December 5, 2012

Posted on December 8, 2012 by jgarrott

Isaiah 7:9 ” ‘If you do not stand firm in your faith,
you will not stand at all.’ ”

I am often critical of the NIV translation for various reasons, but at this spot I like it very much. (The Japanese just says, “If you don’t believe, you won’t stand for long.”) The principle is one that is true throughout Scripture, but this is one of the most pithy expressions of it. From the human standpoint, faith is the foundation for everything. As it says in Hebrews 11:6, “Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” If we don’t please God, we have no reason to exist! Jesus said, “Everything is possible for him who believes.” (Mark 9:23) We tend to be analytical about our faith, bemoaning our lack of it, when the general Biblical admo­nition is to use whatever faith you have. James goes on at length about the need for faith to be practical rather than theoretical. It is my conviction that your theology can be all over the place, but if you cling to Christ in faith, you’re fine. That’s not to say that I don’t think theology is important, but simply that it’s secondary to faith. That’s why Jesus said we must become as little children if we are to enter God’s kingdom. (Matthew 18:3) Children don’t analyze, they trust. It is true that children can be easy to deceive, but if our fear of being deceived keeps us from trusting God, we’re in deep trouble.

My most intense encounter with this verse came about 14 years ago. We were building this church building, and frankly, the money had run out. The banks wouldn’t touch us, because we had gotten half way through without talking to them, and banks don’t like that. It got so bad that, frankly, I was tempted to throw myself in front of one of the trains that regularly pass by here. However, God came through, we sold some church bonds and worked out a payment plan with each of the creditors involved in the construction, and about five years later it was all paid off, including the bonds. I went through a lot of suffering because I wasn’t exercising the faith I had, but I think I learned my lesson. In contrast, when we were going through procedures this year to buy the land the building stands on, I had no question that God would come through, and we have a purchase contract that is not a strain on our current budget but still allows us to pay it off early, and all at zero interest! Finances are ultimately of very little importance on the eternal scale, but they certainly test our faith. In the current economy, those who are trusting finances rather than trusting God are in for a rough ride! As a pastor, I need to lead people to stand firm in faith whatever their circumstances, and be a clear example myself that it is indeed possible to do so, so that all of God’s plans for us may be fulfilled.

Father, thank You for Your amazing faithfulness. Help me indeed trust You fully, and lead others to do the same, so that nothing will stand between us and You, for our blessing and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

December 4, 2012

Posted on December 5, 2012 by jgarrott

Micah 4:2 Many nations will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
so that we may walk in his paths.”
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

When two Scripture passages are closely parallel, it’s interesting to see exactly what the differences are. In Isaiah 2:3 it just says
“peoples,” but Micah specifies that these are Gentiles, so the NIV says “nations.” However, despite differences in the overall passages, these two verses are otherwise identical. The point is that others besides Jews will realize that the God of Jacob is indeed the Creator, and they will seek Him. To me the most beautiful part of this verse is the statement that first of all, God will teach us His road to follow, and that second, we will follow those roads in detail. (Paths are very specific, narrow roads.) The expectation that God will teach us is enormously important, but so is the commitment to be obedient to Him. Sadly, many people who have been taught God’s ways don’t follow His paths! The last part of the verse makes it clear that for this to happen, God’s Word is not to be shut up in some central location, but go out from it. Christians can be very good at creating insider clubs, talking about God and bemoaning how the rest of the world doesn’t know Him. That’s a violation of God’s plan! Our task is to get the Word out to where it’s so desperately needed, so that it will have a chance to enter people’s hearts and minds and set them free from the traps of the devil. Anything less is self-centered and blind, and deprives us and many others of blessings that God intends.

I was initially slow to share the wealth of knowledge of the Bible that I had been given, but I had a definitive moment, that for me was pretty dramatic. I had been praying for the baptism in the Holy Spirit, but had experienced nothing. Then one day someone told me, “How do you receive anything from God? It’s by faith, isn’t it? If You know that God has promised You His Spirit, then ask for it, believe that you have received, and thank Him for it.” I tried that, and once again felt nothing, but a couple of days later I was shocked to realize suddenly that I had just initiated a conversation about Jesus with a total stranger, and Acts 1:8 came to mind. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” I realized that the purpose of the baptism in the Holy Spirit is to empower us to be witnesses, and I had received it. It was months later that I first received one of the gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12, and though I have since experienced all of those at least once, I am strongly aware that the purpose for it all is that I may be a witness of Christ, drawing others to Him by sharing what He has done in and for me. I am to be a channel through which the Word of the Lord is to go out from Jerusalem.

