The Blessing of Suffering?

Dear Fellow Travelers,

Roughly seven years ago, I was introduced to the writings of Richard Wurmbrand, from which the following is an excerpt:

I thank God for the years I passed in solitary confinement. I was, for three years, thirty feet beneath the earth. I never heard a word. I never spoke a word. There were no books. The outward voices ceased. The guards had felt-soled shoes; you did not hear their approach. Then, with time, the inner voices ceased. We were drugged, we were beaten. I forgot my whole theology. I forgot the whole Bible. One day I observed that I had forgotten the “Our Father.” I could not say it anymore. I knew that it began with “Our Father . . . ,” but I did not know the continuation. I just kept happy and said, “Our Father, I have forgotten the prayer, but You surely know it by heart. You hear it so many thousand times a day, so You assign an angel to say it for me, and I will just keep quiet.” For a time my prayers were, “Jesus, I love you.” And then after a little time again, “Jesus, I love You. Jesus I love you.” Then it became too difficult even to say this because we were doped with drugs that would destroy our minds. We were very hungry. We had one slice of bread a week. There were the beatings, and the tortures, and the lack of light, and the things. It became impossible to concentrate my mind to even say so much as, “Jesus, I love You.” I abandoned it because I knew that it was necessary. The highest form of prayer I know is the quiet beating of a heart that loves Him. Jesus should just hear the “tick-a-tock, tick-a-tock,” and He would know that every heartbeat is for Him. [The Triumphant Church (Bartlesville, Oklahoma: The Voice of the Martyrs, 1999), p. 24-25]

In the first place, I cannot imagine the suffering one would endure being confined for three years inside a very small cell, thirty feet beneath the earth. Furthermore, I cannot imagine what it would be like to endure three years without hearing a voice; that silence would be deafening! How one would keep from going “mad” is beyond me. To be sure, I have no idea how one could physically or mentally survive on a diet that consisted of only one slice of bread per week. Add to all of this, the beatings, the drugs, the tortures, the lack of light, and I have a difficult time believing that story is true.

This, however, is what intrigues me about this man: in all of his suffering, his pursuit of Jesus never diminished, it only intensified! Even after he was too weak to repeat the simple prayer, Jesus, I love You, he never lost his passion for Jesus. Oh, I am sure that there were times when he wondered where God had gone. I am also sure that there were times when he wondered why God did not deliver him from this relentless suffering (he actually spent 14 years in prison because of his refusal to deny Jesus); however, after 14 years of imprisonment and torture, his response was this: I thank God for the years I passed in solitary confinement.

Although none of us have suffered like this man suffered, and certainly none of us have suffered for the reason he suffered, most of us have suffered to some lesser degree and, I might add, suffering is suffering. Somehow, the whole of Christianity is built on the foundation of suffering. In Hebrews, we read these intriguing words: Although He (Jesus) was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered (Hebrews 5:8; parenthesis mine). Obviously, Jesus, Himself, suffered—relentlessly suffered. Then there is the host of other men and women of God who have, without exception, suffered because of their stand as Christians. We simply cannot get around the fact that suffering is a part, a vital part, of Christianity. Why, therefore, should we think that we are somehow exempt from it?

Yes, I realize that there are various kinds of suffering. Some suffering is the fruit of our foolish choices, while other suffering is the fruit of our faithfulness. Even so, suffering is suffering, and it always hurts. It is never pleasant! It is never enjoyable! Fortunately, however, God uses our suffering for our benefit and for His glory. In other words, God never wastes our suffering—NEVER!

Richard Wurmbrand suffered because of his faithfulness, his refusal to deny Jesus. Even though it was motivated by love, it was very painful, even debilitating; however, in the end, he could say with integrity, “I thank God for my suffering.” Obviously, God did not waste his suffering.

I guess I just wanted to remind you to stop and thank God for your suffering. Oh, I know that you have probably already thanked Him for many things, but have you thanked Him for the suffering He has allowed you to endure? If you haven’t done so, I encourage you to thank Him because your suffering is not without purpose—His Sovereign Purpose. Did you notice one of the fruits of Wurmbrand’s sufferings? He came to know the highest form of prayer—the quiet beating of a heart that loves Him.

MY PERSPECTIVE: Our suffering just might be our greatest blessing.

Idolatry or Obedience?

