What Did Jesus Do?
Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
John 14.27b
Many boys are troubled by feelings of homesickness their first summer at Scout camp. In truth, second and third-year campers, and even veterans of many summers, have to deal with varying degrees of homesickness. One of the saddest things a Scout leader ever witnesses is the sight of a boy, whose feelings have gotten the better of him, leaving for home thoroughly disheartened after only a day or two at camp. As a camp chaplain leaders will sometimes bring a boy to see me, hoping I might have something to say that will work some magic.
Actually, there are no magic words. The first thing I tell a Scout is that there is nothing wrong with what he is feeling; it is quite natural for us to miss home and family, especially the first time we are separated from them for more than a few hours. And I can honestly share with the Scouts that I had the very same feelings, and not just at camp, but going off to college, and many other times as an adult when I have had to leave my home and family for a time because of work or school (Or, as a camp staff member!). Dealing with the queasiness in the stomach, and the anxiousness of the heart, and the self-defeating talk going on in our mind is not easy. Being disheartened, losing hope, despairing that things will not turn out alright, fearing that we won’t see those we love again, is not at all restricted to boys going off to camp for the first time; it has troubled boys and girls, and men and women, for centuries, and our Father knows this, for his heart is also pained by our being separated from him. That’s one reason the Father sent the Son into the world, to hearten us.
When Jesus spoke to a multitude gathered on a Galilean hillside He instructed them to not be anxious about their lives, assuring them of their Heavenly Father’s care and love. (Matthew 6.25-34) Jesus heartened.
A desperate Jairus, fearful that his precious daughter was dying, sought the Lord’s help. Though word came as they were heading towards the home of Jairus that his daughter had died, Jesus rallied the father’s hope, “Be not afraid, only believe.” (Mark 5.36) Jesus heartened.
Knowing that He would soon be separated from His disciples, Jesus sought to calm their hearts with the promise that He was going to prepare a place for them to be with the Father for eternity, and that He would surely come back for them. (John 14.1-1-3) Jesus heartened.
With foreknowledge of the tribulation His followers would face in the world, Jesus declared His victory over all worldly powers, that they might take heart and be of good courage. (John 16.33) Jesus heartened.
To the dying thief on the cross beside Him, Jesus pledged that they would be together in paradise that very day. (Luke 23.39-43) Jesus heartened.
One of the biggest sources of anxiety for a homesick Scout is the fear that the separation from those he loves and needs the most will not be just for a few days, but forever, “What if Mom and Dad don’t come to pick me up on Saturday, and I never see them again?” I don’t care who you are, that is a scary thought; and we all have similarly scary thoughts at one time or another. Such thoughts elicit powerful feelings, feelings difficult to master. It is easy to lose heart, for courage to falter, at the prospect of being cut off from those who love you most.
In truth, there is no one who loves any of us more than the Father; he proved his love when he sent his Son to die for our sakes, that we might be forgiven our sins and receive eternal life. (John 3.16) I can’t think of anything more heartening than this assurance of the Father’s steadfast and unceasing love. Knowing and believing the Son, who is the very expression of the Father’s love, supplies courage, good cheer, and hope, not to deny our anxious fears and feelings, but to best them. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Jesus Faced
What Did Jesus Do?
Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person...
Hebrews 1.3
Although I rather doubt that the average high school graduate could identify them, I suspect that most people over fifty could easily identify the iconic images of Lincoln, Jefferson, and Washington on the penny, nickel, and quarter, respectively. Talented sculptors at the U. S. mint, working from paintings and photographs (At least in the case of Lincoln), have rendered the profiles of these presidents so well that we can easily recognize who is represented on the coins. But even the best of the likenesses on these coins is hardly perfect.
Before the advent of cloning, which has yet to work out all the kinks in the process, the closest thing to perfect “likeness” in creation have been so-called identical twins. Yet, even the most “identical” of twins have differences that can be measured between them. But not so with the Father and the Son. The Son is not a likeness, not a twin, certainly not a clone of the Father. Rather, for all eternity, the exact and complete re of the Father, in every aspect of its fullness, is in the Son; the Father and Son are, as Jesus told His disciples, one. (See John 17.11, 20-26)
So it was that Jesus could answer Philip, when he asked the Lord to show the Father to the disciples, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” (John 14.9) Truly, the Aaronic blessing of Numbers 6.24-26 was fulfilled in the Incarnation. All who beheld Jesus encountered the shining face of God. No icon, image, or likeness, the Son, bearing the very re of the Father, was lifted up on the cross, the countenance of the LORD giving peace to all who receive Him.
