Courage in God’s children is in short supply these days. Be strong, Christian!

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What man is there who is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go and return to his house, lest the heart of his brethren faint like his heart. (Deuteronomy 20:8)

Cowards have no place in the Lord’s army.

Faintheartedness seems to spread from one person to another like a bad disease. Better to go forward with a small fighting force made up of champions than with a massive one infiltrated by cowards.

Fear and courage are brothers, we are told. They show up at the same time, often hand in hand. But, like many brothers, the competition between them is fierce. They struggle to see which will rule the day.

Fear and courage are both contagious.

Let someone start the conversation by pointing out how strong the enemy is and how weak our side is and how foolish we would be to go forward, and soon, his solo is drowned out by a chorus of like-minded fearmongers.

They had been waiting for an excuse to go home.

Let someone stand up and speak faith and courage, and often–not always, alas–others will step out of the crowd to stand with him. Ten warriors with courage–strong of heart and dead-set on victory–can do more than a thousand who are ruled by fear.

The twelve spies had returned from their forty days in Canaan. Israel’s multitude gathered around, eager for their report. There was good news a-plenty: the fields were fertile, the crops abundant, the orchards loaded, and the barns filled. But there was another side to the report: the land was well-populated, the cities were walled and protected by standing armies equipped with the latest technology. And if that wasn’t enough, there were giants in the land.

This could go either way.

It all came down to leadership.

Immediately after the report, faithful Caleb spoke up. “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”

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How God fooled Satan at Christmas

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“….the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age understood; for if they had understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” –I Corinthians 2:8

There is more going on in this universe–above us, underneath us, in the spirit world surrounding us–than we can imagine.

God is always at work. The hosts of Heaven are constantly serving Him in ways unknown to us.  But so is His arch-enemy at work, as well as his minions.  We see this throughout Scripture.

Satan is the enemy is all that is good.  Anything that would honor God, benefit humanity, and spread the gospel, Satan hates and works to sabotage.

But God is not stymied by Satan. The Heavenly Father loses no sleep worrying about him.  Satan’s doom is settled, his fate is sealed, his days are numbered.

“On earth is not his equal,” said Martin Luther about the devil in His majestic anthem “A Mighty Fortress.”  Granted, you and I are no match for Satan.  But in Christ we are more than conquerors.  This is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith in Christ. (Romans 8:37 and I John 5:4)

God is constantly handing the devil defeat after defeat. We see it in life, we observe it in the world about us, and we see it demonstrated in Scripture.

Case in point:  The First Christmas. 

First, understand that as a created being, Satan shares none of the attributes of Almighty God—not omniscience, omnipresence, nor omnipotence.  This means that he is limited in knowledge and space and power. When it comes to predicting what God is going to do next, he has to rely on what he can figure out, what he remembers from the timeless past when he resided in Heaven as a favorite angel, and what he reads in Holy Scripture.

Since the Holy Spirit does not enlighten his understanding, Satan sees as the world sees, not with the mind of Christ. Once we understand this, a hundred puzzles fall into place.

Satan did not know God’s plan which involved the cross. Bear this in mind.

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The Bible is in a class by itself.

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“For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses….”  “For prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:16,21).

I’ve been reading books.

That explains a lot of things.  It explains where my mind is these days, what’s been bugging me, and where I’ve been searching the Word.

I’ve been reading The Story of Ain’t.  This is mostly about what goes into dictionaries, particularly Webster’s Third Edition.  Author David Skinner brings us into the inner offices of G. and C. Merriam Company to show how decisions are made concerning the English language.  If you like that, you’d love watching sausage being made.  (It’s a difficult book to read and only the wordsmiths/scholars among us should rush out and buy it.)

I’ve been reading “The Refiner’s Fire: The Making of Mormon Cosmology, 1644-1844.”  Author John L. Brooke takes us back into the context of the birth of this American-made religion to show that almost all its doctrines and revelations were the product, not from Heaven, but of ideas floating around when Joseph Smith was a young man.

But most of all, I’ve been reading the Bible.

The contrast in these three is enlightening.  Reflecting on them resulted in these observations….

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That printed material that your church office churns out

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“Your words have helped the tottering to stand; you have strengthened feeble knees”  (Job 4:4). 

Speak clearly.  Enunciate. Use simple, active language.  Avoid wordiness. Never try to impress the audience with large, unfamiliar words.

Encourage people with your speech.  She opens her mouth in wisdom, and the law of kindness is on her tongue (Proverbs 31:26).

Take with you words, said the prophet to God’s people, and return to the Lord (Hosea 14:2).

