Your Christianity is boring

When God exposes himself to us, we become, at that very moment, responsible.. When God reveals himself to us, we are obliged to respond to what has been revealed. Be careful when you pray; “Lord show me your glory!” What if He does? Do you really think you want the responsibility? The Christian life that is devoid of spiritual revelation is also conveniently devoid of spiritual responsibility isn’t it? What life do you want to live? One of ease, comfort and predictability?  Or one of danger, risk and revelation? The choice is yours pilgrim. You can be radically changed by the doctrines of the church, or you can become embalmed by them.

dl

Some interesting statements about the “preservation” of Israel

 

 

 

  

Right now I am enjoying the task of reading through the New testament in 30 days. To my embarassment, I can’t remember the last time I sat down and read a Gospel from beginning to end in one sitting! I am amazed by some of the things I have discovered..Some of these are:

-How Jesus was quite clearer about contraversial subjects than we give Him credit for..

-How much Jesus talked about hell, wrath and judgment. (hey grace people. Don’t freak out, He still loves you!)

-How little I know, compared to how much I think I know…

-How interesting Paul’s personality and way of thinking was..

-How unique, mysteious and special the land, nation, history, and future of the people of Israel is to God…

   

“Stranger still, the ancient religion of the Jews survives, when all the religions of every ancient race of the pre-Christian world have disappeared. Again it is strange that the living religions of the world all build on the religious ideas derived from the Jews” - The Ancient World, Professor T.R. Glover

“According to the materialistic and positivist criterion, this people ought to have perished long ago. It’s survival is a mysterious and wonderful phenomenon demonstrating that the life of this peopleis governed by a special predetermination…”
- The Meaning of History, Professor Nicholas Berdkilaev of the Moscow Academy of Spiritual Culture

“It was Judaism that brought the concept of a God-given universal moral law into the world…the Jew carries the burden of God in history and for this he has never been forgiven” - Distinguished Catholic Scholar Edward H. Flannery

 

What are your thoughts?

Shalom.. pastor darrell

 

 

 

December 31st | The feast of St. Sylvester

 

Today is Decemebr 31st. New year’s Eve. the beginning of a new year, and a chance to celebrate for many. Around the world, to many who acknowledge various liturgical calendars, today is the feast day of someone a little less popular than Father Time..

Sylvester was ordained bishop over the church in Rome in the year 314.  This Christian brother served the church at a time when the Arian heresy and the Donatist schism had provoked great discord. After the peace of Constantine, he contributed greatly to the expansion of the faith throughout the Roman world.. Below is a reading I borrowed from a Catholic Missal:

Collect:
Lord,
help and sustain Your people
as in the days of Bishop Sylvester.
Guide us always in this present life
and bring us to the joy that never ends.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

First Reading: Ezekiel 34:11-16
“For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, I Myself will search for My sheep, and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when some of his sheep have been scattered abroad, so will I seek out My sheep; and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. And I will bring them out from the peoples, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the fountains, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them with good pasture, and upon the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on fat pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. I Myself will be the shepherd of My sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord God. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the crippled, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will watch over; I will feed them in justice.

Gospel Reading: Matthew 16:13-19
Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do men say that the Son of man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

Happy John The Baptist Day!

Hey Pilgrims!

Here is a quick devotional I found. It makes for a great little read on John The Baptist Day. Enjoy.

Daily Reading & Meditation

Thursday (June 24): “For the hand of the Lord was with him”

Scripture: Luke 1:57-66,80  (alternate reading: Matthew 7:21-29)

57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to be delivered, and she gave birth to a son. 58 And her neighbors and kinsfolk heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. 59 And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they would have named him Zechari’ah after his father, 60 but his mother said, “Not so; he shall be called John.” 61 And they said to her, “None of your kindred is called by this name.” 62 And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he would have him called. 63 And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all marveled. 64 And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. 65 And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea; 66 and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, “What then will this child be?” For the hand of the Lord was with him. 80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness till the day of his manifestation to Israel.

