Forgiveness; January 29, 2023

Posted on February 1, 2023 by jgarrott

2 Corinthians 2:10-11 If you forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven–if there was anything to forgive–I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.

We tend to take the whole matter of forgiveness far too lightly. Jesus said that if we fail to forgive others, we won’t be forgiven by God, (Matthew 6:14-15) and after His resurrection He gave us authority to forgive on a heavenly scale. (John 20:21) That deserves a lot more thought than we give it! As Paul recognized, the devil knows all about that, and he works overtime to trip us up, to get us to nurse unforgiveness or to overlook things that need to be corrected. We need to be alert as Paul was. I couldn’t begin to count up all the train wrecks I’ve seen in this area. As I’ve written before, Japanese have a linguistic problem in this, because they have two characters that are read the same way, but the one that is used commonly actually means permission. The average person on the street doesn’t even know the character that means Biblical forgiveness. I find that very significant, because the two halves of that character indicate “blood document.” You can’t get more Biblical than that! And that is compounded by the word/character for sin being most commonly used for crime, so people who haven’t broken human laws don’t understand how they have broken God’s laws.

And that is the culture in which I live and minister. My own spiritual warfare is very involved with forgiveness! One incident a couple of years ago caused a Japanese pastor to say that I had more faith than he did, because of a situation in which I forgave. However, I’m never to take my ability to forgive as a done deal. I am to seek the Spirit’s guidance in every situation, not permitting evil but not failing to forgive. I don’t want to be deceived by the devil, and I don’t want those to whom I minister to be deceived either.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You also for enabling me to type it one-handed! Help me release everything into Your more than capable hands, particularly while one of mine isn’t really available. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian, encouragement, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Equality in Christ; January 28, 2023

Posted on January 31, 2023 by jgarrott

2 Corinthians 1:21-22 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set His seal of ownership on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

The thing that strikes me most about this is how Paul is placing himself in exactly the same place as those to whom he is writing. Actually, he does that in several of his letters. He was aware that he was an apostle sent by God, but that was just a job description. The thing is, we often evaluate people on the basis of their jobs, or even of their job titles. That’s why some people put Bishop or Prophet or Apostle on their business cards, without any part of the Body of Christ having recognized them as operating in those ministries. It is generally wise to steer clear of such people. Jesus said clearly that we will recognize people by the fruit they bear. The second thing that stands out to me in this passage is that it is the Holy Spirit who marks us as God’s property, a foretaste of all the glory that awaits us in heaven. In some denominations the Holy Spirit is presented almost as an option, whereas in others, spiritual gifts are seen as merit badges. Both are sadly mistaken, and they have fostered some bitter disputes between brothers and sisters in Christ. The Holy Spirit is an essential part of salvation, but His fruit (Galatians 5:22-23) is a far better indicator of His presence than any “spiritual gift.” Those two things together form a clear guide as to how we should live as believers.

Naturally this applies as much to me as it does to anyone else. People consider me a missionary, and I do call myself one at times, but missionaries today generally have a sending body: a denomination, a para-church organization, or even a local congregation. We don’t have any of those things, so I often say I’m just a Caucasian pastor in Japan. I am aware that God has given me responsibility and spiritual authority in various areas, but those aren’t things to trumpet, but rather to discharge with the faithfulness that can only come from Him. I am just as much in need of the grace and mercy of God as anyone else, if not more so. (James 3:1) My current hospital stay is one more reminder of that.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for enabling me to type despite the condition of my left hand. Thank you for the care I have received and that the pain is gradually diminishing. I pray that Your healing would proceed on Your schedule and that everyone affected by my injury would learn and gain from it exactly what You intend, for their blessing and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian, encouragement, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Parts of the Body; January 26, 2023

Posted on January 31, 2023 by jgarrott

1 Corinthians 12:26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

I think the biggest issue for most American Christians, at any rate, is recognizing that they are part of other believers, and vice versa. Some other cultures are far more group oriented, so this chapter seems to almost go without saying, but America has always been very individualistic. That’s good for liberty, which is one of the bedrocks of the nation, and indeed, we are individually accountable to God, but it’s not without its risks. Far too many sincere believers are focused on I-my-me-mine, and can hardly see anyone or anything outside of their immediate circle. Paul is trying to combat that sort of myopia, using graphic, personal language. If we will lift our eyes off of ourselves to fix them on Christ, we will discover that we can see the people around us as well, perhaps better than we ever have before, because we will start to see them with the eyes of Christ.

