Connecting Points

Monday, December 21, 2009

Current Study: Advent

Today’s Topic:  Maturing Love

Scripture Reading:  Matthew 1:20-21  An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

It is the theme of more songs than any other subject. It is the subject of more prose and poetry than any other topic. It is the topic of more conversations than any other item of interest. It interests everyone even before we understand we are interested in it. We were designed by our eternal Creator to need it, know it, experience it and show it. It is love.

The love of God that we have the capacity to know and experience is far greater than the counterfeit defined and desired by the world. What the world calls love is nothing more than an attempt to satisfy self, and should not be called love at all. The essence of love has nothing to do with emotions. It has even less to do with hormones. Love may produce emotional responses, but it is not found in the emotions. Love is volitional, not emotional. Love is found in the will of one’s heart.

The love of God is not based on His emotional connection to mankind, for there is nothing in our sinful nature for Him to desire. Love is itself an attribute of God, not a product of any of His other attributes. His nature is love, and therefore His actions are all loving. Even in His judgment of sin He declares His love for the sinner. Jesus came to earth to be judged for our sin, yet God sent Him as an expression of His love so that we might be forgiven and experience His love.

As I read the story of Joseph I am impressed by the nature of his love. What kind of love was it that would move Joseph to listen to the angel and take Mary as his wife after she was already pregnant and declared by society to be an adulteress? How great the love he knew that he would forego the stoning required by the law and marry her. How strong the love he lived that he would put his own reputation and career at risk for the sake of honoring God. How secure he was in the love of God to prioritize obedience to his Lord over acceptance of his culture. How confident he was of God’s love that the opinions, scorn, and even rejection of his friends were not allowed to influence his decision. What love Joseph knew!

We are in desperate need of this kind of love. As the Apostle Paul said, And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:17-19 NIV)

We may think we know what love is, but the reality is probably that we don’t. How many of us would dare to presume that we know the depth and width and length and height of God’s love? But according to Paul we can. We must not be satisfied with less than the fullness of God’s love. So here’s a measuring stick to help you determine where you are in the process of understanding the love of God. May the Lord use it to bring you to maturity in love so that you fulfill the promise of Jesus when He said that the world will know we are Christians by our love.

These are the five stages of love’s maturity. Stage one is actually not love at all, but must be the starting point because it’s where we all begin apart from Christ.

1.    The love of self for self’s sake – All choices are made for the benefit of self because love of self has been chosen as one’s highest priority.

2.    The love of God for self’s sake – All choices have a spiritual appearance, but God is worshipped and served only so long as self is well served.

3.    The love of God for God’s sake – Now love is beginning to truly be experienced. We love God not for what He does for us but exclusively for Who He is.

4.    The love of self for God’s sake – We now see ourselves in light of God’s grace that has forgiven us, accepted us, and qualified us as His eternal child.

5.    The love of others for God’s sake – This is the fullness of love – the sacrifice of one’s self for the sake of another.

It was the love of others for God’s sake that moved Joseph to consider God’s purpose and take Mary as His wife. It was the same love that had sent Jesus to her womb. God’s love is unique to Him, but shared with those who are His. Each one who has been born of God has inherited the love of God. We can and we must know it, experience it, and live it.  

Pastor John

Connecting Points

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Current Study: Advent

Today’s Topic:  Living Love

Scripture Reading:  Luke 11:42  “Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.

I would rather do simple things motivated by the love of God than great things tainted with even a hint of pride.

That statement was born in my mind this morning as I was reading a devotional from Brother Lawrence, a monk from the 17^th century who wrote the book Practicing the Presence of God. I was deeply challenged with his words when he wrote, We ought not to be weary of doing little things for the love of God, who regards not the greatness of the work, but the love with which it is performed.

When Jesus came to earth as the living expression of the love of God, a stark contrast was created. The culture into which Jesus was born was one of great pride, manifesting itself in mandated obedience to the law that had been translated and twisted to accomplish self-righteousness. Jesus entered this world of self-centered sin with the liberating language of love. The contrast created conflict ending in crucifixion

It was in the midst of a meal that the contrast created such conflict that the religious leaders of the day began to actively pursue the elimination of the Messenger whose words threatened their prideful positions and possessions. You can read the complete story in Luke chapter 11.

