WDJD? II

After Jesus was born a helpless little baby, just like you and me, which, as we said in WDJD I, was essential for our salvation, the next thing He did, according to the Luke 2.21, was receive the sign of the Abrahamic covenant, circumcision. Again, we have a definite sign of the reality of the Incarnation, of God taking on our flesh and blood, as, for the first, but not the last, time, the innocent flesh of Jesus was cut, and the first precious drops of His blood were shed.

Jesus was, as His circumcision served to confirm, a Jew, a child of the covenant God had made with Abraham. In point of fact, had Jesus not been circumcised He could not have been the "seed" ("offspring") of Abraham through whom all the nations of the earth would one day be blessed. (See Genesis 12.3; 15.1-6;; 17.1-14) With His circumcision the Lord also received the name the Angel had told both Mary (Luke 1.31) and Joseph (Matthew 1.21) they were to give the child conceived by the Holy Spirit in Mary's womb, "Jesus" ("God Saves").

It might not seem such a big deal to any of us. Most of us received our names shortly after birth with little attendant fanfare. But, as the song says about Jesus, "there's something about that name," an incredible divine something. Inheriting a name far superior to the angels (Hebrews 1.4), the child was immediately both the King of kings and the Lord of lords (Revelation 19.16), though His majesty was concealed in the form of a baby.

Ultimately, the whole world will acknowledge and praise this name on the day when every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. While a rose by any other name may smell as sweet, a savior by any other name than Jesus is no Savior at all, for truly, there is no name given under heaven by which we must be saved (Acts 4.12).

What Did Jesus Do? (WDJD?) I

I won't presume to say that we'll ever get close to commenting here on all that Jesus did, after all John correctly observed that the world isn't big enough to hold all the books that would be necessary to write down all that thing that Jesus did. (John 21.25) So I am going to limit myself mostly to the things that Jesus did that are written down in the Bible.

The first thing that Jesus did was come into the world the same way all of us do--He was born. Doesn't sound at all singular or spectacular, does it? But, were it not for Jesus being born one of us like all of us, well we would all still be in a world of hurt, which is not to say that we aren't in a world that's still hurting. Now, none of us get any credit for being born. But we all received an incredible gift when Jesus was born. The angel who announced "good news of great joy" to the shepherds outside of Bethlehem spoke volumes when he said "unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior..." A Savior, the Savior, born like all of us? What's that all about? Shouldn't a divine Savior just appear, descending in glory from heaven? Well, yes, but that will be the next time He comes. It was absolutely critical that when He came the first time that he be born like you and me because to accomplish the work of Savior He had to be just like you and me, He had to be fully human. And, with the exception of Adam and Eve, being fully human means being born of a woman.

Why was it necessary that the Savior be fully human? Because He didn't come to atone for the sins of beasts, birds, or bugs; He came to bear in his completely human body the penalty for every single human sin that would ever be committed. You see, there had been a system in place for a thousand years that sought to deal with human sins by shedding the blood of animals. But no matter how much animal blood was shed on the altar it was never enough to pay the full price for all our sins. While God commanded that the blood of animals substitute for our blood as propitiation for sin, God always knew that the old sacrificial system wasn't enough, there would be a day when His own Son would be born of woman to shed His blood as the one sufficient sacrifice for all humanity's sins. And Christ's sacrifice was sufficient because He was as human as you and I.

Of course, it was necessary that the Savior be fully divine as well. Anything, anyone, less and, well it would just be the blood of a sinner like you and me, and the blood of a sinner has never been pure enough to suffice as a sacrifice for another sinner. When we're talking about substitutionary atonement, we are talking about a sacrifice that is pure, without sin, spot, or taint of any kind. And no man or woman ever born before or after Jesus could supply blood so pure. Jesus, fully human and fully divine, alone provided what was necessary for our sins to be forgiven. Jesus was man dying for man's sins, and He was God dying for man's sins. Anything less and we would still be looking for a Savior.

