Music/Worship/Prophecy; August 8, 2017

Posted on August 14, 2017 by jgarrott

1 Chronicles 25:1 David, together with the commanders of the army, set apart some of the sons of Asaph, Heman and Jeduthun for the ministry of prophesying, accompanied by harps, lyres and cymbals.

One word in this verse blows me out of the water: prophesying. I have to say that their usage of the term isn’t the same as how I use it! From this and other passages, “ecstatic utterance” would perhaps be a better term, particularly considering such incidents as Saul prophesying. (1 Samuel 10:10-13) What is without question is that these men were designated musicians, and music is closely associated with worship. Again, several places in the Old Testament associate music with prophecy. (2 Kings 3:14-15) It is certainly true that music stimulates emotion. Many churches today have incorporated “worship teams” in their services, actually much along the lines of what we have here. The danger in that is that all too often it becomes a matter of performance, rather than genuine worship, and with everything happening on stage, the congregation participates little if at all. That’s not worship! We know next to nothing about the men mentioned here, but we have some of the Psalms they wrote, and there were certainly many who loved the Lord in all sincerity. On the whole subject of music/worship/prophecy, it is entirely possible to manipulate a group of people through music. Sometimes the Holy Spirit will move powerfully through a particular song, but sometimes it’s just the “worship leader” seeking to manipulate people. The awkward thing there is that there is a real gift and skill to selecting the music for a service, in terms of the flow of keys, rhythms, and lyrics. The difference between an anointed “worship set” and one that was thrown together can be painfully obvious. There is a real element of the prophetic in leading worship, and it needs to kick in during the preparation time as well as in the actual service. Church musicians should be committed to excellence, but have a constant battle with pride. They must remember that they are not there as performers, but as worshipers. Only then will the Lord be pleased with what they offer.

I am a musician, but as pastor my role gets complicated. I have the strongest voice in the church, but if I’m showing off I’m not worshiping. As pastor, one of my vital roles is that of Chief Worshiper. If I’m not worshiping in Spirit and in truth, how can I expect the congregation to do so? Sometimes I’m distracted by any of a number of things, and have to make a very conscious effort to focus on worship. It’s always worth the effort! I desire that the messages I speak be prophetic, expressing what God is saying, but that is not likely to happen if my heart is not worshiping humbly before my Lord. Not everyone comes from a musical family the way I do. I am not to demand perfection in music from anyone in the congregation, but I am to encourage genuine worship. God can deal with people’s senses of pitch and rhythm! I am to foster an environment where God will delight to inhabit His people’s praises.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the musical part of the magnificent heritage You have given me. May my use of music always be as You intend, drawing people to You for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Getting God’s Directions; August 7, 2017

Posted on August 9, 2017 by jgarrott

1 Chronicles 14:13-16 Once more the Philistines raided the valley; so David inquired of God again, and God answered him, “Do not go straight up, but circle round them and attack them in front of the balsam trees. As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, move out to battle, because that will mean God has gone out in front of you to strike the Philistine army.” So David did as God commanded him, and they struck down the Philistine army, all the way from Gibeon to Gezer.

We’ve seen it elsewhere, but the secret of David’s consistent victories in battle was that he consistently sought God’s direction. He had just had a very successful encounter with the Philistines, and the natural human tendency would have been to do the same maneuver, expecting the same results. However, David asked God again what he should do, and God gave him a different strategy, and he was even more successful. We tend to get into ruts, following “standard operating procedure,” too lazy to seek God at every turn. Standard procedures aren’t bad necessarily, but we need to be in a constant, consistent attitude of seeking God, listening for how He wants us to do things. The easy thing is to repeat what worked the last time – or even what didn’t work – but God wants better for us. Sometimes He will indeed say, “Do the same thing,” but we are not to presume. The whole point is to recognize our dependence on God and act on it, rather than relying on whatever He has done for us in the past.

This is extremely pertinent to us right now. Each time we as a church have made a major move, particularly in terms of buildings and land, someone has left the church. That is actually not at all unusual among churches in general, and we’re having it come up again. This time, however, our response has been different, and I think the ultimate results will be different. Yesterday there was an announcement of departure, but it was met with an outpouring of love, in strong contrast to some past times. I personally think the final result will be very different. We are in new territory in many ways, but the pain of people leaving is all too familiar. Whether the situation we face is new or old, we need to seek God for His directions. Following God is an adventure, and we need to treat it that way. As I grow older the familiar and comfortable are more and more attractive, but God is too good a Father to leave me as I am and where I am. He wants me to keep growing! The Bible speaks many times of God being our “hiding place.” That’s directly equivalent to a storm cellar or safe room in tornado country. I am not to fear the storms that threaten, nor try to retreat into the physically and emotionally familiar, but rather find my security in God Himself, doing exactly as He directs and being anxious about nothing. He told me personally to rest, relax, and rejoice, and I keep learning more of what that’s all about, as well as how to do it. I’m to trust Him, even when He says, “you have never been this way before.” (Joshua 3:4)

Father, thank You for all You did yesterday. It was magnificent on several levels. Help me indeed fear nothing, but move forward in humble obedience, knowing that Your plans aren’t just good, they’re perfect! Thank You. Praise God!

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God’s Control; August 6, 2017

Posted on August 9, 2017 by jgarrott

2 Kings 23:25 Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the Lord as he did—with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all the Law of Moses.

Reformation is hard work. David had his troubles, but if anything he suffered from success, because he grew spiritually lax and fell badly on a personal level that echoed down through the generations. Josiah, on the other hand, came to the throne of a kingdom that was amazingly corrupt, and he dedicated himself fully to cleaning it up. The Church in America today is more in need of Josiahs than Davids. Josiah’s one failure was in passing his faith and commitment on to his children, and that is sad indeed. It is interesting to realize that Josiah’s death in battle was part of God’s reward to him for his dedication. We don’t think of death as a reward, but Josiah was spared all the mess that came after that, and he doubtless received a welcome with the saints. Our perspective on everything, including ourselves, is limited and distorted. That’s why God’s ways and thoughts are so much higher than ours. (Isaiah 55:9) The only logical response is to yield everything to Him and walk in humble, grateful obedience, rejoicing that He is God and He is love.

Like everyone else, I am faced with a multitude of complex situations, only some of which I can impact directly. Refusing to be anxious is certainly Biblical, but it’s also certainly not easy. As I tell others, I need to choose faith and choose obedience, because by doing so I will choose peace, joy, and fulfillment. My days are in God’s hands, and that’s a very good thing. I am to apply myself fully to every task He sets before me, not running from anything but not chasing after other things either. We are in the beginning stages of a huge project (from my viewpoint) that hopefully will last long after I’m gone. At the same time, I am to continue planting and watering God’s Word, trusting Him for the harvest in His time. I am not to be focused on myself and what I do, but on God and what He does, keeping myself available as His instrument for however He might choose to use me.

Father, thank You for being God. Thank You that the typhoon, that was supposed to bring us gale force winds by this afternoon, seems to have missed us completely. I pray that the wind of Your Spirit would blow through each church in the city, blowing away the junk and rearranging things as You know they need to be, so that we may be available and useful to You, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Spiritual Generations; August 5, 2017

Posted on August 7, 2017 by jgarrott

2 Kings 23:3 The king stood by the pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the Lord—to follow the Lord and keep his commands, regulations and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, thus confirming the words of the covenant written in this book. Then all the people pledged themselves to the covenant.

As the saying goes, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Josiah proceeded to follow through like no other king recorded in the Bible. The shocking thing to me is the listing of all the things he had to dispose of in order to return to the Mosaic covenant. All the things listed, even from within Jerusalem and even the temple itself, boggle the mind. Verse 13 points out the huge influence Solomon’s idolatry had, because that gave the green light to the rest of the nation to do likewise. This verse says that “All the people pledged themselves to the covenant,” but it had to have been just the leaders, because the whole population of Judah couldn’t have been there physically. Given all of this, it’s all the more tragic that Josiah’s descendants after this did not follow his example of dedication to the Lord. Parenting was one of the weakest points of kings in those days. That’s probably one reason the mothers of the kings are mentioned so frequently, because they evidently had far more influence than the fathers did. Running a kingdom is important, but as Paul points out, how can a man who can’t run his own household properly run anything else well? (1 Timothy 3:5) At least today some people are waking up to the importance of this, and some men are standing up as the husbands and fathers God intends them to be.

As a husband, father, and pastor (spiritual father), this certainly applies to me. I have the incredible blessing of being the product of generations, on both sides of my family, who loved God and served Him faithfully. Very few people have the sort of spiritual head start I was given, so the question of accountability is all the more intense for me. What have I done with my spiritual heritage? How well have I passed it on to my physical and spiritual descendants? God is the judge of that, but I must stay aware that those are questions asked of me. I am to be faithful, not just for my own sake but for the sake of all who are influenced by me, and that is a huge number. In school teaching alone I have literally thousands of former students. Because I have taught at private schools exclusively, I have been free to pray for my students at the beginning of each class period, but even so I haven’t had even a single student commit to Christ and be baptized in this church. I am not to give up, but trust God with the seed He has allowed me to plant. It will be very interesting to discover in heaven what God has done with all of that.

