The Sacrifice of Praise; February 18, 2023

Posted on February 19, 2023 by jgarrott

Hebrews 13:15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise–the fruit of lips that confess his name.

This is one of the first verses I became aware of when I was introduced to the Charismatic Movement. Choruses like We Bring the Sacrifice of Praise still echo in my heart and mind, and that was just over 50 years ago. The principle of praising God has never vanished entirely from the Church, but it has certainly had its ebbs and flows. I have seen skits that made fun of it, saying that God is egotistical to require praise of His subjects, but that misses the purpose of praise entirely. God, being infinite, doesn’t require anything at all, much less ego boosts. However, we have a fundamental need to acknow­ledge Him in all His magnificence, and that is what praise is all about. There are two facets to the “sacrifice” part. The first is that this is a replacement for the Old Covenant sacrificial system, since Jesus has given the ultimate sacrifice of His own body and blood. This letter was written to Jews, after all, and the temple in Jerusalem possibly hadn’t been destroyed yet. “Sacrifice” was certainly a significant term to Jews of the day. The other facet is that it’s not always easy to praise God, and doing so requires a genuine sacrifice on our part. At that time in history, confessing “Jesus is Lord” could get you killed for treason, for disloyalty to Lord Caesar. To this day, totalitarian regimes of all stripes hate genuine Christians, because our loyalty is to a power higher than any government. Sadly, we see that going on full force in the US even today, though thankfully the Constitution still hasn’t been abolished. Praising God is seen as an act of sedition by statists of any label, because they want the State to be our god. Praising God is all the more essential in such circumstances.

I grew up in a family that loved to sing, and some of my best memories are of being gathered around the piano, singing through the hymnal. There are some magnificent praise hymns, but they aren’t in the majority. Today, a sad percentage of “Christian” music is simply emotional, man-focused instead of God-focused, and would be hard to classify as praise toward God. As a pastor, I am responsible for what we sing here, and I seek to be careful about such things. I ascribe to the view that the pastor is to be the “chief worshiper.” If I am not worshiping in spirit and in truth, how can I expect others to do so? Sundays are very busy for me, and distractions abound. Sometimes it really is a “sacrifice” of praise! My goal is for every aspect of my life, public and private, to confess Jesus as Lord, both in word and in action, so that others may join me in repentance and faith and receive eternal salvation, for the glory of God.

Father, thank You for allowing me to express that so clearly. I do pray that I would continually offer You the sacrifice of praise that is due You, and You alone, so that I may be fully available at all times for however You want to use me, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Thinking about Jesus; February 17, 2023

Posted on February 18, 2023 by jgarrott

Hebrews 12:3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Often emotional exhaustion is worse than physical exhaustion. (The Japanese here doesn’t just say “weary,” but “exhausted.”) The two things necessary to overcome that are perspective and hope, and thinking about Jesus should provide both of those in abundance. When we compare what we are experiencing with what Jesus went through in order to provide salvation for us, our struggles look pretty small. At the same time, the result of His suffering should give us a transcendent hope that will eclipse everything else. Paul put it this way: “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” (2 Corinthians 4:17) Most Christians know that in theory at least, but in our daily lives we are all too prone to forget it. That’s why we need to think about Jesus! As a carpenter, Jesus was certainly familiar with physical labor, but His emotional and spiritual labor on our behalf was far greater, far more taxing. That awareness has strengthened believers down through the centuries, and we need to let it do the same for us.

This chapter is one of my favorite in the whole Bible, with virtually all of it underlined, and I quote it frequently. However, even I could benefit from thinking about Jesus more frequently and deeply. As I am often reminded, familiarity indeed breeds contempt, and I must not gloss over any part of God’s Word simply because I can quote it without thinking. It’s the “without thinking” that’s the problem! I have wide interests and think about an almost infinite variety of things, but I would do well to consciously think about Jesus more. After all, I want to be more like Him, and thoughts often develop into action. That’s why “premeditated” murder is judged much more severely than a “crime of passion.” I’m not going to keep growing more like my Lord without thinking about Him, submerging my thoughts and feelings into Him, to the point that He’s the first thing I think about in the morning and the last thing I think about at night. That is my desire, and I need to be active in my pursuit of it.

