Another Thomas A Kempis Quote

Endeavor to be always patient of the faults and imperfections of others for thou has many faults and imperfections of thine own that require forbearance. If thou are not able to make thyself that which thou wishest, how canst thou expect to mold another in conformity to thy will?

Thomas A Kempis

Who is Thomas A Kempis? Click to find out!

A Great Prayer

I found this while looking through some old journals. I think I'll keep it more handy.

"Give us, O Lord, steadfast hearts that cannot be dragged down by false loves;

give us courageous hearts that cannot be worn down by trouble;

give us righteous hearts that cannot be sidetracked by unholy or unworthy goals.

Give us also, our Lord and God, understanding to know you,

diligence to look for you, wisdom to recognize you,

and a faithfulness that will bring us to see you face to face.

Thomas A Kempis, 14th Century

Having Faith in Prayer

"Have faith in God. Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it shall be granted him. Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you." Mark 11:22-24

I read these verses today and pondered it a bit and read some commentary by Tim Keller. I learned a lot that really encouraged me. Often we read these verses and think that perhaps if I believe hard enough that what I pray for will be granted. And often when what we pray for isn't granted we attribute it to not having enough faith. But doesn't this put the focus on ourselves rather than on God?

Context is so important! First, Tim Keller makes a good point. Jesus prayed fervently for the "cup" to pass from him in Mark 14:35-36 but was turned down. Does this mean that Jesusdidn't have enough faith? I hardly think so! Second, this passage follows two passages having to do with God judgment on sin. Jesus is encouraging the disciples that though sin in prevalent, He still hear them. And lastly, Mark, in his usual brevity, is making a simple statement about the "endless possibilities" of prayer. "For the one who really trusts God, there is no end to what can be accomplished." He has the power to grant any request we ask.

And He also has the wisdom to not grant what He has the power to grant. As we pray we must trust not only His power to give us what we want but in His wisdom to know what I need or don't need and when. When we pray we aren't just to have faith in God's attribute of power, but in all of His attributes - His sovereignty, His wisdom, His love, His mercy, etc.

"If I refuse to believe that God could turn me down, that is itself a failure on my part to trust that His wisdom might be greater than mine."

God invites us to put faith in ALL of Him and, in doing so, attempt great things for Him and move toward them with confidence.

What encouragement this brings to me! Another lesson on trust to add to my ever growing repertoire!

Constitution Week

This week marks the 222nd anniversary of our Constitution.

Here are some quotes to commemorate it.

“The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government - lest it come to dominate our lives and interests.” Patrick Henry

If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be. Thomas Jefferson

The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground. Thomas Jefferson

Liberty cannot be preserved without general knowledge among the people.

John Adams

The essence of a free government consists in an effectual control of rivalries. John Adams

We have no government armed in power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Our Constitution was made only for a religious and moral people. It is wholly inadequate for the government of any other. John Adams

To Give or Not To Give

Over the years and even more so recently, I've pondered whether I should give money to the homeless person on the street corner or to beggars that walk the streets in foreign countries and even in our own land. I feel a great tinge of conviction in my heart when I just drive by going on about my happy, well-provided for life.

The argument from many has been that they will just use it for sordid means. Yes, perhaps. Maybe that is more than likely the case, but how do we know? How do we discern? Sometimes it is easy to tell, but sometimes it isn't.

Jesus said, "For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me. Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give you a drink?' ... Then the King will answer them, saying, ' Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.'" Matt. 25:35-40

When we give we are serving the Lord. My thought has been that sometimes we just don't know the motives and intentions of people but is it up to us to make that judgment? The person who approaches us is in definite and obvious need regardless. Should we not give and let God work it out?

Well, my thoughts were put to the test the other day. We were shopping at Home Depot and I happened to be perusing the bushes outside by the parking lot while Eric went inside to get some electrical material. A man approached me who was obviously in need, though not too destitute looking. He told me a story that sounded legitimate about needing money to get back to the Salvation Army and to buy a few legitimate, inexpensive things at the store. I felt this tugging in my heart to put action to what I had been pondering. I wanted to offer to take him to the Salvation Army or to the store to get the other things he said he needed but I didn't feel like I was in a position to do that with Eric in the store where I'd have to track him down. So I gave him some money, probably more than I should have but I didn't have smaller bills.

I went inside and told Eric and he scolded me. He said that guy had approached him before with a similar story, though not exactly the same one, which led me to believe that it wasn't true at all. I was utterly discouraged. I felt like I had done the right thing and now I realized I had been scammed! I was really bothered by it. But Eric agreed with me that God knew my heart in it and that is what matters.

The next day, Eric discovered that the car we had driven to Home Depot had a flat tire. Somehow our tire was damaged in the Home Depot parking lot. So Eric took off the wheel and took it up the street to Sears. The repairmen fixed the flat and wrote up the bill. However, they said not to worry about it, that it was a really cheap part and it didn't take much of their time!!! Who does that? Especially in this recession? And do you know how much the bill was for that we didn't have to pay? The same amount I gave the guy in the Home Depot parking lot!