He grew up in a society that was almost as pagan as the one in which we live. Idolatry was rampant, even in his own family. And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘From ancient times your fathers lived beyond the River (Euphrates), namely, Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, and they served other gods’” (Joshua 24:2; parenthesis mine). The truth is, Abraham had probably never even heard of God, the Father of our Lord Jesus. Instead, he had probably been well indoctrinated into the same pagan notions his parents embraced, and was, therefore, very much an idolater. He was probably fully convinced that any religious persuasion other than the one his father, Terah, embraced was heresy. Interestingly, however, Abraham’s religious persuasion was not a deterrent to God’s purposes. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River, and led him through all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his descendants and gave him Isaac (Joshua 24:3). Even though God knew that Abraham and his family worshipped other gods, He took him from beyond the river Euphrates (the place of idolatry) and led him through all the land of Canaan and multiplied his descendants through Isaac. Awesome! That reminds me of just how glad I am that God is big enough to open our eyes (even when we don’t want Him to do so) and show us The Truth. It also reminds me of just how thankful I am that God doesn’t wait around for us to make the first move toward Him. It really reminds me of just how thankful I am that God does as He pleases—regardless! What really happened was this: when God called Abram (Abraham), he and his wife, Sarai (Sarah), were living in Ur of the Chaldeas, far removed from any notion of following God anywhere. The call was clear: Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father’s house, to the land which I will show you; and I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing; and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed (Genesis 12:1-3). In my opinion, that was quite an order; even so, the Scripture is clear concerning Abraham’s response: So Abram went forth as the Lord had spoken to him; and Lot went with him. Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his nephew, and all their possessions which they had accumulated, and the persons which they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan; thus they came to the land of Canaan. And Abram passed through the land as far as the site of Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. Now the Canaanite was then in the land. And the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord who had appeared to him. (Genesis 12:4-7). I think we could conclude that Abram obeyed God and it paid big dividends! Did you notice the way the Scripture describes Abram’s response? I really like it! And they set out for the land of Canaan (Genesis 12:5; emphasis mine). I wonder what would happen, if more of us would “set out” in obedience to God’s call. I am convinced that more of us would find ourselves enjoying the pleasures of God, if we, like Abraham, simply “set out” in response to His call. Notice that Abraham had no idea, as to where he was going; he just “set out” in obedience! Think about what must have been going on in Abraham’s mind as he built the altar to the Lord. At one point in his life, he had no idea who God was; however, at this point he is obeying God and being blessed by God. Thus far, Abraham had been obedient to God, and God had done EXACTLY as He had promised to do. I want you, however, to notice this: Abraham would not settle for ANYTHING less than God’s best. By faith he (Abraham) lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise; for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Hebrews 11:9-10). Somehow, Abraham knew that this was just a shadow of what was to come; he knew that the best was yet to come. As a result, he never planted his feet firmly on this soil; instead, he lived in tents as an alien (a stranger) in the land of promise. Why? The Scriptures make it clear: He was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God! Have you ever noticed that obedience to God, especially “set out” obedience, moves your focus from what you can see to what you cannot see? Have you also noticed that obedience to God never allows you to be satisfied with what you can see? Somehow, you are always being moved from glory to glory and from faith to faith! Most of us need to “set out” in obedience to the God of Abraham, especially since the call has already come. Truthfully, anything less is idolatry.

Dear Fellow Travelers,

In Genesis 6 we find the story of Noah and the ark: Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. And the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them” (Genesis 6:5-7).

To be honest, it is very difficult for me to understand how God could be sorry that He had made man on the earth when He knew BEFORE He created us how we would behave. I can understand why his heart would be grieved by our behavior but for the life of me, I cannot understand why He would be sorry that He had created us. Even so, the text tells us that He was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and I believe it to be true—period.

The truth is I am much more concerned about the end result of His being sorry that He created us than I am about understanding why He was sorry because the end result was rather horrific! Man, along with the animals, the creeping things, and even the birds of the sky, were blotted out! That’s right—BLOTTED OUT! It really is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God, when He is angry!

HOWEVER, there is more to this story. Noah found favor (grace) in the eyes of the Lord (Genesis 6:8; parenthesis mine). I have no idea how many people were alive at the time, but only one family found grace in the eyes of the Lord—Noah’s family. As the head of his family, the grace (favor) that God extended to Noah was also extended to his wife, his sons, and their wives. For whatever reason, God chose to be merciful to Noah and graciously set him apart as a righteous, blameless man, along with his family. These are the records of the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God. And Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth (Genesis 6:9-10). But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall enter the ark—you and your sons and your wife, and your sons’ wives with you (Genesis 6:18).

Do you remember a time in your life when you really needed someone to be gracious to you? The reason for your need of grace could have been any one of a number of things, but wouldn’t it have been great if that someone had extended grace to you?

Maybe you are one of the fortunate ones, who did experience a lavish outpouring of grace. If you are, do you remember how it made you feel? You were guilty as charged, but the person you offended chose to lavish grace upon you. The truth is it had a profoundly positive influence on your life!

Interestngly, Noah was one, who found grace, not in the eyes of another person, but in the eyes of God. Wow! What an awesome thought! Noah was just as much a part of that sinful race as were each of the others, but God chose to be gracious to him and declare him to be righteous and blameless, even to spare his life. Noah deserved to be swallowed up in the deluge just as much as the rest of the people, but God chose to provide him an ark of safety. Incredible grace!

Obviously, Noah was a man of faith (he is included in the Hall of Faith—Hebrews 11). For some reason, He simply believed God. When God declared that he was a blameless and righteous man, he believed God, and he began to live as a blameless and righteous man. This was evidenced by his obedience to God. Thus Noah did; according to all that God had commanded him, so did he (Genesis 6:22).

