What’s wrong with this picture? Father God suddenly slaps His forehead and says, “Oh, yes, I remember you!” And yet that’s what the Word seems to say in 1 Samuel 1:19: “Then they rose up in the morning early, and worshiped before the LORD, and returned, and came to their house at Ramah; And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the LORD remembered her.”
Out of this encounter Hannah and her husband conceived a child who would be known as Samuel, one of the great judges of Israel. Isn’t it delightful to know that God had a slight memory lapse but just in time remembered who Hannah was and also remembered the tremendous need in Israel for strong and righteous leadership? When His memory returned, God saw Hannah and her husband enjoying a little morning friskiness and opened Hannah’s womb for the first time.
Of course, I jest about God’s memory loss. Sometimes our beloved English language lets us down or maybe it’s just the archaic translation of the King James Version. Well, again I jest, but this time at the expense of the language and the translators.
A little background here will be helpful before we tackle this troublesome phrase, “and the LORD remembered her.”
Hannah was one of two wives of Elkanah. The other wife had numerous sons and daughters but Hannah was barren and it broke her heart.
Each year the whole family went to Shiloh to worship and sacrifice to the Lord of Hosts.
Hannah was so discouraged by her barrenness that one day while in Shiloh, she went alone to the tabernacle to pray. She went before the Lord and cried and prayed a prayer of bitter disappointment. In her brokenness she made a vow that if God would give her a male child, she would give the boy to the Lord for his entire life to be one of service to God.
The corrupt priest Eli saw this broken woman praying and because he could not hear any words coming from her mouth, he wrongly assumed that she was drunk. Eli rebuked her and told her to put the wine away, to stop drinking. Hannah’s response was, “No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor intoxicating drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord.”
Eli corrected himself and said, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition” (v. 17). And Hannah then uttered one final prayer, “Let your maidservant find favor in your sight” (v. 18).
This is the background that takes us to verse 19 and the phrase, “and the Lord remembered her.”
Had the Lord God forgotten Hannah? Had He pushed her over to a corner of His mind where she was literally out of sight and so then out of mind? The answer is a clear and unequivocal NO! God does not forget or give up on His people.
“And the Lord remembered her.” So what does this mean then?
In large part, this was the Lord God responding to the brokenhearted cry of a barren woman. Remember, the word as it is used here means that God was reflecting on her, on her prayers; it means to be mindful of, to literally be held in the memory of. It means that God was thinking about her, thinking about her situation, and listening to her prayers. It means that we are never, ever out of God’s mind. We are His children and His attention is continually focused on us.
As the technological advances of our age continue at an accelerating rate, it seems as though we are constantly being reduced to another number, another password. I don’t need my name to get onto the Internet, get into my bank account, or check my pyramid of offshore investments. All I need is an impersonal set of numbers and letters in the right sequence. I have gone from being a person to a code, a password! All of this technological forward movement is reducing the sense of personal value, of meaning, to so many in our culture. There is a greater sense of loneliness, meaninglessness and isolation today than ever before.
It cannot help but affect those of us in the church; we live in this world too. (At least most of us do—there are a couple of you reading this that I’m not sure what planet you are on. Of course, I jest again, except for people from Florida.) It has even crept into the church. It seems to me that some of our contemporary worship songs reflect a feeling that God is somewhat distant and removed from the everyday needs of His people. I believe that many of these songs are really cries for help from a generation that is lonely and has not fully grasped just how much God cares for them.
“I have formed you, you are My servant;
O Israel, you will not be forgotten by Me!” (Isaiah 44:21)
Father God is always thinking about and responding to His people. Our relationship with Him is not impersonal, distant or forgotten!
“And the Lord remembers you” (1 Samuel 1:19).
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Saturday, October 18, 2008
FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS
There is a lot of chatter on the Internet about the story of a pastor from a small Ohio town meeting John McCain and Sarah Palin and telling Sarah that he had a message from God, “You are a type of Esther.” Google “Sarah Palin Ohio Esther” and you will get about 22,000 bits of chatter to read in your spare time.