Father, thank You for this clear Word. I do think about an incredible variety of things every day, which isn’t bad in itself, but Jesus needs to be front and center. Help me indeed think about my Lord so that I will gain the physical and emotional strength and purity I need for all that I encounter, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Angels; February 16, 2023

Posted on February 17, 2023 by jgarrott

Hebrews 1:14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

Evidently there was an issue, back in the 1st Century, of some people worshiping angels instead of God. This sort of thing has been a problem throughout human history, with people worshiping all sorts of impressive things that were less than God. It’s where animism comes from, where people worship impressive things in nature, and is the source of such things as Baal being “the storm god.” Actually, the devil loves this sort of thing, because he seeks to steal the worship that belongs only to God, and as Paul cautions, he can appear to us as an angel of light. (2 Corinthians 11:14) It is sadly the source of people praying to saints, instead of to the Trinity. Why pray to anything less that the Godhead? If we think we’re too unimportant for God Himself to care about us, we don’t understand God. Jesus said He cares about even how many hairs we have on our head! (Matthew 10:30) We fall into this sort of trap precisely because our concept of God is too small. We think, “How could the Creator of the universe care about me?” He’s big enough to care about each one of His children individually, and He does. That’s why He created the angels as ministering spirits to serve us!

I would be the last person to say that angels aren’t impressive. Every time the Bible records their appearance, the people involved have to be told not to be afraid. I’ve never seen one myself, but my wife has on several occasions, and she says they are bigger than the room they are in, mighty warriors. At the same time, they can appear as normal human beings, as Hebrews notes. (Hebrews 13:2) I’ve read reports of “people” who appeared at accident scenes, helped people out, and then disappeared. My wife prayed for a man at a traffic accident and he later wanted to know who the man was who was standing beside her, when there were no men present. I am convinced of the reality of angels and am grateful for them, but I never want to fall into the trap of worshiping them. Any angel of God wouldn’t want that anyway! There are many things I will never understand fully in this life, and angels are one of them. I need to focus on my Lord, with full gratitude for all that He provides, angels included!

Father, thank You for Your incredible, gracious love. Help me not be distracted by anything less, so that I may be fully obedient to You in all purity. Thank You. Praise God!

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Human Distinctions; February 15, 2023

Posted on February 16, 2023 by jgarrott

Philemon 1:10-11 I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains. Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me.

Paul could at times be diplomatic to the point of being manipulative, and this letter is probably the prime example of that. It would be hard to fault any detail of it in terms of Paul’s goal of freedom for Onesimus and reconciliation between him and Philemon. This letter is clear evidence that there was nothing racial about slavery throughout most of human history. I’m reminded of a song from the musical play Finian’s Rainbow that says, “When the idle poor become the idle rich, you’ll never know just who is who and who is which.” In the US we have the image of Black slaves from the Civil War period, but race was simply not an issue in the 1st Century. Regardless, here we have the matter of Paul asking Philemon to accept Onesimus not as his slave, but as his brother in Christ. It is quite possible that One­simus was born into slavery, because “Useful” seems like an odd name to give a child, and that’s what “Onesimus” means. Regardless, relationship with Christ as Lord and the resulting status as a child of God clearly trumps any previous distinctions. That’s important to remember today, when people deceived by the devil are trying so hard to divide people on the basis of anything at all. Actually, slavery today is more widespread than it has ever been, though it’s not technically legal in the vast majority of countries. Whatever previous distinctions might have existed, in race, income, social class, or anything else, they become meaningless when covered by the blood of Christ. It has become a cliché, but the ground is truly level at the foot of the cross.

