I’m going to open myself up to all kinds of mail. Without true, biblical fathers, this nation is lost. Why? Because our fathers are the ones who impart not only survival knowledge to their children, but also, the training and grit it takes to be a true human being. Yes, our species is always in danger of self-destructing. It’s only because of our fathers that the generations step up one after another.

Well, what about Mom? Of course Mom is just as important, but in a far different way. A true human being is balanced. That’s what dads and moms do for us. They put us on track and keep us in balance.

This is the way it is: dads bring discipline, grit, and strength to the family. They don’t have to be Christians to make this happen because it’s written into our genes by God already. My dad was not a believer, but he sure taught me what it meant to be a man. I am grateful for him “whipping me into shape,” and I say that both literally and figuratively.

Having Christ as our Savior makes us all the better fathers. Think about Jesus. He was on balance. He displayed all the toughness and grit that a man should have (After all…He was a carpenter; walked everywhere, overcame temptations, and took a horrible beating and then hung on the cross), but Jesus was also loving, kind, and self-giving. That’s balance…and it takes moral courage.

Now, here’s the tragedy of our day. In our nation right now, there are 50 percent of the homes that have no father. Oh, they may have a boyfriend, or a stepfather, neither of whom have proven very valuable. In fact, we have a whole generation of wimped-out men who fill our prisons, impregnate our women, and substance abuse themselves to death.

We need fathers who fear God and faithfully take care of their families as the Almighty intended; Christ is our example.

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1. Father’s Day
2. Honoring Our Fathers

Yet, I realize that those who framed this day were first of all concerned for the health of the American pulpit. After all, our nation was founded on freedom of religion, and right after that, freedom of speech.

The American pulpit used to be the moral and ethical leader of righteousness. Now, it seems seriously diminished as secular humanism (not your will, God, but mine be done) has taken over. Add to this sad rejection of sound, biblical teaching from our pulpits the fact that the IRS has threatened to take away the church’s nonprofit tax status if preachers address politics or endorse political candidates from the pulpit. Such nonsense is both an affront to religious freedom and freedom of speech. But, then again, the IRS has in recent days proven itself corrupt, so we might take a breather here.

The issue of freely preaching from the American pulpit, however, is still a very real and important concern. In case you haven’t noticed, among the first to be thrown in prison by Adolf Hitler were the preachers. Like the secular government, the devil doesn’t like completion. He much prefers to gag those who have truth to speak, especially when it puts him in a bad light. This should remind us of the current class of politicians in Washington, and in particular, those at the top.

Yes, as long as the American pulpit is free, then we will be free, but when the American pulpit is silenced, then the day will have arrived as spoken about in Scripture: ”But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will…(be) haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited…” (2 Tim.3.1-5).

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Christian people generally don’t seem to have the same enthusiasm for heaven that Patrick did. In a sense, I can understand this because none of us are in a great hurry to die; nevertheless, death for the Christian is more of a “graduation,” as Patrick would say, then an ending.

This Memorial Sunday we remember those who have gone on before us. We remember them in various states of joy and sadness. Of course, joy and sadness are the wages of being on this planet. To mourn those who’ve gone on is natural, but because of Jesus, we can rejoice. We can take heart that our loved ones, especially those who were Christians have the eternal peace and happiness that Jesus promised believers. But what about those who did not know the Lord? What are we to say of their final destination?

Solomon, King of Israel and the wisest man who ever lived, said this in Ecclesiastes, “…There is one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean, and the unclean…there is one fate for all men…” (Eccles.9.2-3). What is it? Death. But, he said this B.C. Paul writes later: “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive” (1 Cor.15.22). Perhaps we should hesitate to pass judgment on the wicked, who did not know Christ, when God came in Person to die for us and pay the price for our sins. That says much about God and His benevolence towards men. The love/peace of God surpasses our knowledge (John 3.16; Phil. 4.7).

So, this Memorial Day, please remember those who went before, and remember them in the context of God’s great love, and His mercy, and His grace to provide a place for
us to be with Him…forever.

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We read in Acts, chapter two, that “(on) the day of Pentecost…they were all together in one place…and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit…” This is no small event but, unfortunately, it has been shaped by opinion and interpretation into something quite different from what it was.