In His response to the legalistic position of the Pharisees, Jesus declared six things that He saw as woeful behavior in them. It is the very first one that to me is most significant, because it expresses the contrast that caused the conflict. The Pharisees were so intent on obedience to even the tiniest aspect of the law that they completely ignored love to people based on the love of God.

The Pharisees were so concerned with their image that they even placed a tenth of their garden herbs in the offering at the temple. Yet when it came to helping the needy and the hurting, they separated themselves from such activity for fear that they would somehow become ceremonially unclean for worship. Their image had become more important to them than the expression of the love of God.

Jesus addressed this issue first in His response to them. He told them that the love of God and the loving treatment of people were to be most evident in their lives. Obedience to even the simplest laws of God was important and not to be neglected, but obedience was never to overshadow love. Obedience is never an end in itself. In fact, the self-righteousness and image-consciousness attached to obedience not motivated by love is woeful in the eyes of God.

Love is to be the reason we live and the motivation for all activity. Legalism chooses what is beneficial to self. Love chooses only what is beneficial to others. Maybe this would be a good time to review what the Bible says about a lifestyle of love.

• Love is more important than miraculous spiritual gifts – If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 
• Love is more important than knowledge and faith – If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 
• Love is more important than sacrificial giving – If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.
• Love is to expressed in every aspect of our personality, lifestyle, and relationships –
  • Love is patient and kind.
  • Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 
    or rude.
  • Love does not demand its own way.
  • Love is not irritable
  • Love keeps no record of being wronged.
  • Love does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 
  • Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. 

Many times I think we fall into the trap of the Pharisees, somehow hoping our actions will bring credibility and value to our lives. God’s love alone can do that. His love qualified us. No amount of obedience can improve our standing before God. We have already been given full rights of inheritance as the children of God. The love of God has conquered the need for self-affirmation. As a result, let the love of God motivate all of your actions. True love always benefits others. We can live that way now because we’ve already received all the benefits of God’s love.

Pastor John

Connecting Points

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Current Study: Advent

Today’s Topic:  I’m Still Standing

Scripture Reading:  1 John 3:1  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!

All I was doing was putting on my socks. I did it the same way I do every morning. I don’t know what happened. By the time I got to the kitchen for my bowl of Frosted Mini Wheats and my coffee, I couldn’t stand up straight. I am currently experiencing the kind of lower back pain that blurs the vision. It is sapping my strength.

As I sit here at my desk I wonder if I’ll be able to get out of my chair. Getting out of the car was a struggle. One of the many well-conditioned muscles :) of my back has decided to cramp up and I don’t know how to uncramp it. I am sitting differently. I look goofy when I stand. (Stop it. I know I look goofy anyway. And don’t make me laugh because it hurts too much.) It’s probably obvious that the pain is affecting my ability to think and write.

Even though the pain has changed my physical positioning, it is not affecting my permanent position as a son of the Most High God. Hallelujah for that. Pain can’t stop love, and the love of God has been lavished on us. King David knew about this love when he wrote this in Psalm 36:

How priceless is your unfailing love!

Both high and low among men find  refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house; 

you give them drink from your river of delights.  For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.

The Apostle Paul declared that by the power of God’s love our position in Christ is eternally secure.

In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:37-39)

Paul also wrote that the power of God’s love is what put us in that permanent position in the first place.

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,   made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.   And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,   in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-7)

When trouble comes; when pain increases; when strength is sapped and needs to be replenished, follow the advice of Ephesians 3:16-19.

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,   so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love,   may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,   and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

I’ve been lavished with love by my heavenly Father. The pain in my back, or pains in the neck, can’t change His love for me or my stand in Him. So I’m going to have a “count-it-all-joy” party today, knowing that Jesus is teaching me the depths of His love so that I can be filled to the brim with the fullness of God. Anybody want to come to the party?

Pastor John
  

Connecting Points

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Current Study: Advent

Today’s Topic:  Love

Scripture Reading:  Galatians 4:3-5  We were in slavery under the basic principles of the world. But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. 

