April 14, 2015

Posted on April 16, 2015 by jgarrott

Psalm 51:10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

This whole Psalm is thoroughly familiar, and for excellent reason. It is interesting, and so like Him, that God has used David’s horrible sin and turned it around to speak to, guide, and bless countless people. It is a perfect example of Romans 8:28, of taking something that had no good in it intrinsically and making it a blessing to those who love Him. That should be a comfort as we observe the horrible things that are going on in the world all around us in these days. That said, what David says here specifically is certainly worth considering. In the first place, He asks God to “create in [him] a pure heart.” There is recognition that he can’t clean himself up sufficiently, and that his old heart is dirty beyond repair. That is a very important truth, and one we forget too often. God is the Creator and it’s no problem for Him, but so often we labor at trying to clean ourselves up, when what we need to do is throw ourselves on God’s grace and mercy. I think it’s rather like our stomach lining. If we didn’t continuously grow a new one, our digestive juices would eat through the entire stomach and kill us in short order. (I had an aunt to whom that almost happened.) We are bombarded with filth constantly, and we need the renewing work of the Holy Spirit just as constantly, or we go under. David also asks for an unshakable spirit. Lots of things shake us. The only way we can stand is to stand on Christ, because everything else is unreliable. Lines from two hymns come to mind: “On Christ the solid rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand,” and, “Built on the Rock the Church doth stand, even while steeples are falling.” Mental illness is on the rise around the world because the pace of change is so extreme that people cannot keep up emotionally. It is only in Christ, who never changes (Malachi 3:6) that we can find the stability we need and crave.

Well, this certainly applies to me! I don’t need to go through a litany of the filth that comes my way. By God’s grace I have an increasingly “non-stick surface,” but that’s not perfect by any means. I certainly need the constant renewing that is available only in Christ. Likewise, I have my own problems with the pace of change. At 66 I am living in a world that was science fiction, if that, in my youth. Even national boundaries are being redrawn as I write, and the possibility of nuclear conflict is greater than at any time since the height of the Cold War. Persecution of Christians is more intense than at any time since Constantine, and it is far more widespread than it has ever been. As I observe the world on the micro and macro levels I’ve got to remember Who I belong to, and find my stability in Him. I also need to be aware that the time available for evangelism is short, and make every effort to bring as many people as possible with me into God’s kingdom.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I ask for wisdom and clear guidance in how to apply this in my daily living, so that I will indeed live as Your representative so that Your name may be recognized as holy and Your kingdom come as Your will is done in and through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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April 13, 2015

Posted on April 14, 2015 by jgarrott

Psalm 41:4 I said, “O Lord, have mercy on me;
heal me, for I have sinned against you.”

In English, at least the way the NIV renders it, this doesn’t make much sense. It would seem like David having committed sin would be a reason for the Lord not to heal him! However, the Japanese specifies, “heal my soul.” Our souls get scuffed up, dirtied up by sin, and healing/cleansing are part of the same package. That way, this falls into line with 1 John 1:9. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) It makes no sense to ask for God’s mercy without acknowledging that we don’t deserve it. That’s the whole meaning of grace, as gets pointed out again and again. The key to it all is repentance, which is the recognition of being wrong and the desire, the decision, to change. It’s no use being like Alfred Doolittle in My Fair Lady, who said, “I’m undeserving, and I mean to go on being undeserving.” That’s not repentance!

I’ve had my own struggles with repentance over the years, and as a pastor I tangle with the issue all the time. People get themselves into fixes and want God to get them out, without acknowledging that they were wrong in the first place. That doesn’t work! Enabling bad behavior isn’t the path of love. I am to speak the truth in love, (Ephesians 4:15) but failing to speak the truth is not love. I must not let a fear of being disliked get in the way of expressing God’s love, righteousness and holiness. I am very aware of my own imperfections and my own checkered past, but I must not let that get in the way of my expressing God’s standards, His purity, even when I don’t measure up myself. As I keep being reminded, I’ve got to listen to my own sermons! God is faithful to speak through me, and I had better pay attention.

