Category: Love

Our Spiritual Vaccination

Background Passage: Mark 12:28-36, Proverbs 6:16-19, Romans 6:23, Philippians 4:8

One year ago this week, my wife and I traveled to Washington D.C., with our son’s family. We left amid a growing fear of global pandemic none of us really understood. By the time we finished our five days walking the nation’s capital, the World Health Organization label Covid-19 as a “global pandemic.” We arrived home to a vastly different world.

Over the last two weeks my wife and I have both received the first of our two Covid-19 vaccinations and are eagerly awaiting the second. By the end of the month we will be fully immunized against the coronavirus. I don’t know that we expected to feel such a sense of relief after receiving only one dose. I’m hoping the second shot gives us an even greater sense of peace.

I don’t pretend to know exactly how the vaccine works. I’m grateful for the scientists and doctors who do. I do know that the vaccine stimulates the production of white blood cells that attack the virus at the point of infection and block the virus from infecting other cells in my system.

The vaccine helps my body produce T-lymphocytes (memory cells) that hang around in my body in case the same virus tries to return. If that’s not exactly how it works, it is explanation enough for my limited understanding of biology and the human body. I just trust that it works.

I’m not naive. I know every pharmaceutical company rushes to produce a vaccine knowing it will make them a lot of money. Free enterprise. I want to believe though that the scientists and doctors who do the research and develop the countermeasures to defeat a new virus do so because they hate to see the suffering it causes.

Just as those doctors hate a virus that causes physical suffering and death, God hates the sin that causes spiritual suffering and death. Work with me while I try to build something here.

The late Rev. Billy Graham once wrote that God’s love for man prompts him to hate sin with a vengeance. He wrote, “I tell you that God hates sin just as a father hates a rattlesnake that threatens the safety and life of his child…God loathes with a holy abhorrence anything that would hinder our being reconciled to him, wrote Graham.”

So what specifically does God hate? The writer of Proverbs laid out a list of things God detests.

“These six things the Lord hates, yes, seven that are detestable to him: A haughty eye, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.” (Proverbs 6:16-19)

Consider all these things a spiritual virus that infects the human soul with devastating and eternal results. Then, consider how rampant are each of these sins in our culture and society today. Arrogance. Deceitfulness. Murder. Hatred. Wickedness. Evil. Discord. The Covid-7 of the spirit.

These viruses are at the heart of our cultural dissonance and discontent, making this world more sin sick with each passing day. How eye-opening and frightening would it be to see these sinful attitudes charted on the nightly news. Billions infected. Millions hospitalized. Far too many dying in the sin of their choosing.

It paints a pretty dismal picture.

The good news for the world is that God long ago developed a spiritual vaccine to ward off the spiritually deadly virus of sin. The surest vaccine against the ravages of sin is putting one’s faith and trust in Jesus Christ as Lord.

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ, our Lord.(Romans 6:23)

Here’s how that vaccine works. It changes and protects the heart. Like the T-lymphocytes, God’s spirit stays with us and in us convicting and convincing us of the sin we’re allowing to creep into our hearts.

Paul says the vaccine changes our attitudes and thoughts by attacking those sins that invade our hearts with their positive counterparts. He told the Philippian church:

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” (Philippians 4:8)

As much as he detests those notorious sins, don’t you know God loves these things all the more?

For this spiritual vaccine to work best we must take two shots that enable us to change our attitudes and our hearts. It’s a lesson Jesus taught an inquisitive Pharisee. You’ll find the story in Mark 12:28-34.

The teacher of the law came to Jesus, standing in the background as the Sadducees tried their best to trap Jesus with specious arguments and innuendo. Jesus saw right through them. Their questions were insincere, yet Jesus tried to enlighten them to the truth of his teaching. They just didn’t get it. The Pharisee, however, was beginning to see more clearly.

At a break in the conversation, the Pharisee in the background came forward, impressed with Jesus’ words. He had a question of his own. A good question. No intention to trap Jesus. Just a honest effort to pick his brain. To understand.

“Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

Jesus leaned back against the wall and looked intently into the man’s eyes, gaining a measure of his character and intent. Seeing the honesty in his heart, Jesus answered.

“The most important one is this. ‘Hear, O Israel. The Lord our God; The Lord is one. Love the Lord our God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’”

Bam! There it is! Shot 1 of our spiritual vaccination. To avoid those things that God hates, we must inoculate ourselves against them by focusing our love on the God who first loved us. Totally. Completely. With all that we are. In every aspect of life. Without hesitation. Without reservation. Heart. Soul. Mind. Strength.

For we cannot succumb to arrogance if we are loving God with our everything. We cannot easily condone wickedness nor practice it in our own lives, if God is Lord…the boss of our lives. We cannot manipulate the truth, pass along lies as truth; we cannot sow discord among God’s people, if we focus our heart, mind, strength and soul on the will of God in our lives.

Jesus knew that loving God was the first and most critical step. Yet, he knew it was just the beginning. To be fully vaccinated in spirit, however, we can’t stop there. Jesus didn’t. With barely a pause to see if his first statement hit home, Jesus spoke again to the Pharisee.

“The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no greater commandment than these.”

Shot 2. Just like the medical vaccine, this one has a few side effects. Some of us might feel a l little queasy afterward. It might initially make us uncomfortable.

When we open our hearts to Christ, we find it easy to love God with all we are until we understand that he requires us to love those who disagree with us. Those who look different than us. Those who don’t typically walk in our circle. Yet, his love in us gives us the capacity to open our eyes, to expand our circle to include everyone with whom we come in contact.

Jesus permanently linked together loving God and loving our neighbor, whomever that might be, as the greatest of all his teachings. He knew if we do those things well, sin, our spiritual coronavirus, will never gain a firm foothold on our lives.

That’s the good news of the Bible. As deeply as God hates the sin, he loves the sinner. He sent his son to die so that we might live. The ultimate spiritual vaccine, taken in two inseparable doses, exemplified in our love for God and our love for those around us.

I’m glad I’ve been vaccinated. How about you?

Worthy of the Call

Background Passage: Ephesians 4:1-16; Acts 19:20, 23

Serving as a pastor or minister is a more than a job. For most of the men and women who serve as ministers, their work is a calling. When we speak of a “calling” we tend to speak in reverential tones. It is a beautiful idea of being set apart for service by God.

Many who serve in other capacities speak of their call to service. A police officer who puts his or her life on the line every day to serve a community speaks of a calling. A doctor or nurse feels called into the field to care for the sick and hurting.

Watch a kindergarten teacher work his or her magic while trying to corral 22 five-year-old children. See the middle school teacher fending off the preteen hormones. Follow a high school teacher preparing teenagers for a world that is changing before their eyes. If you do, you know these saints of schools have been called to that profession.

Being God-called to serve in whatever occupational capacity is, in my view, the definition of that which is honorable and noble.

The police officer who violates community trust, the doctor or nurse who turns a callous heart to a suffering patient, or a teacher whose actions diminish the potential of a child, fail to live worthy of the call they received.

If we allow God to rule our lives, I believe that we have been called to the career to which he led us…with godly intent and purpose. The Bible teaches a higher scriptural call for every believer in Christ.

