Always Ready

Posted on October 18, 2010 by Pete

That we as Christians are to “do life” differently is pretty evident in Scripture. Not that it’s about being different for the sake of being different . . . not that we seek to stand out . . . not that we purpose to “go left” just because everyone else decides to “go right.” But we are to align ourselves to the “true north” of heaven . . . to set our minds on things above . . . to conduct our lives in a manner that is consistent with our calling as the people of God. And when we do so . . . at some point . . . someone . . . somewhere . . . will notice and ask, “How come?” And that is why, Peter says, “Always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.” (1Peter 3:15)

The context for Peter’s charge is encouragement written to a band of Christians who are being increasingly persecuted for their faith. And as the heat gets turned up Peter points to Jesus as the example of how to endure unjust treatment and suffering, “Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously.” (1Peter 2:22-23). Not exactly popular opinion on how to deal with unfair treatment . . . not the way of the world on how to stand up for oneself . . . not the stuff that assertiveness training is made of . . . not much there concerning knowing your rights and fighting for them. But it’s a different approach . . . an approach modeled after Christ . . . an approach designed by the will of God to put to silence the ignorance of foolish men by doing good (1Peter 2:15). And Peter says, live as Christ lived . . . respond as Christ would respond . . . and there will come a point when someone asks why . . . and then, be ready to give an answer.

And the reason we, as believers, are willing to swim upstream in a downstream world is because of the hope that we possess. Our actions now are shaped by our view of the future that awaits us. The reality of heaven’s glory shapes our response to earth’s trials. The value system of eternity is the determining factor of our investment strategy here and now. Our hope shapes our thinking . . . our decision making . . . our living. And so, when the question is asked . . . and it will be asked . . . Peter says we need to be ready to give a defense for the reason that hope so shapes our lives.

I’m challenged to be thoughtful about what and I do and why I do it . . . to bring it all under the authority of the One I claim as Lord and King of my life. It’s not about separating my “spiritual life” from my “everyday normal life” but about integrating all that I am in Christ . . . all that I believe . . . all that I have hope in . . . bringing it all into play in how I walk my walk. And then being ready to explain why I do what I do . . . or don’t do what I don’t do . . . or value what the world doesn’t value . . . or take a pass on what the world says is so important.

Always ready to give a defense . . . prepared with an argument (not to argue) . . . ready to articulate to others why I have counted the cost . . . and have weighed the reward . . . and decided to follow Jesus.

Living for Jesus will provide opportunity to testify for Jesus. Aligning myself toward heaven will open doors to point others to heaven. And mine, by the grace of God, and for the glory of God, is to be always ready. Amen?

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Routine Bread

Posted on October 15, 2010 by Pete

I like routine . . . especially my morning routine. From the time I get up to the time I arrive at work, pretty much the same boxes are checked and the same motions are gone through. Over the past several weeks I’ve added a new piece to the routine . . . I take two pieces of toast with me in the car and eat them on the way to work. And it’s not your everyday sliced white bread . . . no, it’s a couple of freshly cut slabs from a good, solid multi-grain loaf . . . with just the right amount of fake butter on it and covered from edge to edge with some strawberry jam. I smile just anticipating it later this morning. It’s just the right amount of breakfast, crammed into the right part of the schedule, to get my day and my metabolism kicked off. Great bread . . . satisfying . . . part of my routine. But this morning I’m reminded of another bread . . . the bread of God . . . the bread of heaven itself . . . the bread of life . . .

“Then Jesus said to them, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.’ Then they said to Him, ‘Lord, give us this bread always.’ And Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.’ ” (John 6:32-35)

They had followed Jesus across the sea of Galilee to Capernaum. The day before they had been there when Jesus took a few fish and couple of loaves and fed more than 5,000. Just as Jesus had created “the good wine” at the wedding in Cana (John 2:10), I’m guessing that what they had eaten at that divinely enhanced fish fry not only was plentiful but it was delicious . . . so good they were determined to follow Jesus . . . even across a body of water . . . in order to see if He would serve up some more.

