Notes of Faith May 7, 2020

This is the National Day of Prayer

I’ve come to the place where I have had to stop telling people, “I’ll pray for you.”

I simply know that despite my good intentions — and these promises are almost always spoken with good intent — I know that nine times out of ten I just don’t remember to follow through. Not until maybe a week or two later, and then I feel guilty that I forgot. I don’t like promising something I probably won’t live up to.

You know how these stories go: Someone you care about tells you of their pain, need, or struggle, and you respond with, “Oh, I’m so sorry to hear that; I’ll pray for you.” But then, most of the time, we never do.

If all the prayers that were promised were actually prayed, this would be a different world by now.

So instead of promising future prayer, what I try to do nowadays is stop, right there in the moment, and pray. Right then and there. It’s funny how many Christians this actually throws off guard. “You mean, right now?” “Yes — absolutely. Let’s pray.”

In the restaurant, in the car, on the plane, wherever. If it’s a text or e-mail request, I’ll start praying as I type my response, typing out a prayer for them right then and there. Not only does it help me follow through, but it helps them to agree right along with what I have prayed, and agreement is mighty powerful, as we know.

I’m thinking of St. Patrick, how he would pray through the course of the day as he worked: “Tending flocks was my daily work, and I would pray constantly through the daylight hours. The love of God and the fear of Him surrounded me more and more — and faith grew and the spirit was roused, so that in one day I would say as many as a hundred prayers and after dark nearly as many again.”1

He simply did it right there, in the moment. For the truth is, there is no “later.”

"Now is the time to pray, for now is all we really have."

“Jesus, come into this — we invite You into this” is a great place to start. Whatever the need — guidance, direction, encouragement, healing, protection; the cancelled flight, the report from the doctor, the tension in relationship — this is the place to start. Invite Jesus right into the heart of it all, right there, in the moment. “Jesus, come into this — we invite You into this.”

We do this often in our meetings at Ransomed Heart. Someone will say, “I think we ought to pray about such-and-such,” and I’ll reply, “Go for it. Lead us. Right now,” and we’ll stop what we are doing and pray. Because if we don’t, we rarely get back around to it. I don’t know how many Christian meetings I’ve been in — board meetings, elder meetings — when all the time is used talking about what needs prayer, and we find we have barely a few minutes left at the end for one quick, little, rushed prayer.

It’s a brilliant ploy of the enemy — keep God’s people talking about it, debating, conjecturing, worrying over it, speculating, so they never really get around to praying.

By all means, pray when you have time and space to devote yourself to it, time to truly seek God. But pray now too — because you don’t know that you will get to it later.

1. Thomas Cahill, How the Irish Saved Civilization: The Untold Story of Ireland’s Heroic Role from the Fall of Rome to the Rise of Medieval Europe (New York: Anchor, Doubleday, 1996), 102.

Excerpted from Moving Mountains by John Eldredge, copyright John Eldredge, 2016.

“Pray Now!” That would make a great note to stick on the fridge, or car dashboard, or desk. Today and going forward, when we hear that prayer is needed, let us not respond with, “I will pray”, but pray right then and there instead!

Pastor Dale

Sample prayers…

Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all. — 2 Thessalonians 3:16

Father, You are wise and all-knowing. You allow all things to happen in Your perfect timing. Please give me peace in the midst of a busy season with my family. I feel pulled in so many directions by my kids’ needs, my husband’s requests, and my life.

Surround my family in this time. May Your peace bring us all peace, and may You create a calm environment in our home.

Thank You that You have gone before us in this hectic time and for bringing order to the chaos when we need it most. Thank You for giving me time to hug my kids and show them what a precious gift they are to me.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. — Isaiah 26:3

Dear God, Your ways are perfect. Your will is good. You deserve all praise.

You have promised perfect peace to those who focus on You. Help me to keep my thoughts on You. When I rush ahead to the next plan or responsibility, bring me back to You and Your goodness.

Help my children to fix their eyes on you when they experience fear or anxiety. Show them who You are, and grow their trust in You.

I am grateful for the gift of peace we have in You. Thank You for the example of faith that I see in my children’s lives.

In Your precious name I pray, amen.

A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.
— Proverbs 16:9
 

Father, You are outside of time. You know what will happen before it happens. You are the creator and ruler of all. Steady my heart today as I make to-do lists. Direct my steps. Do not let me be overcome by anxiety and fear. Direct the steps of my family today as well. Show them that Your way truly is the best way, and give them a desire to do Your will.

Thank You for Your steadfast love.

Thank You for giving me time to play with my children and for the joy that it brings to us all. I’m so grateful for their laughter and hugs.

In Your name I pray, amen.

Excerpted from Pocket Prayers for Moms by Max Lucado, copyright Max Lucado.

Lord, bless our moms during this season. Give moms extra peace that surpasses human understanding. Help moms build time into the day to rest, relax, reflect, and laugh.

Notes of Faith May 6, 2020

Sometimes we need to plunge our minds into the ocean of God’s sovereignty. We need to feel the weight of it, like deep and heavy water pressing in against every pore, the deeper we go. A billion rivers of providence pour into this ocean. And God himself gathers up all his countless deeds — from eternity to eternity — and pours them into the currents of his infallible revelation. He speaks, and explains, and promises, and makes his awesome, sovereign providence the place we feel most reverent, most secure, most free.

Sometimes we need to be reminded by God himself that there are no limits to his rule. We need to hear from him that he is sovereign over the whole world, and everything that happens in it. We need his own reminder that he is never helpless, never frustrated, never at a loss. We need his assurance that he reigns over ISIS, terrorism, Syria, Russia, China, India, Nigeria, France, Myanmar, Saudi Arabia, and the United States of America — every nation, every people, every language, every tribe, every chief, president, king, premier, prime minister, and politician, great or small.

Sometimes we need to hear specific statements from God himself about his own authority. We need God’s own words. It is the very words of God that have unusual power to settle our nerves, and make us stable, wise, and courageous.

God’s Voice

On the one hand, hearing the voice of God is like a frightened child who hears the voice downstairs, and realizes that daddy’s home. Whatever those other sounds were, it’s okay. Daddy’s home.

On the other hand, it feels like the seasoned troops, dug in at the front line of battle, and about to be overrun by the enemy. But then they get word that a thousand impenetrable tanks are rushing to their aid. They are only one mile away. You will be saved, and the enemy will not stand.

Vague generalizations about the power of God do not have the same effect as the very voice of God telling us specifically how strong he is, how pervasive his power, how universal his authority, how unlimited his sovereignty. And that our times are in his hands.

So let’s listen. Let’s treat the Bible as the voice of God. Let’s turn what the Bible says about God into what God says about God — which is what the Bible really is — God speaking about God.
And as we listen, let us praise him. There is no other fitting way to listen to God’s exaltation of God. This is what happens to the human soul when we plunge into the ocean of God’s sovereignty.

We praise you, O God, that all authority in the universe belongs to you.

