Doing the Unthinkable

Today, I did the unthinkable. About an hour ago, I ate a piece of chicken. I don't know what I was thinking! After months of a vegetarian diet... after months of no stomach aches... after a report on my blood test that said my blood sugar and cholesterol were at almost perfect levels... I caved in to my appetite and ate a piece of fowl chicken against my better judgment and much to my wife's chagrin. It was even organic chicken, but that didn't make it any better...

Not even a half hour later, I felt like someone punched me in the stomach!
One moment of pure joy of that chicken that I had missed all those months was hardly worth the belly ache that I am experiencing, even as I type these words.

I used to think that vegetarians were crackpots. Maybe some of them are. But there is something to be said for not having dead animal meat rotting and decaying in your stomach. I have felt alot better not eating meat. I think I learned my lesson tonight the hard way... its not always the best thing to fulfill your desires for one moment of pleasure.

Someone please pass the carrots...

Dynamic Devotional Living

I have many things to learn about being a parent, and therefore I am always reading material on how to raise my children effectively. I have read many resources on parenting. Just as with anything, there are some really good books and pamphlets, but there is alot of junk out there too. There is nothing worse than a parenting book that is all psycho-babble mumbo jumbo. Who writes these books anyway?

Our kids just finished a week of Vacation Bible School where our church hosted 'The Musical Merrill Family'. While they were here visiting our church and ministering to our family, I noticed a book they had for sale by Gail Martin, "What Every Child Should Know Along the Way". I leafed through it real quick and decided it might be worth the $10 they were asking for it. Today I read through about half the book. This is probably one of the best parenting resources I have ever read (at least so far). The premise of the book is developed in the first chapter on "Dynamic Devotional Living", which the author defines as "being vigorously active and profoundly dedicated to the love, praise and service to God; resulting in the power of God affecting further life transformation, thereby producing the joy of holy Christ-like living". This book is solidly biblical and contains valuable practical advice.

There is a section on manners, practical living checklists for specific age groups, the importance of mining out childrens talents and spiritual gifts. There are chapters ranging from personal safety to biblical character traits.

I am sure we will be referring to this book over and over again. I strongly recommend this book to any parent with children still at home.

Mark

The Importance of Praying

Recently, I read a great booklet by JC Ryle entitled, 'A Call to Prayer'. It's a short 33-page booklet, but packed with pure dynomite. The following is basically an outline of what Ryle states in the last section, with some of my own notes added in:

"By prayer the Christian can open his heart to God, as to a friend, and obtain fresh testimony of God’s friendship to him". – John Bunyan, Prayer

Importance of Praying with Reverence and Humility
1). Beware of rushing into God’s presence with carelessness.
Ecclesiastes 5:2 - Do not be hasty in word or impulsive in thought to bring up a matter in the presence of God. For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your
words be few. KJV
2). Confession of sin and turning away from sin is necessary for God to ‘hear’ – Psalm 66:18
3). Consider your prayer posture – 1 Kings 8:22; 54 - What interesting observation do you
make comparing these two verses, the beginning of Solomon’s prayer vs. the end of the prayer? Consider also Daniel 6:10.

Importance of Praying Spiritually
1). Labor to always have the direct help of the Holy Spirit. Romans 8:26.
2). Strive to pray ‘biblically’ – within the compass of God’s Word.
2). Beware of ‘form’, vain repetition and scripted prayers. Matthew 6:7.

Importance of Praying with Regularity
1). Just as you allot time to eating, sleeping, exercise, etc… so also allot time to prayer. Daniel,
the man of integrity in the Old Testament took regular breaks during the day for the sole purpose of prayer. Daniel 6:10.
2). Requires discipline of time (time management!). JC Ryle says, "Disorder is eminently one of
the fruits of sin… speak to God in the morning, before you speak to the world; and speak to God at night after you have done with the world".

Importance of Praying with Perseverance
1). Never give up!
2). What did the Apostle Paul say? "Continue in prayer" (Colossians 4:2) and "pray without
ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17).
3). What did Jesus say? "Men ought always to pray and not to faint" (Luke 18:1).
4). The enemies of perseverance in prayer are sickness, sleepiness, weariness, important
business.
5). Do not neglect your soul. Make no excuses. Press forward - persevering in prayer.

