11-29-15 Before the Journey to Bethlehem

Luke 1:5-80

          In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; (A priest of the 8^th division of 24, the division of Abijah and served at the temple for two one week periods a year. There were 18,000 priests. A priest only served at the sacrifice once in his lifetime – this was my one time.) his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly. But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well along in years.

          Once when Zechariah's division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. (As the officiating priest, it was Zechariah's job to place incense on the heated altar and then prostrate himself in prayer. The incense represented the prayers of the people. Outside, the people were reciting this prayer during the incense offering: "May the merciful God enter the Holy Place and accept with favor the offering of his people.")

          Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth.   Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous — to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." Zechariah asked the angel, "How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years." The angel answered, "I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their proper time."

          Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. When he came out, he could not speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.

          When his time of service was completed, he returned home. After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. "The Lord has done this for me," she said. "In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people."

          In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." "How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God." "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.

          At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah's home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!" And Mary said: "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me — holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers." Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.

          When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.

          On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, but his mother spoke up and said, "No! He is to be called John." They said to her, "There is no one among your relatives who has that name." Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child. He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone's astonishment he wrote, "His name is John." Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue was loosed, and he began to speak, praising God. The neighbors were all filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things. Everyone who heard this wondered about it, asking, "What then is this child going to be?" For the Lord's hand was with him.

          His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: "Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago), salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us— to show mercy to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, the oath he swore to our father Abraham: to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace."   And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the desert until he appeared publicly to Israel.

11-22-15 Applaud God

Psalm 100

  Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
²   Worship the Lord with gladness;
    come before him with joyful songs.

³ Know that the Lord is God.
    It is he who made us, and we are his;
    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving
    and his courts with praise;
    give thanks to him and praise his name.

⁵ For the Lord is good

    and his love endures forever;
    his faithfulness continues through all generations.

² On your feet now—applaud God!
    Bring a gift of laughter,
    sing yourselves into his presence.

³ Know this: God is God, and God, God.
    He made us; we didn’t make him.
    We’re his people, his well-tended sheep.

⁴ Enter with the password: “Thank you!”
    Make yourselves at home, talking praise.
    Thank him. Worship him.

⁵ For God is sheer beauty,
    all-generous in love,
    loyal always and ever.

My Journey                                                Sherri Wallace

          Yes, I’m a Christian.  ‘How do I know?’  Well, I’m not Jewish!  Why are you laughing?

I went to Sunday School until I was 10.  I even won a Bible for memorizing the most verses.  Why did I stop going?  We moved to California, and …I guess there just weren’t that many churches there.  I did go to Youth Group with my friend a couple times when I was in junior high.  It was a Baptist church, and I liked it…except for that funny, little pool in the corner.  That was weird. 

          “My friend got baptized in it one Sunday, but I didn’t understand it.  I mean, I was 10 when Mom and Dad had me baptized in Virginia, but all the Reverend did was dribble water on me.  I was kind of embarrassed because I was so old.  The other two kids were babies.  But, my friend was the same age as me…13.  I wonder why she waited so long to be baptized.

          When I was 16 or 17, there was this hippie movement happening…they called them Jesus Freaks.  I thought that was mean, but they didn’t seem to think so.  They were always smiling and hugging each other.  One day, one of them walked up and hugged me!  I thought that was nice. 

          She started telling me about Jesus, and how He would fix it so God wouldn’t be mad at me anymore.  All I had to do was say a prayer.  ‘Did I want to do that?’  You bet!  We went into this little room…me and 2 girls…and we started to pray.  Then all of a sudden, they started talking in some weird language.  I think they wanted me to do it, too.  I kept asking God; please make me talk like they are.  I want to be like them.  But, He didn’t.  When the girls stopped praying, they said God didn’t want me, since I didn’t talk like them.  I was mad at the girls…and embarrassed…and I wanted to cry, but I don’t know why.  I just ran out of there. 

          ‘What did I DO?’  I told God, if He didn’t want me, I didn’t want Him either!  And, I got wild and did what I wanted.  I had a GREAT time!  Who needs all those Do Nots and Thou Shall Nots.  Those people reminded me of a dream I had when I was a little girl.  I was down in the church basement, and a policeman was there.  He shot me!  I guess that must be what God’s like.  A big, mean policeman.