“Is Sarah Palin a type of Esther?” Before there can be any kind of answer, let’s look at two things:
1. Does God speak to His people today?
When the news media lampoons a story like the one that has caused all this particular Internet chatter, they are not questioning the spiritual ramifications of being an Esther. No, they are calling into question the fundamental question, “Does God speak to people?” When elements of the church question a “word from the Lord,” they are often driven by the same spirit of unbelief.
God is not silent; He is still speaking to His people. For one thing, the Bible is like a digitally recorded conversation from heaven. “For the Word of God is alive and powerful” (Hebrews 4:12). Let them that have ears to hear, hear!
2. Esther came out of nowhere to be a deliverer of her people.
The story of Esther and its comparison to today is fascinating. Esther came out of obscurity; she was beautiful and smart and she rose to the second highest position in Persia (are you picking up any parallels here?). Soon after her ascension to power, a holocaust-type plot was revealed that would have seen hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of Jews murdered in a region stretching from India to the Mediterranean. Esther’s uncle brought her the details of the plot and told her that she needed to take the information to the king. Esther tried to defer to someone else, to let someone else take the risks.
Esther’s uncle got right in her face and told her (this is my paraphrase): “Do you think that somehow you are going to escape the terrible consequences of the evil? You and your family will suffer under this, too. You must do what you know is right, that which you have the ability to do. Do you honestly think God bestowed all this favor on you and that, therefore, it has somehow insulated you? God put you in this place for now! You have come to the kingdom for such a time as this” (4:12-14).
Several of the chapters in the book of Esther (5-7) tell the story of how God used Esther to bring the conspiracy of evil to the attention of the king and then how the perpetrator of evil was dealt with.
So now back to the original question: “Is Sarah Palin a type of modern-day Esther?” My answer is, I think so. I say that with emphasis!
I believe that Sarah Palin has a destiny that is yet to be fully revealed. Before the biblical Esther could be a deliverer for her people, she had to come to the palace and be established in a place of authority. This preparation period takes time and when it is complete, then suddenly God will reveal His plan, as He did with Esther.
How will God use Sarah Palin? I don’t know and neither does anybody else, yet. No matter which direction the voting goes in the next few weeks, we have watched Sarah come out of nowhere and begin to be established as a major player in the American political scene. I see in her an ability to communicate with middle America that very few politicians have; the latest and greatest was Ronald Reagan. (Here’s a little info for you. When Margret Thatcher began her ascendency toward becoming Prime Minister of Great Britain, the elitist liberals in English politics and most of the English media were very dismissive of her. They thought of her as a commoner—and just a woman—and therefore unworthy for high office! The Iron Lady, as she became known, went on to be one of the greatest of England’s modern leaders.)
There is one more part of the answer to the question, “Is Sarah Palin a type of a modern-day Esther?” I have briefly tried to answer the first part, and the second part of the answer is, “Yes, and so are you!”
Every believer is a type of Esther. Every man, every woman who is honest in his or her pursuit of God, is an Esther. Let’s get over the childishness of thinking of the Esther spirit as being somehow feminine. This is not a gender issue, this is an “anointing of the Holy Ghost” issue. Frankly, there are a lot of men who need to stand up and become half the woman of God that Esther was. If they did so, they would be a lot more of a man than they are now! All those who are hearing the voice of the Lord need to embrace the understanding that God has brought us to His Kingdom for such a time as this!
“Is Sarah Palin a type of Esther?” Before there can be any kind of answer, let’s look at two things:
1. Does God speak to His people today?
When the news media lampoons a story like the one that has caused all this particular Internet chatter, they are not questioning the spiritual ramifications of being an Esther. No, they are calling into question the fundamental question, “Does God speak to people?” When elements of the church question a “word from the Lord,” they are often driven by the same spirit of unbelief.
God is not silent; He is still speaking to His people. For one thing, the Bible is like a digitally recorded conversation from heaven. “For the Word of God is alive and powerful” (Hebrews 4:12). Let them that have ears to hear, hear!
