Patient Endurance; March 22, 2021

Posted on March 26, 2021 by jgarrott

James 5:7-8 Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.

This last part of James’ letter has many memorable verses that I have meditated and spoken on many times, but I don’t think I’ve ever really done so about this bit. It actually seems very timely at this point from a number of factors. In the first place, I’m planting a garden myself, and I’m very excited to see lots of seeds coming up. In the second place, world events are making a lot of people long for the return of the Lord! Frankly, I would have to count myself among their number, even though at the same time there are a lot of temporal events that I am very interested to see how they turn out. I’ve been a space/science fiction buff for 60 years, and I have a lot of appreciation for Elon Musk at the moment! That said, humans going to Mars can’t compare with Christ returning to Earth, so that isn’t an obstacle to my anticipation. The political situation, along with the societal decay that has engendered it, is what has so many people longing for Christ’s return. As has been very wisely said, politics is downstream from culture, and American culture has been sexualized to an amazing degree, especially over the past 100 years. There have been decadent cultures dotted throughout human history, but the scale and the intensity are currently at the upper end of the scale, especially with the wholesale slaughter of innocents on the altar of sexual pleasure. We live in an Information Age indeed, and the tsunami of information about decadence of all sorts threatens to drown us all. That makes James’ words here extremely appropriate. I like the fact that the Japanese term used here is closer to “endurance” than simply “patience.” I think we do well to think of it as “patient endurance.” Even Jesus wanted to be done with the suffering He knew awaited Him, (Luke 12:49-50) but He patiently endured on the Father’s schedule. We need to keep our eyes on the prize (2 Corinthians 4:16-17; Philippians 3:14) and know that God already has it all worked out, whatever it looks like to us in the moment.

I go through times of being excited about all that I see happening around me, and times of wishing I could already hear the Last Trumpet! (Revelation 11:15) My garden is giving me plenty of anticipation, but at the same time I know there is plenty of work to be done before the harvest. I need to approach my coming encounter with the Lord the same way, whether that encounter is strictly personal or whether it is indeed the end of the age. The fact that it hasn’t come yet means that I’ve still got work to do. Some of that work may simply be enduring! I’m not to complain, but rejoice that the Lord does choose to use me in various ways, and give myself totally to Him.

Father, thank You for this clear reminder. Thank You for all You did yesterday. That large, 3-generation family showing up yesterday was quite a shock, but hardly a bad one. It was a reminder that things can change overnight! Thank You also for the ongoing lessons of the garden. Help me receive all the lessons You have for me, responding as You intend, so that indeed, Your name may be acknowledged as holy and Your kingdom come as Your will is done in and through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Active Obedience; March 21, 2021

Posted on March 23, 2021 by jgarrott

James 4:17 Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.

Ouch! This verse has got to bite any thinking believer. We tend to think of sin in terms of commission, things we do that we shouldn’t, but this is dealing with omission, failing to do things. Actually, there is a very famous story Jesus told that deals with exactly the same thing. At the very last of the story of the judgment of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25, Jesus said, “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’” (Matthew 25:45) Then those “goats” are sent off to eternal punishment! That actually fits in very well with the even more famous parable of the talents, recorded in verses 14-30 of the same chapter, just ahead of the sheep and the goats. We like to focus on the blessing given the first two servants in that story, but the condemnation of the third servant rose from what he did not do with what had been entrusted to him. We are not to be passive in our faith, expecting everything to be handed to us. It is true that all real power comes from God and we can do nothing without Him, but we are called on to seek Him for the opportunity and the ability to do what He desires with what He provides. James distills all of that down to this one short verse.

I’ve certainly committed sins of commission, actively doing things I knew were not pleasing to God, but I have probably committed far more sins of omission, failing to do what I knew He was indicating to do. Someone has humorously observed that sins of commission are far more fun! However, sin itself is nothing to joke about, because what comes from it is death. (Romans 6:23) Like probably the vast majority of human beings, I tend to be lazy, and as James says, that can generate a lot of sin. I have a tendency to feel that simply knowing Biblical truth is enough, when, as again James points out, knowing it and failing to apply it is just deceiving myself. (James 1:22) I have long felt that verse was written especially for me! All of this said, I still am not to get anxious or frantic. God has told me personally to rest, relax, and rejoice. My heart is to be keyed to Him, desiring to do His will but trusting Him to show me what that is. There are countless “good things” I could be doing, but trying to earn God’s favor is actually the opposite of faith. I am not to draw back from anything He does want me to do, but I’m not to be neurotic about searching for things to do.