I laughed when I saw today’s reading, because I’m in the middle of rather intense training in this area. Yesterday on my way home from taking pictures in the snow I slipped as I was crossing the icy street not 50 meters from our front door, reached back to catch myself, and snapped my left wrist. Since my wife cannot currently drive, I drove myself to the doctor and back, to their amazement, and now have an appointment in a couple of hours at the National Medical Center close to here to be evaluated for probable surgery. My wrist is a small part of my body, and it’s not on my dominant hand, but it’s certainly demanding my full attention! I need to receive this as a lesson in how important all parts of the Body of Christ are, and treat them accordingly. In all of this I am thankful that the first words out of my mouth after I fell were “Thank You, Lord.” I’m a little surprised I’m that spiritually healthy!

Father, I do thank You for this experience, painful though it is. It gives me more empathy with Cathy’s pains! I do pray that the right decisions will be made this morning, and that there will be full cooperation with Your healing for me. I pray also that this will strengthen this church, as others will have to step in to do various things I am currently unable to do. I’ve not been very good at releasing things to others, and now You’re forcing me to. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian, encouragement, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Time; January 25, 2023

Posted on January 26, 2023 by jgarrott

Romans 16:20 The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.
The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

As even physicists are starting to realize, time is relative, even subjective. The word “soon” here perhaps seemed like a joke or even a lie even to the people who read this letter first, and it certainly has to many people in the centuries since then. However, two things counter that response. The first is of course the fact that Peter famously pointed out about God’s perception of time: “But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:8-9) Because God is outside of time, everything is NOW to Him. The second thing that strikes me here is that God will use our feet to crush Satan (as the Japanese makes clear). That doesn’t necessarily mean his ultimate defeat, as expressed in Revelation, but it does mean victory over him on a personal level. James famously expressed it as, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7) It’s no use trying to resist the devil if we aren’t submitted to God, but it’s also foolish to expect victory if we aren’t willing to apply ourselves to resist him. Of course we can’t do that in our own strength, but as God later told Paul, His grace is sufficient for us. (2 Corinthians 12:9) That’s why the blessing of grace in the 2nd half of this verse is very appropriate in this context. We don’t know the form our victory will take, whether in this life or the next, but our victory is nonetheless sure.

Of course this applies as much to me as it does to anyone else. At 74, I have experienced things that seemed to happen almost instantly and things that seemed to take forever. I’ve had to learn that it’s all the same to God! Submitting my perception of time to God has been a difficult lesson, frankly, and the lessons continue. Right now my wife is recovering from major back surgery in October, complicated by Parkinson’s Disease. She herself can’t remember how very bad off she was before the surgery, so patience with her recovery is difficult for her. Likewise, I would like freedom of movement and freedom from pain for her, but at least I can see how much better off she is now than she was four months ago. The flip side of that is that she is the one experiencing the pain! On a broader scale, we have now been in Omura over 41 years, and we haven’t seen the major harvest we have desired. However, we have seen individual lives transformed, and we have sent disciples of Christ across the world. We don’t see the whole picture! We need to keep our eyes on Jesus and keep stepping on the devil, so that those oppressed by him may be set free, for their salvation and God’s glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I shouldn’t need it quite so often! Help me indeed trust You fully and obey You faithfully, so that Your will may be done in and through me on Your schedule, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

Posted in Christian, encouragement, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Prayer; January 24, 2023

Posted on January 25, 2023 by jgarrott

Romans 15:30 I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me.