          One night, I met a Christian guy while we were ‘cruising the boulevard’ in Van Nuys.  He took me for a ride to the beach.  We just stood there watching the waves roll in.  I love the beach, don’t you?  He started singing, Michael Row Your Boat Ashore.  I sang for a while, but he was super foxy, and I really wanted to make out.  All of a sudden, he said it was time to take me home.  What?  Why?  Christians are mean.

          There was a big church on the hill overlooking my school.  It was called Greek Orthodox.  It was really pretty and I wanted to go to church there, but my Mom said they wouldn’t let me, since I wasn’t one of them.

          A couple years later, I got married to a Catholic, but we didn’t go to church much.  Only when they said mass for somebody.  One time, I brought the Bible my Grandmom gave me, but none of the other people had Bibles.  They just sat and listened.  I was hoping they would read out of the Bible, because, every time I tried to read it, I couldn’t understand it.  I thought, if I was in a church, maybe the words would make more sense.

          We never got our son baptized because my husband was Catholic and I was Lutheran.  (That’s the church I was baptized in.)  I didn’t think it was fair.  It wasn’t my son’s fault that his dad and I got baptized at different churches.  I had this big Family Bible.  In the middle, it had places to write about special occasions.  I wrote our marriage date in it, and the day Shane was born, but the ‘baptized’ spot had to stay blank.  That made me sad.  When Shane was 5, his dad and I got divorced.  I don’t know if he was too old or I was too young…anyway, it just didn’t work out.

          I got married again, to another Catholic, but he didn’t go to church, either.  His family said they were ‘good Catholics,’ but I never saw anyone read the Bible or pray.  Not even at mealtimes.

A couple years later, we had Casey, my daughter.  I asked my husband about getting Casey and Shane baptized.  Maybe a Christian church wouldn’t care if he was Catholic and I was Lutheran.

We started going to this BIG church, but there were only a few people in it.  The choir sang so pretty, and they had Bibles in the pews!  I didn’t see a lot of people use them.  The pastor typed the verses he was using in the bulletin, so maybe that’s why.

          My husband and I talked to the pastor about getting the kids baptized, and he said he could baptize Shane, but Casey could only be ‘dedicated,’ because she was still a baby, and didn’t understand what was going on.  That’s the first time I ever heard of that.  He said, when we get baptized, we’re obeying a command from Jesus.  It had to be something we wanted to do, not just something that was done TO us.

          Shane said he wanted to be baptized, so the pastor told him to bring swim trunks one Sunday, and he would do it.  (This church had a little pool, too!)  I couldn’t see much, but I heard the splash!  Then, the pastor said it was time to dedicate the baby.  We said we had godparents picked out, but he didn’t have them sign the baptism certificate.  I guess they don’t do godparents there.  Christians are confusing!

          I don’t remember much about the pastor’s sermons…just that one was about him being in a rowboat in the middle of a lake when a storm came up.  Scary!  But, I noticed something strange was happening.  Each Sunday, when we would sing out of the hymnals, I felt like crying.  Most of the time, I could stop it, but sometimes I couldn’t.  Usually, I would glance at the words so that I knew what to sing, but mostly, I would follow the music notes.  The times I felt like crying were when I read the words.

          Another thing.  Every Sunday, after the sermon, the pastor would invite us to come forward, but nobody ever did.  I didn’t really understand why, but I wanted to do it.  One week, as we were leaving church, I told God that I would go forward the next Sunday.  But, I was really shy, so He would have to get my feet moving!

          Next Sunday was Palm Sunday, and we were late (arguing again!).  Church had already started, so we followed the kids in as they waved their palm branches.  After the sermon, when the pastor gave the invitation, I stood up (jumped to my feet, is more like it!).  For a split second, I looked at my husband, to see if he would come with me, but he said no.  I guess God was giving me courage, because I didn’t just sit down again.  I walked down the aisle and met the pastor.

