Get the point? Two sports teams got it, and two lost it in the final seconds of their respective games.
Nursing a 0-9 opening record, the hapless New Jersey Nets faced off with the Miami Heat last Friday evening. They had stifled the superstition of "Friday the 13th" and a 0-10 loss. With 4.1 seconds to go, the Nets were leading 80 to 78 and Miami had the ball. The Heat’s Wade got the inbound pass, dribbled unsteadily for a couple of those precious seconds, and pumped up a long shot from three-point range. And—swoosh—the Nets were behind one point with 1/10 of a second left. Their inbound pass was futile with only a sliver of a second, and they sadly lost their 10th straight game.
Two days later, a decades-old rivalry brought the New England Patriots to face the Indianapolis Colts. Toward the end of a brutally hard-fought turf war, a questionable 4th down call by the Patriot’s coach gave the Colts the ball, and they ultimately pushed on to a very late touchdown and a "squeaker" 35-34 win to maintain their undefeated season. Again, it was the slimmest of margins, but one point is all it takes. Be it ever so late, that single point spells victory.
Baseball icon Yogi Berra said it well despite his grammatical slang. "It ain’t over ‘til it’s over." While there is game time, there is hope.
Many a Christian victory is within reach, even though the human chances seem slim. Too often our self-prediction of seeming failure is self-fulfilling. If only we’d have pushed on.
Christ said, "I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work" (John 9:4). The old Christian song says,
Encamped along the hills of light,
Ye Christian soldiers, rise,
And press the battle ere the night
Shall veil the glowing skies.
Against the foe in vales below,
Let all our strength be hurled.
Faith is the victory, we know,
That overcomes the world.
The author understood the battle pressure of the fleeting moments of sunset—that terminal opportunity is extremely fragile.
Years ago, I was preaching in Bangor, PA, and we closed with the invitation hymn "Just As I Am." The hour was getting late, and we’d sung a number of verses, so I closed in prayer. Afterward, man came to me and said, "If you had sung just one more verse, I would have come forward." Sometime later in another place, a man shared how he had walked forward to receive Christ on the fifteenth verse of "Just As I Am."
Galations 6:9-10 declares, "And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith." The word "opportunity" is the translation of the Greek word "kairon," which is an unrepeated time frame of set length. It is best described by being a sacred parenthesis with beginning and ending.
Pro athletes know that they need to spend every ounce of competitive energy until that last second has expired, for the last second may mean the winning or losing difference of a single point. Fighting the good fight of faith, as Paul describes it in I Timothy 6:12, is no less demanding.
Dave Virkler
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Monday, November 16, 2009
Find Your Financial Soul Mate
Money matters – A Lot.
That was the title of a recent article dealing with marital finances. Good Housekeeping puts it this way. “The best case scenario is that you find someone whose money strengths and values complement your own.” Their reason is simple. Money conflicts are one of the primary factors leading to today’s high divorce rate. To some, the matter is so weighty that they suggest that some general questions on the subject should be attempted even on the first few dates. The goal is to get a better sense of your date’s true money identity.
The subject of money is of course a crucial aspect of everyday life. The more modern the culture, the more money is an interracial factor in daily affairs. Knowing this to be true, the Bible also speaks to the subject – only in a different light than most economic and marital experts of the day.
The Scriptures seem to care little about how a couple handle their family money issues – with a few notable exceptions. For instance, there is reference made to the principle of lending. In this area, Luke 6 speaks to motives of God’s people when they feel the desire to lend a helping hand financially speaking. When they do, it should not be for some future material benefit for themselves. Verse 34 begins, “And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High.” It is also a given that God also expects those who are on the receiving end to be thankful, responsible, and to never take advantage of the goodness of those who help out.
Later in that same gospel account, a story is told about a woman who would be scorned by any of today’s typical financal gurus. The writer tells of her actions in Luke 21:1-4. “And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites. So He said, "Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had."
