New and Old; April 30, 2024

Posted on May 1, 2024 by jgarrott

Luke 5:37-39 “And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, ‘The old is better.'”

This is a very famous parable, prompting a book I read in seminary: The Problem of Wineskins. The book is about church structure and organization, particularly in light of the Charismatic Movement that was still new in those days. However, what struck me in reading this just now is the last statement, that those who are used to the old don’t want the new. We are indeed very prone to get set in our ways. The problem with that is that Christ in His glory says, “I am making everything new!” (Revelation 21:5) Also, as Paul famously pointed out, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17) I have known churches that weren’t comfortable with lots of new converts, because they disturbed the set order of things! Traditions and the like aren’t necessarily bad, but we must be very careful we don’t refuse what God is giving us or doing in us and around us, just because it’s unfamiliar. At the same time, some people want to throw out everything “old” and start over, and that almost always destroys much that is good. There are hymns that are largely forgotten in many churches today that convey deep, valuable, spiritual truth, for example. However, we need to remember that just singing those hymns doesn’t mean we’re living in that truth. It really is a balancing act, and one for which we must have the guidance of the Holy Spirit, or we’re guaranteed to get it wrong. Many Psalms encourage us to sing new songs to the Lord, and that is certainly a good thing. However, not all songs are equal, and focusing always on the latest or most popular is seldom a good idea. We need to let God continuously renew our minds, (Romans 12:2) so that we will be able to perceive and follow what He is doing and not be led astray.

Recently this has been driven home to me by a dear friend joining this church. He certainly loves the Lord, but he is very used to a particular denominational format and ways of “doing church,” and he struggles at times with how we are different from that. I must not shut him out, because sometimes his ideas have real validity, but I must also not allow him to force this church into the forms he is used to. I have had to realize that in 40 years this church has developed various traditions, or you could just call them habits. That Cathy and I are used to them doesn’t automatically make them good, but it doesn’t make them bad, either. We all need to be submitted and obedient to the Lord, allowing Him to show us what we are to be doing, and when and how to do it, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this clear Word, particularly as we are preparing for the 40th anniversary of this church. On the one hand that seems like a long time, but it’s just a moment in eternity. Help us have both the flexibility and the firmness You desire, standing strong in Christ to destroy the devil’s works (1 John 3:8) and bring many into Your kingdom, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Good News; April 29, 2024

Posted on April 30, 2024 by jgarrott

Luke 3:18 And with many other words John exhorted the people and preached the good news to them.

I think it’s important to note that John, who was famous for his tart tongue, calling people vipers in verse seven, was preaching good news to the people. We don’t often think of a call to repentance as good news! He also wasn’t preaching what they wanted and expected to hear, because they were looking for the Messiah, and he very clearly said that wasn’t him. However, he did say the Messiah was coming, and so was preparing the people for Jesus, just as Isaiah had prophesied (verse four) and had been specifically prophesied about him before his conception. (Luke 1:17) From this, we need to learn that soft and gentle words aren’t always the most loving. The term, tough love, comes to mind. Truth is always better than falsehood, even when that truth hurts. When we forget that repentance is essential to salvation, we lose the whole point of evangelism. We make a big deal of “gospel” being the same as “good news,” but we forget that the very first step of the Gospel is, “You’re lost and headed for hell.” That was John’s message, and it was just as much good news as, “Heaven is wonderful.”

As I’ve commented many times, I’ve never been much of a “hellfire and brimstone” preacher, but I must not hold back from speaking the truth, particularly not to make people like me. I am always to speak in love, (Ephesians 4:15) but never draw back from whatever the Lord wants to say through me. At the same time, I need to remember that just because something is true doesn’t mean I have to say it. Even so, words of correction are often genuinely good news, because without them we won’t grow. I well remember what Cornelius Iida said to me almost 30 years ago, telling me I was treating my God-given ministry like a hobby. It was devastating to me at the time, but he was right, and it was an extremely necessary word of correction, and as such, good news! As I was recounting to someone just yesterday, it was painful to me to have to tell a “transgender” person that no, God didn’t accept him as a woman, regardless of his surgeries and hormone treatments, but He did accept him as a person. That wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but it was what he needed to hear. I still pray for him every time I remember him, and we will welcome him with open arms if he comes to us as a detransitioner.