Father, thank You for the amazing privilege of communicating Your Word, of being a witness of Christ. Help me be more and more effective, because I certainly can’t do it on my own! Help me share so that many will choose to seek and find You, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

Posted in Christian | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

December 3, 2012

Posted on December 5, 2012 by jgarrott

Psalm 89:24 “My faithful love will be with him,
and through my name his horn will be exalted.”

Throughout the Old Testament “horn” is used to symbolize either strength or, by extension, ruler. With that cleared up, we can consider this promise made to David and His Descendant (Christ). It’s impor­tant to remember that all such promises extend also to those who are in Christ, to the degree that they abide in Him. When we remember that last point, reading through the promises in Scripture should be enough to make anyone do everything they can to abide in Christ! (I think it’s unfortunate that the NIV translation committee decided to replace “abide” with “remain.” The meanings aren’t so different, but “abide” feels much more volitional to me.) Jesus made it clear that what we can do to that end is to obey Him, and that calls for getting His Word into our hearts. (John 15:7, 10) It is when we abide in Him that His Name rests on us, and we are able to pray and act in His Name. We often glibly tack “In Jesus’ Name” onto our prayers, with no thought of whether we are walking in submitted obedience to Him, and then we wonder why our prayers aren’t answered! God’s power isn’t limited, but by our disobedience we distance ourselves from being able to operate in that power. Psalm 89 as a whole is a recitation of God’s character and His promises, leading up to a cry (from verse 38 on) over why things are so bad at the time it was written. The answer is very simply that the people and their leaders wanted the blessings without the obedience, and God cares too much about our character to allow that to happen.

This of course applies to me, as it does to everyone on earth. There are many who have not yet entered into God’s family by faith, but even among those that have, there are many who aren’t committed to obedience. I must not be one of those! The current situation in the US certainly comes to mind as I write. America, originally founded on Biblical principles, has rejected obedience to God to a degree that is astounding to me, and it is starting to reap the fruit of that. I grieve, and I pray for a revival of repentance, for people, men, to stand up as husbands and fathers and say, “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15) When that happens, and only when that happens, America will indeed be restored to being a “shining city on a hill,” as Ronald Reagan spoke of. That will not be by politics, but by repentant obedience. Nations have to obey the rules just as people do, because nations are made up of people, and the Bible is clear that there is no salvation without repentance. I am not to bemoan the state of the nation and ignore or excuse my own lack of obedience!

Father, I hear many voices from the US at this point bemoaning the current state of affairs, but few that really call for repentance. I ask You to pour out Your Spirit on America, as I have asked You to pour it out on Japan, so that veils may be lifted from people’s eyes and they may see themselves and see You, and repent. Only then will we see the tsunami of salvation that we need. Have mercy on us, Lord, for the sake of Your Name and for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

December 2, 2012

Posted on December 3, 2012 by jgarrott

Genesis 22:14 So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.”

This is a rightly famous verse from a rightly famous story. That Abraham would be told to sacrifice his miraculous son Isaac shocks us even today, but he followed through in faith, and God provided a substitutionary sacrifice. The story is remarkable for Abraham’s faith, for Isaac’s obedience, and for God’s provision. Of course the whole story is a foreshadowing of God providing His Son as a substitutionary sacrifice for us. As Paul so rightly pointed out, “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all – how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32) This is a glorious truth, but some who are focused on the material have twisted it to insist that God will satisfy our every whim, if we just get our faith right. There’s an irony to that, because if our faith actually is right, then we will trust God enough that the material won’t really matter! God provides our every need, down to the air we breathe, but we are called on to “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness.” (Matthew 6:33) If we aren’t doing that, we don’t really know what we need! Abraham didn’t know he needed a ram to sacrifice in place of Isaac, but he knew he needed to obey God, and God honored that.

I haven’t been called on to sacrifice a child, but I have been called on to sacrifice things that were very dear to me. I will never forget that time, in August, 1981, when I was praying as I took a walk in Chatham, Virginia. What I had thought was an open door to return to Japan had closed, while at the same time I was not making a go of it as a freelance photographer. In complete honesty and surrender I said, “Lord, You’ve given me these two dreams of returning to Japan and of once again supporting my family through photography. Since You gave them to me, they are Yours, and I give them back to You. May Your will be done.” On September 15th, I arrived back in my home town of Fukuoka, and a month later my wife and children had joined me here in Omura, and we’ve lived here for the 31 years since then. However, the Lord gradually lifted the desire for photography from me, though not completely, and my darkroom became a computer room. More recently, He has allowed me to have a couple of photo exhibits in the City Gallery, but the drive to be paid is gone. I have learned that God is indeed the Provider, but I need to trust Him to know what I need better than I do, and that His grace is indeed sufficient for me. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Father, thank You for Your patience with me over the years. I have at times been very slow to learn! Thank You that our pensions will be kicking in shortly, giving us more financial cushion than we’ve had before. You know my tendency to spend whatever is at hand, or even before it is at hand. Help me indeed listen to You as to what we need and when and how we need it, as a good steward of Your provision, advancing Your kingdom for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