Just try to imagine today anyone sanctioning the giving to God of nearly all of one's worldly assets and then trusting Him to supply all of their personal daily needs? That kind of attitude would be considered as pure madness without a clear understanding, and sound believing, in Jesus’ striking words about “seeking God first” in Matthew 6:33.
In the Old Testament book of Haggai, the prophet lays out a principle that certainly escapes the notice of those outside of God’s family. Tragically, many inside His inner circle of faith miss it as well. Verse 2 of chapter one begins with God’s serious indictment of all those who primarily focus their own material wealth and selfish wants.
He writes, "Thus speaks the LORD of hosts, saying: 'This people says, "The time has not come, the time that the LORD's house should be built."' "Then the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet, saying, "Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?" Now therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts:" Consider your ways! "You have sown much, and bring in little; you eat, but do not have enough; you drink, but you are not filled with drink; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and he who earns wages, earns wages to put into a bag with holes." Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Consider your ways!“
The financial principle here is quite plain and not at all difficult. Separate God’s will from your wallet and find that your finances suffer or even collapse - no matter how cleverly or professionally they are handled!
The profit Malachi likewsie brought it all into the briefst and most understandable of terms in the third chapter and the 8th verse. Two short questions and two equally quick answers are listed there. “Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, 'In what way have we robbed You?' In tithes and offerings.”
For a Christian, it is not finding a “Financial Soul Mate" that is all-important. The Bible is concerned first that people agree, and be ‘equally yoked’, in the faith. (2 Corinthians 6:14) Afterwards, it becomes God’s desire for His people to agree to offer Him dominance in every aspect of life - including the use and distribution of their material blessings. When this is done, to the contrary advice of the ‘experts’, it is then that the personal promises of God come into play and the primary purposes of God are played out!
The Apostle Paul laid out one such promise for the serious disciple of Jesus Christ like this. “But this I say: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:6-9)
Yes, Money Matters - but only “A Lot” when used to achieve God’s eternal work and will!
Bill Breckenridge
That was the title of a recent article dealing with marital finances. Good Housekeeping puts it this way. “The best case scenario is that you find someone whose money strengths and values complement your own.” Their reason is simple. Money conflicts are one of the primary factors leading to today’s high divorce rate. To some, the matter is so weighty that they suggest that some general questions on the subject should be attempted even on the first few dates. The goal is to get a better sense of your date’s true money identity.
The subject of money is of course a crucial aspect of everyday life. The more modern the culture, the more money is an interracial factor in daily affairs. Knowing this to be true, the Bible also speaks to the subject – only in a different light than most economic and marital experts of the day.
The Scriptures seem to care little about how a couple handle their family money issues – with a few notable exceptions. For instance, there is reference made to the principle of lending. In this area, Luke 6 speaks to motives of God’s people when they feel the desire to lend a helping hand financially speaking. When they do, it should not be for some future material benefit for themselves. Verse 34 begins, “And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High.” It is also a given that God also expects those who are on the receiving end to be thankful, responsible, and to never take advantage of the goodness of those who help out.
Later in that same gospel account, a story is told about a woman who would be scorned by any of today’s typical financal gurus. The writer tells of her actions in Luke 21:1-4. “And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites. So He said, "Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had."
Just try to imagine today anyone sanctioning the giving to God of nearly all of one's worldly assets and then trusting Him to supply all of their personal daily needs? That kind of attitude would be considered as pure madness without a clear understanding, and sound believing, in Jesus’ striking words about “seeking God first” in Matthew 6:33.
In the Old Testament book of Haggai, the prophet lays out a principle that certainly escapes the notice of those outside of God’s family. Tragically, many inside His inner circle of faith miss it as well. Verse 2 of chapter one begins with God’s serious indictment of all those who primarily focus their own material wealth and selfish wants.