This verse has been used by countless missionaries seeking to raise support in their sending countries, and rightly so. One of the mysteries of prayer is how we really can support one another through prayer. How or even why it works is something only God knows, but the fact that it does had been demonstrated down through the centuries. It may be something like “quantum entanglement,” where doing something to a particle in one place affects another particle in another place with no physical connection between them at all. Research is being done in such areas as instant communication that isn’t limited by such niceties as the speed of light. Be that as it may, the fact remains that prayer makes a difference. The power is God’s, but we are somehow involved. That’s part of the mystery! There is no demonstrable ratio of effort to effect, but where the NIV says “join me in my struggle,” the Japanese expresses it as “apply your full strength.” That said, it’s certainly not physical strength. There have been countless examples of people who were physically very weak but spiritually very powerful. “Applying your full strength” doesn’t mean lifting barbells! As in so many areas of life, success comes from taking our eyes off of ourselves and fixing them on the One who is all powerful, all knowing, and all loving. The better we do that, the more Jesus’ words will be fulfilled through us: “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.” (John 15:7) That is true power in prayer.

I have experienced this very clearly from the receiving end. When we came to Omura in 1981 we had no sending church or agency, but there was a church that prayed for us regularly. However, the pastor got mired in the devil’s lies and eventually the church dissolved. As the problems were escalating we were aware that something was wrong even without being told. We learned some of the details only much later, but we could tell there was “a disturbance in the force,” as Star Wars put it. After the church dissolved we were still here, but it was like I had forgotten why we were here, and the church became almost a hobby, peripheral to my life. God was still supporting and providing for us, but it seemed almost meaningless. God used one of His servants to rebuke me rather strongly, just at the time we were heading for the US in support of our younger daughter entering college. In the US we were led to attend a church that had a number of “home groups” that met regularly, and one of those took us in with great warmth, and we were nurtured spiritually. After four months we returned to Omura, but that group kept praying for us faithfully, and we prospered spiritually. That group has since “aged out,” with most of the members now in heaven, but in the interval the Internet sprang up, and now we have people across the world who pray for us. We couldn’t be more grateful! Having been on the receiving end I try to pray for others, but feel I could do much more.

Father, thank You for the mystery of prayer. Thank You that it works, and also that we don’t know how it works, because if we did, we’d try to manipulate You. (I think we often try to, anyway). Help me be more faithful in prayer, allowing Your gracious blessings to flow through me just as I have received so many, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian, encouragement, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Bible; January 23, 2023

Posted on January 24, 2023 by jgarrott

Romans 15:4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

Some Christians, sadly enough, ignore the Old Testament, when there are incalculable riches in it. On the other hand, most Jews ignore the New Testament, when it is the culmination of the prophecies of the Old and expresses clearly God’s plan of salvation. From our standpoint, Paul wrote longer ago than the Old Testament prophets wrote from the standpoint of people in Paul’s day, so “what was written in the past” applies to all of the Bible. Genuinely inspired things have been written in the centuries since then, and continue to be written today, but it is of immense value to us to have the whole canon of Scripture, agreed on by many and chosen through rigorous tests. We tend to respond individually to different parts of the Bible, with some being more touched by one book than another. Martin Luther called James “a book of straw,” and my mother would have happily left out Leviticus, but God can and does use every bit of it for the purposes Paul mentions here. Some people love the stories in the Bible and some are bored by all the history, but as Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us.” (1 Corinthians 10:11) Instructing his spiritual son Timothy, he wrote, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17) And that was written when Paul was facing his imminent martyrdom, and would no longer be able to teach Timothy directly. God knew what He was doing when He caused the Bible to be written and the canon settled, and we do well to take full advantage of it.

As I have written before, I first read all the way through the Bible by the time I was 10, and at least for the past 50 years I have been reading it every day. I still get new insights out of it, or at least things I don’t remember the Lord saying to me in the past. God speaks to His children in many ways, and a couple of times I have heard Him in what seemed to be an audible voice, though I don’t think others could have heard it. However, I hear Him most consistently when I read the Bible every morning. I certainly need endurance (the Japanese says “patience”) and encouragement, and God is faithful to supply them through the Bible. Sometimes He tells me things that aren’t explicitly written in that form, but I never have trouble confirming those things through what is written. A good example is His instructions to me to “Rest. Relax. Rejoice.” I had no trouble at all finding Scriptures to back that up when I preached it as a message! I am to be listening constantly, but also be aware that the devil is a liar and he is always trying to trip me up, so when something comes into my mind I’ve got to confirm it with the Bible before I go living it out. It is no accident that John, the “beloved disciple,” (John 21:20) started out his Gospel by saying that Christ is the Word of God. There are reasons both in the Greek language and in the philosophy of the day for him to have done that, but the longer I live and the more I read the Bible, the truer I know that is.