Jesus knew why they followed Him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled” (John 6:26). Oh, how driven man is by his belly . . . I can relate! I love my toast in the morning! But Jesus says, take that taste you anticipate . . . channel that hunger that you have . . . focus the thirst you experience . . . on “the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you.” (6:27)

Enter the “true bread from heaven” . . . behold the bread of God come from heaven to give life . . . eat of the bread of life and never hunger or thirst . . . sit at the table of Jesus . . . take of His fare . . . partake of heaven itself . . . and know an abiding satisfaction that is literally out of this world.

Strictly speaking, the context in John 6 is salvation. The people were urged to take of the bread of heaven by faith. To believe in Jesus as the One sent by the Father is to eat the bread that gives everlasting life. To come to Him is to satisfy the spiritual hunger created within man for the God who formed him. To eat of that bread is to receive a promise . . . a promise of not being cast out (6:37) . . . of not being lost or left behind (6:39) . . . of being raised up to be with Jesus at the last day (6:40). Oh, thank God that, by His grace and through His Spirit, he opened my deaf ears and blind eyes to see and believe in heaven’s Holy Bread.

But the meal goes on! His mercies are new every morning (Lam. 3:22-23) . . . He desires to come and dine with me on a continuing basis (Rev. 3:20) . . . there is new food to be eaten every day . . . through His word . . . through abiding communion with Him . . . through the inner renewal of the Spirit. The taste of heaven is available each morning and throughout the day, if I’ll just take some time and partake. Oh, that I would seek more the Bread of Heaven . . . that I would know continually its flavor on my tongue . . . its soul satisfying plenty within my inner man . . . its routine presence in my daily diet.

Jesus is true manna . . . praise God for the daily availability of heaven’s Bread . . . that by His grace it would be a continuing part of my daily routine.

Did I mention that I like routine?

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Without A Word

Posted on October 14, 2010 by Pete

My youngest daughter is enrolled in a ministry internship program at a local church. In addition to living in dorms at the church, working with the church, and attending accredited Bible classes at the church, they are discipled by a vibrant, dedicated set of leaders from the church. She told me one evening at dinner, that one of those leaders takes issue with a quote attributed to St. Francis of Assisi, “Preach the gospel always: When necessary, use words.” His objection, understandably, is that gospel is to be preached . . . with words. Jesus said that He had come to preach the gospel (Luke 4:18), and told His disciples to preach the gospel (Mark 16:15), and, if you look at Paul and the early church, that’s what they did – preach the gospel . . . with words. The concern with the quote then, is to take a view that the church can be silent and somehow proclaim the good news.

And while I agree with the concern . . . and understand the danger of taking an unbalanced view of the role of only “walking the talk” and never “talking the talk” . . . I read in 1Peter 3 of a scenario where someone is won by watching someone else’s life . . . where the gospel is preached without a word.

The general context is Peter’s encouragement to a group of believers to “Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.” (1Peter 2:12 ESV) The specific context concerns a believing wife who is called to submit to an unbelieving husband . . . “so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives.” (1Peter 3:1 ESV)

Won over by conduct . . . that’s the spiritual dynamic described here. Not to say a word was never spoken. The husband would know his wife was a follower of Christ . . . she would have proclaimed the good news and have been ready to give a defense as to the source of her hope and conduct (1Peter 3:15) . . . she would have talked the talk . . . but, in this situation, Peter says, in effect, “Preach without a word.” And I can’t help but wonder if there is an application for me in this . . . an application beyond a saved wife and her un-saved husband. I’m thinking so.

That a person can be won to Christ through the conduct of a believer is evident here. And I note the characteristics of that conduct. The NKJV says it’s “chaste conduct accompanied by fear” . . . the ESV, “respectful and pure conduct” . . . the NIV & NLT, “pure and reverent lives”. It’s a life that is lived in reverent awe and fear of God and respectful of others . . . conduct that is undefiled by the world and characterized by a personal purity (3:2).