He writes, "Thus speaks the LORD of hosts, saying: 'This people says, "The time has not come, the time that the LORD's house should be built."' "Then the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet, saying, "Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?" Now therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts:" Consider your ways! "You have sown much, and bring in little; you eat, but do not have enough; you drink, but you are not filled with drink; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and he who earns wages, earns wages to put into a bag with holes." Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Consider your ways!“
The financial principle here is quite plain and not at all difficult. Separate God’s will from your wallet and find that your finances suffer or even collapse - no matter how cleverly or professionally they are handled!
The profit Malachi likewsie brought it all into the briefst and most understandable of terms in the third chapter and the 8th verse. Two short questions and two equally quick answers are listed there. “Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, 'In what way have we robbed You?' In tithes and offerings.”
For a Christian, it is not finding a “Financial Soul Mate" that is all-important. The Bible is concerned first that people agree, and be ‘equally yoked’, in the faith. (2 Corinthians 6:14) Afterwards, it becomes God’s desire for His people to agree to offer Him dominance in every aspect of life - including the use and distribution of their material blessings. When this is done, to the contrary advice of the ‘experts’, it is then that the personal promises of God come into play and the primary purposes of God are played out!
The Apostle Paul laid out one such promise for the serious disciple of Jesus Christ like this. “But this I say: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:6-9)
Yes, Money Matters - but only “A Lot” when used to achieve God’s eternal work and will!
Bill Breckenridge
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Lessons in Leaves
In many parts of the world, the cool chill of fall means a cascade of multi-colored leaves as the deciduous trees shed their food factories for another year.
In completely calm weather, some of these leaves head gently earthward. Add a drenching rain or howling wind, and some are simply wrenched off their branches. Whether by advancing season or an additional nudge from nature, they all become earthbound unless a temporary stop occurs in a bush or in the roof gutter. Most of this plunge is unappreciated, especially if a homeowner is stuck with laborious leaf-gathering and disposal.
The special blessings leaves afford are largely lost with those terminal fallings and cold rush of winter snows. In summer, leaves provide shade from the scorching sun and coolness beneath by transpiration, that marvelous means God built in to move moisture directly from the leaves into the atmosphere. (Remember shivering after coming out of the water after a swim? Evaporation removes heat and leaves you cool).
The falling leaves can teach us so much of Bible truth. Many believers pass off the earthly scene, and their special impact for Christ is as quickly forgotten as the withered and colorless leaves. Old age and the final departure can be a burden unless we understand each person’s inherent worth and precious focus for the Savior and retain it in our consciousness. Parents may have shaded us from the burning problems of life and cooled us down when we tended to overheat in a temper tantrum. And then the years speed by, and it’s time to move on from the summer of this life to an eventual eternal springtime in the next.
I recently considered the various descents of leaves. Some simply plummet down, with no grace or artful maneuvers. The final moments are no subject for a photo or picturesque narration. They just come down—period! Others seem to flutter, wobbling this way and that in an unpredictable dance with death. Some spiral like a glider squeezing out extra seconds of airborne grace. A few sometimes catch an updraft from a building or other object and soar magnificently for a few fleeting seconds before being finally earthbound. Oak leaves are among the last to fall, and some even linger for months until heavy snow or even the first flush of spring takes then down.
The annual leaf fall is a profile in the final variables of ultimate human descent. Recently, four friends went to be with the Lord, and their passage varied as do leaves heading down.
Dot lived for 95 years and was in great health for almost all of them. Then, at nine and half decades, way beyond the proverbial "threescore and ten," she left so very quickly. Florence reached 84 and spent the last few years in her room and in bed as she tumbled downward in a long spiral. Bill developed a treatable disease that slowly worsened with ups and downs, taking back healthy ground and then losing a bit more. At 67, long before anyone expected him to go, he simply plummeted down and went to be with Jesus. William spent his final years surrounded by family in graceful decline as retirement lowered him gently.