Words.  They matter so much.  You’re reading a compilation of them right now.  Ideally, I have so arranged them as to make sense and convey a message.

The major reason writers edit their writings is to find the culprits that would hinder communication.

It’s essential not to use a word that would impede, stun, or detour the message.

The newspaper’s food section carried a huge article on how a good salad can improve a meal.  The headline said: “Ameliorate any meal with a simple pasta salad.”

Ameliorate?  The word means to improve, to enhance, to make something bad better.  But ameliorate?!!  When was the last time you used that word?  And why would a newspaper–where reporters and editors presumably work at effective communication–use such a word?

A friend points out the irony of finding ameliorate and simple in the same sentence!

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A resounding testimony for Christ will do a lot of things for you, including get you into trouble!

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A resounding testimony of faith in Jesus Christ will get you into more trouble than you’ve ever been in, in your life.

You thought we were going to say how good life would be if you went “all in” for the Lord and told everyone about Him?

Let’s say it again…

A strong outspoken witness for the Lord Jesus Christ will box you into a corner and make you put up or shut up.

That’s why you ought to do it. That’s why you ought to erect a neon sign in your front yard declaring that “Jesus is Lord at 203 Garden Cove” or wherever you live. You ought to put a Bible on your desk and wear t-shirts that celebrate Jesus and put Him in your conversation.

Pray in restaurants before meals, speak to waitresses about their spiritual welfare, and witness to your colleagues at work.

So live and speak that when someone wants to attack the Lord Jesus Christ and can’t lay hands on Him, they start looking for you. (Acts 5:41 comes to mind.)

In declaring yourself for Jesus, you ought to remove your safety harness and throw yourself totally into God’s hands.

Quit being so cotton-picking careful.

What are you afraid of?

Tell people you’re a Christian and that it’s the best decision you ever made and that to know Jesus is the best thing on the planet.

Keep doing it and then watch what happens.  It might be painful, so be strong.

We have a couple of stories, one from a longtime friend and the second from God’s Word.

Diane tells this story about her family.

There was a time when their children were small and times were hard.  Diane had quit work to be a stay-at-home mom, and they were trying to make do on Philip’s salary from the department store.

As if life were not already complicated enough, Diane got sick and had to have a battery of tests and medical treatments. The condition was on-going and the costs were frightening.

As the one who paid the bills, Diane always made sure they sent the clinic a payment of some amount each month. However, it hardly put a dent in the total bill, which kept increasing.

During all this time, they never missed tithing their income to the Lord through their local church.

One day, they received a phone call from the clinic.  “We appreciate that you pay toward your bill each month, but we are going to have to ask for one-half of the total now. Until you do, you can’t charge anything more to this account.”

That was a blow. They began praying in earnest about what to do.

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Envy: It’s the root of many of the Christian’s problems

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A friend asked, “Have you noticed that so many Christians seem to be discontented with their lot?  That they envy the rest of the world, and maybe even resent a little having to live like Jesus?”

If this is true–and I know enough of my own heart to suspect it is–it’s not a new phenomenon.  The condition has been with us from early on.

The malady was voiced perfectly by the Psalmist:

“I was envious of the boastful, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked” (Psalm 73:3).

You and I suspect the Psalmist may have been a bit too selective of the ungodly whom he chose to envy. But that’s how we do it, after all.

Envy is selective.

All around the Psalmist were wicked people living wretched lives, filling the jails, fighting and killing, fornicating and drinking themselves into early graves.  Those people also are “the boastful” and “the wicked.”  But he focuses on none of those.  The ones he admires and even envies are the “up and out,” not the “down and out.”  Look how he describes them….

–There are no pangs in their death. (Psalm 73:4)

–They are not in trouble like other people. (73:5)

–They have an abundance of this world’s goods. (73:7)

–They speak against God and show no respect for sacred things, and seem to get by with it. (73:8-9)

–They are always at ease; they increase in riches. (73:12)

In short, those he envies have “got it made.”

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A “Joe” Manifesto, of a sort

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I am a work in progress.  And so are you.
Here’s where I am at the moment.
FIRST, MY STATEMENT, THEN I WANT TO ELABORATE ON IT…
I was called by God to be a New Testament pastor, not an Old Testament prophet, not an expert on prophecy, and not a community activist. I am not a politician and will not be advising people from the pulpit on how to vote.
I was not sent as a judge or critic for every controversial thing people in my community are doing, but as one declaring the good news of Jesus Christ.
I have no deep psychological insights on why people do wrong-headed things other than that the heart is a rebel and wants to be its own god.
WHAT I PREACH–
–Only a new nature (given by God the Father when one repents and places trust in Jesus Christ) can change that. And even then, after the heart has been changed, the old nature is still around and the struggle to do right will only intensify. Anyone hoping that by following Christ he/she would be through with tough decisions is sadly mistaken.
–So, I work to get people into the Word, teach the importance of praying-without-ceasing, encourage them to plant themselves within a congregation of believers, help them to bring their friends to Jesus Christ, and caution them to expect opposition from the enemy of righteousness. No one said this life would be easy.
–I urge them to let the Son shine through them, to laugh and rejoice and encourage, and to love one and all.
–After all, if God did not “send His Son into the world to condemn the world” (John 3:17), then He surely didn’t ask me to!
I’ll just be sharing the good news of Jesus, thank you. That should be enough.

