My Birthday Prayer
2 Corinthians 5:17
If any man be in Christ,
he is a new creation,
old things have passed away,
behold, all things are become new.
My Birthday Prayer
Even now, once again,
after three score,
ten and four more years
I continue to find
Your absolute goodness
and love and Your
redemption working
deep within and around
me through the Presence
of Jesus and
the Holy Spirit within
my heart redeemed
through Your Gospel Plan . . .
in Creation, from
our parent’s fall toward the
Incarnation, the
Lion of Judah and the
Lamb of God slain
reconciling me . . .
and just especially
for my own joy
just this week one
beautiful butterfly
gliding in the air
as free as could be
rejoicing among
the bright garden
of blossoms below
reminding me
how You have through
Your mercy and grace
made me brand new
now free to find
daily and eternal
bliss entrusting
my whole soul to You.
Revelation 5:5
And one of the elders said to me,
“Weep no more; behold,
the Lion of the tribe of Judah,
the Root of David, has conquered,
so that he can open
the scroll and its seven seals.”
Revelation 5:12
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom
and might and honor
and glory and blessing!”
Seven Verses Seven Days
Seven Verses Seven Days
Seven days a week
God gifts me life
for the living,
for the loving,
for the laughing,
for the weeping,
for the serving.
SUNDAY
Best to begin,
best to proclaim
His praises,
best to embrace
His people,
best to feast
upon His Word.
MONDAY
Do it all with joy
for the opportunity
to bring Him glory
in everything you do
pointing your best
to Him who has
done it all in Christ.
TUESDAY
Whether the day seems golden
or whether the days seems gray
focus your heart on His Hand
as He’s working His best
for the supreme glory
of His Kingdom
and your good.
WEDNESDAY
Every anxious thought
along with every tinge of doubt
can open up your cringing heart
to look up to Him who cares
for you so much
He lived and died
and rose again.
THURSDAY
I am so glad
for every labor
God places on
my shoulders
as He blesses
even me working
toward His Harvest.
FRIDAY
His Love acts
remarkably
in His servants
to accomplish Justice,
as His children reflect
His mercy
while they walk with Him.
SATURDAY
Our Father be praised
for His good hope
even as He renews our strength
and gives us mighty wings
for soaring the heavens
beyond this world’s
weariness.
Jesus Our Messiah In The New Testament
Jesus Our Messiah In The New Testament
John 1:1, 14:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God…
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,
and we have seen his glory,
glory as of the only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth.”
(A personal Word Of Explanation: Ask my wife. Ask my Mom and Dad. Ask my brother and sisters. Ask any of my close friends. Ask any of my teachers along the way [Bless their hearts!] I have always been one of those people who too often have “ . . . their heads in the clouds . . . “ So, for me my imagination has never been limited. Indeed, it has been so strong that it has made me unpredictable, to say the least. In a geometry class I might have seemed to be listening, while actually I was busy admiring clouds in the sky, birds flying by, or maybe some student running across the breezeway. Hence the pictures accompanying the scripture in this week’s blog. Don’t look for deep hidden meaning or any application that would make sense to anyone but me. Just enjoy the various views of the sky as you consider God’s Word attached to each.)
We have certainly seen the clear pattern of Scripture always pointing toward God’s Promise of a Messiah throughout the Old Testament. We have read of patriarchs, kings, poets, and prophets; all looking forward with hope, faith, and expectation to the coming of the Messiah, God’s Promised One. Only those who purposefully close their eyes to this pattern can fail to see how God has always been moving throughout history to establish His eternal Gospel Plan. He has always been moving beyond humanity’s fall toward their redemption and His reconciliation in glory. He has always been offering His Promised Land to those who answer His Call and find through Jesus, the Messiah, the welcome embrace of God’s Perfect Love welcoming them into His Kingdom, nations, peoples, tribes, and individuals. The New Testament boldly claims Jesus as this Messiah, declaring His wondrous life, His miracles, His teaching, His death, His resurrection and His ascension into Heaven—and then points us toward His victorious second coming and the establishment of God’s Eternal Kingdom—New Heaven and New Earth, the ultimate Promised Land.
Colossians 1:15–17:
“He is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn of all creation.
For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth,
visible and invisible…
all things were created through him and for him.”
In the Gospels we read the testimonies of Jesus as He lived out His earthly life. The longer His followers knew Him, the more they began to understand they were looking into the face of God when they looked into the eyes of their teacher and their Lord. When He spoke to them, they heard the very Word of God. When they watched Him care for the sick, they watched the very Love of God. When they listened to Him pray, they felt the very Heart of God. When they saw Him calm the storm, they felt the very Power of God. When they witnessed Him as He restored to the widow her son; Jairus his daughter, and Mary and Martha their brother, they marveled at the very Glory of God so obvious in all He did and said.
When they saw Him arrested, tried, then crucified, they experienced the shock of how much Jesus had to endure to complete His purpose in this life. Their hearts were shattered by the brutality with which Jesus was mistreated. Their minds were assaulted by the questions that arose about Jesus choosing to endure such suffering even though they knew He had the power to overcome any human threat. Their souls were crushed by the weight of Jesus’ suffering and their own failure to stand with Him. The writers of the Gospels do not hide the disciples’ confusion during these, the darkest days of their lives.
Then He arose! The disciples could not believe it. Even the faithful women who first saw the empty tomb, could not believe it. Then the risen Jesus proved Himself to them. The Gospels again hide neither their doubts, not their utter shock as they discovered the Truth of His resurrection that changed their lives forever—and in so doing, gave them their testimony God used to change the history of the world.
