What Does Your Heart Earnestly Yearn For?

Dear Friends,

     Maybe I should start by asking:  What is it that you really want?   What is it that you really desire?   What does your heart earnestly yearn for?   Do you even know? 
     This week's "thought" addresses that issue: What  your heart truly yearns for.   The answer I offer today comes to you from David Downing, co-director of the Marion E. Wade Center at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois. It is taken from an Advent Devotional book called, "The Grand Miracle."  Enjoy.

"I Am the Bread of Life."

John 6:35

     "It is not what God can give us, but God that we want," said George MacDonald.  He was a seasoned old soul, and what was true for him may have been more of an ideal for other pilgrims on the journey. The rest of us may feel more inclined to pray: "Father, forgive us, for we do not know what we want."   We seek a gilded afterlife when we could have Eternal Life.  We seek breadcrumbs of earthly pleasure when we could have a heavenly banquet.  We avoid pain when we could embrace joy.  We plead for words that will give us comfort and light, but our own darkness does not comprehend the Word. 

     Help us, Lord.  We ask for a road-map to heaven when the Way, the Truth and the Life stands right before us.  We want the crown without the cross, and we fix our gaze on the crown more than the King.  We look to Glory, but others do not see the glory when they look at us.  We do not ask too much in prayer, but too little.  We follow the One who multiplied the loaves and do not see the Bread of Life.  We want to quench the thirst of the moment, but do not ask for Living Water, the cup of heaven.

     The Everlasting took human form so that we might lift our eyes from the gifts to the Giver. He emptied Himself so that from His fullness we might receive grace upon grace. The baby lay in a feeding trough so we might not be forever hungry. The child spoke in His Father's house, so we might put away childish things. The man told us that we must die to live, that sorrow would turn to joy, that those who seek will find.  He rose that we might rise. He came to be with us for a time, so that we might be with Him forever.  Lord, teach us to know what we want, to want what you want, and most of all, to want you.  Amen." 

     So many today do not realize that their pursuit of joy, happiness, pleasure, contentment and peace in their souls' is really an inner craving after God.  "God has placed eternity in our hearts," says Solomon, in Ecclesiastes 3:11.  And that "eternity" which God has placed within us has left a hole in our soul that can only be filled, as Pascal put it, "by an infinite and immutable object, that is, by God Himself."

     Yes, most people fail to see that their clamoring after all those things -- even sinful things -- is really a pursuit of God and what He alone can supply when He enters our being, by His Spirit, in the grace of regeneration.  To quote Pascal at greater length, "There was once a true happiness in man, of which there now remains only an empty trace, which he vainly tries to fill with things from his environment. Yet all these efforts are inadequate, because the infinite abyss in the human soul can only be filled by an infinite and immutable object, that is, by God Himself."

     Maybe our prayer should be:  Lord Jesus, forgive us for chasing after things that can never truly satisfy when you have told us time and again in your Word that we can find true and lasting satisfaction only in You; in having You.  So often we clamor after everything but you, even venturing into the pursuit of sinful and forbidden things, before we finally come -- broken, empty and damaged -- to see the error of our ways. Convince us, we pray, that our inner hunger can only be satisfied as we feed on You the Bread of Heaven, and our inner thirst can only be quenched as we drink deeply of You the Living Water -- the only water a person can partake of and thirst no more.  Lord, as Mr. Downing has correctly prayed, "teach us to know what we want, to want what you want, and most of all, to want you."  Amen.

In this time of anticipation and waiting, Pastor Jeff

Little Faith

Greetings Everyone!

     Today's "thought" addresses the question: "How much faith is necessary?" 
     On two occasions I have heard preachers speak on Jesus' words that, "faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains."  And in each case both of those preachers went on to speak of wanting to exercise a far greater quantity of faith than Jesus said is necessary.  One of the preachers even said, "some people are content with a thimble full of faith, I want a swimming pool full of faith -- faith I can swim in!"