Theologians distinguish between General Revelation and Special Revelation. God is revealed, generally, throughout all of creation; the works of the Maker bear evidence of the existence and re of God. But it is in the Son alone, the very Word of God made flesh, that the Father has specially revealed all the fullness of his grace and truth, and his glory, to the end that all who see and believe on Jesus Christ know the only true God, and receive eternal life. (John 17.3)
The face of God was not revealed in any of the carved, painted, or sculpted images of the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, or Romans. God’s countenance is not to be found in statues of Buddha or any of the many gods of the Hindus. Certainly, all who look anywhere but to Jesus search vainly for God.
Since our expulsion from Eden we have sought to again behold the glory of the face of God, our Maker. It was the Father’s plan for the Son, in the fullness of time, to make his face shine upon Man, that our relationship with our Creator should be restored. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person...
Hebrews 1.3
Although I rather doubt that the average high school graduate could identify them, I suspect that most people over fifty could easily identify the iconic images of Lincoln, Jefferson, and Washington on the penny, nickel, and quarter, respectively. Talented sculptors at the U. S. mint, working from paintings and photographs (At least in the case of Lincoln), have rendered the profiles of these presidents so well that we can easily recognize who is represented on the coins. But even the best of the likenesses on these coins is hardly perfect.
Before the advent of cloning, which has yet to work out all the kinks in the process, the closest thing to perfect “likeness” in creation have been so-called identical twins. Yet, even the most “identical” of twins have differences that can be measured between them. But not so with the Father and the Son. The Son is not a likeness, not a twin, certainly not a clone of the Father. Rather, for all eternity, the exact and complete re of the Father, in every aspect of its fullness, is in the Son; the Father and Son are, as Jesus told His disciples, one. (See John 17.11, 20-26)
So it was that Jesus could answer Philip, when he asked the Lord to show the Father to the disciples, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” (John 14.9) Truly, the Aaronic blessing of Numbers 6.24-26 was fulfilled in the Incarnation. All who beheld Jesus encountered the shining face of God. No icon, image, or likeness, the Son, bearing the very re of the Father, was lifted up on the cross, the countenance of the LORD giving peace to all who receive Him.
Theologians distinguish between General Revelation and Special Revelation. God is revealed, generally, throughout all of creation; the works of the Maker bear evidence of the existence and re of God. But it is in the Son alone, the very Word of God made flesh, that the Father has specially revealed all the fullness of his grace and truth, and his glory, to the end that all who see and believe on Jesus Christ know the only true God, and receive eternal life. (John 17.3)
The face of God was not revealed in any of the carved, painted, or sculpted images of the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, or Romans. God’s countenance is not to be found in statues of Buddha or any of the many gods of the Hindus. Certainly, all who look anywhere but to Jesus search vainly for God.
Since our expulsion from Eden we have sought to again behold the glory of the face of God, our Maker. It was the Father’s plan for the Son, in the fullness of time, to make his face shine upon Man, that our relationship with our Creator should be restored. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Jesus Joined
What Did Jesus Do?
…that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me,
and I in you, that they also may be in us,
so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
John 17.21
President Theodore Roosevelt is famed for, among many other things, joining the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific by pushing through the completion of the Panama Canal. Wilbur and Orville Wright are remembered for their successful joining of a motor to a glider, thereby creating powered flight. Jonas Salk is celebrated for joining the right ingredients together to make a life-saving polio vaccine. Those who join are worthy of honor; just think of Mr. Reese who joined chocolate with peanut butter (Just kidding.).
The Father sent the Son on a “joining” mission. Jesus testified before Pilate that the reason He came into the world was to bear witness to the truth (See John 18.37), and the truth is, without Jesus we are all tragically, mortally, eternally, separated. So it was that when Jesus prayed to His Father as His mission neared its end His prayer was for successful joining. Modern songwriters may lament that “One is the loneliest number,” but in fact it is the exact opposite—the perfect unity of our being one with the Father and with each other in Christ is the very longing of God’s heart.