“There is no authority except from me, and those that exist have been instituted by me.” (Romans 13:1)

“You, Pilate, would have no authority over my Son at all unless it had been given you from me.” (John 19:11)

We stand in awe, O God, that in your freedom you do all that you please and all that you plan.

“Whatever I please, I do, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps.” (Psalm 135:6)

“I work all things according to the counsel of my will.” (Ephesians 1:11)

“I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose.’” (Isaiah 46:9–10)

We marvel, O God, that you share this total authority and rule completely with your Son.

“I have given all authority in heaven and on earth to my Son, Jesus.” (Matthew 28:18)

“I love my Son and have given all things into his hand.” (John 3:35)

“I have given my Son authority over all flesh.” (John 17:2)

“I have put all things in subjection under my Son’s feet — all things except myself.” (1 Corinthians 15:27)

“I raised my Son from the dead and seated him at my right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion. . . . I put all things under his feet.” (Ephesians 1:20–22)
“I welcomed my Son into heaven. He is at my right hand, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him.” (1 Peter 3:22)

We submit with reverence to you, O God, because, through your Son, you remove and install the rulers of the world.

“Wisdom and might belong to me. I change times and seasons; I remove kings and set up kings.” (Daniel 2:20–21)

“I loose the bonds of kings and bind a waistcloth on their hips.” (Job 12:18)

“I sent my angel and struck Herod down, because he did not give me glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.” (Acts 12:23)

Indeed, O God, you not only raise rulers and put them down; you govern all their deeds in every age.

“The king’s heart is a stream of water in my hand, says the Lord; I turn it wherever I will.” (Proverbs 21:1)

“I will put an end to the wealth of Egypt, by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. . . . I will break the yoke of Egypt, and her proud might shall come to an end. . . . I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and put my sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh.” (Ezekiel 30:10, 18, 24)

“I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant, and I have given him also the beasts of the field to serve him. All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson, until the time of his own land comes. Then many nations and great kings shall make him their slave.” (Jeremiah 27:6–7)

“As I have planned, so shall it be, and as I have purposed, so shall it stand. I will break the Assyrian in my land; and his yoke shall depart from my people.” (Isaiah 14:24–25)

“I will make the nations the inheritance of my Son, and the ends of the earth will be his possession. He shall break them with a rod of iron.” (Psalm 2:8–9)

We acknowledge with wonder, O God, that no plan of man succeeds but those which you, in unfathomable wisdom, permit.
“I bring the counsel of the nations to nothing; I frustrate the plans of the peoples.” (Psalm 33:10)

“No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against me.” (Proverbs 21:30)

And how mighty and wise you are, O God, that no man, no nation, force of nature can thwart your holy plans.

“No purpose of mine can be thwarted.” (Job 42:2)

“I do according to my will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay my hand or say to me, ‘What have you done?’” (Daniel 4:35)

“There is none who can deliver from my hand; I work, and who can turn it back?” (Isaiah 43:13)

So, we bow, as dust in the scales, O God, and confess with joy, that we are as nothing compared to your greatness.

“Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as the dust on the scales. . . . All the nations are as nothing before me, they are accounted as less than nothing and emptiness.” (Isaiah 40:15, 17)

“I sit above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers. I stretch out the heavens like a curtain, and spread them like a tent to dwell in. I bring princes to nothing, and make the rulers of the earth as emptiness.” (Isaiah 40:22–23)

The joy of our hope, O God, is that you magnify your greatness by lifting up the low, and putting down the proud.

“Who but me can say to a king, ‘Worthless one,’ and to nobles, ‘Wicked man’? I show no partiality to princes, nor regard the rich more than the poor, for they are all the work of my hands.” (Job 34:18–19)

“I shatter the mighty without investigation and set others in their place.” (Job 34:24)

“I look on everyone who is proud and bring him low and tread down the wicked where they stand.” (Job 40:12)

“I the LORD kill and bring to life; I bring down to Sheol and raise up. I make poor and make rich; I bring low and I exalt.” (1 Samuel 2:6–7)

“I have scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; I have brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate.” (Luke 1:51–52)

And so it will be forever, O God. You rule over all, with an everlasting rule, for the sake of the lowly who trust your Son.

“I live forever, for my dominion is an everlasting dominion, and my kingdom endures from generation to generation.” (Daniel 4:34)

“My dominion shall not pass away, and my kingdom shall not be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:14)

“My Son will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:33)

Therefore, overflowing with praise and thanks, O precious and holy God, we rest in your absolute sovereignty over our lives. And rejoice to hear you say,

“Your times are in my hand.” (Psalm 31:15)

Spend some time meditating on these verses looking into the very face of God, listening to His voice…and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.

Pastor Dale

Tomorrow is the National Day of Prayer - Please see a following email from me today regarding another opportunity to participate through the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.

WILL YOU JOIN WITH CHRISTIANS ALL ACROSS AMERICA FOR A SPECIAL TIME OF PRAYER?
Virtual Event | Thursday, May 7 | 8-10 p.m.

Your prayers make a difference. Amid the uncertainty we are facing, it’s important to lift up our neighbors and our nation in prayer. Will you join with fellow believers and Christian leaders for a time of dedicated prayer this Thursday from 8 to 10 p.m.? Wherever you are, you can join this virtual event streamed live from the Billy Graham Library and led by National Day of Prayer President Kathy Branzell and Will Graham.

Together, we will pray that God will be glorified in our nation, our communities, and our families. We will also ask Him to help us shine the light of Jesus Christ in the midst of the difficult days people all over America are experiencing right now.

Thank you for your heart for prayer! May God richly bless you and protect you.
“FOR THE EARTH WILL BE FILLED WITH THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE GLORY OF THE LORD AS THE WATERS COVER THE SEA.”
— HABAKKUK 2:14 NIV —

A ministry of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association
1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, NC 28201

Notes of Faith May 5, 2020

I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring, and My blessing on your descendants. — Isaiah 44:3

Back when Praying the Scriptures for Your Children was released, my mom told me she wished she’d had it as a resource when my siblings and I were growing up. I had two thoughts. The first was that she didn’t need a book to help her pray the Scriptures; my mother is one of the most biblically literate and powerful prayer warriors I know.

The second was that I was glad she had the book then, because she was using it to pray for my children. They were ages five through eleven, and at the time, my daily life was a blur of car pools, soccer games, homework, meal prep, and laundry. (And that was before you factored in all my Very Important Jobs, like organizing the hula-hoop competition for the elementary school’s annual Bazooka Blowout.) There were plenty of days when I barely had time to throw up a “God, bless Annesley,” let alone beseech God to instill in her things like compassion, discernment, or the ability to speak kindly to her siblings.

I had attended a Christian parenting conference where one of the speakers asked, “If you aren’t praying for your children, who is?” I know the speaker meant that as a motivational charge, but honestly? I heard her and felt guilty. Even though I’d written a book about praying for your children, I didn’t always do a good job of actually doing it. I wanted to spend time asking God to fill my kids with wisdom and bless them with godly friendships and all, but it seemed like somebody was always throwing up, falling down, or needing me to make a turkey costume because all of the Pilgrim parts had been taken.

