Lent and Christ

Lent, a 40-day period (not including Sundays) beginning on Ash Wednesday that leads up to Easter Sunday. Lent is seen by many as an exclusively Catholic season, but this is not the case. Lent can and should be used as a season to draw closer to Christ and to develop a deeper relationship with Him. While this should always be the case, the season of Lent is a particularly good time because it increases faith as aptly us on the resurrection of the Savior of the world.

So, what can you do during the season of Lent? Many people choose to fast from something. This can be a habit, a hobby, or an indulgence. But, I believe that it should be something that takes any of you time, attention, money, resources, or commitment away from Christ. And, as you fast you commit the additional time, money, or attention to serving the Lord.

It is also good to share your Lent commitment with another person, so that you are held accountable. This year my wife is fasting from all carbonated drinks, I have committed to a food fast one day per week and an increased time of prayer daily. And, along with many others in our church family, we are committing to a thorough reading and studying of the Gospel of John.

What will you do to draw closer to Christ and increase your commitment to Him in this season leading up to Easter?

Stay focused on and faithful to Him.

Moses and Jesus

For the author of Hebrews, Moses is a pre-figure of Jesus Christ. Below are some similarities I found:

MOSES	JESUS
A prophet (Deut. 18:15)	A prophet (Matt. 21:11)
From among his own people (Deut. 18:15)	From among His own people (Matt. 21:11)
He was an Israelite (Ex. 2:6)	He was an Israelite (John 4:4)
Raised up (Deut. 18:15)	Raised up (Eph. 2:6)
Baby boys born at the same time were killed (Ex. 1:22)	Baby boys born at the same  time were killed (Matt. 2:16)
Escaped an order to be killed (Ex. 2:1-10)	Escaped an order to be killed (Matt. 2:13-14)
Escaped to Egypt (Ex. 2:1-10)	Escaped to Egypt (Matt. 2:13-14)
Drew out of the water (Ex. 2:10)	Taken out of Bethleham (Matt.2:14)
Wrote the commands of God on tablets (Ex. 20)	Wrote the commands of God on human hearts (2 Cor. 3:3)
A faithful servant of God (Heb. 3:5)	A faithful servant of God (Heb. 3:2)
Testified to the truth (Heb. 3:5)	Testified to the truth (John 7:7)
Made atoinment for the sin of his people (Ex. 32:30)	Was made atoinment for the sin of His people (1 Tim. 2:6)
Was the mediator between God and man (Ex. 32:30-32)	Was the mediator between God and man (1 Tim. 2:5)
Willing to give his life for the sin of his people (Ex. 32:32)	Willing to give His life for the sin of His people (1 Tim. 2:5)

Cows In The Corn

A Funny Little Story About Hymns and Praise Songs

Written by an unknown author

An old farmer went to the city one weekend and attended the big city church. He came home and his wife asked him how it was.

“Well,” said the farmer. “It was good. They did something different, however. They sang praise choruses instead of hymns.”

“Praise choruses?” asked the wife. “What are those?”

“Oh, they’re okay. They’re sort of like hymns, only different,” said the farmer.

“Well, what’s the difference?” asked the wife.

The farmer said, “Well it’s like this … If I were to say to you, ‘Martha, the cows are in the corn,’ well that would be a hymn. If, on the other hand, I were to say to you, ‘Martha, Martha, Martha, Oh, Martha, MARTHA, MARTHA, the cows, the big cows, the brown cows, the black cows, the white cows, the black and white cows, the COWS, COWS, COWS are in the corn, are in the corn, are in the corn, in the CORN, CORN, CORN, COOOOORRRRRNNNNN,’ then, if I were to repeat the whole thing two or three times, well that would be a praise chorus.”

As luck would have it, the exact same Sunday a young, new Christian from the city church attended the small town church. He came home and his wife asked him how it was.

“Well,” said the young man, “It was good. They did something different, however. They sang hymns instead of regular songs.”

“Hymns?” asked the wife. “What are those?”

“They’re okay. They’re sort of like regular songs, only different,” said the young man.

“Well, what’s the difference?” asked the wife.

The young man said, “Well it’s like this … If I were to say to you, ‘Martha, the cows are in the corn,’ well that would be a regular song. If on the other hand, I were to say to you,

Oh Martha, dear Martha, hear thou my cry
Inclinest thine ear to the words of my mouth.
Turn thou thy whole wondrous ear by and by
To the righteous, glorious truth.

For the way of the animals who can explain
There in their heads is no shadow of sense,
Hearkenest they in God’s sun or his rain
Unless from the mild, tempting corn they are fenced.

Yea those cows in glad bovine, rebellious delight,
Have broke free their shackles, their warm pens eschewed.
Then goaded by minions of darkness and night
They all my mild Chilliwack sweet corn chewed.

So look to that bright shining day by and by,
Where all foul corruptions of earth are reborn
Where no vicious animal makes my soul cry
And I no longer see those foul cows in the corn,

then, if I were to do only verses one, three and four, and change keys on the last verse, well that would be a hymn.”

A Response To Fear

This Sunday's sermon covers the letter to the church in Smyrna from Revelation 2:8-11. As I read and studied today I was struck by the word fear. Not because it appears in the letter bit because it is something that predicates our culture today.

In the letter to the church in Smyrna, God basically states his knowledge of their suffering and persecution and offers them encouragement during this period of persecution.

But as I considered this letter, I kept coming back to "fear". Specifically, I was reminded of Matthew 10:28; "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell".

We fear a lot these days, but most of the things we fear are not to be feared at all. But, i drew comfort in knowing that although we fear a lot in our culture today, we are not alone and we are not the first. Reading in Genesis and Exodus this afternoon I was reminded of some of our fearful ancestors.