So, the trip to Home Depot resulted in either giving up money for the man in the parking lot who was less than truthful but needy nonetheless, or giving up the money to Sears. The money we have is not our own. God will do with it what He will. And, God rewards those who follow His prompting even if it doesn't make sense to us.

Of course I will always try to do as the Spirit leads me but I might use a little more wisdom and thought about how to best help next time. In Jesus example no money was given, only the tangible resources that were needed. So perhaps it is better to offer to take the person to a store or drive them where they need to go which, by the way, is what Eric had offered to the man in the parking lot when he had been approached by him. The needy man declined. However, there are people with legitimate needs who are not trying to swindle us. Perhaps the best way to give to them is through an organization or ministry that reaches out to them or through food and clothing donations or through volunteering.

Regardless, the Old and New Testaments are wrought with commands, instructions and requirements to give to the poor. It is not an option. You cannot get through the Pentateuch or the prophet books without recognizing this. To neglect this task is to bring judgment upon ourselves and even our nation (as in the case with Israel), to neglect the Holy Spirit and to disobey the Lord. Be faithful and compassionate and wise with what God has given. It isn't ours anyway.

Ransomed

I've been doing a study for some months now by Tim Keller, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian in NYC on the book of Mark. It is very in-depth and I have learned some really incredible things and been reminded of truths that have longed been tucked away. I've been meaning to post several blog entries regarding key concepts I've learned or reviewed that had some kind of new spark to them that I wanted to share. Hopefully I will get around to writing about those.

I thought I would get started by sharing what I was reading about today. It is a review of the basic gospel but it was so refreshing and I learned a thing or two. It is from Mark 10:45. "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many." Jesus had just finished describing about his upcoming death to the disciples for the third time. They were still not getting it. They were still thinking of the Messiah as the one who would come to usher in the new kingdom, an earthly one, and they wanted a piece of the power and prestige as Jesus' right & left hand men. Jesus, in verse 45, is telling them that He first must come as the suffering servant referred to in Isaiah 53. So, Jesus had been telling them that He was going to suffer and die; now He is explaining why He must do so - as a ransom for many.

I've always thought of ransom meaning that someone has been kidnapped and someone else must pay a very large and unreasonable sum to release the captive. The one kidnapped is incapable of paying because they are held in captivity. However, upon further reading in this study, "ransom" actually meant in those days to purchase someone out of slavery and refers mainly to prisoners of war - to bring a prisoner of war who has been captured by the enemy out of his slavish captivity.

Here are some things to be gleaned from this verse - Mark 10:45.

1. Jesus could have come to be served. Jesus, the Messiah, "God with us" had every right to expect to be treated with honor and dignity and glory and with all the other rights and privileges afforded the King of kings. He came to build His kingdom and could have taken it and His glory by force at that time. Many expected that the Messiah would come to set them free from Roman "captivity." That is what the disciples were hanging onto. However, in actuality, He came to build His kingdom in a much different way than the way earthly kings bring glory to themselves. His was a plan of service.

2. We are enslaved by something that we need to be ransomed from- Not the "captivity" of the Romans over the Jewish people, but rather a captivity of our hearts. He wasn't concerned with political captivity. He was concerned about His creation's much longer standing spiritual captivity to sin, death & the Law. See Romans 3-6

3. There is a price for that penalty that must be paid in order to release slaves. Ransomed does not just mean that the person sneaks in at night and conducts the slaves to freedom, or creates an elaborate escape, or a battle plan; it specifically involves a price to be paid. (Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.") Jesus paid it all for us. We don't have to pay anything or do anything nor could we if we tried. Nothing we could pay or do would be enough.

4. This verse tells the sum of the price - Jesus' life! "...to give his life a ransom..." His enemy had taken His creation and enslaved them. He came to take them back by paying the ransom for sin with His own sacrificial death. A ransomer, who has much to give, experiences loss and poverty so that the slave, who has nothing, can be free. (II Cor. 5:21 "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.")

5. This word "ransom" implies that a new relationship is formed between the ransomed and the ransomer. If someone gave up all He had out of love for your sake, would you not give your all back to Him out of love and gratitude and serve Him willingly and joyfully and follow Him faithfully?

6. It assumes that there is real evil and real sin and real guilt and real divine justice. Jesus death is senseless unless we are truly in bondage & honestly in need of being ransomed. Modern people don't recognize the real problem & extent of evil & sin on a global and individual level and that justice must be honored. Ancient people had difficulty understanding the concept of a loving God that would come to make the perfect payment Himself. Instead they strove to appease a begrudged and capricious god or gods who could never be appeased.

There are many other words to describe the gospel - justified, made righteous, bought, reconciled, redeemed, propitiated, triumphed over, made new. However, it all involved some sort of substitution on the part of both man and God. Man tried to substitute himself for God, to be like God, to bring glory to himself - the essence of sin. However, God came and substituted Himself for man, dying man's death for us, accepting our penalty - the essence of salvation.

"God presented Him as a sacrifice...so as to be both Just and Justifier of those who believe." Romans 3: 25-26

This is a summary of the notes from the Tim Keller study with my thoughts thrown in here and there.