Father, thank You for the person I was talking to yesterday. She had come because we were having a Gospel music practice, and her first visit last week had given her a thirst for more. Thank You for the various things You said to her through me. I pray that she would be quick to realize that she is indeed hopeless without Christ, but that in Christ she can have eternal life, and so repent and believe for her salvation, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Heart Attitude; April 28, 2024

Posted on April 29, 2024 by jgarrott

Luke 1:16-17 “Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous–to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

Here we have John the Baptist’s commission, delivered before he was even conceived. Not only is it a magnificent commission, it is also a clear demonstration that no embryo, or even blastocyst (which applies to when the fertilized egg first starts dividing) is without value or meaning in God’s sight. The whole idea of aborting a baby because it is “just a clump of cells” is not just a lie, it’s blasphemy against our Creator. I think the devil probably delights in blasphemy more than in anything else, just because of who and what he is. We can’t change that, but we can be on our guard and refuse and reject blasphemy in all its forms. To get back to John himself, his commission was to prepare the people for Jesus, and he was to do that by “turning the hearts of the father to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous.” That sound very timely for society as we experience it right now! For quite a few years we have been in a “fatherhood crisis,” with men not knowing how to be men, much less fathers, and being put down at every turn by militant, deceived women. That is a major characteristic of the Left, because they start with denying the Fatherhood of God. That makes it obvious who’s guiding them! It is well known that John’s ministry was calling people to repentance, but we tend to relegate that term to specific sins, when this passage indicates it’s more a matter of heart attitude. No human father, for example, is perfect, but if their heart is turned toward their children, they will do a far better job than otherwise. Likewise, disobedience starts with heart attitude, before it ever blossoms into specific actions. It’s not that God doesn’t care about our actions, but He knows they come from our heart, so that’s where the emphasis lies.

I have certainly experienced this, more times than I could count! I still stumble at times, but at this point my heart’s desire is to be fully obedient to my Lord. The “major sins” of my life have all come from an attitude of pride, of thinking and feeling that I was in control, and that whatever felt good to me was right. Such foolishness! I am deeply grateful that my parents taught and modeled the attitude of placing God first and listening to Him, before and above any other voice. I can’t say I have followed that perfectly by any means, but it is still the goal of my life.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I pray that I too would be useful to you in “turn[ing] the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous,” for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Apostles; April 27, 2024

Posted on April 28, 2024 by jgarrott

Mark 6:12-13 They went out and preached that people should repent. They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.

We sometimes forget that Jesus’ disciples did what He did, both in word and in deed. We are astonished that, in the Upper Room before His crucifixion, Jesus told these same disciples, “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) but it probably wasn’t such a shock to them, because they’d already been doing some of it. As to “greater things,” we have no record that anyone was healed by Jesus’ shadow, but it happened with Peter. (Acts 5:15) That Jesus’ promise wasn’t limited to the original 12 apostles is illustrated by people being healed by Paul’s sweat cloths. (Acts 19:11-12) God isn’t stingy with His pow­er, but He is strict about being given credit. The minute we start talking or acting like the power is ours, we are in deep trouble. The problem is that this runs into human pride. We so want to take credit for anything good! However, we’ve got to remember that an ambassador’s credentials depend on the one who sent them. We are indeed ambassadors for Christ, (2 Corinthians 5:20) but we are nothing without Him. At the time of this verse, “apostle” wasn’t that special a title. It just meant someone who was sent on behalf of another. By the time the New Testament was written, the word had acquired much of the meaning we give it, but in the world at large it wasn’t a strictly religious word at all. Every believer needs to realize that, to some extent at least, they represent Christ to the world around them, and hold themselves available to Him to be sent and used whenever, wherever, and however He directs. Like “saints,” which we make a very special category but the New Testament applies to all believers, we need to understand that apostles are an ongoing office and function in the Body of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11)

This is something I have thought about quite a few times over the years. It has been pointed out by numbers of scholars that the closest modern equivalent to “apostle” in contemporary language is “missionary,” and I am the son of missionaries and am a missionary myself. I’m not to run from that, nor to let it puff me up. After all, I have never had a “sending organization,” not even a local church, so I have often described myself as simply a Caucasian pastor in Japan. While we were in seminary, butting heads with the Southern Baptist Foreign Mission Board, my wife stated clearly, “I’d rather be Lord sent than Board sent.” That is absolutely spot on. Human credentials mean very little indeed, but I am deeply honored and grateful that my Lord has seen fit to send me, and I am to live each moment appropriately to that commission.

Father, thank You for this reminder, and for Your grace to me. Thank You for using me in spite of my many weaknesses and failures. You are in the process of changing my job description, and I don’t yet see what shape that will take. Help me be fully humble and available at all times and in all ways, so that Your purposes may be accomplished on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Authority; April 26, 2024

Posted on April 27, 2024 by jgarrott

Mark 1:22 The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law.

