Category: Encouragement

Pushing the Right Buttons

Hebrews 10:22-25; I Corinthians 12: 12-26

My son Andrew has always been pretty good at pushing buttons. He had a way, particularly as a toddler, of getting under his older brother’s skin.

After one particularly troublesome morning where two-year-old Andrew repeatedly pestered four-year-old Adam, we heard a muffled scream from the playroom. Andrew came around the corner crying. He declared with righteous indignation through incredulous tears, “Adam hit me back.” It was the “hit me back” part of that statement that had Robin and I fighting back the laughter. Adam had finally had enough, and our toddler had implicated himself in his own words.

The episode didn’t cure him of being that annoying little brother at times. In the honesty of days gone by, they both were pretty good about stirring each other up, one action invariably leading to retaliation until they both were in trouble.

I guess all little brothers or little sisters have that tendency. I was a middle child. I’d like to think I was different, but I suspect my older brother would disagree.

The truth is the selfishness that is natural for a young child, tends to stay with us as adults. We’re all pretty good about pushing buttons when we’re feeling neglected, hurt or out of sorts.

The writer of Hebrews seemed to recognize that most of us are button pushers. He offered some affirming words on the subject.

The writer of Hebrews is unknown. For lack of any other name and in an effort to keep my word count low, rather than always referring to the writer of Hebrews, I’ll call him Syntakti. It means author in Greek.

Whomever Syntakti is, he is one who speaks with the authority of one who knows and understands the teachings of Jesus. The theology of his message throughout Hebrews lines up well with everything that Jesus and his disciples taught. His practical application rivals that of Paul.

One of the main theological themes of Hebrews is that Jesus is greater…the greater priest than Israel’s high priest and the greater sacrifice than any gift man might present as an atonement offering.

Shortly after making his case that Jesus is the greater priest and sacrifice, Syntaki states there is no longer a need for sacrifices offered under the law because of the price Jesus paid in blood upon the cross. Since the final sacrifice has been made and the Jesus now stands as the “great priest over the house of God” (Hebrews 10:21), the author, Syntaki, offers instruction on how to practically persevere in the faith. One of the keys, he says, is to “push somebody’s buttons” (my words, not his)

Let’s read what he says.

“Let us draw near to God with a pure heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us with a guilty conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we possess, for he who promised is faithful.

“And, let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10:22-25)

Did you see it in verse 25? “Spur one another on…” Another translation says we should “Stimulate one another to love…” The author tells us to figure out how we can poke, prod and push one another toward love and good deeds. To push each other’s buttons so we learn to love each other and do the good work to which we have been called.

Our present context for “pushing buttons” is a negative one, falling more in line with the annoying little brother. We push until it triggers the explosive reaction we hoped to provoke. Syntakti encourages us to push the right buttons that spur one another or stimulate one another to do the things our great priest desires us to do.

If you’re anything like me, you don’t like to be pushed or prodded to do anything…even if it’s good for me or beneficial in some way. When someone pushes my buttons…even the good buttons…I tend to push back and do nothing or worse, do the exact opposite. The author shows us how to push in the right way.

Syntakti says before we push anyone’s buttons we must “draw near to God” with a pure heart and the full assurance that faith brings. It’s an idea that speaks to our confidence and trust in the greatness and “graceness” of our Father in heaven. Because we have in Jesus direct access to the Father, because we are beneficiaries of his amazing grace, we can go directly to him with our joys, concerns, sorrows and fears in absolute confidence and trust. We have that privilege because what we find in his word and what we see in his character is true. He is the same “yesterday, today and tomorrow.” Our life experiences prove it time and time again.

Drawing near to God speaks to our personal interaction with him. While we certainly draw near to him in corporate worship, we must also find intimacy with God through our private time with him. Bible study. Prayer. Listening. Walking with him every day. Paying attention to the Spirit’s leading. Such commitment cannot be a one-time thing.

The author also tells us to “hold unswervingly to the hope we possess” in Christ. Never let go of the hope we have in Christ. Why? Because he has proven himself faithful time and time again. Keep trusting in his faithfulness. Keeping a tight grip on the promises he has kept to us. His word reminds us of his constant, undivided love.

Holding without fail to our hope presents the idea of extreme focus on the things of God to the exclusion of the ways of the world. Unwavering trust when things are going well, knowing he will never ignore us. Unwavering trust in the most difficult times of life, knowing that he will never abandon us.

So, before we can push each other to do what God wants us to do, we have to have our hearts and mind in the right place. Only then can we “consider how to spur one another toward love and good deeds.” Without that foundation of faith governing our words and actions, we will almost invariably push the wrong buttons. At the very least, it will come across as a holier-than-thou attitude.

The word “consider” used in this passage means to “think carefully about…” “To figure things out…” “To be intentional” in thinking about new ways to encourage each other to live as we should. We are to light a fire under each other and push the buttons that will trigger the love within us and move toward doing good.

Syntakti knew his audience well. In the hindsight provided by the Spirit, I think he knew us pretty well, too.

Life was not easy for those first century readers. In many ways, it is no easier for us to live for Christ in our world today. The hardships they faced tempted them to drift away from the fellowship of believers. As the world discounts so much of what we hold dear, are we not also tempted to drift away?

Since the pandemic, the exodus from the church has had staggering implications on church attendance and ministry. Like those first century Christians, it seems we find it safer and easier to worship in isolation or not at all.

The author of Hebrews knows the danger of separating ourselves from the body of believers. He wants us to spur each other to love one another and to do the good work and ministry of the church. We can’t push the right buttons if we’re isolated at home. We can only encourage one another if we meet regularly together. If we join in corporate worship. If stand by each other in ministry.

Look again at verse 25.

“And, let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another.”

Here’s what I’ve found to be true in my personal experience. My best days of worship happen when someone pushes my buttons. The congregational and choral music inspires. The preaching challenges. The teaching makes me think. Someone uses the gifts God gave them to encourage me to keep living for Christ. To spur me on to love others more deeply. To push me to keep serving him. To prod me to keep meeting the needs of others.

I need that encouragement in my life as I suspect you do. I need them to push my buttons. It’s true that one can practice faith in isolation, but others miss out on your testimony and witness. If you are not “meeting together,” you’re depriving others of the gifts you bring to the table. You’re depriving them of the blessings you have to offer. If I’m not present, I’m depriving you of the blessings I have to offer.

In I Corinthian’s 12, Paul plants his tongue in his cheek and tells us how much we need each other.

Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a foot, I don’t belong to the body,” it would not be a reason to not belong to the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?…Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is part of it. ” (I Corinthians 12:15-17, 27)

The point of that humorous illustration is that God gifts us in unique ways to be a part of the body of believers. The kingdom of God only flourishes when every part of that body is present and working together.

If you’re an ear, I need you to be a great ear. If you’re a foot, put your best foot forward. By being who God called you to be, I am encouraged to use my God-given gifts in service to God and others. I am encouraged to love and do good deeds. And, maybe, just maybe, as I do those things, I am an encouragement to you.

My boys pushed a lot of buttons in their childhood and, especially during their teenage years. Even in those times, we knew they cared for each other. They did enjoy pushing those buttons, though.

However, in the years since, they’ve pushed the right buttons for each other. The deep love and friendship they have for one another stands in remarkable juxtaposition to the arguments of youth. They have been there for each other in some incredibly difficult times over and over again, encouraging one another, much to the delight of their parents.

I am grateful for all the people God placed in my life to push all the right buttons in me. You have spurred me to love more deeply and serve more intentionally.

Let me encourage you to draw nearer to God. To hold unswervingly to the hope in Christ that you possess. Then, let’s consider together ways that we can together push each other’s buttons so we can love with the love of Christ and do the good work he has called us to do.

Seems to be a good prayer for today.

Amen!

When Doubt Creeps In

Background Passage: Luke 7:18-28; John 16:33; and I Corinthians 15:58

Being discouraged is a common human experience. If you’re not discouraged now about something happening in your life, you haven’t lived long enough, or you’re exceptionally blessed. Truthfully, in my experience, if you’re not discouraged now, just hang on. You will be at some point. Our faith gets tested time and time again by life’s challenging circumstances.

Discouragement feeds off of itself as it drives us to do or not do things that make our situation worse, spiraling into doubt and despair. In the end, we grow frustrated about what has happened or fearful of what might happen.

Noted Christian theologian and author C. S. Lewis wrote The Screwtape Letters in 1942. Screwtape, a upper management demon offers advice to his nephew, a novice demon looking to work his way up in the devil’s kingdom. Screwtape shares his wisdom in a series of letters that offer keen insight into the human condition.

In one such letter, Screwtape advises his nephew to sew fear and discouragement into the hearts of those who follow God, whom he called their Enemy. Screwtape writes, “We want him (the human) to be in the maximum uncertainty, so that his mind will be filled with contradictory pictures of the future, everyone one of which arouses hope or fear. There is nothing like suspense and anxiety for barricading a human’s mind against the Enemy. The Enemy wants men to be concerned with how they live. Our business is to keep them thinking about what will happen to them.”

If we enter our relationship with Christ expecting a trouble-free life, discouragement is a given. At some point, we will worry about what will happen to us. Jesus warns us that our time on earth will have “many trials and sorrows.” He doesn’t leave us there, however. He adds, “Take heart because I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) Experiencing discouragement and doubt in troubled times is a natural response when answers don’t come quickly or when the answer is not what we expected or wanted.

You can read passage after passage in scripture about exceptional men and women of faith who grew discouraged at what life threw at them. This week I came across a passage in Luke that I’ve read but not considered deeply. In this passage, John the Baptist’s experience provides a fresh take on how we are to respond to doubts that creep in from time to time.

