What Did Jesus Do?
“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you...
Whoever hates me hates my Father also.”
John 15.18,23
Have you ever wondered why Jesus placed so much importance on his disciples loving one another? I believe it was because he knew that hate was all they would receive from the world, and from all who are of the world (John 15.19). Now, before we fault the world, I point out that its behavior is somewhat similar to the Father's. The world loves its own, and the Father loves his own. Where the Father and the world are, well, world's apart, is that the Father loved those who hated him, while the world hated the One who loved it like no one else ever has or ever could.
The world, of course, will try and deny, “Hate you? Don't be silly, we don't hate you. It's Jesus we can't stand.” The question is, how do we feel about being on the receiving end of the world's enmity on account of the name of Jesus? The apostles counted it as cause for rejoicing to be considered worthy to suffer for the sake of the name (Acts 5.41), and Paul considered it his highest privilege to share in Christ's sufferings (see Philippians 3.7-11).
For his part Jesus, in choosing those whom the Father loved, knew full well that as the world would persecute him, so it would persecute his followers, and he reminded us that as it goes with the master, so it will go with his servants (John 15.20). In effect, Jesus coined the phrase, “No good deed goes unpunished,” when he pointed out that he was hated by the world for doing (good) works no one had ever seen before (John 15.24), even as the Psalmist had foreseen (Psalm 35.19).
So, again, how do we feel about the world hating us? If we try to avoid the world's animosity by being its friend, by loving the world as the world would be loved, we might not be the kind of disciple of Jesus we imagine ourselves to be. It's in loving the world like Jesus loved the world that we draw the world's ire. Are we loving like Jesus? I tell you, that is why he has chosen us, because, having known the love of the Father in and through the Son, we consider it our highest calling to love as we have been loved, though it earns us nothing but the world's hatred. And this lack of love from the world is why Jesus so emphasized the importance of his followers loving one another (John 1334; 15.17). It's the toughest, and greatest, love we'll ever know—direct to us from the Father in and through the Son.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Jesus Shared Privileged Information
What Did Jesus Do?
“All that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.”
John 15.15
It's frustrating, even belittling, to hear, “That information is on a need to know basis, and you don't need to know.” Ouch! Guess they put us in our place. For hundreds of years it was understood that man's place in relation to God was that of a servant. God was the indisputable master, and our job was to worship and serve him, end of story. God was under no obligation whatsoever to share anything with us, other than his commands. Any information sent to earth from on high was on a strictly “need to know” basis. But the master-servant relationship wasn't the end of the story. God had an entirely different relationship with us in mind, and he sent his Son to tell us about this relationship. The Father gave Jesus authority to share privileged information.
The whole master-servant relationship was to be transformed into a unique, and unimaginable friendship. Where servants are routinely kept in the dark, so to speak, by their masters; friends know all about each others' business, and Jesus no longer called God's people servants, but friends (John 15.15a). While servants simply do the bidding of their master, friends share in the work together. And the work of God is the work of a vinedresser who cultivates a vineyard so that it will bear much good fruit (John 15.1-2).
In order that the former servants-now friends should fully take up their part of God's work the Son passed along all that he heard from the Father (John 15.15b). The “secrets” of the Kingdom were no longer secret; the Father desired that we would no longer think of ourselves as his servants, but as his friends, even his daughters and sons who are privileged to call him “Abba” (see Romans 8.15).
Of course, a Father may yet not disclose everything to his children, even to the Son (see Matthew 24.36; Mark 13.32). And, though no longer servants under obligation to do the will of a master, we are under an even greater obligation, as children of our loving Father in heaven, to be obedient. The obedience that the Father desires from us is the same he asked of the Son, which is why the Son shared with us fully the privileged information that had passed between the Father and the Son. As the Son, by his obedience to the Father, loved us, so we are now to obediently love one another (John 15.17). As the Son, the true vine, yielded good fruit by fully submitting his life to the Father's will, so too with us. We have been chosen by the Son to be his friends, and children of the Father, for the express purpose of bearing much fruit as we submit our lives to the will of our gracious Father.
Jesus shared all this privileged information with us so that, when we ask in his name prayers for the bearing of much good fruit, the Father will grant it (John 15.16). If, in the end, “we are all fruit” (see WDJD for 5/28/11), we are all also part of the fruit bearing business of our Father. And the only thing that will produce fruit good enough for the Kingdom, fruit which will abide, is love. Jesus shared this privileged information with us because it's something everyone needs to know.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
“All that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.”