There is this obvious progression: (1) Because of his sinfulness, Noah deserved destruction—to be blotted out; (2) God, however, chose to be merciful and extend grace to Noah; (3) God gave Noah faith—saving faith; (4) God declared that Noah was blameless and righteous; (5) Noah walked in obedience to God—the fruit of faith. Faith without works is dead (James 2:26); and (6) Noah escaped the wrath of God in the safety of the ark.

MY PERSPECTIVE: Man escapes the wrath of God only as the result of God having chosen to place him into Jesus, who is his ark of safety. Furthermore, the end result of the grace of God having been extended to man is saving faith and the good works of obedience—the good works that God prepared beforehand. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (Ephesians 2:10). Now you know why I love rainbows!!

A Return to the Basics

The following is from Mike Mason’s book, The Gospel According to Job, pages 37-38:

Job knew one of the great secrets of faith: the believer in God has no worldly rights. The true believer is someone who has abdicated all rights, freely accepting the status of a slave and no longer laying claim to any earthly chattel, whether it be “houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields” (Matthew 19:29). These are precisely the sort of things that Job has just lost, and yet his initial response to their loss is not bitter complaint, nor even mere acquiescence, but adoration.

The fact is Christians have abdicated one kingdom in favor of another. They have released their hold on this world’s elaborate system of amenities and expectations, in order to embrace something infinitely higher. In practice this letting go can be a delicate process, for as citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven we certainly do have rights, but what we do not have is worldly rights.

For a Christian to insist on having worldly rights and comforts is, plain and simply, to be a grumbler. It is to be like the Israelites in the desert when they were continually murmuring against God. How often do we as believers waste precious time and energy trying to “claim” things that, as those whose lot in this life is nothing more than to share the cross of Christ, we have no right to claim? The tragedy is that meanwhile we neglect to claim the spiritual rights that are properly ours. In our pursuit of worldly contentment, we forfeit spiritual joy and peace.

We Christians are people who know in our bones that we never had any right to be created in the first place, let alone redeemed. We know we have no more inherent title to life and its goodness than a dead man has. For us the coffin lid has already been nailed shut on all the natural joys and privileges that earth can offer. Knowing this, we are set free to bless the Lord in all circumstances, whether we find ourselves clothed or naked.

When Adam discovered he was naked, he hid from the Lord. But when Job was faced with his nakedness he worshipped, and this is what sets fallen man apart from the redeemed man. Even Christ, after all, when He came into the world, came naked. And He died naked, too. The Gospels plainly state that soldiers divided Jesus’ garments among them at the foot of the cross, including His undergarment. The pictures do not usually show this; it is almost as though the sight of God’s nakedness would be somehow more appalling than His death. But in the full Biblical revelation it is clear that God became not only man, but man naked and helpless, and that both at the beginning and at the end of the Lord’s earthly life His bare flesh had to be wrapped in rags like that of any other poor wretch.

MY PERSPECTIVE: Maybe we need to return to the basics of Christianity and find ourselves, as naked children, simply relaxing in His incredible love, His measureless mercy, and His lavished grace.

I penned these words in October 2000, almost seven years ago, and in my opinion they are very relevant today. I would love to have your comments!

Dear Fellow Travelers,

Last Sunday our text (Hebrews 11) took us to Genesis 6 and the story of Noah and the ark where we found an example of what it would be like to experience the wrath of God. Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. And the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them” (Genesis 6:5-7).

To be honest, it is very difficult for me to understand how God could be sorry that He had made man on the earth when He knew BEFORE He created us how we would behave. I can understand why his heart would be grieved by our behavior but, for the life of me, I cannot understand why He would be sorry that He had created us. Even so, the text tells us that He was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and I believe it to be true—period.

The truth is I am much more concerned about the end result of His being sorry that He created us, than I am about understanding why He was sorry. The end result was rather horrific; man, along with the animals, the creeping things, and even the birds of the sky, were blotted out! That’s right—BLOTTED OUT! It really is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God when He is angry!

HOWEVER, there is more to this story. Noah found favor (grace) in the eyes of the Lord (Genesis 6:8; parenthesis mine). I have no idea how many people were alive at the time, but only one family found grace in the eyes of the Lord—Noah’s family. As the head of his family, the grace (favor) that God extended to Noah was also extended to his wife, his sons, and their wives. For whatever reason, God chose to be merciful to Noah and graciously set him apart as a righteous, blameless man, along with his family. These are the records of the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God. And Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth (Genesis 6:9-10). But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall enter the ark—you and your sons and your wife, and your sons’ wives with you (Genesis 6:18).

Do you remember a time in your life when you really needed someone to be gracious to you? The reason for your need of grace could have been any one of a number of things, but wouldn’t it have been great if someone had extended that grace to you? Maybe you did experience that lavish outpouring of grace. Do you remember how it made you feel? You were positively guilty as charged, but the person you offended chose to lavish grace upon you. The truth is it had a profoundly positive influence on your life!

