Christmas Hope

If your family is like ours, your Christmas celebration has already started. Trying to get it all in can be a scheduling challenge. How rewarding to be with family and friends. Last night we shared some time with a group at a friend's home, eating and exchanging surprise gifts. I was the last one to pick or steal, depending on the mood at the moment. I made the choice to steal and allow someone else to select the last package. I went with what I knew was available, it was a sure choice. My sure choice is Jesus Christ. Born a child and yet a King. He is the King of kings. He is the Light of the world. He is the Great I Am come in the flesh. He is Life. He is the only One who can bring hope into this world filled with darkness and despair. Not much has changed about the condition of mankind since the birth of Christ and today. We have smart phones, and magic tablets. We have high speed Internet, and a host of other gadgets. In the middle of it all, mankind is still searching for identity and direction. Jesus Christ is for all mankind the source of identity and direction.  At this Christmas, I am sure of what I have chosen, Jesus is my Lord and Savior. At mid life I still have a lot of questions, ask a lot of questions, know only a portion of what I need to know. But I know Whom I have believed and am convinced that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until He comes again (2 Tim. 1:12). Thank you Jesus for the hope I know at this Christmas.

America's Hypocrisy & Sandy Hook

Christmas Greetings. The emotions of this season took an intense hit with the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School. We mourn the tragedy that strikes at the heart of parents, siblings, grandparents, etc. This tragedy awakens anger and anxiety in the heart of America. The President sheds tears and pledges to 'do something about it'. In our arrogance we suppose we can 'fix' the problem with more government control and fail to admit that the sinfulness of the human heart is beyond any set of rules and regulations.

The great hypocrisy of this tragedy and the American voice is that on the same day those precious children and adults were murdered, over 3000 children were 'terminated' in America. Their death came at the hand of a doctor acting for a 'woman's heatlh'. Our hypocrisy was voiced by the President's carefully crafted words following Sandy Hook. Every word spoken can be applied to the 3000 aborted in America on that day. Our hypocrisy is that the President sheds no tears for the 3000, and embraces their termination. Our hypocrisy is that America's leaders are talking about 'new laws' to protect but sit in compliance with a great holocaust. Our hypocrisy is to say that we care about the most vulnerable, but thousands of lives have been silenced. Most of it coming for convenience and other selfish purposes.

I apologize to myself and others for deviating from the Christmas spirit and message, but as I listen to the ongoing verbiage the hypocrisy intensifies and my heart is dismayed by America's lack of conscience and concern for the most innocent and vulnerable.

The President mocks life with his tears for the precious ones at Sandy Hook but no concern for the masses murdered during his presidency (Over 4.3 million during his first term @ 3000 per day).

God have mercy on us-our hypocrisy is replusive.

Advent Hope

Christmas is upon us again. As Christ followers, this season is one filled with great hope. Not being pessimistic, but our selfish culture, our hedonistic world is fast coming apart at the seams. Gross selfishness abounds on every front. Greed, prejudice, lying, injustice, hatred-the kingdom of man is full of darkness and as Christ said, the last days will be marked by an increase of lawlessness. The last days continue as we move toward the great coming of Christ. Hope. Not in government, United Nations, supreme court, or any effort of man. Hope in the fact that Christ has come and is coming again. He came, not in selfishness, but in servanthood. He came not in greed but in graciousness. He came not in prejudice but in compassion for all. He came not in hatred but in sacrificial love. Because Christ came, there is hope for whosoever will. The kingdom of man offers no hope. The audacity of hope is not rooted in the resiliance of man, or the wisdom of man, but in the activity of the true and living God as revealed in Jesus Christ. We sing at this season of the year because there is hope. Reach up believer and take hold of the Holy One who is our HOPE. Come Thou long expected Jesus...we look forward with hope.

