But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy. And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm. And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him. (Luke 8:23-35)
The context for this snapshot of the disciples
= training comes early in Jesus= ministry. From their response to His calling, it is obvious they were intrigued by Him from the beginning, but they clearly did not understand by whom they had been called. The question they ask here is one we all must answer. Ultimately, the question is AWho is this . . . ?@It is a question which, at its heart, raises the issue of whether their master is merely mortal. It is a question which Peter will be the first to vocalize,
AThou art the Christ.@ Jesus responded by letting everyone know Peter didn=t figure it out for himself but God revealed it to him. The events which followed in the earthly ministry of Christ and in the lives of the generation which rubbed shoulders with Him would ultimately reveal to all the world, ATruly this man was the Son of God.@ Not all will confess Him as the centurion did, but the evidence is insurmountable for an honest mind.A
What manner of man . . .?@ That is still a question worth pondering. We may quickly assent to the reality that Jesus was no ordinary man. Beginning with Mary=s knowledge of the New Life within her, nothing was ordinary about Him. It is an incredible paradox that at the same time we are told there was nothing about Him physically which would cause people to flock to Him. Nevertheless, there was something about Him which could not be ignored. With Him or against Him, His existence demanded a response.The entrenched establishment wanted Him dead because He challenged their stranglehold on the people; but those hungry for liberty responded quite differently to One who, unlike their oppressors, taught them with authority. His ministry was punctuated with events which defied explanation in human terms. The unbelieving declared such signs to be demonic, but those who believed saw them as affirmations of their faith. Believer and unbeliever were driven to act upon what manner of man they understood Him to be. Each one of us today still does the same.
While it is certainly improper to dismiss the humanity of Jesus, it is perhaps even dangerous to over-emphasize it. In the pendulum swings of Christian practice, it seems to me the latter is the greater problem today. When we focus our attention on Him as our Friend and Brother, we are not far from minimizing Him as our Sovereign God. It is a subtle shift, but the difference is whether we seem Him because of what He has done for us, or for whom He truly is. Again, neither should be ignored, but our rejoicing for what He does for us should be the fruit of who we are in Him.
When we understand He is first and foremost our Sovereign Lord and that He demands justice, mercy and compassion, we realize that we deserve His wrath. There is no sense of entitlement whereby God owes us anything, but death. Unless we understand that, we never grasp the peril we face outside of Christ. We are most assuredly loved by God, but if we think for a moment His love toward us is a matter of our own doing, we
=d better think again. He loved us in Christ because it pleased Him to do so and for no other reason which scripture reveals. He was certainly under no obligation to us.A
Who is this . . . ?@ None other than God Himself, doing what only He can do, for those who are not only powerless to do for themselves, but those who are unworthy of having any expectation another should act on their behalf. Do we really see ourselves that way? I suspect many times we do not. Our nature is to look at others around us and think we are pretty good. We imagine that God grades on a curve and we just know we deserve at least a C+. It doesn=t matter what percentage you pick, you don=t get a passing grade just because you are in some upper percentile group. In the kingdom of God, the test of life is Apass/fail.@The defining difference is our relationship to Christ. We can call ourselves Christians all we want and it won
=t make a bit of difference. Who are we? What is our nature? Whom do we seek to please? Where are our highest priorities? When we begin to truly understand whose we are, these issues start to come into focus.If I could make you stop and read Hebrews 7-9, I would. Since I can
=t, let me just encourage you to take the time to do that right now. The author answers the question posed at the beginning of this piece by telling his audience about the nature of Jesus= priesthood, contrasting it with old administration, AAnd the former priests, on the one hand, existed in greater numbers, because they were prevented by death from continuing, but He, on the other hand, because He abides forever, holds His priesthood permanently. Hence, also, He is able to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.@He goes on to let us know this was just the kind of High Priest that was needed. The righteousness of men could never satisfy the demands of God because they were ultimately subject to death. In Christ, God established an eternal High Priest and there is no need for [or plan for] an earthly/natural priesthood. The priesthood of believers offer