Philippians 2:9–11
“Therefore God has highly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name that is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.”
Jesus did all that God had sent Him to do. He clearly taught the lessons Heaven had for Him to teach on earth. He powerfully revealed the power God’s Love displayed in meeting the deepest needs of humanity. He willingly, He purposefully, He divinely took unto Himself the sins of the world and paid the ultimate price. He shockingly rose up from the grave, defeating sin and death in one victorious proof of God’s Will for His children to accept His Gospel, His Good News. So, as the Scripture says; it will come to pass. Every tongue will proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. Amen and amen and amen!
Hebrews 1:3
“He is the radiance
of the glory of God
and the exact imprint
of his nature,
and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.
After making purification for sins,
he sat down at the
right hand of the Majesty on high.”
As God’s Spirit points us to Jesus, He reveals His own radiance, His perfect Light. Here is such a radiance as transforms even the darkest of nights into the brightest of dawns. We look upon all that Jesus is, through the Gospel writers, through the Holy Spirit at work in the early church, through the letters written for the building up of the various churches established by His saints, in the powerful vision granted John of the triumphant second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the establishment of New Heaven and New Earth. In all of this we witness God’s perfect purpose being accomplished and illuminated through the person of Jesus.
John 14:6:
“Jesus said to him,
‘I am the way,
and the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.'”
(Well, there goes my spacey mind again. I just couldn’t go with another picture of the sky when this verse is talking about Jesus being the way. Isn’t this is a beautiful way?) All Scripture testifies to that truth. All of my life testifies to that truth. All who know Jesus testify to that truth. We rejoice together as we find in our Messiah, our Lord and our Savior, the glorious Way to God, the powerful truth of God’s Love for us, and the exhilarating life we discover as we follow God’s Way in Jesus.
1 Timothy 3:16
“Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness:
He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit,
seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations,
believed on in the world, taken up in glory.”
Surely the magnificence and power of Jesus, God come down to earth as man, is a mighty mystery—all about the nature of God. In his first letter to Timothy, Paul summarizes the Gospel message vividly: Jesus revealed the very nature of God in the flesh. The Holy Spirit upheld Him before the people who followed after Him as He preached, taught, healed; all as He lived among them. Angels observed His mighty mission of redemption. And after He died and rose again, the disciples proclaimed His Good News among the nations. Many in the world believed on Him, and after completing His mission, He was taken up into glory.
John 8:58
“Jesus said to them,
‘Truly, truly, I say to you,
before Abraham was, I am.'”
Clearly the New Testament writers grew to understand this truth: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit; always existed in a beautiful unity of one purpose, one direction, and one glorious outcome. Every event in history has been a part of God’s eternal Gospel Plan for the redemption of His children to whom He has always been calling; and who, empowered by His Love, have responded in faith. If we have fallen with our parents from Eden, we have been raised through faith by Jesus, exemplified in the provision of God’s ram in place of Isaac on the altar at Mount Moriah.
Titus 2:13
“…waiting for our blessed hope,
the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.”
And so Jesus is our sure and blessed hope. We all would have despaired if it were not for Jesus. We would have perished if God had not provided the Lamb, illuminated and glorified by the unmistakable glory of our God in the the magnificence of the life and death and resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ. We would have had no hope in a dry and weary land destined for everlasting death we deserved for our sin and disobedience before our Holy and Just God. But, as His Perfection proclaimed His Holiness and Justice, it also proclaimed His Love.
Revelation 1:8
“‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’
says the Lord God,
‘who is and who was
and who is to come,
the Almighty.'”
And so Jesus will ultimately say in final triumph, “I am the Alpha and the Omega.” He most surely is the beginning and the end. “I am, I have always been, and will always be. I am the Almighty. Neither sin nor death nor all the powers of sin can stand against me.” God will give the eternal victory. Jesus will deliver the eternal victory. The Holy Spirit will testify to the eternal victory. And so we read in the annals of those glorious times in New Heaven and New Earth; we, His children from every nation upon this earth, will joyfully and wholeheartedly praise Him forever and forever and forever. Maranatha! Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus.
Jesus, Our Messiah, In The Old Testament
JESUS, OUR MESSIAH, IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
We who live day-by-day and minute-by-minute bound by time; often find it hard to comprehend how God lives in eternity. While we live from day-to-day with more deadlines than we can deal with; He purposefully lives in eternity to show forth His glory and invites us into His loving, His welcoming, His redeeming Presence. He does this in the person of Jesus Christ, the Son, our Messiah. This is God’s eternal Gospel plan. So, for us, we start in the beginning, in the Old Testament. There we find a constant declaration of God’s Love expressed in Jesus.
Yes, it is the zeal of God who will accomplish this, the Prophet Isaiah proclaims. He will come as a child, as a son. Even so, the government of God’s Kingdom will weigh upon His shoulders. He will be given mighty names: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. From the time of His coming there will be no end to His Kingdom’s growth. He personally will establish it and uphold it with justice and righteousness forever.
Though Jesus comes to us as God Incarnate, God-in-the-flesh; He will be unique. He will be born of a virgin, unlike any other person in the history of our world. By God’s divine will, and by the virgin Mary’s willing obedience, Jesus comes as the one and only one like Himself. Still, in life He chooses hunger, thirst, pain, heat, cold, dirt, hard ground, sweat, difficult work, and eventually death. He endures the longest of days. He patiently teaches God’s Truth over and over again. He makes His life an open book, the Gospel to be clearly read in His actions and through His Words. Then He willingly lays down His life to open the door to faith which becomes His free gift of salvation to each of us who choose to believe and to entrust our very lives to Him.
