The Joy of the Lord; July 11, 2022

Posted on July 15, 2022 by jgarrott

At this point the theme of the readings changes from Hope, which we have been following for some time, to The Joy of the Lord. I will not be writing on that specific point every day, but I will be writing from passages that include that concept.

Deuteronomy 12:7 There, in the presence of the Lord your God, you and your families shall eat and shall rejoice in everything you have put your hand to, because the Lord your God has blessed you.

And here we have the Biblical basis for the church pot-luck dinner! Actually, not many people directly associate worshiping God with joy, but as the readings from now will demonstrate, the Bible makes that connection many times. The thing is, gratitude is inseparable from joy, and gratitude should always be a major factor in worship. When we see worship as an obligation we quickly miss out on that. It is true that giving God worship and praise when things seem very bleak to our senses and intellect brings spiritual growth and deep blessing, but that in itself can bring joy that is incomprehensible to those who don’t know God. That’s what Hebrews calls “a sacrifice of praise.” (Hebrews 13:15) The devil hates genuine joy, and he does all he can to destroy it. Jesus is the opposite! (John 10:10) Dennis Prager, though a Jew, understands this principle, and often says, “You will never see a happy Leftist.” Praise and worship of our Creator is spiritual warfare against the enemy of our souls, and as such it should be joyful indeed.

I grew up in a home where church attendance was required, but it was also seen as a privilege, and for that I am grateful. Even so, it wasn’t until I was exposed to the Charismatic movement, starting in 1973, that I began to experience more of the depths and heights of the joy of the Lord. Big gatherings are great, but small ones can be just as good. It was in a small prayer meeting one time that the joy of the Lord was so intense in me that I felt that with one more drop I would be translated directly to heaven, because my physical body couldn’t handle it. I literally told the Lord (though not out loud) “If You have more for me to do on earth, You’d better back off a little.” He did, and I’m still here! However, such experiences make me delight to praise and worship my God and eagerly anticipate heaven, where there will be no restrictions to that worship or that joy. As a pastor I seek to help others taste that joy that comes only in a right relationship with our Creator. Some seem to get it much more easily than others! In any case, a dour congregation is hardly a fair or accurate representation of the God we say we serve!

Father, thank You indeed for Your joy. Thank You for creating us as beings capable of experiencing joy. May we as a church radiate Your joy, drawing many more to repentance and faith for their salvation, so that they may join us in Your joy, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Purification from Sin; July 10, 2022

Posted on July 15, 2022 by jgarrott

1 John 3:3 Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.

This is an important verse, particularly in light of the section that follows. That following section has traditionally been badly misinterpreted, both into English and into a number of other languages. Greek has a continuing verb tense that is lacking in most languages, and that is the one used in verse five and several times afterward, talking about sin. For once the NIV gets it right! When we are in Christ we are uncomfortable with sin; it doesn’t feel good. If sin didn’t feel good on some level we would never do it, but sin does appeal to our flesh, and that’s what makes us vulnerable. However, as this verse says, when we have the hope of full integration into the Family of God, we do our best to distance ourselves from sin. It’s not at all that we never slip up. John himself makes that very clear in this very letter. (1 John 1:8- 2:2) Those who insist on sinless perfection aren’t being honest with themselves, much less with God and the people around them. However, that doesn’t mean at all that we are to take sin lightly, to wallow in it as it were. Children of God don’t do that. One of the most dangerous things you can do is to become comfortable with your sin. To do so is to abandon the hope of being like Jesus when He appears.

This of course applies as much to me as it does to anyone else. I have come perilously close to being comfortable with sin on more than one occasion, but God in His grace has always opened my eyes to what was happening, and I repented. Some sins are harder to recognize than others. Resentment, envy, and revenge certainly come under that category, because they often feel right and justified, when they are far from it. Just as Jesus didn’t indulge any sin at all, I must recognize and reject every impulse to be unlike Him. I have long loved the musical setting of verse one of this chapter, and a group of believers singing it as a round is to me indeed a taste of heaven, but since I indeed have that hope, I need to live like it on every level.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for all You did yesterday, as we completed a busy schedule and went to Nagasaki to lead a service there. Thank You for Your presence in that meeting and for blessing people through us. I ask Your anointing on the service here this morning, that each person would be aware of and open to Your touch on them, so that together we may be more and more transformed into the likeness of Christ, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Personal Evangelism; July 9, 2022

