Jesus, The Light of the World

My Buddhist friend says, “You have to have “darkness” (or evil) in order to appreciate the “light’.”

My writing teacher who wanted nothing to do with God said, ‘You can't only write “light”, you have to write mostly “darkness” in order for the ” light” to shine brighter.’

My artist friend whose husband describes them as “born-again pagans” insisted that I must paint more “darks” in order for the “lights” to “pop” (stand out).

Curiously, I’ve heard much the same thing from many church friends, “You have to have “darkness” in order for the candle to shine brighter.”

The Bible disagrees and so do I.

Jesus said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12) and John later wrote, God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. (1 John 1:5)

The Buddhists with their “yin and yang”, see dark and light, evil and good as equals to be balanced (incidentally, they put female on the same side as evil) but Solomon pointed out that light is better than darkness. (Ecclesiastes 2:13) Jesus came to dispel darkness not balance it!
"The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work." (1John 3:8)

In creative writing class, I made it my goal to prove that I could write about “light” more than “darkness”. I simply couldn’t dwell on darkness because as Paul said to the Thessalonians,"You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness." (1 Thessalonians 5:5)

Perhaps my artist friend gave up on me since I kept insisting that my paintings are about light, that there is plenty of darkness in this world already—I don’t need to add to it! (If you’ve seen my paintings, you know that I have no trouble getting my “lights to pop”!) As Paul exhorted the Ephesians, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.” (Ephesians 5:8-11)

Physical science would probably refute my church friends’ candle philosophy but psychology would likely agree with their perception. But we followers of Jesus need to be concerned with what is true, not what seems. Many who are called by Jesus’ name (so many that it’s epidemic) believe wholeheartedly that God makes them sick or puts other evil things in their lives (one person even said that God makes people sin!) in order to “teach them something” or ‘bring them closer to him”! (see Matthew 7: 9-11) But the Bible continually speaks of Jesus bringing us out of darkness and into the light! (1 John 1:6; 2 Corinthians 4:4,6; Colossians 1:12,13; Isaiah 5:20)

We are coming into Christmas, the season in which we celebrate The Light of the World, Jesus. I’ve heard from two sources lately that it doesn’t matter if all the trappings of Christmas that we’ve come to value—saying “Merry Christmas” (though Charles Spurgeon said that, in his time, people were bothered by the “Merry” part) or nativity scenes (attributed to St. Francis) and are only left with “twinkling lights”. Because, they said, “Light is what we celebrate. The Father of Lights (James 1:17) sent The Light of the World (John 8:12) into a dark world (Isaiah 9:2) during the Festival of Lights (Chanukah).

Light has overcome and is overcoming darkness. Don’t try to balance it and don’t make darkness your friend.
“...giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:12-14)

This Christmas season, walk in the light as he is in the light and as Michael Card sings, “Celebrate the Child who is the Light”!

Advent—Looking for Jesus’ Return

Since Jesus already came to earth as a man (a baby who grew into a man) about two thousand years ago, Advent (coming) isn’t about Jesus’ first coming but his second one.

Indeed much has been said and written about “The End Times”—often too much and too little. I tend to hold “End Time prophecies” and eschatological interpretations of current events at arm’s length because they tend to focus heavily on one aspect, adding to the Word, taking away from it or rearranging it. Much paralyzing fear is generated; keeping God’s people from doing the work Jesus assigned us.

But some people, you may say, are scared into the Kingdom (of God) this way, but I have to wonder what they are being brought to--when scripture is changed to enable the process. Besides fear breeds fear not love or life.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10

It seems strange that the same people who preach that the church will be raptured before “The Great Tribulation” seem to be the same ones who are so worried about “Armageddon”, the last battle at the end of the world (after the Tribulation). Jesus is most definitely coming back for his followers, but he has given us some clear guidelines that have been largely ignored.

Fear Not
You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Matthew 24:6

This was the watchword the Lord gave me after “September 11”—it still applies.