God declares Himself the Father of the coming Messiah. All that Jesus is and all that He does among us has arisen from the eternal gospel plan of the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Spirit acting as One. God acknowledges this overpowering truth when Jesus begins His ministry, submitting to the rite of Baptism at the hand of John the Baptist. The Holy Spirit descends on Jesus like a dove. “And when was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him.” (Matthew 3:16) God says, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17) Here is an open declaration that Jesus is the Messiah, the one and only Son of God, who has always been and who will always be One with the Father and the Spirit.
The prophet Micah had the privilege of announcing the birthplace of the coming Messiah in Bethlehem, where King David had also been born. See how comprehensively God arranges for the King whose dynasty provides the lineage for the Messiah to share his humble birthplace with the Messiah. Humility befits God’s eternal Gospel plan when the Mighty One comes as the little one, whose life is immediately both precious and precarious. How fitting that the One True King Above All Kings should be born during the reign of a false and fickle, a diabolical and an unholy, wholly political king.
The prophet Zechariah declares the joy the crowds will demonstrate as Jesus rides on a donkey, a colt into Jerusalem. Though most of Jerusalem does not recognize Him, Scripture clearly points to Him as God’s promised Messiah. We recall the nature of God’s heart displayed as Jesus pauses while He weeps over God’s Chosen City. “And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, ‘Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.’” (Luke 19:41-44) Their Messiah is coming to fulfill every covenant promise God has made throughout their history; but even so, most will fail to recognize and worship Him. And the consequences of their failure to receive their Messiah will be terrifying.
Perhaps Judas becomes the saddest of all the tragic figures caught up in the ultimate revelation of the glory of Jesus when He is revealed through His betrayal, His trials, His torture, His crucifixion, His burial, and His resurrection. Judas’ price? Thirty pieces of silver. The price of a common slave. A pittance of a price for the precious life of Jesus. Notice in the passage above how clearly Zechariah predicted the specifics of Judas and his betrayal, and of the payment Judas received. Notice also that Zechariah accurately prophesies the actions of Judas when he realizes how disastrously his scheme has gone. “He cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.” (Zechariah 11:13)
Even a Bible skeptic has to do some complicated mental gymnastics to explain away the shockingly accurate portrayal of the Messiah’s Crucifixion in Psalm 22. Behold the “dogs,” the Jewish leaders and the Jerusalem’s rebel spitting out taunts and curses at Jesus on the Cross. And see how they pierced His hands and His feet. Hundreds of years before Jesus was born, the Psalmist is inspired by God to pen these words which vividly describe Jesus and His suffering. God’s plan had always been for Jesus, the Son, to absorb all of God’s Just Wrath against sin, in this most hideous form of human suffering there just outside Jerusalem on a Roman Cross, rejected by His own people.
Again in Psalm 22:18, the Psalmist describes how the soldiers around the Cross cast lots for Jesus’ clothing. Indeed, God chose from eternity to bear the suffering for our sin. From the Garden, to the Ark, to the Exodus, to the Kingdom and the Temple, to the Exile, to the return, even to the coming of Jesus the Messiah; God’s plan had never wavered. He would be the Redeemer of His People throughout history and throughout the world. Eternal Truth cannot be explained away. May God soften their hearts who continue to shake their fists at Heaven and God who so longs to save them from sin and theirselves.
For as Isaiah says Jesus WAS pierced for our transgressions. (He had no transgressions.) Jesus. WAS crushed for our iniquities. (He had no iniquities.) Jesus DID bear our chastisement. (He deserved none.) Jesus DID bring us eternal heavenly peace. (We had none.) Jesus DID endure the wounds that healed us. (Jesus deserved none, not even one.) Again, God’s prophet spoke God’s inspired Word pointing through the centuries to the time when Jesus would pay it all for each of us.
Once again God uses the psalmist to look beyond the crucifixion and burial to the glorious resurrection—and again in fulfillment of God’s eternal plan. Notice the powerful phrase, “ . . . my glory rejoices; . . . “ Then, pointing to Jesus as the Son of Man, “ . . . My flesh also will rest in hope.” Speaking to the Father; “. . . You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.” God will show the Messiah the path of life. And here is a central foundation truth—in God’s Presence (alone) is the fullness of joy. Not just joy, but eternal pleasures forevermore. What a powerful testimony to the coming into fulfillment of God’s eternal gospel plan—when He will be glorified and His multitudes of the redeemed, will be in His Presence forever. Hallelujah amen!
God Smiles: Flowers As His Parables
Parables as flowers, some of you may be asking? Well, parables were some of Jesus’ most effective approaches to very earthy people, inviting them into the beauty of living in God’s Kingdom. After all, Jesus did say in Luke 12:27; “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labour or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.” God created the earth resplendent with beauty as a testimony to His Glory. The variety in His Creation boggles the mind. Adam and Eve had the unique privilege of living in fellowship with Him in the perfect, the original garden. I have put in my share of hours among flowers both here and in Nigeria, and though the labor is intense at times, I confess the testimony each unique blossom speaks to my soul, blesses me again and again.
I praise God that He writes His Grace and His Mercy on a wide variety of tablets. There are the heavens. There are the mountains. There are the oceans. There are the trees. There are His animals. There are His creatures in the seas. There are, above all, His own children, His children who seek His face in Jesus.
