Where Have I Been?

Where have I been? Right here, but I have been too busy to write a blog. In the past three weeks I have

• preached three Sundays;

• completed a week of devotionals for a publisher;

• completed a Bible edit for a Sunday school curriculum quarter;

• completed a week of devotionals for a publisher;

• written discussion questions for a publisher;

• completed a week of devotionals for another publisher;

• written an assigned 18,000-word inspirational journal; and

• mentored writing students on line.

The Lord gives enough strength and wisdom for each day as we serve Him.

Yesterday, I received the results of two heart tests that were performed last week: a resting echo of the heart and an echo of the carotids. It had been a year since I had a nuclear stress test and three years since I had an echo of the carotids. The cardiologist reported that I am doing well. Nothing had changed since the previous tests.

I am thankful for a good health report. Walking daily and keeping my weight under control are significant health factors, but ultimately the Lord holds my days—and yours—in His hands. He keeps us here until He wants us there!

No One Died When Jesus Was Present

“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (John 11:21). Martha spoke these words to Jesus upon the death of her brother Lazarus. Was she right?

She was. No one ever died in Jesus’ presence. Death and Jesus, the source and giver of life, are mutually exclusive. When Jesus heard that Lazarus of Bethany was sick, He did not go to Bethany immediately, but stayed another two days where He was. He went to Bethany after Lazarus had died.

After arriving in Bethany, Jesus promised Martha that Lazarus “will rise again” (John 11:23). He also assured her that He is the resurrection and the life (v. 25). Accompanied by Martha and her sister Mary and other mourners, Jesus went to Lazarus’ tomb. There, he instructed the mourners to remove the stone that blocked the entrance to the tomb. Then He summoned dead Lazarus to come forth (vv. 39-43). Still bound in graveclothes, Lazarus hobbled out of the tomb—alive!

But didn’t two thieves die on crosses alongside the cross that held Jesus? Yes, but Jesus died before they did. Furthermore, He voluntarily dismissed His spirit after declaring, “It is finished!” (Read John 19:28-33.)

Jesus’ death on the cross was the ultimate act of amazing grace. He, the Prince of Life, died to give us life—eternal, blissful life. The apostle Paul exclaimed, “But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 5:20, 21).

Death is every human being’s enemy, but “thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 15:57).

Have you claimed the victory by believing in Jesus Christ?

Hungry for the Bread of Life?

Between college and my first pastorate I worked as a retail bread salesman in Niagara Falls, Ontario. Gloria and I were newlyweds then. Soon we will celebrate our 52nd Anniversary. I worked long hours in Niagara Falls, six days a week, and earned about $100 per week. Finally, in November of that year (1958) a church called me to be its pastor. In December I stopped selling bread and began to break the bread of life to members of the church that had called me to be its pastor. Suddenly, my salary went from $100 per week to $50 per week, but the privilege of serving a congregation on behalf of the Savior was priceless. Now, 52 years later I still consider ministry a priceless privilege.
Times have changed since 1958. When I sold bread in Niagara Falls, an 18-ounce loaf cost 12 cents and a dozen donuts cost 28 cents. Now a loaf of bread may cost 3 or 4 dollars and one donut costs more than a dozen cost in 1958. Of course, salaries have risen too. However, occasionally I drive many miles to preach, and then I return home with only the satisfaction of having shared the bread of life with hungry believers. I have often said I would rather preach without pay than be paid not to preach; a few congregations have tested that philosophy.
Bread has always been a staple food and probably always will be. It seems consumers are willing to buy bread at any price. I just wish there was a heavy demand for the bread of life throughout the land. It seems many believers want to see a national revival, but how many hunger for the bread of life? We may have a revival someday, but I don’t think it will happen until first we have a reBible.

Are We Having Fun Yet?

An ad in today’s newspaper appealed to readers who want to lose weight. The weight-loss company said the best thing about its program is the fun readers would have if they joined. If trying to lose weight is so much fun, why are so many people overweight? Overweight people might argue that eating generous helpings of pecan pie topped with ice cream is fun, but dieting is torture.

Having fun seems to be a key factor in almost every modern venture. It isn’t uncommon for job recruiters to talk about Company X as a fun place to work. We are encouraged to exercise for fun, and our children or grandchildren are supposed to have fun in the classroom. The schools I attended were so wrong. My classmates and I had to work hard in class. Our teachers were so uniformed that they thought only recess was supposed to be fun.

A growing number of Christians look for a church home on the basis of how much fun a church provides. Entertainment and social life seem to be more important to them than edification and service. “Rock on” seems to be gaining acceptance while devotion to the Rock of Ages seems to be shrinking.

Just a reminder: Jesus summoned His disciples to take up a cross and follow Him. He assured them they would have tribulation, but He also told them to be of good cheer. Are good cheer and fun synonymous? I don’t think so. But good cheer and joy are. Having fun depends upon exposure to entertaining circumstances; whereas joy depends upon exposure to the Scriptures and a close relationship with Christ. James instructed us to “count it all joy when you fall into various trials” (James 1:4). How long do you think James would last in a modern-day church with a calendar crammed with fun-filled activities?

It isn’t wrong to have fun, but it is wrong to evaluate the worth of a church or Christianity on the basis of fun. Maybe the weight-loss company can produce lighter participants in a fun-filled way. And maybe churches can produce lighter Christians in a fun-filled way.

Saved by Grace Alone

The apostle Paul wrote Galatians to call his readers back to the doctrine of grace. They had drifted to legalism, the teaching that insists salvation must be earned. Early in his first chapter he drew the Galatians to the cross. Salvation, after all, is all about what Jesus did for us there.

Read Galatians 1:4 and 5 and ponder these aspects of Jesus’ death on the cross.

• His death was substitutionary. He “gave himself for our sins.”

• His death was expiatory. He “died for our sins.”

• His death was voluntary. He “gave himself for our sins.”

• His death was efficacious. It was “to deliver us.”

• His death was redemptive. “To deliver us from this present evil age.”

• His death was foreordained. “According to the will of God and our Father.”

• His death is praiseworthy: “To whom be glory forever and ever.”

As we approach Good Friday, let’s offer heartfelt thanks and praise that Jesus purchased our redemption at Calvary. Salvation does not depend upon what we do but upon what He has done.