Overcoming Divisions; May 2, 2019

Posted on May 5, 2019 by jgarrott

Ephesians 2:19-20 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow-citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.

Paul’s focus was on the barriers between Jews and Gentiles in general, but today the differences among various people-groups is very much in the news, whether or not it is in individual hearts and minds. The whole point is that in Christ, such differences no longer matter, period. Human beings are experts at creating differences, all the while demanding uniformity. God, in contrast, created infinite variety, but has provided for genuine unity through His Son. Countless Christians have discovered that their brothers and sisters in Christ are closer than blood relatives. When people fit into both categories the connection is indeed special, but not necessarily stronger. In society in general, however, divisions and barriers seem to be the order of the day. We are bombarded with news of “hate crimes,” as though there were such a thing as murder that wasn’t hateful. The news doesn’t like to recognize it as such, but in recent years persecution of Christians has continued to rise worldwide, with the bombings in Sri Lanka only being the most recent example. The pastor of one of the churches that was bombed gave an interview to a Christian agency in which he specifically and explicitly spoke forgiveness and love to those who had killed dozens of his church members. He confessed that there was anger there, but when Jesus said, “Father, forgive them,” from the cross, there was nothing that was not covered. That is what Paul is talking about here. When human beings focus on their differences, that’s like a Japanese proverb that says, “acorns comparing height.” From the human perspective, any differences among acorns are totally insignificant.

As a Caucasian in Japan, human differences are very much part of my life. I am part of a Facebook group of adult MKs, (Missionary Kids) and similar feelings are widely expressed. Many people bear scars from being excluded, not accepted, and not just MKs. However, the answer to them all is the way our Creator, our Father, accepts us in His Son. Thankfully, my wounds aren’t nearly as raw as they have been at times in the past. My job at this point is to express God’s love and acceptance to those around me, however they respond, just as that Sri Lankan pastor has done. I pray that I would never be tested that severely, but I also pray that my assurance of God’s love would be fully that strong.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I do continue to pray that Your name would be recognized as holy and Your kingdom come as Your will is done, in Sri Lanka and everywhere else, specifically including right here where I am, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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God’s Good Works; May 1, 2019

Posted on May 5, 2019 by jgarrott

Ephesians 2:10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

The previous two verses are enormously important and appropriately famous, but this verse gets overlooked at times. God doesn’t save us by grace through faith just to sit around like a bump on a log. We are not saved by what we do, but we are saved in order to do stuff. I have always thought that the cartoon representations of heaven were at times amusing but ultimately absurd, with people sporting wings and halos sitting around on clouds strumming harps. Harps do appear in the Revelation of John, but they aren’t why we go to heaven! I have read various things about our supernatural dominion and the like, but the vast majority of that is just conjecture. What we do know is that God has a plan, it’s good, and it involves us doing stuff. The important thing becomes discovering what God wants us to do. We do know that our first priority is loving Him, and then loving our neighbor. (Matthew 22:37-40) However, that will look different from one person to the next. The point then becomes getting close enough to the Lord to hear accurately what He is saying to do, and then do it with all that we have. The tricky thing is that there are a lot of good things that God doesn’t necessarily want us to do. They aren’t bad in themselves, but they become distractions from God’s purposes for us.

This is of intense interest to me at this point, for a number of reasons. A couple of days ago I attended a conference that talked about “The Seven Essences of the Church.” The speaker was talking about how some things may be good to do, but if they aren’t a reflection of the essence of the Church, they aren’t necessary. One example was prayer meeting, which immediately produced a reaction in me – and it wasn’t a good one! However, his point was that prayer is essential to the Church, but prayer meeting isn’t, particularly as a “mid-week prayer service.” That’s not at all to say that such meetings are bad, but that rather that if the form takes priority over the function, the meaning is lost. Then, I encountered a very personal example. I usually do my devotions on a computer I had set up as an audio workstation, both for working on music in Finale and editing and burning CDs of our services. The past couple of months it had become increasingly unstable, crashing repeatedly at unpredictable intervals, and I decided it needed to be replaced. However, for the purpose of burning 12 or more CDs every week, I had 4 DVD drives installed, requiring a case with that many drive bays. Accordingly, I decided to replace the motherboard, to give me a new computer on the inside while retaining the previous outside. (I have built computers several times in the past.) However, things have not gone well, and right now I am doing this on my tablet computer, rather than the work station. The question then becomes, are CDs something I need to keep doing? My pride really gets in the way here, and that is something I have struggled with all my life. I need to get quiet enough before God to hear what He wants me to do, and what tools He wants me to use in the process. Anything less is essentially meaningless.