The Bible tells us there will always be a battle between the way of Christ and the way of the world. In this clash of cultures, Christians are called to live distinctive lives, different from the world around us.

Paul, the apostle, spent years in Ephesus sharing the gospel to a diverse group of Gentile and Jewish individuals who, in the real world, stood at odds. In Christ, Paul needed them to love one another and to be united in spirit and faith. In his letter to the Ephesian church he encouraged them to join in relationship with one another and to grow in wisdom and maturity of faith.

When division crept into the church, Paul addressed the issue head on. He knew it was the only way they could distinguish themselves from the cutthroat culture of the community that surrounded them. He told them that God had given them everything they needed to live those distinctive lives.

Ephesus was an important city in the Roman Empire during the first century. Its harbor opened onto the Cayster River of Asia Minor which emptied into the Aegean Sea. At one point, Ephesus, with its 250,000 residents, was a hub of commerce and the second largest city in the known world.

In addition, it was a major religious center. The city boasted a temple dedicated to the Greek goddess, Artemis, (the Roman goddess, Diana) one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

During Paul’s three-year stay in Ephesus, the gospel of Jesus Christ took hold. Acts 19 tells us that people were abandoning their pagan religion and that “the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.” (Acts 19:20)

The clash between the pagan culture and the growing Christian culture shook Ephesus to its core.

“About this time there arose a great disturbance about the Way.” (Acts 19:23)

A silversmith, named Demetrius, who made small shrines to Artemis, complained that this new Christian religion was cutting into his business. He called together his workmen and craftsmen of all related trades stirred up a city-wide riot that threatened the lives of Paul, his pastors and all Christian believers in Ephesus.

It was within this clash of cultures that Paul admonished the believers to keep living distinctive lives.

“I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.”

What a challenge he presented the followers of Christ 2,000 years ago and today. Live a life worthy of your calling. He wasn’t talking about one’s profession or work. He was talking about the call to live life in the image of Christ. Let Paul explain what that meant.

“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”

What does that kind of life look like? A Christian, in Paul’s definition is one who puts others before self, extending kindness to all he or she encounters, answering the hurts and disappointments inflicted by others with self-control and restraint and showering both friend and enemy in God’s love.

Nothing quite destroys the witness of a Christian or the church as quickly as when humility is replaced with arrogance. Gentleness with Rudeness. Patience with restlessness. Love with hatred. Peace with discontent.

Humility. Gentleness. Patience. Love. Peace. Living lives patterned by these traits…what Paul identifies elsewhere as “fruits of the spirit…” builds unity within the church and enhances our witness in the world.

It’s not just the unity within a local congregation of which Paul speaks. It is our relationship as Christians to all people of faith regardless of social status, political affiliation, or ethnicity. It is our purpose to keep that unity from being disturbed by focusing on that which unites us.

“There is one body and one Spirit…just as you were called to one hope when you were called— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all…”

There is nothing wrong with our denominational divisions. There is nothing wrong with the varied worship styles. We all belong to one faith. When we allow our differences to overshadow the similarities, we diminish our witness. Baptist. Methodist. Catholic. Male. Female. Black. White. Brown. Saints and sinners. One faith in glorifying God. One faith in Jesus Christ as Savior. One faith in the spirit who guides. One faith in serving our fellowman. One faith in building the kingdom of God in this world.

God desires us to live lives worthy of his calling. God wants to live in unity as believers in Christ. These things are so important to him that he provides us with the means to make it happen.

“…To each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it…he gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers to prepare God’s people for works of service so the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in faith…and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.”

You and I have been called to serve in some unique way and given the gifts to be so very good at it. When we use those gifts we’ve been given, the engine that is the Christian faith fires on all cylinders at its utmost efficiency and effectiveness. Every time we live unworthy of the calling nothing in life runs as smoothly as it could.

The clash of cultures between the way of Christ and the way of the world is starkly evident today. Because the world delights in our failure to live up to our calling, we need an extra measure of those distinctive characteristics that set us apart from the world.

Lest we think it’s impossible to live with one another in humility, gentleness, patience, love and unity, we simply must keep our eyes on the one God, the one Lord, the one Spirit and the one faith.

Seek God and his will. Look to serve one another. Set aside that which divides us and open your hearts to love all those who love the Lord. Reach out to the world community in ways that demonstrate the love and compassion of Christ.

“Live a life worthy of the calling you have received.”

I don’t know about you, but it is a reminder I needed to hear and heed.

Amen.

 

 

The Greatest of These

Background Passage: I Corinthians 13:1-13

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Its origin traces back to the memory of a saint who was executed on February 14 over 1,500 years ago. Not exactly a Hallmark moment, is it?

Two legends surround St. Valentine, the patron saint of lovers, epileptics and beekeepers. The first story says that Valentine was a Roman priest and physician who was martyred on February 14 during the persecution of Christians by the Roman emperor Claudius II Gothicus in the late third century. Apparently, Valentine defied the emperor’s orders and secretly married couples to spare the husbands from war.

Again, not exactly a Hallmark movie. However, according to the second legend, Valentine befriended his jailer’s daughter whom he had healed from blindness, often exchanging letters from prison that he signed, “from your Valentine.”

Okay, that’s more like it.

Despite this noble beginning, no one celebrated Valentine’s Day for more than 1,000 years. The first valentine still in existence today was a poem written by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his young wife in 1415. The Duke had been captured at the Battle of Agincourt and jailed in the Tower of London shortly after their marriage.

As such, it was a rather depressing note dated February 14.

My very gentle Valentine,
Since for me you were born too soon,
And I for you was born too late.
God forgives him who has estranged
Me from you for the whole year.
I am already sick of love,
My very gentle Valentine.

I seriously doubt Hallmark will resurrect that one on one of their cards.

Over time, Valentine’s Day has morphed into a time when we celebrate romantic love. And, as a concept, it’s worth celebrating. Romantic love provides the starting point for one of the world’s most cherished relationships between two human beings. It is a gift from God, not to be taken lightly or dismissed easily.

However, anyone who’s marriage lasted beyond the honeymoon stage knows that romantic love gets buried in the messy reality of life. To be sure, healthy relationships dust it off as often as possible in a haphazard and sporadic reminder of the things that brought us together in the first place.

When Robin and I married 45 years ago, we had read at our wedding the beautiful verses found in I Corinthians 1:13, a passage many have used to define married love.

While such definition wasn’t Paul’s intent, it does take love to a new dimension that serves as the spiritual glue that binds two people together.

Paul wrote those words to address the growing discord in the Corinthian church that hampered their relationship with God and with one another. Within their relationship as the body of Christ they each had gifts to share, none more important than the other. All God-given and necessary.

Paul told them that despite all their gifts, they lacked one thing. As a result, all their words and deeds sound as “noisy gongs and clanging cymbals.” Meaningless.

Paul implored them, “Let me show you the most excellent way.” Then, he shared some of the greatest poetry of the New Testament.

“Love is patient. Love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered. It keeps no record of wrongs.

“Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”

All else, Paul reminded the Corinthians, will fall away and disappear, leaving us incomplete. But, all is not lost.

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. And the greatest of these is love.”