I needed reinforcements. And knowing that my parents were on the job — that they were talking to God about my kids’ health and their character and their relationship with Jesus — was an indescribable gift.

My friend Susan understands the value of this gift. She has five married children and twenty-one grandkids. In order to pray for them all, she assigns a day of the week to each family. And knowing she can go where her children sometimes can’t (“Grandkids roll their eyes less at grandparents than they do at parents,” she says), she doesn’t mind letting the younger generation know she is praying, whether it’s for a little one’s fear of going to sleep-away camp for the first time or an older child’s yearning for friends. Even the most unremarkable events — like soccer games or math tests — can become an invitation to pray.

For instance, Susan’s grandson Will was a sophomore in high school, facing a particularly challenging exam that could affect his overall GPA and ultimately his college applications. When Susan heard about the test, she asked God to provide things like mental clarity, alertness, and the ability for Will to recall what he had learned and do well — but she didn’t tell her grandson all of those details. Instead, when exam day rolled around, she sent him a simple text message: I am praying for you.

Afterward, Will was clearly excited. He’d done better than he’d hoped he would, and — whether he was smarter than he thought or the test was just easier than he expected — he figured that having a praying grandma in his corner had to be a plus.

Susan has prayed similar prayers for all of her grandchildren, asking God to provide everything from good health to good time management. “Children are all different,” she told me, “but a lot of their needs are the same. They all need safety, wisdom, protection from evil, fellowship opportunities, and godly mates (if they are to marry). They need the sorts of things you wrote about in Praying the Scriptures for Your Children. I use those prayers for my grandchildren!”

I was grateful for that endorsement, but I knew I hadn’t covered everything in that book. How, for instance, did Susan pray for her own children, now that they’d become parents? (I don’t have grandchildren yet, but I want to be ready — and who better to learn from than someone who has been there twenty-one times?)

Susan told me she and her husband, John, began praying for their daughters and daughters-in-law as soon as they learned they were expecting. “John and I prayed Psalm 139 during our kids’ pregnancies, asking God to fill them with peace about their unborn babies, knowing that he was forming them and ordaining all of their days — including the day that each child would be born.

“And as our grandchildren entered new phases, from toddler-hood to the teen years, we often prayed that our kids would call out to God for wisdom,” she continued. “Nobody really knows how to be a parent, so we asked God to give them a generous helping of wisdom, just as He promised to do.” (James 1:5)

Sometimes these wisdom prayers get very specific. When John and Susan realized that one of their sons-in-law didn’t seem to be connecting well with his son, they asked God for help. “The two guys are wired very differently,” Susan said. “I began to ask God to give [the dad] wisdom to take the initiative in the relationship, as well as the creativity to discover some common ground and shared interests with his son.”

Knowing that prayer support can be every bit as helpful to a young family as things like meals and babysitting, Susan keeps a notebook that includes specific requests for each grandchild.

“I ask my kids how I can pray for their kids,” she told me. “That’s not a very threatening question; even if your adult children aren’t walking with the Lord, they will usually be grateful for a grandparent’s love and support. And when we demonstrate love for our grandchildren by showing an interest in their lives, it’s like adding glue to our relationship with our own children and their spouses.”

Indeed. Susan and John have seen a strengthening of their family ties as the younger parents share concerns over everything from sibling relationships and character development to “non- spiritual” things like finding a soccer team for their daughter to join or a group of friends who share their son’s interest in music.

“Johnny and I are delighted when our kids and their spouses ask us to pray about something,” Susan said. “But we have to remember to watch our tongues. They are coming to us for prayer — not necessarily for advice.”

Prayer Principle

Praying for your grandchildren strengthens your relationship with your children and their spouses.

Excerpted from Praying the Scriptures for Your Adult Children by Jodie Berndt, copyright Jodie Berndt.

Again, I thank you for caring for my children, for loving, and providing for their needs.  The tears are beginning to flow as they pack to move across the country, but we are close, and will remain close from a distance.  For me, praying for my children is easy…I can think of so many things in my own life experience that I want or do not want for them and that is just the beginning of my prayers for them.  

You are my spiritual children.  I’m not sure exactly how that works, as many of you are older than me, but God gave me the responsibility to Shepherd His flock at Community Grace Brethren and there is nothing more needed than prayer for all of you.  My petitions rise early in the day for you and during the day and evening as God brings any of you to mind, whether I know what is going on in your life or not… He does and is watching over you in all ways that I cannot.  You are precious to me and I will always cherish you as my own, just as I do the heritage of my flesh. 

Never stop praying for you children, and your children’s children.  God hears our cry, and loves that created in His image more than we do.  Give thanks, exclaim “Abba Father”, recognizing the eternal blessing of being a child of God!

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith May 4, 2020

I was overjoyed to see so many of you yesterday! Your outpouring of love and expressions of hope and blessing toward my children humbled me greatly. My expectations for our time together were small, BUT GOD, brought through you, a multiplicity of blessing. Thank you for coming out, for sharing goodbyes, for loving my family. They hope to visit us in August. Pray fervently with me that we will begin our regular services soon!

Notes of Faith May 4, 2020

We discover where we really find our strength not when we feel strong, but when we feel weak.

Exhaustion and frustration have a way of blowing away the fog, revealing what’s really happening inside of us: Have we been leaning on God for all that we need, or have we made his help, his strength, his guidance a kind of last resort? Many of us are more self-reliant than we would admit, and self-reliance is far more dangerous than it sounds.

The widespread delusion, especially among more secular people, is that I can do anything, if I am willing to work hard. I am stronger than I think, strong enough to do anything I want to do in the world. The reality, however, is that the vast majority of us are weaker than we realize — and yet love to think ourselves strong. And that false sense of strength not only intensifies our arrogance and our ineffectiveness, but it also offends our God.

His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
nor his pleasure in the legs of a man,
but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,
in those who hope in his steadfast love. (Psalm 147:10–11)

Our delight is often in the strength of our legs — our work ethic, our perseverance, our cleverness, our strategies. And that temptation touches every part of life — at work, in ministry, at home — because every part of life in a fallen world requires strength. But God is not pleased by all that we can do — unless we do all that we do in his strength, and not our own.

Rejoice in All He Can Do

One way to combat a sinful sense of self-sufficiency is to meditate on all that only God can do — all that he can do, that we cannot. Psalm 147 models how to expose and unravel the lies of pride with the strength and authority of God.

The psalm says that God alone places each cloud in the sky (Psalm 147:8). He chooses when, where, and how much rain will fall, and he tends every millimeter of every blade of grass.

God alone crafts every snowflake that falls, fashions every inch of frost, and decides just how cold it will be (Psalm 147:16–17). Every aspect of our winters is scripted and conducted by him, including precisely when they end (Psalm 147:18).

God alone feeds the elephants, the sharks, the squirrels, and even the ants (Psalm 147:9). When newborn birds whimper in hunger, he hears each faint cry.

