My wife’s grandmother has long been a model for me. Actually, this lady had many qualities to admire, but there is one in particular that was a stand-out: the woman never complained. She liked everything.

Take her to any restaurant, serve her anything, and she’d like it. Take her to a play, a concert or a church service and she'd like it all. But more than just liking it, she really enjoyed it, whatever it was. She liked anything and everything. She was happy with whatever she had or experienced. It was amazing.

I remember taking her to the Praisefest sponsored by area churches held here annually in our community to benefit the local Food Pantry. There has always been a great deal of variety: loud songs and quiet songs; rock and southern gospel; pianos, drums and everything in between. She liked it all. I loved watching her smile and genuinely enjoy every person and every song.

Ever since I realized this about her, I’ve watched to see how she responds to things. I still to this day don’t know what she ever disliked. (I’m sure there had to be something but I could never figure out what it was.) Every chance I got, about anything and everything I’d ask, “How was it, Grandma?,” not because I didn’t know the answer, but because I loved hearing it. “Good,” she’d say every time with genuine smile. “I really liked it.”

There are plenty of complainers in the world, but not enough of us are like her. She seemed to me to be a happier person because she liked everything. I don’t know if she had to work at it, but it seemed to come naturally to her. I want to be like that. I want to be the sort of person that likes everything and everybody. The world doesn’t need any more grumps. (I hope I'm like her when I'm an old man. I want to be the happy old man everyone likes to be around, not the grumpy kind. And you all know exactly what I'm talking about.)

I think the key in finding good in everything is being content with whatever you are given. “But godliness with contentment is great gain” (I Timothy 6:6).

“Be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’” (Hebrews 13:5) When we trust God we are better able to appreciate everything as a gift from him.

The dear lady I'm talking about went home to be with Jesus yesterday. I will miss her a lot.

The Bible says, “Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe” (Philippians 2:14-15).

Evelyn shone brightly. May we all follow her example.

I've been waiting to take another run at my series on Christian Defeatism . In particular, I've been meditating and taking notes on the, in my view, neglected concept of Sanctification. Couple that with my teaching assignment tomorrow on Exodus 15 and the five-inch thick Exodus commentary that Stroke loaned me, and out popped this post.

In Exodus, Saved for God's Glory, Philip Graham Ryken calls sanctification "the long, hard, difficult process of being conformed to the holiness of God”. Below is an excerpt from his commentary on the end of Exodus 15:

“The Wilderness is a hard place. It is a place to meet with God, to be sure, and yet it is always a difficult place. It is barren and desolate. Thus the Israelites were setting out on a long and arduous journey. They had seen a great salvation, but for them it would not be “happily ever after.” They still had a pilgrimage to make, a pilgrimage that was both spiritual and physical.”

. . .

All our problems and persecutions are meant to teach us to depend on God alone, to have absolute confidence in his faithfulness. It is important for us to know where we are in the Christian life. We have not yet reached the promised land. We are still in the wilderness, where God is sanctifying us. Knowing this keeps us from having the wrong expectations and also enables us to "consider it pure joy . . . whenever [we] face trials of many kinds, because [we] know that the testing of [our] faith develops perseverance" (Jas. 1:2,3).

Emphasis mine.

This is a good reminder, and it speaks to two equal and opposite errors that we can commit as Christians.

The first error is to assume that sanctification isn't real or, if it is, that it is a rare occurrence for the Christian. This is the equivalent of staying in Egypt, chowing down on those delicious leaks and onions while bemoaning your slave status. I've observed this attitude (particularly in the blogosphere, for some reason) an alarming number of times. It's generally expressed in "I'm not OK, and don't even get me started on you" statements, and the subtext is that we'll never be OK ("at least not in this life" is the adder), so let's all quit pretending.

Look, sanctification is not easy. In fact, it's hard. But you can't read the Bible, and the New Testament in particular, without getting hit in the face by the repeated exhortations to press on, to be transformed, to conform to Jesus, to change. The lives of the writers of the NT were hard - but better! How else could Paul write this?

Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ - Philippians 3:8

I'm not worthy to clean Paul's toilet, but I am, in my bumbling way, heading to the same destiny that Paul was.

About the hard aspects of sanctification: I came to the realization a long time ago that the Christian "desert experience", "season of dryness", or even "dark night of the soul" is not necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes God wants us there.

The desert may last a long time. Indeed, the life of a Christian is - the joys and victories we may experience included - a long season of wandering as a stranger and alien in a land that is not our home. Perhaps in your life you haven't seen a lot of evidence of any kind of progress toward Christ-likeness. That, of course, can point to a deeper problem, but it may also just be that the time hasn't come yet for the kind of outward progress that people (or even you) might notice. A plant can spend a lot of time spreading roots under the soil. It's not wasted time. Israel wandered in circles as the older generation died off, but that wandering prepared the younger generation for the Conquest. And in reading the Exodus, you begin to see the progression toward a nation that had the ability to take the Promised Land.

One side-effect of sanctification is perseverance. Don't give up! Your destiny is to become like Jesus. And not just in the sweet by-and-by, but as part of a process, the process of learning to bear fruit, in your life here on earth that is visible and consciously observed and enjoyed. We were made to step into the Jordan at full tide and cross safely over to the other side. It takes a lot of work by the Holy Spirit to get us to the point where taking that step of faith seems the natural thing to do.

