Thought of the Week

When Everything is Falling Apart

Posted on by Shannon

The past few weeks have seen many upsetting things happen in the world. Terrorist violence in London, England, outraged people around the globe. Our national budget promised to plunge us into tremendous debt, sparking worries in the financial sector. Similar anxiety took place in the United States with the realignment of their finances, possibly leaving the poor and elderly in difficulty. It seems that every week brings new worries and surprises. Many people tend to throw up their hands and give up.

When young Daniel was taken to Babylon, he and is Jewish friends faced a barrage of upsetting events and changes that would cause any normal person great stress. I’m sure he longed for home, but Jerusalem had been destroyed. New uncomfortable responsibilities were demanded of them, and soon their lives were threatened by a demanding king who insisted on an interpretation to his dream. Like many people today, Daniel could have thrown up his hands and given up.

But he was smarter than that. He got together with his three friends and spent time in prayer to God, who promptly gave them wisdom. When his appointment before the king arrived, Daniel stood before him with the confidence that only faith can bring. One of his first statements is something we always need to remember: “However, there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries.” (Dan.2:28) The king had demanded something impossible, “however, there is a God in heaven.” Daniel’s life had been threatened, “however, there is a God in heaven.” They had been forced to move to Babylon, “however, there is a God in heaven.” Do you see the point? When things seem hopeless and people can’t see beyond the clouds above, we need to remember God. He’s still in control; He gives wisdom generously; He promises to look after His people; He has a plan.

Yes, our world regularly seems bent on falling apart and nobody seems to have adequate answers. God is not acknowledged, and few seek His compassion. That’s when we need to remember what Daniel said: “However, there is a God in heaven.”

– Tim Johnson

Men of Whom the World Was Not Worthy

Posted on by Shannon

We’ve all been encouraged with the great characters found in Hebrews 11. The people listed there lived their lives by faith, which is the focus of the chapter. In moving terms the author describes the courageous nature of each of them and the heroic things they did way back in history. While some of them became famous in the Old Testament, many lived out of history’s view. It didn’t matter if anyone was watching them, they lived and died for the Lord anyway.

One statement in verse 38 stands out, although it’s only parenthetical: “…men of whom the world was not worthy.” How could people who were forced to “wander in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground” be considered so great that the world wasn’t worthy of them? Surely such people looked miserable, stressed, poor, and weak. What made them remarkable is that they endured hardships because, in their circumstances, it was necessary in order to be faithful. They chose the hard road because it was the only road to heaven. God considers people like this to be the greatest in the world. Faith makes all the difference.

What a contrast to the people today the world considers great. Attention always goes to the fabulously rich, to the outrageous, rebellious, immoral, and the reckless. The world likes people like this and gives them honour. But God views people of faith as the cream of the crop.

Don’t spend your time worrying about getting rich or trying to look cool and reckless. You might get some attention, but God will only shake His head. He wants you to live for Him in a way that will move you to sacrifice and endure hardships – if that is necessary – and to make the right decisions for yourself and your family, no matter the social repercussions. If you do, in God’s view, the world is not worthy of you.

Read Hebrews 11 again. Could your name fit in there?

– Tim Johnson

Ownership

Posted on by Shannon

We have very little say in what kind of neighbours we get, and how they treat their properties. Some are proud of their homes and work hard to keep everything in good repair. Others seem to think it doesn’t matter that their gutters are broken and the fence is falling down. If you own a home you have the right to decide what you do with it, how it looks, and what goes on there. One person may turn their place into a party house with loud music and drinking, while another may have three dogs that tear up the yard. It’s your property and you have the right to decide what character of place it will be. You can keep your vehicles in a nice garage or, as one neighbour of mine does, jam the driveway and lawn with trucks and cars. It’s up to you.

God tells us in the Bible that we are His possession. “He gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself a people for His own possession…” (Titus 2:14). Christians gladly give their lives to Him because we are grateful Jesus died and rose again to save us from our sins. Along with His ownership, the Lord has the right to expect a certain kind of behaviour in our lives. We are His house, and He directs our ways. “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in this present age” (Titus 2:11-12).

