Jesus Sightings - 2

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

"In the beginning" is a phrase that points to eternity at the point of creation. It points to the ETERNITY of the Word, the Lord Jesus Christ. He who was and is the eternal revelatory Word never began to exist. He was there in the eternal state BEFORE creation.

Consider the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ, before He became man, was the ETERNAL Word. He had no beginning. In Himself is EXISTENCE. No source outside of Himself caused His being. No source outside of Himself is necessary for His CONTINUED existence. Life, Existence, Being are inherent to WHO He is.

This means that our Lord cannot become weak, cannot change, cannot fail to keep His exceeding great and precious promises, can NEVER become other than He has always been in His divine nature. Who He was is Who He is and Who He will be.

But the Word was not alone..."the Word was with God." Surely this points to the Trinity of God...the Father, Son, and Spirit. Though the universe was uncreated and only existed in the mind of God, there was fellowship and love and communication between the eternal Word and God the Father and Spirit. Who could begin to think about what that Divine Triune interaction was like? No misunderstanding, no needs for clarification, no friction, no discouragement, no anger, no selfishness...it is a glorious thing to realize that our communication in heaven with one another and with Christ and God will resemble that eternal fellowship.

All of this, of course, points to the fact that "...the Word was God." How else could he be eternal and uncreated? How else could He share fellowship with the Father and Spirit? The eternal Word, the Son, who also became our Lord Jesus Christ...IS GOD. And what glory is it to KNOW that Jesus, my Lord, He who indwells me by the Spirit, He who gave Himself up for me...is GOD!

What mind-boggling condescension!

Jesus Sightings - 1

The Bible is about Jesus Christ. He himself said this:

And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
(Luke 24:27)

However, I have found over the years that when I go to the Scriptures, I often...most often...nearly ALWAYS...go to the Scriptures NOT to SEEK Jesus, not to SEE Jesus, but for some personal encouragement, some answer to a question or problem, or for MATERIAL for a talk or sermon. Lord of the Scriptures, forgive me.

By the grace of God, I am beginning to go to the written WORD to see the LIVING WORD, Jesus. It is ALL about Him and as a Christian I AM ALL ABOUT HIM. The Scriptures are for "beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord" so that we can be "transformed into the same image, from one degree of glory to another" 2 Corinthians 3:17,18.

How LITTLE of His glory I really know. I want to know HIM more. I want to know His PERSON and His LOVE and His GLORY...MORE! This is what eternal life is about - John 17:3. The ONLY place to see Him clearly and faithfully is in the written Word...so here I go...

For the next while, Lord willing, I will be looking for Jesus in the GOSPEL of JOHN. I pray that these "Jesus Sightings" will be a means of grace in His sovereign hands to show Himself to me...to us.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 1:1

Why is Jesus called the "Word"? Words are communication. Words are the outward expression of what is inside. Words are the audible expression of the TRUE PERSON or BEING. Words are SELF REVELATION. Jesus is God's self-revelation in its ultimate and final form..."He has made Him known" v.18. "In these last days He has spoken to us by His Son..." Hebrews 1:2. That Jesus is the WORD tells us that God WANTS to reveal Himself to us and that a primary purpose of the incarnation of Jesus was to reveal the Father.

It is glorious to know that God wants to be known. He is not hiding from us. He has come in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ so that in terms we can understand...HUMAN LIFE IN THIS WORLD...we might see Him and know Him. Jesus coming as the WORD is the Father's invitation for us all to KNOW Him. He WANTS to be known. He has put REVELATION of Himself on the "bottom shelf," so to speak, in Jesus. He is accessible. John says in his epistle (1:3) that he is making known what he has "seen and heard." God is within reach in the Lord Jesus Christ.

That there are "Jesus Sightings" at all is a glory and grace from God too high to fathom in a million devotional meditations...but there are an abundance of them that all the books in the world could not contain (John 21:25) simply BECAUSE God wants to be known and JESUS is the WORD who reveals Him.