Can you imagine any time that John the Baptist, that fiery, locust-eating preacher and prophet, would be discouraged and filled with doubt? Here’s a guy about whom Jesus offered high praise. Talking to a crowd about John the Baptist, Jesus said,

“What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear expensive clothe and indulge in luxury are in palaces. But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written: “I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.” I tell you, among those born of women there is not one greater than John…” (Luke 7:24b-28)

To Jesus, John was rock solid, called by God to set the stage for the final act of God’s redemptive plan. Let’s think about John the Baptist. (To make it less cumbersome, I’ll just call him John from now on.)

Jesus and john were kinfolk. John was born to Zachariah and Elizabeth, Mary’s relative, just months before Jesus was born. It is John whom the spirit made jump for joy while still in his mother’s womb as Mary told Elizabeth about the things God told her about her own baby. He’s safe in the womb and John’s already “preparing the way of the Lord.”

Since they lived in different towns, I doubt that Jesus and John were everyday playmates as children, but I can certainly see them playing together as children when the families gathered. I can imagine John and Jesus having some interesting conversations about life and faith as they grew to be teenagers. I can certainly hear the deeper and more substantial theological conversations as they stood on the threshold of their respective ministries.

This is the same John to whom Jesus came when he felt the need to be baptized in the Jordan River. Hear John make this strong declaration about Jesus in the moment.

“Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!…I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.” (John 1:29,34)

It is John who stood waist deep in the Jordan with Jesus, hearing the voice of God declare,

“This is my Son, the one I love. I am very pleased with him.” (Matthew 3:16-17)

If anything could cement his faith and trust in Jesus, that should be it.

It was John whose strong preaching called for repentance, urging God’s people to turn back to him. It was John who told his disciples that Jesus must increase while he (John) must decrease. It was John who chastised the rich and powerful for ignoring God’s word. It was John who was unafraid to call sin a sin, even if it meant confronting Herod, the most powerful man in Judea.

Still, as solidly as John was grounded in his faith and belief, he had a moment of doubt and despair when his life took that unexpected twist.

After calling out Herod for committing adultery with his brother’s wife, the despot had enough. Herod arrested John, shackled him and tossed him into a small, dark cell, until the king’s new wife and step-daughter conspired to have John beheaded.

While languishing in prison, John heard from some of his disciples of Jesus’ growing popularity. They told him about Jesus healing the son of a Roman centurion and raising from the dead a widow’s only son. Here’s how Luke tells the story.

“John’s disciples told him about all these things. Calling two of them, he sent them to the Lord to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” When the men came to Jesus they said, “John the Baptist sent us to you to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”

“At that very time Jesus cured many who had disease, sickness and evil spirits, and gave sight to many who were blind. So he replied to the messengers, “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” (Luke 7:18-23)

Did you hear John’s question? “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” John earlier declared Jesus “God’s Chosen One.” He already testified that Jesus was the Messiah. What caused his apparent change of heart?

I think the reason for his question was personal. John had done the right thing…always. He had dotted all the i’s and crossed all the t’s just as God led him to do, but he still found himself in prison with no way out. John could no longer do what he felt called to do.

This prophet of God faced a death sentence because he proclaimed what he thought was God’s truth. He wanted and needed to know his suffering was worth it. In his mind, everything he did that brought him to this dark place seemed in vain. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Screwtape was whispering lies that led to discouragement, doubt and despair.

It wasn’t supposed to end like this. He was supposed to see God’s kingdom restored. He sure didn’t expect to be locked away in prison while Jesus took what seemed to be a less aggressive and less controversial path.

John’s question is one I’ve asked many times when life took its unexpected and nasty twist or when I’ve been confused and confronted with the will of God that runs counter to my own desire. Is Jesus really the one? Is Jesus who I believed him to be? Do I really trust him with my life even in the middle of this mess I’m in?

When struggling with questions of life and faith, most of us don’t go to Jesus…at least not at first. We don’t go to the source of life. We like to wallow in our misery for a bit.

Yet, in his most troubled moment John, whether he knew it or not, teaches us a lesson about what to do when doubt creeps in. When his faith wavered, John did one thing right. In the middle of his despair, John took his doubts directly to Jesus.

John’s disciples posed the prophet’s question to Jesus. Jesus didn’t blink. He didn’t roll his eyes at John’s confusion. The scripture says, “At that very time Jesus cured many diseases, sicknesses and evil spirits…”

In other words, Jesus suggested, “Why don’t you guys just take a seat and watch for a while.” Then he went about doing what Jesus always did. He took care of the people he encountered. When he finished his work, he instructed those two disciples to go back and tell John what they had seen and heard.

That Jesus touched the lives of people was a clear message to John designed to reassure his downcast heart. The people to whom John had also preached were seeing God’s kingdom at work. More than that, however, the work Jesus did as those disciples watched matched specifically several Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah that John, in his wisdom, would know by heart.

When Jesus talked of making the blind see and the deaf hear, John could recall Isaiah 35:5. When Jesus spoke of sharing the good news to the poor, John would hear the echo of Isaiah 61:1. When Jesus talked about raising the dead, John could quote Isaiah 26:19. Each and every one prophesied about the coming Messiah.

You see, as John sat in the filth of that prison, he needed to be reminded of the servant Messiah’s true nature. Jesus loved and cared for the people and proclaimed the good news to them, building upon the repentance John preached. In all he did in that moment, coupled with the references to Old Testament prophecies, Jesus validated John’s good work of preparing the way for God’s anointed. Jesus was exactly who John thought he was. He did those things that John, in his heart, knew the Messiah was called to do.

In the prison of our discouragements, whatever they may be, we need to take our worries to Jesus. To find truth in the answers to all of life’s questions embedded in God’s word. To remind ourselves of all Jesus has done for us and for those around us. To see his work and the impact that work made in our lives and the lives of others. To have our lives, our faith and our work validated through the grace God offers to all of us. Going to Jesus in prayer and studying his word helps us see past the bars of whatever prison in which we we’ve locked ourselves.

At the end of his message to John, Jesus offered an encouraging and kind rebuke to his kin. He told those two disciples to tell John, “Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” Here’s what I think that meant to John, and, by extension, what I think it means to you and me.

Jesus says, “I’m the one. If you’re questioning that, don’t. Don’t look for anyone else. Just don’t lose faith just because I’m not doing things the way you think I should or because things aren’t going your way. Just be who you were called by God to be. Trust my will and my way.”

That’s the rub, isn’t it? In the middle of our discouragement and doubt, we want God to do things the way we think he should. Fit him into our Messianic mold. That’s never the right answer to the troubles that eat at our souls.

I keep going back to that verse in John where Jesus was trying to comfort his disciples at the reality of his sacrifice hit them square in the face.

“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have trouble. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

“Take heart. I have overcome the world.”

No matter what words old Screwtape is whispering in your ears, know this. With God’s victory guaranteed, no mess we find ourselves in can separate us from his love and grace.

In the middle of our discouragement, we can find peace and take heart in who he is and what he is doing in our lives. And if our prayers seem unanswered, if our lives have taken that unexpected turn as John’s did, we need only to take our fears to Jesus. He is the one. You don’t need to look for anyone or anything else.

“Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” I Corinthians 15:58)

I think John would say amen to that.

As Time Goes By

Background Passages: Psalm 90; Ephesians 5:15-20; Colossians 4:5-6 and Matthew 25:23

You must remember this.
A kiss is just a kiss,
A sigh is just a sigh,
The fundamental things apply,
As time goes by.

Written in 1931 by Herman Hupfeld, As Time Goes By leapt to fame when it was featured in the 1942 Warner Brothers film Casablanca, performed by Dooley Wilson as Sam. The popularity of the song through the years is in the way it evokes a strong feeling of nostalgia…of regret and remorse over opportunities missed.

We flipped the page to another calendar year last week. It seems natural that the dawning of a new year causes us to reflect on the past as we look with either expectation or dread to the coming year.

Time is a weird concept when you think about it. When asked by a report to explain his theory of relativity in simple terms, Albert Einstein only half-jokingly responded by saying, “The only reason for time is to keep everything from happening at once.”

Here’s what I know about time. One can have too much time or too little time. Sometimes, there is never enough time. The days can be the best of times or the worst of times. We can make time, waste time, take time and spend time. I know that time heals all wounds and that time is money. It can be his time, but not her time. Time flies and time stands still. None of that explains what we are to do with our time.

According to Hal Borland, noted author and journalist, “Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning, but a going on.”

As a younger man, the new year brought a sense of excitement, offering a fresh start. As I have lived out my 69 trips around the sun, the pragmatist in me tends to agree with Borland, a new year is simply “going on.” Just another day on the calendar.

American poet Mary Oliver appeals to the dream in me when she invites us into a new year. “Keep some room in your heart for the unimaginable.” In a way, that makes time a God thing…a gift that is more than simply “going on.” Each passing day gives way to the unimaginable presence and purpose of God in our lives. Time is a God thing.

Though the Bible never explicitly says that time is God’s gift, it certainly implies it. Genesis tells us God created the heavens and the earth in the darkness. As he hovered over the depths of the sea, he spoke time into existence.

“Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God call the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning…the first day…and God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:3-5, 9b)

Isn’t it interesting? God, who is “from everlasting to everlasting” (Psalm 90:2), had no need for the concept of time, but the finite beings he created would need to understand the limits placed on human existence.

“The length of our days is seventy years…or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their span is but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away.” (Psalm 90:10)

If that sounds too much like Borland’s rueful lament, we just need to keep reading God’s word to find Oliver’s unimaginable. Knowing that our time on earth has a beginning and end, the Psalmist goes on to say…

“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)

That’s an important point of a new year, don’t you think? To gain a heart of wisdom? It’s critical because there are some really unwise ways to live. I don’t even need to look at the lives of others to know that. All I have to do is look at some of the choices I’ve made in the last year.