Importance of Praying with Fervency
1). James 1:17 states it best: "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much".
2). Fervency is achieved by ‘crying, knocking, wrestling, laboring, striving’.
3). Of Jesus, the Hebrew writer states "in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers
and supplications with strong crying and tears"
4). John Bunyan – "When the affections are indeed engaged in prayer, then the whole man is
engaged…"

The Importance of Praying with Faith
1). We should cultivate the habit of pleading promises in our prayers (not the ‘name it and
claim it’ or ‘blab it and grab it’ kind of pleading and presumption we find in the word-of-faith movement).
2). We should cultivate the habit of expecting answers to our prayers. Do we believe God? See
Acts 12:15.

The Importance of Praying with Boldness
1). We have access to the throne of grace – to come ‘boldly’ to receive mercy and find grace in
time of need. Hebrews 4:16.
2). We hardly plead with boldness as we might, because we do not realize our privileges as a
‘child of God’!

The Importance of Praying with Fulness
1). Private devotions of many are painfully scanty and limited; People seem to want little from
God. They seem to have little to confess, little to ask for, and little to thank Him for. "They have not because they ask not"
2). We should not be content with ‘general prayers’. Pray ‘general’, get general answers. Be
specific and detailed. Answers are easier to see that way!
3). Hide no secrets, hold nothing back, share your heart.

The Importance of Praying for Others
1). Intercessory prayers help us fight our selfish tendencies.
2). Intercessory prayers enlarges our sympathies and expands our hearts.
3). Intercessory prayers benefit the Church.

The Importance of Praying with Thankfulness
1). Is it true prayer in which thankfulness has no part?
2). Philippians 4:6 says, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication
with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."
3). Surely we should never open our lips in prayer without blessing God for that free grace by
which we live, and for that lovingkindness which endures forever.

My Footsteps

I lost a couple of friends this past week. They were dear soles to me for ten years or more. Yes, I had to throw my work shoes away. I hauled them to the dumpster kicking and screaming. I hated to part with them, but they were literally on their last leg. I could barely stand to see them go. They had been good to me (and comfortable to boot). I guess I'll have to foot the bill for a new pair soon; I just hope they're not toe expensive.

As I pondered the passing of my reliable friends, I couldn't help but wonder how many times did I sin with these shoes on. How many people did I encourage with these shoes on? How many people heard the gospel from me while I wore these shoes? How much ministry happened with these shoes on my feet? How many people did I offend? Boy, if these old shoes could talk... How many places did the soles of these shoes touch that weren't pleasing to God? How many kind words spoken, how many victories, how many defeats?

Well, they're gone now. They have nothing to say - nothing to do now. Other shoes have risen up and taken their place. Do they have big shoes to fill? We'll see...

If Not For Christ

It's been a busy week. The kids are in Vacation Bible

School in the evenings, 2 dentist appointments today, a hair appointment, grocery shopping, gotta squeeze in some grocery shopping, cut the grass, fix the plumbing, go to work and somehow manage to get my reading and study time in. The stress of the days can sometimes be overwhelming, but we thank God for the stability we gain from the truth found in His Word. If not for Christ - the One we read of and learn about in this Word - the one we can have an intimate relationship with - without Him, I'd be a basket case.

People who are outside of Christ? I don't know how they do it... especially when they are faced with a death of a loved one, a terminal illness, a family crisis or any other major event. If not for Christ, I don't know what gutter I'd be lying in today.

I heard an appropriate song today:

If not for Christ I would surely fall

Over myself and bear the fault

Of all my deeds so terrible

If not for Christ I would surely fall

If not for Christ I would surely fall

If not for Christ I would surely break

Under the weight of my mistakes

And in my sin be kept away

If not for Christ I would surely break

If not for Christ I would surely break

It was for me He bled and died

It was my sword that pierced His side

It was my name that Jesus cried

When on that tree He bled and died

It was for me He bled and died

And now to Christ I owe it all

He is to me a tower strong

Salvation does to me belong

It is to Christ I owe it all

It is to Christ I owe it all

The Thin Veil

There is a thin veil between life and death. Any one of us is one heartbeat away from plunging into eternity. It could be a heart attack. It could be a murder. It could be a car accident.