It’s a life attractive not because of designer clothes, or a “cute haircut”, or well-applied makeup or jewelry . . . it’s not attractive because someone looks cool or rad or whatever today’s term is. Instead, it’s a life that is attractive because of the “hidden person of the heart” and “incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit” (3:3-4). There’s something about authenticity that draws people to the Lord . . . something about emulating the nature of the “meek and lowly Jesus” . . . something about an inner beauty that doesn’t fade with age . . . doesn’t wrinkle . . . but, if anything, radiates increasingly as a believer grows in grace through the transforming work of the Spirit. And that “something” can be the very thing that Jesus uses to draw someone to Himself.

As I think back, God used a powerful combination of a friend who preached the word and his family who lived “beautiful lives” from the inside-out to woo me to Himself. It was the written Word in combination with the “without a word” testimony that was used to bring this sinner to the Living Word.

I agree with my daughter’s mentor . . . the gospel is to preached verbally . . . audibly . . . fervently. But I also think we need to “study up” on the “without a word” approach . . . to continue to submit to the Spirit’s work of conforming us into the likeness of Christ . . . to cultivate pure and reverent lives . . . to be focused on the inner beauty of the heart . . . the outer reality of a gentle and quiet spirit . . . the authentic representation of following Jesus . . . that, as He would determine, some might be won without a word. For His glory . . .

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Identifying

Posted on October 13, 2010 by Pete

So, I’m thinking it is wired into man to want to be part of something . . . to be identified with something. Around us it finds it’s manifestation in everything from bumper stickers to brand name clothes . . . from baseball caps to sports team jerseys . . . from the flag of our country hanging outside our door to the flag of our football team hanging outside our door . . . from colored wristbands to logo’d up t-shirts . . . all of it, a way of identifying with something. And as I continue reading in 1Peter . . . a letter to a people whose experience I have little connection with . . . I identify with them . . . not in their suffering so much . . . but in their calling and their identity in Christ . . .

“But you are a CHOSEN GENERATION, a ROYAL PRIESTHOOD, a HOLY NATION, His own SPECIAL PEOPLE that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now THE PEOPLE OF GOD, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. Beloved, I beg you as SOJOURNERS and PILGRIMS, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul . . . as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as BONDSERVANTS OF GOD.” (1Peter 2:9-11, 16)

I look at that list of capitalized words . . . that catalog of descriptors . . . that inventory of “tags” . . . and I think any one of them would make a great logo on a t-shirt or a baseball cap. Each of them, for the believer, would be a badge of honor to wear . . . a life’s mission statement to try and live up to. Talk about identifying with something . . . talk about being part of something bigger than yourself.

And while they all really grab me, one kind of stands out above the rest this morning. It probably isn’t the one that lends itself to the most creative t-shirt design or most witty tag line . . . but it so describes where my identify lies . . . it so clearly states the “something” that I am part of . . . I was not a people, but now I am THE PEOPLE OF GOD.

How’s that for an identity? A people-group of God’s own choosing and creating and re-creating. Common ancestry . . . born of God through the Spirit. Common language . . . the Word of God. Common anthem . . . the song of the redeemed. Common currency . . . treasure in heaven. Common mission statement . . . live for glory of God. Part of a people that transcends any earth-defined culture . . . brothers and sisters scattered throughout the world all claiming the same identity . . . the people of God. David wrote, “I am a companion of all who fear You, and of those who keep Your precepts.” (Ps. 119:63)

The People of God. It’s an exclusive club . . . but it’s open to all who would enter. It’s free to join, the price already having been paid in full . . . but membership will cost you your life. There’s a rewards program . . . investment in it now, pays huge dividends in the future — an eternal future. But there’s no boasting in this identity, save for boasting in the cross . . . no place for pride or self-promotion for all members are but sinners saved by grace.

Oh, what privilege to be counted as the people of God.