With all that happened to Joseph by the hands of his brothers and by the will of God. After all that Joseph did to bless and provide for his father and his brothers. Genesis 50:15 tells of the fear his brothers had following their father's death; "When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said to one another, “If Joseph is holding a grudge against us, he will certainly repay us for all the suffering we caused him.”

And in Exodus 1 we read of the fear of Egypt; "A new king, who had not known Joseph, came to power in Egypt. He said to his people, “Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and powerful than we are. Let us deal shrewdly with them; otherwise they will multiply further, and if war breaks out, they may join our enemies, fight against us, and leave the country.”

Fear forces the fearful to respond. Joseph's brothers bowed and pleaded for their lives, Egypt's Pharaoh oppressed and murdered the Israelites. Yet both fears were unwarranted.

The first question for us must be, what do we fear. Next we should ask if it is a warranted fear. And finally we need to decide what our response to our fear is going to be.

Clumbsy by Chris Rice

"Clumsy" as written by Chris Rice and sung by Jason Castro.

This song came on my ipod this morning and the words resonated with me in a special way today. I enjoy the way that Chris Rice sings this song, but I did not like the video that I was able to find of the song with he pictures and the additional audience audio added to it. The song lyrics are posted below.

You think I'd have it down by now
Been practicin' for thirty years
I should have walked a thousand miles
So what am I still doin' here
Reachin' out for that same old piece of forbidden fruit
I slip and fall and I knock my halo loose
Somebody tell me what's a boy supposed to do?

I get so clumsy
I get so foolish
I get so stupid
And then I feel so useless
But You're sayin' You love me
And You're still gonna hold me
And that You wanna be near me
‘Cause You're makin' me holy
You're still makin' me holy, yeah

I'm gonna get it right this time
I'll be strong and I'll make You proud
I've prayed that prayer a thousand times
But the rooster crows and my tears roll down (again)
Then You remind me You made me from the dust
And I can never, no never, be good enough
And that You're not gonna let that come between us

I get so clumsy
I get so foolish
I get so stupid
And then I feel so useless
But You're sayin' You love me
And You're still gonna hold me
And that You wanna be near me
‘Cause You're makin' me holy
You're still makin' me holy, yeah

From where I stand
Your holiness is up so high I can never reach it
My only hope is to fall on Jesus

I get so clumsy
I get so foolish
I get so stupid
And then I feel so useless
But You're sayin' You love me
And You're still gonna hold me
And that You wanna be near me
‘Cause You're makin' me holy
You're still makin' me holy, yeah

The Shepherd's Final Response

In the four weeks od advent leading up to Christmas day our church family took part in a teaching series; “And There Were Shepherds”

·         We have looked at the message of the birth of Jesus Christ according to Luke 2.

·         We looked at the response to this message by the shepherds.

·         And we looked at the response that this message requires of each us

Luke 2:8-20 says:

"And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told."

We asked questions within the church family:

·         “What will the glory of The Lord bring to you this Christmas?”

·         “How will we (as a church) continue to go and to see this Christmas?”

·         “How will we come to Christ this Christmas?”

·         “How will we act (with love) toward others this Christmas?”

We see the final three responses that the shepherds took;

·         The shepherds returned

o   They returned to their normal environment

§  We too must return to our normal environments

·         Where hearts begin to harden to the thoughts of generosity

·         Where hearts grow cold to the message of Christ

·         Where it’s not as easy to drop Jesus name into everyday conversation

o   They returned to their normal tasks

§  We too must return to our normal tasks

·         Where the drive to achieve and outdo can drive our time and our energy

·         Where the stress and anxiety can overwhelm

·         The shepherds glorified

o   To glorify is to give honor – to impart glory on something – to declare it excellent – to clothe it with splendor.

o   They glorified what they were once unaware of.

·         The shepherds praised

o   To praise is to make promise or vow to something – to  admire – to worship – to devote yourself to.

o   They praised what they were once terrified of.

See, this is what we do – or all called to do;

·         Glorify and praise a God that we were once unaware of

·         Glorify and praise a God that we were once terrified of

·         Glorify and praise a God that is deserving of all our praise and glory

Worship, as defined by Colossians 3:17, is doing “whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

As we celebrate Christ’s birth this Christmas season, let us glorify Him

·         When we return to our normal environments and our normal tasks, let us praise Him

o   Let us do everything we do “in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him”.

Comforts of Christmas

I write this from my bed this evening, Christmas Eve. at 10:00. We are setting a record this year, this is the earliest we have ever gotten to bed since having kids.

I gave my wife a luxury pillow today and she climbed into bed to enjoy the plush comfort of it's embrace.

The furnace just kicked on, completely quiet except for the sound of the rushing warm air from the vents next to our bed. That reminds me of a couple more luxuries; the quiet safety of our home and the warmth that we enjoy within it.

All these thoughts of our comforts and luxuries bring to mind luxuries that were missing the first Christmas night in Bethlehem.

I think of Mary and Joseph sleeping in a barn on the cold, damp straw, both of them probably hungry and tired from their long journey, Mary still writhing from the pains of childbirth, and both with thousands of questions and uncertainties on their minds.

I think of the shepherds leaving their fields in the middle of the night, leading their flocks throughout the town of Bethlehem, and embarking on a search to find The One they have heard to be the Savior of the world.

And I think of Jesus, The One giving up the most. Giving up the comforts of heaven to be born here in earth. Giving up the luxuries of glory to begin a life of humanity, all so that He could be killed.

So, while we enjoy our comforts and luxuries this Christmas Eve. Let us give thanks for those that did without on the first Christmas and let us give thanks to The One that gave up His glory, His honor, and His life for us.

Praise be to Jesus Christ this Christmas