Tax Collectors and Sycamore Trees

July 29, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
OK, after yesterday’s perspective, I will move on to something more serious; however, I have thus far passed my physical, which is a good thing. Thanks to all of you who offered prayers in my behalf, I know the Doc and his nurse appreciated them, as well.
As you probably remember, Zaccheus was one of Rome’s chief tax-gatherers, i.e. he was very good at collecting taxes for Rome, and he was, especially, good at skimming enough off the top to make a good profit for himself; consequently, the Roman government loved him, and he was rich, as in filthy rich—literally. “And behold, there was a man called by the name of Zaccheus, and he was a chief tax-gatherer, and he was rich” (Luke 19:2 NASB).
The next verses really intrigue me: “And he was trying to see who Jesus was, and he was unable because of the crowd, for he was small in stature. And he ran on ahead and climbed into a sycamore tree in order to see Him, for He was about to pass through that way” (vss. 3-4). Can you imagine Warren Buffet climbing up into a tree because he wanted so desperately to see Jesus? I am of the opinion that most of the folk in the crowd thought Zaccheus had lost his mind; a rich man sitting in a tree is enough in and of itself to make the Daily New headlines, but sitting there because he wanted to see Jesus, is quite another.
Have you ever wondered why this rich, tax collector, Zaccheus, wanted so badly to see Jesus? I mean, gosh, he had plenty of money, lots of job security, and Rome loved him (well, they loved the money he collected). Why was he so driven to see Jesus, that he made himself look foolish, sitting above the crowd in a sycamore tree?
I am of the opinion that he wanted to see Jesus for the same reason anyone wants to see Jesus—Jesus first wanted to see him. “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10). You think about that, then read this: “And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, ‘Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house’” (vs. 5). I love the next verse: “And he hurried and came down, and received Him gladly” (vs. 6).
For some reason, I am wondering if you are in a hurry to see Jesus, if you are in a hurry to know who He really is, so much so that you are willing to make yourself look foolish, if that is what it takes.
I will say this: If you are, you are because He is in a hurry to see you, so make haste and come on down—

Paper Sheets, Voiding Cups, and Mango Metamucil

July 28, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
Tomorrow, I have my annual physical exam; for some reason, I thought you would want to know that. Gosh, now that I think about it, I hope I can muster up what it takes to pass it. The truth is I hope I can pass it with flying colors, which at my age, ain’t nearly as easy as it once was.
You think about it. At my age, I have to go into that small, freezing-cold, sterile-feeling office and take of all of my clothes, and put some flimsy paper sheet over my naked body, that is about half long enough to cover my important parts, and wait for the doctor to arrive. I already know his first question: How are you, today? I also know my answer: I am about to freeze to death; in fact, I have embalmed people who were warmer than I am.
Oh, I almost forgot! Before the experience in the “embalming room,” some cute nurse will have weighed me. For the life of me, I do not know why because I have weighed the same thing for the past 50 years, and she has it recorded on her chart. I tell her that every time, but she doesn’t listen. Just before I step on the scales, she will ask me, if I want to remove my shoes. I probably won’t say it, but, as always, I will wonder why in the wide-world it is so important not to wear shoes when weighing in. Maybe it is a Jewish custom or something.
Next, she will hand me a little cup and tell me to go into the bathroom, void in the cup, and leave it on the back of the toilet. It took me several years to figure out what “void in the cup” meant (in nursing language), so for most of my life, I just did the only thing that made any sense to me: I dipped a little of the toilet water into the cup and left it on the back of the toilet, and, inevitably, I would have to pee, thinking how glad I was that I had already dipped the water. Things are different, now that I know what “void” means.
Then comes the blood pressure thingy. I do not know why she has to pump that gizmo up so tight that my eyes bulge, but I guess it is necessary, even though I have never had particularly high blood pressure. When she finishes, she writes down what she learned, as if it is some kind of classified secret. Just to aggravate her, I always ask (tomorrow will be no exception!) if I have any blood pressure (most embalming room patients don’t), thinking she will laugh, but she never does.
You know what’s coming next! “When did you last have a bowel movement?” (I never have known why she wants to know that, but I will try to remember and tell her. Actually, I am sure it won’t have been all that long ago, so I should be able to remember, rather easily). Then, as if she hasn’t already been intrusive enough, she will want to know if I am constipated (Obviously, she doesn’t know me, so I tell her “yes,” which is a major lie, but I never tell her that, and, again, tomorrow will be no exception; instead, I will peep over her shoulder, as she very discretely writes in all caps—METAMUCIL; I have no idea what that means, or I would tell you).
As you can probably guess, she always asks me if I am sleeping at night (When else would she think I would sleep?), so I feel certain that I will get that question tomorrow. I usually tell her that I am on the night shift and sleep during the day, which is another huge lie, but I never tell her that either. Inevitably, she asks me where I work during the day? Of course, I reply with, “Did I say that I work?”). Somewhere, long about now, she says the Doctor will be in to see you in a little while. This is when I learn that she is a bigger liar than I, unless she measures minutes in hours.
Anyway, after some time, the Doc will come in and, as I said earlier, he will ask me how I am doing (I will wonder if he looked at the chart the nurse just filled out!) and I will tell him that I am about to freeze to death; in fact, I have embalmed people who were warmer than I am, albeit, covered with a similar sheet.
Thankfully, he won’t ask me when I last had a bowel movement, or if I am constipated, but before it is all over, he will want to know, if I prefer orange or grape Metamucil. Since, I have no preference, I will probably tell him that I prefer mango. To be honest with you, I have never been constipated in my entire life—far from it.
After a few probes in very interesting places, he will tell the nurse to do an EKG. To the untrained patient, those are just letters, but to an old experienced one like I, it almost creates panic. Before it is over, there will be very few hairs left on my chest, and all she will to say to console me is “Sorry; I know that hurt.” Truth is I know she enjoys it, otherwise, why does she always have that weird grin on her face? If Docs can install new vessels into our hearts, give us knee replacements, and remove our gall bladders through a laparoscope, why can’t they figure out to make those sticky things come off more easily?
You will have to be of the male sex to understand the rest of this but I will spare the details, other than to tell you that my youngest brother was having this particular test (you know, the one done with a digit) done by his doctor, a female, and in the process, he asked, “Does your mother know what you do for a living?”
I am not sure what all of this has to do with the intricacies of God's amazing grace, but I am sure you can make a connection, if you try hard enough.

“How blessed is he who considers the helpless; the Lord will deliver him in a day of trouble. The Lord will protect him, and keep him alive . . .” (Psalm 41:1-2a).

Our Addictions to People

July 24, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
Yes, another quote from Anthony de Mello: “How many activities can you count in your life that you engage in simply because they delight you and grip your soul” [“The Way to Love” p. 89]? Take a few minutes, many, if necessary, and make an honest list; I think you will be surprised.
From what I have been able to see, most people’s list will be rather short; in fact, I am betting that some of you will have a hard time coming up with even one activity, much less a list of them.
It is my guess that many of you get up in the morning, wishing you could remain in bed, but having to spend most of the day doing something you don’t even like to do, much less something you delight in doing. In fact, I am going to raise my bet and say that many of you are so weary, that you are about ready to throw up your hands and say, “I quit!”
Now, listen up, as I share another quote from de Mello (same book, same chapter): “Look at your life and see how you have filled its emptiness with people. As a result they have a stranglehold on you. See how they control your behavior by their approval and dis-approval. They hold the power to ease your loneliness with their company, to send your spirits soaring with their praise, to bring you down to the depths with their criticism and rejection. Take a look at yourself spending almost every waking minute of your day placating and pleasing people, whether they are living or dead.
Is there any wonder that so few of us engage in activities that delight us, that grip our souls? How can we, when we spend every waking moment attempting to placate and please people, when in fact we have sold our souls to our addictions to people, even dead people? “What will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world, but loses his own soul?”

Sulfuric Acid, Garlic, Tar, Mentholatum, and Dirty Socks

July 23, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
As we rode past the paper mill in Jesup, the odor was almost breath-taking. I wondered out loud how many of the employees had grown accustomed to it, no longer even noticing it. It brought back memories (not good ones!) from my growing-up days, when winds would carry the odor from the paper mill in Macon, some 40 miles to Reynolds, where I lived. The stench was terrible. It still is.
One of the members of my flock at GCF, Luke Wicker, invited me and my son, Michael, on a fishing trip to Morgan’s Lake, just off the Altamaha River, near Jesup, Georgia. Actually, there were four of us, as Luke picked up his brother, Pete, on his way down to Jesup. We were all very excited about fishing, especially after one look into the cooler of a couple of men, who had just returned to the fish camp. We quickly put our boats into the water, and got busy, not fishin’, but catchin‘! It soon became obvious that this was going to be a fisherman’s paradise.
We couldn’t help but notice, however, that the stench of the aforementioned paper mill was very prevalent. Interestingly, the longer we stayed, the more accustomed we be-came to the odor; the incredible scenery and the bountiful fishing were both powerful distracters!
At the end of the trip, we were all tired, so I iced-down the fish (some of the healthiest looking fish I have ever seen!) in one of my coolers and brought them home, where, motivated by the anticipation of a good fish fry, I would clean them. About two fish into the cleaning process, I said to Michael, “These fish smell just like that paper mill!” He brushed me off, thinking I was “imagining things.”
Well, sure enough, according to plan, I cooked a good mess of them, and lo and be-hold, they tasted just like that paper mill smelled and Michael agreed. (For those of you who do not know what a “mess” of fish is, listen up: it is about two more fish than the invited crowd can eat). Needless to say, this meant that I had more than a “mess,” because, well, I think you can understand why. I now have three gallon milk jugs of frozen fish in my freezer, that I can only discard. Trust me, not even the folks living under the bridge will eat these.
As of this afternoon, I have checked and that paper mill is permitted to dump, what-ever it is dumping, into the Altamaha River and is, therefore, meeting the EPA standards. Of course, it wouldn’t matter if they weren’t, as that company has plenty of money and enough political clout to get away with dumping toxic waste by the ton into the river, if it was so inclined.
A further check revealed that there is a lawsuit in the works, attempting to get this company to do something about this travesty; however, it is my guess that Jesus won’t live long enough to see any positive result.
Interestingly, whatever they are dumping must be good for the fish, as they are thriving (some of the largest bream I have ever seen!), but they are NOT for eating, unless you happen to like the combined taste of sulfuric acid, garlic, tar, mentholatum, and dirty socks.
So much for that. Now on to my point: substitute “religion” in the place of this paper mill and the resulting picture is much the same. Few have any idea what it is dumping into the river of their lives, and most are deceived, as to the significance of its affect upon their lives.
In contrast, taste and see that the Lord is good! “Everyone who drinks of this water shall thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him, shall become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life” (John 4:13 NASB).

Free to be Free

July 18, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
As I hope you know, tomorrow is Sunday, which means that in roughly 14 hours, I will be privileged to preach again. Preaching is my passion. With few exceptions, I have preached the Good News every Sunday (and many times between Sundays) for the last 30 years, and I have done so, passionately.
For as long as I can remember, that passion has burned at “white-heat” within the sanctuary of my soul; to be sure, the passing years have not diminished the passion. I must admit that for quite a few of those years, I was passionate about error. Oh, I thought the message I was preaching was truth, but when one is deceived he does not know it, and I was deceived—big time and on several fronts.
How were my eyes opened? Actually, I had to face the fact that my belief system, most of which was unquestioned, was not producing freedom—not in me, not in others. Jesus, however, was very clear: you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free. To be sure, I was anything but free; in fact, I was a slave to religion. Obviously, I did not know the truth!
Even after all the years of living in the freedom that Christ died to give to me, I still ask myself this question: Are those who listen to my sermons experiencing the freedom that Christ died to give to them, or are they still imprisoned to religion.
Surely, the folk, who attend the church I pastor, have heard the gospel enough times to be preaching it themselves, so my mission is not to continue to pound the gospel into their heads; instead, my mission is to see the fruit of the gospel—FREEDOM—in their lives. It continues to be true: you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free!
Tomorrow my text is this: “For through the Law I died to the Law, that I might live to God” (Galatians 2:19 NASB). In other words, one cannot live to (for) God, i.e. one cannot live in freedom, until he dies to the Law.
I wish each of you could be present and, even more, I wish for each of you FREEDOM—the freedom that Jesus died to give to you.

Worried and Bothered

July 17, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
This is what Jesus said to Martha in response to her being upset because Mary was sitting at His feet, “leaving her to do all the serving”: “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only a few things are necessary, really only one, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:41 NASB).
For some reason, the story doesn’t continue far enough for us to find out how Martha responded to what Jesus said to her; instead, we are left to use our imaginations, and mine says, that after Jesus’ rebuke, she neither enjoyed His visit or the supper she had prepared. I am imagining that she probably sulked through the entire evening, wondering why she ever agreed to have Him over for supper, in the first place. [Yes, I could be wrong!]
I am also imagining that she didn’t speak to Mary for a couple of days, at the very least, because she was convinced that the entire fray was her fault, and nothing Mary could say would change her mind. To be fair, however, I am rather certain that Jesus’ words pre-vailed in her heart, and she came to her senses in a few days. I hope I’m correct!
Has you imagination caused you to wonder what Jesus was referring to, when He told her that she was worried and bothered about so many things? Was she worried that the bathroom hadn’t been cleaned? Was she bothered by the fact that Mary wasn’t bothered by her having to “do all the serving?” Was she worried that the bills weren’t paid? Was she bothered by having to live with her sister and not a husband? Had she just received news that her grandmother had stepped in a hole and broken her left leg? Had she just heard about the new tax increase that was going to be levied, so everyone could have health care? Was she worried that the Stalagmites were going to defeat the Amalakites?
Heavens, I have no idea what was controlling her thinking but I do know this: it was preventing her from sitting at Jesus’ feet and enjoying His Person.
I have a question: What has you so “worried and bothered” that you haven’t been sitting at His feet and enjoying His Presence?
Just thought I would ask—

A Road Less Traveled

July 10, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
One of my readers informed me that she had begun reading Anthony de Mello’s book, “The Way to Love,” so, as you might imagine, I ordered it myself, and all I know to say is “Wow!”
The following is a quote from the book (p. 13-14): “If you take a look at the way you have been put together and the way you function you will find that inside your head there is a whole program, a set of demands about how the world should be, how you should be and what you should want. Who is responsible for the programming? Not you. It isn’t really you who decided even such basics as your wants and desires and so-called needs; your values, your tastes, your attitudes. It was your parents, your society, your culture, your religion, your past experiences who fed the operating instructions into your computer. Now, however old you are or wherever you go, your computer goes along with you and is active and operating at each conscious moment of the day, imperiously insisting that its demands be met by life, by people and by you. If the demands are met, the computer allows you to be peaceful and happy. If they are not met, even though it be through no fault of yours, the computer generates negative emotions that cause you to suffer. For instance, when other people don’t live up to your computer’s expectations, it torments you with frustration or anger or bitterness. Another instance: When things are not under your control or the future is uncertain, your computer insists that you experience anxiety, tension, worry. Then you ex-pend a lot of energy coping with these negative emotions. And you generally cope by spending more energy trying to rearrange the world around you so that the demands of your computer will be met. If this happens you will be granted a measure of precarious peace; precarious because at any moment some trifle (a delayed train, a tape recorder that doesn’t work, a letter that doesn’t arrive—anything) is going to be out of conformity with your computer’s programming and the computer will insist that you become upset again. And so you live a pathetic existence, constantly at the mercy of things and people, . . .” (italics added).
Whether or not you believe what de Mello says, the fact remains that we are con-trolled by the paradigm out of which we view life, and that paradigm was developed from what we learned from the significant others in our lives. Sadly, it determines our perceptions, and our perceptions determine our “reality.”
Is there a way out? Sure, but it is not an easy way; indeed, it is “a road less traveled.” Step one is to realize that your perception of reality is in all probability incorrect, which is no easy task. Step two is to realize that your “computer” is relentlessly insisting that reality be reshaped to conform to your perception of reality, i.e. to its programming. Once you “see” this, then you can begin refusing to conform to its demands.
You give this some thought—

One More Bit More on Forgiveness

July 9, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
Before I temporarily leave the subject of forgiveness, there is one other passage that I want to bring before your remembrance: “But Jesus was saying, ‘Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing’” (Luke 23:34 NASB). OK. I want all of you who believe they did not know what they were doing to raise your hands. Hmmm. That’s what I thought. I didn’t see a single hand. Oh, they knew what they were doing, and for the most part they were convinced that they were doing the “right” thing. They were, really!
There is another side of this coin, however, and it is this: they really did not know what they were doing! They had no idea that they were fully cooperating with God’s plan of redemption. They had no idea that they were merely carrying out a piece of the plan of redemption that God set in motion before the foundation of the world. These criminals were in this designated place, at this appointed time, to carry out God’s rearranged plan.
These men were the scum of the earth, murderers, having no conscience, no sense of compassion, eager to torture and, even to watch with glee the suffering servant’s life’s blood flow from His battered body. If anyone ever needed forgiveness, they did; however, they did NOT deserve it—no way! It was His gracious gift to them. Jesus and His Father agreed to mark their debt paid in full—no contingencies whatsoever. Talk about grace!!
Now, listen up because this is really a three-sided coin (well, I guess I should call it a three-legged stool) and most NEVER realize it. This is the third leg of the stool: we forget that we were the “scum-of-the-earth, the murdering with no conscience and no sense of compassion” sinners; we were the “if anyone ever needed forgiveness we did” sinners, whose sins brought Him to this terrible cross, and, sadly, we, like they, thought we were doing the “right thing.” We did, really!
Did we deserve to be forgiven? Absolutely not! We weren’t even asking for forgiveness, primarily because we didn’t think we needed to be forgiven! But He ignored that, and without even asking for our permission, He forgave us. His words still ring clearly—“Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” At the time, we really didn’t; in fact, we didn’t even have a clue.
If you are His, then you are forgiven—forever forgiven. He paid you debt in full!

A Bit More on Forgiveness

July 8, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
[Yes, I know I made a typo yesterday; looser should have been loser! Sorry but I ain’t perfect and I am old, not to mention that I wear trifocals, so be patient with me!]
Jesus said some things about forgiveness that for the life of me I have never been able to fully understand. I want to offer a few of them, so you can explain them to me:
1. “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Mat-thew 6:12 NASB). Hmmm. As we also have . . .? Careful!
2. “And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your transgressions. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your transgressions” (Mark 11:25-26 NASB). Oh my! If we do not, neither will He?
3. “And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us” (Luke 11:4 NASB). Do we really?
4. “Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ forgive him” (Luke 17:3-4 NASB). A piece of cake!
You know, this notion of forgiveness just might be a bit more important than we think! Maybe we have been too busy focusing on keeping the Sabbath holy, instead of focusing on forgiving one another. Maybe we have been too busy judging one another, instead of forgiving one another. Maybe we have been too busy keeping an account of wrongs suffered, instead of forgiving one another. Maybe we are all so sick that we enjoy being en-slaved to those who offend us. As I said yesterday, there is but one way out; yep, just one way. Fight it all you wish, but you will lose—I promise.
There is no cancer as aggressive and deadly as the cancer of “unforgiveness,” and, I might add, there is but one cure; yep, just one.

What If We Forgive?

July 7, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
Your responses to yesterday’ perspective let me know in no uncertain terms that most of us need a regular reminder of the importance of forgiveness, especially our forgiving others. In my opinion, that says lots about the whole lot of us.
How can those of us who have been forgiven of so much, love so little, as to have a difficult time forgiving others, especially our brothers and sisters in Christ. How can we with integrity receive God’s forgiveness, when we refuse to forgive those who offend us? How can we lay claim to personally trusting the efficacy of Jesus and His vicarious sacrifice, when we do not trust it’s effectiveness in the lives of others?
Yes, I know that some of you have been hurt—really hurt—by the actions (or lack thereof) of others, and I know that anyone, who would have to go through what you have experienced, would also have a difficult time releasing that enormous debt. I also know this: none of us have been hurt nearly as much as He was hurt by our rejection, our sinfulness—there is simply no comparison; the debts are incomparable. Furthermore, I know this: in spite of the depth of His hurt, in spite of the enormous debt we created (one we could never, ever repay!), He has forgiven us—forever—and He has chosen to call us His friend. The truth is this: He reconciled us to Himself while we were yet sinners (you can check that out in Romans 5, if you like)!
There is a bit of irony in this notion of forgiveness: we are slaves of the people we refuse to forgive. Really, we are! How foolish is that? Just for the record, there is only one way to freedom—F-O-R-G-I-V-E-N-E-S-S. You can live in your deception for as long as you wish, but you are the looser, not the offender.
I wonder what would happen in the Body of Christ if everyone who is refusing to for-give, did? I wonder what would happen in the Body of Christ if everyone who is holding another in his/her debt would mark that debt “Paid in Full”?
Maybe, just maybe, this is more important than we think.
You think about that—

Forgiveness

July 6, 2009

Dear Fellow Travelers,
In my message yesterday, I intended on pointing out some of the characteristics of Jesus’ life that separated Him from the world of religious folks; characteristics that, once seen, help to remove the scales of legalism. There were ten that I intended to share, but on my way home, I realized that I had omitted one of them, a very significant one of them.
These are the nine I shared: (1) Jesus was a man of relentless tenderness; (2) Jesus was a man of incredible courage; (3) By His own admission, He did not come to condemn the world but to save it; (4) Jesus’ weapons were mercy, grace, and love, not swords, guns, and muscles; (5) Jesus was a man of humility, not arrogance and pride; (6) He hated sin, but loved sinners; (7) Jesus was a man of few words, but when He spoke, the trees clapped their hands, the sea roared, and the heavens thundered; (8) Jesus was a man with few true friends, but He, nevertheless, calls each of us “friend”; (9) In Jesus’ eyes the Sabbath was made for Him, not the other way around.
This is the one I unintentionally omitted: Jesus was a man of instant forgiveness, never keeping a record of wrongs suffered. The truth is, He took the “record of wrongs committed against Him” and nailed it to the cross not only for His good, but especially for our good. That “certificate of debt” no longer exists—period!
I find it interesting that we can so quickly and eagerly accept His forgiveness of our sins, but we often find it very difficult, seemingly impossible, to forgive others, when they sin against us.
Just for the record: forgiveness in NOT what most think! It is not pushing feelings aside and pretending that all is well; instead, it is releasing another from a legitimate debt. Forgiveness can be accomplished only after the debt, that was created by the offense, is paid in full. The problem with that is this: not one of us has the resources to pay the debt, even a portion of it, much less the entire debt, which is why we so desperately need a Savior, especially One who never keeps a record of wrongs suffered—instant forgiveness.
It is very difficult for me to understand how anyone can receive His forgiveness with-out readily forgiving others. It is very difficult for me to understand how those, who have been forgiven so much, can be so diligent in keeping a record of wrongs suffered.
Remember this: YOU are a slave to the one you refuse to forgive. THAT person controls more of your life than you probably realize—what you think about, where you go, your sleep, your attitude, your relationships, et al.
For the life of me, I do not understand why He did not remind me of this yesterday, during my message. Oh well-