And it’s not a t-shirt or ball cap or rubber band or bumper sticker that identifies and seals us. No, it’s the living Spirit of God which has been given to us as a seal of His ownership . . . an indicator of our authenticity as His people . . . a deposit guaranteeing that the best is yet to come (Eph. 1:14). That’s the “God wear” that I am to put on . . . that’s the evidence I am to display . . . the living Spirit of God showing forth . . . identifying me as part of the people.

Oh, that it would be more than just an identity . . . that it would be reality . . . by His grace . . . through His Spirit . . . and for His glory . . . amen?

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As Living Stones

Posted on October 12, 2010 by Pete

That God is in the midst of a building program is clear in Scripture. He is the architect . . . the developer . . . the sub-contractor . . . the tradesman . . . and, He even supplies all the material. It’s re-cycled material . . . all of it, at one point, soiled . . . all if it, apart from the re-cycling program, damaged goods . . . but all redeemed and renewed such that it is now suitable for God’s design and purposes. Material which cost the Father dearly to secure . . . but which He delighted to purchase for this one of kind eternal structure. Material which is laid in the context of a Foundation which is perfect . . . a chief cornerstone, elect, precious . . . a Living Stone chosen by God. Material which has been reconstituted to take on the properties of the Foundation . . . to be like the Foundation . . . to be, just as He is, living stones.

This picture in 1Peter 2 always grabs me . . .

“Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1Peter 1:4-5)

Man! What a building program . . . what a high and lofty structure . . . a living, breathing sanctuary . . . a people-building designed to function as a God separated priesthood given the sacred occupation of offering up spiritual sacrifices to the Father through His Son. In Ephesians it say that this structure has been architected such that each member is fit together perfectly so that it grows into a holy temple . . . being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit (Eph2:20-22). And the materials? 100% re-cycled.

I, along with every believer through the ages, am a living stone. Purchased at great cost. Having no “textile” quality of myself but given new “properties” suitable for building with when I was made a new creation in Christ. I’m a living stone just like THE LIVING STONE . . . redeemed into the likeness of Christ for the purpose of being conformed to the image of Christ . . . to be incorporated as part of the building whose foundation is Christ.

A living stone being built into a spiritual house. I’m a piece of the puzzle . . . a small piece of colored glass in the mosaic . . . a measure in the opus . . . a face on a multi-faceted diamond. A living stone shaped, as He has determined . . . placed exactly where He wants . . . incorporated into an eternal design for the purpose of offering up spiritual sacrifices to the One who alone is worthy to receive honor . . . put together for the glory of God.

What a privilege . . . what an undeserved, grace wrought privilege. To be counted a living stone fit for His sanctuary . . . to be recruited into a holy priesthood with such a high and holy calling . . . to be cemented eternally with His Son to form a house of eternal praise . . . it really is a bit overwhelming. And who’s up to the task? Not me in my own power . . . not me in my own strength and determination. But the life I now live as a living stone, I live by faith in the Son of God — THE LIVING STONE — who loved me and gave Himself for me (Gal 2:20). And the textile strength I possess as fitting for such a unearthly structure is that of the indwelling Spirit of God — the power of the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead (Rom. 8:11). And the “right” I have to consider myself suited for such a grandiose building program is the right I have as a child adopted by the Father (Gal. 4:4-7).

A living stone . . . who woulda’ thought? God . . . the God who is in the midst of a building program . . .

Thank You Father!

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Don’t Ask If You Already Know the Answer

Posted on October 11, 2010 by Pete

It’s one of those stories that just makes you cringe. You read the account and you know this is not going to turn out well. One of those cases where it would have been better if they had never said a thing rather than stand up and speak up in some pious manner. But they did . . . and I cringe . . . and it’s a warning to me . . . don’t ask if you already know the answer.

So here’s the deal . . . Jerusalem has fallen to the Babylonians. They have destroyed it . . . a lot of people have died . . . many more have been taken captive back to Babylon . . . a remnant of the poor have been left in Judah and given land to tend . . . and a governor has been put in place to watch things for the king of Babylon. There’s been a coup where the governor has been overthrown . . . and a counter coup re-establishing some level of stability in Judah. But they are still under Babylonian control . . . and the leaders think it’s time to take things into their own hands and head to Egypt for protection.