December 1, 2012

Posted on December 2, 2012 by jgarrott

Genesis 3:4-5 “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

In this first record of Satan’s direct interaction with mankind we see several typical things. In the first place, he contradicts what God has said. If we really grasped that God is GOD, that wouldn’t be effective at all. However, our grasp of God is so small and incomplete that we fall for the lie all too often. The second thing is that Satan mixes a little truth in with his lie. That’s like using Koolade as a medium for poison; it’s just something attractive to get us to swallow the poison. The third thing is that he maligns God’s character, attributing ignoble motives to Him. The devil not only wants us to disobey God, he wants us to mistrust Him as well. Sadly, he’s effective in that all too often. The best defense against a lie is very simply the truth. That’s why we need to soak ourselves in the Word of God. Bank tellers don’t spend time studying various counterfeit notes, they study the real thing. Only then do they have a high probability of detecting counterfeit bills when they see them. If we don’t know what God has said, we’ll be much less likely to recognize when the devil is telling us something different.

I keep coming back to what an immense privilege and advantage it was to grow up in a home that was steeped in faith and the Bible. However, that didn’t insulate me from temptation, and I have yielded more times than I like to think about. I like the hymn that says, “Yield not to temptation, for yielding is sin.” That points out that being tempted isn’t sin, it’s yielding to it that is sinful. After all, Jesus Himself was tempted. (Hebrews 2:18; 4:15) I find that if I dwell on the temptation it gets bigger and bigger, greatly increasing the likeli­hood that I will yield to it. To stand firm against temptation I need to focus on God’s truth, rather than on whatever lie the devil has just told me. As a pastor, that’s precisely the attitude I need to foster in the believers. I need to help them not feel guilty for being tempted, but rather rejoice that God has made them able to escape and/or overcome temptation. (1 Corinthians 10:13) As the foundation for all of that, I need to teach them that God is not only omnipotent and omniscient, He is also gracious and loving, and He will never be unfaithful or untrue.

Father, thank You indeed for Your absolute faithfulness. Thank You for embodying Truth in Your Son. (John 14:6) Help me be firmly planted in Him, and He in me by Your Spirit, so that I may be an effective channel of Your grace and love to all those I encounter, lifting them out of the lies of the devil and presenting them with Your truth, so that they may be set free, (John 8:32) for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

Posted in Christian | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

November 30, 2012

Posted on December 2, 2012 by jgarrott

Proverbs 11:18 The wicked man earns deceptive wages,
but he who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward.

The Bible has a lot to say about sowing and reaping, which is hardly surprising considering that the whole world was essentially agrarian at the time it was written. In today’s industrialized society, many people don’t relate so well to the image of putting seed in or on the ground, supplying the necessary water, waiting the necessary time, and then collecting the harvest. We think of popping frozen food into the microwave, pushing a button, and a few minutes later having something hot to eat! Few things in nature have the instant results we are used to demanding. Thinking about this verse, “sowing righteousness” doesn’t present a clear picture to many people today. The image is of someone consistently being and doing good. The results aren’t immediately obvious, but this verse – and the rest of the Bible – says they are sure. An evil person, on the other hand, might get faster results, but they are deceptive. For example, a robbery puts material wealth into their hands immediately, but when the law catches up with them, they pay dearly. Actually, robbery might not be the best example, though it is true enough, because most people aren’t as openly evil as that. Any active sin gives us at least a momentary payback, or we wouldn’t do it. Any passive sin seems to relieve us of pressure or responsibility, or we wouldn’t fail to do the right thing. However, those “benefits” are entirely illusory, and as Paul says so clearly in Galatians 6:8, “The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.”

I am as human as anyone else, which means that temptations to sin of all sorts are very much part of my life. I’ve got to remember the principle I’ve just stated, and be consistent in sowing righteousness. I am to leave the harvest in God’s hands, trusting that it is sure, just as this verse says. I like instant results as well as anyone! I need to be willing to put in the work of plowing, planting, and watering, so that the harvest may be as bountiful as God intends, and not illusory.