I find this a fascinating comment. Jesus not only taught as someone with authority, He demonstrated that authority by casting out evil spirits and healing people. The “teachers of the law” didn’t do that, because they had no such authority! Today, we should be operating in the delegated authority of Jesus, (Matthew 28:18-20) based on the Scriptures. The problem is, the devil has tricked many current “teachers of the law” into teaching that the Bible isn’t reliable, and is merely a source of truth, instead of the inspired Word of God. They not only relinquish their own authority, they teach that such authority is unavailable to men. No wonder the Church has lost power in society! A young man I was involved in discipling who is currently pastoring a denominational church called me yesterday, asking, “When and how did this denomination become so liberal? I thought they were Bible-based!” I was able to point out some specific individuals and influences to him, and he was encouraged to stand firm on the Word, despite denominational influences. When the Church loses its mooring on the Bible, it has lost just about everything, and becomes no more than another human organization.

I am well aware of the difficulties of translation, being bilingual myself, and my father and one of my grandfathers were both actively involved in that issue. I also know about textual criticism and the like, but I also know that God is in control of His Word, and He sees to it that the essential truths get preserved. Truth is not just a matter of opinion, whatever anyone might say! Just yesterday I ran across two or three articles that specifically touched on that, and the chaos that attitude engenders. There is no “my truth” and “your truth!” I shouldn’t be surprised at this current confusion, because there have been signs of its coming for a long time. Even when I was in seminary, from 1976-78, I was required to quote commentaries in the sermons I wrote for Preaching class. The opinions of men were being placed on the same level as the Bible! A Japanese pastor, now a close friend, confessed to me over 30 years ago that he was more familiar with Barth than with the Bible. I feel sure that’s changed now, but he still struggles with assurance about what God is saying to him. I can have no authority apart from what God delegates to me, and I won’t have that if I take His Word lightly, or particularly, place the opinions of men over it.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for that call yesterday, and that I have generated such an opinion of my theological position and grounding. Help me indeed be faithful to You and Your Word, proclaiming Your Word so that it may accomplish everything for which You send it, (Isaiah 55:11) for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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War; April 25, 2024

Posted on April 26, 2024 by jgarrott

Matthew 24:6 “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.”

Human history is in many ways a sequence of wars. Just yesterday I was reading an article that talked about how “peace” was a very strange concept in most places throughout history. The Bible even includes a phrase that we find shocking today: “In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war!” (2 Samuel 11:1) In a sense, war was a method of population control. Specifically, polygamy was unsustainable without killing off a lot of young men, and war is a way of doing that. That actually is a major factor in various Islamic countries today. As Jeremiah said, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9) The human lust for power is amazing. That’s why the difference between a politician and a statesman can be so striking, even though we all too often don’t recognize it until after the person is gone. The current state of affairs in the world, including but not limited to Ukraine and the Israel, is regrettable but hardly surprising, and the people who are stoking the conflict are despicable but hardly unusual. Human beings are sadly bloodthirsty! That’s why Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.” (Matthew 5:9) Those who know Jesus as Lord are already children of God, and we need to act like it, not stoking conflict but actually promoting peace. At the same time, there is the sad reality that justice often requires a forceful response to aggression. The reality that Russia made an unprovoked attack on Ukraine is complicated by the undeniable corruption of Ukrainian society. What’s going on in Gaza is generated by the genocidal hatred of Jews by Hamas and others, to the utter disregard for the safety and good of their own people. Answers are not easy to come by! What Jesus is saying in this verse is that this is how the world is, so don’t get all stirred up about it. The vast majority of people aren’t in positions to do much about international conflict, but we can control our personal attitudes and actions. We can recognize that we are ambassadors for Christ, (2 Corinthians 5:20) and so represent Him in drawing people to repentance and faith, which is peace indeed.

I’ve never been a particularly combative person, but I was drafted in 1970 and spent 2 years in the Army, thankfully stationed in Hawaii rather than Vietnam. I’ve known lots of people who have known far more about war than they ever wanted to. From my training, I know that I am quite capable of killing people, and it’s not a nice feeling. Even in Basic Training I almost got myself court martialed for writing and performing an anti-war poem. At the same time, I have a strong desire for justice, and that kicks in when I think about Ukraine and Israel. The only real answer I can come to is prayer, that God’s rule and reign may be established and His will be done, as perfectly on earth as it is in heaven. That may seem like a copout, but I don’t think it is. I am to strive to bring that prayer to pass in my own life, and trust God with everything else. I need to be sure that Jesus is the Victor in my own heart!

