Evangelical Association

Michael Jackson has died. What an extraordinary, yet, extraordinarily tragic life. From what I've read and heard over the years, Michael Jackson was a generous, sensitive, incredibly talented person who was surrounded by the opulence of his own success but a person who was ever dissatisfied. He was man on a mission, a mission to remake his life. 

 

Great expectations. No, I'm not thinking about the book. I'm thinking about the concept, the idea. Very few of us have gone too long without having had a "great expectation" of some sort.

During the past election year, we heard a lot about "Change You Can Believe In."  However, when we really thing about it, most of us really don't like change. Most of us will also admit that the older we get the less we like change happening.

...The lastest buzz on the internet.  Recently I went online to see what all of the hubbub was about.  Millions already are communicating to one another on moment by moment basis as to what they are doing in 140 characters or less.  This can be done on computers or telephones and is based on the assumption that other people care about the trivial things that you do in your life.

Not so long ago I was looking for some photographs that I have had ever since I was a child. I can't even remember why I suddenly wanted to see them, but I did, and it irked me that no matter where I looked, they weren't there.

When Peter was directed by the Spirit to go to Caesarea where he would enounter a gentile named Cornelius, he was being asked to model the incarnational style of our God who sent Jesus into the world as a human (See Acts 10).  Instead of making Cornelius come to Jerusalem (where it was assumed by the Jewish religious establishment that anyone and everyone who wanted to encounter God must come), Peter was told by God to go to where Cornelius was - his city and even his home.  Jews were strictly forbidden from entering the homes of gentiles and no self-respecting, God-fearing Jew - even a Christian one - would expect God to direct them in such an unorthodox and unconventional way.

Easter blessings!  The resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ is a true blessing of life, and a sure sign of God's love for each and every person on earth!

Wanting more of what we already possess is a character trait upon which our entire consumerist society is built. It seems there is no end to the things we want more of and, of course, the first and most fundamental is more money. Even billionaires want more of it, though to what end I can't imagine, unless it is simply a way of keeping score.

The small boat was rocking back and forth in the windy Sea of Galilee.  The disciples were beginning to fear that the boat might capsize.  Somewhere between 3 AM and 6 AM Jesus went out to them, walking on the water. The disciples spotted his ghostly figure walking on the water and they cried out in fear.  Jesus' response: "Take courage!  It is I.  Don't be afraid." (Matthew 14:22-33)  Easier said than done.  When was the last time you saw someone walking on water?

I am  the resurrection and the life.  (John 11:28)

"He is dead.  Our hope is destroyed."  Jesus' friends sat in the dark room, remembering His words and His works, especially His last day, that sad Friday.

 

"When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him along with the criminals - one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." (Luke 23:33-34)

Those words... I can't get them out of my head. Those words... they haunt me. They confuse me. They awaken me. They make my heart pound. They give me life! They are the words of ultimate love. "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."

Greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus...And here's a story with a "holiday" message.

The days are getting longer.  Something in our body clock says to us, "spring is coming!"  It does seem like the early church fathers meeting in Nicaea in AD 325 could have come up with a more exciting name for the season beginning on Ash Wednesday, February 25, and ending on the night before Easter. 

 

The tornado that hit Oklahoma February 10th had the audacity to hit our daughter's home in Edmond.  They were not home at the time, so they were safe, and all of their animals survived, and as she said, "The rest of the stuff is just that - 'stuff.'"

What I found interesting was my attitude toward the storm.  Although I knew that there was damage around the state I was only appropiately concerned for the safety of the people involved.  But when I heard my daughter and her family were involved I was suddely angry that a storm would dare harm my family!  And on my birthday!  Now we had to cancel the party!

 

Lent has both thrilled me and perplexed me.  I have been thrilled with Lent from the standpoint that it challenges us to evaluate our spiritual disciplines of Bible study, prayer, fellowship, worship and service in order to tone-up the muscles of faith.  That's the good part!  What shepherd would not rejoice at the prospects of the sheep "working-out" in order to draw closer to Christ?!  That thrill, however, has been offset by the perplexing practice of discarding those very disciplines faster than the smell of jelly beans fade from our breath.

