Shepherd who is always with us.

Now Hear This!

(“Listen to me”)

Isaiah 46:3-13

 

According to Wikipedia, the phrase "Now hear this" is used in the United States Navy to instruct personnel to give their “full attention to an order or command that is about to follow”. When Navy personnel hear this phrase, they are to immediately stop what they are doing, listen closely and follow the instructions without question.

 

In today’s passage, Isaiah wrote his own version of “Now hear this”. Actually, it was God’s version.

 

³ “Listen to me, all Israel who are left; I have created you and cared for you since you were born. ⁴ I will be your God through all your lifetime, yes, even when your hair is white with age. I made you and I will care for you. I will carry you along and be your Savior.       

 

⁸ “Don’t forget this, O guilty ones. ⁹ And don’t forget the many times I clearly told you what was going to happen in the future. For I am God—I only—and there is no other like me ¹⁰ who can tell you what is going to happen.

 

¹² Listen to me, you stubborn, evil men! ¹³ For I am offering you my deliverance; not in the distant future, but right now! I am ready to save you, and I will restore Jerusalem and Israel, who is my glory.”    TLB

 

 

God spoke these words through Isaiah to the people of Israel in a specific historical context. He was speaking to the remnant of Israel that had been taken as captives into a totally different culture including pagan idols and gods.

 

Now God was about to bring the remnant back to the Promised Land and He was reminding them of who He was, and who they were. But you get the definite feeling that the people of Israel have a history of being hard headed, stiff necked and stubborn.

 

Does that sound familiar? It does to me. How many times has God had to tell me something before I got it?

 

Now hear this Joe!

 

I have created you and cared for you since you were born. ⁴ I will be your God

through all your lifetime, yes, even when your hair is white with age… For I am God—I only—and there is no other like me… ¹³ For I am offering you my deliverance; not in the distant future, but right now!

 

Look at your own life. God is sovereign. He is always at work in your life. There is no other like Him. There are many pretenders, but none can match Him. He is always with you, ready to deliver you; to bring victory to you.

 

Now hear this!

 

 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=isaiah%2046%3A3-13&version=NIV;TLB

https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Isa.46.3-Isa.46.13

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s All Good

The Tree of Life

Revelation 22:1-5

 

“It’s all good”, is a popular response nowadays that means, nothing is bad. But the irony is that some things are bad, painful, irreversible and even life-changing. Is it all good after having a still born baby or when a family member dies unexpectedly? Is it all good when you get fired from your job of 30 years? Is it all good when a relationship is irreconcilable? Is it all good when life feels like there’s no hope?

 

At the time when John wrote the book of Revelation, the believers in Asia Minor were on the verge of suffering sever persecution for being a follower of Jesus. The Roman authorities were beginning to enforce emperor worship which would be unacceptable for a Christian.  What could this persecution mean for an individual?

 

“Nero was quite insane, and is reported to have tortured Christians with great cruelties for his own enjoyment. According to the Roman historian Tacitus:

Besides being put to death they [the Christians] were made to serve as objects of amusement; they were clad in the hides of beast and torn to death by dogs; others were crucified, others set on fire to serve to illuminate the night when daylight failed.”

 

“It’s all good”, would seem like a hollow response at best.

 

In the Book of Revelation, John gave the persecuted church a future with eternal hope through these words:

 

“And he pointed out to me a river of pure Water of Life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and the Lamb, ² coursing down the center of the main street. On each

side of the river grew Trees of Life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month; the leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations. ³ There shall be nothing in the city that is evil; for the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him.”          TLB

 

For the first century believers, as well as for us, these words bring great hope. It’s not that “it’s all good”, but we can have faith in a loving sovereign God that He has a future for us without pain and suffering. In other words, evil and pain do not have the last word… God does.

 

Now THAT IS all good.

 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=revelation%2022%3A1-5&version=NIV;TLB
https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Rev.22.1-Rev.22.5


 

 

God-in-a-Box

Acts 11:1-18

 

 

No doubt you have seen a “jack in the box” toy before. You may have even played with one as a child; which means that you experienced the excitement of anxiously anticipating the clown to unexpectedly pop out of the box as “Pop Goes the Weasel” reached its climax.

 

Have you ever tried to control God? It sounds ridiculous to ask the question, but if we are honest with ourselves, we do it every day. It’s called sin. We rationalize, manipulate and do everything but back flips, to control our world.

 

The church in the first century tried to control God by saying that only Jews could follow Jesus, not Gentiles; not the uncircumcised. They wanted a god-in-a-box; a god that they could control; that wouldn’t surprise them.

 

After visiting Cornelius in Caesarea, Peter returns to Jerusalem where he comes under fire for associating with the uncircumcised. He explains to the Jews how the Holy Spirit came upon the Gentiles in the same way that He had with them.

 

^17 “Since God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, how could I stop the work of God?” ¹⁸ When the believers heard this, they stopped arguing. They praised God and said, “So God is allowing even other nations to turn to him and live.” NCV

 

Confronting this concept of a god-in-a-box, was a constant battle for Jesus during his earthly ministry. His ministry focused on people who were scorned by the culture, and as a result, were social, religious and emotional outsiders.

 

Think of the hemorrhaging woman, the lepers, prostitutes, tax collectors, the demoniac; all of them fit into this category. The religious establishment didn’t have room for them. Their god-in-a-box wouldn’t allow it.

 

God-in-a-box: it doesn’t seem like it would sell very well, but in reality, we all buy into it. We want to control our life and if we can control God, then we are well on our way to accomplishing our goal.

 

But God will not be controlled. His Holy Spirit will move whomever and whenever He desires.



Our decision is whether we want to be a part of His work… or not.

 

 

 

 

 

 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts%2011%3A1-18&version=NIV;NCV

https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/niv/Acts.11.1-Acts.11.18