Baptism; August 10, 2018

Posted on August 12, 2018 by jgarrott

Acts 2:38-39 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

This is perhaps the ultimate invitation, which is interesting because it was the first invitation given at the birth of the Church. You can’t really improve on it. It isn’t a call to faith, it’s a call to action. Those to whom it was addressed had already believed enough to be “cut to the heart,” (verse 37) so Peter was telling them what to do about it, and why. He also explicitly extended the invitation to all who would receive it, far more broadly than even he himself realized at the time. It didn’t occur to him that “all who are far off” would include Gentiles! That’s one of the features of prophetic preaching: you say more than you realize, so you need to pay attention to your own sermons! Some people have tried to read into this that baptism is necessary for salvation. That couldn’t be true, because Jesus assured the thief on the cross next to Him that he would be saved, when there was absolutely no opportunity for baptism. What is necessary is action. A concrete confession is called for, and baptism is certainly part of that. I was raised in a church tradition that said that baptism is entirely symbolic, to get away from the idea of “baptismal regeneration,” but my position has certainly changed over the years. I have a book about a 20th Century revival in New Guinea titled, If You Care to Accept It. The author was a pilot for a missionary aviation group, but I don’t remember his name at the moment. He describes numbers of miracles, but one scene sticks in my memory. They had gone to one village to conduct a baptism service for several converts, and the other men in the village confronted them in battle dress, saying they would kill them if they baptized anyone. When they asked why, the men said, “We have seen what happened in the neighboring village. Once those people go into the water they are as dead to us.” In other words, they had seen transformation in people who were baptized, and they were afraid of it. When the team trusted God and went ahead with the baptism, some of those who had threatened them chose to be baptized as well! Baptism without repentance just gets people wet, but when the conditions are met, it is transformative.

My own baptism at age seven was real. I don’t remember the baptism itself very well, but I do remember going to my parents and expressing my commitment and my desire to be baptized. However, my spiritual growth after that was not so good, and when God called me back to myself at age 24, the shock and repentance were so great that I thought I must not have actually been a Christian, and I asked for and received baptism a second time. At this point I don’t think that was necessary, but I know without question that mentoring and guidance are necessary for new Christians of whatever age. We have the baptism of a 65-year-old man scheduled for the 19th. He has come to the conviction that Christ is real by watching his sister-in-law, who struggled with clinical depression but is now a triumphant believer. I have talked with him about repentance, and he acknowledges that he is a sinner in need of salvation. I do need to mentor him, but it is the Holy Spirit who will bring him through to new life in Christ, as a testimony to all who know him, just as his sister-in-law was to him.

Father, thank You for all that You are doing. I pray that this would mark a real turning point in this church, with believers who are fully committed to Jesus as Lord and filled with the Holy Spirit to be and do all that You desire and intend, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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The Gift of Tongues; August 9, 2018

Posted on August 11, 2018 by jgarrott

Acts 2:4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

As the birthday of the Church, the events of this day have certainly been examined up one side and down the other. This verse in particular has been something of a bedrock for the various Pentecostal denominations. Even so, there are some things really worth considering about this verse. In the first place, God was fulfilling His promise. Jesus spoke of it enough times that some people think of it as His promise, but Jesus Himself called it “the promise of the Father.” (Acts 1:4) John the Baptist made it clear that Jesus would be the Baptizer, (Luke 3:16) and it is the Holy Spirit Himself in whom believers are baptized, so the whole Trinity is involved. In any case, God keeps His promises. The whole Bible is actually a record of this, so we would do well so see which promises have yet to be fulfilled and anticipate their fulfillment, rather than getting distracted by all sorts of secondary issues. The other major point of this verse is the vocal gift that was given and expressed. The point is not that what was said was unintelligible, but rather that it was in languages that had not been learned by the speakers. That is the supernatural element, and not the words themselves. The following verses make it very clear that this was not babbling, but recognizable language. In 1 Corinthians 13:1 Paul references “tongues of men and of angels,” and various other passages make it clear that this gift may be expressed when there is no one present who speaks that language, but in such cases the gift of interpretation is called for. (1 Corinthians 14:13) This gift is significant because language is one of the key elements of being human, and it requires great faith and trust to speak out whatever the Lord gives you, even when you don’t understand it at all yourself. (Actually, the same thing may be said for some kinds of prophecy.) It’s not that God forces anyone to speak, but rather that He supplies the words when we choose to speak. I’ve had someone refuse the gift of tongues because they wanted God to move their mouth! These people on the day of Pentecost chose to praise God out of the joy in their hearts, and God gave them unexpected words with which to do so.