Father, thank You that I grew up in a home that knew and revered the Bible. Thank You that I can never exhaust the Bible. Help me make it more and more an essential part of me so that I may do Your will and bear Your fruit, (John 15:7-8) for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

Posted in Christian, encouragement, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Kingdom Values; January 22. 2023

Posted on January 23, 2023 by jgarrott

Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

We have sung the chorus based on this and verse 19 in this church for many years, and it got to be a bit of a joke because we liked having meals together so much! The point, however, is that our focus is not to be on physical things but on spiritual. This is very much in line with Jesus’ famous statement: “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33) We are certainly in the world, but we are not of it, again as Jesus said. (John 17:14, 16) The thing is, few people around us have that perspective, so what we do with physical things has a big impact on them. This whole chapter is about looking out for less mature believers, so that our use of the physical won’t get in the way of their appropriation of the spiritual. Our lives should exemplify righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, thereby drawing those around us to desire and seek those things for themselves. When we make a big deal of the physical it can interfere with our own appreciation of the spiritual as well as keep others from realizing that the spiritual even matters. That’s what the devil wants, and we certainly don’t want to boost him!

Of course this applies to me as much as it does to anyone else. I am to be a good steward of the physical things God has provided, starting with my body, but my focus is to be on God and His kingdom, which as Paul says here, means righteousness, peace, and joy. I certainly desire and enjoy those things! At the same time, my body can be pretty demanding. I have certainly been known to get “hangry” at times! Particularly when fasting, either by choice or by circumstances, I need to be careful to reflect the values of the Kingdom that Paul mentions here.

Father, thank You for this reminder. The world can consider me a rather strange bird when I operate by these principles! Help me indeed walk in step with Your Spirit, in Your kingdom even while in this world, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian, encouragement, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Overcoming Evil; January 21, 2023

Posted on January 22, 2023 by jgarrott

Romans 12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

This verse encapsulates the very dense collection of good advice from verse 9 onward. If everyone lived by these principles, this would be a wonderful world indeed! This also seems very timely, as I’m sure it has in every year since it was written, because human nature is still the same. If we all had our heads on straight, we wouldn’t need to be told these things! Considering this verse specifically, sometimes it feels like we are drowning in a sea of filth. I won’t even describe a new “reality tv” program I just read about! Thankfully, the tide seems to be turning a bit, with people burning out over all the lies, particularly as more and more things are being uncovered and brought out into the open. The thing is, those on the side of truth and righteousness have got to remember that it is only by the grace of God that they are any different from those they currently oppose. If we aren’t careful, pride will open us up to the deceptions of the devil and we will be worse than they. (1 Corinthians 10:12) The only way to be obedient to this verse is through grateful humility. We aren’t inherently wiser or better than anyone else. I have always liked the Japanese expression, “Acorns comparing height.” When God is our standard, differences from person to person become meaningless. It is only by opening our hearts to the One who is the source of all good, all wisdom, all righteousness, that we can be any of those things. However, if we do open ourselves up to Him, He will flow through us in ways that will astonish even us!

I am certainly preaching to myself here. I allowed pride to take me to a very dangerous point indeed, but God in His mercy brought me back from the edge. I am very aware of the sea of evil around me, so I’ve got to stay grounded on the Rock, Christ Jesus. Choosing to allow God’s goodness to flow through me has got to be consistent, but I must never take it for granted. I can accomplish nothing good on my own, (John 15:5) but God can do anything at all through me, if I am yielded to Him. I need to remember that in Christ, and only in Christ, I am righteous, and as James said, “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16) That is how I will overcome evil with good.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for protecting us through the full day yesterday. Thank You especially for the meeting You orchestrated at lunch yesterday. I pray that our interaction with that couple would draw them into active discipleship indeed, for their blessing and for Your glory. I pray that every activity of today would likewise accomplish Your purposes, overcoming evil with Your good, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian, encouragement, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Glory of God; January 20, 2023

