July 18, 2012

Posted on July 18, 2012 by jgarrott

Philippians 4:11, 13, 19 I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I can do everything through him who gives me strength. And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

Taken consecutively like this, these three well-known verses have a rather different impact from the way they are usually taken. Actually, verse 11 gets used far less than the other two, and it is really the key to understanding it all. Where the NIV says “be content,” the Japanese says “have enough,” but the meaning is still pretty clear, and that is that Paul had learned to let God tell him how much was enough. He expands that thought in verse 12 to make it clear that he is including what most people would call “dire straits.” Anyone who is honest will concede that such an attitude is hard to achieve, which is why Paul makes it clear in verse 13 that is is God who enables him to do it. I couldn’t begin to count how many times I’ve heard verse 13 misapplied (and some of those times were by me)! It is only when this context is understood that verse 19 comes into proper focus. It does indeed mean exactly what it says, but the problem comes in our distorted view of what our needs are. I’m not saying that material needs aren’t included in this, but I am saying that the material isn’t our primary need, ever. Jesus dealt with the matter of our material needs at some length in Matthew 6:19-34. Sadly, many Christians and even churches are so focused on the material that they aren’t really serving God at all. (Matthew 6:21, 24) What Paul was saying that he had learned was to trust God fully, seeking first His kingdom and His righteousness, just as Jesus said. (Matthew 6:33) When that is indeed our priority, then we will discover that not only are our actual physical needs met, (though not necessarily our greedy desires) we are filled with treasures that money can’t buy: love, joy, peace, and all the rest.

This is an area in which I need regular reminders, but God is faithful to give them to me. I commented recently to my wife that there are a lot of things I would like to spend money on, but I don’t want to spend money. That means I’m in another learning period on this very issue. God knows what my real needs are financially, materially, emotionally, and spiritually, and I need to trust Him with each of those. If I will really do that, then He will indeed meet all my needs out of His “glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” As a pastor, I deal constantly with people who are struggling in this area. As James makes very clear, I am not to belittle anyone’s physical or material need, (James 2:15-16) but I should seek to lift their eyes off of the temporal and help them see the God who is indeed “able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine.” (Ephesians 3:20)

Father, thank You for Your grace! Thank You for the opportunity last night to share that grace with someone who has an abundance of this world’s goods, but doesn’t have the greatest good of all, salvation by grace through faith. Thank You for how You are working in him. I pray that the seeds You have allowed me to plant and water will bear rich fruit, and soon, not just in him but in his extended family as well. May we all learn what true riches are, to receive, appropriate, and utilize all that You desire to pour out on us, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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July 17, 2012

Posted on July 17, 2012 by jgarrott

Philippians 1:20-21 I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

In verses 22-23 Paul asks the same existential question Shakespeare put in the mouth of Hamlet: “To be, or not to be?” However, Paul has essentially answered it before he asks it, and his answer is obedience to Christ. Probably everyone faces this question multiple times in their life. Some take the decidedly self-centered path of suicide, refusing to credit the claims others might have on them, not realizing they are denying the ultimate claim: that of their Creator. Probably few people who commit suicide have a clear focus on heaven; they just want to get out of their current circumstances. Paul, on the other hand, had been given a vision of heaven that was too glorious for words, (2 Corinthians 12:2-4) so he knew what lay ahead of him. That was doubtless what created such a pull on him. In spite of that, his commitment was to Christ, to serving Him and proclaiming His Gospel, for His glory. That is certainly the kind of life that, when God says it’s time, earns the accolade, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

In my college days I seriously considered suicide, and actually it has crossed my mind quite a few times in the years since then. That’s not at all to say I haven’t enjoyed life in general, but the thought has arisen when circumstances seemed to be more trouble than they were worth. I’ve never been particularly afraid of death itself, but choosing it over serving God on this earth would certainly seem to be self-defeating if my goal is heaven with God! I have dealt with many suicidal people over the years, and a few have succeeded. In every case, the focus was on themself; suicide is ultimately selfish. Dealing with the aftermath of suicide is certainly a painful experience, and sometimes that is exactly the goal of the person who commits it; they want to inflict pain on the people around them, so they turn it on their own bodies. They don’t understand that suicide is spitting in God’s face. I knew one man who was a Christian, though he had emotional problems. He had previously attempted suicide by hanging, but the cord he used broke, and he wasn’t successful. In talking about it with me a few years after that, he said that when he jumped off of the chair, in his heart he was crying out, “Jesus!” I think Jesus answered him, in making the cord break! As I have commented recently, life is complicated, but suicide is never the right answer. I need to have my own focus on Christ, and seek to lead others to do the same. Only then will death, when God says it’s time, actually be gain.

