Coffeecake

THE CHURCH TRIUMPHANT!

2011-12-21T08:21:00.000-06:00

Ephesians 3:14-15

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name.

. . . and from the Message:

My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth.

by Unknown

For this reason, I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles -- (vs 1) . . . kneel (vs 14). Paul responds to the knowledge of God's unfathomable love for people (Jewish and Gentile alike) and God's enormous, immeasurable desire to save us (Jew and Gentile alike) and His glorious and rich plan to make us one by getting on his knees before the Father. It is a humble act on Paul's part. An act of submission to the One who is all-wise and who makes all of Paul's brilliance and genius seem like nothing. Up to his conversion, Paul lived a life of Jew against Gentile, Jew above Gentile; but, no longer. God's plan for the Gentiles is revealed and now the apostle lives to make it known. The Church, with all its cracks and flaws, is alive. At its best, it reflects the glory of Jesus Himself. At its worst, it reflects the reason we need Jesus. Paul knows this. He fought for it. He paid a great price for its growth (albeit, a price not comparable with that of Jesus).

This humble apostle knows who he is and to Whom he belongs. Friends, we are named after Him! We are God's family! Co-heirs with His Son! Adopted by Him and belonging to Him!

Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. Romans 8:17, NIV
. . . He predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— Ephesians 1:5, NIV

We do not belong here -- we belong in heaven . . . and heaven is a part of us here and now. The family of God is Jew and Gentile alike, no matter whether you are slave or free! (Gal. 3:28) And, here's a truth: we are both slave and free. A slave to sins that still grip us, but, in Christ, we live a free life . . . no longer condemned by those sins . . . not controlled by those sins, but controlled by the Spirit of God.

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1-2, NIV

You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. Romans 8:9a, NIV

The Church Militant and Triumphant by Andrea da Firenze

The Church is alive. It has overcome the forces of evil that have tried to destroy it time and again. It is not a building. It is a Body! It is made up of men and women of all nationalities, different personalities, a plethora of gifts, many cracks and flaws . . . its head is Jesus, and, . . . it lives.

And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way. Ephesians 1:22-23, NIV

Paul fought hard for this truth so that nothing would divide it, but, instead it would be the Church triumphant! For this reason . . . he kneels.

This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It's adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike "What's next, Papa?" God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what's coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we're certainly going to go through the good times with him! Romans 8:15-17, MSG

I kneel,
Kerry

THE PRICE TO BE PAID

2011-12-07T10:34:00.000-06:00

Ephesians 3:10-13

His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory.

. . .and from the Message:

Through followers of Jesus like yourselves gathered in churches, this extraordinary plan of God is becoming known and talked about even among the angels! All this is proceeding along lines planned all along by God and then executed in Christ Jesus. When we trust in him, we're free to say whatever needs to be said, bold to go wherever we need to go. So don't let my present trouble on your behalf get you down. Be proud!

Paul at His Writing Desk, Rembrandt

Ever had issues in your church that seem insurmountable? Ever been hurt or let down by your church or someone in it -- a trusted friend, elder, pastor? Ever find it difficult to be excited about going to church? Difficult to feel inspired by sermon after sermon, tradition after tradition? Honestly . . . yes. Yes, to all. Church is a messy place and it's filled with messed up humans all trying to do their best to live like something that resembles Christ and failing miserably a good percentage of the time. Here's the good news, though: by some miracle, we display the glory of God to the angels! Friends, this is no small statement! Through all of our mess . . . through all of our failures . . . through all of the cracks and chips and flaws and stains of the broken vessels that make up the Church, we make the angels stand up and listen! (I think I'd rather listen to them, but whatever.) God's extraordinary plan to save us from the mess we are and remake us into people who live and love well is done only through His Son. And, because His plan is eternal, it applies to all of history, as well. That means that God's eternal plan to save us through His Son was doing its work in the sacrificial system in place throughout the Old Testament. That system was meant to lead people to the grace and mercy of God -- in the same way Jesus' death on the cross, the ultimate and final sacrifice once for all, leads us to the grace and mercy of God. (Hebrews 7:27) This IS the "manifold wisdom," God's varied and diverse and complex plan to save us, that the angels love to hear us talk about and rejoice over!

Worship Painting by Jun Jamosmos

Considering this grand plan, Paul draws a conclusion: when we trust in Jesus, we have freedom to approach God with boldness -- with confidence, knowing that this plan to save us through the ultimate sacrifice really did work and God accepts us as we are! (Hebrews 4:16) When we come to God through His Son we walk through the blood that cleanses us from unrighteousness and walk into the all embracing, never failing love of God.

In verse 13, Paul rounds off this lengthy parenthetical statement of the administration of God's grace that has been entrusted to him by reminding his audience that his imprisonment (first mentioned in vs. 1) should not bring them discouragement. It should instead bring them blessing and freedom. The Apostle Paul knew the messy-ness of people. He experienced the church with all its cracks and chips and flaws and stains and still believed in its potential to be a powerful force in the world -- just as God planned -- and he fought hard for her. He paid a big price for her growth and expansion. Paul saw his imprisonment, and all his sufferings for the gospel, as the price to be paid for the Gentiles to know the gospel. That's HUGE! How about you? Do you see any of your sufferings as an opportunity for others to know the gospel -- to know the love of Christ? I don't know. I tend to wallow a bit in my trials. Paul's life gives us much to think about.

Worship by Miki De Goodaboom

Here we are two thousand years later and the Church still exists, more than that, lives . . . more than that, THRIVES! Yes, the Church can be a messy place, but at her best, she is beautiful to behold and a force to be reckoned with. I believe the angels still stand up and listen whenever we proclaim the gospel or whenever we live out God's plan as a part of His Church. God's plans cannot be thwarted!

"I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted."

Job 42:2, NIV

Part of His Church,
Kerry

A SERVANT OF THE GOSPEL

2011-09-07T11:38:00.000-05:00

Ephesians 3:7-9

I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power. Although I am less than the least of all God’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things.

And, from The Message Bible . . .

This is my life work: helping people understand and respond to this Message. It came as a sheer gift to me, a real surprise, God handling all the details. When it came to presenting the Message to people who had no background in God's way, I was the least qualified of any of the available Christians. God saw to it that I was equipped, but you can be sure that it had nothing to do with my natural abilities. And so here I am, preaching and writing about things that are way over my head, the inexhaustible riches and generosity of Christ. My task is to bring out in the open and make plain what God, who created all this in the first place, has been doing in secret and behind the scenes all along.

What do you think of when you hear the word "servant?" You might think of the people you find in mansion environments who do all the work, like maids and grounds keepers -- those who do the bidding of the wealthiest sorts. Or, maybe you take it all the way back to slavery -- those who were forced into the service of another, no choice, no voice in his or her lot or fate. The most typical picture and definition of a servant, however, is a table waiter. A table waiter is always at the bidding of his customers. The Apostle Paul lives and works as a servant (whatever image you have) doing the bidding of Christ and His church.

Apostle Paul by Rembrandt

Paul considers his services to Christ and the church a gift -- a grace given to him by Christ. He did nothing to deserve such an important role as "servant of the gospel." God did it. God gave it to him. God took care of every detail in Paul receiving this grace. All Paul did was breathe.

We talked a little about Paul's deep humility my last post. If you still weren't sure about Paul as a humble sort, maybe this statement will help: "although I am less than the least of all God's people . . ." Paul was always aware of his past as a hater of The Way, a hater and murderer of Christ followers. Do you struggle with a sin in your life that is difficult to live down, one that is always haunting you, always reminding you of how wretched you were and therefore making you feel as if you do not deserve anything good from God, least of all His forgiveness and grace? I am convinced that Paul, being ever so human like the rest of us, allowed himself to be kicked around between two worlds: the "worst of sinners" and "beloved by God." We all find ourselves there sometimes. Yes? But, here's the good news:

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. (1 Timothy 1:15, NIV)

and . . .

Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. (Isaiah 1:18, NIV)

This past summer I had the privilege of teaching several 5th and 6th graders about God's Word at a little 3 day retreat. One of the many crafts designed to emphasize and highlight God's truth was soap making. Isaiah 1:18 was the verse used for this particular craft. They learned that crimson was the color of a deep, red permanent dye and its deep stain was impossible to remove from clothing. They also learned that God doesn't just cover up our sin, He lifts it out and completely removes it from our lives. In the case of the crimson dye, no amount of bleaching or scrubbing or re-dying to another color would hide the stain. It was always there for you and me and the entire world to see.
Sometimes the stain of sin seems equally permanent. With God, that crimson red stain, impossible to remove in any other way, is lifted out. Not covered up -- lifted out and removed! What once was stained, is now white as snow, like the white wool of a an unblemished lamb.

And so. . . here is Paul, over his head in writing about things that go against everything he was taught as a young Jewish boy and student of the Law. He learned from his own life that it's all about grace and mercy and God's love for all of humankind and . . . servanthood. He lives and works in the service of Christ and His church bringing out into the open everything that our mysterious God had planned for His people from the beginning of creation: the mystery about His love and generosity through Jesus Christ, my Lord and yours!

A servant,
Kerry

A MYSTERIOUS TRUTH

2011-08-31T07:35:00.002-05:00

Ephesians 3:4-6

In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets. This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.

And, from the Message Bible . . .

As you read over what I have written to you, you'll be able to see for yourselves into the mystery of Christ. None of our ancestors understood this. Only in our time has it been made clear by God's Spirit through his holy apostles and prophets of this new order. The mystery is that people who have never heard of God and those who have heard of him all their lives (what I've been calling outsiders and insiders) stand on the same ground before God. They get the same offer, same help, same promises in Christ Jesus. The Message is accessible and welcoming to everyone, across the board.

We are still in the midst of a lengthy parenthetical statement. Simply put, as the Ephesians re-read Paul's letter to them, they will be able to make their own judgment about whether the apostle has really grasped the essence of God's secret plan. It seems that Paul's credibility was always in question because of how he became one of the apostles Unlike Paul, the other apostles were apostles because they lived with, ate with, spoke with and learned from the Master, Jesus, during His 3 years of ministry on earth. Paul became an apostle later after Jesus went up into heaven. He's always having to defend his credibility as one of the apostles equal to Peter and John and the others. Maybe that's why he's always so long winded and works so hard at driving his point home and explaining his message over and over again. How about you? Do you ever feel as if you have to defend yourself, your credibility? At work? At home? As a Christian with some knowledge of scripture? I bet we can all relate to Paul a bit here.


The Apostle Paul in Prison by Rembrandt

The mystery of Christ was simply this: Christ lives in and among His believers and gives us an unwarranted and unexplainable hope of eternal glory. This mystery was not made known to the generations before them. Paul extrapolates this mystery out a little further knowing what we now know. This mystery extends to Gentiles, too. Now, in and of itself, this is not news. Genesis 12:3 says that through Israel ALL nations will be blessed. We've talked in depth about Israel's important role to the other nations. It was through Israel that the other nations would know the Living God -- the same as the church's role today.

The big news here is that the old theocracy is superseded by the body of Christ composed of Jews and Gentiles -- equally. We stand together on the same ground. The ground is level at the foot of the cross of Jesus. The Jews were no longer the ones through whom God would speak and lead the nations. The Church now takes that role. The Church, as we know, is made up of any and all who believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It knows no distinction between Jew and Gentile, slave and free, rich and poor, married and divorced, etc. If you believe in Jesus as Savior and confess Him as Lord, you are among those to whom this mystery extends. The Message is accessible and welcoming to everyone, across the board.

Paul is exhaustive in his attempts to bring this point home -- to make it clear to Jew and Gentile alike -- to you and to me. As far as his credibility goes, even the great apostle Paul had his insecurities. Friends, if nothing else, this should make him someone to whom you can relate.

Living into the mystery,
Kerry

REACH HIGHER, LIVE BETTER, LOVE MORE FULLY

2011-08-16T07:49:00.001-05:00

Ephesians 3:2-3

Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly.

Sometimes, many times, I am most grateful for the Message bible and Eugene Peterson's fresh interpretation of God's Holy Word. It takes what SHOULD be a simple message, made somewhat convoluted by other interpretations (like the NIV, for instance) and makes it just that, simple. Here it is from the Message:

I take it that you're familiar with the part I was given in God's plan for including everybody. I got the inside story on this from God himself, as I just wrote you in brief.

Verses 2-13 seem to be parenthetical. Paul really is the master at this type of writing. What humors me about this little passage is the phrase "as I have already written briefly." I would argue that Paul knows how to write on anything "briefly." His idea of "brief" and my idea of "brief" are two different things. Chances are, if he was writing books today, he wouldn't have much of a following. People today would probably say things like, "he's too wordy;" "it takes him too long to get to the point;" "he's too hard to follow." Although all that may be accurate, the truth is, he is brilliant and altogether humble. Qualities that don't always mesh together in an individual.

Very few people in scripture can claim to hold the trophy on legalistic righteousness (Philippians 3:6) and then turn around and write a flaming manifesto on the need for God's grace (Galatians) like the apostle Paul. I've known more than a few people in my life who do not like Paul and have a hard time appreciating his writings. Not me. I think his life is fascinating and his writings challenge me.

One of the most intriguing things about Paul is how, at first glance, he comes off as hard-nosed and black and white about everything. Upon further study of Paul's life and motives and personality, however, you find a man who is not hard-nosed at all. On the contrary! He is very tender to those around him and so in love with the One who saved him that day on the road to Damascus that it causes him to speak out relentlessly about God's love and grace. It's Paul's tenacious personality along with his brilliant intellect that makes him a force to be reckoned with. And this would be true no matter the group of people that might have laid claim to his loyalties. It is his humble attitude, humility taught him by the same One who humbles each of us, that allows him and moves him to challenge each one of us to be more than we are right now. To reach higher and live better and love more fully as we take each breath of life given us by the One who created us. That's what I hear the Apostle saying to me.

All of that to say, these two verses are not as complicated as they sound. Paul is simply being conversational. When you read verses 2-13 like they were in parenthesis, you read it with a bit more understanding. As he has explained throughout this letter, several times, because he is not "brief," his commission is to the Gentiles and this commission is from God himself. It's a reminder. Thank you Mr. Peterson for your simple and fresh approach to God's word.

Reaching higher, living better, loving more fully,
Kerry

FOR THIS REASON . . .

2011-06-02T08:05:00.004-05:00

Ephesians 3:1

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles—

Paul's great desire was for the Church to rise up and continue to grow and build. Paul has made certain that the Ephesians know and understand ALL THAT GOD HAS DONE to bring it about! And, we have spent weeks learning this as well! So, it's for THAT reason . . . so for this reason . . . what? What is the apostle trying to say here? He doesn't finish his thought. At least not yet. "I, Paul," the apostle who can write in "asides" and "digressions" without us ever even realizing it, who so fluently and fluidly writes under the influence of his mad passions and mad skills and mad knowledge of truth . . . doesn't finish this thought until verse 14 where he softly and humbly says, "For this reason . . . I kneel . . ." We'll have to wait a few weeks to finish his thought. Whatever he is trying to say, it if for this reason: the Church, this mystery wrapped in flesh. In the meantime, we will sort out all that's in between verses 1 and 14. (It's kind of like he put a really long thought in parenthesis between 1 and 14.)


St. Paul in Prison by Rembrandt

Paul is a prisoner in Rome. Paul, however, refuses to regard himself as a victim either of the Jews or of the Roman emperor, rather, he is the prisoner of Christ Jesus. This statement alone marks him as a true apostle. It is because of his calling to the Gentiles that the Jews had him thrown in prison. In Acts 21 we read this account. Paul arrived in Jerusalem and was immediately warned by fellow Jewish believers that Jews from the province of Asia were in hot pursuit of him, watching for any reason to accuse him of breaking Jewish law. When they sited Paul in the city with Trophimus, an Ephesian convert, they assumed that Paul had paraded him inside the temple area. This would be a stretch of an accusation since a) it was forbidden in Jewish law for Gentiles to enter the temple, an act requiring the punishment of death for the gentile who entered; b) Paul was extremely educated in Jewish law and would not have been so careless as to risk the life of Trophimus in such a way; and, c) the law required that Trophimus be punished for entering the temple, not Paul. They were looking for a reason to imprison Paul -- to stop him from including Gentiles in the promises of God and in the process converting Jews to believers in Jesus Christ as Messiah.

His calling was to the Gentiles but he also loved his fellow Jews. Paul, a Jew of Jews, zealous for the law, once a Pharisee and persecutor of those who belonged to the Way . . . it is for the sake of the Gentiles that he is imprisoned. Refusing victim status, no whining or complaining about his circumstances, is a prisoner of Jesus Christ whether he is in chains or walking free -- his status and calling is sure.

. . .circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless. But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. Philippians 3:5-7, NIV

Kneeling,
Kerry

WONDER OF WONDERS!

2011-05-23T10:29:00.002-05:00

Ephesians 2:19-22

Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

Because of a promise God made to Abraham, the Gentiles were on the outside looking in. God promised Abraham that from his ancestors a great nation would emerge and He would be their God and they would be His people. The Gentiles were allowed into citizenship in Israel as long as they adhered to circumcision and followed the laws of the Living God -- the laws God gave to Israel. The requirements for the Gentiles were no different than the requirements of the Jews. But . . . we've been through all of that. Here's the good news: we are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God's people because Jesus made it possible through His death. In Him we are one with no barrier between us.

The Cornerstone by Richard Tuvey

Paul paints a wonderful picture of architecture, community and family by calling us a household. The foundation, the mortar being the apostles and prophets. Typically, Paul attributes the title "foundation" to Jesus, but here he attributes it to the apostles and prophets who were witnesses to the resurrection appearances of Jesus and who preached the good news. And, also typically, when a New Testament writer refers to "prophets" they are referring to the prophets of old, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, etc., but here Paul is referring to the prophets of a new Israel. The apostles and prophets who established the church, Paul, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Peter, etc. by preaching God's message of salvation through Jesus Christ. And, Jesus Christ is the chief cornerstone. In ancient times, "cornerstone" was referred to as the capstone or building stone. Placed first before all other stones, it covered a right angle joining two walls together and held the whole building together. Often a royal name was inscribed on it and in some parts of the world it was considered more important than the foundation. Paul expounds on this idea and so the purpose behind Paul calling Jesus the chief cornerstone was in the image of being "joined together" into one building, one household, by one chief cornerstone.

So with that image in mind, Paul takes a jab at the Ephesian gods of the day by claiming that this building of God rises to become a holy temple. Now, "temple" is surely a term that the Jews understood since the days of Moses, but Ephesus was steeped in a cult religion that worshiped the goddess Artemis whose temple was so magnificent that it was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

Ruins of the ancient temple

The new Church rises, and continues to rise, continues to build. The process of joining together the two families into one household began with Jesus Christ, the chief cornerstone, and it continues to this day. Churches work together to put differences aside, individuals work to put differences behind them. This continual "building" has centuries of proof behind it that it cannot be destroyed. It will not be left in ruins like the cult temples of old. It is the dwelling of the Living God made possible by His Spirit. The Church is truly the greatest wonder of them all!

Rising up!
Kerry

ONE NEW HUMANITY

2011-05-11T07:33:00.002-05:00

Ephesians 2:14-18

For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

Rainbow in My Hand by Gwen Meharg

God never intended for a great barrier of hostility to exist between the Jews and the other nations. God only intended for the Jews to be set apart and used for God's glory with the result being that other peoples and nations would see the difference between the Living God and the false gods they were worshiping. He wanted the other nations to see that He was a God of grace and mercy and love, that He created them and would therefore care and provide for them, and that He NEVER demanded the sacrifice of their children to appease His anger. But, instead of the nations always seeing that through the Jews relationship with the Living God, the Jews shut them out and soon it developed into an "us" against "them" mentality. But, to be fair, if I was part of a nation that God used to wipe out entire people groups, I might gain that mentality myself. It would be easy to get confused in such a situation. What's important to remember here is that God didn't wage war on people groups to prove the superiority of the Israelites, He did it to prove His own superiority as the God of gods, the Living God over all the other gods in a world where many, many false gods were being heavily worshiped and to whom children were being sacrificed. (Romans 1:20-25 and Jeremiah 7:31-32 and Leviticus 20:2, Deuteronomy 9:4-5)

Painting of Nineveh capital of Ashur ca 700 BC

The book of Jonah is such a great example of God's great mercy and grace to the other nations. When God sent Jonah to warn the Ninevites that judgment and wrath were coming to them, Jonah ran away. He would have sooner drowned in the sea than give the Ninevites opportunity to turn to God. The Ninevites were part of "them" -- they were Gentiles and enemies of Israel. Jonah did finally give them God's message, albeit very begrudgingly, the Ninevites repented and turned to God for mercy. Guess what God did? He extended mercy to them and told Jonah,

"And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?" (Jonah 4:11, NIV)

Any move towards God and God reaches out His long arm of mercy and grace, rescues those that were lost and far away and brings them near where they find peace.

God had commanded the Jews to care for the the foreigner and alien. Any foreigner or alien who became one of their servants or who sought refuge with the Israelites was to be included as one of the Israelites:

"When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the LORD your God." Leviticus 19:33-34, NIV

They were to be allowed to glean from their harvest fields and the Jews were commanded to leave what was dropped and to leave the corners of their fields alone so the poor and hungry, no matter who they were, could eat.

"When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the LORD your God." Leviticus 19:9-10

There is no place in God's economy or law for "us" and "them."

Paul points out that in Christ, through His sacrifice, there is no dividing line. The Jews no longer have to follow all of the rules and regulations that kept them separate from the other nations. The Jews are no longer the only ones through whom God speaks and shows Himself mighty. We see all of that now as one body of believers, one church through which Jesus Christ is worshiped as King and Savior and through whom we all have access to the Living God -- Jew and Gentile alike. He brought peace to all the nations -- whether we live into it or not. Christ and no one else has solved the problem of our relationship with God and with each other.

Remember, Paul's objective in the letter to the Ephesians is to take them higher and help them rise above the day to day sins that beset each of us, to root them deeper into the truth of God's word and to widen their scope of understanding about who God is and His purpose for humankind. He's telling them and us, "Enough with the walls and barriers you put up between you and them. In Christ, those walls and barriers DO NOT exist. Out of the two worlds, Jew and Gentile, Christ has made a new creation. One that is at peace. One that strives to love each other. One that no longer emphasizes the differences, but embraces the unity of Christ's sacrifice for all." We are one in Christ.

In unity,
Kerry

JEW AND GENTILE: DIFFERENT AND THE SAME

2011-05-04T09:16:00.005-05:00

Ephesians 2:11-13

Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (which is done in the body by human hands)— remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

It's easy to read these verses and gather the impression that Paul is pointing out the low class of the Gentiles and how it's only by God's good graces that they would be considered for inclusion into God's kingdom with the Jews. And, all of that is true, only not in the sense that you might think.

The Gentiles, those not born of Jewish descent, you and me, were simply that -- not born of Jewish descent. That's the only real difference between us as human beings . . . different from the Jews, that is. Once again Paul is drawing the distinction that because that is the only thing that separates, there is really nothing that separates us. In Bible times, circumcision was the outward sign that set you apart as a member of the Jewish race of people. God had Abraham circumcise himself and his entire household, sons, grandsons, servants, slaves and foreigners and aliens that were among them as a sign of the covenant between him and God. The covenant was this: for Abraham's part, the Lord alone would be his God, whom he would trust and serve; for God's part, He would be with Abraham and his descendants and make them a great nation because of Abraham's faith and that He would be with them and be their God. (Genesis 17:1-14)

As time went on, the Jews used the term "uncircumcised" in a very contemptuous way, believing and pointing out the Gentiles lowly state of their soul. Paul, on the other hand, is simply using the term here to make his point (hence the quotation marks) that "circumcised" or "uncircumcised" doesn't matter because circumcision is only something that is done to the flesh . . . by human hands. What matters is if our hearts, not our bodies, bear the mark of the covenant promise . . . of the Eternal One who brings us near to Him and gives us citizenship in His kingdom.

Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and do not be stiff-necked any longer. For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt. Deuteronomy 10:16-19, NIV

A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God. Romans 2:28-29, NIV

It's true, there was definitely a distinction between Jew and Gentile, but not in a spiritual sense. The distinction was made through Abraham. Because Abraham had faith in God, God chose him to bring the blessings of God to the rest of the world, to the foreigners and aliens . . . those outside of Abraham's descendants. Abraham's descendants became the Jewish nation. God chose Abraham's descendants to do a special work.

