The "Other side" of Spiritual Advancement Week

My Bethany friends,

We are now on the “other side” of Spiritual Advancement. We are into the semester routine…and for many of us that might mean we have misplaced some of the realities we discovered just 10 short days ago. On this Sabbath, could we take just a few moments to reflect upon both the profound words that were shared and the effects in our lives of the movement of the Spirit in our midst. Question: Are you the same today as you were before Rev. Clint Ussher came to Bethany? Can you see yourself falling back into some of the same, possibly even more destructive habit patterns as before? May it not be so!

 

Think with me about John chapter 5. This passage depicts a beautiful story of Jesus’ care and compassion for the disabled of the world. But more than that, it’s a description of the wholeness that Jesus offers to all who hear His voice. Listen to the description of the event, “Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie-- the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. (ESV 5:2, 4)” Traditionally, as story is told, an angel would “stir up” the water in the pool and the first one to get in would be immediately healed. But the story goes on, “One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, ‘Do you want to get well?’”

 

Now, you might think that the answer to Jesus’ question is obvious. I mean, the man is in the right place isn’t he? He’s here, near the temple, waiting for a miracle, his miracle. But in actuality, Jesus is not simply asking a question, He is holding a mirror up to the man. How could a paralyzed man be the first to get in the pool? And he has been going through the same quasi-hopeful routine for 38 years. Maybe, just maybe, he is comfortable with the situation that he knows.

 

But what in actuality is Jesus asking him? Several translations word it this way, “Do you want to be healed?” (ESV) or “Do you want to be made well?”(NKJ, NASB, NIV). Neither word choice gets at the heart of Jesus’ question. Listen to my translation of the unusual word, “Do you want to be made whole?” This word occurs 11 x’s in NT; 9 in Gospels (Matt. 12:13; 15:31; Mark 5:34; John 5:6, 9, 11, 14f; 7:23; Acts 4:10; Titus 2:8). Outside of our use in John 5, the most revealing is in the passage concerning the woman with the issue of blood. Jesus said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”(Mark 5:34 NIV)

 

Now, to John, the question Jesus is asking the man by the pool (and us) is this, “Do you want me to free you from what is destroying you?” Now, hear me carefully when I say, it’s not just his physical condition which is eating away at him. The man may not realize it but its more so his lack of faith that there will ever be any remedy. Moreover, we get even more insight into the man’s spiritual dilemma after his healing when “Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, ‘See, you are well!” (FYI, “well” is the same word we discussed above but this time in the perfect tense; “See, you are restored to wholeness”). But then Jesus goes on and says, “Sin no more that nothing worse may happen to you.’” Jesus explicitly states there are decisions that one can make which can return you to the same situation that you were in before Spiritual Advancement Week. Oh, please do not return but only go forward with the Presence of the Lord.

 

So, what will each of us do to keep from going back but rather to pursue Wholeness in our lives? First, “Align your lives with the means of grace God has put in your path.” For us here at Bethany, this is place before us every week.

1. How about being transparent and utterly open before God and others with your life.
2. How about the simplicity of reading a Psalm of Ascent (Psalm 121 for example) as you are walking to chapel. Prepare yourself for the meeting with God. Do not passively sit by the pool…but actively participate with Him. Expect to meet Him even before walking into the chapel.
3. Make sure in the busy-ness of your schedule you set aside time for personal Bible study or to meet for public and private prayer. So many people are gathering for prayer walks or times of corporate prayer. Why not engage with them in a pursuit of the high-calling of Christ. Moreover, make D-Group not just another “check” on your Day-Timer but an opportunity to calibrate your spiritual compass in the direction of how God would like to fashion your Soul to look just like Him!

 

Second, one true shortcoming of many folks today who are trying to overcome spiritual shortcomings in their lives is that they attempt to remain in the grace of God all alone. Just like the man in John 5, “I have no one to put me into the pool for healing.” So why not intentionally align yourself with a spiritual mentor or guide, someone who is farther along the journey than yourself, and knows that wholeness can be attained because they live it before you each day.