God alone can count every star in the universe (Psalm 147:4) — and not only count them, but decide their number and give them each a name.

God alone heals the wounds of the brokenhearted (Psalm 147:3). Very few are ever tempted to think we ourselves could bring rain, make snow, or count the stars, but we might be tempted to think we could heal a broken heart. We might imagine we could compensate for someone’s loss, or talk someone out of despair, or save someone’s marriage. But Psalm 147 says that God is the healing one.

God alone makes peace (Psalm 147:14). We cannot achieve real peace — in families or friendships, in a church or a nation — unless God quiets the conflict and awakens harmony. If we think we can achieve peace without God, we have not understood peace, or God.

“Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure” (Psalm 147:5). Our power is small and often failing, but his power is abundant and never exhausted. Our understanding is extremely limited and often flawed, but his understanding is universal and inscrutable. Why would we ever rely on ourselves?

Embrace How Little You Can Do

Yet we do rely on ourselves. We slip into habits of living, and working, and serving that don’t require him, and sometimes that barely even acknowledge him. Jeremiah’s warning is as sobering in our day as it was in his: “Thus says the Lord: ‘Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord’” (Jeremiah 17:5). The man who deep down trusts in himself cannot help but slowly walk away from God.

We fight sinful self-sufficiency by glorying in all that God can do, and we fight by learning to embrace just how little we can do apart from him. Jesus says to his disciples, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Many of us can recite the phrase, and still quietly suspect that he’s really exaggerating. We know we can do something on our own. And if we won’t admit it, our prayer lives betray us.

The humble are strong precisely because they know how weak they truly are — and how strong God will be for them. They sing, “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Psalm 73:26). They exhort one another, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might” (Ephesians 6:10). They serve “by the strength that God supplies — in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 4:11).

The humble have experienced what Isaiah promised: “He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. . . . They who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:29–31). By embracing their weakness, they found vast reservoirs of strength, strength enough to run and even fly.

Weakness Welcomes Strength

The apostle Paul knew how weak he was and where to find true strength. When he pleaded with God to remove the thorn that plagued him, God said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). Why would God, in infinite, fatherly love for Paul, not spare him the pain and inconvenience of this weakness? Because our weakness welcomes the gracious strength and intervention of God.

Weakness welcomes grace. When we feel strong, we are not prone to rely on the grace and strength of God. We often begin to experience, and even enjoy, the delusion that we are strong. We forget God, and our need for him. But when we feel our weakness, we more fully experience reality — and we remember our tremendous, continual need for him. The intensity of our thorns unearths the depths of his grace and mercy. Without them, we would only play in the wading pools of grace, instead of exploring the endless storehouses God fills and keeps for us.

As Paul says earlier in the same letter, “We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us” (2 Corinthians 4:7). If you look strong in your own strength, very few will wonder how you are so strong. But if people watch you walk through intense or persistent weakness and adversity, with strength and faith and even joy, then God will look unmistakably strong in you. So, to the extent that you are weak, to that extent will you magnify the awesome height of his power and love.

We Have Done Nothing

We often learn to rely on our own strength because we want the recognition and respect of others. We want to be known as strong, not utterly weak; as independent, not deeply dependent; as self-sufficient, not uncomfortably needy. We want to be the achievers and creators, the healers and the heroes. But as J.I. Packer says,

If we think of ourselves or others as achievers, creators, reformers, innovators, movers and shakers, healers, educators, benefactors of society in any way at all, we are at the deepest level kidding ourselves. We have nothing and have never had anything that we have not received, nor have we done anything good apart from God who did it through us. (Praying, 147)

The happiest, strongest, most meaningfully productive people have embraced, and even rejoiced, in that reality: We have done nothing good apart from God who did it through us. “Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion” (Psalm 84:5). They have been liberated from self-sufficiency, and now run, work, create, and serve in the happy fields of their utter dependence on God.

Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith May 3, 2020

Why do we keep confessing our sins if all our sins have been canceled in Christ? It’s a great question from a listener to the podcast named Andy, who represents a lot of listeners out there asking this very same question. Here’s how Andy put it: “Hello, Pastor John! Can you help me understand the work of Jesus, whereby all of our sins — past, present, and future — were forgiven in Christ, and yet, we are called to continually confess? I’m thinking specifically of the ‘It is finished’ statement in John 19:30, and the amazing reality that Christ ‘forgave all our trespasses’ and ‘canceled our record of debt that stood against us’ in Colossians 2:13–14. But then we’re called to constant confession too in 1 John 1:9. How do you make sense of these truths?”

I love that question because it gives me an occasion to exult with you, in the immeasurable greatness and beauty and preciousness and wonder of what Jesus did on the cross, to achieve once for all, when he died and rose again for his sheep. And I say “for his sheep” because Jesus says in John 10:15, “I lay down my life for the sheep.”

In other words, in the death of Jesus, God has a very special, peculiar design or intention or purpose to purchase and create a flock for himself, including the purchase of our faith, our union with Christ, our forgiveness of every sin (past, present, future), our eternal right standing with God as adopted children and as new creatures in Christ — all that purchased once for all by Jesus. That’s what God intended and achieved when Christ died and stood in the place of his sinful flock, his sheep.

Paid in Full

Now, Andy sees this glory; he sees it and he’s exulting in it with me, I believe. He sees in John 19:30: “It is finished.” And he sees in Colossians 2:13–14: “God made [us] alive together with [Christ], having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.” Those just have to be some of the most amazing verses in all the Bible for describing what became of our debt that we could never pay: canceled, nailed to the cross. And you can add to what Andy has seen and pointed out:

• Hebrews 7:27: “[Christ] has no need, like those [Old Testament] high priests, to offer sacrifices daily . . . since he did this once for all when he offered up himself.”

• Hebrews 9:26: “He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.”

• Hebrews 10:14: “For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.”
  
  Hebrews is really good at this. There it is: “once for all” — not repeated. Not repeated in history, not repeated in the Roman Catholic mass Sunday after Sunday, not repeated in any kind of Protestant religious performances that we may attempt through baptism or whatever. Once for all: done, finished, complete, debt paid in full, can’t be added to, can’t be improved upon. That’s the foundational glory of the achievement of Christ when he died for us on the cross.
   
  So, Andy’s question is this: “Well, if the death of Christ achieved the forgiveness of all the sins of all God’s people for all time, what does 1 John 1:9 imply when it says, ‘If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness’?” Or verse 7: “If we walk in the light, as he is in the light . . . the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” So, Colossians 2:13 and the passages that we saw in Hebrews sound like our forgiveness was achieved, completed in the death of Christ. But 1 John 1:9 and 1:7 sound like our forgiveness and our cleansing depend on our confessing those sins and walking in the light.
  
  That’s the issue that Andy is raising. Now, here’s how I would resolve the tension biblically. There are two steps in the resolution.
  