Father, You know better than I do how I have been tempted to give up many times over the years. Thank You for Your faithfulness that has enabled me to be faithful. I do pray for my descendants, physical and spiritual, that they would recognize their dependence on You and rejoice in Your love, walking in obedience not out of obligation but out of gratitude, for their blessing and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Relating to the Bible; August 4, 2017

Posted on August 6, 2017 by jgarrott

2 Kings 22:8 Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the Lord.” He gave it to Shaphan, who read it.

It seems incredible to us that the Law of Moses would have gotten misplaced in the temple of the Lord, but that shows how far the nation had fallen spiritually. One factor was that books in general were rare and valuable, because each one had to be hand-copied, but that should have ensured that the scroll be kept in a safe place of honor. Actually, it’s possible that it was, but people had just forgotten that it was there. That’s actually the case in many American households today. They have a Bible or two on the shelf, or even on the coffee table, but it becomes part of the décor and is never opened and consulted. That brings to mind a question my seminary professor grandfather regularly asked his students: how big is your Bible? They would naturally protest, “Why Dr. Carver, it’s at least as big as yours, or maybe a little bigger.” He would respond, “I’m not talking about what’s in your hand, but what’s in your heart.” With electronic versions available for smart phones, today it’s possible to have a Bible with you constantly, but if you aren’t taking it into your heart to do it, it does you no good. I have read a statistic that a majority of pastors, even, never read the Bible except to prepare sermons. In such cases, it’s highly probable the sermons aren’t much good! From the time of Moses onward, people of God stressed that God’s Word is to be in our hearts and mouths. (Deuteronomy 30:14) If we aren’t taking it in and digesting it to do it, to make it part of ourselves, then we are only deceiving ourselves. (James 1:22) In today’s passage, the people and even the priests had been going through the motions of temple worship and the like, but with no grasp of the meaning of what they were doing or what lay behind it. Today there are many people who go to church strictly as an obligation, with no personal relationship to the Lord they say they worship. That’s the very definition of meaningless religion.

As a pastor, this is a matter of great importance, even urgency, for me. I have considerable knowledge of the Bible, but if I’m not living it out I’m deceiving myself. I desire that the believers be faithful, but if they’re faithful to the church without being faithful to God the other six days of the week, it’s meaningless. I prefer the term, believers, to calling them members, but if their faith is in an organization rather than in a Savior, it again is meaningless. My challenge is to lead each one to discover how much God loves them individually, and then to respond to that in loving obedience. I strive to get as much of the Word into them as possible, but chewing, swallowing, and digesting are their responsibility. I certainly can’t force them to do any of that, so I am to pray for them that their hearts may be open to the Holy Spirit who will do those things in them. After all, He’s the Author of the Bible, so who better to interpret it to us in ways we can understand and apply?

Father, thank You for this Word, and for clarifying what I am to speak on this Sunday. It’s interesting that preaching less often makes it harder to prepare messages. Help me indeed transmit what You speak to me so that nothing will stop the flow, but many be blessed, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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The Zeal of God; August 3, 2017

Posted on August 6, 2017 by jgarrott

2 Kings 19:31 The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.

“Zeal” is expressed in Japanese as “hot heart.” There are real risks to thinking of God anthropomorphically, as though He had a physical body like ours, but we have difficulty thinking of Him any other way. God doesn’t have a heart in the sense of a blood-pumping organ, but in another way he is all heart, because He is love. (1 John 4:8) One of the things about God that is so remarkable to human intellect is that He cares. After all, why would the Creator of the entire universe care about such insignificant beings as we are? There are mysteries of time and dimension that cannot be explained even by string theory, which to our intellect makes God unknowable, but from His side He has revealed Himself to us in various ways and given us the gift of faith by which we may know Him. Insisting on being able to figure everything out is pride, and that drives us farther from Him. That’s why Jesus said that we have to come as little children before we can see, much less enter, the kingdom of heaven. (Luke 18:16-17) Like little children, we need to trust Daddy. That’s not to say that we are to turn off the brains God has given us. That’s a frequent accusation made against those who live by faith and not by sight, (2 Corinthians 5:7) and some people do seem to use “faith” as an excuse to throw common sense out the window. We are to exercise all the gifts God has given us, intellectual and otherwise, but we must remember that they are ultimately not enough. We have to choose to trust that God’s “hot heart” is going to accomplish everything necessary for our salvation.