John 15.15
It's frustrating, even belittling, to hear, “That information is on a need to know basis, and you don't need to know.” Ouch! Guess they put us in our place. For hundreds of years it was understood that man's place in relation to God was that of a servant. God was the indisputable master, and our job was to worship and serve him, end of story. God was under no obligation whatsoever to share anything with us, other than his commands. Any information sent to earth from on high was on a strictly “need to know” basis. But the master-servant relationship wasn't the end of the story. God had an entirely different relationship with us in mind, and he sent his Son to tell us about this relationship. The Father gave Jesus authority to share privileged information.
The whole master-servant relationship was to be transformed into a unique, and unimaginable friendship. Where servants are routinely kept in the dark, so to speak, by their masters; friends know all about each others' business, and Jesus no longer called God's people servants, but friends (John 15.15a). While servants simply do the bidding of their master, friends share in the work together. And the work of God is the work of a vinedresser who cultivates a vineyard so that it will bear much good fruit (John 15.1-2).
In order that the former servants-now friends should fully take up their part of God's work the Son passed along all that he heard from the Father (John 15.15b). The “secrets” of the Kingdom were no longer secret; the Father desired that we would no longer think of ourselves as his servants, but as his friends, even his daughters and sons who are privileged to call him “Abba” (see Romans 8.15).
Of course, a Father may yet not disclose everything to his children, even to the Son (see Matthew 24.36; Mark 13.32). And, though no longer servants under obligation to do the will of a master, we are under an even greater obligation, as children of our loving Father in heaven, to be obedient. The obedience that the Father desires from us is the same he asked of the Son, which is why the Son shared with us fully the privileged information that had passed between the Father and the Son. As the Son, by his obedience to the Father, loved us, so we are now to obediently love one another (John 15.17). As the Son, the true vine, yielded good fruit by fully submitting his life to the Father's will, so too with us. We have been chosen by the Son to be his friends, and children of the Father, for the express purpose of bearing much fruit as we submit our lives to the will of our gracious Father.
Jesus shared all this privileged information with us so that, when we ask in his name prayers for the bearing of much good fruit, the Father will grant it (John 15.16). If, in the end, “we are all fruit” (see WDJD for 5/28/11), we are all also part of the fruit bearing business of our Father. And the only thing that will produce fruit good enough for the Kingdom, fruit which will abide, is love. Jesus shared this privileged information with us because it's something everyone needs to know.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Jesus Showed His Friends How To Love
What Did Jesus Do?
“Greater love has no one than this,
that someone lay down his life for his friends.”
John 15.13
It's one thing to issue commands, and quite another to go and execute them yourself. Jesus issued a command to his disciples that they love one another (John 15.12), then he went out and executed the order himself through his own execution/crucifixion. On the cross, Jesus showed his friends how to love.
The command to his followers was that they should love one another just as Jesus had loved them. Just how had Jesus loved his friends? He had fed them with true food and true drink (John 6.55); he had given them words of eternal life (John 6.68); he had saved them from drowning by calming the water and the wind (Mark 4.35-41); he had healed loved ones (Mark 1.30-31); he had even called a friend back from the dead (John 11.43-44). But all this would soon take a backseat to the demonstration of love the disciples were about to witness.
You see, there's love, and there's greater love, and then there is no greater love. The Lord was about to show his friends, and the world, love to the highest pitch of devotion. In all of history, there has never been, nor ever will be, a greater expression of love than the Cross whereon Jesus laid down his life. Jesus issued the command to his friends, already knowing that in a few hours he himself would execute the “order.” I believe this is how Jesus was able to append to the command a challenge, “You are my friends if you do what I command you.” (John 15.14) Only a coward or despot would give a command he was unwilling to obey himself. Jesus issued the command to love, and then showed his friends how to love.
It's not that Jesus commanded all his friends to climb up on a cross themselves. But the Lord had made it quite clear that to follow him required bearing one's own cross (Matthew 16.24). It's not that Jesus commanded all his friends to die for one another. But the Lord made it quite clear that there is no greater love than that love willing to sacrifice itself for the sake of another.
What it comes down to is this, no one can go around claiming to love Jesus who is not willing to love like Jesus. This is the true cost of discipleship, to be willing to love regardless of the personal price to be paid. It is a way of life radically contrasted with a “me first,” “I'm #1” culture. And, in truth, it is rare to find, even, and, all too often, especially, in the Church.