A bunch of wild, untamed, even rebellious, branches incapable of producing any good fruit of our own, Jesus, the true vine, comes and joins us to himself. (See John 15.1-5) Apart from abiding in Christ, and by the Holy Spirit having Christ in us, we are hapless, helpless, and headed for the flames (John 15.6). But in Christ, as He joins us to himself, we glorify the Father through bearing much good fruit for the kingdom. (John 15.7-8) Jesus joins us to himself.
When we were lost, alone, unloved and unlovable, Jesus came and told us that He is the one and only way to the Father. (See John 14.6) As Jesus is the very image of the Father (See Hebrews 1.3), all who know the Son in fact see the Father. (John 14.9) And the Lord has promised that He will come to take each of us to himself, that where He is (With the Father), we may be also. ( John 14.3) Jesus joins us to the Father.
There was a time when a gulf separated God’s covenant people (The Jews) from all other peoples (Gentiles), but in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek. Through the millennia people have been separated by economic status, but in Christ there is neither slave nor free. And, ever since the unfortunate affair of the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, men and women have had no little contention between them, but in Christ there is neither male nor female, for in Christ Jesus all are one. (See Galatians 3.28) Jesus joins us to one another.
If joining was at the very heart of Christ’s mission then we had better be about the business of being one, for it is in fact the calling to which we have all been called. (See Ephesians 4.1). Therefore, following the Lord’s example, we look to join and be joined, walking in all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (Ephesians 4.2) That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
…that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me,
and I in you, that they also may be in us,
so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
John 17.21
President Theodore Roosevelt is famed for, among many other things, joining the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific by pushing through the completion of the Panama Canal. Wilbur and Orville Wright are remembered for their successful joining of a motor to a glider, thereby creating powered flight. Jonas Salk is celebrated for joining the right ingredients together to make a life-saving polio vaccine. Those who join are worthy of honor; just think of Mr. Reese who joined chocolate with peanut butter (Just kidding.).
The Father sent the Son on a “joining” mission. Jesus testified before Pilate that the reason He came into the world was to bear witness to the truth (See John 18.37), and the truth is, without Jesus we are all tragically, mortally, eternally, separated. So it was that when Jesus prayed to His Father as His mission neared its end His prayer was for successful joining. Modern songwriters may lament that “One is the loneliest number,” but in fact it is the exact opposite—the perfect unity of our being one with the Father and with each other in Christ is the very longing of God’s heart.
A bunch of wild, untamed, even rebellious, branches incapable of producing any good fruit of our own, Jesus, the true vine, comes and joins us to himself. (See John 15.1-5) Apart from abiding in Christ, and by the Holy Spirit having Christ in us, we are hapless, helpless, and headed for the flames (John 15.6). But in Christ, as He joins us to himself, we glorify the Father through bearing much good fruit for the kingdom. (John 15.7-8) Jesus joins us to himself.
When we were lost, alone, unloved and unlovable, Jesus came and told us that He is the one and only way to the Father. (See John 14.6) As Jesus is the very image of the Father (See Hebrews 1.3), all who know the Son in fact see the Father. (John 14.9) And the Lord has promised that He will come to take each of us to himself, that where He is (With the Father), we may be also. ( John 14.3) Jesus joins us to the Father.
There was a time when a gulf separated God’s covenant people (The Jews) from all other peoples (Gentiles), but in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek. Through the millennia people have been separated by economic status, but in Christ there is neither slave nor free. And, ever since the unfortunate affair of the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, men and women have had no little contention between them, but in Christ there is neither male nor female, for in Christ Jesus all are one. (See Galatians 3.28) Jesus joins us to one another.
If joining was at the very heart of Christ’s mission then we had better be about the business of being one, for it is in fact the calling to which we have all been called. (See Ephesians 4.1). Therefore, following the Lord’s example, we look to join and be joined, walking in all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (Ephesians 4.2) That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Jesus Mattered
What Did Jesus Do?
All things were created by him…
Colossians 1.16
Archeology provides us with some incredible evidence of long-lost civilizations. From little bits of stuff, like potshards, to huge monuments, like pyramids, the things big and small that ancient peoples made offer us tremendous insights into who they were, how they lived, what they did. Were it not for this hard evidence, the accumulation of the matter, if you will, that these ancient people produced, we would probably not know much about them.