Father, thank You for Your grace. As I was realizing yesterday, it’s often the little things that create the biggest problems. Help me wear Your armor indeed and press forward, looking forward to all that You will do in and through me for the sake of Your kingdom and for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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July 16, 2012

Posted on July 17, 2012 by jgarrott

Ephesians 6:10-11 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.

The fact of the matter is, we are in a battle, and our enemy is a scheming devil. If he can’t defeat us one way, he will try another. That’s why two things in this passage are very important. The first is that we don’t have to fight in our own strength. It doesn’t take long on the spiritual battlefield to realize our strength isn’t enough! However, in the middle of our weakness, God manifests His mighty power. (2 Corinthians 12:9) The second thing we need to keep in mind is that the armor God provides is multi-parted, that is, it’s not just one thing. Paul lists it in verses 14-18, and each part is necessary for our stability and safety. Some armor is better than none at all, but all of it is needed. It doesn’t do much good to have your head protected, only to have your chest exposed! Sometimes it seems like we try to get by with as little as possible, but that is pure foolishness. The devil tries to trick us into laying aside one piece of the armor or another, and then he attacks. We need to make good use of the armor, as well as the two weapons (the Word of God and all prayer in the Spirit), so that we may indeed be able to stand firm.

As I commented to my wife this morning, sometimes the attacks are big and recognizable, but sometimes they are small and mundane. In my experience, the latter can be more dangerous, because we are slow to recognize them. We need the whole armor of God even for such things as lost paperwork and unreliable computers! It all comes down to trusting God, to choosing to look to Him rather than focus on our circumstances. Big challenges are easily recognized as challenges, but little ones slip under our radar, so to speak, and can rob us of the peace and joy that God intends for us. As a pastor, it’s fairly easy for me to recognize this when it happens to those to whom I minister, but I can still be blind to it when it happens to me! I need to be proactive in wearing and using the armor God provides, no matter how small the incident might seem at first glance. When I have seen such things escalate into major problems for others, there’s no reason to think I’m immune myself.

Father, thank You for this timely reminder. Help me apply it diligently! Thank You for yesterday and each thing it held, and thank You for today and all it holds. Help me receive this day with gratitude, looking forward to what You are going to accomplish around, for, and even through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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July 15, 2012

Posted on July 15, 2012 by jgarrott

Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.

Since I use this verse in every wedding I perform, I have it well memorized. However, it’s still all too easy to overlook the most fundamental thing it is saying, and that is that Jesus gave Himself for the Church. Of course the Bible talks about this in many more places, but it’s important to think about what it means. John 3:16 famously talks about how God gave His Son Jesus, but when Jesus went to the cross He wasn’t just obeying orders, He was giving Himself. Everything else we have from God is on the basis of that sacrifice. The importance of that cannot be overstated. As Paul pointed out in Romans 8:32, when God gave His very best, why would He hold anything else back? Conversely, when Jesus gave Himself, why would He hold anything back? However, we have to remember that God only gives us good and perfect gifts. (James 1:17) Sometimes we ask for, or even earnestly desire, things that aren’t good for us. In perfect love, God withholds those things. There are of course exceptions to that, because God has given us free will, and in consequence He sometimes gives us over to what we are asking for. (Romans 1:24, 26) However, what we get that way is our own fault, and not His! Knowing that, we can see what a high standard is set for husbands with their wives. I would venture to say that no husband has ever fulfilled this perfectly, but this must be our goal if we are to receive all that God intends in the marital relationship.

I would say that my marriage is in the top 1 percentile, certainly, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have room for improvement. However, it is good enough that I can understand more of how Christ loves me by thinking about how I love my wife. Our relationship, though widely admired by the people around us, is seen almost as an aberration, particularly by Japanese men. They don’t really want to treat their wives like I treat mine! I am saddened to see the lack of communication between even Christian couples, and that problem comes from both sides. Part of my ministry, part of the reason God has me here, is to demonstrate a Biblical lifestyle to the people around me, both believers and nonbelievers. (Actually, that’s true for every disciple of Jesus Christ.) I am to speak Biblical truth as God gives me the opportunity, but my life itself must be an illustration of what I am saying. It is a problem that people see me as “other,” because I am not Japanese, and therefore they are less inclined to take me seriously as a role model, but I must not give up. After all Christ gave Himself totally for me!