HIM

It seems so simple, but we are so distracted. It seems so easy but we are so worldly. Our one possession is Christ-his presence in us and with us. All else is chaff that will be burned up or blown away. When we circle the grave of a loved one we should know that the only thing that matters is the relationship with Christ and the relationships with family and friends. All the stuff is just that-we know it but the stuff is attractive, distracting. Achan picked up the spoils of Jericho and it only brought death to his family and others. When we pocket anything from this world, it will only bring death to us. Nothing in this world gives life, only Christ can and does. All the glory and luxury of the world system will be gone in one hour (Rev. 18). It is all gone in the moment we breathe our last breath. The church flounders in desperate need of His Presence. Our sin is that we have substituted programs, personalities and anything else we can come up with to replace His Presence. Getting His Presence back into the picture requires repentance, prayer, seeking His face. It invovles an energy and effort that we will not find entertaining or comforting. I believe Christ is standing at the door of His church, knocking, wanting to pour His glory on His body in America again. Who is going to get up and answer the door?

The Gap

The Old Testament prophet was notified by Almighty God that someone was needed to 'stand in the gap". A place to stand on behalf of God's holiness, seeking the face of God so God would be free to work His will in the midst of His people. Centuries rolled by and God Almighty stood in the gap himself through the life of Jesus Christ. Christ stood in that gap, hung in that gap on a cross, stands in that gap as the King of kings and the redeemer of the world. In other O.T. language, 'God's arm was not too short to save'. God was able and is able and Christ lives to bring a broken world and holy God together. While Christ was standing in the gap, He showed the method for this redeeming work and called His disciples to 'follow me.' Today the body of Christ, the church, stands in the gap. We are His presence on planet earth. We are the ones who have been given the ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5). We are God's arm in this world today. The gap is the church's responsiblity. The gap is our mission field, where we follow Christ and illustrate to the broken world that Christ is the answer. While we stand in the gap we proclaim a message of hope and victory, of freedom and fullness in and through Jesus Christ. Are we standing in the gap or sitting in the pew? Are we standing in the gap or looking for a church to meet our needs? Are we standing in the gap or drifting along with the world? Church, we must stand in the gap. We are His Presence on planet earth to proclaim the Great News. Let us stand strong in the strength of the Lord.

Christ Central

In a culture that has lost its 'moral knowledge', that has abandoned the Rock of Ages for the sand of men's wisdom, Christ still stands as the eternal One. Desire in our culture rules over truth, fact, reality. We have run hard after what makes us 'feel good.' This is an expensive choice, for our own eternal distiny, but also for the world that we leave our children and grandchildren. What we 'feel' outweighs what God says is right or wrong. No longer do our legal pundits look to the foundation of Christian ethics and morality to determine what is right or wrong. What the masses say, the broad way that leads to destruction, is the yellow brick road that our culture is travelling. God's voice is not only silenced and ignored, but rejected. Reality is, God is still God. Man comes and goes-like a vapor, another generation is gone and what we reject only stands to mock us for our ignorant selfishness. Truth may be trampled in the street as the Old Testament prophet proclaimed, but it is still truth. In this day of increasing darkness, may the body of Jesus Christ awaken from her slumber, repent, and begin to live and move in the power of the Holy Spirit. He will guide Christ's people in true holiness and righteousness so that we may shine like stars in this universe.

Consecration

Matthew 7:11 contrasts the Father in heaven with earthly parents. Parents give good gifts to their children. If the child's need is for bread, a snake is not provided. A contrast that seems absurd; however, Jesus is attempting to raise our level of trust in the Father and our consecration to the Father. The 'how much more' of the Father is what should liberate us to consecrate ourselves to the Lord. We dabble around the edges worried that the Father may demand something of us that we don't desire. Jesus says the good gifts the Father gives make the actions of responsible, loving parents seem trivial. When we give our all to the Father, when our consecration is complete and we have placed our life in His hands and becomme His living sacrifice, we begin to taste the divine gifts that can't be found from a source on earth. We have a tendency to ask for good gifts from the Father without first making our consecration complete. The enemy causes us to view this consecration as hard, unfair, life threatening. But this consecration is the doorway to the abundant life, the Spirit filled life of victory over sin, world and Satan. We must be all His. To restrict or rebel against the Father in heaven only plays into Satan's schemes and robs me of the abundant life. Each morning to awaken and say, "Father in heaven, Your kingdom come and Your will be done" is the threshold to a day of victory. When I am all His, I can rest in the 'how much more' of my Father in heaven. When my Edler brother, Jesus, lived out his consecration to the last breath hanging on a cross, the Father did the 'how much more' of resurrection and exalted the Son above all. Father in heaven, 'take my life and let it be consecrated Lord to Thee'.