The question facing each of the Lord's “friends” is, will we or won't we obey his command? If we would truly be his friends, then we have only one choice—to love one another, even to the point of making the supreme sacrifice, should it come to that, for a friend, or an enemy. For, you see, that's what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
“Greater love has no one than this,
that someone lay down his life for his friends.”
John 15.13
It's one thing to issue commands, and quite another to go and execute them yourself. Jesus issued a command to his disciples that they love one another (John 15.12), then he went out and executed the order himself through his own execution/crucifixion. On the cross, Jesus showed his friends how to love.
The command to his followers was that they should love one another just as Jesus had loved them. Just how had Jesus loved his friends? He had fed them with true food and true drink (John 6.55); he had given them words of eternal life (John 6.68); he had saved them from drowning by calming the water and the wind (Mark 4.35-41); he had healed loved ones (Mark 1.30-31); he had even called a friend back from the dead (John 11.43-44). But all this would soon take a backseat to the demonstration of love the disciples were about to witness.
You see, there's love, and there's greater love, and then there is no greater love. The Lord was about to show his friends, and the world, love to the highest pitch of devotion. In all of history, there has never been, nor ever will be, a greater expression of love than the Cross whereon Jesus laid down his life. Jesus issued the command to his friends, already knowing that in a few hours he himself would execute the “order.” I believe this is how Jesus was able to append to the command a challenge, “You are my friends if you do what I command you.” (John 15.14) Only a coward or despot would give a command he was unwilling to obey himself. Jesus issued the command to love, and then showed his friends how to love.
It's not that Jesus commanded all his friends to climb up on a cross themselves. But the Lord had made it quite clear that to follow him required bearing one's own cross (Matthew 16.24). It's not that Jesus commanded all his friends to die for one another. But the Lord made it quite clear that there is no greater love than that love willing to sacrifice itself for the sake of another.
What it comes down to is this, no one can go around claiming to love Jesus who is not willing to love like Jesus. This is the true cost of discipleship, to be willing to love regardless of the personal price to be paid. It is a way of life radically contrasted with a “me first,” “I'm #1” culture. And, in truth, it is rare to find, even, and, all too often, especially, in the Church.
The question facing each of the Lord's “friends” is, will we or won't we obey his command? If we would truly be his friends, then we have only one choice—to love one another, even to the point of making the supreme sacrifice, should it come to that, for a friend, or an enemy. For, you see, that's what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Jesus Produced Joy-filled Fruit
What Did Jesus Do?
“Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit...
These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you,
and that your joy may be full.”
John 15.5, 11
You gotta love Greek philosophers. No, I don't mean Plato or Socrates, I'm talking about Gus Portokalos, the sage, and funny, font of wisdom in My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Gus was always informing the world how it owed pretty much everything to the Greeks, and it was all but impossible to argue with him. For instance, there was his speech at his daughter Toula's wedding to Ian Miller. After noting that the root of Miller is the Greek melo (apple), and that Portokalos derived from the Greek word for orange, Gus declared that, though we are all different, “in the end we are all fruit.” Watch, you'll love it!
Now, a lot of people may be inclined to dismiss old Gus Portokalos as a proud and foolish old man, but I'm not one of them. Gus knew what he was talking about. I mean, the Portokalos family, and their myriad relatives, were all Greek Orthodox believers, and as such, as Gus so correctly declared, though not in the exact words, in Christ we are all fruit!
You see, Jesus is the true vine,and his Father is the vinedresser (John 15.1). Together, Father and Son preside over the world's most vast, fruitful, and joy-filled vineyard—the body of believers at all times in all places. True, Jesus did not call us fruit, but rather fruitful branches, if we abide in him. But it's hard to make a sharp distinction between branch and fruit, even as separating a vine and its branches must only be done with care and consideration. A vine with no branches is little better than a branch with no fruit. I mean, without the evidence of the fruit attached to the branch, how can anyone know that the branch is fruitful? And without branches just how productive could any vine be? There is an organic unity, an essential abiding of one in the other, that makes vine, branch, and fruit all one in the end. Clearly, it is the Father's will that the true vine and its branches be fruitful (John 15.2), and this fruitfulness accrues to the Father's glory (John 15.8).
