Mar

27

The mighty oak

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 The God of all creation spoke to Abram (later Abraham)  here at the tree of Moreh in a little place called Shechem back in the day. The take home message of this relationship for me is that when God made a covenant with him (that he would one day be a father to all nations–Father Abraham–and that through his seed, many nations would be blessed), he had all of humanity in mind.

The journey began when Abram, at God’s leading and with a few historic sidesteps, ended up settling his tent in the land of Canaan between a city called Bethel (“house of God”) and the city of  Ai (“ruin”).

I see this journey as a prototype of a believer’s time here on the earth. Today, like Abraham, we are also journeying. Our world is the new Canaan and our walk with God finds us traveling here until the day the Lord returns or takes us to our real home. As sojourners, the Lord instructs in his word through the Apostle Paul, that we shouldn’t become too comfortable here in the new Canaan, because it’s really not our permanent home. Although, we do have a clear purpose:  to preach in love that God is real and to make Him known.

Along Abraham’s journey, we are reminded that he, like us, was not a perfect man. He made mistakes along the way that served him more trouble than necessary. However, the Lord used even those mistakes to bring about his purposes. Though there is plenty that Abraham did that showed his dependence and faithfulness to God and his journey allowed the Lord to bring him to this place, it was not an overnight experience. Neither is ours. It will take not only a lifetime but most likely an eternity to even mine the depths of all that the Lord has planned for those who love him.

One thing of particular note that speaks to me is that Abraham stopped at the oak tree of Moreh in Shechem.  It is at Moreh (meaning “teacher”) where God first appeared to Abraham and gave him the declaration of His promises. His oracles. Abraham lingered there and fellowshipped with God and erected the first of many alters to him.

The significance for this believer is that when Abraham stopped at the oak tree and rested is where God chose to reveal himself to Abraham. It is only by stopping and lingering with the Lord that we, too, will be able to abide in His grace.

May we not hasten past the oak tree of Moreh in our journey while here on earth so that we may hear His voice.

Mar

18

Explain thyself…

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A recent online conversation with someone who doesn’t believe in God led to an amicable debate. The lady who says she doesn’t need a savior and is willing to stand or fall on her own saddens me. The reply she elicited from me was the following: To not acknowledge God and your place in the world by virtue of his creating you and to assume that you can do things without him is the epitome of self-righteous. You claim to be able to help people around you. How do you assume you are helping them? By what standard are you basing your goodness? If the answer is YOU, then I see that as being self-righteous.

When I acknowledge God, I use his standards, not mine. There is no putting down of other people.  We are ALL under God. We are ALL sinners. If you don’t think you are a sinner or one who needs God, it is you who is putting yourself ABOVE others… not to mention ignoring why Jesus came to earth in the first place. You’re calling him frivolous, unnecessary, just like the Pharisees did.

I’m sorry that people haven’t put their faith in the Messiah. He can run our lives “exceedingly above all that we can ask or think.” Praise God!

Mar

03

Immigrants

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There have been Facebook memes going around every once in a while whose purpose is to point a finger at Christians for not having more compassion for the foreigners who wish to come to America.

While U.S. president after president has imposed limits on the import of immigrants for whatever plans and purposes he wishes, the quotas set forth lately have been met with opposition.

Some would cry, racist, bigot, hater… Really? Is this the motivation for the U.S. government… to be racist? I don’t think so.

These same individuals who have nothing better to do with their time than to denounce presidential mandates are the same ones who take a quote out of scripture and use it as a cudgel to beat Christians over the head (Leviticus 19:33-34). In this verse, Moses says to Israel that as they were once immigrants to a foreign land, in the same way, they are to love them and not mistreat them.

But some would use this one verse, taken out of context, to judge Christians. These no-pretext-no-context-loving gospel spewers think they can have an “ah hah” moment by the means of calling out Christians as being hypocritical.

What these people don’t take into account is that the foreigners Moses was referring to in Leviticus had to acquiesce to rules for being a part of the society and culture of the land into which they were going. They were made to conform to these as mandated and thus made to assimilate into the Jewish culture.

Ask Dearborn, Michigan how that assimilation is going here in America after the city has been mandated to import thousands of Muslims who adhere to Sharia law.

As a Christian, I am absolutely obliged to kindly treat ALL people with compassion. This has little or nothing to do with immigration and speaks to a bigger political picture where scripture is being used as a weapon to meet a cultural end.

 

Feb

24

Devil in the Details

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Some kind gentlemen knocked on our door today.  I recognized them as Jehovah’s Witnesses. These people are some of the sweetest people you’ll ever meet. They offered me some literature as they are encouraged to do by their works-based doctrine. While some who peddle religion are often met with a quick slam of the door in their face, at our house, we look forward to sharing our beliefs with ANYONE, even those who claim to know Jesus. With a smile, I told them I’m a born again Christian and together we proceeded to converse on the world situation as it relates to the Bible.

Although we all knew Jesus, the difference is that the JW’s do not claim Jesus to be God. At least, he wasn’t “born” that way, they say. I believe Jesus to be God himself, incarnate. I supported this with scripture, pointing out the book of John in the first chapter where it says, “In the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God and the Word was God.”

The Word is Jesus. They weren’t buying it.

Without believing in the deity of Jesus, I told them, then who was it that sacrificed himself for my sins? There is no man on earth who could satisfy God the father’s wrath other than God, the son, himself.

To believe that Jesus was a perfect man (which he was) and compare him to the first man, Adam, is to me a grave injustice bordering on heresy. To believe as the JW’s believe would appear to give false grandeur where it ought not to be. It’s like man has become elevated in their minds to become like God. This mindset leads to a false view of both man and God. I told them that NO man could ever satisfy the wrath of God with regard to my sins. Only God can fulfill that requirement.

What we did agree on was that God is a marvelous mystery. After they left, I prayed that God would reveal the truth to them and that this one pesky detail in their belief structure would go away and that they would give homage to Jesus as the one true God.

 

Feb

14

Valentine’s Day

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So how did Valentine’s day originate?

With any celebratory tradition, the historicity is sometimes muddled but most would agree the day originated romantically with 14th century poet Geoffrey Chaucer when the tradition of courtly love flourished.

Some would claim Valentine’s day originated as a  Christian liturgical feast day that honored one or more early martyred saints, St. Valentine of Rome included.  The popular story recounts that he was imprisoned for performing weddings for soldiers who were forbidden to marry and for ministering to Christians, who were persecuted under the Roman Empire. According to the legend, St. Valentine healed the daughter of his jailer, Asterius, and before his execution, he wrote her a letter signed, “Your Valentine” as a farewell.

In 18th-century England, the day evolved into an occasion in which lovers  expressed their love for each other through flowers, candy, and greeting cards aptly known as “valentines.”

However you celebrate, may the love of our Lord be your source of joy today and whose valentine took the form of a cross. He signed it with his own shed blood. Now that’s love.