Being Used by God; August 14, 2023

Posted on August 15, 2023 by jgarrott

John 5:19 Jesus gave them this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.”

Something I have been saying for many years is that Jesus in His physical body did nothing in His power as the Son of God; it was all in the power of the Holy Spirit, who rested on Him from the point of His baptism by John, (Matthew 3:16-17) and as He says here, it was echoing what the Father was doing. The more we meditate on that, the more it should cure us of trying to do things on our own! We are so isolated and self-centered that we think we can and we have to do things on our own, when neither of those ideas are true. We do have free will and we do have independent action, but our scope, when compared with that of God, is less than that of an ant compared to an elephant. Logic should tell us that it makes far more sense to get in step with the Creator than to attempt anything without Him, much less try to rebel against Him. In making us in His own image, (Genesis 1:27) God gave us creativity, as well as the free will to use it. He wasn’t after robots. That said, our powers of all sorts are severely limited. It is only when we allow His power to flow through us that our weakness is transformed into real strength. (2 Corinthians 12:9) When Jesus said this was true for Him, why would we think we were any different?

This is something I have struggled with over the years, and I’m still not totally clear on it. I am so prone to run off on my own, in how I think about things and in how I attempt to do them. I have experienced being used by God and I honestly like nothing better, but I still attempt to do things on my own. That’s not at all to say I’m to be lazy; I’ve done more than enough of that, too! I am to seek the Lord for what He is doing and what part He wants me to have in it, and then submit everything I have and am to that end. As Paul said, specifically to slaves, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.” (Colossians 3:23) And as he said more generally, “Whatever [I] do, whether in word or deed, [I am to] do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” (Colossians 3:17) Yesterday the Lord spoke clearly and powerfully through me, but I also displayed anger at some who were trying to be helpful later in the day. That wasn’t Holy Spirit speaking! Today we will be setting up my photo display, and I have clear ideas of how it should go. However, I have a close friend who wants to help me, and I’m quite concerned about biting his head off when he does things differently than I had been thinking. That’s not doing it in the name of the Lord Jesus! As the Lord told me years ago, I need to rest, relax, and rejoice in Him, allowing Him to carry me along by His Spirit even while my body is busy, so that the results will be His, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for what really was a very good day yesterday. Thank You especially for how that one man was impacted by what You said through me. I pray that he would indeed give all of himself to You, just as You expressed through me in the message, so that he would be added to Your family as a brother in Christ. I also pray that everything about the exhibit over the coming week would impact people and open their hearts to repent and believe, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Signs and Wonders; August 13, 2023

Posted on August 14, 2023 by jgarrott

John 4:48 “Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders,” Jesus told him, “you will never believe.”

Jesus may have been a bit exasperated when He said this, but He healed the man’s son anyway, and as verse 53 tells us, the result was that the man and his whole household indeed believed that Jesus was the Messiah. The thing is, God indeed does things in our lives to trigger us to believe. Sometimes we accept those things with joy and do grow in faith, but sometimes we make humanistic excuses and go on as if nothing had happened. That’s tragic! As John famously proclaimed in his first letter, it is faith that gives us victory over the world. (1 John 5:4) That faith is a gift from God, but we have to accept it and apply it for it to be operative. (Ephesians 2:8-9) The man in this story took Jesus at His word that his son would live and headed home immediately, exercising what faith he had. It wasn’t until after he had done that, that the timing of everything was confirmed and his whole household believed. The faith of any individual can have a remarkable effect on those around them. When we experience victory because of our faith, others look at us and can decide that what we have is the real thing, and choose to believe as well. It can be quite a cascade! However, it won’t happen unless we exercise the faith we have already been given, however small that might be. Jesus repeatedly used the figure of a mustard seed in talking about faith. A seed might be tiny, but it has life in it and so will grow, given the opportunity. Our faith can trigger the signs and wonders that will cause others to believe!