Queue the question . . . “Then all the guerrilla leaders, . . . and all the people, from the least to the greatest, approached Jeremiah the prophet. They said, ‘Please pray to the LORD your God for us. As you can see, we are only a tiny remnant compared to what we were before. Pray that the LORD your God will show us what to do and where to go.’ ” (Jeremiah 42:1-3 NLT)

Fair enough . . . sounds good . . . desperate uncertain times call for divine wisdom and guidance. Jeremiah comes back and says, “Ok, but know that whatever the LORD answers you, I will declare it to you. I will keep nothing back from you.” (42:4) And the people’s response is, “You bet. Bring it on. Whatever He says we will do . . . wherever He directs we will go . . . that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the Lord our God.” (42:5-6)

God, through Jeremiah says, “Stay in the land under Babylonian rule and it will go well with you.” The people say, “No way! Are you kidding me? That’s not what we were expecting or wanting to hear? That makes no sense. Jeremiah, you’re not speaking God’s word . . . you’re speaking falsely. We’re going to Egypt! That’s what makes sense to us . . . that’s what God really wants us to do.” (43:2-4) They didn’t like the answer . . . it didn’t line up with their thinking . . . it didn’t suit their view of what God’s will had to be . . . they asked the question . . . but they already knew the answer.

And the problem is diagnosed by Jeremiah, “For you were hypocrites in your hearts when you sent me to the LORD your God, saying, ‘Pray for us to the LORD our God, and according to all that the LORD your God says, so declare to us and we will do it.’ ” (42:20)

They were playing the God game . . . they were going through the motions hoping the answer they wanted would be the answer God would give them. They weren’t being honest with Jeremiah . . . or God . . . or themselves. The were leaning to their own understanding and were hoping that God would endorse it . . . that they would find a verse in the Bible to support it . . . that they could do their own thing with God’s blessing. And God, through the prophet, calls them on it.

And so I cringe. It would have been better to have just done their own thing than to have tried to act under a pretense of “desiring God’s will for me life.”

He knows the answer . . . I need to ask the question . . .and, in asking the question, sincerely want God’s voice . . . and His mind . . . and His answer . . . even when it’s not what I would have thought the answer to be. How I need to have a true heart that desires my “Plan A” to be His plan . . . for my well being . . . and for His glory . . .

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Rechabites Among Us

Posted on October 8, 2010 by Pete

Jeremiah 35 records an interesting object lesson. It was a lesson for the people of the time . . . it is a lesson for the people of this time. And what grabs me about it, is a promise that God makes to a group of men at the time of Judah’s demise which is having an impact on some family, somewhere, today. If I’m reading it right, there are Rechabites among us . . .

The story’s pretty simple. God tells Jeremiah to go to the house of the Rechabites, and invite them over to the temple and then give them some wine to drink. Jeremiah extends the invitation . . . they RSVP in the affirmative . . . they show up . . . he serves up . . . and they close up . . .

“Then I (Jeremiah) set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites bowls full of wine, and cups; and I said to them, ‘Drink wine.’ But they said, ‘We will drink no wine, for Jonadab the son of Rechab, our father, commanded us, saying, ‘You shall drink no wine, you nor your sons, forever. You shall not build a house, sow seed, plant a vineyard, nor have any of these; but all your days you shall dwell in tents, that you may live many days in the land where you are sojourners.’ Thus we have obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab, our father, in all that he charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, or our daughters, nor to build ourselves houses to dwell in; nor do we have vineyard, field, or seed. But we have dwelt in tents, and have obeyed and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us.’ ” (Jeremiah 35:5-10)

And these boys, and their families, become God’s example to a rebellious nation of what He desires. They had been instructed by their dad on how they were to live . . . and they listened . . . and they obeyed . . . and even when sitting in the temple of God, before a prophet of God, and told to drink, they said, “Uh, no. We have determined to do what our father asked of us.” And the Lord, through Jeremiah, says to the people of Judah, “Will you not receive instruction to obey my words like the sons of the Rechabite, Jonadab?” (35:13-14)