Since it was Palm Sunday, the choir was singing a looooooong song, so we sat down to wait it out.  I think I told the pastor that I didn’t know why I was there.  When we stood up, he asked me if I believed that Jesus was born of a virgin, crucified and buried, and rose again the third day.  I said, yes, of course I believe that.  Everybody clapped, and the pastor welcomed me into the church.  (He must have thought I was joining the church, but I don’t think that’s why I was crying through the hymns.)

          That night, the strangest thing happened.  I wanted to read my Bible!  I remember digging through box after box of books until I found it.  When I started reading, I could understand it!  I read and read, and decided to take it to work with me the next day.  I’d been on night shift for a long time, and this was my first day back on the morning shift.  I was testing some electronic assemblies when, who should walk up but the one guy that I couldn’t stand!  Rick was a married guy, but he flirted all the time.  Two years ago, he’d transferred to day shift.  And now, I was stuck with him, again.  I looked down at my Bible and thought; this’ll get rid of him!  I told him that I had dedicated my life to Jesus, expecting him to turn tail and run.  Instead, he said, “Praise the Lord!  I got saved last year!”

          Over the next few months, God used Rick to mentor me.  He told me where to buy a study Bible, so I’d have lots of notes to help me understand it, and he introduced me to Calvary Chapel.  The first Sunday I went, EVERYONE was carrying a Bible!  And, they had notes and highlighting in them, which made me think they really used them!

          The pastor gave an awesome sermon, and every song made me cry.  Rick said that was because I finally understood what the words meant.  I learned that the Holy Spirit was living inside of me, now.  That seemed creepy at first, but comforting, too.

          Rick suggested I listen to the radio, too.  The Calvary Satellite Network was run by Calvary Chapel, and they had lots of pastors on it, teaching us just like the one at the church did.  Book by Book.  Verse by verse.  I listened to that station every time I could!

          One summer day, there was a huge baptism in the ocean at Pirate’s Cove.  There were 10 or 12 pastors doing the baptizing, and lots of people were lined up.  When it was my turn, the pastor told me to hold my nose, and he dunked me.  Strangely, everything went black and seemed to stop.  Then, almost in slow motion, the world started again, and the pastor helped me get up.  I was so freaked out that I said, “Whoa!” and walked away.  As I was making my way back to the parking lot, some lady came up to me.  She said she’d been sitting on the rocks watching my baptism, and she felt led to come tell me that God was going to use me in a mighty way!  I couldn’t stop smiling on the way home.

          My husband went to the church with me, but I could tell he didn’t like it.  Pretty soon, he stopped going, but Shane and I still went. 

          Then, the world fell apart.  I found out I was pregnant with my second daughter, Jessie, and due to the chemicals my job required, I had to go on disability until she was born.   At the same time, my husband lost his job…and didn’t seem too inclined to get another one.  We almost ended up on welfare, but my husband’s family told us to move to Idaho.  They promised to help him find a job and a house for us.  I didn’t want to leave my family, but they had been treating me weird since I got saved.  It’s like they didn’t know how to talk to me anymore.  Maybe a new home in a different state would be a blessing in disguise.

          In Idaho, we went to my husband’s niece’s church, and I got really involved!  Teaching Sunday School, AWANA, lady’s ministry, working for the daycare and being the church janitor.  They even let me set up a church library!  My husband went to church more than he did in CA (I think, because his niece nagged him).  He even went to the men’s retreats.  Things were looking up!

          Later, because of problems the church split right down the middle.  It was the first time I’d ever seen a church split.  I cried and cried.  My husband used that as an excuse to stop going.  Eventually my husband and I divorced.

          The kids and I started going to church again, and I felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders!  It was a different church than we were going to before.  I really liked the new church.  It was one of those where they all carry Bibles.  I prayed, “God, if this is the church you want me in, please show me my ministry.”  And, did He ever!  The pastor was talking about a TV Ministry, saying we had all the equipment, but no one to run it.  So, I volunteered to learn to run a camera.  Two weeks later, the pastor came to me and said they were going to teach me how to direct the whole thing!  I was scared…anything can go wrong on Live TV…but I loved that ministry.

          Then, I got another shock.  They asked me to work at the radio station…the same station I’d listened to in California!  I knew God was ‘qualifying the one He called’

          At the church, I went to a Ladies Bible study, helped prepare and serve the Agape Meal (once a month), packed boxes for the Food Bank, as well as directing the TV Ministry. 