And while there is a great consistency in all He has made as He focuses our hearts, our minds—indeed, our deepest souls on His saving grace in Jesus our Savior; He amazes each of us individually in those voices which sing to us most clearly His Gospel message so that we will turn to Him in faith. For me flowers have become parables of His perfect and creative and persistent love. I can only rejoice and praise His Name.
I will borrow a line from “The Chosen,” that powerful depiction of Jesus and those He chose to follow Him on this earth; “It would have been enough.” Just before HIs arrest and trials and crucifixion began, His followers repeated particular examples of how He had intervened in each of their lives as He called them to Himself, after repeating this phrase, “It would have been enough.” Well, I would humbly add, there is so much of His glory, His splendor, His redemptive design, and beauty in every single flower, just one among the thousands He has created would have been enough; but allow me to share some of my favorites which speak so powerfully His Love for me.
A Regal Rose
God’s glory in all His perfection
declares His splendor, His grace, His delight
in all His Creation
precise, His regal rose
telling His Story,
each petal so soft,
so appealing—
so much like His mercy.
An Easter Lily
Consider the purest of whites,
the golden, the green,
displayed as His Testimony
declaring His victory
even at the end
of His darkest of stories—
yet His Love rises
victorious.
A Delightful Dahlia
See, the purple, the pink, then the white
seem somehow flowing
secure yet so free
in the breeze
just to be as beautiful
as she can be
worshiping
her perfect Creator.
Tiger Lilies
Bright as they can be
rejoicing in His Glory
who colors for all to see
their particular delight—
reflecting His passion,
His creative power
on display
His majesty proclaiming.
Just A Zinnia You Say?
You might dismiss this
common flower
seeming just like
one more flower to see—
and yet examine
her divine design
in a trinity of shapes
and colors profound.
These Dependable Daffodils
No matter the length of this winter
nor the frost hardening the ground
these dependable daffodils
rise up and brave the cold—
to defy dreariness
shouting their first hallelujahs
recalling
His resurrection once again.
Even One Sunflower
Even one sunflower
lifting up his crown
so beautiful
a testimony
to our great God
glorious in Heaven
should be enough
for my seeking heart.
“God writes the gospel not in the Bible alone,
but on trees and flowers and clouds and stars.”
Martin Luther
Everyone Needs A Barnabas, A Paul, And A Timothy Part III
Everyone Needs A Barnabas, A Paul, And A Timothy Part III
Imagine A Letter From Paul
Imagine how you would feel
as Timothy
to receive a letter
from the Apostle Paul
who had taught you all
you know about
following Christ.
Imagine how delighted
you would feel to
read his words, “ . . . my
beloved son, . . .;” how secure
to read these words, “. . .
grace, mercy
and peace from our Lord.”
Imagine how challenged
you would feel with
Paul, more than a
father, waiting in prison
anticipating
going Home
to meet His dear Lord.
************
”Well, I must admit after all these years
to remember how I felt when
I, Timothy, after having assisted
my Father-in-the-Lord,
the Apostle Paul
write such monumental letters
to the believing Corinthians, Philippians,
Colossians, the Thessalonians,
and even my dear brother Philemon;
to now receive letters
from him, myself.
”I still remember as a boy
learning to honor
the writings of Moses,
David, and the prophets
as my mother Eunice
and my grandmother Lois
brought me up in our
Greek home to honor
the Scripture.
So, I had a deep
appreciation
for the written
Word of God.
“How did I first meet Paul?
Paul and Silas came to Lystra,
where Paul had visited
before, and met my family—
our fellow believers
spoke to him about my
faith and he asked
me to join him on their mission.
As a Greek I was required
for propriety’s sake
to do all that was
required to be accepted
by Jews.
“To serve Jesus, my Savior,
and to be mentored
by Paul, It was well
worth it.
He truly became my
spiritual Father,
teaching me the faith
in our Lord Jesus,
and training me
in the Scriptures,
and how they
applied to Jesus,
gradually entrusting
me more and more
assignments.
Oh, how blessed
I was to learn
from this great Apostle
of our Lord.”
************
Philippians 2:19-24
I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon,
so that I too may be cheered by news of you.
For I have no one like him,
who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare.
For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.
But you know Timothy’s proven worth,
how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel.
I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me,
and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.
************
“Oh, how I loved
Timothy—
oh, how he loved
our Master, Jesus,
oh, how he sacrificed
just to join us
in our mission.
He did not allow
any requirement
to keep him
from joining us
to take the Gospel
to the Jews
and to the Gentiles.
“He was always listening,
always learning,
then obeying, then teaching
as I taught Him.
In every way he
became a son in the Lord
to me—loving and honoring
Jesus—and teaching others
to do the same—
and even though he was young
he had one of those
hungry hearts
desiring our Lord
and His Gospel
above everything else.
“It is his eager-to-hear,
eager-to-learn,
eager-to-share
determination
that set him apart
in my heart—
for I had, since meeting
our Lord Jesus
on the road to Damascus,
longed to know our Savior
more so I could better
teach others about
His Love, His Mercy, and His Grace.
“This is why Timothy
came to be my dear son
and such a dear gift
from our Lord to me—
as my time was running short
Timothy’s time was still beginning—
as he visited with me in prison,
as he helped me write
my gospel letters,
as he prayed with me
and more and more,
for me—
Jesus, allowed me to see
the passion for the Gospel
still burning bright in me,
burning ever more
brightly in Timothy.