Yesterday, on the way to lunch after church, by the grace of God and a Starsky-and-Hutch-style steering maneuver, I was spared from plunging into eternity. Rounding a bend on a very curvy road on the way to the restaurant, my wife, my daughter and myself were quickly met head on by another driver. He was in our lane rounding the bend and with his head down. I assumed dialing the cell phone was more important than the lives of those of us who were approaching in our own lane.

I only had time to yell, 'what is this guy doing!' He looked up at the last second and with his eyes as big as saucers, he swerved to one side, I swerved to the other. On any other part of that narrow road we would have either rolled up one side of an embankment, or plummetted to our demise into the valley below. But instead of my family planning my funeral today, providentially there was a gravel pull-off or driveway of some sort, and just like the Dukes of Hazzard (only in a blue minivan), we did a major powerslide in the gravel that would have made Bo, Luke and Uncle Jesse proud. We missed the other car by millimeters and I was able to get back up on the road... all in a beat of my heart. We were thankful. We could have all been killed and left two sons behind - they were safe in their grandparents car.

Somehow the flowers were more beautiful today. Somehow the rain and thunder was more welcomed. Somehow my job didn't seem like such a drag today. Somehow it didn't seem like the kids were fighting as much. Somehow the dog didn't seem to bark as much. It's strange how an incedent like this can make a person appreciate things a little more.

None of us is guaranteed tomorrow. I almost found that out yesterday.

The Printing Press

Of all the inventions in history, I had never thought of the printing press as being one with the greatest magnitude. After studying about William Tyndale and his burning passion and desire to get the Bible translated into English and put into the hands of the common people - I'd say the invention of the printing press is unrivaled in its effect on humankind.

The printing press was invented in Europe and its use spread throughout the continent like a summer wildfire Southern California. Providentially, the spreading of the printing press was happening at roughly the same time that Tyndale was working on his translation of the Bible while he was in exile from England. The ability to mass-produce an English version of the Bible was going to amazingly allow Tyndale to accomplish his one desire: "that the boy that driveth the plow" would know the scriptures.

Tyndale paid the ultimate price. He was branded a heretic, strangled by an executioner, and burned at the stake because of his efforts in translating the Bible. He is truly a hero of the faith and we owe a great debt of thanks to this bold and singly-focused man of God. He looked down through the corridor of time and saw fifty, a hundred... five hundred years into the future and knew that he was going to make an impact for the kingdom of Christ.

I look around and see all of our technology that makes the printing press look rather simple and crude. But what an amazing thing that printing press was for those of us who speak and read English. And then I wonder, 'in fifty, a hundred... five hundred years from now, will there be someone studying about our computer-sophisicated culture and saying what an impact we had for Christ because we used all of our gadgets for the cause of the kingdom'.

I wonder...

If Your Eye is Clear

"The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!" - Matthew 6:22-23

This is a pretty strange passage at first glance (no pun intended). What in the world does this phrase 'if your eye is clear' mean?

I've been studying a little about William Tyndale. He lived in the early 1500's and his goal in life, his single devotion, his reason for living and dying could be summed up in his burning passion and desire to translate the Bible from the original language of Greek and Hebrew into an ordinary English version available for anyone and everyone to read and understand. We owe Tyndale a debt of gratitude. He gave up his life for this single-minded devotion.

We could say that Tyndale's 'eye was clear'. This is what the phrase means: singleness of mind, clear focus, intent on one purpose. The eye is an illustration of the heart - the heart is the eye of the soul. J.C. Ryle made the following comment that fits well with this passage that we find in the Sermon on the Mount: "Singleness of purpose is one great secret of spiritual prosperity".

We are a fragmented people. Ours is a culture of rushing everywhere to do everything. Consequently, we excel at nothing. Christians are the worst of all people when it comes to having single-minded devotion to Christ. We have lost the simplicity of knowing Christ because piled on top of work and family commitments, we have a million church activities to keep us busy. I am not against church activities, but when they interrupt our 'singleness of purpose', then there is a serious problem.

God, let my eyes be clear. Rid my life of all activities that come between me and you.
Amen.

Redirected

Here's a couple of links to some good articles I read on some other blogs and websites that are worth a look:

On who 'prizes' Christ:
http://titus2talk.blogspot.com/2008/06/godly-mans-picture.html

Tips for self-discipline:
http://www.sfpulpit.com/2008/06/16/tips-for-self-discipline/

An intimate hour with God:
http://www.bulletininserts.org/hour.html

Faithful stewards of God's Word:
http://stevenjcamp.blogspot.com/2005/09/guard-trustevery-christians-duty.html

Elements of True Prayer

The prophet Daniel was a man of integrity. He was also a man of prayer. In chapter 9 of the book named for him, Daniel prays one of the great prayers of the Bible. The John MacArthur study bible outlines several 'elements of true prayer':

True prayer:
1). Is in response to the Word of God (9:2).
2). Is characterized by fervency (9:3).
3). Is also characterized by self-denial (9:4).
4). Is identfied unselfishly with God's people (9:5).
5). Is strengthened by confession (9:5-15).
6). Is dependent upon God's character (9:4,7,9,15).
7). Has God's glory as it's goal (9:16-19).

We would do well to follow the example of Daniel. God's answer to Daniel's prayer is amazing. God gave him the 'Seventy Weeks' prophecy - the window into the rest of history - including end times, which most of us are very much interested in. While we may not get the same kind of answer to our prayers that Daniel received, James tells us that the effectual fervent prayers of a righteous man availeth much.

In Christ Alone

This song is one of my 'new' favorite songs. A contemporary hymn that is destined to become a Christian classic anthem along side of 'How Great Thou Art' and 'It is Well With My Soul'. It contains several key Christian doctrines including the deity of Christ, 'propitiation' we talked about several posts ago, the imputation of Christ's righteousness to us, and the eternal security of the believer. I love songs like this because of the biblically solid lyrics - as opposed to the empty, fluffy, soft lyrics used in most contemporary 'Christian' songs. Doctrine is often compromised in the interest of artistic license. Not so here in this beautiful song:

"In Christ Alone"

Words and Music by Keith Getty & Stuart Townend Copyright © 2001 Kingsway Thankyou Music

In Christ alone my hope is found;
He is my light, my strength, my song;
This cornerstone, this solid ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My comforter, my all in all—
Here in the love of Christ I stand.

In Christ alone, Who took on flesh,
Fullness of God in helpless babe!
This gift of love and righteousness,
Scorned by the ones He came to save.
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied;
For ev'ry sin on Him was laid—
Here in the death of Christ I live.

There in the ground His body lay,
Light of the world by darkness slain;
Then bursting forth in glorious day,
Up from the grave He rose again!
And as He stands in victory,
Sin's curse has lost its grip on me;
For I am His and He is mine—
Bought with the precious blood of Christ.

No guilt in life, no fear in death—
This is the pow'r of Christ in me;
From life's first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny.
No pow'r of hell, no scheme of man,
Can ever pluck me from His hand;
Till He returns or calls me home—
Here in the pow'r of Christ I'll stand.


Go HERE to see a video and hear the song.

Father's Day Thoughts

I owe a great debt of gratitude to my dad. Now that I have children of my own, I realize the importance of a dad's influence on his kids.

My dad taught me all the 'guy stuff' that I needed to know - stuff I am teaching my own kids - like how to enjoy nachos at a Pittsburgh Pirate game; how to hammer a nail into a two-by-four; how to operate an electric drill; how to make a jig saw do what you want it to do; how to dig a post hole; how to cut the grass; plant tomatoes; throw a football; how to change the oil in the car and change a tire; how to paint (neatly); how to trim bushes; ... there's a thousand other things - all things I need to pass on to my kids. So that they will pass them on to my grandkids... and their kids... and...