          Then, the bottom dropped out.  The church split (this was the third split since I’d been there plus two law suits). I knew I needed to leave there. I prayed and asked God where he wanted me to go – the new church, or stay with the old?  The only answer I got was, “Wait.”  While I waited, it became clear that he didn’t want me at either of those churches, so I started looking at websites, and made a list of churches to visit.

          I had a ‘checklist’ of things that were important to me, and I kept notes on each church I’d visit.  I thought it would be best to visit each church at least twice, to get a better idea of what they’re like.  In some churches, I’d know that once was enough!  Like the one that told my friend she’d have to sit in the back because she was late.

          Even though I had another church picked out to visit, God steered me towards FirstB.  On the website, I read some articles about blended worship by Mr. Redman.  I was intrigued!  The following Sunday, I walked up the steps to First B.  A man named Mike took one look at me and said, “Do you need a hug?”  I almost cried.  As I made my way to a seat in the back, it seemed like everyone in the church welcomed me!  A sweet lady named Teddy made me feel like an honored guest.  When my friend, Josie sat down, she leaned over and said something to the effect of, “I don’t need to visit here for 2 weeks.  I’m staying!”  I agreed. I still had one thing on my checklist, though. When the pastor began to preach, I thought, “This man doesn’t just know the Bible.  He loves the Lord.”  What a relief!  Now, First B is my home!

  

APPLAUD GOD

Psalm 100

² On your feet now—applaud God!
    Bring a gift of laughter,
    sing yourselves into his presence.

³ Know this: God is God, and God, God.
    He made us; we didn’t make him.
    We’re his people, his well-tended sheep.

⁴ Enter with the password: “Thank you!”
    Make yourselves at home, talking praise.
    Thank him. Worship him.

⁵ For God is sheer beauty,
    all-generous in love,
    loyal always and ever.

PEOPLE GIVE THANKS

11-15-15 Hilarious Journey

Scripture:                                             2 Corinthians 9:6-11

VIDEO: Mr. Likes to make change in the offering plate guy.

Praise the Lord HORSE story: (The reason for the joke was to make you laugh, chuckle or at least smile; because we are going to look at a single word in the scripture – in the original language it is pronounced “hilaros” from which we get the English word “hilarious.” I know the joke wasn’t hilarious, but for some odd reason the idea of Donovan on a horse about to plunge into disaster makes us chuckle inside…)

          It just makes our heart feel good – when we laugh…when we are cheerful. Our text for today tells us the best way to give is cheerfully – hilariously.

          Giving is not as much about having your money as it is about having your heart. God wants your heart. We are the church with heart and our giving should reflect that – indeed it does.

          Out of 140 churches in Mission Northwest – We are the second most generous church in our giving to the region and 5^th highest in overall giving to ABC mission work.  Locally, we assist transients, church members with needs, we give generously to the Operation Christmas Child, Salvation Army, Valley House homeless Center and in support for children’s needs at Lincoln Elementary School.  That is just in direct finances and does not take into account time and abilities given for the sake of our community.  We are hilarious givers.

Matt 6:19-21

          “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” On “American Pickers” you can see where people keep stuff stored in a leaky barn till it has lost all value. And many of us have had something stolen at one time or another. Things that last are from your heart.

          Your heart has to be involved to give cheerfully.

Mark 12:41-44

          Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny.  Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others.  They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything — all she had to live on."

          She gave cheerfully.

Genesis 4:2-5

          Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil.  In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord.  But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering,  but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor.

          Abel gave cheerfully. (No guarantee about earthly tresures

2 Corinthians 9:6-11

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 9 As it is written: "He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever." 10 Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

2 Cor 9:7 The MESSAGE

I want each of you to take plenty of time to think it over, and make up your own mind what you will give. That will protect you against sob stories and arm-twisting. God loves it when the giver delights in the giving.

CHEERFUL  hilaros NT:2431), from hileos, signifies joyousness, hence, "cheerful" (Eng., "hilarious"), 2 Cor 9:7, "God loves a cheerful (hilarious) giver."

