March 30, 2016

Posted on April 1, 2016 by jgarrott

1 Samuel 3:7, 21 Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.
The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word.

This is a very famous story that is taught in Sunday School all over the world, I would suppose, but it is of far more importance than many adults attribute to it. Precisely because they learned it in Sunday School, and because the main character is a child, they think it no longer has bearing for them. Nothing could be further from the truth! Many “Christian” adults are in the position of Samuel as they story begins: they don’t really know the Lord. This is different from knowing about Him. Literally living in the Tabernacle, Samuel had to know all about the rituals of worship, and I’m sure he pestered Eli with “Why?” a great deal. However, he didn’t have a personal relationship with the God he served. All that changed when God spoke to him, and not only his life, but also the whole nation, and indeed world history, changed as a result. I keep remembering that up through Samuel, people had very little written Bible to go on. Living in the Tabernacle, Samuel had far more access to what Moses had written than the vast majority of people, and it is quite possible that this experience of hearing directly from God caused him to dive into what was available to him, seeking to know the One who had spoken to him. That may well be included in what verse 21 says about God continuing to reveal Himself through His Word. Today we have not only the whole Old Testament but the New Testament as well, so we have far more opportunity to develop a personal relationship with our Creator, whether or not He speaks to us in audible words. When it is so possible, it is a mystery why so few people seem to pursue it! The Bible as a whole is clear that God desires a deep, personal relationship with each of His children, and there is no greater joy, satisfaction, or achievement than entering into and growing in such a relationship.

This is something I have certainly learned over the years, but then I had the huge blessing of being raised by parents who each had such a relationship with God. The Word of the Lord was deeply and truly honored in our home, and I became quite familiar with the Bible from a very early age. However, being familiar with the book and receiving the Word of the Lord are two different things! I have had to grow in listening, in opening my heart and being quiet enough to hear what He was saying to me. As a pastor I am charged with communicating the Word of the Lord to others, but if I fail to receive it for myself, that does me no good. I am never to preach anything I am not willing to receive myself.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You also for having me re-read just now Mark Conner’s “Preaching to Change Lives” outline that is on the wall beside me right here. Help me not only hear You fully myself, help me communicate what You are saying effectively to my hearers so that they may hear You through me. May I not just dump information on them, but lead them gently so that the eyes of their hearts may be opened to receive Your truth and understand it to apply it. May each person in this congregation come to a deep, personal relationship with You, taking in Your Word for themselves and growing as You desire and intend, for their blessing and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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March 29, 2016

Posted on April 1, 2016 by jgarrott

1 Samuel 2:21 And the Lord was gracious to Hannah; she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord.

This is “the rest of the story” for Hannah. Because she was willing to release her firstborn to the Lord, He blessed her abundantly with more children. Since her childlessness had been her big problem before, this was blessing indeed. Meanwhile for Samuel, the biggest issue was that he didn’t have a good example of parenting, and in consequence didn’t do a very good job with his own sons. (1 Samuel 8:1-3) However, Eli apparently treated him quite well, and he doesn’t seem to have suffered. Rather, he grew up with an awareness of God that was perhaps unique in his day, and in consequence became the first great prophet after Moses. And that was truly blessing indeed, not only for him but for the whole nation. Hannah didn’t know that would happen when she prayed so earnestly for a child, but unintended consequences can include good things as well as bad. We really can’t know all the ripples our words and actions will cause, but God sees the end from the beginning. We are to be faithful and obedient to God, letting Him straighten out all the lines of cause and effect, trusting that His plans are always for our benefit. (Jeremiah 29:11)

I have never been very big on planning, and at times I have suffered for it. The secular proverb, “He who fails to plan, plans to fail,” has some real truth to it! However, many of the major events of my life have been things for which I could not plan, but God has been more than gracious. I am to be faithful in planning and preparation, but that must always be with the awareness that God has the last word. James 4:13-16 is very much to the point here. My planning needs to be logical and thorough, but in full submission to God, allowing Him to change my plans at any time and in any way. Frankly, I don’t always respond well when He does that! However, as He has made it clear to me, He’s smart and I’m not, so I need to trust Him fully and rest, relax, and rejoice.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I’m in the middle of helping someone with some major plans in his life, and I need Your wisdom and guidance. Actually, people come to me for counseling and advice pretty frequently. Keep me from answering any of them glibly out of my own head. Rather, help me turn them to You, because only You know the end from the beginning, and Your plans are always best. Thank You. Praise God!

