A Simple Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus,
Help my unbelief.  Increase my faith, that I may more properly know who you are.  Your power is beyond imagination.  Your love is extravagant.  Your grace is amazing.  Your perfection in unlimited.  Your knowledge knows no measure.  Your mercy is without comparison.  Thank you for teaching me about Yourself.  I know so little and yet you have revealed so much.  You have revealed so much and yet there is still so much more to know.  Thank you for remaining somewhat of a mystery, "Your ways are not our ways and Your thoughts are not our thoughts."  But you have clearly revealed so much truth, which is not at all mysterious.  Help me to live in submission to the things you have definitively revealed and to live in patience with the things that only you know.  May I live without contention in the tensions of life.  May I enjoy the deeper study of Christian paradox.  I must die to live and be nothing to be great.  Precious Lord, Thou art the truth of God!  Worthy of all praise!
Amen

Help for the Hopeless

      For those who are discouraged, God has a word for you.  For those who are feeling a sense of despair, you can claim Psalm 11.  For it is in this sense of hopelessness that David finds himself as he begins the 11th Psalm.  He says, “I put my trust in the LORD” and yet the wicked are surrounding me.  In verse 2 we see that his enemies have, “bent their bow” and their “arrow is ready” and that they “shoot secretly” at me.  It is the picture of a soldier in fierce attack against him.  The threat is imminent and it feels overwhelming.  In verse 3, “if the foundations be destroyed, what will the righteous do?”.  In other words, the rug is being pulled out from underneath me, what should I do?  Even the very foundations of my life are being attacked and I need help.  People are attacking me.  The devil is attacking me.  My emotions are attacking me.  My enemies have flanked me on every side and are moving in quickly.  From where does my help come?  I feel so hopeless, is there help for me?

We all know this feeling of despair and if we live much longer we will know it again.  God speaks very clearly to us this morning and gives help for the hopeless.  He says we must see God above it all.  David answers his question of discouragement in verse 4.  He says, “the LORD is in His holy temple.”  That word holy means that God is separated.  He is not bound by the gloom of this life.  His light outshines the darkness.  His righteousness overpowers transgression.  His holiness is not polluted by the sin of this world.  He is in His holy temple and He is not threatened.  

Isaiah saw Him there.  In Isaiah 6:1, “I saw the LORD sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple.”  And the seraphim were there and they covered their eyes because of God’s holiness and they cried, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!”  God is above it all.  Isaiah spoke of Him there again in 57:15 as “the High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is holy” and God said, “I dwell in the high and holy place.”  God is above all of your problems.  He dwells in eternal holiness.  Though the foundations of this world may quake, God is not moved.  

I cannot think of a man who lived this more than Stephen.  He was the first deacon and the first martyr of the early church.  In Acts 7 he preached to an assembly of Jewish leaders and told them that they killed the Messiah.  He said to them that they were stiff-necked and stubborn people who were resisting the Holy Spirit and that God’s judgment would come upon them.  He spoke the truth.  The Bible says they “gnashed their teeth at him, charged at him and stoned him to death.”  Their bow was bent, and they shot their arrows.  What could be more hopeless than being pummeled with stones?  But Stephen was not discouraged.  He was not hopeless.  His face glowed with the glory of God and he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit, do not charge them with this sin.”  How could he do that?  How could he face such hateful opposition, such despair and respond with such love?  He saw Jesus above it all.  For we are told that Stephen gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God.  That he saw Jesus Christ standing at the right hand of God.  

Dear friends, when you feel hopeless and discouraged.  When the enemy is moving in and the foundations of your life are being shaken.  Look to Christ and see that He is above it all.  Above your fear, above your anxiety, above your despair, above your enemies, above their ability.  Remember that God is above it all.

God gives us help in times of despair by reminding us that He controls it all.  Psalm 11:4 says, “the LORD’s throne is in heaven.”  A throne is a place of authority and God is enthroned in heaven.  He sits in authority over all of the universe.  Jesus said in Matthew 28:18 that “all authority has been given to Me in heaven and earth.”  Jesus has all authority.  Romans 8:28 affirms that “God works all things together for good to those who love Him and are the called according to His purpose.”  God controls all things in the lives of His children.  God is working these things according to His purpose.  He is sovereign, He is in control.

“Tomorrow morning,” the surgeon began, “I’ll open up your heart...”