Father, Thank You for this reminder. Thank You also for reminding me that I’m to start working on that book this morning. Thank You for the rain, to keep me from being as distracted by other activities. There’s still plenty that could distract me; help me stay focused. Thank You for yesterday and all it held. Thank You for all of Your plans for today. May I flow with Your Spirit in every detail, accomplishing Your will on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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April 12, 2015

Posted on April 14, 2015 by jgarrott

Psalm 40:10 I do not hide your righteousness in my heart;
I speak of your faithfulness and salvation.
I do not conceal your love and your truth
from the great assembly.

We are not supposed to be quiet about the good stuff God does for us. That said, we do need to be careful we aren’t bragging, as though we had earned God’s blessing. Rather, we need to be keeping the focus on God, just as David says here. In Japanese culture in particular bragging is seen as very poor form, and I think that is a real factor in the very low rate of personal evangelism. However, I read that the vast majority of American Christians have likewise never shared the Gospel with anyone, so this is hardly just a Japanese problem. The children of God need to remember that they are adopted, and God’s house is big enough to adopt as many more as would choose to come. We are not to to be concealing God’s righteousness and faithfulness, we are to be declaring it to those around us. English has a problem here, because we confuse different meanings of “hide.” We are indeed to “hide God’s Word in our hearts,” (Psalm 119:11) but that is, as the Japanese translates that verse, “store up,” not conceal. I recall a story I read by someone who reported that he was delighted at the salvation of someone in his company, but when he expressed his joy to that person, they came back with, “You are a Christian? I thought for years that if someone as nice as you were not a Christian I had no need to become one myself. I never knew you were a Christian.” The person writing the testimony expressed his deep repentance at having been a silent Christian. Society today, with the encouragement of the devil, seeks to make Christians as silent as possible. We need to recognize that and stand against it, proclaiming God’s faithfulness and salvation just as David says here.

I will never forget how God made it very clear to me that He had indeed baptized me in His Holy Spirit just as He had promised. I was sitting on a train waiting to pull out of the station and struck up a conversation with the person beside me. It suddenly hit me that for the first time in my life I was telling a total stranger about Jesus, and God brought Acts 1:8 to my mind. “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses.” Various spiritual gifts came later, but I knew that was the key. That makes me wonder how many Christians are indeed baptized in the Holy Spirit, as God clearly wants for all His children. As a pastor I want everyone in this church, certainly, to be baptized in the Holy Spirit and have Him flowing through them on a regular basis, but I can no more make it happen in my own strength than I could have baptized myself all those years ago. I am to speak God’s truth in love and back it up with unceasing prayer, because only God can bring that to pass, yet I am completely convinced that He desires to do exactly that.

Father, I honestly don’t know why Your children don’t declare your goodness more. I ask You to pour Your Spirit out on all the Body of Christ, that we may wake up and be cleansed, healed, and delivered, to stand up as a mighty army for You, tearing down the strongholds of the devil as Your agents, for Your kingdom to come as Your will is done, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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April 11, 2015

Posted on April 13, 2015 by jgarrott

Psalm 31:1, 24 In you, O Lord, I have taken refuge;
let me never be put to shame;
deliver me in your righteousness.
Be strong and take heart,
all you who hope in the Lord.

This Psalm shows a very interesting progression. It starts with a statement of commitment, coupled with a request for deliverance, and progresses through some fairly desperate cries for help, interspersed with declarations of faith, and then ends up with a strong, confident exhortation to others for them to trust the Lord. David is notable for his honesty, and I think that’s part of why he was “a man after God’s own heart.” (Acts 13:22) He didn’t pretend to ride on the heights of faith all the time, but was honest about his struggles. He fell disastrously but accepted it honestly and God restored him. These days some people are so worried about a “negative confession” that they can hardly be coherent in talking about themselves. That’s foolish! We are to be honest about the difficulties we face, but at the same time remember always that God is far greater than any difficulty ever could be. It is not wrong to say, “I face this impassible mountain,” if we also say, “God is more than able to get me over it.” It’s also not wrong to say, “I don’t know how He’s going to do it!” We are very prone to try to figure out what the solution to our difficulty should be, and then demand that God do it that way. He generally has a better idea!