But they all eventually dropped away as Ecclesiastes 8:8 says. "No one has power over the spirit to retain the spirit, And no one has power in the day of death, There is no release from that war…." And, as Eccl. 3:1-2 says, "To every thing there is a season, A time for every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck up what is planted…"
Years ago, my dear musical evangelist partner, blind Erick Webber, often sang "Where the Roses Never Fade" in our meetings. Sixteen years ago, he suffered a stroke, and, after months of downward spiral, left for Heaven.
I heard of Erick’s Homegoing while leading a tour to Israel, the same place where Jesus said to a grieving sister, "I am the resurrection, and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live" (John 11:25). As we traveled through a huge Israeli farm of thousands of acres of bright-faced sunflowers, I shared the lyrics of the song with our group:
I am going to a city,
Where the streets with gold are laid;
Where the tree of life is blooming,
And the roses never fade.
In this world we have our troubles,
Satan snares we must evade.
We'll be free from all temptations;
Where the roses never fade.
Loved ones gone to be with Jesus,
In their robes of white arrayed;
Now are waiting for my coming,
Where the roses never fade.
Chorus:
Here they bloom but for a season,
Soon their beauty is decayed.
I am going to a city,
Where the roses never fade.
(Janie West Metzgar – 1929)
Roses … leaves … humans …. They all tumble downward to the ground from which we were taken. For believers in Jesus Christ, the physical journey may be to the ground, but the spiritual transition is to God.
Dave Virkler
In completely calm weather, some of these leaves head gently earthward. Add a drenching rain or howling wind, and some are simply wrenched off their branches. Whether by advancing season or an additional nudge from nature, they all become earthbound unless a temporary stop occurs in a bush or in the roof gutter. Most of this plunge is unappreciated, especially if a homeowner is stuck with laborious leaf-gathering and disposal.
The special blessings leaves afford are largely lost with those terminal fallings and cold rush of winter snows. In summer, leaves provide shade from the scorching sun and coolness beneath by transpiration, that marvelous means God built in to move moisture directly from the leaves into the atmosphere. (Remember shivering after coming out of the water after a swim? Evaporation removes heat and leaves you cool).
The falling leaves can teach us so much of Bible truth. Many believers pass off the earthly scene, and their special impact for Christ is as quickly forgotten as the withered and colorless leaves. Old age and the final departure can be a burden unless we understand each person’s inherent worth and precious focus for the Savior and retain it in our consciousness. Parents may have shaded us from the burning problems of life and cooled us down when we tended to overheat in a temper tantrum. And then the years speed by, and it’s time to move on from the summer of this life to an eventual eternal springtime in the next.
I recently considered the various descents of leaves. Some simply plummet down, with no grace or artful maneuvers. The final moments are no subject for a photo or picturesque narration. They just come down—period! Others seem to flutter, wobbling this way and that in an unpredictable dance with death. Some spiral like a glider squeezing out extra seconds of airborne grace. A few sometimes catch an updraft from a building or other object and soar magnificently for a few fleeting seconds before being finally earthbound. Oak leaves are among the last to fall, and some even linger for months until heavy snow or even the first flush of spring takes then down.
The annual leaf fall is a profile in the final variables of ultimate human descent. Recently, four friends went to be with the Lord, and their passage varied as do leaves heading down.
Dot lived for 95 years and was in great health for almost all of them. Then, at nine and half decades, way beyond the proverbial "threescore and ten," she left so very quickly. Florence reached 84 and spent the last few years in her room and in bed as she tumbled downward in a long spiral. Bill developed a treatable disease that slowly worsened with ups and downs, taking back healthy ground and then losing a bit more. At 67, long before anyone expected him to go, he simply plummeted down and went to be with Jesus. William spent his final years surrounded by family in graceful decline as retirement lowered him gently.