So, if you feel like you're in Egypt, that's not a good thing, but it's not a bad thing either, unless you've just decided that that's your (and everyone else's) destiny. It's not.

The second error is to assume that sanctification has already happened, at the moment of salvation. This is what I term the Edlredgian Heresy (tongue in cheek, sort of) that "your heart is already good", just because you're saved.

Heh - good thing he never slapped a heart monitor on my ticker. Some of the things I think and meditate on would make your face melt. I'm not there yet.

But I'm heading there. I press on. The Promised Land is my destination. And, if you're a Christian, it's yours too.

We don't get to go there without changing.

(more coming on this topic in a later post).

In my previous post, (right below this one, just look down) I told you what happened to the mutineers of the H.M.S. Bounty. They took some women from Tahiti and settled on an island in the South Pacific. After all but two of the men had been murdered or killed, only one man remained. He found a Bible, turned his life over to Christ and led the women and children on Pitcairn Island to become a Christian community.

It was originally written as a column for my local paper, and I posted it here at Thinklings at about the same time I submitted it to my editor.

I told my wife the story and she thought it was so cool, that on Thursday morning at Ladies Bible Study at our church, she came to my office and asked me to come tell the ladies the story. They thought it was cool too, as it illustrated what they were studying about reforming Kings who turned their people back to God's law.

I, of course emphasized that the fact that the current residents of Pitcairn Island are still Christians is a testimony to the power of God's word.

Enter Thinklings commenter Jonathan W. In only the second comment by a reader,in which he told me that most of the island's grown men (including the mayor) had been charged with sexual crimes against children going back decades.

You can go see the drama unfold as the truth does under the original post's comment thread. (Of all the articles linked there, this is probably the best one.)

Imagine my shock and dismay to learn something like that after I had written triumphantly about it here, in my local paper and shared it excitedly with a bunch of ladies in a Bible study.

I told everyone that all of the Island’s current inhabitants are Christians. Turns out they weren’t acting like it. The girls on the island were “coming of age” sexually speaking at ages 12-14, at least that’s what the residents of Pitcairn claim. Their argument in court was that because of their inherited Tahitian culture, that it was culturally acceptable. Some of the women who had been victimized for years said differently. (And for those of you who might remind me that Mary was around 14, on Pitcairn Island they weren't necessarily getting married young, grown men were having sex with girls as soon as they hit puberty, and probably some before that.)

What are we to learn from this? Does this horrible new information mean that the point of the previous post is invalid? After all, I was trying to demonstrate how God’s word changes lives, and I pointed to the fact that the island’s current residents are still Christians as evidence of that. Does their rampant immorality disprove that premise?

I don’t think so. Instead, it teaches us another lesson: just because one generation embraces the Gospel, doesn’t mean the next one will. It also shows us that religion can be empty and meaningless if it is missing the most essential ingredient.

The most essential ingredient is knowing and trusting Jesus personally. The Gospel doesn't change your life just because you hear it on Sunday. Your children may continue your religious traditions, but that doesn’t mean that they have what matters. In fact, if religion is all they have, they have nothing.

This important truth is why Moses stood on the banks of the Jordan telling the new generation what God had done in their parents’ generation. (That’s the entire book of Deuteronomy.) He also asked them to renew the covenant with God that their parent’s had made. He knew that if the new generation didn’t deliberately choose to follow God, they wouldn’t.

Again and again we see this pattern repeated in the Bible. For example, the entire book of Judges is about how one generation turns back to God after suffering for their sin, and crying out to him, and then each succeeding generation forgets about God again and “does what is right in their own eyes.” Many generations later, King Josiah rediscovers the book of the Law of God which had been forgotten in a back room of the Temple. (Ironically, that book was probably Deuteronomy, the very book whose whole purpose was to remind the next generation to remember God and to choose him for themselves.) This discovery causes him to lead his people in repenting of their sins and dedicating themselves to the LORD.

There’s a reason that Moses (yes, in the book of Deuteronomy!) says that, you are to teach your children to Love YHWH with mind, passion and action (6:4-7).

4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

And at some point they must make the decision for themselves. Each generation has a choice: whether or not they are going to follow in the footsteps of those who have gone before, for good or evil.

Of course, that lesson here isn't quite so shocking. It's as old as the very first "second generation" --- Cain and Abel.

On April 28th, 1789, the HMS Bounty was taken over by mutiny. Fletcher Christian led 17 other mutineers to set Captain Bligh and his supporters afloat in a small boat. The mutineers tried to settle in Tahiti. After some violent encounters with the Tahitians, the mutineers, some Tahitian men and some woman they had taken from Tahiti left on the Bounty. They eventually arrived at the uninhabited island of Pitcairn.

They burned the Bounty in what is now called “Bounty Bay” in order to hide the evidence of their crime and to prevent the women from fleeing.

There was plenty of water and food on the island and at first things were going well. However, many of the women felt like they were treated like slaves and revolted. The Tahitian men killed many of the mutineers in a revolt, including Fletcher Christian. The widows of the mutineers murdered the Tahitian men in revenge. The remaining mutineers could not get along with each other either, and so eventually due to fights, drunkenness and murder, only two men survived. One of them, Ned Young, died of Asthma in 1800, the first to die of natural causes.