Here’s the point I’m trying to make, I hope. The love we share with our spouse never reaches its greatest depth absent of the love of God within that relationship. As great as one might think their marriage to be…and it could be marvelous by the world’s standards…it could be infinitely richer and more meaningful when grounded in God’s love.

This “agape,” God-like love that he shares in abundance with us, demonstrates itself in our lives when we love each other as he loves all of us. It is the measuring rod of our spiritual and marital maturity.

When love is patient it never tires of looking out for the well-being of others. When kind, love is tenderhearted in word and deed, never harsh and bitter. Love cannot look at the accomplishments, possessions and abilities of others with jealous intent. It cannot look at its own success with boastful pride.

Love remains approachable, always. Not arrogant or overbearing. Love is courteous and polite. Never selfish or indulgent. Love is slow to anger despite cause and easily forgives, holding no grudges. Taking no offense.

Love cannot inflict pain upon another. Love rejoices when we get it right. Love celebrates truth.

Love believes the best of others and trusts in the other’s intent. Love hopes always that those who fail will not fail again rather than insisting that failure is inevitable. Love always lasts through life’s difficult moments.

When you think about it, love like that is exactly how God loves us. Love like that is exactly as we are to love one another. Love like that is the definition of married love.

Therefore, it seems to me, that married love is at its best when both individuals within that relationship are filled with God’s love to the extent that it flows freely through them and into the heart and soul of the other.

I am grateful that my wife loves me like that, despite my mistakes. I am hopeful that she knows I love her like that.

It’s Valentine’s Day!

I hope you and yours are reminded today of that which brought you together in the first place and God’s love that allows you to grow deeper in love each day.

Abide in Me

Background Passages: John 15:1-11; Galatians 5:22

When I enrolled at Texas Tech University many years ago, I left a high school with 120 students to enter a college with more than 20,000 students. It was a little intimidating. My brother, who was already a senior at Tech, shared some great words of advice.

He simply said to make the enormous a little smaller by creating a connection with a group on campus.

Made sense.

I chose to make the Baptist Student Union my connection. I made great friends, discovered tremendous spiritual mentors and found Robin, my wife. As far as I am concerned it was the social trifecta of my college experience.

I maintain peripherally connected to this day. I follow the Tech BSM on Facebook, receiving information about the ways that organization continues to minister to its students.

I saw a post this week about one of those programs that encourages students to pray for their friends, their campus and the world. The BSM is encouraging alumni and others to pray as well. That, I can do. The program is called ABIDE.

After reading that post, that word kept creeping back into my thoughts this week. When that happens, it’s usually a sign that God has something he wants me to learn. That became the focus of my devotional thoughts this week.

Abide is not a word we use much anymore. At least, I don’t.

The dictionary calls it an “Old English word.” That must be why the translators of the King James Version of the Bible (living and breathing old English men) loved the word. They used it often.

By definition “abide” carries the meaning of “await, remain, lodge, sojourn, dwell, continue and endure.”

The word points me to a beautiful passage in John 15:1-11. Rather than using the more archaic “abide,” my New International Version uses “remain.” Let’s break it down.

Jesus and his disciples just left the solemn confines of the upper room. Jesus sought to ease their creeping sense of anxiety and uncertainty. As he frequently did, he drew a parable from a familiar life experience to focus their thoughts on the point he needed them to understand.

“I am the true vine and my father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I spoke to you. Remain in me as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself. It must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.”

Jesus wanted, needed, them to understand that even though he would go away, the connection he had with them was strong. He had already told them about the Comforter he would send in his place, but here he reminded them that the gardener had already pruned them for fruitfulness by the “word” he spoke to them.

John called Jesus the Word back in Chapter 1. The truth he shared with them, the truth they learned from him would serve them through every step of life as long as they allowed the word to remain. Everything Jesus had taught them for three years was to prepare them for this moment. If they never forgot what they had been told and put those words into practice, they would bear fruit.

Isn’t the same true for us? The pull to walk our own path grows strong when we forget what we’ve learned about God’s truth…his way and his word. When we ignore God’s word because it doesn’t fit with our personal desires.

We remain in him and he in us when we immerse ourselves in his word, putting into practice all he has taught us through the years.

So Jesus says, “Abide in me.”

“I am the vine and you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit. Apart from me you can do nothing…if you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you. This is to my father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”

Jesus’ illustration of the vine and branches is brilliant imagery. Our ability to be fruitful hinges on our connection with the one, true vine. If we claim that all things are possible through Christ, we must also accept that nothing meaningful and lasting value is possible without him. When we pull away from the vine, we cannot bear fruit.

Galatians gives us a great idea of what that fruit might be.

“But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22)

By remaining and abiding in Christ, we find our lives demonstrate the character of Christ. We become more Christ-like. When our lives take on the character of Christ, it glorifies God and tells the world of the transforming nature of Christ. Without wearing the t-shirt, a sinful world will know are his disciples.

So Jesus says, “Abide in me.”

“As my Father has loved me, so I have loved you, now remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so my joy may be (remain) in you and that your joy may be complete.”

Jesus knew the disciples would soon have the bottom drop out of their world. These words were meant to reassure them.

“I have loved you…remain in my love.” What must it have meant to his closest followers to hear those words? During the darkest of hours yet to come, the disciples heard Jesus remind them to cherish and cling to his love. It is the same sustaining love you and I experience when the bottom drops out of our world.

When Jesus told his disciples, “If you keep my commandments,” he wasn’t saying his freely offered love was conditional on their obedience. God’s love is always unconditional. He was saying to the disciples and to us that our obedience keeps us from drifting so far from him that we can no longer feel his love.

Everything I learn of God through his Son, his Spirit and his word, reminds me of all I’ve gained through my relationship with him.

I hear those final words spoken as clearly to me as if I were standing among those shaken disciples. I hear the promise of abiding joy, utter contentment, at the life God has given me and in the future he has planned for me.

And here is the real kicker. Hear what Jesus said in this passage. “…remain in my love…” “so that my joy may be in you…” Did you hear it? My love. My joy. That’s what he wishes for us.

No one this world has known love more deeply, more authentically, than did Jesus. No one this world has loved more deeply, more authentically, than did Jesus. His joy was absolute contentment, despite the difficult circumstances and the horrendous task he faced.

It is the fullness of that love and joy that he desires for us. Not the feeble imitation offered by the world. His love. His joy. We gain access to that depth of feeling when we remain in him.

So Jesus says, “Abide in me.”

I join in prayer with those college students at Tech who seek that connection with the Father, through his Son. Those who desire a connection with the vine. Those who wish to be pruned in order to be fruitful to the glory of God.

Jesus told us how. It simple remains for us to listen. Make the connection real and personal. Allow Jesus to “await,” “remain,” “lodge,” “sojourn,” “dwell,” “continue” and “endure”within our hearts throughout our lives. Then, do our best to “await,” “remain,” “lodge,” “sojourn,” “dwell,” “continue” and “endure” in him.

If that sounds too complicated, let’s keep it simple and go old school grounded in the old English.

“Abide in me as I abide in you.”

He Went About Doing Good

Background Passage: Acts 10:28; Galatians 6:9-10; Galatians 5:22-23, 25

I no longer watch much news. And in this era of rampant social media, I carefully pick and choose the type of post I read. I find myself listening less and blocking more and more posts, not because I disagree with them, but for their tone.