Jesus told the disciples that they were to wait in Jerusalem until “power came upon them” (acts 1.8). It was the same promise that He gave them in John 14, where He said, “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper…” (14.16).

We can all agree that Jesus promised us power in the Holy Spirit and that He was given in a new way to the church at Pentecost. What we have a problem with is the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Christians have been divided over this issue for generations.

We need to recognize of first importance that the key manifestation of the Holy Spirit is “love for one another.” That’s the sign of our spirit filling given by Jesus (John 13,35). After love comes holiness. Peter writes, “but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior” (1 Pt. 1.15,16). I can guarantee that without the filling of the Holy Spirit, you’re not going to be able to love as you should, nor will you be able to live as you should.

Those who advocate speaking in tongues as the sign of spirit filling are often far from loving or holy. We need to turn things around here. Let’s all be filled with the Holy Spirit, and yes, let’s ask for the filling (Luke 11.13). But, God forbid that in exercising our gift that we are less loving and/or less holy (1 Cor. 14 ff).

Happy Birthday church!

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I got into trouble in a previous church where I served because I praised my mother in a sermon. It made a couple women in the congregation feel inferior. I received the same criticism at another time for preaching from Proverbs 31 on “The Virtuous Woman.” So, I rarely speak about Mom anymore. Yet, here in this writing, facing the possibility of criticism for lifting up a positive, Christian woman, I will say this much: My mom loved me and treated me with kindness, teaching me to be a decent human being. Furthermore, she feared God.

We only need to think about some biblical women, who give a good example, to begin to understand God’s divine intention for women. There’s Ruth, whose husband died, but she chose to stay with and care for her mother-in-law and finally married Boaz, showing herself as hard-working, honorable and faithful (Ruth 1.4-18; 3.1-4.13). And, we have Samuel’s mother, Hannah, who trained up her son in the fear of the LORD and dedicated him to priestly work (1.19 – 2.10). Her “song of praise to the LORD” is prophetic. Then, too, there’s Mary, the mother of our Lord Jesus, who was dear to Him and prayed and ministered to Him all the way to the Cross (Luke 2.26-37-2.52; John 19.26,27). Her prophetic utterance is called the “Magnificat” and it holds wisdom for the Christian woman today.

So, it is plain to see that God intended for women to be virtuous, persevering, loving and righteous. They are to be the heart of their homes, and indeed, they deserve our esteem.

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Well, the simple answer is “God was right where He’s always been — in the midst of it all.” This being the case, “Why didn’t He act on behalf of the innocent?” That’s a good question. Yet, ”God is not a man that He should lie…” (Num. 23.19). The biblical text relates, in essence, that what He has said, He will do. Think about that. Jesus said, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (John 10.10). It’s not God’s divine intention that destruction, carnage and death should rain upon us (Ephes. 1.5-8). The problem is man’s free will.

God did not perpetrate the Boston bombing…men did. God intervened with many medical personnel who were standing by for the marathon runners. These people saved many lives that would have been lost otherwise for lack of quick medical  attention. God also intervened in that the blast did not kill more people, nor do more damage, nor radically disrupt the whole area.

It was the free will of supposed terrorists, who were carrying out their insane belief that their cause would be furthered by this evil act.

Nothing has changed. God is still in His heaven; mankind is still living his sinful lives. The solution is the same: Jesus came to seek and saved the lost (sinners). When we think about all the acts of violence brought about in recent days, it’s worthwhile to remind ourselves that normal people, people who have jobs, families and hopes, do not do such things. It’s the fringe that are swayed by evil to do evil.

Let us remember: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Rom.12.21). It’s God’s way of life.

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We’re the same way. We believe in Jesus. We are taught by His words, we agree with His mission, and we abide in His church, but we are reluctant to “go it on our own.”
When I took my solo flight after a year’s flight training, my instructor told me, “Now, the aircraft will behave differently without my weight.” No kidding. A sense of fear gripped my mind as I flew off into the blue with the empty seat beside me. Yet, that’s exactly what I needed. Just like a baby bird getting kicked out of the nest, I needed to go it alone. One cannot be a full-fledged pilot, nor for that matter, a full-fledged Christian, until you “solo.”