Note: In the Sept. the verb hilaruno translates a Hebrew word meaning "to cause to shine"

A CHEERFUL LIVER

Mary Ann O'Roark: "As a little girl I heard grown ups repeat a bible verse that I was certain said, "God loveth a cheerful liver." I asked my grandma what a liver was. "It's a part inside you," she told me, "like your stomach or your heart." I puzzled over how to get my insides to be more cheerful. One day in Sunday school an older kid set me straight: "It's giver, not liver." But I don't think I got it all that wrong. God does love a cheerful liver."

RICH SO YOU CAN BE GENEROUS

          QUOTE: While I’m not a proponent of the health and wealth gospel, 2 Cor. 9:6-11 is nothing short of amazing in terms of a Biblical promise. How else would you interpret words like these? "You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion." With a promise like that how could you not be a generous and cheerful giver?
It’s like turning on a water faucet at home. I’m never afraid that the water will run out, because I know that my faucet is hooked up to the whole Edwards Aquifer. That’s billions of gallons of drinkable water behind my faucet. The only limit is my ability to pay my water bill.
And being generous in giving; amounts to being hooked up to the reservoir of a more generous Father than I could even think or imagine. I don’t have to be stingy or miserly knowing that my Father in Heaven has promised to make me rich in every way so that I can be generous on every occasion. The only limit is the limit of my ability to trust God to keep it coming. Knowing this assures us that we can be cheerful, joyful, hilarious givers.

Realize one thing in two ways – When you give joyfully you are not doing it alone – 1^st) God is doing it through you 2^nd) You are doing it with others. In the body of Christ we are never working alone – Here is an example of the bad things that could happen when you try working alone.

WORKING ALONE

          A letter to the insurance company called “Doing the Job Alone”.

Dear Sir,

          I’m writing in response to your request for additional information. In block 3 of the accident report form I put trying to do the job alone as the cause of my accident. In your letter you said I should explain more fully, and I trust the following details should be sufficient.

          I am a brick layer by trade and on the date of the accident I was working alone on the roof of a new six story building. When I had completed my work I had about 500 pounds of brick left over. Rather than carry the bricks down by hand or having someone to help me, I decided to lower them in a barrel by using a pulley that was fortunately attached to the side of the building on the sixth floor.

          Securing the rope to the ground level I went to the roof, swung the barrel out, loaded the bricks into it and then I went to the ground, untied the rope while holding the rope tightly to insure a slow descent of 500 pounds. You will note in block 2 of the accident report that I weighed 160 pounds. Due to my surprise of being jerked off the ground so suddenly, I lost my presence of mind and forgot to let go of the rope. Needless to say, I proceeded at a rather rapid rate up the side of the building. In the vicinity of the 3^rd floor I met the barrel coming down. This explains the fractured skull and the broken collar bone.

          Slowing down only slightly, I continued my rapid ascent, not stopping until my hand was two knuckles deep into the pulley. Fortunately, I regained my presence of mind and was able to hold tightly to the rope in spite of my pain. At approximately the same time, however, the barrel of bricks hit the ground and the bottom fell out of the barrel. Devoid of the weight of the bricks, the barrel now weighed approximately 50 pounds. I refer you again to my weight in block #2. As you might imagine, I began a rather rapid descent down the side of the building. In the vicinity of the 3^rd floor I met the barrel coming up. This accounts for my two fractured ankles and the lacerations on my legs. This encounter with the barrel slowed me enough to lessen my injuries when I fell on the pile of bricks.

          I’m sorry to report, however, that as I lay on the bricks in pain, unable to stand, watching the empty barrel six stories above me, I again lost my presence of mind and let go of the rope. The empty barrel weighed more than the rope and so it came down and broke both of my legs.

          When you become a hilarious giver – you are always a partner with God and with your brothers and sisters in Christ.

11-08-15 Right clothes for the journey

Scripture:                                          Ephesians 6:10-18

Wrong clothes for Ironton, Ohio

Bob casual clothes to a black tie event.

David tried on Saul’s armor – too big.

1 Sam 17:4-7

A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. He was over nine feet tall. He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing five thousand shekels (125 lbs); on his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. His spear shaft was like a weaver's rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels (15 lbs). His shield bearer went ahead of him.

