6/28/12- God's Power Over Evil

¹³ When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, ¹⁴ having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. ¹⁵ And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

¹⁶ Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. ¹⁷ These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. ¹⁸ Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. ¹⁹ He has lost connection with the Head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow. (Colossians 2:13-19)

(Crucifixion- Vouet 1622)

Thoughts: When Christ died, the curse against us was destroyed.  The powers against us were disarmed.  Evil became toothless when Christ died on the cross.  It still exists, but evil has a mortal wound.  There is only one God.  The image here is of a Roman general triumphantly parading his conquered foes naked through the streets.  In Christ's humility on the cross, evil was conquered and humiliated.  In Harry Potter, when Voldemort killed Potter- he killed himself.  In the cross, the death of Christ destroyed the power of evil, though evil was at work in the cross.
   There are those who think any spiritual being who is stronger than us should be worshiped.  Scripture says there are evil powers that seek to destroy and ruin us and should never be worshiped.
    The written code that is cancelled is not the Law, but the curse of the Law for those who believe.  The law of God does not die- for truth does not die.  But Christ paid the penalty so that the curse is no longer valid or active.  In doing this, ascetic practices and liturgical observations become secondary and superfluous.
    Jesus has freed us from evil and from the curse of the Law.  The Law is now a blessing to us to guide us, not a terror to us. Thanks be to God who frees us. 

Prayer: Thank you for your constant and victorious goodness, O Lord.  Thank you for freeing me from the curse of the Law and from evil. 

6/27/12- Colossians 3:23-24

²³ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, ²⁴ since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.  ²⁵ Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism. (Colossians 3:23-25) 

(Working on handicap ramp and porch for GOoDWorks)


Thoughts: Today there will be a funeral for an elder at my church, Jack Barwick Jr.  He was a faithful man- married to the same woman 68 years, loved his God, his church, his family, his country.  He was 87 but still sent out emails to thousands with an inspiring quote or thought for the day that were too good to ignore/spam.  At 87 he was still doing the Lord's work, though he was slowing down.  I think he lived these verses.
    Today we will also have lots of folks going to out GOoDWorks Blitz.  This verse reminds us that when we are doing the Lord's work, it is not JUST for what we get here- it is ultimately for God who does not ignore what we do on this earth.
    These verses reminds us that what we do and how we do it matters, and is tied to eternity.  It is similar to the verse that says, "Let us not grow weary in well-doing for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up" (Gal. 6:9,10).  Or, "Be steadfast, unmoveable, always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." (1 Cor. 15:58).  What we do on this life fades unless it is tied to the Lord of eternity.  


Prayer: Lord, establish the work of my hands.  My my handi-work glorify you this day. 

6/26/12 Baptized for Good work

¹¹ In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, ¹² having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.

 Thoughts: Here circumcision (Old Testament) is linked with baptism (New Testament).  They both are initiation rites at the beginning of the Christian life. They both are symbols of being cleansed (reproach rolled away, sin washed away- "putting off the sinful nature").  They both are symbols of faith and being in the community of faith.  Baptism, however, was administered to both Jews and Gentiles, slave and free, male and female.  
    Both are not symbols of just a state of being but are reminders that we are called by God with a purpose to do something with our lives.  The prophets would often say "circumcise your hearts."  Many over the years say, "Remember your baptism!"  They are calls to live purposefully not selfishly or immorally.  Christians have seen baptism as a symbol of their mission to serve- they are baptized to go out into the world and baptize- and to teach and serve as disciples (Mt. 28:18-20). 
    So proud of all those who went out yesterday to work on the Goodworks Blitz- helping with housing and improving the infrastructure of Goodworks so that others may be helped. 


Prayer: Help me to remember my baptism and serve you today.  

6/25/12- Fullness of God

⁹ For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, ¹⁰ and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. (Colossians 2:9,10)

Thoughts: We take the astounding mystery of the incarnation as if it were an old, dry piece of doctrine.  In contrast to the hollow and empty philosophy of the world, there is completeness, fullness and life through Christ who fills all of life with His presence- as much as oxygen fills every living cell.  Colossians 1:19 reminds us that God was pleased to have all of his fullness dwell in Christ.  It is not as if a little bit of God dwells in Christ- but Christ is fully God as well as fully human.
   Paul is also telling the Colossians that they are not weak, powerless humans, but they have been given the power of God- the God who is the chief power and authority in life.  The power of God was evident in Christ, and it is at work in those who believe.  Too often Christians act as if they have no power, no strength, and are frustrated by evil and persecutors.  But the power of Christ is not to be laughed at, and makes the powers of the world seem empty, shallow, and hollow.  The world will one day give out of gas, energy, and strength. God never does, and even now empowers us with a full tank of Himself. 


Prayer: Help me, O Lord, to live a full life, making use of the blessings and grace you give me. 

6/24/12- End of an Era

There is a time for everything under heaven... a time to be born a time to die.  (Ecclesiastes 3)

(Roy Roger's Museum)

Thoughts: A great friend, church member and elder drowned yesterday- his name was Jack Barwick. Jack sent an email thought every day to thousands of people (many times more than one).
    His last email was called "An End of an Era" and it forwarded an email about the selling off of Roy Rogers' museum property.  Roy had said whenever the museum quit being profitable to sell it off.  The museum sold his things many times triple for what they were estimated.
    Roy and Dale were people of great faith and a strong witness.  So was Jack.  One of the paragraphs said, "You and I were born at the right time. We were able to grow up with these     great people even if we never met them. In their own way they taught us patriotism and honor, we learned that lying and cheating were bad, and sex wasn't as important as love. We learned how to suffer through disappointment and failure and work through it. Our lives were drug-free."
    A new documentary is coming out on the 100th birthday year (2012) of Dale and Roy called "Life Beyond the Happy Trails."  Dale wrote an autobiography called, "Trials, Tears, and Triumphs" in which they highlighted their very great highs and lows.  But through it all they kept their love for God and for each other.
    Roger's sign off of his show was the song, "Happy Trails to You...Until we meet again."  Happy trails Jack.  It IS the end of an era.  But my prayer is out of the stump a shoot will spring forth. 


Prayer: Lord, through out my life, keep my faith and my love for you and others strong. 


"Happy Trails to You" : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcYsO890YJY

6/23/12- Hollow Philosophy

⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ. (Colossians 2:8)

(hollow tree that looks good on the outside but empty on the inside)


Thoughts: Two years ago we thought we had a wonderful, gigantic shady oak tree outside our church office.  A storm came along and a huge limb- the size of a good sized tree- fell on our electrical line into the office pulling away the whole electrical box- and came close to causing a fire.  We cleaned up the limbs, and put back the box.  Then last year in another storm, another huge limb- the size of a good sized tree- fell on our electrical line again- almost in the same place- doing the same damage.  Each time it cost us $1,500.  It cost $800 to remove the tree, and guess what?  It was hollow on the inside from rot and maybe carpenter ants.  The tree had the appearance of doing good- providing shade and beauty- but in reality- it was a danger that should have been handled earlier if we knew it was hollow.
    Paul says to beware of hollow and deceptive philosophy which depend on human tradition and even get their power from worldly spirituality.  It appears that the Colossians' deceptive philosophy involved a cafeteria of diverse thoughts.  They allowed for sexual immorality (2:23)- but they also had an ascetic tendency (do not handle, do not touch2:21) with an emphasis on liturgy and calendars (2:16). Their temptation was to follow a kind of Proto-gnosticism that reveled in secret knowledge as a way to salvation, and the worship of secondary spiritual beings (2:18).  Paul recognized that such thinking is incompatible with true faith and erodes the soul.
     In our day many in the church act as if sexual immorality is not immoral anymore.  One Barna survey in 2010 noted that as many young people in the church were immoral as the people outside the church.  It is suddenly as if we "know" better now- so that what was once called anathema is not a blessing.  But in reality-  this is just an old temptation rearing its head again in a new way.  At the same time that the church has become more immoral it has also become more liturgical- as if the liturgy gives meaning to faith when the practice of obedience does not.  The experts of knowledge have persuaded many that they know better than the ancient and proven words of scripture, and that we should only interpret the scripture through their skeptical and unbelieving scholarship.  
    The Colossians didn't have much scriptural knowledge, so such temptations perhaps were more excusable.  We have the Bible on cd, dvd, podcast, internet, with multiple versions and languages- on our phone, our computer, our tablet, our TV.  Yet many ignore it because they cannot understand some of it, and so they must trust the experts- the scholars who often analyze scripture from a very skeptical viewpoint.  Those in the pews are dependent on the seminaries who are not accountable to the church- except when their endowments run low and churches start sending their students to other schools.  There should be a balance between academic freedom and faith.  We do not need the seminary witch hunts of the 1920s. But today, the seminaries' faith is far removed from the simple faith found in the churches.  I would contend that too often the faith that is taught to our preachers is hollow, lacking power, lacking trust, full of skepticism, doubt, and empty air.  There are many hollow and deceptive philosophies outside the church too- the skepticism of Hume, the nihilism of Nietzsche, post-modernism's tolerance of immorality and its demeaning of truth.  But the hollow and deceptive philosophy Paul speaks of is a hollowness that creeps into the church now and again.  Today, the large tree of the Church in the West is a shell of what it once was.  It has allowed the termites of skepticism, carpenter ants of immorality, and dry rot of "we've always done it that way" to hollow what was once hallowed. However, one day a small shoot will spring forth from the large stump and the Church will be alive once more. 


Prayer: Lord, keep me from being deceived by worldly-wisdom.  Instead, help me to seek and find wisdom from you and from your Word. 

6/23/12- Livingstone I Presume

⁶ So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, ⁷ rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ. (Colossians 2:6-8)

⁴ As you come to him, the living Stone —rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— ⁵ you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 2:4,5) [also compare Eph. 2:21-22]

(David Livingstone statue in Glasgow- picture taken by the author)

Thoughts: The image often used in the New Testament of the Church is of a living building.  Peter, whose name means "rock", calls Christ and us, living rocks.  Colossians morphs the building up and the living tree together.
   As we grow, as we continue to live in Christ, we are building up the kingdom of God.  We are not called to coast or be staid in our faith.  We are not merely stones- we are living stones- who continue to be nourished through Him and get our strength from Him.  When we are stone-dead in our faith, we do not please Him.  When we give into shallow thinking (think "Shallow Hal"), or shallow philosophy that refuses to see the whole spiritual dimension of life- we freeze our faith.
     Part of being a living-stone is to offer ourselves as sacrifices (1 Pt. 2:5) which pleases Him.  In Glasgow Scotland there is a statue to Dr. David Livingstone who gave up his homeland and his comforts to go to Africa- exploring and spreading the good news of Christ.  He was one of the first Europeans to travel across the continent and he renamed Victoria Falls after Queen Victoria.  He did much to abolish the slave trade. Livingstone's motto was, "I am prepared to go anywhere as long as it be forward."  Today there are as many Christians in Africa as in North America because of Livingstone and those like him.  Livingstone lived up to his name. 

Prayer: May I, Lord give myself as a living sacrifice to you- holy and acceptable in your sight.