Father, thank You for this reminder and clarification. Thank You for the times You have enabled me to be obedient to You, and for Your grace and forgiveness for the times I have failed to do that. Help me hear You more accurately and obey You more completely, living out the Word You have poured into me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Different Harvests; March 20, 2021

Posted on March 22, 2021 by jgarrott

Hebrews 12:11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

There are all kinds of harvests, because there are all kinds of seeds planted. Sometimes God drops seeds into our hearts, as here, and sometimes the devil does, as in the parable of the weeds. (Matthew 13:24-30) As in yesterday’s reading, we do a lot of sowing, in cooperation with either God or the devil. It’s no secret what produces the best crop! We frankly don’t like it when God sows discipline into our lives, but we can be grateful when the harvest time comes. The devil tries to deceive us as to what is actually going on, so that we will rejoice in the weeds and grumble about the discipline, but as always, he is a liar who never desires good for us. (John 8:44; 10:10) If we choose to turn and tune our hearts to God, He will give us wisdom to distinguish between good seed and bad, and refuse the bad, but strictly on our own, we won’t make the right choices. We’ve got to remember that James’ famous admonition begins with, “Submit to God.” Only then can we “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7) We also need to remember that this is an ongoing process for as long as we are on this earth. The devil doesn’t give up, so we must not either. He doesn’t much care exactly what damage he does to us, just so long as he does damage us. That damage might not be in overt sin, but might be as subtle as stealing our peace and joy. We are to submit to God on every level so that we won’t let that thief steal anything from us!

This of course applies to me. People expect that a pastor who’s been walking with the Lord for as long as I have would automatically welcome the Lord’s discipline and would need very little of it. That might logically be the case, but I can be very illogical! I have tasted the fruit of submission to God, and it is good indeed. I have also tasted the fruit of ignoring God, and that is bitter ashes. As I say in my Faith Declarations, “By the grace of God, each day I am more accurately hearing and obeying the Holy Spirit, for it is written, ‘He who has ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ By the grace of God, each day I am more accurately detecting and resisting Satan, for it is written, ‘Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.’” That has got to be more than words; it must be my consistent practice, so that I will walk in all that God intends for me and yield nothing to the devil.

Father, thank You for this strong reminder. Thank You for all You are doing on so many levels. Thank You for the physical seeds I could plant in the garden yesterday, and for today’s rain. I pray that on every level I may reap the harvest that You desire and intend, for the blessing of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Sowing and Reaping; March 19, 2021

Posted on March 22, 2021 by jgarrott

Galatians 6:7-8 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.

In current society this principle is either forgotten or steadfastly ignored. Thinking about it, it’s amazing that so many people think they can ignore a fundamental principle of the universe. It’s rather like ignoring gravity! A commentator I really like calls it “magical thinking,” and it is sadly endemic. That is, “If I feel this way, or if I want it badly enough, then that’s the way it is.” To use Paul’s phrase, that’s mocking God, or trying to at any rate. Paul is quite correct that such efforts cannot succeed. You don’t have to be a theologian, much less a genius, to recognize a lot of things about God’s creation. Ignoring those things, or trying to, is an open invitation to personal destruction, just as it says here. Like Paul wrote to the Romans, “Since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities–his eternal power and divine nature–have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20) Magical thinking will get you nowhere, but seeking God and obeying Him will get you “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine.” (Ephesians 3:20)

I don’t know that I’ve actively mocked God, but I’ve certainly ignored what I knew He had said many, many times, and that falls under what Paul says here. That’s why I know I’m totally dependent on the grace of God. I am to press in to know more of God and be quick to repent when I slip up, but at the same time I’ve got to remember that forgiveness is real, and fully effective if we will allow it to be. 1 John 1:9 is very famous, but at the same time I don’t think we really grasp all it means in practical terms. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” God’s forgiveness isn’t just removing a penalty, it’s removing the offense! Jesus’ younger brother Jude only left one short letter as part of the New Testament, but he wrote something that resonates deeply in my spirit, courtesy of Don Francisco and the song he wrote from it: “To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy–to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” (Jude 1:24-25) As a pastor, I need not only to remember that for myself, but also to communicate it to all to whom I minister, because it is an essential part of the Gospel. We reap what we sow, yes, but the glorious Good News is that Jesus has provided the only way out of what otherwise would be a hopeless situation.