What made him do it? He was a free man. Not only had he never been a slave, he had spent his entire life working to free slaves. So what made him voluntarily become a slave?

For years Jack had been the voice of truth and reason in his small southern community. But he was opposed to the slave trade that was ingrained in the everyday experience of the socialites with whom he lived. He took a public stand on his position. His words cut deep into the hearts of those who bought, sold, and owned fellow human beings. The respect that so many had held for him was soon rejected and turned into hate. In an attempt to discredit and discourage him, the town folks flaunted their slaves more publicly than ever. They lost all compassion and concern for the lives of the slaves, and soon physical mistreatment and abuse was heaped high upon the already crushed spirits of the slaves.

Then Jack did something incredible. It was unexpected and unbelievable to the slave owners and to the slaves themselves. Jack sent a letter to the owner of the slave market. In the letter he referred to the Code of Hammurabi. Hammurabi had been the sixth king of Babylon in 1790 B.C. In this Babylonian law it was written that “an individual might sell himself into slavery.” So Jack suggested to the slave market owner that he would like to be sold as a slave. The slave trader agreed, accepting Jack’s contingency that in exchange for his slavery, one slave scheduled for sale that day would be set free.

On the appointed day, Jack placed himself on the trading block in the town square, and the bidding began. The hatred of the people directed at Jack for trying to stop slavery soon boiled over into enormous bids. Everyone wanted their chance to get their hands on Jack. They truly thought that this would silence him.

But they had not counted on the power of love. After the sale, as Jack’s clothes were torn from his body and he was literally dragged away in chains, the announcement was made that the next slave up for sale would not be sold, and instead would be set free. Everyone shouted in angry disapproval until the slave trader held up his hand and told them that the purchase price for Jack included the freedom for one slave. When asked why he would do such a thing, the slave trader replied, “It wasn’t my idea. It was Jack’s.”

The crowd went silent. Heads hung in shame. One by one they turned and walked away until only Jack, his new “owner”, and the freed slave were left. Then, with tears streaming down his face, the slave reached out and hugged Jack and simply said “Thank you.” Then, turning to Jack’s purchaser, the slave said, “Master, I would like to become your slave as well on one condition: that you set Jack free.”

The slave owner fell to his knees and cried out to God in heaven, “How can I resist such love?” He stood to his feet, unshackled Jack, and released him and the slave. They were both free.

What made him do it? Love. The same love God displayed when He sent His one and only Son to the earth. From the freedom of heaven He was born under the law so that He might set us free from slavery to sin. And for those who have been set free, that same love of God is to flow through us to bring the hope of freedom to those still in the bondage of sin. So I ask you, how will the love of Jesus be seen in you today so that someone is set free?

Pastor John

Connecting Points

Monday, December 14, 2009

Current Study: Advent

Today’s Topic:  Joy to the World

Scripture Reading:  Luke 2:10-11  …the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. 

“Joy to the world, the Lord has come.” These familiar words from a popular Christmas Carol are ringing in my ears this morning. As I went to my laptop at home to start writing my Connecting Points, there on my computer was an email from someone in the church. She had submitted a prayer request yesterday in the worship service for a close friend who needed to be saved. The friend and her husband are going through a serious financial crisis right now and may even lose their home before Christmas. We prayed for her friend’s salvation and for God to reveal Himself miraculously to them.

Here’s a portion of the email that arrived in the middle of the night. I know it’s late, but I just can’t wait to tell you!!!!  I don’t think I’m gonna get any sleep tonight, I’m sooooo excited!!  Shawna has accepted Christ as Lord of her life!  This is awesome!!!  I am going to send her that book [you gave me].  We are going to go through it together at night.  We already talk every night, so it will be really cool to be able to talk more about how God is working in our lives.  I have always talked about how great my faith is, but it really didn’t hit home for her until today.

When I got home from church I found Shawna online and asked her how she was doing.  She said her life was hopeless and that there was no way it was going to get better.  I said that I put in a prayer request for her and I can’t wait to see what God does with them.  She said that she felt so hopeless that she didn’t think even God could help them.  I told her that God was the ONLY one that could help them and that all he wanted from her was to give Him her trust and let Him handle the rest.