  Whosoever Will Must Come
  
  We should distinguish between the purchase and the permanent securing of our forgiveness once for all at the death of Jesus, on the one hand, from the personal possession and enjoyment of that benefit, which comes to us through faith, on the other hand. At the death of Jesus, our sins are canceled, nailed to the cross, debt fully paid. So, payment and securing are accomplished once for all — never to be repeated, permanently, infallibly for all God’s people when Christ died.
  
  But the personal reception, the possession, the enjoyment of that achievement, that purchase, that securing of forgiveness comes to God’s people only through faith in Christ — union with Christ by faith. I say that because of texts like Acts 10:43: “Everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins.” I mean, that’s clear. Everyone who believes receives forgiveness of sins. And Romans 3:28: “We hold that one is justified by faith.” So, we are justified, including forgiveness of sins and right standing with God, by faith.
  
  And the reason there’s no conflict, no tension, between the absolute certainty of the forgiveness achieved in the moment of Christ’s death, and the fact that this forgiveness is dependent upon, contingent upon, God’s people coming to faith in Christ — the reason there’s no conflict, no danger of anyone missing out who was died for in that way is that God sees to it in his sovereignty that all those for whom he fully paid do in fact come to faith. There are no dropouts. Those whom he foreknew, he predestined; those whom he predestined, he called; those whom he called, he justified; those whom he justified, he glorified (Romans 8:29–30). He sees to it. That’s the first step in resolving the tension between Colossians 2:13 and 1 John 1:9.
  
  Confess and Kill
  
  Here’s the other one. The Bible teaches that there are traits that God’s people have that show they are in fact God’s people and do truly belong to Christ — truly born again, truly united with Jesus. These traits are how we can know that our sins were fully paid for and that our forgiveness is fully secured by the death of Jesus.
  
  And one of those traits is how we deal with ongoing sinning in our lives. This is the complicating issue: Christians sin. That’s what John is dealing with in 1 John 1:8: “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves.” So, the question becomes this: “Well, if you are a true child of God, and if your sins are truly and fully paid for — covered, canceled — what will you feel? What will your thoughts and actions be toward your ongoing sinning? What trait will mark you?” Here are two biblical answers.
  
  Colossians 3:3: “You have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” That’s a description of wonderful, completed salvation. We’re already home. Then comes Colossians 3:5: “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire.” So, one trait of those whose sins are fully paid for is that we make war on our sinning. That’s the mark of those whose sins are fully canceled: We make war on our sinning. We put them to death. But you can’t do that if you don’t admit — that is, confess — that you have any.
  
  The second trait is confession (1 John 1:9). You have to confess your sins in order to make war on them. If you don’t think you have any, if you’re not confessing, “Yes, I have sinned and I’m sorry,” you won’t make war. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.”
  
  So, confessing our sin is the agreement with God that we have sin and it must be fought and killed. If we don’t confess this truth, we’re living, John says, in an illusion. We’re lying, we’re deceived, we’re calling God a deceiver, and we’re not saved. If we believe we have no sin and that it doesn’t need to be killed, we’re living in an illusion, not in salvation. So, confession of sin is not the basis of our forgiveness; it is one of the traits that shows we are truly in Christ, where all our sins are covered by his blood.
  
  Praise the precious name of Jesus!  Give thanks for your salvation today and every day!
  
  Pastor Dale
  

This came a few days ago, in an email from Joel Rosenberg, a man I follow for updates in Israel and of course for the reading of his great books!

 (Jerusalem, Israel) -- Happy birthday, Israel!

  (April 29, 2020) marks 72 years since the rebirth of the modern State of Israel in 1948 (Israelis go by the lunar calendar; on the Western calendar, Independence Day is May 14th.)

  Today, despite the coronavirus pandemic, Israelis are joyfully celebrating our freedom and security. Not everyone is happy, though. Too many in this region and the world despise Israel and seek our isolation, demise, and even annihilation.

That said, I don't want to focus on geopolitical issues today.

Rather, I’d like to draw your attention to two curious numbers:

• Only 40 percent of American Jews believe that God gave the land of Israel to the Jewish people, according to a 2013 study by Pew Research. That means that six in ten American Jews don’t believe see Israel as the Biblical "promised land," or are not sure. Among those who are Reform Jews, only 35% believe Israel is the given by God to the Jewish people.

• By sharp contrast, fully 80% of Evangelical Christians in America believe that God gave the land of Israel to the Jewish people and that the rebirth of Israel in 1948 was the dramatic fulfillment of Bible prophecy, according to a 2017 study by LifeWay Research and The Alliance for the Peace of Jerusalem.
  
  Set aside, for a moment, questions of how to make peace with the Palestinians, and with other Arabs in the region. Important topics. But let's discuss those later.
  
  Right now, just take a moment to consider how bizarre this is that twice as many American Evangelicals see Israel as the Biblical "promised land" than American Jews.
  Why?
  
  There are a number of reasons, but here's the central one: Most American Jews do not spend much time reading, studying or memorizing the Bible. Few consider the Hebrew Scriptures the authoritative, inspired, inerrant Word of God. Thus, what the Bible teaches about God's love and plan for Israel and the Jewish people is not something they spend much time thinking about, much less believe.
  
  For most Evangelicals, just the opposite is true.
  
  I've been doing a lot of thinking and praying on this topic, specifically about how to help Jews, Christians, Muslims and others better understand Israel's place in the region, the world, in history and in the Bible. I've been talking with a wide range of leaders. As a result, I've got some thoughts that I'd like to share with you.
  
  But not right now.    Joel Rosenberg

 
As we pray for the peace of Jerusalem, let us pray for the people of Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria and the whole world to come to faith in Christ, that they might be saved.  The Jew needs to recognize their Savior, and Satan has done much damage, many times through the hate of “so-called” Christians toward the Jew. We must be fervent in these last days in asking God to draw His children to Himself, protect them from the evil one, and glorify His name. Do you think about the Jewish people and pray for them often? Lord, teach my heart and mind as I grow in grace and mercy through Your Spirit. Help me to love and have compassion for all people, toward the Jew first, and also toward the Gentile.

 Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith May 1, 2020

REMINDER – We will have a DRIVE-THRU goodbye to the Riggs family and lunch in your car at the church on Sunday May 3 at 11:30 a.m.  See below for details

Those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good. — 1 Peter 4:19

If our kids always behave and our boss is always pleased with us and our home is always orderly and our bodies always feel good and we are patient and kind and thoughtful and happy and loving, others shrug because they are capable of being that way too.

On the other hand, if we have a splitting headache, the kids are screaming, the phone is ringing, the supper is burning, yet we are still patient, kind, thoughtful, happy, and loving, the world sits up and takes notice.

The world knows that kind of behavior is not natural. It’s supernatural. And others see Jesus revealed in us.