 

Lord Jesus,

May Your wholeness be what we seek.

May Your Spirit guide us on this journey.

May Your Body here on earth assist each of us.

May Your Image be re-created within our hearts.

May the pleasure of Your voice be what we long for, “For you are my beloved child, in you I am well-pleased.”

May we never stop short of anything less.

Amen.

 

Now, Go with God

Live in the "It-Is-Finished-ness" ... Graduation Address @ Bethany Bible College

Dr. H.C. Wilson, President Gorveatte, fellow members of the faculty and staff, distinguished friends and family, and most of all, to you students;

 

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

My task this morning is two fold. First, to be short. Today is about you, individually and as a faith community.

 

Second, my job to assist you in the beginning stages of the oft times difficult transition from the life of being a student to that of being a minister in the marketplace,

what ever that may look like, and

where ever it may be.

 

So again I repeat to you; Grace and peace.

 

May, "Well done good and faithful student" be your watchword and song this day.

 

Yet at the same time, each of you are riding the crest of a major life transition. You are leaving the "Oh-so-familiar" world of being student. Each semester you receive a lengthy syllabus for every class. Your faculty has predetermined all of your course assignments and their corresponding due dates. And as each of you know, the faculty spend countless hours strategizing on how to make all of your assignments and tests due at exactly the same day!

 

In the end, for the last 16-18 years, your life-decisions have been in the hands of another.

 

May I hear an "Amen" that this will no longer be the controlling force in your life?

 

From here on out, you will make all the decisions.

For example,

·      It will be up to you whether Chapel or its real-world equivalent, the Church will be the central spiritual focus of your week.  

·      It will be up to you to be proactive when it comes to your own spiritual growth. Will you make time to establish and personally invest in your own self-styled D-group? I pray that you will seek brothers and sisters in Christ to keep you accountable to the Scriptures and to live a vibrant life of faith

·      It will be up you if you ever pick up a book again, either for fun or to feed your soul so you can feed others.  

From here on out, you will make all the decisions.

 

Since your life will no longer be driven by a series of syllabi and assignments and due-dates; here is my question for this morning,

·      What will become the new driving force in the formation of your Day-Timer entries?

The reason I phrase the question this way is quite simple, what you invest your time in, is truly what you value.  

 

May I suggest a source for your decisions? Yes, of course you all would shout out "the Bible" and you would be correct. But I wanted to give you a special gift this morning of a place to turn that will give you the heartbeat of our Lord for making ministerial decisions.  The Scripture that you just heard read by Aisha, David, and Joshua is what biblical scholars call "Jesus' High Priestly Prayer." But this morning, they are wrong. Today, this is the prayer that Jesus prayed over the first class of graduates from His "School of Extreme Discipleship."

 

If you look carefully, John chapters 13-16 are what might be termed the "final classroom instruction" of Jesus. It is during these last few hours that Jesus prepares them for their lives of faith and ministry without Him as their teacher. Hummm, life without an incarnate instructor? Does that sound familiar to your situation in life?

 

Remember, in the first 12 chapters of John, Jesus teaches openly for all to hear; every kind of person in every imaginable public arena. Then in John 13, He initiates His private teaching to them beginning with an object lesson of love. The teacher washes the feet of His students. He sets the tone for all that will follow in the rest of His teaching with this humbling act of self-denial. And may I make a simple observation about this passage? In the first half of the Gospel of John Jesus has repeatedly said, "I only do what I have been shown by the Father." So, if I ask you where did Jesus learn to wash feet? The answer is simple, Jesus learned this from the Father. Thus, the act of foot-washing is not what the teacher does; it is precisely who He is.