Growing up as a Caucasian in Japan I was both aware of race and aware that it was unimportant. On my first visit to the US, just before I turned four, I encountered my first Black person, and am told I insisted on speaking Japanese to them because in my experience, anyone who had darker skin than my parents had to be Japanese! In the over 70 years since then I have encountered people of many races, not to mention social distinctions and everything else. It is my continuing conviction that however real those distinctions might be at any given moment, in the final analysis they don’t matter at all. The Japanese language has many social distinctions built into it, depending on whether the person addressed is “above, equal, or below” the speaker, as well as interrelated degrees of formality. The fact that I ignore most of that makes my Japanese distinctive, but I think most people find it attractive. Everyone is my equal, which they find refreshing! The thing is, my desire is that they all become my siblings in Christ, just as Paul was trying to do with Onesimus and Philemon. The world is a much better place when we are all family!

Father, thank You for how much this church is indeed family, as various visitors and observers have noted. May we be an accepting, ever-growing family, bringing more and more into the eternal salvation given to Your children alone, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Words; February 14, 2023

Posted on February 15, 2023 by jgarrott

2 Timpthy 1:2 To Timothy, my dear son:
Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

This chapter has several verses that are long-time favorites, but it struck me just now that this verse, which from our perspective seems like a somewhat stylized greeting, was actually anything but that. The Biblical evidence is that Paul had no one who was more “family” than Timothy, just as he calls him here his beloved son. You don’t write platitudes to someone like that! And that means that Paul didn’t consider his blessings, spoken or written, as formalities but as genuine impartations of the things mentioned. We take such things so lightly! How many people really think they are imparting blessing when they say, “Bless you,” after someone sneezes? We are not at all on the scale of God, who spoke the universe into being, but our words are not without meaning and impact. There are some who take this too far and get all hyper about “negative confessions” and the like, but the fact remains that God has given us the privilege of speaking His words after Him, and His words certainly have power. What we say and write to people is important. Recently social media have made it all too easy to broadcast our words to the world, but rather than considering the weight of that we tend to “run off at the mouth” and do all sorts of damage. It is very true that as James pointed out rather forcefully, words without actions are meaningless, but that doesn’t mean our words are unimportant. The old saying, “Sticks and stone may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” is actually quite untrue. Sometimes wounds from words last far longer than physical injuries. We need to speak and write intentionally, to convey the grace and love of God rather than anything less.

As I have written multiple times before, I am a man of words, and so this strikes very close to home. Frankly, I need to be reminded of it all too frequently! I have certainly hurt people with my words, at times intentionally, and I have no excuse for that. Growing up I felt very inadequate in sports and socially, and I covered that up with words. Now, as a pastor and teacher, you could say that I make my living with words. I need to be careful that my words impart value, yes, blessing, whatever the context. When Facebook notifies me of birthdays I seek to respond with genuine blessings, and the feedback indicates I often succeed. Even there I need to be careful I don’t just use “boiler plate” blessings, but sometimes, as Paul wrote to Timothy, even those can be genuine. In my preaching and my teaching I need to be open with all that God has poured into me, so that it may in turn accomplish God’s purposes in the lives of those who hear me. I have no power for good in and of myself, but God can use me as His agent, and that is good indeed.

Father, thank You for this reminder, and for the gift of words. May I make the use of that gift that You intend, communicating Your grace and love without distortion, for the blessing of all and for Your glory Thank You. Praise God!

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Ikigai; February 13, 2023

Posted on February 14, 2023 by jgarrott

1 Thessalonians 3:8 For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord.

The Japanese of this verse uses an expression that I have recently seen taken up in multiple English articles, pointed out because there isn’t an equivalent English expression. Ikigai essentially means “a reason to live,” in other words, something that gives meaning to life. Frankly, a sad number of people seem to lack this. What Paul is talking about here is the sense that his efforts had born fruit, that he hadn’t labored in vain. That’s important for anyone. Countless people come to the end of their lives and realize their priorities had been all wrong and thus their accomplishments were essentially meaningless. People who prioritize career over the people closest to them often end up in that boat. Fathers who are “successful” but have no real connection with their children are in this category, as are women who place career ahead of motherhood. Dennis Prager has a question he often asks: “If you could have a guarantee of one or the other, would you choose a successful marriage or a successful career?” It’s not that both are impossible, but that only one is guaranteed. The fact that he gets about half of one answer and half of the other shows how skewed society’s priorities are. Paul wasn’t married, but his priority was raising up disciples for Jesus Christ, so hearing that the believers in Thessaloniki were standing firm was indeed an ikigai for him. He knew that they would outlive him, which gave meaning and continuity to his own life.

