“DO NOT BE AFRAID”

Harry J. Taylor, famous American Journalist and Economist, tells how as a boy, his father took him down into a mine.
The descent was made in a barrel which twisted alarmingly.  The bewildered boy was kept from fear by the grip of his father’s hand.  Then, his father led him into the darkness of the mine.  Eventually, they met a man carrying a light upon his hardhat.  He told them that there was gas about.  The situation was dangerous.  Then, in the tense atmosphere, someone asked the boy if he was afraid.  He replied, “I’d be scared except my father is with me.”
Then, the journalist remembers his father smiled and said, “Then, you will never be scared, son, because a greater Father than I, will always be with you.”

We fight our fears with faith in Jesus, who said, “Do not be afraid, I am the First and the Last. I am the living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever. And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”    Revelation 1:17-18
Our fears are overcome by our trust in Jesus.

Dwight L. Moody tells of seeing boys jumping from a porch into the arms of a man. They were enjoying themselves.  One boy stood off to the side watching, refusing to jump.  Moody asked the boy why he didn’t join the others and jump into the man’s arms?  The boy replied, “he ain’t my father.”

Trust your Heavenly Father to guide you safely to Himself.

 

 

CRY OF TRUST

Come to the Cross.  It is central to everything. Jesus lived His life in the shadow of the cross. He was eager to go to the cross because God’s mission of salvation could not be carried out without His sacrifice on Calvary.  He who knew no sin became sin for us.  John the baptizer told his followers, “Look the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”  John 1:29  His death was not just the death of anyone.  It was none other than the Son of God who died.  Jesus voluntarily breathed His last. He gave up His spirit.  He willed it and accomplished God’s will in doing it.  No man ever lived or died like Jesus.

We turn to listen to Jesus last statement from the cross which is the CRY OF TRUST.
Jesus first cry from the cross started with “Father” and now His last cry begins with “Father.”  It is only fitting that Jesus who would not use the word “Mother” speaking to Mary from the cross, now uses the word “Father” in this final cry.  Jesus knew whose He was, He was the Son of God.  Even when He was twelve years old, He said, “I must be about My Father’s business.”  God, the Father had said of Jesus, “This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him.”  Matthew 17:5   Jesus had felt this Father-Son relationship slip away as on the cross He bore the sin of humanity.  The separation of Jesus from God had drained Him.  But, now what He came to do was done, finished.  The darkness is gone.  The fellowship is restored, never more to be broken.

With great confidence, Jesus said, “Father into your hands I commit My spirit.”  Luke 23:46
Jesus knew what it was to be in the hands of men.  He spoke of this on several occasions.  To the twelve after His transfiguration, He warned them, “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill Him.”  Matthew 17:22-23    At the Last Supper, Jesus said, “But the hand of him who is going to betray Me is with mine on the table.”  Luke 22:21   In Gethsemane Jesus said, “Look, the hour is near, and the Son of Man is  betrayed into the hands of sinners.”  Matthew 26:45
Men’s hands had done their worse.  But, never again will Jesus be in the hands of men.  So He places Himself into the safe, sure hands of God.

Now Jesus knows that the worse is behind Him.  The best is yet to come.  He is going home to be with the Father. Jesus prayer was answered, “And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.”  John 17:5   The writer of Hebrews said, “After He had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.”  Hebrews 1:3    Jesus is at the right hand of God in heaven.  Jesus had lived by faith and He died in faith.  His life was fully committed to God.

Dwight L Moody saw boys jumping from a porch into the arms of a man.  They were having such fun.  One boy stood off at the side, just watching. Mr. Moody asked him why he did not join the others and jump into the man’s arms.  The boy replied, “that man is not my father.”
We have committed our lives to the heavenly Father.  Trust Him fully.
Remember, life is on down the road and, for the Christian, the best is yet to come.

 

NO TURNING BACK

The story of this song, “No Turning Back” is covered in the book by Dr. P.P. Job.  It comes out of  an incident with a tribe in India known as head-hunters.  The more heads a man collected, the more successful he was considered.

One Welsh missionary succeeded in coverting a man, his wife, and two children in this village.  This man’s faith proved contagious and many villagers began to accept Christianity.  Angry, the village chief summoned all the villagers.  He then called the family who had been converted and demanded that they renounced their faith in public or face execution.  The man instantly composed a song which bcame famous down the years.

He sang, “I have decided to follow Jesus.   No turning back, no turning back.”

Enraged at the refuasal of the man, the chief ordered his archers to arrow down the two children.  As both boys lay twitiching on the floor, the chief asked, “Will you deny your faith?  You have lost both your children.  You will lose your wife too.”  But the man sang these words in reply:

“Though no one joins me, still I will follow. No turning back, no turning back.”

The chief was beside himself with fury and ordered his wife to be arrowed down.  In a moment she joined her two children in death.  Now he asked for the last time, “I will give you one more opportunity to deny your faith and live.”  In the face of death the man sang the final memorable lines:

“The cross before me, the world behind me.  No turning back, no turning back.”

He was shot dead like the rest of  his family.  But with their deaths, a miracle took place.
The chief who had ordered the killings was moved by the faith of the man.  He wondered “Why should this man, his wife and two children die for a Man who lived in a far-away land on another continent some 2,000 years ago?
There must be some supernatural power behind the family, and I too want that supernaural power.”
In a spontaneous confesssion of faith, he declared, “I too belong to Jesus Christ.”  When the crowd heard this from the mouth of their chief, the whole village accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior.

This is the power of God through the demonstation of faith. Can we too sing in the strength of our trust in Jesus, “No Turning Back, No Turning Back.?”

PEACE

                     A HYMN WE SING:  “When Peace Like A River”
“When peace, like a river, attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll;
whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul.
It is well with my soul, it is well, it is well with my soul.”

This is where peace comes.  It comes from within, from a right relationship with God through Jesus.
Inner peace comes from a good conscience made so through our trust in Jesus.

How clearly this is seen in Jesus farewell remarks to His disciples in the upper room in city of Jerusalem, recorded in the fourteenth chapter of John.  Jesus is telling them that He is going to leave them.  His concern is for their well-being, those He was going to leave behind at His death.  Jesus said, “Let not your heart be troubled.” He is not stating some nice sounding platitude. He is not whistling in the dark.  He is not talking about some kind of escape, avoidance of trouble. What Jesus said was to comfort, encourage, strengthen His followers.  He offered to them, as He does to us, in the midst of an imperfect world, PEACE.  This is a special kind of peace.  Jesus said, “My peace I give you, not as the world gives.”

The peace of Jesus is not without conflict, trouble, trials.  Jesus peace has to do with relationship with God that brings inner assurance, triumph and victory.  This inner peace from Jesus has to do with faith, trust.  We must believe in God. There can be no ground for peace without an intelligent belief in God. All who come to God must believe that He is and that He is the rewarder of those who diligently search after Him.  “Without faith, it is impossible to please God.”  But, in order to make this mysterious, vague God real, Jesus insist on belief in HIM.  It is not enough to merely believe in God, you must believe in Me, Jesus said.  Believe in Jesus as the Teacher come from God. Believe in Jesus as Deity, God in human flesh, the one who came to make God known.  Believe in Jesus as the Lamb of God, who takes away sin.  Believe in Jesus as the resurrection and the life, who promised “Because I live, you can live also.”  There is no way to the Father except through Jesus.  This we must believe.

We do not place our trust in doctrine, nor a system, nor an organization, nor the wisdom of men but in Jesus, the Christ.  He alone can offer us real peace in the midst of a trouble world.  Nothing grander can come from human lips than to confess from the heart, “I believe Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”   In order to have inner peace, you must trust Jesus.

YOU BET YOUR LIFE

  There was a television show called, “You Bet Your Life”   It ran for some ten years between 1950 – 1961.  A contestant would talk with Groucho Mark for several minutes.  Then, the contestant would chose quiz questions from a category they had selected.  If they answered them correctly, they won money.
This is exactly what we must do, we must “bet our lives” on a possibliltiy and take the calculated risk of faith.  Every human being must live by an assumption and the Christian assumes God.  Now this is more than mere guess-work. We have Christ.  In Christ, we know that ‘behind the dim unknown standeth God.’

  We acknowledge God’s strength and our weakness, His adequacy and our inadequacy, upon which we make a venture of faith. To do this, we must venture beyond the gates of certainty, beyond what we can touch with our hands and see with our eyes, and walk into the unknown with our hand in God’s.

  Jesus has revealed to us a personal God. God is not just an impersonal force, nor invisible spirit, but a God who can know and feel.  We call Him, “Father.”  Jesus said, “Anyone who has seen Me, has seen the Father.”  John 14:9  We must not merely believe that there is a Deity, a higher power, but we must feel sure that this supreme Being is like Jesus.  This compassionate, forgiving, loving Jesus is what our heart needs.  We must be loved and this is what God demonstrates in seeking us through His Son. Remember the golden text of the Bible, John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”  

  Jesus dared to confront His disciples with His approaching death, seeming defeat, by telling them, “Do not let not your hearts be troubled, trust in God, trust also in Me.”   John 14:1  The disciples were confused by this talk of His leaving them and Thomas asked, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”  Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”  John 14:5-6  

  We bet our life on Jesus.  He is our light in the midst of a darkened world.

 

 

WAVES

  “They build up under the surface of the water, becoming larger and larger as the moments tick away.  They they crest, roll over, make a very loud noise, bubble and foam, they finally dissipate.  This is the pattern of the wave.  Waves at the beach are never ending. One is gone, and the next rolls in, one after another.  Some are larger and louder than others, but they keep rolling into shore.   

  I believe life’s problems are like that.  They build up, peak, and dissipate. They may be large, small, or in-between, but they keep on coming. They may crash your life with a resounding bang or make a more soft and subtle noise, but they keep on coming.  They may deal with emotions, health, finances, family relationships, or a variety of other difficulties one must face in a lifetime, but they keep on coming.

  As long as we live in this world, we will face one dilemma after another, be it large or small.  The unending load gets heavy after a while, and the waves of life can beat away at a person the same as ocean waves pound at the shoreline.  Jesus has told us to come to Him with our burdens and He will give us rest.  He said to cast our cares upon Him, for He cares for us.  He said He would send the Holy Spirit to be our comforter and guide; to give us wisdom and the strength to survive the battering waves of life.  He promises this in the Bible to to all who will reach out to Him and believe in Him.

  If the constant waves of life are beating you down, depleting life’s energy out of you, like the grains of sand that are pulled back into the ocean with each wave, call upon Jesus.  He will answer the call – you can count on Him.”
                                                                              Author Unknown

It has been said, “Calm seas never made a good sailor.”

Read Matthew 7: 24-27…Jesus told of the storms which come upon every person, just or unjust. Whether or not, we weather the storms depends upon the foundation. Only those who build their lives on the teachings of Jesus, putting His words into practice, will be able to overcome the storms of life.

THE ETERNAL INSOMNIA OF GOD

  In the story,”The Cockpit,”  the Queen comments scornfully on the New Testament phrase, “The Peace of God.”  She says, “As I lie sleepless, I think of the eternal insomnia of God.”  Her maid is shocked by this remark. But, the Queen goes on to say, “I only quote the Bible, God neither slumbers nor sleeps. Ah it is the pain of God, not His peace that passeth understanding.”

  Can we comprehend the pain of God?  From the time when evil first entered the heart of man, human history has been one long, dark night of pain.  Fear of life and uncertainty in death, has been the unhappy nightmare of human kind.  Life is forever trying to make us lose our nerve.  In the unavoidable experiences of sorrow and loss which come to mankind, the constant temptation is to doubt the existence, the wisdom and goodness of God.  In the midst of the immeasurable suffering of mankind, our hearts are filled with doubt.  Such questions as: does God really care, is He active and at work in our midst, does He have a purpose and plan for our lives? 

  Read what Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:4-8  “For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will – to the praise of His glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One He loves. In Him,we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.”