No Avoiding It
Such things must happen Matthew 24:6b

Theses things, wars, earthquakes, famines will happen, must happen because they are the signs of the end. Nor can we completely prevent them, though we may be able to lessen some of the effects through considerate decisions and perhaps science. We can’t, as one pastor said, pray away the signs of the end times nor, I would add, protest them away with picket signs, petitions nor boycotts, though avoiding being a part of making them worse is wise.

but the end is still to come. Matthew 24:6b
These things aren’t IT but only the signs of the end.

Jesus’ emphasized that we should avoid being deceived by false prophets (v.11) since many will appear and that we should stand firm until the end in order to be saved. This doesn’t sound like we’ll have an easy ticket out. A major focus rather than wringing our hands about how bad things are (hint:read history;things have always been bad and often good,just as now) but on shoring up our faith (Jude 20) and living holy and obedient lives.

Jesus went on to say (v.14) that “this gospel will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations (people groups) and then the end will come.” Missions are crucial to eschatology (study of the End Times) but the average Christian isn’t all that interested in seeing to it that every one hears the Good News. Notice that Jesus said, “this gospel of the kingdom” not the gospel of the cross (which is a MAJOR part), he also said that we’re to teach them to obey everything he commanded us. (Matthew 28) Any gospel that teaches less is not “this gospel of the kingdom”. Any gospel that disrespects or disregards the poor, women or aliens, waves a national flag or seeks to put Christians under Mosaic Law not only is not the gospel of the kingdom (of God) but what Paul called “a different gospel—which is really no gospel at all.” (Galatians 1:7)

We need to be careful what we teach and what we’re taught—always taking the teachings of Jesus (including that which he taught through the apostles) as our standard rather than “conventional wisdom”, culture or “what I’ve always been taught”. And we need to be careful what teachings we export to other parts of the world. For example, I read that there are women in an African country who are called by the name of Jesus, yet they believe that they can only be saved by having babies! This is NOT Good News! What happened to grace? The true meaning of I Timothy 2:15 was apparently ignored--to great harm. The Greek says “the childbearing” and clearly points to Jesus, born of Mary, who was Eve’s seed (or offspring)! Genesis 3:15

In summary, we need to avoid fear, watch the signs, be ready by preaching the gospel of the kingdom to all nations (and living it!) and standing firm, not being taken in by the many false prophets. There’s no time for fearful hand wringing! We’ve got work to do!

Who Were the Pilgrims, Anyway?

My elementary school classrooms were always filled this time of year with pictures of austere-looking men in black hats and shoes with big buckles. The women in the pictures had white headdresses and aprons over their black dresses. These were the Pilgrims, we were told, who had crossed the ocean in a tiny ship to come to start America—definitely the condensed and inaccurate version.

I was shocked (and relieved) to discover that the people in black were not the Pilgrims but those who came later, the Puritans. The Pilgrims were a church from England, formed when they saw no hope for positive change in the Church of England. They were persecuted for believing that a person could have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and for wanting to see “the churches of God revert to their ancient purity and recover their primitive order, liberty and beauty” (William Bradford)*, for believing that no one but Jesus could be the head of the church. They were “hounded, bullied, forced to pay assessments to the Church of England, clapped into prison on trumped up charges, and driven underground,” and “constantly spied upon”*. Finally, (to put it very simply) these “Separatists” had had enough and left England. The black-clad Puritans stayed and tried to “purify from within”*.

And surprise! The Pilgrims didn’t wear black, either! They wore colors such as plum red and emerald green!

*The Light and The Glory by Peter Marshall & David Manuel

Thanksgiving--A Community Celebration

In the U.S. we’ll soon be celebrating Thanksgiving, a special day originally set aside by our early settlers, the Pilgrims, to give thanks to God for providing their food and safety. (though not the original date) Many have (rightfully) complained that it has degenerated into “Turkey Day” or “Football Day”, though food and games were a large part of the original. The lament continues that Thanksgiving is supposed to be a time for families to get together—you know, like the Norman Rockwell painting. Wait! Where did that come from?