However it happens, I want more people around me to believe! By God’s very interesting plan, my wife’s Care Manager for her disabilities is the son of a Buddhist priest. As we have gotten to know each other we find we like each other a lot. A couple of days ago he ordered a sling for Cathy’s broken elbow from his phone, and it was to arrive “on Saturday,” so he said he would bring it by. It wasn’t delivered until around 8 pm, but after calling, he brought it anyway. I really think God has connected him to us so that he may be brought into God’s family. Our faith is on display to all the people around us, and I believe God is using the “signs and wonders” that happen in our lives to impart faith to others. I certainly pray so! I don’t need signs and wonders to make me believe more, but I welcome them if they might draw others to believe.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the relationship You are building between us and the Care Manager. Thank You for the photo and craft show we’ll be setting up tomorrow, and for all the people we will see because of that. I pray that our every interaction may draw people to desire and receive the relationship with You that they see we have, for the salvation of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Evangelism; August 12, 2023

Posted on August 13, 2023 by jgarrott

John 4:42 They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

The woman was an extremely effective evangelist, but all evangelism must lead to the result expressed here, with the person being evangelized encountering Christ personally. Testimonies are powerful and effective, but only to the degree that they lead their hearers or readers to open their own hearts to the Lord. The problem with the various systems of evangelism is that they all depend on a logical progression of ideas. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with logic, but by itself it will save no one. What each person needs is an encounter, and since we don’t have the advantage these Samaritans did of seeing and hearing Jesus in the flesh, that has to be by faith. I have the greatest admiration and respect for Dennis Prager, but he hasn’t made that last step. He is mightily used by God in rescuing people from the lies of the devil, but his marvelously logical mind can’t believe that the Creator, of whom he is fully convinced, loves him personally enough to send His Son to be his Savior. That is tragic. He says clearly that he chokes on the idea of loving and being loved by God. The woman in this story was overwhelmed by Jesus’ love in treating her as a valuable human being, when she had been so used by men in the past, and the villagers in turn were touched by the love that radiated from Him. We have to express the facts of the Gospel to as many people as possible, but it is love that will draw them into the family of God.

This is perfectly applicable to the message I’m to bring tomorrow on Family. I prepared it for last week, but God superseded it with one on Walking. I just added, as the climax to the message, that we need to share the facts of the Gospel with people but it is love that will draw them into God’s family. We are never to be satisfied with a simply intellectual agreement with the Gospel, either in ourselves or in others. I got trapped in that, which quickly devolved into pride, because I knew the facts better than most, so I thought I was a better Christian than most. Salvation is in some respects a contract, but God wants far more than a contract; He wants a relationship. My focus is to be on that relationship, both for myself and drawing others into it as well.

Father, thank You for this clear Word. Help me express it clearly to everyone tomorrow, so that they too may turn on to sharing such a loving Savior with as many people as possible, for the salvation of many and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Divine Appointments; August 11, 2023

Posted on August 12, 2023 by jgarrott

John 4:25-26 The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I who speak to you am he.”

Either John talked to the woman over the next two days, (verse 40) which seems likely, or God gave him a clear revelation of what went on, because Jesus and the woman were the only people physically present at this encounter. That said, this is an absolutely amazing incident. In the first place, Jesus knew that He had an appointment at this well, because there was no particular reason why He would have been more tired than His disciples, but He stayed behind. In the second place, the woman herself brought up the socially and culturally unusual, even inappropriate, elements of a Jewish man having a conversation with a Samaritan woman. In the third place, this is the first time, and one of the clearest times, Jesus told anyone that He was the Son of God. God certainly has a way of doing the unexpected! We have no record of how many of the townspeople believed in Jesus over the next couple of days, but it was quite a few at least. God’s plans may be unexpected, and even strange from our perspective, but they are always good. What Jesus told this woman, that doubtless resonated strongly in her heart, has opened the eyes of countless people down through the centuries since John recorded it. This is yet another illustration that nothing is impossible with God! (Luke 1:27)

I’ve had assorted unexpected/surprising encounters with God over the years, and I look forward to the next! The term, divine appointment, has resonated with me ever since I first heard it, because it so well describes many experiences I’ve had. I do make plans and set up schedules, but I am very aware that God is the One who controls what actually happens. Nothing I could plan would equal what He has in mind! I have learned that He can use absolutely anything to bring about blessing, (Romans 8:28) and I am to expect Him to do so. I have learned that He can speak through me even when I have no idea it’s happening, and I am to expect Him to do that, too. I have also learned that He can and does speak to me in ways and through people and things that I would not have expected, and I am to seek to be open and sensitive to Him whenever that happens. We’re back to the uncontestable reality that God is far smarter and more powerful than we could ever be, and that’s a very good thing indeed.

Father, thank You for Your plans for my life. At this age I might think those plans are finished, but I remember Moses, whose ministry really began when he was 80. Help me meet all Your appointments for me and recognize them when they happen, rejoicing in being part of Your plan, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Being Used by God; August 10, 2023

Posted on August 11, 2023 by jgarrott

John 3:34 “For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.”