Father, thank You for Your patience with me. Help me exercise that patience toward the tasks and the people You assign to me. May I not go for the “quick fix,” but for Your sure harvest, even if in the short term that means more work. May Your Name be hallowed and Your kingdom come as Your will is done in and through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

November 29, 2012

Posted on December 2, 2012 by jgarrott

Proverbs 11:3, 6 The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.
The righteousness of the upright delivers them,
but the unfaithful are trapped by evil desires.

Many passages in Proverbs contrast the fate of good people with those who are not good, and it uses various terms for each category. In these two verses, “upright” is used for the good, and “unfaithful” for the bad. (In Japanese, “unfaithful” is rendered as “those who be­tray.”) There is a lot of wisdom here. In fact, Proverbs is categorized as Wisdom Literature. Those who ignore it are demonstrating their foolishness! Analyzing these two verses, we see that if your heart is upright, you won’t be wondering about a lot of the minor decisions of life, such as, do I take another drink? Do I flirt with that person? And so forth. In other words, an upright person has a healthy and active conscience. In contrast, someone who breaks their word for some­thing they see as being to their advantage is indeed destroyed by their own actions. Verse six makes it clear that it is our appetites/evil desires/lusts that cause us to break our word, and that leads us into a trap from which we cannot escape by our own efforts. That is why the Gospel is good news indeed: it tells us of God’s grace and power that can free us from the traps we have gotten into. The thing is, no one can be “upright” without the help and grace of God, and the sooner we realize that and cling to Him, the better off we are.

I recently read a blog that talked about how a prominent and very capable general destroyed his career and his legacy by being unfaith­ful to his wife. The story is familiar to everyone paying any attention to the news, and it is an all-too-common one. The writer of the blog was pointing out that we are all in danger of the same sort of trap, and thinking we are not in danger is the most dangerous attitude! I know that I have had the temptation and I have had the opportunity; it is only by the grace of God that those two haven’t come at the same time! I have enjoyed the benefits of an upright life, but I need to remember that it has only been by the grace of God. The minute I start thinking, I can handle that, I get myself into the destructive traps Proverbs talks about. It is only when my focus is on God and pleasing Him that I enjoy the benefits of His promises.

Father, thank You for Your grace! Thank You for the grace of realizing that I’m dependent on Your grace! Help me be an open channel of Your grace to those around me, not excusing sin but not condemning either, rather, drawing them to repentance and faith. Help me always speak Your truth in love, not looking down on anyone but as someone who needs Your grace just as much as the person to whom I’m talking. May more and more believe, trust, and receive Your grace, so that Your house may be full, (Luke 14:23) for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

November 27, 2012

Posted on November 28, 2012 by jgarrott

Proverbs 10:22 The blessing of the LORD brings wealth,
and he adds no trouble to it.

With a very small difference in translation from the Hebrew, the Japanese for this verse makes a major difference in the thrust of it, and it blesses me greatly. Going from the Japanese into English, it comes out as, “The Lord’s blessing itself makes a person wealthy; man’s labors add nothing to it.” This verse has been greatly misused in English by the “name it and claim it” crowd, who twist it to say that everyone blessed by God should be financially well off. That in itself is a violation of Jesus’ very clear teaching that “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Luke 12:34) Making finances our goal essentially cuts God out of the picture, because it means we are trusting in finances to meet our needs and our wants, rather than in the God who created it all. The Japanese translation also puts the emphasis on grace, and brings to mind Ephesians 2:8-9. We cannot add to what God does, we can only cooperate with it. This does not eliminate our faithful obedience, but it does eliminate our striving. If our goal is intimacy with God and obedience to Him, then He will indeed take care of every other detail. (Matthew 6:25-34) Someone who walks and talks with God on a daily basis has wealth right there that the financially richest people on earth can’t touch.

Once again I have the incredible advantage of having been raised by parents who operated by Biblical values, but that doesn’t mean I’ve always stuck to them myself. Many times I’ve had entirely unnecessary suffering because of focusing on the material and the temporal rather than on the One who supplies it all. That applies not just to finances but to everything about life on this planet. I need to press in to God more and more, not to be “otherworldly” but to have the right perspective on the world and everything in it. I need to rejoice in God and in the opportunities and challenges He provides, not bemoaning things that I see as less than optimal. They may indeed be less than optimal, but God has allowed them and that means He can and will use them for my blessing and His glory, if I will release them to Him and trust Him.

