Be a lover!

 

“Are you a lover or a fighter?”  My uncle would ask me that playfully when I was a little boy, but I caught the implication of his words. “Tough and tender don’t mix, so toughen up little boy.”  Our world is very effective at knocking the tenderness out of us, isn’t it?  Early in life we realize the struggle, that there are people whose mission in the world is to make others miserable.  We meet playground bullies who delight in making it clear who’s ‘in’ and who’s ‘out.’  We are bludgeoned by cruel words that make it clear where we fit in or don't!  Lines are drawn – rich, poor, black, white, male, female. There is competition for … well, just about everything and we learn the ‘power game’ that is life for many.  

The last three weeks make us witnesses to human cruelty on a horrific scale. The complicated mess that is world politics brought an invasion of a peaceful country, the destruction of cities and towns, the death of thousands – both soldiers and civilians. The callous cruelty of a man with power is demonstrated daily with tanks, bombs, and missiles. The demons of death dance in delight while the angels of heaven weep. And, I returned to an old thought – “Jerry, are you a lover or a fighter?”  That might seem a strange thought to you, but it is distills our response to the world in which we live to the basics.  

 While I am not a pacifist and recognize the tragic need for armed response, I am equally convinced that God’s desire for His children is that our first response to life is open arms not clenched fists.  

World peace will not come until the Second Coming of Christ, the King. Only His perfect justice and triumph over evil will cause wars to cease. But, we are called to be peacemakers even now, people who love in His Name. A Christian who lives in constant friction, causing division and disunity, who exploits others, is a spiritual flop, failing to live the heart of the Gospel!  You may be as proud as a peacock about your personal morality, your stellar record of church attendance, even your good deeds but if you live at odds with the world around you, there is a major misunderstanding of what it means to be Christ’s disciple.

Jesus’ words are clear, not requiring a theology degree for understanding. They are quoted frequently and practiced seldom. He says  “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35, NIV)  Peace begins with you and with me as we choose radical love, which is demonstrated in forgiveness, in acceptance, in care, by building bridges not walls.

So, I ask you “Are you a lover or a fighter?”  Don’t complicate it by pointing to world problems. Just look at your own life. Is the love of God you claim transforming you into a person of love?

The word from the Word points us to heart change, to the inner security found in our Father’s love that makes us people capable of loving in a world full of hate. Meditate on these words today.

"How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. …

    We know that we have passed from death to life,
    because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death.

Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him. This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. … And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us." (1 John 3:1-2, 14-16, 23, NIV)

“Are you a lover or a fighter?”  It’s not a silly question, at all.

(Video of this blog at this link)

______________

The Love Of God

The love of God is greater far
Than tongue or pen can ever tell
It goes beyond the highest star
And reaches to the lowest hell
The guilty pair bowed down with care
God gave His Son to win
His erring child He reconciled
And pardoned from his sin

O love of God how rich and pure
How measureless and strong
It shall forevermore endure
The saints and angels song

When years of time shall pass away
And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall
When men who here refuse to pray
On rocks and hills and mountains call
God's love so sure shall still endure
All measureless and strong
Redeeming grace to Adam's race
The saints and angels song

Could we with ink the ocean fill
And were the skies of parchment made
Were every stalk on earth a quill
And every man a scribe by trade

To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry
Nor could the scroll contain the whole
Though stretched from sky to sky

Frederick Martin Lehman | Meir Ben Isaac Nehorai

© Words: Public Domain

I’ve got your 6.

 

“I’ve got your 6.” The phrase means “I’m watching out for you!”  It came from fighter pilots in the first World War referring to the plane following them as being in the ‘6’ position, a reference to the face of a clock with 12 at the top and 6 at the bottom.  That was a protective position and the phrase evolved for use in combat situations for those who were covering another. 

Who is watching your back, caring for you?  Who’s got your 6?  I am blessed by friends and family I know I can count on to be my advocate, to stand up for me, to step in with encouragement.

Christian there is One who ALWAYS has our 6! We have a High Priest who is always praying for us!  While I sincerely appreciate those who tell me "I was praying for you today,”  nothing to that assurance and comfort I find in knowing that Jesus Christ is at the Father's right hand making a case for me, asking for mercy on my behalf, directing the Spirit to keep me on my feet when life is coming at me hard and fast. - "We have a great High Priest who has gone to heaven, Jesus the Son of God. Let us cling to him and never stop trusting him. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same temptations we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it." (Hebrews 4:14-16, NLT)

In throne room of God, we have an Advocate – yes that is amazing - and it is true! "He is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. Such a high priest meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens." (Hebrews 7:25-26, NIV)

John's Gospel records the final hours of Jesus' earthly ministry in greater detail than the other Gospels. The 17th chapter is a record of the prayer that Jesus prayed on behalf of His disciples and for Believers to this day. In those words, we hear His love.  “I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. They do not belong to this world any more than I do. Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth." (John 17:14-17, NLT)

What He does not pray is as important to note as what He does ask on our behalf. He does not ask God to make life easy or to provide us an escape from the human experience.  Sometimes I pray that way asking to be relieved of responsibility or be given a place of lesser struggle. “God, let me outta here! Change this situation."  But Jesus prays that we are kept in the Father’s hand and preserved from spiritual destruction, that we will be full of the Spirit's life and distinct as the people of God in a dark world, and that we will understand God's word and will. And all the while He’s got your 6!

If you feel alone, or if you are facing a difficult day, remember this -

Jesus is praying for you!