Father, thank You for this experience. The depression and sense of failure are no fun at all, but I know that You are growing me to listen to You more accurately, and I thank you for that. Thank You for having me go back and read what You had me write on January 2nd of this year. I was amazed at how appropriate it was! Help me indeed live out all that You say to me and not deceive myself, (James 1:22) so that I may be and do all that You desire, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Knowing God; April 30, 2019

Posted on May 2, 2019 by jgarrott

Ephesians 1:17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

I could easily write on anything from here through the end of the chapter, but since it’s basically all one sentence in Greek, sentence divisions in either English or Japanese don’t line up with verse numbers! The truths of God are all marvelously interconnected, which is why we indeed need “the Spirit of wisdom and revelation” to get it all straight. That’s one of the issues with finite, imperfect man relating to infinite, perfectly holy God. Life in Christ is a constant series of discoveries. That’s one way it is analogous to marriage, except in marriage the discoveries aren’t always good! That’s why one of the great anticipations we can have of heaven is that “I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” (1 Corinthians 13:12) It was precisely because Paul was a very intelligent person, the equivalent of a PhD or more today, that he recognized the limits of merely human understanding. He knew from his own experience that human intellect alone can’t get to God; it takes God’s revelation for us to grasp Him. We are all born with a basic ability to sense, receive, and in a way grasp the love of God, but the world and the devil quickly act to blunt and distort that. One factor is that our imperfect human fathers often do a poor job of expressing Father God to us. That’s why so many people today carry what has been called a “father wound,” needing but lacking an assurance of the Father’s unconditional love. That would can come from simple absence, with so many homes not having a father present, or from lack of discipline, since discipline is an essential expression of love, (Hebrews 12:7-11) or from inappropriate, capricious or even sadistic discipline. Any or all of those can blind us to God’s love, and in such cases special revelation is called for. Thankfully, God can and does provide that. There are countless testimonies of people who have discovered the love of God when they had no reason to believe a father could ever love them. I think that’s what Paul is talking about here. The Holy Spirit will always lead us to Jesus and to the Father, if we will open our hearts to Him.

I was incredibly blessed with a father who loved God and sought to express Him in every area of his life, but he was no more perfect than I am. However, he did a good enough job that most of the revelations I have had of God have been along the lines of, yeah, I knew that, but now I really know that. Even so, I know I always have more to learn, and I also know I have things I need to unlearn, because they aren’t actually true. Ever since I first read it I have loved C. S. Lewis’ statement that one thing we can be sure of about heaven is that we will all discover we were wrong somewhere. That’s why I need to operate in humility at all times, indeed asking for “the Spirit of wisdom and revelation” so that my mind and heart can grow to grasp more of God. As a pastor and teacher I am always seeking to lead others into a deeper knowledge of God, but I must never think that my own knowledge is perfect or even complete. However, I must also not hold back from sharing what I do know, asking the Holy Spirit to make any necessary corrections as it is imparted to others.

Father, thank You indeed for revealing Yourself to Your children. May we all be hungry to know You more and more, opening ourselves up to Your Spirit to be used by You for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Salvation; April 29, 2019

Posted on May 2, 2019 by jgarrott

Ephesians 1:13-14 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

It’s certainly no surprise that Ephesians appears a great deal in the list of readings based on “in Christ.” If Romans might be called the foundation of Paul’s theology, then Ephesians might be called the pinnacle, and there is nothing higher or more glorious than being in Christ, the Son of God. These two verses express how we come to be in Christ: by receiving the Gospel in faith. That’s why we are to share the Gospel: so that as many people as possible may have the opportunity to be in Christ as well. Paul then expresses a major function of the Holy Spirit, one that we sometimes have a cultural barrier to understanding. In Western culture, seals are a rare and specialized thing. When my father went to the US consulate in Fukuoka to create a document giving me permission to get married, (since I was 20 and the age of majority for men was 21, 50 years ago) an embossing seal was affixed, along with some red ribbon. (That’s the origin of the term, red tape, which again, few people really understand today.) It looks very fancy and official, which it is. Japanese culture, on the other hand, still uses carved name stamps a great deal, even though there has been a rather rapid move away from them in the past few years. Paul says the Holy Spirit is such a stamp, a seal (minus the red tape) saying that we are official, and are not to be denied. That official status is as an heir of the Kingdom of God, and that is glorious indeed.