 

As Jesus copies the life of the Father…May you copy exactly the same in your life and ministry. And, as a word of encouragement, there is no threat of plagiarism in copying Jesus word for word…and act for act. What an honor to reflect the Imago Dei; the image of God to a lost world with filthy feet.

 

It was how the Father served the Son. It was how the Son taught the disciples. Then Jesus instructed, "A new commandment I give to you, Love one another as I have loved you."

 

I now longer call you students, but friends. And "May a Basin and a Towel become ministry tools which allows the Lord to use you in demonstrating His love throughout the world."

 

We move from John 13 to John 17. Please notice how Jesus' teaching ends or I would argue, climaxes as Jesus prays. May I say that again; Jesus prays. At every major decision in Jesus' life, we find Him praying.

·      At his baptism.

·      At the selection of His disciples.

·      At His transfiguration.

·      At the Last Supper.

·      In the Garden of Gethsemane.

·      And most profoundly, On the Cross.

 

And in our passage this morning, His students overhear how He talks to His Heavenly Father about them. And, if you were listening closely, Jesus is also praying for His future students as He said; "I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message." In this prayer, each of you were interceded for by Jesus. Your first graduation prayer came from the very lips of Jesus Himself, nearly 2,000 years ago. He anticipated this day for you. He celebrates with you as well.

                                                                     

One commentator on John 17 says, What Jesus talks to the Father about could be called, "Listening in to the conversation at the very Center of the Universe." It's God talk, and Jesus continues as our teacher by allowing us to overhear.

 

The early church worded it this way, Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi.

 

Literally, the phrase means "the law of prayer [is] the law of belief."

 

Let me translate this into our contemporary language, simply put, "What you pray is what you believe."  The contents of our prayers are the very things that we value the most.  I call this term our 'lived-out theology.'

 

Thus, if I want to know what Jesus believed and practiced and valued, simply look at what He prayed; for that is His "lived-out theology."

 

Similarly, if I want to know what you value the highest; let me overhear you in prayer. Let me read your prayer journal.  What are the very things that you bring to the Father?

 

May I urge you (please allow me to employ the Pauline word), may I urge you to carefully select the matters which you pray for; for they are truly what you believe, what you desire for God Himself to do in and thru you.  

 

May I urge you to adopt John 17 as your new life-syllabus.

For, if this passage indeed verbalizes what was important to Jesus in His last hours on earth…

For, if it was indeed a conversation at the very center of the universe…

Would it not be a great starting point with which to fashion your own "lived-out theology." As I have studied and carefully moved through this passage I have found numerous core principles Jesus is teaching us regarding His "lived-out theology."

 

But, you do not need me to lead you thru John 17. For you have been trained to read and exegete scripture; you have had an almost unlimited number of opportunities to apply scripture personally and also to proclaim it from a pulpit…but would you allow me to simply to whet your appetite, let me give you one example of how this might be employed…then I will leave the rest up to you for your life-long learning.

 

Listen to the beginning of Jesus' prayer in John 17: "Father I have brought You glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do."

 

May I urge you to live and minister within the "It-is-Finished-ness" of Christ. (Thank you Darrell Johnson for your book title)

The Greek word for "complete" is the verb  "teleiow" which is often translated as "finished." The initial words of Jesus' prayer are that He wants to bring God glory on earth by "finishing" His work. This prayer is of course a foreshadowing of Jesus' final cry from the Cross in John's Gospel, "It is finished."

Specifically, what is finished? This would include His work of reconciliation, of adoption, of sacrifice, of suffering, of abandonment, of forgiveness. For you as ministers, remember, Jesus is doing this work NOT you.

PLEASE listen to me carefully apply this text to your lives, this was His work.

This is so much more than an exegetical exercise.

For either we learn to live in the "it-is-finished-ness" or you will try to complete what you think or you feel is lacking in the work of God.

If the work that Jesus has completed actually brought Glory to God, should we tamper with it? Should we add to it? Or should me simply marvel in it? Hear me, IT IS Finished.