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March 28, 2016

Posted on March 30, 2016 by jgarrott

1 Samuel 2:2 “There is no-one holy like the Lord;
there is no-one besides you;
there is no Rock like our God.”

We are back to the whole issue of shaky theology. Hannah was certainly not wrong, she was just relating to God from where she was. Actually, she expressed a very good rebuttal to the polytheism of the era, with an essentially monotheistic declaration. If you dip into comparative religions today you will likely be astounded at what other religions claim about their gods. The thing is, as Hannah said, none of those are in the same category as Yahweh and His Son Jesus. Having done some comparative religion study myself, I could go on at length about it, but there’s no point to that here. Actually, what Hannah said applies to philosophies we don’t consider “gods” as well. The whole idea of evolution without a Creator recently received a huge blow from a massive study that was done to try to engineer the simplest living organism possible. After numerous failed attempts to start from zero and build up, with the minimum number of genes, the researchers started removing genes from an existing bacterium to see how far they could go. The simplest they could make it and it still be alive, it still had around 300 genes, and the researchers had no idea of the functions of about half of those; they simply discovered they were essential. In other words, they ran into what is called irreducible complexity: there had to be a Creator, because there is no way chance could account for what is. From whatever direction we approach Him, God can tolerate all the scrutiny we can give, because there is indeed none holy as the Lord. None of us has perfect understanding, but He meets us where we are, if our hearts are humble before Him.

I have run into the whole gamut of objections to the God of the Bible, and none of them ultimately hold water. Without exception, those who reject Him stubbornly do so not because of logic or reason but because of rebellion. That’s why I need to be ready to talk to anyone about God, (1 Peter 3:15) but at the same time not just counter their arguments but rather ask the Holy Spirit to speak to their soul. It’s like the American who told a pastor he would become a Christian if the pastor could explain where Cain got his wife, but then it turned out the man’s real problem was someone else’ wife, with whom he was having an affair. He refused the claims of Christ because he didn’t want to repent. I can’t make anyone repent and believe, but I can speak the truth to them in love, and I must never stop doing so. I must remember that there is indeed no replacement for God, just as Hannah said, and that His grace is sufficient. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Father, thank You for this reminder. Sometimes I am tempted to try to argue people into faith, but I have demonstrated many times that I can’t do it. Help me be fully open and available to You, whatever You want me to say or do, or even be silent and do nothing. May Your will be done in and through me, destroying the works of the devil (1 John 3:8) and drawing many to full salvation, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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March 27, 2016

Posted on March 30, 2016 by jgarrott

1 Samuel 1:27-28 “I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he shall be given over to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there.

Hannah is a magnificent example of faith. However, today she would be imprisoned for child abandonment! Hannah knew that the Lord was totally reliable, but today many act as though He didn’t exist, whatever they say with their mouths. She is an extreme example of integrity, because she followed through with the promise she had made to the Lord, since He had followed through in meeting her need. That is clear evidence that He was very real to her, whatever her “theology” might have been. Today, in addition to those who honor God only with their mouths (Isaiah 29:13) we have some who are very earnest in their Christianity, but they are more concerned with whether people dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s than with practical, rubber-meets-the-road faith. We need to remember that people back then had very little of the Bible to go on, if they were even literate, so their experience of God was very personal and practical. Biblical knowledge is valuable indeed, (2 Timothy 3:16) but even memorizing the Bible is no substitute for living out the faith you have. (James 1:22) Hannah trusted God and acted on that, and the result was one of the pivotal figures in world history, the prophet who anointed Israel’s first two kings. God honors faith.

With my high level of familiarity with Scripture I tend to be surprised at Christians who don’t know the Bible very well. That has a real influence on my preaching, because I tend to assume too much background for people to be able to understand what I am saying. I need to be looking for Hannahs, people who will act on the faith they have, however little, or much, theological underpinning they might have for it. I need to be willing to teach from zero, so to speak, and not demand that people start from a certain level. I don’t make that demand intentionally, but it happens all too often in practical terms. I would love to have a church full of Hannahs, but I don’t know that I’d be the best pastor for them! I need to let the Lord continue to grow me as His agent to all whom I meet, dealing with them where they are and as they are so that they may be brought closer to Him in genuine growth toward spiritual maturity, for their blessing and His glory.