I have loved Ephesians for a long time, and practically every word of it is underlined in my Bible. I was introduced to the idea of the baptism in the Holy Spirit in 1973 and received it in 1974, and have been growing in my knowledge and appreciation of the work of the Holy Spirit ever since. That said, I still have a long way to go! As Paul says a little later in this same letter, what God has done and provided for us is beyond human knowledge. (Ephesians 3:17-19) It gives me great joy and peace to know that I am an heir of the Kingdom, even though I really grasp only a fraction of all that means. As an heir, then, I am to be active in telling others how they too can be-come heirs, because adding more in no way diminishes my share, since God is infinite.

Father, Your salvation really is almost too good to believe. I ask for Your anointing so that more and more people may indeed believe, for their eternal salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Rules; April 28, 2019

Posted on April 29, 2019 by jgarrott

Galatians 5:13 You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.

This is a verse that needs to be preached far and wide! This whole letter is speaking strongly against legalism, but this verse is the counter to keep the pendulum from going too far. There are those who indeed abuse the grace of God, ignoring, condoning, and even promoting various sins of the flesh while proclaiming that they are “better Christians” than those who seek to submit themselves to the way of life that God has laid out as best for us. The degree of ridicule that was heaped on Mike Pence for his personal rule of never being alone with any woman other than his wife was downright astounding. That degree of purity makes those who choose impurity uncomfortable! A major purpose for rules is to provide guidelines. A conscientious parent, not to mention psychologists, will tell you that children will invariably test their boundaries, but they will seldom go far past them. God’s rules aren’t to bind us, they are to protect us from the countless dangers that surround us. John hit the nail on the head when he said, “This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.” (1 John 5:3) As Paul says, we are free. He told the Corinthians, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” (2 Corinthians 3:17) However, he also said this to the Galatians, and we need to maintain that balance.

This of course applies to me as much as it does to anyone. I have a personal policy of no alcohol, and the biggest reason for that is that in my position as a teacher and a pastor, many people look to me as an example. I personally have a very high ethanol tolerance (I once tried to get drunk on bourbon and didn’t succeed) but many people don’t. At the same time, I know that someone like me with very high tolerance is more in danger of chemical (as opposed to emotional) addiction, and I certainly want to avoid that. Alcohol is just one of many “pleasures of the flesh” that entice us. Gluttony is a constant danger, and the world today is steeped in sexual temptation. I am to remember and practice what Paul says here, not being legalistic but not being stupid, either. Like Mike Pence, I need to be wise and loving even when ridiculed. As a pastor, I deal constantly with people who have trouble in this area. I am to speak the truth in love, not condemning but not condoning either, always holding out the possibility of repentance and forgiveness, regardless of the sin.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for all You are doing on so many levels. We have a very full schedule today. I ask your anointing on the service here, and on the Coaching seminar this afternoon. May the Body of Christ be built up all around, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Differences; April 27, 2019

Posted on April 29, 2019 by jgarrott

Galatians 3:28-29 There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

I quote verse 28 as the basis for gender equality every time I do marriage counseling, to tell the husbands that though they are organizationally the head of their household, (Ephesians 5:23) they are not of greater value in the eyes of God, and they are to walk in all respect and humility. However, these days some people are insisting that gender is a social construct, in defiance of science and common sense. That’s not what this is saying at all. This is saying that whatever your situation or condition as far as the world is concerned, if you have been born again in Christ by faith, (John 3:3) you are an equal heir of all the promises of God. That is absolutely huge, but it doesn’t destroy our differences. Paul himself expounded on the importance of differences in 1 Corinthians 12 and elsewhere. Saying that a man is a woman if he feels like it, or vice versa, is denying the very necessary differences God built into us. What Paul is speaking against here is the human tendency to rank everyone by value. It is when we treat differences as indicative of intrinsic value that we get into trouble. Going back to Paul’s discussion in 1 Corinthians 12, “If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.” (1 Corinthians 12:19-20) Unity does not mean uniformity! In the Church we should be celebrating both our unity and our differences, rejoicing in how we supply each other’s needs. That’s how marriage should be, and ultimately, how society as a whole should be. That we aren’t there yet doesn’t mean that we are not to be aiming for that goal. However, the way to get there is not at all to deny that differences exist. Rather, it is to respect each other as being of fully equal value.