Praise be to God! Amen!”
************
I am convinced that any believer in Jesus who loves the Gospel, lives the Gospel, and shares the Gospel, needs at least one Timothy to keep them sharp, always learning, always doing—and so, always teaching the believer eager to grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus. I was uniquely blessed to arrive at Baptist High School in Jos, Nigeria, just as God had prepared many young student hearts to seek in-depth, committed discipleship. These students had a Holy Spirit driven desire for Jesus, for Bible Study, for memorizing Scripture, and for learning how to live and share the Christian life. In fact, Larry Davis, a teacher and coach at the school, actually turned over to me what became my first discipleship group at the school. These were five deeply faithful, deeply joyful, and deeply obedient students of the Gospel. They were my first Timothys in Nigeria: Mike, Shola, Ademola, Philip, and Victor.
*They were always seeking God with hungry hearts and minds.
*They were 100% committed to do what the Word of God taught them to do.
*They were active in ministry among their fellow students.
*They grew in the faith until they became partners in sharing the Gospel.
*They supported me well as I adjusted to all that was new to me in Nigeria.
*They were constantly engaged in sharing the Gospel and growing the Kingdom.
*In their day-by-day lives they were eager to glorify God.
God granted me a blessed 18 years at Baptist High School where I found delight in too many Timothys-in-the-Gospel to count. He also gave me the rich privilege of working through discipleship with many among our Nigerian staff. I must give Him praise for surrounding me with many colleagues who became my Barnabas brothers and sisters, my Paul-like mentors in the faith, and my Timothys as we grew together in the ups and downs of sharing the Gospel. Even today, there remain in my life those who uphold me like Barnabas, teach me like Paul, and fulfill me in my calling like Timothy. What can I say? Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!
Everyone Needs A Barnabas, A Paul, And A Timothy, Part II
Everyone Needs A Barnabas, A Paul, And A Timothy
Part Two
Acts 26:12-18
“In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority
and commission of the chief priests.
At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven,
brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground,
I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language,
‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?
It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’
And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’
And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.
But rise and stand upon your feet,
for I have appeared to you for this purpose,
to appoint you as a servant and witness
to the things in which you have seen me
and to those in which I will appear to you,
delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—
to whom I am sending you to open their eyes,
so that they may turn from darkness to light
and from the power of Satan to God,
that they may receive forgiveness of sins
and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’”
Everyone Needs A Paul
Before Jesus changed him
no one could resist him
as an unholy fire burned
hot within him threatening
the faithful, scattering
them from Jerusalem
with the power of his
murderous persecution.
After Jesus changed him
no one could resist him
as God’s Holy Spirit burned
hot within Him declaring
God’s gospel message
of salvation in Jesus—
neither the angry Jews
nor the murderous Romans.
For God had a call on
his life, this onetime Saul
blinded on the road
by the glory of his Lord,
granted more than the
sight he had known—
now the Love of His
Savior afire in his heart.
It is an eternal necessity—that is, for each of us to reach the point in our life when we lay ourselves down at the feet of Jesus, and ask Him to be the Lord of our life. So, God has always had His eternal Gospel plan—having Jesus come to live among us on this earth. In so coming among us He lived the perfect life to reveal the ways of God among human kind. In so living He demonstrated how to walk in God’s Presence every day, looking and listening for His direction, seeing, hearing, and obeying His perfect Will. In loving God and every person, Jesus made clear the perfect Way. And then came His ultimate purpose—to willingly, obediently, and lovingly lay down His life for us, so that our sins might be forgiven. Then, Jesus arose victorious, declaring for all time the defeat of sin through Him. And so, the decision is in our hands and in our hearts. We must decide for Jesus or against Him. We must choose Heaven or Hell. So, the Holy Spirit draws us towards our ultimate decision.
By God’s Grace He raises witnesses to the Gospel, who declare with their lives and with their words, the necessity of yielding to the Holy Spirit and making Christ Lord. This is precisely why we all need a Paul. For God raises up Paul and His similarly burdened brothers and sisters gifted with Gospel burning hearts, who proclaim the Jesus path we must follow if we would discover and accept the claims of Jesus, our Savior. How thrilling to hear Paul’s testimony. How blessed to see how Jesus caught him on the road to Damascus. How amazing to see how He spoke God’s Truth into Saul’s troubled heart. How profound to see the absolute change the Spirit brought in Saul’s life once Jesus confronted him, and won the surrender of his heart, mind, and strength to His loving Lord Jesus.
We all need a person or people in our lives who have experienced this miraculous transformation achieved by Jesus. We need people in our lives who speak the deep and troubling truth concerning the hopelessness of our present lives. We need bold and honest souls who love us too much not to interrupt our present course which leads us towards eternal death and destruction. We need people like Paul who will use the mighty Word of God to speak the truth we must heed lest we die forever. We need people like Paul who worry little about what we think of them, so that they say the hard things about our sinfulness we need to hear. We need people like Paul who stick with us as we come to Jesus and begin life in His service, so that when we falter, they point us to Jesus and His outstretched, loving hand to take our own and raise us up, dust us off, and lead us back onto His pathway leading towards Heaven, blessed eternally, in the presence of Jesus.