“You’ll find Jesus there,” the boy interrupted.  The surgeon looked up, annoyed.  “I’ll cut your heart open,” he continued, “to see how much damage has been done...”  “But when you open up my heart, you’ll find Jesus in there.”  The surgeon looked to the parents, who sat quietly.  “When I see how much damage has been done, I’ll sew your heart and chest back up and I’ll plan what to do next.”  “But you’ll find Jesus in my heart.  The Bible says He lives there.  The hymns say He lives there.  You’ll find Him there.”  The surgeon had had enough.  “I’ll tell you what I’ll find in your heart.  I’ll find damaged muscle, low blood supply, and weakened vessels.  And I’ll find out if I can make you well.”  “You’ll find Jesus there too.  He lives there.”  The surgeon left.  The surgeon sat in his office, recording his notes after the surgery, “...damaged aorta, damaged pulmonary vein, widespread muscle degeneration.  No hope for transplant, no hope for cure.  Therapy:  painkillers and bed rest.  Prognosis:”  here he paused, “...death within one year.”  He stopped the recorder.  “Why?” he asked aloud.  “Why did you do this?  You’ve put him here; you put him in this pain, and now you have cursed him to an early death.  Why?”  The Lord answered, “The boy, my lamb, was not meant for your flock for long, for he is a part of My flock, and will forever be.  Here in my flock, he will feel no pain, and will be comforted as you cannot imagine.  His parents will one day join him here, and they will know peace, and My flock will continue to grow.”  The surgeon’s tears were hot, but his anger was hotter.  “You created that boy, and you created his heart.  He’ll be dead in months.  Why?”  The Lord answered, “The boy, My lamb, shall return to My flock, for he has done his duty:  I did not put My lamb with your flock to lose him, but to retrieve another lost lamb.  The surgeon wept.  The surgeon sat beside the boy’s bed; the boy’s parents sat across from him.  The boy awoke and whispered, “Did you cut open my heart?”  “Yes,” said the surgeon.  “What did you find?” asked the boy.  “I found Jesus there,” said the surgeon.      The LORD is on His throne in heaven.

When you need help for feelings of hopelessness know that God tests His people.  Psalm 11:5 says “the LORD tests the righteous.”  David is in the middle of a crisis.  The wicked bend their bow and shoot their arrows at him.  The only advice he seems to be receiving is to run away, “flee like a bird.”  But he knows better.  The arrows are flying.  The battle is intense.  The foundations are being destroyed.  This could create such despair.  But David is not distracted from God’s glory.  The best thing to do in the midst of this crisis is to trust God and know that He tests the righteous.  

Abraham is considered to be one of the greatest examples of a man of faith in all of Christian history.  We count him as a great man of faith mainly because of this one time in his life in which God asked him to sacrifice his only son, Isaac.  Look with me in Genesis 22:2, God said to Abraham, “take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.  3So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place to which God had told him.  4Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off.  5And Abraham said to his young men, ‘Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back’.”  We will come back.  Here is the reason we recognize the great faith of Abraham.  Hebrews 11:17 tells us that Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son and he believed that both he and Isaac would return because He believed that God would even raise him up from the dead.  But look further with me at Genesis 22:6, “So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together.  7But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, ‘My father!’  And he said, ‘Here I am, my son.’  Then he said, ‘Look the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?’”  Can you imagine anything more hopeless feeling than that?  Can you just imagine the father looking into the eyes of his little boy, knowing that he was about to slay him?  And then he strapped Isaac to the altar and raised his knife as he looked upon his only son as a sacrifice.  And of course God stopped him and blessed him for his faithfulness, but here is the point I want us to see.  In verse 1 we are told that God did all of this to “test” Abraham.  

Now there are many complexities to this narrative with Abraham and Isaac that I do not have time to address today.  But I do want you to understand this, God tests His people.  You must remember this when you feel discouraged.  When you feel hopeless.  God may be testing you.  And the Bible tells us why God tests His people.  James 1:2-4 says, “count it all joy brethren when you fall into various trials (testings), knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.  But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”  When I was first saved I was discipled by an older man who would always tell me that God was testing me in some way of trial.  It took me awhile to understand what he meant and I’m still growing in my understanding of God’s testings in my life.  But here is what I have learned.  I am on a mission which is really God’s mission.  And the mission is this:  that I become conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.  That I become perfect as He is perfect.  That I become complete, lacking nothing, just as Jesus.  The only way I will get there is by the purifying work that God places in my life through tests.  And so it is with all of us who are followers of Christ.  We  see opposition.  It is a test.  We feel hopeless.  God is purifying us.  We feel discouraged.  God is taking us to the next level.