What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? Much in every way! First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God. Romans 3:1-2, NIV

. . . the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen. Romans 9:4-5, NIV

The Jews were given the special tasks of bringing God's word through history, they were the picture of adoption into God's family and they enjoyed the glory of God's presence (like with the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night as in Exodus 13:21-22). God made his covenant with them to bless all the peoples of the earth through them. In the receiving of the law He gave to them the standard of living for all people, and He didn't just speak the law to them, He wrote it on stone tablets. These tablets became prize possessions to the Jews symbolizing their relationship with God. He gave to them the standard for worship and the precious promise of a Savior. And, not at all least of these, is the patriarchs. God was pleased to be the Father of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and it was through these faithful few that we trace the human ancestry of Jesus.

So, yes. There was a distinction between being Jew and being Gentile in terms of responsibility to the human race. BUT, that in no way means that there is a distinction between Jew and Gentile in terms of the spiritual condition of our souls. The Jews were chosen for the task of showing the rest of the world, the foreigner and the alien, the non-Jew, who this living God was, but they still had to circumcise their heart. Being chosen by God to do this work did not negate their own need for God's grace and mercy. They still had to come to God the same way the Gentiles had to, in faith . . . like Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Being a Jew did not gain them access into God's presence. Faith did.

These verses go on to tell us that the Gentile was separated from Christ and excluded from citizenship in Israel, going through life unaware of the covenants and promises and without hope of really knowing the God who created them. Again, that was Israel's job. They were to love the foreigner and alien and, in the Old Testament, if the foreigner and alien were willing to be circumcised, then they were to be counted as part of Israel. It's no different now, New Testament life. Those outside of the knowledge of salvation, those who haven't yet believed, go through this life unaware of God's love and hope and knowledge of the God who loves them. Paul tells us that now, through Christ's work on the cross, through His blood, those outside do not need to remain outside, unaware. The work of Christ is for us all. We no longer depend on Israel to be God's messengers. They did their job. We have God's word and it tells us everything we need to know about who we are, who God is, how we should live, whom we should love, how much God loves us, the message of the cross and blood that leads us to life.

The message is this: there is no difference between us or anyone else -- Jew, European, African, Indian, Middle Easterner, or American. In God's economy no one is any lower class than the other. And, God is not begrudgingly allowing us the opportunity to gain eternal life with Him. He is GLADLY holding out the promises to you and to me! He has gone to the most extreme lengths to insure our salvation. His grace is extravagant and it lavishly ushers those on the outside in as soon as they desire it. We all must come to the same place the same way: to the cross in faith (like Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) believing that through Jesus' blood we are brought near to the throne of God, the Ruler of all who live, who will live and have ever lived.

In Christ's family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. Also, since you are Christ's family, then you are Abraham's famous "descendant," heirs according to the covenant promises. Galatians 3:28-29, MSG

In faith,
Kerry

A GOOD LIFE

2011-04-19T06:30:00.002-05:00

Ephesians 2:10

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

This verse shows us that one of the things that salvation is intended for is to produce the good works that bear out its reality, its truth. Let's be clear here. "Works" plays NO PART in securing salvation. It is, however, how we prove our faith.

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. James 2:14-17, NIV

You are God's handiwork. Handiwork means to have the characteristic quality of a particular maker. It's like when you look at a Van Gogh painting, you can tell it's a Van Gogh. It has that distinctive look and feel to it.

YOU are God's handiwork! You have the touch of the Maker all over you! And, what's more, the good works you are to do, the good life you were meant to live, were created in advance for you to do! Let me try to explain. In Genesis 1:26 it says this:

"Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image . . .'"

The "us" and "our" in that verse clearly indicate that God, the Creator-King, is not alone. The idea of the Trinity is introduced for the first time here and God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are actively involved in the work of creation together. In John 1:1-3, the apostle is talking about "the Word," referring to Jesus, as being with God in the beginning and that "the Word" was God and that

"through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made."

Jesus was with God in the beginning, active in creation and is, in fact, God. And, YOU, dear Believer, were created by Jesus himself with the idea that you would put your faith in Him on display by the good effort you put forth at living the life He gave you. Better put: the good life, or the life of goodness, that having faith in Christ produces was prepared for Believers from the beginning. It was meant for you from the beginning of time to live a good life, or to live a life of goodness. And, that life of goodness will demonstrate the reality of our salvation. Furthermore, you cannot boast about this life of goodness because even IT has its source in God -- the One who made it possible.

For goodness sake,
Kerry

I LOVE THAT I'M LOVED!

2011-04-05T14:16:00.001-05:00

Ephesians 2:8-9

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.

Let's keep this simple and to the point. You did nothing to warrant, deserve or contribute to God's gracious act on your behalf. Salvation is His gift to you. Furthermore, the faith it takes to believe cannot even be produced by you. The faith it takes to believe in this gift of salvation is simply a trustful response on your part. A trustful response. He already did the work to bring you to this place of trust, and trust is your response to that work. It is not to be misconstrued as an effort or action on your part that helped the process along. It's like simply loving to be loved. You did nothing to be loved by God or to earn that love. Loving that your loved by Him is your response to a God that loves you! The Holy Spirit produces faith in us. We cannot produce it ourselves. Salvation is a gift of God's grace; it is the unmerited favor of God to you and to me. To take any credit, or to boast about any action on my part in achieving salvation is altogether out of place.

He did it all! I love that I'm loved!
Kerry

Images for this post can be found at www.freymanc.com.

RAISED UP AND SEATED!

2011-03-21T08:59:00.002-05:00

Ephesians 2:6-7

And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

In my last post, we talked about how Paul points out 3 things that God did for us in Christ in these verses (5-7). The first one is that He "made us alive with Christ." The second thing He did for us is "raised us up" and the third thing is He "seated us with him in the heavenly realms." When reading these few verses, it's easy to feel a little disoriented and bewildered by the picture we're given and by the words used to convey this message. I mean, seriously . . . I don't feel raised up from anything today and I don't think I'm sitting in the heavenly realms right now. With all that life has put on my plate today, I'm pretty sure I feel like I'm right here, right now, on earth in this mortal body. You with me on this one? But, let's just break it down a bit and find the literal parts of the symbolic. Understanding these verses are key to understanding the reality of our salvation.

"The Redeemed Walked There" by Marcia Hinds

The actual part of this story is that Jesus actually left the tomb where he was laid as a dead man and appeared to His disciples, alive. Forty days later He ascended into heaven and sat down at the right hand of the Father. That's the literal part of this story. Our part in this story is that we participate with Him in this. Here's how:

We literally anticipate resurrection and glorification with Him in the coming age. When we die and leave our mortal bodies behind, we live on in a new body (whatever that may look like!). Death did not keep Jesus in the tomb, and it will not keep us lying in a grave, non-existent, with no life to live.
We can face each day knowing how temporal this mortal life is. Yes, we have problems to deal with, car repairs to be paid for, health issues niggling at us, (insert your own here) . . . but, Friends, it IS temporary.

"For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:17-18, NIV

And, know this: I AM NOT making light of the problems you face today. I have my own and I know that they are small by comparison to some who face much greater tragedies than I. I am not blind to what's going on this world. Life -- this life! -- is full of problems that must be solved, decisions that must be made. The apostle just wants us to understand that there is something greater in this life with Christ that transcends every problem we face today. And, that "something greater" is eternal life!

Because we have been seated with Him in the heavenly realms, we participate with Him in His action in this world -- in this life.

Our problems are opportunities for His glory and our decisions make a difference in the lives of people around us. Here's the good news: every problem, every decision is weighed at the throne of God and weaved into the story of humankind. Now, how I handle my problem of paying for my car repair today may not seem consequential to humankind or history, but how I face problems like this IS consequential to those around me -- my family and friends. Will I give them a picture of faith and of a God who loves me enough to be involved in my life? Or, will I give them a picture of a small life with eyes that can't see past the nose on my face?

http://www.sonoitacrossroads.org/sv/character.html

God wants to show off and demonstrate His great love for us in the lives around us . . . in the lives to come . . . and in the lives of the past. By raising us up and seating us in the heavenly realms, He shows off His greatness and love to those who will believe and to those who already believe. We certainly do not deserve this participation with Him and He didn't have to make this part of the deal of our salvation in Jesus Christ. But He did! You could call this act of grace His "publicity program" for the whole of history and beyond. He planned a continual exhibition of His favor towards humankind to cover all of history, all of the future and into eternity. His great riches toward us are "incomparable!" His kindness to us in life is shown in His act of love to us through Jesus Christ.

Life moves on and you cannot stop it. Problems come and go -- there is always something to be stressed about. But you are part of a bigger, grander picture, one that includes life eternal. God planned for you and had you in mind at the creation of the world, so you have always been a part of this grand story of life. This life is a stop along the way and you will go on from here because of His great love!

Exhibiting His favor,
Kerry

NOTORIETY AND RENOWN - THAT'S YOU AND ME

2011-03-08T08:09:00.002-06:00

Ephesians 2:4-5

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.


"New Thing" by Gwen Meharg www.drawneartogod.com

Human beings are renowned for rejecting God. We are notorious for this behavior. Throughout all of history, human beings have rejected their Creator and instead given their hearts to created things.

"For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles. . . They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen." Romans 1:21-23, 25, NIV

I am no exception. I remember well when I was one of the walking dead. But in spite of this churlish behavior, Paul says that God loves me -- loves us. He loves us in spite of it all! Meditate on that for a minute. Swallow it and internalize it. In spite of it ALL . . . He LOVES us! He didn't let our constant rejection of Him stand in the way of the great love He has for us! Can you say the same? Most of us have faced rejection of some kind and we always feel like it is unwarranted. And rejection always hurts. And, most of the time, when we face rejection from someone, we reject them back. But not our God. His love for us led to mercy. We reject Him and He showers love on us. It is difficult to fathom. Instead of loving us even more, He could have destroyed such a rebellious and unlovely creation such as human beings. And He would be justified. Instead, He sees our weaknesses and flaws and unholy behavior and is moved to mercy. He does not approve of our rebellion and unholy behavior, but He does approve of His creation -- you and me. He made a way for you and me to find our way back to Him and to change our "walking dead" ways. That way is Jesus Christ. It works like this: when we were the most unlovable, Jesus stood in the way and God looked through Him and saw us . . . cleaned up, standing firm, living right, giving back, loving Him! Because of Jesus, we are alive and well!

He is Risen by Paula Maybery

In verse 5, Paul points out one of 3 things that God did for us in Christ. The first one is He "made us alive with Christ." (The other 2 we will discuss in my next post.) God gave us new life together "with Christ." It's like a partnership (although we can take no credit for this partnership). We were dead in transgressions . . . Jesus died on a cross. When Jesus beat death by overcoming the grave, we too were given new life. Death and the grave could not hold Jesus and it cannot hold us now, either. We no longer have to live this life as a dead person. We live because HE lives! It was an act of God's power that Jesus was literally raised from the dead . . . it's an act of God's grace that we are literally given new life with Him. Because of God's grace we share this life with Christ. Mercy overflowed from God's heart at the cross right to you and me. We deserve death but we got life = mercy. We do not deserve life, but we got it anyway = grace.

Here's the good news, friends: you are no longer dead . . . you are ALIVE because God LOVES you! God's loving heart holds a treasury of mercy and it cannot be exhausted.

"Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:

Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness."

Lamentations 3:21-23, NIV

"It wasn't so long ago that you were mired in that old stagnant life of sin. You let the world, which doesn't know the first thing about living, tell you how to live. You filled your lungs with polluted unbelief, and then exhaled disobedience. We all did it, all of us doing what we felt like doing, when we felt like doing it, all of us in the same boat. It's a wonder God didn't lose his temper and do away with the whole lot of us. Instead, immense in mercy and with an incredible love, he embraced us. He took our sin-dead lives and made us alive in Christ. He did all this on his own, with no help from us! Then he picked us up and set us down in highest heaven in company with Jesus, our Messiah."

Ephesians 2:4-5, The Message

May grace rain down on you today!
Kerry

DEAD OR ALIVE! PART II: WALK -ABOUT

2011-02-22T09:34:00.001-06:00

Ephesians 2:2-3

. . . in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.

You were dead in your transgressions and sins in which you used to live. The word here "live" in the Greek literally means "walk about." That's right! Like in Australia when you hear them talking about going "walk about." There it means they're going to go travel about a bit and see what they can see. It has a similar meaning here only add a zombie-like attitude to the traveler. This is how you used to walk about this life before you came to know Jesus. The walking dead. Transgressions and sins used to be your manner of living. True life, real life, was not something you could grasp, although it was always within your reach. It's like being in a prison cell with the keys hanging within reach right outside the bars, but you don't see them or know they're there.

The evil one, the devil, is identified here as the ruler of the kingdom of the air. Taken literally, the air signifies the atmosphere around the earth and the earth is Satan's abode. According to ancient cosmology, the atmosphere was believed to be the habitation of demons. I'm sure you would agree that it's not a big stretch to see this world as being ruled by the evil one. When you consider everything that bombards us on the daily news reports, it's certainly easy to see the evil one at work. That's not to say that the work of the Holy Spirit isn't just as prevalent -- but those reports never hit the daily news. The devil is the spirit who is at work in those who are disobedient -- those who refuse to believe in the saving power of Jesus Christ. He is constantly at work keeping God's creation from choosing life -- from becoming alive and aware of the life God created for you. But, take heart. The Holy Spirit is also constantly at work in those of us who are obedient to call of Christ.

Paul started out in chapter 2 addressing the Gentile Christians, but in verse 3 he's addresses the Jews. Jewish believers were no better, despite their inclination that God's promises to them somehow made them better people and exempt from God's wrath. All of us have lived in the grip of sin, Paul included. "This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." Romans 3:22-24, NIV Human beings are sinful and we have numerous ways (too numerous to count, actually) of expressing our sinful side. We lie, we lust, we hate, we seek revenge, we are ungrateful. In fact, we are so sinful by nature that we need very little help from the devil, if any at all. One thing about Paul, he is very clear on the condition of humankind. Gentile, Jew . . . we're all the same and we all have to come to the same place to gain life: the foot of the cross. You have to remember that when Paul wrote this letter he was a Jew of the highest quality, sent to minister to the Gentiles, who every Jew considered to be of lesser quality, and had to find a way to make this Gospel message real and appealing and believable to both. He could not allow the Jewish believers to think of themselves as better nor could he allow the Gentiles to think of themselves as unworthy of God's promises. Therefore, we are ALL deserving of God's wrath.


Alive! Gwen Meharg

Here's what Paul is saying: though you lived, you used to be counted among the dead and those that followed the evil one and his ways, even without knowing it. But not now, believer. Yes, you still sin. We all do. The difference is transgressions and sins no longer define who you are. It's true for all of us. I'm not better than you and you're not better than me. We were all there at one time, ruled by sin and deserving God's anger. Faith, love, truth, life . . . these are the things that define you now. You walk about this life ALIVE! The devil may rule this earth, but Jesus Christ rules your heart!

Defined by Life,
Kerry

DEAD OR ALIVE!

2011-02-08T11:17:00.006-06:00


Art by Christella: http://christellaart.blogspot.com/

Ephesians 2:1

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins. . .

In our natural, physical state, death seems so final . . . the end of a life. And, clearly, there is that aspect to death: finality. In death our physical bodies cease to live. The "physical," however, is not all that we are. Thankfully. We are also spiritual beings. As Christians, we believe that we live on even after our physical bodies die. But the apostle Paul is not talking about a physical death here. The type of death he is talking about, however, is very real and very present. It's like living without life.

"As for you" is directed once again to the Gentiles believers. (Make no mistake, however, the apostle will throw the Jewish believers, himself included, into this mix as well a few verses from now.) "As for you, [Gentile believers,] you were dead in your transgressions and sins." Our spirit is the essence of who we are. It is the most vital part of our personality and it's dead to the most important factor in life -- God. When we come to the cross we receive new life and the forgiveness of our sins. The God of the universe, the Creator of our souls, IS life and the only way to real life. Without the death of our Savior, Jesus, and without the atonement made for us at the cross, we are the walking dead. We live but we are not alive. God's mercy and forgiveness have always been available to us, even before Christ walked this earth. But since Christ came, mercy and forgiveness comes to us by means of the cross -- by the death of Jesus. When we accept those terms, life begins anew to us. Our spirits become alive and intrinsically aware of something greater than ourselves. Our sense of belonging and of being loved awakens. On the other hand, however, so does our understanding of transgressions and sins. And so the clean-up process begins. We have been made aware of our state. No longer dead. New life.

The essence of this verse, however, is not so much about death as it is about life. Yes, we become aware of the multiplicity of ways in which we have sinned, but we also become aware of the One who has forgiven us these many sins. We become aware of the life He has given us and multiplicity of ways in which He has shown His love to us. For those to whom Paul is speaking, Gentile believers, you and me, we were dead but now we live! Life begins with God

"Give ear and come to me; hear me, that your soul may live." Isaiah 55:3, NIV

Alive!
Kerry

LIVING IN EPHESUS

2011-01-19T06:18:00.005-06:00

Before I go on to discussing chapter 2 in the book of Ephesians, let me give you a little background on the city of Ephesus. When the Apostle Paul started the church in Ephesus and at the time of his writing the letter to the Ephesians, the city of Ephesus was a metropolis surrounded by 230 independent communities within the Roman province of Asia. The harbor of Ephesus was one of the main routes to the eastern empire and the metropolis of Ephesus had few equals. It ranked with Rome and Corinth and Antioch and Alexandria.

Paul was under house detention in Rome at the time of this writing, but enjoyed the privileges of many visitors. Many, including representatives from the Jewish community, came to him inquiring about Christianity. He received visitors from many of the churches he started all wanting instruction and direction regarding problems that had arisen among their congregations. Although still so new, Christianity was quickly gaining ground. These new believers and new churches did not hold in their possession the entire word of God as we have it today. They clung to words of instruction and direction given to them by letters written by the apostle and circulated them from church to church. As easy as it is for us today to go to the Word and find truth and food for our hungry souls we still get messed up in the way we think and act. You can imagine how difficult it was for these new congregations to stay on the right track having only, in many cases, the remembrance of what the apostle Paul had to say to them from God's heart.

One of the most important aspects of the letter to the Ephesians is its call to unity. A hymn of unity, one might say. God's ultimate purpose is "to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ." (1:10) And, Jesus has been appointed "head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way." (1:22-23) Unity was highly sought after in the first century A.D. The Roman Empire believed they were achieving unity due to the fact that much of the Mediterranean world was unified under its rule. Because of this fact, they had visions of a universal commonwealth. The philosophers of the day were recognizing an order to the universe and many of the popular cults were offering a sense a oneness in their religious practices. They were a little obsessed with unity and Paul was trying to teach them that only through Christ, the supreme Head, and through His Lordship will true and lasting unity be found. All of this is very familiar to us today. Yes?

Through this letter, Paul's desire is to take this group of people, and anyone else who finds this letter, beyond the daily mishaps of church life and beyond the day to day struggle of sin. In this letter, he doesn't deal with particular sins or correct wrong thinking or expose false teaching. Paul's desire is to transcend the every day battles of sin and and to rise above the argument of whether the Church had the right to exist. It's like he caught a vision of the true body of Christ and the fellowship that is to be among us and how we are to exist in a hostile world. He also caught a vision of reconciliation between the entire universe and Christ. In essence, the apostle wants his readers to rise above and go deeper. Only in true submission to the Head of all things will we find true unity. Only in recognizing the One who is Lord, this one Lord over all who gave us incredible gifts to live well and right, will we overcome the every day struggle of sin. We cannot live as an island but, instead, we must live and function within this body which belongs to Christ, is made up of Christ, is held together by Christ, is filled up with Christ and filled by Christ. In so doing we understand who we really are.

Rising above and going deeper,
Kerry

FILLED UP!

2010-12-08T07:42:00.002-06:00

Ephesians 1:22-23

And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

These two verses bring chapter 1 to a close. Chapter 1 has revealed a lot about the gifts that God has given to the church. Here's a reminder: "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ." (vs. 3) We have talked about predestination, grace, forgiveness, redemption, wisdom and understanding -- all gifts to us who believe. It doesn't stop there, however. Our verses today reveal another stunning truth. The supremacy of Christ, His Lordship over all, is yet another gift to us. Paul tells us that God appointed Jesus to be our head, our ruler, and He did this for us. Not in spite of us. Not to control us. He did it for us. It is God's gift bestowed on the church. Jesus Christ is the head of the church and the head over all things on earth and in the heavenly realms, above all rulers and powers and authorities and dominions, and, He is head over the church. Take comfort, friends. Because of this fact, there is nothing that the church cannot overcome -- no opposition that can overtake us because of the absolute Lordship of Jesus Christ. That is good news for you and me.

The church IS Chist's body. It is more than symbolic. It is a fact. The church is not an institution, it is an organism. It exists and functions only because of its vital connection and relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, who overcame the greatest setback to life there is: death. I love the analogy of the church as a body. All the different pieces working and moving together in perfect synergy. All of it affected when one piece is in pain or not right and all of it working in joyous health when every piece is doing its part and working as it should. Cut off its head, however, and the body falls to the floor -- nothing about it can function or do any more to bring glory to its Creator. (See 1 Corinthians 12:12-27) This is the supremacy of Christ for us. He is the head. Without Him, we have no power to function. We have no power to mourn or rejoice, love, laugh, sing or cry. We can no longer give glory to the God who created us. And even beyond His church, He is supreme. Over all.

"...the fullness of him who fills everything in every way." This is a bit elusive to even the greatest theologians out there, but here's what I've gathered. "Fullness" suggests two things. 1) That which is filled with Christ. The church contains the fullness of Him. Jesus is "all in" when it comes to the church. There is no part of Him that He withholds from His believers. 2) That which is filled by Christ. Jesus pours His life, His gifts, His blessings, His inheritance, His presence into us.

The church manifests the presence of Christ in the world, but only as His fullness lives in us and as He fills us every moment and every day. The church is His treasure. The church is who He is. The church is you and me. It's true. The church is a clay jar -- fragile, broken and cracked. But the holes and cracks of a broken pot allow more light to shine through -- the light of Jesus. "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." 2 Corinthians 4:7, NIV The Body of Christ is a most beautiful place and His headship is a gift. Take it from someone who has had to leave and come back again, search for its beauty, health and usefulness and struggle to do her part to help the body function.

Filled,
Kerry

HE RULES ALL!

2010-12-02T10:18:00.003-06:00

Ephesians 1:19b-21

That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.

Who's the strongest person you can think of? I'm always amazed at how strong my husband is. He takes me down with no effort and I usually have to trick him somehow in order to escape his grip (this is all done in fun, of course). I can think of some famous actors whose mighty muscles betray their strength. Professional wrestlers . . . I wouldn't want to make them mad. Human beings can make themselves relatively strong. They can build up their muscle strength to the point of no fear when walking down a dark alley at night. But, no matter how big and strong our muscles, we cannot and do not compare to God's strength. 1 Corinthians 1:25 says this: "For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength." No matter how big and strong our muscles, we have no power to raise someone from the dead.

Jesus Christ died on a cross. He died. But He did not stay dead. God raised Him from the dead with His mighty power and strength. This divine power, the same power that raised Jesus Christ from death to life, is at work in our own lives. We, too, were dead in our sins. But now we live! (Eph. 2:1,4-5) This divine power is at work in us constantly changing us into something better than what we are right now. It is at work guiding us in His divine will for us (which is ultimately eternity with Him) in spite of ourselves. "...for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose." Philippians 2:13, NIV

Once Jesus was raised from the dead, God seated Him at His right hand. No longer among us in human form, He was completely transformed from man to God, from scourged to exalted, from death to life. God exalted Him higher than anything or anyone. No matter what title we can come up with to give a person, Jesus Christ ranks higher. He rules over everything on earth and over everything in the heavens and beneath. He rules all! Only God has the power to exalt someone to such a position, and it's THAT same incomparably great power that is exerted in us every day of our lives as we live in Him. So, live in the strength of the Lord, my friends.

God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen. 1 Timothy 6:15b-16, NIV

Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spiritsbefore his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen. Revelation 1:4-6, NIV

In strength,
Kerry

WE HAVE IT ALL!

2010-11-15T10:15:00.003-06:00

Ephesians 1:18-19a
I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.

Do you realize how much God has made available to you, dear Believer? Do you count the promises that are yours in Him who saved you? If you're like me, you probably go about your day to day life without really considering all that is ours in Christ. Sometimes in the midst of difficulty, I hope and pray in a rather uncertain way for His word and His promises to be real in my current situation. "God, are you there?" "God, do you hear my cry?" I can't help but wonder, if I lived in this awareness every moment of every day . . . how different I would be and how different would be my sight. Paul wants his readers to know, to be fully aware, of all that God has made available to those who believe.