Father, thank You for this clear reminder. I can think of several people who are probably in need of this right now. Help me communicate it effectively so that the lies of the devil may be exposed and defeated and people be set free to walk in all that You have for them, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Abounding Grace; March 18, 2021

Posted on March 21, 2021 by jgarrott

2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

In reading this verse the first thing that came to mind was something Paul wrote a little later in this same letter. Reporting God’s response to him when he asked for healing of a physical problem, he wrote, “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’” (2 Corinthians 12:9) That’s not the same image as “grace abounding” in this verse, but it’s just as real and it’s vital to understand. We have a huge problem with feeling entitled. We feel that if we do A and B, then God has to come up with C, and it doesn’t work that way. Just yesterday I read a horrible, extreme example of what entitlement can do. A man showed up at the house of his girlfriend (with whom he had a child) and demanded half of her “stimulus” money, which she had just received. She refused, saying that she was working to support their child and he was doing nothing. When her brother stepped up to support her, the man pulled out a gun and started shooting, killing four people, and then grabbed his infant daughter and left. When he was caught, he said she had “made him do it.” That’s where a sense of entitlement ultimately leads. He wasn’t entitled to anything, and he will be paying for his actions for a long time, at least, and possibly for eternity. We aren’t entitled to anything, but God likes to do good stuff for us anyway. What we need to do is seek Him so that we will position ourselves more and more in the flow of His grace. When we really understand it’s all grace, we will be grateful, and many studies have shown that gratitude is the most fundamental component of genuine happiness. The man I just wrote about has no gratitude whatsoever, and he is miserable to the nth degree, making others around him miserable in the process.

Once again I am grateful for the parents who raised me. As a case in point, at Christmas we weren’t told the presents came from Santa, but rather that each gift came from someone, who was to be thanked. We also prepared gifts for our parents and each other (even when it was actually our parents’ money that purchased them), and it was actually more exciting and enjoyable to see the others open what we had gotten for them than it was to receive gifts ourselves. When I was raised that way, our older daughter’s first words were “Thank you,” and we have some very cute tales as a result! She hasn’t had the easiest life, but right now she is a remarkably well-adjusted, and happy, person. When I start going over all the ways in which God has been gracious to me it can be overwhelming, because there is no end to it all. It’s not that everything in my life goes as I would like, any more than it was for Paul, However, God’s grace has certainly been sufficient on every level, and I am deeply grateful.

Father, You know more ways in which You have been gracious to me than I have even recognized. Help me walk in full gratitude and obedience, so that Your grace through me may draw many more to repentance and faith, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Socialism; March 17, 2021

Posted on March 21, 2021 by jgarrott

2 Corinthians 8:12 For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.

It is fashionable in some circles to claim that socialism originates in the Bible, pointing to this passage as well as to the practice of the Early Church in Jerusalem. (Acts 4:32-35) However, there is a massive distinction between socialism and Biblical generosity. What we find in the Bible is strictly voluntary, motivated by the convictions of the givers, whereas socialism is government-commanded, motivated by envy and/or greed. One conservative speaker has done an experiment recently on several college campuses, talking with students who espoused socialist ideas and claimed that “the rich” should support “the poor.” He tells them, “OK. That sounds like a good idea. Let’s all go sell our smartphones and donate the money to the local food bank.” They immediately change their tune! Socialism sounds good only to those who will receive stuff, not to those from whom it will be demanded. Christian generosity is based on the conviction that God is our Supply, as in the Hebrew “nickname” for God, Yahweh Yireh, commonly mispronounced as Jehovah Jirah. (Genesis 22:14) Christian generosity is an opportunity to participate in God’s supply chain, and is an even bigger blessing to the giver than it is to the receiver. (Acts 20:35) Being stingy benefits no one, but having “generosity” commanded by government is robbery.

Recently someone in a Facebook group for Missionary Kids asked for reports of miracles, and the response was massive. There were reports of healings and even resurrections, protection and supply. In the reports of supply, the miraculous element was that those doing the supplying had no idea of the need, yet they met it. I have experienced that myself, as well as God multiplying what we had and making things last much longer than they had any reason to. I have also experienced the joy of being an agent of God’s supply to others, with no compulsion other than the inner voice of the Holy Spirit. Having tasted that, it’s fairly easy to see through the socialist smokescreen. I’m not to dump on those who are currently deceived by such fine-sounding slogans as, “From each according to his ability, to each according to his need.” Rather, I am to speak the truth in love so that it may penetrate through the fog and set people free. (John 8:32)

Father, thank You for Your abundant supply and for the privilege of being a channel for it at times. Help me hold all things loosely, recognizing that they are Yours and letting You do with them as You desire, for the blessing of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Ministerial Compensation; March 16, 2021

Posted on March 18, 2021 by jgarrott

1 Corinthians 9:14, 16 In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel. Yet when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, for I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!