All of you graduates have completed your internship. And you know only too well that when you take all the cares of the world and the burden of ministry upon yourself; it is exhausting beyond belief. Hear me, IT IS Finished.

 

Everything that needs to be done in order for us as broken, sinful people to be re-created in His image and to enter into and enjoy life and ministry with the Living God has been finished.

 

Our task is to enter in. And to invite the world to come in as well; not to fix ourselves or them. That's the Work of God. Hear me, IT IS Finished.

 

What would a life be like that did not cause you to strive to constantly find the approval of others? Do you recall over the last 4 years the number of times you turned in a paper to a professor and then began to worry about what he/she would think of you when they read it? What would life be like, if you did not become overwhelmed with what people thought about you? Hear me, IT IS Finished

 

What would life be like, if you did not have to strive to please God? To prove your worthy-ness? Hear me, IT IS Finished.

 

Please, may I urge you to enter into the "It-is-Finished-ness" of Christ.

 

This is a "lived-out theology" worth living!

 

In the ensuing days, Post-graduation that is; I beg of you to sit at the feet of your flawless teacher Jesus. Begin in John 13. Allow Him to show you your ultimate worth as He humbly steps from the throne, picks up a basin and towel, and washes away the grime of sin and cleanses you.

 

Then, search John 17. Listen to what Jesus says to the Father. Listen in to the conversation at the Center of the Universe…so you can fashion your own "lived-out theology" not based upon convenience or creature comforts, but upon Kingdom values that are utterly time-less and God-breathed.

 

I no longer call you students, but friends.

This is the way Kingdom friends talk to one another. Welcome to ministry.

A Theology of Sponge-Bob

A "Go with God" Moment

Friends, last week we were talking about what it means to simply "listen and obey." But in all practicality, there is nothing simple about this. If so, we would never have an inner struggle of faith plus there would be no disobedience in the Christian world. 

So, what is so hard about listening? Maybe I can paint a spiritual metaphor that will define the overall problem. And I will do it in the form of a theological question. "What would make Sponge-Bob Square-pants a poor follower of Christ?" Go ahead, say it out loud. Right, "He has no ears." How can he listen if he has no ears? In essence, he is a spiritual blockhead. But that is nothing like us, right?

Read with me Psalm 40:6-8 …and let's create a "Theology of the Ear."

Sacrifice and meal offering You have not desired;

My ears You have pierced;

Then I said, "Behold, I come;

In the scroll of the book it is written of me.

I delight to do Your will, O my God;

Your Law is within my heart." 

Several years ago a male student burst into my office with Psalm 40 in his hand. He shouted, "I have all the biblical evidence I need. See, even God approves my ears being pierced." Now, he was trying to find scripture to justify to his parents that they should approve his desire to get his ears pierced. He read the text as if this act would be his offering to the Lord. I tried to convince him that he had unknowingly taken the passage out of context. For the NIV does a strange job of translating the Hebrew word kara. He was assuming this passage was referring to the act of faithfulness that a servant/slave does for his master by making a lifetime commitment by having his ear pierced. (See Ex 21:6; Deut 15:17). His only problem; it's the wrong Hebrew word.

The word "pierced" in Psalm 40 is a rarely used in the OT and it refers quite specifically to a cistern being dug out (Gen 26:26Num 21:18). The noun form of the word actually means "well" or "cistern." What the passage is describing is straightforward; we are human SpongeBobs. We have hands and feet (and are often found to be equally poor dressers). But worst of all, we have no real ears to hear the voice of God. Offering and sacrifices do not help in any way. God's words still falls on deaf ears. Furthermore, it will take a divine act of grace to fashion ears on the side of our heads that will hear anything above the earthly noise that fills our daily life. Our ears are only capable of hearing the within the auditory range of what I would call "daily distraction." 