Posted on July 14, 2022 by jgarrott

1 Peter 3:15-16 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.

I quote this with considerable frequency, and with good reason. This expresses the attitude, the method, and the result of the most effective form of personal evangelism. It all starts with the Lordship of Jesus Christ. If He isn’t genuinely your Lord, then your faith is self-centered – what will I get out of it – and actually in question. However, if you are indeed living under the Lordship of Christ, you will have a hope that will buoy you up in any situation, and people will take notice. The world can be a pretty hopeless place at times, and people can’t live without hope. The more your life demonstrates the hope that you have, the more people are going to desire it for themselves. Ideally, they will ask you about it, and that is your big opportunity. However, your presentation of the Gospel must not be proud or holier-than-thou. You’ve got to remember that you too are hopeless without Christ. If you will do that, then your righteousness will be evident, and those who indulged in name-calling (which certainly happens) will be embarrassed. And of course, the big benefit is that those who heard your Gospel presentation are very likely to receive it for themselves, and be born again as your brother or sister in Christ.

I have experienced all of this, but that last step not nearly as frequently as I would have liked. The devil has convinced the majority of Japanese that all religions are the same, so if they are more earnest in Buddhism, for example, they will get the results they see me getting. Also, they are very hesitant to ask personal questions, so I don’t get many specific requests to explain my faith and hope. I can see they want to know, however, and I seek God’s wisdom for how to present it to people. Just yesterday we were talking with two ladies who admire Cathy and me greatly, but they can’t seem to grasp that our religion is fundamentally different from theirs. I think they ended up closer to faith than when the day began, but they aren’t to the point of commitment yet, so we keep praying. Much the same may be said of many of the people with whom I interact on a regular basis. I don’t know what the specific barrier is, and I don’t know what will be the trigger to tear that down, but I do know that when it happens, there will be a massive harvest in the Kingdom!

Father, I do thank You for all You did yesterday in the hearts of those ladies, even using Cathy and me in the process. I do pray that You would expose and dissolve the barriers that remain, so that they would receive Your gracious salvation and go on to share it with others, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Marriage; July 8, 2022

Posted on July 14, 2022 by jgarrott

1 Peter 3:7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.

This verse was completely uncontroversial and was indeed dearly loved by many women up until the “Women’s Liberation Movement,” when some women chose to be greatly offended at being called “weaker.” However, the very recent phenomenon of “trans­gender” men competing in athletics against women is driving home the accuracy of that part of this verse. It’s hard to argue against basic biology in terms of skeletal structure and muscle mass. Men and women are simply designed for different tasks. However, those differences don’t in any way mean different value. We need to pay more attention to what Peter says about respect and “heirs with you.” Peter is the one Apostle we know for sure was married, since Jesus healed his mother-in-law, (Matthew 8:14-15) so we know he was speaking from experience. That makes the last part of this verse all the more pointed. Marriage is the most intimate relationship we can have on this earth, and numbers of places in the Bible use it as a picture of our relationship with God. When that closest human relationship is disturbed, it stands to reason that our relationship with God is also disturbed. If we want to be on right terms with our Creator, we need to be on right terms with our spouse! I really don’t know how John Wesley did all he did, because he had a marvelous mother but an extremely difficult wife. It is said, reasonably enough, that that was why he spent so much time away from home! Such cases aside, it’s important to remember that men and women were never intended to be identical, even apart from biology, but rather complementary. (And don’t confuse that with complimentary.) Each is designed to do different tasks more easily. It is no insult that there are more men than women in the STEM fields, even though there have been outstanding women scientists and mathematicians. Likewise, women are generally better at dealing with children, though some single fathers have raised really good kids. Men and women need each other on many, many levels. We need to recognize, respect, and thank God for that.

Like Peter, I speak from experience, having been married for over 53 years now. I have personally experienced having difficulty praying when I was at odds with my wife! I am grateful for the opportunity to counsel couples before I perform their weddings, and as I say in every ceremony, I like doing weddings because I consider marriage to be God’s 2nd greatest blessing, after salvation itself. I married early, at 20, because I had seen how marvelous marriage was for my parents. Early on I had gained the perspective that marriage would be the biggest job of my life, but it would carry the greatest rewards. I was right! Marriage is very much under attack in society today, with many couples not bothering to “tie the knot,” and with the absurdity of same-sex “marriage” that denies the very principles on which the institution is founded. My wife and I are to be examples to all who know us of what God intends marriage to be, for their blessing and His glory.