By the time we got home from the Christmas program Shawna had made a complete 360!!!  She was laughing, singing and just plain happy.  She told me that she prayed and told God that she just gave all that was going on to Him and that whatever he wanted to do with it was ok with her. Not even 2 hours later they had a few things pull through and it looks like they are going to have a small but BLESSED Christmas and their house to boot!  The best part is that she’s more excited about the blessed part than the stuff.

“Joy to the world, the Lord has come!” Hallelujah! This event illustrates wonderfully what the Lord was teaching us yesterday in church. JOY is Jesus Overcoming You. Joy happens when Jesus comes. Joy happens when Jesus takes over. Joy happens when we let go and let God. Joy happens when the Holy Spirit produces the life of Christ in us. Joy is not contingent upon circumstances. Joy abounds in the life of anyone who has Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and has their focus fixed on Him.

The good news of Jesus is for all people. Race doesn’t matter. Status doesn’t matter. Looks don’t matter. Education doesn’t matter. The angel’s announcement to the shepherds in the fields was for all the people, and it was good news that brought great joy. The Savior has come. He has come to save people from their sin and to give them hope again. 

I can’t think of a better way to celebrate the joy of Christmas than with the good news that Jesus has come to save another person from their sin. From an eternal perspective, does anything else really matter? Rejoice with us, and give thanks to God. “Joy to the world, the Lord has come!”

Pastor John

Addendum:

Here is the list I promised to publish from yesterday’s sermon.

Top Ten Ways to Guarantee Unhappiness

10. Make happiness the aim of your life instead of bracing for life’s troubles and growing from them.

9. Don’t give yourself wholeheartedly or enthusiastically to anyone or to anything.

8. Take personally, with a chip on your shoulder, everything that happens to you that you don’t like.

7. Always compare yourself unfavorably to others, which is the guarantee of instant misery.

6. Don’t trust or believe people, or accept them at anything but their worst and weakest. Be suspicious. Impute ulterior motives to them.

5. Be right, always right, perfectly right all the time. Be the only one who is right, and be rigid about your rightness.

4. Be a perfectionist: condemn yourself and others for not achieving perfection.

3. Get yourself a good worry—one about which you cannot do anything but worry.

2. Lose your perspective of things, and keep it lost. Don’t put first things first.

1. Make little things bother you: don’t just let them, make them!

Connecting Points

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Current Study: Advent

Today’s Topic:  Do Nothing Day!

Scripture Reading:  Exodus 16:29 …realize that the Sabbath is the LORD’s gift to you.

Well, wasn’t that fun? I’m referring to the blizzard of Tuesday night and Wednesday. It wasn’t as bad here in Eau Claire as they thought it would be, but it still caused a lot of problems. I wonder how our friends in LaCrosse are fairing? I think they got it a lot worse down there.

Twenty-four hours ago I was putting on all of my winter outdoor gear and getting ready to start up the snow blower for the first time. Two hours later I shut it off. I wasn’t totally done, but at least the driveway and front sidewalk to the house were clear. Living out in the country as I do with an open exposure to the north I get some pretty impressive drifts. I really thought it would be worse than it was – only two sections were over three feet deep. The biggest issue is always along the road. I wait until the plow comes by, and yesterday there was a 3-4 foot bank of snow to remove. I’m sure some of you had it worse.

The reason I tell you all of this is for one very simple reason – I really needed that day off. I stayed at home all day. I played magic blanket for hours with two of my grandchildren (ask Alyssa).  I finished the snow blowing, filled the bird feeders, and watched a couple of hunting shows on television. I went to bed at 9:30 and slept until 6:15. What a gift yesterday was from our great and gracious God.

As I was out working on the snow yesterday morning, my heart was filled with joy. I didn’t have an inkling of complaining enter my mind. The air was brisk. The snow was cold as it sprayed refreshment on my face as I worked. I watched the wind swirl the snow up and over my house in angelic designs. I was reminded of the words of Jesus when He said, “The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.” I wondered how many people around the world would be brought to new birth by the Spirit of God during the time I was spending moving snow drifts.