Meditation: Birthdays are a special time to remember and give thanks for the blessings that have come our way. Are you grateful for the ways that God has worked in your life, even from your birth? In many churches of the East and West the birth of John the Baptist is remembered on this day. The friends of Zechariah and Elizabeth marveled at the wonderful way in which God blessed them with a child. This child was destined by God for an important mission. The last verses in the last book of the Old Testament, taken from the prophet Malachi, speak of the Lord’s messenger, the prophet Elijah who will return to “turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers” (Malachi 4:6). We see the beginning of the fulfillment of this word when the Angel Gabriel announced to Zechariah the marvelous birth and mission of John the Baptist (Luke 1:17). When this newly born child was about to be named, as customary on the eighth day, his relatives quibbled over what name to give him. (Don’t relatives today often do the same when the time comes for naming a newborn?) This child, however has been named from above! And Elizabeth is firm in her faith and determined to see that God be glorified through this child. The name John means “the Lord is gracious”. In the birth of John and in the birth of Jesus the Messiah we see the grace of God breaking forth into a world broken by sin and without hope. John’s miraculous birth shows the mercy and favor of God in preparing his people for the coming of its Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

John the Baptist’s life was fueled by one burning passion – to point others to Jesus Christ and to the coming of God’s kingdom. Scripture tells us that John was filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb (Luke 1:15, 41) by Christ himself, whom Mary had just conceived by the Holy Spirit. When Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, John lept in the womb of Elizabeth as they were filled with the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:41). The fire of the Spirit dwelt in John and made him the forerunner of the coming Messiah. John was led by the Spirit into the wilderness prior to his ministry where he was tested and grew in the word of God. John’s clothing was reminiscent of the prophet Elijah (see Kings 1:8). John broke the prophetic silence of the previous centuries when he began to speak the word of God to the people of Israel. His message was similar to the message of the Old Testament prophets who chided the people of God for their unfaithfulness and who tried to awaken true repentance in them. Among a people unconcerned with the things of God, it was his work to awaken their interest, unsettle them from their complacency, and arouse in them enough good will to recognize and receive Christ when he came.

What is the significance of John the Baptist and his message for our lives? When God acts to save us he graciously fills us with his Holy Spirit and makes our faith come “alive” to his promises. Each and every day the Lord is ready to renew us in faith, hope, and love. Like John the Baptist, the Lord invites each of us to make our life a free-will offering to God. God wants to fill us with his glory all the days of our lives, from birth through death. Renew the offering of your life to God and give him thanks for his mercy and favor towards you.

“Lord Jesus, you bring hope and salvation to a world lost in sin, despair, and suffering. Let your grace refresh and restore your people today in the hope and joy of your great victory over sin and death.”

Psalm 139:1-3,13-15

1 O LORD, thou hast searched me and known me!
2 Thou knowest when I sit down and when I rise up; thou discernest my thoughts from afar.
3 Thou searchest out my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
13 For thou didst form my inward parts, thou didst knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise thee, for thou art fearful and wonderful. Wonderful are thy works!  Thou knowest me right well;
15 my frame was not hidden from thee, when I was being made in secret, intricately wrought in the depths of the earth.

---

Go to | Daily Reading & Meditation Index |
 (c) 2010 Don Schwager

The Ascension

I was looking at my calendar this morning and realized that today is the feast of Ascension, as observed by the Roman Catholic Church. The Ascension is one of the great feasts in the Christian liturgical calendar and commemorates the bodily Ascension of Jesus into heaven. Ascension Day is traditionally celebrated on a Thursday, the fortieth day from Easter day. However, some Roman Catholic provinces have moved the observance to the following Sunday. The feast is one of the ecumenical feasts (i.e., universally celebrated), ranking with the feasts of the Passion, of Easter and Pentecost.

I made use of the day by reading and thinking on the passages of scripture containing the account of Jesus ascension into heaven. They can be found in Luke 24, Mark 16, and in Acts 1. I invite you to read this passage and drink in the words. What must it have been like to witness such a miracle? What had the disciples thought about Jesus final commission? What did this all mean to His followers?