The Pilgrim’s celebration had nothing to do with family, except of course that they were thankful that any of their family members survived at all. It was a community celebration. The entire settlement came together, and they invited an Indian chief. Surprise! Massasoit came “ a day early with ninety Indians.” How would they feed them all? No problem, the Indians had brought “five dressed deer and more than a dozen fat wild turkeys.” They taught the pilgrim women how to make hoecakes, Indian pudding and popcorn! * The whole community brought food and there was plenty.

If each Pilgrim family had stayed around their own table, they would have missed the opportunity to thank God together with others who had gone through the same trials. They would have missed building valuable friendships with their neighbors (and another culture). And of course, they may have missed popcorn!

If you’ve been in the habit of keeping your Thanksgiving celebration in the “us 4 and no more” realm, I urge you to reconsider and include others from the church and the community. “But I don’t have enough chairs…” You can borrow some or even ask your guests to bring some. “But this is the only time I can be with my family…” Well, then that needs some work. Sure people often include those who are single--but don’t stop there. What about the couple who is far away from their family? Why not make room for them, too? “But they have each other…” Well, “us 2 and no more” isn’t healthy either.

Some of my best memories of Thanksgiving are of community gatherings. One year, when we had our house in Texas, we invited my parents and sister, and a family of three from church who brought along a hitchhiker they had picked up the day before! (I don't recommend picking up hitchhikers but the Lord used it.). Another year, a variety of us from our apartment building gathered to eat, pray and listen to my husband read about the original celebration. Don’t be isolated, celebrate together!

*The Light and The Glory by Peter Marshall & David Manuel

Keep on loving each other as brothers. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it. Hebrews 13:1,2

Whose side is God on?

Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, "Are you for us or for our enemies?"

"Neither," he replied,"but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come."

Joshua 5:13,14

Election Woes

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. I Timothy 1:7

My spirit is deeply troubled over the upcoming election—not so much about the outcome but over the fighting between those who are called by Jesus’ name. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such fear, even hysteria from the “conservatives”, who have resorted in their fear to making up accusations against their opponents. The “progressives” retaliate in anger, accusing of slander.

Somehow, those who are called by Jesus’ name have taken hard stands with both parties though I don’t see how they can support either. Conservatives scream, “How can you possibly vote for abortion or homosexual marriage? Anyone who votes like that can’t possibly be a Christian!” The progressives yell back, “We’re not voting for that, but it’s the best we can do! How can you possibly vote against the poor and not care about the babies after they’re born and against taking care of God’s creation? No one who votes like that can really be a Christian!” Increasingly, conservatives are beginning to hang their heads and say, "We're not voting against that, but it's the best we can do." Each of the two parties gets some things right and some things wrong. But neither is a good option.

And it will continue this way until those who are called by Jesus’ name forget about who is wearing a flag on their lapel or who contributes the most money and focus on following Jesus and his teachings. We can’t cherry pick which ones we like—and they go far beyond the issues of abortion and traditional marriage, even beyond caring for the poor and creation. One of Jesus’ main teachings was that we are to love and serve one another in unity. It’s time for a better way—Jesus’ way.

Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." John 8:31,32

Important Questions

“The thoughtful person finds herself asking important questions. If Jesus’ ethic speaks of loving one’s enemies, why are we praying for American soldiers but not their victims? Why are we passionate to protect life in the womb but often apathetic about the plight of single moms trying to raise infants without health coverage or access to living wage employment? Why are we working just as hard as everyone else to perpetuate an American dream that results in our 5 percent of the world’s population consuming 26 per cent of the world’s resources? When thoughtful Christians articulate these questions, they are too often told to stop thinking so much and get with the program.”

Richard Dahlstrom

Rescue

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Col. 1:13)

In Galveston,Texas those who ignored the order to evacuate from Hurricane Ike’s fury now have to be rescued from waist-deep water. Reporters and observers have been quick to point out that these “determined” residents have put the “first responders” at risk. While it is true that they have needlessly endangered themselves and others, I was impressed by the response from a spokesman for some of those “first responders”. He gently said, “Our job is to rescue, not to judge.” What a refreshingly mature response!