But they all eventually dropped away as Ecclesiastes 8:8 says. "No one has power over the spirit to retain the spirit, And no one has power in the day of death, There is no release from that war…." And, as Eccl. 3:1-2 says, "To every thing there is a season, A time for every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck up what is planted…"
Years ago, my dear musical evangelist partner, blind Erick Webber, often sang "Where the Roses Never Fade" in our meetings. Sixteen years ago, he suffered a stroke, and, after months of downward spiral, left for Heaven.
I heard of Erick’s Homegoing while leading a tour to Israel, the same place where Jesus said to a grieving sister, "I am the resurrection, and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live" (John 11:25). As we traveled through a huge Israeli farm of thousands of acres of bright-faced sunflowers, I shared the lyrics of the song with our group:
I am going to a city,
Where the streets with gold are laid;
Where the tree of life is blooming,
And the roses never fade.
In this world we have our troubles,
Satan snares we must evade.
We'll be free from all temptations;
Where the roses never fade.
Loved ones gone to be with Jesus,
In their robes of white arrayed;
Now are waiting for my coming,
Where the roses never fade.
Chorus:
Here they bloom but for a season,
Soon their beauty is decayed.
I am going to a city,
Where the roses never fade.
(Janie West Metzgar – 1929)
Roses … leaves … humans …. They all tumble downward to the ground from which we were taken. For believers in Jesus Christ, the physical journey may be to the ground, but the spiritual transition is to God.
Dave Virkler
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Commander and Comforter-in-Chief
To say that the office and job of the President of the United States is a complex one would be a massive understatement. Not only does he oversee the most formidable military on earth, but he sets the agenda for the most powerful and influential nation on the planet as well. But sometimes the job requires other seeming lesser things – like comforting just a small percentage of the nation’s citizens who have experienced some sudden tragedy or deep form of heartache.
That was President Barak Obama’s task this week as he tried to offer words of comfort and hope to the devastated families of those brutally murdered at Fort Hood. His was not any enviable position to be in. But his is the position that demands it.
Bill Clinton helped rebuild his troubled presidency with the way he reacted to the vicious Oklahoma City bombings. Then, too, George W. Bush governed throughout some of the worst events ever in American history. There was 9/11, the worst terrorist attack ever on the nation’s soil. That was soon followed by Hurricane Katrina, the most traumatic and crippling natural disaster to ever hit the U.S. mainland. Along with these there came a series of smaller but still difficult events like the space shuttle explosion, a terrible shooting rampage at Virginia Tech, a tornado that wiped out a Kansas town, a bridge collapse in Minnesota, Midwestern flooding and the catastrophic California wildfires.
When horrific events like these hit, it is the responsibility of Commander-in-Chief to be the chief comforter to the individual citizens he leads. Again, it is a difficult requirement but a worthy and sacred role. It is also true that the popularity of a President, and even his platform, can be altered depending on how key events are handled in public.
The God of the Bible is well aware of the grief and frustration that is the eventual part of every life. The ability of the Creator to relate to those He created is mentioned in Hebrews 4:15. The writer records there, “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” The Bible stresses forcefully that Jesus was 100% man while, at the same time, being 100% God. (Philippians 5:2-8) This miraculous and mysterious union enables Him to know how we feel when we face what we face. And while Christ’s human side can fully relate to our trials and needs, as fully God, He is able help man rightly respond and overcome them.
During His great prayer in John 14, Jesus was preparing His followers for His death and soon departure. He informed them that His leaving would not leave them some terrible void or sense of loss. Rather the Lord gave them a glimpse of the One who would take His earthly place on a full-time basis. It would be none other than His equal but in the form of the indwelling Holy Spirit. This part of the triune Godhead would not, in any way, be an inferior substitute to Christ’s physical presence. Instead, He would make available to all believers certain supernatural gifts and abilities.
One of the most critical of those assets is named in verses 16-18. John records Jesus’ words as follows. “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”
He later re-emphasizes the reason for, and benefits of, His leaving. “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; it is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.” (John 16:7) The Spirit would no longer come and go for specific and limited ministry tasks as was the case in Old Testament times. (Psalm 51:11) But He would now empower and dwell permanently in the hearts and lives of every true follower of Christ. Jesus was simply trying to convey the superior value of this new spiritual relationship.