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the wonderful blessings You pour out on Cathy and me through our being one in Christ. May we continue to grow in all that You intend, tearing down the works of the devil in lives and families all around us, so that Your will may be done on every level, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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July 14, 2012

Posted on July 14, 2012 by jgarrott

Ephesians 5:8-10 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord.

If every Christian lived according to Ephesians, the world would be a different place indeed! This passage, in keeping with the whole letter, is intensely practical, while being very deep at the same time. Paul is reminding believers that we were once darkness, but now are light in Christ. Jesus talked about this very issue immediately after the most famous verse in the Bible. John 3:19-21 says, “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.” This is why Christians are under attack around the world, and increasingly in the US: light makes the darkness look bad. That’s part of the reason some children of the light imitate the children of darkness! To most of us, that sounds all theoretical and philosophical, so Paul gives some examples: goodness, righteousness, and truth. Then he closes with an excellent rule of thumb that the NIV clouds just a bit by saying “Find out what pleases the Lord,” as though we had to go searching for it. A more helpful translations is, “Discern what pleases the Lord.” It really doesn’t take a lot of insight, most of the time, to know what is pleasing to God and what isn’t. Spiritual common sense, if I may coin a term, should take care of the vast majority of the situations we find ourselves in. If we are applying that common sense, then the Holy Spirit will find it easy to guide us in the less obvious situations. Then we will be living as children of light indeed!

Well, here I am with yet another sermon! I will have an opportunity later this month to record some messages for a Korean Christian satellite TV station that targets Japan, and I would say that this week’s passages have left me well prepared for that. The Word of God is incredibly rich, loaded with light and life and truth, and I’ve been given the privilege and responsibility of sharing that with others in ways they can receive, digest, and apply it. When I’m not doing things 100% myself, it’s clear I need the help of the Holy Spirit to get the job done. I need to keep myself available at all times, because I don’t know what appointments the Lord has set up for me. If I’m not read up and prayed up, then I will come up empty when faced with hungry souls. God’s supply is more than abundant, but I’ve got to be appropriating it regularly myself, or I won’t be effective as a deliveryman.

Father, thank You for this encouraging, affirming Word, and for showing me one avenue for all that You have been pouring into me. I ask for Your grace and anointing to impart to the believers in this church a hunger, an openness to Your Word that will cause them to make it their first priority each day. Reveal to them both how glorious and how practical it is, so that they may take it in to live it out, bringing Your kingdom in this place, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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July 13, 2012

Posted on July 13, 2012 by jgarrott

Ephesians 4:17, 32 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Putting these two verses together brings some things into sharp focus. Actually, all the intervening verses also refer to the empty way of life of those without God, but there’s so much in between that by the time we get to verse 32, we’ve forgotten that Paul’s still on the same subject. Failing to be kind to one another, failing to remember how God has forgiven us in Christ and therefore forgiving one another, is a life of futility! As I touch on with some frequency, Japanese society has a lot of trouble with forgiveness, but the Japanese aren’t alone in that. It is human nature to seek revenge, to nurse grudges, and we are very slow to realize that those we hurt most by such attitudes are ourselves. In every detail, life in Christ, lived out according to Biblical principles, is the most satisfying, the most rewarding life possible. Several years ago a book titled Looking Out for #1 was on the NY Times bestseller list. I never read the book, but the title certainly exemplifies the empty life Paul is talking about! Self-centered people never have the emotionally rich, deeply satisfying life that God intends for us all. Some of them realize it while they are still alive, but all of them are confronted with it at the judgment seat of God!

I have had to deal with this in myself, as everyone does, but I haven’t had any cultural barriers to the very idea of forgiveness, such as what the Japanese have to deal with. I have been shocked more than once to hear Japanese Christians agree that the Bible says something, and then say, “But that’s not the Japanese way,” as though that excused their not following the Biblical pattern. I am not to be a “cultural imperialist” about American culture, but I must keep expressing and insisting on Biblical culture. Frankly, there are elements of American culture that really stink. (Being raised in a cross-cultural environment makes such things easier to see.) Just as Paul had to insist on a Biblical standard in the face of the various cultures he dealt with, I need to be so steeped in the Word, so open to the Holy Spirit, that I will be able successfully to represent Christ whatever the context.

Father, once again You’ve taken me in a direction I didn’t expect when I started writing. Thank You for being wise, though I’m not. Thank You for the Bible, even with all the assorted difficulties of translation, and thank You especially for Your Holy Spirit to speak Your Word to us through the printed words. I ask for an ever increasing anointing to communicate Your Truth so that people may be set free indeed from all the traps of the enemy, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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July 12, 2012

Posted on July 12, 2012 by jgarrott

Ephesians 4:1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.