This morning, as I shoveled by hand the dusting of snow we received overnight, I felt refreshed. I stopped for a moment and thanked God for the gift of a day off, and made a commitment to be more consistent about taking them. Don’t get me wrong, I take days off, but always with the intention of doing something. Yesterday made me realize how important a total Sabbath day of rest is. God said we should take one every seventh day. I am far from that level of consistency, but I’m beginning to realize the significance of moving that direction.

We have become far too busy and far too crazy about planning. Even our days off have to be planned with all kinds of stuff to get done. We say we’re going to do something relaxing, but the fact that we plan it days in advance makes it seem like work when we do it. A true Sabbath day is a day of nothing. It doesn’t mean you can’t do anything, but it to be a Sabbath you must separate yourself from everything that seems like work. For me, that means separating myself from planning.

There’s no better time to put this into effect than right now, during what many of you feel is the busiest time of the year. Some of you are already shrugging your shoulders and shaking your heads in disbelief that I would even suggest such a thing. But here’s my challenge – take your calendar right now, and every seven days block off one of them. Take a black permanent marker and color the day in so you can’t write anything else in that square. Don’t even write down your recreational plans. Just plan a day of nothing. Then if you spontaneously decide to do something it will be stress free because it wasn’t planned.

I discovered yesterday the joy of such a day. I want more of them on a regular basis. I am sure you do too.

Pastor John

Connecting Points

Tuesday, December 08, 2009

Current Study: Advent

Today’s Topic:  Joyful Celebration

Scripture Reading:  Romans 12:12  Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 

I’m an emotional guy. I especially can’t handle happy endings. I love stories of people who overcome obstacles and tragedies. The tears flow freely every Sunday when they move that bus.

True joy does that to a person. I’ve cried at the end of too many movies to count – from Karate Kid to Rudy. But I don’t think I’ve ever been more overwhelmed with joy at a movie than when I watched Sister Act 2 for the first time. Sister Mary Clarence, played by Whoopi Goldberg, takes a class of musically talented misbehaving misfits and transforms them into a championship choir. One girl in particular is highlighted in her battle to honor her mother’s dysfunctional wishes or pursue her own dreams. She chooses her dreams. Her mother realizes her mistake and comes to the choir competition they have trained for. When she sees her mom enter, she freezes as her performance is to begin. She composes herself, and then…well, maybe you should just watch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLWhfxq8Jhs

I’ve seen that video clip dozens of times, and I’ve once again had to dry my eyes this morning. It is one of the greatest visual illustrations of joy I have ever seen in a movie.

That’s the kind of joy I want to have when I think of Jesus. That’s the kind of joy I want people to express I worship. That’s the kind of joy our hope in Christ is to produce. In fact, because joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit, we who know Jesus and have the Spirit should be better at it than anyone else.

I’m not saying that joy is just an external action. No, joy starts in the heart and is manifested externally in several ways. Joy brings peace when all around us is in turmoil. Joy produces patience in the presence of problems. Joy connects hope with perseverance in prayer. But joy also erupts in a geyser of praise that should freely flow from hearts boiling over with gratitude. (See Dec. 07, 2009 Connecting Points)

I really don’t know what the reason is, but the average Christian today has severely stifled the expression of joy. When the angel appeared in the sky and announced the birth of Jesus to the shepherds he said, “I’ve got good news of great joy for you.” Great joy. So great that a whole host of angels appeared at the mention of Christ’s birth and filled the sky with praise. Something has happened to turn great joy and public praise into emotional control and silent privacy.

The Apostle Paul tells us that we are to be joyful in hope. The Apostle Peter said that we are to always be ready to give an answer to everyone that asks us about the hope we have. My question is – without a visible expression of joy in our lives how does the world know we have any hope?

We get way too bogged down in our problems. So what if the Vikings lost – badly? (Stop being joyful all you Packer fans – it’s not nice.) So what if all of my running backs on my fantasy football team are injured entering the first week of playoffs? So what if the economy looks like it’s going down the tubes? So what if…you fill in what has stifled your joy. So what? Your hope isn’t in those things – it’s in Jesus Christ, who lives eternally and has given you His life.