I believe you are blessed as I am, to look back on life and recognize those people like Paul God placed along your way. I still thank God for my own Father and Mother, who invited our Pastor to talk with my older brother and me about our need for Jesus. He came to our house and explained in a way we could understand even as young boys, our need for Jesus as our Savior. I do not recall his actual words, but I do know he did so clearly and that he neither frightened nor confused us. He simply gave us the Gospel facts. That very day the Holy Spirit opened up Ray’s heart, and he made his decision to make Jesus His Lord and Savior. The Holy Spirit continued working, based on our Pastor’s witness, until the words of the hymn, “Oh, why not tonight?” one Sunday evening, pierced my heart with my need for Jesus. And so, that very night I prayed with the Pastor and gave my life to Jesus.
Not only did I need the Pastor to show me the way to Jesus and salvation. I needed those who would lead me and guide me in Jesus’ perfect way for me. Not only did Paul show people in his life the way to Jesus and salvation. He taught them and exhorted them to follow in the path the Lord Jesus laid before them. When they wandered from truth, He forcefully and lovingly showed them the way back to Jesus. Even in the life of the Apostle Peter, and in the life of his dear friend and co-laborer Barnabas, Paul proclaimed clearly the truth about the Jesus Way, and corrected them if they wandered. In my long life I have needed such bold and loving correction, and God has, of course, provided Paul’s to admonish me. I praise God for pastors, certainly (including my present pastor), Bible teachers (including one presently teaching a group of us in Galatians), missionary colleagues, Nigerian and Nigerien Christian brothers and sisters, and my dear wife, just to name a few. They have not allowed me to wander far, and have kept me on the Jesus path, the only path to the life filled with obedience and joy in our blessed Lord Jesus.
I Needed A Gospel Witness
There was a time in my life
when I was in danger
of choosing the wrong
and the dangerous,
self-centered way
rather than God’s loving,
His perfect Way for me.
I needed a Gospel Witness
who would in obedience
take the time to show
me God’s perfect way in
Jesus to center
my heart Making Him my
Lord on the Way to Heaven.
And as I have walked all these years
along His Good Way blessed
with further witnesses
He has lovingly kept
leading me back
when I’ve wandered—so
I praise Him forever.
Everyone Needs A Barnabas, A Paul, And A Timothy
Everyone Needs A Paul, A Barnabas, And A Timothy
Part One: Barnabas
Acts 4:36-37: Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus,
whom the apostles called Barnabas
(which means “son of encouragement”),
sold a field he owned
and brought the money and
put it at the apostles’ feet.
Everyone Needs A Barnabas
Everyone needs a Barnabas,
a loving and faithful believer
who joyfully serves our Lord Jesus
while encouraging, teaching,
believing, inspiring, caring,
challenging and building
your faith in the Master
as you become His Disciple.
Even the great Apostle Paul
needed His brother in the Lord, His
fellow Apostle in Antioch,
His missionary companion
living in the midst of travels,
travails, welcoming new
believers, establishing
churches, facing persecution. . .
. . .Challenging each other to stand
on the Word, even in declaring
God’s Truth, pointing together
the Church to faith in Jesus over
works of the Law—remaining
true to the Gospel to defend
Gentile believers in Antioch
before the leaders in Jerusalem . . .
We all need a Savior, indeed. What a wonderful Savior we have in Jesus. He loves us. He calls us. He welcomes us. He redeems us. He leads us. He prepares us. He takes us home to Heaven. We will spend eternity expressing our gratitude forall He does.
He does not leave us alone. He surrounds us with His own people, gifted and equipped and called to walk alongside us in the mystery of growing in Him toward maturity in His Kingdom of Love and Light and Life. Bible teachers often express this by saying we (as believers) need a Paul, a Barnabas and a Timothy.
I am going to rearrange that order, beginning with Barnabas, rather than Paul, and finally Timothy. While we all definitely need a Paul, I believe we would never find our own Paul, for they are rare, indeed; if there were no “Barnabas-es” to provide fellowship, encouragement, support, and camaraderie. I am reminded of the new believer, Saul, who had terrorized the church in Jerusalem and beyond—in many ways making himself their chief persecutor. Then, after Jesus literally blinded him with conviction, and he came to belief in Damascus, Saul needed someone to stand up for him among the Disciples in Jerusalem, Barnabas did stand up for him. And when Barnabas needed a co-laborer in Antioch, he went and found Saul in Tarsus. Surely he was sent by the Holy Spirit on a divine mission to bring into ministry Saul who would become the mighty Apostle Paul.
Because Paul’s redemption had been so startling, the church leaders in Jerusalem found it difficult to believe that their greatest persecutor had now become a sincere believer, himself. So, we read in Acts 9:27; Then Barnabas brought him to the apostles and described how Saul had seen the Lord, who spoke to him on the road to Damascus, and how Saul had spoken boldly in that city in the name of Jesus. Barnabas put his good reputation on the line to stand up for Saul and the genuineness of his faith in Jesus.
Acts 11: 25-26: So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians. Later, as Barnabas worked with the church in Antioch, he realized he needed a co-leader, so he went to find Saul in Tarsus. He brought him back, and they led the work together as God did amazing work using the two of them in seeing many called into ministry through the church where believers were first called Christians. In Acts 11 and 12 we read that Barnabas and Saul were sent with gifts to help feed the believers in Judea during a time of famine. Then they returned to Antioch together, with John Mark, thought to be a cousin of Barnabas.