This left one mutineer, and the last surviving man, John Adams, in charge of nine Tahitian women and dozens of children. Adams was a murderer and a mutineer. But he was also a man looking for hope. One day he found the H.M.S. Bounty’s Bible at the bottom of an old chest. He began to read it and his life changed. He dedicated his life to Christ and began to lead worship services on the Island. He taught the women and children of the island from the Bible.

Eventually they all became Christians.

Today the population of Pitcairn island numbers a little over 50. They are the descendants of the Bounty’s mutineers and still bear those surnames. And every person on the island is a Christian.

Though he didn’t live to see it, the way that Fletcher Christian’s people became actual Christians was through the power of God’s word.
The Bible has the power to change your life and the lives of those around you as well. “

God means what he says. What he says goes. His powerful Word is sharp as a surgeon's scalpel, cutting through everything, whether doubt or defense, laying us open to listen and obey. Nothing and no one is impervious to God's Word. We can't get away from it—no matter what” (Hebrews 4:12-13, The Message.)

The next time you pick up a Bible, don’t just go through it, let it go through you. It might change your life.

Sources under comments...

You will get different answers depending on who you talk to. An outsider to both religions will say, “Yes.” The reason they say that is because Christians and Jews and Muslims all believe that they are worshiping the God who spoke to Abraham. So historically, all three religions point back to the same God as the god they worship. Plus Muslims and Christians both call him "God". (“Allah” means “the God” in Arabic.)

Muslims say that they worship the same God that Christians do. It’s just that Christians are committing blasphemy when they associate any other being with God. So when Christians call the Holy Spirit or Jesus, “God”, it is seen as blasphemy. Muslims say that Jesus was a prophet who came to call the Jews back to faithfulness to Allah and that Christians who worship Jesus as God are wrong to do so.

However, most Christians deny that they worship the same God as Muslims. Jesus said, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). Christians believe that we can point to Jesus and say, “There’s God” and Muslims obviously disagree. Christians believe that God is triune, one God in three persons. (Muslims see this as polytheism.) Because Muslims reject the triune God, Christians will say that Muslims are not worshiping the God of the Bible. Another reason many Christians will say that "Allah" and "YHWH" are not the same God is because the attributes of the God who reveals himself in the Bible and the attributes of the God who reveals himself in the Koran are not the same.

Here’s an analogy: Let’s say you are talking to someone and find out that you both know the same person. Let’s call him, “Bob.” So you talk about that same person for a while, exchanging stories about Bob. Then someone walks in that you don’t recognize. And you say to your friend, “Who’s that?” and your friend says, “Oh, that’s Bob.” And you say, “That’s not the Bob I was talking about. I was talking about a different Bob.”

The God who speaks in the New Testament says very different things about himself than the God who speaks in the Koran. “While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!’" (Matthew 17:5). The Muslim would read that and say, “No, that’s not God talking because Allah has no son.”

The Koran says,

“And they say, ‘Be Jews’ - or, ‘Christians’ – ‘and you shall be on the right path.’ Say: ‘Nay, but [ours is] the creed of Abraham, who turned away from all that is false, and was not of those who ascribe divinity to aught beside God’” (2:135).

Perhaps a better way phrase the question is “Do Christians and Muslims believe the same things about God?” And in that case, everyone can agree that the answer is clearly, “No.”

The following excerpt comes from the great Helmut Thielicke's sermon "The Parable of the Prodigal Son." Here he is talking about when the son comes to himself in the pigsty.

Now for the first time he begins to realize what it means not to be with the father, no more to be a son. so this is the end of his freedom, his autonomy, and whatever other glittering terms one may use.

The fact is, of course, that we are always subject to one master. Either to God, and then we are in the Father's house, possessing the freedom of the children of God, sons and not servants, with constant access tot he Father. Or we are subject to our urges and therefore to ourselves, subject to our dependence on men, subject to our fears - with which our hearts are always well supplied - our worries, our Mammon.

There is no such thing as neutrality between these two masters. And we begin to surmise what Luther was saying when he spoke of our human life as a battlefield between these two masters. We are not masters at all, as the prodigal son wanted to be; we are only "battlefields" between the real masters. In other words, the question we face is whether we want to be the child of the one or the slave of the other.

"I wanted to be free," says the prodigal son to himself - perhaps he cries it aloud, "I wanted to become myself; and I thought I would get all this by cutting myself off from my father and my roots, fool that I am! I have found nothing but chains!" And bitter laughter goes up from the pigsty.

That he should have wanted to separate himself from his father now seems just as ridiculous as that a person should fret over being dependent on air and then hold his breath in order to assert his freedom. We cannot with impunity - actually, without being utterly foolish - separate ourselves from the element in which we live and have our being. We can't take God off as we would take off a shirt. To separate ourselves from the Father is at bottom not merely "unbelief" at all, but simply the most monstrous kind of silliness.

Brilliant.

Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

- 2 Corinthians 4:1-7

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts . . .

Only God can pierce the darkness with light, where light was not before. Only God can bring the bright, shining light of the knowledge of His glory to shine out of the cold darkness that beforehand filled this clay jar. What was once good for nothing but to sit in the corner, collecting dust, has become a vessel to display the beauty, the light, the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Thanks be to God!

May I be a light-filled clay jar today.

Have a good Sunday, everyone!

“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work" (Thomas Alva Edison).

Work is a basic rule of life. But that doesn’t make it bad. In fact, work is a gift, and not just because of the money it brings. Work is an opportunity to use the gifts God gave you for a purpose!