Both mainstream and social media fill the air and their column inches with bad news, hateful rhetoric and intolerance. Ending each newscast with a snippet of “good news,” does little to offset the divisiveness previously portrayed.

Don’t get me wrong. I truly believe there is far more good in this world than bad. Our urgency to celebrate the good and correct the bad needs to be foremost in our hearts and minds. Yet, when you listen to the voices of the world, it seems as though no one is trying to make a positive difference. No one is doing anything good.

The offhand comment spoken by Peter to Cornelius, an inquisitive, God-fearing Roman centurion, gets buried in a lengthy narrative about the work of God through Jesus Christ. I find it crucially important, especially in today’s world. Peter said of Jesus:

“…he went about doing good…” (Acts 10:28)

Peter encapsulated the entire ministry of Jesus in those five simple words. “He went about doing good.”

He healed. He fed. He comforted. He touched. He taught. He led. He encouraged. He restored. He challenged. Along his path and in his time, lives changed.

If we are to use Jesus as our role model, then we, too, must go about “doing good.”

In his letter to the churches in Galatia…modern day Turkey…, Paul spent time encouraging their behavior toward one another. Using tender words that speak of a doctor setting a broken bone so it would heal properly, Peter talked about restoring the sinner…healing the broken. He told these early Christians that a man will reap what he sows. That one who plants the seeds of sinfulness will reap the consequences of those actions and that one who lives by the spirit of God will find eternal life.

Then, his words encouraged the believers to “do good.”

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people…” (Galatians 6:9-10)

What is this “doing good” that Paul addresses?

For Paul, doing good had everything to do with living by the spirit of God. He addressed what it means to live by the spirit in the fifth chapter of his Galatian letter.

“So I say, live by the spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” (Galatians 5:16)

For all practical purposes in our doctrine of the Trinity, there is no spiritual difference in God, the Father, Jesus, the Son, or the Holy Spirit. They are one and the same. Therefore, living by the spirit is to live as Jesus lived. To live as God desires us to live.

After running a long list describing our sinful natures, Paul added this:

“But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22-23)

In other words, “doing good.” These are the attitudes of the heart that prompt our doing good. The condition of our hearts compels us to heal, feed, comfort, touch, teach, lead, encourage, restore, challenge and change lives…just as Jesus did.

Paul told the believers that these acts were not one time deeds. You cannot spend just one day loving. We must love every day. We cannot do one kind thing. We must be kind continuously. If lives are to be changed, we must make the effort always. We must keep on doing good each day we live. Paul ended this part of the discussion by saying:

“Since we live by the spirit, let us keep in step with the spirit.” (Galatians 5:25)

Walking in relationship with the Father, through our trust in the Son and the influence of his Spirit. Every step of the way.

Paul said, “Do not grow weary of doing good.” If living in step with the spirit and doing good is such a high calling why would we ever grow weary of doing good?

We may find ourselves alone in the work. Criticized by those who do not understand. We may see our good deeds rebuffed, our efforts ignored. We may lose our own enthusiasm and start going through the motions. We may be doing the work in our own strength or for our own glory. We may lose faith that God is at work. We may grow discouraged because we cannot see the results of our labor.

What it boils down to is this. We grow weary of doing good because we lose sight of the ultimate goal of our work…to draw all to Christ. It is the reason for every act of goodness and its purpose is has eternal consequences for all we encounter.

Paul’s words pull us back to what matters most in our desire to do good.

When we explore the life of Jesus, we see it at every turn. Every action had a purpose. An intent. Everything Jesus did was meant to draw someone to accept the grace gift of salvation. He healed to remedy an affliction, but he did so hoping that the healed might believe.

He comforted to ease the suffering, but he did so hoping that the comforted might believe. He fed to erase the hunger pangs of the starving, but he did so hoping that the satisfied might believe. His deeds were an extension of who he was…an extension of his faith and trust in the Father.

Our doing good, modeled after Jesus, should have the same intent and purpose. Our actions ought to reflect our faith and trust in him. Every good we do ought to meet a need, hoping that those we helped will be drawn to God. That’s the aim of doing good. And it requires us to keep our eyes on that goal.

Florence Chaddick waded into the sea off Catalina Island 21 miles off the coast of California on July 4, 1951 with every intention of being the first woman to swim to the mainland. Swimming long distances was not new to her. She was the first woman to swim the English Channel in both directions just a few years earlier.

The challenge before her was less the distance than the chilly waters of the Pacific. On the morning of her swim, a dense, thick fog descended upon the ocean reducing visibility to a mere feet. Two boats accompanied her to keep her on track and to protect her from sharks. Her mother stood in the lead boat while her trainer followed behind.

She swam for hours never seeing beyond the lead boat. After a time, Florence began to complain about the water and the cold. She was ready to quit. Her mother provided encouragement and cheered her on. Florence continued to swim. When she would lag behind, her trainer in the back boat pushed her. Soon, she said she was done, unable to swim any longer. Her mother and trainer would not let her quit.

She struggled for a time more. After 15 bone chilling hours in the sea, Florence gave up. She climbed into the boat only to realize she had quit within a quarter of a mile of the coast. Later, she told a reporter, “If I could have seen land, I might have made it.”

Chadwick returned to Catalina Island the next year to try again. Though greeted by another foggy day, she dove in. She achieved her goal this time, remarkably besting the men’s record by more than two hours. On this occasion she made it by telling herself over and over again that the land was there. She just had to keep swimming.

Here’s my take away. Do not grow weary of doing good. Keep swimming. Trust that as you live by the spirit…on the course you’ve taken…that land is not that far away. In God’s appointed time, we will “reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Our work is not for naught. God is at work in our doing good.

I’ll simply end by echoing Paul’s final encouragement to look for every chance we have to do what is good and right.

“Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people.” (Galatians 6:10)

Seven Times Seventy

Background: Matthew 18:21-35, I Corinthians 13:5, Ephesians 4:31-32; Luke 6:27-28; Isaiah 43:25

The story may be apocryphal, which means regardless of how much I want it to be true, it probably isn’t. Still, no one wants to let a good story interfere with a great illustration of spiritual truth.

Renaissance man, Leonardo da Vinci painted The Last Supper as a fresco for the Dominican monastery Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan between 1495 and 1498. It depicts that intriguing moment during that last meal in the upper room when Jesus tells the disciples that one of them will betray him.

Da Vinci felt that “notions of the mind” could be seen in a man’s posture, mannerisms and expressions. Therefore, the expressions on each face of the disciples reveal da Vinci’s interpretation of how each disciple might have reacted based upon their personalities.

The story goes that at the time the artist painted The Last Supper, a bitter feud erupted between da Vinci and a fellow painter. Da Vinci despised the man.

When da Vinci painted the face of Judas Iscariot at the table with Jesus, he used the face of this enemy so that it would be present for ages as the man who betrayed Jesus.

As he worked on the faces of the other disciples, he tried time and time again to paint the face of Jesus, but nothing he depicted felt right.

Over time he realized that his hatred for the other painter kept him from finishing the face of Jesus. Da Vinci sought out and made peace with this fellow painter, erasing his features from the fresco and repainting the face of Judas. Only then was he able to paint the face of Jesus and complete his masterpiece.