Thanks Dad
Love,
Mark

Prayer Posture

Although King Solomon's heart turned from the Lord in 1 Kings 11, his great prayer of dedication a few chapters earlier in 1 Kings 8 taught me a couple of things. This prayer was Solomon's response to the Lord after the completion of the temple. The building of the temple was a fulfillment of a promise that God had made to Solomon's father David.

The prayer of Solomon contains several elements that we might do well to add to our own prayers:
1). The affirmation that there is no other god except the God of Israel (1 Kings 8:22). Of course God knows that, but our confession of it to God is of utmost importance.
2). Not only do we make that affirmation, but just as Solomon recognized that this God of Israel was a covenant-keeping God and a merciful God, so should we recognize this before God in our prayers. I like the phrase in 1 Kings 8:50 - "make them objects of compassion". I want to be this object!
3). Solomon also asked God for protection. Who of us doesn't need the protection of God?
4). "Hear and forgive" is a repeated phrase in this prayer. Our plea for forgiveness shows God our utter dependence upon Him, and Him alone, to cleanse us from the guilt and stain of sin that soils our souls daily.
5). One of the most intersting items I noted when reading through this passage is not the content of the prayer itself, but the posture in which it is prayed. Not that we can't pray in any posture (standing, sitting, lying down, etc), but notice in 1 Kings 8:54 - "he arose from before the altar of the Lord, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread toward heaven". Earlier in the chapter in verse 22 as he began his prayer, Solomon was standing. So at some point during the prayer, Solomon fell to his knees. I thought of the passage that tells us that "every knee shall bow". Solomon's knees buckled in the presence of Almighty God. I am convicted by this. Too often I rush in out out of the presence of God. On my knees I can show humility, respect and undivided attention. Much more than if I am whisking out the door in the morning with my car keys in one hand and a bagel in the other.

More prayer thoughts next week.
Mark

Learning to Pray

Prayer is one of those spiritual disciplines that I am constantly working on. Praying is not easy – in fact, it is hard work. The forces of evil are obviously opposed to the fervent prayer of a righteous man - and so it is a battle. I want to grow in prayer. I want to learn. Not so I can be the person who ‘prays the best’, but so that I can be something like the person of Paul who said simply, ‘that I may know Him’.

There are several ways to learn how to pray better:
1). Learn to pray by praying. On the job experience is one of the best teachers.
2). Learn to pray by hearing others pray. We can learn a lot just by being around those who have a deep and meaningful relationship with God in their prayer lives. And so their example is valuable.
3). Learn to pray by reading the prayers of other Godly men. A good example of this is ‘The Valley of Vision’, which is a collection of Puritan prayers.
4). Learn to pray by studying the great prayers in the Bible. And there are many of them.

In future posts in the next week or so, I would like to share what I am learning by studying the prayers in God’s Word such as Solomon’s prayer in 1 Kings 8, Nehemiah’s prayer in the first chapter of Nehemiah, Daniel’s prayer in Daniel chapter 9, the Disciples Prayer(the Lord’s Prayer) in Matthew 6, Mary’s prayer in Luke 1, and possibly others.

Mark

A Million Words

You've heard the phrase 'A picture is worth a thousand words'? Well that's true, if you want to do an inadequate job of describing something. I believe a picture is worth a million words (maybe more!). A new blog element will appear in the left column on occassion, entitled 'A Million Words'.

Dreaming?

I approached the lush riverbank. The parched and crunchy straw-like grass gave way to tall mature grass blades blowing in the warm summer wind as I neared the cool, refreshing water.

Mist drops of water from the rushing rapids blanketed my face and brought joy to my dry and cracked lips. And there I saw him - the man crouched down as if he were praying. Who was this man, I wondered. The closer I stepped toward him I could tell it was someone vaguely familiar, but from behind it was hard to tell. He seemed to be very busy at work as I yelled to capture his attention. I thought the sound of the rushing water made it difficult for him to hear me, so I yelled all the louder and approached even closer.

Who was this man so enthralled with his work that he didn’t hear my voice? I became angry and indignant. "Who are you?! I want to know who you are!", I screamed at the top of my lungs. Then I noticed his head slowly turn toward me.

"It’s about time", I thought impatiently. And then my burning anger and selfish impatience turned to sheepish embarrassment as I recognized the man’s face. He was also holding in his hands something that was easily recognized by only me. There on the riverbank knelt the Son of Man, Jesus Christ.