If we will ever find help when we feel hopeless we must remember that God is above it all, He controls it all, and He tests His people in order to purify us and conform us to the perfect image of His Son, Jesus.  Which, by the way, is where true hope is found.  There is nothing that appears more hopeless than the death of Christ.  Yet God is above it all, establishing His kingdom by saving all who will believe.  Nothing appears more discouraging than Jesus taking His last breath on the cross.  Yet God is in control of it all, setting forth His Son as the perfect sacrifice to die for our sins.  Nothing appears more devastating than Christ being crucified.  Yet God is preparing His disciples for a global mission to declare His glory to all nations.  And if you are here this morning and have realized that you have no hope apart from Christ, He is your help.  Come and receive Him by faith, and live with true hope.

Bible Translations?!?!

I prefer a literal Bible translation.  I preach from the NKJV but also appreciate and use KJV, NASB, and ESV.  I was very privileged to be taught Greek by a wonderful teacher and as I translate the text I consult these translations.  I think the NIV can be helpful at times but many times I find myself in disagreement with some of their interpretative decisions.  I find very little use for a paraphrase.  Recently, the messengers of the Southern Baptist Convention churches approved a resolution which speaks against the new (updated) gender-neutral NIV.  I agree with our messengers.  A gender-neutral translation seems to be an attempt to make Scripture more appealing to a culture greatly influenced by radical feminism.  God's Word should be rightly handled with reverence and respect.  Culture should be conformed to God's Word not vice-versa.  However, this is not my greatest concern.  My concern is in regard to many of the recent English translations that have been (are being) produced.  According to Wycliffe International there are over 2,000 languages in the world today which do not have the Bible in their language.  It seems to me that it would be much better to use the resources that are being used to translate the Bible again into English (and market these translations) more efficiently, for the sake of getting God's Word into other languages.  We have some great translations and I thank God for them, now let's get to work on the rest of the world, for their sake and for Christ's.

Loving Like God

       There is nothing more difficult than to truly love.  To love someone as God loves.  To love sacrificially.  To love selflessly.  To deny yourself and to give your life for another, there is nothing more difficult than this.  Yet, this is exactly what Jesus tells us to do, to love as God loves.

This kind of love is very different from the world’s idea of love.  Jesus said you have heard it said, “love your neighbor”, and the Mosaic law did state that very clearly in Leviticus 19:18.  But the law of God never stated that one should “hate his enemy”.  As a matter of fact, Leviticus 19:17 says, “you shall not hate your brother” and verse 18, “you shall not take vengeance.”  This additional statement of hating your enemy was an addition by the Pharisees.  Their rationalization went like this, “I am to love my neighbor, but if someone is not my neighbor than I have the right to consider him my enemy and therefore I can hate him.”  This is what the Jews said.  But now we find what Jesus said, “I say unto you.”  Jesus is once again going higher, deeper, fuller into the meaning of the Scripture.  Our Lord is saying that we must love as God loves.  

The world offers a very different definition of love.  They tell us that love is something you feel, fall into, or fall out of.  They say that love is what you should give only if it is first given to you.  And if you don’t feel loved than you have every right to withhold love from others.  And this is how the world deals with their idea of love even among those that they say they love, without even mentioning how they feel toward their enemies.  Jesus shows us that love is not necessarily something we feel, but it is something we do. He shows us that love is not something we fall into or out of.  How, you ask, does He show us these things about love?  Look at the cross and you will find the clearest and loudest definition of love.  Jesus is suffering, He is committed, He endures sacrifice and pain.  And in this “God demonstrates His own love toward us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  You will find that in Romans 5:8 and two verses later you will find that at the time Christ died, “we were His enemies.”  (Romans 5:10)  Jesus perfectly exemplifies that which He speaks.  Jesus Christ says that you are to love one another...and that you are to love your enemies.