Whether the story is true or false, it begs the question. Is our hatred for another, for what they have done to hurt us, keeping us from seeing clearly the face of Jesus? Are our ill feelings for another obstructing our relationship with Christ?

To their credit, the disciples who followed Jesus listened. They had difficulty at times understanding, but they heard what he said. They asked questions. They learned…sometimes the hard way.

In the days immediately following the transfiguration experience, Jesus continued teaching the disciples things they would need to know after his death and resurrection. Given the hostility he knew they would face when he was gone, Jesus spent a lot of time talking about forgiveness.

The Pharisees wrote it down, buried in the numerous laws they added to Jewish life. Their laws told them that one must extend forgiveness to another person three times. Beyond that, if the person offended you a fourth time, your personal grace obligation disappeared. You could simply wipe the dust off his sandals and cut that person out of your life. You had done your part.

At one point, Peter, in an effort to impress Jesus with his gracious spirit, asked and answered the question he was sure would bring him praise.

“Lord, how often should I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

Peter’s thought seemed to be, “If I just double what the law requires and add one for good measure, I’ll be seen as magnanimous and gracious.”

Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seven times seventy.”

Jesus’ thought seemed to be, “How can you not extend forgiveness to anyone who offends you no matter how many times they hurt you since God forgives your every sin?”

Thus began another great parable about kingdom living which taught that forgiveness ought to be a reflection of the mercy God extends to us each and every day.

The story Jesus tells Peter and the other disciples talks about the man who owed his master an enormous debt he could not repay. Touched by the man’s appeal for mercy, the master forgave the debt and sent him on his way.

Later, that forgiven man demanded payment from a poor man who could not repay his debt to him, though the amount he owed was small. Despite the poor man’s plea for mercy, the man to whom the debt was owed, the same man whom the master had forgiven so much, cast the poor man and his family in prison.

The message to the disciples was clear. The well of God’s forgiveness never runs dry for those who truly repent. He asks the same from us. Forgiveness ought to be a part of who we are…infinitely extended as a natural part of our relationship with a loving and merciful father.

Let’s talk about what that means. When someone hurts me, my first reaction is to check my contract with God to find a loophole, any loophole, that allows me to withhold my forgiveness. That’s kind of what Peter was asking. “Surely, there are things I don’t have to forgive. Surely, there is a limit.”

As humans, we can do some despicable things to one another, making the resentment we feel run deep. We might say the words of forgiveness. We might act the part. But we let the bitterness fester and burn. It takes time to process the hurt.

Forgiveness is too easy to say. Much harder to do. Bitterness keeps us from being able to forgive. It is a tap root that burrows deeply into the fertile soil of anger that we’ve trapped inside. We justify our bitterness with frightening ease. “Since I’ve been hurt, I have a right to feel this way. I have a right to retaliate. I have a right to push this person aside, unworthy of my grace and love.”

That beautiful passage in I Corinthians 13:5 tells us that “love keeps no record of wrongs.” Our experience tells us that bitterness keeps a ledger and conceals it in a combination safe behind the haloed painting of Jesus hanging on our wall in our bedroom. We just don’t want to give up our anger.

While the world might agree with us that the hurt we’ve endured entitles us to a certain amount of anger, rage, resentment, and bitterness, we know in our hearts that the longer we harbor resentment, the more it hurts us.

This is not the way of Christ. Love and forgiveness are the only ways to get rid of bitterness that has taken root in our hearts. If we are to live as Christ lived, forgiveness must be our way as well. Paul laid it out there for the church at Ephesus.

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4:31-32

Only God’s power and the work of his spirit within us can bring us to a place of being ready and willing to forgive.

Jesus was skilled at forgiveness…It was a God thing. Second nature. A part of who he was. Hanging from a brutal cross and bearing our sins, he cried, “Father, forgive them for they don’t know what they’re doing.”

I always thought this prayer was for the Jews who convicted him and the soldiers to crucified him. I’m convinced now that it was his appeal on my behalf…for my future sins. His willingness to forgive my sins from the cross compels me to forgive others.

So how do we get rid of the bitterness that stands as an obstacle that keeps us from forgiving those who hurt us?

Jesus told his disciples, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Luke 6:27-28

There it is — love and pray for your enemies! Love them as God loves them. Pray for those who persecute you. Hurt you. Disrespect you. Disagree with you. Irritate you. Offend you.

Here’s what I’ve learned through the years. My prayers for others may or may not change them, but they always change me…which may be the whole point of prayer in the first place.

There’s one more thing. Several passages in the Bible indicate that God forgives and forgets our sins.

“I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.” Isaiah 43:25

God’s “not remembering” is not what we usually think of as forgetting. God is omniscient. He knows everything. He forgets nothing. “Not remembering” is the equivalent of not acting upon them. He chooses to overlook our sin because the price of that sin has already been paid.

You see, forgiveness is a choice. We may never actually forget the action. We can, through the grace of God, choose to put the painful memories aside. To choose to overlook it. Forgiving as God forgives keeps us from dwelling on the past.

I’ve erased my painting of Judas so many times the plaster is worn out. I don’t know who’s face you’re painting on your forgiveness fresco. I do know that you’ll never clearly see the face of Jesus until you set the bitterness aside and forgive the one who hurt you.

“Seven times seventy.”

Passion Week-Monday: Love

Author’s Note: I’m stepping outside of my normal process during this holy week of our Christian faith. We often read in scripture about the triumphal entry of Christ on Palm Sunday. Many congregations observe with solemnity Maundy Thursday in remembrance of Jesus’ suffering on the cross. Then, in great celebration of faith we arrive at the resurrection on Easter Sunday. Typically. This year will be different…obviously.

As I began my preparations toward Easter this year, I wanted to walk where Jesus walked during that last week. I wanted to see what I could learn from God’s son at a time in his life that required boundless courage and faith. The parallel accounts in scripture differ minutely in chronology. Don’t get hung up on those minor inconsistencies. We’ll look at the major themes along the way. I will post a devotional study every day during this week, leading up to Easter Sunday. Let’s see together where this journey can take us.

Background Passages: Matthew 21:18 -22:39; Mark 12:28-34

Jesus returned to Bethany at the end of a long and tiring day. It began with his ride into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey to the cheering throng of people throwing their cloaks on the path before him, waving palm trees in celebration and singing praises to the Son of David. Jesus remembered how the praises of the people rang hollow. How he wept as he approached the walls of this great and doomed city. Jesus knew his disciple and the crowd that followed him failed to fully understand the kind of Messiah he came to be.

As he climbed the winding path from the Eastern Gate up the Mount of Olives toward Bethany he felt a wave of mixed emotions. Sorrow in knowing the fate of his people. The righteous anger at the merchants who turned the temple from a place of prayer to a den of thieves. His frustration with the intransigent nature of the religious leaders. His love for the children who sang to him as he left the temple.

As the sun set, Jesus rested that Sunday night in the home of Lazarus and his sisters, finding a respite in their undemanding companionship. He needed that solace in order to face his Monday.