     Yet, I believe both of them missed Jesus point.  For Jesus tells us that faith the size of a mustard seed is far more than anyone will ever need!   With that much, says Jesus, "Nothing will be impossible for you."  In other words, we don't need tons of faith to see impossibilities become possible, we simply need that small amount and we will see miracles happen.  As R.T. France says in his commentary on Jesus words: "It is not the 'amount' of faith which brings the impossible within reach, but the power of God, which is available to even the 'smallest faith.' " 

     That's what today's thought is about: "Little Faith."   It comes to us from a book entitled, "Day by Day with the English Puritans" by Randall J. Pederson.  This particular entry was written by John Rogers, a Puritan pastor from Essex, England, back in the 1620's.  I trust you will find it helpful and encouraging. Enjoy.

Little Faith

"If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you shall say unto this mountain,

'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."

Matthew 17:20b

     "Little faith is true faith, as well as great faith.  A little man is just as much a man as a large man; a little water is just as truly water as the ocean seas. The disciples had true faith, yet very weak faith, weak in knowledge. Though they believed that Jesus was the Messiah come to save the world, yet they did not know how.  They were ignorant of His death, for when He told them of His coming sufferings, it is said that they did not understand what He was saying (Luke 18:31-34). Peter took Jesus aside and counseled Him not to go to Jerusalem to die (Matthew 16:22). They were ignorant also of His resurrection also, for when Mary told them of it, they did not believe her (Luke 24:11).  And of His ascension, when He spoke of going away, they understood it not, neither did they know where He was going, or the way to get there (John 14:1-31).  Their knowledge was very weak to be ignorant of such important things...

     But weak faith may prove strong in time. The most learned clerk was once in school studying his grammar book. The greatest giant was once in swaddling clothes. The tallest oak was at one time a twig. And faith grows from a grain of mustard seed to produce a tall tree.  As from a child to a man, so corn grows from a weak blade, to a stalk, to an ear with ripe corn therein. The disciples who were so weak before, afterwards, when the Holy Spirit was sent among them, were exceedingly strong and feared not in the face of tyrants."

     It was not unusual for Puritan pastors to affirm the words of Jesus that even little faith (faith as small as a mustard seed) was sufficient faith.   Thomas Watson, also a Puritan pastor, once said: "Though your faith is weak, do not be discouraged -- a weak faith may receive a strong Christ."   And Richard Sibbes, yet another Puritan pastor, once said: "A spark of fire is fire, as well as the whole element. Therefore we must look to grace in the spark as well as in the flame. All do not have the same strong faith, though they have the same precious faith (2 Pet. 1:1), whereby they lay hold of, and put on, the perfect righteousness of Christ. A weak hand may receive a rich jewel.  A few grapes will show that the plant is a vine, and not a thorn.  It is one thing to be deficient in grace, and another thing to lack grace altogether.”

     So, we are, as Peter says, to, "make every effort to add to our faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge, and to knowledge, self-control...." (II Peter 1:5-9).  We are called to exercise and add to our faith. Yet, we must also remember that a mustard seed sized degree of faith is more than sufficient to "move mountains" and make "nothing impossible for (us)."   No one needs a swimming pool sized degree of faith!  Who needs more than a faith that is able to do all things?!

     In fact, if Jesus rebuked the disciples for not being able to cast out evil spirits, "because they had so little faith," and then went on to say "faith the size of a mustard seed" was enough to do anything that needed to be done, one must question how much the disciples could have had?  Maybe the tiniest speck of a mustard seed that had been ground to powder?  I suppose it really doesn't matter. Little faith in the infinite God is enough! The aim, after all, is not to focus on our faith, but the immutable, great, loving, and all-powerful object of our faith.  For faith grows as we look away from it, and seek to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus.  The greater we understand Him to be, the greater our faith will become -- and that without even needing to focus on faith.