You Can Know God

You will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul. — Deuteronomy 4:29 NKJV

If Adam knew God as a beloved Father,
if Eve knew Him as the original Homemaker,
if Noah knew Him as the Refuge from the storm,
if Abraham knew Him as a Friend,
if Moses knew Him as the Redeemer,
if Rahab knew Him as the gracious Savior,
if David knew Him as his Shepherd,
if Elijah knew Him as the Almighty,
if Daniel knew Him as the Lion Tamer,
if Mary Magdalene knew Him as the Bondage Breaker, if Martha knew Him as the Promise Keeper,
if Lazarus knew Him as the Resurrection and the Life, if Bartimaeus knew Him as the Light of the World,
if John knew Him as the glorious King upon the throne,
surely you and I can know Him too!

The Sufficiency of God’s Power

To Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,... be glory.
— Ephesians 3:20–21 NKJV

If you are questioning the sufficiency of God’s power to resolve your problems and pressures, your suffering and stress, your crisis and change, His answer is the same. The infinite power of the living Logos of God is adequate for any need you or I will ever have.

We may intellectually grasp the truth that God’s power is adequate, but we can never know that by experience if we stay in our comfort zone. If all you ever attempt is what you know you can do yourself, if all your needs seem to be met through someone or something other than God, if you never have any difficulties that are greater than you can bear — how will you know the awesome greatness and personal availability of His infinite power?

It’s when the Red Sea is before you, the mountains are on one side of you, the desert is on the other side, and you feel the Egyptian army closing in from behind that you experience His power to open up an escape route.

He has power to do the supernatural, the unthinkable, the impossible.

~ Just Give Me Jesus

Excerpted from The Joy of My Heart: Meditating Daily on God's Word by Anne Graham Lotz, copyright Anne Graham Lotz.

I received this from a friend and believe the following event will take place on Thursday May 7, 2020.  I will continue to forward information for those who would participate.  (from Dale)

Gentlemen,

I received word yesterday evening from Mickey Crump at the National Day of Prayer office with Broadcast details for this year's NDoP broadcast. As you know, we cannot meet together because of the virus so consulting with some of you this was agreed to be our best option. Attached is the broadcast flier with information. Bob Bakke is producing the broadcast. I have known Bob for years and consider him to be one of our nation's finest historical authorities on prayer and revival. He has great Youtube postings about US and world revivals, certainly worth your time investment to watch.

Because time is short and I just got this confirmed information, please announce this to your congregations this weekend. I could not confirm the exact live stream link when I talked with Mickey but he said it would be posted on their website shortly. An option is to go to www.nationaldayofprayer.org the day of the broadcast for the link.

It goes without saying to be in much extraordinary prayer. God is up to something special and perhaps it is in response to many years of praying for revival.

Call me if you have any questions Cell: (562) 335-4653

Blessings brothers,

Jim Whitney

And finally, a reminder...

We have decided that it would not be prudent for us to open our church doors for services this Sunday, May 3, 2020…even with requested social distancing orders.  However, we WILL have a DRIVE-THRU the parking lot time (at 11:30 a.m.) to say goodbye to Ben, Carissa, Sarah and Parker as they are preparing to leave for a new life experience in Bagdad, Kentucky on May 6. We ask that you stay in your car.  They are providing a lunch from Subway of sandwich, chips, cookie and drink.  You may take it and park to eat and continue sharing with them from a distance if you wish or take your lunch home.  They wanted to provide this gift to you as an expression of their love for you.  God has provided for them in miraculous ways in the last few months as stated in their email/letter that Ben has a job starting as soon as they can get there.  Carissa had an offer before the Covid virus outbreak and will have to wait until it is lifted to know if her offer is still on the table.  Dale and Robin have purchased a home where both Michael and Casey, Ruby, and Ivory, and Ben and Carissa with Sarah and Parker will live.  We would love for all of you to be able to say goodbye but know that circumstances may not permit that.  Do not come if you are feeling sick, know that you have the virus, are afraid of catching the virus due to health concerns that you already have.  They know they are loved and appreciated by all of you.  We hope to have them back in August (for our yearly Almanor vacation) but do not know if they will be here for services. We will try to make arrangements to gather together in August, Sunday or not, to say goodbye, if you are not able this coming Sunday.  This message will be repeated this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday as a reminder.  Please note and understand this…Dale and Robin are NOT leaving.

Notes of Faith April 30, 2020

We have decided at this time that it would not be prudent for us to open our church doors for services this Sunday, May 3, 2020…even with requested social distancing orders.  However, we WILL have a DRIVE-THRU the parking lot time (at 11:30 a.m.) to say goodbye to Ben, Carissa, Sarah and Parker as they are preparing to leave for a new life experience in Bagdad, Kentucky on May 6. We ask that you stay in your car.  They are providing a lunch from Subway of sandwich, chips, cookie and drink.  You may take it and park to eat and continue sharing with them from a distance if you wish or take your lunch home.  They wanted to provide this gift to you as an expression of their love for you.  God has provided for them in miraculous ways in the last few months as stated in their email/letter that Ben has a job starting as soon as they can get there.  Carissa had an offer before the Covid virus outbreak and will have to wait until it is lifted to know if her offer is still on the table.  Dale and Robin have purchased a home where both Michael and Casey, Ruby, and Ivory, and Ben and Carissa with Sarah and Parker will live.  We would love for all of you to be able to say goodbye but know that circumstances may not permit that.  Do not come if you are feeling sick, know that you have the virus, are afraid of catching the virus due to health concerns that you already have.  They know they are loved and appreciated by all of you.  We hope to have them back in August (for our yearly Almanor vacation) but do not know if they will be here for services. We will try to make arrangements to gather together in August, Sunday or not, to say goodbye, if you are not able this coming Sunday.  This message will be repeated this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday as a reminder.  Please note and understand this…Dale and Robin are NOT leaving.

Notes of Faith April 30, 2020

Few experiences expose our inner selves quite like the experience of suffering. When trials come, we almost cannot help but hold out our hearts for all to see.

Some sufferers bow their heads and bless the Lord, while others curse him. Some say, through tears, “I trust you,” while others refuse to pray. Some collapse into God’s presence, and learn to love him with a broken heart, while others turn their backs and walk away.

What makes the difference between such sufferers? Dozens of factors, surely. But one of the most significant is what we know about suffering. The apostle James, writing to Christians torn by trials, calls them to suffer faithfully because of what they know: “Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know . . .” (James 1:2–3).

Rejoice, James says, because you know something about suffering. And what did they know? They did not know many of the specific goods God was working in their trials. They did not know why these trials should be happening now. Nor did they know how long their trials would last. But they did know a simple promise, filled with power: “. . . for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness” (James 1:3).

Testing produces steadfastness. If these three words can sink their roots down into our souls, then we might meet our trials with the most radical response of all: joy.

Tested by Fire

James begins his promise with a word lifted straight from the world of metalworking: “Testing . . . produces steadfastness.” Just as silver and gold are refined in the furnace (Psalm 12:6; Proverbs 27:21), so Christians are refined, or tested, by their trials (see also 1 Peter 1:7).

This image of testing — of metal cleansed in the flames — both confirms and confronts what many of us feel in our suffering. It confirms the basic fact that suffering puts us into the fire. We need not pretend, then, that the heat of our trials does not hurt us, nor that our souls, even years afterward, no longer bear the marks of the flames. Trials are a fire, and fire burns, even if our faith is strong as silver.