And, what fruit! Why, each “grape” that is produced by each branch of the true vine is filled with joy (John 15.11). This is one way you can tell one congregation from another. Those churches that are just a bunch of sour grapes, as it were, bear little fruit, and even less evidence of being connected to the vine. But where the Spirit of joy, the Spirit of the Lord, is, well there you see much fruit, sweet and joy-filled, abiding and abounding in Jesus. Seemingly, day by day, the Father adds to the number of “grapes” on these branches.
Now, there may be fruitful Orthodox churches, and fruitful Roman churches, and fruitful Pentecostal churches—there may even be fruitful Presbyterian churches—all different, but in the end, all fruitful, all joy-filled. The one essential is the connection to the true vine. Here's the thing, if there's not evidence of a church, or an individual Christian, bearing fruit, there's only so much time before the Father will prune. And the one place to begin to be fruitful, is to know the joy of the Lord, for it is only the filling of the true joy of the true vine that produces true fruit. That's what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
“Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit...
These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you,
and that your joy may be full.”
John 15.5, 11
You gotta love Greek philosophers. No, I don't mean Plato or Socrates, I'm talking about Gus Portokalos, the sage, and funny, font of wisdom in My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Gus was always informing the world how it owed pretty much everything to the Greeks, and it was all but impossible to argue with him. For instance, there was his speech at his daughter Toula's wedding to Ian Miller. After noting that the root of Miller is the Greek melo (apple), and that Portokalos derived from the Greek word for orange, Gus declared that, though we are all different, “in the end we are all fruit.” Watch, you'll love it!
Now, a lot of people may be inclined to dismiss old Gus Portokalos as a proud and foolish old man, but I'm not one of them. Gus knew what he was talking about. I mean, the Portokalos family, and their myriad relatives, were all Greek Orthodox believers, and as such, as Gus so correctly declared, though not in the exact words, in Christ we are all fruit!
You see, Jesus is the true vine,and his Father is the vinedresser (John 15.1). Together, Father and Son preside over the world's most vast, fruitful, and joy-filled vineyard—the body of believers at all times in all places. True, Jesus did not call us fruit, but rather fruitful branches, if we abide in him. But it's hard to make a sharp distinction between branch and fruit, even as separating a vine and its branches must only be done with care and consideration. A vine with no branches is little better than a branch with no fruit. I mean, without the evidence of the fruit attached to the branch, how can anyone know that the branch is fruitful? And without branches just how productive could any vine be? There is an organic unity, an essential abiding of one in the other, that makes vine, branch, and fruit all one in the end. Clearly, it is the Father's will that the true vine and its branches be fruitful (John 15.2), and this fruitfulness accrues to the Father's glory (John 15.8).
And, what fruit! Why, each “grape” that is produced by each branch of the true vine is filled with joy (John 15.11). This is one way you can tell one congregation from another. Those churches that are just a bunch of sour grapes, as it were, bear little fruit, and even less evidence of being connected to the vine. But where the Spirit of joy, the Spirit of the Lord, is, well there you see much fruit, sweet and joy-filled, abiding and abounding in Jesus. Seemingly, day by day, the Father adds to the number of “grapes” on these branches.
Now, there may be fruitful Orthodox churches, and fruitful Roman churches, and fruitful Pentecostal churches—there may even be fruitful Presbyterian churches—all different, but in the end, all fruitful, all joy-filled. The one essential is the connection to the true vine. Here's the thing, if there's not evidence of a church, or an individual Christian, bearing fruit, there's only so much time before the Father will prune. And the one place to begin to be fruitful, is to know the joy of the Lord, for it is only the filling of the true joy of the true vine that produces true fruit. That's what Jesus did.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Friday, May 27, 2011
Jesus Clearly Saw The Future, And Said, "Fear Not"
What Did Jesus Do?
“Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
John 14.27
Fear of the unknown can trouble even the stoutest hearts. And few things are more unknowable than the future. “What if...” can start our minds to worrying and our hearts to fearing what could happen later today, what might happen tomorrow, what there's a chance of happening next month. Jesus, knowing both what the future held and how vulnerable his disciples' hearts were to fear of the unknown, looked at and clearly saw a frightening future and said, “Fear not.”