The Gospels report the same hearing disorder to Jesus disciples. After they have witnessed countless miracles and sat under His teaching for years, Jesus sadly says to them, "Do you still not see or understand. Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but fail to see? Do you have ears but fail to hear? (Mark 8:17-18)

We are no different. Maybe we are even affected with a worse disease; for they all lived pre-Cross and pre-Resurrection. Our deafness is rejecting the full revelation of God. Plus, what honor or praise are we giving to a speaking God if there are no human ears to hear?

So, may I now ask you a serious question? This very day, will you allow the Lord, the Divine Physician Himself to do a serious act of spiritual surgery on you? Will you let Him fashion a whole new set of ears for you? Will you permit Him to dig out and excavate your old deaf ears and replace them with ones that are capable of hearing even the gentlest whisper of the Spirit? Does your heart long to hear the voice of the Father, with clarity?

Lord,
We desire to want what You want.
We pray for hearts to be shaped after Yours.
But Jesus, that may only begin when we can hear Your Word.
So begin with me this very day.
Use a divine instrument (Heb 4:12-13) and provide us with the ability to hear You.
We pledge to quiet all competing voices and distractions.
We promise to incline our lives in Your direction.
Now, Lord, heal our ears, dig deep into the recesses of our souls.
We long to hear…and obey.
Amen.

Now, Go with God

Simply "Listen" and Say "Yes" in Advance

A "Go with God" moment

Last week, we discussed the issue of finding and obeying God's will. In my mind, the term, "God's will" sounds just a bit distant and disconnected. As if "His will" is something God keeps hidden from us and we have to wrestle Him for it, much like Jacob at Bethel. Can I change that paradigm for you, because I do not think anything could be farther from the truth. What if we made the statement just a bit more relational…I want us to learn to hear God's voice.

A great place to start would be the key parable in each of the Synoptic Gospels. Take just a minute and read Mark 4:1-9

Jesus began to teach again by the sea. And such a very large crowd gathered to Him that He got into a boat in the sea and sat down; and the whole crowd was by the sea on the land. And He was teaching them many things in parables, and was saying to them in His teaching,

Listen to this! Behold, the sower went out to sow; as he was sowing,
some seed fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate it up.
Other seed fell on the rocky ground where it did not have much soil; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of soil. And after the sun had risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.
Other seed fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.
Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.
And He was saying, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

Often when I hear sermons preached or Bible Studies done on this passages, the discussion circles about the call of this passage to be "good soil." But there is nothing explicit about this in the parable. There is only one imperative Greek verb in the whole passage. Sorry to sound like a Greek geek but in actuality there is only one command in the entire parable, its found in the word, LISTEN. The hallmark of being a Christ follower is simply listening to His voice. Let's not make this more complicated than it is; just listen. As a matter of fact, the parable begins and ends with the same call; use your ears and listen. But that takes us to the next step, the implication to obey.

Now once we have the "listening thing" clear in our minds…let's read one of the best know passages, Romans 12:1-2.

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

As you probably know, this is a power packed passage, worth pondering and carefully exegeting. But let's  focus our attention to the clear cause-and-effect description given by the Apostle Paul. He is saying this, First, present your bodies as a living sacrifice (somewhat of an oxymoron)…then you be able to prove what the will of God is.

Think about this question, "Why you want to know the will of God?" Be honest with yourself. Most people ask to know the Lord's will so that they can ponder if they like what He is asking of them…or even worse, if they even want to obey. Let me make this as clear as I can, our task is not to consider the option of obeying or even mull over what part we like or will consider doing. Our act of faith is just to say, "Yes Lord Yes." So, if you really want to know the Lord's will, just say YES…and then ask Him what we have agree to. Simply, sign on the dotted line and then follow Him as the faith contract begins to be written in your daily walk.

Finding the Will/voice of God is just saying YES, in advance of knowing what it is. That is true faith…and it will make your life so much easier to live. Temptations to disobey will cease to become a part of your walk, because you have already agreed to His will.   