Acts 13:1-4: Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seluecia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. So, amongst the prophets ministering in the Antioch church, the Holy Spirit called two of them to become missionaries in Cyprus and beyond. Interestingly it seems that as they began their work, Barnabas was the leader, but as they moved more and more into the Gentile world, Saul was called by his gentile name, Paul, and assumed more and more of the leadership role. Yet, they worked as a team, along with Mark, who accompanied them. Those who take the Gospel around the world today still find that pairs of missionaries generally do better than those who work alone.
I know I have certainly been blessed to have “Barnabas-es” supporting, encouraging, correcting and pushing me to fulfill the Call of God in my life. I think of Marsha Eichenberg Cooke, who mentored me through four years of summer missions. Something like a Drill Instructor, she taught me how faith acts through the Grace of God in the midst of troubling circumstances. Next Norman and Carolyn Mock in Ludowici Georgia, two of the “loving-est” folks I have ever known, helped me grow up as I lived and taught and served alone for the first time. In Nigeria one of my first discipleship group members, Mike Tosan, taught me how deep, deep faith can overcome all obstacles, and bear fruit for God. And then as Becky later joined me there, Don and Gwen Reece both loved and challenged us to see how far God would take us in serving Him. In Niger an eighty year-old volunteer who deeply loved God’s Word, Jim Kelly, taught me so much about the faithfulness of God. Each of these, in his or her own way, did what Barnabas did for Paul—they modeled for me how we can and must depend on God as He calls us into and develops us for His service.
Even as God the Father, Son and Spirit, exhibit so beautiful a manifestation of His Oneness in dynamic Love of our great God; even so, we never stand alone in our worship and service to our Maker. Each of us is but one within the Body, the Church; and so we deeply depend on each other as we grow in knowledge, in fellowship, and in service to our Maker, Savior, Spirit—three-in-one.
God Knows Us, He Sees Us, He Empowers Us
GOD KNOWS, HE SEES, HE EMPOWERS
Where does a man go when he has been anointed by God’s own prophet Samuel to become the King of Israel after her first King, Saul? Where does he go even though he, himself, has delivered Saul from the great giant, Goliath? Where does he go when he, himself, has sung God’s soothing Psalms to quiet Saul’s tortured and disobedient spirit? Where does he go when he has performed Saul’s disgusting quest and earned the hand of the king’s daughter? Where does he go when in all matters he stands in the eyes of God and in the eyes of the people as a worthy successor to the king? Where does he go when he is the very best friend of the present king’s heir apparent? Where does he go after the king tries to pin him to the wall with a spear? Well, in this case, David labeled as “a man after God’s own heart,” flees into the wilderness. Often he finds himself escaping Saul “by the skin of his teeth,”as we might say. And yet he also finds himself choosing to spare Saul’s life, even when the king wanders into circumstances which would seem to give David the opportunity to avenge himself upon Saul. David refuses to harm God’s anointed king, even after these long years of fleeing so many attempts by Saul to catch and assassinate him. Finally the king, completely depraved, is slain by the ungodly Philistines, along with his sons, including David’s best friend, Jonathan.
Surely, then, the wording of David’s Psalm 139 comes as no surprise when this mighty King and gifted poet, David, examines the role of Almighty God in rescuing himself, and the Kingdom of Israel, itself. In fact David serves as an excellent example of God’s involvement in each of our lives. We can say, based upon David’s spirit-inspired comments in Psalm 139, God sees us. God knows us. He empowers us.
GOD KNOWS US
How good it is that our incredible, our omnipotent, our omniscient, our omnipresent God, Creator of the Universe; takes time, minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour, and day-by day to know us. In fact He knows us much better than we know ourselves. He opens up paths before us according to His perfect knowledge. His love gives us the choice to follow Him. God knows our every need. He knows His provision for us in the midst of our greatest need. So He came to this world as Jesus to live among us, to show us the way to follow His path for our redemption. In fact, He actually gave Himself-in-Jesus upon the cross to cover the penalty for our sin and disobedience. Then He gave us redemption and deliverance when He arose victorious on the Cross. Praise God. He knows us.
GOD SEES US
Not only does God know us, He sees us. He walks so close beside us, He sees even our smallest, our most personal joys—He stands behind every bit of joy. He also walks right beside us on the darkest days and becomes the light which gives us hope just when we need it the most. Wherever we go He never leaves our side. He knows our thoughts, our feelings, our hopes, our dreams, our fears, our doubts, and our despair. His Spirit indwells our hearts deepening all that is right, but also strengthening, cleansing, and perfecting us as He deals with all that is wrong within us. He sees us always. He proves to us that He is always the same; yesterday, today and forever. Praise God. He sees us.
GOD EMPOWERS US
From before we were born, throughout all our days on this earth, and even as we
are delivered into His eternal Presence, God empowers us to complete the course He sets before us. We are so precious in His sight. He is intricately involved as we are formed in our mother’s womb, molding and shaping every cell within us to become perfect in His sight. Each glorious day He writes into the book of our lives, a beautiful testimony to His Love, His Mercy and His Grace. Surely, the more we understand the depths and the goodness of His touch upon our lives, the more we have cause to praise Him forever. No wonder His thoughts become precious in our sight. No wonder the blessings He bestows on us overwhelms us like the grains of sand on the sea shore. No wonder we grow to reject all wickedness and blasphemy in His sight. Praise God. He empowers us.
When we experience the truth of David’s Psalm 139, we find ourselves, like him, overwhelmed with praise and gladness as we consider God’s eternal greatness and His overwhelming, personal love expressed inside of us and all around us.