The heart is the seat of thought, of understanding, of feeling. It is in the heart that the Holy Spirit provides that inner awareness of our hope in God, the riches that are ours in Christ, and His power directed toward you. But let's break it down. First, that "hope" to which you and I have been called is eternal life. The hope of something better makes my momentary afflictions seem easier to bear. First and foremost, our glorious Father wants us to be and remain assured of our future glory. (Titus 1:2; Hebrews 6:17-20) Second, we have inherited all the "riches" of God and heaven through our faith in Jesus Christ. Provision, healing, forgiveness, truth, understanding, wisdom and so much more makes me rich! (2 Corinthians 1:20; 2 Peter 1:3-4) Third, and not at all least, is His "incomparably great power," an unimaginable divine potency that is directed toward all who believe. (I'll speak more about this power in my next post.) No power on this earth or below can take me down because my God is more powerful and is always at work in me and surrounding me. We're marked, remember. (Romans 8:38; 1 Peter 1:5)

Believers, we have it all! Today I'm praying for the eyes of my heart to be enlightened so that I might know all that God has made available to me. Today I'm praying for my sight to change.

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13 NIV

Enlightened,
Kerry

IT'S A REVELATION!

2010-11-08T10:39:00.004-06:00

Ephesians 1:15-17

For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

The Ephesians had embraced the word of truth and were sealed with the Holy Spirit and for this reason Paul's thanksgivng for them rises up in prayer. News had been brought to him in Rome of the Ephesians faith in the Lord and their love for others. Galatians 5:6 tells us that faith expresses itself in love. They were on the right track and Paul was expressing his pleasure at what they learned by giving thanks for them and remembering them in his prayers and he was letting the Ephesians know it. The word "remembering" literally means "making mention." Deeper than that, however, is that it implies that Paul was not just sending up a blanket prayer of thankfulness for the Ephesians as a whole. Paul was mentioning each one that he knew in the church in Ephesus by name. The Apostle Paul remained deeply involved in the lives of those with whom he helped to bring to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. He was no slouch when it came to prayer or study.

The believers in Ephesus have been taught about the Holy Spirit and Paul was helping them to take it a step further . . . to go deeper. "Revelation" refers to insight into the mysteries of God's divine truth. Friends, we cannot even receive Christ as our Savior without first receiving a revelation, insight, that Jesus indeed died for our sins. You know this to be true by how many people out there have heard this truth but do not believe it to be truth. A revelation is needed and that can only be given by God, the glorious Father. The Holy Spirit is referred to as the Spirit of truth at least 3 times in the Book of John. (John 14:16; 15:23; and 16:13) I cannot over emphasize the importance of reading and knowing God's word. It is in the pages of God's word where the mysteries are hidden and the truth is found. And, it is from the truth found in God's word that the Holy Spirit can begin to open the eyes of your heart. What Paul wants for the believers at the church in Ephesus, and for us now, is to follow suit. Pray for the Holy Spirit to give us wisdom and revelation into the mysteries of God's word so that we might know Him, the glorious Father who loves us without measure and beyond reason, better.

Please read the following piece from 1 Corinthians 2:7-16 as if the Apostle Paul was writing directly to you as he received it straight from the heart of our glorious Father.

Friends,
No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” the things God has prepared for those who love him—these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

~Paul

Following suit,
Kerry

SIGNED, SEALED, DELIVERED . . . I'M YOURS!

2010-11-01T08:56:00.001-05:00

Ephesians 1:13-14

And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory.

In verses 11 and 12 (see previous post), Paul was addressing the Jews alone. In verses 13 and 14 he addresses the Gentiles. Paul is not trying to draw any kind of line between the Jews and the Gentiles. On the contrary, he is reminding the Gentile Christians that they are fully incorporated into the Body of Christ with the Jews. In the previous two verses, he was reminding the Jews that though they were the first to believe it does not mean that they alone get to share in the inheritance of Christ. He is trying to show that there is no difference now. We are co-heirs, equal partners, and we have a full share in the inheritance. We (i.e., all those belonging to God's family) came into it the same way. We heard the word of truth -- the gospel of our salvation. Jew and Gentile, alike. The Jews of the Old Testament started with the promise of a Savior and salvation and it was their job to share that good news with the nations. They were privileged because they were chosen to take on this task. They still had to trust God for His grace and mercy just like we do now. And when Jesus came, they had to accept the word of truth the same as the Gentiles did. Now we're all privileged and chosen to take on the task of sharing the gospel.

At the moment we believe, God's word says we are sealed with the Holy Spirit -- marked so that it is clear that we belong to Him. Think of the word "seal" this way: *something affixed to a document to guarantee its genuineness; it indicates ownership and ensures protection; it represents a designation of office in the state of service. Once you believe, you have the promised Holy Spirit in whom all God's promises are fulfilled. Once you believe, you are a genuine member of the family of God, you hold a place of belonging and are under God's protection and are assured a place to serve in His kingdom. What's more, the Holy Spirit is not just a seal, but a deposit. Think of "deposit" this way: *the first installment in a major purchase; a token payment assuring the vendor that the full amount will eventually follow. The gift of the Holy Spirit is the first installment of our inheritance. At the end of the age, God's treasury, heaven itself will be opened up to all who are His in Christ. God's Holy Spirit is no small deposit. God gave us His Holy Spirit as a guarantee of His faithfulness to me and to you! Meanwhile, we wait. We wait for the rest of the payment and the Holy Spirit is our reminder that God is real and He fulfills His promises! THIS, my friends, is a GENEROUS GOD!!!

Marked,
Kerry

*Definition taken from Zondervan NIV Bible Commentary, pg. 754.

HIS INHERITANCE, HIS PORTION

2010-10-20T10:24:00.003-05:00

Ephesians 1:11-12
In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.

Let's just start with this: Israel was regarded as the Lord's inheritance and portion. The church, the new Israel, becomes a part of that same promise. Here is the basis for these verses: Paul is reminding his readers that his people, the Jews, were the first to put their hope in Christ, in a coming Messiah. This idea was distinct to their faith. No other faith held the idea of a savior within their belief systems. The Gentiles had not entertained this notion. So as not to think that somehow Christians have usurped Jewish privileges, Paul is emphasizing Israel's important role in God's story to expand His kingdom. It was Israel who was chosen to introduce God's mercy and grace to all the nations. It was Israel who was chosen to bring forth God's word from generation to generation. No, Christians have not usurped Jewish privileges . . . they have been brought in to inherit those same privileges to the praise and glory of God who has worked this out from the beginning.

Israel was regarded as the Lord's inheritance and portion. I've always found this to be a difficult concept. Here's what I think it means. "Inheritance" should be thought of as qualities and markings and characteristics we inherit from our parents. In this sense, Israel was to reflect the goodness of God. And "portion," in this sense, means part of a whole. Israel was a part of God's creation just like the other nations. The difference being that God took that portion (Israel) and cared for them and gave them promises as an example of what He wants for all of us. The foreordained plan for Israel was to make known to the nations the wondrous works of God, His unfathomable and all-consuming love and His unending mercy and grace to the rest of us. Now, maybe they haven't always succeeded in that task, but then, neither have I.

My next post (Ephesians 1:13-14) will bring further clarification on these verses and will hopefully round it out a bit more.

To his glory,
Kerry

A HIGH CALLING

2010-10-12T10:05:00.000-05:00

Ephesians 1:9-10
And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment -- to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.

Life doesn't make sense sometimes . . . a lot of the time. Things in our world can feel very confusing what with all the political, economic and environmental drama going on every single day (not to make light of any of it!). It's hard to always know which views are right and which are wrong. The lines of moral conduct are blurred at best. There's always a cause to support and a hill to die on but, at the end of the day, have you fulfilled God's calling in your life to unity and love or did you let all those causes and hills separate you?

One of the purposes of Paul's letter to the Ephesians was to broaden their understanding of the Church and its part in God's story of humankind. Paul begins by drawing attention to God's gracious gifts given to us in all of God's wisdom and forethought, not the least of those gifts being salvation. All of this we've already discussed. And, in the same way that God has planned for you, another concept we've already discussed, He has also had a plan for the "times." The "times" encompasses all of history until the moment of Christ's return. Christ's appearance in the New Testament unlocked the "mystery" of His will for humankind. His will for us, Church, is to bring Him praise and glory, to love Him, and, in the end, reign with Him. But, not only that, it's also to show others the way to His love, through His Son, Jesus. The Church was created to bring all believers together under one head, that "Head" being Jesus Christ. We are to be an example of unity and love no matter color, race, gender or age. The same unity and love that binds the Trinity together should also bind us as believers. The Church is to be an example now of how things will be when Christ returns and rules the nations and all peoples no matter color, race, gender or age. In Paul's day, the lines of separation were hard and fast. Very simply put, the Jews were struggling with elitism and rules and the Gentiles were struggling with loose morals and monotheism. (Though, believe me, those issues crossed both lines.) Sounds a little familiar. Yes? Now, it's true, most of the time we fail to be such a great example. We have our own hard and fast lines of separation in our world today: political, denominational, doctrinal, racial, moral . . . the list can go on.

This great mystery IS the Lord's return. His return will bring the end of confusion. Questions about correct doctrine will be no more because Christ will reign supreme! Political views will no longer separate us because Christ will reign supreme! Denominational differences will cease to exist because Christ will reign supreme! Societal ills will fall away because Christ will reign supreme! Broken relationships, financial hardships, sickness and disease will melt before the One whose love captured us at the Cross! All things in heaven and on earth will be subject to His reign and rule. That includes the nations and heads of nations. It includes churches and pastors and governing boards of all kinds. It includes you and me and everything that besets us. In the light of Christ, all things are made right.

There's a lot of questions on this earth that we can't answer -- a lot of things that make no sense. The hard things we face in life can make us wonder, "Why, if God is such a loving God, does He allow this kind of suffering?" The Church is not called to have all the answers. Some things in this life are simply unanswerable. The Church is called, however, to be salt and light to a world where many of the lines of truth and moral conduct are blurred at best -- where hurts and sorrows overtake us to the point of hopelessness. The Church is called to be the place where no one is EVER turned away but, instead, shown the love and light of God in His Son, Jesus. God has given the Church the high calling to be unified in the love of Jesus Christ - perhaps our greatest challenge on this earth - and to show the immeasurable grace from the One who calls us to unity. One day, all questions will be answered. Church, you can take comfort in the fact that God holds the "times" in His hand and one day Christ will return and all things will be made right and life will make sense. Fully. Until that day, Church, remember God's will for you: unity and love.

Accepting His call,
Kerry

BLESSINGS, BLESSINGS AND MORE BLESSINGS!

2010-10-05T14:07:00.000-05:00

Ephesians 1:7-8, NIV

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

Blessings, blessings and more blessings! As if grace and peace and being chosen to have life and every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms weren't enough . . . we also find the gift of redemption and forgiveness and wisdom and understanding lavishly handed to us. Has there ever been anyone in your life that just seems to give and give and give to you or anyone you might know? Anyone you know who just loves to shower you with gifts without any expectation of getting something in return? And, I mean excessively so! To the point of embarrassment! My guess is that for most of us, probably not. Most of us probably know, however, someone who tends to give more willingly than others. We all know someone whom we can say, "They're just so giving." The truth is, none of us can out-give God. He is the ultimate, unmatched champion Giver!

Redemption in this case simply means to pay a ransom price for the freedom of another, particularly a slave or a prisoner. Friends, we're the slaves. We are the prisoners. And the price paid was the blood of Jesus. His life, the blood that ran through His veins, was poured out so that you and I could be set free from the sin that enslaves us and holds us prisoner to sin's demanding laws. The Levitical system of sacrifices required that something must die, blood must be shed, in order to the pay the penalty for sin of the people. When an animal was sacrificed on the altar, it was extremely messy . . . blood was everywhere . . . it was ugly. And when the fat and meat were burned, everyone could smell it and it happened all day long, everyday at the temple. It was meant to be extremely messy and ugly so that the people would be reminded of how sin destroys life. When Jesus came and died on the cross, He died once for all. No more sacrifice is necessary. We have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. The price has been paid and we no longer have to live in slavery to sin . . . a prisoner held captive by the enemy of our souls.

Forgiveness is ours in Jesus Christ! Top that all off with all the wisdom (i.e. knowledge that sees things as they really are) and understanding (i.e. discernment that leads to right action) you could possibly need in this life if you only ask. (Proverbs 2:2-6, James 1:5) These riches of grace have been lavished, LAVISHED! on us! When we mess up, He forgives. When we falter, He forgives. When we fall, He forgives. When we deliberately sin, He forgives. You cannot out-sin God's lavish grace for you! (Romans 5:20) This all comes at an incalculable cost. The One who gave you life, gave His own that you might live in freedom! "Because of the sacrifice of the Messiah, his blood poured out on the altar of the Cross, we're a free people -- free of penalties and punishments chalked up by all our misdeeds. And not just barely free, either. Abundantly free!" Ephesians 1:7-8, MSG

Free!
Kerry

THE LOVING ACT OF PREDESTINATION

2010-09-30T10:39:00.001-05:00

Ephesians 1:4-6

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will -- to the praise of this glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.

I've noticed in Christian centered conversations that words like "chosen" and "predestined" (especially any word derived from "predestination") gets avoided. These are words that trigger debate and even conflict. People immediately assume that these words mean something exclusionary and rob us of our free will. On the contrary, being chosen and predestined should open our eyes even wider to the great love that God has for us . . . for ALL of us! First of all these words are easily taken out of context. They must instead be brought into the context of God's overall character. God is not exclusionary, therefore, being chosen does not mean that He's included some and not others into His great plan of redemption. God never overrides our free will and, therefore, accepting the idea of being predestined does not mean that we submit to a doctrine "no choice." I believe that the idea of being chosen and predestined is seated, embedded, into God's all surpassing wisdom and omniscience. Friend, God knew you, chose you and planned for you "before the creation of the world." He already chose you and predestined you, by the mere fact that He created you, for redemption and to be adopted as his sons or daughters. Adoption is no small thing. In our world, people wanting to adopt a child would give almost anything they had -- everything they have in order to adopt. Adoption is a very serious matter invoking all the rights and privileges to the one adopted as would be given to a natural son or daughter. Think about this! You have been given all the rights and privileges as Jesus himself!

"In love He predestined us..." Predestination is a loving act straight from the loving nature of God. Any interpretation (and there are many!) of this mysterious doctrine that detracts from the love of God should be suspect. In love He chose you for eternal life with Him and predestined you to live holy and blameless through Jesus Christ. And, through Jesus Christ you are received into His family by adoption. This, my friend, is His plan for you and for me. Why? Because it pleased Him to create you, to know you, to love you, to plan for you, to make room for you in this world -- His world. He didn't have to create you at all. But, He did. He thought of YOU and it pleased Him to make room for you in His story! Accepting His son as your Savior and Lord is in His plan for you . . . this is what you were created to do! This is what you were predestined to do! This is why you were chosen to have life!

Now, whether or not you choose Him (free will) is up to you. It always has been. Each one of us on the planet is chosen for creation and He knew each one of us before time began "and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live." (Acts 17:26b, NIV) His plan for you and for me is be holy (set apart to reflect His purity) and blameless (free from blemish) and this seemingly daunting task is accomplished one simple way: by accepting the grace given us through Jesus Christ. This is not a doctrine that robs me of free will or excludes some from knowing Him. Instead, this speaks to me about a God who, before He created the world, thought of me and planned for me and determined that I would live in the times I do and, once here, set eternity before me and created opportunities for me to choose eternity with Him. He allowed me to freely choose Him, and, when I did, His grace, the grace I need to live holy and blameless was (and is) freely given to me through His son!

I realize my interpretation of the doctrine of predestination in this post is a tad oversimplified. This is an interpretation that God has been showing me for a number of years now and, although it may in fact be simple in nature, it doesn't mean it's wrong. I submit that it's just another layer to a very deep theology. I encourage you to search out the idea of being chosen and predestined for yourself.

Chosen,
Kerry

A MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACE

2010-09-14T11:37:00.004-05:00

Ephesians 1:3

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. NIV

One of the purposes of Paul's letter to the Ephesians was to reveal the "mystery" of the church. In somewhat simplistic terms, the church's purpose was (is) to reveal and express the fullness of Christ here on earth, doing so by uniting all believers no matter our race, gender or background and to equip us to extend Christ's victory over evil. To further simplify, we are to show Jesus to the world so that they may know Him, too. Now, I've had my issues with the church. It hasn't always been kind to me (at least in my estimation). And I can tell you this: it's a messy place -- full of baggage and despair and disappointment and even hypocrites. The church falls short many times in showing the world the love of Jesus. But, I can also tell you that the church is beautiful because of all of those same things. It's those within the church that are broken and know it that define it's beauty. It is beautiful by virtue of the fact that it is the Body of Christ. And, it is in His body that my healing is found. "But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed." (Isaiah 53:5, NIV)

Paul is telling the Ephesians in this verse that our God, the same God who sent His Son, the same God who paid our redemption, the same God who saw fit to tie His name to us, has also blessed us with spiritual blessings. And, those blessings are ours here and now. He's not talking about material blessings here. He's talking about the blessings of adoption, forgiveness and being chosen. Friends, wrap your mind around this! You have been adopted and brought in to this most sacred union between Father and Son! You have been forgiven of your past and chosen to live and dwell and walk among those who are called "redeemed!" Don't get me wrong. This is NOT an elitist group in the sense that it's difficult to be brought in. On the contrary, it couldn't be more easy to be included. However, it is an elitist group in the sense that you can ONLY be brought in one way and one way only: through the blood of Jesus who paid your way in. (John 14:6, Ephesians 1:7)

If you consider yourself a believer then you are a part of the Body of Christ. And, if that be so, then you must find your place among a body of believers. You will never function at your best as a believer apart from it -- this is a lesson I've had to learn. Yes, the church is messy. Yes, it's not always as kind as it should be. But . . . Hello! Neither am I and neither are you, but, therein lies the mystery. It's people just like you and me that make up this most precarious and beautiful place. It's people like you and me that God has chosen to bless with "every spiritual blessing." (Even as I write that I cannot fully grasp the weight of what I'm saying.) I'm a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ and therefore one of the redeemed. Like a piece of a puzzle Christ's Body is where I fit. I do not fit anywhere else.

Blessed,
Kerry

TO THE FAITHFUL

2010-09-09T15:00:00.003-05:00

I've decided to do some expository teaching from the Word. Expository teaching is one of my favorite ways to learn and teach God's word. Over the next several months my posts are going to be limited to 1-3 paragraphs teaching on one or two verses of scripture starting with Ephesians 1:1-2. Expository simply means to expound on or to explain something. It's a fairly common way of preaching and teaching by pastors, although some enjoy this style more than others. Expository teaching is usually limited to just a handful of verses at a time because it would take way too much time to expound on and explain an entire chapter at a time. The beauty of this kind of teaching is that it is extremely thorough (which I love) without being too lengthy at any given time (so, hopefully I won't bore you to death). Here goes!

Ephesians 1:1-2, NIV

"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ."

In every epistle (or letter) that Paul wrote, he addressed his readers first by stating clearly who he was in Christ. Early on in Paul's ministry there were many who questioned his status as an apostle because he did not start out as the other 12 disciples who walked closely alongside Jesus during His earthly ministry. Paul became an apostle later under rather precarious circumstances. While on his way to persecute Jesus followers, he was struck by a bright light, blinded and was spoken to by our Lord convincing him of his wrong behavior. Although he immediately turned his life around, I'm sure others weren't always convinced of his change of heart and still feared a little for their lives. As time went on, however, he became more well known for his actions as a Jesus follower instead of a Jesus persecutor. But, you and I both know how the enemy likes to drag up our past life with all its past mistakes and find new ways to torture us. I'm sure Paul woke up every morning having to come to terms with his past sin of persecuting his fellow believers. I know I would.

Beginning each letter in this way not only reminded his readers of his status as a true apostle but solidified in his own heart each time he wrote it out who he was in Christ. And, in that same vein, he addresses his readers as "saints" and "faithful," reminding them of who they are in Christ! Paul does this in every letter he writes in some fashion or another. Here's something to think about: what if every time you introduced yourself to someone you added something that spoke to who you are in Christ; and, every time you met someone new you referred to them as someone with whom God is interested? Like this: "Hi! My name is Kerry, servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace and peace to you, _________________, loved by God." Saying all of that would be awkward for sure, but you can still think it!

"Grace and peace" was a common way to address someone at the time, but the Apostle Paul made sure that there was a spiritual component to this most common greeting: ". . . from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." Basically, Paul is saying let there be no mistake! It is from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ that I come as I do, and it is from God alone that I speak and ". . . live and move and have our being." (Acts 17:28, NIV) Let there be no mistake, readers! If you consider yourself a Jesus follower, then you are an apostle, a servant, a prisoner, a saint, and one of the faithful in Christ Jesus -- no matter your past!

Grace and peace,
Kerry

THE MOTIVATIONAL GIFT OF SHOWING MERCY

2010-05-25T14:42:00.002-05:00

". . . if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully."

Mercy. If you say it with a slow and thoughtful approach the word melts through your mouth. Mercy. We cannot live without it. Grace should be like the air we breathe and mercy should ooze from our being. Mercy. We deserve punishment and death but what we get is Mercy. Mercy is scandalous. Mercy is unfair. Mercy is the Cross.

The Motivational Gift of Showing Mercy is the last in the list. It might interest you to know that there are more people operating in this gift than any other. Rightly so. And here's why: without mercy we would die. Bottom line. We serve a merciful God who calls us to His mercy and requires us to be merciful in return. Now, as with all the gifts, and even though this gift shows up the most, there are still those of us who do not score so high in Mercy. Like me . . . and prophets. I talked earlier in this study about how we are to cultivate all of the motivational gifts in our life even though they do not all come so naturally to us. Prophets are to learn to be merciful. Administrators are to practice serving. Servers must learn to Lead and so on. And, Mercy people need to learn the tough love approach of a Prophet.

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Showing Mercy here are some things you might want to know about yourself. If the Prophet sees everything in black and white, you see the human landscape in shades of gray. Even if the person has no justifiable reason for his/her distress or trouble, you understand that they are in pain...and that's enough to motivate you to action. You do not apply hard and fast rules or reasons to life. For instance, you would never say, "He or she committed a sin and that is the reason for their trouble. They need to get back into God's word, repent and seek forgiveness." End of story. And, although all of that is probably true in most cases, you know that things just aren't that simple and that human nature needs guidance and love and renewed hope and an understanding ear . . . and time. Time for the human spirit to heal enough to make its way back to God and His word. You know that there are complex reasons for whatever condition we're in and you show God's mercy by being merciful. That's you. You have the ability to empathize with people. You feel what they feel and you grieve with them . . . or, rejoice with them. You are drawn to the underdog and the downtrodden -- the hurting, the lonely, the aged, the ill, the dying. And, likewise, they are drawn to you. You are willing to deal with those people who have needs that most other people feel uncomfortable dealing with. You are generally soft-spoken, a good listener, peaceable and agreeable. You tend to make decisions based on your feelings rather than facts, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. At your best (when you are being led by the Spirit) you take your time making those decisions which gives the Holy Spirit time to guide your feelings. The downside to operating strongly in this gift is that because you are drawn to and attract the downtrodden and the underdog, these same people have a tendency to use you. You have a hard time setting boundaries with people which perpetuates the using. If you were more hard and fast with people, like the Prophet is, then you wouldn't get used by people, but then who would show the rest of us mercy. Others accuse you of being too soft and compromising. It's not the downtrodden you find troubling or difficult, it's the prophet motivated people that exasperate you.

The fact that there ARE so many Mercy motivated people, means we all KNOW many Mercy motivated people. I confess that I have thought the following of some of my Mercy motivated friends: "She is too compromising with so and so...If she is being used and walked on she has only herself to blame for not setting some boundaries..." I also confess, however, that when I need mercy the most (which is often) I pray for it, I seek it with my whole being and I love it when I'm shown mercy. I am learning to be more merciful as I grow in the Lord. In fact, "becoming more merciful" is synonymous with "growing in the Lord." I know this guy who was tragically born without a mercy bone (I'll call him "my husband"). He said as we were discussing the topic of mercy, "If I didn't have to be merciful, I wouldn't be." To God's credit, "this guy" has become a man of mercy even though he operates in the Motivational Gift of Prophecy. To God's credit, he recognizes the mercy he's been given and that fact alone, through time, has shaped him into a person of mercy. God asks very little of us while we're on this planet, but He does ask us to show mercy. "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:8, NIV, bold italics mine) Seriously, who among us hasn't needed mercy in this life? Who among us hasn't found themselves hurting, alone, scared, troubled or sick at some point in their life? Mercy. It is essential and crucial.