Father, thank You for this Word this morning. It was quite painful recently when someone I love said he wouldn’t be attending here any more because I don’t feed him spiritually. I feel sure there are are other factors, and I ask for clear guidance as to how I am to relate to him going forward. May all those under my care be nurtured as they need it and not dumped by the wayside, so that all may grow together to be the mature children that You desire, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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March 26, 2016

Posted on March 27, 2016 by jgarrott

1 Samuel 1:17 Eli answered, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant you what you have asked of him.”

We know from the next couple of chapters that Eli was hardly an exemplary high priest, and his sons were downright despicable, but the office carried weight even so. I don’t know that he was intending to be prophetic here, but at the very least he was intending to speak blessing, and that blessing was effective. I am reminded of another High Priest who was certainly not yielded to God, but who nonetheless spoke an important prophetic Word. “Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, “You know nothing at all! You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.” He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one.” (John 11:49-52) He was actively involved in killing the Son of God, and yet he spoke God’s plan of salvation in a nutshell! The office a person holds is important, so whether they are worthy of that office or not, their words and actions carry weight. I am reminded of the fact that my father’s certificate for the Order of the Imperial Treasury that was awarded at the time of his death is signed by Kakuei Tanaka, the only prime minister ever to be convicted of receiving bribes. That signature of a deeply flawed man does not diminish the award. We are not to let titles blind us, but neither are we to despise an office because it is currently held by an unworthy occupant.

This is of course extremely applicable to churches. A pastor is not above their flock, but the office carries weight. The person holding the office must never forget that it is a weight of responsibility, not privilege. I have to answer to God for my every decision and action, even more so than someone not in my position. (James 3:1) I have found, sometimes painfully, that my words carry weight, and so can wound more easily than those of someone else. Like Eli, I need to speak blessing and give hope. The hope that he imparted to Hannah may well have been the factor that enabled her to conceive! Every believer is a representative of Christ, (Acts 1:8) but as a pastor, even the world looks on me that way. By God’s grace I am to do that faithfully, not distorting the image they get, so that as many as will may come to Him and receive life.

Father, at times I am blown away by how You use even my mistakes for good, but I’d rather not put You to that trouble! Help me fulfill Your calling, Your commission, in every respect, so that all of Your plans for me may come to pass, for the blessing of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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March 25, 2016

Posted on March 27, 2016 by jgarrott

Judges 16:28 Then Samson prayed to the Lord, “O Sovereign Lord, remember me. O God, please strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes.”

This is an interesting prayer, with both power and impurity. It has for a starting point a humility that Samson was slow to achieve. He recognized, finally, that it was only God who had given him so much strength in the past, and it was his own disobedience that had stripped him of that strength. That was good, but at the same time, the desire for personal revenge was not good. I don’t know whether his willingness to die in the process had any bearing on the good-or-bad scale. His personal desire was for revenge, but at the same time, the Philistines were actively praising their god for their victory over Samson, and that was reason enough for God to act. This is a very popular story in Sunday School, but it is certainly R-rated at best! Samson is an example of how flawed a person can be and still be used by God. He appears to have done most of his thinking with his gonads, which is hardly the image of a man of God! At the same time, he is a picture of God using us in spite of ourselves, and how it is never too late to recognize our dependence on Him.

I have certainly prayed with mixed motives many times. That’s probably why my prayers haven’t had a higher success rate! By God’s grace I have made it past the age at which my father died, and I am fully aware that it is only by His grace that I can accomplish anything at all. Yesterday he enabled me to do repair work on the ceiling, balanced on a scaffold, and today my body is telling me it didn’t enjoy that! However, by His grace my body will recover, and neither I nor the young man helping me had any injuries, which had been a real concern. The whole matter of motivation for prayer is an important one, for me personally and for my ministry as a pastor. I need to learn from this prayer of Samson that prayer can be effective even when the motivation isn’t pure. Accordingly, I should never be hesitant to pray, or to encourage others to pray. I need to trust the Holy Spirit to sort it all out, (Romans 8:26-27) and just pray.

Father, thank You for Your guidance and protection yesterday. I am very aware of the imperfections in what was done and how, but You got us through it anyway. Help me not hold back from anything You direct because of focusing on my weaknesses, but rather trust You to enable me to do Your will. Thank You that what was done yesterday is not going to increase my personal pride! Help me make the use that You intend of the abilities You have given me, without being personally proud of any of it, so that You alone may be glorified. Thank You. Praise God!

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March 24, 2016

Posted on March 26, 2016 by jgarrott

Judges 13:8 Then Manoah prayed to the Lord: “O Lord, I beg you, let the man of God you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born.”