I know most people are quite thankful that Christ was willing to die for us, but as Christmas approaches, it might be a perfect time to give thanks that Jesus was willing to be born just like us, just for us. There will no doubt be a lot of gifts under a lot of Christmas trees this year. But the One gift we all need to celebrate each and every day is the gift of Christ's birth. If Jesus hadn't done that, nothing else He did would have ultimately mattered.

We Need To Be Definitely Personal About Jesus

A pastor friend, whose initials are not KD, but who has achieved a certain amount of fame, or infamy, depending on your worldview, employing those letters to post his observations on faith, politics, and the foibles of, well pretty much everyone including himself, has said about Jesus that it's rather poor form to claim Him as yours when you don't know Him. And, because, I have a mind that often takes a peculiar turn, and spends far too much mental effort contemplating the significance of the insignificant, I have been thinking a lot about personal possessive pronouns and their use in sentences that also contain the name of the Lord.

Personal possessive pronouns are words like my, mine, yours, ours, his, hers, and their. Think of the song "Shout to the Lord," My Jesus, my Savior... The only folks who get to use personal possessive pronouns when talking about Jesus are people who belong to Him. When Jesus has come and sought you out and made you one of His, well you get to call Him your Savior. If He is not your Savior, well you don't get to call Him yours, and, obviously, you aren't saved because no one gets saved except by Him. I'm sure I've made myself absolutely unclear, so I'll go on.

In addition to pronouns there is another part of speech called the definite article. The definite article separates a person, object, idea from a group and identifies it over and above all others. There are lots of songs in the world, but the song I quoted was "Shout to the Lord." Notice, it isn't "Shout to a Lord," but "the" Lord. Always and forever, when it comes to Jesus, he is The Lord, whether you want to acknowledge Him as such or not.

But when I get to talking about salvation, well I want to be more than definite, I want to get personal, because, well, salvation is personal. No one is saved as part of a group. There is no class-action suit that can get you into heaven. Either Jesus is your Savior, and you're good to go, or He's not and you're not.

More confused, and wondering why I'm writing this? Well, when I'm talking with others about Jesus, or when I'm praying aloud in a group, I always try to make sure folks understanding that Jesus is definitely the Lord, the one and only. But I also want to make sure that as far as being Savior, well, that's personal, and I want people to hear the difference between being definite about His Lordship, and secure in the personal knowledge of Him as Savior. So, I try while I always try to identify Him as the Lord, I also try to always say He is my or our Savior, because while Lord of all, the truth is Jesus only saves some.

By no means am I suggesting that there is any other way of salvation, it's Jesus or nothing. But, and this is all about the sovereign will of God, not all will be saved, because not all are willing to personally receive Jesus and His gift of salvation. So, what's the sum of all this? When it comes to Jesus, we definitely need to get personally possessive.

The One Free Offer You Can't Afford to Refuse

I wore my NY Football Giants cap and sweatshirt to the grocery store the other day. ("Football" used to be necessary to distinguish the team that ran and passed the pigskin from the baseball team that used to play in the Polo Grounds) It actually takes some courage to go out dressed like that in the heart of Carolina Panthers territory, to say nothing of going public about my support for a team that has played so poorly over the past month that the NJ meadowlands smell bad enough to be offensive all the way down here in the Blue Ridge. When I got to the check out the young man took one look at me and--smiled! "Hey, you're a Giants fan" he called out. Only since a guy named Y.A. was completing passes to Kathy Lee's future husband.

The checkout clerk enthusiastically informed me he will be going to see the Giants play in person on December 27 at Giants Stadium, having won five free tickets to the season's finale (And considering the Giant's playoff chances, I do mean finale). The only problem the clerk had was affording his "free" game. It seems that while the tickets are free, he has to fly himself and his four guests from North Carolina to New Jersey, and that's not cheap. It wasn't the first time I had heard about a free offer that cost a lot to accept. Sitting in a drawer somewhere in my house is a letter describing a host of "free" vacations I could be eligible for. But, in fine print that I used to be able to read, but now struggle to decipher even with magnification, each one of the seven vacation choices details little things like "processing fees," ""taxes," and "port fees," that make the free vacations anything but free. In fact, they are so expensive I don't think I can afford to accept any of the "free" offers.