Father, thank You indeed for the wife, the marriage, You have given me. May I be the husband to her that You desire and she deserves, supporting and completing her as she supports and completes me, as an example to many and for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Holiness; July 7, 2022

Posted on July 9, 2022 by jgarrott

1 Peter 1:13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.

1 Peter is so packed with important truth! I could probably preach for weeks on this chapter alone. This verse emphasizes a vital truth, that our minds, our wills, are fully involved in our life of faith. When we choose to follow Christ we need to expect to be fully involved; there is little if anything that is passive. The power is all from God, but we are actively involved. If we don’t choose God, His power and His holiness, then they won’t be manifested in our lives. We can’t make them happen, but God in His grace allows us to choose them. As we do that, we need to remember that everything is not going to be set right until Christ returns, so we aren’t to be bummed out when scenarios we create in our minds don’t materialize. God certainly acts, and miracles are to be expected, but evil is still rampant, and we have to live with that reality. As Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) As Peter says, we are to set our hopes and expectations on Christ’s return, whether that happens in our physical lifetime or not. The mess in the world is never an excuse not to live as a child of God, instead of a child of the world, as Peter makes clear in the following verses.

I will never forget the time, over 20 years ago now, that I was lying in bed thinking, “There are so many things I wish were different.” That wasn’t a conscious prayer, but the Lord spoke to me so clearly that I was almost surprised my wife didn’t hear Him too: “How do you think I feel?” That gave me total assurance of two things: first, that God doesn’t create or desire evil, and second, that God’s got a plan that will clear it all up in the end. This points up the reality of human free will. That free will has got to be one of the most valuable things in the universe, because it was worth the Son of God dying a horrible death in order to deal with sin. If we didn’t have free will, we would never sin! We’re back to where we started with this verse. I’ve got to expect spiritual attack and stand against it, on the basis of my obedience to God, (James 4:7) and I need to teach others to do likewise. We can’t do it in our own strength, but we can choose to appropriate the strength God offers us to enable us to do it. The world is always saying, “It’s only natural,” but those who are in Christ are supernatural, and we need to live like it.

Father, thank You for this powerful reminder, and for this clear message to communicate to the flock on Sunday. I pray that I would communicate exactly what You are saying, and I pray that I would apply it fully in my own life as well. Keep me from deceiving myself! (James 1:22) May this flock be the holy, loving children You desire, drawing many to repentance and faith for their salvation, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Living Hope; July 6, 2022

Posted on July 8, 2022 by jgarrott

1 Peter 1:3-4 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade–kept in heaven for you.

I’m thankful that the Japanese translation of this passage didn’t try to preserve the Greek sentence structure, but broke it up into several shorter sentences. Long sentences weren’t just a characteristic of Paul! Regardless, the content here is indeed rich. Jesus found Peter when he was an ignorant, headstrong fisherman, but he was massively transformed by his experiences and by the work of the Holy Spirit in him. He starts this section by praising God. It is the practice of many Japanese Christians to start any letter, on paper or electronic, with an expression of praise. Americans, myself included, tend more to “get to the point” immediately, but we would actually do well to remember that our very existence is dependent on God’s mercy and grace. Peter is here writing to people who were being persecuted for their faith. Very few Americans have tasted genuine persecution, and we sometimes take our own faith lightly as a result. An untested faith isn’t likely to be strong! Peter here writes of our “living hope,” that comes to us because we serve a living Savior. Peter was certainly transformed by his experience of watching Jesus die and then encountering Him after the resurrection. It is said that when he was forced to watch his wife being crucified, immediately before he himself was crucified upside down, he cried out to her, “Remember Jesus!” Peter had seen personally that death no longer had dominion, and it galvanized him for the rest of his life. We haven’t seen Jesus with our physical eyes, just as Peter writes in verses 8 and 9 of this same chapter, but we have experienced His touch in our heart, and we can have the assurance Peter speaks of here. Our physical bodies won’t live forever but our spirits will, and that is the inheritance that is prepared for us. We need to let the Holy Spirit work that know­ledge, that conviction, into the depths of our being, so that nothing in this world can shake us.

This of course applies to me. Yesterday I participated in an online “short-term missions trip” of a group from Taiwan. We already sponsor, legally speaking, a Taiwanese missionary family (we don’t provide their finances, but rather the legal framework for them to be here) and this was a group of six people who are considering coming to Japan as missionaries. I told them that Japan is not unreasonably called “the graveyard of missionaries,” and if they come it should be with the attitude that they are surrendering their lives to serve Christ here. I’m not sure how firm my own grasp of that was 41 years ago when I came to Omura, but I did know that my life was to be spent in obedience to my Lord, wherever He wanted me to be and whatever He wanted me doing. That’s not always an easy thing to maintain! Like everyone else, I have my own preferences and desires, and actively submitting them to Christ can be a real stretch at times. I don’t have so much trouble with the big questions, but the little details can really trip me up all too often. Several years ago God very graciously told me to rest, relax, and rejoice. I’m still learning to do that! However, I do know that what is laid up for me in heaven, as Peter says here, will be more than worth it all. (2 Corinthians 4:17)