Father, You had me preach on essentially this message this past Sunday, and once again You’ve given me a practicum on what You’ve spoken through me. Thank You. As much and as often as You’ve told me to “rest, relax, and rejoice,” I still have trouble doing it! Thank You for the training of the past week. Help me extend to others the grace and patience that You’ve poured out on me, so that together we may walk in all that, and only what, You intend, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

November 26, 2012

Posted on November 28, 2012 by jgarrott

Proverbs 10:9 The man of integrity walks securely,
but he who takes crooked paths will be found out.

I really like the way the Japanese translates this verse: “The walk of a person who walks completely straight is safe, but a person who bends his own path will be found out.” Deviousness and lying are not forced on us from outside; most people don’t have to be taught to lie. However, that’s not at all to say those are good things. There’s good reason “Your sin will find you out” (Numbers 32:23) is a famous quote, though most people have no idea it comes from Numbers. A person who is walking as straight as they can doesn’t have to worry about covering their tracks. Deception eventually brings its own pun­ishment. (That’s not to say that it’s wrong to plan a surprise birthday party, for example; we’re talking about deception for personal gain or to deliberately hurt others.) The thing of it is, we can’t fool God any­way, so the thought of “getting away with something” is a trick of the devil in the first place. “Honesty is the best policy” isn’t in the Bible as an aphorism, but the Bible certainly teaches it from beginning to end.

I don’t think I would be happy in a job like the CIA, where in a sense deception is a job requirement. I don’t like watching movies or TV shows where characters pretend to be something or someone they are not. I really like the plain, unvarnished truth. That of course has been influenced greatly by my father’s policy of absolute honesty, and I’m very grateful for that. It’s hard for me to imagine what life would be like if I were trying to hide some dark secret. That’s not to say that I don’t try to be diplomatic, because dumping “the whole truth” on people is sometimes far less than kind, but if pressed, I will not lie even there. As a pastor, I seek to instill this attitude in those under my care, but this is something that is caught more than taught. I feel I have done fairly well. Some who have been particularly uncomfortable with it have left this church, but they are few. As a teacher of the Truth, I must be true in all I say and do.

Father, thank You for Your faithfulness. I know full well that I could never be faithful myself, or even consistent, without Your Holy Spirit. Help me both walk in truth, and particularly Your Truth, myself, and lead others to do the same, for their blessing and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

November 25, 2012

Posted on November 26, 2012 by jgarrott

Proverbs 10:4 Lazy hands make a man poor,
but diligent hands bring wealth.

It seems incredible that this very, very basic truth would ever be forgotten, but it is increasingly so in today’s entitlement society. A big part of the reason for that is that technology has made more of a disconnect between physical effort and results, as in the motto, “Work smarter, not harder.” However, humanity seems to have a strong thirst for “something for nothing,” and that’s why even Solomon felt it worthwhile to record such a simple proverb. Actually, references to this principle are scattered throughout the book of Proverbs, and even Paul felt it necessary to state that “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” (2 Thessalonians 3:10) There have been freeloaders throughout history! The difficulty comes with the even more frequently stated Biblical principle of taking care of the weak. We are not to ignore those who are physically unable to provide for themselves, and the Church has a long and generally honorable his­tory of providing for such, starting right after Pentecost. (Acts 2:44-45) However, this was quickly corrupted at both ends, as the story of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11) and the need for appointing deacons (Acts 6:1-7) illustrate. Absolute honesty is called for all around! For most of its history America has seemed to understand this principle, and many people believed in the non-Biblical proverb of “God helps those who help themselves.” However, individual effort and individual charity have been increasingly displaced by government “social welfare,” and that has increasingly severed the connection that Solomon spoke of. We are all dependent on God for His grace and mercy, and He tells us to “pay it forward” by being gracious and merciful to those around us. He requires that we be good stewards of the abilities and opportunities He provides so that we will be available as channels of His blessing to others.

In my own upbringing I was encouraged to apply myself, but not for the purpose of financial gain. Money was seen as a necessity, but a fairly low-level priority. At the same time, I have always felt blessed by God, and I have tended to take His blessings for granted. That combined to give me a bit of an entitlement mentality, but getting a couple of F grades in college went a long way toward curing me of that! As a pastor I emphasize the grace of God, but as a school teacher I give the students the grades they earn. Actually, grace is understood and appreciated only when we grasp that we haven’t earned it. I do get upset seeing the attitudes expressed in society around me, but I must focus on the tasks God assigns to me, and not waste emotional energy on things He has not assigned. He is still Lord, and He will bring it all right in the end.

Father, the temptation to take up battles You haven’t assigned to me is very real. Help me indeed be faithful and diligent at the tasks You have for me, so that I may abound as You intend, not being distracted but serving as Your agent for Your will to be done, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

Posted in Christian | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment