December 29, 2023

If we can trust Him with the final hour, we can trust Him with the next minute. ~ Helmut Thielicke~

Transitions & Resolutions It is the end of a year and the beginning of a year. We encounter and experience it every year. We also seem to mark each transition with a quick assessment and evaluation of the past and some prognostications and predictions for the new year. I am not much for new year resolutions, but I am very interested in creating Goals, Objectives, and Standards (GOS). They function as my guide so that I can evaluate the investment of my life. How have you invested this past year? How will you invest this upcoming year?  Obviously, priorities are essential. As Goethe reminds us; Things that matter least must never come about at the expense of things that matter most. Here are four biblical principles that can guide our priorities as we invest in the approaching new year. Be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time because the days are evil.  Ephesians 5:15-16 Teach us to number our days that we may present to Thee a heart of wisdom. Psalm 90:12 Beloved, do not love the world nor the things in the world. I John 2:15 Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise let your mind dwell on these things. Philippians 4:8 We are all subject to the fall and that means that death will come. “The dash on the tombstone is the great equalizer.” As Ecclesiastes reminds us, there is a time to live and a time to die. But for those who have received the gift of eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ, we are prepared to live forever.   Now the only question is: How will you live this year? Serving Him with you Until He comes for us. Fred

December 22, 2023

Is Christmas Just a Kids Thing?

They say Christmas is for young children and not for old people. Well, I used to be a child and now I am… a bit older. The truth is that Christmas is for everyone. That is because everyone needs the gift of eternal life.   At Christmas we realize that all that we need was to be found in a place where you would not expect to find anything. In a dirty, smelly stable is where we find the King of kings and Lord of Lords. And He came there so He could meet us. All of us. As Anselm reminds us- “Jesus did not come out of curiosity or personal need. The Father sent him on an errand of mercy solely to accomplish our redemption.”   I would never do that. I would never leave the comfort of heaven and perfect fellowship with the Father and the Spirit to come to earth to die for me. But that is what happened and as Charles Spurgeon reminds us, “The Infinite became an Infant. The Creator became a Creature. God was in a Cradle.” As my friend, Joel Householder, has eloquently stated; “This initiative is the most exquisite, incomprehensible, unimaginable, quintessential display of humility ever.”   This Christmas, whether you are young or old, and in spite of the busyness that seems to crowd around us during this time of celebration, make sure you make some time to remember the mysteriously wonderful words of Syd McCaully;    “He who was infinite became finite so that we who were finite might become infinite.” Serving Him with you Until He comes for us. Fred

December 15, 2023

There is nothing like a dream to create the future. -Victor Hugo-

I have always been a dreamer. Many people would find that hard to believe. They think that I am more of a critical if not cynical person. However, I like to think of myself as someone who simply has a heightened sense of reality.  I have found if you scratch a cynic, underneath you will find an idealist. I tend to be an idealist who has big dreams and aspirations. These are not my dreams. They are the dreams of my boss. His name is King Jesus. It goes without saying that where there is a King there is a Kingdom. The King to come is predicted in Isaiah 7:14 fulfilled in Matthew 1:23. His name is Immanuel - “God with us.” The King’s provision is seen in the four throne names found in Isaiah 9:5-7. I am sure that during this Christmas season we will all listen to that passage through the playing of Handel’s Messiah. It contains four couplets each describing God’s anointed ruler. He is wonderful counselor, mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. The King’s presence is seen in His ruling and reigning in His kingdom. Today His kingdom is what many have called a mystery or spiritual form of the Kingdom - the Church. But in the future, there will be a millennial kingdom, promised in the Old Testament to the nation of Israel. Yes, they really do own the Land! (see Psalm 2, 89, 2 Sam. 7:14) The final fulfillment of the promise of this millennial kingdom is expressed in Revelation 20:1-6.  The final form of the kingdom will be an eternal kingdom that will have no end. This is what John is describing in Revelation 21-22. This is when and what transpires, according to the Apostle Paul's declaration in I Corinthians 15:24-28           ...then comes the end, when He delivers up the kingdom to the God and Father, when he has abolished all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be abolished is death. For He has put all things in subjection under His feet. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him. And when all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, that God may be all in all. Martin Luther King had a dream, and it was a good dream for our country. My King has a bigger dream and a better dream for the entire world and all of creation. Jesus came at Christmas to bear a cross and wear a crown of thorns. He is coming again to wear the crown of victory, Christus Victor. Serving Him with you Until He comes for us. Fred

December 8, 2023

The Sleep of Reason Brings Forth Monsters -Goya-

Today we are watching the sleep of reason, and we are witnessing the creation of monsters. Monsters that come in the form of antisemitism. We now have an answer for how the German people could listen to Hitler and not realize the demonic origin of such a genocidal view of people. Reason and common decency have been deceived and degenerated and have descended into barbaric behavior much like what we have witnessed by Hamas - pure evil. What is puzzling today is why there are Jews who vote for a political party that seems to have a difficult time rejecting such evil ideas. Perhaps Irving Kristol was right in his assessment in his 1999 essay, “On the Political Stupidity of the Jews.” Is that reasonable? Monsters also come in the form of LGBTQ+ ideology. Let’s be clear - it is not only a divergent form of behavior in all of the natural world, but more importantly an affront to God almighty the creator. But today it has been normalized and thought by some to be a “gift from God.” Is that reasonable? The French philosopher, Renan, was perhaps on to something in his observation that the only thing that can give you a conception of the infinite is the extent of human stupidity. Mark it well, the changing of circumstances cannot repair the defect of character. It is only the power of rebirth and regeneration, the receiving of eternal life in Christ Jesus that makes lasting and eternal changes in both our character now and our destiny forever. The song writer was right, “People need the Lord.” Serving Him with you Until He comes for us. Fred

December 1, 2023

“Why Argue And fight And worry How the world ends? Pray for the best, Prepare for the worst, And take whatever God sends.” ~Ruth Bell Graham~

There is much wisdom from Mrs. Graham. I imagine she said this to her husband, Billy Graham, during one of those days when he was preaching about the end times, and she needed a break. LOL However, much of the Bible speaks of the prophetic future and our headline news has caused many to ask searching and penetrating questions that can only be answered by a correct understanding of the Bible. What is the Day of the Lord, the Great Tribulation, and are we in it now? (Mal 4:5; Jer 30:7; Dan 12;1; Rev 6:17; 2 Peter 3:13?) What is the Rapture, and will it occur before the Great Tribulation or after? (I Thess 4-5; Matt 24)  Are we close to the Battle of Armageddon, and if so when is it and what is it? (Rev 16, 19) And who is this Gog guy and where is Magog? (Ezk 37-38) The warning of Reinhold Niebuhr is true: “It is unwise for Christians to claim any knowledge of either the furniture of heaven or the temperature of hell, or to be too certain about any details of the kingdom of God in which history is consummated.” (The Nature and Destiny of Man, Vol. 2, p. 294) Nevertheless, it is imperative that we as believers in the Lord Jesus search the inspired, infallible, and inerrant scriptures to be aware so we can beware. Remember what the Apostle Paul said, “Redeem the time for the days are evil." Let me encourage you to make time to read, study, and absorb the sacred scriptures, for in them you shall see Him and know how you should then live. Serving Him with you Until He comes for us. Fred