I love the challenge from the prophet Habakkuk – Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls,   yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.   The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.  (3:17-19)

So stop looking at the hurts of your past and start looking look at the hope of your future. Then put on your dancin’ shoes and raise a voice of praise, and start letting the joy of the Lord out of quarantine. Someone around you today needs to see it.

Pastor John

Connecting Points

Monday, December 07, 2009

Current Study: Advent

Today’s Topic:  God Is Faithful

Scripture Reading:  Hebrews 10:23  Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 

I love traveling. I get excited about seeing new things in new places. If I had to choose what kind of places I like to visit it would be a tie between the great outdoors and places with historical significance.  I loved San Antonio because of the Alamo and the missions, but I also love the Upper Peninsula of Michigan with all of its waterfalls and the Porcupine Mountains. Walking the National Mall in Washington was great, but so was walking as close to the edge as I could at Niagara Falls.

One place I’ve always wanted to go but never have is Yellowstone National Park. Northwestern Wyoming and up into Montana has a certain appeal to me. I would probably sit through at least four cycles of Old Faithful eruptions.

Old Faithful was first given that name back in September of 1870 by members of the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition. They were impressed by the consistency of the geyser’s eruptions. Over the years, the length of the interval between eruptions has increased, which may be the result of earthquakes affecting subterranean water levels.

Old Faithful is more predictable now than ever. With a margin of error of 10 minutes, Old Faithful will erupt 65 minutes after an eruption lasting less than 2.5 minutes or 91 minutes after an eruption lasting more than 2.5 minutes.

Old Faithful is more than just a consistent geyser. In 1994, four probes containing temperature and pressure measurement devices were lowered into Old Faithful. The probes were lowered as deep as 72 feet. Temperature measurements of the water at this depth were 244 °F. What’s amazing is that those are the same temperature readings that were measured in 1942. According to geologists, the reliability of Old Faithful can be attributed to one fact – that it is not connected to any other thermal features of the Upper Geyser Basin.

When I read that last statement at Wikipedia.com, it really hit me hard. Old Faithful is so faithful because it remains independent of other thermal influences that surround it. What a challenge for you and me today as we strive to be faithful to Jesus Christ. We will remain faithful only so long as we remain independent of the influences of the world around us.

Such faithfulness begins deep down in our hearts, where the Living Water flows from the fountain of Christ’s life in us. The Holy Spirit maintains the consistent “temperature” of Christ’s temperament so that we can be faithful in our responses to the influences of the world. As the Holy Spirit moves the Living Water in and through all of the channels and caverns of our deepest thoughts and desires, pressure builds. Not the pressure of stress from unbearable circumstances, but the pressure of praise from the hope of glory the Living Water brings to every area of our existence. It is essential that we faithfully erupt with joy and thanksgiving, shooting our praise high into the heavens.  

Our eruptions can quickly change from praise to bitter complaining if we have contaminated the flow of Living Water with worldly influences. When the pressure that builds in our lives is due to a faithless focus on our circumstances, we will erupt with fear, anger, and bitterness. We will become resentful and rebellious. We will become inconsistent, so that those closest to us don’t know what to expect when we begin to spew. The Living Water has been polluted by pride.

So long as we remain uncontaminated by the things of the world, and remain independent of their influences, the Living Water of Jesus Christ will flow though us and erupt in praise to God from the depths of our hearts, no matter what the external circumstances of our lives might be.

I am also challenged by the historical record that indicates that after only a few days or weeks of observation the explorers who discovered Old Faithful were able to give it an enduring name that represented its nature and character. I wonder, after just a few short days or weeks of observing our lives, if others would be able to call us faithful?

Pastor John

Connecting Points

Thursday, December 03, 2009

Current Study: Advent

Today’s Topic:  Grace Motivates

Scripture Reading:  1 Corinthians 4:2   Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.

Please permit me to review for a moment. Last Sunday we started the season of Advent – the time of the year when we remember the coming of Jesus to the earth in humility and we prepare for His return to earth in glory.