Lord,

Give us ears to hear and hearts that are undivided towards Your will

Jesus, give us a holy walk which resembles Yours.

Amen   


Now, Go with God (and keep listening…and say "Yes" when we hear) 

After the Music Stops, That's When I Live My Song

My new, and deeply growing Bethany friends.

Several years ago, as I was stepping out of the classroom and into more of an administrative roll, Dr. Keith Drury suggested that if I was concerned with losing my level of influence with students, I should begin writing to them a weekly "open-letter." Thus, I started writing about my musings of life and my exegetical insights in the Word. It was affectionately titled, Go with God, since those are the last three words I pronounce over you as you would walk out of my classroom.  

So, once again, I find myself without a classroom. Thus, I have no convenient place to share my insights. So I was wondering if I could think of you as my sounding board? (Wikipedia defines sounding board this way: A structure placed above or behind a pulpit or other speaking platform that helps to project the sound of the speaker.) Perfect. Will you help me refine and project my engagement with the Lord?

So, here I … Go with God.

Years ago (yes, 1992); Christian music artist Darly Coley wrote a song entitled, "When the Music Stops." The opening line goes like this,

       When the music stops, that's when I live my song…

That thought kept coming to mind all this last week since we are in our first week, post-Spiritual Advancement. The music has stopped, the services are over and the Lord is asking us to daily walk in the freedom we received and to live out the commitments we made. This seems to so easy to do while basking in the glory of the moment but Oh so hard in the mundane routine of Monday through Friday.  Might I add, this was no easier for the disciples as they walked with Jesus than it is for you and me.

Let's start with reading Mark 9:2-13 It's OK, I'll wait for you.

 In this story we find the discipleship inner-circle of Peter, James, and John on Mt. Transfiguration, and Jesus is displayed to them in all of His radiance. Peter, in his typical "speak-first-think-second" style says, "Rabbi, It is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters – one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."

My first observation is that Jesus, in His wonderfully graceful way, does not respond to Jesus' impulsive statement but rather the Gospel writer Mark interjects his inspired insights with a subtle parenthetical comment

     (Peter did not know what to say, they were so frightened).

Simply, Peter did not know how to react or even worse, how to integrate this mountaintop experience into his normal everyday life. And his immediate response was, let's just do away with the day-to-day monotony and instead, stay here and worship 24/7. Let's just make everyday a Sabbath day.

Notice how second comes a divine revelation clothed in a theophony (define this as a God-moment). A cloud descended and a voice appeared. If you were a good first-century Jew, this would remind you of the Giving of the Law on Mt. Sinai, (see Exodus 20). The voice of the Father comes and speaks directly to the three disciples, "This is my Son whom I love, Listen to Him!"

So what does this have to do with determining the Lord's will for everyday life! (This is the application part). First and foremost, just listen to Jesus. Please do not think that the "art of listening" is isolated to your ears. In every language "the act of listening" implies obedience, making this just as much a matter of the heart. So please, never say, "I heard from God, yet I decided to act differently." That, my friends, is called open rebellion.  

Second, (and I love this part) listening does not demand that you fully comprehend all the implications of what Jesus means. For example, as the disciples are coming down the mountain, Jesus told the disciples "not to tell anyone what they had seen until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead?" (9:9). And they discussed "what this rising from the dead" meant. What a relief that is! I do not need to fully comprehend every single theological and practical nuance of Jesus' teaching to find and follow His will. I merely need to listen. Life has just become so simple 

So you might ask, what do we as a Bethany Community do following Spiritual Advancement week? How do we find and follow God's will after we come down from the mountain?  Well, we start with our ears (and heart). But of course there is more and I'd like to take the next several weeks and discuss in detail, finding God's will…and of course, implementing this into the fabric of our community.

Next week, after we hear, to know God's will, we simply say YES.

Lord,

Again and again in Your Word, you call "those with ears to hear"

So please tune our ears to hearken to Your voice.