If anyone had been around to come up to Jesus and ask Him, “Jesus, whatcha’ doin’?” during the six days of creation, I believe His answer might have been, “Mattering.” You see, during that long ago first week Jesus turned the Word of His Father into matter. Other than God, the Three in One, nothing at all had ever existed from all eternity past up to the moment the Father spoke , “Let there be…” and the Son started, well, mattering. “All things were created by him”; if you will, all things were mattered by Him. And, though the work of creating all the stuff of the cosmos concluded with the close of the sixth day, the Son has never stopped mattering. Want to know about Jesus, you don’t need Archeology. Just check out what the Son mattered.
Look up in the night sky at the stars; Jesus created all the matter that fires those countless celestial beacons. Look through a microscope at a drop of water; Jesus created all the matter of the tiny teeming organisms swimming about. Take a deep breath; the matter that composes our atmosphere was created by Jesus. Those graying hairs on your head; Jesus created the matter that made you a blonde, brunette, or redhead, and He counted each one! Everywhere we turn, everywhere we look, from the infinite to the infinitesimal, Jesus mattered it all, just as the Father spoke it.
Now spirit is not matter. Spirit has no mass, no density, no physical properties at all, it is measureless. But there came a time when it was absolutely necessary for God, who is spirit (John 4.24), to become flesh, to matter himself, if you will. And so the Father sent the Son into the world to matter as never before. What the Son made material in His Incarnation was the glory of His Father, and He did it by revealing the grace and truth of God. The grace and truth of the Father was what mattered most to the Son. In the end, knowing this, the grace and truth of the glory of God in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ the only Lord and Savior, will be all that, well, matters. In the beginning, Jesus mattered. When the world needed to be redeemed, Jesus mattered. When the cosmos passes away, Jesus will be the One who alone will matter for the elect who will enter the Father’s kingdom. Mattering. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
All things were created by him…
Colossians 1.16
Archeology provides us with some incredible evidence of long-lost civilizations. From little bits of stuff, like potshards, to huge monuments, like pyramids, the things big and small that ancient peoples made offer us tremendous insights into who they were, how they lived, what they did. Were it not for this hard evidence, the accumulation of the matter, if you will, that these ancient people produced, we would probably not know much about them.
If anyone had been around to come up to Jesus and ask Him, “Jesus, whatcha’ doin’?” during the six days of creation, I believe His answer might have been, “Mattering.” You see, during that long ago first week Jesus turned the Word of His Father into matter. Other than God, the Three in One, nothing at all had ever existed from all eternity past up to the moment the Father spoke , “Let there be…” and the Son started, well, mattering. “All things were created by him”; if you will, all things were mattered by Him. And, though the work of creating all the stuff of the cosmos concluded with the close of the sixth day, the Son has never stopped mattering. Want to know about Jesus, you don’t need Archeology. Just check out what the Son mattered.
Look up in the night sky at the stars; Jesus created all the matter that fires those countless celestial beacons. Look through a microscope at a drop of water; Jesus created all the matter of the tiny teeming organisms swimming about. Take a deep breath; the matter that composes our atmosphere was created by Jesus. Those graying hairs on your head; Jesus created the matter that made you a blonde, brunette, or redhead, and He counted each one! Everywhere we turn, everywhere we look, from the infinite to the infinitesimal, Jesus mattered it all, just as the Father spoke it.
Now spirit is not matter. Spirit has no mass, no density, no physical properties at all, it is measureless. But there came a time when it was absolutely necessary for God, who is spirit (John 4.24), to become flesh, to matter himself, if you will. And so the Father sent the Son into the world to matter as never before. What the Son made material in His Incarnation was the glory of His Father, and He did it by revealing the grace and truth of God. The grace and truth of the Father was what mattered most to the Son. In the end, knowing this, the grace and truth of the glory of God in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ the only Lord and Savior, will be all that, well, matters. In the beginning, Jesus mattered. When the world needed to be redeemed, Jesus mattered. When the cosmos passes away, Jesus will be the One who alone will matter for the elect who will enter the Father’s kingdom. Mattering. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Sunday, June 27, 2010
No Yellow-Brick Road
Is it me, or are there a lot of scarecrows standing in pulpits of formerly mainline churches, that are now sideline churches at best, pointing their congregations in all kinds of directions, with the assurance that all ways lead to the Emerald City?
I don't know about you, but I don't live in Oz, my goal is not the Emerald City, and my path is no Yellow- Brick Road. And I find it deeply disturbing that so many folks are getting direction in life from scarecrows. No offense, but a head full of straw hardly seems qualification for proclaiming the Word of God. But then, scarecrows very rarely, if ever, actually proclaim God's Truth.