I’ve certainly experienced this more times than I could count. I still have moments of anxiety, but I know from multiplied experience that such anxiety is both unnecessary and foolish. I am reminded frequently that there is far more that I don’t know than I do know, even though some people call me a walking dictionary and/or encyclopedia, and that’s not at all a bad thing. It is liberating to know, to the core of my being, that God is God, and that’s enough. I have no idea what He’s going to take me through, but I do know that He will take me through it to the other side, and that “other side” is glorious indeed. As a pastor I deal constantly with people who don’t have that assurance, and sometimes they try my patience greatly. That reminds me of how much I have tried God’s patience! I am to extend to them the grace and mercy that have been poured out on me, knowing that whatever the circumstances, God’s grace is all we need. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Father, the relief I recognized in myself after getting the good result from my circulatory system check-up showed me I was anxious about how much longer I had, since I’ve already lived longer than my father did. That’s a reminder that I need to listen to the truth You allow me to speak! Help me walk in the assurance of Your presence, Your grace, at all times, neither ignoring problems nor trying to dictate to You what the solutions should be, but resting, relaxing, and rejoicing in You, just as You have told me to do, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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April 10, 2015

Posted on April 12, 2015 by jgarrott

Acts 1:1-2 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.

The word that stands out to me in this is “began.” In all probability Luke researched and wrote the Gospel that bears his name while Paul was in prison in Caesarea, (Acts 23-26) and then Acts while Paul was in prison in Rome. (Acts 28) Traveling with Paul extensively, he had seen and heard a great deal that he could only characterize as Jesus continuing to act and teach, by the Holy Spirit through those who believed in Him. That is an extremely important point. When we think we have to do God’s works for Him, we get discouraged and give up. When we think we can do God’s works for Him, we get conceited. The Biblical reality is that Jesus can and wants to work through us, if we will yield ourselves to Him in active faith. Anyone who is actively following Christ is constantly confronted with situations they know they can’t handle on their own. The glory of the Gospel is that we don’t have to do it on our own; Jesus will do it through us by His Spirit. (Colossians 1:27) It is when we really understand this and yield ourselves to Him for this purpose that we become His ambassadors indeed. (2 Corinthians 5:20) When that happens there is no room for pride, because we know full well that we don’t accomplish things, Jesus does it in and through us, so our response is gratitude and praise.

This is something I have been growing into over the years. I first learned 2 Corinthians 5:20 as a young boy in a Baptist children’s group called Royal Ambassadors. I only got to participate once a year, when the Japan Baptist Mission gathered for their annual meeting, but I did get that verse memorized. However, the implications of it were slow to take root in me. Having grown up in a missionary family I didn’t think it strange that God would act and speak through people, but I didn’t press in to Him for that to happen in my case. I thought I could do pretty well on my own! God very graciously let me know how absurd that thinking was, and I have slowly relaxed to let Him work through me. That’s not at all to say that my effort isn’t involved; laziness has been another problem for me. I have to be as active as He tells me to be, without complaining about it, but not go doing things on my own, or feeling guilty to be resting if that is what He directs. As a pastor, it is a growing passion in me to help the believers understand that God wants this lifestyle as much for them as for me, and that it is just as possible, because the power is in Him and not in us. I deal with so many people who disqualify themselves in their minds as being unworthy/unable to be God’s ambassadors, but that just shows they’re still focusing on themselves instead of on Christ. As Paul said, we’re nothing more than earthenware pots; the power, the glory, is Christ in us. (2 Corinthians 4:7)

Father, thank You for continuing to give me direction for the book You’re telling me to write. Thank You that I’m not supposed to write it all right now! Help me be faithful and exercise the necessary discipline to get that job, and each job You assign to me, done, on Your schedule and by Your wisdom, power, and anointing, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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April 9, 2015

Posted on April 12, 2015 by jgarrott

John 21:21-22 When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”
Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.”