          1 Sam 17:38-51     Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them.

          "I cannot go in these," he said to Saul, "because I am not used to them." So he took them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd's bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.

          Meanwhile, the Philistine, with his shield bearer in front of him, kept coming closer to David. He looked David over and saw that he was only a boy, ruddy and handsome, and he despised him. He said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?" And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. "Come here," he said, "and I'll give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!"

          David said to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will hand you over to me, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give all of you into our hands."

          As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.

          So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him. David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine's sword and drew it from the scabbard. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword.

Ephesians 6:10-18

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. (This suggests what is about to take place is about His work and not ours) 11 Put on the full armor of God (This is not your armor – it is God’s armor you put on – not like when David tried putting on Saul’s armor and it didn’t fit – God’s armor is always a perfect fit for you) so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. (I don’t spend a lot of time considering the Devil’s schemes-but maybe I should) 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Even when struggles happen here because of other people – understand that those struggles happen because of things happening in spiritual places. The Devil will use the unlikely people to try and destroy you. The Devil doesn’t go outside the church to hurt the church – he uses church people for that. Same in your life – most of your struggles come from people close to you. What do you do about it?)

13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

(Just what is the armor of God?)

14 Stand firm then, with the (1) belt of truth buckled around your waist,

with the (2) breastplate of righteousness in place,

15 and with your (3) feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel shoes of peace.

16 In addition to all this, (4) take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

17 Take the (5) helmet of salvation and

the (6) sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.

With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

Do you have all the provisions you need when you begin your daily Unique journey?

Because many of our days are not likely to be unique, we don’t give much thought to preparation. Oh, we may iron a shirt or pick out matching clothes. But how prepared are we to meet the unexpected? I don’t know about you, but I have met many unexpected things in what I thought would be “just another day.” 18 hour trip home from Judson

CONCLUSION

God has a hero’s welcome planned for those who wear His armor and go into battle. Winning the battle is not the goal. Wearing His armor and going into battle is the goal. Just like any war – many people who went into battle don’t return alive. Therefore – simply being dressed well and going into battle makes you a victor and assures that you will receive a hero’s welcome into heaven.  Just like the way a parent or sibling or spouse or child welcomes a veteran home from the military. As you watch this – allow it to be a time to honor our Vets but also to realize how much God is looking forward to welcoming you home when your Armor-dressed service in this world is done.

VIDEO

11-1-15 Reformation vs. Transformation

Scripture:  Romans 12:1-2

SUMMARIZE Paul’s theology:

(Romans 11) Jews disobedient meant Gentile mercy – Gentile disobedience means Jews mercy – Gentiles were grafted in and can be cut off – Jews can certainly be grafted back in.

Romans 11:30-36

Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, 31 so they too have now become disobedient in order that they too may now receive mercy as a result of God's mercy to you. 32 For God has bound all men over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all. 33 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!  How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!  (Can’t make a God’s Ven diagram or master flow chart) 34 "Who has known the mind of the Lord? (No one!)  Or who has been his counselor?" (No one!)  35 "Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?" (No one!) 36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.    NIV

It is not about you or even US – it is about JESUS! – His mercy!

          We need to Lament our disobedience and rejoice in His mercy.

Lamentations 3:19-23

I'll never forget the trouble, the utter lostness, the taste of ashes, the poison I've swallowed. I remember it all — oh, how well I remember — the feeling of hitting the bottom. But there's one other thing I remember, and remembering, I keep a grip on hope: God's loyal love couldn't have run out, his merciful love couldn't have dried up. 23 They're created new every morning. How great your faithfulness!        THE MESSAGE

I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever.
I will sing, I will sing.
I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever.
I will sing of the mercies of the Lord.

With my voice will I make known

Thy faithfulness, Thy faithfulness.

With my voice will I make known

Thy faithfulness to all generations.

