Happy New Year!

Numbers 29:1‑6 – Happy NewYear!

The first day of the first month of 2015. The New Year is almost here. And just as it was for the Jewish people of old, this is a special day for all of us. I will admit that for most of us, nothing changes. The routine that follows this day is much the same as the routine that precedes it. But for most, it holds the promise of new beginnings. Starting over. A leaf turned over. A chance to do it right. In our minds, old accounts can be wiped away and we all start fresh. That’s why people look to this day with anticipation and excitement. That is why tremendous celebrations accompany the day.

For the Jewish people, it was called Rosh Hashanah, Head of the Year, The Feast of Trumpets. In Numbers 29:1-6 we come to the celebration of the Jewish New Year. Of course their New Year began on the first day of the seventh month, but it was the time when God commanded them to celebrate – a time of new beginnings for the people of Israel. It was a day of sounding the trumpet, the shofar. The shofar was used to awaken worshipers to their need for prayer and repentance. On Rosh Hashanah, the Jews were reminded of their need to wake up and be honest and objective about their lives: Who they are, where they had been, and which direction they were headed. The Teruah blast resembles an alarm clock, arousing the worshiper from their spiritual slumber. The shofar brings clarity, alertness, and focus. Rosh Hashanah was a day of memory, a day of appreciating who God is. It was a day of judgment. It was the first day of a ten day period of deep introspection and repentance leading up to Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It was the day of new beginnings.

For the Hebrew people in the Old Testament, it was a special day. As I mentioned before, their year began on the first day of the seventh month, just before the harvest season would start and the physical blessings of God would be manifested. This was a day of special celebration. You see, Rosh Hashanah was first and foremost a day of rejoicing – sort of like it is for us. Normally, we spend the day eating black-eyed peas and watching parades and football games. It is a day of rest for most in the United States, but only so they can recuperate from the parties of the night before. Unfortunately, January 1 is typically anything but a holy day in the United States of America. Instead of a day of rejoicing, it is usually a day of recovery. We, the people of God, could take a lesson from the Israelite people. With so many people searching for something new and different in 2015, what better place to start than by consecrating the year to the Lord. How about you? Will you rejoice in His presence this year?

God's Grace Changes Everything

1 Thessalonians 2:14-16 – God’s Grace Changes Everything

The Thessalonian Christians were suffering. They were being persecuted for their faith by the people who lived around them. Why? Because they no longer believed like their neighbors which meant that they no longer lived like their neighbors which meant that their neighbors felt the conviction that comes when lost people find themselves in the presence of true believers. You have probably experienced that before. People that you sense are uncomfortable around you or even become hostile toward you for no apparent reason. Paul describes this as an aroma in 2 Corinthians 2:16. To other believers, our presence is like the aroma of life; but to lost people, we are the aroma of death. That explains why there is such hostility towards Christians. Sometimes lost people don’t even know why they are uncomfortable around us or sometimes even angry at us. Our spirits and their spirits clash.

So Paul reminded these brothers and sisters of what happened in Judea. The Jews ultimately crucified Jesus – just like they had done the prophets. Again, this is evidence of hostility that takes place when God-followers stand for truth. Lost people hold to their sinful beliefs and even carry them to the extremes. But Paul hits the nail on the head. These people do not please God, and they “fill up the measure of their sins.” That is the picture used by multiple prophets to describe God’s judgment. It is like those who are outside of that love relationship with God have a bowl that is constantly being filled with our sins. Eventually, that bowl fills up, and when it begins to overflow, God pours out His wrath. This is the reason that the Canaanites were judged so harshly in the Old Testament. It’s why Israel was defeated by the Assyrians and Judah by the Babylonians. And it is why people spend an eternity in hell. The good news is that one drop of Jesus’ blood poured into that bowl makes it all evaporate into nothingness. God’s grace changes everything!

Receive God's Word

1 Thessalonians 2:13-14 – Receive God’s Word

There are three elements involved in a successful witnessing opportunity: the witness, the Holy Spirit, and the recipient. Jesus taught a parable about the recipient. We call it the parable of the soils, and in the parable, the farmer goes out to sow his seed. Typically in Jesus’ day, a farmer would put the bag of seed on the back of a donkey, cut a hole in the bag, and let it pour out onto the ground. As a result, some of the seed would fall on the pathway made hard by those constantly travelling on it. Some would fall on rocky soil and never be able to develop sufficiently deep roots. Some would fall onto thorny ground, and as it grew, it would be choked out. But most, if the farmer was any good at what he was doing, would fall on soil that was properly prepared for the seed. Jesus’ point was that the hearts of the recipients must be prepared to receive the seed, or the seed will not flourish. The Thessalonians were ready. They received Paul’s teaching as the truth of God, and because of that, the Holy Spirit worked powerfully in their lives.