For once the NIV and the Japanese agree on a minor departure from the literal Greek. The Greek says, “He gives the Spirit,” but both translations in front of me replace the pronoun with God. The translators didn’t want anyone thinking that ordinary humans could go around giving the Spirit without limit, simply because they had been sent by God. In a sense that is true, but it is also true that God can use someone as a channel for Him to pour His Spirit through. We aren’t to draw back from that, but rather earnestly desire that it happen, for God’s glory alone. The moment we try to take the glory for something God does through us we lose the benefit of it, and the thing itself is immeasurably cheapened. I think that’s a major part of what Jesus was talking about when He said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” (Matthew 7:21-23) The prophecies, deliverances, and miracles had to be works of God, because humans can’t do those things, but if they took the glory for themselves, they alienated themselves from the very One they claimed to serve. I read a quote just yesterday from a popular singer that was very pointed and, I think, accurate: “Success doesn’t change you. Fame does.” When we are used by God our flesh and the devil want us to take the credit, but that is a terrible mistake. It is indeed God who pours out His Spirit without limit, and we must never try to take any credit for that.

I have long desired to be a “fire hose of the Spirit,” so to speak, but God has known that would destroy me, because of my innate tendency to pride. He’s still working on me in that area! My mind has run in many different directions thinking about what God might have in store for me after my retirement from secular teaching. It was said around 30 years ago that I would have a major part in revival in Japan. I would be absolutely thrilled if that were the case, but I certainly can’t make it happen. If God does use me, I’ve got to be very clear to myself and to others that it’s not me, it’s Him. Maybe I’m old enough and tired enough to get out of the way and let Him do whatever He likes through me, for His glory. I certainly hope so!

Father, thank You for this reminder. Help me indeed stay out of the way of whatever You want to do in and through me, so that Your will may be accomplished on Your schedule for Your pleasure and glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Walking in the Light; August 9, 2023

Posted on August 10, 2023 by jgarrott

John 3:20 “Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.”

For some reason I’ve been referencing verses 18-21 a lot recently! As Intercessors for America was saying just yesterday, the prayer focus for 2023 has been truth and justice. With whistleblowers and the like we’ve been seeing a lot of truth come out, and we need to keep praying for justice. I think the truth of this verse is something everyone has experienced, not just in those around them or in the news, but in their own heart. We don’t like it when the bad stuff we do comes out! That’s why honesty before God is so essential. As came up two days ago, we can’t hide anything from God anyway, so it’s really a matter of being honest with ourselves. If we indeed confess our sins in repentance, He will truly cleanse us from the filth we’ve gotten ourselves into, just as John wrote. (1 John 1:9) When we know we are forgiven and clean, we run joyfully to God to fellowship with Him, which is what we were created for. This verse describes the reverse of that, and it’s absolutely tragic. As we pray for truth and justice in all things, we need to pray God’s mercy for those who have been deceived by the devil. Yesterday I saw a video of a man who seemed like a nice person, but he was convinced of things that are opposite the truth. It takes courage to admit, even to yourself, that you’ve been immersed in a lie! The ultimate answer is of course Jesus, since as He Himself said, He is the Truth. (John 14:6) He is the light in whom we are to walk, just as He says here.

I had the huge advantage of being raised by a man who held Absolute Honesty as one of his foundational principles. Coming to the light has been comparatively easy for me, though there have certainly been things in my life that I can’t brag about and would rather not discuss! However, I must never deny that they have happened, but rather give glory to God and delight in His grace and mercy. The Internet brings me an immense flow of facts, as well as a lot of attempted deception. I must let Holy Spirit be the filter on my eyes, ears, and heart, so that I will not be led astray but stay on God’s path consistently, doing His will on His schedule for His glory.

Father, thank You for Your grace and mercy. Thank You for not discarding me when I refused to follow what I knew You were saying. Help me be a faithful guide to help others likewise walk in Your light, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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Symbols; August 8, 2023

Posted on August 9, 2023 by jgarrott

John 3:14-15 “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”

The verse after this gets the most attention, but this part also is justly famous. The thing is, the average person isn’t particularly familiar with the story of Moses lifting up the snake. The story is in Numbers 21:4-9. The people had been complaining again, this time about the lack of water, and they had become completely jaded with the miraculous provision of manna every morning and wanted something different to eat. The Lord decided they needed to be reminded that things could be worse, and He sent venomous snakes among them to teach them that lesson. Under the Lord’s instructions, Moses made a bronze snake and put it on a pole, and everyone who had been bitten, if they looked at that bronze snake they recovered. That sounds like a bizarre story to us today, but it’s interesting that it’s specifically the stories that secularists tend to choke on – Noah, Jonah, the bronze snake – that Jesus explicitly references. That should teach us not to take any part of the Bible lightly! The image, as Jesus expressed it, is remarkably apt, because Jesus was indeed lifted up in much the same way as that snake, and it is by believing that His death was for our sake that we receive the gift of eternal life. We do, however, need to be careful that we treat crosses and crucifixes as reminders, rather than as having power in themselves. 2 Kings 18:4 records that good king Hezekiah had to break up the bronze snake, because people had made it an idol, which they called Nehushtan. Our focus needs to be on God Himself and not on anything else, even if God gave it to us for our good.

Raised in a Baptist home, I was taught that symbols are no more than symbols. That in itself is good, but sometimes those symbols are very important. My view of baptism shifted after reading a book titled If You Care to Accept It, which is about a move of God in New Guinea. Baptism itself certainly doesn’t impart sinless perfection, but we should expect it to make a real difference in the person receiving it. Likewise, I am particular about the bread and the cup of Communion. (We use grape juice, for a number of reasons.) They are symbols, certainly, but we need to be reminded to give our bodies to Christ, just as He gave His for us, and we daily need His blood to wash our hearts and minds of the filth in which we live. As a pastor, I need to keep pointing people to the invisible reality behind the symbols we use.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Sometimes we get confused as to what is symbolic and what is real. Help me keep it straight in my own heart and mind and lead others to do likewise, for their blessings and Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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God’s Omniscience; August 7, 2023

Posted on August 8, 2023 by jgarrott

John 2:25 He did not need man’s testimony about man, for he knew what was in a man.

Sometimes we forget that God is omniscient. We do all sorts of things to try to hide from Him, but it’s like a little kid denying that they got into Mommy’s makeup when they have lipstick all over their face. Actually, the amazing thing isn’t that God knows everything about us, it’s that He loves us anyway. He doesn’t love everything we do, but He loves us. Really grasping both sides of that will give us peace that can be had no other way. Sometimes we get frantic that “God will find out” something about us, when He knows us better than we know ourselves! Conversely, we can get completely torn up over something we have done, when God knows the sin and the repercussions of it far better than we do. All we have to do is ack­nowledge it before Him and ask His forgiveness and cleansing, and He will do what we never could. (1 John 1:9) Recent advances in astronomy, courtesy of the new telescopes we’re now able to put into space, are showing us the incredible size of the universe, quite literally beyond our power to grasp. That makes it all the more miraculous that God both knows and cares about every detail of our existence. (Luke 12:2) When God already knows every detail about us, better than we know ourselves, the only logical course is to walk open and honest before Him, never attempting deceit but asking and allowing Him to keep working on us, correcting and growing us as He knows we need it. After all, that’s far easier and more peaceful than trying to maintain any sort of facade. However, we won’t do that unless we know in our deepest being that He loves us in spite of ourselves.

I think the greatest gift my parents gave me was the assurance that I was loved, by them and especially by God. I don’t remember all the details of how they did that, but they were certainly effective. It is recorded, in my parents’ Christmas newsletter when I was five, that I went to my mother and told her, “Mommy, I really, really love you, but I don’t love you nearly as much as I love Jesus.” I would never have had that attitude if I hadn’t been strongly aware of the love that was poured out on me. That love didn’t spoil me; I was very used to being told “No.” However, it certainly penetrated, and I am deeply grateful. Now, my task is to help others know that God loves them as much as He does me. People don’t seem to have trouble believing that God loves me, but they choke on the idea that He could love them just as much. I can’t force them to believe, but I can give them the information as winningly as possible and let Holy Spirit work it into their hearts and minds.