But James’s word testing also lovingly confronts how many of us feel in suffering. For if our trials are a testing, then our trials are not random or pointless; instead, they come from our Tester. And not just any Tester, but the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ — the good God, the kind God, the God who himself knows what flames feel like.

Even when trials overtake us, we are still the apple of his eye (Deuteronomy 32:10). Even when the suffering feels meaningless, we are still wrapped in his good and perfect will (Ephesians 1:11). Even when the flames rise higher, we are still hidden safely in his hands (Isaiah 43:2).

Pain’s Production

Often in suffering, we have eyes only for what our trials take away from us. We watch, speechless, as the fire swallows up so much we held dear. But underneath the ashes, our trials are producing something. “Testing . . . produces steadfastness.” If we will trust God and wait patiently, our trials will give us far more than they take away.

Yes, but how do we know that our trials are producing something glorious? That’s the question that returns on wakeful nights, and intrudes throughout the workday, and casts a gloom on our wavering faith.

We know that pain is producing steadfastness not because we can always see the production in process. Normally, in the moment, all we can see is the pain: the diagnosis, the divorce, the loneliness, the long wait. Instead, we know that our suffering is producing something because God, alongside his promise, displays this pattern in the lives of his people — without exception.

If we scour our Bibles, and the history of all the saints, we will find many Jobs covered with boils, many Ruths widowed away from home, many Hemans covered in darkness of Psalm 88. But if we trace their stories, we will find, without fail, “the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful” (James 5:11). There never was a child of God whose suffering was for naught, nor will there ever be.

In every trial — from headaches to heartbreaks — God wounds his children only to heal them (Hosea 6:1); he casts them down only to raise them up (Isaiah 30:26); he sends his flames only to leave them refined. So we can hear God sing to us, in the words of John Rippon’s hymn,

When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,
My grace all-sufficient shall be thy supply.
The flame shall not hurt thee, I only design
Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine.

Steadfast Saints

What does the gold look like refined? God’s testing produces ten thousand goods in us, many of which will be visible only with heaven’s hindsight. But here, James points out one of the ten thousand: “Testing . . . produces steadfastness.”

Steadfastness — translated elsewhere as endurance or patience — may not attract our attention as much as faith, hope, and love do, but it is among the most beautiful badges of Christian character. By it, we bear up under burdens, raise our hearts toward heaven, and press on toward eternal life, come hell or high water.

If we want to see the glory of steadfastness, James tells us, “take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord” (James 5:10). Steadfast Christians are modern-day Micahs, who can defy the devil even as they sit in darkness (Micah 7:8–9). They are patient Habakkuks, who can look upon a barren land and say, “Yet I will rejoice” (Habakkuk 3:18). They are mighty Shadrachs, who no longer fear the flames as they once did, because they know their Lord walks there (Daniel 3:25).

Steadfast Christians are increasingly undaunted by tribulation (Romans 12:12). They feel the sin that clings so closely, and do not hesitate to cast it aside (Hebrews 12:1). They walk through the wilderness of affliction without fainting (2 Corinthians 1:6); they groan for redemption without grumbling (Romans 8:25); they suffer scorn without stumbling (Matthew 10:22). Their eyes tell the story of battles won, temptations defeated, and the crown of glory awaiting (James 1:12). They are the oaks of righteousness among us, weathered trunks who brave the raging wind (Romans 5:3–4). They are the saints in whose faces, set like flint toward glory, we sometimes catch a glimmer of Christ.

Out of the pain of our trials, God produces perseverance. Out of the flames of our suffering, God creates steadfastness.

Complex Joy

If we know the promise that testing produces steadfastness, we may gain strength not only to endure our suffering, but to trace a line from our present pain to our future perseverance — and, wonder of wonders, to find ourselves counting even trials as joy (James 1:2).

Such joy will not be a simple joy. It will not be the painted smile of a Pollyanna or the pep of a motivational speaker. It will instead be a complex joy, a joy mingled with tears and mixed with sorrow, all the way to bottom (2 Corinthians 6:10). In other words, it will be an otherworldly joy, the kind that can only come from the man of sorrows himself. And being from him, it will one day return to him on the other side of these flames, “perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (James 1:4).

In order to get there, we need to recognize our suffering for what it is: not ultimately a thief who steals our best years, nor a murderer who kills our dearest dreams, nor a madman who wields his weapons at random. Our suffering is, rather, a servant from God, sent to make us steadfast.

Pastor Dale

If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that the times are always uncertain and our lives in this world are far less stable than we realize. More and more, it seems like the only predictable thing about life is its unpredictability. So, in the middle of the current social and medical and economic upheavals that very few of us could have foreseen, what eternal promises root us? We have some amazing promises from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who apparently knew our lives would remain unpredictable until he returns. So, he left us with his closing words in Matthew 28:16–20. We read this:

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Here’s Pastor John Piper explaining what this means for us today.

Jesus came up and spoke to them saying, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18 NASB). Now, that’s a very lofty claim for anybody to make. It has been given to him by God the Father. Because he died, he overcame guilt — he overcame condemnation. Because he rose again, he overcame suffering and he overcame death. And since he has triumphed over guilt and condemnation and suffering and death, he has also triumphed over Satan. Because the only way, ultimately, that Satan can damn the people of God is with guilt and condemnation. And the only way he can rough us up is with suffering and with death. And if suffering and death and guilt and condemnation have been conquered by Jesus in his death and in his resurrection, Satan is empty-handed today in his ability to destroy believers.

This is a tremendous thing. Philippians 2:9–11 says,

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

This is just another way of saying “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

Jesus Has All Authority

So, here’s our King, who’s commissioning us. This lofty claim, “All authority has been bought by me, possessed by me, given to me. I have all authority in the universe” — let’s ponder it for a minute. All authority. Really? All authority.

• All authority over Satan and all demons and all angels, good and evil.

• Authority over the natural universe: natural objects and laws and forces, like stars and galaxies and planets and meteorites.

• Authority over all weather systems: winds and rains and lightning and thunder and hurricanes and tornadoes and monsoons and typhoons and cyclones, and all their effects like tidal waves and floods and fires.

• All authority over molecular and atomic reality: atoms, electrons, protons, neutrons, subatomic particles, quantum physics, DNA, chromosomal reality.

• All plants, all animals. Doesn’t matter what size: whales, redwoods, giant squid, and giant oaks. All fish, all wild beasts, he has authority over.

• All invisible animals: bacteria and viruses and parasites and germs of every kind — he has authority over.

• He has authority over all the parts and functions of the human body. Every beat of your heart, every movement of the diaphragm, every little jump across a million synapses in your brain — Jesus has all authority over all those physiological phenomena in your body.

• He has all authority over nations and governments and congresses and legislatures and kings and premiers and courts.

• He has all authority over armies and weapons and bombs and terrorists.

• All authority over industry and business and finance and currency.

• All authority over entertainment and amusement and leisure and media.