Last week I had a Certified (Or is it certifiable) Presbyterian Lay Preacher proudly describe the "pulpit" he built at a Boy Scout camp complete with a cross, a Star of David, and "Allah" written in Arabic. Only someone with straw for brains could conclude that Allah and Yahweh are one and the same. And, with a head stuffed with fluff, why stop with the so-called "Abrahamic" faiths? Did that scarecrow mean to insult Buddhists, Hindus, and Zoroastrians, or was it an oversight?
I realize I come across as extremely arrogant and exclusive when I answer the question, "After all, don't we all worship the same god?" with "NO!" I have no use for inter-religious activities which in reality amount to irreligious activities. There is nothing reverent about reverence directed to that which is not to be revered. And, sorry, you fans of three "Abrahamic" faiths, Yahweh has made it quite clear that there are no other gods beside him.
People may find the idea of a Yellow-Brick Road of their choosing that goes wherever they want to go appealing. But for any who want to make God the Father their destination, there is but one way, Jesus Christ the Son (See John 14.6).
Jim
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
I don't know about you, but I don't live in Oz, my goal is not the Emerald City, and my path is no Yellow- Brick Road. And I find it deeply disturbing that so many folks are getting direction in life from scarecrows. No offense, but a head full of straw hardly seems qualification for proclaiming the Word of God. But then, scarecrows very rarely, if ever, actually proclaim God's Truth.
Last week I had a Certified (Or is it certifiable) Presbyterian Lay Preacher proudly describe the "pulpit" he built at a Boy Scout camp complete with a cross, a Star of David, and "Allah" written in Arabic. Only someone with straw for brains could conclude that Allah and Yahweh are one and the same. And, with a head stuffed with fluff, why stop with the so-called "Abrahamic" faiths? Did that scarecrow mean to insult Buddhists, Hindus, and Zoroastrians, or was it an oversight?
I realize I come across as extremely arrogant and exclusive when I answer the question, "After all, don't we all worship the same god?" with "NO!" I have no use for inter-religious activities which in reality amount to irreligious activities. There is nothing reverent about reverence directed to that which is not to be revered. And, sorry, you fans of three "Abrahamic" faiths, Yahweh has made it quite clear that there are no other gods beside him.
People may find the idea of a Yellow-Brick Road of their choosing that goes wherever they want to go appealing. But for any who want to make God the Father their destination, there is but one way, Jesus Christ the Son (See John 14.6).
Jim
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Jesus Everlasted
What Did Jesus Do?
The grass withers and the flower fades, but the Word of the LORD endures forever.
Isaiah 40.8
I got to see The Book of Eli last night. The violence and the f-bombs turned off the rest of the family, and, I confess, were it not for a friend’s assurance that the film had a very important message I too might have shut it off and gone to bed. But the Fahrenheit 451-type ending was worth it. In a day when the whole earth was withered and humanity had faded God enlisted Eli (Not the fat old priest of Israel who tutored Samuel) to help see that the Word endured.
A long, long time ago the Father entrusted his Word to the Son. Every word the Father spoke the Son not only heard, but, even more, embodied, brought to life, incarnated. The Son is all about the Word because, well, the Son is the Word. And, even if all the rest of creation should fall and pass away, the Son is going to assure the Word of His Father is everlasting. In fact, the only hope of a creation that withers and fades is the everlasting Word.
When an “economic downturn” throws millions out of work, their hope is not in the government’s plans for economic recovery. Or hadn’t you noticed that all kinds of government-type experts have been announcing the end of the economic slide while the millions still have no jobs? When a tornado flattens a town in the Midwest, their hope is not in the Weather Channel’s forecast of clearer skies to come. Or hadn’t you noticed that even the most silver of linings is inevitably followed again sooner or later by dark and destructive clouds? When death claims a family member our hope is not in this life. Or hadn’t you noticed that all who are born into this life one day die? The best of economic policies will always leave some out of work (The poor will always be with us; see Matthew 26.11). Accurate forecasts can only warn of storms, they never prevent them. (Hail and destructive winds, and overflowing floods cannot be turned back; see Isaiah 28.2). Death claims all who draw breath, as Man returns whence he came (Those formed of the dust of the earth return to the dust of the earth; see Genesis 3.19). It is enough to make a preacher despair (See Ecclesiastes 1.)
