Truth Unashamed

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes..."  Romans 1:16

In this world of political correctness the message of Jesus Christ is becoming more and more controversial.  Why?  In a conversation with a Hindu priest several years ago, he told me that he believed Christians were narrow-minded.  His reasoning was that he did not have any problem accepting our Jesus as one of his gods.  However, Christians told him that there was only one God and only way to have everlasting life.  This was too exclusive in his way of thinking.  Why not be more diverse?  Why not be more accepting of the opinions of others?  After all, aren't we all God's children?
Let me defend the gospel of Christ in two ways.  First, the gospel of Christ is not a message of hate that excludes people.  I believe the message of Jesus Christ is inclusive in its invitation but exclusive in its application.  That is another way of saying that the offer is open to whosoever will, but only those who turn to Jesus Christ can have true life.  Some have the false idea that Jesus came to this world to condemn those who did not believe on Him to hell.  That is a misunderstanding of why Jesus came.  He said in John 3:17 that He did not come to condemn the world but to save the world.  Our sin is what condemns us.  A judge passes a sentence on a criminal, but it is the crime that condemned the person.  Our Judge, Jesus Christ, offered Himself as the payment of our penalty if we would accept Him and turn our lives over to Him.  Secondly, the gospel of Christ has a life changing power that is unparalleled by any other system of belief.  This message has turned lives upside down for over 2,000 years, and it will do the same for eternity.  It has been a message that has stood the test of time.  It has withstood the persecution of its believers.  It has outlasted the fads of belief that come and go.  As a believer, don't hesitate to boldly proclaim the truth of God.  Man may try to change it, pollute it, and insult it, but its power is eternal.

Why Should I Rejoice?

"Rejoice in the Lord always.  Again I will say, rejoice!"  Philippians 4:4

 Do you have someone in your life that always seems so perky that it is annoying?  Maybe it is that coworker that has already had way too much coffee when they get to work.  Maybe it is a family member that is without doubt a "morning person" and thinks that everyone should sing in the shower.  This kind of "happiness" just seems over the top.  It grates on our nerves.  Paul is telling us to rejoice, but is this what he means?  Surely it couldn't be.

As a matter of fact this kind of rejoicing has nothing to do with "positive thinking" or "seeing the cup as half full".  Many Christian authors almost sound like self-help gurus instead of Holy Spirit dependent people.  They instruct people to manufacture something that is not there with the idea that what they construct will become their reality.  This just isn't realistic though.  We all face difficulties and trials.  There are times in our life that the only way we could smile was if it was fake.  We are literally living in hurt and anguish.  So we turn to the Word of God for comfort and read that we are to rejoice always.  How can we do that?  Don't leave out a key phrase for this whole passage.  We often get stuck on the word rejoice.  Paul's admonition was not to rejoice in your circumstances.  Your circumstances may be overwhelming and difficult.  Paul's admonition was not to rejoice in your relationships with people.  Relationships can be trying.  Paul encouraged and instructed us to rejoice "in the Lord".  That changes everything.  Just a couple of verses earlier he had challenged two individuals that were at odds with one another to unify together.  He understood that relationships were difficult, but we are not to rejoice in relationships.  We are to rejoice in the Lord.  Paul's circumstances during this time were horrible.  Philippians is what we call a "prison epistle".  Yes, he was writing these words from a damp, dark, rat infested dungeon.  He was bound by his captors and not sure what the next day held for him.  Yet, if you listen closely, you can hear these words echo off of the block walls of that cell:  Rejoice in the Lord always.  For emphasis he repeats the admonition:  Again I will say, rejoice!  Paul was not caught up in his circumstances.  That was not the most important thing in his life.  Paul was enraptured with the thought that his name was in the book of life.  He was a child of God.  There are no chains that can bind the heart that has been set free by Christ.  There are no shackles that can be wrapped around the soul that has been delivered by the blood of Jesus.  In the midst of our circumstances let us rejoice always in the Lord.