Our text, however, tells us that Noah found grace, not in the eyes of another person, but in the eyes of God. Wow! What an awesome thought! Noah was just as much a part of that sinful race as were each of the others, but God chose to be gracious to him and declare him to be righteous and blameless, even to spare his life. Noah deserved to be swallowed up in the deluge just as much as did the rest of the people, but God chose to provide him an ark of safety. Incredible!

Obviously (he is included in the Hall of Faith—Hebrews 11), Noah was a man of faith. For some reason, He simply believed God. When God declared that he was a blameless and righteous man, he believed God, and he began to live as a blameless and righteous man. This was evidenced by his obedience to God. Thus Noah did; according to all that God had commanded him, so did he (Genesis 6:22).

There is this obvious progression: (1) Because of his sinfulness, Noah deserved destruction—to be blotted out; (2) Instead, God chose to be merciful and extend grace to Noah; (3) God gave Noah faith—saving faith; (4) God declared that Noah was blameless and righteous; (5) Noah walked in obedience to God—the fruit of faith. Faith without works is dead (James 2:26); (6) Noah escaped the wrath of God in the safety of the ark.

MY PERSPECTIVE: Man escapes the wrath of God only as the result of the grace of God. The end result of the grace of God having been extended to man is saving faith and the good works of obedience—the good works that God prepared beforehand. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (Ephesians 2:10). We escape the wrath of God ONLY in the safety of Jesus, who is our ark.

How Many of Your Days Have You Used Up?

Take a few minutes and answer these questions—honestly, of course:

1. What is the purpose of my life? Why am I here?
2. How am I fulfilling that purpose?
3. Am I satisfied with what I have done thus far with the life that God has entrusted to me?
4. If I should die TODAY, what legacy would I leave to my family?
5. If I should die TODAY, would my family be left in financial ruin?
6. If I knew that TODAY would be the end of my life on earth, how would I want to spend that day?
7. If I knew that TODAY would be the end of my life on earth, with whom would I want to spend the day?
8. If I should die TODAY, what loose ends would I be leaving for someone else to tie together?
9. Do I have an up-to-date will (the legal document)?
10. Do I have an annual physical examination?
11. How do I want to spend the rest of my life?
12. What do I regret most about my life?
13. Am I in control of my life, or is my life in control of me?
14. Am I enjoying my life?
15. Am I so focused on living this life that I have lost sight of the real life?

Regardless of what your answers might be, I wonder if you will do anything to change the things that you can change. I wonder if you will accept the fact that you, even you, are not exempt from death. I wonder if you are aware that God ordained your days when yet there was not one of them. Thine eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Thy book they were all written, the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them (Psalms 139:16).

MY PERSPECTIVE: Life is a most precious gift, even the life we live on this earth. Interestingly, God has entrusted life (on this earth) to us for an ordained number of days; the mystery being the number of those days. It, therefore, seems to me that it would behoove each one of us to live every day as if that day would be the very last of that mysterious number; it could well be, you know. And by the way, for those of you who will get “religious” on me and tell me that you can’t wait for that last day to come because things will be so much better for you then, remember this: most of you will leave behind people who love you and will sorely miss your life on this earth. Do not be so self-centered!

Faith's Resting Place

In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthian church, he makes it very clear that faith’s resting-place should be the power of God and not the wisdom of man. And my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God (1 Corinthians 2:4-5; emphasis mine).

In other words, Paul was telling the saints of the church at Corinth that he purposed to do nothing, not even in his message or in his preaching, to influence them to believe that true faith has anything to do with the wisdom of man. Paul was fully convinced that when faith rests on the wisdom of man, it can only produce what man can conjure—nothing of lasting value.

Paul confirmed this in chapter one: For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God . . . (1 Corinthians 1:21). In other words, when all the wisdom the men of the world could put together has accomplished all it could possibly accomplish, it will not have borne the fruit of even one person coming to know God, not one eternally significant thing will have been accomplished! And that, in the wisdom of God, not in the wisdom of man! It is so very true: The foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Corinthians 1:25). Man has NOTHING about which he can boast!

If your faith is resting on the wisdom of men, then all you will ever see is what the wisdom of men can accomplish. You will never see what true faith in God can accomplish—the works of the Spirit.

Obviously, this is true, not only for an individual believer, but also for a local assembly of believers. If any local assembly of believers places their faith in the wisdom of men, all they will ever see is what the wisdom of men can accomplish. To the eyes of the world, that might be much; but to the eyes of those whose faith is resting on the power of God, all that the wisdom of man could accomplish, put together, would only be the pitiful and shameful fruits of man’s labors—works of the flesh.

To be specific, if this local assembly rests its faith in the wisdom of men, believe me, it will see only what the wisdom of those men is able to achieve and that is not what any of us want for this church! Surely each one of us wants to see the sovereign and strong hand of God move amongst us in ways that we have never before seen. At the very least, we want to see Him continue to do the things He has been doing since before the foundation of the world. Surely we want to see Him continue to call into being that which does not exist (Romans 4:17), continue to raise the dead (John 11), continue to heal the sick (Luke 6), continue to give sight to the blind (John 9), continue to cast out demons (Luke 8:26-39), continue to equip the saints for the work of service (Ephesians 4:12), and above all, continue to draw men unto Himself (John 12:32). These things never happen as the result of the wisdom of man! They can only happen as man allows his faith to rest on the power of God.

MY PERSPECTIVE: The faith that rests on the wisdom of man is really not faith at all because its end is to see what man can accomplish; consequently, most of what we call faith is really not faith at all.

All Things are Lawful!

I penned the following in June of 2000, and I continue to believe that His ways are not our ways! How in the wide-world has the church moved so far away from the truth of the gospel? Of this I am certain: were Paul to pay us a visit, he would be flabbergasted and we would call him a heretic!

Dear Fellow Travelers,

You probably know this by know, but I really do love the way Paul (the apostle) writes, and I especially like the way he communicates what he writes. He has a way of slipping in the most unlikely comments at the most inopportune times. I guess I should not be surprised because he did make it very clear that he was not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Actually, I do not suppose anyone would be, if he believed the gospel that Paul believed, especially if he believed it as strongly as Paul did.

Anyay, he can come up with some of the most unorthodox comments; he must have been on a mission to irritate the religious people of this day. Whether or not he was on such a mission, he certainly did irritate them! Please join me as I take you on a brief tour of some of his unorthodox comments:

(1) Grace to you and peace (Romans 1:7).

(2) The kindness of God leads you to repentance (Romans 2:4).

(3) There is no partiality with God (Romans 2:11).

(4) He is not a Jew who is one outwardly (Romans 2:28).

(5) There is none righteous, not even one (Romans 3:10).

(6) Through the Law comes the knowledge of sin (Romans 3:20).

(7) Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account (Romans 4:8).

(8) While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).

(9) Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more (Romans 5:20).

(10) Sin shall not be master over you (Romans 6:14).

(11) We have been released from the Law (Romans 7:6).

(12) Apart from the Law sin is dead (Romans 7:8).

(13) I am no longer am I the one doing it (Romans 7:20).

(14) There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).

(15) God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God (Romans 8:28).

(16) For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ (Romans 9:3).

(17) I will have mercy on whom I have mercy (Romans 9:15).

(18) He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens who He desires (Romans 9:18).

(19) Let love be without hypocrisy (Romans 12:9).

(20) Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another (Romans 13:8).

Although the list could go on and on, I will stop with these because I want to highlight this one: All things are lawful for me (1Corinthians 6:12). Can you imagine anyone having the courage to make such a statement, especially to a group of Christians who have been thoroughly convinced that keeping the law is the way to please God? Well, whether or not you can, Paul did it. As you know, many of the Christians in the Corinthian church were deeply involved in various sins, especially immorality, and they were so, even though they knew better.

In the midst of this epidemic of sin, Paul arrives in town and, right out of the chute, he announces that all things are lawful for him. He must have been crazy! I can only imagine what the leaders thought; to be sure, they certainly thought that the epidemic was about to become pandemic. This crazy man had just announced that all things were lawful for him, and if you read on a bit further you will find that he said almost the same thing again—All things are lawful (1 Corinthians 10:23). This time he omitted the word “me” and simply made it all-inclusive! All things are lawful—period! Had he gone “mad”?

May it never be! He knew what most never know (apart from the Law sin is dead), and he was simply putting into practice what he knew to be truth. He knew well that the only hope the Corinthian church had of overcoming this epidemic of sin was for them to be released from the Law. He knew that the Law is the power (strength) of sin, and he knew, just as well, that he had to release them from that power.

Most evangelists would have come into town and immediately purposed to put the people under the Law by telling them that God would never be pleased with them as long as they continued to live such reckless lives. They would have heaped judgment and condemnation upon them, rather than upon their behavior. The result would have been tragic! The epidemic would have, indeed, become pandemic.

Paul was much too wise for such foolishness. He pointed out the sin, to be sure, but he also made it clear that not one of the sins could separate them from God or from His love. Talk about unlikely comments at inopportune times!

Think about it! There is an epidemic of sin running wild through the church, immorality is rampant, and Paul’s fix is this: Everything is lawful!

MY PERSPECTIVE: God’s ways are definitely not our ways.

The Pruning of the Vine

I penned the following lines on January 7, 2003:

Dear Fellow Travelers,

I trust that each of you enjoyed a good holiday season, and, even more, I pray that you are looking forward to a great 2003. I am praying that your best day in 2002 will be equal to your worst day in 2003 (I hope I communicated what I was thinking)!

It is very apparent that the Holy Spirit is moving among us—a deep moving of God that is obviously the fruit of several years of severe pruning. I hate pruning not only because it hurts, but also because it involves the cutting away of what appears to be such good wood. Even so, I am well aware that pruning is necessary for the production of new life—fruit that remains.

Interestingly, when the Vinedresser has pruned the vineyard and the resultant life—new life—is formed, the pain of the pruning is seen for what it is—the exercise of life. God’s pruning of His vineyard so concentrates the life of Jesus in the remaining branches that new life—His life—explodes throughout the vineyard. Although both are beautiful, the contrast between a pruned vineyard and a fruit-laden vineyard is simply breath-taking; however, nothing can compare to the beauty of the vineyard when the blossoms are in full bloom. (Next spring, look one of our local peach orchards and you will see what I mean.)

Although I have seen it coming (the buds of life have been evident), this past Saturday night and Sunday morning it became unmistakably obvious that the work of the Vinedresser was paying off and paying off big time! The life of Jesus has filled the vineyard of Grace Christian Fellowship with the blossoms of life; blossoms that will soon become fruit— fruit that remains.

MY PERSPECTIVE: As the Vinedresser continues His work in His vineyard, we should give ourselves to the study of His Word—a life of meditation; to the celebration of His Supper—a life of thanksgiving; and to the discipline of His model—a life of prayer. As the vineyard begins to bear fruit, fruit that remains, you will be very thankful for this time of nourishment and enrichment.

Interestingly and thankfully, vineyards are pruned every year but my how painful the pruning is, especially to those of us who like to avoid pain. The fact is, however, that without the pruning the vine becomes worthless, at least as far as fruit-bearing is concerned. My, how much He must love the church and the fruit she bears!

Blessings with grace lavished,

Mac Goddard

Which Cure Would You Choose?

The following is an article I penned on July 9, 2000 and from my vantage point, it continues to hold true today:

Dear Fellow Traveler,

This past Sunday, I raised this question: If you could have a cure for cancer OR a cure for sin, which would you choose? I suggested that most Christians would choose the cure for cancer, and I did so because I know how well we have been taught to believe that we can somehow manage our sin(s). We have not only been convinced that we can avoid committing the really serious sins, but also that we can keep our “sin list” short enough to impress God and, thereby, convince Him that He should be merciful to us.

On the other hand, I also know that even the suggestion that one might have cancer brings tremendous fear, anxiety, and hopelessness. The truth is we see our ability to deal with sin as being much more effective than our ability to deal with cancer; not to mention, that most would choose a diagnosis of sin over a diagnosis of cancer any day.

It has become obvious to me that as long as we hold on to the mindset that anything (including cancer) is more devastating than sin; the One True Gospel will not be very attractive to us. Until God causes us to see the exceeding sinfulness of sin and our inability to overcome it, we will see no need for a gospel that offers us grace. In fact, the belief that we can manage our own sin will eliminate any perceived need for grace. We will simply try harder to overcome.

Interestingly, no one has come up with a cure for cancer; yes, progress has been made, but there is no blanket cure for cancer. Even in those situations where surgery removes the malignancy, there is always the possibility that the tumor will return. As a result, the patient is encouraged to return to his/her doctor at regular intervals for various diagnostic tests and, more often than not, for radiation and/or chemotherapy. As valuable as these tests and treatments might be for the health of the patient, they also serve as reminders of cancer, and, therefore, keep the patient cancer conscious.

Every cancer patient I have ever known really looked forward (anxiously and eagerly) to getting past the window of increased risk for the return of the malignancy—usually 5 years. Even then, however, some risk still exists.

The truth is every one of us is at risk and unfortunately there is no blanket cure. We simply live life at varying degrees of cancer consciousness—the greater the risk, the greater the cancer consciousness.

Well, I have some really good news! Someone has found a cure for sin—Jesus! I know it sounds too good to be true; nevertheless, it is true. God, through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus, has cured our sin problem. Interestingly, Jesus is also the guarantee that it (sin) will never return. There is no need for a return to the doctor for diagnostic tests and various treatments. There is no need for continued reminders of sin; sacrifices are a thing of the past! With faith the size of a grain of mustard seed, sin consciousness should be a thing of the past. There is no reason for continued guilt! God, the Great Physician, has declared every Christian to be sin free—as righteous as Jesus is righteous! Welcome into the Holy of Holies! Enter by the blood of The Lamb!

Consider the difference it would make in your life if you began to see yourself as God sees you. I find this quote from Mike Mason’s book, The Gospel According to Job (p. 74) very appropriate: Do not let the consciousness of your unworthiness keep you from believing what God has said concerning you. If you are a believer in the Lord Jesus, then the precious privilege of being in partnership with the Father and the Son is yours.

Listen to what the author of the letter to the Hebrews has to say; He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself (Hebrews 9:26b)!

It is my prayer that the Holy Spirit will reveal to you the incredibly good news of the gospel and that you will be receptive to it!

My perspective: This good news will be rejected by most because most have been brainwashed into believing they can manage their own sin—with, of course, a little help from Jesus.