Most pastors are gifted with Showing Mercy. It makes sense that God would equip pastors this way and I've come to appreciate this quality more than I can say. When you're hurting or suffering or in trouble it's a natural inclination to seek out your pastor, or a pastor. At those times you're not needing to be yelled at or scolded. What you need at that moment of vulnerability is someone who will listen to you, pray with you and understand how life. gets. so. very. difficult. Sometimes correction is needed, but it's always been my experience that God gives mercy first and then corrects and then gently and powerfully restores me to a safe and healthy journey. I have a dear friend in my life that I've known for years and years -- VERY gifted with mercy. So much so that in her earlier years she'd cry and grieve over a bug that was unnecessarily squashed. It PAINED her to thin out a flower bed (you know...the whole loss of life thing). I remember we had an old pine tree in our yard that was way too big. It was EXTREMELY messy dropping all those needles and pine cones everywhere. It always took an entire day and umpteen garbage bags to clean up underneath that big 'ol tree. I'd had enough and determined life was too short to spend this much time cleaning up after a messy tree; AND it was in a terrible spot in the yard. It was reasonable to me. Upon telling her how we were thinking of having it cut down I got a heartfelt lecture on why we shouldn't be killing God's creatures. As it turns out, the tree remained. Over time she learned to temper her gift so as to see some situations with more reasonable eyes. It's this deeply heartfelt mercy that causes her to NOT give out what is deserved to all that live around her. To me, the tree no longer deserved to live because it made my life difficult. To her, though it may have deserved to be cut down, she helped me understand that it is alive . . . just like me . . . that it needs patience and understanding . . . just like me . . . that it has the ability to praise the Lord . . . just like me. To this day, she lives out her stunning gift of Mercy with everyone around her and God uses her to bring great comfort to the hurting. Mercy. It is of great consequence.

Let's look at an example from scripture: The Good Samaritan, the quintessential Mercy person. "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead...But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him." (Luke 10:30, 33-34, NIV) Beautiful picture. Others walked away but he moved in close to help. What if this person, robbed and left for dead, was you? How badly would you need this Samaritan full of mercy to come and help you? I don't know...I'd like to think that I would help someone in this condition, but I get scared...what if the offenders are still around and I'm the next victim? I might just walk away assuming that someone else would stop and help...and then I'd regret it for the rest of my life. To the one gifted with the motivation of Showing Mercy, I'm sure my reaction is completely unreasonable and makes no sense. As I said earlier, I'm learning to be more merciful. What seems like it should be as easy and as natural as walking or thinking or breathing, isn't always. When I NEED mercy, I only know I NEED it. When it comes time for me to give it out, God help me. Mercy. It is dangerous and risky.

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Showing Mercy here's what you need to do. First, you need to know the absolutes of God's word. Seeing life in shades of gray is truly a beautiful thing, but some things are black and white. Some behaviors are listed as sin in God's word and must be dealt with as such. Sometimes people need the hard truth even if it feels like it will hurt them. Second, work towards long term solutions for those you desire to help. Mercy is an answer in itself, but it is only the starting place. Remember, God shows mercy first, then corrects and restores. Third, set boundaries for yourself and know that it is ok to do so. Showing mercy does not equal showing yourself naïve. If possible, come alongside someone who will mentor you and help you evaluate the intentions of others. If you could learn to work with a prophet motivated person and he with you, the balance between you would be stunning. Fourth, if you're not careful and wise with people, this gift of Showing Mercy can become sympathy instead of empathy and where real and honest help is desperately needed ends up looking like enabling. The Holy Spirit will help you know when to be tough enough to make them stand and will equip you to do so, so daily seek His wisdom. In love and truth your gift of mercy will shine! Fourth, and regarding those with the Motivational Gift of Prophesy, learn from them and don't disregard them. If two types of people ever needed each other in this world, it's you two. And . . the Body of Christ depends on both of you equally.

This concludes the study of the Motivational Gifts of the Spirit. Allow me to recap just a bit. The Motivational Gifts of the Spirit are different than the Fruits of the Spirit found in Galatians 5:22. God gives each of us at least one strong Motivational Gift and we are to work at cultivating and practicing the others. The Fruits of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) are developed in us by the Holy Spirit. As we walk out our faith and our life, the Holy Spirit will develop in us the ability to exhibit the fruits. Whereas we may not always exhibit each of the gifts, we must make a conscious effort, with the help of the Holy Spirit, of course, to practice them. If you haven't taken the Gifts Assessment test yet, one is located it in the sidebar on the left. Remember when taking it that you must go with your initial gut reaction to each question. Do not labor over the questions. When finished and the test is scored, look for your top 3. If one of the top 3 is Pastor/Evangelist then throw that one out and use the fourth highest score as your number 3. I'm not disregarding the importance of Pastor/Evangelist, it's just that it's not one of the 7 Motivational Gifts of the Spirit listed in Romans 12. Upon looking for a Gifts Assessment test that only covered the Motivational Gifts listed in Romans 12, this was the best online test I could find that didn't take a lifetime to complete.

Mercifully,
Kerry

NOTE: The description of each gift is based on the highest score possible for an individual. You may find that only certain things are true for you and the rest is only true to a certain measure. We are individuals created by an infinitely creative God. We do not fit any certain mold. These descriptions help you to understand why you see things a certain way, why you act a certain way and why some things are more important to you than other things. Most of us will score fairly high in 2 or 3 gifts and how these gifts rank and what God has you involved in at the time will determine how well these gift descriptions speak to your individual personality.

2010-04-29T10:54:00.002-05:00

"...if it is leadership, let him govern diligently..." (Romans 12:8b, NIV)

This is the one I've been waiting for...the one I've wanted to write about. The Leader. (Some of you out there will know it better as Administrator and that's how I will refer to this gift throughout this post.) Why have I been waiting for it? Because it's me. I understand it. I can live this one out. As far as I'm concerned, the world would be a better place if we were all administrators. But, alas...not so. And, truly, there is good reason why God allows only so many administrators on the planet at one time. To many, administrators are annoying. If everyone operated in this gifting we'd all look like robots carrying lists around and checking off details, taking charge of every little thing -- then it would be chaos instead of the beautiful order that Administrators bring to the world. I've been reminded and even reprimanded on more than one occasion by two of my very favorite people on the planet regarding my take charge, plan everything out personality.

The Greek word for Administrator or Leader is "kubernesis" which literally means to steer a ship and "diligently" simply means to do or pursue with persevering attention; painstaking. C. Peter Wagner calls this person a "helmsman." A helmsman must steer the ship safely to harbor; to steer it through rocks and storms and other dangers that others might miss or misjudge due to poor course setting or poor planning. In other words, the Administrator has the ability to pursue and oversee a project, event or ministry with painstaking attention to its desired end. The NIV refers to this Motivational Gift as the Gift of Leadership. To administrate something means to control, manage, direct and govern; to lead means to guide, show the way, escort, pilot, be in front. Leadership probably better describes what this gift SHOULD be, but I prefer Administrator because I feel that term better describes the operation of this gift as others see it.

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Administration here are some things you might want to know about yourself. You are a big picture person and a planner. You plan everything out. You have the ability to organize and prioritize so that you can and do reach your goal. Sometimes you organize the details of an event or project and other times you organize people to carry out the necessary tasks of the event or project. You know how to delegate. You have a natural ability to problem solve. You easily take charge and start giving orders. You are detail-oriented, goal-oriented, disciplined and work really well under pressure. You are a good motivator and usually won't procrastinate. You tend to be a perfectionist with an adequate self-image. You feel really good and extremely useful when in charge of a project because you believe you are working for the good of a group.

Now before you get a big head, here's the downside of your strength. You can be a little too intense for some. You appear bossy. Planning is good, and, in my opinion, you cannot succeed (or even exist well) with a solid plan; but, you plan ad nauseam. From the moment I get up in the morning my brain is saying, "What's the plan today?" (My sons-in-law will be rolling their eyes at me right about now.) You don't like to admit your mistakes along the way because it comes across as not being in control; and, be it a list of tasks to accomplish or a group of people to accomplish said tasks, you like to be in control. You follow A, B, and C or 1, 2, and 3 and don't leave a lot of room for inserting anything in between. It 's not that you can't, it's just not easy to allow.

Both of my sons-in-law (2 of my favorite people on the planet) have commented on my administrative personality. They are both very spontaneous people with wonderful gifts of their own. I am well aware of how I come off sometimes to them and I know they've swallowed hard on more than one occasion instead of telling me to chill out and stop planning the entire day. Whenever we're all together, the first thing out of my mouth in the morning is literally, "So, what's the plan today, people?" and then I proceed to make a plan. They roll their eyes at me or sigh and shake their heads. Sometimes they beat me to the question; and, although I like to think they're trying to take lessons on making a plan, I know they're just humoring me. But, it just makes good sense to me. Honestly, how do you not think about some sort of plan for the day? My daughters jump right on board with me. I have a good friend who operates even more strongly in this gift than I do. She works for a church as a type of Office Administrator and does her job extremely well. She doesn't miss a beat when it comes to the details. She has lists both at work and at home and knows exactly why she has the list, where said list is located and, I'm certain, everything on the list gets finished and crossed off. The spontaneous people in life find this annoying, but I can guarantee that without the detail-oriented organization of Administrators like this the spontaneous people in this world would not be free to be spontaneous!

Let's look at an example from scripture: Joseph, the quintessential Administrator. The stories of Joseph are found in Genesis beginning with chapter 36. Through a series of bad decisions by his brothers, Joseph ended up in Egypt as a slave and then as a prisoner. Through both situations his gift of Administration came shining through but never more glowingly than when he had to oversee a plan that would save Egypt from a coming famine. "And now let Pharaoh look for a discerning and wise man and put him in charge of the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh appoint commissioners over the land to take a fifth of the harvest of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. They should collect all the food of these good years that are coming and store up the grain under the authority of Pharaoh, to be kept in the cities for food. This food should be held in reserve for the country, to be used during the seven years of famine that will come upon Egypt, so that the country may not be ruined by the famine," said Joseph to Pharaoh. (Genesis 41:33-36, NIV) Pharaoh saw this to be a good and sound plan and put Joseph in charge. Ah...in charge of a plan! I love it! Try to imagine the logistics of collecting and storing food for seven years from all the cities of Egypt -- enough to be portioned out to all the families of all those cities for seven years of famine. How much food would be needed for all the people? Do we store enough for everyone to have plenty or do we store enough for everyone to just have enough. Where do we store it all? Obviously, we must build storage facilities. Where? Who does the building? Who does the collecting? Who moves the food around? The questions DO NOT end there! The details involved in keeping an entire nation from starvation is mind-boggling. Could YOU do it? God gave Joseph the plan and God gave Joseph the ability to carry it out. Those of you who get annoyed with the likes of Administrators should stop and think about this story.

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Administration, here's what you need to do. First, because planning and organizing come so easily for you work on your ability to be spontaneous. There's something freeing about throwing away the list and flying by the seat of your pants. Those around you might just appreciate a little vacation from the plan. Second, though some take to being ordered around more willingly, others do not appreciate your take charge approach. In fact, they may come to blows with you or walk away from the task altogether. At the end of the day it's better to know that you walked and worked in love and humility with those who have signed on to help you. Remember, "A gentle answer turns away wrath." (Proverbs 15:1, NIV) Third, always remember that the responsibility and privilege of being in charge is best approached from a position of humility. Don't play the blame game. Own the mistakes and share the glory. Fourth, and this may sound a bit redundant, but not everything in life can be planned out. Life is unpredictable in both good ways and bad. Sometimes you just have to let things develop around you, watch them fail or succeed, and know that God, who has given you this beautiful gift, is in TOTAL control of your world -- so you don't have to be!

Diligently,
Kerry

NOTE: The description of each gift is based on the highest score possible for an individual. You may find that only certain things are true for you and the rest is only true to a certain measure. We are individuals created by an infinitely creative God. We do not fit any certain mold. These descriptions help you to understand why you see things a certain way, why you act a certain way and why some things are more important to you than other things. Most of us will score fairly high in 2 or 3 gifts and how these gifts rank and what God has you involved in at the time will determine how well these gift descriptions speak to your individual personality.

THE MOTIVATIONAL GIFT OF GIVING

2010-01-05T06:11:00.001-06:00

". . .if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously;" (Romans 12:8, NIV)

As I take you through the Motivational Gift of giving, remember that even though you may have scored low in this gift it does not relieve you of practicing giving. It only means that it does not color your every thought or inspire your every action. The same holds true for every motivational gift.

This is the MOST fascinating gift to me. Givers are SO interesting. Maybe I just feel this way about Givers because I'm not one and I wish I was one! I have known many, many people with this motivational gift and have watched them at work. My husband and I have been the recipient of this gift at work more than a few times in our life. It's AWESOME! (albeit humbling!) We've received money, groceries, gas. . . oh, gosh, just to name a few things. My husband has even been the recipient of a guitar or two throughout the years due to Givers. Having said that, it's important that you know that he has also learned to give his own guitars away. There a lot of struggling guitar players out there -- there's always someone who needs a guitar. When discussing the importance of learning to be a giver with him the other day he said this, "My first nature, my human nature, wants to hoard but the godly nature is to give away."

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Giving then here's some things you should know about yourself. You see all of your material belongings and monetary wealth as belonging to God -- only on loan to you. You don't just SAY it all belongs to God like the rest of us, you KNOW it belongs to God. You are frugal. You are responsible with your money and manage it well. You probably have an innate ability to make money. You may not be wealthy but you still probably out-give everyone else because you give (or are at least willing to give) everything you have. Money does not cause you stress because you KNOW that God will provide. You are charitable and generous and loving because you care about people and their needs. You probably have a heart for missionaries and financially support several of them. You are very aware of the financial need of the church. You like your gift (large or small) to be of high quality. You are organized, have a good self-control and an adequate self-image. If the Holy Spirit is not allowed to be in control of your gift, however, you can become controlling of your money and prideful of your giving. You have a tendency to think that everyone should be giving like you do. It is important to remember that although we are ALL called to give, we are NOT all called to give like you give. Scripture gives many important directives regarding giving. Here are two of them: "But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." (Matthew 6:3-4, NIV) "Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." (2 Corinthians 9:7, NIV)

Albeit not essential for a happy marriage, it is likely that your spouse has the same gift. If not, however, and you've wondered why your husband keeps giving away his stuff or large sums of money or why your wife gives away the entire grocery budget from time to time to someone she deems in greater need. . .well, this is probably why.

Givers give in lots of different ways. Some live on very, very little because they give everything they have or else they keep everything they have set aside to give to the next person in need; and, you'd never know they have so much. And, although it may look like God is not blessing their giving because of how they live, be careful to remember that people with this gift aren't looking for more blessing and blessing comes in more ways than material wealth. Others are clearly blessed with more and more wealth BECAUSE they are so willing to give it out. Some Givers take this gift super, super seriously while others seemingly fly by the seat of their pants. When my youngest daughter, Annie, still in college at the time, found out about the plight of one of her classmates having to leave school a couple months early due to a lack of funds she quickly called us with her plan. Having only a couple more months of the school year left, Annie had a very limited amount of money left in her account -- $600.00 to be exact, but she immediately started making plans to give it all to her friend. Being less than enthusiastic about her plan we managed to advise her to pray about it for a couple of days and we would too. God provided for that young man in a different way and Annie was able to keep her money to finish out the year. You may be saying, "Wait! This story doesn't really count because nothing was really given away." I share this story with you because of how it affected me at the time. Ultimately, her dad and I would have had to find a way to see her through the rest of the year had she given away that money. The point is that Annie was ready to give all she had left in a moments notice because that's how Givers are. I was not ready for her to do that and instead of faith washing over me, fear and stress flooded in. Givers always have a lot to teach me about the way I live out my faith. Givers stand ready to give with no concern for their own needs. Some look for significant ways to give that will change a person's life in significant ways like giving a car or other large items that are difficult to afford. Others are on the look out all day long for ways to meet smaller needs like a tank of gas or bag of groceries or that extra cash in their wallet for the homeless guy on the corner. No matter how it manifests, it is God-directed and needed at the time for the recipient.

As I said earlier, I've known many people with the Motivational Gift of Giving. I have many examples that I could share (already having shared one about my daughter) but I'm going to limit it to 2. There was a woman I knew a long time ago. Whenever I saw her out and about during the week she would do things like shove a twenty dollar bill into my pants pocket or hand me some little item she just bought because she thought I could use it. It was always appreciated and although these were not large items and it certainly didn't happen every week. . . it was always appreciated.

Let's look at an example from Scripture: the story of the widow's mite -- she was the quintessential Giver! "As He looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 'I tell you the truth,' He said, 'this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.' " (Luke 21:1-4, NIV) This is a great example of a Giver because, though she had practically nothing, Jesus says that she gave more than anyone else. Her gift cost her everything...literally, everything. There is no indication that she struggled over giving it or that it caused her any turmoil at all. Jesus was simply pleased with her gift! She must have felt that it could help others far more than it would help her. She must have KNOWN beyond any doubt (because I would have doubt) that God was just as capable of using that tiny amount in a huge way as He was of using a very large gift as He was of giving back to her to meet her needs. Givers just KNOW these things! Understand that this story is not about giving from your abundance. There is no sin in having wealth or abundance. In fact, if you fit into that category then you have been given all you have for generosity's sake. This story is about the heart. Givers give because they cannot NOT give. The widow in this story was just as generous as those who give out of their abundance. This story should teach us at least two things: 1) we do not have to have a lot to give in order to give well; and, 2) it reinforces the idea that we cannot buy the love of God.

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Giving here's what you need to do. First, even you can't give to everything and everyone. Be selective and led by the Holy Spirit so that where God calls you to give, you can give really, really well. This is not to say that He hasn't called you to give to several things at once, it just means that because your heart is so motivated this way you may feel compelled to try to save the world with your giving. Unless you're a go-zillionaire, and that's doubtful, trying to give to everything will only leave you feeling inadequate as a Giver. Second, remember that it is God who has planted this exceptional motivation in you and He provides everything you have (this truth holds true for everyone of us!). It will do you no good at all to take pride in your giving. If you are going to boast, boast in the Lord! Also, trying to control where, when, to whom and how much you give will leave you suspicious, untrusting and empty. And, although it's important to you that your gift is used properly, you cannot control that part of it either. If you're certain God has called you to give to something or someone, give it cheerfully and let it go. You are only responsible for giving what God has directed you to give not for the how the recipient uses it. If you feel any of this developing in you then get on your knees and God will take it from there. Third, if you are the type of Giver who is called to give a gift like a car or a house or something of that nature, then I cannot stress enough how important it is to check back in with the recipient to see if they are able to handle the extra financial burden it might be bringing into their life. The reason the recipient doesn't have the car or the house in the first place is because they cannot afford it so affording the upkeep or extra expense it ALWAYS takes to own something like that might be more than they can handle. Even if you have to check back in with them through another source so as to keep your giving private, then so be it. That's easy to accomplish. You can go through a Pastor or friend. Fourth, pay no attention to how others give or whether they give. You have much to teach the rest of us in this area and your example and encouragement is essential! When you can, bring others in on your giving and allow them the opportunity to give with you. Sometimes the rest of us just need a little help and direction regarding where and to whom to give. Although God makes all of us aware of the needs around us, He is most likely speaking to you about specific ways to give. So . . . HELP!

For generosity's sake,
Kerry

NOTE: The description of each gift is based on the highest score possible for an individual. You may find that only certain things are true for you and the rest is only true to a certain measure. We are individuals created by an infinitely creative God. We do not fit any certain mold. These descriptions help you to understand why you see things a certain way, why you act a certain way and why some things are more important to you than other things. Most of us will score fairly high in 2 or 3 gifts and how these gifts rank and what God has you involved in at the time will determine how well these gift descriptions speak to your individual personality.

THE MOTIVATIONAL GIFT OF ENCOURAGEMENT

2009-12-14T09:09:00.012-06:00

". . .if it is encouraging, let him encourage . . ." (Romans 12:8, NIV)

This word "encourage" has an interesting meaning. It comes from the Greek word "parakaleo" which, in simplest terms, means to admonish, to encourage, to beseech. The deeper meaning, however, means "to come alongside." In other words, you, dear Encourager, are not just words -- you are action. Sometimes this gift is referred to as Exhorter. You'll find the word "exhortation" in the RSV Bible. Exhortation and encouragement work together in this gift. Encouragement mainly involves comfort, understanding, help, and strength. Exhortation involves rebuke and admonishment along with words of comfort and strength. Unfortunately, it's a difficult word to translate because we don't have a single word that brings those two ideas together. I'm going to use the word "encourage" instead of "exhort" for the sake of simplicity, but just know when reading this post that I'm referring to all aspects of this gift.

A good picture for what it means to "come alongside" might best be drawn in the relationship between a lawyer and his client. The lawyer stands in the gap and defends his client's case. He strengthens his client's position before a judge. More than that even, one who comes alongside cares enough to confront and correct the wrong. When unbelief rears its ugly head you challenge us to faith. When we are too weak to stand you come along and motivate our hearts back to a place of strength. So much of scripture upholds this type of behavior. Jesus most assuredly comes alongside us and strengthens our case before God. "He's there from now to eternity to save everyone who comes to God through Him, always on the job to speak up for them." (Hebrews 7:25, Msg) He never leaves us to find our own way. He corrects and rebukes and comforts us to the point of change.

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Encouraging then here are some things you should know about yourself. You are, for the most part, practical, tolerant of others, a little serious minded, orderly and a good counselor. You express yourself easily in a group setting and others willingly listen when you speak. You might interrupt people when they're speaking in order to convey needed application of the truth but it's only out of enthusiasm to apply the truth of God's word to others. Your greatest desire is to show how God's word is applied to everyday life and conduct. Although you tend to believe that Scripture holds the answer for every problem the application is more important than quoting the actual verse. You are usually a good teacher and this gift often finds itself working with the Motivational Gift of Teaching. Unlike the person with the Motivational Gift of Teaching, however, you are more apt to teach the same material over and over, perfecting it and changing it up so as to make it more and more applicable to the listener each time. You are persuasive and others probably seek you out when confused or hurting. At the core of this gift, however, is your willingness to take risks with people. You are willing to believe in someone when no one else will. This is truly a defining characteristic of the Encourager. Your willingness to see people through to the desired end result: victory over sin and a life that resembles the Savior.

On the downside, if not relying on the power of the Holy Spirit, you will tend to get discouraged yourself. You give out a lot allowing others to take everything you have to give, and, many times there isn't always another encourager around to help build you back up. You also have a tendency to rely on yourself for answers and needed encouragement instead of relying on the Lord. It's only because it comes so naturally to you.

If this is you, you have most likely learned, or are learning, how to truly be an encourager through the fires of experience -- through times of standing in the empty halls of ruthless trust. This gift is being built in you and refined in you by the hard times in life. Ruthless trust has made it's mark on you and is pouring out of you by means of encouraging others. Be encouraged yourself! God knows what He's doing with you and you will literally live out the verse that says "Praise be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows." (2 Corinthians 1:3-5, NIV) If you're a little older you can probably look back on your life and see some pretty difficult things that you've survived. What's more, you've not only survived them but they've become solid reminders of times when God lifted you up, comforted you, admonished you, corrected you, and, instead of judging you harshly He held you tight and set you right. These places in your life are the pillars of your faith. It is only having come out the other side that allows you to be this person to others.

I once had a very, very sweet friend (she has recently passed away) who operated heavily in the Motivational Gift of Encourager. Her life exemplified the hard times of which I speak. She epitomized what it meant to come alongside someone. She came alongside me and my husband many times. When we were still very young in our faith she recognized the need we had to understand God's word in a deeper way even before we did. She supplied us with at least two different Bibles (one was a topical Bible for ease of finding things -- makes me smile a little now) along with other study guides and books. She called us up on a regular basis just to ask about our spiritual life. She would pick our brains during those phone calls until she got a clear picture of the current depth of our faith and until she was sure that our understanding of God's love and will for our lives had become clearer to us than the last time. As you can imagine, the phone calls were quite lengthy. It wasn't just us, either. You could ALWAYS find her talking to and sharing with the stranger in the church service or the bedraggled and down-trodden soul at the store. I have this gift operating in me but it's not the one I score the highest in. It always comes up third for me. I'm not so apt to take risks with people, although I have surprised myself lately. (Maybe the gift is growing in me a bit. I hope.) My friend, the Encourager, never, ever considered coming alongside someone to be risky. It was just what she did. I'm not sure I ever made sure that she knew how much she did for us all those years ago. She knows now. Thank you, Ann.