2. Esther came out of nowhere to be a deliverer of her people.
The story of Esther and its comparison to today is fascinating. Esther came out of obscurity; she was beautiful and smart and she rose to the second highest position in Persia (are you picking up any parallels here?). Soon after her ascension to power, a holocaust-type plot was revealed that would have seen hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of Jews murdered in a region stretching from India to the Mediterranean. Esther’s uncle brought her the details of the plot and told her that she needed to take the information to the king. Esther tried to defer to someone else, to let someone else take the risks.
Esther’s uncle got right in her face and told her (this is my paraphrase): “Do you think that somehow you are going to escape the terrible consequences of the evil? You and your family will suffer under this, too. You must do what you know is right, that which you have the ability to do. Do you honestly think God bestowed all this favor on you and that, therefore, it has somehow insulated you? God put you in this place for now! You have come to the kingdom for such a time as this” (4:12-14).
Several of the chapters in the book of Esther (5-7) tell the story of how God used Esther to bring the conspiracy of evil to the attention of the king and then how the perpetrator of evil was dealt with.
So now back to the original question: “Is Sarah Palin a type of modern-day Esther?” My answer is, I think so. I say that with emphasis!
I believe that Sarah Palin has a destiny that is yet to be fully revealed. Before the biblical Esther could be a deliverer for her people, she had to come to the palace and be established in a place of authority. This preparation period takes time and when it is complete, then suddenly God will reveal His plan, as He did with Esther.
How will God use Sarah Palin? I don’t know and neither does anybody else, yet. No matter which direction the voting goes in the next few weeks, we have watched Sarah come out of nowhere and begin to be established as a major player in the American political scene. I see in her an ability to communicate with middle America that very few politicians have; the latest and greatest was Ronald Reagan. (Here’s a little info for you. When Margret Thatcher began her ascendency toward becoming Prime Minister of Great Britain, the elitist liberals in English politics and most of the English media were very dismissive of her. They thought of her as a commoner—and just a woman—and therefore unworthy for high office! The Iron Lady, as she became known, went on to be one of the greatest of England’s modern leaders.)
There is one more part of the answer to the question, “Is Sarah Palin a type of a modern-day Esther?” I have briefly tried to answer the first part, and the second part of the answer is, “Yes, and so are you!”
Every believer is a type of Esther. Every man, every woman who is honest in his or her pursuit of God, is an Esther. Let’s get over the childishness of thinking of the Esther spirit as being somehow feminine. This is not a gender issue, this is an “anointing of the Holy Ghost” issue. Frankly, there are a lot of men who need to stand up and become half the woman of God that Esther was. If they did so, they would be a lot more of a man than they are now! All those who are hearing the voice of the Lord need to embrace the understanding that God has brought us to His Kingdom for such a time as this!
Saturday, October 11, 2008
THE CONNECTION
(I was going to entitle this “Getting Hooked Up” but my wife’s good sense prevailed over my childish and slightly risqué attempt at humor.)
Carol and I have just returned from a weekend of ministry in West Texas. I have not driven Interstate 20 between Abilene and Midland for close to twenty years. We enjoyed the drive out and back and especially the time of ministry at the Dream Center in Odessa. Our friend Jimmy Dennis is doing a great work in that area. The Dream Center is reaching a lot of people for Christ; they have a men’s home; they are touching the community with Christian love and service; and God is building a great church there.
On the drive out I was fascinated to see the huge wind farms that have been built in the last few years. There were hundreds and hundreds of giant wind turbines, their massive blades driven by the invisible force of the wind. Each of the majestic turbines is connected to a local power grid that either uses the electric power locally or feeds it on to a regional power grid. From the regional power grid, electricity is then distributed sometimes nationally and who knows where? Maybe just a little of the power that perked your coffee this morning came from West Texas.
Harvesting energy from the wind seems to have a very bright future. Wind power is environmentally friendly, there is a phenomenal supply of wind worldwide, and new technology is continually bringing down the price of generating power from this source. Some countries, like Denmark, are already getting nearly 20 percent of their electrical power from the wind.
One of the difficulties that I understand faces the harvest of the wind for power is that you cannot just find a windy place and build a turbine and poof, you have usable electricity. Unless the turbine is put near a local user like a home or a business or is plugged into a grid where the electrical power can be sent, then the turbine, while perfectly good and capable of producing lots of usable power, is not usable.