But all is not in vain as long as the Word lasts, and the Word is everlasting. From eternity past, through this present world, unto eternity future, all things have their beginning in Jesus, the Alpha; and the end of all things (As in their purpose and destiny) is in none other than Jesus, the Omega. (See Revelation 1. 8, 18) Our help in ages past, Jesus everlasts; He is our only hope for all the years to come:
“From everlasting Thou art God, to endless years the same.”
--Oh God, Our Help in Ages Past
To people who are perishing, living in a world that will itself one day pass away, the Father has sent the Son, that his everlasting Word should be our hope. Though the world thought the cross and the grave had made an end of Him, the everlasting Word rose in glory and in victory, bringing everlasting hope to the world. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
The grass withers and the flower fades, but the Word of the LORD endures forever.
Isaiah 40.8
I got to see The Book of Eli last night. The violence and the f-bombs turned off the rest of the family, and, I confess, were it not for a friend’s assurance that the film had a very important message I too might have shut it off and gone to bed. But the Fahrenheit 451-type ending was worth it. In a day when the whole earth was withered and humanity had faded God enlisted Eli (Not the fat old priest of Israel who tutored Samuel) to help see that the Word endured.
A long, long time ago the Father entrusted his Word to the Son. Every word the Father spoke the Son not only heard, but, even more, embodied, brought to life, incarnated. The Son is all about the Word because, well, the Son is the Word. And, even if all the rest of creation should fall and pass away, the Son is going to assure the Word of His Father is everlasting. In fact, the only hope of a creation that withers and fades is the everlasting Word.
When an “economic downturn” throws millions out of work, their hope is not in the government’s plans for economic recovery. Or hadn’t you noticed that all kinds of government-type experts have been announcing the end of the economic slide while the millions still have no jobs? When a tornado flattens a town in the Midwest, their hope is not in the Weather Channel’s forecast of clearer skies to come. Or hadn’t you noticed that even the most silver of linings is inevitably followed again sooner or later by dark and destructive clouds? When death claims a family member our hope is not in this life. Or hadn’t you noticed that all who are born into this life one day die? The best of economic policies will always leave some out of work (The poor will always be with us; see Matthew 26.11). Accurate forecasts can only warn of storms, they never prevent them. (Hail and destructive winds, and overflowing floods cannot be turned back; see Isaiah 28.2). Death claims all who draw breath, as Man returns whence he came (Those formed of the dust of the earth return to the dust of the earth; see Genesis 3.19). It is enough to make a preacher despair (See Ecclesiastes 1.)
But all is not in vain as long as the Word lasts, and the Word is everlasting. From eternity past, through this present world, unto eternity future, all things have their beginning in Jesus, the Alpha; and the end of all things (As in their purpose and destiny) is in none other than Jesus, the Omega. (See Revelation 1. 8, 18) Our help in ages past, Jesus everlasts; He is our only hope for all the years to come:
“From everlasting Thou art God, to endless years the same.”
--Oh God, Our Help in Ages Past
To people who are perishing, living in a world that will itself one day pass away, the Father has sent the Son, that his everlasting Word should be our hope. Though the world thought the cross and the grave had made an end of Him, the everlasting Word rose in glory and in victory, bringing everlasting hope to the world. That’s what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Jesus Starred
What Did Jesus Do?
And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 3.29
No, the above does not refer to the Lord having “top billing” in the Bible, nor to His place as the principle character around whom the entire biblical narrative is built. Rather, the Son was the one who delivered on the Father's promise to Abraham, that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars. (See Genesis 15.5) The host of Abraham's offspring might not twinkle in the night sky, but they nonetheless shine, as we would expect “children of light” to do. (See Ephesians 5.8)
Of course, Jesus does have top billing in both the Hebrew Scriptures and the Greek. Israel's Messiah is the Gentile's Christ, and though there are many fine “actors” who have a part in the Bible, there simply would not be a Bible, nor anything else for that matter, without Jesus; His name is rightly above all other names. (See Philippians 2.9) Jesus starred.
Were it not for Jesus the Bible would be merely an anthology of religious writings, an admirable literary collection, worthy of study along with the works of, say, Shakespeare. It is the Lord who makes the Bible the “Holy Bible,” the Word of God, the repository of all Truth, and the sacred history of God's redemptive plan for a fallen humanity. Jesus starred.