Isn’t that the response we Christians should have toward unbelievers—those who have not yet heeded God’s warning and offer of safety? Paul said that it wasn’t his business to judge the world. (I Cor. 5:12) Even Jesus, the Creator of everything (Col 1:16) and eventual* judge said that he didn’t come to condemn the world but to save it. (John 12:47) Jesus response was and ours should be, “Our job is to rescue, not to judge.”

*Eventual is the key word here. Jesus will be the judge of all things and “the saints” will judge the world with him (John 5:27-30; I Cor. 6:2) but not until the “end”.

Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God. (I Cor. 4:5)

God's Pruning

Have you ever heard someone exclaim (or write), “ I was cut to the heart by what I read in Scripture”? If you’re like me, it’s been a very long time since you have. In the last several years, people I’ve encountered have been more likely to instead say, “God is teaching me so much through this sickness that I wouldn’t have learned any other way. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

Jesus said, "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 that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.“(John 15:1-3) Since the Greek words for “prune” and “clean” come from the same root, Jesus was saying that his word had pruned them already and they apparently didn’t need any other. If we stay in the Word (continually reading the New Testament and making the teachings our way of life) we won’t need any other kind* of “pruning” either. Sure, the Lord uses every situation, turning what the devil meant for evil into good,(see Romans 8:28) but it’s so much better to let the Holy Spirit convict and teach you through the Word of God.

*Persecution for Jesus’ name's sake is the kind of trial that God uses for chastening us and building character. Look for future posts on this.

He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker,
but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.(Proverbs 14:31)

Judgment, Hurricanes & New Orleans

God's Judgment? Once again, a large hurricane was headed for New Orleans and once again I’ve heard Christians assess it as God’s judgment. I’m ashamed to hear God’s people, who have been generous recipients of god’s mercy deny it to others! In 2005, I wrote an e-mail response to the the judgment-by-e-mail that circulated like buzzards when Katrina did it’s damage. I’m repeating it here, now because the Biblical issues haven’t changed.

On God’s Judgment
By Joan C. Thomson
Autumn 2005
When Katrina headed for New Orleans, I grieved and cried out to God for mercy. Thankfully it “weakened” to a category 4 hurricane from a huge “5 1/2”!

As a teen visiting several times with my family, I knew New Orleans as a beautiful city with huge sprays of magenta bougainvillea trailing over wrought iron balconies. Artists set up their easels in Jackson Square. Royal Street hosted antique and gift shops one after another while a streetcar ride through St. Charles garden district was a delight. Beautifully landscaped courtyards with fountains peeked out through passageways and the food was renowned. And yet, most people only know about Bourbon Street. I’ve been there, too. It is horrible—once you see past the continual carnival atmosphere, but it’s only one part.

I’ll miss the good parts of New Orleans (as it was) yet after Katrina hit I began to hear (as usual) speculation about whether the hurricane was God’s judgment on the area. So I looked for commonality between New Orleans, Gulf Port and Mobile (another beautiful city). New Orleans and Gulf Port have in common newly acquired big gambling while Mobile taught New Orleans how to Mardi Gras (literally). Even as I found these parallels, the Holy Spirit began to convict me. IF God were judging these cities on the grounds of such wickedness, THEN we’d better pray for lots of places! My dad agreed as he enumerated the types of legal gambling in Texas. Was it Mardi Gras? —many US cities have it, as do many throughout Europe. Was it the homosexual parades? Many US cities have those too, including Charlotte.
But even Sodom and Gomorrah had Abraham to intercede for them. God would have relented for even ten righteous people. We can be sure that most places have at least ten! If it was God’s judgment, where were the intercessors? I read an exhortation that said more changes aren’t seen in particular groups because instead of praying for them, we Christians are too busy throwing stones.

Was it God’s judgment? That is for God to say. Even Jesus said, “For I did not come to judge the world but to save it.” (John 12:47b) Judgment will come at the end. “Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes.” (I Corinthians 4:5) Paul said that we aren’t to judge the world at all. “What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church?” (I Cor. 5:12) Yes, I’m aware of the verses that say we will judge the world. Notice that they are written in the future tense.

Jesus warned against our passing judgment on those who are the victims of disaster when He said, “Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” (Luke 13:4,5) That puts us all in a difficult situation since, if there is to be any judgment, it starts with God’s people. “For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God…” (1 Peter 4:17) But guess what? The context has nothing to do with “natural disasters” but persecution for being a Christian. V13 “But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when His glory is revealed.”

We’re a lot less likely to pray for a person or place if we’ve made up our minds that God is judging them.

One reason I’ve been so distressed over Katrina’s devastation of the Gulf Coast is that I knew a hurricane could just as easily have hit Galveston and Houston, the city in which I was born and lived until 1985—over half my life. My husband lived most of his life there as well. Our families are there still. Now here we are a few weeks later with Rita bearing down on Galveston and Houston. Yes, Houston has its evil and plenty of it but that doesn’t mean that everyone who lives there is evil.

I’m ashamed to hear Christians saying that Rita should veer over to New Orleans and “finish the job”. Please don’t react to events in an uninformed manner—please base all your opinions, thoughts and comments on the Word of God for it’s the only worthy standard. “But I tell you that men will have to give an account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.” (Matthew 12:36) When you feel the urge to point the finger—PRAY INSTEAD.

Generational Curses

Generational curses are blamed for everything these days. So often when I ask for healing prayer, if I mention the “G” word (genetic), or for no particular reason, the person praying will launch into praying against “generational curses”, the concept based on the second commandment, which says that since “God punishes the sins of the fathers to the third and fourth generations,” any problem a person has results from some sin, known or unknown, that their ancestor committed. The remedy, according to the teaching's adherents, consists of anything from personally repenting of that sin to undergoing five-hour rituals to undo their ancestors' Masonic involvement. One person told me that someone who prayed for her discerned witchcraft in her family all the way back to the eleven hundreds—for which she had to repent. People mean well (I think) but I’m amazed at the angry responses to my pointing out what the scripture truly says.

The second commandment and several other passages in the Bible really do say that:

You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, Exodus 20:5

So what’s the problem? God in his mercy and grace didn’t leave us there! Even as far back as Ezekiel’s time, God stopped passing the blame through the generations!

"Yet you ask, 'Why does the son not share the guilt of his father? Since the son has done what is just and right and has been careful to keep all my decrees, he will surely live. The soul who sins is the one who will die. The son will not share the guilt of the father, nor will the father share the guilt of the son. " Ezk 18:19-20

This entire chapter is clearly about individuals not bearing any guilt but their own. Ezekiel was looking forward to the day when Jesus would bear the curse of sin and death, including the generational curse, for us.

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree." Galatians 3:13

Hallelujah! Jesus has already done it!!! We who follow Jesus are no longer under the Law! Each person is only responsible to repent for his or her own sins and Jesus’ death and resurrection have won us forgiveness! We don’t need any rituals to “break off” such curses; the New Testament never even suggests such a thing! Even in the Old Testament, God had Ezekiel rebuke the Israelites for saying such a thing.

The word of the LORD came to me: 2 "What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel:" `The fathers eat sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge'?As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel. 4 For every living soul belongs to me, the father as well as the son--both alike belong to me. The soul who sins is the one who will die. EZE 18:1-4

This is a very serious issue since the kinds of curses that people should be concerned about are the ones that come from trying to be justified by the Law (Mosaic).

All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law." 11 Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, "The righteous will live by faith." GAL 3:10

But what about genetic diseases? I’m not a genetic scientist but I can be reasonably sure (and fervently hope) that if a person’s parent has a disease it’s not a sure thing that they will contract it also. If a person knows that a genetic tendency runs in their family they will do well to take precautions such as eating a healthy diet and exercising. I realize that this part is oversimplification but I do know that we who follow Jesus are not required by any curse to contract these things!!

Yes, sometimes curses do harass people for other reasons but that’s another matter. God no longer punishes the children for the sins of their fathers! We are FREE in Jesus!

Sola Scriptura

Childhood books urged me, “If you believe hard enough, whatever you wish for will come true!” Oh, how I wanted it to be so but there was always an adult around to assure me of what I had already sensed, that it just wasn’t. Later as a teen I discovered that “faith can move mountains” and began to pray in faith and received amazing answers. I learned though that faith and belief, unlike “wishing upon a star”, worked only on those things that God had promised in his word.

Sola scriptura, scripture alone, was Martin Luther’s insistence that all authority for a Christian’s life was based not on what some religious leader found advantageous, not on tradition but only on the Word of God—the Bible. Today, people tell me, “Well, I believe …”, fill in the blank with whatever they’ve been taught by “someone I respect”—therefore-it-must-be-true, without taking time to be like the Bereans who “examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true” (Acts 17:11) Paul wasn’t threatened, so why do Christian teachers feel threatened today? Or perhaps the person believes, "God wants me to be happy,”
making it convenient to divorce their husband or wife, regardless of what God has already said on the subject.

Just believing something, anything does not make it so. Exercising faith in God, based on his word already expressed in the Bible does!

“I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, `Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20)

Let’s move those mountains of sickness, poverty, evil and unbelief! Anyone game?

Christians and “The Law” (of Moses)

Saturday, a store manager told me that an item I had always found there was no longer stocked but she encouraged me to “keep checking because everything old is new again.” I was amused since my first thought was, “That means me!” Many old things (and people!) are still good and don’t need to be replaced just because something newer, flashier or more technologically up to date comes along. My grandmother’s cheese grater still grates and my late twentieth century phones can still connect me to any other phone in the world—without all the fancy features and up-charges.

However, bringing some old things forward is not only inappropriate but can be harmful, as when Christians try to put other Christians “under the Law”. Of course, I’m referring to the Law of Moses, given to Moses by God for the Jews. Even a rabbi told me that Jewish people are the only ones who God expects to follow the Law. But for all who follow Jesus, the Law was fulfilled by his death on the cross and resurrection from the dead! (Romans 10:4) and we are “not under law but under grace.” (Romans 6:14) Yet, Christians often still insist on requiring each other (sometimes even themselves) to be “under the Law” in various forms. Some insist on the Ten Commandments, others on tithing and still others that God punishes sins “to the third and fourth generations”.

The apostle Paul severely chastised the Galatians for following teachings that put them under the Law. He called it, “deserting the one who called you” (Gal.1: 6) “turning to a different gospel, which is no gospel at all”. (Gal. 1:7-9) Paul quoted the Law itself in saying that anyone who relied on the Law was under a curse for not keeping the entire Law—all 613 parts! (Gal. 3:10) Strong words! But they’re not mine. They’re the Word of God. God is very serious about grace—it cost Jesus a lot.

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” (Gal. 5:1)

I’ll be writing more detail on this subject in weeks to come, and don’t worry, I’ll address as well the overdose of grace that leads to license.

God's Will for Your Life

We Christians are always wondering, ”What is God’s will for my life?” Many books and workshops are eagerly sought in this mysterious quest. We think, “I just know the answer is out there somewhere, if only I could find the right formula…” Some tell us to follow our dreams while others say, “Do what you’re good at” and still others say that you never quite know because God may change it minute by minute. But God isn’t capricious--constantly changing nor is he holding out on you, keeping some big secret from you. In fact, he so much wants you to know what he wants for your life that he had it written down for you even before you were born!

As I recently wrote to a young friend, God doesn’t have a different will for each person, his will for all of us is written in the Bible (with an emphasis on the New Testament). Of course, there are details that will vary such as timing and location, etc. I’m in no way dismissing the leading of the Holy Spirit! But the first place the Holy Spirit will lead you is to that which has already been said. Do you remember your mother ever saying, “Now what did I already tell you?”

One question that comes up among young people and increasingly among the not so young is, “Am I ‘called’ to missions?” The answer is simple—yes. Jesus said,” Therefore go and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:19) Every Christian is called by Jesus to take the good news of his kingdom to the nations though the nations or “people groups” may very well be in your city. Your role may be to help someone else travel, supporting them in (fervent!) prayer and finances until you can take a more active role.

What field should I work/major in? Which job should I aim for?” are two other questions that confront most of us at an increasingly earlier age. Your number one calling is to be a disciple of Jesus who makes other disciples (this certainly includes worshipping him) so your primary concern should be in taking a job that doesn’t so fill your time that there’s no time left for following Jesus in every way,and gathering with other believers (this does not necessarily mean committee meetings!). You already know from scripture without having to wonder (I hope!) that it should be work that honors God and doesn’t dishonor him. There is an old teaching that all work a Christian does honors God—sorry, there’s no way that being a stripper or a manufacturer of products that harm people will ever honor God.

These are just a couple of the questions many of us have about God’s will for our lives. I’ve only skimmed the surface, but my aim is to send you back to God’s Word to get the foundational knowledge of his will—you may be surprised at how many of the details fall into place once you do. More later…

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem

Today, Jerusalem is once again in grief and turmoil after a horrible attack by a Palestinian bulldozer driver, who rammed two buses, knocking over one, squashed cars (apparently with people in them), damaged buildings, killing three people and injuring forty-five others. This was a horrendous deed. Perhaps it was terrorism, as it’s currently considered, or maybe a man let his anger against those he believed to be oppressive occupiers overtake him.

My prayer (in addition to praying for the wounded and families of those who died) and I hope you will pray with me, is that Israel won’t commit a greater wrong and retaliate ten or even a hundred fold against everyday Palestinians as they have in the past. They already shot the man dead. Every time Israel blasts rockets into Palestinian homes or orders tanks rumbling over Palestinian streets, squashing cars and buildings, everyday Palestinians are damaged, as are Palestinian Christians.

I love Israel and know that the Jews are still God’s chosen people but nowhere does the Bible say that a political state of Israel can do whatever it pleases to other people and be blessed by God. There are not two Yahweh’s, one that says “Exact vengeance!” and another who says through Jesus, “Love your enemies.” The Christians do not participate in the violence but they are often the brunt of it.

When I read Brother Andrew’s book, “Light Force” (with co-author Al Janssen) my worldview was knocked on end! I was grieved and astounded to discover the oppression that Palestinians, even Christians experience at the hands of Israel, that they show no concern for our brothers and sisters in the Palestinian church. In fact, the church asks, “Why are American Christians always for Israel, no matter what they do?’ and “Where is the church in the West when we suffer so? Why don’t they speak up? Don’t they care about us?” “Everyone wants to come see the ancient stones, why don’t they come see us ‘living stones’?” I urge every Christian to read “Light Force” for true understanding of how to pray for the peace of Jerusalem!

Dental Anguish

When I ask people to pray for healing of my painful teeth, they say, “Oh but you should go to the dentist. God uses doctors and dentists to heal.” Jesus said that he came to preach good news to the poor. “Healing” which costs thousands of dollars after insurance (if you can afford insurance in the first place) is not good news for the poor or anyone else for that matter. Would people be so quick to insist on doctors and dentists if they had no insurance? What about the many who are unemployed or the “working poor”? Yes, the worker is worthy of his/her hire but Jesus never charged for his healing. That’s the kind I want, the kind with no side effects. Besides, he’s healed me of some pretty serious things so teeth are easy.

Then there’s the fact that even dentists, when they see my x-rays say, “Wow, you’ve really spent a lot of time in the dentist’s chair.” Right, I’ve been there, done that and suffered quite enough thank you. After spending thousands on root canals and crowns, the crowns fall off and oops! if I don’t get back in immediately with the errant crown, it won’t fit anymore (even a week) and oh well, we have to start over. That will be $800 plus, please. Then there was the one who hit a nerve with the needle and skewed my vision for a time! It simply has not worked for me and the downward spiral has to stop. My teeth must get well! (This doesn’t even count the many doctors my husband and I have encountered in the last few years who say, “I have no idea what causes that or what to do about it.”)

MT 8:16 When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. 17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah:

"He took up our infirmities
and carried our diseases."

Healing is a part of the atonement and I don’t want to waste one bit of his suffering for us. Jesus healed every person who came asked him and some who didn’t even ask. I may still have to endure the agony and high price of the dental chair as my faith grows but at least I know how it’s supposed to be. What if we really believed God’s word? What might be accomplished?