Sayre Woods Bible Church

This is what the LORD says to the house of Israel: ”Seek me and live; do not seek Bethel, do not go to Gilgal, do not journey to Beersheba. For Gilgal will surely go into exile, and Bethel will be reduced to nothing.” (Amos 5:4-5) 

Seek Me and live. To a nation and people that are wandering away from Him, God simply says, “Seek Me and live.” Seek Me, run after Me, pursue Me, desire Me, make Me your priority.

I was trying to think this morning what it means to “seek God.” I guess it boils down to wanting Him, really desiring Him. We seek that which we love or that which we feel that we cannot live without. In Matthew 6, after talking about worrying over finances, food, clothing, and daily provision, Jesus says, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well” (6:33). Instead of seeking after financial security, making this your priority, making this your aim, making this the thing you worry about, Jesus says, “Seek God. Seek His kingdom and His righteousness.” Pursue Him.

I am reminded of A.W. Tozer’s book, The Pursuit of God. It is one of the most powerful Christian books written in the last century. His first chapter is “Following Hard after God” in which he states that the main problem we face in the Christian life is lack of desire. We become complacent, apathetic, thirsty and hungry for the wrong things. We fight this battle every day in our lives. Actually we fight it in almost every relationship. Why do marriage relationships so often falter, fizzle, and fail? Desire for one another gets slowly replaced by apathy and busyness. The relationship becomes so cluttered with trivial things, unresolved issues, and other desires that the heart of the relationship dies.

No relationship can operate on cruise control. The natural tendency of all things in this sin-cursed world is to move toward, what scientists call, entropy. Disorder. Decay. Actually, the definition of entropy is pretty interesting. “A measure of disorder of the molecules in substances that are in contact with each other, indicating the amount of energy that (although it still exists) is not available for use because it has become more evenly distributed instead of being concentrated.” In other words, energy is not lost in substances rather it is distributed among so many other things that it loses its concentration, its power, its effectiveness. The same is true with us. How many things are on your mind right now? How many things are on mine?

God says, “Seek Me and live.” Don’t go running off to Bethel, Gilgal, and Beersheba (places of worship, idolatry, and government). For our time…don’t go running to Washington DC, Trenton, Colorado Springs, Nashville, or even Sayre Woods to find peace, security, satisfaction, and direction. Run to Me.

And what’s the promise? You will live. Find God and you find life…real life, true life, abundant life, everlasting life.

No matter where we are, God promises, “But if…you seek the LORD your God, you will find Him if you look for Him with all your heart and with all your soul” (Deuteronomy 4:29).

Lord, I thirst and hunger after the wrong things. My mind is easily distracted. My emotions are easily dominated by worry. Calm the waves of my heart and help me to see You and seek You today.

“The LORD roars from Zion and thunders from Jerusalem; 
the pastures of the shepherds dry up, and the top of Carmel withers.” (Amos 1:2).

Our reading in the minor prophets continues today with chapter one of Amos. If you have gotten off track in your daily reading, today is a good day to get back on track.

For historical context, Amos prophesies to the northern kingdom of Israel around 750 BC. This is a time of prosperity and power for Israel. They are feeling smug and secure and living in luxury. They have no concern for others and no real concern for God. Amos, a shepherd and farmer by trade, is sent by God to wake up His people to His coming judgment. As Amos says in 1:2, “The LORD roars from Zion.” His roar is a warning that judgment is coming. Indeed, in 722 BC, the northern kingdom of Israel would be totally destroyed by the Assyrians. 

The LORD roars. God is pictured as a lion about to pounce on His prey. God is a God of mercy and grace but we can’t really understand these attributes unless we also understand that God is a God of holiness, power, sovereignty, and judgment. God hates sin with a holy passion! It is a cancer in His universe and He must judge and destroy it.

Amos reminds us that God sees the sins of all nations. He sees the cruelty of Damascus, the slavery and greed of Gaza, the treachery and slavery of Tyre, the anger and lack of compassion of Edom, and the total disregard for life and the desire for power and gain in Ammon. These sins do not escape His notice. Nations will be judged. This in itself reminds me that, though our citizenship is in heaven, we do have a responsibility in the nation in which we live to fight injustice, promote mercy, uphold truth, and seek God’s righteousness.

God is a lion and His roar should wake us up. I am reminded of C.S. Lewis’ Narnia series. In these books, God is portrayed as a lion named Aslan. And we are reminded in the first book that “He is no tame lion.” God is loving and kind but He is not to be trifled with. He is not mocked. He cannot be ignored.

Amos reminds me that in my love of God’s grace, I should not ignore God’s pure holiness and powerful sovereignty. My tendency is to reduce God into something that I can handle, something I can grasp and understand. This is the “God” of my own mind, not the God of the universe, the King of Kings, the Lion of Judah. The “God” of my mind I can control. The God of the universe is beyond control. He reigns supreme and to Him I must submit.

Lord, expand my vision of You.

“In those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will enter into judgment against them concerning my inheritance, my people Israel, for they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land.” (Joel 3:1-2)

One of the most amazing things to me has been how the nation of Israel has survived despite thousands of years of persecution. Since Joel wrote this prophecy almost 3000 years ago, Israel has been conquered and possessed by the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Greeks, and the Romans. The Romans so completely destroyed them in 70 AD that they were scattered throughout the world. While scattered, the Jews continued to face persecution and oppression in both “Christian,” Moslem and secular nations. Hitler’s regime sought the total annihilation of the Jewish race. Iran’s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, seeks the same today. Despite all this persecution, the tiny nation of Israel stands today in the midst of a hostile territory. It is an amazing fact of history that a nation dispersed and virtually destroyed in 70 AD could come back as a strong, organized democratic nation in 1948. There truly is something unique about the nation of Israel and about the Jewish people.

Joel prophesies that one day Judah and Jerusalem will be fully restored and that there will be a judgment of the nations based on their treatment of Israel. Many Bible interpreters believe that this will take place after a seven year period of tribulation on the earth. During these seven years, many Jews will come to recognize Christ as Messiah and the nations of the earth will, once again, set their sights on annihilating the nation of Israel. Jesus Christ Himself will return during this time to defend His people and judge the nations.

Where do we as Christians stand in all this? Well, Paul tells us in Romans 11 that we have been “grafted” into the promises of Israel. We are now participants in God’s blessings, through Christ, the King of Israel. This should not create pride in us but rather responsibility. We have been blessed to bless others. We also, like Paul, should pray for the salvation of the Jewish people and for the peace of Jerusalem. Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved (Romans 10:1).

God’s plan still involves the people and nation of Israel. For if there transgression [i.e., rejection of Christ] means riches for the world [i.e., Christ’s death for all mankind], and their loss means riches to the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their fullness bring! (Romans 11:12) In other words, if the Jews rejection of Jesus as their King brought spiritual salvation to the world, then their acceptance of Him as King will bring about the full redemption and restoration of the world. When Christ reigns on earth, He will reign from Jerusalem as the King of the Jews and the King of all nations.

Lord, may Your power continue to protect the people of Israel and may Your grace penetrate their hearts today.

“Even now,” declares the LORD, ”return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. (Joel 2:12-13)

Yesterday began our reading of the minor prophets. We start with the prophecy of Joel.

Reading and understanding the minor prophets takes some work. The prophets use a lot of imagery and symbolism…much of which can only be understood by comparing Scripture with Scripture and knowing the historical situation in which they wrote.

Joel is one of the more difficult prophets to understand because his historical situation is relatively unknown. Apparently a massive locust invasion in Judah prompted Joel to prophesy. The devastation in the land caused by the locusts led Joel to foretell of a future time when the devastation will be even greater…only this time it won’t be locusts that invade the land but a vast army intent on destroying Israel.

Though Israel has been invaded many times since Joel’s prophecy, it appears that his prophecy pertains primarily to a still future time when Israel will be invaded by an army and the Messiah will intervene to bring judgment on Israel’s enemies and blessing upon the land. This is what the people in Jesus’ day expected when He claimed to be Messiah. However, they failed to repent because they failed to understand their deep need for forgiveness and spiritual salvation. They wanted physical relief not spiritual regeneration. Thus, the kingdom was postponed until the time of Christ’s second coming.

We now stand in that gap waiting for the appearance of our Savior and God, Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13). Unfortunately it is just as easy for us to get sidetracked as Israel did in the Old Testament. We want physical relief more than spiritual renewal. We weep and mourn over trivial things rather than over the condition of the souls of mankind. I fall into that trap. That’s why reading the Old Testament prophets is usually not a “fun” experience. You are confronted with your addiction to things that really do not matter.

Joel confronts us with the words of the LORD–”Even now, return to me with all your heart with fasting and weeping and mourning. Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and He relents from sending calamity” (2:12-13). 

I love that description of God…gracious, compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in love. But Joel does not tell us these things to promote passivity in our lives. We are not to take advantage of God’s grace like a rebellious teenager who figures he can do what he wants since his parents are so kind and gracious. No, God’s kindness is to lead us to repentance (Romans 2:4). God’s grace is to compel us to return to Him…as the broken prodigal returns to the Father…not run from Him spending our Father’s inheritance on wasteful, worthless things.

Just yesterday Joshua, my youngest son, gave me a run for my money. He was in a particularly obstinate mood. As a father, I tried to walk that delicate balance between love and discipline. I am sure I did not do it very well. My frustration was too strong at times. But as I reflected on that this morning, I realized that, to God, I am like my son, Joshua. Obstinate. Bent on my own way. Resistant to my Father’s proddings. God perfectly walks that balance between love and discipline, letting me experience the disappointments and pains of my own stubbornness and gently extending out His hands of love to welcome me back into His arms. But I must be willing to come.

Lord, I come to You this morning. Give me a repentant heart that does not take advantage of Your kindness but rather runs into Your arms of love and enjoys Your gracious embrace.

Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. (John 19:38-39)

When you read the gospel accounts, you get the impression that all the Jewish religious leaders were opposed to Jesus. However, this was not the case. At least two of them were “secret disciples” of Jesus–Joseph of Arimathea (on the Jewish Sanhedrin) and Nicodemus (the Pharisee who visited Jesus at night in John 3).

We do not know a lot about either man. Neither one is mentioned in the book of Acts or Paul’s epistles, which either means that they continued to be “secret disciples” of Jesus or that they were simply part of the “large number of priests” who followed Jesus but were not named (Acts 6:7). Here is what we do know….

Joseph of Arimathea was wealthy (Matt 27:57) and a prominent member of the Jewish Sanhedrin (Mark 15:43) who did not agree with their decision to condemn Jesus (Luke 23:51). He was a good and upright man (Luke 23:50), waiting for the kingdom of God (Luke 23:51). He had become a follower of Jesus…though secretly for fear of his fellow comrades (John 19:38). 

Nicodemus found himself in a similar situation. He was a Pharisee and probably also a part of the Sanhedrin (John 3:1). He visited Jesus at night early in Jesus’ ministry, presumably to avoid notice from his fellow Pharisees. He tried to stand up for Jesus in John 7:50 but was quickly shot down and apparently kept his allegiance to Jesus pretty quiet after that.

These two guys encourage me. They remind me that Jesus’ disciples are not always bold and fearless. Sometimes your love for Jesus is there but it is hard to express. You want to stand up but something holds you back. You feel like a failure and you kick yourself for your lack of faith. And you wonder how much God could love a fearful disciple.

Fear is such a frustrating thing. You know it is there, you know it is not valid, you know it shouldn’t control you…but often it does. You love Jesus but sometimes fear dominates you and you find yourself drifting into the background, staying quiet, keeping your relationship with Jesus a secret…just like Joseph and Nicodemus.

What encourages me is that God still used Joseph and Nicodemus…despite their fear. They were “secret disciples” yet all the world knows about them for their one simple act of faith. They stepped forward when all the other disciples of Jesus ran away and they asked for the body of Jesus in order to give Him the proper burial. I like what Mark’s gospel says, “Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body” (Mark 15:43). The man afraid to stand up for Jesus among his peers “boldly” went to Pilate to ask for Jesus’ body. He had courage…just not all the time and not among certain groups of people.

I’m sure if you interviewed Joseph during his lifetime, he would probably see himself as somewhat of a failure as a disciple of Jesus. After all, during the three years of Jesus’ ministry, he apparently failed to let anyone on the Sanhedrin know of his devotion to Christ. He also never appears in Acts or the epistles as a prominent preacher or evangelist or church leader. For all we know, he drifted back into the background. Yet on this one occasion he stood up for Jesus when no one else was around. And God chose to focus on this one act of faith rather than on all the acts of fear in his life.

That’s the beauty of grace. We tend to focus on our failures. God chooses to focus on our small acts of faith. They may not be much in the world’s eyes. They may not even be much in our own eyes. But God sees those times when we act out of love and act in faith (no matter how inconsistent) as precious in His eyes.

I am reminded of Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 4:5, Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.

Ultimately God will judge us not on how much we did or how great our acts were or how many people we witnessed to but on the motives of our hearts. Did we love Him? Did we act out of love toward others? And He will find those times in our lives when we acted out of love–those times that we have probably forgotten–and highlight them and praise us for them. That is grace. That is what it means to be in Christ…to be free from condemnation, to be free from shame, to be free to live for Christ without guilt, without a sense of failure…and without fear. 

Lord, thank You for Your grace!

I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name-the name you gave me-so that they may be one as we are one. (John 17:11)

John 17 is the longest recorded prayer of Jesus and the last one in John’s gospel before Jesus  is crucified. While the other gospels focused on the “Lord’s Supper” on that night, John focused on Jesus’ words to His disciples and on this final prayer.

In this final prayer, Jesus prays for His present disciples and His future ones (i.e., us!). What does He pray for? He prays that we would have His joy (17:13), that we would be protected from the evil one (17:15), that we would be set apart from the world by adherence to His truth (17:17-19), and that we would be unified together (17:20-21).

What particularly struck me this morning was Jesus’ prayer request in John 17:11. Jesus prays for the protection of His disciples so that they may be one. I would expect Him to say, “Protect them so that they will be safe and unaffected by harm and free to spread My word.” Instead He prays for our protection so that we will remain unified. Interesting. It seems that Jesus is saying that our biggest threat in this world is becoming disconnected from the body, from cutting ourselves off from other believers, from “going alone” in our faith.

Look at it again. Protect them by the power of your name…so that they may be one. What are we to be protected from? What kind of things threaten our unity? What may have been on Jesus’ mind?

• Pride…Lord, protect them from thinking that they are self-sufficient.
• The world…Lord, protect them from adopting the materialistic, me-first attitude of the world.
• Trials…Lord, protect them getting so overwhelmed by trials that they withdraw or turn their inward sorrow and grief into anger against others. 
• Fear…Lord, protect them from self-protection, from the fear of showing their weaknesses and struggles to others.
• The evil one…Lord, protect them from the devices of Satan, the accuser of the brethren. May they not let their anger fester or their gripes turn into gossip or their differences into division.

I don’t know exactly what was on Jesus’ mind but I do know that foremost on His prayer request list for us was unity. Jesus basically prayed on that night, Lord, protect their unity. May they be one as we are one. May they stick together and learn to love one another so that the world will see the difference in their lives and be drawn to You.

May Jesus’ prayer become my own. Lord, protect the unity of Your church and may it begin with my local church, Sayre Woods. Keep me from self-righteousness, self-protection, and self-sufficiency. Help me to love others in this body as You have loved me.

I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)

There is a lot that is hard to follow and understand in John 16. I can identify with the disciples when they say, “What does he mean…? We don’t understand what he is saying.” (16:18).

Basically Jesus is preparing His disciples for His arrest, crucifixion and death. They cannot grasp the thought of Jesus dying. It is not in their “theology.” They are waiting for Him to reveal Himself to the nation as Messiah and bring peace into the world. That’s why Judas (not Iscariot) asks in 14:22, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?” Even though Jesus has told them on numerous occasions that He is going to die, it has still not registered in their minds. It is something that they do not want to believe, and so no matter how many times Jesus tells them, they simply do not get it. [That in itself should teach us a lot about human nature. If we don’t want to believe something, then no matter how many times we are told we will not accept it.]

Jesus last statement to the disciples on this fateful night comes in verse 33. I have told you these things… all these things about my going away, about the coming of the Holy Spirit, about being hated by the world, about remaining in me, about praying in my name, about loving one another…so that in me you may have peace… so that despite the sorrows, trials, and griefs in this world, you can still have an inner tranquility and confidence that there is a master plan and a Master Planner behind it all…in this world you will have trouble… don’t be surprised by it, expect it… But take heart! I have overcome the world… find your joy and hope not in the things of this world, not in a new government, not in financial security, not in the temporary pleasures of life, but in the fact that I am going to rise again and show forever that I am more powerful than sin, death, and anything this world can throw at you.

I needed the message of John 16:33 this morning. It is hard not to be affected by the things going on in the world…the war in Iraq, the failing economy, the sense that our country is in a moral tailspin…Jesus’ words are just as applicable today as they were 2000 years ago. In this world you will have trouble…but in Me you can have peace and joy and hope. The challenge is keeping my eyes on Jesus and not on the news.  

Lord, thanks for the promise of Your peace. May You fill my heart with it today.

Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet (John 13:14).

Jesus washing the disciples’ feet would have been a major shock in that culture. Washing feet was generally reserved for the lowest servant in the household. For Jesus, the Master, to get on his knees, don a towel, and wash the twenty-four feet of the disciples would have created an awkward situation for all of those assembled that night. Peter is the one who finally expresses this awkwardness. “You shall never wash my feet!” Peter’s shock and dismay come out in his words. This simply did not feel right. And the disciples did not know what to say…what to do… But inside they felt like Jesus needed to get up and be served not stoop to such a low level and wash their dirty feet.

But Jesus wanted to teach His disciples a simple, unforgettable truth….following Him involves stooping down to wash dirty feet. And not primarily in a literal sense. I don’t think Jesus was interested in creating an ongoing hygienic practice as much as He was trying to teach the disciples to humble themselves enough to get involved in the dirty aspects of servanthood. “Washing one another’s feet” seems to be a graphic way of saying, “Love others enough that you are willing to see the dirtiest aspects of their lives and not turn away.”

Hey, let’s face it, we are all sinners by grace. We all have dirty feet. We all have aspects of our lives that we don’t want others to see. Why? Because deep down we are ashamed…and we are scared…scared that if others knew our weakness, our anxiety, our insecurity, our selfishness, our greed, our lust, our past, our anger, our grief, our pain…they would turn away. So we cover our stinky feet with nice white socks and brand new Nikes and hope no one notices the smell.

But part of being the body of Christ is learning, like Jesus, to wash another’s dirty feet…and learning, like Peter, to let another person see and wash our dirty feet. Both are essential. I must learn to be vulnerable and I must learn to be humble…vulnerable enough to let others see my weakness and sin, humble enough to see the weaknesses and sins of others and be moved toward compassion and not condemnation.

Only when we learn to wash each other’s feet do we grow in the love of Jesus. And only as we grow in Jesus’ love does the world see the difference that Christianity makes in the human heart. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another (John 13:35).