I’m so glad this is recorded in the Bible, because it shows that the apostles were just as human as we are. We are quick to say, or at least think, “What about him?” Whether from our standpoint that’s a good comparison or a bad comparison is irrelevant; Jesus’ response is the same. The Bible is loaded with examples of God choosing to do differently with people who to us might seem very similar. Jacob and Esau certainly come to mind. In some ways Esau was the nicer guy, until God really dealt with Jacob, but Esau’s values were off in some important ways, and God chose Jacob. The situation is different with Peter and John, or even with John and his brother James. James was the first of the apostles to be martyred, (Acts 12:2) while John is the only one of the 12 to have died a natural death. My personal feeling is that James had it easier than John, but the point is that God had different plans for them. We aren’t to be comparing God’s plan for someone else with His plan for us, either in pride or in resentment, but rather be earnest in fulfilling His plan for us with all we are and have. We are to encourage one another and serve one another – and so serve Christ (Matthew 25:40) – but not be comparing ourselves with each other. None of us really knows what it’s like to be another person. We are all better off being who we are to the best of our ability, for the glory of God.

I especially had trouble with this as a young person. Because I was a zero at sports and felt socially inept, I envied the “popular” people. In compensation, I was boastful of my intellectual and other abilities. None of that did any good, for me or for anyone else. Rather it tended to keep me from applying myself diligently, either because I thought it was no use or because of conceit. That fact alone has had a huge negative impact on my life. I am called to faithful stewardship, just as each person is. Comparing myself with others has gotten in the way of that stewardship, so in genuine repentance I need to cut it out completely. I don’t think I do it much any more, but I can’t say the temptation doesn’t arise. Diligent application still isn’t my strong suit, so I’ve got to keep working on that. After all, I still haven’t done all I’ve been told to do.

Father, the past few days I’ve been feeling like You want me to write a book, and I’ve been resisting. It’s going to take discipline, especially in the use of time, and my flesh doesn’t like that idea! Keep me from making excuses, but rather be faithful to do what You are directing, when and how You direct, so that all of Your plans for me may be fulfilled, on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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April 8, 2015

Posted on April 10, 2015 by jgarrott

John 21:4-5 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”
“No,” they answered.

This brings me back to the message that was given at the Easter Sunrise Service. That message was that even after His resurrection Jesus used completely ordinary greetings in speaking to people, pointing out that we are to encounter Christ in our daily lives, and not just limit Him to Sundays. Here too Jesus is meeting with the disciples at the lake, and not in some “holy place.” It’s interesting that the Japanese, probably sticking closer to the Greek, has Jesus saying, “Children, you don’t have anything to eat, do you.” From what followed the implication was obviously, “fish worth eating,” so the NIV isn’t out of place in its translation, but it’s still interesting. The hour was early enough that the lighting wasn’t sufficient for the disciples to see just who was talking to them. Often we don’t recognize when the Lord speaks to us, even when we hear what He is saying. If He is speaking through someone, often we take it lightly, as just that person’s opinion. If He is speaking to our minds, we are likely to take it as our own imagination. That’s why we need as much familiarity as possible with the Bible, because it is indeed “a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” (Psalm 119:105) As David said, “In your light we see light.” (Psalm 36:9) The more familiar we are with the Bible, the more likely we are to recognize when God is speaking to us and hear accurately what He is saying. That’s not at all limited to Sundays, or even to specific devotional times, because God meets with us in the ordinary, mundane events of our lives, caring about what we’re eating and whether our activities are successful.