Speaking Out

The recent statement by the CEO of Chic filet and the backlash from the liberal media and the folks who are calling wrong right is interesting. The agenda of the present administration is to grant the homosexual minority status (which has to be an affront to true minorities) and to silence those who are willing to say that such lifestyle is sin. Our culture has made the choice to abandon the foundation of moral and ethical guidelines that are from God's Word. We have cut the ship loose from shore, thrown away the anchor, sail, steering wheel and rudder and are being carried along by the whims of this culture. Shipwreck will happen sooner or later. A refresher of the rise and fall of the Roman empire brings to our attention that immorality, sin, selfishness, eventually brings its own destruction. The wrath of God is not needed, the law of sin and death will bring its own result. We reap what we sow-when we think we can sow seeds of sin, immorality, greed, hatred, prejudice and still live the good life, we have moved into the ultimate delusion. In the midst of the chaos, may the body of Christ step forward to speak His truth in love and to live a different life, one of true righteousness and holiness that brings glory to Christ. May we, the followers of Jesus Christ, get serious about shining like stars in this dark world.

Freedom in Christ

I have been doing a series on celebrating freedom in Christ during July. How often we take any freedom we have for granted. I remember when doing a jail ministry in Houston at Harris County, one day a week I would spend five hours 'inside" the facility. It would always a joyous moment to hear the door shut behind me when I left the facility and reentered the world of the free. Our freedom in Christ is a precious gift, given to us not so we can do as we please, but so we can please Christ. A freedom from sin, condemnation, fear and doubt that privides the position to live in a manner worthy of Christ. My freedom in Christ is a freedom for Christ. I am now free to do His will, to follow in His steps and live to His praise. I am now free from the littleness of a selfish life, and am living in the vast ocean of His grace, for His glory. Some talk that our freedom in Christ is a freedom from responsibility, holiness, obedience, etc. The freedom in Christ is the freedom to be who I couldn't be without Christ and to do what I couldn't do until He set me free from the prison of sin and selfishness.

God's Glory

When Christ comes again, the Word tells us that every knee will bow and tongue confess that He is Lord. According to my personality, that is because God the Father will force it to happen. But once again I believe I have it wrong, for God never 'forces' anything. All will bow, all will confess because they will have to. The glory of Christ's presence will be so overwhelming that they will have to bow down and confess. The glory of His presence will bring us all to our knees. Mankind may not want to, but they will have to because of the overwhelming presence of the living Son of God. Then I am reminded by a friend that the hosts of heaven right now, the four living creatures and the twenty four elders are on their faces because of God's glory and pouring forth unending praise to the Lamb who was slain. Unending praise, always on their faces-because of His presence. I really doubt that seeing Grandma will be at the top of the list when we enter His eternal presence. I really doubt we will be concerned with mansions and streets of gold. It will be all about Christ-His presence. His overwhelming, all consuming presence. Dare I pray, Lord show me your glory? Could I handle such an overwhelming Presence. O Lord, teach me your ways.