Father, thank You for this reminder, and for Your incredible love – in spite of Your omniscience! I ask You to enable me to locate that carbon copy of the Christmas newsletter that I quoted. I just looked for it, and didn’t turn it up. There are many things from my past that are worth preserving, but I’m not a very good archivist! May all that You have done, are doing, and will do in my life accomplish what You intend, for Your pleasure and glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Reasons to Believe; August 6, 2023

Posted on August 7, 2023 by jgarrott

John 2:11 This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

Having been raised as a tea-totaling Baptist, it’s always been impressive to me that Jesus’ first miracle in front of His disciples was changing water to wine. That said, there are several points about this that are worthy of meditation. The first is that this was in response to someone else’s felt need, it wasn’t to satisfy Himself. The second is that the result was of the highest quality. The third is that there was no big show about it, no mysterious incantations or gestures. It is also worth noting that water in those days wasn’t necessarily potable; wine was in that sense a much safer drink. We don’t know how many disciples were with Jesus at this point. When they all got invited to the wedding banquet, I have a feeling it wasn’t the full 12 yet. All of that said, this was the first incident to make those disciples believe that Jesus was more than an impressive teacher. Teachers abound, but there’s only one Son of God! We aren’t in the same situation as those disciples, following Jesus around, watching Him and listening to Him, but we all have our reasons for believing in Him. Those reasons are countless, and in some ways different for every individual. If we try to convince someone to believe for the reasons we do, we aren’t so likely to succeed. That’s why packaged evangelism techniques have a very spotty track record. It is Holy Spirit who opens people’s eyes and hearts to Jesus, and we need to listen to Him. He knows each person’s deepest needs, and what will touch them. After all, we can’t force anyone to believe!

I am hardly a gifted evangelist, but I have had the privilege of leading some to commitment. I think every one has been different. Just last night over the phone I was able to share the Gospel in a way that confirmed the commitment in someone’s heart. By the time I finished praying, he was crying to the point of not being able to talk. Holy Spirit was really working in him. I rejoice at such opportunities, but I can’t make them happen. All I can do is pray to be sensitive to them when God presents them to me, and as Paul said, make the most of them. (Colossians 4:5) My upbringing gave me something of a head start on faith, but I must never take it for granted and get lazy about it. I am to exercise the faith I have been given and allow God to use it to draw more people to repentance and faith, for their salvation and His glory.

Father, thank You indeed for last night, and for bringing that young man through to this point. I pray that his faith would be strengthened daily as he chooses to live it out in every area of his life, drawing others to You by his example, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!

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Discipleship; August 5, 2023

Posted on August 6, 2023 by jgarrott

John 1:35-37 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus.

I am struck by the fact that Andrew and John, who were considered, and probably considered themselves, to be disciples of John the Baptist, so quickly left him and followed Jesus. That shows that John’s disciples were seeking more of God, not more of John the Baptist. That is in distinct contrast to cult leaders – and many who don’t think they are cult leaders – who seek allegiance to themselves first of all. Sadly, I have known quite a few pastors who were like that. Andrew and John the son of Zebedee were convinced that John the Baptist spoke truth from God, so when he said that Jesus was the Lamb of God, they immediately followed Jesus. There have been “Discipleship Movements” in the past that have essentially been exercises in control, and that is not what genuine discipleship is about at all. A disciple is one who follows his master to learn from them. That does indeed involve discipline, as the English words make clear, but believers are to be disciples of Jesus Christ, and only secondarily disciples of any simply human leader. The problem is that control can be addictive; receiving obedience can be heady stuff! The devil loves to use that, and he has ruined countless churches and ministries using it. Likewise, some people actually enjoy being controlled, because it frees them from responsibility (or so they feel). Genuine Christian discipleship is all about responsibility, and submission to Jesus Christ alone. Often that will involve obedience to a human leader, but that must never be the focus. Every Christian leader must say with John the Baptist, “He must become greater; I must become less.” (John 3:30)

As a pastor myself, this is extremely applicable to me. To be honest, adulation makes me uncomfortable, but at the same time there is a part of me that likes it. I’ve got to be on my guard! My goal in ministry is to raise up disciples of Jesus, just as He commanded in the Great Commission. (Matthew 28:18-20) I am grateful to say that I have raised up a few, but that number never approaches the number of people in the church. However, I’m never to give up, but always keep pointing people to Jesus. One thing I think I’ve done right was commented on by a believer who moved here from another part of Japan. He said, “I’ve never encountered another pastor who was so open about his weaknesses and imperfections.” I’ve messed up in so many different ways that I don’t see how I could be otherwise, but at the same time I know I wouldn’t be that way if I weren’t convinced that God loves me anyway. I can make true disciples of Jesus Christ only to the degree that I am one myself.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for Your incredible, gracious faithfulness toward me, even though my own faithfulness has certainly been less than perfect. Help me be an effective example and mentor to draw many more into genuine discipleship, for the sake of the Body of Christ and for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!

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