A heart of wisdom tells me to not place my hopes and dreams, my identity or my worth on things that will pass away as time goes by. Rather, my hopes, dreams, identity and worth can only be found in my relationship with God who made me and sustains me. Because he is eternal and his promises to me are eternal I should live my life for him and trust the work he has given me. That’s why the Psalmist ends his song with this.

“May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands.” (Psalm 90:17)

Each new year is God’s gift of time, a not-so-subtle reminder that life is finite…too short…to make plans that ignore God’s plan and will for us…to ignore the work he has established for our hands to do. That lays a responsibility upon every believer to use the time we’ve been given wisely.

Because Paul understood this responsibility to live wisely, he told believers in Ephesians and Colossians to “redeem the time.”

Be very careful, then, how you live…not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity (redeem the time (KJV), because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is…speaking to one another with psalms, hymns and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 5:15-17, 19-20)

His message to the Colossian church hit a similar theme.

Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity (redeem the time (KJV)). Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. (Colossians 4:5-6)

To redeem is to buy back. To give back something in exchange for what we have already been given.

To redeem the time or make the most of every opportunity suggest that we pay God back for the time he gives us by worshipping him in heart and spirit, constantly thanking him for all he has done for us. We redeem the time or make the most of every opportunity by speaking words of grace to a lost world. Letting our words and our deeds be a testimony to the love and grace of God in our lives.

Perhaps, there is no greater testimony than the life described in Micah 6:8.

“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)

I wish I could look back on 2022 and say I lived those godly ideals every day. I suspect you’re no different. There is little we can do to change the past. There are, however, lessons to be learned from those experiences that guide us in the days to come.

Shauna Niequist is a Christian writer and author of Present Over Perfect. Her words may be the words we need to hear at the start of this new year.

“I used to think that the ability to turn back time would be the greatest possible gift, so I could undo all the things I wish I had not done. But grace is an even better gift because it allows me to do more than just erase the past; it allows me to become more than I was when I did those things. It’s forgiveness without forgetting, which is much sweeter than amnesia.”

Maybe Borland and Oliver were both right. The new year is a going on. It is also the doorway to the unimaginable. I know it is a new chance to redeem the time we’ve been given.

In the parable of the Talents, Jesus tells us that we are responsible for using what God has given us to bring him glory and honor. While he is not speaking specifically of time in the context of the parable, it does not take a great leap to see its application.

He tells the story of a rich man who has three servants. He gives each servant an amount of money (Talents) and asks each servant to be good stewards of what he has been given. The first servant is given five talents and uses it to produce five more. The second servant is given two talents and doubles his investment. The third servant, fearful of doing something that might displease the rich man, buried his talent. When he was called to account for what he was given, he dug up the coin and returned the single coin to his master.

The servant who hid the coin was scolded for his laziness. Those who made the most of their opportunity heard a different word.

“Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness.” (Matthew 25:23)

So as time goes by, let’s celebrate the amazing grace of God. Let’s redeem the time. Let’s make the most of every opportunity in the time we’ve been given to worship and serve the God who is worthy of our worship and service.

That’s my hope for my new year and my hope for you in the days to come. When we close the book on 2023, I hope we can all hear the voice of our timeless Father saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

That would truly be a Happy New Year.

Why a Baby?

Background Passages: Isaiah 7:14-16; Matthew 1::22-23; Hebrew 2:17-18

Why Bethlehem?

Why Mary? Why Joseph?

Over the past few weeks, I’ve read and read again the familiar Christmas story as recorded in Matthew and Luke. Why Bethlehem? Perhaps, the small Judean village was chosen to remind us that God can work in and through the insignificant to accomplish his purposes.

Why Mary? Why Joseph? Perhaps they were chosen to be the parents of Jesus because of their faith and willing hearts. They opened themselves to the possibility of being used by God, even when the task seemed unimaginable and overwhelming.

With Christmas upon us, we believe the creator of heaven and earth chose to reveal himself to his creation as an infant. It begs the question, “Why a baby?”

The Signatry, A Christian foundation based in Overland, Kansas, launched the He Gets Us media campaign in March 2022, to introduce Jesus to those struggling to understand that our Lord understands the struggles of life we all experience. You may have seen or heard the He Gets Us messages via TV, radio, digital ads, billboards and other social media platforms.

According to Signatry, the focus of the $100 million initiative stems from the “desire to see the Jesus of the Bible represented in today’s culture with the same relevance and impact he had 2,000 years ago.”

I don’t know how effective the campaign has been, but it creates a great starting point for a conversation that might answer our question, “Why a baby?”

God could have materialized fully grown, walking into Nazareth to set up a carpenter’s shop. He could have burst on the scene on the steps of the temple in Jerusalem, teaching a message of hope and grace. Jesus didn’t just transport down to earth from heaven. Why a baby?

Once you get past the immaculate conception, the birth of Jesus wasn’t much different from what I observed when my own children were born. Trade our sterilized environment with the sights and smells of an unsanitary cave turned stable…trade a doctor and a bevy of nurses for a last-minute midwife…now the birth of Jesus appeared as normal as any other, except to two people.

I imagine Joseph and Mary stared at the child who came to them in Bethlehem. Their insight into the nature of the swaddled child derived from an angel’s personal message delivered nine months earlier. Cradled in Mary’s arms rested a baby proclaimed by a host of heavenly angels and celebrated by a herd of smelly shepherds.

There in the light of the stars was the Messiah, the subject of prophecies, poems, songs, hopes and dreams of a people to whom God promised his presence. The lump in their throats must have been the size of an apple every time they thought of its implications.

With a nation’s expectations already on his shoulders, it had to be hard for Mary and Joseph to imagine such magnificence when they changed his soiled clothes or listened to his hungry cries. Reality stared them in the face with the unfocused eyes of a newborn.

I admit it. I will never be able to explain how Jesus was fully human and fully divine…simultaneously. Human in every aspect. God in every way. The Apostle John heard it from the source and believed. He tells us at the start of his gospel…

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God from the beginning…The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” (John 1:1, 14)

I accept that Jesus was wholly God and completely human simply on faith.

That God incarnate would come to earth as a baby was a part of God’s plan from the beginning. When God chastised the serpent for leading Adam and Eve to sin, he said, “I will put enmity between you and the woman. And between your offspring and her offspring, he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:15)

God also promised Abraham and David that the Messiah would come from their descendants. In explaining the birth of the Christ child, Matthew makes it a matter of fulfilled prophecy when he quotes Isaiah 7:14-16 in his introduction to his gospel. The passage gives us insight into why God chose to send his son as an infant.

“Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin shall conceive and bear a son and will call him Immanuel. He will be eating curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right.”

The first hint I find is in his name. Immanuel, which Matthew tells us means, “God with us.” Those of us who profess a belief and trust in Jesus know that he is with us, every day, walking with us through the good and bad times of life. But, I wonder if the translation is simpler than that. God is with us. Looking on his life, we know that Jesus experienced life just as we do. He lived it in every way we live it.

Could Immanuel also mean that God is with us…on our side…that he gets us, as Signatry says, because he knows how difficult it is to live life in the face of temptation, heartache and pain. He knew joy and sorrow. Tears and laughter. He dealt with all of it.

Jesus came to us as a baby so he could grow up just like we grow up. So, he could identify with us. Look at Isaiah’s words again. He will be eating curds and honey until he knows enough to discern good from evil. He’ll eat the pablum of childhood until he reaches the age of accountability for his actions. From that point on, Jesus had to choose right from wrong, just as we do. Because he faced those same dilemmas, he can identify with our struggles.

A 12-year-old Jesus astounded the teachers of the law in the temple until Mary and Joseph had to pull him away. But, even then, scripture tells us that Jesus grew in wisdom and stature. It’s comforting to me that as a 12-year-old, Jesus didn’t have all the answers. Like us, he kept increasing in knowledge and understanding of all facets of life.

You see, Jesus had to come as a baby so he could grow up just like us…to become like us…with a full human inclination to go his own way, to fully experience and understand our weaknesses. To live life wrapped in our skin and still not sin. That’s the only way his sacrifice on the cross would make any sense.

“He had to be made like his brothers in every respect so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” (Hebrews 2:17-18)

Because he dealt perfectly with his temptations as a human being, he can, through his spirit, help us when we are tempted. Only by being flesh and blood could he gain victory over death, opening the doors to eternal life for those who will accept him as Savior and Lord.

Could we follow his footsteps as a man if he had not crawled as an infant? Could we believe he suffered through every temptation we have faced if he had bypassed the struggle to earn adulthood?

Dr. David Jeremiah wrote an article years ago from Crosswalk.com about Jesus coming as a baby. He said, “To make the full sacrifice on our behalf Jesus had to make the full commitment. It would have meant little to us if he had sprung from heaven fully formed, bathed in heavenly glory, saying, ‘Here are my hands and feet. Place me upon the cross, for I am willing to die.’”

Instead, we get to see the child in the manger. The boy in the temple. The carpenter at a wedding in Cana. We see him react to the jealous whispers of the Pharisees and the disbelief of his own brothers. We see him hug the children as he blessed them. We see him unafraid to touch a leper. We see him asking probing questions to a misguided woman at a Samaritan well. We watch amazed has he feeds a multitude. We hear him cry outside the tomb of a dear friend. Above all, we see him love.

In Jesus we see the perfect example of how to love and care for a world lost in its own sin. Because he is Immanuel, God with us, we see in him how we are to live and love. In this baby, we see one who later became a quiet servant of God who began a ministry that would change the course of human history. We see one who changed the lives of all who believed in him.