God intended for us to work from the beginning and it wasn’t supposed to be punishment! “The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it” (Genesis2:15). When you experience those moments of joy and satisfaction of your work, it is a reminder that God intended for it to be that way. But after Adam sinned, he was told that his work was cursed.(Genesis 3:17-19).

But just like he redeems everything else from the curse of sin, God can also redeem our work.

Our work can be redeemed from the sin of selfishness. “Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Colossians 3:17). Doing our jobs in Jesus’ name means that we represent him not only in what we do, but in how we conduct ourselves.

We work not simply to support our families or to buy nice things, but also so that we might be able to do the Lord’s work by giving away some of what we earn. “He…must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need” (Ephesians 4:28). Look around for those in need. God may have you given you that job so that you might be generous to others.

Our work can also be redeemed from the sin of laziness. “If a man will not work, he shall not eat” (II Thessalonians 3:10). “He who works his land will have abundant food, but he who chases fantasies lacks judgment” (Proverbs 12:11). “All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty” (Proverbs 14:23). “Do not love sleep or you will grow poor; stay awake and you will have food to spare” (Proverbs 20:13).

Somebody said, “There are two kinds of people: those who work and those who take the credit. It's better to belong to the first group because there is less competition.” :-)

Work can be redeemed from the sin of envy. “The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of a rich man permits him no sleep” (Ecclesiastes 5:12). Everyone wants what the rich man has. Being rich is a blessing and a curse in and of itself. Work itself is a reward that can't be taken from you or taxed by the Gov't.

Work can be redeemed from the sin of ingratitude. We are to do the best job we can even if we work for a jerk because our ultimate boss is God, not man. “Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people” (Ephesians 6:7).

Work can be a testimony about who God is. “Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody” (I Thessalonians 4:11-12). Work is not just honorable, it is a way that God has given you to show that your whole life has been redeemed.

Working on my sermon for Sunday on Luke 12:49-13:9. Found this jewel by Darrell Bock in the NIV Application Commentary:

Much of 12:49-59 raises the issue of judgment and accountability before God. Yet all too often we try to package Jesus for our culture today as if sin were a minor topic on his agenda. This is not only the work of skeptical scholars like those noted above, it is also found in the way we preach Jesus in evangelism. For all the value of seeker-sensitive approaches, if as a result of trying to market Jesus churches soften the message at this point, then they distort the gospel and do not preach the Jesus who offers renewal of life.

To remove accountability to God for sin is to remove one of the realities that make grace so powerful. In the effort to make the gospel palatable, we risk emasculating it of its most precious truth, that God has paid the debt for our failure and has washed it white as snow. Ironically in trying to exalt God's love by ignoring sin, we remove the most powerful evidence of its presence.

So there you are leading a Bible study and someone asks, "Hey, why did you skip verse 4?" Now hopefully, you already knew that the King James had verse 4, but your modern version doesn't have it, because you studied ahead of time.

But just the same, how would you answer the question in a way that causes your church members to have more (not less) trust in their Bibles?

Greek scholar and Bible translator Bill Mounce gives a a simple outline on the subject. He explains the process of textual criticism and why some versions have verses that others do not. It's excellent. And he closes with this :"You can trust your Bible!"

That post caused Peter Mead at the excellent blog "Biblical Preaching" to write this post entitled Help People Trust Their Bibles.

These kinds of questions may intrigue us, but usually shouldn’t find their way into the pulpit! However, if people in the pew are looking at their Bible and asking a textual critical question, then we need to offer help. Just a few brief thoughts in light of Bill’s good post:

1. Textual criticism can be explained relatively simply. People probably don’t need to know about every textual family, how to pronounce homeoteleuton, or the full rationale behind lectio difficilor potior.

2. Textual criticism can be explained with grace. This area of study can really stir up the tension, especially between adherents to different textual families. Such tensions won’t help if shown from the pulpit. Be gracious to people who disagree with you on Majority Text vs Critical Text issues. Often you’d be fighting an unseen opponent anyway since people in the same church often tend to use the same version of the Bible (and most of these without any real understanding of text critical issues underlying the options)!

3. Textual criticism should be explained at the right time. Just because you’re enjoying a textual critical excursion in your personal study, or even in your sermon preparation, doesn’t mean the people are needing a dose of it. But when a verse is missing and they are wondering, or when you’re going through Mark or John and you get to the square bracket sections, then is probably a good time to offer some explanation.

4. Textual critical explanations should build trust in our English Bibles. This has to be paramount. What have you gained if you’ve showed off your knowledge, perhaps won a debate against an opponent not present, but undermined the confidence of every listener in their English Bible?

I commented and asked Peter what in light of his advice what his answer to a church member would look like. I have had to do this many times as a pastor, but I asked because I was looking to improve. I took very seriously his charge to help people trust their Bibles.

Here's his follow-up post. Go read it. He did a great job responding to my request!

The first thing I do when someone asks why their Bible (or mine) doesn't have a verse, is point out that it hasn't been removed completely. I tell them to look at the bottom of the page for a footnote. It's usually there. That seems to reassure people a little. At least it's not totally gone. Then the next thing I do is explain that it may not be that the verse was "removed" but actually added later, which is why it is not contained in the body of the modern versions. (But still in the footnote.) I will say quickly that the modern translation is actually based on older manuscripts than the King James. (It's not good to keep people in suspense when answering questions like these!) Then I go through an explanation along the lines of what Mounce wrote. (But his is way better than mine.)