The First Day of Heaven

The following is an article I wrote on June 5, 2000--seven years ago! Since heaven will be one eternal day, the title I chose might be a bit confusing; however, we are still earthlings, who think in terms of time, so bear with me.

When I wrote this article, I really believed what I wrote; however, I believe it even more strongly today. This world is not our home; we are, merely, passing through it on our way Home!

Dear Fellow Traveler,

The first day of heaven! When I said those words yesterday (in my message) they struck my heart like a lightning bolt. Although none of us can do much more than imagine what it will be like, I have an imagination that runs wild when I consider that day. The Bride of Christ will finally be gathered together in perfect unity! All our differences will be settled and we will be in one accord. Only one thing will matter—that Jesus is glorified. There will be people there from all walks of life and from every tribe and nation. It will have finally dawned on us that none of us deserve to be there! What was seen through a glass darkly will be seen through the perfect lens of the eyes of Jesus. What we had not been able to understand will finally make perfect sense. What we once feared, we will then embrace. The One we had all longed to see will reveal Himself to us in such a way that we will all become exactly like Him! There will be no more sorrow, no more tears of remorse, no pain, and no more death. There will be no need for the sun or the moon because the glory of God will illumine the whole city. There will be no darkness because the Light of the Lamb will always shine. We won’t have to carry keys because the gates to the City will never be closed. There will be no foreigners there, only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of life—the Family of God! It will be home and we will be—home!

If you stop to listen, I really do believe you can hear the instruments beginning to play a new song, a song that the angels cannot sing. There will be cymbals, even loud-sounding cymbals—even resounding cymbals! There will be harps and trumpets and guitars and clarinets and saxophones and timbrels and lyres. There will be dancing and dancing and dancing! We will be dancing all over Heaven! The fetters of shame and guilt and poor self-image will all be broken. We will be laughing and singing and dancing and clapping and drinking the strong drink of the Spirit of the Living God! All the stuff that used to control us will no longer be in control! All the baggage that used to inhibit us will no longer do so! We will be free—absolutely FREE! The Lord will take great pleasure in His people and His people will honor Him. We will be rejoicing and praising God. We will be living in wild and total abandon to Jesus!

To tell you the truth, I think it will be a lot like it was supposed to have been before Adam sinned, except better. It will be a love feast to beat all love feasts! We will finally realize what Jesus meant when He said, “Unless you become like little children . . .” Talk about wild abandon! I am sorry that Adam messed things up for himself and for us, but I am certainly thankful that Jesus fixed whatever Adam messed up! The Tree of Life will be along both sides of the River of Life and the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil will not even be there! No temptation! No having to listen to the serpent trying to beguile us. Such joy! Such unspeakable joy! Such peace! An everlasting peace!

LET EVERYTHING THAT HAS BREATH PRAISE THE LORD! LET THE TREES OF THE FIELDS CLAP THEIR HANDS! LET THE CHOSEN FROZEN THAW! LET THE WAVES ROAR AND THE MOUNTAINS BOW DOWN! LET THE REDEEMED OF THE LORD—SAY SO! LET EVERYTHING THAT HAS BREATH (AND EVERYTHING ELSE, FOR THAT MATTER) PRASE THE LORD!

My perspective:

PRAISE the Lord!

Praise God in His sanctuary;

Praise Him in His mighty expanse.

Praise Him for His mighty deeds;

Praise Him according to His excellent greatness.

Praise Him with trumpet sound;

Praise Him with harp and lyre.

Praise Him with timbrel and dancing;

Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe.

Praise Him with loud cymbals;

Praise Him with resounding cymbals.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord!

(Psalm 150)

The Eucharist

I wrote the following “perspective” on Tuesday afternoon, January 14, 2003:

Dear Fellow Travelers,

About an hour and a half ago, ten believers gathered for our regular “Tuesday Noon Eucharist.” What an incredible experience! In my opinion, there is nothing quite like the experience of a group of believers gathering for the sole purpose of celebrating the Eucharist—eating the bread and drinking the wine, both signs of something signified; namely, the body and blood of Jesus. In doing so, the participants are spiritually nourished, and today was no exception. Ten of us walked away from the table having received a miracle. Through a work of the Holy Spirit, the bread and wine became the Person of Jesus in us, our perception of our union with Him was clarified, and our desire to honor him was intensified.

It is becoming increasingly more obvious to me that our Lord takes great delight in our celebrating the Eucharist. This is evidenced by what we have seen happen in our lives since we determined to make The Supper a regular part of our worship experience. As a result, I am committed to celebrating The Eucharist with you, and I am committed to celebrating it as often as the Word is proclaimed. I am so committed because I truly see “the proclamation of the Word” followed by “the eating of the bread and the drinking of the wine” as being genuine spiritual nourishment for our hungry, thirsty souls.

MY PERSPECTIVE: We need to pay very careful attention to these words of Jesus: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life; and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in Him” (John 6:53-56).

