Jump Start # 4101

2 Timothy 4:8 “in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.”

It’s a common statement that I hear all the time. It is meant well and comes from a curious mind that wants to know. It is generally pitched this way, “When I get to Heaven, I’m going to ask God why penguins can’t fly.” Or, “When I get to Heaven I’m going to ask God about whether or not Jonah ever got it.” When I get to Heaven, I’m going to ask…

I was one of those for years and my list of what I was going to ask God kept growing and growing. God’s going to have to answer a lot of questions I thought. But the more I really chewed on that, and the more I really thought about the nature of God and being in His presence and in that wonderful place, Heaven, the more I realized that I probably won’t be asking any questions. In fact, if we say anything to the Lord, most likely, it will be “Thank you.” Thank you for being so patient with us. Thank you for your grace and forgiveness. We don’t belong in a place like Heaven, yet, He is making that possible. Thank you for being with us all those years. Thank you for helping us learn the lessons that make a difference. Thank you for putting amazing Christians in our lives. Thank you for loving us when we were not very loveable.

Here are some thoughts:

First, God won’t owe us any explanations or answers. He is God. His ways have always been higher than our ways. The father towards the prodigal, the Lord towards the penitent thief on the cross, Jesus with the adulterous woman, all are actions so different than the norm and the way we’d do things. He is God.

Second, once we are in Heaven, will any of those questions really matter? Our lives seem to take the center stage most of the time. Can you imagine standing next to Noah, THE NOAH, and thinking, “I’m going to ask God why I didn’t get a job I really wanted?” Really? Do you think that will even matter? Things that seem so important to us here and now, often are not even on the radar a few years later. The things that we worried so much about in the past has not even become a memory for us. We’ve forgotten.

Third, we will be so marvelously amazed and gracious to be in Heaven that most of the details of our lives will be overshadowed by the experience of being in the presence of the almighty. There is nothing here that will compare to Heaven. NOTHING. So beautiful. So large. So precious. So holy. And the greatest people will be there, the people of God. We won’t miss earth. We won’t wish that we could be somewhere else. We will feel like we are in a dream and just don’t want to wake up. Except it won’t be a dream. It will be reality. God’s home will become our home.

And, “thank you,” will be the words that come from our lips. Years ago, I was invited to go golfing with a former professional baseball player from the Kansas City Royals and one of the elders in the congregation who was a multimillionaire. After the round of golf, I was sitting in this gorgeous club house with the two of them, sharing stories and laughing when it suddenly hit me that I really didn’t belong there. These were two men who were outstanding in their own world. I could never afford a membership to that golf club. And, the two noticed that I was disengaging from the conversations. They asked if something was wrong. I replied that I really felt out of place and didn’t belong in such an expensive club house. They both replied at the same time, “we invited you here.” They wanted me to be with them. They wanted me to be there. And, on a much grander scale, this is what Heaven will be for us. We’ll see the people we have read about in our Bibles. Elijah. Abraham. Timothy. Paul. Heroes of faith. Men who wore themselves out for the Lord. I’ve heard sermons about these guys. We’ve studied their examples in Bible classes. And, now, I am with them. I am among them. I am included as equal with them. I believe we will thnk “we don’t belong here.” I want to be here, but it’s me. Why should I be here? And, the answer will be, “I invited you here.” We belong because the Lord has invited us. And, for that, “Thank you.”

Heaven, won’t it be wonderful there.

Roger

Jump Start # 4100

2 Timothy 4:2 “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.”

Throwback Thursday: an article written from the past

Why Do I Preach?

First of all, I preach not because it has always been a life long ambition of mine. Actually I never dreamed of doing what I now do. Neither my father, nor my grandfather ever preached. I was not ‘pushed’ into it by my family. In fact, it took some convincing to get across that after two years of college I was not going to completely switch majors and plans for my future.

I did not decide to preach because  felt that I was “good” at it. After my first few attempts at giving Wednesday night lessons, I was thoroughly convinced that preaching was what I was NOT GOOD at. I did not receive overwhelming response or great encouragement to “be a preacher.” It might be hard to see this in me now, but public speaking was very difficult for me in school. I hated speech class for the simple reason that it was required that we had to give oral speeches. I would have never taken that class except for the fact that it was required in my field of study.