I don’t think I’ve had much of a tendency to limit God to church, but that doesn’t mean I’ve always been listening to Him. I think that as long as I’m in this body that I’ll have room to grow in that area! However, as a pastor one of my biggest desires is that the believers grow in expecting God to speak to them and learning how to recognize what He is saying to them. I seek to speak out what He is saying from the pulpit, but I don’t want them just to be spoon fed; I want them to learn how to feed themselves steak. Each one is at a different place in that process, which makes it imperative that I not try to rely on my own wisdom to do the job. I can’t do it! I need to listen to the Lord myself throughout each day, so that my words and actions may indeed point others to Christ to hear Him for themselves.

Father, thank You for the example of my father, who was notorious for asking people who came to him for advice, “What is God saying to you?” Use me to cause the believers to expect to hear from You and to be quick to obey what they hear You saying, so that all of Your purposes for us may be fulfilled, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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April 7, 2015

Posted on April 10, 2015 by jgarrott

John 20:31 But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Hundreds of at least nominally Christian books are written every year, but if this is not the underlying motive behind them, they are at best fluff and at worst divisive distractions. Since God is infinite and we are not, it is no surprise that people continue to find plenty to write about in relation to Him, but sadly, some of that is largely to push a particular theological position, adding heat but not light to the discussion. Theological insights do need to be shared clearly, but in all humility, and always with the motive expressed in this verse. I see ads all the time for books and seminars that reek of division and strife, not lifting up Christ but rather human ideas and positions. There is so much evil in the world, and yet people spend their time and energy splitting theological hairs! I keep coming back to the observation of my Systematic Theology professor, Dr. John Kewiet. As a young man in Holland at the time of the Nazi invasion he was captured and put in a labor camp, but he managed to escape. He spent the rest of WWII, as he put it, “dodging American bombs and Nazi bullets.” During that period he saw a church deacon literally knock women and children to the ground so that he (the deacon) could get into a bomb shelter first. That convinced him that if our theology doesn’t affect the way we live, it is meaningless. In the same way, if what we say and write doesn’t lead our hearers and readers more and more into the life that is found in Jesus Christ alone, it is meaningless.

As a pastor/teacher who writes, this is something I had better keep in mind! I am certainly not against non-religious writing, but at the very least I must be careful that what I write would not pull or push people away from Christ. When the Lord opens His Word to me day by day, morning by morning, it is certainly not wrong to share that with others. However, if I do so out of pride, seeking to inflate myself in some way, then I have negated any benefit that I, at any rate, might receive from the process. I must always write from a profound humility that I am as much in need of the truth I share as anyone. I certainly am not to attack those who see things differently, but rather speak the truth in love with gentleness and respect, (1 Peter 3:15-16) so that as many as possible may be led into the intimate fellowship with Christ for which we were created.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the speaking engagement I have next month. I feel like You’re saying I’m to use this passage as the basis for that message. Guide me in being fully prepared. Thank You that my school teaching for the new term starts today. My classes have nothing to do with religion overtly, but I will be the clearest representation of Christ that most of those students will have seen, to this point at any rate. I pray that even as I teach medical English and speech therapy that I would be communicating Christ, drawing my students to desire and receive life in Him, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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April 6, 2015

Posted on April 8, 2015 by jgarrott

John 20:21-23 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. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

I know I have preached on the first two verses of this passage, but I think I’ve been afraid to preach on the third one! This is obviously an extremely important passage, because it was Jesus’ first encounter with His disciples after the resurrection, and it is indeed a commissioning. The first thing that hits me is how matter-of-fact Jesus was. “Peace be with you” was a standard greeting, as it still is in some cultures, so this was equivalent to saying, “Good evening.” Of course, when Jesus says it there is real peace imparted, and the disciples were certainly in need of peace, after all they had been through in the previous few days. Then He says He is sending them as He was sent. I’m sure books have been written on this statement – or they should be! If we meditate on this verse it should give us both a deep humility and a deep excitement and expectation of what God wants to do through us. There must be no misunderstanding: there is only one Savior, one Mediator between God and man (Acts 4:12, 1 Timothy 2:5). That is not and cannot be part of our commission. However, apart from that, God wants to manifest Himself through us just as He did through Jesus’ human body. Jesus Himself said, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” (John 14:12) We seldom exercise that kind of faith! Then it gets theologically awkward. We don’t understand forgiveness nearly well enough. This isn’t talking about excusing, it’s talking about forgiving. The scariest thing Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount was that if we refuse to forgive, we won’t be forgiven. (Matthew 6:14-15) Here He’s extending it, saying that how we forgive others has eternal consequences for them as well as for us. That should really give us pause and cause some deep self-examination.