Aspiritual service of worship@ (as the NASB renders Romans 12:1). AGod is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.@ (John 4:24). Hebrews 8:1-2 recaps the message, ANow the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary, and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man.@The pattern is that our
Amanner@ of living is to be consistent with AWhat manner of man@ Christ is: Again, the author of Hebrews gives us light in this regard. First, ASince then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need.@ (Heb. 4:14-16) We need to interpret this passage in the context of those who were being persecuted by Judaizers, but the application for us is, I think, obvious. Because, we acknowledge God as Sovereign we are to live boldly and thereby demonstrate our fidelity to our confession. In my experience, that attitude is sorely lacking in many Christian circles today.Second,
A. . . since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more, as you see the day drawing near.@ (Heb. 10:21-25).Again, we need to first view these words from the perspective of their first century audience. They were being tempted to
Ashrink back@ into old covenant practices. They are instructed to come together in fellowship as a matter of mutual encouragement. The day they were anticipating came in the events surrounding the destruction of Jerusalem and they were already feeling the heat as this was written. The instruction still contains wise instruction for us. If you=ve paid attention to this newsletter you have noticed I=ve borrower from this passage to express my heart=s desire for the relationships I share with you and others.We each have a day coming when we will pass from this existence into the eternal realm. It is incumbent on us to share with one another freely what we have received from God. When we do, we add the grace we have been granted to the common pool of His revelation to His people. When we do, the watching world witnesses Christ in us and asks anew,
AWhat manner of man is this . . .?@Think On These Things
A
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things.@ (Philippians 4:8)If you
=ve managed to get through years of sermons and Bible study without being confronted by these words, your time has come! Paul is encouraging the Philipians to faithfulness in the difficult times they are facing. Having earlier reminded them of Christ=s humility, he delves into practical aspects of the Christian walk. To be sure, the message held special significance to them, but it should be instructive to us as well.A
Finally@ - There remains this one matter which he wishes to address with them, their thought life. Having dealt with external matters, he now turns to an area which challenges us all at one time or another.A
Whatsover@ - Literally, Aall that is.@ So, although he is offering a limited list of things, within that list one is to consider all. That may seem silly to say but it has serious implications. How many folks have gone afield simply because they selectively accepted truth (to take the first item on the list)? We are not free to pick and choose when it comes to these weighty matters. We are to devote our attention to all, even when it has implications which we don=t like.A
True@ - The Greek word is alethea and is accurately translated true. Interestingly, its literal rendering would be Anot hidden@ or stated positively, Arevealed.@ That could take us down an interesting path of speculation, but I=ll resist the temptation for the moment. Suffice it to say, that God has made His truth evident to the extent we need to know. Peter makes this clear in his second letter when he writes, AGrace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence@(2 Peter 1:2-3). What God has revealed as true should be the focus of our thought life, Peter echoes Christ=s teaching that He alone is Truth.A
Honorable@ - Worthy of reverence. Now, that is a short list! Psalm 111 praises the works of God and in verse 9 proclaims, Aholy and reverend is His name.@No man should ascribe Areverend@ to his own name. To do so is to imply equality with God. We all should be reverent but there is a big difference to be found in that final letter! God alone is to be revered, but of necessity that means all authority which He has ordained is to be given appropriate honor or respect. That has implications which we need to consider at length one of these days.A
Right@ - Righteous or Just. The Greek dikaios has its origin in the idea of judgment or that which is equitable or fair. Those who scoff at the idea of God punishing those who do evil like to whine about how a loving God wouldn=t punish people for their mistakes. The irony is, at the same time they are looking for the day when Awhat goes around comes around@ and those who have shortchanged them get what they are due. The inescapable reality is that love demands justice be done. There is always a price to be paid for evil. The question is always, who will pay the price? Scoffers reject the One who paid the price for them because they think themselves just. Disciples of The Christ must focus on what is truly right to avoid a skewed view of justice which always devolves into Aevery man did that which was right in his own eyes@and that always leads to the intervention of Divine Justice. So, carefully consider the time in which you live and be sure you do what you can to encourage true justice.A
Pure@ - Hagios in the Greek: holy, consecrated, sacred, etc. Think on that which is unpolluted and therefore cannot corrupt your ways. Proverbs 23:7 reminds us, AAs a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.@ Several years ago, this scripture was driven home to me by a program on The Discovery Channel. Using a high powered microscope, researchers were able to see and record the physical connections being formed in the human brain in response to external stimuli. What we allow to enter our mind literally alters us physically. Now, I don=t think that is all Proverbs is talking about, but it should get our attention to know that what we allow to be entertained in our minds creates physical neural pathways. The more that stimulus is allowed in our minds, the stronger the connection becomes. Perhaps that is why Paul acknowledged that he took Aevery thought captive to the obedience of Christ.@ Thoughts wander in and out of our conscious mind. We are to exercise self control so that only what is pure gets re-enforced. It takes practice, but in time we can make progress and by God=s grace we should.A
Lovely@ - Acceptable or friendly. Rather than occupy our minds with thoughts of those who are hostile toward us, we should dwell on the richness of the positive relationships we enjoy. We should show appropriate concern for trouble relationships, but we should not allow them to distract us from our walk. Keeping short accounts with one another is a biblical way of addressing this serious issue. We will spare ourselves a lot of grief if we simply follow the instruction we have been given for maintaining relationships.A
Good repute@ - No, we can=t avoid hearing bad news. Again, the issue is a matter of what we allow to become the focus of our thoughts. That is not to say we should have some Pollyanna attitude about serious issues which need to be addressed. We need to keep things in perspective or we lose balance in our lives. Even in, or I should say especially in, the most troublesome times, we need to be trying to see things from God=s point of view. The more in touch we are with His sovereign purpose, the more problems will diminish in our hearts and minds. We can welcome the outcome, no matter how dire, because we know His hand is in it.A
Virtue@ - This word derives from the idea of lifting or strength, i.e. manliness or courage. That does not however mean it is a word reserved for men! Courage has many faces. At times it is seen in the heat of battle but can equally be demonstrated in the refusal to engage in such conflict. The difference is possessing the wisdom which is appropriate for the moment. Filling our minds with images of such appropriate responses helps us to be properly equipped to handle similar situations with grace and fortitude. Choose your heroes carefully.A
Praise@ - Anything praiseworthy. We can=t ignore the real world, but we can refuse to engage in propagating that which should not be commended to others. Giving our attention to that which is truly praiseworthy draws our thoughts to Him who is worthy of all praise.A
THINK@! - Pardon my emphasis of this word, but I see so many folks who, by all accounts, just don=t seem to be able to think. The original word has the idea of taking an inventory or assessing a situation. It is the opposite of just going with the flow. There is a quote from G. K. Chesterton which I believe I=ve shared before, but it bears repeating even if it is paraphrased here: a dead thing goes with the current, only a living thing can go against it. Thinking is counter to the way much of the world works. Many people live their lives simply reacting to situations. They are forced to react because they haven=t taken the time to thoughtfully consider a particular situation. In our time we are familiar with the idea of being pro-active rather than reactive. Thinking makes that possible.Many in our culture have lost critical thinking skills and our society exhibits the consequences of that failure. If something sounds good, it is easier for many to jump on the bandwagon than to investigate matters for themselves. They are content to live their lives based on the conclusions others have drawn. It is appropriate to rely on others for initial understandings of issues, but to continue acting upon such information without diligent investigation is a perilous path to walk.
When our minds are engaged in thinking properly about proper matters, we are in a position which not only brings us peace, but empowers us to act in a manner worthy of our Lord.
The Mission Field
Recently, I was privileged to be invited to dinner at the home of dear Christian friends. The food was wonderful and the time of fellowship was special. We
=ve known each other for over 20 years now and, though we=ve not always been deeply involved in one another=s lives, I=ve been blessed to witness the growth of their faith. I=ve been particularly blessed by the way they evangelized their own home. By God=s grace, their children have a solid foundation on which to build their lives. Now, they are stepping out to take their place in transforming our culture for the glory of God and it is indeed lovely to contemplate the impact their faithfulness will have on those God brings their way.I know these folks well enough to know they made their share of mistakes but I know too the desire they have for their children to be obedient heirs of the kingdom of God. As I left their property that evening, I noticed a sign by the gate which is a constant reminder to them when they leave,
AYou are now entering the mission field.@ Understanding that missions begins at home, and having been faithful to that task, their mission field is expanding and they are acutely aware of the challenge.Without a doubt, God calls people to pull up stakes and relocate in a remote part of the world to share the gospel with those who have never heard. I wouldn
=t minimize those selfless labors in the least. At the same time, we need to understand that for most of us, the mission field is where we are right now. God may indeed choose to place us elsewhere, but for the moment we are where we are and we are to be his ambassadors in that venue. How often do we take the time to view our day to day involvements as an opportunity God has given us to serve Him? When our day presents us with problems, how readily do we see them as occasions to let our faith be seen by others ? I don=t mean in some demonstrative, flashy manner, but simply in our conduct and attitude.Our Christian walk is a 24/7 vocation. When we truly understand that we are not our own, it becomes natural to see life that way. It isn
=t easy, but it is deeply satisfying so we need to encourage one another regularly to keep on walking.The Apprentice
=s JournalWell, its now April 24th and I
=m finally getting my thoughts together for this month. I hope to get back on schedule next month, but if I was really on schedule I would be finishing up the May issue instead of April! When I began this newsletter I had it ready for mailing the week before the month for which it was intended. Self-imposed deadlines have a way of slipping over time and I=m now a month later than I intended to be. Maybe I can catch up in the next few months and get back on schedule by the end of the year.It
=s good to be past the rush of the tax season and to have more time and energy to devote to study. You don=t know how much you miss that until it gets curtailed. I=m already trying to figure out ways to deal with that next year. If you=ve got suggestions, I would welcome them! I=ve finally managed to spend a little time in the yard and it is looking a little neater. The backyard is still too wet to mow and it=s time to get the weedeater out again. The garden finally got dry enough to till a little bit and I hope to get a few things planted this week. However, the forecast is for more rain so that may not be possible.The bluebirds have started building their nest after a week of dealing with intruders. Their biggest threat was their own reflection in the patio door. They spent much of the day flying toward those other birds trying to chase them off, but they just kept coming back! I=m sure there is a lesson in that observation. It probably emerges in the way we tend to attack in others what we fail to address in our own lives. Or perhaps, it is as simple as realizing that we are our own worst enemy.
The frogs seem pleased with the warmer evenings and yes, the toads have made their first appearance of the season. I may be getting used to the racket. They don=t seem to bother me as much as they once did. I don=t think the bull frogs really mind. I suspect they enjoy eating all the eggs the toads leave behind. It saves me from having to clean up the mess.
It seems the swamp snake that appeared last year decided to make the ponds his home. The first day I pointed him out to Sharon a serious look came across her face and she said, AKill it!@ I grinned and she said, AI mean it! Get rid of it!@ With some regret, I took a shot at it with the pellet pistol. I thought I had killed it, but when I tried to pick it up it quickly slithered into the rocks and escaped. Sharon has seen it once since then, but she tries not to think about it.
Everything is in bloom and each year the beauty of it all amazes me. The variety of colors, textures and shapes is truly amazing. It is mind-boggling to realize that each has a role to play in the scheme of things and each goes about living out its purpose with no conscious awareness of doing so. How blessed we would be if our life in Christ was learned so well it was our natural response. Our days wouldn=t be filled with wondering what we ought to do; we would simply get on with living them in the confidence and boldness which is ours in Christ.
As spring makes its way to where you live, I pray God will grant you many opportunities to enjoy the beauty and wonder of His creation. Do take the time to stop and reflect on the special way nature shows forth His glory and do spend time delighting yourself in the thought that we have been made partakers of that glory in Christ. Above all, let those thoughts feed your anticipation of what eternity holds in store for us.