• All authority over education and research and science and discovery.

• All authority over crime and violence and all families and all neighborhoods.

• And he has authority over his body, the church.

• And he has authority over every soul in the universe and every moment and every second of every life lived, now or previously or forever and ever, anywhere in the universe.
  
  He has all authority. Jesus has all authority. And that’s why he has a right to say, “Go everywhere.” Matthew 28:18 is the search warrant for breaking into other cultures. Almost nobody in America believes we have a warrant to do this today. This is a massively politically incorrect thing for us to do — namely, world evangelization. But we have a warrant. We have a warrant. You don’t do this kind of thing without a warrant. You don’t go into somebody’s culture or house and say, “Jesus is Lord of this house; Jesus is Lord of this culture,” without a warrant. What’s the warrant? Matthew 28:18 is the warrant: “I have died. I have risen. I have triumphed over all my enemies. I have all authority in heaven. I have all authority on earth. Go.”
  
  He Gives and Takes Away
  
  Jump over verse 19 with me to verse 20 to see not only the lofty claim, but the loving comfort: “And behold, I am with you always [literally, all the days], to the end of the age.” There are three pieces to this. I call them identification, continuation, and duration. That’s the three pieces in verse 20 at the end.
  
  What do I mean by identification? I mean: Would you please, for a moment here, ask the Lord to reveal to your heart what stands in the page, that the One who promises never to leave you and always be with you is the One who has all authority in the universe? Would you please, right now, whisper a prayer in your heart? I’m whispering it right now for you that God would open your eyes to what that means. Lord, just do it. Would you come at this moment and put these two verses together? Lord, you have all authority in the universe, all power, all right, the right and the power to do as you please in every area of life, every culture, every people, every religion — the right and the power to be Lord and King. You have spoken to your people, “I will always be with you to the end.” Friends, do you get it? The One who said, “I will always be with you,” is that One. That’s the identification.
  
  The continuation is found in the word always or all the days. And what I mean by that is not just length of time, but unbroken time. Do you see the point? He doesn’t go on vacation on Mondays. Pastors think he goes on vacation on Mondays, and so they get real depressed and discouraged on Monday morning. “Where’s God?” Well, the answer is this: as close as your skin, because he doesn’t break his word. He does not break his word. I don’t care how blue the day is, Jesus doesn’t lie. “I will always be with you.” Dark, bright, up, down, bad, good, death, life — “I will always be with you.” Hebrews 13:5: “Be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’”
  
  Though he giveth or he taketh,
  God his children ne’er forsaketh;
  His the loving purpose solely
  To preserve them, pure and holy.
  
  Swedes have good theology. “Though he giveth or he taketh, God his children ne’er forsaketh.”
  
  May we be like Job and in our sufferings (brought on by Satan, allowed with restraint by God), continue to draw near to God.  He revealed Himself to Job as Job drew near to God. He will always be there, whether one believes in Him or not, whether one trusts in Him or not, whether one doubts in Him or not... May we believe, trust and not doubt the truth of the Word of God, "I will never leave or forsake you.  I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
  
  Pastor Dale

Notes of Faith April 28, 2020

KOL DEMAMA DAKA

Listen in silence because if your heart is full of other things you cannot hear the voice of God. ~ Mother Teresa

As God opened my eyes to see the world as He does and opened my heart to explore this perspective further, I remembered the story in 1 Kings about Elijah. In the story, Elijah, after he defeats the prophets of Baal, seeks rest and some time with the Lord. He is feeling lost and alone, and he needs to hear from God. The Lord sends Elijah to the mountain to stand in His presence. The story then goes on to say a great and strong wind tore through the mountains, but the Lord was not in the wind. An earthquake came, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. A fire burned across the land, but the Lord was not in the fire.

But after the fire a gentle whisper followed. The Lord came to Elijah in that whisper: kol demama daka. Translated, the phrase means “the sound of thin silence.” It’s the kind of voice you can only hear when you quiet the world around you enough to hear it. You have to be listening for it.

I’d heard this story a handful of times growing up, but it wasn’t until adulthood that its true meaning would become clear to me. That is how I’ve found I can hear God most clearly. When I stop brushing everything off as just a coincidence and start paying attention to the small signs He gives me. Sometimes it comes in the form of a number or dates. Other times, it’s a feeling. The only way I know to describe the feeling is to imagine you are in the place that makes you feel the happiest in all the world, you’re with the person or people you love most, your belly is full of delicious food, and you’re at complete peace. That feeling, in that moment, is the same one that comes over me when I know God is the one leading me in a certain direction. For me, it’s a feeling of belonging, like I know somehow that I fit in this particular story. Even if I don’t know how or why, I just fit. I belong in it; even if it’s uncomfortable or not what I had envisioned, I still know I belong there.

I can come up with a lot of harebrained schemes, plans, and grand adventures. It can be hard to know which string to pull, which path to take, or which hill to die on that day. But it’s that feeling of belonging that lets me know that God has placed me here. He wants me to keep going. More important, the feeling of belonging lets me know that the feelings I have are from Him. It’s assurance that I’m where I need to be. If I can quiet the world around me, with its voices telling me who I should be, what I should look like, how many kids I should have, and even how I should worship God — when I can silence those voices, I can hear Him in the kol demama daka.

There is a second piece to hearing the Lord that I feel is equally important; that is, God doesn’t contradict Himself. Throughout history, people have used “hearing from God” as a justification to forward their hateful, corrupt agendas. That’s why it’s important that whenever I feel God leading me toward something, one of my first moves is to read what His word has to say. Does what I feel He is asking me to do contradict His written word? If the answer is yes, then I know it’s my own selfish desires and not a true calling He has placed on my heart. I’m not an expert on Scripture. I don’t have the whole Bible memorized, and I’m not a theologian, but I don’t believe God expects me to be. I believe He asks me to do the best with what knowledge and wisdom He has given me, and with the way I feel His presence guiding me in my prayer life. Ultimately, He wants me to continue to seek Him and His Word, and to seek truth in the noise of this world.

It’s easy to get wrapped up in what we want, especially because our culture tells us that we should always be happy, that we’re in charge of our own happiness, and that we hold the key to it. If we aren’t happy, the solution is simple: we just need to make the necessary changes to get happy. If only life were that easy. Perhaps this is the reason so many people choose to see their wants and desires as the highest priority. When we see people making decisions that seem contradictory to their own happiness and perceived safety, we question them and even grow concerned, instead of cheering them on and backing them up.

My personal struggle in adulthood has all too often been not a struggle to hear the voice of the Lord in my life, but a struggle to actually do what I feel He’s asking of me. That’s where I find my faith tested the most. Am I willing to not just be a hearer of the word, but a doer?

Excerpted from Love Without Borders by Angela Braniff, copyright Angela Braniff.

I have always loved the Scriptures concerning Elijah…a man used by God in powerful, miraculous ways…and wanted to be like him. Can I learn to listen for God in the still small voice? And when I hear Him, will I be willing to do what He says?

James 4:8
8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

Pastor Dale