I'm happy to take time to detour from my planned message and answer this question when someone asks it because I think that building trust in the Bible is critically important, and I'd hate for someone to walk away from a message or Bible Study of mine with more doubt than when they came in!

What do you think?

Below I have an included Mounce's excellent explanation. I highly recommend it.

Read the rest of this entry . . .

She stood there speechless. She knew she was guilty of living a sinful lifestyle. No one needed to tell her. She heard the whispers and could feel the stares as she walked through town. She carried the guilt with her every night when she lay down and every morning when she got up. Then the teacher had come. He said that she could be forgiven. He said that he had been sent by God to seek and save sinners. For the first time she didn’t feel like an outcast. God could and would forgive her. This was the best news she had ever heard.

It was the first time a man had ever been kind to her without expecting anything in return. In fact, he said that God expected nothing in return. She had nothing good to offer God, yet he was offering her the one thing she thought she would never have, righteousness.

So when she heard that Simon the Pharisee was having the teacher over for a meal, she had to go. What could she bring? Finally her eyes came to rest on the most valuable thing she had: an alabaster jar full of perfume. It was tainted because of what she had given up in exchange for it. But it was what she had and she was so glad that she didn’t have to feel guilty anymore. God loved her. That had been the message of the teacher and she trusted him. And she was so grateful. She wasn't God's enemy anymore, and a strange feeling arose in her: Love for God, instead of fear.

So there she was standing at his feet. She couldn’t even bring herself to say, “Thank you, Master” and present the gift. She just stood there weeping. Finally all those years of guilt gone. She was sorry for her sin, but that wasn’t new. What was new was the freedom she felt in forgiveness. Her tears fell from her cheeks. Then she realized that her tears were so many that they had been falling on his feet. She fell to her knees, overwhelmed with gratitude.

She had nothing with which to wipe his feet. She barely heard the gasps of shock when she untied her hair. Then she lovingly dried his feet with her hair. She kissed his feet and anointed them with the perfume. What else could she do? There were no words that could properly express her joy and her gratitude.

As Jesus told a story to Simon about two men who were forgiven debts, one great and one small, it occurred to her that they were talking about her. She had indeed owed a great debt.

Then Jesus spoke to her, “"Your sins are forgiven" and then, “"Your faith has saved you; go in peace" (Luke 7:36-50). And finally, for the first time ever, she had peace and that night as she lay down to sleep she felt guilt no more. She could finally rest in peace. But not in death. In new life.

And so can you.

An expensive gift did not earn her right standing with God. Her faith did. She showed love because she had already experienced God’s love. Doing good does not make you right with God. Accepting his forgiveness does. God loved you first. Jesus came to bring good news: that “whoever believes in him is not condemned” (John 3:18a). Love God because he already loves you. “If anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One” (I John 2:1).

So why do we do good? Not because we have to, but because we can. When you serve an employer, it's for pay. And you do what is expected, no more. But when you serve a loved one, you do it not for what you get or will get. You do it for love.

We love him because he first loved us.

Do not do good out of guilt or fear or desire to earn something from God.

Do it not to earn God's love, but because you already have his love, given through the son.

Let gratitude be your motivation for all you do. Yes, for EVERYTHING!

“There is no such thing as a non-working mother” (Hester Mundis).

That Moms are special is self-evident. Every person with a mother knows this. Many of you are mothers, or are married to a mother, or are friends with one. Thank God for mothers and motherhood.

Mothers make society better. Mothers make families better. Mothers make individuals better. In human society is there any force more powerful than a mother’s love?

For most of us, if the rest of the world abandoned us, one of the people who would still be there would be Mom. How great it is for a child to know that whatever he does, his mother is still going to love him. Someone once said, “A mother holds her children’s hands for a while but their hearts forever.”

There's a reason for the cliche "a face only a mother could love." A mother's love is simultaneously legendary and assumed. Pardon the reference, but was anyone surprised that the last woman on earth who would still stand by Tiger Woods was his mom?!?!?! (I'm pretty sure Lex Luthor's mom still loves him too.)And as a much more positive example, is it surprising to any reader of any culture to see that the very, very small group that still remained at the foot of the cross included Jesus' mother?

I know that the Bible reveals God as Father, so don't accuse me of saying otherwise. But can you see a mother's love as a reflection of God the Father's love for us? ("He created man in his own image, male and female he created them.")

The Bible says that "Every good and perfect gift comes from above." Everything good we have is a sign pointing us back to our creator. For example, marriage is given to us as a picture of Christ's love for the church. I believe that mothers are given to us as perhaps the best earthly picture of unconditional love, the kind of love that God has. (Only his is much more so.) But could we even imagine unconditional love if God hadn't given mothers the gift to love as they do?

The Bible acknowledges the great worth of mothers. I have adapted the classic passage about a Godly woman in tribute to modern mothers. As you read it, thank God for the mothers in your life.

“A good woman is hard to find, and worth far more than diamonds. Her husband trusts her without reserve, and never has reason to regret it. Never spiteful, she treats him generously all her life long. She shops around for the best deals and clips coupons. She's like a trading ship that sails to faraway places like Sam’s and Wal-Mart and brings back exotic surprises. She's up before dawn, preparing breakfast for her family and organizing her day. She looks for the best deal on the internet, then, with money she's put aside, she buys things for her family.