Of course this applies to me. Japan is known as a “graveyard for missionaries” because the “return on investment” seems so low, and indeed many missionaries have given up and left. I’m grateful my parents didn’t do so, and actually chose to be physically buried in this country, though they happened to die in the US. Yesterday’s message was an encouragement to me, though I was the one speaking it. As I said, in over 40 years of being a pastor, in the US and Japan, I don’t know that I have led as many as 40 people to initial commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord. However, my gifting and calling is as a Teacher, and I have indeed led numbers of people to greater commitment and maturity in their faith. Considering the size of this congregation, the number of ministers that have gone out from here is rather remarkable. Beyond that, there are many lay people who are very secure in their faith, and that is precisely what Paul is talking about here. I do indeed have an ikigai for which I am very grateful. I am sharply aware that it is not because of my own strength or wisdom, but because God has been so gracious as to work through me, often enough in spite of me! I am to focus on faithfulness, and leave the results up to Him.

Father, thank You for this reminder, and for encouraging me through the message yesterday. I do pray that everyone under my care would grow strong in their faith and relationship with You, for the sake of the Body of Christ and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Fathers; February 12, 2023

Posted on February 13, 2023 by jgarrott

1 Thessalonians 2:11-12 For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.

Paul describes pastoral ministry in various of his letters, and all of them are worthy of meditation. The framework here is that of a father with his children. For some that clicks beautifully, but for many not so well, because we have experienced a wide variety of fathers. I subscribe to a newsletter called Fatherly, and just yesterday it had a very good article (actually a reprint from a couple of years ago) about the massive impact for good a present, involved father has on their children, and how damaging it is when that is missing. Suffice to say, Paul is talking about a good father! However, when our own father left a lot to be desired, the lack of a model can make it challenging to say the least to be a good father to our own children, physical or spiritual. In such cases in particular, meditation on what Paul wrote can be very instructive and helpful. I get the impression he had a good father! Here we have three elements mentioned: encouragement, comfort, and discipline. (The discipline might not seem so obvious here, because he isn’t talking about genetic children.) Fathers, and pastors, should certainly encourage their children. Sadly, that is often not the case. Fathers need to tell their children that they have ability, which they do, and praise them for jobs well done. That doesn’t mean praising something done carelessly, without real thought or effort, and it does mean encouraging them to do even better, but it very much means not putting them down for their efforts. Then there’s comfort. Life is rough, and everyone runs into problems that can seem devastating at times. Fathers, and pastors, need to be available as a shoulder to cry on if needed. Many fail in that area. We aren’t to run from emotion, either our own of that of our children, but be fully present and open and honest. That will produce secure children! And then there’s the matter of discipline. Writing here about pastoral ministry, Paul says “living lives worthy of God.” In other words, straighten up and fly right! In our human foolishness we all need that. Physical children certainly do, and so do spiritual children. However, we aren’t to be legalists, punishing for the sake of punishment. Acting that way would mean that we ourselves wouldn’t be living worthy of God!