"When you were dead in your sins...God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins...that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away nailing it to the cross."    Colossians 2:13-14

 

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.-John 15.13

 

At the end of this month (25 February is Ash Wednesday), we will enter the season of Lent once again.

 

This is a time to prepare to meet Jesus on the cross, to consider His deep love for us, and to think of how we should respond with our lives.

 

The E100 Challenge [here at St. John's Christian Church] has been great, and is has only been the first month!  Being able to read most of Genesis and the beginning of Exodus has allowed us to meet many characters that are familiar and not so familiar.

 

It has been very interesting as we've begun working through the Bible one day at a time. I pray that you have been taking advantage of this program this new year. Knowing that I can read the entire Bible in 365 days by spending just 15 minutes each day takes some of the pressure off!

 

One of the benefits is that this program is sparking discussion. Individuals are asking questions, and Sunday school classes find themselves caught up in discussion for part of their class time. Any time we are prompted to talk about and ask questions about God's Word we ought to celebrate!

 

 

This story from the internet is apparently true:

 “On Lake Isabella, east of Bakersfield, California, some folks, new to boating, were having problems. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't get their brand new 22 ft. boat going. It was very sluggish in almost every maneuver, no matter how much power was applied. After about an hour of trying to make it go, they putted to a nearby marina, thinking someone there could tell them what was wrong.

One of the favorite Christmas hymns has a refrain that goes like this:

O come, let us adore Him! O come, let us adore Him!

O come, let us adore Him – Christ, the Lord! 

That's a great refrain, not only for the Advent/Christmas season, but for every season of the year and every season of our lives.

Advent dates back to the mid-sixth century. By the 13th century, the whole church recognized the four Sundays leading up to Christmas as a period of preparation for Christ’s coming. If Christmas was a birthday party for the Messiah, then Advent was a time to ponder the fact that that Messiah would change everything.

"When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him... and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under..." - Matthew 2:3, 16

From a purely political perspective, Herod's response to off the baby Jesus makes perfect sense. He knew, and the power brokers in Jerusalem knew, what all this potentially meant. If the Christ was among them, then the social and political world of Palestine would change and change might bring about personally undesirable results.

After coming off of an intense week of Vacation Bible School, I found myself asking the age-old question, "is doing this really worth all of the hassle?" And you may be surprised to find out that this year the answer was "no." But before you start trying to expel the demons out of your pastoral brother, let me explain myself. Let me tell you about our V.B.S. so that you can judge for yourself.

Then the king ordered...some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility—young men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the language and literature of the Babylonians...They were to be trained for three years, and after that they were to enter the king’s service. – Daniel 1:3-5 NIV

A gentleman walked past a clockmaker’s store every day on his way to work. He would study the stately grandfather clock in the window for some time before continuing on his way. One day the clockmaker, who had noticed this man standing outside his shop window each morning, ventured out to strike up a conversation. “This one is a real beauty, isn’t it?” the clockmaker asked, pointing to the clock on display.

Every Sunday morning our church has, as I'm sure most churches do, a Sunday School. We also have studies going as additional opportunities for not only learning God's word, but, and perhaps more importantly, learning how to apply what we have learned to our daily Christian living.

Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men. - Luke 15:18b-19

The prodigal son was at home with his father for years. He knew his father’s love since his earliest memories. How could anyone walk away from such warmth and caring?

Luke 15:14 - "... and he began to be in need."

The parable of the prodigal has spoken mountains as of late, studying it for breakfast, studying it for prayer. It hasn’t moved any mountains for me though, not any I can see anyway.

Or has it?

Every read has produced a new treasure, a new nuance, a new angle and I wonder if Jesus intended it to do so. I wonder if he intended to speak mountains. I wonder if he intended the parable to move mountains.

I greet you in the most excellent name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for it is in His name that I accomplish much and would boast of His love for each and every one of us.

The reality of Christmas in the New Year has become the cost of "Christmas after."

Sadly, "Christmas after" often has a greater impact on us than does Jesus’ actual birth.

Concerned with what he saw as a spiritual deterioration in churches, D. L. Moody convened a special convocation. The messages he delivered during the convocation were the substance of his book, Secret Power. The book begins…