While the divine Jesus showed us the way to eternal life by dying, his human side showed us all that pleases God by living. He is the example of what it means to live a Christ-like life.

My uncle Les is a retired minister who still writes devotionals from his heart. In a completely uncoordinated effort with mine, the devotional he posted today asked the same question, “Why a baby?”

“I read the story of Jesus’ birth again, and a lovely little grin comes to my face, and a sweet, sentimental feeling overcomes me. Still, I wonder, why a baby? Could it be that since Jesus’ calling was to teach us how to be human and not gods, God’s perfect move was to start at the beginning.”

That’s probably it in a nutshell. He came as a baby. He grew and conquered every challenge so common to all of us so we could see how it is done. The perfect example of what it means to be human in the way God created us to be human.

So, let’s celebrate that this Christmas. Then, we can enter the new year resolved to follow in his footsteps.

Merry Christmas, y’all!

Why Bethlehem?

Background Passages: Micah 5:2-4; John 6:25-36

You’ll hear it repeatedly in the weeks leading up to Christmas. One of the most cherished of all Christmas songs, will be sung by congregations and children’s choirs around the world.

“Oh, little town of Bethlehem,
How still we see thee lie,
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by,
Yet in the dark streets shineth
The everlasting light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight.”

It will be sung as a song of praise and celebration.

In his book Lifestories, Mark Hall, singer and songwriter for Casting Crowns, said he spent nine years trying to compose a new arrangement of Oh, Little Town of Bethlehem.

“I set out to use the hymn’s original lyrics but to spin them into my own version with different chords…I was playing with some chords and realized halfway through the first verse that I was 27 years old and had been singing the song since I was a kid without grasping its meaning.

“Halfway through the first verse, the whole point of the song hit me. They missed it! Bethlehem missed it. They never knew what happened. They had no idea the Messiah, the savior of the world, had fulfilled the prophecy of Micah 5:2 and was sleeping in a feeding trough in their very village.” Said Hall, “They slept through the whole thing.”

Look at the new lyrics written by Hall.

Oh, little town of Bethlehem,
Looks like another silent night.
Above your deep and dreamless sleep
A giant star lights up the sky.
And while you’re lying in the dark,
There shines an everlasting light.
For the King has left his throne
And is sleeping in a manger tonight.

Oh, Bethlehem, what you have missed while you were sleeping,
For God became a man
And stepped into your world today.
Oh Bethlehem, you will go down in history
As a city with no room for its king.

It’s a poignant song. Hall suggests that Bethlehem had no clue what God had done among them that night. Given the continued obscurity it experienced during Jesus’ ministry, he may not be far from the truth. After hearing his interpretation of the song, I could not help but think why would God begin his redemptive work in a village that seemed so unaware?

Why Bethlehem?

I have read enough scripture and experienced enough of God’s amazing work in my own life to know that nothing God does is happenstance. Bethlehem wasn’t chosen by a blindfolded creator who, after the angels spun him around, tossed a heavenly dart at the earth only to have it land in a little-known Judean village. God chose Bethlehem for a purpose. So…

Why Bethlehem?

It would be true, but simplistic, to say that God chose Bethlehem to fulfill a prophecy given to Micah 750 years before Jesus was born.

“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet, out of you will come for me one whose origins are from the distant past…And he will stand to lead his flock with the Lord’s strength, in the majesty of the name of the Lord, your God…And he will be the source of peace.” (Micah 5:2, 4)

I think there’s more to it than that. To call it just a fulfilled prophecy removes from the equation the genius of God as a storyteller and communicator. Throughout history God uses imagery to convey his truths. Metaphors. Parables. It’s not a stretch to think he chose Bethlehem specifically so he could point people to Jesus.

Knowing how he wanted the story to end, God did what any great author does when writing a compelling narrative. He dropped clues along the way. He chose Bethlehem to make a point you and I needed to remember every Christmas.

Beth in the Hebrew language means house of. Le’chem is the word for bread. Beth le’chem. Bethlehem…House of Bread.

Bread was survival to ordinary people of the first century. As the main source of nourishment, bread meant life. Priests used bread in Temple worship. It symbolized God’s provision to the Israelites by sending manna after their escape from Egypt and throughout their wilderness years. A gift of bread laid on the altar indicated that God alone was their provider. Their sustainer.

Jesus fed multitudes of people by breaking bread and sharing it with them, letting them eat until they had their fill with many loaves left over. The next day, the crowd found him again on the other side of the Sea of Galilee and they had some questions. Jesus answered them.

“I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.”

“What signs will you do? Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert…”

Jesus answered them, “I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread of heaven, but it is my father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who come down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

“’Sir, they replied, from now on, give us this bread.”

Then, Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe.” (John 6:25-36)

Why Bethlehem?

Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the house of bread, to remind us that he is our bread of life. He was born in Bethlehem to be our provider. Our sustainer. Jesus was born in Bethlehem to offer himself to the world as bread that never spoils. Bread that brings eternal life.

Why Bethlehem?

Another reason he chose Bethlehem can be found in that prophetic word from Micah. Let’s look at it again.

“But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet, out of you will come for me one whose origins are from the distant past…And he will stand to lead his flock with the Lord’s strength, in the majesty of the name of the Lord, your God…And he will be the source of peace.” (Micah 5:2, 4)

From the small, quiet and out of the way village, God did a mighty thing. He chose the insignificant to do something that would change the course of history and eternity, bringing his peace to his creation.

Maybe you and I are Bethlehem in that way. God doesn’t need the grand or the grandiose to change the world. He can use the most insignificant among us to point a world to Jesus. To share the bread of life. To be his voice, his hands, his heart in a world that has lost its way.

Why Bethlehem?

God chose Bethlehem to remind us that Jesus is the bread of life. Our provider and our sustainer. He chose Bethlehem to show us that he can use the lowest among us to point the way to the Most High.

Here’s the catch. Here is where we are too often most like Bethlehem. Bethlehem missed a heavenly opportunity. While the angels proclaimed the glory of God in the form of the child he sent to be the salvation of the world, Bethlehem slept right through it. Bethlehem made no room in their hearts for the savior. Mark Hall alludes to it in the final verse of his song.

Mary shivers in the cold, trying to keep the savior warm.
Born among the animals and wrapped in dirty rags because
there was no room for him
in the world he came to save.

Oh, Bethlehem, what you have missed while you were sleeping,
For God became a man
And stepped into your world today.
Oh Bethlehem, you will go down in history
As a city with no room for its king.

Why Bethlehem?

Maybe God chose Bethlehem to remind us that he chose to reveal himself to us. Maybe he chose Bethlehem to remind us that we cannot be sleeping and miss the opportunity to see God at work through Christ. To be Christ at work through that which he has called us to do.

The only way I can do that is to make room for my King…every day…every hour…every minute. I cannot be caught sleeping.

**********

Author’s Note: My church, South Main Baptist Church in Pasadena, hosts A South Main Bethlehem each year. This interactive experience allows you to experience life in the first century as you walk the streets of Bethlehem. Before you leave the village, the Nativity Scene will remind you of the true meaning of Christmas. The event will be from 5:00-8:30 p.m. December 9-11. Come and enjoy the experience. Let it remind you to make room for the King.

I Am That I Am

Background Passages: Exodus 3:1-14, John 8:48-58; Jeremiah 29:11

While exchanging the propane tank for my grill this week, I passed a slightly pudgy man about my age wearing a t-shirt that read, “I YAM WHAT I YAM!” I was instantly transported back to my childhood and my old friend, Popeye, one of my favorite cartoons. Those grainy black and white cartoons that I watched every Saturday morning on that old console television set entertained me.

“I’m strong to the finish ‘cause I eats me spinach…” I bet most of you are singing the song in your head even as you read this.

It’s amazing to me that the old man’s t-shirt bearing Popeye’s famous catchphrase prompted such a warm and vivid memory. “I YAM WHAT I YAM!”

I recall giggling a bit while sitting a Sunday School class long ago as the teacher taught about Moses and the burning bush. I heard the words of Exodus 3:14 and immediately pictured God with bulging biceps and a corncob pipe declaring to Moses in that graveled, mumbled, Popeye voice “I AM THAT I AM,”

It’s funny how God uses everyday encounters to prompt a deeper study of his word. I came home after reading that t-shirt, pulled out my Bible and looked again at a familiar story you know well, I’m sure.

Moses’ abrupt and harrowing escape from Egypt took him as far from Pharaoh as he could reasonably get. The journey of about 300 miles brought him to Midian, a semi-arid region across the Sinai Peninsula on the far side of what we know today as the Gulf of Aqaba.

After marrying into a priestly family, Moses settled into the life of a shepherd. While tending the flock on the side of Mount Horeb, Moses caught a glimpse of a fire in the nearby brush. Instantly wary of any kind of brush fire, Moses approached only to see that the bush was aflame, but it was not being burned.

God called to Moses from within the fiery bush, warning him to draw no closer and remove his sandals for he was standing on holy ground.

“Then, God said, ‘I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.’”

Frightened beyond understanding, Moses trembled and turned away from the bush, fearful of catching a glimpse of God, because to do so in the Hebrew culture of the day was to invite death. God continued to speak. In the course of what had to be an unnerving conversation, God called Moses to be his ambassador to Egypt. To demand that Pharaoh release the Hebrew people from slavery and let them return to the Promised Land.

Moses argued against his assignment. “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

When God countered with the promise of his presence. Moses tossed in a new objection.

“Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ What shall I tell them?”

“God said to Moses, ‘I AM THAT I AM.’ This is what you are to say to the Israelites; ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3:11-14)

The burning bush always intrigued me less than the cryptic response from God when Moses asked for greater clarity.