Other Little Boats

"Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him." Mark 4:36

Jesus and His disciples are headed straight into a storm. This storm is going to test the faith of the disciples. It is going to teach them once again of the almighty power of God, the Lord of creation. They will be shaken by what they encounter. They will learn a multitude of hard lessons in a short amount of time. Storms are never easy to go through. Most of us dread the storms of life.
I am sure that we have all heard numerous people share their stories about the storms that they have been through. There are many kinds of storms, and they affect all of us differently. However, I would like to take our eyes off of ourselves for a moment. The one drawback that can happen to us when we are in a storm is that we become very self-centered. We begin to believe that no one has it as bad as we do. We become fixated on our pain and discomfort. We relate everything that is going on around us to our personal crisis. We wonder why others don't see things the way we see them. What we fail to realize is that there are "other little boats" that are affected by our storm. In our passage, we do not know who was in these other little boats, but they experienced the wind and the waves as much as the disciples. They were in a crisis as well. We can imagine what kind of fear and anxiety had crept into their hearts.
I believe that God is calling on each of us to recognize the others that are caught up in our storm. Some of you have spouses, children, family, friends, and coworkers that have experienced the waves of your storm. They have been taking on water and felt like they were going under, but you didn't notice. You were understandably so caught up with what was swirling around you that you could not hear their cries. I would like to challenge you today to listen over the noise of the howling wind and hear their frightened voices. Look over at their little boat and recognize the difficulty of their situation. Then, once you have seen and heard them, ask God to calm not only the storm for your sake but for theirs as well. Reach outside of yourself and love those in the other little boats. Find the peace of God together!

The Shepherd's Work

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"The words of the wise are like goads, and the words of scholars are like well-driven nails, given by one Shepherd." Ecclesiastes 12:11

There is a power in the words that we speak. We all know that at times our words can be utterly destructive. However, when we use "wise words" we are able to build people up as Christ would. All of us can remember something said to us that not only encouraged us but more importantly taught us. These words have been a guiding force during our lives. I personally can remember several things said to me by a man name Charles Whetsel. Susan and I had only been in ministry for a brief time and desperately needed someone wiser to share with us what they had learned from God. I am still thankful today for the things that I heard Charles speak into my life. Some of them were said directly to me, while others were things that I heard him say to others.
The Scriptures compare these words to three things: 1)They are goads. These wise words prod us on and encourage us to not quit. The driver of the mule or ox knows his animal. He knows exactly when the animal is laboring and faltering. It is at this time that he wisely uses the goad to push the animal forward. If he were to use it all of the time, the beast would kick against it and rebel. However, because the master is wise, the goad is always right on time. Maybe you are ready to throw in the towel. You have labored and are discouraged. Listen to the words of our Master and be steadfast and unmovable, continuing in the Lord's work with the knowledge that your labor is not in vain. 2)Wise words are well-driven nails. A carpenter knows that the placement of a nail is crucial. He knows that you place the nail at a joint or a place of weakness so that it is held fast and strong. Placing a nail at a position where there is nothing to nail into would be futile. God knows our weaknesses, and according to Scripture it is there that He places His strength. He told Paul that His grace (the nail of God's goodness) was made perfect in his weakness. (Just a side note, it was the three nails of faith, hope, and charity that held our Savior to the cross.) 3)Wise words come from THE Shepherd. That wise voice that calls you to Himself is our Shepherd, Jesus Christ. It is His voice you hear, because the sheep know the voice of the Shepherd. When He calls you to Himself, do not hesitate but run to Him. When you fall at His feet, listen intently to His Word and apply those things that you learn their in that place. At times, He will use others to teach us, but always listen to the wisdom of the Shepherd as you hear the words.

Daily Light - May 22, 2012

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, loving favor rather than silver and gold."  Proverbs 22:1

"I don't care what anyone thinks" is a popular mantra for those with a rebellious spirit.  Life is lived with a disregard for the opinions of others.  Granted, our first concern about how we live our lives should be what God thinks and not others, but there are numerous admonitions in Scripture for God's children to live so that others may see Christ in us.  We are called to live in holiness so that our reputation may be one of blamelessness.  We are admonished to let our light shine so brightly that when others see it they will glorify our Father in Heaven.

Solomon knew that a reputation of godliness was far greater than all of the wealth in the world, something which he had.  A godly reputation must be diligently sought and finely crafted.  This thought occurred to me while working in the yard the other day.  As I was passing by with the mower I saw an old bird's nest that had fallen out of a palm tree.  It was obvious that it had been used some time ago, but it was still completely intact.  When I came by it again, the mower chewed it up and spit it out in a thousand tiny pieces.  That is when I started to reflect on that nest.

At some point in time a bird carefully knit that nest together.  It gathered twigs and other debris to make it exactly right.  The time and the effort alone are incredible to consider.  Strong winds and rain cannot tear apart that beautifully crafted nest.  However, in just a split second the blades of that mower tore all of that work apart.

Such is a reputation.  We can work for years doing what is right, saying the right things, and submitting our will unto the Lord.  A finely crafted reputation is a thing of beauty and more valuable than anything on this earth.  However, sin can suddenly tear that reputation to shreds.  What was once thought of as seemingly indestructible can be scattered as tiny pieces of ruined hopes and relationships.  What was once a thing of beauty and honor is now a pile of worthless rubble.  Oh, let us not only build a reputation that honors God but let us be determined to protect it each and every day!