As both a physical father and a pastor, I’ve got a lot to think about here. I was greatly blessed to have a wonderful, though not perfect, father. Actually, there are no perfect fathers apart from God! As someone with Teacher gifting, I have tended toward giving instruction as opposed to encouragement, and that’s not always been good. I’ve got to appreciate, and give thanks for, less than perfection! And actually, that applies to myself as well. I’ve got to give everything my honest best, as unto the Lord, (Ephesians 6:7) but doing that, leave the results in His hands. I’m neither a perfect father nor a perfect pastor, but God uses me in spite of that, and I’ve got to be at peace with it. I think I do moderately well at giving comfort, but there’s always room for improvement. Discipline is always tricky, and as my physical children have grown that is now entirely in the form of advice and encouragement. That could be said of my spiritual children as well, because I can’t exactly spank my church members! However, as I will be doing this morning, I need to urge them on into ever-growing maturity in Christ, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for Your patience with me, and for giving me patience with my physical and spiritual children. May I be the father and pastor You want me to be, for the blessing of my children and for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Perspective; February 11, 2023

Posted on February 12, 2023 by jgarrott

1 Thessalonians 1:6 You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.

The joy of the Lord doesn’t depend on circumstances. The Bible is full of examples, and we hear about many even today, where people are filled with what seems to the world like a completely illogical joy. That’s because people who know Jesus, who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, don’t live by this world’s logic. Once we have tasted the spiritual dimension, the glory of the love of God, if you will, then as the chorus says, “the things of earth will grow strangely dim.” It’s not that we don’t pay attention to the physical realm or that we think it’s unimportant, but rather that we understand that the things of God are far more important. To be honest, it’s difficult and even rare to maintain that perspective 100%. The things of this world can be very effective at demanding our attention. And frankly, the easier we have it in this life, the harder it is to focus on the next. That’s why believers undergoing active persecution are often far more vibrant and joyful than believers in, say, the US or Japan. However, that doesn’t mean the situation is hopeless for believers in “easy” locations. Paul’s famous statement about being able to handle anything included “easy” stuff too. “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:12-13) We just need to work a little harder to keep our focus on what is really important, instead of on all the distractions that surround us.

I try to keep track of persecution around the world, and some of it is quite horrendous. More believers were martyred in the 20th Century than in the previous 19 put together, and the 21st Century is at an even higher pitch. At the same time, I feel like I have experienced no persecution for my own faith and have lived in comparative luxury, even though my income isn’t high enough to have to pay taxes on it. I am blessed on all levels, and have no excuse not to be joyful! Even so, things like a broken wrist, and even quite trivial things, can set me off and make me grumpy. How shallow! When the Lord has told me personally to rest, relax, and rejoice, I have no excuse not to do so! I am experiencing healing in my wrist day by day, for which I am quite grateful, but at the same time, as I mentioned to my wife this morning, I’m tired of pain, even though my accident was just over two weeks ago. That makes me sharply aware that I am far from perfect, but I have the comfort of knowing that God is still working on me. (Philippians 1:6) I can’t do it on my own, but as Paul said, I can do it through Him who gives me strength.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You indeed for the healing I’m experiencing, and that I can type with much more freedom now than even a few days ago. That’s just in time for the article I’m to write that’s due by the end of this month! I pray that I would make the use that You intend of everything You bring my way, whether ability or opportunity or trial or anything else, so that Your purposes may be accomplished in and through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Maturity; February 10, 2023

Posted on February 11, 2023 by jgarrott

Colossians 1:28-29 We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.

What a beautiful, accurate description of the job of a pastor-teacher! You could say that evangelists are obstetricians in the family of God, but then you need pediatricians also. It’s wonderful and essential for people to be born again, but it’s pathetic when they remain spiritual infants, always dependent on others and hardly knowing how to feed themselves. Hebrews has a very pointed rant about that in Hebrews 5:11-14. The difficult thing for the pastor is that every believer is at a different place in their spiritual journey – and that includes the pastor! I realize the Greek can be translated either way, but I think some people might be thrown off by the word “perfect” in this verse. I prefer the way the Japanese says “mature,” as in “adult.” None of us is ever perfect this side of heaven, but we can certainly aim for maturity. Many of the evils of society come from people failing, or refusing, to grow up. A mature person recognizes responsibility and doesn’t run from it. They are accountable, ready to answer for their behavior. Everyone benefits from good parenting, from people who will encourage them to grow in every area while teaching them responsibility and accountability. That’s the job of a pastor, and I can testify that it’s no easier with spiritual children than it is with physical children! It’s hard work, but as Paul says here, God supplies the necessary wisdom and energy, if the pastor is open to receive it.