Two things stand out to me in this prayer of Manoah. First, he trusted his wife. Had he not, he might have suspected that she had fallen for some mysterious stranger and was concocting this story to cover up in case she was pregnant (since infertility in a couple can come from either side). The second thing is that he really believed in God. That is evident from the fact that his prayer was not whether the boy would be born, but rather how to raise such a miraculous child. The Bible has many examples to show us that God likes that kind of faith. To me, the angel’s parenting instructions seem highly inadequate, but God knew in advance what Samson’s story would be, and that He was going to make use of both Samson’s strength and his weaknesses. I find Manoah’s faith all the more remarkable because he probably had very little basis for it. No more than the first six books of the Bible had been written, and the probability is very high that he was illiterate anyway. Nevertheless, he knew enough of the oral tradition of Israel to know that Yahweh was God indeed, and He could do miraculous things. That he knew how to sacrifice a burnt offering is another indication that he was devout; this was obviously not the first time he had done so – though he had never seen an angel ascend in the flames before! God takes us where we are and uses us, if we will yield ourselves to Him. Manoah himself was no special physical specimen, but God used him to father one of the physically strongest people in history. Genetics alone couldn’t account for it.

I have things to learn from Manoah. I have been blessed, both in nature and nurture, as they say, but as long as I am depending on that, nothing miraculous is going to happen. Miracles are by definition outside of human ability, so the more I focus on my ability the less likely I am to see miracles. I need to listen humbly to God to know His plans, and then not try to figure out how to make them happen in my strength, but rather ask Him what my part is to be in their coming to pass. God has given me a vision of Omura again becoming the foremost Christian city in Japan, actively advancing the kingdom of God to the ends of the earth. That is so impossible as to be preposterous, from the human standpoint, but that is all the more reason to believe it is God’s idea, because He will be the only explanation for it. I need to start asking God how I’m to act when it happens, rather than dismissing it as impossible.

Father, thank You for this reminder, this renewal of Your vision in me. We read the church vision in church every Sunday, but to a degree it has become just words to me. Forgive me. Help me actively anticipate what You are going to do, in no way depending on myself but being fully available and responsive to You for whatever You want to do through me. May all of Your plans, for me, for this church, for this city, and for this nation, be fulfilled in Your way on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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March 23, 2016

Posted on March 26, 2016 by jgarrott

Deuteronomy 9:20 And the Lord was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him, but at that time I prayed for Aaron too.

Church leaders need prayer too! Most have not been as flagrant as to make an idol, but all have made mistakes. Even the ones who have made major errors, drawing many after them, are not beyond redemption if they will repent, so we need to pray for them. Often the person in the pew doesn’t grasp emotionally that their pastor faces the same temptations they do, and the pressures are often greater. That’s no excuse for sin, but it does point up the need for prayer support. I have seen leaders close to me fall, and in every case I’ve seen, there was a lack of transparency and accountability involved. When the leader is seen as unapproachable, pitfalls abound. When the leader is seen as above it all – especially by himself – disaster is just around the corner. All the English translations I checked say that Moses prayed for Aaron, but the Japanese specifies that he interceded for him. Intercession is “standing in the gap,” (Ezekiel 22:30) recognizing a need and seeking to meet that in prayer. God does anoint some people as intercessors with special gifts of perception and compassion, and they are marvelous gifts to the Body of Christ. However, every believer has the ability and the privilege of intercession, but many fail to recognize it. James 5:16 is very much to the point: “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” All of us are righteous by faith, if our repentance is up to date, and there is great blessing in seeing God meet a brother or sister’s need through your prayers.

I don’t have the specific calling of Intercessor, but I am still called to intercede. That’s not a contradiction. I don’t have special gifts in that area, but I am to pray for others however the Lord guides and gives opportunity. At the same time, I am very aware that I also need people to pray for me, just as Paul did. (Romans 15:31, Ephesians 6:20, Colossians 4:4) I am as human as anyone else, and just as liable to deceive myself. (James 1:22) I must never neglect praying for others, precisely because I know my own need. The power is not in us, it is in the One to whom we pray, and he delights to listen to and make good use of the prayers of His children.

Father, thank You indeed for the privilege of intercession, both of doing it and receiving it. May I not neglect it but exercise it more and more, for everyone whom You indicate. May I be willing to stand in the gap even when I know it invites attack on me, resting in the assurance that Your presence in me is greater than anything that can come against me. (1 John 4:4) Thank You. Praise God!

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March 22, 2016

Posted on March 24, 2016 by jgarrott

Deuteronomy 4:7 What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him?