Pain and suffering have always been part of the human condition. The reasons should be obvious. First, man lives in a sinful and broken world. Then secondly, man has been made in the image of God! (Genesis 1:26-27) This amazing blend allows him to share certain of God’s attributes - the ability to love and sense grief and loss being a prime example. Emotional and relational suffering is a natural part of being human. But dealing with it, with any lasting degree of success, requires something unnatural – better yet, something supernatural. It requires the ongoing presence of perfect Comforter. It requires the helping and healing power of the Holy Spirit. And that requires an intimate knowledge Jesus Christ as Savior and also as Lord.
The words of the President to hurting families at Fort Hood were perhaps helpful – for that moment. But the words of Jesus to His family members allows for something outsiders can only dream of, and long for, when times of crisis arise.
“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14:27)
America’s “Comforter-in-Chief” may offer fine words of peace, But they cannot ever replace or equal the ministry of “Chief of all Comfort”.
Bill Breckenridge
That was President Barak Obama’s task this week as he tried to offer words of comfort and hope to the devastated families of those brutally murdered at Fort Hood. His was not any enviable position to be in. But his is the position that demands it.
Bill Clinton helped rebuild his troubled presidency with the way he reacted to the vicious Oklahoma City bombings. Then, too, George W. Bush governed throughout some of the worst events ever in American history. There was 9/11, the worst terrorist attack ever on the nation’s soil. That was soon followed by Hurricane Katrina, the most traumatic and crippling natural disaster to ever hit the U.S. mainland. Along with these there came a series of smaller but still difficult events like the space shuttle explosion, a terrible shooting rampage at Virginia Tech, a tornado that wiped out a Kansas town, a bridge collapse in Minnesota, Midwestern flooding and the catastrophic California wildfires.
When horrific events like these hit, it is the responsibility of Commander-in-Chief to be the chief comforter to the individual citizens he leads. Again, it is a difficult requirement but a worthy and sacred role. It is also true that the popularity of a President, and even his platform, can be altered depending on how key events are handled in public.
The God of the Bible is well aware of the grief and frustration that is the eventual part of every life. The ability of the Creator to relate to those He created is mentioned in Hebrews 4:15. The writer records there, “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” The Bible stresses forcefully that Jesus was 100% man while, at the same time, being 100% God. (Philippians 5:2-8) This miraculous and mysterious union enables Him to know how we feel when we face what we face. And while Christ’s human side can fully relate to our trials and needs, as fully God, He is able help man rightly respond and overcome them.
During His great prayer in John 14, Jesus was preparing His followers for His death and soon departure. He informed them that His leaving would not leave them some terrible void or sense of loss. Rather the Lord gave them a glimpse of the One who would take His earthly place on a full-time basis. It would be none other than His equal but in the form of the indwelling Holy Spirit. This part of the triune Godhead would not, in any way, be an inferior substitute to Christ’s physical presence. Instead, He would make available to all believers certain supernatural gifts and abilities.
One of the most critical of those assets is named in verses 16-18. John records Jesus’ words as follows. “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”
He later re-emphasizes the reason for, and benefits of, His leaving. “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; it is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.” (John 16:7) The Spirit would no longer come and go for specific and limited ministry tasks as was the case in Old Testament times. (Psalm 51:11) But He would now empower and dwell permanently in the hearts and lives of every true follower of Christ. Jesus was simply trying to convey the superior value of this new spiritual relationship.
Pain and suffering have always been part of the human condition. The reasons should be obvious. First, man lives in a sinful and broken world. Then secondly, man has been made in the image of God! (Genesis 1:26-27) This amazing blend allows him to share certain of God’s attributes - the ability to love and sense grief and loss being a prime example. Emotional and relational suffering is a natural part of being human. But dealing with it, with any lasting degree of success, requires something unnatural – better yet, something supernatural. It requires the ongoing presence of perfect Comforter. It requires the helping and healing power of the Holy Spirit. And that requires an intimate knowledge Jesus Christ as Savior and also as Lord.