Growing up as a Caucasian in Japan, I have always been aware of differences. On my first visit to the US, shortly before turning four, I insisted on speaking Japanese to the first African-American person I met, because to me, anyone with skin darker than my parents’ had to be Japanese. I certainly didn’t consider them to be of any less value. Throughout my life I have met people with a wide variety of abilities and disabilities. I have learned that none of those things make those people any less – or more – human than I am. At the same time, I know that different people have different functions, in society and in the home. I learned very early that I was not my parents! As a pastor, part of my task is to make the believers comfortable in their differences, each supplying what the Lord has given them and rejoicing in the unity of value and purpose that we have in Christ.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for today, and all You have planned in it. There are a wide variety of things to be done. Help me recognize the task at hand and focus fully on it, not being distracted by what is ahead but doing each thing as unto You, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Works of Faith; April 26, 2019

Posted on April 28, 2019 by jgarrott

Galatians 3:5 Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard?

It really strikes me that the Galatians, for all their legalism, had still experienced the gifts of the Holy Spirit and miracles. That makes me feel the majority of churches in “developed” countries are formula-based, rather than faith-based. That is, we grant membership if someone says the right words, rather than if they really believe God. Faith is indeed a seed that grows, and we aren’t to demand maturity before baptism, but the question really arises as to whether we actually believe the things we profess. And that applies to pastors as well as to baptismal candidates! My maternal grandfather had a rather dismissive expression for the whole idea of “formula” Christianity: “Into bliss and out of blister.” That is to say, the idea that just saying a few words will get you a ticket to heaven instead of hell. What we say is important, as Paul himself stressed in Romans 10:9-10, but even there, faith is absolutely essential. As was said many years ago about the faith/works controversy, genuine faith works. We don’t earn God’s favor by what we do, but if we believe Him and love Him, we will do what He has said. The question then becomes whether we really believe Him enough to allow Him to do things that our “sophisticated, rational,” minds can’t explain or even comprehend. It is no accident that miracles are far more common in “undeveloped” countries than in wealthy ones. We end up depending on what we can do, instead of on the God who can do anything.

This is a matter of immediate urgency for me. Three and a half years ago my wife had surgery to correct scoliosis that had progressed to the point of putting her into a wheelchair. Yesterday, arrangements were finalized for her to have a second surgery, because the vertebra just above the area that was previously straightened and fused has shifted to the point of causing her intense pain. I am very grateful for good medicine, good hospitals, and good doctors, all of which we have. However, I can’t help noticing the paucity of miracles in my ministry, and I wonder if my faith isn’t badly distorted. Paul’s own experience of physical problems is a clear statement that God isn’t a “miracle vending machine,” (2 Corinthians 12:7-10) but I can’t help feeling I should be seeing far more of the supernatural in my ministry than I am. I need to break out of the fear of embarrassment that holds me back, so that God will be free to do whatever He likes through me, whatever it makes me look like.

Father, thank You for this Word. I feel trite, thanking You for Your grace when my wife is the one who is in pain. Keep me from trying to dictate how You will act, but also keep me from drawing back from any way in which You want to use me for the sake of the Body of Christ and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Life in Christ; April 25, 2019

Posted on April 28, 2019 by jgarrott

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

This is a justly famous verse, so much so that I have heard American Christians use expressions like “220 power” to refer to it. However, even most of the people who quote it don’t really live it out. We hang onto “the life I live in the body” with fierce tenacity, prioritizing the flesh over the spiritual and essentially despising the grace and blessings of God. It’s not that we do it intentionally, it’s that we get distracted and deceived by the devil and the world. We generally don’t need much encouragement to go that direction! Our pilgrimage (a very appropriate word, actually) on this earth is a process of learning more and more to “fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen,” (2 Corinthians 4:18) so that we may truly “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness.” (Matthew 6:33) That is what it is to abide in Christ, and let His words abide in us. (John 15:7) That is power indeed!

All of these Scriptures come easily to my mind, for which I am grateful, but that in itself is no guarantee that I’m living them out. My own pilgrimage has been one of allowing the Word to go from my head to my heart, and from there to my hands and feet, and not just to my mouth. I can talk the Christian life until your ears fall off, but that’s not the same thing as my living it out. I’m reminded of the very true saying: “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” When I speak the truth in love, the love needs to be the dominant element, preparing the way for the truth to penetrate. That happens only as I am aware of God’s love for me and how hopeless I am without it, so that I will allow that love to flow through me to the other person. As soon as I focus on myself, that gets distorted. I’m just a cracked clay pot, (2 Corinthians 4:7) and I must never forget it! I should be overwhelmed that God would choose to use even such as I am to do His work for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the texts that came in in the middle of it, allowing me to express your love to someone who feels very isolated and alone. I indeed pray that they would discover the joy of taking their eyes off of themselves and fixing them on Jesus, allowing You to fill them with Your presence and use them for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Accurate Ministry; April 24, 2019

Posted on April 27, 2019 by jgarrott

2 Corinthians 13:11 Finally, brothers, good-bye. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.

Several differences in translation caught my eye about this verse. In Japanese it says, “Finally, brothers, rejoice. Become perfect. Receive comfort. Be of one heart. Maintain peace. If you do that, the God of love and peace will be with you.” I’m particularly struck by the NIV saying, “good-by,” and the Japanese saying, “rejoice.” It really makes me wonder what Paul actually said. Sometimes, someone leaving (or shutting up) does make us happy! Also, “listen to my appeal” seems quite different from “be comforted.” Actually, whatever way you translate it, this verse fits in with the fact that Paul has said some pretty strong things in this letter, but it is all out of the love he feels toward the recipients. We get the mistaken idea that being loving keeps us from being firm, when that isn’t the case at all. We have the expression, “tough love,” but often we don’t get that right. Sometimes our “toughness” is just being self-centered, and sometimes our “love” is just taking the easy way out. We too need to aim for perfection, recognizing that we aren’t there yet, and strive to let the Holy Spirit be in control of our words and our actions. We need to remember that God is indeed “the God of love and peace,” but our perception of both of those things is often distorted.

My use of this chapter has been focused on the benediction in verse 14, which I quote or paraphrase very frequently. I’ve got to remember that the things mentioned there – the grace of Jesus, the love of the Father, and the fellowship of the Spirit – are my goals for each person I interact with. I need to remember that I can’t do any of that in my own strength and wisdom, and so walk in grateful humility. God does impart His wisdom to those who ask, (James 1:5) and His power does operate through His children, (1 Corinthians 15:10) but that’s all His doing and I cannot be presumptuous. I need to remember that verse 11 applies as much to me as it does to those to whom I minister.

Father, thank You for this reminder. When I am struck by the imperfection of others, help me remember my own! May I be an open channel of Your grace, love, and fellowship to all, so that together we may indeed be knit into the Body of Christ, bringing Your kingdom to this earth as we do Your will, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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God’s Power; April 23, 2019

Posted on April 27, 2019 by jgarrott

2 Corinthians 12:8-9 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

This passage is well known, but I think very few people actually live it out. We are so in love with the idea of being strong, of being able to do things by ourselves. Paul wasn’t a believer at the time and didn’t hear it, but just before His crucifixion Jesus said plainly, “Apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5) We don’t like that! Paul had to be put through something of a wringer to get it through his head, and I don’t think we’re any better. We have such trouble grasping the infinite, perfect, power and wisdom of God. However, the better we do grasp it, the more we are able to allow that power and wisdom to flow through us, instead of getting in the way. We tend to set conditions, to try to bargain with God, but that is absurd on the face of it. We need to say, “OK God, You do Your will in and through me, and I’ll do my best to tag along and not get in the way.” That’s the attitude Paul was talking about when he said he would “boast of his weaknesses.” There have been many “broken vessels” throughout Church history who have been mightily used by God, but there have actually been many more who had to be broken because of their pride and never really recovered. That is tragic. We need to strive to grasp this truth before we bring tragedy on ourselves and those around us.

This hits very close to home because of how I have struggled with pride over the years. I am frequently reminded of how many years it took to really grasp that it’s not that God’s smarter than I am, it’s that God’s smart and I’m not. The suite of abilities He’s given me are his, not mine, and trying to use them on my own never ends well. As a pastor, I am currently dealing with someone who has run full tilt into their own weakness, and can’t seem to get over it. They still haven’t grasped that God wants to use their weakness as a channel of His power to bless many. My own wife is a marvel to many for all that she does, but right now she is actually looking forward to her second back surgery (that just got scheduled) in the hope that it will eliminate her current severe pain. I don’t think she was proud as such, but she has always been an “over-performer,” usually on behalf of others, and now she is having to let others do for her. It’s not something she takes to easily! In both of those cases I’ve got to remember that I’m not “Mr. Fix-it,” as I would like to be, but that God is capable of using even me if I will be yielded to Him. God’s grace is indeed sufficient for us all!

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You that we were able to get the surgery scheduled yesterday. I ask Your special grace for Cathy in the two weeks until it takes place. We have a busy schedule through the end of this month. I pray for wisdom and peace for us both, in dealing with her situation and in dealing with all the other situations around us as well, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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