Living in the Grace of Jesus, Pastor Jeff

Touched by an Angel

Greetings All,

     This week's "thought" comes to you from Eric Metaxas and is found in his lesser know book entitled, "Miracles - What They Are, Why They Happen, and How They Can Change Your Life."  Metaxas  graduated from Yale with a degree in English and is much better known for his lengthy and best-selling book, Bonhoeffer - Pastor, Martyr, Propet, Spy  or his other more popular book Amazing Grace, about William Wilberforce and his heroic campaign to end slavery in the British Empire.

















In this book, "Miracles," Mataxas deals only with those miracles cited in Scripture, or told to him by friends and associates whose integrity he trusts implicitly, so as to avoid sharing stories from people whose character and credibility he cannot personally vouch for. (He even records for us the dream which he himself had, that led him to write the book on Bonhoeffer.) The stories come from personal friends who either witnessed or experienced phenomena that apart from a miraculous explanation is otherwise inexplicable. Phenomena whose veracity he might even have questioned if he did not personally know the various individuals. For any interested in this topic of the miraculous, this book is well worth the price. Most of the stories are too long to quote, so I share one of the shorter ones. Enjoy.

Touched by an Angel

     "My friend Eva Meyer was thirteen and a freshman at Staples High School in Westport, Connecticut.  In the first few days of school (this was in the 1980's) she made some new friends and one invited her to a sleepover one Friday night in early September. Eva soon realized these girls were rather different from the ones she had been used to spending time with. For one thing, they were all interested in the occult. In fact, they decided they wanted to have a seance that night. One of the girls was heavily into the music of "The Doors," and said she wanted to invoke the spirit of Jim Morrison (who had died July 3, 1971). But Eva did not wish to "break on through to the other side."  She knew far too much about the dark side of the spirit realm to think it was a good way to spend the evening. She simply could not go through with it and said so to her new friends.

     So the girls decided they would all take a walk to the beach instead. The girl whose house the sleepover was at, lived within walking distance of Compo Beach. The quickest route there was straight down Hillspoint Road and over the Hillspoint Road Bridge, which crosses over I-95, the heavily trafficked interstate highway that runs from Maine to Florida. When the girls got to the bridge, Eva saw that there was a six-foot-tall wooden stockade fence blocking the road. Evidently there was "roadwork" being done on the bridge, although they could not see past the tall fence to see exactly what was being done. But the girl whose house they they were staying at told them she climbed the fence all the time and just walked across the bridge. She insisted that she had done it many times and explained that they just didn't want cars driving across it, but it was absolutely fine to walk across it.

     Eva explains that for "some strange reason" they insisted that she go first. They would boost her up and help her get over the fence. To this day Eva cannot figure out why she agreed to go first, but she did. She says that at the time she was a "five-foot-two, maybe one hundred forty pounds, somewhat chubby, very weak thirteen-year-old girl," who had never done a single pull-up in her life. Maybe this is why she agreed to letting the three of them help her up and over first, or why they suggested it.  So the three girls boosted her up with their hands and essentially heaved her over the six-foot fence.

     It was in the next split second that Eva saw the trouble. To put it in her own words, precisely as she typed them to me: "THERE WAS NO BRIDGE THERE!!!  NOTHING!!!"  It was an unspeakable horror, the sort of thing about which one has reoccurring nightmares. Eva remembers in that briefest of moments seeing a huge semi-truck roaring right beneath her flailing legs, which were kicking in midair, and she remembers the feel of the rough top of the stockade fence which she desperately tried to grasp with her hand as her body went over.

     Instinctively she screamed, "Jesus!!!"  Then, just as she lost her grip and began to plummet to what she knew would be her death on the highway below, with the endless speeding trucks and cars, she felt herself being lifted up.  She saw nothing, but in the blink of an eye she felt herself being scooped up in midair and carried back over the fence and placed on solid ground -- but a full ten feet away from where the three girls had tossed her over.  She says that she remembers landing -- "my arms stretched out wide, as though a parachute had brought me to a soft landing." And then she remembers the unhinged looks on the faces of the three other girls. She remembers that they were "utterly horrified, scared witless." Eva says they were, "white as sheets, with mouths agape, and eyes wide in terror."  All three of them shrieked and instantly bolted from the scene, running as fast as they could. 