I reflected to the checkout clerk and the woman standing next to me in line that the only really free offer I knew of was salvation. And salvation really isn't free, it's just that Jesus has already paid the price for us, in full. There are no surprise costs, or fees hidden in some fine print in the Bible. Jesus has personally taken care of everything necessary for us to be saved. To which the woman responded, "Praise God!" Salvation really is the one free offer we can't afford to refuse.

Neither Terrorism or Vengeance Are Options for Us

The latest act of domestic terrorism last week at Ft. Hood, Texas had a distinctly international-jihadist look to it. And no few people, myself included, wondered if there just might be a connection between the religion of the gunman and his savage act. Well, I don't want to be unfair, or worse misrepresent the Gospel. And, in the interest of fairness, I need to say that Islam does not hold exclusive rights to violent extremism. Christians, or at least some who claim that title, also go off and commit heinous crimes. Like fundamentalists and radical pro-lifers who shoot doctors or blow-up abortion clinics to stop the killing of unborn babies. Sorry, but that's just as wrong as what happened at Ft. Hood, in fact in my eyes even more wrong because it's supposedly done in the name of Jesus. While Allah may be pleased with the shedding of infidel blood, and followers of Mohammad may believe they are purchasing passage to paradise by flying a commercial airliner into the World Trade Towers, no Christian does the will of God when motivated by blind hate or rage.

While I have a decidedly conservative and biblical worldview, it would be an offense to my Lord and a defamation of his Gospel to preach death to Muslims because their religion is false. While I know that same-sex "marriage" is clearly and consistently condemned and forbidden by the Word of God, I also know that it is also a sin to treat anyone who is in bondage to that life with any less compassion, love, and respect than I would my own family.

Oh, we need to be willing to take up arms, and to die if need be, to defend freedom. And we need to both promote and practice moral values rooted in the Bible and the life and person of Jesus Christ. But we had better not forget that forgiveness, grace, and mercy figure prominently in a life of discipleship.

Major Hasan should be tried for his crime, and when found guilty he should suffer the penalty for what he did. Such penalty could mean his execution. If so, it would not be an act of vengeance, but of justice. Mercy may intercede and spare his life. But only the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ can save his soul. I pray that before the day of his execution, should that day come, that the Major would come to know the Lord. Should that happen he might, with his last words, confess his guilt, yet claim the mercy of God by virtue of the blood of Jesus, and express a desire to live for his Savior while acknowledging that he willingly accepts the justice of his execution.

Who Is To Blame, Our Leaders or His Religion?

It was barely 24 hours after the massacre at Ft. Hood when some extreme members of the so-called mainstream media, which means they were really extreme, if you catch my drift, had completed their investigations of the terrible scene and concluded that the gunman wasn't to blame, the war in Afghanistan was. We should have expected a Muslim solider to go off the deep end when faced with orders to go and fight to liberate other Muslims from the grip of the (Muslim) Taliban. We should have known something like this was going to happen.

I mean, didn't German-American soldiers go berserk in Britain during WWII on the eve of D-day? Doesn't history record dozens of incidents of Japanese American Marines blowing up troop transports full of their comrades as they headed towards Iwo Jima? What could President Roosevelt have been thinking when he sent our troops to fight against the homes of their ancestors? He must have been crazy.

But, if we want to make sure that what happened in Texas last week wasn't the first of more and worse horrors on our military bases, as a "moderate" mainstream magazine warned in the wake of the one-man Jihad that rocked Ft. Hood, our leaders had better call an immediate end to all hostilities everywhere, bring our all our troops home, and strictly order our generals not to even dare to think about ever going and fighting anyone anywhere, it might upset some of our soldiers! Why, there would probably never be any cases of what used to be called "battle fatigue" when soldiers don't have to worry about fighting anymore. Of course, when we decide to eliminate any chance of conflict from ever stressing out anyone in our military we probably might just as well discharge all the troops and mothball all their equipment, they won't serve any real purpose anymore.