Too often, even Christians aren’t prepared to receive. Hearts become hardened – so much so that even the prompting of the Holy Spirit is ignored. When that happens, indifference to the truth results in sinful behavior. But when Christians receive the truth and welcome it as God’s word, it effectively works in them. For these Thessalonian Christians, that meant they followed the example of the strong churches in Judea. They suffered the same persecution, and they continued to serve the Lord. What a blessing! And the key to thriving in the midst of difficult circumstances? Receive God’s word! Let it work in you! Nothing is more important to your spiritual health and power. The best way to receive the word is to read the word. Read it every day praying that God would prepare your heart for the truth He wants to reveal to you. With that in mind, I challenge you to join me in reading through the Bible in 2015. For a chronological reading plan, go to 2015 Daily Bible Reading Plan on our website. I guarantee you that you will NOT regret it!

Truths of Christmas (Pt. 3)

Christmas has come and gone for 2014, but there is another lesson in genuine worship seen in this story -- that of giving our treasures to the king. You know, some people say that Christmas is only a cultural tradition not connected with any spiritual reality. And maybe to many people, it is only a custom or an ordinary holiday, but to the children of God, it marks the commemoration of the most historic, life-changing birth the world has known or ever will know.

The wise men brought rich gifts as evidence of their adoration of the child King. The gifts were not mere tokens of courtesy. They were valuable, expensive treasures. Gold was the essential currency of the day, and frankincense was a sweet smelling resin, very costly. Myrrh was a popular scented ointment, the same type of ointment another Mary used to anoint the Lord's feet and the same type of ointment Nicodemus used on Jesus' body after the crucifixion.

And my friends, these gifts were not offered from compulsion but from the extravagance of devotion. Not because they had to give, but because their hearts were filled with love for the newborn king. Those who love Jesus whole-heartedly demonstrate it by offering their lives and their treasures to Him. He is worthy of our most valuable gifts, but He desires one gift supremely: the gift of ourselves in true worship. Consequently, the amazing paradox is that while He is honored by our gifts, we are blessed beyond measure by the act of giving. While we are busy giving and receiving gifts this Christmas, we should concentrate on the greatest gift of all--the gift of God's Son, our Savior. After all, when all the gifts have been opened and the paper discarded, He continues as the ultimate Gift to all humanity. When the Christmas meals have been eaten and friends and family have gone their separate ways, the Bread of life continues to abide with us and offer us spiritual nourishment. When the lights on the Christmas tree have been removed and boxed up, He remains as the Light of the world who desires to illuminate your life today.

The truth about Christmas is that everyday can be a holiday when you worship the one born King of the Jews who gave His life on the cross for you and for me.

Truths of Christmas (Pt. 2)

Matthew 2:1-12
It is important to know that the reality of our worship at Christmas is directly related to the quality of our regular worship. If we do not experience a thrill in our daily times with the Lord, we likely will not be excited about Him on Sunday, nor will we be excited about Him on Christmas day. The psalmist reminds us to "seek the Lord and His strength; seek His face continually" (Ps. 105:4).

The second lesson in genuine worship is bowing before the king. These wise men were in marked contrast to the religious leaders of Jerusalem. The priests and scribes knew where the Messiah would be born, but none of them journeyed with the wise men from Jerusalem to Bethlehem. Pride and apathy have a strong grip that can choke the spiritual life out of a religious people. The priests and scribes could talk about their love for God and His law, but they would not venture the few miles to Bethlehem by faith to verify it. The wise men, however, put their faith to work and discovered the Savior. Their first response, in verse 11, was to fall down and worship Him. They knelt humbly in Jesus' presence. They may even have lain prostrate before Him, stretching themselves out in an act of submission before the child King. The whole picture is painted with emotion. And while emotion does not make a worship service, worship without emotion is like a marriage without passion. It scares me that as Christians we can get caught up in the activities of the season and take the birth of Jesus for granted. We get excited about the gifts, family and friends, but not about the Savior of the world coming to Earth.

Something is missing if we, day by day, Christmas after Christmas, no longer can be moved to adore Him who came to pay a debt He did not owe to free us from a debt we could not pay. If God arranged for a star in the heavens to point to His Son, if God sent His angels to announce the news and stirred men hundreds of miles away to come for a celebration, why shouldn't we burst with excitement?