“I AM WHO I AM…Tell them ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

Up to that point in scripture and following, God’s name had been a description. The God of our Fathers. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Even the names the Hebrew people used for God were descriptive. Elohim would be the “God of creation.” El Shaddai, “the powerful one who provides blessing and fruitfulness.”

Yet, when Moses asked his name, biblical scholars say God chose “ehyeh asher ehyeh”… I AM THAT I AM. The best meaning, according to some Hebrew scholars, suggests self-existence…having no beginning, no end. The phrase implies eternality and immutability…forever unchanged and unchanging. It is a phrase that speaks to God’s very nature. A footnote in my New International Version of the Old Testament translates the phrase, I will be that I will be.

That phrase alone, though doesn’t convey the simple complexity of I AM. I AM expresses an existence unto itself. He simply IS. A holy being beyond what our finite mind can fully grasp or understand.

As Christians, we strive to learn more about him through his word and the revealed presence of Jesus Christ. As great as that is, as long as we’re hear on earth, what we understand will always be infinitely less than who he really is. God, the I AM THAT I AM, then, is a term given for our practical benefit, but not for our ability to fully comprehend.”

One explanation I read in my study said the Hebrew name of God in scripture could be translated as he who becomes or the becoming one. When God needed to reassure Moses and all of Israel that he would become what they needed him to be, he used the phrase “I AM THAT I AM” to reveal to Moses a promise and a pledge found in his very name.

According to this thought, God said, “I can become whatever you need me to become.” So, as the Hebrew people cried out day and night for a deliverer. God told Moses “I will do that. I will become what you need whenever you need me. I will be your deliverer.”

As I think about how God worked in the lives of his people throughout the Old Testament, it’s a true statement. He was everything his people needed just when they needed him most.

To Job…A Redeemer (Job 19:25)

To David…The Rock of My Salvation (2 Samuel 22:47) and My Shepherd (Psalm 23:1)

To the writer of Proverbs…A Strong Tower (Proverbs 18:10)

To Isaiah…A Sanctuary and The Everlasting Father (Isaiah 8:14 and 9:6)

To Ezekiel…The Lord Who Is Always There (Ezekiel 48:35)

To Jeremiah…The Lord Who Is Righteous (Jeremiah 23:5-6)

He is all of these and so much more even as we live and speak his name today. I AM speaks clearly to the eternal and unchanging nature of God. What he was to these leaders among the Hebrew people, he remains also to us today. He is the I AM who was and has been ever the same.

The strength of the I AM statement translates equally well into the New Testament and the life of Jesus Christ. The very words of Jesus echo the words of his father in heaven and since Jesus tells us, “I and the father are one,” when Jesus tells us “I am,” it harkens back to the words of God to Moses.

In John 8:48-58, Jesus spoke to the religious leaders of his day who accused him of being demon-possessed.

“Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?”

Jesus responded by telling them they did not truly know God even though they claimed to be his people. That he came to bring glory to God and life to those who would trust in him and obey his word. Then, he invoked the name of Abraham whom they claimed as the father of their faith.

“Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.”

“You are not yet fifty years old,” the Jews said to him, “and you have seen Abraham!”

Jesus answered them, “I tell you the truth, before Abraham was born, I AM!”

Can’t you hear it? Just as those words surely echoed from the voice of God through a burning bush, when Jesus declared himself the I AM, it had to reverberate with the same power in the hearts of all who heard. In that I AM statement, Jesus identified himself as the God incarnate.

The stained-glass windows of our church depict the seven I AM statements of Jesus recorded throughout the Book of John. In those I AM statements, Jesus claimed the characteristics of God. To the disciples of the first century, steeped in Jewish tradition, the linkage would be far clearer than it is to us today.

Jesus said, “I AM…

“…the bread of life.” God Incarnate, in Jesus, miraculously fed those who were physically hunger. As the bread of life, he is our provision, but not just for the physical things we need to survive, but for the spiritual sustenance that satisfies our deeper longing for a relationship with the God who loves us enough to die for our sin. Those who trust in Jesus have bread that leads to life eternal.

“…the light of the world.” Our world is darkened by sin. It casts its shadow over all of us. In contrast to that darkness, Jesus is the light that prevents darkness from controlling our lives. His light guides down the path he wants us to walk and illuminates his will and direction for our lives.

“…the door (shepherd’s gate).” In Jesus’ day, a shepherd would end his day by gathering his flock into a rock enclosure for the evening, positioning himself at the entrance so they could not wander. Ever vigilant so nothing could threaten them. He was their protector and their salvation. Jesus guards us as a shepherd guards his flock. He offers salvation and protection to all who trust in him.

“…the good shepherd.” Shepherds hired by the owner of a flock of sheep might run at the first sight of danger, leaving the flock defenseless against the threat. Jesus is the good shepherd. The one who stands his ground, willing to sacrifice himself to protect his sheep. He is our salvation.

“…the resurrection and life.” His death and resurrection are the keys to our victory over death and our hope for eternal life. The ultimate statement of biblical hope…that which is not wishful thinking, but a confidence in the truth of Christ. When we accept that Jesus conquered death on our behalf, death no longer has a grip on us. We are free of its sting. Life eternal awaits.

“…the way, the truth and the life.” It has become politically correct to think there are multiple paths to heaven. Jesus declared clearly that no one come to the father except through him (Jesus). He is the path that leads to God’s grace. Obedience and good works are simply not enough. His word is always true and never falters or misleads. He is the source of life abundant to all who believe.

“…the true vine.” He is the sustaining power of our lives. He is our spiritual nourishment. We are to use the nourishment he provides to bear fruit, to produce in us and others a life reflective of God’s grace. As the true vine, he is the reason and power behind our ability to bear the fruit as we do his good work.

So, here’s the thing. The writer of Hebrews later proclaims that God is “the same yesterday, today and forever.” The I AM of the Old Testament is the same I AM of the New Testament. Jesus is the self-existent, eternal, unchanging I AM who died on a cross a sacrifice for the sins of the world and resurrected to live in spirit with us to this day…becoming exactly what we need right when we need him most.

What do you need the I AM to be in your life right now? Provider? Comforter? Fortress? Shepherd? Rock? Light? Salvation? Whatever it is, he is ready to bless us with the full measure of his grace. When we give ourselves completely to the I AM, he promises his presence. He promises to be what we need him to be as he molds us into what he needs us to be.

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11)

It’s a promise you and I can claim. It’s right there in his name.

He’ll Leave the Light On For You

Background Passages: Revelation 3:7-12, Isaiah 22:17, Matthew 23:13, John 10:7-10

Holiday Inn-Express is our hotel of choice when we’re traveling in the United States. We’ve stayed in that chain often enough that we generally know what we’re going to get when we arrive.

These smaller, convenience hotels began to spring up about 15 years ago. Now, if one opens in your area, you can almost be assured others will build within a three-block radius.

As one with a background in advertising, I know you measure the effectiveness of an ad campaign by sales and market position. While they didn’t sway me, I always enjoyed the Motel 6 ads.

Motel 6 is a motel franchise with over 1,000 locations that started in Santa Barbara, California, in 1962 as a lower cost alternative to Holiday Inn. Motel 6 may be best known for its series of commercials that aired beginning in the mid-1980s. I’m sure you remember them.

The motel chain hired National Public Radio personality Tom Bodet to read the commercial script because of his warm and friendly vocal style. When he made the first commercial, Bodet extolled the virtues of the motel’s hospitality and warmth. Then, he ad-libbed and unscripted line, “We’ll leave the light on for you.”

The slogan was an instant and lasting success, winning the grand prize at the Radio Mercury Awards. More importantly to the franchise owners, it boosted sales and market share.

There was something comforting in the slogan. “We’ll leave the light on for you” reassured travelers that they would be welcomed and accepted. That there would be a room for them.

That’s one of the joys about being a Christian. When you put your faith and trust in Christ, you know where you’re going and you know Jesus will be there to welcome you. Still, it’s nice to hear a word of reassurance from time to time.

I’m near the end of my study of the seven churches to whom Jesus spoke in the second and third chapters of Revelation. The brief letter to the church at Philadelphia is all about reassurance. It’s as if Jesus is telling us, “We’ll leave the light on for you.”

It’s a good word to hear. Let’s look at the passage.

“These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. I know your deeds. See I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have but a little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of earth. I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. The one who is victorious will make a pillar in the temple of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God, and I will also write on them my new name.” (Revelation 3:7-12)

Philadelphia, founded in 150 B.C. by King Attallus of Pergamum, whose nickname was Philadelpius, meaning “lover of a brother.” The king was noted for his deep affection for his brother Eumenes. Oddly enough, driven by a king’s ego, he named the city after himself to honor his love for his brother.

The church in Philadelphia is a little unique from the seven churches because it is the only one for which the Lord levels no complaint. Despite some serious attacks from the local synagogue, they remained faithful.

The Jews from the “synagogue of Satan” made life miserable for the Christians in Philadelphia. The Jews in the city had unwittingly aligned themselves with Satan and had little use for this offshoot religion of the one they felt was a false Messiah.

The Jews claimed to be spiritual descendants of Abraham, worthy of the blessings of God, when they were only ethnic descendants. Their attitude toward the truth of God and his new revelation in Christ was far removed from Abraham’s unwavering faith.

The Jews had Moses and the Law. The Jews had David. The Jews had God’s promises. To the Jews, these Christians were unclean Gentiles, pretenders and corrupters of truth.

Undoubtedly, these Philadelphia Christians experienced the same personal and economic hardships inflicted upon them by the Jews as did other early congregations. They were ostracized from the community, pressured and slandered, and labeled as political enemies of Rome because they would not worship Caesar.