Father, thank You for this reminder. I feel like I’m under spiritual assault after all that went on yesterday. Thank You for speaking to the Taiwanese through me. I do pray that they, and I, would surrender everything to You in order to hear You accurately and follow You completely, so that Your purposes may be accomplished through us for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Creation; July 5, 2022

Posted on July 8, 2022 by jgarrott

Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

This is a verse that some astrophysicists choke on, and some say, “Of course.” Today the prevailing theory of the origin of the universe is the “Big Bang” theory, but there is no cogent explanation for where the Big Bang came from. This one verse completely solves that issue! Materialists are at a complete loss when trying to explain where matter came from in the first place, and here we have the answer. The problem for the materialists is that this requires a Creator. They aren’t willing to concede that, because a Creator implies accountability, and that’s precisely what they don’t want. For several centuries some philosophers have tried to deal with that issue with the idea of a “divine watchmaker,” who essentially set the universe into motion but then has nothing to do with it. That fails simple logic, because what being would create something so complex and then have no interest in it? The Greek word here is literally “apprehend,” but where the English says “understand,” the Japanese says “satoru,” a verb form of the famous Buddhist concept of satori, a deep knowing that is above and beyond intellect. When we grasp something that way it is beyond question in our heart, and that is inseparable from faith.

I couldn’t define my intellectual journey from childhood to the present, but I do know that I was taught about Creation and our Creator from the time I was very small. My parents certainly didn’t limit my education to the Bible, however. We had back issues of National Geographic Magazine going to the 1930s, and I devoured them. For that matter, by the time I was in the 4th grade I was reading our Encyclopedia Britannica for fun. I think I understood most of the concepts that were presented, but I realized early on that those concepts changed as more information was gathered, and I weighed it all in relation to the Bible. Bible translations may change, but Biblical truth does not! The irony of all that is that I was totally convinced that we are created beings, and that God loved us enough to send His Son to take the penalty for our sins, but I didn’t live consistently with our accountability to our Creator in mind. My life has certainly been a demonstration of human fallibility! Now, I seek to help others grasp that they too were created by One who loves them intensely, so that they may open their hearts to His Lordship and so discover and walk in the purpose for which they were created.

Father, thank You for this reminder. There are so many different ways to describe sharing the Gospel! Help me be increasingly effective at it, drawing more and more to repentance and faith, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Evangelism; July 4, 2022

Posted on July 7, 2022 by jgarrott

Hebrews 10:23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.

Reading this chapter I’m always tempted to dwell on verse 31, because that, in the mouth of Jonathan Edwards, was used to spark the Great Awakening revival that prepared the American colonies for the Revolutionary War. (Perhaps a fitting subject for the 4th of July.) However, this verse is also powerful and is applicable to every believer, and not just those who have drawn away from God. The English and the Japanese are obviously translations of the same Greek, but the nuance is different. The Japanese says, “Since the One who promised is faithful, let us not waver, but firmly profess hope.” The English stresses the holding onto hope, and the Japanese stresses professing hope. I take that as being evangelism, expressing the hope that is available in Christ alone to others, just as Peter talked about in 1 Peter 3:15. American society has always stressed the individual, to a degree that is perhaps unique in the world, but that can easily bleed over into self-centeredness, which benefits no one. We are individually accountable to God, but we are not to be satisfied with just our own salvation; we are to be sharing that with those around us. When we discover the incredible salvation that is available in Christ by grace through faith, it is the worst of ironies if we keep that good news to ourselves. God’s truth is to be shared! Just as Jonathan Edwards helped transform the colonies into a nation, our words too can lead people from darkness to light, from death to life. If we are indeed convinced that our God is faithful, just as this verse says, then nothing should hold us back from sharing the Good News of salvation.

As I have written multiple times, the thing that showed me that God had indeed baptized me with His Spirit was the awareness that for the first time in my life, I was talking about Jesus with a total stranger. Jesus’ statement in Acts 1:8 about being witnesses wasn’t coincidental, much less unimportant, it was the definition of walking in the Spirit. If we want the Holy Spirit to flow through us, and we certainly should, then we need to be active in sharing Christ. This isn’t limited to speaking, but it certainly includes it. Francis of Assisi’s famous admonition, “Preach constantly. When necessary, use words,” is valid enough, but as Peter pointed out, words are going to be called for to give people the details. Personality plays a part here, but we aren’t to let personality be an excuse not to share Christ. Despite being a teacher, unafraid to speak to groups, I am an introvert, happy to be by myself and uncomfortable at parties. That’s no excuse not to share Christ! I am to be active in seeking God’s appointments with those whose hearts He has prepared, because, as Paul pointed out, “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” (Romans 10:14) (Don’t overthink “preaching” here. This is simply sharing the Gospel.) As a pastor, a major part of my ministry is to be in helping all the believers understand this is their privilege and task.