Some, armed with half knowledge, which is to say they are quite familiar with the heart's fear of the unknown but absolutely in the dark about the future, have found that it can be profitable to exploit fear. I am sure you've heard all about the “seer” in California who has filched millions from the fearful with his proclamations about the rapture and end of the world. In marked contrast, Jesus, who wanted his disciples to be unafraid, asked nothing of his followers, but rather offered them much.
First of all, Jesus offered the Helper, the Holy Spirit, to take his place as Teacher, and to serve as a memory aid to help his disciples recall all his words (John 14.26). To avoid any possibility of the unknown causing anxious worry to paralyze his followers, Jesus promised us that we would have the direct assistance of the Spirit who possesses all knowledge of past, present, and future.
Jesus also gave his followers his peace, the fullness of his shalom (John 14.27). Note that I said fullness. While the world may think of peace in terms of the absence of conflict and war, Christ's peace is the positive, confident, assured, certain hope of a heart and the mind filled with the knowledge and love of the Father, and of the Son.
What Jesus wanted his disciples to understand and celebrate was not that he would soon be leaving them, but that he was about to go to the Father, who was even greater than he (John 14.28). The future was not about parting, but about coming together, and being together forever (see John 14.2-3).
Having several times spoken with his disciples about his approaching death, and his resurrection (see John 12.32; also Luke 9.21-22, 43-45; 18.31-34), Jesus again spoke of what would soon occur so that, when it was fulfilled, his followers would believe (John 14.29). It amazes me how Harold Camping, whose “prophecies” have consistently proven false, can still have anyone who gives him any credence. Fear, which again Camping and his ilk play upon to his great profit, makes not only cowards, but apparently fools as well. Jesus would not have us be fearful or foolish, but faithful.
Finally, Jesus wanted those whom he loved to know for a certainty who was in control. For, though it might soon appear to the disciples as if the devil was exercising his power in the world and even over Jesus, the Son obeyed no authority but that of the Father alone, who was and is absolutely sovereign over all (John 14.30-31). Chapter 14 begins and ends with Jesus offering his followers hope and peace in the place of fear, through faith in the Father and the Son.
Christ's disciples have a responsibility to be, well, responsible. We are not to play upon people's anxieties and their fear of the unknown, but rather to share with them our hope and our peace in the sure and certain knowledge of the Father and the Son, knowledge which the Helper, the Spirit of Truth, conveys from the hearts of those who believe to the hearts of those being saved by faith in Jesus Christ.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
“Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
John 14.27
Fear of the unknown can trouble even the stoutest hearts. And few things are more unknowable than the future. “What if...” can start our minds to worrying and our hearts to fearing what could happen later today, what might happen tomorrow, what there's a chance of happening next month. Jesus, knowing both what the future held and how vulnerable his disciples' hearts were to fear of the unknown, looked at and clearly saw a frightening future and said, “Fear not.”
Some, armed with half knowledge, which is to say they are quite familiar with the heart's fear of the unknown but absolutely in the dark about the future, have found that it can be profitable to exploit fear. I am sure you've heard all about the “seer” in California who has filched millions from the fearful with his proclamations about the rapture and end of the world. In marked contrast, Jesus, who wanted his disciples to be unafraid, asked nothing of his followers, but rather offered them much.
First of all, Jesus offered the Helper, the Holy Spirit, to take his place as Teacher, and to serve as a memory aid to help his disciples recall all his words (John 14.26). To avoid any possibility of the unknown causing anxious worry to paralyze his followers, Jesus promised us that we would have the direct assistance of the Spirit who possesses all knowledge of past, present, and future.
Jesus also gave his followers his peace, the fullness of his shalom (John 14.27). Note that I said fullness. While the world may think of peace in terms of the absence of conflict and war, Christ's peace is the positive, confident, assured, certain hope of a heart and the mind filled with the knowledge and love of the Father, and of the Son.
What Jesus wanted his disciples to understand and celebrate was not that he would soon be leaving them, but that he was about to go to the Father, who was even greater than he (John 14.28). The future was not about parting, but about coming together, and being together forever (see John 14.2-3).
Having several times spoken with his disciples about his approaching death, and his resurrection (see John 12.32; also Luke 9.21-22, 43-45; 18.31-34), Jesus again spoke of what would soon occur so that, when it was fulfilled, his followers would believe (John 14.29). It amazes me how Harold Camping, whose “prophecies” have consistently proven false, can still have anyone who gives him any credence. Fear, which again Camping and his ilk play upon to his great profit, makes not only cowards, but apparently fools as well. Jesus would not have us be fearful or foolish, but faithful.