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for telling me many years ago that You aren’t happy with much of what goes on. Help me indeed trust You with the resolution to it all, so that I won’t get in the way of Your answering the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Repentance; April 24, 2023

Posted on April 25, 2024 by jgarrott

Matthew 21:31 “Which of the two did what his father wanted?”
“The first,” they answered.
Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you.”

We have trouble grasping, or really believing, that it doesn’t matter what a person has been so much as it does what they are willing to become. That’s what repentance is all about. In Ezekiel 33 God says clearly that trusting in past good to cover up present evil results in our destruction. At the same time, there are many examples, such as David, of people who did good, fell badly, and then repented and turned to the Lord. We aren’t to write people off, and particularly, we aren’t to write ourselves off. Someone was once telling me about a woman who came to him distraught, thinking that she had committed “the unpardonable sin.” His answer to her, which he reported to me, was spot-on: “If you’re worried about it, you haven’t committed it.” The devil tries to hide this truth from us, telling us that we’re too far gone, that we might as well give up and plunge further into sin, but that is one of the nastier of his lies. A major element of the Gospel is that it’s never too late, if you have a heart to repent and believe. The deadly option is thinking you have nothing to repent of, and can get into heaven on your own merits. That’s not to say that we’re to go around putting ourselves down as miserable sinners, but rather that we need to be like Paul, who said, “My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.” (1 Corinthians 4:4) We just need to keep our repentance up-to-date.

Of course, this applies to me. Every once in a while I mention something in my past that shocks the person I’m talking to, but I don’t parade those things. Rather, I seek to live as a demonstration of the reality that walking in step with the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:25) is a real possibility. To do that, I’ve got to be honest with God and with myself about my weaknesses, and be quick to repent when I stumble or fall out of step. As a pastor, I need to help people understand that God’s forgiveness is real, and they probably haven’t done anything worse than I have! People need to realize first of all that they need salvation, and then they need to realize that it is genuinely available. The devil tries to hide both of those things, so spiritual warfare is very much involved. I’ve got to take Ephesians 6 to heart and go to battle for the souls of the people around me, because God “wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:4)

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for recent reminders of my emotional weakness. Help me never think I am strong without You, and at the same time know that I can do everything with You. (Philippians 4:13) May I be an effective tool, a faithful servant, in Your hands, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Stewardship; April 23, 2024

Posted on April 24, 2024 by jgarrott

Matthew 13:12 “Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.”

This seems manifestly unfair to many people, but we’re talking about spiritual realities here. As Paul observed, “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14) It’s not that God is mean (as I say repeatedly), it’s that our heart attitude is just about everything. Also, much truth and knowledge depends on a solid foundation. You can’t grasp trigonometry if you don’t have basic arithmetic mastered. Spiritually speaking, if we don’t accept that we have a Creator who loves us and has a good plan for our lives, the Gospel will seem like a total fantasy. This is a major issue in Japan, that doesn’t even have a firm foundation of monotheism. This is one reason why 1st generation Christians might be effective evangelists, but deep theologians are likely to have been raised in Christian homes, at least. That’s one of many reasons why it’s important for Christian parents to actively, intentionally, lay a foundation of faith in their children. It is the single most important, most valuable, thing they can do for them. Everything else is temporal, but that is for eternity.

This certainly applies to me. My parents were missionaries, one grandfather was a pastor and the other a seminary professor, and one of my great-grandfathers was a pastor. Many spiritual concepts have seemed simple to me, when they seemed dense to people around me. When I was first exposed to the Charismatic Movement in 1973 I immediately recognized it as Biblical, though I had heard nothing of the sort previously, at least to remember it. That doesn’t make me “better” than others, it just gives me a different toolkit. And certainly, it’s not something I chose, much less earned. The thing is, as Jesus said clearly, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” (Luke 12:48) It would be easier if I hadn’t been given so much! Just yesterday I was going through things in a drawer of a desk I inherited from my father, much of which I had put in there and some of which had been there when I received the desk over 40 years ago. The emotional strain just about broke me down, because I am currently more than 11 years older than my father was when the Lord took him home. The question is always, what have I done with what I have been given? I am not a good judge of that, but I know and depend on the reality that God is a righteous and gracious Judge, and I am covered with the blood of Jesus. My rewards are up to Him, but my salvation is sure, and I am to rest, relax, and rejoice in that assurance.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for yesterday, and for Cathy’s presence and love that helped sustain me. I ask for wisdom in dealing with all the stuff that was in that drawer, and for skill in repairing the bottom of it that is tearing up. May I be a good steward of all You have given me, on every level, so that Your purposes may be fulfilled in and through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Proof; April 22, 2024

Posted on April 23, 2024 by jgarrott

Matthew 12:38 Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, “Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you.”