As he turned to me, his look of disappointment was mixed with a gaze of love. There He was, holding my blackened soul in his bloody hands, scrubbing it clean. My ugly, dirty, sin-stained, wrinkled, tough-as-leather soul lie in the nail-pierced hands of the spotless One. ‘I forgive you’, were the only words He spoke.

With tears in each of our eyes, we embraced.

Up On A Roof

I spent the better part of yesterday helping my father-in-law put a new roof on his house. It was hot. Really hot! No shade. Direct sun. All day. It literally was the hottest day of the year so far, approaching the mid-90's in the afternoon, with maximum humidity levels. In my delirium, I contemplated the obvious effects of global warming in the countryside of Western Pennsylvania. The ice caps must be melting and polar bears are going the way of the dinosaur. It was really hot up there on that roof.

The excessive heat of the day caused my brain to think weird thoughts - like "what in the world are these global warming people thinking! This heat is NOTHING compared to the impending heat wave that the unbeliever is about to face". Maybe not such a weird thought...

Here's another thought... maybe instead of trying to save the planet and save the glaciers and save the whales and save the environment, we ought to be all about passing around the good news of the gospel so that people would be rescued from that 'eternal heat wave'. Not that we don't want to be good stewards of the earth we were given to live on, but an eternal conscious punishment in the lake of fire is of infinite more importance than 'global warming', as the buzzword goes. Losing someone to the eternal flame - the place of weeping and gnashing of teeth, the place where the worm never dies - far outweighs ice caps and polar bears.

Justification - Gospel Thoughts for the Week

A few days ago I posted the definition of the word 'propitiation'. I think its good for Christian to define their terms, so I may occasionally define words that us Christians use.

Justification. This is a legal term – a legal declaration by God – a VERDICT - an instantaneous legal act of God in which He (1) thinks of our sins as forgiven and Christ’s righteousness belonging to us, and (2) declares us to be righteous in His sight - we are completely forgiven and no longer liable to punishment.

Colossians 2:13-14 says, "When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, 1having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross."

What was the certificate of debt (or handwriting of ordinances) against us? This certificate of indebtedness referred to a handwritten note by the debtor acknowledging his debt. The decrees mentioned in this passage refers to the Mosaic Law – all people have violated God’s law and therefore we owe God a debt. This is enough to condemn us to judgement and hell because "cursed is everyone who does not abide by all the things written in the book of the law, to perform them" – Galatians 3:10. The 'canceled out' phrase is one I like. The Greek term for this phrase means "to wipe off, like erasing a blackboard". This certificate of debt has been nailed to the cross! Not a trace of it remains to be held against us. Forgiveness is complete.
John Piper comments on this passage from Colossians: "there is no salvation by BALANCING THE RECORDS, it must be wiped out, cancelled, blotted out".

What are the results of the legal declarations of justification?
1). We have no penalty to pay for our sins (past, present and future!) (FORGIVENESS) Romans 4:6-8
2). We are now not merely neutral in God’s sight, but we are actually declared to be righteous! (IMPUTATION of Christ’s righteousness to us) See Isaiah 61:10 – He has covered me with robes of righteousness.
3). We have RECONCILIATION - that is, peace with God – See Romans 5:1

What is our response to this 'justification', this legal declaration of our standing in God's sight?
There are numerous responses. Standing in awe, continually thankful, as we pursue holiness - just to name a couple.

The photo above was taken in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in the capital building in Harrisburg. We visited on a holiday, so we had access to the room, which normally would be a rare occurance. You can't tell from this photo, but behind the judges seat is a huge mural of Moses in front of the Ten Commandments. The courtroom is filled with other pictures and quotations that reference God, the Creator, the Divine, the Almighty. Interesting when you consider the 'separation of church and state' argument.

Mark

Stars and Stripes

Today was a big day for me. I was finally able to get my flag pole put up. I never had a flag pole in my yard. Flying an American flag is a necessity! It's like baseball, apple pie and Chevrolet.