Children and Fathers (Parents) from Ephesians 6 - Part 1

The Apostle Paul continues his teaching on how life IN CHRIST is to be lived with a section in 6:1-4 for children and fathers.

Roman fathers had absolute control by law over their children. They could treat them as slaves, they could sell them, they could have them put to death. At a child's birth a father would decide whether he wanted the child to live or die. A child in Roman society NEVER "came of age" but was under his father's authority until the father died.

In the context of this sometimes tyrannical social structure Paul gives the command that children are to "...Obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right" 6:1.

Note first of all that Paul addresses children DIRECTLY. This tells us:

• There were children PRESENT in the congregation. Entire families worshipped together.
• Children were expected to LISTEN when the Word of God through the Apostle was read.
• Children were expected to UNDERSTAND what was being said. We can underestimate what children are capable of learning. There is no need to dumb down or kiddie-size the Word of God for children to benefit. Remember, the Spirit of God is at work in children, too. He can teach them. The Kingdom belongs to such as these!
• Children were treated as RESPONSIBLE for their hearing and obeying of the Word of God.

The basic command to children here is "OBEY." This means they were to LISTEN to their parents and DO WHAT THEY SAY. It is a SIMPLE command, but not simplistic.

Parents have a God-given authority. God channels His goodness into the lives of children through their parents. Apart from the whole consideration of HOW the parent actually parents, God has commanded children to respond in obedience to His authority through their parents. Children are not to obey ALL ADULTS as their authorities, but their OWN PARENTS.

When a child listens to his parents, he listens to God. When a child obeys his parents, he obeys God. And when a child obeys his parents, he is shaping WHO HE WILL BE as an adult. As a rule a child who learns to listen and obey his parents will have a good relationship with authorities in his life as an adult: bosses, police, government officials, church leaders, etc. But the child who does NOT learn to listen to and obey his parents will most often grow up butting heads with other authorities. Worse yet, the child who rejects his parents' authority will often reject the authority of God, at least IF and UNTIL God in mercy brings them to repentance and saving faith.

Listen to Proverbs:

"Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future" 19:20.

"Listen to your father who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old. Buy truth, and do not sell it; buy wisdom,, instruction, and understanding. The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him" 23:22-24.

Husbands and Wives from Ephesians 5 - Part 5

What does it mean for a husband to love his wife "as his own body" Ephesians 5:28?

• It means for the husband to NOURISH his wife, v.29. This word "nourish" is a word that has the idea of nurturing and bringing up gently. It means the husband will not be HARSH with his wife, either in his words or in his actions. It means he will treat her with the utmost care, seeing that she needs special attention and protection. It means he will seek to provide his wife what she needs in body, spirit, mind, and emotions. He will treat her as a young plant, needing food, water, sunlight and protection from adverse elements.
• It means for the husband to CHERISH his wife, v.29. This word has to do with treating warmly, affectionately...holding your wife as DEAR...to treat in a manner to encourage growth. Our wife is NOT a man nor is she another one of "the guys." She is a woman. Peter tells us in 1 Peter 3:7: "...Live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life..."
• It means to see your relationship with your wife as WE and not ME and YOU. In Christ, husband and wife as a UNIT, a UNITY, the TWO have become ONE flesh, v.31. We are to view ALL of life from the vantage point of US. It now becomes OUR decisions, OUR purchases, OUR children, OUR church, OUR money, OUR commitments. This means the husband will not make a decision for the family and then ramrod it through by announcing, with no input or discussion, what he has decided. Nor will he ask his wife's opinion as an empty courtesy when he has already made up his mind. He will KNOW that God has given to him a helper who has wisdom and insight that COMPLETES what is needed for decisions and guidance.

"He who loves his wife loves himself" v.28. When we are joined together as husband and wife we can NO LONGER live as a single or self-sufficient person. There is something that happens to me and her that makes the two of us a WE. What happens to her affects ME deeply. What happens to me affects HER deeply: body, soul, spirit. Therefore, when I love and cherish and protect and nourish my wife I am indeed loving myself. What benefits her benefits me. If she is joyful, encouraged, and hopeful...I will be.