But for today I want us to consider what Paul wrote to the Galatians about the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham. Abraham was “as good as dead,” and the womb of his aged wife Sarah was as barren as the desert (See Romans 4.19); the opportunity to have even one son was gone, making the promise of offspring as numerous as the stars and the sand of the seashore (See Genesis 22.17), seem unlikely to ever be fulfilled. Yet, Abraham believed, which the LORD accounted to the patriarch as righteousness. And so it was that a righteous seed (singular) would descend from Abraham, so that the promise of seed (plural) too numerous to count would be fulfilled. Jesus starred.
When Jesus told His followers they were the light of the world (See Matthew 5.14) they didn't realize that the Lord was making them “stars,” shining children of Abraham, who, by faith, would illuminate a world lost in darkness without the light of Jesus Christ. Well, it is not as if it was the first time Jesus starred. After all, who do you think it was who created the myriad of lights in the night sky that Abraham stared up at as he wondered how it could ever be that his descendants should ever be so numerous.
Here's the thing, stars are still being made, and I am not speaking of Hollywood or American Idol. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Seed of Abraham, births children of Abraham every day. Carl Sagan declared in Cosmos that we are all “star stuff,” meaning that there is one chemistry, and one set of elements, from which all tings in creation are made. Sadly for Sagan, he refused to believe that, more than “star stuff,” we can be “stars”; children of light who are offspring of Abraham, and who reflect the light of the Father by virtue of their faith in the Son. Shining the Light of God's glory and grace, his majesty and mercy, his word and will, upon those who otherwise live in darkness, can transform lost sinners into stars. That's what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise.
Galatians 3.29
No, the above does not refer to the Lord having “top billing” in the Bible, nor to His place as the principle character around whom the entire biblical narrative is built. Rather, the Son was the one who delivered on the Father's promise to Abraham, that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars. (See Genesis 15.5) The host of Abraham's offspring might not twinkle in the night sky, but they nonetheless shine, as we would expect “children of light” to do. (See Ephesians 5.8)
Of course, Jesus does have top billing in both the Hebrew Scriptures and the Greek. Israel's Messiah is the Gentile's Christ, and though there are many fine “actors” who have a part in the Bible, there simply would not be a Bible, nor anything else for that matter, without Jesus; His name is rightly above all other names. (See Philippians 2.9) Jesus starred.
Were it not for Jesus the Bible would be merely an anthology of religious writings, an admirable literary collection, worthy of study along with the works of, say, Shakespeare. It is the Lord who makes the Bible the “Holy Bible,” the Word of God, the repository of all Truth, and the sacred history of God's redemptive plan for a fallen humanity. Jesus starred.
But for today I want us to consider what Paul wrote to the Galatians about the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham. Abraham was “as good as dead,” and the womb of his aged wife Sarah was as barren as the desert (See Romans 4.19); the opportunity to have even one son was gone, making the promise of offspring as numerous as the stars and the sand of the seashore (See Genesis 22.17), seem unlikely to ever be fulfilled. Yet, Abraham believed, which the LORD accounted to the patriarch as righteousness. And so it was that a righteous seed (singular) would descend from Abraham, so that the promise of seed (plural) too numerous to count would be fulfilled. Jesus starred.
When Jesus told His followers they were the light of the world (See Matthew 5.14) they didn't realize that the Lord was making them “stars,” shining children of Abraham, who, by faith, would illuminate a world lost in darkness without the light of Jesus Christ. Well, it is not as if it was the first time Jesus starred. After all, who do you think it was who created the myriad of lights in the night sky that Abraham stared up at as he wondered how it could ever be that his descendants should ever be so numerous.
Here's the thing, stars are still being made, and I am not speaking of Hollywood or American Idol. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Seed of Abraham, births children of Abraham every day. Carl Sagan declared in Cosmos that we are all “star stuff,” meaning that there is one chemistry, and one set of elements, from which all tings in creation are made. Sadly for Sagan, he refused to believe that, more than “star stuff,” we can be “stars”; children of light who are offspring of Abraham, and who reflect the light of the Father by virtue of their faith in the Son. Shining the Light of God's glory and grace, his majesty and mercy, his word and will, upon those who otherwise live in darkness, can transform lost sinners into stars. That's what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
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