We can erect nativity scenes, adorn the church with decorations, bring canned goods for the needy, purchase gifts from the angel tree, give to the Lottie Moon Christmas offering; but if our hearts are cold and dry and void of sheer joy, we need to fall down beside the wise men and learn the thrill of bowing before the Savior.

Linked to their devotion expressed in falling down was adoration in worship. The word worshiped in verse 11 is a word used only to refer to worshiping one who is divine. It is used often in the book of Revelation to describe the adoration of the Lord. The comparison is striking. The wise men worshiped the Lord as a child; one day we will worship the Lord as He sits on the throne of glory.

Truths of Christmas

Matthew 2:1-12 – Truths of Christmas (Pt. 1)

The context of the Christmas story in the gospel of Matthew magnifies for us this truth, a truth that is often overlooked in our busy-ness -- the importance of worship. In only twelve verses, the word "worship" occurs three times. It refers both to the devotion of the wise men who wanted to bow down before the newborn King of the Jews and the scheme of Herod who wanted only to kill Jesus. And we can see by these references that worship can be sincere and genuine, or it can be trivial and false. But understand this. True worship does not originate with plans and programs or orders of service. It starts in a heart that has experienced the saving grace of God. When we are truly saved by believing in the babe born in Bethlehem and crucified on Calvary, resurrected and ascended into heaven, then we will truly desire to worship Him because worship essentially is our response to God's grace. Methods and mannerisms do not make us true worshipers. Observing outward rituals cannot accomplish God's purpose in our lives. But as we worship Him, we truly desire to give ourselves completely to Him. The wise men revealed the truth of worship, a truth that we can learn from.

The first lesson in genuine worship is "seeking the presence of the Holy one." And that, my friends, is not always easy. Look at the effort of the wise men. Their identity is uncertain. Tradition has left us with the ideas that they were kings and that their number was three. The expression "wise men" comes from the Greek word "magoi" and bears some relationship to our English word magician. The phrase "from the east" indicates their origin. They probably were from ancient Persia and were experts in astronomy and astrology. The star that suddenly appeared in the sky had seized their curiosity, but know this. They came not to worship a star but to worship the King of Kings. These men who were considered pagans by the Jewish people believed that this child to be born in Bethlehem would usher in a new age, an age of grace.

The wise men's journey wandered across mountains and deserts on camels and on foot maybe as much as a thousand miles so that they could worship the one born "king of the Jews." And we have difficulty driving 10 miles in our automobiles. Their determination to worship the Messiah makes our efforts at worship seem small by comparison. Sometimes we complain about how long the service lasted, but my friends, worship in not an activity that occurs for only one hour on Sunday. Worship is a daily desire for a relationship with God. It is yearning to love Him and seeking to pleas Him with our attitudes and actions, not just one day of the week but every day of the year.

Remember Who You Belong To!

1 Thessalonians 2:9  - Remember Who You Belong To!

Paul was bivocational! Don’t panic. That just means that he worked a secular job to support himself so that he didn’t have to ask for anything from the churches to which he ministered. That’s why he worked night and day. Make some tents, then make some disciples. A stitch here; a witness there. No doubt, many of the false teachers were jealous of Paul and made all kinds of accusations: “He’s just in it for the money!” “He’s taking advantage of the churches!” (As a side note, I have discovered that so many times when people start making accusations like this, it is because of what they themselves are doing.) So Paul feels (again and again) that he must defend himself to the church, reminding them that he had taken nothing from them. Instead, he gave them everything he had – which, by the way, is what great ministers do!

Paul reminds the church of what he did. Not only did he compare himself to a mother nursing her baby (see previous post), but also he said, “I’ve been like a father to you.” (Please understand that the next statement is in no way meant to stereotype the roles of men and women. I am not being chauvinistic in any way. It is about the culture of Paul’s day.) Where moms take care of the emotional needs, dads take care of the practical needs, at least in his culture. So he exhorted, comforted, and charged them. In other words, Paul taught them truth. More than that, he showed them truth. And the truth is this: Every born again believer, every faithful follower of Jesus must live their lives in a manner that is worthy of being blood-bought children adopted into the family of a king. No. Let me rephrase that – adopted into the family of THE KING!

When I was a youth, my pastor would always give us “the speech” before we went on an outing: “Remember Who you belong to!” I know that’s not perfect grammar, but it is good counsel. We belong to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, so we need to start acting like it.