     She remembers the feeling of those moments. She felt strangely calm, but confused too. She knew without a doubt that in that moment Jesus had miraculously saved her life. She simply walked home not telling a soul what happened, but remembers clearly that not one of those three girls ever spoke to her again. They wouldn't even glance in her direction or come near her. [Twenty-some-odd years later, around the time of her high school reunion, Eva discovered through Facebook that the girl whose house they had been at was a full-fledged Satanist -- her page filled with pentagrams and other dark, occult symbols]."

     If you read the book you will find one other amazing story about Eva later in her life.  One which may explain why she was so miraculously spared.

Just some food for thought!

In the Service of Jesus, Pastor Jeff

Few Bearers of His Cross

Greetings Friends,

     Today's "thought" comes to you from the Christian devotional classic, "The Imitation of Christ" by Thomas a' Kempis (1380-1471).  His name means "Thomas of (or from) Kempen" - a small town in eastern Germany, just a few miles from the border of Holland. His God-given gifts which come through to us in his writing consist in his wisdom, keen insight into human nature, and ability to say a lot in very few words (a gift I missed out on)!

     In terms of personal transformation he taught: "The acknowledgment of our weakness is the first step in repairing our loss."   In terms of spiritual leadership he stressed: The loftier the building, the deeper the foundation must be laid."  In terms of the self he said as we all can: Who has a harder fight than he who is striving to overcome himself."  And in terms of Jesus words in John 14:7 he assured us: "Without the Way, there is no going, Without the Truth, there is no knowing, Without the Life, there is no living."   This selection is entitled"Few Bearers of His Cross."  Enjoy.

     "Jesus now has many lovers of the heavenly kingdom, but few bearers of His Cross. He has many who desire consolation, but few who desire tribulation. He finds many companions at His table, but few of His abstinence. All desire to rejoice with Him, but few are willing to endure anything for Him, or with Him.

     Many follow Jesus unto the breaking of bread, but few unto the drinking of the cup of His sufferings. Many reverence His miracles, but few follow the shame or disgrace of His Cross. Many love Jesus so long as no adversities befall them.  Many praise and bless Him so long as they receive consolations from Him.  But if Jesus hide (the sense of His presence) and leave them but a little while, they turn to complaining or into much dejection of mind.

     But they who love Jesus for the sake of Jesus, and not for some special comfort they can receive from Him, bless Him in all tribulations and anguish of heart as well as in the state of highest comfort.  Even if He was never willing to give them comfort, they would, even then, praise Him and wish to be always giving thanks. 

     O how powerful is the pure love of Jesus, which is mixed with no self-interest or self-love!  Are not all those to be called mercenary who are ever seeking consolations? Do they not show themselves to be rather lovers of themselves than of Christ, who are always and only thinking of their own profit and advantage?  Where shall one be found who is willing to serve God for nothing?" 

     Now, here, I do need to confess I am one who enjoys and cherishes the comforts and consolations of Jesus when they come.  I believe we all do.  Even Mr. A'Kempis did, as he confessed elsewhere.  That's not really his point. His point is that if that's all we seek; if we only seek, love, praise, and thank Jesus when we are receiving those things, and we cease doing so, or walk away in bitter anger and disillusionment when the opposite comes (whether it be for a short or extended time) we must question what we are seeking, who we are loving, why we are praising, and why difficulties would make us stop giving Him thanks.

     If we love Jesus only when the blessings are flowing, and not when the struggles come; if we cherish and adore Him only for what He gives, and not for the sake of who He is (the Lamb worthy of all glory and honor and power - Revelation 4:6-5:14) we must truly question if it's Jesus that we love.  If a child only "loves" his father when his father was giving him gifts, and is indifferent or does nothing but complain when he withholds those gifts, what would it say about the object of that child's "love"? 