There are all kinds of proof, and all sorts of reasons for asking for proof. Jesus had been giving many demonstrations of divine power, so it was obvious from the outset that these people were less than sincere. Anything Jesus could have done would have been discounted. On the other end of the scale we have Gideon, who asked two times for signs that he was hearing God accurately, and God gave them to him. (Judges 6) Receiving those proofs, Gideon acted decisively, and God’s will was done. I have heard countless testimonies of people who really wanted to find God and asked Him to do something, and He answered marvelously, just as He did for Gideon. I have also known people who probably won’t submit willingly to Christ when He returns in triumph from the skies! These men who questioned Jesus were in that last group, so Jesus told them the only proof they would get would be His own burial and resurrection. I wonder if any actually did repent and believe at that point? The whole issue is heart attitude. If we honestly want to know God’s will and obey Him, then He will give us all the proofs we need. If our demand for proof is just an excuse for not obeying Him, then we are in deep trouble.

I don’t know that I have ever demanded proof from God, but I have asked for clear guidance many times. Sometimes His guidance has seemed clear, and sometimes not! Looking back, I can see that the times when it was less than clear have been training in faith. I have done far too many things without ever asking what God wanted! At this point I feel like I have a lifetime of evidence that God is righteous, faithful, and loving, and that is proof enough for me. I think I honestly desire to live each day according to His plans for me, and that is a source of deep peace. I still slip up, certainly, but He has “worked in me to will and to do His good pleasure,” (Philippians 2:13) and I am to rest, relax, and rejoice in that assurance, just as He has told me to do.

Father, thank You for this encouraging Word. Thank You for yesterday and all it held. Thank You for speaking through me clearly, and for the response. Thank You for the wonderful time of fellowship we had in the afternoon. Thank You for Your plans for today, and that You will enable me to fulfill my part in them, for Your glory. Praise God!

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Divine Revelation; April 21, 2024

Posted on April 22, 2024 by jgarrott

Matthew 11:25-26 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.

It struck me just now from verse 26 that Jesus might not have thought about this until He said it. God reveals His truth to us in various ways. As Jesus says here, it isn’t on the basis of our “mental horsepower,” but by His sovereign, gracious, choice. I have personally experienced God speaking to me by what He was saying through me. In other words, I didn’t know it until I said it, or wrote it. That isn’t at all a case of, “If I said it, it’s true.” Rather, it’s an example of the reality that we often can’t grasp things until we articulate them. The “wise and understanding” generally don’t like to say things they don’t already know, so their minds and hearts can be closed to fresh revelation. Adults can be convinced of things that aren’t true, or at the least aren’t complete. That’s why Jesus said repeatedly that we have to be like little children to enter His kingdom. (Matthew 18:3, Luke 18:7) Just yesterday I heard a talk by a man who has been very instrumental in Japan’s rocket industry, and he talked about how he likes to hire people straight out of high school who maybe didn’t even do well in school, but they have curiosity and drive, a dream that pulls them on. He said that if something’s never been done before, nobody can teach you how to do it! It was a very challenging, inspiring talk, particularly since the majority of the audience was students. We do need to be careful that we don’t abandon Biblical teaching in our search for the “new.” Those who do that quickly get mired in the lies the devil has been telling since the Garden of Eden. However, we aren’t to be limited by the theological boxes that various people and groups have built. God is by definition bigger than any box ever could be!

I long ago lost count of how many times God has shown me things by having me say them or write them. It happens with some regularity with my morning devotions! That’s why writing things out – journaling, as some people call it – is very helpful indeed. I’ve been called a geek for doing my devotions with a computer, but my handwriting is slow and sometimes illegible! I have indeed had times when God showed His love to me in ways that are beyond words, but those have been the exception. God gave me a gift for words, and His gifts are always to be used as He intends. I am to speak and write as He directs, both for the sake of my listeners and readers and for my own sake, and always for His glory. Again, I’m never to think or feel that because I said it, that makes it true. I am to be humbly submitted to my Lord and allow Him to correct my misunderstandings, however He might choose to do it. There is so much more of Him than I can grasp, so I am to rejoice in whatever He chooses to reveal to me.

Father, thank You for this clear Word this morning. The devil doesn’t want me writing, and he distracts me in countless ways. Help me focus on what You have for me so that I won’t miss anything You want to say to me or through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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