Without the availability of an outlet. the majestic wind turbine is nothing but a rotating piece of art generating power with nowhere to go!
The fastest growing segment of Christianity in the world is the Pentecostal/Charismatic community. While modern Pentecostalism is just slightly over 100 years old, it has experienced phenomenal growth that shows no sign of slowing down. It is estimated that at least 600 million people are now “Pentecostal/Charismatic” Christians and some surveys indicate that close to 40 percent of all Christians (globally) are Pentecostal/Charismatic.
The cornerstone scripture for most “Spirit-filled” Christians is Acts 1:8:
“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; AND you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
How many dozens of messages have you heard preached on the power of the Holy Spirit?
How many messages have you heard about being witnesses in your local community and beyond?
How many messages have you ever heard on the word “and”?
What pulls these two powerful concepts/truths together is the often overlooked word “and.” “And” is a conjunction, a connector; it hooks the two truths together and makes them the hallmark statement of Pentecost.
If Pentecost is all about power and that’s all it’s about for us, then we are missing the point. The word “and” takes the power of Pentecost and joins it to an outlet of meaningful service and witness. “And” is the connection that takes the lethal elements of the power of the Holy Spirit and joins them into the grid of powerful service; it brings to life the purpose of Pentecost.
Too much of modern Pentecost is nothing more than wasted power. The majestic turbine of Holy Ghost power is standing in the midst of the roaring wind of Pentecost and is spilling its power on the ground because it is plugged into nothing, it has no outlet. It has taken the power of God and engaged in spiritual self-gratification.
The power of Pentecost is to be connected to the grid of outreach, service and missions. Pentecost is not a plan to empower the individual believer for personal gain and enjoyment of spiritual highs. The power of Pentecost is to be connected to the grid of the whole of God’s church and if it is not, then it is simply a waste of “the power.”
(Whoops, I used the word “hook” a couple of paragraphs ago and I think I see my wife coming this way with an eraser in her hand!)
Carol and I have just returned from a weekend of ministry in West Texas. I have not driven Interstate 20 between Abilene and Midland for close to twenty years. We enjoyed the drive out and back and especially the time of ministry at the Dream Center in Odessa. Our friend Jimmy Dennis is doing a great work in that area. The Dream Center is reaching a lot of people for Christ; they have a men’s home; they are touching the community with Christian love and service; and God is building a great church there.
On the drive out I was fascinated to see the huge wind farms that have been built in the last few years. There were hundreds and hundreds of giant wind turbines, their massive blades driven by the invisible force of the wind. Each of the majestic turbines is connected to a local power grid that either uses the electric power locally or feeds it on to a regional power grid. From the regional power grid, electricity is then distributed sometimes nationally and who knows where? Maybe just a little of the power that perked your coffee this morning came from West Texas.
Harvesting energy from the wind seems to have a very bright future. Wind power is environmentally friendly, there is a phenomenal supply of wind worldwide, and new technology is continually bringing down the price of generating power from this source. Some countries, like Denmark, are already getting nearly 20 percent of their electrical power from the wind.
One of the difficulties that I understand faces the harvest of the wind for power is that you cannot just find a windy place and build a turbine and poof, you have usable electricity. Unless the turbine is put near a local user like a home or a business or is plugged into a grid where the electrical power can be sent, then the turbine, while perfectly good and capable of producing lots of usable power, is not usable.
Without the availability of an outlet. the majestic wind turbine is nothing but a rotating piece of art generating power with nowhere to go!
The fastest growing segment of Christianity in the world is the Pentecostal/Charismatic community. While modern Pentecostalism is just slightly over 100 years old, it has experienced phenomenal growth that shows no sign of slowing down. It is estimated that at least 600 million people are now “Pentecostal/Charismatic” Christians and some surveys indicate that close to 40 percent of all Christians (globally) are Pentecostal/Charismatic.
The cornerstone scripture for most “Spirit-filled” Christians is Acts 1:8:
“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; AND you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
How many dozens of messages have you heard preached on the power of the Holy Spirit?
How many messages have you heard about being witnesses in your local community and beyond?
How many messages have you ever heard on the word “and”?