Monday
When Jesus left Galilee a week ago, he set his eyes firmly on Jerusalem knowing beyond a doubt that the cross awaited him. It was for this reason he was sent by his Father. He knew the limits of his time with his closest disciples and how much they still needed to understand. Jesus also knew that the enthusiasm of Palm Sunday had his disciples walking on air, feeling a bit invincible. They had much to learn. The next few days would be difficult for them.

Despite the heavy burden he carried that would leave most of us cowering in bed filled with anxiety, Jesus and his disciples rose early to return to Jerusalem, the dawn of a new day little more than a glimmer on the horizon. It would be a challenging and a full day. Think about the things he endured probably before lunch time.

      • A barren fig tree became a talking point about the emptiness of Israel’s heart and the need for faith and prayer. The agony he felt for his people ran deep within his soul.
      • The Pharisees challenged the authority of Jesus leading to some of the strongest and clearest statements from Jesus about the failure of the religious leaders and the coming of a new kingdom of God built upon genuine faith, service to others and spiritual humility.
      • He battled his detractors with some of the clearest and most pointed parables ever uttered, calling them out for their false piety and wanton indifference toward those in need. He told them they would forfeit their place in God’s kingdom. These were difficult conversations.

After crushing the theological traps set by the Pharisees and Sadducees, an expert in religious law recognized that Jesus was providing great answers to their challenges. He was impressed with the teacher’s knowledge. In a sincere effort to engage Jesus, he posed his own question.

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?

Jesus looked at the man intently. Seeing within him a different heart. He smiled and said,

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

I imagine the expert in the law laughed out loud and clapped his hands as he glanced at the Pharisees and Sadducees murmuring at the edge of the crowd. “Well said, Teacher,” he replied, engaging in a brief but substantial conversation with Jesus. The man shared his view that those two commands were more important than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices one could offer. Jesus looked knowingly at his disciples because he had shared a similar thought not too long ago.

Jesus nodded his approval. “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” Though scripture doesn’t tell us so, I want to believe a private conversation between Jesus and this legal expert ended in the man giving his heart to our Lord.

It is this story that struck me about Jesus’ last Monday before the cross. It was a ray of hope in an otherwise dismal day. Not only was Jesus carrying the burden of the knowledge of his impending death on the cross, he had faced the bitterness and anger of people who ought to know better. Challenged at every corner. His every word parsed and picked apart by people so busy trying to make a point they probably didn’t hear him anyway.

Then, out of the blue, an associate of the religious leaders who questioned his authority, stepped forward. The conversation was a breath of fresh air. Non-confrontational. Non-threatening. Instead, they talked about what was most important in the middle of these contentious arguments.

Jesus, set those arguments aside. What’s really the greatest commandment God gave us?

I think God knew Jesus needed to end the morning on a positive note. This conversation gave Jesus a chance to refocus his heart and mind. To set aside the discord and the discourse and think about what mattered most. Our relationship with God and with each other.

“Love the Lord with all your heart, soul and mind.” With all that is within you love the Lord. Total and complete. Dominating our emotions. Defined by our actions. That’s the greatest command. Once you’ve tuned your being to the heart of God, the next commandment falls in place.

William Barclay said about this passage, “It is only when we love God that man becomes lovable. Take away our love for God and we can become angry at the man the unteachable; pessimistic about man the unimprovable.” Only when we love God are we able to love your neighbor.

The coronavirus has much of the world on the edge of panic. We sit today sequestered in our houses or working at an appropriate social distance uncertain of what tomorrow might bring. Though I think I’m handling things pretty well, I find myself at random times getting antsy, anxious about tomorrow. It helps to be reminded of what is important.

Jesus had more reason to feel distress in this last week before his crucifixion than any of us could possibly feel today. The weight of the whole world was squarely on his shoulders. God choose a most difficult time to remind him to love.

Perhaps it is a good reminder for us in the middle of a global pandemic. Love God. Love your neighbor. Our hearts, our very being must turn to God with the love of one eternally grateful for his provision and his sacrifice. He provided a way for everlasting security for all who love him and believe. That’s a powerful thing to remember in times of crisis.

It’s also a great reminder that we are called to love others. What better time to do so than when everyone is feeling the strain? When everyone needs a loving touch…even if it is long distance. Demonstrate your love of God this week by calling friends and family to check on their status. Pray for one another. Help where you can.

A neighbor did exactly that for Jesus that evening. Jesus and his disciples returned to Bethany for the evening. The ate supper in the home of Simon the Leper, most likely he was someone Jesus had healed in the past.

During the course of the evening a woman of the house, who intuitively understood the path Jesus walked, was so overwhelmed with love, that she broke open an expensive bottle of perfume and poured it over Jesus’ head…An act Jesus understood as her way of anointing him, honoring him, by symbolically preparing him for burial. An expression of love.

Monday’s message is clear. Forget the struggles of the day. Just love God. Just love your neighbor. As the song says, it’s the only thing there is just too little of.

Come To Bethlehem

Background Passages: Luke 2:1-20; Matthew 2:1-12

We often get caught up in the extraordinary events of that first Christmas.

      • An angel’s visit to a chosen, teenage girl.
      • A promised and pristine conception.
      • The birth of the Christ-child.
      • A choir of angels proclaiming “peace and goodwill” to everyone.
      • The shepherds’ worship of a Messiah.
      • The wise men’s gifts to a newborn king.

Yet, the Almighty God focused all the extraordinary acts of his perfect plan for the salvation of the world on the obscure, insignificant village of Bethlehem. Chosen from the beginning of creation as the place of the Messiah’s birth, God maneuvered the events of history and enabled the lives of his obedient people to open the gate of a stall and fill its manger with the perfect image of himself.

Sure. Prophecy told us it would be Bethlehem. Israel’s favorite king was born in the little hamlet and herded his sheep in the hills surrounding it. For hundreds of years it slept a few miles from Jerusalem and its Temple Mount. Until the day when Joseph, a direct descendant of David, obediently followed the governor’s law and made a five-day journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem to fill out his census and pay his Roman required tax.

Why Bethlehem?

God could have used any number of better-known cities in Israel to call his king and send his son. Instead, he chose Bethlehem.

If you pay enough attention to God’s work in history, he seldom used the magnificent to achieve his purposes. Far more often, God chose the humble and insignificant. The ordinary and mundane. When it came time to sing the final stanza of salvation that would one day hang on a cross and be raised from the dead, God pointed the world to a tiny village using a star bright enough so all who were willing to follow would find the baby, wrapped in swaddling clothes.

God didn’t send a king. He sent a servant.

God didn’t send a conqueror. He sent a carpenter.

God didn’t choose the temple city of Jerusalem or the royal city of Tiberias. He chose Bethlehem.

Why Bethlehem?

Here’s my thought.

For most of the people of the world, the coming of Jesus to Bethlehem was, and is, a curiosity. A Nativity scene in the courthouse. A painting on a Christmas card. A phrase in a Christmas carol. A tidbit of trivia that changes nothing.

For Mary and Joseph…for the shepherds and the wise men…for me…the coming of Jesus to Bethlehem was, and is, personal and powerful. A God-purposed encounter that changed everything.

God, through his son, Jesus Christ, will never force his way into our lives. Rather, he hangs a star above a stable and invites us to come to Bethlehem. He lets his angels sing and invites us to come to Bethlehem.