The world says resist your enemies, defeat your enemies, hate them, kill them, or at least ignore them and be rude to them.  Jesus says love them.  The Greek word for love here is agape, which means you are to love your enemies with an unconditional love.  So look for those who are your antagonists, and love them.  Not based upon the condition of their behavior, but upon the fact that you are going to love them with the love of Christ.  Think of those who are your opponents and do good to them.  Consider the one who is against you and pray for him.  Alfred Plummer was correct when he said, “To return evil for good is devilish; to return good for good is human; to return good for evil is divine.”  Love this way because it is the way God loves you.

Discussion Regarding "Contextualization"

Contextualization is one of the buzz words for church leaders these days.  As I understand it, American pastors are seeking to contextualize themselves into American culture in order to more effectively communicate the gospel.  I have a hard enough time fighting off the influence of our dead and dark culture, but so many others are embracing it, in order to try and reach it.  Obviously isolationism is not the answer, but at what point does this effort to repackage the gospel cross the line of being unbiblical?  I would like to have some conversations about where to draw the line with contextualization because much of what we see happening is simply worldliness (a word we don't use anymore) in a new generation.  Dr. David Sills in his book "Reaching and Teaching" offers these helpful words, "Some people mistakenly believe that contextualization means changing aspects of Christianity to make it look like the culture, but contextualization is simply the process of making the gospel understood.  To ensure that our hearers understand the gospel, we must use their language rather than our own, if ours is nonsense to them.  However, this does not mean that mimicking the profane vocabulary or lifestyles of the unchurched is an appropriate use of contextualization.  In fact, much of what many call contextualization is simply an effort to be trendy and edgy.  It may be effective, it may even attract a hearing among a certain demographic, and it may not be offensive to all hearers, but that is not contextualizing the gospel; that is marketing."

Voice of a Southern Baptist Prophet

R.G. Lee wrote many years ago (in the fastest growing years of Southern Baptists), "Consider the matter of growth of Southern Baptists.  Usually the subject is approached from the positive point of view. 'How shall we grow?'  View the subject form the other direction - 'How did Southern Baptists not grow?'  Several suggestions may be listed:
1.  Practice open church membership - this will devaluate our Baptist position.
2.  Disregard the Scriptural meaning of, and invitation to, the Lord's Supper - this will cheapen communion.
3.  Play down the importance of baptism - this will stifle our testimony.
4.  Emphasize ecumenicity - this will erase our distinctives.
5.  Be apologetic regarding the use of the name "Baptist" - this will weaken our prestige.
6.  Deny direct kinship with the New Testament Christians - this will cut the root of Biblical and doctrinal strength.
7.  Minimize the importance of training - this will close the churches on Sunday evenings.
8.  Take the side track of fanatical conservatism or radical liberalism - this will produce a series of splinter groups.
9.  Solicit financial support from non-Baptists - this will make beggars of the churches.
These roads will lead to denominational nothingness."

Truly the voice of a prophet!  I hope we will listen and turn back the tide.

Voice of a Southern Baptist Prophet

K. Owen White served as pastor of FBC Houston and was president of the Southern Baptist Convention in 1964.  Hear his voice:
"We who believe the Bible are under constant attack.  If we hold convictions, we are told that we are bigoted.  If we express them, we are narrow and belligerent.  If we call for uncompromising loyalty to the truth, we are provincial and unbrotherly.  If we believe the Bible, we are guilty of bibliolatry.  If we refuse to go along with the prevailing theological ideas, we are isolationists and reactionaries.  We are told that everything is relative, nothing is absolute, thus the authority of God's Word is not only challenged but abandoned.  How do we compromise with a belief and an attitude like this?  In the name of broadmindedness and unity the liberal seeks to silence our voice of testimony."

A Life of True Value

Acts 20:24, "nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God."

Dear Lord,
Thank you for making my life valuable.  I have ultimate value in your purpose and for your service.  Let my life be poured out as a drink offering.  Let me serve you with all of my life and let me have no sense of worth apart from living for your glory.  Take my life and use it for Thee, without you I would be nothing.  May I run well the race you have set before me, keeping my eyes fixed upon the joy which is to come.  I become so weak and weary.  My soul sometimes does not want to go on.  I feel weak and want to stop, but I can't.  Your word is a fire in my soul, burning with fiery flames of passion and conviction.  Turn me away from my weakness!  Strengthen me to run well.  At times my soul is troubled and what shall I say?  Save me from this hour.  No, Father, let me be with Jesus in glorifying Thy name!  My life is not dear to me apart from being used for You.
AMEN