The Servant Who Is Our Hope

We are a multi-task generation. There are so many things calling for our energy and attention. Much of it is driven by the shallowness that overwhelms the human spirit. The shallow stuff of this world, that is constantly passing away. Christ stands in the middle of it all as the One in whom the nations will put their hope. (Matthew 12:21). His name is hope. Not Mohammed, Ghandi, Joseph Smith, or any president or world leader, but Jesus Christ. There will be a moment in history when every one who has ever lived or is living at that moment will realize that Jesus Christ is the One in whom is life. In that moment there will be a great cry of despair from those who rejected this One who is our hope, and at that same time a great shout of victory and praise from those who put their hope in this Jesus. Awesome and great is His name. There is no other  name under heaven that brings salvation and rescues mankind from the shallowness of this world's stuff. Look at my servant the Father says. This Servant is my Son. It is more than a suggestion, it is the invitation to life for whosoever will. In our multi task age, let us do this one thing-Look at the Son of God, who reigns and is coming again.

Look At My Servant -The Easter Person

Isaiah 42 and Matthew 12:18 call us to look to the Son, who is also the Servant of the Lord. Sometimes our perspective gets out of focus, we become selfish, we look at others and make comparisons and become full of despair, we look at the world and the mess of humanity and become discouraged or even afraid. The Word tells us to look at the Son. To focus our attention upon the One, crucified and raised to life.

The Father delights in the Son and calls us to do the same. At the heart of salvation, of having peace with God and the peace of God, is delighting in the Son, looking to the Son. The Word says every knee will bow and tongue confess that Jesus is Lord. That every eye will see him or look at him, even those who pierced Christ.

God the Father will get mankind's attention with the Son sooner or later. The salvation choice, the life giving choice is to look to the Son today. To acknowledge our need of the Savior today and walk each day with our attention upon the Son. Easter is about the Person, Jesus Christ who was declared with power to be the Son of God through the resurrection from the dead. Look and live!

Come To me

Oswald Chambers in his book, "As He Walked" states the following.

"All the questions that matter in life are remarkably few, and they are all answered by these words "Come to Me." Not-'do this' and 'don't do that', but "Come..." Have you ever come to Jesus? Watch the stubbornness of your heart and mind, you will find you will do anything rather than the one simple, childlike thing-Come. Be stupid enough to come, and commit yourself to what Jesus says. That attitude of coming is that the will resolutely lets go of everything and deliberately commits the whole thing to Jesus. At the most unexpected moments there comes the whisper of the Lord, 'Come to Me,' and we are drawn to Him. Personal contact with Jesus alters everything. He meets our sins, our sorrows, and our difficulties with the one word-Come."

God's Good Work

The GOOD work (Phil. 1:6): A work only God can do within man, the work that every person requires to be complete, restored to the image of God, redeemed from sin’s death & despair. God created & it was ‘good’, Jesus said why do you call me good, only God is good. We define a lot of things with ‘good’, but ‘good’ is something that comes from the hand of God the Father. Every good & perfect gift (Ja 1:17). The Father loves to give ‘good’ gifts to his children (Mt. 7:11). The good work is the Christ work, the Divine work. Rom 8:28-work in all things for good-the good being Christlikeness. The restoration of the image of God to the spirit of man, the shalom of God bringing wholeness & completeness to the heart of restless mankind. The good work is bringing order out of chaos (Genesis), the good work is bringing life out of death, redeeming power out of the cross, hope out of an empty grave, life in the person of the Son. Only God can do this. When men do something ‘good’, it is a little spark of the Holy God. The good is holiness, righteousness, justice, mercy, truth-those powers that bring freedom to the human heart. The hope of mankind is that they would allow God the Father to do the good work in them through faith in Christ. All other ‘works’ only treat symptoms, the good work of God is to make the tree good, then the fruit will be good. Ultimately the good work is the life of Christ in us that brings hope, joy, peace, the shalom of the true and living God.

HE IS

Ps 103:8 , The Lord is gracious, compassionate, slow to anger & abounding in love. I have been trying to allow Matt 12:20 (Is.42) to sink into my spirit. It speaks of the compassion, mercy, gentleness of our Lord, and harmonizes with the passage from Ps.103. The Psalmist goes on to say that the Lord remembers we are dust, he does not treat us as our sins deserve. The WOW of that should humble us & bring tears of joy and shouts of praise. The Lord could squash us, destroy us, should destroy us, as the wages of sin is death. But He did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him (Jn. 3:17). That saving presence overflows with grace, compassion, love. HE IS more than we can describe or imagine. HE IS the greatest lover in the universe. HE IS the one who does not break the bruised reed or blow out the smoldering candle. HE IS the One who touches the leper to make him clean. HE IS the hope of the nations as it goes on to say in Mt. 12. He IS my hope because I need, am hungry for grace, compassion, patience, love.