Despite the opposition they faced, they endured. Jesus praised them for their perseverance while acknowledging their situation. Look at his words.

“I know your deeds…I know you have but a little strength.”

Jesus was not condemning them for being weak in faith. He was proud of them for remaining faithful when they were almost powerless to do anything about the opposition that confronted them. Small in numbers and influence, they had little ability to counter the hostility they faced. No political leverage. No social standing. Everything was stacked against them, yet they endured it all without sacrificing their faith.

These Christians from Philadelphia were hammered day in and day out by the Jews saying they were God’s chosen people…That God loves the Jews and them only…That God has no place for those who profess a faith in Jesus.

Though they never denied their faith in Christ, don’t you imagine these early Christians needed to hear a word of reassurance?

“You have kept my word and not denied my name.”

Don’t we all hope Jesus could write those words about us? The Philadelphian Christians heard that word. It’s as if Jesus was whispering in their ears, “I know you. You made your reservation when you believed in me. And, even if you’re not sure right now, I know where you’re going. I’ll leave the light on for you.”

That’s what all that verbiage about holding the key of David and the open and shut doors means. Jesus reminds them that he is the fulfillment of prophecy. Isaiah 22:17 says,

“I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David. What he opens, no one can shut, and what he shuts, no one can open.”

During the first Jesus and his followers battled the Pharisees about the true faith. Jesus used a similar thought to condemn the Jewish religious leaders.

“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.” (Matthew 23:13)

The Pharisees acted as gatekeepers to God’s kingdom. While they would not allow others to enter the kingdom, they never walked through the door either.

Jesus called himself the door in the third of his “I am” statements in John.

“I am the door (gate) for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the door (gate); whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.” (John 10:7-10)

Jesus offers reassurance to the battered souls of Philadelphia. Jesus has the key to the house of David. He sits on the throne. When he opens a door neither the Jews nor Caesar can shut it. If Jesus shuts the door, neither the Jews nor Caesar can open it. Jesus tells them, “I know you don’t have the political clout to stop the harassment, but, in the end, I hold the key. I’m at the door.” They are powerless against him.

I’d like to say I’ve never needed to hear God’s calm reassurance in my own life. I’d like to say I’ve never had others throw up arguments against my faith that left me questioning my eternal destiny. I’d like to say that, but it would not be true. Those who argue against faith can be convincing at times.

When pressured by opposing forces to abandon our faith, when it feels we wield so little influence against those whose influence seems so powerful, our hope is that we would respond as the Christians in Philadelphia responded…by keeping his word with absolute obedience to the teachings of Christ and by never denying the name of Jesus.

Jesus holds the key and stands at the open door. Nothing man can do or say and no one with earthly power and influence can hinder those who believe from entering the kingdom of God. That’s a word of reassurance we all need to hear at times.

How do we feel that sense of reassurance when everyone else is telling us we’re wrong? Jesus told the Christians in Philadelphia and he tells us, I think, three things.

“Since you have patiently endured, I will keep you from the hour of trial…”

Trials will come. All of us get to experience them. When we keep his word and honor his name, when we persevere through tough times, God keeps those tough times from being worse than they could be. He walks beside us and with us. He protects us from some of the ugliness of life because our eyes are focused on him.

“I am coming soon. Hold fast to what you have so no one will take your crown…”

I’ve never worried too much about the second coming of Christ. He will come when he comes. In God’s eternal time frame “soon” is a relative term.

My task is to “hold fast.” To hang on to his teachings and live life accordingly. I am to be so grounded in his word that no one can persuade me to abandon my faith (take my crown).

“The one who is victorious will make a pillar in the temple of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God, and I will also write on them my new name.” (Revelation 3:7-12)

None of that makes as much sense in this context without knowing the whole of Revelation. Near the end of the book, John is sharing more of his vision of God’s kingdom as his temple and the New Jerusalem. It is a vision about being sealed within his protective care for all eternity. Jesus promised the church in Philadelphia. He promised us. Every believer has a home waiting for them. We are citizens of this heavenly city.

So, we find comfort when we endure the trials with him beside us. We find encouragement when we hang tough in the face of spiritual opposition. We find hope and reassurance when we understand that he has promised us a place in his kingdom.

When I read this passage in Revelation, that’s the line that kept jumping into my head. Jesus, speaking in that warm and friendly vocal style, reminds us that he his holding the door open. He praises the faithful for being obedient and never denying his name. Then, he urges all of us to hold on until he comes again, whenever that may be, with a simple reminder, “I’ll leave the light on for you.”

It is the promise that I know where I’m going. I know I’ll have a warm room waiting for me. I thank God I can see the light.

Beware the Slippery Slope

Background Passage: Revelation 2:12-17; John 6:48-50

I knew I was in trouble the minute I saw those Girl Scouts standing by the exit to Lowe’s. I just bought some random piece of hardware needed for a home project. As the glass doors slid open, I read the lips of the older one as she whispered to her friend, “Here’s an easy mark!” She had me pegged from the moment she saw me glance at the table.

“Could we interest you in some Thin Mints, Peanut Butter or Samoa cookies,” she asked as they launched into some pre-rehearsed sales pitch about the virtues of helping her troop get to some distant camp in Iowa. I held my palm up to silence them and reached for my wallet. “You had me at Thin Mints,” I replied as I bought three boxes.

Thin mints and orange juice. It just doesn’t get any more sinful than that.

Satan inspired Thin Mints, as devil disks designed to break one’s will to lose weight and live a healthier lifestyle. I buy them knowing I’m perched at the top of a slippery slope. Once I open that first sleeve…taste that perfect blend of minty freshness and chocolate covering infusing that delectable morsel of pure crunch…I kiss all restraint goodbye. One cookie leads to the whole sleeve. One sleeve leads to one box. It is a slippery slope.

I know eating that first Thin Mint has fewer consequences than other poor life choices I’ve made. It is, however, a nice metaphor for the allure and temptation of sin. Taking that first bite out of sin’s apple is a quick ticket out of the garden of grace. Rarely do I jump in to sin with both feet. More often than not I make a subtle compromise with sin that begins my slide down that slippery slope of disobedience. I think Jesus had this in mind when he spoke through John to the early church in Pergamum.

A slippery slope is an idea or course of action which will eventually lead to additional actions until some undesirable consequence inevitably follows. One domino falls causing another to fall and then another and then another.

John, in the Book of Revelation, heard the voice of Jesus sharing a word with seven churches in what is now modern-day Turkey. Though obedient in doing good, the church in Ephesus forgot their love of Christ and their love for one another. They acted out of a sense of obligation rather than love. In Smyrna, Jesus simply encouraged the church to persevere in the face of the coming persecution. To keep the faith despite the hostility around them.

The church in Pergamum found itself flirting with disaster, standing on a slippery slope of compromise…giving in to the subtle sins that opened the door to deeper depravity. The first domino had already fallen as a few had been led astray. One by one others believers succumbed to their influence.

“These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword. I know where you live—where Satan has his throne. Yet, you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in men, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in our city—where Satan lives.

“Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: You have people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and by committing sexual immorality. Likewise, you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.

“Repent, therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.

“He who has an ear to hear let him hear what the spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.” (Revelation 2:12-17)

Jesus introduced himself to this church as the one with a sharp, double-edged sword, presenting himself as qualified to serve as their judge and jury. The believers in Pergamum did so many things well, despite the harsh culture around them. Jesus praised them for being an oasis of faith surrounding by hostile desert. A light in a dark world.

An historic capital of Asia, Pergamum served as the intellectual center of the region, surpassed in influence only by Athens and Alexandria. The city stood as a religious center with temples, shrines and altars dedicated to Zeus and other Greek gods, including Asklepios, the god of healing. As a result of this particular god, one might consider Pergamum the Mayo Clinic of its day.

To make matters worse for the church, Pergamum embraced the idea of the imperial cult even before Rome did. Its citizens built the first temple to Caesar Augustus in AD 29, proclaiming him a living god. Pergamum became the birthplace of emperor worship. Failure to worship the emperor was a crime punishable by death. Antipas, one of the early church leaders in Pergamum, refused to bow before the emperor and was martyred for his faith.

“I know where you live,” Jesus said. He knew their circumstances. He knew they lived in the shadow of Satan’s throne. Jesus was empathetic to their situation. Temptations and pressure to sublimate their faith for the sake of self-preservation were intensely felt. Surely Antipas was not the sole believer killed by the emperor’s sense of self-importance. One must assume that other Christians lost their lives.

Their faithfulness unto death caught Jesus’ attention. You face death every day, he said, “Yet you remain true to my name.” Despite the ever-present danger to their lives, they would not forsake the name of Jesus.

What a spectacular testimony. Nothing could persuade them to renounce Jesus. Jesus lifted up the church in Pergamum for being faithful in that which mattered most. Sadly, the story doesn’t end there.

Despite their insistence on not bowing down to the emperor, some of them stood on that slippery slope. Some people in the church had, in fact, already taken the plunge. If you’ve just received a word of praise from heaven, the last word you want to hear next is “Nevertheless.” The tone of the passage changes dramatically from one of commendation to condemnation.

“Nevertheless, I have a few things against you.”

Though they were faithful in the big thing, they let the little things seduce them. Some of the folks could not stop at one Thin Mint. They ate one, then ate another and another.

Sin wraps itself in attractive packaging. Covers its hideousness. Disguises its affects. Surrounded by the allure of sin, some of the Christians at Pergamum yielded to temptation. Jesus’ reference to Balaam is an Old Testament Jewish moral tale warning against listening to the siren songs of those who would forget to whom they belonged. Scripture tells us Balaam found a way to seduce Israel away from God, not in some explosive act of disobedience, but by inching step by step toward disobedience until sin’s dominos started to fall one right after another.