  Notice in the text, that God made a choice, He wanted to have a family.  He determined ahead of time that  people could be adopted into His family through His son, Jesus.  Jesus said, “Whosoever will may come.”  People may come, ‘just as they are’ but they cannot stay that way. The adopted children must become more and more like the Father.  God sent His son, Jesus, to show mankind how He wanted all of His children to be.  We are to be like Jesus, holy and pure.  God purchased us through the death of His son. He forgives us our sins.  He lavished on us His grace, mercy undeserved. 

  How can we know all of this and think for one moment that God does not care?  He made us, knows what is best for us, and wants each one of us to be a part of His family.  God is wide awake seeking us for His own.

  It was a terrible night on the Sea of Galilee, the lake was lashed to furry and the boat, with the disciples and Jesus in it, struggle in the waves. The twelve disciples did all they could to save themselves and Jesus.
All this time, Jesus is asleep in the stern of the boat oblivious to the roaring storm.  In their fright, the disciples awakened Jesus.  They are critical of Him, for they cried out, “Lord, save us. We’re going to drown.”  Then, they learned a much needed lesson.  Jesus rebuked the winds and the waves, and there was a great calm.  Luke 8:23-27
  That night the disciples learned, that there is someone stronger in human experience than life’s waves and storms.  There is the Christ who rules the waves and the storms. That there is a God, revealed to us in Christ, who is not asleep.  God loves you and wants you to know Him, so He can fill you with peace and give you real life – forever. 

      God neither slumbers nor sleeps.  You can count on Him.

THE DRY ROT OF COVETOUSNESS

  The dry rot in timber is a chemical decompositon of imperfectly seasoned timber, caused by certain fungi. It is an inner disease which brings about the destruction of the fibers and reduces timber eventually to a mass of dry dust.
The dry rot of covetousness is gradual moral corruption.  Greed, evil desire, selfishness eats at the very fiber of the best and most spiritual of us. We live in a culture of affluence and materialism which has brained washed us.  

  An Old Testament story illustrates this dry rot of covetousness.
Remember the story of Naaman found in 2 Kings chapter 5 how he had to dip seven times in the river Jordan in order to be cleansed of his leprosy.  God was able to heal him through his obedience. But, the story does not end there.            (See 2 Kings 5:20-27)
Naaman offers the prophet of God, Elisha, a gift for his healing, but Elisha refuses it. No man can pay for God’s grace, His blessings.  So, Naaman leaves making his way back home.  But, a servant of Elisha can’t stand it.  He believes that Elisha should have taken a gift for healing Naaman.  So, Gehazi follows Naaman intent on getting a gift from him.  Gehazi lies to Naaman, telling him that Elisha had sent him.  He pretended to be seeking gifts for some young poor preachers. Naaman gave gifts to this con artist. Gehazi kept the gifts for himself.  Elisha confronted him with the question, “Where have you been, Gehazi?” Gehazi lied by saying that he had not been any where.  Elisha knew better and told Gehazi that he knew of his greed.  God’s blessing are not for sale or reward.  The curse of leprosy fell upon Gehazi as punishment for what he had done. He left the presence of Elisha a leper.  It was a fitting expression of his inner self, he was contaminated within.  The dry rot of covetousness had eaten him up.

  Christian people are not immune from this sin of covetousness.  The 10th commandment of God, “Thou shalt not covet”  has not been repealed.  God is not on the gold standard.  The standard of success, as counted by this world in things, possessions, is not God’s standard.  Jesus said, “a man’s life consists not in the abundance of the things possessed.” Luke 12:15   There is nothing wrong in possessing material things or handling the coinage of this world, but a spirit of greed will wreck the finest life.
Paul, the Apostle, puts it so well in First Timothy 5:6 – 10 “But godliness with contentment is great gain.  For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.  But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.  People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” 

  Our Lord did not teach that we should seek poverty, but He warned against the moth and rust which would spoil character, if greed dominated.  God has given us things to wisely use and enjoy, but we do well to handle and hold things, lightly.  Life is more than things.  May we know that the good life is not in things, but in Christ.  Wealth is not determined by earthly riches, but by our faith (trust) in God.