As you can see, more than four years have come and gone since I penned those thoughts about the Eucharist, and to the best of my knowledge this small group of believers has celebrated this incredible supper at least twice per week ever since. From what I can observe, even after almost 52 months, it is the highlight of every service. I continue to believe that the Triune Godhead holds this supper in very high esteem.

Over the years, I have watched the church “water down” this supper, so much so, that it is seldom even celebrated, and certainly no longer appreciated—at least by most. In my opinion, this is a tragedy.

For some reason, I cannot get these words of Jesus out of my mind: “And while they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to His disciples, and said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body.’ And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins’” (Matthew 26:26b-28; emphasis added).

No, I do not accept as truth the Roman Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation; however, I do accept as truth these very clear words of Jesus. I will probably never understand them (this side of Heaven) but my lack of understanding does not diminish my faith in His words; consequently, I will be faithful not only to “eat & drink” myself, but also to offer the privilege to others.

MY PERSPECTIVE: There needs to be a “revival of love for the Eucharist” within the church; after all, we are His bride.

Jesus the Outlaw

I can still remember anticipating the response of the listeners. I knew I would have their attention as soon as I announced the title: Jesus the Outlaw. I must admit that, although I sincerely believed the message was true and I sincerely wanted the listeners to hear it and to believe it, I also enjoyed (even back then) irritating religious people. As you can imagine, the looks on the faces of the listeners revealed their concern. What man in his right mind would accuse Jesus of being and outlaw? I had their attention and the religious were irritated!

The truth is I was thoroughly convinced that Jesus was an outlaw, at least to the Jews; after all, He intentionally violated so many of the laws the Jews held sacred. He refused, at least in the minds of the Jews, to keep the Sabbath Day holy; He had the audacity to heal the sick on the Sabbath; He touched the unclean, even lepers; He forgave sinners, even adulterers, and He encouraged others to do the same. There is no wonder that the Sanhedrin was out to get this outlaw. He simply did not conform to the cultural norms of the Jewish community. It was obvious that He was a renegade. He was marching to the beat of a different drummer. To use the words of Brennan Manning, He lived in wild abandon to His Father, His Abba.

Although the Pharisees made it clear that Messiahs do not break laws concerning the Sabbath, touch lepers, or forgive adulterers, Jesus made it just as clear that this Messiah does WHATEVER He pleases, WHENEVER He pleases, AS LONG AS it pleases His Abba. After all, He is Lord of the Sabbath, Lord of healing, and Lord of forgiveness. In fact, He is Lord—PERIOD! Whatever He does is precisely that in which His Father delights. He always knows which rules are for following and which rules are for breaking. He knew then, and He knows now!

The truth is, Jesus was (and still is) too bizarre for most people. His behavior is too radical. Following Him is too dangerous. Following Him can lead only to what appears to be a premature death. There is no wonder that most of those who were following Him left Him. Who would want to follow an outlaw? Who would want to follow a man who always marched to the beat of a different drummer? Who would want to follow a renegade?

To be honest, I believe there is a remnant, a group of believers who, like Paul, sincerely want to continue with Him. I believe that God has a people who are far more interested in experiencing Jesus than they are in understanding Jesus. I truly believe that God has a people who are far more interested in following Jesus than they are in following the religious rules of our culture.

Has it dawned on you that, although Jesus repeatedly told us to follow Him, He never once told us to follow His rules? He did say this: If you love Me you will keep My commandments (John 14:15). You see, loving God and loving one another are the fruit of being His children; they are not rules we must learn to obey. His call is to follow Him, not His rules!

I really do believe that God has a people who truly desire to live in wild abandon to Jesus. Are you one of them? I can tell you one of the true indications that you are: you are struggling to abandon something. What are you afraid to abandon? Your comfort? Your religion? Your riches? Your career? Your reputation? Your theology? Your parent’s expectations? Your security? Be honest!

Remember this: The rich, young ruler could not abandon his riches and he, therefore, missed out on knowing the true riches of living in wild abandon to Jesus. The Pharisees could not abandon their religion and they, therefore, missed out on knowing the joy of living in intimate relationship with Jesus, an intimacy that only wild abandon could produce.

By the way, this was Jesus’ prayer: And this is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent (John 17:3). Did you notice how clearly He stated that eternal life has to do with knowing Him, rather than understanding Him or obeying Him? Did you notice that for Jesus, relationships were far more important than doctrine?

MY PERSPECTIVE: Until we are willing to live in wild abandon to Jesus, we will never truly know Him; instead, we will spend our lives trying both to understand Him and to obey Him. To say that another way, until we choose to live in wild abandon to Jesus, we will be nothing more or less than modern-day Pharisees—hypocrites. Rules will be far more important than relationships and doctrine will always take precedence over relationships. Unfortunately, most of us have spent our Christian lives learning what we cannot do (the rules of our religious culture) instead of celebrating who we are in Jesus. Come on! Take the leap into wild abandon to Jesus—THE OUTLAW!