Help fashion our ability to listen as You speak

Shout, speak, or whisper; we are here.

Your Word originally was a creative act,

So, in our lives, please make this a re-creative work of grace.

Amen   

Now, Go with God (and keep listening) 

Not a "Walk" in the Park

Friends,

I needed to share a few closing words after chapel this morning. First, you have all made Angie and me feel so welcome. There is nothing lacking in the way you have reached out and blessed us. Most of you know, when you move, it just takes time to “find your place.” You need to learn the routines and rhythms of where you are, and there is no way to speed up the process. Angie and I are amazingly resilient and patient but we are simply in the Lord’s waiting room. Thanks so much for the love you have expressed just upon us!

Second, when I preach, I usually have about two hours of material that needs to be edited down to a reasonable length sermon. There are just a few things that I would like to express to you that have become recently real to me. When I was talking about the “Way” that Jesus wants you to follow, you know that Jesus is talking specifically about the way of the Cross, the way to Jerusalem, the way of humility. Now, this may seem a but disconcerting and almost frightening. But discovering the “Way” is not like jumping into icy cold water. Rarely is it a jump right in and take a class here at Bethany in Martyrdom 101.  Jesus has this wonderful plan that is usually reveled to His followers in baby steps.  He simply asks you to stretch just a bit and lean into the direction His voice. And before you know it, you find yourself standing right next to Him and He has taken you from where you are tonight right into a “table set before me in the presence of my enemies (Psalm 23). And to your utter surprise, faithfulness in the little things places you in leadership over many.

Someone was asking me this afternoon about finding His will. “Precisely how do I find the Lord’s way?” was the question. For me the easiest answer is found in Romans 12:1-2, where Paul writes,

“I urge you, brothers [and if Paul was writing today, he would most certainly include “and sisters”] in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-- this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-- his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

Did you read carefully the cause-and-effect relationship in the passage? When we make a decision in advance to offer ourselves to God then we will know what His will is! Our real problem is that our decision-making process usually functions in the reverse. We tell God to reveal His will then we decide if we will obey. In honesty, if we are pondering whether or not to obey God, we are already in serious trouble. Liking or disliking God's will is not the question. Faith is always the correct response. Just say, "YES" in advance of knowing where we are going. To walk in the Kingdom “way”, we must order our lives (and decisions) according to His Kingdom values. And being a Christ-follower means that we will do so even before we know His will...maybe the reality is that saying "YES" is actually the forerunner of discovering His will!

So, if you want to know His way, just follow Him…go wherever He goes…make every turn and every course adjustment. And make that promise in advance of even knowing where you are going. There is no better way to life than a “road-trip” with the Lord. And I promise you something in advance...He will transform your heart to love the journey you are on. Angie and I are on an adventure of a lifetime. Yes, some days I am uncomfortable and often somewhat unnerved...but I would not trade this trip with Jesus for all the silver and gold in the world. Just thought I would share that with you this evening, cause you all are on the same train with us!

Now, Go with God!

A Blessed Start

My new Bethany friends and fellow travelers on the path of faith (especially all you students),
 
As the time of preparation recedes and the reality of the new academic year comes to the forefront…would you let me expound just a bit on the profound power of a “blessing?”
Listen…
Then he (Jesus) led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. ⁵¹ While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. ⁵² And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, ⁵³ and were continually in the temple blessing God. (Luke 24:50-53)

What you just read are the closing words in Luke’s Gospel. Some might call them at best transitional verses; as you move from teaching and action Jesus in the Book of Luke (Volume 1) to the on-going teaching of Peter and Paul in the Acts of the Apostles (Volume 2). However, I find it quite interesting that the final act of Jesus on earth was to lift up his hands and to bless his followers. I wonder what the actual blessing consisted of. Was it done principally in words, like a pastoral benedictory prayer at the end of a worship service…or do you think Jesus’ final blessing was more physical in nature, taking on the form of a first century “Holy Kiss.” This might translate into our culture as a warm and endearing hug. You know the kind I mean. Not a mere handshake but an encounter that stays with you for a while. I have to imagine that the final “blessing” which Jesus gave to His disciples was perfectly chosen for each one of them; unique to meet each personal need. Moreover, I trust that this blessing lingered in the air as a sweet-smelling fragrance, propelling them forward to worship Him and then to offer in the Temple their own blessing.
 
In actuality, let me try to demonstrate how this action of Jesus serves as God’s wondrous climax to the book of Luke as a whole. Think with me how the Gospel of Luke opens. You find yourself temporally located not in the days of Jesus but Luke describes the times as; “In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah” (Luke 1:5). Zechariah is entering the Temple to offer an incense offering; with all of Israel just outside; praying as they are waiting to hear that God has accepted Zechariah’s sacrifice on their behalf (Luke 1:10). But (and I should put “BUT” in all caps), as the angel Gabriel comes and delivers to Zechariah a message of hope (his wife’s shame will be removed by the birth of their son John the Baptist); Zechariah shows no faith to the words from God’s messenger (Luke 1:18). So, the result of Zechariah’s faithlessness is that he is struck speechless. A pastor unable to speak!
 
Let me relate the consequences of Zechariah’s faithlessness and how it impacts Israel. The role of the priest as he exits the Temple is to hold his hands up and pass on the Lord’s blessing to the people. The traditional words would be the priestly benediction which comes from Numbers 6:23-26;
This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:
The LORD bless you and keep you;
The LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you;
The LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.
 
Can you now see how Jesus’ blessing at the end of Luke’s Gospel is nothing short of a divine answer to a human problem? What Zechariah could not do for Israel because of his lack of faith (bless them); Jesus performs after his demonstration of perfect faith in trusting God with his life on the cross. What the priests of Israel could not do, Jesus fully blesses His followers.
 
How does this relate to us here and now on the eve of a new semester? Well, one example is cemented in my mind. God’s Son has fully prepared you for this next step in your journey.
·     Some of you are first semester freshmen, concerned if you have the “right stuff” to make it at BBC. Please, sense the call of God on your life and know that the very blessing of our Savior is being bestowed upon you, even as you read this note...or maybe tomorrow in class…or in Chapel on Thursday as President Gorveatte speaks and we share together in Holy Communion.
·     Some of you are returning students and you know all too well the routine of the days and weeks of the semester. But will you take a serious personal inventory and ask the Lord of the Harvest to make you fully aware of the needs of others right around you. May you please extend a hand of blessing into the hearts and lives of the BBC community who are less comfortable in our surroundings?
·     Finally now, you seniors. You are entering into your final months among us. We will soon entrust you in a six-month internship in which you will be expected to pass on the blessing of God to others. Please do not attempt to do this on your own. Allow the blessing to originate with Christ and merely allow Him to use you as a broken vessel filled with His love. Maybe this semester, this first week, this very moment; you will sense His hands upon you and the blessing of God to infuse you in a whole new way. Remember, preparation for ministry is not only academic knowledge and practical training but it consists of the Hand of God reaching down to us in
 
Now, remember, the end of Luke is really the end of the beginning; for the entire Book of Acts follows. In the same way, please sense Jesus’ blessing on your life this very first day of the Fall 2010 semester.
 
Lord
Today, as we go about our regular daily tasks;
May we sense Your divine blessing.
May it be found in our classes, and in our hallway and in our dorm room conversations;
May during our meals, may we break bread and may our eyes be opened to who you are.
May Your blessing be heard in our service to others or in the reception of grace from a friend.
In all we do, may we sense your blessing.
Most of all Lord, if there is an absence of Your blessing;
May You call us back to Yourself, to the place where Your voice and touch is most clear.
Amen

Now, today, and forevermore…Go With God.