My family has a long and interesting history with the gift of tongues, starting with my father around 1935 or so. As a new missionary in Japan, he was studying Japanese but was hungry for more of God. At a special meeting in Yokohama he had a powerful encounter with the Holy Spirit. He was already gifted in languages, having gotten his Masters degree in Hebrew and his PhD in Greek, so it was no surprise that he did very well in his Japanese studies, particularly since he chose to live with a Japanese family so as to further immerse himself in the language. However, he interpreted his facility in Japanese as the gift of tongues, and when other missionaries struggled with the language, he just thought they needed to be more spiritual! I learned about the Baptism in the Holy Spirit in 1973 and started seeking it, but because all the books I read stressed the gift of tongues, I ended up seeking that gift more than the baptism itself. It was over a year later, after I had brought my wife and children to Japan for the first time, that I was baptized in the Spirit, but God specifically divorced it from the gift of tongues so that I wouldn’t keep confusing the two. I did receive that gift, and various others over time, several months later. My wife Cathy had a fascinating experience of the gift of tongues after we were in Omura. We were ministering to a group of Filipina trainees at a company in Omura, and she had gone to their dormitory for a prayer meeting. As they were all praying, she started praying in tongues, and the girls got very excited. It turned out she was praying in Tagalog, which she neither speaks nor understands! The point is, we need to surrender our mouths – our whole bodies, actually – to God for Him to use however He chooses. If we will do that in active obedience, He will act.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I do pray that You would pour Your Spirit, and any gifts You feel we need, out on this church, that we would be equipped and emboldened to be and do all that You intend, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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The Power of the Holy Spirit; August 8, 2018

Posted on August 10, 2018 by jgarrott

Acts 1:4-5 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

This is actually a restating of what Luke had recorded at the end of his Gospel. “I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” (Luke 24:49) Along with verse 8 of this chapter, that makes it very clear that the Holy Spirit is to supply the power to be and do all that the Father commands. Without the Holy Spirit, it actually goes without saying that we don’t have the ability to be God’s agents. Actually, it should go without saying, but far too often we try to do it on our own. That’s something we have to keep in our awareness: the organization and economy of the kingdom of God are absolutely illogical and even impossible without God. That is reflected very clearly in what God told Paul when he was complaining about a physical problem: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9) If we don’t accept that we are weak in ourselves, we won’t be fully open for the power of God to operate through us. We have such trouble accepting what Jesus said: “Apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5) God is not stingy with His power, but it is different not only in quantity but in quality from ours, and the more we trust our own power and try to use it, the more we get in the way of God’s power operating through us. At one point, while the Southern Baptist mission board still had strict rules against the exercise of Charismatic gifts, fully half of the Southern Baptist missionaries in Japan had been baptized in the Holy Spirit, simply from realizing how impossible it was to make any headway here without the help of the Holy Spirit. They cried out to God, and He answered.

This is something I’ve had a lot of trouble really getting through my head. God has given me a lot of abilities, but if I try to use them on my own, I accomplish nothing worthwhile. I am to exercise those abilities, but always in recognition of and submission to God. When the Holy Spirit is operating through me, people are touched and encouraged and healed and otherwise drawn to God. When I’m operating on my own, none of that happens. I experienced the baptism in the Holy Spirit in 1975, and have experienced all of the gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12 at least once, but that doesn’t mean I operate in the Spirit with full consistency all the time. I still get in the way! Just as I tell the believers in this church, I’ve got to be more intentional in submitting to the Holy Spirit, asking Him to use me for the Father’s glory and making myself available. I’ve learned that my own will is involved, even though the power comes from God. I might feel a stirring in myself, but if I don’t choose to open my mouth, the speaking gifts aren’t manifested. I might feel something needs to be done, but if I don’t start moving, the action gifts aren’t manifested. That’s why I’ve got to stay humble, because I don’t have the wisdom to keep it all straight.