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Cautions as you meet with a pastor search committee

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Pastor, you’ve been invited to meet with the search committee from the First Church of Butterfly City, and you’re plenty excited.

You’ve been at your present church a number of years now and have about run out of ideas, patience, and life-savings.  A change would not only be good, it might save your life, your ministry, and even your marriage.

Now, pastor, calm your heart beat. Don’t get overly excited.  We need to talk about a few considerations…

First, pastor, you must not assume anything. If you do, you are setting yourself up for a major disappointment.

–Do not assume the Butterfly committee has done its background checks.  It’s completely possible they may begin tonight’s meeting with, “And who are you again? And where are you serving?”  Assume they know very little about you.

–Do not assume that you are the only candidate the Butterflyians are interviewing.  Committees have been known to invite a series of preachers for interviews, after which they will decide which ones are worth the trouble of traveling to hear them preach.  Assume–until they say otherwise–you are one of several they are looking at.

–Do not assume you are their number one choice and start dreaming of moving to that wonderful church in Butterfly City. This is no time to be calling the chamber of commerce for information on the nearest schools.  This is not yet the time to start doing background checks on the church.  Assume this is just for your encouragement and their education until the Lord says otherwise.

–Do not assume they owe you anything or you may be disappointed.  In the minds of most PSC committee members, they are walking through a garden in search of the prize-winning rose.  The idea that they owe you a call-back is foreign to most. Assume you will not hear from them again. The surest way to disappointment is to wait by the phone for a call that in all likelihood will never come. (I have stories about this.  I’m still waiting to hear from two or three committees that promised they would be in touch.  They didn’t.) 

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Our Lord has taken all the work out of prayer

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“Your Father knows what things you have need of before you ask Him.” –Matthew 6:8.

Who wouldn’t like to lose weight without dieting?  And, yes, we’d like to get healthy and have our muscles toned up while we sleep.  Half the people I know would like to get a college degree without going to class or studying.

Forget it. Not going to happen.

In the same way, spiritual disciplines require purposeful effort from us.  Whether we are fasting and enduring great tribulation for Jesus’ sake, or doing something as simple as studying our Sunday School lesson and offering grace before meals, conscious effort is required, and that means a strong focus on the Savior.

Prayer is hard work, we are told.

I respond that this is a half-truth.  Overcoming our human tendency to “do it by myself” (like a petulant four-year-old) and our sinful insistence on hanging onto a sinful but enjoyable habit, those may indeed require discipline and effort.  Making myself turn off the television or lay aside an enjoyable book to open God’s word and read and meditate and pray does require some effort from me.

But is prayer itself–talking with the Heavenly Father–actually work?  Is it hard to talk to the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ who loved us and gave Himself for us our needs?  Is it work to praise Him for His wondrous works?

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Word-wrangling. Dangerous work!

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Remind them of these things, and solemnly charge them in the presence of God not to wrangle about words, which is useless and leads to the ruin of the hearers.  (Second Timothy 2:14)

Many of us pastors have trouble staying out of the ditches and onto the road.

A scholar friend says, “Truth is a ridge on either side of which are vast chasms to be avoided at all cost.”  One side is called liberalism, the other legalism.  Rigid fundamentalism on the right, worldly compromise on the left.  In between is the road.  The way.  It’s narrow.

Truth always is.

It’s one thing to love word-study and to delight in finding a particular word in Scripture that yields a well-spring of insights and applications, but a far different thing to fight over the meaning of some obscure Greek word.

First Timothy 6:4 warns God’s leaders about “word-battles” or “word-wrangling.” The idea is “constant striving” and “chronic disagreement.” The Greek word is disparatribai, a double compound word which means “constant contention, incessant wrangling or strife.”

Then, in Second Timothy 2:14 Paul uses a different word, logomachia, which we are told means “fighting with words.”  The NASB translators made it “word-wrangling,” which I like.

The image of wrangling suggests a cowboy roping a dogie, jumping off his horse, and wrestling the animal to the ground.

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