We must come to Bethlehem, not for the cold glitter and gold of a palace or cathedral, but for the chance to feel the warmth of a child held in our embrace…God in human form…a child to be adored and loved and worshiped. You see, the where is not nearly as crucial as the why.

Why Bethlehem?

Because Bethlehem is a place where God becomes personal…and powerful. A place where you can find the answer to your greatest longings of heart and soul. A place to see Jesus as God’s gift to you…God’s gift to a hurting world. A chance to embrace Jesus as savior and be forever changed.

Why Bethlehem?

Perhaps its time to come to Bethlehem and see for yourself.

Clanging Cymbals

Background Passages: I Corinthians 13:1-13; I Corinthians 1:4-7; 3:1-2 and I Corinthians 12

Thankfully, I never experienced it.

A friend of mine in college was majoring in electrical engineering. His roommate never seemed to get up in time for that dreaded 7:30 a.m. English class. The snooze button on his alarm was his favorite friend.

Desperate, the roommate asked my friend for help. The future engineer purchased one of those cymbal clanging monkey toys and, with expertise beyond my capability, rigged it up to a clock and the light switch across the room. Then, every morning at the appointed time, the monkey would crash its cymbals incessantly until the roommate got out of bed and turned on the light.

Ingenious and diabolically annoying.

I think the arrangement lasted only three days before the monkey and its cymbals were found in pieces in my friend’s bed like the horse head in The Godfather. Message sent and received.

As I said, thankfully, I never had to experience it. I would not have lasted three days. There is a reason you never hear a cymbal solo in the band or orchestra. A cymbal by itself is just noise.

After Paul founded the church in Corinth, he moved his base of ministry to Ephesus. While spending a couple of years in that city, Paul began to hear disturbing reports about the divisions and factions developing in the church in Corinth. He eventually received a letter from the congregation asking for clarity on a number of issues the divided church faced. Paul penned a response (I Corinthians) designed to instruct and encourage a gifted, but fractured group of people who failed to shake the influence of the dominate culture.

Paul recognized that God gifted the people in Corinth to do the work he required of them, telling them they had been “enriched in every way…in all your speaking and in all your knowledge…” and that they “do not lack any spiritual gift…” (I Cor. 1:4-7) Yet, he admonished them for growing no deeper in their faith and understanding over the years.

“Brethren, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly…mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready.” (I Cor. 3:1-2)

Their shallow understanding of God’s teaching and an egotistic application of their giftedness, split the church. Paul recognized that the people of the church had grown little spiritually over the years. They took the basics of faith taught by Paul and did little to deepen their understanding. They still thought and behaved as spiritual children.

There is a richness to the Christian faith that makes living the life of Christ a process…a necessary investment of time, study and the lifelong application of our experiences with God that challenges our faith and dares us to dig more deeply into his truth.

What I knew of God’s word as a 9-year-old boy who just accepted Christ should not be the same as what I know almost six decades later. Any deeper understanding of God’s teaching requires effort on my part, the desire to learn from his word, from his revelation and through the private rebellions and the personal restorations I experience as a child of God.

Life compels us to ask the question. From the moment we accepted Jesus into our hearts, have we grown in our understanding of what God desires of us? Are we gnawing on the meat and bone of God’s word or are we still drinking the milk, with a stomach unconditioned for the deeper truths.

The lack of personal spiritual growth in the Corinthian church led to a great many issues Paul tried to address. He wrote to them about their struggles with sexual immorality and marriage and their insistence on personal rights that caused others to stumble in their faith. He spoke to them of worship and how to make the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper meaningful.

Then, in I Corinthians 12, he provided a powerful lesson about using their individual giftedness to benefit the work of the church rather than glorifying the gifted.

“God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that the parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ and each one of you is a part of it. (I Cor. 12:24b-27)

How do you act as one body in Christ, each benefiting from the gifts of the other? Paul answered the question in the “most excellent way.”

“If I speak in tongues of men and angels and have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophesy and can fathom the mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains and have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.”

Resounding gongs. Clanging cymbals. Screeching clarinets. Paul says the spiritual gifts God shares with his people will grate on people…will annoy to the point of distraction and division… will cause them to close the door to the faith we practice…unless those gifts are grounded and used in the love of Christ.

Loving others as Christ loves may be the greatest mark of our spiritual maturity, particularly in a world in which hatred and division rules and agape love is in such short supply.

As Paul told the Corinthian church he tells us what that love looks like.

“Love is patient. Love is kind. It does not envy. It does not boast. It is not proud. It is not rude. It is not self-seeking. It is not easily angered. It keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”

The deeper we dig into God’s word…the more we imitate the life of Christ…the more we begin to understand how loving one another in Christ lets us see the needs of those around us with selfless clarity.

Love is everything this world is not. When our words and actions do not reflect the kind of love Paul describes, we are little more than clanging cymbals…spiritually inclined, but annoying and hollow sounding.

The Corinthians needed to learn that the things in which they took pride would fade away. They needed to understand that love reigns supreme. As gifted as we may be, as great as our faith and hope are, love is greater. Theologian William Barclay said, “Faith without love is cold. Hope without love is grim. Love is the fire which kindles faith and love is the light which turns hope into certainty.”

Until love waters our souls, the roots of our faith and hope will never stretch deeper into God’s truth. We will miss every opportunity to shine God’s light into the darkness. Paul knew it was the missing piece in the Corinthian church.

God knows it is one piece of our lives that can keep us from fully experiencing God’s blessings and from extending God’s grace to a lost world.

I don’t know about you, but I needed to hear that word this week.

“And now, these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

Faith to Dig a Hole in the Roof

Background Passages: Mark 2:1-12 and Luke 5:17-26

In a world where so many people are hurting, it’s difficult to understand why there are so many empty pews in our churches. Many people blame organized religion for its lack of compassion and concern. Perhaps the fault lies not in the institution but in our individual response to God’s call for ministry and service.

The world seeks help for its problems, but no longer trusts the church to be its answer. When it tries, the world tends to ridicule our efforts, painting them with unintended ulterior motives. As a result, many well-intentioned Christians no longer make the time or effort to heal the brokenness they see in their families, friends and community.

We can learn a valuable lesson from a familiar story in Scripture about what it means to take the initiative in meeting the needs of others and persistently breaking through the barriers that prevent us from doing what we are called to do. Mark and Luke both share an early account of Jesus healing a paralyzed man in Capernaum.

*****

When Jesus taught, people noticed a difference between the words he shared and the hollow recitations cited by the religious leaders of the day. With Jesus, they sensed vitality and life…an authenticity and authority to his teaching that was lacking in the synagogues. Couple his unique teaching with the miracles he shared with the needy and the hurting and Jesus became a national celebrity.

Jesus’ reputation as a master teacher and miracle worker spread across Galilee and Judea like wildfire, prompting people to leave their homes to hear him teach and see him work. Drawn by his compelling words of truth and the hope of healing, crowds followed Jesus wherever he went.

On this particular day, Jesus was invited to teach in a home in Capernaum. It didn’t take long for word to spread. They came from Capernaum and throughout Galilee to hear him speak. Others who had journeyed from Judea, including a group of religious leaders from Jerusalem, caught up to him in this seaside village. As the day progressed, Jesus found himself teaching to a standing-room-only crowd.