The Lord gives us tremendous freedom in Christ. We can make our own minds up about our lives. But we don’t have the freedom to live ungodly lives now. “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another” (Gal.5:13).

Respect God’s ownership. Is your life like the house with the gutters and fence falling apart, or is it becoming a house that is in good repair?

– Tim Johnson

Fake Medicine

Posted on by Shannon

I once met an elderly preacher who supported himself by selling home-made medicines. He wandered the forests and picked plants he believed could help people, and then ground them up and made liquefied products. But their effectiveness was called into question. He gave people false hope for physical problems. The same thing happens when people think parts of the Bible are not inspired, yet insist God’s word can save us. It’s like trusting in medicine you have decided is fake.

For example, in the late 1700’s, German scholars taught that since Isaiah prophesied events that would take place over huge amounts of time, he couldn’t have written all 66 chapters of his book. They decided the first 39 chapters are his, but others wrote the rest much later. Some claim the book was completed by up to four people, and that half the book is just history recorded by men.

But if half of Isaiah is not inspired, how can we trust the rest of the Bible? And if it can’t be trusted, how can these same scholars teach us that its message can save us? They have turned God’s word into fake medicine.

Jesus and His apostles thought differently. All of them quoted from the book of Isaiah and never gave a hint that there was any more than one writer. For instance, Jesus quoted from Is.6:9-10, 42:1 and 61:1-2 (see Matthew 13:14, 12:17, and Luke 4:17 respectively) – the first, middle, and last sections of the book. Jesus said he was quoting “the prophet Isaiah.” He meant just one. Further, the apostles quoted from many sections of Isaiah in their inspired books. Just look in a Bible concordance under “Isaiah” and see how many times he is quoted. All of them simply state “Isaiah said,” or “the prophet Isaiah,” etc.

These New Testament quotes indirectly tell us that there was only one Isaiah, and all 66 chapters of his book inspired by God. This is what Jesus believed, and He knew what He was talking about. There’s no legitimate reason for us to believe otherwise.

The book of Isaiah, like the rest of the Bible, is the real thing. It’s completely trustworthy, powerful, and can cure the sicknesses of the soul. Don’t settle for something that doubting men water-down and render useless – like fake medicine.

Have you taken God’s medicine today?

– Tim

The Daily Car Wash

Posted on by Shannon

I once knew a senior citizen who said he lived to have a clean car. Sure enough, he was up every morning and out the door to wash and wax it until it gleamed. That car would sparkle even on cloudy days. How silly, we say. Yet if there was anything positive about it, we could say it gave a senior motivation to get moving every day. But surely we can think of something greater than the vanity of a nice-looking car. Nothing injects life with more energy than when we have a purpose that is bigger than we are; an overall reason to live; a great goal that defines what we are trying to do in our all-too-short lives.

When we look into the New Testament we see the early church engaged in expansion, pushing the borders of the Kingdom into new places, smashing right through racial barriers, and dreaming to get into new areas. They endured prejudice, persecution, exhaustion, and stress. What drove them to take the gospel into the whole inhabited world in one generation (Col.1:23)?

The answer lies in the empty tomb of Jesus Christ. They realized that God Himself was behind this new enterprise of faith. Jesus gave his earliest followers their marching orders, recorded by Matthew, Mark and Luke: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved, but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned” (Mk.16:15-16). Obeying this purpose produced the greatest strides in evangelism that the world has ever seen.

How about us today? Is our purpose simply to make as much money as possible? Should your ultimate future achievement be ownership of a great big house in a nice neighbourhood? Is your goal just to travel and enjoy warm weather somewhere? If we’re just trying to please ourselves, we’re not much different than that man who had to do the daily car wash. When we live for great things Jesus gave us, life gains a driving force that moves us to take on exciting challenges and satisfying works for others.

Are you serving the Master, or just washing the car?

– Tim Johnson