The words of the President to hurting families at Fort Hood were perhaps helpful – for that moment. But the words of Jesus to His family members allows for something outsiders can only dream of, and long for, when times of crisis arise.
“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14:27)
America’s “Comforter-in-Chief” may offer fine words of peace, But they cannot ever replace or equal the ministry of “Chief of all Comfort”.
Bill Breckenridge
Berlin Wall Anniversary
It has been 20 full years since one of history's most symbolic moments captured the gaze of the entire globe. It is a story of heartache, struggle, death and finally victory!
On November 9, 1989 one of the all-time great examples of tyranny began to crumble - literally.
It was the Berlin Wall. The structure had separated more than just scores of German families and the country’s most notable city. It separated the opposing principles of freedom and bondage and simple good versus evil. It was a line that had divided, in many ways, the civilized world for 28 long and painful years. The 96 mile long span was also the site of the 136 deaths of those who thought it important enough to risk their lives rather than live in bondage.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Sunday that "the ideals that drove Berliners to tear down that wall are no less relevant today." And Lutheran Bishop Wolfgang Huber told the congregation at the Gethsemane Church, "We remember the tears of joy, the faces of delight, the liberation."
His words rang true, but only those who personally experience a Berlin Wall, or something like it, can truly relate to its devastating and lingering effects. All others must try to imagine what that specific form of suffering might be like.
The existence and tearing down of the Berlin Wall carries a deeply significant spiritual illustration. There is a wall that separates God from all men. It begins at birth. It affects all the same. But it does not come through the typical treachery of some earthly entity. Scripture teaches that man is born in sin, separated from God, and without hope in the world (Psalm 51:5, Ephesians 2:11-13). Even so, the Apostle Paul makes it abundantly clear that these effects of this grim reality are reversible when man’s faith is linked with God’s grace. He condenses the matter down to just a few powerful and profound words in Ephesians 2:8-9. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”
A few verses later Paul reveals some of the spiritual mechanics of how God accomplished this miraculous and eternal task. He uses language similar to that often used of Berlin’s wicked wall. Ephesians 2:14-17 reads, “For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.”
Scripture is clear that man is born into sin, separated from God, and without hope in the world (Psalm 51:5, Ephesians 2:11-13) Fortunately it is equally clear that sin’s dreadful effects need not reign supreme since there is a way to flatten this most destructive of all walls. Romans 5:8 provides the foundational reason for God’s tearing down of the relational wall between Himself and those He made. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” It was that unique love that caused Christ to fully smash through the wall of sin that divided all humanity from Himself. The route of escape has been fully cleared. That is all about God’s grace. But each and everyone must chose to walk it to arrive at the place of spiritual freedom. That is all about man’s personal faith.
It seems highly symbolic that Bishop Wolfgang Huber addressed his congregation from a church called Gethsemane – the name of the place where Christ prayed just before becoming the divine target for the sins of man. No doubt many in Huber’s flock recalled the building and tearing down of Berlin’s wall of woe. Some there maybe lived behind it until escaping its destructive grasp. With that said, those and likely many others still live today behind a self –imposed ‘spiritual’ iron curtain. Perhaps they recall well that moment of great national freedom. Some will remember vividly gaining their own physical release, but unaware that they remain captives from birth in another realm on this great anniversary.
Some will be forced to live in physical bondage for part or all of their earthly lives. That is just a tragic part of life in a fallen world. Then there are those who are blessed enough to never experience that brand of suffering. But both share equally in something far more serious and infinitely deadly.