Acts 2:4-12

“And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the father, ‘which’, He said, ‘you have heard from Me: ‘for john baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him saying, ‘Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And he said to them “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you: and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, he was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw him go into heaven.” 

One of the things that really stuck out to me was the fact that the disciples “were watching” as Jesus ascended. And we know that when Christ returns, there will also be eye witnesses:

Revelation 1:7 “Behold He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.”

When Jesus is scrutinized before the Sanhedrin, He alluded to this inevitable event, by paraphrasing Daniel 7:13-14:

“I am. And you will see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”

I guess the point I’m trying to make, is that the ascension happened in the same way that the second coming will happen. I don’t have time, or urge to write in detail my eschatological opinion of the sequence of events around the second coming, but I want to emphasize that the Bible mentions it over and over. It is not a symbolic event, or a parabilic vision. It is a literal, event that will happen in human history. Basically, this is real folks!

May you be blessed on this Ascension Thursday! May you enjoy the friendship of the Holy Spirit today, and may you take comfort in the hope of Christ’s return.

shalom | pastor darrell

prize/price

 

There is a prize for being a Christian you know. It’s called the abundant life. In John 10:10, Jesus said:

 ”I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

You know this already. It cannot be denied that coming to Christ, is in one’s best interest. After all, it is a source of blessing, purpose, forgiveness, healing, knowledge, excitement, joy, and not to mention, eternal life! But to be Christian, there is also self-denial. Consecration, persecution, sacrifice, obedience, etc.

A friend of mine recently reminded me that Jesus, was acutely aware of this. I think of the passion week. I think of Gethsemane. Jesus had come to the end of three-year rabbinic career. He preached the gospel to crowds all over the country side, he saw people’s lives change. He performed miracles, and opened minds and hearts with his heavenly teaching. He made friends. He enjoyed hospitality and travel. But, now, he was experiencing such agony, and suffering, that His very body reeled under the weight of it. Darkness was closing in, and Jesus became graphically intent on what his whole mission was about. Jesus was aware of the “prize” of His mission: Encouraging heavy hearts, bringing healing to the sick, feeding the hungry, giving sight to the blind, casting out demons, preaching the gospel message. He had attracted quite a crowd. But, there was also a “price” to His mission. While He was living, many of His disciples were not aware of this price. The price, in Jesus case, was His very life. Hebrews 12:2 lets us in on this:

“Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of  our faith, who for the JOY set before Him, endured the cross, despising its shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

As ministers of the gospel, let us not be deceived into ignorant optimism. A friend of mine once said ‘salvation is a free gift that will cost you the rest of your life’.

Let us also not make the mistake of mis informing people to whom we minister that a life sold out for Jesus is strictly filled with candy and hugs and rainbows. Yes, there is a prize..life beyond your wildest dreams. But there is also, a price…..this price may differ for all of us. For only God in His wisdom knows what we can handle, and what He wants us to surrender to Him.

What has God-given you as a “prize” since you came to Him?

What is “price” he has asked you to pay?

shalom | pastor darrell

+

Jesus said some things on the cross that became known as the seven words.

 

1. “Father,  forgive them, they know not what they do.”
2. “This day you will be with me in paradise.”
3. “Woman, here is your son.”
4. “My God, why have you forsaken me?”
5. “I am thirsty.”
6. “It is finished.”
7. “Into your hands I commit my spirit.”

Allow me to paraphrase Huston Smith:

“Riveting and inspiring as these phrases are, they are not the final word. The word of the cross is more elaborate and compelling than the words Jesus spoke from the cross. If we try to articulate what the cross itself says, it is something like this:

Still your tongue. Close your lips. In blunt parlance, shut up. Shut up and simply look. And as you look, remember that the agony I experienced during the three hours that I hung there was for your sake, to heal your transgressions.

Is there anything more I could have done to demonstrate how much I love you? If this doesn’t get through to you, there is nothing more I can do to make my point.”

selah/pastor Darrell 

 (some of this content is taken from Huston Smith’s book “The Soul Of Christianity”  http://www.amazon.com/Soul-Christianity-Restoring-Great-Tradition/dp/006079478X