Let's look at an example from scripture: Barnabas, the quintessential encourager. Barnabas' name means Son of Encouragement. (Acts 4:36)) Barnabas took risks with people. Like Saul before he became Paul. "When he (Saul) came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus." (Acts 9:26-27, NIV, parenthesis mine) How much risk do you think it would take to come alongside a known persecutor of Christians, your own brothers and sisters in Christ, and make a statement to these same people that you are going to believe in this person no matter how scary it feels or looks regardless of this person's past. It would look like you were betraying those who have walked beside you. That's what Barnabas was up against coming alongside Saul. Did you notice how Barnabas defended Saul and strengthened his case before the harsh judges? And, what about John Mark? Remember him? When this same Paul rejected John Mark and would no longer stand beside him because he failed to be all that Paul wanted, needed and expected him to be, Barnabas saw more. "Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, 'Let us go back and visit the brothers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.' Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus." (Acts 15:36-38, NIV) Barnabas took the risk and came alongside John Mark until John Mark became the person that Paul, later on in his ministry, could not live without. "Get Mark and bring him with you because he is helpful to me in my ministry." (2 Timothy 4:11, NIV) Please understand how valuable you are, Encourager! Who knows what might have become of Saul or John Mark had it not been for this gift working through Barnabas. Jesus exemplifies all of the gifts, but of them all, this one screams the life of Christ (at least to me) who comes alongside us when no one else will -- who risked everything on our behalf, no matter how many times we fail. He does whatever is necessary to help us see and understand truth -- His truth!

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Encourager here's what you need to do. First, remember your Source! It is not YOU who is doing the encouraging but the Holy Spirit working through you in your gift. Likewise, it is the Holy Spirit who is willing to encourage YOU and fill YOU back up as needed. Second, because of your tendency to look to yourself for answers and solutions you also have a tendency to forget to pray. Make time to pray. Pray while on the treadmill, while walking through the grocery isles, while in your office and anytime you can grab 5 minutes. PRAY! It's important because every 5 minutes you will probably find someone else to come alongside. Third, taking risks with people does not mean that you allow yourself to become a doormat. Needy people have a tendency to take advantage of your time, sucking the life out of you. This may not be intentional on their part, but it happens far too easily. And it does not mean that you put them before your family. This is always my mantra: family comes before others. Your family is your first most important ministry. They need you to be willing to take those risks for them first. They need you to come alongside them first. Fourth, try to take notice of when you are enthusiastically interrupting others in order to bring the necessary application of truth. It's a little thing to be sure; however, refining our gifts and doing the Christian life with a little finesse shows maturity.

Encouraged,
Kerry

NOTE: The description of each gift is based on the highest score possible for an individual. You may find that only certain things are true for you and the rest is only true to a certain measure. We are individuals created by an infinitely creative God. We do not fit any certain mold. These descriptions help you to understand why you see things a certain way, why you act a certain way and why some things are more important to you than other things. Most of us will score fairly high in 2 or 3 gifts and how these gifts rank and what God has you involved in at the time will determine how well these gift descriptions speak to your individual personality.

THE MOTIVATIONAL GIFT OF TEACHING

2009-11-18T07:05:00.008-06:00

". . . if it is teaching, let him teach." (Romans 12:7b, NIV)

The Motivational Gift of Teaching is a bit different than some of the other gifts because it's a little more quiet. By "quiet" I mean that you probably won't run the risk of becoming a workaholic and neglecting your family like with the gift of Serving; and, you probably won't make people mad like with the gift of Prophecy. There are a couple of things to watch out for with this gift, however. 1) You do run the risk of boring your listeners to death with all your knowledge -- too thorough, too detailed, concept beat to death, class overwhelmed with too much information and everyone bored. And that is truly one of the difficult things about this gift, the possibility of being a real bore. 2) More importantly, this gift comes with a hefty warning from God. "Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more harshly." (James 3:1, NIV) It is a highly important gift because it aides in helping the church to understand God's word correctly. This gift is meant to help bring God's word to life, to help clarify the truth found in Scripture and to do so without compromising the mystery and integrity that lies within the life-giving, life-changing pages of the Bible.

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Teaching here's a few things you might recognize about yourself. You love God's word and it drives you crazy when a verse is taken out of context and used incorrectly or paraphrased to the point of losing it's proper meaning and application. You love to study and research a word, a passage or a concept from the Bible and see how it works in to the rest of God's word. You feel comfortable behind a podium. You would never consider teaching on anything unprepared. In fact, you over prepare. You want what you teach to be clear, concise and understandable to your listeners. This is also your greatest fault. You can beat a concept to death. You can become so detailed in your explanation and application that you lose your listeners. You can monopolize the conversation in an effort to get your point across. As I mentioned earlier, you can become a bore. (Sorry.) I know because this is my gift and I've been there. Now, those who know me probably would not say that I monopolize a conversation, but that's only due to the fact that I'm fairly introverted and a little shy. My problem comes when I write. I've been told that what I write is too long (I believe the term was "long-winded") and that I run the risk of losing the interest of my readers. The problem isn't writing about my subject. The problem is going back through and knowing what to chop out because it ALL SEEMS SOOOO IMPORTANT! The comfort zone of teaching will vary from person to person. You might enjoy one on one time as opposed to a classroom full of students or you might love a lecture hall where you can have undivided attention from people who want to hear everything you have to say on a subject. Or, you might love the quiet work of writing. Personally, I love a classroom and a podium (provided I am thoroughly prepared), but I have most recently found a love for writing Bible studies.

A friend of mine who clearly exhibits the Motivational Gift of Teaching is a lovely, loving, warm and highly intelligent person who is always thorough in her subject matter and I can count on her to give me a clearer understanding of the topic than I had before. She has one problem, though: when she invites questions during her teaching time it is always towards the very end of the class time after she has realized she has (and apologized for) taking up too much time. Then, when a question is presented she spends what little time is left and beyond addressing it and leaving no time for anyone else. This is simply due to the fact that she has spent so much of the class time making sure the material is understood . . . thoroughly . . . from every angle. Again, I've been guilty myself. This is clearly an example of what not to do. The person with this gift, however, has the incredible opportunity to make a huge difference in his/her listeners just by establishing a few simple classroom rules and learning a few simple teaching techniques.

Although it varies from person to person, some other things common to those with this gift is a love to read and a love for charts, graphs and lists. You will probably find yourself questioning others who try to teach you and pick apart their theology. It's possible that you love the research more than the teaching but teach you must because nobody else will teach it is well as you. The telling of any account must be factual and not exaggerated. You are concerned for the truth of God's word and once convinced of the truth you are not easily swayed. You are more apt to want to help build up believers than to help make new believers. In other words, you typically do not enjoy evangelism. You would rather teach Discipleship 101 to new believers than to share your faith with someone who is not a believer. Don't worry. This does not make you heartless. It's not that you don't want to see people get saved. On the contrary, you want those who love evangelism to evangelize so that you can fill up your Discipleship 101 class with new believers and help them on their way to deeper truth.

Let's look at an example from Scripture: Luke, the quintessential teacher. The Book of Luke is the longest of the four gospels. Luke wrote his gospel so that the full truth might be made known. "Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught." (Luke 1:3-4, NIV) I don't know about you, but I can just feel Luke's need to make sure that a factual account was being given. He is oozing with accuracy in the telling of his account, plus he carefully investigated it. Bless his heart. He made sure that no important facts were being left out or exaggerated causing the account to lose credibility. He researched it, told it straight, backed it up. It was very important for Luke (a physician by trade) to include as many facts as possible, and so his account is longer than the accounts of Matthew, Mark and John. Plus, we also give him credit for the writing of the Book of Acts which is a thoroughly informative account of the formation of the early church.

Now . . . about that warning. Some things cannot be known. Regarding some concepts, no amount of research is going to give you an answer. Just because you have this gift doesn't make you 100% correct about everything. In Matthew 23, Jesus severely judges the Pharisees and teachers of the Law for not handling God's word correctly. He accuses them of keeping His people from finding Him -- the very thing they were supposed to do. They were haughty with knowledge and pious without understanding of the spiritual disciplines of grace, mercy, forgiveness, compassion and love, to say the least. Micah 6:8 is applicable here for the teacher: "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Look to and trust the Spirit of Truth who "will guide you into all truth!" (John 16:13) So, do not be afraid to teach for teach you must, but do your homework and walk humbly. A little trepidation is healthy. It is no small thing to handle the Word of God.

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Teaching, here's what you need to do. First, learn to recognize when you have monopolized the time and/or conversation, but, more importantly, learn to avoid it in the first place. In a lecture style environment this is fine, but in a Bible study or Sunday school class it's not so fine. People want to be invited to add their own thoughts and questions to the mix. Learn to listen as well as you talk. Be willing, in fact, be expecting to learn from your students. (Remember: humbly.) Second, create a learning environment wherein your students feel free to share and are safe from ridicule. Establishing some classroom rules like, "Everybody has a voice here," and "There are no dumb questions," make it easy for you and your students to learn. It's more important for your students to find their own way to the truth than it is for you to share all the minutia of detail on your subject, so create a joyful and safe path for them to do so. Students will learn better if they can figure some things out for themselves. Third, keep it simple. If you are the kind of teacher that LOVES research and needs answers then know this: some questions are unanswerable, some topics are going to be controversial, and some people are going to remain unconvinced. By all means glean all the information your little heart desires on a subject but do not expect everyone else to be as interested or as convinced as you. Being too detailed and too technical is no way to influence your listeners. Accuracy is good but not to the point that you are dwelling on the trivial. Fourth, you must leave room for the mystery of God. Mystery begs for the space to just be -- to just mysteriously be enjoyed -- to remain a mystery, and God is FULL of mystery!

Humbly,
Kerry

NOTE: The description of each gift is based on the highest score possible for an individual. You may find that only certain things are true for you and the rest is only true to a certain measure. We are individuals created by an infinitely creative God. We do not fit any certain mold. These descriptions help you to understand why you see things a certain way, why you act a certain way and why some things are more important to you than other things. Most of us will score fairly high in 2 or 3 gifts and how these gifts rank and what God has you involved in at the time will determine how well these gift descriptions speak to your individual personality.

THE MOTIVATIONAL GIFT OF SERVING

2009-11-03T14:39:00.003-06:00

". . .if it is serving, let him serve." (Romans 12:7a, NIV)

I love Servers! I do! I love them! They do everything I am unlikely (sometimes unwilling) to do.

The word Server comes from the Greek word "Diakonia" which means "service." It's where we get the word Deacon (1 Timothy 3). Other words used for this gift are "helps" and "ministering."

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Serving, here are some things you might like to know about yourself. You are practical in the way you approach life. For you, if something needs fixed or cleaned up you are quick to respond. You are happiest taking care of the behind the scenes tasks like tightening screws, cleaning up after a meal, changing light bulbs, taking out the trash. You typically do not like being in the spotlight. You would rather take care of all the menial tasks there are to do than to just sit and visit with those around you. (That does not mean you are unfriendly!) You find it hard to say no when asked to take care of something that needs fixed or cleaned up. You could easily be a workaholic. Servers sometimes feel they are insignificant in and unappreciated by the church (and even at home) because they do not always get a "thank you" or "well done" for their work. We take you for granted. It's true. For my part, I apologize! You are VERY appreciated and your significance is unmatched.

God has gifted a lot of people with this motivation -- probably because there is always so much that needs to be done. God understands about the details of life. I have known many Servers in my life, but one in particular stands out. A long time friend of ours, this man was seriously, deliriously happy taking out the trash or fixing a squeaky hinge. One time after a meal at our church I was helping to clean up in the kitchen (serving is not my gift but I was trying to exercise it *smile*). I went to throw something in the trash and realized that it was so full it had become unusable. I shouted out to no one in particular, "Someone needs to take out the trash!" It didn't occur to me at the moment to take it out myself. My reaction to the full trash can comes from a different motivation. I didn't mean to be rude, I was just trying to help by letting someone know that this needed to be done. (See? I'm not a Server.) Our friend came running, sorry that he hadn't noticed it sooner, and rushed it out to the dumpster, but not before putting a new bag in the can so that we could continue or work. Servers are great people!

Do not confuse this Motivational Gift of Serving with a gift for hospitality. They can differ. I should know because although Serving is not my gift, there is nothing I love more than being a great hostess. I love to make people feel exceptionally welcome in my home. I spend hours setting the table just right, picking out just the right color of napkins and napkin rings. When I have overnight guests I want the sheets I put on their bed so fresh that they still smell like soap! I am adamant about going last in the serving line for a dinner in my home. I always seat myself very close to the kitchen so that I have quick and easy access to the food and drinks. And I hate it when people feel that they need to help me clean up. When they're in my home I just want them to sit and relax and enjoy! Servers are very uncomfortable with the idea of just sitting like this. This is not to say that a person motivated to serve cannot have a gift for hospitality, it just doesn't always go hand in hand.

Let's look at an example from Scripture: Martha, the quintessential server.

As Jesus and His disciples were on their way, He came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to Him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what He said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to Him and asked, "Lord, don't You care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken from her." (Luke 10:38-42, NIV)

No matter how you've read this passage in the past, it is NOT a passage about how Mary is better than Martha because she was sitting at Jesus' feet instead of helping her sister. It is not about Jesus being disappointed in Martha because she was neglecting Him for all the details of serving guests. On the contrary, this passage points out the necessity of what both Mary and Martha had to offer. Mary loves to worship. She has one foot on earth and one foot in heaven. Max Lucado says these are the people you want praying for you. Martha, on the other hand, is motivated to serve. It is how she does life. I think that Max Lucado has it right. In his book Cast of Characters, listen to what he writes: Every church needs a Martha. Change that. Every church needs a hundred Marthas. Sleeves rolled and ready, they keep the pace for the church. Because of Marthas, the church budget gets balanced, the church babies get bounced, and the church building gets built. You don't appreciate Marthas until a Martha is missing, and then all the Marys and Lazaruses are scrambling around looking for keys and the thermostats and the overhead projectors.

Mary and Martha just do life differently. (But this, my friends, is exactly what I'm talking about when approaching the subject of spiritual gifts! One body, many parts.) Mary is seated, worshiping Jesus. Martha is angry because she thinks that everyone should have the same priorities as her. There's a hundred things that need to be done in order to feed their house full of guests. And, all these things really do need to be done. Martha sees Mary's actions as impractical, inconsiderate and a little lazy so she complains to Jesus, "Tell her to help me!" Her issue at the moment is that she has forgotten to serve the Master. She has forgotten that her service to Him is in serving His guests. This is her personal act of worship. Jesus is not condemning Martha for not sitting at His feet. He understands the details of life. Instead He's reminding Martha to choose what is better: worship Him in her service. If we were all like Mary instead of Martha, life around us would become the equivalent of a dump. Does any of this sound familiar, dear Server? It's hard for you to understand why others aren't as practical about the details of life as you. For you, the practical needs easily trump the spiritual needs.

If you scored high in the Motivational Gift of Serving, here's what you need to do. First, know that it's OK to say "no" once in a while. It's not going to feel good and you'll most likely feel guilty for saying it, but it's OK! Do not allow yourself to be a workaholic around the church or around your home. Stop. Rest. Ask God to help you become conscious of overworking and then to give you the wisdom and strength to say "no." Second, remember that your family needs you. Your children won't remember you for all those jobs you did around the church. The rest of us might, but your children won't. Third, and this cannot be overstated: DO NOT NEGLECT YOUR SPIRITUAL NEEDS! Even though for you straightening things up or making sure tomorrow's list of jobs is already written down feels like a spiritual experience, it DOES NOT take the place of time spent in prayer, in quiet, in reflection, in the Word. Even though this is when you feel the least productive, it is when you are actually the most productive. Fourth, remember Whom you serve! It is not the church, it is not the pastor and it is definitely not me. You serve the One who gifted you with this unique and special motivation. Your reward is from serving Him and Him alone. Fifth, be merciful with those who do not jump up to take out the trash! Instead, invite someone whom you suspect does not have this particular gift to grab a bag of trash and join you in the experience.

Serving Him,
Kerry

NOTE: The description of each gift is based on the highest score possible for an individual. You may find that only certain things are true for you and the rest is only true to a certain measure. We are individuals created by an infinitely creative God. We do not fit any certain mold. These descriptions help you to understand why you see things a certain way, why you act a certain way and why some things are more important to you than other things. Most of us will score fairly high in 2 or 3 gifts and how these gifts rank and what God has you involved in at the time will determine how well these gift descriptions speak to your individual personality.

THE MOTIVATIONAL GIFT OF PROPHECY

2009-10-27T13:12:00.002-05:00

". . . If a man's gift is prophecy, let him use it in proportion to his faith." (Romans 12:6b, NIV)

Prophecy (or, Prophet) is the only gift that shows up in each of the gifts lists (Romans 12, Ephesians 4 and 1 Corinthians 12). This gift has a different purpose, however, in each of the three areas. We are discussing here the Motivational Gift of Prophecy in Romans 12. Scoring high in this gift does not mean that you are gifted in the other two uses of the Prophecy gift. Using it "in proportion to his faith" simply means that you are to exercise your gift in the power of God but with a reliance on Him.

The Motivational Gift of Prophecy does not mean that you can foretell the future. It does not mean that you will speak words given directly by God. It means that you hold the Word of God in the highest regard. The Word of God alone is the only gauge by which you measure a person's actions, thoughts and motivations. It means that you will hold the rest of our feet to the fire and aide in keeping the Body on track and lined up with God's Word.

Let's look at an example from Scripture: the Prophet Isaiah. Isaiah is a great example because he had the gift of prophecy operating in his life as a motivational gift, a ministry gift and as a manifestation gift. He was the quintessential prophet. Everything he did and said was motivated by his love for God and his strong desire for right and wrong. He said whatever God told him to say to the people and to the king at the cost of his reputation and later his life. He was considered by most to be harsh and uncaring. The leaders of the day, both Jewish and Gentile, wanted him to stay quiet. He could not, though. He was a highly motivated prophet. Isaiah, chapter 1 gives you a good taste of how this prophet operated and how he saw life and people.

If you scored high in Prophecy in your Spiritual Gifts Assessment, here are some interesting things you may want to know about yourself. For you, everything is black and white. You don't operate in the gray areas of life. The gray areas in life are nothing; they are non-places. You feel that people need to get right with God, seek His will and walk in it; or, get out of the way. Things are either right or wrong. If you see someone doing something sinful, it's hard for you to hold back the truth that can set them right. I've known some who would give you a severe beating with the Word. At the very least, you call sin what it is: sin. Only through the development of humility in your own life do you become more tempered in your views. The development of humility in anyone's life is God's job.

You are probably highly conscious of the political atmosphere, suspicious of quick church growth, somewhat critical of contemporary culture, very aware of the public unrighteousness that surrounds you and ever ready to shout at the injustice of the world. You understand God's grace and mercy best when it follows a heart that has turned back to the Lord. Isaiah 1:16-20 says this:

Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight! Stop doing wrong, learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow. "Come now, let us reason together," says the Lord. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best of the land; but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword." For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

I hope you can see through the eyes of this prophet the black and white and the wrong and right that he sees. I hope you can see through his eyes how mercy is given when hearts turn back to the Lord.

You can be a little scary for others in the Body. Like Isaiah, you are often misunderstood and mistook for cold and uncaring, harsh, lacking grace and mercy (though that is not necessarily how you feel). You are often uncomfortably direct and you never lie. Your words can come out sounding judgmental, but all you really want is for others to wake up and understand the importance and urgency of knowing God and living right. Because of this, others think you need to relax a bit. They probably would prefer that you stay quiet because more times than not you will offend someone by calling sin, sin. Enter your complete reliance on God.

This gift is most often found operating alongside the Motivational Gift of Teaching, but typically, if you scored high in this gift, you probably only scored average at best in something else. I knew a person with this motivational gift who also had the gift of Serving. What you won't find working alongside this gift is the Motivational Gift of Mercy. It just doesn't happen. The person with the Motivational Gift of Mercy deals in ALL of the gray areas of life. In fact, many times you butt heads with the mercy people and they with you. You have a hard time understanding the other one. Although there are some pastors with the Motivational Gift of Prophecy, they typically come with the gift of Mercy; therefore, they can have a difficult time with you.

When the Holy Spirit is in control of your gift you are highly regarded and others will seek you out for spiritual direction. When YOU are in control you become a pain in the rear. (I say that in the most loving way!) Know this: I already regard you! My husband and my oldest daughter have this motivational gift. I know you well.

Here's what you need to do if you have this gift. First, do not be quiet, but do become selective in your moments to point out sin. To be quiet would be to neglect your gift. To be selective is being sensitive to the Holy Spirit's direction regarding when and when not to speak up. Second, allow the Holy Spirit to work in you the fruit of gentleness so that others may hear you without feeling fear and condemnation. Ephesians 4:15 says to "speak the truth in love." Third, cultivate mercy. It may not be your gift, but it is your calling as a child of God and a member of the Body of Christ. Strive to find harmony with some, not all, but some gray areas because this is where most people live. God is merciful and so should you be. Fourth, work with your pastor, not against him. Heed his words as a member of his fold. It is not your job to convict others of sin, it is the Holy Spirit's job.

You are precious! God gave this gift to the Body for the good of the Body. Hopefully, I have clarified this. The Body cannot thrive without you. Because of your willingness to speak out on behalf of righteousness, it makes it a little easier for the rest of us to find the line in the sand.

Word!
Kerry

NOTE: The description of each gift is based on the highest score possible for an individual. You may find that only certain things are true for you and the rest is only true to a certain measure. We are individuals created by an infinitely creative God. We do not fit any certain mold. These descriptions help you to understand why you see things a certain way, why you act a certain way and why some things are more important to you than other things. Most of us will score fairly high in 2 or 3 gifts and how these gifts rank and what God has you involved in at the time will determine how well these gift descriptions speak to your individual personality.

Happy Birthday!

2009-10-13T15:33:00.009-05:00

I've been wanting to write a study on the Spiritual Gifts found in Romans 12:6-8 for some time now. It's a bit of a pet project of mine. I think they are important and understanding them helps us to live in peace and freedom with each other. For some, a study on the Spiritual Gifts may seem redundant. You've already been there, done that. For some of you who read this, it may be the first time you've ever studied this topic. Think of it, if you will, like a birthday party and these are gifts of God -- for you! Presents to be opened and used to better your life and the lives of those around you. Whoever you are, let me challenge you to to take a(nother) look at what it means to be given spiritual gifts from God.

There are many studies out there on this topic and you'll even find some that differ slightly in theology from this one. Hopefully, though, you'll find this to be a balanced and useful approach. I will focus mainly on the Spiritual Gifts listed in Romans 12:6-8 as opposed to the ones listed in Ephesians 4 and 1 Corinthians 12. I will, however, explain a bit about how these 3 sets of gifts differ in a later post. The gifts listed in Romans 12:6-8 are: Prophecy, Serving, Teaching, Encouraging (or Exhortation), Giving, Leadership (or Administration) and Mercy. "We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully." (NIV)

The gifts listed in Romans 12 are sometimes called the Motivational Gifts. The gifts listed in Ephesians 4 are sometimes referred to as the Ministry Gifts. The gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12 are sometimes called the Manifestation Gifts. I find it easier to remember the 3 sets of gifts by using the 3 "M" words; and, it helps to differentiate their unique purposes in the Body.

Your motivational gifts are built into your personality. They affect the way you do God's work and the way you respond to God's work. They are a part of your natural drives and human tendencies. They motivate your choices in life and are the reason you find more joy doing some things more than others. Your gifts affect how well you get along with others. Your gifts are to be nurtured and celebrated!

Your motivational gifts differ from the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). The Fruit of the Spirit are characteristics or virtues produced in each one of us by the Holy Spirit. We are all called to live a life that will not hinder the complete development of each and every fruit. We are to possess every fruit -- not every gift. As you discover what your gifts are it will be important to keep in mind that even though you might find that you score high in Prophecy, for example, that does not mean you are to neglect showing Mercy.

Motivational Gifts also differ from specific roles in the Church, like teaching Sunday school or helping to serve a meal. You may be a Sunday school teacher and find that you don't score very high in the gift of Teaching. However, since you are already serving as a Sunday school teacher you should definitely remain one until God directs you otherwise. These gifts will, however, affect how you do any Christian service. Your motivational gift will cause you to do this task differently than someone else who is doing the same task. Sometimes God will call you out of your zone of comfort to do a job that does not come as easily for you. A task that you find yourself literally dragging your feet to do. But what you bring to the job is your unique set of gifts that cause others to grow and stretch, too. Plus, it will cause you to exercise the other motivational gifts that are not so prevalent in your life. Not to perfect them, but to exercise them.