     You see, a pure love for Jesus mixed with "NO self-interest or self-love"  may be an ideal that we can never fully achieve so long as the principle of sin still clings to us in this life. Yet, that ideal can be placed before us, and should be placed before us (as a'Kempis does here), to serve as a means of grace which helps us move away from the all too common tendency to love so conditionally the Lord who loves His children so unconditionally. Only you can know the reaction a'Kempis' words caused inside you, but I must confess they lead me to say, "Sorry Lord, please change my heart." 

Thankful for His Grace, Pastor Jeff

The Lessons of Saint Nicholas

Greetings and Merry Christmas to All!

     This week's "thought" follows the theme of Christmas. It's a selection I took from another Advent Devotional Series, this time sent out by my former alma mater, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, where I received my MDiv.  It was on Day 4, December 6th, and written by Dr. Ken Barnes, Associate Professor of Workplace Theology and Business Ethics.  In it he gives us helpful historical insights into the part St. Nicholas has come to play in the Christmas celebration (at least here in the States) and how we could respond to his inclusion in it -- which is not likely to go away anytime soon.

     
     I would like to take this time to wish all my friends near and far a Merry Christmas and pray that no matter where you are, or how busy things get, you might keep your eyes on the all-important truth the day is meant to emphasize -- the incarnation of God in Christ.  As C.S. Lewis so poignantly reminded us: "The Central miracle asserted by Christians is the incarnation. They say that God became man."  What truth could be more astounding or life-changing than that?  Enjoy.

The Lessons of Saint Nicholas

“…the stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there.” 

(Clement Clarke Moore, 1822)

     We’ve no doubt all have heard the famous poem attributed to the late Dr. Clement Clarke Moore, former Professor of Greek and Oriental Literature at New York’s General Theological Seminary, entitled “T'was the Night Before Christmas.”  Supposedly written as a holiday bedtime story for his own children (he had nine of them), the simple little ditty forever evokes our popular images of Santa Claus, the “jolly old elf,” complete with his white beard, rosy cheeks, plump belly and “bundle of toys.”

     Based on convoluted versions of Norse and British folklore, the latter producing “Father Christmas,” and the ancient Dutch story of “Sinterklass” (Saint Nicholas), the contemporary version of Santa Claus is sadly quite wide of the mark. Of course, if you had grown up in an Eastern European household as a child, you would know that today, December 6, and not Christmas day, is actually the day when children receive gifts in honor of the 4th Century Bishop of Myra, the actual Saint Nicholas.

     The Bishop, it is said, was born into a wealthy aristocratic family, and upon receipt of his inheritance considered quite literally the words of Jesus: “Go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come follow me,” (Matt 19:21). Legend has it that in response to God’s grace, he did just that, and gave his wealth not only to the poor,  but uniquely to poor children, especially young girls who would have otherwise experienced lives of destitution and exploitation. He was indeed a saint if ever there was one.

     So how did we go from celebrating the benevolence of St. Nicholas on his traditional feast day (December 6) to giving gifts on Christmas Day?  The answer, it would seem, rests with none other than Martin Luther, the progenitor of the Reformation itself, the 500th anniversary of which we celebrated earlier this year. As legend has it, Luther found the veneration of saints to be unhelpful and a distraction to the proper worship of Christ alone.  So, he sought to redirect the popular tradition of exchanging gifts on the feast of St. Nicholas to the feast of the “Christkind” (the feast of the Christ child), a.k.a. Christmas.

     In some respects, it wasn’t a bad idea. Surely we should focus our attention on the work of Christ and not the work of others.  But in two very important ways, it turns out to have been folly.  FIRST, it backfired quite spectacularly.  Instead of turning our attention to the great gift-giver himself, Jesus Christ, gift-giving in the form of crass consumerism has appropriated one of our highest holidays. Luther would be nothing less than scandalized to see what has become of Christmas.

     SECOND, we lost the truly inspirational story of the real St. Nicholas, whose retelling may inspire us to follow his example and use our material goods to bless the lives of others in devotion, and in response, to the grace of the “Christkind.”