Romans 12:1-2

I urge (parakalew = to admonish, to encourage, to exhort. Used to exhort troops who were about to go into battle.) you therefore (as a result of the whole previous argument Romans 11:30-36), brethren, by the mercies (oiktirmos = 1) compassion, pity, mercy 1a) bowels in which compassion resides, a heart of compassion) of God, to present your bodies (1 Cor 6:19-20 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.) a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not be conformed (to mold or form after something – imitation of a received mode of conduct.) to this world, but be transformed (change in form) by the renewing of your mind (by the reasonable quality of your thinking power causing action – hence, not involuntary), that you may prove what the will of God is (God’s will is proved to you based on your transformed life), that which is good and acceptable and perfect.   NASB

Transformed by the: RENEWING OF YOUR MIND  2 Corinthians 10:3-6

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.  We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

Transformed = Things that mattered no longer matter. Things that did not matter now matter.

Jeff Cooper = Potty mouth. TRANSFORMED Reading the bible.

Saul of Tarsus - hated the people stealing his religion – throwing them in prison and approving of their murder. TRANSFORMED Apostle Paul – loved the person who transformed his religion into a personal relationship with the Living God.

Martin Luther = A man who was struck by lightning and gave himself to the will of God and became a monk who was spiritually good for no one but himself  TRANSFORMED to a man who stood against the holy Roman Catholic Church no matter what the cost.  Who transformed the idea of salvation by works // to salvation by faith alone.

reformation vs transformation
Reformation = The act of reforming; correction or amendment of life, manners, or of anything corrupt.

Transformation = The act or operation of changing the form or external appearance.
1. Metamorphosis; change of form in insects; as from a caterpillar to a butterfly.
2. Transmutation; the change of one metal into another, as of copper or tin into gold.
3. In theology, a change of heart in man, by which his disposition and temper are conformed to the divine image; a change from enmity to holiness and love.

Reformation When one reforms he, by his own power, decides to live a better life with the Bible as his guide. He has determination to live a better life in order to be a good Christian. If all the person did was get under conviction or was tired of living the life he was living and decided to make reform of his ways then salvation most likely never took place.

Transformation though not a Bible word, the principle according to the definition is. (2 Cor 5:17  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! NIV  --- The Message:  Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it!

Reformation a person decides to quit drinking, joins AA and cleans up his act. Is this a good and commendable thing? Yes, but there is no real transformation only reformation.

Transformation a sinner becomes a new creature in Christ. The sinner who was once dead is made alive.  Colossians 3:5-11  Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.   You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

Reformation is man making himself better by following scripture’s teachings. Transformation is God doing a supernatural act in a person, made possible by Jesus Christ.

THE PROTESTENT REFORMATION = THE CHURCH TRANSFORMATION

October 31, 1517 (498 years ago) Martin Luther posted his 95 theses on the church door in Wittenberg, Germany against the Catholic church’s practice of indulgences = purchasing forgiveness to reduce the time that departed loved ones would live in purgatory before going to heaven.  Many of Luther’s ideas were based on others who had come before - like

John Wycliffe who taught at Oxford University in the 14^th century and translated the Latin bible into common English. He had a certain understanding about this idea of transformation as we look at his theology about communion – also a position against the catholic church of his day.

He believed in the “invisible” church of the elect – those who were transformed by Jesus, rather than in the “visible” church of Rome—that is, in the organized, institutional church of his day. But his chief target was the doctrine of transubstantiation—that the substance of the bread and wine used in the Communion is changed into the body and blood of Christ. He condemned the doctrine as idolatrous and unscriptural. He sought to replace it with a doctrine of remanence (remaining)—“This is very bread after the consecration”—combined with an assertion of the Real Presence of Christ = Consubstantiation. Meaning that the bread and wine do not become Christ but Christ’s real presence is in them as they are taken.

Here is the problem when looking at Reformation vs Transformation. Both of those theological perspectives mean the bread has been transformed but offers only an act of reformation for the person taking it. We look at the bread and wine only as symbols to remind us of the work that Christ did and the transformation that may take place is not in the elements but in the person taking them. The real presence of Christ is in the person – not the bread. The bread and wine may be reformed into wafers, crackers and even leavened bread - cabernet, zinfandel, or simple Welches grape juice. BUT the person who, during communion receives the real mercy offered by Jesus Christ, can have their life completely transformed:

Life as a reprobate transformed into life someone virtuous

Living without cause transformed into living for the sake of the king.

Ticket to hell is transformed into a ticket to heaven.