In their simple, unpretentious, “as for me and my house” willingness to follow the instruction of their father, these boys and their families are held up as a divine object lesson of the obedience the Father of the family of believers desires. An object lesson for Judah . . . an object lesson for me . . . the Father requests obedience. He wants His people to incline their ears to His word . . . to prepare their hearts for it to be planted . . . to steel their wills with holy determination to follow . . . to know the blessing of the enabling power of the Spirit . . . and to experience the joy of abiding in the will of the Savior of their souls. God desires obedience among His people.

And what’s captured my imagination is a promise God makes through Jeremiah to this family of tent dwelling teetotalers, “Because you have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts and done according to all that he commanded you, therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not lack a man to stand before Me forever.'” (35:19)

There are, therefore, Rechabites among us . . .

Generation after generation . . . through the millennia . . . God has placed a special protection on the line of this family . . . all because of their willingness and desire to obey. And I can’t help but be challenged by the importance the Father places on obedience from His children . . . the joy it gives Him when I say, “Yes Lord” . . . “Thy will be done Lord” . . . “By Your strength Lord” . . . “Because I love you Lord.”

These Rechabites . . . they walk among us . . . oh, that by God’s grace we might walk as one of them . . . for His glory . . . amen?

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The Jesus Diet

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Pete

I don’t do well with diets. Not because I can’t be disciplined . . . but because I like food . . . I enjoy eating . . . I like taste. Sugar-free, fat-free, taste-free just doesn’t do it for me. And I like variety. No-meat or only meat . . . no carbs or only carbs . . . just salads . . . only vegetables . . . that won’t work for me either. I like a variety such that even a favorite food can turn into a “I’m done with it” food if I eat it day after day after day. I’ll admit it . . . I like to eat . . . I like food. So that’s why, for me at least, the best way to keep my weight in check, to some degree, is to make sure I eat the right food (and try and get in some regular exercise, but that’s another devotional thought). I think it’s somewhat ironic that I finally find myself living a 5 minute walk away from a Mickey-D’s and it’s no longer on my list of things I want to eat (oh, what I wouldn’t have given for easy and quick access to the golden arches a few years ago).

And what’s got me thinking about food . . . and the right food . . . is a conversation Jesus had with His disciples . . .

“Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, saying, ‘Rabbi, eat.’ But He said to them, ‘I have food to eat that you do not know about.’ So the disciples said to one another, ‘Has anyone brought Him something to eat?’ Jesus said to them, ‘My food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to accomplish His work.'” (John 4:31-34)

My Lord knew what it was to enjoy food. He augmented the feast at the wedding in Cana of Galilee with some out-of-this-world wine (John 2:1-12). He served up a massive fish fry on a hillside for 5,000+ people from just five barley loaves and two small fish at His disposal (John 6:1-14). One of His last desires before the cross was to make sure He sat down with His closest associates for a final meal (Luke 22:14-20). After His resurrection He served up breakfast for His friends at the seaside (John 21:1-14). And one day, He is going to host a feasting table unlike any every set or imagined when all who are redeemed by the blood of the Lamb are invited to dine with Him at the marriage supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:5-9). But while Jesus only serves up the finest fare, there is another food on His menu which He delighted to partake of . . . and desires that I do the same . . . the food of doing the will of God.

Doing the will of God . . . accomplishing the work He has prepared in advance for us to undertake (Eph. 2:10) . . . that is food too, according to my Lord. Within obedience there is flavor and nourishment and satisfaction . . . it is the primary source of the recommended daily does of Christian vitality. To do what God wants me to do needs to be a regular part of my diet . . . needs to be served up throughout the day . . . and when His will is partaken of . . . oh, it tastes so good!