In ancient Israel’s case they violated God’s laws by eating meat offered to idols and embraced the sexual immorality prevalent in their culture. I don’t know if these were the specific sins of the Pergamum Christians, but they began to be disobedient in the little things. They confessed a faith in Christ, but didn’t live like it on a daily basis.

In addition, some among the congregation In Pergamum fell victim to false teaching. The Nicolaitans taught a twisted distortion of the gospel. Subtle deviations from gospel that made disobedience permissible. What they practiced was what Dietrich Bonhoeffer called “cheap grace.” Grace that only emphasizes the good or easy parts of the gospel without the truth regarding the more difficult aspects of true discipleship.

Jesus reminded them there is only one solution to sin. He called these wayward Christians to repent. To turn away from the little things they’ve been doing wrong and get their life right with God. Get off that slippery slope and live again the life in Christ to which they had been called.

There are certainly times in my life where I feel like a citizen of Pergamum. To my recollection, I’ve never denied my relationship to Jesus. Never renounced my faith in him. Though challenged from time to time, I can say with Antipas, “He is my Lord.” I am faithful in the BIG thing.

Man, can I identify with those men and women in Pergamum who found themselves on the slippery slope to sin. It’s just so easy to take the first wrong step and find yourself on a path you never intended to take. What we focus on or fret over become or idols, substituting for our dependence on God. It feels easier to walk the well-travelled road of convenience than the narrow path of righteousness. Faith, we feel, just shouldn’t be this hard. So, we compromise. We give in.

Even a cursory look at the actions and beliefs of many Christians yields evidence that they swallowed the lies of the world hook, line and sinker. Sadly, every foray into the shadow is another step down a slippery slope that leads to additional actions until some undesirable consequence inevitably follows. I know. I’ve been there.

Jesus closed his letter to the church in Pergamum with a series of promises to those who overcome the slippery slope despite having to claw their way back up the muddy hillside into the arms of Jesus.

To those overcomers, he offers bread, a stone and a name. I love this metaphor as explained by a pastor friend of mine.

John likely remembered the conversation Jesus had with a crowd he had just miraculously fed. Awed by the miracle and wanting more, they followed Jesus around the Sea of Galilee asking for more. He told them this.

“I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. ” (John 6:48-50)

Jesus is the bread of life. The all-sustaining, eternal manna from heaven. In him we have all we need. We don’t need what the world offers.

He also offered a white stone. The meaning may be less clear, but most commentaries point to the judicial courts that may have handed a white stone to those declared innocent. Other scholars suggested that the white stone may have signified an invitation to a wedding.

Either idea fits within the context of this passage. God’s grace declares the repentant heart innocent of falling down that slippery slope, wiping the slate clean by the forgiveness purchased at the cross. It could be that those who repent find themselves invited again to the feast, to rejoice in a renewed relationship with Jesus.

I like that thought because the stone has my name written on it. It has your name written on it. When we present that stone to Jesus, he knows our name. It stands as a personal invitation to share an intimacy with Jesus that we might otherwise miss.

The symbolism is powerful. Eternal provision and divine satisfaction. A permanent transformation from guilt to innocence. Individual intimacy with the Father.

Those with an ear to hear are told to listen to what Jesus was telling the Christians in Pergamum. He calls us to stand firm. Most of us don’t struggle too much with the faith confession. We struggle with daily conduct, the seduction of compromise.

A look at the church in Pergamum begs the question. Are we also susceptible to the same spiritual schizophrenia? Willing to defend the faith, but failing to see the moral compromises we make?

Let’s pray it is not so. Put the Thin Mints away. Avoid the slippery slope.

To every overcomer, eat a little manna, take hold of that white stone with your name on it and accept the invitation to live in right relationship to the one who loves you so much that he gave his life to compensate for every time you skated that slippery slope.

When Suffering Comes

Background Passages: Revelation 2:8-11, Isaiah 43:2, John 16:33, I Peter 1:6-7

I leaned against the hoe at the end of a quarter-mile row of young cotton, fighting back a fit of anger. My Mom was already 30 feet down the four rows she was hoeing, doing what had to be done.

Dad was on the tractor, plowing a different section of the farm. My older brother stayed in the house that morning “suffering” from his convenient hay fever. My younger sister was given different, and by that I mean easier, chores that didn’t involve the tedium of the hoe.

I begged to stay home that morning using the strongest debate point I could muster, “It’s not fair.”

Rather than the customary sympathy I expected from my Mom, she chopped those weeds as she walked away and said with a shake of her head, “Get used to it.”

“It’s not fair.”

I smile inwardly now when I hear those words from my grandchildren. It’s a truth they must learn the hard way. As much as our culture would like it to be, life isn’t always fair. We should never stop trying to make it more so, but it will never be fair in all aspects.

Adults are not immune to the feeling. Our personal world caves in for one reason or another. A loved one gets sick or injured. A disheartening diagnosis comes our way. A promotion is handed to someone else. Your neighbor seems to live a charmed life where everything works out perfectly.

We may not voice it the same way we did as children, but we feel it. When the hard times come as they inevitably do and will—when we suffer–it’s difficult not to fall back on the pained and plaintive cry, “It’s not fair!”

Being Christian does not immunize us against difficult times. All of us face those deep trials eventually. Isaiah recognized the certainty of hardship and suffering. He also knew suffering could not defeat the faithful child of God if for no other reason than we will not make that journey alone.

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” (Isaiah 43:2)

Understanding that promise is what keeps the Christian from becoming a victim to the “life is not fair” culture. We can overcome life’s hardships because the one we trust also overcame.

“I have told you these things,” Jesus said, “so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But, take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

Long time pastor and author Ray Pritchard recalled preparing for a radio broadcast with Jim Warren on Moody Radio for Primetime America. As they discussed some recent heartbreak, Warren shared this thought. “When hard times come,” he said, “be a student, not a victim.”

Pritchard called it one of the most profound statements he ever heard. He said, “Some people go through life as professional victims, always talking about how they have been mistreated. But perpetual victimhood dooms you to a life of self-centered misery because you learn nothing from your trials.

“A victim says, ‘Why did this happen to me?’ A student says, ‘What can I learn from this?’

“A victim looks at everyone else and cries out, ‘Life isn’t fair.’ A student looks at life and says, ‘What happened to me could have happened to anyone.’

“A victim believes his hard times have come because God is trying to punish him. A student understands that God allows hard times to help him grow.”

I think the church at Smyrna would have understood this. Prior to Easter, my last Bible study focused on the word of God to the church at Ephesus. I mentioned at the time, that I would pick up with the messages to six other churches as found in the book of Revelation. We will focus this week on the Christian church in Smyrna. Though these seven churches are historic congregations, the message Jesus delivered to them through John remains relevant to Christians today.

Smyrna, located about 35 miles north of Ephesus on the Aegean Sea. shared a long and storied history that began as a successful Greek colony 1,000 years before Christ. Raided and razed by the Lydeans around 600 BC, Smyrna ceased to exist for the next 400 years, a pile of ruin and rubble. The city rose from its ashes around 200 BC, rebuilt as a planned community with beautifully paved streets and a perfectly protected harbor.

By the time John writes Revelation, Smyrna is a free city, committed with absolute fidelity to Rome. Cicero called it “one of our most faithful and most ancient allies.” It was the first city in the world to erect a temple to the spirit of Rome and the goddess, Roma. The Roman citizens within the city worshipped the emperor as a god and made worshipping any other deity a serious crime.

Jews earned an exception to the rule primarily by placating the Roman authorities and paying large tribute to the emperor to fund public works. The Jewish population grew increasingly hostile toward the Christians, fearing that they would lose their protected status and privileges.

Christians living in Smyrna suffered severe hardship because of their faith. Having none of the legal protections and refusing to call the emperor a god placed them at odds with Rome and with the Jews. The Christians in Smyrna chose not to bow down to the emperor despite the laws of the land. Rome typically ignored their insubordination in a sort of “don’t ask, don’t tell” approach.

In other words, they didn’t look for Christians to persecute, but would investigate if someone complained. Fearing for their favored status among the Romans, the Jews complained often. And, if they had nothing concrete to go on, they made things up.

When Rome was forced to investigate, Christians who refused to kneel before the emperor would be stripped of their possessions, banned from employment and, in some cases, put to death.

Yet, through their growing difficulties, they remained faithful disciples (students) of Jesus rather than victims to the mounting persecution and problems.

Read Jesus’ words to the “angels of the church in Smyrna:”

“These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.

“Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful even to the point of death and I will give you the crown of life. (Revelation 2:8-10)

What an encouragement these words must have been to a faithful church oppressed!

Jesus describes himself as the First and Last, as the one who died and is alive again. It is upon the foundation of Christ that the church is built. He was the First. Their cornerstone. Their foundation. He was the Last. The Judge. The one before whom all men must stand in judgment of their actions.

Surely, the church in Smyrna found courage and strength in knowing that, regardless of the pressure put upon them by Rome or the Jews, Jesus was their unshakable foundation. As the one who died and is alive again, Jesus proclaimed his powerful presence among them. He would judge those who persecuted them.

Despite their “afflictions and poverty,” Jesus considers them rich! Impoverished by the world’s standards, they lived in the abundance of God’s grace. As his children, they shared in the riches and glory of God’s kingdom.

Despite the dire circumstances, the church in Smyrna refused to give in. Despite their suffering, they persevered. While God found a flaw among most of the seven churches mentioned in Revelation, he could only commend Smyrna for their strength, courage and perseverance amid their troubles.