Finally, Jesus wanted those whom he loved to know for a certainty who was in control. For, though it might soon appear to the disciples as if the devil was exercising his power in the world and even over Jesus, the Son obeyed no authority but that of the Father alone, who was and is absolutely sovereign over all (John 14.30-31). Chapter 14 begins and ends with Jesus offering his followers hope and peace in the place of fear, through faith in the Father and the Son.
Christ's disciples have a responsibility to be, well, responsible. We are not to play upon people's anxieties and their fear of the unknown, but rather to share with them our hope and our peace in the sure and certain knowledge of the Father and the Son, knowledge which the Helper, the Spirit of Truth, conveys from the hearts of those who believe to the hearts of those being saved by faith in Jesus Christ.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Jesus Spoke of Where The Father and Son Would "Settle Down"
What Did Jesus Do?
“If anyone loves me, he will keep my word,
and my Father will love him, and we will come to him
and make our home with him.”
John 14.23
Have you ever fallen in love with a place? Lots of people have a special place, a place where they hope and dream of moving to and settling down “ some day.” Maybe it is a spot visited once or more on vacation. Perhaps business takes someone to a location that so captures them that they determine to relocate there. There have even been people who go on short-term mission trips who conceive such a strong bond with a place and a people that they eventually move there. This is actually what Jesus did.
You see, the Son, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit, is eternal (Which is a VERY long time), came to earth on a “mission trip” which lasted roughly thirty years (Which, compared to eternity, is a VERY short-term visit). But, while on his “short-term” mission, Jesus declared that, because of the great love both he and the Father have for those who love them and who keep their Word, he and the Father had determined that they would both come and settle down with men, making their home with us.
Can you imagine? Having dwelt from eternity past in the majesty and glory of heaven, and with all the Cosmos to choose from, the Father and Son declare that their heart's desire is to come and dwell through eternity future with us! That is amazing. It is especially amazing when we consider how men treated Jesus during the Incarnation. Many ignored him. Quite a number rejected him. A few actually hated him. Even among his closest friends one would betray him, one would deny him, and the rest would desert him. No wonder he declared that he wanted to make his home with us forever! Well, of course, the true wonder is that the Father and the Son didn't deal with the world and man as we deserved, but as dictated by their love and amazing grace.
I believe the best thing about God's choice of where he would “settle down,”' is that he didn't put it off until “some day.” That's right, we don't have to wait until “some day” for the Father and Son to move in, as it were, and for eternity to begin. The moment we confess our sin and repent, and receive Christ, the Father and Son see that the Spirit works to incline our heart to love Jesus more and more, and and to keep his commandments. And the Trinity moves in to make our heart their home. Wow. I mean, just, wow!
By implication, then, wherever a believer goes, so go the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We, the Church, the Body of Christ, are the living, loving presence of God, in the world, or at least we are supposed to be. Just as we were all once sinners, and God, through the Church, in the person of, well, one or more persons who loved Jesus and kept his commandments (People in and with whom God had “settled down”), came and brought the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit into our life, so we, who are now part of the Body of Christ, are to go live and love like Jesus. In this way the Father and Son come and make a home in other repenting hearts. It sounds more and more to me as if God desires nothing more than that his children should live with him as one, big, happy family.
But as I survey the landscape, the more it seems littered with angry, broken, splintered little collections of people who exhibit anything but any kind of love and unity, much less the gracious and transforming presence of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Mega-churches notwithstanding, the average size of the average congregation is getting smaller and smaller, even as the number of congregations seemingly multiplies. With all the bad feelings, not to mention bad words, so many of these little splintered parts have for one another, I have a hard time finding places where the Father and Son have actually come and settled down.
But, make no mistake about it, when Jesus spoke of the Father and Son settling down, he declared that they would dwell with those who love them and who keep their word. Every believer needs to ask, “Have the Father and Son come to make their home with me?” It the answer is “Yes,” then there should be no trouble at all with our being “at home” with other believers, regardless of the music they sing, the clothes they wear, or the Bible translation they read.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
“If anyone loves me, he will keep my word,
and my Father will love him, and we will come to him
and make our home with him.”
John 14.23
Have you ever fallen in love with a place? Lots of people have a special place, a place where they hope and dream of moving to and settling down “ some day.” Maybe it is a spot visited once or more on vacation. Perhaps business takes someone to a location that so captures them that they determine to relocate there. There have even been people who go on short-term mission trips who conceive such a strong bond with a place and a people that they eventually move there. This is actually what Jesus did.