HE MOST TRULY KNOWS AND LOVES ME
I can but join David as I praise Him,
I can but raise my heart and sing
filled with joy and conviction
as I raise my voice before His glory
and His knowledge and His power—
for my God most truly, faithfully,
He most truly knows and loves me.
Just like the shepherd David found Him
in the valley as He guarded his
father’s sheep, and as he lay
by night under those stars who joyfully
praised Him, and as David found Him
ever faithful even as he faced
a lion attacking his helpless sheep.
Even as David found himself in the king’s throne
room playing his own harp, the
Spirit used his sweet psalms to soothe
Saul, troubled by his own disobedience—
then he stood before Goliath
with nothing but a sling, five stones,
and his trust in the Lord, Israel’s great God.
Even as He sat accused on Israel’s throne
by God’s angry prophet caught
up in adultery and murder,
his heart broken by his guilt, sorely punished,
then redeemed and cleansed, redeemed by God’s pure
love and grace, exemplified
in a cleansing, dutiful sacrifice.
All throughout His life in the depth of valleys
filled with death’s fearful darkness and
on the mountaintops when God’s own light
so filled his heart with pure joy and at all
those times which seemed somehow in between
both the best and worst of all his
days, God always loving him, proved faithful,
I can but join David as I praise Him,
I can but raise my heart and sing
filled with joy and conviction
as I raise my voice before His glory
and His knowledge and His power—
for my God most truly, faithfully
He most truly knows and loves me.
Praise God! He loves me!!!
Proverbs For Life: Part Two
PROVERBS FOR LIFE: PART TWO
Our good God cares how we live. He made us for His glory as we are blessed by Him, and as we serve as witnesses to His Goodness before the world. So, as we consider these proverbs, we will see how He guides us through His Wisdom, and how He so perfectly blesses us and others. For instance, in Proverbs 17:22 He explains; the cheerful heart acts like potent and beneficial medicine—giving us spiritual, emotional and physical health. Then, as He often does, He contrasts His blessing with the pitfalls of following the world’s way of thinking. Those who do so find their spirits crushed by their own pride. Without Him and the perfect wisdom which comes from trusting God’s Word, we are doomed to become, even as we live, like dried up, dead men’s bones. There remains only lifeless nothingness—our lives literally perish without His Wisdom and His Love.
We who know Him discover that everything we own belongs to Him. God places everything we have in our hands so we can offer it back to Him in loving service. He chooses to bless us. In following Him we choose to bless others with all we have, for He has freely given all of it to us. He fills our barns to bless others. He blesses our every source of plenty—for He has others He wants to bless through us, and the gifts we have because He has given us so much. Jesus reverses this picture in the parable he tells about the rich man and his barns. This rich man continues making bigger and bigger barns for himself. He never finds the blessing of sharing with others, but when he dies he loses all of his control over the wealth he has hoarded. God freely gives good gifts to us. Then our first act in gratitude and worship is to share with others. In sharing we do so with delight, for he has given us the opportunity to share His blessings.
PROVERBS 22:1
Actually, then, we discover in living our lives open-handed, always looking to give rather than to hoard, the depth and the breadth of God’s riches completely surrendered to Him and His purpose in blessing His world. Then His glory grows in the eyes of the world, and our own reputation shifts from pointing to ourselves into multiplying opportunities to praise Him before the world. Even when we earn a reputation before the world—we make it our testimony to point people away from us and to Him. He deserves our every act of love. He deserves our unselfishness. He deserves our acts of unselfish service given to those who need it most—all accomplished by His grace and for His glory. Then, as is His true Nature, He stretches our hearts to receive more and more so that we can share with others more and more until they, too, find that their hands are full, so they can share, even as He has shared with us.
You know, words are a particularly noble gift from God. Surrendered by our imperfect hearts to His perfect heart, they become a blessing for healing in the midst of those stumbling through the pain of grief. He alone can take our words and fill them with power to restore and to rebuild spirits broken by the cares of the world. He can miraculously take our words as a proverbial “anti-match,” neither sparking the fire of anger nor spreading the wildfires which threaten not only ourselves but those around us. How blessed and how calming come HIs Spirit-inspired words of peace. How blessed come those cooling and refreshing showers which bless when love’s declaration dampens the most deadly fires of out-of-control anger. God’s Love becomes the damper which conquers all of the Enemy’s fires so that we and all God’s children receive release and then recovery from the Enemy’s angry and dangerously flaming words—all his lies.
Ultimately, as the Lord’s Spirit strengthens the sensitivity of our hearts seeking His glory, we discover how dearly we are blessed by His own people who become our friends. Those who walk especially close by His side, often speak Truth they have received from Him. Even if such words, which come upon us hot from the altar fires of worship, seem to sear us with their holy heat. They destroy and ultimately heal any imperfections in us. And when the Lord does so, we find ourselves always stronger, better and certainly healthier than we have ever been. So, as we read in Proverbs 27:6 the wounds of a friend-in-Jesus are faithful, helpful, bountiful—overflowing with His rich blessings.
The Book of Proverbs in the Bible records in the midst of God’s Story of Redemption available to all human kind, deep, abiding wisdom, which guides us clearly in God’s path for our blessing and His Glory. When we carefully consider these Proverbs, and pray for God’s Holy Spirit to use them, they inspire and direct our hearts. We find ourselves walking His perfect path for us. May we allow God to accomplish in us His Purpose in Proverbs, and in all of His Blessed Word, so that His perfect light illuminates all our days. As we are so blessed, may we fulfill His desire to richly bless His beloved world while His Spirit works in and through us. Amen!