Since I am a pastor with the primary motivational gift of Teacher, this job description is spot on for me. How well I do it is for God to decide. I joke that the reason I stay youthful is that I never mature, but I hope and pray that is never more than a joke. I too need to be fully adult in all my decisions and actions. That isn’t to say that I’m not to have a childlike delight in things; that would make me frumpy and uninteresting. There’s a huge difference between being childlike and childish, even though linguistically the words might seem to be identical. I am to remain always a child of God, delighting in my Daddy and all He does and provides for me, but I am to be as mature as possible in my stewardship of all of that. I am to desire and seek for people to be born into the family of God, and I am to encourage and appreciate those who are called as spiritual obstetricians, but I am not to put myself down for not having that particular gifting. This congregation has never been big in numbers, but several have gone from here into fulltime ministry, and others have been notable for their maturity. Producing such people is my job description, and like Paul, I’m to work at it with all of God’s energy, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I feel like I am to share this with the congregation, but some of the concepts and distinctions aren’t going to be easy to express in Japanese. I ask for wisdom and anointing in preparing the outline and especially in delivering the message, so that each hearer may be encouraged and strengthened to go on to full maturity, for their blessing and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Thinking; February 9, 2023

Posted on February 10, 2023 by jgarrott

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.

The whole letter to the Philippians is so loving, joyful, and practical! “Favorite verses” abound, making the choice of what to write on difficult. However, this verse particularly strikes me at the moment. We live in the Information Age indeed, and we are constantly bombarded with things to see and think about. The big issue becomes filters, for our eyes, minds, and hearts. The Holy Spirit will guide us in this, but we need to seek and be open to that guidance. None of the evil in the world today is new, but in the past it was a little easier to avoid it, at least. For example, there have always been drug addicted, mentally unstable people in the world, but these days in some cities you can hardly step out of your house without encountering them. Likewise, moral perversion has always been around, but recently it’s even being promoted in schools. And that doesn’t even get to political corruption, which is being exposed with depressing regularity. The thing is, constant exposure to all of that tears us down. It’s easy to say, “Fix your eyes on Jesus,” (Hebrews 12:2) and that is important, certainly, but we need to get more granular, and that is what Paul is doing here. Rather than saying, “Don’t think about such and such,” He is telling us what we are to think about. It’s like the story of the man who was told he would have something wonderful if he could only not think about a white horse, and he suddenly discovered that was all he could think about. Negative commands can be very important, as in the 10 Commandments, but positive commands are generally easier to follow. It’s interesting to note that when Jesus was asked what was the greatest commandment, both of the ones He cited were positive. (Matthew 22:35-40) In the sea of negative filth in which we find ourselves, we need to be proactive in filling our minds and hearts with the positive, just as Paul says here.

As I noted at the time, using my wife’s computer in the hospital I realized that YouTube was giving me different suggestions than what I was used to, and it hit me that the algorithm gives you more of whatever you click on. My wife had been wiser in her clicks than I had been! Since then my own desktop computer has “cleaned up” a good bit, because I have been more careful and conscious in my clicks. That said, simply paying attention to the news can be pretty depressing. The recent earthquake in Turkey is a case in point, and the news has generated a lot of prayer. On top of that there’s the constant barrage of political news, very little of which fits into the categories Paul mentions in this verse. I have recently been unsubscribing from various newsletters that seem calculated simply to stir me up and get me angry. I don’t need to focus on that junk! As I started out by saying, I need to let the Holy Spirit be my filter on all levels, so that my responses and my actions will be what my Father desires, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. It’s certainly timely! Help me so live that when people think of me it will fit into Paul’s categories, drawing those people into the relationship with You that is transforming me, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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