You Love Second

From the excellent Book "Note to Self:  The Discipline of Preaching to Yourself."

You must learn, relearn, and remember your Savior's love and sacrifice for the wicked, the rebellious, the black-hearted - for people like you.  And when you see the Holy One's sacrificial love for you, you not only see what love looks like, but also you find strength and power to love like Him.

Jesus is the Father's Glory Revealed

And the Glory of the Lord shall be revealed; and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. Isaiah 40:5

And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. Luke 2:9

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”. Luke 2

Forgive? Why?

It seems ridiculous that we should forgive people for horrible, terrible things they have done to us....until, that is, that we fully realize the extent of our offense against our Father.  And yet, we were forgiven.  If we really think about it, our conclusion will be that the ridiculous thing is that He forgave us.       

23 "Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants.
24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.
25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.
26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.'
27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.
28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, 'Pay what you owe.'
29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you.'
30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.
31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place.
32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.
33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?'
34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt.
35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart."

Unreasonable Doubt and the Fatherless

Here's an interesting excerpt from an article in "Christianity Today" on February 10, 2011.  The article, Unreasonable Doubt is by Jim Spiegel.

External factors may also hamper the natural awareness of God and contribute to a descent into atheism. In his book Faith of the Fatherless: The Psychology of Atheism, New York University psychologist Paul Vitz, a onetime atheist, examines the lives of the major atheists of the modern period, including Hobbes, Hume, Voltaire, Feuerbach, Nietzsche, Sartre, Camus, Russell, and Freud. He found they had something in common: a broken relationship with their father. Whether by death, departure, abuse, or some other factor, the father relationships of all these well-known atheists were defective. Vitz also examined the lives of prominent theists during the same period (Pascal, Reid, Burke, Berkeley, Paley, Wilberforce, Kierkegaard, Schleiermacher, Newman, Chesterton, and Bonhoeffer, among others). In every case, he found a good relationship with the father or at least a strong father figure.

More Poetry from the Same Source

When years of time shall pass away
And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall
When men, who here refuse to pray
On rocks and hills and mountains call
God’s love so sure, shall still endure
All measureless and strong
Redeeming grace to Adam’s race
The saints’ and angels’ song

Hound of Heaven - Still Pursuing Today

Francis Thompson (1859-1907) wrote this poem that is, frankly, very difficult to understand but well worth giving it a shot.  Thompson was addicted to opium and alcohol and the poem spoke of God the Father's pursuit of him (with deliberate and unperturbed pace).  

Wherever and however quickly Thompson fled, God was the same distance behind him - never overtaking him but always there the moment Thompson quit running to things he thought would satisfy him.

Isn't it exactly the same for all of us?  Our Father never, ever stops pursuing us with what John Wesley called prevenient grace.  I'm glad He didn't stop pursuing me - like a Hound in pursuit of prey - with a persevering focus that nothing can distract.

Click here for a version that helps define some of the words of the poem.

If you are interested in re-writing the poem to fit with the postmodern pursuits of man (e.g. greed, sex, power, money, drugs, escapism, etc.), shoot me an E-mail with your results and I might publish them on this site.   

Why Did Christians Used To Talk About Heaven?

Why did Christians used to talk about heaven?  Why don't we?

There is an epidemic in Christianity.  We are looking for heaven on earth.  We're always asking God to be a genie.  We want our problems fixed.  We want no pain.  And, we could care less about the promises God actually makes us.    

God does NOT promise us a way out of our problems.  In fact, He promises us that the faithful will have tribulation.....the saints will be persecuted.  Not might be but will be.  We've been taught that, if we have enough faith, He'll get us out of our problems.  This is a lie that has consumed much of Christianity in America.  For Christians in China or the Sudan or India or Russia, this is a lie that is easy to detect. 

God DOES promise a way through our problems.  He promises us that He'll never leave us.  He tells us to persevere, to never fear, to fight, to battle, to pray for strength.  He promises us that, through any storm or any fire, we are in His hands and that He'll protect us.  ALWAYS and without fail.

God knows what He's doing.  In fact, I can honestly say that what I am most thankful for is what He's brought me through - not what I've gotten out of.  

QUIT TRYING TO GET OUT OF YOUR PROBLEMS - and start depending on God to get you through them.  Be strong and bold and faithful.  Or, are you content with keeping the Father at hand for your needs instead of being in His Hand?

Now, back to the question.  Why did Christians used to talk about heaven?  Because they understood that life was full of difficulties and problems because of the wrong that all humans bring into the world.  It's an evil place.  There's no easy, quick fix.  They never even considered that there might be.  All they had was Jesus - no magic.  

But they understood the biblical truths that all of us just don't understand:

these are light and temporary trials, 

we'll never have more than we can bear, 

our suffering is worth it.

But most importantly, they understood what the word hope means.  Hope is all about longing for a place we really know little about.  Hope is about clinging to what we do know - that one day every Christ-follower will leave behind all our troubles, all our fears, all our pain, all our tears.  The hope of His return.  That day and that place is called Hope....or Heaven.

When we understand the truth, quit running from our problems, see that we're in Abba's hand and that His Spirit is in us, that there's no way out of our problems - but there is always a way through them....

....then, once again, our hymns, songs, prayers, sermons and what we talk about-  will once again be about Heaven. 

FOR FURTHER MEDITATION:

Song lyrics compilation:

There's gonna be some trouble in your life....hold on to Jesus.

He never promised that the cross would not get heavy and the hill would not be hard to climb.  He never promised victory without fighting but He said help would always come in time....our Lord will show up....and take you through the fire again.  

These are they who've won the battle....who've stood the test....clothed in garments pure and spotless....the redeemed....the pure and blessed.   

They tell me of a home where no storm clouds rise....of an unclouded day.  

When we all get to heaven what a day of rejoicing that will be.  When we all see Jesus we'll sing and shout the victory.

I can hear the chariots rumble.  I can see the marching throng.  The flurry of God's trumpet spells the end to sin and wrong.  Regal robes are now unfolded and the grandstand's all in place.  Heaven's choir is now assembled starts to sing Amazing Grace.  The King is coming!  The King is coming!  Praise God He's coming for me!

These are they who have come out of great tribulation.  They have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb.  They have come through much sorrow into great jubilation.  They're redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.  And all the strangers and all the pilgrims, they'll be no longer strangers.  And the tired and the weary wanderers they'll wander no more.  The table is spread for the great celebration.  And the welcome home banner flies over the door.

The clouds be rolled back as a scroll.  The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend.  Even so, it is well with my soul.

The sweet light in His eyes shall enhance those awaiting....the sleeping shall rise from there slumbering place....those who remain shall be changed in a moment.  

And there will be no more night....no more pain....no more tears....never crying again. 

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow.  The sun forbear to shine.  But God Who calls me here below will be forever mine.  When we've been there ten thousand years....we've no less days to sing His praise than when we've first begun.  

Job said this:

As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, And at the last He will take His stand on the earth. “Even after my skin is destroyed, Yet from my flesh I shall see God; Whom I myself shall behold, And whom my eyes will see and not another. My heart faints within me! 

Paul said this:

To live is Christ and to die is gain. 

We are afflicted in every way but not crushed; perplexed but not despairing; persecuted but not forsaken; struck down but not destroyed....for momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.

An Elder (creature in heaven) told John this and he wrote it down in the Revelation:

"These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. “For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them. “They will hunger no longer, nor thirst anymore; nor will the sun beat down on them, nor any heat; for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the water of life; and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”