Father, thank You for this strong reminder, and for the awareness You want me to speak on the power of the Holy Spirit on Sunday. It won’t make any sense if I try to express it on my own, so I ask You to guide as I write the outline, so that it will be Your message in Your words to work Your will in the hearers for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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God Cares; August 7, 2018

Posted on August 10, 2018 by jgarrott

John 21:12-13 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish.

We forget how totally mundane and down-to-earth Jesus was. We think of Him in terms of all sorts of miracles, but here He’s just giving His disciples some breakfast. The point is, God cares. We have a real tendency to lose sight of that. Jesus brought it up several times in His teaching, going so far as to say that the Father pays attention to how many hairs we have on our heads. (Matthew 10:30) No person is insignificant, and no detail is insignificant. In this era of “big data” we have computers that sift through incredible amounts of information, but they are no match for God! He is, by every metric, infinite, and that includes His concern for us His creatures. That’s why Jesus told us to ask for our “daily bread.” Sometime we get hung up on what we think are “big” things, when from God’s perspective, every bit of it is small! We aren’t to be presumptuous or lazy, but we are to trust Him with our every need, not just physical but emotional and every other kind of need. Jesus of course taught on that in Matthew 6, and Peter reminds us of it in his first letter. “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7) He even cares what you have for breakfast!

This is something I have certainly learned over the years, but even I forget it in practice sometimes. I tell others all the time that God loves us in every detail, but I still get uptight or anxious about various things. How foolish! Like the disciples in this story, I may “labor all night” with nothing to show for it, but when Jesus shows up, one cast of the net can bring in 153 fish. It’s been several years now since He told me to rest, relax, and rejoice, but I’ve still got room to grow in putting that into practice! I do believe God has a season of harvest for me, and I’m to trust Him with the timing and every other detail, so that He may receive every bit of the glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the good practice session we had last night for one of the songs for the CD project, and that You’ve already provided the recording engineer and location. Help me do my part, in that and in all of Your plans, so that Your name may be acknowledged as holy and Your kingdom come as Your will is done, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Commission; August 6, 2018

Posted on August 8, 2018 by jgarrott

John 20:21-22 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”

After giving the ultimate proof of His divinity by rising from the dead, Jesus then gives the ultimate commission to His disciples, sending them as He was sent. On the face of it, that’s absurd. Jesus was and is the only Son of God, and certainly the only human being to be born of a virgin. He is the only Savior, the only one in whom faith produces the forgiveness of sins and eternal life. How could anyone be sent the way He was sent? It comes down to understanding the broader definition of Jesus’ commission. Very simply, Jesus came to earth as God’s agent to express and demonstrate His love to mankind. The entire New Testament and much of the Old Testament speaks of this in various ways. The disciples in that room, and by extension, believers today, have that same commission. This is not hubris. If anything, it takes intense humility to accept this commission, since we have to acknowledge that we are utterly incapable of fulfilling it in our own strength and wisdom. As soon as He delivered this commission, Jesus then made it possible to fulfill it, by giving the Holy Spirit. Up until His resurrection, Jesus Himself operated only in the power of the Spirit, rather than in His own power as the Son. We have to understand that before we can believe that we can indeed fulfill Jesus’ commission, because the same Spirit is available to us. It wasn’t until several days later that the Holy Spirit was manifested to a degree that supernatural things started happening, but Jesus wasn’t about to give a commission without providing the power to fulfill it. We have to realize that since it’s God’s commission to us, it’s God’s power in and through us that will fulfill it.

This is an issue that has really burned in me, to the point that I’ve written a short book on it, though I’ve not yet published it. (At this point it’s just in English, and my burden is for the Japanese.) Many years ago I came to the conviction that if Japanese believers really grasped who they were in Christ, they would change not only the Japanese Church, or even the nation, but the whole world. I stated it that way because I am specifically called to Japan, but that should apply to believers in any country of the world. I cannot force anyone to act as Christ’s representative, but I can keep myself available to do so. I have experienced God acting through me many times, and it’s marvelous! I am to speak the truth in love, praying for others that they may have the courage to accept and surrender to the commission that Christ has for them, so that God’s name may be acknowledged as holy and His kingdom come as His will is done, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Show me what I’m to do with that little book, since it’s been almost a year since I finished writing. If I’m to write more, guide me clearly. If I’m to get it into Japanese, show me how and by whom. If I’m to publish as is, give me peace about that. May I indeed fulfill Your purposes for me, in every way and on every level, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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The Cross; August 5, 2018

Posted on August 8, 2018 by jgarrott

John 19:30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

The different Gospel writers each brought out different details of Jesus’ crucifixion, thus reinforcing the authenticity of the total narrative. John was the only one to record Jesus entrusting His mother Mary to him, just before the end, and here he records a theologically vital detail. In English we use “finished” in various ways, but the Japanese is very specific here, rendering it as, “It is completed.” Jesus had indeed completed the work for which His Father had sent Him. Another reason that statement is important is that we can neither add to nor subtract from what Jesus did on the cross. We love to take credit for things, but there is no opportunity for that here. Paul spoke of “fill[ing] up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church,” (Colossians 1:24) but that isn’t a matter of adding to salvation, rather it is of being willing to take up his own cross, just as Jesus had spoken of. (Luke 9:23) Various religions promote abusing the flesh for “spiritual gain,” but neither Jesus nor Paul did that. We will all have our own encounter with death, but that is in God’s hands and we are not to try to take it into our own to any degree. The final detail in John’s record here is how he saw what was going on. Jesus here fulfilled exactly what He had said: “The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again.” (John 10:17-18) That’s why John chose to express Jesus’ physical death as, “He gave up His spirit.” That was the ultimate provision for our salvation.

I have known the facts of Jesus’ crucifixion since I was a young child, but my awareness of it keeps getting deeper and deeper. I am very aware that no suffering I might be called on to endure could compare with what Jesus went through for me. As several of the New Testament writers expressed in various ways, the magnificence of what happened for our salvation is beyond human words to express fully. It follows then that the only appropriate response is total love and obedience. I strive for that, but I constantly come up against my own humanity. I could never earn what God has provided in Christ; every bit of it is grace. And as the Lord told Paul, that grace is all I need. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Father, thank You indeed for the cross, for all You did for me in Christ. Thank You for revealing more and more of that to me as I walk with You. Help me share the reality of Your grace more and more effectively with more and more people, so that they too may fall totally in love with You in response to Your love for them, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Accountability; August 4, 2018

Posted on August 7, 2018 by jgarrott

John 19:11 Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”

God’s provision sometimes involves some strange things. He gave Pilate authority to crucify Jesus! Just because something has been given doesn’t necessarily mean it should be used, and in any case, how it is used is certainly our responsibility. This calls for humility and obedience at all times. Parents have authority over their children. If they use that authority to train them up in the way appropriate for them, (Proverbs 22:6) the child will feel loved and affirmed and God will be pleased. However, if they insist the child be a surrogate for their own dreams and ambitions, or worse yet, an outlet for their anger or even perversions, then they will certainly have to face the consequences when they stand before God in the Judgment. Some people today insist that parents have no such authority. The current absurdity is that they are not even to insist on the child’s biological gender. Again, all such things must be answered to before God, just as Pilate faced. Apart from authority, God gives abilities of all sorts. Again, we are responsible for how we use them. The vast majority of evil in the world comes from people misusing the abilities God has given them. It all comes down to accountability. Whenever God gives us something, we are accountable to Him for what we do with it. The famous parable of the talents comes to mind. (Matthew 25:14-30) As that parable points out, not using what God has given is not a good option! If we ask, He will give us the wisdom and guidance we need to make the use He intends of whatever it is, (James 1:5) but we need to tune our hearts to inquire and obey.

This is an issue that has loomed large in my awareness because I feel God has given me so much. I have a wide variety of abilities, and only a fraction of those have been developed. I am currently preparing for a photo show in just over a week, and I find that to be something of an analogy for my life. Each year I limit my exhibit to pictures taken within the previous 12 months, but I still have extreme difficulty narrowing the selection down to a manageable number. Even now, we have more pictures in frames, even, than we have wall space, and yet we have more pictures than we have frames! In response I have tended to draw back, effectively saying “I took and printed the pictures, and that’s that.” That is enormously unfair to my wife, without whom I could never mount these exhibits. I am accountable to her and I am accountable to God, not just for taking and printing the pictures but for what happens now. The same thing may be said about my musical ability, my literary ability, my linguistic ability, and on and on. As comes out in the parable of the talents, God is after faithfulness, and that is how I will be judged. I am very aware of my need for the grace and mercy of God!

Father, I do thank You for Your provision of everything, and for Your grace and mercy most of all. Help me never take any of Your provision lightly, but make the use of it that You intend, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Prayer; August 3, 2018

Posted on August 7, 2018 by jgarrott

John 17:13 “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them.”

Prayer is very interesting. Jesus was very clear that we are not to pray in public for the sake of being seen and heard by people, (Matthew 6:5-6) but at the same time He showed us by example, here and at the resurrection of Lazarus, (John 11) that sometimes we are to pray to be seen and heard by people. The difference is why we want to be seen and heard. In Matthew Jesus is addressing people who want to flaunt their piety. Some people simply want it to be seen that they are praying, so that they will be admired. I’d say their prayers have about as much effect as flicking a teaspoon of water at a forest fire. Here, and elsewhere, Jesus prayed out loud so that those around Him could be blessed by His words. It is a powerful encouragement to know that someone is praying for you, and the easiest way for that to happen is for them to do so in your presence. Jesus had perfect communication with His Father, but He sometimes conducted that communication in public so that those around Him could know the content and be blessed in that way. I was very blessed to know Dr. Cal Guy while I was a student at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. One of his trademarks was that whenever someone asked him for prayer, he would stop whatever he was doing and pray, whether it was in the middle of class or walking on the campus or in a grocery store or wherever. Many people were greatly blessed by that, and I’m sure it was life-changing for quite a few. We aren’t to flaunt prayer, but neither are we to hide it. Often enough, Spirit-guided prayer (Romans 8:26) is prophetic, speaking the very words of God into situations. We should not draw back from that!

Because of the home in which I was raised, prayer has always been as natural to me as breathing, so I found Dr. Guy to be a kindred spirit indeed. I try to follow his example, but sometimes people find it intimidating! That is never my intention. As a pastor one of my highest priorities is for each believer to have an intimate relationship with the Trinity, certainly including prayer, so I need to teach by example, allowing them to hear how I pray. However, if they are not used to the idea of personal prayer, hearing me pray so freely has been known to make people feel they could never pray like that, so they don’t try. That’s a tragic trick of the devil! Even Jesus said, “I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf. No, the Father Himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.” (John 16:26-27) Faith gives each individual a personal ticket into the throne room of God. I need to help people understand that I can pray as I do – not because I’m a pastor, but because God loves me and I love Him, just as He loves them and they can love Him. I need to communicate God’s love to them so that they will delight to talk with their Daddy, in private and in public and all the time, just as I do.

Father, thank You for this Word, and for making it clear I’m to share it Sunday. Thank You for the brother who has decided to commit himself to You, and for the time we could have together yesterday, but he’s not the only one who needs to know more about prayer. Help me share Your heart with Your words so that Your will may be done in the hearts and lives of all my hearers, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Glory; August 2, 2018

Posted on August 3, 2018 by jgarrott

John 17:4 “I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.”

Even Jesus was concerned with giving the Father glory. Just before this, in 15:8, He said that our bearing much fruit as His disciples gives the Father glory. Far too often we are concerned with our own glory. Most of us hardly ever think of whether we are giving glory to God. I think we really don’t have a very good grasp of just what glory is. The characters used to write it in Japanese indicate something along the lines of “successful light,” whatever that might mean, and I don’t think we’re much clearer in English. At the same time, I think we all have something of an innate awareness of glory, which would not be surprising since we were created for the Father’s glory. Looking at this verse and 15:8, I think at least one factor in glory is something or someone doing what was intended for it. It’s like a machine that works well gives glory to its designer/maker. We are far more than machines, but I think the idea comes across. When children do well, becoming good people and expressing their gifting, that gives glory to their parents. The converse of that is when children go off the rails and bring shame to themselves and their parents. We are all agreed that is tragic indeed. The problem with putting that in a strictly human framework is that parents often don’t know what is best for their children, and try to set out “rails” that aren’t appropriate for them. In such cases, the children have to “go off the rails” in order to fulfill their true purpose. With the understanding that our parents were fallible, and we are certainly fallible, the smartest thing is obviously to seek God for what purpose He has for us. The Bible is very clear that He indeed has a purpose for each individual. Passages from Jeremiah 29:11 to Ephesians 2:10 leave no doubt on that score. We don’t have to be anxious about whether God’s plan for us is good, so we just need to draw close to Him to be able to listen accurately and obey fully. When we do that, we indeed give Him glory and find our own greatest fulfillment.

My parents’ gravestone has a line from John 4:34: “… to do the will of Him who sent me.” When my father died at 64 several things he was involved in were terminated, most notably a fresh translation of the New Testament into Japanese. Even so, I think he indeed gave the Father glory by doing to his fullest each task that was set before him, right up to the point that the Father said, “That’s enough.” That’s a magnificent and high example for me to aspire to. I’ve already outlived him by over 5 years, but I don’t know how much in my own life has really given God glory. He’s the judge of that! The point for me is to “keep on keeping on,” seeking God’s plan for right now and doing it with the strength He gives me. I’ve certainly proven that I can’t do it in my own strength and ability! Faithful obedience is the key, and is my prayer.

Father, I do ask that You enable me to do that for which You created me. Right now my schedule seems complicated and packed, to the point that I have something of an avoidance response. Forgive me, and help me fulfill each task at hand, not being anxious about what’s down the line. Today has things of considerable importance, as does tomorrow. Help me rest, relax, and rejoice in You, allowing You to work through me in every detail so that You may indeed receive the glory only You deserve. Thank You. Praise God!

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Troubles; August 1, 2018

Posted on August 3, 2018 by jgarrott

John 16:33 “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.”

I probably quote this verse more than any other, particularly in messages. Once again, the Japanese amplifies my understanding of what is said. As has come out recently, Japanese differentiates between inner, emotional peace and the absence of external conflict. It is entirely possible, even common, for someone to be in inner turmoil even though their external circumstances are quite peaceful. It is also possible, though less common, for someone to have inner peace even though their circumstances are chaotic, even violent. That’s what Jesus is talking about here. External peace is welcome, but Jesus knew it would be in short supply for His disciples for the rest of their time on earth. Another way the Japanese translation I use helps me understand what Jesus said here is the specific combination of characters used to express “trouble.” It’s unusual enough that Microsoft IME doesn’t want to give it to me when I type this verse in phonetically. The second character used is relatively expected, but the first is “patient,” as in someone in a hospital. The character itself isn’t unusual, but the combination is. I don’t know the Greek there, but the Japanese certainly agrees with experience. We know from Acts, as well as Paul’s letters, that early believers had health issues just as we do. God is indeed our Healer, (Exodus 15:26) and miracles of healing are to be expected even today, just as they were in Jesus’ ministry. (John 14:12) However, that doesn’t mean we can be careless with our health, doing unhealthy things (like smoking or overeating) or failing to do healthy things (like appropriate nutrition, exercise, and rest). What Jesus is saying here is that because we live in a fallen world, all sorts of problems, including health issues, are part of the package. He then says why we can have inner peace regardless of our circumstances: He has overcome the world. When we abide in Him, as He talked about repeatedly throughout the Upper Room Discourse, we share in His victory, whatever it might look like at the moment. It blows my mind, actually, that He put “overcome” in the past tense when in the flow of time He had not yet gone through His crucifixion and resurrection. God is outside of time, so to Him, everything is already a done deal, and Christ and those in Him are on top. When we get that through our hearts and minds we can indeed have peace and even joy even when everything is falling apart.

I think I quote this so much because I need so much to remember it myself! Various things trigger anxiety and/or anger in me, so I have to choose to abide in Christ and receive His peace, just as He says here. It is a great comfort to be confident that there is no bureaucracy in heaven! (Tangling with such on earth can really trigger me!) I face many circumstances that I would like to be different, but one time when I was thinking about that the Lord said very clearly to me, “How do you think I feel?” He’s not happy about them either, and He’s not going to leave them that way. It will get very messy before He’s done, but the end result will be glorious. I am not to allow the devil to steal my peace or my joy, but submit every part of my being to God and receive all that He has for me.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Help me be increasingly effective in sharing this glorious truth with others, so that together we may be Christ’s disciples indeed, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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