May 30, 2019 Ascension of the Lord

“15 ¶ Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power 20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. 22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.” (Ephesians 1:15-23 NKJV)

Why did Jesus ascend? There are so many ways Jesus could have chosen to go to be the Father. So why Ascension? There must be a reason Jesus chose to ascend rather than any other way. Here are some possibilities from this passage.

17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened;

Jesus ascends our wisdom, knowledge and understanding. In the Ascension we see the promise we will ascend to God!

that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power

God ascends our view from our low view of this world and life! Jesus ascends our view of life and creation as we see the connection between Heaven and Earth.

20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,

The Ascension of Jesus and His position at the right hand of the Father is the seed of hope which grows to the tree of faith producing the fruit if love which offers the seed of hope to others.

21 far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.

Our view of might and power ascend to realize no world leader or weapon are nothing in comparison to the might and power of God. Those who ridicule God, work against God and seek to turn others from God cannot stand before the power of God. They are already defeated! They already lost!!! We do not need to fear them.

The ascension reminds us that in a world of death and despair in Jesus we have hope and life! Be not afraid for God loves you and has already defeated His and therefore your enemies.

Memorial Dad – a time to remember those who gave their all

We celebrate D-Day the landing of troops, part of Nazism fall

But do we remember who in Africa’s desert also gave their all

Those in Italy who fought up the boot so despot would fall

Market Garden, “One Bridge too Far” still offered their all

In Korea, the forgotten and unplanned war not knowing why

In Vietnam unprepared soldier who were reviled still did die

In the Cold War warm blood was shed without knowing why

In Haiti Clinton gave guns without bullets to soldiers to die

Fight terrorists around the world without a plan they do die

Many families suffered terrible cost as hope and dreams die

Though not knowing the why in honer they stand and die

Leaders not knowing cost now send men and women to die

Families paying terrible cost ask why their loved one did die

Father’s, Mother’s, spouse and children cherish those who die

Politicians see life without value send pawns in game to die

Their lined up headstones to honor their sacrifice ask why

And so so many die – please tell WHY! 5/27/2019

May 26, 2019 Sixth Sunday of Easter

“1 ¶ And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. 4 They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. 5 There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever. 6 ¶ Then he said to me, “These words are faithful and true.” And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place. 7 “Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” 8 Now I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things.” (Revelation 22:1-8 NKJV)

There are times when the Bible leaves us in awe! John’s view of Heaven first is a reminder of who Jesus proclaims to be in the I am statements and in the second part we can see who Jesus proclaims to be in the promises to those who are faithful. Let us look at and hear this heavenly proclamation.

They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads.

This leads us back to Moses whose face shined when coming into the presence of God. Others did not want to see but wouldn’t it be amazing to see.

Sheep are marked so shepherds can tell their sheep from others. Jesus knows us so this could be to keep the evil one from trying to “rustle” God’s sheep.

There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light.

In Creation Light comes before the sun, moon and the stars. Here G0d reveals to us the fulfillment of the Light conquering darkness. In Heaven there will only be one day with no shadow or darkness.

“These words are faithful and true.”

The Living Word is the source of all words to enable us to see the truth and faithfulness of Jesus! Notice it says “these words” as the Living Word Jesus is the source of all words.

“Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”

For two millennium those who follow Jesus have looked to see the coming of Jesus. In the New Testament there was even a group who waited on the roof for the coming of Jesus. Paul told them to come down and get to work. While being heavenly minded is important we must not allow it to keep us from making disciples!

Now I, John, saw and heard these things.

We have the declaration of God and now John declares he saw and heard these things. Jesus is the Word and Light and enabled John to see and hear what was needed to write this final book of the Bible. Bible means book of books and a book is a series of connected words.

Allow God to reveal Himself to you as the Living Word through the Bible, the written word of God. Listen and see the fullness of Creation, salvation and love found in Jesus!

My faith is in You, my Lord for You have been very faithful all my life

My hope is in You, my Lord for You have lifted me above my despair

My wisdom is in You, my Lord for I have humbled to see my ignorance

My life is in You, my Lord for You rescued me from eternal death in this life

My health is in You, my Lord for Your strength within and without suffering

My wealth is in You, my Lord for you protect me from too much and too little

My death is in You, my Lord for You have dies for me and destroyed death

Every good thing I have done is because of You working in and through me

My Lord and my Love, You have allowed me to see You working in others

You, my Lord have allowed me to see the light in their eyes as they found YOU!!!

Thank You, My Lord not just for what You do but for Who You are!!!

                                                                                                 5/18/2019

Pain overwhelms me                 But God is my refuge

Weariness overwhelms me      But God is my refuge

Grief overwhelms me                But God is my refuge

Fuzzy mind overwhelms me    But God is my refuge

God is my hope and help         to face the pain

God is my hope and help         to live despite weariness

God is my hope and help         to comfort within grief

God is my hope and help         with clarity of my mind

 5/17/2019

The clouds go by white like sheep guided by the Shepherd

As they go some seem to follow in line and even in groups

Like sheep some go astray but as before Jesus directs them

Some of “the sheep” grow dark and become a strong storm

Lightning hurls out their anger and fear of what lies within

Thunder awakens not only to their anger but also their fear

Confused and twisting wind shrieks from earth to Heaven

The winds of fear destroys homes, churches and families

All is twisted, pierced and damaged through the confusion

The winds blow and fierce rain rattles and shakes everything

Roofs are torn off and homes ripped from their foundation

Water leaves behind the debris of torn lives and families

But then the Son comes and the Light casts darkness aside

Families are brought together as Light allows love to grow

Homes are rebuilt before houses are rebuilt on foundations

Again clouds white like sheep are guided by the Shepherd

As they go some seem to follow in line and even in groups

Like sheep they go astray but as before Jesus directs them 5/11/2019

May 12, 2019 Fourth Sunday of Easter – Mother’s Day

“9 After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 All the angels stood around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying: “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom, Thanksgiving and honor and power and might, Be to our God forever and ever. Amen.” 13 ¶ Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?” 14 And I said to him, “Sir, you know.” So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 “Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them. 16 “They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; 17 “for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”” (Revelation 7:9-17 NKJV)