He asks the best for you, not the easy!

 Pray like He prays; not for release, but for courage; not for an easier place, but for His glory shine through you as remain faithful to Him in your present situation.  Remember this. Our High Priest understands our needs for He was tempted and tested in all the ways we are. When you're wrestling with life and the will of God, remember He did, too. As He prayed in Gethsemane, under terrible pressure and in great anguish, He pleaded for another way, but eventually came 'round to surrender, "Not my will, Father, but Yours, be done!" So He understands when you're pressured, squeezed, stressed, broken, disappointed, distraught, confused, or afraid! He is praying for you.

The word from the Word - "God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never forsake you.” That is why we can say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper, so I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”" (Hebrews 13:5-6, NLT)

(Video of this blog at this link)

______________

Our Great Savior

Jesus what a friend for sinners
Jesus lover of my soul
Friends may fail me foes assail me
He my Saviour makes me whole

Hallelujah what a Saviour
Hallelujah what a friend
Saving helping keeping loving
He is with me to the end

Jesus what a strength in weakness
Let me hide myself in Him
Tempted tried and sometimes failing
He my strength my vict'ry wins

Jesus I do now receive Him
More than all in Him I find
He hath granted me forgiveness
I am His and He is mine

 

John Wilbur Chapman

• Public Domain

“Stop bawling and get moving”

 

What do you fear?  Don’t tell me nothing. We all deal with something that gets to us – spiders, heights, darkness, confined spaces perhaps?  And there is another kind of fear, one that is far worse than arachnophobia. The unknown, the unseen, the future can bring an undefined dread that grows to become a life-altering anxiety. Only a fool would say that there is nothing to fear.  How can we counter fear?

In the book of Exodus we read about the deliverance of God’s people from Egypt.  There is a battle of wills, God’s power meeting the pride of man, but finally after the 10 plagues the Pharaoh relents sending a nation of slaves off towards the ‘Promised Land’ with Moses leading the way and then this happens - "When word reached the king of Egypt that the Israelites were not planning to return to Egypt after three days, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds. “What have we done, letting all these slaves get away?” they asked. So Pharaoh called out his troops and led the chase in his chariot." (Exodus 14:5-6, NLT)  Uh oh!   

God’s people were camped at the Red Sea, water in front of them and the military might of is approaching. There is no way out.  Yes, they panicked!  Despite all they had seen God do, they fell into a natural response of fear. "As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up and saw them—Egyptians! Coming at them! They were totally afraid. They cried out in terror to God. They told Moses, “Weren’t the cemeteries large enough in Egypt so that you had to take us out here in the wilderness to die? What have you done to us, taking us out of Egypt? Back in Egypt didn’t we tell you this would happen? Didn’t we tell you, ‘Leave us alone here in Egypt—we’re better off as slaves in Egypt than as corpses in the wilderness.’ ”  (Exodus 14:10-12, The Message)

Knowing the end of the story it’s easy to ask what was wrong with them, to wonder how they could forget the miracles they had witnessed in Egypt.  But, truthfully, I admit that I can identify with their terror.  There were no obvious solutions, no places to turn – from a human point of view.  I can identify with their terror, can you?  How like our lives, isn’t it?

Moses reminded them of who they were, of their status as the people of the Lord. “Don’t be afraid. Stand firm and watch God do his work of salvation for you today. Take a good look at the Egyptians today for you’re never going to see them again." (Exodus 14:13, The Message)   Moses was afraid, too, but he kept his own fear hidden, crying out to God in private. "And the Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward." (Exodus 14:15, NKJV)    God’s answer seems abrupt, almost cruel.  He does not coddle or comfort. He challenges. “Stop bawling and get moving.”  Then the Lord told him to get out in front of the people and stand beside the Red Sea. There he was to raise his staff and hold it over the water. God said it would part and the people would walk through on dry land!   When he exercised faith and did what God asked, the path of deliverance appeared, not around but straight through the Red Sea. What a powerful story for times of fear.

If you have grown afraid – of the future, of the war, of an illness, of growing old, of losing your security - take God’s word to Moses as your challenge. Stand in faith. Watch God work. Face the future and get moving!

Our word from the Word comes from Isaiah. The people of God were in a terrible situation. God speaks in the preacher’s words. "The LORD spoke to me with his strong hand upon me, warning me not to follow the way of this people. He said: “Do not call conspiracy everything that these people call conspiracy; do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it. The LORD Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread, and he will be a sanctuary; but for both houses of Israel he will be a stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall. And for the people of Jerusalem he will be a trap and a snare." (Isaiah 8:11-14, NIV)  Let only the fear of the Lord own your heart and mind, for in Him is wisdom and strength.

(Video of this blog at this link)

______________

Mighty To Save 

Ev’ryone needs compassion
Love that's never failing
Let mercy fall on me
Ev’ryone needs forgiveness
The kindness of a Saviour
The hope of nations

Saviour He can move the mountains
My God is mighty to save
He is mighty to save
Forever Author of salvation
He rose and conquered the grave
Jesus conquered the grave 

So take me as You find me
All my fears and failures
Fill my life again
I give my life to follow
Ev’rything I believe in
Now I surrender

Shine your light and let the whole world see
We're singing
For the glory of the risen King
Jesus
Shine your light and let the whole world see
We're singing
For the glory of the risen King 

Ben Fielding | Reuben Morgan

© 2006 Hillsong Music Publishing Australia (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

CCLI License # 810055