First thing in the morning, she dresses for work, rolls up her sleeves, eager to get started. She senses the worth of her work, is in no hurry to call it quits for the day. She's skilled in the craft of home and business management.

She's quick to assist anyone in need, reaches out to help the poor.

Her husband is proud to call her his wife.

She always faces tomorrow with a smile. When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say, and she always says it kindly. She keeps an eye on everyone in her household, and keeps them all busy and productive.

Her children respect and bless her; her husband joins in with words of praise: ‘Many women have done wonderful things, but you've outclassed them all!’ Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades. The woman to be admired and praised is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-God. Give her everything she deserves! Festoon her life with praises!” (Proverbs 31:10-31 -Adapted from “The Message” by Eugene Peterson).

“No man is poor who has had a godly Mother.” – Abraham Lincoln

God through Malachi comes to the end of a series of rebukes of the priests of Israel (for offering polluted and blemished sacrifices) and says this:

Cursed be the cheat who has a male in his flock, and vows it, and yet sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished. For I am a great King, says the LORD of hosts, and my name will be feared among the nations.
-- Malachi 1:14

This is a curse you and I bear. We are -- every one of us -- cheats. Hucksters. Phonies. Charlatans. Hypocrites. We go through the religious motions, we muddle through. We soak in lukewarmness. We vow our best to God and then give him half our heart (or less). And truth be told, there is not a single one of us whose best would not be blemished anyhow, total depravity being what it is.

So there we have it. We sinful, scheming cheats are under a curse. And God, as R.C. Sproul says, "will not negotiate his holiness."

But he will have his glory one way or another. That is not up for debate. His name "will be feared among the nations." He has predetermined this, and our sin, though great and total, is not some kind of kryptonite for God's plans for his own fame. His glory will cover the earth like the waters cover the seas. That's a promise.

So what to do? Nothing we can do. Just be cursed cheats, I s'pose. Something must give, though. God won't negotiate the price but he will have his own glory. Could it be -- oh my goodness, dare we think it? -- that he'd paid the price himself?

And here we see in the harsh tones of Malachi the whispers of the Messiah. Between the lines of the heavy words of rebuke ride the heavy beams of the cross. These old covenant shadows are cast by the emergence of the new.

God vows a male from his own flock, but an unblemished one. The spotless lamb of God bears the curse for us. (As the Scriptures say, cursed is anyone who hangs on a tree. And while he hangs there, cheaters play beneath his feet.)

Because he is a great King. And his name will be feared among the nations.

Blessed be the name of the Lord.

Go check this out! What's In The Bible

Do watch his video where Phil explains that what he really wants to do is combat Biblical illiteracy in the church. And so, he is seeking to give kids an A-to-Z instruction. It's not just stories, it's the story. He is trying to give kids the content of the Bible in context and in order, so that they know what's where and why. It looks pretty good.

Here's a review from Dallas Theological Seminary:

I’ve just spent four hours with what I think will be two of the most life-changing titles of the year. Hang onto your seats. They’re children’s DVD’s called What’s In The Bible? They were so good that I watched each one twice.

Phil Vischer (creator of VeggieTales) has just released the first two of what will ultimately be a 13-DVD series covering the whole Bible. With puppets, animation and live-action craziness, you get the silly songs, clever jokes and what you might not expect–some great Bible teaching. Along with a good overview of Genesis and Exodus, the first two DVD’s hit some meaty issues as well. Canon, redemption, inspiration and salvation are simply explained by a Sunday School lady with a magic flannelgraph, a piano-playing pastor, a church-history-loving pirate and a lovable cast of characters. How many adults can answer the question of why Catholic and Orthodox Bibles have more books than the Protestant version? My favorite was the Popsicle-stick theater debate on how to depict God (I cheered with the conclusion). Now, I’m trying to figure out how I can get my adult class to watch these.

These DVD’s fill a huge void in presenting an entire overview of the Bible for children. With Biblical literacy at a low, these DVD’s need to be in the hands of every kid in the church. My real hope is that with repeated viewings, their parents will watch them and learn the Bible also.

They talk about canonization and theology? For the pre-school set? Wow!

So what do you think? Has anyone seen these yet? I'm thinking about getting them.

"And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree" - (Revelations 9:4) - As seen by me on an Earth Day T-Shirt.

"The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left." (Ecclesiastes 10:2) - Seen on a Tshirt at a website selling politically conservative stuff.

May his days be few; may another take his place of leadership. The text of Psalm 109:8 which appears on "Pray for Obama" Tshirts. That one was deliberate.

Then of course there is all those youth group shirts that use a Bible verse to parody some popular cultural trend...

And the over-used "Do not judge" that is quoted on on blogs on message boards anytime people start arguing about homosexuality.

I keep waiting to see an atheist Tshirt that says "There is no God" and cites: Deuteronomy 32:39, 2 Samuel 7:22, 1 Kings 8:23, 2 Kings 1:3, 2 Kings 1:6, 2 Kings 1:16, 2 Kings 5:15, 1 Chronicles 17:20, 2 Chronicles 6:14, Psalm 14:1, Psalm 53:1, Isaiah 44:6, Isaiah 45:5, Isaiah 45:21, 1 Corinthians 8:4! (And yes, all those verses do say "there is no God". I dare you to go check.

What are your favorite examples of out of context or otherwise misused Bible verses?

On April 1, 1996, a full page ad appeared in The Philadelphia Inquirer, New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Dallas Morning News, and USA Today. It said: “In an effort to help the national debt, Taco Bell is pleased to announce that we have agreed to purchase the Liberty Bell, one of our country’s most historic treasures. It will now be called the “Taco Liberty Bell” and will still be accessible to the American public for viewing.”

This was an April Fool’s day joke and publicity stunt all in one. Later that day, the White House spokesman joined in. “We’ll be doing a series of these. Ford Motor Co. is joining today in an effort to refurbish the Lincoln Memorial. It will be the Lincoln Mercury Memorial,” he said.

The Top 100 April Fool's Pranks Of All Time

I know I'm a few days late, but in honor of one of the silliest holidays ever, I will list here a series of quotes about fools and foolishness. All of the quotes are real, no fooling.

“April 1 is the day upon which we are reminded of what we are on the other three-hundred and sixty-four” (Mark Twain).

“Wise men learn more from fools than fools from wise men” (Marcus Cato).

“The greatest lesson in life is to know that even fools are right sometimes” (Winston Churchill).

“You can always tell a Texan, but not much” (Unknown).

“I bought some batteries, but they weren’t included” (Steven Wright).

“There’s never enough time to do all the nothing you want” (Bill Watterson).

“He who winks maliciously causes grief, and a chattering fool comes to ruin” (Proverbs 10:10).

“The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God’” (Psalm 14:1).

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline” (Proverbs 1:7).

“Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent” (Proverbs 17:28).

“It is not fitting for a fool to live in luxury” (Proverbs 19:10).

"Like an archer who wounds at random is he who hires a fool or any passer-by"(Proverbs 26:10).

"Like a thornbush in a drunkard's hand is a proverb in the mouth of a fool" (Proverbs 26:9) (Or on the blogpost of a Phil)

“Because your sins are so many and your hostility so great, the prophet is considered a fool, the inspired man a maniac” (Hosea 9:7).

“Anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell” (Matthew 5:22).

“But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand” (Matthew 7:26).

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (I Corinthians 1:18).

“The wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight” (I Corinthians 3:18-19).

What do you think "the point" of this parable is? Biblical Scholars have various opinions.

Matthew 20 - The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard
1"For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. 2He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. 3"About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4He told them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' 5So they went. "He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. 6About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, 'Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?'

7" 'Because no one has hired us,' they answered. "He said to them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard.'

8"When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, 'Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.' 9"The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. 10So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12'These men who were hired last worked only one hour,' they said, 'and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.'

13"But he answered one of them, 'Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? 14Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?'

16"So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

Here are my opinions:

1. The Parable Is About Grace. If anything, it's showing that grace isn't "fair". What we get is undeserved. Grace is the value of the Kingdom.

2. The reaction of those hired first mirrors that of the Elder Brother in the parable of the Prodigal Son. And I think that's an interpretive key. The Elder Brother is jealous of all the grace that gets poured out on his little brother. Do we get jealous of those who "receive more grace" than we do?

3. Question: Is it Biblically and theologically correct to say that some people receive (or require) more grace than others? If so, who would those people be?

What do you think?

Last October, a family got in the news for trying to get in the news. They claimed that their son was trapped in a home-made flying-saucer balloon that was flying through the air, only to find out later he had been hiding in the attic. In the media frenzy that followed, it came out that this family had staged the whole thing as a publicity stunt. It’s amazing to me what people will do for a few minutes of fame. On television, people will embarrass and humiliate themselves in unbelievable ways. The TV show “American Idol” is full of people trying to get fame any way that they can. A few years ago there was a young man that couldn’t sing,(William Hung) but because watching him try so hard was funny, he got national attention and even recorded three albums made a video and appeared on various talk shows. That he didn’t seem to be in on the joke was the saddest part. He didn’t seem to understand that people were laughing at him. (And now there's General Larry Platt who similarly doesn't seem to understand that he's the joke, or maybe he just doesn't care.)

We all crave love. We were designed for it. However the love we were designed for comes from God, family, our church and real friends. But the love of the public is as lasting as the snow we got in South Texas this week. Public attention is not real love, and people who pay attention to you because you are famous are not real friends.

The crowd demands entertainment, but they have short attention spans. Christian group Barlow Girl has some good things to say about this. Whether it's fame, popularity or just peer pressure, the love of the crowd isn't worth it. In the fantastic song "5 Minutes of Fame" they sing,

“I always said the thing that meant the most to me was my very integrity. Who would have thought I'd ever trade it all for popularity? 'Cause the truth is though I've made it to the top, I'm anything but satisfied. I gave up the only thing that mattered for this empty life.”

Popularity and fame, whether it is in your school, your neighborhood, or the whole country is fleeting and empty.

Paul warned the Christians in Rome about those who are trying to mislead them. “Keep away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people” (Romans 16:17b-18). Not everyone who sings your praises has your best interest at heart. Be careful who you listen to. “A simple man believes anything, but a prudent man gives thought to his steps” (Proverbs 14:15). Do what's right, not what brings the most applause.

“A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24). Look around. Who are your true friends? One person has said that a true friend is someone who comes in when the rest of the world is going out. True happiness cannot be found in the fleeting praise of the crowd. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (Matthew 6:33).



Thoughts? Stories? What other Bible verses apply?

In preparation for an article written to husbands, I did a Bible search for the word “wife”. What I discovered is that each of the first four occurrences of the word is found in a verse that gives us truths about wives that are foundational and timeless. Will you join me in a quick tour of what the first few chapters of the Bible tell us about wives?

“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24).
Your primary family unit is you and your husband. You made a promise to be united to your husband. This means that the strongest tie is not by blood, but by covenant. Where there were two people from two different families, now there is just one family and there is one life that you live together.

“The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame” (Genesis 2:25).
Before sin, before the fall, before selfishness and pride took over, this is the way God intended it to be. You and your husband should know each other physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Secrets, especially sinful ones, can be dangerous.

“Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden" (Genesis 3:8.
God intends to have a relationship with both you and your husband. He is to be a part of your marriage. And like the third point in a triangle, if you are both moving closer to the Lord, you will be moving closer together. Don’t hide from God. He wants a relationship with you.

“To Adam he said, ‘Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,' ‘Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life’” (Genesis 3:17).
Men listen to their wives. Really, they do! It took the devil himself to convince Eve to sin. All it took to convince Adam was a word from his wife. You can have a powerful influence on your husband with your words. Just make sure that you use that influence for good, and not for evil. “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Ephesians 4:29).

“A wife of noble character is her husband's crown…” (Proverbs 12:4).

Do yourself a favor. Study, I mean really study I Cor.13:4-7 some day. Dig into, digest, ponder and meditate on each phrase. I've been doing weekly chapels on this passage for my kids' elementary school. I do one "Love is..." each week. And I have discovered that those little three word phrases contain waaay more meat than I ever knew. Not all of those phrases mean what you think they mean. ("Love is Patient" for example doesn't mean you should be really good at waiting in line.)

But by far one of the most profound and beautiful of these truths about the way we ought to love one another is found in this one.

"Love Always Hopes"

And as usual, nobody explains it better than Spurgeon. Take it away maestro...

Love's third great labour is in "hoping all things." Love never despairs. She believes in good things yet to come in her fellow-men, even if she cannot believe in any present good in them. Hope all things about your brethren. Suppose a friend is a member of the church, and you cannot see any clear signs of grace in him, hope all things about him. Many true believers are weak in faith, and the operations of grace are dim in them; and some are placed in positions where the grace they have is much hindered and hampered: let us take these things into consideration. It is hard to tell how little grace may yet suffice for salvation: it is not ours to judge. Hope all things, and if you should be forced to see sad signs in them, which make you fear that they have no grace, yet, remember that some of the brightest believers have had their faults, and grave ones too. Remember yourself, lest you also be tempted. If you cannot hope that these persons are saved at all, hope that they will be, and do all that you can to promote so blessed an end.

Hope all things. If thy brother has been very angry with thee without a cause, hope that thou wilt win him; and set about the task. If thou hast tried and failed, hope to succeed next time, and try again. Hope that though thou hast failed seven times, and he still speaks bitterly, yet in his heart he is really ashamed, or at least that he will be so very soon. Never despair of your fellow Christians.

As to the unconverted, you will never do anything with them unless you hope great things about them. When the good Samaritan found the poor man half dead, if he had not hoped about him he would never have poured in the oil and the wine, but would have left him there to die. Cultivate great hopefulness about sinners. Always hope of them that they will be saved yet: though no good signs are apparent in them. If you have done your best for them, and have been disappointed and defeated, still hope for them. Sometimes you will find cause for hope in the fact that they begin to attend a place of worship. Grasp at that, and say, "Who can tell? God may bless them." Or if they have long been hearers, and no good has come of it, still hope that the minister will one day have a shot at them, and the arrow shall pierce through the joints of the harness. When you last spoke to them there seemed a little tenderness: be thankful for it, and have hope. If there has been a little amendment in their life, be hopeful about them. Even if you can see nothing at all hopeful in them, yet hope that there may be something which you cannot see, and perhaps an effect has been produced which they are endeavouring to conceal. Hope because you are moved to pray for them. Get other people to pray for them, for as long as they have some one to pray for them their case is not given over. If you get others to pray, there will be another string to your bow. If they are very ill, and you cannot get at them, or they are on their dying beds, still have hope about them, and try to send them a message in some form or other. Pray the Lord to visit and save them; and always keep up your hope about them. Till they are dead let not your hope be dead.

Would you see a model of this? Ah, look at our blessed Lord, and all his hopefulness for US: how, despairing of none, he went after those whom others would have given up. If you ask a proof, remember how he went after you. Will you despair of anybody since Christ did not despair of you? Wonders of grace belong to God, and all those wonders have been displayed in many among us. If you and I had been there when they brought the adulterous woman taken in the very act, I am afraid that we should have said, "This is too bad; put her away, she cannot be borne with." But oh, the hopefulness of the blessed Master when even to her he said, "Woman, where are thine accusers? Neither do I condemn thee. Go, and sin no more." What wonderful patience, and gentleness, and hopefulness our Lord displayed in all his converse with the twelve! It was a noble hopefulness in Christ which led him to trust Peter as he did: after he had denied his Master with oaths, our Lord trusted him to feed his sheep and lambs, and set him in the forefront of apostolic service. He has also had compassion on some of us, putting us into the ministry, and putting us in trust with the gospel, for he knew what love would do for us, and he was certain he could yet make something of us to his own glory.

Go read the whole sermon. It's beautiful.