For those who have had their reputation ruined by sin, do not lose hope.  That bird's nest will never be the same, but we are given the promise that our God is one who restores and redeems what has been broken.  He can take the pieces and mold them back together to be of great beauty once again.  It will surely take plenty of time, and the process will most likely be painful, but listen to the Savior say, "I make all things new!"

Pastor David

mydailylight.blogspot.com

Daily Light - February 28, 2012

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think,

according to the power that works in us."

Ephesians 3:20

We live in a world that is full of limitations.  There are those of us that hate to admit it, but we are limited in what we can accomplish in this life.  We are limited by factors that are out of our control.  There are only so many hours in a day.  We have a limited number of days in a week.  Physically there are restrictions on our bodies and in our minds.  If we could only break through these barriers, the impossible would become reality.
It would be good for us to remember the story of Gideon and the 300 men that went with him into battle.  They faced an army that outnumbered them by more than was even fathomable.  Gideon's mighty army of 32,000 had dwindled to just a handful in comparison.  They had no swords, spears, or shields with which to fight.  Their weapons consisted of lanterns and trumpets.  To win a battle in such was would be impossible except for one powerful fact:  God was with them.  As a matter of fact, He had purposely reduced their numbers and chosen their weapons for the express purposes of them being dependent on Him and His receiving the glory for the victory.
There was not a soldier including Gideon that could have fathomed what would take place in the valley below them, but when they blew the trumpets and let their lanterns shine they saw the God of the impossible do wondrous works.  This is what Paul is praying for in His letter to the Ephesian church.  This young church does not realize how great the resource of God's power is in their midst.  They possess an inordinate amount of blessing and strength, but all that they can see are their limitations.  Paul commits them to the Lord who can do "exceedingly abundantly above all that they ask or think".
How similar we are to the church of Ephesus!  We have the great and mighty God that created all things through the power of His spoken word living within us, but we are bogged down in the mud of sin and self.  We struggle with the limitations of what we can and can't do and forget to turn our lives over to the power of the Holy Spirit.  We live in defeat as if Satan is more powerful than God and therefore we will always be in bondage to the sin which does so easily beset us.  Let us remember the words of Scripture, "Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world!"
Call now more than ever on the only One that can do what you cannot do and even what you cannot imagine.  He is not limited but limitless!

Daily Light - February 23, 2012

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"The LORD our God, the LORD is one!"

Deuteronomy 6:4

When Jesus was asked which commandment was the greatest, He came back to the well-known declaration of the Hebrew Shema, "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength."  This great commandment was preceded by the words, "The LORD our God, the LORD is one!"

Society today has a buzzword that flows through our media, corporate human resources, athletics, etc.  That word is "diversity".  It is an important word because we live in a very diverse world, especially in the United States.  People from all walks of life, socioeconomic backgrounds, cultures, races, and homes live, work and exist together.  Walk into almost any large or medium sized city and you will see diversity on its grandest display.  You can see it through physical characteristics, religious backgrounds, societal behaviors, etc.  People have differences in taste when it comes to clothing, food, and habits.  They look different, act different, and even smell different.  Diversity in our day and culture must be understood as normal and accepted.

However, in all of this diversity there is one thing and one thing only that remains consistent:  there is, always has been, and always will be ONE God!  Throughout the pages of Scripture and the years of history He has been on display for all to see.  From the beginning as we know it He was the Creator and Giver of life.  He declared Himself to be the I AM to Moses as He led His chosen people out of captivity.  As Jehovah (I AM) He showed Himself to be Shalom (peace), Tsidkenu (righteousness), Rapha (healer), Rohi, (shepherd), Jireh (provider), and Nissi (banner).  This same God as the fulfillment of prophecy came to this earth in the form of man (Jesus) to be the Suffering Servant that would take the sins of the world upon Himself and be the Sacrifice that was needed for sin to be cleansed.  One of His disciples would rightfully declare Him to be the Messiah.  Today we learn of Him as He (the Holy Spirit) teaches us and convicts us.  We also await the day that the clouds will be gathered at the four winds of the sky and the whole world will watch as He steps out as King of kings and calls His children to spend eternity with Him.

There may be many people with many differences, but God is the only One that can truly unite us.  Jesus came to draw all men to Himself.  He did not come for a particular race, nation, or people group.  He came because He is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.  Jesus Christ and He alone is the Hope that this world desperately needs.  We who have been changed by Him must shine the light of His salvation like a city set on a hill.  Let us declare to every man, woman, and child that there is one God and He loves them!