What pulls these two powerful concepts/truths together is the often overlooked word “and.” “And” is a conjunction, a connector; it hooks the two truths together and makes them the hallmark statement of Pentecost.
If Pentecost is all about power and that’s all it’s about for us, then we are missing the point. The word “and” takes the power of Pentecost and joins it to an outlet of meaningful service and witness. “And” is the connection that takes the lethal elements of the power of the Holy Spirit and joins them into the grid of powerful service; it brings to life the purpose of Pentecost.
Too much of modern Pentecost is nothing more than wasted power. The majestic turbine of Holy Ghost power is standing in the midst of the roaring wind of Pentecost and is spilling its power on the ground because it is plugged into nothing, it has no outlet. It has taken the power of God and engaged in spiritual self-gratification.
The power of Pentecost is to be connected to the grid of outreach, service and missions. Pentecost is not a plan to empower the individual believer for personal gain and enjoyment of spiritual highs. The power of Pentecost is to be connected to the grid of the whole of God’s church and if it is not, then it is simply a waste of “the power.”
(Whoops, I used the word “hook” a couple of paragraphs ago and I think I see my wife coming this way with an eraser in her hand!)
Saturday, October 4, 2008
STAYING FRESH!
In our last devotional, we looked at the story of Onesimus, the runaway slave of Philemon. The powerful change that came into O’s life is captured in Paul’s magnificent statement in verse 11, “Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me.”
We have to speculate about how O got with Paul in Rome. In the previous article I raised the question, “Is it possible that O ran away from his employer, Philemon, because he was attracted to the message of Jesus but for unexplained reasons would not or could not respond in that environment?” The beauty of the story is that he did get to a place where he could respond and the results were radical.
Paul’s approach to Philemon is very affirming and gracious. He calls Philemon his “beloved friend and fellow laborer” (v. 1). He assures Philemon of his constant prayers on his behalf and compliments his wonderful testimony of love and faith (vv. 4 and 5). And then in verse 6 Paul makes this somewhat provocative statement:
“I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.”
Is it possible that as he writes to share the news about O’s conversion, Paul also has a corrective word? Is it possible that the church in Colosse had become primarily a believers’ gathering, that little or no evangelism was taking place?
Some would say that is just speculation! I don’t think so. I believe Paul was lovingly addressing a problem in the Colossian church. One of the fundamental truths of church life is, “as the head goes, so goes the body.” Philemon was one of the keys leaders of the church that met in his home and if Philemon was not sharing the message of the gospel and that had become his way of life, you can mark it down in indelible ink that was the way of the church.
Paul appeals to Philemon with a very rational argument. He maintains that as we share our faith, we gain a fuller understanding of all that Christ died to provide for us (see v. 6).
Our home sits on the south side of a small man-made lake, one of four small lakes in a chain. Because they are man-made, it is a struggle to keep them full of water, so the homeowners’ association installed a recirculation system. The water in the lakes flows from east to west and then is pumped back to the eastern end. Problem solved? Well, not quite. In our warmer climate, it is difficult to keep recirculating water fresh. Health and vitality in lakes happens when there is a strong flow of fresh water coming in one end and an outlet on the other; it is the flow of new water that keeps the lake fresh and the water clean and clear.
The same is true with the spiritual man. If there is mostly recirculation, then the water is going to become murky and strange things are going to start growing.
Paul’s challenge to Philemon was couched in delicate terms because the Colossian church was not one that he began and, in fact, he had never been there. His challenge, however, was clear: “For you to fully realize who you are in Christ you have to begin sharing your faith with others.” Why would he say this? Because the Colossians were not doing this!
The lack of evangelism in the Colossian church is a tragedy of incredible proportions. When the church stops sharing the gospel to those around it, people pass into eternity without Christ and the blame lies with the church. Because of the failure to share the gospel, the church grows stagnant and that makes it even more repulsive to the world. Stagnant water is smelly and germs and disease begin to grow.
One of the arguments of today is that this generation will not hear the gospel in a style that it was presented 40 or 50 years ago, and I agree wholeheartedly. The shouting, sweating, Bible-thumping days are gone—and thank the Lord they are! But the gospel is still as powerful today as it ever was. Has heaven shut off all the creativity? Are there no new ideas left? If there are no fresh ideas flowing, it’s because we have shut off the intake of fresh water!