Everyone is called to be a child of God. Some people respond to that calling, and some don’t. However, each person’s calling is also unique. To put it in physical terms, I was called to be a child of Max and Dottie Garrott, but that calling was to be their second son and their fourth child; I did not receive the same calling as my brother or either of my sisters. I did not receive the identical genetic package as any of my siblings, and there were differences in family circumstances for each of us as we were growing up, not to mention the difference birth order makes. In the same way, every child of God has a different calling, even though we have some common points for all and many other common points between any two individuals. Living appropriately to the calling we have received means two things, primarily. First, it means living in reverent, grateful appreciation for God’s grace in calling us and giving us a Savior in Christ Jesus our Lord. This is common among all children of God, though some take their salvation for granted and fail to live up to it. The second thing it means is that we aren’t to be living identically to our neighbor, because our callings are different. If I am living appropriately to the calling I have received, I won’t be doing exactly the same things you will be doing, and vice versa. This is where our tendency to compare ourselves with each other creates problems. We are quick to feel either superior or inferior to others by comparison. Sometimes those differences are real, and show us areas in which we need to grow, but more often they simply indicate differences in calling. Our task as God’s children is to gain more and more understanding of our various callings, and each fulfill his own calling in faithfulness.

As a pastor, part of my calling is to come alongside other children of God and help them recognize their calling and how to walk in it. (This is what it’s talking about in verse 12.) That’s not easy! I need the wisdom and guidance of the Holy Spirit each step of the way. One thing that makes it awkward from my viewpoint is that I am still growing in my own grasp and application of my own calling, so I don’t have an exalted position from which to make pronouncements. Rather, as someone who has traveled a bit further down the road than some others, I am to share the grace that has been poured out on me. This whole issue of maintaining unity through recognizing that we aren’t supposed to have uniformity has been quite a problem, as I’m sure it is for most churches. I am certainly in learning mode here! I have tried to help people understand differences in gifting, which produce differences in function, but it has been an uphill battle indeed. I must not give up, but seek to let the Holy Spirit through me reveal to each one their value in the eyes of God, as well as the life to which He has called them, so that we will be done with rivalry, jealousy, resentment, and all of that, to be the church God wants us to be, for His glory.

Father, the entire letter to the Ephesians is so rich, and I want to instill every bit of it into the believers! Help me be submitted and obedient to You in what You want me to say when, so that together we may grow as you desire and intend, for Your pleasure and glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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July 11, 2012

Posted on July 12, 2012 by jgarrott

Ephesians 3:20-21 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

We really can’t imagine how much power God is prepared to manifest in and through us. We hear stories of how people do things that normally are physically impossible, like lifting a car off of someone or running to catch a falling baby, and all we can do is be amazed – as are the doctors and scientists, for that matter. If such things happened all the time, they wouldn’t be miracles. However, they are a reminder that we don’t know it all, and our strength and abilities aren’t the end of the story. The key, though, is not to be seeking miracles, but rather seeking for God to be glorified, in the Church and in Christ Jesus. This applies not only in terms of our personal needs, which Jesus addressed so clearly in Matthew 6:25-34, but also in terms of the “good works that God has prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10) Sometimes we get all worked up about whether we can “perform” for God, when that should never be the issue. We are indeed to give Him our all – effort, energy, time, talent, resources – but we have to acknowledge that they will never be enough. Accordingly, we need to rest, relax, and rejoice to be His instruments, allowing His power and resources to flow through us for His glory.

This is certainly applicable to me! In my 30+ years of ministry the Lord has allowed me to see very clearly that my resources are never enough, but His grace is all I need. (2 Corinthians 12:9) He is indeed more than able to do far above and beyond all I could ask or think. I won’t know all He has done through me until I’m in heaven! I was told once by a Japanese pastor that something I had said to him years before had transformed his ministry, yet I couldn’t remember having said it to him! I cannot know how I have impacted people, or rather, how God has impacted them through me, and I need to be at peace with that. My heart needs to be focused on Christ, His kingdom and His glory, and simply keep myself available to Him for however He wants to use me to advance His kingdom and manifest His glory.