I did not become a preacher because it was my only interest and there was  nothing else I could do or get a job at. The fact is that there are so many things that interest me I often feel tempted to pursue them just to see what they are like. I could see myself as a history teacher in a small college. Financial planning is interesting to me. I would enjoy being a writer and have thought about putting out a newsletter on a variety of subjects. Someday I would like to own a used bookstore. I originally went off to school to get a degree in forestry. That and landscaping still are of interest to me.

You probably are expecting by now, some grand and heart touching reason why I chose the path that I have. There is none. It’s not the thrill of standing before crowds or the great trust and responsibility that people have in the preacher. It’s not the place that it takes you or the different kinds of people you meet. I preach for the simple reason that I love the Lord and am excited about His word. It’s a joy to be a part of helping someone get to Heaven. My simple advice to any one who want to be a preacher is to just preach. Being true to the book and being true to myself is all I’ve ever tried to do.

That is why I preach today.

Roger

March, 1994

Jump Start # 4097

2 Timothy 2:15 “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth.”

A very progressive female pastor who advocates same sex relationships recently used the resurrection of Lazarus as a proof text for her liberal agenda. In the Gospel account, Lazarus has died and been buried. The Lord calls Lazarus to come forth, to come out of the grave. He appears bound in grave clothes. The Lord orders others to unbind him and free him from those things. Powerful miracle that shows Jesus has power and authority in the other world. Dead Lazarus heard Him. Dead Lazarus obeyed Him. Not all the dead in that cemetery came forth, only Lazarus. Our Lord can do anything.

Taking that great Gospel message, this female pastor twisted it, turned and abused it. She used Lazarus coming out of the grave as the Lord calling homosexuals to ‘come out of the closet.’ And, not stopping there, she referred to the bound Lazarus as culture’s prejudice and binding upon homosexual marriages. And, just like that, she painted a picture of the Lord approving of same sex marriages. The context has nothing to do with what she said. She has taken a passage and misused it.

Couldn’t I then say, Lazarus coming out of the grave is a symbol of a Kentucky race horse coming out of the gates at the Derby? And, the bindings, well that’s the restrictions of the government on gambling.

Or, could I say, Lazarus coming out of the grave is a high school student graduating and the bindings are the freedom that comes from the opportunities in his life.

If we start reading anything we want into the Scriptures then we make the Bible fit us rather than we change and fit what God says.

Our verse today reminds us to “handle accurately the word of truth.” Now, put some thought to that.

First, accurately carries the idea of fact checking and being right. The Bereans searched the Scriptures daily to see if those things were so. “Were so,” means, “were right.” One cannot close their eyes to the rest of the Scriptures when studying one specific passage.

To our example above, approving of homosexual relationships doesn’t fit in the context of the resurrection of Lazarus. It also ignores what God says about holiness and righteousness. And, it completely closes it’s eyes to what the Lord says about adultery, marriage and homosexuality. Yes, the Lord has spoken about those things.

Second, we must not come to the Bible with our minds made up about things. If we do, we will find what we want. We will twist and bend the Scriptures to suit our liking. In that way, everyone is right and sin doesn’t exist.

As we come to the Scriptures, our minds will change. Our motives will be explored. The will of God shapes and changes our hearts. In this way, the Bible is the same. It is the same for all of us. It is the same for all generations. It is the same here as it is there. One Lord. One faith. One body. One baptism. When two people do not see the Bible the same way, the issue is not the Bible but rather one or both of the people who are looking at it.

Third, handle accurately. Handle it carefully. We understand that in moving. I’m up to my eyeballs in moving. Some things I just toss in the back of the truck. We had movers for our big stuff. But when it came to my wife’s grand piano, only professional piano movers were called in. There is no way that piano was going in the back of a moving truck. Handle it carefully.

There are things in life that I may not handle carefully. I may look over the internet news so quickly that I don’t get the story correct. I may not handle some tools carefully, just tossing them in a tool box. But, we are careful with the American flag. We are careful that it does not touch the ground. There is something special about that flag. We may handle some rare heirlooms carefully, realizing how they have been passed down through the family for generations.

And, when it comes to God’s word, handle it accurately. Read it slowly. Look at the words. Look at the order of the words. Bring in other passages that are connected to the one you are reading. Know the context. What’s going on? Put yourself there. Let the Bible speak to you. Leave you opinions on the floor.

Shame on that female pastor who butchered God’s word and misled her audience. There are layers of things that are wrong with this picture, such as the misuse of the word ‘pastor,’ to a female being in that role, to being part of a denomination rather than seeking to return to the N.T. way.

May we do better with God’s word.

Roger