The church of Acts was not a church of big events; it was primarily a church filled with people who made it their business to take the gospel to their neighbors. Paul did not go around the Mediterranean world holding big crusades. He went to an area, found a few people who responded to the message of Christ, taught them, formed a church, and moved on. Paul lovingly challenged Philemon with this as he also taught the early church.
“Lord, help us to shake off all timidity and fear. We do not want to live in the murky waters of recirculation. We want to be receiving from You and at the same time giving Your love and truth to those in need. Help us, Lord, to stay fresh in You!”
We have to speculate about how O got with Paul in Rome. In the previous article I raised the question, “Is it possible that O ran away from his employer, Philemon, because he was attracted to the message of Jesus but for unexplained reasons would not or could not respond in that environment?” The beauty of the story is that he did get to a place where he could respond and the results were radical.
Paul’s approach to Philemon is very affirming and gracious. He calls Philemon his “beloved friend and fellow laborer” (v. 1). He assures Philemon of his constant prayers on his behalf and compliments his wonderful testimony of love and faith (vv. 4 and 5). And then in verse 6 Paul makes this somewhat provocative statement:
“I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.”
Is it possible that as he writes to share the news about O’s conversion, Paul also has a corrective word? Is it possible that the church in Colosse had become primarily a believers’ gathering, that little or no evangelism was taking place?
Some would say that is just speculation! I don’t think so. I believe Paul was lovingly addressing a problem in the Colossian church. One of the fundamental truths of church life is, “as the head goes, so goes the body.” Philemon was one of the keys leaders of the church that met in his home and if Philemon was not sharing the message of the gospel and that had become his way of life, you can mark it down in indelible ink that was the way of the church.
Paul appeals to Philemon with a very rational argument. He maintains that as we share our faith, we gain a fuller understanding of all that Christ died to provide for us (see v. 6).
Our home sits on the south side of a small man-made lake, one of four small lakes in a chain. Because they are man-made, it is a struggle to keep them full of water, so the homeowners’ association installed a recirculation system. The water in the lakes flows from east to west and then is pumped back to the eastern end. Problem solved? Well, not quite. In our warmer climate, it is difficult to keep recirculating water fresh. Health and vitality in lakes happens when there is a strong flow of fresh water coming in one end and an outlet on the other; it is the flow of new water that keeps the lake fresh and the water clean and clear.
The same is true with the spiritual man. If there is mostly recirculation, then the water is going to become murky and strange things are going to start growing.
Paul’s challenge to Philemon was couched in delicate terms because the Colossian church was not one that he began and, in fact, he had never been there. His challenge, however, was clear: “For you to fully realize who you are in Christ you have to begin sharing your faith with others.” Why would he say this? Because the Colossians were not doing this!
The lack of evangelism in the Colossian church is a tragedy of incredible proportions. When the church stops sharing the gospel to those around it, people pass into eternity without Christ and the blame lies with the church. Because of the failure to share the gospel, the church grows stagnant and that makes it even more repulsive to the world. Stagnant water is smelly and germs and disease begin to grow.
One of the arguments of today is that this generation will not hear the gospel in a style that it was presented 40 or 50 years ago, and I agree wholeheartedly. The shouting, sweating, Bible-thumping days are gone—and thank the Lord they are! But the gospel is still as powerful today as it ever was. Has heaven shut off all the creativity? Are there no new ideas left? If there are no fresh ideas flowing, it’s because we have shut off the intake of fresh water!
The church of Acts was not a church of big events; it was primarily a church filled with people who made it their business to take the gospel to their neighbors. Paul did not go around the Mediterranean world holding big crusades. He went to an area, found a few people who responded to the message of Christ, taught them, formed a church, and moved on. Paul lovingly challenged Philemon with this as he also taught the early church.
“Lord, help us to shake off all timidity and fear. We do not want to live in the murky waters of recirculation. We want to be receiving from You and at the same time giving Your love and truth to those in need. Help us, Lord, to stay fresh in You!”
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