You see, the Son, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit, is eternal (Which is a VERY long time), came to earth on a “mission trip” which lasted roughly thirty years (Which, compared to eternity, is a VERY short-term visit). But, while on his “short-term” mission, Jesus declared that, because of the great love both he and the Father have for those who love them and who keep their Word, he and the Father had determined that they would both come and settle down with men, making their home with us.
Can you imagine? Having dwelt from eternity past in the majesty and glory of heaven, and with all the Cosmos to choose from, the Father and Son declare that their heart's desire is to come and dwell through eternity future with us! That is amazing. It is especially amazing when we consider how men treated Jesus during the Incarnation. Many ignored him. Quite a number rejected him. A few actually hated him. Even among his closest friends one would betray him, one would deny him, and the rest would desert him. No wonder he declared that he wanted to make his home with us forever! Well, of course, the true wonder is that the Father and the Son didn't deal with the world and man as we deserved, but as dictated by their love and amazing grace.
I believe the best thing about God's choice of where he would “settle down,”' is that he didn't put it off until “some day.” That's right, we don't have to wait until “some day” for the Father and Son to move in, as it were, and for eternity to begin. The moment we confess our sin and repent, and receive Christ, the Father and Son see that the Spirit works to incline our heart to love Jesus more and more, and and to keep his commandments. And the Trinity moves in to make our heart their home. Wow. I mean, just, wow!
By implication, then, wherever a believer goes, so go the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We, the Church, the Body of Christ, are the living, loving presence of God, in the world, or at least we are supposed to be. Just as we were all once sinners, and God, through the Church, in the person of, well, one or more persons who loved Jesus and kept his commandments (People in and with whom God had “settled down”), came and brought the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit into our life, so we, who are now part of the Body of Christ, are to go live and love like Jesus. In this way the Father and Son come and make a home in other repenting hearts. It sounds more and more to me as if God desires nothing more than that his children should live with him as one, big, happy family.
But as I survey the landscape, the more it seems littered with angry, broken, splintered little collections of people who exhibit anything but any kind of love and unity, much less the gracious and transforming presence of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Mega-churches notwithstanding, the average size of the average congregation is getting smaller and smaller, even as the number of congregations seemingly multiplies. With all the bad feelings, not to mention bad words, so many of these little splintered parts have for one another, I have a hard time finding places where the Father and Son have actually come and settled down.
But, make no mistake about it, when Jesus spoke of the Father and Son settling down, he declared that they would dwell with those who love them and who keep their word. Every believer needs to ask, “Have the Father and Son come to make their home with me?” It the answer is “Yes,” then there should be no trouble at all with our being “at home” with other believers, regardless of the music they sing, the clothes they wear, or the Bible translation they read.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Jesus Promised Us Help
What Did Jesus Do?
“I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper,
to be with you forever...”
John 14.16
I love insurance commercials. They assure us that we're in “good hands,” that they're “on our side,” and, "like a good neighbor, they're there.” I mean, the folks in the ads are so earnest and sincere that they almost make me forget that insurance companies are in business for the purpose of making money. Don't get me wrong, I've got auto insurance, homeowners insurance, and life insurance, and I'm happy that there are companies who provide these products. But I'm not about to confuse them with altruists. Sure they'll help. That's why I've paid them a $100,000 and more in premiums and deductibles during my lifetime.
Thankfully, God has never sent us a bill for the insurance, and assurance, he supplies us. You see, when Jesus promised us help, it was with the full knowledge that he himself would pay the “premium.” And, unlike my insurance policy which is always expiring and needing to be renewed—the help, actually the Helper, Jesus promised (the Holy Spirit), he promised forever.
Another thing about insurance companies, they keep you waiting a lot. Call them and you're likely to be put on hold after 10 minutes or so of working your way through the automated prompts of their answering system. If you are not careful, you may make a mistake and have to go back to the end of the queue. And, when you finally get through to someone you are likely to wait several days, if not weeks, for an adjustor to show up to verify your claim. But the Helper Jesus promised is always with us, dwells with us. In fact, he's an “insider” (see John 14.17). He's always present and ready to help us.