     As a pastor, I know how easy it is to critique the way Christmas is observed in many places around the world (not just America). The commercialization of the holiday has spread far and wide and made it difficult to simply focus on Jesus' coming, offer Him our grateful praise, and kneel in heartfelt adoration before the One who was "the Word made flesh."  And that's the truth that's so life-changing. The other more superfluous aspects of the celebration can, and undeniably do, generate fond memories and sentimental feelings in believers and unbelievers alike. And that's fine I guess (though it can turn into idolatry when one seeks, desires, and delights in those things more than Jesus.)

     Yet, what I've found to be true is that unless our primary focus is on Jesus and the miracle of His incarnation -- what C. S. Lewis rightly calls the "central miracle asserted by Christians" -- our holy endeavors will often end by New Year's Eve, or shortly thereafter. They tend to "lose the feeling of Christmas"  once they take down the tree and put Jesus, the lights, the creche scenes, and decorations, back into the closet until next Christmas.

     That's why it's so important to remember that the truth we celebrate at Christmas is not simply for Christmas!  It's a truth that should change the way we view everything and do everything, every day of the year!  For how can one believe that God the Son, the Word (ie: the Logos, or Wisdom of God, who was with God and was God from the beginning -- John 1:1-4) actually became flesh in the Christ child and not see the incredibly profound implications that has for all of life? 

     For is Jesus was a man, and nothing more, then the rest of the Gospel story is emptied of all its life-changing power and life-saving significance. If the baby in the manger was a mere human child and no more, the story is quaint, but no more worthy of our notice than the story of any other child, born in any other place, under adverse conditions.

     Surely the Christmas celebration should involve JOY (who wouldn't rejoice that our Savior came to earth!), and it should also involve GIVING (after all, God gave His son), and it should invoke a sense of REVERENCE at the glories of heaven revealed in the birth of Jesus (as the Shepherds discovered).  But most of all (if it's effect is to be lasting) it should be centered upon Jesus and lead the heart to worship and adore Him as the Christ. For it's only when the heart is driven to kneel in worship before Jesus, and see Him as the object of that worship, that we show we really comprehend what took place at Christmas.

Merry Christmas!  Pastor Jeff

Lord, Fill Me With Your Spirit

Greetings Friends!

     Today's thought comes to you from a gentlemen named Jon Bloom, co-founder and staff-writer for desiringGod.org, a ministry most closely associated with John Piper (whose thoughts I have passed on to you before). This article was found on the desiringGod.org website.  I pass it on to you for your serious and prayerful consideration. To simply read it is one thing, but to read it and then pray in the manner he advises is another thing altogether -- and surely the author's hoped for response on any readers part.  Read. Pray.  Enjoy.

Lord, Fill Me With Your Spirit

     “The kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power” (I Corinthians 4:20).  If we are not disillusioned with how much we have allowed our talk to pass for our walk, discontented with the sparse amount of spiritual fruit we are truly bearing, and disappointed by the impotence of our own efforts, we will never be distressed enough to really plead with God to fill us with the Holy Spirit.  If we’re not disturbed by how little we can do in our own power, we’ll never be desperate enough to ask God for his.

What Is the Filling of the Holy Spirit?

       But when we pray for this, what are we asking God for? In the words of Wayne Grudem, we are asking God for “an event subsequent to conversion in which a believer experiences a fresh infilling with the Holy Spirit that may result in a variety of consequences, including greater love for God, greater victory over sin, greater power for ministry, and sometimes the receiving of new spiritual gifts.” (Grudem 1242)  Now, of course every Christian receives the Holy Spirit upon conversion. Being born again is the greatest miracle any human being can possibly experience, and it only happens by the omnipotent power of Holy Spirit (John 3:3-8, I Corinthians 12:13).