All who will ever draw a single breath are born spiritually captive and in desperate need of escape. They face together a serious universal flaw but have access to the solitary universal cure. That exclusive repair is quite simple in its requirement (2 Corinthians 11:3) but beyond stunning in its impact. (Colossians 1:13) It requires only a sincere act of faith in response to God’s sacrificial act of grace. And when that great wall of separation is broken down by God’s greater act of grace, then will the great words in the Bible writer become the equally great testimony of the Bible reader!
“Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” (John 8:36)
Bill Breckenridge
On November 9, 1989 one of the all-time great examples of tyranny began to crumble - literally.
It was the Berlin Wall. The structure had separated more than just scores of German families and the country’s most notable city. It separated the opposing principles of freedom and bondage and simple good versus evil. It was a line that had divided, in many ways, the civilized world for 28 long and painful years. The 96 mile long span was also the site of the 136 deaths of those who thought it important enough to risk their lives rather than live in bondage.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Sunday that "the ideals that drove Berliners to tear down that wall are no less relevant today." And Lutheran Bishop Wolfgang Huber told the congregation at the Gethsemane Church, "We remember the tears of joy, the faces of delight, the liberation."
His words rang true, but only those who personally experience a Berlin Wall, or something like it, can truly relate to its devastating and lingering effects. All others must try to imagine what that specific form of suffering might be like.
The existence and tearing down of the Berlin Wall carries a deeply significant spiritual illustration. There is a wall that separates God from all men. It begins at birth. It affects all the same. But it does not come through the typical treachery of some earthly entity. Scripture teaches that man is born in sin, separated from God, and without hope in the world (Psalm 51:5, Ephesians 2:11-13). Even so, the Apostle Paul makes it abundantly clear that these effects of this grim reality are reversible when man’s faith is linked with God’s grace. He condenses the matter down to just a few powerful and profound words in Ephesians 2:8-9. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”
A few verses later Paul reveals some of the spiritual mechanics of how God accomplished this miraculous and eternal task. He uses language similar to that often used of Berlin’s wicked wall. Ephesians 2:14-17 reads, “For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.”
Scripture is clear that man is born into sin, separated from God, and without hope in the world (Psalm 51:5, Ephesians 2:11-13) Fortunately it is equally clear that sin’s dreadful effects need not reign supreme since there is a way to flatten this most destructive of all walls. Romans 5:8 provides the foundational reason for God’s tearing down of the relational wall between Himself and those He made. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” It was that unique love that caused Christ to fully smash through the wall of sin that divided all humanity from Himself. The route of escape has been fully cleared. That is all about God’s grace. But each and everyone must chose to walk it to arrive at the place of spiritual freedom. That is all about man’s personal faith.
It seems highly symbolic that Bishop Wolfgang Huber addressed his congregation from a church called Gethsemane – the name of the place where Christ prayed just before becoming the divine target for the sins of man. No doubt many in Huber’s flock recalled the building and tearing down of Berlin’s wall of woe. Some there maybe lived behind it until escaping its destructive grasp. With that said, those and likely many others still live today behind a self –imposed ‘spiritual’ iron curtain. Perhaps they recall well that moment of great national freedom. Some will remember vividly gaining their own physical release, but unaware that they remain captives from birth in another realm on this great anniversary.
Some will be forced to live in physical bondage for part or all of their earthly lives. That is just a tragic part of life in a fallen world. Then there are those who are blessed enough to never experience that brand of suffering. But both share equally in something far more serious and infinitely deadly.
All who will ever draw a single breath are born spiritually captive and in desperate need of escape. They face together a serious universal flaw but have access to the solitary universal cure. That exclusive repair is quite simple in its requirement (2 Corinthians 11:3) but beyond stunning in its impact. (Colossians 1:13) It requires only a sincere act of faith in response to God’s sacrificial act of grace. And when that great wall of separation is broken down by God’s greater act of grace, then will the great words in the Bible writer become the equally great testimony of the Bible reader!
“Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” (John 8:36)
Bill Breckenridge
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