Jesus told them the suffering would continue. Persecution was inevitable. He told them they would be tried and tested for their faith. He reassured them that the trials and troubles would last only a little while compared to the eternity that awaited them.

So, in the face of hardship and difficulty, Jesus gave them two commands. “Do not be afraid,” he said, “Be faithful, even unto death.” In other words. Don’t worry about what’s happening in your life. Don’t worry about tomorrow. Remain faithful, even if it kills you.

To anyone of us who has experienced the tragedies of life, that’s a difficult pill to swallow. While we might adopt the “one day at a time” attitude just to get through the struggle, it seldom makes sense. I doubt the people in Smyrna understood any better than we do.

How could they not be afraid? Jesus told them early in this passage. “I too was persecuted. I was put to death. Yet, I am alive again.” In essence he told them whatever your suffering may be, remember I overcame death. If you persevere to the end, you will overcome all things. You will overcome death as well. The worst problems and afflictions in this life pale in comparison to the eternal glory which God shares with his people.

My life has been blessed by God. Most of the difficulties I have experienced have been self-imposed. My mistakes. My decisions. My fault. The sorrow and sadness I’ve felt, the pain and suffering that comes as an inevitable part of life has been temporary and intensely overshadowed by God’s blessings.

I also know difficult times are ahead. It is inevitable. I can either declare life unfair and call myself a victim or I can be a student of a persecuted Lord and Savior who endured the worst the world could offer on my behalf. I suspect you feel the same.

Jesus is our unshakable cornerstone and foundation. As a victor over persecution and death, he lives today. His presence in our lives through his Holy Spirit is real and powerful. His comfort flows freely to those who are frightened and hurting.

In the face of all that is unnerving and painful, he tells us the same thing he told the brothers and sisters in Smyrna. Do not be afraid. Don’t let the troubles of this world keep you from living a life of committed service to the one to whom you owe everything. Do not be afraid. Feel the presence of a risen Lord. Cling to the hope he brings.

Be faithful. Focus on that promise of eternal victory and not on the hardships ahead. Though the troubles may seem difficult and long-lasting, their duration is but a vanishing mist when compared to all eternity. Suffering is temporary. Faith is forever.

Jesus told the persecuted people of the church in Smyrna that those who overcome “will not be hurt at all by the second death.” (Revelation 2:11)

The second death. That’s what Jesus called spiritual separation from the father. God’s victory is final. That’s what I know. When the day of judgment comes and God separates the sheep from the goats, his sheep will not be hurt and will not suffer. Those who never trusted in his name will face a spiritual death that separates them from the goodness and grace of God forever.

Pritchard said, “A victim begs God to remove the problems of life so that he might be happy. A student (a disciple of Christ) has learned through the problems of life that God alone is the source of all true happiness.

That’s the true Christian outlook. We believe so much in the sovereignty of God that when hard times come, we know that God is at work for our good and his glory.

One final point, hardships don’t come because God needs to figure out who his true believers are using some spiritual obstacle course. Rather, our ability to endure and persevere because of our faith shines a light on God for the rest of the world to see. Through our pain we prove the true nature of our faith. Those on the outside looking in witness the power, the presence, the goodness and grace of our father in heaven.

“In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith…may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus is revealed.” (I Peter 1:6-7)

I read a quote this week from Caleb Suko, a pastor serving in Ukraine. I think he sums up well the message Jesus shared with the believers in Smyrna. It’s the same message we need to hear today.

Suko said, “If you have Christ then all your pain is temporary. If you don’t, then all your pleasure is temporary.”

As the song goes, “I’d rather have Jesus than anything this world affords today.”

 

By Our Love

Background Passages: John 13:31-35; I Corinthians 13:4-8, 13

As Christianity entered its second century, the faith was spreading throughout the Roman Empire, especially in some of the largest cities like Rome and Carthage in North Africa. Though spreading rapidly, Christians were still held in suspicion by neighbors and ruling officials because they had abandoned behaviors associated with the prior pagan lifestyles.

Confusion about Christian teachings and political rumors designed to discredit this new faith caused Tertullian, a church leader in Carthage, to write a document explaining Christian practices and debunking the rumors against them. Tertullian wrote that the Roman government was so unnerved by the growth of the Christian movement that they sent spies into Christian meetings.

The spies, according to Tertullian, reported the following:

“These Christians are very strange. They meet together in an empty room to worship. They do not have an image. They speak of one by the name of Jesus, who is absent, but whom they seem to be expecting at any time. And my, how they love Him and how they love one another.”

After reading this historical footnote this week, I found myself wondering what spies from our government would say about the church today? Would they make the same declaration?

“My, how they love him and how they love one another.”

*****

Jesus had just stunned his disciples by confirming a close betrayal. He then dismissed Judas from the upper room near the end of the Passover feast.

“What you are about to do, do quickly.”

As the door closed, a somber silence filled the room. Seeing the confusion and anxiety on the faces of those he hand-picked to carry on his work, Jesus began to teach his most important lesson.

“Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the son in himself, and will glorify him at once. My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now. Where I am going, you cannot come.

“A new command I give you. Love one another. As I have loved you so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, If you love one another.” (John 13:31-35)

What a defining moment! It’s as if Jesus took out his copy of the 10 Commandments and scratched a new word at the bottom of Moses’ list.

“A new command I give you.”

This was no subtle suggestion. No vague hint of something they might try. It was a God-given command written as indelibly on their hearts as the God-etched words inscribed on stone tablets.

“Love one another.”

The idea of loving others was not a new concept or even a new command. Recall the Pharisee who came to Jesus and asked him to identify the greatest and most important of Moses’ commandments.

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:29-31)

Jesus had taught his disciples to love God and to love others. In the hours before his death and his going to a place they “could not come,” Jesus knew they would need each other. He knew that in order to survive the persecution and scattering to come, his disciples and followers would need to love each other. Holding on to their fellow believers for support and aid.

“As I have loved you, love one another.”

How, then, did Jesus love them? How was he asking them to love each other?

Jesus’ love is sacrificial.

Just minutes prior to his declaration, Jesus demonstrated the kind of love they would need. As he took off his tunic, grabbed a bowl of water and a towel, Jesus took on the role of a servant to minister to their needs.

Christ washed the disciple’s feet, as a clear example of Christ’s humble, self-sacrificing love for them.

Then, just hours later, Jesus paid the ultimate price for his disciples and all humankind by dying on the cross for our sins. Jesus’ love for his disciples and for us was born of his humility and self-sacrifice.

What greater love can we learn than by following his example, as Paul proclaimed in Ephesians 5:2.

“Walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us, and gave himself up for us a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

Jesus’ love is forgiving.

The sacrificial love of Christ brought forgiveness of sin to all who would repent and receive his mercy and grace. Unmerited. Undeserved. Freely given.

If we love like Christ, we can forgive anything that anyone does to us. Nothing someone does to us is so heinous that we cannot forgive if we are acting with the same love with which Christ loved us.

I love this illustration from Baptist pastor and Christian author Wendell C. Hawley on forgiveness. He wrote about a group of Moravian missionaries who spent time among the Inuit tribes in Alaska. In attempting to explain the gospel, the missionaries found no word in the Inuit language for forgiveness. So, they invented one by combining words into “Issumagijoujungnainermik.”

This string of Inuit words strung together shares a beautiful expression of forgiveness that is roughly translated, “not-being-able-to-think-about-it-anymore.”

To love each other as Christ loves us means that the hurt and emotional pain caused by others must be set aside as meaningless. Forgive and forget. Love means not being able to think about it anymore.

“By this everyone will know you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Jesus’ love is evident to all.

This is exactly the distinguishing love that Tertullian spoke about. “My, how they love him and love one another.” Such real, self-sacrificing, and forgiving love ought to be the mark or brand of a Christian. So evident in our expression of love to one another that others cannot help but note the difference in our behavior and those of the world around us. Because of what God has done for each of us, his love ought to overflow our hearts, naturally expressed to one another. It must be a love deeply felt and plainly seen.

This love is an overflow of what God has done in our hearts. This is to be the distinguishing mark of Christ’s followers. All people will know those who follow Christ if true love is always displayed by Christians. You must be known by your Christ-like love for others.

If loving one another is a command, listen to how Paul says such love is best expressed.

“Love is patient. Love is kind. It does not envy. It does not boast. It is not proud. It does not dishonor others. It is not self-seeking. It is not easily angered. It keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails…And now, these three things remain: faith, hope and love. but the greatest of these is love.” (I Corinthians 13:4-8, 13)

One wonders what the world around us thinks when the church does not reflect those things even to other believers. What does the world think when we lose our patience with one another? When we get easily angered by our brothers and sisters? When the world sees us ticking off all the wrongs that have been done against us by a fellow church member?

What must the world think when love fails?

My church is studying a book by Russell Moore entitled Onward: Engaging the Culture Without Losing the Gospel. He begins with the premise that the United States is no longer a Christian nation to and think otherwise is burying our heads in the baptistry. Though we may have once lived in a world that believed the culture should conform to the church, we now live in a world that believes the church should conform to culture.

It makes me wonder if our culture looked at how we treat each other within the faith and decided it could do better without us? If believers in Christ chose to love each other every day as Christ loves us, would our witness in the world be stronger? Could we then engage our culture without compromising or losing the heart of the gospel?

I suspect it took only a few moments after Jesus’ death on the cross for his disciples to realize the truth of his words. Their ability to carry on his ministry and their hope for the days to come depended on their love for one another.

I don’t think it is much different today. Our ability to carry on his ministry today and our hope for the days to come depends on our willingness to love one another as Christ loves us.

“A new command I give you. Love one another. As I have loved you so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Let’s let the world know to whom we belong.

Let them say about us, “My, how they love him and how they love one another!”