HIS - ABSOLUTELY!

It's easy to miss, Philippians 1:1-'slaves of Jesus Christ' (doulos-Greek word). Not a servant, but a slave. Paul & Timothy belong to Jesus Christ-they are His property. Their will has been swallowed up in the will of Christ, their heart is saturated with the life of Another, their desire is single, undisputed-to please their Master, do His will, bring glory to His name. Wesley captures this spirit in his covenant service, "Put me to what you will, rank me with who you will...". Oswald Chambers says, "Be absolutely His!". Whether in what some would say is a big way, or in a simple way, those used of Christ, those who break the darkness with His light, who overwhelm the harshness & hatred of this world with love, who diffuse compassion in a selfish, uncaring world, those who do so are 'slaves of Christ.' These are the holy ones of God. These are His-bought with a price they glorify God with their bodies. Their lives speak of One greater who has invaded them with holy grace. Those who are filled with the Holy Spirit so that they are HIS! Their sacred journey is the road less traveled, the narrow path that leads to life, they are following in the footsteps of Jesus. The world does not understand, but it doesn't matter: grace produces a life beyond explanation. They are focused on the 'least of these.' Their reward is in the Master's affirmation, 'well done good & faithful servant'. They neither strive for recognition nor glory, Christ is their all. When all else in life is forgotten, they want to remember, I'm His & His forever!

Transitions

As I read God's Word, it's about people in transition. Those in the O.T. narrative attempting to follow God's leadership and be the people they were created & redeemed to be-for His glory. In the N.T. the story continues. Those who encounter Jesus are always in transition. About the time the disciples think they have it mastered, Jesus takes the road less traveled. Those who cried out for mercy from Jesus were in transition. Their life became a 'new work of God'. The sacred journey, life, is a process with a purpose. Our tendency is to confine the process to what makes us comfortable, secure, applauded. To confine the process is to minimize our discovery of the purpose-ruthless trust in the Father. As I am in transition, learning new roles, listening to hear what the Father wants & being willing to jump off a cliff if I need to, fear creeps in. Blackaby in Experiencing God Day by Day (2/3) states, 'Most fear is fear of the unknown. We do not know what lies ahead of us so we become apprehensive...fear is no excuse to disobey God." Life is one continuous transition-no matter how much we think we are in control. Our false sense of security in the picture we put together can hinder us from exercising trust in the Father. A resounding message from God's Word is 'FEAR NOT'.

The Pharoh In Us

Reading the Exodus story. Pharoh is an interesting person. As I read about his stubborn refusal to cooperate with God's plan, I thought about the Pharoh in all of us. Pharoh showed a few flashes of remorse, regret, or something, but never really got on his face before God in repentance. I wonder how much the Pharoh in all of us is hindering the Lord from doing a new work in His church. Our refusal to repent, our attempt to manipulate the situation, our personal sin that we sweep under the rug, all hinder the Lord from pouring out the Holy Spirit upon us. How desperately the body of Christ in America needs an exodus from our current status into the promised land of victory over sin and world. A life of power and victory, of light and love awaits us in the promised land of the Spirit filled life. The pharoh in us resists any call to repentance. We run to our comfort zone of experiences from long ago, and rationalize our personal and corporate coldness and lethargy. We blame the culture and Christ remains outside knocking on the door. Hard and cold hearts fill our churches. We have become like the Jewish leaders of Jesus' day, thinking we are the holy ones, we have moved into the abyss of self delusion and spiritual darkness. Lord, remove the pharoh spirit from our hearts in order to do your new work in us and through us, for your glory. I repent-revive me again O Lord.