I expect, when all the digging into the life of the Muslim Major who decided he would rather wage war against American GIs than fight global terrorism is through, he will say he did it for his religion. Kind of like the folks who blow themselves up in Baghdad. He will say he was about to be forced to go fight against his fellow Islamists, and decided instead to do his fighting right here against Americans, rather than betray his religion. Why didn't he just refuse his orders? Why didn't he risk court-martial and whatever punishment that may have followed a conviction if he was so opposed to fighting? Well, there's nothing particularly terrifying about a court-martial, and not near enough blood to satisfy Islam.

You know, when Jesus died to glorify the Father, he didn't take out anyone with him. And when Christians were served up as snacks for the beasts in the arenas of Rome, the only blood shed for their faith was theirs. I suppose the gunman in Texas last week might have expected to die, but he obviously didn't make certain of it. All he made sure he did was kill unsuspecting and innocent people for the sake of his religion. I hope, whatever happens to him, he is not executed, he doesn't deserve to be a martyr. But, maybe, spending the rest of his life in Leavenworth, he may yet come to know the Lord. In fact I pray Jesus will visit his dreams every night for the rest of his life until he surrenders all his messed-up Muslim hatred to the love of the Lord.

Are You Ready To Feel Some Real Heat?

A pastor friend sent me an email with the following Youtube clip this 4-minute excerpt, which features a British expert on the subject of global warming. Let me tell you, this speaker is not a subscriber to the hysteria that we are about to go "greenhouse" and cook all life on the planet. But his warning about the proposed United Nations Climate Change Treaty is, if you will excuse the expression, chilling because if what he claims the treaty will do will definitely bring serious heat to bear against Christians and Americans.

What would you say about a treaty that would voluntarily make our Constitution submit to the authority of United Nations' edicts? What would you say about a treaty that would require the U.S., along with other nations, ship billions of dollars to third-world nations as a repayment for our alleged damage to the world's atmosphere by our "reckless" use of fossil fuels and other greenhouse gas emitting products? What would you say about a treaty that in effect creates a one-world government? Sounds almost Orwellian.

I confess that I have not read the draft of the treaty, which could be signed in about a month, when world leaders gather in Copenhagen. And there are reports that the treaty won't be signed this year, but perhaps in 6-12 months after politicians do some more work to hand over even more to the third-world. Don't get me wrong, it is absolutely immoral for us to exploit smaller developing nations for our own selfish purposes. But, with the case not yet made for global warming, it hardly seems right to give away our nation's sovereignty at this point, as if there ever would be a time to do such a thing before the Lord himself returns to rule over the earth for a thousand years.

Bottom line, check out that link up top, and maybe from there do some more looking into what this upcoming UN treaty is all about. And, as at all times, pray. The UN, and our own feckless leaders, may be able to schnooker us, but they are not about to fool the Creator, who knows everything there is to know about the climate which, ultimately, He controls.

Jesus As The "Boss"

Well, actually, He is The Boss, although most of the world refuses to acknowledge it, and most of us who do still don't live in a way that shows it. But I'm not talking about the boss of all things, I am talking about "The Boss," as in George--you know George Steinbrenner, the guy who owned the Yankees and drove them to a bunch of their now 27 World Series titles.

I know there are no few Yankee haters out there, and I will confess that most of the time I don't really care all that much whether they win or lose. And, further confession, I was pleased when the Bosox exorcised the Curse of the Bambino, and I was happy when the Palehose (White Sox) won it all a few years back (Though I would have preferred to see Ernie Banks' old team win a World Series). But, and this may well bug a lot of you Yankee haters, but the Yankees sitting on the MLB baseball throne is good for America. It sends a signal that, despite the health care reform circus, and the near hysteria over the potential threat of swine flu, and the way things are going down the toilet in Afghanistan, and the unemployed status of 10+ million Americans that all is right with the world. Listen, if God didn't think it was a good thing for the Yanks to win their first title since 2000 He would have seen to it that one of the other seven playoff teams was drenched in champagne last night.

I am sure that if Jesus ran the Yankees, as The Boss once did, and the Boss's sons now do to a somewhat lesser extent, He would pursue the crown as passionately as ol' George. So, what did Jesus do, not actually having the chance to play ball? Think about how Jesus went about assembling His team. He searched far and wide, and held serious high-level conferences with His Father, before drafting the twelve who would all become Hall of Famers (Well, one actually has a place in the Hall of Infamy). And, like George, Jesus was someone hard to say "No" to (Though the gospels record the story of a free agent who was so rich that he turned down Jesus' offer.). And, like the franchise in the Bronx, it took some time for the team to really gel. They all but folded in the Garden of Gesthemane when the season came down to its most crucial moments. There were clubhouse squabbles about who should be the franchise players (The mother of James and John lobbied hard for her boys to the captains of the team). And, when the roster was depleted because Judas had to go on the permanently disabled list, the team of apostles brought up a prospect from the farm, though their decision was a bit of a gamble.

In short, Jesus played to win, though His strategy confounded the experts, and, rather than a grand slam, it took a sacrifice to win it all. So, it wouldn't surprise me if, at least today, they're wearing pinstripes in Heaven. Will the New York victory impact the Heal Care debate in Washington? I doubt it. Nor will a Yankee victory help settle things down in Afghanistan. But, and this is just my opinion, I think the nation feels a little more confident, a little more sure of ourselves, when the team from the Bronx does what it's supposed to do. And, if nothing else, the Yankees having won this year will keep a lot of people alive for the next 12 months in the hopes of being around next year to see them lose.

As Maine Goes, So Goes......

The people of Maine, as with the people in 30 other states, have spoken. And the "Vox Populii" says, "Marriage is between a man and a woman." Overruling their state legislators, who last spring approved a bill, in turn signed by their governor, recognizing same-sex marriages, the people of Maine proved that while they may be noted as independent and free thinkers, they are not yet prepared to abandon traditional biblical morality.

Gay and Lesbian activists were crushed by this latest rebuke by the people, as opposed to more pliable courts and legislatures. To date no public referendum on gay-marriage has ever been approved by the electorate in any of the 31 states to have had such a question on their ballot. And, I those gay-lesbian couples and their sympathizers who say that their sexual orientation is a private matter, so how can voters try and force their morals upon them, I say, "Then keep it private, and stop trying to force your immoral position on the people. Stop initiating court cases and introducing legislation to win approval and recognition for something the majority of Americans clearly don't approve of."

None of this is to say that those with misguided sexual orientations should be persecuted or shunned. Jesus loves them just as much as He loves the rest of us sinners. And He hates all our sins equally, including the sin of not-loving and caring about those who are as much in need of grace and mercy as the rest of us. I mean, if adulterers were to try and legalize their sin I would oppose them too, but just think how empty many churches would be if they refused admission to adulterers (and liars, and tax cheats, and others who show off clean hands while trying to hide impure hearts, like Pharisees of old).

ANYthing Less Than EVERYthing Is Not Enough

John D. Rockefeller, the Bill Gates of his day, was once asked how much wealth was enough. The then richest man in the world did not hesitate to reply, "Just a little bit more than I have." It is hard to imagine how a fortune sufficient to last several lifetimes would not be enough for someone, but the truth is most of us know very little of contentment, regardless of our financial station in life. Deep inside the race is an avarice gene that pretty much guarantees that neither you nor I will be happy with ANYthing less than EVERYthing.

Consider our ancestors, Adam and Eve. They had executive privileges, as God's stewards over the whole earth, which gave them access to almost everything. In fact there was only one thing in the world they were denied; they had EVERYthing-1. But then, as now for most people, EVERYthing-1=Discontent, desire, GREED. We want it all!

We want new. But new loses its sparkle the instant we see newER. We want big. But big fails to impress us as soon as biggER hits the market. Fast is great until fastER comes along. Fancy is just fine for us as long as we don't encounter fanciER. ER, ER, ER, ER. Two of the most diabolical letters in the English language. While there are some definite advanatges to newER and biggER, there is no guarantee that newER+biggER=Better, and plenty of evidence to the contrary.

Don't get me wrong. I am glad that new surgical techniques made my recovery from the operation I had in July 2007 less painful and quicker than practices that had been state of the art just a few years earlier. And, though I think they might have been more reliable vehicles, I don't want to drive a Model T. And my wife is quite happy to have an automatic washing machine rather than the wringer washers our grandmothers used.

But, for those of you who have endured the many generations of Windows software, how much better is "7" than "98"? (Which is not meant to be an advertisement for Macs) Is a 2010 Mustang ten-fifteen times better a vehicle than my 1972 Mustang was, that it has to cost ten-fifteen times more? Though the color TV screen I watch the World Series on is huge compared to the black and white 17" model I used to have, I can't say that it really adds anything to my enjoyment of the contest, but there in the living room sits the modern behemoth. Of course, our economic system has been fueled by exploitation of most every consumer's greed button.

And, to keep that system going and growing we have witnessed the rise of the huge runaway credit industry which lets us push that greed button today, and pay for our pleasure for years and years to come. Of course, loud lamentations are heard throughout the land as we now cry out in pain from the collapse of the whole mess. Cars repossessed. Homes foreclosed. Businesses bankrupt. 10+ million unemployed. And still the allure of newER, biggER, fastER, fanciER tempts us with more and more in pursuit of the ever discontent consumerist lifestyle.

You know what Jesus did about all this? He came bearing a gift for all who would receive it--Life. Life full and abundant, overflowing with purpose and meaning, and contentment as well, with the desires of our heart all met in our delight in knowing Him. Funny, if we would just realize that Christ IS All, well we wouldn't have to settle for anything less than everything, because everything is fulfilled in Jesus.

Good News From Ford, But Was It A Better Idea?

Well, they may not have had a better idea at Ford, but something's been working better for the folks from Dearborn than their pals at GM and Chrysler. Analysts were stunned by Ford's third quarter profits report. It seems while the other U.S. automakers were filing for bankruptcy and begging for government bailouts, Ford was determined to do what it could to right its own ship. Oh, they took full advantage of the "Cash for Clunkers" program, which certainly fueled their third quarter sales. But profits were also boosted by cost cutting layoffs, certainly not good news for those who now find themselves unemployed. And in the long-term it remains to be seen how Ford will make out in negotiations with its union workers, who will likely balk at management attempts to reduce both workforce and labor costs by freezing or cutting benefits.

And, in an economy that is far from robust, with no end in sight for alarmingly high unemployment, it remains to be seen how well Ford will do in sustaining sales without adjusting the prices of its products. Cash for Clunkers effectively served as a $4500 price rollback, for much of the third quarter. But how is the year going to finish out without that artificial sales incentive? Third quarter profits may well be followed by dismal fourth quarter performance. For may be in a better position for now than its main U.S. competitors, gaining a bigger share of a shrinking auto market in the short term. But there are still a lot of unemployed and financially strapped folks who have not driven a Ford lately, and will not be likely to anytime soon.

So, while I congratulate For on its third quarter, without the "Cash for Clunkers" crutch, which wasn't Ford's idea, I wonder what better ideas we will see from Dearborn that will truly turn things around for Ford, for Ford workers, and for Ford customers. Because, regardless of what the reports from headquarters said, the local Ford dealer went out of business here just a few weeks after the government's gimmick program, so at least in that case corporate profits did not translate into local business. And given the economic realities of this area, no one is likely to reopen that business anytime soon. What is more liable to happen is that other dealers will be closing their doors. So, at least in this case, we're still looking for a better idea that works for folks across America, as opposed to in America's boardrooms.

Jesus told a parable about a rather dishonest manager who, facing the loss of his job, shrewdly negotiated debt-reduction agreements with enough folks to convince his master to keep him. (Luke 16:1-13) The lesson was not intended to encourage dishonesty, but suggests to me the wisdom of forgiveness, how it can both foster loyalty, and be more profitable in the long run than the relentless pursuit of unfair profit. This is not to say that the management at Ford, or GM or Chrysler, is dishonest. But businesses voluntarily lowering the costs of goods and services, and reducing and forgiving debts, might be a better solution to our economic woes, than the heedless and unbridled pursuit of bigger and bigger profits for fewer and fewer Americans.