When I first became a Christian some told me since I was a Christian I would no longer suffer. There are times I wanted to punch them! (I know that is a very unchristian thought but I must confess it.) But Jesus promises, and seeks to prepare us for the suffering and tribulation we will face when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior!

Take time to peruse (I love that word!) the Bible and over and over, cover to cover God reveals to us the suffering of His people who are ambassadors of God in a world that hates and despises God!!!

The prophets are murdered, the apostles are murdered and those who trust in God often become martyrs or die with the fallen people who cause their own judgment by arrogantly making themselves God!

(Many believe more Christians are being persecuted and martyred now then at any other time in history.)

One of the traditions of the early Church is that the book of Revelation was written to be smuggled into Christians who were to be tried and must choose to reject Jesus or to hold on to their faith in Jesus and accept that His suffering is worth our suffering for!

We do not like to think of this. Those who told me there is no suffering as a Christian desperately want to believe this is true! But to do so is to not prepare ourselves for destruction! To not be prepared for destruction is to invite destruction.

We see in the school shootings people are trained what to do when an active shooter situation (what is an inactive shooter?) Training is preparation so we will not fail.

Have you prepared for suffering and tribulation? Does reading this passage call you to be prepared to make the decision to trust in God and suffer for your faith in God? Are you prepared to walk in the footsteps of the cross bearing Jesus?

There is a saying “To fail to prepare is to prepare to fail.”

May 5, 2019 Third Sunday of Easter

“11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain To receive power and riches and wisdom, And strength and honor and glory and blessing!” 13 And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: “Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, And to the Lamb, forever and ever!” 14 Then the four living creatures said, “Amen!” And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped Him who lives forever and ever.” (Revelation 5:11-14 NKJV)

In Psalm 100 we are shown the difference between thanksgiving and praise. The psalmist says we can enter the gates with thanksgiving but with praise we come into the court of God, into His very presence!

If we are not careful we can never get beyond Thanksgiving and on to praise. It is very easy to spend our time of worship as a time of entertainment, giving thanks and coming up with a Christmas list of needs and burdens.

This passage of Scripture is a revelation of worship as all of heaven worships God for who He is. Thanksgiving is a time and way to acknowledge all God has done for us and given us the chance of life. But praise acknowledges who God is and that God is worthy of our worship even if we have nothing to be thankful for!

This picture of worship reveals to us how heavenly and earthly beings come together in praise of God. Scripture tells us that God’s presence is with us even if only two or three of us of us are together. When even the smallest group comes together in praise we become part of the heavenly celebration of who God is!

The revelation of God in Jesus Christ and the resurrection which offers us eternal life in the presence of God is why Christians went from Saturday to Sunday as a sabbath and the day of worship. CELEBRATE EASTER NOT JUST EVERY WEEK BUT EVERY DAY!

There is a Trinity of love and a trinity of hate

The trinity of hate is:

I hate God

I hate others

Because I hate myself

The Trinity of love is:

I love God

So I can love others

Because God loves me I can love myself

There are different levels

There are different way

There are different reasons

But we will choose which Trinity we live within

April 28, 2019 Second Sunday of Easter

“John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”” (Revelation 1:4-8 NKJV)

The Second Sunday of Easter? What does this mean? Some see Easter as one day involving eggs, chicks and chocolate. We might go to the Sunrise service to recognize it is a special day but why should we continue celebrating Easter?

Easter is too big to fit into one day because Easter is a forever happening. The affects of Easter reach back to Adam and Eve and forward to the last person to cry out to God on this broken, darkened world. Easter opens the doorway between us and eternity and us and God!

In this Revelation Jesus declares in one of His “I am” statements “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

It is not that Jesus is involved from the beginning and the end BUT IS!!! Jesus reaches beyond time and is the Creator of time. Just as Jesus does not just love but is Love, does not just create light but is Light and so many things we think come from Jesus but He actually IS! Or I am.

This so important for us to know Jesus not only tells us in three ways but also reveals to us what this means.

“Alpha and the Omega” This would be like say A to Z meaning the fullness of every way we have of expressing ourselves.

“the Beginning and the End,” To be the beginning and the end means Jesus must have existed outside of time to create time! This is a short way of saying what John shared in the first chapter of his gospel.

“who is and who was and who is to come” Jesus not only exists outside of time but has and will enter into time. This is not an expression of a distant God but a God who though beyond time and the creator of time still has an impact and presence within time.

“The Almighty” Jesus as the Almighty is described by the three Revelation above. We are able to see the wonder of who Jesus really is and not left with the kind Jesus alone. Jesus is shown to be God and Almighty and we are also given a definition of Almighty.

Take time to look over this passage of Scripture and list what it reveals to you about God. Realize Jesus IS God and not just an expression of God! God, who created all and even time itself, saw our need and our pain and came from the light and wonder of heaven to this dark and horrible world because of His love for us!

HAPPY EASTER!