In This World You Shall Have...

I find the "have it, grab it" Christians to be somewhat off kilter.  Everytime Jesus says that we will have anything we ask for, it is in connection with our work to expand His kingdom.  Nothing in the Book says that we can have anything that will spoil our need for God or our relationship to Him.

Abraham, David, and Solomon had much.  Altho the first two stumbled, they remained faithful.  Solomon had so much that he became depressed – see Ecclesiastes.  Solomon’s many foreign wives turned him away from God.  In the end, did he still believe in the true God?

Jesus said in this world we would have tribulation (John 16:33).  Jesus asked us to forsake the world for Him and Hebrews 12:1 advises us to lay aside everything that hinders us.  In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says we should not lay up treasures for ourselves on earth, but to forward them to our eternal heavenly dwelling. 

He promised to be with us.  He promised us eternal life with Him.  He promised that, as we abide in Him and work to bear fruit, that we would have everything we needed to accomplish that goal.  He did not offer us Mercedes and large mansions on earth.

Please bear in mind the story of the rich man and Lazarus.  On earth Lazarus had nothing and ended up in heaven. The rich man, whose name we do not know, ended up in hell.  In another parable of the rich man and his barns, Jesus says the rich man came to nothing and all he had went to someone else.

Outside of parables, there was a rich man who asked Jesus how he could be saved.  Jesus said “Your riches are weighing you down.  Give it all away and follow me.” The man walked away sad, because he treasure his "stuff".

How many lottery winners commit suicide?  Money doesn’t fill our inner need.  “The love of money…”, that often misquoted line actually points to the division between having much safely and having much to one's own detriment.  Do you have your stuff or does it have you?

Proverbs 30:8 has an excellent summation:
O God, I beg two favors from you;
    let me have them before I die.
⁸ First, help me never to tell a lie.
    Second, give me neither poverty nor riches!
    Give me just enough to satisfy my needs.
⁹ For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?”
    And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God’s holy name. (NIV)

Having more than we need may be a trick of the devil to ensnare us and weigh us down.

In every worldly thing, guard your heart.  If you can do that, God will know how much He can trust you with.

God bless us all.

Kathi

Christmas Angels

This morning, our church's children performed their Christmas play.  I think I've seen this one before, but one word especially caught my ear - millions.

Here's the account of the angels visiting the shepherds from Luke:

⁸ And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

⁹ And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

¹⁰ And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

¹² And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

¹⁴ Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

What is your image of the angels who appeared to say, "Glory to God..."?  Twenty or so?  I think that's about what I had in mind.  I think it may have come from the painting I used to see in various Bible story books.  There are exactly five angels in this picture.

But the Bible says that there was a multitude of angels.  How many in a multitude? 

If I had been any angel in God's presence and Jesus came down from heaven to live in a human body, I would want to be part of the wonder of the moment.  If I were the proud Parent of a new baby Boy, an earth-changing baby Boy, I would use every means at my disposal to make the announcement. 

What if every angel in heaven were present to announce God's Christmas gift to the world? 

And if I were one of the shepherds, that would indeed terrify me.

Just something to think about.

God be with us all, especially as we remember His best gift to us.

Kathi Linz

The Order of Melchizedek

Melchizedek has always made me wonder.  How can someone have no mother and no father and yet still be human?  Here are some of the things I learned.

"Having no mother and no father" may have meant that the man was old to the point where no one knew his heritage.  Jewish tradition suggests that Melchizedek may have been Noah's son Shem.  Shem lived for a long time after the Flood, long enough for Abraham to have arrived in Canaan according to the timeline offered in Genesis.

Melchizedek was his title, not his name.  The title means "King of Righteousness". He is called "a priest of the Most High God".  His name is never mentioned.

Jesus is named a priest after the order of Melchizedek.  According to the Tabernacle/Temple priesthood, any priest had to be from the Levite tribe of the family of Aaron.  Jesus didn't belong to Aaron's family.  He came from the tribe of Judah.  He would have to be a different type of priest.  Melchizedek is the only other  type of priest approved in Scripture.

At the core of what I heard last week is the story about Jesus' baptism.

When an old high priest was about to die, he would name his oldest son to be the next high priest.  This son had to be at least 30 years old.  The son would bathe in the mikvah and dress in the priestly robes.  His head would be anointed with sacred oil.  He would go to his father's bedside (or wherever the ailing old man was) and his father would say, "This is my son.  I am pleased with him."  Then he would go out and fulfill his duties.

When Jesus went to the Jordan River to be baptized, He did not do it because He needed His sins to be washed away.  He had no sin. 

Let's compare Jesus' baptism with the account of preparing a new high priest.  When Jesus was 30 years old, He went into the water like the priest going to the mikvah.  When He came out of the water, the Holy Spirit came down on Him like the anointing oil.  Jesus received the Spirit to empower Him for the ministry He was about to begin.  And the Father's voice came from heaven saying, "This is My Son.  I am pleased with Him."

Jesus came up out of the river with God's stamp of approval on His ministry - a priest after the order of Melchizedek, King of Righteousness.  (Gen. 14, Ps. 110:4, Hebrews 5:8-10)

May God bless us all.

Kathi

At War with Israel

Les asked me this morning what Bible verse talked about Israel being alone against the world.  I thought of one I wanted to look up, and, as so often happens on the internet, I ended up in a whole different place.

The verses I found talked about God bringing all the nations to war with Israel in the Valley of Jezreel at the foot of Mount Megiddo, also know as Haar Megiddo or Armageddon.  But that wasn't what most caught my eye.

I found an article about Zephaniah 2:1-7 which reads like this:

"1 Gather together, gather together, O shameful nation, 2 before the appointed time arrives and that day sweeps on like chaff, before the fierce anger of the LORD comes upon you, before the day of the LORD's wrath comes upon you. 3 Seek the LORD, all you humble of the land, you who do what he commands. Seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be sheltered on the day of the LORD's anger.


4 Gaza will be abandoned and Ashkelon left in ruins. At midday Ashdod will be emptied and Ekron uprooted. 5 Woe to you who live by the sea, O Kerethite people; the word of the LORD is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines. "I will destroy you, and none will be left." 6 The land by the sea, where the Kerethites dwell, will be a place for shepherds and sheep pens. 7 It will belong to the remnant of the house of Judah; there they will find pasture. In the evening they will lie down in the houses of Ashkelon. The LORD their God will care for them; he will restore their fortunes."

Please note the reference to Gaza which hasn't changed its name in thousands of years.  Does anyone remember the day when the Israelis were kicked out of their houses by the Palestinians who were given Gaza as a homeland?  8,600 Israelis were brought out of Gaza escorted by the Israeli military, often under protest.  "But this is our home!  Where will we go?" they cried as they left everything behind.

Gaza was abandoned by the Israelis.  That was seven years ago in 2005.  God loves the number seven. 

Note the rest of the passage - wrath, destruction, the end of the Philistines/Palestinians.  God says He will do it, and the land will return to Judah.

I watch the news and see an almost inevitable war in the Middle East with Egypt, Syria, and any other Arab nation that wants to pile on, attacking Israel.  It won't be their best move.  God is on Israel's side.  Besides the promise to return the land to Judah mentioned above, you might want to note the last few verses of Amos (chapter 9):

¹³ “The days are coming,” declares the Lord,

“when the reaper will be overtaken by the plowman
    and the planter by the one treading grapes.
New wine will drip from the mountains
    and flow from all the hills,
¹⁴     and I will bring my people Israel back from exile.^[f]

“They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them.
    They will plant vineyards and drink their wine;
    they will make gardens and eat their fruit.
¹⁵ I will plant Israel in their own land,
    never again to be uprooted
    from the land I have given them,”

says the Lord your God.

NEVER TO BE UPROOTED AGAIN!  Yes, I'm yelling!  No nation, not all the nations together will be able to take Israel out of their homeland again.  God says so.  Allah will not defeat Elohim, El Shaddai, the Great I AM and His people Israel.

Watch the news.  It's fascinating to match current events against prophecy - to see it all take place as if ancient Bible verses are today's headlines.  I don't believe there's much time left for us to talk to our family, friends, and neighbors about Jesus.

By the way, the verse I was originally looking for is Ezekiel 38:13.  If you are aware of end times prophecy at all, you will know this chapter.  It is about Gog and Magog and their cohorts coming to attack Israel, "a land of unwalled villages".

The part I was thinking about is where the "cubs (or merchants) of Tarshish" shake their fingers at the attack but do nothing to stop it.  Tarshish may very well have been part of ancient Spain.  Where did the merchant ships come from that found and founded America? 

And although our nation has a strong history of supporting Israel, do you think the current administration would lift a finger if Russia and the Islamic nations descended on Israel en masse?  I think they would shake their fingers and their heads, leaving Israel to its fate.

And that, my friends, is when God will step in, when Israel has no one to depend on but its God.

I'm watching the news.  The times we live in are a wonder.  I believe this chapter in time is about to come to an end and a new one begin.  What do you think?

May God bless us all.

Kathi

The Name of America

Scandal piles on top of scandal.  No one knew anything about what was going on" until the day after the election".  We're still supposed to blame Bush for everything going wrong in this country even though he has not been in office and hasn't even said anything in the last four years.  Not a peep.

After watching CNN (Constantly Negative News/Clinton News Network...)  during my lunch date with Les (not exactly the greatest thing for healthy digestion), I have a new name for our country - Ichabod. 

Ichabod - the glory has departed.

We kicked God out of our public places during the 1960's.  We legally adopted evolution and secular humanism before that.  God is a gentleman.  He doesn't hang around places where He isn't wanted.  The only reason, I believe, that our country hasn't been completely sold to our enemies (and it's well on its way) is because there is still a remnant that holds on to the truth - that is, the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Don't be deceived.  Our Glory has departed and judgement will come.  The only variable that I can't state with certainty is whether this is the time when we Christians will be taken out first or if there is more to come before the final curtain falls on this "play".

Ichabod.  Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus.

God bless us all,

Kathi

Choir - Long Ago

I was just watching a DVD of the Three Priests and enjoying it very much.  I seldom hear a good choir arrangement anymore what with modern Christian music used in every worship service.  Sometimes I miss it.

I grew up in Zion Lutheran Church.  I was in choir from the third grade up to middle adulthood.  My voice was inherited from my father's side.  He was a bass and Grandma sang alto.  Our Easter parties used to include Handel's Hallelujah chorus sung with all the parts while Uncle Larry carved the turkey - spontaneous and wonderful.

I always enjoyed singing in choir.  Sometimes we had excellent, heartfelt pieces and, now and then, a good rousing song that made your spirit fly.  I always loved the song "This Joyful Eastertide".  One choir always did it every Easter.  Most often it was the junior choir, but sometimes the adults sang it.

But the song I remember most was a wonderful song called "The Song of Zechariah".  The lyrics included the phrase "Rejoice, daughter of Zion, for your King comes to you, meek and riding on a donkey".  It was happy and uplifting.  It had a really strong beat going  - and I was a daughter of Zion.  What more could you ask for in a song?

On the Sunday that we sang it, I was pouring myself into the music and just enjoying the moment.  Right after the benediction, however, one of the men in the bass section leaned forward and said to me, "I hope we never do that song again.  You were almost dancing." 

Well, poke a pin in my balloon and burst it.

I'm older and wiser now.  I've read the Bible several times and this is what I've learned.  King David danced before the Lord and God called him a man after God's own heart.  I since have belonged to a number of churches and they allow dancing if that's the way the worship goes.  Now I try to make sure there's no doubt whether I'm dancing or not.  And on a Sunday when I don't let my feet get happy, someone is sure to ask me if I'm feeling okay.  That's the way it should be.

Once I heard someone say that if Christians worshipped properly, they wouldn't need gym memberships. 

Please check out this song for a little added inspiration:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFcVeQlDDdw&feature=related

God bless us all,

Kathi

Learning from a Student

Some time back, I had a girl named Chanta in my class.  Since we both changed grades, I had her in my class for several years. 

Chanta was somewhat dyslexic.  This affected her spelling and math skills more than anything else.  You could just tell that she was very smart when she spoke, but her written skills suffered - and so did she.  She would study hard.  Given her spelling tests out loud, she could spell with no trouble at all.  Doing it on paper, all of the letter would be present, but not in the right order.  I hated to mark them wrong as I knew the effort Chanta put into getting them right.  It was simply beyond her.

One time during her second grade year, Chanta was having trouble with her adding and subtracting.  Often her subtraction problems would have answers larger than either of the numbers being subtracted. 

I sat down with her and said, "Let's say you have eight M&M's, and you give three of them to your brother..."

"Oh, I would never do that!"

"Well, let's say that you did.  Would you have more afterwards than you did to start with?"

Her answer: "Yes, I would.  God would give me more."

How do you argue with that?  My exact thought was, "Her checkbook will never be balanced, but she'll never run out of money."

I used to frequently wear a small locket that was a gift from my mother.  This same girl still in the second grade noticed that I liked to wear it and once asked me whose picture was inside.  I opened it and showed her that there were no pictures in my locket.

Chanta looked up at me with an amazing depth of wisdom in her young eyes and said, "Miss Eickstadt, it's not good to have an empty heart."

She went and sat down and got busy at her desk.  I didn't notice what she was working on until a few minutes later when she came back to me and offered me a tiny, tiny heart cut out of notebook paper.  It was angular and inperfect with the word "Jesus" written on it in uneven second grade handwriting.  She meant for me to put the heart inside my locket.  I did.

A couple of years later, I showed her that I still had the heart in my locket.  Chanta seemed embarrassed to see the roughness of her work.  She offered to make me a new one that would look better. 

I turned down her offer.  I told her, "There's no way you can top this one.  I'm never going to get rid of it."

To this day, that small gift of love is still in my locket.  She was right - it's not good to have an empty heart.

May God bless us,

Kathi