The matter of “ministerial compensation” is an issue even today. News media (which in general tends to be anti-Christian) loves to pick up on preachers who get huge salaries, and “TV preachers” who spend half their air time begging for money have certainly fed into that. Fortunately, they are actually the exception. Far more common is the pastor of the small church who barely receives enough to get by. Sadly, too many churches seem to think it’s their duty to “keep their preacher poor and humble.” On top of that, there are missionaries who serve among people who cannot support them financially, and have to take time and emotional energy trying to get people in their affluent sending country to supply the funds they need to live and minister. God is certainly our ultimate supply, but we all need to be open to being used as channels for His supply. At the same time, Paul himself was famously an exception to the very thing he is expounding here as normative. He took pride in supporting himself, and even those working with him, by making tents, and he must have been pretty good at it to have been able to do so. However, the Lord later dealt with that pride by having him in prison where he couldn’t work, and his only supply was what others provided. His commission to proclaim the Gospel had nothing to do with how he was compensated on this earth.

I have a lot of empathy with Paul in a number of ways. I am considered a missionary by many, but I have no human sending agency. Indeed, when we were struggling with one such agency before we came to Omura, my wife very wisely told them, “We’d rather be Lord sent than board sent.” We are in our 40th year in Omura now, and in that time have never received as much financially from our ministry as we have given to it in offerings. The Lord has blessed us with abilities that are in demand and are well compensated, but when I have let that be my focus, the ministry has suffered. Right now we receive both some American Social Security and a Japanese government pension which is the practical equivalent. Neither would be sufficient to live on by itself by any means, but receiving both is a big help. The big thing is that there is no forced age ceiling to my teaching medical English, so that income is still there. The corona virus situation put a real damper on my income from doing weddings at a local “wedding palace,” but thankfully that is picking up again now. All of that is to say that like Paul I cannot boast about my ministry, because as he wrote, Christ’s love compels me. (2 Corinthians 5:14) I will be preaching for as long as I am physically able. The Lord has been saying some things recently about moving me into a different sort of ministry, but there is no hint of stopping! I am to keep my eyes on Him and do whatever He says. As a refrigerator magnet says (in line with the Bible but not quoting any passage I’m aware of) “Where God guides, He provides.”

Father, thank You for Your supply, and for the privilege of proclaiming Your Word without thought of compensation. Help me be a good steward of all You provide, material and otherwise, so that my faithfulness may be a testimony drawing others to You, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Sin and Grace; March 15, 2021

Posted on March 18, 2021 by jgarrott

Romans 6:15, 23 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Verse 23 is rightly quoted a great deal, but sadly we still struggle with the issue expressed in verse 15. Frankly, we don’t understand grace very well. The devil does his utmost to convince us that if our sins can be forgiven, they don’t matter. That, as always with what the devil says, is a lie. We by nature like to indulge our every impulse, but as the section between these two verses makes clear, that makes us slaves to sin. Our appetites in themselves aren’t bad, but uncontrolled they quickly become distorted and lead to destruction. Even something as basic as our appetite for food, if uncontrolled, leads to obesity and death. Right now over half the population of the US is overweight, and obesity is the prime “co-morbidity” in deaths from the current corona virus pandemic. Rigid legalism is certainly a trap, and one that Paul rightly railed against, particularly in writing to the Galatians, but the solution isn’t license, the feeling that “anything goes.” That’s what Paul is writing about here. Jesus didn’t die just to save us from the penalty for sin, He died to save us from the power of sin, since sin is fundamentally destructive, just as verse 23 says. We do still slip up at times, which is why we look forward to heaven, where we will be saved from the presence of sin. The more and better we walk free of sin in this life, the more we enjoy the blessings of heaven even before we get there!

This is something I teach others, but I don’t walk in perfectly myself. The fleshly nature is a stubborn thing! That means that as a pastor I can have empathy and compassion for those to whom I minister, but I must never close my eyes to my own vulnerability. Of all people, I am to “Be holy, because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:16) I have tasted the blessings of walking in step with the Holy Spirit, (Galatians 5:25) and must be vigilant against anything that would get me out of step with Him. I do indeed look forward to heaven, but as long as I am in this life I am to seek to bring as many people as possible with me on the the road to heaven.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Nothing could be more basic. Help me indeed share the Good News of salvation more and more effectively, while walking in it more and more fully myself, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Saints; March 14, 2021