Father, thank You for making me Your child. Thank You for the incredible privilege of calling others into that same relationship with You. I pray that You would indeed fulfill Your plans in and through me according to Your will, for that is certainly above and beyond all that I could ask or think, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

 

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July 10, 2012

Posted on July 12, 2012 by jgarrott

Ephesians 3:12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

Drawing close to God is conditional on only one thing, and that is faith in Jesus Christ. People today seem to have little grasp of how big a deal that really is. A good part of that comes from the systematic atheism of the theory of evolution. Before that, people had no intellectual excuse for saying there was no Creator, which is why so many people who didn’t want to be accountable to a Higher Being jumped on the evolution bandwagon. Because of the virtually universal teaching of evolution in public schools today, few people have a deep-seated fear/respect toward God, even if they say with their mouths that they believe in Him. We make jokes like, “God will get you for that,” without really meaning them at all. The fact is, God is indeed the omnipotent, omniscient Creator, and He is perfectly holy. As such, anything that is less than holy – which is to say, sinful mankind – can no more approach Him than antimatter can approach matter. In that example there is mutual annihilation, but in the case of God and impurity, only the impurity is destroyed. When we fail to understand this, we fail to see what a big deal it really is that God made a way through Christ for us to come to Him. This verse has a slightly more famous parallel in Hebrews 4:16, which the NIV renders as “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (I prefer translations that use the word “boldly” myself.) The point is that such boldness, such confidence, can only come through faith in Jesus Christ, because it is only when we are clothed in Him that we have the purity to approach God. (Galatians 3:27)

In common with every modern minister of the Gospel, I have the difficulty of getting through the atheistic mindset generated by the teaching of evolution. Thankfully, nothing is impossible for God! I am never to back down, but walk in the assurance of someone who can indeed draw close to God, not because I am pure in myself but because God has made me to be righteous in Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:30, 2 Corinthians 5:21) The Good News (Gospel) is that anyone can have that place in Christ by faith, but until people grasp the reality that their unholiness dooms them to destruction, they won’t understand that it really is good news. I am not to draw back from preaching about sin and hell! God doesn’t deal with our sinful hearts by patching them up, He replaces them! (Ezekiel 11:19, 36:26) I need to let people know that heart transplants are available, and there is no waiting list!

Father, thank You for that striking illustration just now. Guide me in communicating it effectively to all whom You have prepared to receive it. Thank You for all You have been doing and are continuing to do in each of us individually and in this church as a whole. May we accept your “cardiac rehab” with joy, putting our new hearts to full use, so that all of Your purposes may be fulfilled, on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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July 9, 2012

Posted on July 12, 2012 by jgarrott

Ephesians 2:3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.

This is a vitally important understanding of the natural state of human beings, and yet many people reject it out of hand. They refuse to admit, sometimes vehemently, that “doing what comes naturally” makes them objects of God’s wrath. It strikes me that this verse has a pretty good definition of a common Japanese term that doesn’t have a direct English equivalent, and that is “wagamama.” When forced to translate it, I generally say something like “selfish” or “self-centered,” but those terms aren’t exactly it. This verse says, “doing whatever the flesh and heart desire,” and that comes very close. Perhaps the closest English equivalent would be “spoiled,” as in a spoiled child. Many people would consider wagamama (doing whatever the flesh and heart desire) to be the ideal lifestyle! Many wealthy celebrities attempt to live exactly like that, and the tabloids are filled with the stories of how they crash and burn. As I frequently tell people in counseling situations of all sorts, wagamama can never lead to true happiness; at best it can only give temporary enjoyment. That’s because at its core, wagamama ignores God, which also involves ignoring the needs and desires of everyone else. As this verse says, we are born with a strong tendency toward wagamama, and true happiness, not to mention eternal life, comes only with overcoming that by the grace of God through faith, as Paul goes on to say immediately after this verse.

It’s interesting that I had never noticed before that this verse has a good definition of wagamama, as familiar as I am with Ephesians and as often as I talk with people about wagamama. Maybe that’s because I do most of my counseling in Japanese, and there’s no need to define a word that everyone understands! I have the same tendency innate in me, so I have no cause to look down on anyone. However, by the grace of God I have realized that wagamama could be said to be the very definition of the “wide gate that leads to destruction” that Jesus talked about. (Matthew 7:13-14) As a counselor I seek to help people understand how it destroys their happiness, and as a pastor I seek to help people understand how it destroys their eternal souls. I cannot accomplish that without the help of the Holy Spirit, so I must be active in my dependence on Him. At the same time, I must be on my guard against wagamama in myself, placing Christ first in my thoughts and actions. His blessings are deep, rich, and satisfying, not to mention eternal, so letting go of the desires of my flesh is no sacrifice in comparison.

Father, thank You for this genuinely new insight. Help me make good use of it! I do have occasion to minister to people in English, and this will be very helpful in that. Enable me to help people understand that the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) is a far better alternative to wagamama, and that it is available to them in Christ Jesus. Thank You. Praise God!

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