I read this morning in Jeremiah of those who refused the food . . . those who pursed their lips . . . who turned away their heads . . . of whom God says, “They have turned to Me the back, and not the face” (Jer. 32:33). They refused the food of His will and in so doing, the Lord says they profaned His name (34:16). For His people to reject His bread is to defile and dishonor Him who loved them from before the foundation of the world. And, from a personal and spiritual perspective, to refuse God’s will is to assume bad eating habits . . . worse than junk food, it will sap a believers spiritual vitality . . . causing a form of malnutrition which results in no satisfaction . . . no peace . . . no joy . . . and no glory.

The Father places a premium on obedience. The Son models for me the priority it should have in my life. My food too should be to do the will of Him who called me. It’s part of a well-balanced spiritual nutritional plan. By God’s grace I desire to follow and be faithful to the Jesus diet . . . for His glory . . .

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good . . . amen?

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The Music Matters

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Pete

For the sake of unity we downplay it. Hymns vs. modern praise and worship or, as we used to call it, “choruses.” Piano only vs. a multi-piece band. Slow and reverent vs. up beat and joyful. The old songs of the faith vs. new and original tunes and lyrics every week. The way we worship in our different gatherings is truly varied . . . yet, so often, very defining. “I’m of the hymn book” . . . “I’m of Hillsong” . . . “I’m of the Passion movement” . . . “I’m of Jesus Culture” . . . “I’m of Gaither” (yes!!!) . . . “I’m a little bit country . . . I’m a little bit rock ‘n roll” (maybe not so much) . . . but you get the idea . . . how we worship is as different as we are. And so . . . and I think rightly so . . . we downplay it for the sake of unity . . . cause it’s not really about the music . . . or at least not about the music we produce externally.

This morning, I’m reminded that how we worship matters . . . that, at it’s core it really is not left up to our preferences or different tastes. In fact, I read again this morning that God seeks “true worshipers” . . .

“But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:23-24)

First of all, I’m blown away that God seeks worshipers. God who needs nothing . . . who is Creator and possessor of all . . . this God is on the lookout for true worshipers. They are the worshipers He desires . . . those He craves . . . those He longs to find. Oh, to think that there would be anything which puny mortal man could offer which would be something that the High and Lofty God of eternity would desire is a point to ponder (and enjoy) in and of itself. God loves worship . . . His heart is set on finding worship . . . His eyes comb the earth looking for worship . . . but not just any worship . . . in a sense, the music matters.

And it’s the music of authenticity and reality . . . the music of veracity and of the heart . . . the music of spirit and truth.

The woman Jesus talks to in John 4 tries to deflect Jesus’ probing into her personal life by talking of worship. Where was the right place to worship — the mountain where her people worshiped or Jerusalem? . . . which was the right way to worship — the way of the Samaritans or the way of the Jews? And Jesus used the opportunity to talk about “the music.” The Samaritans passionately pursued their worship but it was false worship . . . worship mingled with pagan practice . . . worship fashioned after their world . . . it wasn’t worship in truth. The Jews, on the other hand, sliced and diced and offered at the temple as God had commanded them . . . but it was about going through the motions . . . checking the boxes . . . seeing it as a measure for how “good” they were in their “obedience” . . . how worthy they were because of their actions . . . they drew near to God with their mouths and honored Him with their lips but their hearts were somewhere else (Matt. 15:8). But, says Jesus, true worship must be in spirit . . . transcending the physical motions, it must emanate from the very being of a man or woman . . . it must be reflective of the very essence of the person and be offered into a realm beyond what is seen or heard . . . for God is Spirit.

So while the number of instruments doesn’t really matter . . . and whether the words were written in 1810 or 1910 or 2010 doesn’t really matter . . . the “music” of spirit and truth does matter. The melody needs to originate from the heart (Eph.5:19) and the lyrics must be penned in God’s defined reality. We can go through the motions just as easily singing out of a hymnal as we can singing off the screen. Fake worship can be offered whether we’re singing to a piano, a five piece band, or no band at all . . . the creation being praised above the Creator. What God seeks is the music of the heart . . . and the lyrics of truth. Package it with whatever genre of music you prefer, but oh, that God’s people, would pursue worshiping in a manner which delights God . . . which honors Him and Him alone . . . which is sourced in the reality of hearts won by the Savior and humbled by His grace . . . which is presented in the context of His living Word and the truths conveyed from it . . . which is sought by Him for His honor and pleasure . . . for His glory alone . . . amen!

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The Thoughts

Posted on October 5, 2010 by Pete

Any way you look at it, they were there for the long haul . . . seventy years. Jeremiah’s letter (chapter 29) . . . a word from the Lord . . . promised a return to Jerusalem . . . but it would not be for 70 years . . . the promise was literally a lifetime away. It didn’t matter what age you were when you heard the promise, you would be old . . . really old . . . if you were still alive . . . at the fulfillment of the promise. If you were a child of 5 years old, then you’d be 75 when the opportunity came to go home . . . if you were a young teen of 13 . . . then they’d be pushing you back to Jerusalem in a wheelchair as an 83 year old . . . and, if you were a thirty-something . . . forget it! . . . welcome to Babylon . . . for life!

And it’s in the context of this promise of God to the exiles of Judah that we find one of the most encouraging verses of Scripture: “For I know the thoughts I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

Huh? Really? What exactly are those thoughts? How does seventy years in Babylon . . . a lifetime in a foreign land . . . a promise that maybe my children, but more likely my grandchildren, will only see . . . what kind of future and hope is that? So, I ask myself, what exactly are those thoughts? Are they just the thoughts of returning His people to Babylon . . . or, are they more the thoughts God has of returning the hearts of His people to Himself.

“Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:12-13)

That’s what I think the promise was about . . . not about returning to Jerusalem, but about returning to the Lord. It wasn’t about the getting back to the comfort of familiar surroundings, but about getting back to the reality of a familial relationship with the Father. It wasn’t about a quick trip to the woodshed to get whooped for their sin . . . it was about a journey to an extended stay facility where they would experience open heart surgery . . . and where the lust for other lovers would be purged . . . and where the taste of idolatry would be replaced with a hunger and thirst for the God of heaven, and Him alone.

The fact that it would be seventy years in Babylon was not inconsistent with the thoughts God had toward them . . . it wasn’t at odds with His intent to give them a future and a hope . . . Babylon was the means. It would be there, in Babylon, that the Daniels among them would purpose in their hearts to not defile themselves with the kings meat (Daniel 1:8) and would be drawn to be faithful to God even in the midst of a culture which didn’t know or fear God. It would be in this crucible of foreign values and thought patterns and worldly ways that the dross would be skimmed away and the pure silver of a people devoted to their God would be formed. It would be in the fire of a king who demanded to be honored as God, that the sheep of Israel would be strengthened to stand fast declaring that there is only One God . . . their God . . . Jehovah God . . . the “I AM” God . . . the God who makes new hearts . . . and promises a future.

So I’m a 15 year old boy when I’m hauled off to Babylon. For most of my life, my religion’s been a joke . . . it’s been temple time on the Sabbath, along with idol worship throughout the week. I wear the prayer shawl, but I also burn the incense to the wooden statue on the mantel. But in Babylon . . . though I will likely live out my life there and never return to Jerusalem . . . in Babylon is where God will lead me to know what it really means to live. It is there that He will reveal His thoughts to me . . . there that He will set my eyes on a future that transcends any place on earth . . . there that He will work in me such that I desire Him . . . such that I will call on Him believing He is there and will answer . . . such that I will seek Him . . . and search for Him . . . search for Him will all my heart. And then, says the Lord, “I will be found by you, and I will bring you back from your captivity.” (29:14a) And therein, lies the blessing of the promise . . . therein lies the thoughts He has towards me . . . “I will be found by you.” That’s the future . . . that’s the hope. God found . . . the captivity of sin and struggle and alienation removed . . . relationship established . . . hearts thirsting for Him alone . . . God being the focus and the reality . . . even in Babylon . . . for a lifetime . . . for His glory.

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