Posted on March 17, 2021 by jgarrott

Romans 1:7 To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

We get such strange ideas when we hear the word, saints. We imagine someone walking around with a perpetual halo over their head, or maybe not even a person, but a statue! The Catholic Church, with its complicated and rather rigid procedures for granting sainthood status, has contributed a great deal to that. However, a quick search of all the uses of “saint” in the New Testament, and for that matter, even the Old, will show you that anyone who is in Christ is a saint; they are holy. In other words, we are saints! Too often we fail to act like it, but that doesn’t change our fundamental nature. Actually, understanding that can make us much stronger against temptation, because we can see that yielding to temptation has become unnatural to us, instead of being natural. The devil tries to convince us that we are no more than animals, so yielding to fleshly desires is how we are and what we should be, but as usual, he is a liar. We are children of God, inhabiting physical bodies and prone to weakness, yet loved by God and capable of being filled and used by His Spirit. In that capacity, the grace and peace Paul mentions here are available in unlimited measure. We tend to act in accordance with our self image, so seeing ourselves as saints puts us ahead of the game when it comes to spiritual warfare. That’s not at all to say that we are to be proud, much less conceited, because we have this status only by the grace of God, but recognizing our own weakness should not blind us to the power of God, and He has called us to be saints.

This certainly applies to me. There are moments when I am sharply aware of my own weaknesses, and there are also moments when I am aware that I am being used and carried along by the Spirit of God. Like everyone else, I am in the “now but not yet” mode, eagerly looking forward to the day when I will stand before the Throne with everything unworthy stripped away. The point is to keep the eyes of my heart fixed on Jesus to that I may step free of the sin that is so quick to entangle. (Hebrews 12:1-2) I too need to live like what God says I am, instead of what the devil says I am. On the one hand I am indeed “Only a sinner, saved by grace,” as the hymn says, but on the other hand I am a saint of God. As a pastor, I need not only to remember that I myself am a saint, I need to help other believers understand that they too are saints. If I will do that, we will rise up, a holy army, to crush the works of the devil and proclaim the kingdom of God. (1 John 3:8)

Father, thank You for this powerful Word. You have been saying some exciting things to me recently. Help me not try to make anything happen in my own strength, but rather cooperate fully with You in full, joyful submission. May Your name be acknowledged as holy and Your kingdom come as Your will is done, for Your glory alone. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Luke; March 13, 2021

Posted on March 17, 2021 by jgarrott

Acts 16:10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

Luke has got to be one of the most humble, obedient people recorded in the Bible. We know from Colossians 4:14 that he was a doctor, which has been a respected occupation throughout history, one requiring intelligence and diligence and usually garnering a good income. However, even though he wrote two of the longer books of the New Testament, Luke never put his own name forward. We know nothing of his personal background and family, but his commitment to Christ was complete and his loyalty to Paul remarkable. This verse is the first place he uses the first person plural, including himself in Paul’s group, so that would indicate he was from Troas. Whether he was from somewhere else and just happened to encounter Paul there remains a possibility, but the fact is, we just don’t know. However, that actually seems likely to me, because if he had been an established part of society in Troas it would have been very difficult for him suddenly to pick up and go to Macedonia with Paul. He may have been a widower, traveling to try to ease the pain of his loss. I have known doctors who were devastated to lose their wives, in one case to a disease that was part of their own specialty. The self-accusations can be extreme in such cases. However he happened to be in Troas, Luke obviously received the Gospel with conviction and committed himself to its spread, and the whole world has benefited. His Gospel, probably written while Paul was in prison in Caesarea, (Acts 23-26) is obviously carefully researched, giving us most of what we consider “the Christmas story.” And of course, his is the only deliberate record we have of the early years of the Church. Every believer today is deeply in his debt, yet he never put himself forward, but simply did what he felt God was asking of Him.

I couldn’t ask for a better example to follow, but then, there are quite a few of those recorded in the Bible! He is one of the “great cloud of witnesses,” (Hebrews 12:1) testifying to the faithfulness of God and the glory of knowing and following Him. The specific area I would like to emulate is that of submitting intellectual and academic achievement to the cause of the kingdom of God. Actually that is something of a tradition in my family, since all four of my grandparents were college graduates and my father and both grandfathers had advanced degrees, but all loved God before and above everything else. Actually, advanced degrees are littered through my family tree, but not all of those have been as committed to the Lord as Luke and my immediate ancestors were. Like Luke, I need to seek first God’s kingdom and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33) before any thought of personal pride, acclamation, or achievement. Like him I need to be willing to leave everything behind in a moment, if God makes it clear to me to do so. Like him I need to use the gifts God has placed in me in word and action, to serve God’s children and draw others to Him.

Father, Thank You for pointing this out to me so clearly. Help me indeed be totally committed to You in every area so that Your purposes may be fulfilled in and through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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