Let me give you an example from my own life. I typically score the highest on Spiritual Gifts tests in Teaching, Leadership and Encouraging. These 3 come easiest for me. What does not come easy for me is the gift of Serving or Giving. Every once in a while, though, I find myself in a situation where I must help with serving a meal or handing over what little cash I may be carrying for that special trip to Starbucks. I grumble a little (sadly). I do. But, doing these things helps me to exercise those areas where I fall short. Just because they are not my particular Spiritual Gifts strengths does not mean that I am allowed to neglect them or opt out of them altogether. It just means that these things do not come as easily for me. I do not jump up and volunteer for them. The do not bring me as much joy as they bring to others who do have these strengths. I used to feel guilty about not really wanting to do these things. After all, what kind of a Christian doesn't want to serve food in a soup line or give a measly $5.00 to someone more needy. Let me tell you right now it is a waste of emotion. God has equipped you in a certain way and there is freedom in allowing yourself to be who God made you to be! Hence, the Body of Christ! Many parts, one body. "Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function." (Romans 12:4, NIV)

In the sidebar you will find a link for a Spiritual Gifts test you can take online and get your results within seconds. Although this one adds two other gifts to the list found in Romans 12 (Pastor/Shepherd and Evangelism), I feel it will give you an accurate assessment without taking forever to finish. The two extra gifts listed are gifts found in Ephesians 4 and I believe they do not belong in this list. It won't hurt anything though and its the best test I could find for free. Once you've taken the test and gotten your results, do not look only for your strongest score. Instead, find your top 3 and begin to look for how they work together in your life and ministry. (If Pastor/Shepherd or Evangelism is one of your top 3 then find the fourth one on the list to replace those. We will talk about these gifts later.) If you are under 20 or still young in your faith you might want to consider taking a Spiritual Gifts test once a year for 5 years because you may not yet have a clear understanding of your desires and limitations. Your desires and limitations will grow and/or change with time. If you happen to score extremely high in one area and score average or low in all of the others, this is a good indicator, no matter your age, that this one gift is significantly present. Take heed, though. It could also mean that it needs to be tempered and refined in you. Just a little personal note: I find my scores for Teaching and Leadership to go back and forth depending on how God is using me in the Body at the time.

Through the next weeks, we will study each gift in turn. We will discuss how it works -- for good and for bad -- and its relationship to the other gifts.

Remember, these are gifts from God! He has formed you and knit you together with His loving hands to be the person you are! The gifts you have are not a mistake. They should not be taken lightly. They should be received with thanksgiving! My prayer is that this study will help you find joy in the Body.

Happy birthday!

2009-09-03T17:47:00.003-05:00

New post coming soon! I'm going to start a study on the gifts of the Spirit, focusing mainly on the motivational gifts. Watch for it! (Soon. I promise.(

HiStory

2009-07-09T09:42:00.008-05:00

From the beginning of time, it's been His story. We walk into it. He doesn't adjust His story for our entrance. We've been a part of it from the beginning.

Some of you know that I've been participating in a Bible study called "The Bible in 90 Days." Obviously, the idea being that you read through the Bible in 90 days, which breaks down to 12 pages a day. It's a bit of challenge, but has proven to be well worth my time, and, well . . . amazing!

In regards to this study, I hear many comments about "this God" of the Old Testament. I hear comments like, "I'm having a hard time reconciling this God of the Old Testament with the God I know," and, "How can a loving God annihilate entire nations?" or, "The Israelites were supposed to kill the women and children, too?" All good questions. Questions worth asking. Unfortunately, as seems to be the case in many portions of scripture, there just aren't enough good answers. But, there are some.

Here's some things I've come up with (for whatever it's worth). God is a mighty big God. There is so much about Him to learn. It's taken millenniums to know what little we do know about Him. But, just as the New Testament gives a larger picture of God's grace, I think the Old Testament gives us a larger picture of God's holiness. Sin is sin and there is certainly nothing new under the sun. However, reading the Old Testament the way that I have (in very large chunks) has given me a clearer snapshot of the blatant sin of idol worship going on at the time. The world was still rather new, relatively speaking. Nations were still new. God was introducing Himself to those He put on the earth, and it was Israel's job to help the other nations know who the one true living God was. It's not that God cared nothing for the other nations. On the contrary, He made His works known to the other nations through the miracles He performed on behalf of the Israelites. Through the Israelites, He wanted the other nations to see that He was not like the other "so-called gods." He was not a golden calf or any other handmade sculpture that had eyes but could not see, a nose but could not smell, ears but could not hear, a mouth but could speak. Through the miracles and the devastations He was making it known loud and clear, "I AM the God of Universe and you will have no other gods before Me!" Commandment #1! It's His story.

"And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord." (Ezekiel 38:23, NIV)

"Joshua said to the people: 'You are not able to serve the Lord. He is a holy God; He is a jealous God. He will not forgie your rebellion and your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, He will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after He has been good to you.' " (Joshua 24:19-20, NIV)

It was a harsh time. And, it's hard to take it all in. For those of us who have entered His story during this present time of grace find it very difficult to adjust to this holy God. Well, be assured! God has not changed! He is the same holy God today that He was then. The difference is that Jesus came and stepped into the middle of the story. God's gift to human beings! Grace! God is still angered by our idolatry, but instead of me being annihilated Jesus paid the price for it. So when God looks at me, He sees Jesus (the picture of holiness and righteousness!) because Jesus lives in me!

It's always been about grace. The God of grace of the New Testament is the same holy God of the Old Testament. But what is also true is that this same God of grace ia alive and well in the Old Testament. In Isaiah we read how God sent prophet after prophet to the other nations in order to give them opportunity to repent and turn to Him. We read the same in Jonah with the city of Nineveh. God is a God of grace. Except for a few instances like Rahab, we're not told of countless souls who repented and chose to trust God and were saved from the annihilation. Anytime it's written how someone did in fact turn towards the Living God we see that God was compassionate and merciful and gracious to that person and saved them from destruction. Just like today! When reading the Old Testament, and you come across things that seem harsh on God's part and difficult to understand or reconcile, it's always safe to weigh it against the rest of His character. Don't stop at His holiness --begin with it and end with His grace!

This is His story! We are invited in. More than that, we were planned for! You and me! Since the beginning of time, God planned for our entrance at this particular time and place in His story. "From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would see Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us." (Acts 17:26-27, NIV) What's more, His story is His responsibility. He bears the weight of history! He is a big God! Full of grace! Full of mercy! Full of compassion! Very Holy! Justice is His name!

"God's Message:

'Don't let the wise brag of their wisdom.
Don't let heroes brag of their exploits.
Don't let the rich brag of their riches.
If you brag, brag of this and this only:

That you understand and know me.
I'm God, and I act in loyal love.
I do what's right and set things right and fair,
and delight in those who do the same things.
These are my trademarks.'

God's decree."

(Jeremiah 9:23-24, The Message)

It's HiStory! You have been invited in! Trust in His full character at all times!

WHOLLY, HOLY, HOLEY

2009-06-15T13:15:00.009-05:00

I got to thinking about 3 little words the other morning during Sunday school: wholly, holy and holey. Here's what they mean:

Wholly - entirely; totally; completely; altogether; to the exclusion of all others.
Holy - consecrated; dedicated or devoted to the service of God, the church, or religion; a sacred place; sanctuary.
Holey - several or many openings through something; gaps; full of holes.

Our church started a study on June 1st called "The Bible in 90 Days." The idea is to get as many people as possible reading the Bible altogether at the same time. The creators of this study recommend that while going through this process you do not try to understand it all or figure it all out, but that you do read attentively every word of the Bible in 90 days. What's been so amazing to me is the enthusiasm within our church walls that this study has generated! People have been genuinely excited about it and eager to accomplish it. Those of you who know me well know that I have a passion for God's word! I love what lies between those leather covers. It's full of mystery and mess. It contains life and blessing! It has the power to convict and change lives! Few things bring me more pleasure than motivating another to read the Bible for themselves. I've read through the Bible cover to cover one other time in my life, but it took me closer to a year to accomplish it. This has been more difficult. It's 12 pages a day and it's really easy to get behind. So, it's making me be disciplined, diligent and determined in my Bible reading. It's all good!

Genesis was interesting, as always, and so was Exodus. The creation story, Abraham and his descendants, Joseph in Egypt, the miracles that God performed on behalf of the Israelites, Moses life and times, the ten commandments -- you can't write fiction this good. Leviticus and Numbers though were like hitting a brick wall, and Deuteronomy wasn't much better. So many rules and laws! It was exhausting. And, the details! Holy cow!!! Burn this up, but don't burn that up. Eat this but not that. If someone is guilty of breaking a particular law, that person must be killed -- if he's guilty of this other law, he must live outside the camp. Who on earth could ever keep straight all the rules for sacrifices and what sacrifices are made for what sin. Do I bring a roasted grain offering or should I grind the grain into a fine powder with some oil added to it? Or, do I bring doves or goats or lambs or heifers or bulls? Or should I just bring some shekels? Good heavens! It goes on and on through these books. And, some of the details of what was considered unclean got a little nauseating like the chapters on infectious skin diseases (it's tough to glean profound, life altering truth from that!). Then, when you're not reading about the rules and laws you're reading through list after list of who beget who. I have to admit, it got a little boring and laborious to read. But, I learned a few things.

I learned all over again that we were created by God and for God and His word is life to us. "These are not just idle words for you, they are your life." (Deut. 32:47) He rules the nations and He wants us to be wholly His. I learned, again, that sin will wholly destroy us. And, because sin is so destructive to us, the sacrifices had to be a serious reminder of how sin destroys life. The priests were busy day in and day out with sacrifices. Nobody could be perfect. God knew that all were going to sin. And, because sin destroys life, life was what had to be taken to pay the price of each sin. When an animal was sacrificed you can be sure that blood was everywhere (if you want it in greater detail, you'll have to read it for yourself). Can you imagine the humane society tolerating sweet little lambs being sacrificed today for someone's careless behavior? Children became attached to the lambs and goats that would eventually have to be taken to the temple. If the sacrifices were not made then the people would die from their sin. And, so they watched and learned and saw the destruction of life right before their eyes so that they could live. In some cases, there was no sacrifice that could be made because the sin was too great, like murder with "aforethought." (Numbers 35:16-21) The only thing that could be done was to kill the person who deliberately took the life of another. Sin destroys life.

I learned, again, that our God is a holy God. He does not tolerate sin because 1) He Himself is sinless, and 2) He knows how sin destroys life. I learned, again, that although the laws are many, they are summed up in the two greatest commandments: "Jesus replied: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: "Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matt. 22:37-40, NIV) God wants us to fear Him and revere Him. God wants us to know how serious He is about His love and justice. He wants us to understand that if we love Him like we should and love those around us like we should then we will live in peace and safety. I understood like never before God's timeless and holy plan to redeem us -- to pay the price Himself for our careless, sinful behavior. The concept of redemption was intricately woven through the Old Testament. Redemption is a concept that the Israelites understood, and yet when Jesus paid the final and ultimate price for their redemption, they spurned His gift. When God sent His son to die for us, the Jews should have understood it immediately -- they should have understood it like no one else. They above all people understood the practice of sacrifices and one life dying for another. This practice was such a prominent and prevalent part of who they were that this One Sacrifice For All should have rocked them to their core, their world and everything in it. But, they did not believe. Unbelief was another concept intricately woven through their history.

I learned one more time just how flawed and faulty and full of holes human beings are. Never before, however, have I read through these books with such anticipation and foresight of a Savior. With every written law and rule I heard the words that Paul wrote to the Galatians, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free!" (Gal. 5:1, NIV) Israel's identity was wrapped up in their history. All of them, clear up through the time of Christ and beyond, knew of their history with the living God. All of them knew of the miracles that God performed on their behalf in Egypt and while wandering in the desert for 40 years. All of them knew of their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They quoted King David. All of them, especially by the time Christ had come, knew of the laws that they must uphold or die. From the time they left behind their captivity in Babylon to the time Christ walked on this earth (about a 400 year span) they had become acutely aware of God's holiness -- so much so that the rules and laws imposed on them milliniums before in the desert they had added to and built upon to the point of utter nonsense making the law even more impossible to live up to. What the law really did was point out God's holiness and our holey-ness. The Israelites (i.e. human beings) were never able to live up to all the laws and rules set before them and the first five books of the Bible confirm this over and over. We are so holey that God's laws pour through us like a seive. What could become of such a messy creation? God's plan was brilliant.

Jesus came. God in the flesh. He died once for all. No more sacrifices to be made. No more would we have to die for our careless sins. Jesus died in our place. (There are still sins that go against the laws of our land that require a death sentence whether that sentence looks like a life lived out in prison or an actual death sentence. But, that's always been the case.) No longer would we die for all the careless acts that in the past required the death of another living thing. No longer would the life of innocent animals be taken to pay the price of my sin. No longer would we be bound to a law so lofty that no one could live up to it. Jesus set us free from the heavy burden of the law and now we live under grace. No longer do we have to be shackled by the weight of sin that so easily grips us keeping us outside the camp. Jesus' death on the cross was too monumental for words! God Himself paid the price for our sinfulness and He had it planned all along. What's more, even though He was working out His plan in all of history, He was always with the individual. He was always moving on behalf of one or two or three or twenty or a thousand or ten thousand. Everybody has a part in His plan and His plan is for everybody.

God made the laws and rules so hard to live up to and the sacrifices so numerous and messy that we should have been FULL of joy and rejoicing at His pardon! The Israelites had centuries and centuries of trying to live up to God's standards and every time failing that news of their Savior should have brought the most exuberant shouts of joy for their most AMAZING GOD! But, instead, the news of Jesus' coming slipped through the holes of their spirits and hearts (and ours!). The Israelites did not believe that Jesus was God and we find that true of so many people still today. (There really is nothing new under the sun.)

I struggle to put into words how amazing God's plan was! Is! I encourage you to read the first 5 books of the Old Testament (the Pentateuch as it's called by our Jewish friends). Put yourself in the pages, in the lives, in the thoughts of those who lived during this most incredible time. You will find that there is truly nothing new under the sun. The same sins we struggle with today, they struggled with then. Why? Because we are all human beings born into sin. The good news is that we have a God with a plan. His love lives on. I want to be, to the exclusion of all others, completely and totally, wholly His, the Holy God of our past present and future, as I live this life as one who is very holey.

"I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yolke and enabled you to walk with heads held high." (Leviticus 26:13, NIV)

"Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your life . . ." (Deuteronomy 30:19b-20a, NIV)

DAVID: A MAN WITH A HUMAN HEART

2009-06-01T14:55:00.006-05:00

" . . . the Lord has sought out a man after His own heart and appointed him leader of His people. . ." (1 Samuel 13:14, NIV)

Whenever I read the Bible, my tendency is to look for the broken qualities of those about whom I'm reading. I guess it helps me to feel hopeful that I'm not a lost cause. It's easy to read about some of our heroes of the faith and then romanticize them into more than they were. But the characters in the Bible are people just like you and me. They did not hold some secret key to the mysteries and mind of God. They had to come to Him the same way we do, humbly and by grace. Right now I'm especially intrigued by King David, a man after God's own heart.

Read Psalm 32 and Psalm 40:1-3

Questions for reflection:

What are some ways that God relates to you like He did with King David?

"A man after God's own heart." That statement makes him sound like he had some sort of elusive quality that made him extra special. Something more than human -- superhuman. Whenever we think that about any Bible character (or anyone else for that matter) we have just made a huge mistake in interpreting God's word. It's true that David loved God and sought Him wholeheartedly (for the most part). It's true that David prayed for God to bless him and to give him the throne that was promised to him so that he could finally rule as the King of Israel. It's true we see God answering David's prayers and speaking to him about his life as a man and as a king. But what about any of that is different from you and me? I, too, love God and seek Him wholeheartedly (for the most part). I, too, pray for God to bless me and to give me the things that come as the promise of a righteous life. God also answers my prayers and He speaks to me about my life as a woman, a wife, a mom and a Christian.

It's very easy to make King David larger than life, but he struggled just like you and me; and, just like you and me, he sinned. He had to fall upon God's grace and mercy more than once in his life. God picked him up from the miry pit of mud and clay and set his feet on solid ground more than once in his life. Just like you and me. One of my favorite stories about King David is found in 1 Samuel and it involves two other very interesting characters: Nabal and Abigail. This story paints a picture of the famous and the average, the mean and kind, the evil and the good and the brokenness of us all. It also points out, as always, the gracious and merciful hand of God in the lives of the broken ones. King David, Abigail, Nabal, you and me.

Read all of 1 Samuel 25.

In this chapter of 1 Samuel we find David still living out in the fields and caves hiding from King Saul having attracted an army consisting of rejects and malcontents. Nabal, a wealthy man from Carmel, has sent his men out to shear the sheep that were pasturing out where David and his men happened to be camping. David, having been anointed King of Israel but unable to rule, already had the heart and attitude of a king. You can tell by the way he had his men surround Nabal's sheep shearers and his sheep as a way of protecting them from harm. This is what a king does. He keeps his people safe and brings no harm to them. I love this about David. Before he is actually sitting on the throne, he is living into his calling from God. He knows he is the rightful King of Israel and lives into it, with or without the throne. When the sheep shearing is finished and Nabal's servants return to their master, David sends out his own messengers to Nabal with a message of peace. He expects to receive food and other necessities for his men in return for his protection. Let's not make the mistake in thinking that David only gave protection to Nabal, his men and his property in order to get something in return. David protected Nabal and his property because it was the right thing for David to do. Nabal returning that consideration to David and his army by means of food and other supplies was the right thing for Nable to do. Nabal, however, was a mean brute of a man.

Abagail was kind, wise and beautiful, and, unfortunately, Nabal's wife. When she finds out how her husband has treated Isreal's future king, she rushes out to meet David, sending lots and lots of good food ahead of her (everything that Nabal should have sent) hoping to talk David out of murdering her husband (deserving as he was). It made sense to her that David would come after her husband because what Nabal did went against all common considerations among the Israelites -- especially considerations toward the King. So off she goes to convince David otherwise.

David is a king yet he hides in the wilderness like a common criminal. Nabal as much as acts like a criminal yet lives like a king. Nabal's heart is dark and cold and Abigail's heart is kind and full of love and life. David is a master who serves the people. Abigail has a servant's heart that becomes the master of a king's heart. There are so many dichotomies in this story. I'm certain you can come up with a few of your own.

Read Matthew 5:43-48; 13:24-30; Acts 17:26-27 and Psalm 31:15.

Dichotomies can often times seem like injustices yet God always has a plan and He holds our days in His hand. What are some situations in your life that seem like dichotomies? Some weeds among your wheat? Some evil clouding your sunshine?

How is knowing that God holds your times and has directed where you are right now comforting to you?

Abigail bows at David's feet and begs him not to commit murder -- an unnecessary and heavy burden, she explains, that the king will have to carry on his conscience for the rest of his days. Killing another person is never an easy thing to bear no matter how much the other party seems to deserve it. She begs him not to avenge himself on her husband. She reminds David of his role as the King and not to let his anger and humiliation brought on by Nabal discolor his honor, his dynasty and his rule. This is beauty. This is humility. This is grace! Abagail, the wife of a brute, a servant of David, a daughter of The King rules the day and David's heart. I love how she pronounces on David the true law of grace and mercy: "Even though someone is pursuing you to take your life, the life of my master will be bound securely in the bundle of the living by the Lord your God." (1 Samuel 25:29a, NIV) David heeds Abigail's words as God's hand on his life and turns from doing what he has set out to do. The law of grace and mercy always results in life and honor.

Now, here's what's real to me about David: even though God characterizes David as a man after His own heart, David's heart is still very human. When Nabal refuses David and his men nourishment and hurls insults at them, accusing David and his men of being nothing more than runaway slaves, David gets angry and humiliated and sets out to act upon that anger and humiliation. David acts the way any of us would act, or, at least would want to act. He goes about taking matters into his own hands. In an effort to make the world a better a place in which to live and because Nabal breaks all the laws of decency by refusing the King (an act worthy of severe punishment, if not death) and the King's men of needed food, he deems it necessary to rid the earth of wicked Nabal. David is very human. Very real. David, the man after God's own heart, feels the need for revenge, acts out of anger, retaliates after being humiliated. I doubt anyone would have even tried to stop him. No one from Nabal's camp or his own. Nabal, after all, was mean and wicked and selfish and, therefore, more than likely hated by his servants, so his servants certainly wouldn't have stopped the future King of Israel. David was already recognized as the King of Israel by most people of the day so who would dare try to stop him. He was already renowned for his fighting ability, his leadership ability and his merciful ways with King Saul. He already held the loyalty of the people, so who would question him after Nabal acted so ungraciously towards him. I think it would have been so interesting to be a part of this time period. News about the comings and goings and ins and outs of Saul's and David's reign and relationship spread daily. If they'd had FOX news back then, it would have been a top story every day. "King David said to be spotted in the wilderness of Maon." "When will King Saul give up the throne?" "David spares King Saul's life yet again." "Obscure shepherd spots David and his army in the wilderness." The headlines would go on and on. You can be assured that news got around for there wasn't anyone in the land who did not know of David's exploits. There was no one in all of Israel who did not know that David was to be King. Abigail knew it (which is why she spoke to him the way she did). Nabal's servants knew it (which is why they feared what was going to come of them if Abigail did not do something). And, you can be sure that Nabal knew it (which makes his insults all the more arrogant and brutal).

Abigail returns home to her husband who is now drunk from too much celebrating. In the morning, after he is sober, she explains to him her actions on his behalf. Nabal immediately has a heart attack and goes into something that looks like a coma and dies 10 days later. By God's hand, not David's. God held Nabal's times in His hand. The shock of his wife being so bold and presumptuous as to wander away without his permission with goods that belonged to him to take to David, someone for which he clearly had no respect, was just more than he could take in. I kind of think that Abigail was secretly happy that her brute of a husband was no longer able to terrorize her or the servants or the hired hands. His death, however, left her with the dilemma of having no one to provide for her. A serious matter. Abigail, too, was a broken human being. After all, she was married to someone who showed her no respect and undoubtedly mistreated her at every turn. She had asked King David to remember her. She said, "When the Lord has brought my master success, remember your servant." (25:31b, NIV) And, remember her he does. He sends her word to come and be his wife.

It should bring hope to you and me that one of the most loved characters in the Bible, one of the great heroes of our faith, is actually someone who acted impetuously from time to time. Even though we see that sometimes David could act rash and allow his feelings to dictate his next move God was still able to see deep in David's heart. God saw the love David had for his King. I love how God used Abigail, an average Israelite woman, to keep David, the famous King of Israel, from sinning. I love how God extends His hand of grace and gets involved with us, working to guide and direct us in the right path. I love how God extends His arm of mercy and provides a way out of our own impetuous, rash decisions before they become a sin to great to bear.

As with every passage of scripture, the life lessons and profound truths are numerous. This story holds truths I've yet to pick out. I can only write about the way it hits me and the about the truths that God points out to me at the time. My hope and prayer is that God sees deep into my own heart and finds the love I have for my King in spite of my rash and impetuous ways!

A NEW DAY -- A NEW MERCY

2009-05-07T13:42:00.000-05:00

"I knew You were sheer grace and mercy, not easily angered, rich in love, and ready at the drop of a hat to turn your plans of punishment into a program of forgiveness!" (Jonah 4:2b, The Message)

My husband and I went through something several years ago that caused us to wish for some retribution on an offending party. Unlike Jonah with the Ninevites, we didn't really want God to strike them dead, but we did desire for God to bring some wrath upon them in our defense. (I don't know what sort of wrath I was hoping for -- I would never be able to pick. Maybe just something that looks like a spanking.) We even sat back and watched and waited for things to fall apart a little for this group of people. Thus far, we haven't seen any significant punishment come down. We've seen only mercy. Jonah is a lesson for me in God's rich and unfathomable mercy. He is merciful to the Ninevites and He is merciful to Jonah. I understand Jonah better than I like to admit.

Let's begin by reading Jonah 4.

Earlier in the story we saw how merciful God was with Jonah by saving his life and how Jonah repented and agreed to do God's will. But again, Jonah becomes angry with God -- so angry that he would rather die than live, again. Some lessons are very difficult to learn. Wouldn't you agree? The real reason for Jonah fleeing to Tarshish is revealed. He prays, "O Lord, is this not what I said when I was still at home? THAT is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I KNEW that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity." (Emphasis mine.) Imagine yourself doing something you knew God wanted you to do knowing that you weren't going to like doing it. Then, after doing it, you say to yourself, "This was just as awful as I expected it to be!" You might take some comfort in knowing that you were obedient, but no comfort in the task itself. Can you imagine a situation like that? Have you been in a situation like that? That's how I felt regarding the situation I mentioned above. We were obedient in following through with what God had asked of us and it turned out to be just as difficult and uncomfortable as we expected it would be. I wonder if days or weeks later Jonah thought about what he said to God. Recognizing the irony in his words.

Questions for reflection:

Why would Jonah rather die than see God's mercy come to the Ninevites?

God had defended Israel against her enemies so many times. God had just delivered Israel from the rule of Damascus, and Israel was a little cocky. The Israelites always expected God to give them victory over their enemies (without any thought towards their own sinful state it would seem). Israel was quickly approaching a time when God would tolerate their promiscuity and unmerciful ways no longer and was beginning to prophecy to them through Amos and Hosea about their pending exile. The Israelites had become very narrow in their worldview and in their view of God's love. They weren't considering that God might just love and desire the best for all of His creation, enemy of Israel or not. So, for Jonah to accept God's love and mercy toward the Ninevites was counter-thinking -- Jonah's brain would need to make a complete 180 degree turn to consider God's love toward Nineveh. Tough spot for Jonah -- tough spot for Israel.

Questions for reflection:

What is the most difficult thing that God has ever askef of you?

Why did Jonah construct a shelter and sit down to watch what would happen to the city?

Think of a time when God constructed a shelter for you.

Has there ever been a time when you were disappointed in God's answer to you personally for a difficult situation?

Is it ever right to be angry with God?

Here's what's so real about Jonah for me: after giving Nineveh God's message he goes out and plants himself outside the city still holding out that God is going to bring some judgment upon this undeserving nation. He plops himself down in a pouting stupor to watch and wait. At this point he doesn't really know for sure that God is going to be merciful with them. Only time proved this out. He's fairly convinced that the Ninevites' reformed actions are not heartfelt and that their appeasement of his God by fasting and wearing sackcloth was just that, appeasement. He's thinking that their reformed ways cannot last and God will see and bring the retribution that will finally relieve Israel of this military threat once and for all. Keep in mind that God only recently saved Jonah's life, undeserving as he was. So he waits. He constructs a makeshift shelter to protect him from the wind and heat, and what does God do? He mercifully builds Jonah a better one by growing a large vine up to give him adequate shade. Now, God also brings a treacherous east wind and a worm that destroys the vine, but lest you think that God's mercy only went so far with Jonah, think again.

If God's mercy came to an end with any of us, we would die. It is because of His mercy that we live and breathe. "And He is not served by human hands, as if He needed anything, because He himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. . . For in Him we live and move andhave our being . . ." (Acts 17:25 & 28a, NIV) It is because of His mercy that He takes the time to teach us invaluable lessons like the one He teaches Jonah. Verse 6 tells us that Jonah was "very happy about the vine." Who wouldn't be. This is the only time through this whole story that we see this emotion. He might be thinking that because God relieved his suffering from the heat that He was was also going to comfort him and ease all his pain at this moment. He might be thinking that because God is merciful to him yet again (just like He's always been to Israel) that He will indeed see God overturn Nineveh. He's more than a little wrapped up in his own feelings and views. Maybe Jonah's view of God is that He is like one of those parents who can't stand to see their children be unhappy even for a moment about anything. You know the kind I'm talking about. The one's that ease their child's pain in every discomfort and get them out of every difficult circumstance. God is not that kind of a parent. And, we should be thankful. God always has a plan for our maturation. He's always working at helping us to see a bigger picture, a bigger love -- His perspective. Indeed, it is because of His mercy that He takes the time to teach us about His heart.

A new day dawned for Jonah. God's mercy was going to show up in Jonah's life all over again. We know that Jonah spent the night outside the city because verse 7 says that at dawn the next day God provided a worm which ate the vine. After the vine withered and died, God brought a scorching east wind causing Jonah to nearly faint from the heat. What does Jonah say? "It would be better for me to die than to live." (Shocking!) The east wind reveals the condition of Jonahs' heart attitude. He would rather die than live. He would rather die than live with God's mercy and compassion on his enemies. He would rather die than live with the fact that God loves the people of Nineveh. He loves God's mercy and compassion for himself. But then don't we all! The worm reveals Jonah's misplaced compassion for a plant over people. Jonah recognizes compassion, one of the theme's of this story, as something God possesses -- but he does not share this trait with Him. Instead, Jonah says (and at this point I can almost hear him myself), "I KNEW You would do this! I KNEW You would be merciful to these people! THAT is why I didn't want to go!" He basically wishes that God wasn't so good. Try as we might to be different, we all have our moments when we wish God to be exceedingly good to us but not so good to the undeserving people in our lives. Jonah did God's will but not with the right attitude. God asks him, "Do you have a right to be angry about the vine?" Jonah says with assuredness, "I do. I am angry enough to die." The Ninevites cared nothing for Israel and Israel cared nothing for Nineveh. The evil that marked the Ninevites, now marks Jonah. Now Jonah himself needs to face God's punishment. Maybe, just maybe, Jonah deserved punishment more than the Ninevites because of God's ever-present grace and mercy in the lives and history of the Israelites. Instead, God shows Jonah the same compassion He'd shown Jonah's enemies.

I love the end of this story. After God reveals the condition of Jonah's heart, He reveals His own heart. His heart is for people and all of His creation. "But the Lord said, 'You have been concerned about his vine, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?" End of story.

God loves all of His creation and so should we. There is no race of people better than the next -- no individual less sinful than another. We all share the same propensity toward sin. Israel was not blessed by God because they were a supreme race. They were blessed because of Abraham's obedience. Abraham was not a man without sin, either. He was just a man -- like Jonah. But, God made a promise to him and He was faithful to hold true to what He said, "Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him." (Genesis 18:18, NIV. Emphasis mine.) Israel was called "God's chosen people" because He chose them as a nation to do a specific job. One of Israel's jobs was to show other nations the grace and mercy of the one true living God!

I asked you earlier if it was ever right to be angry with God. What do you think about that? I know that God is always right and that He always has my best interest at heart, so . . . therefore, when I am angry with God it is safe to assume that I am in the wrong, not Him. But, I'm human and sinful, just like Jonah. My perspective is not always God's perspective. Many times my own worldview is very narrow. I get wrapped up in my own feelings. Sometimes I try to appease Him by just going through the motions of my faith -- trying to earn His love and mercy, just like the Ninevites. Yes, I do get angry with God sometimes. I don't always like His answer for me. But, you know what? God has really BIG shoulders. He can take my anger without feeling threatened or hurt. He is unmoveable in His purpose and love for me!

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness." (Lamentations 3:23, NIV)

Cake everyone!

Mercy Speaks Louder Than Words

2009-04-20T09:41:00.000-05:00

"When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, He had compassion . . ." (Jonah 3:10a)
Read Jonah 3:5-10.

"Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned." Jonah spoke 8 graceless words to the people of Nineveh. What would you think if some foreigner came into your city and spoke those words in the city's downtown area? If you're anything like me, I would be hard pressed to think the person speaking to be anything but a nut. But, before you develop an answer to that question you need to put yourself in the shoes of a Ninevite. Because when they heard Jonah's less than compassionate, completely unremarkable message, "The Ninevites believed God." (vs. 5) Let's bring the Bible to life by looking at this place and time for a moment.

Regarding the place, Nineveh was a fierce city. It might be like you or me going to Iran or Burma and telling them that the God of universe was going to overthrow them. I can't imagine it setting well with the powers that be. Nineveh was notorious for their torture techniques. You might say they had it down to a fine art. This was a place that was feared by everyone. Regarding the time, prophets were common and accepted in the ancient world, and Ninevah would have had its own prophets running around. Because there were so many prophets, believing the right prophet was tricky business. Also commonplace was the use of omens. Omens were observations made in the natural world that were believed to be related to what the gods were doing in the spiritual world. One of the most common ways to observe omens was by examining the entrails of animals that had been sacrificed. (Gross! I know!) They had other ways of observing omens, this was just one of them. To a modern day Christian that sounds a little scary, something that's associated with the dark underworld. But, again, remove yourself from this present time. Back then using omens to predict the future was similar to the sailors aboard the ship casting lots to make a decision. Neither one represents time spent praying to God for an answer; nonetheless, we find that God used both to accomplish His will. All of that to say, that if the omens were unfavorable (meaning something bad was on the horizon) for a few days or weeks prior to Jonah's message then the people would have readily accepted the truth of his message. The omens would have supported what Jonah was telling them. If sacrifices were offered and the entrails verified an impending doom then Jonah's word would be taken very seriously. This was how Jonah, an Israelite, could bring a message to Ninevah, one of Israel's most feared enemies, without facing Nineveh's wrath and torture. Nineveh was more afraid of Jonah's message and his God than Jonah was of them. God had them ready.

Questions for reflection:

Think about a time when God used natural things to work in supernatural ways in your life. (Take a few moments to write it out because that helps you remember it as an important moment of grace in your walk with God.)

Prophets are not typically known for their own acts of mercy. Although not always as cold as Jonah was when delivering his message, they do tend to be rather harsh and unyielding about how others live their lives. Would it have been easy for you to add a measure of mercy and grace into that message? Would you have tried to soften the blow somehow?

Jonah's message could be accepted in spite of the fact that he was a foreigner. In a polytheistic society such as Nineveh, there could literally be hundred of gods, any of whom could impact their lives. If the Ninevites' omens supported Jonah's message, then they would have no reason to disbelieve it. In fact, that he was a foreigner only gave weight to the message. Why would someone have traveled such a great distance if not impelled by a god? Besides, it's not like Jonah's message threatened their beliefs. Hearing from prophets was common and accepted and sacrificial systems were practiced allowing for easy access to entrails and other body parts. It was a different time, a different place. The one constant in our history is the nature of mankind. In that sense we can always find commonality with the characters of the Bible.

Apparently, when this message reached the King's ears, even he believed. He rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust. He officially declared a fast and commanded his people to call upon God, to give up their evil ways and their violence. Since the Ninevites did not know Jonah's God personally, they reacted to the message as best they could in an effort to appease this most powerful God. They acted the way an Israelite would act (after all it was Israel's God). They wore sackcloth and fasted. Even the animals wore sackcloth and fasted. (That must have been a funny sight!) The Ninevites undoubtedly heard many of the stories of the miracles that God had performed on Israel's behalf. Still, in their minds, because of how they were brought up and taught, and, although Israel's God was to be feared, Yahweh was still just one of many gods to be feared. There is no indication that the Ninevites turned from their false gods to worship the One true living God. In fact, the introduction of another "god" did not preclude the worship of the gods with which they were already familiar. By inquiring about the God of the Israelites, they could easily learn that He was a God of justice and so they acted accordingly. They cleaned up their act and, for a time, responded with some reforms. It's no different for you and me. When someone is introduced to Jesus Christ, it's unlikely that he or she would give up all of their current vices and bad habits (other "gods") because of it. It usually takes time for changes like these to occur. I struggle to live up to my own convictions every day. I am always missing the mark. The Ninevites recognized God's power and responded and God extended His mercy to them -- the very thing He wanted to do. You can be assured that the other gods they worshiped were not merciful -- not like the God of Israel! "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you." (Psalm 89:14, NIV) Maybe this was the only message necessary for now. Maybe this was enough. We don't know how many Ninevites gave serious attention to God's mercy that day -- whose lives were not just changed for that day, but forever.

Questions for reflection:

Have you ever responded to God in a purely outward way (like the Ninevites putting on sackcloth and fasting because they thought this was what God required)? Did it remain purely outward, or did a change of heart eventually follow?

What do you think the ramifications were for Jonah upon returning to Israel and announcing that God did not bring judgment upon their enemies, but mercy?

The final chapter brings me to the following conclusion about Jonah: Jonah is a big baby. At least that's how he acts. Seriously, what a pouter! We'll discuss Jonah's behavior in my final installment on the Book of Jonah.

An Attitude Adjustment for Jonah

2009-04-06T17:00:00.000-05:00

"From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God." Jonah 2:1

Have you ever had to have an attitude adjustment? It's not a pleasant experience. It usually means that God is going to take me through a difficult situation to help me see things with a little different (hopefully better) perspective. It's usually happens when I think I'm impervious to a certain sin or behavior or attitude. Like the time I thought I could just open my mouth and spout God's word like some sort of fix-all for someone else's painful situation. The problem wasn't with God's word or the application of it in their particular situation. The problem was with my arrogance and my lack of love and sensitivity to the other person's heart and problem. I was told so by the other party and it shot me down. But, I learned to be more of a listener and my attitude was adjusted accordingly.

Start today by reading all of Jonah 2 and also Jonah 3:1-4.

Jonah's time spent in the belly of a fish became the start of a major attitude adjustment. Jonah recognizes his time inside the fish as God's merciful deliverance from death and repents. When you read the 2 chapter of Jonah you hear in his voice the cries of someone who just can't feel any lower and realizes the depths (literally) from whence he came. "From the depths of the grave I called . . . You hurled me into the deep . . . the deep surrounded me . . . To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever." Jonah knows that the sea could have and should have swallowed up his life and I'm sure that he expected to die. But now, Jonah sits in the belly of this big fish and contemplates what just happened. I'm not certain that Jonah even thinks that there is hope beyond the belly of the fish, though I think he suspects that there might be life beyond his present situation because he plans to make good on the vow he's made to the Lord (whatever that may be). Jonah knows one thing at this point: he is alive. He offers a prayer of thanksgiving to the Lord and makes a vow to Him. The Lord, in His mercy, commands the big fish to vomit Jonah out (nice image) and, conveniently, Jonah lands on dry ground.

Questions for reflection:

Have you ever been so thankful to God for His rescue from a difficult or frightening situation that you made promises or vows to Him in response? Think about what those promises or vows were? Did you follow through with them?

You can imagine that Jonah might lay there on the beach for a bit before getting up and moving on with life. If it was me, I might have laid there and re-capped what just happened, how I got in the situation I was just in. I might be trying to wrap my head around the fact that I just spent 3 days of my life inside of a fish. I would most certainly be considering my impending task ahead (the whole reason for my current situation). There was a lot that just happened in his life. Think about it. We've all heard this story so much that we easily take it for granted. But let's you and I recap. Jonah was just given a monumental task to do for the Lord. (A task he wasn't happy about and that made him angry.) He made the monumental decision to run away from God. (Never a good idea.) He was thrown overboard and given monumental mercy from God by being rescued from death. (There's that exquisite Grace again!) He was swallowed by a monumental fish! (Big, big Grace!) He sat inside the fish for 3 days of which I am sure was monumental torture. (I don't know if you've really thought about what that was like, but please do.) All of the events leading up to this moment lying on the beach are monumental.

Jonah must go to Nineveh. I suspect that that was the vow that Jonah made to God -- to follow through with what God had asked him to do. Although, let's not make the mistake of thinking that Jonah is any happier about doing it. He did indeed get an attitude adjustment -- enough of an adjustment to decide to be obedient. Not enough of one to be happy about what his obedience required. But, that's ok. We're not always happy with what God asks us to do. Some things are difficult. To say that we do all things with exquisite joy is not realistic. Jonah must go to Nineveh.

When he reaches the great city, he delivers God's message of impending judgment. Now, Jonah wasn't a missionary. He was a prophet. It's a different gift. (It was a different skill set -- just as important :).) A missionary would bring a message of salvation to everyone who would listen convincing them of God's love and grace. A prophet brings a specific message to a particular audience. You can tell by Jonah's message that he was not happy about being there. He says (half-heartedly, I'm sure), "Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned." (3:4, NIV) Count them -- 8 words. He did the bare minimum. He used the fewest amount of words possible. No call to repentance. No instruction about what God might want from them. No conviction of their sins. No convincing the Ninevites of the love of God. His message was short and terse. I'm thinking he knew the message would bring fear, but he also suspected that God was going to be merciful with them. God just doesn't play by our rules, does He? Jonah is conflicted and troubled and he probably just wants to get out of there.

Questions for reflection:

If you were to deliver that message to Nineveh, would it have been easy or difficult for you to add a measure of mercy and grace into that message? Do you think you would have tried to soften the blow by directing them towards repentance?

Next time:

How did the Ninevites come to believe Jonah's message?

If the Ninevites were so cruel to Israel, how did Jonah get away with giving his message without facing their cruelty?

We'll talk about these questions in my next and last installment of my thoughts and teachings on the Book of Jonah. Let me know what you think!

Cake,
Kerry

MAN OVERBOARD!

2009-03-03T15:46:00.001-06:00

"He answered, 'I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.'" (Jonah 1:9)
Refresh your memory by reading Jonah 1. We will focus this time on Jonah 1:4-17.

The Book of Jonah has a few other characters besides Jonah himself. The sailors, for instance, who unknowingly put their lives at stake by taking Jonah aboard their ship. These innocent bystanders lost most of their goods in an effort to keep their ship from sinking. A violent storm ensued and the sailors were introduced to Jonah's God that night. Imagine being one of those sailors the moment you realized that you had to throw a man (Jonah) overboard in order to save your own life and the lives of your shipmates.

These heathen sailors would have had their own patron deities (personal or family gods), but they also would have implored whatever cosmic deities (universal gods) were popular in the day. They could usually identify divine activity as such, but it was another matter altogether identifying which god was acting and why. Don't get me wrong! I am in no way implying that there were actually other gods to identify. The only other "god" (little "g") that can be identified is our enemy, Satan. Each of the sailors would have called out to his own personal patron deity in hopes that the patron deity could influence the actions of the cosmic deity at work -- the cosmic deity causing the storm about to take their lives. The more deities that were contacted the better their chances of getting help from one of them. So, the captain decides to ask Jonah to call upon his god. (I say "god" little "g" because at this point the captain has no understanding of who Jonah's God is.) The captain goes below deck to speak to Jonah, and, lo and behold, Jonah is sleeping. It's not that Jonah doesn't realize that they are now sailing in the midst of a life-threatening storm. It's just that Jonah doesn't want to go to Nineveh. That is Jonah's state of mind. Death to himself and the ship's crew is better than going to Nineveh and allowing God the opportunity to be merciful with Israel's enemy. As if Jonah could stop God somehow from showing mercy. "For he says to Moses, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.'" (Romans 9:15, NIV) We cannot stop God! The thought of dying in this storm is so much better in Jonah's mind that he is able to sleep. Have you ever made the comment, "I would sooner die than ________________ (insert your worst nightmare here)!" That place right there. That's where Jonah was at.

The sailors cast lots to determine who would be first to disclose information about themselves. The assumption was that someone had done something terrible to make one of the gods angry enough to bring such a storm. The assumption was, in essence, true. One of the passengers did do something to make the God of the universe angry. The lot fell on Jonah. This is one of the most fascinating things that I've come to realize about God. He uses whatever tools we have, whatever our understanding at the time to accomplish His intent. He is not threatened by these so-called "other gods." God does not compete. He is not an ego-maniac. He is God. His purpose and intent will be accomplished and at the moment it is, all eyes will be on Him. He never loses control of a situation. In this case, He uses the tradition of casting lots. That was the sailors way of making difficult decisions. It was a custom practiced by most cultures of the day, including Israel. The sailors are naturally curious about who Jonah is and where he comes from and what exactly he did to make his God so angry. Jonah answers the sailors in such a way that explains his God as the Creator of heaven and earth -- just the sort of "god" who could bring such a storm! All eyes are on Jonah now and they blame him for their destruction. Jonah's flight from God has put them all in jeopardy and Jonah knows it.

How the sailors deal with Jonah and his God's anger is typical during this time in history. The people of the day believed that the actions of the gods were neither honorable nor reliable. In fact, it was believed that their actions were somewhat whimsical and always arbitrary. They worshiped gods that were childish in behavior -- gods that could not be trusted. Make no mistake! This is NOT the character of the God of Israel -- the One true living God! They believed that each god could be appeased in a different way, so they approached Jonah for an idea of how they might appease his God. Jonah's advice to the sailors was simple and to the point: "Pick me up and throw me into the sea." (vs. 12, NIV) Well, the sailors weren't enthusiastic about murder, so they made a last ditch attempt to row back to shore. The attempt failed because the sea grew even wilder than it was before. God was demanding Jonah's obedience.

Reluctantly, the sailors throw Jonah into the sea. In an act of desperation (and because, to them, a god is a god), the sailors cry out to the Lord Jehovah for mercy. "O Lord, please do not let us die for taking this man's life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, O Lord, have done as you pleased." (vs. 14, NIV) As soon as the sailors throw Jonah overboard the sea grew calm. At this, the sailors feared the God of Israel, sacrificed to Him and made vows to Him. There is no indication as to what they sacrificed or what the vows entailed. One thing is certain, they recognized Jonah's God as the God in control of the present situation and the One to be worshiped at the moment. The sailors probably made a vow to remember this divine event each year on its anniversary. This does not mean that they gave up worshiping their other gods. It only means that they included Jonah's God among those they already worshiped. But, hey, it's a start. They've now been introduced to the One, true God.

Jonah was cast into the sea and swallowed up by a big fish. Jonah more than likely assumed he would die as soon as he was thrown into the sea. Most certainly, he did not expect to live the next few days of his life in the belly of a big fish. (Mercy: not getting the punishment we deserve.) Jonah's overt disobedience to God deserved the punishment of death. This big fish was more willing to do the bidding of its Creator than was Jonah. I love the various translations of the last verse in chapter 1. The NIV states it this way: "The Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah . . . ," as if the fish was an act of rescue on God's part. (I love that! That's so like the God I know to provide a rescue.) The ESV states it, "And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah." This one kind of gives me the picture of God's creatures lining up waiting for their assignment from God -- maybe even eager to be asked. Jonah was appointed a task and the fish was appointed a task. Hmmm. What Jonah and the great fish had in common in regards to their tasks was that neither task was pleasing to either one. Jonah did not want to go to Ninevah because the Ninevites had certainly left a bad taste in his mouth. The great fish couldn't have liked the idea of swallowing up a whole man, clothes and all, when what he really enjoyed swallowing was shrimp. (I'm assuming here that the great fish was, in fact, a whale.) Aah! I love the Word. It's an ocean of fun!

Questions for reflection:

If you were one of the sailors that night would you have been able to and willing to throw someone overboard if it meant saving your life and the lives of your shipmates?

Have you ever felt like God's ways seemed whimsical or arbitrary? What truths does the Bible give us about this?

How would you share with those sailors about your God? What would you share that might convince them that He is the Creator of heaven and earth?

Have you ever shared your God with someone who served a different god?

You Can Run . . .

2009-03-03T09:54:00.000-06:00

The book of Jonah has always been a favorite of mine. It seems so outlandish and mysterious. A man swallowed by a whale? Alive for three days inside its stomach . . . in the depths of the ocean? Seriously? That can be a little tough to swallow (pardon the pun). I believe it nonetheless. And here's why: God can do anything and the Bible is full of outlandish stories and that's part of what makes God so amazing and great.

Over the next several posts, I'm going to take you through the Book of Jonah. We'll look at the man, the unbelievable truth, some innocent bystanders, and a nation under judgment. We'll discover just how much we have in common with Jonah and with the Ninevites. More importantly, we'll get another beautiful picture of God's amazing grace (my current favorite subject).

Let's start by reading Jonah 1.
Make a list of all the characters in this chapter.

Here we go!

Long ago in a land far away near the city of Joppa there lived a man named Jonah. Jonah tried to run and hide from God. He was a person not unlike you and me. He knew God but didn't always understand His ways. (Sound familiar?) God gave Jonah a very important job to do. He told Jonah to go to Ninevah and tell them to repent or suffer judgment. Jonah was less than enthusiastic so instead he paid considerable fare for passage on a ship to Tarshish. It's important to understand Jonah's state of mind regarding God's request. For Jonah to go to Ninevah and tell them to repent or face God's judgment would be like sending a Jew, Jonah in particular, into Nazi Germany with the same message. You can understand why the Jew might think it more acceptable for Nazi Germany to simply face God's judgment and be destroyed. It would be difficult, even today, to find a Jewish person who possessed any compassion for Hitler and his armies. This was what God's request felt like to Jonah. Jonah knew God, however, and suspected that God was going to show mercy and have compassion on this enemy of Jonah. Jonah was severely conflicted.

Ninevah had a long history of cruelty to the Israelites. It was the flourishing city of the Assyrian Empire (probably located in present day Iraq). The people were wealthy, modern and full of pride. The Ninevites worshiped many gods all demanding sacrifice for appeasement. They were infamous for their sacrifice of children. The Assyrian armies were constantly waging war with the Israelites and making treaties with and allies of neighboring countries against Israel. Cruelty was their specialty. It was well known amongst Israelites that to be captured by an Assyrian soldier meant a long, torturous death. The Ninevites knew nothing of mercy or compassion.

Now, Tarshish, on the other hand, was a quiet little place kown for its trade exports. It was neither lavish nor wealthy, and certainly not infamous (possibly located in what is now southern Spain). Joppa (located just south of modern Tel Aviv) was a harbor town for merchant ships of various sizes transporting grain, wine and oil. A ship like the one Jonah boarded would have had a crew of no more than a dozen sailors.

Jonah was a man who desired to see justice served on his enemies. Wouldn't we all? He probably was not without mercy and compassion, he just had his limits that's all. Like most of us, he had a difficult time understanding God's ways. He tried to refuse God, but, well . . . we all know how well that works. He tried to hide from God even though deep down he knew he could not hide. "He could run, but he could not hide," as the saying goes. Jonah got angry at God like all of us do from time to time.

I'll continue this next week in a new post. Before then consider the following questions:

1) Why did Jonah flee to Tarshish?

2) Has God ever asked you t do something you did not understand or just did not want to do? What did you do? Did you follow through or did you flee?

3) Do you feel mercy and compassion easily for those you consider enemies? Or is it difficult for you?

4) Are there people in your life for whom you have a hard time feeling compassion? Why or why not?

5) Do you ever try to hide from God? Why or why not?

The Simplicity of a Complex Theology

2009-02-12T13:48:00.000-06:00

I'm working on a theory. This theory involves a difficult concept by which greater minds than mine have still not been able to completely answer, and I am not claiming to answer it either. I am only hoping to add to the theology in some small way. I'm certain you will be able to spot all of the holes in my theory, but maybe you will find a way to fill in some of the holes with your own learned theories on the subject. My theory has to do with the concept of "election" and "predestination."

Let's begin by looking at Scripture.

Psalm 139:16: All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

Jeremiah 1:5: Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.

Ephesians 1:4-5, 11: For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will . . . In Him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will . . .

2 Thessalonians 2:13: But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit through belief in the truth.

One thought is that maybe we make the theory of election and predestination too hard. Maybe there is a simplicity to it that needs to be explored. That's my goal.

Those of you who know me, know that I believe that life begins at conception. So, no matter your personal views on the subject just know that this is the position from which I begin. Let's take a peek at the mystery of creation. A woman has one lifetime of eggs. She releases one egg a month (typically), but has absolutely no control over which egg gets to make the journey. A man deposits millions of sperm into the woman's body with absolutely no control over the creation of that sperm. When conception happens the couple has absolutely no control over which sperm gets to make the necessary connection with the egg. And, when one does, you have the beginning of life -- the beginning of a human being. A unique individual unlike anyone else ever created. If conception happens during a different month, you have a completely different human being from the first one. So, if I would have conceived in September instead of August, Sarah wouldn't be the Sarah I know. And if I would have conceived in October instead of September, Annie wouldn't be the Annie I know. They would be completely different people than they are. Only God controls such things. He chooses which egg and which sperm and which month for the exact person He has chosen to create and exist in His world. (I hope that wasn't too graphic.)

So just by virtue of the fact that God has hand created you ("knit together" as Psalm 139 says) makes you chosen. You have been chosen to live in His world and predestined for just a time as this. God thought of you and planned for you before you were ever created, and since He knows all things, He thought of you and planned for you before time began. As the elect of God, chosen by Him to exist, you get to own some responsibility in how you live your life. It's up to you to live into the life He wants for you and the salvation that is yours through faith in Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 2:10 says, "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." And, Romans 8:29-30 says, "For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified."

My question is this: Why can't this apply to every person ever created? Why shouldn't it apply to every person ever created? God, the Creator of human beings, "wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:4) Since He wants all men (or people) to be saved then in my mind it stands to reason that He has elected, chosen and predestined each one of us to share eternity with Him. We are eternal creatures. We will spend it in one place or the other. It is our choice. God, in His grace, gives us that choice. I believe so completely in life beginning at conception that I have a difficult time not sharing with young mothers-to-be the important truth of eternity. I want to say to them, "Do you realize that eternity has been set before this child yet to be born? ETERNITY has been SET BEFORE HIM! He or she will spend eternity somewhere and you have the most important calling of steering this child towards God's great salvation for which God has created him." Sometimes I do share it, but it's usually a little bit of a downer for these precious and joyous young mothers-to-be. They usually say something like, "Umm, thanks for that?" And, I say something like, "I'm sorry. That was too much right now in the middle of your joy, wasn't it?" And they say, "No, no, Kerry. I appreciate your wisdom in these matters." And I apologize again.

So, I say to you: Live into your destiny from God. Accept the truth of God's love and grace and mercy given to you in His great salvation through Jesus Christ. You have been handpicked before time began and your life was meant for exactly this time in HiStory (pronounced: "His Story," but spelled like "history"). You have a destiny already planned by God Himself to live into all of the great things He has for you in this life. He has a plan for you! He has work for you to do! He has new things for you to learn! This is your moment given to you by God!

Let me say again. I know there are holes in my theory. But maybe, just maybe, it fills in some holes in your own theology of election and predestination.

Cake!
Kerry

Morsel of Truth: "But you are a CHOSEN people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light."

The Bold Approach

2009-01-15T14:19:00.000-06:00

Grace. I always want it given to me, but am not always so eager to give grace to others.

Read: Ephesians 1:3-8

Re-write this verse in your own words in a way that explains what it says to you.

Have you ever been driving along and some other driver does something like cut you off or linger too long when the light changes from red to green? Do you just get so aggrevated at the other driver that you holler out something like, "C'mon!" or "Idiot!" wishing he or she could hear you from their car because your window is still up and you're just a little too cowardly to actually holler it to their face? Have you ever made a thoughtless comment that you wish you could suck back out of the air and stick back down your throat? Or, have you ever made a comment as a deliberate attempt to take a little jab at someone? Nothing too bad, really, you don't necessarily want to hurt them, you just definitely want to let them know that you noticed their behavior and you're not happy with their actions at the moment.

Truth is, I have been the culprit in all of these situations. I've also been the one on the receiving end. I've been yelled at and flipped off for being less than perfectly attentive behind the wheel. I've been on the receiving end of the little jabs and thoughtless comments. When found in either situation, oh, how I want others to extend some grace to me.

We buy two lottery tickets each week. (I know what you're thinking! Spare me the lecture and instead extend grace to me and John for our gambling habit.) Seriously, though, somebody always wins. About every few weeks someone's numbers came up in the lottery (just like for Babette) and their lives are changed forever. Somebody always wins -- it may as well be us. Anyway, we buy two lottery tickets each week, one for Wednesday's drawing and one for Saturday's drawing, and we would really like to win. In fact, we pray for God to let us win. But, here's the thing. John and I had a moment of severe truth a while back. We were stopped at a stoplight and just as we were ready to make our entrance onto Loop 250 a little old veteran who stands on the median every Sunday (all day) selling Sunday papers made a sale to the driver ahead of us. The sale didn't end soon enough and the light turned green and we were left waiting at a green light behind the driver buying his paper. Well, neither one of us was happy about not being able to immediately move forward into the intersection to make our turn and we made some noise about it to each other in the car. A few minutes later as we were finally speeding comfortably on the Loop, he said to me with disgust, "I ask God to let me win the lottery and I can't even show grace to this man who is just trying to make a living by selling Sunday papers." We withheld grace. We both looked at each other. You know that moment when you realize just how loathsome you can really be? That was one of those moments for both of us. Believe me when I say we've had lots of those moments in our lives. I wish I could get this grace thing down. But, I fear it will take the rest of my life and probably my life hereafter.

Grace is getting something that we do not deserve. It is God's favor. Grace is ongoing. There is no end to God's grace. The proof of that is in our salvation. No matter what I do in this life I have salvation through my faith in Jesus Christ. God just keeps holding it out to me. I never have to ask for His grace, He just gives it. Grace cannot be taken -- it can only be given.

In the verses that I asked you to read, what do you see? I see a God who, because of His gracious nature, gives blessing after blessing. I read how He already knew me and chose me before time began. He planned on me being here at this particular time in history. He planned on it. He didn't have to stop and realize it when my mom became pregnant with me and then begin planning for me. That's how we do it--that's not how God does it. He was planning on my arrival before time began. I read how it's His pleasure to have me as a part of His life and family; and, my destiny is to live into it. And, all of this just to show how gracious He is -- not for any other reason but to show us He is a God of grace. He doesn't do all of this to get our obedience or to earn our love. He does it to show us that He, the One true living God, is a God of grace! No cost to us at all! I also read that in God's own wisdom and understanding (He knows what He's doing--He isn't going to re-think it one day) He thought it worth His Son's life to redeem me because that's just how rich in grace He is! Unfathomable!

Re-read Ephesians 1:3-8 and wherever it has the word "us" change it to "me." Wherever it has the word "sons" change it to "child." Wherever it has the word "we" change it to "I." Go ahead and make it personal!

God knows how loathsome I am. He knows every time that I willingly withhold grace to another. He knows every time. I cannot hide it from Him. He, however, never withholds grace from me. Although I am changing and I do see signs of growth in the area of grace-giving, the truth is, no matter how good I get at extending grace to people, I still do not deserve God's favor. For this very reason, when I go to Him in prayer, I always say (as a way of reminding myself), "Father, I come to you the ONLY way that I can: through the blood of my Savior, Your Son, Jesus." That is how we boldly approach the throne of grace. Hebrews 4:15-16 says, "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way , just as we are -- yet without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Because He came and walked through this life conquering FOR ME all the sins that I can't seem to conquer, I can walk right up to his comfortable, approachable throne, settle in with Him and I can tell Him how angry I got at the driver in front of me or how I think I may have hurt that person at church by my careless words. I also tell Him how hurt I was by so and so's thoughtless comment and He says to me, "Daughter, my forgiveness goes on and on. I have forgiven you much because I love you." In that moment, nothing else needs to be said. Because I am keenly aware of how much God has forgiven me, I am compelled to give grace at a moment's notice. At least for a time.

His grace is sufficient!

Cake you so much!
Kerry

Today's quote: "Grace comes free of charge to people who do not deserve it and I am one of those people. I think back to who I was -- resentful, wound tight with anger, a single hardened link in a long chain of ungrace learned from family and church. Now I am trying in my own small way to pipe the tune of grace. I do so because I know, more surely than I know anything, that any pang of healing or forgiveness or goodness I have ever felt comes solely from the grace of God. I yearn for the church to become a nourishing culture of grace."

Philip Yancey, "Wha't So Amazing About Grace"

Babette's Feast: A Story

2009-01-06T13:30:00.001-06:00

The following post is an excerpt from Philip Yancey's book, What's So Amazing About Grace. It is a story of profound grace. A story that helps us measure and weigh our own acts of grace in the lives of others. Please read.

Karen Blixen, Danish by birth, married a baron and spent the years 1914-31 managing a coffee plantation in British East Africa. After a divorce she returned to Denmark and began writing in English under the pseudonym Isak Dinesen. One of her stories, "Babette's Feast," became a cult classic after being made into a movie in the 1980's.

Dinesen set her story in Norway, but the Danish filmmakers changed the location to an impoverished fishing village on the coast of Denmark, a town of muddy streets and thatched-roof hovels. In this grim setting, a white-bearded Dean led a group of worshipers in an austere Lutheran sect.

What few worldly pleasures could tempt a peasant in Norre Vosburg, this sect renounced. All wore black. Their diet consisted of boiled cod and a gruel made from boiling bread in water fortified with a splash of ale. On the Sabbath, the group met together and sang songs about "Jerusalem, my happy home, name ever dear to me." They had fixed their compasses on the New Jerusalem, with life on earth tolerated as a way to get there.

The old Dean, a widower, had two teenage daughters: Martine, named for Martin Luther, and Philippa, named for Luther's disciple Philip Melanchthon. Villagers used to attend the church just to feast their eyes on these two, whose radiant beauty could not be suppressed despite the sisters' best efforts.

Martine caught the eye of a dashing young cavalry officer. When she successfully resisted his advances -- after all, who would care for her aging father? -- he rode away to marry instead a lady-in-waiting to Queen Sophia.

Philippa possessed not only beauty but also the voice of a nightingale. When she sang about Jerusalem, shimmering visions of the heavenly city seemed to appear. And so it happened that Philippa made the acquaintance of the most famous operatic singer of the day, the Frenchman Achille Papin, who was spending some time on the coast for his health. As he walked the dirt paths of a backwater town, Papin heard to his astonishment a voice worthy of the Grand Opera of Paris.

Allow me to teach you to sing properly, he urged Philippa, and all of France will fall at your feet. Royalty will line up to meet you, and you will ride in a horse-drawn carriage to dine at the magnificent Cafe' Anglais. Flattered, Philippa consented to a few lessons, but only a few. Singing about love made her nervous, the flutterings she felt inside troubled her further, and when an aria from Don Giovanni ended with her being held in Papin's embrace, his lips brushing hers, she knew beyond doubt that these new pleasures must be renounced. Her father wrote a note declining all future lessons, and Achille Papin returned to Paris, as disconsolate as if he'd misplaced a winning lottery ticket.

Fifteen years passed, and much changed in the village. The two sisters, now middle-aged spinsters, had attempted to carry on the mission of their deceased father, but without his stern leadership the sect splintered badly. One Brother bore a grudge against another concerning some business matter. Rumors spread about a thirty-year-old sexual affair involving two of the members. A pair of old ladies had not spoken to each other for a decade. Although the sect still met on the Sabbath and sang the old hymns, only a handful bothered to attend, and the music had lost its luster. Despite all these problems, the Dean's two daughters remained faithful, organizing the services and boiling bread for the toothless elders of the village.

One night, a night too rainy for anyone to venture on the muddy streets, the sisters heard a heavy thump at the door. When they opened it, a woman collapsed in a swoon. They revived her only to find she spoke no Danish. She handed them a letter from Achille Papin. At the sight of his name Philippa's face flushed, and her hand trembled as she read the letter of introduction. The woman's name was Babette, and she had lost her husband and son during the civil war in France. Her life in danger, she had to flee, and Papin had found her passage on a ship in hopes that this village might show her mercy. "Babette can cook," the letter read.

The sisters had no money to pay Babette and felt it dubious about employing a maid in the first place. They distrusted her cooking -- didn't the French eat horses and frogs? But through gestures and pleading, Babette softened their hearts. She would do any chores in exchange for room and board.

For the next twelve years Babette worked for the sisters. The first time Martine showed her how to split a cod and cook the gruel, Babette's eyebrow shot upward and her nose wrinkled a little, but she never once questioned her assignments. She fed the poor people of the town and took over all house-keeping chores. She even helped with Sabbath services. Everyone had to agree that Babette brought new life to the stagnant community.

Since Babette never referred to her past life in France, it came as a great surprise to Martine and Philippa when one day, after twelve years, she received her very first letter. Babette read it, looked up to see the sisters staring at her, and announced matter-of-factly that a wonderful thing had happened to her. Each year a friend in Paris had renewed Babette's number in the French lottery. This year, her ticket had won. Ten thousand francs!

The sisters pressed Babette's hands in congratulations, but inwardly their hearts sank. They knew that soon Babette would be leaving.

As it happened, Babette's winning the lottery coincided with the very time the sisters were discussing a celebration to honor the hundredth anniversary of their father's birth. Babette came to them with a request. In twelve years I have asked nothing of you, she began. They nodded. But now I have a request: I would like to prepare the meal for the anniversary service. I would like to cook you a real French dinner.

Although the sisters had grave misgivings about this plan, Babette was certainly right that she had asked no favors in twelve years. What choice had they but to agree?

When the money arrived from France, Babette went away briefly to make arrangements for the dinner. Over the next few weeks after her return, the residents of Norre Vosburg were treated to one amazing sight after another as boats docked to unload provisions for Babette's kitchen. Workmen pushed wheelbarrows loaded with crates of small birds. Cases of champagne -- champagne! -- and wine soon followed. The entire head of a cow, fresh vegetables, truffles, pheasants, ham, strange creatures that lived in the sea, a huge tortoise still alive and moving his snakelike head from side to side -- all these ended up in the sisters' kitchen now firmly ruled by Babette.

Martine and Philippa, alarmed over this apparent witch's brew, explained their predicament to the members of the sect, now old and gray and only eleven in number. Everyone clucked in symphony. After some discussion they agreed to eat the French meal, withholding comment about it lest Babette get the wrong idea. Tongues were meant for praise and thanksgiving, not for indulging in exotic tastes.

It snowed on December 15, the day of the dinner, brightening the dull village with a gloss of white. The sisters were pleased to learn that an unexpected guest would join them: ninety-year-old Miss Loewenhielm would be escorted by her nephew, the cavalry officer who had courted Martine long ago, now a general serving in the royal palace.

Babette had somehow scrounged enough china and crystal, and had decorated the room with candles and evergreens. Her table looked lovely. When the meal began all the villagers remembered their agreement and sat mute, like turtles around a pond. Only the general remarked on the food and drink. "Amontillado!" he exclaimed when he raised the first glass. "And to the finest Amontillado that I have ever tasted." When he sipped the first spoonful of soup, the general could have sworn it was turtle soup, but how could such a thing be found on the coast of Jutland?

"Incredible!" said the general when he tasted the next course. "It is Blinis Demidoff!" All the other guests, their faces puckered with deep wrinkles, were eating the same rare delicacy without expression or comment. When the general rhapsodized about the champagne, a Veuve Cliquot 1860, Babette ordered her kitchen boy to keep the general's glass filled at all times. He alone seemed to appreciate what was set before him.

Although no one else spoke of the food or drink, gradually the banquet worked a magical effect on the churlish villagers. Their blood warmed. Their tongues loosened. They spoke of the old days when the Dean was alive and of Christmas the year the bay froze. The Brother who had cheated another on a business deal finally confessed, and the two women who had feuded found themselves conversing. A woman burped, and the Brother next to her said without thinking, "Hallelujah!"

The general, though, could speak of nothing but the meal. When the kitchen boy brought out the coup de grace, baby quail prepared en Sarcophage, the general exclaimed that he had seen such a dish in only one place in Europe, the famous Cafe' Anglais in Paris, the restaurant once renowned for it woman chef.

Heady with wine, his senses sated, unable to contain himself, the general rose to make a speech. "Mercy and truth, my friends, have met together," he began. "Righteousness and bliss shall kiss one another." And then the general had to pause, "for he was in the habit of forming his speeches with care, conscious of his purpose, but here, in the midst of the Dean's simple congregation, it was as if the whole figure of General Loewenhielm, his breast covered with decorations, were but a mouthpiece for a message which meant to be brought forth." The general's message was grace.

Although the Brothers and Sisters of the sect did not fully comprehend the general's speech, at that moment "the vain illusions of this earth had dissolved before their eyes like smoke, and they had seen the universe as it really is." The little company broke up and went outside into a town coated with glistening snow under a sky ablaze with stars.

"Babette's Feast" ends with two scenes. Outside, the old-timers join hands around the fountain and lustily sing the old songs of faith. It is a communion scene: Babette's feast opened the gate and grace stole in. They felt, adds Isak Dinesen, "as if they had indeed had their sins washed white as wool, and in this regained innocent attire were gamboling like little lambs."

The final scene takes place inside, in the wreck of a kitchen piled high with unwashed dishes, greasy pots, shells, carapaces, gristly bones, broken crates, vegetable trimmings, and empty bottles. Babette sits amid the mess, looking as wasted as the night she arrived twelve years before. Suddenly the sisters realize that, in accordance with the vow, no one has spoken to Babette of the dinner.

"It was quite a nice dinner, Babette," Martine says tentatively.

Babette seems far away. After a time she says to them, "I was once cook at the Cafe' Anglaise."

"We will all remember this evening when you have gone back to Paris, Babette," Martine adds, as if not hearing her.

Babette tells them that she will not be going back to Paris. All her friends and relatives there have been killed or imprisoned. And, of course, it would be expensive to return to Paris.

"But what about the ten thousand frands?" the sisters ask.

Then Babette drops the bombshell. She has spent her winnings, every last franc of the ten thousand she won, on the feast they have just devoured. Don't be shocked, she tells them. That is what a proper dinner for twelve costs at the Cafe' Anglais.

Babette's Feast is a story of grace: a gift that costs the giver everything and the recipient nothing.

A Gift Too Big

2008-12-29T15:53:00.001-06:00

Have you ever received a gift that was simply too big and too lavish to accept? We've all just finished up another Christmas. I wonder if any of you, in retrospect, are looking back and wishing you hadn't given such a lavish gift to someone. Or, maybe you're wishing you could have given a nicer gift to someone special. That's usually the category I fall into. I have two wonderful friends and over the last couple of weeks I keep wishing I could have given them something really great -- something really, really spectacular. Something that would have made them stop and catch their breath. Something that really says how special they are to me. Instead, they got a bag full of hand made items. The gifts really did come from my heart and, in the end, simpler is probably better. It makes me wish anyway.

Grace. I've been doing a lot of reading and thinking this past year about grace. My conclusion thus far is this: God's grace is ultimately and magnificently sufficient and my grace is hideously insufficient. God's grace is too big to be contained, measured, weighed, or stopped. We cannot breathe without it. It comes unexpected. It is undeserved and unwarranted. It cannot be taken -- it can only be given. God resides on a throne called "GRACE."

Read: Ephesians 2:1-10

According to these verses, God is actively giving grace in our lives. How many ways do you see God giving His grace?

Ephesians 2:1 says we were dead in our transgressions and sins. Dead. That seems fairly serious. But, God, who is rich in mercy and because of His great love for us, made us alive. GRACE. He raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms (we can only imagine what that looks like for us!). GRACE. He saved us. GRACE. We are God's workmanship! GRACE.

Even though the Old Testament writers speak a lot about the Law, life has always been about grace. God has always been about grace. Yes, the law is important; however, if you read between the lines a little you can see God's amazing activity of grace in the lives of those who recognized their brokenness. Let's look at King David.

Read 2 Samuel 12, 2 Samuel 24 and Psalm 51:16-17.

In 2 Samuel 24 David's pride got him into trouble and God allowed David to pick one of three punishments. (I'm oversimplifying this passage, I know.) David had learned a thing or two in his life. He learned how ruthless people can be, for he even saw it in himself. He couldn't choose. Instead of falling into the hands of men he chose to fall into the hands of the living God for His mercy is great. Grace.

In the account of David and Bathsheba, David lost sight of God's life flowing through him and wanted what he wanted and did whatever he had to in order get what he wanted. When confronted by the prophet Nathan, David admitted his guilt, repented and fell into the hands of the living God. If God would have wanted sacrifice to make amends David would have brought it. But, David knew that what God wanted was David's heart, broken and contrite and in need of grace. When David brought that to God, David was forgiven. Grace.

It's always been about grace, not law. Law only proves to us how much we need grace.

"To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.'" (2 Corinthians 12:7-9a) God's grace is sufficient in all of our weaknesses. It's easy to think of that word "sufficient" as meaning "only just enough." The gift is just enough. "Sufficient," however, actually carries with it the meaning of "more than enough." The gift is SUFFICIENT! It is more than enough! It takes care of everything and there is nothing lacking! I don't know about you, but a grace big enough to cover my multitude of weaknesses is BIG!

I have weaknesses. You have weaknesses. Jesus understands weaknesses. HE is not weak, but He was tempted in every way just like you and me. "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are -- yet was without sin." (Hebrews 4:15, NIV) Because of our weaknesses and because He knows all about it He invites us to come -- to approach His throne of grace -- boldly! -- where we can find grace when we need it. How do you picture God on His throne? Do you picture the classic storybook throne? A large, opulent throne, all gold except for the red velvet upholstery on which the king regally sits. It's easy for me to have that picture, but I don't think that's it. I think it looks more like a seat (albeit, regal) that is soft and roomy. One that is inviting and there's always room on it for one more person. And, God sits and beckons me to His side. "Kerry, come and sit with me. What do you need today? Do you need forgiveness? Do you need the strength of my arms? Do you need to tell me anything? Speak boldly for I already know and I have more than enough grace for you today." It makes me stop and catch my breath. "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Hebrews 4:16, NIV)

Cake you.
Kerry