Even better, the help the Helper provides us is not just timely, it's perfectly, well, divine. Because, you see, the Helper is the very presence and power of the Father and Son, with, in, and for us. It's rather ironic that the world cannot receive help from the Helper. Dollar signs and other idols make the world essentially blind to the truth, which means the world cannot see the Helper, who is the very Spirit of Truth.
But, here's the thing, though there are many who have not received the help Jesus promised, a good number of them may yet receive it. How? Well a big part of it is up to us. If the Holy Spirit is presently invisible to them, they neither see him nor know him. But, if they could but see him and know him, there is every likelihood that they would receive him. My question to you is, where is the Holy Spirit now? If we have received him, then Jesus says that the Spirit dwells among us and even in us. So, if people are going to see and know the Spirit of Truth, their best chance of doing so is for us to exhibit him to them. That's right, today you and I can help someone to see the Spirit at work in us, or not. The key, I believe, is the kind of fruit our lives produce each day. When the Spirit is working in us, when we are exhibiting him, there is such wonderful fruit, you see (see Galatians 5.22-23). Unlike the fruit that our ancestors ate, which enabled all of us to see and know sin, but be blind to righteousness, the Fruit of the Spirit in our lives helps others to see and know the Truth, even Jesus Christ.
Jesus promised us help, in the person of the Helper, in order that we might be helpers who help others to see and know him. Imagine if everyone who has the Spirit within them helped someone to see him and know him today, why it could mean a whole lot of people being added this day to the number being saved. And, you know what, that's what Jesus did when he helped us.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
“I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper,
to be with you forever...”
John 14.16
I love insurance commercials. They assure us that we're in “good hands,” that they're “on our side,” and, "like a good neighbor, they're there.” I mean, the folks in the ads are so earnest and sincere that they almost make me forget that insurance companies are in business for the purpose of making money. Don't get me wrong, I've got auto insurance, homeowners insurance, and life insurance, and I'm happy that there are companies who provide these products. But I'm not about to confuse them with altruists. Sure they'll help. That's why I've paid them a $100,000 and more in premiums and deductibles during my lifetime.
Thankfully, God has never sent us a bill for the insurance, and assurance, he supplies us. You see, when Jesus promised us help, it was with the full knowledge that he himself would pay the “premium.” And, unlike my insurance policy which is always expiring and needing to be renewed—the help, actually the Helper, Jesus promised (the Holy Spirit), he promised forever.
Another thing about insurance companies, they keep you waiting a lot. Call them and you're likely to be put on hold after 10 minutes or so of working your way through the automated prompts of their answering system. If you are not careful, you may make a mistake and have to go back to the end of the queue. And, when you finally get through to someone you are likely to wait several days, if not weeks, for an adjustor to show up to verify your claim. But the Helper Jesus promised is always with us, dwells with us. In fact, he's an “insider” (see John 14.17). He's always present and ready to help us.
Even better, the help the Helper provides us is not just timely, it's perfectly, well, divine. Because, you see, the Helper is the very presence and power of the Father and Son, with, in, and for us. It's rather ironic that the world cannot receive help from the Helper. Dollar signs and other idols make the world essentially blind to the truth, which means the world cannot see the Helper, who is the very Spirit of Truth.
But, here's the thing, though there are many who have not received the help Jesus promised, a good number of them may yet receive it. How? Well a big part of it is up to us. If the Holy Spirit is presently invisible to them, they neither see him nor know him. But, if they could but see him and know him, there is every likelihood that they would receive him. My question to you is, where is the Holy Spirit now? If we have received him, then Jesus says that the Spirit dwells among us and even in us. So, if people are going to see and know the Spirit of Truth, their best chance of doing so is for us to exhibit him to them. That's right, today you and I can help someone to see the Spirit at work in us, or not. The key, I believe, is the kind of fruit our lives produce each day. When the Spirit is working in us, when we are exhibiting him, there is such wonderful fruit, you see (see Galatians 5.22-23). Unlike the fruit that our ancestors ate, which enabled all of us to see and know sin, but be blind to righteousness, the Fruit of the Spirit in our lives helps others to see and know the Truth, even Jesus Christ.
Jesus promised us help, in the person of the Helper, in order that we might be helpers who help others to see and know him. Imagine if everyone who has the Spirit within them helped someone to see him and know him today, why it could mean a whole lot of people being added this day to the number being saved. And, you know what, that's what Jesus did when he helped us.
S.D.G.
Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4
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