Father, thank You for this reminder. It’s something I’ve known for a long time, but I’ve got a lot of room to grow in communicating it to the believers. I pray that they would all profess boldly the hope that we have in Christ, for the salvation of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Jesus’ Intercession; July 3, 2022

Posted on July 6, 2022 by jgarrott

Hebrews 7:24-25 Because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

Hebrews presents the legal basis for our salvation from the standpoint of the Mosaic Law. That might mean very little to Gentiles, but it is important in the grand scheme of things. The various covenants between God and man, from Adam on, respectively precede and supersede each other, coming to a grand culmination in Christ. As He Himself said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” (Matthew 5:17) That’s why it’s important to have Hebrews in the Bible. This particular statement is enormously comforting if you allow it to permeate your being. It says that salvation in Christ is complete, with nothing left to be done. We are forever trying to add to our salvation in some way, when that is an impossibility. What we should be doing is living in grateful obedience for the salvation that has already been accomplished and granted. That is possible because Jesus is eternal. He existed before Creation and He cannot “not exist.” And what is He doing with His eternity? He is interceding to God for all who seek to draw near to God through Christ. It is futile to try to draw near to God apart from Christ, though many try. People don’t like it that there is no room for pride in God’s plan of salvation! It requires repentance and faith, but nothing else. (Mark 1:15, Ephesians 2:8-9) In our weakness we slip and fall many times, in more ways than we generally realize, but as it says here, Jesus is always there to say, “Put that on my bill.” That is marvelous news indeed!

Of course this applies as much to me as it does to anyone. The Lord has had to point my sins out to me many times, and not just that one earth-shaking experience in 1972, but repentance has been possible and forgiveness has been real. I have the privilege of sharing the good news of God’s salvation with others, and I must let nothing interfere with that. I preach again this morning, and the subject is God’s grace. I am to proclaim it with great joy, allowing God to speak His heart through me by His Spirit, so that those present and those hearing electronically alike may be transformed by His Word to them, for His glory alone.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Lord Jesus, thank You indeed for interceding for me, and for all God’s children. Holy Spirit, use me freely, flow through me to break the lies that have bound so many, so that there may be a great harvest in the Family of God. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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A Firm Hope; July 2, 2022

Posted on July 6, 2022 by jgarrott

Hebrews 6:19 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain.

There are two distinct metaphors in this verse, and many people don’t have a reference for either one. Boating is fairly common and we are all familiar with the idea of ships and anchors, but unless we have personal experience, this image isn’t likely to grab us. The thing is, in heavy seas or strong winds, anchors can and often do drag along the floor of the body of water in question. It is only when they dig into the sand or catch onto fixed rocks that they really fulfill their purpose. That’s why this verse specifies “firm and secure.” The second metaphor is even less familiar, because it speaks of the temple in Jerusalem that hasn’t existed for almost 2000 years. There was a curtain that separated the Most Holy Place from the rest of the temple. The Ark of the Covenant was there, signifying the very presence of God. Matthew records that when Jesus died on the cross, that curtain split from the top to the bottom, signifying that Jesus had opened the way to God’s presence. (Matthew 27:51) What the writer is saying here is that our hope is firm and secure in the very presence of God. All of us have times when our hope doesn’t seem very strong, when our “anchor is dragging,” so to speak. When that is the case, it shows that our hope has shifted off of what God has done for us in Christ and onto some lesser thing, generally circumstantial. The thing is, circumstances are temporal, temporary, and so can’t be a firm and secure anchor for us. Storms certainly come in life, as even Jesus assured us, (John 16:33) so we need to confirm that our anchor is properly set, and take our focus off of the wind and waves.

I’m in a very minor training session in this at the moment. A number of essentially minor things, coupled with the heat and humidity, have added up to make me feel unsettled. How silly! Lifting my eyes to Jesus is without question the answer. You’d think I’d have that down pat by now, but even at 73 I still need reminders. I need to focus on Christ to have the anticipation of all that has been promised us in Him. That’s the hope that is spoken of here, and I need to walk in it.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Help me tackle each thing I face with the assurance that You will get me through it, and not let the devil distract me with negative scenarios. That only produces procrastination that benefits nothing! Help me flow with Your Spirit on Your schedule each moment of today, resting, relaxing, and rejoicing in You just as You have told me to do, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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