Husbands and Wives from Ephesians 5 - Part 4

Husbands, we are to love our wives as Christ loved the church. That love was and continues to be SACRIFICIAL.

That love is also SANCTIFYING. The Apostle Paul writes, "...Christ...gave himself up for her (the church) that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish" Ephesians 5:25-27.

To SANCTIFY means to SET APART from one thing to another. Christ died that we, the church, would be separated from sin and the world to belong exclusively to HIM. Our love for our wives is to win the hearts of our wives so that they love us EXCLUSIVELY.

Christ sanctifies us to Himself more and more through HIS WORD. As husbands, we are to win the heart of our wives to ourselves through OUR WORDS and HIS WORDS.

Our words have a powerful impact on our marriage relationship. Words of anger and irritation and belittlement have a divisive, separating effect. Our wife will generally feel and act as close to (or as far away from) us as our words allow her to be.

On the other hand, words of encouragement and affirmation and hope and commitment DRAW our wife to us and create oneness and intimacy.

• "I love you...I will always love you."
• "You are becoming more beautiful with each passing day."
• "You are such an excellent manager of our home."
• "I love the way you connect with the children when they are discouraged."

But we are also to love our wives with HIS WORDS. We have responsibility for helping along and nurturing the SPIRITUAL GROWTH of our wife. We are to be before the Lord receiving fresh bread from heaven each morning so that we can pass it on to our wife. Of course, she has her own responsibility for her spiritual relationship with the Lord, but we are to SHEPHERD her towards HIM and HIS truth.

Does she need encouragement? The WORD of God has it.

Does she need correction? The WORD of God has it.

Does she need hope? The WORD of God has it.

Does she need to be taught some area of God's truth? The WORD of God has it.

But we must be in the WORD to fetch it for our wives. WE must be growing and learning from God through His Word first, and then we can be good shepherds of our wives.

Husbands and Wives from Ephesians 5 - Part 3

The basic command for husbands in Ephesians 5 is "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her..." 5:25.

This tells us that our love for our wives is to be SACRIFICIAL, like Christ's for us.

Giving "himself up for her" refers to Christ's crucifixion. His love was a TOTAL, HOLDING NOTHING BACK kind of love.

James M. Boice writes of a story from the Greek histories:

"...The wife of one of the generals of Cyrus, the ruler of Persia, was accused of treachery and was condemned to die. At first her husband did not know what was taking place. But as soon as he heard about it he rushed to the palace and burst into the throne room. He threw himself on the floor before the king and cried out, 'Oh, my Lord Cyrus, take my life instead of hers. Let me die in her place.'
"Cyrus, who by all historical accounts was a noble and extremely sensitive man, was touched by this offer. He said, 'Love like that must not be spoiled by death.' Then he gave the husband and wife back to each other and let the wife go free."
"As they walked away happily the husband said to his wife, 'Did you notice how kindly the king looked at us when he gave you the pardon?' The wife replied, 'I had no eyes for the king. I saw only the man who was willing to die in my place.'" Ephesians, p.200

This wonderful story illustrates how the SACRIFICIAL LOVE of Christ wins the heart of the church and how that same kind of love will win the hearts of our wives.

Jesus said, "Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friend" John 15:13.

Of course, men, we are not called on too often to go to a cross for our wives or to throw ourselves down before the king to offer ourselves in their condemned place. The SACRIFICIAL LOVE we are called on to make is a day by day, moment by moment, situation by situation love that DIES TO OUR OWN PLANS and COMFORT for the good of our wife.

While we steadfastly insist that we are willing to DIE for our wife, she may be wondering if we are willing to LIVE for her. Will we fold the laundry? Will we take up the slack after arriving home from work? Will we listen to her as she shares the details of her day? Will we share with her the details of OUR day? Are we willing to talk for another 15 minutes when our inner alarm says "BEDTIME!"?

How often in the past week have you asked yourself, "What will serve my wife at this moment?"

It is a HIGH and HOLY love that we are called to show our wives. It is a love which follows Jesus to the cross...daily.

But this kind of love will make it a JOY for our wives to SUBMIT to our leadership and will give her eyes ONLY FOR US.

Husbands and Wives from Ephesians 5 - Part 2

Christian marriage means that those who have convenanted together are IN CHRIST. God has chosen them to be in His Son and so to have all the spiritual blessings needed to know and please HIM and one's spouse in marriage.

Being in Christ, according to Paul's letter to the Ephesians, includes the following benefits that flow into the marriage relationship:

• We are made part of the ONE BODY OF CHRIST (Ephesians 2:12ff). We are no longer "lone ranger" sinners. We are members of the church and as members of the church we are to become OTHER-minded and OTHER-centered. Life in the church is to be a life where we learn to live with humility, gentleness, and patience...4:2...towards others. It is a life where we learn to use our gifts and talents for THE GOOD OF OTHERS...4:12-16. All of this other-centeredness is the perfect preparation for the deeper and more intimate relationship of marriage.
• We are indwelt by the HOLY SPIRIT (1:13,14; 3:16; 5:18). The Spirit fills us and we are to be filled with the Spirit, be under His control, so that we can KNOW CHRIST's LOVE, so that we can properly build up one another (5:19), and so that we can SUBMIT to one another in the way that fulfills Christ's will (5:21). We are IN CHRIST and the Holy Spirit is CHRIST IN US.

So, brothers and sisters who are in a Christian marriage, rejoice that you can submit to your own husband and love your own wife IN CHRIST as a part of the OTHER-CENTERED BODY OF CHRIST and INDWELT by the SPIRIT OF CHRIST. You DO NOT NEED more than God in Christ has already supplied for your marriage.

Husbands and Wives from Ephesians 5 - Part 1

The most detailed passage in the Bible on God's design for marriage is found in Ephesians 5:22-33. Three verses address the wife (22-24). Eight verses address the husband (25-32). One summary verse addresses both (33).

ALL of these verses are set in the context of Paul's letter to the Ephesians. This has great consequence. It means that all that is taught BEFORE this passage to husbands and wives has a direct bearing on how the passage is to be understood and how it can be obeyed.

And so, while wives are struggling with SUBMISSION and husbands are struggling with LOVE, they (we!) need to be reminded that the letter doesn't START there! It starts with GOD and CHRIST and what God has done for us IN CHRIST. Of course, Paul reminds us of this throughout this passage as he teaches, "Wives, submit to your own husbands, AS TO THE LORD" (v.22) and, "Husbands, love your wives, AS CHRIST LOVED THE CHURCH" (v.25).

Before we look at any details or talk about practical HOW TOs in regard to submission or love, we need to go back and be reminded WHY it is possible for us to obey these commands. Today we'll briefly consider the fact that we are IN CHRIST.

Ephesians 5 talks about marriage IN CHRIST. It looks at God's will for wives and husbands in CHRISTIAN marriage. The difference between a secular marriage and a Christian marriage is not just that in a Christian marriage Christians are married. In a Christian marriage the husband and wife are IN CHRIST. They have been blessed with every spritiual blessing in the heavenly places IN CHRIST (1:3). When they were dead in trespasses and sins they were made alive by God's mercy and grace IN CHRIST (2:1-5). They are God's creations, created IN CHRIST JESUS for good works (2:10). They have been made members of the same ONE family of God, the body of Christ, the church through the CROSS OF CHRIST (2:11-22). They are God's children, they have God's inheritance, God's hope, God's power, God's Spirit, and know God's love IN CHRIST. And all of this makes them NEW CREATIONS IN CHRIST. Christian husbands and wives DO NOT face marriage day by day and the commands to love and submit with the limited resources of an ordinary sinner. All they will ever need to submit and love has been supplied to them IN CHRIST. They are joined to Christ, they are part of Christ, and therefore all that Christ is and has and has done is made available to them for marriage.

Before you think about WHAT you are to do, remember and believe WHOSE YOU ARE, WHO YOU ARE, and WHAT YOU HAVE...IN CHRIST.

Loving Jesus by Being WITH Jesus

Luke records for us a little "in house" encounter of Jesus in 10:38-42. Jesus was a couple of miles from Jerusalem and visited the home of Martha and Mary (and Lazarus). BOTH of these women loved Jesus and Jesus loved them. The immediate context before this home visit was Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan, shared with an expert in the law who wanted to "save face" before others by asking Jesus "who then is my neighbor?" Jesus then told this true to life story, making the point that loving our neighbor means to help and serve those with needs around us.

But what does it mean to love GOD with all of our heart? What does it mean to love Jesus? Perhaps Luke includes this story or Martha and Mary to illustrate the first part of the Great Commandment.

Realize that when Jesus showed up at Martha's home, He had at least the 12 inner circle disciples in tow. This means there are at least 26 extra feet to wash and 13 extra plates to set. Martha, being a good and conscientious Jewish hostess, has some WORK to do! She apparently gladly welcomes Jesus into her home...and then gets to it. She knew what a privilege it was to have Jesus present as guest and knew what she wanted to do to show Him how much she valued His presence.

Mary, Martha's sister, shows her love for Jesus in a different way. Breaking the mold for Jewish women with a Rabbi present, she CHOOSES to sit at Jesus' feet and listen to Him, just like one of the 12, just like she is His disciple herself. Jesus breaks the Rabbi and religious leader mold by WELCOMING HER and treating her like she IS a disciple, though she is a woman.

Martha is not happy with this scenario. She is busting her gut to serve Jesus and His disciples and Mary is sitting there enjoying the Lord LIKE THERE IS NOTHING TO DO IN THE KITCHEN! So, like the take charge gal she is, Martha comes to Jesus...but NOT to listen and NOT to sit at His feet. "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me" v.40.

Whoa! "...Do you not care...?"! It is easy to think the Lord doesn't care when you are busting YOUR guts to do good and others are just "enjoying the Lord." "Why is Mary just sitting there like there is nothing to do?!" But...WASN'T Mary doing something?

What Martha was doing WAS important. And it wasn't WHAT she was doing that Jesus highlights in His response... "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary." 41,42. Martha sought to show her love by the EXTENT to which she was making preparations. She wanted to put out the BEST spread possible. No simple one or two course meal at Martha's! She wanted Jesus to KNOW how much she valued His presence in her home. Now...WHY can't Mary see this and seek to show the same kind of love?

Because, as Jesus says, "Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her" v.42. Mary chose to BE WITH JESUS and to LISTEN TO JESUS. Her heart was to be with Him, to be near Him. Her food was to take in the bread of life from the Bread of Life. In the immediate determination of values that Mary made, perhaps without conscious deliberation, as Jesus entered their home, she CHOSE to get as close and stay as close as she could to the Master.

This is not really a tale of the worker versus the contemplative. It is rather a tale of HOW JESUS WANTS TO BE LOVED by us. He wants us to work. He saved us to do good works - Ephesians 2:10. But the works are not to replace or crowd out our BEING WITH HIM and LISTENING TO HIM as a loving disciple. Work CAN be a poor replacement for relationship. Work CAN be a poor replacement for PRESENCE. Work CAN say, "I love you, but I'm afraid to be close to You."

How do YOU love Jesus? There is no magic formula for how much time we are to spend with Jesus or how that time is to be spent. But there are several musts:

• We MUST spend time with Jesus listening to Him through His WORD. That is the ONLY place where His voice comes through loud and clear without error every time.
• We MUST spend time with Jesus talking to Him in prayer. He listens. He wants two-way relationship.
• We MUST spend time with Jesus in CHURCH. That is where we sit at His feet together with other loving, listening disciples. This is where it is confirmed that it is really Jesus we are spending time with and not a Jesus of my own making who is saying things that are not in line with reality.
• Our WORK for Jesus, and there MUST be work in the life of a loving disciple, will be a work of fruitful love when it follows and is empowered by being with Jesus in the Word and Prayer FIRST of all. Work FOR Jesus pleases Him when it flows out of BEING WITH Jesus.

What a privilege to have Jesus Christ, Lord and Maker of the universe, seeking fellowship with the likes of us daily. Let us find, let us MAKE, let us like Mary CHOOSE to sit at His feet and listen as He speaks just as powerfully and personally today through His inerrant Word.

Lessons from Vacation

A few things I learned while on vacation:

• I am NOT in Heaven yet! When you travel nearly 5,000 miles and sleep in 10-12 different places you tend to feel like a displaced alien. I am. Though I THOROUGHLY ENJOYED our VACATION, I really looked forward to getting home, where my office is and my garage is and my sock drawer is and my church family is. This longing for permanence, I realized, was a faint whisper of my soul's longing to be with Jesus in Heaven forever. God has destined us for a PLACE and a PURPOSE and a PERSON that is PERMANENT. Bring it on!
• I am a WRETCH with DIVINE RESOURCES. I left for vacation with the prayer that God would use me to serve and bless those I was with: family, friends, and sovereign encounters. I am not sure I was out of the driveway at home before I was struggling with the selfish flesh. I got perturbed with my wife, my girls, the truck drivers on I-80 (and I-90, I-94, I-39, I-70...), the too-steep hills of western PA, the too-long dipper for ice-cream at Penn Alps restaraunt, and the fact that my family didn't share my love for a loud fan at night. And that's only the "I'm not as bad a you think" list! But a glorious reality burst into my consciouness over and over during those days: "I am NOT who I used to be. I am in Christ Jesus. He is my Lord and Savior and Strength and Provider who lives in me by His Spirit. I can say "No!" to my selfish, irritated, critical spirit and "Yes!" to Christ and the Spirit and love." Wow! It IS true: "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation" 2 Corinthians 5:17.
• My FATHER in Heaven is LAVISH. I know from the Scriptures that He has lavished grace on us through Christ, Ephesians 1:7-8, and that is AWESOME. But as we travelled from MN to PA to NJ to MD to DC to VA to NC and from mountains to ocean and from stormy to cloudless days, I saw my Father's lavishness over and over and over. Waterfalls. Raging rivers. Berry bushes heavy with fruit. Deer frolicking at dusk. A full moon rising over the mountains. Corn with tassels over my head. Valleys lush and green with crops and trees and grasses. Peacocks guarding the barn door of a remote farm. God could have made this world gray and fruitless and blossomless. But He has made it FULL of color and smells and shapes and sounds and panoramas that fill the mind and heart with wonder...at HIM. What a lavishness...for YOU and ME to enjoy...and to turn to WORSHIP.
• My times are in HIS HANDS. My oldest daughter and I were having a great time bobbing the waves at Va Beach. We had been in the water for about an hour. Suddenly, a wave passed by and we were TWICE as FAR from the beach as we had been a moment earlier! We were caught in a rip tide...my first. I was soon in water too deep to touch the bottom and keep my nose above the surface. We could both swim, but we are both "dead weight" type swimmers and we tire quickly. There was a quick realization that we were in trouble and we struggled to swim towards shore. We only seemed to be moving backwards. We talked to each other. I tried to keep Briana from panicking. What do you do in times like this? "Lord, help!" That was about it. He DID help. After a few moments a couple of waves came in that pushed us JUST far enough for me to touch bottom and have the footing to push my daughter forward until we both were safe. Exhausted we trudged onto the beach, THANKED GOD, and enjoyed the sand for awhile.

These are FOUR lessons I learned or re-learned or futher-learned during this vacation. All of life is God's glorious classroom. And, man, does He teach!