Posted on January 21, 2023 by jgarrott

Romans 5:2 And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Doing this bilingually can get awkward at times, because Greek has no punctuation, and the sentence structure is often very different between the English and Japanese translations. Sometimes that can give fresh insight, but there’s nothing particularly eye-opening here. That said, this whole passage, from verse 1 through 11, is justly famous. Verses 3-5 are often quoted to give comfort in trials, and rightly so. However, it is this snippet of verse 2 that says just what we are hoping for. Countless studies, not to mention personal experience, show that hope is essential for human life. A hopeless existence isn’t much worth living, and is often a factor in suicides. However, an amorphous hope – maybe things will be OK – isn’t much better. What is expressed here is the highest hope: the glory of God. We really have very little grasp of how great that is. In the first place, very few people have been given a glimpse of that glory, the way Isaiah was in his vision of God in the temple. (Isaiah 6) On top of that we have Jesus’ statements about glory in His High Priestly Prayer in John 17, and the things He said about our being in Him and He in the Father and God in us in the Upper Room Discourse in John 13-16. Paul summed all that up in writing to the Colossians: “To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27) If we are in Christ and Christ is in us, then we share in His glory. That really is something to get happy about!

A close friend spoke on Hope at the interdenominational prayer meeting two days ago, focusing on verse 5 of this passage. His younger son is named Hope, and he talked about how, of his three children, that son seems to be the least active in his faith, and how he still has hope that son will come into active discipleship. His honesty was very moving. That said, we have various hopes that may or may not be fulfilled, particularly in this life. That’s why it’s so meaningful that we can have this ultimate hope of the glory of God. I am often disappointed, as I was in my students’ performance on a test I gave recently, but I am not to let that sort of thing distract me from the supreme hope that I have, of total fellowship with my Lord in all His glory. To be honest, “glory” itself doesn’t seem that attractive to me, at least in my current conception of it, but the idea of complete unity with my Lord is enormously attractive, and that will certainly be glorious. As I have written recently, the awareness that I serve a risen Savior should enable me to get through any trial, and the hope that is mentioned here should enable me to do it with joy.

Father, thank You for this reminder. The devil keeps trying to distract me, and sometimes I let him get away with it. Help me stay focused on You, Your faithfulness and Your gracious love toward me, so that I may indeed be unshakable, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian, encouragement, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Supernatural Response; January 19, 2023

Posted on January 20, 2023 by jgarrott

Acts 16:25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.

The picture here is clear. Luke specifies in verse 23 that they had been “severely” flogged, and their feet were in stocks. They doubtless had too much pain and too little comfort to sleep, so what did they do? They prayed and sang praises! No wonder the other prisoners were listening to them! This was, frankly, a supernatural response by Paul and Silas to their circumstances, but at the same time it was their choice. As came out in the reading two days ago, it was a matter of focus. Rather than focusing on their pain and discomfort, they chose to focus on the Lord, who had loved them enough to die for them and, by rising from the grave, had given them assurance of eternal salvation. That shift in focus was enough to enable them to act in a way that certainly didn’t seem natural to the other prisoners at the very least! The events were dramatic enough that they brought the salvation of the jailer and his household by faith, as the following verses tell. I wouldn’t be surprised if the other prisoners likewise committed to this God that Paul and Silas followed. The thing is, people are watching us whether we are aware of it or not. When we choose to cling to Christ and praise Him as Paul and Silas did, they will be deeply impressed and want to know why and how, as Peter wrote about in his first letter. (1 Peter 3:15) That is the most effective evangelism!

This is close to home not because of my own suffering, but that of my wife.  She has a list of physical difficulties that would cause most people to give up, but she has certainly not done that, and it seems that my response to her situation has been impressive to some people as well. We are being given training in focus, in letting Jesus be Lord regardless of our circumstances. That frankly isn’t always easy even for me, when I’m not the one experiencing the pain. However, as Paul famously wrote, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13) Responding to circumstances the way Paul and Silas did is indeed supernatural, but that’s what God’s all about! I am not to be anxious about how I will respond to the next trial, because God’s already got it covered. As He has told me, I am to rest, relax, and rejoice, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. You know how far I still have to go in this! Help me keep making progress, pressing in further to You, allowing You to transform me into the likeness of Your Son, (2 Corinthians 3:18) for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

Posted in Christian, encouragement, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment