Jesus On The Cross

They put Jesus on the cross. His cry six hours later when he died shows that the cross was a time of anguish for him in his humanity. Some like to picture Jesus as calm, cool, and collected on the cross. John's presentation leans in that direction, with Jesus giving instructions about his mother to the beloved disciple from the cross. But each gospel has its special features, and one of John's is a minimizing of Jesus' human struggle. In Mark, Jesus asks for this cup to pass (14:36). In John, Jesus dismisses the very idea (12:27). John gives us Jesus in hindsight, the spiritual understanding of Jesus. In Mark we get a little more literal picture. So I believe the cross was a time of anguish. John does not give us the cry, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me" but the confident, "It is finished." Mark gives us the pain of the moment, the intense suffering. Jesus is so in anguish that he dies hours before a crucified person normally would have. The physical struggle was not the worst possible death, but his anguish was spectacular. There's no evidence that God turned away because of him taking on our sin--that's just a fun story driven by a particular theology. I fully believe God the Father was there with him on the cross. But I also suspect that Jesus himself wasn't feeling it at the time.

Wisdom From Age

Reading through the Old Testament it seems that many of God's choicest servants began some of their best ministry in their later years. It seems a shame that some of our churches fail to see the value in the experience and wisdom that many of our older pastors could bring them. These ministers who have seen and heard it all could be the non-anxious presence that some of our churches need to be able to move forward.

Make It As Sure As You Can.

The Lord Jesus Christ was wonderful in His resurrection. When His body was laid in the grave, Pilate gave orders at the request of the Pharisees to seal the sepulchre. “Make it as sure as ye can” (Matthew 27:65), and they did! Nature made it as sure as she could, for a large stone was before the sepulchre, but “up from the grave He arose,” the angel of the Lord rolled the stone away and sat upon it! The Roman government made it as sure as it could and placed its seal upon the grave; but “up from the grave He arose” and now He carries the keys of death and hell. The world, the flesh, and the devil conspired to keep Him in the grave, but “up from the grave He arose” that “death might be swallowed up in victory.”

Study The Word.

Disregard the study of God, and you sentence yourself to stumble and blunder through life blindfolded, as it were, with no sense of direction and no understanding of what surrounds you. This way you can waste your life and lose your soul. Packer, J. I. (2011-09-26). Knowing God (p. 17). Intervarsity Press. Kindle Edition.

Bi-Vocational Ministry

Many of us in ministry, especially those of us who are bivocational, are in constant motion. We go from church to job to family activity to a dozen other things. What often suffers in all that activity is our own personal walk with God. We are so busy doing things for God that we fail to spend time with God. We spend so much time with people that we can never really be with any of them.

Church

Church should not be the focus of our efforts or the banner we hold up to explain what we’re about. Church should be what ends up happening as a natural response to people wanting to follow us, be with us, and be like us as we are following the way of Christ.

Fear

In the twentieth chapter of John's Gospel we find a group of disciples including ten of the apostles gathered behind doors that were barred for fear that the authorities would be searching for them. They imagined the same suffering that Jesus received would be their fate. Fear is a terrible emotion to live with. Many today live in fear of something. Jesus came and stood in the midst of those gathered and He will stand with us as well if we will seek Him.

Our Speech

‎The mouth is a poetic use of one of the organs of speech and refers to the words or thoughts spoken by the righteous, that is, a good, honest person. Fountain of life is similar to “tree of life” used in 3:18. See there for comments. The expression is used in Psa 36.9 (Hebrew verse 10), where it refers to God as being the source or creator of all life. In 16:22 Wisdom is a fountain of life. In this verse the expression refers to the words of the righteous, perhaps because such people are identified with the wise and with wisdom.

Assembly Required

Have you ever seen just what you needed (wanted) at WalMart but the display item is not for sale. The box says, "assembly required". Or maybe it was, "EASY ASSEMBLY REQUIRED". I want to let you know that's just not true. It should probably state, If you are a carpenter, contractor, or a handy man you may be able to figure out the instructions and get the darn thing together. Well, I've been all evening working on a desk chair. Back hurts, almost cussed, and it aint easy.

Good Book

The following is part of the forward of a book titled: The Tangible Kingdom: Creating Incarnational Community. RECENTLY I WALKED BY a “church” that was holding “services” on a Sunday morning in an upscale community in Northern California. Organ music drifted out of the open doors, spilling onto the streets where passersby made their way to coffee shops, art galleries, and antique stores, oblivious to the goings-on of the band of worshipers ensconced behind stucco walls. Is this situation worrisome to that congregation? Apparently not. No one was outside to engage anyone on the street. Nametags were on prominent display in the entry plaza next to the “sanctuary.” The clear message was “Members only.” If you wandered in on the activities absent a nametag, you’d stick out like a sore thumb. Contrast this picture with what you see and experience as you read about the early days of the Christian movement in the Book of Acts. The Kingdom was spreading like a virus, invading every aspect of society. There wasn’t a possibility of containing it inside a building; it was unleashed onto the street. If you are a church leader, you will self-select into your own future of spiritual expression. Either you will participate in some kind of religious activity that is increasingly disconnected from its surrounding culture, or you will join the ranks of those who want to experience the life of a Jesus follower. You don’t need much help in making the first choice. However, if you want to participate in the Kingdom here and now, you might need some help in knowing how to prepare for that.

Wonderful Worship

Today was a special Sunday at CBC. Pastor Matt was certainly preaching under the anointing of the Spirt of God and we felt His presence. He challenged us to invite someone to come and listen to the gospel. Not only the lovely but those who we might find different than us. God loves the sinner and came to heal their spiritual sickness.

Time Change

Spring ahead; Fall back. It's that season and this week-end we change times again. Wasn't it nice when we didn'y have to? I'm prepared to lose an hour's sleep this Saturday night. How many will get to church late? Oh well, this means Spring is near!

New Beginnings

A successful start begins by asking, "What does a wildly successful outcome look like?" What a powerful question for a church leader to ask when preparing to start a new ministry!

Snow

The snow that God sends is beautiful. It sometimes make things difficult but there's a reason for all that our God does. His creation is amazing. Our God reigns above all. He is good and loves us unconditionally. Enjoy the beauty of the earth.

A New Beginning

This afternoon I was invited to accept the pastorate at Burton-Richland Center United Methodist Church. I look forward with joy to loving the people as together we give glory to God. The people welcomed me with great hospitality.