It’s surprising how many Christians have not soloed.

Jesus commanded us all, those disciples then, and us now, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them…and teaching them….” (Matt. 28.19,20). It’s just been within, I’d say the last 30 years, that church attending, Christian people have become less and less evangelistic. Jesus set the example: He taught them, and then He lived it before them. Step two is to live it before men.

Our courage comes from the Holy Spirit who was given to the church a long time ago. He’s still available, and even though we often neglect Him, He is ready and willing to give us the words and the life to win the lost to Christ. After all, it’s what Jesus wanted, and we should want it too…after Easter.

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We reminded ourselves that the Easter saga is the gospel. In those three short days God in Christ gave us the best news we’ll ever have. He showed us by His example that sin is taken care of, that we have the victory in Him, and that our place in heaven, by a genuine faith, is secure.

But there’s another piece to the gospel that gets left out, and Pastor Matt pointed to that as the commission of Christ. That is, we now have “good news” to share with the world, and it’s our moral duty to do so (Matt. 28.19,20).

Some 40 days after the resurrection Jesus ascended into heaven before His disciples. It must have been and amazing sight. So amazing that they stood there gazing. Two angels appeared to them and said…”Why gaze” (My interpretation, Acts 1.11)? The text lends itself to “the great commission,”…get going, get busy, get the good news out. The Easter message is loaded with action.

Unfortunately, our culture is strong on words but weak on action. We Christians talk about “sharing Christ,” but more often than not we hesitate to do so. Why? Well, fear of criticism and lack of biblical knowledge probably contribute to our reluctance. Yet, what is evangelism other than one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread?

Let’s make this Easter a launch pad to our witness; let’s honor our resurrected Lord by doing His known will.

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It should be every Christian’s desire, his most sincere longing, his hope to be at home in heaven with Jesus. After all, the Lord said, “…I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also (John 14.3). Yet, our ties to this earth are strong, and we’re in no hurry to leave it.

I guess that Easter time brings us again face to face with eternal destinations. The passion of Christ and His glorious resurrection, and then His “ascension into heaven,” lift up the question: “Where am I going?”

Our brother, Patrick Suter, spoke much about being at home in heaven with Jesus. For him, it was a reality that drew him like a nail to a magnet. I can still see his face set in a smile of longing for that promise. The “things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace” (Hymn: “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus”).

It’s a great encouragement to have so many going through near death experiences and returning to tell us that there’s a heaven on the other side. It’s a place of wonderful color, and sounds, and glorious presence. Everything is so much more real and alive over there, and throughout is the all encompassing love of God. Few who’ve experienced this want to return to earth.

Nevertheless, even as the disciples watched Jesus ascend into heaven, and as they tarried there, wishing to be with Him, the LORD’s angel appear to them saying: “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven” (Acts 1.11). And then…we can almost add the words…”Get back to living better in the now because you know where you’re going.”

Jesus is coming again, for us…very soon.

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We have been preaching about overcoming, and we can indeed rejoice that through Christ Jesus our Lord we can be victorious. But, we must own it. We must believe it and practice it. “Greater is He (Jesus) who is in you than he (the devil) who is in the world” (1 Jn 4.4). Therefore, take heart…you’re on the winning side!

This is not just religious fancy. It s the truth predicated both on the Word of God and on our own Christian experience. That is, we know that Jesus taught us to have faith in God, because there’s a reward in it, and we know that “faith is the victory” (Mk. 1; Heb.11.6; 1 Jn. 5.4). We know that when we follow God’s Word, it all turns out better.

If ever there was a time in our nation when we need to overcome the world, it is now. Before, during our revolutionary and civil wars, there were real issues with real manifestations. But now, in this climate, everything is “stealth.” I mean, you can’t know for sure who’s telling the truth and who isn’t, nor can we know for sure who’s for us or against us.

Let us then persevere. Let’s continue in the known Word of God, believing Jesus holds the victory. This is not a time to wring our hands in despair, nor is it a time to cave in.

Therefore, let us be of good courage, and look beyond the day the trouble of the day. Like Allstate…”You’re in good hands.”

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