This shows clearly the polytheistic mindset of virtually everyone in those days. I doubt that any of the Israelites thought of Yahweh as the only God, He was just the strongest, and most especially, He was their God. That was perhaps the biggest factor in their being so prone to getting into trouble with other gods, such as the Baal of Peor that Moses mentions here. Moses isn’t asking them to make the jump to full monotheism, he’s just trying to point out that none of the other gods they know about is as close and personal as Yahweh. We have trouble understanding this mindset today, in America at any rate. In the US, theism is assumed to be monotheism, when that was firmly entrenched even in Jewish thinking only much later than Moses. All of that said, it is still very relevant to us today that God is indeed near when we call on Him. Monotheism doesn’t do you much good if you only see God as some distant being who doesn’t care about you. One of the consistent, and amazing, themes of the Bible is exactly the fact that God does care, very deeply in fact. As John said, He is love, (1 John 4:8) and the opposite of love is indifference. When God is love, it follows that He cares more about us than we care about ourselves. Nothing else could explain the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That’s what John 3:16 is all about: He cares. Peter said it too: “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7) When we really get that fact into our minds and hearts, both rebellion and worry should go out the window. We live in a fallen world, which means that we will have troubles in this life, but when we really understand the love of God, those troubles are no big deal. (John 16:33)

The whole matter of dealing with people where they are, polytheism and all, is extremely relevant to me in Japan, because the average Japanese has some very deep polytheistic tendencies. Most Japanese are dedicated to the gods at a Shinto shrine as infants, then have a “Christian” wedding and a Buddhist funeral, and they see no conflict to that. I wonder if I haven’t kept some people out of the family of God by my insisting on monotheism from the outset, rather than letting the Holy Spirit straighten that out after they open the door to Jesus. The Japanese themselves describe their nation as “the land of 8 million gods,” because Shinto is animistic, and almost any impressive natural feature is liable to be worshiped. Historically, that fed into worshiping not just the emperor but also other impressive human beings after their death, which dovetailed with Confucian ancestor worship, as practiced in Japanese Buddhism. That’s the spiritual mess I deal with all the time! Nowadays people generally go through religious motions without any real personal faith, which makes them suspicious of active Christianity in which Christ is our life. That is true even in church! I certainly can’t straighten it all out in my own strength or wisdom, either on a macro or a micro level, so I’ve got to depend on God. I too need to remember that He cares, that He’s not distant or indifferent, and make myself available to Him in obedient trust, for His glory.

Father, You really helped me lay the problem out clearly. Thank You. Knowing the problem, help me trust You for the answer, not trying to cook it up on my own but recognizing it as You show it to me, so that as many as possible of these Japanese whom You love may be brought into Your family, Your kingdom, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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March 21, 2016

Posted on March 24, 2016 by jgarrott

Numbers 21:8-9 The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.

From our current perspective this is one of the more bizarre incidents in the whole Bible, right up there with the talking donkey. (Numbers 22:28) To modern theology it seems like pure superstition, yet Jesus explicitly said that it was a foreshadowing of His crucifixion. (John 3:14) The thing is, faith needs an object, and at the time, the people were so generally ignorant of God that He had Moses make them a physical object that they could relate to. In a sense it really was superstition, but they were unable to relate to God on a higher level at that point. Protestants tend to despise Catholics for all the physical objects – statues, medallions and the like – they use, but there is a difference between that and idolatry. Sometimes the line is very fine, and sometimes it is crossed, but physical objects don’t automatically equal the “graven images” of the 10 Commandments. That said, that line can indeed be crossed, and even the snake in this story made it across that line later in Israel’s history, so that King Hezekiah had to destroy it. (2 Kings 18:4) That shows the complicated nature of faith. Jesus said this prefigured His supreme act of salvation, yet it had to be destroyed because people were worshiping the thing rather than God Himself. Actually, this happens on many levels, and not just the physical. Denominations often fall into this trap, when people become more zealous for their organization than they are for Jesus Christ. The organization might have been as much God’s idea as the snake was, but it is just as temporary.

This issue is actually a major reason why I chose the non-denominational route for my ministry. I have seen so many walls thrown up within the Body of Christ over labels and terminology. However, my very non-denominationalism could become a stumbling block for me, if I let pride in it make me feel superior to my brothers and sisters in Christ. I am not to abandon the positions I feel God has shown me through His Word, but I am to share those gently, in love and respect, and not place the position ahead of Christ in my heart. I am not to despise traditions, but neither am I to cling to them once their purpose is gone. I am to remember that everything on this earth is temporal, temporary, and keep my heart fixed on the eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:18)

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the day yesterday and for how encouraging it was. Help me remember all the time that I don’t know what’s really going on, so that I won’t let what I see tie me in knots. Help me indeed rest, relax, and rejoice in You, responding to You with gratitude and obedience at all times, so that Your will may be done in and through me for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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