There is a specific pattern to our remembrance and preparation. We start with hope – the hope of the prophets and people that their Messiah would come, and the hope that we have as an anchor of our soul that He is coming again.

During the second week of Advent, we will focus on faith – specifically the faithfulness of our lives as we wait for Jesus to come back.  

Faithfulness, or rather the lack of faithfulness, is all over the news in the past week. A famous sports celebrity has been unfaithful to his wife. As a result, his family is being pounded by the press who get their pleasure from invading people’s privacy. The unfaithfulness of the man towards his wife has resulted in people’s unfaithfulness towards him. Is one more wrong than the other? I’m not saying that his sin should be overlooked, but as Socrates said 400 years before Christ was born, Think not those faithful who praise all thy words and actions; but those who kindly reprove thy faults. Tiger Woods needs to be corrected, but it needs to be done gently with love, not in the destructive fashion of the media.

Unfaithfulness is a serious problem. It reaches far beyond the marriage covenant. Unfaithfulness is common in the workplace. It’s found in the life of the employee who calls in sick when they’re not, or uses work time for personal business. The manager who doesn’t use every resource he’s been given to produce the greatest profit for the owner is being unfaithful. Jesus even used that example to teach faithfulness in the parable of the talents. “The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’   His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’”

But should we expect faithfulness in a faithless world? Probably not. At least not from faithless people. Back in the 18^th century, George Horne wrote, When men cease to be faithful to their God, he who expects to find them so to each other will be much disappointed.

But we who have faith in Jesus Christ must model faithfulness for the rest of the world.  God has called us to faithful living, and has equipped us with the indwelling power of His presence in the Holy Spirit to be able to do it.

Let me highlight a couple of areas where I think we all need to work on faithfulness. Please remember that we have already laid the foundation for faithfulness yesterday when we discovered the motivation for faithfulness – GRACE. Please put all of these items in that perspective or you will simply be ridden with guilt and will resist change.

• Faithfully Persevere in Ministry – Years ago, a veteran missionary was returning home to the U.S. after several terms on the field. Aboard a ship bound for New York harbor, a secularist challenged him by pointing out the futility of giving one’s life in missionary service. He continued by noting that no one on board ship was paying any attention to the veteran missionary, a sign they apparently considered his efforts quite wasted. The servant of God responded, “I’m not home yet.” The agnostic assumed the missionary was referring to a large crowd that would meet the ship, and he scoffed again when they disembarked—not a solitary person welcomed the missionary. Once again, the missionary said, “I’m not home yet.” A lonely train ride lay ahead as he made his trek from New York City to his small Midwestern hometown. Reaching his destination, the missionary could no longer fight back the tears as the train pulled off. Again, he stood alone. It was then that the inner voice of God’s Spirit brought comfort by reminding the faithful servant, “You’re not home yet.”
• Faithful church attendance and ministry involvement – All God asks is that we apply the same standards of faithfulness to our church activities that we would in other areas of our life. If your car started one out of three times, would you consider it faithful? If the paperboy skipped Monday and Thursdays, would they be missed? If you didn’t show up at work two or three times a month, would your boss call you faithful? If your refrigerator quit a day now and then, would you excuse it and say, “Oh, well, it works most of the time.” If your water heater greets you with cold water one or two mornings a week while you were in the shower, would it be faithful? If you miss a couple of mortgage payments in a year’s time, would your mortgage holder say, “Oh, well, ten out of twelve isn’t bad”? If you miss worship and attend meetings only often enough to show you’re interested but not often enough to get involved, are you faithful?
• Faithfully represent Christ in everyday life and lifestyle – An author in Leadership has written, The story we’re called to tell and live and die by is one of risk confronted, death embraced. What’s more, Jesus calls us to walk the narrow way, take up a cross with him, daily. It’s terribly risky business. Ask that bright company of martyrs that quite recklessly parted with goods, security, and life itself, preferring to be faithful in death rather than safe in life. (William H. Willimon) Don Wildman of the American Family Association said it this way – At the very heart of the Christian gospel is a cross—the symbol of suffering and sacrifice, of hurt and pain and humiliation and rejection. I want no part of the Christian message which does not call me to involvement, requires of me no sacrifice, takes from me no comfort, requires of me less than the best I have to give. The duty of a Christian is to be faithful, not popular or successful.

