Growing up in a musical family, the place and importance of music has never been lost on me. My father schooled me and taught me most of what I know concerning bands and choirs, etc. When Holy Spirit rocked our world back in 1992, He began to school me in worship in both leading and participating. Being involved with “Toronto Airport Vineyard” during the years of the “Toronto Blessing” launched me into a whole new understanding of worship…
One of the greatest attributes of the Lord is that he is faithful. Jeremiah wrote these words in a book, the book of Lamentations, that hi-lighted the “unfaithfulness of Israel”; Lamentations 3:22-23 (ESV)
“The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness”
The word “faithfulness” comes from the Hebrew word, אֱמוּנָה, “emunah” which is used 3 different ways in the scripture; firmness, steadfastness, fidelity. Fidelity has to do with moral purity and integrity. That is very interesting usage as Israel is often compared in scripture as an unfaithful wife. Read this portion from Hosea 2:1-3 (ESV).
Faith is such a difficult thing to define. The writer of Hebrews does as good a job as any when He defnes it this way; Hebrews 11:1-2 (ESV)
Now faith is the certainty of things hoped for, a proof of things not seen. 2 For by it the people of old gained approval.
He then follows with a list of “patriarchs” who pleased the Lord for their obedience to His voice by stepping out from the familiar into the mystery on the “unknown”. The “Orthodox Jewish Bible” puts the same 2 verses this way;
I remember hearing a story from a friend of mine who spent a lot of time ministering to pastors who served the “underground” church in China. She asked one of the pastors who had just returned from a trip to America what impressed him about the church in America. His answer; he was amazed what the American church could accomplish without God!. Ouch, what an indictment! Help us Lord!
The last few weeks having been extremely trying for the Black family for the second consecutive January. One December 24th, Cheryl and I were in a bad car accident that totaled our car. Then on Christmas day, my health began to worsen.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully make; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”
This is the time that will mark the beginning of making straight the way for the soon restoration of all things. Seismic activities. Creation groaning. Even mankind groaning...all awaiting the manifestation of the sons of God. This revealing of Jesus upon these mature sons will prepare the way for the soon coming of the Lord.
Over the last few weeks, we have been looking at the importance of signs that God often puts in front of His people to give direction or to show a change in seasons. In this final part, I want to look at one of the most incredible signs that directed a group of noble seekers to the Christ-child, the “Star of Bethlehem”.
The Star of Bethlehem, or Christmas Star, appears in the nativity story of the Gospel of Matthew where "wise men from the East" (Magi) are inspired by the star to travel to Jerusalem. There, they meet King Herod of Judea, and ask him:
Last week we started talking about the importance of signs. Signs are important especially if they designate a change in something. When the patterns of our lives become so routine, we can often miss signs which can lead to catastrophic results. For instance, I missed a speed limit sign in a work-zone recently. Because I was not paying attention and was living my life routinely, I received a $40 citation in the mail for my ignorance. I’ll be sending the “State of Maryland a $40 Christmas gift. If you miss the signs that your body is trying to give you in certain conditions, it can often be too late once you begin to pay attention.
They may seem quite insignificant at times. In fact, most things become so routine and familiar that we tend to ignore signs that we see every day. However, signs can be very important. To miss a sign indicating the speed limit might result in a hefty fine. To not see a house number might result in one going to a wrong address. To miss a “bridge washed out” sign might result in a tragic accident. God uses signs in various ways to let people know His plan. The first evidence of this is Genesis 1:14 (ESV) Genesis 1:14 (ESV).
The term “perfect’ is used a few times in scripture. Perhaps the most noteworthy is by the half-brother of Jesus, James in his letter to the early church. This from chapter one of his letter; James 1:1-7 (ESV)
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion:
Greetings.
2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
Cheryl and I are so grateful for all our dear church family and friends who have been walking with us through this past season. God is certainly calling out a remnant for Himself to the deeper things of the Spirit as we prepare for the greatest harvest the world has ever witnessed. We are so thankful for all of you and wish you all the most wonderful “Thanksgiving” possible.