I talk about forgiveness a lot, because Japanese culture has a very weak understanding of the whole concept. However, that’s not to say that I understand everything about it myself. I do know that I must not hold grudges, that as soon as something is done against me I’ve got to let go of it and yield it to God. I’ve done too much ignoring God, and even defying Him, to want to risk not being forgiven myself! I am reminded of Corrie ten Boom’s encounter after WWII with the guard from the concentration camp where she was and where her sister died. I think that was exactly what Jesus was talking about here. Corrie did choose to forgive, and she received a release and a blessing beyond what she had thought was possible, previous to experiencing it. I need to remember that in my forgiving of others I am allowing Jesus’ blood to flow over me as well. I don’t even know everything for which I need to be forgiven, so I’d better be proactive in forgiving others. As a pastor, I need to be very careful that my forgiveness doesn’t come across as excusing; wrong things are clearly wrong. I am to declare the holiness of God, and then His grace and mercy. It is only when we know we are wrong that we repent, and that is essential.

Father, I’ve still got so much to learn here. Thank You for continuing to move me along, to grow me and deepen my understanding. Help me communicate effectively what You show me, so that the Body of Christ may be built up as You desire, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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April 5, 2015

Posted on April 8, 2015 by jgarrott

John 20:8-9 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)

This incident is an illustration of the reality that there is a difference between faith and understanding. Faith is more important, because we are not saved by understanding, but faith without understanding is rootless, for want of a better word. Paul said that “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17) Saving faith is a gift, (Ephesians 2:8) but we do need understanding to lay hold of all that God has provided for us. This passage doesn’t specify precisely what John believed, but he had been granted the best memory of all that Jesus had told them in the Upper Room and on the way to Gethsemane, so he had the most reason to expect resurrection. At the same time, he hadn’t connected it to the Old Testament prophecies about Jesus (since that was the only Bible they had at that point). When we experience something that seems spiritual we need to search the Scriptures to be sure we aren’t being misled by our emotions or something worse. That said, we also need to be careful not to put out the Holy Spirit’s fire, as Paul cautioned. (1 Thessalonians 5:19) We need faith, certainly, but we need faith that is rooted and grounded in the Word of God, so that emotions won’t be able to rob us of it.

Having been involved in the Charismatic Movement since the early ’70s, I’ve seen a wide range of faith/understanding/activities. They didn’t always connect very well with each other! However, of all the people in the New Testament, the one I would most like to emulate, apart from Jesus, is John. John had both simplicity of faith and depth of understanding. I personally tend toward the intellectual, but I know that without a foundation and an overlay of faith, intellect by itself leads to total futility and death. I read about such people as Isaac Newton, who are know for their brilliance but who operated from a bedrock understanding that we are creatures, accountable to our Creator. Japanese in general have very little understanding of the Christian Gospel, so I have to give information before they are able to receive the gift of faith. However, I must not think that information alone is enough. I am consistently and constantly to pray for the Holy Spirit to impart faith to my hearers, so that they may repent and believe for their salvation.

Father, thank You for this reminder on this Easter Sunday morning. Thank You for the lightening and thunder that woke me up in time to have this time with You before the Sunrise Service. I leave the weather in Your hands, and I ask Your presence and anointing for every service this morning, both at the martyrdom site and in each church building. May many gather, not only to hear the Good News but also to be touched by Your Spirit and transformed into the likeness of our risen Lord, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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