The Pharisees took the choice seats in the house where Jesus taught. The rest of the people packed into every nook and cranny, blocking the doorway and leaning in windows trying to catch his words. The crowd eventually spilled out into the street outside, making it impossible for anyone else to get close enough to hear.

Four men traveled for days between villages, constantly following the rumors of Jesus’ location, only to find that he had moved on by the time they arrived. They carried a litter between them, bearing a friend whose body was broken and paralyzed, unable to lift even a finger.

Hearing so much about Jesus’ ability to do the miraculous, they had to get their friend before the great healer. They knew Jesus was their friend’s only hope. As they entered Capernaum, there was a buzz in the town. Jesus was here, teaching in a house near the sea.

Moving through the twisting streets, they followed the crowd to the place where Jesus was teaching. The press of the crowd so great and the people so inconsiderate the men could not get anywhere near the door. Each time they tried to get close they were pushed and shoved to the back of the crowd.

They laid their friend underneath a tree and sat beside him, full of disappointment and despair. One of them kept looking at the house, noticing that they could reach the stairs to the roof. Again picking up their friend, they climbed the steps to the roof of the house. With sticks and fingers, they began to chip away at the mud-covered branches. They work until their fingers began to bleed and they dug some more.

At last, one of them managed to get his hand through the roof. They increased their effort with renewed hope. If they could just get the hole big enough they could lower their friend into the room where Jesus sat.

Inside the room, an arrogant Pharisee looked puzzled and irritated as he brushed the dirt from his sleeve, looking angrily at the ceiling. Jesus, for his part, kept teaching with one eye on the ever-expanding hole above his head.

Finally, even Jesus had to stop what he was doing, the hole and the frenzied activity too great to ignore. With effort, the men began lowering their paralyzed friend by rope into the room until he was resting at the feet of the healer. Perspiring and covered in dirt, they peered into the hole they created and shared the man’s story with Jesus, begging him with such sincere words to heal their friend.

To the chagrin of the religious leaders whose brightly colored robes were flecked with dust and twigs, Jesus acknowledged the great love of these four men who sacrificed their time and energy for their helpless friend. Compassion poured from Jesus’ heart as he knelt beside the stricken man. Nodding in approval of the faith they demonstrated and addressing the man’s deepest need, Jesus held a quiet conversation with the paralyzed man before laying his hand upon his chest in prayer and telling him his sins were forgiven.

The Pharisees muttered to one another in their dusty robes, denouncing Jesus privately for his blasphemy.

“Why does this fellow talk like that? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Without hearing their words, Jesus knew their hearts. Never allowing his eyes to leave the man resting on the cot, Jesus responded to their thoughts.

“Which is easier? To say to this paralyzed man, ‘your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk?”

After a moment his eyes bore into the hearts and souls of the religious leaders until they cringed under the intensity of his gaze. “I want you to know the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.”

With a deep breath, he paused and prayed. Then, he smiled at the four men poking their heads through the hole in the roof and extended his hand to the paralyzed man. “Get up,” he said as he pulled him to his feet. “Take your mat and go home.”

Every miraculous healing pointed to the power of God demonstrated in Jesus. For anyone paying attention, each act of healing was proof conclusive of God’s power within him. The people left the home amazed at all they had heard and seen.

*****

The story reveals a lot about Jesus. Like the Pharisees we have much to learn about the power and authority we can find in him. But, I find a more personal message in this cherished story demonstrated by the faith of the four friends.

The accounts of this story we find in Mark and Luke are almost identical. Almost word for word. But Luke, the physician, uses a phrase that Mark does not include. Luke wrote this about Jesus,

“And the power was in him to heal the sick…”

On a day when the Holy Spirit was filling Jesus with great power, there was no one present who needed his help. Jesus’ audience that day consisted of people who loved to hear Jesus teach. There were present also a few religious leaders who felt a little threatened and challenged his every word. Yet, other than this one who was brought to Jesus by four wonderful friends, there is no mention of others who were present in need of healing.

On nearly every other occasion where Jesus taught the crowds, we read about the sick, blind, disabled and demon-possessed so desperately in need of Jesus’ touch. But not this day. Given what happened to these four men and their paralyzed friend, we can surmise that many of the sick and helpless were sent away, pushed to the periphery of the crowd. They were not invited inside.

So, despite having the power in him to heal the sick, there was no one present for him to heal…until four men traveled a great distance and refused to go away. I find that moment when they climbed on the roof instructive for my life as a Christian.

Could it be churches have empty pews because we don’t take the initiative to reach out to those in need and bring them to Jesus? Could it be that we find reasonable excuses to disregard the needs of others?

You see, faith demands that we take initiative to bring others to Christ. It wasn’t as if these four friends lived next door to the house where Jesus taught. The scripture implies that the paralyzed man and his friends journeyed over time and distance until they caught up with Jesus. It was an exhaustive effort to carry their friend across hill and valley to reach Jesus.

They didn’t wait for Jesus to come to their village. They didn’t send a messenger begging for Jesus to come for a visit. They didn’t wait for Jesus to just happen by. They didn’t simply tell their friend to find his own way to Jesus. They dropped what they were doing. They picked up the bed and they carried their friend to Capernaum and cared for his needs along the way.

What could happen in our churches if we took the initiative to bring others to Christ? To be enough of a friend to pick up the litter and carry it over time and distance until our hurting friend found the spiritual healing he or she needed and desired. Faith requires us to take the initiative to bring the lost and hurting to Jesus. Faith without service is no faith at all.

There is more to learn in the example of these four friends.

Could it be that churches have empty pews because Christians give up when challenged? Could it be that those who need our help get turned away at the door because we would rather just listen to God’s word than live it?

When these four friends arrived at the house they found every natural entrance blocked by the crowd. Carrying a paralytic and pushing through the unyielding wall of humanity proved impossible. It seemed they had come all that way for nothing.

They could have blamed the unsympathetic crowd. The poor choice of venue that didn’t allow enough people inside. They might have even blamed the paralyzed friend for hurting himself in the first place. When faced with the obstacles, they could have simply gone home. Their faith would not allow them to give up so easily.

Instead, they refused to let the obstacles stand in the way of the healing their friend needed. They found another way. They climbed to the roof and dug in.

You see, sometimes faith requires us to carry the litter to the roof and start chipping away at the dirt and branches until the hole is big enough to let us lower a hurting soul at the feet of our Lord. Faith demands persistence.

Persistent faith digs through a roof. Persistent faith wraps a rope around our hands to bear the weight of those in need.  Persistent faith often leaves us with dirt on our faces, cuts on fingers and rope-burned hands.

Yet, this much is true. When we take the initiative to bring others to Christ and when our faith is persistent in pushing through every obstacle that might prevent us from introducing others to our savior, good things will happen. We will find the power of Christ available to heal and help those in need.

What would happen to the empty pews in our churches if we took the initiative to introduce the world to Jesus? What would happen to the empty pews in our churches if we never gave up or gave in to the obstacles and distractions that stand in the way of ministry and service.

I suspect we might have a hard time finding a place to sit…and that would be just fine.