We are certainly in a time of training in faith and trust. Had yesterday’s conference taken place a year ago, we would not be embarked on our current project. As it is, we are being reminded not to trust in any human instrument but in God alone. In a number of ways we are feeling around in the dark, but as it says in a song by my friend Chu Kosaka, “Jesus is the Light; He’s shining in the darkness, and you know that He’ll lead you.” It’s not that we aren’t to plan, but that we are to submit our plans to Him and be at peace with whatever changes He makes. The more that we are aware that we are unable, the more we are to rejoice that He is more than able. He has made it clear in various ways that this is His plan, and we are to be faithful in our obedience so that all of His purposes for His plan may be fulfilled.

Father, thank You for making it clear that You, and no human individual, are our supply. Help us trust Your “hot heart” to accomplish all that You intend, for the salvation of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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God-centered Prayer; August 2, 2017

Posted on August 4, 2017 by jgarrott

2 Kings 19:19 “Now, O Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all kingdoms on earth may know that you alone, O Lord, are God.”

Somewhere in the centuries from David to Hezekiah, monotheism took root. David certainly had a grasp of it, but it was in a very polytheistic context. Hezekiah has just said that it was no wonder the Assyrians were able to destroy the gods of other countries because they were “only wood and stone, fashioned by men’s hands.” (verse 18) Here he’s asking God for deliverance, not for the sake of Judah but to demonstrate that God is who He really is. It’s no wonder God delighted to answer that prayer! Even today we get far better results when we pray because of who God is, rather than because of what we happen to want. Self-centered prayer is extremely common. I don’t think it’s bad, but I think it’s the lowest level of prayer. We grow spiritually when we pray for others on the basis of who God is, and not just to make ourselves look good. It does feel very good when God grants what we ask for, but if we treat that like a merit badge, we lose the real benefit. Hezekiah gives us an example of what God-centered prayer looks like, and we do well to emulate it.

I am often asked to pray in public situations, precisely because prayer is as natural to me as breathing. However, any time I take pride in that, my prayer ceases to be genuine. Jesus had strong words for those who pray to be seen and heard by people. (Matthew 6:5-6) I am not to hesitate to pray in the presence of others, because I often experience people being blessed by the words that come from my mouth, but my focus must be on God, first and foremost, even more than on the situation about which I am praying. Like Hezekiah, my concern should be that people would know God for who He is and so give Him the love and glory He alone deserves. If I am focused on what I want out of the situation, my prayer is blunted at the very least.

Father, I am often brought back to how Jesus taught us to pray. I do ask that Your name be acknowledged as holy and Your kingdom come as Your will is done perfectly, in every part of my life, in every part of this church, and throughout the world, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Naysayers; August 1, 2017

Posted on August 3, 2017 by jgarrott

2 Kings 18:30 “Do not let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the Lord when he says, ‘The Lord will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.'”

Those who come against people who are following God will even use the name of the Lord in their attacks. Earlier this commander had claimed specifically that the Lord had told him to destroy Judah. (verse 25) That shouldn’t be surprising, when the devil quoted Scripture in his temptation of Jesus. (Luke 4:9-11) This calls for discernment, certainly, but we should neither be conceited nor despairing. Conceit would lead us to insist that only we can hear from God, (when in fact, God will sometimes speak to us through our enemies) while despair would lead us to think we can’t be sure of anything at all, and cut us off from any stability. We are to be aware of God’s many promises of guidance, supply, and everything else we need, and focus on Him in assurance and peace. Frankly, that’s much easier said than done! We are always in the process of spiritual growth; none of us can claim to have arrived. However, like Paul we are to act on what we know from where we are, (Philippians 3:12-14) allowing God to grow us as we choose to follow Him.

This is certainly where we are right now. Those who have spoken against our current plans aren’t our enemies as such, they just have grave reservations about the validity of those plans. I need to hear and act on their concerns without letting their negativity pull the whole thing apart. This is indeed a project that is beyond us, far outside of my experience and expertise, certainly. That’s actually part of my assurance that this is God’s idea, because only He can bring it about. I need to be methodical and not haphazard, checking things off rather than just assuming they will happen. I need to seek out those who have relevant knowledge and experience, but at the same time listen to them through the filter of faith, rather than simply swallowing what they say. The flip side of that is that there are numbers of people who are cheering us on, but they don’t have knowledge or experience either. As I said to begin with, this calls for discernment, so I’ve got to ask God for that. As the song says, “He didn’t bring us this far to leave us.”