       But the reason we talk about the filling of the Holy Spirit as “an event subsequent to conversion” is because that’s how the New Testament usually talks about it. Paul was exhorting born-again Christians when he wrote, “be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18). And almost all of Luke’s description of Spirit-fillings occurred to people who were already born again (see Acts 2:4, 4:8, 4:31, 9:17, 13:9, 13:52). And we’re actually talking about events (plural) because, just like the same people received repeated fillings of the Spirit in the book of Acts, we also need to be filled repeatedly. According to the New Testament, we need to be repeatedly filled with the Holy Spirit for two primary purposes: empowered worship and witness.

Intoxicated with God

     When Paul told the Ephesians Christians to “be filled with the Spirit,” he was talking about Spirit-empowered worship: "And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Ephesians 5:18-20).  Be careful as you read these verses. Don’t let your familiarity with it or your experience-based preconceptions about worship styles or other things cause you to dodge the punch the Holy Spirit intends to land here.  Paul is saying, don’t be intoxicated with alcohol, but be intoxicated with God! 

      His words confront each of us with the penetrating question, “Are you intoxicated with God?” Does our heart so overflow with love for God that our heart, whether light or heavy, can’t help but sing, both to God and to one another? No matter what our circumstances, are we overflowing with thanks to God?  If not, we need to be filled with the Holy Spirit because we are not worshipfully enjoying God according to the grace available to us. That means we are not glorifying God as we ought, and are we not experiencing satisfaction in God like we might.

Empowered by God

     When Luke described this experience of Spirit-filling among Christians, its purpose was for Spirit-empowered witness: "And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness" (Acts 4:29-31).  Those early Christians were feeling fear from the threats of the religious authorities, the same ones who had crucified Jesus. But their response was to ask God for boldness to preach the gospel and supernatural power to minister to people. And God answered their prayer.

     Don’t let yourself be immediately distracted by popular controversies, like whether all the miraculous gifts in the New Testament continue, or some have ceased. Those questions are important in their place. But there are more fundamental questions for us here. “Are you responding to your fears of real physical threats, disapproval, or scorn with desperate prayer for God to empower you to overcome?” Are we laying hold of God until he answers? If not, we need to be filled with the Holy Spirit because we are allowing fear and unbelief to gag or mute our witness to the reality and gospel of Jesus Christ. And because we are silent, people who need the gospel aren’t hearing it.

Whatever It Takes, Lord

     Here’s wonderful news: our heavenly Father loves to give his Holy Spirit to those who ask (Luke 11:13)! “For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened” (Luke 11:10).  Do you feel dry? Are you weary? Are you tired of talking so much about glorious theology, but not experiencing the reality of it? Does your worship feel distracted and hollow? Are you lacking in gratitude to God? Do you long for more fruit, both the internal fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:28-29) and the external fruit of empowered ministry?  Then you are a good candidate for the filling of the Holy Spirit. Your dryness and discouragement may, in fact, be invitations from God to press in to him. The desperation that comes from living with low-ebbing affections and spiritual impotence can itself be a gift from the Holy Spirit, because it's when we become disillusioned enough with our mere talk, our anemic worship, and our weak selves that we really become prepared to pray:  Whatever it takes, Lord, fill me with the Holy Spirit and any gifting you would be pleased to give me."

     As one who has been preaching and sharing the Gospel for 37 years in various capacities now, I must confess his opening words rung true.  It is because I have frequently been, "disillusioned with how much [I] have allowed [my] talk to pass for [my] walk," and have indeed been,"discontented with the sparse amount of spiritual fruit [I am] truly bearing," and have been deeply, "disappointed by the impotence of [my] own efforts," that I habitually, "plead with God to fill [me] with the Holy Spirit."  I find it impossible to think there is even one person involved in Christian ministry of any sort who does not do this. For ministering in merely human strength, and nothing else (and I know when I am), cannot help but bring bring about fruit that will not last. That's what we must eventually ask ourselves: Do we yearn for fruit that bears the stamp of a power that is not from us?  For only if we do will we confess our inability to produce it in our own strength and plead for the power of the Spirit to do through us what only he can do.  Lord show us our weakness that we may plead for your strength.

In His Service, Pastor Jeff