”In an article written by Jennifer Slattery, she defines the phrase by the following; “This is the crux of the Gospel: “The just shall live by faith”. This Scripture phrase, when understood, can give us such peace and assurance in knowing our salvation doesn’t depend on us. This was Paul’s, the author of Romans, driving message. It was also God’s plan from the beginning that His people would be made just, or right with God, not through striving, church attendance, or legalism, but rather through faith in Jesus Christ and His payment for our sins. We see this phrase, “the just” or as some translations state, “the righteous live by faith” in the Old Testament and the New Testament. The ancient Hebrew prophet, Habakkuk first spoke this phrase during a dark time of Israel’s history. Centuries later the apostle Paul quoted him in Galatians and Romans while explaining God’s gift of salvation, as did the author of Hebrews, in much the same manner.” The Old Testament scripture Paul is referring to is Habakkuk 2:4 (ESV).
In this time of cultural complexity and difficulty, its easy to become overwhelmed with all the adversity. It’s easy to get focus off the Lord and upon the problems that we’re facing. The ignoring of the challenges and just believing that God will sort it out is “fatalism”! The scriptural approach is to realize that God has called us to be light in the darkness. The darker it becomes, the brighter He shines through us. He has called us to work with Him and to bring His kingdom into godless situations. In the great commission, He said this in Matthew 28:16-20 (ESV);
As Jesus is head of the church, it is His right to move people around as He sees fit. The reason we find it so hard is because we do not see the church as He sees it. We see the church as “my” or “our” church. We often think that the main church is about “fellowship” and “community”. That’s what social clubs are for, not the church. The Apostle Paul says this about the purpose of the church in Ephesians 4:11-13 (ESV).
If I’ve learned anything over the last 45 years of being a pastor, it’s that church life is always in the place of transition. It’s just the nature of it. Just like the actual human body which completely changes its skin every 7 to 10 years, the “body of Christ” is always changing. People come and go; babies are born and the elderly pass on. The problem is that the majority don’t like change. It’s because our security often comes with familiarity with things around us. People usually gravitate to friends rather than reach out to visitors. Perhaps Paul had this in mind when he tried to encourage his young pastor and son in the faith, Timothy when he said this in 2 Timothy 1:7 (ESV)
It appears that we are at the climax of history as we know it. I believe, we’re getting ready for the greatest awakening and move of God that we will ever witness. As it usually happens in scripture, the Lord whittles down His church to a remnant of individuals who are responsible of co-laboring with Holy Spirit to see it birthed. In following the “Youtube” videos of Dutch Sheet’s “Give Him – 15” and receiving regular reports from Mario Murillo, both are often stunned by the churches “hands-off” attitude towards what is happening in our nation, morally and spiritually. The following is a report I received a few days ago from the desk of Maurice.
Now Jesus is not talking about construction here but evaluating the cost of following Him. Many individuals begin to follow Jesus after an emotional plea from a pastor or evangelist but many fall away after realizing that the cost of really being a disciple is just too great. In fact, statistics show that less than 1% of all those who “accept” Christ at an evangelistic crusade ever wind up in a church to be discipled. Jesus begins the passage by saying that “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.”
We are living in some of the most contentious and difficult times ever know to man. As one of my Bible school profs used to say, “if this isn’t the last days, it’s the best dress rehearsal he’d ever seen”. When I was in my younger years during the 1960’s, one of the churches greatest draws were all kinds of prophecy conferences. With the “cold war” in full swing including the “Cuban Missile Crisis”, everyone’s thoughts seemed to be about the end of the world and Jesus’ second coming. Churches were packed with prophecy teachers explaining scripture with charts based upon on the opinions from their study and interpretation of the timing of the return of Christ. We were convinced that the rapture was imminent. Movies like “A Thief in the Night” and “Years of the Beast” and books like Hal Lindsay’s best seller, “The Late Great Planet Earth” only intensified the atmosphere of Jesus’ soon return. In church youth group, we were convinced that Jesus would come back before any of us could experience the joy and marital bliss of a wedding night. That was 50 years ago. Then along came Ronald Reagan in the 1980’s, the iron curtain came down and the entire scenario painted by the teachers of the 1960’s seemed to collapse.
We seem to be living in unprecedented times. In fact, some might say “apocalyptic”. There is so much confusion and fear out there to navigate through. Does anyone else see the insanity in mandating a “jab” for a “virus” that under proper care from correct protocol is 99.9% recoverable? It appears from all the friends I’ve lost in the last 18 months that the best way to not die is to stay out of the hospital. When I was hospital last January, a nurse screamed at me that “if you go to the ICU unit, I would surely die”. I later found out from another nurse that 75% of those that go into the ICU end up in the morgue. I’m so glad that God heard my and your prayers and healed me. Nurses called my recovery “miraculous”. No kidding!!