I must stop there, although we have only scratched the surface on this subject. Let me close with this challenge. The Marine motto is Semper Fi, which is Latin for “Always Faithful. In November of 1990, Newsweek magazine ran an article titled “Letters in the Sand,” a compilation of letters written by military personnel to family and friends in the States during the Gulf War. One was written by Marine Corporal Preston Coffer. He told a friend, “We are talking about Marines, not the Boy Scouts. We all joined the service knowing full well what might be expected of us.”

We are in the service of the King. Semper Fi.

Pastor John

Connecting Points

Wednesday, December 02, 2009

Current Study: Advent

Today’s Topic:  Grace Motivates

Scripture Reading:  Titus 2:11-14   For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. 
It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.

What motivates you to do what you do? What does it take to give you the ambition to want to do more? These are not just irrelevant questions with insignificant answers. Each one of us is driven by something. Whether we do it carefully and consciously or automatically as a result of years of learned behavior, we all make choices that evaluate the product before we enter the process. Human nature is consistent and motivates us with outcomes.

I believe that the primary outcome that our human nature uses to motivate us is acceptance. Whether we are lost in our sin and seeking a way to cover it with performance, or whether we are saved but continue to try to earn the favor of God and people with our spiritual knowledge and legalistic performance, our flesh overwhelms us with the need for acceptance. In the case of the unsaved person, I can understand their pride that manifests itself in performance to earn acceptance. It’s the only hope they know. But in the case of a saved person, especially in myself, I’m convicted by the power of pride I see when we are motivated to serve our Lord by anything that even remotely resembles the pursuit of acceptance. Unsaved people live to earn acceptance. Saved people are to be free from that bondage and are able to live because they are accepted.

Let me speak to what I think is probably the majority that are reading this – the saved people. What motivates you to serve Jesus? What motivates you to want to know Him more intimately? What motivates you to grow in your knowledge of doctrine? What motivates you to live a holy life? What motivates you to be involved in leadership in your church? Come on, be honest, what motivates you?

I confess I’m motivated far too much by the need for acceptance and to earn the approval of people. The measuring stick of my value is severely warped. I don’t think I’m all that unique. Take at look at how you determine your value as a person. Reflect on how your need to measure your value motivates your choices and behaviors. Go ahead – dig deeper and evaluate how you live your spiritual life and you might discover that your maturity is being measured with a warped stick.

• You take pride in your theological position because it adds self-determined value to your life and meets some need you have to prove yourself by improving your position.
• You harbor resentment against others who don’t agree with you because you know you are right, and being right means you have value.
• You feel obligated to serve in the church because you’ve experienced the guilt trip that comes with most appeals for help. You know that if you don’t serve you’re not as valued as those who do.
• You believe that your acceptance in the church is somehow connected to the number of ways you are involved. You sense the existence of an inner circle of the elite and wish you could be in it.
• You strive to live a life of victory over the passions of the flesh and to be upright and Godly, all because you want to feel good about yourself and want others to notice how faithful you are to God.

Now compare your current motivations to the one and only motivation God provides for us – His grace. God reached down from eternity and connected with us at the point of our desperation in sin. God’s grace motivated Jesus to give up His value and become nothing so that we who were nothing could have God’s value. (Philippians 2:4-8) Because of Jesus we who were unacceptable have been accepted. And it is that same grace that is our motivation to live for and serve the One who saved us.

It is the grace of God that teaches us to say no to the passions of life. It is the grace of God that teaches us to live righteous lives. It is the grace of God that makes us eager to serve Him. It is the grace of God that has unconditionally accepted us and qualified us for all eternity to be joint heirs with Jesus of all things. Grace motivates from a position of permanent acceptance. Grace motivates us to serve because we are already valued and have no need to earn more. The grace of God should be and can be your only answer to the question of motivation.

But is it?

Pastor John