This picture is obviously not my particular flag. These American flags fly proudly around the Washington Monument in our nations capital.

The box that my flag pole came in contained a fact sheet about the American flag. Here's a couple of items on that sheet:

The Pledge of Allegiance
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Red: stands for hardiness and courage
White: Is the symbol of purity and innocence
Blue: is the color of vigilance, perseverance and justice.

The flag should only be flown from sunrise to sunset. It should not be displayed at all during stormy or rainy weather, unless for some very special reason.

I love my flag. Alot of people died for that flag.

Be Ye Glad

Today I was reminiscing about our wedding day that took place almost eight years ago. I heard a song that we played in the prelude to the ceremony. The song is 'Be Ye Glad'. The reason we picked this song as part of our wedding celebration is that it speaks of the happy occassion of Christ taking our sin debt out of the way and (as we see in the following verses from Colossians 2:13-14) nailing it the cross.

When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, 14having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

Here are the lyrics from the song. Wish you could hear the tune as you read the words. Maybe you know how it goes:

In these days of confused situations
In this night of a restless remorse
When the heart and the soul of a nation
Lay wounded and cold as a corpse

From the grave of the innocent Adam
Comes a song bringing joy to the sad
Oh, your cry has been heard
And the ransom has been paid up in full, be ye glad

Oh, be ye glad Oh, be ye glad
Every debt that you've ever had
Has been paid up in full by the grace of the Lord
Be ye glad, be ye glad, be ye glad

So be like lights on the rim of the water
Giving hope in a storm sea of night
Be a refuge amidst the slaughter
Of these fugitives in their flight

For you are timeless and part of a puzzle
You are winsome and young as a lad
And there is no disease or no struggle
That can pull you from God, be ye glad

Oh, be ye glad Oh, be ye glad
Every debt that you ever had
Has been paid up in full by the grace of the Lord
Be ye glad, be ye glad, be ye glad

Oh, be ye glad Oh, be ye glad
Every debt that you ever had
Has been paid up in full by the grace of the Lord
Be ye glad, be ye glad, be ye glad

(c) Michael K. Blanchard, ASCAP, Paragon Music Corp.Gotz Music & Diadem Sky, ASCAP

Only ONE Way - More Gospel Thoughts for the Week

You would expect that non-Christians would think there is any number of ways to get to Heaven. What is amazing to me is that Christians who say they believe there is only one way on one hand, but then also say there are two ways. I can't count the number of times I have heard professing Christians say, 'there are two ways to heaven, by living a perfect life or by faith in Jesus Christ'. I think that this odd statement is sometimes said with good intentions, because usually they will go on to say 'well, none of us is perfect, so we really are saved by faith in Jesus Christ'.

But why even mention 'living a perfect life'? It just makes the message of the gospel unclear. In fact, saying 'there are two ways to heaven, by living a perfect life or by faith in Jesus Christ' is not only unclear, it's WRONG - it contradicts what the Bible says.

To live a perfect life, you would have to keep all of God's Law - that is, all of his commandments and statutes, Every single one of them - 24x7, 365. The Law was given to mankind to demonstrate our utter sinfulness and inability to be righteous. Romans 3 and 4 is one section of scripture that explains about the Law and about faith. Early in Romans 3, the Apostle Paul quotes the Old Testament by saying 'there is none righteous, not even one', and 'there are none who seek after God', and 'there is none who does good', and if we didn't get it yet, Paul removes any doubt and confusion by making the famous 3:23 statement that 'all have sinned'.

And even if you could live a perfect life, that doesn't save anyone. Romans 4:13-16a should further clear this matter up: "For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would be heir of the world was not through the Law, but through the righteousness of faith. For if those who are of the Law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise is nullified; for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no violation. For this reason it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace."

If living a perfect life could save us and catapult us into heaven, then Christ died needlessly.

There IS only ONE way, not two.

Propitiation - Gospel Thoughts for the Week

Propitiation (prō-pĭsh'ē-ā'shən) .
Now there's a word you don't hear very much. What does it mean?

Systematic theologian Wayne Grudem explains it like this: a sacrifice that bears God’s wrath to the end and in so doing changes God’s wrath toward us into favor (Systematic Theology, page 575). It isn’t a ‘doing away’ with wrath, but a transfer of wrath from one object to another.

