Finality

Tomorrow I will be at the memorial service in honor of my Mom. I was looking forward to seeing her the weekend that she died. Her death that Friday morning prevented me from seeing her. I wish I could have seen her at least one more time. I will never see her again on this earth. I will never speak to her again in this lifetime. However, tomorrow I am to speak at the service. I will need grace and strength and wisdom from the Lord.

The finality of death is sinking in. I will go to the house where my mother lived the last 37 years of her life, I will see some of her things, but she is not there anymore. That's the reality about death. It brings a definite end. There is a certain, unchangable finality about it.

Recognizing the inevitable finality of death must affect the way we live. We only have a certain number of days. We can't take anything for granted. We must make the most of the time we have and be prepared for the certain finality that we all face.

Most people live their life in fear of death. This is the great weapon of the enemy (Hebrews 2:14-15). In response to this fear people try to squeeze as much as they can out of their physical existence while trying to deny the inevitable. But there is no denying death.

There is only one who has defeated death. The Lord Jesus rose victorious from the grave demonstrating that He is the Son of God, He is the Savior of the World. Only those who trust in Him will know eternal, abundant life. This is real living - following the One who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

We must allow the Word of God to direct our thinking regarding life and death. We must learn to find our peace and joy in knowing and serving Christ. Death will not separate us from Him, rather it will bring us into His glorious presence. Hallelujah!

As I speak at my Mom's memorial service tomorrow many may have their thoughts focused on death and who knows what kind of thoughts they will be thinking. I hope, by God's grace, to speak of life, the life that comes only through Jesus Christ.

"The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is in the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Corinthians 15:56-57)

The Word of Truth

The Bible is the Word of Truth. This is evidenced in many ways. I came across a couple of amazing examples recently.

In 1 Kings 17:1 the prophet Elijah announces to wicked King Ahab that there will be no rain. The Lord is going to send a prolonged drought. In fact, Elijah had prayed that the Lord would do this before he made his announcement to Ahab (James 5:17). How could Elijah pray this prayer and be so sure that it would be answered that he stood up and confronted Ahab? Because the Bible is the word of truth. In Deuteronomy 11:16-17; 28:15,23-24, the Lord had warned that if the people of Israel turned and worshipped other gods that the Lord would stop the rain. That's what happened. Ahab formalized the worship of Baal into the life of Israel. He built a temple and an altar to this false god. Therefore, Elijah knew that God would do what He said. And God did what He said. Baal was supposedly the god of the storms. The people worshipped him thinking he would send the rain they needed. God showed that He alone is Lord. When the prophets of Baal were defeated and judged, then God sent rain ending a three year drought (1 Kings 18:20-46).
Amazing!

Here's another one. After Joshua and Israel defeated Jericho, Joshua pronounced a curse on any one who would rebuild the city. They would do so at the cost of the life of their first-born and their youngest (Joshua 6:26). In 1 Kings 16:34 we read of a man who rebuilt Jericho and, exactly as the word of truth proclaims, he did so at the cost of his first-born and his youngest. Incredible.

The Bible is the Word of Truth. Therefore we need to work hard in order to cut it straight. We must take seriously its warnings and rejoice in its promises. In this day of confusion and relativism aren't you glad that you can study the word of truth?

No Greater Joy

The Apostle John stated that there is no greater joy than to see your children walking in the truth (3 John 4). He may have been speaking primarily of spiritual children in this verse but in my case it is true of my physical children as well. The Lord graciously gave my wife and me three boys. It has been our pleasure to see them all come to know the Lord and we are witnessing the Lord at work in their lives. There is no greater joy.

On the other hand, there is no greater pain than to see children walk away from the truth, live in sin, and be apathetic towards the Lord. Sadly, this is the case for many Christian parents. Having pastored a church for ten years with a Christian school I have seen how it can be. The Bible warns parents not to provoke their children to anger (Ephesians 6:4) nor to exasperate them (Colossians 3:21) but parents do it none the less. They do it by not having a solid marriage. They do it by not being united in parenting their children according to God's word. They do it by displaying anger towards their children. They do it by not paying enough attention to their children. They do it by not teaching their children. They do it by not correcting their children. They do it by not loving their children. They do it by being selfish hypocrites.

It doesn't have to be that way. If parents will humble themselves they will find that God is gracious and His word is true. God is gracious! I am not the perfect dad and I do not have perfect children but God has been very gracious to us. I have purposed to parent according to God's Word - loving my children, teaching my children, correcting my children - and I have found God's Word to be true. What He says can be trusted, what He says is enough, and what He says comes true. His Word is bearing abundant fruit in the lives of my children.

There is no greater joy.

O Soul, Be Not Shaken

Things don't always go the way you think they will. Sometimes the surprises of life seem more like violent interruptions. David wrote Psalm 62 at a time when his son, Absalom, was leading a revolt against him. This must have been a source of great pain for David. This certainly isn't what he would have thought would happen when Abasalom was born. David was emotionally grieved, for sure.

In the middle of Psalm 62 (verses 5-7) David has a conversation with his soul. In this conversation David reminds himself of who his God is and what the Lord has done for him. God is his hope. God is his rock. God is his salvation. God is his stronghold. God alone. David speaks these great truths to himself and as a result his soul will not be shaken. In verse 8 David encourages others to trust the Lord at all times. He exhorts us to pour out our hearts before the Lord. If your heart is full of grief, you can pour that out. The Lord cares. The Lord hears. We can call upon Him at anytime from anywhere in any circumstance.

This is a good and timely reminder for me. Today I was anticipating one of the greatest weekends of my life. Tonight my son, Ben, graduates from high school. Tomorrow, my son, Billy graduates from college. It doesn't get much better than this for me and my wife, Roberta. However, early this morning I received a call from my brother informing me that my mother had died. My mom's health had not been good in recent years. She would be unable to attend the graduations, but lately she seemed to be doing ok and we were looking forward to seeing her on Sunday. She fell during the night on Wednesday and that was more than her fragile system could handle. Her death was not what I was expecting.

Obviously, this will impact our weekend. We need grace and strength from our Rock and Savior. Thankfully we can find all we need in Him. We can pour out our griefs to Him. He can grant us an eternal perspective on the events of this weekend. God is our refuge.

Only in God is my soul at rest. O my soul, be not shaken.

Hard Work

Here is an amazing thing. Most Christians do not know Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, the original languages of the Bible. Most Christians are not familiar with the customs and cultures of Bible times. Most Christians are not real acquainted with the historical setting of the biblical record. Most Christians do not have a degree in Bible or theology.

All of these things are true and yet Christians claim to be a people committed to the Bible. How can this be? How can they overcome such deficiencies and rightly represent the Scriptures they claim to believe? There is only one way - hard work. The first word in 2 Timothy 2:15 is translated "be diligent" or "make every effort" or "study." This speaks of the hard work necessary to cut it straight. To overcome the language gap, the culture gap, and the historical gap, Christians must apply hard work. They must be willing to make the effort. Fortunately there are many excellent resources available today but the individual Christian still must put in the effort. We are to be "workmen" who handle accurately the pure word of God.

Many Christians casually read their Bibles, listen to some sermons, perhaps read a book or two, and think that they can now speak with some authority. Worse, they think that they can judge others and be critical of what they teach. The reality is that there is an awful lot of ignorance in the Christian community. People aren't doing the hard work and they are blown about by every wind of doctrine and all of the latest fads that come along.

Our Lord made this lament through the prophet Hosea, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6). This lack of knowledge is inexcusable. The resources are there. The time is there. O, you may have to turn off the TV for a while or say no to some social event or put aside the pursuit of some personal pleasure or hobby, but the time is there. The only question is will you put in the hard work?

Do you have a hunger for the truth? Do you want the joy that comes from walking in the truth? Do you want to influence others for eternity? Then put aside the other stuff and sit down with your Bible and study. You won't ever regret it.

Test: This is a test to see if I can update an entry and not lose the comments.

Living the Good Life

What is living the good life? How would you define it? Does it consist of houses, cars, money, clothes, boats, vacations, food, sports, health, peace, family, parties, and fun? Most people would say you've got to have some or all of these things to live the good life.

What does the Bible say? Take a look at 1 Peter 3:8-12. Peter was writing to Christians in a hostile environment. They were hated, slandered, mistreated, abused, and persecuted. Yet, Peter tells these believers that they can live the good life apart from any particular possessions or circumstances.

Look at v. 10. "Love life" means "life to be loving." This speaks of a quality of life. It is a life lived zestfully and with purpose. "Good days" means days that are really beneficial, days that are not empty and meaningless. This is the good life. You can have all the possessions and good circumstances and not live this kind of life.

How do I know this? Take a look around. Even many Christians who have relatively good circumstances live lives of dissatisfaction. They are generally unhappy. A lot of Christians spend their days grumbling and complaining. It doesn't have to be this way.

We can be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil, or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead. Our lives don't need to be consumed with stress and discord. We don't have to be consumed with jealousy, envy, and hatred. How? By remembering that we have been called to inherit a blessing. God called us out of darkness and into the light. He called us out of death and into life. We have an inheritance that we did not deserve or earn. God freely sent His Son to die for us and to rescue us from our sin. Because I am blessed I can be a blessing. Because I have an inheritance secured for me in heaven I don't have to get all hung up on the things of this world. And when I am focused on the blessings given to me, life on this earth gets that much better.

I can keep my tongue from those things that so often stir up trouble. I can swerve away from evil and do good. I seek peace and pursue it. I can be a fireman rather than an arsonist. How? Because I know the eyes of the Lord on me, watching out for me and I know His ears are open to my cry. The Lord is always watching and listening to His children. I also know that the Lord can take care of those who do evil. I don't need to seek my own revenge. I can leave that up to the Lord.

What we normally do when we are mistreated is stir up more trouble. We feel the need to state our case, to make things right, to make sure every one knows that I am right and this other person is wrong. No, I don't need to do that. You don't need to do that. Pour out your grief before the Lord. Trust in Him. Do what is right.

This is a huge issue. This is ginormous. We create so much trouble for ourselves rather than experiencing the good life that the Lord provides. The good life isn't in trying to get everything the way you would want it but rather it is in rejoicing in the Lord, walking with Him, trusting Him, and in being kind to others even when they act like jerks.

Enjoy the Lord and live the good life.

Welcome

Welcome to my new blog entitled "Cutting It Straight." The title comes from 2 Timothy 2:15 where we are exhorted to handle accurately the word of truth. To handle it accurately means to cut it straight like a straight furrow in a field, a straight row of bricks for a wall, a straight pattern for some clothing, or a straight drive down the middle of the fairway.

Cutting it straight is what I do for a living. I am a pastor and I have the privilege of studying and teaching God's word. My responsibility is to get it right. I don't need to add to it and I must not take away from it. I have to work hard if I am to fulfill my assignment. If I do well I am approved but if I do poorly I am ashamed before God.

This is much more than an occupation for me. It is my passion. God has given us His revelation. It is a treasure beyond words or value. I love to study it and learn from and about my Lord. I grieve when I see the word of God misshandled. This blog will allow me to express the truths I am learning from the Scripture, talk about how to study the Bible, and to examine popular teachings in light of the Scripture.

I invite you to go with me on this journey as we seek to cut it straight.