Father, thank You for all You continue to do in, around, and through us. Help me not neglect the fruit of the Spirit (which the devil tries to tell us are little things) because of being preoccupied with what needs to be done. Help me remember that the only things I can take with me to heaven are souls, and so focus on drawing as many as possible into Your family, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Idolatrous Traditions; July 31, 2017

Posted on August 3, 2017 by jgarrott

2 Kings 18:4 He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made, for up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it. (It was called Nehushtan.)

We don’t know Hezekiah’s history before he became king, except that he didn’t ascend to the throne until he was 25. Perhaps that gave him a little more maturity than some of his predecessors. In any case, he was dedicated to the Lord rather than to tradition, and that is something we certainly need to emulate even today. Verse 5 says he trusted the Lord and verse 6 says he obeyed all the laws of Moses, so he certainly didn’t throw the baby out with the bath water. However, it took a lot of courage to destroy the bronze snake Moses had made, in addition to destroying all the other objects of folk religion that were leading the people astray. In some ways that would be equivalent to attacking the liberal agenda today, that has led so many people away from the principles on which America was founded. That should give an indication of the level of resistance Hezekiah probably encountered. Genuinely following God takes courage, sometimes toward enemies but sometimes toward the people you are leading. The matter of the bronze snake stands out here. There were doubtless logical, pious protests against its destruction, but Hezekiah recognized that it was an object that had come to be worshiped, and that by definition made it an idol. I preached not long ago on “Idols of the Heart,” and I don’t need to repeat that here. We are all too prone to let things, be they objects, people, or traditions, usurp the place in our hearts and minds that belongs only to God. Hezekiah was right on.

It’s interesting that this is coming up again right now. I need to be careful that the land next to the church isn’t an idol in my own thinking, since we have desired it for 19 years now. I need to be careful that the approval of people isn’t a higher priority in my heart than the approval of God. I need to be alert to anything that pulls my heart, my devotion, away from God, especially those things that seem admirable or even pious in themselves. For example, my daily devotional time is meaningful only as it connects me to my Lord. When it becomes a goal in and of itself, it is impinging on “idol” territory. I want my life and this church to be dedicated to Christ alone, and not be distracted by anything else.

Father, You know me better than I know myself. You know my genuine priorities better than I do. Keep me dedicated to You and Your kingdom and righteousness, not pulled away by anything else. May we as a church walk in total obedience, allowing You to use us however You please, drawing many into Your kingdom for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Who or What You Follow; July 30, 2017

Posted on August 2, 2017 by jgarrott

2 Kings 17:15 They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless.

This one part of this one verse speaks volumes, not only about the 10 Northern tribes but about the human condition in general. The Bible warns us in many places about the dangers of association. We end up being like those we choose to associate with. This passage is talking about spiritual association, which we often don’t even think about. The devil would have us believe that all religions are the same, but even logically speaking that’s not true. In the past year a famous British atheist has angered his atheist friends by coming out and declaring that the only real answer to the horrors of militant Islam is genuine Christianity. He claims to believe in no god, but even he can see that it makes a huge difference what God you choose to follow. Actually this doesn’t apply just to formal religion. Hedonists are exposed for the emptiness of their pursuit of pleasure, and financially greedy people bring spiritual ruin on themselves. (1 Timothy 6:10) It all comes back to the reality that our choices have consequences. Free will is genuine, even though God sees the end from the beginning and so knows what choices we are going to make. Some people insist that we are not free, since if we weren’t free we would bear no responsibility for our actions, but that is a lie of the devil to persuade us to make wrong choices. God has given us the Bible to help us understand what the right choices are, and to understand the consequences of wrong choices, as this passage does. The logical choice is obviously to follow God’s Word!

I am an illustration of the truth that simply having the Bible, and even knowing the Bible, doesn’t guarantee that we follow the Bible. I have been steeped in the Bible since before my birth, and first read through it by the age of 10. However, at various times in my life I have chosen to do things that a genuinely objective observer would recognize immediately were in violation of the Bible. By God’s grace He has enabled me to repent and return to Him, but I can attest from personal experience to the truth of this passage. As I strive to follow Christ (which is the opposite of what this passage is talking about) I also seek to draw others with me in following Him. I don’t want to be worthless, and I don’t want those around me to be worthless either. So many people have a poor self-image, but if they follow the One, who alone is worth more than everything else put together, they understand the value He has assigned to them.

Father, I am faced with this constantly. Help me indeed draw others to follow Christ as I follow Him myself, for the salvation of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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