Is the 'God of love' angry and wrathful? You bet. Consider Psalm 7:11, "God is a righteous judge and one who has indignation every day", and Ephesians 2:1-7 where rejecters of God are called "children of wrath". Romans 9:22 makes reference to "vessels of wrath". Consider also the account of Adam and Eve, specifically in Genesis 3:8: "They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day". In a book on marriage (ironically) Charles Swindoll describes that the Hebrew phrase ‘cool of the day’ is RUAH or WIND. He goes on to say that research into this phrase suggests it could mean "during the wind of the storm". When we experience a storm, a severe storm, don't we imagine fury and wrath? This explanation of this phrase makes perfect sense when we consider what just happened between Adam and Eve and God.

Consider also the following quotes on the wrath of God from great men of God:

Jonathan Edwards (from his famous sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God) - "They are now the objects of that very same anger and wrath of God, that is expressed in the torments of hell. The wrath of God burns against them, their damnation does not slumber; the pit is prepared, the fire is made ready, the furnace is now hot, ready to receive them; the flames do now rage and glow."

William Gurnall (1660) said: "When I consider how the goodness of God is abused by the greatest part of mankind, I cannot but be of his mind that said, The greatest miracle in the world is God’s patience and bounty to an ungrateful world. But think not, sinners, that you shall escape thus; God’s mill goes slow, but grinds small; the more admirable His patience and bounty now is, the more dreadful and unsupportable will that fury be which ariseth out of His abused goodness".

John Piper says that we have preferred other things… "God is not indifferent to that. Our sin is not small, and in fact is quite insulting to our Creator. The seriousness of an insult rises with the dignity of the One being insulted. Failure to love God is not TRIVIAL- it is TREASON".

Back to Ephesians 2:1-7 mentioned above... read this passage. God doesn’t take bad people and make them good, he takes dead people and makes them alive. How does he do this? By sending Jesus to absorb the wrath (diverts that wrath) that we deserved, taking the full brunt of the force in the cross. Christ is our SUBSTITUTE. He bore the wrath we deserved and thus SATISFIED the Father’s JUSTICE.

What is our response to this? When we recognize the seriousness of our sin, and the wrath that we’ve avoided because of the finished work of Christ on the Cross we, the only response is to be awestruck!

I like this word 'propitiation'.

Patriotic Quiz #2 - Answers

Two of the hands belong to Abraham Lincoln. The closed hand indicates his strength and determination. The open hand represents his compassion.

The hand clenching the weapon is from the three soldiers keeping watch over the Vietnam War Memorial Wall.

One hand in the relaxed position is at the right side of Thomas Jefferson - third President of the United States and the writer (and a signer) of the the Declaration of Independence.

The other two pictures of hands are from the Iwo Jima Monument located next to Arlington National Cemetery. The monument was erected in honor of the brave soldiers who conquered Mount Suribachi on the strategic island of Iwo Jima in the Pacific Ocean in WWII. The group of hands belong to Mike Strank, Rene Gagnon, John Bradley and/or Franklin Sousley. Harlon Block was the soldier with his hands at the base of the pole, so he is not in this picture.

The set of hands that can't quite reach the flag pole belong to Ira Hayes. In the book, Flags of our Fathers, the author James Bradley (son of one of the flag raisers) mentions that this was Ira, different, apart from the rest, unable to grasp the pole just as he was unable later to get his hands around his life. Ira died after the Iwo Jima Monument was erected and dedicated. He was found face down in a ditch where the cause of death was listed as hypothermia and too much alcohol. Ira Hayes is buried in Arlington. Ira Hayes is an American hero, regardless of the circumstances surrounding his death.

We should pause for a moment and thank God for all of these people for their valuable contributions to America.

Patriotic Quiz #2

Without the providential hand of God active in the life of our country, it's hard to tell where we would be. Here are some images of other 'hands' that were instrumental in the progress of our country. If you've been to Washington DC and seen some of the monuments, you can probably guess whose 'hands' they are. Answers tomorrow.